Here we go again. Honestly, there's not much to say this time. Except that it explains a thing or two about my other story. Full circle, I guess. So, with nothing else to say: Here you go.
Chapter 32
Old Grumpy
There were many questions regarding Rohana's fate. Why had she decided to leave Aiur after the Protoss had reclaimed it? What had she done in the meantime? How had she ended up and Zhakul, and more importantly: Why had she decided to offer her services to the Nerazim?
She had been, after all, the most devoted follower of the Khala. Even Selendis hadn't been this stubborn.
These were all good questions, but Artanis was too old and too tired to really wonder about any of them. This journey, while certainly entertaining and a nice change of sitting on the same old bench near the same old house on the same old hill that he had called home for the last two hundred or so years, was taking its toll on him and his old bones. Artanis was too proud to admit it in front of Paula Raynor or any of the Nerazim, but he really just wanted to sit down and close his eyes for a moment.
But his pride forbade him from asking for a rest.
"You look tired, maybe we should ask for a place where you can sit down?" Paula Raynor whispered as she leaned over to him.
"No, I'm fine." Artanis croaked. "I did not travel all this way just to sit down and have a rest. I could have stayed at home for that." His body was old, his muscles were failing him, but his pride kept him going. "Besides, I have some questions for Rohana. Like why she left, and why she ended up here." Selaria, the captain of the Nerazim guard, tilted her head to the side as she looked down at the smaller Protoss. Once Artanis had possessed an imposing figure. But age had taken its toll on Artanis' body, and now he was only slightly taller than an ordinary human. Granted, the reason for that was the fact that he was hunched forward. But he was no longer able to straighten his back anymore. Paula Raynor had once compared him to a turtle. And since he hadn't heard of a "turtle" ever before, he had asked for a picture.
After she had shown him one, he hadn't spoken to her for two months.
The insides of the temple were in a much better shape than what they had seen on the outside. And there was much less Xel'Naga-stuff lying around, which seemed to put Paula Raynor's mind at ease.
Actually, the architecture around him was very familiar to Artanis. You could even say that he felt as if he was back home.
"This temple has been rebuilt, has it not?" he asked.
"Yes." Selaria replied.
"Even though I have never been here, it feels as if I know this place. Whoever did this, they went to great lengths to make it look so...hmm, how shall I put it?"
"Conclave-ish?" Paula suggested.
"I do not think that this is a word, but yes. It does remind me of the architecture we had on Aiur, before the reunification."
"This place was rebuilt according to the wishes of the Grand Preserver. Part of her old self required a place that reminded her of her old home to focus and maintain balance." the Nerazim explained.
"Part of her old self? Maintaining balance?" Artanis growled. "What are you talking about. He noticed how Paula and Selaria exchanged knowing looks. "You two know something that I do not. There is no honor in keeping secrets from your elders!" he chastised them.
"Forgive us, Lord Artanis, but it is by the orders of the Grand Preserver herself that we are not allowed to talk about this to outsiders. You will see for yourself in a few moments." It was not what Artanis wanted to hear, but he understood the concept of personal honor perhaps better than anyone else, and he didn't want to make this young Nerazim have to break that oath just to please his curiosity.
Different standards, however, applied to Paula Raynor...
"You know the Grand Preserver." he said as they moved on. It was not a question.
"Yeah..." Paula whispered.
"And you decided that informing me was not necessary?" the old warrior grunted.
"I'm sorry, but I wasn't allowed to say anything either. The Grand Perserver demanded it. Otherwise, she wouldn't have helped us."
"Helped us? With what?" Artanis asked as they walked through a nearby gate.
"You can ask her that herself." Selaria explained as they entered a big round room. The Nerazim stopped, and so did Artanis and Paula. The room looked empty, there was only a bright blue light shining down from above. Still, the moment Artanis entered the room, he felt a familiar presence in the back of his mind, one that he hadn't felt in a very long time.
But something was off. It was as if this presence was...fading. And then becoming stronger again. There were other presences, yet Artanis recognized none of them.
"What is this? An empty room? Where is Rohana? I am old, darn it, I do not have time for sightseeing and a galactic treasure hunt! My bones are hurting and my back is killing me!" And that's when he heard her...
"Hierarch Artanis..." a voice, made out of many voices, suddenly spoke up. One of them sounded like that of Rohana. "...we recognize you." Only then Artanis realized that the voice was coming from above. He looked up, as much as his stiff neck allowed it, and squinted his eyes as he tried to look past the bright blue light. At first, he thought that he saw something moving, dancing around it. But then he finally recognized the light for what it truly was, and his eyes widened in surprise and shock.
"Rohana?"
"Well, it has been fun and all, but we have wasted enough time here." Sarah explained and turned towards her sisters. "Come on, Sisters, leads head back to the ship and get going. We still have to get back to Sternenheim and get Rose."
"Rose?" Evalonis asked.
"Our sister. It's complicated, don't ask." Sarah replied as all her sisters began to board the hover-loader that was standing nearby. "Let's just say that without her, we won't be complete."
"I..." Evalonis was about to say "...understand.", but then he realized that he had no idea what Sarah was talking about. "...wish you a safe journey then."
"Hmm...strong, mindful and well-mannered. How the heck did Paula actually land a catch like you?" Sarah mused. "Meh, whatever. Tell the prodigy that we hope that we won't see each other again for the next couple of...centuries."
"I will try." Evalonis replied dryly. He watched how Sarah turned around and slithered away to join her sisters. She wasn't the only one. Karax, who had just studied another obelisk made out of some onyx-like material, turned away from it and followed them.
"Are you leaving with them as well?" Evalonis wanted to know. The phase smith stopped and looked at him. Something was weird about this Protoss. Evalonis couldn't really put his finger on it, but somehow it felt as if Karax wasn't fully Protoss. At least not anymore. It was as if he had become something else...something more.
Eh, the young warrior was probably just overthinking things.
"I have to. Much work awaits me back on Sternenheim." Karax replied. "And while this...journey proved to be an interesting distraction, I still have an important task to complete." Right. Studying Ulnar. Paula had told Evalonis everything about it, even that she thought it was an impossible task, one that couldn't be completed by anyone.
"Well..." Evalonis mused when he thought about that. "...good luck." And so, he watched how Paula's unlikely travel companions prepared to leave. He had heard about Sternenheim, the world that Paula called her home, but had never been to that world. From what he had heard it had to be quite the paradise. And while "paradise" could mean something completely different to members of different species, what Paula had told him about Sternenheim made him at least curious.
Maybe one day he would see this place with his own eyes. Until then-
"Hold!" a loud voice suddenly barked. Everyone turned around, including Evalonis. A group of Nerazim was approaching. Warriors, specifically. Evalonis could tell by the way they moved. While they lacked the precision of Templar, they definitely knew the way of the warrior. Even though Evalonis felt no intention of challenging them, he still wondered if he could take them on. In singular combat he probably could have defeated them easily. Until he would wear out, of course. But if they would all gang upon him, he would probably end up defeated rather quickly.
"Is there a problem?" Evalonis asked. The other warrior stopped a few meters away and studied the larger Templar as if he was assessing how much of a threat Evalonis was. Judging from the body language of the Nerazim...apparently not much.
"That depends."
"Depends on what?" Sarah, who had turned around and slithered back to Evalonis and the Nerazim. "Listen, we do not want to stay here much longer. And I'm pretty certain that you don't want us to stick around either. So we're just on our merry way. How does that sound?"
"What about the others?" the guardian asked, suspicion filling his voice.
"Others?" Sarah asked and looked back at the hover-loader. "My sisters are all either right over there or still on board of the ship. There are not others and..." That's when she suddenly seemed to realize it. Evalonis watched how Sarah frowned, and then how she sighed and rubbed her temples. "...damn it, Paula, that's one of your side-gigs again, isn't it?" she whispered to herself.
"What?" Evalonis asked. Behind the Nerazim he noticed some more warriors approaching. They were leading a group of smaller beings out of the nearby jungle. Even from all that distance Evalonis could see that they were far too small to be Protoss. Yet they were walking on two legs. Which meant...
"Humans?" Evalonis wondered. "Where did they..." That's when he suddenly remembered the dropship that had arrived earlier. And what Paula had told them.
"They're not hostiles. They're here with us."
Paula's words.
"Ugh...should have thrown her out of the airlock when I had the chance." Sarah growled. "I knew it. I knew she would come up with something like that, playing her stupid games, pulling some annoying trick out of her butt without telling anyone. Oh, how glad will I be once we are going out separate ways." Man, she sure was in a foul mood.
"You will explain this. And then you will take them with you." the warrior told them.
"And if we can't?" Sarah wanted to know. She sounded more annoyed than scared.
"Then you will remain here until the Grand Preserver will decide what to do to you." the warrior replied. "But perhaps you recognize these humans. They look all the same to us." Evalonis and Sarah exchanged looks. It was clear to him that Sarah was not amused by any of this. But she wasn't interested in escalating this situation either.
"Fine..." she told them. The small group that was brought to them consisted of four humans, three men and one woman.
"What...is that?" the woman gasped as she spotted Sarah. The three other men had very different reactions. The skinniest one, who looked like some sort of scientist, was downright scared and tried to hide behind a man that looked as if someone had taken a dump on his breakfast.
"Great...even more freakish things to ruin my day..." you could hear him mutter. His reaction was somewhat surprising. However, it was nothing when compared to the reaction of the last man, a guy who looked like a washed-up pirate.
He was grinning.
Like an idiot.
When he spotted Sarah, he reacted in a way that seemed rather unusual for someone to see a giant zergish snake-lady.
"Haha! I don't believe it!" he laughed, sporting a weird accent. "How did you manage to get here so fast?"
"Excuse me?" Sarah asked. "Do I know you?" That's when this man walked straight up to her as he continued to smile.
"Oh, come on! It's been just a couple of days and you act as if we don't know each other? That's not very nice, Izsha!"
…
…
…
There was an awkward moment of silence. Evalonis noticed how Sarah's eyelid began to twitch. And that couldn't be a good sign. The Nerazim surrounding them seemed to be vindicated in their judgment. To them, it was clear that they all belonged together.
"What...did you call me?" Sarah growled.
"Aw, come on! Now don't act all distant and cold when your boss isn't around. I would accept this cold-shoulder-treatment" if we hadn't met again just a short while back! But even then, I'm pretty sure you wouldn't have forgotten good old Alexei! So, Izsha, where are the-" But before this "Stukov" could finish his sentence, Sarah slithered towards him, placed her hands on his shoulders and looked down on him.
"Dear Sir..." she cooed with a sweet voice. "...I don't know you. I don't know your name, or where you come from, I don't know why you are here and what do you want of me and my sisters-"
"Sisters?" the man called Alexei wondered and looked over Sarah's shoulders, only to spot all her sisters further back. His eyes widened in surprise. And confusion. "What the...?"
"...but I want to give you a fair warning, since we have never met and all..." Sarah continued and leaned down until their faces were only inches apart. "Never, EVER, call me by our mother's name. Fail to do so, and you will learn what it's like to live without any skin. Understood?"
The man seemed to be both impressed and amused at the same time, but not scared.
"Joke's on you, then. I do know what it's like to live without skin. For a very long time, actually."
"And was it fun?" Sarah asked back.
"No." Alexei admitted.
"Then I guess you don't want to go back to that, hmm?"
"...I see your point." Alexei admitted. "I was just...you know...Izsha and I used to work together. For Kerrigan. A long time ago. A really long time ago and-"
"Kerrigan?" Evalonis asked in surprise. "You know of her?" That's when the other man stepped forward.
"You know Kerrigan?" he hissed.
"Yes? You seem to do the same. Who are you? And what is she to you?" Evalonis wanted to know.
"My name is Dan Bowski." the man explained, a name Evalonis didn't recognize. He looked over at Sarah, who just shrugged her shoulders. And since he had no reason to doubt her, he accepted that she too didn't know who this Dan Bowski was. "I'm here to find Paula Kerrigan." Next to him, the dark-skinned woman frowned when she heard that.
"Wait, Paula...?" she whispered.
"Why?" the huge Protoss wanted to know.
"Because she's a goddamn pest! A menace! She barged into my life, the life of others, played with us as if we were some kind of toys, made us experience horrific things, and then just stormed off as if nothing had happened! She's an insane creature, and I demand from her to apologize to me and everyone she tormented! Just because she and her mother have these abilities, doesn't mean that they have the right to play with us as if we are just mortals and they're gods!"
"I gotta admit..." Sarah chirped. "...I like this one. So you don't like Paula, huh?"
"I despise her." Dan hissed.
"Oh yes, we do like the sound of that." Sarah cooed. "Say, you're not looking for a job? We got this battlecruiser, and even me and my sisters have plenty of hands ourselves, we still could use some more."
"Who are you?" Dan asked. He didn't seem to be scared by Sarah's, well, existence. "And how do you know Paula Kerrigan?"
"That's a long and dour story I don't want to talk about. Let's just say that I and my sisters share some of your frustrations."
"So you agree that she's irresponsible and careless?" Dan asked.
"And thinks that she's funny when she's not. Don't forget that. Yeah, I see we have a thing in common, you and us." Sarah then flashed a grin at Evalonis. "Seems like there is a crowd out there we can run with after all." Dan then looked at the huge Protoss and sneered.
"So, you know her too? Did she ruin your life as well? Screw you over, or did her lousy character get you into trouble?" Evalonis looked down at the smaller human and thought how much force he had to apply to break one of Dan's bones. Not a big one. Maybe the jaw.
"She is my girlfriend." he then simply said. A stupid grin appeared on Dan's face. It seemed as if he needed a moment to process that statement. At first, he thought it was a joke, then he realized that Evalonis was dead-serious, and then he realized that he had just insulted the girlfriend of a 700-kilogram alien warrior.
"Eh..." Dan mumbled.
"Heh, and you told me that I got no people skills." Alexei snickered before he faced Sarah again. "Anyway, apologies are in order. I mistook you for Izsha, since, you know, you do look somewhat similar..." And then he bowed down, grabbed Sarah's hand...
...and kissed it.
"Please do accept my apology. I guess I was confused in the face of such beauty and elegance!" Alexei declared, which earned him the disbelieving look of, well, pretty much everyone.
"You are such a desperate horndog." Dan whispered.
"But...that's a Zerg!" the dark-skinned woman gasped.
"We are not Zerg!" Sarah growled. "You would do well to remember that, lady! And you-" She then turned towards Alexei. "...are indeed creepy. Are you some kind of pervert?"
"I'll be whatever you want me to be." Alexei simply replied. Evalonis, who watched all of this, saw how Sarah visibly shuddered before she turned around and slithered away.
"Whatever. This is getting too weird. We don't know any of these people, so we're off now if you don't mind." Unfortunately, someone did seem to mind.
"I am afraid not." the Nerazim in charge replied. "These people clearly know the person who entered the temple alongside Artanis and the captain of the guard. You shall all remain here until they have seen the Grand Preserver and Paula Kerrigan can explain them coming here." The moment Sarah heard that, she dropped her head in defeat.
"Great...just great...I'm gonna skin you alive, Paula..."
"Well, since we're stuck here..." Alexei cooed as he moved closer to Sarah. "...how about you introduce me to your sisters, eh? Also, you could skin me anytime, my exotic beauty."
Evalonis wasn't an expert on alien anatomy, and he still had problems understanding mouths and digestive systems even if his girlfriend possessed both those things, but he was pretty certain that the sounds Sarah was producing were in fact retching.
"Hierarch Artanis...we recognize you."
"Rohana?" Artanis whispered as he stared at the person hovering above them. Though the term "person" was probably not the right word to describe who he was looking at. Or rather "what" he was looking at.
At first glance you could mistake it for an orb made out of pure light, but the longer Artanis' old eyes would look at it, the more details he would make out. Details like arms, and something that looked like the shape of a Protoss' head. He hadn't seen one of these in ages. And even then, it had only been in the rarest of cases and the most dreadful of moments.
When you grow old, you tend to look back at things and remember them differently than when you actually experienced them. People tend to forget the bad things and glorify the good stuff. After all, no one wants to remember all the dark stuff they experienced, all the suffering and pain. Humans were that way, and Protoss too. Maybe Zerg were different, but Artanis had never bothered to ask any of them.
Still, even someone as old as Artanis, who would go on and on and on about the "good old days", knew that there were certain things that were better left in the past.
The Khala was gone. And the Templar nowadays were not like the ones Artanis had commanded during the Great War. Some of these warriors would lament that fact. Evalonis was different, however. He possessed a healthy dose of septicemic, a trait that set him apart from his comrades. Artanis had never told the young warrior that, but he wished someone like Evalonis had fought at his side during the Great War. He reminded him of his old friend Horrash, a Templar that had passed away many years ago but had been a good friend.
Yes, there were many memories that he cherished, maybe even too much. But one thing that he was certainly not happy to see again...
...was an Archon.
No one had seen such a being in a very long time. Artanis wondered if, in fact, he was the last living Protoss who had witnessed the existence of such beings. Some things were better left forgotten, and the Archons were among those things. The sacrifice necessary to create such a being was simply too high. He had his reasons for harboring such thoughts, even though he had never shared them with anyone, not even Selendis.
Yet as he stared at this being of pure energy, Artanis could only marvel at all this power.
It was overwhelming.
"Rohana...is that you?" he whispered. The being lowered itself to the ground until it was right in front of them. The Nerazim knelt down and lowered her head in respect, and even Paula looked away.
"Yes, Hierarch. Rohana is part of us. You speak to her." the Archon replied. Under normal circumstances, an Archon was the fusion of two Templar who had reached the highest level of enlightenment. Rohana had been a grand preserver, not quite the same, but not completely unlike a high templar. What bothered Artanis, however, was that he didn't hear just two voices, but many. Many.
Many...
"Who...what are you?" he asked. The Archon seemed to understand the true nature of Artanis' question immediately.
"We are the Grand Presever. Born from the ancient preservers that guarded this place, and the Grand Preserver Rohana, who came here to find equilibrium."
"But...why this?" Artanis gasped.
"You disagree with her choice." the Archon replied. It was not a question.
"Why did you not tell me?" the old warrior simply moved on. "You were gone. Suddenly. We tried to find you, but you were simply no longer there. No one knew. I was worried." There was a lot of pain in his voice. Rohana had been a comrade. And while she had been more conservative than Aldaris on his worst days, she had earned Artanis' respect and trust.
"We did not wish for you to know." the Archon replied.
"Why?"
"Because we knew that you would try to stop us." Even though this being was made out of pure energy, its face still contorted as if it was in pain. Or sorrow. Or both. "After the end of the Great War, we realized that the old ways were no longer needed. We feared for our future, for our purpose. This new world you helped building, Hierarch, it was not ours to live in." Artanis smashed his crane into the ground and stared at the Archon in anger.
"Why did you not tell me?" he demanded to know. "Why did you not talk to me? We tried to build a world for all Protoss, surely we could have found a solution for your predicament. If you only had talked with one of us then-"
"We did." the Grand Presever interrupted him.
"You...what?" And then Artanis squinted his eyes and spoke only one word. "Who?"
"Vorazun." the Archon told him. "She sensed our predicament, tried to be our friend, offered her guidance. Yet it did not help us. And then she told us about this place, about Zhakul, and the ancient preservers." Artanis knew of them, but only through stories and tales. The ancient preservers, revered by the Nerazim and hidden away so the Khalai wouldn't find them. But even someone as old as Artanis didn't know much more.
"So what? She brought you here?" Artanis wanted to know. There was pain in his voice. Even though Vorazun was long dead, he still felt hurt because she had kept this from him.
"We came here on our own volition. No one forced us. We chose this."
"You chose this?!" Artanis growled and pointed at the Archon. "To steal away like some kind of thief in the middle of the night is one thing. But giving yourself up to become an Archon is something completely different!" Becoming an Archon wasn't just an honor like the Khalai had proclaimed. It was the ultimate sacrifice.
"You made us do this." the Archon then replied, which caused Artanis' whole body to shake in anger.
"Maybe we should all calm down and-" Paula tried to intervene.
"No!" Artanis roared, his voice surprisingly strong for someone as old as him. "I may not have much time left, but I...I..." If you're over 1400 years old, and not able to withstand the raw power of time and entropy as someone as powerful as Sarah Kerrigan or her kin, then your strength has its limitations.
"Artanis!" Paula yelled as she watched how the old Protoss suddenly hunched forward. His cane fell to the side and he dropped to his knees. She tried to help him, but he pushed Paula away and placed his hand on his chest as the pain of an age-ridden body was tormenting him.
"Leave me be!" Artanis growled. "I do not need your help, or your pity!"
"That's not what I-" Paula tried to say but was pushed back by Artanis, who fought hard to get back on his feet. As he looked up at Rohana, his eyes glowed in anger and frustration.
"So, instead of telling me, you all decided to keep this secret from me. Tell me, why did you not have the courage to tell me back then? Why?"
"Because, in your singular focus to reunite our species, you were willing to sacrifice that we held most dearly. The realization of your dream meant the end for our most sacred duties." the Archon explained. "The preservers of Zhakul, while not Kahalai, understood that the past has its value. And so-"
"I too value the past." Artanis interrupted her. "But we did not sacrifice so much to repeat the mistakes that kept us apart. Why could you not see that?" There was an almost pleading tone in his voice.
"Because-" the Archon started, but that's when Paula interrupted their argument.
"Please, that's not why we came here!" she told them with a pleading tone in her voice. Time for some intervention.
"Whatever!" Artanis barked and turned away. "Is this why you brought me here? To meet up with an old companion that did not even bother to tell me how she felt all those years ago?"
"No, that's not it." Paula said as she tried to defuse the situation. Instead, she pulled something out of her pocket and presented it to the Archon. "Grand Preserver, I bring you the last remnant of Zeratul's consciousness, recorded on this crystal, as I told you I would."
"...as you told her?" Artanis mumbled. "You have been doing this for her? You have been here before and knew all about Rohana? Tell me, is that the truth, Paula Raynor?" The look on her face was one of fear and anxiety. The Archon spoke up and drew Artanis' anger away from the young woman.
"Everything she did, she did so because we asked her to do it." the Archon explained. "We knew that you would not take kindly to this revelation, so we urged her to remain silent about this...detail."
"Detail? DETAIL?!" Artanis roared. "One of my most trusted comrades decided to just scurry away in the darkness of the night, and now I learn that other people that I trusted, dead and alive, have kept this from me. Why am I cursed with such a long life if all I learn at the end of it is that my people would do such things behind my back?"
"Because we were afraid of exactly this situation." the Archon replied. "We do not wish you any harm, Hierarch. Nor do we wish to incur your wrath this late in your life. But it was our...the choice of Rohana, to come here and join with the other preservers to keep the past secure. This, after all, was always what Rohana wished for."
For a long moment Artanis didn't say anything. He felt tired. And betrayed. But mostly tired. All this anger was too much for his old body. And so, he just turned away and looked for a place to sit down. Thankfully there was a small bench in this room. He hobbled over to it, sat down, and sighed.
"I am no longer Hierarch." he mumbled. "I have not been in a very long time. You knew if you had stayed."
"It was not an option." the Archon replied. "We wanted to preserve. All of us. Rohana agreed. It was common ground." The being made out of pure energies placed both her fingertips of her hands against each other. "It gave us peace." Artanis snorted when he heard that but shook his head. A part of him realized that he was acting irrationally. Perhaps it was unbecoming of him, perhaps he was overreacting, and perhaps he should be grateful to have someone from the old days he could talk to.
But Artanis was old, and he was in almost constant pain. And so far, he did not appreciate what was going on around him. So, instead of pursuing that conversation, Artanis looked at Paula and decided to focus his old-man-fury on her.
"So, the two of you know each other?"
"Something like that." Paula muttered. "It's...complicated."
"If Paula Raynor says that something is complicated..." Artanis mused. "...then I will definitely not like it." The Archon came to Paula's side.
"This young woman has ventured here for a bargain. She offered her help, and we agreed. We are united in a common goal and-" the Archon explained.
"I recognize a lie when I hear one." Artanis interrupted them. "You know each other. How? From where?" The way the Archon and Paula exchanged worried looks could almost be described as comical.
"We should tell him the truth." Rohana mused.
"He ain't gonna like the truth."
"That is the nature of truth."
Artanis squinted his eyes and tightened his grip around his cane.
"Out with it." he told them. "Now!"
"We...uhm...let's say that the Grand Presever and members of my family had dealings in the past." Paula muttered.
"Members of your family?" Artanis repeated. "And that member would be...?"
"I think you know." Paula whispered. That's when Artanis' suspicions were confirmed. Suddenly he looked at the Archon once more.
"Well, I suppose this will make for a fantastic story. Please, do indulge me." he asked, but the tone in his voice couldn't hide his cold anger. Paula and the Archon exchanged looks one more, and then Paula made a step back.
"You can tell him; I'm done being everyone's favorite target for criticism for today." she mumbled.
"Very well..." Rohana replied and sighed. "It all started some fifty cycles ago..."
Zhakul
Some fifty cycles ago...
Zhakul had always been a remote world, off-limits to most Nerazim and a secret kept from the Khalai (and Tal'darim) wherever possible. If they had succeeded, or if the children of Aiur had simply decided to ignore them, there was no answer to that. Perhaps every normal person, human or Protoss, wouldn't care about that. However, that couldn't be said about a preserver.
The Grand Preserver wandered wherever no member of the Khalai had ever ventured here, or anyone else. Maybe they had truly not known anything about this place? Or had they kept it a secret to use it at a later date? And not only them. Perhaps the Tal'darim thought that there were no riches to be found and that the people guarding this place were only slaves of inferior quality. Those questions seemed insignificant, but a preserver existed to, well, preserve.
And a true preserver was indeed asking even the most mundane questions, as long as they would result in answers that could be recorded and cataloged.
Granted, when Grand Preserver Rohana had first arrived on Zhakul, she hadn't really seen it that way. The past of all Protosskind had been less important to her than the history of the Khalai. But centuries of working alongside the ancient preservers taught her that knowledge was knowledge, no matter the source. With the years passing and the powers of the ancient preservers fading, things had changed, however. Before the Great War they had dipped into the powers of the Void, which had helped them to predict the future by reading the tides of fate. It sounded a lot more poetic than it truly was. But ever since the end of the Great War the connection to the Void had been almost completely severed. And with that the near-endless life cycle of the ancient preserver had become threatened.
To save all that knowledge, Rohana herself had suggested performing a joining. It had been dangerous, and it had nearly killed them, but the results justified the means. What was left of Rohana inside this newly forged being of pure psionic energies...
...was at peace.
Here, deep inside the temple, inside the meditation chamber, the Archon was meditating and searching through its own memories, and that of others. Sometimes the Grand Preserver would find memories or thoughts that had no end to it, or no answers, and she would task her servants to look into it. How did a certain battle end? What happened to an individual or a group after a catastrophe? Which words were truly uttered during a specific moment in history?
Not all questions had answers, however.
Some of them were harmless. No one really cared how Artanis' armor looked like during the Great War.
But other questions caused the Grand Preserver's mind to return to them over and over again.
Like...what was the true nature of the Void?
Rohana didn't have the answers to that, neither did the ancient preservers. But others might know. The memories of the living weren't the only ones available to the Archon. Inside the meditation chamber, there was another room filled with Ihan-crystals. Each and every single one contained the memories of so many individuals...even the Grand Preserver would need centuries to catalog them all. Maybe even longer. Too long for a mortal Protoss to achieve something as big as this.
Here, inside the meditation chamber, the Archon was detached from the world around it. Only here the being could concentrate on such a task. Only here the Grand Preserver could actually, well, preserve.
And yet...something was amiss.
There were many Ihan-crystals in this place, but the Archon knew that none of them possessed the information it truly desired. It was the memories of scholars, of philosophers, of warriors and of traitors. Some had recorded their memories to make sure that past generations would not forget their knowledge, some had done it out of fear of being forgotten, and some out of hubris, thinking that they had been so special that everyone had to hear their stories.
Many of them had studied the Void. But none of them had actually seen it, tasted it, touched it.
So for now, all that remained was-
"Grand Preserver." The Archon turned around and looked down at the captain of the guard.
"I am meditating. I do not wish to be disturbed."
"Apologies, Grand Preserver. However, a traveler has arrived. He claims to be...former Nerazim."
"Former?" the Grand Preserver asked with many voices.
"Yes. He was very adamant about that part." the captain of the guard explained. "He said that he traveled from very far away to have an audience with you even though, and I shall quote, he "had literally no time for this giggle-gaggle-festival"."
"I do not understand those words." the Archon replied.
"Neither did I. I asked him, yet he only told me that he has spent too much time among humans to mind such a, and I shall quote him again, "wickel-wackel-nonsense". Again, my apologies."
The Grand Preserver was not fond of being disturbed. The everyday dealings seemed like a distraction from its true purpose.
"Tell this...former Nerazim that we do not wish to speak to him. Send him away." When the captain hesitated, the Grand Preserver focused its mind on the warrior. "You disagree?"
"I do not wish to be impertinent, but this newcomer told us that he has something that he is in possession of something that is of worth to you." the captain explained. "I would not disturb you if I think he would be lying."
"Is that so? And what is it that this traveler has worth to us?" the Grand Preserver asked. That's when a new voice spoke up.
"I heard that you are interested in Void-related matters. Happen to know a thing or two about that." Selaria and the Grand Preserver turned around and faced the newcomer. It was a male Protoss, tall and lithe, who moved weirdly, almost like a human would.
"Stand back!" the captain demanded and stepped in front of the Grand Preserver to shield it from any possible attack. "You were told to remain outside, how did you manage to gain entrance? The other guards were supposed to-"
"Yadda yadda yadda!" the newcomer interrupted the captain, using words that made no sense to either the Grand Preserver or the Nerazim-guard. "Listen, I do not want to steal your time, or waste mine, for that matter, I am just here to relay a message, or rather a request, or whatever, and then I will be on my merry way."
"Begone! You are not-" the captain started but was suddenly interrupted by the Archon itself.
"Hold, Captain!" its many voices said. "Let this newcomer come closer."
"But Grand Preserver, we do not know if he is-"
"I gave you an order." the Grand Preserver simply declared. The captain frowned but yielded in the end. He bowed his head and moved to the side. However, he remained close to the Archon to protect it, should the situation demand it.
"You...feel different." the Grand Preserver mused as it looked down on the newcomer. "We sense power. Power that is not yours. And it reminds us of...the Void. How-"
"Yes, yesyesyes, I smell of my boss, I get it." the Protoss interrupted the Grand Preserver. Whoever he was, he had no sense of etiquette whatsoever. Something that seemed to anger the captain greatly.
"You will address the Grand Presever with the proper respect!"
"Tell you what, handsome..." the newcomer replied. "...I am just the messenger. If I had anything to say in this matter, I would not even be here. I have more important things to do. You know, like training for the next Imperial Rumble."
"Then what message do you bring?" the Grand Preserver asked to redirect the conversation. The newcomer looked up and straightened himself.
"My name is Tesson. Formerly a son of Shakuras. Until that place got blasted to hell and back." he told nonchalantly. "I am in service of someone who desires your help." The Grand Preserver didn't seem to know what to make of this, but it realized that this Protoss wasn't just like anyone else. No. He had been touched by the Void, there was no doubt about it. The glow of his eyes seemed to be proof of that. The wavelengths of psionic energies determined in what color a Protoss' eyes would glow. So the nature of the psionics determined why the eyes of a Protoss were blue, green or red.
This Protoss' eyes glowed golden.
"You...you have been to the Void..." the Grand Presever stated.
"Not really. Not more than most Nerazim." Tesson replied. "As I already mentioned; I got that from my boss. And my student, I suppose."
"Your...boss? And student?" the Grand Preserver asked. "They were touched by the Void? Who are they?" And that's when the eyes of the Grand Preserver widened in disbelief. "Does this mean...that you are a messenger of the Xel'Naga?" Tesson flinched when he heard that.
"Oh, no! Hell, no! Definitely not! And you should definitely not suggest something like that to her when you talk." he muttered.
"Her?" the captain of the guard whispered. "Who-" But a gesture of the Archon shut him up.
"If you say you are not serving the Xel'Naga, yet that your master-"
"Boss." Tesson corrected the Grand Preserver. "She's my boss. Not master. Big difference."
"...is touched by the Void..." The Grand Preserver suddenly fell silent. It knew of two individuals who had been exposed to the Void more than anyone else. One of them was Artanis. The memories of Rohana told the Archon that he couldn't be this so-called "boss" of Tesson, and not only because he was a male, and this Protoss was claiming that his superior was a female.
That meant that there was only one person left...
"The Queen of Blades..." the Grand Preserver whispered and the captain of the guard looked up, disbelief all over his features.
"What?" he gasped.
"She does not go by that title anymore." Tesson explained. "Also, just so you know, galactic domination is no longer on her schedule. Guess we should be all glad for that, huh?"
"Grand Preserver, I strongly advise that we call the-" the captain of the guard tried to say. However, the Grand Preserver gestured him to be quiet once more.
"What is it the Queen of Blades wants of us?" the Archon asked. "And what makes her think that we are interested in aiding her?"
"How about we start with the second question, yes?" Tesson replied. "As said, she is no longer in the galactic-conquest-business. She wishes to strike a deal, and she offers something that might be of some interest to you."
"And what would that be?" the Grand Preserver demanded to know.
"Insight." Tesson explained. "Insight into the nature of the Void. Sarah Kerrigan has spent more time within the Void than any other living creature. And not only that. She offers knowledge and experience, even memories from her time on the other side." When the Grand Preserver heard that, it fell silent. This was...unexpected. And spectacular. Such knowledge...it was exactly what the Archon was looking for. But still, a sudden offer like that had to be too good to be true. Or it came at a price...
"Why would the Queen of Blades make such an offer?" the Grand Preserver wanted to know.
"Because she wants something in return." Tesson muttered. "Knowledge, to be exact. And someone to teach that knowledge."
"What kind of knowledge are we talking about here?" the Archon asked and earned a disbelieving look from the captain of the guard.
"Grand Preserver!" he protested. "You cannot be serious! This is-"
"Not your decision to make." the Grand Preserver declared. "Surely this traveler has not come all the way to Zhakul to make threats or to declare war on behalf of his master-"
"Boss." Tesson corrected the Archon. "And like said: No more warpath. She has not participated in roughly one thousand years and intends for it to stay that way. Actually, you can help her to make sure that this will come to pass. Sounds like a paradox? Well, that is exactly what this is about. And please do not make me explain it, it makes my head hurt."
"We are afraid that you will have to explain yourself before we can agree to anything."
"I was afraid you would say something like that." Tesson mumbled and then he sighed. "Ffffffine."
"There's a certain kind of knowledge Kerrigan is looking for. Knowledge that centers around the ability to foresee the future, to actually be there and experience it."
"The Queen of Blades...wishes to see into the future?" the Archon asked. Surely nothing good could come of this.
"No, it is actually the other way round." Tesson replied. "What Kerrigan is looking for is not to experience the future, but the past."
"Why would she-" the Grand Preserver mused before everything began to make sense. "I see. She wishes to alter the course of time." Next to the Archon, the captain of the guard raised his warms and ignited his psi-blades.
"I knew it! Grand Preserver, let me slay this traitor and rally the others! We need to be prepared!"
"Now calm your bits, fancy-pants." Tesson muttered and just rubbed his eyes in a very human way. "Let us all agree that no one slays anyone else, how about that, huh? Sure, usually I am all game when it comes to punching people, but not when Kerrigan is actually around. Need to be a role model, you know."
"Kerrigan...is here?" the Archon whispered.
"Yes. How about I introduce you to her, hmm? That should also clear some things up because I am pretty certain that there is some misconception in place. Ahem...Paula!" the newcomer suddenly barked and held out his hands. At first nothing seemed to happen until...
"...aaaaaaaaaahahahahahaaaaaa!" Suddenly, as if appearing out of thin air, something dropped from the ceiling. It was small and fast, yet just before it smashed into the cold and hard floor, Tesson closed his hand and caught this object out of mid-air. As it came to a stop, both the Archon and the captain of the guard looked at...
"What...is this?" the captain asked as he looked at the small wiggling thing, which, in his opinion, looked repulsive. Some kind of rodent?
"Master!" this strange creature squealed. Oh god, it was making sounds?! "I floated!"
"Technically that was more falling, but we will get there, little one. We will get there." Tesson sighed, holding this creature, which looked like a miniature human, upside down. The creature didn't seem to mind though. The Grand Preserver stared at this newcomer in disbelief. This...creature...it too felt as if it was touched by the Void. Even more so than the one calling himself Tesson. No, it wasn't just touched by the Void. Part of its essence belonged to the Void!
How was this possible?
"What...is this?" the Grand Preserver asked.
"This charming little thing?" Tesson chuckled as he held the little creature up. It was a human child, and it looked no older than six, maybe seven years old. A girl, not that the other Protoss could tell the difference between a boy and a girl. "This is the one who needs some teaching. May I present to you: Paula Kerrigan." And when Paula Kerrigan looked at the Archon, her eyes widened in amazement.
"Whoa! A talking glowing ball! Can I touch it?"