CHAPTER 30 - RISK

DATE POINT: APRIL 28th, 7 A.U. (AFTER UNIFICATION)

LOCATION: SOL SYSTEM, ABOARD AAV “CONTACT ONE”

LIEUTENANT PAUL KARST

Paul came to with a jolt and sat up, only for his head to buzz heavily as his vision blurred into black static. He laid his head back down and let the sensation clear before he tried lifting it again, slower this time. Henry seemed to be deep in discussion with Roh Thaad’at at the entryway to the training room. It was hard to tell from body language alone with the Captain in his suit, but he didn’t seem so happy. Great…

That was… a foolish maneuver…. Our wisdom is useless if you refuse to heed it… the god-kings will kill you as you are… you must take this lesson… you must grow stronger… wiser… humbler… if you die… we return to the seas of primordial chaos… and all our efforts will be for naught….

Look, I have a splitting headache and my stomach is in knots. We can have this discussion later. Right now I have to talk to the grey.

This is not over mortal…do not think you can escape this...

I know, and you are right. I got cocky and it would have gotten us killed . Spare me the longer talk, I understand the message. No distractions now, thank you.

Head mostly clear, Paul got to his feet with a groan and jogged over to Henry to rejoin him.

“Paul, glad to see you up so quickly. How do you feel?” Henry asked as Paul joined them.

“Humbled, honestly. I got knocked around a bit back there. That simulator is no joke, Commandant. Question for you, why do I get the feeling that you bumped up the difficulty on me? Is it normal to send one man with a low integration level into that kind of fight?” Paul asked with his arms folded.

Apparently he hit a bullseye as the alien leader seemed taken aback momentarily before it resumed its normal expressionless facade. Paul had no idea if awkward silence had the same effect on the alien as it would on a human, but he stuck to it and did his best to stare them down anyway. After a pause that seemed to drag on painfully long, but must have been only a minute or two, the alien relented and spoke first.

“Your species is truly perceptive. That specific fight was intended for a fully balanced party of a higher median integration level. You wish to lead the ground expedition, am I correct?”

“I am leading the ground expedition.” Paul corrected.

“Then you must be prepared with a healthy degree of caution, you must be ready for the realities of the dangers you will be facing. Remember, also, that we are investing billions of credits into this expedition in advanced experimental augmentations and military hardware. All of that will be wasted if you get yourself or your soldiers killed in some foolhardy manner on the surface. The worst danger you ever truly faced in our training room was in getting a bruised ego. In a real fight the stakes will be much higher, we hope that you will remember this next time when it counts.”

He speaks wisdom…. You allowed yourself to be baited into a trap… your ego would have been your death… have we chosen the wrong host?

No. I don’t need two of you harping on me over this either. One conversation at a time, please!

The only reply Paul got was a sharp stab of mental pain. Asshole.

“I will remember, I assure you. I actually took some other lessons from this battle as well. My telekinesis is far too weak and inefficient compared to theirs, can you give me an armor upgrade module that will boost my powers, or some kind of advanced heat sink technology to boost my powers or longevity?” Paul asked.

“The Alderei do not have such powers within our scope of genetic possibilities, and thus we have not developed such technologies. We have already begun research using the data we have collected so far in anticipation of deepening our future partnership. There may be a breakthrough we can provide in the future, but it will take time. Your best bet is to collect similar technologies on the surface from the bodies or the armor kits of the god-kings which we can work to resize or adapt in the short run to work with your armor and physiology.”

“Damn, I thought that might be the case. Earlier on I thought I heard you mention that you could upgrade our genetics and provide us with a rapid cellular replacement body. I think its clear now that we are going to need the extra boost. I want to see if you can give me extra height, breadth, natural strength and speed, anything that can give me additional advantage, I want it, I don’t care about the risks.” Paul said,

“Hold on a minute, Paul, I thought we agreed….” Henry began before Paul cut him off.

“My body my choice. You are going to get to sit pretty up on the ship while I put myself in harms way on a constant basis down there. This is what I want, furthermore, it’s the right and prudent decision.” Paul said in a tone that brokered no argument.

Roh Thaad’at nodded and then spoke.

“That can be done. There is a philosophical angle to this. Every cell of your body will be replaced with a genetically superior and modified version of itself once your time in the cellular replacement chamber is complete. Because you have yet to have your nano-machine osteo-cladding fuse, this is still possible to accomplish by putting the various augmentations into stasis mode while you undergo rapid cellular replacement. When you come out on the other side it will be arguable if you are the same being, even though your memories will transfer over along with your basal genome into its upgraded form. Have you considered the implications of this procedure all the way through?”

“Yes, we have an old thought experiment called the ship of Theseus, where philosophy students have to argue if a ship that has had every timber and part replaced over time with new ones, leaving no old parts behind is truly still the same ship as before. I don’t give a damn if I am made of different cells and if that means I’m a different person afterwards or not. I do give a damn about winning. Having a larger, stronger frame to support the extra bulk and muscle is going to be critical to our survival. I can feel it in my aching bones. What I am is not enough.” Paul replied.

“Very well, there are risks to this course of action, but it seems that you will not be easily swayed against it. We will have the chamber prepared for you. It will be painful and the process takes just over two weeks to complete, you will experience time at a normal pace inside the time dilation field event horizon, though outside of it a mere twenty-eight hours will pass. For this reason, we will put you into a medically induced coma through the full duration. That is the primary risk, the secondary risk will be an increased chance of developing cancer, though your onboard medical suite should identify and kill any such cells long before they become truly dangerous. There is another small chance of neurological issues if your nervous system fails to properly integrate with your new body cells. This is rare, but it might require intensive physical therapy and medical intervention to correct. The risks of this are manageable with Alderei medicine, and the odds are well under one percent for each of these negative outcomes. Do you consent to the procedure, knowing the risks?” Roh Thaad’at asked.

“I consent.” Paul said grimly.

“Paul… are you sure about this?” Henry asked, aghast.

“My body, my choice, captain. I’m not going to tell you again. We need every advantage we can get. I am walking into this with my eyes wide open.”

“I can order you to stand down and put a stop to this,” Henry began.

“But you won’t because you know I'm right, and furthermore it is my right to take this risk. If this fails, you can have Lance take my place as field ops commander. If it succeeds, I will be strong enough to shoulder the burden of tanking the worst blows and the most dangerous fighting and our odds of success will rise tremendously. It’s the right move and you know it.” Paul said with steely conviction.

“Very well, I won’t stand in your way, but you will have to be the one to explain yourself to Ariana.” Henry said with folded arms and a smug tone.

Right… hadn’t thought about that… any objections from you, creepy?

No... we can see no alternative…. If you plan to survive…. you will need all the power you can acquire….

Great. One thing we agree on, at least…

“The chamber has been prepared. We had cultured your genetically modified stem cells in preparation for this possibility that you would request this. We will be able to safely add thirty percent to your height and nearly double your width. We will upgrade your organ efficiency, vastly strengthen your tendons and ligaments, increase your bone thickness and density, improve cardiovascular efficiency, as well as improve your eyesight, hearing, and apply few other upgrades. We will also attempt to remove your genetic predisposition to a degenerative neurological disease that would otherwise have affected you in your old age without functional immortality prolonging your lifespan.”

“You really don’t mess around do you?” Henry asked, taken aback.

“You’re telling me I was going to get Alzheimer’s?!” Never mind, I'd rather not know. That list sounds good, if that is the most you can safely modify, then I will take it.” Paul said.

“Very well, stand by for translocation.” Roh Thaad’at said.

“Wait, what?” Paul said before he disappeared in a flash of bright light. When the light faded away he was in a different room altogether. He swayed on his feet for a moment as a dizzy spell struck.

“First time translocating? Don’t worry, the feeling will pass.” He turned around to see a new Alderei in a purple and crimson robe and a set of wraparound goggles strapped around its prodigious head.

“Uh… yeah… That obvious huh? I don’t believe we've met.” Paul said awkwardly.

“The swaying gave you away. The process is perfectly safe, but it messes with your species inner ear. The effect is less pronounced in the Alderei.”

“Let me guess. You have a more highly evolved sense of balance?” Paul snarked, unable to help himself.

“Quite the opposite actually, your species are far better natural athletes, and your evolutionary path demanded a much more sensitive organic system for maintaining your sense of balance. Quite an impressive structure actually. Dear me! I forgot my manners. My name is Researcher Octa Silvar’Esh, chief geneticist onboard. You must be Lieutenant Karst, I am excited to meet you finally. Your genetics are quite unique and intriguing! The study of the structures that generate your telekinesis alone will be keeping me busy for years alone! The fact that your body is able to produce such intricate structures out of carbon is quite impressive. To think that you have a pristine unscrambled copy of a portion of your race’s standard junk DNA sequences! It is truly an exciting opportunity to study the racial inheritance that the Nephaeli’im had stolen from you so long ago, and by extension, how life and evolution eventually found a way to reclaim it!”

Paul stood in silence taken completely aback at how quickly the alien intelligence had spoken, as if they had no biological need to breathe at all. His head hurt at the implications of what he had heard, and he struggled to find a good way to digest it, much less uncover more. He shook his head to snap himself out of it.

“I’m sorry, what did you say about stolen racial inheritance and scrambled DNA?!” He managed to blurt out.

“Oh? You weren’t aware? Of course not, it makes sense with a nearly two thousand year gap in knowledge. Surprised that some aspects of this hadn’t made it through to the modern era, even as half-forgotten myths. The Nephaeli’im are generally not subtle in mythologizing their actions. Always wondered as to why they do so, perhaps as an intimidation tactic? Or perhaps through a hidden sense of guilt, though that is much less likely. They are not known for their empathy or strong positive emotional traits. Are you certain that there are no human myths about an extinct race of humans that were greater, stronger, smarter, or braver than the current modern generations?”

Paul wanted to shake Octa Silvar’Esh and beg them to slow down, but he held himself in check.

“Now that I think of it, there's a Greek myth about a race of golden humans in the past, I think the modern humans were considered lesser bronze humans or something like that. The bible also speaks of an older race of humanity that could live up to one thousand years and lived... with giants before the flood…. Holy shit… I always thought that was all bullshit. Are you really telling me that's all true?”

“Bull... Shit… hmmm... refers to male bovine excrement? Curious phrasing, though I can understand the likely linguistic implication. An unbelievable tale that nobody would wish to swallow. Disgusting, but effective verbal imagery. You humans are such a constant source of delightful surprises! Bull shit… such an intriguing turn of phrase. Back on topic. Yes, the original genome of the Adamu has been manipulated many times by the Nephaeli'im. The original genome had superior intelligence, longevity, strength, immune systems, and much more. Much of the basis for your converted genetic profile we prepared is based upon the original Adamu genome with multiple tailored upgrades of my own design. Would you like to review the procedure you are about to undertake? Do you have any questions for me, or did you manage to get a full explanation from the Commandant?”

“No thank you, I already spoke with the Commandant. I am ready to begin, unless you think you can find a way to genetically upgrade my telekinetic abilities. The Commandant seemed to think that there was nothing that he could do to help through technology without significant research and development time requirements.” Paul said, not daring to get his hopes up.

“Actually…. With the increased cranial capacity that I will be adding to your new body, I believe I can fit a larger primary field generating structure and better insulate your brain tissue as well as improve the rate of excess waste heat radiation. I had been working on just such a design since I first received your brain scan and genetic profile. There will be risks involved, as we will not get the chance to test this design, but the rationale behind it is sound.”

Paul suddenly found himself very excited. “How did you come up with such a design so quickly? All I need to know is will it work?”

“The science is sound, and I am the foremost expert in Adamu genetics amongst the Alderei, but I would rather have a chance to test it in a controlled experiment first… I had planned to flash clone your brain, but I haven’t had the time to do so yet.”

“Forget the testing, we don’t have time for all of that. I’m already taking the risks enough as it is. I am sure that you are plenty smart enough to accomplish this safely.” Paul replied, remembering how quickly he had lost against the Dyeus AI earlier, and how under-powered he had felt when he tried to throw it. Worse even than that was the embarrassment of utterly failing to catch up in their dogfight. He needed this upgrade, or else he may as well give up now; the risks be damned.

“Well, if you insist... The design upgrades are based primarily off those found in a telekinetic Nephaeli’im corpse I had the opportunity to dissect. I see no reason that we couldn’t adapt it to your physiology with relative ease. The difficult part was to adapt the genomic sequence into one recognizable by your body to allow your RNA to compile and create the structures necessary. Having access to your gene code and its evolutionary workarounds was tremendously helpful in preparing the necessary adaptation. I believe that the method that I have devised will be safe and effective. My research station has its own dedicated quantum computer that I have already set to task modeling a solution, it should be done momentarily. The required parameters are already well within known theory and our technical capability. There is always a risk of unintended consequences that you will have to accept if you plan to move forward without testing.”

“Yes, yes I consent. If it is even half as promising in reality as you have laid out here then the reward is more than worth the risk.” Paul answered.

You are being reckless…. Do not be so quick to agree… at least weigh the consequences of failure...

Do we need to have another discussion reminding you whose body this is? You are a passenger, a helper, and your reward is to soak in all the fear and negative emotions you can feed on when we reach the surface.

You stubborn fool… remember that we warned you…

Paul rolled his eyes and got another sharp stab of pain in response.

Cut that shit out! Sore fucking loser.

“Very well, Please strip your weapons and armor and step into the pod. It will fill with an enzyme-infused stem cell solution that will begin the rapid cellular replacement process. You will have a breathing mask and integrated feeding tube place you in a medically induced coma in order to keep you alive. Once we can verify you are safely on life support and unconscious, we will begin the rapid cellular replacement therapy and activate the temporal acceleration field. You will awaken in approximately twenty eight hours if everything goes well. All of your integration levels will be reset, so you will need to re-train from one percent with most of your augmentations. Are you ready?”

Paul was hard at work stripping down and out of his armaments and armor while the Alderei spoke.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.” He said as he laid himself down in the pod. A mask lowered down and sealed itself against his face. He felt the highly uncomfortable feeling of a slimy tube being forced down his throat as a sweet smelling gas filled the mask and the world began to fade to black.

28 HOURS LATER….

DATE POINT: APRIL 30th, 7 A.U. (AFTER UNIFICATION)

LOCATION: SOL SYSTEM, ABOARD AAV “CONTACT ONE”

LIEUTENANT PAUL KARST

Blinding light broke through the foggy darkness as Paul fought against powerful restraints. His throat burned and his eyes felt crusty, but he couldn’t wipe at them.

Where the fuck am I?

Settle down… you have been awoken from your rapid cellular replacement… everything appears to have gone well…

“Lieutenant! If you can hear me, please stop thrashing about or I will not release you. Those are self repairing meta-alloy restraints. Even with your enhanced strength you cannot break them at your current integration level. Can you understand me? Try speaking, though go slowly, your voice may be hoarse.” The Alderei doctor spoke. What was his name again?

Their name is Octa Silvar’Esh… has your memory been damaged?

Fuck off creepy, I just need a minute to wake up properly. Everything’s all foggy still, but I can remember most everything, just bad with these damn xeno names.

“Please release the restraints Doctor, I need to rub my eyes… and to take a shower. I smell like tank goo.” Paul croaked.

The restraints clicked and retreated from around his wrists and legs. Slowly, carefully, Paul tested his limbs, which felt heavy and sluggish to respond. He rubbed the crust from his eyes and blinked a few dozen times until his eyes finally adjusted. When they did so, he found he could see everything in astounding clarity. Cool!

“You will probably feel sluggish and weak for a bit until your neural pathways can adjust. Just be careful, as you might accidentally damage small objects with your upgraded muscle mass until you get fully adjusted and can regain fine motor control. Take it slow, and when you are ready, we will get you some proper solid food to eat. After that, we can get you over to the training room to begin your physical therapy and combat re-training to familiarize yourself with your new body.”

Paul stepped out of the pod with a heavy thump before he stretched his back with a satisfying feeling. He then jogged around the room with heavy footfalls, getting used to his new body mass and proportions. He realized he now stood taller than the Alderei who had previously had at least a full head on him in height. He looked down at the massive paws that were his hands now along with his thicker legs and torso.

Damn! I can get used to this!

“Don’t freak out, but I have to test something.” Paul said with a mischievous grin. He then activated his telekinesis and lifted the Alderei right off the ground with surprising ease.

“Put me down, Lieutenant Karst! This is most undignified!”

Paul shrugged and released the field, dropping them back to their feet. He then activated a similar TK field over his own head at the same strength he had so thoroughly memorized for flight only to find that he barely budged.

Gonna have to remember to boost the power up from now on when I fly.

Much to his surprise, he had to double the power of the field to lift himself now, and to his further surprise, it was easy.

“Doc, I think you out-did yourself in juicing up my telekinetic power. I’ll have to thoroughly test it later to be sure, but I can tell I am more powerful than I was before by a substantial margin.” Paul said with a grin.

He then walked over to the cubby that had in the wall to grab his BDUs only to realize that they were way too small.

Shit. I didn’t even think of that. Paul thought to the sound of the entity laughing at him in his head as his face turned red with the realization that he was going to have to go commando now.

“Would you happen to have any clothes I can wear for now?” Paul asked.

“No, we don’t. Not for any being of your size, anyway. I believe engineering was working on something for you, though I am unsure if it is ready yet. However, your Guardian suit will be able to thin out its armor thickness enough to adapt to and cover your larger frame if you wish to at least wear something until we can find a solution to your predicament. We can modify the belt size to hold more meta-alloy so that your defense will not be compromised before you deploy. It will at least cover you for now, the helmet and your gauntlets will not be able to resize enough to adapt, however. Those will require a complete re-engineering, which have already been started as well.” The Alderei responded.

Paul shrugged and grabbed the belt, affixing it to his bare waist. The adjustment feature strained to fit, but managed to clasp in the end, ever so slightly too tight. He then gave the mental command to suit up. The uncomfortable feeling of being covered in liquid metal felt even more unnerving against his naked flesh, he found to his dismay. Even worse, it pinched and rubbed in some very uncomfortable places.

Better than hanging dong in front of the Captain, I suppose. Paul told himself, trying extremely hard to make himself believe it as he moved carefully to avoid pinching himself in some very sensitive places.

“Are you ready for translocation, Lieutenant? The Captain and the Commandant have been notified that you are awake and ready.”

Paul nodded and was engulfed in a flash of light before he could verbally respond. The sense of vertigo returned once more as he re-emerged into the conference room they had all originally met in.

“Paul! Holy shit you’re huge!” Lance said, having to crane his neck to look up at him, even encased as he was in his Paladin suit. Paul found that he was easily a full head taller than even Victor, probably half a meter wider too.

“I feel great too, thanks for asking.” Paul snarked with a shit eating grin plastered on his exposed face.

“Good, I would hate to have such an important soldier out of commission for any reason, much less because of some foolhardy quest to get swole quick.” Henry replied in a half sarcastic tone.

“It worked, I’m much bigger than ever, in every way. Wanna see? I’m going commando under this armor because my old BDUs don’t fit anymore.” Paul flexed and winked. The whole room groaned and Henry facepalmed against his faceplate.

“At least now we can definitely say its still you in there and not some xeno doppelganger. You are hereby ordered to never say that again.” Henry replied.

“Jealous much?” Paul laughed.

“Captain, permission to undertake the same genetic upgrade course as the Lieutenant?” Victor asked.

“Can’t stand not being the giant in the room, eh, big guy?” Paul snarked.

“Can’t let you be the only super-heavy now, can I? The rules of the game have changed forever now, and someone will need to play human tank for team two.” Victor replied happily.

“Fine, permission granted. We can begin group training after that. Anyone else want to get swole on easy mode?” Henry asked. Unsurprisingly, there were no other takers.

“That works for me, it makes sense to have at least one super heavy per team, especially with how hard those bastards hit.” Paul said. His stomach growled loudly.

“Doctor Octa said something about food?” Paul asked.

Roh Thaad’at’'s mouth upturned ever so slightly for a mere moment before he replied.

“Yes, Lieutenant, I will have some human edible food brought up for you right away. If Chief Petty Officer Franklin is ready, we can translocate him at any time. His genetic samples along those of the other Guardians were prepared for upgrade while Lieutenant Karst was undergoing his procedure in anticipation that they would likely wish to be next.”

Paul smiled, thinking how it was good to be back. He then turned over to Henry.

“What are we going to do about my Paladin suit?” He asked.

“Already taken care of, I brought one of our marines over and had it returned by dropship while you were out. Since you are never going to fit into a Paladin suit ever again, I took the liberty of requesting special modifications to your new armor to make them space worthy for boarding operations.” Henry said.

“Well, thank you Captain, I didn’t know you cared until now.” Paul said with mock sweetness.

“Keep your armor on, please. I can’t have you staying behind on this upcoming fleet action. If I order a boarding op, I'll need my best soldiers kitted out and ready.” Henry said, waiving him off. Roh Thaad’at came to the rescue right after.

“We have manufactured a new size adaptable meta-fiber undersuit for that will help block radiation, regulate body temperature, and will act as a pressure suit for you. It will make wearing your outer armor much more comfortable as well. We have a low profile detachable life support backpack module that will automatically integrate with your armor and which you can sling your spear against,. We are also working on new gauntlets as well as two new helmets for you. One for void operations and another for ground operations like your old one, all of them capable of dynamic resizing.”

“Will they be ready in time? Also, can you resize my armor belt and add more meta-alloy to it? It’s feeling pretty damn tight on me, and the armor thinned out a lot already in order to cover me. I'm only going to be getting bigger from here on out…. I'm gonna need a lot more room to grow into.” Paul asked.

“Of course, though that will take some time. We do have your first undersuit ready now, if you are ready to change. It will have a certain amount of additional meta-fiber included in an expansion pack in the back to allow for limited resizing, but eventually you will need a larger overall size as you grow in size and musculature. We will have two larger size options ready for you to grow into within the next couple of days, along with the rest of your team's upgraded Guardian sets.”

“Good. I’m itching to get out of this armor.” Paul replied, meaning every word of it.

Roh Thaad’at then waived his hand and a neatly folded jet black garment appeared on the table in a bright flash of light. Wasting no time on shame, and secretly reveling in the chance to show off, Paul retracted his armor into his belt without warning, and set the belt on the table.

“Dammit, Paul, at least turn around!” Lucas shouted.

“Hey, you know you’re just jealous.” Paul fired back.

Paul then slipped his feet into into his new undersuit and slid it up his legs before slipping his arms into the sleeves. The suit then zipped itself closed without a visible seam once he connected the open halves over his chest.

"Is it supposed to be this loose?" Paul asked.

UNDERSUIT SEALED. RESIZING AND PRESSURIZING.

Suddenly all over Paul's body from his toes to his neck he felt the suit tighten down. His eyes bulged and he grunted in agony as the suit squeezed in on him and then equalized its pressure and fit, showing off every contour and muscle of his body before the pressure seemed to relent just enough that he could think straight once more and move freely. This is going to take some getting used to.

One quick glance downwards and he was suddenly very conscious that his new suit showed off every contour.

“Gotta love that ET tech.” Paul said, wearing a forced smile.

“Hey Captain, Permission to on get that same gene therapy upgrade as the Lieutenant?” One of the Marines in the second augmentation wave asked. Gunnery Sergeant O’Brien, if Paul remembered right.

“Don't lie. You just want that bigger junk, don’t you, Gunny?” One of the marines in the back quipped, Paul didn’t know his name.

“I don’t need the extra size to get the ladies screaming out my name in ecstasy, but you just keep on projecting there, Corporal.” O’Brien replied, completely unruffled.

The marine in back started to angrily speak up before Henry turned his head back with a death glare obvious even through his faceplate while Paul smirked on.

“Stow it, now. Anyone else want to get the gene treatment? Speak up now or hold your peace.” Henry said, sounding more than a little flustered. This was getting fun.

“If the other Guardians are going to get boosted, then I gotta do it too. It’s gonna be our job to take the hits and keep the attention of these cosplaying posers off the rest of our squad anyway. I’m personally looking forward to squashing me some ‘God-kings’.” Their fourth guardian, Staff Sergeant Jaden Hamilton replied.

Roh Thaad’at nodded. “This was an expected outcome, the personality types that lead people to the Guardian role tend to gravitate towards desiring increased strength and body mass to assist in winning physical confrontations.”

“Hulk bro strength may not be everything, but its damn useful in a fight.” Staff Sergeant Hamilton replied.

“Indeed. We don’t disagree, and have thus prepared to augment all of the Guardians at one time after the Lieutenant made his request. We have prepared stem cell solutions for each of you, and had the additional rapid cellular replacement pods delivered by wormhole from our homeworld in anticipation. If you are ready, please move into the center of the room away from your fellows, and step out of your armor to prepare for translocation.” Roh Thaad’at replied.

The three of them stood and walked into the middle of the room and set their helmets on the central table before stepping out of their armor.

“We are ready, Commandant.” Gunnery Sergeant O’Brien stated.

Roh Thaad’at nodded, and the three of them disappeared in a bright flash of light. He then turned back towards everyone else in the room.

"Right. Back to the topic of planning balanced economic development and the development of dynamic supply chains."

Paul groaned and sat himself down in one of the now empty chairs with a heavy thump.

Can't. Wait,

4 HOURS LATER….

DATE POINT: APRIL 30th, 7 A.U. (AFTER UNIFICATION)

LOCATION: SOL SYSTEM, ABOARD UTRN INDOMITABLE WILL

SERGEANT ARIANA SILVA

Ariana paced back and forth. Try as she would, nothing seemed to calm her mind. None of her usual tactics seemed to be working, not hitting the gym, nor taking a shower, her meditation and breathing exorcises were interrupted within mere moments by intrusive thoughts. In a word, the past weeks had been hell. Chantal had been her rock lately, and the poor girl had been cheerful and calmly rational even in the face of the worst anxiety storm that Ariana could dump on her shoulders. It was unfair, she knew, but she couldn't help it. Ariana hadn't been this emotionally disregulated since she had painstakingly remade herself after the fall of the Ascension Project. In spite of it all, Chantal had always made time to let Ariana vent and had never once made her feel guilty over it.

In all fairness, Ariana had been there for her when Chantal had been stressed in her research post before meeting Henry and joining the expedition, and had helped untangle residual feelings from argument or two the couple had engaged in since then. Even then, Ariana felt like a horrible friend over how uncharacteristically needy and unhinged she had become lately. Things had become especially bad after the assault in the corridor following Jenkins's fight, along with the horrible long-buried memories that it had exposed.

Girl, get a fucking grip, you're stronger than this.

After a painful eternity, a rhythmic knock cut through the storm. She's finally here. Ariana palmed the door control and it slid open to reveal her friend holding two coffees.

"Hey! Sorry to take so long, that port side C.L.A.P.P.E.R calibration took a little longer than expected. Anyway, I come bearing gifts." She beamed.

"Bless you." Ariana replied as she grabbed the offered cup.

"All right, lets sit down. Tell me everything, you look like you're about fit to burst." Chantal replied.

"Honestly, Chantal, I don't know what to do. They are still holding a spot for me to get augmented and to join Paul's field team... I know he wants me there specifically, and I want to be there for him, even if its just to watch his back. But I don't want to make this decision just based on what he wants. What about what I want? I still don't think its wise to trust the Alderei with installing some super computer in our brains. I've spent some time with Paul after he had his computer installed and he seems perfectly normal, well... normal for him anyway, and you personally helped our doctors scan them and test them to make sure it doesn't seem like there's some sleeper mind control embedded, so there's that. Then there's this thing with Preston getting into a fight, and those bastards and what they tried to do.... which before you ask, I still don't want to talk about. God I feel like I'm about to explode! I need your logical brain to help parse this out. I am supposed to give my final answer by tomorrow or they give up my slot on the team, leaving Paul with no real counterbalance and Preston without my support out there. Though again, I need to make this choice on what's right for me, not them! Fucking immortality! I'm not sure I even want that!" Ariana ran out of breath releasing the stream of thoughts that had plagued her.

Chantal gave her the sweetest look of concern and squeezed her into a hug. After a moment, Ariana relaxed into it and released her fingers from digging into the palms of her hands before she gave in and returned the hug. They sat there in silence together for a long moment before they broke away. Chantal took a long sip of her steaming cup before she finally spoke.

"You've allowed this all to get tangled up into one giant ball of stress. That's why you can't untangle it or think it through. So let's address this one issue at a time. I've decided that I am going to get augmented alongside Henry. I know you aren't much a fan of pro and con lists, but that really helped me out, along with learning that I can shut off the augmentations that prolong my life indefinitely by a simple command if I ever decide I want to start aging normally again. I do want an opportunity at forever with Henry, even knowing that its possible things can go badly in the future. He's right that I am utterly irreplaceable, not to toot my own horn, but this mission needs me and that onboard medical suite will help me recover from almost any injury with enough time. Falling down the quick lift shaft put my own mortality into perspective for me, along with a long series of talks with Henry on the topic. Having that out makes a big difference for my mind, and I think it should help ease your mind on the topic too. The mission needs you too, I need you. Paul needs you, as you are one of the few humanizing influences he has. I daresay even Preston needs you."

Ariana rolled her eyes. "Please, why would it matter if Preston needs me? It's not like I need him. I've barely seen him since he met nurse smiley, anyway."

Chantal giggled and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, is that jealousy I detect? Sure sounds like you don't need him to me." She said in a teasing tone.

"I don't need him- or any other man!" Ariana hissed, getting irritated.

"Look, all I am saying is that you two make a great couple... of friends. Also, you'll effectively have him all to yourself as friends down on the surface. Nurse smiley will be staying up here on the ship. You wouldn't be feeling such strong emotions right now if he really means nothing to you. I see the way you look at each other. You're still human, no matter how much you may want to hide it. Even then, would you be able to forgive yourself if something happened to Paul, or Jenkins down there and you could have helped save them?" Chantal doubled down, taking zero shit.

"I.... dammit. When did I get so weak and dependent?" Ariana asked with slumped shoulders, having nothing to say against the full onslaught of Chantal's intellect dissecting her bullshit. Her ability to see right through her freaked Ariana out more than a little bit. It was no wonder she had Henry so effectively wrapped around her finger.

"You are neither of those things, queen. You are simply gaining the realization that you have something to fight for other than yourself. There is no dishonor in that, in fact, a lot of people see that as a pillar of strength. It's kind of nice to be a part of something bigger than yourself. From that perspective, inter-dependency is a form of strength that you cannot achieve on your own." Chantal said with a gentle smile.

"Fine, so I can maybe get behind that idea. I still find myself hesitating to jump in feet first here. It's a huge decision, even knowing that I can change my mind later and disable the mods. Fuck! I wish I had more time to think." Ariana complained.

thump Ariana's mass senses picked up something huge closing in on her room, just at the edge of perception. thump

Thump "What the fuck is that?" She asked, turning towards the door. THUMP

THUMP "What is what?" Chantal asked. THUMP

Five powerful knocks struck on her door, arranged in a specific and familiar pattern. It couldn't be... She tensed up. That's Paul's knock, but the mass signature is way off.... It can't be him.

Cautiously, and ready to fight, she palmed the door control. It slid open to reveal an impossibly tall, broad man wearing a shamelessly skintight one piece outfit. Their head was covered halfway by the door frame, making it impossible to identify them. She stepped backwards from the door, instinctively readying her telekinesis.

"Hey sis, can I come in?" The man crouched down a bit, revealing a much larger version of Paul's face which spoke in a deeper version of his old voice.

"Paul?! What... What the fuck have you done to yourself you moron!?!" Ariana shrieked, as the tension drained only to be replaced by fury.

"Well, I guess I should have expected a reaction like that..." Paul said, laughing.

"What have you done?!" Ariana replied, unable to comprehend what she was seeing. He had to be well over two and a half meters tall and almost twice as wide as he was before. Her heart pounded in her chest uncontrollably.

"I decided to take Roh Thaad'at up on his offer to provide me with a rapid cellular replacement body with some major genetic upgrades. The rest of the Guardians have all decided to follow in my example. So far the Rangers and Scouts have opted out, but that's okay, their job description isn't to act like a damage sponge and walking tank like the Guardians will need to be. My bones are way thicker, my muscles are larger with far stronger tendons, I have literal hawk vision, I can hear your heartbeat even. Every part of me has been upgraded to superhuman levels. It's actually pretty incredible!"

"How in the world can you possibly be acting so relaxed about this right now!?! You let those xenos turn you into some freak genetic abomination!" Ariana shouted, still quite unable to rein in her anger.

"Paul... This sounds like a bad idea, who knows what kind of long term unintended consequences you have bestowed upon yourself. Did you even talk to anyone about this before you decided to do this!?" Chantal asked.

"Oh hi Chantal! Don't worry, Henry gave his begrudging approval after I talked him into it, and reminded him that it's my body to risk and that the potential upside far outweighed any potential downsides." Paul replied nonchalantly.

"Forgive me, but I'm definitely siding with Ariana here. What the hell were you thinking letting the Alderei experiment on you like that?" Chantal replied.

"Everything they did was well tested in advance or was based on a prior working design in flesh that they were able to replicate and adapt to work in my body and brain physiology." Paul replied. Chantal folded her arms across her chest and raised an eyebrow.

"You let them make structural brain changes?! What did you do, Paul?" Chantal asked in a tone that demanded the complete truth.

"I had them upgrade my telekinesis at the same time as they gave me a larger frame to grow into and add future muscle onto. It was risky, but I am much more powerful than before. They based it on a design found in a telekinetic Nephaeli'im corpse they were able to dissect and study. The design was already a working one, so apparently it wasn't hard to adapt. Listen, I understand your concerns. shared them even before I started, but the truth is we need this if we plan to win."

"No, Paul, this is too much! How can you even call yourself human anymore!?" Ariana surprised herself at the roller coaster of emotions she felt over this.

"Ariana, you didn't fight Dyeus like I did. We need this extra edge, you have to trust me. I need this if I am going to keep you and the rest of the team safe. I did this for you, Ariana. We still need you on the team, please. You don't have to get the genetic upgrades, but the rest of the non-permanent physical augmentations you should absolutely get. There's nobody else I would trust to fill that last slot over you." Paul said with a twinge of... sadness?

"Fucking asshole! How could you?!" Ariana shut her eyes and did her breathing exercises. It was clear she had no choice anymore. She hated him for his manipulations, but knowing it was one still didn't release her from its power.

"Fine. I'll do it. I'll join your team and get augmented. You need me there to keep you in check, help you think through things better. Help you remember who you are and to keep your humanity. I'll do it... because you clearly can't be trusted to do it on your own. You changed your genetic code! You cannot just undo something like this! You'll never be the same after this, hell you're barely even recognizable as human anymore. I know that electro-muscle upgrade will just continue to add muscle, make you bigger, wider.... the onboard medical suite makes sense too. Those are upgrades, and they can be shut down or removed later when the war is over, but you have permanently changed your fundamental being now down to your very DNA! There's no going back from this, Paul. Please tell me Preston isn't doing this too?" Ariana trailed off as her anger faded, now being replaced by sadness.

"No, just us Guardians, we talked it through and came to that decision already. We are taking this risk and making this sacrifice so the rest of you won't have to. The God-Kings have a huge head start on us, and most of their war bodies are reportedly nearly three meters tall and built like a brick shit house. Trying to punch one is like trying to punch a steel wall, and they could easily crush an unmodified human like a grape. The people whose jobs it will be to fight them head on will need to be built to match. I don't like it any more than you do, really, but that's the reality of the situation. I plan to win, I plan to survive, and this is what is needed for that to happen." Paul said in a grave tone.

"I said I would join your team, get the augmentations, and watch your back. You have done this already without even talking to me about it first. What's done is done. Just... go. Get out of here. I need to think. I'll see you tomorrow, and I'll be ready. I promise." Ariana said as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"Ariana... I," Paul started before she cut him off.

"GO! I can't even look at you right now. Just go." Paul nodded and crouched his way through her too-small doorway and left, thumping away with his heavy footfalls. Ariana collapsed into Chantal's equally horrified embrace as she fought to bring herself back under control.

"FUCK! I hate this war already, and we haven't even started fighting it!!" Ariana screamed.

"I know, hon, I know. So do I."

They held each other in deafening silence, and afterwards their conversation continued long after that into a very difficult night.