Chapter 32 - Raid: Draconian Discourse

“All Units, Cease Fire.” Stewart's words followed the Drake Fisher's acceptance of Eric's Tribute and opened a dialogue for parlay. “Your show, Wyre.” Eric nodded at her permission and focused on the Drake Fisher's eyes.

“First, a Cease to Hostilities, Second: a Non-Aggression Pact between You and Our Forces.” He spoke with the authority of a diplomat to the sentient super-weapon. She nodded once.

“The First is Acceptable, the Second is also, provided my Lair is not intruded upon.” She nodded a second time, following her words.

“We're seeking a Regulator.” Eric paused as he saw the Drake Fisher clench her fists and bare her sharp looking teeth. “Our Forces may have to move through this area to pursue.”

“Acceptable. Your target is the Regulator filth?” She asked.

“It is.” Eric replied, with a nod.

“She attacked us. My mate and I.” She closed her eyes. “He is... was... not a large Male.” She admitted. “But he was intelligent, prudent, resourceful, patient, caring, compassionate, dignified,” She begins listing off all her mates admirable qualities, and tears build in her eyes. “He was not large, even for a Male, but he was mine, and I was his.” She looked at Eric. “She took him.” Not Good. 

"When?" Eric asked.

“Five surface days ago.” She growled. “She attacked. He was defending our eggs, and she made to target them. He fought her, to delay her, he reached out to me. I was chasing Cobras.” She admitted. “An... indulgence... of mine, to work off my excess egg mass...” She looked to the side. She pinched her abdominals and the barest amount of body fat was visible. “He said it only made me warmer to the touch... I should have listened. When I returned, his blood was everywhere, everywhere but the nest.” She looks down at the eggs. “He never let her get this close.” She said, turning her gaze to Eric. 

“She was on the surface just this morning.” Eric said. His words brought the Drake Fisher out of her glare. “So, she can't have... been within... for very long.”

“Not long enough,” The Drake said, “And with your presence she will be imperiled to harry. She will need to rely on him to support his body, rather than puppeteer a corpse, as she would otherwise.” Her voice had hope.

“My thoughts exactly." Eric assures her. "Do you have an idea where they are?”

“I do.” She nods. “I cannot sense him, she's torn out his...” She cringes, “He can no longer Resonate with me.” She says, rather than describe it.. “But the blood led North and down, toward this sector's lower cistern. I could still smell it. I would pursue, but her contaminated pets had gathered and threatened my eggs.” She looked back down to the eggs. Oh... I am NOT thinking, what I think I'm thinking.

 “Your Grace.” Eric said to the Drake, addressing her with respect. “Allow me to call my superiors.” Eric said, and his smile was visible through the artificial transparency of the helmet. “I've got an idea.”  It took five minutes to explain his idea. The Communication Truck had reestablished a connection to the Colonel, and she was... doubtful.. about the viability of his plan.
 
 “I don't believe in deputizing local assets, Warrant Officer.” Was her initial response. But that was an opinion, not a tactical point.

 “Having an Adult Drake as support for whatever else the Regulator has down there would be a boon.” Eric argued, “Especially one familiar with the environment.”

 “It means diverting a portion of our assets to protect her nest.” She countered, but that was part of his plan: their forces protect the nest, and the Drake leads them down to the Regulator.  

 “Assets that aren't going to be used to directly engage the Primary target anyway.” Eric replied. Indeed, Captain Rachel was the primary combat asset to subdue and destroy the Regulator. Everything else was there to keep distractions off of her. “And she would be more than willing to pry her mate away from harms way, and the Regulator's control.”

 That was a major danger, if the male Drake was under the Regulator's control, and being used as such. Having his mate to pin him down would make things that much less complicated.

 “Rebecca has been deployed, and is on her way toward an access point that leads down to the Cistern.” The Colonel said. A Titaness deployed in the City? Good thing it's night time. 

 “There's no reason not to stack the deck in our favor, then.” Eric replied. “Female Drake pins the Male Drake. Rebecca removes the Regulator. Rachel takes it down.”

 “I wouldn't mind having a local girl as backup.” Rachel's voice joined the channel, and her support for Eric's idea was a point in his favor.

 “I've read the maps of that Cistern, ma'am.” Stewart said. “That was on the list of our 'worst possible' places for the Regulator to hold up. Choke points all around, and if she's got a Drake 'mounted', it'll only get worse.”

 “Good points, around.” The Colonel said, calmly. Eric blinked, there was a hint of a smile in her voice. She was going to go with it the whole time, he realized. She just wanted to hear our input on it, first. “The plan is approved. Mister Wyre, make the offer.”

 Ten minutes later, Dancer Squad and two similar units had redeployed to guard the Drake's nest. Eric was riding shotgun in Stewart's combat car once more, at the head of her full unit. One of the groups initially blocked by the sealed entry points took over guarding the access shaft Eric and the others had descended through.

 Less then five meters to Eric's right, the massive torso of the Drake set the pace for the rest of the group. She was leading them to where the Regulator was most likely penned up. Eric didn't want to think about what he would see when he got there, but he forced himself through the motions.

 Regulators needed various resources, organic and synthetic, to carry out Metamorphosis. The synthetic was rare enough, but there was enough to scavenge down here in the Under City. The organic components were the more difficult to acquire. Specifically because the Regulator would require such an amount that it couldn't just kill the Drake and take them. She -IT- would have to embed herself into his body, and siphon off the hormones, enzymes, and other biological ingredients. The Regulator could have accomplished a similar result with about seventy Queen Cobras. But with two Drakes in the area, a breeding pair at that, any Queen Cobra population was likely to be well monitored.

 So It had gone up a link in the food web and went for the Male Drake instead.

 “Close.” The whisper in Eric's ear had a fleshy echo to it. He'd given the Drake Fisher a communicator, so she could keep it hidden and safe while she rescued her mate. Eric was under no illusions that anyone here had any control over the Drake. She was here for her mate, and would operate as she saw fit to get him.  

She was being polite with the reduced pace she was taking, so the heavier vehicles could keep up.

The tunnel they were traveling through showed signs of battle. Deep gouges in the metal and the stone, and lines of melted metal and exposed earthworks told the tale. The Male Drake was taken alive, fighting the whole way down to the Regulator's lair.

The Female paused once, resting her massive fore-claws against marks left by relatively smaller claws. Her massive eyes narrowed, and while Eric wasn't the best at reading the body language of biological war constructs, she seemed to be both proud and angry in the same moment.

Not surprising.

 Stewart signaled to the rest of the group that they were drawing close. The tension everyone was feeling from traveling side by side with a Drake only built higher. The unit's role was to confirm the Regulator's position, and support the Drake in extracting her mate. Engaging the Regulator would be up to Rachel once she and the Titaness Rebecca entered the fray.

 They came to the end of the tunnel, another opening into another cistern. Unlike the Drake's domain, there was no Haze here. Eric could clearly see the remains of a massive atmosphere reclamation apparatus. It must have been dragged here by the Regulator, and it would have the exact parts required for the Metamorphosis. It was a mess of pipes, wires, spinning fans, and sparking machinery.

 But what got everyone's attention was the body stretched out on top of the machine. Like the Drake beside them, it was broad and its scales shimmered with many hues as it shifted in and out of 'invisibility'. It was a Drake, smaller than the one beside them, but only by comparison. It shivered in pain as the cables tying it down arced electricity into its body. A tube was shoved into its maw, and a gray sludge was dripping out. The Drake's face was mauled, and of his many eyes, only one remained with any light in it. He was looking at them, through the murk, his eye wide with shock and fear.  

 Eric didn't think something that powerful could know fear... but there it was.

 All of this would be horrible enough, but just in front of its hind legs, between its last rib and its hips, was a massive bulging cyst. The Female Drake shivered, but held her position, even after two generations, her genetically inherited training told her the best thing she could do for her mate was to hold her ground.

 For now.

 “Wyre?” Stewart asked and pointed at the cyst bulging out of the Male Drake's side. “Is that it?” Eric held up a scanner and through the enhanced optics viewed the cyst through the entire spectrum. All the readings he got confirmed it, and he nodded. “Keeper Leader to OpCom, we have eyes on the Male Drake. Metamorphosis intrusion confirmed, patching video feed.”

 There was a short pause as Eric could almost feel other eyes looking through his helmet cameras and the scanner he was holding.  

 “Captain Rachel to Lady Drake...” Rachel's voice was soft, and lacked any of the static that should have been present on a wireless channel. The Female Drake's eyes opened.

 “I hear you, Arch Angel...” Her voice replied on the same channel.

 “Our Titaness will seek to... divide... your mate in a means that will allow him to regenerate later. You will remove him from the battlefield, afterwards.” Rachel couldn't hide the sympathy from her voice, or maybe she didn't try to.

 “This is acceptable, Arch Angel.” The anger and pain in the Female Drake's voice was threatening to impose on Eric's professionalism. “You have my thanks for your mercy in this.”

 “I am for the protection of Life and its Freedom, not its Abuse or Destruction.” Rachel responded, and then there was a massive CRACK.

 Shafts of artificial light appeared on the far side of the cistern, and the Male Drake's body lurched at an unnatural angle. His eye was forced to turn and bulge so he could see. Eric could see the muscles coil in the Female Drake as she prepared to spring. He also saw the Cyst churn and start to spew thick black ichor from itself, hardening into a shell around the cyst.

 The Drake's groan of pain could be heard as loud as the crack of the breaching. Then there was a thunderous boom as something landed at the bottom of the open shaft.  

 She was towering, over seventy meters in height, as over eight thousand tons of condensed mass landed in the form of beautiful, if synthetic, looking woman. The Titaness Rebecca's body was smooth, her silver skin and chrome armor were painted in black and red markings that denoted her advanced combat rating. Her wide yellow eyes glowed in the dark and her face was a calm mask of focus and intent.  

 And as she stood, Rachel descended. Her full armor shocked Eric as he saw it. Her pointed, star-like, wings extended far to each side, and her arms and legs were longer by her battle extensions. Her torso was mostly exposed, but her plating now glowed with internal light.

 “NOW!” Rachel called out, and Rebecca and the Female Drake both charged forward. Stewart's column was close behind. Rebecca drew a massive blade from her back and brought it down just as swiftly. The sickening sound of flesh parting reverberated as Rebecca's blade separated the Male Drake's body, just below his ribs. Rebecca swatted her blade to the side, and set the lower half of the Drake, and the infecting cyst, toward some other rubble.  

 Rachel pursued the Cyst infected half of the Drake's body and Eric held on as Steward followed the Female Drake to her mate. While the Female Drake bent low over her mate's head and brought her mouth down toward his, Stewart swung around the back.

 Eric prepared himself for gore, but instead he was surprised to see a tightly knit wall of muscle and flesh. The exposed spinal column still dripped and there was blood coming from several other arteries, but they were fast clamping down. He'd had enough control over his anatomy to partition his core vitals? That didn't make sense. Unless...

“Ready....” Eric heard a male's voice, on the Female Drake's channel. She must have pushed herself into his mouth to find his Fisher body. “I was....able to make ready...” The Male Drake whispered, and Eric could hear the female whimper and weep. “But so was she...” He gasped as his body shuddered. Fuuuuck.

 There was a howl, a wind sheering gust, and Eric turned around. The laughter that followed was blood curdling, heart chilling, and enraging all at once.

 Rachel was getting back onto her feet, having been knocked back; Standing in the center of a bloody mass of flesh and slime was a powerfully built female synthetic. Her five meter tall body was muscled, gray, and coated with a placenta-like sheath. She pulled it off and spread her wings. Wide, feathered, and black. Her red eyes gleamed with joy as she flexed and shifted her shoulders. From across the Cistern she turned her head and fixed her gaze on Eric. Then, she vanished. Eric felt the hovercar shift as something landed on it behind him. Then heard a voice in his ear.

"I am Complete~"

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Special Thanks to Skiratas and Aeronator for their editing help, catching typos and tense jumping. (So much tense jumping)


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