It didn't happen often, in fact, it was such a rare occurrence that Olivia hadn't the slightest clue of how to cope with the current situation. She was stumped. How the hell did Chloe gain Max's powers? The fact that hundreds of spaceships were battling for the fate of the planet at this very moment didn't seem like that big of a deal, even though it really was. Did our procedure that saved Max's life do this? Did she already have these powers? The main problem was that she and her team still had no idea how Max's powers had manifested themselves in the first place.

The two opposing fleets were now swarming around one another, blasting each other to pieces, demanding her attention. Unfortunately, the questions in her head ceased to persist their torments. Mighty warships were being torn apart, people were dying, their lives snuffed out of existence with each passing second, it was the least she could do to watch. Tearing away her thoughts from her troubled mind, she cast Chloe one last demanding look before turning back to observe the battle. Chloe paled, swallowing hard, while her partner glared furiously back at her. Max, it seemed, wasn't the same insecure girl that she had met so many years ago, not in the slightest.

Her mind may have been untrained in the art of war, but to her it seemed that the battle for earth was now going exceptionally well. Not only was it obvious from the steadily shrinking numbers of the enemy fleet, but the mood in the room was now more jovial than ever. The younger officers in the room were excitedly watching the battle unfold, jostling one another from time to time, even the grizzled and moody Captain Cage seemed pleased.

Unfortunately, as usual, the mood soon soured as fresh reports from the Night Hammer reached their ears. They really need to turn that damned radio off… It was hastily reported, the man's voice full of dread and concern, that the grand admiral had been seriously wounded. Kimberly took the news as well as anyone could have expected her to have, badly. However, the roller coaster ride of emotions continued as the grand admiral's voice angrily reported that he was fine. His voice was strained, but it certainly didn't sound like he was on the verge of death. Recovering dramatically from her sudden grief, Kimberly let out a calming breath as Olivia moved closer to the young woman, should bad news strike again.

Barely having had a moment to recover from the trauma, a second report of grim tidings bore down on them. The bridge was now under heavy attack, the report barely audible as the transmission was garbled by static, explosions, and weapons fire. The words that did get through, however, were dire at best. Admiral Daala had been hit and was in desperate need of medical attention. The report's authenticity was dubious at best, the woman's commanding voice could be heard in the background, screaming fury at her crew as often as she cursed her enemies.

Sounding more strained than he had before, the grand admiral reported that his forces were breaking out of their encirclement with the help of reinforcements. Through what sounded like grinding teeth, he directed all available forces to move to assist the bridge.

"The bridge… must… not… fall!" Each word was heavily emphasized. If words had weight, then each of these must have weighed a ton. A series of affirmations to the orders followed, each voice grim, weighted with fatigue. Olivia forced herself to let out a second calming breath, everything seemed to be coming to a head. If the enemy gained control of the Night Hammer, how much would that change? Certain that she didn't want to find out, she distracted herself from her thoughts by quickly scanning the room.

Kate was on the edge of her seat, as if she expected the bad news to continue, perhaps on a more personal level. Luckily for her, no ill tidings of her fiancé had been reported, in fact, nothing at all was heard from him. The young woman seemed to be taking little comfort in this, her concern was nearly palpable, growing by the minute. Soon her worries might fester into an entity all of its own, Olivia had seen stranger things happen before.

Kevin was a tough kid. Shaking her head, Olivia reminded herself that he wasn't a teenager anymore, that had been years ago. Either way, she was certain that if anyone could survive this hellish day, it was him. On the other hand, he had already fallen once during this fight. What if he had perished and no one had been around to announce it? Chloe's newfound powers may have saved his life once already, but if she didn't know when to utilize them, how could she save him once again?

Even worse, Max's manipulations with time had spawned an unprecedented maelstrom of destruction, would something similar happen once again now that Chloe had punched a hole through time and space? Feeling even more uncertain than she had minutes ago, Olivia's ears hungered for news as her eyes rapidly scanned the ongoing battle.

Pain, the sensation had become somewhat of an odd experience for Kevin. Whether physical or emotional, he was usually able to channel his agony into raw power. The force shall set me free… grunting in exhaustion, he did his best not to let on exactly how much he was suffering. Not that it mattered anymore, it was fairly obvious at this point, a blind man could see. Not long ago he had given up attempting to move under his own power.

Tachanka and Canderous were carrying him, he couldn't keep up with the rest of the unit otherwise. It was a humiliating experience for the alleged Sith warrior, but the pain was everywhere. Deep unrelenting blinding pain, greater pain than he had experienced in ages. His suffering was only intensified by their quick pace, but despite everything, he persisted. He was not the primary concern, even if his soldiers paled at his horrid state. The ship must be saved.

During his last fight something had exploded right next to him, raking his body with heat and fire. His combat armor had kept most of the nasty stuff out, but not everything. A sickeningly large piece of shrapnel was buried in his gut, the slightest of movements sent shivers of searing pain cascading through his already ravaged body. The explosion had showered the rest of his armor with smaller debris, tearing through his armor as if it had been paper. They too had imbedded themselves into their new home. His body, however, was not welcoming its new inhabitants, constantly it reminded him exactly how unhappy it was.

Easily carrying their burden, the two massive men traded words to one another as if he wasn't even there, thinking perhaps that he had passed out. He couldn't blame them, they had found him surrounded by the corpses of his enemies, lapsing in and out of consciousness. As he had desperately attempted to struggled to his feet with agonizing futility, they had become gravely aware of his perilous state.

"Think the boss is dead this time? He hasn't said anything for a bit…" Others might have been worried, but not Canderous. His words grim words were offset by a deep, throaty chuckle.

"I thought he couldn't die, because he's… you know… whatever it is that he is, a sorcerer?" Tachanka's own deep voice was riddled with amusement, the pair had been trading jokes for a while now, most of them revolving around his imminent and almost certain death.

"He's a badass dark lord of the Sith, don't you forget it neither."

"Really? Then how come he's the one being carried, and not us?"

"Well, we're gods among men chunky, gods among men."

"No, just me, you're just a simple thug." Canderous roared in laughter, startling the sentries at either end of the strung-out formation. As the man's laughter shook his body, fresh waves of pain stung Kevin, the joke was entirely lost on him.

"You're god-damned right I am, the best damned thug in the entire galaxy, right boss?" Grunting in agreement Kevin tried desperately to force the pain away, transform it into something that he could use, there was no fighting in his current state. Despite his best efforts, he was entirely at the mercy of his injuries.

A halt was called and the stragglers caught up with the leading elements of the formation, Kevin and his charges were among them. The stop had been called for a rather obvious reason, a large Sangheili strike force was blocking their way. It was soon learned that their allies were preparing to attack the rear elements of the enemy assault force, their scouts could be heard clashing up ahead, skirmishing with their opponents.

Fury overtook Kevin as he looked around at the assembled warriors, we don't have time for this! Why have they not begun their assault? The bridge could fall at any moment! To the surprise of everyone, including the Sangheili, he pushed away from the two men that had carried him for so long, moving under his own power once more.

"The hell? If you could walk why were we carrying your lazy ass?" Canderous' insubordinate comment was ignored as he stormed towards the leader of the Sangheili unit. Each step was a herculean effort, wrenching his body with blinding pain. His rage fed on it, consumed it, yearned for it, flooding him with strength.

"Why… do… you… delay?" The purple armored Sangheili commander gaped at him, his toothy mandibles twitching in a frenzy of panic as it attempted to form a word, any word. Thankfully the creature was spared of the difficult task, he pointed to his left down a previously empty corridor. Turning, Kevin grunted with effort, the noise modulated into a low growl by his mask. Misinterpreting the sound as displeasure several Unggoy shriveled before him while their leader visibly recoiled.

The deck began to tremble as two massive creatures lumbered towards him, side by side the two titans barely had enough room to maneuver in the tight corridors. Staring in awe at the massive creatures, Kevin was soon forced to stumble aside to let the creatures pass. Forming up into a single-file formation the mighty Mgalekgolo squeezed through the lesser beings around them. Reaching the front of the strike force, the mighty armored creatures seemingly shrunk in size. Their heads that had barely cleared the ceiling now reached about eight feet in height as the behemoths nestled into their combat stances, raising their massive pavise shields protectively in front of them. The armored beasts groaned in unison, their words were felt more than heard, they were ready.

A hushed quiet went over the motley group of gathered soldiers as Kevin advanced towards the awaiting creatures. A chorus of gasps rang out as he clambered onto the back of the rightmost Mgalekgolo. Not seeming to notice his presence, the creature remained unmoving as he settled himself into a comfortable firing position. Motioning to Tuchanka and Canderous he ushered them over, pointing to the second creature.

"One of you jump on, whoever doesn't… hand me your weapon." The two massive men slowly approached, dwarfed by the Mgalekgolo before them.

"You sure, just hop on without asking? Won't it… like… upset it? Should I buy it dinner first or…" Not in the mood for Canderous' jests, Kevin cut the man off, growling at him over his shoulder.

"I already asked them, just get on." Shrugging as if it no longer mattered to him, Canderous mounted his steed with only a moment of difficulty. The Mgalekgolo communicated with their bond-mates mainly by telepathic means, they had actually come up with the idea all on their own. The Lekgolo colonies that formed the mighty creatures were somewhat force sensitive, making communication with them easy. Well known for being 'silent giants' due to their rather basic spoken language, the Mgalekgolo were actually quite chatty if you possessed the means in which to listen.

Unbeknownst to the assembled soldiers, Kevin chatted away with the two creatures while Tuchanka, reluctantly handed Kevin his heavy machine gun.

"Don't worry… I'll take good care of Sasha…" The rather emotional looking Russian grumbled unintelligibly in response. The man never let anyone touch his gun, the honor was not lost on Kevin as he settled himself into a firing position, signaling to his improvised steed that he was ready.

The advance was painstakingly slow at first, but the creatures soon worked themselves up to an alarmingly fast pace. Their massive armored legs thumping the deck in an almost rhythmical manner. Enjoying himself, perhaps far too much as usual, Canderous let out a whoop as the beasts charged toward the battle. The embattled scouts of the Sangeheili strike force barely had enough time to get out of the way as the armored behemoths charged.

An eruption of horror and panic soon seized the enemy position, they had fortified themselves behind a half blown-open blast door. The crowded firing position erupted in an enfilade of panicked weapons fire, their rounds harmlessly ricocheting off the thick armored shields. Returning fire from their elevated positions, Canderous and Kevin suppressed the enemy position while their steeds powered up their assault cannons. The massive weapons were embedded in the creatures' right arms, emitting a bright green glowing light as they were powered up.

Sensing their imminent destruction, the densely packed enemy soldiers intensified their fire. It was too late. The assault cannons unleashed their destructive energy, entire swathes of the enemy position simply ceased to exist. The remnants were finished off by Canderous and Kevin, the wounded trampled mercilessly as the Mgalekgolo advanced. Shaking his head, Kevin winced in pain as Canderous chuckled, the crunching of bones and the sizzling of flesh amused the man far too much.

The progress through the enemy lines was not difficult, but it was slow. Not only did Kevin feel his strength fading with every passing moment, but there hadn't been a communication from the bridge in a worryingly long time. Fearing that he would insult the creature that he rode, he desperately tried to keep his mounting worries to himself, he failed. Far from being insulted, the colony of Lekgolo understood his fears. They sensed that his colony was in danger, and just as the ammunition on his weapon ran dry he felt them insisting that he get off.

Allowing the chorus of their voices to overwhelm him, he pushed himself off of them, collapsing on the ground in a heap of pain and regret. Mistaking that he had been hit, Canderous nimbly vaulted off of his own steed and scrambled towards him, bellowing for a medic. The man's call went unheard, however, the Mgalekgolo were charging, their deafening battle cry reverberated through the air like a force of nature.

Firing as they darted forward, the creatures crashed into the massed lines of the enemy. An unpleasant sound of sheer terror emitted from the enemy lines as bodies were crushed, trampled, disintegrated or simply flung aside. The Mgalekgolo did have weak spots in their armor, but you had to maneuver around them to even have a chance at striking them. No chance existed for the enemy, the corridors of the Night Hammer were simply too tight.

Unfortunately, the attack was once again stalled as side corridors opened up on either side with increasing frequency. The attacking force dwindled as more and more soldiers were committed to the flanks that were being constantly harassed by a desperate enemy. They must know that the end was near for them, and yet, they bitterly resisted, refusing to give an inch without a fight.

Once he was on his feet, Kevin joined the battle to hold their right flank while the Mgalekgolo trudged onward. Struggling against his injuries and his mounting exhaustion, he fought on, adamantly refusing to give up. Fighting with his lightsaber was now entirely impossible, he no longer had the strength nor the dexterity to effectively utilize the weapon. He had retrieved a small Sangheili pistol from a fallen Unggoy, in his weakened state he barely had the strength left to lift even such a small weapon. The weapon spat globs of green energy at his enemies, felling them in a single shot as the destructive energy tore through them.

Despite his relentless drive to continue fighting, a simple cough brought him collapsing to the deck. He lay there, groaning, cursing his weakness. Tears of shame cascaded down his face, thankfully hidden from view by his mask. Chocking back his humiliation he did his best to remain silent, fearful that his suffering would be amplified by his modulator. Two newly arrived medics dragged him away from the fight as a cluster of reinforcements took his place.

Entirely at their mercy, he allowed himself to be dragged away. Dozens of boots thundered by as the two medics fussed over him, arguing on whether or not the largest piece of shrapnel should be removed or not. Their debate was entirely pointless, his armor had fused around the once half-melted chunk of metal, he just lacked the strength to tell them. His vitals were read from his armor's readout and a cocktail of fluids were administered. A wonderous feeling of weightlessness overtook him as the drugs flooded his system. Despite the obvious relief in which he felt, his rage fought back.

The battle was not yet won, he certainly wouldn't be able to fight now! Visibly resisting the drugs his entire body trembled, startling the medics. They were further shocked when he stumbled unsteadily to his feet, refusing to listen to their protests. More reinforcements were pouring in, the attack was back on in full force. Barely able to keep up with the rapidly advancing front-line, he was at least thankful that he didn't have to stop to fight. The medics trailed directly behind him, seemingly waiting for him to collapse once again.

Thankfully, the entrance to the bridge had already been cleared of enemies, he soon realized why his two wards had allowed him to proceed without much of a fight. The bridge had been turned into a temporary hospital for the scores of wounded and a mortuary for the dead that were beyond counting. The medics following him directed him to sit but he refused, frantically searching the still figures for one in particular.

As he searched, he nearly collapsed several times, fatigue was gnawing at him with increasing ferocity. The pain was mostly gone, replaced by a disconnected and disconcerting numbness. Recognizing far too many of the dead and dying, he slowly came to the realizations that Lieutenant Lee Martin and the rest of his team had perished, defending the bridge to the last man. Pushing back his grief he continued his search, pushing away the medics once more.

Finally, he found her. Admiral Natasi Daala, her olive uniform soaked with blood, still clung to life.

"About time you showed up…" Her words trailed off as she coughed up a worrying amount of blood, her entire body trembling throughout the ordeal. Gasping in pain she flung her head back, her matted and blood-soaked hair scattering in every direction. Slowly recovering from her grim state, her eyes widened in shock as they focused on the jutting piece of shrapnel that protruded from his abdomen.

"What the hell are you two buffoons doing? Get him to sickbay… now!" The medics hastily moved to comply, gesturing towards an awaiting stretcher. Her legendary anger was mounting, but it was about to get a whole lot worse.

"Her first…" The two medics stopped, startled by the intensity of his words. "Now, damn you!" Natasi would have argued, he expected her to, but she was rapidly losing consciousness, forestalling any argument that she may have provided. She was quickly loaded onto the stretcher and he soon found himself mostly alone on the bridge, a handful of walking wounded nervously meeting his gaze.

All at once every ounce of strength fled from his body. Barely noticing the world around him, he numbly felt his body impact with the deck. It must have hurt, it must have caused quite a scene, but he was beyond caring at this point. Rest, he needed rest. His ship was saved, Natasi was alive, his fight was over. From his oddly comfortable position on the deck he saw something spectacular, he saw Kiera burst onto the bridge. He smiled, he had so many questions for her, it had been ages since he had last seen her, it was a shame that he needed to rest so badly.

"Father!" Her impulsive outburst was as surprising as it was terrifying. Luckily most of the witnesses were among her crimson guard, they wouldn't dare repeat her words. Their silence could be counted on, however, there were other witnesses. A morbidly stone-cold expression coalesced onto her face, her next words were deadly serious.

"If anyone so much as dares to repeat what I just said, ever, to anyone, the punishment will be swift. Swear your silence to me, now." The ragtag collection of soldiers stared at her in total astonishment, their minds furiously grasping at the sacred truth that had been accidentally revealed to them. The empress of Hirosh, somehow, was the daughter of their grand admiral, but how could this be? The two were of similar age, the same age actually, it simply made no sense. There was one being present that needed no time to decipher this seemingly impossible riddle, he stepped forward.

"I pledge my blade to the Honored Arbiter's kin, swear to her or become purged!" Igniting his glowing blue energy sword, the golden clad Sangheili warrior presented just how serious he was. Presented with the stark reality of the conundrum, the unfortunate witnesses quickly escaped their confusion and pledged their silence. Nodding in thanks to the golden clad warrior, the empress of Hirosh slowly knelt beside her father's unmoving form. The soldiers kneeling by him shrunk away from her, clearly worried about what secrets she may reveal next. That was… unfortunate, hopefully this doesn't become a problem…

Her thoughts halted abruptly, her father's presence in the force was terrifyingly weak. She had known this before arriving, but she was now faced with the grim reality of the situation. Here he was, closer to death than she had ever seen him, laying cold and forgotten amidst countless other corpses. Pale faced medics rushed over to him, their love for their leader was touching. She hardly noticed as she was unceremoniously shoved out of the way. Her personal guard moved to protest and punish the offending medics, but she waved them down as her father was hastily loaded onto a stretcher and transported off of the bridge.

She had been next to him for a fleeting moment, the encounter heralded memories of her childhood for which he had been entirely absent from.

Long ago, a mysterious stranger had arrived at the borders of the Hiroshi Empire. He was a mere boy, barely in his teens. Lost and confused, the boy arrived aboard a strange, yet highly advanced single-seat starfighter entirely alien to the Hiroshi people. The regal emperor interviewed the boy personally, quickly permitting him sanctuary. It was unknown at this time that this boy had come from the future, it was an easy mistake, the boy himself hadn't known.

After some time however, it was discovered that the boy's craft had passed through a strange spatial anomaly, a wormhole perhaps. Eager to study this phenomenon his flight records were charted and the anomaly was discovered. Probes were dispatched, readings were feverishly analyzed, but the greatest minds of the empire were confounded. Taking the news of his sudden time-travel in stride, the boy soon settled into his privileged life at the emperor's court. During his stay, the emperor grew fond of the boy, some even began to predict that he was being groomed to be the next emperor.

This entirely unorthodox rumor was fed by the fact that the emperor had no son of his own, he had been blessed with a single daughter by one of his three late wives. The emperor was a loved man but cursed. The empire could not be inherited by a woman, it simply could not happen. It was perhaps this growing tension that caused the emperor to overlook just how close his daughter had grown to the mysterious boy.

After only a short period of time, the pair became inseparable. The emperor's daughter insisted that her new 'brother' attend all of her many studies. She was headstrong, beautiful, and persistent, she always got what she wanted. Her father seemingly wanted to adopt this boy and place him as his heir, but she had other plans. Referring to him as her 'brother' in public, they became something entirely different in private.

Meanwhile, the scientists studied the wormhole, eventually unraveling its secrets. Subversive elements within the empire informed the heir that was unwanted that they could get him home, back to where he had come from. Unable to see the broader implications of what was happening, the boy accepted. The plot was revealed, but the machinations against the emperor had already been fulfilled, the boy was gone, returned to his time. Furious, the emperor moved against his enemies, a great 'restructuring' of the empire commenced, lasting for many years.

Far more heartbroken than her father, his daughter lamented the absence of her secret lover. The situation grew far more complicated when she became pregnant. Her father's fury only intensified when the bastard child, proved to be a girl, another inviable heir. His fury was unleashed on his enemies, real and imagined alike, it was a dark time for the empire.

The times that followed were darker still. The 'mad' emperor was deposed, violently. Fierce and desperate fighting erupted throughout the mighty empire as it fractured. Assassins infiltrated the capital, slaughtering the emperor and his loyal court. His daughter and her child narrowly escaping the blades that hungered for their blood. As the empire sank deeper and deeper into chaos as tyrannical warlords battled one another for control of the ashes, the child was raised.

She had been that child, her mother raised her, alone, ever hopeful that her love would return to her one day. Since the beginning of her life, she was imbued with a single purpose, restore the empire to its former glory. Her mother busied herself gathering loyalists, securing alliances, preparing for the day that her daughter would retake the empty throne. At the age of sixteen, her mother died, the stress and misery of her life having taken their toll. Her mother was laid to rest, her ardent supporters feverishly pledging to see her bloodline to the throne.

Her forces were few in number, especially when compared to the competing warlords, but her mother's martial training at the hands of her father had been passed onto her. She would take the throne that had never actually been meant for her, it mattered not that she wasn't a man, she would take it anyway. The operation was several days after her mother's passing, she had to be swift, less her late mother's supporters fade away. It was on the eve of their operation that her father returned.

Returning with a fleet of warships entirely foreign to the Hiroshi, he returned as a masked warrior, vengeful and furious. The warlord that had been ruling from the capital at the time of his return had foolishly boasted about the slaughter of the emperor's court, claiming that none had survived. Directing her fleet to join her father's attack, their combined forces secured the capitol. Her father may have been masked, may have not have revealed his true identity, but she had known who he was.

Although it had been kept a secret, the mysterious boy who had arrived years ago only to disappear had been blessed with strange abilities, never heard of before. Perhaps it had been this that had made the late emperor so interested in the boy, perhaps it only added to his intentions. Whatever the reason, it no longer mattered. The powers her father had been imbued with had passed to her. Alone she came to terms with her abilities, alone she bent them to her will. It would be much later that she realized just how little she knew concerning them. Despite the infancy of her abilities, she was still able to recognize the man who had bestowed them upon her.

It was pure coincidence, or perhaps fate, that they met face to face for the first time as she led her forces into the plundered throne room. Masked, clad in black armor, brandishing a glowing red energy sword, she had watched in awe as he had torn her enemies asunder. Surrounded by his soldiers, he had turned to her, hesitantly asking who she was. Without a word she had marched to her grandfather's empty throne and had taken her rightful place. Glaring fiercely at her father, she had announced herself as the rightful heir to the throne, her soldiers had cheered while her father simply stared at her, gaping from behind his mask.

Later, in private, he had removed his mask and the face of a boy, not a man, was revealed to her. Explaining that he had returned as soon as possible, he begged for her forgiveness. She had not forgiven him. She had blamed him for her grandfather's fall, for her mother's death, for the corruption of her empire. He had left, crushed by her words, tortured by his mistake of having left her mother, setting into motion a chain of tragic events. Despite the rift between them, they reclaimed the empire in her name.

The people rejoiced, the old traditions were forgotten. Peace finally reigned after years of turmoil. It no longer mattered that she was who she was, the rightful heir had returned to the throne. Peace and stability restored, her father left, spurned by her hatred. It was years later, during the Amarakk crisis that he returned to rescue her once again. Acting as a mediator, he helped resolve the expanding conflict. Luckily for him, her anger towards him had subsided and an alliance was formed.

He introduced her to Jedi Master Kyle Katarn, who helped her understand the strange power that existed within her. His refusal to train her himself hurt her, but Master Katarn soon explained her father's worries. He was a Sith, a Dark Jedi, tainted by the dark side of the force. Fearing for his daughter's well-being, he wanted nothing to do with her training. It was through her tutor that she learned of her father's past. He was hesitant at first, but she was just like her mother, she always got what she wanted.

Slowly, she came to terms with the fate that had befallen her. Forgiving her father of his blunders was difficult, but she soon came to understand him, even love him. It was uncomfortable at first, having a father that was her age, especially when rumors started to circulate concerning their relationship. There were many in her court that insistently pushed her to marry this powerful man, permanently securing an alliance with him. They saw lineage, imagine how powerful her heir would be, imagine the potential! They, hopefully, would never know the truth of the matter.

A spatial anomaly had fatefully brought her father into contact with her mother, their relationship had briefly and passionately flourished. Allowing deviously plotting and trickery to lead him away from his rightful place, he had left, secretly longing for his true place in the universe. Her mother had never spoken ill of his decision, but she had hated him for it. It's easy to hate something you don't understand, easier still when your mother's hopes and prayers continuously go unanswered.

Forgiving him wasn't easy, but necessary. Warned about the darker side of her powers, she allowed herself to heal. She was shocked however, when she learned the truth behind her name. Her father's first love, before he met her mother, had been a young girl named Kiera. Recognizing the attachment that he had still held to deceased girl, her mother had given her the same name. Her mother must have seen the loss that he felt, must have seen the pain, the hurt, how could she not? Only able to guess at her mother's intentions, she thought long and hard about her namesake.

A wonderful treasure had been stolen from her father, painfully torn from his heart, erased from his life. Her mother, the sentimental woman that she was, must have wanted to fill the void that had been created. Naming her Kiera may not have been the right thing to do, but it had been done. Long before her birth, her father's love had perished. Her entrance into this world, despite his absence, was meant to prove to him that he was not entirely lost. She may not be the girl that he had lost, but she was his.

Despite her initial reaction to his existence, their relationship steadily blossomed. He was a loving and proud father, and she became an equally loving and determined daughter. The awkwardness of their similar age was soon replaced by a very pleasing realization. She would have her father with her entire life, so long as he didn't get himself killed.

Several moments of confusion and pain overwhelmed Kevin as he opened his eyes. Struggling against the murkiness in his mind, he fought to remember what had happened. His struggles caught the attention of a nearby medic who quickly restrained his movements.

"Easy there commander, easy… You'll be alright… just… try not to move okay?" He quickly relented, quite literally everything hurt, it seemed like a good idea to listen to the medic. Her ravaged uniform was stained with blood, please tell me that's not my blood… She must have noticed his fearful expression because she soothingly reassured him that most of the blood was her own, not his. Hardly reassured, he now noticed several hastily yet expertly applied bandages all over her haggard body.

Despite her possibly gruesome injuries, she was still standing, mostly. This fact sent waves of guilt rippling through his chest, she was still doing her duty while he lay on the deck, barely able to move. How badly hurt am I? Why don't I remember anything? These questions and more wormed their way into his muddled mind as he tried once again to lift his head. Fresh tendrils of pain blossomed all throughout his body, he persisted despite this, grunting with effort through clenched teeth.

"For fuck's sake, you're just like the big man aren't you?" Does she mean the grand admiral… the other me? She probably does… "Listen hon, when I say don't move I mean don't fucking move. Don't make me have to tie you down… trust me, this is for your own good."

"What happened?" His words were weak, shaky, embarrassingly incoherent, but the woman's ears must have grown accustomed to her charges speaking in such ways, she easily understood him.

"You got blown up is my best guess, your line got hit hard just before reinforcements rolled in… relax though, the jobs done, it's over." Despite her calm words she seemed to becoming increasingly worried about his condition. She was constantly casting her gaze over her left shoulder, as if she were impatiently waiting for something.

"Will I die?" She smiled sweetly at his fearful words, shushing him like an unruly newborn.

"Not for a while yet sweetheart, you're just banged up… that's all. You'll be fine."

"That's what you tell dead men…" His words were coming with increasing difficulty now. Something was wrong with his… everything. The pain was becoming unbearable now, it was all he could do to remain conscious.

"Listen hon, are you a doctor, a medic, a corpsman? Do you have any experience in medicine? No?" She patiently waited for his response, but when none came she continued on. "I thought not, now I don't make a habit of lying to folk, especially not dead men, so you best start believing me. Now, for the last damned time, lay still."

He didn't believe her, but his pain was so intense he couldn't concentrate enough to use his powers to read her thoughts. She was emanating confidence and reassurance, but her deeper more controlled thoughts may have revealed the truth of the matter. Yet, despite his pain, despite his lack of focus he could sense a presence nearby, a powerful presence in the force. It seemed, almost familiar to him, yet, it wasn't his master. It was different, comforting almost, not overwhelming and intense like he was used to.

A call came out from somewhere nearby and almost immediately his stretcher was being hefted off of the deck and carried away. It took him some time to realize that he was being rushed to surgery. As several panicked looking surgeons surrounded him, his thoughts went back to the medic. You lying bitch… Instantly regretting his harshness, he found himself missing her charming nature, she had been kind to him, she deserved better. His thoughts became even more unfocused as the surgeons began pumping him full of drugs, his consciousness faded rapidly.

"Dude, it's like your fault… I think…" Chloe was being interrogated by Olivia about her new powers, it sucked. She kept asking questions that she didn't have the answers to. The woman's persistence seemed to only redouble as it became even more apparent that she wasn't getting the answers that she was looking for. Not wanting to involve Max in this sordid affair, she had excused herself for a quick smoke and as she had expected, Olivia had been right on her heels.

"Are you sure? You've never had these powers before?"

"Have you not been listening? No! Do you think if I could control time I would be stuck down here with you guys?" Olivia seemed to relent for a moment, retreating deep into her thoughts, fucking finally! Chloe took a long and refreshing drag from her cigarette, only to cough and ruin the satisfaction of the moment. Fucking bullshit, why did I ever start smoking again? These things are killing me… I wonder if those junior officer kids have any green on them… that's really what I need… holy shit! Walter will have some, he'll have something on him, that dude is always loaded on something.

"Does Max know?" Olivia's sudden question after several moments of blissful silence startled her out of her thoughts.

"It doesn't seem like it, like… I guess her powers are all fucked up now or some shit… you saw what happened to her when she tried to use them… right?" The woman nodded, grimly. It seemed as if she too was having a difficult time erasing the dreadful memory from her mind.

"Do you think we should tell her?" Another goddamned question. What's this we shit she keeps going on about?

"We? I'll tell her about it when I feel it's appropriate, until then let's just let her concentrate on celebrating the badass victory. Seriously though, I get that this is your job and all, but we can deal with this all on our own." After another quick drag of her cigarette she realized that perhaps she might have been a little too harsh. "This doesn't mean that I'm not eternally grateful for you guys saving Max and all, like seriously, you guys are the best, but we just want to get on with our lives… leave the past in the past… you know?" Smirking at her words, Olivia cracked an uncomfortable looking smile.

"Except one or both of you have the ability to rewind time…" Chloe exhaled a stressful cloud of smoke, slumping her shoulders as she did so.

"Yeah… but I did it to save Max, don't think I'm going to make a habit of it… Max told me about how fucked things got when she used her powers too much… do you think in a few days a storm is going to fuck shit up… wherever we are?"

"We can only wait and see. But either way I'm glad you understand the gravity of the situation. All I'm saying is that you should come by our lab, and soon, so we can see if we can learn anything about your powers. We're not the bad guys, we just want to help." Chloe begrudgingly acknowledged Olivia's words, thanking her once again for her concern.

Their 'conversation' now spent, just like her cigarette, it was time to return to the others. It was like stepping into a madhouse. Everyone was shouting at one another to be heard, some were even desperately trying to listen to the stream of incoming reports from the fleet or from the now entirely reclaimed Night Hammer. However, the best part was that the junior officers had broken out the booze.

"Fuck yes!" Chloe quickly pilfered several bottles from their care and returned to Max, entirely uninterested in the many calls for her to join them in the celebration. Her partner, no surprise here, was off in the corner doing her best to be invisible. If Kate had been alone she probably would have joined her, but a fresh case of family drama seemed to have exploded while she had been away. Max's eyes brightened as Chloe approached, her smile turned mischievous as she caught site of her spoils.

"I see you're still quite the pirate, Captain Blue-beard." Chloe's heart swelled as she approached, Max you are so fucking adorable.

"As are you, I'm sure, Long Max-Silvers!" Max laughed, a genuine heartwarming, stress relieving laugh that rang true and loud. Throwing herself into the chair next to Max, she handed her a bottle and immediately drained most of the contents of her own. Thank god this shit is going to be over soon…

"Everything is going to be crazy different now… there's no way that things are going to be the same after all this. Aliens, a super intense space battle, spaceships from all over the galaxy coming to fight… what do you think?" Max seemed somewhat worried, her words were riddled with anxiety and uncertainty. Chloe could certainly understand, she had spent most of her recent time worrying about the future, but no longer.

"Either way I couldn't give two shits honestly, we're together and that's all that matters, fuck all the rest." Max's smile returned, brighter than ever. She watched with amusement as her partner downed as much as her beverage as she could, giggling at her struggles. Recovering from her ordeal with ease, Max snuggled up to her, leaning her head against her bony shoulder.

"What did you and Olivia talk about?" The question was honest enough, but a sense of panic crept into her all the same. Shit, she saw Olivia following me, very subtle agent Dunham, don't they teach you anything about being inconspicuous at FBI school or whatever? Desperate for time to think, she hastily opened a second bottle and drained some of its precious contents into her awaiting throat.

"Just, uh… stuff, like girl talk?" Smooth… you are the smoothest… like that time you asked Max to marry you when you were just kids… god I hope she doesn't remember that…

"Chloe… I know about your powers… remember, I am the time-lord after all. If she wants us to stop by their lab again… we should, it'll be for the best I think. They did their best to help us in the past… maybe they can fix me…"

"There's nothing to fix, you're perfect." That was easy enough, I don't know why I was so worried about telling her about my powers…

"You know what I mean… something happened to me when I tried to use my powers for Kate… something bad?" Chloe shook her head adamantly, willing the image of her spasming partner out of her mind. She pulled Max closer to her, protectively clutching her to her chest. Shivering at the intensity of their embrace, Max melted into her arms.

"Nothing bad will ever happen to you again Max, from now on I'm going to be looking after you."

"This is bloody pointless… we're wasting our damned time…" Vice Admiral Letho Canady had more pressing matters to attend to right now. The battle had been won, but his fleet needed attention. Sure, he had his subordinates dealing with everything right now, but only a fool left even the best subordinates alone for so long. He couldn't care less what happened on the earth, and he certainly wasn't going to take orders from this… boy.

"Then perhaps we should abandon this action, the doctors did mention that there were risks, didn't they? Is this really worth those risks, what if our actions cause further harm?" Why didn't you bring up these reservations of yours earlier, empress? Vice Admiral Canady was, for now, in command of what was left of the forces that had valiantly defended earth. With both of his superiors in critical condition, and the grand admiral not expected to survive his wounds, it was entirely possible that he would soon be officially in charge of defending the planet. I never wanted this responsibility, those two better not fucking die, this isn't my god damned planet.

"It was the only plan of action you lot could come up with, if anyone has any better ideas it's too bloody late at this point…" Momentarily confused by his words, the glorious Empress of Hirosh, Kiera Tralcyon seemed to ponder his constantly shifting stance on their actions. Still in her stained combat armor, she still looked majestic, somewhat frightening as well. She seemed like such a frail creature, beautiful and vulnerable. He knew better though, she had personally led her troops during the battle, proving the truth behind many of the rumors surrounding her combat prowess.

The woman's words seemed to have a calming effect on his mind, despite this, she fixed an intense, look of warning his way. She wanted this to go quickly. Fix your menacing stare someplace else, this wasn't my bloody idea! Captain Noin, oddly enough, had come up with the plan. Everyone was watching her out of the corners of their eyes, mistrust was heavy in the air. It wasn't her fault that everyone looked at her as if she were a traitor, her illustrious and scheming bastard of a master had seen to this. Lieutenant Colonel Treize Kushrenada, the cunning devil, was taking over the world.

At some point during the ending phases of the battle, perhaps when victory seemed assured, Treize had set his plans into motion. One by one the governments of the world were capitulating to him, each takeover seemingly designed specifically to ensure success. Some countries seemed to join the ever expanding Treize Faction willingly, while others were coerced by neighbors. Resistant governments were overthrown by their own people, rival politicians, votes of no confidence, or quick and ruthless coup's. At this point, very few unconquered countries remained stable, open conflict having erupted in at least half of the remaining independent nations.

Treize's schemes would have been easy to stop if it wasn't for that damned energy shield protecting the planet, the massed fleets were entirely neutered. Technicians and hackers were furiously struggling to regain access to the shield generator, but so far, their efforts had met with failure. This meeting had been called to decide on what, if anything, should be done concerning Treize once the shield was lowered.

Robbed of the leadership of the grand admiral and Admiral Daala, it was up to him to decide on what to do. He had quickly gathered as many advisors as he could, he hadn't a clue what should be done. Along with the Hiroshi Empress and Captain Noin, he had invited Shipmaster Ryvu 'Tusamai and the masked Colonel Zechs Marquise to the meeting. He didn't entirely trust the Treize Faction stooges, but they had been trapped outside of the earth just like everyone else. They knew that they were sacrificial pawns, he could see I written all over their delicate faces.

After an arduous and frustrating argument, the young Captain Noin had suggested that they seek out the grand admiral's clone for guidance. He was out of surgery and expected to survive, there should be minimal risk in waking him. The doctors weren't too keen on the idea, but they eventually relented to the gravity of the situation. The empress, despite her initial agreement to the plan, seemed to be growing more and more opposed to the idea. Canady had suggested that she be thrown out, respectfully of course, but the honorable Sangheili Ryvu had entirely dismissed the idea. The damned creature had taking a liking to woman's mounting determination, he now loomed protectively over her as if he were ready to do her bidding.

Thankfully, the intolerable woman's argumentative words seemed to have ceased, the room was now wonderfully silent as the assembled group waited for the drugs to bring Commander Anderson out of his coma. Zech's and Noin were constantly monitoring the situation on the ground, events were unfolding quite rapidly.

"China seems to have fallen…" Zechs scoffed, clearly insulted at how little of a fight the great nation had managed to put up.

"Don't be so hard on them Zechs, it's hard for a government to fight off their own people and most of their army-."

"All the while supported by Treize's shock troops… it seems that their lack of support for the defense of earth was their undoing." Bloody hell… was that his plan all along? Maneuver the more powerful countries into not supporting the battle for earth… then use their own people to overthrow them? Rotten scheming rat bastard, if it wasn't for this damned shield…

"Interesting… it seems that most of the people believe that Treize is doing all of this in… the name of the grand admiral? People believe that he has the support of this fleet… that's why so few are resisting… they probably don't even know about the shield…" Noin's words trailed off as Commander Anderson groaned, he was finally awake.

Kiera was at his side in an instant, her path practically took her straight through Canady, but the empress hardly seemed bothered as he stumbled, furiously collecting himself. It took quite some time for the commander to become lucid, but eventually he was regarding the amassed faces in his room with hesitant suspicion. Before anyone else could speak Canady cleared his throat, directing the wounded commanders' semi-conscious gaze towards him. He did his best to ignore the commander's gaunt, pain riddled expression.

The situation was quickly explained. Treize was taking over the world, the shield was still up, blocking them from interfering. Once the shield was down, what should they do? How should they respond? Having swiftly finished, he impatiently awaited a response, only to discover that the commander had lapsed back into unconsciousness. God damnit!

Kiera, noticing his frustration seemed about ready to resume her protests, but the Sanghieli shipmaster did it for her.

"The Honored Arbiter is… not well! We must allow him to heal!" The creature's horrid mandibles flapped grotesquely around his words, and yet, his speech was coherent enough to understand.

"That is not your damned arbiter! That's a clone, that's not him, he's just a bloody copy, you understand?" Having lost his temper, he did his best to explain to the thick headed zealous being up from down, but his efforts failed, miserably.

"Clone? Copy? If your words are true… then there are two of the Honored Arbiter! It matters not which is which if the two are alike, the Honored Arbiter is the Honored Arbiter." The massive being nodded its armored head in satisfaction, its mind clearly made up. Thankfully, the creature's deep voice had roused the commander back to a state resembling consciousness. The room went silent as he struggled to speak, Kiera, finally doing something useful, acted as his interpreter.

"He… wants to know why you're asking him…" Letting out an exasperated sigh, Canady did his best to keep what little control of his temper that he could.

"I'd ask the grand admiral or Admiral Daala if I could, but I bloody can't. You're the man's clone, aren't you? You must think like him, I've seen you do it. So, I'm asking you, that's right… you! What should we do about Treize?" Suddenly, the commander became overwhelmed by a series of tremors, gasping out in pain as his entire body trembled. Ryvu wailed in concern, Noin paled while Zechs remained entirely void of emotion, seemingly bored, at least one of them hasn't lost their fucking marbles…

The commander's trauma ceased just as suddenly as it had begun, he even seemed more alert now. All eyes were now on Kiera, who seemed to be concentrating intensely on something as she placed her hands on the recovering man before her. Jedi sorcery, why the bloody hell didn't she do this earlier? Canady would have scoffed, but he internalized the gesture when the commander began to speak once more.

"…He wants to know… if the people of earth are with Treize… or against him?" Kiera's words were strained, her eyes closed, yet her words were strong and projected themselves to her audience with ease. The pair of Treize Faction officers turned to one another, Zechs shrugged and consulted his data pad once more. Several moments went by, the heavy silence in the room bearing down its occupants oppressively. Kiera seemed to be struggling now, her strength fading rapidly.

"It seems that… overall Treize has more support than he has enemies. I would expect him to gain total control of the world's governments in the next… twenty-four hours? It seems that the American president has been removed from office, though they have yet to capitulate, while a bloody civil war has erupted in the Russian capitol, they are his last major obstacles.". The commander nodded, flinching against another tendril of pain as he did so.

"Get that shield down… and if it seems like Treize is working against the people… get rid of him… if he's doing this all for himself… remove him… but… leave him be if-." Kiera gasped loudly, her youthful face drenched in sweat. Her entire body shook as she struggled to prevent herself from collapsing. Her powers were clearly spent, the commander slipped into unconsciousness once more. Thankfully, his last words had been clear enough. Take out Treize if he was against the people, leave him be… maybe even support him if he was acting in the planet's best interest.

Slowly but surely, Kevin awoke to the best scene that could possibly greet him, Kate playing her violin. She was so caught up in her craft that she failed to notice his slow but gradual journey to consciousness. As he gradually became more and more aware of the world around him, he watched her play, enjoying every moment of it. She always seemed so carefree, so entirely at peace when she played, it was beautiful. The scene could have only been more perfect if her hair had been down, but she only did that in private.

Finishing her song, her eyes slowly opened, going wide with surprise as she discovered that he was awake. Sitting himself up, he stretched. His pain was manageable but still quite debilitating. Despite this he was content, he was alive and seemingly entirely in one piece. He cheered immensely when Kate informed him that he was expected to make a full recovery. Her charming and relieved expression abruptly became deadly serious. Withering under her intense glare, he awaited her inevitable reprimand.

"It's going to take you a while yet to fully recover, giving us plenty of time to sort through everything, and I do mean everything. I've spent plenty of time locked away in different prisons, locked away with some very interesting people… locked away with my family, who have plenty of questions of their own. I learned a lot about you, more than you might expect, so you better not leave anything out." Swallowing hard he nodded, as he did so her appearance softened. There would be time for interrogations later, plenty of time.

Seeing that he still had many questions of his own, she quickly caught him up with recent events. The man he had been cloned from, the grand admiral, his master, still lived. The man had suffered horrendous wounds, but he resiliently clung to life. There was no doubt that his incredible powers were perhaps the only reason behind his miraculous survival. Though he had yet to regain consciousness, it was expected that he would make a full recovery, mostly.

Admiral Natasi Daala, had survived as well, but her wounds were threatening to see her entirely out of action. The best possible recovery for the woman was going to be a struggle, but if anyone had the will or the determination to overcome the odds, it was her.

The death toll had been high, especially aboard the Night Hammer, but the earth had been saved. However, he was surprised to discover that things were not as they were on his planet. The Treize Faction had entirely taken control of the planet, sweeping aside the world governments in a lightning fast, well-coordinated, takeover. Shortly after the resolution of the battle for earth, Treize Kushrenada had total control of the planet.

Surprisingly, he had immediately relinquished control of the planet to a newly formed 'world-government' and placed himself under arrest. The victorious Treize Faction was disbanded and incorporated into the newly formed armed forces. The planetary shield was lowered and earth's valiant forces were welcomed as heroes, entirely perplexed by the dramatic series of events. The grand admiral, once he recovered, was to remain in command of the newly formed naval forces. It was being left to his discretion if Admiral Daala would be capable of returning to her former post.

For now, Vice Admiral Canady reluctantly and begrudgingly accepted command of the naval forces. He was eagerly awaiting the recovery of one, perhaps both, of his superiors. Diplomatic relations had been established with the various factions that had come to the earth's aid. Rumors were already abound concerning the Empress of Hirosh. She was young, beautiful, willful, and extremely powerful. A political marriage was already being speculated between herself and the grand admiral. Welcomed to earth with glorious fanfare and excitement, Kiera was the shining star amongst the representatives from the other worlds.

During Kate's arduous tale, she was thankfully given a break when Max and Chloe stopped by for a visit. Kevin couldn't have been more overjoyed, his friends looked well, closer than ever. Long ago he had seen the power of their passion for one another, it was perhaps far too satisfying to see them happily enjoying each other's company. Kevin thanked Max, with as much heartfelt gratitude as he could muster, for intervening with her powers when he had needed her most. Several moments of awkwardness followed, confused he hesitantly asked what was wrong.

"Dude, I don't know how to say this… so I'm just going to say it… it was totally me that saved you. I can do the time rewindy stuff now…" Chloe, serious and bashful somehow had gained access to Max's abilities, Kevin immediately pressed her for an explanation.

An obviously abridged version of the events that had transpired was hastily explained to him. Max and Chloe had been kidnapped by the Treize Faction and rescued by a timely intervention by Agent Dunham, allegedly with some help from forces loyal to the grand admiral. Max had been incapacitated when her powers attempted to force themselves out of her, or she had tried to access them, it wasn't certain. She had been rushed to Walter's lab and Chloe had gone into her mind and saved her. As one does in these types of situations, naturally.

Kate listened silently, clearly unsurprised by the details, she had certainly heard all of this before, perhaps in greater detail than he was at the moment. Entirely overwhelmed by the ludicrous story that was being presented to him, he asked how all this had led to Chloe gaining the ability to control time.

"Oh… well in order for me to jump into Max's mind… they pumped me full of some crazy drug which expanded my consciousness or whatever. Walter thinks that while I was inside Max's mind I somehow gained her powers…"

"Somehow?" Chloe shrugged at his question, as if it really didn't matter to her.

"Yeah dude, the eggheads seem hella' confused at how it all went down but I can control time now… so that's cool, I guess." Even though she was doing her best to act relaxed and unimpressed by this fact, her eyes shone brightly with excitement. Max, clearly not fooled either, smiled at her partners attempt to play off the event.

"You're so humble Chloe… it's almost cute." Chloe seemed to take exception to her partners remark, turning to face her with sudden enthusiasm.

"Almost? Are you kidding me Caulfield, I'm fucking adorable!" That's more like her… his thoughts became clouded as the pain reminded him of his state. Feeling weak, he did his best to hide his discomfort. Kate, however, saw through his clumsy efforts and quickly called an end to the reunion. It was time for him to rest, and even if he had wanted to argue with her, he simply couldn't. He was tired, perhaps more tired than he had ever been in his strange life.

As Max and Chloe said their goodbye's he settled back down and began to wonder how much the world was going to change. Earth was now part of the galactic stage. With the help of her new allies she had shown her indomitable will to survive. No matter what lay in store for his planet in the future, he was sure that he and his friends would face it head on, adapting if necessary as they had always done. Life was indeed strange, but his place in it had seemingly been cemented. Thankfully, despite his many failures and mistakes, it seemed that Kate was still willing to see it through with him.

Cheered by this thought, he allowed himself to drift off into a much-needed slumber, the world and its changes would have to wait.