Blessed by Night

340  Serosh?

Malachi took a deep breath as he basked in the cool air of the room.

Even before opening his eyes, he felt as if he could feel the energy in the room. Sense the energy coursing through the walls on a grander scale than before.

He could picture each electrical pathway in the entire building. Not just inorganic material either. He could feel the minor electrical activity running through the nervous system of every person here.

Thinking about it's practical applications made Mal feel a bit like a supervillain.

"You can begin whenever you're ready, Mr. Saint."

Malachi was too deep in his thoughts to properly pay attention to the Doctor's voice over the loudspeaker.

Dr Wells is what is famously known as a 'dick'.

Even though he could see that Malachi wasn't necessarily ready, he pressed the button to begin the simulation anyway.

Malachi felt a gust of wind pass over him.

He finally opened his eyes and pulled on his signature dark glasses.

"Alright, Doc. I'm ready."

Malachi waited and waited, but the doctor didn't say anything.

"..Doc?" He called.

"You're fucking with me, right?"

Malachi glanced over to the observation room with his arms crossed.

He found Doctor Wells and his fiancés staring back at him. All looking like they'd just seen a full grown hog shit out a pulled pork sandwich.

"Y'all look pretty amazed. I look that good?" He smiled.

""Yes."" Anna and Nadine held up their thumbs.

"But that's not why we're staring." Sei said- trying to convince herself as much as him.

"Babe, you just-" Joanne began. B

"Initiate playback." Bianca said.

A holographic screen appeared in front of Malachi's face.

There, he saw a recording of himself surrounded by a dozen hardlight constructs in the shape of lizard men.

He watched himself move much faster and more precisely than he ever had before. He used martial arts he was sure he didn't know and moved in ways that he had probably only seen in anime before now.

Malachi generally tried not to have too high an opinion of himself, but right now that was looking pretty difficult.

"I… did all that?"

"You don't remember it??" Joanne asked.

"No." He shrugged. "I didn't even feel myself do anything."

That was the strangest part about all of this. Malachi felt like he had just barely woken up and everything was already done.

This went far beyond traditional sleepwalking or natural reflexes.

"Do you, uh, want another test..?" The Doctor asked.

"I think I kind of need one.." Malachi looked down at his hands. "Haven't really felt myself doing anything different.."

Before the doctor could reboot the simulator, one of the girls suddenly took over the console with a question of her own.

"Can you call out any of the little ones, honey? How are they faring in there?" Luna suddenly asked.

"…Ah."

Malachi suddenly felt a terrible pet owner. Of course his animalistic children should have been one of the first things he checked on. Especially since he/they were injured before he went into a coma.

He sifted through his mind for their familiar faces.

Something heeded his probing and crawled out of the darkness at his feet.

It was a large black tiger, easily twice the size of an adult man. It's tail was a frightening serpent nearly half the length of its full body.

Dark feathery wings were nearly enough to envelop Malachi entirely. A strange golden mask with demonic markings covered the top half of it's face.

The creature stared back at Malachi with violet eyes full of intelligence and regality.

…And possibly a little bit of lethargy.

It bellowed out a roar crossed with a yawn and tossed itself on the floor like dirty laundry.

"…"

Malachi took his glasses off, cleaned them with his shirt, and then put them back on again.

He then took them back off, and then rubbed his eyes to really make sure that there were no issues with his sight.

Once he was certain of his 20/20 vision, he leaned down and poked the creature in the muzzle a few times.

The creature opened its eyes slowly and kind of waived at Malachi with its paw.

"Too tired for words then, buddy?" Malachi kneeled down so that he and the creature were at eye level. "Guess you must be Serosh then."

Instead of poking, he reached out to pet the seemingly harmless creature.

At the minute he ran his fingers through his fur, he realized that his intitial observation may have been the tiniest bit incorrect.

"All of you are in there, aren't you..?"

The beast opened a tired eye and stared at Malachi.

"It's been a very strange day…" Serosh replied sleepily.

Malachi began to feel like that was an understatement.

"Where's my Ajani? Is she well?" Malachi grimaced.

He remembered what it was like to have two of his tails cut off by Satan in their spar.

It had cause him a dastardly amount of discomfort, so he knew it couldn't have tickled for her either.

Serosh just nodded and rolled over when asked about her. "Resting… come out later."

"…" Malachi had a sneaking suspicion that spending so much time with Anna had rubbed off on Serosh in more ways than one.

"Third. You have a visitor." The Doctor suddenly announced.

Malachi looked towards the sliding doors where he saw two familiar faces striding through the door.

At first glance, he felt like he was seeing strangers.

He had no real explanation as for why, other than maybe their clothes were a little bit different.

"Hey! Where you two lovebirds be…"

Malachi finally saw them.

Two of the sparkliest, most out of this world rings that he had ever seen sat on both of their fingers.

It wouldn't at all be an understatement to say that they were priceless.

Malachi couldn't help but smile.

"I really gotta hurry up and finalize my wedding plans. Now that you two are right behind me, that is."

Aisha let a small tear run from her eye. "How you feel about being a best man?"

"You thought I would let you pick somebody else over me? C'mon, you know me better than that." Malachi dismissed.

Aisha finally couldn't take anymore and she tightly embraced the only brother she had ever known. He hugged her back just as tightly.

Both of them were absolutely going to deny this moment ever happened later.

"I'm afraid we've got just a little bit more news than that…"

Malachi looked up at his sister. In an instant, he saw the silhouette of a gentle, but frantic little girl who was too adorable for words. It felt like she had grown up all at once somehow.

"Oh yeah? What's that?" He smiled while trying to hold back his own feelings of nostalgia.

"I… well…" Aubrey shuffled about awkwardly with her hand on her stomach. "L-Let's just say… we might not be drinking when I turn 21 in a couple of months?"

Malachi's vision flickered.

His brain struggled to keep up with the current scenario. No, it couldn't keep up.

The room began to spin. He had a hard time putting together strings of words.

The next thing he knew, his vision was cutting out and he was hearing familiar voices cry out in panic.

"He's going down!!"

"Catch him, catch him!!"

-

Celeste was in another corner of the base filing out paperwork for her new position.

For an agency that was just starting to get on it's feet, they sure were being thorough about all of their qualifications.

She was nearly finished when she heard a knock from behind her and an unfamiliar face walked in. n/ô/vel/b//jn dot c//om

"Excuse me, ma'am… I was wondering if I could have a moment of your time?"

had a coworker tell me today that he strict with his wife because he knows she’s easy… I think it’s time to request a transfer AnathaShesha

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