“It is a poor move to barge into the office of a ruler without asking permission. Or at the very least making an appointment…”
The High General of the Retha didn’t even look up from whatever it was he was doing. It was almost as if he didn’t care that Stasis, the Lord of the Void, was taking up half the office with his massive body.
“You would not have accepted the appointment.”
“I might have. Any appointment request is passed through my captains, who help me organize and decide which meetings are important. A meeting with a being such as you would have a high priority…” Elkay threw his pen down and leaned back in his chair. “Lord Stasis, why are you here? Do you wish to ruin the life of another member of my family? You raped my mother, you killed one brother and mentally damaged another. Now you are here, standing in front of me as if I owe you something.”
Stasis was not surprised by this mere mortal and his utter lack of fear. It was common for rulers to have massive egos, if only to hide their smaller insecurities, but Elkay Theanon was something different. A blend of confidence and empathy.
“You owe me nothing. But I have a request of you. Something that only you can provide.”
Elkay sighed. “I am but a single Rethan. Yes, I may rule over all other Rethans, but we are just one little species in a backwater solar system in the middle of nowhere. Are you really telling me that only I am capable of offering something in particular?”
“Yes.”
“I do not believe you.”
The Rethan went back to whatever it was he was doing. From the looks of it, Elkay was preparing a speech.
“Why do you not believe me? Have I not lied to-” Stasis paused. “Actually, I can see why you do not believe me. But I am not lying. There is something about you that is…”
“Corrupted. I know.” Elkay looked up again. “My poor, battered brother told me. He comes along, pretty regularly, venting his frustration at me. It kills him that he was never able to live in a society where he would be free. Instead Arkay spends his days serving someone who hates him, doing a job he hates, while stopping beings like you from fucking everything up. And I blame all of that on you…
“But really, that is not why I do not believe you. As I said before, I am one of, how many beings are there in this universe? A lot. I am one individual, and I am somehow the special one? How ludicrous is that?”
Stasis tutted. He was a little bit tired of this Rethan. Maybe it was just time to tell him the truth. “Well, that Corrupted Seed that broke in nearly 60 years ago had to impregnate something, and that something just happened to be your mother. Also just happened to be a Seed from the Ancient One. Which is why I have not gone and pestered other Corruption-borns and am standing here in front of you.”
Elkay looked up properly this time. Stasis had caught his attention.
“What?”
“Simply put, you little runt, you are the spawn of the Ancient One, said to be the oldest Corruption to travel the Lanes of Infinity. I knew you were born from a corruption, but not what most consider THE Corruption. As we recently found out, the best way to stop a Corruption that starts infecting a universe is to kill it with more Corruption. Which is why I want a litre of your blood, some of your bone marrow and whatever other body parts and bodily fluids you can spare.”
“What?”
Either the stupid Rethan was too dumb to understand what he was being told or he was in shock. Stasis didn’t care either way.
“You want to harvest me for parts?”
“No. I just want whatever you can offer without you killing yourself. Whatever you hand over, I will turn into self-reproducing strands and part-farms, so we’ve always got a supply of Corrupted matter to kill other Corruptions with. Yes, it means taking from you, but as you said, you are just one being in a large universe.”
Elkay picked up another pen and chewed on the end, trying to comprehend what he had just been told.
“So you do want to harvest me for parts. Just over time rather than all in one go. So you can fight whatever these Corrupted things are. Because I am part Corrupted myself.”
“Yes.”
Elkay threw down the new pen, sighing loudly as both he and Stasis watched the pen bounce off the table and disappear under a sofa in the corner.
“But I can’t infect anything, can I?”
“No.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
The High General closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
“Fine. But I have to speak to my advisors first.”
“Very well, Elkay…” Stasis smiled as he faded away. “I shall come back tomorrow with the required equipment…”