Z
Zack
IN, a medical bay>
"Waaakey wakey..."
Aaron hurt... a LOT... he might be openly crying if it weren't for the numbing sensation flowing through his body. His power armor was gone, as was his sense of where exactly he was. His world seemed confined to just a few fluffy pillows and a light overhead,
"Normally I'd let you sleep, but you've been out too long and I need you for this..."
Aaron tried to move but he couldn't feel anything. The last thing he remembered was.. Well, he couldn't even remember that. Something about aliens. And a face, someone he hated. General Lewis. He remembered someone said something to him. His eyes moved to the person speaking to him. All he could tell was it was a beautiful woman. At first he could only moan and gurgle weakly. Eventually he found his words. "Celest..? Where am I? Am I dead?"
"I understand I'm easy to mistake for your lovely Celest... but no. You're not dead, I'm Uso, and you're... well... I got this whole thing planned for that... come on!" Uso's voice was getting faster and more excited with each word, as her face started to come into focus. She gently grabbed Aaron's hand with one of her own as she helped him sit up, supporting him just a bit with her own body, "You're lucky to be alive. That blast would have liquefied you had you not been wearing armor... I mean, it also did a number on the armor so you probably won't be using that again... after that you ended up burried under a mountain, luckily we have a pretty good explosives expert of our own. Now come on, on your feet solider! You just won a war, you should feel good!"
He started to recall bits and pieces of the explosion and the events leading up to it. He was at the mercy of the enemy he feared so much originally. Now she was supposedly an ally, but he didn't like showing weakness in front of Uso. Especially considering what Ned told him about her. "You saved me, then? Why would you do that?" He said, trying his best to sound strong and fully conscious.
"Damnit. That totally ruins the flow of this conversation... You were supposed to be all 'no seriously, where are we?' and I was going to drag you over to the rear door...." Uso would put her arm around Aaron's back, holding him under his shoulders as she helped him to his feet. The woman much stronger than she appeared to be, easily lifting him up and dragging him towards the door if need be. "So I'm totally going to dodge that question for now... and... Hold on. I had something I was going to say here... " She would quickly reformulate her plan, slamming her free hand on the console beside her to open the rear loading door of the Queen's slave, the light blinding Aaron for a few moments followed by the rather rank smell of smog and piss.
"BEHOLD!" Uso shouted.
Stretching out before Aaron as far as he could see in any direction were rows and rows of brown and grey buildings, smokestacks taller than anything on his planet beltching smoke, people shuffling around below them, some sleeping in the street... others probably just dead.
"This is what happens when you people are left to their own devices for long enough. Technology, Industry, people as far as the eye can see and you all just fuck it up. I mean just look at this!... " Uso turned her vision downward, "... That guy down there is dead! That one's just fat and lazy.... Most of these people are going to live that way for a very, very, long time."
Aaron realized he was on some sort of ship just before Uso opened the door and blinded him. He looked around once his eyes had adjusted. The smell hit him long before that. He tried to figure out what she was trying to tell him, but he didn't get her message yet. "How long was I asleep..? Is this.. Are we on another planet or is this the future?"
Uso chuckled a bit, "We're on another planet. This one in particular is run by Nepleslians... which are basically the same species as you. You were only out for about 12 hours, we pumped you full of nanomachines from my blood and got you mostly fixed up." As she spoke, he would feel himself start to sober up, his body starting to get used to the light and the movement.
"This entire planet is covered in city, some of it isn't bad, but for the most part its just a bunch of nepleslians working out ways to kill other nepleslians. They have no overall goal, they are just sorta, doing things."
Uso would then turn to face Aaron,
"You are in a very unique position. You're now the leader of your people, every one of you on that planet is going to be answering to you soon. Sure, you could play the good middle manager, do the right things, and eventually build up your planet to be a mess like this one... OR, you could have a vision. Lead your people, do something epic."
The idea that his body was full of machines sounded completely insane, even after all he had seen. He was finally able to stand on his own. The smell made him cough. "That doesn't sound much different than my home, the world you call 188604. That is the very reason I was fighting the Osman government before you showed up. Something tells me you didn't rescue me and bring me all the way out here just to teach me a lesson. What do I call you? Queen? Master?" He said, with more attitude than he would use while he didn't feel invincible from the drugs.
"I'm partial to Empress... but feel free to make up your own especially bombastic honorific. I'm not here to be like these Nepleslians, but you are. There are probably a million people out there who could run a planet just as good as you are... but I'm not here for Samey. I'm here for gluttony and hedonism. When we get back to your planet I don't want you thinking about 'how do we feed all your people'... that's boring, that's easy. I want you to want to make something of your people... Build the biggest building you can, create the largest view screen in existence, fuck 100 women at once. I want you to have a passion for this instead of just being another block of buildings for people to live in."
He would have probably rolled his eyes at her if the gesture meant anything to him. "Gluttony and hedonism? Is that all you aspire to, Empress? If so, you're not much different than the Osmans, especially the royals. These Nepleslians got it wrong. We could be better than this. I'm not eager to die, but if passion's all you're after, just leave me here. I don't want to see what you do with 188604."
"Around here, you're going to find out that I'm pretty much the only creature that's unique... " Uso said, placing a finger on Aaron's chest, "... So what is it for you then? Is saving your people from the scary Osmans all you ever wanted to do?"
Aaron considered his goals before the invasion. "I opposed them because they killed anyone who spoke against them. They kept the best food and water and let people starve. Didn't want to make the world any better for the common man. That is what I wanted, for everyone to have a chance. Not just to survive but to make things better. Everyone working together for a common goal. Being rewarded for the amount of work you put in, not just taking what you want from people too weak to fight back."
"So make the fairest and justist society you can, Help everyone improve themselves, open schools, universities, you know... whatever. Be about something. I want you to make something of your world... I mean, sure, I could just let anyone run the day to day stuff... or get bored and wander off, but then you'd just be... mundane..." Uso said.
He wondered if she would really trust him to run things if she wasn't around. She may be a hedonist but he knew she was not an idiot. "You're offering me leadership then? I guess Cyrus's men will make sure I don't get out of line. You want the resources and manpower of my planet, but you don't want to be responsible for doing the boring work of governing a whole planet. Also if the shit hits the fan you can blame me for being bad at my job." He managed to shrug. "That sounds like the best deal I'm going to get, really. It's pretty much what I wanted in the first place."
"Not quite. This isn't an offer. You're your people's leader now. That happened, it is done. I already have your planet's resources, and I've got the manpower to do whatever the hell I want. Cyrus will keep any trouble from happening. Of course I don't NEED your people anymore than I need you, but there is certainly room here for someone with some vision. Your people are counting on you to make something of them instead of dooming them to uh... you know, whatever... being a side show I guess. Come work with us as little or as much as you want..." Uso pressed the button again, closing the hatch of the Queen's Slave.
"ALRIGHT! TAKE US BACK HOME!" She shouted back towards the cockpit, before turning her attention back towards Aaron,
"It'll take a few hours to get back, I suggest you lay down... This pad will let you look up things, just talk to it, or slide your fingers on it." Uso would unclip the Datapad on her hip and set it down on the medical table that had been arranged inside of the loading bay for Aaron, "We'll be having a meeting when we get back with everyone. We are going to figure out how to save those Space-Bugs from some NMX Space Monsters. You're welcome to join us and see what else is out there in the universe."
Aaron was aware that he wasn't necessary, he was merely a convenient tool but he was fine with that. He was determined not to let his people become a side show attraction, for aliens to come and laugh at the pathetic barbarians. He wouldn't let it become a stinking hovel with barely breathable air and nothing but buildings as far as the eye could see. "I will do that. I don't think I'll be much help with these monsters to be honest, but having access to one of these ships could be helpful. Are you going to leave us one with someone to drive it? We must have something to trade for goods from the rest of the universe, right? I would only want us to trade with Nepleslia, it would not be good if the rest of the universe found us right now." He said hoping she would agree.
He walked over on unsteady legs and picked up the device. "What do I say to make it work?" As he spoke the screen lit up. He almost dropped it. After a moment he touched it with his finger. It beeped angrily at him. "I think it's angry. It won't explode if I do something wrong, right..?" After a few more button presses an image of a naked Gartagen female in a seductive pose appeared. "What the hell is that.." He muttered, strangely aroused by the alien, which confused him even more. "I think I want to be alone now it that's okay." He said, climbing into bed with the datapad in his hand.
"I've got trade handled for the time being, right now you need to start getting familiar with the rest of the universe. Figure out what you want to do, me and my people can help you with the rest...." Uso looked at the Datapad, initially planning to help him when she saw the naked Gart.
"Waaakey wakey..."
Aaron hurt... a LOT... he might be openly crying if it weren't for the numbing sensation flowing through his body. His power armor was gone, as was his sense of where exactly he was. His world seemed confined to just a few fluffy pillows and a light overhead,
"Normally I'd let you sleep, but you've been out too long and I need you for this..."
Aaron tried to move but he couldn't feel anything. The last thing he remembered was.. Well, he couldn't even remember that. Something about aliens. And a face, someone he hated. General Lewis. He remembered someone said something to him. His eyes moved to the person speaking to him. All he could tell was it was a beautiful woman. At first he could only moan and gurgle weakly. Eventually he found his words. "Celest..? Where am I? Am I dead?"
"I understand I'm easy to mistake for your lovely Celest... but no. You're not dead, I'm Uso, and you're... well... I got this whole thing planned for that... come on!" Uso's voice was getting faster and more excited with each word, as her face started to come into focus. She gently grabbed Aaron's hand with one of her own as she helped him sit up, supporting him just a bit with her own body, "You're lucky to be alive. That blast would have liquefied you had you not been wearing armor... I mean, it also did a number on the armor so you probably won't be using that again... after that you ended up burried under a mountain, luckily we have a pretty good explosives expert of our own. Now come on, on your feet solider! You just won a war, you should feel good!"
He started to recall bits and pieces of the explosion and the events leading up to it. He was at the mercy of the enemy he feared so much originally. Now she was supposedly an ally, but he didn't like showing weakness in front of Uso. Especially considering what Ned told him about her. "You saved me, then? Why would you do that?" He said, trying his best to sound strong and fully conscious.
"Damnit. That totally ruins the flow of this conversation... You were supposed to be all 'no seriously, where are we?' and I was going to drag you over to the rear door...." Uso would put her arm around Aaron's back, holding him under his shoulders as she helped him to his feet. The woman much stronger than she appeared to be, easily lifting him up and dragging him towards the door if need be. "So I'm totally going to dodge that question for now... and... Hold on. I had something I was going to say here... " She would quickly reformulate her plan, slamming her free hand on the console beside her to open the rear loading door of the Queen's slave, the light blinding Aaron for a few moments followed by the rather rank smell of smog and piss.
"BEHOLD!" Uso shouted.
Stretching out before Aaron as far as he could see in any direction were rows and rows of brown and grey buildings, smokestacks taller than anything on his planet beltching smoke, people shuffling around below them, some sleeping in the street... others probably just dead.
"This is what happens when you people are left to their own devices for long enough. Technology, Industry, people as far as the eye can see and you all just fuck it up. I mean just look at this!... " Uso turned her vision downward, "... That guy down there is dead! That one's just fat and lazy.... Most of these people are going to live that way for a very, very, long time."
Aaron realized he was on some sort of ship just before Uso opened the door and blinded him. He looked around once his eyes had adjusted. The smell hit him long before that. He tried to figure out what she was trying to tell him, but he didn't get her message yet. "How long was I asleep..? Is this.. Are we on another planet or is this the future?"
Uso chuckled a bit, "We're on another planet. This one in particular is run by Nepleslians... which are basically the same species as you. You were only out for about 12 hours, we pumped you full of nanomachines from my blood and got you mostly fixed up." As she spoke, he would feel himself start to sober up, his body starting to get used to the light and the movement.
"This entire planet is covered in city, some of it isn't bad, but for the most part its just a bunch of nepleslians working out ways to kill other nepleslians. They have no overall goal, they are just sorta, doing things."
Uso would then turn to face Aaron,
"You are in a very unique position. You're now the leader of your people, every one of you on that planet is going to be answering to you soon. Sure, you could play the good middle manager, do the right things, and eventually build up your planet to be a mess like this one... OR, you could have a vision. Lead your people, do something epic."
The idea that his body was full of machines sounded completely insane, even after all he had seen. He was finally able to stand on his own. The smell made him cough. "That doesn't sound much different than my home, the world you call 188604. That is the very reason I was fighting the Osman government before you showed up. Something tells me you didn't rescue me and bring me all the way out here just to teach me a lesson. What do I call you? Queen? Master?" He said, with more attitude than he would use while he didn't feel invincible from the drugs.
"I'm partial to Empress... but feel free to make up your own especially bombastic honorific. I'm not here to be like these Nepleslians, but you are. There are probably a million people out there who could run a planet just as good as you are... but I'm not here for Samey. I'm here for gluttony and hedonism. When we get back to your planet I don't want you thinking about 'how do we feed all your people'... that's boring, that's easy. I want you to want to make something of your people... Build the biggest building you can, create the largest view screen in existence, fuck 100 women at once. I want you to have a passion for this instead of just being another block of buildings for people to live in."
He would have probably rolled his eyes at her if the gesture meant anything to him. "Gluttony and hedonism? Is that all you aspire to, Empress? If so, you're not much different than the Osmans, especially the royals. These Nepleslians got it wrong. We could be better than this. I'm not eager to die, but if passion's all you're after, just leave me here. I don't want to see what you do with 188604."
"Around here, you're going to find out that I'm pretty much the only creature that's unique... " Uso said, placing a finger on Aaron's chest, "... So what is it for you then? Is saving your people from the scary Osmans all you ever wanted to do?"
Aaron considered his goals before the invasion. "I opposed them because they killed anyone who spoke against them. They kept the best food and water and let people starve. Didn't want to make the world any better for the common man. That is what I wanted, for everyone to have a chance. Not just to survive but to make things better. Everyone working together for a common goal. Being rewarded for the amount of work you put in, not just taking what you want from people too weak to fight back."
"So make the fairest and justist society you can, Help everyone improve themselves, open schools, universities, you know... whatever. Be about something. I want you to make something of your world... I mean, sure, I could just let anyone run the day to day stuff... or get bored and wander off, but then you'd just be... mundane..." Uso said.
He wondered if she would really trust him to run things if she wasn't around. She may be a hedonist but he knew she was not an idiot. "You're offering me leadership then? I guess Cyrus's men will make sure I don't get out of line. You want the resources and manpower of my planet, but you don't want to be responsible for doing the boring work of governing a whole planet. Also if the shit hits the fan you can blame me for being bad at my job." He managed to shrug. "That sounds like the best deal I'm going to get, really. It's pretty much what I wanted in the first place."
"Not quite. This isn't an offer. You're your people's leader now. That happened, it is done. I already have your planet's resources, and I've got the manpower to do whatever the hell I want. Cyrus will keep any trouble from happening. Of course I don't NEED your people anymore than I need you, but there is certainly room here for someone with some vision. Your people are counting on you to make something of them instead of dooming them to uh... you know, whatever... being a side show I guess. Come work with us as little or as much as you want..." Uso pressed the button again, closing the hatch of the Queen's Slave.
"ALRIGHT! TAKE US BACK HOME!" She shouted back towards the cockpit, before turning her attention back towards Aaron,
"It'll take a few hours to get back, I suggest you lay down... This pad will let you look up things, just talk to it, or slide your fingers on it." Uso would unclip the Datapad on her hip and set it down on the medical table that had been arranged inside of the loading bay for Aaron, "We'll be having a meeting when we get back with everyone. We are going to figure out how to save those Space-Bugs from some NMX Space Monsters. You're welcome to join us and see what else is out there in the universe."
Aaron was aware that he wasn't necessary, he was merely a convenient tool but he was fine with that. He was determined not to let his people become a side show attraction, for aliens to come and laugh at the pathetic barbarians. He wouldn't let it become a stinking hovel with barely breathable air and nothing but buildings as far as the eye could see. "I will do that. I don't think I'll be much help with these monsters to be honest, but having access to one of these ships could be helpful. Are you going to leave us one with someone to drive it? We must have something to trade for goods from the rest of the universe, right? I would only want us to trade with Nepleslia, it would not be good if the rest of the universe found us right now." He said hoping she would agree.
He walked over on unsteady legs and picked up the device. "What do I say to make it work?" As he spoke the screen lit up. He almost dropped it. After a moment he touched it with his finger. It beeped angrily at him. "I think it's angry. It won't explode if I do something wrong, right..?" After a few more button presses an image of a naked Gartagen female in a seductive pose appeared. "What the hell is that.." He muttered, strangely aroused by the alien, which confused him even more. "I think I want to be alone now it that's okay." He said, climbing into bed with the datapad in his hand.
"I've got trade handled for the time being, right now you need to start getting familiar with the rest of the universe. Figure out what you want to do, me and my people can help you with the rest...." Uso looked at the Datapad, initially planning to help him when she saw the naked Gart.
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