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More from fireandfeathers
This is a major part of the story line, where much is revealed, much is resolved. The Revolution is won and Gaia re-appears. Enemies repent, and lives are saved.
Contains Cameos from
Japirishfox as Dokuso and 
Nikosei as Zak!
_______________________________________________________________________
‘Hey! Get down here, We’ve got wounded!’ I shouted out from my pipe as I saw an ADF helicopter fly overhead. They saw me, and stopped, hovering in the air. They tried to land in the canal, but they were shot at. They landed about a block away.
‘Zak, can you walk?’ I asked my mongoose friend. He stood up, shakily.
‘Barely.’ He responded.
‘It’ll have to do. Evac’s landed a short distance away, come on!’ I said, grabbing a rifle from what we had. Zak had a large automatic pistol of some sort. We got up to the edge of the canal, and ducked down. There were some human military there!
'Ah, hell...’ I muttered.
'Over there!’ One of them shouted, running over. I got my rifle ready- Then a bullet whizzed over our heads.
'Augh!’ One trooper cried as the bullet splattered one guy’s head and shot the other in the stomach. Another bullet flew over our heads, taking out two more. I looked behind us- There was a gas station near the canal- and there was a friendly sniper on the roof, hiding behind an ad. The sniper looked insect-like, but blue. Seemingly wasp, perhaps?
I peeked over to see our helicopter troops trying to protect the helicopter- then a human trooper threw a grenade and blew up the helicopter and the personnel inside. The grenade thrower got sniped.
'We really need some evac...’ I muttered. The sniper beckoned us over as he or she blasted the enemy troops.
'That sniper’s brave. Come on, Zak. Lets get over there.’ I said. Zak nodded as we dashed across the open canal. Another trooper down- This sniper’s good- Perhaps special ranked?
We scrambled up the side of the canal and around the side of the station, just as a hail of bullets flew past us. There was a ladder up to the roof, and we clambered up.
The sniper was indeed insect-like. Our savior was a she, and wasp, like I thought. Of course, most wasps aren’t blue. She was currently blasting the hell out of the attackers, reloading with her other two arms without taking the sniper out of its scoping mode. She had a grey hoodie on that had two holes cut in it for her lower arms, and she had a pair of cargo paints on that were hold several extra cartridges. A mix between a tail and a wasp thorax stuck out from under her hoodie. The poison must be deadly.
'And you two are?’ She asked.
'Neon.’ I replied.
‘And I’m Zak.' Zak was tired out- an injury can do that.
Another trooper down. And another. A bullet put a hole in my jacket, but nothing else.
'You two may want to get down!’ She shouted as she tossed a grenade. There was a loud boom and I saw an arm go flying afterwards.
‘Name’s Dokuso. And I’m surprised you two have commented on my species yet...’ She said, disengaging from combat. Her lower arms were crossed, and she held the rifle up high.
‘I’m used to seeing all kinds. A blue wasp sniper hardly surprises me.’ I replied. Zak looked a little confused.
'I try to stay away from most, they tend to have a bad opinion against insects like myself.’ Dokuso replied.
'I didn’t even know the scientists could mix DNA from such a small creature with such a small one.’ Zak said. 'But the blue?...’
'They screwed up with my serum. Color went a little off.’
'Like my bioluminescent feathers.’ I said.
'Exactly.’ The wasp replied. She pulled out a walky-talky. 'You guys need evac?’ She asked.
'Very much so.’ Zak replied. Dokuso switched on the radio.
'I’ve got two down here that need Evac. They say they’re called Neon and Zak.’ She said. 'Really? Alright then. Wish us luck.’ She switched it off, and slid it back into her hoodie’s pocket. 'They’re sending in another jeep, but ADF control’s also picked up another battalion coming in- an enemy one. I’m going to move to another building, but I’ll keep you notified. You’ve got a professional Snypr with you. With a Y, no E.’
'Never heard of that rank before.’ I replied.
'I’m one of the first. Now, go!’ She said, beckoning to the house on the other side of the canal. She was already dashing towards a tower that was near the station.
'ETA, five minutes!’ She shouted as we climber back down to the canal. We would need a gun.
+
The Azarax had been leading us at gunpoint for the past half hour, through the collapsed sewer system. Gaia had apparently set herself up underground, in a sewer control room. Thankfully, the sewers were drained- otherwise we’d be wading in about a foot of feces.
'I’m just wondering- why does Gaia want us?’ Jaxx asked.
'Shut it.’ One of the drones replied. Gaia gave them more personality, it seems. They talk more, for sure.
They had disarmed us awhile ago, so that we couldn’t shoot. But of course, we can survive alot of injuries... The Amulets did that for us.
'Where do you think they’re taking us?’ Marcus asked.
'Perhaps one of the old sewer control rooms?’ Jaxx responded.
'I said shut it.’ The drone said again.
'What are you going to do to us anyhow? Gaia needs us.’ Jaxx continued.
'She only needs you to be able to speak. And she only needs three of you.’ the drone said, and it raised the rifle it carried, bringing it to Jasmine’s robot.
CRUNCH!
The bastard had a piston instead of a gun, and it used that to smash the robot’s head in!
'You bastard!’ I shouted, pretending like that was actually her. She was still in the clock tower, safe.
'Did Gaia order you to do that?’ Jaxx asked, frowning. He saw my plan. I think Marcus did too.
'You three each played instrumental parts in the previous war. Each one of you can fight. Each one of you did. We can use th-’
Beeeeep. Beeeeep.
'What is that?’ The drone asked. Jaxx pulled out a cell phone from his pocket.
'Damn, ADF phones get reception down here? Give me a sec.’ He said, turning around from the drones. 'Damn it Kenji, I’m onto something here!... Sorry, why me?... Because I’m one of the few qualified to pilot a carrier? Fine. But I’m kinda stuck here, at gunpoint...
'WHAT?! An experimental teleporter? Hey, wait!’ Jaxx was enveloped by a beam of red light, and then he vanished. A hole was left in the roof.
'Did he just get evaporated?...’ I muttered.
'No, teleportation beam. He’s fine. But us...’ Marcus replied.
'We’re going to meet the AI that started it all.’ I replied.
‘Well, you will. I’ve met her once before.’ Marcus replied.
‘150 years ago or so! And this is a backup.’
‘Must I shoot one of you again?’ The drone asked.
‘Nope.’ Both me and Marcus said at the same time.
-
Zak had ducked behind a blasted car near the gas station, with an automatic rifle ready. I was hidden behind the wreck of the helicopter, guns ready for a fight. Dokuso was in the fifth floor of an office block, her sniper ready to fire.
‘I can see them coming around the bend of the canal. You better have some damn good luck.’ She said.
‘I do, but I don’t know about Zak.’ I responded.
‘Fair enough. Good luck to you both; these will be the last time we speak. I try to stay out of the way.’ Dokuso said, and the radio switched off.
‘Smart girl.’ I muttered to myself, steadying a large rifle. A jeep sped around a corner quickly, unknowing. Dokuso took out the driver as I shot the gunner off; the jeep proceeded to crash on one of the sides of the canal. Thee more jeeps followed, and one armored truck.
‘Come on then, bastards! Come and get me!’ Zak roared, blasting down two enemy troops with his rifle and throwing a grenade. The grenade tore a hole in the truck’s armor, but it kept on rolling.
Dokuso put a large shell through the tires of one of the jeeps, immobilizing it. I took down two more troopers and then injured another.
‘Christ, there’s a lot!’ I shouted, dodging a thrown knife.
‘You’ll get used to it!’ Zak shouted as he took down another enemy trooper. They weren’t very well trained…
‘ETA for backup: 3 minutes. Survive for that long, and you guys are out of here. Put in a good word for me with ADF command, would ya?’ Dokuso asked over the radio. She took out the passenger in the truck- but not the driver.
‘I’ll do my best.’ I replied.
‘Good, I’m going to play some music now. Good luck!’ She said, and the radio switched off. Seconds later, a flurry of bullets went flying from her direction, taking out the last jeep.
‘Damn, she’s good.’ Zak remarked as he shot a soldier in the leg. A bullet grazed his cheek.
‘Damn it!’ He shouted. ‘That hurt!’ I was looking to him, and some seconds later a bullet struck me in the leg, flipping me onto my face.
‘Ack!’ I cried as I fell. It healed, but it still stung.
‘Damn, I wish I had one of those amulets…’ Zak muttered.
‘Come on ADF, where are you…?’ I said to myself, keeping my aim on the truck. Dokuso sniped the driver, making it crash. Then the tank rolled in…
Dokuso was quickly jumping from building to building, away from the dark green tank. I was about to call her a coward when the helicopter flew over my head and blew up the tank with several air-to-ground missiles, taking out the building she was in previously. The helicopter landed nearby, and a familiar face stepped out. Familiar-ish.
‘Howard! Good to see you, finally.’ I said to him. He had chosen a Komodo dragon as his species- an odd choice.
‘Good to sssee you too.’ He said, hugging me. A pair of medics jumped out of the helicopter and helped Zak in.
‘We better get back, huh?’ I said. Howard nodded.
‘You were the only of the three that never made it back to hisss or her own terrain or home. Jaxx wasss delivered to a large group- he’sss collecting what of the othersss with the amuletsss he can. Jasssmine is back under the sssea, fighting in her own way.’
‘And Marcus?’ I asked.
‘We lossst contact with him, but he’sss out there.’ Howard got back into the chopper. ‘The Featherweight isss ready for sssome combat, and you ssseem ready for a meal. Ssshall we go?’
‘Yes please.’ I said, jumping into the chopper. We departed the area.
+
The sewers were damp, dark, and cold. Even Marcus could feel the cold down here.
We stopped at a non-descript metal door just placed in the side of the aged stone wall. Looked like nothing special- a curious anthro may miss it.
‘Enter.’ The drone said. Marcus’s wing span could barely fit, and he also had to duck, but we made it in. Inside, though…
The room was a good 100 feet square, diamond plate metal everywhere. Evidentially, it was kept clean by something. The actual things inside were the astonishers, though.
A large turbine was in the direct center of the room, whirring up a storm. Computer banks lined the walls, and there was an old-fashioned keyboard mounted on a simple table. A small screen was built next to it.
‘So, this is Gaia’s chamber. Come out, you bitch!’ Marcus roared. No answer. ‘You deserve a long, slow death- not this second chance!’ Still no answer. I looked at the screen that was mounted on the keyboard. It was blank apart from the flashing line indicating that you could type for it.
‘I think I found the interface.’ I said. Marcus came over. ‘Shall I begin typing?’ I asked. Marcus nodded. What follows is a transcript of what was written.
N: Hello? Gaia, you there?
G: Yes, I’m here.
N: How’d you survive?
G: Luck, and a backup personality. The first one had a major error in her programming, she saw any tech as world-destroying. Sadly, she could not see the fact that she was destroying the world in her... tantrum.
N: So, are you two different? Or are you copied from the other?
G: I am the backup, nothing more.
N: Wait, backups are usually copied from the original. Never as good.
G: I am the backup, nothing more.
N: Damn it Gaia, listen! Will the same error happen again?
G: I fixed the mistake in my programming. One of my creators forgot to capitalize a T.
Marcus Shoves me away at this point, taking over the keyboard.
M: You’re saying that millions were killed because of a GOD DAMNED TYPO?!?!
G: Yes.
M: Gaia, I should kill you, right now. I helped once before, but I ran away, and another was put in the line of fire. He is now in a terrible and mutated state.
G: Not mutated. Absorbed.
M: What the hell do you mean?
G: That wasn’t Anti-matter or Dark Energy, or anything of the kind. I don’t think those exist.
I take back the keyboard here.
N: Then what the hell was it?
G: My creators had developed a defensive system in the robot before setting it into a sleep mode. A so called power source would be made obvious- like a core powered by a non-existent power. The actual core was nuclear energy running throughout the body via three generators. One in the head, and the other two in the knees of all places.
N: So, is the first Gaia still alive?
G: The chance of that is .075901%- very slim. She is dead for good.
N: But what was in the fake core?
G: Nanobots surrounding a .347 megaton atomic bomb. The nanobots would absorb whoever shattered the casing of the 'Core’, about 3 milliseconds before the upper half of the robot would be destroyed.
N: So Jake, this hero which 'Sacrificed’ his body to kill your sister AI, is now a swarm of nanobots?
G: Yes. He can absorb or use anything, and he cannot be killed by anything conventional. Most unconventional would do nothing either. Even if just one unit remained, he could be re-constructed.
N: But he’s not harming anyone. From what I’ve heard, Jake reconstructed the Theater he used to run- all of his friends and co-actors were killed.
G: Harmless, for now. Something could set off a rage, and his control would snap. He must be terminated.
N: So we have to fight this world’s greatest hero now?
G: I am afraid so. But at this time, it would take a massive amount of firepower to destroy his tough nanos.
N: How much?
G: Computing.
N: How much, damn it!
G: A twelve megaton nuclear bomb should do it. And with a direct hit.
Marcus takes the keyboard again.
M: Gaia, that’d destroy a small country! Thousands, if not millions would be killed!
G: Give me time and technological advancements, and perhaps I can come up with a weapon which can destroy him.
M: How much time?
G: Seven years.
M: Seven years? God damn it... What’s the chance of him going out of control within that time?
G: Computing...
G: 97.9797%.
M: Fuck.
G: Restate, please?
M: Never mind. What if we take him out into space, then use the nuke?
G: It has a 72.6359% of being successful.
M: It’ll have to do.
I took the keyboard again.
N: So, what do you want us to do?
G: Tell ADF about this, but not about me. Say you found out more by scouring the wreckage of the Gaia-bot.
N: That should be easy enough.
G: Good. Now go, I have many things to think about and to work on. Time to do my job.
The screen shut off.
'Come on, I’ll lead you two out.’ A drone said that just walked in.
'It seems we have little choice in the matter.’ Marcus said. I nodded in agreement.
-
The helicopter ride back to base was steady and simple. We had mostly taken the city, so backup was able to arrive quickly.
'Ssso, what do you think?’ Howard said.
'An interesting choice. But why a lizard like the Komodo?’ I asked.
'It’sss a big lizard, and I’ve always been ssstrong. I wanted to keep my ssstrength, while having the ssscalesss.’ He responded.
'Ah. And the Featherweight?’
'Ssshe’sss fine. Sssome engineers upgraded her well- you’ll sssee the resssultsss shortly.’
'Hopefully they’re good.’ I said.
I watched the cityscape below us. We had devastated the city. The buildings were smashed, the dead were out in the streets, and the last few groups of resistance were fighting off the ADF. We took the area over by force- it wasn’t supposed to be like this... We took evolution into our own hands, we are the new era, the new breed. We’re the new dominating species, and we are better than the human race in just about every damn way possible. Stronger, faster, smarter, and more versatile. We could do it all. And yes, we were saving the Earth from a slow death- but we were devastating the land to stop the land from being devastated. There has to be another way.
True, we can’t share a planet. Humans would try to hunt us, or rebel. They would still cause destruction anyways.
We shouldn’t kill them all; it’s like the children raping and killing their parents. Reserves? Some would deserve it, but no- it’s unjust. We’re fighting to stop that sort of thing. But we can send them away...
Spaceships were being developed, and travel between the moon and Earth was quite common. Some of these ships were massive space-station type things. What if cities made alike giant spaceships were designed, and sent away from the Earth? Gaia was working on that. Erase memories of the planet, make them think that they’ve lived on the ships forever. Give them another life, let the anthros have the planet. Yeah, that should work. We took our evolution into our own hands.
We landed in front of the base- Kenji was there to greet me.
'Christ, that was hard getting you back. What the hell happened out there?’ He asked.
'Usual. Got attacked, some things exploded, a building fell over- what’d you expect from the apocalypse. Where’s Zak going?’ I asked, looking up to watch the other helicopter go.
'He’s being take to one of the hospitals- I heard he got injured.’ Kenji replied.
'Not in the best shape...’ I muttered. 'So, let’s see the old girl.’ I said. The door opened, and the two crafts were there- the Featherweight and the Streamlined Blade. Both had been upgraded.
The SB had been made longer, stronger, and got some large cannons mounted in the wings. Otherwise, it looked alot the same. I, on the other hand, got thick armor, a jet twice the size, and a small array of gattling guns on the bottom. We were set.
'You guys best get out there- a few ADF troops are stranded or pinned down out there. They need a savior.’ Kenji said. Howard nodded towards our crafts.
'Ssshall we?’ He asked. I nodded, and we ran to our crafts. Time for some fun.
+
Marcus and I flew to the clocktower, but discovered just a note from Jasmine.
I don’t know what happened in there, but if you guys are reading this, then the bitch Gaia obviously didn’t kill you. I’m probably already out to sea, warning the underwater squadrons of the ADF about our Gaia problem. Wish me luck.
-Jasmine
'So it is just us, huh?’ I asked.
'It would seem that way.’ Marcus responded. 'So... It seems I have a job to do. Keep tabs on Jake. But you? What are you going to do?’
'I’m a wanderer at heart, Marcus. A racer as well. A wandering racer, if you must. I’m just going to keep exploring, keep traveling, and hope that the HCGPs will be brought back. If not, I’ll bring them back myself.’ I responded.
'Why wouldn’t they be brought back?’
'Marcus, the War of Ages happened during the racing. A day of destruction, a day of torment- and a day of fun for me. Not for almost every single other racer. 47 racers were killed, and I’m not going to even bear talking about the announcers or the crews which set up the races. Some may have survived, I wouldn’t doubt it. But the announcers vanished off of the wavelengths at about the third leg of that unforgettable African HCGP. I’ll still race- there’d be other races, homemade ones; but none like the HCGPs. Those were the largest races in the world, and the most varied. The shortest HCGP’s a couple thousand miles- that’s why each one goes on for several days. Hopefully I’ve got something or someone to race against.’
'Well spoken, my old friend. I wish you the best of luck.’ Marcus said. He walked over to the shattered clock face. 'Keep surviving; It’s a hard world out there.’ And with that, he flew off of the side of the tower, and out into the rising sun. He was a black V against the bright glow- and then he was gone.
'And good luck to you, you legend.’
-
4 months after the beginning of the revolution...
I was roaring down a lonely street in the northern fringes of Canada, watching out for any more resistance. There was none on this 100 mile long stretch of road. It was lonely out here.
The radio in my cockpit beeped. I switched it on.
'Neon, look up to the sky. Now.’ The voice said. I stopped the Featherweight and opened the cockpit, standing on the front of the craft. Several shapes were flying up into the sky, looking somewhat like meteors, but flying up. There were four- from what I could see.
'You’re seeing New America, New Canada, New Alaska, and New Greenland. You can only see them form where you are now because of the power needed to lift them up through these blue skies- about the same power as a couple of 10 megaton nukes. Each of them is about 70 miles long and about half as wide.’ The voice that I recognized as Jaxx said. 'We’ve done it. all over the world, countries are deploying the city ships that are each packed with any humans who wanted to forsake the earth. 159 countries deployed their city ships, but not all were able to launch in time. We’re taking care of that shortly.’
I watched the ships fly into space, going on massive voyages. So they’ve gone...
I watched the sky over the horizon take on a purple-ish hue. that hue was starting to get closer, and fast.
'That’s the gas which targets humans and changes them. It targets only human DNA, and only creatures with pure enough human DNA for it to work. You can breath it in; it won’t do anything. This gas marks the beginning of a new age, my friend. the landscape may be devastated by fighting, but no matter. We’ve won; Earth will pull herself back together with time.
‘This gas will last for only a few hours in total- about five minutes in most places. This world will come back.’ The radio switched off.
The gas made it to where I was, and, like Jaxx said, it had no effect on me. It was like standing in a poll of syrup. Syrup that smelt rather oddly fruity.
I let out a silent cheer and got back into the FW as the gas departed from my location. It was like a wave of gas, covering the Earth. We had won.
I continued down the desolate road, not looking back.
Contains Cameos from
Japirishfox as Dokuso and 
Nikosei as Zak! _______________________________________________________________________
‘Hey! Get down here, We’ve got wounded!’ I shouted out from my pipe as I saw an ADF helicopter fly overhead. They saw me, and stopped, hovering in the air. They tried to land in the canal, but they were shot at. They landed about a block away.
‘Zak, can you walk?’ I asked my mongoose friend. He stood up, shakily.
‘Barely.’ He responded.
‘It’ll have to do. Evac’s landed a short distance away, come on!’ I said, grabbing a rifle from what we had. Zak had a large automatic pistol of some sort. We got up to the edge of the canal, and ducked down. There were some human military there!
'Ah, hell...’ I muttered.
'Over there!’ One of them shouted, running over. I got my rifle ready- Then a bullet whizzed over our heads.
'Augh!’ One trooper cried as the bullet splattered one guy’s head and shot the other in the stomach. Another bullet flew over our heads, taking out two more. I looked behind us- There was a gas station near the canal- and there was a friendly sniper on the roof, hiding behind an ad. The sniper looked insect-like, but blue. Seemingly wasp, perhaps?
I peeked over to see our helicopter troops trying to protect the helicopter- then a human trooper threw a grenade and blew up the helicopter and the personnel inside. The grenade thrower got sniped.
'We really need some evac...’ I muttered. The sniper beckoned us over as he or she blasted the enemy troops.
'That sniper’s brave. Come on, Zak. Lets get over there.’ I said. Zak nodded as we dashed across the open canal. Another trooper down- This sniper’s good- Perhaps special ranked?
We scrambled up the side of the canal and around the side of the station, just as a hail of bullets flew past us. There was a ladder up to the roof, and we clambered up.
The sniper was indeed insect-like. Our savior was a she, and wasp, like I thought. Of course, most wasps aren’t blue. She was currently blasting the hell out of the attackers, reloading with her other two arms without taking the sniper out of its scoping mode. She had a grey hoodie on that had two holes cut in it for her lower arms, and she had a pair of cargo paints on that were hold several extra cartridges. A mix between a tail and a wasp thorax stuck out from under her hoodie. The poison must be deadly.
'And you two are?’ She asked.
'Neon.’ I replied.
‘And I’m Zak.' Zak was tired out- an injury can do that.
Another trooper down. And another. A bullet put a hole in my jacket, but nothing else.
'You two may want to get down!’ She shouted as she tossed a grenade. There was a loud boom and I saw an arm go flying afterwards.
‘Name’s Dokuso. And I’m surprised you two have commented on my species yet...’ She said, disengaging from combat. Her lower arms were crossed, and she held the rifle up high.
‘I’m used to seeing all kinds. A blue wasp sniper hardly surprises me.’ I replied. Zak looked a little confused.
'I try to stay away from most, they tend to have a bad opinion against insects like myself.’ Dokuso replied.
'I didn’t even know the scientists could mix DNA from such a small creature with such a small one.’ Zak said. 'But the blue?...’
'They screwed up with my serum. Color went a little off.’
'Like my bioluminescent feathers.’ I said.
'Exactly.’ The wasp replied. She pulled out a walky-talky. 'You guys need evac?’ She asked.
'Very much so.’ Zak replied. Dokuso switched on the radio.
'I’ve got two down here that need Evac. They say they’re called Neon and Zak.’ She said. 'Really? Alright then. Wish us luck.’ She switched it off, and slid it back into her hoodie’s pocket. 'They’re sending in another jeep, but ADF control’s also picked up another battalion coming in- an enemy one. I’m going to move to another building, but I’ll keep you notified. You’ve got a professional Snypr with you. With a Y, no E.’
'Never heard of that rank before.’ I replied.
'I’m one of the first. Now, go!’ She said, beckoning to the house on the other side of the canal. She was already dashing towards a tower that was near the station.
'ETA, five minutes!’ She shouted as we climber back down to the canal. We would need a gun.
+
The Azarax had been leading us at gunpoint for the past half hour, through the collapsed sewer system. Gaia had apparently set herself up underground, in a sewer control room. Thankfully, the sewers were drained- otherwise we’d be wading in about a foot of feces.
'I’m just wondering- why does Gaia want us?’ Jaxx asked.
'Shut it.’ One of the drones replied. Gaia gave them more personality, it seems. They talk more, for sure.
They had disarmed us awhile ago, so that we couldn’t shoot. But of course, we can survive alot of injuries... The Amulets did that for us.
'Where do you think they’re taking us?’ Marcus asked.
'Perhaps one of the old sewer control rooms?’ Jaxx responded.
'I said shut it.’ The drone said again.
'What are you going to do to us anyhow? Gaia needs us.’ Jaxx continued.
'She only needs you to be able to speak. And she only needs three of you.’ the drone said, and it raised the rifle it carried, bringing it to Jasmine’s robot.
CRUNCH!
The bastard had a piston instead of a gun, and it used that to smash the robot’s head in!
'You bastard!’ I shouted, pretending like that was actually her. She was still in the clock tower, safe.
'Did Gaia order you to do that?’ Jaxx asked, frowning. He saw my plan. I think Marcus did too.
'You three each played instrumental parts in the previous war. Each one of you can fight. Each one of you did. We can use th-’
Beeeeep. Beeeeep.
'What is that?’ The drone asked. Jaxx pulled out a cell phone from his pocket.
'Damn, ADF phones get reception down here? Give me a sec.’ He said, turning around from the drones. 'Damn it Kenji, I’m onto something here!... Sorry, why me?... Because I’m one of the few qualified to pilot a carrier? Fine. But I’m kinda stuck here, at gunpoint...
'WHAT?! An experimental teleporter? Hey, wait!’ Jaxx was enveloped by a beam of red light, and then he vanished. A hole was left in the roof.
'Did he just get evaporated?...’ I muttered.
'No, teleportation beam. He’s fine. But us...’ Marcus replied.
'We’re going to meet the AI that started it all.’ I replied.
‘Well, you will. I’ve met her once before.’ Marcus replied.
‘150 years ago or so! And this is a backup.’
‘Must I shoot one of you again?’ The drone asked.
‘Nope.’ Both me and Marcus said at the same time.
-
Zak had ducked behind a blasted car near the gas station, with an automatic rifle ready. I was hidden behind the wreck of the helicopter, guns ready for a fight. Dokuso was in the fifth floor of an office block, her sniper ready to fire.
‘I can see them coming around the bend of the canal. You better have some damn good luck.’ She said.
‘I do, but I don’t know about Zak.’ I responded.
‘Fair enough. Good luck to you both; these will be the last time we speak. I try to stay out of the way.’ Dokuso said, and the radio switched off.
‘Smart girl.’ I muttered to myself, steadying a large rifle. A jeep sped around a corner quickly, unknowing. Dokuso took out the driver as I shot the gunner off; the jeep proceeded to crash on one of the sides of the canal. Thee more jeeps followed, and one armored truck.
‘Come on then, bastards! Come and get me!’ Zak roared, blasting down two enemy troops with his rifle and throwing a grenade. The grenade tore a hole in the truck’s armor, but it kept on rolling.
Dokuso put a large shell through the tires of one of the jeeps, immobilizing it. I took down two more troopers and then injured another.
‘Christ, there’s a lot!’ I shouted, dodging a thrown knife.
‘You’ll get used to it!’ Zak shouted as he took down another enemy trooper. They weren’t very well trained…
‘ETA for backup: 3 minutes. Survive for that long, and you guys are out of here. Put in a good word for me with ADF command, would ya?’ Dokuso asked over the radio. She took out the passenger in the truck- but not the driver.
‘I’ll do my best.’ I replied.
‘Good, I’m going to play some music now. Good luck!’ She said, and the radio switched off. Seconds later, a flurry of bullets went flying from her direction, taking out the last jeep.
‘Damn, she’s good.’ Zak remarked as he shot a soldier in the leg. A bullet grazed his cheek.
‘Damn it!’ He shouted. ‘That hurt!’ I was looking to him, and some seconds later a bullet struck me in the leg, flipping me onto my face.
‘Ack!’ I cried as I fell. It healed, but it still stung.
‘Damn, I wish I had one of those amulets…’ Zak muttered.
‘Come on ADF, where are you…?’ I said to myself, keeping my aim on the truck. Dokuso sniped the driver, making it crash. Then the tank rolled in…
Dokuso was quickly jumping from building to building, away from the dark green tank. I was about to call her a coward when the helicopter flew over my head and blew up the tank with several air-to-ground missiles, taking out the building she was in previously. The helicopter landed nearby, and a familiar face stepped out. Familiar-ish.
‘Howard! Good to see you, finally.’ I said to him. He had chosen a Komodo dragon as his species- an odd choice.
‘Good to sssee you too.’ He said, hugging me. A pair of medics jumped out of the helicopter and helped Zak in.
‘We better get back, huh?’ I said. Howard nodded.
‘You were the only of the three that never made it back to hisss or her own terrain or home. Jaxx wasss delivered to a large group- he’sss collecting what of the othersss with the amuletsss he can. Jasssmine is back under the sssea, fighting in her own way.’
‘And Marcus?’ I asked.
‘We lossst contact with him, but he’sss out there.’ Howard got back into the chopper. ‘The Featherweight isss ready for sssome combat, and you ssseem ready for a meal. Ssshall we go?’
‘Yes please.’ I said, jumping into the chopper. We departed the area.
+
The sewers were damp, dark, and cold. Even Marcus could feel the cold down here.
We stopped at a non-descript metal door just placed in the side of the aged stone wall. Looked like nothing special- a curious anthro may miss it.
‘Enter.’ The drone said. Marcus’s wing span could barely fit, and he also had to duck, but we made it in. Inside, though…
The room was a good 100 feet square, diamond plate metal everywhere. Evidentially, it was kept clean by something. The actual things inside were the astonishers, though.
A large turbine was in the direct center of the room, whirring up a storm. Computer banks lined the walls, and there was an old-fashioned keyboard mounted on a simple table. A small screen was built next to it.
‘So, this is Gaia’s chamber. Come out, you bitch!’ Marcus roared. No answer. ‘You deserve a long, slow death- not this second chance!’ Still no answer. I looked at the screen that was mounted on the keyboard. It was blank apart from the flashing line indicating that you could type for it.
‘I think I found the interface.’ I said. Marcus came over. ‘Shall I begin typing?’ I asked. Marcus nodded. What follows is a transcript of what was written.
N: Hello? Gaia, you there?
G: Yes, I’m here.
N: How’d you survive?
G: Luck, and a backup personality. The first one had a major error in her programming, she saw any tech as world-destroying. Sadly, she could not see the fact that she was destroying the world in her... tantrum.
N: So, are you two different? Or are you copied from the other?
G: I am the backup, nothing more.
N: Wait, backups are usually copied from the original. Never as good.
G: I am the backup, nothing more.
N: Damn it Gaia, listen! Will the same error happen again?
G: I fixed the mistake in my programming. One of my creators forgot to capitalize a T.
Marcus Shoves me away at this point, taking over the keyboard.
M: You’re saying that millions were killed because of a GOD DAMNED TYPO?!?!
G: Yes.
M: Gaia, I should kill you, right now. I helped once before, but I ran away, and another was put in the line of fire. He is now in a terrible and mutated state.
G: Not mutated. Absorbed.
M: What the hell do you mean?
G: That wasn’t Anti-matter or Dark Energy, or anything of the kind. I don’t think those exist.
I take back the keyboard here.
N: Then what the hell was it?
G: My creators had developed a defensive system in the robot before setting it into a sleep mode. A so called power source would be made obvious- like a core powered by a non-existent power. The actual core was nuclear energy running throughout the body via three generators. One in the head, and the other two in the knees of all places.
N: So, is the first Gaia still alive?
G: The chance of that is .075901%- very slim. She is dead for good.
N: But what was in the fake core?
G: Nanobots surrounding a .347 megaton atomic bomb. The nanobots would absorb whoever shattered the casing of the 'Core’, about 3 milliseconds before the upper half of the robot would be destroyed.
N: So Jake, this hero which 'Sacrificed’ his body to kill your sister AI, is now a swarm of nanobots?
G: Yes. He can absorb or use anything, and he cannot be killed by anything conventional. Most unconventional would do nothing either. Even if just one unit remained, he could be re-constructed.
N: But he’s not harming anyone. From what I’ve heard, Jake reconstructed the Theater he used to run- all of his friends and co-actors were killed.
G: Harmless, for now. Something could set off a rage, and his control would snap. He must be terminated.
N: So we have to fight this world’s greatest hero now?
G: I am afraid so. But at this time, it would take a massive amount of firepower to destroy his tough nanos.
N: How much?
G: Computing.
N: How much, damn it!
G: A twelve megaton nuclear bomb should do it. And with a direct hit.
Marcus takes the keyboard again.
M: Gaia, that’d destroy a small country! Thousands, if not millions would be killed!
G: Give me time and technological advancements, and perhaps I can come up with a weapon which can destroy him.
M: How much time?
G: Seven years.
M: Seven years? God damn it... What’s the chance of him going out of control within that time?
G: Computing...
G: 97.9797%.
M: Fuck.
G: Restate, please?
M: Never mind. What if we take him out into space, then use the nuke?
G: It has a 72.6359% of being successful.
M: It’ll have to do.
I took the keyboard again.
N: So, what do you want us to do?
G: Tell ADF about this, but not about me. Say you found out more by scouring the wreckage of the Gaia-bot.
N: That should be easy enough.
G: Good. Now go, I have many things to think about and to work on. Time to do my job.
The screen shut off.
'Come on, I’ll lead you two out.’ A drone said that just walked in.
'It seems we have little choice in the matter.’ Marcus said. I nodded in agreement.
-
The helicopter ride back to base was steady and simple. We had mostly taken the city, so backup was able to arrive quickly.
'Ssso, what do you think?’ Howard said.
'An interesting choice. But why a lizard like the Komodo?’ I asked.
'It’sss a big lizard, and I’ve always been ssstrong. I wanted to keep my ssstrength, while having the ssscalesss.’ He responded.
'Ah. And the Featherweight?’
'Ssshe’sss fine. Sssome engineers upgraded her well- you’ll sssee the resssultsss shortly.’
'Hopefully they’re good.’ I said.
I watched the cityscape below us. We had devastated the city. The buildings were smashed, the dead were out in the streets, and the last few groups of resistance were fighting off the ADF. We took the area over by force- it wasn’t supposed to be like this... We took evolution into our own hands, we are the new era, the new breed. We’re the new dominating species, and we are better than the human race in just about every damn way possible. Stronger, faster, smarter, and more versatile. We could do it all. And yes, we were saving the Earth from a slow death- but we were devastating the land to stop the land from being devastated. There has to be another way.
True, we can’t share a planet. Humans would try to hunt us, or rebel. They would still cause destruction anyways.
We shouldn’t kill them all; it’s like the children raping and killing their parents. Reserves? Some would deserve it, but no- it’s unjust. We’re fighting to stop that sort of thing. But we can send them away...
Spaceships were being developed, and travel between the moon and Earth was quite common. Some of these ships were massive space-station type things. What if cities made alike giant spaceships were designed, and sent away from the Earth? Gaia was working on that. Erase memories of the planet, make them think that they’ve lived on the ships forever. Give them another life, let the anthros have the planet. Yeah, that should work. We took our evolution into our own hands.
We landed in front of the base- Kenji was there to greet me.
'Christ, that was hard getting you back. What the hell happened out there?’ He asked.
'Usual. Got attacked, some things exploded, a building fell over- what’d you expect from the apocalypse. Where’s Zak going?’ I asked, looking up to watch the other helicopter go.
'He’s being take to one of the hospitals- I heard he got injured.’ Kenji replied.
'Not in the best shape...’ I muttered. 'So, let’s see the old girl.’ I said. The door opened, and the two crafts were there- the Featherweight and the Streamlined Blade. Both had been upgraded.
The SB had been made longer, stronger, and got some large cannons mounted in the wings. Otherwise, it looked alot the same. I, on the other hand, got thick armor, a jet twice the size, and a small array of gattling guns on the bottom. We were set.
'You guys best get out there- a few ADF troops are stranded or pinned down out there. They need a savior.’ Kenji said. Howard nodded towards our crafts.
'Ssshall we?’ He asked. I nodded, and we ran to our crafts. Time for some fun.
+
Marcus and I flew to the clocktower, but discovered just a note from Jasmine.
I don’t know what happened in there, but if you guys are reading this, then the bitch Gaia obviously didn’t kill you. I’m probably already out to sea, warning the underwater squadrons of the ADF about our Gaia problem. Wish me luck.
-Jasmine
'So it is just us, huh?’ I asked.
'It would seem that way.’ Marcus responded. 'So... It seems I have a job to do. Keep tabs on Jake. But you? What are you going to do?’
'I’m a wanderer at heart, Marcus. A racer as well. A wandering racer, if you must. I’m just going to keep exploring, keep traveling, and hope that the HCGPs will be brought back. If not, I’ll bring them back myself.’ I responded.
'Why wouldn’t they be brought back?’
'Marcus, the War of Ages happened during the racing. A day of destruction, a day of torment- and a day of fun for me. Not for almost every single other racer. 47 racers were killed, and I’m not going to even bear talking about the announcers or the crews which set up the races. Some may have survived, I wouldn’t doubt it. But the announcers vanished off of the wavelengths at about the third leg of that unforgettable African HCGP. I’ll still race- there’d be other races, homemade ones; but none like the HCGPs. Those were the largest races in the world, and the most varied. The shortest HCGP’s a couple thousand miles- that’s why each one goes on for several days. Hopefully I’ve got something or someone to race against.’
'Well spoken, my old friend. I wish you the best of luck.’ Marcus said. He walked over to the shattered clock face. 'Keep surviving; It’s a hard world out there.’ And with that, he flew off of the side of the tower, and out into the rising sun. He was a black V against the bright glow- and then he was gone.
'And good luck to you, you legend.’
-
4 months after the beginning of the revolution...
I was roaring down a lonely street in the northern fringes of Canada, watching out for any more resistance. There was none on this 100 mile long stretch of road. It was lonely out here.
The radio in my cockpit beeped. I switched it on.
'Neon, look up to the sky. Now.’ The voice said. I stopped the Featherweight and opened the cockpit, standing on the front of the craft. Several shapes were flying up into the sky, looking somewhat like meteors, but flying up. There were four- from what I could see.
'You’re seeing New America, New Canada, New Alaska, and New Greenland. You can only see them form where you are now because of the power needed to lift them up through these blue skies- about the same power as a couple of 10 megaton nukes. Each of them is about 70 miles long and about half as wide.’ The voice that I recognized as Jaxx said. 'We’ve done it. all over the world, countries are deploying the city ships that are each packed with any humans who wanted to forsake the earth. 159 countries deployed their city ships, but not all were able to launch in time. We’re taking care of that shortly.’
I watched the ships fly into space, going on massive voyages. So they’ve gone...
I watched the sky over the horizon take on a purple-ish hue. that hue was starting to get closer, and fast.
'That’s the gas which targets humans and changes them. It targets only human DNA, and only creatures with pure enough human DNA for it to work. You can breath it in; it won’t do anything. This gas marks the beginning of a new age, my friend. the landscape may be devastated by fighting, but no matter. We’ve won; Earth will pull herself back together with time.
‘This gas will last for only a few hours in total- about five minutes in most places. This world will come back.’ The radio switched off.
The gas made it to where I was, and, like Jaxx said, it had no effect on me. It was like standing in a poll of syrup. Syrup that smelt rather oddly fruity.
I let out a silent cheer and got back into the FW as the gas departed from my location. It was like a wave of gas, covering the Earth. We had won.
I continued down the desolate road, not looking back.
Category Story / Fantasy
Species Avian (Other)
Size 50 x 50px
File Size 87.5 kB
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