Alien Mine Ch. 18

She watched the feed from the drones as he was led up to her father's old office, the same one in which Leslie had killed her father. The blood was all gone, some of the furniture changed, the picture gone, but otherwise still the same. She had put off redecorating it; the men she was dealing with would be comfortable here, and they would feel superior to the woman sitting behind the big desk. That was what she wanted. Later she would rip it all out and remake it to suit her, but for now, she wanted the men who came here to underestimate her, and she was sure Vlad was about to do precisely that.

However, when Nelya saw who was accompanying him, her calm evaporated, replaced with a cold rage. She recognized the man immediately. One of the things the Binary had learned was the names of the men who had planned her mother's death. Nelya had always suspected it, but now she knew and hated her father even more. Four men had been involved, and her father had disposed of two of them, but he had kept this one. Hedeon was a trusted man and valuable; he may have even been responsible for killing the other two. Nelya vowed to herself that his time was limited; he just didn't know it yet.

"Hello, Mr. Solkolov," she said as the two men walked into the office. "Something to drink," she said, gesturing toward the bar? Nelya had deliberately chosen a skirt and blouse with heels to wear for the meeting. She had rejected a pants suit; she deliberately wanted to look feminine, and this was Russia; there was no sense in pretending to be a man. The high-necked white blouse and mid-length midnight blue skirt designed by Amancia had the added benefit of being bulletproof and fashionable.

Solkolove was a tall man but thin. He had a prominent nose that dominated his face. His hair was still thick but starting to turn from brown to gray. He was dressed like a typical Russian businessman; expensive suits and Italian loafers. Expensive clothes that made him look sophisticated and not the corrupt man he was.

"Hello Nelya, good to see you again, though it has been quite some time. No, nothing to drink now, thanks, but perhaps later. This is Hedeon," he said, gesturing at the smaller man beside him, "he works for me now, as he did for your father." Hedeon was not the typical thug associated with Russian crime; he was small, intelligent-looking, and almost effeminate. He wasn't gay, though; Nelya knew that. He was also dressed impeccably, almost flamboyantly, with a purple dress shirt but no tie. Looking at him, one would never suspect he was capable of the many crimes attributed to him.

Vlad looked at the young woman sitting behind her father's desk. He hadn't seen her in a few years, but she looked different, more mature perhaps, but he still thought of her as a young party girl, beautiful, but just a decoration, a toy maybe for someone interested, but not to be taken seriously.

Nelya felt a tiny bit of apprehension, a moment of doubt, but she remembered what Rhys had said to her. "You will be fine," he had told her; "remember, you are not the same young woman any longer. You are one of us now and are stronger than you know."

Nelya took a deep breath, centering herself, forcing a smile, and going through the required ritual of small talk. They made condolences about her father, but Nelya found she did not have the patience for it.

"Mr. Solkolov," she said suddenly, "we have a board meeting next week that will affect the long-term future of my late father's company and holdings. I have spoken with each member of the board and the other senior executives, and I have put forward my plans and where I want the company to go. I am sure you know the resistance I have been meeting regarding my continuing leadership of this company. Buzzards are circling, you might say, or perhaps Hyenas is a better term for them. I want to know if I have your support; I need allies to keep the empire, as my father called it, together. You were a loyal supporter of my father, and I am asking that you continue that loyal support with me. My father has built a truly formidable economic power within Russia and internationally. I intend to build on that. I am being blunt, but I need to know where I stand and what I need to do to win your loyalty and support."

Nelya surprised Vlad; he wasn't prepared for someone who sounded so sure of herself. Unfortunately, she was correct; wolves and hyenas were poised to tear the company apart, waiting for the first sign of weakness. The President was already thinking about how to divide the spoils among other supporters. Vlad figured prominently in several of those discussions, and with any luck, he would end up with a large part of Dmitri's assets. There was really nothing Nelya could do; those decisions were already being made.

"Nelya," he said cautiously, "I must be equally blunt. I think we must all consider what's best for the company. I respected your father very much (and feared him), but you are not him. Moreover, you have no experience; perhaps it would be best if you considered appointing someone to run the business."

"Someone like you, I suppose," she said quietly.

"I would be honored," he said, mistaking the tone of her voice.

Nelya sat very still as if thinking about it.

"I would, of course, want your input," Vlad continued with a sincere smile, "but the company needs a strong voice right now, a sturdy hand, and you know I can be trusted to look after your inheritance. Running a company like this is a difficult job; you are single now; perhaps you would prefer living in a warmer climate."

Well, that's true, Nelya thought, smiling to herself, the warmer climate where Rhys is. But still, Nelya felt the anger bubbling up inside her. She kept it under control like Sandy had taught her, but it was difficult. Nelya had hoped Vlad would be different, but now she would have to deal with him in another way. It was unfortunate; she hated these men, these types of men. Vlad would murder, bribe, and betray for his own gain without a second thought. He had no moral compass or conscience and was limited to a predator's view of the world.

"Mr. Solkolov, perhaps we should speak in private," she said.

"Why? Hedeon is my close, trusted associate, also one of your fathers; surely we can speak in front of him as friends."

"You misunderstand me," she said. "I merely wished to spare you the embarrassment, but we shall continue," she said quickly, not allowing Vlad to interrupt. "I was being polite when I asked for your support; I was offering you the chance to avoid some unpleasantness," she said, her voice growing cold. "To be clear, I am not asking; I am demanding. You will support me unconditionally, or you will not be part of this company or any company."

Vlad was taken aback by her words and tone; the last thing he expected was threats from this young woman playing in a man's world. Two though could play this game though, and he felt his anger rise that Nelya dared to speak to him like that.

"Don't threaten me, young woman," he said, almost hissing, "you are playing far above your station; you mistake this for some club in Europe, not the real world. You cannot demand anything from me."

Nelya didn't say anything, just glanced at a large screen that came to life showing Vlad with a lover that was not his wife, was not female, and was not of age.

"Stop that," he shouted, jumping to his feet, "you little whore, where did you get that?"

"It's just one of many," she said calmly, "how do you think your comrades and associates are going to react when they see this. We are not in Europe as you said; here in Russia, that kind of behavior will get you in prison," she said not blinking.

"You can't threaten me," Vlad shouted, his anger barely under control. "You will regret this; I am warning you."

"Oh, but I can threaten you," Nelya said in a surprisingly calm voice, "I am doing exactly that. Either I get your support, or I will destroy you. This is only the tip of the iceberg, embezzling, offshore accounts, murder, extortion, blackmail. Oh yes, and this also," she said. The screen changed, showing bank transfers to various accounts. "These deposits you made into accounts of enemies of the President; how do you think he will react when he sees this?"

"Those aren't mine, " he said, horrified. " Where did it come from?"

"I arranged it," said Nelya calmly, taking credit for Amancia's work, "but they are actually your accounts. If you check, you will find you are missing these funds. Careless of you, I think."

Vlad glared at her, finally realizing how much he underestimated her. No matter, he thought, it was time she met with an accident, just like her mother.

"Hedeon," he said, moving his head in Nelya's direction. Hedeon stood moving surprisingly fast, almost like a viper. However, to Nelya, he moved like he was mired in tar. She sat still, letting him grab her, pulling her out from behind the desk. Hedeon held her there, facing Vlad.

"I am sorry," said Vlad, "but you cannot be allowed to do this. You are a stupid girl if you think you can threaten me and get away with it. Take her," he said to Hedeon.

Hedeon pulled her toward him, intending no doubt to kill her where she stood. Nelya felt a calm settle over her, and everything seemed to slow down. "You killed my mother," she said, in an ice-cold tone looking at Hebron, and at the same time, she twisted out of his grip kicking his legs out from under him as Kiania had taught her.

Hedeon fell hard to the floor, stunned by the force of the fall, and surprised that this young woman was so strong. Before he could react, Nelya threw herself down on him, and as she fell, she pulled her arm back. Then, using her new symbiont strength, slammed her fist down on his chest, shattering his sternum. Hedeon screamed in pain as the blow hit. Nelya felt the surge of cold anger, and something inside her seemed to shift. Without thinking, she reached for his chest; her fingers suddenly became sharp claws that stabbed deep. Hedeon screamed as, with a sudden yank, she used them to tear open his chest.

Vlad shouted and jumped half out of his seat but could do nothing but watch as he saw Nelya reach with her left hand, grab Hedeon's still-beating heart, and yank it from his body, bright crimson blood spurting out over the rug and floor. Hedeon let out a moan and then was still. Nelya paused, forcing herself to breathe slowly as calm returned. She glanced at the heart in her hand and then stood up, staring at Vlad while holding the still-beating heart and enjoying the terror she saw in his eyes. Blood had splattered across her blouse and face, the crimson color contrasting starkly with the white of her skin.

Nelya kept her eyes on Vlad's as she casually dropped the heart on the floor beside the body. "Excuse the mess," she said calmly as if she had just spilled a drink and walked over to the bar. Vlad, terrified, jumped from his seat and ran for the door, but Nelya moved faster and reached out and grabbed him, casually throwing him into a chair. "Sit," she said in a voice cold as ice, "we are not finished yet."

Vlad just stared in terror, "what are you?" he screamed.

Nelya calmly poured two glasses of vodka, her father's favorite bottle.

"Here," she said, handing him a glass, "a toast to our new future."

Blood still dripped from her fingers holding the glass, but he took it anyway with shaking hands.

"Nostrovia," she said casually and tossed it back. Vlad did the same, but it looked like he would throw up.

Nalya poured them another, then kneeling down by his chair, she looked him in the eye. "Vlad!" she said in a stern voice. "Pay attention. you have a family, a wife, a son in the military, and a daughter in a Swiss university." As she talked, pictures of the people she named were displayed in boxes on the screen. "Now, I have no interest in ruining your life, but I will destroy everything you have if you force me to," she said. "Your son will go to prison, your daughter to a whorehouse, your wife, reduced to poverty living in public housing for the rest of her life. It won't bother you, though, because you will be dead. Now I will ask nicely one more time, will you support me unconditionally?"

Vlad looked like he was going into shock. "Yes," he mumbled, "yes, of course, I will."

"That's good, Vlad," she said, "but one more thing." Other pictures began appearing on the screen: his home, office, bedroom, daughter's room, and son's apartment.

"I know everything you do, so you must consider this whenever you think about betraying me. Also, I expect what happened in this room to remain between the two of us, do you understand?"

Vlad just nodded, unable to form words.

"And one more thing, the people who killed my father did not target you, but you had to be involved in the drug development. A wrong word might alert them that they missed someone; you saw the images of the laboratory attack, and it wasn't pretty. I expect complete loyalty from you, Vlad, but I can give it in return. I will make what my father referred to as his empire look small; the rewards can be tremendous; let's hope you and your family can share in those rewards."

Leslie's symbiont constantly monitored the various inputs from surveillance gear and alerted her when the meeting turned threatening. Her eyes widened in surprise, and the interlace sprang into being when Nelya's hand turned into a claw.

"I think we have underestimated her," she told Rhys afterward, "that shouldn't have been possible.".

"She is certainly impressive," Rhys said with almost fatherly pride, but you're right; I wonder how that happened?"

"You might consider marking her soon," said Kiania, "we don't want another Leslie."

The Binary smiled. They agreed, but Nelya was not Leslie, at least not yet. Marking her and reinforcing the bonds seemed like a good idea, especially as they controlled the bonds.

Nelya stood looking down at Hedeon 's body, expecting to feel remorse, but there was none. Instead, all she felt was satisfaction. One of the murders who killed her mother was gone, and she had terrified Vlad, who would now support anything she proposed. She smiled, thinking about the look on his face when she handed him the glass, her fingers dripping with blood. Vlad had probably wet himself, and he had run out of the room when she told him to leave.

He would need watching and perhaps a visit from Leslie to ensure his compliance. But he would not dare cross or betray her now. Nelya looked at her hand, concentrating, trying to make it into a claw again, but nothing happened, no matter how hard she tried. It was like a door in her mind had slammed shut; now, it was just a hand. She contacted the Binary with the implanted comms. "I need you," she told them. They needed to know what had happened, and she needed help disposing of the body. Sighing, Nelya went into the bathroom to wash her hands and get a towel to soak up the blood. She would have to clean it herself; she could hardly ask the maid to take care of it.

***

Yaneta swore as the hand connected with her shoulder at the same time her legs were swept out from under her, sending her to the ground again. She looked up in the face of her opponent, smiling down at her. Then, swearing to herself, she grasped the offered hand that pulled her to her feet with little effort.

"You are getting better, but you are overthinking," Bao said. "Let your symbiont direct you; the knowledge is there, and if you let it, your movements will simply flow through the progressions without the awkwardness; don't think, just relax, and it will come." This half of the binary watched Yaneta gather herself to begin again. It had been hard on her; the woman had struggled with the symbiont and the growing changes to her body. Still, Yaneta was getting stronger daily, and she had to work on control which was proving difficult. The training she was undergoing was challenging and demanding, but they had only a short time to get her ready.

The ambitious physical training was accompanied by an equally demanding mental and emotional adjustment. Bao/Mei had undergone a similar transition, though not as intense. The integration of the host and symbiont required multiple mental adjustments as the physical brain adjusted to the changes. But the mind, the part of a person separate from the physical brain, underwent the most changes. It was impossible to describe it to someone who has not experienced the Symbiont/mind conjoining. The increased speed of thought that translated to vastly increased nerve flow. Not only did your brain work differently, but all the physical actions were also affected. There was increased muscular growth and strength, of course, but also increased innervation throughout the body, which resulted in enormous quicking of the physical reflexes. Learning to integrate these changes and control the changing body was a challenge. Still, they did not have much time, Yaneta was needed back in Moscow, and this training would save her life.

"Ok, let's try it again; this time, try and let the movements flow naturally. We will go slower, but you need to get better fast, so prepare yourself," Bao said with a smile.

Yaneta tried to relax and let the symbiote help her through this. The skills were there; it was like they had downloaded every possible martial arts training into her brain, but sorting out what to use and when kept getting her knocked to the ground. It didn't really hurt, but her body struggled to keep up with the grueling schedule Rhys demanded. Still, she put as much effort into it as possible because the level of her sexual frustration was directly related to her progress. Glowing reports from the instructors equaled orgasms, and failure to try her hardest equaled none. It had only taken one day to convince her that, for now, happiness required her maximum effort.

While Bao sparred with Yaneta, the other half of the binary worked on reverse-engineering the Drans technology. The binary had an inherent advantage when it came to combat, especially close combat of any kind. At first, the interlace had been burdensome; integrating four eyes and two bodies into one mind had taken time to master, similar to what Yaneta was going through now. They had stumbled and made several false starts, some of them hilarious, especially when trying to have sex. It had been exhausting, but as they mastered the intricacies of the interface, their skills grew exponentially. The binary could now outscore even the combination of Leslie/Amancia in the combat simulations, and they still had not reached their full potential.

Rhys tended to protect them, keeping the binary in the shuttle and away from direct combat. The combination of the link between the shuttle's AI, Thea, and Sandy acted to multiply their combat effectiveness there. The binary suspected their combined abilities made them far more dangerous than even the Drans could have anticipated. Still, the new weapon they were developing would have a dramatic impact on the Binary's abilities to engage the Om in close combat if they could solve the beam control function. The Dissipator, one of the Drans weapons on the shuttle, acted to destabilize the Higgs boson, which resulted in atoms losing their coherence and breaking apart. The problem was it had a massive energy requirement. But at reduced scales, say within thirty meters, it might be possible to design a weapon with a much smaller but still deadly output.

Thea was designing a prototype, and the initial models looked good. It would be a potent weapon against the Trangrods and would make the Binaries even more effective. Rhys would be hard-pressed to keep them out of combat if their predictions were correct. The Binary's attention shifted back to Bao as Yaneta landed a blow; she was doing better this time, and if she kept it up, the binary would see that Yaneta got a much-needed reward. After she begged, of course.