by Devin Cain
"I want to change you into a Nephilim. Become what I am, embrace this new— world order. Show that you mean what you just said."
Gremory took in a deep breath and let it out three times before she finally responded with a slight nod. I couldn’t help but feel ecstatic as I placed my hand on her chest and activated the skill Agent of Chaos. She started screaming immediately, but it only lasted three whole seconds as a dark light shot out from her forehead and connected with mine. A new option became available to me for a yet unknown reason, though I thought it had to do with her becoming a Nephilim.
Do you wish to change Gremory’s Nephilim rank? The only available position is High priestess until you have gained enough followers. Yes / No?
It was rather strange, but I was becoming accustomed to strange and weird things, so one more or less didn’t make any difference. As I accepted the change, she started screaming once more, but the screams immediately turned to moans of pleasure as the darkness was forced back into her forehead along with new darkness that came from my head. What a weird sight it must be, I thought.
"I—no, what’s happening? I feel so strong suddenly! Don’t tell me you’ve been this strong all the while, Cain?" she asked, barely able to control herself. I willed for the darkness to stop, and it did, along with Gremory’s moans.
"You’ve just become my first High Priestess. Have you gained any new skills or something?" I asked curiously.
"Yeah, something along the line of pray to your lord to increase his overall power."
"Oh, that’s a good one. Do that every time you can, I’m sure it will increase our white power pool."
"I will, but damn, this was one helluva thing you just put me through. First, I felt like I was about to die, and then as if you were making love to me. It was so strange."
"Whatever. As long as you’re mine now, with both body and soul, I can finally be at ease."
"How about we go for that R&R you just promised? Just to see if our endurance was affected."
I grinned, nodding at my mischievous Priestess.
"I couldn’t have said it any better myself."
Chapter Thirty-Six
"Admiral on deck!" shot the same guard officer announced just as when I came here the first time.
"At ease," I replied as everyone got up, and sat back down again. "What do we know so far?"
A young man turned to me and saluted. "Sir, we have nothing. We’re jumping in blind. Devil two and three are only seconds behind us, so whatever we face, we’ll be doing so together."
"Right. Any drones or probes we can send ahead?"
"No, sir," said another, slightly older-looking man. I turned to him and then the previous one. "We don’t have any probes capable of that yet. The engineers are working on some stuff, but they’re nowhere near ready. We truly had the worst of all weaponry installed on here."
I sighed and nodded.
"What’s your names and positions?" I asked, my eyes switching in between the two.
"My name is Vladimir, and I’m the Weapons Officer, Admiral.
"Oh, a Russian? Interesting," I replied before I looked at the second guy, waiting for his response.
"The name is Friedrich, sir. I’m the Helmsman if you will, and I’m German."
"What a colorful outfit. I love it! Now, what is it that we can do?" I asked. "Get ready for a shootout if they prove to be hostile?"
Gremory squeezed my shoulder.
"I’ve been a couple of times on the bridge during negotiations. Let me do the talking, okay? Unless they directly talk to you."
My pride didn’t want to let me do what she asked for, but I knew it was for the better. She had a lot of military experience, and that was a thing which I was sorely lacking.
"Take command for now. Lady Death will serve as the main ship’s Captain from now on."
"Aye, aye, Lady Death is now the Captain!" the guard officer repeated after me.
"Go into orange alert and prep all weapons, but do not open missile hatches or spool the batteries. We don’t want to scare them into acting," she ordered.
"Yes, mam!" a collective response came from all stations, in total, three young men and women. I sat down on the leather seat and observed, it was all I could do for now and let her handle the talking.
"Arriving in five, four, three—transitioning into normal space," the Helmsman announced. "We have arrived. Devil two and three to our stern. The enemy formation is comprised of--"
"What are we facing?" Gremory snapped.
"Sir! There are five motherships and over thirty battleships on an intercept course. A second formation to our port. A total of ten carriers and another twenty battleships."
"Shit, this isn’t what Mikhail promised us."
"Admiral, they’re hailing us."
"Put them through," Gremory replied, straightening herself. I remained seated and out of view from the facing cameras.
"Why isn’t that Lady Death? What a surprise to see you on screen," a tall, bald man said in the way of greeting. His broad chest was decorated with all sorts of medals. From what I understood, he was at least an Admiral by the large sunburst over his left breast.
"Admiral Chen, what a surprise to see you here. Why does the Red Alliance block our path? The council and Mikhail summoned us in person."
"Oh yes, yes, I know, Lady Death. But you have to see, things-- changed over the last few days. We were informed that you’re part of a-- new faction? Should I call you like that?"
"That all depends on how things go today, Admiral," Gremory replied with as much steel as she could muster. "If things don’t go the way they are supposed to, we won’t be the only ones licking their wounds."
The man smirked and bobbed his large head slightly. There was something in the way he looked at her, and it wasn’t very assuring. I decided to step up. I got up from my seat and transformed right in front of my bridge crew. They might as well see who they were serving, no?
My overall battle form hadn’t changed much, except for the addition of pitch-black, bone, and steel wings that seemed to go on forever. I stepped up next to Gremory and stood there, my eyes narrowed at admiral Chen. He flinched ever so slightly before focusing on me.
"Admiral," I nodded in greeting. The little act of trying to intimidate the man had paid off. Even more, he wasn’t able to see how young, inexperienced, and nervous I was. "Can I do something for you, Admiral Chen?" I asked casually as if I’d known him for ages.
"Y-You are the one who chased Cafka off the Steel Legion’s flagship?"
"Not correct. He detonated over thirty bombs and left us to die after he lost control over the ship to the Gebradim, placing his pride over the Legion’s survival. I don’ revel in violence, but if you push someone to the brink, they’re likely to push back."
"Yes, I see. And from what we’ve heard, you’re to become some anti-god?"
"No, Admiral. All I care for is to let the people who wish to go home do just that, and if anyone else wants to flee this oppressive world and regime, I’d gladly take them off your hands."
The admiral snorted and looked to his right, nodded his head and then back at me.
"You see, we’ve been ordered not to interfere with you, but that was before you had three warships and such a strange class at that. It’s slightly smaller than your capital ship but quite formidable from what we’ve been told. What’s stranger, the ships are uncrewed. Would you care to explain?"
I shrugged my massive, mutated shoulders and unfurled my wings even further.
"No, I wouldn’t. You’re just an admiral, the same as me. And if I may add, I do not belong to the Earthern defense forces. We are—unaffiliated for now. We work for no one but ourselves, and only for our people."
The video link cut off plunging the room into silence.
"Unaffiliated, huh?" Gremory asked. "I like it, I guess. I mean, if we live long enough we might even come up with a cool name, and become a thing or whatever."
I chuckled, my low, rumbli
ng voice catching the others off guard.
"We’ll see soon enough, though one thing still bothers me. Mikhail is nowhere to be seen. I mean, it’s not that I want to see his ugly face, but he should have been here to welcome us."
The bridge’s door opened up, letting in Samson, Levi, Khavvrin and the Gebradim Queen. They all stopped for a moment to gawk at my new look, but quickly made their way to the lounge part of the bridge and sat down. The queen remained standing beside Khavvrin for some reason, looking around curiously.
"What’s with her? Has anyone spoken to her yet?" I asked as I made my way to the group.
"Not really," Khavvrin replied. "She follows me around like a lost duckling."
"Maybe it’s because you ingested Mellona?"
He nodded and got up as I approached, offering me his hand.
"Maybe, and thanks again, Admiral. You gave me a new purpose, a new life, and these awesome powers. With every soldier that turns, I can feel him as a singularity in my mind. I can talk to all of them, order them what to do as easy as breathing."
I nodded my head curiously and sat opposite him, then looked up at the queen and motioned for her to sit beside me. Still, she remained standing but looked at me under her long eyelashes.
"Sir, the enemy formation is opening up a corridor for us. How do we proceed?" the Helmsman asked
"We don’t," Gremory replied before I could. True, I had given her overall command, so I’d try and keep quiet. "We wait until Mikhail shows up. He promised us safe passage, and even though I dislike him, he should be a man of his word."
"Yes, sir," he replied.
"So, Queen," I said and turned back to the alien guest. "Why do you spit on my hospitality?"
Her eyes went wide, and she was about to speak but then looked down at Khavvrin and back at me.
"Don’t look at me; I’m not your mother. Answer the admiral," Khavv said. "Or do what he asked. Either way, I have no idea since I don’t speak your damned language."
She bared her teeth and stepped away from him, then looked up at Gremory before sitting next to me. I put my hand on hers and whispered.
"I’m not going to hurt you, after all, you’re a guest," I said, trying to sound as assuring as possible.
"I do not wish to be your guest," she hissed.
"No, and neither did I want to die saving you down there from the other queen. But it happened, and that’s another story anyway. So, tell me more about yourself and your powers. How would you like to start a new colony somewhere far away from those who want to hurt you?"
She gasped and pulled away from me, her skin glowing faintly orange.
"I need a mate to do that! You’re offering yourself to that position?"
"Kris, is Orange still alive?"
"Yeah, he is. Why?" she replied curiously. It was a good thing neither of them understood the Gebradim language, and to me, it was just like Earthern since Khepri did the translating for me.
"Thanks."
"Whatever," she murmured and looked away.
"We have the Gebradim male I named Orange. He’s strong, loyal, and devoted. Do you think he’d be able to become your mate?"
The queen narrowed her eyes on mine and bared her teeth, hissing.
"Why do you want me to start a new colony for you, Conqueror? So we can be your slaves?"
I shrugged and leaned in closer to her, our faces only inches apart. I could feel all eyes on me, especially Gremory’s boring holes in my back, but I didn’t care.
"I wish to create a place for everyone to live in harmony, peace, and equality. Once we’re done here on Earth, we’re visiting a planet very far away from the Human worlds. It's far out on the rim of their border. There is a planet almost identical to where I grew up on. It has magnificent oceans, mountains, and deserts. You can choose any place to create your colony."
"And what does that have to do with me? With the Gebradim?"
"Well, for us Humans she’s perfect. And having Gebradim populate it along us would only serve to show other races that I’m someone who keeps his word, that I stand behind my promises. As for your community, you would rule it how you saw fit, but only on the presumption that you and Orange treat your people well."
"And that we stay loyal to you," she added. I shrugged.
"That’s the least you can do, no?"
"I guess," she replied with a smirk on her face. "I can do so much more if you’re planning to be so benevolent, Conqueror."
"He’s here," Gremory said, interrupting our conversation. I was sure she had listened in, at least partially, but I neither did or said anything that should upset her too much.
I got off the seat and walked up to Gremory, unfurling my wings again. The seat was more or less destroyed after supporting my heavy body for some time, but I didn’t care. We’d get new ones when the situation allowed.
"Mikhail," I said as the image of his face appeared on the screen. He’d dropped the smirk from last time and stared at me as if I was death incarnate. For him, I just might be. "What’s with this show of force?"
He shrugged and straightened his shoulders.
"Things have changed as Admiral Chen told you earlier. Still, I wouldn’t be the Mikhail, the supreme Angel, and divinity in all the known and unknown space if my word wasn’t worth anything. You will dock all three ships at the space station Europa. From there, you will be escorted down to Earth. Both you and Lady Death are expected and will be given one day to rest and freshen up. The meeting will be held tomorrow morning eight sharp."
"I see. And just what is it they hope to achieve?" I asked flapping my wings twice. His face changed slightly from mildly amused to sour, but only for the slightest moment.
"To prevent any unnecessary conflicts. They know what you’ve become, and that you’ve gained a buffer of seven days through The Host to disappear from known Earth space. Everything in between and afterward depends on what you manage to get out of the council."
"I see. So, they’re afraid of making an enemy out of me. That’s a good thing then, don’t you say, Mikhail? Speaking of which, are we allowed to trade and pick up new personnel and unload the ones who want to return to their homes?"
"I don’t see why not. I doubt that you’ll be getting any weaponry or starships, no matter how much valuables you might have, but other than that, the less ‘ordinary people’ are left on Earth, the better."
"Thank you. Alright then, we’ll proceed to dock. Oh, and please warn them that Devil will have its nose pointed down at Brussels. If anyone attacks the ships or tries to capture them, Brussels will be erased first, then Earth follows next. Also, the council is to stay there, otherwise my second in command might get trigger-happy."
Mikhail grew visibly angry to the point his eyes turned to slits, and he stepped closer to the camera. He opened his mouth and remained like that for a moment, before closing it and taking a deep breath.
"Do you think my word isn’t enough to put you to ease? What about my father’s word?"
"Oh, I trust you fully, but I don’t trust the Human scum that rules the Earth and most of the known galaxies. Whenever they lay their eyes on something interesting, a new toy, a beautiful woman, a pretty young boy, or whatever it may be, they want to have it."
"Proceed to the space station Europa, or turn back and never come back again. Make up your choice in the next five minutes. I will meet with you in person tomorrow during the meeting. Goodbye for now, Cain. Or should I call you Nephilim?"
With that, the video transmission shut down, and the screen went black.
"Well, that could have gone worse," Gremory whispered. "You really shouldn’t have pulled at his nerves that badly. His word really does mean as much. He’s the top dog or Angel in this case. No one dares go against him when he explicitly orders something, not even Ariel or Azrael."
"Doesn’t matter. If we showed weakness today, tomorrow they’d put us through the grinder. In the end, we would have become their servants once more."
"True. Yo
u have wizened up, Admiral," she teased. I shrugged, not wanting to get into a discussion with her in front of the rest. "Plot course to Europa and dock as instructed. The capital ship in the middle, the two extensions to the sides, and do turn the nose at Brussels as instructed."
"Yes, sir," one of the other officers replied.
"What’s your name?" I asked.
"Gregor, sir."
"Well, Gregor, you’ll be the one in charge when we’re gone. I trust you’re smart enough to handle yourself under pressure?" He nodded once and stood at attention.
"Yes, sir. I’ve been in the military for over ten years now serving as the first mate on two ships."
"Good. If you prove capable, I’ll assign you one of the other two ships once we’re out of here."
"Admiral, sir!" he snapped and saluted me. They sure are eager to prove themselves, I thought. Hadn’t I been just like that when I joined up all those weeks ago? And what had it gotten me? A lot of headache and trouble.
I sighed and turned to the group that still sat.
"Khavvrin, how many transformed do you have at your disposal?"
"Seventy-two, Admiral. I can proudly say that each one of them can easily take down a squad of Gebradim troopers."
"So, what you’re saying is that the soldiers who have already turned, are stronger than all of our other forces combined?"
"Yes, Admiral. If I may say so, I myself am worth thirty of them."
"I bet you are," I mused. "And you better. You’ll stay with whatever fresh troops come out on the capital ship, but send thirty-six each to the two ships, fully equipped. They are to repel anyone trying to board the ships and to kill on sight."
"Yes, Admiral. Anything else?"
"For now, no. Samson, you and Levi will go down on a separate shuttle and search for black market traders. You should be able to find them with your knowledge and hacking skills, no?"
She nodded frantically.
"Of course I can! Who do you think me for?"
"A good little soldier who’s the best at what they do."
"Oh, flattery? Sure, but that only gets you so far. What specifically do you need?"