Ok everybody, sorry yet again for the long wait, but now without a shadow of a doubt THIS is the longest chapter I have EVER written. And don't worry this chapter has a LOAD of juicy stuff packed into it, we got some action, some development, some tension, some new characters (I know this far in right?) and a moment I think you who people who love the characters will love very much.
Without further ado.
Bonds forged in Acid
A lone Wolf creature sniffed around the area, looking for prey in which to gorge upon. The creature was as large as a bull and had the appearance of a Wolf only its fur was much more rugged and it had two goat like horns sprouting from its head. The animal sniffed until it came to what it desired, the corpse of a Black Yautja, the hunter had a slash mark across its stomach thus exposing his guts.
The wolf drooled as it lowered its head and opened its jaws to feast upon the fallen hunter, but as it was about to take a bite out of the Yautja's hide a blade came descending from above and drove into the Wolf's head, instantly killing it.
The blade was that of a Shortsword and its wielder was none other than Rezeal. The black haired Kamad withdrew his helmet and took a deep sniff of the air before he ripped his blade from the wolf's skull. Rezeal's red reptilian eyes looked down on the Wolf and he grabbed a hold of its horns, dragging it away from the Black Yautja corpse.
"Dinner is served" he smiled as he sheathed his Shortsword.
"You know, I don't think this is really AH…..necessary"
"Do you want to walk around the ship naked?"
"…No"
"Then stop complaining and let them do their job"
Eli was sat outside the door, his legs crossed and one of his Kanata's on his lap, on the other side of said door Norma was…getting fitted for her new attire. Finding a set of clothes for someone with a tail and an altered biology wasn't easy, in fact it was impossible.
Thankfully Eli had a solution to their little dilemma; the armour of a Kamad elite was comprised of self-replicating Nanites that would create the users armour by scanning their body and thus tailor it to the wearer, it was the reason why Kamad armour could regenerate like they could. Eli luckily had a spare capsule of Nanites, of course it would take longer for the machines to create something to fit Norma, but it would be worth it.
"It feels weird, having these things crawl all over my bod...OW!...did they just bite me?" Norma asked from the other side of the door.
"They just took a blood and tissue sample, anyway don't whinge you have probably already healed" Eli replied
"Why would they need my DNA?" Norma asked
"To verify you're Gender, species and your other physical requirements" Eli replied, "It's perfectly normal Norma, just let the Nanites do their work and it'll be done in a flash"
At that moment the doors to the main room opened up and in walked Rezeal with his head held high and dinner in his grasp. The Black haired Kamad didn't have trouble getting the creature in through the door as he dropped it to the ground and smiled widely "Who's hungry?"
Sophie was sat in the centre of the room, tending to the fire that Eli had started. Blair was not sat with the others, apparently he had some 'matters to attend to' in one of the other rooms.
"Uuuh, im not eating that thing" Sophie said, looking at the gruesome looking wolf creature.
"Don't rock it till you tried it, isn't that the Human saying?" Rezeal asked
"It's 'don't KNOCK it till you tried it', Knock not rock" Sophie said, correcting the Kamad
"Still, Norma is part Kamad now, so she will be quite…ravenous" Rezeal said as he sat down by the fire and began skinning his kill.
"Ravenous?" Sophie asked with an arched brow
"We Kamads are mainly carnivorous, and since Norma is a girl, she will be much more drawn to blood and flesh, females have a higher body temperature and burn calories much faster thus meaning they need to feed much more often than males" Eli explained
"Uuuh why is that?" Sophie asked
"It's how our biology works, both males and females have high body temperatures but since Females need to give birth, they have evolved to be much, for lack of a better word, hotter" Rezeal explained "Then again Eli shouldn't complain" Rezeal smirked at the end of his sentence, Eli glared at his friend and let out a low growl.
"Excuse me?" Sophie asked, arching her eyebrow.
"I doubt things would work out between a pure blood human and a Pure blood Kamad like Eli, you see Kamads are very…violent when we mate, there is a lot of scratching, clawing and biting involved especially on the females' side" Rezeal explained, smirking all the while. Eli suddenly stood up and walked straight for the door with a glare on his face.
"Hey, where are you going?" Sophie asked
"To get some air" Eli replied, Sophie only then realized that he had bit of red on his face and Rezeal was giggling to himself. It was then that Sophie realized that Rezeal only said those things to tease his fellow Elite.
"Oh Gods, even after a thousand years, it's still funny to see him act like that" Rezeal chuckled wiping his eyes.
"I'm surprised you two are friends, considering how much you tease him" Sophie chuckled
"Oh, It's just simple fun, me and him have been through some rough patches, but no matter how hard things get we always come out on top" Rezeal said with a smile
"You sound close" Sophie said
"I owe him everything; in fact I wouldn't be here if not for him" Rezeal answered with a smile, as if he was remembering something.
"What do you mean?" Sophie asked
"You are asking a lot of questions today" Rezeal smiled
"Sue me, just tell me, I'm curious of what you mean" the blonde replied
"Well, when I say I owe him everything, I don't mean it figuratively; I literally had nothing until I met him" Rezeal said, slowly explaining as Sophie hung on his every word. "When I was a child, I had nothing, I was born onto the streets of some backwater trading world, I never knew my mother or father. I would go for days on end with no food; I would resort to stealing food from the merchants who traded on that world, back there the punishment for thievery was to have your hands cut off, I was a Kamad so may merchants would let me off, but one day that changed…" Rezeal said slowly, allowing Sophie to absorb the information.
"…One day I stole from the wrong person, the merchant was a Gorgonian, they were a race that out people had several wars against, but at the time we were at peace. This Gorgonian was a veteran of one of the wars and he did not like Kamads. Now Gorgonians look like creatures from your myths, Lamias, the females were pretty, but the males…they were much more snake-like, frills like a cobra, huge fangs, claws and jaws that would unhinge unnaturally wide, very terrifying for a child Kamad with no one to turn to right?" Rezeal continued.
"…All I did was steal a piece of meat, a scrap if you could even call it that, but as soon as he saw me, he was slithering after me with his fangs bared and a Khopesh drawn. I ran as fast as my legs could possibly carry me, but I was so weak with hunger and I fell to the floor, before I even knew it he had me in his grasp. He hissed at me and raised his sword high, I could tell I was going to die, there was no escaping it and no one would bat an eye at seeing a street rat like me get beheaded for theft. But as I waited for the blow there was a long silence, as I opened my eyes to see what had happened…there he was…" Rezeal smiled, Sophie could swear she saw his eyes glistening as if he was going to cry.
"…A kamad Prince was stood between me and the Gorgonian, he stood there with his head held high, not an ounce of fear in his stance, yet he was still a boy no older than I. "Leave him alone" he said, the Snake man only hissed and told the Prince to get out of the way and that he 'wasn't afraid to backhand a child' but before he could even finish the sentence he felt five Kamad steel blades on his neck, the royal families' personal bodyguards were stood there ready to take his head if their prince ordered. But the Prince didn't say anything, he simply turned to me and smiled "Are you alright?" he asked, I could barely speak I was so scared, I bowed my head as low as I possibly could, not wanting to offend the Prince by looking at him with eyes as filthy as mine, but he knelt down and told me "It's alright, you are going to be fine" I looked up and met eyes with him, he was like a god to me at that moment, he held out his hand to me "I'll protect you" I'll never forget those words" Rezeal paused before continuing.
"…he took me in, gave me a home, an education, food, safety but even more than that, he gave me something that I never thought I would have…a purpose, I knew from that moment that I would repay him. Eli is more to me than a friend, he is the very reason that I am still alive, when I joined the Elites I made an oath to every god in the heavens, that I would protect him for as long as I had a breath in my body and I would gladly give my life to defend him" Rezeal said, pouring his very soul into his words as he spoke.
"Really? Eli did that?" Sophie asked, surprised that the stubborn and stern warrior could do something as compassionate as that.
"He is a good man and he will make a great Emperor when his father stands down" Rezeal smiled as he sliced a piece of meat from the wolf and skewered it on a stick to hold over the fire.
"I'm sure he will, now what do you think is keeping Blair?" Sophie asked looking in the direction of Blair's room.
"I'll get him" Rezeal replied, thrusting his knife into the Wolf carcass before standing up to go and get Blair. The Black Haired Kamad walked over to Blair's room and knocked on the door "Hey Blair, we got food"
"I'll be out in a second" Blair replied, Rezeal shook his head as he walked back to the fire, little did he know that Blair was sat in the room with a pair of earplugs which were attached to a small handheld device, the image on the screen of said device was that of his employer, Weyland.
"Like I said sir, I don't know if the Xenomorphs have even survived the initial attack" Blair whispered.
"They had better, Doctor. You have no idea what my company went through to get you those specimens, anyway have you been able to find a way off of the ship?" Weyland replied his voice being transmitted through the earplugs Blair was wearing.
"I haven't been able to get much time away from the Kamads, sir. The leader one, Eli, he has already tried to kill me twice, I just need to bide my time and wait for the opportunity to present itself" Blair replied quietly.
"I wouldn't worry about that, Blair, I have a contingency plan on the ship, so just wait and don't raise too much suspicion, is that clear?" Weyland asked
"As Crystal sir" Blair nodded before the device powered down and Weyland's image disappeared.
Meanwhile as Rezeal and Sophie sat by the fire, Rezeal skinning and slicing flesh from the Wolf Carcass and Sophie placing the meat over the fire. The door of Norma's room opened and out she stepped, Rezeal and Sophie turned around to see Norma in her new attire.
"Well…how do I look?" the Hybrid asked. Her new attire looked way more suited for combat than for research like her other clothes.
The majority of her new clothes were a type of tight fitting synthetic leather that allowed for moderate protection and movement; segments of metallic armour were located on her shins, feet, forearms, hands and her left shoulder. Her armoured segments were Silver with runic markings on them, most likely the language of the Kamads, the rest of her outfit was black.
Though there was one thing that put her off and that was the fact that it left certain areas uncovered, the tops of her thighs and her biceps weren't covered by an inch of clothing. She also had a very short leather loincloth covering her crotch and ass thankfully, she was also surprised at how her new tail felt free and loose as opposed to how weird and stiff it felt before.
"It looks good on you, you look like a proper Kamad Woman" Rezeal smiled.
"But…why does it feel so…thin and…revealing?" Norma asked.
"Kamad Women have higher body temperatures than Males, trust me, I you wore as much armour as me and Eli you would be pouring sweat" Rezeal explained.
"I suppose that's alright. Say, where's Eli?" the Hybrid asked.
"He said something about getting some air, he's probably nearby outside" Sophie replied. Norma headed to said door and opened it, intent on finding Eli but before she had a chance to step through Rezeal called out to her.
"Hey, it might not be safe to go out there, here take this" Rezeal said as he held out his Shortsword to Norma along with its sheath.
"Uh, Rezeal? Are you sure you want be to have this?" Norma asked, the Shortsword being one of Rezeal's primary weapons.
"Its fine, I can fight with my Hookblade, Throwing knives and my Dagger if need be. You have Kamad blood in you know, that means you need a blade with you at all times" the Black Haired Kamad smiled. Norma only arched a brow in response "But, I'm not a fighter like you, I'm a biologist for god's sake" she replied, but Rezeal chuckled and said "Norma, you don't need much training to be a fighter, we Kamads are natural born killers, all you need is a blade and a strong enough will to survive, the rest is just filling in blanks"
"I...I guess that's ok" Norma replied, reaching out and taking the Shortsword from Rezeal. At first she didn't really know what to do with the sheathed weapon until Rezeal chuckled "Your belt is magnetic, just clip it on" Norma did just that and the sheathed sword instantly latched to her hip.
The Hybrid supposed that Rezeal was right, he did have a thousand years' experience over her after all, not to mention he was born a Kamad and knew how to hold his own, he could fight without his Shortsword if need be.
Norma proceeded to make her way out of the room in order to find Eli, she wanted to talk with him and she had more than a few concerns about the situation she was in right now. Said situation being that she wasn't fully human anymore, she didn't know how kamad biology worked so it was a completely foreign concept for her, something she hoped Eli could help her with.
It wasn't really a bad experience being like this, hell it beat being dead for starters and the blood running through her veins made her feel empowered like she could run faster, fight harder, think faster and overall do everything she could before only better. She just needed a bit of advice about how Kamads lived, like how their diet differed from Humans, how her instinct or emotions could be affected.
The hallway she was walking through was littered with storage containers and pieces of discarded equipment; it seemed like only yesterday when the ship was full of life, with Scientists and researchers doing their studies on the resident aliens, Engineers and technicians doing their daily rounds of looking over the ships equipment and Marines patrolling the hallways with their pulse rifles on hand.
Now the ship was lifeless, devoid of life besides them and the Black Yautja hunting them throughout the ship. Norma only wished that she wouldn't run in with the Black Yautja that had stabbed her through the chest again, though he wouldn't have such an easy time if he did.
As the Brown haired hybrid came to a turning she looked to see Eli sat on an empty cargo crate with his bandana down and something in his hand. The Hybrid walked closer to see what Eli was so intently looking at, but as she got closer he spoke out "I can smell you, you know" Eli turned to lock eyes with Norma, his golden reptilian eyes scanning her new outfit and the Shortsword at her side.
"You look good, like an elite yourself though…" Eli began with a smile "Your hair needs work" he finished, referring to her ponytail. Norma chuckled, she honest to god considered having her hair done like Eli and Rezeal's dreadlocks, she had a tail and reptilian eyes so why not complete the image?
"I'm glad you think so, now what is that you're looking at?" Norma asked walking closer. Under closer inspection she saw that Eli was holding a device that looked like a digital picture frame.
"My family, come have a look" Eli offered, scooting a bit to the left of the crate he sat on. Norma sat down beside the Kamad and looked at the picture frame and at the depiction of Eli's family.
The picture depicted 5 Kamads, the first one she noticed of course was Eli, he was wearing more or less the same gear he was wearing here with the exception that he had a wide smile on his face and his arms wrapped around two other Kamads at his sides. On his left was a shorter white haired Kamad with golden eyes like him and was wearing a pure white version of Eli's black.
And on his right was a Kamad that towered over Eli, with black dreadlocks and golden irises but strangely enough the whites of his eyes were black and he was wearing a red mask like one wore by Japanese Samurai covering his lower face, this Kamad wore very much a similar version of Eli's outfit, consisting of a black leather coat with armoured segments covering it.
And sitting on two chairs below the three, was the Emperor, Eli's father. He wore an intricate blue and gold Yakuta robe with segments of gleaming gold armour on the shoulders and forearms. The similarities between Eli and his father were stunning as his father looked barley older than he did with pitch black hair tied into ornamented dreadlocks, the golden eyes that seemed abundant in the picture could also be seen on the Emperor's eyes.
And finally sitting on the other chair was a stunningly beautiful female Kamad, most likely Eli's mother, her hair cascaded down her shoulder in very well kept golden locks and her eyes shimmered blue lie sapphires. She wore a beautiful Japanese styled Kimono and her smile seemed to light up the rest of the picture.
"Who are those two?" Norma asked pointing at the two Kamads Eli had his arms around in the picture.
"Those are my younger brothers, that one in the mask is Taruro and the one in white is Yuna. I hope that I can introduce you to them one day" Eli smiled
"Why does Taruro have….well…?"
"Black eyes?" Eli finished for her, Norma nodded "It's a medical condition he has, that mask he is wearing isn't just a mask, it's also a breathing apparatus. He had it since he was a child, but that hasn't stopped him from becoming one of our best warriors, trust me he is deadly with a scythe" Eli smiled, remembering all the sparring matches he and his brothers would have when they became elites.
"Why don't you mention them more?" Norma asked
"I'm an Elite, Norma. I'm supposed to keep my head in the mission, thinking of family and home would only get in the way of things" Eli replied, he mentally cursed himself for being like this on a mission, he was being unprofessional and childish when he should has been focusing on getting Norma, Sophie and…Blair out of here.
"I think we've lingered here for too long, any longer and we might draw some unwanted attention to ourselves" Eli suggested as he put the picture device back into his coat and stood up.
"Agreed, I don't fancy getting into a fight without you and Rezeal teaching me a bit first" Norma smiled.
"I see Rez gave you his short sword as well"
"Yeah, he said since im part Kamad I'll need a blade with me at all times" she replied
"And he's right, all Kamads carry some sort of bladed weapon once they reach maturity" Eli replied
"Really? And why's that?"
"It's part of our religion I guess you could say. A Kamad's blade is like a part of their soul, as a rite of passage we forge our own blades in our family forges, I actually made these Katanas myself, they are as much a part of me as my own heart" Eli said, gripping the hilt of his right katana.
"So I guess I'll have to forge my own soon enough" Norma said making Eli's eyes widen "Excuse me?" he asked, wondering what she meant by that. "Well I'm part Kamad now aren't I? Not only that but apparently I've got royal blood in me, I'm not just going to go back home after all this is done, I want to go out and see the universe seeing as now I have a couple thousand years added to my lifespan" Norma grinned.
"I…I suppose I can…no…I'm sure I can get you a visit around the Empire once this is done" Eli smiled reassuringly.
"I can't wait" Norma smiled back.
"I bet you can't, I can assure you that a lot of the worlds that my father's empire rules' have to be seen to be believed, there are worlds made entirely out of diamonds, worlds than have existed since the creation of the universe with life that humans could never believe existed, hell there are even worlds that…" Eli spoke before he froze in place and his eyes widened.
…
"Eli?" Norma asked
*Sniff* *Sniff*
"Do you smell that?" Eli asked, Norma gave the air a few long deep sniffs herself and defiantly smelt something different, her sense of smell now greater and much more sensitive than it was before. Eli's mandibles flared and the secondary nostrils on the interior membrane flared as he inhaled a lung full of air, Norma did the same to her shock she too had mandibles like Eli did, and now the scent was much stronger than before.
"What is that?" Norma asked
"Human…Male *Sniff*Yautja…Female…and *Sniff* oh no" Eli said as his mandibles retracted and his eyes widened.
"Norma, go to Rezeal quickly, bring him here and he'll find the scent, do you understand?" Eli asked quickly.
"Eli…what was…"
"Do you understand me?" Eli demanded again, Norma nodded as Eli drew one of his Katanas and flourished it "Don't follow me without Rezeal" he ordered before darting off down the direction of the scent. The white Haired Kamad recognised this scent, and he recognised it well, it was the scent of a race that was known for spreading chaos across the universe since the time of its creation.
He just hoped that he was ready for what awaited him as his helmet emerged from his armour and covered his head, his dreadlocks flowing from the back of his head as his visor flashed to indicate its functionality.
He hoped he would make it in time.
Sha'ra and Erik walked side by side at a steady pace; the Yautja Huntress had her plasma Caster on alert for Xenomorphs while Erik had his Pulse Rifle leaning on his left shoulder. Last night seemed like it went by very fast once Sha'ra had seen Erik's scars, she took her shower and he took his, before they knew it the night had passed and it was time for them to move again.
Erik had also noticed that Sha'ra was being unusually quiet since she saw his scars, being a Yautja he thought she would not have been bothered the scars adorning his body. After all Yautja were much more durable than humans and scars seemed to be the norm, he also spotted a scar on two on her body seeing that her armour didn't cover her entire body and her thighs, biceps and midriff were exposed, not only showing off her scars but also her very…feminine figure.
"Alright, why the silence?" The Myrmidon Major asked
"Im…Sorry?" the Huntress replied
"You are being WAY too quiet; I know we should keep our voices down and all but that doesn't mean we have to remain silent all the time, and don't give me the old 'im listening for enemies' trick, if Xenos were approaching we would hear them, especially in a metallic surrounding" Erik continued
"I'm sorry it's just that…well…" Sha'ra began
"It's the scars isn't it?" Erik asked, guessing Sha'ra's response
"Yes…it's just that, I have never seen scars like that before, what wounded you so to give you those?" Sha'ra asked. Erik pondered for a moment on whether to tell the Huntress or not, the scars adorning his figure were something that no Myrmidon felt easy talking about except with other Myrmidons. Then again, Sha'ra had proven to be very trustworthy and Erik was certain that she would understand.
"…Well, these scars aren't from combat like you are probably thinking" Erik said
"Then, what are they from?"
"Remember how I told you Myrmidons where made?" Erik asked
"Yeah, I do" the Huntress replied, recalling how Erik explained to her the origins of how he became the super soldier he was.
"Well, the strain infusion process is much more dangerous than I led you to believe" Erik said. If Sha'ra wasn't wearing her mask then Erik would see the arched brow of confusion on her face.
"When you become a Myrmidon, you have to be more than just strong or smart, you have to be dedicated to what you are doing. If your will is weak and your reasons are flimsy, then the strain eats through your body and kills you from the inside out. All Myrmidons run the risk when they sign up, your will has to be strong and you need to want it with every fibre of your being" Erik explained, still walking beside Sha'ra at a reasonable pace.
"Being a Myrmidon isn't a job, it's a choice you take for the rest of your life, once you become one there is no going back. If you survive the process of infusion then it leaves you scarred, like a reminder that you aren't human anymore, that you left that world and now you are something more" Erik explained to his traveling companion
"What were your reasons then?" she asked, her curiosity in Erik reaching its peak
"Xenomorphs ruined my life, just like they ruined the lives of countless humans since we discovered them. They do nothing but spread death, destruction, pain and sadness, they don't have a sense of morality or a conscience, they kill families, colonies and anything that isn't a Xenomorph too. You know Human serial killers can be excused because it's something wrong in their heads, but Xenomorphs…well, they are all the same" Erik explained
"It must be more than that, I saw the way you stared at them across the laser grid, you didn't just hate them, you despised them" Sha'ra said, even though Erik had his helmet on, she could see the way he wouldn't break his gaze on the large Predalien as he called it.
"I have probably lost more to Xenomorphs than most other Myrmidons, anyone who has lost more than me was either killed by Xenos, committed suicide or is also a Myrmidon" Erik said, finding someone who had survived a Xeno attack was extremely rare as the creatures were extremely skilled at leaving no survivors in their wake.
"I lost my parents before I became a Myrmidon, in a way that…well I'm not that comfortable talking about, and I have lost things since, trust me I hate the Xenos with good reason" Erik said with a tone that made it clear that he had quite a few thoughts going through his mind. By the way he talked, anyone else would have thought he only had vengeance on his mind, but Even after spending little more than a few days with him Sha'ra knew that he wasn't like that in the slightest, he was more than just a man seeking vengeance.
"What happened in the past doesn't make you who you are Erik" Sha'ra spoke
"I know that, but it sure did have an impact on shaping who and what I am" Erik replied, making Sha'ra frown behind her mask. Knowing that something in Erik's past haunted him made Sha'ra a little upset, she didn't like seeing someone as kind and honourable as Erik be chained down by something that happened in the past.
It reminded her of her younger brother Yeyinde, he was always a strong and Honourable Yautja who wanted to take after their Uncle and become an Elder. Yeyinde however had his short comings as a Hunter as he always went the way of honour while many other Hunters would see Honour as a suggestion rather than a principle, and that made him very unpopular with the other Yautja he grew up with.
Sha'ra remembered when they were children and how Yeyinde came home at afternoons, covered in cuts and bruises, he used to get into fights a lot in his childhood due to his stubborn nature. Of course their Uncle Zen'tau would sort the other children out but Yeyinde would always act as if he was the one that did something wrong. She hated it when he thought like that and would always make it a point to reassure him that he was in the right, so seeing Erik go through something similar made her feel uneasy.
"You may think that I am strange for a human Sha'ra, but I ceased being a Human long ago, you can take my word on that" the Myrmidon Major spoke with a tone of certainty.
"You may act like not being human is a bad thing, but is it really?" Sha'ra asked looking to Erik, it was only then that he remembered that Sha'ra wasn't human in the slightest. He found it strange that the phrase 'human nature' had lost its meaning in this situation and no longer being human didn't really raise concern.
"I guess not, huh I guess after this whole thing is done with the Human race are gonna have to get used to things being a lot different" Erik said with a chuckle
"What do you mean by that?" the Huntress asked
"Well, If your Uncle and the rest of your group don't kill Me and my men or vice versa, I can expect our races might work something out in terms of a compromise" Erik suggested
"Well, I'm not sure if after the war a lot of Yautja or Humans would be up to the idea of peace. Though you may have better luck with some of the other species" Sha'ra replied, it was a well-known fact that the wounds caused by the war on both Species hadn't fully healed, sure Sha'ra and Erik considered each other friends but a lot of purist Yautja clans sure as hell wouldn't make peace with their former prey and Humans were almost as well known as the Yautja for having very little tolerance for those who were different.
"Uh, Sha'ra I'm not sure I heard you right but, did you say 'other species'?" Erik asked
"Yeah, there are more sentient species out there than you, us and the Black Yautja" Sha'ra explained
"Really? How many others?" the Myrmidon Major asked with sheer curiosity
"A few million different species, all shapes and sizes actually" Sha'ra explained
"Really? Wow, I can't wait to tell the others about that" Erik smiled behind his helmet, Sha'ra was still a little surprised how the Human race hadn't made contact with alien life apart from the Yautja, especially considering how far they came in terms of their tech.
Of course space travel to most of the galactic community was something that could be easily achieved. Of course the Yautja hadn't had many interactions with the many other races in the universe aside from when Yautja Merchants travelled to other worlds to sell their wares, so the Yautja could understand what is was like being isolated from the rest of the verse. But since Erik was living breathing proof that the human race was capable of genetic enhancements, they were defiantly at the level at which another race would make contact with them.
"I'm pretty sure at the level your race is at Erik, it won't be long until one of the 'Higher' races tries to make contact with you" Sha'ra smiled back
"Won't that be the day?" Erik smiled in response before he heard something and stopped dead in his tracks.
"Erik?" Sha'ra asked
"Ssh! Listen" Erik whispered as he put his pulse rifle into both hands and unlatched the safety, causing the ammo reader to display that it was loaded with 90 rounds. Erik's Pulse Rifle was an advanced version of the older model that Colonial Marines used, while their versions held about 50 rounds, Myrmidon Pulse Rifle held nearly double that amount with twice as much fire power.
The two stood still and Sha'ra slowly extended the Wristblades on her right hand, her Plasma Caster switching to Manual as it tracked the area around them.
Then the two heard the sound much more clearly, it sounded like something was scratching a Metallic surface and in the result making an echo, it took a moment for both Sha'ra and Erik to gauge by the sound how far away the culprit was.
"I think we had better start moving" Erik announced
"Agreed" Sha'ra replied as the two of them turned back to the direction they were heading in and picked up the pace. The clanking sound only seemed to get faster and faster as the Huntress and the Myrmidon ran down the hallway with their weapons primed.
As the two ran they heard the sounds getting louder and louder until finally one of the floor panels underneath their feet was torn from its hinges and a huge Black Clawed hand reached out to try and snag one of the two. Erik leapt over the hand as its claws narrowly skimmed the base of his boots, once the two were a good couple of feet away the floor panels behind them were broken free and 3 massive Black Predaliens burst from the floor, snarling and screeching in rage as they began to quickly scurry after Erik and Sha'ra.
"There were more of those things!?" Sha'ra exclaimed as she kept pace with Erik
"The Bastards never make it easy!" Erik replied as he kept running besides Sha'ra, the Myrmidon quickly glanced backwards to see the 3 massive creatures almost galloping down the hallway behind them, their dreadlocks bouncing and slime drooling down their maws.
Erik quickly turned to fire a few short busts from his pulse rifle at the Predaliens, but the shots did little more than graze their thick armoured crests. Erik went wide eyed as he sprinted to catch back up with Sha'ra whom seemed to have gotten ahead of him.
"Great! Now the Bastards are bulletproof!" Erik shouted to Sha'ra as the two ran as fast as they could, adrenaline pumping through their veins at a rapid pace as they tried to outrun the hulking Xenomorphs galloping after them.
Sha'ra's Yautja biology granted her greater bursts of adrenaline than a human could and Erik's Myrmidon biology gave him enhanced stores of adrenaline, if not for their enhanced biology the Xenos would have caught them by now.
"Do you have any more of those laser mines?" Erik shouted to Sha'ra
"I used the last one yesterday remember?" Sha'ra replied just as loud
"Shit, looks like we got to fight these guys then!" Erik cursed, he wasn't used to fighting this number of large Xenos while being low on ammunition and without the rest of the team. If Vlad or Baako or even Hanzo where there then they would have had a better chance against these things.
"What are you suggesting?" the Huntress asked, the sound of the Predaliens galloping getting closer.
"We need to find a room where we can separate one from the rest! There is no way in hell we can fight them all!" Erik shouted as he and Sha'ra ran for their lives. The best possible thing they could find would have to be a doorway with a Heavy Duty security door, a door that would have enough force and weight behind it that it would keep 2 of the Predaliens at bay while he and Sha'ra could take on one. Erik was sure that he could take on one by himself and that Sha'ra was experienced enough to be able to bring one down by herself so the best option was to sheer down their numbers.
"Look out for a Security door!" Erik shouted to Sha'ra as they turned the corner
"What does it look like?" Sha'ra asked, not knowing much about human ship architecture
"It's a large door with a Blue overh….There!" Erik pointed towards what he was looking for, the door's archway was blue and looked big enough to force the Predaliens to go single file in order to get through, this would give him and Sha'ra the chance to separate a Predalien from the others.
Erik and Sha'ra ran as fast as they possibly could towards the security door in the hope that they could outrun the Predaliens for a while longer. Sha'ra was the first to make it through the door due to the light nature of her gear, Erik followed close behind and as soon as he made it through the archway time stopped.
Erik had one chance at this, he had to find the control panel that controlled the door, if he was even a second late in finding the control panel then all three of those slathering abominations would make it through the door. The sound of Erik's heartbeat savagely beating sounded louder than the sounds of the Predalien's galloping down the hallway.
Erik saw out the corner of his eye the control panel he was looking for and as the First Predalien's head made it through the doorway, he reeled his hand back and slammed it savagely into the emergency switch. The Predalien's hulking form made it through the doorway before the security door fell down, it's immense weight crashing down before the other two Predalien's could make it into the room.
The loud clang of steel was hard from the security door as the other Predalien's probably just collided face first into the reinforced alloy of the door. Erik smiled, the door's alloy was super strong and could defiantly take some punishment, some security doors could withstand missile fire and even the pressure of a vacuum, plus it was very unlikely that the Xenos would bleed over the door.
If a Xenomorph cut itself it would most likely die from blood loss extremely quickly, one setback of having Acidic blood was that wounds wouldn't heal and would keep bleeding so a smart Xeno wouldn't cut itself open, the handicap would be the equivalent of a bear biting its own limbs off. The Security Doors were defiantly going to keep the other two busy for a while.
Erik smiled as he and Sha'ra turned their attention to the lone Predalien in the room, it looked confused as its head darted around, looking for its brothers, it's dreadlocks and slobber swaying as it did, the creature hissed at Erik and Sha'ra as they drew their weapons. Erik holstered his Pulse Rifle on his back and drew his Broadsword while Sha'ra extended her Glaive.
"Looks like you are shit outta luck Ugly" Erik smiled behind his helm as he flourished his Sword and Sha'ra flourished her Glaive.
The Predalien snarled, drool dripping down its maw as it locked its eyeless gaze on Erik and Sha'ra, the two defiantly had the upper hand in terms of numbers, and if the Predalien was even the slightest bit bright then it knew that too. The Slathering creature had the upper hand in size and strength but it probably knew that because of its larger size it was a much bigger target and way harder to miss.
Sha'ra looked to Erik and the two nodded at each other before slowly circling it, Sha'ra took the Predalien's right while Erik took its left. Erik's blade glimmered as he tilted it, showing the Xenomorph his weapon like how a Tiger would bare its teeth at its prey, Sha'ra slowly spun her Glaive causing it to make a slight whistling sound as its twin blades spun slowly.
If the Alien Behemoth wore pants it would be shitting them right now, who knew that a creature that brought pain, death and destruction would be feeling fear when being circled by the two. Then again it was probably picking up the auras that both Sha'ra and Erik were giving off, Erik was a Myrmidon Major and his deep hated for Xenomorphs was like a flare to the creature, he felt no fear for the creature and thus stood his ground. Sha'ra was a Veteran Huntress of a race of Hunters, she wasn't afraid of the lone Xenomorph in the slightest; she had faced and killed creature's way larger and more terrifying by herself.
Sha'ra was about to lunge first but the creature seemed to predict her very movements before she made them and lashed out its long club like tail. The Predalien's tail hit Sha'ra with the force of a truck, luckily for the Huntress it didn't land a direct hit and instead only glanced her. This however caused her Glaive to fly out of her grip as she fell to the floor.
The Xenomorph saw an opportunity when Sha'ra fell on her back so it instantly turned to face her, swinging its tail to swat at Erik as if he didn't matter, its black lips peeled away to show the sinister grin of its species' signature silver teeth. Before the alien could attack the Huntress however it felt a sudden sharp and agonizing pain pierce its back.
"You missed arsewipe!" Erik shouted as he held onto his sword with both hand for dear life. The Predalien's attack didn't miss per say, more like Erik was so used to tail attacks that he leapt up and had drove his broadsword through the Predalien's back, not deep enough to pierce anything vital but deep enough to stay imbedded it in.
The Predalien shook violently trying to make Erik loose his grip, it bucked like a horse or Bull, savagely kicking its rear legs and flinging its head back whilst screeching and hissing. Erik held on for dear life as he kept both armoured hands wrapped tightly around the hilt of his sword, even though the Major was a Myrmidon he was still inferior in terms of strength when compared to the Hulking behemoth, if he let his grip waver then the creature would have him on the floor in the blink of an eye.
The Predalien shook its tail as it trying to swat Erik from its back, despite its best efforts its tail didn't seem to have enough dexterity to reach Erik, the bulkier armoured segments of its tail didn't exactly allow flexible movement, pretty ironic that its armoured tail couldn't be used for defence in this situation.
"Sha'ra I could use some help here!" Erik shouted as his grip weakened. His shouts for help were quickly answered as the sound of Sha'ra's Plasma Caster rang through the air, the loud whipping sound was followed by a Plasma Bolt striking the Xenomorph in its armoured ribcage.
The Plasma may not have killed the creature like it was intended to do, but it defiantly did some damage, the creature's armoured underbelly had been broken open and there was a serious burn across its chest, the burn seemed deep enough to cause the Predalien to start bleeding, a good sign if they wanted it crippled.
Erik grinned as he finally found his balance, he tore his sword from the armoured hide of the Predalien before jumping from its back. As the Myrmidon landed he swung his sword and managed to slice the Predalien's back right leg clean off.
The Predalien roared in pain as it los it's balance having just lost one of its five limbs, the wound sprayed green blood in a quick burst, of course the blood of a Yautja/Xenomorph Hybrid was much less acidic than a regular Xenomorph but it could still leave a gruesome burn, Erik turned and ran at full speed at the Predalien 'I'm not giving this thing a chance to recover!' He thought as he drove his blade into the Predalien's exposed ribcage.
The Myrmidon's Polymer alloy steel blade pierced straight through the Predalien's heart and sliced open veins, sinew, bone and muscle under the strength of the Myrmidon's arm. The Predalien howled in pain as Erik twisted his blade, ripping its insides apart and turning its heart into mincemeat.
Sha'ra roared as she retrieved her Glaive and drove it into the underside of the Predalien's lower jaw, the skin there being weak and not armoured, the blade of the glaive cut through the rough flesh of the Predalien's lower jaw and through its brain as the blade remerged out the top of its head.
The crack of the Predalien's skull rang deep within Sha'ra's mind and the grin of a Predator appeared underneath her mask. The Huntress gave her glaive a sharp and sudden twist as she wanted to make sure that she had shredded the Predalien's oversized brain with her blade, the Predalien went motionless and the way its limbs slumped and its tail dropped dead to the floor showed its lack of life.
Sha'ra tore her glaive from the monster's head and let its lifeless corpse drop to the floor with a thud. The Huntress swung her glaive and the green Xenomorph blood splattered across the floor, it only took a couple of second for both Sha'ra and Erik to catch their breaths and regain their composure.
"Are you alright?" Erik asked, referring to when the Predalien struck her with its tail.
"Yes, the creature simply grazed me" Sha'ra replied as she flourished her glaive.
*BANG! BANG! BANG!*
Sha'ra and Erik turned their gazes to the security door and they were shocked to see that the enhanced metal alloy frame was beginning to bend underneath whatever was attacking it. Erik's eyes widened in shock, there was no way that either one of those Predaliens could be doing such damage to the security door and with how narrow the corridor was there was no way that they could be attacking it in unison.
"I think we had better get ready Sha'ra" Erik suggested as he readied his broadsword in his right hand and drew the Revolver on his left side.
"Agreed" the Huntress replied, extending her Wristblades and flourishing her Glaive, her Plasma Caster scanning the area for threats as it powered up.
The two slowly backed away as the sound of the Security Door being demolished from the other side got louder and louder, the doorway bending with each blow and the allow weakening. The two began to feel that they didn't want to face whatever was doing that kind of damage to the security door.
Their steps backward began to get faster paced as the bolts holding the security door in place where broken and ripped from the frame, the door and the areas of the wall around it were broken to pieces as the attacker crashed through the hole.
It was the Predalien from before; it was twice as large as the other Predaliens and had a much sharper bladed crest, its dreadlocks were longer and its tail was like that of a sinister scythe. Erik and Sha'ra instantly recognised it and they could tell it was happy to see them again from the sinister grin plastered on its featureless face. Then the Predalien looked down to see the mutilated corpse of its younger sibling and its grin turned into a scowl, it looked up at Erik and Sha'ra and roared in rage, saliva pouring from its maw of a mouth as its other two brother roared in unison, baring their secondary mouths in what looked like rage.
"…Time to go" Erik said as he and Sha'ra turned tail and sprinted for their lives, the three massive Predaliens galloping over their fallen brother and after the Huntress and Myrmidon.
Grey's vision was blurry as he tried to open his eye, yet all he could see was a figure standing in front of him as if bending down to meet eyes with him. The figure's speech was barely audible and Grey could not concentrate due to the killer headache he had. This was quickly remedied when the figure struck him hard across the face with what felt like a backhand.
"Wakey, Wakey Monkey!" the voice called as the force of the strike almost broke something. Grey could swear it almost felt like that hit could have broken his nose if there was even the slightest bit less restraint. Blood dripped slowly from the Captain's mouth as he regained full consciousness thanks to the pain.
"Awww, I'm sorry, did I interrupt your sleepy time?" the voice said, this time sounding much more familiar to the Captain. The human captain raised his head to meet eyes with his tormentor, the Black Yautja known as Tra'kan, his hideous grin made worse by the various scars on his face and piercings on the webbing of his mandibles.
Grey looked to his surroundings and found that he and Tra'kan were not the only inhabitants. Captain Azarov was also in the room next to him; she had been tied to her seat and seemed to be unconscious. The Russian Captain was not in as bad condition as he was, she only had a bruise or two on her face and a cut on her lip, he remembered Ma'zax telling him that killing women did not give him pleasure so he would spare her for now.
Though Tra'kan did not seem the sort to share that morality
"Fuck you" Grey replied weakly
"Oh now you have gone and hurt my feelings, I thought we would be friends by now Captain" Tra'kan grinned. Grey looked up at Tra'kan stood up straight and turned to his table of torture tools, it was only then that he noticed that Tra'kan's right arm was now replaced with what looked like a Cybernetic arm, someone must have cut it off recently because Grey didn't ever remember Tra'kan only having one real arm.
"What happened…to your arm?" Grey whispered with a smile, the Black Yautja turned to scowl at the Captain for bringing up his shameful Mutilation.
"I'm curious to know who did it" Grey replied innocently
"…It was that white haired Lizard that did it, but don't worry, I'll have his head by the end of this" Tra'kan replied as he kept rummaging through his tools, picking up scalpels, saw blades and even long needles, Tools that he made Grey get familiar with.
"Eli did it huh? Well I wish I could shake his hand, it's the least I can say for you" Grey grinned; Tra'kan growled and quickly backhanded his across the face, enough to knock one or two teeth from his mouth.
"Silence you worm! The only reason I haven't torn your head off is because Lord Ma'zax wants it otherwise, so do not test my patience" the Black Yautja growled in anger as he leaned in close to Grey.
Grey couldn't find the strength to reply to the Black Yautja's threats, but he was not going to give in to the creature's torture, he was a proud man and a veteran of the wars between the Humans and Yautja, he had received worse injuries than the cuts and broken bones that Tra'kan gave him.
Grey was prepared to take his secrets to the very grave with him.
"So, what should I do to you today? Tell you what? I'll let you chose your torture, would you prefer I peel the skin from your body? How about I slice off a finger or two? Or maybe I could tear out some of your teeth?" Tra'kan said, his mandibles creating an inhuman grin of pleasure, fiddling with the tools at his disposal.
"I think not Tra'kan, Oomans need their teeth in order to speak properly and it would be a shame if Captain Grey could not talk when he inevitably breaks" the voice of Ma'zax rang as he stood in the doorway.
"Lord Ma'zax, I…I didn't expect you to…" Tra'kan began with a look of shock in his eyes, even Grey was astounded by how the Elder seemed to have appeared out of thin air, it must of spoke volumes at how great a master of stealth Ma'zax was as he went undetected in plain sight.
"Be standing here? Well of course not, I am simply here to see how you are coming along with our guests" Ma'zax smiled, his scarred Mandibles forming more of a grin due to his missing appendage.
"W-Well my Lord you are welcome to stay, but I should warn you that my methods are a bit…"
"Gruesome? Please Boy, I have seen things that would make you shit yourself, if you think cutting an Oomans skin would bother me then you are mistaken" Ma'zax commented with his hands behind his back.
"You would be better off if you just killed me, I won't talk" Grey spat
"Oh Captain, you probably think you are the first person to ever say that to me, but I have heard that countless times from men stronger than you, Chiefs, Elders and even Generals have told me the same thing…but they all break in the end" Ma'zax told the Captain with a smile on his face.
"Though there is one thing I must know, what are these black clad creatures on board my ship?" Ma'zax asked, his grin turning into a serious look.
"W-What...what do you mean?" Grey wearily replied.
"You know exactly what I mean, these creatures, clad in black armour, humanoid, you know what they are, and well I want to know" Ma'zax growled. Grey then realized what the Elder meant, it could only mean one thing, Myrmidons had arrived on the ship and if that meant anything it meant that this ship would not be around for much longer. Being a Captain he knew that during circumstances in which an invaluable asset of the human race is taken by an enemy force, be it Xenomorphs or something else then Myrmidons would be sent to resolve the situation.
"I have…no idea what you mean" Grey replied, he couldn't let Ma'zax know who and what the Myrmidons were, he would not break this easily.
"Yes you do Ooman, you know exactly what those creatures are!" Ma'zax demanded, baring his fangs.
"I'm sorry…but I don't" Grey replied. Ma'zax's eyes narrowed and he scowled at the Ooman.
"You may rest for now Captain, but you have earned yourself the pain of every hell imaginable" Ma'zax scowled as he turned and headed for the door, he signalled Tra'kan to follow him out the room. As both Black Yautja left the room, Grey smiled and whispered "Bring it on"
"The Ooman is resilient my Lord, I'll give him that much" Tra'kan commented
"I do not care how resilient he is, everything has a breaking point, every stone breaks, every metal bends, shatters or melts, Captain Grey is no different" Ma'zax said as he walked down the hall.
"If not, then his head will make a fine trophy, Oomans have become harder to hunt recently" Tra'kan said
"I would not soil myself by taking that filth's head, his every breath is an insult to me and if not for the information in his mind I would have him fed in pieces to the Hell hounds" Ma'zax said as the two entered the Armoury.
The Black Yautja had managed to take control of a number of the Asclepheus' levels, the Control room, the Maintenance levels, the heavy loading docks and even the armoury. Right now many of these levels were being used by Ma'zax's hunters for such tasks as keeping weapons in working condition, tending to the Hell Hounds and other hunting animals and even taking trophies from the dead Oomans and aliens aboard the ship.
Some Hunters were tending to the wounds they had suffered during their last encounter with the Kamads, others were busy cooking fresh prey over stoves and pots and some were making necklaces and trinkets from human bones. Ma'zax seemed to be leading Tra'kan somewhere with the way he kept his eyes fixed on his destination instead of watching his many Hunters perform their tasks.
"My Lord, where are we going? The Control room is in the other direction" Tra'kan asked
"To meet the Hunters who will assist in your next hunt" Ma'zax replied
"Assist? My Lord I can kill those Kamads myself, I just need 10 or 15 good men and…" Tra'kan began
"And you will return with another severed limb? I'm sorry Tra'kan but I want results this time, and that means you cannot be the only elite on this hunt" Ma'zax replied with a stern tone.
"And who may I ask will be accompanying me this time?" Tra'kan asked
"The Pale Twins" the Elder replied, Tra'kan's mandibles flared in shock at the very thought of hunting with the aid of said hunters.
"I am not hunting with those Soulless Piles of refuse!" Tra'kan growled in disagreement. Ma'zax immediately turned around and scowled at Tra'kan, his scarred mandibles flared and his brow furrowed.
"I don't care about your personal quarrels with them Boy! They get the job done, I don't give two Pauks about whether you like them or not, I want those Kamad's heads and the Twins have yet to have failed me…which is the least you can say" Ma'zax growled, putting Tra'kan in his place. Tra'kan may have been a veteran Hunter and a deadly opponent in battle, but he knew Ma'zax long enough to know that you did not disagree with his commands unless you were the Sovereign herself…or the man that gave him that scar.
"Very well my lord" Tra'kan replied, like a child after being scolded by their father.
"I do not ask you to get along with them, I ask you to work with them in order to kill the one that took your arm, now do you think you can do that?" Ma'zax asked, earning a nod from Tra'kan.
"Good, now stand up straight and stop feeling sorry for yourself" Ma'zax replied.
"Why do you have such faith in their skills my Lord? They are abominations" Tra'kan asked
"Because I am the one that trained them" Ma'zax replied earning a wide eyed glance from his Subordinate.
The two Black Yautja kept walking until they came to a very special and secluded part of the Armoury, the heavy weapons chamber, this part of the armoury was where the crew would kept the artillery and heavy lifting machinery. The room was dark and silent, the only sounds being that of the Black Yautja's footsteps as they walked through the dark.
"Those two should be here" Ma'zax uttered. As he finished speaking the two Black Yautja heard the sound of metal being scraped, the same sound as a blade being sharpened.
"What brings you down here My Master?" asked a voice from their right. The Elder tried to find where the voice was coming from but neither he nor Tra'kan could seem to pinpoint where it was coming from.
"Your stealth skills seem to have improved Qul'tan, where is your brother?" Ma'zax asked
"I'm flattered Master, but May I ask why you haven't allowed us some fun yet?" the voice of Qul'tan answered
"It's funny you should ask, I have a Hunt coming up, one that you boys will love" Ma'zax replied.
"Well then…"
*CLANG*
Ma'zax and Tra'kan looked to the right to see Qul'tan crouched on top of a heavy loader. The first thing that anyone would tell about said Black Yautja was the colour of his hide, unlike other Black Yautja whose scaly skin was either a very dark green or literal black, Qul'tan's scales were pale white. His black armour didn't cover much of his body, meaning it must have been more suited for manoeuvrability and being lightweight. His black dreadlocks were adorned with golden rings and his ornamented Mask hung on his belt.
The amount of bone necklaces and ornaments adorning his armour was a sign that he was a very experienced and successful hunter especially considering his lack of scars. The weapons he had equipped were not limited to the Throwing knives adorning his belts, the Machete sheaved in his belt and the spear gun on his back.
"…Why didn't you say so?" Qul'tan replied his ivory mandibles making a sinister smile. The Albino Black Yautja hopped off the Heavy Loader and began walking away "Tra'zen is this way" he added as he began walking. Ma'zax followed immediately with Tra'kan reluctantly following his lead.
Tra'kan not trusting the Albino was to be expected as the Yautja species was not a very excepting one, where minor differences in appearances were seen as curses from the gods or signs that they were inferior. Normal Yautja were not very excepting of Albinos, but Black Yautja thought of them as abominations sent from hell like a punishment, due to his upbringing Tra'kan naturally didn't trust Qul'tan or his brother, in fact a part of him wondered how the two of them hadn't reached this stage in life without being discarded by their parents.
As the Yautja came into the next room, they quickly spotted Qul'tan's brother, Tra'zen. Like Qul'tan he had pale white skin and his figure was adorned with many various trophies, the one that stood out the most being the Kamad skull impaled on his right pauldron. Tra'zen's armour was bulkier than his brother's, his mask also had many more dents and scratches than Qul'tan's. On his lap he had the head of a Halberd which he was polishing, under close inspection the blade had Kamad runes engraved upon it, most likely a trophy from a very profitable hunt.
"We have visitors, Brother" Qul'tan said, earning his brother's attention. The differences between the twins weren't many, apart from the fact that Tra'zen was slightly more muscular and taller they were pretty much identical.
Tra'zen grunted in response as he stopped polishing his Halberd blade, he pulled what looked like a folded up combi stick from his belt and attached it to the Halberd blade before sheathing it on his back.
"Why doesn't your brother speak? Does he not know what respect is?" Tra'kan asked with a growling tone.
"Oh no, no, it's just that it's hard to speak when you lack a tongue" Qul'tan replied, Tra'zen opening his mandibles showing a fleshy stump where his tongue used to be.
"Now, tell me Master Ma'zax, what task is it you need me and my brother for?" Qul'tan asked as he walked over to a pile of crates which held his and his brother's possessions.
"I trust you know about the Kamads aboard the ship already?" Ma'zax asked
"We do, Kamads are our specialty and we have been itching for a crack at them" Qul'tan smirked as he retrieved a quiver full of arrows from the crates.
"Well, I want you to go with Tra'kan and a company of Hunters to track them down, I wish for you to bring me their heads"
"You don't hunt down Kamads with a company of just any hunters, Master. We will need some expert help in the matter" Qul'tan replied
"Who did you have in mind?" Ma'zax asked
"All of the best hunters in the fleet, my brother and Myself, Tra'kan, Mh'jax the Breaker, Lin'thuew the Butcher and anyone else we deem worthy enough" Qul'tan replied
"Very well, im sure they would love to spill Kamad blood with you" Ma'zax responded. He knew the bloodthirsty nature of his hunters more than anyone; none of the previously mentioned Black Yautja would refuse the chance to kill the Kamads.
"…How many are there?" Qul'tan asked as he retrieved a small box from the crates as well. The box was handheld and seemed to have movement within it.
"Two and three Oomans"
"Two Oomans, I killed one" Tra'kan added
"Ooooh, Tra'kan killed a single Ooman, we are so very impressed aren't we brother?" Qul'tan snickered, his brother grunting with a smirk, Tra'kan glared at the two and bared his fangs "Oh forgive us oh great Ooman slayer, but was it said Ooman that also cut off that arm of yours?" Qul'tan laughed.
"Don't you dare insult me you pale scum!" Tra'kan growled, extending his Wristblades in a threatening gesture.
"Trust me…you don't want to do that" Qul'tan said with a killer gaze.
"Enough! The both of you! Now do you wish to kill them or not?" Ma'zax spoke with authority that both the Twins and Tra'kan instantly obeyed.
"…Master…if you knew us at all you should already know the answer to that question" Qul'tan replied as he put the box onto a flat workbench.
"How exactly do you plan on killing two elites? Last I heard it isn't so easy" Tra'kan asked
"Elites, soldiers, Lords, Primarchs, it makes no difference what rank they hold, their biology is the same, and like all prey you must know how to bring them down" Qul'tan said as he opened the box and reached inside it with lightning fast speed.
The sound of a shrill shriek was heard as Qul'tan pulled out what he was keeping in the box, it was a tiny creature, no bigger than a rat though more like a scorpion in appearance. It had pincers, six insect-like legs and a stinger on the tip of its tail, Qul'tan wisely gripped it by the tail so the stinger wouldn't strike him.
Tra'kan had never seen such a creature before, so it confused him when Qul'tan laid its body on the table and stabbed it with his dagger. The Albino hunter then sliced open its stinger and let the venom pool around it, Qul'tan then took an arrow from the quiver and dabbed the tip in the venom, letting the arrow tip get a good helping of the poison.
"And we are experts in that matter" Qul'tan smiled as he held the arrow in front of his face.
"RUN SHA'RA!" Erik screamed at the top of his lungs as he and his companion sprinted as fast as their legs could carry them. Pure concentrated Adrenaline pumped through their veins, instinct keeping them from turning around to see the three colossal Predaliens bounding after them.
"I'M RUNNING AS FAST AS I PAUKING CAN!" she screamed back as she ran as fast as possible for a Yautja of her size. She felt blessed by her smaller size right now, her lighter weight allowed her to move much quicker than any other Yautja, though the same could not be said for Erik as his Pulse Rifle, Revolvers, sword and armour was weighing him down even if by a little bit.
Erik wished to god that they could lose the Predaliens around a corner or something, but he knew better than to think that the Xenomorphs could be that easily shaken, they would always find their prey, even aboard massive ships, the incident on the Nostromo was pure proof of how a Xenomorph could easily find its way around a massive ship.
"Sha'ra do you see anything in front?!" Erik shouted, with Sha'ra being ahead of him there was a better chance of her seeing something before he did.
"Wait….YES, THANK PAYA!" Sha'ra yelled in joy as the two came to a large circular cargo room. The room didn't look like anything special except for the lift that lead to a higher level and the entrance to said level seemed to have another security door.
'Thank Paya indeed, whoever that may be' Erik thought with a smile as he caught up with Sha'ra.
"Ok, looks simple enough" Erik said as he quickly looked over the controls of the lift. It seemed to be a simple elevator system, simply press a numbered button and the lift would go straight to the corresponding floor.
Erik pressed a button to a higher floor and…
Nothing
"No…No…no…no nononono NO!" Erik shouted in panic as he pressed every button on the control console. The mechanism seemed to have run out of power and thus could not start up, there was no getting out of this room apart from the hallway they had just taken to get in.
They were trapped like rats.
"Shit, Shit, Fucking piece of shit!" Erik swore as he violently kicked the control console.
"They're coming" Sha'ra warned as she and Erik tried desperately to find an alternate way out the room. Erik scanned everywhere trying to find an exit of some kind, anything would do, a door, an air duct, hell even sewage vents or open pipe systems.
That was when Erik saw an air duct that looked just big enough for Sha'ra to slip in, he ran over to it and grabbed the edges, ripping the lid off and throwing it away. The Myrmidon Major checked how large it was and found that unfortunately he would not fit in it, not while equipped with all his weapons and armour, and ditching his equipment was not an option due to the fact that taking his armour off would take a considerably long amount of time which he did not have.
"Dam it!" Erik cursed. Sha'ra was already readying herself for combat with her Glaive extended in her left hand while her Wristblades extended on her right; she had already accepted that the fight was going to be hopeless to win, especially against three huge Predaliens when just one caused them trouble.
"Sha'ra come over here, there isn't enough space for me to get in but you shouldn't have much trouble" Erik said as he unsheathed his Broadsword.
"What? I'm not leaving you Erik" Sha'ra spoke back in a firm tone.
"Listen up, I don't know if you get this but there are three alien killing machines coming this way, we can't win in a fight, and there is no other way out of this for the both of us. Now you need to get your Yautja arse in that vent and I'll do my best to buy you as much time as I can get you" Erik ordered as he held his sword ready in both hands.
"No! I'm staying here!" Sha'ra spoke back with a tone of anger.
"Listen to me Sha'ra, either one of us dies or we both die, now get in the dam…"
"NO, you listen to me; we have been through too much together for me to just leave you behind, I can't even believe you would even suggest such a thing, now I don't know much about how you Myrmidons do things, but we Yautja do not leave our friends and loved ones behind to get slaughtered! Now for me there is only one option on the table, we both die today, but I say we make these Kainde Amedha regret coming here" Sha'ra spoke with utter surety
"…I thought you would say that" Erik sighed as he and Sha'ra awaited the coming Xenomorphs, the sound of the creatures galloping down the hallway getting louder and louder as time went by.
"You know…I'm glad I met you Sha'ra, and if I had to die at someone's side, im glad it's you" Erik smiled.
"Thank you Erik and I'm glad to have known someone like you" Sha'ra smiled back.
The two gripped their weapons tightly, silently awaiting their fates. Both Sha'ra and Erik were not going to be taken by the Predaliens; they were not going to let themselves be taken and hived by the abominations, they would rather die with their weapons in their hands than Xenos in their chests.
Erik pondered where his team were and how they were fulfilling their task, he wondered if they were all still alive…no, he knew they were still alive, he knew for a fact that his team would fight with everything they had in order to fulfil their mission. Erik's life had been one full of misery and loss, but he would die remembering all the good times with his team. Not to mention meeting Sha'ra, he would die happy having met someone like her, someone that seemed to fill an empty part inside him.
His only regret was not getting to know her better.
Sha'ra thought of her Brother and Uncle, they would never see her again, she would have died without either of them knowing how. She would die not knowing what happened to her parents when she was a pup. Unlike other hunters her last moments would not be filled with the thought of death and glory, but with the minor happiness in knowing she would not die alone, she felt comforted knowing that no matter the manner of her death that Erik would be there with her.
Her only regret was not getting to know him better.
The Predaliens came around the corner of the hallway and skidded to a halt. The largest one snarled and drooled menacingly as it slowly approached, its two brothers following close behind with their dreadlocks hanging from their bladed crests. The hot air of their breaths smelt foul even from the distance as they slowly approached as if savouring the tension and terror they sowed into their prey's hearts.
But Erik and Sha'ra gripped their weapons tightly and awaited the creatures to attack, the largest of the Predaliens grinned as its claws scraped against the floor, its tail swaying back and forth like the scythe of the reaper himself.
"We haven't got all god dammed day" Erik muttered as he held onto his sword tightly.
The lead Predalien seemed to hear that, because as soon as Erik finished his sentence it began galloping down the hallways like a bull ready to skewer its mark. Erik gripped his sword and clenched his teeth and he readied himself, Sha'ra bared her mandibles behind her mask and flourished her Glaive.
The Predalien galloped faster and faster until it leaped at the two, its claws outstretched and its maw open, the Predalien's secondary mouth was ready to strike. But as Erik and Sha'ra were readying themselves for what was to be their last fight, something dropped in front of them, a humanoid shape much larger than Erik and Sha'ra landed in front of the two and them and grabbed a hold of the Predalien's jaws.
"…What the fu…" Erik began before Eli let out a loud and bone chilling roar that echoed through the room. The Kamad then picked up the Predalien by its jaws and threw it at the other two whom had frozen out of pure shock. The largest of the three collided with the others and Eli drew his Katanas and gave them a flourish.
"If you two want to live, I suggest you follow my lead" Eli spoke with the tone of a leader.
"Wait a minute here, just who the fuck are you?" Erik asked
"No time for questions, I'll take the big one, you two take the others, alright?" Eli answered looking back at the two, Erik confused at whom or what this guy was and Sha'ra's eyes widening as she recognised the distinct helm of a Kamad Elite.
"I'll take the stun silence as a yes" Eli turned back to face the Predaliens.
The largest Predalien screeched at Eli and he flourished his Katanas in response. As the creature galloped towards him, Eli sprinted towards the Predalien and as the two got close enough Eli went into a skid underneath the huge alien. The Kamad then leapt up and tackled the Xenomorph, wrapping his arms around its mid-section, sending it crashing into a pile of cargo crates.
The next Predalien ran at Erik and before he had time to react it swung it's mace like tail at him, sending him flying into a wall. The Myrmidon quickly tried to get back on his feet, but as he got up he saw the Predalien already gaining on him, the Myrmidon pulled his right revolver from his belt and fired a few shots at its face, the pulse rounds didn't kill or wound the creature but they did their job of distracting it long enough for him to get to his feet.
The Predalien lunged at Erik, as if trying to bite his arm off, in hind sight it made more sense for the Predalien to bite as its head and neck had a better reach than its arms. Erik side stepped the Monster's lunge, its teeth making a loud clack as it bit nothing and Erik swung his broadsword downwards and into the Predalien's head. But instead of decapitating it like he hoped his strike would, his blade got stuck in its skull and thus failed to kill the creature.
The Myrmidon tried to pull his blade free from its head but it was lodged in tight, the Predalien's skull must have been incredibly dense as the blade hadn't managed to pierce all the way through it. The huge Predalien screeched in pain as having a sword in your skull wasn't exactly pleasant, it screeched and clawed at him, its claws scraped his chest plate, leaving four long claw marks on his armour.
The Predalien snarled at Erik, the Myrmidon cursing as he drew his combat knife from his belt and held it out in a threatening manner, the Predalien continued to slobber all over the place.
"That's a real nasty habit you got there" Erik grinned as the Predalien once again lunged at him.
Sha'ra ducked as the Predalien swung its bladed tail at her, narrowly dodging getting beheaded she rolled to the side with her Glaive at the ready, she swung it at the Xenomorph, slicing its 'lip'. The creature screeched at Sha'ra and lunged at her, its secondary mouth bursting free from its maw, the Huntress rolled away and as soon as she had regained her footing she swung her Glaive at the Predalien and cut off its secondary mouth.
Acidic blood began pouring from the Predalien's mouth as it began screeching with pain, it turned to Sha'ra and snarled at her, green blood spraying from the wound, but before the Predalien had a chance to spit its acidic life blood at her she fired a plasma bolt into its mouth, instantly cauterizing the creatures wound and ending the danger of it spitting acid on her.
The Predalien snarled in anger and lunged forth with its right hand making Sha'ra drop her Glaive to the floor, its bony hand wrapped around her throat and holding her in front of its torn up face. The Predalien hissed as it was about to bite the Huntresses face off, luckily for Sha'ra she unsheathed the dagger from her belt and sliced across the Predalien's wrist, not deep enough to cause major bleeding but deep enough to hurt it. The Predalien threw her into a crate, causing the box to break into splinters and pieces.
"Ugh, ok, let's try that again" Sha'ra mumbled to herself as she got to her feet and flourished her Glaive and charged the Predalien.
Eli stood up and locked gazes with the featureless visage of the lead Predalien, it snarled at the Kamad Prince as he chuckled and sheathed his Katanas. "Let's make this interesting" Eli growled as he cracked his armoured knuckles and got into a battle stance. The Predalien snarled and rushed him, but as he swung his fist and right hooked it in the face it looked shocked?
Did the Kamad just punch a Predalien in the face?
"Missing something?" Eli smiled as the Predalien looked to the floor to see something that nearly made its jaw drop. Eli's punch had knocked out several of its silver teeth, the Predalien snarled furiously, drool and saliva dripping from its mouth.
"I say it's an improvement, you slobbering piece of shit" Eli growled.
The Predalien rammed Eli, its bladed crest bashing the Kamad Prince into the nearest wall. The impact would have crushed a human or Yautja, but Eli's Kamad biology made him extremely durable to attacks such as this.
The Predalien reared back and prepared to ram Into Eli yet again, wanting so much to turn him into a stain on the wall. As the Predalien's skull as close enough Eli used its head crest as a stepping stone and leaped onto its back. The Kamad then drew both his Katanas, but as he was about to drive them into the Xenomorph, the creatures' tail flailed around and smacked Eli clean off its back and onto the floor, dropping his swords as a result.
As Eli quickly leapt to his feet and was met by the Predalien's scythe like tail, as it attempted to decapitate the Kamad, he dodged and weaved under its every swing with skill and grace. The Predalien hissed in rage and kept swinging its tail, hoping that Eli would get sloppy and lose his balance, thus giving it a chance to land a killing blow.
Such a time happened as the creatures tail swiped Eli's legs from underneath him, sending him falling to his back with a thud. The scythe tail came down, ready to impale Eli, but the Kamad not only rolled out of the way but he also drew a Tanto knife from his coat and sliced off the bladed tip of the Predalien's tail. The alien screeched its lungs out in pain and as it screeched Eli made a mad dash for his Katanas, skidding on the floor and grabbing both blades, giving them a flourish before standing in a threatening manner.
"Come on, I'll take you a piece at a time if I have to" Eli growled menacingly.
Erik fell to the floor with a thud, the Predalien's club tail crashing into the ground literally an inch away from his face. The Myrmidon rolled across the floor, narrowly avoiding the Predalien's tail swipes with each roll. Erik had to get off of the ground and quick before the Predalien wore him out, even his Myrmidon stamina wouldn't last forever.
Then as it seemed like the Predalien's club tail would hit its mark, the creature began screaming loudly in pain. Erik used this chance to get back to his feet and scope out what the hell was going on, after a quick glance he noticed that the Predalien had a very runic looking Dagger protruding from its neck.
Before Erik even knew it another large 9 foot humanoid had leaped down from where Eli had come from before, only this one had black hair as opposed to Eli's white. Rezeal ran towards the Predalien with his Hook blade at the ready, the Predalien swung its tail at the approaching Kamad whom leapt over the tail and swung Hookblade into the Predalien's side. The Kamad further continued his onslaught by grabbing a hold of the Predalien's throat, keeping its head still.
"I can only give you so much time Human, don't waste it!" Rezeal growled as he struggled to keep the Predalien still. Erik didn't waste time with a response or nod and ran straight for the head, grabbing the hilt of his sword, still imbedded in the Xenomorph's skull.
The Myrmidon tore the blade from the Predalien's head and as he was about to swing it again it broke free of Rezeal's grip and sent the Kamad flying, this reaction was not fast enough however as the Myrmidon brought his Sword down and sliced the Predalien's face in half, its brains fell to the floor through the gaping wound as the Predalien lied dead on the floor.
"….nice swing" Rezeal grinned.
Sha'ra was holding her own against her Predalien as it swung its razor sharp tail at her. She ducked underneath the creature but unfortunately went straight into its outstretched hand that grabbed her roughly on the face. The Huntress tried to use her Wristblade arm but the Xenomorph grabbed her other arm as well. She was rendered immobile by the colossal creature, as it opened its mouth, ready to finally end her life.
"RAAAAAAGH!" Norma roared as she leapt down onto the Predalien and drove her Short sword into the Predalien's back. The Kamad steel sliced through the creature's armoured plates, muscle and bone like butter and the Predalien screeched in pain, letting Sha'ra fall to the ground where she grabbed her Glaive and swung it, slicing the Xenomorph's front right leg off.
Before the Predalien had a chance to react, Norma stabbed the Predalien in its head, slicing through its brain and killing it dead. The lumbering creature collapsed limp with a thud as its acid blood hissed, creating a hole in the ground around its head.
The Hybrid jumped off the Predalien's back and met gazes with Sha'ra who was tilting her head in confusion of who and what this female in front of her was, she was too short to be a Kamad, then again Sha'ra remembered that she was very short for a Yautja.
Eli and the last Predalien circled each other, Eli had both Katanas drawn and the Predalien hissed, baring its secondary mouth.
"Come on you coward, show me what you're made of" Eli growled, taunting the Xenomorph. The Predalien charged at his recklessly, and the Kamad reacted as he was trained to, he side stepped the creature and swung his Katanas, slicing it across its head. The cut wasn't deep enough to kill the creature but it was definitively going to leave a nasty scar.
The Predalien hissed in pain and screeched at Eli, but the Kamad didn't even waste his breath roaring back, he glared at the creature, giving it a look that said 'get the fuck out of my sight'. Eli turned fully and growled deeply at the Predalien that looked to its brothers for help, the brothers that lay dead, one with his head lopped off and the other with a sword in its head.
"I know you can understand me and Yeah, your friends aren't gonna help you….so piss off while I'm feeling merciful" Eli threatened the Predalien, telling it to get out of his sight like it was some back alley whore.
"Go on then…before I change my mind" Eli said before spitting at the ground in front of the Predalien. The Xenomorph hissed before it turned tail and began to run, the Predalien would not forget this, and the scar on its face would serve as a reminder.
Eli turned around and met the gaze of Erik who had his broadsword balanced on his shoulder. The two stared each other down, and gripped their weapons, neither one knowing what side the other was on.
"So human…are you going to thank me?" Eli asked with his eyes narrowed.
"I don't know who you are, what you are, or even if you are on my side…so no, im not going to do any thanking until I get a fucking explanation" Erik replied back, his helm blocking his equally narrowed gaze.
"Wait a minute…that…that voice…" Norma said, her eyes widening as she heard that voice. It couldn't be, after all these years it couldn't be. Norma ripped her blade from the Predalien's head and sheathed it before walking over to the Black clad Myrmidon.
"…Erik?" Norma asked her eyes widened like never before. Erik looked at the Hybrid who had just spoken his name and arched his brow in confusion "H-How do you know my name?" Erik asked not recognising this female alien standing before him.
"I guess you don't recognise me, after all, it has been twelve years" Norma said, Erik's eyes widened and his lower jaw dropped as did his grip on his broadsword. The metal blade dropped to the floor with a clang as the Myrmidon stepped closer to the Brown haired Hybrid.
"It…it can't be" Erik whispered before raising a hand to Norma's face, cupping it in his hand.
"….Norma?" he asked
She smiled
She nodded
The two suddenly threw their arms around each other, Norma's arms around Erik's neck and Erik around Norma's waist. It was an embrace that neither of them had experienced for twelve long years and they relished in it.
Eli's eyes widened like plates
Sha'ra's eyes widened like never before
Rezeal broke the ice
"…wait….YOU TWO KNOW EACH OTHER?!"
I KNOW I'M A BASTARD FOR LEAVING A CLIFFHANGER THERE! But seriously guys I thought it was about dam time that Erik and Sha'ra met Eli and Norma and Co. Now a few things you should all know.
My update times for both this and my other stories will be VERY SCARCE for a while seeing as I am settling into Uni at the moment and have a TON of stuff on my plate. I may be able to get out the next chapter of 'flames of war' soon but apart from that I will work on my other stories when I can.
Those of you who thirst for some Myrmidon/Yautja party moments, next chapter will have a doozy! Not to mention the addition of the new Black Yautja antagonists 'The Pale Twins' whom I hope have your interest. The next few chapters will be EPIC!
As always dudes and dudettes, please write a review of what you thought, every review gives me the strength to keep writing more awesome stuff for you guys to read.
See you all next time
