Selim and Isaac watched from the shadows as a tall, greyish-skinned male stepped through the doorway, carrying a case containing more sinister surgical implements. He came a few feet into the room, then stopped abruptly as he noticed the body of his colleague, savaged and unconscious on the floor. A clawed hand seized him from behind and a knife pressed hard against his windpipe.

"Do not move." Selim said, in yautja, "Or my brother will cut your throat."

Immediately, the Rough Skull became still. He blinked as Selim stepped in front of him, holding another long-bladed knife to his belly. The golden eyes focused on Selim's face. "You are the hybrid specimens," He said, then his eyes flickered over to the body, "What did you do to Ik'Tiaz?"

"The same thing I will do to you, if you do not tell us the way off this ship." Selim pressed the knife a little harder, "Speak! Or I will spill your guts for you."

"You will not make it off the science deck before you are captured."

"Perhaps not, but we will take our chances, rather than being used for your experiments!"

Isaac pushed his own knife harder against the male's throat "We cannot… trust him Selim. S'Kia would tell us to … kill him now… and leave." Selim knew his brother was speaking yautja so the other would understand and be intimidated.

"S'Kia?" Despite the knives, the older male's brow furrowed, "You mean … S'Kia of this clan? Who was part of R'Zuul's command?"

The two boys glanced at each other.

"Ye-ess," Isaac said, slowly.

"You call him U'darahje {Pron: OO-dar-rah-jeh, Trans: The Abomination},"

"But, how can you know S'Kia?"

"We – " Selim thought for a moment, not wanting to tell him the truth after their Father's warnings, "We were trained by him, so you had better do what we ask, or we shall kill you!"

The yautja stared at him, "But… S'Kia went to the spirit world over twelve cycles ago. You two do not look old enough."

Selim growled "Never mind that, just tell us the way to the landing bay."

Both brothers started as the door of the lab hissed open again. Isaac was first to move, he seized their captive and spun him round, putting him in between them and the door as two more yautja entered. Both the boys recognised the distinctive armour and tan colouring of the warrior who had captured them. He was leaning against the doorframe with one arm, almost as if he was having trouble standing. Next to him stood another, shorter yautja with the same sandy skin-tone as Scar.

"You will let us leave!" Bellowed Selim as Isaac pressed the knife to their prisoner's throat.

The shorter male looked over at the one who had caught them "Are these the ones?"

"Of course, they are!" The taller warrior snapped, "Do you think there any two other juveniles who look like that?"

The short one snarled at him and then stepped forward, "Put up your blades," He said, "I am Rika."

Selim stared at him, but then he growled, "I do not care who you are. Back off – or my brother will slice open his throat!"

"You are like your Father," The short one shook his head, his eyes flickered down to the unconscious body on the floor and his jaws spread in a grin, "In temper as well as appearance, but you resemble your… Mother also."

"What would you know about our parents?"

The smaller male put his head on one side "S'Kia was my closest ally… and she was his. Now, release the scientissst." He held out a clawed hand, "I have come to help you."

"I could have killed you, Abomination! I was giving you a sporting chance – "

Scar gave a bark of laughter, loud enough to echo down the avenue of columns, "So says every poor shot!"

Lex took a deep breath, the plink, plink, plink of cooling flagstones filling the air, "She certainly seemed like she was trying to kill us!"

"I do not have to miss!"

"Then shoot, or come out of your hiding place and face me."

"I do not fear you, pathetic deviant! You come out here and fight me!" The bellow bounced around the stone walls of the Pyramid.

Lex grabbed his arm, "Scar, don't go out there. The moment you put your head up they'll blow it off!" She hissed.

He looked down at her, "She wants to face me in single combat, not shoot me. And anyway, not so long ago you were threatening to blow my head off yourself."

"Scar, no! Don't be an idiot – "

"Stay here." He shook off her hand and stood up.

"Here I am." He spun the ki'cti-pa into one hand, the knife drawn in the other "Stop cowering in the shadows and show yourself."

Despite his warning, Lex risked a glance, the plasma gun ready to cover him.

A shape dropped from blackness above, landing softly. What unfolded itself in front of Scar was the biggest Rough Skull Lex had ever seen, almost as tall and broad as a Bad Blood, carrying a heavy weapon like a huge hammer. With a jolt, Lex recalled where she had seen this titan before, 'Sek'Met called her Little Sister, she was part of our armed escort onboard the Vortex.'

An image flashed into her mind of the giant pushing the crowd back, sending other hunters sprawling onto the floor with nothing but the brute strength in her massive arms and shoulders.

Lex levelled the gun, staying out of sight but keeping the female yautja covered as the behemoth squared up to Scar, 'He might be willing to go toe to toe with her, but I can't think of one good reason why I shouldn't shoot her right now!'

"I do not understand," Selim said, as Isaac continued to hold the knife to the scientist's throat "Why would you help us, when your leader wants us dead?"

"He has no honour!" Varrik, the warrior who had captured them, was leaning against the wall with his head hanging. Now, he looked up, "Nar'Jat does not respect the obligation of blood… he does not respect the 'D'aRan-thwei'. And so your Goddess will swallow his soul and drag him down to darkness..."

"Our goddess?" Selim exchanged a glance with Isaac.

The male called Rika cut in, "Your Father always honoured the Nameless Goddess over the Gods. She is a deity of vengeance – worshipped mainly by females. I always thought it was part of his… eccentricity. As was blooding your Mother."

"And what… about us?" Isaac watched him under lowered brows, "Are we some sort of… eccentricity too?"

Rika looked at him, "After Lexsss came on board, they were always together. He became a deadly enemy to any who wished her harm, especially after she became … pregnant." Rika spat, as if ejecting an unpleasant taste from his mouth, "At the time I did not understand why, perhaps I still do not fully understand but… they were both my comrades in arms and he was my oldest ally. If you are truly his sons, as Varrik says, then I am bound to help you." He held out one taloned hand towards them.

"And I," Varrik lurched to his feet and approached them, swaying slightly, "Your father saved me, so my life is his…. and I do not wish your mother to curse me with her dark magic."

Isaac looked at Selim, eyebrows raised, "He thinks Mom can do magic?" He hissed. Selim shrugged.

"Release Halkrath." Rika's hand was still held out in front of him. Selim looked at it for a moment before his eyes flickered up, searching Rika's face. Then he nodded at Isaac, who gave him a dubious look before slowly removing the scalpel from his captive's throat. Hesitantly, Selim stepped forward and grasped the outstretched talons.

"Good." Rika nodded. "I am sure Halkrath would not wish to harm the offspring of S'Kia. Is that not right, scientissst?"

"He would not notice if his throat was slit anyway," Said Varrik, turning on them golden eyes, bloodshot with alcohol. "He cares for nothing but his research."

"Do not speak of that which you cannot understand, drunken brute!" The one called Halkrath hissed, then, turning back to Selim and Isaac, "If what Rika says is true and you are truly S'Kia's progeny, it is even more imperative that I know everything about you. How did you come into being? Are you the product of some sort of ooman experimentation, manufactured in a laboratory?"

He seized Isaac by the arm, who recoiled, "Neither of us are… any sort of experiment!"

Selim growled softly, "Even to ask such a question is an insult to my family."

"Then, how did S'Kia's genetics come to be part of your makeup?"

He looked at Isaac, who shook his head vigorously, then at Selim who continued to glare at him.

Varrik gave a chittering laugh, "Halkrath, when we find S'Kia, you can ask him. I would certainly enjoy watching that."

Scar watched the large female as they circled each other 'Another young one. Despite her size, she does not look more than a few seasons past the chiva…'

"Little Sister," He said, "That is what they call you, is it not?"

"I am not your sister, Abomination. But you will remember my name, because it is the sound of your doom. Soon, I will be famous as the warrior who put you down."

"Are you sure you wish to do this? I have no dispute with you and besides…" Scar raised his brows at her, "I do not enjoy killing Rough Skulls – particularly female ones."

Her jaws flared "Contemptible deviant! Can you not handle females of your own species? Only a coward such as you would stoop to spawning offspring with the pyode ahmede!" {Trans: 'soft meat' ie. humans, slang, pejorative}

Scar's knuckles whitened as they gripped the spear "You will regret those words."

"I do not think so. My commander wishes me to exterminate you… and I wish to have the pleasure of knocking off your head."

"Then, I shall disappoint you," He mirrored her movements, eyes locked on hers, "I like my head where it is, and I only give pleasure when I choose."

She charged at him, aiming the hammer at his chest, moving fast for one so large. He swayed backwards, dodging the first vicious blow and the second, slipping around her, feeling the rush of air as the heavy weapon whistled past him. Sneaking the spear-blade under her guard, he traced a bright green pathway across her thigh, spinning to face her as she wheeled back towards him, 'That hammer could do me great harm if she managed to land a direct blow, but with the spear's reach I can keep her at a distance – perhaps indefinitely.'

He allowed his mandibles to curl up at her and she charged once more, swinging the hammer. He sidestepped and struck out with the spear again, catching her on the arm this time, a shallow flesh wound to match the one on her leg.

"You scratch like a little bitch, Abomination!" She hissed, "Stand and fight!"

"Do opponents often stand still for you? No wonder you are slow." He grinned, the words and the expression calculated to infuriate her. As he had expected, she bellowed back, a wordless roar as she launched herself at him, the hammer singing through the air towards his head. He ducked the first furious swing and then the next, but he underestimated her recovery speed and the third swing caught him a glancing blow to the right shoulder. His armour partially deflected the blow, but shards of agony shot through his shoulder as the pulverising force of it crunched along his shoulder bone.

Spurred on by pain, he evaded the backswing and lunged, stabbing the spear deep into her side; a fast, savage thrust, pulling free and darting clear before she could seize the weapon. Jah'Di'Tou did not make any noise, but she faltered. Blood poured from the wound and she clamped a hand on it to stem the flow.

"You want my head?" He spun the spear, grinning still wider, "Try again, Little Sister. Try harder."

At his words, she roared and hurled herself at him, less co-ordinated than before, her outstretched arms leaving her lower body unprotected.

He charged towards her and lunged again, stabbing her in the thigh and jerking the blade free. This time she staggered; her steps unsteady as she wheeled again for another swing.

Her movements were clumsy now, the swing over-extending her, and Scar dived under the arc of the bludgeon and came up under her guard, smashing the shaft of the ki'cti-pa into her face. Her head snapped upwards and there was a crack as her faceplate fractured. Jah'Di'Tou was thrown backwards and he drove the butt of the spear into her sternum. She went sprawling across the flagstones, ending up on her back with the point of his spear-blade in the hollow of her throat.

"Go back to my Mother." He panted as the point drew a thin stream of blood from her skin, "Tell her; she should have killed me when she had the chance!"

Jah'Di'Tou's mask had come away under his onslaught and she froze, eyes focused on him. Scar growled, his grip tightening on the spear shaft. Too quick to follow, he spun the ki'cti-pa and smashed the blunt end into her brow with brutal force. Her huge head dropped onto her chest and she went limp, unconscious.

A blast of light split the darkness and a huge impact struck him; blinding whiteness searing his vision.

Selim was watching the other Rough Skulls, 'These… creatures could be telling the truth, but I have no way of knowing if we can trust them or believe what they say. If only Father or Mother were here – but then we would not need the help of these strangers…'

Meanwhile, the one called Rika was shifting from foot to foot, his mandibles rattling and clicking as he fought down his exasperation.

"Halkrath, what exactly were Nar'Jat's orders to the science team regarding these juveniles?"

"To use them for the purposes of defeating the contagion. The consensus was to dissect them," Halkrath paused and frowned at Selim and Isaac, "Although in the circumstances, this seems inadvisable."

Selim held Halkrath's gaze, "My Father and Mother will kill any who try – if I do not first."

The scientist shook his head, "I have no wish to incur S'Kia's wrath – he was my ally under R'Zuul, but there are others who do not share my allegiance to him. They might follow Nar'Jat's orders, even if I refuse."

Rika frowned at the brothers, "Halkrath is correct. Your parent's reputation – their victories for the clan – these things would win the allegiance of some but... many also would obey Nar'Jat."

"Then why are we wasting time talking about this?" Selim spread his hands "You say you want to help us – then, get us off this ship."

"The boy is right!" Varrik banged his fist down on one of the scrubbed metal surgery bays, "We must not delay further."

Rika nodded "Perhaps we can use your rank to commandeer a ship, Varrik."

The drunken male swayed "You are a captain as well as I."

"True, though I have not the same favour with Nar'Jat as you have," He snorted, "But you must sober up."

"What about him?" Selim gestured to the body of the unconscious male.

Rika knelt by him a moment "He will regain consciousness in a unit or so – with a sore head most likely. We must go now."

"And I must come with you." The other four turned to look at Halkrath. The grey skinned male fixed the brothers with an intense stare, "I have to be near them." He said simply, "I must continue my work to combat this illness. The blood samples I took from the two of you have brought me within striking distance of a breakthrough."

Isaac went pale "We are not your … your research subjects!"

"You do not understand," Halkrath shook his head, "Studying your blood alone has been invaluable in my battle against the contagion that is destroying our clan. I must study your biology further if I am to succeed. I need a ready supply of living tissue samples and blood samples… all of this I could take without doing serious harm."

Selim, meanwhile, was eyeing the science officer through narrowed lids "And if we co-operate?"

"You would have my undying loyalty. I must understand the seamless mixture of ooman and yautja in your makeup. It is unique… unprecedented! It has great value, not merely that which pertains to the development of a cure or vaccine, but in and of itself. I must unlock the secrets contained within your genetic coding. Who knows what further knowledge it may bring us – "

"Then I offer an alliance," Selim interrupted, slightly disconcerted by the older male's intensity, but keeping his voice level, "We swear to help you and you swear allegiance to us." He turned to his brother, "Do you agree, Isaac?"

Isaac stared at him, one corner of his top lip curled back over his teeth, but Selim knew his brother would not refuse. 'After all,' He thought 'We need all the allies we can get – no matter how strange.'

Lex bit back a gasp as the concussion flung Scar across the chamber in a flash of blue-white light. Another shape appeared, a smaller yautja female, materialising out of the air above his unconscious body, replacing a kainde amedhe Krei'ithala in one of the holsters at her waist. {Translation: a bug thumper, a metal-tipped stick used for administering electric shocks for the purpose of herding, stunning or killing the hard meat}

"That is enough from you, Abomination!" She snarled, unsheathing her blades, "The GhaRan-S'i-Ka will be pleased when I bring back your head – "

A bolt of plasma sheared off her hand, particles of flesh still glowing white-hot and she dropped to her knees. Before she could rise, her head exploded, blown into a spray of green pulp by a salvo of deadly plasma. Slowly, her decapitated body toppled to the floor.

Lex emerged from behind the fallen pillar; gun pointed at Jah'Di'Tou. She walked forwards, the barrel of the gun never leaving the hulking female, but the giant lay utterly still. Lex approached the decapitated Rough Skull. Not taking her eyes off the huge yautja, she knelt by the dead body and jerked the bug thumper from the other's belt, stowing it in one of her own holsters. There was a large clutch of incendiary grenades and she took them, too. Finally, she unfastened the control gauntlet from around the slack wrist and snapped it closed around her own. Still keeping the gun on Jah'Di'Tou, she moved closer to Scar, reached out with one hand and shook him, hard.

"S'Kia, wake up."

He growled woozily and raised himself on his elbows, "Why does everyone feel it necessary to use shockers on me?"

"Just be happy she didn't blow your head off."

"Probably wanted my skull intact for the GhaRan-S'i-Ka's trophy wall."

"Stop complaining and get up."

He pushed himself to his feet, grabbing the spear from where he had dropped it. Then, a series of hollow booms echoed down the hall of columns, crash after crash reverberating off the stone walls around them. Both of them stiffened, drawing closer together. Although Lex did not take her eyes off Jah'Di'Tou, she could feel the floor shake as the booming crashes came closer and closer, like the tread of an advancing army.

The floor opened beneath them, heavy slabs swinging apart with shocking suddenness. Jah'Di'Tou, the dead yautja female, the hall of carvings; all disappeared upwards as the sudden abyss gaped to swallow them. She threw out her hands, desperately trying to grab onto something, hearing the ear-shredding screech of Scar's claws on the polished black surface.

Happy belated Easter holidays, whether you've had an actual holiday or not. I've been doing some family stuff but also using the break to do some writing. It's been blissful!

LovyDovy7: I'm pleased Spyrro is growing on you - she's a pain in... well, lots of areas... but I hope readers still like her. I've moved away from her for a while to focus on the boys, cos I think they have some growing up to do. Having protective, kick-ass parents is great but sometimes you have to stand on your own. I know I don't update every week any more but I hope the extra time I'm taking to edit is making it a better read (?). Anyway thanks, as always!

Zyanadryn: I'm happy you like the stories and the family dynamic. I have tried to make them a convincing family - each with their own persona/ traits/ flaws and ways of bouncing off each other. I enjoy writing them interacting with each other.