Recruiting
They hadn't had any warning at all. Before the Corpus personnel even knew the Grineer were there, the filthy clones had infiltrated the complex somehow and deactivated the security systems. Then everything was chaos. Shouts, shooting… It wasn't supposed to be like this. The Grineer were not supposed to be able to attack so quickly and with such devastating force. There hadn't been time to evacuate the non-combatants. The small team of technicians huddled in their secure bunker, praying as they had been taught. The firing outside had stopped, but no one relaxed. The doze non-combatants all knew their fates if the Grineer broke in. The lucky ones would die, gunned down or beaten down. The unlucky ones would spend the rest of their –probably short- lives working as slaves to manufacture weapons for the Grineer. The sole med tech in the secure room fingered her Spectra pistol reluctantly. She had been trained how to use it of course, but she had never had to fire it. She was not a fighter. She had never…
She paused. What was that sound? She stared around at the others who were all kneeling, praying as they had been taught. Begging Profit to send them surcease. But the noise wasn't them. None of them paused in their prayers. She was more flexible than them. She had been reformed that way during her indoctrination when she had shown a propensity for medical technology. She knew a lot about a lot of things. So she knew just how slim their chances actually were. That the chance of a Corpus ship responding to their plight was remote to say the least. She was trained to protect and heal this group however, so she would. She moved carefully through the chanting crowd, seeking the source of the odd noise. At one wall, she felt something odd. A breeze? She stared down at a tiny hole that appeared in the wall and flinched as something came through it. But…
It wasn't a weapon. It wasn't anything she had ever seen before. Indeed, it looked like some kind of insect. Odd looking, metallic. Not organic looking at all. The tiny six legged form looked up at her and she could swear that she was being perused in turn, but that was ridiculous, wasn't it? But then, it jumped impossibly high and she gave a squeak as it landed on the helmet of her space suit. A sharp pain hit her neck and she felt…
Wait a moment. How had she gotten on the floor? Why had the chanting stopped? Why were her eyes suddenly seeing many colors? Why…? She was unconscious before she could fathom what had happened.
None of the chanting techs heard her cry out. Not that it would have helped them at all as eleven more of the tiny insects had entered the room through the hole. Each unerringly sought out a warm body, found a place to grip, cut through the tough Corpus helmets with no effort and bit down, instantly sedating their victim. In moments, the secure room was silent, twelve space suited forms lay still. Then the wall gave a shudder and something cut through it as if the insanely tough metal was as resistant as tissue paper. Another shriek of tortured metal and part of it was torn from the rest. Then another piece was torn out, then another. Finally, what had been a wall was a large wide opening.
A huge armored form entered the room, looking around carefully. It bent down and touched the still med tech. In form, it was humanoid, but… One arm was a long mass of sharp metal. The other had a hand, but the forearm had a large protuberance on it. A whir came from the protuberance as a scanner worked.
"All unconscious." The voice from the armored form was calm and unhurried. "Secure and prepare." It rose and stepped back as a squad of Grineer entered the room. But…
These were not normal Grineer. Instead of helmets, each had an odd fleshy thing over their heads. The bubble like masses only looked flimsy, each was far stronger than steel. Their weapons as well were… different. Instead of Grakata SMGs, Karak or Hind rifles, Ignis flamethrowers or Ogris rocket launchers, these carried small, organic looking weapons that looked toy-like in their hands. But the pistols were anything but toys. Firing darts or stunning beams, they were excellent for taking prisoners, which was the intent here. Each of the soldiers holstered their weapons and started grabbing unconscious techs. But… they were oddly gentle. Each carried one or two of the still forms carefully. After a moment, only the medical tech was left to lie on the floor. The armored form who had come in first picked her up and carried her from what had been a secure room.
As it walked, it passed piles of ash. These were the remnants of the Corpus security forces who had tried to defend the small facility. Without the automated defenses however, they hadn't had a chance. The assault team had tried to take prisoners, and indeed, they had many. But a few of the Elite Crewmen had proved difficult and the assault team had been pressed for time, so…
The med tech moaned as regained partial consciousness.
"Strong." The voice of the armored form was unemotional. "You will serve well."
"Grineer…?" The med tech was dazed and confused. "What…?"
"No." The armored form said flatly. It turned and another soldier laid a small, fleshy thing up against the med tech's skull. She gave out a small noise of pain and slumped unconscious again. "Orders?" The armored form asked as the small force of Grineer entered a Corpus design transport. They had used the ship to gain access to the small facility.
Prepare them. The voice of their master was calm and unhurried as always. It came from nowhere and everywhere. That one will serve well.
The transport bore little resemblance internally to any Corpus ship anymore. Now, the walls and floor were all carpeted with odd looking flesh. It looked…almost dirty somehow. The machinery was run by organic matrixes. Human brains that had been… harvested and repurposed to serve as living computers. The armored form passed Grineer soldiers securing Corpus personnel into odd cocoon like things. It passed into a larger room as a thrum sounded. The ship had taken off. A rumble sounded and the armored form nodded. They had sent a sizable explosive charge to cover their abductions. The Corpus would find nothing but rubble from that facility. They would likely write off the whole place and all the personnel. Which was the idea.
The armored form moved to a specific place and laid the unconscious med tech down on a special pad. Then it stepped back as tentacles came from various places on the ceiling and walls and converged on the med tech. Whirring saws cut the space suit off of her. Then the pad extruded pseudopods that arced over her body, covering her completely. In moments, she was almost totally covered by dirty looking flesh.
"This one will do well for us." The armored form said calmly. "We will need battlefield medicine. She will serve."
The cocoon that the med tech was encased in hardened quickly, leaving only her head free. The armored form watched dispassionately as another tentacle swung down and encased the top of the woman's head. A crackling sound heralded energy being applied. The med tech's eyes shot open and she screamed.
"Be easy, sister." The armored form said quietly. "We will tend you. You will serve."
"Hurts…" The med tech's eyes were not focusing.
"It won't hurt for long." The armored form reassured her. "Soon you will feel very good." Indeed, after a moment, the med tech started panting, her face going red.
"I… No…" The Corpus tech stammered. "Don't…" She broke off and gasped, but not in pain. Far from it.
"We will use you." The armored form said with a nod as the Corpus woman shuddered. "Your body will be refurbished and you will serve. You will gain pleasure from healing. From bending souls to the Master's will."
"No… I… do… serve…" The Corpus tech stammered. "I…"
"What is your name, sister?" The armored form asked, its tone kind.
"I am… Ginger L89…" The med tech replied. "I… No…" She pleaded. "Don't…" Her pleading fell on deaf ears.
"Mind access… achieved." The armored form said quietly. "Download commencing." The Corpus med tech screamed and went limp as energy started playing along the tentacle around her head, sucking her memories out and parsing them at lightspeed. "Ah, you were chastised, punished for failing to detect a trap. You did everything right and were punished for a failure higher up the chain of command. Typical Corpus. Lousy Tenno screwed you as they screwed me. We will get revenge, sister. Relax. Just flow with the pleasure. It won't hurt."
"I serve… the Corpus…" Ginger L89 said listlessly. "The Corpus…serves me… Don't…"
"Not anymore." The armored form replied evenly. "Now you serve a higher calling. A noble calling. You will be our medical support. Our Healer. Our Mender."
"No…" Ginger begged and then screamed again and went limp as the organic machine drained her volition completely as well as much of her personality. What was left would be remade in the way that the other had been. Remade to serve unquestioningly. Remade to be strong, to be fast and capable. To be, in essence, the ultimate slave.
"There." The armored form said quietly. "Download complete. We have your memories archived. Now to program you." Ginger's body jerked in place as energy flared again. The cocoon fell away and her body was now covered by armor much like the others. "Not long now, sister." The armored form crooned. After a few moments, the reclining form lay still and the standing one spoke again. "Who are you?"
"This one is Mender." The former Corpus tech said quietly as an armored helmet covered her face, obscuring her voice. "This one will serve."
"Indeed." The standing form said with a nod. "Status?"
"Memory capacity at 35%." Mender replied. "Medical knowledge unimpaired. Self-volition removed." She sat up slowly. "Body repairs complete." She looked down at herself and nodded. "Query: Other recruits will be processed?"
"Slower." The standing form replied. "But we have two who may need your… special touch, sister." Mender looked at her and the other made a noise of exasperation. "They are stubborn."
"They will serve." Mender said as she rose. "We serve."
"Indeed we do." Nemesis replied evenly. "Come, sister. We have work to do." She held out the hand that was not a sword and Mender took it to rise. Then both walked from the room without a backward glance. Behind them, a Grineer soldier laid another Corpus Crewman down and the machinery started the process again. As they walked, they passed others in various stages of conversion. Some were crying, some were praying. Some were screaming and others were just dull and listless. All would eventually succumb and serve.
The pair of armored forms entered another room and paused. Two cocoons lay well away from each other. The occupants were both male from the facial features that could be seen through the clear bio plastic domes that covered their heads.
"These will be Tech and Strike." Nemesis said calmly. "Technician and melee combat specialist, respectively."
"Understood." Mender replied as she strode towards the closest cocoon. "Ah, Strike. Human baseline." A series of pseudopods extruded from her arms and extended to touch various parts of the cocoon. "This one is very strong. Conversion may take some time. And…" She paused. "This unit is badly damaged!" She protested. "Suboptimal."
"That unit fought long and hard despite overwhelming force." Nemesis agreed. "Three stunner hits and it continued to fight. I was forced to subdue it personally."
"Repairs must be done before conversion can occur. They have begun, but the injuries are extensive and will take some time to repair. Physical conversion will aid in recovery, but until done, mental conversion must wait." Mender said with a hint of exasperation. She retracted her appendages and strode to the other. "Ah, Tech…" She touched this cocoon and nodded. "Less damage. Easy, Brother." She said as the man woke and started to scream. "Everything will be well."
"Monsters!" The former Corpus combat tech screamed. "Monsters! Get away! Profits save me!"
"Your profits cannot help you now." Mender said quietly. "But I can. Rest easy, Brother." A pulse of power flared and he went limp. "Selective personality wipe begun. I have him, Sister. Conversion has begun." She said as the cocoon moved under her touch, bit flattening, other bits enlarging. "What now?"
"Now we find more recruits." Nemesis said quietly. "And then? We kill Tenno."
The ship gave another rumble and Nemesis paused. That one hadn't been planned, had it? Mender did not look up from her work, but all of the minds aboard were suddenly focused on a new thing.
"Grineer Galleon on approach." Nemesis said flatly. "No communication."
"Query:-"Mender said as she worked on the still form in the cocoon. "Why would Grineer attack?"
"The first recruits were Grineer." Nemesis said quietly. "They may have taken offense." She did not sound worried. "Crew preparing. We will find more recruits and a new ship to spread the Word."
"The Word must spread." Mender said and the still form in the cocoon spoke the same words. "Tech is… ready."
"You are efficient, Mender." Nemesis complimented the other. "Grineer boarding pods approaching. We will allow them to land." The cocoon in front of them spilt and another armored form rose from it. Without a word, Mender moved to the other cocoon and started working. The newly converted form was armored like the others, but had various protuberances, much like antennae, sprouting from various parts of his body. His armor did not look as extensive as the others, but he was not a front line combatant. "Tech? Can you access the Grineer networks?"
"Yes." Tech replied, his voice a monotone. "Grineer firewalls bypassed. Systems under control. Galleon weapons and drives offline. Other systems will require physical access due to separated networks."
"What are their orders?" Nemesis asked absently. The boarding pods were nearly to their ship.
"To determine what happened to the missing Grineer and kill whoever is responsible." Tech replied, unease filtering into its monotone. "Kela De Thaym is in one of the boarding pods."
"Kela?" Nemesis said softly. "I see. So the Queens know something is wrong. But not what." She laughed a little maniacally. "I think… I think it will serve them right if we took her." Tech stared at her and Nemesis shrugged. "If they lose her, they will clone her. It is what they do for all of their leaders except Vor and that moron Hek." Tech just looked at her and she shook her head. "Personal status?"
"Systems online." Tech reported. "Volition dampened to 15%. Control systems in place and operational. Do you wish to deploy controllers?" The insect pacification systems would render any boarding parties unconscious. They were designed to operate against any foe, armored or not. They would even work against warframes if they took the Tenno by surprise.
"No." Nemesis said after a moment's silent consultation with her master. "Kela De Thaym was one of the ones who tormented this unit before it's ascension. She must be punished."
"Personal." Tech's voice was still unemotional, but held censure now. 'Emotions are not rational."
Morale is important tech. This wasn't from Nemesis. No, this voice came from their master. Nemesis serves well, but she is angry. Deservedly so. She was wronged. She desires vengeance. That will give her some closure. And it will be a good test of her combat capabilities, not all of which have been tested completely.
"Concerned." Tech stated. "But obeying. Deploy controllers to the Galleon?"
Do it. The Master's voice replied. And Nemesis? Have fun.
Tech strode to one side of the room and sat in a fleshy chair that extruded from the wall for him. Dozens of displays flickered around him as information flowed back and forth. Nemesis strode from the room silently. She passed the ranks of slave Grineer and the soon to be slave Corpus who were now unconscious in their pods. It was not compassion that put them to sleep, but efficiency. If they thrashed, they would tear delicate membranes and do damage to the conversion mechanisms. It would not stop the conversion process, but it would delay it. And efficiency was everything. With no pesky self-centered emotions, the whole would be far, far greater than the parts. With no egos to get involved, things were so much simpler, as the Origin system was about to discover to its cost.
Nemesis strode to a junction that the enemy would have to pass through and waited. She did not have to wait long. Thuds heralded the arrival of the assault pods and Nemesis moved to stand in the shadows near one wall. The wall moved a bit to help conceal her. It was organic despite its metallic look. In moments, she could hear the Grineer fanning out through the parts of the ship they could access and then she could hear their commander.
"Where are they?" Kela De Thaym was rarely a quiet person. Now, she wasn't even trying. "I want to kill something!" A dozen Grineer passed Nemesis without noticing her concealed position. She was not worried. They would be taken down as soon as Nemesis engaged De Thaym. Some would survive to be converted and the others would be…
"Commander!" A loud voice called in Grineer. "Something is here!" Nemesis cursed as a rocket slammed into the wall near her. She had been seen before she could spring her ambush. She stepped from the wall to find herself face to face with a Grineer Bombard and Kela De Thaym. "What…?" The Bombard had time to say before nemesis hurled her sword and it impaled his right arm to the wall. His rocket launcher fell from nerveless fingers as he tried to pull it free. But then he collapsed as the drug she had directed it to inject him with works its wonder with him. The sword flew back to her hand as De Thaym watched, dispassionate.
"What are you?" The Grineer female demanded as she took aim.
"I am the future, Kela De Thaym." Nemesis declared. "Join us."
"You are a fool!" De Thaym snapped as a pair of rockets spewed from her modified Ogris. She gave a startled cry as Nemesis made a motion and the rockets spun in mid-air to slam into the wall next to her! "So… the fun way…" She holstered her rocket launcher and drew a shock baton.
"Fun for some." Nemesis was unemotional now despite the hate that sang within her. Her personal shield activate and De Thaym paused in her approach as Nemesis' sword formed again. "You too will serve. I think… I think you will be 'Blast'. Long range attack."
"You are delusional!" De Thaym snapped, baton twirling. "I have hundreds of troops with me."
"All of whom are unconscious or dead by now." Nemesis retorted. "They will serve the Master. As will you."
"Grineer dominance is inevitable." De Thaym declared as she swung a stupendous blow that hit Nemesis' shield and rebounded. She backed away, shock on her ruined face. "What?"
"Grineer dominance?" Nemesis asked. "No. You will serve. You will serve me. And… just so you know? My name before my ascension… was Valkyrie." Kela De Thaym paled and took a step back, but Nemesis made a gesture and a force field blocked her exit. "Now, now… Don't run. We are going to have some fun…" Her sword crackled with electricity as she charged.
