Date: The Year 9042: Planet Castai III
Zurig felt the screams of the men as they perished in blinding light and flame. He felt the agony of his master, Lucin, as his host body was enveloped in brilliant fire-a trap left for him by the Barudii King, Tiet and his band of survivors before their unforeseen escape. The entryway to the underground base burst outward and the rock above crumbled and shifted under its own weight as the stone beneath the ground became molten and displaced by the massive explosion.
Zurig, a Castillian man, and one of Lucin's servants, assimilated by the symbyte organism well before the thousands that served him now, crumpled to the ground as he felt the loss of strength. The line of communication between minds appeared severed now and Zurig gasped under the pain of the loss.
For years now, his master Lucin's mind had been the dominating force and being within his head, but now Zurig no longer felt him present. The sensation crushed him like a sudden onset of withdrawal threatening to send him spiraling into madness and despair.
The army of symbyte assimilated soldiers, which had responded to their master's call, stumbled around in complete disorganization. And then, as suddenly as the voice and presence of Lucin was taken from him, he returned. At first a crushing weight, but Zurig quickly accepted the presence of his master again. Zurig, my servant.
"Yes, my lord?" Zurig said speaking to the air.
The Barudii king has escaped me, but I will yet have him and destroy him, the mind of Lucin said.
"Of course, my lord."
Zurig, you will be my chosen vessel to lead this new campaign, the voice said.
"I am honored, my master."
Zurig felt himself slip away as his consciousness melted into the powerful mind of Lucin. He allowed his master to absorb him. Zurig surrendered as the symbyte organism wrapped around his brain stem. Its tendrils, fused to his cerebral cortex, exerted the physical control and channeled the malevolent spirit within his new host body. Now, more than any of the other assimilated Vorn and Castillian people, Zurig manifested Lucin himself.
Kale awoke from yet another symbyte induced nightmare. His sheets were soaked with sweat. Their group, led by his father Tiet, might have escaped the symbyte take over of their planet Castai, but he had not. This foul thing, now doing its best to takeover his mind and body remained ever present with him. It desired his power and told him so often.
Even being on planet Kosiva for weeks had not dulled its painful ability to intrude upon his thoughts and play visions inside his mind of killing his own father and mother along with everyone else onboard the Equinox.
Images of the young symbyte controlled girl, which had attacked him and infected him with the creature, came rushing back to taunt him with his own helplessness. Somehow, Emil's immune system had fought off the infection. His mother's medical scans showed it shrinking in size and withering to nothing near Emil's brain stem where the beasts take residence within their hosts.
Kale sensed its thoughts as much as his own. How long would it be before he succumbed to the sinister, murderous visions and unconsciously carried them out to fruition? The thought of his own weakness had become too much for him to bear. Kale knew he had to get away from his loved ones.
Kale turned to the desk in his compartment and to the piece of white paper which he had been staring at recently. He needed to say he was sorry to his father and mother before it was all over for him-needed them to know that his actions were only intended to keep them safe from harm by these terrible creatures. At last, he picked a writing instrument and allowed the liquid pigment to join itself to the parchment before him. Kale knew what he had to do, he only wished with all of his heart that he didn't have to.