Hugs and Separations, A Road to Go On

Crynn POV

"Found anything yet?" I swiped through the console controls on the digital screen, trying to find any way to stop the portal. No time to worry about Calian and Jill at these tumultuous minutes. Well I'm sure they're prowess will in turn grant them a victory but let's not get too cocky just yet because so far, I haven't found any way to disable the portal!

"Facility self destruct mechanism? This is not a great day to die," V said as she continued searching from her position, this is quite the work effort, huh. "A lot of these needs passwords as well which we don't have time to crack," Yep, Aria also said it, yes a lot of the controls require keycodes, keycodes that I don't have nor could I have.

"Well, invading aliens above our heads, not everything you see everyday," V stated as she looked up to the 'skies', a yellow portal opening to another world, or plane and a whole lot of warships. "Never believed in aliens before?" I questioned while doing m part, God knows small talk is required to calm one's self in this shit show.

"No, well, not until today when the proof is right above me," V sighed as she gazed upwards once more to the invading forces. "Does the Earth or the Moon have any of their own warships?" I inquired because they must have, right? Seeing as how many wars were waged on the moon, it seems obvious to have some.

"Yes they have, but nothing I knew are as big as the alien warships," V frowned and went on looking. You know, surprisingly with how much of a wreck the alien caused to this room, not one electronic console was 'hurt' in the process. All the spikes avoided it, all the smashing never got to it, all meticulously avoided by the alien.

Well we could just destroy the consoles, see what happens, but looking at the odds, maybe not. "Finally! Made! It! To! The! Top!" Some panting made it to my ears as I found that it came from the gaping hole on the ground. "The alien?" I went over and bent down to gaze at Jill and Calian, pretty much uninjured and looking all fine.

"We... disintegrated him..." What? "How did you do that?" I stretched my one arm down and pulled both Jill and Calian up respectively. "We came across a large energy reactor with this very bright ball as the core. Things happen, the alien went too far out of the magical beacon's range and all his abilities disappeared."

"We ganged up on him and threw him off into the core," good, very good, no more danger, peace for us to quickly find anyway to shut the Lunar Gate down. "So, what have you got?" Jill immediately asked and got to work the instant she reached up because Jill is just that much of a workaholic and perfectionist.

"A whole load of nothing, well, nothing enough to stop the portal. Those enough won't only work to stop it, it will stop us to, in the... living sense," yes, V wouldn't want to die today and so wouldn't we. "Anyway to shut down the reactor, cut down power supply?" Jill called out for more information and pertaining that one, I'll just let Aria explain.

"Yes, see the couple of black rectangular boxes on the ground over there. Those boxes link the Lunar Gate through to the reactor by these console controls. The problem is, looks like the alien had already done countermeasures and pulled it out. So to summarize, it's broken and we can't turn off power supply," yup, bonkers.

"Can't nothing get right for once," Jill uttered in exasperation as she pressed hard on the console and scrolled down, and hard, and fast. And... stop. "Oh? What's this?" What's what? Question marks appeared in my mind as I looked at Jill's console to see what she has got. "Lunar Palace Defense Systems... Defense!" Jill shouted as she opened the file up.

"Yes, defense. Defense is the best offense!" Calian laughed as I just stared, how could someone be so lucky. Maybe I have to remember, that someone is a protagonist, of course she's lucky... right... "Here, arm yourselves," Jill said to each of us as our holographic screens show a different scenery. Before, it was technical, now it was practical.

On our screens show the vibrant view of battle and a barrel, and an aiming reticle, this is about to get fun. That's if I could bring myself out of the present view into the Lunar Gate because damn, that is an amazing setting of war. Huge colossal sized warships battling each other, though the human side is on the losing side at the moment.

I spun my turret and raised the barrel, aiming for the Lunar Gate. "Permission to fire?" I cheekily said as my reticle was centered on the Lunar Gate's casing, ready to blow it out of space! "Fire!" BOOM!!! I know, no sounds could be heard in space, but that's the only sound I can imagine at the moment, the perfect and beautiful sound of an explosion!

5 different turrets, 5 massive metal rounds, and 5 simultaneous shots! That's all it took, all it ever took. BOOM!!! "What an explosive end this is!" I was mesmerized. As our rounds penetrated the portal's casing, surges of energy began to be released and soon, blamo! The entire portal blew into fragments and shrapnel as 3 waves of yellow energy bursts out, circling the moon!

{Chain Mission:}

{1. Find out what world you're in and where you currently are. (Accomplished) }

{2. Hack and analyze Militech's database with the all-round scanner retrievable via anyone's inventory in the course of the mission. (Accomplished) }

{3. Enter the UCU (United Corporations Union) database vault via information obtained in the all-round scanner or crudely said, your own way. (Accomplished) }

{4. Access and analyze the UCU database vault with the all-round scanner. (Accomplished) }

{5. Take a space express plane to the nearest lunar transit port and proceed to the Lunar Palace. (Accomplished) }

{6. Defeat Doctor Guft'vin Ltauf'ish. (Accomplished) }

{Sub-mission : Get a local to help you out! (Accomplished) }

{Sub-mission : Shut down the Lunar Gate! (Accomplished) }

{Returning in 2 Minutes}

Mission accomplished. That's all I need to hear. I really need a vacation and refreshing cold tea. Not Long Island iced tea, but mixed fruit tea, non alcoholic, chilling. And as usual, 2 minutes, a very small time to say goodbye. This is always both the saddest and happiest parts of a mission. You complete it together with someone, you get to know the person, be friends and after all that, just leave with no explanation., the biggest shame.

"We did it..." V muttered as she looked at us. "We did it!!!" She roared together with a crazed chuckle and cackle as she couldn't hide her immense delight and sense of achievement. It's not everyday you get to prevent an alien invasion. "Yes, we did it, indeed we did it," Jill's smile was serene and sincere.

"And I guess it's... time for us to leave," Aria said which pulled a sigh out of herself and the rest of us, this had been easily a great time and all great times must eventually end. "We're leaving so soon?" V seems confused, I don't blame her. "Someone will come pick us up in under two minutes... not including you," Calian broke it for her.

"What do you mean?" V's expressions slowly turned to a frown. "No no no no... that's not what Calian meant entirely. You see, Even after this buzz, we still have our own work to continue and... you need to rest. Imagine we were going clubbing. The four of us want to continue onto another club while you, you want to go back, home."

"And you called upon a taxi. And that's what you're going to get, a taxi back home, back to your lover and a taxi full of rewards," Jill began with another sigh, this is turning somewhat gloomy. "And you're just going to leave?!" V angrily shouted, ouch. "It's not our choice to make," Aria interjected and soothed.

"Then... will I see you guys ever... again?" Seeing the atmosphere, V finally relented and hoped. "Maybe, maybe not. Just remember, life's an adventure. You meet, you go, you see, you feel. Life is about what we, what you experience, what you remember, what you decided to keep in your heart and mind. And so do us," I smiled genuinely, as I opened my arms to hug her.

She returned it warmly as the rest did so in turns, each hug represents a road to move on, and each separation dignifies the intent to reel forwards. "I... I will miss you all. And it has been a pleasure to know you," V said with glistening eyes as she nodded. Looks like it's time to leave. I waved my hand at V as golden light descended on us and the next thing I knew. I'm back into the void.

***

As soon as the light dimmed, and the figures disappeared, V heaved a long, long sigh. A journey worth a lifetime, ended in a flash. Days had gone past, it feels long but time is never forever and its haste is always whenever. V raised her hand and rubbed her eyes, a small tinge of tear remaining as she smiled and turned, it's time for her to continue onwards on her path.

Shine, holy light, brightness envelops the room as V's eyes enlarged and she rotated back, hoping to see her saviors turned friends once more. But what she got was most unexpected. It was beautiful, it was an angel, a description of anything else would seem to sully the image in front of her.

"So, about the promised rewards, I may have a proposition to make."