Thread: All Hail the High Queen! (FoxWriter/Uminator)

Drixel stood quickly when Neema told him to, dusting himself down lightly, seemingly slightly embarrassed by his momentary outburst. Natalia seemed to relax slightly at Neema's assurances, the thing she had been most afraid of was losing Cleo, of not being a part of her life anymore. Of course if that had been the case there would have been little she could do to prevent it. Ah...I... Natalia looked to Neema as she asked what she knew. She slowly shook her head. I...haven't received any news, not since we.... She bit her lip, glancing after Cleo as she moved through to the living room with Aaron. But...she's gone...isn't she? I...a while ago I felt....I felt a terrible pain... She placed a hand over her heart. I knew the moment she was killed.... Tears streamed from Natalia's eyes for a moment as she recalled Freeya, and the sensation of knowing she had died. The two had shared a very special bond, and the pain Natalia had felt when that bond was forcibly broken by Freeya's death still haunted her. She wiped the tears from her eyes quickly, then moved to shut the door behind the two once they were inside. As the group moved to head through to the living room so they could talk, Drixel turned his attention to Aaron, beginning to run a scan on him, somewhat more focused and detailed than he had run on the humans outside. This one seemed odd. He had some medical ailments, breathing troubles primarily, no doubt worsened by the pollutants in the air, but his DNA was different to the others. It was....more. So this was an 'Advanced Human', one who had not been as stunted as the others, one who was further along the potential evolutionary path of humanity. He would need to keep a close eye on this one...and from the way he took the Princess' hand like that, it seemed they were already close. Excellent, that would make things easier all around. Not just in terms of breeding a new generation for both of their races, but on making things easier for the new Queen. The transition to her new life would be much easier with familiar people around her and anything that made this less traumatic for her was a very good thing in Drixel's eyes. Natalia slowly took a seat in the living room, waiting for everyone else to do the same before she took a deep breath. Where did she begin? How could she explain this? There was so much to tell, yet now she had no idea how to do it. Cleo... Finally she spoke, piercing the silence at last, looking up slowly at Cleo and Aaron. There's something I have to tell you, something that's difficult for me to say...something that will be difficult for you to hear, for both of you to hear.. She glanced to Aaron, trying to give him a reassuring smile. But you must know...everything I'm about to tell you is...it's the truth She closed her eyes, taking another deep breath. I....am not your biological mother... WHAT?! Cleo's eyes widened, glancing to Aaron, then back to Natalia. She wasn't sure how to process this information....how could that be possible? I...but...what? That can't be right. I...I mean you've....we've always.... It's true Cleo...but...while I might not be your biological mother...you're still my daughter, I still love you just the same, as if you were my own flesh and blood She smiled, tears flowing once again. As much as Cleo didn't want to believe it, deep down she knew that it was true.....and besides, why would Natalia lie about something like this? So...why tell me now...? I......wait... She slowly looked to Neema and Drixel. ....Are you going to tell me these two are my birth parents? Hm? Oh! No no Natalia shook her head. These are....friends of mine, this is Neema and Drixel. They both work...worked...for your birth mother Worked? So....she's... Cleo slowly looked down as she realised what that meant, her birth mother was dead. This next part....you may not believe it Cleo... Natalia closed her eyes. Telling someone that you weren't their biological parent, that was a perfectly normal thing in human society, it could be accepted as possible. Telling someone they were not only an alien, but heir to a galactic empire of many different alien races....that was something that happened a little less frequently. Cleo, your birth mother was....she was married to the High King of a great Empire....a vast empire...spanning almost the entirety of this Galaxy Uhhh....did she just say King and Galaxy...? Cleo glanced to Aaron for a moment, then back to Natalia as she resumed speaking. Your mother, Freeya....a long time ago she visited the Earth. She was with child, you, and she desired a handmaiden. Someone to tend to her and the baby. I don't know how...I don't know why...but she found me...she saved me from......from a terrible life, took me away with her. I travelled the stars...saw incredible things, but best of all I got to be there with you and her. But shortly after you were born.....a war began....a terrible war...a rebellion against the empire. To keep you safe, your mother and the High King sent us away, sent us here to hide until the war was over and it was time for you to return. Now that Neema and Drixel are here....it means that time has come She looked up at the pair slowly, then back to Cleo, who seemed to be sitting there trying to process all of this information. Ok....so.....either this is a really elaborate prank in revenge for some of the stuff I've pulled over the years.... But that didn't seem right, her mother was crying....that was too much for a mere prank. ....Ok....I hate to be 'that sceptic' but....I think I'm gonna need just a tiny bit of proof on the whole alien thing. You're trying to tell me that I'm not human, that I'm the Princess of some giant space empire, and these two guys here are aliens too? She pointed to Neema and Drixel. That's just a little too much to take at face value really Perhaps I can assist with that matter your Highness Drixel smiled slightly. Please, permit me to show you Ok, go ahead? Cleo wasn't used to being asked permission for things like that. Drixel just smiled once more, then waved his hand forwards, several holographic screens appearing around the room, being projected by his glasses. On the screens were various displays of biological data. This display here is of a human, do you recognise it highness? Uhhh.....Cleo stared at the holographic screen now floating in mid air, reaching out to poke her finger right through it. ....Yeah....kinda looks like a biology textbook..... Ah, you have studied, most excellent Drixel seemed excited at the notion of the Princess being an academic, though it was also another sign that Natalia had done a wonderful job, ensuring that Cleo was raised to make use of the natural intelligence she possessed. And now this highness, is data of our race, or at least the baseline He motioned to another display, the data shown quite different to humans, though there were some recognisable elements. You see, no two of our race are quite the same. Within days of birth our bodies will begin to adapt and change, a process which continues throughout our lives. Though our base DNA will remain the same, our bodies are capable of generating new, additional DNA strands, sometimes in a matter of seconds or minutes, or sometimes over months or years It's true Cleo. I promise you, all of this is true Natalia walked over, placing her hand gently onto the hand Cleo was using to grasp onto Aaron's, Cleo's grip a rather tighter than usual. But what happens now is up to you. All we want is to make this easier for you, to make sure you're happy. You are the most important person in the Universe Cleo, quite literally. Just keep in mind, you can do what you want. You don't have to lose anyone or anything you don't want to. Even if you do decide to go, you can take whoever you want with you She looked to Aaron and smiled once more, trying to reassure both of them that they wouldn't have to be separated. Your mother is perfectly correct highness Drixel slowly sat down once again. We are not here to snatch you away from your life and force you into another. Of that you have our word