A single arbiter drifted through the silence of space at a steady pace, being careful to avoid long range detection. From some angles the arbiter was unrecognizable from the distortion of light around it. From the mass several smaller distortions broke away, and, outside the field of cloaking, revealed themselves to be two corsairs. The two ships departed for the far side of the gas giant the arbiter and its accompaniment was passing.
“Not again! This can’t be happening! Why are you tormenting me again?” The shadow of a man stood inside a different plane of existence, colours and patterns dancing before his eyes. Yet he was fixated on one form.
“Because I know you can’t fulfill your promise, Jimmy.” The second figured stepped closer, out reaching its arm, almost as if an offering of peace. Then, the image of peace was shattered. The figure outstretched menacing wings tipped with claws. All hell broke loose on the plane.
“Raynor, are you well?” He finally focused on the face of Artanis looking down on him. Raynor sat up in his bed, and Artanis stepped back slightly to accommodate him.
“I don’t know. I just don’t know. I feel like I am being drawn here.” He got out of his bed and Artanis began to leave him.
The protoss warrior looked back as he was leaving the room. “Zeratul is waiting for us on the bridge. There is something to discuss.” He left the room, leaving Jim Raynor to wonder what the discussion was to be about.
The Bridge of the Battle Cruiser Hyperion was a massive room, built into the top of the forward section of the great ship. Raynor walked in from the aft entrance and came down to the central area where Artanis and Zeratul were waiting. As he hadn’t had much time to prepare, he looked like a mess.
“Commander Raynor, a scouting patrol ran into what we can only assume to be a Zerg expeditionary brood. We have the last transmission.” Zeratul was still as dry and serious as ever.
The lights dimmed on the bridge and the blast shields covered all the exterior windows. An image of space was displayed in the front of the bridge and all the crew watched on. A planet, the gas giant they had passed before, came into view, along with a blurred object. The object drew closer until its flapping wings could be seen. It was then that neutron flares erupted from the two protoss crafts, creating bright flashes all over the object, now clearly a mutalisk. The view shook several times until the mutalisk died in a bloodly explosion. The view swung around, with the other corsair in full view. It appeared to have taken some damage. The view returned to the planet and swarms of creatures headed for the two ships. They both continued to fight, but it was in vain. The last neutron flare lit up the image, and then it went black. Nothing was left to see.
“My god…how long ago did this happen?”
“Four earth hours.” Artanis replied.
“And how long will it take us to reach Antiga Prime?” Raynor asked.
“Another twenty hours. Based on this sighting, it will take the Zerg less than fifteen.” Zeratul answered sorrowfully. Considering what he had been through in his long life, there was little reason for him to ever be happy.
“I’ve got to warn him. A tactical meeting in, uh, two hours. Excuse me.” Raynor rushed from the bridge and went down the corridor to the comm room. He had two messages to send.
***
Mr. Robert Hawkins knocked on the door of a tech class. He hadn’t talked to Mr. Dryson, the head tech teacher, in a while. He made a mental note to do that, next lunch break. A student opened the door and he walked in.
“Mr. Hawkins? What I can I do for ya?” Mr. Dryson had rough accent and a deep voice to go with it.
“Can I get the…” Hawkins pointed at a cart in the corner of the room.
“Of course!”
With that, Robert walked across the room, past a variety of mechanical projects. On the Display board he noticed a technical diagram of a Goliath armored walker. The Grade P independent project, he recalled, as he wheeled the cart out of the room and down the hall, back to his own room. He moved in front of the class, then removed the cover draped over it. A full-articulated educational diagram of the Goliath he had seen on the board before.
Henry Jason Walker sat attentively at his seat near the front of the science room. He had known exactly when Mr. Hawkins would step into the classroom. He had known that he was pushing a cart. He had known what was in that cart. It was the same reason he had always answered every question correctly. He saw things happen in his mind long before they happened in front of his eyes.
“In this next unit, we are going to take a look at the effect combat has on Zerg biology, and, how it deals with these pressures. For instance, take the Zerg carapace.” He bent down and rummaged through one of the boxes on the lower shelf of the cart, and pulled out a round metal sphere.
“This is a 30 millimeter auto cannon round, the main weapon on the Goliath walker. Now, creating armor to resist such an attack is very difficult, but to grow a carapace naturally for such a task is even more remarkable.” Hawkins picked up a model of a section of carapace.
“Like any good armor, it is grown in layers, making it more effective.” He brought the round in contact with the model to illustrate that. “I’m not going to go in detail about why that is, that’s covered in physics, rather how the species grows such a natural exoskeleton.” He continued the lesson for the rest of the period, managing to keep the students excited, though he was afraid that he might be encouraging enlistment into the marine corps all the while. Indeed, several students who very interested in a military career were utterly enthralled by it.
After another rather boring lunch break and biology classes, Robert Hawkins decided to check his school mail again. It had brought him interesting news last time, so why not again, he thought.
The computer beeped, informing him of a new message. He viewed it, but glanced at the sender location first. He thought for a minute.
“But those coordinates are in deep space! How, and why would he be out there?” Putting his own questions aside, Hawkins read through the letter.
“I will be arriving shortly…my enemies will get here first…be prepared for…war?” Hawkins sat back for a moment to think.
“James is in a war?” he questioned. He finally decided to keep reading, as he thought the rest of the letter may answer his questions.
“I can meet you…two A.M. tomorrow, at the spaceport? What an odd time to meet him.” He continued to read. “This is all I can say…be prepared to understand the bigger picture. Hawkins closed the message. This can be right, this can’t be happening, he thought. That last line kept repeating in his mind.
“Understand the bigger picture? What bigger picture?” He couldn’t get the question out of his mind. Even when he tried to fall asleep that night, it kept going through his mind. James is coming back, and he is bringing something else with him.
***
The Queen of the Zerg sat back on her organic throne. Legions of Hunter Killers were lined up before her, waiting for a single thought from her to act upon. But they would not get such an order for some time.
“Really Jimmy, you think this attempt at peace will work?” Her minions gave puzzling stares, as if they had been addressed by her comment.
She read his message over again. He had wanted her to spare Antiga, and to stop haunting him in his dreams, in exchange for him to abstain from trying killing her or her minions. She laughed out for no really reason. The Hunters looked confused by her actions. She quickly composed herself.
“I am the Queen of Blades, I must not show my human weaknesses!” Her mind was in chaos, the Zerg aspect wanting Raynor’s head on a spike, while what was left of Sarah wanted to agree to the deal. She quickly dismissed the Human side. She was not Sarah, she was Kerrigan.
