Chapter 91 - Annie case

A couple of weeks had passed since Prime confronted Ross. During this time, strangely, Ross hadn't shown up and also didn't seem to be investigating Prime or anything like that. Prime knew this because he sent some symbiotic birds after Ross, and overall, Ross seemed to be just going about his normal life.

Prime found it strange that Ross, who just a few days ago considered him a threat that needed to be eliminated, now seemed to have completely forgotten about it. Currently, Ross simply seemed to no longer care about Prime.

When Prime explained the situation to Bruce, he also found Ross's sudden disinterest strange. However, in the end, Prime decided to let things be as they were, since it seemed that Ross had changed his attitude towards him, at least for the time being.

And that brings us to the present, on what seemed like a normal Sunday. Prime was the first to wake up. Although he technically didn't need to sleep, he preferred to rest for practicality, since he didn't have much to do during the night. With plenty of time on his hands, Prime decided to prepare breakfast. Although he didn't need to eat, since his energy came from Sara, sharing a meal was a way to keep conversation and connection at the table.

"You're up early"

While busy in the kitchen, Prime heard a voice and turned his head in its direction. Sara, still somewhat sleepy, had sat on the couch and was looking at him. They didn't need words to understand what the other wanted; their connection was deep and intuitive.

Without exchanging words, a tentacle emerged from Prime's back, grabbed a cup, and carried it to the coffee machine. Once the cup was filled, Prime handed it to Sara. She gave a faint smile and began to drink, savoring the caffeine taste as she slowly woke up.

"Thanks. Waking up early always leaves me sleepy" said Sara, taking a sip of coffee with a grateful smile.

Upon hearing Sara's words, Prime gave a faint smile. They had been together long enough for him to know Sara's strengths and weaknesses well. As he continued to prepare breakfast, he heard slow footsteps approaching. There was only one person in the house who moved at that characteristic pace.

"Daddy, good morning" said Ema, with less enthusiasm than usual.

"Good morning, Ema. Why did you wake up so early today? You usually only get up..." Prime said, looking at the clock on his wrist. "30 minutes later" he concluded, turning his gaze back to Ema.

"I smelled the food and got hungry" Ema said bluntly, sitting next to Sara and resting her head on her shoulder.

Prime seriously wondered if Ema possessed some peculiar sensory ability that he was still unaware of, perhaps like that of a sniffer dog. Her room was considerably far from the kitchen, and the apartment was spacious, making it unlikely that she had smelled the food from her room. Putting that question aside, Prime turned to Sara.

"Could you call Annie? Since we're all here, it would be nice to have breakfast together" Prime said, and Sara nodded in agreement.

Then, Sara slowly rested Ema's head on the couch, indicating that she had fallen asleep again, and got up to head to Annie's room. Meanwhile, Prime continued to prepare breakfast. He was making eggs, bacon, and toast. For drinks, he prepared some natural fruit juices. As Prime's friend used to say in his past life, a healthy body leads to a healthy mind.

While pondering this, Sara's footsteps echoed in Prime's ears again, but something seemed strange - Sara was running. Intrigued, Prime turned to the hallway, waiting for Sara to arrive.

"Prime! We have a problem" Sara said, with only her head appearing in view.

Prime raised an eyebrow and cast a brief glance at Ema, who was sleeping. He sighed and went to Sara, who led him to Annie's room. No matter how much Prime tried, it seemed that problems always followed him.

Upon arriving at Annie's room, the first thing Prime noticed was that everything was completely normal. Annie's bed was still in place, she was sleeping comfortably, and the room didn't seem to have been ransacked.

"Okay... what happened?" Prime asked, evident doubt in his eyes. "You called me with such a desperate look that I honestly thought someone had invaded her room"

Hearing Prime's words, Sara didn't respond; instead, she simply went to Annie and sat beside her on the bed.

"Annie!" Sara exclaimed.

No specific movement came from Annie after being called. Prime noticed Annie's chest rise and fall, indicating she was breathing. Technically, Annie seemed fine.

"Annie! It's time to wake up!"

Sara continued calling for Annie, but no response came from her. At this point, Prime also found the situation strange. Outwardly, Annie didn't seem to have any issues; she just seemed to be deeply asleep.

"You see, no matter how much I call her, she just doesn't react. Trust me, I've tried more than just calling her" Sara said, a worried expression beginning to form on her face.

Hearing Sara's words, Prime approached Annie and sat beside her, taking her hand. He checked her pulse, which was normal. Next, Prime checked Annie's breathing again and found it to still be normal, as he had observed earlier.

"It's strange, she seems fine, at least on the outside. I can't identify anything that would justify her not waking up" Prime remarked, a thoughtful expression on his face.

As he pondered the matter, something came to Prime's mind. Carefully, he reached out towards Annie, focusing more precisely on her face. Closing his eyes, Prime concentrated. As he had predicted, the seed he had implanted in Annie reacted.

More precisely, the seed inside Annie seemed ready to sprout. Though Prime was curious as to why this was happening now and what triggered this specific moment, he had other priorities he needed to deal with immediately.

"I think her symbiote is about to awaken" Prime suddenly said, catching Sara's attention.

"Why now? Also, how can you be sure that's it?" Sara questioned, a surprised and suspicious expression on her face.

"Annie's and Ema's symbiotes are a bit special in their creation. I have a sort of connection with them; I can feel them, and it also makes them obey me. However, this relationship can vary depending on the host. While I created them to function like a hive, where I am the king, the hosts can influence their decisions" Prime explained while casting a thoughtful glance at Annie.

"So... to summarize, she's okay?" Sara inquired.

"Yes, she is" Prime affirmed.

Hearing Prime's words, Sara visibly relaxed. A sigh escaped Sara's lips, and it was at that moment that Prime felt something strange. Within seconds, Prime lunged forward, protecting Sara. In that moment, Prime felt an impact on his body, even though he was mostly inside Sara.

Prime shared the senses of his main body with this created being. In other words, he felt the pain of something hitting his chest. The impact was so strong that both he and Sara were thrown to the far end of the room.

Before they could collide, Prime's body dissipated, and then Sara transformed while still being thrown.

(What the hell was that?) Sara asked in Prime's mind.

"I'm curious too. Suddenly, I felt an attack coming your way and only had time to throw myself in front" Prime replied.