The Voyager

Thousands of miles above the surface of the martian planet, in a warship larger than the planet itself, Verax sits bored, in front of a glass tube in a small gray room, cluttered with notes and a desk and computer, a cup of coffee still steaming next to the monitor, and inside the tube itself, behind a glass panel, the tube running from floor to ceiling, is the unconscious Caz.
"Believe me...." He said to the container. "I didn't want it to be this way."

As Caz started to stir, he said unemotionally, "You're awake." He pointed out, just in case there was any confusion. "How do you feel?"

Caz woke, but did not respond to Verax. As he awoke, he realized a few things.
First, Caz was in his true form.
Which meant his implant was gone. Which he also noticed.
Verax must have taken it out, somehow.

Finally, he opened his eyes. "I'm fine." he said, in a flat, monotone voice, revealing no emotion or real feeling. "What do you want from me? Why am I here?"

Verax sighed and spun around to face his computer, which he began typing into. "What I want.... heh.... I ask myself that a lot. But as for why you're here..... you're here because- well, lets first establish where here is, shall we? You are aboard the most powerful vessel I could ever find. The Voyager..... quite literally fueled by destruction and nigh impossible to destroy. My inheritance. My problem is that aside from ramming this ship through one of Mar's moons, or starting a full-on assault and taking fire, I have no way to power the ship. Ignoring the fact that I'm studying you to create a self powering generator of some sort, I also have a profound curiosity of your kind. By studying you I can plan, and prepare for you.... and by extension, Aurora." He wheeled back around in his dragon-sized chair to face Caz. "You looked cramped in there. Would you prefer I let you out? Shall we take a walk while we talk?"

Caz just laughed. "There's nothing holding me in here to begin with. You're just lucky I'm cooperating. Energy being, remember? I think it's best for you if I stay here." He paused, shaking his head. "Eris-Tam will not fall. I think I should warn you of that now. She survived the Purge, the original Infestation, and she has survived completely on her own for almost eight hundred years since Robless slaughtered her people. We will save her from the parasite, and then she will destroy you if you attack her or her friends."

Caz sighed. "As for a generator... It has never been tried. I will not tell you that it is not possible, but I doubt that anything you find in the Kazesqui will tell you how to create one. The Kazesqui have unlimited energy, but not at our will. Sometimes it comes when we need it, sometimes it doesn't. It isn't as cut and dry as you seem to believe."

Verax chuckled. "You are wrong on all counts. First off, I have nothing to fear from you. Secondarily I have no intent to harm Eris-Tam. Thirdly if I did, she would find me more than a fair match for her. Thirdly, I am not seeking to learn how to use you to power this ship, but to mimic your energy structure. I am interested in discovering how to recreate the Kazequi's energy, without the sentient forces restricting them." Verax turned to Caz. "I think you'd like it better to walk around. Come. Let us talk." And the glass tube that was containing Caz shattered.

Caz rolled his eyes, but stepped lithely from the container. He warily approached Verax, but stayed a good five feet away from him and refused to get any closer.

"The Kazesqui's energy cannot be reproduced. Energy can't just spontaneously come into being, it all comes from somewhere. The Kazesqui energy is special, it's different from any other. You can't just make more of it. The sentience is the energy; you can't have one without the other. Every bit of energy that makes me, is me. There is no way you could change that." Caz sighed, wondering if there was actually a reason for him being with the "Dreadlord". What Verax wanted to do was impossible, it was no lie. But the fact that the Dreadlord wouldn't get what he wanted that way probably meant that he would resort to other means by which to acquire it.

Even though he had stated that he didn't want to learn to use the Kazesqui to power the ship, that would be the only option. Verax would see it before long, and after that...

Verax smiled. "Oh really. You too have nothing to fear. I may be insane, murderous, cruel, cunning, crafty, but I am no liar, unless of course its to Archelaus. Remember that, it may serve useful one day. When I said I would not harm you, I meant it. I have no need to. And YOU are the one who is misled. YOU may not be able to create something from nothing, but I am different. Just as I can destroy space, I can use the inverse of my abilities. But enough! Come along." And Verax stood, and strut out the doorway to the room, and on to a hallway suspended a good thousand feet above a hanger.

Caz sighed again. Some people never listen. The Universe would never allow him to use such powers. If what he says is true, then the Kazesqui should not exist. "And neither am I. You are not a god, Verax; you cannot simply bring life into being. But that is what you threaten to do. The Kazesqui's energy is not self-sustaining; it is given to us by the Universe. We are the Creator's Race; I do not believe that you are capable of bringing our life, our energy, into being. That is the Creator's job, and the Creator's job alone. You cannot be as powerful."

Verax halted. "......You are only as weak as you allow yourself to be." He said. "I am only as strong as I allow myself to be. I will not play god, and I do not plan on making pure Kazequi power, I HAVE the power, but no way to sustain it. I wanted to see if your kind could give me clues to how to make this raw energy I have found be able to sustain itself. Something that should not exist, a being of unlimited energy like you, but without the limitations of being true life. And I don't have to listen to anyone's rules but my own. Common sense says one should not be allowed to go faster than light, yet we can. I don't play by the universe's, yours, physic's or anyone else's rules. But moving right along, I wish to ask you something. No effort is needed to see you love Zyria, yet I sense you seek a Neiede. Why is that?" He turned to face Caz upon this question.

Caz answered plainly, his expression of dissatisfaction not changing.

"All Kazesqui seek a Neiede, as do all Alteriia. It is simply our way, our nature. We can love others, but the Neiede is still a constant desire. For example: the Alteriia and the Kazesqui cannot reproduce together. We are an asexual race, they are not. They must still reproduce to continue their race's existence. Therefore, it is possible to love those other than the Neiede. Eris-Tam managed it, with the Warchief after she had been forced to abandon Archelaus. And I do the same. I am in love with Zyria; so much so that I would deny myself the chance to find my Neiede if it meant that I'd be able to stay with her." Caz paused. "Why do you care?"

"Excellent answer. MOVING ON..... er... actually.... I have nothing left to say. So.... humph..... I don't care really. Do you want to go see Fluffy or would you rather wait until I've shown you my 'generator'?" Verax was thrown off balance by Caz's answer. Pah, such pathetic feelings. But..... this would prove even more useful. If he was this devoted to Zyria... then through Zyria he could control him.

Caz shook his head. He didn't really care, so he stayed silent. The only reason he had revealed such information was because he had a very good idea of what Verax would do to him if he failed to comply. There was no point in testing him; he was in control. Caz would not get far in trying to fight back against him. But he feared... he feared the ways that Verax would use the information that Caz did give. Every single tidbit he told would hurt him and... and others.

But Caz still said nothing.

Verax sighed. "Look, no matter what you say or do, I promised I'd return you alive and whole, and I plan to do exactly that. You could cuss me out till you were blue in the face, try snapping my neck off, kill my mother -if she was still alive-, and I still wouldn't harm you. So please, loosen up or this will be very long and stressful. Well then, on to see Fluffy! One of the only Dragons left in the universe! FOLLOOOOOOW MEEEEEE!" And after a big arcing motion to follow, Verx began skipping off towards the end of the hall.

Caz followed slowly at a distance. Damn, Verax was hard to read. He couldn't predict what the guy was going to do. He didn't know whether to trust his promise or not, and he didn't know whether or not it was worth it to find out. It was just so damn confusing, and eternally frustrating to Caz.

But there was only one thing he was interested in. Letting Zyria know that he was fine, and not hurt. Maybe it would be worth it to cooperate if it meant that Verax would allow him to send a message to her... He'd do it himself with his implant, but that had been conveniently removed.

So he followed Verax a little more quickly, a slight hope having risen in his heart.

Verax, still merrily skipping along sung back to Caz, "Ooooh I know what you waaaant! Ans suuuuurre, you cal talk to your girlfriend right after we see FLUFFY!!!!! And she's not all that much farther ahead!" Right at that momment, a deafening primal roar shook the entire area. Verax bellowed with laughter. "AND SHE'S HUNGRY!!! HAHAHAHAA!"

Caz managed a slight smile. A dragon, huh? I mean, at least it should be interesting. So he followed Verax towards the door at the end of the hall.

((Bump))

Verax merrily skipped along, Caz following, through a series of almost aimless turns and paths until the made a left into a massive room, at least 10 miles in every direction, and built of stone to look like a cave. "FLUFFY!!!! I'M HEEEEEERE!" And he looked around, searching. Verax frowned.
"Huh... thats odd, she's one tenth the size of the room... so we should spot her fairly quickl-"
and he was thus interrupted by a by an earth-shaking, bone-breaking roar.
"AH, THERE YOU ARE!!!" and the dragon descended. 'Fluffy' was as Verax said, a mile across from nose to tail, and an extra two in wingspan. She was jet black, but her pointed saw-like scales were lined in purple. Along her back and her tail, blood-red spines were lined. Her bony and angular head was complete with a set of purple curling rams-horns. 'Fluffy' was anything but.
"Awwww there you are! How's my cute engine of destruction doing?" Verax asked, as if speaking to a baby. Fluffy responded by smiling and bathing Verax in a massive inferno of purple fire, which when cleared, Verax seemed perfectly unharmed, save for his face being coated in a layer of soot. He bellowed with laughter, and as he did, the soot on his face flew off.
"GREAT!!! Aww, COME GIVE UNCLE VEARY A BIG HUG!!!" And Fluffy nuzzled Verax affectionately, until she noticed Caz. She got a sinister look and snapped her at towards him, roared at him and made a step towards him. Verax somersaulted through the air and stopped, levitating in front of her face and said sternly, "NO! Fluffy! We DON'T eat guests! I have your meal ready! Just go raid the mess hall, I gave all the incompetent soldiers their lunch at this time. Go on! I'll be fine!" Fluffy snorted, then flew at, and broke through one of the walls, and headed deeper into the ship. Verax roared with laughter, and picked up the shattered cave pieces with telekinesis, and fit them all back in place.
"Adorable, ain't she?"

Caz couldn't help but chuckle at the ridiculousness of it all. It was crazy. So he nodded his head in agreement, and made a generally curious inquiry.
"So where did you find that one? Seems unlikely that the last Cretorian dragon would reside on your ship."

Verax laughed. "Found? I STOLE THE EGG! HAHAHAHA!!!! It was worth it, too! Even killing the small army escorting it was a bonus! WAHAHAHAAA! Also.... she's not the last. While I've been here, I've managed to replicate the sperm cells of their kind, AND NOW FLUFFYS PREGNANT!!! WAHAHAHAHA!!!..... Unfortuantly that means she's also moody and about ten times as hungry."

"Dear lord, do you know how torturous women of any species are when thier pregnant? NEHNEHNEHNEHA bleh! GAH! Its almost impossible to not want to take the dragon by the tongue!"

Caz chuckled again, only because he couldn't help it. "Well, that's certainly something..." He still wasn't sure about the whole situation, because Verax seemed to change moods about as quickly as you'd expect the pregnant Fluffy to. But for the moment, things were looking up. Caz was thinking. And what he thought... was that he knew what Verax was looking for. The energy. A stable, self-sustaining form of the Kazesqui energy. And that... that was something Caz knew how to find.

He wouldn't tell Verax, of course.

Verax laughed again, then aruptedly quited, and tilted his head. Caz knew he was hearing some voice again, from somewhere. Then Verax frowned. "Hmm.... so strange..... Lurinia... are you sure this is right? ...... Then I understand. CAZ!!!" He turned around with a wide smile and open arms. "My dear friend...... let me show you something." And without even waiting for a response, he picked him up by his neck and took him the The Voyager's bridge, then dropped im on the ground. "Look, out there... do you see it... one of Mars's moons..... I think it has one too many... so..... well.... hehe.... prepare." His face became serious. "Prepare to witness the unbridled power of the Voyager! Lurinia! Are we set to fire the Decimation Beam?" He called out. The holographic form of the 10-foot tall blond haired Myrionith materialized next to Verax. She smiled joyfully.
"We are." Then she turned to Caz, and in that same pleasant voice and with that same charming smile said, "This is what happens when you hide things from us. So pay attention." And a moment later, the very front of the ship lit up, a massive sphere of swirling black and purple energy exploded into view, grew, and grew, until it burts into a massive planet-sized beam that engulfed one of the moons of Mars.
When it all subsided, the moon was still there. "Wait for it..." Verax eargly cautioned. And moments later, the moon gave off a faint glow, and then burst into millions of fragments.

"NO!" He turns to Verax, fury building inside him. "Have you any idea what you've done?! Thousands of people lived on that moon!" And Caz cursed himself, cursed himself for allowing Verax to somehow sense that there was something he wasn't telling the insane man. "How did you...?! How..." And that's when the guilt hit him. Thousands of lives... ended, just because of Caz. It was his fault. He collapsed to the floor, not knowing what to do. Give away the information, allowing Verax to create a self-sustaining energy with which he could end millions more lives? Or withhold it, and risk him killing people anyways just to try to get Caz to talk?

It shouldn't be Caz's choice, which lives to end. No. He wasn't, shouldn't be responsible for that. And so he lay on the floor in his pure state, dazed, guilty, and without any idea what to do.

Verax with a look of pity said, "Before you ask, Lurinia has information collection capabilities of almost a god-like level, she also has telepathic abilities, she could hear a worm's thoughts from 30 dimensions away." after a puase he broke out laughing. "But the look on your face!!! HAHAHA!! I don't get it, kill a few hundred thousand people, and suddenly everyone wants to kill you. People die ALL THE TIME! Why should it matter if I change when, how, who dies? IT MAKE-ED NO SENSE! BUT ITS HILIARIOUS!!!!" He began tap-dancing while he laughed.