Whiteout

**Whiteout** is the third side-story in the Universal War. It is the sequel to Blackout. It follows Orion Amastacia and Zeifer Blue on their quest to keep the Genesis Device safe.

## Plot Summary

With Jupiter Mars and Ender after them, Zeifer Blue and Orion Amastacia must use the Shed in order to teleport to Omega. They arrive in New Tides and seek shelter in the nearby city of Titusville. A man named Irving Lancaster gives them a place to stay for the night. During this time, Orion looks at photos of his wife, brother, and children, and tears come to his eyes. He pulls a small clockwork goldfish out of his pack and holds it in his hands as he cries harder. Zeifer pretends to be asleep during the ordeal.

In the morning the two head off to Loralai to acquire a ship. Orion says he knows of a scientist that can help with hiding the Genesis Device. They eventually find a ship with the help of an elf named Briar, and then sail to Sheer. Sheer is very tiny but has several tall mountains all along the countryside. In the center of Sheer a small kingdom is floating in midair. When Zeifer inquires about it, Orion shrugs and says that it wasn't there when he lived in Sheer.

They arrive at a fort near the coast of Sheer and Zeifer notices the "Camp Antonia" sign. He tells Orion that they can still turn back when he seems to get cold feet, but Orion wishes to press on. They meet with Vilis Runehartz, the scientist. Vilis brings up Orion's wife and children at several points, and reminds him that he abandoned them. Zeifer stands up for Orion and Vilis is impressed. Zeifer presents the Genesis Device and Vilis states that "the God Code has been deactivated," meaning that someone knows the device is missing. Vilis says he will help hide the device to repay a debt to Orion.

Zeifer thinks Vilis has an ulterior motive. Vilis denies the claim; stating that after Camp Antonia closed down the Runehartz brood ex-communicated him. He has been vengeful ever since, and he's heard rumors that Anastacia Runehartz is looking to end the O.M.E.G.A. Experiment in 9050.

Before Zeifer can ask any questions, Jupiter and a group of mercenaries attack from the woods. They tracked the two mercenaries by their Pilots. Jupiter incapacitates Vilis, and then fights Orion. Orion defeats Jupiter, but Jupiter's men take him down. While they were all busy with Orion, Zeifer escapes with the Device.

He floats away from Sheer on a boat while mumbling a prayer for Orion. A brief flashback to their arrival on Omega reveals that Orion stated that if either of them were captured by Jupiter, that the Genesis Device needed to come first. Zeifer sails off in the direction of the sunset.

Orion is brought to an outcropping near the coast of Sheer. A man in black robes tells him to reveal the location of the Device. Orion refuses. The Dark Man commands him to reveal the location, and they whip Orion until all he can see is white lines in his vision. Suddenly, the sound of music is heard over the speakers from Camp Antonia.

Orion recognizes the "Nighttime Song," the song played whenever the guards of Camp Antonia would run out of the watch towers and beat every inhabitant of the camp until they all were unconscious. This was in order to remove certain members of the camp for something called "Relocation" and to "Terminate" others.

The Dark Man tells someone to go and find out what's causing it, but just then a tattered group come out of the woods and surround the Dark Man's group. The leader steps forward and Orion immediately recognizes Utica Amastacia, his wife. After freeing him, Utica and the rest of the group flee to Camp Antonia. Orion tells Utica that they will not be able to outrun the villains, and he tells the group to go on without him. Utica lets her people go on, but she stays with Orion. His wounds are bad, and he believes he is going to die.

His Pilot lights up, showing that he has a call (and a low battery). He picks up for Zeifer, who is now nearing the Abyss. Orion warns Zeifer to keep the Device safe, but Zeifer is worried about Orion. There's a loud explosion as the men enter Camp Antonia, and Zeifer is forced to say his goodbyes. Orion commands Zeifer to break his Pilot after he hangs up, and to never think about Orion again. Zeifer tells Orion that he will never forget him, and if he had the opportunity to do it all again, he wouldn't change a thing.

Utica stands and readies her weapon as fresh blood pumps out of Orion. Orion tells Zeifer that they will meet again, and then he hangs up and stands to join his wife.

A woman appears before them in red robes. She smiles and asks for the Genesis Device one final time before Utica opens fire. The woman is unaffected by the bullets, and simply raises her hands up in the air. A white flash passes before Orion's eyes, and then suddenly everything goes black.

In the epilogue, two goats are grazing in a large field. A young Zelda Amastacia walks out of the forest and looks shocked to see them. The female goat rushes off into the woods, but the male slowly approaches her. Zelda embraces the goat and feeds it, deciding to take care of it. She names it Basil.

Elsewhere, and at a later time, Zeifer is in a small town. A dragon is seen flying overhead in the distance. Zeifer lights a cigarette, at least a couple years older since we've seen him last. He holds a clockwork goldfish in his hand, the same one Orion held earlier. He walks over to an elf sitting on the coast and sits next to him. He tells the elf that great wonder follows the clockwork goldfish, and that he should have it, and cherish it. The elf thanks "Lieutenant Blue" and takes the gift. In the closing moments of the story, Zeifer puts a hand on the elf's shoulder, and says, "Take good care of it, Nikodemus." And a final thought, "It's all we have left of him."

## Characters

* Zeifer Blue
* Orion Amastacia
* Utica Amastacia
* Zelda Amastacia
* Vilis Runehartz
* Briar Ripley
* Jupiter Mars
* The Dark Man
* Nikodemus Greyhawk