Izsha explained it out in the section of tundra that Kerrigan was heading down to. "This moon has pockets of intense cold called flash freeze storms. One such storm is approaching. It will push temperatures down so fast that almost all thermal energy will be lost." Kerrigan landed with a small pack of Zerglings at her command, their carapaces now a bit more bulkier than before as Izsha continued. "The storm will pass quickly, but while it is here, your troops will be frozen in place." Kerrigan extended out her sense to locate anything that would keep the Zerg secure in the cold and was not disappointed.
"I can sense indigenous creatures nearby. Their matriarchs have powerful essence strong enough to help us adapt to this cold." With that, she headed out as she looked around for such creatures, her senses giving them names than just a native creature. "I have to find an Ursadon Matriarch and get her essence." She at least knew what they now looked like when an Ursadon leapt off the cliff to attack them, but was overcome as parts of the valley fell in before Kerrigan found something that must have been Nafash's once, a armored creature in ice that soon broke free and roared in joining as Izsha spoke.
"This Zerg is feral. It is not under the control of any higher entity." Something was not right as she didn't sense any influence over it, it just attuned to her right quick as they pushed on, another Ursadon making the mistake of trying to fight them as the Roach actually was quite armored from attacks and had quite the acidic spit to it before Kerrigan commented as she found another Roach by the Ursadon nest there.
"Another feral roach. Something is very wrong." They kept going as Izsha warned.
"The flash freeze is near."
"I just have to find an Ursadon Matriarch." But she didn't get to say more as the flash freeze had struck, freezing them all in place as Izsha's warning came a bit late.
"The flash freeze has arrived. Your troops are frozen." Kerrigan focused to keep her heat in as the Ursadon made their move, a larger and more armored Ursadon leading the pair right there as Abathur spoke.
"These Ursadon, led by matriarch, strong essence. Once local essence assimilated, Swarm will resist flash freeze." Kerrigan and her forces waited for the ice wall to fall before the Ursadons charged and Izsha spoke before she shouted with two more Roaches joining the fight.
"Attack, do not let these Ursadons stop us!" The force attacked and brought down the pack that came for them, a pair of Zerglings losing to the Matriarch, but Kerrigan avenged them with a Psi-blast to the face's face, killing it after all of its wounds as Abathur worked to assimilate the essence into the Swarm.
"Essence assimilated. swarm resistant to flash freeze."
"Excellent." Kerrigan was feeling warmer already as her forces looked more like they were more at home in the icy caps before something else caught her attention. "And now I can sense Nafash's hive cluster nearby..." Abathur explained the intense healing factor of the Roaches to Kerrigan, but she continued on to find a frozen hive cluster and spoke with concern. "Nafash's brood. The Protoss must have wiped them out. I'll awaken this hive cluster for the Swarm." She extended her power to the hatchery and the base came alive in freedom from the ice, Overlords taking flight once more before Izsha exclaimed to the additional presence close by.
"The Protoss sensed the awakening! They are aware of our presence!" Kerrigan rolled her eyes that it wasn't going to be easy in the first place as the leader spoke.
"The Queen of Blades! What has happened to you? Frail and human!" Kerrigan countered as she was sure this was going to be a fight.
"Protoss. I wonder when you'd show yourselves." But the next reply was different as the leader spoke.
"If you wish to kill us, then do so. The Terrans have defeated enough of us and weaken us to the point that this is our last stronghold." Kerrigan blinked in surprise as she exclaimed.
"Terrans? Here? Izsha, can you confirm what they said?"
"It is true, my Queen. before you arrived, a large strike force of them came here and attacked the Protoss, wounding many of them. We have identify them as part of the Moebius. The Protoss have defenses, however limited, due to Moebius attacks on them as well as feral Zerg that have taken to commands from these Terrans." Kerrigan blinked in surprise, there was no way that the Zerg would have fallen under the command of Terrans unless they were using psi-emitters to control the feral Zerg to follow the commands.
"Seeing as how you are somehow un-infested, if you can help us against these Terrans, then we'll spare you for now." Kerrigan was of a half-mind to just attack them and be done with it, but... she also knew that Jim was friends with the Protoss and that helping them could actually help her if she tried to keep them safe from Moebius.
"Then we'll fight Moebius and the rouge Zerg before they can destroy you." So the plan was made as Abathur informed Kerrigan of additional sources of Matriarchs.
"Additional matriarch essence nearby. If collected, Swarm can become more efficient in flash freeze."
"I do like an efficient Swarm. If I have a chance, I will hunt down some Matriarchs." The cluster started to grow again as the leader spoke in aiding Kerrigan.
"Brave Protoss, hold the line! Buy Kerrigan more time!" So there would be small forces of Protoss coming to buffer the attacks form both Feral and Moebius as Izsha warned.
"Rogue Zerg approaching the hive cluster!" But the small force was soon consumed by the flash freeze as Izsha spoke. "Flash freeze approaching! Moebius and the feral Zerg will be vulnerable until it passes, as well as the Protoss!" In a another time, that would be a chance to maul the Protoss, Kerrigan's vengeance taking full command over preserving, but she decided against it, to instead help the Protoss with living on this world and keep them safe form whatever Moebius was up to.
"The Feral Zerg are defenseless! Attack now!" With that, they struck at the feral creatures and Kerrigan tried to find out what was causing the Zerg to rebel against her, even in close range, but nothing was given as they crushed the offensive and arrived on the first base to cut them down, freeing up space for another base to use as she spoke.
"Press our advantage! Destroy Moebius! Still, this is one down." The leader of the expedition spoke.
"Even if you destroy these bases, more forces will retaliate. Still, this proves that there's more to you than we thought." The flash force came to settle and the forces withdrew for the next base as Kerrigan headed off to kill the Ursadons, granting more strength and more cold-resistance for the Swarm as Abathur assembled it.
"Matriarch essence useful. Visibility during flash freeze increased." Suddenly, Kerrigan got another message from the Protoss as the leader explained.
"When the Terrans came, they took to capturing a great deal of our colonists and warriors, for reasons we do not know of. They are located in heavily-protected bases, but if you could destroy them, we would gladly offer more support in fighting these invaders and give you more room to tell us your plans for coming here." Kerrigan thought about it as the bases where two captured Protoss encampments were being held were both indeed heavily guarded with Terrans, but with the flash freeze storms freezing everything, including the heavy guns of Siege Tanks, the chances were increased as Kerrigan replied back.
"I'll see if I can liberate your forces, just don't expect the assault to be simple." They pressed on and Kerrigan took advantage of destroying the bases once more, especially when she had found the remains of Nafash, not having perished by Protoss psi-blades, but by Gauss Rounds as she exclaimed as the frozen, riddled husk of a former Broodmother. "Nafash! I didn't have much hope of finding you alive at this point. Moebius will pay for this, many times over." She built up the forces before attacking again during the flash freeze cycles as a second base of Moebius and Zerg had fallen to her.
"Time grows short, Kerrigan! Mobius is nearly done!"
"Even if you kill every Terran on this planet, the Dominion will destroy you!" The first was from the leader of the Protoss while the second was from what Kerrigan suspected to be the Moebius commander, but he sounded... crazed, insane, like he was not in his own right mind as she crushed the second base before the freeze was done.
"One more left."
"Keep going! Mobius is nearly destroyed!" She didn't push it a bit more as she needed to build up some more forces to face the increased presence there, even with the Protoss lending their support to fight the forces attacking back as she took to hunting down the last source of Ursadon in the area and improving the Zerg once more as Abathur collected the essence.
"Matriarch essence assimilated. Swarm perfectly adapted to fight in flash freeze storms." that was very good news as the stand-off was real before Kerrigan smirked as the flash freeze hit and the assault by Zerg claws started to rip through metal, flesh, and ground as the final base of Moebius and their Zerg pets had fallen and the Leader of the Expedition Protoss thanked her for coming to save them.
"The Terrans and Zerg forces are in retreat! It seems a thanks is in order for you, the Former Queen of blades."
"Anything I could do to help..." She trailed off as she spoke to herself with walking away, back to the Leviathan. "...For Jim."
Kerrigan returned to the Leviathan as Izsha informed her of something different. "We have been sent a representative of the Protoss. He claims he wishes to be aboard."
"Did he say why?" Kerrigan asked as Izsha answered.
"He says it was an order and a request."
"Did he say how long he will be on here?"
"He said until we're done and leave or betray him." Kerrigan thinks it over for a moment before she answered again.
"I'll talk to him. Meanwhile, make sure Abathur doesn't do anything stupid." Izsha acknowledges before a Scout ship soared over and hovered before warping in someone else than what Kerrigan was expecting to be either a Zealot or a Templar.
Adorned in both armor and garbs of Protoss tradition, he carried a large blade on his side, much like the ancient stories of the samurai before Kerrigan asked.
"Who are you?" The Protoss answered back with question.
"Why do you wish to know my name?"
"It's what Jim would ask." The Protoss nodded as he spoke.
"You speak of James Raynor."
"You knew him?"
"Fought with him on Aiur, when we killed the Overmind. What has happened to him?"
"It's... hard to answer right now."
"Very well." He continued on with explaining. "I am Tenorai, Warrior Captain of the Kaldir Expedition Force, I am at ease that you have sought to preserve my people, despite our bad blood." Sarah nodded before Tenorai continued. "Now I ask about your appearance. How is it that you have reverted to being Terran once more, true with some Zerg features in the mix, but still the question lingers on all of us."
"I was..." Kerrigan blinked before she spoke again, her voice taking on a sad tone. "Jim... he purified me with a ancient relic, something that my... other self was after for some reason, he took me away from the eyes of all and wanted me to... leave with him, to forget this mess and the Dominion."
"Your words..." Tenorai spoke before he continued. "Your words ring with sorrow, I will not pursue why you feel this way now, just know that we are in your debt and, though you have the chance to slay me, I can see that you are searching for vengeance elsewhere, that is all I need to know for now..."
Kerrigan nodded as she went over her reawakened abilities, having discarded the rifle back on Umoja and started using her psi-power to lash out with lightning as she extended her power to the Swarm, making the Overlords more helpful for the battles to come before heading down to the Evolution Pit and learning that Abathur insists on leaving creatures to die, not put them out of their misery and that incurred... an rage in her in trying to figure out why she felt this way toward the Weaver before she focused on the Roaches that have been assimilated back into the Swarm, its mutations being an improved acid spit that kills lightly-armored units faster, a adaptive carapace that increased its armor when it hits a threshold of health, and tunneling claws that allows it to move at a normal speed underground and heal just as quickly before deciding to mutate the armor, the Terrans and any other force would be solely in trouble with Roaches and heightened armor as she also tried to figure something else out.
Why were there Terrans here and what did they want, she had heard in passing from Jim and Alex that Moebius were no good now, they were supporting the Dominion Emperor and were doing something far, FAR worse than just researching new weapons to fight Zerg and Protoss with...