Allison was back in med bay after Keira’s confession and a night’s sleep. Keira and Delilah showed up shortly after she did, a single Silwrath stood guard over Keira. He looked quite bored guarding what he apparently considered a juvenile delinquent. Kuvarn had been generous to Keira and her freedoms onboard the ship. Her cooperation went a long way, that and a promise to the mind-reading silver scale that she would not attempt to escape, to harm anyone or to aid the other prisoners in any way. That would typically be enough to have no guard, but she wasn’t a Silwrath so they did not fully believe her word was her bond.
For the guard’s part he kept a discrete distance and did not have his weapon out. Allison was quiet, at least for her. She still blamed herself for Tyler’s condition. No number of voices telling her differently would convince her that her use of force was fully justified. She had expected Tyler’s mother to be upset with her, to blame her, but she just seemed to blame herself and his father.
Allison looked up when she saw Tyler’s father come in, he wasn’t in any sort of restraint. He was followed by two guards and Kuvarn. Kuvarn seemed shocked when Will lunged across the med bay and grabbed Allison from behind. He slammed her on the footboard of one of the beds. The guards were rushing to restrain him, then realized who he was attacking. They stood back and smiled. Then they laughed. Apparently the Silwrath guards wanted to see the Battelord’s prowess for themselves. Allison would have loved some help. Will was half a foot taller than her and in good shape for his age. He swung her around and smashed her against the window of the medical staff’s office space. He punched her in the face.
“You! You stole my family from me! Your family! Butcher!”
He was screaming at her. Allison was thrown into another bed. A normal human teenage girl would have been pretty much done at that point. She wasn’t a normal girl though. The last hit triggered something in her, and she snarled. Will had woken the sleeping beast inside of her and she vamped out. She lunged at him. Will didn’t look worried at first. Then he was overwhelmed by her sudden burst of supernatural strength.
Allison slammed him into a wall and started punching him. She slammed him into another wall and threw him into one of the beds. The bed crumpled under the force of his body hitting it. He stirred and that was enough. She was on top of him, and her teeth sank into his neck. He screamed when she tore into his flesh with her razor-sharp fangs. Her feeding was anything but gentle or clean.
When all was said and done it took fifteen Silwrath soldiers who responded to the alert from med bay, to subdue Allison. It was her most brutal vamp out yet. Trying to snap herself out of it had been impossible. Once she snapped, she had seen red and she had one goal, the complete and utter annihilation of Will Torban. Allison blacked out at some point during the conflict.
When she woke up she was on a bed in the med bay. Futara was standing off to the side. She turned to Allison and smiled.
“You are awake, Battlelord. I apologize for the headache. It would appear your nanites adapted to the sedative I used before and fought against it, I had to give you a dose that would kill even the largest of my race.”
Allison blushed and buried her face in her hands. She vaguely recalled getting thrown around like a ragdoll by Will, but the rest was a hazy blood red blur. She looked up at Futara.
“Did I kill anyone?”
The blue Silwrath shook her head.
“No, you did not, one was close, but we were able to stabilize him. I suspect our guards are regretting not stepping in sooner. You banged a few up. I synthesized some of the blood you require. I also ensured you had a high sugar content drip attached to counteract the drain on your body’s energy stores from your nanites.”
Futara placed down five bags of the Silwrath copy of Synth-O.
“I apologize all I have are what we would use to supply it intravenously.”
Allison took the first bag and used one of the tubes like a straw. It didn’t taste perfect but her body didn’t seem to care.
“Thank you… uh, so how much trouble am I in?”
Futara tapped a few items on her tablet.
“Oh, you’re fine, legally speaking, you were attacked. Quite honestly, I’m surprised you were still moving under your own power based on the injuries you’d sustained. Broken ribs fractured spinal bones, broken tibia, I believe that is the bone’s name, concussion, fractured skull. He meant to kill you. An attack like that on a Silwrath would have ended in the attacker dead. It would have if the Investigator did not need him alive.”
Allison closed her eyes and just sucked back more synthetic human blood.
“One interesting fact we discovered was that you did consume Silwrath blood and seemed to have no ill effects. This suggests your blood intake is not limited to your species. She is fine by the way.”
Allison shifted so she could get out of bed after finishing the last pack of blood. Futara removed the pad they’d been using to provide her fluids. The medical technician held her clawed hand up.
“Battlelord, your body was very low in several essential nutrients and metallic elements, we have replenished them. I found the mechanism by which your body generates nanites. You need to take a supplement daily. The nanites will generate themselves at the cost of other bodily functions. This could impair you as much as intoxication or worse. I have sent you a list of minerals and supplements you must take. Do not skip a dose. I highly recommend you schedule regular visits to an LSR medical facility to ensure you are keeping up with your body’s needs. There are no legal ramifications for having them in your system in the LSR. Your body will grow and change as you age, you need to ensure you keep the supplement intake up to date so you do not suffer ill effects. I have sent you a list of facilities that meet your needs. I have also attached a special rider to your file, I did not provide details, but I did ensure there was a note that due to medical reasons you qualify for Asylum status with the LSR in the event you apply. I highly suggest if your people seek your death for your mutation, you seek asylum at the Embassy, your noble status, influence with the Silwrath and my rider will make it a certainty the council will intervene on your behalf.”
Allison nodded.
“I appreciate that.”
Futara shook her head.
“I thought your people enlightened, but I’ve seen one of you try to murder another for superstitions and to condemn you to death because of a mutation you have no control over, simply barbaric. Among the Silwrath you would be celebrated. You are a soldier that can heal from everything short of death.”
Allison shrugged.
“It makes sense, Earth, our homeworld, nanites escaped a facility a thousand years ago, turned our planet into a frozen world and killed ninety five percent of the population, almost destroyed all life on the planet.”
Futara crossed her arms.
“What does that have to do with you precisely, Battlelord? Your nanites outside of your body will self-destruct, they will only work for your genetic structure.”
“It won’t matter. There are no exceptions. Thanks, I’ll run to the embassy or LSR space if anything like that happens.”
Allison went to leave and Futara stopped her once again.
“Before you leave would you like to talk about what happened?”
Allison made a face.
“I thought talking things through was the last thing Silwrath would do.”
Futara tapped a control on her tablet and the door to the room closed.
“Battlelord, you are not Silwrath. My research into humans has indicated that talking about issues has therapeutic benefits. I would suggest that I am uniquely qualified to have such discussions with you. The threat of exposure from your nanites must be a constant worry for you. All of my scans indicate a heightened stress level across the board. I understand this is detrimental to human health. Adolescents of your species are particularly vulnerable to it. Medical journals from your species indicate an increased risk of self-harm and suicide, sometimes manifested as risk taking.”
Allison held up her hands.
“Look, I appreciate all of this, Futara but I’m fine.”
The Silwrath tapped her tablet.
“My scans indicate otherwise, Battlelord.”
Allison motioned to the main med bay.
“I shot the boy I really like and nearly killed him. He’s in a coma. Of course I’m stressed. And apparently, I almost killed his father, and caused his sister to require major reconstructive surgery. I destroy everything of his I touch. Oh, and he shot me in the head.”
Futara leaned her tail and behind on one of the desks and folded her clawed hands around the edges of it.
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“How are you going to fix it, Battlelord?”
Allison blinked at her in disbelief.
“Fix it? I can’t fix it. I’m lucky his mother is even talking to me and letting me stay near him. Hell after what I did to his dad, I’d bet she moves planets to get Tyler away from me.”
“I would say you might be exaggerating slightly; However, you make valid points. There is a saying among my people: Have the honor to change the things you can, have the courage to understand there are some things you cannot change. That is a rough translation, but I think the meaning makes it through. It acknowledges that there is only so much we can do, and control. You need to acknowledge what happens with your friend is not within your control and accept that fact.”
Allison sighed.
“Now make me believe that.”
Futara smiled.
“Battlelord, there are some things even I cannot heal. Please if you need to talk, use the embassy’s hyperwave comm unit I am happy to talk with you about anything at all.”
Allison nodded.
“Well, for a person from a race of people who don’t believe in therapy, you’re pretty good.”
Futara smiled.
“I am glad I helped in some small way. Your friend was transferred to a medical facility on the surface, his mother went with him. I do not know the disposition of Keira. I believe your fighter has arrived for you, or so I’ve heard through the rumor mill.”
Futara stood up and tapped a stack of clothing.
“A fresh uniform, there wasn’t much left of the other one. Your weapons and armor are in your temporary quarters. I had them delivered there. Remember the supplements Battlelord.”
Futara left the room. Allison pulled off the hospital gown and got dressed. She left the private room. She saw the results of the brawl. The med bay looked like a tornado ripped through it. The medical beds that were still in one piece held a few stragglers from the group that had tangled with her. Will was under guard by two Silwrath. He was sedated and was covered in wound bindings. He had several tubes going into him. Allison didn’t let her eyes linger on him. She waved to Futara, made her way to her quarters, equipped her armor and headed to the hanger bay in which the angry sounding VI indicated she would find Bit. Allison smiled. Bit was probably the one entity in her life that would never let her down. She got into the cockpit and slid her hand across the holo-control surface.
“Hey, I hope the last few days were better for you than they were for me.”
“I was flying near constant search and rescue patrols. Several people were caught in the storm. I am glad to report there were no casualties.”
Allison muttered.
“Besides my dress.”
“Given the circumstances, I would say that is an acceptable loss. You hate dresses and skirts. Not that I will ever understand your dislike of specific clothing. I have no basis for comparison.”
“Imagine I moved all of your liquid metal to the top of your airframe and turned it into a liquid metal skirt and a breeze left your lower airframe naked.”
Bit pondered.
“I see. Why would humans put themselves through that?”
Allison shrugged.
“Because being a girl sucks, well it sucks sometimes. Guys are big, we’re small. If I wasn’t a dhampir I’d be dead right now because some gorilla tossed me around like a ragdoll this morning. I felt powerless.”
“That seems illogical, you are a trained soldier.”
“I wasn’t expecting someone to randomly attack me in what I thought was a safe space. My guard was down. Then the guards just watched. Ugg.”
Bit remained quiet as they descended into the atmosphere and came to a soft landing in Allison’s backyard. Bit spoke up.
“I will return to the base. Perhaps some sleep will help.”
Allison waved to Bit and went inside quickly the temperature was ridiculously low and her coat was at the LSR embassy. Her mother was not home. Aryna was home and bundled under blankets. The habitation unit wasn’t freezing, but it wasn’t exactly warm either. Allison shivered when the door shut. Aryna didn’t take long to tug Allison under the blanket.
“You’re alright!”
Allison gave her a look.
“Of course I’m alright. Why is the house so not warm?”
“It has been abnormally cold at night and your mother hasn’t been home to light a fire.”
Oozie came bounding from deep within the house and jumped on Allison and started licking her face. The nargle snuck under the blanket and on both of their laps.
“Well, if the one with all the fur is cold something isn’t working right.”
“I am not very technical, so maybe I did something wrong. Your mom hasn’t been home since the storm hit. She’s been sleeping on base coordinating… whatever she coordinates.”
Allison sighed.
“Leave for two days and the whole colony falls apart. I’ll go look once the furball has had enough.”
She kept petting Oozie under the blanket.
“If she does this once I get her food with the enzyme, this is going to be a bit more painful.”
Aryna giggled. Allison looked down at Oozie.
“Okay, if you want me to get a fire going and get the habitation warmed up, you’re going to need to move your furry butt.”
Oozie purred, whined, tried the big blue puppy-kitty look then moved when Allison shoved her gently. Allison started a fire after. Then she wandered around trying to figure out why the heating system was failing them. She assumed, perhaps incorrectly, that Aryna had already tried that. She ended up getting her military scanner out. Nothing seemed physically wrong, at least inside, so she accessed the VI’s back-end settings. She realized there was an issue with the external thermostat, so she manually set the temperature. The heating system kicked in. By the time Allison got back both Oozie and Aryna were huddled in front of the fire.
Allison plopped down on the couch. The room was already starting to heat up. Aryna drifted back to the couch and sat down beside Allison. She glanced at Allison. Allison smiled at her.
“Your gifts probably saved my life, by the way. That pistol I had keeps running out of battery power sooner then I’d expect. Too bad it doesn’t work like our energy weapons; We just swap out batteries. Or e-clips.”
Aryna quirked her head to the side.
“I wonder why we never thought of that.”
“Did you ever develop gunpowder?”
Aryna shook her head. Allison scratched her head.
“Weird how did that happen? Like I figured it was a natural progression from bows and arrows.”
“We developed archery later, after running into other species as an art form. Like our sword fighting techniques. Perhaps it is because we have always been able to accelerate objects with our minds. I would demonstrate but I do not want to damage anything.”
Allison turned to her.
“Wait, you have telekinesis strong enough to kill people?”
Aryna smiled.
“Yes, of course. My mother could have torn one of your dreadnoughts in half. There are stories of other Queens stopping meteorites from damaging worlds.”
Allison blinked in disbelief.
“I saw a video of the Dark Mother doing that once. The ship thing.”
“Was your Dark Mother a Qual’sa?”
“No, she was a really old, really powerful vampire. She apparently stopped a meteorite once from destroying Sauroid Prime… or… well she stopped it in its tracks after it cut a slice off the planet and held the planet together? I saw the meteorite it was half the size of the moon… I think she stopped the planet from rotating. There were pictures in the Temple of the Universe.”
Aryna perked up.
“Was she an energy being? There are stories of the ancients of my people that could alter reality.”
“Uh, we’d call her… an angel? The stories get more ridiculous from there, like, she reorganized. Umm, I didn’t quite understand, but she changed how reality works? Like… instead of one universe she created an infinite number? Something about some are sacrificed so all can survive? Honestly the old priestess wasn’t making much sense. The temple is covered in millions of carvings and paintings that tell the story of multiple histories. It was so…weird and I don’t think there is enough time in three or four lifetimes… well human lifetimes, to document it. Like in one I saw she actually obliterated an entire hemisphere of our home planet with antimatter. Her daughter had joined the enemy, and she had no choice. I think the picture showed her fighter was damaged? It was trippy. Like the predictions and alternate timelines… They’re so out there. I don’t know I saw some things there I still don’t understand.”
Aryna put her hand on Allison’s thigh.
“I can try to help sort through it, if you’d like. We Qual’sa, especially those selected to rule, have a long history of visions of alternate futures. We believe it is our ancestors, the ancients, the first of our kind to evolve past physical forms. They guide our people with visions to the Queen. I have only had one, it was of your face. It is why I trusted you immediately. They told me to trust in you. That you would save the Qual’sa, and look you have. They told me I should reward you and grant you lands and title, I did it without question. So, whatever you have seen, perhaps it was them speaking to you through images from your religious beliefs.”
“I don’t know. This was… It was real. I felt it. She cried tears of blood, I tasted them, I could smell them. My face had blood on it. It was more than a vision, it was like I was somewhere else.”
Aryna took Allison’s hands in hers and offered the link.
“Show me, please?”
“Are you sure? I thought you didn’t want to risk… the Sal’nash. I am not as in control as you are.”
Aryna slid her fingers along Allison’s wrist gently.
“I trust you. Now trust me.”
Allison closed her eyes and opened herself to the link. Their thoughts flooded into each other. She took Aryna back to the vision of the Dark Mother. Aryna slowed it down. Allison was out of her body in the memory.
“I see what you mean. This is different. It is like you were physically here.”
Aryna looked between the Dark Mother and Allison.
“My sister, are you sure she is not your biological mother. The resemblance is uncanny.”
Allison honestly wasn’t sure and there were no lies in the link. Even without voicing it Aryna could sense Allison’s doubts, despite her adamant protestations to the contrary.
“I don’t know. I just don’t. Everyone’s her child. If… if the stories are true, she created every living being. Why wouldn’t she just keep me with my sisters then? Why… why would she not give birth to me? Why would she have someone else… I just. No, she can’t be because if she was then I’d have to admit my parents didn’t want me. That I, wasn’t worth staying around to have and to raise. If she can reorder reality, she could have made it so I was with her before she left to do whatever.”
Aryna slipped her hand into Allison’s in the shared vision with her other hand she pointed at the Dark Mother.
“Look at the pain in her eyes. I know what this is, you can feel it can’t you? Her mind at the edge of yours? You can read her thoughts, but you are ignoring them. You’re a latent telepath.”
Aryna touched Allison’s forehead and whispered.
“Remember.”
Allison felt a wave of nausea pass through her as the Dark Mother’s… no Enid’s thoughts passed through her mind. It was a flood. Allison felt like she was touching infinity. Enid hadn’t left this as a recording; She had reached through space and time, from just before the dawn of the universe, in her last moments as herself, an instant before she sacrificed everything she was. Her last act had been to speak to the daughter who had never known her. To let Allison know her biological mother loved her. She knew when she gave Allison up that her daughter would have a mother who loved her as much as Enid would. To warn her that darkness was coming. The shadow behind the Sal’nash. An ancient evil. Enid had left Allison here. Put her in the perfect place to face the threat she could not. A chance to save this universe, and the family hidden away. The darkness created by Enid’s meddling. An existential threat to all of creation. Allison couldn’t hold the link or the memory, nor could Aryna. As Enid released herself to her true intellect, neither of the girls could withstand the infinite complexity of all universes, all realities, all living things. The link snapped. The pair rubbed their heads and stared at each other for several minutes. Aryna spoke first.
“She… how could one person… one being handle so much information?”
Allison had tears dripping down her face. She started to sob. Aryna pulled her close and hugged her tightly.
“She loved you Allison, she loved you so much she reached billions of years through time to tell you. She also told you that your real mother is Apiyo. She was right. Who gave birth to you, who conceived you, it doesn’t matter. Apiyo is the mother you know, and the mother who knows you. You felt it, she had no choice. If she can see all possible futures and you can save all life in the universe by being here, being you, then she had no choice.”
Allison wrapped her arms around Aryna and cried into her shoulder.