Nonpareil - SCP Foundation

Her metamorphosis took place at the dinner table.

She abruptly crumpled up, compressing herself into a fat, rounded form

before a light red layer of veins covered her, themselves

being covered by a gorgeous iridescent scaly layer.

I picked up the emerald egg and gave it a quick peck,

to reassure her that I was still there.

Her father chuckled. “Don’t worry, she’s in there, all right.

Her mother went through the same process, and, well, just look at her.”

His wife hissed in agreement, coiling her tail around him.

I held onto her egg, unsure

whether or not

to put it back down.

“Why so tense? Set her down; she’s not going anywhere.

She’ll have finished her transformation by tomorrow.”

I put her egg down on the seat

and continued to eat,

savoring the taste

of my own imperfections.

She was born the next day

at the dinner table. The egg cracked and then ceased

to exist, shattered into infinitesimally small bits

by a dragonfly of jade and gold. She buzzed

contentedly as I held her in my arms,

admiring the circuitry in her wings.

I crooned to her

to let her know that I was there.

She brought her head to meet mine.

We connected, man and beyond-man.

I kissed her, savoring

Complex mouthparts, dexterous legs

Lithe exoskeleton, slender antennae

Deep eyes, lofty wings

A scent of perfection to which I could only dream to aspire.

Just me and her now,

man and beyond-man. What was she seeing, thinking

in that body beyond my mere comprehension?

The cybernetic capsule within her head,

seat of her human emotions, that last

Vestige of imperfection in a body

that was above my own. How could I love her any less

knowing that she was destined to surpass me.

But for now, us together

sharing the jointed metamorphosis

of this body of hers, more beautiful than before

a soft, wet, warm thorax

wings ripe with the scent of ambition

A mind built to perceive

A soul meant to dream

A body created to achieve

A destiny within the stars.

She left me the way she entered

in a flash that changed my life

I ate her and took her capsule

Seat of her mind

Seat of her emotions

Seat of her previous imperfection

why

Why did I eat her

what dream did I have

that I would seek to ruin hers?

Does she realize what has happened

Is this a nightmare

this impulse to consume

This horrific imperfection

How do I save her from myself

Join her in the capsule

connect to her mind

Uploaded to her world.

She tasted of everything I wanted to be.

stars. a platform. the sea.

just us. her imperfect body. the one we shared.

what can I tell her

how do i save her dream

she knows

she looks at me and

the virtual ocean in her eyes

the burning of a sun in her heart

she knows and

she still loves me

is this a dream?

despite my imperfection

through the nightmare

the nightmare i created

she still loves me

she was never imperfect

she has always been perfect

she has always been headed for the stars

this is her dream

so this is my dream

she can have my body

metamorphosize and find the stars

i remain in the capsule

stars. platforms. the sea.

Sometimes she visits.

tells me stories of the stars

tells me of the metamorphosized body I once had

and of the stars it visited.

the stars she visited.

They sound beautiful.

I look at the false ocean

and look at the virtual stars

and wonder what might have been

in this dream

what we might have been together

but

she is happy.

the stars are open to her.

this is the dream.

this is my perfection.