Tales of the Titans: Godwar Part 3: Promises
"What?" Kitten couldn't believe her ears. "You're going to this New Osira…and without me?"
"I can't take you, Kitten. It's not because I don't want to-*"
"You think I can't handle it."
"I know you can't handle it. Kitten, New Osira orbits the white supergiant star that used to be Apokolips' homestar. At a little more than one astronomical unit, no farther away from it than the Earth is from the sun. But this is a white supergiant. The sunlight of New Osira would fry you crisp in an instant. No, you couldn't handle that."
Still she huffed. "I bet the Orb could…do something. Protect me, somehow."
"Perhaps in this universe. But from a universe away? Kitten, it simply wouldn't be wise to risk it. And yes, there is another reason I do not wish you to go."
"The Lords."
"The Lords. From Grodd's experience, we know their power is not limited to our kind alone. And while you possess one of the finest minds on Earth," and here, he crossed over to her, curling a finger under her chin, and lifting her angry face up to his, "even though some may accuse me of a certain bias with regards to that—the simple truth is, you would be vulnerable to the Lords' power. And please believe me when I say it is not something you want to experience first hand. It would be no trouble whatsoever for a Lord, even a lesser one, to turn your mind inside out, and you would never notice. So please. Besides, I need you here anyway, to run the extraction program we've designed, in case things should take a turn for the worse."
"I thought the Orb was handling that."
"The Orb needs a connection with us. I would like that connection to be you; it would be all the stronger for our personal involvement. So by staying here, you would be assisting the two of us in a very real way. Will you not do this? For me?"
She sagged slightly, in his arms. "Okay. Ya put it that way. But I can't say I'm happy about this whole business of you going to the Lords personally. I mean, couldn't you, like, just call 'em or something? Why do you have to go in person?"
"Remote communication such as you mean would be just as dangerous—the Lords' power can work through communication signals as well as face-to-face. And this mission is to see if it's possible to establish peaceful—or at least, non-warlike—relations with them. That is best done on a personal basis, and would have to be done sooner or later anyway."
"So…do you think you'll be able to resist the Lords' power, this time?"
He turned back to his workbench. "I only know I did last time. And I believe, with all she has gone through, and the modifications the Kindred placed in her brain, that Athena will be able to, as well." At least, I hope so. "And I'll need you to continue to attempt to locate the Deson. I fear the worst, but still, I have hope. Hope that they may've somehow survived."
"Yeah." Kitten shivered slightly, her tail twitching nervously. "God, that'd be…horrible. To be eaten like that…"
"We don't know, for a fact, if that's what happened to them." He frowned, a look of determination coming over his porcelain-white features. "But I will not give up on them. They were friends of ours. We must not lose hope." Even such a slender hope as we have. "Now. I must go meet with Alpha. They are supplying us with a vessel by which we may breach the continuum walls through to the target universe, hopefully, in such a manner as to render our entry undetectable, and our exit," If we make one… "…untraceable." He hoped she didn't notice the slight hesitation.
She came up behind him, putting her arms around him from behind, sliding her hands over his body. "Do you have to go right away?"
"Perhaps not right this second, but we will be leaving for the Kindred's hive within the hour. And I must get with Athena and prepare our 'cover story,' as it were, for how we happened to be here. Why do you ask?"
"Because," she said, continuing to feel all over him, "there's no telling when you'll be back, is there? And…we've got some time. And in that time, I mean to have you." And she led him over to the reinforced bed, a mischievous look on her face. Her tail twitched once, twice, three times in anticipation. "Unless of course, you've got something better to do. In which case, Prepare to Die, lover."
Omega smiled a quirky smile of his own as he followed her to the bed. A good tactician knows that, when he faces overwhelmingly superior forces, he must adjust his battle plans accordingly.
…..
"…still don't like the idea of you heading back into Lord territory alone, 'Thena," Blackfire was saying. The Tameranean was clearly nervous; her hands wouldn't stay still. Tameraneans don't bite their fingernails like humans do, but when they get nervous, they start making certain hand gestures which they usually don't even notice. This was happening now: Blackfire's hands were fluttering, first one way, then the other, even as she strove to calm herself. "I mean, the last time you were there, one of those bastards fucking raped you! And now you're going right back? How smart is that?"
Athena turned from where she was gathering the items she'd need. It was possible that New Osira would not be the world they both remembered; there could be cultural, social, and, almost certainly, technological advances that might hinder communication. For a conqueror people, this wasn't a problem: let the conquered learn to communicate with their new masters. But what she and Omega hoped to do was to represent Earth as a world with a more or less comparable level of technological development to Osira, enough to be treated as close to an equal as they could manage. That wouldn't be easy, she knew, and could easily backfire. "Blackfire, surely you see that I must do this for precisely that reason. Yes, I was…abused. By sheer good fortune, I escaped, and managed to come here, where I am beginning to come to terms with…with what happened to me." She turned towards her friend, still nervously dithering there in the middle of the room, "I cannot run from this, Blackfire. You see that, don't you? The Lords are out there, and they're not going away. And they may prove helpful even…."
"Helpful! That sleighgar raped you, Athena! Multiple times! AND had you so thoroughly brainwashed that you didn't even notice! How would you feel if something like that happened to me?"
At her words, Athena suddenly felt as if someone had thrown a bucket of ice water into her face. And, at the same time, it seemed as if a nuclear cascade reaction had suddenly ignited in her chest. Blackfire, raped as she herself had been raped? Not just bodily, but mentally, as well? Her whole head turned silver, not in a blush, but in rage.
She stood there for just a microsecond, until she was sure she had herself under control. Then she went over and gathered the dark-haired girl into her arms. "I would personally kill whoever was responsible. Slowly, painfully. But they would die. It would not matter if they were Lords or not. They would die."
Blackfire sighed, there in Athena's embrace, her arms around the Osiran girl. "That's kinda how I feel. I know you said this Lord Natal was, like, crazy or something, and not your typical Lord, but…you'd still be going back to the very kind of creatures who did this sort of thing to you before. I, I don't want that to happen to you. I don't even wanna think about it. And yeah, I'd kill anyone who did that to you. I don't care if it was one of these oh-so-super-duper-mondo-powerful Lords; I'd find a way
"But…but, dammit all, I can kinda see where you're coming from. This is, like, your worst nightmare. If you don't face it now…"
"Exactly." The two of them still stood there, in the middle of the room, holding each other.
Blackfire sighed there, in her embrace. "Did I ever tell you about my worst nightmare?"
"No."
"One word: Psions. They were a race of cold-bloods, a reptilian race that seems to like to capture and experiment on people. Not draw-your-blood-and-see-what-it's-made-of type experiments, either. They're rumored to frequently attempt to 'cross-pollinate,' I guess you'd say, different species. See if they couldn't force-fertilize the females of one species with the males of another. Why? 'Cause they can. 'Cause they're aliens who don't care. The whole universe is just research material to them. They'd do these horrible things just to see what would happen. It's not like there would be some kinda point to it all, not trying to better the species or anything. Just out of mere curiosity.
"I used to have nightmares, when I was little, about being captured by the Psions. They'd always tie me up, naked, of course, and then drag in the ugliest, most disgusting looking monster you could imagine, an' let him have me. And no matter how much I cried and begged, no matter how much I screamed, they never stopped." Here she stopped, shoulders shaking, tears running down her face.
"Blackfire…"
Blackfire continued, wiping the tears from her face and sniffling, "I think, one of the reasons I always had it in for Kory was, she was just such an innocent. She never had nightmares like that. Never. She was little miss luv luv luv. I really think if a Psion had smashed in her door late one night, she would've taken one look at it, and gone over and hugged it. She never saw the dark heart behind the universe. Maybe I was jealous of that. I know I was envious of it.
"So when I got out, on my own, I went looking for Psions. Not for killing, necessarily, but for information. They were my bogeymen, and I wanted to know more about them. Especially how to beat them.
"And, just as importantly, to show them that I wasn't afraid of them. I wasn't a kid anymore.
"So I can totally understand how you feel you gotta go face these Lords. Even if they're not as bad as Natal, they're still Lords, they're still your worst nightmare. One thing I learned: you can't hide from your own nightmares. They tend to find you.
"I just wish I could go with you."
For a long moment, the two young women just stood there, locked in an embrace, with Blackfire's head resting against Athena's shoulder, Athena's hand behind her head. Finally, Athena spoke up. "Learning….and growth…is, of course, an ongoing process. But I have learned something this day, this very hour, in fact, something I think quite valuable."
"Oh? What?" Blackfire's voice was muffled somewhat, pressed up against her friend as she was.
"It is this." And gently Athena tilted Blackfire's head up, and brought her own face down to hers….
….and kissed her. Not a platonic kiss, not a "friendship" peck, but a fully sensuous kiss. Blackfire's eyes widened at the unexpected, but obvious meaning behind the kiss…and then she closed her eyes and devoted herself to just enjoying it. Where had Athena learned to kiss like this? But who really cared? She was doin' such a great job…
They broke apart, practically gasping. "Uh, Athena?"
"Blackfire…when you told me what you just told me, I realized just how much you mean to me. I realized how much something that hurt you could hurt me, as if we were…one being. I realized how much I care." Athena looked down into her friend's eyes. "I don't know how you feel about such a thing, or about me, or, or anything else, really. I only know that I cannot bear to lose you or see you hurt.
"I believe I love you, Blackfire of Tameran. I don't know how you feel about me, but I would understand if you…did not feel the same." She found she couldn't look Blackfire in the eyes as she said that last.
"Feel the same? Are you serious? Okay. Check this out." And now Blackfire drew the Osiran woman into a passionate kiss of her own. "I've felt the same way for months now! I, I just didn't wanna weird you out with it all…."
Athena smiled, a broad smile. "Well, if this is being 'weirded out,' there's certainly a lot to be said for it."
…
The vessel had been named Searcher, and carefully designed to resemble a standard Osiran starcraft. Warriors themselves did not need such ships, being perfectly adapted to the conditions of space, but Omega felt it would be better this way. This way, the implication was they came from an established technological culture, and weren't just some stray warriors.
Almost as soon as they lifted off, Omega turned to Athena. {{So. How are things between you and Blackfire?}}
Athena smiled and blushed at the same time. {{You see how it is, in Link. I…did not realize how much she meant to me….until now.}}
He reached over and patted her on the knee. With Osirans, that gesture meant something completely different. {{Athena, I am happy for you. One thing I have noticed: love is not a guarantee on Earth, with humans. Not everybody finds somebody to love, and who loves them in return. That you have…is very gratifying to me. You deserve this.}}
She was silent for a moment, in Link. Then, {{Well, we're still in the process of…coming to terms with how we feel about each other, but…}}
{{Doesn't matter. All that is 'mere details,' as the human saying goes. What matters is, the intent—and the emotion—is there. As I said, I'm happy for you. For you both.}}
They maneuvered the craft towards the point where the Kindred were to open the boom tube into the vibrational universe they sought.
Athena turned her chair so that she was facing him. {{Omega? I need a favor.}}
{{You know you have but to ask.}}
{{This is a big one.}}
{{That doesn't matter. You know that.}}
Again she paused, gathering her thoughts. Then, {{We are heading into Lord territory. We will be within their sphere of influence.}}
{{Yes.}}
{{Omega…if it seems like I will be taken over by the Lords, if it seems like I am losing the battle…I want you to kill me.}}
{{WHAT!}}
{{You heard me. I will not be a slave to the Lords, ever again. If that seems likely…I want you to kill me.}}
{{Athena, I-*}}
{{No ifs, ands, or buts. I want you to promise me. Now promise me! Or would you really want me to go back to being a thrall in the Lords' domination?}}
{{You know I wouldn't want that.}}
{{Then promise. Promise me now. I'm serious. Promise me.}}
{{Athena….}}
{{Promise me!}} Her mental tone of voice allowed for no argument.
{{Very well. I promise you: if it seems like the Lords are about to take you over again, I….I will kill you.}}
A brief smile touched her face, and suddenly, she seized him by the back of the neck, drew him in to her, and kissed him. {{Then this seals the vow. And I promise the same: the Lords will not have you. Not as long as life and mind remains within me.}}
He drew back, the surprise in his face being replaced by determination. {{I furthermore vow one more thing, Athena: either we both come back, or neither of us comes back.}}
{{Good. We both have people to return to, a reason to live. And we will. We both will.}} They both paused for a moment ….
{{Alright,}} she said, returning her seat to its forward-facing position, {{Let's double-check those coordinates. We should be approaching the jump point.}}
To be continued…
