Night City Aliens: The Wandering Planet

Ch 15: Out of Juice

"Please say something," V thought to herself. "I know you're there."

It had been two days since the group's encounter with the Mooplexians. V had been plagued with nightmares and existential dread, struggling to maintain some semblance of composure. Even now, she was struggling to wrap her head around what she witnessed. She knows what the Omega was, but it was like her brain was incapable to fully comprehend it. That made describing the event to the others impossible. So, she didn't try. She just directed the group to their goal. The sooner they got the crystal, the sooner she could return to Earth. That's where things were simple. That's where things made sense.

There was only one 'person' who would understand what she was feeling. So, V did her best to turn inwards and draw her phantom out. But Dominator didn't want to talk either. The woman could still feel the split. Her phantom was there, but it was ignoring her for some reason.

"I don't know who else to talk to. The others wouldn't get it. Not even Wander. I don't have Jackie. You're all I got right now."

"I'm not your fucking shrink," Dominator whispered, sitting down next to V by the campfire.

"I don't need a therapist. I just don't want to be alone."

"The fact that you think talking to me will make you less lonely proves you need a therapist."

V let out a sigh. "Then why are you here?"

"You're whining was getting annoying. That coupled with your Jackie obsession is making you mind unbearable."

"I'm not obsessed."

"Admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery," Dominator sang.

V gritted her teeth. She had to concentrate to not yell out loud at her past self. "What about the Omega? Did that... that... thing not bother you at all?!"

"Why would it?" Dominator raised her eyebrows at V. "I'm not the one suffering from an identity crisis."

"I fail to see how that relates to my question."

"Look, I know my purpose in the universe. I know who I am. Who we once were," Dominator gestured between them to get her point across. "The fact that there are powerful things outside the universe changes nothing."

"It changes everything," V protested.

"Uh... No. No, it doesn't. See, if the old you met the Omega, she wouldn't have cared. She would have shrugged and kept on destroying planets. Sure, you might have given up the whole 'Greatest in the Galaxy' shtick. But you were having fun causing mayhem long before that."

V stared down the phantom. Dominator was wearing an uncharacteristically sweet smile, and it was putting her on edge. V was having a hard time believing what Dominator was saying. She couldn't have changed that much. Could she?

"If old me wouldn't care," V said slowly, "why do I care now?"

"I don't know," Dominator shrugged. "What's changed between now and then?"

"A better question would be what hasn't changed," V chuckled. "I feel like a different person, now. I care about more than being a villain. And I have people that care for me. Friends and family, I'd do anything for. I don't know what I would do without them." V paused as the sudden realization came to her.

"Interesting," Dominator smirked. "Omega bothers you because of what it means for your friends. Omega showed you a glimpse of the end, but the end means you lose everything you've come to hold dear."