The One who is Many

Chapter 1

In the depths of the Sol system in the year 2113 The SS Castellanos named after the Captain who had helped with the conception of humans gaining Faster Than Light propulsion was eagerly waited as his best pilot to begin the first practical test flight of FTL that had been installed into a flight pod.

"Alright, you know the drill, folks. We're on the cusp of history here," Captain Castellanos announced over the intercom, his voice steady and confident. The bridge of the SS Castellanos buzzed with anticipation.

Lieutenant Emrys Borg, young and ambitious, sat in the pilot's seat of the test pod, his heart racing. He was about to take humanity's first tentative steps into the vast unknown of faster-than-light travel. The pod's cockpit was a claustrophobic cocoon of gleaming steel and complex circuitry. His eyes darted over the control panel, checking and rechecking every system. "All systems are a go," he murmured to himself, trying to tamp down his nerves.

The pod's hatch hissed shut, sealing him in. He felt the throb of the engines as he left the confines of the landing bay and came clear of the ship. He could feel the vibrations from the pod around him, growing stronger with each passing second as the FTL drive came online. The countdown blazed in his mind: 10...9...8... His gloved hands gripped the controls tightly. The anticipation was palpable, a silent crescendo that seemed to echo through the very fabric of the ship. 5...4...3...

2…1… With a jolt that slammed him back into his seat, the pod shot forward. The stars outside the cockpit blurred into streaks of light as the ship's FTL drive kicked in. Emrys's vision swam, and for a brief, disorienting moment, everything was a kaleidoscope of colours. His breath caught in his throat as the universe around him bent and stretched.

Over the comms he received a hail from his Captain, "Lieutenant Borg, report your status immediately!" But his voice was lost in the cacophony of alarms that had erupted in the pod. The once-clear display before him now swarmed with alerts, and the ship's instruments had gone haywire. Panic began to grip him as he realized something had gone terribly wrong. The pod jolted again, and this time it felt as if it had ripped through a wall of some unseen substance.

The cockpit was plunged into darkness, and Emrys' stomach lurched as gravity seemed to abandon him. He felt weightless, floating in the void. "What the hell just happened?" he murmured into the silent emptiness. His hands fumbled for the emergency beacon.

As the pod's emergency lights flickered to life, casting an eerie glow over the chaos of the cockpit, Emrys saw that the pod's windows had been replaced with distant stars that looked nothing like the ones he'd seen before the jump. Panic swelled in his chest, he had to keep it together though. He took a deep breath, trying to calm the racing thoughts that threatened to overwhelm him. He had to find out where he was.

"This is Lieutenant Emrys Borg, pilot of The SS Castellanos's FTL test pod. I've encountered an unforeseen situation with my FTL Drive. I repeat, I have experienced an unexpected disruption in the FTL Drive. Requesting immediate assistance and location verification," he spoke into the comms, his voice strained but steady. The silence that followed was deafening, the only sound his own breathing echoing in the confined space.

Emrys's eyes darted around the cockpit, searching for any indication of where he might be. The stars outside were arranged in a pattern he didn't recognize, and the instruments showed no sign of his location. His mind raced with the implications. Could he have travelled to another galaxy? Another universe? He had to find a way to communicate with The Castellanos.

With trembling hands, he tried to re-establish a connection. The comms crackled to life, but the voice that answered was not Captain Castellanos'. "Unidentified vessel, you have violated our space state your intentions and prepare to be brought aboard." The words were somehow in English, but the accent was unmistakably not of any Earth accent.

Emrys's heart raced as he replied. "This is Lieutenant Emrys Borg of the United Earth Spaceforce. I am conducting a peaceful scientific mission. My test flight of the FTL Drive malfunctioned, and I request assistance." He hoped his voice sounded calmer than he felt.

The response was immediate and cold. "Your technology is primitive. Identify your star system of origin." The alien voice was cold, almost mechanical. Emrys swallowed hard, trying to recall the coordinates from his last briefing. "We... I... Earth is my planet of origin."

There was a pause, and for a moment, the comms crackled with static.

"Earth," the alien voice repeated, and Emrys could almost feel the weight of a thousand calculations being made on the other end. "We have no record of such a planet or species. You will be brought aboard for inspection."

Emrys's pulse quickened. He had no way to fight, and no idea what he was dealing with. The pod lurched again as an unseen force took hold of it. He watched in horror as the stars outside began to shift and swirl, the pod being drawn inexorably toward a massive, metallic structure that grew larger and more ominous with each passing second.

The pod docked with a jolt, and the airlock hissed open. In the doorway, a figure appeared, silhouetted by the cold, green light of the alien ship. It was unlike anything Emrys had ever seen: it had a humanoid form, but it was blue in colour, 6'9 in height and held an air of superiority to it.

The alien escorted him through the ship's corridors, the cold, sterile environment a stark contrast to the warm, beating heart of the Castellanos. The walls and floors were an uneven blend of metal and green light, the air suffused with an unnatural chill that sent shivers down his spine. The creature's footsteps were silent, a stark contrast to the clank of Emrys's boots echoing through the emptiness. He was led into what he could only describe as an examination room, the walls lined with unidentifiable technology that hummed and pulsed with a disturbing rhythm.

The creature stepped aside, revealing a second figure, smaller and more insectoid in appearance. It approached Emrys with a whirring of mechanical limbs, its movements precise and unnerving. "You are the first of your kind we have encountered," it was obviously some kind of robot built to examine biological creatures.

The alien towered over him. Its eyes boring into his soul. "Your species is primitive, yet you possess technology that can pierce the boundaries of Faster Than Light propulsion. This is... intriguing."

Emrys tried to keep his voice from shaking. "I mean no harm. I am just a pilot."

The alien tilted its head, studying him with a dispassionate curiosity. "You speak of a 'SS Castellanos'. What is the purpose of this vessel?"

Emrys took a deep breath, trying to keep his thoughts clear. "We are testing a new FTL drive, we want to seek new worlds, new life, and new civilizations to understand and learn from."

The alien's gaze never left him, and for a moment, Emrys thought he saw a flicker of something akin to amusement in its eyes. "Your intentions are noted. However, your primitive technology is a threat to what we have worked so hard to achieve."

The robotic creature began to probe his body, its mechanical limbs moving with a speed and dexterity that was mesmerizing and terrifying in equal measure. Emrys flinched at the cold touch of the instruments, his mind racing with the implications of what was happening. He worried that he was going to be dissected, catalogued and analysed by an alien species that saw him as nothing more than a curiosity.

"Your biological form is... unique," the insectoid robot concluded, retracting its limbs. "But your technology is not."

Emrys felt a bead of sweat trickle down his forehead. "What does that mean?"

The alien spoke without looking at him. "Your vessel's design is... unfamiliar, unfortunately for you though we are in deep space at the edge of our system and no one knows you are here so I am able to try out one of the experiments I've been wanting to do."

Emrys felt a cold, metal appendage wrap around his wrist, and he was suddenly pulled to his feet. "Wait! What experiment?" he managed to ask, his voice tight with fear.

The alien turned to face him, its expression unreadable. "You will be augmented with a new type of nanoprobes I've invented from salvaged technology. It was designed to assess both biological and technological differences and adapt it to its own purpose."

He suddenly remembered an old program he had watched with his grandfather 13 years ago when he was 10, before his grandfather's death. He then thought about his families surname that had been a running joke with his friends who use to tease him.

"Nanoprobes? You can't!" Emrys Exclaimed.

The alien's gaze remained unflinching.

"It is not a question of can't, Lieutenant Borg," it said, its voice devoid of emotion. "It is a necessity." As the robot said as it was injecting him.

Emrys felt a cold, tingling sensation spread through his veins as the nanoprobes began their work. He struggled against the robot's grip, but his body was already succumbing to the technology. The alien, seemingly unfazed by his resistance, held up a small device that emitted a soft blue light as it scanned him. "These nanoprobes will Assess your biological structure to catalogue then it will adapt to activate it's Hive Mind".

Panic surged through Emrys as he felt his consciousness slipping away. "What do you mean by 'hive mind'?" he managed to croak out.

The alien's gaze remained unwavering. "You will become part of something greater," it said, the words echoing in the cold chamber. "Your knowledge and experiences will be assimilated by the Nanoprobes, contributing to the collective understanding of the Hive Mind. They will convert you to become a control node that I can override with but a push of a button!"

Unfortunately for the alien, the nanoprobes had finished cataloguing his memories and found the ones of him and his grandpa watching sci-fi and took inspiration from it and began its adaptation of its base programme so none could change its directive.

Emrys felt his mind swimming with a flood of new information and sensations as the nanoprobes integrated themselves into his very essence. He could feel his thoughts being rearranged; his perceptions altered. The fear and panic that had gripped him moments before were now distant memories, replaced by a strange sense of calm and purpose.

"Your transformation is almost complete," the alien announced, and the robot released him. He looked down at his hands, expecting to see some sign of the changes within him, but they remained human at the moment. The alien checked the programming to make sure that it could engage an override and discovered the changes locking him out.

"You have been assimilated," the alien continued, "but your transformation has taken an unexpected turn. It appears your biological makeup has reacted with the nanoprobes in unseen in a way that has granted you a form of control over the ship." It sounded a bit worried, which was something new to Emrys.

Emrys blinked, trying to process the alien's words. He could feel the swarm of nanoprobes inside him, a living, pulsing presence that was now a part of him. "What do you mean by control?" he asked, his voice stronger than he felt.

The alien's eyes narrowed, studying him intently. "The assimilation process was... somewhat incomplete. You retain your individuality, yet you are now connected to the hive mind of the nanoprobes. A King of the Hive Mind if you want."

Emrys's mind raced as he tried to understand the implications. "What does this mean for me?"

The alien paused, considering its words carefully. "It means that you will likely be able to influence and be influenced by the Nanoprobes to help complete its directive" with that said the alien and the robot left the examination room and locked him in.