The Kett, who've made a breakthrough.

Cora Harper was on routine patrol on Voeld when the Kett attacked. They had continuously probed defensive positions on Initiative worlds, looking for weak points to exploit in a future invasion. However, this ambush didn’t fit the usual profile. The Kett killed the two men with her in seconds, quick and efficient, but they seemed unusually slow to follow through with her. They had her in their sights, they could have just killed her with her subordinates, yet they chose to pin her down. They were after her, specifically, and she had no intention of finding out why.

After returning fire for several minutes, she felt her gun click empty and swore. As she fumbled with the reload, she heard the distinct whirr of a craft approaching her position. She dared a glance up, and saw an unusual Kett dropship hovering over the area. A squad of Ascendants, the most elite Kett infantry, stepped off and began approaching her position as the others provided covering fire. Her heart started to race. She had to get out of there.

She heard a crunch behind her, but before Cora could turn, she found herself in a headlock. The last thing she remembered before she blacked out was the low growl of a Destined in her ear.

“Sleep,” it said. “Sleep, and prepare to be born again… into a world without fear or hate… Sleep…”

***

Cora didn’t know how long she was ****. When she woke up, she was in a cell. She couldn’t tell if it was a Kett ship or a Kett base or anything else about her location, but it certainly wasn’t on Voeld. It was warm and wet, and she had been stripped of her clothes, leaving her naked in this spartan, claustrophobic room. After a moment, Cora heard the door open behind her. The Primus was clad in the same armor as the last time they’d met. She looked Cora up and down, and Cora could feel the Kett’s eyes linger on her breasts, her hips, her rear. She fought the urge to cover herself.

“Hello, Lieutenant Harper,” she said.

“You,” Cora growled. “What is this? Where am I?”

“You are where you belong,” the Primus replied.

“Oh yeah? Where is that, exactly?”

“I suppose that depends on your perspective,” the Primus mused. “Your friends would tell you you are in the hands of your enemy… But I would tell you, Lieutenant, that you are home.”

Cora scoffed. “Yeah right.”

“I don’t expect you to understand just yet,” the Primus said. Cora could hear the mirth in her tone, as if this were some sort of joke she didn’t understand. “But I promise you, you will.”

The Primus reached out and touched Cora’s cheek. Cora jerked back, the cell wall pressing against her bare back, but the Primus followed and grabbed Cora by the chin, holding her in place with a firm grip as her thumb pressed against Cora’s lips. “You are quite beautiful, you know. I do hope we can preserve that while you’re here.”

“Let go of me!” Cora shouted.

The Primus chuckled, and released her grip on Cora. Before the human could react, she felt the Kett’s palm strike her across the face, sending her reeling to the floor. She spat blood from her mouth as the Primus knelt down beside her and grabbed a fistful of her hair. She pulled Cora’s head back, exposing her neck, and Cora winced as she felt a sudden jab of deep stinging pain. Cora tried to pull away, but the Primus’ grip was too strong. She shuddered as the Primus whispered in her ear.

“You will learn to love me, Lieutenant,” she said.”I promise you.”

Primus released her, letting her fall to the floor, then turned and left the room, leaving Cora disoriented on the ground. She tried to throw a biotic field, only to find she couldn’t. Either she was too weak or the Kett had done something to prevent it. As she got back to her feet, the room was suddenly awash in the brightest light she had ever experienced. What had moments ago been a claustrophobic room now felt like an infinite plane of white. She tried to pinch her eyes shut, but it was futile. Then the voice started to speak, coming from nowhere, yet everywhere. It was oscillating as if it were mechanical and organic, singing like it was many and yet one.

“You are not who you are.”

“You are home.”

“Do not resist.”

“Obey.”

“You are inferior.”

“Serve.”

“You will be reborn.”

“Obey.”

“Embrace your new form.”

“Submit.”

“You are not who you are.”

“Resist, and we will take you anyway.”

“Serve, and you will be made whole.”

“Your past does not matter. Your future is ours. Your identity is ours. Your life is ours. We are your salvation. We are your redemption.”

Cora tried to cover her ears, but it didn’t even muffle the sound. She knew what this was, what they were trying to do, what they were trying to turn her into. They were trying to turn her into them. They were trying to Exalt her. She didn’t know what she could do. The only thing she knew was that she wasn’t going to let them break her. She had to endure. She had to survive.

***

When the Primus returned, she appeared unfazed by the light, and her voice carried over the other. There were other Kett with her. Cora had never been afraid of them before. They were fast, yes, and dangerous, yes, but not something she couldn’t handle. But now, stripped of her weapons, her armor, her biotics, Cora didn’t feel like a soldier, she felt like a plaything. The Primus approached her. Cora tried to throw a punch, but the Primus easily parried her, then threw her to the floor. She heard the Primus chuckle as she and the others circled around her.

“You are a feisty one, Lieutenant,” she said. “But that is good. We are going to make something great out of you.”

The Primus knelt down, and Cora felt the Kett’s weight on her back. A firm grip took hold of her head and **** her to look the Primus in the eyes, and she could feel the Kett’s breath on her neck.

“Tell me, human,” the Primus asked, her voice low and sultry. “How does it feel to know that you belong to me now?”

Cora glared at her, but didn’t answer. The Primus chuckled.

“You may resist if you wish,” she said. “It will only make our victory over you all the more sweet.”

***

How long had she been here now? She hadn’t slept. There was no way to measure time. It was just the light, and the voice, and the visits. Every so often, the Primus and her guards would arrive, **** her to drink some kind of nutrient paste, inject her with something, and then leave her in that room to be overwhelmed. The voice went on.

“You are not who you are.”

“You are home.”

“Do not resist.”

It was constant, it was unwavering, and it was maddening. Cora was fighting to keep her sanity. It wasn’t working. She felt her grip on herself weakening, and she was terrified. She couldn’t let this happen, not to her. But she didn’t know what else she could do.

***

The next time the Primus visited, Cora tried to fight back, but the Kett held her down and **** the paste into her mouth and the injection into her neck. Then the Primus leaned in, and whispered in her ear, her tone mocking, her voice sadistic.

“You will serve, Lieutenant,” she said. “We will make a proper Kett of you, and then you will be mine, forever.”

“N-Never,” Cora spit.

“Brave words from a woman on the brink. I thought you’d last longer than a day, but it seems we may not even come close.”

She had been here… less than a day? Impossible. It had to have been days, maybe a week at least. No, no, no, no, no, she couldn’t lose her mind after only a day. Why would they be feeding her? Why would she feel so hungry? But her hair… her hair hadn’t grown… She was still… This couldn’t be happening, this was impossible, this was insane. The Primus laughed as she watched Cora struggle.

“Maybe a bit longer, then.”

***

Cora was curled up in a ball on the ground when they next returned. She only limply tried to resist the needle, and she didn’t even bother pushing away the paste. The Primus grinned.

“Look at you Cora, I’ll admit I’m impressed. Not many could claim to have resisted our control this long. How long has it been now? Five years? Six?” She grinned. “It’s impressive.”

Years… But no… It had been hours before hadn’t it? Cora’s eyes darted around confused again, causing the Primus smile to widen.

“I have to admit… I did think your friends would have at least tried to come and rescue you by now,” the Primus flicked a lock of Cora’s hair out of her face. “It’s almost like they don’t care about you.”

No, no that couldn’t be right. This wasn’t real. It couldn’t be. The voice was lying. The Primus was lying. Ryder would come for her… Alec would… Wait? But wasn’t Alec dead? But then who did she serve alongside? The Pathfinder Ryder… But… Who were they? Who was Ryder? Cora didn’t know. The Primus chuckled at her reaction.

“Poor thing. Don’t worry, it won’t hurt much longer. Soon, you’ll have a new life, a new family. You will be a member of the Kett. And I’ll make sure to treat you well. You’re mine, after all.” The Primus’ hand cupped Cora’s chin and pulled her into a kiss. Her tongue pressed against Cora’s lips, and then invaded her mouth. She couldn’t resist. The Primus held her there for a minute, her tongue exploring Cora’s mouth, before she pulled away, a smug smile on her face. “I can’t wait to have you all to myself, Cora. No other Kett will ever compare to you.” The Primus stood and walked to the door. She stopped, and turned to Cora, her hand on the doorknob. “You really are beautiful, you know. You’re a wonderful human, and I think you’ll make a wonderful Kett. I hope you can endure the final stages of Exaltation, because I truly cannot wait for you to serve us.” The Primus smiled, and then left.

Cora was alone again, with nothing but the voice in her head. She was tired, so tired. And the voice was so loud, so inescapable. She just wanted it to stop, to let her sleep. She just wanted to be at rest.

“YOU ARE NOT WHO YOU ARE.” The voice continued, changing yet again. It sounded familiar somehow. Why?

“I am… Not… No…” Cora mumbled, weak and feeble.

“YOU ARE HOME.”

“I… I am?” Cora asked. “This is… home?”

“OBEY.”

She was silent to that, but she was a soldier. Wasn’t it her duty to obey?

“SERVE.”

Serve… she had sworn to serve. But who had she sworn to serve?

“YOU WILL BE REBORN.”

“Born… Born again… A world without fear or hate…” Why did those words sound so familiar?

“DO NOT RESIST.”

“I won’t resist…”

“SUBMIT.”

“Submit… Submit… I…”

When had the voice become her own?

***

When they returned, Cora couldn’t fight back. She didn’t have the strength. She didn’t even resist when the needle was jammed into her neck, or when the paste was **** into her mouth. She didn’t have the will to resist anymore. She couldn’t even remember why she had been resisting in the first place. Who was she, anyway? She was… home. Yes, she was home, she had always been home, this was the place where she belonged, where she wanted to be, and she would be made one of the family, made perfect, made whole, made complete. She knew, somehow, that this was what they were doing. They were making her better, stronger, faster. They were going to make her beautiful, and powerful, and then she would be one of them, a Kett, and she would belong. The voice told her so, and why shouldn’t she listen to her own thoughts?

***

The next time they returned, the needle was gone. The pain was gone. She was no longer curled up in a ball on the ground. She was sitting cross legged, staring forward with a vacant smile, repeating her mantra over and over again. The one that had been drilled into her brain by the Purification.

The light, the light which had been there for as long as she could remember, was turned off. She was led to a room, where a machine was waiting, a machine that would make her whole, and complete, and perfect. The Primus was waiting for her. She was smiling.

“Hello, Cora,” the Primus said, her voice low and sultry. “Are you ready to be reborn?”

“Yes,” Cora said. “I want to be perfect. I want to be made whole.”

“Good girl. You’ve done so well, I think you deserve your reward.”

She was laid on the slab, and the needles came down. They pierced her skin, her flesh, and injected her with a fluid that burned as it entered her bloodstream. She screamed, and the Primus held her close as she thrashed, the pain wracking her body.

“It’s alright, my love,” she whispered. “You are being cleansed of your inferior form. It’s all going to be over soon.”

The fire burned within her, burning away who she was. She could feel her bones shifting, her muscles changing. Her hair had fallen away, her eyes were glowing bright blue, and her skin was starting to turn tarry and black. The pain was unbearable. She screamed, and she cried, but the Primus held her tightly, and told her she would be okay. She would be perfect. She would be beautiful. And she wanted that. She wanted to be perfect, and beautiful. She wanted to be whole. She wanted to be complete. She wanted to belong. She was going to belong.

***

When it was done, Cora was gone. In her place was a Kett unlike any before her. She was beautiful, powerful, and perfect. Her exoskeletal bones had been shaped into the form of her old armor, with a plate swooping down the side of her head like her old hair. Her face was, for the most part, still Cora’s, softer, more refined than any other Kett. Her body was leaner, lithe, and more athletic than any of her kin.

However, what made her most unique was simple: her reproductive organs had survived the transformation. If they could replicate it, again and again, eventually exaltation would no longer be necessary. They would still be able to harvest useful traits from those they encountered, but their species would not be dependent on the survival of others.

And she would be the key to all of that.

She was whole. She was complete. She belonged. She had always been here, and she always would be. This was her home. This was her family. This was her life.

The Primus stood in front of her, her hands on her hips. She smiled, and reached out, touching the former Cora’s face.

“If we could all share in your beauty, Valiant, none would ever resist us again.

“You flatter me Primus,” Valiant-Cora answered. She was told her previous self had killed her predecessor. It only seemed natural to have her carry his mantle forward.

“Nonsense. You are the future of the Kett.” The Primus stroked her cheek. “But for now, you are mine.”

Valiant felt a surge of pleasure as her touch. She could feel the urge to submit to her. She wanted to be hers. She wanted to obey her, to serve her, but she also needed to know something.

“How long has it really been?”

The Primus cocked her head slightly, confused for a moment before realizing her meaning. She grinned.

“Three months,” the Primus said. “Purification requires one lose all sense of a world beyond our words. We froze elements of your metabolism, while letting others run wild. I simply gave you the extra push.”

Valiant nodded, thankful to know the truth, and ashamed it took so long for her to see the light. She resolved to make up for lost time. “What are your orders?”

“You have a very important task ahead of you, Valiant,” the Primus said, her voice low and sultry as she cupped Valiant’s chin. “Something only you are capable of. Something only you have the potential for.”

“What is it, Primus?” Valiant-Cora asked, eager to serve. She wanted to obey. She wanted to serve. She wanted to be good. She wanted to be perfect. She wanted to belong.

“You must find a mate.”