Kerrigan had the Adjutant scanning for anything when Horner had warned her that several Dominion signatures were tracked going to ground and she was not dismayed when the Adjutant spoke up. "Scanning. Detecting Dominion forces and a Zerg hive cluster."
"Yeah, there must be an old hive here. I'm more worried about the Dominion." She soon tapped into their comms as the feed showed the Dominion base developing.
"Ground team, this is Fleet. What is your status?"
"Fleet, our base is set up and the Drakken Pulse Cannon is almost online."
"Roger that. Eliminate all stragglers as they warp to these coordinates. Will return for you. Fleet out." Kerrigan griamced at the size of the gun being powered up and knew that if Jim's ship was in the sector again, that thing was going to destroy them.
"That cannon will take out Jim's ship as soon as he enters orbit. He'll never see it coming." It was risky, but she had little choice in the mission. "Set course for the Zerg hive cluster. I need an army." The dropship arrived behind the mineral fields of the Zerg cluster before she stopped in getting off, the link to the Zerg not connecting at once like with more feral Zerg, there was... "I can sense a mind controlling this brood. Who are you?" To her surprise and confusion, she got a reply, but it wasn't the aged voice of a Cerebrate, it was... more female in nature and more powerful than a Cerebrate, emitting from the grounds below.
"My queen, I am Naktul, a Broodmother. You created us to extend your control of the Swarm. Have you returned to us?" Broodmother? Kerrigan tried to remember when she, when the Queen of Blades made the Broodmothers since they were an growth from the Queens of recent years, but she just couldn't as she retorted back for only the army, not for the rule.
"I'm not your queen and I haven't returned. But I need your brood to destroy the Terran cannon, right now."
"Most of my brood is with me. I can send them to you, but it will take time..."
"Then send them. When they arrive, we'll tear down that cannon before Jim gets here." She breathed as she readied her rifle and the Zerg moved to surpport them as she took in the light defenses of a few Spine Crawlers and a Spore Crawler, something done right as the colonies were immobile and could move to shirt the defense to sectors in need of that said defense. "Meanwhile, I'm going to prepare this hive for combat. The Dominion would have tracked my ship and they'll be looking for me." She quickly started improving the cluster as she had a Spawning Pool set up and that allowed her to field both Zerglings, but also create Spine Crawler, the evolution of the Sunken Colonies for base defense as the Dominion did find her, but she repelled them just fine as she also liberated several caverns of Zerg from the Dominion teams.
She went the extra mile in tearing down the Dominion outposts from drafting anymore troops to attack and then came a titan of a worm, followed by another that were likely further growths of the Nydus Worms that she was starting to remember about as Naktul exclaimed when the brood had finally arrived. "My brood has come! They are yours to command, my queen!"
"Perfect. Now let's get up to their base and destroy that cannon before Jim arrives." Then came the Zerg rush as the Dominion made to defend against them and stop them from destroying the cannon, but they were soon overwhelmed as Naktul exclaimed to the Dominion making an escape.
"The gun is destroyed! The Terrans are fleeing to their ships!"
"Kill them all. No one gets out alive."
"Yes! The queen has returned! Kill the Terrans!"
"The queen?" She blinked before looking terrified at her own behavior, she felt anger, rage, untampered and overwhelming in her veins and it faded when she started to realize her won behavior. "You're right. I was slipping back into something that–" She headed back to her ship in a rush, away from the cluster. "-I have to get out of here."
"We will await your return." Kerrigan didn't answer, she wanted to be away from this mess before she really lost herself.
She stepped into the ship and powered it up, taking a seat to go over everything before she looked at the scans and made to speak, hoping that he was there. "Jim? Are you on this frequency?" Silence filled the ship as she tried again. "Jim, are you out there? I'm at the rendezvous, it's all clear here." She breathed in rested a fist to her head, talking about it, hoping that he heard her. "I've been thinking about what you said. There's something dark in me, Jim." She breathed as she tried so hard to hear him, anything from him. "… I need you. I need you to hear me right now." A scratch and she was springing out of her seat with rifle in hand before she aimed, the eyes that came toward her were that of a Zergling, but it bowed before her as he kept her sights on it, not wanting to risk it before a new cast was heard.
"We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming to bring you this news." Kerrigan looked to find Kate Lockwell reporting, but it was the Death's Head armor with a hole through the middle of it that gave Kerrigan grief, deep grief as only one man would wear that armor. "Notorious rebel Jim Raynor was captured in a daring raid yesterday. He was briefly interrogated, and summarily executed. Emperor Mengsk had this to say." She watched in disbelief as Mengsk confirmed it himself.
"Proud Dominion citizens, at long last our nightmare is over. The lawless terrorist James Raynor is dead." With grief came rage as she screamed with power surging through the ship as Mengsk's voice 'assured' the people. "With his death comes a new era of peace." It faded out and she toppled backwards to curl up in a ball in grief. "The Protoss have retreated from our Dominion, and the Zerg threat has been removed. Their Swarm is shattered and leaderless." The Zergling approached, but it did not attack her as she glanced up to it, a tear falling before it... backed away as Mengsk finished his speech. "Soon we will eradicate every last Zerg on Char. In short, we have won. Our peace and security is assured. Good night, my faithful subjects." Kerrigan wiped away those tears and focused the only emotion she could feel right now toward the one source of spite she had, the very reason why Jim was dead now, his face that of the Dominion.
"Mengsk." She got up, heedless to the Zergling with only one tusk aboard her ship as the Adjutant spoke to Kerrigan's plan of action.
"Navigation online. Destination Zerg space. Confirm?"
"Confirmed." The ship took flight and headed out of there, taking Char was a plan, but she chose to head for a remote world known as Kaldir, something there was... calling to her now...
Kerrigan was not mistaken as a creature loomed over the world, a creature the size of a moon, but it welcomed her in as she landed the ship and approached the ramp as the Adjutant warned. "Warning. Zerg organisms detected."
"That's why I'm here." She spoke with the Zergling behind her as she spoke. "They'll either accept me as their Queen, or I'll start killing them one-by-one until they do." A trio of Zerglings were on the defensive, but one glance form her eyes, touching that energy left in her again, and they backed down in humble respect, they knew who she was, but a surprise came from the strange creature that entered, she was Zerg, but also Terran, was she infested in someway as she asked. "What are you?"
"I am Izsha. Your Majesty used to store all her ideas, thoughts and plans within me. Do you not remember?" Kerrigan thought back before she replied, the first actual attempt at an intellect infested Terran, but her... other self disregarded her as a minor store of information.
"Yes... I do remember you. More importantly, you remember me." She used the same power on Izsha and she didn't seem to have opposed it, more like she welcomed it as she spoke.
"You are the Queen of Blades. I obey."
"Perfect. Summon the Swarm and prepare to move on Korhal."
"The Swarm is in disarray and will not answer your call."
"Right... forgot about that part..." She wasn't the same Queen as before, so making that demand was in vain, but then... "If that is so, then why is the Leviathan here and not heeding the call of a Broodmother?"
"Most Zerg on Kaldir are under the command of Broodmother Nafash. She seeks to create her own Swarm." Izsha spoke as she continued. "As for why your Leviathan does not heed her call, it is connected solely to you and refuses to acknowledge her as your successor." Kerrigan nodded as she spoke.
"That makes sense."
"While she lives, the Swarm will be divided."
"Not for long, it won't. Take us down to the surface." She took in the wide spanning ice caps and snow-blanketed lands of Kaldir and thought to herself. 'This world is cold, bitterly so, adjusting to this would be difficult for Terrans, but for Zerg, it will just take some time.' She soon found Abathur, the creature responsible for creating the various strains in the Swarm and felt... somewhat angry at the creature as she had the Zerglings adjusted to a Hardened Carapace mutation, granting the swift creatures increased health for combat, though the faster attacks or movements were good, she wanted her Zerglings to fight longer and live to continue the fight.
Izsha took Kerrigan that Nafash had set up a hive, but abandoned it to pursue Protoss on the planet, Kerrigan actually blinking at the idea that Protoss settlers were on this icy world to start with, she shook her headed as she spoke. "It is time for Nafash to learn her place." Little did she realize that she would be betraying the Zerg's primary interest, to kill the Protoss, very soon...