Within the mind-link, Kodachi and Ranma were politely trying to raise a screen between their activities and Nanami to add to the many layers of metal between them that would make ideal communication difficult.
If Nanami wanted to, she could cut through their walls like a knife through butter. The fact was, she had more than a few elements of human telepathic ability as well as the SIL splices, and those splices were acting like the spark that made a pilot light into an inferno.
However, most of that growing potential in Nanami was sitting unused, she hadn't flexed her muscles as it were. At the moment, she had no reason to. She didn't want to see what was going on in the other part of the ship.
It did leak through, though their more sophisticated experiments gave the emotions less of the feeling of an animalistic rut. Instead, Nanami was finding herself at the center of a pleasantly erotic dream.
Her, Makoto, Shayla Shayla and this 'Ifurita' she'd heard about once before going to the repository. She wasn't sure how she knew, but she knew this purple haired woman was that person. And equally sure that she wasn't as human as she looked.
Well, between Shayla's chi and Nanami's new genetics, they were even there.
A small smile, despite her recent frustrations on this subject, worked itself over her face as she traced slick black hands over Makoto's skin. Then sharing a breath kiss with Shayla, directed at working up Makoto.
Both she and Shayla were hetro, but, in this dream at least, they were willing to put on a show, though it took a bit of convincing for the red-head. Especially as they tried to draw in the obviously inexperienced Ifurita.
Nanami was just getting to the really good part, tail twitching as it started to form the converting stinger unconsciously, and then the chittering at the edge of her dream began.
Nanami slowed down, though her imaginary bed partners seemed not to notice, then she straightened up and looked around past the circle of light that was the only other mark of terrain in this dream.
Past that dark, Nanami saw movement. Black on black slickness.
"Hey, why did you..." Shayla was interrupted as a ten-legged monstrosity leaped out toward her face.
*****
Nanami snapped awake gasping, not knowing if the facehugger in the dream had been caught or had managed to reach Shayla.
"Oh, still having nightmares from the Repository," she noted, sitting up and coming aware of a beeping that indicated someone was outside the ship.
Behind their screens and activity, Kodachi and Ranma hadn't yet noticed Nanami's nightmare or the intercom beep, so that left Nanami, who was still itching at a feeling of danger in the back of her mind.
Grabbing a night robe to cover herself and forcing herself into human form, Nanami sleepily worked her way down toward the cargo bay and opening the door to see who was there.
"Hello," the girl said hesistantly on seeing Nanami. "I didn't mean to wake you or anything. I have the rest of Miss Kodachi's order."
"Oh kay," Nanami said, rubbing at her eyes and looking toward the second large order of products that had come to the ship today.
"Have to remind Kodachi that we don't have unlimited funds," she thought with a sigh.
Turning back to the girl, she gestured up toward the cargo bay. Something was tickling the back of her mind: an echo of Kodachi's appreciation for this girl and her efforts.
"Bring it in," Nanami said. "Kodachi's busy at the moment."
"All right," the girl said nodding and moving toward the machine to drive it up into the cargo bay and start the off-loading.
Nanami started to help her, getting a good whiff of the shop-girl. Physically mature, still in the process of fully developing her brain, as most teens were. It struck her suddenly, that Kodachi would very much like to make sure this girl lived.
Still a little sleepy, and rattled for reasons she couldn't quite grasp, Nanami's control over her instincts were limited.
In the next moment, Nanami was shifting out of human again and a tail was striking rapidly into the girl's back. The scorpion like stinger pumping genetic material into her as she cried out.
Then Nanami's intellect snapped awake and came back to the reins. The tail pulled out quickly, hopefully quickly enough that there wasn't enough material to convert the girl.
"Wh...what are you?" the girl demanded hysterically as she stumbled back, one hand clutching her back where it had been stabbed and watching as Nanami returned to a humanoid form.
"Listen...sorry," Nanami said. "I didn't mean..."
But the girl, not showing the change of eyes that was the first symptom or linking to Nanami and the Saotome's collective either, was growing progressively more hysterical.
Again, Nanami let instinct direct her, reaching out mentally to the girl's mind and first shut off the panic. She was about to leave it at that when she started seeing a replay of the event that had just happened.
Before all she could do was sense stray thoughts and ambient attitudes. Now she was a full out telepath? Would that happen to the others as well? Or just her?
She didn't take time to think about it, instead quickly rewriting the girl's memory with a fabrication of her own. It was a heavily flawed fabrication, being Nanami's first attempt at such a thing, but it would stand against anyone not a telepath.
Nanami thought.
"Are you all right?" Nanami asked experimentally reaching out a hand to the girl to help her up.
"Umm, yeah," the girl said. "I must have fallen over something."
"Well, let's get this finished," Nanami said quickly.
******
The girl from the market, as she was driving home, didn't notice as her eyes shifted black. The dose she got was small due to Nanami's quick response to her instinctive action, but it was there. Pretty soon, Mudpie was going to have its own resident hybrid and not even that individual would know it for sometime.
At least not until the bugs started provoking an instinctual response.
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(Posted Mon, 15 Feb 2010 21:17)
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