A Genetic Defect

Chapter 3

by deadkitty1

Procedure. Caine would rather be surrounded by enemy troops with only his Mauler to defend him than to go through the dull routine of pushing papers in Orus with other cranky bureaucrats. They have waited line after line and sent from one unit to another with still no ending in sight. Each splice, human, and cyborg just seems to be lifelessly staring out into a void until their number is called, except for one eager young woman who couldn't help but watch everything with wonder and excitement.

The half-breed wolf bodyguard has just rescued Jupiter from the clutches of Kalique Abrasax on her beautiful garden of Eden planet called Cerise. When he found her, Jupiter was donned in a gorgeous dress that easily overtook Kalique in beauty. The once normal human finally resembles an Entitled and he barely recognized her. Compared to his shirtless appearance against a backdrop of exquisite flowers, he looked like a stupid savage waving a gun around. He felt even more foolish telling the girl that Kalique was using her just as the Abrasax brothers would surely do if they had the chance to find her first. For a moment, he expected to be escorted out of there in chains, but the girl defended him. She listened and let him escort her back to the Aegis to reclaim Seraphi's inheritance even when Kalique offered to take the girl to Orus herself. The girl refused royalty over his truth and he felt relieved about her decision.

Caine watches the girl closely as she talks animatedly to the cybertron diplomat about certain stipulations asked of her. Her curiosity is endless. He remembers when she was in denial about the Abrasax Dynasty and other worldly creatures coming after her for her capture or death. Now she's absorbing every tidbit like a sponge, memorizing it in detail. She's changing right before his eyes! Or has she always been like that? Not only is she smart, but she's compassionate. Others may see that as a weakness, especially important figures on top, while common people like him would be honored to lay their lives for such an emphatic ruler like her. At least, he would.

Which is why he can't help but be concerned for her welfare. He had his suspicions on what her talks with Kalique were about. He didn't want to pry since she still insists on wanting to go home, but she's young, and after this whole ordeal with the Common Wealth Ministry, she will gain enough power to easily become as corrupt as any royal. He'd like to believe she'll stay the same odd woman he met on Earth who used a female sanitation pad to stop his bleeding; it was a clever move on her part. Unfortunately, Regenex is a drug. Living forever is her privilege, if she wants it. Will she easily succumb to the curse like so many of the people in the universe or will she continue her normal life back on Earth?

"Caine. Caine!"

He blinks and jumps back at the dark brown eyes staring back at him. Jupiter grins as she holds back a laugh.

"Yes?" the splice manages to reply from his sudden dry throat.

"Hey. You can go wait out with the others on the Aegis if you're bored. I don't mind," she suggests nonchalantly.

Oh. Caine is beyond bored. He is working up all his energy just staying awake. He won't go down on the menial torture with his tail between his legs and he will not leave her side when her only protection is some robotic brown-noser without a backbone. Speaking of the annoying leech.

"Where is that bureaucratic idiot?"

"You mean Bob? He went over there to ask for directions."

She points over to a long hallway as the ex-soldier gazes down the corridor. He hardens his eyes as his annoyance for the cyborg increases.

"That rust bucket left you by yourself?!" he growls while fighting the urge to punch something.

"No. He left me with you. So when he gets back, you can go return to the ship," she states plainly.

The intimidating warrior straightens his stance and shakes his head.

"I'm staying right here next to you."

She grins wide and goes back to reading regulations as she replies, "Suit yourself. You're free to do what you want."

Caine is glad she didn't insist on his leave or he might have to pull an excuse out of the air on why he's needed beside her, even when he's close to taking a hundred year sleep from the constant waiting. He didn't care if he was labeled as a fretting mother. He lost the girl when he took his eyes off to grab weapons and shoot at some bounty hunters. He'd rather not repeat the panic attack he almost experienced at seeing her lifted in the possession of some enemy's ship.

Seeing her engrossed in her reading, he interrupts her, "You don't have to read all that stuff. Nobody does."

"I want to. I need to know what I'm getting myself into so I can protect myself once I become one of these royal people," she answers intellectually sound.

"Entitled," the wolf-splice corrects.

The girl taps on the screen as she acknowledges his words, "Yup. Entitled."

Caine's eyes travel through the length of the woman's body as he examines her outfit. She has tossed the purple ruffled gown to trade for one of the snug military uniforms available. Unlike the previous dress, she moves at ease and isn't so closed-off as she was before. If it wasn't for the fact that everyone on the ship knew her as a Reoccurance, she would have fit in with the crew quite perfectly.

Being with the Aegis crew felt like a second home to him. Many of the people on board, including the captain, have admired his great accomplishments. Word on his integrity and tenacity for battle spread like legend even after his long absence. He's famous for finding nearly elusive criminals thought to have disappeared off the radar only to be brought back through the scent of their DNA. Those dangerous hunters were quickly sent to jail where ironically he ended up, but that would be an entirely different story to tell. One that would require a willing audience, but the reputable ex-soldier could hardly get a word in when a crewmate would interrupt him to excuse the rest of the Aegis to get back to work. Being court martialed can also earn him an entirely different reputation. Stinger was treated pretty much the same and he didn't seem bothered by it at all. His friend expected the cold-shoulder, so Caine reluctantly endures it until they gain their worth back. Just as soon as the girl receives her title, everything with go back to what it was.

Caine longed to be back into the Legion. It's all he's ever known. It's what he's been born to do. At last, Stinger will finally forgive him, if he hasn't already. Bringing Kiza with him during his exile to some foreign planet must have affected her health greatly. Kiza's always been a sickly child and became dependent on the Regenex. The rejuvenating nectar isn't an all healing potion, especially for a reoccurring sickness that nobody can seem to solve. When it's stuck to her genes, there isn't much anyone can do about that. Stinger would do everything in his power for his daughter and bringing Jupiter back to the throne is the right step forward.

"What are you staring at? You jealous you didn't get to dress me?"

The Lycanton coughs out of embarrassment as Jupiter brings up his tough task at undressing her on Earth. He felt caught in a corer and didn't know how to respond. Was he really staring at her that long the entire time?

She didn't give him time for an excuse as she keeps talking.

"You know what's weird? Ever since I've been here, I've never had to lift a finger to dress myself, do my hair, or makeup. I've actually been sedated through most of that." Jupiter voices thoughtfully as she turns towards him, "But I've always dreamed of wearing dresses like the one Kalique dressed me in. It felt wonderful but strange... Like I still feel like I'm in a dream. That this can't be real."

The tough ex-Legionnaire reasons with the delusional girl as he speaks calmly. "Are you still in denial that worlds like this would never exist outside of your universe, even after everything you've seen?"

"No. I think I'm in denial about who you... everyone thinks of me. That I'm a reincarnation of some dead queen that lived thousands of years ago. I mean, these kinds of things don't just happen to me. I've never even won a spelling bee in my life!" the woman exclaims.

"Humans win bees? I thought your kind would be scared of insects with pointy things attached to them. And where does spelling come into this?"

The panic on the girl's face dissipates as she roars out in giggles. Caine looks at her puzzled but didn't mind being the joke as long as her worries get pushed to the back-burner. She didn't get a chance to answer him as Bob comes back eagerly dragging them to the records once more.

Slowly as the minutes turn into hours, even Bob, the one with the most patience, is beginning to lose his temper. As they face one grumpy worker after another, it's becoming clear that these obnoxious workers didn't even care to do their jobs! It didn't help that each person on line impatiently complains as passionately as them. The protective bodyguard growls at a couple of pushers with the audacity to even try cutting him in line. Needless to say, they thankfully bless their luck at finally catching a break with one worker and soon face the end of their long agonizing routine. All they had to do left is receive the official seal from the Signet Minister.

The bored wolf-splice can barely hold his joy at the appearance of old machina in the Minister's office. By the looks of the cobwebs, it's been a long while since anyone has been called down here in the old crypt. He sighs as the old man balances himself on a rickety chair to set the machine in motion. Lights blare to life as the gears noisily rotate in rhythm. The old man motions for the soon-to-be Entitled to place her arm inside the circle as tiny robots tickle her skin with pinches to mark a precious seal on her skin. The new queen gazes in wonder as she receives her official title as ruler of Earth. All goes as planned.

"What did that man mean by my deepest condolences?" Jupiter asks in concern to Bob.

Bob, who looks as chipper as ever for completing a task other androids would consider improbable for their own memory capacity, sweeps the statement away as a minor issue.

"Oh! I wouldn't worry about it, your majesty. He's probably gone a little off his rocker being alone in there all day. You are now royalty! The owner of the Earth! That is something more to celebrate, your majesty."

"Yeah. I guess," the new queen answers as her thoughts wander on while Bob gushes forth about her exciting future as a queen.

Caine also questioned what the old senile man meant by what he said. She's a Reoccurance. A rebirth. She didn't lose anyone. If anything, she's gaining so much more. She has just inherited a name, money, and empire. To have this crazy lunatic tell her something like this will just rack up her already muddled head full of thoughts about this Entitled business. She doesn't need any more things to worry about. The sudden irked splice wonders if it's too late to go back and teach the Minister a lesson in playing mind games with the new appointed queen. She doesn't need to bear with his encrypted nonsense about politics in the beginning of her very long career. As long as he's here, no one close to her will be dying on his watch.

4

Cold bars filter in a soft light that gives a harsh glare on the Lycanton half-breed's eyes. The powerful look did nothing to budge the strength of the cage even after several attempts at using his Gravity Boots to disable them. He's locked up, again. The darkness and containment is a familiar feeling he once felt he deserved, yet in this instance, the injustice building within him boils to the surface. He shoves the wall hard with his boots as the impenetrable cage only trembles from his rage.

He needs to escape and fly back to her side, to her majesty. She needs him.

It's a shame they were ambushed by the least likely person they expected to betray them. Stinger. Caine should feel angry or even sad. The one friend he trusted turned his back on him, but he didn't feel anything remotely close to sadness. His anger is directed at Titus and Titus alone. The manipulating prince always has a way of clawing through anyone's weaknesses and offering them an escape. Just as easily as he's done to Caine, the Entitled must have found a way to get to Stinger too. They've underestimated the spoiled prince. The playboy duped them all.

The more he thinks about Titus, the more his thoughts drift back to the girl. He trusts her to see through the prince's underhanded moves, but there are things that he can use against her, like her own genetic Reoccurance, Seraphi Abrasax. Seraphi's reign is reserved for the history records and no one really knows her personally besides her bratty offspring. Caine can tell enough about the mysterious late queen from her children and she should bear the same type of convoluted personality as the Abrasax siblings have over fighting for power. No amount of memories will awaken the dead queen they see in the girl. He's confident of that. By the way she's treated him, he knows for certain the old queen would have done the complete opposite. There's no one in the kingdom, not even in the lowest breaches of the rich, that would blatantly display their affections for a mutant like him.

Caine has only mingled with other like him. Talked, ate, and slept with degenerate military personnel who are spat on. The amount of regalia or recognition over their heroic deeds will never exhibit any desire in the eyes of the Entitled. They'll forever be marked as fused together leftover parts for a job pure humans wouldn't dare touch.

That girl though didn't even see such a distinct barrier in the universe's society. She crossed the line and he had to step back to remind himself of his lower position. He can't fathom why she would even take an interest in him. Although she's familiar being in the bottom rung of the ladder working as a maid, even then, he's a different breed. He's a splice and she's human. He has sharp razor teeth, odd looking pointy ears, and alabaster skin while she's beautiful, tan, and has a pair of the thickest eyelashes he's ever seen. He can't be for her. It's ridiculous to even hope for it to happen. If he was more like a dog, he'd add tail to the mix of odd parts a girl would consider disgusting on a potential mate.

Dog. That's what he used to refer himself to her so she would understand how big of a distance they stand against each other. Instead, she tossed it aside by saying she loves dogs. He grins at the memory as a picture of her embarrassed expression pops in his head. He knows what she meant by loving dogs. If it's any consolation to her majesty, Caine would have been honored to be her pet. Unfortunately, his desires for her would be beyond the area of a human and pet relationship. It would cross the realm of bestiality which he read is illegal in Illinois, not that he looked it up...

4

Just as he gets himself out of the frying pan, he gets tossed into the fire which would be the big black void of space. His boot grazes a suit packet as it continues to spiral out of his reach to the unknown darkness. To go after it would risk the danger of gliding off Titus' last teleportation spot. The suit he activated stopped his tumbling trajectory for the moment. So if he has any chance of being rescued, he needs to stay put. Thirty minutes is enough time to find him. Meanwhile he'll reserve his oxygen while keeping an open mind about his rescue.

Silence permeates. His body surrenders to the pull of gravity hovering him to a slow rocking motion that's barely noticeable. He concentrates on his breathing and his heart as his mind meditates the universe away. The rhythmical beats have a calming effect. It reminds him that not only is he alive, but his body is constantly fighting to survive. With each inhale, it's one step closer to chocking on an empty tank, but it's no less different than breathing on land. Everyone is really living on borrowed time. His just happened to be cut shorter.

Most would loose it after staring into an abyss knowing the light far off into the distance will never be reached. It doesn't help that the timer in the suit automatically reminds him how long he has before death claims him. It's the soldier within him who fails to submit to defeat even in the face of death. It's still a strange afterthought. He always thought he'll leave the universe in a field of battle. Maybe not together with his comrades but fighting for a purpose worth dying for. That's the type of death he expected on the job. Suddenly, images of Jupiter float in his head at the thought of death.

Titus didn't just plan on killing him off. He wanted Jupiter dead too. He needs to stay alive long enough to warn her or she'll end up not only making the mistake of her life, but selling the lives of the humans she inherited. She'll never forgive herself. It's one thing to deceive him, but it's an entirely different ordeal when some rich impudent child toys with the lives of the people he loves. Loves.

Two minutes remain. Only a few more puffs of air before his body becomes a dead log in space, yet his imminent fate doesn't matter when he struggles to piece his thoughts together at a new revelation. Caine Wise, the half-breed exiled space soldier, is in love with a newly Entitled Queen from Earth. A girl who believes in the impossible miracles of space. Her existence questions the rule of three powerful rulers which puts her to the precipice of near death every second. This girl is the one he's fallen for. The one that ends up stuck in his mind as a constant problem. She's a gorgeous problem. The only one where he would want to be the answer for her every time.

Time has run out and visions of her flash across his eyes like a reel from a movie. He sees her panicked eyes as they fly around Chicago. The scent of her blouse on the tips of his fingers from dressing her. Her teasing smile stamped in his head as she tries to pick him up. Echoes of her screams sound off in his ears as she falls in a cliff right into his capable strong arms. Jupiter Jones. The partner he didn't know he was waiting for his entire life to be with only to have death take him away.

Save her. If not him, then someone else. Someone save her majesty.