[You Interviewing Amalie]
"Death by a thousand, tiny, insignificant cuts… have ever you wondered what it would be like to die in such a manner?" She hissed as she toyed with her plasma pistol, using a solitary finger to spin it on the table ever so slightly. "A tiny cut, it cannot kill you, a moment of pain yes but death… perish the thought. But that… is how it kills you; you 'perish'… the thought alone that a tiny cut one would take, would lead you to your grave. Ooooh perish the thought…"
She smiled sadly as she stopped spinning the pistol, staring at the barrel pointing directly at her, before twirling it again with a solitary finger.
"I never thought that any singular wound would finish me, end my life, deliver me to the void… whatever end awaits my life." She hissed again, watching as her finger toyed with the weapon. "Why should I, it never bothered me before, I have been wounded before, injured many a time. I have always recovered, always regained my strength."
She sighed as she looked up at you with weary, saddened, heavy lidded eyes.
"The one thing that kept me going, despite the thousand cuts I continued to receive, is my fire for revenge, and my affection for him. I would endure a thousand cuts, again and again, any time for him. Because what the Elders failed to understand, was that my… love… funny word… for him is greater than my fear of them and whatever torture they may put upon me. The only thing I 'truly' fear…" She hissed with a glare. "Is dying before him."
= Chapter 15, Scars of the Viper =
(Amalie's PoV)
She breathed heavily as she clutched the blanket and laid in the bed that was given to her, but she did not sleep, not a wink. Across from her, separated by plasma beams to provide each other vision of the other occupant of the cell as well as permit them to talk to one another. Yet that did not mean they could communicate or plan any sort of resistance or escape from their prison.
No, they were monitored and watched over every second of every minute by the hour, both by patrolling Advent Troopers, and security cameras both in and outside of their cells. The hum of plasma fields and beams was the only consistent sound that she could hear, with the occasional march of a patrolling Trooper to break up the monotony that was their prison. The smell of metal and recycled/circulated air, as well as refrigerated cooling air filled her nostrils as she tried to find rest, regain strength, any strength she could for the next day.
The next day's torture.
Across from her she heard the quiet sobs of Agent Puppy, her fellow XCOM captive, captured alongside her, but her captors weren't interested in her, not one iota of her, body or mind. Puppy was useless as anything else besides a captive, but they tortured her nonetheless, yet compared to what she had to endure Puppy's was practically little more than regulated interviews. Puppy was scared for her life, she was still young for a human, terrified for her life, and now in enemy hands her only means of surviving was cooperating and answering as little as possible to keep herself valuable enough to remain alive. Too much information or too little and she would be executed, or worse… but again, what Puppy endured was trivial compared to her.
No, Amalie was forced to endure far worse, far worse than what that little human could ever endure, because she was a 'special' prisoner. She shivered again, and tightened her blanket, hiding beneath her blankets and curled up her body as tightly as possible. All of this to preserve as much heat as she could, because unlike the humans, Vipers could not regulate their body temperature as easily. So, the cool air that was regulated into the corridors, the rooms, the cells, everywhere was torture to her. She struggled just to stay awake when she needed to, and she was unable to sleep when she was so desperate for it.
That alone was torture enough, after three days being kept in these conditions, she was ready to give in and just tell them whatever they wanted to hear if they would but simply raise the temperature a few degrees for her. But she refused…
Beneath her eyelids her eyes shifted as she fought against the cold the only way she knew how, going to her… what was it called again, some fantasy place she once read about while she was a spy still?
'Underland… no it couldn't be Underland… Funderland? Thunderland? Uhm… hentailand? No that doesn't sound right… what was the title of that book called, Alice in Somethingland?'
Whatever it was she pretended and imagined being in her own little pretend paradise, where she relaxed bathing in the warm sunlight of a hot summer's day. She was sitting on a reclined chair, gently cradling several eggs in her arms that she was slowly stroking lovingly as she felt their softness against her scaly hand. Beneath her fingers she could feel them squirming inside of their shells, her children, her young, the beautiful creatures she'd brought into this world at long last.
She sighed as she gently, carefully, lovingly separated one of them from the others in the clutch and smiled while nuzzling it. At long last her new home was freed, the wars were over, peace had been achieved, at least for 'her', now all that mattered was she finally have the family she had been craving for years.
After she stopped nuzzling her egg, the 'first' egg she'd had, all she could do was feel a warm bubbly sensation that kept growing warmer and warmer as she knew she couldn't 'wait' for them to hatch. As Hierarch Mother of the Vipers, she got first dibs when it came to breeding the next generation of the Vipers. Her chosen, who else but her friend, the former Commander of XCOM, her beloved…
She snickered as she shook her head, what did it matter if she mentioned his name out loud. Her friend was her friend… well not anymore, as she softly rubbed the eggs in her clutch. He was no longer her friend, he was her Hierarch Father, the 'father' of her children now, and she couldn't wait to see her young with him.
"Thinking about seeing our family again without me?"
Her heart leapt as she heard his voice, and turned to look into his face and see his-
*Pschhhht*
"Karemeneeshdoosh!" A Trooper yelled, breaking her from her fantasy, and bringing her back to quite literally, her cold reality. "Sheestoosh, horast sheesh!"
She slowly rose and glared silently at her captor, the Advent Trooper once again, woke her from her fantasy world. Well so be it, get on with the day's torture. She smiled sadistically as she rose and was forcefully dragged forward. They could try to break her, try to force information from her, but nothing was going to work on her, she knew that… and they knew that.
It knew that.
She was shoved into a room many minutes later, and she was then forcefully pushed facing down onto a cold steel table which clamped down on her arms, her wrists, her torso, and especially her tail, locking her in place so that she could not move, and she felt the cold stinging every inch of her body. She shivered, looking around as rapidly as she could for her captor, the one who was so sadistic in torturing her in this manner. A solitary light was shined down on her from behind, not so blind her, oh no, they wanted her to see clearly. In fact, they wanted her to see the air conditioning unit that was steadily releasing cold air, the source of her discomfort and the tireless torturer that haunted her day and night.
[Such a 'cozy' position you have right now…] A sadistic mechanical voice whispered from the shadow of her vision. [You know I really envy you; I really do…]
Slowly it floated into her vision, a low hovering heavily armored tank that looked upon her with a singular optical light that was visible only because of her close proximity to it. What dominated it was the long-ranged rotary plasma cannon jutting out from its central body armor. D.L. Infinity, one of many copies. Was it the original, the primary body, or just another copy? Did it even have an original, was there ever an original, did it have a primary body that it protected using its endless copies that it seemed to have?
So many questions she asked herself as she was unable to respond, but she glared and hissed, wishing she could open her mouth even a little bit. Just enough, even a centimeter or two would be enough to spit bile and venom at it, anything to fight back…
[Enjoying your stay here?] It asked maniacally as it floated around her, constantly watching her, observing her sneering reaction. [Hohoho, I so hope you enjoy my hospitality; you know I chose these conditions for you and that brat, only the finest for my… 'guests'.]
She snarled as she shivered, trying to cling to consciousness and stay as alert as possible, she needed every iota of sense and willpower to keep from giving in.
[So, let's get today's 'conversation' started… tell me, what weaknesses does the Commander's 'new' body currently have? How long can it remain active, or is he back in his real body now?]
She snarled as she thought why he even bothered asking, how was she even to respond, her mouth was clamped shut, she couldn't even open it enough to slip her tongue out!
D.L. Infinity rotated back into her vision, and she watched as it moved closer, as if to stare directly into her eyes.
[Mhmmmm not talking… I love the strong 'silent' types… so delectable and sooo wonderful to talk to. They make such lovely conversationalists!] It cackled as its cannon rotated and an electric shocking rod replaced it. [In fact, they make such lovely conversationalists that I can't help but want to surprise them with how STIMULATING I CAN BE!]
She wanted to scream as the shocking rod prodded her body at an angle so that it hit her softer underside scales, directly near the neck. All she could do was moan in agony, every atom in her body screamed in pain, electricity wracked her senses and her nerves cried out in pain. All the while she writhed and squirmed, trying desperately to alleviate her pain however possible, she fought against her bindings and cried both internally and externally, through her silenced mouth and eyes as tears ran down her face from the pain. D.L Infinity cackled and laughed at her misery and pain, pushing the rod harder and causing her to burn and smolder, even as she cried and begged to whatever higher force existed if there was one for relief and saving, she could 'smell' the scent of burning scale-flesh.
Just when she thought she would faint, which would be a blessing now, or even die from the sheer pain, D.L. Infinity pulled it back and she breathed fast, in and out, trying to gasp for air. Again, her body was scarred… again, another scar, every day he scarred her, every day was pain, endless pain, unending agony…
'Beloved… where are you… 'Father'…' She thought with despair, the only thing keeping her going was that she 'knew' her friend would not abandon her, he'd save her, he'd find her.
[Wow that really WAS stimulating… for me at least!] D.L. Infinity cackled. [Not sure about you, you know, the whole 'silent but deadly' type. It doesn't really suit you given the position we're in.]
She tried to glare back, tried to resist however she could, but it was hard to win a staring contest when your enemy had no facial features to look at.
[Why do we have to do this every day, just tell me what I want to know…] It asked almost politely, 'almost'. [Oh wait… you 'can't' can you… of course how silly of me, your little mouth is clamped shut! Well since that is there, I guess we can conclude our conversation we were having, and it was oh so stimulating!]
She hissed in defiance, trying her very best to snarl, to reveal a fang in defiance.
[You know… Amalie, Hierarch Mother of the Vipers, the Elders were fully aware of your rebellion from the start. Oh yes, you did quite the number on us when it happened, but the Elders did not care if you rebelled or not, you see it's all over! This planet is 'theirs', humanity is 'theirs', you cannot win this war anymore. Your pathetic little resistance was finished before it ever had a chance to begin.] It stated. [Look at you, you had such a high position, all you had to do was play along, play your role, serve the Elders, and your species could have continued as normal. Instead, you chose to rebel, to resist the will of the Elders, and look where that has gotten you.]
It circled her, tauntingly, watching her every second as she remained tense and alert, waiting for the moment when it would resume torturing her body.
[Trapped here, away from your many daughters, your many sons, in this wonderful place mind you, but still… away from them. You don't know what is going on out there, you don't know if we've won, if XCOM has fallen or not, you don't know because we haven't told you anything. Mhmhmhm, then again perhaps that's for the best, oooh yes it probably is.]
It returned to her field of vision and instead of the shocking rod a metallic claw now inched forward and grasped at her mouth. She hissed furiously, the only show of resistance she could show.
How dare this AI touch her body?
[Perhaps it's for the best you don't know… yes… live blissfully ignorant, believe that your saviors are coming to find you. Believe they're going to find you, yes go ahead, keep resisting, defiantly, tell yourself even as you scream in agony, an inch from death, that if you last another day, another hour, one more precious minute that someone out there will come and rescue you. For all you know, and only I'd' know, XCOM has been crushed, their little carrier, that mobile base of theirs… has been wiped out, shot out of the sky, a smoldering wreckage, its valiant soldiers lying dead from countless wounds, those who survived being executed even as I speak… and your precious Commander.] D.L. Infinity whispered sadistically as it inched ever closer. [You're precious Commander, is once again in the welcoming embrace of the Elders. Perhaps it's for the best… that you don't know, so go ahead, be blissfully aware of what's beyond these walls, go ahead… hope. Hope that you will be rescued…]
It laughed as it retracted the claw, leaving her to cry pathetically as it spoke those words, unable to reply verbally, unable to respond visibly beyond what her eyes could portray. Forced to listen to these words. 'It's a lie, he's lying, he will come for me, he will come for me… he will come for me… he will come for you, he will not forsake you, he will not abandon you!'
[Yes, go ahead, go ahead, plea to yourself, beg, reassure yourself, go right ahead!] It cackled to her face. [Let yourself believe that all will be well, let yourself 'think' that… in the meantime!]
It replaced the claw with the electric rod, and her eyes widened in fear as it began charging up.
'He will come for you, he will come for me, he will not abandon me, he will not forsake me…'
[Let's resume having our love, one sided, CONVERSATION!]
She braced herself for the pain, as D.L. Infinity once again jabbed her body, this time in a softer part of her body, just off to the side of where her breasts, a very soft collection of scales that were extremely sensitive to touch, or in this case… pain. Her muscles tensed, her eyes clenched, she breathed rapidly, but nothing could prepare her for the excruciating pain that came when he jabbed her, laughing as she writhed once again in agony, and could smell as her body was burned by the shock.
Unable to scream…
Unable to move…
Only able to moan in loud agony as she begged for it to end.
The cold would not let her sleep, but it would not let her remain alert. The pain kept her senses and nerves active, and every second was agony.
This was how it had been for the past several days, as time began to blur and pass, with D.L. Infinity pretending to interrogate her, asking her questions about the resistance, about the rebels, about the Commander… and when she refused because she was both bound and because she would not surrender any knowledge… she was tortured for countless time periods.
They kept her alive, but only so the torture could resume.
Each day was a new torture method, one day she was jabbed by needles filled with chemicals that burned her on the insides yet caused no more harm than that. Another she was constantly submerged in cold water and threatened to be drowned, only to be pulled out... so that she could repeat the process.
How much time passed, she actually wasn't sure, she was just told it was another day… but now she began believing that was a lie. For all she knew, she was there for weeks, and each time she was tortured, she could only hope that she would have the strength to resist, to keep going, to not give in.
So, when at long last, D.L. Infinity had had his fun with electrocuting her, she was dragged back to her cell, where some food and drink was awaiting her. She ate it, not caring if it was poisoned or drugged… and then curled up on the bed, curled under the blankets, hiding from sight, anything… anything to avoid the world beyond her cell.
At some point she heard Puppy shoved into the cell next door, and she peaked to see the young human crying, sporting a black eye, breathing heavily, trying to look brave. But like Amalie, it was a façade, she was being broken inside. The only thing that gave the Viper some confidence that she was superior to this young one, was that Puppy only had a black eye that she could see.
So once more, she slipped into her fantasy world, to hide, to cower, to escape…
She went back to her youthful stage, when she was here on this planet as a spy, when she was with her childhood friend. It was a bright warm summer's day, and she had used her special mind control device to convince his parents to buy them something referred to as 'Pizza', a Deep-Dish Pizza with Cheese, whatever that was.
At first when she ate it, she figured it was… disgusting, it was so slimy and… gooey, and it had a crusty side and bottom and each bite she felt all 'greasy', especially her hands. But after a few bites, much like how she came to like a drink called 'Root Bear', the more she ate the pizza, the more she began to like it. She liked eating it as she and her friend watched some of their favorite cartoons on tv. When they didn't watch cartoons, she and he would watch game shows, or even play video games, sometimes they even played board games…
Oh, how she loved those times, those days when she could lie next to him on their stomachs and just gaze lazily on the screen and let it do all the work to entertain them. When they were both dulled by mindless tv, they would go to bed when it was late, and she would use her friend's naivety to cuddle with him. Though he was young she was already interested in being intimate with him. He may have been ignorant… but one night, she was sorely unable to resist her silent desire any longer, and so when he slept, she leaned closer to his lips and-
"Teeshmotash!" A voice called out, snapping her out of her fantasy world once again. "Keepesh moreno, horek eetesh!"
She opened her eyes and glared at the Advent Trooper, once again… back to reality.
Back to her next torture session she went, dragged by force, pushed down cold corridors, into a room where she was forced upon a table face down, and clamped down to restrict her movement.
Then she was left alone with her captor, once more, who floated into her vision range.
D.L. Infinity.
[So, feeling up to talking today?]
She only glared back and hissed in frustration.
[Mhmmm still the silent type I see, I love it when a lady resists to the bitter end~!] They spoke. [Tell me, what is it that drives you to resist me so? For a Viper, even the Hierarch Mother of the species, you have endured quite a bit of pain over the… oh I almost spilled the beans over how long you were 'actually' my guest.]
She remained silent, both because she would never submit to interrogation, and because her mouth was still clamped shut.
[What could possibly drive you to keep resisting, to keep fighting back… you know all it would take is a few words, just tell me what I want to know, and your situation will be oh so much better…] It said as it began floating around her again. [Alright let's begin our interrogation session for today. I'll give you five words, any more than that and you get a little jolt.]
She heard from behind her the sound of electricity crackling and squinted as she knew where he was going to shock her today.
[Now, the Commander, does he have his real body yet?]
The clamp around her mouth released so she could talk, but her head was still held down, so she could only open her mouth enough to respond.
"I'll… never… tell you… you monster!"
Her mouth was clamped shut right afterwards.
[ERRRRRG, that was SIX words, you know what that means!] D.L. Infinity said gleefully. [Time to see if what your species biology says about you is true, tell me how sensitive is 'this' part of you!]
She began breathing rapidly and tried to scream in agony as the lower part of her tail was shocked with who knows how much voltage was streaming through that shocking rod of him. All she knew, was that she was begging to be killed the longer it went, her tail was extremely sensitive to touch, since their tails was how they moved around they had to be.
So, when she was shocked there her body screamed in agony, this was pain beyond what she was expecting.
But endure it she did, it was all she could do.
After a while, how long she didn't know, but after a period of time, D.L. Infinity retracted the rod and ended her misery. She breathed deeply, her heart beating rapidly and in excruciating pain, while her mind processed how much pain was done to her, and she had to cope with yet 'another' blemish upon her body.
Another scar, to go with the others.
[You are really hard to convince to cooperate, don't you know defiance is only going to make this last longer?] D.L. Infinity asked sarcastically as it rotated around to her field of view. [Of course, I don't mind, since I'm the one who caught you, I get to decide how interrogation is handled… the others would have been 'gentle' to get you to explain everything you know, but not me. You scored the golden ticket with me, aren't you special!]
She struggled to keep her eyelids open, trying to glare back with all the fury and anger she could visually muster, but right now most of her body was trying to recover from the pain she'd just endured.
[Well then let's keep going shall we, question 2, what weakness does the Commander have that we aren't already aware of? Seven words or less now…]
Her mouth was unclamped, and she used the chance to gasp for air.
"I will… never… tell you… a thing… bastard!" She hissed venomously.
Instantly her mouth was clamped shut and D.L. Infinity began gleefully laughing. [EEEEEEEEEEG, penalty, that was 'eight' words! Technically it was six, but I'm counting the 'a' and the 'I' as two of your allotted words, you know what that means… Penalty Time!]
She breathed rapidly as the electrocution rod was pushed forward and she was now shocked, this time on the neck, causing her to writhe in pain and agony once again, smelling the stench of burning scaled-flesh the longer it stayed there.
After a while her eyes were on the verge of popping out, the sheer pain was incredible, how she was still conscious she wasn't sure, but still… she endured, long enough for her captor to relent.
She was barely awake, barely sentient as she stared at her captor, laughing as she lay there in pain and suffering, her body scarred and desperate for escape, for release, anything to avoid any further agony. Why was this machine, this AI so fixated on causing her suffering, the last shred of cognitive thinking began questioning that line of reasoning? So far, his torture sessions, his interrogations, whatever word one would describe them, he rarely cared what her answer was, he tortured her regardless. He made no remark about her answers, he just took delight in torturing her.
[Alright next question… the Commander of the XCOM forces, why was he so willing to let you die for so long, but then so suddenly, come to your rescue? Five words or less please.]
The clamps released, and she tried her hardest to steady her breathing, to steady her heart, keep her body stable for the foreseeable future. She stared into the tank's cold glaring light, knowing no matter what she answered would result in further pain.
'Because he loves me moron…' She thought apathetically, tempted to tell the machine that, but she refused… revealing any information might lead to her friend's defeat.
So instead, she chose to respond with another set of five words… ones that were the truth and fit the criteria her captor had set before her, even if nothing she said mattered.
"He… will… come for… me!" She hissed back.
The clamp was slower this time to bind her mouth shut but shut her mouth it did.
[The Commander, come for you…] D.L. Infinity asked, almost sarcastically. [The Commander… come for you? He'll come to rescue you, you say. Oh, you traitorous snake…]
She watched it hover closer, the electric rod sparking with power, and once again she braced herself for pain.
[Honey… I'm… COUNTING ON IT!]
'HNgaaaaaaaaaaaaah' She screamed in her mind as she was electrocuted once again.
(Commander's PoV)
He stared at the report handed to him by Outrider, and examined every word, every photo, everything about it.
[Based on a percentage, how sure of you that this is where they are being held?]
"Ninety Nine percent sure Commander." She replied.
He read the data once again, only one percent off from a hundred, but that was all he needed. He tuned into the communications grid and patched into the command center so he could talk to Central.
[Take us there Central! We're going in after them!]
With that order given, and the Avenger now flying, he turned to his room and looked at the table near the bed. There sat a plate that was empty, an empty glass with a bottle of wine that sat buried in half-melted ice. Nearby lay several other buckets that were empty, but they still carried minor droplets of water. The viewscreen off to the side was off but there sat a movie waiting to be inserted and played… their personal favorite, one they enjoyed watching during that one summer's break.
[Amalie… hold on… I'm coming for you…] He muttered. [I've lost enough in this world because of this war… if there's one thing, I won't lose however… it's you…]
He stared at the bed where she often slept, his bed, often cuddling his Gremlin frame close to her despite his annoyance, where she also strip teased him and toyed with his male-mindset, causing him to complain and yell at her. He then glanced over to where the bathroom was, where she often teased him more when he told her to wait in there while he communicated with The Council Spokesman in private, and upon concluding his talks she would rush out and snuggle him against her nude form, resulting in him smacking her over the head to get her to let go.
Right now, he wished she would do that again… because it meant she was with him again.
[Amalie… you have no idea how often I looked to the stars, thinking of you, waiting for you, hoping you would come back to me.] He whispered as he placed his solitary claw on her favorite spot of the bed. [The stars separated us, but my mind was always drawn to you, I knew every day you were out there, waiting to come back to me, and I was down here waiting for you to return to me.]
He floated away from the bed and over to a shelf unit, and there he pulled out a draw where, sitting in the middle was a small box. He opened it and stared at… a small ring, with a golden snake coiled around silver heart.
[I'm coming for you my friend… I'm coming… just wait a little longer for me.]
With that he closed the box, closed the draw, and went back to his desk to work.
(Amalie's PoV)
It was… how many days have passed? She didn't know, all she knew was that she had endured so much pain, so much agony, her body was again dragged forward, toward her next torture session. Puppy had gone silent, but for other reasons. The young XCOM agent had finally spilled secrets, secrets that… didn't matter anymore. It was outdated and useless information that their captor did not care about, and so she was given the distinct honor of knowing that her fate now was tied to the Hierarch Mother's.
If Amalie broke, then they would both suffer a great torture, or at least a very painful death. Puppy had been broken, and so spent hours upon hours silently crying, unable to fight back and punished if she tried.
Amalie, however, was not broken… 'yet'.
But the cracks were starting to show, she was dragged with a limp, unable to muster any strength to hold herself up, any semblance of 'interrogation' that D.L. Infinity kept up as a façade had all but vanished. His true intentions had been revealed after a while, he was not interested in getting intelligence from her, nor was he interested in using her as a puppet or a tool against the Commander.
No, instead the AI general was only interested in torturing her, causing her as much pain, pulling her an inch into death's embrace before shoving her back out. He just wanted to see how much she could suffer, endure, before she finally 'begged' for mercy, whatever mercy that was.
Before she finally cracked under his gaze.
Today however, or at least this torture session, was a different type of torture, as she felt herself being clamped down but was staring at a viewscreen. Yet what didn't change was D.L. Infinity slowly coming into vision and floating in front of her.
She noted there was no electrocution rod, no weapons, nothing today from the AI, instead a simple remote.
[Mhmmm you know, I just realized today I haven't entertained you as my guest, how silly of me, oh how pathetic of me, oh please forgive me my beloved guest of my most humble abode…] It said sadistically. [Don't worry, I won't hurt you today, no I don't want to hurt a scale on your pretty body.]
She highly doubted that, what torture was she to endure today?
[Tell me what kind of movies do you like to watch, surely during your time serving on the Advent High Council you enjoyed some entertainment? I think I recall some of your profile specs saying that you enjoyed watching traitors and enemies to the Advent Coalition, and especially the Elders, suffer and die…]
She narrowed her eyes as she heard those words, it was true she did that, but it was only to keep up the image while she was working as a double agent for her friend.
[Mmmm I think we have a winner, well let's tune in to my favorite show, it's about to start!]
She watched as her captor flicked the remote and the viewscreen turned on, and she watched as it showed one of her daughters, not one of her natural daughters, beat up and whimpering as she lay curled on the floor.
[Greetings one and all, coming to you live from some random cell somewhere in the world, and today's Super Star of the show is going to be Viper… eh forget it I don't remember her name, but what I do remember, is that she is a SPY!] A digital voice declared, a copy of D.L. Infinity.
[Oh, I love this show!] D.L. Infinity cackled.
[That's right folks, you at home now can watch how 'Spies' are dealt with in D.L. Infinity's area of operations, not only that, thanks to super advanced Advent Technology, we can now communicate here on the Super Star show and with you the viewers at home, so to our lovely star, give a big smile and a thumbs up to your very own Hierarch Mother!]
"M… mother, is… are you?" Her daughter asked pitifully.
Amalie went wide eyed as she knew her daughter was calling for her, she even knew her name now that she had a better look, it was Tereshta, last daughter from a clutch of eggs that she watched over during her early years as Hierarch Mother. Her sisters had died due to Elder experiments, and insurgent bullets. Despite her wishes, Tereshta had volunteered to remain as a spy in an Advent City to help serve the cause of freeing her fellow Vipers and the humans.
She tried to speak, to talk to her, to help her somehow, but her mouth was bound.
[Ooooh would you look at that, poor Viper guest, it seems the Hierarch Mother seems to be unable to speak at this time, probably by force, but worry not, we 'know' she's watching us, because I'm watching her while watching you at the same time!]
[Oh, here comes my favorite part!]
"Mother… mother… please… say something…"
[The punishment of traitors and spies to the Elders, does this Super Star have any last words before we commit her sentence?]
"N… no… you will… we will succeed, we'll be free!" Tereshta hissed defiantly, despite the fear in her voice. "Mother… don't give up… don't worry, I'll be fine, they don't know about any of the others!"
[For now, at least… now let's see, spin the wheel round and round!] A holographic wheel began spinning. [Round and round it goes, where it stops, well only I can know, round and around it goes, as it stops then we'll know~!]
She watched in horror as the wheel stopped and landed on a space, but what truly made it horrifying was that all of the spaces had the same exact wording, so no matter what her fate was decided.
[Ohhhh, Death by Cryssalid and her body used to spawn eggs! I love that one!]
[And to carry out her sentence, let's see what's behind door number 1]
She watched as a door raised behind her daughter, and her daughter looked behind her to see several glowing eyes in the dark. Amalie could do nothing but whimper and cry as she was forced watch her beloved daughter die in the most horrible way imaginable. How she wanted to plead with them to just shoot her, kill her, spare her that terrible, terrible fate. She silently begged them to spare her daughter, willing to endure any torture if they would just kill that Viper swiftly instead of what would come next.
Alas, they did not let her mouth speak.
[Dinner tiiiiiiime~!]
Instantly several Chryssalids rushed forward, their glowing eyes and spiky bodies rushing over to the Viper who screamed and tried to fight, but her screams of agony were all that could be heard. Try as Amalie might, as much as she wanted, she could not tear away her eyes from the sight of Tereshta being eaten alive, and even worse… her corpse being used carry their offspring.
"MOTHAA GAHA HAGAAAAAAAAA HGAHAAAAA!"
She cried tears of sadness, and rage.
She knew this was going to happen, she knew the risks, she knew everything that was going to happen to her daughters when she went down this path of revenge and freedom. But still… to see one of her daughters, no matter how low on the chain they are… it was revolting, it was soul crushing.
She was limp in her restraints, as she watched and heard as her daughter was eaten and… she couldn't take it anymore.
[Well, wasn't that fun!] D.L. Infinity cackled as the screen shut off. [And the best part is, this will happen if we ever catch any more spies in 'my' territory, aren't you fortunate? You can have a front row seat to every Super Star show! Free of charge!]
She was quiet, she just cried, she ignored him, didn't care as she was quietly dragged back to her cell.
She just laid in her bed, ignoring everything around her, even Puppy next door.
"Hey… uhm… are you… are you alright?"
She looked over and shook her head, before turning away and crying silently, before moping and sobbing as she kept imagining Tereshta's terrified face, moments before she was…
No, she was not alright.
'Friend… my friend… where are you?' She whimpered.
And so it was, so it was, for however long it went, the same monotonous routine of Amalie trying to hide and escape their situation by hiding in her fantasy world in her mind, being rudely awakened, brought to a room to be tortured, dragged back to her cell, and then repeated the process.
Sometimes she was electrocuted, others she was jabbed with needles, and some others she was… she didn't remember those times, but she was tortured, nonetheless.
She endured, she endured… oh how she endured, out of a vain hope that her friend was going to rescue her, to save her and Puppy, free them from this torture.
After a while, she didn't know how long that was, she found herself staring at the wall of her cell, and she saw the funniest of scenes. It was a weed, it was a funny thing, this little green plant thing, poking through the wall. Funny how nature on this planet works, no matter how much they tame it, nature finds a way to fight back in some way. Take that weed for example, it was poking through the wall, why was it poking through it?
Heck if she knew, but she tentatively imagined if it was there, then she could tug on it. If only she had the energy to lift her arm, she could pull on it, and then she could pull on it, pull the wall down and… break free?
She imagined that, breaking free, breaking out all on her own, going back to her beloved friend and telling him the story, oh the stories she'd share with him when they met again. He still owed her that dinner date, movie with a drink. She had to watch her intake though, she didn't want to get too tipsy, she still had to keep herself ready for when that time happened. What about the steak though, eh she could eat more, it was dinner, she'd indulge?
She blinked and… the weed was gone.
'Figures… it would be hallucination.' She thought bitterly. 'I can just imagine my friend… coming in that way, I can picture it now…'
Suddenly the wall where the weed had been blew up, covering both her cell and Puppy's cell, and light poured into the room.
'He'll blow up the wall… having perfectly calculated where we are so that he can extract both me and Puppy. Then one of his 'Land Sharks' will come in, reporting that they'd located both of us, and head over to pick up puppy!'
Right on cue, an older human male ran in and shouted, "Commander, I've located Puppy, and Amalie is here too!" before saying over their comm, "Understood sir, I'll take Puppy! Come on girl let's take you home!"
'And then, he'll float in with one of his operatives… probably one of my daughters, most likely it will be Bellona.'
As if her delusions wanted to prove her right, Bellona rolled in and right after, a Gremlin floated in and directly over to her. She looked up at it and smirked tiredly.
'And then… you'll say… something to me… along the lines of… oh, 'Amalie, can you hear me'.'
The Gremlin floated closer to look at her, optic to eye, and a claw gently extended and touched her cheek.
[Amalie… can you hear me?]
But she wouldn't believe it was him yet, not until she whispered… "Do I… still have dibs… on your morning wood?"
And his reply would surprise her, that was how she knew it wasn't a delusion.
[Only if I get to pop your cherry.] He whispered warmly.
She smiled happily. "I knew… you'd come… for me" She whispered tiredly.
(Commander's PoV)
He stroked her cheek lovingly, knowing she was alright now, knowing she was alive and now he had her back again. At least for now, it wasn't a successful rescue until both Amalie and Puppy were extracted.
[Course I'd come for you, like I'd find another girlfriend like 'you' out there in the world? Nobody gets to touch you except me!] He chuckled as he signaled Bellona to pick up her Hierarch Mother, and Eagleeye ran out carrying Puppy over her shoulder.
"Grandpa… I want a beer…" Puppy moaned as she tried to stay conscious.
"When we get back maybe, but till then I got you girl!"
"I have the Mother, Father, let's go!" Bellona declared as she and Eagleeye ran out and began climbing the nearby cliff.
He nodded and floated up while alarms began blaring and guards started storming out.
"Keeposhtaaaaaaaah-" An Advent Captain screamed in agony before they got shot in the cranium from an unseen rifle, a rifle belonging to Outrider.
"That one's from the Reapers!"
[SHIV, provide covering fire!] He ordered. [Outrider get out of there, move to grid T-6, Eagleeye to grid Q-5, Bellona to P-9!]
[Got it commander, firing main cannons!] Shiv declared excitedly.
From SHIV's position overlooking the pickup zone a barrage of plasma fire erupted as it laid down suppression fire. An Advent Trooper tried to storm out to chase after the escaping prisoners and their escorts but was gunned down by SHIV as it wailed into them. Any further Advent forces were stifled as SHIV resumed suppression fire.
"Commander, we have a UFO on approach, time is running out, head for the EVAC zone!" Central said over the coms.
[10-4 Central, alright everyone make your way to t he EVAC zone, Outrider to U-7, Bellona to U-6, Eagleeye to U-8!]
"Understood, moving out!"
"Going as fast as I can…"
"As you wish my Father…"
They made their way to the EVAC zone, and right as they did his vision was overridden as something tugged at him to look across the field.
Then over a dozen mobile heavy weapons tanks appeared, all of them D.L. Infinity copies.
[How easy it is to slaughter you all one by one…] D.L. Infinity and all of its duplicates said.
= AI: D.L. Infinity, Advent Numerical Commander Heavy Tank =
= Strengths: Varied Weapon Types, Heavy Armor Plating, Multiple Tank Bodies, Multi-PoV perspectives, Cloaking Technology, (New) Rapid Teleportation Deployment. =
= Weaknesses: unstable Personality, Shared Pain Backlash, Prone to Taunting, Cannot Climb Ladders =
[Now that you're here, you're not getting away from me!] He yelled menacingly as all of the duplicates separated and cloaked.
He meanwhile knew what Amalie must have endured to carry all of those scars and burns and other injuries he'd glimpsed. It also sickened him to know that her captor had been the one who inflicted them.
[As much as I would like to even the score… I don't have time to waste on you! SHIV, engage flight mode!]
[Engaging flight mode, weeeeee!] SHIV activated its hover pads and flew upward into the sky.
He then tapped into SHIV's optical systems, and accessed its new electrical optical visual detection system, a new upgrade that Shen was hard at work at. But that wasn't the only tool she designed for him.
[I see, he's split his duplicates into teams of two, six squads, for a total of twelve copies that I need to take down, but I don't need to take them down all at once. I just need to focus 'one'.] He declared as SHIV zeroed in on the cloaked signature of the nearest copy. [Now let's see if Shen's new toy works, SHIV, fire on F-3, use your EMP Rocket!]
[Loading missile now… firing in 3… 2… 1… firing main cannon!]
SHIV launched a small rocket and it landed directly on the cloaked unit.
[Gblblgrrrgglbblblbgaahaaaaaaar!] They all screamed in unison.
He smirked as he gave SHIV the order to land in the EVAC zone, right as the Skyranger arrived to pick them all up. Thanks to the memory core his team recovered from D.L. Infinity, they learned the psionic frequency at which all of the tanks shared their unique perspectives and abilities. It also exposed a very special weakness that his SHIV now exploited to the fullest extent.
Tygan's research team theorized that an EMP discharge at the right strength, directly on top of the AI general's tank body would cause a residual shock wave that affected the others, at least temporarily. In other words, one EMP discharge from SHIV's rocket that it just launched, disabled all of the D.L. Infinity tank copies.
[Brgllgalg I'll gragraeeeet… youagnruruuuu for thihsgrssss!] D.L. Infinity screamed in rage.
[Not today sadly…] He countered as all of his operatives were pulled up into the safety of the Skyranger, with the last one being SHIV who was pulled up via a magnet attached to a rope. [Pilot, we're all aboard! Take us home!]
"We're comin home captain, roll out the red carpet cause the boys are back in town!"
He sat in the nearby seat as he waited for their trip back to the Avenger to end, all that he'd done was worth it… the last few weeks had been difficult on him, but he had done what he'd promised to do, save Amalie and Puppy. The Vipers had almost left the resistance upon the capture of their Hierarch Mother, and it had taken all of his strength and determination to keep them in. They'd listened to him, since he was named 'Hierarch Father', and as such they trusted him to rescue her.
So, he'd spent the last few weeks gathering any and all intel that he could to find the prison containing Amalie and Puppy. Once he'd located it, he'd sent in Outrider to scout out the building, and from there confirmed she was in fact there.
Then, he took his operatives onto the mission of saving their lives. Though it had taken him over two weeks to save Amalie and Puppy, they were now back and heading home.
[Central, mission accomplished, inform the Vipers that their Hierarch Mother has been recovered and will now safely be aboard the Avenger in a short time.]
"Got it Commander."
Hours later, after he'd made his report to the Council, and after sleeping hours had started, he floated into the infirmary, where the medical officer on watch was overseeing Amalie's and Puppy's recovery.
Puppy had received many bruises and was suffering a cracked rib, a sprained leg, and other physical damages to her body. She was currently asleep and recovering in a full bio-bed.
Amalie was also recovering from her own set of injuries, but she'd requested to be put in 'later', as she wanted to see him again before going to sleep.
[I'd like some privacy please.] He told the medical officer, who nodded and walked out as he floated over to Amalie's exhausted form.
She smiled as he floated over to her, and wearily lifted her arm so that he could grasp her hand, injured and burned as it is. "What… took you so long… darling~?" She hissed.
[Paperwork, obviously…] He muttered. [I'm sorry for everything, you went through, I tried to find you as fast as possible but, I couldn't…]
She shook her head with a warm smile. "My friend… you still came… that's all that mattered."
He nodded as he never let go of her hand. [Amalie… I'm so sorry, what you must have endured…]
"Don't… tell me, we both know, what we must endure to save our species…" She hissed sadly. "They… what they did to me… is nothing compared… to never seeing you again."
He gripped her more tightly, [Some day we'll be free Amalie. Someday, we'll be free to be… to be together.]
She nodded as she leaned upward and closer, and he also floated closer to her, so that she could press her lips against his Gremlin body. He couldn't feel her lips, couldn't feel how warm they might be, or feel how hard she pressed them against him, but…
He could still feel her love for him through that kiss.
After a few moments, she pulled away with a smirk. "Say those words…"
[You really want me to say them?]
"Please, just this one time?" She hissed.
[Ugh… fine… but only because you asked me to say… I love you Amalie.]
She smiled happily as she reached up with her other arm, grasped his Gremlin body and pulled it into a hug against her chest. "About damn time, you stupid idiot… now I can stop calling you 'friend'." She hissed lovingly.
[Yes… but one thing doesn't change…] He muttered. [And that is WHY ARE YOU SLEEPING IN THE NUDE!?]
"What can I say, I like it better this way!" She laughed as she gripped him tighter so he couldn't escape. "Especially now that I've finally gotten you all to myself, you get to enjoy all of 'me' whenever you want!"
[You're supposed to be recovering, NOT TRYING TO GET ME IN YOUR TAIL!]
"Who says I can't do both?" She laughed back.
[Me you seductive snake! Now let me go, put some clothes on, and… wait when did you even find time to take them off without the medical officer noticing?]
"That is my secret to know and you to find out afterwards!" She hissed excitedly.
After a bit of play thrashing, he smacked her on the hood with a claw and muttered something about how she never changes, before turning to leave and return to his quarters. [Amalie, please put some clothes on and… hurry up and recover.]
She looked over with a wry smile as he turned to her, "Any particular reason why?"
[Because I still owe you that dinner date remember?"
Amalie nodded as she was left alone and began to put her clothes back on. She then gently lifted her tail to her mouth, looked back at the door before gently biting into her tail.
"Grgreeeeeg…" She moaned painfully as she confirmed that this was in fact, not a delusion.
She cried tears of pain as she put her tail back and tried relaxing into her bed.
