Volume Twenty Six - Desperation

## Chapter 301 - The Star Eater

Space seemed quiet and empty, per usual, but the emptiness was greater than usual. The stars were being blotted out, by something massive, something surrounded by legions and legions of Space Dragons. As it neared Gliese 784, the light shone on it, and it became clear what it was. The massive cube, with the diamond hole on its front face, neared the star, and began to split up into smaller cubes, which surrounded the star. "I believe it is time to test the weapon." Sechsgrad remarks, looking on.

The cubes began to absorb the matter and energy from the star, creating an extremely bright light, Atsumichi shielding his eyes in response. The heat they could feel was like nothing before, nothing they could describe anyway, as the Space Dragons began to move behind the cubes in relation to Gliese 784. The light became brighter, the heat became hotter. Until everything began to darken and cool down. Atsumichi lowers his arm down and gazes upon Gliese 784, or rather, where it used to be, where now...

...there was just empty space.

"I'd say that was a success." Atsumichi says, as the cubes reform back into the large, main cube. "This weapon's might is precedented, perhaps only, by the Ancients..." Sechsgrad remarks. The cube then turned in the direction of Barnard's Star, the capital system of humanity. Sechsgrad merely watched, as they began to enter the Warplane, Atsumichi smiling a bit, enjoying the power that they now possessed. The Netraxians' victory seemed all but certain, as far as he was concerned.

## Chapter 302 - The Juggernaut

"Woah..." Jack breathes, as they look on at the massive ship in the sky, its wingspan was by far the most impressive part about it, and its whole size seemed to dwarf the castle. "This is the Juggernaut, a project we've been working on for decades." Rosenstock explains. "Now that we have it, we can finally go on the offensive, and take this fight to the Netraxians for a change." "What about their superweapon?" Candice asks. "You four are going to stop it." Rosenstock replies. "We can do that?" Jack asks.

"I very much believe that you can." Rosenstock says with a smile. "I've seen you grow over the years, and you've faced every threat that came your way." "The power core is in the center of the weapon." Lev says. "If it is disabled or destroyed, then the ship should shut down, and fall apart. Or, more likely, explode." "Then we have to blow it up in interstellar space." Shunsuke replies. "Yes." Lev responds. "I'm going with the Royal Guard, I want to stop the very heart of the Netraxians' darkness, Arcturus."

"Good luck to you guys." Candice says. "Thanks...we probably need it." Grimwald replies drowsily, walking up the ramp, as do Demetrius and Dione. The rest follow, taking in the true scale of the ship. There were entire construction and docking bays inside, holding what looked like thousands of ships and millions of strike craft. "Woah..." Andromeda breathes, as they walk towards a large elevator and get inside, being taken up to one of the top floors, walking out to be inside a station with a train.

They get inside said train, which rushes through the corridors towards the last stop, which was a large door. When they got out and walked inside, it was a huge cockpit, with multiple layers, windows, interfaces, and control panels. "I can't believe we're inside something like this...it's amazing." Jack remarks. "It only gets better from here." Demetrius says. "There's hydroponics, industries, offices and residential areas. This place is basically a mobile space city." "This is insane..." Shunsuke breathes.

"The plan is for you four to be ejected towards the superweapon when we come across it." Grimwald says. "You'll have an army tailing behind you, while we go to directly attack the Emperor's Palace." "Sounds like a plan." Jack replies, as they all get inside seats and buckle up tight. Not long after, the Juggernaut entered the Warplane to Gliese 784, knowing from...recent news...that the enemy was coming from that direction. It was time to put this war to an end, no matter what it took to do so.

## Chapter 303 - Warp Lane Battle

It wasn't long before they spotted the superweapon rushing towards them on a parallel warplane, as well as the legions of Space Dragons surrounding it. "Prepare to send transport ships." Rosenstock orders, Jack, Andromeda, Candice, Shunsuke and a number of soldiers getting into space pods to prepare for the launch. "Five, four, three, two, one." Demetrius says, pressing a button to launch the pods at the superweapon. Jack and the others do their best to dodge plasma blasts, while advancing.

What seemed like hundreds of millions of small dragons rush at the pods, Jack, Andromeda, Candice and Shunsuke attempting to evade them all as they fly in closer and closer to the superweapon. "We're almost there!" Jack shouts, before noticing a larger Space Dragon rushing at them. He opens fire on the inside of its mouth, making it flinch back as they fly past it, almost reaching one of the many, many docking bays of the superweapon, an even larger dragon rushing out to blast plasma at them!

They do their best to dodge the plasma, feeling the heat from it, as they all fire at the dragon's eyes and mouth to disorient it like the last one, but that was easier said than done this time around, the dragon ramming at Candice, who tries to fly upwards to dodge as Shunsuke rams the dragon in the eye, making it fly back in pain as they all rush past it to get into the docking bay, blasting through an airlock to fly through the corridors until they reached a place that wouldn't feel the vacuum for a while.

"We should get looking for the core." Jack says, as they all take out hologram projectors that...project...the schematics of the superweapon, and their general location. "We need to go forwards, upwards, to the right, then backwards...I think we all get the idea." "Once anyone destroys that core, we all have to get out as soon as possible." Shunsuke replies. "Couldn't have said it better myself." Andromeda responds, as they split into pairs to look for the core, knowing they'd run into guards along the way.

## Chapter 304 - Zukai'Netraxia

It was a massive, arid world, covered in deserts, oases, and savannahs. Not to mention it was guarded by large Space Dragons, which blast plasma at the Juggernaut. "Brace for impact!" Demetrius shouts, as the blasts hit, being stopped by a forcefield, the parts of it hit by the blasts briefly glowing red. "It's already got those sections down to thirty four?!" Demetrius demands. "We must land as soon as possible." Rosenstock replies, as the Juggernaut fires back at the Space Dragons, while descending.

The hot air shook the Juggernaut violently, as it was hard to see what was going on, but nevertheless, the thrusters on the underside of the ship activated, allowing it to land more slowly and safely, an army of Netraxians stepping back as they saw it land, some unnerved, as the ramp lowered and an army from Sciarhiel walk down it to face their reptilian adversaries. "We have come here to negotiate with Emperor Arcturus, if possible." Rosenstock says, flanked by the Royal Guard as he walked down.

"You invade our world and ask for negotiations?!" One of the Netraxians roars. "Implying you aren't trying to devour us all?" Demetrius retorts, before yelping and flailing around to dodge fireballs. Dione yells a battlecry and leaps to punch a Netraxian in the face, sending him flying through a rock pillar. "Woah." Demetrius remarks, as he throws a flask at another Netraxian, the flask exploding in the Netraxian's face, as she holds her head in pain. "Bullseye!" Demetrius declares, as Grimwald sighs and fires.

The antimatter blast immediately kills multiple Netraxians in an explosion, as the others are distracted by this, Rosenstock slashing them down as he, Lev, Serena and the supersoldier from before rush through them and through the city, Rosenstock noting the Nertraxians who were staying indoors, holding their children closely. He closes his eyes, takes a deep breath, and exhales, as they continue to run towards the truly palace in the distance. That was no doubt where the Emperor was.

## Chapter 305 - Through the Consumer

Jack and Andromeda were walking through the dark corridors, hand in hand, looking around for anything that might lead to the core. Around any corner could be a Netraxian, waiting to strike. Around any corner could be a doorway, but not necessarily to where they needed to go. They were vigilant, and proceeded with caution. Soon enough, they heard footsteps, and ducked behind a doorframe to see a Netraxian guard walk by. They nod at each other, before leaping out to trip the guard over.

"Guh!" The guard growls, as Jack uses a taser to knock him out. He and Andromeda then break down the door and run inside, seeing that it was an armory, filled with weapons and armor. "So these guys do use armor..." Jack remarks. "Some of them, at least." Andromeda replies, as they continued to walk, seeing another door and deciding to go through it. No guards for now, it looked like, as they walk through the corridor and look around for any more doors. "Dammit...we're farther away." Jack mutters.

As they continued to walk, they heard the thudding of footsteps from above, and below. This place was massive, and that only really occurred to them just now. They were searching through something the size of the moon! They kept walking regardless, happening across another door. When they opened it, it seemed to merely be a repair station for armor and small spacecraft. "What do they need these for...?" Jack wonders, as he and Andromeda walk into the the repair station, looking around.

"There's nothing useful here, either..." Jack mutters, searching around for something, anything! Andromeda looked around as well, walking through the repair station, as she thinks she hears something nearby, from a wall. Raising an eyebrow, Andromeda decides to start slashing at the wall. "Anne?" Jack asks, walking to where she was. Soon enough, the wall fell, and they happened across yet another room. "This is...not creepy at all." Jack remarks, as they walk into this room.

## Chapter 306 - The Moon That Consumes Stars

Candice and Shunsuke walked down similar dark corridors, keeping an eye out for doors, and an ear out for guards. "This place is creepier than I would've liked..." Candice remarks, as she looks at the map, seeing that they were getting closer to where the core was, as she sighs a bit in relief. "We're on the right path, we just need to find a door." "I think there's one over there." Shunsuke replies, pointing at a door that had just opened, Netraxian soldiers rushing at them! "Gh!" Candice shouts, leaping back.

Shunsuke punches one of the soldiers in the face to send him into the wall, as Candice whacks another one of the soldiers with her staff to knock her out. They both dodge a fire blast from the last one, and attack him in the stomach, making him kneel over in pain as Shunsuke kicks him in the face to knock him out as well. The two then run through the door, ending up on an elevator, which began to take them up higher and higher, and suddenly move horizontally at high speeds! "Woah!" Candice shouts.

And when it stopped...it stopped at the core.

## Chapter 307 - The Dragon's Palace

Columns of lava flowed into a moat, over which a drawbridge sat. "It's open..." The supersoldier remarks, as they walk across the drawbridge and into the castle. The stone was almost pitch black, with glowing orange cracks running through it. "Do you know the layout?" Serena demands. "I don't, unfortunately." Lev answers as they happened upon a few guards, who Rosenstock immediately slashes down, before cutting open the door to a hallway lined with more doors. "Which one?" Serena demands.

"I don't know..." Lev answers, as the supersoldier begins to break down all the doors, firing down any Netraxians that he finds, before finding a spiraling staircase behind one of the doors. "I think I found something." He says, as they walk up the stairs, and come across what they had been looking for, the throneroom, and sitting there, on his throne, surrounded by fire, holding a large metal sword, was Arcturus, glaring at all four of them with such ferocity that they sweat a bit. "So you've come..." He growls.

## Chapter 308 - Deserts and Dragons

Dione continued to punch and kick Netraxians around, dodging blasts of fire and blocking claw slashes and tail attacks. Demetrius meanwhile was firing arrows through Netraxians' eyes, the arrows exploding upon contact, killing them immediately. Grimwald kept firing down swathes of Netraxians, using only the single-shot antimatter pistol as he did so, stoic as ever as well. And the soldiers gunned down as many Netraxians as they could, while dodging as many fire blasts and claws as they could.

"We need to help His Majesty!" One of the soldiers shouts. "We'll do that after clearing out all of these guys." Demetrius replies, dodging multiple claw slashes and throwing an explosive flask in the mouth of the Netraxian that was slashing at him, the Netraxian stumbling back as Demetrius throws a balloon at her. The Netraxian slashes the balloon, which explodes into acid! "GRAAAAAAAAAH!!!!!!!!!" She screams, beginning to dissolve. "Hmm, that seems to be almost everyone." Demetrius remarks.

## Chapter 309 - The Secret Room

It was filled with pistols, cutlasses and sabers, as everything around them was dimly lit by regular candles. Pictures of famous pirates lined the walls, as Andromeda looks around, feeling something is off. "Just what is this place?" Jack wonders, only having one guess in his head. Then, all of a sudden, he steps on a trapdoor, falling through! "JACK!" Andromeda screams, as Jack falls to a much deeper room. "Agh..." He groans, before standing up. "So glad you could make it, Jack." A familiar voice says.

## Chapter 310 - The Final Strategy

"You've come here to perish at my hands, have you?" Arcturus demands, with a cruel smile on his face. "We've come to end this war where it started, with you." Lev retorts. Arcturus laughs at this in response. "And how do you plan to defeat someone such as I? The King of the strongest race in the galaxy!" "That remains to be see, but we believe it is possible." Rosenstock answers, glaring into Arcturus' eyes, his swords at his side, as he walks towards him. "You want my people dead, and you'll pay for that."

## Chapter 311 - Destroying the Core

Candice and Shunsuke stood in front of the massive core, a bit in awe. "That...was the luckiest we've ever been." Shunsuke remarks, as Candice walks towards the core. "It feels...psychic." She breathes, before looking down at her hands, closing her eyes, and opening them again, holding out her hands towards the core. "What are you going to do?" Shunsuke asks. "I'm going to nullify it." Candice replies, as she sends all the Psychic Weapons she can at the core, beginning to do just that, the best she can.

## Chapter 312 - The Dread Pirate

"Atsumichi..." Jack mutters, as he turns around to fire at the ceiling, Atsumichi leaping down from a girder to dodge as he slashes at Jack with a hanger sword, Jack dodging as quick as he could before pointing his gun at Atsumichi. "Why do you want to do this?" He demands. "For fun." Atsumichi answers. "No matter what happens, I will live forever on in the history books, unlike my brother." "I'll make sure thart doesn't happen." Jack retorts, preparing to pull the trigger once more, glaring at Atsumichi.