Asclepheus chapter 24
Holy fucking shit….THIS is the longest chapter of anything I've ever written. Almost all action! Tonnes of emotion, Blood sweat and tears went into this people (Amongst other bodily fluids I will not divulge) I have been dreading this chapter for a looooooong time…everything changes from here.
3 years of writing this story and I hope you guys enjoy this chapter…I have been building up to a moment like this for a long time. so please….enjoy.
Blue Blood
This part was the part that Erik dreaded the most, the part that every Myrmidon to some extent dreaded the most.
That moment where you saw the light at the end of the tunnel. It was like being rescued at sea, that fear waiting for your turn. That moment of relief was what could spell your doom, you would let your guard down and something horrible could happen.
Just when salvation was within arm's reach, the relief and joy could be taken away as soon as it was given.
A feeling that would be very prominent today.
The group quickly sprinted as fast as they could, almost tumbling through the opening to the hive. Finally stepping on tiled floor rather than the resin covered tunnels of the Xenomorph hive.
It felt good to be out of that dark, foul smelling pit. The smell of rotting corpses mixed with Xenomorph slime was not pleasant on any nose, Human, Yautja or Kamad. So, Eli and Norma were especially pleased to be back in an area with actual air ventilation.
Then again, not everything was smiles and relief. Erik and Sasha had lost a good friend in the hive, a friend they had known for a long time that had stuck besides them during the hardest of times.
"Is everyone alright?" Erik asked, trying to keep a calm composure as best he could.
The collection of nods, affirmative grunts and pants pretty much spoke for themselves. The Dark Blades had proven their worth in the hive, they were Yautja Elite for a reason. As was Sha'ra for that matter, getting the drop on a Xeno-Myrmidon was no easy feat. Norma was in good condition all things considered.
Sasha and Erik's armour was riddled in scuff marks and battle damage along with dried acid blood. Erik didn't need to reach up to notice that the red hair on top of his helmet was a bit frazzled from the battle.
But then there was Eli, even after he had healed his injuries he was looking rough.
The Kamad was sweating profusely, his eyelids were half open, his eyes themselves were bloodshot, the blue slightly glowing veins around his golden iris' just accenting his alien nature. His breathing was ragged as he panted, his knees shook and his clawed fingers twitched. It just seemed so out of character for the Kamad to look this worn out, in every other situation it seemed like he had endless stamina.
But right now, he looked genuinely worn out.
It wasn't surprising considering the amount of flesh, blood, tissue and probably bone Eli had to regenerate recently. Through the various, cuts, piercings and acid burns he had went through, the Kamad had probably regenerated enough flesh to create a full-grown human.
It was amazing that Eli was even conscious after taking such punishment.
This served as a testament to insanity of a Kamad's physical abilities, this was pretty beyond superhuman and downright inhuman. Not surprising as Eli was anything but human.
"You holding up alright, big man?" Erik asked.
"I've been better…just…please…for fuck's sake…no more xenomorphs please" Eli panted. As of this moment, acid burns were his least favourite injuries by far.
"Duly Noted" Erik replied with a smirk before he stood up straight and felt his back click.
"You took a beating back there…more so than the rest of us, are you sure you'll be ok?" Erik asked. Eli was by far the best fighter they had right now, their metaphorical big gun, and he needed to make sure the Kamad was still ready to fight.
"Well…my healing abilities will be…much slower for now…all I need is a long fucking rest and I'll…be back to 100%" Eli panted, his reptilian tongue almost hanging out his mouth as he exhaled. Erik noted that Eli's exhaled sounded less like a human panting and more like a crocodile exhaling on the Nile.
Yet another alien feature that the Myrmidon hadn't noticed before.
The Myrmidon Major had to admit that bieng impressed in Eli's skill was an understatement. It would have usually taken an entire squadron of Myrmidons to do what he did, navigate and fight his way through a hostile Xenomorph hive that knew he was there. The Kamad proved his mettle.
"Now…Let's get back to the others…we've got to get moving" Erik said as he shouldered his pulse rifle and began to walk.
The group didn't walk, but more like broke into a brisk jog. Eli uncharacteristically lagging behind the others as he still had slight limp in his walk. Norma ended up having to help the Tired out Kamad walk, after all the shit he went through in the rescue mission, it was only fair he had earned a bit of help walking.
The sound of metallic boots impacting upon the tiled floors was welcome sound to all, as the squelching sound of xenomorph resin was far behind them.
Little did they know…they had not earned their rest yet. Crueller things than Xenomorphs were on the hunt right now.
The sound of clawed feet and hooves galloping upon the metallic floor echoed throughout the halls. The clanking of armour plates and weaponry jangling against one another served as a death rattle, a warning for the coming bloodbath.
The Black Yautja hunting party charged through the hallways of the Asclepheus at full gallop, their Hell Steeds proving to be the perfect transportation through the terrain of the ship. In any other circumstance, the Tram system would be faster, but they had to find their prey first.
And the Hell Hounds were right on the scent.
The Twins were acting very focused. As expert Kamad hunters they had learned to get themselves in the right mindset for tracking, fighting and killing the alien warriors. Which was no easy feat considering the Physical, strategical and technological prowess of Kamads, especially their Elites.
Finding a warrior in the Universe that could give a Kamad Elite a run for his money was pretty hard, probably because those that fought the Elites didn't last very long. The word around the universe was that if you ever got in a fight with an Elite, you had better have a grave dug, because soon you would be filling it with what's left of you.
Then again, warriors that killed Elites weren't unheard of.
The Twins were examples of Warriors who had managed to bring down Elites, emphasis on the plural. Qul'Tan's Machete used to belong to a Kamad warrior as it was forged out of Kamad steel, Tra'Zen had a Kamad Skull mounted on one of his shoulders, not to mention his halberd blade was made of Kamad steel.
The Twins were dangerous, they had managed to kill prey that many of the other Veteran Hunters hadn't. It was almost scary to the other Black Yautja, the Twins weren't Elder age or even Veteran age. In fact, by Black Yautja standards they were still quite young.
At the age of the Pale Twins, most Black Yautja would have only just become Full Blooded hunters. Yet they had done more in their time than most Elites, this was probably because their master was one of the most infamous Hunters in their race's history.
It would be no surprise that if in a hundred years' time, that the two would be given the chance to start their own clans. Hunters of great accomplishment would often be rewarded in ways such as this, and the Pale Twins had already made a name and reputation for themselves.
Tra'Kan had to admit, those two may have been on his side: But they fucking scared him down to the bone. Even more than Lin'Theiw, who was a well-known cannibal.
The Hunting Party had been hot on the trails of their quarry for a while now. It was only a matter of time until the Hell Hounds caught up. All the Hunters in question were ready.
Tra'Kan, the Blood Bringer; the right hand of Lord Ma'Zax. His Cybernetic arm ready for the task of cleaving through Kamad flesh. His will hardened after letting his guard down last time.
Lin'Theiw, the Butcher. The Devourer of flesh and the cleaver of lesser Yautja. He had been itching for a taste of Kamad flesh since they had set off, and the glowing tinge of Yautja blood adorning his armour gave him a Ghoulish appearance.
Mh'Jax, the Breaker. The brutish Tank of a Black Yautja. His thick black armour and his grizzly looking war mace looking more than ready for battle and death. War, blood and mayhem were his domain and soon he would be home.
Yul'Tran, the Tracker. The Hunt master, almost part Hell Hound in his tracking methods. His Pack of Hell Hounds ready to gnaw upon the bones of their prey as he was about as ready to cleave flesh with his wristblades.
And last but certainly not least.
Qul'Tan and Tra'Zen, the Pale Twins. The Albino Black Yautja, their appearance almost a contradiction to the name of their species. Their alabaster hides making them standout like the great white whale himself in an ocean of black. Qul'Tan had his bow at the ready and the cybernetic eyepiece of his mask going through its vision and aiming patterns. Tra'Zen, itching to swing his great Halberd and create his favourite musical tone; the Symphony of screams and death cries.
It wouldn't be long now, they were red hot on the trail.
It was only a matter of time.
Ramirez had always prided himself on his great eyesight. Even before the Myrmidon strain enhanced it beyond the capabilities of normal humans, he had great sight. Always passed his sight tests, never once needed glasses. To say he had 20/20 eyesight was an understatement.
Most Hawks and Eagles had worse sight than the Spanish sniper.
So, it was pretty much a dam deal that he wasn't seeing things when he saw the approaching figures of Erik, Eli, Sha'ra, Norma, Sasha and the Dark Blades approaching from down the hall.
"Baako! It's the Major!" the Spanish sniper called out to his fellow Myrmidons.
It didn't take long for the remaining Myrmidons to come scurrying down the halls, followed close by many of the Yautja, including Xen'Tau and his recently recovered Nephew Yeyinde. The young Yautja male had earned himself a very obvious looking scar on his chest, where Ramirez's armour piercing shell had pierced his chest.
The Myrmidons and the Yautja were all impressed by Ramirez's eyesight. As they could barely make put the shapes of their approaching allies from so far away.
"Is it me or should there be 8 of them…not 7?" Hanzo asked out loud.
Zen'Tau and Baako both broke out into sprints towards the group. Baako, being the leader in Erik's absence, was eager to make sure all his allies were still alive. Zen'Tau was concerned for the Dark Blades, but he also wanted to be sure that his niece was alive and well.
It didn't take long for the rest of the Yautja and Myrmidons to catch up, Sophie in tow with Dexter perched on her shoulder. Blair however was absent from the group. Erik and Sasha took off their helmets and under armed them, the Yautja followed suits by removing their Bio-Masks.
"Well, well, well…aren't you fuckers a sight for sore eyes!?" Baako announced loudly as he threw his arms around Erik in a brotherly embrace.
"Welcome back Major" Hanzo lightly bowed his head to Erik.
"Good to be back" Erik replied as him and Baako let each other go.
Baako and the other Myrmidons looked around before their faces dropped, Baako asked in a fearful voice "Where's Vlad?"
Erik lowered his gaze before putting a hand on Baako's shoulder. The two Myrmidons shared a long look in each other's eyes. The look that Erik gave Baako was full of contemplation, his eyes said everything that needed to be said without saying a syllable.
Baako was as close to Vlad and Erik as humans could get. They grew up together, learnt together, fought together and bled together. They were basically brothers in everything but blood.
Erik nodded, Baako nodded back.
"Did…did he go well?" Baako asked.
"He went out the way he lived, screaming at the top of his lungs over minigun fire" Erik smirked, earning a chuckle from all the present Myrmidons.
"SHA'RA!" Zen'Tau yelled as he sprinted towards his niece, throwing his arms around her and picking her up off the ground.
"Uncle!?" Sha'ra gasped in surprise at her Uncle's behaviour.
"Sister!" Yeyinde quickly caught up, followed by the rest of the hunting party. Once Zen'Tau let Sha'ra back down on the floor, she was promptly scooped up by her Brother in a weaker hug.
"Hey! Don't exert yourself! You'll open up those wounds!" Sophie shouted after Yeyinde.
"Uh…Oh…Sorry" Yeyinde put his sister down and scratched the back of his head like he was being scolded by a teacher.
"Good to see you up and about, Big Man" Erik walked up to Yeyinde.
"Are you…Erik?" Yeyinde asked, looking down at the Myrmidon. When Erik nodded yes, the Large Yautja bent down and wrapped his large arms around him in an embrace.
"Thank you…thank you for protecting my sister" Yeyinde said before backing up. Erik was surprised to hear Yeyinde speak in almost fluent English, then again Sha'ra and Zen'Tau were fluent English speakers, maybe they told him.
"Don't worry Big Man. Your sister is a…well…she's a special gal" Erik replied, directing a smirk at the Huntress in question.
Norma wrapped her arms around Sophie in a powerful hug, one which Sophie was quick to tap out of, knowing Norma's newly found Kamad strength.
"Sorry, still getting used to my strength" Norma scratched the back of her head.
"Is it me…or do you keep getting taller?" Sophie looked up at the Hybrid.
"I missed you too Soph" Norma smiled. Dexter hopped from Sophie's shoulder onto Norma's and began to snuggle up to his master.
"Hey Dex, Oh I have missed you! I see you two have actually gotten closer" Norma smirked at Sophie.
"What can I say? With all the shit that's been going on lately, The Monkey isn't so bad" Sophie smiled as she reached out and starched Dexter behind his ears.
"Out of curiosity, how did he take waking up with just you in the room?" Norma asked, nodding to Yeyinde.
"Well…I'm not dead, that's a plus" Sophie smiled.
As Sophie and Norma continued to talk, Zen'Tau approached Erik and looked down on the Myrmidon Major.
"…You kept your word" Zen'Tau stated.
"I told you I would bring her back" Erik replied, holding the Elder's gaze.
"Indeed, you did…" Zen'Tau said before he leaned in to Erik's ear.
"No matter what the others say…you proved yourself. I was wrong…You proved your worth…Erik" Zen'tau for the first time, called the Major by his name.
"Did…did you just?" Erik whispered back.
"You brought her back, you have earned my respect and my trust" Zen'Tau whispered before backing up and standing up straight again.
"No offence, but I did it for her" Erik replied in the most respectful tone he could muster.
Zen'Tau narrowed his eyes before turning his gaze toward Sha'ra who was busy talking with her brother. For the longest time, Sha'ra had been a very restricted child, ever since her parents' deaths. She only really showed positive emotions in the company of Zen'Tau or Yeyinde, but ever since meeting Erik she had…changed.
Sha'ra seemed happy again. Despite being on the hellish confines of the Asclepheus, she looked happy and just like the little pup that Zen'Tau remembered her being when her parents were alive.
Zen'Tau looked back at Erik, who at this point was looking at Sha'ra, a soft smile on his face as he gazed at the Huntress. Zen'Tau had seen that look on many young males in his time, his brother held the same look when he met the Huntress that would one day become his life-mate.
It was the look of a man, in love.
Zen'Tau grunted, getting Erik's attention again. The Elder leaned in and whispered.
"If you ever hurt her. No god in the heavens will save you from me" Zen'Tau growled.
"…You would have every right to do so" Erik replied. The conversation, if you wanted to call it that, was cut short when Eli approached the two leaders with a slight limp.
"Where is Rezeal?" Eli asked, still holding his aching side.
"Your friend? We haven't seen him for a while" Zen'Tau replied.
"I think Rez said he was going to check up on Blair" Sophie replied, stepping up to Eli.
"Good, I don't trust that slippery bastard. Something about him doesn't smell right" Eli replied.
"You lot must be tired. You look like you could use some rest" Sophie said, observing the way Eli was moving.
"I could fucking use it…By Eleran I could just…" Eli stopped in the middle of his sentence, his face froze in a position of shock.
"Uh…Eli? Are you ok?" Erik asked before he noticed the slits on the side of Eli's nose going haywire.
The sound of Eli sniffing got louder as he closed his eyes and his head darted around like he was possessed. After a few seconds, Eli's mandibles flared open, revealing the huge sets of inner nostrils inside his maw.
"Eli…what is it?" Erik asked.
"…Black Yautja…coming this way…fast" Eli replied, his mandibles still flared open.
"Myrmidons! Get ready for a fight!" Erik ordered as he put on his helmet and put down the faceplate.
"You won't have to wait for very long" Eli said as he readied his Katana.
Erik listened closely and he swore he could hear the sounds of Galloping hoofs on the floor. By the way Eli started snarling and baring his mandibles, that was not a good sign.
"DEFENSIVE POSITIONS!" Erik shouted at the top of his lungs. The Myrmidons immediately sprung to action, hoisting up their rifles and donning their helmets.
Zen'Tau roared a few words in Yautja and the Hunters all sprung to action. Erik assumed he was giving them orders much like he gave his squad. Sha'ra donned her Bio-Mask and extended her glaive, giving it a few flourishes before approaching her brother, whom was re-equipping his armour and weaponry.
"Yeyinde, don't do anything stupid, you are still healing" Sha'ra spoke to her brother in their shared tongue.
"I'm fine, sister. I'm not made of glass"
"I don't want you getting hurt" she continued.
"What kind of Yautja would I be if I let my uncle and my sister do all the fighting?" Yeyinde asked, putting his hand on Sha'ra's shoulder.
"Paya…you are so much like Father" Sha'ra smirked at her brother's stubborn attitude.
"And you are so much like Mother" Yeyinde smiled back.
Five minutes passed as the Yautja and the Myrmidons got into a defensive position. Using tables and metal wall panels to create barricades. The Myrmidons taking kneeling and crouched positions behind the barricades while the Yautja took standing positions, ready to spring into close quarters at a moment's notice.
Eli however was taking a different approach; he held both Katanas in his grasp, his armour and wounds fully regenerated and a scowl plastered across his face. Eli was never one to fight at a range, close quarters was where a Kamad belonged.
Even though Norma and Sophie both told him he wasn't fit to fight, the Kamad was too stubborn to listen.
He stood his ground like a warrior should.
The sound of galloping hooves and clawed feet on steel floor came to a slow treading sound. The riders had slowed down and soon came into view around the corner of the hallway. Eli took a deep sniff of the air, and he defiantly recognised one of the scents.
The figures on horseback came into view.
Black Yautja eyes made contact with the golden reptilian eyes of a Kamad prince.
"Well, well, well…it can't be…but it is! It's the prince of the Lizards himself! And with some new friends I see" Tra'Kan announced in Yautja as he reigned his Hellsteed in.
The Black Yautja all halted as Tra'Kan raised his cybernetic hand in a closed fist.
The Hell hounds even halted when Yul'Tran whistled at a high pitch.
"Tra'Kan…long time no see…how's the hand?" Eli sneered back in fluent Yautja.
"Much better actually! This beauty doesn't have the same feel of my old arm…but it will do just fine killing you" Tra'Kan replied, extending his wristblades. Qul'Tan leaned forward on his hellsteed and peering at the Prince before him.
"You must be Eli" the Pale Black Yautja smiled behind his mask.
"I am…you must be the Pale Twins…I've heard quite a bit about you two" Eli pointed his Katana at Qul'Tan and Tra'Zen.
"Oh really? What are the denizens of the Empire saying about us?" Qul'Tan asked with an excited tone.
"You two are at the top of the Empire's most wanted list. Scum, Murderers, Maniacs…and that's me being nice" Eli replied.
"Well…it's good to see our reputation proceeds us" Qul'Tan smiled.
"And what exactly are these? You've made friends with a bunch of our lesser kin? And are those Oomans in that black armour?" Tra'Kan asked, scanning the Yautja and the Myrmidons.
"Yeah…it looks like the odds are more even than they were last time" Eli replied, flourishing his Katana.
"It doesn't matter…they'll die the same as you" Tra'Kan growled, flexing his metallic fingers.
"Eli? Translation please!" Erik shouted over the barricades. Erik spoke a few languages, but nothing alien.
"Ah, the Oomans finally speak" Qul'Tan announced in English as Erik spoke up.
"Major Erik Reaver, United Systems Myrmidon corps, Alpha Squad" Erik stood up.
"You must be the Ooman leader…I'll enjoy putting your head on my wall" Qul'Tan smiled behind his mask.
"Myrmidon? Myrmidon? Are those Myrmidons? So, you are the Oomans that gave our lesser kin such a hard time in the war?" Tra'Kan asked with a laugh in his tone. Sha'ra, Yeyinde, Zen'Tau and any other Yautja that understood English let out audible growls.
"Why don't you come off your horse and we'll show you a fucking hard time?" Sasha growled as she pointed her shotgun at Tra'Kan. She had lost a comrade today…she was not in the mood for them.
"Is that a female? Huh…I thought our females were large" Qul'Tan laughed.
"You have about 5 seconds to turn back before I carve you into little pieces" Eli growled as he lowered his stance as if ready to pounce.
"Oh, we will have time to do that in a bit. But right now, someone wants to talk to you" Tra'Kan announced as he pulled out a large disc from one of his saddle bags. The Black Yautja threw the disc onto the floor, upon where he pressed a few buttons on his wristbrace.
The disc suddenly came to life as a series of blue lasers jetted out from the disc. The lasers creating the form of an old Black Yautja in a long flowing cape and well used ceremonial style armour. The Black Yautja's scales looked paled and he was missing on his four Mandibles, along with a long scar over the left side of his face.
"Ah…you must be Eli" the Black Yautja spoke.
Eli immediately recognised that voice. He hadn't met the elder face to face, but he defiantly recognised the voice from when he cut off Tra'Kan's arm.
This must have been Elder Ma'Zax.
"And you must be Ma'Zax" Eli said in English, he wanted everyone to know who this Black Yautja was. Zen'tau's attention perked when he heard the name and saw the Elder's hologram.
"I must say…I'm quite disappointed. I expected a tall, strong Kamad worthy of your reputation…not the worn-out dreg I see in front of me. Is the trek across the ship giving his royal highness fatigue?" Ma'Zax asked with a smile on his mandibles.
Eli bared his teeth and let out a low grumbling growl.
"What the fuck do you want?" Eli growled, his grip on his Katanas tightening.
"Well, a few days ago I wanted your heads delivered to me on a silver platter. But right now, I find myself in a bit of a pickle as the Oomans call it. I require a member of staff from the Asclepheus crew…but seeing as the vast majority of them are either dead or in escape pods floating in the vastness of space, I find my options limited" Ma'Zax spoke calmly with his hands behind his back.
"Get to the point" Erik announced loudly.
"I am willing to let you and the rest of your mongrel friends live…if you give up whatever members of Asclepheus staff hide amongst you. Tra'Kan has informed me that at least three of them travel with you. Hand them over to my men and you will be allowed to leave this ship with your lives in tact" Ma'Zax offered with a toothy grin.
Norma held Sophie close to her behind the Barricades, the voice of Tra'Kan was a terrifying one to the both of them. The two females hid as best as they could, but it was no use. The Black Yautja had technology above that of the Myrmidon Corps or the Yautja, seeing through a Metal barricade wouldn't be that difficult.
Tra'Kan was one thing…but that other Yautja, Qul'Tan…Norma had taken some courses in Psychology, she knew how the human mind worked, and through interaction with Sha'ra and some of the other Yautja she had a basic understanding of how Yautja worked. Qul'Tan did not sound like a stable individual, his inflections, the way he emphasised his words and the body language he displayed…and the faint smell of Kamad blood on his aroma did not fill Norma with confidence.
If her and Sophie were given over to the Black Yautja…they wouldn't last long.
Sha'ra saw the way Sophie was cowering into Norma. Leaning forward she put a hand on the Human's shoulder and whispered "It's alright…Eli won't give either of you up"
Norma replied with a fear of her own.
"I know…it's what I'm afraid of"
Eli was NOT in any condition to fight. After the amount of physical damage, he took when fighting the Xenomorphs, he was nowhere near 100%. And the scent of Kamad blood following Qul'Tan and the other Albino Black Yautja made Norma think they were not new to killing Kamads.
Out of the corner of Sha'ra's eye, she saw a few of her fellow Yautja eyeing Norma and Sophie, as if considering that they should throw them to the wolves to save their own hides.
Meanwhile Eli was staring down with the hologram of the Black Yautja Elder.
"What do you want with this ship?" Eli asked.
"…Excuse me?" Ma'Zax replied.
"The Asclepheus. I understand that it's a large ship with a lot of potential, but other than that why would you go through this much trouble just to get it? It's something other than a ship…isn't it?" Eli asked with a furrowed brow, trying his best to get answers.
Ma'Zax's eyebrows raised, his eyes widening in surprise, as if shocked by the Prince's question.
"You…You don't know what this ship is…do you? You haven't the slightest clue!" Ma'Zax began to laugh as he realized that the Kamad prince had no idea what the Asclepheus was.
"Stop laughing and tell me!" Eli growled, his grip on his swords tightening.
"AHAHAHA, Oh…oh my…this is priceless. The Kamad Prince that thought he knew the Universe finds that he is just as clueless as his under evolved peers. Oh…this must be quite embarrassing to you" Ma'Zax replied with a chuckle.
"Stop laughing and tell me you idiot!" Eli growled. The smile slowly fell from Ma'Zax's face, replaced with a grin.
"You are in no position to be making demands" Ma'Zax replied as two triple laser sights appeared on Eli's chest. Two of the Black Yautja hunters had their plasmacasters trained on him, ready to fire at a moment's notice.
"This ship is beyond the comprehension of the idiotic Oomans that recovered its wreck. Its uses are vast beyond its use as a simple transport. That is all the information you will receive from me…now…hand over the Oomans I requested" Ma'Zax smiled as he spoke. The Black Yauja Elder must have loved the sound of his own voice.
Eli looked back at Norma, she was looking at Eli with fear in her eyes. He had just been through hell to rescue her from the Xenomorphs. And weak or not, he was not going to let these bastards take her.
Not as long as he had a breath in his body.
Or a Katana in his hand.
"Over my dead body" Eli growled before flourishing his Katana into a reverse grip and bringing it down on the device projecting Ma'Zax's image.
The hologram of the Black Yautja Elder fizzled out once the Kamad steel blade sliced through the projection device. Once the Prince made short work of the device he heard the tell-tale sound he was expecting.
*WIIIIIIIICRACK!*
A blue plasma bolt streaked through the air towards Eli, the Kamad using his honed reflexes to dodge out of the way, but was immediately hit square in the chest by the second that he didn't see.
The plasma bolt exploded upon contact with Eli's armour, the searing heat melting the metallic surface of his armour and the sheer force of the bolt sending him off his feet. If Eli was at 100% he may have been able to stand his ground.
But in his weakened state, the Kamad was sent falling to his back with a smoking hole burned into his chest.
"Yul'Tran" Tra'Kan announced.
"The Kamad is ours…let the hounds take care of the rest" Qul'Tan ordered.
The Tracker growled before letting out a loud roar. The Tracker's Hellhounds were already salivating and growling lowly. The pack bolted at the sound of their master's roar, galloping towards the Myrmidons and the Yautja.
Eli would have tried to stop the Hellhounds, but the state he was in made it difficult for him to even stand back up.
The Myrmidons and the Yautja opened fire upon the charging Hellhounds, some of the pulse rounds and plasma bolts finding their mark. Black Hellhound blood splattered onto the floor as the reptilian quadrupeds were riddled with holes.
However, Hellhounds were built to survive a hell of a lot of damage. Like a spider's leg would twitch when separated from its body, Hellhounds were hardwired to keep going.
"CLOSE QUARTERS!" Erik shouted as he holstered his pulse rifle on his back. Unsheathing his blade, Erik swung it at the Hellhound that leaped at him.
With a spray of black blood, the Hellhound's right front leg was cleaved from its body.
The other Hellhounds quickly leapt and bounded over the barricades and engaged the Myrmidons and Yautja in close quarters combat.
As Eli finally got to his feet, he saw the approaching Black Yautja Hunters. Many of the Black Yautja Hunters without much personal flair, about 15, dismounted their Hellsteeds and began to approach on foot.
Tra'Kan, The Twins, The Tracker, The Breaker, The Butcher and another five Black Yautja Elites all stayed on their Hellsteeds, content with watching for the time being.
Every one of the Black Yautja Hunters, with the exception of Qul'Tan and Yul'Tran, was clad in Black plate armour, it would be much harder to inflict serious injuries on these Hunters as they usually wore very lightweight leather and hides on their hunts.
These Hunters however were not equipped to hunt. They were on the warpath.
Eli stood, supporting himself with his Katanas like they were walking sticks. Scowling at the Black Yautja, his Helmet revolved around his head, shielding him from any attacks that might be directed at his face.
"Come on them" Eli growled.
Two Hunters lunged at him with their wristblades extended.
Eli blocked the attacks with his blades, sparks flying from the contact of Yautja steel against Kamad steel. The Monomolecular blades of the Wristblades creating vibrant sparks of electricity against the plasma forged Ultra-dense blades of Eli's Katanas.
With a few pained grunts, Eli staggered back, sweat already beginning to pour down his face from behind his helmet.
The Hunters growled at they advanced, feeling confident in their skills.
Eli used that confidence against them as he quickly rolled past the two Hunters, switched his Katanas into a reverse grip and drove both blades into the backs of their necks.
Black Yautja were durable, but not durable enough to survive that.
The two Hunters dropped to their knees, spluttering green luminescent blood onto the floor. Eli growled before swapping one of his Katanas into a standard grip. Spinning on the spot and with a flash of steel he decapitated both spluttering hunters.
Both the heads tumbled to the floor as their headless stumps sprayed glowing green blood into the air like fountains.
Eli glared at the other Hunters before giving a long and loud roar. Some of the Hunters took a step back, evidently the Kamad even in a weakened state was still deadly.
"Oh, for Paya's sake. You lot go deal with the Oomans and lesser kin, we'll take care of the Prince" Tra'Kan groaned as he dismounted.
Lin'Theiw, Tra'Zen and Mh'Jax all dismounted from their Hellsteeds. The Butcher drawing and flourishing his knives, Tra'Zen cracking his knuckles and Mh'Jax flourishing his Mace.
"Come on then…who's first?" Eli growled.
"Oh…How Adorable" Tra'Kan grinned before his plasmacaster powered up and quickly fired three bolts at the Kamad Prince. Eli's eyes widened, bringing his swords up the Kamad blocked two of the three with his blades, the third hitting him square in his right leg.
With a flash of blue plasma and a spray of Blue luminescent blood, Eli yelled in pain as he fell to one knee. A Smouldering wound had been burned into his right thigh, burnt flesh exposed so deeply one would be able to see bone. The fibre leggings that Eli wore didn't offer as much protection as the armour on his chest and arms.
The Kamad fibre mesh leggings that Eli wore were made for flexibility and mobility, but they were not made to stand the impact of the Black Yautja plasma bolt.
Smoke rose from the smouldering wound on Eli's leg.
Standing would hurt like a bitch right now.
Eli grunted with pain as blue luminescent blood dripped from his wound.
The 15 Black Yautja Elites ran past the kneeling Eli with their wristblades and weapons at the ready, charging at the Yautja and the Myrmidons whom were already battling the Hellhounds.
Eli looked up to see Mh'Jax approaching him. This Black Yautja was a freak of Nature, taller than Eli by at least two feet. A thick wall of muscle encased in black armour, his bio-mask adorned with the bones of slain prey.
And the grizzly mace he was holding didn't fill Eli with confidence.
"I believe I'm next, Lizard" Mh'Jax chuckled sinisterly as he flourished his mace.
"Fuck my life" Eli muttered to himself.
It was absolute chaos behind the barricades, once the Black Yautja Hunters got into the fray it became a full blown no holds barred brawl.
Yautja hunters were brawling with their larger, more aggressive, better armed Cousins. The Myrmidons were caught in the crossfire, trying to hold their own, and the Hell Hounds were causing chaos everywhere they were.
Norma held Sophie close to her and tried to dodge and avoid any stray blades, Pulse rounds, plasma bolts or claws.
The utter chaos that was transpiring was harrowing for both Norma and Sophie, the blonde human especially whom had never been this close to battle before. Dexter was huddled inside of Sophie's lab coat, trying to stay as safe as possible during the battle.
"Stay low Soph, just stick close to me ok?" Norma held Sophie close as they tried to navigate through the chaotic battlefield the hallway had just become. Sprays of green blood came from every direction, the sound of Plasmacasters discharging along with pulse fire rang through their ears. The roaring of both Yautja species echoing through the halls.
A Huge, almost 8-foot Yautja hunter dropped dead in front of Norma and Sophie, making an almighty thud upon its landing upon the floor. Sophie almost screamed as the corpse missed them by an inch.
The Hunter had been run through and had a large portion of its face blown off by Plasmacaster fire.
Norma decided to hoist Sophie up Bridal style, using her newly acquired Kamad strength. Sophie felt as light as a feather as the Hybrid hoisted her up. Norma ran past the corpse in their way and quickly got out of the immediate danger.
Before Sophie and Norma knew it, a large hulking 9-foot Black Yautja in full plate armour was stood in front of them. Wristblades on both arms extended, it walked towards the two with one arm raised.
The Black Yautja growled something in its mother tongue before it lunged at the two.
Norma had flashbacks to that first night of the attack, only Eli wouldn't be able to save them this time. Closing her eyes and waiting for the inevitable.
*CLANG!*
Norma opened her eyes to see the Black armoured form of Erik, his red headdress being the only indicator that it was him. The Myrmidon Major had blocked the strike with his sword and was grunting under the power of the Hunter in front of him.
"What the hell are you two doing!? Run!" Erik yelled back at them before using all his strength to push the Black Yautja off him.
Norma immediately booked it past as Erik lunged at the Black Yautja with a flurry of strikes of his own. Myrmidon Dura-Steel clashing against Black Yautja steel, sparks filling the air as Metal clashed against Metal.
Erik and the Hunter duelled for a good half a minute. The Hunter was strong, vicious and merciless in its attacks, though it did have several chinks in its armour. Using all his strength and his body weight, Erik threw himself at the Black Yautja, driving his blade into its gut.
The blade got caught in the armour, but it managed to pierce through the heavy plate. Green glowing blood pouring from the newly formed wound.
Erik pulled the creature in close, drawing his revolver and pressing the barrel against the underside of the Black Yautja's head. The Hunter let out a confused grunt before Erik pulled the trigger.
*BANG!*
A spray of glowing green, and the Black Yautja's brains were blown into the air.
Erik pressed his foot to the Hunter's chest and yanked his blade out of its gut. The Myrmidon then put another round in its head for good measure, he had heard stories about how durable Yautja could be, so he could only imagine how durable their larger cousins were.
"Sha'ra!" Erik shouted out, trying to get a beat on where the Huntress was.
Before he could get a reply, a Hell Hound leapt onto Erik's chest and pushed him down onto the ground. Using the Blunt side of his sword, Erik kept the creature from getting his fangs around his neck.
The Hell Hound slobbered and drooled all over Erik's helmet visor. The smell would have been absolutely foul if his helm wasn't airtight and pressurized.
Erik grimaced, he didn't want to meet his end at the jaws of such a hideous beast as the one trying to gnaw on his jugular right now.
Suddenly the creature's sounds of growling and grunting was replaced with a sudden squeal as a blade emerged from its mouth. Blackened blood dripped onto Erik's visor before his saviour pushed it off and tore the blade from its skull.
"You looked like you needed some help" Sha'ra held out her hand to Erik which he gratefully took.
The Huntress pulled the Major to his feet.
"Are you ok?" Sha'ra asked.
"Yeah, yeah fine…DUCK!" Erik grabbed Sha'ra and pulled her down to the ground as a Plasma bolt raced past the space her head previously occupied.
The two landed in a very precarious position, Erik on bottom with the Huntress laying on top of him. His arm around her waist and her hand on his shoulder.
"Uhm…Hi" Erik chuckled behind his visor.
"RRAAAAAAAGH!" a Black Yautja Hunter charged at them from behind, hoisting a spear above its head, ready to bring it down and impale the both of them. Sha'ra saw the reflection in Erik's visor and quickly acted.
Sha'ra's Plasmacaster came to life and Erik drew both his Revolvers. Erik hit all the joints in the Hunter's armour, the joints in the knees especially.
*WHIIIIIIICRACK!*
Sha'ra's Plasma bolt hit the Hunter square in the face, destroying the Hunter's Bio-Mask.
The Hunter let out one angry snarl before a second Plasma Bolt blew his face off. The Hunter feel lifelessly to his knees with a clatter of armour before faceplanting on the ground. The green luminescent blood pooling on the ground beneath him.
"I think we had better get off the ground" Sha'ra replied to Erik.
"Good plan" the Myrmidon Major replied.
The Major and the Huntress quickly got to their feet, weapons in hand and concentration back on the fight.
"We have to get to Eli. He's not in any condition to be fighting right now" said Erik, gripping his sword tightly in both hands as he and Sha'ra dodged and ducked through the battlefield.
"We can't just leave our people here Erik. They won't last long against these Hunters" Sha'ra replied.
"We can't leave Eli either. He needs us!" Erik replied with a hint of anger in his tone.
Eli on the other hand was not doing as well as he should have been.
*CLANG!*
*CLANG!*
The Kamad Prince was using all his remaining strength to block or at least parry the Mace swings of the hulking behemoth known as Mh'Jax the Breaker. If Eli's swords were not made of Kamad steel they would have broken under the immense force behind the Black Yautja Elite's weapon.
The Mace was obviously tailor made for the hulking brute. It looked like it was made not only to crush skulls, but to make it slow and painful at the same time. It was more of a Morningstar than a Mace in the design of its head. A large cylindrical piece of metal with grizzly looking spikes and blades protruding from it.
Eli did NOT want to get hit full force by that thing, regenerating ability or not.
"Stay still you little runt!" Mh'Jax roared as he winded for a powerful downward swing.
*CLANG!*
Mh'Jax's mace imbedded itself in the floor, the tough Yautja steel creating a crater in the floor beneath him. Eli had just managed to dash out of the way of the Black Yautja's attack.
The pain of Eli's leg wound was close to unbearable, but the Kamad grinded his teeth and soldiered on. Eli leapt onto Mh'Jax's mace and used it to vault up in the air and kick the hulking brute in the face.
*CRACK!*
Even with his bio-mask attached, Mh'Jax reeled back at the impact, ripping his mace from the floor and taking a few steps back. The Black Yautja's Bio-Mask had a noticeable crack in the eye piece and by his stance he was obviously rattled.
Mh'Jax was a brute, but even a brute wouldn't be able to shrug off a kick from a full grown Kamad.
"What's the Matter!? Can't take a hit!?" Eli snarled at the Black Yautja who began to chuckle.
"Oh, now this is getting interesting!" Mh'Jax chuckled before sprinting full force at Eli.
Eli rolled out of the way of the Hulking brute. All this dodging, ducking and dashing was taking a lot of energy out of him. He wouldn't be able to keep this up for very long.
Eli did everything he could to avoid the flurry of Mh'Jax's attacks. It got harder and harder with the more movements he took. Mh'Jax on the other hand was fresh as a daisy and had stamina to spare.
It wasn't long until Mh'Jax's mace finally made contact.
*CLANG!*
The Black Yautja clocked Eli across the face. The Mace breaking off armour plates from Eli's helmet with an ear shattering clang. Eli's visor broke, the enhanced vision and digital HUD immediately disabled as the visor cracked. Eli almost felt his neck snap from the sheer force behind the impact.
The Kamad prince fell to the floor, his grip on his Katanas loosening, sending the swords clattering to the ground.
Eli's ears rang, his senses going haywire as he tried to stand up, but quickly falling back on his face.
"HA! Not so High and Mighty now are we!?" Mh'Jax growled with glee as he walked up to Eli.
The Kamad prince was not looking good, segments of his helmet scattered all over the floor around him, his ears ringing, the entire right side of his face felt numb.
Mh'Jax reached down and grabbed a handful of Eli's dreadlocks. The Black Yautja Elite picked Eli up from the ground until he was a few inches off the ground. This served as a testament to the sheer size and strength of the Brute, Eli was by no means small or light, he was 9-foot-tall and would have been impossible for even a group of Myrmidons to pick up.
Eli let out a long and furious Yell of pain as he hung from his dreadlocks. The Kamad Elite snarled as he reached into the back of his belt and drew his Swabbie Dagger. Ramming the dagger into the gap of Mh'Jax's armour.
Right where his elbow would be.
"GRAAAAAGH!" Mh'Jax roared in pain as green glowing blood spilled from the wound.
Forced to drop the Kamad to his feet, Mh'Jax dropped his mace to cradle the bleeding wound. Eli however was pissed and shoulder tackled Mh'Jax with the last of his strength.
The sudden ferocity of Eli caught Mh'Jax off guard and the two were sent to the floor. Eli quickly straddled Mh'Jax, planting a foot on his still functioning hand and raising his dagger into the air, ready to finish it.
But before Eli got a chance to drive his blade into the throat of the Behemoth; an Armoured fist made contact with the side of his head, sending him flying off Mh'Jax and back to the ground.
As Eli tumbled across the floor, his armour clattering and coming off in certain places, he got a look at his second attacker.
It was the only Black Yautja present as big as Mh'Jax. It was the larger of the two Pale Twins.
Tra'Zen, the Speechless.
Eli immediately cursed his luck. Mh'Jax was well known amongst his people, but Tra'Zen and his brother were like the Bogeymen for Kamad children in the empire. Holding his dagger in a reverse grip, and waiting for the Pale Twin to attack.
"Mh'Jax, take a back seat for now. Let my Brother show you why you had to bring us along for this" Qul'tan smirked, leaning forward on his hellsteed.
Mh'Jax grunted, standing up and walking over to stand besides Tra'Kan and Lin'Theiw. The Large Black Yautja seemed to shrug off the pain that would drive a human insane, he reacted as if it were a bug sting, which spoke volumes of his pain tolerance.
Mh'Jax quickly took a position on the left side of Tra'Kan, probably because Lin'Theiw was giving him a very disturbing stare, drooling at the sight of freshly drawn blood.
Tra'Zen simple began to walk at a slow pace, his hands flexing at his sides, knuckles cracking as he approached. Eli's face was pouring sweat, his knees buckling and his wounds healing at such a snail's pace that there was no way they would heal in time.
Eli lunged at the approaching Black Yautja, his dagger bared. He wasn't going to show fear or weakness in this moment, no matter how much he was hurting.
But as soon as Eli got within range, the Hulking Black Yautja grabbed Eli by his dagger arm and by the throat. Eli struggled against Tra'Zen's grip, trying his best to get out of the Black Yautja's iron vice like grip.
Tra'Zen let go of Eli's throat.
Eli gasped for breath as Tra'Zen let go. But the Black Yautja's grip on his weapon arm was as strong as before. Tra'Zen reeled his right arm back for a punch, but just before he struck Eli's eyes widened in horror as the Black Yautja's gauntlet shifted and transformed into a power fist.
Power Fists were very destructive weapons that Yautja usually used to clearing away strong structures. Normally a Yautja could easily break through an inch or two of concrete bare handed, but the Power fist attachment would allow a Yautja to punch through a wall of solid concrete.
*THWACK!*
Tra'Zen's power fist made short work of the rest of Eli's helmet. The armour plates, the framing, the visor, everything that made up his helmet didn't stand a chance against the enhanced fist of Tra'Zen. Eli lost all feeling in the left side of his face after he swore he felt many of the bones that made up his mandibles snap.
Tra'Zen recoiled his fist, blue luminescent blood dripping from the gauntlet on his right hand. Eli swore he coughed up about a pint of blood along with half of his teeth. His nose was easily broken and he was blind in his left eye as the punch had easily broken his left orbital socket.
Tra'Zen deactivated the power fist and now grabbed Eli's right arm with both hands.
*SNAP!*
"AAAAAAAGH!" Eli roared out in pain as his right wrist was brutally snapped like a twig, bone protruding from initial break.
The Swabbie Dagger clattered to the ground. All feeling in his right hand was gone.
Tra'Zen pulled back and delivered a brutal kick to Eli's gut.
The Kamad Elite was sent reeling back, bleeding, bruised and beaten. Blood squirting out his recently snapped wrist. The pain of the kick to the gut was bad, and defiantly shifted some of Eli's innards around, but it dwarfed the pain of having his wrist snapped in two.
Grabbing his broken wrist, Eli snarled. He would have to snap his wrist back into place if he wanted it to even begin healing. Eli took a few long and deep breaths before grabbing his wrist and with one final deep breath.
*SNAP!*
"GRAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Eli's mandibles flared in sheer pain as he roared, loud enough for all to hear.
Tra'Zen simply stared at Eli with his arms crossed. His stance was that of not a Hunter, but a trained and battle-hardened warrior. His white armour and bio-mask didn't cover the fact that he was built like a brick wall. The larger of the Pale Twins was at least the same size as Mh'Jax, and seemed leaner than the Breaker.
Eli tried his best to stand up, his knees buckling and his right arm hanging limb at his side. Only his right eye seemed to be working as he was still blind in his left. Blue glowing blood poured from the open wounds on his wrist and right thigh. His mouth was bloody and half of his teeth were missing.
Eli was in really bad shape.
"Come on…I'm not done yet" Eli growled between deep breaths.
Qul'Tan laughed as his brother tilted his head to the side in a display of confusion. The Pale Twins had killed many Kamads in the past, but they were all at 100%. They had never seen a Kamad in such bad shape from the get go.
Then again, they were used to this 'never give in' mentality that all Kamads seemed to have.
"Defiant to the last…just what I expected from a Kamad, prince or not" Qul'Tan laughed.
"Finish him off, Brother" the smaller of the Pale Twins ordered.
Tra'Zen cracked his neck from side to side before reaching back and taking out a collapsed staff. In the blink of an eye the staff was extended to its full length.
Eli slowly walked forward to one of his Katanas, picking it up in his left hand.
Eli raised his Katana and got into the best fighting stance he could. Not saying much as he was probably in the worst state of his life.
"Come on!" Eli growled.
Tra'Zen began walking towards Eli, his walking quickly turned to a slow jog. Flourishing his staff, the Mute Yautja began to attack with precision and grace. Eli quickly realized that even at his best he would have trouble fighting an opponent of this skill.
Tra'Zen was not a mindless brute, nor was be a bruiser style fighter like Mh'Jax who left opening in his technique to increase the damage he dealt. Tra'Zen was like surgeon with his attacks.
Attacks that were putting Eli in a world of hurt.
Within a minute Eli was being battered senseless with Tra'Zen's staff, his insides felt like they were going to explode and he couldn't even think straight. Eli even swore that he felt his skull shift and loosen in several places.
Eli would have thanked his great ancestor Eleran for his Kamad pain threshold, if not for the fact that he had not yet passed out or been knocked unconscious yet.
With one particularly powerful staff strike, Eli was sent to the ground, crashing to his back. With a bleeding nose and a few less teeth. Eli only wished that his broken nose had somehow negated his highly developed sense of smell as the smell of his own blood was overpowering.
Eli's vision was blurred and his ears rang. Before the Prince even knew it, Tra'Zen was upon him again. The Pale Yautja stepped on Eli's left arm at the wrist, making it impossible for him to retaliate. However, Eli began to regain some feeling his right hand again as the nerves reconnected, allowing him to flex his fingers again.
But before Eli could utilize his newly healed hand.
*WIIIIIICRACK!*
…
…
…
"AAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Eli screamed at the top of his lungs as Tra'Zen shot a Plasma bolt at his left hand, completely destroying Eli's appendages, palms, knuckles and all. All that was left in place of Eli's left hand was a smouldering stump.
Eli's katana was untouched, but that was small potatoes compared to his missing hand.
Tra'Zen stepped away from Eli, allowing the prince to cradle his bleeding stump.
The Pale Twin reached back and retrieved his Kamad steel Halberd blade. Taking a few seconds to attach the blade to his staff, converting it to a Halberd.
Eli was in complete shock, he had never been in such a dire situation in his life. Never had an enemy pushed him this far.
Eli felt doubt begin to encroach upon him.
This may be the moment of his death.
But then, Eli's natural Kamad sense of pride kicked in. He wasn't going to curl up and die like some weeping pup. He was a Warrior, he was an Elite, he was a Kamad, a descendant of Eleran. His bloodline had suffered worse pain than this.
The Kamad's golden eyes shimmered before he slowly and painfully stood up.
Tra'Zen's head tilted to the side.
"Why do you continue to struggle? It's pointless, you don't stand a chance here Kamad" Qul'Tan laughed from his horse.
"I…Am Eli Vakran…son of Rokuro Vakran, Prince of the Kamad Empire and great descendant of Eleran…If you think…even for a second…that I will give up…then you know nothing of Kamads" Eli almost spat at the Black Yautja in front of him.
"Typical…Typical Kamad. Go on brother, his head is yours" Qul'Tan signalled to his Mute twin.
"…Go on then…finish it…if you have the balls" Eli snarled.
Tra'Zen raised his Halberd, the Kamad steel blade's edge shimmering in the light. Eli closed his eyes and took a deep steady breath. He was prepared.
He was going to die on his feet.
Like a Kamad.
…
…
…
*CLANG!*
Tra'Zen's Halberd blade struck the hard-metallic ground.
No blood was spilt.
All the Black Yautja looked on with wide eyes.
Eli had been tackled out of the way of the Silent Hunter's attack.
Another Kamad had entered the fray.
Eli opened his eyes to see his saviour, none other than his best friend and staunchest ally.
Rezeal.
"Honestly…where would you be without me?" Rezeal chuckled.
"Rez…what took you so fucking long?" Eli smirked.
"You are welcome. Now you just concentrate on healing" Rezeal replied, standing up and cracking his neck.
Tra'Zen tilted his head at the sight of the newly arrived, Black haired, black armoured Kamad with burning red eyes.
"And who the Pauk would you be?" Qul'Tan asked.
"Rezeal…just Rezeal" the Black haired Kamad replied with a flourish of his hookblade as he walked towards one of Eli's Katanas. Using his foot to flick the sword into his other hand, Rezeal gave the blade a long graceful flourish.
"I won't lie…I've always wanted to use one of these" Rezeal grinned as he went into a battle stance with his hookblade and Eli's Katana.
Eli grunted as he pulled himself into a sitting position against one of the walls, clutching his stump of a hand as it healed as best it could.
Tra'Zen charged at Rezeal with his Halberd in hand, in the blink of an eye the Kamad steel blade clashed. Sparks flying everywhere with each collision of the unbreakable steel. Rezeal fought with the grace that one would expect from a Kamad Elite, though Tra'Zen, despite his large size was just as quick and agile with a polearm.
The display was absolutely stunning, to see two huge alien warriors fighting each other with all they had. Though Rezeal tried to use his smaller size and agility to his advantages, regularly using Tra'Zen's Halberd to vault and attack from the air. The fighting style of Rezeal was quite unorthodox and was unrecognisable to any human watching.
Using his hookblade to grapple with opponents and bring them in close was a trademark of Rezeal's fighting style, and even though he was used to using a shorter blade than a Katana, he was till deadly.
Tra'Zen on the other hand was beginning to falter and show trouble handling this Kamad by himself. The Mute hunter could easily take care of a wounded and worn out Kamad by himself, but he was having trouble with an Elite at 100%.
Kamad Hunting after all wasn't easy, otherwise everyone would do it.
Qul'Tan noticed his brother faltering in his defense and quickly jumped off his Hellsteed. "Tra'Kan, Mh'Jax, Lin'Theiw! Make yourselves useful!" he yelled as he took out his bow.
Tra'Kan extended his wristblades, Mh'Jax readied his Mace and Lin'Theiw flourished his knives. The three Elite hunters charged Rezeal, the Kamad Elite's eyes widening as they did.
Rezeal's quick and highly trained reflexes went to work as he switched his strategy from offensive to defensive. A rather hard task to undertake as the numbers were not in his favour.
It didn't take long for first blood to be drawn as Lin'Theiw drove one of his daggers deep into Rezeal's side, glancing off his leather coat and piercing through his armour, into his ribcage. Rezeal growled in pain, blue blood spilling from the wound at a rapid rate.
The Black haired Kamad tail whipped the Butcher in the face, sending him reeling back. Lin'Theiw's bio-mask however took the brunt of the blow as he quickly regained his balance before reaching up and taking off said mask.
"Oh…I'm going to enjoy this!" the Butcher's long and serpentine tongue running along the length of his Kamad blood stained blade.
Rezeal already felt his wound sealing itself, not too much to worry about, but while the Butcher had his attention he had noticed all too late.
*WIIIIIICRACK!*
A Plasma bolt was launched from Tra'Kan's plasmacaster and sent hurdling straight into Rezeal's left knee.
"GRAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Rezeal roared out in pain as he swore he felt his kneecap split in two at the impact of the bolt.
Rezeal in his moment of weakness was quickly Shoulder tackled into a wall by the hulking form of Mh'Jax. Rezeal was huge by the standards of Humans and Yautja, but Mh'Jax was a wall of muscle, he easily managed to ram the Kamad elite into the wall. The metallic wall denting inwards at the force of impact.
Eli saw the trouble that Rezeal was in, and quickly rose to his feet, a little of his strength regained, not nearly enough to be even at 50%, but enough to move.
Eli picked up his other Katana and rushed to his friend's aid.
Tra'Kan was the first to notice the approaching prince, and a sinister grin appeared across his face.
"Oh, I've been waiting for this!" Tra'Kan charged at Eli and began unloading wristblades strikes at the Kamad. Sparks erupting from the clashing Yautja and Kamad steel.
Fighting one handed was something Eli would have no trouble with…if he wasn't currently seeping blood from most of his body, was blind in one eye and was running low on energy as it is. His regeneration was at its very limits, simply straining to stop blood gushing from his wounds.
Tra'Kan may have lost his arm to the Kamad Prince, but it was in this moment Eli realized why. Eli had gotten the drop on Tra'Kan in a moment of weakness when he took his arm, they hadn't actually fought until now, and it was obvious why Tra'Kan was Ma'Zax's second in command.
The Black Yautja was a strong and skilled fighter, stronger now due to his newly acquired cybernetic arm. Eli was quickly overpowered in terms of strength and had to resort to evading the attacks as opposed to blocking and parrying.
Tra'Kan, as if on purpose, began inflicting non-fatal wounds at every chance he could get. A cut across the cheek, a cut across the thigh, a piercing stab at what was obviously a body cavity. The Black Yautja just enjoyed seeing Eli wince and snarl in pain.
"Oh, I am Enjoying this!" Tra'Kan snarled before he kicked Eli's knee, forcing the Kamad to fall to one knee. The Black Yautja grabbed Eli's left-hand stump with his cybernetic hand and began squeezing. Blue luminescent blood dripping from the opened wound.
"GRAAAAAGH!" Eli roared at the top of his lungs before he snarled and quickly landed a vicous headbutt to Tra'Kan's bio-mask covered head. The Black Yautja quickly shook it off before retorting with a headbutt of his own.
*CRACK!*
The impact of the headbutt rung through Eli's ears as he swore he felt his skull loosen a bit. The Bio-mask only seemed to enhance the strength of the Black Yautja's attack.
"Not so high and mighty, now are you?" Tra'Kan snarled as he wrapped his metallic hand around Eli's throat and raised him back to his feet. The Black Yautja backhanded the prince across the face, sending the Kamad cluttering to the floor.
Eli spat blood with a few more of his teeth.
Qul'Tan nocked an arrow, it was one of the poisoned arrows. Designed to neutralize a Kamad's healing ability, making them easier to kill. Once hit with one of these arrows, a Kamad wouldn't be able to heal its injuries, any wounds that weren't fully sealed would be opened up. Most Kamads that Qul'Tan shot with these would usually bleed to death, their natural Pain endurance becoming a crippling weakness.
"Brother! Use the gas!" Qul'Tan shouted out.
Tra'Zen immediately, upon instruction from his twin, pulled out one of the gas grenades that they made specially for occasions such as this.
Pressing his thumb into the activation switch, Tra'zen activated the gas grenade and threw it to the ground. The canister quickly burst and a thick gas filled the air. The Hunters all wore their Bio-Masks, protecting them from the noxious fumes the grenades gave off.
Eli and Rezeal however were not so fortunate, their helmets were not functioning and their senses of smell were extremely attuned.
The two Kamads dropped their weapons and began to grasp at their throats, coughing like crazy and tears beginning to run down their faces. The fumes were the most foul-smelling things that either Kamad had ever experienced. A Kamad without their nose was like a human without eyes. Basically blind.
"Ah…finally at your rightful place eh?" Tra'Kan grinned as he swiftly kicked Eli in the face. The White haired Kamad spluttering and coughing.
"Lin'Theiw! Go get the Hybrid and the blonde Human! Lord Ma'Zax needs them" Tra'Kan ordered the Butcher whom put away one of his knives and replaced it with his cleaver before charging into the fray.
The utter chaos of the rest of the battlefield hadn't calmed down. plasma bolts and pulse rounds were still being fired left right and centre, glowing green and red blood splattering across the walls as the combatants tore each other apart.
Norma and Sophie continued to try and manoeuvre their way through the fight. Norma still held Sophie in her arms bridal style.
The carnage was too much for Sophie, whom had retreated into herself, clutching tightly to Norma's leather armour.
"Hello my pretties!" came a snarling, visceral voice.
Norma turned and was faced with the sight that nightmares are made of. A Huge Black Yautja Elite in a full black plate armour, glowing green highlighting most of the armour, especially the bio-mask. Tusks of previous kills adorning its visage. Knives of all shapes and sizes hung from the belts that this hunter wore.
"Just surrender, and I'll promise to not tear your limbs asunder" Lin'Theiw chuckled with a slither of his serpentine tongue.
Norma didn't have anywhere to run or hide. Her knees shook as she stared at this Black Yautja Elite wide eyed. Her mind flashed back to when Tra'Kan drove his wristblades into her chest. Norma wasn't someone that looked into the past often, but this was different.
Her heart rate increased, sweat began to pour down her face as he eyes widened. The Hybrid's back hit a wall, her exits had been cut off by the battle surrounding her.
"Very well…You lose the legs first" Lin'Theiw grinned behind his bio-mask.
But before the Black Yautja could close the distance a Black Armoured humanoid leapt in between Norma, Sophie and their attacker.
One of the Myrmidons had leapt to their rescue at the last second. As the Myrmidon in question held a Spanish Rapier and had a sniper rifle holstered on his back, Norma recognised it as Ramirez. The Spanish Myrmidon may not have been in his prime, but he was a Myrmidon…prime didn't mean anything to him.
"Ah, wonderful…some fun at last!" Lin'Theiw lunged at Ramirez with his knife and cleaver drawn and bared.
"I'm too old for this shit" Ramirez muttered under his breath as he flourished his rapier.
The Myrmidon and the Black Yautja clashed blades. Lin'Theiw was fresh, having only fought Rezeal for little more than a few minutes, however Ramirez was not to frosty, he had been trying his best to hold his own against the Hellhounds and other Black Yautja hunters after his recovery.
Lin'Theiw was faster than Ramirez expected from an opponent of his size. The knives flickered back and forth with a style and grace that did not match such a savage foe. The whistling of steel through the air would be hypnotic if the blades in question were not wielded by a bloodhungry Psychopath.
Norma saw an opening to run and took it. She hated having to leave Ramirez behind, but she couldn't possibly help him anymore than Sophie and Dexter could. But when the Hybrid tried to leave, a pain like none other sliced through her Achilles tendon.
A spray of red glowing blood poured across the floor. Norma shouted out in pain as she fell, dropping Sophie and Dexter to the floor. At the sound of his mistress in pain, Dexter darted out of Sophie's lab-coat and sped over to Norma.
The Hybrid looked at her leg, seeing that her Achilles tendon, the muscles and nerves connecting her right foot to her leg had been sliced clean open, her foot was pretty much dangling from a few strands of flesh and skin.
Imbedded in the wall where her leg was previously, was a bladed shuriken, dripping with glowing red blood.
"Oh No you don't! I Never let my prey escape that easily!" Lin'Theiw snarled as his attacks became more aggressive towards Ramirez.
The clashed became more and more violent, aggressive, animalistic to an extent. The Black Yautja began snarling, fighting dirty, feigning attacks, not a shred of respect or honour inflected in his attacks. Soon his attacks began leaving visible marks, scratches upon the armour, cuts in the nocks and crannies of the armour plates.
Soon red blood began dripping from Ramirez as Lin'Theiw sliced open a few of his arteries, the Yautja was not known as The Butcher for no reason. Ramirez's movements began to get sluggish as the pain inflicted by these cuts began to pile up, blood dripping down his finger tips and down the plates of his armour.
Black armour stained red.
"Now you die!" Lin'Theiw flourished his knife, pulling Ramirez in close and headbutting the Myrmidon in the forehead.
Ramirez's ears rang as he stumbled backwards, his back hitting the wall. the Spanish Myrmidon looked down to see Norma there, looking up at him with a look of fear.
It reminded the Spaniard so much of his daughters. The children he had failed to protect from the Xenomorphs. The memories triggered Ramirez and the Spanish Myrmidon picked his sword back up, walking towards the Black Yautja with his blade in both hands.
"Never again…never again…never again" Ramirez whispered to himself like a chant.
Lin'Theiw flourished his knife and his cleaver, flexing his thick biceps as he lunged at Ramirez.
Rezeal clashed his hookblade against Mh'Jax's Mace, sparks erupting from the initial contact. But the black haired Kamad used his leverage to twist the weapon from the Brute's grasp, manipulating Mh'Jax's movement with his grip.
Using this, Rezeal brought the Hulking brute's face down on his knee.
Mh'Jax reeled back, shaking his head to gain back his bearings.
Tra'Zen however stayed on Rezeal, swinging his Halberd to keep Rezeal's guard up before lunging in close with his wristblades. Tra'Zen rammed his wristblades into the Kamad Elite's waistline, slicing through his armour and flesh before protruding from his back.
Tra'Zen reversed the direction of his wristblades while they were still within Rezeal, causing the blades to shred his abs with their sudden movement. Like meat being thrown in a blender, a section of Rezeal's abdominal muscles were shredded.
Rezeal grunted in pain as his abdominal muscles were sliced to ribbon. Tra'Zen's boot made contact with Rezeal, sending him falling to the ground with a thud, Blue glowing blood pouring from his eviscerated mid-section.
"RAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Lin'Theiw roared at the top of his lungs as he leapt on top of the barricades, raising a bloody cleaver in the air with one hand.
Eli looked over, wearily and his eyes widened as he saw what Lin'Theiw held in his other arm.
An unconscious Sophie, hanging over his shoulder.
"Sound the retreat" Qul'Tan called to Yul'Tran.
The Tracker typed a few commands into his wrist computer and a few seconds later a shrill whistling filled the air. The remaining Hell Hounds flocked towards their master, and the remaining Black Yautja Hunters began to retreat along with Lin'theiw.
Just as Eli was about to run to Sophie's aid, Tra'Kan kicked his legs from underneath him.
"Bad Luck…Isn't it?" Tra'Kan grinned before stomping on Eli's stump of a left hand.
The Elite Hunter primed his wristblades before swinging the in an upward arc. A spray of Glowing blue blood and Eli's left arm was cut off at the elbow.
"AAAAAAAGH!" Eli screamed at the top of his lungs.
"Hurts doesn't it!?" Tra'Kan laughed before turning his back to retreat.
Eli was left there, blood pouring from the fresh wound. Gritting his teeth, Eli reached into his coat and pulled out a device he hoped he wouldn't have to use. A small metallic cylinder that transformed into what looked like the head of a branding iron.
A cauterization unit.
Cauterization units would only be used in the direst of situations for Kamad warriors. When their healing abilities where stretched to their limits and they could no longer heal large injuries such as this, they would use Cauterization units to halt bleeding. The only problem was that they hurt like no other pain.
But Eli needed to do it, if he didn't he would bleed to death pretty quickly.
Eli activated the unit and pressed it against his armless stump.
*HISSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS*
"GAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" Eli shouted as his flesh sizzled and burned, the unit clamped onto his stump in order to work automatically.
The Kamad scrambled to his feet, his blood was pretty much coating the floor at this moment. Barely any silver of the floor could be made out underneath the glowing blue liquid that used to reside within Eli's veins.
Eli got back to his feet. Still holding his Katana in his remaining hand, his breathing was shallow and pained. Glowing blue blood pouring from minor wounds that were still healing. His knees shook, his eyes faltered, blood still dripped from his mouth as his teeth were still growing back.
Eli was a mess. His armour was tattered and plates were hanging loose, his dreadlocks were dishevelled, his eyes were bloodshot, his skin was sweaty and stray follicles of hair clung to his face.
The Cauterization unit fell to the floor, having done its job of sealing his wound.
Qul'Tan noticed the Kamad prince hobbling towards them.
"Why won't you just stay down?" the Pale Yautja asked as he knocked an arrow.
"It's not in my nature…you'll have to kill me" Eli growled.
"Hmm…. very well…I've never killed a prince before" Qul'tan grinned behind his mask. The eyepiece of his mask shifting to enhance his vision.
"Then go ahead and do it!" Eli snarled.
Qul'Tan smirked as he drew back his arrow. By the looks of the prince, his healing abilities were all but used up. A show with an arrow dipped in his special venom would not only neutralize his regeneration at this stage, it would reopen any wounds made recently. A Kamad in such a state as this wouldn't survive a few arrows from Qul'Tan.
The Pale Yautja released.
…
…
…
Eli's eyes widened in shock as blue glowing blood fell to the floor.
"What…the hell are you doing!" Eli shouted in anger as Rezeal had stepped in front of him at the last second, taking the arrow square in the chest.
"Just…my stubborn nature I guess" Rezeal smiled before he suddenly coughed up a lungful of blood.
"REZ!" Eli shouted in panic. Rezeal however whipped around and grabbed a hold of Eli. Grabbing the scruff of his neck, the Black haired Kamad hauled the injured Prince away.
"Dammit!" Qul'Tan drew and nocked another arrow, drawing it back and taking aim at Eli's head.
*FWIP!*
The arrow was let loose but once again Rezeal moved into the way, the arrow sinking deeply into his left shoulder. Rezeal gritted his teeth, reaching up and snapping it in half.
Another arrow was fired.
Rezeal took it in between the shoulder blades with a yell of pain.
"GET HIM OUT OF HERE!" Rezeal yelled as he threw Eli over the now tattered and partially destroyed barricades towards the Myrmidons and Yautja.
Erik and Sha'ra ran over to see the wrecked and badly injured Eli tossed to the ground by the other Kamad. Rezeal threw Eli's swords and his swabbie dagger to the Injured Prince.
"Survive!" Rezeal spoke to Eli before another arrow sank itself deeply in his thigh.
Rezeal grunted, falling to one knee. His wounds no longer healing, as the venom took effect.
The Black Haired Kamad looked to the control panel on the side of wall, then to the walls themselves. Smiling to himself, Rezeal drove his fist into the panel, causing sparks and streams of electricity to dance up his hand and fry his arm.
From Eli's point of view the walls seemed to close themselves after Rezeal drove his fist into the panel. Erik knew exactly what the Kamad had done, he had caused this section's security system to overpower and close itself off from the other section.
What slammed in between Rezeal and Eli was a heavy-duty security seal. 9 inches of thick dura-steel, meant to withstand anything that was hurled at it. It would take nothing less of a Nuclear warhead to break through the material that comprised the seal.
Eli quickly scrambled to his feet, grunting in pain as he slammed his hands on the frame, the only opening between Eli and Rezeal was a small window panel.
"Rez! REZ! OPEN THIS FUCKING DOOR NOW!" Eli shouted as he began frantically slamming his fist against the steel material of the seal.
"I'm sorry Eli…but, this is the only way" Rezeal replied, his voice muffled by the thick glass.
"What the hell are you talking about!?" Eli kept panicking, he never felt so helpless in his life.
"I have to make a stand. I can't let them get further in" Rezeal replied. Black viens began to protrude up the Kamad's neck as he spoke. Eli noticed Rezeal's wounds opening up, cuts across his face and torso began bleeding. Blue glowing blood leaking freely from his wounds.
"We can fight them, together!" Eli replied.
"You aren't in any shape to fight…if just one of those arrows hits you you'll die" Rezeal replied before yet again coughing up another lungful of blood. The black veins crawled further of the Kamads neck even as he looked up at Eli.
"Rez please! For the Love of Eleran just open the fucking door!" Eli yelled, slamming his fist against the seal like a madman.
"Erik! Sha'ra! Anyone! fucking open this door now!" Eli snarled at his friends, the bloodshot eyes and glowing blue blood adorning his face making for an intimidating face whether he intended it or not.
"Sha'ra move it!" Erik ran over to the interior control panel. The Huntress ran over to him, her armour drenched in blood belonging to Black Yautjas, and some of it her own.
Hanzo and Baako however remained stationary, and Sasha knew exactly why. In his mad hurry to get the door opened, the Major hadn't even noticed it.
"I'm sorry…But this is where my path ends. It was an honour to know you Eli…my Lord, my Prince, My Emperor…my brother" Rezeal's eyes began to waver as he pushed himself from the door, ripping the arrow imbedded in his chest away.
"Finish him off" Qul'Tan ordered. Five Black Yautja Hunters extended their wristblades and charged the Kamad who met them with Hookblade and dagger in hand.
The first Black Yautja that got close managed to ram its wristblades into Rezeal's left shoulder. grunting in Pain and gritting his teeth, Rezeal flared his mandibles and brought the hunter in close.
"RAAAAAGHUGHGUGH!" the Black Yautja yelled in pain as Rezeal bit his throat out. Glowing green blood spraying all over the Kamad's face.
The next 2 Black Yautja extended their Combi-sticks and impaled Rezeal in his mid-section, right in his waist. The two combi sticks emerged from the other side of the Kamad, effectively skewering him on the spot.
Rezeal coughed up at least another pint of blood, sweat pouring from his face and his eyes going bloodshot. The Kamad growled deeply and grabbed both combi sticks, pulling them in further, forcing the Hunters to get closer.
When they were close enough Rezeal rammed his dagger into the underside of one Hunter's head, bypassing the bio-mask and piercing right into his skull. The other Hunter did not receive a better death as Rezeal swung his hookblade into its neck.
The spiked tip of the hookblade pierced the Hunter's windpipe, slicing into it like a hot knife through butter. Rezeal tore the blade from the Hunter's throat, causing it to tumble to the floor and grasp at its rapidly bleeding neck.
Both hunters were dead, but Rezeal was not in the best of positions as he was currently impaled twice through his abs, and was unable to heal.
*FWIP!*
Rezeal looked down to see another arrow had sunk into his sternum. Unable to even see straight, Rezeal fell to his knees. His armour plates clanked and shifted as he slouched, blood dripping from his mouth and pouring freely from his fresh wounds.
The venom had taken its toll.
Rezeal felt completely drained.
His strength had left him.
He couldn't even feel his legs anymore.
"Is that all?" Tra'Kan tilted his head to the side.
Rezeal didn't respond, just held out his palm in front of him. Blue blood illuminating his hand as it had previously been pressed against his abdomen. Rezeal then put his hand inside his coat, assumingly to cradle one of his many bleeding wounds.
"Huh…apparently it is. Finish him, bring me his head" Tra'Kan ordered the Hunters.
The remaining two approached Rezeal, their wristblades extended and gleaming in the light. The Kamad seemed to be faltering to stay upright, the Combi-Sticks being the only things keeping himself stationary.
Rezeal fell into a slouched position.
The nearest Hunter grunted as he reached forward and grabbed a handful of Rezeal's dreadlocks. Yanking him up to look him in the eye.
However
*Clink!*
As the Hunter raised Rezeal's head, the Kamad took his hand out of his coat.
Rezeal was holding a live, activated Plasma Grenade in his hand.
And he had the biggest grin streatched across his face.
Qul'Tan went wide eyed and quickly began shouting "FALL BACK! GRENADE!" the Black Yautja scrambling to get back on their hell steeds, those who couldn't mount in time choosing to run on foot.
"Hehe….I win" Rezeal murmured before closing his eyes and letting his helmet seal over his head.
*KABOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*
Eli had to avert his eyes from the pane of glass as electric blue light burst, threatening to blind anyone that looked directly at the explosion.
"Rez….OPEN THE FUCKING DOOR!" Eli shouted at Sha'ra and Erik whom were in the midst of hotwiring the door open.
Sha'ra typed a few more commands into her wrist computer and with a crackling of electrical energy, the seal began to lift.
Eli bolted into the room as fast as he could all things considered. Blood still leaked from his wounds and his limp was way more pronounced than it had been.
"Rez! Rez!" Eli shouted, frantically looking for his best friend.
The room was filled with smoke and the smell of burnt flesh. The Plasma Grenades of the Kamads were very effective as their job, it was only expected that they would leave a hell of an impact upon the surrounding area.
The Plasma Grenade also seemed to have done its other intended purpose. The already unstable celling around where the Black Yautja approached had caved in, metallic wreckage effectively blocked off any access for either party to traverse.
After a few seconds of frantically looking and taking deep sniffs of the Smokey, clouded air, Eli eventually found his fellow Kamad.
Only it was worse than what he expected.
Rezeal lay on the floor, his entire left arm was missing at the shoulder, a smouldering stump was all that was left in its place. His armour was burnt and charred, the visor of his helmet had been completely shattered. Both his legs were broken, the left had been brutally snapped to the point where bone protruded at the knee.
Glowing blue blood was splattered all over Rezeal, leaking from fresh wounds created by the initial explosion, pieces of his armour digging into his flesh. Rezeal looked pretty dead, which is why is so shocking that he was still breathing.
"Rez! I'm here! I'm here buddy!" Eli's voice shook as he picked his friend up, leaning his head on his lap.
Only Rezeal's right eye opened, Eli noticed his left eye had been left a smouldering socket with burnt bone and charred nerve endings. The sound of Rezeal's laboured breathing almost echoed throughout the room. Eli reached down and practically ripped the helmet from Rezeal's face…only to wish he hadn't.
Parts of Rezeal's helmet had apparently been fused to his face, ripping the helmet off only seemed to open up more of the Kamad's face to the point where the left side of his jaw had its muscles exposed.
"Oh…Oh sweet Eleran, I'm sorry! Rez…can you hear me?" Eli asked, cradling Rezeal's head in his hands.
"…That...fucking hurt" Rezeal whispered in a gravelly voice before coughing up more blood. The blue glow staining what remained of his lips.
"Oh, Eleran…Uh…I…I-I I don't know what to do" Eli began panicking again, sweat dripping from his head.
"It's ok Eli…It's ok…I was prepared for this…I've been ready for this my whole…life" Rezeal wheezed, blood dripping from his mouth as he did.
"Stop talking…You…you're going to be fine…you've…you've had worse than this" Eli replied, panic laced in his tone.
"No…I haven't got long…ever since you took me in, when we first met. I had nothing…I was nothing but homeless guttertrash until you met me. I…I never got to thank you. If not for you I would have never become who I am today" Rezeal smiled before spluttering and coughing out more blood.
"You can't die…Not here! Not like this!" Eli grasped Rezeal hard. Tears beginning to emerge from his eyes.
"I would have died a homeless wretch…alone, cold and starving on the streets when I was a child, if I hadn't met you of course" Rezeal smirked as he wheezed to speak.
"I am glad this is how I die…I welcome it. Dying for the man who made me better, the man who gave me a second chance" Rezeal gasped as the pain made it near impossible to hold on.
"But…we still have so much to do. You were going to be my Primark…you were going to be my right hand when I became Emperor" Eli's tears began to fall.
Erik and Sha'ra saw the state Rezeal was in as well as the look on Eli's face. This was not a sight anyone enjoyed seeing, the sight of someone in denial.
Sha'ra bent down and picked up one of the arrows that Rezeal had ripped out of his body. Examining the bloody arrow tip, she realized it had been dipped into something prior. Whatever that something was, it was slowly killing Rezeal.
He was far beyond the point of no return.
"I know…and I'm sorry for that. But…you have to continue on…promise me Eli…promise me you won't give in…Fight on" Rezeal grasped Eli's remaining hand.
"I promise…I promise"
"Swear it…Please!" Rezeal's remaining eye began to tear up, his already wheezing voice trembling with pain.
"I swear…I swear on my blood! I'll make them pay for this…I'll carve your fucking name into their chests if it's the last thing I do" Eli almost growled that last bit of the sentence.
"I'm sad I won't be around to see it" Rezeal chuckled weakly.
"…I'll never forget the times we had" Eli smiled, tears beginning to flow down his face.
"…I hope not. Become the Emperor you were supposed to be" Rezeal gripped Eli's hand as hard as he could. The Kamad's eye then shot wide open. He remembered at this crucial moment, Eli had to know. He couldn't die without letting Eli know.
Pulling Eli close he whispered into the other Kamad's ear. Not wanting his last words to be of this terrible news. Eli's eyes widened Exponentially, blue veins encroaching on his golden orbs.
"Don't trust him...Kill him! Understand?" Rezeal whispered.
"I will…I promise" Eli replied, his tears flowing down his face like waterfalls.
"Then…I guess…this…is goodbye…brother" Rezeal smiled one last time before his single red eye slowly shut.
Rezeal's grip on Eli's hand loosened as his arm fell limp on the floor.
His laboured breathing ceased.
All signs of life on the Kamad had ended.
Eli sat there, his eyes wide open as his best friend for the past millennia and a half now laid dead before him. All signs of life long gone as the Black Haired Kamad known only as Rezeal was now nothing more than a smouldering corpse.
Eli stared at his outstretched hand, a hand covered in the glowing blue blood of his best friend. Grinding what remained of his teeth and squeezing his eyes shut Eli was seconds away from letting the waterworks fly.
But he clentched his fist shut and tried everything he could to regain his composure. Eli reached forward and placed his open hand over Rezeal's chest.
"…My Ancestors…welcome this one's soul as you would a brother. He deserves to walk in the greatest halls…be remembered as a hero…as a warrior…as a true Kamad. Welcome his soul…for he was my blade in times of need…my most stalwart companion…and a warrior worthy of song that will be heard until the end of time…I ask you my Ancestors…give him a seat in the grandest hall…honour him with your blades as he honoured me with his…" Eli spoke softly and gently as he could. Praying to his Ancestors on behalf of his fallen friend.
Once the solemn prayer had been completed, Eli dipped two of his fingers in Rezeal's blood before applying it to his face like war paint around his right eye. The pattern was very Nordic in style and would remind one of a Viking warrior.
Eli then began to let the tears run freely again as he clenched his fist.
The Kamad cried into the air, his almighty shout transforming into a ferocious roar as his mandibles flared open. His injuries adding to the pain as he roared into the heavens, not caring if every creature on board the ship heard his roars of anguish.
The sound of a grieving Kamad was not a pleasant one to the ears of Myrmidons or Yautja. His roar while animalistic was filled with pain and sorrow.
"Major!" Hanzo called to Erik, getting his attention.
"It had better be good Hanzo" Erik replied almost angrily. His own memories of losing friends coming back after seeing Eli grieve.
"It's not sir…But…you better see all the same" Hanzo's head almost fell as he said the words.
Erik began to worry at that and immediately took off towards his men.
Sha'ra did the only thing that came to mind and darted off after him, leaving Eli some privacy to grieve.
Erik and Sha'ra entered the area that served as a blood drenched battlefield a few mere moments ago. Sha'ra could only look on in sorrow as many of her fellow Yautja Mourned their dead. She wished she knew some of the dead, but honestly the only ones she knew of were her relatives and the dark blades.
It was awful to admit, but she was a little glad she did not know them.
That would only make the pain worse.
Erik approached where Hanzo led him.
Sasha was supporting Norma by acting as a shoulder to lean on. The tendons in her foot were slowly reconnecting and her bleeding had stopped. Dexter was perched on Norma's shoulder seemingly fine.
But what wasn't fine was what they were looking at.
That's when Erik saw it.
Ramirez
Dead.
Baako was knelt beside the corpse of the Spanish Myrmidon. Ramirez had many wounds inflicted upon his person, his right arm had been snapped to where bone protruded from it. Gash marks littered his abdomen, his own Rapier had been used to impale him through the gut, but considering the amount of blood surrounding his body, the killing blow had to be his Carved open throat.
This was a sight that no commanding officer liked witnessing. The sight of a long-time friend and ally, slain on the battlefield.
Erik dropped to one knee.
"He did his best…if he hadn't they would have taken both Sophie and me" Norma whispered through her tears.
Simply stared at the body of his deceased ally for a few seconds before reaching up and pulling off his helmet.
*CLANK*
Erik dropped his helm to the ground before reaching forward and yanking off Ramirez's dog tags.
"Thank you…old friend. Now…rest, you've earned it" Erik whispered to Ramirez, hoping his spirit heard him.
After taking one long look at the tags Erik squeezed his eyes shut. Fighting back any tears he may have been building up.
Taking one deep inhale and following it with a trembling exhale, Erik looked to Baako, locking eyes through the Kenyan's visor.
"Get a body bag…we're not leaving him here" Erik's voice shook at he ordered his friend. After losing Vlad, he wasn't going to leave anyone else behind, dead or otherwise.
Baako was taken aback for a second or two before slowly nodding.
The sound of metallic clanking approached, the Myrmidons, Norma and Sha'ra turning to see Eli. The Kamad was hobbling towards them, limping while carrying Rezeal's body in his arms.
"Eli are you….Oh…Oh my god" Norma began to ask before she realized Rezeal's lack of breathing or movement.
"I'm…not…leaving him behind" Eli almost growled as his eyes twitched, struggling to stay open. Erik saw that Eli would probably collapse any moment, he was so spent it took everything he had to stand up yet alone carry another Kamad.
"Yeyinde!" Sha'ra called for her brother. The large Yautja immediately responded to her call and ran up to Eli.
Yeyinde, while not as large as Eli, was still big enough to bear the weight of Rezeal. Holding his arms out as if offering to carry the fallen Elite.
Eli stared at Yeyinde before he reluctantly handed the body over to the Hunter.
" .Blair?" Eli practically hissed through his remaining teeth.
Erik looked to Hanzo as if waiting for an answer.
"I don't know, the doctor ran through this area about an hour before you all arrived, seemed like he was in a hurry" Hanzo replied.
"I'm going after him" Eli wheezed. The Kamad began limping, his bleeding had crawled to a halt but he still looked like death. His eyes were bloodshot, his limp was easy to spot and his left arm at the elbow was non-existent.
Sha'ra and Erik had seen corpses in better shape than him.
"Eli, you have to rest. Please you aren't in any condition to be moving around like this" Sha'ra stepped in front of the large Kamad, placing her hands on his chest.
"I…I have to…I…I…." Eli groaned as he tried to push past Sha'ra. His eyes struggling to stay open, without a moment's notice the Kamad's eyes shut and his entire body went limp.
Sha'ra quickly hopped out of the way as Eli fell face first into the ground. His immense weight making an almighty metallic thud as his armour made contact with the floor beneath him.
"ELI!" Norma shouted in utter fear that Eli shared the same fate as Rezeal and Ramirez.
"Uncle! Help me!" Sha'ra called to Zen'Tau. The Elder rushed over to his niece as did Erik. Together the three managed to flip Eli onto his back.
Pressing her fingers against his neck, Sha'ra tried to feel for a pulse.
"Is he alive?!" Norma panicked.
Sha'ra looked up at the Hybrid and nodded "Just barely…heart like a machine this one".
Norma let out a sigh of relief. They had all suffered enough loss for today.
The Yautja gathered their dead, 10 out of the original 20, the third Dark Blade Hunter amongst them, died from wristblades to the back and a plasmacaster bolt to the face.
Baako and Hanzo sealed Ramirez's body tightly in a body bag. Sasha assisted Norma in binding her foot back onto her leg. Yeyinde and Zen'Tau readied Rezeal's corpse for transportation across the ship.
Erik sat beside the Unconscious form of Eli, the slow breathing being the only indication of the Kamad's survival.
Their situation was bad before.
Now.
Their situation had gone from bad…to absolutely FUBAR.
…
…
…
It's good making progress, isn't it? I've been writing this story for so long that I didn't think I would make it to this point…Hope you guys enjoyed the ride.
Because from here.
Things are only going to get weirder.
Please be sure to leave lengthy comments….and for those of you that read this yet still choose to leave a comment of "Good work…more plz" you people can officially go to hell for wasting my time. either tell me detailed what you liked so I can improve or don't bother reviewing at all.
Seriously, would you want to see a movie if the only reviews were shit like:
Great movie
Or
I liked it
We human beings need details, so leave some goddam details ok?
Ok, now that I've scalded the naughty children, you guys can tell me what you actually thought about this chapter.
Dakkman777…signing out, till next time.
