The hivemind is conquering for me?

Wendy looked visibly taken aback at her assigned task. ”R-Really? You trust me this much?” She couldn’t help asking.

Samantha removed her legs from the table and stood up. Her body then began to change as she took on her true appearance. Unlike before, Wendy barely registered fear upon seeing the alien before her, instead she felt a sense of longing.

’This. This is what I want.’ She couldn’t help thinking.

”Don’t be so surprised, Wendy, you are more valuable than just a pretty face. There is a reason we reached out to you initially, apart from your desire to become Psionically gifted. You have a smart head on your shoulders and a talent for logistics. Besides, I think it is fair to give you a run of the den for a short while, after all, you were crucial in assuring a clean takeover with your luring the former boss out and whatnot. Just don’t let me down. I don’t take failure lightly.”

Wendy immediately gave a Spartari salute due to the honour she felt being assigned this task, but then slowly placed her hand down as she felt odd doing it to Samantha. Samantha picked up on this and informed. ”You don’t need to do that here. Also, it is not like you will be doing all that much. This is a drug den. You give the clients their vials after payment and use muscle if they get testy. It is easy. Most of these addicts know not to fuck with us already though. So you will be fine.”

She then turned back into her humanoid form, now completely naked as she destroyed her clothes during the transformation. ”Now, I have to go and find a stupidly expensive dress so I don’t look out of place up top...”

Wendy watched in silence as Samantha went to leave the room, but a sudden thought instigated her to yelp out.

”Wait!”

Samantha turned in her stride to face Wendy. ”Yes? What is it?” She asked.

”Um... Sorry, I am just curious. When are you planning on sending me back to my family? I have never been gone before and after my incident. I am sure they are both worried and angry. Especially my father. He is a very volatile man. If he finds out where I am he will come bearing everything he has and I don’t know if you will survive against all...” She paused, hoping she hadn’t offended Samantha. She then sighed and spoke again. ”I just don’t want to leave it too long and make things worse.”

Samantha smiled listening to Wendy and replied. ”You may revisit your family once you are a part of my family. I have told you and a select few what my substance is doing to you. Once the conversion is complete. There will be no reason for second guessing. You will be on the path of what you crave most. Power. It is then I will send you back, not as Wendy, member of the Cacia family, but as Wendy, part of the great family...”

Wend looked down at the floor, taking everything in before looking back up resolute. Samantha nodded seeing this. ”Good. Now, do you mind if I go and put clothes on now? Or was your real intention to ogle my form?

...

Hailey arrived an hour early to the dispensation building. How could she not? She had confessed her feelings to Apollo and now all she could think about was being close to him. Putting on the new pass with her picture on it, she smiled as she walked past the guards. It felt good not having royal treatment and being waved right through.

As she walked down the corridor towards the lab entrance, she could hear Apollo singing? It was not a song she was familiar with, but the slow lyrics mixed with his lower pitch than usual took her breath away.

As she entered the lab, she stayed silent as she approached, continuing to listen to the song.

...

”♪-Oh who is she? A misty memory. A haunting face. Is she a lost embrace? I call her name. Across an endless plain. She’ll answer me. Wherever she may be.♪”

”♪Oh who is she? A misty memory. A haunting face. Is she a lost embrace? Somewhere across the sea of time~ A love immortal, such as mine! Will come to me~ Eternally. Immortal she. Return to me.♪”

I took a deep breath and smiled. I loved these moments where I remember such beautiful songs from my last life. Spartari Songs sucked ass. It was all war marches, bleep boop beep boop music or stuff akin to classical music, which I didn’t mind compared to the others.

Onyx didn’t know this though and hearing the song, she was unequivocally serenaded and was showering my Mindspace with sappy love. And she was not the only one It, apparently serenaded, as behind me I suddenly heard.

”Apollo, that was beautiful.”

Spinning around in place, I was surprised that I was snuck up on for the second time in this building. The person who snuck up on me, Hailey, was standing there. Her hands hovering over her chest, clasped together as she looked up at me with teary eyes.

I ignored the look for a moment to ask. ”Oh, Hailey, Hi. Sorry, have I lost track of time? Are the others here?” I then looked towards the entrance to the lab.

”No, it is just me. I am an hour early. The guards let me in because you were in here.” Hailey then took a few steps forward and looked up at me while resting her hands on my chest.

”Where did you hear that song Apollo? I was transfixed. Who was it for? The emotions in your voice... Don’t worry I am not jealous, I know where we currently stand.” Hailey stated. As I looked down at her and into her eyes. They were glistening and fluttering. Soft and delicate, a stark contrast to the way she looked at others... The way she was looking at me at this moment made me feel incredibly dense.

’Has she always looked at me like this while at the college? If so, fuck me I need to work on myself even more. It is beyond obvious that she has feelings for me now that I know.’

I cleared my throat and replied before the slight pause got noticeable. ”Um, I suppose I am the first person to sing this song? It just came to me. I was thinking about my loves and potential future loves. My mind has been quite hectic since last night, so I think it just came to me.”

...

It took every muscle in Hailey’s face not to smile creepily in front of her first boyfriend. After their discussion last night. His thoughts had been in turmoil? So much so that he had written a song about eternal love? For her? His future love?

’And it was so beautiful as well...’ She couldn’t help herself after thinking that and asked. ”Apollo, could you sing the song again? From the beginning? You have a wonderful singing voice.”

”Do I?” I asked, genuinely surprised. Getting agreement from both Sol and Onyx.

”Yes. Though I doubt you could perform well high pitched. Now let me... There. Please. I am eager to hear you sing again.” Hailey said as she sat up on a workbench, crossed her legs and gazed upon me quite intensely.

I suddenly felt a little embarrassed. Singing in front of my internal observers is one thing and around the hive is also fine, but this was a woman I had agreed to start dating. My close friend. A human.

Kathrine excluded, as she was just a sex fiend when we first met, I have never had to try and woo a woman before. The pressure was actually surmounting. ”Ok, just give me a moment.” I then closed my eyes and thought of what I was thinking of when I was singing the song.

I began to see glimpses of my loved ones and my heart began to swell. Seeing their faces before me, filling me with Passion. I opened my lips and began to sing.

...

After repeating the song four more times, I was finally given respite by Hailey as she asked. ”So, what had you here early, Apollo? Working on anything in particular or preparing for the class?”

”Preparing for the class? No, what I will be teaching you guys doesn’t need preparing, its basic to me. No, I was creating something. Come and look!” I said, getting excited. I hastily walked over to my workstation and began tinkering with the thing on the table, continuing to make small tweaks and fixes that had been keeping me occupied for the last few hours.

Hailey then walked to my left and looked down at my workstation, confusion written all over her face, as she looked perplexed at what was making me feel all excited.

”Goggles?”