Laboured breaths rushed in and out of Tanya's lungs as she shuffled from the burning wreck, blood trailing at her feet, legs shuddering with every step as the world swirled around her. Her ears bled, and she moved on willpower alone. Her legs gave out on her after only a few steps as she collapsed and laid on her back, her eyes glaring in defiance at the stars glimmering before their shine disappeared in the roaring light of the burning vehicle.
Tanya could see the bodies burning in the vehicle, death already claiming them. There was harrowing laughter resounding in her mind, a mockery to her defiance with a whisper of promises of longevity and time, all she had to do was a simple call. A single name and all worries, all pain would fade but she would not submit and never will, her will and defiance resolute. Until the whispers silence in contempt.
She could feel her blood pooling around her, colouring her hair and uniform crimson as she grew colder each second.
Then she took a final breath, and it was over. Tanya von Degurechaff had died.
The light had come over her vision, and blinding light faded to blurry vision. From blurry vision, it slowly subsided, and shapes formed into medical equipment. Blurry forms have become figures and faces. Their forms are covered in stark white suites and grey accents; strangely enough, all visible individuals are in peak health and fitness. Tanya's vision was forced on a blond-haired woman with piercing purple eyes, which were odd. A small smile played on her 'Mother' face, but there was a cold depth to those purple orbs like a soldier's eyes after combat. Due to her mental exhaustion, her eyes began to droop and close carefully as she felt herself get wrapped in a warm blanket in the relatively dry, cold air.
If Tanya had looked behind her mother, she would have seen an endless expanse of space. Many voidships took precedence in the window's view, and the earth-like planet underneath them was burning.
In her dreams, Tanya had watched a man torment the lives of his subordinates and had visions of a child in war, and Tanya knew they were her in the same, but she couldn't grasp much other than what she witnessed in the fitful visions that plagued her dreams. Haunting memories beyond her grasp, but she could not grasp how she died in either.
The following day was odd for Tanya; the first thing she noticed was her mother fully recovered and, more importantly, training as she woke up in a gymnasium watching her mother strike a bag with stone-shattering attacks, each with a thunderous echo. Behind her mother was a window that cast a Horrific vision of a planet below them; she watched the planet fade from view as the ship left orbit, and she watched her mother slow her movements and those purple eyes move to face her. She watched her mother's face go from a combative snarl to a warmth-filled smile and made her way to Tanya ``You are awake, my little warrior," her mother called, and she could feel herself being picked up by deceptively strong arms.
"There you are, Joannia." came a voice from the door, and she watched her mother look up. However, Tanya's vision was blocked by her mother's arm. "Still being the doting mother for your daughter, I see." Joannia's limb had shifted, and Tanya could see the figure. This man was large, well over 6 feet, and muscular. Still, the physique was common to all she had seen, his eyes were blue almost oceanic and his hair was black with grey showing, he had a strong moustache over his top lip he was wearing a glaring white suit and a small almost loincloth covered his hips, off setting his Greek physique was a almost carved frown on his brow. The mountain of a man walked up to her mother and placed a hand on her shoulder and gripped "The council has given you a job"
Tanya frowned only a day after her birth and this 'Council' had already has made demands of her mother and a angry babble came out her mouth and a thunderous fury roared in her mind tiny fists balled and a scowl on her small features, it caused both her mother and the stranger to glance down at her and smile trying to ease her wrath, her mother playing with her hands "I understand Knowl-ahn…" her mother sighed in acceptance before returning her gaze to Tanya "I won't be long Tanya, my little warrior"
Soon she was passed from the loving care of her mother to Knowl-ahn and his rather stiff actions with her, his posture was that of someone who was not used to caring for an infant and Tanya pitied him, he stiffly moved towards the cot for her and placed her into it, his features shown confliction… something concerned him and it made her gut have a sinking uneasiness. She watched her mother walk out of the door and cast a quick glance before the door snapped shut behind her.
It has been a few weeks since and Tanya has grown concerned for several reasons, Knowl-Ahn has been constantly been around despite his own duties and has consistently shown a face of confliction, his face doesn't show much other than that then came the return of her mother, covered in blood and brutality but the love in her eyes doesn't fade, "Told you I wouldn't be long" her purple orbs held a depth of caring, Joannia's faces towards Knowl-ahn "The Unopian Rebellion is crushed" and the large man nodded before leaving the small room that both Tanya and her mother stayed in the majority of their stay.
Tanya watches her mother physically relax and she says heavily and she casts off the skintight suit and her mother wears a tube top and the bottom half of her suit with its cloth flowing in some non existing wind in this ship. She casted a smile towards Tanya and it looked strained at best, a forced tugging of her lips as her eyes looked hollow. "Sometimes little warrior, you do things you don't enjoy…" her mother picked her up and bounced her a few times in her arms, her face showing no effort in her part "and you will have to make a difficult choice that affects others and so will they, do not hate simply because of that choice…" she paused carefully in her words "Learn why they made their choices and find your own answers"
She carefully placed Tanya back into the bed she was in, and then stepped into an opaque glass and the sound of a shower filled her ears. And her mind filled with a weight that casted heavy lids over her eyes and with that she fell asleep once more.
The next time Tanya woke it was to the her mothers screams and a heavy crashing sound, the silhouettes of white and grey, two large forms cover her vision and her mother covered in blood, Combat fills her vision as she watches several individuals attempt to fight her mother before she rips them apart, literally gore spilling across the corridor before she turned with tears in her eyes, her fist clashing with the tempered glass and it crumbled and the air vacuuming out but the people holding Tanya did not budge and neither did she, she watched her mother fly out the destroyed window and into the vacuum of space before it sealed in heavy steel shutters her mother seemingly dead, Tanya wept…
It has been a few days since Tanya saw her mother flung out into space, the stars bleed light into her hollow room, its contents ripped apart by angry judicators searching for any shred of evidence, she watched Knowl-ahn pace around the room many times seemingly lost in thought, he glanced at Tanya his face that of conflict before he sighed and picked her up carefully then began exiting the room
It's been a few years, Tanya a toddler of 5 years old under the care of Knowl-ahn and some Stiff attitude others who treat her with disdain, hate hidden carefully with a thin veil of apathy, It was one day where Knowl-ahn had stepped into their shared quarters, his face stony "Tanya… I have an assignment to a world" his frown grew "I have to take you as they will not care for you"
"Vewy well" came her reply he began packing her spartan room and with what remains of her mothers suit "How long will it take us to get there?" she packed into a small case neatly and struggled to lift it, hating her tiny body.
Knowl-ahn gripped the case with a single large hand, He turned round to leave the room "It will take some time" He pressed the button on the side of the room with a heavy sigh "But it will be within the week" he finished and Tanya nodded, he exited the room and she followed him down featureless steel walls and into a room filled with a hatch that windowed into the vastness of space, the room was centred with a featureless pod that had no windows and no clear openings.
Knowl-Ahn placed his hand on the pod and with a sharp hiss it opened. Inside was a single seat and a space where her pack would sit, but no space for him… Tanya had thought he would fit inside but clearly she was wrong, he must have a pod or something of his own in another room… so she stepped inside and placed her pack in the intended slot. The massive man placed a hand on the door and pushed it down carefully once she was seated comfortably, with a hiss she sat in a dark space with zero light till she had a screen light up and had a Viltrumite Novel appear for her to read for the weak and on the side was the weeks nutrient paste which she hated and water which was… water.
The passing of time was slow in her purview and she would carefully hear knocks on the hull of the pod, it confused her at the first day but she learned to ignore it. The book was boring because it was filled with nothing but propaganda so she ignored them too and slept most of the week away, in flitting dreams she had seen more memories of her past lives… the more she watched the more she remembered but the dreams where nothing but flashes… barely anything to gleam from but enough to grasp general ideas.
As the week passed Tanya had realised that sometimes she felt heavier or lighter in the pod only assuming they passed celestial bodies and soon there was a pull of ungodly degree clearly passing something massive… It was not long after that that the pod began to warm up, uncomfortably so for her small stature before it cooled down, not instantly but enough to make the warmth bearable.
Soon she saw a hand rip the pod lid off with a sharp hiss of recycled air into clean fresh air, the skies clear and blue clouds hung lazily in the sky with a hauntingly familiar star in orbit, it was Knowl-ahn who with a gentleness that belayed his size lifted her and placed her on the ground with care, she watched him for a single moment before looking around and seeing no other pod, his Viltrumite suit untouched by anything which confused Tanya greatly but chalked it up to space bullshit.
Tanya watched the skies before a thundering roar of a jet engine filled her ears and her eyes snapped towards the two Fighter jets soar past and circle them, it wasn't too soon as the fighters pulled back and a flash of blue light crashed into her vision, it was a man clearly… his suit jacket was black and smooth devoid of any creases… either this man was a neat freak or he was well off, his red tie centre of his person and also crisp, but his face was another story, horrific scars ran from the right side of his mouth and spread like cracks on his aged face, he was balding but that did not stop him from having long straight hair at the back of his head, his face was a stern statue and his blue eyes focused on the clear threat that Knowl-ahn possessed and then flicked to her for a single moment "Cute kid" his voice was cut and dry and filled with nothing but business and there was a hint of an accent… not much for Tanya to grasp but it was there.
The stranger snapped his fingers and another blue flash entered vision. Soon there was a group behind the stranger, a man who was nothing but green, even his eyes were nothing but green… there was a man in red who was erratically moving ever so often, he looked like he drunk too many energy drinks and the caffeine hit all at once, the fourth was a alien of some kind, his face was gentle despite its inhuman appearance and was smiling like a kind elderly neighbour at her, there was a Fishman… there was nothing much else on his appearance other than abundant wealth.
The final 4 were of actual note, A man in a dark cowl and who was clearly a batman fan as he had gadgets and gizmos all over his person, his face was cast of stone and in a permanent scowl, the second was a large man, his face was that of a grizzled veteran and had a grim complexion cast over his face, he wore nothing but a body glove that had a primarily cream white colour with pattern a light purple, the third was a woman with eyes of an ancient who withstood the sand of time despite her youthful appearance. Her head was crowned by a helm and she wore armour, in her hand was a mighty mace which was a smooth surface but was more than likely a dangerous instrument of death in her hands… The last man was Abraham Lincoln? No it can't be… however he had a full beard but no moustache, his hair was slicked back neatly and his form was tall and muscular like most of the others here but his suit was a yellow and blue with a white lining.
The stranger took a step forward, Tanya now seeing the clearly American flag on his suit "Welcome to earth…" he gestured towards Knowl-ahn to say his name "Knowl-ahn" came the response "Nolan, good to meet you and the little miss too" he gestured towards Tanya who at this point was having a massive headache from the information slammed into her memories from her previous lives, Memories of notable figures, continents, pop culture etc, useless information on Viltrumite ships but could be useful on earth.
Tanya had decided that standing with the headache was far too annoying and sat down on the grassy hill both her and Nolan found themselves on, tired from the pain she plops down onto the grassy hill and huffs in annoyance which drew a smile from most of the present members of the group behind the suited man "Name's Cecil, if you want to stay here you talk to me." His tone led to no room for an answer for anyone else.
"Fine" came the sole response of her guardian, his fist was clenched with stone shattering fury. A single small hand placed upon his leg and he looked down to see Tanya looked exhausted mentally and needed rest, his anger simmered before relaxing his posture, gently he picked her up and rested her in his arms.
"We have accommodations for 'Guests' like yourselves. It shouldn't take too long… however I need a surname." Cecil walked up to him with the Lincoln look alike both of their postures stiff
"Gray" Nolan paused to think "Sons… Graysons'' he nodded to himself, seemingly accepting the name. Cecil snapped his fingers and they arrived in a simple apartment with two bedrooms, the smaller one was bare with a bed and a bedside unit and the main room had a reading lamp and a shelf filled with basic literature from earth, the main room was filled with two cream coloured sofas and a single coffee table while the main window looked out into the bustling city below them, Tanya walked into the Kitchen and open the refrigerator and found it filled with the essentials.
She closed the door to the refrigerator and strolled into the smaller bedroom and found nothing to note other than what she saw earlier and with that she threw herself into the bed, enjoying the softness. Soon sleep took her into its dark comforting embrace, easing her headache,
Nolan had looked into the small room and saw Tanya sleeping on the bed and he walked into the room quietly as possible and carefully put her into the bed fully tucking her in. With that he walked into the other bedroom finding many books and picking one up… a Cartoonish novel by the Name of Overlord and the cover art shows a world full of monsters and magic its main theme seems to be a skeletal figure in royal purple with blazing red eyes… he placed it down and pulled another book and read its cover and it was called The Master of Mankind this books cover art was that of a large man clad in gold armour and surrounded by other gold clad warriors, one hand of the large man clearly the Master of mankind as the title suggests is a flaming longsword and the other hand is a massive claw type weapon, clearly the last resident was a Fiction enjoyer.
Tanya woke the next morning, Finding an empty apartment Nolan nowhere in sight. She sat on one of the cream coloured Sofas and found several novels on the coffee desk, The master of mankind being one, a Book she has seen before in her first life and The Lord of the Rings Special edition book that thing is thicker than a dictionary, Tanya carefully placed both books back onto the table, Tanya glanced around the room and a knock had came from the door and Tanya had removed herself from the couch and opened the door slightly and peeked outside to see Cecil and another man who was slightly overweight, his eyes were under a pair of glasses, his own suite crips and clean, a grey with a blue tie his face was gentle compared to the stern visage of Cecil, Tanya seeing that she was not in any threat she opened the door wider and saw both staring at her.
The Gentle looking man kneeled down to her height and smiled softly and waved while Cecil still had a stony visage "Hey kid, we are looking for your father" Tanya grimaced and looked at the older men
"He's no' here, No' ma Dad, Carer thow" she replied annoyed by the fact she couldn't form full words the way she wished,
"I… See, Do you know where he is kid" he asked her to which she shook her head, The other man turned to Cecil "Sir, We could have Satellites find him" this made Cecil sigh before turning to his subordinate "Take too long Donald, Damn it"
They disappeared in a flash of blue light right as Nolan arrived in the window, Now she realised that he could fly his Viltrumite suit slightly tarnished some oil and is that Lipstick on his moustache, can't be he entered the room and closed the window behind him, seeing Tanya's shock was no surprise… Viltrumite children don't learn of their powers till they are fully indoctrinated… this is going to be an awkward conversation when she's older "Let me get changed Tanya and then we'll talk okay?"
Nolan's figure disappeared behind a closed door, leaving Tanya to her thoughts, thoughts like did her mother really die during that battle and how many other things can she do?
Nolan re-entered the room this time wearing a basic shirt and jeans, he looked at her and sighed "Tanya, its… best you sit for this" he gestured to the sofa to which they both sat at "As you may have noticed our people is… not like those here, We can fly, almost impervious, strong beyond human measure and we age incredibly slowly after a certain point" he explained slowly.
"You will get these powers too when you are older though" he stood up and walked into the kitchen, "I will make us something to eat" he opened the fridge and soon Tanya realised her life on earth will be filled with intrigue
Tanya has had a few months on earth and noticed things, Nolan has taken up a job as an author but he seems relaxed, normally he seems like a coiled spring ready to react.
She walked into the main room and found Nolan filling out forms, He noticed her "Good morning Tanya, I'm thinking of sending you to school" he had paused "I want you to blend in"