Anissa's hand lingered over my heart, feeling the slow, fragile rhythm beating beneath my ribs.
"It's just as I predicted," she whispered, inching closer. The warmth of her breath ghosted across my skin. "You proved yourself the strongest of us all. And you did it while trying to protect us. Trying to protect our Empire."
Get the hell away from me, I thought, panic flaring in my chest as I attempted to shove her with everything I had.
However, she didn't move an inch. She didn't even flinch. It was like trying to push a mountain.
A cold spike of terror shot down my spine. My arms felt like I'd been lifting weights for a week straight. I scrambled away from her, dragging myself across the heavy silk sheets, but every single movement took an agonizing amount of effort. My entire body felt impossibly, terrifyingly heavy. Gravity itself felt like something was pressing down on me, crushing the breath out of my lungs.
"What did you do to me?!" I demanded, my voice coming out as a raspy, winded pant.
Anissa casually reached out. I tried to move away, but she moved much faster than my eyes could track. She grabbed my wrist between two fingers and her thumb. Judging by how nonchalant she was, her grip wasn't even that tight, but for the life of me, I couldn't break out of it.
She looked at me with a mix of what I assumed was pity and extreme desire. "We saved you," she said smoothly, gently forcing my arm back down onto the bed. "Your muscles have severely atrophied. You have been in a deep, healing coma for the last six months."
Six months?! I thought, my mind screaming. No way!
I immediately tried to tap into my nanites, desperately reaching inward for the familiar, burning well of solar energy that I had relied on for years. I tried to push my body into Overdrive. I tried to spark even a flicker of my aura.
But, nothing happened.
There was no heat, or hum of technology. Just a vast, hollow exhaustion. I stared down at my trembling hands in absolute horror.
My powers… they're gone, I realized, the truth hitting hard. They're really gone.
Anissa reached forward and firmly grabbed my chin, forcing me to look into her striking blue eyes. She leaned in, her lips brushing against my ear.
"It's only temporary," she whispered, her voice dark and seductive, like a devil making a promise in the dark. "But don't worry... until you are whole again, I will be your protector."
The look she gave me was almost chilling. It was a mix of protective possessiveness and ravenous hunger—the look an owner gives a prized possession, or a predator gives its favorite prey.
Before I could even process the sheer terror of that promise, the room's doors hissed open.
The shift in Anissa was instantaneous. The lustful, predatory obsession vanished from her face in a microsecond. By the time the doors were fully open, she had released me, stood up perfectly straight, and snapped to attention like the disciplined soldier she was.
General Kregg walked into the room, followed closely by a Viltrumite medical officer holding a digital datapad.
I tensed, preparing for an interrogation or a beating. But neither came. Instead, Kregg stopped at the foot of my bed and looked at me with an unprecedented level of respect.
"You are finally awake," Kregg noted, his single eye scanning my weakened form. "How felicitous."
"My powers," I rasped, ignoring the pleasantries, my chest heaving with exertion just from sitting upright. "What happened to my powers?"
Kregg gave a slight nod to the medical officer, who stepped forward.
"When you intercepted the Coalition's weapon, the casing fractured slightly before your… detonation," the medic explained clinically. "A microscopic fraction of the perfected Scourge Virus seeped its way into your system just a fraction of a second before your... coronal discharge... incinerated the rest of the cloud."
Coronal discharge?! I thought. Is that what they're calling my solar flare?!
"While you were comatose, your body fought a brutal, cellular war against the virus," the medic continued, referencing the datapad. "You survived. However, the combination of expelling one hundred percent of your internal energy, paired with the severe viral damage to your Viltrumite DNA, has left your cells completely stripped of their capabilities."
I stared at him, my stomach dropping into a bottomless pit of disbelief. "Meaning?!"
"Meaning," the medic said flatly, "until your cells can naturally repair the damage over an undetermined amount of time... you possess only the baseline strength, durability, and senses of a standard human."
I looked back down at my hands. They were shaking. I couldn't fly, I couldn't fight, and I couldn't even push Anissa away from me.
I'm really just a bitch-ass human now, I thought, the horrific reality settling over me.
I was entirely powerless, locked inside a ship surrounded by a race of god-like sociopaths who could crush my skull with two fingers.
Before the heavy silence in the room could suffocate me entirely, the doors hissed open once more.
This time, it was Nolan who stepped inside.
He looked tired, but the first thing that caught my eye wasn't his face. Draped over his broad shoulders was a thick white fur mantle—the traditional royal garb of the Viltrumite Empire.
"I think it would be best if I explained things," he said, his voice quiet but echoing in the sterile room. "But to understand the full scope of the situation, you'll have to come with me."
There's no way, my eyes widened, staring at the fur mantle. They know he's the heir?! Is that why they've been acting like this? Is that why he switched sides?! How did that even happen?!
Suddenly, the words Thragg had spoken to me right before he attacked echoed in my mind: "You carry the blood of the Empire, yet you panic over falling debris like worried prey. Let us see if you truly have the strength to stand above."
So, that's what he meant, I thought.
I swung my legs over the edge of the bed. It took an embarrassing amount of effort just to stand up. My knees buckled slightly under my own weight, but I forced myself upright.
General Kregg and the medic gave a crisp, synchronized nod, saluted Nolan, and exited the room. Anissa followed them out, but just before the doors closed, she paused. She looked over her shoulder, giving me a lingering, sultry look that promised she'd be back, before disappearing down the hall.
I fell into step beside Nolan, though I had to work twice as hard just to keep up with his casual walking pace.
As we trudged through the seemingly never-ending metallic halls of what I assumed was the main Viltrumite dreadnought, I noticed something insane. Every passing Viltrumite soldier immediately stopped, snapped to attention, and bowed deeply to both of us as we walked by.
"What's going on?!" I finally asked, my voice still raspy. "Why did you switch sides mid-war?! Why did you tell me everything you were doing was for us?! And why the hell is everyone bowing?!"
Nolan kept his eyes forward. "When they captured me and brought me back to that staging ground, I assumed they were ready to make an example of me," he began. "However, they informed me of something that completely changed everything."
"And that would be?" I asked, feigning ignorance.
"They discovered that I am the long-lost heir to our previous Emperor, Argall," Nolan said heavily. "The Emperor who led us for centuries. Under his reign, the Empire became the powerhouse it is today."
How's that a good thing? I thought bitterly. He's also the guy who led y'all into becoming the vicious psychopaths you are today.
"Okay? Does that truly matter?" I asked aloud. "You were aligned with a Coalition that sought to completely eradicate them. Does the information of you being the heir make them just forget all that? I'm finding that hard to believe."
"In a way, it does," Nolan replied. "But there's another reason why they've accepted it, and it has everything to do with you."
I raised a brow, rubbing my heavy, aching shoulder. "What does that mean?"
"When the Empire discovered our bloodline, they became, for lack of a better word, split on how to proceed with us," Nolan explained. "Ultimately, they came up with a solution they felt was necessary."
"And that involved you joining back up with them," I said, entirely unconvinced.
Nolan stopped in front of a pair of massive, heavily armored double doors. "That decision was of grave importance. It was the only way to end the war's prolonged bloodshed. And it was a situation in which I could not interfere with anything involving you because—"
"Because an Emperor must first prove his blood is strong enough to rule," a deep, booming voice finished from inside the room. "And your father has grown… soft."
The doors slid open, revealing a vast, dimly lit throne room. Grand Regent Thragg stood at the center, his hands clasped behind his back.
The atmosphere in the room instantly shifted. Instead of attacking or gloating, Thragg did the unthinkable. The Grand Regent of the Viltrumite Empire brought a fist to his chest and offered me a deep, traditional Viltrumite salute.
I broke out of my shock, my eyes narrowing defensively. "And what's that supposed to mean?!"
"If your father had interrupted what was planned," Thragg said smoothly, rising from his salute, "the Empire would have had to... re-educate you both on its principles."
"If I had interfered," Nolan said quietly beside me, "they would have killed Debbie and Oliver."
Every muscle in my weak body tensed. "Over my dead body!" I said, stepping forward. "And what were you not supposed to interfere in? What was the point of all this?! And how did they even discover we were related to this Argall guy?!"
"Watch your mouth!" Thragg barked, his eyes flashing with sudden authority. "Emperor Argall—"
I dropped into a combat stance, raising my fists as best as my exhausted body could manage. "Or what?!" I yelled back. "What's gonna happen?!"
Thragg looked down at me for a tense, heavy moment. Then, surprisingly, he smirked. He let out a low, echoing laugh that completely confused me.
"The longer I stand here, the more certain I feel about my decision," he mused. He began to pace slowly around the dais. "After your father was taken from that planet of insect people, a couple of samples of both your blood were left on the uniforms of the surviving soldiers. Medical procedures are usually issued after any soldier is assigned to a planet with a unique disposition. However, after several reports of your developing prowess were documented by our highest-ranked soldiers, the topic of understanding you became a main focal point."
Kregg must have gotten my samples when he punched my tooth out, I realized, thinking back. Or it could have been Anissa when she came to Earth.
"When the confirmation of the heirs of Emperor Argall was revealed to us, we were taken aback by the news that one of its greatest soldiers had aligned themselves with the Empire's biggest traitor," Thragg continued, his tone chillingly calm. "Chaos almost broke out at the thought of the royal bloodline being poisoned. A time when unification was essential. So, to keep us from unraveling, I proposed the idea of an evaluation of sorts."
"What kind of evaluation?" I questioned, listening extremely closely.
"One to prove that you were still a Viltrumite at heart," Thragg said, stopping to look at me. "Since your father had been nothing short of loyal to the Empire for decades, we categorized his actions as a brief lapse in judgment. Seeing how he has realigned his focus upon hearing the revelation of his lineage, our categorization was deemed correct. But you, like many in our Empire, needed to be tested."
Everything finally clicked together.
"The first test was your subsequent rematch with Conquest. He had been more than willing to be your first pillar," Thragg said, almost fondly. "He called it something of a fated meeting. The next pillars were from members of the Empire who wanted to see firsthand if your strength was at the appropriate level to rule."
That's why they were all fighting like that, I realized, remembering how the soldiers had bowed to me during the skirmishes. They didn't just respect my power, it was truly for a reason. It's all making sense now.
"To say you passed would be an understatement," Thragg said, his eyes gleaming with dark approval. "You not only demonstrated your strength, but you used it appropriately by ridding the world of that traitor, Thaedus, with your... developed abilities."
I didn't miss the hesitation in his voice when he mentioned my powers.
"When our medical officers were in the process of purging the Scourge Virus from your system, they reported how unique your Smart Atoms had become," Thragg said, looking at me like I was a scientific marvel. "They said they were nothing like they've ever seen before. A one-in-a-million evolutionary advancement."
Damn, I thought, my stomach twisting. My atoms mutated so perfectly that they think I just evolved. If they start to assume that my human DNA might be a catalyst to it, then this might turn into a major problem.
I stood there, still processing the sheer weight of everything that had just been dumped on me. The evaluations. The bloodline. The destruction of Viltrum being viewed as a twisted rite of passage.
"What happens now?" I asked, my voice tight.
"Now, we wait," Thragg stated smoothly, his posture relaxing just a fraction, though his presence remained suffocating. "You have demonstrated your strength well, but your current powerless state makes you a severe vulnerability to the Empire. So, I will continue my duty as Grand Regent, until things settle."
I did a double take, momentarily forgetting how weak I was. "What?! You?!" I questioned, then gestured towards Nolan. "Why you?! If my dad's the heir, why isn't he in charge?!"
Thragg's eyes narrowed, the briefest flash of hostility crossing his features before he reined it in. "Your father betrayed our Empire in favor of the very side that almost eradicated us," he began. "The very Coalition that was the driving force behind the destruction of our home."
Ah, so they are furious about that, I thought. Anissa kind of seemed to brush it off in a way, but I'm pretty sure it's because her priorities have shifted. This hulking beast in front of me is probably never going to forget about it. And it begs the question: what's happened to Allen and the rest of the Coalition forces?!
My mind was slowly drifting toward the unknown status of the Coalition forces, but I was snapped back to reality by the sound of Thragg slowly walking up the steps of the dais.
He turned to look down at us. "If your father were to take up the throne without proper repentance, unrest and unease would quickly let loose within our ranks. The Empire needs stability right now. Not a controversial transition of power."
Bullshit, I noted internally, glaring up at him. He's just manipulating the situation by using Nolan's recent actions against the Empire to justify keeping himself in power, all while keeping us exactly where he can see us. Especially now with my powers gone.
I turned to Nolan. He wouldn't meet my eyes. He just stood there, wearing the royal mantle of a king who had no kingdom and no real authority.
"Where even are we?" I asked, rubbing my temples as a dull headache began to throb behind my eyes. "How far away are we from the Coalition?"
"We aren't anywhere near Coalition space," Nolan answered quietly. "We are on a command ship on the dark side of Earth's Moon."
"Earth?!" I gasped. "You brought the entire Viltrumite Empire to Earth?!"
"We had nowhere else to go," Nolan said, finally meeting my gaze with a look of heavy resignation. "There are only thirty-five surviving Viltrumites left. With Viltrum now gone, our resources are extremely finite. The Empire decided that, based on how compatible the human species is with Viltrumites, Earth was the most suitable place to rebuild our forces."
There it is, I thought, sighing internally. The one thing I absolutely wanted to prevent.
"While you were incapacitated, many soldiers had already infiltrated Earth without notice," Nolan continued. "However, there is still one problem that we're facing."
"That being?" I asked with a raised brow.
"The Coalition," Nolan replied. "They still have Oliver. And they are actively hunting us, with a high priority on you."
I took a step back, the walls of the massive throne room suddenly feeling like they were closing in on me.
That's right, I crashed out and killed Thaedus, I realized, a cold sweat breaking out on my forehead. I ripped their Founder in half in front of their entire armada. To them, I'm probably just as much of a monster as the rest of the Empire.
"Furthermore," Thragg's booming voice cut through my spiraling thoughts, "because of that information along with your current, powerless state, you cannot be allowed to leave this ship."
I snapped my head up to look at him. "Excuse you?!"
"You are the Heir of Argall. A one-in-a-million evolutionary marvel," Thragg said coldly, leaving no room for argument. "You are too valuable to lose, and too fragile to protect yourself at the current moment. The Coalition would execute you on sight. Therefore, you will remain here, on this ship, under our strict protection."
"You can't just lock me up!" I yelled, taking an aggressive step toward the dais.
In a fraction of a second, Thragg blurred from the top of the stairs and reappeared right in front of me. The sheer displacement of air from his movement knocked me off balance, sending me stumbling backward onto the hard metallic floor.
I hit the ground with a heavy, painful thud, my human bones aching from the impact.
Thragg looked down at me, his expression devoid of any warmth or mercy. "You are not a prisoner, Mark," he said, though his tone promised otherwise. "You are our future. But until your strength returns, you will do exactly as you are told. For your own safety."
He turned his back on me and walked away.
I sat there on the cold floor, my chest heaving, staring at my trembling, powerless hands. I had destroyed a planet. I had incinerated a galactic plague. But it didn't matter.
I was officially a prisoner in a gilded cage.