Page 16 of Slavic

“Einar, are you with me, brother?”

“Rightbehind you.Iwill take the bottom bay and you take the other.”

“Soundslike a plan.Arewe going to keep any prisoners alive forMurgulto play with?”

“Dependson how much funIam having, or ifIhave any restraint left once we secure the ship.”

Iclick our communicator off as we get closer.EinarandIboth circle the ship slowly making sure that neither of us are walking into a trap.Thesebugs have not spread all over the solar system by being dumb.WhenFalonsends back a confirmation on the thruster failure,Igive the signal forEinarto proceed.Hewill infiltrate the lower cargo dock whileIslide right into the main one.Fora momentIcontemplate turning the shuttle’s cloaking system off just to see how much funIcan have all by myself.

Einarpings me, verifying that he is attached safely, andIfeel the ship jerk as he cuts off their power.Openingthe shuttle door,Ipause long enough to make sure the atmospheric shield is still active.Thisfun activity would end abruptly ifIwas suddenly sucked out into the void of space.

Themoment my boots touch the surface of their ship, alarms start going off.Ismile asIanticipate the blood of my enemy flowing all along the floor around me.ThenIstand there simply allowing the bugs to come to me.Myswords swing around and around, an extension of my arms asIhear them approaching.

Enteringthe dock, they immediately spread out and their leader steps up likeIam going to cower away. “Whatis the meaning of this,Rukuhk?Youare here tempting your gods if you believe you can rescue your princess alone.”

“Aprincess you say?Idid not know there was still such a thing bug, but now you have given me even more reasons to shed your blood upon the walls surrounding us.”

Thelarger one thinks that his words have distracted me long enough for his crew to sneak up behind me.Ilower my swords and shake my head, “Onething you bugs will never learn.”Swingingmy sword straight back hard,Ihear the crunch of an exoskeleton. “is that you cannot hide the clipity-clop of those feet of yours.Youreally should invest in coverings.”

Snarling,Ileap forward, ducking and slicing at the multiple legs like a madman.Aloud bellow has me turning with a smirk on my face asEinarengages in the fight from behind them.Withwicked smiles on our faces, we cut them into multiple pieces effortlessly.Unfortunately, the fight seems to end too soon, andIfind myself covered in bug gore standing next toEinaras he rolls his enormous neck.

“Ihaven’t enjoyed a rising quite this much, in well, some time!Areyou injured,Slavic?”, he asks, motioning toward my arm with a look of concern on his homely face.

“Oneof the frackers tried to stab me with his tail, but he just nicked me.Igot sidetracked playing with that last one who was teetering back and forth on the two legsIhad not cut off yet.Ijust managed to get my arm up in time, or you might have had to finish them off by yourself.”

“Thatis what you get for playing with your enemies, instead of focusing on the matter at hand.Theirupper bodies, at least, have several weak points, but those fracking tails are deadly.Let’sgo see if there is anything worth salvaging on this stinking heap.Thenlet us get out of here before their filth settles into our skin and we cannot scrub it off.Iwill commBikarand let him know it is safe to hard dock.”

“Soundslike a plan.Iwill check the rest of this upper corridor while you head back toward the lower deck.Keepyour eyes open, there could still be a few hiding.”

Walkingthrough the ship,Ihave to fight my gag reflex as the smell of death permeates the air all around me.Theship is relatively small compared to theZenith, and it does not take long to clear each room.Thebugs devour everything, so there isn’t much that can be salvaged in the upper chambers.

Mycomm unit goes off. “Slavic, did you find anything interesting up there?”

“Negative,Einar.Thereare only two more doors in this area, so onceIclear both of them,Iwill be down to help with the cargo.”

Openingthe next door,Istick my head in, instantly disgusted whenIrealize what this is…the leader’s breeding nest.Movementin a middle one has me drawing my sword, rushing forward ready to destroy any and all young in there, only to slide to a stop when large, amber eyes blink up at me.

“Slavic, is that really you or amIdreaming?”

“GodsofRuk,Kallen?Youare dead, you all perished.Isaw it with my own eyes.”

“NotallSlavic, butIam not long for this world, my old friend.”

Iimmediately sheathe my sword and reach down for her only to notice a chain attached to her emaciated leg.Graspingit between my hands,Itear the links apart with a growl on my face.Stopping,Itake a second to look at her.Sheis nothing but skin and bones.Darkblood cakes her inner thighs and there is some sort of homemade bandage under her left breast.

“Kallen,Ineed to lift you up out of there.Gods, what have they done to you?Iwill be as gentle asIcan,Princess.”

Kneelingon one knee,Islip my arms under her.Tearsform in her eyes asIlift her up.Sheis so weak she simply hangs on me, andIhave to stop long enough to secure her head against my shoulder.

“Ithought you were a ghost sent to bring me home”, she whispers.

“Wewill get you betterKallen, do not give up on me now.”

“Donot forgetRuby.”

“Who?Iknow noRuby.”

Atfirst,Ithink she is talking out of her head untilIsee movement in another bowl nest.Ihit the comm unit on my wrist.

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