Queen of Hearts

by Michael-Scott Earle

  “We were in the process of that,” Madalena answered for the men. “It depends on where my husband wishes to go next.”

  “We are going to Ganymede,” I said.

  “Very well. Where will be our destination afterward?” Madalena’s lips formed a slight smile, and I could feel her pleasure at the decision to go after my mom. Earlier, it had seemed as if she didn’t want me to spend time on trying to find her, but now it was clear that she agreed with my choice.

  “Nordar - 13,” I said. “And then we will visitt the otherrr clans.” My words were starting to slur more, so I focused on trying to calm myself.

  “You will attempt the truce?” she asked.

  “Yeah, but I’m going to carry a big fucking stick. I want to bring most of our armada, along with what Kuroda has gifted me.”

  “They might take that as an invitation to war,” Madalena said as she crossed her arms.

  “It will be a war they can’t win. Do you need anything else from me? I want to question Yu before we depart.”

  “No, but may I come with you?” She said, and I could feel her hope pour from her and wrap around my shoulders.

  “Of course, I’ll need Eve as well. Can you both meet me in front of his room in a few minutes?”

  “Yes,” Madalena said. “I will finish the logistics with Baccor and Reeyal.” She turned back to the two men, and I continued into the hold with Kuroda.

  “Do you wisssssh to come with me and speak to Yu?” I asked him after we were halfway through the hold.

  “No, Tiger,” he answered. “I have spoken many times to the scientist. Conversation with the man is useless, but I can understand why you wish to meet with him.”

  “Alrightttt,” I said. “I’m sure you can ask around and find out what rooms your wives are staying in.”

  “I will take my own room,” Kuroda said. “They are no longer my wives.”

  “I don’t know if I’ll ever understand your logic,” I sighed.

  “I was once Kuroda, who was the Dragon. But now Kuroda is dead, and the Dragon lives to serve Tiger. Does that make sense?”

  “Nope,” I said with a shrug, “but I’ll talk to you later.”

  “I look forward to it. I will explore my new home and seek a room from your quartermaster. Who should I ask?”

  “Madalena, or a woman named Lux, or either Hegeia, Uma, and Waiola.” I pointed across the hold to where the three Nordar women were speaking to Kasta. The four women saw me gesture toward them, and they all waved at me.

  “I will speak with them,” he said before he nodded at me.

  I watched the strange man walk toward the four women for a few seconds, and then I turned back to my task. I didn’t need to be armored or armed on Persephone, so I walked to the armory and deposited my new pistols, shrapnel sprayer, and cloaking armor. I was still in my tiger-man form, but my thoughts hadn’t been twisting toward endless rage. I still felt the anger, but I must have been approaching twenty minutes now, and I didn’t feel the usual tension from fighting the beast.

  I shifted back into my human form and then grabbed one of the many flight suits folded in a nearby crate. Exhaustion set in as soon as I zipped the black suit on, and I had to lean against the wall for a few minutes before I stepped out of the armory.

  Madalena was walking down the hallway when I exited, and I wrapped my arms around her waist before kissing her. Our tongues danced together for a few moments, and then she pulled away so she could stare into my eyes.

  “I am glad that you are going to retrieve your mother.”

  “Yeah,” I said. “Me too. Did you tell Nikki to leave when we were ready?”

  “Yes,” Madalena said as her gloved fingers reached up to stroke my cheek. “You are tired. Yu can wait in his cell for a few hours longer. As soon as we enter hyperdrive, none of his army will be able to attack us. You should rest.”

  “Tempting,” I replied, “but I’ll sleep better once I ask him about my sister. Then I’ll take you up on your offer.”

  “Then we should hurry and ask him your questions,” Madalena said, and I saw Eve walk up behind her in the hallway.

  “Hello,” I said to the vampire woman as I unwound my arms from Madalena’s hips. Eve slipped into my arms smoothly, and I kissed her just as passionately as I had kissed the warrior woman.

  “Hello, my love,” Eve said after we broke our kiss. “Madalena is correct, you should sleep.”

  “I’ll be fine. Did you get anything out of those officers?”

  “Yes,” she replied. “Let us walk toward Yu’s room while I speak of it.”

  Madalena and I nodded, and the three of us stepped down the hallway together while Eve continued.

  “Neither of the officers know exactly how they are tracking us. They were just given orders to come here. However, one of the men saw something interesting during the briefing that I believe he was not meant to see.”

  “What?” I asked.

  “The communications screen on the captain’s desk was still open, and it was paused. There was a woman with pale skin and red eyes.”

  “Hmmm,” Madalena said. “You think she issued the order to the captain?”

  “Yes,” Eve said with a nod. “My theory is that the woman is one of my sisters.”

  “You have sisters?” Madalena asked.

  “In spirit.” Eve smiled. “They are not blood, but I know there are more women Elaka Nota has experimented on. They saw success with me and then tried it on others. I believe she might have some sort of connection with me that I cannot sense.”

  “And she’s able to track you across the galaxy?” I asked.

  “I understand your skepticism.” Eve smiled to show off her fangs. “However, you are a man who can change into a tiger, and I am a vampire with psychic powers. Both concepts seem too fantastic to be real.”

  “I’ve thought of that often,” I laughed, and some of the exhaustion fled from my shoulders.

  “Where would this woman tracking you be located?” Madalena asked.

  “I would guess on Trappist - 1e,” Eve said. “However, they could be anywhere in the galaxy. I do not feel her presence or understand how she might be tracking me. This is just a theory I have, but considering that Elaka Nota keeps tracking us through the systems and that we have searched Persephone extensively for a beacon, I would guess one of my sisters must be the cause.”

  “How large is Elaka Nota’s fleet?” Madalena asked me.

  “Eve might know better,” I said as I fought against an exhausted yawn. “They had a shitload of ships in their yard when we stole Persephone, so I’m guessing that they have a few thousand.”

  “They have several different fleets,” Eve said. “I was only able to peer into the mind of a rear admiral who was local to the Trappist system. At the time, they had some three thousand ships.”

  “That is their home system, though,” I said. “It might be the majority of their fleet.”

  “It could be,” Eve said. “I do know their territory encompasses some seven hundred stars. I would guess they have at least double that number of ships.”

  “Hmm,” Madalena said as her mouth twisted a bit. “Husband, you have powerful enemies.”

  “People fighting for justice tend to make enemies,” I said. “Speaking of enemies. Is this Yu’s room?”

  “Yes,” Eve said.

  One of Kasta’s small tank-looking gun drones sat in front of a door, and I guessed my android friend was keeping watch with a part of her mind so that Yu didn’t try to escape.

  “Alright,” I said as I took a deep breath. “Let’s try to get some more info about my condition.”

  “I will probe his mind while you speak,” Eve said, and then we opened the locked door and stepped inside of the cell.

  The room was bare except for a pair of twin sized beds, a sink, and a toilet. Yu lay stretched out on the left bed with his long legs crossed and his eyes closed. He didn’t open them when we entered, but he did when I cleared m
y throat.

  “Oh, Adam!” he said without opening his eyes. “I was wondering when you would come to visit me. It’s fucking boring in here.” His words caused exhaustion to flee from my body, but I knew I only had ten or so minutes with him before I needed to sleep.

  “Start talking,” I growled.

  “Naw,” he said as he swung his legs off the bed, stood, and took a step toward me. Both Madalena and Eve stepped a bit away from me so they could help defend me from an attack, but the man just grinned. “You didn’t say ‘please.’”

  “Please?” The beast should have been exhausted, but it screamed murder through my soul.

  “Yes,” he said as he wagged his finger at me. “You always need to say ple--

  I interrupted his words with my fist, and I felt his nose break under my knuckles. It wasn’t a very hard punch, but he still tumbled to the ground with a shout of surprise.

  “I don’t say please,” I seethed. “You do what I tell you to do, or I’ll rip you to pieces.”

  “You broke my nose!” Yu shouted. His hands were over his face, and blood leaked out from around his fingers.

  “I’m glad you can bleed,” I said.

  “I don’t even know what you want to talk--”

  “You know damn well what I want to talk about,” I interrupted. My head was starting to hurt. It was an exhaustion headache, but my anger was still keeping my head clear.

  “Adam…” Eve said as she laid her hand on my shoulder. Her touch soothed my soul a bit, and I let out a long breath.

  “Why don’t we start with your red blood, Yu. Eve wasn’t able to get any information out of you, and you haven’t aged in a few hundred years. You’ll tell me who or what you are, and then we’ll get to the part where my sister seems to think that you are saving us.”

  “You just asked me to talk, and then you punched me. Adam, have you ever stopped to consider that we should be friends? All this anger isn’t good for you. Just ask your woman.” Yu pointed at Eve with a bloody finger.

  “You should begin answering Adam’s questions,” Madalena said, and Yu turned his blue eyes to my wife.

  “This one is good for you, Adam,” Yu said with a laugh. “She serves you faithfully.”

  “And Eve doesn’t?” Madalena’s cold eyes narrowed.

  “Well, I’m no mind reader. How would I know?” Yu cackled a bit, and then he groaned as he reached back with the hand he had pointed with to touch his nose.

  “You try and drive a wedge between Adam and I,” Eve said. “It will not work.”

  “Sure it won’t. I don’t need to drive anything between you. Time will do that.” He took his hands away from his nose, and it didn’t look to be broken anymore. There was still blood on his face, but even that looked dried.

  “You heal fast,” I said. “You aren’t human.”

  “I’m plenty human,” he said. “Just depends on how you define it.”

  “Humans don’t heal broken noses in less than a minute,” I growled. “But this means I can break it again. Will your fingers and arms heal just as fast? I’ll move onto those next.”

  “Poor Adam,” Yu said with a mocking laugh. “All you know is torture and pain.”

  My foot shot out and slammed into his chest. I could hear the ribs crack and Yu was flung back into the wall. Before he could stand up, I stepped over to him and wrapped my hand around his scrawny scientist neck.

  “You taught me that!” I screamed into his face. “You tortured me for years! Do you think I won’t torture you? Do you think I won’t take pleasure in ripping every word I want out of you? How fast will your broken ribs heal? I’ll break them twenty times today. Eventually, you’ll tell me what I want to hear.”

  “Ha!” Yu gasped out a laugh through the grip I had on his neck. “You. Are. So. Rude.”

  My love, he is trying to anger you. Do not let him.

  I closed my eyes and then threw Yu over onto his bed. He bounced off it with a groan and wrapped his arms over his chest.

  “Or I can just kill you,” I said. “You already told Eve that you can’t fix me, so I don’t need you anymore. My sister seems to think you are some sort of savior, but it might be better to just end you instead of puzzle out why she thinks that way.”

  “So, you’ve found Hanekawa,” Yu said with another one of his laughs. “Damn, your team works fast. I thought we had her hidden rather well.”

  “You fucking experimented on her,” I said as I rubbed the bridge of my nose. “You know, I’m just going to fucking kill you and be done with it.”

  “I’ve raised you well,” Yu said. “Kill first and ask questions later. You are the perfect grunt. How’d you end up with such a nice spaceship and collection of breathtaking women?”

  “You didn’t raise me,” I growled as I fought against my rage. Fuck. Everything Yu said made me want to shift into my tiger-man form and rip his fucking face off. I didn’t even think I could shift so soon, but the beast inside of my soul was begging me to try.

  “Will you answer Adam’s questions?” Madalena asked with surprising politeness.

  “He hasn’t even asked me a question,” Yu said with a wide grin. “He’s always punching, and growling, and throwing.”

  I grabbed the lanky blonde man by the collar of his shirt and yanked his face into mine. “Why. Does. My. Sister. Think. We. Aren’t. Human?” I seethed each word.

  “Because you aren’t,” he said with a shit-eating smile.

  “Explain,” I whispered as I tried to keep my anger in check.

  “It’s a long story,” he said with a shrug. “You’d get bored--”

  I flung him across the room, and he bounced off the far metal wall. I could feel the beast inside of my stomach threatening to take over, but I could also feel Eve’s hand on my shoulder. Her fingers pressed into the thin fabric of my flight suit and I forced myself to think about the ocean waves.

  His mind is not giving up much. As I said before, it is as if he does not remember anything.

  “Ahhh, Adam,” Yu grunted as he picked himself up off the floor. “You just continue to prove my point. You don’t really want to know what I have to say, you just want to beat up an innocent man who wishes nothing but the best for you.”

  “Fuck you,” I growled. “You shot me full of drugs, manipulated my genes, and then put a fucking control collar around my neck. I haven’t forgotten the suicide missions you sent me on.” My anger should have returned, but I was able to control the rage now.

  “As usual, you are making me out to be the bad guy here.” Yu tisked his lips together three times and shook his head. “You don’t even appreciate how much I’ve--” Yu’s mouth stopped in mid-sentence when Madalena pulled a long knife from the belt of her uniform. It was a wicked looking blade that she had used to bond our souls together.

  “I am not angry,” Madalena said. “But I will remove one of your testicles in the next thirty seconds if you do not begin telling Adam what he wishes to know. After I cut it off, if you do not begin talking in the next thirty seconds, I will shove it into your mouth and make you swallow it. If you do not begin talking thirty seconds after that, I will do so with your other testicle. After I have fed that to you, I will pick another body part to remove. Can you guess which one I will pick?”

  Yu stared at the warrior woman for a good five seconds, then he nodded and turned to me. “Alright, I’ll talk, Adam. Be a dear and fetch me some water? I imagine my throat will get parched.”

  “I’ll bring you some water after you start talking,” I said.

  “So cruel,” Yu sighed. “And grumpy. Are you grumpy? Maybe you need a nap?” the man laughed, but when I didn’t reply, he just shook his head. “Ahh well. Hmmm. Where should I begin my tale?”

  “I already asked you why my sister thinks we are not human,” I hissed. Fuck this guy. He seemed to know exactly what to say to piss me off, and he just kept pushing my buttons.

  “Well, you aren’t,” he said with a shrug. “You can turn in
to a weretiger, duh.”

  “You did that to me,” I growled.

  “No, that’s where you are wrong,” he said. “Remember what I said to you when you first brought me to your fancy spaceship? I said ‘I just looked for people who already had the beast in them.’ Or something like that, I honestly don’t remember my exact words. I say so many genius things. Hard to keep track all the time.”

  “I still have my knife out,” Madalena warned.

  “Let’s go back in the past a bit, maybe fifteen billion years or so,” Yu said as he glanced at the Prime Valkyrie’s knife. “The Milky Way was brand spanking new, and still expanding, but it’s not an old galaxy, there were plenty of others in the universe. Billions of galaxies and trillions of solar systems with zillions of planets.”

  “I understand the fucking universe,” I said. “Get to the point.”

  “See, you say you understand the universe,” Yu said, “but do you really? What created it? What powers caused it? How does it actually work? Is it the only universe or are there parallels?”

  “It doesn’t fucking matter,” I said. “Keep on with your story, or my wife will neuter you.”

  “Ahhh,” Yu sighed again. “My point is that each universe is massive and impossibly large, but each galaxy is just a grain of sand in the endless desert of the universe, and then there are even more deserts. It is impossible for anyone’s mind to grasp, so I’m just saying you need to realize that no matter how large, or far, or powerful, or vast something seems, it is not the end or the pinnacle. It is only the beginning.”

  I opened my mouth to tell him to get back to the point again, but he continued.

  “When the Milky Way was new, it began to grow life, but then other life came here from adjacent galaxies. Those other arrivals weren’t coming here to settle. They only came for two reasons.” He paused and then smiled a bit at me. “Can you guess?”

  “They were the hunters or the hunted,” I answered.

  “Ding! Ding! Ding!” He laughed. “Maybe you aren’t such a meathead after all, Adam.”

  “Should I break your nose again?” I asked.

  “No, that’s okay, I’ll continue,” Yu said as he waved his hands. “Homo Erectus or Neanderthal or even Sapiens were probably not the first intelligent life form to evolve on Earth. Or maybe they were, but then these other life forms integrated. It doesn’t even matter how it happened, really. The genes got mixed, and there are humans and hybrids. I didn’t put the monster in you. It was already there, and I just allowed it to come to the surface.”