Kaldir - Ursadon tunnel camp
Lassara held the datapad firmly, a rising sense of urgency ticking away while watching the progress of the weather observers recovery. When all its systems finally came online and information streamed once more, the realization of what those three impacts were hit hard.
Arut! The three quakes, they were from Terran machines! Arut had strode back to Lasarra quickly, watching the video footage in silence beside her.
Only three? That is not typical Terran, they lack the technology to even survive on this moon. Critical, Arut watched the three distant forms emerge from their drop pods. The observer had not zoomed in on the Terrans, as that was not its purpose; It did scan them from afar however, and quickly revealed each Terran to be thoroughly infested.
Feeling sick, Lasarra's voice was just a whisper in Arut's mind. Infested Terrans! How terrible... We must inform the Judicator at once. The information was already being routed to the main Nexus, where their warriors would be roused immediately.
You have done well, Lassara. Lives may be saved because of your caution. Know that I will tell the Judicator myself of your role in this. Arut was proud, any action that could save the lives of his fellow protoss was to be held in high regard.
My thanks, Arut. I can't help but wonder at their motives however; what could the swarm desire on Kaldir? Did we miss something when the last of the hives were purged? Brows furrowed in concern, Lasarra gazed out of the mouth of their cavern base and watched the never ending snows swirling violently.
What reason do zerg do anything? They devour life, be it on some small icy moon or the mighty Aiur, and that is their only purpose Lasarra. To know more would be to tempt madness; only the foul corrupter, their Queen of Blades, truly knows of any other goals. Arut was firm, rigid even, in his beliefs about the zerg; a sentiment echoed by most, if not all, protoss. Lasarra could not blame him and her own more malleable points of view had been the cause of disruptions before.
As you say, noble warrior. This canyon that they landed in only has one exit, they may already be at the dead hive. Deftly, Lasarra brought up a map of the region and charted the course she believed the infested to be taking, showing it to her companion. We are the closest to this location by far. Would you like to meet the enemy in glorious combat? Her eyes smiled, but Lasarra felt the strong desire to see zerg rent asunder by the superior protoss warrior.
The warp prism is at the ready should I be summoned to battle, but do not so easily forget your place. Arut chided, though he yearned for the glory of combat as much as any Zealot. As a researcher you are precious, not to be thrown into the midst of combat.
You are right, of course. Lasarra tilted her head in acceptance. Truthfully, the scouts the Judicator will send should be more than enough for three simple infested Terrans. They must not have detected our bases, else there would surely be a larger force. While they spoke, the old footage of the infested played right until the observer became frozen by the flash freeze. They were long gone by the time it had recovered.
Kaldir – Hive of Nafash
Warfield was bringing up the rear of the small group. When they had finally acclimated to the brutal cold the old General privately admitted to himself that he had never felt so youthful and energetic, doubtless a zerg trait. The so-called path out of the canyon they landed in was closer to a series of shelves, layered close enough to one another that they could be climbed with little trouble.
They were scaling one such shelf right now. A chunk of rotten ice crunched loose under Tychus' foot when he put his weight on it, leaving him scrabbling for purchase with his shorter nails.
"Watch it, watch it!" Raynor called from above, swiping at Tychus' arm and attempting to stabilize his position while digging his nails into the ice he was clinging to.
Warfield was swinging across the face of the ice cliff to avoid being pummeled down by the falling debris Tychus was making with his feet, talons clattering and cutting chips out of the ice. One such piece hit his shoulder hard and nearly sent him tumbling, leaving him sending a blistering wave of curses up at Tychus. "Either get a grip or just fall damn you! You aren't going to die!"
Tychus grunted in pain when Raynor caught the meat of his forearm and dug his claws right in, holding fast. Secure in place, he tentatively sought out new footholds and sunk his nails as deep in as he could, glaring up at Jim while muttering clearly at Warfield. "See if I don't kick you off when I get to the top, armchair general." Blood was welling up past Jim's claws and all he could do was look apologetic when he tugged his hand free of Tychus' arm and resumed climbing.
"Sorry Tychus. Nafash's hive can't be far now."
"Armchair general? Son, I've been on more forays than you can-" Warfield was clearly getting worked up, Tychus no doubt having hit a nerve.
"Not the time gentlemen!" Raynor interrupted sharply before swinging his arm over the snowy ledge and pulling himself to safety. Quickly, he offered Tychus a hand up and together they helped Warfield. Straightening up, they looked down the gentle slope that lead to the dead and frozen zerg base before them. The snow was coming down in thick, endless waves and obscuring the full view; but they could vaguely see one of the claw-like spires of a hive looming above in the distance.
"Hm. Time to check in at hotel zerg." Tychus mumbled and started walking, gingerly palming the deep holes Jim had punched into the meat of his forearm. The blood flow had slowed and no longer dripped sluggishly down his armored skin, steaming against the bitter cold air until it froze. Wouldn't be long before it had healed up completely.
"Don't think we're gonna find a Wicked Wayne's in there." Jim chuckled, shaking his head.
"I feel like you boys got some stories to tell. Maybe when we get outta this mess you'll fill me in." Warfield had to admit to himself he wanted to be able to join in on Jim and Tychus' humor more, or at least know what the hell they were referring to half the time.
"General, when we're off this ice rock I'll tell you all the stories you like. But for now," They had come down the hill at a quick pace and were walking over frozen creep, revealed by wind continually blowing the snow away. An entrance to the hive loomed ahead of them, frozen over completely. "lets get this done. You wanna handle that Tychus?" Gesturing at the iced over door vaguely, Jim and Warfield looked at the big man questioningly.
"How come whenever somethin' needs liftin' or breakin', everyone comes cryin' to old Tychus?" Regardless of his griping, Tychus stepped up to the frozen maw.
"Because you're built like an SCV? Might as well play the part, partner." Raynor winced slightly when Tychus brought his fists down in an overhead smash against the wall of ice. Though his fists left an impression and a great amount of cracks had become visible, the ice had not given in.
"Put your back into it son." Warfield chuckled with good humor at Tychus' struggle, keeping an eye on their surroundings.
"If you ever think I'm goin' to another planet, moon, whatever, with snow again Jimmy..." Tychus threw his fists against the ice with renewed vigor, so hard that chunks sprayed out and the ice groaned in warning. "You're damn wrong!" Jerking back, he slammed his shoulder into the ice- feeling it beginning to give. One final violent heave sent him tumbling into the hive as the false door shattered inwards and a surge of air entering the sealed structure helped keep him off balance.
Stepping up to the open door, Warfield and Raynor looked into the dark at Tychus. "You alright?" Raynor called cautiously. It was a steep decline into the living structure and everything had a thick layer of ice. Warfield sunk his talons into the wall and began to lower himself down while Tychus groaned and struggled to his feet.
"Just freakin' peachy, partner."
While Jim cautiously followed Warfield, giving him plenty of room to maneuver, he focused on Shlassa. Any idea where Nafash might be in here?
Shlassa was listening, as Jim and co. were not capable of communicating over such long distances yet either. If Nafash was pursued into the hive, she would lead them as deep as possible. She could have been killed anywhere inside, however.
Huffing in annoyance, Jim muttered. "So the answer is no, just great."
"Not going to find this thing just standing around. Maybe we can find the path it took? The hive may have been damaged by whatever was chasing it and it's more than cold enough here to freeze the structure like that." Warfield offered, looking down the narrow corridors that stretched in all directions from the crossroads they stood at. It was the truest form of darkness inside the hive, the only light was dim and spilling in behind them from the doorway they had opened.
Nodding agreeably, Jim gestured down a corridor of his choice. "Sounds like a plan. We can split up and make this go faster, speak up if you find anything boys." They each started cautiously walking down their own halls, their nails tapping and sliding against ice and frozen chitin making an eerie skittering noises echo around them.
"At least it ain't all wet 'n nasty in here." Tychus lamented as he ducked through a partially frozen shut fleshy doorway.
Traveling through the insides of a dead hive was a macabre experience. All around, Warfield imagined the walls pulsing and flexing while the structure gurgled and hissed. None of the three men had ever been inside a hive like this; the way it had stilled in death and frozen over was unnerving, never mind the pitch black they could only see in by the good grace of their new forms.
Uneasy, Warfield reached out with his thoughts as he carefully climbed down a dark, thin tunnel that angled downwards steeply. He could just imagine smaller zerg sliding up and down the slime-coated muscles while it was still alive, and it left him grimacing.
You know, I haven't seen a single dead zerg here. Where did they go? Not a single dead body or even signs of a battle had come up yet.
Tychus had come to a stop, glaring at a sealed shut doorway. Grimacing, he couldn't help but think the door looked a lot like an orifice. He supposed it was. "I ain't touchin' that..." Muttering and turning around, he paused and listened to Warfield before nodding slightly himself.
General has the right of it, this place is a graveyard but no ones home. I'm at a dead end here, gonna double back.
Jim had an ill feeling the deeper into the hive he went and it came to a head when he found another iced shut doorway where he figured there should have been no connection to the outside. Tugging a spine free from his thigh, its familiar crunch sound amplified by the fact it had become coated in ice, Jim gripped it tight before smashing it deeply into the ice. As suspected, a new flow of cold air erupted from the hole he had made when he pulled the spine free. Continuing the assault, Jim hacked away at the ice to weaken it while focusing on Tychus and Warfield.
Think I mighta found somethin', hang on a minute. After several more holes were punched through the ice, Jim shouldered it roughly and almost fell through before catching his footing. Blackened eyes widening, he surveyed the scene before him with dread. Figured out what got rid of the zerg.
Protoss! Shlassa hissed angrily into their minds.
The north face of the hive had been obscured to them when they came down from the hills, so they couldn't have seen what had surely been the killing blow to the hive; its flesh and chitin had been melted away straight to the core. Normally, a hive would collapse at the kind of damage Raynor was surveying, but a flash freeze must have hit and froze it in its final moments. "Bet I know who's down there." With a new sense of urgency, Jim began the descent down the literal guts of the structure to the center of the hive where he could see an opening.
Both Warfield and Tychus had wordlessly doubled back and came running down the path Jim had taken, moving as though the protoss themselves had arrived and given chase.
Stumbling down the steep V shaped slope, Jim barely caught himself from sliding and falling directly into the cavern below. Grasping on to a frozen ridge of flesh, Jim cautiously leaned over the mouth of the hole and looked down. There, coated in snow and frozen in death, was Nafash's corpse in the center of what appeared to have been some sort of birthing chamber, maybe where the hive generated its larvae in life.
Found Nafash. When you boys get to the open door, come down into the pit below. It was a long fall, but Jim felt confident in his new form- he wouldn't be broken upon landing. With that thought, he let go and swung down into the dark.
Nafash had been butchered. Jim landed nimbly and approached the dead creature with no small amount of revulsion. Several of her legs had been severed neatly by energy weapons- most likely the psi blades of zealots, and from the base of the dead broodmother's neck all the way to its lower body had been eviscerated. Warfield and Tychus were leaping down and landing heavily nearby while Jim was observing the carcass.
"So this is Nafash, huh? Can't say I'm sorry to see it dead." Tychus straightened up from the crouch he had landed in and sauntered over to look at the killing blow curiously. "Them Protoss sure don't mess around."
Shaking off some snow that was melting into slush, Warfield came up to the corpses side opposite of Jim and frowned. Nafash's abdomen, filled with that familiar almost glowing green goo, was drawing both his and Jim's attention.
Hyperion – Kaldir low orbit
Matt could feel Shlassa seething about something and was trying to ignore it. He was watching the adjutant continually adjusting the ships sensors in an attempt to pierce the weather of Kaldir and start providing essential surveillance for the ground team. It was severely grating to be both blind and reliant on Shlassa for any news regarding Jim, Warfield and Tychus.
As if on cue, the angry broodmother invaded Horners thoughts. They have discovered Nafash's body. It was protoss that killed her.
"Protoss..." Horner muttered, a sense of dread building up inside as the intense weather pattern of the flash freeze came on to the screen and howled towards the three men once again. Shlassa, a flash freeze is approaching. Let them know.
Chittering angrily in Stetmann's lab, Shlassa felt the stirrings of psionic energy the protoss were known for. Though the broodmother herself had never entered combat against the great enemy, the memories of millions who had were at her fingertips. Much worse than a flash freeze is coming, Terran. The protoss are still here on Kaldir!
Sitting heavily in his chair, Matt combed his fingers through his hair in frustration. We need to get them and get out of here Shlassa.
They have killed Nafash! Destroyed her brood! This cannot go unpunished!
Listen here Shlassy. Swann entered their conversation, rough and to the point like always. The Hyperion does not stand a chance against even a small amount of Protoss ships right now. So unless you want us all getting blown to hell, we need to get those three jokers back on this ship and get the hell outta here.
Stubborn and mad, Shlassa clenched her spidery fists and bristled. I don't have to answer to you! Our Queen has given us a mission and one of ours has been killed. This is the way of the zerg, of the swarm! Their bickering continued, even while several protoss Scouts slid through the sky towards the decimated zerg base.
Kaldir - Hive of Nafash
"Doesn't really look frozen, does it?" Jim's question hung in the frigid air as he tentatively reached out to touch the bright green flesh of Nafash's abdomen. Before his hand reached its destination, a clearly agitated Shlassa spoke.
Terrans! A flash freeze approaches, but we have discovered a Protoss base that has wakened nearby. They know you are here. It is time! Rouse the hive and bring the might of the zerg down on these Protoss who dare kill our own!
Uh, hate to break it to you but this here hive is dead. Tychus stated simply, glancing at Warfield and Raynor with a quirked brow.
No, fool. Life and death do not matter, only essence. You will assimilate Nafash's essence and gain what immunity she and her brood had to the flash freeze. Hurry!
Jim felt control of his body leave him as Shlassa took over. The urgency of the situation called for haste and she wasn't willing to watch them fool around.
"Wait, Jimmy you ain't gonna-" Both Tychus and Warfield reeled in disgust and Jim's clawed hand plunged through the flesh of the dead broodmother, green goo spilling out around it as he sunk his arm into her body to the elbow.
"That ain't right!" Warfield only had a second before he too was taken over, leaving Jim stumbling backwards and looking at his gooey limb in shock. The sound of Warfield digging into the other side of the corpse was disturbing, crunching mixed with the wet sloshing of thick liquid.
"Oh no, you're not doin' that to me no w-" Tychus had tried to step away, to raise some kind of mental defense against the grip of the broodmother, but she was having none of it. Warfield stumbled away from the corpse and Tychus shambled into place where he had stood, forced to plunge both his arms up to the elbow into the body.
The smell from the goo, thankfully never capable of rotting in the arctic temperatures, was extremely vile and was stinging their eyes and noses. Tychus ripped his arms out of the body and stumbled away much like Warfield and Raynor had, attempting to come to grips with what just happened.
Shlassa was merciless. Her essence is now yours. It is time for you to fight.
With the initial shock wearing off quickly, Jim shook his arm, flinging goo away and trying not to retch. He was about to lay into Shlassa when he really felt what the broodmother was saying- the green corpse goo had begun to seep through his flesh and he could feel his core temperature rising. Stifling his anger, Jim attempted to reason instead. Shlassa, if our mission was to find out what happened to Nafash and assimilate this essence, then it is complete and we need to leave. Fast.
Attempting to ignore the sound of Tychus retching on the other side of the corpse, there was a different sound that caught Jim's attention.
"I hear it too." Following Jim's train of thought, Warfield looked upwards. It was a humming sound, familiar.
Leaping to action, Jim ran around Nafash to Tychus and grabbed his slippery slime-coated arm and started hauling his big friend away from the opening in the top of the cavern. "Ships! Hide, fast!" Warfield ran over and attempted to help get Tychus moved, but the big man shook them both off angrily and ran for the wall with them in tow. They settled behind the caved in shells of eggs and watched the dark sky above warily.
Shlassa, listen. There is a time to fight and a time for flight, this is the latter. I know the Protoss and I know the status of the Hyperion- we will not survive a confrontation right now. Jim wasn't too proud to plead; it was as much about saving protoss lives as it was their own. The sleek golden hull of a single protoss Scout obscured what little light the pale gray sky offered, hovering above the hive.
This is not the time to argue. We're the ones down here risking our asses- let us make the damn decisions, Shlassa! If we're good at anything, it's dealing with these situations. Warfield chimed in, hoping to help sway the broodmother so they could focus on their current predicament faster.
There was a long pause between the three men, waiting for either the broodmother or the protoss ship to act first. It was a relief when Shlassa spoke. As you say. The flash freeze is almost upon you, the Protoss ship will be rendered helpless until it is over. You can safely leave in a moment. Shlassa reasoned to herself that, indeed, the Queen of Blades had chosen these Terrans for good reasons; letting them have free reign had been going well so far and she could bring the hive to life herself if the situation became worse.
"Jimmy." Tychus whispered, trying to keep quiet. "There ain't no doors outta this room! We gotta get back up through that hole somehow." It was true, all paths out had collapsed in on themselves long ago.
"Quiet you moron, who knows if that ship has sensors that can hear you or not." Warfield whispered harshly and the two exchanged a glare while Jim stared hard at the ship, willing it to go away. They would have no such luck, however. As the Scout slowly rotated around the pit above the center of the hive, the three men saw the blue energy pattern of a scan moving across the inside of the cavern; There was no time to move away from it before they had been detected.
"Run!" Jim shouted as the Scout spun to face them, its twin cannons glowing to life before firing rapidly. Scattering from behind the broken eggs, the three barely avoided the first barrage that left their cover in shattered smoking ruins.
"When's that damn freeze coming?!" Tychus yelled over the sudden loud noise. The Scout had honed in on him and he was barely avoiding its shots by forcing the ship to twist at odd angles to keep its aim.
Reverting to mental communication, although he was not sure if the protoss could hear it or not, Jim could hear the raging storm coming and made a quick decision. Warfield get to the center on top of that broodmothers corpse! Tychus, when the freeze hits you're gonna use us to jump up! Sure enough, the Scout did not switch off from Tychus when Warfield leaped onto the back of Nafash's corpse and braced himself. The protoss could not hear their communication.
As the flash freeze hit and poured into the chamber, howling and raging, the Scout was rendered frozen instantly. The ship freely dropped several feet before its emergency super-heated thrusters roared to life- specifically designed to counter the flash freezes. The pilot and the rest of the ships systems, however, remained frozen. It had fallen so far that the golden nose of the Scout was resting inside the cavern, the ship at a 90 degree angle from the ground.
Tychus broke away from the outer rim of the cavern and charged towards Warfield and Jim who was balancing on top of his shoulders, it was a little worrying to think about the mechanics of hurling someone as heavy as Tychus upwards, but Jim decided to let the zerg DNA do the talking and braced himself as the flash freeze washed over them.
As he leaped ontop of Nafash's body and planted his bare foot on Warfield's knee, it was like time slowed to a crawl for Tychus. The flash freeze had hit and he felt the heat of his body being sucked away, only to be rapidly replaced by even more intense heat as their newly adapted bodies struggled to generate more than what was being taken. He almost missed his second step upwards to Jim's bent knee as his functions slowed dramatically but his momentum did not.
A split second later, time resumed almost as normal when their bodies had fully acclimated. Letting out a gutteral roar, Tychus all but flew up Raynor and sprung off his shoulders into the air. Warfield and Jim were left tumbling like dominos from the force of the jump, but Tychus was not going to make it all the way.
Seeing what was happening, he began flailing outwards in panic until he collided with the nose of the Scout with a metallic clang, his claws generating a screeching sound as they dug into the metal like flesh and he slid a few feet downwards before coming to a jarring stop.
"Haha! WOO!" Jim yelled from below, pumping his fist in triumph as he lay on the frozen ground. Warfield gave a sharp clap and laughed as he stood back up, but they quickly sobered and climbed back on to the dead broodmother.
"Hang in there Tychus, we gotta climb up you!" Jim yelled, getting situated on Warfield's shoulders and ready to spring.
"Hurry the hell up! This freeze ain't gonna last forever!" Tychus worriedly stared down the nose of the ship into the blue glowing eyes of the Scout's pilot.
"You gonna be able to jump high enough by yourself, General?" Jim quirked a brow, looking down at Warfield who had the good grace to look offended.
"If he could make it, I damn sure can with nearly twelve less feet to jump." He had a point and so Jim shrugged and pumped his legs hard, throwing his arms up at the height of the jump for extra momentum. The result was Tychus' nails screeching down a few more inches of the ship and his panicked readjustment while Jim dangled off his ankle.
"Alright old boy, you can do this..." Warfield muttered to himself, eyeing Jim's legs and getting ready to jump.
"Time is tickin', General!" Jim called in warning, looking down at Warfield sharply. Without need of further prodding, Warfield leaped upwards- a great gust of air from the storm howling around them actually allowing him to overshoot his mark moderately and end up half way up Jims back.
"Agh, just go!" Jim tossed his head back in pain when Warfield's talons dug straight into his back, but there was nothing for it. Warfield scrabbled up Jim, Tychus and part of the protoss ship before landing at the edge of the icy maw and offering help to his two teammates. It felt like forever but was only the work of a few moments for all three of them to be on their feet and running- the coating of ice on the Scout had already began to slough off and the ship was struggling to life as the storm raged past.
Tychus looked over his shoulder and cursed as the Scout began to right itself and piece together where they went. "Hope you ain't tired, cause we're about to be runnin' for our lives in a second here!"
Shlassa! Jim called with some urgency as he quickly helped Warfield and Tychus clear the ruins of the hive and start running hard to the west- the closest collection of icy spires and crags where they could take cover and maybe lose their pursuers.
You are the one who chose to not kill that ship, Terran! Your job is not yet done. You must find an Ursadon Matriarch and consume its essence to finish the acclimation process, Nafash had not collected enough to be completely immune before she was killed.
"Shoulda just killed that damn ship Jimmy!" Tychus snarled and though Warfield kept quiet he privately agreed. Neither had any particular love for the aliens.
"Not if I can help it, damn it!" Jim snapped, focusing on keeping one foot ahead of the other and not getting fouled up on deceptively uneven ground. The Scout had picked up their trail and was in pursuit, it would be able to fire on them awfully soon. Where the hell is a damn Ursadon Matriarch then? We need to get some cover or this Scout is gonna be shootin' fish in a barrel real soon!
Shlassa was not very caring of their plight- it was their own fault after all; but letting them die was not an option either. Using their current position and her own considerable ability to feel the landscape and other lifeforms around them, Shlassa nodded slightly to herself before offering up their escape plan. The Ursadons live in ice tunnels all around and below you. Ahead you will find at least one cavern opening, choose any and the ships will not be able to pursue you.
Ships? Tychus asserted, wanting to make sure he had not misheard the plural- but it quickly became clear he hadn't as two more Scouts came into view, golden and menacing against the gray sky, approaching from their left and right. The curses that came from the three could scour paint off walls.
"Raynor, you start shooting at them or I'm going to shoot you at them!" Warfield yelled tensely as he leaped over a deep hole in the ice. Their pace had slowed considerably because of how broken up and uneven the ground had become and before Jim had time to consider their options, or lack thereof, the sound of three cannons firing simultaneously filled the air.
The Scouts had surrounded them, attempting to cover as much ground with their cannons as possible. As Jim, Tychus and Warfield tumbled, leaped and ran in multiple directions to spread the fire out, the ground began to groan and shake. Jim pulled a spike from his back and hurled it at the nearest Scout just as he fell into a freshly opened crevasse with a startled yell, only delivering a glancing blow to the machines shield.
"Jimmy?! Warfield, over here!" Tychus yelled while slipping between two close shelves of ice that were shifting of their own accord, snow and ice chips showering this way and that from the cannon fire. Without hesitation, he charged towards the hole Jim had fallen into and entered feet first- jagged shards of ice scraping against his shoulders and legs as he passed through the tight space.
As the three Scouts lost two of their targets, they all turned to focus on Warfield as he zigzagged and ran as hard as he could towards the spot where he last saw Tychus. Unfortunately evading the fire of three ships was damn near impossible and searing pain exploded from his right shoulder, along with a spray of blood and hallucinogenic paste, when an energy cannon hit true. Off balance from the blow, he fell into the dark head first and barely managed to twist his body enough to hopefully land on his uninjured side against whatever was waiting below.
Jim's forehead dashed off the sheer wall of ice hard, having tried to tuck it into his chest for protection, right before crashing through to his new unknown position. The result of the jarring action was Jim ending up tossing his head backwards in pain and throwing his whole body out of position for the landing. When Jim's back hit the ground, followed by the rest of his body weight, the sound of all the air being forced out of his lungs echoed off in multiple directions around him.
Breathing heavily and staring up through the crack in the ceiling of the ice tunnel he had fallen into, Jim's eyes widened in panic when he heard the telltale sound of Tychus yelling above. Attempting to roll to the side proved useless, his spines had jammed into the ground and were effectively pinning him in place.
Trying to slow his fall by fanning his hands out and dragging his fingertips down the wall had proven very painful and Tychus quickly settled for keeping his balance. Gaze focusing downwards, it became apparent almost too late that Jim was flat on his back and not moving. Clenching his jaw and focusing, Tychus came spilling out of the frozen fissure with a rain of knife-like shards and a bellow. Spreading his legs just wide enough for his feet to plant on either side of Jim's body, gravity slammed him down to his hands and knees directly after. Sucking in a ragged breath, Tychus looked down at Jim and noted his eyes were clenched shut. "Not dead yet, I hope?"
Eyes snapping open in disbelief at not being crushed, Jim stared at Tychus' collar bone and let out a weak chuckle. "I'm stuck, but alive."
"Stuck?" Eyes narrowing, Tychus looked over Jim with a critical eye, thankfully still able to see in the pitch black.
"The spikes, Tychus." Sighing in annoyance and raising his arm in an attempt to shove the several hundred pound man child off, neither men were prepared for Warfield to come crashing in silently. Tychus' body slammed flat against Jim's without mercy as he took the full brunt of the collision and both let out pained shouts. Warfield's body bounced off of Tychus' back and landed nearby with a dull thud.
Making a weak distressed noise that caused his voice to crack, Tychus' rolled off Jim and lay on his side. "My back." Unable to say anything more colorful, he focused on sucking in air and recovering, much like Jim.
Blackness had taken Warfield's vision during his fall, the painful burning of the Scout's energy weapon wasn't comparable to any pain he had experienced in his lifetime. Crashing into Tychus and landing directly on his charred shoulder wound had jarred the General back to a painful wakefulness, however. Sluggishly rolling to his back, Warfield muttered. "You boys alive? Took a hit up there, good thing I fell into the hole."
Certain that he could feel bones returning to their rightful positions and re-knitting, Jim remained silent except for his forceful breathing.
A snort and a wave of rancid, hot air hit Tychus' in the face. Gritting his teeth, he opened his eyes and saw a great white beast with beady eyes and some of the biggest teeth he'd ever seen glaring down at him only a few feet away. "Shit." Tychus whispered and started to rise with his elbow but froze when the Ursadon stamped a clawed foot in warning. Warfield wasn't back among the living yet but Jim began to stir in alarm, sensing something was wrong.
There's a damn Ursadon right here, Jimmy. Erring on the side of caution, Tychus reverted to mental communication while staring the Ursadon down.
Instead of Jim responding, however, Shlassa intervened. Stetmann says that Ursadon will most likely attack you if you appear weak or are in its territory. Be cautious.
Careful, Tychus. Jim warned. Warfield is out and I'm still stuck.
"Always up to ol' Tychus to save the day." Muttering and cautiously raising himself to a crouch despite the warning growling and stomping of the Ursadon, Tychus faced off with the creature.
Kaldir – Ursadon tunnel camp
Urut and Lassara stood watching the infested Terrans through the recording sensors on the first Scout that had arrived to cleanse them. When the flash freeze hit- thankfully their camp was far enough away to not experience it, Lassara began to feel concern.
Why are the infested not attacking back?
Urut's brow furrowed slightly, waiting for the footage to resume. They must not have any weapons or projectiles. All the better, the Scout is safe.
Eyeing the spine-covered Terran, Lassara couldn't help but feel differently... A strange feeling of deja vu tickled at the back of her mind every time she looked towards him, though it was certain they had never met. Lasarra had never met a Terran, or an infested. When the sensors were restored and the Scout was left reeling into the air to look for its targets, even Arut shifted slightly in discontent at the turn of events.
Two more Scouts coming across the icy plains towards the small group of infested put both Protoss at ease. There was nowhere for the three to run, all directions were covered and there was nowhere to hide.
As the three Scouts began firing down upon the infested, Arut's voice was low. For Aiur.
For Aiur. Lassara echoed, but with much less fervor. Lasarra almost reached to turn the feed off when the ice began to shift visually, followed by a much more real rumbling and trembling of the earth around herself and Arut.
Out of the cave! Realizing what was happening, Arut nearly dragged Lassara out of the cave by her arm before she fully committed to running. Hiding beneath the Warp Prism, ready to escape should the ground around them become unstable, they watched the feed Lassara was clenching firmly in her hands.
They have fallen into the Ursadon tunnels! The three infested had fallen through the unstable ground in the time it took for Arut and Lassara to run to safety, and the Protoss researcher was clearly distressed at the thought. Arut, we can't let them infest the Ursadons- no creature deserves such a fate!
Though he did not physically sigh, the slight dip of the Zealots shoulders was telling. Lassara. Surely you don't expect the two of us to go into the very heart of Ursadon territory and hunt down three infested Terrans who may or may not have survived falling into the tunnels?
We are the closest by far! Protesting, Lassara glared at her partner then. If the thought of meeting the enemy galls you so- I shall do it by myself! Shouldering past Arut without another word, Lassara briskly strode through the snow back into the base camp- which had thankfully not collapsed. She was already stepping past the camp and deeper into the cave when Arut physically halted her with a strong hand on her shoulder.
Sister, it does not gall me to meet the enemy; it does to think that you can be so rash about simple creatures. Letting his hand fall from her shoulder, as he now had her attention, Arut peered past her into the dark. To possibly throw your life away in an attempt to save some beasts? Lunacy. Lassara's shoulders dipped and her long nerve cords followed suit. Arut would surely put an end to this and the Ursadons would suffer. But brave. He continued. Braver than a researcher has any right to be. You are my charge and I would not be so negligent as to let you meet the enemy alone, but know this: You will listen to my commands. If I tell you to run, you will. Understand? Arut's gaze pinned her, waiting for an answer.
Not sure she heard correctly, Lassara tilted her head slightly before determination bloomed across her smooth features and through their connection. Understood. Let us bring peace to these infested and save the Ursadon, together.
Without need of further confirmation, the two ran into the dark together- lead by the datapad in Lassara's hands and their combined psionic might feeling out far ahead for signs of life.
Happy New Years everybody, hope 2015 is treating you well so far. Man, this chapter gave me so much trouble! In order for it to be posted I've settled for just not being happy with it and moving on. Tried out making it more clear when the whole scene shifts to another place for clarity purposes, but not sure if I really like how that turned out either. Let me know if you like it, would you?