Today. Today would be it. Today would be the day he sprung himself from this hellscape.
Those exact words were running on repeat in the Viper King’s mind as he watched, coiled up in his test tube. He eyed the humans, in their white coats, that ambled around and checked monitors. Shazara-Ta didn’t know how long he had been captive in this facility, subject to tests and procedures that warped his very form. He didn’t know how long it had been since he had been taken from his home planet, deposed as the rightful king and kidnapped by the Collective. He didn’t know how long it had been since he had fought a futile war with the invaders from beyond the stars.
He did, however, know how much longer he would wait until he sprung himself... and his fellow test subjects.
His eyes slid over to the containment chamber across the room. There, the Archon King hovered, giving an eyeless glare to the scientists that paid him no mind. Shazara-Ta didn’t even know his fellow ruler’s name—but as it turns out, they both knew ADVENT, and that was enough to make plans in broad view. It seemed none of the personnel their captor had amassed knew their language, and that allowed them to formulate an escape. They just had to wait; there was one person in particular that had to arrive for her daily checkups in order for this to happen.
They didn’t have to wait long. Shazara-Ta’s eyes flitted to the door at the far end of the room as it opened, and in stepped the despicable slag that watched over them like a jailor to inmates—Vahlen. Shazara-Ta had heard her name enough times beyond the glass of his tube to know it’s what they called her. For the abuse he suffered, for the abuse she made the others suffer, she would die slowly and painfully.
Discreetly, he looked over to the Archon King. His own eyes seemed to be locked on Vahlen as well... but the signal came through as clear as the day. He flared the props on his wings in a specific pattern, indicating he was ready. In response, Shazara-Ta rapidly vibrated his hood—a symbol of aggression with the pattern he chose, but here? It was a sign of rebellion.
Clutching his chest, the Archon King’s thrusters began to flicker out, sending him bumping into the walls of his cell. If this had been any other species feigning death, he knew it wouldn’t work—the scientists had visuals on their vitals on their screens. But something Shazara-Ta had been informed about Archons is that they could take control of the machinery in their body down to an impressive level. The Archon King was shutting down vital systems to serve as a distraction.
It worked—the scientists began hurriedly rushing over to his station, pressing buttons and uttering words he couldn’t understand. Vahlen herself ran over, providing her own commentary. The Archon King crashed at the bottom of his cell, unmoving, and this sent the humans into a further panic.
If Shazara-Ta wanted to do this, he had to work fast. His fellow king couldn’t keep those systems shut off forever without killing himself. With that urgency in mind, and with the taste of freedom so close, Shazara-Ta rose from his despondent coil on the bottom of his cell. Using his natural mobility and the scales on his underside, he rocketed up the glass of his cell and launched off of it in the minimal space he had, careening his tail forward and putting massive force into striking the glass.
The glass shuddered violently, and he could see a head or two turn towards him. He had to keep trying. Scrambling up again, this strike created webs of fractures against the glass where he hit it. Another strike sent them shooting further out, and he could feel the glass starting to buckle.
One more strike, and his prison shattered in an explosion of shards.
That was enough to send some of the humans screaming out of the room, sure of their fate now that one of their test subjects had escaped. Not wasting his moment long, he felt his hood vibrate in anger and adrenaline, venom rising up his throat. He would sicken them and make them feel just a tenth of the agony he had. Squeezing his chest, he spat it out behind them, intent on trapping them against the cloud.
What happened, however, reminded him of the detestable things Vahlen had done to him. Instead of a cloud of poison, once the liquid hit the ground, it formed a large chunk of ice. Some of the humans that had been too close or already running for the door found themselves trapped within it regardless. As much as Shazara-Ta wanted to mourn for what had happened for him, there was far larger prey to take down. Vahlen herself was backing away in a panic, spotting the one area the ice didn’t cover and making a break for it. Shazara-Ta found himself starting to course after her—but a thought stopped him up. What if the humans had thrown some sort of killswitch in the Archon King’s tube? Vengeance was one thing... but the Viper King had grown very attached to his fellow test subjects. Leaving him to die so he could get his revenge wasn’t something he could abide by.
Turning around, he could see the Archon King’s thrusters activate again, propping himself up on the glass as he sluggishly got up, no doubt groggy from what he had just performed. Shazara-Ta couldn’t claim to know what the buttons on the console meant, and knew that mindless mashing could be the king’s further doom. He could easily coil around the glass and shatter it... but without a cushion, he’d undoubtedly get a few glass shards in his tail for his troubles. Without a cushion. He hadn’t spent his whole allotment of freezing venom on his previous expulsion. He could use a layer of ice to protect himself.
Making his way up to the other tube, he brought up his venom again, applying it evenly around the lower middle section of the tube. Once he had a good enough layer going, he turned to the Archon King. “Get down!” He barked in ADVENT. “I’m getting you out of here.”
Nodding, the Archon King dropped to the floor once more. Sliding up the tube, Shazara-Ta coiled himself around the layer of ice he had created. The tail muscles in Vipers were to be feared—as he squeezed the tube, cracks rapidly formed, and he could already feel the material bending. Just a second more and the Archon King was freed in a shower of sparkling glass, the ice acting as an effective protection.
Landing right next to the king, Shazara-Ta righted himself, offering a hand to his fellow ruler. The Archon took it, jets activating and propelling him into a stable hover. The two shared a quiet moment before the Archon King’s head jerked back towards the door. “Vahlen. Where is she?”
The only humans that remained were the ones trapped in the ice, and Shazara-Ta had half a mind to go over and kill them right now. Vahlen wasn’t among them—presumably having escaped as Shazara-Ta freed the Archon King. No such love lost for the trapped scientists, it seemed. Shazara-Ta clenched his fists. “Escaped. I wouldn’t leave you behind to kill her if it meant you dying from a failsafe.”
The Archon King looked... surprised, to hear that. Maybe slightly touched. “That... is noble of you, Viper.”
“It’s only fair. Without your distraction, I wouldn’t have escaped.” Speaking of escape, his head careened around. “Best we get the others out. I don’t think the Berserker Queen wants to spend another moment in there.”
“Right.” But before Shazara-Ta could make his way to the Berserker Queen’s area, the Archon King grabbed his arm. “... Rodin. My name is Rodin.”
Looking back, Shazara-Ta paused for a moment. He now had a name to put to the Archon King. Wanting to return the favor, he nodded. “My name is Shazara-Ta. Let’s get the others out, Rodin.”
Not wasting a moment more the two of them made a course for one of the other doors in the room, leaving the humans behind. A corridor or so later and they ended up in a large room. There were monitors on the wall, hooked up to a camera feed that showed the Berserker Queen, curled up in her cell. Half of the room was taken up by her containment, with no windows to speak of in favor of maximum security.
No windows meant nothing either of them could break to free her. As Rodin flew over to the console, trying to make sense of any of it, Shazara-Ta scanned the room. Surely there had to be some sort of emergency switch he could flip, or perhaps... his eyes locked on a bit of white coat poking out from a piece of machinery. Slowly, he stalked up, rising up and above the machine. Sure enough, there was a human behind there, hiding and shaking terribly. Feeling no empathy for the trapped human’s plight, Shazara-Ta swooped down and plucked the human screaming from its hiding place, dragging it over to the console.
Rodin stepped aside as Shazara-Ta forced the human against the console, making sure he had its attention before pointing to the door. Hopefully that was a clear enough indication. It seemed like it was, as with shaking hands, it entered in a sequence that Shazara-Ta paid close attention to. Klaxons blaring, the door to the Berserker Queen’s cell slowly started to open.
Having seen to it that the human did its job, Shazara-Ta threw it in the direction of the door. It took the hint, scrambling up and out. Rodin started after it, but Shazara-Ta stopped him. “It did its job. I’ll allow it some gratitude by letting it escape.”
“And the door to the Gourgeamus Queen?”
“I watched the sequence the human put in. It should work for the other cell.”
Their conversation was summarily interrupted by a terrifying crash against the opening door of the cell. The Berserker Queen was just beyond, trying to force the door open. Shazara-Ta rushed over, making sure he was in sight. “Berserker Queen! Can you understand us?”
The sight of one of her fellow Rulers, free, fully stopped up the Berserker Queen. Head swiveling from him to Rodin, she looked back to Shazara-Ta, nodding. Good. Hopefully the Gourgeamus Queen also spoke ADVENT. “We’re getting everyone out of here. The door will open on its own.”
The Berserker Queen’s head bobbed again, but even still, with an impressive display of strength, she forced the door fully into its frame, stumbling out. The machinery on her back was plainly visible, and while the pumps were inactive now... Shazara-Ta turned to Rodin. “Get her out in the open and start severing what you can of that accursed machine. Something tells me it’s not any good for her.”
Turning to them, the Berserker Queen growled and grunted in what was assuredly a language... but not one either of them could speak. If she knew ADVENT, why was she speaking her own language? Then again... the ADVENT language kind of required a tongue and lips, neither of which she seemed to have. She could understand it, but not speak it, went Shazara-Ta’s guess. Still, he shook his head. “We... can’t understand your language, Berserker Queen.”
With an impatient growl, she pointed to Rodin. Then she pointed to her back and mimed a yanking motion. Pointing to Shazara-Ta, she then pointed to the door, miming the act of opening a door. Understanding, Shazara-Ta moved for the exit. “Just my thinking. I’ll spring the Gourgeamus Queen. Get those tubes out of her, Rodin.”
“Understood. Good luck, Shazara-Ta.” After hearing Rodin’s well-wishes, Shazara-Ta hastily made his way out of the Berserker Queen’s containment, through the joint containment, and into the final room. It was much like the other queen’s room, with half of it being taken up by the cell itself. This time, there was a window into the chamber, allowing him to get a better look at the fourth Ruler.
She was impressively tall, standing at the Berserker Queen’s hunched height. Her lower body reminded Shazara-Ta of some of the four-legged reptiles from his planet, while her upper body was vaguely humanoid. A veritable bouquet of flowers adorned her head, while leaves and vines trailed down from it. Sharp teeth and four slitted, glowing-gold eyes accented her face, and she was even more built than Rodin. Her skin was a verdant green and peppered by leaves and hanging vines, with four fin-like leaves extending a ways away from her back. Bulging spores dotted and lined her more reptilian back, and her tail was capped off by what looked like a trapping plant. Throughout her form, there were highlights of glowing purple, almost fluorescent in nature.
Seeing Shazara-Ta free, she rushed to the glass window of her cell, pressing her hands against it. He could see her speak—but the glass was too thick to allow any communication. Shaking his head, he slid over to the console, inputting the sequence of buttons he’d seen the scientist do. Sure enough, the door to her cell started to open, and he rushed to the crack in it. “Gourgeamus Queen. We’re all free.”
She was quick to join him at the door, peering out. “—please tell me Vahlen’s dead.”
He sighed. “I let her escape so I could free Rodin.” If they had any escape devices in this facility, she was likely long gone. “I’m sorry.”
She shook her head. “Don’t be. Better to make sure that everyone gets out than have your revenge.” Looking back over her body, her shoulders slumped. “Look at what she’s done to me. I should’ve never adapted spores like this—and what does she think I’ll do with this dysfunctional tail? It will take me ages to adapt this all out...”
Feeling a stab of jealousy, he leaned against the doorway. “—forgive me for being envious, but at least you can adapt it all out. I’m stuck with this icy venom—and who knows what she’s done to me otherwise.”
Looking to him and frowning, she nodded. “Yes, I should... consider myself lucky. Who knows what she’s done to the others.”
The distinctive roar of a Berserker echoed through the facility. Shazara-Ta looked to the door. “About that. Rodin’s trying to get a machine off of her back the we don’t even know what it does. That didn’t sound good.”
“Certainly didn’t.” With the door open wide enough for her to escape, the Gourgeamus Queen did, galloping towards the door. “Come on!”
Not wasting another moment, he followed after her. The scene in the main area was one of destruction—the ice block he’d made was destroyed, as if something powered through it at high speed. Humans were tossed about, a few definitely worse for wear from the experience. No skin off of Shazara-Ta’s back—they knew what they were doing to the Rulers. The Gourgeamus Queen and Shazara-Ta ran further, into what could be called the lobby of the lab.
There, the Berserker Queen was in the middle of the room, clutching her head and giving another pained roar. There were some tubes missing from her back—but one remained, and Shazara-Ta could see a green fluid coursing through it as the pumps on her back were fully operational. Rodin was off to the side, trying to approach the Berserker Queen but kept at bay by her blind swipes.
Shazara-Ta tried approaching as well, but flinched back as she swung around again. It was the other queen who calmly approached, and he could see the flowers and vines on her head start to move. “My Queen. Look at me, please.”
The Berserker Queen whipped around, panting, an orange mist puffing out with each breath. She gave an uneasy grumble, clutching her head again. The Gourgeamus Queen continued to approach, kneeling down to her eye level. “My Queen. Come close, breathe deeply.” It was then that there seemed to be a silvery mist floating off of the exotic flowers on her head, starting to envelop the Berserker Queen. Doing her best to obey, she staggered towards the other queen, clutching her when she got close enough. Turning to Rodin, she spoke. “Destroy the pumps, sever the tubes. Do what you can to prevent it from enraging her further. My mist can only do so much.”
Rodin sprung into action, flying up to the pumps on the Berserker Queen’s back and giving them a solid yank. The jostling made the Berserker Queen give an uneasy croon, to which the other queen hugged her and whispered calming words. Shazara-Ta himself slithered over to the remaining tube connected to her gauntlets, yanking it out. When more of the green fluid seeped from it, he sealed it up with a quick spit of ice, preventing even the smell from reaching her. As Rodin broke off the first pump, he crawled up her back and handled the other one, crushing it in his tail. What machinery the could destroy now gone, the two of them came down, huddling around the two queens. Unintentionally, Shazara-Ta inhaled the mist, and it was... calming. He eased himself into leaning against the Berserker Queen. “It’s broken now. We’ve done what we can.”
The Berserker Queen nodded uneasily, still clutching to her fellow queen. Rodin came in and leaned against the Gourgeamus Queen. The four of them shared a moment of silence as the Berserker took in deep breaths of the mist that hovered around the other queen, and the two kings took a moment to calm down, themselves.
The calm was swiftly broken as the front of the lab exploded, and the four Rulers immediately assumed combat positions, despite being weaponless. When the smoke cleared, in streamed... Mutons. Vipers. Archons. Shazara-Ta had half a mind to think ADVENT themselves came for them. That is, if he couldn’t recognize a face like Shel-Za’s anywhere. He perked up, rushing over. “Shel-Za!”
Almost dropping her weapon, Shel-Za clipped it to her belt and met him mid-way hugging him. “My King, Shazara-Ta, you’re—” She shuddered. “You’re very much cold. Are you alright?”
“Cold?” He didn’t feel any different. He watched as his inner circle approached, gathering around him. Sure enough, they reached for his skin and recoiled. “... I’m. Cold.”
Shel-Za hugged him again. “That scientist did this, didn’t she? No matter. We’ve found you, my lord.”
As angry as Shazara-Ta wanted to be at Vahlen... he wasn’t going to let it dampen this. His inner circle, his court from his home planet were here. Reaching for them and heedless of his own body temperature, he pulled them in for hugs. “I’ve missed you all,” he muttered, switching to his native language for privacy. “I...” He took in a shuddering breath, the years of agony catching up to him. “I m-missed you.”
His court pressed around him, and their relative warmth helped ease his pain. They whispered assurances and mutual sorrow, squeezing him in embrace. He’d missed them, so much, and thought of the long hours he spent wailing for them when there was no one around but Rodin.
Speaking of his fellow ruler... Shazara-Ta lifted his head. Rodin was crowded by Archons, of different shades and colors. Mutons circled the Berserker Queen, their armor marked and distinguished from the usual ADVENT brand. The Gourgeamus Queen... merely watched as the three of them reunited with those closest to them. Feeling empathy for her plight, Shazara-Ta broke off from his group and came over to her. Wordlessly, he held out his arms. She didn’t hesitate long before she took the invitation, sweeping him up and holding him close. The other rulers seemed to notice—soon, Shazara-Ta was trapped in a four-way hug and sandwiched by the Berserker Queen.
“We’re free,” Rodin breathed. “Free of the tortures of this lab.”
“We can stake out our own lives.” Shazara-Ta looked at his fellow royalty. “We can rebuild. Leave.”
“Is there anything left for us?” Their eyes turned to the Gourgeamus Queen. “My servants sacrificed themselves to sabotage one of their Gates so I could flee. They... they drained my homeworld of its resources. Is... is there anything to leave to?”
That sent some quiet into the group hug. Shazara-Ta, himself, regretted the suggestion. Of course there was nothing to return to. If their stories were anything like his, there was a puppet ruler in their places, and a population indoctrinated by the Collective. All they had now were their servants... and each other.
“Ourselves,” he interrupted the silence with. “We have each other. There must be some force rising up on this planet against ADVENT. If we gather our numbers and cooperate with them...”
The rest of the rulers got the implication, and there were nods. Surprisingly, it was one of the Berserker Queen’s Mutons that spoke up. It seemed like they could speak ADVENT—if a little poorly due to their mouth structure. “There is a resistance force on this world. It calls itself XCOM. They have been fighting against ADVENT for a while, now.”
“XCOM...” Well, it was worth a shot. “I believe we should remain together. Try to gather those of our own in ADVENT who wish to fight back.”
Rodin nodded. “A noble plan. There is safety in numbers, and... I would be loathe to leave all of you. We have all suffered together under Vahlen’s torturous eye. When we have rallied our numbers... perhaps XCOM will allow us to fight alongside them.”
“It’s possible.” This time, it was Shel-Za who spoke. “XCOM have shown themselves willing to align with former ADVENT forces in the Skirmishers. I suspect they would be respectful to our wishes to fight with them.”
“Then it’s settled,” the Gourgeamus Queen replied. “We will stay together. Forge a new home of our own. Then, when the time comes... we may fight back.”
The plan settled, the group hug broke. Looking over the lab, just the sight of the machinery was enough to make Shazara-Ta sick. He huffed. “Let’s move outside. My servants, scavenge the area. Look for weapons, usable materials, anything.” His own Boltcaster should still be here, hopefully.
Rodin turned to his followers and spoke something in his native language. The Archons nodded and flew inside, and similarly, all but one of the Mutons did on the Berserker Queen’s order. That left the rulers, along with the single Muton. Silently, Shazara-Ta moved outside, past the blasted-out door of the front.
The whole facility, once Shazara-Ta was outside and could see it, seemed to be embedded into the mouth of a cave. There were hurried footsteps in the sand... as well as some shot-down scientists and personnel. Their rescue party must’ve parsed them as threats. He went further—enough that the warm glow of the setting sun soaked into his scales. He turned behind him to find that his companions had followed, all stepping out into the sun. The Gourgeamus Queen fanned out the leaves on her back, closing her eyes and literally soaking up the sun.
Looking between the two queens, Shazara-Ta realized something. “I... I don’t think I got either of your names.”
Rodin shook his head. “Neither did I.”
The Berserker Queen said something that was probably her name, but... it was hard to parse. Noticing their confusion, the Muton with her turned to them. “The closest I can put into ADVENT is ‘Vel’kiin.” Vel’kiin chuffed, pleased with the translation. “My name is Du Mag.”
Shazara-Ta smiled. “It is good to know you, Vel’kiin, Du Mag. And yourself, Gourgeamus Queen?”
She opened her mouth to reply... and then closed it, looking towards the ground. “I... I can’t say I remember. Those long years of solitude...”
A dagger of empathy felt as if it had pierced Shazara-Ta’s heart, and he went over to rest a hand on her shoulder. “If you would like to pick another name—”
“Celosia.” All eyes went to Du Mag, who seemed a little embarrassed, but he pressed on. “I... had taken to finding books to teach myself ‘English.’ It seems to be a primary language for humans. One of the books defined native plants and...” He pointed to one on her head. “That one. I’m sure it isn’t the same, but it looks like a celosia flower under a certain mutation. Don’t remember the name, but...”
At Du Mag’s offer, she smiled. “It’s... as fine a name as any. I don’t have anyone waiting on me as you all do, so consider my new name Celosia. Thank you, Du Mag.”
Vel’kiin planted a hand on Du Mag’s head and gave him some affectionate nuzzles, to which Du Mag uttered something in his language to her. Giving a throaty chuckle, Vel’kiin relented.
Inevitably, Shazara-Ta’s gaze went back to the setting sun. The reality of the situation kept occurring to him; he was free. They were free. No more labs. No more scientists. No more Vahlen... until they found her again and exacted revenge. Wordlessly, his hand fell to hold Celosia’s. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched as the chain continued; Celosia to Rodin, and Rodin to Vel’kiin as they all looked to horizon.
They were free. They could start living, again.
