Ardor sat on the bench of his cell, eyes closed, hands resting with palms skyward upon his knees. If he conserved his movement, perhaps the hunger would abate. He knew not whether it was night or day and was contemplating sleep when the door to the brig opened. Ardor opened his eyes, and though he saw no one enter, he sensed a new presence.
"Somebody there?" the on-duty guard called, tightening his grip on his weapon.
At first, there was no response.
The guard fruitlessly searched the area near the door. "Hello? Who's there?"
A low, disembodied voice replied. "I am not a threat."
The guard's eyes glassed over. Lowering his firearm, he retreated to the corner of the room, as though entranced.
Slowly, Ardor rose to his feet and took a few steps forward.
"Your queen is dead," the voice, now at the edge of his cell, announced.
"I would see with whom I am speaking," Ardor countered.
There was a pause during which the only sound in the room was the incessant hum of the cell's forcefield. Then, a human flickered into view. He was tall, thin, and though he looked to be of median human age, Ardor recognized his life force as more similar in quality to that of his own kind. This human's life had been long – unnaturally long.
He sniffed and narrowed his eyes. "You are the one that requires my essence."
The man blinked slowly and lowered his chin a fraction of an inch.
Ardor tilted his head to the side as he evaluated the new visitor. "It's not just that. You are not like the others."
"No. I am not." The man disappeared, as though into thin air once again, but Ardor still felt him in front of him.
"What are you?"
"Someone who both needs your help and wishes to help you in return."
Ardor raised his brow. "My help?" He gestured around his cell. "I am afraid I have little to offer at this point in time."
"As I said, you no longer have a queen to serve. You are without a Hive."
"This is not news to me. I watched as the Satedan barbarian cut her head from her body." The sting of her death had felt as though a part of himself had died alongside her.
"You have heard of the scientist called Purveyor?" the man continued.
At the mention of the name, Ardor's suspicion and intrigue were piqued. "He is a myth."
The invisible man let out a small burst of air, whether scoffing or laughing Ardor couldn't tell. "He is as much of a myth as I am. He and his ship are on their way here. They will be here within days."
Now that was news to him.
"I am somewhat of a prisoner here – not unlike you – and need you to relay a message to him."
"I am weak," Ardor said, not untruthfully. "I would need to feed to make such a connection."
"You know I cannot offer that to you. But I can provide you with something better – your freedom and a new master to serve."
Ardor's own colony had likely fallen into collapse following the death of his queen, scattering his brethren across the galaxy, begging at the doorsteps of other once-hostile Hives for a lowly spot in their ranks. Had his capture actually been a blessing in disguise?
"They say Purveyor's ship is even faster than Wind. Is it true?"
"That is only the beginning." Ardor could hear the smile in the man's voice. "Can you find it within yourself to muster the strength to relay just one short message?"
Such a proposal proffered so directly, so casually, seemed too good to be true. After considering the proposition for a moment, Ardor realized he was in no position at all to bargain, and nodded.
"Tell Purveyor to find me on the mainland, at these coordinates, before they launch their attack." A piece of paper emerged from the man's pocket of invisibility. Ardor stared at the paper until he had committed the coordinates to memory. He nodded once again to his visitor and the paper vanished.
Ardor closed his eyes, pushed his hunger to the back of his mind, took a deep breath and entered the mind space. There were three weak connections close by, but those were not new. Those had been there since he arrived in this pit and all three were closed off to him. He reached out farther, more broadly, casting his thoughts in a wide net. He had already tried this before, of course, and found the results to always be the same. He opened his eyes. "It is too far away."
"The message can wait until they are closer. Once they arrive, you will have your freedom again."
Ardor felt the man's presence dissipate before he could say any more.
"I was never here," his bodiless voice said to the guard. "You will forget all of this."
The doors opened again and presumably, the visitor was gone.
A/N: Been a while. Hope you enjoy. :)
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