Chapter 77: Strenuous Coexistence

Kay and company neared the tallest tent structure within the underground caverns. It was the oldest building in the refugee camp cluster, but it was also the most defended tent out of all of the other tent structures. It had a circular formation of walkways that Gargantua guardsmen patrolled over, their keen eyes constantly scanning the immediate area for any trouble that might stir. They were armed with rifles that were designed to pick off any lone assailants or a group of rioters, and had pistols that they could quickly equip when reloading their rifles could take too long and expose them to an immediate danger. The tent that Baroness Tak was living in looked comically big. Though it had a beige-yellow coloration, Kay couldn't help feel as though he might find some entertainment within. Do gilanian circuses usually serve popcorn and corn dogs?

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU MEAN 'I CAN'T SEE MY HUNTERS?!'"

However, as Kay, Bayz, and Goqqa walked into the tent, Kay saw that Catlak was having some kind of argument with Baroness Tak. It looked like there were less hunters that had accompanied Catlak than previously. Baroness Tak, which was currently sitting on her luxurious red chair, raised her hand and gestured to Catlak to calm down. "I'm sorry, but you said that you, and your men and women, had feasted upon the flesh of the infested vaph. I cannot, in good conscience, allow them to mingle with the rest of the populace."

"AND WHY NOT?!" Catlak shouted, angered by Tak's reply. Tak was currently guarded by four Gargantua guardsmen, but she didn't budge from her current guest's furious yelling.

Tak calmly explained. "They were exhibiting behavior that were the early symptoms of zerg infestation. After several hours, they would physically change into... things that you would no longer recognize as gilanians. I'm afraid that it's for the best that you do not see them until the evolution master has treated them first."

Catlak fumed with more anger. "ALL THEY GOT WERE STOMACH ACHES! I EVEN ATE SOME OF THE VAPH THEY HUNTED, AND I WAS COMPLETELY FINE AFTERWARDS!"

"Considering the fact that the broodmother named Broo had politely asked the men and women that had eaten the infested vaph to follow her, it gives us reason to believe that they were the only gilanians that had contracted the zerg virus in the first place. And since you didn't follow her request at the time, it only gives me enough evidence to assume that you had not feasted on any of the infested vaph you hunted, contrary to what you have just said."

Catlak pointed at the twenty four people behind him, which were around half of the inhabitants that had escaped the immortal maze. "AND WHAT, THESE GUYS ARE THE ONLY HEALTHY ONES?!"

"Yes." Tak bluntly answered. "And you should be thankful that the rest of you are still healthy. If you still wish to live in my refugee camp, you'll have to abide to my rules, and respect the zerg organisms that inhabit this underground cavern. Believe me when I say this to you that I am intolerable to any form of rudeness. And as a baroness, I can punish each and every one of you, should the situation demands it. I can even escort all of you back to the surface, if I so wanted it! But that kind of punishment pales in comparison to what the zerg are capable of. If you bear that in mind, and refrain from committing any crimes, then you can enjoy your newfound freedom to your hearts content. If you have any other complaints or questions for me, now is a good time to voice them."

Catlak paused for several seconds, anger steeping into his body in barely self-contained restraint and willpower. But Catlak sighed. "... Will I be able to meet them again?"

"You'll have to talk to one of the broodmothers." Tak answered.

"Hmm. ... And where do I go to get my hunters their own living areas?" Catlak asked.

"There are new tents being made every day by the construction crews. Just walk toward the noise of the zerg monsters that are extending the caverns, and talk with one of the gilanians with a hard hat on. They'll direct you to the construction foreman named Lippot. He'll tell you which tents are empty."

"Thanks. Hunters. With me." Catlak nodded, turned, and walked away. Catlak locked eyes with Bays for a few seconds before shaking his head and sighed. After that, Catlak and his hunters left Baroness Tak's tent. Many of them had solemn faces, almost looking like they had lost their friends from a previous conflict. Kay felt somewhat sorry for them.

"And who might you be?" Kay's attention was grabbed by the baroness of the largest tent in the refugee camp. Her expression was torn between suspicion, surprise, curiosity, tiredness, and caution. Kay didn't know which emotion was dominant over the others, but he wasn't paying attention to Tak's emotional condition.

Kay stepped toward the baroness and slightly dipped. "I apologize for the intrusion, but I was indisposed for a week within a Golden Star secret facility. I rescued a bunch of prisoners during my escape, and these two people behind me are in need of a home."

Baroness Tak pointed at Kay. "You are the bug-man beast-master known as Kay? The very co-commander of the zerg swarm that is responsible for causing so much harm to the Golden Star Empire?"

Kay looked up at Tak, puzzled by her questions. "... Uh... Yes, I am him." Tak slowly sighed and gotten off of her soft chair. She strolled forward until she was only a couple feet away from Kay. Once she was close enough, her right hand had swung forward and smacked Kay in the face. As she had done so, the caverns began to thunderously echo with the braying and roaring of hundreds, if not thousands, of nearby zerg organisms. Kay took a step back and cradled his face. "WUH~?! WHAT THE FUCK?!"

Tak shook the stinging pain from her hand as she kept a stern stare fixated on Kay. The bodyguards immediately raised their guns, surprised that their baroness had struck a commander of the zerg swarm. "Don't be surprised. Our meeting was bound to happen, and I simply took the opportunity to be the instrument of retribution."

Kay hissed in annoyance as he glared at Tak. "What the hell for?"

"Inadvertently being the cause for the doomsday weapon that Gollog had built to fight against your zerg swarm. Activating the Kiln Keepers. Antagonizing the Era Agency. The twenty year war that had plagued Kiln and all of its inhabitants. I can go on, but you know the general idea of what I meant." Tak chided.

Kay rubbed his face for a few seconds. "Eh... You know, this isn't how I imagined our first ever meeting would happen. Isn't this the first time we had ever met each other?"

Tak sighed and shook her head. "Regardless of your imagined slights, I am dedicated to the care for the people of Gargantua."

"So you just slapped me only because I had put your people into harms way on several occasions?" Kay growled.

Tak turned around and walked toward her large and soft chair. "You are not one to judge someone of my position, Bug-man Beast-master." Once she was close to the soft and red chair, she turned around again and sat herself onto it. "And don't begin thinking that I am the only one in the wrong here. If I had things my way, then we wouldn't be having this conversation in the first place, or evacuating into the underground that is already inhabited by your unhygienic and savage zerg beasts."

"Then I'll have to inform you that it wasn't my decision to evacuate everyone from Gargantua in the first place."

"Be that as it may, it doesn't excuse you from your actions." Tak replied. She then turned to the two other guests. Her focus seemed to be fixated on the two in question. "And who are they?"

Kay groaned and gestured to them. "As I said before, I rescued these two from the immortal maze within the Pyramidal Guard's dark mausoleum. Right now, the lady is concerned about her big friend, and she's curious about the living conditions that the refugee camp will provide them."

Tak gestured to Goqqa. "Then can't you let this creature sleep in one of your beasts' dens?"

Kay folded his arms and tilted his head. "Are you assuming that the zerg ever sleep?"

Tak paused for a few seconds, sighed, and then pointed in a direction. "There are construction workers building the metal scaffolding and tents in that direction. Listen for the sounds of rock being mined and look for any people wearing hard hats. They can direct you to Construction Foreman Lippot. Be mindful of the people here, and there won't be any problems. And be EXTRA mindful of the zerg that already live down here. They are seldom ever in a forgiving mood, so it is unwise to provoke them."

Kay stopped and turned to face Tak, pausing for several seconds as he stared coldly at her. He then nodded. "Alright then." He turned to Bayz and Goqqa. "Let's get you two settled."

"And Kay?" Kay's attempt to leave was interrupted by Tak. As Kay turned around, he saw Tak furrowing her brows and leaning into her soft chair. "Tell Kragnon that I wish to speak with him."

After another pause, Kay reached his hand toward Tak. Her chair tilted forward, which made the baroness squeal in surprise as her own chair ejected her from its seat. After it floated forward and neared Kay, he calmly gave his reply to Tak's request. "I am not your errand boy." At the same time Kay closed his hand, Tak's soft chair crumpled into a shrinking ball, which abruptly made sounds of wood breaking and fabric ripping upon its destruction. Once Kay released his grip, the ball that used to be Tak's soft chair bounced around before coming to a halt.

Tak's armed bodyguards trained their weapons at Kay. "Sir! Leave this area immediately, or we will be forced to defend Baroness Tak! Do you comply?!"

Tak had quickly gotten to her feet and raised a hand to tell her guardsmen to stop. There was a deadened silence between Tak and Kay. The quietness between the two was palpable, though the two leaders didn't need to speak a word to each other. After such a pregnant stillness of unsettling muteness, Kay turned away from Tak. After some confusion between Bayz and Goqqa, they decided to follow Kay out of Tak's tent.

Goqqa decided to break the silence. "That was... intense."

Kay growled as he continued his angry walk. "Intense? Yeah. It was so intense you can cut it apart with a knife."

Bayz ran up to Kay's side with worry draped across her face. "You know, that wasn't very nice of you, breaking her chair like that."

"If I was in her palace, then the rules would have been different. Since she is in zerg territory, she is bound to the ways that the zerg abide by." Kay replied.

"Is violence the usual way for the zerg?" Bayz asked.

"She slapped my face, so I killed her seat. I'd say that's fair." Kay said.

Goqqa grumbled. "She may rrule herr people, but herr ass is not safe in yourr domain. Violence only brreeds violence."

Kay nodded at Goqqa. "Eloquently put. Maybe this Lippot guy can give you an extra large tent to sleep in?"

Goqqa huffed. "We arre morre worrrried about something to eat. A place to stay is nice, but nourrishment and hydrration is also imporrtant."

That raised a question within Kay's mind. How did the underground refugee camp cluster get its food and water?

As kay, Goqqa, and Bayz traveled through the camp cluster, Kay had his question indirectly answered. As Kay and his company traveled through the refugee camp cluster, he saw that the gilanians were collecting moist creep that was generated from a resource tumor.

They used ladles to scoop up the creep and sealed it in sealed containers made of glass. They would then transport these creep-filled glass containers to a high-powered machine of intricate design. It was created to convert the creep into steam via using a high-heat boiling process. The steam would then be directed by an internal fan, which would then be blown into a large glass reservoir. This glass reservoir were covered by a series of plastic tubes that were colored blue, which seemed to refrigerate the steam and make it condensate into water droplets. Whatever that was left in the boiler that couldn't be turned into steam would be dumped back in the creep, or be transferred to a metal refinery.

The gilanian refugees had also acquired a new staple food source, which, surprisingly, came from the resource tumors. A selected number of brave gilanians would be tasked to tread through the creep and collect resource pods that were generated from the resource tumors. The pods were a little heavy, but when they had decided to use a wheelbarrow to transport the resource pods, it had prevented any further accidental slips from happening on the creep. Once enough were collected, the pods would then be placed in a large metal basin, and then be boiled for an hour. The watery slurry would be transported to the metal refinery for further processing, while the boiled pods would be boiled again for another hour. The end result of the 2-stage boiling process resulted in creating white, flat, bean-shaped objects that had shrunken to 50% of its original size.

The flavor and texture of these boiled pods were bland and unusually chalky, and were hard to chew despite being boiled for two hours. However, the gilanian chefs in the soup kitchens had experimented their culinary skills on these boiled pods, and found several different ways to prepare the boiled pods. These boiled pods could be sliced and diced before being simmered with fruit sauces or oils, or have a cut in its center to create a hollowed cavity, which would be filled with vegetables, meats, and with other kinds of condiments and garnishes. However, due to a lack of rations in the underground, a few unlucky gilanians were forced to eat the bland boiled pods as-is and without any kind of culinary preparation applied to them. Luckily for them, boiled water easily washed away the bland taste. They would say that eating the boiled zerg resource pods is significantly better than eating smokeless vaph meat strips, or an expired bag of bugmeal.

But the entire camp cluster was not without any means of entertainment. Spread out within the cluster were several screens that broadcasted two figures fighting one another. Apparently, the arena in Gargantua's black market district had been dismantled and delivered into the underground refugee camp cluster. The cage that produced the dream-light that animated the fighters was not present within this environment, but the fighters were still being broadcasted from the different angles that were shown from the perspectives of the screens. The dream-light arena battles provided a necessary distraction to an otherwise stressful transition. Moving into the zerg-infested underground super cluster that they had finally decided to neighbor with, whether they liked it or not, was a choice that they once thought bordered on insanity. It was thanks to Othafurn's diplomatic skills and Kragnon's assurances that enabled a smooth transition into the underground refugee camp.

At the edge of the refugee camp cluster, Kay, Bayz and Goqqa saw massive figures that were covered in a constant shroud of dust, while a swarm of zerglings went to work gnawing and clawing at huge boulders that remained intact after their excavation. The ultralisks that have been tasked to expand the underground caverns by using their massive Kaiser blades to slice through bare rock, which made enough room for the construction crews to work with. The drones also worked with the ultralisks and zerglings, but they were either mainly focused on either delivering usable ore to the closest hatchery, or pushing gravel piles out of the way for the construction crews to work on.

The watery refuse that the creep and resource boiling processes produced were transported to metal refineries that processed the slurry into usable materials. Apparently, there were a lot of metals and minerals within the creep and the resource pods, and the gilanians figured out a way to extract the metals they needed to create the platforms that the tents could be constructed on.

"Man, I can never get used to seeing this." A gilanian construction worker said aloud, as he gazed upon the noisy zerg that were busy expanding the underground cavern.

"I'm going to give you an earful if you keep slacking off like this. Get back to work, and stop gawking at those bilious beasts!" Said another gilanian construction worker, which wore a much cleaner attire, compared to the other workers that were focused on laying down one metal platform after another.

"Gah! Yes boss!" The worker was reprimanded of his lollygagging, and he hurriedly went back to work on building more metal platforms.

Kay and Bayz had asked for directions from three construction workers before finally finding the construction foreman they were looking for. Goqqa couldn't ask for directions because every time he tried to, the constructions workers either froze up from fear or screamed and ran away. Kay decided to get the foreman's attention. "Yo! Are you Foreman Lippot?"

The construction worker turned to face the inquisitive infested zerg organism. He took a few steps back when he saw Kay's carapaced form. "Bwah?! ... Oh. Another one of them talking zergs, I take it? Well... At least your face is easier for my peepers to look at."

Kay tilted his head, but then shook his head dismissively. "Uh... Whatever. Listen. I have a few friends here that need a warm place to themselves. I just came to you in order to drop them off in your care so you can get them tents of their own." Kay said, pointing a thumb behind himself to direct the foreman's attention to Bayz and Goqqa. "You're Foreman Lippot, I presume?"

The foreman nodded as he glimpsed over Bayz and Goqqa. "Yeah, I'm Lippot. I direct the builders and architects to make the platforms and tents in this cavern. For free." Lippot said, emphasizing on his last word with a grumble. "Did Tak send you here to find out which tents are empty and available, or which are occupied and inhabited? Well you can tell that royal fart tart that anyone deciding to evacuate into the refugee camp cluster can pick any tent they want. I don't want to be bothered unless it's an emergency, and I'm done being a tour guide of the homeless."

Kay shook his head. "Actually, this big guy might need more room that the average gilanian."

Lippot sighed and shook his head. "Well he's NOT a gilanian, whatever on Kiln he is." He turned around and began yelling. "Hey Dandus! Got a tent in this big red guy's size?!"

"DAYUM, das a huge dude! And no, we got no tent in his size!" A worker said from a distance.

Lippot turned back to Kay. "Sorry on that. Looks like you're friend is gonna get drenched in the rain. ..." Lippot looked up. He then looked back at Kay. "... Wait a minute. We are in an underground cavern, and in a desert. HAH! Looks like the chances of rain, which are equal to getting a tent big enough to fit that big red guy, are equally slim."

Kay huffed. "Listen, Lippot. You don't have to be a dick about this."

"Oh! I'm sorry!" Lippot said in mock surprise. "When I realized that I wasn't going to get payed for this, I'd assumed that I'd have a chance to have some vacation time in the palace at the center of Gargantua!" Lippot then slouched and hardened his eyes. "Imagine my surprise when I learned that Gollog's doomsday weapon is going to fire tomorrow. There are more people trying to get down here with each day that passes, and I have to manage workers that are quite incompetent with their tasks. So, as you might expect, I have my own reasons for being unpleasantly blunt as of this moment. But right now, I have a lot of work to do. Good day. Or not. Bye anyway."

Kay narrowed his eyes at Lippot. He then raised a hand into the air and snapped his fingers. "I don't care if you decided to piss straight up while a shitstorm of tremendous proportions rained down on your arrogant little head. I want you to listen very closely, because this is only going to be said once, and once only, to you."

Lippot huffed and stepped closer to Kay. "Go ahead. I'm... Listening?" Lippot was distracted by the reverberations going through the ground. They sounded as though they were getting closer and closer. Before he knew it, a Kaiser blade had entered Lippot's field of vision. He turned and saw the ultralisk, which had walked up to him as he was busy talking with Kay. After a few seconds of hesitation, the ultralisk broke the silence my bellowing a tremendous roar that shook the caverns. The shockwave of sound and air that the ultralisk produced startled Lippot, making him fall backwards. He stared up at the massive beast that thunderously quaked the cavern halls in awe and fright, unable to run away due to his legs giving out at that exact moment.

After the roar, the ultralisk gave a mean stare towards Lippot before grumbling and stomping its way back to its previous task. Kay leaned down at the foreman on the ground. "So... Do you understood what was said to you just now?"

"... Uh... Rhetorically... Yes." Lippot timidly replied.

"Good answer." Kay growled.

Goqqa stared wide-eyed at the ultralisk beast. He whispered an excited hiss as he stared at the retreating form of the ultralisk. Bayz, on the other hand, slowly walked past Kay and stretched her hand to the fallen form of Lippot. "Uh... Not to make this into an even more awkward scene for everybody, but perhaps it could help you to understand that he doesn't exactly speak for everyone here."

Lippot looked at Bayz's proffered and bubble suit-protected hand for a couple seconds before grasping it firmly. "I shall hazard a guess that I'm not the only one with the bad day here. What do you need?"

"If it's not too much trouble, I could request some materials that I could use to craft a big enough tent for my big friend." Bayz replied as she pointed at Goqqa. "And maybe he could be settled at a place where it's quiet? He doesn't like to be disturbed very much."

Lippot chuckled. "Well if that's gonna be the case, then I can give you what you need! You can also have your own workshop to work at, and a space of your choice to place his tent at." He slowly looked back at Kay with a hesitant stare before stepping away from Bayz. "Er... Why don't we discuss what kind of materials you need on the way to your workshop? My schedule is kinda hectic at the moment."

"Wait." Bayz replied. After a hesitant turn, Bayz looked up at Kay and bowed. "Thank you for taking us here."

Kay smirked and waved dismissively. "Ah, don't mention it. I can understand what it means to be in captivity. At least here, you'll no longer have to be hungry, or worry about being tortured. If you can excuse me, I now need to vomit my guts out." Kay turned around and sharply whistled loudly. The whistle that Kay had made was just for showmanship, but his psionic command had a different effect. A single zergling was summoned from the several swarms that hacked away the boulders and approached Kay. Kay then straddled the back of the zergling and rode away on it. "YEEEEEEEEEEHAAAAAW~!"

Goqqa and Bayz stared in amusement at the zergling-riding Kay as he rode away from their company. Goqqa decided to finally speak up when Kay was out of hearing distance. "That Kay guy is scarry... But he is weirrdly likeable."

Lippot grimaced from Goqqa's growling voice. "Oh gods, don't ever talk in that tone ever again! It sounds like you might eat a hatchling, or strangle someone's pet krell!"

Goqqa rolled his eyes, but decided to keep quiet from then on.

Speeding through the tunnels and chambers while riding on a mounted zergling had a kind of magic that Kay immediately enjoyed. Despite the fact that his legs were preventing the zergling from extending its wings, the creep still provided a nice speed boost that accelerated him and his mount faster through the underground zerg network. Kay couldn't believe that he didn't thought about riding a zergling into battle sooner! The omega worms may have the capability to remove the travel time on the surface by the means of the zerg organisms using its near-instantaneous troop transportation methods of its undulating guts, but riding on a zergling's back had more enjoyment.

Despite the sudden vertigo experienced within the nydus/omega network's intestinal movements, it was a short-lived and sudden experience. But as Kay might have put it, zergling-riding was more funner.

There could be more improvements with the zergling he was riding on, however. It could be larger, since his feet kept hitting the creep as the zergling bounded up or down sloped inclines or declines. Having it's overall mass increased could easily solve that problem, but making and evolving the zergling to be bigger could also create more problems, such as reducing it's ability to turn quickly, or diminishing its attack capabilities, or even reducing its overall speed even further.

And speaking of evolving, Kay had finally reached his intended destination, arriving at a group of evolution chambers that pulsed with life, and with Corvurn's experimentation. He could see infested gilanian chrysalises surrounding the evolution chambers. However, he felt something different about them. They seemed to have sapient minds, and they exhibited thought patterns that were coherent. Kay sighed as he passed by them, but he came to a stop at one of the evolution chambers that was currently processing what Kay could only assume was new mutations, or some form of research that Corvurn was overseeing. Once Kay had neared the evolution chamber, Corvurn had crawled out from its bowels and bowed at Kay. "Command organism Kay arrived. Require assistance?"

"No. I just came here to exchange some mean words with you, and then give you something to analyze." Kay replied.

"Mm. Assuming exchange pertains to infested gilanians? Pertains to infested organism Kragnon? Aware of past altercations. Rather discus organism Kay's object of analysis." Corvurn mumbled.

Kay stared at Corvurn for a few seconds before sighing. "Well... So long as you know better than to do something stupid like that again, we should be okay."

Kay turned to the side and leaned forward as he stuck his fingers in his mouth. After a couple of seconds, a torrent of salty fluid leapt and left Kay's maw, which then pulled and deposited his captured specimen. What Kay saw from the resulting spew of stomach contents surprised him. Apparently, it was a many-limbed cephalopod, which seemed to have several spots of white that had loosed skin, a result of having contact with a low acid that ate away at the poor creature. It had red skin, but it seemed to glimmer rapidly between different colors with varying brightness. Its eyes were gone, since it had been blinded by Kay's stomach acid a long time ago.

Corvurn analyzed the creature with his studious eyes for a few seconds before scooping the creature up and messily devouring it. Kay would have vomited again should his constitution be any weaker, and if he hadn't barfed earlier. Corvurn pawed at his mouth a few times as he sifted through the essence that the cephalopod contained. "Will take moment to analyze. Return later. Must tend to infested gilanians."

Kay turned to the chrysalises with a gentle somberness in his mind. "Do you know what will happen to them?"

Corvurn sighed. "Discussed with Othafurn and Kragnon. Will let sane infested gilanians choice to serve swarm, or serve Kragnon. Physical contact with refugee cluster must be limited. Zerg Hyper-evolution Virus must be prevented from pathogenic cross-contamination with gilanian population. May allow verbal communication between parties. However, permission for communication, needed."

Kay nodded with a sigh. So much could have been prevented, had Catlak's followers refrained from hunting and eating the infested vaph in the immortal maze, then this wouldn't have happened in the first place. But Kay knew that dwelling on the could, should, or would of each scenario was counterproductive to a commander of the zerg swarm. In essence, the best that a leader could do is weigh the choices available and claim responsibility of the consequences. To Kay, he imagined that the new reality that the infected Moss Field Hunters will face might frighten them. Or worse, empower them. The infestation process within the gilanians was slowed down to a crawl, and enable their minds to withstand the changes and mutations. Life would be VERY different for them from now on.

However, a sudden rumble jolted Kay from his thoughts. And then a giant metal hand came down from above him and clasped around his form. Corvurn and the infested chrysalises were unharmed from the sudden event, but Kay was at the mercy of a large palm that had a firm hold of him. Despite his earlier guesses on what kind of enemy had plucked him from the underground, the perspective of an overseer enabled Kay to find that a completely different enemy had accosted him.

It was a 120 meter tall giant emperor.

A/N: Say, do you guys think that if a zergling bit a lemon, they would develop big kissy lips? '3'