"You promise you're not gonna leave me, right?"
"Yes, for the one millionth time, I promise I won't leave you."
"What if someone starts talking to me?! What do I do?!"
"I don't know, talk back?"
"Don't be ridiculous, you know I can't talk to people!"
"You'll be fine!" Seres stifled a sigh and flashed the security guard a smile, as she all but shoved Liena through the doors to the club. A deep bass and the tinny twang of electric guitar reverberated up the stairs towards them. The deep, rumbling music had already entered Liena's body, her already pounding heart now pounding to the beat instead.
"Why do I let you do this?!" Liena yelped as Seres took her by the arm and guided her down the stairs. "This isn't how I celebrate, this isn't how I do things, so why do I let you do this to me?!"
"Because it's good for you to try new things. And I refuse to spend another night sitting in that tiny room watching slice-of-life anime and talking about genetic drift vs gene flow."
"Hey, drift and flow always get mixed up and they're not the same thing!" Liena snapped. "It's interesting."
Nomad space had a more prevalent club scene than either of them had been expecting. While the clubs were generally pretty grungy, an underground area with sticky floors and the faint smell of damp, the scene itself was undeniable; lots of people and good vibes all round. They might not have been as big and grand as the DA ones, the bright disco lights not as vibrant or the sound quality not quite as clear through the rattling old speakers, but the music was good, and the drinks weren't too bad either.
Fair play to nomads, they knew how to have a good time.
They went and took their seats at the bar, Seres carrying a surprising amount of flirtatious grace considering her powerful build. She pushed her chest out as she swung her leg over the barstool, and rested her bust over her crossed arms, which in turn were resting against the table. Liena wasn't quite able to match her friend's level of grace and overshot the stool, swinging her leg into the bar with a loud bang as her goth stompers made contact with the wood. She hissed in embarrassment as a few people looked around, and did her best to inconspicuously hide her face. Luckily the bar was busy, and people quickly went back to their own business.
"At least you made it onto the stool this time," Seres chuckled, a light, flirtatious chuckle.
"That was a strider bar! The seats were almost as tall as me!" Liena muttered, blushing and glancing away as Seres sat forward, pushing her chest out further.
"Wait, are those my old boots?"Seres asked, glancing down at Liena's feet.
"Y-Yeah. Why, you want them back or something?" She snapped defensively.
"No! Calm your tits, Liena -"
Pfft what tits. Compared to the huge honkers you've currently got splayed out.
"- I just never realised how big they are on you!"
"Oh, are they?" Liena asked non-chalantly. "They fit fine."
"They do not! They're way too big for you, why are you wearing them if they're the complete wrong size?"
"I dunno. I like them. So what happens now?" Liena asked loudly, quickly trying to change the subject. "We don't have any money, what do we do when the bartender comes over?!"
"Just chill the fuck out and wait." Seres replied. There was a small selection of free nibbles before them, just a few snacks including nuts, crisps, and little cubes of cheese and fruit on cocktail sticks. Seres picked up one of these and delicately popped into her mouth, smoothly pulling the treats off with her teeth and absently playing with the leftover stick between her fingers.
Liena glanced over the bar at the various multi-coloured beer taps, evenly spaced out before her. She'd never seen any of these drinks before, and a sudden pit opened in her stomach as she contemplated what she'd even want.
"Seres…?"
"Hmm?"
"How do you know which drinks are nice? I-I don't know any of these at all!" She pointed with a slightly shaky finger at one called 'The Lewd Kobold,' which had a provocative image of a skimpily- clad kobold on its front. "Is that legal? Can they do that?"
"Honestly, Liena, I have no idea either. I usually just drink what's given to me. If a guy is offering to buy me something, I just ask for what he's having. What they drink gives me some idea of who they are. It also tells me what they think of me."
"So you can tell a lot about men by what drinks they… drink. But you don't know what drinks are nice…?"
"Shut the fuck up." Seres giggled, punching Liena playfully on the arm. "I'm sure 'The Lewd Kobold' is just wonderful, as are its patrons."
"What about that one?" Liena smiled back, pointing at an ominous tap simply labelled 'Hurt Juice.' "What kind of guy buys that for you?"
"Oh. If someone offers you a glass of 'Hurt Juice,' you find a new place to drink." Seres replied flatly, and Liena's face dropped.
"H-Have you had it before then?"
"Nah. Never heard of it." Seres suddenly smiled back, her grin intensifying as she watched Liena's face contort.
"Awh Seres! Cmon! You can't do that to me! I thought you were being serious!"
Seres went to respond, when she noticed the bartender. She could see him pouring two drinks and glancing in their direction.
"Heads up, Liena. Lets hope its not a pint of 'Hurt Juice.'" Seres smirked as the bartender approached them.
"If it is, you can have it." Liena replied quickly. And I'll leave.
"From the gentlemen across the bar." The bartender winked as he placed two drinks down in front of the girls, the ice clinking gently against the glass. They both glanced across the way as the bartender went to serve someone else, and indeed there were a few men, their own drinks in hand, chatting amongst themselves but glancing over towards the girls, a teasing smile on their lips.
"See?" Seres smiled. She put one of the drinks into Liena's hand. The glass was cold, and condensation trickled down her fingers as she received it. "I told you we'd be fine."
The next few hours were a blur of bright lights, loud music and a mixed concoction of sweet, sour, smokey and fruity drinks through multiple exchanged hands. They gradually moved from the bar and into the main section of the club, where some people were dancing, and others were sat enjoying their drinks at tables. Seres did most of the talking; although, the key seemed to be to not actually do that much talking at all, just to sip their drink, smile and laugh and nod along and listen as the groups they moved through tried their luck. The whole thing was incredibly boring, and Liena didn't much care for these hopeless romantics' stories about their absolutely embellished labouring roles. Working on an 'ice crusher, going from comet to comet' was fancy talk for 'water miner who'd probably never stepped out of this sector of space in his life' and she bloody well knew it. But, feeling too anxious for laughing and nodding, and definitely too anxious for talking, she resorted to doing the only thing she felt she could.
She drank.
And with each glass she drained, wincing at the strong alcoholic flavour, people around her would cheer and immediately order her another one.
On the flip side however, Seres had a rather attractive man hooked in and the two of them were actually getting along rather well. Before too long, he was sidlingly up close to her and teasing her with a playful nibble on the neck. Much to his surprise and delight, she reciprocated and within minutes, he posed the question…
"Do you wanna come back to my place?" He asked in a low, playful voice. "Its a dive, but it's private and there's room for two…"
"Depends if you can handle me, big man. I top." Seres grinned, expecting him to shy away. But instead, he blushed red and scooted a little closer to her again.
"I was hoping you would."
But just as she felt her body flush with desire -
"Sereeeeeeeeeeees!" Liena giggled and slurred as she staggered towards her friend, grabbing hold of her arm and clinging to it as though it were a matter of life and death - or perhaps just staying upright and falling flat on her face. "Come dance with me, this is BORING!"
Oh my god she's completely smashed.
Seres' initial shock slipped into a genuine grin, which she quickly tried to hide from the man she had been chatting to.
"Two seconds, Liena!" Seres replied. "Sorry, this is my friend. We sort of come as a pair. Could we take her back with us? She doesn't go out like this very often, maybe she could sleep it off on your sofa, while we…" Seres placed a hand on his thigh and went to lean in, until she noticed the barely concealed grimace on her potential partner's face.
"You can't leave her here? I'm sure she'd be fine for a couple of hours." He asked as Liena began to swing herself side to side in the music, still pulling on Seres' arm. He seemed to realise his mistake straight away though, as Seres' face hardened, her smile all but gone. "I-I mean my place is only small, I've only really got room for two… three's a crowd and all that -" He went on, trying to laugh, but quickly realising his fuck up.
" - If you'll excuse me," she interrupted dryly, placing her unfinished drink down, "I'm going for a dance with my friend. Thanks for the drinks, have a good night."
"FINALLY!" Completely unaware of the ethical cock-blocking which had just transpired, Liena dragged Seres onto the dancefloor and immediately erupted into a wild, uncoordinated dance. She didn't know many of the songs that were playing, but it wouldn't have mattered if she did; Liena was moving with little regard for the beat, a wide grin on her face as she whipped her dreadlocks around, staggering about in a pair of boots three sizes too big for her and lurching her arms all over the place. There weren't too many dancers on the floor, but they quickly all vacated to the sides to avoid Liena's terrifying octopus-windmill moves. Seres' hands hovered cautiously around Liena's hips, ready to catch her if she fell (which she did - multiple times). But despite her badly timed thrashing and multiple near-miss incidents per song, Liena was having the time of her life. Her intoxicated smile was pure, her energy infectious and Seres couldn't help but join her, wholeheartedly.
Usually, Seres would be more interested in maintaining some level of social cred and mystique to keep the drinks and conversation coming, but right now, throwing her body around the dance floor with Liena was the only thing that mattered.
Maybe it's good for both of us to try new things.
Song after song went by and their grins only grew, despite their aching legs and feet. They spent the rest of the night dancing together, miming the words they knew and screaming the ones they didn't. As her energy finally started to fade, Liena rested her head heavily against Seres' chest and the two of them swayed together instead, holding onto one another's hands as bright LED streaks of green and purple light enveloped them.
***
Chapter 10 - In Plain Sight
One heavy blink at a time, she awoke from the dark into a hazy dream of green and blue. The leaves swaying in the gentle breeze overhead were slow to focus. Her arms were heavy, and her fingers numb as she ran her hands slowly across the grass beneath her, tickling against her skin. There was a sweet taste of summer in the air. And for one blissful, peaceful moment, she wasn't entirely sure which her she was…
Alas, with the stiff, iron taste of blood and the ache of her bruises, one wound at a time, reality clarified around her.
Leech groaned and pressed a hand to her temple, as her head began to throb. Seeth's beat-down was well and truly kicking in.
Owwww. Fucking hell. She still got a mean swing on her.
She blinked a few times, clearing her vision to the window of clear blue sky, peaking out between the swaying treeline. It was so refreshing to see the sky, after being in space for so long. But her moment of peace was shattered as a metallic cobalt blue flashed into her vision. A DA first response ship, barely a dot in the sky… but there nonetheless.
The fleet was coming.
Shit… SHIT! We gotta go! Right now!
Leech bolted upright from her rest, clawing at the mud in a desperate scramble as her heart hammered in her chest. The ship wasn't descending - for now - likely it was waiting for more reinforcements. But the clock had struck its first chime, and if they waited much longer, their chances of getting safely back to the dreadnought would be pretty much zero.
She thudded over to the wrecked ship, still dripping with oil and coolant from its shredded chassis, and clambered over to Ink, who was out cold on the floor.
"Ink! INK! Wake up! C'mon calamari, we need to move!" Leech shouted, furiously slapping the downed Controller. After a few firm slaps across her cheeks, the giantess pried her eyes open, confusion plastered over her blood-soaked face. "Oh thank fuck!" Leech allowed herself a breath of relief. "I didn't fancy my chances at hauling your big ass back. We need to move, the DA fleet is coming!"
She stared blankly at Leech for a few seconds, the words rolling around her brain like sludge, but her eyes widened as the realisation finally hit her, and she rose from the earth like a titanic zombie. Her body was still running with fresh, dark blood, trailing from her multi-meter long lacerations and spreading like a spider-web over her skin, poisoning the earth it soaked into.
The two of them began their frantic scramble through the forest's undergrove, as fast as their damaged frames would allow, back towards the fields where they'd hounded Diego only an hour or so ago. Thankfully, Darkpaw dropships were already starting to land, and Nodes were rushing each-other and their Slaves towards the dropships' ramps.
As they broke the treeline Ink started to sprint, charging for the nearest dropship as a threatening thunderclap filled the air. More DA ships were warping in, larger ones this time, cruisers and destroyers. The hum of their cannons tinged the atmosphere with their electric crackle, but despite the imminent danger, Leech slowed down. She stared across the field at the large, scorched circle, fading orange streaks of lightning burnt into the ground, erupting from the epicentre and branching across the surface of the scorched earth.
The field was a burnt mess of corpses and half-corpses, barely clinging onto life. The glimmer of psyonic golden fire still permeates many areas, dancing in an almost hypnotic fashion. Leech could feel survivors through the hierclasty, Nodes buried amongst their dead kin, desperately hanging onto life under the crushing weight of the dead. But they could not find the fight to move in their battered bodies, and would be left behind…
… unless she did something about it.
C'mon you lot, you need to move too.
With all the force she could muster, she pushed deep into the hierclasty, her iron grip squeezing every single body littering the field and forcing all of them to their feet. From the croft of corpses, wounded Nodes erupted from the ground, their groaning bones protesting the forced motion, but nevertheless subservient to the Controller's unyielding orders. Even the scorched Slaves, dead or beyond saving, all twitched and squirmed at the command. The blackened mass before her became a writhing mess of jolting limbs and bodies, with a trickle of charred Nodes and Slaves marching out from the corpse pile.
From further afield, a march of new slaves caught her attention. Towering at least a head above the usual Slaves, the Barons had been turned to their cause. Their vacuous eyes now filled with a new hunger as their jiggling bellies wobbled in time with their upbeat march. Smaller Ragers also accompanied their once rulers. Their distinctive rage engine now had a sickly crackle to its fans, like it was perpetually trying to clear a tickle in its mechanical throat.
An uncomfortable bubble stuck inside Leech's throat. This hadn't been a 'repopulation' mission, but of course a little corruption was inevitable. Although there weren't many, there were even a handful of fresh draconic Slaves and a couple of draconic Nodes, staggering their way forward. But the Barons… Leech's eyes narrowed momentarily. While she was more than aware that the Rewritten were far from a cause for good, she did not like the idea of them associating with Vora Barons, not one bit, even if it was in a corrupted capacity.
There were more than enough dropships to ferry everyone back in a single trip. The logistics back on the dreadnought seemed to have been to be well handled, but a pang of guilt hit Leech as she watched the survivors stagger towards the ships.
They had been expecting more.
It was only glancing around at their numbers, or lack thereof, and the dropships that were already starting to take off - empty, that Leech finally shook the disgust from herself, and allowed the Barons to come forward. Now wasn't the time to be picky. They could cull later, if needs be.
Another thunderclap rippled through the air then, this one rumbled through her chest and rustled through the trees either side of her.
She glanced up to see an immense white hull hanging in the horizon, far closer to the planet than the others were; a battleship, with a full suite of weapons already coming online. She felt an uncomfortable shiver as several pairs of eyes landed on her, followed by a surge of adrenaline as she realised what that meant. Target finders aboard the battleship were surveying the area, looking for invaders for their gunners to obliterate. And she had very much been seen.
"~FUCK! FIRE UP THOSE ENGINES, WE NEED TO LEAVE!~"
She threw herself at the closest dropship, where Ink was waiting. The giantess' gaze was locked on the battleship, she'd felt it too. Leech ascended the ramp and latched her hands onto the ceiling rails. She did a quick final check within the hierclasty to ensure everyone was on-board, revealing that all but one corrupted Baron had made it.
Sorry fat-so. Good enough. We're leaving.
She felt the dropship lurch into the air as the ramp closed behind her, cutting their view of the battleship off. Anxiety sliced straight down her middle like a cold knife as she swore she saw its many turret-mounted weapons turning towards them through the final closing crack.
It was out of her hands. All she could do now was wait as the dropship began to shudder and shake, the roar of atmospheric escape filling her ears.
How desperately she wanted to assume control of the Node piloting, just to see through her eyes, but it wasn't worth the risk. She wasn't in charge of logistics and transport, and the plan had been set for a reason… It was best not to interfere, even for a moment, just for a peek.
The shuddering of the dropship reached its climax, her legs rumbling beneath her, feet like concrete. Then, the rumbling died away as they crossed the karman line. A haunting nothingness filled the atmosphere, a far cry from the screaming, gunfire and carnage of the last few hours. Only the fire of the dropship's engines could be heard now, usually a comforting white-noise to those well travelled.
But Leech did not travel well.
The sickness in her stomach blended and thrashed around deep inside her, quelled only by the thought that if she was about to be vapourised by a DA battleship, she would do so with dignity, not drooling sick down herself. The thought made her laugh, an awkward giggle that hiccuped out of her and thankfully went unnoticed by both Ink, and the only other occupant in the dropship; a new Node she didn't recognise.
It was hard to shift the thought of imminent instant death from her mind. and so, Leech feigned for distraction, deciding to focus on the new Node. She was a tall and immensely busty dragoness with magenta red skin. A small pair of amber crystal horns protruded from the top of her head and were flanked with a larger pair of curling white horns, along with a small pair of sharp ears under her messy, goo-clogged black hair. Her eyes complimented her amber horns, framed with a beauty spot under her left eye. Leech imagined she would have quite an elegant affair if it wasn't for the copious amounts of dried black goo around her mouth, and dripping down her neck. Her clothes had torn open where her figure had expanded and, as a result, she was wearing little more than scraps. She looked more lost than anything else, unsure of where the hell she was, why she was here, and who she had become.
We'll get you inducted, Node. Don't you worry. Providing we survive…
Leech suddenly felt the dropship slow and she braced herself, her grip as tight as steel coil on the hand rail. The dropship reeled sharply, and she felt a clunk under her feet.
OH MY FUCK. WE MADE IT!
The ramp descended to reveal one of the dreadnought's refurbished launching bays, alive with activity as more dropships rolled in and wounded Nodes were quickly escorted into makeshift infirmary rooms. Squads of medi-spray equipped Slaves were hosing down the scorched Nodes, pained howls filling the bay as the Controllers limped down the gangplank, and joined the chaos. A concerned Mina was waiting patiently in the middle of the bay, counting her way through the landing dropships. She squeezed her eyes shut and whispered numbers, flicking through a count of her fingers as more dropships arrived through the hazy blue environmental shield that coated the many open bay doors, that spread the length of the room.
There was an impending sense of urgency and worry shared amongst the Nodes, detectable within the hierclasty; they were worried about Moltezz. A quick scan through the dreadnought-assigned Nodes showed that she'd gone silent around twenty minutes ago, although the warp engine was still fully heated with no dip in its input.
Hold on, Moltezz.
In a span of a few seconds, the remainder of the Darkpaw dropships slipped into the various empty spots, all landing with the same heavy clunk of their landing gear. Their occupants slipped down the ramps in various states of injury, and were quickly directed into one of the makeshift staging rooms. Credit where it was due, it was an almost seamless affair, as far as dealing with hundreds of wounded people in a hasty evacuation went.
A shrill alarm vibrated through the hierclasty, soaking into the ears of the Nodes on the bridge.
// - ANTI-CAPITAL WEAPONS DETECTED - \\
Through the dreadnought's sensors, they could see more and more blue flashes through the planet's horizon. Dedicated capital-felling cruisers were swinging the length of their hulls towards them, bringing their spinal mounted cannons to bear. The sheer quantity of ships now out-weighed the dreadnought in mass… This was the moment the DA had been waiting for. Victory all but assured.
"~That's everyone, we're pulling out!~" Zhali barked, confident in spite of the situation. This was not her first high pressure rodeo.
"~W-Wait! That's everyone?! Where's Libbi? S-She went down and hasn't come back?~" Mina asked, her voice heavy with concern.
"~Libbi…?~"
"~One of my pack! She got sent down with the other Slaves…~" The heirclasty went quiet for a second as the realisation hit Mina. She'd counted all the survivors multiple times now. There were no more dropships. This was it. "~I-I lost one of my girls…~"
// - TARGET LOCK DETECTED - \\
"~I'm sorry, Mina. We're leaving now. Everyone brace!~"
Everyone inside the bay grabbed hold of the nearest solid item or, failing that, dropped to their knees and braced themselves against the floor, as a faint tingle began to flow through all of them.
The dreadnought blared a deep horn, rumbling through the very atoms of their beings, and in the blink of an eye, the vessel shifted, shuddering heavily under everyone's feet. But just like that, it was done. The planet was gone, there was no sign of the DA fleets, and the very welcome sight of Barru X floating in the background graced their vision.
Slowly, the Nodes stood and raised their Slaves with them. A mix of emotions erupted through the hanger. Some nodes cried out in relief, overwhelmed with joy that they'd survived such an experience. Others remained silent, still processing exactly what had happened. A few were visibly angry, marching their wounded Slaves off for medical treatment as frustrated growls rumbled from their throats. And a final small percentage were beginning to grieve, glancing around the emptier-than-it-should-have-been room for those lost.
"We actually did it…" Leech exhaled loudly, wiping some nervous sweat from her forehead. Yet the Controller's eyes landed on a distraught Mina, who was fighting back tears in the middle of the hanger. They might have survived the attempt… but this was no victory. Before she could contemplate the thought any longer, Zhali spoke through the hierclasty once more.
"~Moltezz is okay! She said she wants to see the Controllers in thirty minutes for a review.~"
FUCK.
"~Got it.~" Leech responded. She was surprised at how composed she sounded.
How am I going to explain this to her?!
But before Leech could succumb to her thoughts, a familiar pink face appeared through one of the doors. It was Bubblegum, who had helped herself to a skimpy nurse outfit and was waving Leech down.
Ink had been beckoned by a couple of the Nodes on the other side of the bay, and she departed instantly without a word, squeezing her fists into tight balls as she left. To be fair to her, talking wouldn't have been Leech's priority either after the beating she'd taken.
I could do with a friendly face after this shit. Fuck me…
She padded her way over and joined Bubblegum in the adjoining room. It had been equipped with a reasonable medical facility, nothing out of the ordinary, with a large medical bed in the centre of the grey steel room, presumably for Leech.
As she approached, Bubblegum's face turned from an excited smile to a toothy grimace as she got a closer look at the cuts and bruises across Leech's body.
"Oh babes… You look like shit. I was hoping to have some celebratory fun with you, but I might need to actually put this uniform to use!"
"Sorry to disappoint, Bubbles. Maybe later if you do a good job now?" Leech teased back with a cheeky wink, wincing as she did so.
"Walk the walk when you're a bit less bloody, hun."
Bubblegum was a bit of an enigma compared to Cherry and Plum. Seldom seen when not enjoying marks, she often kept to herself, despite her seemingly extroverted personality. She'd ended up spending a good deal of time with Leech over the last few months, eager to be strapped into the Controller's lab for milking. Leech was more than happy to personally tend to her, given her more than generous assets. Calling her a size queen was too modest, frankly, and her 'production' of corrupted goods had genuinely helped Leech's research of their condition, even if the girl had caused several overflows and spillages single handedly.
The result of their time together was a casual, but focused friendship. If you asked Leech where Bubblegum grew up, her favourite foods, even her favourite colour, she wouldn't have been able to tell you. But she did understand her. Bubblegum was too bubbly and extroverted to hide away the way she did by accident. The girl liked her privacy. She liked her space. She liked to feel in control.
And it felt like they had less and less of that these days.
"It didn't go well then?" Bubblegum was asking, fetching two medi-spray cans from a medical cupboard as Leech took a seat on the edge of the bed.
"You could say that. The fucking lizard nuked us." Leech sighed, still trying to piece the whole thing together in her head. "Seeth beat the snot out of me and Ink, too."
We also nearly fucking killed the fucking precious prince… but maybe I'll keep that to myself.
The hiss of the spraycan prompted a wince of pain as the sting kicked in, up and down her back as Bubblegum began to coat her scratches and cuts in tingling blue foam.
"You don't say. Ink looked like she came off worse though, was she missing tentacles?" There was a smug undertone to Bubblegum's voice that did not go unnoticed.
"She was. Seeth nearly killed her." Leech snapped, harsher than she meant to.
"O-Oh. Well… I'm glad that didn't happen." The smugness dropped from Bubblegum's voice instantly. Leech winced again as Bubblegum continued to spray her down, rubbing the mixture in with her soft fingers as needed. But the toxic Controller couldn't help herself; the brief glimpse into Bubblegum's thoughts wasn't enough to sate her.
"I dare say you seemed at least a little pleased that she's been roughed up though, Bubbles. I didn't have you down as a sadist."
"I-I don't know what you're referring to. And I'm not." Bubblegum replied rather firmly, apparently unhappy with the sadist comment.
"Don't bullshit me, big tits. I detected some level of satisfaction there. I'll ban you from my tables for a month if you don't spill."
Bubblegum went silent, her lips a tight line as came around Leech's front and began spraying her chest down.
"I'm not gonna tell her, Bubblegum. I promise." Leech said, softer this time.
"...You promise?" Bubblegum asked, as their eyes met. Leech nodded, and Bubblegum sighed. "Alright. But don't tell Cherry I told you. You better milk me good later on."
"I'm gonna need all the distraction I can get, and you'd be a more-than-welcome one." Leech winked again with a toothy grin, resisting the urge to lean in and kiss Bubblegum's plump lips. The girl just had an irresistibly pretty face, with big puppy-dog candy pink eyes that just begged for more. Leech couldn't help but laugh at herself though; it appeared that the last few hours had not impacted her sex drive at all… She began to wonder if anything short of catastrophic injury could sate a Controller's desire at this point. "But I'd like to know what's going on in your head."
"You know, you seem more light-hearted than usual…" Bubblegum pondered with a growing smile. "Maybe it wasn't all bad down there?" She suddenly shifted back, the smile dropping off her face abruptly. "Anyway… I uh… I don't like Ink."
"She's an acquired taste, I will admit. I wonder where she gets that from." Leech giggled, feeling the pain fade away from her body as the sprays worked their magic.
Bubblegum fetched a new tray of supplies, including a bowl of water and a sponge to dab Leech's blood-stained lips.
"No, Leech. She's not like you. I really don't like Ink."
You? Happy-go-lucky, milk me 'til I'm dry, smiles for everyone Bubblegum, doesn't like Ink? Fuck me… okay. Maybe this is more serious than I thought.
"Has she done something?" Leech asked tentatively, pushing her chin forward so Bubblegum could clean her face.
"She doesn't care about anyone except herself. She's a liar. She's a control freak. She has to get her way. And nothing is ever her fault. She always seems to find herself in the middle of a mess, and always, always it's herself that put her there. And she uses people." Bubblegum glanced down, trying to catch Leech's eye. "She was on the freighter before we were, and she'd already made quite the name for herself when we got there. We didn't believe the rumours about her though. Little 'Lamp,' with her cane and her glasses, barely five foot tall, a bully?"
A bully? Ink's a lot of things, but a bully..?
"We tried to make friends with her," Bubblegum continued, "bring her into our little trio, and she didn't like that. She didn't like it when the guards or other passengers would flirt and chat with us. She didn't like it when we offered to share our food with her. She didn't like it when we offered to try and find her cane after she lost it."
"You mean after the guards hid it from her?" Leech interrupted, eyebrow raised.
"Oh, is that what she told you?" Bubblegum laughed dryly. "Why am I not surprised? She left it in the canteen one evening. Not for long, just to pop to the bathroom I think, but it was gone when she got back. A few of the staff had changed when we boarded, and one of the newbees didn't realise it was hers. He took it to storage for safe keeping. If she had asked, anyone would have apologised immediately and fetched it for her. But not Lamp. How could she be the perpetual victim if someone went and actually helped her."
"So no-one ever laughed at her?" Leech could feel herself getting defensive. "No one took the piss out of her, or was rude to her, or straight up cruel? Everyone was hunky dory, and it was all in li'l Lamp's head?"
"Eventually, of course. Were we all supposed to just sit there and take it from her? Me and the girls, we were prettier than her, and she didn't like that. We were bustier, and taller than her, and she didn't like that. The worst part is, at first, people were more than happy to talk to her, people seemed genuinely keen to get to know her, and she turned them all down with a scowl and a slur.
I'm not joking when I say half her problems were caused by her, purposely. I think she needed an enemy so she could always be the victim. The more I see of Ink, the more I see 'Lamp.' She hasn't changed one bit. She's just become strong enough now, to become the bully she accused everyone else of being."
The words rolled around Leech's head for a few seconds as Bubblegum dipped the sponge back in the water, blood oozing into the bowl. Leech couldn't speak to the content of Lamp's character, but Bubblegum wasn't exactly wrong about Ink's traits… but a bully? She still doubted that. She hadn't seen Ink bully anyone within the Rewritten.
"That's a… strong statement. So did you know her well before we… uh… arrived?"
"Well enough. She was the sort of person you tried to avoid because she would only end up causing issues, no matter how friendly you tried to be. Everything was a hassle with her. I remember one time where I tried to get her some lunch and she whacked me with her cane and told me to 'back off.' That was only the third time I met her."
Leech stifled a giggle which did not go unnoticed, causing Bubblegum to scowl at her playfully.
"It hurt! She smacked me right in the back of the leg with it! She looked so betrayed!"
"Why did she do it? Were you winding her up or anything?"
"Of course not! We were getting along just great before that! Plum said that she saw me talking to the guards and them flirting with me, and that was all it took. Suddenly I wasn't her friend any more. And my help, or lunch, wasn't welcome."
"What a diva!" Leech giggled again, grinning at Bubblegum as the girl finished cleaning her face. "I have noticed she is the jealous type. Is that it though? Was there anything more than just trash talking and the odd cane thump?"
"Well…" Bubblegum hesitated, then sighed softly.. "Lamp lied to get us in trouble with the guards. We tried to stay away from her after she made it clear we weren't welcome anymore, but she had this habit of just showing up randomly, all the time. It's like she always knew where we were somehow."
Leech thought back to Lamp's bedroom, and her rigged surveillance setup. She didn't say anything, but felt an odd tightening in her stomach.
"Within a week, she was filing false reports to the guards about us, trying to get us kicked off the freighter. We were apparently mocking her, harassing her, stealing her stuff and pushing her around. She showed everyone these bruises - which I'm almost certain she did to herself. Thankfully, the guard captain was pretty diligent and did a full investigation into her complaints, and eventually he took our side."
"Wow, okay… she lied to get you in trouble?"
"Yes, and she was smart about it too. She picked parts of the ship that didn't have camera coverage to stage her complaints. She'd knit together this story about how we were all against her… It was honestly pretty vicious story telling, Plum was really shaken by it, especially after what we'd just been through together…" Bubblegum immediately stopped herself, cautiously glancing at Leech, trying to gauge her emotions. "I-I'm sorry, I know you're close with Ink. I don't mean to poison the well."
"You're fine, Bubblegum. I can handle being in the middle of people. Besides, it's not like Lamp and Ink are the same person."
Bubblegum looked at Leech quizzically. "Really? Are you sure about that?"
Leech went to respond, but the words caught in her throat. It was such a small word, but 'yes' just wouldn't come out. Ink was possessive, impulsive and deeply jealous, and it sounded more and more like Lamp was still lurking in there, somewhere.
"Ink… does have her moments, admittedly. Is that it though? This is all stuff Lamp has done, rather than Ink herself."
"I wouldn't know about Ink. I stay away from her, as much as I physically can... There is another reason, but it's stupid." Bubblegum's cheeks flushed red and she pulled away from Leech, retreating to fetch more supplies and tipping out the bloody water into a sink with a splash in the corner of the room.
"Oh please, nothing can be more stupid than what just went down planetside. Indulge me."
"N-No." Bubblegum stammered, her face flushing even redder.
"C'moooooon. I'll make it worth your while. I'll do that thing you like… You know the one I mean…" Leech bit her freshly cleaned lip, her voice dropping a few octaves in an overwhelmingly sultry fashion.
Bubblegum froze, slowly turning to face Leech with almost burning cheeks, flustered beyond belief and flapping out her nurse outfit as a heavy bulge pressed against its front.
"F-Fine. Fine! But I want the full works! A-And don't pretend you don't enjoy it too!"
"Deal. Now gimme the deets, bitch." Leech gave a low, evil cackle at her victory, drumming her fingers together.
Bubblegum glanced up at the ceiling, doing a little stamp of protest before sighing loudly.
"S-She has bigger breasts than me."
The words took Leech off-guard, and her expression dropped into one of perplexity.
"She what?"
"Her breasts are bigger than mine." Bubblegum repeated, her eyes glued to the floor. "I don't like it."
Leech's eyes dropped to the girl's rack. Ratio-wise, she was easily hauling the largest boobs on the entire dreadnought, and maybe even off it. It was the kind of rack that could kill someone if handled without care, and they were prone to swelling in size when she was particularly horny, pushing their already gigantic size into nearly impossible territory. But Ink's breasts were bigger, purely because Ink was bigger. Standing nearly two feet over her, the giant was also hauling a pair of titans, just not quite as large, ratio wise, as Bubblegum. Bubblegum's buxom busty-ness was considered by Leech to almost be the epitome of the Rewritten's hyper-sexuality, as her ultra-curvaceous body also rocked super thick hips and thighs, and an enormous penis that all but commanded the attention of the room. But that didn't matter to the flustered Controller, apparently. The sheer size of her bust was the only factor worth considering… As Leech contemplated the titty math, the fidgeting Controller broke her concentration.
"I know it's stupid. I really do. I try not to think about it too much, because if I think about it too much, everything starts to feel… wrong. I just… I like being the biggest in the room. It's my thing. I don't care to psycho-analyze myself and unpick that thread, as I feel like it might just unwind everything I am right now. And I like what I am right now. I'm in control. The only time I'm locked up is when I want to be."
Her speech struck Leech harder than she expected, for something that had seemed so shallow at first. What Bubblegum had shared with her was not a vanity, but a vulnerability. And Leech understood.
Perhaps it was because she was coming off the back of her own conflict right now, her own flaws, her own psyche threatening to unravel. She couldn't even begin to comprehend her conversation with Seeth, what it had meant, or what it would mean. Truth be told, Leech was feeling rather vulnerable herself.
And that was her own thread that she wasn't quite ready to pull on, not yet.
"Okay… fair enough." Leech conceded softly, prompting a visible release of tension from Bubblegum's shoulders. "I think I get it…"
"I was expecting you to go harder than that." Bubblegum smiled softly. "You don't think it's weird?"
"Hun, I just got my ass kicked by my ex-best friend after literally invading one of the biggest empires in the universe, in the pursuit of one very pissy lizard. Who also happens to be dating said ex-best friend." Leech's speech became louder and more empowered as she continued, somehow enthusiastic about her crazy life. "We're living on a stolen dreadnought that I'm all but sure was used for some type of terrible war crime. After getting knocked the hell out in the middle of a forest, I'm still nursing a semi after talking to you. I'm fairly certain I'm going to die to a walking nuclear bomb of a woman in less than an hour and everything aches. I've just heard the girl with the largest body to boob ratio I've ever seen, and you've got some stiff competition by the way, say that she's jealous that someone happens to have bigger tits. The girl in question is literally two feet taller than her." Leech shrugged dramatically. "I don't know what fucking normal even is! So maybe it's weird? I don't think it matters. I think of all the crazy shit going on right now, your personal struggle with the size of your udders is pretty far down on the list of weirdness. All I know is, I'm getting those sweater puppies hooked up later and I'm helping myself to a glass of Bubblegum's finest, straight from the source."
Bubblegum blushed again, biting her lower lip as she siddled herself down next to Leech on the bed, which creaked under their combined mass. The sexual tension in the air skyrocketed as she suddenly leaned in and pressed a warm, wet kiss against Leech's cheek, her blue studded tongue briefly darting out of her lips and licking the corner of Leech's mouth.
"Moltezz isn't going to hurt you, Leech. Just be honest with her. But thank you. I appreciate that." She scooched closer to Leech, so that their thighs squished up against one-another. "Leave the spray for fifteen minutes, then rinse it off in the shower… Come see me later, Leech. I think we could both do with some one-on-one time."
"Or… you could entertain me now…?" Leech smirked, licking the taste of Bubblegum from the corner of her mouth.
"I could… but we might risk being late to Moltezz… and she might actually kill you if you are."
Bubblegum teased, her soft hands stroking up and down Leech's thighs. "You sure you can? You wear a bruise well but… I don't want to hurt you."
"Hurt me? Bubblegum please. I'm hoping you do..."
As they leaned in to kiss each-other, their lips millimeters away, both felt a sudden rush through the hierclasty as another order was projected through the Nodes.
"~Moltezz says she wants everyone on the main bridge, now!~" Tani suddenly relayed through the hierclasty. There was an edge of anxiety to her message; she didn't seem all that comfortable ordering Controllers around, even at the Molten Mistress' request.
The two of them pulled away from each-other, grinning madly at the sheer timing of it.
"Looks like we're needed…!" Bubblegum giggled, sighing softly as she patted her outfit down for a third time.
"Bah, the old thermo-nuclear cockblock. What a devastating twist. Later it is." Leech laughed. "You know, you were right. I am in a good mood."
Bubblegum's desire-laden smile eased into something more genuine as she looked admiringly at Leech.
"What?" Leech asked, glancing away with a tentative frown. "What you staring at me like that for?"
"Nothing! You're just… I like you when you're like this. It's nice to see. Maybe you're a masochist if someone's gotta beat your sassy butt to catch a grin." She teased, standing up from the bed.
"Depends who's doing it." Leech giggled back, dropping her voice into sultry mode again. "We better get moving, or we'll both be on the grill."
Leech stood with a slight wince and joined Bubblegum in leaving their makeshift infirmary, and headed deeper into the dreadnought. All of their operations were currently contained to one small part of the ship and as a result, the main bridge was only a five minute walk away. On their approach however, Leech suddenly felt the floor shaking with heavy footsteps, as Ink emerged from a room to their left. She was covered in a significant amount of silvery-white bandages. They were tightly wrapped around her limbs and torso, with some specialised ones running the length of her body where Seeth had clawed her from head to toe. Although she looked worse for wear, truth be told, she was standing about just fine, even if she was missing half of her tentacles.
She spotted the pair the moment she walked through the door, and her eyes seemed to darken.
"Aha, sorry, I just remembered I left something behind!" Bubblegum quickly announced, forcing a smile at Ink. "You guys go on ahead, I'll be right there!"
She didn't even wait for a response from Leech before ducking behind her and disappearing back down the corridor. Ink's bright, intense gaze flickered between Bubblegum's disappearing form, and the forced smile on Leech's face.
"Whats her deal?" Ink asked lowly, wearing an unsubtle, dissatisfied scowl.
"It doesn't matter. I'm… I'm glad you're looking… better. You don't exactly look happy, but you know… you're not bleeding out on the floor. W-Which is how I prefer you. N-Not bleeding out on the floor, I mean. I like you upright. And healthy."
Ink glared up and down Leech dismissively, eyes flitting between the Controller's various injuries, before tutting and striding on down the corridor.
"You're being weird. I think you feel guilty."
"Guilty? What the hell for?" Leech shot back, lurching forward to keep pace with the giantess.
"Conspiring with Seeth." Ink snapped with a growl. There was malice and venom in her tone, but also a hint of satisfaction.
"Con- what the fuck are you talking about?!" Leech protested.
"I heard you. I was in and out of consciousness, so I didn't hear everything. But you were talking. Not fighting."
"I don't know if you noticed these fucking cuts and bruises? Or if -"
" - Oh please. Those are superficial and we both know that." Ink's voice was low, and she leaned down towards Leech, her pointed teeth almost brushing against her cheek. "You and your bestie have a nice little natter, and when I wake up, she and Diego are gone. It doesn't take a genius to know what happened. I just wonder what Moltezz will make of it all…"
"Are you for real?!" Leech scoffed, trying desperately to hide her rising panic. "I had to talk Seeth down from killing you! Which I did! You're welcome, by the way!"
"'I've missed you, Seeth.'" Ink hissed from between her bared teeth. "Don't you dare try and lie to me." Leech flinched as Ink spat her words, and bloody spittle splattered against her face. "Do you know how shit it feels to be bleeding to death in the dirt whilst your supposed best friend is making small talk with the girl who did it?! You're supposed to have my back! Seeth betrayed you! She attacked you in your lab! And you still pick her over me?!"
"I-I didn't pick her over you, Ink. I'm literally standing right here! It was a complicated situation and I tried to handle it the best I could. I made sure you were okay, I wouldn't have let you die. But the fact is, Seeth would beat me in a fight… so I had to do something else. A-And I did. And if this is how you want to see that… then fuck it. Go ahead, make it about you. But I didn't choose Seeth over you. That's very dramatic and you know it."
"D-Dramatic?!" Ink spluttered angrily. "H-How dare you! After I acquired the dreadnaught?! After I lead the charge against Diego and the DA?! Seeth dismembered me! And what did you do? You conversed with the enemy, and let them take Diego!"
"Well, if you do fucking say anything… I'll tell Moltezz that you nearly killed her prince." Leech hissed. "I'll tell her that you grabbed the gun from me, you shot the ship down. She probably already knows you charged ahead of the rest of the group, Ink. And she'll know I'm telling the truth. So don't you try playing games with me. Because you won't win."
Despite her shaking limbs, Leech held herself firm. She met Ink's piercing, furious gaze with her strong, toxic-green glare. Ink didn't respond straight away. The Controller's expression was impossible to read, and Leech waited with baited breath for what felt like an inevitable retaliation. However, as she slowly started to move away, Leech dared to allow herself a sigh of relief. But before she could relish in her stalemate, Ink snarled once more.
"You can't lie for shit."
And with that, Ink turned and stormed away. Her words had been a warning, and Leech knew it, but a warning of what..? If one of them went down, so would the other…
Fucking diva.
She sighed.
Let's just get this fucking meeting done already.
However, with each closing step towards the Molten Mistress, Leech felt her anxiety build. All too soon arrived at the large pair of double doors, leading to the bottom of the mountainous bridge of the dreadnought. She followed Ink up the stairs to the next floor, joining Plum and Cherry who were standing next to one of the grey computer consoles.
To their right were a couple of Imprinted and Nodes, including Kross and Mook who were standing right next to each-other, the dragoness' tail curling around the girl's leg.
Currently facing away from everyone, Moltezz sat in an oversized leather chair at the head of the deck, concealed from the growing crowd. Tani and Mina were either side of her, desperately fanning her down with whatever they could find to hand.
Always with the theatrics.
Finally, Zhali and Bubblegum arrived behind Leech, with Zhali finding some space beside Ink, leaning herself against the inactive consoles and Bubblegum joining her friends.
"Just finished moving the new Nodes to induction, my queen." Zhali announced, glancing about at the other Controllers.
"Good. Finally."
Moltezz's voice was tired and low. She spun her chair around and revealed herself to the group, Tani and Mina quickly following her to keep their fanning up. Leech couldn't help but notice that Tani kept glancing over at her friend, doing her best to conceal her concern as the goblin idly fanned the Controller down. Mina on the other hand was staring off into space, doing as asked but wearing a vacant expression as she did so.
As for Moltezz, the Mistress was looking all but Molten. She looked absolutely done. Her usually curling and fiery hair had lost its amber hue at its ends and hung low, currently styled into two, loose, crossing pigtails. She looked like she had skipped a much needed and deserved nap to be here, wrapped in a soft, black silken dressing gown and a pair of fluffy slippers on her feet. Her skin was still glistening with sweat, despite the fact she'd almost immediately been hosed down after they'd warped back.
Leech struggled to pinpoint exactly what Moltezz was feeling as the Controller cast a vaguely irritated gaze over everyone, hovering particularly on Ink and herself. The room remained in a tentative, uneasy silence as they waited upon the Mistress's judgement. Moltezz wore her exhaustion with a surprising grace, at least considering the sheer magnitude of the feat she'd just performed.
"I've spoken to the Nodes," Moltezz announced. "It appears the logistics of the assault were well coordinated. She panned over the trio, who remained steadfast but huddled a little closer together under the mistresses gaze none-the-less. "The dreadnought was maintained throughout; Cherry, Plum and Bubblegum, you all did your jobs well. As well as Tani, Mina and Zhali."
Despite the glowing appraisal, the Mistress did not so much as crack even a glimmer of a smile. She pressed two fingers against the side of her carapace crown, and glared at Ink.
"No. The failure lies with the ground forces. We staked everything on this assault, we risked and lost many resources and even more people. And we have little to show for it." Her voice remained monotone and low, but her frustration was more than apparent as a flicker of angry flame sparked in her irises. But before Ink could shoot back with a response, she shifted in her chair, leaning into Tani's frantic fanning.
"But I accept that things were more complicated than we expected. Seeth made the capture of Diego several times more difficult than I expected, and the prince himself showed an… explosive capacity that we had not witnessed before." The mere mention of Diego's name brought a subtle grin to the Controller's face, before it resolidified into a tired frown once more. She kept her attention on Ink and sighed loudly before addressing her first. "Ink, darling. I appreciate you wanting to continue to prove yourself, but your ego gave Diego his chance to escape at the very beginning of the assault. Temper yourself. I assume your injuries are lesson enough."
Yeah, Ink. Temper yourself. Leech giggled internally, watching as the giantess shrugged and remained silent. She was too tired to care, it seemed. But then the Mistress's scolding stare then landed on her… It lingered for a moment as Moltezz stared Leech up and down, her eyes flicking over the various bruises and cuts covered in blue gel.
"The only part of the assault the Nodes couldn't advise on was the very end. You want to explain where you got your injuries from, Leech? I'm assuming Seeth or Diego had something to do with it?"
Alright Leech, let's make sure we word this right.
"Uh… yeah…. Me and Ink intercepted the ship after I successfully disabled it whilst it was leaving orbit. Diego was out from the crash but otherwise alive, we encountered Seeth but she got the jump on both of us and got away with Diego."
The Mistress's stare intensified as she leaned forward in her chair, her eyes narrowing dramatically.
Hold your nerve, Leech. None of that was untrue… Leech thought, swallowing quietly and meeting Moltezz's scrutinizing stare with shallow confidence.
"Is that so? She overpowered both of you? At the same time?"
"No. Me and Ink split up to surround the impact site. She attacked Ink first and downed her. I had to intervene to prevent Seeth from killing her - "
Ink scoffed angrily, muttering something under her breath and twisting away from the conversation.
" – but after talking her down, she knocked me out and absconded with Diego."
"She knocked you out?" Moltezz continued to question, the chair creaking as she leaned even further forward. "Why didn't she just take your life while you were vulnerable? Your injuries aren't anywhere near severe as Ink's are."
"Ink did take more of a beating than me in the attack overall -"
"- I know. But there's something different about your wounds. They look… deliberately surface-level." Moltezz stared at Leech's wounds one by one, with eyes sharpening with her increasing scrutiny. "Is there something you're not telling us?" She asked, her voice dangerously calm.
Out of the corner of her eye, Leech caught a glimpse of the smug smile that was starting to stretch across Ink's lips. Maybe she wouldn't need to say anything after all.
I'm not done yet, you big brat. The best lies are the ones mixed with truth…
"I think she still cares about me." Leech replied quickly, biting her tongue as she tried to gauge Moltezz's reaction. "She… didn't want to hurt me, much less kill me. I think Diego was her priority, rather than finishing us off."
The room fell into a nervous silence, as everyone waited with bated breath for the Mistress' verdict. She seemed satisfied though and relented, leaning back in her chair towards Tani again.
"Interesting... Seeth has a weakness I did not anticipate." Moltezz mused, flashing Leech a strange smile. "I wonder if we could use that…"
Leech felt an uncomfortable shift in her stomach at Moltezz's unspecified suggestion, but kept her mouth shut as the Mistress continued.
"Well, I suppose I'm… grateful that it worked out that way, or we could have lost two Controllers in addition to the thousands of Slaves and many Nodes. Still, I can't say I'm anything other than disappointed in this entire affair. We will need to consider our next steps and weigh up our tactical options more carefully next time."
Or we could not throw ourselves at Diego like a bunch of obsessive clowns. But that's just me.
Leech's expression dropped a shade as Moltezz glared at her, and for a moment she worried she'd said her thoughts out loud.
"I am in desperate need of some rest and recoup. Can I trust the dreadnought will be in capable hands whilst I regenerate?" Moltezz glanced over to the trio and Zhali who nodded back but otherwise remained silent. "Good. Just… Just rest up and do better next time. This should have been an easy win and we're licking our wounds in such a pathetic manner that it's almost infuriating. Or at least it would be if I had any shits to give right now."
Moltezz went to stand and it was obvious immediately that she was physically exhausted, from the swing of her arms to the slow push up from the chair. The fact she'd managed to keep the drive powered for the length of the entire assault was far beyond even what Leech had expected from her. The main question at this point was how long it would take for her to recover…
"Please just sort yourselves out. I need sleep, and something to eat." Moltezz huffed tiredly, turning to leave the deck. But as she did, Zhali called out sheepishly to her.
"Uhm, Mistress…? We've been notified there's a priority communication hailing us..." Zhali swallowed, glancing between Moltezz, Mina and Tani, her hands gripped in front of her tightly. "Do we want to accept?"
Moltezz took a long breath in before exhaling it loudly, gesturing with a single hand to bring the communication up.
A massive holoscreen flickered on within the bridge deck, showing a dark silver and orange emblem shaped like a zero. A seductive, female, synthetic voice whispered a single line in an almost hypnotic fashion that made Leech's spine tingle, as though they were breathing down her neck.
"Twenty million dies for one hour of your time."