Tau

Isle of World's End

Nirgalen looked at the demon sealed within the cryo-tube.  He touched the roof of his mouth and tasted blood.  Now he just hoped that his plan would work.  He could feel the Barracoi's cells making new connections with his mind.  He wasn't sure just what changes that would make.  The sight of Mia-Karla frozen within the cryo-tube brought him some reassurance... at least she wouldn't be controlling his mind... or so he hoped.  It was time to see just what Mia-Karla's cells could do.

He strode out of the room, past the body of Krais Katchupek, which still lay, senseless on the floor.

Within the holding facility for the captured Barracoi Nirgalen found the room that he needed.  A spherical golden cage sat on a black ebony pedestal.  Nirgalen climbed through the open door of the cage and began to set the dials on the controls of the Casimir Engine.  It wasn't time he needed now, but space.  He hoped his settings were correct.

The door clicked shut.  The cage rose in the air and began to rotate about Nirgalen, as he sat in the chair; still in the centre of the bubble in time and space.  The machine slowed and descended, coming to rest on a hard, rocky floor.

Above Nirgalen glowed thousands of small points of light.  A steady drip, drip, drip of water came to his ears, as he stepped out of the Casimir Engine and into the cavern.  It looked familiar, but felt very different.

By the pool of water, where ripples spread out from the dripping water above, Nirgalen saw a small patch of fungus.  He broke off a piece of the mould and pressed it against the wound in the roof of his mouth.  It was good.  Nirgalen's sight was already starting to change.  The slight blueish light from the glow-worms up above became a deeper blue and Nirgalen could see cold and warm patches.  As he took the fungus out from his mouth, he could see warm blood and a clear liquid on the mould.  The fungus was still alive and that was good, too.

Nirgalen placed the piece of fungus back beside the pool of water and watched as it began to reach out tendrils and spread into the rock.  Fungus and Barracoi cells had now become one.

The next part of the plan would be a little harder.  Nirgalen moved off through the cave, heading towards where he could see the passageways growing colder and colder in the blue light of his vision.

He came, at last to the surface and fortunately it was night.  Nirgalen scented the air and moved along a trail that led upwards to the top of the sea cliffs.

By the bank of a stream Nirgalen scented the smell of the small, ancient reptile known as a tuatara.  Without a moment's thought, Nirgalen thrust his hand into the hole of the creature's lair.  Sharp teeth, just indentations of the jawbone, with two rows above and one below, locked onto Nirgalen's fingers.  He pulled the two foot lizard out and it hung from his hand.

Nirgalen raised the tuatara towards his mouth.  Where the jaws were clamped around the Djara's hand there was a small gap between the jaws.  Nirgalen opened his mouth and closed his eyes.  A spiked barb shot out from Nirgalen's mouth, lancing into the roof of the tuatara's open maw.  Reflexively, Nirgalen pumped his own cells and those of the Barracoi, into the reptile, which opened its mouth and collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

Visions of chasing spiders, insects and eating birds' eggs came into Nirgalen's mind, as he saw the thoughts of the tuatara.  All Nirgalen had to do was plant one simple thought into the mind of the reptile... eat... eat and grow.

The last stop was on the cliffs.

Nirgalen climbed down the rocks, searching for a ledge that he had stood upon, oh so long ago.  It took quite some finding, but again his sense of smell helped.  The smell of guano led him to the ledge and the nest that sat upon it.

A small female eagle sat upon the nest.  Using his mind, Nirgalen sent a rush of air towards her and she flew off into the night.

Inside the nest were three eggs, much, much smaller than the hokioi eggs, which Nirgalen had once taken from the same ledge.

Each egg was raised to Nirgalen's mouth.  His barb shot out and lanced into each of the developing embrios within.  One was male and two were female.

Nirgalen carefully placed the three eggs back in place in the nest.  His only hope, now, was that the mother would return and that she would be able to feed the three chicks, as they greww... and grew... and grew.