Evolution's Essence (31 page)

“
To lessen your
nervousness.” Said the baritone man with deep, calculating yellow
eyes. “You cannot threaten us and we are curious of your situation.
Had you been a traitor when my grandson Read you, you would be in a
different circumstance under my daughter Vikki’s judgment. And had
your mind been altered, Renee would know and correct whatever was
done. It is why you aren’t detained and speaking before me and my
family.” He gestured and Melanie looked at the straight-backed
redhead off to the side with such a cold, azure stare it showed
this woman had almost no remorse. Melanie decided she needed more
than a sip and threw the entire drink down her throat. The warmth
did help. “Please continue your accounts for the record.” A thought
passed her mind as she took in his physique and gentle
tone.

“
Hey, he’s mine.” Renee
practically growled. “Back to the story.”

It was then Melanie knew the green eyed queen
on the throne was inside her head and wished she was given more
liquid courage, but nodded. “Where was I? Oh right, observing.

“
Our ship’s long range
scanners and my team’s collective minds spent years going from
solar system to another. We got by a few scrapes that were really
scary and from time to time we’d replenish recourses from comets
and asteroids. We didn’t want to use any electrical based systems
to rouse the Keptl controlled planets. Our mission was data
collection.

“
From time to time we’d use
stasis during FTL between long rides to save power and let the
hydroponics grow so we didn’t use our finite resources too
heavily.

“
After close to a century
and five galaxies later we exited FTL in the middle of a war
between two rival hives. Our FTL exit was too bright and close to
the action to hide our stealth capabilities. Hunter Garrak
immediately put the ship into evasive maneuvers, but the sudden
power spike from our thrusters to get away damaged three out of the
five propulsion engines on our ship. Blowing the coils and
effectively reducing our capabilities beyond normal
levels.

“
A Goliath that saw our exit
into normal space shot a spine which detonated too closely. It
ripped the entire rear of the ship apart, but luckily the engine
and power supply are located in cargo. Garrak didn’t give up and
used the correcting thrusters to try and keep us out of danger when
the ship warned
another
Goliath was coming up our ass from behind the planet’s moon we
were trying to use as cover from the overgrown crab bastard
following us… playing with us really.

“
We thought our luck ran out
and gave up hope, but then as we watched the already shot spines
coming from the second one, the shots came close, but didn’t go off
anywhere near us. Instead the spines continued till it reached the
first Goliath and caused serious explosive damage.

“
Then ensued a battle
between the two crabs and the surprise attack let the one hiding
behind the moon get its claws on the other and ripped it apart for
an hour. Me and my team didn’t know what the hell was going on, but
we didn’t decide to stick around as the system was in chaos. Garrak
used what he could to get away, but we barely managed an hour of
distance before the Goliath from before came up on us far faster
than we could avoid. We tried to attack, but the damage was too
extensive to do any sort of repair in deep space. The first one’s
attacks as it played with us were too devastating. At that time all
we had were shields and maneuvering thrusters. We were practically
dead in the water. Even our solar sails were shredded after being
deployed.

“
I won’t lie, I prayed when
we saw it’s claw reach out and hoped that we’d die quick even
though we all were in our suits if our shields collapsed. But then
with a gentleness no one ever expected, the claw tenderly closed
around us and brought us towards its mouth. Then we screamed we
were going to be eaten to again be amazed when just below its
feeing mouth a cavity opened up and looked a lot like a vagina. It
pushed us inside and cradled us. We sat there for ten frightening
hours trying to affect repairs.

“
Suddenly we were spat out
into a freshwater ocean and the floating Goliath pushed us
carefully to shore. On the shore though it was writhing with every
kind of Keptl you can imagine from the doglike Trackers to the
gigantic Behemoths with arms like five story long swords. We
readied to fight for our lives, but instead of being felled upon as
soon as we were beached we were just stared at. They made no noise.
It was beyond the most terrifying experience to that point. Keptl
didn’t behave that way. Just watching. It proved something out
there was controlling them. Yet we didn’t see anything except a
hive largest we ever recorded. It was more than seven kilometers
tall and four times as wide.

“
But as we waited for our
death again…” She paused, trying to find the most articulate way to
say it. “well the best way I can express myself would be to call it
an alien mind. Alien in every sense, but immeasurably powerful.
Beyond the power of a Class Twelve I used to mate with back home.
Beyond even the famous Jake Dorgen’s levels.” Wry smiles led to
chuckling. “What?”

“
Jake Dorgen is my papa.
Continue.” Renee smirked.

“
Your father.” Melanie
gulped. Then shook her head. Judging by the redhead’s expression,
she needed to finish the story. “Uh, the mind. Right… the strange
mind didn’t try to dominate me and I realized as I looked around
the bridge, everyone was experiencing a similar mind in theirs. I
tried blocking it, but it brushed me aside like a freshly sharpened
scythe to wheat. I couldn’t help feeling the mind was merely
curious till it focused on all our memories associated to language.
It knew we were terrified and used our memories to figure out
why.

“
When it seemed to make a
decision we were flabbergasted when the Keptl turned around and
disappeared into a thick forest.
All of
them
. Even the Goliath that brought us to
the planet swam away and sank deep beneath the ocean’s
surface.

“
We waited for a few minutes
as the mind pulled back too. Then a single Tracker came out with a
crudely cut piece of wood in its teeth and came right up to the
bridge’s front, hopped on top and put it on the glass. On the piece
of wood was a scratched sentence. I’ll never forget what was
said.

“
It said ‘No danger will
harm you here, Terrans. Your timely aid helped me win with less
damage. I come to meet you and ask you not harm me.” Then at the
bottom was another section with my name on it. It said ‘Melanie
leader, I merely wish to speak.’

“
Oh I forgot to mention that
the crew left me in charge.” She blushed a little. She hated
leaving out details. The Queen of Fire rolled her wrist so Melanie
could continue the narrative. “We were understandably confused by
such a turn of events.

“
Roughly twenty minutes
later a crewmate pointed in the distance where a flying figure
surrounded by flying Dragoon serpents came from the hive. It was a
Keptl we never saw before. It was pale white, five meters tall and
dangerous to even look at. It had glowing eyes like a Creelin, but
far more powerful. Power so great our instruments couldn’t
accurately measure it.

“
It landed on the beach with
the Dragoons and held up another piece of wood between clawed
fingers. It also said ‘I arrive, Do not attack.’ And then all the
Dragoons flew back to the hive. Leaving it alone. You should have
seen it, we discovered the swarm’s mastermind.

“
Apparently it had limitless
patience as when we didn’t exit right away it folded it’s six legs
and merely sat on the beach, watching us. Waiting for us to take
the next step. The most frightening thing I remember on that day
were its teeth.

“
Not fearing another fight
or frightening encounter I ordered my crew to start immediate
repairs. Mainly on the weapons since we were incapable of repairing
the primary thrusters after they were blown clean off. I meanwhile
studied the creature and was about to send a data packet to find
out our long range subspace coms were gone too. We had no means
left to us.

“
The next day it sat there
in a cold rainstorm, but didn’t seem to mind at all. We worked
tirelessly and tried figuring ways to leave the planet gravity just
heavy enough I could walk on. Despite its size, the plant’s mass
wasn’t enough to hurt me. Like walking on Earth’s moon really, but
a fraction heavier.

“
This went on for five days
till we couldn’t fix anything else from the inside. All that was
left were the outside. She just sat there and only moved to relieve
herself in the woods. We couldn’t hide forever so I suited up and
sucked up my courage to open the airlock. I jumped onto the beach
with water up to my knees. At this time the creature didn’t move
more than its silver glowing eyes. I approached slowly while my
crew carefully saw just how crippled the ship was. We wouldn’t have
lived long if we were brought to the surface when we
were.

“
My fear was extreme as I
approached and the Keptl merely blinked, trying to not appear as
frightening. So I asked it ‘Do you understand me?’

It opened its mouth and wonder of wonders it
said “I learned after feeling your minds.” The voice was
frightening. Like a roaring Drake getting a prostate exam.”

Suddenly Renee burst out laughing as Sparky
hissed at the imagery.

The story eventually resumed after the
hilarity an its course. “It spoke clearly despite row upon rows of
serrated teeth like a shark. Then it asked ‘Is anyone injured?’ to
which I find the creature has compassion rather than be blood
thirsty crazy. So I told her ‘no.’ and she nods with a strong neck
despite the bony structure weighing down her head. I wondered why
it saved us and she knocked my socks off.

“
She told me that the Keptl
we know today are nothing like she is. I figured she was the hive
Queen as Keptl behavior works much like insects on Earth do. She is
one of the last remaining true Queens in the entire universe,
descended from the very first Queen. I learned that Keptl we know
and fear aren’t like She. The Keptl loosed upon the universe were
among those who lost contact with the original influence of a Queen
to become feral. We call them the Feral. And they are easy to
distinguish because they are black.

“
Over time these Feral Keptl
evolved their own Queens. These Queens are ruthless and devour all
in their wake. Oh, and just so you know, just because we named them
Queens doesn’t mean they are female. They have neither gender
unlike us. Completely asexual. But since all Keptl have the DNA of
its parent, in time even a Tracker can become a Queen if left
alone.” This raised eyebrows. That was staggering news indeed. “But
true, natural Queens are not only more powerful, they evolve
without needing to evolve offspring. A true Queen merely needs to
eat something and they can select an attribute to bring out in
themselves, and they are more docile and far more
intelligent.

“
I didn’t believe it till
before my very eyes her fearsome visage smoothed out and was
actually sensual. Even the teeth she had that frightened me were
far less intimidating. She only becomes dangerous when threatened
by the Feral Queens.

“
Since we opened a dialogue
I wanted to name her and yet another surprise is she already had a
name. In our tongue it would be something like White
Blossom.

“
White Blossom did inform me
she eats the Feral and sometimes her own young she tasks to eat and
fight to keep herself strong. To evolve. To not be left behind in
the rapid Keptl evolutionary race. It is why she is so much bigger
and Psionically stronger than Feral Queens she once captured and
brought for us to see the difference.

“
While on the beach, Garrak,
our lead Hunter asked if we were prisoners and White Blossom shook
her smooth head. She merely wanted to save us after reading our
minds to learn. She had only heard of Terrans from other battles
and the Feral. We made her curious. Curious enough to reach out an
olive branch first.”

“
How many of these non-feral
Queens are there?” Isabella inquired. As a military genius, she had
to know all facts of potential enemies and allies.

“
White Blossom and four
other still live, but she never told us where. To keep them safe.
She was protecting them since they were her actual daughters. And
if you ask how old she is, she’s a few years from a
billion
. We have to take
her word since as we know, Keptl cells are impossible to measure
age… unless that has changed.” Head’s shook. “I can’t blame White
Blossom for wanting to keep them safe.

“
Since we weren’t prisoners
White Blossom asked how she could help us fix our ship. A sign of
good faith. We needed more than we could offer and she didn’t
hesitate to tell us she needed to taste metal so she could have her
Behemoths refine ore since those Keptl, we found later, eat iron
rich dirt and rocks and naturally refine it into their own bodies
to aid digestion. Metal usually fills their excrement. It might be
gross, but we spent ten years collecting and melting the iron, made
steel. It took ten years because the planet didn’t have a lot of
iron. I’m just glad our magnets worked or we’d need to dig.
Gross.

“
We were eventually brought
to the hive. It was weird finding it was a semi-living creature.
Kind of like a hermit crab. Hard shell outside and soft inside. Yet
not slimy as I feared. It was like skin really. Dry and
smooth.