The eldritch leviathan appeared ahead of them, dwarfing the Sequester.
A mix of a squid and a crab floating ahead of them. Brown chitin with purple splotches of color in it. It had segmented crab legs curled beneath it and held close, with swirling tentacles reaching out around it in a probing way.
It's mouth split open in a cross-shape as they approached.
"I really don't like this..." Raymond said uneasily as he watched from the pilots cabin window.
"You will be fine Mr. Leopold." Dr. Bryant said, enraptured by the caasiok in front of him. He seemed fascinated as his eyes scanned it.
Selene felt a pit in her stomach. Zephyr probably would've made a joke about Raymond's last name. If she wasn't confined to her room. And if Aboleth was there, she probably would've told her something about military decorum.
But things would go back to normal again soon. She'd make sure of that.
The Sequester drifted into the gaping maw of the caasiok. The interior was vacuous and dark. The ship rocked a bit as something latched on. Pulling. Guiding.
Welcome
A vibe resonated through Selene's body. And not just hers—but everyone there seemed to of been affected by it. Danny, Raymond, and Dr. Bryant all reacted to it.
"That's definitely not creepy at all.." Raymond said.
They felt the ship stop as it landed. Though they couldn't tell where. The ships lights shone out into a black void around them. With a fleshy surface below them. Full of cavities and recesses, creeks of green fluid and different organ kinds.
"Am I supposed to go out there?" Selene asked. Her voice giving off layered versions of itself as is typical for her Zykra form.
"I shall accompany you Ms. Carrington... I must-" his breath hitched nervously, then he looked at her very seriously; "-Do not say or do anything that may insult Ku'senai... Queens are rather prideful."
"Honestly I'm not sure about this... I don't like the vibes of the Zykra here. They don't seem to like me."
The scientist sighed; "Yes, the Zykra of other queens are often antagonistic of one another. If it were not for her direct will they would already be attacking."
"What do we do?" Danny asked.
"Just wait here. Dr. Bryant will send a message if he needs to. About what to do with Aboleth... Jesus, here we go..."
They left through the cargo-hold. Selene gave a glance back to the Aboleth-shaped body bag and made a silent promise before leaving. Doctor Bryant had a flashlight attached to his shoulder, but Selene could see fairly well in her form. Her Zykra senses didn't rely on sight alone either—in fact it wasn't even her primary sense.
Her 'vibe sense' was the way she usually saw the world these days.
Come
The pisonic signature was a complex request—it wasn't only words. But it gave her a mental image of which direction to go. As well as flashes of some stick-bug creature. Different from any Zykra she's seen. Clearly not designed for combat purposes, as it's body was lithe and frail.
It met them a minutes walk from the ship. At the base of a large wall with numerous orifice entryways along it. Some were a distance from the ground and would require flying to reach.
It's body was a disturbing marvel of biology.
It was an insulting imitation of humanity. It stood on two impossibly thin legs, like stilts. Brown and twig-like was the going theme for it's body. It had two sets of arms. One was a slightly thicker and longer set which hung awkwardly at the sides. And a second smaller set that was held curled up close to the chest. Tucked into divots seemingly made for this, forming to the rigid pectoral shaped chitin on the chest.
It's head was especially grotesque. It had lips. If you could call them that.
It was like a zombies face. Minus the nose and ears. A thin layer of 'skin' was stretched over a skull which was impossibly pointy in places. It's eyes were a fierce red, though the brow held a gentle expression.
There were a pair of wings similar to Selene's—when she had them deployed. They were frailer than the rest of her so she didn't usually have them out.
Is this how Ku'senai saw humans? Their potential? Frail and weak communicators?
It's voice startled her.
"Gree-tings..."
It was a higher pitched voice. Insectoid as if it was created by buzzing wings.
"I was. Create-ed, to. Speak. On Queens be-half."
"...Hey." Selene said.
The thing gave a robotic bow and gestured to follow. It's limbs would occasionally spasm as if jolted with electricity; "The Queen. Re-cieve."
They followed the thing then. And it led them through the meaty halls. Occasionally there'd be a glowing green pool of acid. Which illuminated glistening purple flesh and orange/brown chitin.
Selene couldn't imagine herself living in a place like this. But soon she would have caasiok of her own. This thing would be the main way she fights the Protectorate in the near future.
Dr. Bryant seemed intrigued by the way their guide walked. It's toothpick legs were quick and accurate. Much more poised than the rest of it was.
It led them into a larger chamber lined with entrances. All emitted toxic green light into the chamber. There was a river of the acid creating a mote around a central round platform. There were rib-like bridges around it giving a ground path for them.
It must've been 30 meters round. The chamber itself could've been 100 meters around.
Their bug-butler walked across the bridge and took it's place in front of the familiar hulking encephalon which stood towards the center of the platform.
It's humanoid-adjacent face was the easiest to look at. The rigid torso had keratin plates layered on top of each other like armor. It's arms were like it's butlers, but burlier. It's head tapered off into a crown shape. All the familiar details that Selene hadn't seen in weeks since that day on the Alexandria station.
"Why... Have you. Come?" the bug butler asked. It's had twitched to the side with a cracking sound—likely trying to mimic human expressions.
Selene glanced to Dr. Bryant, who nodded. Then she took a final glance around her surroundings in preparation, as she stepped forward. Things were different than when they first met. She wasn't the same woman she was then. And she didn't intend on being pushed around again.
"I need your help. To save my friend."
As she said the latter half she emitted a psionic signature. A wordless explanation of events. Images of major Masuka, her change—then her second death.
"I heard you could make her again... I don't have time to do it myself. My hive isn't done, and I only have a fraction of the Zykra you do."
There was a moment of silence then. But not of contemplation. It was as if Ku'senai was giving her time to reconsider. Finally the bug butler spoke again; "Bry-ant... You have encount-ered the. Still. Ones. You have. Retrieve-ed. Pros-thesis."
Ku'senai turned her own head then to look at Selene. And she felt a similar wave crash upon her like that day when they first met. The day she had a seizure.
But the preserver said it had made her more resistance to the influence of other Zykra somehow. And she was banking on that now as she fortified herself. Instinctively. Ku'senai's mind gripped hers like a tiny marble between her fingers. Appraisingly.
"You. Resist?" the bug butlers voice continued speaking on her behalf. "What. Do you. Have. To hide?"
"Nothing. I just don't appreciate you coming in uninvited. It's rude. My mind isn't a doormat you can just walk all over." Selene said angrily.
"Very well."
Selene felt the presence withdraw to a respectable distance. And it was a good thing she did too—it was pretty exhausting to put up mental walls like that.
Dr. Bryant stepped forward; "Yes, que-" he glanced at Selene, then turned to face Ku'senai again; "There are other advanced life forms in my Queens territory. They have left devices that seem to interact to humans in a favorable way. We actually—"
"Bryant!" Selene shouted at him, pulling him back towards her by the sleeve of his lab coat.
She should've left him on Endelon 2, of course he'd spill the beans on all of that! She'd just been so distracted. Too wrapped up in her feelings to think clearly. Ku'senai has already probed his mind for everything she'd hoped to of kept secret by now. She knew about the preservers.
Not her meeting, or her specific plans to rebel against the Zykra once they're done with puck—but she could probably put two and two together now.
"Destroy this device." the bug butler said quickly. "I will. Hunt. For... The remains."
"You stay the fuck out of my territory!" Selene pointed up at the encephalon; "I don't know what these devices are—but they are useful to my goals! I will run my system how I please!"
Her claws began to extend and her helmet went up around her face.
Ku'senai seemed unbothered by this.
"You come. Asking. And now-you demand? You forget yourself. Little queen."
The hulking encephalon took heavy steps towards Selene. It's hands were in a resting position, calmly clasped together over it's 'stomach', but she lowered them now at her sides and clenched them into fists.
"I made. You. I can. Unmake you."
Selene stood straight, looking up at the beast not more than two meters from her; "Try it bitch. We'll see who gets unmade."
"Selene..." Dr. Bryant grumbled fearfully. "Remember what we came her for.."
She didn't care. There was a strange rivalry between them on the instinctual level. The fact Selene was here asking for help... All of the sudden it had hurt her pride. And when Ku'senai started speaking about entering her territory like it was a fact—that sent Selene over the edge. She was a second away from jumping on the giant bug.
"A reminder. Then." The bug butler said behind Ku'senai.
Selene whipped her arm to the side an a scythe formed from orange keratin. It's grotesque uneven blade shined in the green ambient light around them.
The time for talking was over.
She leapt at the encephalon.
It raised a hand and Selene felt a force around her. Pushing her. It flung her at the far wall and she crashed into it. Covering the distance in an instant. It didn't hurt. It was barely an inconvenience.
Attempt number 2.
She flew out of the crater she left- wings forming mid flight. Sending her forward faster. This time she was ready. The moment Ku'senai used her kinetic telepath abilities Selene put up a barrier of her own psychic energy. Shielding her from her influence.
The encephalon wasn't surprised, but didn't attempt to dodge when Selene slashed with her newly created scythe through the monsters arm. It fell to the platforms floor with a heavy impact.
Dr. Bryant had ran across the bridge to the far end of the chamber and was watching the battle play out with rapt interest.
Selene tumbled through the air from the momentum—flying past Ku'senai and righting herself for a second pass. But as she did she felt a hand grip around her ankle.
No!
Selene went to slash it but another hand gripped her arms together to her chest. Completely encompassing her like a straightjacket. The other hand released her ankle as Ku'senai brought her close.
"Let go you disgusting freak!" Selene thrashed about in her grip. But it was impossibly strong. She suplexed a 8 foot tall alien but Ku'senai was on another level.
A hand pinched the edge of one of her wings.
"Oh, you better not you fu-"
There was the sound of snapping tendons as the fleshy socket that held onto the wing was pulled from her back. She felt a wetness spill down her back from it.
"uuUCK!"
Selene sent her tail spearing at Ku'senai's face in retaliation.
The encephalon dropped her. Then grabbed her tail and whipped her back to the ground like a bola.
How was she so fast AND big? The end of Selene's tail snapped off and remained in Ku'senai's hand.
The carapace covering the platform cracked as Selene bounced off it. She felt pain shooting through her body. Her back. Her tail. There was an especially electric pain on one of her antenna. She reached up to feel and realized it was snapped in half.
An insectile chittering sound came from her as she clenched her clawed fist closed.
"Selene stop!" Dr. Bryant called out from the other side of the bridge.
Stop? What, was he a idiot? Should she just let the encephalon pick her apart like some psycho kid torturing a bug with tweezers?
She let out a war cry, sending out a typhoon of psionic energy around her. The acid river that surrounded them began to splash and swirl as she did. Her wing grew again out of her back and her tail healed. She felt her antenna snap back into place.
'I can't loose.' she thought to herself. Even though she knew it was a pathetic hope. Like a child throwing a tantrum.
Selene collected her fingers into a spear shape and launched from the crater. Aiming all of her force centered on the encephalon.
"Futile effort."
She heard the bug butler say the moment she stopped mid-air. She felt tiny hands all around her. There must've been at least a dozen. They all collectively pulled her tight into an 'X' shape.
Ku'senai had sprouted spider legs from her back. Long with many joints like the pholcidae type. Impossibly strong for how narrow they were. Selene didn't see them. She flew straight into a web of the limbs. That held her suspended in front of Ku'senai. It was hopeless. She was older. Stronger. Her battle experience and the power she's accumulated over thousands, probably millions of years. It made her an impossible enemy.
Selene thought of her family. Of Aboleth, and the others on the Sequester. Even Zephyr.
"..Sorry." she mumbled.
Ku'senai narrowed her eyes at Selene.
"Human regret. Insufficient."
She reached out and clutched both of Selene's antenna before pulling them off.
She'd never felt so much pain. Time seemed to lose all meaning. What she remembered, or knew- it no longer mattered. In an instant her world was suffering. She felt something pierce her abominable muscles, a hand ripped off the carapace armor over her chest, pulling chunks of flesh with it. She broke one of her arms by trying to pull away in desperation.
It was like she was on a torture rack.
Dr. Bryant begged and pleaded all the while. As Selene's cries echoed through the chamber. Blood dripped down onto the platform below her.
And just as her consciousness began to weaken and fade—she felt herself drop to the ground. It was bliss to be free from that pain. She hit the ground in a wet pulpy mess.
Half of her helmet was forcibly peeled back, and thin tendons of purple were trying to pull it back.
The purple eye that was revealed from it was gazing towards the floor in defeat. Tears dripped from it. But Selene didn't say anything. She just breathed heavily, as her body fought to stay alive.
There was the soft pattering of toothpick legs as the bug butler stepped in front of her. It leaned to the side to make eye contact with her.
"Regret. Wasteful. Fear. Hatred. Wasteful. Understand?"
Selene had no way of responding. Or desire to.
"You enter. My domain. You demand. My assistance. Your territory. Contains. The Still. Ones. And. Demand still?"
Two scantids emerged into the chamber then. They quickly leapt over the acid river and stood near Selene. Snapping angrily at her.
"Very well. I will. Remake."
The scantids grabbed her ankles between their mandibles and dragged her mangled body from the chamber like a pair of hound dogs fighting over a chew toy.