Isn't Life Strange
By: Heidi "Lady Niko" Reckel

Chapter IX

"And if I have built this fortress around your heart
Encircled you in trenches and barbed wire
Then let me build a bridge
For I cannot fill the chasm
And let me set the battlements on fire."
 Fortress Around Your Heart, Sting


  Late in the night a few evenings after being "reborn" as Kraya Dal'Jesset, Niko tossed and turned restlessly under the covers of a large, antique style four poster bed. In her richly decorated quarters, Niko, or Kraya Dal'Jesset as she was now known, was not having a good night's sleep. Instead of sleeping peacefully, she was caught in a nightmare not entirely of her own making...

  "Niko," a whispered voice called out.

  "No! Niko is no more! I am Kraya Dal'Jesset now!" Kraya shouted defiantly as she walked through the mist-shrouded surroundings.

  "Niko..." the whispered voice called again.

  "Who are you?! Show yourself!" Kraya shouted.

  The voice mockingly answered, "Who are you?"

  "I am Kraya Dal'Jesset!" she shouted out her answer.

  "Are you?" the voice questioned. "Look at yourself," it challenged.

  Then, the mists parted and mirrors appeared all around Kraya. But instead of seeing her reflection, Kraya found herself looking at that, that weakling, Niko....

  Kraya spun about angrily and rejected it, "No! I deny this!"

  "You can't. This is who you are, Kraya," the voice whispered. It was everywhere and nowhere at the same time.

  "No! Not anymore! Niko is dead!" Kraya yelled, spinning around, looking for the source of the voice.

  "You are Niko," the voice stated.

  "No, I am Kraya Dal'Jesset!"

  "Then, look again, Kraya and tell me what you see..." the voice prompted.

  Kraya looked back in the mirror and saw an older version of herself. The version revealed her to be an almost identical copy of the Queen of the Crown. Her long hair was gone, instead, the burnished chestnut hair was cut extremely short, almost a buzz-cut. But, it was seeing the hardened, cruel expression on her face that made her gasp. Her eyes had a deadened look to them, and her mouth was twisted in what appeared to be a permanent frown. She slowly, hesitantly reached out to touch the reflection/projection in the mirror.... and was flooded with such dark and overwhelming emotions.

  The Kraya in the mirror was so hate-filled, contemptuous of all life, and so bitter... She enjoyed making others suffer, and making them kneel in surrender at her feet. Kraya/Niko gasped in shock. This was her future? Was she destined to become this angry, bitter and cruel?

  "Is this really how you want your life to be, Kraya?" The voice asked, seemingly right next to her. "Why do you want power, Kraya?" was the voice's next question.

  "Niko is weak," she said harshly. "She is afraid of her own power, of her own potentials."

  "But, we're not talking about Niko here, Kraya," the voice said, "I want to know, why do you want power, Kraya?"

  "Why speak of power?" she said contemptuously. "It is only a means to itself."

  "Are you certain, Kraya?" the voice asked.

  "Very certain," replied Kraya, "It will suit my needs well."

  Then, becoming irritated with the bodiless voice's questions she called out, "Who are you? Show yourself, you bloody coward. I'm not afraid of you! Show yourself, so I can show you what power truly is!"

  "Very well, then, Kraya," the voice said, and a projection shimmered into place behind Kraya. with a laugh. Kraya/Niko turned around to see a truly hideous face - gaping black eyes, and the tattered garb of a scarecrow. It didn't speak, but as it came closer, its features took on more and more of her own.

  Instinctively she took a step back, then held her ground as the creature came closer. "W... what are you?" she asked. Her voice had an edge of nervousness to it.

  The voice said again, still disembodied. "He is rotted, and you will become his equal. Is this what you want, Kraya? He almost destroyed Niko."

  "No! You're a nightmare! A leftover projection from Niko! You're not real!" Kraya shouted defiantly, but her voice held the slightest tinge of fear in it.

  "Reach out for him if you're truly Kraya. He is powerful."

  "I'm not," a stray thought betrayed her heated denial.

  "You should thank him," the voice whispered. "Or wonder why he was too weak to destroy Niko when he had his chances... he would have, you know. Are you certain, Kraya, that this is what you want?" the voice continued. "Any tinge of doubt could destroy you."

  "Why don't you destroy me, then?" she said. "I am weak. The weak must die."

  "You aren't weak, you never were," the voice answered softly.

  After a long pause it the voice spoke again, "No, Kraya, you must make a choice. Either one way or the other."

  "Why should I even listen? Why should I even trust you?" Kraya asked.

  "Because you are still Niko, Kraya," the voice answered simply.

  Her eyes narrowed at the mention of Niko's name, She was on the verge of refusing when something inside her prompted her to ask, "What choice?"

  "Either Niko or Kraya must 'die.' You cannot be both."

  "No! I told you, Niko is no more! I am Kraya Dal'Jesset, now!" Kraya answered. "What was the best Niko could have hoped for? You show me what I'll become as Kraya - Absolute power. What of Niko?"

  "Are you certain about that, Kraya? Are you certain that you want Niko to be gone forever?"

  "All she could hope for is a crystal coffin along with the other humans, or a death defending some other weakling!" The same small nudge once again made her say a moment later, "Show me first."

  "Then look once more in the mirror, Kraya," the voice commanded.

  She looked, not wanting to see. The image in the mirror was once again of that weakling, Niko. She rode a copper-colored cyberhorse, a white cyberhorse rode next to her.

  "Dare you say that this is the fate that waits me!" she snapped, disgusted at the image of what was in the mirror.

  "Touch the mirror, Kraya," the voice commanded.

  "Why? Why should I do it?! She's a weakling! What can I learn from her?" Kraya demanded.

  The scenes flashed by now. An old man and woman looked up gratefully at her, a bandit stunned on the floor.

  "Touch the mirror, Kraya," the voice said compellingly.

  She reached out for the mirror with great hesitancy. The power lessened, replaced with something softer. She almost wanted to pull her hand back, but something kept her there.

  "Learn, Kraya... Learn what you will be giving up if you remain Kraya."

  She was the same age as the Kraya future. Her chestnut hair was graying, and elegantly braided. She wore the formal uniform of a Ranger, but it was less form-fitting, and various awards and medals decorated it. Standing next to her was an older blonde-haired man who still had a rakish air about him in an equally decorated uniform, who had eyes only for her.

  She slowly realized that as Niko, she wasn't alone. She had friends who cared for her...

  The voice said approvingly, "You see, Kraya.... This is what you will be giving up, if you choose to remain Kraya."

  An older sandy-haired man wearing the uniform of a Ranger Commander walked in proudly, a picture of a newborn in his hand. She could feel the joy as the older Commander boasted about his newborn granddaughter.

  It was like a huge family. The dark rage and power was blocked with light, warmth, and love. Kraya felt cold, but as Niko, she didn't have to fear that.

  "Do you want to be cold for the rest of your life, Kraya?" the voice asked. "Do you want to be alone?"

  Niko could have things that Kraya never could.... joy, happiness, love...

  "Why show me what is impossible to have?" she said.

  "Who do you want to be, Kraya? Niko or Kraya?" the voice asked, "Warmth and joy, or cold and bitter?"

  "No," she whispered, her voice cracking.

  Just then, the Queen's programming of Kraya asserted itself again and she raised her head and said, "No! Niko is weak! I refuse to be weak like that!"

  "What made Niko weak, Kraya? It's not being weak, Kraya, it's what you wanted: power. This is just a power of a different type."

  Niko/Kraya closed her eyes and a tear slid down her cheek. Her voice was wavering as she answered, "They left me. I cared for them... I did what I had to do to save them... Niko couldn't save them, but Kraya has."

  "Look Kraya, look at what the Queen has done..." the voice pleaded.

  "She fell to the Queen, my mistress. She didn't have the strength to fight..." she mumbled the words that had been burned into her by the Queen.

  "Yes," the voice answered full of sorrow, "Niko did fall to the Queen, but only to save those she cared for. Look and see who she chose to fight for."

  The projections in the mirrors changed She stood up to the scarecrow, shooting him before he was able to kill her friend. She stood with her team fighting off Crown Agents and rescuing almost a hundred humans from the clutches of the Queen. She saw an elderly, alien couple look up at her with gratitude after she cuffed the bandit trying to take their wedding jewels.

  "Are these the acts of a weakling?" the voice questioned softly. "This is who Niko chose to fight for, Kraya."

  Making contact with an alien race and whistling in a celebration of good wishes... helping to defeat an evil baron from destroying his homeworld. Saving the last of a species so that they might live again... Dangerous and dirty work, but the rewards at the end were beautiful.

  The mirrors disappeared, and were replaced by two crystal coffins. She looked down at the crystal. One face - hers.

  "You can revive only one," the voice whispered. "Choose wisely."

  Two coffins of ruby crystal. Two women with closed eyes, identical in face and body. The difference was noted by what they wore. Kraya wore the finery of the Queen. Niko wore the uniform of a Ranger Commander. A single Psychocrystal throbbed in Kraya/Niko's hand.

  Kraya/Niko stalled. "Why? Why should I do this? You have to tell me who you are!" She shouted, some of the Kraya anger taking over again.

  "Who I am, or will be depends on you." the voice was now clear, no longer echoing. Definitely a young man. Kraya/Niko knew that voice...

  "Who are you?" Kraya asked.

  She shivered reflectively, as two forms materialized, one standing behind each coffin. One was a rakish blonde man dressed in a Ranger uniform, and the other was a Slaverlord. The man in the Ranger uniform stood behind the coffin of Niko, while the Slaverlord stood behind the coffin of Kraya.

  "Niko, come on, you know who I am. You are better then this!" He urged, with somewhat of a cocky note in his voice.

  "Shane," she whispered. Her voice choked.

  "It's time, Niko. Time to make your choice," Shane urged, serious now.

  "If Kraya exists, I will only be more power for the Queen," the Slaverlord answered. "Power is beautiful," the Slaverlord continued. "I am one of millions Kraya Dal'Jesset will command."

  "Or," Shane said. "You can live as an equal."

  "Oh gods...." Kraya/Niko said forlornly.

  "I know you don't want to be Kraya, Niko," the image of Goose standing behind the crystal coffin of the older Niko urged.

  Niko stared at the Slaverlord wondering how something like that could ever have such a hold over her.

  The Slaverlord tried again to tempt her with power and said, "Remember the power you felt when I was created, remember how it felt..."

  Niko staggered back, the power surged through her. Pure and sublime, but cold... Somehow, that seemed less...enjoyable...

  She shivered... this wasn't what she wanted... It was cold, too cold, and it made her heart ache for warmth...

  Kraya/Niko walked over to the coffin and joined the crystals. As the blue light flashed over the Ranger, the Queen's servant was turned to dust. Niko felt an incredible weight lift from her shoulders. She felt like she was finally able to stand straight and tall again.

  When Niko looked up, she felt oddly empty. She was alone again, and it was so cold around her. She cried out with loss. Had she been lied to?

  "Shane," she called out. "Where are you?"

  "Still trapped," he said in a faint voice.

  But, she no longer felt cold inside.

  Tears spilled down her cheeks as she held on to the memory of his voice however faint. "Oh Shane, what have I done?" she said to herself quietly.

  "Nothing, babe. It's my fault that you're here," he answered, his voice growing fainter and tinged with self-chastisement. But, it strengthened again for a moment, and it seemed like he was right next to her as his voice said firmly, "You made the right choice, Niko. Now hold on to your decision, no matter what the Queen does to you."

  "I will," she said. Her own voice was fading as she started to awaken. "Thank you..."

  She opened her eyes, not moving a muscle otherwise. She looked wildly about the room in confusion. What had happened? Where was she? Looking around she realized she was in the bedchamber, and everything felt cold. Her head hurt. The dream had been so real that much she could remember...

  She had dreamed about that weakling, Niko.... hadn't she? The details of the dream were starting to slip from her grasp as she tried to grab them. She closed her eyes, and the memories played back. Everything seemed foggy. Was she Kraya, Niko, both, or neither? The more she tried to think about it, the foggier the memories became... and her headache began to worsen as she tried to concentrate on it.

  She didn't seem to be completely Kraya, was the thought that gradually came to her, although this time the thought did not disturb her, and that confused her even more. Her head ached abominably now, and the only thing Kraya could think of was sleep.... hoping it would allow her to escape the pain.

  It was split - she was of two minds and neither of them seemed to want to function.

  "I am not weak," she said to herself but the words lacked their usual conviction because of her confused state.

  She reached down to the foot of the bed and pulled up the extra blanket to try and block out the cold she felt deep down inside her... Slowly she lowered her head back on to the pillow and closed her eyes, trying to push out the fog that seemed to be moving through her mind.

  The "Niko," mind wanted to get up and explore. She wasn't about to let "Kraya" sleep. Finally, it was the "Kraya" mind which won out, and Kraya/Niko succumbed to sleep once more....

* * * *

  Kraya walked around and looked at the attached arboretum.

  "So, you see, Your Majesty," the researcher explained, "The compound only affects plant and animal life, not humans."

  The Queen nodded, and glowered harshly at the red-haired woman next to her, "Pay attention, my dear!"

  Kraya jerked her attention back to what the technician was saying. "My dear," she said. "I want you to contact BETA and demonstrate the power of my new superweapon."

  "Your Majesty?" Kraya was surprised.

  "These plants have been cloned from samples my spies have taken on Granna." The Queen took a small remote control, and pressed a button. The image of an Earth-like planet flashed on the screen. Various other monitors showed the rich vegetation, and the primitive alien culture taking root on the planet. It was a peaceful day of work in the village. "This is the planet of Xanchi," the Queen explained. "A primitive people, a large amount of vegetation. Diverse, unpolluted, non-technological. The societies have just discovered farming."

  Kraya found her attention wandering.... The Queen wanted her to contact BETA?

  A huge screech as Crown fighters appeared in the air. A single pellet dropped from each. Magnification showed the pellets to be no bigger than a baseball. Six of them were dropped. As a hissing sound filled the air, and all vegetation in the area almost immediately blackened and withered. The villagers choked and collapsed. Within minutes, all that was left was barren rock and withered vegetation.

  Kraya/Niko staggered back, astonished. Fighting with her awe at her mistress' power There was a sense of loss, disgust... fear.

  "Even the threat of this will be sufficient. If I choose to I can deliver the pellet in a small undetectable rocket," the Queen remarked.

  "But, Mistress..." Kraya said.

  The Queen glowered at her harshly. "Kraya, remember your obedience."

  Kraya swallowed hard and said, "Yes, Mistress...."

  "If I didn't know better, I'd swear that you were having second thoughts," the Queen said, knowing which buttons to push. "That isn't an option with you."

  "I am not having second thoughts!" Kraya snapped. "How dare you think..."

  The Queen laughed, "Just testing you, Kraya. Now, my dear, I want you to contact BETA and tell them I want them to surrender the planet Granna IV to my control."

  "Or else?"

  "Or else, the same fate that befell those primitives will befall Granna. The only species this gas will not kill is humans. After all the vegetation is gone, I will be able to scoop them up easily. If they won't surrender, they will starve."

  Kraya barely surpressed a shudder. This new plan of her mistress' frightened her more than she was willing to admit, even to herself.

  "In addition, the lack of plant life will stop oxygen production. BETA can send food, but air for a planet?"

  "I see the point," said Kraya. "How long is the poison effective, Mistress? Will the planet ever be capable of supporting life again?"

  "Oh, it will be," said the Queen. "After about six months of Crown ships conducting terraforming." She threw her head back and let out a cackle that made even Kraya's blood run cold. "So, in the end, I will have humans to serve me and a new planet to rule! Without firing a single shot. Bloodless warfare. No lost resources or waste."

  In the back of Kraya's mind, Niko silently stood by, absorbing the information and worrying about how to give BETA all the information it needed....

* * * *

  The bridge of the Laredo was an atmosphere of controlled nervousness. There were no clues as to where or when the Queen would invade. Any place would be good at this point...

  Zach stared out into the space in front of the ship. Doc noticed that he hadn't spoken or eaten much since their return from the Queen's Graveyard.

  "Captain?" he asked.

  Zach was slow to answer, "Yeah, Doc?"

  "Don't beat yourself up, Zach."

  Zachary nodded, then spoke to no one in particular, "After you guys got me out of the Psychocrypt, I swore that no one, especially anyone under my command, would wind up in that place."

  "Captain," Doc was normally so good with words, but now it was a Herculean task to form a sentence.

  Zach sighed and continued to stare at the monitor as he said, "We're stuck here, waiting for the Queen's armada to show up while the Queen could be doing who knows what to Niko..."

  "Zach... we could be lucky... she could be..."

  "'All right?' No, I don't think so, Doc..." The two Rangers thought about the possibilities. There were two places Niko could possibly be - the Psychocrypt or a grave.

  A technician turned to Commander Walsh who stood on the far-side of the bridge, "Sir, we're getting a hail from the Queen."

  "That..." Walsh grumbled a expletive under his breath. "Patch it through."

  The tech complied, and a second later the transmission was transferred to the big screen. The image flickered and jumped before attaining a clear, cohesive image.

  Doc and Zachary gasped. Doc took a stumbling step back, Zachary looked about ready to be sick. Even Commander Walsh was caught off-guard. It wasn't the Queen, but Niko! Her auburn hair was pulled into a harsh braid, and she wore black silk with purple trim and a black velvet cape.

  "Niko!" Zachary said, taking a step towards the image. "Niko, you're all right..."

  She spat at him angrily, "No thanks to you, Captain Foxx. You left me here to die."

  "Niko," Doc said from the back. "It's us. Your friends, remember?"

  "Friends?! Bah! A mistake, Ranger Hartford," she said icily. "A mistake I intend to rectify. Associating with you made me weak."

  "Niko, what are you talking about?" Zach asked.

  She straightened. "I've switched masters. The Queen was quite persuasive."

  "Are you crazy, Ranger Niko?" Walsh snapped.

  "You are the crazy ones, Commander, for failing to take your proper place in the galaxy. The weak must be conquered for the strong to survive."

  Zachary said, "Niko, whatever the Queen has done to you, I swear..."

  "That's the Queen of the Crown talking, Ranger," Walsh said at the same time.

  "Swear, Captain?" Niko asked, with a lift of her eyebrow. "You've sworn a lot of things, but you've not been strong enough to fulfill those oaths. Do I need to remind you of your dear wife?"

  Zachary winced. His one promise to his children that he had not been able to keep, as of yet, was to free his wife's Psychocrystal from the Queen of the Crown, and it was his biggest weakness.

  "The Queen has destroyed all of what I was," Niko said. "All the foolish loyalties, the foolish pity... She's purified me."

  "More like taken your soul," Zachary said, reaching out to her, trying to find the woman who was practically his daughter...

  "Destroy that pity, Captain. It doesn't become you. I'm no longer even Niko. I am Kraya, Student of the Queen." Niko/Kraya's eyes fixed on Doc. "Out of witty words, Doc?"

  Doc smiled and said, "Only for the moment, Lady Niko."

  The woman on the screen seemed to flinch at the use of her old nickname.

  "Where are O'Mega and Gooseman?" asked Walsh. "Has the Queen made 'students' of them, too?"

  "They weren't strong enough... They had too many barriers to be good students."

  "You mean, they're Slaverlords," Zach answered.

  Niko/Kraya nodded, a satisfied smile on her face. "Yes. They are now extensions of my mistress."

  "Isn't the Queen some sort of sorceress? A psychic?" Doc leaned forward to whisper in Zach's ear.

  "Psychic, yes... very powerful." Zach whispered back.

  "My Series Five Implant on the bet that Niko's psychic ability is the only reason she isn't looking at us from the inside of a red crystal."

  "I'd say you win the bet, Doc. Now, how do we get Niko back?"

  "Damned if I know. Two interceptors in the heat of battle... it would be dangerous, but easy to vanish."

  "Hell, Doc, we still don't know for certain which world is the Queen's target!"

  "Our fighters will be standing by," said Kraya. "With this." She picked up a vial of green-gray liquid. Then the holoviewer panned back to show an arboretum.

  "I have put one part per billion of this substance into the air systems of this eco-dome," her voice said off the screen. The plants sickened and withered into black stumps before the bridge crew's eyes. "Toxin Eighty is equally poisonous to all non-human life. The Queen has amassed enough of this substance to bombard Granna IV." The viewer flashed back to her face.

  "That's barbaric," barked Walsh. "Millions will starve."

  "That is the intention of the Queen," she said. "Granna will be bombarded with this, and the human population will be rounded up."

  "The harvest from Granna feeds most of the colony worlds on this side of the frontier!" Doc said, shocked.

  Kraya's dark evil flashed across her face again. "If humanity hasn't enough food, the Crown is more than willing to take surplus population off your hands..."

  Doc asked shrewdly, using his nickname for her, "Is this what you want, Lady Niko?"

  Her face twisted into grief and pain for a second - or did Doc and Zachary only imagine it? "It is the only choice. The only warning I am authorized to give."

  "Doc, I think you may have hit a nerve there..." Zach whispered to Doc.

  Doc nodded and said nothing.

  "Ranger Niko, you can tell the Queen that we will not bow down to her threats. We will fight her to the bitter end!" Walsh blustered.

  "I told you! Niko is no more! I am Kraya Dal'Jesset now!" Kraya spat out at Commander Walsh.

  Commander Walsh's eyes narrowed, "So be it, Kraya Dal'Jesset. Just tell the Queen that we will be waiting for her at Granna IV."

  "You have twelve hours before the invasion begins. I would suggest preparing the human populations of the colony worlds for their fate. Ni... Kraya Out."

  "She threw it," said Zachary after a stunned moment of silence. "She told us everything we needed to know."

  "Almost a warning," said Doc. "Which might mean..."

  "The Queen didn't do a thorough job of destroying Niko...."

  Zach and Doc looked at each other. They were going to have to do some planning here.

  "If you two are thinking of a rescue mission," said Walsh. "Then I'm not having it. Ranger Niko, I know, is a good woman, but if it comes down to it, she is..." He swallowed. "She is to be considered a casualty of war."

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