Page 39 of My Big Scaly Alien Naga
Nothing.
Then he opened his palm and held it to my mouth.
“Breathe on it.”
I shot him a questioning look but then exhaled a slow breath.He pressed that hand to the wall, wriggling his fingers slightly.
Click.
A section of the black rock slid back with a hiss of pressure.Dust drifted down.Inside: wires, old data ports, and a glowing interface screen barely brighter than an ember.The symbols on the screen meant nothing to me, but Venom exhaled sharply.“By the stars… it's still live.”
I peered over his shoulder.“What now?”
“Now I patch in, break through any security they might have, strip the data load, and try to route a burst transmission through one of the ancient orbital relays.Nobody ever bothered to remove them.I’ve been telling the game makers for ages that they pose a security risk, but nobody listened to me.Now we can make good use of them.If the Bloodstar is still watching this region, they might catch it.”
“And if the game makers intercept it first?”
“Then they’ll come straight here.Harder.Faster.No more waiting outside the cave to flush us out.They will sacrifice the crowd’s entertainment to get their revenge on me.”
I swallowed.“No pressure then.”
He met my gaze.“We’ll send one signal.No fancy encryption, just coordinates and a distress call.”
“Just tell me where to run if this goes to hell.”
“You’ll be running with me.”
19
Venom
The moment I pressed the final command, the interface went dark.
No confirmation.No echo.Just the faint hum of buried circuitry and the low pulse of power fading into the stone.
I waited.One breath.Then another.
Nothing.
“Did it work?”Clare asked behind me.
“I don’t know,” I admitted.“If they received it, they’ll come.If not…”
I didn’t finish the sentence.
Before the silence could stretch further, a familiar chirping sound echoed from the tunnel.I turned just as a cluster of chii emerged, running on all fours, their tails erect.At the front was Ba’quoo, standing out with his silver feathers among his golden and bronze companions.
He scrambled up a crate and fixed me with all three eyes.His presence pressed against my mind a moment before his voice did.
More movement.Many beasts.Bigger than any we have seen here before.Wings.Fire.The sky trembles.
“Can you show me?”I asked sharply.
I have not seen them myself.But this is what Cla’quoo witnessed.
The image he sent was blurry around the edges and somewhat faded, but it was clear enough for me to recognise the monster.
“Fuck,” I exclaimed before I could stop myself.“That’s Tyvaron!”
