Seeing his nephew... this gentle, naïve giant trebling in fear, John could not help but feel sympathy for him. John could not blame Trak for his mistakes any more than he could blame a two year old for breaking his toys. "I'm sorry I yelled at you Trak. You thought you were being fair to my people. If only your mother was still with us... she would have helped you make better decisions," John said as he reached over and touched Trak's face.
"I miss her so much. She was the only one who understood what I feel. I was made more human than my sisters, so they don't really understand why I have the emotions I have. That is why I brought the fleet here first. My mother said I would find you on Aquarius and that you would help me with this human thing called emotions."
"And I will help you Trak," John promised. "I need to ask you a few questions. Will you answer them?"
"Of course uncle," Trak replied, his antennae straightening out in curiosity.
"My people who have been cocooned, can they be removed from them?"
"No... not without killing them," Trak said sullenly, afraid the answer would upset John.
"It's ok Trak... I suspected that would be your answer. What about the ones who chose not to become Chimera... can you free them from the old ones?"
"But what will they do? Where would they go? Who would take care of them?"
"Don't worry nephew... most humans can take care of themselves. Just let them go home."
"I don't think they would like that uncle."
"Why?"
"They won't exist much longer; our workers and planners are already building new cities for my people to live in. Since the few people who turned down our gift don't like us much, I don't think they would like living on the same world as us."
"You are most likely right. Can you then give them some ships so they can migrate to a human world?"
"I could, but it won't change that the people on those worlds will be made Chimera eventually."
"You mean you plan on conquering all of humanity?"
"Would it be fair to offer our gift to only a few and not all?"
John let out a sigh. It seemed that no matter what he said, Trak would always see humanity as in need of the Chimera's `gift'. Still John had to try. "Is there any way I can convince you to stop your invasion here?"
"No... my sisters would be most unhappy if I tried to stop spreading our gift to humanity. They would think I lost my purpose and force me to take a mate."
"And would that be a bad thing?"
"My sisters kill and eat those they mate to... that is why I have none of my original brothers left."
"I'm sorry, Trak."
"It's alright... my mother made me so I would not want to take one of my sisters as mate."
"So you are sterile?"
"No..." Trak chuckled with a clicking sound.
"You are saving yourself for a nice human girl who won't eat you?" John laughed.
"No uncle," Trak said as he extended his hair tendrils to touch John's face.
"I don't believe it... my sister gave the gay bug to a bug!" John laughed.
"I am not a bug," Trak said, offended.
"But you are gay," John grinned as he hugged Trak tightly.
Trak did not understand what his uncle was talking about. He did not care. It felt so good just to have John's arms around him.
"Trak, I know you can not stop this invasion but can you do something for me."
"Anything, uncle."
"Will you give me the people who don't want to become Chimera so that the old ones will not eat them?"
"I can uncle but..."
"Yes Trak?"
"I will do it for you uncle but you have to do something for me in return... not for my own sake but yours."
"If it is for my own sake I don't see the problem," John replied, concerned by the nervousness in Trak's voice.
"My sisters don't like that I am spending so much time with you, especially since you are not one of them... not Chimera. I am afraid they might demand I give you to the old ones soon."
"But you are not going to allow that... are you nephew?"
"I know of only one way to stop them uncle. You must become Chimera."
"Trak..." John said as he pulled away only for his nephew to wrap his arms around John's body, his claws digging into his back.
"I promise it won't hurt. All I will do is give you a small bite to put you to sleep. When you wake up you will feel stronger than ever before," Trak said frantically.
"Trak, you are hurting me," John said through gritted teeth.
Withdrawing his claws, Trak saw they were coated with blood. "I'm sorry uncle. I didn't mean to hurt you. I am only afraid my sisters will take you away from me."
"I understand Trak. Just promise me you will be more careful next time."
"If you became one of us I would not be able to hurt you so easily."
"I want to stay human."
"But I don't want to lose you. I don't want the old ones to eat you."
"Trak, I want you to be honest with me... can you bring yourself to let me go and escape to Earth or any other world in the Assembly."
Trak's eyes went from blue to red. "I would bite you myself before letting you go," he hissed.
"Trak," John sighed.
"I'm lonely uncle... so lonely. Why do you want to leave me?" Trak demanded.
"I don't want to leave you nephew, but I don't want to lose my humanity."
"But we are not taking away your humanity. We are giving you a gift. Why can't you see that?" The Chimera insisted.
John let his shoulders slump in defeat. Trak could not understand. John suspected the Chimera was actively refusing to. He could not see that one could not change a thing without destroying some part of it. "I'm sorry Trak. I am sorry you have been alone. I wished we had more time."
"We can have as much time as you want."
"But not as a human. I thought you wanted me to help you understand what being human means. How am I to do that if you change me?"
Sensing the sadness in his uncle's voice, Trak's eyes returned to their normal blue color. "Please uncle... please don't let my sisters take you away."
Once again John remembered he was dealing with a child and like most young children Trak could not see past his own needs and desires. It was as if Trak was a boy in a toy store, not understanding why his poor uncle with an empty wallet could not buy the expensive toy he wanted. John knew his nephew was terrified that his sisters would take him as a mate and eat him if he ever rebelled against them. One day John hoped Trak would have the courage to stand up for himself. If humanity was going to have a chance in avoiding a long and bloody war with the Chimera, Trak was their only hope. That hope would be much weaker if Trak was left alone, with no one to talk to... no one to love.
John saw the irony of the decision he had reached. He, a man who could not bring himself to love his human nephew, was now willing to give up his own humanity for the sake of his alien one. "Don't worry Trak, I won't leave you."
"But you don't want our gift. My sisters will make me send you away if you don't become Chimera." Trak whimpered.
"No they won't. You may bite me Trak. I will accept your gift."
"What?" The Chimera said surprised.
"So you never have to be alone again, I will let you make me into a Chimera."
"I promise it won't hurt and that you will like our gifts."
"I am sure you won't let me feel any pain," was as far as John could bring himself to agree with Trak's statement.
Trak did not notice his uncle's fear. John had just promised to never leave him, which made him the happiest he had been since his mother had died. Sending out his hair tendrils, he let them brush against John's neck, numbing the spot were he was going to bite him. He might have been a little too eager for John soon closed his eyes as his entire body became anesthetized. Embarrassed by what he had just done, Trak hesitated a bit before he got the courage to extend his mandibles and bury his fangs into his uncle's neck. Once he had delivered the life changing venom into John's body, Trak's hair tendrils grew to an exceptional length, enabling them to completely encase John's body. A few hours later when Trak withdrew them, he saw his uncle was wrapped up in a perfect white cocoon.
"Thank you for staying with me uncle," Trak clicked as he patted the cocoon with a clawed hand.
Now free of his prison, Adam walked aimlessly around the land that had once been his home. Nothing looked the same. Areas that had once been filled with fields of grain were now covered by a forest of mushrooms, towering over thirty feet into the sky. Where his family's house once stood, a giant domed shape fungus had grown which every hour sent a large spout of white spores into the air from a hole in its center.
As he continued to wander around the ruins of his planet, Adam left a thick cloud of spores behind him with every step he took until he reached the one place free of the ever present Fungi: the river. His mouth, covered by the white fungus that allowed him to breathe the toxic air, prevented him from drinking as he used to. Instead, he dipped both of his hands into the water, long thin roots quickly sprouting from his fingers. As the roots drew the water into his body Adam let out a muffled sigh. He could not remember the last time he had eaten. According to his brother, he no longer needed to, the spores in the air providing whatever nutrients he needed.
Looking down at his gray veined body, Adam hated his existence, wishing his brother had not saved him. He was deep in these self destructive thoughts when he felt the stinging touch of his brother's hand on his bare shoulder.
"It is time Adam," Saul spoke in his brother's mind.
"Already, brother? Do you have no mercy left for our own people?"
"We are Fungi now... humanity is our enemy."
"So you are going to help these aliens commit genocide?"
"Remember brother that it was humanity that attacked the Fungi first."
"It was an accident brother...can't you get the Fungi to see that."
"To the Fungi there are no such things as accidents. Even if I could get them to understand the concept, I have no desire to."
"But why?" Adam demanded.
"To end human suffering of course."
"How can you say that? You let the Fungi kill all our people."
"But what life would our people have had. Just before the Fungi arrived the Guild had stripped our world. In a way our people were lucky, the Fungi saved them from the slow death of starvation."
"Forgive me if I do not agree with you brother."
"You will in time. Do you think the Guild will ever stop walking down its chosen path of pain, suffering, and war?"
"The Guild might be corrupt, but it has given much to humanity."
"All they have done is allowed humans to spread like a plague across space."
"And how is that different from the Fungi?"
"The Fungi do not pollute their own worlds, they do not kill their own kind; there is no poverty, hunger, or conflict. A universe ruled by the Fungi would be nirvana. Humans, being what they are, are incapable of creating such a utopia. Better to end their suffering now then let them destroy themselves slowly."
"Why me brother... why did you let me live."
"When I pleaded for your life I was as you are now... very much human. I was afraid... afraid of not having one of my own kind to talk to, but that time has past." Saul said as deep slits in his neck appeared, releasing reddish spores as he removed his hand from Adam's shoulder, breaking the mental connection.
As the spores touched his body, Adam felt his mind flooded with words and images. "This is how true Fungi communicate with each other, releasing sterile spores that carry their thoughts in the form of chemical messages. All around you the Fungi are talking to each other... tens of millions of voices coming to me all at once."
Adam reached over and touched Saul's bare body, reforming the connection. "Then why do you need me."
"That's the point brother... I don't, but you are Fungi, and Fungi do not kill each other. Unless you want to be left here until your body roots itself to the ground, you will come with me and help me destroy mankind."
Lowering his head, Adam nodded slightly. He hated his brother, hated what he had become but he did not want to be left alone on a world that had become alien to him. "I will come with you brother."
Saul released another cloud of spores. "Good... follow me." He sent out as he began walking towards the large domed shaped fungus that had grown out of his family's home.
Moments after both men had entered the folds of the gigantic mushroom, the plant lifted off the ground. It blasted into space to join the mass of other Fungi vessels as they prepared to head for Earth.
Thanks go out to all those who were kind enough to write or join the yahoo group. All the chapters of The Son can be found there along with several other series not posted on nifty. While there check out the link section and take a peak at The Centurion and The Academy both books which are now for sale on Amazon. Take care.
James