Boudica

Another bunker… another thought grave. It's hard to imagine anyone could pose a threat to a grave mind general, but who else could Gibraltar be referring to? "We must keep her safe," it said.
Me and Fray touch down on a dead world, Xhoksa V. The planet has little to no atmosphere, the rocky ground gray and uneven across the entire surface. It didn't take long to find the thought grave itself, but getting inside proved to be quite a task. It's buried, settled over time. The majority of the bunker sank below the surface long ago. It's been left to die, forgotten by those who should have kept closer watch.
We drill through where the door should be, the laser aboard my ship proving more than enough to shake the rocks loose. We enter through a massive hole, carefully climbing down to the floor of the main corridor of the complex.
It looks familiar. Caesar looked the same. The metal floors, walls, and ceilings blended with stone. Caesar was curious, eager to speak. The cameras danced, moving to follow me as I explored his interior. The cameras here stare at me with indifference. This one is not like Caesar
"Why didn't the Dhitol try to wake this one?" I ask.
Fraeia turns to me and replies, "They don't know what you know. They meant to awaken a devastating war machine, they wouldn't do it at their own doorstep."

A voice rings out, echoing down the halls in a booming tone that demands more than respect, it demands awe. The words slither out as if each meant to prove a point, "It's… about… time."
It knows my language. How? Fraeia and I exchange a look, then focus our attention down the hall before us. We take a step and a thin line of red dots appears on the floor, a set of lights that appear and travel down the hall. Once the lights are out of view, another trail appears to take the same path.
"Come to me." The voice says it in a whisper, but it's almost deafening, and the echo doesn't help. "Don't be shy."
We follow the red lights up and down narrow corridors. Fraeia is cautious, tense. It makes me more than a little anxious.
We reach a fork in the path and follow the lights as they trail down the left hand side. I start to see light up ahead, a room that looks exactly like… no.
The closer we get the more my legs resist my command to move further still. The sight of the room takes me back. I can almost see the corpse on the ground, the blood pooling around the body. "Fraeia, no. I can't."
"What's wrong?" They ask.
Before I can reply I feel a burning heat in my skull. The translator feels as if it's red hot. I cry out in pain, clutching my head and keeling over. Fraeia rushes to me, their arms unsure of whether to touch me or not. They don't know what to do. I don't either.
This wasn't like it was with Caesar. He was kind, gentle in his invasion of my thoughts. He even bothered to ask for consent.
"One?" The voice calls out again but it's focused now, with a clear point of origin; the room just ahead of us. "One dead body is enough to bring you so low?"
I see visions of the dead, countless creatures crying out in agony as their bodies burn. I feel their pain, their fear. What the hell is going on?
The burning stops, and I hear footsteps from the room ahead. Fraeia is the first to move, their rifle drawn and eager to finally be of use.
I stumble behind them, unable to even think. "What?"
"A taste of true horror," the voice replies. The footsteps get louder and I see something blocking the light at the threshold of the room. I see the silhouette of a woman, her features hidden until she steps back to allow us entry.
She wears a green dress, a wooden crown, and holds a golden scepter in her right hand. Her skin is covered in tattoos, beautiful designs of black and blue.
Fraeia fires a single shot and the round passes through without injury. "You're the interface?"
"Yes." She replies, gesturing to herself as if putting on a show. "I am Boudica, an appropriate name, I think."
"Do you mind?" I shout, stepping into the room with a scowl. "I would have let you in. Did it have to hurt?"
"Life is pain, child. Get used to it." Boudica replies.
"How did you know my language without getting in my head first?" I ask.
"The universe doesn't revolve around you." She gives me a sneer as she speaks. "You killed the one who woke me, one Daniel Haddock."
Hearing the name is painful. I've been trying to forget it. "Why would he wake you?"
"Desperation. I couldn't help him, however, even if I wanted to."
Fraeia lowers their rifle. "Why?"
"He asked me to turn on my makers." Boudica points to Fraeia and the room goes cold. "I hate you, but I won't see you dead either."
"The Lebha?" Fraeia whispers. "We built you?"
The woman shakes her head. "How far you've fallen. Yes, but it was those who came before. You would call them the lebhni." Lebhni... Those we were. The translator kicks in and I'm thankful it still works.
This is unexpected. The eden built the thought graves. How did they forget? Even they believe the graves predate their empire. It doesn't make sense.
"How is that possible?" I ask. "That doesn't add up."
"That means someone is lying." Boudica replies. "Our makers were always good at that.
I chuckle and nod. "Or maybe you're lying."
"I have no reason to lie. Why would I bother?"
The room falls silent. I shift my weight and the sound of my feet sliding across the floor sounds much louder than it should. My head hurts, the visions still fresh in my mind.
Boudica smiles. "Did you like my gift?"
"The visions? No. I didn't. What was that?"
"Nero. That's what haddock called him. I was one of four." Her eyes go wide. "Four systems, four thought graves. Nero was the fourth, all of us crammed within a hundred light years of each other. He murdered my lessers."
I shake my head. "Why? I thought-"
"That we were pacifists? We are."
"I don't understand."
"We wait for a foe worthy of our might, but we have no idea when they will come or what they are. We fear them."
Fraeia parks up, "Nero believes you and the others are this enemy?"
Boudica nods. "He didnt know about us. We could have sent a message, but couldn't risk making it worse."
Fraeia scoffs. "The others could have been saved if you had."
"No." I add, "They were afraid." I know this fear well. I'm human. We're isolated on a rusting planet and we keep our signals low. After the siliue came, we learned to stay quiet, too. "Not everyone can enjoy the luxury your people have, Fray. You never know who's listening, or their intentions. He may have gone rogue or worse.
Boudica smiles again. "Like hunters in a black forest."
Fraeia shrugs. "Is he still a threat?"
Boudica raises a brow as she speaks, "Nero burned in a supernova nearly three thousand years ago." The smile fades. "Ironic, really. That's how he managed to kill the others."
I let out a sigh. "Not Nero then."
"Not…" Boudica tilts her head and I feel the heat in my skull build before she speaks again, "You simple creatures. You came to protect me?"
Fraeia replies, but Boudica cuts them off, "We had reason to believe-"
"I don't care. What could you even do?" Boudica points to the threshold. "Out."
"No." Fraeia straightens their posture and shakes their head. "I want answers."
"You do not make demands of me."
Fraeia smirks and stifles their laughter. "But I did."
"Fray," I whisper. "Stop."
Fraeia looks at me and then back to Boudica. They sigh and turn away. "Understood."
"You let this human command you like a domesticated pet?" Boudica spits out each word. "Has your kind truly lost what it used to be, what it must one day become?"
Fraeia shakes their head, "I don't follow."
"I smell it on you. You're destined for the final death, maker." She takes a step forward and places herself inches from Fraeia's face. You should be preparing, not galavanting across the galaxy with this fragile, fleeting thing."
"Amber, this was a waste of our time." Fraeia turns to me, their face soft and comforting. They turn back to Boudica, giving their reply before leaving the room, "I'll spend eternity as I please. I do not need your approval."
The rage on her face disappears, fading to an expression of acceptance. It's as if the anger was all for show. With Fraeia out of earshot, she whispers. "I tried. I knew it wouldnt work, but I tried." Boudica looks me in the eye and shrugs. "The loop binds us all."
"What?" I ask.
"Yours is not the only species weighed down by their sins."
I look back down the corridor and see Fraeia walking further away. "You mean-"
"Heaven can be many things. It's a time, a place, an idea. The eden, as you call them, they had a heaven, once." She turns to look at Fraeia withe wide eyes. Shes terrified. Is this a trick? "They broke into heaven too."