Chapter Eleven: Into the Darkness
There is an old saying that the night is darkest just before the dawn. With the way things are going now, though, I'm beginning to think that the dawn is going to be so bright that it'll cause some serious problems on its own. Too much sun can burn you as bad as the night can chill you.
When I set out for Mar Sara over a year ago I never expected things to go like this. I was going to write some propaganda pieces. Get out of town until the heat died down.
The universe has a funny way of pulling the rug out from under you.
Liberty's Reports, volume IV
The doors of the installation slid shut behind them. Raynor winced as absolute darkness overtook them for a moment. He could hear and see nothing except Tassadar and Artanis' eyes. Then he switched on his lights and peered into the long corridor leading into the ground.
"Artanis, Raynor," said Tassadar, "I sense that Zeratul and his brethren are close by. But I have been unable to make contact with them. I fear they may be in grave danger. We must scour this area immediately and find the Dark Templar, lest they be overcome by the Zerg.
Raynor sighed. "That won't be easy, man. That's Kerrigan down there leading those Zerg. She won't let us go without a fight."
Tassadar looked to him. "I know, my friend. With all due respect to you, and to the feelings you once had for her, you must know that I will not hesitate to destroy her should she pose a threat to us. Nothing shall prevent me from delivering the Dark Templar to Aiur. Nothing."
So they began their descent. As they walked there was only the noise of fans and air vents. It was eerie. No bodies. No blood. Nothing to be seen.
"Did you terrans build this recently?" asked Artanis.
"Nah." said Raynor. "Duke found it. It's an old Confederate Installation. Apparently, a scout ship came to check up on the Kel'morian expedition. The Confederates set up a research facility here. Duke has repurposed it and fixed it up." He paused. "Hey Tassadar, do you sense any life force in this place?"
"I do not sense lifeforce Raynor." said Tassadar. "We sense the inherent psionic energy which is emitted by all living beings. Some more than others. And yes, I do sense them. There are many terrans nearby."
"Great." said Raynor. "They'll be some of ours then."
"There are also many zerg-" began Artans.
"LIVE FOR THE SWARM!" screamed a feral voice.
Out of a nearby hall came a shambling monstrosity. Raynor raised his rifle and unloaded into it. Bits and pieces of it were torn off as he rushed forward. Its faceplate was shattered to reveal a deformed and twisted face. Acid spewed from its wounds to scar the floor black.
Then it exploded into the stuff. Raynor fell back before a blue shield appeared in front of him. Acid hit the shield and hissed heavily. "Jesus Christ Tassadar!" said Raynor. "What the hell? Why didn't you sense that?"
"This cannot be." said Tassadar. "Somehow these infested terrans are hiding from us."
"Is that possible?" asked Raynor.
"For any sentient creature, yes. However, it requires mastery over oneself to do effectively." said Tassadar. "For a terran consumed by the Overmind's taint to do so is… worrying."
"While on Aiur we discovered that the Overmind cannot create psionic strains of zerg." said Artanis suddenly.
"That's wondrous news." said Tassadar. "But what proof do you have of it?"
"The exact reasoning is complicated." said Artanis. "When the Overmind infests something it naturally bends that something to its will. In doing so it makes the creature little more than an extension of his being. Because of this the creature cannot use psionics. Psionics require will."
"What about Kerrigan?" asked Raynor. "She uses plenty of psionics."
"She does." said Artanis. "For there is one possible way that the Overmind may control a psionic creature. If that creature yielded willingly to the Overmind, gave everything it was to it. Then the Overmind might well leave it with some semblance of its will. In doing so allow it to wield the powers it had before."
"Now hang on. Kerrigan didn't willingly submit." said Raynor. "She was nothing like the Queen of Blades. It was like her personality did a complete one-eighty when she was captured."
Tassadar and Artanis remained silent as they walked on. Finally, Tassadar looked up. "From what you have told me, Kerrigan was raised as a weapon. She was trained from a young age to murder and destroy in the name of the Confederacy. Every effort was made to obliterate all individual will from her.
"Such efforts left scars that made her easy prey to the will of the Overmind.
"If these infested terrans are now hiding from us it bodes ill. The Overmind's experiments are progressing. We must be cautious."
"Tassadar, I sense something up ahead." said Artanis. "A group of terrans."
"Very well." said Tassadar. "We will go to meet them."
How the hell was he so confident? They had just seen evidence that there could be zerg lurking around anywhere down here. And yet Tassadar walked on, without fear. In the time Raynor had known him Tassadar had never been afraid. Never doubted his convictions.
When he had met Zeratul there had been no doubt. Raynor had wondered if Tassadar had come to Char for the sole purpose of meeting Zeratul. Of meeting him. Like it was preordained. It was absurd.
But Tassadar did stuff. Like enter a dangerous facility all alone when he had an army on hand. And when he did it, it always worked. Though that whole fiasco with Zasz probably didn't work out.
Yet Tassadar had never accused Zeratul. He'd accepted it in stride.
It was eerie.
Then out of the darkness, they saw lights like those on marine suits. They were coming nearer. Raynor raised his gun, just in case, as they drew near. Then he released a breath he didn't know he'd been holding as normal, 100% humans came out of the darkness.
They halted when they saw the protoss. Tassadar met their gaze carefully. Then they lowered their guns. "Hey boys, mind if we tag along?"
Raynor smiled. "No problem. Fall in."
"Commander Raynor?" asked a soldier. "What are you doing down here?"
"Reenacting Star Trek, I guess." admitted Raynor.
Then there was a screech. The men looked up as the sound of claws on metal came from a nearby passage.
"We've got zerg incoming!" cried a soldier.
"All right boys, form up!" said Raynor. "Tassadar and Artanis, you keep these critters off us!"
The men moved in great formation. Months of constant training kicked in. The zerg came around the corner. Their guns roared to life, tearing through zergling and hydralisk alike. Raynor shot two down himself.
Artanis slashed two down as they came, then fell to one knee. The zerg were coming on in greater numbers, clambering over their dead to reach them. Then Tassadar raised a hand. There was a sound like thunder, but it was like it was in their minds. Lightning tore through the creatures as they came. It ripped them to shreds in great numbers.
Silence fell as the last zerg died. "Holy crap!" said a marine. "That was a hell of a something!" "It will take more than this to bar our path." said Tassadar. "Quickly, follow me."
They moved onward. But as they walked they heard screeching. Distantly they heard the sound of gunfire and screams. Human screams. People were dying inside this facility. And Raynor had a feeling he knew who they were.
"SACRIFICE ME!" screamed a voice.
Out of the darkness came yet more nightmares. There were a lot of them this time and even as some of them fell more came on. One of them kept on coming no matter how many impaler rounds went into them. He was nearly at the formation.
Everything seemed to slow down. Raynor knew what would happen. The infested terran would reach them and explode. Everyone in the radius would be killed.
And then a single man ran forward while firing. "No you don't you freak!"
The infested terran met him and exploded. There was a wave of acid and then the lone marine fell backward. In moments his armor and flesh were dissolving. But he'd saved them all. "…Poor Johnny." said a man.
"He sacrificed himself for his comrades. A worthy death for even the greatest of warriors." said Artanis.
"Shove it, protoss." snapped a soldier.
"Where were you and Tassadar?" asked Raynor.
Tassadar emerged from the darkness and pointed down the hall. Raynor focused his light and saw dozens upon dozens of torn and obliterated zerg.
"Ah." said Raynor.
So they went on.
"I don't get this." said a man.
"What is it?" asked Raynor.
"They've seized control of marines." said the man. "So why aren't they using the weapons instead of sacrificing them?"
"The infestation on these terrans is far from complete." said Tassadar. "When the swarm assimilates a creature it takes many attempts to complete the process. The number only increases if the creature is sentient.
"These terrans are a living battlefield. Their minds are at war with the will of the Overmind. Until it can perfect its control it cannot make any fine-tuned commands."
"So it pumps them full of acid and uses them as suicide bombers?" asked Raynor.
"Indeed." said Tassadar. "The Overmind need only cause the terrans such agony that they become suicidal. Then they need only control the legs into charging and attacking."
"Mother of god." said Raynor. "That's sick."
"Tassadar I cannot sense anything ahead of us." said Artanis. "It is as though the entire facility has gone dark."
"You need not fear." said Tassadar. "This darkness, at least, is familiar. It is a technique used by the Dark Templar to hide from the Conclave's agents. In my time with them, I have learned to see past it."
"You trained under them?" asked Artanis, voice accusing.
"I made no secret that I learned much from them." said Tassadar. "Did you think I spoke in jest? There is much they could teach you as well." Then he stiffened. "Someone is coming."
They readied their guns. It could be someone friendly. Or maybe the zerg had gotten smart and decided not to make such a racket while charging. Gradually the sound of heavy footfalls could be heard.
"Keep your guns primed. We don't want a repeat of last time." said Raynor.
Then out of the shadows came a familiar firebat suit. With him were a large number of troops. The visor slid back to reveal Gui Montag. "Need a light?"
Raynor blinked. "Montag?! Where the hell have you been man?"
Gui blinked. "Raynor? That you? I've seen you on TV."
"Yeah, Arcturus had me make some speeches in the fringe colonies." said Raynor. "Then I ended up here. But how did you-"
"Mercenary work." said Gui. "After Duke got his core smashed Arcturus put out the call for mercenaries and I followed it. Ordinarily, I wouldn't have bitten, but there were some very lucrative prices."
"All right," said Raynor "what's the situation?" "We had a near thing." said Gui. "The zerg queen tore through a lot of us. Some of the boys lined up and fired at her, but I figured we ought to make a tactical withdrawal. Take out her troops piecemeal and hope for rescue.
"We've been dodging them for a while. "Though all communications have gone dark. We were wondering if there was anyone left alive outside."
"Do you know of Zeratul and his Dark Templar?" asked Tassadar.
Gui looked up and bit his lip. "Yeah, I met up. Scary bunch of characters. Some of them helped us out then disappeared. I heard they were toward the far back of the facility."
"Then we will go further in." said Tassadar. "Come, Gui. We must find them or all may be lost.
"Sure, save the universe." said Guid. "Whatever. Business as usual."
They went on and things got darker. Not in the way you couldn't see anything. But as if there was something out there in that darkness. That was the darkness. Something setting itself against you. Raynor kept feeling like they were being watched.
But nothing came out to face them.
They didn't see any sign of the zerg. He hoped Kerrigan had given up. They'd wiped out everything she had thrown at them before. Maybe she'd given up.
Except she had nowhere to run. She was stuck in here. Duke was outside.
"Did you hear that?" asked Gui.
Hear what?
And then the floor was torn apart in the center of their formation. An infested terran snarled as it appeared and exploded. Everyone in a ten-meter radius was soaked in acid. One man lost his leg and screamed horribly.
And then the walls were twisted away to reveal tunnels. Huge tunnels which zerg poured forth from. They went for the wounded first. Raynor blasted one away with from the wounded man before another tore him to shreds. A hydralisk emerged, shooting spines which killed a marine near Raynor.
Raynor saw a blur coming for him and stepped away on reflex as a zergling landed. He shot it dead, then shot two more. Artanis moved back and forth, hacking down the creatures as they came. Tassadar summoned a storm of lightning which consumed the front ranks.
Gui stepped in front of one of the tunnels and unleashed his flamethrower. Raynor got behind him and fired over his shoulders. The men were reacting now, sealing up the breaches. But there were so many, and they had already lost a lot of good men. "We gotta move!" cried a man.
He was right. Raynor looked up and saw a narrow passage. "Run for that passage boys! We'll beat a fighting retreat! Go quick!"
A few months ago they would have been as good as dead. A few months ago they would have broken and run and been hunted down. A few months ago they wouldn't have even lasted this long.
But the terrans had grown since then. They'd learned to fight the zerg. On Mar Sara. On Antiga Prime. They were afraid of course. They were fucking terrified. But they remembered their training and made a run for it. Gui and Rayor covered the retreat and finally, they came to the passage. Forming a defensive position they blasted everything that came their way. Artanis and Tassadar stood back to back, cutting down all who came their way.
Then it was over. All the zerg were dead. But so were a lot of Raynor's men. A year ago, back on Mar Sara, Raynor would have been horrified at these losses. But they had become business as usual. His heart had hardened. Even the men didn't seem all that beat up. He saw a few joking around as they walked.
"That showed em." said a marine. "You think that bitch is still somewhere here?"
"No." said Tassadar. "Kerrigan is long gone from this place."
"Are you sure?" asked Raynor.
"She has learned from our last meeting." said Tassadar. "No doubt she had her minions dig her a passage out of this place, then set them to wait in ambush. She realizes now that directly confronting her enemy is not always the best choice.
"I fear she will be far more dangerous in the future. But her next attack will be through subterfuge. Not a direct assault."
Raynor looked at Tassadar. He was not afraid. "Tassadar, how are you so calm?"
"We are all of us part of a great cycle." said Tassadar. "We are its children and its originators. Once you realize and understand its nature you will not fear the end. For it does not end."
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" asked Raynor.
"When you study history you come to realize that most situations are but the newest form of old conflicts." said Tassadar. "Everything returns in one form or another. Civilizations rise and fall. Yet the same virtues and vices continue to rule them.
"Everything is both mortal and immortal at once. Ever dying, yet always reborn."
"If it's all so set in stone," said Raynor, "then why do you care about what happens at all?"
"I fear the cycles end." said Tassadar. "If the Overmind assimilates my race then it will spread throughout the stars. Every world will become its domain. Every race a mere extension of its will. Life shall be defined wholly by it.
"This cannot be allowed. The races of this universe must be allowed to make their own mistakes and learn from them."
"Well, Tassadar, it looks like you've cleared the gauntlet." said Kerrigan. "No matter. I've got plenty more zerg where they came from. Now that I know where these ones went wrong I'll make a better infestation next time."
"Doesn't this woman ever shut up?" asked Tassadar.
Raynor laughed, almost doubling over. Tassadar looked at him in surprise.
"What was that?" asked Gui.
"My ex." said Raynor. "How close are we to the back?"
"Pretty damn close." said Gui.
"I sense a large number of terrans ahead." said Tassadar. "As well as our exiled brethren. Come, we must go."
They marched on and rounded several corners. As they did they found bodies. A lot of bodies. Most were zerg at first, but as they walked on they came to terrans. But there were still a lot of zerg.
"Hey look, there are some of our boys." said a man.
They came to them. Instantly the blue-clad marines raised their guns and trained them on the troops. "You, state your business."
"Relax kid." said Raynor, coming forward. "We've lost enough of our boys without getting into a pointless firefight. Whose in command here?"
"The Dark Templar, uh, Zeratul." said the man. "We lost our officer and he got us together. We were afraid this was it for us."
And then a three fingered hand set itself on the man's shoulder. Raynor looked up into a being of absolute darkness. But this was not the fridged and chilling darkness of the voice. It was almost warm. It was kind of like turning out the lights and going to sleep in your bed after a hard days work. Soothing and contemplative.
Zeratul could be chilling of course. But Raynor had seen his nicer side.
"Peace, young one. Help has arrived." said Zeratul in a measured voice. "Now I will speak with them."
"Yes sir." said the man.
The soldiers parted and Zeratul came forward. He was shorter than most protoss and clad in flowing black robes. His eyes were ancient, old beyond measure. Tassadar went to meet him and they nodded respectfully. "Greetings, Dark One. I have come to bring you home."
"Greetings to you, mighty Tassadar." said Zeratul. "I knew that you would not forsake us. For in the time that you have spent with us, you have learned to value our ways and our methods. You have learned to channel our dark power as well as that of your masters. Thus you alone have found completeness beyond the scope of the Khala. But I fear that the Conclave, in its pride, could never bring itself to welcome outcasts such as we."
"Outcasts though you may be, it is your vision and courage that may yet save our Homeworld from the Swarm." said Tassadar. "I beg of you, Zeratul, return with us to Aiur. Though they are petty, and have, in ignorance cursed your kind for generations... help me save our people."
"Since our banishment long ago, we have never failed in our responsibility to Aiur." said Zeratul. "Though it shall cause us great pain to see our homeland once more, we shall return with you, Tassadar. We will do what we can."
"Great. Let's get back home." said Raynor. "I need a freaking drink."
They made their way out of the facility and saw no more zerg. Eventually, they emerged blinking into the sunlight. A lava-soaked hellscape had never been such a welcome relief.
At that moment there was a communication ."Commander, this is Matt Horner. We're in orbit around Char and stand by to evacuate anyone who needs it."
Raynor blinked. It had been months since he heard that voice. "Matt? What took you so long?"
"Sorry sir." said Matt. "We ended up getting transported halfway across known space and our systems got fried. We've had a devil of a time getting back."
"Well good job." said Raynor. "We've made some new friends since then."
"Glad to hear it." said Matt. "Listen, sir, the sector is falling apart. The zerg have launched new invasions of Antiga Prime and Tarsonis. Mar Sara beat off a major assault a few weeks ago. They're going to need our help."
More zerg assaults? Just how many troops did the Overmind have in reserve? "Damn it. Listen Tassadar, I've got to do what I can to help the fringe worlds. You boys should head on without me. I'll come and help you on Aiur whenever I can."
"Your service has been invaluable, friend Raynor. It will not be forgotten." said Tassadar.
"No problem." said Raynor.
Despite the news, Raynor was in a brighter mood than he had been in weeks. Yes, he was going from one life or death struggle to another. But this way he was getting off Char.
If he never saw another vulcanic planet it would be too soon.
Author's Note:
Okay, this chapter took longer than it should have to come out. Sorry, I kind of lost my groove and focused on other things.
Oh and Gui is back. Kind of disappeared from the fic forever. Oh well.