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The planet truly was unremarkable, she noted from her position aboard the vessel. The main deck was entirely surrounded by glass, giving a panoramic view of the glinting stars and the blue and green orb before her. A mere 7,918 miles in diameter, a pebble among boulders, orbiting a small yellow star among billions just like it. Yet in all her travels, she had never come across a planet with so much potential. Earth was a conundrum. What was it about this otherwise insignificant rock that gave a subset of its population such remarkable gifts? Was it the composition of the atmosphere or the soil? She shook her head. Couldn't be…there were many planets with a similar blend of elements. No, it seemed that evolution had produced by sheer chance a species with nearly unlimited genetic potential. She felt her brow furrow. Her species had not changed for many thousands of years, and yet these creatures had produced a startling array of abilities in their short existence. And moreover, they had thwarted Skrull invasions time and again with their unusual talents. The failed invasion of earth, the latest of their defeats, weighed on her. First the destruction of Throneworld by Galactus, then the endless battles with the Kree, and now the humans. She frowned. The Skrull species had suffered mightily. At this rate, they would soon be all but extinct.
"My Queen Jakara, such an expression is unbecoming of one so fair."
"Dear Kildor, how could I not fret for the fate of my race?" She inclined her head slightly to acknowledge her second in command, but her eyes never left the planet. She could feel his presence at her right shoulder. Kildor was handsome and capable, she had acknowledged many a time. Had her people not been in so precarious a position, she might have considered marrying him. She knew he would leap at the opportunity. But there was no time for such trifles. At the moment, Kildor was far more valuable as her chief advisor and military strategist. His unwavering loyalty to her was one of the few things she could depend on in these uncertain times.
Kildor silently admired her profile: the supple smoothness of her olive green skin, the long tapered ears, the thin bridge of her nose, and large angled eyes that were a brilliant shade of pale green. A delicate, modest crown of gold nestled itself in her straight ebony hair that shone like polished leather and fell to her narrow waist. She was beautiful, determined, and ruthless when necessary. Jakara was a true leader and undoubtedly the finest of the Skrull race, and he would give his life to serve her.
"Do not trouble yourself, my queen. Earth is the solution to our woes. With their gifts, we will strengthen our race and claim the miserable rock as our own. It is unfit to serve as the new Throneworld, but past insurrections must be punished. After we drain the inhabitants of their useful abilities, we will have enough power to conquer any planets we see fit to be part of our new empire. The Skrulls will rise to their former glory. We will survive," Kildor pronounced. A thin smile played on the Jakara's lips.
"Ever the optimist. It's a wonder you haven't already started celebrating our victory. But if I may intone, was this not the plan of our predecessors? Infiltrate the government, the Avengers, S.H.I.E.L.D, and other key organizations, and claim the planet from the inside while attempting to mimic the abilities of the gifted in our own? Even humans are not foolish enough to fall victim to the same ploy twice, and only a fool would reattempt a clearly unsuccessful strategy. Do you take me for a fool, Kildor?" An edge crept into her normally level tone at the question, and she could sense Kildor stiffen at her abrasiveness. The fate of her people was not something she took lightly.
"I would never imply anything of the sort. You misunderstand me. We will not be pursuing the same course of action. Covert infiltration is no longer an option. We have been exposed, and they will be on alert for shapeshifting Skrull imposters. No, this attack will be more direct." The queen looked at him sharply, her piercing eyes blazing.
"Direct? Do you realize how few our numbers are? I have always trusted your judgment in matters of combat, as I cannot profess to have your experience, but a direct attack would be suicide." Kildor grinned at her sheepishly and took a step backwards, trying to avoid drawing anymore of her ire.
"Please, my lady, if you would allow me to finish," he pleaded. The queen looked as if she were going to say more, but instead held her tongue and gave him a brisk nod.
"I have thought about the failed invasion of Earth time and again. Our infiltration was near flawless, but even after our discovery we should have been able to take the planet by force, for the average human is exceedingly weak. As I'm sure you have gathered, the reason behind our failure was the gifted ones, who managed to overwhelm even our genetically enhanced Skrull soldiers. A successful invasion of Earth would necessitate their neutralization. Up until recently, we had no means to do so."
The Queen raised her eyebrows and met Kildor's eyes with rapt attention. "What are you alluding to?" The tall Skrull offered her his arm, and she entwined her slender arm with his.
"Come with me, my Queen. Rodom and his team have been busy; I believe the latest development will please you."
They entered the harsh white light of the ship's research facility not long after. Jakara narrowed her eyes against the harsh reflection off the polished steel walls and various machinery of the large circular room. Five Skrulls surrounded a metal table at the center of the room, wearing the white pants and knee length black labcoats that were the standard attire of researchers. A fairly thin Skrull looked up from the table.
"Ah, Queen Jakara, we've been expecting you. Please, come forward."
"Kildor refused to divulge any particulars on the way down here, insisting that you wanted to do the honors. If you would, Rodom, my interest has been peaked. You say you have found a way to "neutralize" the superhumans?"
Rodom smiled. "Are you aware of the strain of superhuman colloquially referred to as vampires?" At that moment a feral hiss alerted Jakara to the creature restrained on the table. The Skrull researchers parted so that Jakara could get a closer look. The male human, who appeared to be approximately thirty human years, strained against the metal cuffs that bound his wrists and ankles to the table. But it was apparent that this was no ordinary human. The skin of the creature had a pale cream coloration, but even more unusual was that the skin sparkled under the artificial light like the facets of a finely cut diamond. As she approached, the human hissed once more, baring two elongated fangs that replaced the normally diminutive human canines. The human's molten gold irises were striking. Jakara turned up her nose in disgust. Such an undignified creature.
"No I am not, but I assume this one is representative of its kind. May I ask why you risked exposure for its capture, and what this has to do with your work?" Rodom flinched slightly at the reprimand, but continued.
"We were discreet, I assure you. Vampires are parasites. Their kind feed off the blood of humans." Jakara turned up her lip in disgust, but allowed Rodom to continue. "Vampires are not a new breed. Quite the contrary. They have a small but still significant population, but until recently they lived covertly. As you know, we have been observing Earth since the first invasion. Three years ago, there was a war between vampires and humans. The vampires were attempting a forcible takeover of the Earth by creating an overwhelming number of their kind. They failed, but that's not the important point."
"What do you want from me?" The vampire ground out between clenched teeth, pulling against the restraints. They strained, and the Queen gave him a sharp look. So strong.
"Silence this creature before it escapes. I do not want a human parasite wreaking havoc on my ship, especially one that was brought here without my knowledge," she said, giving Rodom a pointed look. The form of Rodom's hand and forearm seemed to melt like a wax candle, reshaping itself. Within seconds it had been replaced by a large metal club, which he slammed against the vampire's temple. Its eyes rolled back into its head and it ceased to move. A blow like that should have shattered a human skull.
"It's not dead my Queen, but you won't see it breathe, as apparently vampires can live without oxygen. The vampires are exceedingly durable creatures. Sedation is ineffective, as the skin has the consistency of granite and a needle will not penetrate it. So we've had to resort to brute force."
"But as I was telling you prior to the interruption, the intriguing part about the war was how the vampires increased their numbers. Their saliva contains a potent venom that can transform the human into a vampire, assuming the host is left alive. They may or may not survive the transformation, but assuming success the human will gain the increased strength, speed, durability, and senses of the creature you see before you. What is even more intriguing is that when a gifted one is bitten by a vampire, they gain these strengths in addition to an enhancement of previously existing abilities."
"If you are suggesting that we become these creatures, you truly have lost your mind. Dependency on blood would be highly impractical for an isolated race that is already few in number. We have no means to regularly access—"
"That is not what I am suggesting," Rodom interrupted, at the cost of an icy glare from Jakara at being interrupted. "Please, forgive me for my brazenness, but allow me to explain."
"I have been listening, Rodom, and my patience is wearing thin. Get to the point."
"We've been in possession of this vampire for several months. During its captivity, we isolated venom samples for further study. During our examination, we were surprised to discover that the venom is not venom at all, but rather a virus. A very potent, pervasive, durable virus that affects every organ system of the body. This was an incredibly exciting discovery, because unlike a toxin, a virus has genetic material. Meaning it can mutate. It can evolve. So my team and I were possessed by an idea. If the virus normally enhances the genetic potential of humans and gifted ones, then why couldn't it be genetically engineered to do the reverse?"
Kildor looked at Jakara's face to gauge her reaction. She was trying to remain impassive, but he knew her too well; her eyes betrayed her. They were alight with curiosity, eagerness, and even excitement. He had not seen Jakara excited since the beginning of the Skrull invasion, when their success seemed all but ensured. He smiled to himself. Rodom had better have a workable product to show her, or there would be hell to pay. Likely not execution, since minds like Rodom's were too hard to come by and the Skrulls were already few, but there were some fates worse than death.
"You mean to engineer the virus to remove superhuman abilities?" She breathed. "Can it be done?" The possibilities raced through Jakara's mind. Without the gifted ones, humans were no match for the Skrulls. They were superior in strength, in skill, and possessed more advanced weaponry. Yes, they were outnumbered, but the humans would be like so many ants under the sole of her boot. They were weak, even in great numbers. Rodom's grin seemed to stretch from ear to ear. He stood straighter, exuding confidence.
"On the contrary, we believe we have accomplished it. However, it has not yet been tested, considering our only potential test subject, who lies here before you, was also the source of fresh virus from which to create our modified version. But now that we have a stable strain, the subject is no longer needed. We wanted to do you the honor of observing our first test of the engineered virus on a live subject." He cast a glance at the prone, unbreathing form on the cold steel table. "Or rather, undead subject. Vampires seem to teeter on a strange boundary between living and deceased."
Jakara's anticipation grew, and she nodded in ascension. Rodom and his team went into motion simultaneously. One assistant morphed his hand into a blade and cut open the captive's shirt in a single fluid motion, revealing the glittering pale skin of the vampire's abdomen. A second Skrull attached several chest leads, and the portable heart rate monitor they were attached to sprang to life, the high pitched whine of the flat line filling the room. Rodom pulled over a ventilator and pried open the vampire's mouth, the twin fangs glinting briefly under the harsh light. Jakara watched with mild disgust as Rodom fed the tube down the creature's esophagus.
"You see, my Queen, the virus was initially transmitted via bloodstream, so it could only infect another through a direct bite. But we have successfully aerosolized our strain so that it may be spread via respiratory droplets. The advantage to this is that the virus can spread quickly and effectively from person to person." He indicated the ventilator. "As our subject is not breathing, we'll have to force inhalation of the virus with the ventilator." Jakara's brow furrowed.
"And how does the virus affect the non gifted humans?" Neutralization of the gifted abilities was a wonderful prospect, but she hardly wanted the rest of the human population to fall deathly ill. No doubt this would draw the attention of the gifted ones before they could succumb to the pathogen themselves. Plus, while the Skrulls reestablished themselves, the humans would be invaluable as slaves.
Rodom grinned. "Theoretically, it will have no obvious manifestations in the non gifted. But the virus is still capable of infection in these individuals, which allows them to serve as silent carriers. In essence, the sheer numbers of the normal humans will allow the virus to spread quickly, likely allowing us to affect even those gifted ones we have no previous knowledge of." Jakara's eyebrows rose nearly imperceptibly. A silent virus. Covert and effective. She liked the idea immensely.
"I'm impressed at your meticulousness in the fabrication of the virus. Let us hope that it functions as well as your theories suggest." Rodom winced at the veiled threat, and saying no more he went to a panel adjacent to the table, inputing several codes.
"Stand by," he said to his associates. "Beginning virus administration." He pressed a small green button on the panel, and the ventilator hissed as the aerosolized virus filled the tubes, pumping the gas into the immobile vampire. Its chest began to rise and fall at the prompting of the machine.
"Our theory suggests that the virus would typically require several days to have its full effect, but at the concentration we are applying, we are hoping to see a much more prompt response."
Kildor let out an involuntary snort. He had better hope for a prompt response.
All eyes were now trained on the captive. Jakara stared at the creature, her eyes flicking from its face to its abdomen, to its limbs and back again. She didn't know what to expect. Would its fangs drop from its mouth? Would the glittering skin peel from its body? Judging from intrigued impressions of her researchers, they had no idea what to expect either.
Thirty seconds passed. One minute. Kildor watched the perspiration begin to bead on Rodom's forehead. He was likely counting down the seconds he had left to live. His eyes flickered nervously to the panels showing the vampire's vital signs. Jakara was beginning to look displeased.
"My Queen, I sincerely apologize." The words came out in a rush. To Kildor it sounded like a desperate plea. "It appears we need to run more test—"
Beep. The sound from the heart monitor stopped the words in Rodom's throat. A single wave fluttered up from the flat line and died. Or had it? Was he imagining it?
Beep. Another wave, unmistakable this time.
Beep. Beep. Beep. Three perfectly formed depolarizations. Rodom had never seen anything more beautiful in his life. A few more beats followed, beginning to pick up a regular, consistent rhythm. It was working. My god, it was working.
