Chapter Seven : Intricate Dealing

" The evil Cassiopites, a race of aliens from across the universe invaded Earth . They wanted , and by extension , she wanted to take out her enemy , Spica Starlight . So , they used the indestructible Heart Of Darkness to take out both Spica , and her hiding place , Earth .

'We lost our friends, our allies , our families and even Spica herself. Just when we thought it was over for us, we were saved by a mysterious robot called Juniper. "'

''A swirling mass of debris was all that had managed to remain after the black hole disappeared, floating gracefully in the empty void of space. It would've been beautiful if not for one fact -- everyone had died. Lost forever in an infinite gravitational singularity .''

''The dragon-human hybrid, having lost everyone and everything he loved , fell into a deep depression , unable to say anything. Juniper, however , was hemming and hawing over some of the ship's ultra-futuristic screens , saying , " Oh my , and 'Oh dear ' " , every other second. She walked about the cockpit, seeming to attempt some sort of repair work , although , the others were all but interested , being very quiet .''

However, just then , Brandon realized that he wanted answers .

Turning to the robot with tear-drenched eyes, he spoke :

" Okay, Juniper , or whatever the hell your name is , what just happened ?! "

Spinel, seemingly disturbed by everything , took Juniper by her shoulders and shook her violently , irritating the robot .

''"This has got to be some kind of sick joke, right ? " she said frantically. "Right ?! "''

''Juniper took her hand and smacked Spinel right across the face, temporarily stunning her. She shook her head in distaste as she walked away. " Calm down, Spinel . I'am needed at the pilot's seat . "''

''Misty also got into the conversation as Spinel gave Juniper a rather dirty gesture. She mimicked it. Juniper urged Steven and Rigel to get out of her seat and as she sat down, Misty gave her interrogation .''

"That's not good enough . Where the hell are you taking us ? "

''Juniper clicked her tongue as she worked at the dashboard. With everything in place, the ship made a rather harmonious sound as its internal lighting deactivated. In the darkness, a voice spoke .''

" All questions will be answered in time . "

The ship then shuddered as a bright rift in the expanse of space opened, startling everyone .

" What the hell is going on ?!! " Rigel exclaimed .

''Juniper pressed a button and a protective dome surrounded herself. The others stared in shock as what happened seemed unreal .''

''"Hold on to something !!! " Juniper shouted. Immediately everyone held on to Brandon, though much to his annoyance. In a bright flash, the rift engulfed the ship as it flew though it. Whilst inside, a severe cacophony of sounds thundered as rainbow streams of light flickered , then blue , then yellow. It was like being within a living, noisy , kaleidoscope. Brandon and the others screamed and shouted as the noise and vibrations was numbing. Then the black hole dramatically appeared before them, spitting back out the pieces of Earth as the planet re-materialized itself , all whilst spinning at intensely disorienting speeds. The Heart Of Darkness shrank exponentially as the planet grew in size, all of the deaths being reversed. New York was reformed, as the machine shrank and deactivated , many of the buildings reconstructing themselves. Spica came back to life as her death was undone. The invasion and the long battle repeated itself in reverse, as the Moon spun around the Earth. Days and nights passed as the Cassiopites left, with only the reformed Earth and Luna spinning violently , slowing down until it finally stopped. Then a massive thunderclap-like noise sounded as the ship skidded in place .''

''In the massive window giving a perfect view of the planet, Misty , Brandon , Rigel , Steven , Adalene and Spinel gazed with wide , happiness-filled eyes as they saw it. The Earth and Luna floating in space, their home restored. It was over !''

''"What, ...........how ?! " Adalene gasped in ebullience. " It can't be ! "''

''" Earth !!!!! " Steven shouted in joy as he hugged Misty and Spinel tightly. Rigel walked over to Brandon as he stood there, staring at the planet , with tears of joy streaming down his face. Rigel smiled and embraced him as Juniper stood front and center. Everyone was back ! Spica was back !''

''"EH-hem ! " Juniper said expectantly. Everyone, still happy , looked at the robot as she spoke .''

" I understand that you all are happy, but I hope you do realize that the threat of the Cassiopites remain . "

''As if struck with a piece of lead, Misty asked in a concerned tone. " Who exactly are you ? "''

''Everyone concurred as they were all curious. Especially Brandon .''

Juniper appeared annoyed, but answered anyway .

"Like I said, my name is Juniper Starlight . I am a friend of Spica . It was actually Spica herself that sent me here to save you all as a last ditch escape attempt . Plus , I've always wanted to see Earth ! The planet really is as beautiful as the Intergalactic Authority says it is . "

______________________________________________________________

''Juniper returned to her seat and sat down, pressing a few buttons and thing-a-ma-jigs , propping up a hologram of the Heart Of Darkness , the machine that started this war in the first place. Brandon had a murderous thought about its creator, but became quickly enthralled in Juniper's monologue as she explained what their objectives were .''

" I think that we all know what we have to do, right ? " she asked .

" Of course we know, Jupiter . " Misty said .

''" Ah-ah, Juniper . " Juniper corrected with curtness , pointing at the hologram. " The Cassiopites spent the last six years searching the cosmos for the fragments of this machine, which were placed in the most exclusive , abandoned spots in this universe . "''

Everyone stood and were silent, waiting for Juniper to get her point across .

" So this means that stopping them this way is virtually impossible, however , they will arrive in a few minutes so- "

''" A few minutes ?!?? " Spinel asked with horror. " Are you saying that those brutes are right around the corner ??? "''

''Steven and the others became nervous. Adalene glanced about. Brandon turned his back to everyone, staring at a gleaming white dot near a smaller red one in the inky blackness of outer space. His heartbeat began racing .''

''" Yes, " Juniper said in a calm tone , looking at Brandon. " If Brandon's looking at what I think he's looking at, they are actually at Mars at this point . "''

''" I know . " Brandon said in a low tone. The he turned around, a look of strictness and apprehension on his face .''

" What's the plan, Juniper ? "

" The plan is this : We must stop them from using the Heart Of Darkness on Earth, before they have a chance to even get the machine near its countdown ."

Steven seemed confused .

" And how exactly are we supposed to do that ? They outnumber us millions to seven ! "

Juniper smirked .

" Exactly, which is why they'll be complacent in this pursuit . Because they think that they'll win easily . That's the point . "

The white dot got slightly bigger .

" So, we'll simply do this : Get to the city and stop them . "

Everyone looked stunned .

''"Stop them ? Of course !! " Rigel said in an annoyed tone. " But how is the question . Why exactly would we not stop them ? The reason we lost was because we had no concrete plan . We were fighting all over the place !!!! "''

" True, but this time , we'll be more vigilant . "

''Misty smiled. " Even so, if we fail , we can just go back in time again , right ? "''

''Juniper shook her head and frowned slightly. " No, " she said. " Repeated time travel around the constraints of the Black Hole Generator is impossible because even time is subjected to its violent traction . "''

" So what are you saying ? "

The air in the ship felt clammy and cold, with everyone contemplating the massive battle that they have to fight ..........again .

" I'm saying that .....we must defeat the Cassiopites and destroy the Heart Of Darkness, or we won't have another chance . Even if you all manage to save Spica this time .... Earth will be gone forever . That's why we cannot let that happen again . We must be on our toes . We can't rely on Earth's militaristic forces or anything of the like . Only we can truly stop them . "

''Adalene held Misty and Rigel's hands and squeezed them gently, reassuring she and everyone else that everything will be okay. Juniper sat back down in her seat as she began to steer the ship towards New York, soaring through Earth's turquoise-blue atmosphere .''

" So, are you all ready to save Earth once again ? " Juniper asked .

''" Hell yeah !!! Let's do this !! " Misty proclaimed. Everyone cheered and whooped, with morale high within the team once more. Everyone was ready and inspired. Everyone but Brandon, who stood afar for that time , watching as the surprisingly devastated skyline of New York came into view , with Starbeams a few miles above the city. Then the cheers died away. The sense of fear was reinstilled as towering Tripods waltzed all over Manhattan, vaporizing everything that they got near .''

" Let's get this done, then . "

''In the charred remains of the World Trade Center, the ship landed near a diamond-faceted skyscraper , hidden by its shadow as the Tripods laid siege near Battery Park , just a few miles shy of them. With the ship's power off, the crew walked out , stealthily and cautiously , with Juniper at the foreground , surveilling the surrounding area .''

" It's safe to come out . Let's hurry, we only have a few hours before the machine is activated again . "

''In the smolder, Spica and Dahlia zoomed through the rubble of Central Park , sitting near a park bench with Windy , all of them covered with dust and blood , smelling of charred corpses. Three Quasars careened near the center of the park at a massive fountain, bringing the Heart Of Darkness once again to its resting place. Many soldiers beamed down and began to fiddle with the machine, whilst others began to take their places in guarding , gazing about the perimeter .''

''" Those Mortaxans are scientists ," Dahlia said. " They're tasked with the preparation of the Heart Of Darkness . "''

Windy looked in shock as a few of those monsters, as tall as a telephone pole , began to creep closer .

" So, um................I think that those are the soldiers ? " she asked shakily .

''Dahlia and Spica both shook their heads. Spica's eyes were incredibly red and dull, with drooping mascara running down her cheeks. She had been crying. Crying because her fellow friends, family and husband all passed away in the massive explosion that took down her ship. She, Windy and Dahlia were the only survivors as the Starbeam barely missed them , incinerating everyone else instead. She could still hear Brandon's dying screams in her head .''

" Okay guys, I'm not sure if we can do this by ourselves , so I called for the Diamonds for assistance . Until they reach , we have to push back those soldiers as much as possible . "

''Dahlia laid a hand on Spica's shoulder, comforting her as she began to weep again. The world was beginning to burn all around her, and she was the fault for it .....or so she thought. As she cried, large buildings began to collapse as the city once again began to become a ravaged war zone .''

" Spica......"

Spica turned her head away as she cried, moving her glasses out of the way , eyes misty and damp .

" I should've just let Andromeda torture me to death . Maybe if I hadn't gone to Earth and stayed on Cassiopeia, Brandon and the others would've still been alive . This world wouldn't be sucked up into a black hole ............why did I come on this world just to inadvertently destroy it ? "

" Spica ........"

Her loathing was cut short when a soldier tore the bench away and jabbed the gun near her face, seconds away from pulling the trigger .........