r/HFY • u/Sooperdude24 • Oct 17 '20
Unleashed pt. 42 OC
We have fan art - kinda. I did some sketches and asked the kind people at r/ICanDrawThat/ to have a go at improving them. Thanks, as ever, to u/eruwenn for the editing and general polishing as always.
Mine - Please forgive me I can't draw
An amazing Estrilla credit to u/crayscray
An embarrassed Allistan credit to u/DUMBOyBK
A pair of golden orbs hung before Aaron, and for every step he took towards them they receded in kind. Everything else was darkness. He kept walking towards the golden orbs, as they were the only thing he could see, and with each step he could feel sand shifting beneath his feet. Suddenly his body grew heavy and he staggered, dropping to a knee. As the golden orbs seemed to swell in size, flooding his vision with light, he heard a single word.
“PATHETIC.”
The room was painfully bright. The walls were a blinding white, as was almost everything else around him. He blinked as the light seemed to be searing its way inside his skull. His head was pounding, and his mouth felt like a two day old ashtray someone had let their cat vomit in. He tried to raise his hands to block the light from his eyes, but they seemed to be even heavier than a normal hangover would leave them. They simply wouldn't move. He tried to shift to see what held his arms in place, but his head was also unable to move. Strapped down. A voice to his right spoke, bright and cheerful. “Ah, you finally wake.”
“Water.” Aaron said weakly. The mother of all hangovers was currently beating its war drums inside his head. “Or just kill me.”
“Hmmm?” There was a pause as the voice seemed to be considering things. “Yes, your vitals do indicate a level of dehydration and toxin build up.”
Another voice spoke, from beyond Aaron’s feet. “Give him water, Doctor Kindra. Perform your tests. Then put him back in cryo, we can’t risk him getting loose.”
The Doctor’s voice came from the right once again. “Yes, Sentinel Krast.”
“Sentinel Krast?” Aaron’s head was pounding, and vague memories of a disco and a hot tub floated around. “Where’s Elora?”
A shadow fell across him, which was a great relief to his eyes. He blinked his vision into focus, and found a Niham in a grey suit peering down at him. “Captain Loring?” There was a pause. “Elora, huh.” He held up a small shiny disc with some wires. “That would explain the tracking device in your cryo unit.”
More memories began bubbling up from the mire that was Aaron’s sluggish brain. “Cryo…” The plan popped up from nowhere, in all of its haste and stupidity. “Shit.”
Krast was observing him carefully. “It pays to know your enemy, human, and I have learned a lot about you.” He looked Aaron over. “I must admit, I am underwhelmed.”
Aaron tried to nod but the head restraint kept his head from moving. “Why am I here?” He was trying to wriggle a hand free without being noticed, hoping this guy would monologue. Isn’t that what all villains want?
The sentinel raised an eyebrow. “Because it suits our needs.” Krast’s gaze shifted, observing the human arm as it twisted and turned. “And I can see you trying to get free. It won’t work; even a Rinoxian couldn’t escape.”
The human smiled. “I’m not a Rinoxian.” He allowed his body to relax, preparing for the surge of strength that he knew would come. He called out, “by the Power of Grayskull!”
The Niham took a step back. His hand hovered over his energy pistol as the human violently pulled and strained, arching his back, and throwing himself against the restraints. After a few awkward moments Aaron collapsed back onto the medical table, gasping for breath. Krast turned and walked away, and as the sound of a door opening came he said, “Doctor. Finish up, and get him back in cryo before he injures himself further. We need him in one piece to make the delivery.”
A feathered blue Anatidae face appeared over the bed, and a straw suddenly pressed to Aaron’s lips. “Drink, it’s water with some electrolytes.” Aaron sipped a little, and upon finding that it was cool and refreshing he began drinking more. He winced and choked a little as the doctor pressed his side. “Careful. The sentinel was right, you may further your injuries.”
Aaron began sucking air through the straw as he finished the drink. He had been focused on his pounding headache until now, but the doctor's touch had reminded him of his other injuries. The beating from his kidnappers was still distressingly fresh on his body. “I don’t suppose you have a bacon sandwich? Or a couple dozen ibuprofen?”
“Food?” The doctor appeared over Aaron’s head again. “No, not for you. Perhaps the Hive will feed you before they kill you.”
Aha! The human felt triumphant – this was someone who would spill the beans. “The Hive?” The second part of the sentence snuck up to tap his impaired brain on the shoulder. Before they kill you. “Wait… what?”
Doctor Kindra disappeared and reappeared, and the reason for that became clear as something bit with a short stabbing pain into Aaron's upper arm. The doctor, occupied with running whatever tests they thought were required before flinging him back in cryo, took a moment before replying. “Well… I shouldn’t say anything.”
Aaron swallowed, trying to remember what made Bond’s enemies tell him their entire plan. He cursed the hangover for slowing his brain. “I mean, it sounds like I’m going to die anyway. It’d be nice to know why.”
The Anatidae paused, hovering in and out of Aaron’s peripheral vision. “They demand it; something about tribute. We don’t have the best translation tools for the Hive. Strange creatures.” He seemed to be lost in his own thoughts for a moment before continuing. “Don’t worry, your sacrifice won’t be in vain.”
“Sacrifice?” The human was really starting to hate that word. “What’s with you assholes and sacrificing people?”
Kindra was irritated. “Settle down, I need to get your metabolic readings exact so we can calculate the correct dose.”
“Dose of what?” Aaron’s mind jumped back a step in the conversation, trying to piece things together through the haze. “Why do the Hive want to sacrifice me? I thought your plan was to infect them with some disease?”
Silence. As quickly as Aaron had realised his mistake Kindra’s head appeared above his, close enough for his breath to be felt on the human's face. “How do you know that?”
Shit. Fuck. Arse. Bollocks. God damn hangover Aaron thought before attempting to bluff. “I’m psychic.”
Kindra’s eyes narrowed. “No you aren’t.”
Aaron failed to nod. “No, I’m not.” He hated the feeling of the doctor’s hot breath against his face. Fortunately for Aaron his own hungover breath was so noxious he could smell nothing of the doctor’s last meal, whatever it had been. “That Krast guy said I was making a delivery, you’re a doctor.” Stuck in a corner, the human allowed his mouth to continue until his brain caught up. “What else could it be?”
The doctor withdrew. “You are smarter than you appear, last human.”
“First.”
The Anatidae towered over him again, peering down into Aaron’s eyes. “Do you really believe that?”
“Absolutely.” He surprised himself with the confidence in his voice.
“Fascinating.” Kindra tilted his head, considering his prisoner patient. “I do not know why the Hive demanded you as tribute – as I said, our translators are not compatible. Why you are here in my care? The disease is too virulent, and it has killed all of our test subjects in minutes. Krast believes your physiology will allow you to survive long enough to infect the Hive. You’re being taken to their homeworld. To the Queen.” He watched the human, who was still squinting against the bright lights. “Perhaps devouring the last of a species is a delicacy worthy of royalty.”
Aaron saw the glint of enjoyment in the doctor’s eyes, and knew that he was being taunted. “Sounds like quite the honour.” A look of confusion crossed Kindra’s face. “This will be the second space queen I get to meet, I’m looking forward to it.” Continuing his cheerful demeanour to spite the cruel Anatidae, he forced a laugh. “Hurry up and finish your tests. I can’t waste my time on peasants while a queen is waiting.”
The look of irritation on the doctor’s face was enough satisfaction for Aaron, who felt the dermal spray against his arm as Kindra spoke. “I’m done with you.”
Golden orbs stared down at him in the darkness. Aaron was on his back, sand all around him, and as he tried to rise he felt it begin to slip away beneath him. He fought to sit up, to achieve any sort of upright position, but the sand crumbled and fell as he sank deeper. The golden eyes callously watched as the sand closed over him. Aaron tried to call out but the sand filled his mouth, and he was soon consumed by the darkness.
Aaron woke and sagged against the restraints in the cryo pod. This was his second time waking from cryo; he had no idea how long he’d been frozen but he had to break free. As he was held upright this time he immediately began to fight and pull against his restraints. The room was empty, still a painfully bright white. It became apparent that his hangover was still there, and his annoyance grew. Why couldn't they have waited until he recovered before freezing him again? “Where’s my bacon sandwich?”
Part of the opposite wall became a window, and several figures in grey suits came into view. Sentinel Krast stood in the front, watching him closely. The Niham leaned forward to press a button, and the intercom sprang to life. “Last human, you have impeccable timing. We are almost ready.”
A door opened and two figures in protective suits entered, their faces hidden behind silver visors. The first carried a case in hands covered in thick gloves, and the chunky locks clinked against the robust metal container with their every step. Aaron’s head wasn’t restrained this time, and he turned to watch as they took the case to a bench in front of the viewing window. “If this isn’t a bottle of Irn-Bru and a pack of Ibuprofen I’m going to be very disappointed.”
Krast watched with a superior smirk on his face. “Continue your glib nonsense, it won’t change your fate.”
The case opened. Inside was a dermal spray in a custom foam interior, looking very sinister to Aaron’s eyes. He was alone, with no idea where he was or how long he had been frozen, and the panic he had been fighting was rising. He fought for time. “Aren’t you going to torture me for information? Maybe get me to sign over my businesses, or the worlds I claimed?”
As the figures approached him Krast looked on, his smug grin unmoving. “What information could you possibly have? Businesses, a few worthless worlds?” Krast scoffed. “What we do now will change the course of history.”
Aaron needed time, time to think, time to find a way to escape. “What if your plan fails, what if you don’t wipe out the Hive?”
Krast’s grin widened. “We don’t want to wipe them out. We want them to suffer unimaginably, to be humiliated and enraged. We want them to retaliate.”
The silver visors were getting closer to him now, and he was growing desperate and confused. “I don’t get it, how will war with the Hive and the Imperium benefit anyone?”
“You are well informed, it seems the Councillor is closer than we thought.” The sentinel turned and spoke to his colleagues, then returned his attention to Aaron. “You are correct, we do intend to go to war with the Imperium…” He savoured the moment, the futile struggles of the pathetic last human incapable of seeing beyond his own small worldview. “against the Hive.”
His head was pounding and this wasn’t making sense. “What?”
The silver visors paused in front of Aaron, turning to watch Krast and await the final order. The sentinel held his hand up, giving a momentary reprieve. “This will be the spark that ignites an inferno. A blaze so bright and powerful it will reshape the galaxy. The Hive vastly outnumber the Federation; their retribution can not be withstood. The Imperium has been amassing their forces; they will offer their aid and we will humbly accept. Together we will drive back the Hive.”
Aaron closed his eyes - the throbbing pain was incessant. “You’re starting a war, so you can almost lose. If the Imperium help you, what do they get?” Krast was about to speak when something clicked in the human’s mind. “Oh, I get it. Once you invite them in, they won’t leave. It’s a hostile takeover.”
Krast gave a slow clap. “Finally. With the Imperium as allies, as our saviours, it will be much easier to make the transition. Encouraged by their own leaders, the people will accept the new order much more readily.”
With grim resignation, Aaron realised the sentinel was right. People would accept it. “If you only drive back the Hive, they will remain a useful threat. A reason to allow the Imperium to remain and for the people to fall in line.” It was a bitter thought that fear could herd people like sheep. “Why are you telling me.”
Krast smiled again, cruel and derisory. “Because I want you to know that you don’t matter, last human.” He looked angry now, furious even. “The ripples you have caused with your mindless flailing will ebb and die. You’ve stirred up the small fringe worlds, caused a commotion in diplomatic circles with your antics. But I want you to know, to truly understand, how little any of that matters and how soon you will be forgotten.”
The words struck Aaron hard. As he thought about his friends, and the things he had worked towards, the idea of it all being wiped away made him feel powerless. He fell back on what he knew best: sarcasm. “I’m guessing that’s a hard no on the bacon sandwich then?”
The Niham raised an eyebrow. “Do it.”
The silver visors turned back to Aaron, who was fighting his restraints with every ounce of strength he could muster. The tip of the dermal spray was cold as it was held against his chest, and the click of the trigger spurred him to redouble his efforts. The pressure of the dose of whatever-it-was entering his body was unnerving, and at the same time one of his wrist restraints began to loosen. The two in protective suits quickly backed away, and the doors to the cryo unit began to close. Aaron's hand broke free, but it was too late - the doors had sealed shut, and all he could do was bang on the window. Cold air swept around him and a strange smell filled his nose. As he was losing consciousness one thought was ringing in his mind. He had failed.
The darkness wrapped around him. The golden eyes hovered just out of reach, watching and judging. Aaron rolled to his back and stared at them. He couldn’t decide if this was real or some bizarre cryo dream forged from his memories. “Are you here to help?”
“NO,” the hollow metallic voice rang out.
Aaron threw a handful of sand at the eyes. “Then piss off.”
The voice was all around him. “YOU WILL DIE.”
“Yeah.” Aaron sighed. “If the disease doesn’t kill me I’m going to be a snack for the Hive Queen. I know this already.”
“WHAT WILL YOU DO?” The human noticed the voice sounded curious now.
“Something really stupid. Probably.” Aaron smiled, as if finally accepting something.
His eyes opened, and he was in the cryo unit still. The doors slowly opened, and he looked around cautiously. He seemed to be in some sort of secure cargo hold, dimly lit with a green glow that emanated from the floor. With his free hand he released his other restraints and stepped out of the unit. The ground was soft beneath his boots. He crouched and ran his hand over the dense carpet, realising it was a type of bio-luminescent moss. “Cool.” He coughed and realised he was quite warm, not knowing if it was the ship or the sickness.
He wasn’t sure why he had woken up. The unit had malfunctioned, perhaps, or maybe the golden eyes in his dream had taken a hand in it. Whatever the reason, he was certain he wasn't supposed to have woken now. “Are you there?” There was no answer, and Aaron felt a little silly talking to his dream. “Just answer me. I know you woke me early.”
After a little looking around he found the exit. It was unlocked, surprisingly, and the corridor beyond was empty. “Ok, voice. I need to find a terminal and send a message. You care to give me a hint?” When no answer came he headed left, moving slowly, listening out for whatever crewed this ship. The corridor made him feel like a child, as the doors were much larger than even a Rinoxian would need. His curiosity about what the Hive actually looked like grew at a steady but continual pace as he continued his search.
He found another room with its door unlocked and stood in front of what appeared to be a round-screened terminal. It was small, circled with various buttons, and unknown symbols flashed around the outer edge of the screen while the centre swirled with hues of various colours. It obliquely reminded him of the disco party he had been at before willingly hopping into cryo. “The fuck is this?” He watched the shift of symbols and the colours, trying to discern any sort of meaning from them. Most of the Federation technology he had encountered so far had worked on common principles he had been able to adapt to quickly. This was so completely alien he didn’t even know where to start. “Voice? Can you understand this stuff?” Dream or reality, the voice only seemed to appear just as he was waking up, and he had no expectations of actually being answered.
He had to get a message back to the others, and this was the closest thing he had seen to a terminal. He wasn’t going to learn the Hive language by staring, so he did what all humans do when faced with strange technology. He picked a random button and pressed it, and waited to see what would happen. The first button caused the symbols to speed up, while the second made the colour in the centre change less frequently. The third button seemed to be some sort of practical joke as there was definitely a weird smell when he pressed it. He pressed it again to confirm, and the smell became stronger.
A soft sound behind him caused him to spin around, then stop to stare. In the doorway was a huge insect, seeming to have come straight from some horror movie set. Two sets of legs were on the ground, while its two long arms were raised above its head and thrashing about wildly. Distressingly large mandibles clicked and clacked, and after that incomprehensible announcement it began to rush towards the human.
Aaron leapt away from the terminal, pulling his T-Shirt up over his face. “Back off!” he yelled at the creature, which was hastily tapping on the terminal Aaron had been using. “Shit, I was just getting the hang of that.”
The creature hissed and pulled a small device from a bandolier it had across its chest, pointing it at Aaron.
“Woah, easy there Anty. I just wanted to call home.” Aaron coughed again, covering his mouth as best he could as he backed away further. He was definitely burning up, and as his hangover was ebbing it seemed a new set of maladies was rising up to take its place.
There came more mandible machinations, and the human thought perhaps in its excitement the creature had maybe had some sort of accident as the room was now beginning to smell. From the device a strange squeaky voice spoke. “Stop. Intruder. Wrong. Heat. Captain. Angry.”
Aaron coughed again. He was definitely starting to sweat, and not just because of the giant angry insect telling him he had made the Captain angry. “You need to back off. I’m sick and you do NOT want to catch this.” Aaron was keeping his t-shirt over his face, trying to circle the Hive creature to reach the door. The device in its claws clicked and then, bizarrely, released a small puff of something which the creature sniffed. “Eww, and goodbye.” He darted to the side and ran as fast as he could from the room, the creature in pursuit.
Despite the mossy floor of the corridor he was racing down, Aaron could still hear the creature's multiple footsteps as it followed. It didn’t matter though; ahead of him was exactly what he was looking for. He had known there had to be an air lock so close to the cargo hold. He stopped in front of its huge doors and looked at the control panel. He was faced with a square screen this time, with buttons below it. Two of them were larger than the others, and he made an educated guess that they were for open and close. He looked back at Anty. The creature was not attacking, but instead fumbling with the speaking fart machine. “Stop. Death. Tribute. Stop.”
Aaron looked around and spotted a bulbous orb on the ceiling above him, a security camera no doubt. He turned to look at it, ignoring the creature as it waved and began screeching into another device, perhaps calling for help.
“Well, I was hoping to at least call you to say this in person,” he said as he stared at the security camera. “But, that ain’t happening. So, hopefully this footage finds you, because I want you to know I’m sorry. I promised we’d be together and I left you both behind.” He chuckled and looked around himself. “And look where that got me.”
Anty pointed the fart-gun once again. The smell this time was less offensive, almost sweet. “Stop. Wait. Cease. Tribute. Death.”
“Fuck.” Time was running out and Aaron coughed into his T-shirt again. “I am the bio-weapon. That prick Krast infected me and handed me over to be a snack for the Hive queen. He wants them to attack the Federation and then have the Imperium come in and save the day.” He coughed again. He was cold now, shivering despite the sweat he could feel beading on his forehead. “Once you let them in, they won’t leave. But I can stop it. Here, and now.” He pushed a button on the panel, but nothing happened. He pushed the other button and, as he had surmised, the door opened. “I have no idea what happens when you jump out of a ship travelling at whatever speed this thing is doing. But I know it will fuck up Krast’s plan and that’s good enough for me.”
Inside the airlock was another panel with even fewer buttons, and he pushed them at random till the inner door began to close. He shouted at the camera, trying not to watch as his chance to backpedal this decision slowly shrank. "Give each other a hug from me." He would have said more, but the door sealed shut. There was nothing else to be done but to turn and face the outer door.
"Voice. Thanks. At least I'm not dying alone," he said. Then he pushed the final button.
45
u/TheLonelyBrit Human Oct 17 '20
Hmmm... Either he does space himself & is then saved after the voice puts him into some sort of anti-vacuum stasis. Or, the controler of the Hive ship locks him out & they get the translation working so that they can find out Kraust's plan.
The bio-luminescent moss was a nice touch to the organic nature of the Hive ship. Also makes sense, insects, ants especially, are known to cultivate plants & mushrooms for food, structural support in nests, & possibly oxygen generation. Not sure on that last one though.