Bittersweet Legacy

Taking a breath as he looked at Skitter, his hand still on her cheek, he caught movement behind her and saw the image of the lion fade looking at him. He closed his eyes and took a second to open himself up and inhaled slowly. The air was stale, his sense of touch of his fingers touching the chitin of Skitter felt off, larger than he thought.

He slowly moved a finger up to where he should have felt the top of her head only to find there was still more. Leaning back, against what was supposed to be a tree, rough bark touching his back was oddly smooth with what felt to be lumps flowing like veins.

He thought he had won, he thought he had escaped, but he had been drawn back into her power, but this was different. He knew his mind was his own again, he didn’t find himself in the green and black maze as he had before, so this was different.

Jason slowly opened his eyes seeing parts of the forest seeming to distort and wilt in some spots, dark green walls showing through, and before him was Skitter, though it felt off as he looked at her.

Moving his hand downward slowly, Jason eyed the changeling in front of him. “I didn’t attack the Queen, did I?”

“What?” Skitter blinked as she looked at the human.

“You’re not Skitter, this is all another trick on my mind, and I fell for it again.”

Skitter took a step back, a look of uncertainty and fear crossing her face. “I don’t understand, what are you saying?”

Jason looked down at his arm and closed his hand into a fist, he felt something well up within him, a flurry of emotions, and yet he felt so calm on the outside. His heart beat strongly but did not pick up its pace as he thought things through and as he did working things out the veil of trickery began to slowly lift. He had not escaped the Hive, instead he had once again been tricked by the Queen, only it was a bit different, she must have used just enough to alter his vision to let him believe he had escaped.

The who or what was it that he had attacked before? Perhaps another changeling that she had altered to look like her. He should have known with how easily she had gone down to the bit of fire he was able to summon.

With the surge of emotions within him, yet his clam countenance he felt something else within him. Something rising like a feeling of elation and it seemed to draw itself from his back. HE could still feel the burning sensation of where he had been shot in the back as he thought he had escaped. The pain subsided slightly as the heat seemed to spread out through his whole back.

He felt something odd in that moment as he focused his mind, fully ignoring the stammering changeling in front of him. Whatever the feeling was it felt different and new, as the heat turned ice cold and began to draw in everything.

Jason’s mind went back through a memory that came forward then when he was a child living in a broken home, his mother with a man he didn’t like. He remembered laying down on the kitchen floor and feeling something pulsing and surging through his back emanating from the fridge. A frayed wire had been sending electricity through the floor and he remembered feeling a strange sensation as he laid there for several minutes before sitting up and gently touching the arm of his younger brother and shocking him, and laughing a sit felt he had drawn the electricity through his body and into his arm a cold tingling sensation.

That same cold tingling sensation began to bring his mind back to the present as he focused on the sensation and imagined it running up through his arms. As he did so, he felt something strange, like something thick and hard covering his body spreading form both his back and chest.

As he looked at his hand and arm, he caught a glimpse of something colorful reflecting what little light was present.

Uncertain as to what was happening, Jason still wanted to prepare himself for a tougher fight, and whatever this was, something inside of him felt this was something he could use to fight back.

“Golem, what’s happening?” Skitter had approached him carefully again, her eyes on his arm.

As Jason thought, he imagined that same sensation flowing all the energy into his hands and imagined a spark of light and energy like a miniature bolt of lightning course form his body and into his hands before flowing outward.

Instantly he felt the cold tingling alter itself as he heard a brief crackling sound. Rotating his hand, he could see sparks of light between his fingers faster than he could count to a second.

Jason glanced up at the changeling before him, this might hurt him within as he came to realize something, but he had to press this he was already losing the element of surprise once again. He worked to channel all the energy into his right hand as he closed it into a tight fist.

Gathering so much energy to one hand he could feel the coldness from before vanishing as a growing heat began to emerge. Without wasting any more time, Jason thrust his arm outward, his fingers pointed at the changeling.

At that moment, several things happened, as the energy sparked and lifted shooting out from his hand, a shimmering orb of energy appeared around the changeling, but the response was too late as some of the energy had reached her before the shield of magic was cast, sending the now bubbled changeling flying back and striking a wall behind her.

“Well, that was unexpected.” Nepidae winced as her legs shook, her form of the smaller changeling inadvertently falling when she was struck, quickly growing into her own form.

As she turned to Jason, her eyes narrowing at him, she extended her tongue down to the chitin that now held a black spider mark on her chest. She licked at the wound, her saliva seeming to leave a small green ichor covering the wound.

She winced as she settled herself within her orb of protection.

Jason looked up at the now towing changeling Queen, her form slightly distorted as part of left side of her face was split further into a wicked grin that looked almost as though it split her head at her jawline.

So, even her changeling form wasn’t her true form, Jason thought to himself as he looked at her, anger flashing across his face.

“Congratulations, Human, you are the first in a long time to hurt me this much.”

As she spoke, there came a buzzing sound as changeling drones came around from the curves of the walls that no longer showed the forest outside the hive. As he thought, he had only been tricked and led further into the hive, and he had not escaped.

Jason gritted his teeth as the drones in front of the two groups fired magic at him.

It was not out of experience, despite having fought a war before coming to this world, it was purely instinct that Jason threw his arms up as he saw the horns of the changelings’ glow before shooting heated green fire at him.

It was then that as the blasts hit his arms, where there seemed to be crystal growing over his skin that he felt the heat and energy spread throughout his whole body before he focused his mind back to his hands.

His arms seemed to become covered in green fire briefly before it dissipated, and he refocused the feeling he was clinging to back into his hands and threw red hot fire back at the two changeling groups through both of his hands.

He had to escape, even if he could now suddenly use their own magic against them in his own way, he would quickly be overwhelmed, and no doubt brainwashed once again.

Jason refocused his mind to one of his hands as it felt he still had some energy left and as the changelings quickly surrounding him flying above the few burned corpses he had created, he leapt at the Queen punching at her orb of protection, laughing as she felt herself in no way capable of being harmed further.

Jason didn’t know what to do or how to act or react beyond instinct at this point and it took him by surprise that his fist broke through the shield the queen thought was enough, her eyes turning to surprise as the shield reflected off the crystals that were now quickly growing over his fist and shattered before his punch.

There came a sound of screaming from all around him as he struck at Queen Nepidae knocking her head back.

“Well, I must admit, that didn’t hurt as much as I thought it would, but it certainly surprised me. A creature that fights to its very end, more viciously when back into a corner, oh how I would have delighted in controlling you for a while longer. But now it’s time.”

With the last few words nearly being hissed out, Jason stumbled back as Queen Nepidae’s eyes glowed her form rising above him, her mouth splitting her head seemingly nearly into as jagged sharp teeth replaced the smaller ones, her head expanding slightly her wings growing out and her form changing from four legged insect creature to two legged nightmare.

Jason was immediately reminded of a movie he had loved back in his home world, of a large sleek alien creature moving through a ship in space slowly killing off the crew that inhabited the station.

But this creature that stood before him left him feeling small in comparison to how he visually interpreted a false imagined threat whereas the Queen seemed so much more realistic before him, but with large glistening wings.

Almost faster than he could react the Queen swung an arm, grabbing at Jason, he had barely moved once again on instinct alone before he had realized she was even moving his body was turning on it’s own barely missing being grabbed but definitely did get slashed by her claws his already filthy tattered shirt that was barely anything at all now began to stain crimson as he felt the burning sensation of his chest and stomach showing slashes from her missed attack. Luckily it didn’t seem to be too deep, mostly a slash across the skin leaving thin wounds on his torso.

Still though, he sucked a breath in through his teeth as he hissed from the pain he felt.

“Hatchling, come this way!” A voice behind him yelled.

“Traitorous thing, I shall consume you!” The Queen’s rage at one of her changelings turning against her to help the human escape had already dealt with one group of her changeling drones.

Jason turned to see the real Skitter shooting a green beam at one of her changeling brethren knocking it against the wall other corpses in groups strewn all about the floor of the hive.

Jason didn’t hesitate, charging forward and past Skitter, not even looking at her. As he rushed by, he grabbed at a corpse, tearing off the horn and plunging it into another drone that was coming around the bend to help the Queen as he silent commands had already reached far and wide sending the drones into a discordant but obedient swarm seeking to protect her.

Jason rushed through the throng of changelings, slashing out with one hand, using the other to toss out waves of fire.

It took time but just as he was finding himself where he needed to be the entrance of the hive he stopped and turned to find the queen flying, the still living drones moving back to make space for their Queen in her throw of rage. He had to be sure, he couldn’t risk falling to another of her tricks.

He moved an arm to block one of her blasts, leaving a burning sensation on his left arm as he cried out where boiling blood spurted out from the gash of a wound. It must have been either a weakness or a limitation of what was changing him. But he had to try and fight.

Jason waited until she was close then lunged into the air at the Queen, his bloodied weapon thrusting out at her.

It is a sad state that thus far humans of Earth had no known magic, nor ability to truly take flight without the aid of machines.

As he launched himself into the air at the Queen, he let out a barking laugh at his madness as she easily moved her body so that the horn struck at a thick piece of chitin and glanced off not doing any damage as she fully gut checked Jason, both now flying back and hitting the ground just at outside the entrance of the Hive.

“I have had my fun, but now it ends!” Queen Nepidae pinned Jason down, her tongue hanging out through her teeth, dripping saliva as she lowered her head horn glowing biting into Jason’s left shoulder and at the same time seeking to dominate his mind.

Jason screamed out from the pain as he teeth sunk into his soft flesh, even with a few crystals covering in patched her teeth seemed capable of overpowering this as scarlet blood filled her mouth.

All at once the pain seemed to fall away and Jason found himself floating in a dark void, a group of robed figures surrounding him. One large figure dominating the background all looking down to him.

“I will not surrender until death takes me!” Jason screamed out, gripping the horn in his hand fighting back the attempt of domination, focusing on the pain in his shoulder made it so much easier.

He lifted and struck true with the horn, the teeth of the Queen quickly pulling away as she gurgled out a scream. But Jason did not stop nor hesitate as he thrust the horn into a soft spot between the chitin green ichorous blood spilling out over his hand. He did not want to just stab he tried his best to tear at her throat, spots of blood from her falling into his eyes. Jason bellowed and howled his anger and pain as he thrust and tore at her until her body was no longer on top of him.

Once he felt the pressure lift off of him and his weapon found nothing but air, he quickly turned over to his stomach wiping at his eyes, barely able to clear his vision of her blood and began to crawl away as he felt the pain of the wind being knocked out of his he gulped and struggled to breath and move. His body hurt and burned in many places and in ways he never felt before.

As he managed to slowly begin his escape he heard a command of the Queen gurgled from his wild antics and efforts to hurt her.

Jason was struck from behind, yelling out as he turned over, the dirt and ground of the outside bringing a new sensation of pain in his wounds, yet still brought about a cooling sensation as well.

Back behind him, Jason saw Queen Nepidae struggling with her magic as she tried to dominate Skitter who had sought to attack her queen as well.

He saw a faint glow of green around her head before her body seemed to hesitate from the form of domination.

Damn her, he thought to himself he still had not done enough to keep her from commanding her kin.

Skitter approached as Jason began to use his arms and hands to lift his torso up form the ground, still using his legs to push to move himself backwards to try and escape. He knew Skitter well enough to know how she fought, but the Queen didn’t seem to understand her way of fighting she just sought to dominate, control and use her most powerful pawn with such weak efforts as she changed to now try and heal her wounds.

Jason for his efforts used the crystals on his arms to block the magic attacks Skitter threw at him as she closed in quickly. Using the energy instead to fight, Jason sought to try and renew his body easing the pain in his body but not able to actually heal himself. At least this was enough for him to pretend he was still at their mercy until Skitter was close enough, Jason moved lifting his body enough to strike with a leg, his shoe connecting with her head with a hard thwack sending Skitter flying to his left and smacking against a tree.

Jason scrambled to get to his feet and sent another blast of energy at the Queen who called up a bubble to protect herself once more.

This though was simply a distraction as Jason had no intention of continuing to attack, only instead used his attack and her reaction to buy himself mere seconds to turn and run seeking to escape.

He could hear the buzz of drones behind him as he ran, but quickly they seemed to fade as the Queen needed them to help her heal from the savage wounds her former pawn had inflicted upon her.

It would be later, that whenever she would look into a mirror, in any form she took, she would see scars on her throat and be reminded of Jason and harbor a seemingly unquenchable desire to find and slay him at any cost.

Jason used the last of the magic in his body to feed himself energy to keep running through brush and bramble, under and over tree limbs and roots respectively. He had not stopped until he found himself far away. In fact, he was surprised to find himself in a seemingly familiar area. He was at the entrance of the cave where he had been held captive by the strange dogs that had walked like men and ordered him and others to strike at the ground to dig up gems.

With his body aching and screaming for rest, Jason sought to abide, looking around to ensure nothing was around that he felt could give him away before he stepped into the cave.

There was a faint smell and taste of copper in the air, as well as the stench of death a she moved past fallen corpses of dogs and a couple of other creatures.

Jason walked on and on until he was far deep enough into the empty mines and burrows that the stench no longer bothered him, and he could rest. He tried to gather what he could but there was only stale molded bread left. He tore at pieces that wasn’t molded and fought against his gag reflex to eat the food to have something on his stomach.

It wasn’t long after, even with his stomach still growling occasionally that he leaned back and closed his eyes seeking rest unaware of a shadow moving along a short distance away watching him.