Synopsis: Well, I was writing this for a friend of mine a while back, though I'm not sure where she went. But, I thought this would be an excellent opportunity to get to know some of you, and to put out my work in the process. I'm just starting this novel, and just at chapter 1. Hope you like it!
Chapter 1
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As the sun outside the window slowly gets further and further away, dark shadows swallow the small cruiser. It's a souped-up model of the standard Legion Space Voyagers, the left side of it, a picture of a dragon curving about a tree, marking it as the Dragon Brigade. The sun filters had been switched to the highest level of solar blockage possible, the interior of the cruiser kept from being pitch black only by small, red lights on the ceiling. Talk ceases from the soldiers aboard as the cruiser slowly pulls away from Anthelos, a once beautiful planet covered with rainforests, so full of life, the trading capital of the Zeta Galaxy, now decrepit and desecrated from the treacherous war raging on the surface.
With the cruiser out in deep space, talk resumed. “Why the hell would the Legion lure the Terrix onto Anthelos, knowing we could never hold out against those monsters?” Ryu said, lying back against his chair with practiced laziness. His combat suit was still on, gleaming white in the dim lights above him, the blood red Legion insignia, a snake looping around a cross, branded into the front of the chest plate. He punched a button on the side of his helmet, releasing the pressurized atmosphere in the suit via tiny vents, the hiss of compressed air escaping plainly audible. He grabbed the base of his helmet and lifted it deftly off his shoulder plates. He set the helmet in his lap and ran a gloved hand over his cropped blonde hair.
“I don’t know, but they’d better have a good reason to destroy a beautiful planet like this,” Al, the indisputed commander of the squad, said. He raised a removed gaunlet in the air, emphasizing his disapproval. “Why couldn’t they have taken it to some desolate planet like Senic, or maybe Carnit? It’s all the same to those Terrix beasts. As long as they get to kill and eat, they’ll come.” His head was down, his grim face shadowed by his jet black hair.
“If that’s so, then why don’t we just nuke the damn planet and get it over with?” Lee said, polishing his highly modified canister rifle, made possible by his own strange fascination for weapons. His stone gray eyes reflected off the newly added switch-blade at the tip of the rifle, chrome-plated for a dazzling brilliance. This would snap out if one of the Terrix got too close, and all he would have to do was jam the rifle into the beast, and the blade would slide out from the compartment holding it, and neatly deal a deathblow to the enemy. It was actually quite an invention, and would be presented at the HQ for patenting.
“Because, Lee,” Ryu stated, sarcasm oozing through his teeth. “The Terrix have already infested hundreds of planets in this galaxy alone. There’s nothing we can do about it until we have a chance of destroying the core of the brood. Until then, we have to keep our cool and continue fighting until we hit a breakthrough.”
“Then why don’t we nuke the planet the ‘core’ is on?” Lee argued, swinging his arm eccentrically in an attempt to override Ryu.
“We can’t do that, Lee. The planet is
completely blocked by billions of those damned Flyers protecting the planet. You can’t even see the surface of the planet, it’s so infested. They’re completely unaffected by radiation or heat. And
you should know best how resistant those things are to our atomics. And besides-”
“Besides what, Ryu?” Lee cut in rudely, a pang of anger leaping into his voice. “We should have the force to get through any amount of Flyers in the way!”
“Knock it off, you guys,” Al ordered sharply. He stared intensely at Ryu, his green eyes locked onto Al's blue ones. “Either way, we can’t do a thing about it, so get over it. You’ll do as you were trained to do, and that’s fight. We’re almost to our next destination anyway, so quit your bickering.” He threw his arm in the air to cut the tension, and walked into the cockpit.
Naturally, everyone quieted down. Al had all the squad’s respect. No one would disobey him if they wanted to survive. And sure enough, right outside the window, you could clearly make out the Legion Headquarters, a giant space station out in the middle of nowhere. As the ship touched down, the squad became a bit antsy. But as they unloaded and saw that just about every other surviving squad had touched down as well, they realized with mounting regret that they probably should have probably stayed out in space.