“We can’t allow this to happen. We can’t!” Marilyn screamed. “Gather all the resources you can, Councilwoman, and let’s stop these things while we still have a chance.”

“That’s easy to say but I already told you we’re stretched pretty thin and if we alert the humans of the danger they’re facing, we risk getting exposed, too.”

“Do it anonymously, then. Bomb threats, a terrorist attack, a viral outbreak... Anything that makes them take the necessary precautions while I handle Natalia.”

“And how are you going to do that?”

“Give me a handful of men to launch a surgical strike. If the leader is gone, that should cripple the thralls and put an end to their machinations.”

“You’re not a warrior, Marilyn, and you’re on the mend. Rushing into danger again is the exact opposite of what you should be doing. You’ve done plenty already. You should get some rest.”

“I’ll rest when I’m dead. This is personal, Wikktory! Even if I’m not the one to stop Natalia, I need to be there when it happens. Stop trying to persuade me otherwise. I’ve already made my mind.”

“And you’re sure this is going to work?”

“I’m not sure of anything but I know I must try. Now, let’s get started!”

* * *

A couple of hours later, Marilyn and a dozen soldiers in full tactical gear were traversing the sewers underneath Nassau for what could prove to be the most dangerous mission of their lives. After another round with the prisoner that didn’t end well for the parasite, they had a marked location on a map and the quickest way to get there undetected. The odds were not in their favor but at least they were doing something.

Try as she may, Marilyn couldn’t forgive the Council’s actions. Their fear sent the wrong message to the entire Universe. Her species was already looked down by many, and that number was sure to increase once the word of their foolish actions spread. They would be seen as weak and vulnerable, and ready for the taking. Thousands of years of history erased in the blink of an eye. Making things right was not only a boon for Earth but a good way to mend their reputation. 

“And when this is over, I’m done, too,” she thought. No more political games and no more receiving orders from them, too. Their greatest asset would go off the grid to live her life however she pleased. This time around, there was no turning back.

“Marilyn, do you hear me?” the Councilwoman asked over the comms. “We’re detecting fluctuations on your signal. Can you verify your current location, please?”

Marilyn looked at the gray, dank walls all around them. The tunnel system they were in was vast and labyrinthine with occasional dead ends and markings that Time had forgotten. Many of the corridors looked the same but she knew they were on the right track.

“We should be arriving at juncture A2 in a minute,” she replied.

“Should be? You’re not sure?”

“Not through any visual means, no. Only my gut.”

“Are you sensing something we can not?”

“Yeah, you could say that...”

It was a lingering feeling, a vestige of the parasitic connection. As she drew closer to the source, she could almost see faint traces of green in the air, a reminder of what could have been had the assimilation gone through.

Marilyn and the group traveling with her were heading to the Blue Hills Plant, the largest seawater reverse osmosis plant designed, built and operating in the Bahamas. Prior to the construction of this facility and the Windsor facility, all the water used in the public drinking water system came either from groundwater wells on New Providence or groundwater barged to the island from Andros Island. As water demand in New Providence grew, these groundwater sources were over-taxed, degrading the overall quality of the water entering the public system. The desalinization plants had solved those problems, ensuring that Nassau’s inhabitants were well taken care of while making the island even more attractive as a tourist hotspot. If anything were to happen to either of them, the system would collapse.

Topside, the Councilwoman had pulled some strings to alert the authorities of an imminent threat just like Marilyn had suggested. While they looked into it, the security detail above ground was more coordinated than usual, and all non-essential workers were being put out of potential harm’s way. If an armed confrontation came to be, the goal was to have the human casualties reduced to a minimum. She remained wary of the plan but had no choice but to trust Marilyn on this. 

“This is the juncture,” Marilyn said and pointed to the right. “We’re almost there.”

“Good. According to the satellite data, there seems to be an unusual number of people in the center of the plant. You need to assume that, even with all the precautions, they’re already there.”

“Copy that. How are we on the backup plan?”

“All systems are ready for the worst-case scenario. I’ll start the timer. If I don’t hear from you in thirty minutes, I hit the switch.”

“Do as you must,” Marilyn said.

The last resort tactic was a missile strike at the plant and any vehicles in the area. No contaminated water could be allowed to leave the facilities or all hell would break loose.

“I’m turning off comms now,” the Councilwoman declared. Marilyn nodded and stared at the soldiers surrounding her. None of them was happy to be there. Their hatred of the Rinnidyans wasn’t motivation enough to risk their lives for humankind but they had their orders and like good little toys they would see them through no matter what.

“If we go through here, we’ll be under the plant in three minutes,” she said to no one in particular. “Remember, don’t kill anyone unless there’s no other choice.”

“You don’t need to tell us how to do our job,” a behemoth disguised as a seven feet bearded giant, replied. All the soldiers were equipped with tranquilizer rounds besides the standard ones, and their firearms could switch between both at a press of a button. Besides their camouflaged heavy armor, their senses had reflexes had been heightened by a powerful chemical cocktail. It didn’t last long but increased their effectiveness in a battlefield scenario by five hundred percent while it did. Two of the soldiers were to stay with her the whole time while the others scattered to secure the perimeter and neutralize incoming threats. Any hesitation could prove to be their last.

“Then I hope you do it properly,” Marilyn retorted, taking the lead down the tunnel. Deep inside, she felt Natalia’s presence drawing closer. The question was, did she feel it too? Were they walking into a trap? She cleared those dreadful thoughts from her mind and pushed on, ready to end the madness for good.

* * *

Using a portable laser emitter that was one hundred times stronger than anything on planet Earth, the soldiers cut a hole above their heads that led to the bottom floor of the plant. One by one, they ventured inside and Marilyn was the first to notice something different. The air was thicker as if laden with sulfur and volcanic gases and there were green tendrils everywhere, forming a complex tapestry across the walls. Beyond a flight of stairs that led to the primary tanks there were bulbous masses scattered on the floor like giant alien flowers from a sci-fi and horror movie or cocoons, harbingers of new and deadly life. 

“What is this devilry?” the grumpy soldier from before, asked.

“You’ve never seen this before?” Marilyn asked.

“No, and I’m not sure anyone did. This is weird, like they’re recreating the atmosphere inside this place.”

Marilyn sensed the danger in her words and activated a secondary mask on top of the filtering system she was already using. A quick scan of the room revealed no detectable harmful particles but better safe than sorry. Moving without a sound, the group reached the ground floor.

The main section of the building was even stranger her eyes. The fluorescent green tendrils had given rise to spiraling tree-like structures that reached into the ceiling. Dozens of plant workers were curled up at the base of said structures, all of them in various stages of assimilation. Their eyes were closed and they didn’t appear to be breathing but she knew better. The metamorphosis was consuming them all, turning them into full-fledged Rinnidyans.

“Fuck! How did this happen ?” she muttered, averting her gaze.

“They must have some weapon we haven’t encountered yet,” the soldier said. “This is bad. We may not be prepared for this after all.”

“Even if that’s the case, we need to press forward,” Marilyn said. “Right now, we’re the only ones standing in the way of this planet’s total annihilation. Send an encrypted message to the Councilwoman and tell her about this strange mutation. One missile strike may not be enough.”

“Will do.”

One soldier retreated to a more secure location to send the message and the others proceeded along the familiar and yet alien construction. Everyone was wearing masks now and no body parts were exposed to the oppressive atmosphere. Whatever happened in there had hit them fast, distorting reality without mercy. Was this a glimpse of earth’s future if the Rinnidyans ensnared every living creature on the planet? Marilyn no longer felt safe.

She had a gun too, equipped with the same dual-ammunition system as the others. The stun rounds were designed to act almost instantaneously but, sometimes, it took a few extra shots to be sure. She counted the extra clips as they navigated this surreal forest of metal, concrete, gelatinous trees and mangled bodies, and watched as the soldiers assumed their positions around the central tank. It was then she saw her again.

Natalia - or rather the thing that had devoured her body, mind, and soul, stood atop a veiny platform next to the tank, surrounded by at least thirty kneeling thralls. They were holding hands, their bodies shining green from head to toe. The tank was operational but the interior filters had been replaced with spiked metal discs connected by a chain wrapped around the platform where the “queen” stood. They were ready to begin the contamination process, altering the water’s composition to carry their invading DNA.

All the Rinnidyans were humming, sharing their energy in the name of their species’ glory. When Natalia gave the order, they touched the chain and the green glow enveloped it, channeling its nefarious energy. It was now or never!

“Fire!” Marilyn commanded and all the soldiers turned the distorted plant into a war scenario. Bullets were flying everywhere as the thralls awakened from their trance-like state and ran for cover. Natalia didn’t move, her body protected by an invisible force field. She saw the mayhem unfolding and even caught glimpses of the attacker’s movements all around her. Her face was nothing more than a menacing and maddening smile as she growled,

“Marilyn, is that you? My, you are persistent just like a cockroach, aren’t you? You and your friends are too late, though. The mass conversion process has already begun and it can’t be stopped.”

Marilyn pointed her weapon and fired one, two, three, four rounds that disintegrated when they came in contact with the shield. The glowing chain vibrated as it came in contact with the water in the tank and green steam rose from the bottom, filling the air with corrosive droplets. The extraterrestrial switched to normal rounds and urged the soldiers accompanying her to do the same, all three firing at the same spot.

The bullets rattled the chain but weren’t strong enough to break the links.

“We need something stronger,” she said. “Destroy that thing at all costs.”

The soldier at her left reached for a plasma grenade and hurled it at the designated target. It was intercepted in mid-air by one of Natalia’s thralls who vaporized himself for the cause. 

After being startled by the sudden offensive, the Rinnidyans were now regrouping and moving on the offensive. They had the strength in numbers and moved quickly across the mutated grounds, but had no firearms of their own and had no training in close quarters combat. However, they all shared the same fanatical connection that told them that nothing was more important than the hive mind. To preserve the sanctity of their crusade, they were all willing to sacrifice themselves to stop the attackers in their tracks.

Atop her pulsating pedestal, Natalia rejoiced, irradiating green from every pore. The water bubbled, accelerating the process. Victory was only a few minutes away.

“Hell, no!” Marilyn clenched her teeth and yanked another grenade from the soldier’s belt. She started running towards the chain, dodging the rabid attacks of the infuriated thralls. When she was close enough for a throw, she tricked everyone by rolling it on the floor instead. It hit the pedestal and the chain and the concentrated plasma exploded like colorful fireworks in a nocturnal sky, destroying them both. Natalia jumped out of the way, hanging on the outer railing of the tank, but still smiling. The conduit was destroyed but not the chemical, transformative reaction. The water began to ooze, tentacles forming at the surface.

“Victory is ours!” Natalia cackled. “Victory is ours!”

“Oh, shut the fuck up, you crazy bitch!” Marilyn climbed the circular stairs around the tank to meet her. “You didn’t win a thing and you never will.”

The angry thralls continued to jump at the soldiers, hoping that their sheer determination would overwhelm them, but the trained forces were superior in every way. Tranquilizer rounds punished the infuriated defenders, their power being stripped away one hit at a time.

Standing above the mayhem, Natalia and Marilyn were staring each other down, uncontained anger in the former’s eyes.

“How dare you try to interfere with our sacred purpose? All life exists to be assimilated.” Natalia smirked.

“Assimilate this, bitch!” Marilyn fired round after round against the force field. No shield integrity was one hundred percent perfect and she had ammunitions to spare. Eventually, her defenses would have to give. 

Natalia flinched as the rapid onslaught continued. They were so close! The thing in her body contorted, changing her features into those of a bipedal monstrosity with claws for hands and teeth for lips. It hissed and growled, calling to her all the darkness of a pitiful race that existed only to feed. As scary as she could be, in that moment, she was just a pathetic excuse for a monster that could no longer hurt her.

“Goodbye, Natalia,” Marilyn said when the first bullet penetrated the shield, followed by hundreds more. Green blood splattered on the edge of the tank and the parasite fell, the dreams and hopes of a perfect takeover disappearing with her last breath.

((to be concluded))