The Last Dance
An R-Type Fan-Fiction by VaelDragon

  Within the darkness of the Bydo dimension, I sensed my goal was not far now. I passed through countless numbers of their ‘soldiers’, avoided their deadly traps, and destroyed their leaders. Now I am here, behind their lines, right before the heart of the threat itself. For either of us, it will end here or…perhaps this is where we both die. I do not favour the latter option, but it could be possible, this could be…my last dance.

  My craft flies along into the depths of their lair, a rocky tunnel ending in only a shimmering surface of fluid. Their sustenance…or perhaps it’s more of a womb for them. It did not matter, the danger would be great, but I cannot turn back now. Operation Last Dance has entered its final stage, this stage, and I must succeed for the sake of all mankind. I continue on until the force device passes through the mantle of liquid, its membrane warped by the energy emanating from the orb. The craft soon followed, as I entered the mysterious depths of the matrix.

  Within, the scene changed, dimensions vanished before my eyes as the rocky sides of the tunnel faded from view. My heart quickened slightly, for now I really was blind to the environment I was in. Emerging from the fluid were creatures unlike that which I encountered before. They were round with many spikes over their surface; with a large pulsing white eye that eerily stared me and my craft down. I fired the blasters and laser weapon to remove them from sight; I struck several of them as each one dissipated into the fluid. Then it struck me, the fluid was gone. I took a quick look at my console, unnerved by the fact that the once watery environment had now vanished. The console confirmed my disbelief, but my attention was drawn back to the fray as more of the creatures came at me. I spotted a red version of them…perhaps a leader. I fired at it with my blasters, and as it died, the surrounding group met their ends as well. I journeyed on into this disorientated ‘space’.

  As I continued, a massive tidal wave of those creatures started approaching my ship at high speed. I panicked, veered my ship away, blasters firing continuously into the horde of monsters that moved ever closer to my craft. I killed a few of them off before calming myself, and then realising I need to use a stronger weapon. I engaged the wave cannon charge, and watched the meter as the blue bar quickly climbed to the opposing end. The prow of my ship drawing in particles of light energy as the gun readied itself. I fired, and a large bolt of energy rocketed from the main gun, passing through and destroying countless enemies as it continued on. I followed its tail, using it as a shield to protect my craft from the creatures. It was unsettling there and then, the strange creatures locked in a stare on me as they passed overhead and away into the void. It was beginning to feel like a nightmare…a nightmare I cannot wake up from. Sweat formed on my head as I navigated through waves of foes, firing a new wave shot as the previous one faded away.

  Suddenly, the wave had ended, the remaining enemies fading away into the strange orange glow of the ‘fog’. I let out a sigh of relief, before spotting something more up ahead. A large wall of black creatures covered my direction, leaving only a small hole in them…disturbingly; my craft could just fit through it. I decided, against all fear, to take it, and revved my thrusters to maximum speed. Another unsettling moment came, with hundreds of giant white eyes, pulsing and staring at me as I passed. I stared back, wondering why they looked at me. My head felt heavy, realising it had been a few hours since the start of all this. My fatigue would be my downfall if I let it get to me, so I shook my head and continued to fly straight on, ignoring the uneasiness of the scene outside. Soon the wall ended, and I continued on into the void. No more than a few moments later, I sensed a displacement and disorientation and the void shifted and moved around me, until I was in a dark abyss between two fluid membranes above and below me.

  Then I saw it.

  It drew slowly forward, large yellow arteries pumping energy into a round central core, the beginning of such arteries I could not find, for they submerged in the now-opaque fluid. The core drew in my attention, the red orb with pulsed with life, emitting a large amount of light and energy each time it did. My force device, too, pulsed in tune with that of the core, unbeknownst to me. My heart leaped in my chest, for this was the Final Target they spoke of, The Bydo Core. It was nothing like the one from the Seed Mission that the R9-A2 Delta encountered. Then, enemies I defeated started to rise from the fluid, spiralling around the core as if to protect it. I smirked, firing my blasters and laser into their ‘shield’, decimating many of them. My heart sank at the sight afterwards; the core was untouched, unharmed by those weapons. I decided to charge my wave gun as more foes emerged from the fluid to protect the core, and on a full charge fired at the core. The shot sliced through the enemies but dissipated when it hit the core, yet another blow to my confidence. Was this thing indestructible? My thoughts were interrupted by the inner red core swelling and releasing a large group of silver enemies. I fired away and made evasive manoeuvres, identifying the enemies as meltcraft, but they were much stronger. I struggled with the fact, but it changed nothing; the Bydo Core was invincible and I had no means to destroy it. Hope abandoned me.

  The pulsing of my Force Device brought me back from despair, noticing it’s rhythm with the core. I gripped the hope given to me; perhaps the Force can damage it! I flipped the switches, turning off the stationary program for the force, and fired its built-in thrusters. It rocketed forward and slammed through the enemies, destroying them as it went, before colliding with the core itself. Horror came next, as the Force Device became stuck; the inner core growing red tentacles that penetrated the Force’s round shell and attempted to assimilate the weapon for use against me. Fear turned into anger, anger over the loss of my only shield. I charged the wave cannon with vengeful vigour, firing the instant it reached a full charge. The wave shot pierced the Force, causing it to explode in a blinding explosion, soon followed by a shockwave. Nothing could have survived that!
  The shockwave dimmed enough for me to see the result, it wasn’t good. The core was still there, although changed now, with giant purple “warts” covering it. Then my panel malfunction, and the Beam bar shattered, my craft’s wave cannon exploded, rendering it damaged beyond function as indicated by the “WAVE Cannon Down” light flashing on my controls. I cursed to myself, I needed every weapon at this point and I was losing them one by one! My attention was drawn back to the now warty Bydo Core, and no sooner had a second gone by that one of the warts burst, revealing a Force Device! Impossible I thought to myself, but I regained the controls and dodged it as it went by, only for two more to emerge from the core. I dodged them, four more came, and then eight, then I refused to count them, only concentrating on dodging the countless droves of immortal Forces. I attempted to charge my wave cannon, using one of the screens to read out a backup wave bar. It charged to 65% before stopping. It just stayed there, not charging to full, and when I launched it, it was a small bullet no bigger than my first, harmlessly dissipating on an approaching Force. I jumped in my seat and veered quickly, almost missing the Force device as it took off one of my stabilizers. I had to concentrate more on the action around me…though it seems pointless now. My best and only weapons with a chance of defeating this thing have gone, and an unlimited wave of forces constantly pounding away, there is little hope left.

  I shook my head, what was I thinking? I continued to dodge the force devices, shifting my craft’s power to the thrusters while I charged the wave cannon once more. It stopped again at 65% but I continued charging, one of the forces gashing the hull of my craft. Another one bounced off the top-mounted engine, unsure of whether it damaged it or not. 65% still, not charging higher, I remained patient. 65% after a minute, it won’t charge to full…or do I need to wait longer? Another force crashed against the cockpit, cracking the cover, my heart beating rapidly in my chest; I kept trying to dodge the oncoming forces. 66%! It was climbing again! Relief swept over me, but I persevered, I needed more time! 68%, the waves keep coming strong, will I succeed? 70%, another force destroys the port engine, my craft barely moving fast enough to avoid each device. 72%, I could see the glowing core past the cloud of force devices, pulsing and releasing more force clones. 78%, my hands are tired, my head weary, the sweat lining my brow. 82%, my life support is failing; the crack is starting to get bigger in the shield. 86%, power failing, why is it failing? 92%, reserve power is too low, speed dropping; more force collisions are destroying my ship. 95%, only my starboard engine remains, low speed keeps me going, constantly dodging the forces with decreasing skill. 98%, the Bydo…they are a nightmare, and I cannot wake up…none of us can, the Bydo. 99%, getting tired…life support failing…

  100%, it’s charged, but I am too weak, dodging constantly for the 10 mins it took for the cannon to charge, I attempted to reach the fire button, catching a word on the wave cannon screen, bright pink on a white background…

  Final…

  I pressed the fire, the cannon made the standby noise before a huge explosion occurred, brighter than any thus far. I was blinded by its intensity; the massive wave shot pierced and destroyed the force clones before passing right through the core itself. The light faded, the forces were gone, and the core was missing its centre, small organic explosions occurring along its veins before its final explosion. The scenery around me faded out of view and I was back in the dark rocky tunnel, amid the debris. My life support was gone, no power remained in my ship, and there was no going home for me… I allowed the gravity to carry me away, patiently awaiting death, the operation was a success here, and I wondered if it was the same back home. I closed my eyes and had my last proper rest before oblivion.