"so you just mindlessly macro? fine. let the ignorant feed on their own putrid filth."
-Sp|ne
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| Dream Control - Section E: A Nightmare Ends | | | Author: | | | IP: | slip-166XXXX | | Date: | 05/14/00 12:05 | | Game Type: | Starcraft | | Labels: | none | | Report Rating: , # of Ratings: 3, Max: 8, Min: 7
Lifetime Rating for ScreamStalker: 7.5385 |   | Hello, and welcome to the final installment of Dream Control. In case you haven't been following along, DC is a 5 chapter series. If you have missed a chapter, simply hti the search author icon, and search Scream. I hope you all enjoyed this series, as much as I enjoyed writing it. Look for my next story out in a month or so. And so I present:
Dream Control - Section E: A Nightmare Ends
Calvin rose into the air, and for the first time, sampled his new form. It consisted mostly of tightly packed muscles, intertwining tendons, hardened red scales, and leathery wings. Calvin knew instantly that he was a Mutalisk. It took him a few minutes to get accustomed to the body and it's functions, but after several minutes of trial and error, Calvin felt he had the body under control.
The flying was the easy part. It was simply an action that was done without effort or thought, much like the breathing process of humans. The hard part Calvin realized, was steering. His body was basically one giant lump of muscle, shaped like a banana. If he tried hard enough, Calvin found he could nearly straighten his body into a linear formation, and he could also compact his form into a complete circle. After flying around for a few minutes, Calvin took a good look around him…and nearly vomited.
The Zerg structures were the ugliest most revolting objects Calvin had ever seen. Mucus dripped off all of them, and each one was moving in an awkward way. The Hive below him stretched up so high into the atmosphere that Calvin feared he might be impaled by one of its many spires and spikes if his wings should falter. The actual Spire itself, which had allowed Calvin to be created, was a wonder. Its mushroom shape and blood red color would intrigue even the most skeptical of people.
As Calvin peered at it, it did the most wondrous movement. It collapsed in on itself and created a membrane around it's former skin. The membrane pulsated with life, and Calvin knew that is was morphing into a greater Spire. Since he had not received any orders yet, Calvin continued to silently peer down at the base. Several crab like drones were busy harvesting blue rock, their small bodies skittering to and from the mineral patches. Other defensive creatures were strewn about the base, and Calvin was quite amused for a while by the small Zerglings, who were constantly wrestling with each like small dogs. The creep was probably the most disgusting aspect of all. It's purple surface, filled with large red and blue veins resembled human skin turned inside out, and after staring at it for a while, Calvin realized that every so often it would expand a few feet, creating more construction space for the growing swarm.
Then it happened, it started as a small twinge in the back of Calvin's alien brain, and soon developed into a full blown command. Calvin felt his body moving, even though he had not willed it to. He tried to stop, but found it useless, as his body was not in his control. Calvin realized that this must be the Overmind at work, so he simply relaxed and once again resumed his observation of the landscape. After traveling over another small Zerg base, Calvin realized that this landform resembled the Lost Temple, a map he knew well…a map everyone knew well, and that his base was located on the south western plateau. This was also the first time Calvin looked at his fellow Mutalisks, and was amazed yet again. Each Mutalisk was as ugly as the day is long. Their bodies were protected by solid red scales, topped with elongated yellow spikes. The wings were also the same putrid yellow shade as the spikes, and protruded from orifices located at the top of the body. At the end of each Muta's body was a triangular maw, from which dripped an endless stream of mucus, and ectoplasm. Over all this, each beast's body was coated in a thick clear slime, which also drained off the bodies, and made audible smacks into the ground below. Calvin could not believe that he himself was this disgusting, and refused to dwell on the matter any longer.
It was not long before the small band reached the edge of the northern cliff. The Overmind hesitated for a few seconds, before sending the troops straight into the encampment. Calvin saw instantly that it was a Terran base, and that the Overmind had been precise in its attack location, for no missile turrets, marines, or wraiths were lying in immediate wait. Another peculiar sensation over took Calvin. A small tube once invisible to Calvin's eyes, protruded from below the maw of every Mutalisk. The tube began to churn and contract, and soon Calvin found himself firing glave worms into the opponents barracks.
Several minutes passed and still no resistance was met from the Terran. As putrid as he felt, Calvin was actually having fun. The barracks he was initially attacking erupted into flames soon after the first blows, and eventually exploded into a fireball of metal and glass. After the barracks was destroyed, Calvin was sent to a nearby supply depot which needed destruction. He never made it, twelve marines erupted out of the fog of war, the hiss of their stimulation packs echoing in the eerie silence. Calvin soon felt the Uranium bullets ripping into his carcass, and he prayed he would be pulled back.
His prayers were answered, the Overmind knew a handful of Mutalisks could not take on a control group of Marines, so it wisely retreated the six remaining flyers. Calvin and the other Mutalisks were sent to hover over the north western island for a while. This allowed them all a much needed rest time, as well as a period in which to regenerate. Calvin realized that once they were securely stationed over the island, the Overmind had released its control for the moment, and he was free to do as he pleased once more.
The break did not last long, for the Overmind had other plans for its troops. Calvin and the others were summoned back to the main encampment, where upon they were greeted by six other Mutalisks and several Hydralisks. It seemed that the Overmind had deemed it appropriate to eradicate the Terrans from the planet, and had only one final step to complete in its attack plan. It pulled Calvin and three other Mutalisks off to the side of the main group. Nothing happened for a second, and then Calvin's body curled up on itself. His head connected with his tail and bonded together, and the clear slime became a soft opaque shell, preventing on lookers from seeing the events taking place to the Mutalisk's bodies. Calvin slowly began to take on a pancake shape, his muscles, tendons, and bones cracking under the stress of the metamorphosis. Eventually, six appendages protruded from the bulk of Calvin's body, piercing the soft cocoon, and allowing the murky daylight in somewhat.
The once fragile body hardened into a rock like shell, and proceeded to sprout numerous skewers along its base. Calvin's eyes eventually reformed at the base of the shell, and the soft egg fell away, letting the rest of the Zerg minions to peer upon Calvin's new Guardian body.
Calvin saw at once that the other three Mutalisks had also been transformed into Guards. Upon their completion, the Overmind took control once again. It loaded twelve of the Hydralisks into four Overlords, and proceeded to send them on their course towards the opponent. It also ordered the remaining Mutalisks to fly in front of the Lords, to prevent them from being destroyed before they could drop their deadly cargo straight into the heart of the Terrans. Calvin and the rest of the Guardians were to follow the Mutalisks and provide destruction on any defensive ground units or structures.
Once on their way towards the camp, Calvin realized that the Guardian's body was similar to that of a Mutalisks. He had no wings, but simply levitated, and the small tube the appeared to produce glave worms on a Muta was a slightly larger, visible opening beneath Calvin's small jaw.
It did not take long for them to reach the camp, and once they did, all hell broke loose. The Mutalisks arrived first, getting free shots at some of the outlying buildings. Almost instantly, a pack of Wraiths came down from the north screaming at them. Missiles exploded out of their ports and crashed into carapaces. Glave worms rebounded off metal and armor. As the Wraiths were beaten back, several Marines charged from the east, backed by a few medics and several Goliaths.
Calvin started to lob globs of acid down at the enemies. Each glob crashed into a hulk of metal, and eroded it quickly, where upon in came in contact with fragile flesh. Even though Calvin thought he had no ears, the screams from the Terrans were audible enough for him to cringe somewhat. While Mutalisks battled with Wraiths and the Guardians fought the ground forces, the Overlords tried desperately to unload the Hydralisks. One of which was the receiver of several Charon missiles, and it eventually erupted into a shower of blood, appendages, and carcasses. The other three though, successfully released their cargo into the Terran base. The Hydralisks provided the necessary push for the swarm, and soon all resistance was beaten back.
As the Terran structures began to explode, Calvin took a look around. Only one Mutalisk had survived the battle. All three Guardians were left, as well as most of the Hydralisks. Before he could rejoice his victory however, a fleet stormed from underneath its cover of the fog. Four gigantic Battlecruisers, backed by at least twelve wraiths began to tear into the attacking Hydralisks, and soon all that was left of them was a stain on the earth.
The first laser that hit Calvin ripped off two of his legs as well as a hunk of shell. Calvin received orders to flee, and tried to do so. But his immense bulk was simply a huge target for the fighter pilots. Lasers and missiles crashed into his shell, and soon exposed the tender flesh beneath. Calvin tried to scream in pain as his body was sizzled and fried, but all his vocal chords allowed him to do was gurgle a few incomprehensible consonants. The Terrans showed no mercy, and every time they attacked Calvin felt more and more pain. The last Mutalisk tried to come to his rescue, but only ended up wasting some of a Wraith's windshield cleaning fluid. Eventually, the missiles became too much for Calvin to take, and he lost control of his system, falling towards the ground. He never made it though, as a heat seeking missile slammed into his body halfway to the earth, and caused it to explode from the inside out.
Calvin's eyes snapped open and were immediately punished by a wave of bright light. It forced his eyelids to close, and once again Calvin tried to scream, to call out, to make any sound whatsoever, and found that his throat was blocked by a foreign object. A bolt of pain surged up his arm, and once again, the subconscious overtook him.
This time, when Calvin awoke, he was much more coherent. The white light was gone, replaced by the soft glow of an overhead halogen lamp. Calvin was not dressed in his clothes, but rather a starched hospital gown. The bed he lay in, was not his, for the mattress was stiff, and the sheets that covered it were crisp and fresh. Wondering what was going on, Calvin tried to move, and was immediately racked with chest pains. He realized that his arm was attached to an IV system, which dripped a continuous flow of clear fluid into his wrist.
As he wondered, an old man quietly opened the door to Calvin's room. His bearded face showed a pleasant mixture of surprise and delight at finding Calvin awake. "Hello there," he said. Calvin went to fire his flurry of questions at the man, but was immediately silenced the wave of the man's hand. "Before you ask me anything, let me tell you what I already know. Then you may ask anything you like. Agreed?" Calvin shook his head. The man continued, "My name is Doctor Johnson. You are in room 206 of the Daytona Beach Hospital. Your mother brought you into the emergency room late last night, ranting that you were thrashing in your sleep, and that your breathing was labored. My staff and I immediately put you into urgent care, ran some tests, and discovered that your heart was inches away from going into cardiac arrest. We put you on a respirator and a heart monitor, gave you medications, and hoped for the best. Fortunately, your heart never went into a full blown attack, so you are to be released from the hospital tomorrow, provided you are in a fit state. Your mother stayed all last night with you, and only stepped out a few moments ago for a change of clothes. Any questions?"
Calvin shook his head no, thanked the doctor for his help, and asked if he could go back to sleep. The doctor replied warmly, and suggested that sleep would be the best thing for Calvin to do right now.
The next few days sped past so fast, that Calvin wondered if he still was dreaming. He was released from the hospital the next day, with only a faint IV scar to show for it. His mother watched him constantly for the next few months, and made him watch his diet, convinced that the attack was brought on by high cholesterol. Calvin knew the real reason though, but he never told anyone. The day he returned he took all his StarCraft belongings, placed them in a cardboard box, taped the box up tight, and shoved it up into the attic. When his mother question these actions, Calvin replied that he was getting older and such games were childish. His mother was satisfied.
Calvin went on to live a happy life. He graduated from high school and went on to Stetson University, were he majored in graphic design. He was married two years after his graduation from Stetson, and his wife soon became pregnant with twin boys. The boys were named Robert and Shawn, and each one had a personality that was all there own.
Four days after the boy's twelfth birthdays, Calvin and his family decided to have a giant yard sale, and get rid of all their unneeded belongings. While rooting through several boxes, looking for anything that might be interesting, Shawn came upon a dust covered box that was set apart from the rest. He pulled the box out of its storage place, grabbed his pocket knife, and cut the binding tape. Inside he found several books and two CD jewel cases, which had long since been replace by IDG's.
Perplexed, Shawn quickly scanned one of the books, and discovered that this was an older computer game called StarCraft. Shawn padded into the computer room, booted up the old IBM which was hardly ever used by any member of the family, loaded the disk into the CD ROM compartment, and installed the program. He then proceeded to connect to the Internet, and run the game. The white leathery face which appeared on the screen delighted Shawn, as he was quite a fan of mythical stories, and science fiction novels.
For the next four hours, Shawn indulged himself in the game. He soon learned the basic layout of the story, and was enthralled. He found it quite difficult to get into a real battle however, as the entire Battle.Net system seemed dead. Eventually, he found an old veteran who agreed to play a game with him. The game was a beat down, for Shawn barely knew how to construct units. But he loved it anyway. He played the veteran several more times that day, every time getting better and better, until he was forced off by his mom calling him for dinner.
Shawn played the game every day that he could. His Dad asked him one time what he was doing, and Shawn explained. His Dad didn't say anything, but a weird look came over his face, he didn't tell Shawn to stop though, so Shawn continued to play. But one night, Shawn started having this dream………
Yay! It's finished. I hope you all enjoyed Dream Control. Like I said, go back and read all the chapters you missed if you enjoyed this. Comment please, I would really like to know what everyone though of this series, what could have been better, what you particularly liked, what I should do to improve. Any suggestions are always welcome. Look for my next series, which I am calling: Death's Embrace, sometime in the summer. Until then.
ScreamStalker
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