Ch 2

I spent the rest of the day sitting with that little Hatchery. I couldn't help it. These feelings are just so new and so overwhelming. To directly feel love, raw and unfiltered, from another being is like nothing I've ever experienced before, and it's filling up a void in my soul I never even knew I had. So I sat, there petting that little Hatchery, which would pulsate and buzz like an almost purr as it leaned into my touch, and continuously flooded me with feelings of love and I soaked it up like a sponge and sent my own love right back. I could seriously get addicted to this. I really could. And I can already tell it will only get even better the more members of the Swarm there are.

Is this what the Overmind grew up with, this collective connection inherent in its entire race? No wonder it tried to assimilate everything it crossed paths with into the Swarm then! Anything not connected like this is practically blind and alone! I've only just become aware of this connection, and I can already horror at what it felt like to be alone, blinded to this! Already, I feel the instinct to draw and bring in others into this connection so they too can share in the joy and feeling of not being alone.

That thought instantly sobered me though, as I quickly realized the pitfall I could fall in if I gave into that instinct. I can already see it now, following in the Overmind's footsteps from the original Starcraft, continuously seeking and assimilating new creatures into the Swarm, returning my Zerg to its status as a plague on the universe. Thankfully I have one major advantage that the Overmind didn't have. I'm still human. I grew up with the freedom and joys of freewill. I still have that instinct to retain that free will as well. It's tempering my instinct to fold all of creation into the Swarm, making It an easy decision for me. Any sentient I'll simply offer the chance for them to join the Swarm if they wish, and respect that decision if they decline. I wouldn't force the Swarm on anyone. That idea runs contrary to my nature.

Non sentients are a bit of a grey area though. Like my Hatchery, they're simply a bundle of instinct, feelings, and only a slight hint of self awareness. As such, they don't really have the ability to choose to be part of the Swarm or not. I suppose I'll have to deal with animals on a case by case basis then. Anything that runs away I'll leave alone. If they come to depend on the Swarm for survival, I'll bring them into the Swarm. If they try to attack though, I'll defend my Swarm with all of my being.

Actually if anything tried to harm my Swarm I'd defend it with everything I have. I'd prefer not to destroy anything if I can help it though. But if something approaches me with intent to harm, and I can't talk whatever it is down, I will respond in kind.

Nodding to myself, I returned my attention to my Hatchery. Overtime, it's slowly but steadily gotten bigger. Periodically I would have to get up and move back as the Hatchery continued to grow. I would also get up to get a drink or grab an apple when I get hungry or thirsty. Oddly, I've yet to feel the need to use the bathroom. Part of me suspects that my body is converting anything it can't directly use into PSI energy. Convenient and efficient, which seems to be the modus operandi of the Swarm.

Time passed like this, and the Hatchery grew from the size of my palm, to the size of me, to the size of a house, and on as the day waned. The entire time I watched in fascination, reveling in the feelings shared between us, and petting the membrane. By the light of the setting sun, I can actually see the Hatchery forming beneath the membrane of the egg sac. It's already quite large, but I can tell it has a ways to go.

Suddenly the howl of a wolf broke the quiet of the evening and I jumped. The sun hadn't set completely, but that wolf howl was really loud and sounded really close. This reminds me that there are predators in woods like these, which is why it's recommended to set up shelter right away. Slightly shaken, I stand up and eye the tree line. Since my Hatchery isn't finished yet which I intend to use as my shelter, I'll just have to put myself up in a tree until it's finished.

After examining a lot of them, it was the apple tree I'd been eating from that I finally chose to make my perch in. It's the only one that has a three way split in the top, making a small hollow I can rest in rather than have to constantly balance on a branch like all the other trees would require if I chose them. Gulping, and doing my best to ignore the height, I carefully climbed up the tree. I know I survived that fall earlier, but that didn't change the fact that it hurt quite a bit. I doubt I'll ever be comfortable with heights until I can fly or something, which is entirely possible come to think of it. Maybe I could grow a pair of wings or something later on? Now wouldn't that be something.

It was thoughts like this that carried me the rest of the way up the tree. Truthfully it's not very high, but it's tall enough for my purposes. Finally I settled down with my back in the hollow. Laying like this, I'm practically invisible from the ground, which was one of the true key factors that had me deciding on this tree in the first place. Leaning back, and keeping in touch with my Hatchery, I relaxed as much as I could and watched the sun set over the horizon.

It was as the last bit of the sun's rays faded that I first heard it. An unnatural clinking noise coming from right below me that sent chills up my spine and made my eyes widen to impossible proportions. No… it's not possible… Quickly I drew my limbs from where I'd been dangling them and pressed as flat into the hollow as I could, all the while denying the impossibility of what I'd just heard.

There it is again! That clinking noise that's impossible to mistake for anything else. The sound of bones on bones as they rattle from movement. There's only one thing I've ever heard in my life that makes that particular distinctive sound. Carefully, I maneuver myself so I can peak over the edge towards the source of the noise. One thwip noise later had me ducking low after getting a good look. No doubt about it. There's a skeleton archer from Minecraft right below me, and it's staring RIGHT AT MY HIDING SPOT.

I looked at the arrow lodged in the limb of the tree behind me and realized that if I hadn't ducked when I had, that arrow would have gone straight through my forehead. I may have regeneration, but I'm pretty sure an arrow to the brain counts as an instant kill. Worse still, as that fall demonstrated earlier, I'm no tougher than any other human being so if I tried to jump out and kill it I would probably die unless I got really lucky. I really need that Hatchery to be finished and soon, or else I'm going to be in for a world of hurt.

Not a moment later I heard a skittering noise and felt vibrations in my tree. Oh you have got to be kidding me! Quickly judging where it was coming from, I tucked my legs to my lap, and waited. A second later, a great hairy face with black fuzzy and sharp looking mandibles and 8 legs the size of a large dog came over the edge of the branch I was facing. As soon as it came in range, I kicked out for all I was worth. To my relief and satisfaction, the hit was strong enough to literally launch the thing in the air and send it plummeting back to the ground, all ten feet or so. I heard it make a noise in pain, but then it started climbing back up once again a moment later. I once again coiled my legs up, and repeated the same maneuver once it showed its face again. Thankfully it's not very bright and it only took a few repeats of this before the giant spider made a death rattle and I didn't hear it try to climb up again.

I'm seriously counting my blessings though in regards to that skeleton. For every time I kicked that spider, an arrow had shot past, narrowly missing my legs. That last one actually nicked me, but I saw it heal right afterwards in seconds. I love regeneration. I really do. I might've died from an infection later because of that cut if I didn't have it, or possibly from internal bleeding from that fall earlier. As it is, I'm so glad I won't have to worry about things like that. I just wish my clothes would regenerate, since they're starting to get a little ragged at this point.

Time passed, and the skeleton didn't move from its spot. I didn't dare sleep despite being tired in case another spider shows up. A while after the fight with that spider, I heard an explosion and a feeling of pain, upset, and anger came over the connection to my Hatchery, and I narrowed my eyes, going from scared to pissed in .2 seconds. A Creeper just blew up and harmed my Hatchery. Thankfully the membrane of that egg sac is a lot tougher than it looks, but it still took some damage. I'm just glad the damage was rather minimal. It'd take a lot more than that to pierce the Hatchery's cocoon. Still, if I had any feelings that didn't equate with dislike towards Creepers before, they're gone now. I'll gladly mow those things down with prejudice when I get the chance.

The night passed. I had to deal with two more spiders. The skeleton finally got a lucky shot off when I kicked down that last spider for the final time. The arrow lodged in my left leg, and let me tell you, IT HURT. A LOT. Luckily, the head had gone through, and once I got some bearing back, and stuffing the top of my shirt in my mouth to keep quiet lest I attract attention, I snapped the head off and pulled the shaft out. It bled for a few moments before it stopped and then healed over, though it took a bit longer than the nick from earlier did. Seriously, if I ever meet the Xel'naga, or the writer in Blizzard, who gave the Zerg regeneration I will do something amazing for them of their choice and thank them profusely. Simultaneously I'd like to give Notch a knock to the head for creating such terrible monsters. After playing Minecraft for so long, you tend to get to the point where nothing can really stop you because you know all the counters, and mobs end up being mere nuisances rather than the apocalypse inducing nightmares they actually are.

Case in point, I heard an Enderman warp in and jump around, making its weird vworp noises. I didn't dare look lest I have one of the more dangerous enemies out to rip me limb from limb like the sick psycho kleptomaniacs they are. Not to mention this is real life. I don't have a crosshair sitting in the middle of my vision that I can carefully keep away from the Enderman. Besides, with my luck, just seeing it peripherally will probably set it off.

Finally, once the moon had reached almost directly overhead, I heard a great splattering noise any Starcraft veteran will recognize as a Zerg building being born. Along with this sound, new information flooded along the light ribbon from the Hatchery, namely sight, sound, and oddly enough, smell. Along with this came information of the instinctual kind that let me know what my Hatchery is currently capable of, one of which that's currently being employed is the ability to close the entrances into it when in danger. Other than that, most of what it can do is ordering around the larvae it creates, and it has a currently dormant biological system that allows any Zerg that eats from the Creep it makes to gain the ability to burrow into the ground if they have the latent DNA strands for it. I certainly doubt I do, and neither do anything that isn't Zerg, which explains why any non-Zerg wouldn't be able to burrow if they tried to eat the Creep themselves.

Speaking of the Creep, porous tissues along the edges of the Hatchery have started to grow the stuff, and it's slowly but steadily oozing over and into the ground. I watched in a kind of horrified fascination as it slowly approached the tree line, absorbing and destroying any plant life along the way and leeching any and all nutrients from the ground. This, more than anything, is why the Zerg are a plague on the universe. If allowed to run rampant, the Creep would probably consume and destroy this planet, leaving it barren and completely unable to support any life that hadn't evolved up to Zerg standards.

When I say watched, I actually saw this all through the eyes of the Hatchery, though I have no idea how it's actually able to see since it doesn't actually have eyes. Other creatures had been approaching it trying to batter down its defenses. I initially grew worried at the sight of Zombies clawing and biting at the Hatchery, worried my Hatchery would become infected, changing it from a potential sanctuary to my worst nightmare. Thankfully, nothing of the sort is happening. It's entirely possible though that if the Zombies are infectious, the Hatchery's immune system and regeneration is just too strong for the Zombie plague to overcome it. Hopefully that is so for all Zerg, including myself, otherwise one scratch or bite and I'm in big trouble. Best not take the chance.

Speaking of the Zombies, since they're just standing there, battering away at the Hatchery and trying to climb up it, the Creep is slowly rooting them in place and consuming them. I didn't expect that, but it doesn't surprise me when I think about it. The Creep is certainly a nightmarish creation. Honestly, what I'm seeing it do so far reminds me of the Blacklight Virus from the Prototype games. Now THAT particular virus, if ever the Zerg assimilated it, would make the Swarm unstoppable. Blacklight is probably the only thing I've ever heard of that's more biologically advanced than the Zerg is… I wonder if I could recreate its effects later on…

My thoughts were interrupted at this point by the sounds of the Skeleton making sounds of pain, and I could see through my Hatchery that since it wasn't moving, the Creep had latched onto it and had started to consume it as well. I paled as I saw what else the Creep was doing though. It's currently growing up the tree I'm on and I can see and feel the tree withering and crumbling around me as it does so, slowly pulling it down. It never occurred to me to be afraid of it consuming me as well, since I instinctively knew it wouldn't. Creep may not be sentient, but it's certainly a living organism of sorts. It's certainly destroying my current safe haven though!

The apple tree was soon covered and squished down by Creep and I could only watch in horror as I was slowly exposed to the rest of the world. My only consolation is that the skeleton went down faster than the tree did, and no other monsters are close enough to consider targeting me rather than the Hatchery.

That soon changed though as I heard a zombie moan from behind me. Quick as a flash, I was up and running as fast as I could towards the Hatchery and the closest entrance into it. Thankfully Zombies are slow, and I outpaced it very quickly. Unfortunately there's already a zombie hammering at the entrance I'm running towards, so I quickly veer to the right and run around the building looking for an entrance that isn't blocked. The next one wasn't clear, but the third one was. Quickly I ran up, and a quick command had it open and shut directly behind me once I'd ran in, not even slowing down.

Once inside, I finally slowed down, and braced myself against the wall to come to a stop. After catching my breath and coming down a bit from the adrenaline high, allowing my heart rate to slow down a bit, I finally opened my eyes and looked around. The room I'm in is fairly large and has four tunnels branching off leading to the entrances to the Hatchery. The one behind me is the tunnel I just came through. The whole room is roughly egg shaped. The center of the floor holds a pit that has a pool of green glowing liquid which is the main light source for the room. Thankfully the pit has a slight lip or I'd worry I might roll into it were I to fall asleep right here. I don't get a sense of danger from the pit, but all the same I'd rather stay cautious just in case.

Carefully I pop a seat on the slope of the floor that gradually becomes the wall of the Hatchery, and lean back. I'm slightly startled to notice that it's moving, in and out like a giant lung, though the movement is rather small and hardly noticeable. After relaxing a little, I realized that the motion is actually kind of soothing. Casually I patted the floor of the Hatchery, thanking it for being such a good shelter, and I felt a shiver of happiness from the Hatchery both through the link, and an actual vibration in the walls.

I glanced back down at the pit, and yawned. What if I fell asleep and ended up rolling into it anyway? I don't know what will happen, and regardless if nothing happens, I don't fancy waking up to a short fall and being wet. Suddenly the spot I'm laying on formed a depression that matched my body perfectly. Startled, I sent a question at the Hatchery wondering what that was about. Evidently it was responding to my worry and making it so I wouldn't roll into the pit by making a small pit for me to lie in so I wouldn't have to worry about rolling anywhere. For not being sentient, the Hatchery sure does a good job of responding to my needs. Patting it once again and whispering, 'Thanks', the adrenaline high I was on finally crashed and I immediately drifted off.

-END CHAPTER-

Overmind Matthew

PSI Energy – 50/50

Status – Normal

Abilities

- Spawn Hatchery – 50psi – 12 hour build

- Regeneration – Passive – Heals anything not instantly fatal; time needed depends on extent of injury

- Anaerobic – Passive – No longer requires breathable atmosphere to survive

- Temperature Resistance – Passive – Currently able to survive temperatures between -450 and 118 F

- PSI Regeneration – Passive – Regenerate energy at .5 points per second.

Zerg Swarm

Bio-Energy – 0

Support – 0/11

Entities

1x Hatchery (Non Sentient)