Chapter 7, The Not So Great Escape Part 2

A/N: There's artwork of the protagonist on deviant art, credit goes to Lightning In My Hand. I'll leave a link in the next chapter.

Blackfire was many things, an expert con with a talent for screwing over low down crooks, a capable brawler when she needed to be, usually when a deal goes up in flames after the buyer thinks they could get away with stealing from her.

Those buyers went up in flames as well.

She's far from a greenhorn when it comes to murder, when you do it enough you become numb, like a soldier on the battlefield. She would lie, cheat, and kill to keep herself alive. It was comical in a way, how can someone from Tamaran's Royal bloodline turn into a cold blooded outlaw living on the run?

She had her sister to thank for that.

Looking for a story? Well she wasn't in the mood for one. Who would be if they were trapped in a Slaver's ship? How did she get there you ask? Let's just say Blackfire was in the market for high grade weaponry, not found in more legal establishments , now why would a girl who can shoot starbolts from her hands need weapons? Good question, to sell it at twice the price in high demand areas. Spend money to make money right? The meeting point was a simple enough location, if you can call a planet occupied by the universe's most villainous scum simple. They called it the devil's planet known as Vexion, crime ran rampant like the wild god damn west with no law enforcement to uphold the law. Either they were all dead or paid off to turn a blind eye to the mayhem, Merchants there would rather loot your rotting corpse than give you their expensive goods, so in hindsight backup would've been an excellent idea. During the trade off her dealer pulled a double cross at the last minute, who could've expected this unforeseen treachery against a teenage girl on her own carrying a shitload of credits with no backup in sight, apparently not her dumb ass. Blackfire put up a 'valiant' fight in her defense, using the Merchant's bodyguards or any passerby as a meat shield when she was running for her life. Unfortunately her efforts were in vain and now here she is...in a damn cell like her Father and sister predicted, she would rather have her throat slit and fed to beast than see Kori's smug face.

Blackfire had no idea where this ship was going but she didn't plan to find out or stay long, her window of opportunity was closing fast and she needed to escape now before she reached slaver territory. Speaking of slavers, one of them approached the bars to check up on her, Well, that wouldn't be the right term to use, it was more like checking her out. The guy was lizard like with the green scales and fork like tongue to match, the reptile wore full body red armor that exposed his head. The Overgrown iguana had passed several times sparing her hungry gazes, Seems like watching a girl appear so vulnerable in a cage must be enough to get his engines running.

If that wasn't enough of a red flag, the cells containing other attractive young maidens like herself were either sitting in a corner, hugging their knees close to their chest or laying on their sides sobbing. Now that Blackfire was taking a closer look, she spotted the bruises decorating their skin as if they were manhandled by savages, their clothing consisting of torn rags that hardly shielded their bust.

Someone, probably a chivalrous hero, would find the sight cruel and horrifying, then make an empty promise about freeing them from their torment and stopping the big bad monsters from ever doing this again. The only thing Blackfire found horrifying was their apparel, were they going to make her wear filthy rags? Of course she felt sorry for them but not enough to help them, she honestly couldn't give enough of a fuck about a sob story, she heard hundreds of them from the people she killed and before you judge her, note that seventy five of the fools she knew were criminals.

Blackfire is a beautiful woman. Tall, slender with great legs and pair of breasts on her body , it was no surprise that many men and women fall for her grace and sheer superiority in every way. Of course, there were other ways that she was superior to many people that she knew of but she wasn't the boasting type. Lusting after a tamaranian body like hers was a natural response, when she thought about it, being on a rusty old ship occupied with foul smelling idiots could leave any warm blooded man craving for a good fuck. In this case, said man was cold blooded and longing for an expert touch, No woman can rival hers.

"Bored?" Blackfire said to the Lizard man who froze in place. He must had thought she wouldn't speak, they're probably use to docile slaves not making good conversation. "I would be too if I had to patrol a shitty ship all day."

"Sssilence, Prisoner!" It wasn't surprising to Blackfire that her warden spoke like a serpent, however she detected the interest hidden in his authoritative voice, he wanted her to continue contrary to his words. Truly this day was beginning to turn around.

"I'm only teasing, newbie. What are you exactly? You're a cadet right?" The lizard man recoiled when she called him out on his rank, that confirmed it. "Ah...I see maybe I can offer you a better show than these other girls or is submissiveness your only cup of brew?" she let a seductive grin subtly form on her lips, adding to the spell she had upon him. The results were already showing when a bead of sweat slid down his forehead. The creature's long tongue dragged across his non-existent lips. He was making this too easy .

"If so, I don't mind I'm already at your mercy, Why not display your dominance more physically." The bait was on the hook, now it was time for the fish to bite. The man regarded his surroundings thoroughly before typing a code on the panel deactivating the bars of light then entered slowly, unsure if he made the correct decision. He did, but Blackfire didn't consider him a fool, who among the universe can resist her? She shines brighter than any treasure of gold and could send any man into an endless trance with the sway of her curves.

"You aren't shy are you-" Blackfire was immediately silenced when the male lizard pulled her in by her waist and began to lick her smooth neck before working his way to her blemish-free face, while the reptile was busy with foreplay, Blackfire held her breath like it was her last. The lizard's odor smelled of dead fish laying out on a hot day in summer, if He was desperate to feel the warm embrace of a woman then Blackfire would gladly give him.that and more. She wrapped her arms around the Slaver's neck, pulling him deeper into her hold, Blackfire's eyes glowed a faint purple as a malicious smile formed on her lips.

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"Nothing personal, " Blackfire exited her cell with a strut in her step. She blew a kiss towards the smoking corpse sprawled on the floor. Men were all the same in her eyes, threaten them with a good time and they'll be vulnerable for the kill, what was that saying about birds flying too close to the sun?

Blackfire scanned the entirety of the brig, there was only one way out of here and that was through those doors, where a crew of armed slavers would be waiting. She needed a distraction, something to keep their eyes occupied while she took the first escape shuttle out of this madhouse.

"H-help us..." a raspy voice that sounded deprived of water called to her. Blackfire whirled around in time to spot a hand weakly reaching towards her, she gagged then took a step back. She followed the arm up to a thin blue-skin alien with yellow bug-like eyes, staring at her pleadingly, The rest started moaning for her to aid them but Blackfire rolled her eyes then scoffed. They'd only be a nuisance and attract unwanted attention, survival of the fittest after all. Blackfire turned on her heel, ready to face whatever came her way by herself.

When she had a pack of angry soon to be slaves, craving for the death of their captors.

Blackfire paused as if she were a character playing on a DVD.

Oh right.

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They say Newly born infants cry to communicate with the outside world since they could neither talk or express their needs in any other way.

Since as a baby you needed to cry when you were experiencing hunger. When babies grew they begin to learn different ways of articulating their desires for help, usually someone would come and help them right? Even adults were still prone to bitching whenever they didn't like something, Not crying, just bitching.

Like Dwayne Cadman was doing now.

He hated this shit, having to fight for his goddamn life in the most impossible scenario imaginable, No really, He still thought he was dreaming all this, that any minute now he'll wake up in a cold sweat. Sadly, fate isn't on his side at the moment, it was quite the opposite really. Dwayne's first idea was to short circuit the lights in the elevator with his newfound abilities, thinking that will provide a momentary distraction for the Servers as they try to find him in the darkness.

That fucking failed.

Even though he was told constantly that these robots are emotionless killers and they'll shoot first and ask questions never. They resorted to the former quicker than he expected, the second those elevator doors opened a barrage of laser fire poured in the dark elevator. Let it be known if Dwayne retold the story of his great escape, he'll leave out the fact that he didn't scream, rather he charged in with the courageousness of a Roman Gladiator. He dived in a forward roll, successfully dodging the initial shots before rolling to his feet and breaking into a sprint. His eyes swapped left and right, searching for cover or an exit. The hangar was a large metallic room stationing several airships, above him was a large glass panel leading to a long transparent tube that was linked to the surface.

Easy enough he supposed, take one of these Server ships and get the hell out of dodge, however, the dozens of Server Droids lining up in formation were blocking his escape route, while he was in a wide area without significant cover. Dwayne was definitely at a disadvantage, they had numbers on him and weapon superiority. He counted the Servers in his head including the two hulking war machines in the back of the formation, they were heavily armored and taller than a small house, they had massive cannons mounted on their shoulders loaded with missiles, their gigantic arms looked as though they were built to demolish buildings. Their glowing red optics wielded a strong malice within them, it was terrifying that he could sense it.

These were the intimidating Server Brutes the Voice warned him about, How was he suppose to take those fucking gorillas out? This was some bullshit, What chance did he have against Robots armed with laser rifles firing extremely slow.

Hold on...

Dwayne watched the lasers flying towards him more closely, they were fast but not fast enough compare to a real bullet, They had the velocity of a baseball being pitched by an all-star player. That couldn't be right, those rifles were high tech alien weaponry, which automatically meant they should have a higher fire rate than any manmade gun. He considered the fact that his transformation somehow gifted him super-speed, yet he wasn't running fast enough for that, so that theory went out the window. He wasn't manipulating time either, it was more like his brain was processing it slower. Was that possible? Such a thing only existed in video games. Should he really be questioning reality at this point? Nothing made sense anymore and it honestly didn't have to, because no matter what he wouldn't allow fate to decide the outcome of this battle, not after the bitch screwed him over hundreds of times.

Dwayne kept his head low as he charged into the laser fire, disregarding caution. He was determined to become free, the teenager was still absolutely terrified but not at the point of freezing up entirely and dying on the spot. His Rizer was reared back in a striking position, his legs taking long strides to close the distance, the laser beams flew pass him, threatening to rip him apart. He would not let fear guide his hand nor his blade, he would let his anger fuel his resolve, anger at being thrown into this world, anger at being mutated into something unrecognizable to the few people he cherished, anger at letting these monsters drive him into a corner. But like any cornered animal would do...

They'll fight to live.

Dwayne's Rizer claimed it's first victim, stabbing within a Server Droid's chasis and coming out the back, the Server's sensors ceased to glow as it's body was lifted in the air and used as a shield for incoming fire. Dwayne ran forward with the Server in tow and slammed it into another, he tore his Rizer free and slashed behind him, cutting down a Server Droid effortlessly.

Two

He leaped in the air, just in time too, since his original position was swarmed with laser fire. His Rizer lashed out like a whip becoming an orange blur as it sliced off the head of a Droid before burrowing into another's head. Dwayne pulled sharply, launching the droid upward where his feet met it half way, kicking off the head and sending it crashing into a third Droid.

Five

Dwayne landed in a handstand and pushed himself into the air again, where a missile abruptly struck his airborne form. An explosion sent him across the room and flying into a airship's wing, he left a large dent before dropping to the ground . Surprisingly he didn't feel any pain, that might be due to the orange aura coating his body. His jewel shimmered slightly giving him a warm feeling, like it was sheltering him in an invisible armor. So he had his own personal shield? That was convenient.

Dwayne looked up to see the Brutes lining up to fire again, although he notices the dented wing above him, ready to come loose. Dwayne extended his Rizer and cut horizontally, tearing the wing free and catching it before it crushes him. Normally he couldn't bench anything over a hundred pounds but that was his old scrawny self, this was his alien hybrid self. The Brute fired and Dwayne positioned himself in a batting pose then swung the broken wing, bouncing the missile back into a group of five Droids.

Ten

Dwayne groaned in exhaustion, his muscles straining to hold up the heavy object so he tossed aside, managing to crush a Droid straying from the group. Meanwhile one of the Brutes raised it's massive arms, a panel opening in it's wrist revealing a long barrel that discharged a beam of red energy. Dwayne yelped then broke into a wind sprint down the row of ships, the rapid explosions behind him indicated the beam was following him and blowing everything to hell. He skidded to a stop when the second Brute blocked him off, Dwayne cursed as he narrowly avoids being flattened by the Brute's fist hammering down. When the fist was grounded Dwayne latched onto it's finger and pulled himself up. Dwayne ran up it's bulky arm then hurtled over it's shoulder, as the Brute was turning around the red beam that was pursuing Dwayne, pierced through it's chest. The giant collapsed to the floor, it's glowing eyes flickering out.

Twelve.

Lightning surged through Dwayne's arms begging to join the battle, he obliged and swept his arms apart, letting loose an electric pulse that fried two of the droids. The glow in their eyes fades as they dropped to the floor.

Fourteen...How was he doing this?

One droid came from behind and rammed it's shoulder into his back, driving him to the ground. The Server aimed it's rifle down on him, Dwayne kicked the rifle away causing the Server to misfire into one of it's approaching comrades. Dwayne used his other foot to sweep the Server in front of him off balance. Dwayne got to his feet first and mounted the Server droid then brought down his fist several times, bashing the Server's metallic skull in.

Sixteen...was this luck?

His Instincts told him to jump and he did so, dodging a Brute's fist, Dwayne awkwardly ducked under it's follow up then dived to the side when it's foot attempted to crush him. The mounted wrist gun fired an energy blast, Dwayne brought his shield up to defend himself, but it proved fruitless as the blast slammed into him with the force of a speeding truck, sending him soaring in the air. He landed on his back in a bounce, his ears were still ringing from the blast for him to hear the Brute's heavy step. When Dwayne came to his senses he noticed the Brute's foot drawing closer until it kicked him as though he was a football, launching him towards the wall. Instead of crashing again, he angled his body in mid air so he could land safely on the ground in a crouch. He felt the warmth leave him and orange particles disbursing from his body

"That's a bad sign—" Dwayne's sentence was cut short when a laser shot pass and grazed his cheek. He winced at the stinging sensation, so the shield was his first line of defense but it wasn't invincible, if broken his body will be left open for damage.

Dwayne shot electricity through his fingertips hitting the Brute head on, it was like water off a duck's back to the hulking machine as it continued marching towards him. Dwayne dashed swiftly to the side avoiding the Brute's returning fire, he leapt forth with his hand outstretched, the tip of his claws flashed orange and he was suddenly dragged in by an invisible force.

The last thing he knew his hands were planted on the wall, his feet flashed orange as well an electric spark flowing through them. Dwayne didn't have time to question what happen since a red landed beside him, causing an explosion of shrapnel. He raised both his forearms in front him, keeping the shrapnel from shredding his face and eyes, during this he noticed that his feet were sticking to the wall as though gravity was keeping him rooted to the spot. Dwayne gasped and ran upward, missing an energy blast by an inch. More laser fire came into view and He swerved side to side dodging the rapid shots. Dwayne was running out of surface to run on and he had no idea how to detach himself free from gravity's hold. The hybrid focused hard thinking it would trigger something, it did, but it wasn't the expected result. Dwayne's feet flashed twice and he ascended high in the air, he waved his arms frantically as he floated weightlessly. Now he was being repelled by anti-gravity? He slightly understood what was happening, he was controlling the gravity surrounding him, to either repel or attract his body in different directions.

He noted to test these powers later, who knew what else he could do- Dwayne's eyes widen when gravity sent him flying back down. He crushed an unfortunate Server droid under him which softened his landing a bit, he bounced to his feet immediately and awkwardly deflected a laser with his Rizer, three more shots came and he repeated the action only able to deflect two until the third one tore into his shoulder.

"Fuck!" Dwayne yelled in pain and clutched the smoking hole in his shoulder, a solid hit like that could be fatal to any human. Luckily Dwayne is no longer one in appearance, he still had the heart of a man. Orange particles were sucked into the injury, closing it instantaneously.

"Are you shitting me? I have a fucking healing factor!?

He kinda wanted to have a healing factor as a child, who didn't want one? The power to heal any injury in the snap of a finger can be useful to anybody. But Dwayne wasn't stupid enough to start solely relying on it , there had to be a limit to how much damage he could take. Meaning he should avoid that Brute's incoming fist before it could reduced him to dust, he was too late obviously, he did the next best thing and braced himself for the heavy collision. Dwayne's body emitted a loud crack when the attack connected and carried him skyward, but he held on to keep himself from flying off, then started climbing down the arm until he reached the Brute's head. He stood and unleashed a flurry of slashes with his Rizer that were only successful in scratching the metal. Dwayne exhaled sharply when it's large hands grabbed ahold of him and he was thrown down fiercely. He recovered fast enough to catch the foot intending to crush him, the hybrid roared as he lifted the Brute's foot high enough to send it staggering backwards, stepping on a Droid in the process. Dwayne weaved his head to the side missing a laser threatening to punch through his head, he turned behind him to see a Server Droid holding a longer laser rifle equipped with a scope.

Dwayne's Rizer fired across the room nearly puncturing the Droid's head if it hadn't leaned away in time. The Droid fired again at the boy who automatically responded by dropping to his hands and knees, allowing the blast to go overhead. Electricity surged down to his hands transferring through the floor, creating an electric shockwave that coursed into the Droid's body. The Droid's head bursts in a fiery explosion.

Nineteen, this was luck.

The brute was the only opponent left standing, but he had no idea how to deal lasting damage to it. Everything he threw so far was ineffective, it's armor was too dense to penetrate so he needed to use blunt force, but where was he going to find something big enough to hit it with. The mounted shoulder cannon set it's sights on Dwayne deploying a volley of missiles, an idea popped in his head as he began to process time slower. His Rizer whipped, coiling around the first missile like a snake. His plan was to throw it right back at the Brute, but He didn't count on the damn thing taking him for a ride. He was dragged on the floor then up the wall before finally becoming airborne. Dwayne quickly adapted to the situation and held out his glowing hand up at the Brute, gravity pulled him down faster than an anvil dropping from the sky, he used the intense momentum to spin the missile around and launch it towards the Brute's face, creating an explosion powerful enough to send the massive machine onto one knee. The smoke cleared revealing the exposed circuits in it's chest, a potential weak point that could bring this fight to a conclusion. Using anti-gravity to enhance his jump towards the Brute, he hooked onto the opening and shoved his hand deep inside. Electricity was channeled to his palm and exploded outward, shocking the giant as it thrashed around. It took a full minute for the Brute to cease it's struggles then drop to it's side. Dwayne sighed in relief while removing his hand, the jewel in his chest flickered and it's glow became less visible.

"Congratulations human, you've just defeated the Empire's...servants?" The voice faked it's confusion. "That Doesn't sound so rewarding does it?"

"First off, Fuck you." Dwayne didn't care what the boy said at this point, he made it out on top and...he felt good about it. There a was a demented satisfaction in defeating a miniature army of death machines that are capable of destroying whole civilizations, was this what it felt like for the heroes after defeating their foes? "Second, where's the ship? I thought you said it was here?"

"It is, walk forward." The Voice advised. Dwayne rolled his eyes and did what the entity told him. Then his head slammed against something hard. "You're here." the creature said with a hint of amusement in it's voice.

"The fuck?" Dwayne stretched his hand out touching what appeared to be an invisible object, his jewel flashed orange and a surge of energy traveled to his hand. Dwayne gawked in amazement as a gigantic vessel materializes in front of him, It had an arrow-shaped hull, with two elongated wings attached to its sides, with two nacelles under them. It also has several spines protruding from it's rear. There are also several nozzles in between the spines, as well as on the bottom of the engine supports, most likely its main source of propulsion. The colors were black with neon orange trims.

And it was all his...

He truly conquered fate today.

Without warning a metallic claw punched a hole through the floor, a robotic monstrosity crawled out as it's upper body towered over Dwayne's small form. Massive metal horns on top of an arrow-shaped head with one glowing red eye, metallic wings spread freely long enough to touch the roof.

Dwayne threw fate a fast ball...

The Server's hellish screech echoed through the room.

Fate smacked him with a bat