Goddess of the Galacticide Episode 70 - Bred for Purpose
Updated: Sep 8
“No, I didn’t do or say anything stupid.” Cha Dzeeny clenched his fists.
“You must have,” said Baaii. “Why else would the Goddess relegate us to guard the cargo pad, when the prophet arrives in the main landing area? All our security forces are there, but not their leader?”
“All I did was briefing her personally on my security deployments for Vriishany Omga’s arrival.”
“Then what?”
“She told me to take the plans to Terg and ask him to add a few of his hulky aliens to the force.”
“And that’s it?”
“Yes. She wasn’t angry or disappointed, if that’s what you’re asking.”
Baaii bit her lip, then readjusted how the parade cape flowed over her shoulder armor.
“We can’t even see the shuttle from here, let alone the prophet,” she said.
The rain had gotten worse; large, heavy drops pummeled the cargo landing pad, drowning out the rest of the colony, both in sight and sound. The thick cloud cover provided the closest thing to a night cycle on Green Wave, blocking out the ever-present star.
“Do you want to wait in the speeder?” asked Cha. “The rain leaves yellow streaks on your cape.”
“Keewuu spores. But no, our orders were to guard the pad, and that’s what we’re—“
A noise overhead cut Baaii off. A low grumble, then switching to a roar.
“The shuttle. Can’t even see the landing thrusters.”
Cha spotted them. “Over there, the bright dots. Wait, I count eight.”
“That’s a large shuttle.”
“Or two shuttles. Look, the dots are separating into two groups of four.”
“Definitely two craft.”
Cha’s and Baaii’s gaze met. Even without the spores, he knew their minds were aligned.
“I think us being here was not a punishment detail,” said Cha, “that second shuttle is coming here.”
The craft touching down on the cargo pad was a standard personnel and cargo transport, so generic Cha couldn’t even guess the species that manufactured it. It didn’t bear any insignia or even a hint about which Remnant battle cruiser had brought it to Green Wave.
The main lock was aft, and that’s where the lone couple stood at attention. They were not here to sign off on a shipment of batteries. The Goddess had been explicit about their role and their new ward, and she always meant what she said.
The lock hissed open, and through the steam cloud of rain sizzling on the hot thrusters stepped Vriishany Omga.
For Cha, Vriishany had always been a child, and a part of him had assumed the immortality rite would preserve her innocent youth forever, but the woman approaching them was anything but a girl. The rich and powerful in the galaxy often adorned themselves with beautiful partners, but none of the women Cha Dzeeny had to guard matched the effortless grace of the prophet.
“Revered Prophet,” said Baaii, “welcome back to your home. We humbly greet you in the name of the Goddess.”
“My sister,” said the prophet. “Is she here?” Her voice was soft, but each word carried through the clashing downpour as if she spoke through a clear helmet comm.
Her smile was tired, but then turned genuine. “Baaii? Oh, it is really you.”
She stepped forward and gave Baaii a hug. Cha had never seen Baaii helpless, not once, except for the moment the white-clad, rain-drenched religious icon of the Goddess’ plan squeezed her in her arms.
“Prophet Vriishany, your sister is happy to see you return, but instructed us to accompany you to your quarters at once.”
Five passes later, Baaii navigated the speeder through the maze of central buildings toward the prophet’s residence, Cha sharing the rear compartment, staring at a sleeping Vriishany Omga, curled up on the rear seat. The girl he knew was back. And the Goddess wanted to keep her away from anyone else.
***
“The little girl sure has grown up, didn’t she?” asked Baaii.
“Was I that obvious?”
Baaii chuckled. “Cha, your eyes almost fell out of their sockets. But I cannot blame you, Vriishany Omga has turned out striking.”
Cha sat down in the living quarters of the residence’s annex building, their new home for the foreseeable future.
“She got that from her mother.”
“Oh yes, the legendary Pes Pyits, the woman who could melt any heart, even Vnaas the Cruel’s.”
He nodded. “That she could.”
She pretended to kick his shin across the comfy couch setup. “How would you know? I know you’re old, Dzeeny, but not that ancient.”
“My father…” his voice broke, and he needed to clear his throat. “He knew Lady Pyits.”
“What do you mean? Personally? The Pes Pyits?”
“Yes. He established the connection between the Royal Court and House Pyits. He was the one who introduced her to Shaajrrurrhe Vnaas.”
She leaned forward, her eyes fixated on Cha.
“You never told me.”
He shook his head. “It’s not a good story. It’s one you bury with shame. And it doesn’t end well.”
Baaii took his hand and cupped it between hers. “I could be lying to you and say ‘it’s fine, you don’t have to tell me’, but I’m dying to hear it.”
Cha sighed. “My father was an inquisitor for Vnaas the Cruel…”
Baaii remained silent, giving him time to sort his thoughts.
“When the Shaajrrurrhe decided to make Krrugze darrtuzke the state religion of Aloo Dash it opened up more potential suitors eligible to become his wife. House Pyits, newly converted to the faith, proposed their daughter Pes to the throne.”
“I know that, Cha. Shining beauty, a perfect match for the bloodline.”
“Yes, except that she wasn’t. Her genetics were nowhere near a clean match for a bloodline reaching back to the First People.”
“But she got tested. Confirmed. They married.”
“House Pyits cheated. They used some DNA masking technology to make it appear as if she was a perfect genetic match. But she wasn’t.”
Baaii shook her head. “That can’t be, Cha. There would have been major fallout if this ever came out.”
“Oh, it did,” said Cha. “And there was fallout. Vnaas wasted no time after first seeing Pes and bedded her immediately. The masking tech was supposed to be temporary, but was still on when their first child was conceived.”
“Vriishany,” said Baaii.
“Yes, and she was going to have major birth defects because of the genetic manipulation. Vnaas the Cruel had the pregnancy terminated, and eventually they tried for another child, born normally—Sya Omga, the mother of the Goddess.”
“But how—?”
“Vriishany’s embryo was saved by rogue mystics to preserve the bloodline, and they must have fixed the defects many orbits later and had Vriishany carried to full term, and eventually present her as the new Shaajis of Aloo Dash.”
Baaii went silent. Cha took a few deep breaths, saying these things out loud weighed just as heavily as carrying them around.
“There is a reason you never told this story, Cha.”
“Yes. You were right about the fallout. Vnaas was cruel but not stupid, and he knew he had been tricked. He chose to destroy everyone involved slowly over a public scandal, starting with House Pyits and ending with my father, who was put on trial for an endless list of treason charges and sentenced to death.”
“But you were a Royal Guard.”
“Yes. How would anyone choose me with that family history? Shaajis Sya Omga was a strong-willed woman, and she hated nothing more in this universe than her father Vnaas. Everyone he shunned, she saw as an ally.”
“I need a drink,” said Baaii. “Briir?”
“Please,” said Cha.
She returned from the small kitchenette and handed him a cooled glass. The briir was sparkly; her hands must have been shaking when she poured it.
“Do you think,” she asked, ”this genetic DNA cheat is still in our prophet?”
He took a sip. The drink was slightly too warm, but it dulled his anxiety.
“Never thought about it. It’s possible. Why?”
“Before the prophet retired to her quarters, she had asked me twice about when she could see the diin.”
“You mean the Goddess?”
“No, the diin. Very clearly and intently. I thought it was odd at the time, but now I wonder.”
“What would she want from the diin? Or what would the diin want from her?”
“Cha, you know what the hall of the diin really is, right?”
“Of course. It’s the central component of where the aliens are made.”
“Yes,” said Baaii. “But they’re not simply ‘made’. They’re bred, helped by the Remnants, and the aliens themselves. Purpose-built life forms, genetically engineered. If anyone was doing something nefarious in that production cycle, something that needs hiding, a DNA masking technology would be invaluable.”
Cha put down his drink. The diin communicating with the planet’s life forms without the Goddess knowing. Building an army of loyal followers.
But loyal to whom?
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