//------------------------------// // Stand: Khalis // Story: Starcraft: Warriors of Purity // by Xarmar13 //------------------------------// Lyra was standing beside Tassadar, Zeratul and Artanis. Artanis, in particular was a bit irritated. “Does she not think that we can handle the operation without her? The nerve!,” he snapped. Lyra decided that she needs to calm him before he might say or do something he might regret, “Sorry about that, Bon Bon has a tendency to take charge on missions, I think it has to do with her past life as an agent.” “What does this have to do with her practically suggesting that you be in charge when she should not have any command authority in the first place?” “Well, you did pretty much do everything she told you during the battle against the UED. You basically let her take the lead.” Artanis considered his next words. If he had a mouth, it would be opening and closing several times. Zeratul walked up to the two. “It matters not who is in charge, what matters is that we complete our objective. We must find the Khalis soon, for I fear that the renegade Zerg are growing in number exponentially as we speak. Tassadar gave a small chuckle, “It would seem that Sweetie sees the same potential in Lyra as I do, perhaps even more so. Fear not, Artanis, Sweetie merely wishes to see that potential realized just as much as I do.” “Very well, on to other matters. Zeratul, do you know of any possible locations where the Khalis might be?” Artanis asked. “I remember sensing its energies on the planet Char, we must go there and retrieve it,” said Zeratul. With that, the fleet set course for Char to find the Khalis. Upon arriving over Char, Zeratul attempted to lock on the energies of the Khalis crystal once more. However, he also sensed a massive, fluctuating energy signature near the crystal’s location, which Kerrigan informed everyone was the new Overmind, who had decided to nest near the Khalis crystal’s location due to the energies emanating from it. “There will likely be a number of Broods protecting the crystal and the Overmind,” Kerrigan said. “If we strike hard and fast, we might be able to fight our way through their defenses and escape with the crystal. “Comrades, I may have an alternative,” Artanis spoke. “Seeing as how the Overmind is still in its infant stages, I wonder if we might be able to disrupt its control over those Broods. If we can do enough superficial damage to the creature, it might--” Lyra, who had taken a look at the Zerg who were defending the area, had realized that any attempts for an assault against the Overmind would be infeasible at this point in time. Close range scans have found the ground around the Overmind to be covered with countless Sunken and Spore Colonies. She saw more of those structures in one area than she had seen in any one place. The Colonies also appeared to be behaving unusually vigorous, as if they could take anything anyone could throw at them and still not die. The areas between the colonies had unusually large holes while she spotted a rather large, unknown strain of Zerg that walked on numerous, sharp legs, using its large claws to burrow itself. When an unsuspecting critter got too close to the area, a row of spikes erupted from the ground and impaled the poor creature. The skies around the Overmind were also well covered by a massive number of Mutalisks, Scourge and Guardians. There was also a new strain of Zerg flyer among them that looked somewhat like a Mutalisk, except bigger, bulkier, and possessing a thicker shell. Lyra had a feeling that new Zerg were designed to deal with ships. Overall, there was no way of getting any forces close to the Overmind at this time. Lyra took this time to interrupt Artanis, “There is no way we’re getting anyone near the Overmind. I looked at the area around it and concluded that any attack on it is simply not worth the effort. Our only choice is to do a smash and grab for the crystal and pray the Zerg fliers stay near the Overmind.” “My plan it is, then,” Kerrigan said. “I’ll be able to exert limited control over a few of the Zerg and provide you with some backup. But the longer we stay, the more we risk losing both the crystals again. After scouting around for potential landing zones for their base of operations, Artanis found one that was next to a small Zerg base. Setting a few Probes near the landing site, they went to work establishing a base. For extra protection, a small group of Zealots, Dragoons and Dark Templar were sent to defend the base in its initial stages. Kerrigan used her ability to control Zerg and took control of the nearby Zerg hive cluster. Lyra and Tassadar arrived at their base soon after. The Protoss were pressed by moderate attack groups of Zerglings and Hydralisks early on, which gave the Protoss difficulty in setting up an effective defense. Lyra, feeling adventurous, called a Psionic Storm on herself where the lightning hit her horn and, strangely enough, charged her body temporarily. With a grin, she charged past the attacking Zerg and caused an area of Psionic lightning to spread around her as she charged forward and electrocuted the Zerg. Needless to say, Tassadar was quite impressed with the new attack that Lyra discovered. Lyra kept the Zerg off the defensive emplacements by mercilessly cutting them down. Every now and then, one or more of the large, multi-legged Zerg paid a visit to the base, only for Lyra to dismember and decapitate the creature before it attempted to burrow. Kerrigan called the creature that Lyra brutally slaughtered a Lurker. The creatures were helpless above ground and dangerous while underground. When Lyra asked about the bulkier versions of the Mutalisks, Kerrigan told her that they were called Devourers, fliers that hurl corrosive acid at ships and weakens them offensively and defensively. Lyra also assisted Kerrigan by defending her base while she set up a number of Sunken and Spore Colonies to defend her base. At the same time, Kerrigan morphed her larvae into Zerglings and Hydralisks to contribute to the attack force trained to rush their way toward the crystal. Artanis sent a number of Zealots, Dragoons and Dark Templar to back up Kerrigan’s group. Some High Templar also sacrificed themselves to unleash the might of Archons against the enemy Zerg. Lyra, who led the charge, advanced with the group into the canyon where the crystal lied at the end. A number of Overlords and Observers remained slightly behind the group to keep a watch for burrowed Zerg, especially Lurkers. The first part of their journey was obstructed by a pair of Sunken Colonies and a few Zerg. Lyra dealt with the Sunken Colonies and left the Zerg to the rest. The path was treacherous since there were a massive number of Spore Colonies and Scourge to make life miserable for the Overlords and Observers. Thankfully, Artanis reinforced the group by having Carriers pick off the Spore Colonies while confusing them on what to shoot; the Carriers or the Interceptors that were deployed. At that point, Lyra thought the Spore Colonies were not very intelligent if they could not choose the obvious target. The attack force continued to push through the Zerg resistance while a lone Probe followed the group from far behind. Surprisingly, the Brood guarding the crystal actually didn’t have Lurkers protecting the crystal, meaning that their run for the crystal was much easier. The Carriers still bombarded the Spore Colonies above the canyon while the Protoss and Zerg force plowed their way to the crystal. Seeing its chance, the lone Probe made a run for the Khalis before grabbing it and rushing back to base. Everyone followed the Probe’s example soon after. Shuttles from the fleet collected the Protoss forces while Kerrigan had her Overlords collect a number of her new Zerg for the trip back to Shakuras. Meanwhile… Sweetie had arrived at New Antioch on Shakuras. She found Aldaris waiting for her once she disembarked. Exchanging silent greetings, Sweetie led Aldaris to a private room, put up a privacy spell, and got down to business. “Alright, what did you find out?” Sweetie asked. “You were right, there is something wrong with the Matriarch. I suspect that the Queen of Blades has something to do with this.” “Find any evidence to support this?” “I asked a number of the Dark Ones about the Matriarch’s normal behavior. I had a conversation with her and discovered a few inconsistencies between her attitude and her supposed normal behavior.” Sweetie suspected that Kerrigan might be controlling Raszagal, but was unsure on a few points. She decided to ask a few more questions. “How well can a Protoss resist the influence of another mind?” “Normally, we cannot be controlled by others. However, as we age we also lose some of that resistance. The Matriarch may have been a prime target for the Queen of Blades due to her age as she is currently forty-five years over the average lifespan of a Protoss which is one thousand years.” “So, we have a Matriarch that is likely being manipulated by Kerrigan who is playing the role of the Overmind’s victim to fool everyone into thinking that she’s not planning something evil. We need to expose her before her true nature rears its ugly head,” Sweetie thought. “Okay, I have a plan to expose the Queen of Blades for who she is to everyone. I’m gonna need you to be the bait,” Sweetie said. “Expose? Why not just kill her when we get the chance? Surely you realize that she cannot be saved.” “Trust me on this, she is far too important to everyone’s future to let die. I can’t tell you why yet, just know that the future of the Universe depends on keeping the bitch alive.” Aldaris stared at Sweetie for a full minute before he relented, “Very well, what is your plan?” “You are going to start an insurrection…”