Not too long after the meeting, Zerg forces in Raynor's base began to disperse. It was now mid-day on the planet, the sun high in the sky. Those under Raynor's command now watched the Zerg even more than before, awaiting Raynor voice on the intercom. Everywhere they went, they had to devise a new plan to reach the Hyperion as fast as possible. Most of the soldiers took their posts on the walls of the base, while others were gathering all of the necessary equipment for space travel. They would be leaving behind anything that could not be carried by three people or less, which, was most the battle hardware.
During this time, Raynor had returned to his quarters to plan his next move. If this plan worked, Daggoth could still chase his forces with ease, but they would have a minor chance of escaping, which, was more than enough reason for Raynor and his men to believe it will work. Raynor leaned back in his chair, hands behind his head. Yet again, the events the night before's dream echoed trough his mind. "We're getting out of this alliance, Sarah. Every one of us." Raynor said to himself, hoping wherever she was, whatever she was doing, that she heard him. Kerrigan had been right, Raynor had allied himself to the very reason she had been infested in the first place. Raynor sighed, and rose from his chair. He walked over to a small bar in his quarters and prepared himself some spirits, in the hopes that he would be relaxed by its effects. As he poured into the small glass, Raynor realized that he had turned to alcohol more than a few times these past few months. Raynor sighed heavily, a sad sigh but given the events he has been through, one could hardly blame him. The man had been through a revolution or two, been part of an ancient struggle between the Protoss and the Zerg, which dated back to countless millenia. The man has also faced betrayal, cold betrayal. It would seem impossible for him to escape it. Even when he was aiding the Protoss, betrayal set in one again as the Executor allied with Tassadar and the Dark Templar. It was then that the Protoss Conclave turned on the Protoss traitors, and a bloody rebellion followed, resulting in the death of many Protoss. But, Raynor had been on the right side. He took the side that would ensure the destruction of the Overmind. And it had been destroyed.
A few minutes passed as Raynor rested. He had returned to his chair, and fell into a light sleep.
"Thank you."
Raynor awoke, and jolted forward. Sarah. It had been Sarah. She had heard him. As Raynor rose from his chair, a beeping sound could be heard emitting from one of the terminals in the room. Raynor rubbed his face as the sleepiness left him. He sluggishly walked over to the source of the loud beeping, and nearly tripped on a table on his way to it. He cleared his voice as he bent over to speak.
"This is Raynor. Go ahead."
Captain Raynor, no allied Zerg in site. Shall we begin the evacuation?"
Raynor paused for a moment. The time had come to leave this planet, and bound aimlessly through the deep reaches of space once again. Raynor had seem too much of this. But it did not matter. He was a man of action all the same. And the time had come.
"Yes. Begin the evacuation. I will alert the base via intercom." Raynor said through a determined voice.
Raynor reached over to press a button to activate the intercom. He took a deep breath, then started.
"Base, this is Raynor. The time has come for us to get off this planet. Everyone please listen very carefully...The most important thing here is that everyone leaves, no one is left behind. The equipment comes second. Whatever you can't carry, leave it. We've got enough food supplies on the Hyperion to last us years. I'd like to thank everyone for cooperating with all of this. Good luck, Raynor out."
As he switched off the intercom, Raynor let out a long sigh of relief. "Time to get off this rock." he said, to no one in particular. Outside the base, everything sparked to life. Soldiers and non-combatants alike scurried about, finding the surest and quickest route to the Hyperion. Bikers who refused to leave their precious Vultures behind zipped through the base, bound for the cargo hold of the Hyperion. It was time for him to leave, too. As Raynor exited the Command Center for the last time, he took note of how useful it had been to him. They could take it with them, but it would take far too long to load it up on the ship. So, it will stay. Raynor walked towards the garage to his old Vulture hover bike. He looked it over, noting all of the scratches and indentations in the bike. The thought of that day on Antiga Prime filled Raynor's mind. "Sarah..." he whispered as he rubbed his hand across the Vulture as he made his way to the seat. One thing had been for sure, this bike had been through a lot. It almost resembled Raynor himself. That hover bike had been with him since he was a Marshal on Mar Sara. It's something he couldn't leave behind. Raynor started the engine, and the bike roared to life. The onboard computer systems glowed an eerie blue in the darkness of the garage. Raynor pressed a button, and the garage door swung open. He was blinded for a few seconds by the rush of daylight into the garage. Raynor gunned the engine and backed out of the garage. He could barely see the Hyperion over the buildings, but it was there. Raynor's speed jumped from 20 MPH to eighty MPH in seconds, and he was off towards his trusty Battlecruiser that he had stolen so long ago from Arcturus Mengsk and his Sons of Korhal, now referred to as the Terran Dominion. As he drove, Raynor heard terrible, inhuman screams in the background. The two Zerg armies were clashing, no doubt. The battle would not last very long, seeing as how Kerrigan lost much of her forces when they attacked Raynor's compound. Raynor finally reached his trusty Battlecruiser, and drove in around the back to the cargo hold. Many other bikers had done the same, and they saw Raynor's custom bike as he drove in. They commented, most of which were compliments of Raynor's bike. But the comments that suggested he should repaint angered Raynor. Though he showed nothing, it hurt him deep inside. How could they know what he and that bike had gone through? Raynor decided to let the comments leave his mind. These soldiers constantly risked their lives for him. They don't deserve to be scolded by him. Not in the least. In fact, he deserved to be scolded by them. Raynor constantly makes decisions that either get his men killed, or force them to dig out of a hole that he made. If anything, these men had every right to rebel, stage a mutiny, and even to kill him. He didn't deserve to lead these people. But they looked up to him. If only Raynor had realized now his worth to everything...
Raynor gave the bikers a quick nod, before sighing and walking through the corridor of the cargo hold. Raynor made his way to the command quarters. Along the way, Marines in the hallways scurried about. They had duties to follow, as he did. After a few minutes of jogging through the hallways, Raynor reached that old familiar door. Entitled on a gold plate was "Captain's Quarters". Raynor opened the old-fashioned door. The room was cold, but it bore that old familiar smell that he remembered every time he entered the room. There were the terminals, illuminating the entire room with a slight flicker now and then. There was the bar, the bed, and all of the other privileges that captains enjoy. This had once been the quarters of Arcturus Mengsk. Or Emperor Mengsk, as he was now to be called. Raynor shook his head at the thought of a terrorist leader and madman such as Mengsk be crowned emperor. Raynor made his way to the command console, and opened up the comm link with the pilots. He cleared his throat to speak.
"This is Raynor. I'm in my quarters. How's the evacuation going?" he asked, wondering how long it will take for everyone to get on board. In this case, time definitely was not on their side.
"We're almost ready, sir." the head pilot said. "Just a few more things and we're outta here." The urgency in his voice could be felt over the intercom. The man was worried. "Sh..should I contact you before we're ready to go?"
Raynor thought for a moment. "No, when everyone's on, fly. You have confirmation. No sense in waiting." he said.
"Copy that, sir." said the pilot.
"Raynor out." he said, closing the comm link. Now that everything was taken care of, Raynor decided to sit down and relax, and consider their current standing. Almost no equipment, save for a few hover bikes, food, and medical supplies. Within a few minutes, Raynor felt a jerk. The ship was preparing its takeoff cycle. The intercom sparked to life,
"Attention everyone! We are ready to leave. Get to where you need to be. We fly in two minutes. Nav out."
Raynor could hear scrambling outside of his quarters. Everyone was hurrying to get to their assigned area. Another jolt could be felt throughout the Hyperion. The engines were coming to life, and the jolt settled to a slight, soothing hum throughout the ship. Raynor sat down on his bed, thinking. Where are they to go next? Raynor's only allies were the Protoss, and they weren't here. This planet is in the farthest reaches of the Koprulu sector, and with no apparent allies or destination, the Hyperion would be drifting in space aimlessly. But then again, fate and destiny always seemed to come to Raynor, smacking him in the face. He never had to pursue it. Fate had it that he live life by the minute. Whatever happened, happened. And he found he didn't care. He was used to it. All of it.
Raynor felt a rising sensation as the Hyperion lifted itself into the sky, until the ship stabilized itself. Raynor sat down and thought about his ship. He viewed the Hyperion as a light at the end of a dark, endless tunnel that was his life. The view of his ship instilled a kind of hope in him. Raynor lifted himself from his bed to uncover one of the few windows in his quarters. They were in space now, escaping the planet's orbit. Raynor looked out upon the stars with awe. They just amazed him so much. A beeping sound from his terminal replaced the soft hum and his quiet thoughts. He walked over slowly to the blue light, and sighed before he switched it on.
"Raynor here." he said simply.
"Captain, where shall we set a course to?" the pilot asked.
Raynor thought for a moment, considering his next words. "Set a direct course to nowhere." he said weakly.
"Sir?" asked the pilot, obviously confused.
"Let our destination come to us. It always does." Raynor replied.
"Aye sir. Nav out." the pilot said.
With that, Raynor closed off the comm link, and headed back to his bed and continue to observe the stars, before he fell into a deep sleep. And he dreamed.
Thanks for reading. Chapter 7 will be up soon.