Song Precision Works announces Aria Warhead System Gen four update. Optimizations for dense urban environments and improved detonation logic are touted as major upgrades. Limited two-week run of commemorative casings available now in partnership with brand ambassador Demi Vastille.
Vareth Organics quarterly earnings report comes in 14% above projections. Investors who were previously strong supporters of added investments in the fruit farming initiative are earning dividends from their support.
Krath Defense Industries enters final contract talks with Spire Civil Defense Authority for phased replacement of aging Mark 6 war walker units. Formal announcement pending council review and approval.
Inside Angle is made possible by investment from Ilham Design Works. Ilham Design Works: You only get one first impression.
I ran my fingertips over the extremely soft, silky fabric of the kimono I was wearing. Vael had conspired to dress me up in something a bit fancier than what we’d worn up yesterday, and had collaborated with her mother by raiding her more-than-ample closets of clothing for something appropriate for me to wear. Of the various Sul’vari traditional garments and fashions, I chose some of Lael’s human fashion items to try on.
The koifish and wave pattern on the kimono was a softer royal blue color, and it had lovely gold colors for the koi and around the seams. The patterns on the fabric were done in a way that made them look like watercolors, but with a vibrancy that wouldn’t be found in actual watercolors.
Vael decided to join me in the style selection and had her hair up in a high bun at the back of her head. I’d left mine loose, but we’d done a thorough brushing and spritzing session before leaving.
Our ride was the one provided to us by Veris, a sleek black AV with an insane amount of luxury inside, from what I suspected was real leather seating to in-flight beverage service. I wasn’t going to get anything. Vael ordered two flutes of champagne for both of us with a sly wink. They came out of the console on the side of the cabin.
It was regrettably enjoyable.
The flight was short overall; the AV intelligence asked us if we’d like to take the scenic route, and Vael had instantly locked us in. The route took us out, nearly over the wall, then looped back in to fly past the Spire, and then over to the Veris arcology.
I hate how she keeps making decisions that I don’t think I’ll like, but wind up liking regardless. I want this to be shitty, miserable, and over quickly. I’m not supposed to enjoy being up here.
Our flight path took us close to one of the four Ranier wall guns, which was truly awe-inspiring in the sheer scale and audacity. The smooth, monolithic outer wall surface was packed full of gun batteries that resided behind ports that remained closed outside of wartime. They were the teeth of the city: they came in different shapes and sizes for different types of threats, and handled most problems entirely on their own. The big guns didn’t have the luxury of subtlety; they were the razor-sharp claws at the end of muscular limbs.
Each of the four was identical, and they were the size of a full skyscraper. Three hundred meters long, with two parallel, wide, and flat-looking bodies. Of course, perspective made things seem smaller than they were in actuality, and nothing about the Ranier guns was small. They could rotate around on the top of the wall via large mag-lev systems that doubled as anchors for when the gun was repositioned. Primarily, they served the role of strategic-level artillery emplacements. Thankfully, they sometimes went decades between being used in this role. Far more common was their other use, which was inserting objects into orbit. Custodian Ten maintained an orbital satellite network that tracked potential threats to the Ark, ranging from hostile sapient invasions to Convergent megafauna.
In that role, the Ranier guns were priceless defense assets.
Like with the Spire yesterday, seeing them in person was a very different experience than seeing them on the wiki encyclopedia entries on the matrix. The one we flew past was undergoing maintenance, so it was rotated to align with the wall’s curvature and then rolled inward until it sat mostly under the rim of the wall. Crews operating heavy equipment looked like ants on the surface of the gun where the sun shades were retracted.
“Pretty incredible, aren’t they? We should come back up so you can watch a launch sometime.”
“I’d like that,” I responded on autopilot. I couldn’t help but be a nerd about these things.
“Tokh call them Kel|Rakk Vekkar, which loosely translates to ‘the titans of transportation cycle.’ Even Tokh superheavy assault platforms were destroyed within a few shots.”
Passing the Spire on a close flight path was a similar experience of being humbled by scale. Up close, it blotted out half of the city and a major portion of the sky visible through the top glass of the AV.
“Vael? How would you say this?” I pointed through the window at the Spire.
She said a word in Dar’vari, then “Tower,” in English.
I cleared my throat and tried.
(Tower.)
She nodded.
I was trying to pick up what I could. Lael had been downright bubbly about my interest. Vael was similarly enthusiastic.
I tapped my index finger on the flute glass.
(Juice?)
Vael held up one claw and corrected me with (wine), and repeated it in English.
I think I’d gotten my words mixed up from the breakfast session of the point-and-name game.
Our AV approached the Veris arcology. It was shaped like the top half of an egg, or the bottom half of an acorn. Very organic geometry in a deliberate fashion, which was a trend with the various arcologies I’d seen on our flight. Brutalist defense industry corporate arcologies, organic shapes for Veris Biotech, Vareth Organics, Great Harvest.
The arcologies themselves were massive structures, fitting for their status as smaller city-states within the Ark. Veris was wrapped in glass that shone brightly in the morning sunlight in varying shades of green. Two large bands of darker green color formed a double helix structure around the outside of the building and were more concentrated at the tapered top of the structure.
Pretty architecture for a soulless biotechnology wealth extraction empire.
The air vehicle landed in a courtyard space with dedicated landing pads and shallow reflecting pools. There were a few other aircraft there as well, either idling their turbines or with their rotors barely spun up. The electric rotorcraft were upper-middle-class budget options that lacked the performance and security options that the higher-end AVs offered.
We placed our glasses back in the console and exited the vehicle to gusty localized winds generated by some of the other vehicles, and we made our way to the nearest side entrance to the arcology. The entrances at ground level sat recessed below the overhang of the main structure, which was only visible up close at street level. From the air, it looked seamlessly set into the X-1 plate.
People were coming and going in steady streams from the arcology; most wore clothing ranging from business casual to business formal. The population was mostly human, which made sense, as Vareth Organics was a Sul’vari-owned corporation and a direct competitor to Veris.
Glass doors blended near-seamlessly into glass walls, and opened and closed quickly with the coming and going of groups of people. Air curtains blew strong directional sheets of air to keep the inner and outer atmospheres mostly separated. Walking through them, we were greeted with warm, humid air laden with the scents of flora, loam, and petrichor. A large atrium filled the space inside and seemingly wrapped around the entire circumference of the first two or three floors. Waterfalls ran down stone outcroppings on the back walls and into pools, and mist nozzles kept a steady spray of water raining down on some of the large rainforested sections of the atrium. Birds flitted around inside the building, along with what seemed like a curated selection of insects.
The furniture, desks, and kiosks were all natural materials designed to blend into the trees, exotic plants, and other flora.
A receptionist wearing a pretty charcoal dress with green floral print on it greeted us by name. We were directed over to a numbered elevator, one of many set into the inner radius of the atrium.
A solidly built man was waiting for us when the doors opened. He was wearing a fitted button-down shirt in a white fabric that looked expensive. He wore a dark jacket that sat on his shoulders in a way that suggested that it was heavier than it looked, and a pair of boot-cut trousers with a few extra pockets integrated in a subtle manner. His boots were the one concession he hadn’t made, matte black and close-laced, the kind that didn’t catch light and didn’t make sound when you walked.
He looked very different to me when I looked at his aura. The voids I’d started associating with cybernetics and augments were present, intermixed in his body from head to toe extensively, but not in ways that announced itself.
Corpsec, but not the rank and file grunts with their tactical gear, body armor, visors, and rattlers. This must be our minder for the visit. Don’t want us to be under any false assumptions that we’re simple guests here.
He did a once-over on both of us with a pair of pale gray eyes that looked natural enough that I almost believed they were. He was handsome, in a rugged and blocky-faced way. He had a distinctive nose, broad and heavy, and one that looked like it’d been broken at some point and set badly. It made him stand out more by virtue of the lack of impeccably good looks among other agents.
The elevator doors closed behind us, and the three of us stood in momentary silence, facing one another.
His eyes locked on mine, and he addressed me directly, rather than staring down his nose, which was what I was expecting. “Ms. Voss. My name is Clarke. I am the attaché to Assistant Director Mallard. You will be escorted to see her momentarily. I want to establish the expectations for this meeting. You are not to approach her or be closer than two meters, unless she initiates. If you exchange handshakes or items, I expect you to resume maintaining your distance immediately. Any signs of aggression by either you or your…”
His eyes dropped down to the tail that was cutting curving shapes in the space behind me.
“...symbiotic organism, will result in a security response. The Assistant Director’s time is extremely valuable. Conduct your business, and I will escort you to your next destination in the arcology, or to the nearest exit when you are done.”
I gave him a quick nod, and when I did, the elevator shifted into motion, heading up.
I expected the kind of contempt that is ever-present with corpsec back home. The lack of it is almost more unsettling than the contempt itself would be. I’m not sure if he’s just better at hiding the fact that he thinks I’m a piece of human garbage from X-3, or if I have enough status, or whatever, to warrant direct neutrality. Maybe I’m just overthinking things.
Vael slipped her hand into mine, and I squeezed it softly. She returned it immediately.
Is the A.D. a baseline? Or is the bit about maintaining a distance just a standard line for anyone who isn’t a member of the ruling class?
The elevator came to a stop, and we stepped out into a curving corridor that had small potted plants and trees alongside the walls. Clarke directed us from behind towards our destination, which was an unmarked wooden door.
All the space inside the building is probably augmented reality tagged for everyone with standard optic implants or visors.
The door clicked and opened itself, and we were led inside.
It was a large office with a single central desk, with several chairs arranged in front of it. There was a full glass wall behind the desk, with a frankly gorgeous view of the top level of the city. We were fairly high up, but the elevator didn’t have any buttons or floor indicators to tell which floor we were on. Some tasteful paintings and decorative sculptures were placed around the walls of the office, and I saw a pair of doors leading off to one side.
Behind the monolithic desk sat the Assistant Director. Like Clarke, she wasn’t quite what I’d been picturing in my head.
She wasn’t the picture of well-groomed, clear-skinned, and finely done-up corporate beauty. She was a baseline, and she had a bit of a nerd aesthetic. Blonde hair that was arranged in a boyish cut in the front and slightly longer in the back, falling to mid-neck. Dark eyebrows that were thicker than the sculpted lines seen elsewhere in the building. A nose that was a touch too large for her face, and a jaw that was more square than oval. She had on black rimmed eyeglasses that seemed a bit bulky at first glance, but suited her wide mouth quite nicely.
Light blue eyes that seemed to be an odd mix of inquisitive and cold swept over my figure. She motioned for us to sit, and both Vael and I took a seat in the chairs that had open-sided slots cut into the backs. I didn’t have to look back to see Clarke; I could feel him looming behind us.
“Welcome to Veris Biosciences, Ms. Voss. I am Assistant Director Mallard. I oversee the operations of the biotechnology division of Veris. I’m sure you have many questions regarding your situation, and I’d like to take this time to cover what we can before getting down to business.”
I cleared my throat. “That’s a bit of an understatement. There’s one thing I want to know before all of that, though.”
She interlaced her fingers with her wrists resting on top of the desk. “Go on.”
I was trying to keep my temper under wraps, and my jaw was twitching regardless of my efforts. “Are you responsible for the death of my friend and the wanted status in my home sector?”
She regarded me coolly for a long beat. “In the interests of fostering a good relationship, I’ll be more forthcoming with you. I am partially responsible for that incident. Those assets were the property of my division and slated for various ends at their destination. When the transport was attacked, I had a decision to make regarding the recovery of those assets. I decided to send a response proportional to the materials in question. I was concerned about biotechnology falling into the wrong hands, where it could potentially do a lot of harm.”
“You mean like the biotechnology that found its way inside of me?” I reached back and lifted the end of my tail and gave it a shake for emphasis.
“The very same. And while I expect that you think the response was extreme, the members of the gang that stole that transport really had no idea the level of danger they were placing the residents of 6-3 in.”
“Don’t pretend like you give a shit about the people!” I snapped back at her. I couldn’t help myself; it pissed me off hearing the same false concern I’d grown up hearing.
She tapped one index finger on the back of the other hand. “Individually? I don’t. What I care about is reputational harm to my corporation caused by an outbreak of dangerous materials.”
I slumped into the backrest of my chair and took a moment to parse through that. “Thank you for being honest. I’d rather be told things I don’t want to hear than be lied to.”
She dipped her head. “I understand completely, I’m the same way, and I believe that being transparent with people serves my goals, and the goals of Veris better than crafted statements do.”
My tail seemed content with my handling of it, even though I’d been rather rough with it. I rubbed my thumb over the pale skin for a moment before looking back up to Mallard. “In your email, you wrote that it was a ‘non-recoverable asset.’ What did you mean by that, exactly? It can’t be removed?”
“Correct. Attempting to remove the organism after bonding has started will result in the expiration of both.”
I frowned. “Why? With all the advanced surgery tools we have for cybernetics, surely we can do what amounts to parasite removal, right? And for that matter, I visited a U-Med some time after being bonded with it, and U-Med didn’t mention the presence of a big parasitic organism in my body.”
Mallard leaned forward and seemed immediately more engaged in this topic. “The species targets the central nervous system and core organs and begins integration almost immediately. It’s theoretically possible to remove the species if done within the first couple of hours–and that’s being generous–but it’s a very short window. After that, it would require the subject to be placed into a cyberbrain and body. As for U-Med, it's not a Veris product, so I don’t know the exact specifications, but it’s highly unlikely it’s calibrated to support biotechnology. It either could have identified the object as biotech that you’d had installed, or the organism was far enough along in integration to show up as abnormal but functional organs.”
Borgification. Being converted into a brain in a case and stuck in a machine body. I hadn’t even considered the possibility.
“Does that mean that I could be rid of it if I wanted to be borged?” I asked her tentatively.
Mallard glanced upward and looked thoughtful for a long moment. “Truthfully, I’m not certain. We’d have to do full imaging to find out how much of your body it’s integrated with currently to be able to answer that. I would say it’s theoretically possible, depending on your current state. It’s pretty rare that we get the chance to treat a Diver who is infected, and for understandable reasons, that’s generally not even a consideration.”
…Because an established Diver would rather die than be rendered virtually powerless as a fullbody borg? I know they’re a proud bunch, but I don’t know if that’s the decision I’d make.
I glanced back down at the spike-tipped tail in my hand. I wanted to be a User all my life. And now I had that, but with a lot of strings attached. If they could–
A thought occurred to me.
“I was tested to see if I was a latent User, and I even had an additional test done beyond the standard ones. Did the organism trigger my awakening? Is that what you’re trying to do here? To commodify User status?”
Vael glanced over at me and tilted her head.
Mallard seemed briefly amused, the corners of her lips turning upwards before she spoke. “I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I also want to make sure you understand your situation better. You’re not a User, Ms. Voss.”
I gave her a blank look, and she gestured with her hand at my tail.
“You have the situation reversed. Your symbiote is a User, and you’re tapping into its abilities the same way it’s tapping into your body.”
What.
My mouth was suddenly dry, and I swallowed with some difficulty. “So that means that even if you could remove it…”
Mallard nodded along to the line of questioning. “Yes, you would return to being a baseline.”
“I developed IRS. Is that because of the symbiote as well?”
The Assistant Director raised an eyebrow. “Is that so? After you became bonded with the organism?”
I bobbed my head.
It was her turn to lean back in her chair, and she crossed her arms, tapping one finger on her upper arm as she thought. “We haven’t seen that behavior before; however, that could be related to the aspect of the symbiote. We haven’t had one that’s been life-aspected to date. There’s no way of telling if it was due to some interaction between your implants and the symbiote, or some quirk of your exact situation. Not without testing, at least.”
I took the break in the conversation to think over what I’d learned so far. I hadn’t considered that I was the person who was riding in the passenger seat.
Mallard broke the momentary lull. “I will say that functionally, there’s not a huge amount of difference in the practical realities of User status, which is why I originally congratulated you on your awakening. This only really matters if you wish to attempt removal, which I would strongly advise against.”
“...Why?” I asked, a little absentmindedly.
She stopped tapping her finger on her arm. “Several reasons, really. One is that it’s a simple objective fact that being a User is a vast improvement in one’s life and potential over being a baseline. And I’m not even talking about the socioeconomic or political aspects, either. You’re healthier, stronger, more capable, and age more slowly, even at the lowest tier. And of course, the biggest benefit of being a User is if you advance to a sufficient level that the aging process stops entirely. Beyond that, there’s a substantial risk of complications, including loss of bodily function or death. And I will admit, I have more than a passing interest in monitoring your progress, as so far, you seem to be one of the most promising results we’ve had so far. Which brings us to my proposal.”
I don’t know if I like the sounds of “monitoring my progress.”
I looked up to meet her eyes. “I’d like to extend a contractual research offer. The basic structure of the agreement would be that you come in and undergo some test procedures once or twice a month, or after any major changes to your status or development. In exchange, we’ll pay you for your time and willing participation, and we’ll also offer some advancement incentives. Veris would be willing to assist with registration as a Diver as well, if that’s something you’re interested in.”
I was confronted with mental images of being strapped to an operating table and having things drilled into my head by people with lab coats and goggles.
“...What sorts of testing?” I asked her.
“Mostly non-invasive testing. Imaging, blood and tissue samples, measurements of standard performance metrics, like how much you can lift, how fast you can run, and your User abilities.”
I swallowed. “And the invasive testing?”
She smiled at me, and it was the first remotely warm expression I’d seen on her this entire meeting. “I understand having concerns, but these are all things you can opt out of or decline, subject to terms and conditions. Essentially, invasive testing would come down to taking biopsies, using robotic internal imaging, and so on. We are not interested in chopping you up into pieces, but something like a liver biopsy could show changes to cellular structure or function, for example.”
“What’s a liver biopsy?” I felt a little sheepish and ignorant asking the question. Medicine wasn’t my strong point, which was ironic, considering my aspect now.
“An outpatient procedure. You’re given a local anesthetic, and then what most people consider a very large needle is stuck into your abdomen. That’s it.”
I looked over at Vael. She shrugged at me, in a your body, your decision sort of way.
“How much money are we talking about?” I had to admit curiosity, and while being poked like a lab rat didn’t sound very fun, getting paid to have pictures of my bones and shit taken wasn’t so bad, especially if the pay was decent. There were certainly far worse things I could be doing to make money.
“We’re open to negotiation, but it would be in the area of a quarter million credits, with additional funding available based on performance milestones.”
That’s a lot of fucking money. Not quite set for life money, but I could get a major leg up on this whole Diving career I’m getting started on.
Vael spoke up for the first time so far this meeting. “Could you mail a copy of that proposal to the Sul’Vethik estate? That way, our counsel can advise Kiera after she’s had a chance to read through it?”
Mallard nodded to Vael. “Of course.”
Vael pulled out her slate and flicked contact information over, then seemed to be writing a message to her lawyer. Go figure, they had one on retainer. Typical.
I don’t think I want to try to remove it. I’m new to being a User, but I’d much rather be Diving than trying to retrieve someone’s porn collection from their corrupted dataslate in an office.
I nibbled on my lower lip and tried to think of other questions I’d had. In the days since awakening, I’d had more than I could count or keep track of, but here and now, I was starting to grasp at straws.
“Assistant Director, what can you tell me about the feeding habits of these things?” I paused a moment, debating how much I wanted to share. “I seem to have a second kind of hunger now, that came around the same time the changes to my vision did. My tail craves mana, and it has some… pretty gross ways of feeding, admittedly.”
“Changes to your vision?” she asked me.
I looked at Mallard, paying attention to her aura. She had remarkably little in the way of cybernetics from what I could tell. Maybe none at all. Nothing was really standing out, and the odd disruptions or changes in shape were so minor that they could just be that way normally.
“I can see–I’ve been calling it a biotic aura, although that’s maybe not the most accurate thing. I can see biological activity, it’s like a wispy glow in, on, or around people. Hotspots of activity where there are major organs. Where people are missing activity, like in the case of having implants.”
Her brows rose. “Is that so? That’s fascinating.” She looked like she might say something else, but refrained. “The species is like some other kinds of extradimensional fauna, in that it digests biomatter into mana, which it then metabolizes. They are known for being rather voracious eaters, although it depends on the species they are bonded to, with larger species having larger appetites. I would expect to have to feed every few days.”
“But what about the mutations? Every time it feeds, I get a sh–bunch of mana rammed into my circuit, and Vael told me that it’s putting me at risk of mutating.”
“Hmm. There are a few possibilities. These might not be true mutations in the classical sense; rather, changes brought about by the growth and integration of the organism itself. I would think that your chances of developing UCD would be lower, not higher. We don’t have good data one way or another; most instances of bonding tend to result in the death of the pair not long after bonding.”
That got my attention. “Wait, why? Is it a compatibility or rejection thing?”
Mallard cleared her throat and glanced over at Vael. Something passed between them, but I didn’t know what it was supposed to be. She turned back to me. “No, it results in the death of both because people who are bonded with the parent species tend to be either euthanized or killed on sight by other Divers.”
Now it was my turn to look over at Vael. There was a slight frown on her lips, and her eyebrows were drawn together. “The Sul’vari call them soultakers, and they’re considered a very foul parasite and extremely dangerous. They’re rare and only found in quite high-tier portals,” Vael explained to me.
She must have read my reaction on my face, because she continued before I had the chance to object.
“I only found out about this late last night from my mother, who recognized it and explained it to me.”
I let out the breath I’d been holding in a sigh.
She probably didn’t tell me before the meeting because she didn’t want to upset me before we went in.
The Director spoke next. “To be clear, the organism bonded with you is not quite the same thing. That’s the product of a captive breeding and genetic engineering project I’m overseeing. Those are not parasitic, they are symbiotic, which is a key distinction.”
I didn’t know what to say with these new revelations, so I defaulted to a dry quip. “Lovely name.”
Vael shot me a side glance. She knew I was upset. I was relieved by the recognition that she was far better at reading me than most people.
Our conversation continued on for a good bit longer, and I had a few other nagging questions answered, and we had a chance to hear back from Vael’s legal counsel, which had given the nod of approval with a short summary. It was a very cut-and-dry agreement. I’d be paid an initial sum, and then subsequent payments with each visit, up to two per month, and there were conditional bonuses for advancing my tier as a User. There was a lump sum, where the bulk of the money was pooled, at the tail end of the study, which would be paid out in six months. Terms and conditions were tied to declining scans, samples, and testing, which boiled down to “we won’t pay you just to show up and answer questions.” Veris expected that I’d be a good test subject and give them blood and lots of fancy pictures that may or may not leave me glowing in the dark.
Well, more glowing in the dark than I already was. Which wasn’t subtle.
I negotiated a bigger up-front payment, most of which came off the end, but also included lowering the per-visit payments. I argued that I needed additional funding to pursue a Diving career, which suited their goals of my advancement. Mallard pushed back in places, but we agreed on terms, and I signed in about 3 dozen different places, then took a trip downstairs to their labs.
I was sitting on one of those doctor’s office tables that had the crappy padding on top and lots of drawers, along with crinkly paper between me and the padding. I’d just gotten done getting stabbed about 30 times and then blasted with radiation from 20 different angles to get all the juicy details of my guts for their research.
The Assistant Director was chatting with the medical doctor who’d been overseeing a lot of this testing. Clarke loomed in the corner like a dark presence in the room. Silent and steadfast. Vael had stuck close by me when able. She’d whispered an apology about the whole not informing me thing. I was still pissed, but it’d cooled off for the most part by now.
Being stuck with needles wasn’t nearly as bad as I remembered it, and being a life-aspect User had the benefit of healing up the tiny puncture wounds basically instantly afterwards.
The Assistant Director spoke up from the standing meeting she’d been having with the doctor.
“We’d like to run an experiment, if you’re willing.”
I had felt fairly exposed in my blue and white gown with tiny birds on it, wearing nothing but my underwear below it, and wanting to get this over with sooner rather than later.
“What sort of experiment?” I asked.
“Feeding, and what, if any, response it generates. We’d be providing a sample of pure mana for consumption, so no need to worry about feeding behavior.”
I did feel the early rumblings of some mana cravings, even with the food that I’d eaten last night. That hadn’t provided nearly as much mana as I thought it might have.
I glanced over at Vael. Dropping my voice, I whispered over to her, “My tail is a little peckish…”
Vael’s glowing eyes darted over to look at the Assistant Director, who was holding up a small flask filled with a brightly glowing emerald green liquid. It really wasn’t that much.
“That’s a lot of mana for you, Kiera. At least as much as you took in from the guardian, maybe more.”
My tail shifted around restlessly behind me, the tip hovering over one shoulder and pointed at the flask.
“Well, I’m going to have to kill more guardians, and probably feed on them, so don’t I basically have to get used to it either way?”
Vael made a non-committal hum. “I suppose. Just be careful, Kiera. We usually suggest going with a larger volume of smaller doses for safety.”
I thought about it for several beats. I wanted to go Diving again soon, itching to, even. But my armor wasn’t going to be ready for another day or two, and then there was the whole issue of finding one to Dive, which was all Vael.
“Okay,” I agreed to Mallard. “But one condition. I’d like a little more privacy. It’s not always… a very pleasant experience for me.”
The Assistant Director and the doctor shared a look. “That’s fine, we have recording equipment in here that should more than suffice for our purposes.”
Oh, great.
The flask was handed to the doctor, who brought it over to me. I took it cautiously, because I wasn’t sure what my tail was going to do, and I didn’t want it to attack the poor doctor who was just a bystander.
I could feel the mana in the flask as much as I could see it. The markings on the side told me it was 180ml of liquid. It was funny to think that this was probably worth enough chits to throw one hell of a bender with.
Vael and I were left alone in the room. My heart was thumping away in my chest, and my belly felt tight with no small amount of apprehension.
I took the black polymer stopper off the flask, and my tail sniffed at it, then opened its weird-looking mouth and held it up like a funnel.
It was more than a little unnerving, the things I’d learned about it today, and the fact that it seemed awfully intelligent for a butt accessory.
“Bottoms up, I guess.” I tipped the flask and poured the full contents into the toothy mouth.
The liquid flowed strangely, not like any liquid I’d seen before. Very thin and fluid, but it had a strong surface tension or something to it, because it came out of the flask without leaving even a speck behind in the glass. I handed it to Vael and lay on my side on the exam table. Lying on my back was a pain unless it was well-padded, and my front had similar comfort challenges.
Vael offered me her hand from the chair by my head. I took it, thankful for the company and support.
My tail was wriggling like an earthworm in a puddle behind me. I thought it was amused, or happy, or something, but I wasn’t an alien parasite-turned-symbiote expert by any means.
Or was I?
Warmth pulsed in the core of my tail, each pulse growing in intensity, and creeping into my back. I curled up on my side into a ball as the heat went past the point of enjoyment and into the realm of burning.
I let out a whimper, and my eyes watered as the full length of my tail was burning, and my entire spine from the crack of my ass to my skull joined in along with it.
“Are you okay?” Vael asked quietly.
I nodded between gasping breaths and managed to get out “burns!”
A pressure built in my lower back where my tail met my spine, and was paired with cramping in my abdomen, sharp and twisting. I held my breath and felt motion–my tail slipping over the end of the table.
It was growing at a fairly rapid pace. The pressure spread, more tail continuing to grow out of the top of my butt, but now there was a sensation like having the worst need to pop a joint ever. There was a horrible-soundingcrunch that emanated from the base of my spine, and I felt my hips shift. A moment later, another. Then another.
Every five to ten seconds, it seemed, there was mounting pressure, then another snap, crackle, and crunch. The heat seemed to localize around the area, and there was a tingling heat of a much better level left in its wake. At some point during the process, I had another, similar sound, but coming from the floor, wherever the end of my tail was at that particular moment. I wasn’t paying all that much attention to what my tail was doing.
I thought I was going to pass out when it got to my neck and then crept closer to my skull. The shocks were being transmitted into my head in a way that made the grinding sensations unavoidable. They didn’t hurt, not exactly, more than it was a deeply uncomfortable sensation that built to a breaking point, and then rapidly faded after the crunch. The burning heat wasn’t great.
When it was all over, I was left on my side, sweaty and breathless, and feeling overheated. I wiped at my eyes and opened them to see Vael smiling at me.
“Better?” she asked.
“Better,” I agreed.
At least I’m getting paid for it this time. That’s something, right?