Lex gripped the grenades tight, the metal slippery against the sweat on her fingers. Then the first drone lunged and she threw, tossing the bombs towards the place where the eggs were clustered thickest. A blinding flash filled the chamber, drowning the greenish corpse glow in bright, white light, followed by the sulk orange flame of the explosion. The Queen gave a squeal and lashed her arms wildly but neither she nor the drones got the chance to attack.

There was a rumble, the creaking and groaning of anguished stone, and part of the cave roof collapsed, caustic liquid spewing into the chamber. The floor was suddenly awash with it, cutting them off from the Queen and her soldiers, the burning chemical stink of it almost too much to bear.

Scar seized her arm, dragging her backwards and then they were running towards the other tunnel. Racing past eggs even as they opened, she pointed the gun and fired, debris exploding outwards, pods and spiderlings bursting in glistening fragments and the smell of burning everywhere. She looked back. Half-swamped in the steaming torrent, the Queen raised her head and let out a spine-chilling shriek, the rage in that cry jangling all the way up her spine; a primordial hotwire of terror.

They sprinted into the darkness of the passageway, running for their lives, her screams pursuing them and echoing around them. She went down, crashing into the side of the tunnel as a weight hit her from behind. With an ear-splitting roar, Scar knocked the drone aside, yanking her to her feet as he struck its head from its shoulders. In the blackness of the tunnel, she unsheathed her dah'kte and launched herself at the swarming shapes, hacking off fingers and arms and limbs she could not identify; the dark, too thick to see; the enemy, too many to count. The Queen's piercing scream came again, along with the noise of rending and tearing and Lex ran on, sheer terror pushing her forwards.

They emerged into a crossroads, a junction where several tunnels met, and she turned, Scar turning with her. Handing a grenade to him, she flicked the switches on two of her own and counted a few beats aloud. Then, both of them flung the explosives towards the roof of the passageway, hurling themselves backwards and away from the blast.

There was a blaze of blinding fire and a rumble. The slabs fractured and cracked, chunks of rock breaking off and dropping to the ground, splitting and shattering on the chamber floor. A cloud of dust mushroomed from the passage, splinters of stone flying out like darts. When they looked up, the way was blocked, though the enraged shrieks and squeals from the egg chamber could still be heard; the denizens of hell were fighting to escape. Both of them scrambled to their feet and into the passageway opposite the blocked doorway. Pounding down the tunnel in the darkness they met no more hard meat, but the eerie cries still pursued them.

They burst from the passageway and into another cave, the ubiquitous, corpse-light glow of the algae illuminating another huge chamber, like a ruined temple. More slabs had already broken from the ceiling and tumbled into the water. Above them, the vaulted roof of the cavern stretched away, broken in places by glittering rows of stalactites. In front of them, a huge lake, the water cloudy with mineral run-off. Steam leaked from bulging fissures in the rock, sparkling flows of mineral deposit covered in glowing putrescence clustered round the points where the steam escaped.

Behind them, screams of rage and vengeance echoed from the tunnel – the deafening cries of the Queen louder than all – but some of the hard meat were materialising from the shadows of the tunnel now. Scar turned; the spear ready. "They are squeezing through gaps in the rubble – I will make them regret it!"

Lex frowned, 'We can't afford for his killing instinct would take over; we need to focus on escaping, not give in to an orgy of bloodlust!'

She pulled two more of the grenades and, as her heels touched the water's edge, she pushed the trigger. His head turned at the click "Do it, demon. Do it now!"

She hurled the grenades at the mouth of the tunnel but wasn't quick enough to cover her eyes as the flash burned itself across her retinas. With a deafening rumble, the rocks at the top of the tunnel crumbled, giant stalactites – huge chunks of rock – breaking off and tumbling down to the cavern floor. Huge clouds of steam blasted from the fissure that opened in the rocks, filling the chamber with vapour and a terrible, chemical stink. Some of the hard meat were buried under the avalanche but two remained free on this side of the blockage.

Scar launched himself at them, the ki'cti-pa carving through the air. He skewered the first, the improvised spearhead bursting through the hard meat's rib cage. As the second bounded towards him, Lex levelled the plasma gun and fired, blasting it backwards, acid blood smoking and hissing where it splashed over the rocks.

They stood panting, listening, in the sudden hush. Somewhere behind the rubble, there were high-pitched cries and a distant thundering and crashing.

She looked at Scar "She's trying to break through."

"And it is only a matter of time before she does; we must not get trapped." He jerked his head across the water, "I see a passage on the other side."

She looked at the lake, her imagination populating the depths with horrors, while he sheathed the spear. A heavy impact shook the chamber; streams of dust falling from the ceiling, ripples shivering through the lake.

As one, they leapt, plunging into the warm water. Lex forced her tired arms through the water, fixing her eyes on the other side of the lake, knowing the only thing that mattered was escaping the Queen. The rock of the shore seemed further away than ever and she pushed herself to swim harder.

The walls of the cavern shuddered at the impact of another blow, dust streaming down, 'That ceiling looks like it's going to collapse before the Queen ever reaches us!'

She swam harder, arms aching. There was movement in the water beside her, the tips of Scar's talons brushing her.

A howl of almost supernatural rage filled the air and another concussion shook the chamber. Rocks plunged from the ceiling and struck the water on the other side of the cavern, spraying phosphorous into the air.

With a surge of relief, she laid her hand on the opposite bank, Scar doing the same next to her. His arm tensed as he prepared to pull himself up… then he disappeared; pulled under the water. Alarmed, she looked down, then plunged under the surface, trying to see where he had gone. The lake under them was so deep, it seemed a vast pit of blueish darkness. Then, illuminated by the ghoulish glow from above, she saw him sinking, struggling with pale strands wrapping around his legs and chest and arms.

Bursting through the surface, she gulped air and dived again quickly. Unsheathing the dah'kte, she hacked at the limbs that wrapped round him, a cloud of bitter blackness erupting into the water. Now his arms were loose and he pulled the knife, stabbing at the limbs that constricted his legs. Struggling violently, he managed to break free and kicked, launching himself back towards the air, seizing her hand to drag her with him. She thrashed her legs, pushing herself upwards, when something soft snapped around her ankle, becoming hard and unyielding the second she struggled. Her hand was wrenched from Scar's as she was dragged downwards in his place, plummeting into the depths, arms flailing frantically for something to hold onto.

Fighting the forces that were towing her down, she tried to reach down far enough to slash the thing that held her but the limb cracked like a whip, lashing her from side to side; the impact causing her to gasp out a bubble of air, watching helplessly as it boiled upwards. Her lungs were burning now, spots flashing across her vision. Above her she thought she saw Scar trying to reach her but then he suddenly disappeared. The urge to open her mouth and breathe in was almost overwhelming, she had to overrule it second by second. She began to feel panicked, striking out with the dah'kte but not able to see if she was hitting her mark. Confused shapes swirled around her in a blizzard of bubbles and black blood and her ears began to ring again as the lack of oxygen worked its slow poison. She had been starved of oxygen before at high altitude, but this was different. Involuntarily, her mouth opened in a gasp and now liquid was filling her up, the pain of her lungs unbearable, the water crushing her from inside and out, as if every part of her body was filling uncontrollably with water; eyes, ears, nose, mouth, panic overwhelming her as she struggled, desperate to break free, claws and teeth and tentacles merging into nightmarish shapes in the glowing darkness.

Gradually, her struggles slowed, her movements becoming languid; calm was spreading through her as her vision was consumed by blackness. Whatever was happening to her body, it was happening out there. In here, all was dark and quiet and insulated. She was sinking, the greenish light of the surface shrinking to a tiny dot, drifting down into peaceful, blue depths...

The hallways of the Vortex seemed to wind around and around, coiling in spirals as Spyrro followed Xal'Uate for what seemed like forever. The corridors stretched on and on, with door after door on either side, all looking the same to her eyes.

"Ito!" She whispered. The elder girl glanced sideways at her.

"I do not understand what you told me earlier – you must tell me more." Spyrro hissed "How can your leader be Mei'Savir's mother?"

Ito was silent for a moment, as if it was a strange question, "It is common knowledge." She said, finally, "I have not seen them together, but all who have seen him say the resemblance between them is undeniable. She herself says publicly that he is her son."

"I mean how could she do that to her own son? She took him prisoner!"

"Oh, yes. She sent him to be executed, along with the ooman witch."

Spyrro let the insult to her Mother pass, gritting her teeth, knowing it would simply earn her another cuff. Instead of snapping back, she made herself ask about the unfamiliar word, "Ex-ecuted?"

"Put to death. Killed."

"Killed?"

"Yes. He has offended against her most grievously." Ito's voice was soft, almost gentle, "Of course she had him put to death."

"She is his mother, and she had him put to death?" Spyrro wanted to make sure she had not made a mistake – she was so sure there had to be a mistake, somehow.

"Of course." Ito's expression was calm, her gaze steady "As she destroys any who displease her."

"Ito, cease your chatter!" Xal'Uate snapped her taloned fingers and the girl fell silent, leaving Spyrro to the whirl of her thoughts, 'Why tell me such lies about my parents being sent to their deaths? Surely, they must be lies. A mother is supposed to protect her child, not send him away to die…'

The intercom in Nar'Jat's private inner sanctum lit up, a red cyclops eye, winking bright in the darkness. Lethargically he raised his head towards it, his vision blurring as he tried to focus, 'I told them not to disturb me unless it was urgent...'

"Yes?" He snapped.

"D'Jukai has returned, my Commander. He asks for an audience with you."

"I shall summon him, shortly."

Nar'Jat raised himself from the bed on trembling arms and then fell back, the movement provoking another fit of coughing as it agitated his infected lungs.

After two attempts he managed to push himself upright and began to haul himself towards the room he used to receive visitors. All council members inhabited quarters far superior to those assigned to rank and file warriors. As clan leader, Nar'Jat's quarters were especially imposing. He commanded a huge set of apartments, connected by giant, demi-circular archways engraved with intricate designs. The floors shone like burnished marble. The walls were hung all around with his hunting trophies; vast, ugly skulls, polished and mounted; weapons taken from fallen adversaries; treasures looted from alien civilisations; exotic skins, perfectly preserved and stretched tight, imprisoned on their frames. Nar'Jat saw none of these things as he dragged himself through the enormous rooms, staggering on shaking legs. Then his legs gave way and he had to crawl, dragging himself inch by painstaking inch, his clammy skin sticking to the polished floor.

Finally, he reached his presence chamber and laid his hand on the enormous chair, like an exhausted swimmer reaching dry land. He fought to pull himself into the seat and drag himself upright, cold sweat now layered on his skin as he shuddered and tried to recover from the effort of moving length of the room. It took him a long time, but he knew D'Jukai would have no choice but to await his permission to enter. 'Better he is kept waiting than see me in this enfeebled state. I have always thought him loyal, but who knows. I cannot risk showing him even a glimpse of weakness…'

When he had finally regained enough control to stop himself gasping for breath, he pressed the intercom button to summon his visitor, "Tell him to wear his mask."

The door whispered open and after a few moments D'Jukai appeared, standing in the archway.

"Stay back," Nar'Jat croaked, "I have no wish to invite infection into my private quarters."

D'Jukai drew himself up for a moment, as if he might be offended, but then he nodded "As you say, Nar'Jat."

"What news of the Bah-a-Nak's cargo?"

He could tell from the tensing of D'Jukai's shoulders that it would not be good, "There is no news. The cargo is lost. We have searched the sector for those responsible, but we can find nothing."

Nar'Jat allowed his jaws to curl up in scornful anger "I have had more success, for I see the one responsible now standing before me."

D'Jukai's masked face came up "My Commander, I did as you ordered – "

"Are you telling me," Nar'Jat's voice was full of quiet displeasure, "That you are unable to act on your own initiative?"

"No, my Commander – "

"I trusted you with an important task, D'Jukai. The GhaRan-S'i-Ka is … difficult. It took no small amount of delicate negotiation to persuade her… and no small amount of trouble to meet her demands."

"Capturing U'darahje and his sorceress?"

"Their lives were the requested trade. The GhaRan-S'i-Ka would accept nothing less, but it was a sacrifice I was willing to make."

"My Commander, surely their lives were no sacrifice? An abominable deviant and an insidious, ooman witch, who enslaves warriors to her evil will – "

Nar'Jat did not allow his face to showed contempt, 'Does he really believe this nonsense? S'Kia is unstable, but he is a gifted fighter. He could have been useful to us. And Lex is no sorceress but merely a clever female who uses what is between her ears – and sometimes what is between her legs – to get what she wants. He is a credulous fool, believing in magic and hexes!'

His second-in-command talked on, and Nar'Jat became aware of a cold sweat popping out along his spine. His lungs felt suddenly too small and the room too hot, but Nar'Jat had iron self-control. He did not betray himself. He did not move a muscle, but remained sitting upright, as still as stone.

"I am not interested in discussing S'Kia and the ooman Sain'Ja's offences," He said,

"I wish to discuss yours. You lost a most precious cargo, D'Jukai, and I am seriously disappointed. What are you doing right now to recover this loss?" Nar'Jat's voice was a purr of menace but inside he felt as if the ground lurched suddenly under him. His vision began to blur, 'He must retrieve the cargo of antivirus or I am lost!' He thought, the room shimmering like a mirage before him, 'I must remain conscious. He must never suspect… or else he will know I am weak…'

Through watering eyes he saw his second-in-command shift his stance as if he were uncomfortable, "I shall send out more patrols – "

"See that you do!" He snapped, "Return when you have better news."

Nar'Jat managed to stay upright until D'Jukai had gone. Then he rose shakily to his feet. He managed to stagger slowly back towards his inner chamber, before collapsing on the bed once more.

Scar's head twisted downwards as he felt Lex's fingers slither from his grasp; the rippling, plant-like fronds of her hair were disappearing, falling away from him as the water creature dragged her down. Breaking the surface for an instant, he gulped lungfuls of air. Above him, two glowing shapes crawled along the roof of the chamber.

'I cannot deal with them; I have to get to her!'

Plunging downwards, he held the knife ready. There was a crash of bodies hitting the surface above him. He ignored it.

Lex was struggling, slashing with her dah'kte at the constricting limbs. She scored a hit, releasing a stream of black blood, but the thing tightened its grip, squeezing her until a cloud of air bubbles burst from her lips.

He was about to strike at the limb that coiled around her when he felt something coil around his own wrist and turned to find a hard meat's iron claws gripping him, its grimacing face up close to his. Without thinking he grabbed it by the throat, holding tight to keep its striking jaws at bay. Using his greater weight and strength he wrestled it beneath him, both of them sinking into the deep. With a massive effort he thrust the hard meat downwards, launching it into the pale waiting tentacles under them. Immediately the white, doughy limbs became bands of muscular steel, snapping taut around the new prey. The hard meat gave a pointless, unheard scream, bubbles streaming from its jaws. It turned on its new enemy, teeth and claws swiping and striking indiscriminately.

The second kainde amedhe was arrowing through the water towards him. Without giving it time to attack, he seized it, pitching it into the heaving mass of tentacles that became a cage, locking around its threshing body.

As the water creature's attention turned to the new threat, he dived deeper, trying to get close to Lex without becoming enmeshed in the writhing limbs himself, hoping the two hard meat would provide a distraction. Lex was thrashed from side to side like a rag as the foul water beast fought against its new aggressors but he couldn't tell if she was still moving.

He began striking with the knife, stabbing and slashing through the limbs that held her, but as quickly as he could cut them down, more horrible tendrils snaked around her. Clouds of black inky blood fouling the water, his lungs creaking under the strain now as he hewed and hacked like one demented, rational thought sloughing away from his mind as he spiralled into a killing frenzy. Desperation and instinct and oxygen deprivation all combined; making him savage. Now he was using his talons and teeth as well as the knife, rending and tearing at the creature's vile flesh.

With a final, supreme effort, Scar wrenched the last tentacle off Lex, tearing it out at the root and flinging his arm round her waist. Kicking with all his strength, he launched them both upwards and away from the heaving mass of teeth and limbs and blood. They burst through the surface and he grabbed desperately at the bank, dragging them both out of the water.

He gasped for breath, more glowing shapes were already leaping along the ceiling towards them. On the other side of the lake, the pile of rubble their grenades had left bulged, heaved and then erupted. Chunks of stone and clouds of dust showered down into the water.

The Queen shouldered the rock aside. She raised her glowing head, as if scenting the air, and her eyeless muzzle turned towards them. Her scream shook the chamber like the death of stars.

Scar seized the last couple of the grenades, his breathing harsh, clasping Lex's limp body against him, retreating into the nearest escape route he could see, a tunnel with walls that bulged and steamed with subterranean heat. Flicking the switch on the detonator, he continued to stagger backwards with her still in his arms, counting under his breath. Shrill cries surrounded them, the angry red eye of the grenade blinking in his talons. The Queen gave another furious shriek and he hurled the bomb, aiming at the mouth of the tunnel, almost too exhausted to see what he was throwing at.

There was a burst of flame and another rumble of falling rock, but under that sound there was a deeper rumble – a rolling boom that seemed to grow louder as it went on, the walls of the tunnel shivering as if from repeated impacts. A thick cloud of dust coated him and he sprinted up the slope as the ceiling began to collapse, a slew of broken slabs and fragments tumbling down into the tunnel and then a sharp chemical stink and a river of steaming liquid burst from the ceiling further down the slope, cut off by shower after shower of falling rocks.

Xal'Uate halted outside a door, bigger than all the others, a doorway that made even the combat master look small by comparison. Yautja guards stood either side of it. Spyrro felt a little uneasy as she stared up at the carved designs over the doorframe. She did not know what the pictures were supposed to be, but they looked nasty. The D'Tai N'as nodded to one of the guards and, without anyone doing anything that Spyrro could see, the door slid open.

The room beyond was shrouded in gloom. She was used to the dim lighting onboard the Chameleon and the Dragonfly – yautja prided themselves on their night vision – but even to her eyes it looked murky. Xala stepped inside and Spyrro hesitated, shrinking inwardly from what might be in that room. Looking to one side, she noticed Ito made no move to follow the combat master.

Spyrro looked at the older girl "Are you not coming?"

Ito shook her head once, slowly "I am not summoned."

Spyrro swallowed but, determined to show that she was not afraid, she stepped over the threshold. The door hissed shut behind her and she forced herself not to turn. Instead, she kept her gaze fixed ahead, her eyes darting all around for signs of movement. They had been summoned by the leader of this place and she was now on the lookout to see where the creature might be. The only illumination came from a huge glass viewport that ran round the edge of the whole chamber, showing a glowing sweep of space, spatters of stars everywhere. Spyrro froze as a huge shape, outlined against the glass, shifted and stood up.

Spyrro could not help but stare. She had forgotten how big this femalewas, 'She is as tall as Mei'Savir!'

The Matriarch raised her grizzled head and straightened up from the ornate chair, slowly, as if coming to life after a hundred years asleep. "For what reason do you break my solitude?"

The D'Tai N'as stared straight ahead, "Your pardon, GhaRan-S'i-Ka," She said "I did not mean to disturb your mourning ."

"There is none to disturb."

Xala did not answer this, instead she said "I have brought the child to answer your summons." She turned to Spyrro, "Step forward, girl."

The Matriarch's expression did not change but her yellow eyes flared as they came to rest on her, "This is the child that bears my name?"

Xal'Uate nodded.

"Wait outside."

The other female turned and left, shooting a last glance at Spyrro. Then she was alone with the shadow.

In the sudden quiet, Scar fell gasping to his knees, lowering Lex to the floor. His exhausted vision faded in and out of focus as he looked at her. Under the film of dust, her skin was pale and grey and she was cold despite the stifling, underground heat. He pulled her into sitting position and shook her, expecting every moment that she would wake.

"Lexsss?"

Her head lolled backwards, as if some mechanism inside her was broken. He could hear noises far away, but at this moment he cared nothing for either hard meat or rock fall. He laid his fingers to Lex's throat and then listened to her chest, but there was no trace of a pulse. He held his armoured wrist guard to her lips, but no breath misted the polished surface.

'If we had the ship, the medipod would oxygenate her lungs, but as we do not…'

Pulling open her mouth he tried to clear her airway, talons becoming slippery with slime and saliva, and breathed into her throat, thinking maybe she would cough up the liquid that was even now drowning her. After a moment, he pressed down on her chest, once and then again, hoping to jolt her into life, to dislodge the water from her lungs, 'Any moment… any moment she will revive… she must do…'

The woman in his arms remained cold and unmoving, her head hanging backwards, water steaming from the black mass of her hair in the punishing heat.

"Lex, hear me; you must wake up…" He pressed her chest again, talking to her all the while, "Come back to me, demon!"

He pulled her upright and touched her face. Her skin was inert, cold as clay, not like flesh with blood beating underneath it. He pressed her chest again, but there was no change. The long, black lashes lay flat against her cheeks, as if closed forever.

"What else can I do? What can I do? There must be something!"

That there might be no way to revive her was a thought so awful, he could not accept it. He stared; his mind not able to comprehend what was happening, skin prickling with alarm, a feeling of sickness in his stomach that turned him as cold as she was. "I will not believe it," He shook his head, maddened, enraged, "No… no! You are not dead – I will not allow it!"

He pressed down on her heart again, all the time his eyes were flashing around the chamber, not knowing what he was looking for. His gaze hit on the krei'ithala {trans: bug thumper} that she had taken from the female yautja, still lodged in one of her holsters. The sight of it triggered a long-dormant memory, "R'Zuul told me the medics used electricity to bring me back from the dead when they removed the hard meat larvae… he said they shocked my heart and it began to beat again!"

Laying her down on the chamber floor he seized the neck of her suit, tearing it open to the top of her breastbone, exposing the skin over her heart. The flesh was dry now, the searing heat had banished the water. He flicked the switch to activate the thumper, the weapon giving a low hum as it charged. Then he held the shocker against her flesh, pressing the metal tip to the place where he knew her heart must be.

He pushed the trigger.

A jolt of electricity surged through Lex, momentarily reanimating her. Her body arched upwards off the ground, twisting and jerking, but then he turned off the power…. and all movement ceased. He snatched her up, pressing his ear to her chest. Where her heartbeat should have been, there was only silence.

Please don't hate me! There was always going to be more pain and suffering before it ever got better.

LovyDovy7: Yeah, Selim seemed more businesslike on the floating prison, but remember who he was thinking of killing: a human, and an unpleasant, antagonistic human at that! Selim has had S'Kia as a role model since birth, so he sees himself as (partly/ mostly) yautja even though he hasn't been around other yautja. He's still adjusting. On the other hand, Isaac has grown up around humans for the first few years of his life and so identifies as more human. He sees yautja as 'other'.

Bocara: You'll make me blush, but thank you! I'm afraid I will be delivering yet more frustration this chapter, but it ain't over 'til it's over. I find it annoying when they fight but, in my head, they wouldn't stop!