Zerg Staging Grounds on Char, Sometime in the Morning Hours
Seated upon the creep, a Hydralisk's warmly breathing side against her palms, Kerrigan listened.
There was a turmoil in the Hive Mind, all the hallmarks of a war fought on Aiur, lightyears from here. The Protoss, struggling for the very existence of their species, of their home. It was a futile battle, of course. The Zerg's numbers were infinitely greater.
On Char, it was quiet. Too quiet. They'd returned here last week, on the Overmind's orders. And given the strength of their forces, they'd eradicated the last trace amount of Terran forces days ago. That left her nothing but the quiet of waiting, underlaid as it was with that rumbling of force and battle.
And that meant that Kerrigan was, for a lack of a better word, bored.
River
River heard it too, and she was getting restless. She paced around Kerrigan and the Hydralisk, letting out annoyed noises. "Pointless," she muttered.
Kerrigan
"It's too late," Kerrigan spoke, her hand curling under the Hydralisk's chin. She skimmed her fingers along the pointed spikes with an idle slowness. "If we depart now, the skirmish will most likely already be over. Listen to the Overmind's will."
Although it was genetically impossible for her to disagree with the Overmind, Kerrigan still privately felt that his will for her so far had been rather dull-- but greater things must sure be to come.
River
"Know that," River said. "Always listen. Still, I fail to make sense of this." She looked at Kerrigan. "But I might lack information."
Kerrigan
"You and I both," she said, darkly. Her head bowed down. "But, perhaps... our presence shall be necessary after this attack."
River
"We are of little use here." River looked up at the sky.
Kerrigan
"Someone needs to keep the home front," Kerrigan said, every inch black humor. "Our time will come--"
The turmoil-- the sense of battle across their joined minds... was growing worse. Even the Hydralisk beneath her hands had started to move restlessly, as if it were in need of somewhere else to be, of some great danger to fight.
River
River frowned and gave Kerrigan a look of alarm. "Something is wrong," she breathed.
Kerrigan
"You're--" Kerrigan let go of the creature, staggering up to her feet, ready to... just ready, for something she didn't quite grasp yet, as if she were mentally bracing.
Zerg
And then it hit.
The Hydralisk screamed as if it were dying, its fundamental will ripped out from underneath it, suddenly blank, suddenly senseless. Unable to determine who was friend or foe, it staggered, its claws hitting the floor again and again.
It was blank, blank, everything was gone, the world was ending and nothing. It was just meat and rage now, in the face of a nameless, incomprehensible tragedy.
River
River staggered backwards, her mind grasping for something to hold on to. She reached out for Kerrigan.
Kerrigan
All around them, the sky filled with the desperate noises of the lost, trashing about in whatever way they could, pointless, unknowing, unwanting, frightened.
Kerrigan breathed a rasping gasp, her form staggering down to the floor. This, this could mean only one thing: the impossible had happened. The Overmind had died. Stripped them of his will.
But she... She had her own.
She rose. And pulled every presence nearby towards herself.
River
River too had her own, and she chose to hold on to Kerrigan in the midst of this chaos. "Not alone," she whispered.
Kerrigan
Mental had become the physical soon enough. Kerrigan grasped her, running her hands through the hard edges of River's hair. "Focus," she said, "You are my Cerebrate--"
She forced her way through the pathways she'd already established with these Zerg, her Brood, pulled more, brought them closer together. She was Queen.
And suddenly, they all stood silent again.
River
Silence. River looked up at Kerrigan and smiled.
Kerrigan
Kerrigan smiled back in return. It hit her eyes, hit something that hadn't been touched since she first gave in to the Zerg hivemind, back in Fandom.
She felt more like herself than she ever had.
"Well," she said, smiling a feral smile as she pulled away. "Guess 'our time' came knocking more quickly than we'd anticipated."
River
River let out a chuckle. "A new beginning..."
Kerrigan
Kerrigan ran a hand along her own hair, staring at the hive cluster breathing its normal patterns a little whiles in the distance. Hers, now. Her responsibility, her contribution, kept alive by her.
She lead. Never followed. Not again.
But she also knew she wasn't the only Zerg will out there. Not by far. Daggoth. The other Cerebrates...
"Then it's time," she said, and turned to River. "That you and me talk strategy."
River
River gave a nod in reply. She had longed for that.
Kerrigan
"Very well," she said.
Her wings flared high around her. "We're out of time to kill."
[ alternate POV on the events of the very last mission of StarCraft. This is where it really gets interesting... la la NFI NFB OOC-OKAY ]
There was a turmoil in the Hive Mind, all the hallmarks of a war fought on Aiur, lightyears from here. The Protoss, struggling for the very existence of their species, of their home. It was a futile battle, of course. The Zerg's numbers were infinitely greater.
On Char, it was quiet. Too quiet. They'd returned here last week, on the Overmind's orders. And given the strength of their forces, they'd eradicated the last trace amount of Terran forces days ago. That left her nothing but the quiet of waiting, underlaid as it was with that rumbling of force and battle.
And that meant that Kerrigan was, for a lack of a better word, bored.
River
River heard it too, and she was getting restless. She paced around Kerrigan and the Hydralisk, letting out annoyed noises. "Pointless," she muttered.
Kerrigan
"It's too late," Kerrigan spoke, her hand curling under the Hydralisk's chin. She skimmed her fingers along the pointed spikes with an idle slowness. "If we depart now, the skirmish will most likely already be over. Listen to the Overmind's will."
Although it was genetically impossible for her to disagree with the Overmind, Kerrigan still privately felt that his will for her so far had been rather dull-- but greater things must sure be to come.
River
"Know that," River said. "Always listen. Still, I fail to make sense of this." She looked at Kerrigan. "But I might lack information."
Kerrigan
"You and I both," she said, darkly. Her head bowed down. "But, perhaps... our presence shall be necessary after this attack."
River
"We are of little use here." River looked up at the sky.
Kerrigan
"Someone needs to keep the home front," Kerrigan said, every inch black humor. "Our time will come--"
The turmoil-- the sense of battle across their joined minds... was growing worse. Even the Hydralisk beneath her hands had started to move restlessly, as if it were in need of somewhere else to be, of some great danger to fight.
River
River frowned and gave Kerrigan a look of alarm. "Something is wrong," she breathed.
Kerrigan
"You're--" Kerrigan let go of the creature, staggering up to her feet, ready to... just ready, for something she didn't quite grasp yet, as if she were mentally bracing.
Zerg
And then it hit.
The Hydralisk screamed as if it were dying, its fundamental will ripped out from underneath it, suddenly blank, suddenly senseless. Unable to determine who was friend or foe, it staggered, its claws hitting the floor again and again.
It was blank, blank, everything was gone, the world was ending and nothing. It was just meat and rage now, in the face of a nameless, incomprehensible tragedy.
River
River staggered backwards, her mind grasping for something to hold on to. She reached out for Kerrigan.
Kerrigan
All around them, the sky filled with the desperate noises of the lost, trashing about in whatever way they could, pointless, unknowing, unwanting, frightened.
Kerrigan breathed a rasping gasp, her form staggering down to the floor. This, this could mean only one thing: the impossible had happened. The Overmind had died. Stripped them of his will.
But she... She had her own.
She rose. And pulled every presence nearby towards herself.
River
River too had her own, and she chose to hold on to Kerrigan in the midst of this chaos. "Not alone," she whispered.
Kerrigan
Mental had become the physical soon enough. Kerrigan grasped her, running her hands through the hard edges of River's hair. "Focus," she said, "You are my Cerebrate--"
She forced her way through the pathways she'd already established with these Zerg, her Brood, pulled more, brought them closer together. She was Queen.
And suddenly, they all stood silent again.
River
Silence. River looked up at Kerrigan and smiled.
Kerrigan
Kerrigan smiled back in return. It hit her eyes, hit something that hadn't been touched since she first gave in to the Zerg hivemind, back in Fandom.
She felt more like herself than she ever had.
"Well," she said, smiling a feral smile as she pulled away. "Guess 'our time' came knocking more quickly than we'd anticipated."
River
River let out a chuckle. "A new beginning..."
Kerrigan
Kerrigan ran a hand along her own hair, staring at the hive cluster breathing its normal patterns a little whiles in the distance. Hers, now. Her responsibility, her contribution, kept alive by her.
She lead. Never followed. Not again.
But she also knew she wasn't the only Zerg will out there. Not by far. Daggoth. The other Cerebrates...
"Then it's time," she said, and turned to River. "That you and me talk strategy."
River
River gave a nod in reply. She had longed for that.
Kerrigan
"Very well," she said.
Her wings flared high around her. "We're out of time to kill."
[ alternate POV on the events of the very last mission of StarCraft. This is where it really gets interesting... la la NFI NFB OOC-OKAY ]