Before you ask, yes, this is a fanfic. Based on the response, I may or may not continue this story. Anyway, on to the actual story :o

Captain Joseph McCain of the Excalibur relaxed in his quarters after a particularly strenuous day. Glad for the break from the bustle of command, he had just closed his eyes when a buzzer went off, signifying an incoming message. Why now? he thought as he sat up and hit the switch on the comm unit.
"Yes?"
"Captain, we've detected a Protoss vessel closing in on us." The officer sounded worried, although McCain had no idea why.
"Hail them," said McCain.
"We have, Sir. They're not responding. They seem to be moving towards our starboard docking bay."
Damn...just what I need. "Tell the docking bay crew not to let them in. And run a scan on them, see if they're damaged."
"Aye sir."

In the starboard docking bay, Lieutenant Roger McGill looked at the large golden vessel that was growing closer and closer with ever passing second. Damn, that's one shiny ship. The comm unit buzzed.
"McGill here."
It was one of the bridge officers. "Captain McCain sends orders not to allow the Protoss vessel to dock until further notice. Bridge out."
Not a friendly Protoss, eh? McGill turned to his crew. "You heard the man, raise level two forcefields." The docking bay crew moved to complete this task, and soon the second layer of forcefields went up.
"I guess we wait this out, then," said one of the crewmen. Roger smiled grimly. He didn't like how this was turning out.
The Protoss vessel turned so that its tapered front was aimed directly at the docking bay. McGill squinted as a bright blue light began to emanate from the front of the vessel. "Damn, what the hell is go-"
A ripping sound issued from the cables holding the forcefield locks in place, and they flipped open. Level two fields went down, then the glow came back. "Oh shit...evacuate!" shouted McGill.
Primary fields went down seconds later, and the docking bay decompressed with most of the crew still in it.

"Sir, docking bay has been breached. The Protoss are landing."
Dammit. McCain turned to the security officer standing behind him. "Get marine teams down there, and have sickbay ready. We're going to see some action."

Private Richard Melfas stood outside the starboard docking bay of the Excalibur, gauss rifle ready and aimed at the airlock. The commanding officer standing behind him and the other marines around him had a pistol ready at his side, and his other hand held a Remote Drug Injection Control, or RDIC. Or dropping the euphemisms, a Stimpack control. Richard could feel the injectors against his back, knowing that as soon as the door opened, they would inject bliss into him. Bliss that would degrade into immense pain.
Anticipation was killing Richard; he felt as though he had been standing ready to shoot for an eternity. Had the Protoss come out another exit into another team of marines? Had they simply ransacked the docking bay and left? Had they decided that the Terrans did not have whatever it was they wanted? Questions raced through Richard's mind, and along with the tension he could feel the blood pumping through his veins. I wish they'd come out already.
Richard wished too hard.
The door did not open, but rather was sliced off by an invisible blade. A fraction of a second later, a sharp pain in his back and a perceived slowing down of the world indicated that the Stimpack had been delivered. Richard could hardly feel himself, only the wonderful feeling of the Stimpack. Like a distant drumline came the first shots, and Richard pushed down on his trigger.
Spikes sprayed from the muzzle of his gun, whistling through the air at the invisible shape coming from the hole in the door. The spikes stopped in midair, then a Protoss flickered into a visible range around them, falling a second later. Behind him were two more Protoss warriors, wearing heavier armor and wielding the wrist mounted blades Richard had seen so many times before. Shields flickered into existence around them, stopping bullets as they flew. The Protoss charged into the Terran line, swinging their blades into hapless marines who fell immediately afterwards, unable to feel the pain.
Richard felt fear in a distant reality, too numbed by the Stimpack to feel fully. As he targeted the nearer Protoss, he heard a distant voice call out an order. Target the Templar! Kill the Templar! Spinning, Richard found himself facing a regal looking Protoss in priestlike clothing. The Protoss's eyes were glowing blue, a quiet foreshadowing of what was to come. Richard lifted his gun to fire-
-and suddenly an immense pain filled him. His body was lifted into the air and thrown, glowing with the extra psionic discharge that had hit him. Gasping, he tasted his own blood. His vision blurred, and a glowing golden figure approached him and struck him with a glowing blue mass. His suit's status light became red. Richard Melfas blacked out seconds later.

Richard woke up in Sickbay, the harsh sterilized white of the walls causing him to squint. As his eyes adjusted to the light, he looked at the figures surrounding him.
"Wh-where am I?"
"You're in sickbay, Richard." The doctor came over and held a scanner over him. "You've been out cold for hours, you're lucky you survived that attack."
"What happened?" Richard's eyes drifted in and out of focus as he tried to follow the doctor's hand.
"The Templar killed most of your team with his Psionic attack. Most everyone died. Luckily, we had reinforcements headed that way, and they were able to dispatch the Protoss." The doctor moved away, towards a computer console, and scanned the information from the reader into it. "You're in good health, but you need rest. We're going to keep you here for a few days."
Richard nodded, then closed his eyes. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a barrage of thoughts and emotions filled his mind. People he'd never known or seen appeared in front of his eyes, saying thing he'd never heard. In front of his eyes, men died just before recovering from grievous wounds, and for each one he saw, regret over not being able to save them filled him.
Richard screamed, sitting up.
"Are you okay?" The doctor hurried over to him, holding some or other medical instrument in his hands.
Richard opened his eyes, and almost recoiled at what he saw, or rather, how he saw it. Richard's vision was tinted with blue.
The same blue that he had seen on the Templar.

Far away, Praetor Althoris was awakened by a powerful ebb of psionic energy. The shock sent him reeling; such a force had not been felt since Tassadar sacrificed himself to destroy the overmind.
A new power? Althoris stood and dressed, the question of what the ebb was on his mind...