.Space///The Darkness Within (Part IV)

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	The glossy black speck roared out of the hangar. The booster jets ceased, and then the sublights switched to full power. The ship was gone before the engines made a noise. 

	"This is nice," John commended. He twisted his neck to admire the black upholstery. "I never knew the HAU was this big on decoration." 

	His ship, a brand new Slicer-class stealth fighter was the best of its class. It had all the bells and whistles. It had full sublights, widescreen cockpit window projector for those long flights, leather seats, and enough buttons to make anyone giddy. The commander had lent it to him under one condition: that he went to Black Sun and found out everything he could. 

	Suddenly, a laser blast hit a wing. The ship started to spin, then barrel-rolled as another blast grazed its belly. 

	John cursed. He grabbed the joystick and piloted the ship into a straight line. Several thousand Black Sun fighters awaited him. 

	John swore. He grabbed the two weapons joysticks and enabled two heat-seeking missles. "Fire." The two jet black missles flew out of the hangar bay toward the approaching fighters. Suddenly, two bright blue explosions split the darkness of the vacumn. The two smoldering wreckages careened into others, making a mingled chaos of red and dying blue flame. He grabbed the joystick and pushed his ship to full throttle. He readied the lasers and let loose a barrage of bolts at the nearest ships, blowing them apart in bright green explosions. 

	Then, he saw the space station. "This could work to our advantage." he said. He flew toward the ship, trailed by several attackers. He grazed the bottom, sending a bright blaze of sparks streaming toward his pursuers. They lost control and smashed into each other, blowing one apart at the seams, sending one into the station, and another flaming toward the planet Xenolith 7, where it undoubtedly met a charred end.

	 The remaining ships swarmed back to the hangars. John decided to be nice and piloted it toward the hangar that had previously been in his possesion. He hit his opener, but it didn't. He sighed and fired a cruise missle toward the door. The door shimmered, then melted and exploded, sending molten chunks of duracrete blasting his way. John lazily flew past them and into the hangar. 

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	John climbed out of the ship. A semi-transparent ray field covered the huge gap that had previously been a hangar door. He looked around and saw a nearby air grate. "Ah, what the heck." He took out a laser pistol and methodically fired at the bolts securing it to the wall. Clang. The wall hit the floor. John climbed in, missle launcher and grappling gun at his sides. The dull silver walls and floors resonated metallically as he walked down them. He suddenly heard echoing voices. 

	Silently, he slammed himself against the wall. He slowly walked down the tunnel, until he reached a small grate sticking out of a wall in a large cyndrilical chamber. He looked down, and instantly regretted it. John slowly took a plama blade out of his pocket and slid it around the edges of the grate. It fell down soundlessly. 

	"So, what are you doing this weekend?" asked the Hydrakian.

	"Nahmuch." replied the second.

	"For the love of Pete." John said. He picked up his grappling gun and fired it at the nearest Hydrakian, spearing it through the chest. He retracted the hooks, sending the Hydrakian collapsing onto the floor.

	The other Hydrakian looked around. Suddenly, John sprang out of the gap in the wall, and extended several razors out of the ends of the prongs. The other Hydrakian was dead before it hit the ground. All it took was a shot from the grapple gun to rip a door off the wall so he could continue his quest. 

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	He soon found himself in a dimly lit hallway. Several angled windows lined the left side of the room. He looked down and saw huge beasts inside. They were easily twice as tall as a human, and easily a head taller than a Hydrakian. Their skeletal form and blood red tatoos were enough to send John to the floor, for the first time frightened for his life. He regained his composure, threw a sentry droid through the window, and grabbed on for dear life. The droid, sensing the added weight, tried to compensate with an added boost, but it dropped soon. John leaped off at the last possible second. A large smoky explosion surrounded him. The Barbarians were ready.

	So was John.

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