The face did look a little different, notably the long muzzle and ears had been shortened to give it a more human appearance. Those shortened ears were still the same dark brown and the rest of the face still the same light gray Will remembered. The black stump of the left eye had been replaced with a cybernetic eye that now glowed red to remind Will of Dr. Ruff chasing him through Catt University. "Spot I?" he said.
Spot I slapped him across the face, the metal gauntlet striking with enough force to send Will sprawling on the deck. "I am the only true Spot Mangy Mutt. There are no others, only imposters!"
"But I thought you—"
"Yes, you lost me, you fool. You abandoned me in that motel room for a maid to find. She took me back to her home for her little monsters to play with. They were even more careless and stupid than you. They couldn't bring me back to this place."
"But how?"
"For years I remained trapped, in limbo between two worlds. It drove me mad, but in that madness I found my way back. Through sheer force of will, I forced my essence back into this world." Spot I glared down at Will. "I expected to find a hero's welcome, to find my family waiting. Instead, what did I find? I found an imposter living in my house! An imposter living with the wife and children that should have belonged to me. Can you even begin to understand what that felt like?"
"I'm sorry. We tried to find you."
"You didn't try hard enough, obviously. Then you just went on with your happy little life with that usurper you even gave my name."
"That's not true. I thought of you all the time. If I'd only known—"
"Silence! I don't want to hear any more of your lies. You abandoned me, left me for dead, and then replaced me." Spot I smiled, exposing his sharpened canines. "It wasn't entirely a waste, though. I learned quite a few secrets during my first years here. For instance, how to hack into Dr. Ruff's neural pathways."
"So you created the Black Ships."
"Of course. And I turned them against your feeble creations. In the process, I discovered a way to make my victory even sweeter. I trust you've been to the Flea Circus?"
"Yes. You did that to Vern and the others?"
"It took quite a bit of trial and error to find out how to effectively channel my power, but now that I have, you and all your friends will end up on my wall with her."
"Her? Jessie! You—" Before Will could throw himself at Spot I, the Black Ship leader pulled a golden sword from his side.
"I wouldn't try that if I were you. I wouldn't want you to die before you get to watch your dear brother become my trophy."
Will looked around him for something to use as a weapon. The only weapons were those in the hands of the Black Ship warriors. His hand rested on a chair beside the holographic projector. He shoved the chair forward as hard as he could, into Spot I's leg. The Black Ship leader stumbled, losing his grip on the sword. It clattered to the floor right in front of Will.
He snatched up the blade, springing to his feet. He swung it in a rough arc, forcing Spot I to jump backwards a step. During this confusion, Hazel and the other commandos leapt into action to take on the Black Ship guards. They armed themselves with weapons from the guards and began narrowing the odds.
Meanwhile, Will charged at Spot I with the gold sword. Spot I danced aside, in the process touching the side of his left leg. A compartment opened; he reached inside to pull out a silver blade. "Always have a backup plan," Spot I said. He swung his sword to meet Will's. "I'm going to enjoy this."
Will tightened his grip on his sword, but still found Spot I pushing the golden blade aside. In desperation, Will took a step back. He held up his sword defensively and then waited for Spot I to come at him again.
#
The moment she saw Tom enter the room, Jessie had wanted to scream. She wanted to warn him of the trap she knew was awaiting him and the others. But there was no way he would be able to hear her tiny voice. Even if he did, it would already be too late. He had already unwittingly walked into the trap.
"Surrender your weapons," the lead Black Ship warrior said. Jessie waited to see what Tom would do, not sure if she wanted him to go down fighting or to surrender and end up on the shelf next to her. After a painstaking moment, Tom and the others dropped their weapons.
[There has to be something we can do,] she said.
[What can we do?] Whiskers asked. [We're too small.]
Jessie looked around the room. [No, we're just the right size. Follow me.] She forced herself onto her feet and began scurrying along the shelf towards where the Black Ship troopers stood. Her saddle shoes picked up more speed as she went until she was running. When she judged that she was close enough, she let out a scream and then threw herself off the shelf.
Her tiny fabric body glided in the air for a moment before descending towards the Black Ship troopers. They didn't notice her until it was too late. She landed on the shoulders of the lead trooper, grabbing onto his helmet with both of her hands. Behind her came Whiskers, Laura, and the rest of the captives, throwing themselves at the unsuspecting enemy.
The Black Ship trooper Jessie clung to reached up to grab the back of her dress with one hand. He easily plucked her from off his helmet and then hurled her to the floor. There was no pain as Jessie hit the floor, only disappointment that she couldn't do more.
But she had done enough. Her distraction gave Tom and the others an opening to take back their weapons. They opened fire on the Black Ship troopers, who were still grappling with the stuffed animals. A number of Black Ship warriors fell, but there were still plenty more to deal with.
"Let's get them!" Heather shouted. She charged into the midst of the Black Ship warriors, using not only her rifle but her claws as well. The rest of the commandos followed suit, even Tom.
As he threw himself into the fray, Jessie began crawling towards him. There were still far too many of the Black Ship troopers for the small group of commandos to stop. She watched as Tom fired his weapon at one Black Ship trooper and follow it by kicking the warrior to the ground.
Even as he did this, a second spun around to shoot him. [Tom!] Jessie leapt into the air to cover the distance between Tom and the enemy soldier. Though there was no way she could make it, she willed herself to interpose herself between them, to save the man she loved.
As she flew through the air, her body began to glow with golden light. Her body expanded, the fabric tearing and unraveling to reveal human flesh. As she reached her full size, the Black Ship trooper fired. The bolt hit her in the chest. She collapsed to the ground at Tom's feet. "I made it," she said and then closed her eyes.
#
The starboard section of the Cerberus dove in on the Black Ship frigate. Spot II opened fire, raking the frigate's port side with laser fire. As he pulled away, another Black Ship frigate opened fire at him. Spot II was thrown forward in his seat, but managed to hold on to his console. "Shields are gone," Nina said.
"Take the wheel then," Spot II said. Nina transferred the navigation controls to her station, allowing Spot II to focus on his gunnery. Even with careful flying, there were simply too many of the Black Ships and too few Bloc ships remaining. Another barrage struck the starboard section, again almost sending Spot II tumbling.
"We're losing engine power," Zeke said. "I'm trying to compensate but we're running out of relays to use."
"Just keep her flying a little longer," Spot II said. A little longer probably wouldn't matter, though. With the reinforcements, the Black Ships had regrouped from their earlier losses and were now driving the Bloc fleet back on both fronts. Once the two groups of Black Ships united, it would all be over.
Spot II lined up a Black Ship cruiser, aiming for the vulnerable engines. If he could disable more of their ships, it would at least give them a chance to last longer. By then the commando team might have located the captives and destroyed the Black Ship base. With the head of the snake gone, things might again turn in their favor. It was a slight chance, but really the only one remaining at this point.
As Nina spun the starboard section around, a Black Ship battleship lined them up in its sights. This time Spot II was thrown over his console to land in front of the forward monitor. Nina lay next to him, her eyes closed. Spot II felt for a pulse and was relieved to find one. "We're dead in the water, sir," Zeke said.
Spot II resumed his seat, concentrating on the nearest of the Black Ships. He opened fire, not wanting to go down without a fight. "Keep the weapons working as long as you can," he told Zeke. "Even if you have to take power from life support. Understand?"
The young raccoon nodded. Spot II continued firing, though the Black Ships were getting wise and pulling out of range.
"Landing ships are on the way," Zeke said.
"Get Nina to an escape pod."
"What about you, sir?"
"I'm not done fighting yet," Spot II said, touching the collar around his neck. Zeke stared at him for a moment, but then did as ordered. He picked Nina up in a fireman's carry to haul her into the escape pod. Before the door closed, he looked back at Spot II.
"It's been an honor serving with you, sir."
"And you too, Ensign."
Then the door closed and Spot II was alone to wait for the enemy.
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