Raynor and Tychus walked out of the bridge quietly, refraining from talking until they had split off from Warfield who went to guard Jayce.
Raynor immediately thought about the survivor, not familiar with the name. "So, this survivor." Glancing at Tychus, he tried to get a bead on his old friends emotion. Tychus was inscrutable, snuffing the stump of his cigar between his fingertips and tossing it aside.
"Found her holed up in the armory, trying to use some Ghost suit to hide." He smirked in remembrance before sobering just as quick.
"Why didn't you kill her?" It sounded so wrong to say it, but Raynor knew his friend understood his train of thought. Better dead than Zerg.
"Thought about it, but since she wasn't infested she was useful. Needed her to get the Adjutant to stop blocking us from every little thing." Crossing his arms over his Gauss rifle, Tychus kept his eyes ahead.
"You know she's probably a puppet, right? There is no way Kerrigan would let someone conveniently survive without being under her thumb." Jims thoughts were immediately so much more grim when Kerrigan entered them, Tychus easily picked up on the shift in his friends demeanor though.
"Maybe she is, maybe she isn't. Adjutant didn't detect any Zerg infestation on her, good enough for me. Not like the Queen of Blades is going to kill us now anyway, Jimmy." Still, Tychus thought about his interactions with Jayce. A seed of doubt was planted. Up ahead the path had curved enough to obscure what lay beyond, but Tychus felt the idling infested crew member standing there and stopped walking.
"What is it?" Jim stopped with Tychus and looked wary, a spine on his thigh twitching until he firmly planted a hand on it without thinking.
"Listen Jim. Kerrigan didn't just kill everyone." Looking over and down at his friend, realization was clearly dawning on his face. "Most of the crew was infested. There's one ahead, just thought I'd let you know- wait Jimmy!" Raynor had already started striding forwards quickly and with purpose, even though he wasn't currently armed.
Breaking into a run as he rounded the bend, Tychus kept up behind him and decided to let it play out. When the hunched husk of a former crew member came into his line of sight, Jim charged. He had every intention of using his fists to put the man out of his misery, but without thought his right hand wrapped around a thick spine sticking out of his thigh and yanked hard- the spine jerked free of his skin with a snap.
Realizing what he had done only while he was in the process of doing it, Jim let out an angry shout as he made to throw the weighted spine. "Why didn't you kill them Tychus!" When the spine jammed into the steel wall a good foot away from the infested and he was completely certain it should have gone straight through an eye, he faltered.
Cease your attempts, Terran. The infested are not to be harmed. Shlassa addressed Jim, and everyone else by proxy, and he planted a palm to his forehead to try and quell the discomfort immediately.
"There's a damn broodmother on the ship, Jim. Can't kill the infested. Can't kill each other. You really think I wouldn't try?" Tychus stood beside Jim, watching his friend stare at the oblivious infested.
Hit by a surge of emotion, Jim smacked his fist into his thigh with a clack, the helplessness was maddening. "Why would she keep us, Tychus? What's her damn game?" Turning his head to look up at his friend, Tychus was regarding him evenly with his multiple pupil eyes.
"Do you remember Ezekiel Daun, Jimmy?"
"There are Zerg I fear less than that name, Tychus." Brows furrowing, Raynor focused on what his friend was saying, uncertain of the point.
"Some people are just the sickest sons of bitches and get their rocks off on tormenting the weak. Queeny is just miles and magnitudes more powerful than Ezekiel Daun could have ever dreamed of being."
Shoving past the infested angrily, the comparison stung him hard but it fit too. They resumed walking. "She wasn't like that, Tychus. Before all of this alien horseshit she was as good a person as you or me." Swallowing hard, his hand reflexively went to his pocket where he had kept her picture, now gone. "I put all my belief in her coming back."
Somber, Tychus focused on moving any infested that would be in their way out of sight. "Don't tear yourself up Jimmy." Tychus chuckled and elbowed his shoulder suddenly. "We aren't model citizens ourselves."
Horner had been pouring over all the data the ships limited scans could give on the planet adjacent to them before everyone had even left the bridge. What he found left him concerned, but confused. What could Kerrigan want with a planet that had what appeared to be uninfested Zerg? It's not like she didn't have an army big enough to crush any planet, or the whole damn sector, under her heel already.
"Adjutant, open the comms and forward this data to all Engineer and Mechanic data pads."
"Yes Captain."
"Gentlemen, and lady, I have forwarded you all the information I could get on the planet that the Swarm is currently in orbit over. I don't know what to make of it, maybe you can find something I missed." Closing the comms, Horner felt a small measure better. Someone will have an idea of whats going on, most likely Stetmann, and he can focus on ship diagnostics and prepping to get off the Leviathan. Even getting off the monstrous living ship was going to be difficult to maneuver, never mind the minefield of Zerg spread out around it, and the captain had every intention of being prepared.
Eager to depart for Zerus below, Kerrigan had been impatiently listening to the activities of Jim and his men since he woke. The moment Swann felt the satisfaction of a job well done, the ship being able to fly again, she struck.
An ominous pause happened on the Hyperion. Everyone, even Jayce, felt the approach of Kerrigans mind, poised to touch them. It was like standing helpless in a desert as a wall of sand rushed towards you, relentless. When they connected, Jayce yelled out in pain- much like she had when the Queen of Blades first boarded the ship. To everyone else, it was mentally taxing but the foreign thoughts of the Swarm no longer felt so strange, there was no more real pain.
I see you have finished repairing the Hyperion. Good. You are to leave for a planet named Kaldir, in the Koprulu sector. There you will discover what happened to my broodmother, Nafash, and do whatever you have to in order to bring her brood back into the Swarm.
They were unable to respond, as if held in rapt attention, until Kerrigan broke their link with a sharp tug. She remained in contact with Shlassa, however.
Shlassa. There is more I would tell you.
Yes, my Queen?
Nafash was sent to Kaldir to force her brood to acclimate to the extreme temperatures there. It is vital we bring this strength to the Swarm, you will take whatever measures necessary to do this.
And if the Terrans fight me, my Queen?
See that they don't. You are to safeguard them, do not fail me.
As you say. Shlassa was left to plan, and Kerrigan was already leading a small portion of her forces to the surface of Zerus, eager to uncover its power. In tow was Zeratul subtly following in his Void Seeker, ready to impart advice to the Queen of Blades. Izsha would bring the Leviathan down to the planet's surface after the Hyperion departed from it.
Matt Horner jerked slightly as Kerrigan withdrew, taking a slow breath and gathering his thoughts. "Adjutant, set coordinates for the planet Kaldir. I want all information about the planet displayed, and the locations of all refueling stations along the way."
"Yes Captain."
With no small degree of distaste, Horner reached out to the others mentally. Swann, Stetmann, Tychus, Warfield. Ready the infested, we're leaving this Leviathan.
I didn't even tell anyone that she was ready to go! Swann was disgruntled. First he gets the job done like he said he would, then the Queen of Blades is barging into his head and pushing him around, nothing was right about it.
Kerrigan seems to think we are, and I for one will be glad to see the ass-end of this Leviathan.
I don't know much of anything about flying a ship this size, but I'll do what I can. Tychus piped up, already guiding infested to their work stations. He and Stetmann were by far the most skilled with controlling them, if not by virtue of practice than by simply being awakened longer than the rest.
Warfield and I are working together in the engine compartments. Stetmann finally chimed in.
When the Hyperions vertical thrusters roared to life, any unfortunate Zerg below them were seared to death instantly. The ship groaned and trembled briefly before snapping free of the dried creep that had stabilized it on the Leviathan, and guiding it off of and away from the living ship and the millions of Zerg arrayed around it fell into Horners hands.
Jim had come back to the bridge alone to watch Matt work, his head throbbing from their mental communications. It disturbed him to feel and know that the infested crew members were being ridden like meat suits by his friends, leaving him wondering why they were not fighting against it all. He privately questioned if Kerrigan wasn't in direct control of all of them, even if his conversation with Tychus had felt so sincere. What part of his mind hadn't become privy to Kerrigan, if she wanted it?
Tensely, Horner called out. "Jim, get on that dash and keep an eye on the port side. Keep me posted on any obstacles you see."
"Uh." Roused from his thoughts, Jim complied absently. "Right. Try not to crash my ship, Captain."
"Wouldn't dream of it, Commander." Horner was maneuvering past clusters of Overlords and at one point a giant Leviathan tentacle nearly brushed into the ship, but when he realized he could bump Overlords out of the way without any adverse reactions their exodus from the Swarm became that much easier. Only when the Swarm was a cluster in the distance did they relax slightly. From here the Adjutant could steer towards their goal and all they had to do was keep the ship up and running with their limited resources.
We are in the clear and en route to the planet Kaldir. Keep the infested at their posts though, we will want easy access to them should something go wrong. Horner had closed his eyes and scrunched his eyebrows in concentration as he delivered his message, but Jims uncomfortable grunt brought his attention back quickly.
Jayce was in an Engineering hub, a small square room with walls of spare parts and cases upon cases of tools. In the center of the room a square table was arrayed for setting up smaller projects, which was where she sat on a simple stool. Tychus and Warfield were both present, Warfield keeping off to the side and looking at the datapad in his hands.
Tychus had laid his datapad flat on the table and was watching the small image of his infested self rotate while information rolled by. Stetmann had sent his test results to both Tychus and Warfield, and they were looking over it with morbid curiosity while Jayce was attempting to repair a fried coil with her left hand and watch the data Horner had sent to everyone about the planet they had just departed from.
Glancing from the small part she had been soldering to a recorded feed of what looked suspiciously like a Zergling feasting on another one, her voice came like a shout in the quiet. "Pause!" Immediately afterwards she hissed and dropped the soldering iron, aware her hand had moved awkwardly and ruined the job she had been so meticulously doing on the tiny circuits. "Damn it."
"What're you on about?" Tychus mumbled, not looking up from his little infested 3D model. Jayce had proven very stubborn about doing things herself, despite her arm, and had learned early to not intervene unless absolutely necessary.
Scrubbing the back of her hand across her eyes, Jayce gestured towards the video. "Look at that thing." Warfield was getting drawn to the conversation, looking up from his datapad with a stern expression.
"Looks like a Zerg eatin' another Zerg. What about it?" Tychus tilted his head, looking from the image to Jayce with a quirked brow.
Sighing as though he was truly dense, Jayce reached over and started to move the image frame by frame. Twisting to the side on her stool so her broken arm wouldn't be touched, she focused intensely on the image, certain of what she had seen. "There." Pausing the image of the Zergling just after it had consumed a chunk of flesh, she raised a long, calloused finger and pointed at its eyes.
"It has eyes, nice job."
"All those extra pupils in your dumb head and you still don't see what just happened there, Tychus?" He narrowed his eyes at the insult, looking hard at the image and trying to figure out what the hell the woman was getting at. Only then did he notice that her fingertip was actually pointing beside the creatures eye, where a new eye had literally sprouted within the seconds it took to consume the other animal.
"It changed!" Jayce exclaimed, seeing the look of understanding pass Tychus' features.
"Changed? Care to explain?" Warfield had been watching, but drew no closer.
Jayce was already selecting the small section of the recording and forwarding it to Stetmann with a few notes, excited to have figured something out. "It took a bite out of that other Zergling and grew a new pair of eyes, General. If consuming and growing stronger isn't of interest to the Swarm, I don't know what is."
"That does sound right up Kerrigans alley, doesn't it. Good job." Warfield remained in place, looking down at his datapad with a sour expression.
"Yeah. Nice job detective." Jayce was already trying to fix the mess she made with her soldering iron again, and missed the particularly intense stare she was receiving from Tychus just then.
"Just want to help. I'm personally very happy to be away from the Swarm. I hope I can-"
"Escape soon?" Tychus had tilted his head, hands resting around the datapad that reminded him just how much he wasn't human anymore.
"W-well..." Startled, Jayce looked up at the two men then and felt fearful and ashamed. Both were looking at her in what she thought was bitterness. "I am sorry. It was unkind, but we all know I'm not safe by a long shot either."
"She's right Tychus. Can't go blaming her for our own situations." Warfield mumbled, trying to steer his thoughts to more positive grounds. It was difficult when a little datapad was telling you that you secreted paralytic venom from your brand new claws and could possibly fire off clouds of extreme hallucinogenic dust from porous locations on your skin.
"No." Tychus eyes gleamed in the dull overhead light, recalling his conversation with Jim. "Suppose I can't."
Over the planet Haven, where the former colonists of Agria who had declared themselves independent from the Dominion were now shaping their new home, the Dominion ship Bucephalus hung in low orbit. Prince Valerian Mengsk was listening intently to Dr. Ariel Hansen, who was at a communication tower below on the planets surface.
"While the people of Haven are sympathetic to the plight of the Terrans of the Koprulu sector, we are a free people and are not a part of the Dominion or any other unsavory faction, Prince Valerian. We can't house your refugees, not with the threat of Zerg infestation, and we won't house your fleet- the Protoss are our neighbors and we have no desire to start any fires between them and us."
"I appreciate you taking the time to have this conversation with me, Dr. Hansen. Before you dismiss us completely however, please let me tell you of our situation." The loss at Char had burned the young man, but tempered him with new skills. He had been very careful to approach the people of Haven with as nonthreatening and diplomatic a stance as possible, given the reputation his last name automatically earned him. Finding them based off of offhand comments Jim, Tychus and Stetmann had made was hard enough as it was.
"I am listening."
"I know that Jim Raynor and his men helped your people in their time of need. But I don't know how much information you have about what happened to them after they left. Do your people know what is happening, and what has happened, in the Koprulu sector?"
"We do not currently have the faculties to be up to date on what has happened in the Koprulu sector since we left... But what happened to Jim?" Valerian saw the concern painted easily on the Doctors face as soon as Jim was mentioned. She was an open book as far as he was concerned.
"Jim Raynor and his Raiders were destroyed in the battle of Char, where he had attempted to use an alien device to neutralize the Queen of Blades and save the Koprulu sector from her and her Swarm."
Ariel took off her glasses and immediately dabbed at her eyes, stricken, while Valerian pushed on.
"I had taken command of my fathers entire Dominion Fleet in order to ensure Jim Raynors success against the Queen of Blades, in an attempt to save humanity. We failed. The Dominion Fleet has been crushed and my father, Arcturus Mengsk, has publicly denounced me as a traitor to humanity for weakening his precious core worlds." Watching his father put a bounty on his head hadn't hurt him as much as he thought it should, but Valerian wasn't sure it mattered anymore.
"And now you're what?" Sniffing and attempting to retain her composure, Ariel righted her glasses and focused on the Prince intensely. "Rebels, and bringing the Dominion down on helpless colonists?"
"No. I only sought you out recently. Precisely three days ago, the Hyperion's Adjutant came online. The ship had not been destroyed as I initially thought." A chill curled in his stomach at the thought, much like it had when the initial alert came in. Ariel looked to be experiencing similar.
"I sent drones to collect as much information as possible as soon as I found out. The time frame from there is fuzzy still, as the Swarm had moved from the Koprulu sector to an unknown planet. But what I do know is that the Hyperion is on the move and back in the Koprulu sector."
"The Zerg have infested the ship. There is no other explanation if it flew freely out of the center of the Swarm." Ariel stated pointedly.
"No. The ship has no outward signs of infestation and though there are infested signatures on the ship, there are also multiple strong psionic waveforms. Seven, in fact."
"What are you saying? Is the ship being used to deliver infested safely behind enemy lines?"
"I am saying I believe Jim Raynor and his close friends are alive, Ms. Hansen. If anyone has earned an attempt to be saved it is that man and his men."
"How?" Valerian had to carefully control his reaction, smiling would be rude in this case.
"I read your file and what bits of information I could get about what happened to your people in the transition from Agria to Meinhoff and finally, Haven. You are a very gifted scientist, particularly when it comes to Zerg infestation. You may have also come into contact with the Xel'Naga artifact that the Raiders had pinned their hopes on."
While she privately questioned the resources of the Prince that he had this kind of information, given the Dominion completely abandoned her people, Ariel owed everything to Jim and his men. "You think what has been done to them can be reversed? Prince Valerian, I would actually need to be in the presence of an infested Jim Raynor and his men to even begin to understand what has been done to them, and if it could be undone. While we do have very extensive anti-infestation protocols and containment measures here on Haven, the people of Haven can't hope to stage an assault on a battleship manned by some of the most clever, and now infested, Terrans in the galaxy and capture them alive."
"Doctor Hansen, all I ask is your cooperation should I be successful in containing the threat and delivering it to you safely. The Bucephalus does however have refugees and refuel needs. If you are willing to consider saving Jim, I ask that you accept these displaced people and refuel the ship, nothing more. I do not wish to deliver more innocents into harms way, and that is where this ship is heading."
A brief pause was all Ariel needed to consider. "We owe everything to Raynor's Raiders. Our lives. Our home. Everything. You will have our full cooperation, Prince Valerian."
*Rubs hands together* Alright! So a very busy chapter, lots of different things getting put into motion. Hopefully I can keep it consistent and coherent from here on out, see you soon!