Arrival in Gaoa
Arrival in Gaoa
By Jesse DeStasio
Images & Artwork by Ian Ameling & Scott Paige
(pic by Scott Paige)
Stepping out of the vector portal, CyMa's eyes slammed shut in pain.
The heat and the dust were whipping around, blinding her.
Instinctually, she reached her hand out to balance
on the shoulder of Dust Bugmen,
her desert climate specialist.
He smiled under his helmet, thankful for the touch of his queen.
That creep Azu Lado had said...and so here they were.
Assuming this was an obvious trap,
CyMa had sent a recon team the day prior.
(art by Scott Paige)
They cleared the sand level as being mostly deserted,
save for a couple harmless
bipedal machines called Voidgears.
Scanning the horizon, CyMa could see
Scanning the horizon, CyMa could see
"mostly deserted" was an understatement.
There was nothing here save for the
odd cacti and rock formation.
"What the devil did he want me here for?"
"What the devil did he want me here for?"
She asked herself.
No answer came to her mind,
so they kept walking.
It was another hour (or maybe more, who can tell),
It was another hour (or maybe more, who can tell),
before two silhouettes appeared
over the ridge.
Dust Bugmen enhanced his sight
through his helmet's viewports.
"Voidgears! They appear wounded."
CyMa clutched her Caster Wand
CyMa clutched her Caster Wand
just in case they had to make a speedy exit,
but she wasn't sensing any danger.
(photo by Scott Paige)
With a whirring click, the Voidgears approached them.
With a whirring click, the Voidgears approached them.
They seemed to be almost wheezing,
with several smoldering wounds
spilling sparks and smoke into the air.
It was like a pair of limping animals looking for help.
The smaller one collapsed, with the
other falling to its knees to comfort its companion.
As the machine pointing toward the west,
CyMa felt a chill run down her spine.
"She. Is. Here." The Voidgear
chirped through a metallic vocoder.
"Who?" Dust Bugmen spat,
"Who?" Dust Bugmen spat,
feeling a combination of pity and alarm.
"Your daughter." The Voidgear spoke,
"Your daughter." The Voidgear spoke,
tilting its head towards CyMa.
"She is looking for her mother....in order to kill you."
"What do you mean daughter? I don't have any..."
"What do you mean daughter? I don't have any..."
CyMa paced, feeling uneasy.
"Every time you create one of him."
"Every time you create one of him."
The Voidgear pointed to Dust Bugmen, then back to the horizon
"It creates one of her...a Cue."
CyMa leaned down towards the Voidgear,
CyMa leaned down towards the Voidgear,
her nostrils being singed by the smell of
burnt ozone- an indication lazer weapons had been used.
"I created her? I don't understand! You need to--"
CyMa's sentence was cut off by
CyMa's sentence was cut off by
the piercing noise of a blast,
followed by a shower of sparks
cutting down the Voidgear.
As if anticipating it, Dust Bugmen had already
rolled and grabbed CyMa,
dragging her to a rock out-cropping.
Daring a glance, CyMa saw her attacker.
It could've very well have been a clone of CyMa herself,
same build and same frame,
but there was no face nor arms.
Just a rather a devious mix of
technology and weaponry.
A machine for killing.
The Cue's voice was like a metallic shriek,
it betrayed a deep pain.
"The mother is here. The mother must end.
"The mother is here. The mother must end.
I did not ask to be pulled into this world
and I cannot sleep until you are terminated."
"The mother is here. The mother must end."
"The mother is here. The mother must end."
it repeated, firing concussive beams at the rock cover.
"My queen, we must escape,
charge the Caster Wand and let's jump."
Knowing they didn't have enough firepower
to go toe-to-toe with the Cue, CyMa nodded.
"It'll take two minutes to power-up" She yelled
over the deafening noise of
rock being splintered all around them.
A larger chunk of their cover exploded
with a particularly deadly blast, and
Dust Bugmen was left exposed for a moment.
That second was all that Cue needed,
That second was all that Cue needed,
wasting no time in targeting her
next blast into the side of his head.
Dust twisted to avoid the brunt of the attack,
but his head still snapped back like a rubber band.
He fell to his knees below the rock,
tucking himself against CyMa.
The odds were against them surviving the next minute and thirty seconds.
And then a voice called out....
The odds were against them surviving the next minute and thirty seconds.
And then a voice called out....
"Heads up!" A man's baritone cut through
the cacophony of lazer fire.
Several shots rang out
and the Cue was forced to dance to avoid them.
Her barrage was momentarily stopped
as the stranger focused fire in her direction.
With the setting sun obscuring the man,
With the setting sun obscuring the man,
CyMa couldn't quite work out if he
was human or another Voidgear.
Before she could ask his name,
Dust clicked the caster wand to life and
dragged her into the Vector Portal.
In the commotion, the wand fell to the sandy ground,