Kairi Feliz Mercado, “Attack on Hibbat”

ATTACK ON HIBBAT

Kairi Feliz Mercado

The year is 2075. My once beautiful planet, Hibbat, known throughout the galaxy for its bright colors and advanced portal technology, was now a terrifying dark place held captive by Diabolos, the master of destruction. The enemy invasion was swift and malicious; countless innocent lives were lost. My people, the Koolans, tried their best, but ultimately abandoned the war and went into hiding. For months, we have been dogging attacks against the Nadar, the military troops of Diabolos. We aren’t sure how many of our people have survived since Diabolos destroyed our portal system, our only way of escape. As I write in my journal, I can still hear the horrifying screams of my people the day he arrived. Journal Entry 1: It was a normal day, although I had an incessant feeling of doom, and I didn’t like it. Still, I tried to ignore it and headed towards Destination Station, the junction where all the portals on Hibbat met. I was on my way to visit my best friend Niall, for a game of Noggin Ball, when suddenly there was a loud bang followed by screams. People began to scatter as a large triangular black ship with gold-like doors landed a few yards away from the station. In the distance, I could see the doors opening and a large figure emerge. His greenish face was scarred all over, and his right eye was missing. I couldn’t help but get closer when I noticed his four large muscular arms, two on each side of his body. The shorter, lower arms were crossed, and the upper ones held onto a large spear. His voice echoed as he spoke, as if he was speaking through a megaphone. “Citizens of Hibbat, bow down to me. I am Diabolos, the Master of Destruction.” Until then, Hibbat never had a leader, we had no rules because we lived in peace. He continued to speak as his troops began storming out of the ship. “I have decided to take over this planet to add to my collection. Those who don’t follow my rules will hang from the end of my spear.”

“Surk!” my best friend Niall yelled,“ Here, take this, you’re gonna need it.” He handed me an open can of beans. “Thank you,” I said, still startled. I took the beans and wondered if I’d ever eat anything else again. Since Diabolos took over, Niall and I had been living in a crappy abandoned grocery store. The broken lights helped us stay hidden. “Stop writing in that book and walk with me. We need to discuss things.” I got up and put my book on a shelf where I kept most of my things now. I followed Niall as he entered the store’s office. “There are rumors that a few Koolans are going to war again to try and defeat Diabolos,” Niall said as he sat down and turned on a small radio. “Okay, should we join the group that’s going to war?” I said, shoving a spoonful of baked beans in my mouth. Niall tuned the radio until he heard a voice speaking. “We are a small rebel group called The Revolt, looking for strong and brave Koolans to finally take down the tyrant Diabolos. If you think you can fight for the cause, meet us at Zig and Zags Street at 11:00 PM.” The radio suddenly cut off. Niall looked at the clock on the wall. “That’s 30 minutes from now bro!” he said rushing, jumping from his seat. “Let’s go!” I put my beans down and we left. Journal Entry 2: It has been a week since we were accepted into The Revolt. It was a simple plan. Step 1: Find the portal crystal that would allow us to turn on any remaining portals on Hibbat. Step 2: Lure Diabolos into the black hole portal. Step 3: Defeat the Nadar and take back our planet. General Kao, the leader of The Revolt, has chosen me to get the portal crystal since I’m the smallest in the group and could fit through the air vents in Diabolos’ ship. It took us two days to gain underground access to the ship. Tonight we are putting our plan in motion, boom! The vents in Diabolos’ ship were cramped and smelled like a

fish market. As I shimmied my way through the vents, I could hear the laughter of Nadar soldiers as they joked about ways to kill my people. In the distance, I saw a glow of bright green light. I knew it had to be the crystal. I made my way towards the vent door and immediately saw Diabolos below. He was stomping out of the room. I opened the vent door and climbed out. As I looked at the crystal it seemed bigger than what I remembered. I quickly put the glowing crystal in my satchel and climbed back out through the vent. All of sudden a loud blaring siren rang throughout the ship. I made my way out of the end of the ship but as soon as I got out I saw that General Kao and the rest of The Revolt had already been caught by Nadar soldiers. I panicked as I looked around for Niall. This wasn’t a part of the plan, I thought. I couldn’t see him anywhere. The ground began to shake as Diabolos walked out of the ship onto the middle of the portal platform. “This scrawny boy, this is your savior?” Diabolos roared mockingly. The Nadar soldiers burst into laughter. I stood there shaking; a tear rolled down my cheek as I looked around at the faces of my new friends thinking this might be the last time I see them. “Those tears are useless boy!” Diabolos said, raising all his arms at once. “Give me the crystal, NOW!” As I looked at Diabolos, I noticed some movement behind him near the crystal generator. There was a familiar blond puff of hair, which made me smile. It was Niall. He signaled to me using a kicking motion we used when we won our game against Vulcan High last year. Diabolos grew angrier by my sudden change in expression. “How dare you smirk at me you peasant!” I took the crystal out of my satchel. “Is this what you want?” I said as I began walking slowly towards him. My voice cracked as I got frustrated, “You come to my planet, you kill my people, and you think that you can get away with it.” Diabolos looked confused as I continued to walk towards him. “Well if this is what you want then I guess I have no choice but to obey your wishes, Your Majesty.”

I began to bow and then placed the crystal on the floor in front of me. Diabolos smirked. I stepped back and quickly kicked the crystal through his legs. The crystal swiftly glided across the platform and landed at Niall’s feet. Niall picked up the crystal and placed it in the generator. All at once, a shining green light filled the portal station as the portals began reappearing. “NOO!” Diabolos howled, as he felt the heat from the main portal gate splitting him in half. The Nadar panicked and retreated back to the ship and took off. I let out a huge sigh of relief and looked down at the two halves of Diabolos, which lay covered in his oozing green blood. “We did it!” Niall yelled, running towards me and locking me in a bone-crushing hug. The Revolt members cheered as they jumped for joy. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. All I could think is we’re free; it’s over. “What do we do now?” Niall spoke, holding on to my shoulder. “I don’t know, still up for that game of Noggin Ball?” I said with a huge smile on my face.

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