August 2941
Panther Class Pocket Carrier -'BLG Valiant Pennefeather'
Stanton System
It happened so fast and without warning. Specialist James Belcher felt the rattle of one of the Pennefeather's reactors exploding. Warning klaxons bellowed throughout the ship and he could hardly hear himself. The kids and nanny had been walking back from the bridge where they were viewing the four planets within Stanton system. While walking back there was suddenly the massive explosion and several smaller ones. Belcher had immediately ordered them to return to their quarters.
Belcher could sense something going on, and it didn't feel like a physical space battle, but SOP was to return the kids to their quarters until the battle and invaders had been resolved.
Matt and Elizabeth started racing towards the door to the XO's quarters; their makeshift quarters. Nanny Miss. Cameron held Lexi's hand tight, to the point the fifteen year old almost blurted out. She purposely slowed her pace and distance.
"Wait, MATT!" Belcher said as he rushed the two kids. Too late, as Matt pushed the door handle in everything went dark. The explosion shook Belcher to the ground on top of Liz and knocking him unconscious.
Lexi screamed. Blood was all over the place. Her twin had been shattered into non-existence instantly. Falling to her knees, tears pouring out, the scene was eeriely familiar for her.
Without hesitation, the Nanny tugged at her to get up. "Lexi, we have to go."
The child wanted nothing to do with it but was powerless as the seemingly frail older lady suddenly had the strength of a woman twenty years younger.
"You're coming with me young lady." She ordered as she pulled her up and down the corridor. In the chaos, she hoped the flight deck would be the last place at attention. Lexi struggled at first, but her will was devastated at seeing her twin vaporized and younger sister and Belcher fly into the air and into the bulkhead wall.
James Belcher's head rang like a church steeple on Sunday morning. He was having trouble seeing, much less hearing anything. All he could feel was a tiny poking feeling in his belly. It was repetitive and starting to hurt. He rolled over onto his back while trying to shake the cobwebs out of his head. As his vision returned, he could see ten year old Liz getting up of the floor where he just had been. Her mouth and hands were moving a hundred miles a minute but Belcher couldn't hear anything. She seemed to be pointing down the corridor towards the hangar bay.
Belcher realized he'd fallen on the girl and most likely saved her life. She had some scrapes but seemed to be no worse for the wear. He couldn't say the same for Matt.
Nanny Cameron entered the chamber dragging Lexi. Just as she suspected, the crew was busy fighting the fires across the ship's systems. She wasn't aware another agent had been on board, but she had taken the steps required of her and two of the kids were now dead. The third, Lexi would now go with her to her superiors. She had no idea why they wanted the girl, but the pay was too good to pass up.
"Lexi. Bad people are on the ship. You're going to have to ride with me in that space ship there." She pointed at the small M50. "Can you do that?"
"Yeah" She feebly got out. Having watched her mother, now her siblings all die in front of her had shaken her world.
"I'm going to take you to you're daddy. Let's hurry."
With that the two raced over to the M50 squeezing into the cockpit. Without clearance, or concern, Cameron fired up the engines and flew out into the system. As the two flew out, she looked back. Explosions now were rocking the bridge. The Pennefeather had seen it's final days within the Ballistic Logistics fleet.
She smiled as she recorded the message and sent it to her superiors.
"The hen has laid three eggs, two broke, one secure."
Dazed and confused, Belcher was led to the hangar bay by young Liz. The ship was shaking and buckling under more explosions. As they approached Commander Karen Shoemaker grabbed Belcher under his arm and helped lift him.
"Come on you two. We have to abandon ship. The order has been given to abandon ship. I just saw a M50 leave and I've ordered my fighters to vacate as well. Liz, we have to get him to an escape pod."
Processing the information, Belcher couldn't believe the hit, so calculated, so precise and so seemingly at a random time. Once more he had been bested by these evil forces and it had caused the Stormfury family and bloodline to suffer.
"Belch. Come on. We have to get to an escape pod! The Pennefeather is lost!" The Commander urged as she and the ten year old practically dragged the heavier solder to an escape pod.