Alnur woke with a sudden jolt, his breathing erratic, he couldn’t see, but felt something obscuring his eyes. He could feel something cold and mechanical around his left bicep. As he tried to reach up and grab whatever was around his head he felt hands grab him and hold him in place.
“Alnur! Relax! It’s me, Zo! You’re okay!”
Alnur tried to steady his breathing. “Zo? Where are we? Why can’t I see?”
“You had an operation, you're recovering. The surgeons said you shouldn’t wake up for a couple days my lord. They had to graft you a new eye. Though, they don’t know if they’ll be able to restore your other eye.”
It hurt as Alnur chuckled. “Just my luck to wake up early while I still feel like shit.” Alnur gathered his thoughts for a moment, he felt like his whole body had been thrown in a wheat thresher. “Where are we?”
Zo seemed to shift uncomfortably before answering. “Well your highness, we are currently in the medical wing of the Meliorem Vitam in the Imperial capital.”
“I’m sorry. What?” His head was spinning as he tried to speak. “Is it as beautiful as the stories?”
“You will soon see for yourself my lord, I would fail to do the wonders of this great place justice.”
Something was bothering Alnur. “Zo, why are you calling me ‘my lord’ or ‘my highness’? You know I don’t care about titles.” Alnur prided himself on being approachable by his people, the over use of titles always bothered him.
There was another voice that spoke up, one that Alnur did not recognize. “Well, I might have something to do with that, your highness.” The stranger's voice was that of a man, there was a light hearted tone to it, and judging by the laughter that followed it would seem the man was amicable enough.
“Forgive me, I would greet you formally, but I am afraid I must repeat that I feel like absolute shit.” Alnur said with his best smile.
The mysterious man gave a hearty laugh. “I would say that that is an acceptable reason for a more casual greeting. I am High Lord Duval, Primarus of the Celestial court.”
Alnur felt his blood run cold. “Crap.” He mustered his strength to try and sit up but Zo was quick to put him back down with a firm hand to his chest. “I am so sorry, I didn’t mean any offense your eminence!”
The sound of footsteps grew closer as Duval spoke, his tone was still jovial thankfully. “No offense taken, your highness.” Duval seemed to pause for a moment.
Whatever medications they pumped Alnur full of were making it hard to think clearly, it was becoming harder to stay awake. It dawned on him that Duval was waiting for him to introduce himself, the Abyss take him, he was making a fool of himself. “It is an honor to meet you, your eminence, I am Alnur Ebontide, King of the Black Coast, Lord of Light.”
“Interesting, my report on you says you have another title?” Duval said accompanied by the sound of flipping paper.
“You mean Lord Admiral?”
“Hmm, no, your herald name.” Duval still spoke with his lighthearted tone, but the fact that he knew of herald names; which was a secret from the Court, was disturbing to think about. Alnur was starting to grow uneasy.
“I see. Well, what do you know of herald names?”
Duval let out a chortle. “More than you want, but less than I would like. Please answer my question. Your Highness, what is your true name?” His voice grew cold and serious.
Lying now would be problematic, for all he knew Duval already had his true name and was testing him. Alnur hoped a half truth would help get Duval to back down for now. He prepared himself for the backlash as he cleared his throat. When he next spoke, he did so in the voidtongue, a single syllable, that was the limit of his mortal body. His lips split and pooled with blood, his throat burned, he fought to not choke on his swollen tongue. Zo let out a curse as she began to try and dab at the blood.
The Primarus grew quiet as he tapped his finger on his clipboard. Herald names were tricky, they were given in the voidtongue which by their nature could have wildly different translations. They were given by the Heralds when a new ruler took the crown, a true name, one that depending on how they ruled would cement their legacy. Alnur’s true name could be taken one of two ways, he hoped that Duval would only parse the more common translation.
After a long minute Duval finally spoke up. “The Kind King.” His tone was deep in thought. Alnur released the breath he had been holding, the man had gone with the common translation. “Well I can’t say I enjoy the idea of one of our vassals partaking in such an unholy practice, but it would seem it is more of a harmless tradition than some act of treason. It would also seem you are not corrupted by the arch enemy.”
Alnur spoke, his speech slurred and pained from the backlash of speaking voidtongue. “What do you mean by that?” Duval walked over to a machine to the left of Alnur, he could hear the man fiddling with it for a moment. The cuff around his arm injected him with some medical cocktail. He instantly felt the world grow cold and numb. Gasping gently as he struggled to stay awake.
Duval spoke over his shoulder as he left the room, all hints of malice had vanished from his voice though Alnur knew it was still there hiding just under the surface. “Rest now, you still have a long stay with us ahead. I wish you a quick recovery, Your Highness.” The door closed a moment later.
Whatever drug was coursing through Alnur was making it hard to focus, he gritted his teeth. The nightmares threatened to consume him again, the clawing hands of the dead and damned reaching through his scalp towards his brain, hungry for his power. The Fury sat in his chest, a cold lump of coal, stone and iron; the medications were keeping it at bay.
Raising his fist in the air he brought it down on his chest as hard as he could, the inert lump sparked for a moment but refused to ignite. Alnur couldn’t feel his hands or feet, it wouldn’t be long till he succumbed to the drugs. He needed to get angry, to fuel the Fury, but despite his best efforts he couldn’t focus. As he struggled, trying to recall anything to help him tap into his rage, images of the last thing he saw with his own eyes before they were obliterated came to him. He had tried to dodge the Elder Krak’un by moving to the side, his ankle rolled at the worst moment. But even as he fell, he saw it. Vauhn’s smiling face staring at him, as the kelp blade sank into his flesh for the briefest of moments he saw it. The thing hiding under the man's skin, the vast unknowable horror, the grinning maw of unimaginable hunger and malice. It was like looking into the infinite night sky. The monstrosity was a mass of prismatic light, crammed into an ill fitting meatsack that seemed to be ready to burst. The man’s eyes were shining a green glow as he stared at Alnur with its wicked grin.
The memory of Vauhn filled Alnur’s with rage, he raised his numb hand once more and brought it down with enough force to crack a rib. The Fury erupted to life, a blazing wildfire that threated to consume everything. Green flames licked his skin as the flames of the Fury raced through him, his hands and feet were filled with pins and needles as feeling returned, his mind returned to clarity again and with it so did his anger at his mistreatment.
Whatever drugs that were trying to sedate him with were burned away in the cleansing flames. The band around his arm sizzled and popped as the intricate machinery melted to the floor. The bandages around his head fell away, as blinding light assailed his raw, newly grafted eye. He sat up, despite the frantic cries to stop from Zo.
Taking a breath for a moment Alnur calmed the storm inside of him as he looked at his surroundings for the first time. The room he was in was larger than his bedroom back in the Keel, a real window bathed the whole of the room in beautiful light. Every inch of the walls and floors were white marble laced with real gold. He swung his feet over the edge of the bed and stood on uneasy legs. His body protested, his muscles ached from head to toe, there were hundreds if not thousands of surgical scars that covered his body. Whomever had done the surgery was a master without equal, the scars looked so faded that he could hardly tell he had been sliced open. The bed he had been laying on was in rough shape, it was blackened with scorch marks in an outline of his body, the edges drooped from having been heated so rapidly.
It was hard to imagine that he was actually inside Meliorem Vitam, the genesis ship itself that had been the birthplace of the Celestial Empire. After they made planetfall the ship became the very center of the Empire, the capital city having been built around it over the centuries.
Zo cursed as she walked over to a cabinet on the wall and pulled out a white linen gown. She threw it at Alnur. “Permission to speak freely my Lord?”
“Has that ever stopped you before Zo?” Alnur said as he threw on the gown to cover himself.
For her part, Zo simply walked up to Alnur at a quick pace, coming to a stop as she threw a punch at his jaw. The blow landed, knocking Alnur back into the bed as his legs gave out and he fell to the ground. “Good to see you too Zo.” Alnur said as he rubbed his sore jaw.
“Have you lost your mind Alnur! What the hell was that? You need to be resting and instead you destroy irreplaceable medical equipment?” Zo shouted.
The door opened revealing a stunned Bynard, he was flanked by what seemed to be fairly important people, judging by their appearances. Between the red eyes and the bald head covered in intricate spiral tattoos, the woman on the left was obviously a Sanguinite priest, she looked like she was in her sixties, her face was wrinkled but still held a regal power. She wore one of the most intricate and beautiful dresses Alnur had ever seen. The person on the right of Bynard was a hunched figure in long flowing robes, every inch of their body and face was covered in fine occult machinery. They moved forward on dozens of mechanical claws like a centipede. Their fingers were long wicked blades, as they walked they tapped their index blades together.
The older woman raised an eyebrow as she looked over the room. “Young man, do you make it a habit to destroy valuable equipment? If so, I think you should invest in a different hobby. Perhaps one less expensive.”
Alnur rose from the floor, the embers were still in his chest as he spoke. “Only when I’m sedated against my will. I have an adverse reaction to being forced to sleep, I reacted… poorly.” Taking a breath, Alnur bowed. “My apologies, my actions were unbecoming. I am Alnur Ebontide, King of the Black Coast and Lord of light.”
“Sedated against your will?” The bald woman marched into the room towards the partially melted machine by Alnur’s bedside. She seemed to completely ignore Alnur’s greetings.
A series of mechanical tapping echoed as the other stranger skittered towards Alnur. When they spoke it was a robotic sound that came from a box on their chest. “EXCITED INQUIRY: HOW DID YOU PRODUCE ENOUGH ENDOTHERMIC ENERGY TO CAUSE THIS LEVEL OF DAMAGE?”
Alnur blinked as he stared at the person, instead of eyes they had a visor of dots embedded in their skull. “Uh, I have this condition. I don’t like to discuss it with people I don’t know.”
The older woman scowled as she turned to Alnur. “Sedated? Young man you were pumped with more than just a mild sedative, how in the hells are you standing?” There was a suspicious tone to her voice.
“Like I said, I don’t like to discuss it with-”
“I’m not asking.” The woman interjected. “I am High Lady Vivian Bastion. Primarus of the Celestial Court. Now, answer my question.” Her tone made it clear that keeping quiet wasn’t an option.
Zo and Bynard shifted in place, the looks on their faces made it clear that they didn’t like the tone Lady Bastion was taking with their king. Alnur held a hand up to calm them. “Fine. My sister and I have a mild mutation that affects our gifts, she can chill her surroundings, and I can burn things..”
Lady Bastion walked towards him. “Your kind has no divine gifts. Are you referring to your mental link?”
“It’s true, The All Mother didn’t see fit to grant us her blessing. The link we Twin’s share is the work of the Lifeweaver, the only gift we have is the one granted by the Nightfather.” Even as Alnur spoke the name, he felt uneasy. It seemed unclean to speak of one of the Old Ones in these hallowed halls. The sour look that crossed Lady Bastion’s face was testament that she felt the same.
“So this-” Bastion motioned to the melted bed frame. “Is the work of a mutation in your deviant powers, the same ones given to you by the dark gods?” The way she looked at Alnur almost had him missing Duval.
The mechanical being stabbed a syringe into Alnur’s arm, drawing a vial of blood without warning. “CONFUSED INTRIGUE: I MUST STUDY THIS, PERHAPS IF I SEQUENCE YOUR DNA I WILL FIND THE ANSWER.” They blurted out quickly as a small appendage appeared from under their robes and pulled out a device.
Alnur leveled a glare at the probing stranger. “Do you mind asking me next time you plan on stealing my blood!” He barked as the stranger nodded at the readings on their device, ignoring his protests. With a flash of steel the stranger slapped Alnur across the face. The incredulousness was enough that green flames began to pour from his eye and skin as he shook with anger.
“DELIGHTED DECLARATION: I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT THESE READING INDICATE! WONDROUS, FURTHER RESEARCH MUST BE UNDERTAKEN AT ONCE. THEY SEEM TO BE TIED TO THE SUBJECTS EMOTIONAL STATE.” They said as they literally vibrated with excitement, pulling out a notepad, a quill, a calculator, and three more devices with additional limbs from under their robes. They put one of the devices directly into the flames to get some readings.
His eye was twitching as Alnur turned to Bastion. “What the hells is wrong with this thing?” Shouting as he struggled to quell the Fury.
Bastion sighed. “That ‘thing’ is Ava. You are looking at one of only nine Genesmiths left in the world, she’s the one that saved your life.”
Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.
Alnur turned back to the jumble of wires and whirling machines. He lowered himself to one knee as he bowed his head. “Ancient one, I owe you my life. I’m sorry for any disrespect I showed you. I hope you can forgive me.” How had he not realized what they were.
Ava simply clicked in frustration. “AGITATION: THE READINGS HAVE VANISHED. QUERY: CAN YOU REIGNITE THE SELF COMBUSTION?” If she took any offense to Alnur’s actions earlier, she wasn’t showing it in the slightest.
“I can, but if I’m not careful I could hurt someone, or-” Alnur trailed off as he nodded towards the melted bed.
The Genesmith made a series of ticking noises. “ASSESSMENT: THE POSSIBLE DAMAGES ARE OUTWEIGHED BY THE SCIENTIFIC NEED TO CONTINUE TESTS. ADDITIONAL ADDENDUM: IT IS NEAT.” One of the bladed hands gave a thumbs up.
Before Alnur could oblige the Genesmith, Bastion spoke up. “Oh no you don’t, not in the medical wing and not with our patient before he’s been discharged! You can wait to run your little tests until after he’s recovered.” The elderly blood priest scowled so intensely that even the ancient Genesmith barked a small whine as they backed down. It was said that the matriarchs of the Sanguine Swamp were some of the most stern and fierce women in the whole empire, the saying goes that one look from them could set even a hardened criminal back on the straight and narrow till the day they died. Alnur could see how folks would believe that. “You do realize that you were sliced open from head to toe only yesterday, yes? Hells, you should not even be able to see yet with that new eye in your head!”
“When you put it like that, it sounds like I should be rightfully dead.” Alnur scratched his head as he tried to shift the subject. “The truth is, If I had my family sword I could show you safely, but I imagine it's still back in the Coast.”
Bynard cleared his throat, he had been standing to the side scratching at the door jamb with a metal pick, trying to keep to himself. Moving to a storage cubby he retrieved the hefty sheathed sword from a collection of travel needs. A toothy grin of self satisfaction was plastered on his face as he walked over and offered the blade to Alnur.
Bastion’s jaw dropped. “How in the hells did you get that past security?” She held a hand to her furrowed forehead. “What part of no weapons did you not understand?” Groaning as she asked.
“About that.” Bynard kept his back to Bastion as he quickly opened his coat towards Alnur, revealing nothing along the inner liner, then with a flick he closed and opened it again, this time revealing half a dozen blades, firearms, and what looked to be a type of plastic explosive from the Keel’s hidden armory. He gave a devilish wink as he closed his jacket again. “I asked nicely.”
Before the questioning could continue Alnur pulled out Riptide from its sheath, it never failed to fill him with pride when he looked at the blade's perfect form. He placed his dead hand on the white spine of the blade and poured an ounce of the Fury into it, the blade hungerly devouring the energy. A moment later green flames coated the whole of the blade as it mimicked his own power.
Bastion took a step back instinctively. Ava on the other hand screamed. “ASTONISHMENT: THAT BLADE, IT IS FORGED WITH BONE FROM A WORLD SERPENT!” The Genesmith swayed, with a series of sharp clicks from her huddled form she quickly got to work taking readings of the blade. “CONFUSION: QUANTUM ANOMALY DETECTED, ENTROPIC DECAY, THERMAL DECAY, EXTREME RADIOACTIVE READINGS. CONCLUSION: EXTREME THREAT, FURTHER RESEARCH REQUIRED.”
“Enough!” Bastion shouted. “What did I say?” Pointing a finger at Alnur as she stormed towards him.
Alnur quickly dismissed the flames as he sheathed the oathblade. “I’m sorry, I got carried away.” He said sheepishly.
“I can’t make you sleep, but that doesn’t mean you don’t still need rest. Ava spent the better part of a day stitching you back together and getting your circulatory system back into some semblance of normality. But it wasn’t perfect kiddo, we are talking about weeks, maybe months of rest and observation. That means no swords and no flames.”
“Can I at least stretch my legs and walk the halls? It would be a great shame to be in Meliorem Vitam and not have the chance to see the majesty of the genesis ship.” Alnur asked.
With a grunt Bastion glared at him. “Give yourself a couple days of bed rest and then we’ll see if you’re ready to go sightseeing.” Even as she spoke Alnur felt a wave of exhaustion coming over him. This time it was the natural kind, as much as he hated it, he should try and get some sleep again. “The person who tried to put you to sleep, who were they?” Bastion asked.
Alnur handed Riptide back to Bynard, while Ava gently pawed at the blade, no doubt wanting to continue her research. Bynard for his part simply lifted the blade above his head as the Genesmith reached up ineffectively.
Alnur turned back to Bastion. “His name was Duval.”
A dark look fell on Lady Bastion’s face. “You would do well to steer clear of that man. If you value your life.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. For now I think I’ll follow your advice and get some bed rest.” Alnur walked towards the partially destroyed bed and sat back down on it. With a sly smile he said. “I’ll try not to destroy anything this time, I promise.”
Lady Bastion and Ava said their farewells and left the room. Alnur, Zo, and Bynard each let out groans and sighs. Alnur opened his mouth to speak as he heard the ninth bell of the day. “Shit, I need to talk with Tayla, can you two give me some privacy? This could take awhile.”
Zo and Bynard nodded as they made their way outside to stand watch.
Finally alone for a moment, Alnur walked over to the mirror in the room. He knew if he had tried to get a good look at himself earlier that Zo would have hurled him back into bed. With a hesitant step, he shuffled in front of his reflection. The face he saw looking back at him was a scarred mess; he never considered himself to be the most handsome person, despite Lillian’s claims as such. But the sheer amount of half healed cut marks and protruding red crystals on his face was astounding. The largest of the crystals on his face was coming out of his left eye several inches, perhaps the surgeons feared operating on something so close to his brain. His new eye was an odd sight as well, the skin around his temples and eye sockets was raw and lightly colored. The tone of the skin was a hair off of his own, perhaps in time it would be less obvious. The eye itself was red and bloodshot, the iris was a mix of gray and blue.
It felt wrong.
Alnur was sure that Bynard had already swept the room for any device that could be used to watch or listen. Trusting in the man’s skill, Alnur stared into his own eye, he turned his focus inwards as he willed his body to change. His iris shook as it shifted back to his usual eye color. Turning his head to the side, he felt relieved. Much better.
There was no more putting off what he had to do. With trepidation, Alnur reached for the link. It burst open immediately. A surge of relief poured through as Tayla screamed in his mind. Alnur! Thank the Nightfather, are you alright!
A smile crossed Alnur’s face as he shared his vision. I feel like shit, but I should be okay after a couple weeks of rest.
By the saints, Alnur, how are you standing right now? Tayla’s voice shook with worry.
Changing the subject quickly, Alnur sent back. I met a Genesmith and two Primarius, so far this stay has been quite eventful.
Well, I can top that, I met the Nightfather and a Minstella.
Alnur stopped in his tracks, his heart beating loudly in his chest. The Nightfather! THE NIGHTFATHER!? What in the hells happened?
Tayla sent her immense fatigue and exhaustion, as she shared the events of the last couple days. Alnur couldn’t bring himself to say anything, he was shocked by what Tayla was describing. Eventually Alnur managed to speak again. Any word of Fel? Are they okay? For that matter, are you okay Tayla?
Through the link he could feel a growing pressure. No word from Fel so far. Probably for the best, if our guests hear of their whereabouts the Court will try and apprehend them. As for myself, I will manage. She sent, even through the link it was clear she was putting on a tough act so as not to worry Alnur.
I wish I was there to help you, the thought of laying in a soft bed while my people need me is agonizing. Alnur grabbed a fistful of hair as he gritted his teeth in anger.
I know how much you wish to be here. But the best thing you can do is rest and recover quickly. Gods, I never want the crown after this. Tayla sent with a shudder of exasperation.
Alnur laughed out loud. I’m sure you are doing a great job. Now that you mention it, I should try and get some rest soon. He paused for a moment before sending. Any word from Lillian? Even with all of the talks of Old Gods, inquisitions and Fel vanishing he couldn’t help but worry for his beloved.
It was Tayla’s turn to pause for a long moment. She refused to go with you…
Tayla, I’m sure she had her reasons.
I KNOW! Tayla sent back with the ringing of anger. But she should be there with you! Because… because I can’t be. She trailed off.
Tayla, please.
A stab of frustration crossed from Tayla’s side. Shit, this self righteous prick of a Demigod is trying to make a toast to your recovery. Annnnnd now he’s claiming the higher Celestial powers no doubt had a hand in your survival. I’m sorry Alnur, but I need to focus on this, go get some sleep!
Alnur felt a pain in his chest. It’s alright, I’ll be fine. Just promise me you’ll check in on Lillian though!
There was a slight grumbling, the images of storm clouds surging. I promise.
The link disconnected. Alnur fell to the ground panting. His vision was starting to burn and grow blurry. He was paying the price for using the Fury to push past his injuries. The door flew open as a pair of arms grabbed him from the ground and hurried him to the bed. He could hear Zo cursing, threatening to give him a couple more punches to knock some sense into him. The light burned, searing Alnur’s new eye as his body rebelled against him. The Fury grew lifeless once more, and as it went cold, so to did his body. Sleep took him once more, but this time on his terms, the nightmares would come, but they wouldn’t feel so real now.
◆◆◆
Vivian stood in the lab with Ava, the pair were looking over the scans of their troublesome patient. The lab was filled with artifacts and equipment that predated the Long Journey, some of them Ava was studying, others were apparently trinkets and gadgets the woman had brought when she left the old world. Everything in the lab was stainless steel or glass, everything except for the wooden desk that was currently covered in papers and drawings. An odd choice for such a clinical room, but Ava seemed attached to it. Vivian reached up and ran her hand across her barren scalp, feeling the slightly raised skin where her tattoos were. “Well Ava, what did you want to show me?” She asked with a hint of annoyance. It always made her on edge to be around the eccentric Genesmiths for long.
“VEXED STATEMENT: MY SCANS OF THE ALPHA SERIES MALE -CORRECTION- TWIN MALE, HAS YIELDED UNSATISFACTORY RESULTS. I WANTED TO CROSS REFERENCE THE DATA BASE FOR MEDICAL RECORDS ON HIS RACE BUT WAS UNABLE TO ACCESS THE INFORMATION.” Ava blurted from the speaker on her chest. The Genesmith was obviously agitated by the way she clicked her bladed fingers on her wooden desk, leaving micro slices in the grains of wood. The terrifying part was that even without looking at her hand, Ava’s fingers were landing in the exact same place without fail.
“Ava, in the commontongue please.” Vivain said tiredly.
“ANNOYED REBUTTAL: I DON’T HAVE ACCESS TO THE ALPHA SER- -ANGERED CORRECTION- TWIN’S, MEDICAL RECORDS. THIS SHIP WAS THE BIRTHPLACE OF EACH OF THE INHERITORS, IT HAS THE ORIGINAL GENETIC BLUEPRINTS FOR EACH OF THE LIFEWEAVER'S PROJECTS. IT ALSO HAS THE RECORD OF THE CHANGES MADE BY THE -CLASSIFIED- YET WHEN I TRY AND ACCESS THE ORIGINAL RECORDS ON THE ALPH -EXPLETIVE CORRECTION- TWIN’S, IT SAYS THIS!” Ava spun the terminal she was working on towards Vivian, the flickering screen showed the list of all of the children of the Gods, yet the entry for the Twin’s caused an error to appear.
“Access restricted, please contact the admin.” Vivian read aloud. “What does that mean?” She raised an eyebrow.
Ava let a thunderous roar of static escape from her chest speaker as she brought her fists down into the table, cracking the veneer. “RIGHTEOUS ANGER: I DO NOT KNOW. THIS RESTRICTION WAS PLACED BEFORE WE LEFT FOR THE LONG JOURNEY.”
Vivian blinked in shock. “Someone did this thousands of years ago? How are we only finding out about this now?!”
“SHEEPISH REPLY: WE NEVER HAD A REASON TO LOOK INTO THESE FILES. TWINS WERE FIRST, THEY WERE SEEN AS STABLE.” Ava grabbed some transparent plastic pages, placing them along a backlit light box on the wall. The pages showed the skeleton and organs of a human. “AGITATED WONDER: LOOK. SECONDARY SET OF LUNGS, ODD LAYER OF UNKNOWN MATERIAL IN THE SUBDERMAL LINING, HALF A DOZEN DIFFERENT ORGANS AND MODIFIED SYSTEMS, ADVANCED VESTIBULAR SYSTEM IN EAR. HAD TO TAKE SCANS FROM THE INSIDE OF THE BODY, AS ANY ATTEMPTS FROM EXTERIOR WERE REPEALED BY THE DERMAL LAYERING.” As Ava spoke she was frantically flipping through the pages in her hands and tapping on things to highlight them.
All of this was over Vivian’s head. “Stop! I have no idea what you’re talking about. Dumb it down for me Ava.” She hissed over the sound of the speaker.
Ava twitched for a moment. “EXHAUSTED ACCEPTANCE: I HAVE NO IDEA. THESE MODIFICATIONS ARE VAST. WITHOUT MORE SUBJECTS TO TEST, OR A SPECIMEN TO DISSECT, I CANNOT BE CERTAIN.”
“How do you not know? Weren’t you one of the makers of the genetic blueprints?”
“SHAMEFUL REPLY: THE LIFEWEAVER OVERSAW THE DESIGNS OF THE FIRST BORN HIMSELF, ONLY HE AND HIS ASSISTANT KNEW THE FULL SCOPE OF THEIR BLUEPRINT.”
Vivian sighed. “So there’s no way of knowing just how mutated the King is. Wonderful.”
“EXCITED REVELATION: I DID NOTE ONE THING! LOOK AT THESE SCANS.” Ava placed two identical scans side by side. Though Vivian couldn’t tell anything was different from the two pictures. Noting the confusion on her face, Ava continued. “ONE SCAN WAS DONE DURING SURGERY, THE OTHER WAS EARLIER WHEN I WENT TO CHECK UP ON THE SUBJECT. I TOOK THE LIBERTY OF PLACING A SIGNAL BOOSTER INSIDE THE SUBJECT FOR FUTURE SCANS, BYPASSING THE ODD DERMAL SHIELDING. DO YOU SEE THIS?” Ava pointed to a spot on the scan.
“No.”
“FRUSTRATED RESPONSE: THE SUBJECT HAS ANOTHER ORGAN HIDDEN IN BODY, ONLY APPEARED AFTERWARDS. TIED TO EMOTIONAL STATE.”
Vivian took a step back. “He grew an extra organ? From where and to what purpose?” As a Blood Priest of the Sanguine Swamp, Vivian knew a fair bit about the human body and how to prepare it for the Eternal service. But next to Ava she was no more than a bumbling child.
“PERPLEXED JOY: I HAVE NO IDEA! THOUGH THIS ORGAN MUST BE TIED TO INCREASED CELLULAR REGENERATION AND PAIN BLOCKING. ONLY REASON THE SUBJECT COULD BE SO MOBILE AFTER SURGERY.”
“Wonderful, so he is corrupted by the void?” There was a bitterness in Vivian’s voice, the thought of having to purge the ruler of the Twin’s was a nightmare. If the Black Coast were to rebel there would be mass food shortages, the Empire would be brought to the brink of collapse from starvation.
Ava waved a hand. “DISMISSIVE STATEMENT: NOT VOID, NOT ENTIRELY. NEED FURTHER TESTING. THOUGHTFUL SEGUE: GREEN FLAMES THAT SUBJECT PRODUCED WERE INTERESTING, INFRARED SCAN SHOWED THEY HAD NO THERMAL OUTPUT TO THEM.”
Scowling, Vivian pointed a thumb over her shoulder. “Then how did he melt a metal table?” She said incredulously.
Clapping her hands together excitedly, Ava placed an ancient rusted device on the table in front of her. “DELIGHTED MONOLOGUE: THIS DEVICE DATES TO THE OLD WORLD, IT WAS STILL IN PRISTINE CONDITION WHEN I PLACED IT INSIDE THE FLAMES THE SUBJECT EMITTED. NOW IT SHOWS ADVANCED DEGRADATION!”
“Ava, you didn’t answer my question. How does aging something cause it to melt?”
“JOYFUL SPECULATION: THE TABLE WASN’T AGED, NO, THE SUBJECT DID THAT BY BREAKING THE LAWS OF THERMODYNAMICS! THE SUBJECT CAUSED AN ENTROPIC ANOMALY. THE SUBATOMIC PARTICLES OF THE TABLE ACTUALLY GAINED THERMAL ENERGY FROM ITS SURROUNDINGS, THIS SHOULD BE IMPOSSIBLE! ENERGY SPREADS OUT NATURALLY, BUT THE SUBJECT REVERSED A FUNDAMENTAL TRUTH OF THE UNIVERSE! THE TABLE BUILT UP SO MUCH ENERGY, AND COULDN’T RELEASE ANY OF IT, CAUSING IT TO MELT FROM THE THERMAL ENERGY!”
With a deep groan of frustration, Vivian turned to leave. “I have no idea what you are talking about, this has taken up too much time as it is. For now we will keep an eye on the man, if you find any hard evidence that concretely points to the void, let me know. And don’t let Duval get a whiff of this, the last thing we need is for him to make a martyr out of the young man to prove a point.” She said as she left the lab.
Ava turned back to the internal scans, clicking a finger on the scan of the mysterious organ. “CURIOUS CONJECTURE: LOOKS FAMILIAR FOR SOME REASON. WHERE HAVE I SEEN YOU BEFORE?”
