Ancient Hunter

Jenna stared at me trying to process what I’d just said. “You can’t be a Clan Mother?”

“I can since everyone thought you were dead!”

“I should have been,” Jenna admitted. “I remember falling, I remember pain filling my body. We couldn’t stop them.” She said that last bit in a whisper. “We couldn’t stop them.”

“The Orsini?” That’s what the Elders had put out but that didn’t make sense with what I knew about the Orsini.

“They may have looked like Orsini but the never acted like them. Their weapons were strange metal poles that shot projectiles. My warriors and Guardians died trying to defend us. I should have been dead with them.”

They sounded like the fake Orsini we’d encountered on Demeros. We defeated them which had me questioning why we had, when the Landottir couldn’t. Then I didn’t know how many the Landottir had faced.

“We fought some on Demeros.” I did tell her we were investigating the ruined town because Jennifer a First One had dragged me there on a hunch. Which proved correct we were facing an enemy as ancient as the First Ones.

“We fought and killed them.” I told Jenna. “They turned to goo when they died.

“You killed them all?” Jenna sounded surprised.

“Not me personally I had help from the Marines.”

Jenna nodded her eyes on me. I had to ask a question I was a distasteful one at that. One I didn’t really have the time to ask if I wanted to get the Landottir out of here. “The creatures.” I had no better word to call them.

“Creatures?” Jenna looked at the other Landottir for answers. “I don’t know what you are talking about?”

“The things with our…” I changed that. “With Landottir DNA?”

“The Taken!” Jenna snarled her hand curling into fists. I thought she was about to attack me but she smashed her fist in the floor. “They without honour used the Clan to breed those things!” She looked up at me despaired mixed with anger on her face. “We birthed them never seeing those children again.” She gestured to her collar. “ Do you think I would have let them do that?” she tugged at her collar. “It burns into my very soul. I’m shocked until I can’t resist. I do what I can to keep them safe but I can’t stop them.”

“You can still care for our Clan. I can remove the collar.”

“No, I shall still wear it, it is the mark of my shame. I failed my Clan.”

I glanced around at the other Valkyrie wondering why none of them had spoken up or commented during my words with Jenna. It was deathly silent almost too silent I was getting a bad feeling about it. I learned down and helped Jenna get up.

“Lead my Clan to safety?” Was it really my Clan? The Elders had said nothing either way but I had to pretend for the sake of the Valkyrie around me.

Jenna regarded me I was glad she couldn’t see the expression on my face.

“I will Mother…?”

“Gwen,” I replied keeping things simple.

“It will be done.”

I did have my reservations about Jenna’s quick turnaround. I looked at the other Valkyrie their eyes on Jenna.

“That will be alright with you?” I addressed the other Valkyrie.

They all nodded and gestured no one of the m spoke and I was finding that uncomfortable.

“Best not ask them Mother,” Jenna said. “They cannot talk.”

I started shocked and stared at the Valkyrie. “What do you mean they cannot talk?” I asked Jenna carefully.

“Our captors thoughtfully severed their vocal chords.”

I felt sick. “What?”

“It is as I have said so the enemy don’t hear their cries in labour.”

I felt worse, anger warred with the sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. This was beyond monstrous. I abruptly turned to the closest wall and rammed my fist into it. I fell so angry I wanted to kill. I reigned in my anger it was wasted here. I spoke in a calmer voice. “Can you two guide the Landottir to the freighter?” I gestured to the remaining female Ezarans. I wasn’t willing to let the males do it. What ever had been done to the Landottir they were still Valkyrie. I was beginning to think with the amount of captives I was finding that the freighter might not have enough room.

“As you will it,” One of the females said touching her hand to her chest. It was the same gesture the Valkyrie used. I think it meant some sort of mark of respect. I replicated the gesture.

Jenna herded the Landottir out the door past me. My heart was heavy with regret. As they passed me each Landottir touched my shoulder another of those gestures I knew nothing about. Finally I was alone in a the room full of discarded clothes the Landottir were travelling light. On my own I fell to the floor and pulled off my helmet. Regardless of whether I had an audience or not. I wept for the Landottir, I felt an emotional wreck the same as on Valorous Star. Slowly I pulled myself out of my spiralling despair and stood. I looked to see the two male Ezarans standing there silent.

“Right let’s make them bastards pay!”

After my fit of anger and despair I felt strangely renewed. With it came a determination to put things right and just not for the Landottir. I put on my helmet and checked my Seven Double ‘M’. I was ready. The last two Ezarans were waiting outside for me. They had tactfully withdrawn when I lost the plot but I was all better now.

“Any other captives?” I asked.

“Not that we know of.” One of the Ezarans said to me.

“If we push through this corridor we can destroy the Ulkoi device that’s there.” The other said. “I never got close enough but I think it is the cause of the comms disruption.”

I considered that a priority we needed the comms back. I had no idea what was going on elsewhere or even if any of the other teams had completed their objectives.

“I’ll lead the way,” the second Ezaran said.

I followed the two Ezarans through a maze of corridors and stairs. I hoped they knew the way there and back I certainly didn’t. Suddenly from the distance a loud inhuman roared echoed through the corridor. It sounded like the creatures I’d had encountered before. I heard the sound of thudding feet.

“Spread out!” I ordered the Ezarans the corridor was wide enough to make it a viable option. I drew my Seven Double ‘M’ for protection. It wouldn’t be effective against the creature but I wasn’t going to be aiming for the body. I was enough of a markswoman to know I would be going for head shots. I wouldn’t hesitate this time I had to be ready. We had nowhere to hide and if we retreated the creature would be on us before could reach safety. We had to take a stand. An echo roar from behind us told me there was nothing else we could do.

“Aim for the head,” I told the Ezarans. “We need to get it down as fast as possible.

“Right!” Both Ezarans said at the same time grim determination of their faces.

They were equipped with a heavy civilian pistol looted off the Black Stripes and a converted laser welder.

This time there was no hesitation before I fired. The creature slowly shaking its head as the bullets hit home. I fired again the Ezaran with the pistol joining me. The creature edged forward clearly we had done it some damage. My last shot had it on its knees but it was still moving forward. Red laser light hit the creature severing its head from it body. It wasn’t over we turned to face the new danger. A second creature barrelled into us sending the Ezaran with the pistol flying. I didn’t have time to reload dropping my weapon I drew my combat knife as it took a swipe at me. A beam of red light sliced into the creature’s arm and it gave a roar. I ducked and slid through the creature’s legs in the kind of move that you’d only see in action vids. I hamstrung the creature the sharpened blade of the knife easily slicing through the creature’s flesh. It went down on one knee. I stood and lashed out with the knife the blade severing its spine at the base of the neck. The laser finished off the creature. Breathing hard I hurried over to the other Ezaran. He was lying a few metres from the first creature his arm at an angle. He struggled to rise as I approached him.

“You’re going to be ok.” I said retrieving my medkit from my harness.

“Yeah,” Ezaran grunted.

I used my kit on him. The painkillers blocked out most of the pain. I could see he wasn’t about to go any further.

“Can you escort your companion back to the freighter?” I said to the other Ezaran.

“Sure but can you find your way back.”

I nodded at least he wasn’t trying to get me to go back with him. “I need to disable the comms block.”

“This corridor will lead you there. Just follow the crystals growing out the walls.”

“I can do that, you just make it back to the ship.”

“Good luck Silver,” the Ezaran said to me.

“Like wise.” I replied straightening up I had to finish my mission.

I watched the Ezarans go. I was on my own. I felt a pull down the corridor. I knew if I followed my instincts I would reach my goal but I was unsure what that was. I changed my the clip in my Seven Double ‘M’ aware I was low on ammunition. I glanced down the corridor extending into the darkness. The low emergency light putting a faint glow on the walls. With my Seven Double ‘M’ in one hand and my combat knife in the other I headed down the corridor. I knew it would be a hard fight if I encountered any more of those creatures. They might have been born as Landottir but they had been altered to be abominations. Twisted remnants of the Clan they had to be put out of their misery. I don’t know how far I walked down this never ending corridor but it seemed I walked kilometres. On the way I’d passed numerous blast doors thankfully they were all open. After a while I began to see crystals growing out of the walls and roof. They glowed bring more light to the dimness of the corridor. The further I went the more crystals I encountered. The even grew on of a open blast door. That was never going to close again crystals were growing out of the door well. I checked my armour HUD but that said there was no increase in the background radiation. A relief to me since I had no way except for my armour to counter it.

The corridor exited into a huge a hundred meter wide circular room with corridors branching of from it. It was about fifteen metres in height. In the centre of the room was a huge floor to ceiling pulsing blue crystal. At regular intervals around the room were podlike structures full of some kind of liquid. I could see it moving. As I peered closer I could see each pod contained something humanoid. I stepped up to the closest pod and froze my blood running cold. The figure in the pod wasn’t just anyone it contained a Keeper. I’d found them, I had to free them. Frantic I searched the other pods each one contained a Keeper. I found Mouse she was only one without wings. She looked so serene that I thought she was dead I remembered what Moon Shadow had told me. She believed that the missing Keepers were alive but uncontactable.

Reigning back my fears I took a more logical approach. I examined the pods finding them not a sealed unit. There was a seam down the sides. I tried clawing at it with my fingers unable to get a purchase on its surface. I stood back considering my options. My hand rested on the holster of my Seven Double ‘M’. I considered shooting at it but nixed it as a bad idea. Too many things could go wrong. There was a possibility of a ricochet or I might hit Mouse. I drew my combat knife into the seam and twisted. All I achieved was snapping off the tip of my blade. I cast around looking for something strong and wishing that I had taken the laser off the Ezarans. Then it was too bulky and I had no idea how to use it. As in surveyed the area I saw crystalline cables snaking from the pods to the glowing blue crystal. There was one cable for each section of pods. There were thirty-two pods in four sections which meant four cables.

Desperately I checked the entrances to the three corridors. In one I found a pile of junk. Routing through it I found a metal pole the height of me and about six centimetres in diameter. It kind of reminded me of a staff except this was metal and not wood. I sucked at staff fighting so it wasn’t any good for that. Perhaps I could use it for smashing something? I had two options the pods or the cables. I chose the cables my mind on damaging the pods could have detrimental effect on the Keepers in the pods.