Nascent Decay (The Goddess of Decay Book 1) (17 page)

“Let me contact base,” Jessica said. She pressed a small dot on her lapel.

“This is Captain Ramirez at Outpost Beta V-9. Over,” came the response from her lapel.

“This is Jessica Miller aboard ARC-25 Beta V-9. Over,” Jessica responded.

“What’s your situation, Jess?” Ramirez asked.

“We need clearance to return to base,” she said.

“So you’re sure that it’s really her?” asked Ramirez.

“Yes, sir,” Jessica responded. “To the best of my ability.”

“Holy fuck that’s crazy!” Ramirez exclaimed. “Your return is authorized. See you here.”

*

The trip to the outpost was a short, quiet one. Rhylie had expected some sort of interrogation from Jessica and Bart, but strangely there was none. They didn’t seem to want to answer any of her questions either.

The outpost itself was small, built into the center of a hollowed out asteroid. It probably couldn’t outfit and sustain more than a crew of eight. Rhylie tried to remember where Beta V-9 was, but could not.
It must be a new Outpost,
she thought.

They were taken into a round room with high ceilings that had several compact corridors leading off in various directions. The construction looked pretty fresh, and everything in the room looked as though it were brand new, even though it had a military-industrial feel to it. It was a common area that served as a mess hall, meeting room, and recreational center. In one corner was a cluster of simulation booths. The sight of them made Rhylie both nostalgic and sad.

Gathered around the round table in the middle of the central room were three other soldiers. The short one with brown skin and intense eyes she took for Ramirez, due to the decorations on his uniform. The other two were a short woman of Asian descent and a pale white guy with red hair and freckles. He looked young, as though he were about the same age as her when she had signed up. All of them were wearing their recon specs. There were fixed seats encircling the table, but nobody was sitting down. They all seemed to be on high alert.

All three of them looked at Isaar like the boogeyman himself had come to life. Rhylie struggled to keep her anger in check. She was already growing tired of their reactions towards him.

“He rescued me,” she said sternly. “He brought me here to warn you about the coming war.” Ramirez turned his attention to Rhylie.

“Rescued you from what?” he asked.

“I don’t know how-” she began before she sighed with frustration. “It’s complicated. And a long story, and we don’t have time for that now.”

“We’ve got all the time in the world, little girl,” Bart said from behind her. Rhylie clenched her jaw, suppressing her anger. She wanted to shut him up permanently.

“Just calm down, Private,” said Ramirez. “Everyone on this outpost outranks you, even the greenie over there.” He nodded his head towards the red-headed kid.

“Something’s not right with her, Ramirez,” Bart said from behind her. “She told us that a fingerprint bioscan wouldn’t work.”

“I was listening,” Ramirez responded. Rhylie’s face flushed with frustration.

“Please just let us-” she began.

“Something ISN’T right here,” said the short woman, cutting them all off.

“What is it, Meili?” Ramirez asked.

“I can’t scan her body,” Meili said, confused as she looked down at the device in her hand. “Only her head is showing up on my bio-scanner.” She turned to the red headed man. “Adam’s biometrics show up fine.” Her face darkened as she turned back to Rhylie. “Private Underhill doesn’t even have a heartbeat…” she trailed off, her eyes widening in horror. Suddenly everyone’s weapons were drawn and pointed at Rhylie. She put her hands up defensively.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa. Calm down. Everything is going to be okay,” she said, her voice trembling slightly.

“I knew something was wrong,” Bart spat out. “I fuckin’ knew it. We should have toasted their asses.”

“Quiet, Bart,” said Ramirez coolly. “Private, why can’t she scan your body?” He articulated the question carefully, as though struggling to maintain his composure. Rhylie frowned deeply, and clenched her right hand in frustration.

“I don’t have time to explain,” she implored. She felt something prod the back of her head.

“I told you,” said Bart. “We’ve got all the time there is.” Rhylie clenched her jaw, anger blazing in her eyes. She was getting close to her breaking point. Ramirez, Meili, and Adam all took a step back from her.

“Just let me talk to the Council,” she said. “I’ll be more than happy to answer everyone’s questions after that.”

“I can’t let you do that, Private,” Ramirez said slowly. “I have to believe that you’ve been compromised. I don’t know what you are, or where you came from, but until we get this all sorted out, you’re going to a holding
chamber
.”

The word threw Rhylie into a rage. She spun, her left arm arcing out into a formless lash, slapping Bart across the face hard and jarring his head. A small jet of blood and saliva trailed after it. Her arm withdrew and reformed into a hand; her uniform disappeared, all detail and color vanishing. She was standing before them exposed, her body a dull, metallic hue. She turned to face Jessica.

Rhylie’s skin oscillated and pulsated with rage, as though wind were buffeting still-water before a storm. The edges of her eyesight blurred and she could see blood pumping through her vision. Jessica just stood there, staring at Rhylie in wide-eyed horror, her mouth working soundlessly. Isaar was screaming something at her, but she couldn’t hear it over the blood coursing in her ears. She felt shots fired at her back and spun to face the other three.

Meili was nowhere to be seen, but Ramirez and Adam had their sub-rifles wide open, firing bursts at her torso. The shots were harmlessly absorbed by her new flesh. She covered her face instinctively with an atomorphic membrane, enveloping herself fully in a dull gray metallic skin. There was nothing human about her appearance any longer.

She whipped her right arm out at Adam, slapping him backwards with a long, thick tendril. The blow sent him into the wall and he slumped to the floor, struggling to regain the breath that had been knocked from his lungs. She then flicked her arm lazily towards Ramirez, wrapping it around his throat. He dropped his gun, his hands going to grasp at the tentacle around his throat. She lifted him up off of the floor and began squeezing slowly, constricting his neck and cutting off his air.

“Nobody is going to put me back into the Chamber,” she hissed menacingly. It was strangely quiet in the room. Ramirez was unable to respond, his face growing purple as she slowly strangled him. He choked and sputtered as he struggled to breathe, staring at Rhylie desperately.

“Rhylie, please!” Isaar screamed from behind her. She turned to look over her shoulder at him.

He was kneeling on the floor, blood just beginning to pool beside him. The left leg of his pants glistened wetly, and Jessica had her handgun pointed directly at the back of his head. Rhylie loosened her grip on Ramirez, and he fell to the floor, gasping desperately for air. Bart was just now picking himself up.

“Don’t make me do this, Private,” Jessica said softly. Rhylie quickly uncovered her face.

“I won’t. I won’t,” Rhylie said desperately. “Just please don’t hurt him.” She put her hands up for effect. Jessica nodded her head once, keeping her eyes locked on Rhylie.

“Bart, Adam, take her to the holding cells,” Jessica said, her voice cold and serious. “We’re keeping this one up here with us. If you so much as look at someone wrong, I’ll blow his fucking brains out.”

*

Rhylie sat on the lone bunk in the holding cell, which was nothing more than a hastily converted sleeping quarters. The ARC was a reconnaissance craft, and didn’t actually have anywhere to lock up prisoners. She wondered who had to give up their bunk for her.

She passed the time by playing with her abilities under the watchful eye of Bart. She couldn’t help but to show off a little, once she saw how uncomfortable it seemed to make him.

“What the hell happened to you, Private?” he asked incredulously as her hand burst into flame and then extinguished. She couldn’t get it to work as well as Rahve had.

“I don’t want to talk about it now,” she said coldly. “You have to warn the Council.”

“I don’t have to do anything but sit here and watch your weirdo-ass do magic tricks,” he said with a snarky tone. She turned to give him a cold glare, and he shifted uneasily underneath her stare. She turned her head to look away.

Out of everyone on this Outpost, she liked him the least, and right now that was a dangerous situation for him to be in. She took a little comfort knowing she could probably kill him silently, without the others even realizing it. But it would be best to let them give Isaar some sort of medical attention first.
If he dies, they all die
, she thought.

“Are you even human anymore?” Bart asked. Rhylie gave a half-hearted shrug in response. The question caught her off-guard, but she recovered quickly.

“It doesn’t matter,” she said flatly as dozens of tiny needles blossomed across the back of her hand. “None of this is going to matter if we don’t act soon.”

The door opened, and Adam stuck his head in.

“Two more Outposts have been destroyed,” he said. “We’ve been put on high alert. At the first sign of an alien craft, we’re to abandon the post. Resistance has been useless.” He cast a quick glance to Rhylie.

“It’s just going to keep happening,” Rhylie said without looking up at either of them.

“Why?” asked Bart. “Why are they attacking us?”

“Because we stepped out of our backyard,” Rhylie said, as if it were that simple. Maybe it was. “Isaar could tell you more.”

“Is that what its name is?” asked Bart snidely.

“He,” said Rhylie coldly, “saved my fucking life.” Bart snorted.

“Some life. I’d rather be dead than a weirdo freak,” he said. She snapped her head up to look at him, her eyes intense with frigid anger.

“So would I,” she said tersely.

“Then why don’t you…you know?” asked Bart. “I probably would.” He shrugged his shoulders.
And everyone would probably be better off if you did
, she thought bitterly.

“Because my life isn’t the only one at stake here, you selfish prick,” she said coldly. Before Bart could respond, Ramirez and Jessica appeared in the doorway.

“Bart, Adam, go watch the alien. We need to speak with Private Underhill,” Ramirez said.

“Yes sir,” they said in unison and left. It rubbed Rhylie the wrong way. It reminded her of Timmy and Polly in the Chamber.

“I need to show you something,” Ramirez said, his face pale. He held out a small disc. A hologram sprang from it. It was Vorcia. “Do you know her?” Rhylie’s eyes widened in horror at the sight of her.

“Y-yes,” Rhylie stammered. “I-” She struggled to find the words as her mouth continued to work soundlessly.

“Don’t,” Ramirez said. “Just listen.” He placed his finger on a small dot on the surface.

“Greetings, Humans, from the Siirocian Empire,” Vorcia began. “I am Empress Vorcia LaCretian Alaan, and I seek to extend to you a treatise of peace if you comply.” Her voice was sweet and musical, lilting. It made Rhylie want to claw her eyes out. “If you graciously and humbly submit yourselves to the Siirocian Empire, swearing allegiance to myself, the attacks will cease, and your civilization will be granted immunity. You will be welcomed amongst the Galactic Community.” The dulcet tones of her voice suddenly took a steely turn. “If not, you will be destroyed, your race will be wiped out, as well as your home system and star. You have no hope of resisting us. We will be victorious.” Vorcia smiled, barely. “I await your response. You have 72 of your hours to comply.” The hologram vanished.

“She’s lying,” said Rhylie numbly. “She’s going to kill us all anyway.”
She looked up at Ramirez. “What’s the Council planning to do?”

“I don’t know,” said Ramirez. “It doesn’t look like they have much of a choice.”

“We always have a choice,” said Rhylie. “Even when we think we don’t.” She frowned. “So they’re going to submit.”

“I don’t know,” said Ramirez again.

“They are,” said Rhylie softly. “That’s what I did.” Ramirez gave her a strange look.

“What do you mean?” he asked.

“I-” she started and then her brow furrowed. “It’s a long story, and I need to speak with the Council.”

“You’re going to get your wish,” said Ramirez. “They’ve scheduled a meeting with you in the central chamber.”

Rhylie frowned again at the word.

Rhylie was escorted back to the central chamber. Isaar and Meili were nowhere to be seen. The pool of Isaar’s blood looked as though it had been hastily mopped up, mostly just smearing it around. They had done a piss-poor job of it, she could still see streaks of it spread across the metal flooring. She hoped that they were treating him well, for their own sake.

“Have a seat, Private,” said Ramirez. She could tell that he was used to giving orders, but she was getting tired of taking them.

“My name is Rhylie,” she responded, remaining standing.

“My name is Rhylie,
sir
,” Bart said. She gave him an eat-shit-and-die look over her shoulder. She cut her attention immediately back to Captain Ramirez.

“With all due respect, after everything I’ve been through, and the way you have treated myself and our guest, I’m assuming I am no longer a member of the United Armed Forces,” Rhylie said. “If I’ve been discharged, I would like to know. If not, I am certainly used to being treated at least a little more respectfully by the UAF.” Bart snorted derisively.

“You and your friend are lucky to be alive if you ask me,” he said in a dry, mocking tone. “I still think we should execute both of you just to be safe. We do not know what the hell you are, or what the hell he is.” Rhylie struggled to keep her anger in check. It was growing increasingly difficult. She reminded herself that there was more at stake here than her and Bart.

“If Isaar hadn’t offered to accompany me, I’d have you all begging for mercy,” she replied as coolly as she could muster. Ramirez narrowed his eyes, regarding her coldly. “And if anything happens to him, I will hold all of you accountable. Every single damned one.”