//------------------------------// // Chapter 025: Heartbeat Of Her Swarm // Story: Starcraft: Queen and Country // by Wanderer D //------------------------------// Starcraft: Queen and Country By Wanderer D Chapter 025: Heartbeat Of Her Swarm 2504, Somewhere█ After what seemed like hours talking to Twilight, reminiscing, discussing magic, and even learning, Sweetie felt herself awakening almost as soon as Twilight also started to fade.  "Twilight… I'm not sure I can come back here," Sweetie confessed. "It's okay, Sweetie," Twilight responded, watching her with an almost-proud smile. "I'll explain things to the others, and all that we discussed and I taught you should help you… you'll find a way. I trust you." "I'm sorry I turned out like this," Sweetie cried out. "It's such a betrayal of—" Before she could finish, Twilight hugged her tight. Sweetie hugged her back as the alicorn spoke: "I'm proud of you. You've changed and things are different, but we can't prevent change or always be happy with it. But you're strong, and you're still yourself. Keep growing, Sweetie…" She leaned back and smiled. "Evolve into a better pony. A better Zerg. A better everything. You can do it." "Twilight…" and then their forelegs went abruptly through each other, as if they were never really there. The strange place where she had met Twilight Sparkle faded slowly into mists of energy and she felt her consciousness being pulled away from the edge of the universe. At least she now knew everycreature back home was okay, and not only that: they hadn't been forgotten. As tragic as things had been… according to Twilight, the attack that had caused their accident had caused a shift in mentality even in the most resistant groups in Equestria, and even outside its borders. Sudden, public confrontations between Twilight's 'faction' and xenophobic nationalist groups like Unicorns First, had sparked community interest into examining that mentality and its origins. She hadn't gone much into the details, but according to her, that public interest had slowly degraded their narrative, chipping away at the lack of logic and fear mongering until very few even remained after a closer examination had revealed all the flaws in the logic of their hate. This wouldn't really help to get Sweetie and Gallus back sooner, but it was nice to know that when they went back, these groups would be practically buried. But that was the funny thing about ponies and beings in Equestria, Sweetie supposed; they reacted strongly to change, but once they understood it, they were eager to adapt and change, embracing the new and discarding old prejudices, like Ponyville as a whole had done with Zecora. Now, she knew she was going back to the Zerg. To her Queen and Ariel and her swarm; to Gallus and Zeratul and Selendis, and all the other friends she had made. As her thoughts went from Twilight to her current place in the universe, memories flashed back more intensely than in the void where she had been before. 2504, Koprulu Sector, Agria's Moon█ Now she remembered the last fight on Char. The pain of all her nerve-endings burning in white-hot fire, her teleportation, crashing into another place, with overwhelming, blinding pain… that seemed to be gone now, dulled, somehow, but she found herself in a familiar, and disturbing sensation.  As she struggled to fight away the grogginess in her mind, she could feel and even smell the liquid surrounding her. It wasn't the organic, welcoming pool of a Leviathan. It was… different. It reminded her of that place.  The place where she had been torn apart and experimented on.  The memories of her torture came back to her, along with the feelings of despair and horror, her own thoughts as she had believed she would drown so far away from home echoed in her mind, as if brought back from so many months ago.  'Not like this! Please, oh Celestia! Not like this… Rarity! Gallus! H-help me!'  She had been so helpless as liquid was forced into her lungs. She felt her horn gathering energy, channeling it through her body as her cells started regenerating at full Zerg speed. She was stronger now! The memory came unbidden again: She felt the drill touch her horn. "No! PLEASE NO!" Not again. Never again! Just like that time, she could hear voices, unclear through the liquid surrounding her and the barrier separating them. She remembered her desperate crying, her horror-filed cries for mercy all ignored by her captors. "IT HURTS! MAKE IT STOP! I'LL NEVER SING AGAIN! JUST STOP! RARITY! HELP ME!" She twitched. She wasn't going to allow this to happen again. Not when she could fight back! Not when she was Zerg! With a gurgling roar, she unwound from the pitiful curled-up position she had been in while floating in the liquid. She felt tugs and snaps as the tubes connecting to her body ripped apart, and her scythes shot forth, crashing through the barrier keeping her inside with tremendous force, then spread open to help catapult her out of the tube into the midst of her enemies. She flew at the one straight ahead, a small voice in her head crying for her to stop, but her instincts wouldn't allow her to hesitate. Hesitation was death.  Hesitation meant torture and pain! Just as she was about to tear the blue blur in front of her to bloody chunks, something slammed onto her side, sending her flying violently against a white, curved wall. She barely managed to counter the attack with a swipe of her scythe, feeling it slice into something before she had to spread her wings and forced herself to turn in the air, landing with all hooves on the wall, clinging to it as she hissed at her attacker… it wasn't Terran. "Sweetie!" The voice… "Sweetie Belle! Calm down!" "What—Gallus?!" The voice could only be his. She hissed, closing her eyes and shaking her head as the sound of an alarm siren blared around her. She ignored the sound of a door sliding open, of several feet stamping as troops ran in, the hum of weapons… She opened her eyes, breathing hard as she took in her surroundings. The room was clean, curved with inlays of gold and blue crystals, a tank with its front cracked open dripped clear, glimmering liquid onto the floor, and across it were Gallus and two female Protoss she didn't recognize. A short pang of jealousy shook her as she forced herself to breathe. Other Protoss were in the room, weapons ready. One of the females, a dark-skinned Protoss that reminded her of Zeratul held her left arm gingerly, where a wound was gushing blood. She was then the one that had tackled her. But who had she… oh… the blue blur… it could only be Gallus. But… wasn't he with the Terrans? What was happening here? "Weapons down!" a familiar voice called. Sweetie turned around, wide-eyed to stare at the Protoss that had walked into the room, not recognizing her for a moment, then, she placed her. "S-Selendis? What… where—" "There's much to explain, Queen Sweetie Belle," Selendis said gravely. "Stand down." "I—" the strength seemed to leave Sweetie's body all at once, and she collapsed heavily on the floor. "What… I'm sorry, I—" she looked up at the Nerazim that was slowly approaching her. "It was like I was back… being tortured… I didn't recognize—" "I will survive," the Nerazim said. "And I am glad to see my skills have proven true." The Nerazim's voice changed slightly, almost teasing. "I'm guessing you don't have a headache?" "I—" Sweetie raised a hoof to her head in confusion, then blinked as she slid it up her horn… feeling the smooth chitin exterior suddenly become something else. Not bone. Not chitin… but she could still feel, and her magic flowed perfectly, even better than before! The pain, all of it was gone! "What… happened," Sweetie asked, looking up from the Nezarim, to Gallus, then to Selendis." "Allow Gallus, Lasarra and Nerath to help you heal fully," Selendis said, indicating each with a gesture of her head, then waving her hand at the troops who left the lab, albeit a little reluctantly if their body language was any sign. The alarm was turned off and was replaced by the usual hum of a base or ship. "They can explain how you came to be under our care. I will message Ariel as well, to inform her that you are awake." "She knows," Sweetie said, sensing not only her second-in-command, but also her swarm nearby. "I imagine she'll be contacting you shortly." Selendis nodded. "Once you're up to date, you and I will talk. A lot has happened in the last few hours… some of which you…" her look encompassed all four of them, "will want to hear soon." "Thank you." Sweetie said, resting her head on the floor. "I don't know yet what happened, but being here in your care tells me enough about how much I owe you. I'm glad to have you as a friend, Selendis." The Protoss Executor paused, studying Sweetie silently for a moment before nodding stiffly and leaving the room. "Huh," the Protoss female that had been identified as Nerath said, "I think she was blushing." 2504, Koprulu Sector, Planet Agria█ Ariel leaned back from the microscope, rubbing the bridge of her nose. The cells she had been examining, skin cells belonging to her, to be precise, told no lies: the carbon and nitrogen, the glucose content in her basic composition was changing… not as drastically as the almost gooey changes she had seen in those that had been fully infested by the original Zerg strain, but if she took a magnified look at her own skin, it was… different. Like miniature scales. A feeling on the back of her senses told her that the Zerglings outside the city were getting restless, and just like that, her acknowledgment alone was reason enough for them to calm down. When she had feared becoming Zerg, she had no idea that a change like this could be possible. She thought that her evolution would mimic the ones she had witnessed in videos and prior studies. A violent consumption of the original material (her) to be replaced with Zerg cells that overwhelmed the original body with their voracity, creating monstrous, deformed beings that were never truly Zerg, but also not their own species anymore. Sweetie had accomplished something unthinkable up to this point by convincing Kerrigan and Abathur to integrate rather than infest. She had a feeling that her minor psionic capabilities had something to do with her personal growth in addition to Sweetie's push, and it had less with power and more with acceptance. The people of Agria that had remained, had understood and accepted that a slow conversion was going to be their fate, but unlike prior ones, they held to the hope that it would not deprive them of their sense of self. Ultimately, Ariel believed that the Zerg infestation would reach a breaking point where embracing the changes fully would make the difference in results. The human-Zerg population of her Queen's planet was not only getting fully used to the Zerg living there, but also, slowly… very slowly, they were starting to regard their more bestial brethren as less of monstrous beings and more as equals. There was of course an understanding of capabilities. Which Zerg were stronger, faster, more able to kill, but it was balanced by the equal understanding that the original Zerg were developing of these new members… how they might be more feeble in combat in most cases, but definitely superior in strategy and planning, something Zerg as a whole could not do outside very few exceptions, such as Queens Sweetie and Kerrigan. She had to wonder though… if intent was part of the process, and acceptance made it flow in a positive way so far, what would happen if her people rejected the idea? Would the infestation become aggressive and turn them into different creatures than the other human-Zerg hybrids? Or would it have advanced enough that it wouldn't matter? As she sighed and started to type her thoughts into the computer, she felt Sweetie awaken. And she wasn't the only one, she could feel the more advanced hybrids in the population react, and the entire swarm on Agria became abuzz with excitement. Ariel quickly finished her notes and headed over to the transmitter. It took a few, frustrating minutes but she was able to get patched through to the lab, where Nerath and Lasarra were performing a checkup on Sweetie, who sat on the table, waiting patiently. Her Queen's gaze went to her when the communication came through, and a smile spread on her lips. Ariel didn't know what to say. Sweetie looked Zerg, but not. Her carapace had been replaced by what appeared to be fur, and although her pincers were still there, they were smaller. Her horn was now a bit straighter, and in a spiral of its original bony structure and one of those green power crystals that Nerath used, ending in a sharp point. Her scythes rested on her back, folded, but looking sharp as ever, and she could see the gossamer wings flutter slightly when Sweetie greeted her. Her Queen looked different, but well. And her presence was stronger than ever. She could feel the other Zerg basking in her power, and the relief of the few human-Zerg hybrids in tune with the swarm who were not exactly aware yet of what was happening, but could feel the positive reaction from it. "It's good to see you, Ariel," Sweetie said. "Thank you for taking care of our swarm." "My Queen… my friend," Ariel found herself getting a little emotional. "I'm glad you're back." "We'll be there soon," Sweetie said with a gentle nod. "As soon as I've spoken to Selendis." "We'll be glad to have you back," Ariel said. "I'll let Suzie know. She's been asking me about you every day." Sweetie's smile grew, to the point where her mouth expanded back, revealing rows of razor-sharp teeth. She had looked more innocent for a moment there, but right now, she was definitely revealing herself a true Zerg. "I look forward to it." Had she been a human still, the smile might have seemed threatening, but the empathic link they shared allowed Ariel to fully appreciate how touched her Queen was, despite the horrified looks of the Protoss there. Ariel nodded, and smiled, her own lips revealing her own set of fangs. "See you soon, my Queen. You're just in time to celebrate the new year."