FSE

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** CHAPTER 56** Lost in Nightmares

This couldn't be real. Husky looked at his radar and couldn't understand why his brother's ship flew away from them a few minutes ago. The signal of his ship was no more. It happened so fast...

Hasky and Husky were his only family. The three of them had shared their lives since forever. They shared everything, had their own games, secrets and understood and knew each other like no one else in Canis Major. They were so happy in their own little world...

Why would Fx throw all this away? Why would he break the most loving and inseparable trio in Canis Major? Husky couldn't even imagine his life without his brother. The same thing went through Hasky's mind, and even worse, she knew the bitter taste of loss already. She didn't want to go through that again; not with her son.

"No! Let me out!!" an infuriated Hasky punched and kicked the Bridge's door. It wouldn't open. The computer had sealed the floor for safety due to atmosphere leaks.

"Hasky, I can't override the security lockdown." A very nervous Kalem told her. "Not until the D.E Cruiser is in atmosphere!" Kalem was desperate as well. He was very careful with what he said, because he could feel the fury emanating from his Evocanis sister like he had never seen before. For the first time he feared one of his own. "You know how the D.E Cruiser works!"

Hasky suddenly stopped her rampage. But she slowly turned her glare towards Kalem. Her eyes were blood shot. Her lips curled all the way showing not only her pearly white fangs but her pink gums. Her ears were flat on her head and the fur on the back of her neck had risen giving her an intimidating mane. She slowly drew her E.M.P gun.

"Please Hasky... Calm down, my friend. We will find a way to bring him back." Kalem felt as he made a mistake by requesting her to calm down. He instantly placed himself on her position and imagined if it was Hemi who had just flown to the deadly battlefield and disappeared from the radar. He knew that being calm wasn't an option.

Hasky slowly turned to face Kalem. She never let go of the E.M.P. Twice in that day an Evocanis had drawn a weapon to another living being... But did she really mean to? Something told Kalem to drop on the floor; so he did.

Hasky shot indiscriminately at the bridge's computer, in a desperate attempt to make the computer override the lock. Kalem knew they needed the computer to keep the ship living. He jumped at Hasky in an attempt to stop her. He managed to disarm her, but they had a fierce scuffle.

Kalem was bigger and heavier than Hasky, so he was very surprised when he realized that Hasky was physically stronger than him. It could've been her breed or the anger that fueled her strength at that moment, but fighting against her he felt completely overpowered. Kalem flew meters away when Hasky threw him in a defensive grapple. The fall stunned the Labrador-Retriever and still disoriented he saw the furious husky approaching him.

"Please, Hasky..." Kalem had no strength on him anymore. He knew he had failed his crew once again. "Since when do Evos hurt each other?" Kalem didn't look at Hasky anymore. He was defeated, not physically but emotionally. "I am sorry, Hasky. I have failed my kind once again. Your sons are in danger because of me... I should've never come here."

Kalem expected Hasky jumping at him at any moment. But when he took his sight towards Hasky, he saw her kneeling on the floor looking at her trembling hand-paws. Her face reflected many feelings: pain, anger, disappointment... She was as baffled as Kalem of why and how Evos got to that point.

"It's not your fault." Hasky whispered. She stood up and walked towards the panel. "Husky, are you listening to me?"

Sobbing was heard on the other side.

"I know you are, Husky. Please do me a favor and bring your brother back.

"I can't see him in the radar anymore, Hasky!" Husky was emotionally destroyed. He knew what that meant.

"I don't care. You bring your brother. You are the only one who can do this right now." Hasky said in a very silent and paused tone.

"Husky, let's bring Fx." Anubis now jumped in the conversation. "I promise I will be with you until the end of times. You two are my best friends and I would give my life for you."

"Anubis... You don't have to do this ..." Hasky said.

"Oh, but I will. I don't care what happens today. All I know is that by the end of this day, we will be all together and we will overcome what just happened, the way we did years ago. We will rebuild from the ashes once again." Something was different in Anubis' voice. It broke, but the determination and bravery could be felt on his words.

Husky dried his tears and took his glare to where the battlefield was. They had a mission now, and they would fulfill it no matter what. They were warriors now and they would face their enemy fearlessly.

Both Evos looked at each other through their screens and placed their handpaws on them. It was like touching each other for the last time.

"Thank you, Anubis." Husky muttered.

"Let's go, Husky."

Both ships glowed in a blue light and head straight to the battlefield. There was no stopping them now.

They once and a while tried to communicate with Fx, but there was no response. His ship still didn't appear in the radar.

"I am adjusting your radar so you can pick up on Fx's armor signal." Kalem spoke through their Com Systems. "It will require a lot of energy from your ships, but it's the only way to find him."

It took Kalem a few minutes. All of the sudden, Husky and Anubis were being swarmed by enemy ships. They were in the battlefield.

"I'm starting to get hit!" Anubis confirmed.

"We can't stay here and fight. We have to look for Fx and get back!" Husky yelled.

It was hard to distinguish the tiny signal from Fx's armor in that swarm of ships. Their radar was a mess of dots flying all around them.

The situation was critical. They couldn't search for Fx while trying to avoid the machines. They had no choice but to fight their way through. If Fx had made it to the machine's main fleet, no one knows what would've happen to him. They had to hurry before he would be out of reach. But every time they tried to make their way through the swarm of enemy and Retcan ships, they felt like they were being held back. If they focused on pushing forward, they lowered their defenses and got hit. And there was so much their shields would resist.

The shields kept on reducing their percentage. It would be a matter of minutes before they dropped to zero and the ships hull was naked to the merciless attacks from the machines. But Husky and Anubis had only one thing on mind and they continued fearlessly.

"Keep going Anubis!" Husky yelled. "WARNING: SHIELD AT 45%" His computer advised.

"I don't know how longer we can keep this, Husky!" Anubis replied. His shield was at the low 40's as well.

Stopping to fight wasn't a choice. They were risking it all to get to Fx as soon as possible. Going through the battlefield was their only option. However, they couldn't go too fast, or they wouldn't be able to dodge any ship that crossed their path. Going too slow would mean they would be easier targets.

"WARNING: Shield has reached maximum damage threshold. Diverting weapon energy supplies to magnetic shields is recommended."

"I know, I KNOW!" Husky replied infuriated to the computer.

Both ships flew at an outstanding speed dodging everything on their path. Just one mistake, one miscalculation and at the state their shields were they would be dead.

"WARNING: Power source malfunction. Weapon systems offline. WARNING: Shields at 10%"

"We need to get out of here, Husky! I can't take another hit!" Anubis yelled through the Com Systems.

But just when they thought they would never make it, they saw an opening in that cloud of debris and explosions. The black veil of space soon covered them. The chaos that they just went through was now exchanged by an incredibly contrasting peace. Only their heartbeat and multiple alarms echoed inside the small cockpits. They had made it out.

Husky was suddenly startled by a loud hissing sound that invaded the cockpit. "Ventilation process complete. Oxygen levels restored." He didn't notice but his cockpit was starting to fill with smoke. The computer purged the dirty air and replaced it with fresh oxygen as part of security procedures.

"Are you okay, Husky?" Anubis' voice could be heard from inside Husky's ship.

"I'm okay. What's your status?"

"Shields are gone. I'm down to the ship's hull to protect me. I don't know what would've happened if we stayed there another minute." The Great Dane responded. He sounded agitated but somewhat relieved that they were still in one piece.

"My ship is in life support priority right now. I have no shields and no weapons." For a second, Husky sounded doubtful, but immediately he pushed on to their target.

"Husky, let's be careful! Or ships won't stand anymore damage!" Anubis Advised.

"I don't care. All I want is to find Fx and bring him back."

That sector of space was extremely dark. Very few stars could be seen at the distance, but that was about it. The image projected on their simulated windscreen was black so they relied fully on their radar.

Husky's handpaws gripped furiously on his ship's controls. He clenched his teeth until making his gums numb. Husky was furious with himself more than with the machines. If somehow he took priority of the bad feeling he had towards his brother's actions, he would probably be safe in Canis Major at this moment.

"I have something on screen, Husky!" Anubis informed. Husky had seen it too, but he didn't respond. He just kept going. "Let's be careful, Husky! That's the machine's main fleet we're getting close to."

Husky care very little. He just wanted to bring his brother back. In his mind he fought with all sorts of negative ideas of what could've happened. Fx's signal was now steady, but to their horror, it came from one of the huge mother ships.

"He got in..." Husky muttered. He couldn't believe how reckless Fx acted.

"I can't believe that Fx got in that ship." Anubis replied.

"We have to get him out! He has no chance if that ship is crawling with those things!"

Somehow, seeing that Fx signal came from inside the ship gave Husky some hope. But also made him fear for Fx's life even more. They knew what lurked inside those ships after studying The Hive report.

"Husky, lookout!" Anubis yelled through the Com Systems.

Husky was distracted by his thoughts and didn't notice that a huge ball of plasma or who knows what was going straight to him. He barely managed to dodge it but the shot did scrape along his ship taking what was left of his shields.

"DANGER: Hull integrity compromised."

Both Evos found themselves with a burst of rounds coming at them. But they couldn't stop now. They dodged the shots as good as they could and before they knew it they within the canon's blind spot. They could see the massive ship from where Fx's signal came from in front of them.

"I've lost control of my ship, Husky! We won't make it!" Anubis yelled. There was a huge hole at one of his ship's flanks. One of the ionic exhaust ports was heavily damaged, giving him an uneven thrust and making the maneuverability of his ship very laborious.

"There is no way back, Anubis!" Husky responded. He was right; there was no way back. Their ships were almost done for. Judging by how difficult it was for them to get past not only by the battlefield, but the machine's main fleet made him fear the worse for his brother.

If they didn't do anything, they would be dead. The ship got closer and closer, soon covering their entire field of vision. There was little they could do with their unresponsive ships.

"I see a hangar gate, Husky!" Anubis advised. A little ray of hope shined again in their minds. They could see a very large gate with an energy force field wall of some sort. That meant that the ship was pressurized since those fields were also used in their ships to seal the vacuum of space.

What other option did they have?

"We have no choice, Anubis. Do your best to slow down your ship and dock inside that hangar!" Husky yelled at his friend.

"DANGER: Proximity alert. Reduce speed. Reduce speed. Reduce speed..."

The speed was too much. They did what they could to slow down with the little control they had. Their ship's cockpits were in chaos with alerts going off indiscriminately. They finally reached a point were there was nothing more they could do but just brace themselves, hope that they directed the ship correctly and that they managed to reduce the speed enough so they wouldn't be killed by the impact.

The simulated image of the exterior that was projected inside the ship flickered erratically, showing how the machine's ship got closer by the second. One second after, everything went black. Husky and Anubis were brutally tossed and shaken inside their ships as if they were inside a blender. Lights went off and as soon as it started, the thunderous racket abruptly stopped...

A faint buzzing suddenly brought back Husky from his unconsciousness. A sharp pain on his side helped wake him up. A wet sensation on his nose, wetter than usual, also helped. He wiped his nose and could feel a very strong scent of blood covering not only his nose and muzzle, but now his gauntlet as well. For a minute he didn't realize where he was or what he was doing, but it didn't take long until his brain rewound all that happened that day.

"Anubis..." were the young husky's first words. "We need to... we need to find Fx..."

Husky unbuckled his safety straps and watched all around him trying to organize his thoughts and decide what his next move would be. He searched for the manual override to open his ship since nothing but the emergency lights inside of it were lit. Everything else was dead.

It would be a risky move. Not seconds ago they came to the conclusion that this ship was probably pressurized, but there was no way to confirm it. And with the ship's computer down, they couldn't run a quick scan of the environment. There was no choice but to trust his instinct and risk his life.

Before reaching for the release lever, he searched in a small compartment for his emergency oxygen canister; a small 5 inch nozzle with hyper compressed oxygen, enough for at least 20 minutes of breathable air. He placed two in his armor's belt and one in his muzzle. Husky then closed his eyes and got hold of the lever. Thinking of his brother took away all the fear. He then pulled on the lever without thinking it twice.

A strong hiss surrounded him for a second and the hatch of the ship opened violently rather than the usual smooth and mechanical way. His ears clicked and his body felt strange because of the difference of atmospheric pressure, but to his relief he was fine. Now outside, he could run a quick scan with his ComPod. The atmosphere in that ship was safe.

Husky spat the oxygen nuzzle, catching it with his hand-paw and quickly storing it in his belt. He then called for his friend Anubis. To his relief, Anubis was also okay, as he saw him getting out of his also severely damaged ship a few meters away from his location. They soon reunited.

"Are you okay, Husky?" Anubis asked worried.

"No time for that. Fx is close, I can sense it."

They both scanned the area, but there was no sign of Fx. Being in that ships felt like being lost in a nightmare; worse than what they had seen in The Hive report. And it was very strange that this ship was pressurized.

"Do you think they might have our brothers here, Husky?" Anubis asked a logical question. He never stopped looking around the huge and dark hangar.

"I don't know Anubis. We've seen where they keep our brothers, and it's definitely not this ship." Husky replied. He walked all around keeping track of his ComPod for Fx's signal. "Something is not right about this, Anubis... It wouldn't make sense if they bring them here. Are they trying to do the same they did years ago?"

"Maybe you're right; they were planning on taking more of us." Anubis concurred. He drew his E.M.P while doing so. This place was nerve-wrecking and they could feel they would be ambushed anytime soon.

This ship looked like if it had been abandoned for centuries. There were no walls and other trimmings. It was just the bare skeleton structure of the ship conformed by corroded metal beams and pillars. No light could be seen but a faint white light coming from below some vents on the floor and walls. The echo that could be sensed also gave an idea of how empty this ship was. Nonetheless, it was very big; its hangar almost the size of R105's even though the darkness hid how far it actually went.

"We should've asked for support, Husky."

"No time for that, Anubis!" Husky replied, but he immediately ran away towards something that grabbed his attention. Anubis immediately noticed it too.

This could be Husky facing his worst nightmare.

"Oh no... no... no, please!" Husky ran to what it didn't take long for him to realize it was Fx's ship.

Something had gone dreadfully wrong. The ship was totaled.

"Fx!" Husky cried desperately. He knew he had to approach the ship, but part of him rejected the idea of seeing his brother dead. But he gathered strength and managed to get close enough to the smoking ship wreck.

"No, please... why do this to us..." Husky let out a heartbreaking yelp; immediately falling on his knees.

What lied in front of him in a pool of blood would forever wreck the innocence of the young Husky Evocanis. The Evocanis' peace and purity was once again desecrated by those monsters...