Chapter Seventeen
Buck Douglas arrived at a mining site. He had Ero slaves and Annu's people working against their will down in the mines. The walls echoing of their faint moans and songs of being free. Buck got out of the jeep. "let me see if old Tuko Revam is around. I bet he's just dying to get his claws on some Element 511." He sneered. The guards stepped aside. They exchanged comments in Eroian about Buck being a puny human. Their gaze was firm on Buck's every movement. Buck closed the elevator doors. The elevator began its descend downwards into the lower levels of the facility. Buck's fist clenched the handle of the briefcase tightly. He was looking forward to finally ridding the world of aliens and the lone hunter, once and for all. The doors opened to the ground floor level. An Eroian knight stood before him wearing dark purple armor. It's light blue eyes narrowed at Buck. "so the human has finally arrived has he?" he growled crossing his arms. "honey, I told you I would show up with the Element as promised. I hope you've managed to make progress with trying to find that artifact." The jaw on Tuko's face twisted up into a small smile. "we are close to retrieving the artifact for you." Buck smiled back at him. He put the briefcase down on the table. "oh while I'm at it, you may want to send some of your men to investigate the village in the heart of the woods. I heard the little girl is supposed to be there."
Annu had been passed out on Sam's back the entire walk. The hairs on his arms stood up telling him that they were close to the village. He put a hand on Annu's arms gently. Her warmth was making him sleepy. Elvis hung in the back with Finley and Marcelo. He tried his best not to get in Sam's way. "just a few more steps." Whispers Finley weakly. Marcelo feels her let go of him. She falls to the ground holding her leg. Marcelo bent down next to her. "please hang in there Finley. We are almost there." He picks her up again. Blood leaked through her bandage. Archers on the watchtowers aimed their bows at the group. Marcelo gets in front. "please we mean no harm. Your friend, Finley has guided us here for aide. She's hurt and needs help." The archers relaxed. One of them yelled out to open the gates. The village healer rushed over to Marcelo. She takes Finley from him. "she has a great fever and is losing blood fast. I'll see what I can do for her." He nods. The healer takes them to her hut. She takes a closer look at Finley's leg. "the bullets are close to the artery. I'll have to carefully remove them." Marcelo takes Finley's hand. "don't worry Fin. You'll make it." He kissed her forehead. She leaned against his chest gently. Her hand got tight around his.
Sam and Elvis kept an eye on the kids. Elvis' hand interlaced with Sam's. "the kids are safe Sam. You don't have to look so territorial now." Sam looked at Elvis. Elvis pecked his cheek gently. "relax and take a break love." Sam wrapped an arm around Elvis' waist. He kissed Elvis deeply. Elvis picked up on the urgency with each kiss. He opened his mouth a bit more to allow Sam more access. Sam reaches for the collar of Elvis' shirt. "not here." Laughs Elvis. "later." He leaned on Sam's chest.
Marcelo watched the healer mend Finley's leg. Finley moaned quietly. Marcelo kissed the top of her head. "you're going to be okay." He whispered. His hand keeping a firm grip on hers. Finley gritted her teeth. She wanted to squirm away from the tweezers poking at the wound on her leg. "try to be still." Murmured the healer. "I'm almost finished." She put a few of the bullets into a bowl. "there's two more bullets that I have to remove." Finley's vision blurred in and out. Marcelo allowed her to lay her head on his chest. He reached for his belt. "hey handsome. Can you put the rifle away please? I don't think now is the time to show it." He laughs. "that's not what I was reaching for." He pulled a small vile off of his belt. It had a reddish tint to it. "Here drink this. It'll make the pain go away so you can relax more." He held it up to her lips. She drinks what is in the vile. The fluid numbs the area around the wound. She relaxes instantly in his arms. "I love you." She whispers. He kisses the top of her head. "I love you too."
Night settled over the village. Annu laid down next to Sam. He wrapped an arm around her gently. Annu cuddled up to his chest. "I hope one day we'll be able to go back to PontyPandy." She whispers. Annu falls asleep. He strokes her hair. "me too Annu me too." He blows out the candle on the table. He pulls the blanket over the top of Annu's shoulders gently. Elvis hugged Sam. "Sam can I ask you something?" he asked. Sam turned over to face Elvis. "shoot." He replied. "if we manage to destroy the Ero, are you going to adopt Annu?" Sam cracked a grin. "yeah. She's already taken a shine to me." Elvis' eyes lit up too. "then we could get married near the beach." Sam ruffled his hair. He kissed him on the cheek. Elvis settled down onto the sheets. His gaze was fixed on the ceiling.
Buck looked up on the screen. The Eroian knights had already surrounded the camp. The knights unlocked cages that had hound-like creatures inside releasing them into the camp. The creatures attacked the guards that were standing at the gate. A loud horn wailed from one of the towers waking Sam up. He heard screaming outside of the hut. He staggered to his feet rushing outside. He saw creatures attacking the villagers. He pulled his axe from his belt tossing himself into the heat of battle. Archers pointed their bows at the creatures shooting them one by one. Sam bashed his axe over the head of one of the hounds trying to attack a family. The eros quickly made their way through the chaos shooting down anyone who was brave enough to stop them. Sam growled charging at one of them. One of the knights flicked out a laser sword. It clashed with Sam's axe breaking the wooden handle in half. The knight grabbed Sam by the skull bringing its fist down on top of him. Sam saw his world go black.