I got this into my head during finals and it won't leave. So here we are. (As a warning this will be a darker fic at some points, also character death)

Just so you know, I'm also posting on SpaceBattles if you prefer that site over this one. (Only Worm stuff though)

The Primal One: Collection 1.1

The swarm. A hive mind of galactic proportions, constantly evolving, never dying. Always adapting. The inhabitants were the Zerg, a species with an unknown origin, corrupted by the Xel'Naga. They moved through solar systems slaying and assimilating countless species, taking on warped versions of the species skills, so as to be better prepared against an opponent. A single drone that makes its way to an innocent planet would spell doom within weeks for all who resided there.

The lieutenant of the Swarm, Dehaka, prowled his territory on the planet Char, searching for the unnatural disturbance that was felt earlier that planetary cycle. It was oh so similar to his Queen, but so different. It was the sign of evolution. The sign of overwhelming essence. The sign of Xel'Naga. And Dehaka wanted it.

He stood withing a clearing of rocks, circling the point at which the energy was the strongest. If it were a threat, he would kill it, the swarm already prepared for an attack of unprecedented proportions. If it were not a threat... it would still be targeted. Whatever the result, Dehaka would still collect its essence. He would evolve...

The Simurgh eyed the planet below lazily, thoughts flitting by at an impossible rate, post and pre-recognition sight allowing to see every possibility of the future. The chessboard was already pre-determined. In her eyes, the game was already over. It was actually rather boring.

Of course there was always the fun of messing with the puny humans below by turning a few degrees every now and then, convincing them she would strike soon. Fools.

A thought occurred. If the board was predetermined, then it was no fun. Why not put a piece on the board that she could not see? A wild card, per se. Now that would be fun...

Taylor struggled in the locker, banging the door roughly as she screamed. The students in the hall ignored her cries, too intimidated by the threat of the trio looming over them to consider being a decent person. She rolled up into a ball, unable to scream any more, exhausted. She shuddered, unable to move as bugs crawled over her. She wanted to leave. Wanted to run. Just get out. Get out. Someone get her out. GET OUT GETOUTGETOUTGETOUTGETOUTGETOUTGETOUT!

[Connection]

Two beings floated in space, stars whirling by...

[Destination]

[Agreeme-]

Something changed, the two entities leaving her view...

[Sb3*nE/!\ERROR]

A distant planet, burning with flames. A creature, willing to do anything to evolve, grow stronger, be the best survivor. Not the strongest, but the best...

A pause, silence settling over time and space.

[Command Overwritten]

[Infestation]

[Resignation]

[Agreement]

Dehaka felt a pull on his body. He struggled, unable to move. In an instant he recorded the anomaly and sent it to his ally Stukov, who began rallying forces to retrieve Dehaka. He realized he was unable to fight the pull, and had a brief moment to make an apology to his Queen before he-

Wait... he could feel something on the other side. The other side of what? Nothing, yet everything. He wanted that energy, needed it. He moved to it. The Swarm lunged forward to stop the event.

It was too late. His perception stretched across reality itself, his mind struggling to remain whole. Through supreme effort he managed to survive. And then he arrived. All he could feel was... ESSENCE.

The Simurgh observed as the new piece landed somewhere on the planet below, avoiding the gaze of the Golden One. Now she could finally have some fun...

Taylor froze as she could sense something outside the locker. It had been hours, school closing long ago. The doors were locked, but someone was there. She could feel them, knew their movements before they did them. "h-help..." she feebly whispered. In the instant she verbalized a command, the person burst forward, ripping the door off its hinges.

She stumbled out, into the arms of her rescuer. "T-thank you..." Finally, a human being who was a decent person!

She looked up into the yellow eyes of a predator, his fanged mouth filling her field of view. "Greetings. I am the One-Who-Collects. What do you wish of me, my Queen?" The being rasped, his harsh voice sounding like someone who had not hydrated in weeks. She promptly passed out.

Dehaka did not know where he was. He did not care. There was essence to be found in this land, and he had just found his new Queen. Her mind was similar to the other Zerg, although he was the only one in the hive mind connection, that would soon change if he-

Dehaka shook his head. If he could not feel the Swarm, there would be no way to make more brood to join them within the next galaxy or so. It was him and this... Terran Zerg to survive until they could contact the Swarm.

He was a loner, not used to traveling with a pack. Thankfully, his ages in the Swarm increased his skill at working as a team, opening up new ways of seeing a situation. His first goal: Protect the 'New Queen'. He did not know the Terran's name, so the designation would be 'New Queen'. His second goal would be to establish a protective base in an area to which he could survive on this clearly Terran based planet. Third: Examine all threats that may appear for essence gathering.

He carefully picked up his 'New Queen' under one arm, and stalked out through the Terran building. His spikes rippled in disgust as he had to pass by many chemically sterilized environments, his senses constantly telling him he was in danger with no backup.

He approached a set of glass barriers that impeded his progress, so he simply broke through them. He could have done this a simpler way and burrowed his way out, but he was unaware of any impeding subterranean objects Terrans may use for Zerg invasions.

The surrounding area was that of ancient Terran abodes, none outfitted with the proper technology that one would find in the Koprulu sector. It was so... peaceful that it disturbed Dehaka. What kind of Terrans lived here where they expected such a fragile structure to protect them from banelings? His prehensile tail dragged along behind him as he carried his fragile load away from the densely populated source, towards what he could tell was an ocean of some kind. Perhaps there would be shelter in that direction.

Dehaka (The-One-Who-Collects)
Brute 6, Striker 5, Stranger 4, Thinker 3, Mover 4, Master 2, Trump 1
Increased Strength and intelligence the more he kills and gains essence. Can burrow underground or evolve to gain more stealth abilities. Has a tongue he can use to grapple or pull in objects, stunning an opponent. He can also make a small swarm of bioparticles that eat at anything nearby like small insects, but are in fact microscopic Zerg drones used to quickly deteriorate objects. Takes on an aspect of the beings he kills, improving his combat ability each time. Sees Taylor as his Queen due to her master abilities, which keep him in check much like Kerrigan back on Char.

Taylor Hebert
Thinker 3, Master 5
Can control Dehaka with commands. He only follows her because she is the closest thing on the planet to a hive mind connection, and he relies on her judgement for most non-combative situations. Otherwise is a baseline human.