“I don’t believe it,” Emily said defensively.

  Sean blinked at Emily’s frank response to his story.

  “What?” he glanced at Lira uncertainly before looking back to Emily, “What do you mean you don’t believe me?”

  “I don’t remember any Malketh from that time,” Emily said, “If you were really there even looking the same as you do now, I would think that I would remember. I don’t know what you saw, but I don’t believe Peter would do something like that. You must be making a mistake, interpreting things wrong.”

  “You don’t remember because of something the Shadow did back then,” Sean insisted, “You could barely even remember me when we were talking face to face. And what did the Shadow mean when it said that you went on a journey alone? Did you go back into the past and not bother to tell any of us about it?”

  “I don’t have to share everything with you,” Emily snapped before calming down slightly, “Sorry. I just didn’t want to talk about it. It doesn’t change anything. But yeah, I went back. The Shadow got me in a dream. I told Asuta about it, it was right after we finished the end of the invasion by the Endless Flesh.”

  Sean opened his mouth before pausing as he remembered everything, “Ants.”

  Emily blinked, “What? What about them?”

  “The Endless Flesh were Earth ants originally. Something happened to them that turned them into… what they are today.”

  Emily paused and considered the revelation and slowly nodded.

  “Okay. Maybe you… did see something. But that doesn’t mean that Peter was the one who ordered the attack on the museum. Didn’t you say that he apologized? Even by his own admission he didn’t mean for any of it to happen! I mean… He wouldn’t ever…”

  “You weren’t there,” Sean said with some frustration, “He was guilty. I know it. He was just covering himself because he knew that I didn’t approve. He was constantly trying to undermine you and gain control of the Immortal Council the whole time. And he’s succeeded in both. Now your reputation is horrible and he’s the leader of the Immortal Council. Free and clear, and you didn’t suspect him even one little bit. He’s behind it all even now. Go ahead, ask me things about Gaia. I lived there for a while, so I should be able to answer most common things.”

  Emily leaped on the opportunity and started questioning him. He answered almost every question flawlessly. Enough to prove that he wasn’t simply guessing and had some actual knowledge about Gaia from the past.

  “Jade Congress… The GFC…” Emily said with a frown like she was struggling to remember, “You know, I do remember somebody. An Immortal working with the GFC. Hiding and who was brought to the Enforcers. It was big news that they managed to stay hidden for so long. What was the name… what was the name…”

  “Malketh,” Sean said, “It was me.”

  Emily looked back at him, but her eyes didn’t show outright denial anymore but worry and resignation.

  “I don’t believe it,” Emily said again softly as if to convince herself, “You must be making a mistake.”

  “He’s not,” Lira said as she put a hand on Sean’s arm, “He believes every word. He wouldn’t lie about something like this. Not to you after you’ve helped us so much and let us stay with you for so long.”

  Emily let out a long sigh after opening and closing her mouth several times.

  “I have to go see him,” Emily declared after a moment, “There must be an explanation. Some reason why. I’m going to go talk to him.”

  “Wait!” Sean said quickly in alarm, “You can’t! Lira and I have a plan. I’ll go back as Malketh. He’ll talk to me like he won’t for you. We’ll get the real truth rather than whatever lie he has planned for if you discover him.”

  Emily hesitated and glanced between the two of them.

  “Fine,” Emily said after a moment, “But we’re leaving soon. And tell me this plan. If I don’t like it then I’ll just get it over with and confront Peter directly. I still can’t believe that any of it is true.”

  Sean let out a sigh of relief and started explaining the plan that he and Lira had created over the last few hours of discussions after he told her his story of the past.

  — — —

  The connection to the Connected One sent knowledge to the nodes deep beneath the surface and Emily’s world. The nodes sent signals through hyperspace vibrations to the detectors outside of the star system, and then onwards to the fleet of the Endless Flesh hovering in deep space listening. The fleet that held the great minds of the Endless Flesh. Those individuals who had used to be ant queens yet had evolved and changed in a continuous march in the millions of years since.

  They still had failed to kill a single of the guilty Immortals captured in the depths of the planet that had used to be Gaia. Others from the palace had been allowed to be released. Knights and others who were known to be innocent. There had been no reason to hold them in any higher regard than any other Immortal that the Endless Flesh had captured in the years since.

  But suddenly a rush of new information filtered up to the fleet of the Endless Flesh. Another claimed to have also traveled to the past without the Connected One. And to know those who had true guilt for the attack on the museum and the death of the green clothed humans.

  But they were only claims. The Endless Flesh’s instincts screamed at it. To rampage, tear, swarm to those that this Immortal claimed were responsible. But the Endless Flesh did not move. They were only claims. The Endless Flesh must have proof through the Connected One’s mind directly before they would move.

  It watched carefully as two ships started traveling towards the edge of the star system. The Connected One knew the destination, although it took some time before that piece of knowledge drifted into the minds of the leaders of the Endless Flesh.

  And so when the two ships reached the edge of the star system and jumped into hyperspace, the great fleet of the Endless Flesh did so as well.

  For the first time in millions of years, the Endless Flesh would travel to the inner galaxy and flex its true strength once more.

  — — —

  Sean looked down at the blinking control panel of his small ship. Emily remained behind in her own ship just out of the system. It had been an explosive argument with Asuta and the others about it, but Emily and Sean’s forces combined had managed to convince all of them to stay behind for the mission.

  This was it. The make or break moment. Sean reached out and pressed the flashing button.

  “Immortus station docking,” a bored voice said, “Your ship is unregistered with us. Prepare to be boarded for a customs check and search before being allowed to approach any closer. Enforcer ship should arrive at your location in fifteen minutes. Do you have anything to declare?”

  “Yes,” Sean said, “My name is Malketh Gaiason and I believe I’m likely under arrest.”

  “What?” the voice on the other end said in surprise and Sean heard a commotion, “We have no one in our records by that name.”

  “Yes, you may have me listed as Sean Turretson,” Sean said, “Make sure to tell Samir my real name. And that I’m here to talk to Peter Rose.”

  “Peter Rose?! What makes you think that you have any right to make demands of his time?”

  “Just tell him my name. I’m sure he’ll want to speak with me. It’s been a long time since we’ve spoken. For real,” Sean said while sweating a little. They should tell Peter that much, if nothing else. Otherwise he might just be unceremoniously thrown in prison and all of this would be for nothing.

  There was some more grumbling from the operator that Sean ignored. The man agreed to pass the message along to his superiors, which Sean assumed would eventually reach Peter.

  A ship of custom officers boarded Sean’s ship and searched the whole thing top to bottom. The whole thing was empty, only a single low caliber pistol at Sean’s waist that he handed over to them as soon as they arrived.

  They let Sean onto Immortus Station and he was escorted away to a side room as the bureaucracy decided what to do with him. Sean sat in the room across from an empty desk and felt a strange wave of nostalgia wash over him. This was the same room that he’d come to so long ago after first arriving to the station. He’d done paperwork here for what felt like days with Samir to get his presence established on Immortus station. He’d barely been a few decades old back then. When did he start thinking of decades as such little amounts of time? Those short decades had represented his whole life back then.

  Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

  Sean looked to the side and saw Samir come in with his orange swirling robes as always. The man was staring at Sean intently as he crossed the room and sat at the other end of his desk opposite from Sean.

  Samir leaned back and steepled his fingers as he considered Sean carefully.

  “Malketh Gaiason, huh?” Samir said calmly, “Where did you hear that name? Who told you about it?”

  “I heard it every day,” Sean said calmly, “It was me before I was Sean. Have you told Peter yet? I’m sure he’ll recognize me if you give him enough time.”

  “I’m not quite sure what you’re playing at here, Sean,” Samir said with a sigh, “Really you’ve always been the difficult one, haven’t you? Tainted by your connection to the Plaguemother from the beginning. From what those new ancient Immortals floating around the galaxy these days are saying, it seems you two have grown rather close. You and the Plaguemother. Really such a shame, I thought you had so much potential…”

  Sean felt a twinge of annoyance before controlling himself. Samir was still eyeing Sean suspiciously, waiting for his reaction. He might even be trying to intentionally provoke him.

  “The disinformation campaign was more successful than I’d ever imagined,” Sean said as calmly as he could, “I bet it was Alex who was behind it. He was always good at these kinds of things back on Gaia. And he seems to have won out with spreading Shadow worship across the galaxy so far, that considering worshipping anything else is laughable to most people these days.”

  Samir opened and closed his mouth, seemingly unsure how to respond to Sean’s odd response.

  “Disinformation campaign?” Samir said after a moment, “I assure you that the rumors are more than that. You’ve heard it yourself, how the Plaguebringers sing her praises as they…”

  Sean waved his hands dismissively, “That’s why I said it was Alex’s work, didn’t I? I wonder if he’s still in the galaxy or he’s out there leading the Plaguebringers still…”

  “He’s out of the galaxy. I can’t believe I didn’t make the connection before. Malketh. It’s been so long since that fateful day on Gaia…” Peter’s voice said from the door of the room. Sean turned and nodded.

  “Walk with me, Malketh,” Peter said as Samir looked between the two of them in confusion, “I’m sure we have a lot to talk about. Best to be secure about it. You were always a mysterious one, even back then.”

  Sean stood and followed behind Peter as they left Samir behind and moved to a much more luxurious office this time.

  “My personal office. Much better than what we had in the old days hiding from the original Immortal Council, isn’t it?” Peter said as he closed the door behind him.

  “How are you here, Malketh? Why reveal yourself now? Why wait so long, act so clueless and keep up that act?” Peter said after a few seconds as Sean silently took in the office.

  Sean turned to him as Peter walked by him and sat behind his desk. Sean sat opposite him.

  “I was just being careful,” Sean said, “I only escaped one of the nests of the Endless Flesh a few thousand years ago after someone else destroyed it. I didn’t know the true state of the galaxy yet, and have been trying to fly under the radar ever since. Just like we used to with the old Immortal Council or like I did with the GFC. Thought I’d get some modern life experience before reconnecting with my old friends. It would be unfortunate if I found that things had changed since we were on Gaia.”

  “No, I understand. Understand the sentiment perfectly,” Peter said, seeming to relax as Sean provided his explanation, “Just surprised at how well you pulled off the act. It was like you were a completely different person. Best acting I’ve ever seen, even from you. You were always good, but never that good.”

  “I’ve learned some things. Practiced a bit. Helps me be more mysterious.”

  “Alex will be happy to hear that you’re back. He was rather upset about what happened to you for quite a while. You were the only one that we ended up losing on the way out. As I said earlier, he’s out of the galaxy right now. Terraforming and spreading humanity into our neighboring galaxies even as we speak. But I’ll send him a message, I’m sure he should be able to come back within a few centuries to meet you again. You’re one of the great historical figures for the Plaguebringers. The great Martyr, Alex liked to call you back then when we were just starting out.”

  “So, I was right then?” Sean said with a little surprise, “We’ve turned into the Plaguebringers? All of us original Immortals hiding away from the Immortal Council and the Genemother?”

  Peter frowned before shaking his head and groaned slightly, “Ugh. Genemother. I’d nearly forgotten. All those old Gaian Knights and old Immortals are out there trying to counter the narrative and prop up Emily again. Even now after millions of years of effort, somehow it's working. Even after working to tear down her reputation for so long, just a little bit of support and people are ready to start singing her praises again. Immortal and mortal alike.”

  Sean frowned, but tried to frame it as consideration rather than from anger, “Can’t you stop them? You control both the Immortal Council and the Plaguebringers. Using both, surely you can just keep discrediting her just like you’ve been doing all this time?”

  “I only wish,” Peter said, “I can only pin so much on her before it becomes so ridiculous that it becomes clear that someone is pushing an agenda. It’s critical to make it seem like a natural upwelling of normal sentiment rather than something that was manipulated or constructed to be that way.”

  “You’ve only gotten more devious with time,” Sean said while trying to keep his voice casual, “Congratulations on your victory. With the Immortal Council, and control of the galaxy, I mean.”

  “Of course, of course,” Peter said, “It’s our victory. You were on our inner council back then. You’re part of it too. Even if you took a few million years before you became able to enjoy it. And you’ve been rather devious yourself. Getting taken under the wing of the Genemother without her being none the wiser… A good source of information indeed, better than almost anyone else I could imagine on catching up to the current state of the galaxy.”

  Sean nodded.

  The two of them chatted about general topics and Peter caught him up on some of what had happened since the end of Gaia with the core group that would end up becoming the Plaguebringers. Peter seemed relaxed and genuinely happy that Malketh had ‘returned from the dead’ as he put it.

  “Biological weapons was really the only practical option,” Peter said, “Using their own biology against them as best as we can. Especially in those early days. But it's far too distasteful for most people to accept. The Immortal Council wasn’t under our control back then and let themselves be pushed back over and over before one of us would step in to help solve the problem for them.”

  “And the rumors and reputation they have these days?” Sean asked, “Sounds like they’re using those diseases for more than just the Endless Flesh. The Plaguebringer that came to the village on Enguli where I was staying killed all the mortals there just because the mortals disrespected him from what Emily told me.”

  “Yes, these things do happen,” Peter said as the light mood darkened a little, “There’s always bad apples with things like this. And sometimes it is necessary to make sacrifices to keep order here in the galaxy, as unpleasant as it is to think of it like that… A tragedy for the people to point to so the Immortal Council can maintain order. The Plaguebringers as the threat, and the Immortal Council as the solution. And when the Immortal Council fails, the Plaguebringers come in and solve things that organizations with stricter morals can not. Do what needs to be done. Do you understand?”

  Sean waited for a moment before licking his lips. The two of them had talked for a while and Peter didn’t appear to be the slightest bit suspicious of him so far.

  “I’d like to believe you,” Sean said slowly, “Sacrifices have to be made of course. I get that, in the GFC I know that compromises were made for the greater good all the time. Even before I was there as an Immortal. Something’s always bothered me though. The attack on the Museum of Renewal on Gaia. Those terrorists that we hired to attack. Did you order them to kill the staff? To hurt the Genemother? Or was it really a mistake? It hardly matters now after so long, but I’d like to know the truth. If that was a sacrifice to the cause or an accident.”

  Peter considered Sean from across the desk for a moment suspiciously and Sean’s heart almost stopped. But then Peter’s face relaxed again and he let out a long sigh.

  “Yes. Yes, we lied to you,” Peter said heavily, “We thought it for the best that you didn’t know. Their orders were to execute the civilians. It was the only way to make sure that the Genemother would be upset enough to leave her mortal family behind and start making political moves and flex her influence to find the culprits. Nothing less would have made her move. Even with the mercenaries only killing a couple of them, you can see how reluctant she was to leave the mortals still.

  “There was a whole master plan that we were going to use to take control of the Immortal Council in one fell swoop once she weakened them enough from within… But none of it mattered in the end. I wasn’t lying about one part. It truly was for the best that you were there to stop them. Those deaths were pointless. Those mutating animals at the museum and the emergence of the Endless Flesh later ruined everything and made their sacrifice to the cause nothing but needless death…”

  They both sat in silence for a moment, Peter frowning as he reminisced on the past.

  “Thank you for telling me,” Sean said after a moment, “I appreciate that. Just something that I’d always wondered about.”

  “Ah, old friend,” Peter said, “No, I’m the one who’s sorry. We should have trusted you with the truth before. Now let’s celebrate your return. It’s almost like you’re back from the dead again. Even if well, you know… I’m sure you understand how we saw it. Now let’s find some things to do around this old place that you haven’t tried yet on your brief stint a little while ago. There’s plenty of hidden corners to this place that most people never end up finding without a proper guide.”

  And so as uncomfortable as it was, Sean went around and spent some time with Peter. He was internally sweating with every passing moment, keenly feeling the recording devices integrated with his clothing band even if they should be completely undetectable according to Emily.

  Every time Peter patted Sean on the shoulder or glanced at him, it felt like he would discover the secret somehow and make all of this worth nothing.

  After some time, Sean begged off and said he wanted to rest for a bit. After some more excruciatingly civil conversation, Peter let him go to an assigned room. Sean looked around the room that was decidedly much more luxurious than the one he had stayed in the first time he lived on Immortus Station.

  Sean went over to the datapad sitting on the table and booted it up as he went over to the bed. Sean retracted the clothing band leaving only his overclothes on him. He took off the band and found a port built into its structure where the band would usually be touching his skin. He plugged it into the datapad and watched the screen as it flickered and stuttered as the device did its work.

  Finally, it was done. The screen lit up brightly green for a moment before returning to its default lock screen. Sean quickly unplugged the clothing band and reactivated it to cover his body again.

  He lay on the bed and let himself close his eyes and go to sleep. All he had to do was wait here for a bit and then slip out with some excuse. His mission was done, all the footage recorded for the last day was sent out to Emily’s ship parked on the edges of the star system through the virus that the clothing band had downloaded to the Immortus Station communication systems.

  She would have to believe him now. Peter had admitted to it all and more while he thought Sean was his old friend Malketh. Well he was, but… Whatever. Time to sleep, he’d think up an excuse to leave this place as fast as possible later.