Chapter 9: Destiny

"Commander Anderson…" It did have a nice ring to it, not nearly as nice as Grand Admiral Anderson, but that was beside the point. "What do you think of him?" Kevin turned towards Natasi who had joined him in his command suite. There wasn't much room, but she had grown tired of leaning down to speak privately with him.

"You only like her because she's a pretty little doe-eyed creature whose head is filled with foolish ideals… her zealous heart probably beats to the theme of-."

"Who… Captain Noin?" Natasi glared at him in response to insinuate that his question had been needless and unnecessary. Of course she had been referring to the young captain, who else? "Well if you compare her to the rest of Treize's henchmen…"

"A solid point… where do you think Colonel Zechs is hiding these days, I'm a little shocked that he isn't commanding the Leviathan…." Grimacing at the mention of the man's name, Kevin began to wonder as well. Noticing his reaction, Natasi quickly changed the subject. "Your clone… he's… you… but not… does that make any sense?"

"It makes perfect sense, those are my thoughts exactly..." His clone, even though the two had lived considerably different lives, was just like him. The resemblance was creepy. It wasn't just the way he looked, he acted and spoke just as he did. He had the same facial expressions, the same little quirks, he even sighed just like he did. However, masked behind all of these similarities there was a massive glaring difference that even Natasi could see. The dark side of the force had yet to infect his life, there was little darkness within him at all. It was comforting to think about and yet reflecting on this fact sent cold daggers of pain into his chest. That's who I would have been if I hadn't let Kiera die…

"What about this Hiroshi heavy cruiser…" Damnit she noticed again… sometimes I wonder if she's force sensitive, she reads me far too well… Tearing his thoughts away from the past, he forced himself to focus on the matter at hand.

"I am hesitant to believe that they snuck a ship of that size, let alone two ships… down to earth without anyone noticing... but what concerns me more is Treize's involvement in the machinations against the empress… did he know that he was exposing the plot against her… or was that all just blind luck?" If Treize had known about the plot then why hadn't he just said something? Did he really have spies and agents throughout the galaxy, did his web of intrigue really spread that far? Those questions didn't really matter though, if Treize had intentionally assisted forces that had attempted to overthrow the empress… he was a dead man. The thought, however, didn't sit well with him. Such a move on Treize's part was counter to the logic that the man usually operated under. If the empress had been killed and her government overthrown then they would have lost a key ally, perhaps more.

Kevin's thoughts circled back to the whereabouts of Colonel Zechs Marquise, but before he could begin to make a search for his nemesis, Natasi saved him the effort.

"I assumed that he would be aboard the heavy cruiser… but according to this he is leading the fighter squadrons of the Leviathan… leading from the front as usual it seems… is that why they call him 'the lightning count'?"

"I prefer 'killer of his own men'… it's a more appropriate title…" Natasi suppressed a chuckle before responding. There was a story behind the name to be sure, but it wasn't a good story. It wasn't really worth retelling; the name told the tale well enough. Luckily all of the men and women who had lost their lives in that infamous operation had been members of the Treize Faction, and not Kevin's own forces. If they had been… the man wouldn't have lived long to suffer the infamy of such a waste of human lives.

"I thought you were more attached to 'the man in the iron mask' these days?" What kind of a man hides his identity behind a mask anyway? The man was an enigma to be sure, perhaps only Treize knew his real identity. It didn't matter that Kevin had his own mask that he sometimes wore. That's different though, I don't hide who I am… I use that thing to scare the shit out of people… it works too. This was, of course, only partly true. The infamous 'Mast of Revan' was imbued with incredible power and on the rare occasion he would siphon power from the Sith artifact. Especially when he needed to perform extraordinarily devastating feats with his powers.

"That one is pretty catchy though, you have to admit… at any rate, have our scouts reported in yet concerning the enemy fleet?" Natasi abandoned her personal data-pad and leaned forward to enter in several commands into his command console. I could have done that… her closeness in the cramped space had been awkward enough, but now she was practically leaning over him. Normally this wouldn't have bothered him at all, but considering the events that had unfolded in the privacy of her stateroom, her proximity embarrassed him immensely. Not seeming to notice, she finished entering the commands and leaned back, he slowly exhaled as the latest information concerning the enemy fleet flooded on the screens before him.

"Well damn… that looks like all of them… not taking chances anymore… they're really making slow progress with their retrieval efforts too… what I would give for a few more Sangheili ships right about-."

"Slipspace rupture… check… three signals… three Sangheili Destroyers have just arrived!" A ragged cheer broke out across the bridge as the three new arrivals began to maneuver towards their comrade who had arrived before them. The timing was so fortuitous that Kevin couldn't contain his almost childlike excitement as he finished his thought that he had spoken aloud.

"-now… with cloaking modules attached?" A quick scan of the newly arrived ships dashed his hopes. Their allies had the technology, although it was rarely seen on their warships these days, to make their ships disappear, completely. Once activated the cloaking module would make the ship vanish from sight, it would even become undetectable by sensors. Practically this was overkill, once the ship disappeared from sensors it was basically invisible as far as space combat was concerned but the Sangheili had apparently wanted total invisibility. They more effectively utilized this technology on their special forces ground troops, invisible ships were one thing but invisible soldiers… that was terrifying.

"If only we were that lucky… but three more Sangheili ships is certainly quite something, even if they are only destroyers." Resisting the urge to scoff at Natasi's words, he analyzed the new arrivals as they majestically performed their maneuvers. Only destroyers… those ships are probably just as deadly as that cruiser of theirs… maybe even more so… Sangheili ship classifications are… confusing. The ships were roughly the same length as his Star Destroyers but had significantly less mass due to their sleek, almost animalistic designs.

"Well… their formation is quite solid. Any further attacks against their fleet would result in unacceptable losses. All we can do now is hold position and hope that we bought Treize enough time to get that blasted shield generator operational." Natasi nodded in agreement as she too studied the enemy fleet.

"How did the interrogations go; did we learn anything that we can use?" Kevin let out a heavy sigh, he could have stopped there. Natasi would know that things had not gone very well at all just from his initial reaction to the question.

"We learned very little. They speak Galactic Basic, they are fanatically loyal to their people, and they come from very, very far away. We did learn one very interesting piece of information though… but it wasn't given very willingly. Let's just say I had to get very… creative with my persuasion methods..." Their prisoners had all been trained exceptionally well to resist interrogation, but with the force as his ally he had broken through some of their resolve. "These people, they are fleeing something quite terrible. The fear is there in each and every one of them. This fleet of theirs isn't just an invasion force, it's everything that they have left…"

"Are you telling me that those transports we destroyed had civilians on board? Those fools baited us with civilians?" Natasi wasn't the type to stop an attack just because civilians were in play, but that didn't mean she was evil. The thought of slaughtering thousands of unarmed combatants, especially ones that had been offered up as bait, didn't sit well with her.

"Relax, so far there are no indications that those transports had any civilians at all aboard. Many of our prisoners were crippled with guilt concerning the issue. I think it is more plausible that this fleet of theirs abandoned their home systems to whatever threat they were running from." This revelation did nothing to calm her, in fact, it had quite the opposite effect.

"Bastards… they should have fought to the last man to save their people, perhaps they are hoping that we will run like cowards instead of defending the earth… instead of defending our people…"

"They aren't your people…" Kevin began, but Natasi quickly but him off before he could say anything further.

"Nor are they yours… yet here we stand." She looked down at him, her face softening as she regarded him with pride.

"Yes… here we stand." And here we all may die.

The bunker hadn't been so bad before, but now it was suffocating. Earlier, she had just wanted to get away and be alone with Chloe. Now Max just wanted to get away. She was getting far too much attention from far too many people. Her parents were understandably concerned with the situation. Thankfully, Major Elliot hadn't mentioned anything about her powers during his briefing. Either he didn't know about that part of the story or he had kindly kept those facts to himself. It was bad enough that everyone knew that she had been kidnapped, the questions concerning her harrowing adventure seemed to be endless.

Max just wanted to grab Chloe and disappear again, but her partner refused to be dragged away from the central holoprojector. Chloe wanted to know everything and the junior officers, even Captain Cage, were all too happy to accommodate her. Max had listened with interest at first as every ship orbiting the earth was explained in detail. Weapons, shield systems, tractor beams, crew complements, strike craft and more were all intimately described. It quickly became too much jargon for her to keep up with, but not her Chloe.

Wishing to devour every single morsel of information, her partner devoted every ounce of her attention to the task. She wanted to know more, always more. Who commanded which ship? What was the difference between an 'Imperial-Class' Star Destroyer and 'Victory-Class' Star Destroyer? Why didn't the Treize Faction ships have shields too? How long would it take for reinforcements to arrive? Why were the purple alien ships so awesome? Almost the entire staff of junior officers were devoting their full attention to keep up with her thirst for knowledge and yet they were still falling behind.

"So… if the bigger ships have shields, why the hell don't your fighters have them too, that doesn't make sense."

"Some of them do… but not many. The thing is that most of our strike-craft are former Imperial starfighters. The Empire wanted cheap, maneuverable fighters so shields and hyperdrive systems were only used on specific models, like our assault gunboats." As this was explained an image of the aforementioned shuttle materialized on the holoprojector. Chloe studied this for a moment but soon her brow furrowed in confusion.

"So… if shields are so awesome, why haven't you guys modified your ships?" Her new question was immediately answered by another one of the officers while the first looked momentarily at a loss for words.

"The admiral had initially wanted to do this, but most of our pilots didn't want to trade their maneuverability and speed for protection. I know, I know, they're a crazy bunch, but it takes a special kind of crazy to be a star-fighter pilot anyway, especially in those deathtraps." Max watched as her partner nodded absentmindedly in response, she knew that her attention had already shifted onto her next question.

"And this Admiral Daala chick, why is she second in command, and why does she look like a colossal bitch?" Smiling at the chaos that her lover had created, Max turned to see if her parents were still skulking nearby with more questions. They were. Joyce was also close by, seemingly lurking in wait as well. Max liked Joyce, she was really awesome, but right now she just wanted space. It seemed that even Kevin's and Kate's families were interested in speaking with her as well, great. Joyce caught her attention and approached. Putting on a kind face, Max did her best not to panic. Luckily, before a word could be spoken, Chloe came to the rescue.

"Mom! We found David! He's stationed aboard the Night Hammer, the freaking huge ship, you see that one! Lance here, Lance… right? Sorry that's Lance… you're… Fred? Really? Whatever… Fred say's that he's onboard somewhere so he's going to be safe and stuff. No really mom! Look, look at the size of that freaking ship! He's going to be fine!" With Joyce's attention on her daughter, Max managed to escape as a smile crept across her face. To anyone else, it would look like she was trying to comfort her worried mother but she knew better. Chloe was trying to alleviate her own fears, you're adorable Chloe Price.

She could have remained where she was, half paying attention to the information dump that Chloe was absorbing, but she could take no more. Hours had gone by and her brain was turning to mush. However, now that she had broken away she was vulnerable again. Soon she would be approached and asked another difficult question. It was great that everyone was so concerned, but most of the questions would be about her kidnapping and she still didn't understand why it had happened, but she had a guess. From what she had heard about this Treize character, he knew everything. If he did know everything, then he knew about her powers. He had probably been worried about her using her powers to interfere with his plans, or worse, turn her into a lab rat in order to study her. The very thought made her sick and brought back the few memories that she possessed about her first abduction at the hands of Mark Jefferson.

Shivering, she pushed the memories away, buried them, even though she remembered very little, it was far too much. Looking around the room for an escape all she saw were concerned faces, she needed to get out. Frantically scanning the room, she eventually found a face that mirrored her own, Kate's. That's it! Kate's family is smothering her like crazy! I just need to get to her… she'll totally want to escape with me! Of course, Max could have just excused herself and disappeared on her own, but even though she wanted a break from everything, she didn't want to be alone. After everything that had happened she may not wish to be alone ever again, but as she approached Kate and her family she pushed her worries away.

"Um, hey everyone… can I borrow Kate for a minute, that's okay right?" Before any of Kate's family could protest, Kate answered for them. Her words were clear and firm, there would be no argument.

"Absolutely Max." Kate's mother glared at her fiercely but remained silent while Kate's sisters and her father wore mixed expressions. "We'll only be a few minutes, we'll be right back." As Kate led the way out of the room Max noticed that Kevin's parents had positioned themselves on opposite ends of the room, just as they had done in the past. His father was still locked in a fierce argument with Major Elliot while his mother had joined an intense discussion that Olivia and her companions were having with Kimberly. As observant as ever, Kate tracked her gaze, smiling sadly.

"They're both really wonderful people, they are here for their son… not each other."

"Divorced?" Nodding in response, Kate's smile waned.

"It was hard on Kevin, but it happened some time before we all met so we shouldn't worry ourselves over it, he's grown past it… even if they haven't." As they spoke, the pair hastily made their way out of the crowded room before they could be accosted by anyone else. Luckily for them, they weren't as popular with the junior officers as Chloe was. Not a single one attempted to follow them. Chloe had them far too distracted it seemed.

The pair made their way into the kitchen area and without a word to each other, they began to make themselves tea. Max would have preferred coffee, but many years ago this had been their tradition. Before Kevin, before her powers, before her reunion with Chloe, she and Kate had met once a week for tea, things had certainly been simpler then. Despite the well-stocked bunker, resources for proper tea were hard to come by, but they made do. It was only after their task had been completed that they spoke once more, both with a steaming cup of tea in hand.

"How are you holding up Max?" Kate's question caught her off-guard, she stood there for a moment unable to form a response. Finally, she shrugged, shaking off the feelings that threatened to overwhelm her.

"I'm fine… I guess, you?" She watched as a bitter smile crept across Kate's face as her eyes fell to the floor.

"Yeah… me too… fine." It really didn't need to be talked about anymore. Their lives had been turned upside down in the course of a single day. Now they were hidden away in some doomsday bunker while they awaited the results for the battle of earth. Max found herself wanting to scream, she could only imagine how Kate felt. Chloe, her rock, her partner, she was down here with her, but Kate was here and Kevin was not.

"It's been a hella' insane day… for cereal." Kate's genuine laughter raised her spirits, she found herself blushing even before the teasing began.

"I don't know what's more adorable Max… the fact that Chloe has you saying 'hella' now or the fact that you still say 'cereal'." They laughed together for a while, it felt good, almost normal. However, reality could only be held at bay for a finite amount of time. The crushing weight of their current circumstances soon returned to oppress them. The silence in the room rapidly became an entity of its own, as if a third person had entered the conversation, ruining everything.

"You wanted to talk about something?" Shining through the darkness Kate found the strength within herself to banish the oppressive intruder and Max felt as if she could breathe freely once again.

"Not anything specific… I just couldn't stand being in there any longer…" Before she could explain her thoughts further, Kate nodded and gave her a knowing look.

"I know how you feel, my family won't give me any space…"

"They're just concerned…"

"Concerned about things that aren't their business!" Kate seemed shocked with herself for her sudden outburst, but after looking around to see if anyone else had heard her she continued, "It's not their business that my fiancé is a clone, or part of a secret military organization, or has powers, or anything else. It's my business! He lied to me… and yes, I'm mad about it… but he had to. You don't go around telling the truth about those kinds of things…" Suddenly Kate fixed her with a look that spoke volumes, Kevin told her about my powers… she knows! How much did he tell her, did he tell her about… no he wouldn't… this is so not fair… she's going to make me tell her about everything that happened!

"Kate…" Her words were lost on her friend though. Kate calmly and politely interrupted her meek interjection.

"Kevin told me Max… he told me about your powers… don't worry I won't tell anyone… it's just…" Kate struggled with her words, but Max knew where the conversation was going so she finished for her.

"You want me to tell you about everything that happened, don't you?" Kate's eyes widened with surprise and to Max's relief she shook her head.

"Goodness no Max! I wouldn't do that to you, I just want to know about Kevin and me… were things different… in the past… or however you say it?" Feelings of relief surged through her, I won't have to tell her after all!

"Kate, things were different before… but you and Kevin were still very much getting together. It was super adorable!" Max suddenly found herself staring at Kate's neckline. In place of her golden cross was the necklace. The sapphire necklace that Kevin had given to her in the alternate timeline, the necklace that he had then given to Kate in the next timeline, and now it seemed he had doggedly done so again at some point. She had never seen Kate wear it, she always wore her golden cross.

"Thanks Max, really, it means a lot… are you okay?" Suddenly realizing that she was staring, Max averted her gaze as Kate self-consciously fingered the sapphire charm.

"It's just, I've never seen you without your cross Kate, that's all." This, of course, was only partly true. That necklace, that cursed piece of jewelry had taken her back to the reality that she had created, the reality where she had killed Chloe.

"Oh… I gave my cross to one of the soldiers…"

"You what?" Max was floored, she had thought that Kate's cross had been so precious to her, why would she just give it up like that?

"Relax Max… it will be safe, I wanted Kevin to have it… I know he doesn't really believe or share my faith… but he'll bring it back to me." Kate's words were firm and confident, but her eyes didn't seem to share the conviction. She returned her attention to her tea as she changed the subject. "Everything is going to change after this is all over, isn't it?" Nodding absentmindedly in response, Max couldn't help but smile at her friends' optimism. Kate firmly believed that victory was the only possible outcome, perhaps she couldn't come to terms with the prospect of defeat. If earth's forces lost, it would more than likely mean that Kevin was dead. For Kate's sake, she kept her morbid thoughts to herself, victory seemed unlikely at the moment, what would defeat mean for the people of earth?

One of Kate's sisters burst into the room, fervently demanding that they return to the main room. Not waiting for them to respond she rushed back with Max and Kate hot on her heels, their half-drank tea forgotten. The central room was deathly quiet and all eyes were fixed on the central holoprojector. Ships highlighted in red had appeared and the green highlighted ships protecting the earth were maneuvering to intercept them. Max's earlier suspicions were harshly confirmed, the enemy fleet vastly outnumbered the defenders. Even worse, with each passing moment more ships arrived. The room had become entombed in silence and as she drew closer to Chloe, desperately seeking comfort, the enemy fleet continued to grow in strength.

If this had been a movie, he would have been ordering his crew to raise shields, power up weapons, launch fighters, go to red alert, he would be saying something. None of this was necessary, of course, the shields were up, the weapons were standing by, and their first stage of pilots were already scrambling for their craft. His crew was ready, they didn't need him barking orders at them. This gave Kevin plenty of time to curse himself for positioning his fleet too defensively. As soon as the first enemy ship had appeared he had realized his miscalculation. His small fleet was now maneuvering to close the distance with the enemy ships, but the opportunity had been missed.

He had been correct in his assumption that the enemy fleet would approach the earth from a single direction. His enemy didn't want to bombard the planet, merely seize it, but his small fleet was in its way. If his fleet had seemed more of a threat to his enemy he would have expected them to threaten a planetary bombardment or something similar in order to force him to surrender. But his enemy wasn't overly concerned, they had a massive superiority in numbers. Their obvious plan was to throw their ships at his like a massive hammer and sweep them aside, hopefully doing minimal damage to the planet in the process.

This had all been expected, however, infuriatingly, the enemy fleet had appeared much farther away from the planet than he had wanted them to. He had activated the gravity-well generators aboard the Surprise, his Immobilizer 418 Cruiser, so that the closest position that the enemy could appear from was right where he wanted them. Unfortunately, the enemy had been much more cautious than he had anticipated. Equally infuriating, the enemy fleet had also been far more foolish than he had expected.

Their ships were appearing in small groups with no apparent formation or cohesion. If his ships had been in weapons range they could have taken advantage of this, but he had been far too cautious. Even now, minutes after the first enemy had appeared at the edge of the system, their numbers weren't that overwhelming. He should have taken Natasi's advice and positioned his fleet more aggressively, he should have listened. If the shield generator was operational he would have, but it wasn't. Because of this, his enemy was slowly marshaling their forces and all he could do was watch as their numbers slowly but steadily increased as his ships lumbered towards them.

Natasi, to her credit, was doing an exemplary job of not wearing her customary 'I told you so' look that she usually wore when she turned out to be right about something. Her face was blank, staring unblinking at her monitors. Seemingly aware of his attention, she turned to meet his lingering gaze and smiled like a ruthless predator, her enemy was in sight.

Despite this, they were still a great distance away, it would be some time before the battle could begin. It was a frustratingly draining experience, slowly advancing on an enemy that you knew was out there but not yet in range. Space was just too damned big sometimes. It was important not to let the looming onset of a seemingly imminent encounter get the best of you. So, leading by example as he usually did, he left the bridge and announced that he was grabbing a meal. The bridge crew chuckled softly and the tensions that had been mounting dissipated immediately, even Natasi cracked a smile. However, hers was far more feral than the rest, she didn't care how far her enemy was from her, they were before her. It didn't matter that his trap hadn't worked, it didn't matter that they were greater in number, they were prey to her and she always got her prey, always.

Kevin was going to grab a quick snack while he had time, but he had an ulterior motive for leaving the bridge. It was time to prepare himself for battle. He didn't quite know enough about his enemy to declare that he 'knew them,' but he knew enough about them to make a solid conclusion. If he was his enemy, he would look upon his small fleet and see an opportunity. Yes, he could outmaneuver and crush them, but they were more advanced than his own ships, he would want them. The enemy was going to try to board his ships, that he felt certain of, and he certainly wouldn't be greeting them in his immaculately maintained uniform.

A short walk from the bridge was a small armory for the bridge's garrison. If the ship was boarded, there were several key areas that would have to be defended, the bridge, naturally, was one of them. The secondary bridge, engineering, the hangars, medical, life support, and the fire control center were also areas that would be turned into fortresses. The rest of the labyrinths of his massive ship would be turned into a maze of death and carnage as the attackers pushed their way through. At nineteen thousand meters the Night Hammer was almost impossibly massive, he almost welcomed the thought of intruders trying to make their way through it's seemingly endless corridors, almost.

Once inside the armory he was greeted by his personal soldiers, every one of them ready for battle. Should the need arise he would personally lead them to remove intruders from his ship, but for now they were preparing their equipment for battle. Without a word Hans and Gerrard began to help him into his combat armor. It wasn't as heavy as the standard combat armor that the Treize Faction employed, he preferred mobility to the superior protection. This being said, it wasn't light either, putting it on himself was doable but incredibly time consuming. As he was methodically entombed in the full suite of body armor he met IQ's crystal clear blue eyes. In her hands she held the Mask of Revan, he had painstakingly upgraded it and customized it so that it would attach to his armored open-faced helmet.

The standard equipment for the armor had possessed a face-mask of its own but he had no need for the integrated heads-up-display, he had the force. With the force as his ally, and the incredible power imbued in his Sith artifact, he was unstoppable. It took time, but he was soon fully armored and standing before his soldiers in his full war glory, save for his mask. IQ cleared the distance between them in three deliberately slow steps and reverently handed him the final piece that would complete his transformation from a leader to a warrior. As their eyes met once again a shiver ran down his spine, her presence in the force was stronger than usual at the moment. Taking stock of the other men and women in the armory he realized that they all seemed more resolute than usual, more ruthless.

As he moved the mask into place he heard it snap into place and quickly the suit sealed itself, his suit wasn't just armored, he could survive for a limited time in the event of a hull-breach, granted the air in his suit lasted. His mask secured, he felt a disturbing tremor in the force as if the spirit of Revan was laughing in glee, it had been a long time since he had worn the mask. Through this chilling sensation he noticed something else, something far more terrifying, far more personal. A thought was brewing inside Monica's mind, had been brewing since he had accepted the mask from her. Even worse, this thought was quickly transforming into something far more dangerous, words. Before he could make any moves to stop her, he realized that it was too late.

"My lord…" Her words hauntingly escaped from her mouth as she knelt before him. A ghostly chorus echoed her words as the rest of his soldiers dropped to their knees. It had been ages since anyone had referred to him in such a way, he had forbidden it. But now, looking like a Sith warrior of old, wearing the Mask of Revan, he realized once again that he could not escape his past. Grasping his lightsaber that was attached to his belt he came to terms with his apparent destiny. He was a lord of the Sith, the Lord of the Sith, his enemies would learn that before the end, no matter what end awaited him.

Returning to the bridge, Kevin easily noticed the muted silence that greeted him. A bemused smile seemed to creep its way onto Natasi's face for a brief moment, but it vanished just as quickly as it had appeared. Smiling to himself behind his mask he contemplated her reaction as he returned to his command suite. He sensed traces of pride emanating around her, but not in him. She expected me to return to the bridge like this, she knows me far too well it seems… This, of course, was to be expected, who else would know him so intimately if not her?

Sliding into his chair, he checked the fleet's formation, he didn't expect to find anything wrong, it was simply a habit. The fleet was in a standard line formation with the Night Hammer in the center. Its arrowed bow protruding ahead of the rest of the fleet like a deadly spear, bristling with an impossible amount of weaponry. Closest to the flagship were the three Victory-Class Star Destroyers, one on either side while the third was slightly below. The flanks of the fleet were filled out by the twelve Imperial-Class Star Destroyers, evenly distributed on either flank. The right flank was reinforced by the four Sangheili ships, giving the formation a lopsided appearance. Finishing off the formation was the interdiction cruiser which was just to the rear of the Night Hammer. Ideally the Surprise wouldn't even be part of a battle formation, it wasn't really designed for front-line combat. Yet, he needed every ship he could get, he had to commit everything to the fight. It was all or nothing.

Captain Noin's small flotilla infuriatingly lacked shields but, luckily, they were hidden away behind the earth's single moon. When the two opposing fleets met, he expected his enemy to commit excessive numbers to attack his flanks. The right flank would hold because the Sangheili were there but his left was seemingly perilously exposed. Only the moon guarded it, seemingly desolate. As his ships maneuvered at half-speed towards the massing enemy fleet, the moon inexorably drew ever closer. Timing was everything. If Noin's fleet attacked too early they would be annihilated, if they struck too late then their impact would be negligible. This was the only reason he had allowed his clone to remain aboard the ancient Leviathan, the timing was just too important. The risks were massive, he didn't really expect Noin's fleet to last very long either way. He's expendable after all… he's just a clone… And yet, despite the certainty that he felt, he couldn't cast away the sinking feeling in his chest. Damn him, he would have survived this if he had just listened to me…

The time for worrying about such things had passed, nothing else could be done. The crew was ready, each crewman on the bridge was already in their survival suits just in case there was a hull-breach. These suits would protect them from the vacuum of space but little else, if the suits were damaged by shrapnel then its owner was as good as dead should the worst happen. Every single soldier and crewman aboard had similar protection just in case their enemies were foolish enough to board them without equal precautions. Grimacing, Kevin decided not to hope for such luck, there was no way his enemy would be so careless.

Finished with his inspection of the formation he turned his attention towards the massing mob of enemy ships. There was still no discernable formation, but as more and more ships arrived he grimly decided that there really wasn't any need for one. If his calculations were right, and no more enemy ships had arrived, his enemy outnumbered him by at least sixteen to one. Being so helplessly outnumbered crushed his spirit, my ships are better than theirs… and I have the Sangheili too… will that be enough? Can our ships survive long enough to make a difference in this fight before we are annihilated?

"Treize… I need that shield…" Realizing that he had spoken aloud he cut himself off. Modulated and synthesized, the sound of his voice sent shivers down his spine.

"Sir?" Obviously pretending that she hadn't heard him, even though it was quite impossible that she hadn't, Natasi got up from her chair and slowly made her way towards him. Before he could respond he noticed that his enemies' largest ship had just arrived. Big ships were almost always command ships, his new nemesis would most certainly be aboard, it was time to meet his enemy.

"Admiral, hail the lead ship if you would please, I think it's time that we had a word or two with our enemy, feel free to show your fangs… and if necessary, your claws too." Her face was once again decorated by her feral smile and she quickly returned to her command chair as she gave out the necessary orders. It didn't take long for a response either, barely had she returned to her seat when the communications officer made his report.

"Ma'am, they've returned our ping and appear to be trying to establish a two-dimensional video link with our software… shall I send it through?" Natasi nodded and composed herself, setting herself regally into her command chair as she adopted a very menacing demeanor. It took several moments and an intense debate could soon be heard from the communications suite as the crewmen and their officer worked their magic adapting the enemy signal to their software. Just when it seemed that the frustration had reached a boiling point, the holoprojector in front of Natasi came to life. But instead of a three-dimensional image a 'flat' two-dimensional projection was created in front of her. The image was also redirected to one of his own displays and he was far from impressed.

The man in the image slouched lazily in a massive chair that was more akin to a throne. He was red-faced, balding, and massively overweight, his chins even have chins. A bored expression shrouded his entirely unimpressed face. His uniform was extravagant and entirely covered with medals, citations and accolades. When he shifted in his seat Kevin was almost certain he heard them jingle noisily. Can this… can this really be the mastermind behind that ambush… I allowed him to force me to abandon one of my ships… he is the one responsible for the deaths of my people? Impossible! He felt his face flush with anger and he found his black-gloved hands tighten into fists. Fortunately, he was distracted from his rising fury when Natasi took the initiative and spoke first.

"I am Admiral Daala of the Imperial Navy… of Earth…" Old habits are hard to break… but I guess now the Earth has an Imperial Navy… good recovery. "Your ships have entered into a protected zone, retreat or you will be fired upon and more of your pathetic ships will be destroyed." Kevin felt a wave of enthusiasm sweep throughout the bridge as she spoke. Natasi's words were filled with ire, she finished off her threat with a predatory smile, her eyes glaring venomously at the pompous figure before her.

"Your puny transgressions have already been noted…" The man replied lazily as he stifled a yawn. "I am the Grand Marshall of the mighty fleet that stands before you. I am the First of the Founders, Lord of the Pinnacle, Sovereign of the Dominion, Magnate of the Imperator…" Kevin ceased paying attention as the man continued to spout out title after title, each one apparently more impressive than the last but none of them meant a thing to him. Natasi, clearly just as uninterested as he was, stifled her own yawn as their enemy prattled on. He probably would have done so for quite some time, but Natasi's display of boredom caught his attention and he cut himself short.

The bulbous man became immediately overwhelmed in a fit of rage, gobs of spittle flew forth from his mouth as he screamed at Natasi's obvious disrespect.

"How dare you bitch! I am the Grand Marshall of… you little slut! How dare you disrespect me! I would expect nothing less from a woman! I will not forgive your insolence!" Just as suddenly he calmed down as he eyed Natasi with an impish and vulgar look. "But… I might just spare the lives of your soldiers… should you manage to please me like the good little whore… that…"

As the man's words droned off his face burned bright red and he began to choke desperately for a breath. After a few failed attempts his face immediately paled and his entire bulging form began to shake uncontrollably, his medals jingling raucously as he struggled to remain upright. Just as quickly as the man's struggle started it ended as his lifeless body collapsed into his throne. Moments later the video feed cut to black as a stream of saliva began to stream out of his gaping mouth.

"Begging your pardon 'Grand Marshall,' but you appear to be suffering technical difficulties… don't worry, I'll wait." Natasi responded playfully but her face turned deadly serious once the communication line cut off entirely. Kevin could feel her eyes burning a hole into the back of his head as she approached him, her fury was evident. The bridge crew became instantly silent and their conversations abruptly died as she made her way to his command suite, all eyes turned away and pretended not to notice the maelstrom that was about to be unleashed.

"What the hell were you thinking?" He turned towards her as she threw herself down next to him, not even bothering to lower her voice, she shouted directly into his masked face. Shuddering as he processed what had just happened he felt a crippling weakness take over his body as his strength left him. He barely remembered doing anything. One moment the man had been shouting and then he had collapsed. No… he didn't collapse… I reached out and crushed his damned heart… it was so… easy. Despite the ease at which he had ended the man's life, he was glad that he was wearing his mask, he felt feint and was struggling to maintain consciousness. "Well? Take off that damned mask, don't you dare hide from me!" Natasi spoke much quieter now, but her hostile tone had intensified. Suddenly he felt a presence lending him strength, as if rewarding him for his actions.

All at once his weakness vanished and he felt stronger than he had ever felt. Shocked by the sudden reversal of his state, he sensed a whisper of a presence inside of his mind. Well done… well done! The ghost of Revan, it seemed, was pleased. Feeling revitalized he prepared to remove the mask but cut his movements short when the feelings of fatigue momentarily returned. It seemed that he was entirely dependent on the power of the mask for the time being, removing it just wasn't an option.

"Admiral, may I direct your attention to the composition of the enemy fleet." Natasi's fury intensified and her aura burned fiercely for a moment, but she restrained herself from a second outburst. Hesitating a moment to glare at him, she slowly tuned her attention towards the display that he was motioning towards. "As you will notice, every single one of their battleship-class ships is unique, each with its own personality and flair. Our enemy, it seems, uses a hierarchical structure of leadership far different from our own. The commanders of these ships are all next in line to be the leaders of this fleet, do you see how each of these battleships has a supporting fleet around it?" The enemy fleet didn't have a cohesive formation, but when you focused on the battleships, micro-formations could be seen. There were a dozen battleships in all and each had their own fleet martialed around them. The largest ship, the command dreadnaught also had a supporting fleet but none of this had been discernable before, it was almost as if he were looking at the enemy fleet through a new set of eyes.

"So… what are you saying…?" Her words were calm, the fury that had burned brightly within her had mostly abated.

"These twelve commanders, due to their seemingly equal powerbase, must now struggle against one another to become the next leader of the fleet. They are going to be rallying for support, calling in favors, threatening rivals, plotting, perhaps even performing assassinations… if we're lucky we might even get to watch as these micro-fleets turn their ships against each other. If you need confirmation on this, I would monitor the levels of communications between the enemy ships. You will find that the numbers of communications between the dreadnaught and all of these battleships will have increased dramatically.

She did as he suggested and within a few moments the communications officer confirmed this. The enemy capital ships hadn't been communicating with each other at all, but now there was an overwhelming amount of chatter between the thirteen ships. Most of the communications were 'open-air' and not encrypted. However, a few were clearly meant to be extremely secret and were done through sub-standard channels and frequencies. These were most likely the plots and backroom dealings that Kevin had suspected, unfortunately there were very few of them. His enemy, it seemed, wasn't as backhanded as he had hoped.

"When were you planning on sharing these conclusions of yours, or do you expect me to be just as clever as you in these matters?"

"Honestly, I just figured all of this out, that buffoon wasn't saying anything worthwhile anyway…"

"So… you killed him with your mind, yes I saw that… I… didn't know you could do something like that… what… did you do?"

"I crushed his heart…" She made a sudden face of revulsion that was just as quickly replaced by a devious smile. Yet, no matter how quickly she had hidden her reaction, he had noticed it. She was fearful of the extent of his power, he had done some incredible things with his powers in the past, but never anything that brutal.

He knew exactly what had gone through her mind. The thought was most certainly being shared by the rest of the bridge crew that had witnessed the altercation. Soon, everyone in his fleet would share this troubling thought as the news inexorably spread. Like a plague it would seep down to earth and soon Treize would be thinking the same thing. If Kevin could crush a man's heart at such a distance with seemingly no effort, what else was he capable of… how dangerous had he really become? There was certainly no doubt about the power that existed inside of him, but then again, there never had been.

"Aren't you always telling me that you don't understand politics? And yet here you are…figuring out the politics behind an enemy fleet in very little time…" Redirecting the conversation to something more lighthearted, Natasi expertly redirected his thoughts away from the encroaching darkness that his mind had been hurtling towards.

"I don't understand politics… it was just a guess anyway…" She scoffed at his feeble response, but her face soon turned playful and she leaned in close to him and whispered in a hushed voice.

"You and I both know the real reason you crushed that pigs heart… he was saying mean things about your mommy..." Withdrawing she winked at him just before her face returned to its natural state, cold and unforgiving. Kevin felt his face flush with color and suddenly he wished nothing more than to remove his mask, but he dared not. His face was bright red and to reveal this would be detrimental to his feeble explanation for his rash actions.

As Natasi climbed out of his command suite, he desired nothing more than to escape and fortunately for him he was suddenly starving. Not daring to remove his mask, should his newfound strength suddenly vanish, he stood and made his way towards the exit of the bridge. Casually announcing to the crew that he was heading off in search of another meal, he announced that this time he was taking orders.

"What does everyone want from the drive-through, I'm buying." All too quickly the crewman and a few of the officers were shouting out orders. Each successive suggestion became more ludicrous than the one that preceded it. The gag went on for some time until, finally, a confused looking crewman couldn't tolerate the excitement any longer.

"What the hell is a blasted 'drive-through'?" The crew erupted in a cacophony of laughter as Kevin made his way off of the bridge. The jovial atmosphere was cut short when the blast doors clamped shut behind him. The two troopers who were standing guard outside of the bridge seemed flustered at first when the raucous atmosphere that had erupted on the bridge caught them off-guard. They settled down however once the disturbance was gone, one of them shrugging while the other shook his white-helmeted head as he did his best not to chuckle himself. Now there was something else that would be spreading throughout the fleet other than his shocking display of his power. Crew morale improved, check.

A cold, numbing feeling of dread clutched at his heart so suddenly that Kevin nearly lost his footing. Gasping audibly in shock he steadied himself and sought out the nearest chair, all too aware of the stares that followed him. Collapsing into the sanctuary of the semi-comfortable seat he forced his breathing to normalize. Several long moments later he felt the approaching presence of the compassionate Captain Noin, her words were quiet and staggered.

"Did… did the grand admiral just… you felt it didn't you… you felt his power?" Struggling to respond with a steady nod he performed a poor mimicry of the motion, but the message was clear. Kevin had no doubt in his mind what he had just felt. For years he had sensed it, been touched by it, resisted it, but now it overwhelmed him. There had always been darkness within the man he had been cloned from, it had always been there, waiting. Now it was being unleashed.

A cold sweat had broken out over his entire body as a sudden realization overcame his terrified consciousness. All of the weapons that our fleet possesses are nothing compared to that power… Despite the horrifying effect that this incredible power had wrought on him, he knew with grim certainty that it was but a herald of greater things to come. He needed to shield himself from the effects of this monstrous force. But how? Shaking his head uncertainly against his own thoughts, he felt a sense of foreboding certainty that if he did not protect himself he would be consumed by the growing darkness.

"What… what do you know about his…our powers?" His words were shaky and weak, barely audible. The young captain paused a moment before answering, keenly aware that every crewman was doing their best to listen in to their quiet conversation.

"Very little… but I think it's called 'the force'." The force? That's a… fitting yet stupid name. Clearly noticing his confused reaction, she continued. "Apparently there are two sides of this power… one light… one dark, each side championed by a different group… the Jedi… and the Sith. He never told you any of this… did he?" Kevin shook his head in a slow and mechanical motion, any explanation concerning his powers had always been frustratingly vague.

"He… the grand admiral… he's no Jedi… or whatever…" Noin nodded, almost sadly. His words seemingly stung her, as if he had accused their leader of something horrible.

"Apparently, years ago, someone named Darth Vader slaughtered the Jedi to near extinction. It's said that there used to be hundreds of them, if not thousands. Now… very few remain." Recognizing the name of his master's former master he shivered. So, if my master is most certainly not a Jedi… what does that make me? A Sith? No… he teaches me not to use the darker sides of my powers, he forbids it… does he not want me to be as powerful as him, is he afraid of that?

Shaking his head, he immediately cast the thought back to the darkness from where it had originated. His master hated the darkness, loathed it, and would probably seek it out wherever he found it…to destroy it. However, the fate of the Earth and all of its people were in danger. Clearly his master thought that the darkness was too powerful of a weapon not to be used. Such a dreadful power being used for the powers of good… did that make any difference? Good and evil are trivial notions at the moment, all that matters is victory.

"You know something else… you're holding something back, Captain Noin." Obviously not surprised that he had caught onto her deception, she smiled playfully and signaled to a crewman who was standing idly by the entrance to the bridge. Recognizing Ensign Haratio, Kevin watched as the young man proudly crossed the room, his steps full of purpose. In his hands he reverently held an ornate black box, something very precious was inside. Kevin rose to his feet, struggling only somewhat against his retreating weakness.

Full of pomp and ceremony Haratio stood at attention before him. Kevin's curiosity and confusion had now reached a boiling point. Despite this, his hands drew towards the mysterious case with agonizing slowness, as if they were afraid of what they might find inside. The case soundlessly opened and as its contents were revealed, he couldn't help but smile.

Inside were two objects, both of which he was intimately familiar with, though the presence of one of them surprised him. Kate's golden cross lay serenely next to a cylindrical object that had been promised to him 'when he was ready.' That day had clearly come, finally. Reaching inside he collected Kate's revered talisman with one hand and his lightsaber with the other. Each object flooded his body with a surge of emotions. Kate's cross was imbued with her comforting presence, warming him as if he were once again in her arms. The lightsaber, now his, flooded him with confidence and power, he was ready.

One of his first lessons under his master had been the agonizing construction of this weapon. However, once he had finally finished constructing the device it had been taken from him. Promising that it would be returned when he was ready, his master had dared him to object. He hadn't. The construction of the device hadn't been a mundane engineering matter, it had been a spiritual one. Once it had been completed he felt as if he had constructed an extension to himself, having it taken from him robbed him of that sensation.

Feeling whole once again, he clipped the lightsaber to his belt and hung Kate's cross around his neck. Tucking it underneath his uniform, he forcefully buried the cyclone of emotions that brewed within him. Not sure if he had been successful or not, he quickly decided that the outcome of his heroic efforts mattered not. Every single crewman on the bridge was looking at him as if he were a god, the experience was empowering, yet humbling.

Kevin was now certain that no matter what darkness the future had in store for him, he would be ready. The cross that now hung around his neck would be his shield, his light, his hope. A constant reminder of exactly what he was fighting for. The lightsaber, his lightsaber, that now hung at his side would be his weapon against the oncoming darkness. It's piercing red blade capable of warding off any attack, parrying any blow, vanquishing any enemy. Fear no longer clutched at his heart, he was ready.