"Stupid humans! They don't realize how absolutely, positively doomed they are. So doomed, being doomed doesn't even describe how much trouble they're in!" Vera thought, then chided herself for babbling nonsense.
But fear rooted her in place. Vera tried desperately to ignore the rather sharp-looking tools on display behind an operating room window. It was all a bluff. They wouldn't really kill her. It was out of the question! Still, doubt remained.
Her comrades had been silent, allowing Vera to stew in her thoughts and fears. They were too busy with their battle plan to bother with her.
Beside her, a guard played on his phone like the girl next to him wasn't about to be vivisected. Another just lay back, his eyes closed. Was he asleep? Did they not recognize the seriousness of the situation? Sandage was off somewhere for a meeting. And some Ectutai were outside in case any trouble happened. Not that she'd try anything with this stupid bomb collar. She scratched under it, resenting its presence.
Only Cecilia seemed to pay attention to her, pretending she wasn't sending the occasional scathing glare. Frankly, it was getting on Vera's last nerve. What was she even doing here? To watch Vera get cut to pieces?
After another five minutes of this, Vera broke the silence. "What?!" She glared daggers at Cecilia.
"You know what," Cecilia shot back, her words venomous.
"No, I don't," Vera said, just as stubborn. Their eyes met, and sparks seemed to shoot between them. She never realized how much she could dislike someone. Even the original Vera hadn't been that close to this weirdo girl. She'd always been Rose's friend.
An idea struck Vera, and her mouth widened into a wicked smile. "You realize we know all about you, right? That you were made in a lab? That you're a freak?"
This caused the tall girl to stiffen, her expression turning icy. "Maybe. But I'll be the reason your entire species is exterminated. I have knowledge even your hive mind can't begin to comprehend."
"Doubtful. We Altair are eternal. We've conquered countless worlds. What makes you different? Those scraps of knowledge won't save you."
"Is that right? Then why are you afraid of Rose? I saw your reaction to her. You were shaking in your boots."
This earned a scowl from Vera. "I was caught off guard by her freaky eye. One person can't change anything."
"We'll see. Scaredy-cat."
That struck a nerve, and Vera shot to her feet, startling the person on the phone. Much to Vera's bafflement, she realized its screen was blank. The person trying to sleep stood to full attention, gun already in his hand. Much to her shame, Vera realized they'd been playing her. They hadn't been distracted at all. This must play into their plan to lure General Tarazed here.
"Sit down," the man who wasn't actually playing on his phone said. Vera sat down, grumbling about stupid, tricky humans.
"This still won't make any difference," Vera said stubbornly. She continued her staring contest with Cecilia.
"You'd think they would have acted by now," Cecilia said, grumbling to herself. Vera had to admit, she was surprised too. Only about ten minutes remained, yet General Tarazed hadn't acted. Where was he?
"Close. Calm. We will rescue you soon," the General replied, finally breaking radio silence. Vera sighed in relief. She flinched as this caught Cecilia's attention. Vera pretended to play with her nails.
"This was why I kept silent," General Tarazed said, not hiding his obvious annoyance. "You are a terrible actor."
"Yeah, stop messing things up, Aquilia!" Tseen Foo added. Vera fought hard to keep her annoyance off her expression. Still, it didn't stop her from grumbling to herself.
More minutes passed, but Vera found herself antsy. Her leg twitched as she had trouble staying still.
"You have to go to the bathroom?" Cecilia said, her tone mocking. "Do Altair even need such a thing?"
"Quiet," Vera shot back.
"Really, you're acting like a toddler who can't keep still," Cecilia continued, pressing even harder. Vera opened her mouth for a scathing retort, but one of the guards spoke up. He'd been the one pretending to sleep.
"Simmer down, girls," the guard was middle-aged and somewhat overweight, but his cool professionalism marked his true abilities.
"I'm trying, Mr. Beer. But she's being a total jerk," Cecilia replied.
"Me? I'm being a jerk?" This poured oil on Vera's already smoldering temper.
"Stop it, both of you. Or would you rather I have you both sit in the corner?" Mr. Beer replied, his tone even. Cecilia scowled and looked away. Vera said nothing.
"Both you girls." It was the Arab woman who'd accompanied Cecilia earlier. "What a racket you are making! I heard you from across the hallway."
Cecilia didn't reply, smoldering in her temper. "Just forget about Miss Al-Kindī."
"What you're doing is not good. This anger is poisonous," the woman replied. "You're right to be mad, but lashing out won't help. This isn't you, Cecilia. Feeding this anger is only destructive." Again, Cecilia said nothing.
"Why do you even hate me so much, anyway?" Was it because she learned Vera was an Altair? Had she considered that a grievous betrayal?
"You know why," Cecilia said, her tone measured but venomous. "Because of you." Her words trailed off, too consumed with emotion.
"Please, Cecilia. Speak. Why are you angry?" Al-Kindī said coaxingly.
"Prince Imrele. You… you killed him," Cecilia said, her words almost inaudible.
"Huh?" Vera blinked. "Didn't you meet him only a couple of days ago?"
"Does it matter? I liked him! He was the first boy I…" Cecilia broke into sobs, and Al-Kindī held her tight, comforting her.
Vera stared, stunned. The prince's death had hurt her that much? Unexpected guilt stabbed at her heart. She remembered how Rose liked to tease Cecilia about Prince Imrele being her boyfriend. Had it been more than just silly teasing? Cecilia really cared about him?
"Human. So fragile," General Tarazed said with open disdain.
"Pathetic. Look at her cry!" Tseen Foo said, laughing.
Vera said nothing, her heart seizing in her chest at the display of raw grief. She'd never considered how much a person's death might hurt someone.
"You're an Altair," General Tarazed admonished. "Forget this ridiculous sentimentality. Hold your head up high. We are the masters of the cosmos. One life, one death is a pittance."
"Yes, sir." Still, why did Vera feel so wretched? Was there something wrong with her?
"I was trapped in that pod too long. Yes, that's it. It's addled my brain." Vera thought.
She sat down and pointedly ignored the distraught Cecilia. Lord Tarazed was right. She needed to harden her heart. The concerns of some puny humans meant nothing. Despite how many times Vera repeated this to herself, the anxiety hidden in her heart refused to be extinguished.
"It's time." Prince Hallfar said as he entered. He paused as he caught the awkward mood in the room. Unlike the two alien guards trailing him, he wasn't wearing his helmet. He softened when he saw the distraught Cecilia, then turned venomous when he looked at Vera. His words carried a nasty smile.
"It seems your fellow Altair don't think I'm serious about killing you." Vera's heart skipped a beat as he pointed some strange gun at her. Unlike the pulse guns the Altair had seen them use earlier, this weapon was bulkier and had a somewhat cobbled-together appearance. Everyone backed away from her, creating some distance from the Altair.
"I-I thought you were planning to dissect me?" Vera backed away. She jolted as her back collided with a wall.
"A pretense to lure out your allies. You were always going to die here." Prince Imrele's voice contained no emotion, only steel.
"No!" Vera glanced frantically around the room, but no one met her gaze. Some, like Cecilia, only glared at her with pure hatred.
Prince Hallfar continued, "They specially designed this weapon to kill your kind, Altair. It's based on the chemical they used to kill your last General, Altair Alpha. Our scientists have improved on its design. This will be an excellent test run against a real Altair."
Any semblance of calm evaporated, and Vera fell to pieces. She begged and pleaded for them not to kill her. She knew what had happened to the Altair they were referring to. Somehow, Okab had lost all connection to the hive mind. They'd lost all track of him after that. Her peers had speculated that it had driven him insane. They planned to do it to her, too?
"Please," Vera couldn't control the shaking of her body. "I-I don't want to die."
But Prince Hallfar remained unmoved by her pleas. In fact, he seemed to take pleasure in her suffering.
"Down," a voice said in her mind.
Vera didn't hesitate, dropping like a rock and covering her head with her arms. The Ectutai's weapon sprayed some green goop in her direction, but the ground rumbled beneath her before a massive tentacle reached around her to protect her. Another speared through the building, and rubble filled her vision. With surprising tenderness, the tendril pulled her away to safety, leaving a collapsing building in its wake.
"Whoa." Vera marveled as she rose dozens of stories into the air. The view was fantastic, stretching in each direction for miles. She laughed, beyond relieved. Both arms pumped into the air. "Yes, take that, humans!"
But her exhilaration was short-lived as a red monstrosity dashed in their direction. Its speed boggled the mind. Despite its size and considerable bulk, it moved with gazelle-like grace.
"The Red Devil." Vera's breath caught.
Gravel sprayed everywhere as it skidded to a halt, preparing its drill weapon to fight. Through its eyeless face, General Tarazed stared down his opponent.
"Be careful, General," Vera noticed the red monster had some odd attachment she'd never seen before. What the heck was that? A new weapon? "Where's Tseen Foo?"
"Elsewhere." But there was a cold smile as General Tarazed spoke. Out loud, the General continued. "That's where my ally is. I wonder what he's doing?"
Despite showing no expression on its demonic face, Vera sensed shock and apprehension. Somehow, those simple words had rattled Rose.
"What'd you do?" Vera asked.
"Tseen Foo is off in the city called Minneapolis, clearing it free of its human parasites. No doubt her allies have already radioed her about it. Now she has a choice: avenge her fellow LUVOLT members or allow millions to die. Even if she stays to fight, the pressure of the Minneapolis attack will make her reckless, a perfect distraction."
"Rose abandons Cecilia and the others, and we take them. Or she dies here, and we achieve both objectives. We win, regardless of what she does."
///
"What? No!" Rose's hands visibly shook as she heard the news. Right as she was about to confront the monster attacking her friends, she'd gotten the news about the Altair attack on Minneapolis. It was all over the local news. She froze in indecision.
The bunker had already collapsed. Who knew how many survived? Cecilia and Sandage were in there! But the other Altair would kill millions. It was a no-win scenario. Either way, she lost.
"I can't do this." Rose covered her face with her hands, falling into despair. She was only a middle schooler. This sort of decision shouldn't fall on her.
"Fight, Rose." A voice said, breaking Rose from her despair.
"Stella?"
"You must fight." The vTuber appeared on one of her screens. "The Twin Cities attack is only a distraction. It's another one of the Altair general's demoralizing tricks. You can't let him play games with you. Rose, you must defeat this jerk once and for all."
"But what about Minneapolis?"
A confident smile grew on Macauley's lips. "I think the other Altair will get a little distracted once you punch its boss's face in."
"I see." It might encourage the second Altair to rush to its boss's help. Besides, the second might just run away when Rose approached, leaving her with no real victory at all. And killing another Altair general would be a huge dent in the Altair war effort.
"Fine." Rose gripped Luyten V's control stick hard enough that its metal creaked. "I'll teach these guys what it means to mess with Earth." And Rose realized she couldn't bring herself to abandon Cecilia, whatever condition she was in.
The ground boomed as she charged at the monstrosity known as Altair Beta. Its many tendrils, with their needle-like barbs, further tore apart the bunker, mocking her with its casual cruelty.
"How about this?" Luyten V threw a punch at the Altair general's tentacled mouth, but the monster slid away with surprising speed considering its size. In the span of a breath, it had already created distance between them. Before Rose could even blink, the monster was behind her, and a tree-like tendril wrapped around Luyten V's neck. Each one was tipped with wicked-looking spikes that left deep cuts on impact. Damage reports screamed as the barbs tore into her robot's metal neck. Her opponent was trying to finish her in a single move by tearing off Luyten V's head.
Metal squealed as the pressure tightened, her alarm systems screaming bloody murder.
"Tsk, so that's the play, eh?" Rose's mouth extended into her shark smile. "You've been running away too much, Beta. You really think I'd be that easy to kill? How about we test our new toy, partner?"
The entire world became more vivid as Rose joined with Luyten V. Needle-like pain stabbed into her neck, and her breathing became more difficult as the grip around her windpipe tightened. But her robot's strength became hers as Rose entered Stage 2 of Full Synchronization Mode. Her limbs became mighty, giving her the power to crush all her enemies. This one had earned her considerable ire.
With one fluid movement, Luyten V released her whip and whirled it around with impossible precision. Her opponent howled an inhuman cry as the hook dug into its meaty flesh, releasing her. It staggered, startled by the unexpected pain. Tentacles were ground to green mush as a fist struck Beta's mouth resulting in a spray of viscous liquid. Its eyes became considerably less smug as Beta realized Luyten V could hurt it.
Rose's blood burned through her veins like fire as she pounced on her foe, yet it was more exciting than painful. Beta found itself on the defensive as Luyten V's fists flew at it. Its bloated, gray body expanded wider, its mass the only thing her viewscreen could see. Tentacles lashed out from everywhere as the Altair's body reached around her, each wrapping around Luyten V's arms. Rose's arms throbbed as the tendrils tightened. More grew from Beta's back to restrain her further, giving her no possibility of movement as it pinned her legs next.
Blank eyes seemed to gloat as Beta's face tentacles gathered together to create a spear to lance through her robot's chest, ready for a lethal blow. Other barbed tendrils lashed out to keep her further distracted.
"You really think you've got me caught, huh?" Because Rose noticed something that the Altair had overlooked. Luyten V was never defenseless.
Beta moved in for the kill, its face spear aimed right at Luyten V's cockpit. Rose remained still, letting her opponent commit to a move they couldn't take back. Then she activated her arm drill. While some tendrils had snaked around it to keep it restrained, her opponent had underestimated how powerfully it could spin. Tendrils turned to mush as her drill whirled at full speed. Still, her opponent seemed confident that her restraint was enough to make this irrelevant. Beta was wrong.
"Full engines!" Rose activated the rocket boosters on Luyten V's back, guiding it left. Thanks to their connection, Rose calculated the exact moment she'd need to dodge away. Metal squealed as the spear slashed past her chest armor. It left a deep gouge, but not deep enough to hit the cockpit. The position did, however, leave Beta open for a nasty counterattack.
"This is for Vera!" Beta howled as her drill tore right into her opponent's neck. Further tendrils got caught in her drill, trapping her opponent even further. Alien blood spattered against her robot's face as flesh got turned to mincemeat.
Her opponent roared in pain and fear, realizing its mistake. Beta tried to rear away as the drill tore into its neck, but Rose was ready for this. As it fled, a hoof drove into its leg. It was lodged so deeply, its metal tip was visible from the other end. The ground thundered as Beta's massive mass tumbled to the ground.
"You're clever, Beta," Rose said as her opponent scrambled away. Alien blood spilled as part of Beta's legs ripping off in its desperate attempt to flee. The General had lost all appetite for battle.
But the Red Devil had marked it for death. There was no escape. "But not a fighter, it seems. Goodbye." Rose's blood sang as her robot's thrusters ignited, and she pounced like a bird of prey.
"Dynaspike!" A spear lanced from Luyten V's palm, spearing Beta's head from behind. An inhuman groan escaped whatever remained of the Altair's face, its body flailing in its death throes. Its massive, swollen body began to lose all substance as it pixelated. Their universe had rejected its existence. This was proof its kind didn't belong here. Its body continued to crumble until the General became nothing but a memory, little beyond an alien stain.