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VII: Crimson Confessions

Terminus: Containment Facilities

Oct-19th, 2034, 00:15

The Pilot

It hadn’t taken long for Rooker and Rose to patch themselves up. While still somewhat cramped for the viper, Rose’s humbled abode proved quite spacious for the comparably tiny human, who had played medical jump rope (several times) with the viper’s tail in order to secure wrappings around her wide torso. She had been quite insistent that he be the one to do it, while she lounged on her makeshift bed and wrapped her tail around a nearby stone pillar for support.

Then it was his turn, where the viper refused to let him off of her tail until she successfully managed to secure the medical wraps around his forehead. While it took a few tries, her unwavering determination finally paid off, but not before she let him know about a dozen or so times how sorry she was and how much she would make it up to him later.

As for Rose’s home, her spacious bowl-shaped bed was carved directly into the rocky surface with wide outcroppings on every side, all containing a small mountain of pillows stacked on top of a mismatch of blankets and straw coverings. The gentle sound of running water filled the cavern, as veins flowed from small crevasses in the walls, across its fissured surface, and out towards the main channel and accompanied basin. Bulbous paper lanterns, strung together with wiring and serpentine silhouettes covering their surfaces lined the ceiling and illuminated the cavern’s main backdrop, which was covered in rich mosaics and recreations of once-famous oil paintings.

Wanderer above the Sea of Fog, The Last Supper, Almond Blossoms, and even Washington Crossing the Delaware found their place along the artist’s walls. The last one always made Rooker chuckle, as its owner was rather adamant that the ‘powder-wigged human’ was instrumental to his peoples’ revolution from the ‘dastardly’ British and a ‘source of great inspiration.’

As for Rose’s reading materials, most of them were shoved into every available space provided by several tall bookcases, which sat adjacent to what could be considered her study area. Rooker ventured that she'd read each in their entirety at least a half-a-dozen times over, her latest victims were scattered in a semi-circle across the ground.

History and the arts were her favorites, although once in a while he’d catch her reading some of his old aviation handbooks, trying to impress him with her understanding of the dynamics of flight or how a mixture control worked. However, much to her bitter indignation, she would likely never fly again. He had once also caught her reading a firearm manual—he shot that opportunity down quick as a flash, much to her annoyance.

Red and white plush figurines of various sizes could be found everywhere, with ground zero situated at her bedside. As for the matching viper, she was still surrounded in her makeshift pillow fortress, poking and prodding at her bandages even though he'd explicitly told her not to several times now. Rooker stood some distance off, tidying up her living space along with packing up his medical satchel. What a messy viper she had become in his absence.

“Rose, I swear if I have to come over there and adjust those wrappings one more time...”

He turned and waited for her response.

[But it’s still itchy and I think you’ve made it too tight this time around.]

“It stays exactly where it is now. Also, didn’t you complain that it was too loose earlier?”

[Yes, but now it is too tight. Must I repeat myself or have you gone blind again?]

The pilot muttered under his breath. The woman was going to start complaining about wanting him to change the thermostat next. Regardless, he would hold the line on either matter, as was his duty.

“I can understand you just fine, Rose, and my answer is still no. Those wrappings stay on your body until we have to change them in the morn—”

A pillow the size of his upper torso flew through the air and promptly smacked him in the back of the head, falling to the ground shortly after. He turned back again to give the viper a death glare.

[Fine, but I want you by my side tonight and when we have to change them in the morning.]

The viper was being exceptionally bold tonight. However, she'd since clutched one of her larger plush animals in her hands, setting it on her tail and failing to meet his gaze—there was his Rose.

[That is…if it’s okay with you. I know that you usually bring a pillow and blankets when you intend to stay with me, but I don’t want to be presumptuous. It-is-okay-if-you-say-no-because-I-did-destroy-your-pillow-when-it-was-stuck-between-my—]

“Rose!”

The viper stopped in the middle of gesturing to her healthy set of globes, looking up with hopeless worry once again painted across her striped face, her breath shortening as well.

“Please stop and take a couple of deep breaths for me.”

The viper immediately followed Rooker’s advice, taking in great pockets of air before releasing them after a few seconds. Good. It appeared that she still remembered the exercises that he'd taught her.

“It’s alright girl, I have no intention of leaving you alone tonight. You weren’t being presumptuous; you were just expressing your thoughts.”

[You’re absolutely sure? I don’t want to be so…domineering.]

The very thought of Rose becoming a tyrannical dictator brought a smile to Rooker’s face.

“I don’t think you have a single cruel bone in your entire body.”

The viper sighed and looked away again. She appeared to disagree with his assessment.

[You know why, Rooker.]

“Hey, remember what I said earlier. You’re stuck with me, girl, whether you like it or not.”

Rose turned back and offered him a weak smile, reaching out a long arm to the pilot, who let her guide him towards her enormous body once he had his contents in tow. Rooker discarded his satchel and shoes after turning to grab a final item from its outer pocket, hiding it from Rose before turning back to find her in the middle of taking off her improvised bra.

The viper’s undergarment soon fell to the bedside, the red scales covering her shoulder blades and neckline continued down the very center of her chest and branched outwards in thin lines across the rest of her body. However, Rooker was more focused on the heavy orbs that were released from their confines and wobbled in place as a result of their inertia—a man could get lost in the damn things. Rooker practically gave himself whiplash as he strained his neck to gaze into their owner’s eyes.

“W-what are you doing, Rose?!”

The viper’s eyes exploded in size, with Rooker’s well ahead of her. Rose immediately went to cover her chest with her hands but seemed to realize that she now had no means of communicating with the confused pilot, who already looked ripe as a tomato. Frustrated with the communication barrier and her failure to locate her undergarment with her tail, the viper let out an endearing whine before letting go of her ample bosom to address her caretaker.

[I sleep in the nude now. The bra is much too small and uncomfortable at night. I’m so sorry!]

Rose covered herself immediately afterwards, only worsening the situation by compressing her femininity further with her quick movements and making them seem even larger. The poor viper looked like she was going to burst into tears as she pivoted away from him, showing off her muscular back and a set of dimples. Her tail appeared to be having a panic attack of its own.

Rooker inwardly kicked himself as he finally managed to regain his composure. Again, her negative self-concept was rearing its ugly head—there was still very much a mountain to climb in that regard.

“It’s fine, Rose. You just surprised me is all. If you’ll still allow me to stay the night with you, please allow yourself to get comfortable, and I’ll set up shop as we’ve done in the past.”

The serpent turned back and slowly nodded her head, afraid to allow him to reap anything further from her bountiful harvest, yet unwilling to let the caretaker escape her lair. She then let her great body collapse across her cushiony mattress, which cried out beneath her otherworldly frame. Her furthest hand stood guard as her nearest once again reached for the little pilot, guiding him towards the safety of her wide hood. Rooker turned and stepped up onto the soft sail, making sure to displace his weight accordingly before setting his pillow next to her head and stretching his entire body across the hood—the viper had since covered herself with a blanket the size of a tarp. With the crisis resolved, Rose turned a crimson eye to the pilot.

[Are you uncomfortable? I can shift my body a little bit if you are, and…sorry.]

The viper gave him another weak smile, again doing her best to hold his gaze.

“Rose, please do me a favor and stop saying that you’re sorry. Again, it was an honest mistake and it's been a couple of weeks since we’ve had the chance to do this. I want you to be comfortable in your own scales, with me or otherwise. Remember your favorite word?”

[I know. It’s just in a more recent magazine that I read, all the human women have…]

They'd had conversations with regards to the more sensual aspects of her body before—what person wouldn’t be curious about their own body while growing up? Since there was no matriarch to offer words of advice, the task often fell to Rooker. However, especially in the last few years, Rose was quick to avoid such subjects.

“Have what, Rose? What could they possibly have that you don’t...wait, what magazine?”

[Oh! Uhm, I was reading one called…Crochet World. The human women had, uhm…tiny hands. Yes! I’m sad that I have oversized hands, unlike the women, who were in this magazine you speak of, which I’ve definitely read.]

“Crochet World. You’re absolutely sure about this?”

Rooker couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow at her poor attempt at covering her tracks. The viper flinched and gave a heartfelt sigh.

[Look…can we talk about something else? Like maybe why you brought another one of them into our home?]

“No dice, at least until you tell me the actual name of the magazine or the rating that was on it.”

[I didn’t see a rating, although there were big red X’s across its front.]

“How many?”

[Uhm…two…]

The pilot narrowed his eyes at the viper, who quickly changed the number based on his facial expression.

[Three. There were three X's and a revealing human on the front of the magazine.]

Rooker buried his face into his hands, letting out an exasperated groan.

[Is three bad? If two is a better answer, then it was most certainly two.]

“Never mind, we’ll talk about where you came across that later, because I do owe you an explanation of my own, and it has everything to do with the man that I brought into our home earlier this evening.”

The clawed hands once again danced through the air, creating shadow puppets in their wake. Rose now looked at him with focused resolve.

[First, I want to know why you went behind my back and left me in the care of her.]

“Katarina? She's not a bad person, Rose. She risked her own skin to get me back to you safely.”

[Not a bad person? Rooker, she left me in here to rot and chose to treat me like a rabid animal after I defended myself against my attackers. Furthermore, how can you say that after what she did to you in the past?]

Rooker could feel the massive viper tense up, the muscles in her arms flexing in response to her clenched fists—she was beginning to see red again. Fighting his body’s attempt to seek out his phantom flask, the man instead brought a comforting hand to Rose’s head, the tip of her left fang poked against her lower jawline and her forked tongue appeared to be working in overdrive. Her eyes glazed over for a few seconds, but the storm seemed to pass as quickly as it had come. The man took note and proceeded.

“Life is too short to hold onto grudges, you know this, girl. No one is perfect and...it takes two to tango. As for what happened in the courtyard, I’m willing to talk about it now if you are. Don’t worry, we’ll talk about Adrian afterwards, but I want to make sure that...” Rooker gestured to his forehead, “...this, and the physical and emotional wounds that you suffered over this last week never happen again.”

Rose immediately bit down on her tongue, leaving a good couple feet of it hanging out as the viper shifted uncomfortably. Her hood nearly doubled in on itself, taking the pilot for a quick ride before the currents evened out.

[Sorry…I guess that I’m willing to talk about it. My memory is still fresh, at least in terms of when I was consciously in control of my own body.]

Perhaps it was in how she phrased it, but something now felt very off about the viper’s demeanor.

“I’m…not sure that I follow, Rose. You received all of your daily injections, correct?”

[I did up until today. Doctor Moreau remained my primary caretaker while you were away. Quiet woman and never one to treat me like an animal, weary of my large size though.]

“That’s why I asked for her directly while I was away. I know that she wouldn’t harm a scale on your body. However, something changed today?”

[Not just something but someone as well.]

Rose clenched her fists momentarily before continuing.

[Doctor Simons decided to pay me a visit while I was basking in the courtyard. Moreau was by his side but seemed uneasy, at least more so than usual. It was time for my daily injection.]

The viper turned over one of her arms, revealing one of the primary sites used to administer the countless injections that she'd undertaken over the years.

[I had no cause to be distrustful, right? That pig of a man always undressing me with his eyes, dissecting each and every contour of my body as though I belonged in an autopsy report. He hated me and wanted me to know it before he had Moreau administer the drugs, and like an idiot, I just sat there and let her.]

Rose closed her eyes, fighting back something that Rooker couldn’t rightfully place. Nevertheless, he let her continue unabated.

[The drugs took immediate effect, although this wasn’t the inhibiter that I was used to—it was something else. My vision blurred and my hearing was distorted. Paralysis rocked my body, which folded across the entire courtyard. They were then left to do as they pleased with me.]

His viper took a deep breath before continuing her gestures.

[That’s when the pain started, and they ripped into my scales and took what they wanted. Whoever created the concoction wanted me to feel every moment of it. Of course, they took their time. Why rush when you thought that you had all of the time in the world? I only saw shades of grey shifting about my lower torso.]

The edges of her mouth suddenly turned up into an unsettling, wicked grin. The eye that appraised him shrunk to a slit and seemed to drink in his features and sense him as something else.

[But that was only half of what the drug had to offer. Shortly after, I felt an overwhelming sense of power and rage, a wave of crimson took hold, and…I saw them as beneath me. As if every neuron in my brain was telling me to treat them as insignificant prey that needed to be crushed within my coils and swallowed whole.]

“Rose, that is enough.”

[At that moment, I acted on those impulses, like I’ve been wanting to do for so long.]

“Rose…please stop.”

[While the shadows were caught unaware, my tail pounced and I threw one of them against a nearby pillar. Their delicate flesh against my hardened scales made me feel so—]

“ROSE!”

The viper’s eyes dilated and appeared to register Rooker as her caretaker once again.

[I…just signed all of that out to you, didn’t I?]

The color had since drained from his face as a result of her harrowing confession. Rose flinched at his reaction, and Rooker was left speechless as his worst fears came true. The viper’s resolve soon collapsed under the unbearable silence that now filled her home.

[No, it wasn't like that at all! I…pushed them aside on accident and didn’t go after them on impulse. I was careful, gentle even. I-I-I saw them as equals and didn’t lash out at them like they were helpless prey. Small, insignificant morsels that I could have some semblance of control over. No! I didn’t mean it like that!]

Her defense mechanisms were taking over and she was playing out fantasies that were completely detached from reality. The viper couldn’t lie to save her life, and Rooker saw right through her falsehoods. However, as his comfortable hammock began to vibrate violently, she too seemed to realize how pointless it was to justify her impulses. With no options left, she panicked.

[What the hell is wrong with me?!]

The pilot was immediately thrown onto Rose’s bed as the great serpent shifted over his head and made a bolt towards the ledge leading towards the waterfall. Her plush figurines and pillows flew in every direction as her long tail made an earnest effort to keep up with the rest of her body. After gathering his bearings, Rooker stood up to find his viper coiled up with the blanket wrapped tightly around her upper body. She stared through the thin veil, out towards the courtyard and the observation wing inside the opposing rockface—her eyes now fixed on the bloody pillar.

She could not escape without his help and she knew it.

Rooker soon found himself situated on the very end of her long tail and once again leaning into her body for support—he just wished that she could still physically do the same. Nevertheless, he would have to support her by other means.

“You have nothing to be ashamed about.”

Rose’s red eyes immediately fell to him, still puffy with tears and bottled-up emotion.

[Nothing to be ashamed about? Do you even listen to what comes out of your mouth half the time? I likely killed someone and now admit that I enjoyed it! This oversized, bloodthirsty snake just couldn’t help herself and ruined everything!]

Rooker gave a rueful laugh, which seemed to anger the viper even more as she once again looked outside.

“That accusation cuts deep, Rose. However, I acknowledge that that is one of my many shortcomings.”

He would have to break the news to her that Simons was indeed no longer amongst the living, but that would hopefully come later. She was once again banking her wings into a steep spiral, and it was time to slowly level her back out.

[How are our situations even comparable?! I gave you flak for being dishonest earlier, but here I was lying to you and to myself this entire time, giving in to impulses that make me even more of a monster.]

“So, you did enjoy it then? Encircling them in your coils and taking control of the situation?” Rooker began to peel back the layers.

[I…all my life I’ve relied on you to fight my battles for me. Yes, I’m built like an alien battleship now, but I still rely on you for food, safety, and emotional support. I feel so helpless all of the time and just wanted to be in control for once in my miserable life.]

An honest admission that cut straight to his heart, but Rooker figured that this onion went much deeper. They’d continue to take things one layer at a time—for her sake.

“Rose, that’s what a guardian is supposed to do. However, I know your upbringing was anything but normal, and I can’t help but feel that I’m the one to blame for this and any past situations. A guardian is also supposed to give you the tools necessary to succeed on your own, and I’ve failed you across the board on that front.”

[No! Don’t you dare pile all of this on yourself.]

Rooker felt his foundation shift and curl around him, the tail gently squeezed before returning to its resting position.

[You’ve risked your life time and time again to give me a library of knowledge to work with, and simply because I asked for it. I can’t imagine where I would be in life without you. You’re not the problem—I am.]

“You are not a burden, Rose.”

[Not a burden? You’ve given up promotions because of me, you’ve lost associates and close friends because of me, you’ve…given up the chance to start a family because of me. You may very well lose your life because of me if I cannot get control of myself.]

Rose paused to look at the bloody pillar once again.

[I need to leave and get as far away from this place as possible. I’ll only cause you more harm than good by staying here, so help me escape Terminus.]

“And go where exactly?” Rooker couldn’t help but pick apart the foolishness of her plan. “What will you eat? How will you remain under Advent’s radar? The Resistances’? My kind has no love for aliens and you’ll likely live out your days on the run without any social interactions outside of those filled with hostility and scorn.”

The tail beneath him gave way to the cold ground. Rooker sat up, only to have the scaled appendage shoved into his chest as the viper shifted to tower over him.

[You have no idea what it’s like to be stuck this way! I’m effectively cut off from my own kind and an alien invader in the eyes of your own. You should've just caved in my skull when you had the chance!]

The viper went to express another thought but suppressed it by forcing her hands together.

Regardless, Rooker was immediately on his feet and found a large rock to stand on. While he still didn’t have the high ground, he stabbed a finger into the wall of white scales all the same. She wanted to fight with fire? Fine. The pilot would drop an unholy firestorm of napalm right on her dense head.

“Don’t belong anywhere? That’s a bunch of bull-crap and you know it! You belong here, with me. You’re smart, smarter than I ever could be, but the world outside these walls is a death sentence, and I refuse to stand by and allow you to crucify yourself out in that unforgiving wasteland!”

Rose’s body backed up as her head descended from on high until their heights were roughly the same, the pair of red eyes locked onto his blue ones, a set of clawed hands separated them.

[Be selfish for once in your damn life. Let. Me. Go.]

“Not happening, Rose. You’re not taking the path of least resistance on this one.”

[Please…just forget about me and live your life as though I never existed in the first place.]

The crimson eyes faltered and looked towards the cavern floor, finding a single item displaced near her thick coils—a book with a cover featuring a peculiar woman. The pilot followed her gaze and turned over his pockets, realizing that they now lay empty. A flowery bonnet sat atop the woman’s head, she held a pie in her hands and wore a smile on her face. The words Amelia Bedelia hung above her head—a children’s book meant for those learning how to read.

The viper’s eyes soon found his own, her hands shuddered in place as she made an attempt to blink away a tear. Failing to do so, Rose lifted a hand; however, a human one passed through her claws and wiped it away for her.

“Never.”

A second hand found the other side of her jawline, both of hers wrapped around his back as he brought his bandaged head against the top of her muzzle. Rooker felt the tip of her tail weave its way onto the rock and around one of his legs, a forked tongue steadily lapped in his scent. They stayed like this for some time until the viper let go, looking down and realizing that her blanket had since fallen to the ground and she was once again giving the pilot an opportunity to admire her exposed assets. However, Rooker jumped down and handed the large blanket to her, then perched himself back onto the rock and stared out into the courtyard, bringing his knees to his chest.

The caretaker soon found his ward situate herself next to him, her thick tail wrapped itself around his perch until the uppermost layer skimmed his feet. At her current height, the man was about level with one of her shoulder blades, the blanket was now tied around her upper torso in a manner that closely resembled an apron. The tip of her tail then presented him with a gift—his fallen book. Rooker accepted Rose’s offering and held it against his chest.

[It seems like forever ago that you first read that to me.]

Rose’s caretaker looked up and gave her a wide smile. “I remember what first drew the little viper to it in the first place.”

[The bonnet. She liked the flowers in the human’s hood…because they matched her own.]

“That she did, and the way she giggled for hours on end at the strange human acting out Amelia’s wild antics in front of the lamplight before bedtime.”

[He never stopped being strange, but he was my human.]

“And she was my viper.”

The pair sat and let the running water fill the void of their silence. Eventually, Rose let out a deep sigh.

[Look. Rooker, I’m—]

“You’ve done enough apologizing for one night. I’m just happy that you’re still here by my side.”

[I…am as well, but you must understand that this doesn’t change the fact that I still have those urges. If we let this continue and I somehow go off again, I could hurt you like earlier, or worse.]

“Swallow me whole?” Rooker raised an eyebrow at the notion, looking the viper up and down before concluding that she was more than capable of doing so at her current size.

The tip of her tail smacked the back of his head. She gave him her version of a death glare, which was admittedly much better than his own.

[This is serious, Rooker. Enough games; I want to talk about what happened today in further detail.]

“Just trying to lighten the mood, girl.” Rooker slipped the book back into his pocket. “Let me get this straight, today’s actions stemmed from impulses that were exacerbated as a result of the injection that Doctor Moreau was forced to give you?”

[That is correct.]

“Which means that you’ve been consciously suppressing them for some time now. When did you start getting these impulses?”

[I…perhaps six or so months ago. At first, they were infrequent and inconsequential, but now they’re far more common and seem to be triggered by high levels of stress or intense emotions.]

“I see, and how do you feel during an episode?”

The viper broke eye contact and looked at the ground.

[Must I repeat myself? It’s quite embarrassing.]

“Yes. If we’re going to get to the bottom of this and prevent them from happening in the future.”

[I feel powerful and apathetic towards anything in my way. Like a moth to a flame, I’m drawn towards a single outcome: death and the blood that comes with it. However, in some cases, it’s also like I’m not even there and it’s someone else in control. Like I’m in some sort of blind rage.]

“Blind rage…”

The dots immediately connected in Rooker’s head and filled him with a sense of overwhelming dread. It seemed that perhaps Doctor Harper may not have been that far off with his earlier assessment. However, it was just a hunch, but given her origins...

No, the man would keep these thoughts to himself for now. Rose was in no condition to hear this until he had a coherent message to relay to her, even more so if stress was a trigger. He would have to tread carefully moving forward.

“And you felt this same rage towards me and Adrian when we first arrived?”

[At that point, I believe the serum was still not entirely out of my system. I regained some control of my body shortly before you arrived. I…didn’t lie about the fact that my senses were distorted, or that I was angry when I mistakenly believed that Adrian was Doctor Simons.]

Harper had mentioned that they were forced to tranquilize her, so yet another reason to track down the lanky doctor and rough him up for information. He would get to the bottom of this, one way or another.

“But were you really trying to scare him away, or instead looking to finish the job?”

[I don’t know. There comes a point where I slip in and out of consciousness. When they were cutting me open, I only remember up to the part where I slammed one of the shadows against the pillar and the feelings associated with it. With Adrian, his pheromones flooded my senses when I caught up to him, and my brain queried the unfamiliar sensation, resulting in higher cognitive functioning.]

“And what about me? You seemed at least semi-aware during that time and hell-bent on protecting me with your body once Adrian entered the picture. You must have some semblance of control. Perhaps there’s something in that interaction that’s important? What were you feeling when you had me held up against the pillar?”

The scales around Rose’s cheeks tightened.

[Oh. Uhm…I was more focused on Adrian than you. I felt anger and nothing more. Yes. No other emotions to speak of during that time. Then I lost primary control of my body during the resulting chase, so there is no sense in talking about that interaction in greater detail.]

Rooker raised an eyebrow. “You’re absolutely sure? I wasn’t even aware that Adrian was there until he made his presence known. There’s surely got to be something else there.”

[You’re mistaken. Even my weakened senses far outmatch your limited human ones.]

“But you still thought that Adrian was an entirely different person based on those senses?”

[This pointless arguing is getting us nowhere! I just want to find a solution so that it doesn’t happen again.]

Rooker sighed. Clearly, this was a layer that she would not grant him access to.

“So, it’s triggered by intense, often negative emotions, your episodes are increasing in frequency, and you’re more or less a passenger in your own body throughout the process. I…have no idea what’s causing this.”

A lie, at least partially. Funny how quickly they'd reverted back to hiding things from each other. At least he had a lead and another reason to get Adrian involved in the matter. Rose just needed to hunker down and ride out the storm while his sails carried her to safety.

[How are Moreau and Simons? I didn’t actually…]

Rose turned her attention back to him, she looked emotionally drained at this point. However, there was little sense in hiding those facts from her.

Rooker took a deep breath. “Doctor Moreau is in critical condition with second-degree burns over most of her body, and Simons…I guess that you got your revenge in the end.”

[And this investigation that you spoke about earlier?]

“An inquiry will be launched by the Chief of Security starting tomorrow. Kat said that she would be impartial on the matter and will let the facts speak for themselves.”

The viper lowered her head in defeat, the hood drooped to its lowest possible point and fresh tears streamed down her muzzle. Rooker quickly intercepted her clawed hand and pulled it into his chest.

“Hey there…it’s going to be alright, girl. We’ll make it through this, we just need to go into it with a game plan.”

The hand pulled away from him.

[But you just stated that you have no idea what’s wrong with me. And since I wasn’t consciously aware for most of it, it’s their word against…these claws.]

“Well, I may not entirely know what’s wrong with you, but I just extracted someone who might.”

Rose’s sail immediately caught wind and the weakest of stars came to settle in her eye.

[Adrian? I don’t understand.]

“His full title is Doctor Adrian Fairchild, and he's well versed in your subspecies’ genetics.”

This earned him a scowl.

[You mean he picked apart my kind for a living and that made him an expert.]

He needed to be careful here. While Rose was aware that she belonged to a subspecies of viper, he had guarded the specifics from her in order to protect her. Ignorance was bliss in this situation, and he would not destroy that aspect of her life in one fell swoop. Right now, she needed hope, and he would try his best to give it to her.

“No Rose. I’ve read some of his papers and the man is brilliant, even if he is a bit unhinged at times. He is able to re-order genetic sequencing for the betterment of his patient. He’s introduced and halted genetic mutations to the effect of preventing unwanted afflictions. With him on our side, we can stop the injections once and for all, and maybe even determine what’s causing you to have these unwanted impulses.”

[And his ‘patients’ were all vipers?]

“I believe that he’s worked with a variety of species. However, in terms of his written documents, it was predominately with vipers.”

Rose looked to the outer reaches of the courtyard.

[You told me that you were going into the heart of Advent to secure a package. So, this man was that package? Why would he leave Advent if he’s as brilliant as you say he is?]

“Because as far as I can tell, he hated his old life and wanted to escape Advent.”

[To escape Advent or to escape my kind? The tiny ape had less than flattering things to say about me during our first few interactions.]

“Well, you did kind of give him a lap around the facility. That’s not exactly the best way of making a great first impression.”

The viper once again lowered her head towards the ground.

[Fair, but the way he responded by even being in close proximity to me. It’s like he was shell-shocked.]

“I have a theory, but it first involves me explaining what happened in the observation room.”

Rose turned her attention back to him, now tipping her head to the side and darting her tongue in his direction.

[I’m listening.]

“Adrian and I…may have gotten into an altercation about you.”

His ward raised a scaled eyebrow but signed nothing further.

“Adrian went off about how if he even looked at a viper, his mind would conjure up certain images. He demanded that one of your drawings be taken down and stated that he couldn’t fall asleep otherwise. I told him that your stuff was off-limits.”

[The one with the two of us holding hands?]

Rooker nodded.

[Then what happened?]

“He wouldn’t take no for an answer.” The man hesitated but determined that there was now no sense in hiding the trail of destruction that Adrian’s abnormal reaction had caused. “He grabbed onto one of the drawing’s corners. I tried to stop him, but he panicked, and…tore it clean in half.”

The viper largely remained still, but he’d been around her long enough to read the subtlety of her facial expressions, at least when it came to the loss that registered in her eyes.

[I…understand.]

He saw the gears turn inside her head. Unfortunately for him, the viper soon made the necessary connections and her red eyes narrowed.

[And you attacked him afterwards, didn’t you? That's where the fresh blood came from. You’re here trying to convince me that he’d be willing to help me, but both of us have left him battered in the end.]

Shit. He was supposed to be giving her hope, not suffocating what little remained.

“Rose, I—”

[What theory did you come to about Adrian? Why do you think that he’s afraid of my kind and by association, me?]

“It all comes back to the images in his mind. It’s like you said, he just becomes shell-shocked and your kind seems to be the trigger. It has to be something along the lines of PTSD, which means that something happened while he was living under Advent occupation that ultimately made him this way. Unfortunately, it was likely a bad experience with a viper, which will make the job that I originally had set out to do a little harder.”

[‘Originally?’ You intended to convince him before all of this came to light?]

Rooker once again took hold of her hand, massaging her scaled palm, which was pleasantly warm to the touch.

“Rose, every day that you’re trapped in this cell is another day that I’ve failed to give you the life that you deserve. I was tired of sitting on my hands and leaving you to rot, so I took their offer and flew to New Providence to track down the one man that would be able to stop the invasive scans, the endless injections, and the notion that your only use to the Resistance lies in what they can extract from your body.”

[I…don’t understand. Haven’t the other humans made this impossible? What could they possibly gain from extracting a man like Adrian?]

“Doctor Vahlen wanted his research, but the major claimed that she fled Terminus for the arctic before our arrival. I…never got around to asking about the details, but I know that Doctor Hoffman has been placed into the chief scientist role.”

Rose let out a distasteful hiss.

[I had wondered where she went. Prior to Simons and Moreau approaching me in the courtyard, I overhead arguing and mention of Vahlen’s name. I just assumed that the banshee was still in charge.]

Potential infighting between the scientists? Now that Rooker thought about it further, the idea lined up with the current state of the lab facilities on the upper level. Vahlen was always a cold-hearted bitch, so it wouldn’t surprise him if she had simply taken what she wanted and ran. As for Hoffman, he always took a special interest in Rose’s mutations, so maybe something finally came to a head.

“You bring up a really good point, girl, can you remember anything else before you received your pseudo-injection? Did you interact with Doctor Hoffman at all?”

The gears once again turned in the viper’s head, but the hood came to lower as a result.

[No. I don’t remember much else, and Hoffman remained uncharacteristically absent while you were away.]

Rose then turned to look him straight in the eyes.

[You really think that Terminus’ inhabitants would come to accept me? I’m not sure how useful I would be even if Adrian is somehow able to fix me.]

“Isn’t that what you’ve also wanted though? To be able to share your knowledge and talents with the world, and not be treated like some test subject. Rose, you have too much to offer this world and your gifts are spoiled in this cell. Over the years, some have claimed that you can’t be socialized, but that's entirely false.”

Rooker looked to the upper edges of where her hood joined her head. A subtle fissure lined its surface and led towards a crater of discolored scales.

“If you could convince me, you can convince anyone. Adrian can help you live the life that I’ve always hoped that you’d have.”

[But I jeopardized everything through my actions today. How can anyone in Terminus trust me now?]

“It’s true, trust is quickly lost out here, and we have quite the hill to climb. I’m willing to be by your side every step of the way, but this pilot needs a navigator, and I think that we may have found one in Adrian.”

[But how do we convince him? And what happens if he finds something else? I…hate having to put up with this body already.]

Rose looked down at her wide frame with disgust, readjusting the blanket as it began to slip from her generous bust. She was once again falling into that pit of despair. To think that around an hour before, she had a carefree smile on her face and a bounce in her slither. The crushing weight of reality had unfortunately set in.

“We need to convince Adrian that you mean him no harm and that he can trust us. The only way I see this happening is if he is interacting with you at some level. Maybe we start with something small and work our way up. Although, we may not have the luxury of time.”

[You do realize that this means that I have to be interacting with him as well. I’m not very fond of the little ape.]

“I know that you two got off on the wrong foot—err…tail, or whatever.” Rose’s eyes narrowed at his rather poor course correction. “What I’m trying to say is that it may not exactly be pleasant starting out, but I’m sure that he will come around if you show him how gentle of a person you really are.”

She wrinkled her snout at the notion.

[And how do you propose that I do that? Have him give me a sponge bath or a back massage?]

Rooker felt the heat rise from his face. There was a time when she practically demanded such things, although that was when she could fit inside a bathtub. She had filled out since then and things would get rather awkward real fast. He had walked in on her bathing in the basin once or twice; she was less than pleased and he always ended up soaking wet afterwards. Part of him really wanted to see how Adrian would react, but the doctor would likely melt into a little puddle himself, which would be rather counterproductive.

“What? No Rose. Not in a literal sense. Just have a conversation with him and try to get him to open up. Maybe show him your art collection, have him read you a book, anything to convince him that his fears are misplaced. We’ll likely need to ease him into it, so I’ll need to act as a mediator for at least the start.”

And to make sure that he doesn’t directly spill the beans about her kind or get himself killed as a result of his poor word choice.

[But what if he rejects me like before, or I get upset about something that he says? Also, I’d rather not show him my art collection. I worked very hard on those, so he can keep his little ape hands far away from them.]

Rooker glared at his stubborn viper. “Rose…I know you aren’t happy about what he did to your drawing, but you need to keep an open mind here. He may very well be our only way out of this situation and could give you the power to change peoples’ minds within Terminus—to make your voice felt and respected.”

[Fine, but only because I want to prove him wrong and hold it over his tiny head for the rest of his days.]

“Good. And please don’t antagonize him by referring to him by his pet name. The man is unstable enough as it is.”

[But what happens if he starts calling me names like before?]

“Then be the bigger person,” the pilot wryly stated.

[Not funny Rooker. You know that I have very strong feelings about my size.]

The coils around his rock tightened, but the smile on the viper’s face defied the death glare that she was attempting to give him. Her arms crossed over her chest in an exaggerated pout.

“What? Given what I heard earlier about a certain power-hunger viper, who likes to surround humans in her coils. I just don’t want her thinking that she’s a big deal and developing a big head that’s too much for one caretaker to—”

The viper sprung her trap and the human once again found himself between her heavy coils, although this time their presence felt more like a gentle hug than anything else.

[This caretaker has a big mouth on him. Perhaps this viper should remind him of his place on the food chain.]

Rooker felt himself being slowly pulled into the red mass until all he could see was Rose’s large upper torso. High above the viper held her wide smile and ran her forked tongue along the edges of her mouth. She was egging him on and hoping for a reaction. Luckily, he still had access to his arms.

“Oh no! I have offended the mighty viper by pointing out her bigness and am now trapped within her vast coils. I beseech thee, mighty viper. Let this poor wretch go.”

His acting needed a bit of work, but if Rose’s suppressed giggles and subtle bounces off of her tail were anything to go by, his ploy seemed to be working.

[Nay. Thou must first atone for thy sins, tiny human. There's but no greater grievance than to point out a viper’s bigness.]

Damn. His book snake was better at this than he was. His gaze shifted momentarily to the blanket tied around Rose’s upper torso. While she had fixed it earlier, it was now in the process of slipping again, and the knot was on its last legs. In wartime, all options were on the table and it was time to fight dirty. He just had to distract her for a little while longer.

“What about thy longness, O scaled one?”

[Equally as heinous, which doubles thy punishment.]

“Pray tell. What is to be my punishment, mighty viper?”

[Thou must gaze upon my feminine beauty, and offer thy sincerest compliments.]

The ‘mighty viper’ then shifted her coils and brought him even closer to herself. Her great head then came to hover above his own. She had to practically double over on herself, her bountiful bosom was doing her no favors. The blanket once again shifted and his target was now laser designated.

“Thou art fair, O mighty viper. A compliment shall be thy reward.”

Rooker released an index finger. The fleshy missile slowly homed in on the viper’s face, its owner going cross-eyed as it came to a final resting place upon her striped snout.

“You have the cutest of snoots.”

His words had an immediate effect on the viper, whose reflective glow could very well have led the three magi to Bethlehem. He took a moment to let her defenses dwindle and then he struck, pulling on the knot with his other hand as hard as he could as the coils loosened. He was immediately on his feet and bolted towards the fortress of pillows with the entire blanket in tow, all the while snickering like a schoolboy who had just raided the girl’s locker room. The only immediate indicator of his success was the cutest of whines coming from the powerful serpent.

Making it to the far side of Rose’s bed, he turned around to find the viper in hot pursuit. However, she was slowed down by her apparent need to cover herself. The look that she gave him would kill lesser mortals, but the smile still hadn’t entirely wilted from her face. The viper stopped at the opposite end and crouched as low as she could, hiding behind a bunker of pillows that she quickly assembled between them.

“Hark! The great beast awakens. What say you, mighty serpent?”

A pair of scaled hands manned the battlements and prepared a response.

[Give that blanket back this instant, Rooker! This isn’t funny anymore.]

Red eyes poked over the wall in desperation, trying to spot her bra among the remaining pillows. However, to her horror, it currently sat at Rooker’s feet.

“Naysayer. I demand trial by combat!”

The man then moved both the blanket and undergarment into a crude winner’s circle.

[What use could you possibly have with my bra?]

“Don’t know, but I wager it would make a nice parachute in case of an emergency.”

[You’re cruel.]

“And you still haven’t officially said no.”

The pilot moved his way towards the top of the pile, towering above the viper for the first time all night as she continued to seek refuge behind her makeshift fortress. Rose tilted her head in his direction, a cocky smile now formed on her muzzle.

[You’re serious about this? I think that I’m a bit above your weight class.]

“You do outweigh me by a significant margin, but hell…with the high ground now firmly in my possession, I think that I can take you.”

A pillow was launched over the battlements as an immediate response, hitting him square in the face and nearly knocking him off balance. The first blow was struck and the cold war had officially turned hot.

“The serpent chooses her weapon. I move to match her in equal measure!”

Rooker fell behind his own piece of cover and returned his own volley of pillows, each hitting their mark along the viper’s bow. A squeal of delight came as her reply, which was followed up by yet another pillow that missed him by a close margin. Her red eyes once again peeked over to see if she hit his smaller frame. Rooker figured that it couldn’t hurt to egg her on further.

“You’re going to have to do better than that, Rose! Where is that superior eyesight?”

[Your height advantage is impacting my aim. Also, humans make small targets.]

“Well, you’re in full cover, so I don’t want to hear any excuses.”

He launched another pillow, which hit her right along her muzzle as she once again popped her head out of cover. The red eyes narrowed and the viper rose from her cover, compressing her breasts with one hand and snatching up half a dozen pillows in the other hand. Higher and higher she rose until his cover became nonexistent. Rose then bulldozed through her protective barrier, pivoted her tail, and lined up another dozen pillows and stuffed figurines. He pelted her broadside again and again with his own downy weaponry, but the girl was resilient. Eventually, he ran out of ammunition, ceding the advantage to the viper.

A wicked smile found its way onto Rose’s face. Her large tail lifted off the ground and lined up for a deadly swing. Her clawed hand pulled back in unison.

“Now…let’s not do anything rash, Rose. If you just surrender, we can—”

The viper unleashed her firestorm upon the pilot, who was forced to dive to safety underneath a nearby pile. Rooker felt the dull thud of artillery shells landing all around him. While it lasted but a moment, the human soon found himself completely buried and now unable to move. He had been bested by the great serpent and awaited his punishment.

A pair of clawed hands soon dug through his comfortable cocoon and hoisted him into the air. Rose had since donned her winner's blanket around her body and the smile she wore on her face was anything but boastful. Her tired eyes took a moment to appraise him for injuries and when she found none brought his entire body into her. His chest met hers as he wrapped his arms around the base of her neck for support. Rose then brought her muzzle down and held it tightly against his back. The smell of cinnamon spice flooded his senses as heat continued to radiate off of her body and kept both of them warm.

Rooker’s feet found the earth shortly after. The viper then began to tidy up the mess and prepare her bed for the both of them, her tail all the while danced through the air and followed some rhythm that he couldn’t rightfully place. They had gone through this routine enough times when she was younger, such that only a silent conversation was required. However, he must have zoned out, because he soon felt Rose poke his chest with the end of her tail.

[Stop smiling like an idiot and help me by dimming the overhead lights. I’ll finish preparing our bedding and lie down for you.]

“Fine, but I demand a rematch. I had you on the ropes for a bit there and only lost because you hogged all of the pillows.”

The viper only smiled as she laid her great body across her bed, pivoting herself and holding her head in her hands while she watched him lower the ambient lighting. It reminded him of the long nights where she refused to go to bed until he read her the wild tales of her favorite fictional characters, the distinguished efforts of her beloved historical figures, or simply just listening to the sound of his voice as he recounted his own adventures outside of her cell.

He hated to use that word, but that’s what it was and what it would always be unless this insanity ended. As he looked on at the viper, who was willing to share her bed with him, he couldn’t help but be reminded of Adrian’s current position—alone in the dark without even a warm bed to keep him company. What a terrible host he had been up until this point, and there was no longer any anger left to prevent the torrent of remorse from overwhelming his system. This cycle needed to end and it would all start with him.

Rose seemed to sense his hesitation and shifted her body to address her caretaker.

[Is everything alright, Rooker? The color has drained from your face. Was it something that I did?]

“No Rose. I was just reminded of Adrian and how I last left him in the observation wing.”

The viper offered a hand, to which he accepted and found himself situated next to her scaled rump, which she offered to him in an unspoken question. The man quickly checked her bandages before giving her the signal that she could wiggle herself closer until their bodies met. Once the viper was satisfied and the entire right side of his body was bathed in her warmth, she made her thoughts known.

[I never let you get to that part of the story. I assume that he isn’t tucked away in my old bed?]

Rooker sighed and did his best to look into her eyes. “No, I overreacted after he destroyed your artwork and left him on the padded floor, fighting another one of his episodes. He clung to his only remaining possession, which I…damaged in our scuffle.”

The viper’s immediate expression to his own confession was unreadable, yet she kept him locked in her powerful gaze.

[And he is still there to your knowledge?]

“Yes, and I can’t shake the feeling of remorse over the entire situation.”

Despite her earlier anger, her warm heart began to show through and he could sense the unspoken message surface within her eyes—she wanted him to be the one to say it.

“I…should go tend to the doctor. Sorry Rose, but I need to make things right between Adrian and I. If we’re ever going to get you the help that you deserve, we need him by our side.”

The viper lifted him up for one final hug, pressing him deep against her chest before placing him back on the ground. Rose seemed intent on making this type of hug routine, and he wasn’t about to deny that beautiful smile on her face. She then handed him back his satchel.

[Go to him, Rooker. Make things right and then come back to me.]

“I promise, girl. But what will you do in the meantime?”

[You’ve given me a lot to think about, but first I think that I’ll take a trip down memory lane.]

The red and white tail came forward and balanced an all too familiar book on its surface. Before he could react, Rose lifted it and carefully transferred it into her lap, alongside one of her favorite plush figurines that could've served as a miniature doppelganger.

Rooker turned to leave, but a pillow smacked him in the back of the head as he neared the exit—not a bad aim after all. He pivoted on his heels to face the kleptomaniac, who made sure that she had his undivided attention by puffing out her chest and making herself as large as possible.

[And Rooker…a woman can only warm her bed for so long before she begins to worry, so don’t make me another promise that you can’t keep.]

The pilot only nodded his head, afraid that he’d turn into a stuttering mess otherwise. This side of Rose was definitely something that he could get used to, but the tables had indeed turned over the course of the night.

Seemingly satisfied with his response, the viper rested herself against an array of pillows and began to carefully page through the confines of her book and failed to suppress a series of heartfelt giggles. Given permission to leave, the caretaker turned and took his first step towards the observation wing, where a certain doctor was no doubt huddled within the darkness of Rose’s old room and waiting to be cared for.