The Story so far:
Rescuing the miners in the sexium mines Hawk our hero is reunited with his friends Ronnie and the Professor who have fled from the Evil Toza.
Finding Ronnie with Duke Moran he storms away jealous and in anger only to be met by the Professor who tells him that Toza and his chief scientist Chan Li intend to destroy all civilisation on Earth.
I give you the end of the story with the
Episode 6: Battle Beneath the Stars
i
At first the words did not register in Hawk's mind. All he could think of was what he had seen happening between Moran and Ronnie. He wanted her so, wanted to caress her magnificent breasts and fuck her hot cunt. How could she betray him with Moran. More how could Moran betray him, he had thought the man had honour and he really liked him. Then what the Professor had just told him hit him.
"Whoa slow down there Prof what do you mean?" Hawk said slowly as he wondered what the man would say.
"When Chan Li was explaining what they would be doing to me he boasted that he had found a way to make his Y-Beam projector more powerful," as the Professor explained he became calmer and he walked with Hawk to a table in the canteen. As he spoke the others joined the two men amongst them were Ronnie and Moran who refused to look at Hawk.
The Professor continued his explanation," He told me in that vile manner of his that his tests had been successful beyond his wildest dreams and that when the planets were in correct alignment he would fire his projector at Earth starting a chain reaction of exploding volcanoes that would poison the atmosphere with their sulphuric gases. As that happened the Earth would grow warmer and the ice-caps would melt and drown those cities on the coasts that survived. Even were humans to survive they would be only left with stone age tools."
"Do you think he can do this Prof?" Hawk asked his mind focusing on the problem and not his own anger.
"It would take a very powerful beam of radiation but if he has increased his projector's power then yes I think he could do what he said he would and tonight the Earth and Mars will be in the correct alignment again," the Professor sat down heavily in despair.
"What can we do there is no time to get to Viridis to stop him? Even assuming we can storm that place," Hawk spoke to himself, he felt frustrated and wanted to strike out at anything that he could. It was only with intense will-power that he did not fly off into a terrible tantrum.
"He is not at Viridis but at some Observatory that Chan Li had built to the south of the citadel," the Professor said.
"The Observatory!" Bran remarked with excitement and then continued, "Why there is a lifter road that leads from here to the observatory. We built it to carry Sexium ore to the place. When they finished building it the slaves were brought here. The building is only twenty miles from here."
Then he spoke excitedly," We could use the lifters to get us there in one hour."
Excited Hawk asked," How long do we have Prof?"
The Professor lifted his head with some hope in his eyes, looked at the clock on the wall and then spoke," We have six hours before he can fire his infernal weapon, we can stop him if we are lucky and the these lifters are fast."
"Luck nothing, a man creates his own luck," Hawk spoke with excitement.
Not for Hawk Masterson the slowness of contemplative thought but he needed and desired action and clear decisions for his problems. With a target and means to get there he felt in control and ready to do everything that was needed. Without a second thought commands were fired from his lips to the others who formed a council about him.
"Bran take the Prof to the lifters and see what needs to be done to make them ready for us. Lady Lorena we need to be able to move these men out soon find out what you can from the slaves who came from there what the Observatory looks like and what defences it may have....." Hawk hesitated but decided with an effort that his quarrel with Moran could wait until they had finished this matter, the saving of Earth was far more important than a fight over Ronnie at this moment.
"Duke we need the men ready to fight, I need to get the men organised into combat companies and given weapons or anything they can use to fight the guards there, Lorena here tells me that you are one of the best with organising armies can you do this for me?" he spoke clearly and coldly to the man who nodded in the affirmative.
"I will prepare food and other necessities for the battle Hawk," Ronnie spoke.
"One second Toots I don't take women into battle," Hawk spoke without thought.
"Oh you don't do you, you miserable cheapskate!" she was virtually screaming at him," Well unless you want to tie me up I am coming and I will be fighting with you as will Suzann and Toola. It's my planet too or are you going to play at being the hero."
Seeing the other women behind Ronnie he realised that there was nothing that he could say to stop her and that any effort he used against her would be wasted since there was little he could do to stop her. Realising it was not worth the battle he shrugged well she had spirit and he didn't want to face her with a weapon in her hand.
"If you want to Toots okay but I can't help you understand? We start our assault in two hours," he said more vehemently than he intended to but then smiled though the woman stung had turned away from him.
"Oh I understand alright," Ronnie answered and stalked away from the conference in high dudgeon.
With his commands and instructions given the others hurried to the tasks they had been assigned. The Professor and Bran moved quickly away from the the seething Hawk wondering to themselves what may have happened while both Moran and Lorena were huddled together in a corner and were talking in low voices. Deciding that he had given all the jobs he could to the others Hawk sought out plans of the tunnels in the offices above the canteen. All around in the mines there was a feeling of intense excitement and tension as everyman was brought into the project to defeat Toza's plan for the destruction of Earth.
ii
Toza watched the scurrying Inquisitors as they prepared the device for operation. Again he was reminded of scurrying cockroaches and watched as thick black insulated cables were wound across the black marbled floor from the generators power points to the focusing device below the opening roof. Around him instruments were checked and double-checked on pain of death. Chan Li himself had promised that they would die as slowly as he could imagine should they fail in shooting the device at Earth tonight. Outside the guards both Insect and Human prowled the perimeter vigilantly as the slaves in their guarded barracks wondered about the copper discs that had been attached to the walls and floors of their miserable hovels.
As everyone waited the shadows grew longer as the weak Martian sun began to set. Low on the horizon Phobos was beginning its flight across the sky, later Deimos would be seen joining his dark sister in gazing down on the planet below. It would only be later that the blue-white orb of Earth would be seen and then it would take three hours before the device would be fired since that would cause the most damage to the planet in its sights.
Chan Li was everywhere cajoling, threatening and ensuring that the preparations for the firing moved quickly and without problems. At first he thought of starting the countdown himself but decided that it would be best should Toza start it for Toza did not love those who would usurp his power without begging for it. Hiding a smirk of satisfaction Chan Li scurried over to the seated Emperor and prostrated himself before the obscene man.
"If you would do the honour your Ferocity of giving the order to start the countdown of Earthsss destruction," the Inquisitor simpered as he spoke into the cool floor.