Maggie
Ithought being able to see everything remotely might make this fight easier. I could be there with Driok and yet not be there. I run my hand over my stomach because being here is for the baby inside me, whilst the rest of me wants to be on the planetoid’s surface with my mate.
And seeing the other woman down there on the planet, in some sort of crazy pit, her face turned upwards, imploring…getting comms back with Driok came at exactly the right moment.
But maybe too late for her.
As for my mate, I watch as he turns, looking over his shoulder, away from the woman, to something I can’t see. Instantly, he folds outwards, becoming his Sarkarnii form and letting rip with a sheet of flame.
“What’s happening?”
“Spaceworms. The Ulep must have had them in stasis. When I woke everyone, I woke them too.”
“What are spaceworms?” I spin the remote flyer one way, then the other, but there’s nothing save for a huge dust cloud.
“Nev you, Dalox,” I hear Driok say. “The female is not for you. We have to get the nevving spaceworms out of here or they’ll destroy the planetoid.”
There are a series of growls and snarls, none of which make any sense, through the comm.
“What the hell are spaceworms?”
“Is our ship on the way?” Driok responds as I try to get the remote into a better position to see what’s going on.
Unfortunately the dusty planetoid below has done what dusty planetoids do best, and visibility is virtually zero.
“On this planetoid, spaceworms are their worst nightmare,” Driok growls.
“The ship should be with you shortly,” I say. “What can I do?”
“Keep an eye out for any escaping Ulep,” Driok says.
“I don’t know what they look like.”
“You’ll know if you see them,” Driok replies, but his voice is somewhat strangled. “I have to go, but I’ll be back on board with you shortly.”
A squelch of static fires at me, and although I do my best with the remote, I can’t see what’s going on at all. I try calling Driok but there’s nothing. Eventually I heave myself out of my seat and run, or something approximating a run, through Dalox’s ship back to the bridge.
I’m about to dive out of the portal, when Dalox storms through, something in his arms, something which is familiar.
“Oh, thank god, you’ve got her.” I take a step towards him, and he snarls, his teeth becoming great long fangs.
“Mine,” he says.
There’s an even greater bloodcurdling snarl from behind him.
“Mine,” Driok says, bursting through and grabbing hold of me.
This is probably the oddest of stalemates, but I can’t help being so happy I could cry to be back with Driok.
“The Ulep are attempting to leave the planetoid,” a warrior calls out.
“Let them leave,” Driok responds. “We have what we came for.” He glowers at Dalox who doesn’t pay him a blind bit of attention, instead stomping away into the recesses of his ship.
“Is that…?”
“The female. Yes, it is.”
“He can’t just keep her.”
“It’s Dalox. He’ll do just what he nevving pleases,” Driok growls.
“Not with a human, he won’t.” I make a move to follow him, but Driok holds me back.
“I promise you, we can deal with this situation once I have my original ship and the xoh-antenna your Paralnyi friend promised us.”
Driok takes my hand, and we exit through the portal, which instantly closes behind us. Wind roars, and I find myself face to face with Driok as he swiftly pulls down my visor and pulls up my respirator.
“Forgive me, my mate. But we must move quickly. My warriors have subdued the spaceworms for the time being, but spaceworms being what they are…”
“What are they?”
“Trouble,” Driok growls. “We need to get to the ship, and we need your Paralnyi friend to come up with the goods, then we can go after the Ulep.”
“Is that wise?”
“It is the only option,” Driok says as we reach the area I vaguely recognize from the remote flyer.
“Is this it?”
“I might have gone in the hard way.” Driok looks at the devastation around us.
“Just a bit.” I survey the twisted metal and then I see them.
All the other species the Ulep were holding captive. A vast variety, including Paralnyi, are milling about waiting to get on board our ship, with a Sarkarnii warrior who piloted it ushering them on board.
Now I get it, more than anything. The Ulep were a concept in my mind, but looking at the poor shell-shocked creatures who can’t believe where they are and what is happening to them—that was me.
That was my friends. Frightened, alone, lost. All the emotions come rushing back.
The fact the Ulep didn’t even care about these creatures, that they would simply be traded away in pursuit of their aims, mere flesh and bone, makes my blood run both cold and hot at the same time. Anger and despair at the same time.
And a feeling rising within me that the Ulep cannot continue.
We’re surrounded by Sarkarnii warriors, and many of them eye me with something akin to respect, which I find slightly odd until I realize how pregnant I must look to them. After all, they’ve been in stasis, ana the last time they saw me, I didn’t look pregnant at all.
Driok is growling low under his breath, checking his comm and scanning the area.
“This way to the ship,” he announces and approaches a low lying building which appears to be made out of the dust of the planet itself.
“Here?” I query.
“Here.”
“I think it might need some work.” I narrow my eyes at the building, but it still looks like a building, with empty windows and a flat roof.
Driok takes another step towards it, and there is a low, deep humming sound. The ground under us vibrates, and the dust slowly shifts until the building is gone and the ship is there. As if it was always there.
“It’s time to fight,” Driok growls. “It’s time to end our enemies.”