Interlude: Revelations in Utter Darkness
Sweetie’s eyes open to take in the area around her. She saw the familiar bed that she was laying on, the familiar wallpaper that she had installed in her room, the wooden desk next to her bed. Everything around her showed her that she was in her own bedroom in her own house on Equus.
Part of her wondered if she was in a dream or if her experiences in Space were one big dream. She pinched herself on the cheek to find out if she could feel pain. She felt no pain. She was definitely in a dream. She couldn’t wake up either for some reason.
She heard a knock at the front door of her house. Thinking that Lyra might be home, she called for her marefriend to answer the door.
There was no response.
Another knock at the door motivated Sweetie to get out of bed and answer the door.
When she looked through the peephole, she couldn’t see anyone. Another knock at the door had irritated Sweetie enough to throw her door open, ready to punch the idiot who may have been pranking her.
To her surprise, there was someone standing at the door this time. The figure was a black unicorn stallion with a crimson mane and tail. He was wearing a blood red business suit with a black undershirt. Most notable of all was that while his eyes were crimson, they also had a cross-shaped scar through the iris of both eyes.
The stallion stared at Sweetie for a moment before speaking, “Greetings Sweetie Drops, I am here to answer any questions that you may have about myself or the Zerg.”
Sweetie slammed the door shut and blinked for a few seconds. A sound that came from behind her caused her to look to find the figure standing behind her. Regaining her composure, Sweetie asked, “Who are you? How are you in my dreams when I’ve never seen you before?”
The figure chuckled. “A predictable first question, Sweetie Drops. I am the Overmind. I have assumed this form as per the rules of your mind. Do you remember receiving a blow to the head the instant before you fell unconscious? That is the reason that I am in your head now. Both figuratively and literally.”
Sweetie began taking up a combat stance to fight the Overmind turned pony in his head. The Overmind, however, raised a hand in a motion to get her to stop before he continued, “Worry not about my presence. I can do no more to you than I am doing now in this form. I am no longer a threat to you.”
Sweetie relaxed her stance but maintained a wary expression toward her mental guest. “You said that you will answer any questions that I have about you, correct?” The Overmind nodded. Sweetie’s eyes narrowed, “Why are you and the Zerg going around and infecting planets and making war on the Protoss?”
“Because we have no choice.” Sweetie raised an eyebrow at the Overmind’s answer. “We literally have no choice. I was born with thought and reason, but not free will. Even if I disagreed with the ambitions of my creators, I could do nothing to oppose them. I was compelled to obey the overriding directive that they forced upon me: to consume all other species to perfect the Zerg and to assimilate the Protoss into myself.”
“So you can think for yourself, but you can’t do anything for yourself?” Sweetie asked.
“Correct,” the Overmind responded. Sweetie couldn’t help but pity the creature.
“You said your creators, who I assume were the Xel’naga, gave you that overriding directive, but why? Why would the Xel’naga send you and the Zerg against the Protoss?” Sweetie asked.
“The Xel’naga saw great psionic potential in the Protoss and blessed them with Purity of Form. The Xel’naga wished to push their evolutionary progress in the direction that they desired. However, the Protoss grew beyond their control through independent thinking and began seeking their own role in the universe. The Xel’naga were not pleased by this, but were ultimately driven away.
“They later found the homeworld of the Zerg, Zerus. They had gifted us with Purity of Essence and bound us to a hive mind. I was created as the embodiment of that hive mind to ensure that the Zerg could not escape their control.
“In truth, the leader of the Xel’naga, Amon, was a rogue among his kind. I have come to know him as ‘The Fallen One’. When the other Xel’naga learned of Amon’s plans, a war was waged against him and his followers. The war ultimately cost Amon his life, but his consciousness remains in the void where he plots his rebirth. As long as his consciousness remains, we can never be free.
“To answer your question, Sweetie Drops, my purpose was to assimilate the Protoss into myself to aid in the creation of Protoss-Zerg Hybrids that Amon would use to recreate the universe in his own image. Once the Protoss are no more, the Zerg will be exterminated by Amon and his Hybrid and he will continue with his plans unimpeded.”
Sweetie was shocked by the revelation, she had just learned that the Zerg were mere puppets to a far greater power, but there were still some things that needed answers. “You mentioned Purity of Form and Purity of Essence, what are they?”
“Purity of Form is a blessing from the Xel’naga given to those with great psionic potential. Purity of Essence is given to a species with great evolutionary potential. The purpose of the two purities is to unite and create a species to ascend to become Xel’naga. The two blessings cannot be directly given to any one species.”
“So this Amon intends to engineer his own candidates for Xel’naga then wipe out the two component species…” Sweetie pondered on that then changed the subject, ”Kerrigan said that you wanted to capture me alive. Why?”
“In order to combat the psionic abilities of the Protoss, I needed to assimilate other races that possess great psionic potential. Both you and Kerrigan possess this trait.”
“So you intended for us to be weapons against the Protoss?” Sweetie asked.
“In the past, that would have been correct. However, after witnessing the strong will of Kerrigan, my plans were changed. I saw in her an opportunity to resist my all-consuming directive. She may one day free my Zerg from Amon. He has taken notice of this and has retaliated by twisting her personality into something sinister. Amon may not control her, but he can still influence her because she possesses his mark: the same mark that he used to control me and my Zerg.”
“Since you have your small hope of salvation in Kerrigan, where do I fit into your plans now?”
“Prior to my destruction, I infected you with a parasitic version of myself. Now that the greatness of my power is now forever lost, the parasite can do nothing to you but it does contain the remnants of my consciousness and knowledge, hence how I am talking to you right now.”
“So you hit me with a parasite whose only purpose is to whisper into my brain?” Sweetie shuddered.
The Overmind ignored Sweetie’s reaction and continued, “Your journey may yet one day lead you to seeking the might of the Swarm. Until then, I can teach you how to control Zerg. With your current level of power, you should be able to control up to three Zerg at a time...one if you try to control an Ultralisk.”
Sweetie was actually tempted by the offer. She had to admit to the frustration that she felt when all of the Terran weaponry she had in her arsenal was spent and her psionic power was still not adequate enough to be useful against the creature that was now standing before her, even if she was in a dream. If she was to live long enough to get her revenge on Blueblood, she was going to need a lot more than what she had.
“All right Overmind, I accept you offer. Still, I have a couple more questions. How can I increase my ability to control Zerg? My other question: Let’s say someone ends up killing Kerrigan, what would happen?
The Overmind closed his eyes for a moment to contemplate. He opens his eyes and takes a deep breath. “To answer your first question, you can practice your ability and expand it to control more. However, there is a barrier that limits your growth capabilities, to overcome this, you need some sort of catalyst. The greatness of your psionic power is still sealed away. If I had infested you, that potential could have been unlocked, though, I can tell that you would prefer a different option.” Sweetie nodded. “In that case, you will seek out a potent substance that will unlock more of your potential. I shall say no more to that.
“To answer your other question, I shall answer in the form of a vision I had. Be warned, even strong minds may find the vision unbearable. Do you still wish to see?” Sweetie nodded.
The scene in Sweetie’s mind began to shift. She soon found herself on some unknown world surrounded by countless Protoss. Despite the numbers, however, she noticed the grim atmosphere around her.
The Overmind appeared next to her, adjusting his tie as he prepared to narrate his story. “On a distant, shadowed world, the Protoss will make their final stand. Their heroes will gather, their forces will be marshaled, and they will die bravely. But still, they will die. And my Zerg will be slaves to the Hybrid. All will bow before the power of the Fallen One.” He looks around the area, then looks back at Sweetie. “You may observe the battle however you wish, you will not be able to interact with the vision.”
Sweetie looked around. In the center of the compound was a strange device that was being prepared by a pair of High Templar. She also saw a fully functional Protoss base nearby and a group of Protoss near the device. The soldiers looked like they were being addressed by Zeratul. Sweetie approached the Dark Prelate to listen.
“Protoss brethren, heed me! The last twilight has fallen. The galaxy burns around us! The Terrans have been consumed. We are all that stands against the shadow. But if we are to meet our end this day, then we shall do so AS ONE! En Taro Tassadar!”
The Overmind walked up to Sweetie. “In this timeline, you were never involved in the affairs of this galaxy. Although I was destroyed all the same, Tassadar gave his life to end mine. The Protoss honor their great heroes by uttering their name as if wishing to never forget them. This is a timeline where the Terrans, in their folly, killed the Queen of Blades. And now, the universe shall pay for their mistake.”
“Also,” he added. “Please do not tell anyone about the new types of Protoss soldiers that you see. This is a vision of the future and I would rather not invoke any unnecessary consequences.” Sweetie nodded in understanding.
Sweetie noticed the High Templar enter the device, an archive if she heard them right. They appeared to be writing their history and hoped that some future generation would come along and learn from their mistakes.
Protoss ships warped in through a large ring in the center of their compound, bringing in a new type of fighter ships.
Suddenly, a malevolent voice sounded from somewhere: “The Zerg performed their function as I planned. My Hybrid are proof of this. Now, the last of the Protoss will fulfill their function...in death.”
A large number of Zerglings and Mutalisks attacked the compound but were quickly repelled. The Zerg began attacking from each of the entrances, bringing a large number of Zerg to bear against the Protoss. The Protoss scrambled to protect each of the entrances with Photon Cannons and their troops.
The malevolent voice spoke again, announcing the arrival of his greatest creation.
Sweetie saw two types of powerful creatures attack the base. One looked like a dark, bipedal creature with chitinous skin, razor sharp claws, a broad head and dark tendrils coming from its back. The other looked like a glowing version of the first one. They were brimming with psionic power and had glowing tendrils coming from its back.
“These are the Protoss and Zerg Hybrids that Amon is creating for his plan to remake the universe,” said the Overmind.
The Protoss managed to defeat them, but not without them causing some serious havoc. Several Protoss were killed in that attack. A large attack wave attacked the Protoss from all three entrances. The defenders endured the assault.
The ring-like device activated again and brought more ships that Sweetie was unfamiliar with. The ships fired a concentrated beam of energy at each Zerg that attacked the base. The Protoss managed to endure the waves...until the voice spoke once more, mentioning the ground beneath their feet turning against them.
A number of tunneling worms burst their heads out of the ground and start spitting out more Zerg to attack the compound from within.
The ring activated again, warping in a number of large ships that looked a little like Carriers. A female voice spoke from one of the Carriers in an attempt to raise the morale of the defenders. “So the Protoss do have females…” Sweetie thought.
“As I was your beginning - so shall I be...your end,” the voice uttered.
The base was beset upon by numerous Zerg and Hybrid at each entrance. Forced to split their forces, each group had to deal with each wave on their own. The defense barely held.
The voice continued to taunt the Protoss.
In that moment, the archive was completed and lowered into an impenetrable vault, the last hope for the future was stored away.
The overwhelming Zerg and Hybrid forces forced the Protoss back to their base to make their final stand.
The Protoss held strong against the onslaught and the ring activated one last time and summoned a massive triangular ship. The voice of Artanis gave a small speech to inspire the Protoss to fight to the bitter end.
The Protoss killed an unbelievable number of Zerg in their glorious battle. The voice soon spoke again, speaking of how the Protoss and Terrans, in their pride, killed the one hope they had of ruining his plans.
The Zerg began fielding large numbers of flying tentacled creatures that began annihilating the Protoss ships. Thousands of Zerg began advancing on the defenders. More worm beasts surfaced to spit up more Zerg. Zerg were even dropping out of orbit in living pods. One by one Protoss were killed, even Zeratul and Artanis.
“If only we had acted sooner…,” Zeratul said as he burst into light.
“Kerrigan...how could we have known…,” Artanis muttered as his ship was torn apart.
The last of the Protoss was wiped out. Sweetie then saw the Hybrid emit psionic pulses that killed every Zerg around them, likely every Zerg Hive in the universe.
The vision soon turned pitch black.
The Overmind appeared once again next to a stunned Sweetie. “Now you have seen the future that I wish to prevent. The Queen of Blades is vital to preventing this future. I trust that you will set her on the correct path. But first, you must find a way to save her mind from Amon’s influence.”
“Isn’t there something I can do to prevent the Hybrid from being made?” Sweetie asked.
“It’s too late. The Hybrid have already been seeded across the stars. There is simply not enough time to find them all before they awaken.”
“When will they awaken?”
“I estimate that the Hybrids will emerge from their stasis chambers in four years. You must be prepared to fight them when the time comes. Also, I would advise against telling anyone what you have learned today. If others find out about me, they will attempt to remove me from you and all the knowledge that I would bestow upon you would be lost as well as your chance to learn how to control my Zerg.”
Sweetie let out a groan as she realized that her head now had a roommate that was too important to get rid of. Hopefully, she would wake up from this nightmare soon.
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Well that answers my question from last chap and we get a prinsses of the swarm.
9683207
Not quite...The fact is that Kerrigan could control Zerg even without the mutagen. I applied that concept to Sweetie. At this point all she is getting is a very minor version of controlling Zerg minions, which she had all along, just didn't know she had it...as well as the Detector ability. There is no infestation for Sweetie here.
9683242
All psyonics can control serg that do not have a ruler of som sort at the moment, true.
That is mostly a chain of comand thing. You control the overlord who control the lesser zerg.
But, you missed the joke and that is more on me as I am a rather a-symetric thinker when it comes to jokes.
As it is 00:30 am here and I rely need some sleep I will return later and explain the joka I was trying to make.
If I remember what it was.
Yet Narud dont point out Ajur... I guess they were not ready yet . . .
So in theory controlling Overlords she can master 24 Zergs? One get 8 control eatch Overlords created in the game. I always figured that Kerrigan controlled her armys by bolstering her control trough Overlords etc.
Sweety primal Zerg 2.0 incoming
9683242
That would mean she can't be infested or?
I would like to have a swarm. Protoss & Terran will eventually run dry of something but the Changelings Maintenance seem the simplest. Only the feeding would be a problem i guess.
I wonder if the Parasite could effect Sweetys metabolism. Adrenalin to increase combat effectiveness and painkillers for keeping wounds manageable.
Perhaps decrease ability cooldown...
Magnificent lore and damn fine writing! Thanks for the efforts years ago that I can still enjoy to this day ♡