The Rogue Protector

Prologue

The cargo ship drifted through space. The thrusters streaked with piercing blue. The large ship was shaped like a cube, and built out of a gleaming, silver metal, and proudly displaying the logo of a yellow badge with a black 'P' – the mark of the Protectors. A crew of twenty people and an entourage of four fighter ships protected whatever they were carrying.

A faraway, alien sun shone eerie yellow and partially covered by a greyish blue gas giant. To their right was another planet, this one covered with plains of deep orange and oceans of gold. A thick belt of asteroids looped vertically around the planet's radius. Behind all of that lay a black wall dotted with hundreds and thousands of tiny lights: the vast reaches of space.

Inside the cockpit, the two pilots were strapped to their seats. The steering column was calm in the main pilot's hands, swaying left to right. The two glazed out into space, bored out of their minds. They would have thought transporting some very dangerous – and classified – cargo would bring about a pinch of excitement, but it was still as dull as ever. This was far from what they hoped for when they signed up with the Protectors, however, the work was straightforward and the pay was good, so they couldn't really complain there.

The co-pilot adjusted his cap. "I spy with my little eye something beginning with... S."

"Stars?" The other asked in a bored manner; the co-pilot shook his head. "Sun?" He shook again. The pilot looked down. "Seat?"

"Bingo." The co-pilot announced with no excitement in his tone. "You're turn."

The pilot tugged on his standard issue, red jumpsuit allowing him some much needed ventilation as he scanned his surroundings. "I spy something beginning with..." He paused for twice as long. "B."

The co-pilot sighed. "Again? Buttons."

The pilot let out an irritated grunt. "Okay, it's your..."

His words were cut off as something beeped. The pilots snapped out of their daze as the sound cut through their boredom.

"Hold on." The co-pilot said as he eyed the radar. A large, green oval was flashing before the small dot in the middle, which were them. "We're detecting a large object straight in front of us."

The main pilot stared straight ahead into the star-riddled black screen. "What object? I don't see anything."

The co-pilot switched back and forth between the radar and the viewpoint with neither of them adding up. The oval was getting closer, however. Several conclusions ran through the greenhorns head; maybe the radar was broken, maybe some kind of alien space goo had splashed on the sensor, or maybe it was just a lousy joke.

"The radar is still detecting something..." The co-pilot grabbed the radio connecting to the fighter ships. "Our scanners are reading an anomaly ahead. Are any of you guys seeing anything?"

After a short interval, all four fighters responded negatively. The two pilots continued to look on, baffled by the sight of nothing. But then something appeared before them. A small orb of light began to emit in the middle of space.

The pilot gasped. "What is that?"

"I don't know..." The co-pilot responded.

Suddenly, the orb began to light up brighter until it fired several lasers towards the entourage. The beams were launched as tremendous speed towards them. With no time to react, each ship was struck by a laser. The cargo shook violently as they were hit.

The co-pilot screamed. "What happened?!"

The dashboard, previously lit up like a Christmas tree, had immediately when dark. The pilot fumbled with the controls, punching random buttons, but nothing happened. "That must have shut off the engine or something! I've lost control!"

The radio waves spoke with the frantic voices of the fighter pilots. "Our ships have shut down! We're sitting ducks here!"

The orb of light began to advance on the drifting ships. As it neared closer, something began to materialise. Another ship, this one more like a dreadnought, revealed itself before them. The pilots watched in horror as the massive ship descended upon them, and they were helplessly floating there. The exterior was shaped like an arrowhead and painted a sinister grey. The length of the dreadnought was probably twenty times bigger than the cargo ship itself. It was massive!

The pilot reached over the control panel and slammed his fist into the red emergency button. An alarm filled the air as all the lights in the ship shone danger red. "Battle stations!" He yelled into the intercom. "We're under attack from an unknown enemy! This is not a drill!"

In the spacious cargo hold, the crew were on high alert. One by one, they rushed to the bay doors and set up defensive positions around it. Their laser rifles were trained on the only entrance.

The pilot jumped out of his chair, grabbing a laser gun from a cabinet. Before exiting the cockpit, he turned to the co-pilot. "Try and send out a distress signal if you can."

The dreadnought positioned itself beside the cargo ship, where the air-lock chamber was located. An airlock door slowly opened from the dreadnought and out of it extended a tube: a walkway. It extended until it reached the cargo's door. The point of contact made the ship shake for a brief moment. A few moments later, a pair of sparks appeared near the top of the steel, airtight door.

"They're cutting through!" One of the guards exclaimed as the sparks curved around the metal, leaving a visible black line.

"They must be after the top-secret cargo. We must protect it at all costs!" He pilot took cover behind a small, metal crate, and aimed his pistol at the entrance. "As soon as that door opens: open fire."

His words were met with silence, but he knew they got the message. The crew watched as the sparks chewed away the metal, the tension rose with every inch they travelled. Imaginations ran throughout their heads with thoughts, predictions, and ideas as to what form of diabolical creature was assaulting them. The pilot, himself, had his own mental library of alien encounters from his seven years of service, but this was unlike anything he had seen before.

Both sparks reached opposite ends of the floor, every crewmember raised their weapons slightly. The sparks disappeared with a hiss. The doors remained balanced for a brief moment before artificial gravity took effect and they fell forward, still remaining locked to each other. The slam of metal hitting metal was the signal for the crew, in almost perfect unison they fired.

The room lit up for a split-second with around twenty laser beams. Almost every shot was bang on with some hitting slight above or below the wide opening. The entrance was riddled with several smouldering holes, forming a shroud of thin smoke. However, for their aggressive firepower, they were shooting at nothing.

The crew ceased fire. Their weapons and the entrance were smoking. The echo of gunfire continued for a few seconds before finally dying away. After an interval of silence, another sound came from somewhere. It was faint and slow. It sounded like tapping, and it was coming towards them.

From the dark corridor, a lone figure stepped forward. The figure wore some kind of suit that covered the entire body. The suit had a grey, metallic sheen, and a helmet that covered the wearers face. The shape and size of the figure looked human.

He stopped, seemingly unfazed by the fuming holes and the pointed guns that surrounded him. "Hello, nice people." The figures voice bounced off the interior. It was a male voice, and it sounded like the something you'd hear from a royal professor, sophisticated and smart. "If you would all be so kind, please place your weapons on—" BLAM! A laser hit the floor behind his feet, three inches from where he stood. He did not flinch at all. "How rude..."

Without warning, the figure whipped out a blaster and a streak of blue zoomed straight from the end and into nearest guard. A strong wave of electricity coursed through the guard's body, pain screamed in every muscle. The poor guy shook uncontrollably before crashing to the floor, completely paralyzed.

The rest of the crew opened fire on the lone attacker. The figure leapt into a sprint and rushed across the hold, every shot failed to make contact with him. The figure continued to fire the shock gun with deadly accuracy, taking down another six guards.

The figure charged straight into another guard. Time seemed to slow to a crawl as the Protector tried to aim his rifle straight at the attacker. At the last moment, the figure grabbed the gun by the barrel and pushed it upward. The laser shot straight into the air, destroying a light in the process. The figure then grabbed the guard, spun him around, and wrapped his burly arm around his neck. The guy let out a gurgle as the bones in his neck felt like breaking. Using the guard as a shield, the figure proceeded to electrocute several more crew before finally knocking out his hostage.

No more than twenty seconds after the figure had attacked, all twenty of the armed guards were having a long date with the mesh flooring. They weren't dead, just paralysed, unable to move. Only two of the crew were still standing: the pilots. The co-pilot was still trying to get an SOS message out, but the gunfire had put him on edge. The main pilot was hiding behind the same crate he used for cover; he was the only one remaining who could stop this unknown attacker.

A river of sweat dripped down the pilots face, his cap was soaked in it. The pistol shook in his hands no matter how hard he tried to steady them. Nothing had ever scared him before, but this thing was really getting to him. He couldn't see the figure, but he could hear his heavy footsteps over the low droning of paralyzed men. The steps were slowly drawing closer, and closer.

"Come on out from behind there." The classy voice spoke again. The pilot cringed; the figure knew he was hiding there. "You're not fooling anyone."

Acting out of impulse, the pilot leapt from his chosen cover. He spotted the metallic suit right in front of him, a mere foot away. He shoved the muzzle straight into the figure's chest, but before he could pull the trigger, his arm was clutched and twisted around to his back. The pilot yelped in agony, the blaster slipped out of his grasp and clanked off the floor. He swung his left elbow behind him, hoping to hit his attacker, but his attack was blocked.

The figure pushed the pilot forward. "I have no desire to hurt you." He spoke in a calm voice, made frightening by the fact he had just taken down twenty people single-handed.

The pilot swung around and flailed his fists; he may have been a pilot, but he knew a thing or two in martial arts. The first three punches he tried to land were effortlessly blocked with only one arm. The fourth punch was an inch away from the helmet before it was caught by the figure. That may have been a good thing: punching the helmet would have hurt him more than the guy wearing it.

The figure pulled the pilot's hand over his shoulder, executing an arm throw. He was pulled off his feet and forced into a painful spin before slamming into the floor. The impact came first, the pain came second, and then an electric shock came third. The muscles in his body began to spasm as the numbing pain engulfed his entire body. For a few brief moments he struggled to breathe before, mercifully, he wheezed a slither of air.

"My sincerest apologies." The figure spoke. "But I'm afraid you didn't leave me much choice."

The pilot squint his eyes at the figure as he struggled to remain conscience. He worked up the strength to mutter something. "What are you?"

The figure knelled before the paralysed man and brought his head before his eyes. He clutched the bottom of his bulky helmet and began to pull it up. He pulled his helmet off, finally revealing his face. Before, the pilot had so many questions about who was attacking them, now he had even more questions as he stared up into his face.

"You're..." The pilot crocked in confusion. "...human...?"

The figure was undoubtedly human. He had a long, spiky, black beard and a full head of kempt hair, both of which were greying at the roots. He had a pair of brown eyes that showed confidence. He had an intellectual look about him, the type of guy who valued science above all things.

"Wait..." A voice called out from somewhere. The co-pilot stood by the cockpit door, petrified at the sight of the human attacker. "I've heard of you..."

"You... know this guy?" The pilot managed to ask.

The co-pilot continued. All the while, he remained standing by the door. He could clearly see the damage the man had done, so trying to stop him himself would be fruitless. "Yeah, I've read about this man. He's Maverick. He used to be a Protector, one of us, before he went rouge a few years back. Apparently, this guy used to be one of the best agents before he tried to destroy an alien planet with a doomsday device that was intended to blow up the Earth."

"This guy used to be one of us?!" The pilot asked disbelieving. "Get out of here!"

"Oh, but I believe it's true." Maverick stroked his beard. "And I am here to take the precious cargo you are holding." He pulled a radio from behind his back and spoke into it, ordering whoever was on the other side to enter the ship and seize the cargo.

"But, why?" The co-pilot asked. "Why are you doing this? We've done nothing to you."

"Why, you say?" Maverick smiled. "For the greater good of the universe, my boy." Right on cue, a squad of people march through the opening. They were all human and dressed in matching uniform consisting of a blue jumpsuit and helmet. They marched in a military formation straight into the back, ignoring the pained guards slithering the floor. They surrounded a big crate lying at the back and proceeded to lift it up. The squad carried the crate out the entrance, back towards his ship.

"Don't worry, the numbness will wear off in an hour, and your ships will regain a small amount a power, enough to call of help. But heed my warning: The Protectors can't protect anyone, let alone themselves. If you all value your lives and your families: you should leave them while you can."

"You won't get away with this!" The pilot yelled as loud as he could, which was not very much.

Maverick laughed. "I believe I already have." He spun on his heel and began to walk away with the manner of a relaxing stroll.

The co-pilot rushed up to his injured friend. He placed a worried hand on his shoulder in an attempt to calm him. "Calm down, man. Just relax and breathe, we'll get you to a doctor soon."

"The Super Commander will hear about this!" The pilot ignored his advice. "There's not a galaxy big enough for you to hide! He will send his best agents to take you down!"

Maverick was a mere step away from disappearing into the shadow before he made one final glance back at them. His sinister smile was sill etched on his face. "I'm counting on it." Then he was gone. An emergency airlock door slammed shut behind him.

Inside his massive ship, he ordered his crew to take off, leaving the marooned vessels. They will be rescued eventually. He reached for his radio again.

"Stage two will commence shortly." Maverick's voice was messaged to every compartment on his ship. "Have my shuttle prepped to launch. I'm going to visit Earth."