Evolution's Essence (39 page)

“
He would need to volunteer,
but I see no drawbacks forming an alliance. But I’m cautious. I
will not give you a definitive ‘Yes’, but would rather speak a
slight modification. We make a temporary alliance on say… five
years. If you uphold your end of all you said I will ensure it with
all the power of my office. We must hold a trial alliance and find
if we are compatible.

“
You wish to fight with us,
but many of my people, hundreds of millions, have dies at the
ferocity of the Kep… the Feral.” He corrected himself. Many Humans
want all Feral dead and that will likely include you due to
similarities. Humans are passionate creatures and quick to anger.
Mush blood has shed and many will wonder if this is some new ruse
or tactic to make us vulnerable with allies, only when we turn our
back to be taken out. We do not truly know if you have been
manipulating what you call Feral or if you are the mastermind
behind everything.” Many of the Keptl growled, but White Blossom
silenced them with a thought without showing anything outwardly.
“I’m merely speaking broadly and is why you must understand my
position. If you prove a true ally, it will sway opinion, but
resentment isn’t easy to overcome. Neither is prejudice.

“
We still offer relocation
and protection in our secured space on the condition we observe,
but I leave it up to you to consider a temporary alliance with the
hope of solidifying a permanent alliance.”

For a time White Blossom and Emperor Markeese
stared at each other equally before she extended a long arm across
the table made of a tendril from Hard-shell. “I accept. I gain much
by leaving and fighting again. Five years is nothing to me. A
blink. As my friends say, Deal!”

Black hand shook white claw, sealing the
agreement.

“
I have a gift, White
Blossom.” Oliver said after the hush and brought out a sealed
box.

“
Gift? I love gifts!” she
got up swiftly and moved to take it from his hands to try and
figure out what it was and what lay within. She pursed a bottom lip
when he pulled back. “But you said it is a gift?”

He shook his head. “If you opened it here you
would crush or fling everyone aside and possibly injure many
here.”

“
Oh… so I’m guessing
something inside grows rapidly?” her curiosity renewed.

“
Correct assumption. Since
we’ll be relocating you, do you mind if I level about four acres of
land?”

“
By all means.” She
permitted it easily and excitedly watched him wave a hand and it
was as if a powerful square dropped from the skies and flattened
the trees and shrubs near perfectly flat. Crushed.

The box in his hand levitated out and was
placed in the center if the area with all watching with great
interest. Soon at it landed the top parted and like a tornado a
funnel blasted out and seemed made of pure light. Then as the
spinning vortex reached a certain height it seemed to slam into a
wall and spread. Filling the entire newly made field the light
stopped again and bled down flat sides. The energy field of white
light soon became res halfway down and became a circle until below
it was a blue archway reading inside ‘Enter’.

“
What is this big box?” the
Keptl Queen approached carefully and laid her hand on the wall and
pushed. The light coming off resisted her touch as if made of
stone.

“
It is a portable Zero Ball
game field. Inside it cancels all gravity so pick four people or
Keptl you want to play with.”

“
But Zero Ball can’t be
played on world… can it?” someone spoke.

“
I merely isolated the
gravitational field inside the space to counteract gravity. I
merely apply the same principal my Valet implied into my body so
I’m always in a constant ten G aspect to keep me from jumping
around and trying to get from one place to another. The light you
see is merely the stored energy interacting with gravimetric nanite
particles that allow for the walls inside to remain solid. I had it
made years ago, but was saving it for something special.” Said the
inventor scratching his pointed ear. Oliver then asked “Do you know
the rules of the games, White Blossom?”

“
I do from Renee’s memories.
Two groups of five enter a weightless area. No power can be used to
move except bodily. Only one of the five may protect the colored
circle. Renee believes it is the only game you can play fairly with
the Humans because you are so much faster and smarter than any of
them. She enjoys watching you play very much.”

“
Too true.” Renee boasted.
“Always gets me so damn horny when he plays this game. It is the
only game ever invented where he doesn’t get an advantage or can
predict whether or not he’ll win. So what do you say, Big Girl?
Want to try this game out?”

The Keptl Queen’s head nodded so fast others
would have gotten dizzy otherwise. “Oh please. Out of all your
memories, I found this recreation the most fascinating. Solarians
had a very similar game, but the shape was spherical and spin
around dizzyingly. The scoring area never stayed in one place, but
it is just as brutal as this game. I love this gift and want my
brood to join me. It would be good practice and much fun.” Shiny
armored Keptl approached. A large Tracker, slithering Lisk, a
rolling Defilier and floating Dragoon came forth to their queen’s
summons. All wore polished armor and were exceptionally fearsome as
she said “I choose these as my players.”

“
Red, Steven, Sparky and
Visor. I want you four on my team. Visor, you hold down the goal.
Steven, you’re my second striker. Sparky, you are the central.
Renee you’re the supporter.” Oliver called the positions as he
stepped through, under the blue archway and went from ten G’s to
zero the moment he came through. A simple kick off the ground
launched him off to the back area where a handhold on the wall let
him stop. Along the way though he scooped up the ball and held it
under an arm. The rest of his team followed his example and weren’t
strangers to the absence of gravity.

White Blossom willed her brood inside and
felt their discomfort as the abrupt change imparted itself on their
bodies. She had fought for eons and was no stranger to
weightlessness even though it had been so very long. Her legs
carrier her and she took a few breaths before coming inside to find
the light inside wasn’t blinding and she manipulated her body to
flatten out and fused he les together, literally. Her insect-like
legs molded together and resembled flexible oars oddly enough. Her
bulbous rear remained the same, but instead of joined to look as if
she sat up at an angle all the time, her connected torso came in
line with her body. Much more streamlined. Her long arms flailed as
she tried adjusting to the differences as her body continued
altering. Her horns and spiky body continued to extend till she
looked more like an evil white pincushion, but then the spines
oddly flattened and began lifting and falling along her body. Those
spines made it so she could fly in the very air and gain serious
advantages as she managed to take her place as the supporter.

As everyone got in place Amanda Lockwell flew
through the opening with her cameras saying “Mind if I referee this
unorthodox game that will make I into our history books?”

“
Nope. Just be sure you stay
back, Mandy. Your armor won’t be much use if a Tracker’s claws get
in. You’re still a Class Two.” Renee said as her sexy attire
rippled itself into full combat. Sexy and badass. Sparky’s modified
collar was patterned after a Liger’s and his Drake body became
encased in dark green metal, including all four wings. Only Visor
was left out wearing armor.

“
For those of you turning to
GNN to witness this unprecedented broadcast I, Amanda Lockwell, am
bringing you this feed Live. As a Gift to this alliance, Consort
Oliver Void, mate to Queen Renee of Fire, revealed a new invention.
A portable Zero Ball room which has led us to this historic day.
Bringing us to a highlight to today’s amazing culmination. We will
witness the Keptl Queen White Blossom play in our second most
bloody sport. The only rule in the game is no use of Psionic. The
only game where there is no advantage except pure skill. As the
challenger, Oliver Void, he is the primary Striker in control of
the ball. His adversary is a Dragoon… um what is his
name?”

“
Heavy-wing.” White blossom
supplied. “My second striker is Long-fang, the Lisk. Warm-squirt is
my goal safety and my Tracker Run-ready is my center.”

“
Well with the names and
positions ready,” She paused as everyone on the walls tensed “GAME
START!” she shouted.

Amanda Lockwell provided commentary while
using her powers to drag herself around and say out of danger.
“Oliver takes a direct leap to the roof and spins to throw the ball
to Steven as Heavy-wing bites down on his leg and throws him away…
and Oliver rebounds when Renee intercepts, using her own back as a
platform to let him jump back into the melee where he sends a fast
uppercut under Heavy-wing’s jaw. Wow, what a shot!” Heavy-wing’s
head bounced off the roof with a metallic clang after such a
hit.

“
Steven Metts avoided a
tackle from the Lisk Long -fang and manages to circle around before
connecting with White Blossom who managed to grab hold of his
ankle, but not before Steven threw it into the mouth of Sparky
glowing with excitement. White Blossom follows her grab of Steven
and uses her extra mass to throw the large warrior in Oliver’s
direction in an inescapable spin. Her throw was perfect.” Hearing
that White Blossom gave a toothy grin to the Referee before using
her body to fly out of range as Renee came in to double kick the
other queen.

“
Fuck!” Renee called out
when her attack missed.

“
Sparky hits the wall to
rebound and slap Heavy-Wing with his finlike tail while passing the
ball back to Oliver who intercepts, but rather than grab the ball
he does a powerful kick to shoot for two points behind the halfway
line… and it’s no good. Run-ready intercepts with his own mouth and
uses all four legs to pass I to Long-fang, but he gets hit HARD by
Sparky who manages to tear it out of his claws. Sparky flips away
before Long-fang can regain his senses and spits out the ball to
shoot it to Oliver who again flip-kick’s it to the goal which is
wide open. Hold on, Warm-squirt comes out of his corner and from
his mouth extends a barbed tongue to keep the ball from reaching
the goal. He passes it to Heavy-wing who uses his serpentine body
to coil and fling the ball with a straight opening to the goal… But
Visor deflects with his whole body and hits the goal instead of the
game ball. It’s free… Renee gets to it long before White Blossom
and both Queens are fighting together. Visor interferes and rakes
his claws over White Blossom’s face to no effect, but the
distraction gives Renee the opening she needed to pass to Steven
who id deep in the opponents area… and the pass is good. He throws…
it’s a FEINT!” Amanda called in surprise as the Defilier
Warm-squirt extends his barbed tongue where he imagined the
trajectory to go. As he was retracting the several mete long tongue
Steven this time threw it during a kick off the wall. “This time
the throw is good and Warm-squirt can’t retract his tongue quick
enough to launch it again… It’s good! First point
Empire!”

Amanda reached out and telekinetically pulled
the game ball to her hand as the two teams floated back to their
sides. Soon as everyone held onto their open holds dotted all
around the room she tossed it to Heavy-wing who snatched it in
rather flexible leathery wings.

“
And we’re back to the
action as he Dragoon throws himself into a whipping motion to knock
Oliver aside, but Oliver grabs hold of both the tail and the
handhold to throw Heavy-wing at White Blossom, but the Dragoon
spits the ball to Run-ready sprinting across the roof using the
hand holds for added speed, but Steven comes in quick and kicks his
opponent in the gut, getting Run-ready away from the
wall.

“
Sparky’s wings fly him to
tackle Run-ready and both their powerful jaws pull on the ball, but
Sparky can’t dislodge from the Tracker’s locked bite. Any warrior
of Terra can tell you once a Tracker lock’s its jaws it’ll never
let go till it wants to. Five! Four! Three! Two! One! Zero!
Disengage! Run-ready, return to the place Steven kicked
you.”

The Tracker gave a nod, his tail wagging as
he went back into position as all the contestants clung to the
walls eyeing heir opponent and the coveted ball. “Resume!” and the
game did.

Biting, kicking, clawing, punching. The full
contact sport proceeded for hours. It was close in number and both
teams gave their all, but stayed within the limits of the game.

It was a tie game with forty three seconds
remaining when White Blossom and her brood went completely still.
So too did Oliver, Renee and Sparky.

“
What’s wrong?!” Amanda said
as the change that overcame them was so instant, as if they all
were shocked by a an electric shock.

Sparky’s glow increased
three fold as he sent a wide range telepathic warning
“To arms! I sense many enemies entering the
system! Many!”

“
Feral!” White Blossom
transformed again, but this time she assumed a fearsome visage.
“They attack and come early.” She ripped a hole in the area and
dropped to the ground as her entire brood readied and began pouring
out of the hive by the millions. As if someone kicked an ant
hill.

The cube sucked in all the particles as soon
as the wall was breached.