Aetheral Space-Chapter 534 - 17.6: The Abyss
DAY 2
"So…" Ruth said awkwardly. "You live here? Like this?"
Haisley had made her home on a hill in the ruins of Ward 8, in a building that seemed to have been an observation post once upon a time. The small unit was wrapped with string-lights from the outside, making it a dim multi-coloured beacon in the darkness of the empty Ward. Inside, the place was a mess of scavenged weapons and supplies. To be honest, more than being a place to live, it seemed more like Haisley had laid everything out so that -- no matter where she was -- she could reach out and grab a weapon to defend herself instantly.
The girl shrugged lightly as she emerged from another room. She'd shed her tortoise-like outer armour, but still wore a lighter suit underneath. Two swords were strapped to her hips, and it was a pretty safe bet she had another concealed weapon too. As an ordinary human in a world of hostile Aether-users, Ruth guessed she couldn't be too careful.
"There are worse places to be," she said quietly. "And worse places to live."
Ruth frowned, her eyes flicking over to the pitch-black window. "Worse than this?"
"The other Wards," Haisley replied, sitting cross-legged across from her guest. "They don't understand anything. They just believe whatever Pandershi tells them, and do whatever he says… they're like his pets. I'd rather live here in the dark than under his lights."
"And you're here all alone?" Ruth asked gently.
"Sure," Haisley said, setting her lantern down on the table. "It's not so bad. There are loads of rations left behind -- I'll go decades without starving."
"But… doesn't it get lonely?"
Haisley's resolute gaze wavered for just a moment. "I… I guess I can see why you'd think that. I don't have time for that stuff, though. I've got a mission."
Yeah. This kid had mentioned that on their way here, hadn't she?
I want you to help me kill Zephyr Pandershi.
"How come you want to kill this Pandershi guy, anyway?" Ruth asked.
Haisley's eyes widened. "You don't?"
"He seems like an ass, so I'd love to beat him up," Ruth shrugged. "But he ain't at the top of my list."
An idea occurred, then, looking at the darkness in Haisley's gaze and the darkness through the window. It was obvious, really. Ruth was just as stupid as ever, failing to put two and two together.
"Was Pandershi the one who did this?" Ruth asked.
Haisley paused. She'd been digging around in a box of rations -- the biscuit she'd plucked from the container froze halfway to her mouth. She squeezed her eyes shut.
"He made it happen," she whispered, as if the words themselves were painful.
Ruth nodded. "Okay, I get ya. You don't need to say anymore -- I know how it feels. Between you and me, though, I think you're gonna have to get in line to take out Pandershi. He just betrayed all his allies -- I bet they're already on their way to get his ass. The Supremacy, too, probably."
Haisley blinked as she chewed on the biscuit. "What's the Supremacy?" she asked, cocking her head.
It was Ruth's turn to freeze. Suddenly, the girl sitting before her was not a girl -- she was an alien creature, one that had just asked her what the sky was. It was that bad here? It was really that bad here? They didn't even know this stuff?
The Supremacy had been a shadow over Ruth's life since her very first memories. She'd fought it in one way or another ever since she learned what fighting was. And this girl had never even heard the name before. She'd never even heard the name before, and yet she wasn't any happier than Ruth.
Ruth swallowed. It tasted like acid.
"It's… the biggest empire in the galaxy," she said hesitantly. "Do you know that the UAP is at war? The Supremacy is who they're at war with."
Haisley shifted awkwardly. She looked away, embarrassed. She'd read the atmosphere -- she didn't know the extent of it, but she'd clearly realized that this was stuff Ruth would expect anyone to know.
"What's… the UAP…?" Haisley mumbled. "Are they… the other nations that Pandershi works with…?"
Ruth mutely nodded.
"We don't hear about the outside too much…" Haisley explained, scratching her cheek. "When we do, it's really vague… I know there's a black market in Ward 6 where they have other transmissions and stuff, but even then… and I've never been there, so… y'know…"
Her justifications descended into mumblings, and -- eager for an escape hatch from the conversation -- she looked over to Ruth's side.
"Is your friend okay?" she asked.
Ruth looked over her shoulder. Reyansh Patel was still unconscious. They'd laid him down on a makeshift bed on the floor, and now he just lay there, twitching every now and then. His skin was coated with a cold sweat, and his lips moved wordlessly. It looked to Ruth like he was in the middle of a bad dream, but they hadn't been able to wake him up no matter how hard they tried.
Whatever Pandershi had done to him, Ruth guessed it must have been really bad.
"He's not my friend," she replied.
Haisley blinked. "Your enemy?"
"At one point…" Ruth said. "Right now, though, he's just some guy. I broke him out of some transport, but I thought he was someone else. I'm not sure what's going on with him."
Haisley's eyes ran over the ports implanted across Patel's body, where those tubes had been running into him. "Pandershi must have been using him for experiments. He does that. Sorry, but he's probably a goner. I guess it's a good thing he's not your friend."
"You've seen this before?" Ruth asked.
"Not exactly like this. Usually they don't keep their shape as much, but it's the same sort of thing. If I were you, I'd probably put him down."
Haisley threw out that ruthless idea like it was completely normal, barely even blinking. Ruth opened her mouth to protest, but then thought better of it. She didn't know what this kid had seen.
Instead, she said: "If he asks me to, I'll do it. But I'm not doing anything until he wakes up."
"What if he doesn't wake up?"
Ruth took a deep breath, but said nothing. That was a bridge they'd cross when they came to it. In the meantime, she had to figure out her next move. If Muzazi hadn't been captured, she'd have to link back up with him, for one -- and then she'd have to explain the crazy shit going on with the multiple Dragans.
She was just turning back towards Haisley, the track of her mind changing, when she saw it.
Something was moving underneath Patel's skin. Lumps were swimming under his body, squirming and writhing, like his flesh was keen to escape the confines of the epidermis. Ruth stared, as did Haisley, as the shifting accelerated -- until it looked like Patel's skin was bubbling.
"Uh," said Ruth, rising to her feet -- and the instant she did, it happened.
Reyansh Patel opened his mouth…
EXT. PARASPARA HILL
(Our scene opens on the path up to the house on Paraspara Hill, where a figure can be distantly seen walking towards us. We zoom in and see who it is. REYANSH PATEL, a young boy of twelve, on his way back from school. His hair is tied back into a loose ponytail, and he's carrying his school supplies in a heavy backpack.)
(The camera turns and we see his destination -- the house where he lives with his father and younger brothers, at the top of Paraspara Hill. It's a place that was clearly once nice, high-class for this planet, but has been neglected over the years until it's on the very edge of disrepair.)
(Reyansh stops. The camera cuts to the front porch of the house, where a MAN in a suit is sitting, polishing his shoe with a handkerchief. We see Reyansh's brow furrow, his expression becoming more tense -- this is not a man he knows.)
(It's too late for him to just leave, though. The man looks up from his shoe and offers a friendly wave.)
MAN
Oh! Hey there! Sorry, I didn't realize anyone would be back so soon. You're not helping with the parade?
(Slowly, Reyansh shakes his head.)
MAN
It's just you? Where are your brothers?
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(Reyansh says nothing.)
MAN
(He smiles.)
Oh, come on, now. I'm not suspicious. I know your dad. Durga, right? Well, I bet you just call him Dad, though, huh? It's the same with my kids.
(Reyansh relaxes slightly at the man's words.)
REYANSH
You're a friend of my dad?
MAN
I know him, yeah. Where are your brothers at? Are they helping with the parade?
REYANSH
Yeah.
MAN
(He smiles.)
Yep. Well, that's probably for the best.
REYANSH
What do you mean?
MAN
How about we sit and talk for a minute?
(Reyansh shuffles uncomfortably.)
REYANSH
Uh, I should go inside. My dad is…
MAN
Aw, c'mon. He's not going anywhere. I wanna reconnect to my youth a little. It wasn't so long ago that I was a kid myself, you know? Indulge me.
(After a second, Reyansh sits down on the porch next to the man.)
MAN
There's a trooper. You smoke?
(Reyansh shakes his head.)
MAN
(He smiles.)
That's the right answer. I'm a money person. Did you know that? Your dad ever talk to you about money people?
(Reyansh shakes his head again.)
MAN
Now that's a good father. It's best to keep the young away from money as long as you can. Don't worry, though, I'm not a bad guy or anything. I just let people borrow money when they need it, and they give it back once they don't need it anymore. Understand?
REYANSH
Yeah…
MAN
Yeah. Of course you do, what am I even talking about? You're not five. You get how money works. The thing about what I do, though, is I've gotta trust the people I give my precious money to, you know? They could just run off and never give it back. The longer it takes for someone to give it back, the more I worry it's not gonna happen. It makes it hard for me to sleep sometimes.
REYANSH
Oh, uh, I'm sorry.
MAN
Well, aren't you a sweet kid? You don't need to apologise. It's not your fault. You any good with a mop?
REYANSH
I guess?
MAN
(He smiles.)
You guess. I like that. You don't pretend that you're something you're not. That's called integrity, you know? I feel like you might be a trustworthy kid. You think that's true?
REYANSH
I hope so.
MAN
I hope so too. So, how about this…
(He holds out a business card. We cut to a full shot of it, extended to Reyansh. It has a name and a script number.)
MAN
…You take a couple of days, and then you call me here, okay? And we'll figure something out.
(We see Reyansh's unsteady hands accept the card. He looks up to the man, confused.)
REYANSH
Figure what out?
MAN
Just a couple of days, okay?
(The man stands up and leaves without saying another word. We see his figure slowly fade as he descends the hill. Frowning, Reyansh gets up and puts the card in his pocket.)
(He turns around and goes inside.)
REYANSH
Dad?
(We see his dad.)
(We see his dad on the floor.)
(We see his dad on the table.)
(We see his dad on the counter.)
(We see his dad on the couch.)
(We see his dad on the wall.)
REYANSH
Dad…?
(We see his dad in all of these places.)
(Blood drips down.)
REYANSH
(screams)
REYANSH
(screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams) (screams)
(He smiles.)
NIAIN
haha
…and Reyansh Patel screamed.
Darkness burst out from under his skin, flashes of black that reduced the house around them to rubble instantly. Black branching tendrils like veins, writhing out of Reyansh's body and striking with a will of their own, smashing and seizing and crushing and twisting everything within their reach. The naked eye could never have even seen the form they took, such was their speed, but Ruth Blaine's Aether infusion allowed her to truly bear witness.
That was how she could see as one tendril, sprouting from under Reyansh's rolled-back eyeball, lashed towards Haisley with strength and speed enough to send her head flying off. At such proximity, at such speed, there was nothing Ruth could do. In the second it would take to don a Set or react, Haisley would lose her life.
In her heart of hearts, perhaps Ruth Blaine prepared herself for that. Perhaps she grit her teeth, bracing herself for the sight of another innocent death.
There was no need, though.
With a screech of metal, Haisley drew her two swords -- and, wielding them backhand, she sliced the black tendril apart just before it reached her face. This was no feat of Aether. This girl was an ordinary human being. This had been a miracle born of reflex alone.
Miracles wouldn't happen twice in a row, though. As three more tendrils slithered through the air towards Haisley, Ruth launched herself at the girl, grabbing her and --
Monarque Set!
-- encasing the both of them in a protective shell.
A swing of the black tendrils, coiled together into a makeshift limb, sent the hell egg flying through the rubble of the house and into the skeletal forest beyond. A flap of Monarque's crimson wings sent it soaring up into the air once again, the crackling of crimson Aether making it the closest thing this sealed space had to a sun. From within the Monarque yolk, Ruth watched in horror.
More and more tendrils were coming out of Patel's body, some of them balancing on the floor like spider-legs and lifting him high into the air. His face was twitching madly, his eyes rolling up into their sockets, his mouth nearly foaming. Whatever this was, Reyansh Patel was simply along for the ride. He was a puppet with its strings going wild.
"What's happening?!" Haisley flailed in the yolk behind her, taken aback by the Monarque Set, by the absurdity Aether was capable of. "What is this?!"
Ruth ignored her. Right now, the entirety of her focus was on Patel, on what she knew she would have to do now. No matter how monstrous and numerous those tendrils were, Ruth knew now they held not a spark of Aether. Monarque would make short work of them. With a threat like this presented, it was Ruth's job to do as Haisley had suggested -- to put Patel down.
This wasn't like Lily, she told herself. She barely knew Patel, and they never could have been called friends. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢
But…
Damnit, Ruth thought. It feels like Lily.
She couldn't let him go on a rampage, and the way he was now, there was no way for her to talk him down. With that dark resolve in her chest, Ruth began building Monarque's energy to a single point on its shell. A single blast, directly to Patel's head, would surely seal the deal.
Ruth braced herself…
Sorry, man.
…and found her sin interrupted.
Aquarius Covenant!
There was a flash of bright blue Aether, illuminating the air all around Patel's ascending form -- and from that Aether, an endless school of translucent fish began to flow. Ruth allowed the crimson light that had been about to eliminate Reyansh Patel fade away as she watched in awe. This was an Aether ability, no doubt, but whose?
Wait. That colour.
One by one, the fish flowed into Patel's body, and -- as if each was packed with anaesthetic -- his body began to slump and turn limp. He swayed unconscious in the air, held aloft only by the black tendrils that squirmed out of his body. Even they had slowed down until they were more like the waving branches of a tree.
Just as Ruth was about to concentrate her fire on those, she was beaten to the punch.
Atoy Muzazi appeared.
The maneuver he executed as he leapt through the air was nearly identical to the one Haisley had done -- but bolstered by Aether and strength, it was far more effective. The dark tendrils were shredded apart in an instant, their remains slowly coming down like black snow -- and Reyansh thudded down to the ground like a sack of potatoes.
Ruth heard Haisley take a sharp gasp behind her at the sight.
Thrusters blazing from the soles of his feet, Muzazi broke his fall and skidded to a halt on the ground. Ruth's eyes weren't on him, though. Her attention was fixed squarely on the companion he'd arrived with.
There, standing next to him… was another Dragan Hadrien. The two of them looked up towards the flying Monarque Set.
"There's a great deal to explain," said Muzazi.
