The Las Vegas strip was always so pretty at night. The City of Sin was alive 24/7 no matter where anyone was. It was a lucid haze to drug dealers, hookers, gamblers, smokers, and whatever else moved through the muck of civilization there. It was also where the two head members of a viral hive mind were currently taking residence. For a solid year, everything had moved along smoothly for them. They had so many children out in the world that they could easily cover the Russian countryside.
It was peaceful. It was calm. It was… completely and utterly boring. That was the thought that ran through his mind right now. It was the only thought that seemed to assault him all the time when he wasn't doing anything else.
The powerful viral male known as Alex Mercer, also known as Project Zeus, was gazing up at the twinkling, semi-smoggy night sky. He had his eyes halfway closed, and he was relaxing in a floating chair in a clear pool at the top of a hotel penthouse suite. This was the hotel that Anubis and Bastet had claimed when they first came out to Las Vegas to populate this area. They had amassed so much wealth that they bought out the original hotel owner. But, they kept him around as a main manager. They saw him as their personal pet. Humans were fun to keep around as amusing toys. Alex preferred to simply have them killed off, if they got in his way.
"Zeus," a female, ethereal tone crooned at him from just beyond the pool.
"Yes, Hera?" he chuckled. His mate was Project Hera. My antivirus. Should have been, anyways. But, in the end, he forced her to his side. It was the only way to save her life and proceed with the best plan he ever had. Without her, he wouldn't have the army of breeders, drones, or Kings and Queens at his beck and call. He'd still be living out a life on an abandoned island. She was everything to him and more. She earned her place at his side in full. He loved her more than he could ever dream of. And, most importantly, if anything kept him from going nuts from all the boredom, it was her.
"I guess you like the swim trunks?" she giggled. He flipped her off to get her laughing hysterically. He was able to remove his clothes and take in different clothes with his viral body. What he wore now was a set of silken black swimming trunks. They suited his mood. His brownish-black hair was a touch messy to look at, but he usually wore a hood on his head. He was only trying different things for her. He had to test out such things, too. Their intelligence in the form of a King, Hypnos, was their key to getting a lot of things done in such a short amount of time. He was the one that made such genetic enhancements to their race. "Well, I like them."
He picked up the small remote to let the motor under the floating chair turn him slowly around to face her. Then his jaw dropped at what she was wearing from the perfect lighting around the pool. She was a pale, near-albino in coloring from how she was created. Her hair was an off-white cream color and ran nearly to the floor. Her pale, blue pastel eyes regarded his sky blue eyes with complete mirth, as she watched his eyes run down her perfectly formed, overly ample body. On her large chest was a micro bikini that just barely served its purpose. On her hips were black strings that did the same thing to the part that sat between her thighs.
"You're a bitch…" he growled.
"I like the dark blue color. Don't you?" she purred and ran her hands over her body slowly while modeling it for him. "The kids are gone. Robert's away with Osiris for now…"
"Fucking cock tease…"
"Maybe I'll go down to the lobby like this," she mused and turned to show off the black G-string that neatly went down the perfectly cushioned cheeks of her ample rear. At the sight of a black-haired drone with black eyes approaching her, she pouted. "Nick!"
"No, my Empress. You know what would happen, if anyone saw you like this," it chided. It resembled a youthful man, but it lacked what a male truly needed. Such as it was with all the drones, but this was the strongest drone out of the entire hive mind. Being the first one that hatched, it had inherited Alex's claws. Its spiked out hair also displayed the savage, protective nature it always held for her. This drone was the only one allowed to be with her as her personal sex toy when Alex had to leave her alone for small outings. The other four drones of her entourage were ready to tear into anything that tried to hurt the ruling couple.
"I never get to have any fun," she sighed and crossed her arms under her chest to purposely lift them up higher. She squeaked when Alex fully tackled her from how fast he flew off the floating chair to her side. "That's not fair!"
"Nick, go fuck off," Alex growled and scooped up his mate. The drone cracked a grin. "And make sure the kids don't bug us."
"Of course, my Liege," Nick bowed respectfully.
"You know," she mused aloud now. Alex was able to hear her thoughts on what she wanted to try. Nick now wisely kept quiet. "I wonder…if the three of us…"
"Hera. Fuck you. No," Alex growled. "I don't share like that."
"But, it would be so much fun!" she beamed. He knew why she was doing this. She knew he was bored. And he knew that she was also bored.
"No. Final word," he muttered and carried her into the luxurious bedroom to lay her down on the large bed there. "I won't have another cock around me. Even if it's fake."
"And not once did you say how much you liked what I'm wearing," she mused. When he rose an eyebrow at her, she grinned slightly. "You can thank Isis…"
"Already did," he muttered and let his teeth move to trace over the taught strings leisurely.
"Although, I do admit," she sighed. "I'm bored."
"You, too?"
"Yeah."
"Well…what else is there for us to do? We have this whole fucking planet on lock down."
"I know. Maybe we could…oh! We still have that frozen egg, don't we?" she grinned.
"Hmm…" he mused and moved to pull her over his chest. "Yeah. We do."
"And, we finally trained a group of Hunters to act like a bunch of dogs that work for treats," she snickered softly. He grinned back at her. "And, didn't we have a few of our hidden bases start to rise up? I know we did for the main one."
"Oh, yes. That caused mass hysteria of a completely unknown level," he laughed softly.
"The 'End of Days' they called it," she snorted with disgust. "Fucking morons."
"You and I both know that."
"But, I think it's time to crack open that egg," she smiled warmly and gasped when his teeth began to finally pull a string up and off what it was hiding.
"I just sent the word to Hedeyasu and Ragland," he muttered. "I'll be kept updated."
"Ah. Hypnos wants in on this, too," she smiled and lost her train of thought when the nibbling started. He knew exactly how to shut her up. And, with her neatly entertained, he moved his awareness to the drones in the main base. The very base she was created from. It was successfully removed from the water, but it was quick to sink back into the depths to keep itself from causing too much of a world-wide issue. And, because it was seen, it was quickly moved to another location discreetly.
Deep within the base, near the very heart of it, a deep-freeze locker was finally opened. Drones took out the chest to keep the freezing air from escaping too much. It made things much faster, and the ice was expertly chipped away from the lock. When it was opened, they had to wait a couple minutes for the misting to calm down before they could get close to it. As much as the drones could have helped, the two leading men in charge of the egg wanted to be the sole ones responsible for handling it in full.
"You have it?" Ragland asked, as he used the ice pinchers.
"I do," Hedeyasu nodded. The rather tall Japanese scientist worked with the good doctor to take the frozen egg containing the odd alien DNA out of the chest. "Just let it thaw?"
"That's the plan," Ragland nodded. "Hariti? Are you well?"
"I'm all right," she smiled. He let her move over to him to help assist, and he let her guide where the egg needed to go. Her Oriental features always delighted him. She was made from his subconscious thoughts when he was able to get her made from Project Hera. "Mother is very curious about this egg."
"You know that Agatha always would be curious about such a thing," Ragland chuckled. She helped settle the egg on the lightly heated cushion to help the thawing process. After it was secured, he pressed a kiss to her cheek and squeezed her.
"We'll check on it every ten minutes," Hedeyasu nodded. Drones were already set to watch it around the clock. The moment it thawed and began to fully change, they would be ready to sound an alarm. An hour later, Alex, now fully dressed again, was having a laptop set up to let him talk to the other Kings that were part of his usual meeting. Only a select few were able to converse with him. There would have been too many to speak to if they all showed up. Of the few able was Cronus, the first King made. He had to be present. His dark, gothic-type mood always drove the other Kings on edge, but that was only because of his status and how his wife, Rhea, wanted him to be.
Hypnos was the next to appear on the screen. His usual steampunk attire was easily noticed. He was the second King made, and he was the main intelligence of the hive. Thanatos and Lelantos were next to appear. They were the ones that assisted in hive defenses, but they matched in attire for dark leathers. They were also rather savage and brutal killers.
"We seem to be short a few Kings," Alex muttered.
"Oceanus is busy trying to find weak points in various cities. No one ever sees him from how fast he is. Coeus is tending to Frigg. It's nearing her birthday," Hypnos chuckled in his ultra-deep tone. He adjusted his glasses neatly to ensure they stayed in place. He didn't like the hinges on the usual glasses, and these neatly sat on the bridge of his nose like a set of dual monocles. "You know, has Mother's birthday passed yet?"
"I think it has. I thought nothing of it. Why?" Alex frowned.
"We should do something for her," Thanatos grinned. At the sight of Osiris joining the conversation from his screen, the others waved at him. He was the one that kept his nose in the middle of various military conferences by being a powerful figurehead that he had consumed near the beginning. As much as clones were made to take over from various drones, he kept the original design. Isis, his breeder sister and mate, was happily pulled into his lap to join in on the conversation. Their massive appetite for sex was always something admired and grumbled about.
"We need Eros here," Osiris suggested. "He always has such great suggestions!"
"That he does," Alex muttered and sent the order to join in. When the King with the face of a sculpted Roman statue appeared with his golden-blond hair and deep blue eyes facing them all, he simply nodded to them at the mental message.
"So, a birthday party for Mother?" he mused in his chocolate-coated tone.
"You could say that," Lelantos grinned. He was the one who loved to hunt down his enemies. It was him and the breeder male, Hermanubis, that tag-teamed their prey constantly.
"And you would think that it has to be to a very unique place," Thanatos grinned. And, as one that always savors a good kill, he suggested, "Why not a hunting trip to Africa?"
"We did that. The natives wanted to her to leave from how many animals she took down within the first ten minutes of seeing them," Alex snorted. "But, they did admit that they all ate rather well."
"You'd think they did. I want to kill something now," Thanatos pouted.
"You're the Vice President. Shut the fuck up," Alex growled. The King cleared his throat and nodded. "Where's Robert, anyways?"
"He's signing a contract about opening up trade routes for more imported goods," Osiris said. "He is the President, after all. He has to do something for his country."
"Something? Heh. He's been chewing out everyone he sees, lately. If they aren't a drone, they get the short end of the stick," Alex snickered.
"Good," Cronus nodded. "They deserve no less."
"No shit," Lelantos smirked.
"Anyways, back to the topic," Alex started. When Robert walked in to sit down and flip off the Kings on screen, Alex grinned wickedly. "I guess the day went rather well?"
"Fuck no," Robert grunted. "Topic of discussion? I need to talk about something intelligent."
"Birthday outing for Mother," Thanatos chuckled.
"Ah. Good. Hunting expedition?" he asked.
"Nope. Already done. Pick another idea," Alex said.
"And we are not visiting jewelry stores. She has enough jewelry that she can open up her own set of stores and still have enough to fill a bank vault," Robert warned them all.
"Figures," Osiris sighed. "Where is Mother, anyways?"
"She's resting. Isis had to send her that fucking micro bikini…" Alex grunted. Now the Kings swallowed and glanced at Osiris's screen. Isis beamed at them all.
"It was Isis's idea. I had no say in it," Osiris said calmly.
"That it was! It was a pretty color, too," she nodded.
"Agatha was wearing a…?" Robert paused with complete shock.
"She was. I ripped it off her. She's pregnant now. Want to see it? Wait for her to give birth," Alex muttered out. "And that's only for him. Not for any of you."
"We know," Eros chuckled. "Ah, Osiris, can you have Isis send me one of those?"
"I can do that," Osiris grinned ruefully.
"I could improve the design," Hypnos offered. Alex gave him a hard glare before laughing softly and shaking his head. "I could even make some new bathing suit designs out of it."
"You're a pain in the ass!" Alex finally retorted to get them all laughing. He got up and went to check on his mate. Agatha was sitting up in the bed and sipping on a luxuriously made mug of hot chocolate. He was able to steal a little from her and press a kiss to her mouth. Her belly was already swelling from the drone eggs within her. The walk-in closet held a tentacle he made that would hold the eggs when she birthed them.
"So, tell me," she said and licked the spoon clean of whipped cream. "What's on the agenda after these eggs are out?"
"The Commander wants to see you in that fucking bikini," Alex grunted. That got a sharp bark of laughter from her.
:My Emperor! You need to get the main lab! The egg is forming at a critical rate!: Hypnos suddenly cut into his thoughts.
:Fuck! Your Mother is still pregnant! Bring it up on a main screen.:
:We can't. It's too bizarre. You need to be present for this.: Hypnos urged. Alex growled at this.
"You and your fucking micro bikini…" he scowled. "Okay. We need to make a trip. You can still walk, somewhat. We're getting picked up."
"Then let's go!" she nodded and downed the rest of the hot drink easily. Nick was ready to help her dress in her white toga with the mid-section bare for her pregnancy and jeweled finery. The feminine-type drone, Kim, was already setting up meals to take with them to feed her ravenous appetite. The overly-muscled drone, Robin, was making mental directions to the helicopter that now appeared for them. A rather lean drone that specialized in scouting and defense, Eddie, was working on proper transportation worthy of the hive leaders. The drone that handled most of the offensive procedures, Aden, was keeping a close watch over the city. Even though it was nightfall, they all had instinctive night vision.
"She's pregnant," Alex muttered to Aden. The helicopter was able to hover neatly in the air to retrieve them. He was a touch pissed that his solitude was destroyed, but there was no choice in the matter for now. Other drones were there to ensure the helicopter blades didn't knock anything over. They were used to this sort of emergency transport.
"Here, my Empress," Kim said after Agatha was strapped down securely into a specialized chair for her growing belly. A large steak was offered to her to help curb her voracious appetite. Alex was soon sitting next to her and had a hand in her hair. He glanced down when a strand became an odd tentacle to curl about his wrist with affection.
"I'm here," Robert sighed and found his seat after he got lifted into the helicopter. When a tentacle of hair moved to gently drape over his shoulders, he sighed with relief at the feel of her thoughts. A steak was soon served to him, and he tucked into the meal. Now that the helicopter was taking them to the military docks for a proper submarine transport, Alex focused in on the hive conversations.
:What does that egg look like?: Alex asked.
:Think of a giant frog egg. Apparently. Rather amphibious in look, texture and growth. I've never seen anything like it! And it keeps growing like ours can do!: Hypnos said. He was already at the base to help with the careful monitoring of the odd alien egg. :And the fetus inside is developing rapidly. Very fast metabolism from what it looks like.:
:Interesting. Keep it under lock and key, if it hatches before we get there.: Alex ordered. :Find any matches? Or, as usual, no matches?:
:First thing I looked for, my Emperor. No known creature on this planet has this type of DNA sequence. I don't even know how George got wind of such a thing! Ah! Osiris has information.:
:That I do. There were experiments with alien technology being done. There was a type of computer, I think. Communication parts were found in an intact ship. The military government was able to extract something from a room in the ship. It…sort of resembled a nursery. I think that's what the reports said, anyways.: Osiris thought out, as he tried to remember what he learned.
:What happened to the ship?: Agatha asked.
:It self-destructed when an idiot hit the wrong switch.: Osiris grumbled. :All we have is a bit of the communications and the DNA.:
:Fine. Bring the stuff to the main base.: Alex said.
:It's already here. I insisted to see it.: Hypnos chuckled.
:Good. Set it up. Let's make a phone call.: Alex nodded mentally. Agatha rose a brow at him. "I'm bored. I'm curious. I'm likely gonna open up a whole new can of worms. Fuck it."
"If you say so," Agatha chuckled. The rest of the ride was smooth up until they got into the submarine. Agatha had to be carried by Robin now. Her belly had swelled quite a bit during the ride. She was set down in a plush chair and surrounded by drones. Hypnos was already setting up the communication parts. He was having too much fun.
"Everything fitting together?" Alex asked.
"So far so good," Hypnos mused. The egg was carefully set up in the background for close monitoring. It was also in easy view for the camera to see it just in case it was recognized. It may need to be used as a form of a bargaining chip if push came to shove. Agatha was amazed at how the blue egg with a darker blue embryo was forming. It almost resembled one of her eggs, but it was a full yolk sack with the embryo attached to it on the inside. Her attention moved to the screen when it suddenly flicked on with activity. She was out of sight to only let Alex and Robert be seen in the small camera that was fitted to the parts. The egg was clearly in the background behind them like a small trophy.
"Patched through!" an odd man wearing a military uniform said. A rather commanding officer now looked through the camera in an odd way from where he stood on a raised bridge above the control helms. He looked tall, strong and very dangerous. His brown hair was cut short, his face was clean-shaven and a set of strong, brown eyes gazed at the two looking at him from a chiseled face. He was clearly puzzled at who he was looking at.
"My name is Commander John Shepard of the SSV Normandy. You hailed us?" the man asked.
"Um…did we? We just found a bunch of parts and put them together…" Alex started.
"What? This was a salarian transmit! An S.O.S signal! And…is that…a salarian egg?! Joker! Pinpoint the coordinates! We need to get down there now!" the man snapped.
"Wait, what?!" Robert asked. "I think we need to talk about this…"
"We will. Face to face. Expect me to arrive in the next hour," John said. "My ship is currently in orbit right now. It won't be long before we appear."
"Before you do that," Alex said. "what year is it for you?"
"It's 2158. Why?" he asked.
"Trust me when I say this. I'll tell you where to come down. If you appear now, you'll be caught, questioned, and not believed," Alex said calmly. "You'll be coming down in the past. For you, that is. Maybe. I'm not sure. But, you may be regarded as someone crazy and playing with fake guns while talking about a ship that will cause mass, world-wide panic that the world's gonna end and that everyone's gonna die. That kind of past."
"Shit…" John sighed.
"Yeah," Robert nodded. "We don't want to have the populace run scared. That already happens far too often these days. More like a daily basis."
"What?" the man frowned. Alex rose up his hands.
"We'll talk. I'll contact you with a location. Just stand by," Alex said with a knowing nod. The screen went black, and now Alex and Robert looked at each other.
"I'll put on the 'Presidential' uniform," Robert muttered. "That means the gold uniform."
"I'll arrange for the best location to be available," Hypnos said. "Or, Osiris will."
"He will," Agatha nodded. "I wonder how he'll react when he learns that the past was taken over with a virus…"
"If it's not his past, then who the fuck cares?" Alex smirked. Agatha could only grin at him. This was going to be a bumpy ride all over the place. They were ready for it.
*Author's Note*
This story is a direct sequel to Viral Mates, and it's here at long last! Do note that I have not played Mass Effect, and I have been resorting to the wiki and YouTube playthroughs for references. If you want to read what's here, you can. Or, if you want the challenge to not read the prior story, go ahead and continue! Feel free to post reviews/feedback. If you feel the need to message me directly, definitely do so! I'll answer when I can. If you post a review anonymously, I may not be able to respond, as you don't have an account. Thanks for taking the time to read, and enjoy!