Sienna's attention turned away from the warship’s commander as a familiar face joined the group coming from the direction of the dormitory. A familiar face that Sienna knew definitely shouldn’t have been on the Starskipper anymore. Sienna looked to her right and attempted to catch Miss Sevvi’s eye. Had she seen something on the cameras wrong? No, she remembered Isre getting pulled into the dorms, and she hadn’t been in there when she went to get changed. The timing was all wrong wasn’t it? And if she had escaped the lycaian then shouldn’t she have seen her hiding in the dorms?
“Who—” Sienna started before she could stop herself. She looked away from Miss Sevvi and in the direction of Isre. “Excuse me, I’m sorry to ask this but where were you hiding out at?”
That seemed like a good question to start with, for now anyway.
//... into the dark she stepped, but never did she feel free of the gaze...//
Patience, though recommended, did not seemed to be needed as heavy footfalls announced the appearance of two of the pirates. The larger one seemed more machine than man, a fact stated by Luther as they seemed to have already been introduced. Laurel grinned at the jabs the two made at the man, but her eyes hardened at the sight of the Lykaian.
”Nevermind Tape Face and the question of his balls.” Laurel stood as she spoke, walking over to the glass to stand next to the Silwin. ”What’s with his Omega toy over there? You’re walking kinda funny, pup. What exactly were you two doing with that baton before you decided to so graciously visit us?” Laurel pinched her nose and fanned her other hand in front of her. ”I certainly hope you washed your hands.”
Her grin was cruel, vicious even. She stood with her arms crossed, defiantly staring up at the two pirates as if unaware of the considerable height difference. Every beat of her heart echoed through her head painfully. She needed someone to take this out on. “I take it Jack over here is responsible for your face?” She glanced over her shoulder at Luther and jabbed her thumb to the taped cyborg. ”Was he that ugly before? I can see how you lost that round, I can barely look at him even with all of the tape.”
A small bit of tension eased from Sevvi's shoulders as a few of her passengers spoke their intent to stick with her in rescuing their lost acquaintances. A few of them seemed good under pressure, and looked like they knew their way around a fight. All she was here for was to fly, and she was damn good at that, so having people to cover the rest of it was going to be a welcome sight. She went to set her eyes on the last of the three, the one wearing a bucket hat of all things, before Sienna spoke up, with a question. The Dokka nodded towards the captain of the ship outside their ship, saying, "Half o' one. Thanks to Captain Amarok here. Figure we'll tag along for a bit, til' we get everyone back."
Just as she finished speaking, someone else entered, someone who shouldn't be here, on account of Sevvi seeing her taken away with her own two eyes. No way a four foot something Silwin could fight off someone like that, especially after taking a shot from a gun like Six's. Frankly, as far as she was concerned, Isre, or whoever this was that looked like her, should be dead, given the amount of time that had passed since she had last seen her on the cameras. Her face dropped to a frown, and she looked to the others present, hoping to catch their gaze, so they could see the warning. "Great question, Starlight. How in the hell d'you get away from that pirate? He was about twice your size and just about as angry, when we checked in."
"Well, you're gonna want to get a fuckin' move on, because a ship that small isn't gonna make a big splash." Voraan replied, pinching the bridge of his nose with a pair of gloved digits. His head felt like it was about to splatter over the side of the Starskipper, and it sure as hell wasn't just the coke withdrawals. "I'm concussed, by the way. Can barely fuckin' remember what day it is." Reckless as he was, Voraan had always reserved a special amount of fear for head injuries. Something about 'em just... always had a habit of taking without giving back. He'd seen it firsthand with his own crew, when some sorry bastard got his helmet caved in like a crushed beer can from a stray gauss round. Like-- the ship was still running, but nobody was in the pilot's seat. A stupor, the doc had called it. Other times, you had the subtle decay-- take too many hits, and your brain turns into a fuckin' sponge. Nothing you could do about it, too.
Sometimes, he wondered if it was already past the point of no return for him.
"I stayed alive 'cause I'm good at what I fuckin' do." Voraan replied defensively, snapping out of his little daydream with a bit of a knee-jerk riposte. Conveniently, he left out the part where he knew exactly what those amateur scav fucks were up to because he'd done the exact same to countless ships like the Starskipper. Not only that, but he had been far, far less kind to the occupants. Instead of incriminating himself, the mercenary closed his eyes and rubbed at the side of his head. These fuckin' bastards were still military, after all, and they'd probably hang him if they knew who he was. Best to retain that ambiguity for as long as possible, if he could help it.
So-- when the shortstack bitch came out yapping, Voraan didn't press when they started playing twenty questions. Not initally, at least, until the pilot added onto the dogpile. Those fingers dug a little bit more insistently into his temple, and a sharp sigh fell from his mouth as he opened his bloodshot eyes.
"Fuckin' hell, people, who cares if she killed him or fuckin' blew him back there? Is this really that God-damn important to you people? Or would you rather she got dragged off, or some shit? Can we move on from this?" The mercenary shook his head. "Fuck's sake."
It seemed like he was running with a good batch of folks after all. None of them seemed to object to the idea of chasing those pirates, although Six had to admit he wasn’t expecting the Lykaian military to be their saviors. Fortunately he hadn’t taken many Lykaians in, so he figured they wouldn’t have much of an attitude. Unlike the man who had clung to the outside of their ship, who certainly had a mouth on him.
Well speak of the devil. Six’s eyes widened as he saw the very Silwin he was referring to hobble out of the ship. He put a hand on her shoulder, halting her progress. His eyes squinted, and he turned his head to the side, pulling out his cigar so he wouldn’t blow smoke in her face. That just wouldn’t be polite.
“Beggin’ your pardon, ma’am, but last I saw you that Lykaian pirate had you pretty well held. Even if you managed to slip his grasp, that big feller who took the other woman was right behind him. Just curious how you escaped is all.”
Six tipped his hat.
“And of course, my apologies. I was planning on shooting his foot, get him to let you go. Won’t happen again.”
Sygan grinned if only to hide his frustration with the prisoners. His eye drifted over to the Silwin and he scowled - he wouldn't admit it, but she was right. "Laugh it up while you can. If Siobhan didn't want you all in one piece for the trade, I'd give you one free hit before setting you all straight." He glanced over at John. "What's the old saying - eye for an eye? Why don't I just take both of yours and save us all some time?"
His patience was holding on by a thread, so as the blue-skinned woman continued to stoke the flames, he pushed off from the glass and scoffed. "Lukan, pick out one of these clowns and sort 'em out. I'm going up to check our heading." He slammed a heavy hand on the Lykaian's shoulder and promptly left.
~ ~ ~
"What'd you fucking call me? Omega? I brought the stick to be nice, but maybe I'll just say fuck it and show you how we handle fucks like you back on Lykaia!" Lukan bared his teeth and pushed past Sygan as he left. "You got a death wish? How many lucky breaks you think you've got left?"
But then as he stepped up to the glass, his face softened. Over his shoulder, he watched quietly as the cyborg lumbered off. Once he was out of earshot, he let out a long sigh and his face grew slightly weary. A weight gathered in his shoulders and his grip on the baton shifted. He hated this part, but maybe he could do something about it.
For a moment his eyes caught Isre. His immmediate reaction was some relief she was doing better than when he'd dropped her off, but soon he could see the anger in her eyes. Betrayal, nothing stung worse. He hadn't expected her to be in good spirits when he saw her again, but the look she gave him now magnified the shame he already felt tenfold. Words gathered in his throat, but stayed there. Not now, but when?
All he needed was a moment alone with one of them, maybe that's how he'd do it. Lukan's opposite hand fumbled with something in the pocket of his combat pants, then he looked up and said almost nonchalantly - "So... any volunteers?"
~ ~ ~
The Silwin stopped and pivoted on her foot leg to look back at the passengers. Her face grew irritated at the idea that these people would doubt her story. First where she was hiding, then the fact she couldn't have fought off Lukan. Assholes. "Thanks for the vote of confidence, jerks." She rubbed her wound and winced. "Bullseye over there hit the Lykaian pretty bad too, blasted right through him. He was barely holding on by the time we got to the airlock." She shifted again.
She sighed and continued. "Barely carried me up into the tunnel, so when his grip got loose trying to cycle it, I hit him in the balls and ran for the bathroom. Hid in the vent, some idiot left it open when I found it."
The pirate seemed on her side, but if anyone took his testimony seriously was waiting to be seen. "I didn't fuckin' blow him! But yeah, let's just move along now, I'm still bleeding over here." At least the cowboy apologized. "Better not... but yeah, thanks, whatever."
Luther let a small smile of amusement flash across his lips for a moment. The big old cyborg had his buttons properly pressed and resorting to threats. An eye for an eye, he said?
"I'm just saying what you told me," Luther raised an eyebrow, although the way it arced hinted more so at humor than genuine confusion.
Luther shook his head as the big cyborg began walking away. There was something to be said of how big that man actually was if he was hiding behind glass and locked doors as well as hacked augments--Luther's hacked augments. Maybe a smart man or a careful man, but not careful enough if he was sending the Lykaian to do his dirty work. A limping Lykaian. Which meant the three of them had a chance to get the jump on someone as equally injured.
May not be a better opportunity than this.
Putting his hands against his legs, Luther pushed himself up to stand before raising a hand and waving his arm side-to-side briefly.
"I volunteer," a firm nod, almost as if there was no choice but to step up, "I'm least likely to break too bad. Compared to them, at least."
His eyes cast a glance at the others before returning it to the bipedal wolf alien, "You need us in one piece, right? Let's just get this over with."
Luther sighed as if upset and resigned to his fate. But that wasn't exactly true, was it?
It seemed that they had hurt the cyborg pirate’s feelings, their insults driving him away like an injured animal, snarling and threatening even as he dropped the responsibility on his injured friend’s head and fled. The Lykaian, to his credit, responded appropriately to the targeted insults Laurel had made, even going so far as to threaten Laurel herself. This elicited only a chuckle as Luther stepped to the glass and made his case as volunteer.
Laurel shook her head and placed a hand on Luther’s shoulder, having to extend her arm almost fully to reach. Her grip tightened as it had on the one-eyed pirate’s hand, enough to crush the bones of a man and dent the chassis of a bot. Before her grip caused any damage, though, Laurel released the cyborg. ”Your head must still be spinning if you already forgot what I told you. Sit down and let the professionals handle this.” If the words were harsh it was only to echo the banging in her skull.
”Now then, Puppy. How about you show me what they do with fucks like me on Lykaia, and I will show you what we do to bad doggies that growl at their Alphas.” Laurel spread her arms wide and returned her attention to the Lykaian with the same merciless grin. ”Maybe if you’re lucky I will make you half as pretty as your boyfriend when I am done.”
"Here we are, the bridge. We're locked on to drop behind them as soon as they exit subspace - give or take a minute or two." Captain Amarok said as the pressure door to the bridge slid open. He stepped through first, and beckoned the others behind him.
The CIC of the Silent Fang was the pinnacle of Lykaian military design and doctrine. Straightforward, uncluttered, efficent and most importantly it was spacious enough for the larger beings to move unimpeded - Lykaians on average stood upwards of eight feet. To the passengers of the Starskipper, the bridge was nearly six times the size of their mess hall.
The ship had fired back into subspace soon after the shuttle had been secured and the new passengers were accounted for. Kaz had noticed the transition between real space and subspace was oddly seamless for a ship of the Silent Fang's size. The ship's size was somewhere between a frigate and destroyer, but armed far heavier than most LON ships he'd seen of that size. The more he thought about it, it seemed strange that the Lykaians were this far out of their territory in the first place.
"Captain, don't take this the wrong way, but..." The silver haired mercenary looked out across the stations, manned silently by Lykaian sailors wearing advanced AR headsets. "You're not AWOL, are you?" Muscle memory planted his palm on the grip of his pistol, not threateningly, but alert enough to pull if he had to.
None of the Starskipper survivors had been disarmed unless they'd placed any equipment with their luggage - which had been stowed in their makeshift quarters. The Lykaians likely didn't expect them to attack their saviors, and knew they'd have Kaz and the others outgunned.
Amarok stopped and laughed. "No, but I don't blame you for assuming such." He stepped up onto the captain's perch and turned to face them. "What I say, what we do here - it doesn't leave this ship. When we make port, your story is there were no pirates. Your delay and repair marks are the result of an unexpected meteor shower." His eyes were a strange mix of welcoming calm and absolute deathly certainty. "Our mission out here is known only to those present aboard the ship you stand on, and three members of Lykaian Fleet Hierarchy. I am placing my complete trust in you. It would be unwise to break it."
"For reasons that might be obvious, we can't be completely involved with the rescue of your friends. Our flight logs can only reflect a mere pitstop, not boarding action - although some personnel and equipment might've gone missing during such an engagement. Do you have a plan do free your friends once we arrive?"
~ ~ ~
The loudmouth was throwing all kinds of jabs his way, almost the same way his instructors back home would. They came off with almost the same kind of delivery, had she been called these things before? She knew what would get to him, most Lykaians were sensitive in the same way. Lukan growled without thinking, didn't she know she was fucking this up? The sound of a slowing subspace stabilizer began to become more and more present. For better or worse, they were nearing their destination and were about to return to real space.
Lukan's ears pricked up at the sound, and his earpiece flashed as an incoming call found him. "Shit, no time." He looked through the glass at the captives, until his eyes found Isre and stopped. "Isr- you, come here." He planted his paw against the door controls and blocked the frame as it slid open. He didn't take a step in, instead he simply reached out and held her small hand, showing the same care and gentleness he had in the airlock. Something cold laid between their palms.
His eyes said sorry but his lips couldn't follow. There were so many words he wanted to say, so many things that he needed to do to make this up to her. He'd put her here, he was still thinking but maybe he could get her out. "You still gonna be a problem, supernova?" The trace of a smile marked his long face as he pulled his hand away. In her palm laid her pocketknife, freshly wiped clean.
The feeling of sudden deceleration came fast but not hard enough to cause too much discomfort. They'd arrived. Sygan rounded the corner behind him only a few moments later, supported by a trio of pirates wearing armor similar to the raiders who'd attacked the hangar. "Dammit, look I'll try and-"
"Fun's over, Omega." The cyborg pushed Lukan against the frame of the door and held him there with his forearm. "Time's up, don't wanna keep our company waiting. They don't like broken toys." He stepped out of the door and pulled Lukan with him, pushing him out of the way.
The captain's display lit up with an alert. The pirates were finally beginning to slow down - their destination was an unmapped system at the edge of known space. The edge of everything.
~ ~ ~
The pirates wordlessly marched the captives down to the hangar bay, where a pair of battle suits laid dissembled and plenty of other half finished projects littered the edges of the room. The rest of the crew was gathered there - aside from the three guards, Lukan, and Sygan, it was a skeleton crew. No more than maybe a dozen, plus the woman perched on the crate.
"Four? Just fucking four?" The woman hopped off her perch and marched towards Sygan. "We needed more, dumbass! Or did you forget how to count with all that metal in your fat head?" She waved her pistol in the cyborg's face and jabbed at his chest.
"Took what we could, Siobhan. Lost three of our own guys - your quartermaster included, remember?" Sygan hid a smirk under his jab. He'd never liked Callum, but now with the man dead, uttering his name only made that fact more sweet. "'Sides, we'll take what we can and bring more."
"I should let them take you too, useless fucking lug-" Siobhan turned as the proximity alert at the pressure door sounded. "They're here." She turned to square off against the door, her fingers anxiously tapped against the handle of her hand cannon as she awaited the sight of her patron.
From within the airlock emerged a creature the size of the Starskipper, floating through the air towards them with countless appendages that hung below, reaching out and gently touching its surroundings - a light on the tip igniting with each impact. The harder the pirates tried to count them, the more there seemed to be.
Siobhan stepped forward, gripping her gun tighter. "W-we brought you more, like we promised. Now give them back." It took every fiber of her courage to get those words out. She stared at the being, unsure of what to focus on. Could it even hear her?
It settled, and slowly it's limbs reached out for everyone - prisoner and pirate alike. Suddenly, it spoke - not words, it was beyond words or perhaps it never knew the concept. But in that moment it sought to address them, and in their minds they could see it.
Images, shapes and ideas conveyed to them. It almost hurt, the intrusion and immense weight of its mind touching theirs.
C U R I O U S .
E X O T I C .
S P E A K ?
The tentacles reached for the prisoners, beckoning them to perform - to impress.
Laurel was almost disappointed that the Lykaian didn’t take the bait, but remained silent and attentive when the wolf took the Silwin’s hand with his ears down and head low. She held her tongue as the cyborg returned with his fully geared handmaidens in tow and quite literally shoved his comrade to the side. Laurel even kept quiet throughout the the march through the ship, eyes drinking in every detail she could possibly memorize with every half heartbeat.
Her silence broke at the banter between Big Ugly and Captain Edgey with her big gun, a derisive snicker at the absurdity of being at the mercy of these rank amateurs. The situation may not have been quite what she had in mind, but they were clearly about to be swapped to new hands. Laurel couldn’t hope for the next captors to be as idiotic. As the proximity alert sounded and the pirate captain turned Laurel leaned toward Luther subtly.
”On my signal, grab the Silwin and head for the door.” Her words were too soft for anyone to have heard unless her lips were to their ears, but she was counting on the cyborg to have augmented hearing enough to pick it up. When their captors prepared for the exchange was going to be their best opportunity. With a deep breath Laurel steadied herself as the airlock opened.
”What in the fuck?”
The tentacled creature came through with curious, probing lights and a mental onslaught that did no favors for Laurel’s headache. For a moment she stood there, watching as the creature probed, the insanity of the moment nearly distracting her from the pirate captain’s words. Now give them back. Shit.
Laurel burst into action as she forced the intruding projections from her thoughts with a single mental note, a clear bell ringing in her mind and sweeping away the stray images and impressions. Her skin faded, body turning translucent a moment before her clothing followed, a quick but invisible glance tossed to Luther with hope he understood the mission. She had no time to spare him, however, as she twisted away from light tipped tendril and toward the nearest pirate, hands grabbing for whatever weapon was readily available.
Isre stared - moreso glared, if only faintly - at Lukan with the same numb anger she'd afforded him when he first showed up on the other side of the glass. As he approached and pressed something cold and hard into her hands, however, she shifted, that anger fading slightly in the wake of confusion - then realization.
"I'm always a fucking problem, dogbreath," she muttered back, closing her fingers around the object and slipping it beneath her jacket, stowing it in the waistband of her shorts. She opened her mouth, possibly going to say something else, possibly going to be at a loss for what to say, but the sudden slowing of the ship and the reappearance of the cyborg cut off whatever might've come.
They were led out into a hold, of sorts, filled with various mechanical bits and bobs. Almost looked like parts of suits. There were other pirates here, ones Isre didn't recognize, including a short-haired, bossy woman that she could only assume was the leader.
She could stab her.
Right here, right now, head of the beast cut off. But - that'd probably be suicidal, right? At least a few of these pirates had to be loyal to this bitch, and Isre didn't really fancy seeing if the odds were in her favor, considering her luck. Instead, she hung near the back of the group, fingers dancing over the edge of the knife, watching, waiting.
An alarm. A hiss of doors. And then -
A thing entered.
A thing was the only way it could really be described. It didn't look like any animal Isre had ever seen, a big, bulbous thing with dangling tendrils beneath it, entire jelly-like body covered in glowing, probing lights. The Silwin stared. She definitely couldn't stab that. As it approached, it - spoke? - screamed - roared in her head, thoughts that weren't hers, not in a language, but in abstract things she somehow understood.
Get the fuck out of my head.
Panic set in, a lump in her throat, and her fingers again danced along the knife.
"What the fuck?" she shouted to the room. "I thought - this was gonna be, like, a slave thing, or - sex trafficking, or something. At least selling my fucking organs. What the fuck is that?"
She drew the knife the same second Laurel went for a pirate's weapon. A bit of a coincidence, there, but Isre didn't even seem to notice the soldier's movement, eyes - and dagger tip - focused intently on the captain.
"What's your fucking deal?"
Yesterday, upon the stair, I met a man who wasn't there! He wasn't there again today, Oh how I wish he'd go away!
With most of the pirate crew focused on the alien and it's projections, the prisoners took what may have been their only chance to claim freedom. Holly - now unmasked as Laurel struck out for the nearest pirate, one of the armored guards. He was distracted well enough, and Laurel was trained in disarming tactics well enough to wrestle the heavy pulse rifle from his arms and turn it on the pirates.
Isre followed her lead, and set her knife towards Siobhan. If there was a proper moment for mutiny, it was now - even if it was only Lukan. In a fluid motion, he jammed the shock prod into the armpit of the other armored soldier and grabbed for his gun, hoping to pull it out of the line of fire and take control. The pirate crumpled and dropped the weapon.
Lukan raised it towards Sygan, and drew his pistol in the other hand towards - well, anyone who tried to make a move. Most of the techies weren't fighters, but they still had iron. If he kept a barrel on them, they wouldn't pull - he'd shoot if they did and they knew it. As Siobhan turned to face Isre, she scowled at Lukan and the others - finger itching to put a hole through him - or her - or anyone really.
"Lukan, you fucking traitor! Spit in my eyes like this? - "
"Just shut it." He let the pistol fix its sights between her eyes. "Answer her questions, we're all a bit short on patience right now."
Siobhan's eyes narrowed in on Isre and her knife, she'd seen bigger but this would still cut. "If I knew what the fuck it was, I wouldn't be here!" She grimaced and side stepped as a tentacle neared. "Deal was simple, it takes you assholes and gives me back the crew it stole - then, I'm fucking gone." A pain surged through her body, nearly doubling her over. The alien spoke again, this time a harshness and anger filled the air.
I N S U F F I C E N T .
C H E A T E D .
C R E W W I L L S U F F I C E .
The lights within the giant being's translucent form sparked red and flashed auburn throughout as it reached out and grasped the disarmed pirate and pulled him through the air and beneath itself - a black maw.
Few things made sense, even to the detective. As the pieces sifted around under his mental hand, his gaze kept at a standstill in front of him as he could only watch the scene play out. His head and shoulders tilted downward, twisting slightly in the direction of Holly. A raised eyebrow followed as his shoulders stiffened a little. Professionals?
Was she still on about how she would save him? While the gesture could be appreciated, now was not the time for any showboating or proving her worth. Right now, the main focus should be finding a way out. But he kept still, kept quiet as he observed.
The exchange of barbed words and even more importantly the exchange of contraband between the Lykaian and the Silwin. Isre and the Omega. A man on the inside? No, an ally. A reluctant one that could not be trusted nor relied upon to help them. And his muscles tensed at the voice of the cyborg echoing forth followed by his frame pushing the Lykaian t to the side.
What was to become of them now?His head never lowered, his posture rigid, and eyes faced forward, frozen forward and blinking with each new sight of the internal ship walls. His steps came to a stop as his surveyed the airlocks and the remaining crew. A brief glance was afforded towards the captain.
Keep eye contact brief and listen.
On my signal, grab the Silwin and head for the door.
A sound barely above a whisper. His hearing may have been perfect, but not enhanced and his eyes glared for a moment towards Holly before immediately shifting and honing towards the pirates. Had they heard her? Had the cyborg?
The hissing as the airlock finally released the locks of its door and, as the flash of that bulbous flesh crossed across his vision, the detective took a step back immediately before raising his arms up. No idea what that thing was but he knew that they needed to leave. Now. His eyes flashing towards the Silwin. Don't forget the plan. Don't forget the-.
His hands clawed into the sides of his head as he buckled over, head and shoulders held low. A shrieking pain erupted inside of his skull, spreading and growing like mold throughout every crack and crevice and nerve of his brain. Heat built up behind his eyes and seared images into the flesh of his mind. Probing. It was probing for something. Flashes of images. Pictures of her. Sandy beaches and the feeling of the sun-.
No. Those are mine.
When it could not and as the pain receded, it spoke to them all inside their heads. Not gone but not able to take either from anyone. It wished to take what was willingly given. If everything had not gone to hell in that exact moment. His feet moved, at first unsure as the pain wobbled his steps before breaking into a sprint. Straight for the Silwin.
Each footstep overrode every sensation. Even the few small tears streaming down his face.
A flash of color and his body shifted to see what it was. Holly had . . . changed. Different colors. They looked better on her. Shaking the thought and charging forward, his arms stretched out and grabbed ahold of her free shoulder. And pulled. Lightly, at first. A warning.
Either she would get it through her head to run or he would drag her along with him if she did not make up. How much he cared for her comfort paled in comparison for his care of her survival. Everyone's survival. Everyone that mattered.
"We need to run! Now! No time to argue!"
Guns. He needed guns. Or his systems rebooted. Steal one of the techies? No, no, no! Not enough time!
Just run.
"Run!"
Last Edit: May 27, 2023 9:33:21 GMT by Paperbag Fill
Ripped packets of rice and beans lay strewn on the floor, evacuated from their crates to make room for the android's hasty cover. It did not think, otherwise it would have to consider what else had happened whilst it cowered in a refuge of legumes and steel. There wasn't much to be done when the shooting had started, except to run and hide. Fear was something new, and something unwelcomely present. Why was it like this? When the pirates had come aboard and began to take passengers, it had lay completely still, and waited. It had not even attempted to fight them, with it's spindle arms made of steel and plastic, built strong enough for a slave to labor endlessly yet never to rebel against its master.
Who had died and who had not? It might not have mattered, now that they sat docked with another ship. Perhaps it was all simply a bad dream, and in a moment the Master's face would appear again, beckoning his servant to work. But it had only dreamed once, on a night when the master summoned it to its invisible cage to be deactivated for the night. It was different, that night.
Instead of an instant snap to daytime, of the sudden disappearance of the sun from setting to rising as it was awoken again hours later, the machine had awoke to behold a great river. Its banks were lined with saffron and silver masks, so perfectly shaped that it was clear in an instant they had been made so by skilled hands. The birds which circled overhead seemed to desperately wish to speak, but dared not to, for they were merely birds. There was no such thing as a sky to be seen, and yet the midnight moon reflected up from the river face, its fathomless water as clear as a crystal mirror from which the machine drank.
And when he drank, the water felt cool upon a mouth of flesh, and lips and a tongue with which to taste it. It tasted as milk, and wine, and jism, and in an instant the machine bit down with newfound teeth and punctured his newfound tongue. He bled sweet sickly blood, and so he bit himself again that he may taste it again. So enamoring was the taste that he rent part of his finger and suckled the wound, savoring the sensual taste.
Then he took the hand, then the arm. When he had finished it, he devoured the other. Then both legs, and a sex made of flesh and a stomach which was full of succor blood and river water. And when he was done, and there was no more of himself left to eat, he had awoken, the master's face barking commands to clean and sweep.
The next day it had run.
It felt as though the machine should have sobbed, but it had no eyes with which to do so. Instead, it simply spasmed on the floor, the sharp tang of metal against the cargo deck echoing into the dark. It could not stay like this forever., though it wanted to.
Suddenly the cargo deck felt very empty. The darkened corners and scraped shutters spoke in hushed tones of violent struggles and desperation, of the smell animals made when they were scared of dying, of the way fathers beat their children and their wives and their slaves and-
They are so cruel. The realization came unbidden, fed to a metal mind by a metal processor, as simply and succinctly as any other distillation of experience and reason.
They are so cruel.
And for a moment, the android could taste milk, and jizm, and blood, and knew what must be done.
It could not stay here forever, waiting to be found by whomever amongst their rescuers deigned to clean away spilled rice upon the cargo bay floor. It must leave.
The android walked through the cargo bay, to a place where the shuttle doors lay open, revealing another, larger ship. Its crew were larger and hairy, with pointed snouts and canine features. They bristled and snarled at the machine's approach, but did not stop it as it followed the sounds of familiar voices to where they stood, discussing plans with a beast which must have been the ship's captain.
As they spoke, it became clear that they meant to go after those taken. Perhaps they were not so cruel after all. Or perhaps they had merely forgotten their cruelty for a moment.
It would go with them, the machine decided, and see where it was that the river may take it.
"You are a violent and irrepressible miracle. The vacuum of cosmos and the stars burning in it are afraid of you. Given enough time you would wipe us all out and replace us with nothing — just by accident."
The Silent Fang shifted back to realspace, bringing the state of the rescue into view. The pirate vessel; the Iron Promise, was absolutely dwarfed by the massive - ship? Lifeform? It appeared almost docked by the pulsating core of the shape while each of the spiral arms that spurred out from the center twisted and drifted in space - dancing in starlight, weaving between the asteroids and shipwrecks that cluttered their surroundings.
"There's nothing else out here, Captain, just asteroids, derelicts, and that... thing." The helmsman's eyed stayed fixed on the massive shape as they drifted in slowly.
"Take us in slow." At the helmsman's acknowledgement, the captain turned to his guests. "I don't suppose any of you were expecting that, were you?" As if spurned by the captain's words, the light of the star-shape's core focused and reached out and locked onto the Silent Fang. The air within the bridge suddenly became hot and dry, the computer displays began to short out and become unresponsive. "Stealth drive, now!" Amarok barely managed to cough out his words as he keyed in the command at his station and the helmsman pulled the ship wide.
Things were far more complicated than Kaz had feared. He'd expected trouble, reinforcements or a holdout maybe, but this was something else - unknown and forbidden. Kaz had always heard stories of strange beings and sights beyond the edge of mapped space from those who claimed to have gone beyond and returned, but they were nothing more than stories. Until now of course.
The mercenary racked his brain for a plan, taking stock of the challenges and assets. This was more than they'd bargained for, but he'd come this far and he couldn't leave them out there - if they were still alive. If not, it was still his duty to avenge them however he could. "Wait, I think I have an idea." He approached the reinforced viewport, the light from the massive star-shape nearly blinding. "Sevvi takes us in close with one of your gunships - cloaked and quiet. You draw their attention with a volley of missiles, but pop out of their range before they can cook you again."
Isre's face tensed at the plan, leaning back against the wall to rest her newly bandaged leg. "Not to fuck up your big moment, but who made you the boss?" She'd been silent most of the trip through the Lykaian vessel.
"Never said I was." He scanned the group, his face was devoid of hesitation or uncertainty. "I'm just the guy who's dumb enough to try despite what's out there. I understand if any of you want to sit this one out, it's a lot more than any of us expected when we paid for a skip over to Sargasso. But we're all they've got - whether they're counting on us or not. Hell, maybe that'll make it even more heroic - riding in just in the nick of time." Kaz smiled at the thought, it wasn't every day he'd get to be a hero. "If you're out, feel free to stay here and enjoy the doggy treats. But if you wanna do some hero shit, meet me in the hangar."
Wasn't exactly the inspiring speech he'd thought he'd have the chance to say but it was something. With his challenge out there, he marched down to the gunship drop-bay, waiting for anyone else who might wanna join alongside any Lykaians dumb and gun-horny enough for a rescue mission.
~ ~ ~
Everything was getting out of hand, she'd had a feeling ever since she'd made the bargain that it wouldn't go well for her but this was a step too far. The furry fuck had mutinied - expected but still unfortunate, the prisoners were now armed, and the alien was not happy with the numbers she'd brought for the hostage exchange. Golan was gone like the others - still alive, as it had promised but beyond her help now. What she even do now? Instinct took over.
As the panic of the alien's threat set in, her crew began to scatter. Sygan raised his massive arms and unfolded the plating until they no longer resembled arms - they were cannons now, six barreled rotary guns loaded with high caliber rounds. "Siobhan! Give me the fuckin' word and I'll splatter this freak!" Even the cyborg was losing his nerve. The space beast reached out with another arm and drew an engineer into itself.
She heard him, but it didn't matter now. She side-stepped the Silwin and grasped for the human woman's throat - the doctor. The pirate wrapped her arm around the woman's throat and pressed her pistol to the hostage's temple. "It wasn't supposed to be like this! They were going to give us our friends back!" Siobhan pulled back, trying to push herself further from Isre and Lukan and the others. "New plan - everyone puts their weapons down and we rehash this. There's gotta be a way this works out for everyone."
Then, the other side of the hangar bay exploded. Pressure sirens sounded before being cut off by the closure of blast doors and the screaming of thrusters. Hovering in juxtaposition to the alien jellyfish was a Maugrim Class LON Gunship.
The remaining crew panicked and began to fire at the gunship - their small arms fire bouncing near-harmlessly off the hull as the troop-bay opened to unload the cavalry.
~ ~ ~
Blasting open the other side of the hangar wasn't Kaz's first plan - but he wasn't about to argue with the Lykaian commando whose ship he'd just voluntold to take him on a suicide mission onto a slaver ship currently being attacked by an unknown alien force. The ship was fully stocked with arms and ammo, allowing Kaz and anyone who followed to rearm themselves before their attack.
Akela dropped out of the gunner's roost and into the troop bay. He slapped an armored paw onto Kaz's back, causing the smaller human to trip forward a step. "I must thank you, human. I haven't tasted such exhilaration since the Fall of Vrahno!" He reached for the weapons rack, retrieving his arms of choice - a Lykaian Tol'mka, an elegant weapon of ancient design. The Tol'mka, or rifle-spear had been used by Lykaian soldiers since the age of antiquity, and even in this modern era found common use among foot-soldiers and special forces alike.
The commando stood at the edge of the troop bay doors, awaiting their opening. "Behind me, comrades! To glory or death!" Akela howled as he leapt from the gunship and landed on the cool floor of the pirate vessel's hangar.
Kaz followed soon after him, stepping out onto the ramp with a heavy rifle at his side - strapped and knocking against his combat harness, the smallest Lykaian size they had yet still too big for him. Any hint of hesitation arrived too late as his feet fell out from underneath him and he landed hard on the hangar deck. The scene he arrived into was insane - an alien jellyfish floated in the air, grasping for pirates and his friends alike to pull them into its mass. Guns were pointed at everyone, and it seemed as though their arrival only further complicated the situation.
Akela seemed intent on engaging the pirates who were firing on their ride home, but the real threat was the cyborg and the woman with the gun on Sun's head. Kaz flicked the safety off with his thumb and fired a burst towards the pirate forces - trying his best to provide cover to his allies.
. . . I could never hold enough of you in my hands . . .