by Andrew Gates
“What question is that?”
“A Kreed things not if a mission can be achieved, but how a mission can be achieved. It is within our thinking that all objectives are to be accomplished.”
“But surely you know from experience that not all missions can be accomplished. With all due respect, you yourself have failed. Was it not your mission to protect the life of Kal Khtallia?”
Jakhu bowed her head. She did not want to be reminded. She closed her eyes, let out a deep breath, then looked up at Kozakh again.
“I have doubted myself in the past. I doubted myself then and that is not all. I had my uncertainties even when Kho Ikharus and I led the attack on Fruitful Spring.” She turned to Light of the Creator again, taking in its massive presence. “I know now that doubts will never lead to success. I will not doubt myself again,” she boldly declared. “I am a Kreed and I shall see this mission through, even if it claims my life. This is a mission worth dying for.”
Jakhu closed her eyes, taking in the sounds of the world around her and the feeling of the emptiness in all directions. When she opened her eyes again, she raised both claws high and let out a proclamation as loud as she could.
“I am a Kreed!” she declared. “I am not afraid of death! I shall be swift and efficient until my mission has met its end!”
Her shouts bounced off the cliffs, echoing through the valley below.
Kozakh was quiet for a moment, but then, as another gust of wind blew across the world, the former honor guard bellowed a great triumphant shout across the world.
“I am a Kreed!” he proclaimed. He lifted his spear from the snow and held it high.
Jakhu smiled to herself. She would see this mission through and so would the rest of her squad. They were Kreeds. They would not stop until the mission was achieved, for that was their way.
Either the Hive would meet its end, or Scion would. There was no alternative.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Metamorphosis
Mr. Jallah Sane
Days passed. For the first time since leaving Country Roads, Jallah and the other humans actually spent more than one night in the same place. He did not believe it could be true until he finally experienced it for himself.
In that time and for the first time since ascending to the surface, Jallah no longer wore the ratty jumpsuit he had lived his life in for months. He took a proper shower, threw away what the Sorrevahni called the “disease-ridden” garb, and now covered himself in thick animal wool from a hairy grey beast. It was much warmer than anything he had ever worn before and enough to keep him healthy in the frigid air.
But now without his jumpsuit, Jallah was also without his precious vial. Being without it, more than being without the jumpsuit, left him feeling almost naked. It was as if a part of him were missing. He would constantly catch himself feeling for the vial in pockets that were no longer there.
Even after days, he knew it would still take more time to get used to.
To get his mind off the missing vial, Jallah would wander the caverns of the Sorrevahni mountain lair. He mostly knew his way around the tunnels now, though he would still get lost every now and then. There was a lot to take in on his walks.
The facility had been bustling with activity since their arrival. On the first day alone, Sorrevahni scientists carted in massive sheets of glass, ventilation equipment, monitors and various other gear for the upcoming experiment.
Jallah also got to learn more about the humans who lived there. Though he was not able to speak with them directly (they seemed to speak the same language as the Sorrevahni), he observed that the humans had lived here peacefully for some time. In certain cases, the jobs of humans and Sorrevahni overlapped, namely in certain service positions, but in general the humans seemed to exist in a class below the Sorrevahni, like two groups living more alongside each other than necessarily together. Still, there was a peace between both races and the humans did not seem to hold animosity toward the Sorrevahni, at least, none that Jallah saw.
When not wandering the mountain facility, Jallah would talk to Margery. It was good to be with her and to spend proper time with her now that they were staying in one place, not shuffling from one base to the next at the first sign of trouble. They had spoken about many things; the upcoming experiment, the war, the humans who lived here in the base, the snow and the enormous warships that assembled beneath the ridgeline, now parked just outside.
Jallah and Margery sat together now, their leather-covered feet dangling over the ledge of the hangar, overlooking the sprawling vista before them. Another warship was arriving, slowly approaching at a low altitude. It was amazing to stare at the sight. Jallah had seen so much in his time, but this was unlike anything he ever believed imaginable.
Margery placed her warm left hand on Jallah’s right, prompting him to turn and face her. Margery’s cheeks were pink and her glistening white teeth shone through her parted lips as she smiled. She was so beautiful.
“Margery,” he said, smiling back to her.
“Hey,” she greeted, warmly.
“What is it?”
“I was just thinking… you know, it’s amazing what you’re doing, volunteering to help with Kho Ikharus’s experiment, volunteering to join the attack against the Hive.” She turned to face the approaching warship again, sighed, then turned back to Jallah. “It’s very brave. I’m glad to be here with you.”
“Thanks,” he replied. He motioned to her with his free left hand. “You too. You’re even braver than me.”
“I don’t know about that.”
“No, you are!” he retorted.
Margery squinted her eyes, as if perplexed.
“Why do you say that?”
Jallah shrugged.
“Well, you know… I’ve always been the scared one. Even you said it.”
“But I don’t think that’s true anymore.”
“What do you mean?” Jallah asked.
Margery took her hand away from Jallah and shifted her position. She turned to face him.
“You’ve changed, Jallah. You used to be so frightened of everything. I remember the boy who would glance behind every tree, every stone, every bush. You shook in your sleep, if you even slept at all. But something has changed in you these last few weeks. You’re not that same boy anymore.”
Jallah smiled but turned away from her. He picked up a chunk of ice and tossed it over the edge.
“Thank you,” he said. “That’s nice of you to say, but I don’t feel so brave.”
“Nobody ever does.”
“Well, I definitely don’t. I feel more like an idiot jumping to his death.”
Margery sighed and placed her hand on his shoulder now.
“I know what you mean. It’s scary to think about.”
Jallah tossed another chunk of ice over the edge.
“I’m still afraid of dying. My thoughts on that haven’t changed.”
“Then why do this? Why go to war?” Margery asked.
Jallah finally turned to face her again.
“I realize now that life isn’t about just staying alive, it’s about living for something. That’s why I am doing this. I’m doing it to be a part of something greater.”
“That’s big of you to say, Jallah,” she said with a smile.
A deep breath escaped Jallah’s lungs as he repeated the word war in his head. Just thinking about that word was overwhelming. He turned to face the incoming ship again.
“Wow, I can’t believe we’re actually going to war,” he said, more to himself than to Margery. “I mean, I knew what I was agreeing to when I volunteered, but now that I’m watching the warships come in and knowing how soon we might be going up to space, it’s just hard to think about.”
“It can be overwhelming. Sometimes it’s all I think about, you know? Like it’s hard to think of anything else,” Margery agreed. Jallah could certainly relate to that. “But then I think of you and I think of Dan and Ophelia and Grey and Selena and th
e girls and… and Iris and I remember what this is all about. I remember what we’re doing this for.”
“Still, I don’t think the old me would have volunteered, even after what you just said. The old me would have stayed behind. But something about the vial, about meeting the mantises, about coming on this journey, it changed me. I carried the vial with me for so long, in a strange way it almost became part of me. I feel like I must see this through to the end.”
“And I’ll be right here by your side through all of it.” She moved her hand from his shoulder back to his hand again.
“I love you, Margery,” Jallah said, turning toward her again.
“I love you too, Jallah.”
Margery leaned forward and Jallah met her. As his eyes closed, their lips touched. They felt one another’s mouths intertwining as one. Jallah never wanted to break this moment. He touched the back of Margery’s neck and pulled her closer, taking in as much of her loving warmth as he could. And she was willing to share it all with him. For nearly a minute their two faces were inseparable, connected by a passion Jallah was unable to put to words. The word love seemed somehow not powerful enough.
He opened his eyes and slowly pulled away, still keeping his hand on the back of her neck. She looked so beautiful. The light of the sun reflected off the snowy landscape, casting her face in glistening shimmers.
He removed his hand from her neck and stared back at her, awestruck. I know what I’m fighting for, he thought to himself.
“Jallah,” a separate voice suddenly called to him, completely interrupting the moment.
Jallah turned around to find Ophelia standing in the hangar behind them. He wondered how long she had been standing there and if she had been watching them kiss this whole time.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, not intending to sound quite so blunt.
“I’m sorry to interrupt. I didn’t mean to… uh… well, you know,” Ophelia started. She shrugged innocently in her thick white coat of fur.
“What is it?” Margery asked this time.
“Well… I came looking for you,” she replied, pointing to Jallah. “Dan told me to find you. He said you wanted to be there when they tested the Metamorph.”
Jallah quickly swung his legs back around to the inside of the hangar.
“Is it happening now? Are they starting the test?”
Ophelia nodded.
“They are. They told me to get you.”
Jallah turned to Margery again.
“I have to go,” he said.
Margery nodded.
“I know. Good luck. Please be safe,” she said.
“I’ll try.”
* * *
Jallah was not sure who to expect at the laboratory, but when he arrived he found Kho Ikharus, Soh Sylus, Kal Ukhrani, two Sorrevahni scientists and Dan standing in the center of the room. Each of them wore a circular transparent oxygen helmet on their heads, including Dan, who had a helmet specifically designed to fit the human head. Also present were Kho Vylan, who stood vigilantly in the corner with his spear in claw, as well as two sword-wielding Sorrevahni guards standing on the opposite side. And, of course, the focus of the experiment: Soh Saratti. The volunteer stood inside a quarantine room that had been constructed in the empty section of the lab over the course of the last few days.
Nobody seemed to pay Jallah any mind as he entered. The team present expected him to be here anyway. In fact, it seemed as if the experiment had already started by the time he arrived. The two scientists were already setting the vial down into the quarantine room next to some sort of machine with three pointed robotic fingers.
“Kho Jallah,” Ukhrani said as her eyes met him. She was the first to notice him. Since her special suit already had an oxygen mask on it, she just wore her regular Kreed helmet, unlike the transparent ball-shaped helmets the others wore. She quickly approached, keeping her voice down as to not disturb the experiment. She grabbed a helmet for Jallah from a nearby tabletop and handed it to him. “Take this,” she said. “It has been designed to fit your proportions. This will save you from becoming a ruor should any gas escape the chamber.”
Jallah nodded and accepted the helmet. He wasted no time placing the orb-shaped apparatus on his head. He tightened it firmly in place with straps. It felt tight along his neck, almost choking him, but he knew it had to be tight for it to work. For the first few breaths, he struggled to breath in any air, but then he heard the hum of the helmet’s filter begin to buzz and cool, breathable air flowed through the helmet.
It took him a few seconds to adjust to it, but he was soon able to see, hear and breathe just fine.
Ukhrani inspected the helmet for a few seconds, then nodded.
“Well done,” she said, still keeping her voice down as to not disturb the others. She turned and pointed to the cube-shaped glass room where Saratti now stood beside the vial and the robotic apparatus. “They have already placed the chemical inside the room,” she explained, filling him in on what he had missed. “The machine beside it will puncture the hole and apply the seal. We will now wait and watch. Be advised, Kho Jallah: do not, under any circumstances, remove your helmet until the order is given. Is that understood?”
Jallah nodded back to her.
“Am I to take that as a yes?”
“You are,” Jallah answered. “Yes.”
“Good.”
With those words, Ukhrani silently moved back to her original position by Ikharus’s side. It was strange not seeing him with his crown, but Jallah understood the need for the helmets in case anything went wrong.
Dan suddenly took note of Jallah now. He waved to the boy and Jallah slowly walked forward, taking a place next to him.
“Glad you could make it,” he said, quietly. “I see you already got your helmet.”
“Yeah, Kal Ukhrani got it for me.”
“Did she fill you in?”
“Yeah,” Jallah said, nodding.
Jallah watched as the scientists sealed the quarantine room door. After a hiss, they checked again to make sure that it was locked, then read off some data from a monitor attached to the door of the quarantine room.
Inside the glass room, Saratti appeared older and frailer than Jallah remembered. His eyes showed signs of someone who had given up, who knew his end had arrived. Watching the old Sorrevahni now, Jallah could not help but wonder if he would meet his own end soon. The thought made him tremble.
Sensing his uneasiness, Dan reached out his hand and Jallah grabbed it. The man’s touch filled him with a sense of comfort, though he was no replacement for Margery.
After checking all the numbers on the monitor, the two scientists stepped a few steps back to the table on Jallah’s right. There was a control panel there, connected to the quarantine room through a series of wires and cords. Some of those cords fed even deeper into the room, to the mechanical apparatus that stood beside the vial of Metamorph.
There was a momentary pause when no one moved even a single muscle. Everyone simply stood and waited. Then Soh Saratti gulped and nodded his head. He was ready. One of the scientists pressed a button on the control panel and the laboratory seemed to hold its breath.
“It’s starting,” Dan muttered.
Jallah could feel Dan’s palm begin to sweat.
Ikharus and Sylus both took an eager step toward the quarantine chamber. Jallah leaned in close too, hoping to get a better view.
The mechanical hand with pointed fingers began to move. Two fingers outside clamped down on either side of the vial, holding it firmly in place, while the middle finger moved down directly on top of the vial. The tip ended in a long, thin spike. It slowly approached the top of the vial but stopped right before meeting the glass.
The Sorrevahni scientists hesitated and spoke words in a language Jallah could not understand. After a response from Sylus, the scientists nodded and one pressed another button on the panel.
Before his eyes, Jallah watched as the pointed finger moved down and quickly
pierced the vial. Gas emanated from it almost instantly. The finger quickly raised back up and a circular white ring popped out from a hidden compartment within a lower portion of the finger’s joint. Jallah assumed this must have been the stopper. The machine pressed the stopper firmly against the top of the vial and the flow of gas stopped instantly. The pointed tip of the machine’s middle finger receded into itself now and was replaced by some sort of lighter. The finger curled back down above the vial and suddenly covered the top with hot blue flame, sealing the vial completely shut.
“So far so good,” Dan said, letting out a worried exhale.
Jallah turned to look at the others in the lab. Everyone seemed completely transfixed by the display before them. No one moved a muscle. They were like statues.
“Status?” Ikharus asked.
The scientists read some data back to him, but their words were soon interrupted by a loud pinging sound emanating from some sort of speaker.
“What is that?” Jallah asked, searching around.
“I don’t know,” Dan replied. He tightened his grip around Jallah’s hand and took a slow step back.
“Aah!” Saratti suddenly screamed, immediately pulling everyone’s eyes to him.
Within seconds, the old Sorrevahni began to convulse. It started as a simple twitch, but the movements gradually became stronger and faster. He coughed and the more he coughed, the more he seemed to lose control.
“By the Chiefdom,” Vylan muttered from the back corner.
Thud, thud, thud! The old Sorrevahni smashed against the floor as his body flailed.
“The chemical. We cannot allow it to get damaged. Move it away from him, now!” Ikharus said, pointing to the two scientists.
They pressed another button on the control panel and the robotic machine slowly began to move on its small wheels. It carried the serum with it across the quarantine chamber’s floor. Jallah had not noticed before, but there was a small black hutch in the corner of the chamber. That was the machine’s destination. It parked inside the hutch and a small metal door slid down, locking it safely in place.
