"It's been nearly 20 years. Long time. Those bastards locked me away to keep secrets they didnt want told. The hatred I have for thim knows no bounds. I vow, here and now, to avenge you......."
A man stares down at the graves of his two sons. The rain and thunder rip violently through the night.
"Chris..."
the man speaks to his compatriot in a low calm voice.
"Summon a clan meeting....a reckoning is about to take place."
"What about the rest of the Dubliner's Conn?"
"They have enough to worry about right now, this is a family affair.....the begining is now!"
Two men walk slowly away from the Hedgestones, the storm consumes the night.
3 Days Later, Arranmore base, Dublin System
"....and I dont give a damn whet hee says now! That sonova goat owesh me this!"
"Conn, your drunk, calm down!"
"Whey? Now who insh the golden sunhs?!"
Blackness.......
"So they let you out ehh Conn?"
"Wha?!
Conn opens his eyes, his vision is blurred and his head is pounding. He knows that voice.....
"What tha hell?! YOU!!!! I should kill you right where you stand!
He jumps from his chair and rushes at the man in a fit of rage, only to be grabbed from behind and violently seated again. He struggles
"I'LL RIP YOUR HEART FROM YOUR CHEST! I'LL RIP YOUR EYES FROM THEIR SOCKETS! YOU...."
"Conn, 20 years is a long time. You must understand....."
"SHE WAS MY WIFE!!!!! YOU WHERE MY FRIEND!!!!!!"
"Conn, before she died, she gave me this. She made me promise to it to you..."
A box slides across the floor from the shadows. Conn takes the box and opens it. A silence colder than death encompasses the room. He opens it. He stares for long moments, then his head drops. His shoulders begin to shudder, and he begins to sob.
The man and his guards get up and leave the room. Conn continues to sob, twenty years of anguish and torture pour from his heart. Just before he shuts the door, the man stops. Passion and excitement fills his voice....
"Conn, we need you lad. The Union grows stronger! Your skills could help to turn the tide!"
Suddenly Conn is still. Tears trickle shamelessly from his face.
"I will not join you. Not now, not ever. The only reason I will let you live, is because I hate them more than I you. The Sullivan's will have thier retribution."
In a voice very near rage the man replies...
"Very well lad, take this...it is the least I can do"
A Datacard is tossed into his lap.
"You may not have any love for me, but I know what your capable of. This should help. God speed lad."
"Get out of my sight."
The man turns and leaves as requested. Conn's clicks on the data card, and see's an account with his name on it. The account has over 50 million credits on it. Conn gets up, and returns to the Bar.
Silence. It is strange. He knows the world around him is screaming with rage and bloodlust, but to Conn Sullivan there is no sound. Images....nothing more.
Everything moves as if in slow motion. His eyes jump frightfully left to right. Fire blossoms in front of him, a mangled body bounces off of his veiwport. Tracers scream from behind him....shields failing rapidly.
He does nothing. Suddenly, in the silence of the battle raging around him, a vision takes comes to be as his Greyhound passes through the flame.
A woman. Garbed in white. She is beautiful.
A whisper of a gasp escapes his heaving chest. Sweat mingles with the tears on his face. Electric pain erupts from his chest. He opens his mouth to scream. In milliseconds his lungs fill with air and exhale in a great roar of pain....yet the scream is mute.
Suddenly, the pain stops. His focus returns to the woman in front of him. She points away, towards the omega's.
"Conn...." A Voice like thunder erupts in his ears.
"This is not your fight. Not yet. You must leave them. They will find their own way. You will obtain that which you seek, but your vengeance will come at great cost, greater than you know...."
Suddenly, the visage of the woman is replaced by an image of a planet. He recognizes it as Grand Caneria, then, as quickly as it came, it is gone. The voice returns, now soft and feminine...
"Lay down your weapons Conn. Go. Now. Destiny awaits you."
Then everything changes. A rapid pounding vibration takes hold of his senses. The sounds of the world flood back into being and time accelerates back into the chaos of the Dublin system.
The Master alarm on his console is blaring violently, his hull vibrates violently as his armor absorbs more and more damage from the corsair fighter pursuing him. He rotates his fighter to face the enemy and fires. The sheer power of the mini-razor drops the sheilds of the corair fighter. The data screen indicates his armor is down to 25% and falling fast. The enemy continues to fire. Conn opens up with everything he has. Suddenly, the Corsair pilot pulls off. A voice come's through the comm system.
"I had you Phobos.."
Strangely, Conn smiles....
"Aye lad, yeh did...."
The corsair turns his fighter and engages his warp drive.
"It was still anyones game, but I had you..."
"Another day laddy...another day..."
Suddenly, the violence of battle leaves his body. The master alarm continues blare ominiously. He sags as he engages the auto-pilot, heading for Arranmore.
The Heavily damaged "Phobos", Conns personal Greyhound fighter, lands in the fighter bay, and repair driods race to begin making her ready for combat once more.
Hours later.....
"Thats it lads. I cant do this anymore. Its over for me. I dont have this in me. I must leave. Now."
"We need you now more than ever Conn, freedom is in our grasp and you are walking away?"
"Aye lad, that I am."
Conn sets his pilots wings on the desk in front of him.
"I'll be back for these someday lad...I promise. I told you months ago I would never help you, yet I came anyhow. This cause is true. The Union will triumph. It will just have to triumph without me."
He turns and walks away.
Hours later his transport arrives at Grand Caneria. Not knowing why he is there, or if he should even be there, a man walks up to him.
"Greetings Mr. Sullivan. I have been expecting you."
The man hands Conn a data pad.
"This is for you...go now. Begin your journey...."
Suddenly the man fades into nothing before Conn's eyes. He stands there for a long moment, wondering what the hell is going on.
He tucks the data-pad into his pocket and moves quickly to the nearest bar.