10,000 years ago, a cataclysmic war ended Humanity’s fledgling empire. In that time, new life has flourished, ignorant of the sacrifices made for them. However, something stirs, and the universe will soon learn just how stubborn Humanity truly is.
10,000 years ago, Humanity charted the stars and created an empire to survive the ages. They created a society of such power and might, they thought nothing would dare stand against them.
They were wrong.
The Hydra, a race wholly dedicated to the annihilation of Mankind, plunged the fledgling empire into cataclysmic war. For 50 years Humanity fought, but ultimately they lost.
On the eve of humanity’s destruction, 10 humans were interred in cryogenic sleep and sent to a planet Humanity had terraformed: Eques.
For 10,000 years the humans slept, only to awaken In a universe they no longer recognized, on a world full of many multitudes of creatures from myth and legend.
However, something stirs in the darkness. Something long thought to have been defeated, and should the Humans fail, it will plunge all of Eques into darkness.
A/N: hey everyone, I’ve decided to try writing my second story on the platform.
Now this one has a weird background to it: back when the FIM was in its second or third season, I was trying to find a fanfic about the return of Discord. Instead, I found a rather unique HIE fic. It was nothing amazing; the writing was ameuterish and the story was a bit cliched and predictable, but for some reason I loved it.
I built a whole world out of it, tried to imagine what would happen next, and even made some of my own worldbuilding for it.
Right before it’s last chapter was to be published, the author decided he was going to revise the whole story. He did, but it stopped updating before the halfway point and he took it down from Fanfiction.net a year ago. This greatly disappointed me.
However, I’ve read the fic so many times I basically have it memorized and saved the revised version, and since I have way too much free time on my hands, I decided to rewrite it and post it on the platform.
I like to to think of it as a type of recursive fan fiction, and give credit of the story and eight of the human characters to Hawkeye 35 (who also wrote the story COLTS)
Also, bear with me regarding the story image. There wasn’t much that would fit for my incredibly specific story so I had to settle on a sci fi soldier.
“Mildew!” Star Swirls voice rang out through the cave. Mildew Dawn, a Unicorn mare with a gray coat and black mane, looked over as her mentor trotted up next to her. “Mildew, where have you been? I’ve been calling your name for ten minutes.” He said in an annoyed tone.
“A thousand pardons master.” She turned away and pointed her hoof to what she was looking at. “But I found… something.”
Starswirl raised an eyebrow in confusion. “Found what?” He says as he follows her hoof, finding a metal device emitting blue light above it. “Mildew I’m not seeing anything that interesting.”
Mildew didn’t respond, merely reaching her hoof forward and touching the light. A second later the light shifts, showing a strange pale biped in a small bunker.
“It is October 12th, 2680. This is Staff Sergeant William Wilkins of the United Nations Republic speaking.” The biped said in a tired voice as the bunker shook and lights flickered. “... They came like a hoard of ravished insects, devouring all who stood in ther way. They showed no mercy or compassion, just an unending hatred for Mankind and it’s works.”
Starswirl took a step back in surprise, his eyes widening. “What is this?”
“They left nothing, absolutely nothing.” The biped continued. “Humanity has been fighting for fifty years, but nothing can sate their thirst for destruction.” As if on cue, there was a loud screech as something clawed at the bunker's door behind him. “The war is lost, the Hydra have found Earth and are cleansing it of life. All our colonies have been destroyed... there’s nothing left of our empire.”
Mildew and Starswirl gave each other a look at all these strange words the biped was saying.
“I’m all that’s left of my crew. I sent them on the last Seedship... they deserved to rest.” Something big was banging on the door, seeking entry to the bunker. “No one is coming for me, what’s left of our forces are scattered in the rubble of what was Earth. This is where I die.” The biped picked up a strange tool, pressing a button so it started glowing. “But I refuse to die without taking one more Hydra bastard with me.” He said, swiveling his chair towards the door and aimed the tool towards it. “Humanitas in aeternum.” He said as the door gave way, revealing several horrific beasts rushing into the room.
“By Faust!” Starswirl took a step back as the video ended, holding on a blue and white flag depicting a circle with unknown land masses wreathed in olive branches.
“What… does it all mean? Earth, Hydra, Humanity, Seedship?” Mildew asked as she trotted up to the light.
“I don’t know Mildew, but we need to alert the Princesses immediately.” Starswirl said, walking up to her. “Whatever is making these pictures, it isn’t magic. There is no magical output coming from whatever that is.”
Canterlot Archives
A month after Twilight's ascension
“What is it you wanted to show me Princess Celestia?” A purple Alicorn asked her superior.
“Twilight, what I am about to show is very important.” Princess Celestia said seriously as she led her past the forbidden section. “You are one of the few ponies to see this since the days of the Pillars.”
Twilight perked up at that, excited to be entrusted with such an honor. “Is it because I am now Princess?”
“Partly my pupil.” Celestia answered as she opened a locked door with her magic. “The other reason is to do with your recent trip into the Human world.”
“The Human world? What do they have to do with this?” Twilight tilted her head in confusion.
“That, I’m not sure about my little pony.” Celestia turned to Twilight as the doors shut behind them. “A thousand or so years ago, Starswirl and his apprentice were looking for medicinal herbs in a cave not far from Canterlot. However, they could not prepare themselves for what they found instead.”
Celestia stopped at the small metal device found so long ago. She manipulated it with her magic, activating it and showing Twilight the video.
Twilight sat there in shock at what she saw. She was confused beyond measure. That biped was clearly human, but he was different from the humans she had encountered beyond the mirror. The technology he had was also more advanced than what she had come across, and what was this ‘Hydra’ he was fighting? That creature at the end looked nothing like a Hydra from Equestria. “Princess, this… this doesn’t make any sense.”
Celestia nodded. “I know Twilight. Starswirl had become obsessed with humanity when he found this, spending his life investigating this artifact before he disappeared. He had gone so far as to make the mirror portal in an attempt to find them.”
“But Princess, the Humans I encountered were nothing like… this. The Earth is fine and they have no Hydra.” Twilight said, getting closer. “And this technology, it’s far beyond what they were capable of.”
“I know Twilight. It seems Starswirl had either made a portal leading to their past, or discovered a parallel reality.” Celestia explained, wrapping her wing around Twilight.
“I take it you wish for me to investigate this?” Twilight turned to her mentor.
“I do Twilight. Since you are one of the few ponies to live as a human for a time, perhaps you will have better insight to…” Celestia eyed the video. “This.”
“Will that mean I’ll have to leave my friends?” Twilight asked with her ears flat.
“No! No of course not!” Celestia brought Twilight into a hug. “I don’t want you spending your life on this like Starswirl did. Just see what you can do.”
Twilight returned her mentor's hug. “Should I bring Sunset in on this? She’s spent more time as a human than me.”
“No, not until she returns and I know she can be trusted.” Celestia pulled away. “We know precious little about this, I need you to swear you’ll keep this a secret.”
Twilight nodded her head immediately. “I will Princess. I won’t let you down.”
“I know you won't my little pony.” Celestia smiled. “I’m so proud of how far you’ve come.” Twilight smiled at that and hugged her mentor tightly
“Command this is Captain James Iverson of the 97th Sky Jumper Corps. We are close to the President's last known location.” A man of Latino descent said into his radio as seven other figures flew behind him.
He was a large man, standing over seven feet all, thickly muscled, and weighed nearly 300 pounds. He had dark tan skin with short brown hair, his physique littered with numerous scars from years of war. His armor sported a scratched picture of a Golden Fleece on his chest, the symbol of the Argonauts.
“Affirmative captain. You are to confirm if the President is KIA, then report to General Hawthorne in the Millenium Park bunker.” A voice over the radio said. “Be advised, Hydra forces have broken through our defenses and will soon take the building. You’ll be alone from here on out.”
“Affirmative Command, we’ll get to the bunker.” Iverson was quiet for a long moment. “Humanitas in aeternum.”
“Humanitas in aeternum.” was the last thing said as the feed cut out, replaced by static that Iverson quickly turned off.
“Team, roll call.” Iverson demanded over the radio.
“Lieutenant Dominic Navarro reporting sir!” A Japanese man with short black hair answered. Navarro was Iverson's oldest friend, having met Iverson when they were both assigned to the 97th Skyjumper corp. Navarro's armor held a drone on his back, encased in a protective shell so it wouldn’t be damaged.
Navarro was the team's mechanic, helping to maintain the team's equipment and utilized a drone for scouting and combat.
"Private Tommy Dean Lee reporting sir!" A young southern boy with long curly blonde hair responded. Before he became a soldier, Tommy was a farm hand for his family’s beef ranch in Oklahoma, one of the few remaining farms on Earth that specialized in raising cattle for real meat. A wheat field was painted all along his left arm, scratched and burned due to the war.
Tommy specialized in close quarter fighting, carrying a shotgun and collapsible baton in addition to his assault rifle.
“Private Tony Barelli reporting sir!” A gruff voice called out from the radio. Tony was the second tallest of the squad, being an impressive 6’7” tall. His suit was the most unique, and perhaps the most terrifying, having taken the time to paint a skull along his helmet, and covered in ‘trophies’ from dead Hydra.
Tony was the only one in the squad to forgo an assault rifle, choosing to instead wield a mini gun and grenade launcher.
“Private Andy Barelli reporting sir!” Tony’s older brother answered. Despite being older than Tony, Andy was shorter and weaker than his brother. He was also the complete opposite to Tony, contrasting his brother’s serious and dour mood by being a wise ass prankster. Andy’s armor had various engravings of puns and small pictures of Hydra being killed in a wacky fashion.
He was the team’s demolitions expert, carrying an assortment of grenades, demolition charges, and wrist fired rockets.
“Corporal Alexander Ritchie reporting in.” A posh British voice said over the radio. Alexander was born in York, England, but had failed his Earth Citizenship Exam and was forcibly emigrated off world. He moved to the planet Chronisia, where he opened a men’s tuxedo shop. He was perhaps the weakest of the team, having the most slender body type of his teammates.
Due to this however, he was perfect for fitting into places the rest of his team couldn’t, making him ideal for recon and stealth. When fighting from the shadows, he utilized suppressed arms.
His armor was also immaculate, foregoing flashy details for shiny chrome and metal. It was a wonder how he managed to keep it so clean, despite its no doubt extensive use.
“Sergeant Danny Kowalski reporting sir!” A Polish accented man called out. Danny was a certified genius, knowing a plethora of maths and sciences, and considered a whiz with technology. He showed great promise as a leading scientific mind, if not for the war that is. His armor sported the Harvard University coat of arms emblazoned on the back of his hands.
He was the team’s engineer, carrying an assortment of equipment on his back and belt.
“Michael reporting sir.” A small voice called out in barely a whisper. A man with black skin they only knew as Michael, no rank or last name. Michael was a mystery to the rest of the group, as he mostly kept to himself. What was known was that he was the peacekeeper of the group, always seeking to end conflict among his teammates. He was also known for his strong belief in God, which the others scoffed at. His armor proudly held a black cross along his midsection.
Michael was considered the best Marksman in the army, dubbed ‘The Silent Killer’ due to his supreme stealth and ability to kill from afar. He was also the team’s medic, two first aid kits hanging from his waist.
“Team, we have been ordered to determine if the President is still alive then bring him to the Millenium Park Bunker. Hydra resistance is expected to be high.”
“Ha! Knowing that poor bastard, he’s definitely still alive.” Andy called out. “What is this? The sixth time we’ve saved his ass?”
“Shut up Andy!” Tony growled angrily. “... and it’s the eighth time, not the sixth.”
“Bastard owes us a round for saving him so much, especially since he banned alcohol.” Kowalski declared jokingly.
“I’m half tempted to leave him to his fate for that.” Ritchie said with a curt laugh.
“Enough.” Came Iverson's voice over the radio, silencing everyone immediately. “Stay focused, we drop in thirty seconds”
“Sir!” They all said in unison, following after Iverson when he started plummeting to the ground.
Present day
Twilight's castle library
Twilight feverishly jotted down notes as she studied another human artifact.
They had recently come across this relic after Discord revealed its location in the Ghastly Gorge, trying to make up for the Grogar fiasco.
This new artifact had been a major breakthrough in Equestrias research. Instead of being something akin to a diary, this artifact held a wealth of knowledge on Humanity.
There were pictures of great cities reaching miles into the air, pictures of their Solar System, information on Human physiology, blueprints detailing much of their technology, and much more.
Her and other top researchers were no longer confined to a single video (as Sunset liked to call it) that gave no context or details, but now had a clear picture of Humanity.
She had also discovered what exactly ‘William Wilkins’ was fighting.
The Hydra, as Humanity had dubbed them, were a reptilian race with rough scales, flat noses, four pitch black eyes, and a mouth full of fangs that grew in irregular and oftentimes random ways.
Twilight was taken aback by what she saw. Her and the other researchers had deliberated and speculated at length of what a ‘Hydra’ looked like, having little more to go off of than a shadowy silhouette for half a second at the end. This was not at all what she had expected.
This… thing could not exist in a Fillies worst nightmares. Even a depraved mind like Grogar wouldn’t dare think up something so horrific.
Despite how horrifying the Hydra were, she was frustrated with how little information the artifact had on them. She guessed it made sense, the Humans no doubt made this to document their species, they probably weren’t keen on sharing information about the very thing that wiped them out.
She was still frustrated however. This is the most information they’ve had on Humanity for years, and they still knew precious little about their society and their ultimate demise.
Or why their artifacts were scattered about the planet, or why Earth shared so much Fauna and Flora with Eques, and (perhaps most disturbingly) why the artifact had files about Horses and Ponies. Horses and Ponies that looked nothing like she had seen on Eques.
These were barely more than animals, having more in common with a squirrel than with her.
The implications presented in this artifact scared Twilight, almost more than the Hydra did. Hopefully they’d find more artifacts soon and finally put to rest all these questions.
The Humans slowed down as they neared a dilapidated and crumbling building.
“Michael.” Iverson demanded, resulting in Michal falling back behind the rest of the team and flying off in a different direction. “Navarro.”
Navarro's drone detached from his back and flew into the ruin, the Sky Jumpers landing on a ledge as Navarro's drone scouted the building.
They stood there for a few minutes before Navarro nodded his head. “Tommy, Tony: you’re up.”
The two silently walked in, Tommy pulling out his baton as he walked backwards behind Tony. There was a long silence as the rest of the team waited for further orders.
“File in.” Iverson finally ordered as he walked in, the rest following suit with Navarro being the last. “Michael?”
“President's convoy has been spotted. He’s still alive, he and Charlotte are holding out in an apartment complex, but they’ll soon be overwhelmed.” Michael said over the radio, looking down at the scene before him on top of a tall building.
“How many?” Iverson asked.
“About three hundred Hydra, sixty Lost, and a couple dozen Drones, Warbots, and Hounds. Their vehicles have already been destroyed.” There was a plume of smoke from a window of the apartment complex, a large explosion following soon after. “... Make that two hundred and fifty.”
“Affirmative. Keep the Hydra away from the apartment, we’ll clean up the rest.” Iverson commanded as he busted down a door. Finally, the Skyjumpers found a hole blasted through a wall overlooking the fight. “Navarro.”
Navarro held up his left arm, revealing a holographic map of the fight. “We’re on the three hundredth level, most of the Hydra forces are concentrated on the road. Perhaps if we have Andy-”
“Negative. We need to preserve our demo charges.” Iverson commanded, cutting Kowalski off. “We might need them for later.”
Navarro merely nodded, staring at the map for a few more seconds. “We could stealthily surround the Warhost, catch them by surprise by unloading explosives around their back. While they’re disoriented, Tony can unload his minigun in the Warhosts front. When they look at Tony, we’ll ambush them all at once.” He pointed to a collapsed wall on the apartment's side. “Alex can sneak in through here and reinforce the President.”
“Will Tommy be coming with me sir?” Alex asked as he looked between the map and the apartment.
“No, he’ll be a runner, keeping the Hounds and Warbots from getting too close.” Iverson answered. “Any other questions?” The Sky Jumpers merely shook their heads. “Good. Now move out.”
The Sky Jumpers jumped out of the building, flying down and gathering around the Warhost, using the rubble and smoldering vehicles for cover. Alex broke away from the group and hid behind a wall, waiting for the signal.
“Is everyone in position?” Iverson called, a chorus of various acknowledgements following soon after. “Good. Light ‘em up.”
The various Sky Jumpers pulled out their grenades, Andy readying a wrist fired rocket, and threw them at the Hydra's back flank. Four explosions ripped through the Warhost, attracting the attention of most of the Hydra.
Tony then jumped up and revved up his minigun, tearing through the Hydras ranks. When he shot through a Hydras stomach, bright orange slime oozed out of them.
Those whose stomachs were punctured fell to the ground and convulsed for a few seconds before dying. Those that didn’t got up, their wounds healing in a matter seconds regardless of severity.
A few vicious looking quadrupedal animals snarled at Tony and ran forward, while the remaining Hydra looked over. Tony jumped back behind cover as they began shooting at him.
As the Hounds started scrambling up the pile of rubble, Tommy flew out of cover and kicked one's head clean off. He took out his shotgun and shot another point blank. The remaining Hound jumped on him, biting his left arm as it tried scratching at him.
Tommy pushed forward and crushed the Hound between him and a wall, reducing the Hound's head to a pulp just in case.
Just then, the remaining Sky Jumpers poke their heads out of cover and begin firing at the Warhost, Ritchie taking the initiative to sneak into the apartment.
“Be not thou far from me, O Lord.” Michael whispered as he lined up a Hydra and shot a bullet through its stomach. Anything that got too close to the apartment's entrance, or was hiding behind cover, was quickly taken out by Michael.
A Hydra was barely given time to process that their friend was killed before Michael killed them next. “All my strength… haste Thee to help me.” He prayed as he killed a Hydra rushing towards the Skyjumpers, sword in hand.
Alex was weaving through the winding hallways, making his way towards the sounds of gunfire. As he entered a room, he was sent flying into the wall by a Hydra standing over six feet tall.
This one had a more menacing look to it, it’s armor thicker and covered in strange runes. Two Hydra eyes were painted next to where the Hydras' other eyes would be.
Alex's eyes widened as he recognized it. He reached for his knife but yelped in pain as his vision blurred, his brain feeling like it was on fire while the Hydra stared at him intensely.
He screamed in pain as the Hydra doubled its efforts, a faint glow coming from its helmet. The veins around Alex’s eyes became pitch black, slowly creeping into the edges of his Sclera.
Alex shut his eyes tight and blocked everything from his mind. ‘You are Alexander Ritchie. You will not be lost.’ He thought as his mind began slipping away. He shut his eyes even tighter and desperately started searching his memories.
A young girl with brown hair appeared in his mind's eye. Freckles dotted her smiling face while she tried on a bright pink bow from Alex’s shop. She was suddenly replaced with a bleeding corpse amongst a pile of rubble. Tear streaks accentuated her pained features while Alex held onto her.
‘Victoria.’ The black corruption started retreating from his face, his eyes opening up and glaring hatefully at the Hydra before him. He fought through the pain and grabbed his knife, attempting to stab the Hydra through the stomach.
His blade merely bounced off the Hydra's thick armor, the Hydra laughing at the Humans futility. It brought out its own sword and was about to impale Alex, but screeched in pain as it’s arm was suddenly cut off.
Alex fell to the ground as the Hydra let him go, watching as the Hydras arm grew back as it turned around.
It didn’t have time to react as a figure in bulky power armor stabbed its helmet with his wrist blade. It merely growled as it pushed the man off, gabbing it’s sword from the ground as blood began dripping from its helmet.
The two began trading blows with their blades, the Hydra constantly parrying swings towards its stomach. Alex struggled to get up, still recovering from the assault on his mind.
Finally the man pushed the Hydras sword out of its grip, grabbing its arm and running behind it to grab its other arm as another figure ran in.
She was slender, wearing tight fitting black armor and wielding a one sided sword. The Hydra struggled against the man’s grip as she got closer, seizing up as she pushed the sword through its stomach.
She twisted the blade and pushed it upwards, practically cutting the Hydra in two. The man pushed the corpse forward as the girl jumped out of the way, turning to Alex and looking down at him for a moment.
“What took you all so long?” He asked as he helped Alex up. His helmet retracted, revealing a man with combed brown hair looking down at Alex with a smug smile.
“I think the words you’re looking for is ‘thank you’.” Alex snarked, standing up shakily.
“Thank you? For what? Saving your ass again?” He turned to the girl next to him. “This is what? The sixth time I’ve saved one of Iversons men?”
“Eighth time.” She answered curtly, a playful tone in her voice.
“Ritchie, what’s your status?” Navarro's voice called over the radio.
“President Adrian has been secured, moving to exfil.” He answered.
“Secured? Not how I remember it.” A hologram detailing various suit functions and settings appeared over his left arm. “What frequency are you using Corporal?”
“289 MHz sir.”
Adrian nodded and inputted the frequency. “Captain Iverson?”
“Sir.” Iverson answered. “We’ve taken out most of the Warhost, we’re cleaning up the few remaining stragglers.”
“Very good. What’s the status of Command?”
“Last I heard Hydra forces had taken the building, they cut off communications half an hour ago.”
“If that’s the case, then they should’ve taken Berlin with them by now.” Adrian said mostly to himself. He was quiet for a long moment, deliberating on how to deliver his next set of words. “Team, Operation Judgement Day is green to go.”
“WHAT!?” Everyone but Iverson yelled over the radio.
“But sir! We can’t give up yet!” Andy pleaded.
“There’s still reports of fighting in Northern Africa, Tokyo, the New York Arcology, and the Underwater bases.” Tommy added. “We can’t just destroy Earth!”
“Hydras got this whole planet under their control and their entire damn fleet in orbit.” Adrian argues back. “This is exactly what we wanted them to do, we need to think about Humanity’s future. We can’t do that if we fight to the last man on Earth.”
“The President's Right.” Iverson said joining in. “We don’t have enough manpower to weather the remaining Hydra forces. We’ll just die and they'll steamroll over the Galaxy.”
“Exactly. They’ll just colonize the system and re-establish a connection to Triangulum. We need to spare our descendants from further Hydra blight.” A long quiet followed As everyone thought it over.
“This is fucking bullshit.” Tony growled, shaking in anger.
“I don’t disagree, but this is the only way.” Adrian said somberly. “Captain, for the duration of this mission, you are in command. I won’t overrule you.”
“Understood.” Iverson acknowledged. “Navarro, how far is the Millenium Park bunker?”
“Three Klics northwest from here.” Navarro answered.
“Good. Let’s get a move on people.” Iverson demanded.
“Copy that sir.” The Skyjumpers said as they made their way to the rally point for the last stand of the human race.
“INCOMING!” Ritchy yelled as Hydra artillery flattened the area, causing most of the humans to take cover.
“Eat shit!” Tony screamed as he unleashed a torrent of death from his minigun, gunning down a multitude of Hydra and warbots.
Michael hid in a building, picking off any Hydra that got too close to Charlotte and Andy, who were wiring ion charges to a building next to the Hydra artillery. He checked everything over one more time before taking to the sky.
He grabbed Charlotte and brought her out of the building, landing next to Iverson. “Do it!” Andy nodded and detonated the charges. The initial shockwave killed most of the infrantry attacking the humans, as the building collapsed and fell on top of the artillery and most of the remaining warhost. “Adrian!” He yelled over the radio.
Adrian busted through a wall next to the remaining group of Hydra. “Oh yeah!” He said before grabbing one of the startled Hydra and squishing its head. He then impaled another through the stomach as it reached for its gun, and lit another one on fire with a wrist mounted flamethrower.
“Damn, that was a big explosion.” Kowalski remarked as he surveyed the destruction and Adrian’s subsequent slaughter of the remaining Hydra. Suddenly a round deflected off his helmet. “Gówno!”
“Sniper!” Navarro screamed as he dove for cover. He could take tanks, aircraft, and even Soulrippers, but nothing scared him more than an unseen sniper.
Everyone immediately dove for cover themselves, hoping to stay out of the snipers sight. Suddenly the ground was bathed in shadow, everyone looking up to see Hydra ships blotting out the sky, beginning to unleash orbital bombardment on what remained of Chicago.
“Everyone to the lift!”
“But sir! The sniper!” Navarro protested.
“We’ll have to risk it. Adrian, think you can cover us?”
“I’ll try, but my shield only goes so far and I have no idea where the sniper is.” Adrian jumped out of cover and sprinted towards the Skyjumpers, Michael flying out of the building and landing with the rest of the group.
The Hydra sniper dogged Adrian’s steps the whole way, Adrian’s left arm unfolding into a large shield which he held up over him.
“Sniper 33 klics that way at a 63 foot elevation.” Michael pointed to the general area where the sniper was, no one daring to poke their heads out to check.
“Good work, we should lose him if we make a break for that rubble. We have a good twenty feet of open space until we make it to the bunker so we’ll have to fly the rest of the way.” Adrian turned to Iverson. “Is this plan satisfactory captain?”
“Should I harass it with my drone, sir?” Navarro asked.
“Negative, we don’t want to lose it. Tony, Michael, and Adrian, you three stay here and suppress the sniper, the rest of us will make a break to the debris then you’ll run with Adrian if the bastard isn’t dead. We have no idea what’s in store for us in that 20 feet, so you’ll lead the charge Adrian. Any questions?” The humans shook their heads. “Good, now go!”
Tony revved up his minigun and shot wildly into where Michael pointed, Michael himself shooting where he was sure the sniper was, and Adrian firing rockets at the entire block.
The rest of the humans ran as fast as they could to the debris, the sniper unable to shoot at them. They finally reached the debris and hid behind it. “Go!”
Tony and Michael ran next to Adrian as he held up his shield, the Hydra desperately shooting at them and hitting the shield about five times. When they reached the rest of the humans, they ran forward as Adrian got in front of the group, leading the charge through the 20 feet of open space as the world began falling apart from the Hydras bombardment.
Adrian smashed through the bunker doors, waiting for the other humans before he collapsed the entrance. “They have troops down here! Why are these assholes bombing!?”
“They care little for their inferiors lives.” Adrian answered as he and the humans gathered on a lift, Adrian pressing a button to activate it.
The lift shook violently as it descended down to Exodus station. Andy shifted nervously as the lights began to flicker. “Can this thing drag any more ass?”
The ding that signaled they had reached their destination was like the voice of an angel, the humans quickly filing out of the lift. “About damn time! Ah was about to haul some chunks in there!” Tommy declared as he steadied himself against a crate.
“And I was about to start Judgment Day without you.” An old man in an impeccable uniform with graying hair stepped forward.
“General Hawthorne.” Adrian greeted walking up to the man. “Is the last Seedship ready to launch to Equis?”
“It is. Along with this little beauty.” Hawthorne said gesturing to a two hundred foot long ship. “The Divine Intervention, it has everything you might need: food, water, medicine, weapons, ammo, toiletries, etc. and it’s the only ship in the fleet built with a warp drive, it should do the trick when the wormhole drops you and the Seedship off at mars. You’ll have twelve minutes before the Armageddon bomb reaches mars, so don’t dawdle.” The two looked at a screen showing a massive container next to the sun
“Activate it now. We don’t have time to waste.” Adrian demanded as he made his way to the Divine Intervention.
Hawthorne seemed surprised but nodded, pressing a button to open the container. A split second later the feed cut off and another screen showed a massive explosion destroying the sun, going out in all directions quickly before that feed cut off too.
The humans looked on sadly, angered they had to sacrifice their home, their cradle, but it had to be done. “Countdown has begun, we should get moving.” Kowalski said as he eyed a clock reading less than eight minutes.
“Wait, we’re going to make a wormhole here? Underground?” Andy asked with a hint of concern.
“If you’d rather take your chances with the Hydra fleet, be my guest.” Iverson answered as he lifted a huge crate of supplies.
“You know what sounds great? A wormhole jump!” Andy said as he dashed into the Divine Intervention.
‘Smartass…’ Charlotte thought as she filed in.
The humans gathered any remaining supplies and got on the ship, buckling themselves in on the bridge. Adrian made sure they had everyone and weren’t missing anything. “Oh, and before I forget Mr. President.” Hawthorne handed Adrian a case titled ‘Gaia.’ “Thank you Hawthorne, now get in, we’re about to take off.”
“Yes, you are.” Hawthorne declared as the ship slid closed and locked them in.
“Hawthorne!” Adrian banged on the door. “What is the meaning of this!?”
“Someone has to stay to activate the wormhole don’t they?” Hawthorne declared as he began punching in coordinates.
“General Hawthorne, I order you to get on this ship now!” Adrian yelled. Being the only remaining humans left meant losing even one was a big deal.
“Sorry Mr. President, it seems you’ll have to court martial me.” Hawthorne teased before confirming the coordinates. Electricity began racing around in an arc as a huge wormhole opened in the bunker, revealing the depths of space on the other side, sucking everything through it. “Now go!” He said pressing another button, remotely activating a large ship which flew forward and passed through the wormhole
“Hawthorne!” Adrian pleaded desperately as the Divine Intervention did the same and the wormhole closed.
“Humanitas in aeternum.” Hawthorne sighed. He took out a cigarette and sat down, lighting the stick of tobacco and taking a long drag from it.
BANG!
He coughed a little as the smoke filled his lungs.
BANG! BANG!
He took one last drag from his cigarette before flicking it away, grabbing a pistol and turning it towards the door.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Finally, a hoard of Hydra came pouring through the door, filling the room. Hawthorne picked off six Hydra before he was gunned down.
The Hydra gathered around him, a large Hydra in regal armor picking up the bleeding and twitching Hawthorne. “Any last words Human?” It said with a sadistic grin. He frowned as Hawthorne began laughing maniacally. “What’s so funny? Your species is dead, your world is torn asunder, your empire is destroyed. We have finally won.”
“N-nothing.” Hawthorne shook his head. “It’s just y-you fucked w-with the wr-wrong species!” Hawthorne said before the life drained from his eyes, his arms going limp and dropping a detonator.
The regal Hydras eyes widened and he dropped Hawthorne’s corpse. “Everyone get out n-!”
He never got the chance to finish, as the entire bunker was rocked by an explosion, killing all the Hydra in a fiery inferno.
The Divine Intervention and the Seedship were flung into space next to mars, the humans looking towards Earth one last time before both ships entered hyperspace. “You think the Armageddon bomb will really work?” Charlotte asked as Adrian walked in while looking at the floor.
Adrian lifted his head to look at them. “It’ll take roughly five hours to destroy the entire Solar System, they won’t expect a thing.” Adrian answered as he deactivated his suit and climbed out. “Remaining Hydra forces are in the confines of the Solar System looking for any Human survivors. They’ll be dead before they even realize it, and their blight on the galaxy will be expunged. At least in our lifetimes.”
“We should go into cryo sleep.” Kowlaski said as he began stripping off his armor. “Even at warp speed it’ll take five years to reach Equis.”
“You heard him, get to the cryo chamber.” Iverson demanded as he unbuckled himself.
“You guys go ahead, I’ll keep an eye on things for a year or two before I join you.” Adrian said as he sat down at the controls and looked over the ships functions.
Iverson nodded and stripped off his armor, he and the remaining humans making their way to the cryo chambers and entering suspended animation.
