The Burden of Endurance

by R. L. Blalock

  I ran toward Brinden and the Chroin. He was already hefting the massive creature, turning it so its head would stay above the water. I grabbed one of its stocky front legs and squirmed underneath it to lift the creature.

  “Get in the water,” I screamed at the other recruits. “Find your bonded now before they drown!” After a moment’s hesitation, the recruits sprinted for the water.

  Together, Brinden and I dragged the Chroin out of the water. Brinden leaned against the creature’s chest, desperately listening for a heartbeat or breathing. Seemingly satisfied, he ran to the creature’s square head, rubbing its jaw gingerly.

  As the creature stirred, my heart raced. Brinden was nose to nose with the Chroin. If it wanted to kill him, there would be nothing I could do to stop it.

  Unsteadily, the creature rose, its stocky legs wobbling as it looked around. The Chroin looked down at Brinden, huffing as it swayed a bit. The creature reared back, and my heart jumped into my throat.

  But it didn’t attack. A seam opened down the center of its chest. The plates swung open, revealing the same large pulsating oily black orb that lay in Kuna’s chest. A black cable snaked out, almost tentative at first, before it darted forward, striking Brinden in the back of his neck. A small cry escaped his lips as he sank to his knees. Other cables quickly followed, attaching to his arms, legs, hands, and feet. When all the cables were attached, Brinden was lifted and pulled into the black orb. The chest plates closed again, and the Chroin swayed dangerously before collapsing back onto the ground.

  We did it! I breathed.

  Who?

  Brinden.

  I swung back toward the ATV, beaming in Parsons’s direction. I smiled big and wide at him. We had created another Chroin pair just like us if only the one.

  A scream pierced the night, and I spun toward the pond. The water was alive. Eggs shook as the Chroin inside struggled to get free. Those that were free splashed through the water. The recruits were still struggling with their chosen Chroin. Even with my improved night vision, it was hard to pick out the individuals amongst all the chaos.

  Four. I only counted four recruits.

  Someone is missing. Find them! My eyes frantically roved over the heads again, trying to figure out who wasn’t there.

  Another scream.

  There! I could see Harvel as he struggled in the water. In an instant, his head disappeared below the surface.

  “Parsons, get in the fucking turret! Protect the recruits if they are in trouble!” I ran toward the water.

  Get him out of there!

  Kuna surged ahead of me before I had even thought the words. Even in the moonlight, I saw the darkened patch of water where Harvel had gone under.

  Kuna bounded into the water. With a sudden splash, a creature leaped up from beneath the surface at him. Its body was long and slim with a tall ridge that ran down the length of its back ending in a long whip-like tail. Two flippers extended on either side. Its mouth stretched across its face, creating the illusion that the creature was smiling.

  Kuna batted at the creature with his massive paw, slashing its side.

  “Get out of the water,” I shouted at the recruits, my heart thundering in my ears. “Double time!”

  I reached Ilex as he dragged a Chroin to the shore. “Be careful. The bonding isn’t perfect.”

  “He won’t hurt me.” Ilex nodded as if to reaffirm his point.

  I hesitated before nodding and plunged back into the water to help the others. A sudden sharp pain in my leg made me stumble, falling face first into the water. I gasped, sucking in a lung full of water before bouncing back up. As I spluttered and coughed, I looked around wildly for Kuna.

  He had his teeth locked around the Chroin. Black blood trickled down his leg. As the creature thrashed in his grip, his tail whipped up and stabbed into its side. With a strong jerk, he tore away the chunk. Though the creature still squirmed, it no longer attacked. It wouldn’t last much longer.

  Help Reegan. I nodded toward the woman struggling with a cracked egg further out in the pond. Get her and her Chroin to shore.

  I reached Kolton as he struggled to pull a massive gangly Chroin toward the shore. The creature was still limp. Its legs were easily taller than either of us and floated uselessly in the water.

  “Help me,” he called, his head barely staying up as he struggled.

  As I added my strength to his, I wasn’t entirely sure the creature could still be saved. It didn’t move as we dragged it toward the shore.

  A wave of confusion washed over me. The air around me seemed to thicken and made it hard to breathe, almost knocking me off my feet. I stumbled but regained my footing before taking another icy plunge.

  Laure, we need to get the recruits out of the water now, Kuna insisted.

  I’m trying. Do you have Reegan? It was hard to concentrate on what I was doing as the confusion muddled my mind.

  Yes, we’re coming, but the hatchlings are going wild. We need to protect the recruits as they connect.

  Was that what I felt? I shuddered.

  Yes. There was so much pain in that single word. There aren’t enough recruits for all the hatchlings. They are realizing that. Realizing that they won’t be made whole. They are…losing whatever sanity they have.

  I ducked from beneath the Chroin and turned back toward the pond. The hatchlings were dragging themselves out of the water. They shrieked as their feet hit the ground. Long, keening wails made my bones shudder. They knew. They knew what they were losing. Even if they wouldn’t remember, they knew it now.

  I grabbed Kolton by the shirt. “Bond now,” I snarled, “or get in the ATV.” His eyes were wild, desperate as he nodded, and I released him.

  Kuna pushed through the water and onto the shore, another Chroin held delicately in his mouth. The creature was already twitching to life. The instant he was out of the water, he released the creature and knelt, Reegan sliding off his back.

  As her feet hit the ground, he darted for me. I glanced toward Brinden. The Chroin he had bonded with was still a motionless heap on the ground.

  Before he reached me, Kuna’s chest opened, the black tendrils racing ahead of him toward me. The transition was almost instantaneous. My body wasn’t even fully encased in the black orbs before I could see through Kuna’s eyes.

  Can we save them? I asked. The hatchlings were still staggering onto the beach, thrashing and wailing as if in pain. Perhaps they were. What would it be like to lose yourself?

  I don’t think so. Kuna shook his head, his despair washing over me.

  Then let’s make their ending swift, I said. We’ll come back with more recruits next time. We’ll save more of them.

  One of the hatchlings raced toward us on two long legs. It’s pointed nose opened to reveal a row of tiny sharp teeth dwarfed by gigantic fangs. The creature’s eyes were locked on us.

  At the last second, we dodged. Our tail struck out and speared the hatchling’s flank. The creature tumbled over, crying out.

  Without hesitation, we lunged in, our teeth clamping around the back of the creature’s neck. We bit down until there was a crunch between our teeth and the hatchling went limp.

  We dropped the creature, immediately looking for the recruits. Another wild had already descended upon Kolton as he and his bonded lay on the pool’s shore.

  With a fearsome roar, we bounded toward them. The hatchling was so engrossed in its own attack, it never saw us. We lashed out with our tail, striking with everything we had. The sharpened end struck deep into the hatchling’s chest, penetrating straight into the orb. The creature didn’t even shriek. Instead, it instantly crumpled into a heap.

  We looked over Kolton. His bonded had been ripped to shreds before we could intervene.

  We had lost another.

  The clearing around the river was a tangled mass of chaos. The hatchlings were struggling to stand or fighting with each other. Fighting us. We wouldn’t be able to fight them all, not by ourselves.

 
The turret was eerily silent. Even with all the wailing from the hatchlings, the 50-caliber rail gun should have rung out clearly over the noise. We looked to the turret and saw that it sat empty. I looked around wildly for Parsons but couldn’t find him anywhere in the chaos.

  Perhaps he was not lucky, Kuna said. There wasn’t any humor in his comment. Despite the fact that we hated him, we needed him now. We needed his help to defend the recruits, and without him, we wouldn’t be able to protect them all.

  A wild streaked through the clearing, angling itself toward the still form of Brinden’s bonded.

  No! We roared, immediately leaping into action.

  The wild wasn’t fast. It’s thick legs and body were meant for brute force, not speed. We easily caught up with it. With all our strength, we leaped onto its back. The creature collapsed under our added weight, sliding across the ground. It rolled and swiped at us, its claws raking across our side.

  With a snarl, we darted in, our teeth locking on the wild’s thick neck. With a quick thrash, a chunk of flesh tore free, and the wild squealed pitifully. It tried to stand but was too weak to do more than drag itself.

  Another wild was nearly to Brinden. We slammed into it and sent it skittering across the ground.

  How long until they wake up?

  I’m not sure. It shouldn’t take long.

  We roared, slashing at another Chroin as it charged. The creature dodged, giving us a wide berth as it circled around us.

  Minutes matter. We can’t protect them. The wild were growing more and more agitated by the second. More coordinated. More enraged.

  A hatchling staggered out of the water. Its head swept back and forth before its gaze locked on us. Its lips peeled back from its teeth in a vicious snarl. The wild let loose a blood-curdling shriek. The creature hurled itself toward us, its gaze never leaving us.

  Suddenly, the high-pitched whine of the turret reached my ears, and bullets slammed into the ground, kicking up dirt as the spray tracked the creature. With a quick jerk, the spray of bullets realigned and slammed into the creature, knocking it to the ground, twitching.

  Parsons stood behind the turret. I had never been so relieved to see that man. In fact, I had never been relieved to see him until now. His face bore a snarl of his own as he worked the heavy gun, quickly picking out target after target.

  Movement to my left caught my eye. One of the bonded was twitching to life. My heart raced. If they were coming to, we might make it through this.

  Dust kicked up along the ground at the Chroin’s feet. Suddenly, Kolton’s bonded jumped up and flopped back onto the ground.

  No! We roared, our head swinging back toward Parsons. He wasn’t snarling. He was smiling.

  He continued to cut down the hatchlings, recklessly swinging the turret back and forth. He didn’t care about us. He didn’t care if he killed us.

  My heart thrummed in my ears, drowning out our infuriated roar. Our claws dug into the dirt, rending large gashes into the soft earth as we sprinted for the ATV. We had to protect the recruits.

  The hatchlings tried to swipe at us as we darted past them. They didn’t matter. Our vision had narrowed. All we could see was Parsons and his maniacal smile as he swept the gun back and forth across the field.

  Pain exploded in our shoulder, and our leg collapsed beneath us, sending us sprawling to the ground. For a second, we simply lay there as the pain ripped through us.

  Finally, we struggled to pull ourselves up. Our front left leg was useless, but we still struggled to our feet. Parsons had turned to take care of a few hatchlings who had gotten dangerously close to the ATV, but his attention quickly returned to us as we limped forward.

  The turret whirled to life again, but we didn’t look away. We didn’t turn and run.

  A deafening roar drowned out all sound. Some of the hatchlings skittered off into the woods in fright. Others cowered, too afraid to move. We turned toward the sound, preparing to find an enemy behind us as well.

  Brinden’s bonded had risen. It shook its head, shaking off the last of the sleep. The creature was massive. Its thick legs stomped the ground, making the rocks beneath it jump. He threw back his head and gave another thunderous bellow before leaping forward and charging full tilt at the ATV. He angled his head down. The three long horns gleamed in the moonlight as they pointed straight forward.

  The turret whirled to life, but there was no time. Brinden slammed into the vehicle’s side, pushing it along the ground. Metal screamed as it bent and broke under Brinden’s massive weight. With one quick flick of his head, he flipped the ATV onto its side.

  Brinden raised his head and roared again.

  Despite his massive size, he raised up, his front legs coming off the ground for a split second before slamming back down with crushing force. He swung his head again, smashing his hard skull against the underside of the ATV, and flipped it onto its roof.

  Brinden swung around toward us. My heart jumped as his gaze locked on us. His powerful Chroin’s eyes were wild. The beast shook itself and huffed a few times before loping to us. The Chroin let out a quiet whimper as it approached. He pushed his face against ours, nuzzling us gently.

  We looked around the river. Two other Chroin stood. Two recruits. The hatchlings had either fled or were dead.

  Before I could think it, I felt the separation begin. I hardly blinked, and I was standing on my own two legs. I spun to face Kuna. His breathing was heavy as he rested on his side. Black blood oozed from his shoulder where the bullet had entered along with numerous other scratches and bites. I reached for him, holding his nose in my arms and kissing it gently.

  It will be all right. I gave him an extra squeeze. We did it.

  We did. And Parsons is dead.

  I sucked in a deep breath. I’d have to decide how to tell the other commanders what had happened. Would they believe that he had turned on us? I pushed away the thought and turned back toward the remains of the ATV.

  Brinden stood between me and the ATV. Even in the moonlight, I could see his changes. His hair was a brilliant garnet red. His skin had taken on the shade as well, though it was a more subdued blush. I stepped forward in amazement, reaching up with my good arm to touch his face before I even realized what I was doing. He looked so different. So…alien. But the thought didn’t make me shudder. Instead, it was exhilarating to see someone like me.

  “Is this what I look like?” I breathed.

  He smiled. “You wear it better.”

  I rolled my eyes. “Come help me find the med kit.”

  We jogged toward the ATV, picking our way through shards of glass and metal. The trunk was mostly intact. Somehow, it had been spared the brunt of Brinden’s rage. I pulled on the release lever and was greeted with the familiar pop of the latch unhooking, but the door refused to budge. I motioned Brinden over. Together, we pulled open the uncooperative hinges.

  I gasped as eyes stared blankly back at me. Arzus had come uncovered in the tumble. His eyes were frozen open. Blank and lifeless, they stared into my soul and accused me of my failure.

  “Oh, god,” Brinden gasped. “I-I-I entirely forgot—”

  “It’s all right.” I reached out and squeezed his shoulder. “You did what you had to. You saved us.” I smiled weakly. “The dead don’t care what happens to them. Only the living do.” I pulled the tarp back up to cover Arzus’s face.

  Brinden forced a smile and nodded.

  The inside of the ATV was a mess. The contents of the vehicle were scattered everywhere. Casings were littered amongst everything. I delicately pawed through the mess, hoping to catch a glimpse of the med kit’s bright orange bag.

  A groan came from inside the vehicle. I paused, almost unsure that I had heard anything. The quiet sound came again, and my heart fell.

  I ran around the side of the vehicle, getting on the ground to peer inside the broken window. Parsons lay in a crumpled heap on the ceiling. He groaned again.

  “Come help me.” I motioned for Brinden. He
knelt down beside me. The instant he laid eyes on Parsons, his face contorted into a snarl.

  “Why should we help him?” he snapped. “He killed Kolton!” My eyes widened in shock. He must have just started coming to when Parsons had decided to turn the gun on us. “He tried to kill you. He’s a traitor.” Traitor. The word had never been positive, but a species traitor was the lowest kind of person. And there had been plenty when the Biphaits had taken control of Earth.

  I looked back at Parsons. It would be so easy. We could just leave him there and walk away. No one would ever have to know. We could even tell the commanders he had died protecting us. Died a hero. Who would question that?

  “No.” I shook my head. “We can’t let him die. We can’t kill someone who is defenseless, even if he is an absolute jackass.” I sighed, rubbing the bridge of my nose. I hated the idea of helping him in any way. “We’ll take him back to Aldone. Aldone ordered the creation of the Chroin bonded. He can decide what to do with Parsons.”

  Brinden’s lips curled up in disgust, but he nodded.

  “Help me get him out.” I crawled in through the window, the glass biting into my palms and knees, and grabbed ahold of Parsons’s sleeve. I pulled hard, not trying to be gentle. He let out a long groan. As soon as I got him close enough, Brinden reached in and grabbed ahold of the man too. Together, we hauled him out.

  Though Parsons was bruised and bloody, he looked unharmed. Brinden knelt next to him and began looking him over. I turned back to the vehicle to continue to search for the med kit. As I knelt down to glance through the window again, I spotted the bright orange bag. I snatched it up, praying the contents were still intact.

  I gingerly set the gigantic bag on the ground and yanked open the zipper. Inside, the carefully organized kit had managed to stay relatively in place. Dozens of pockets in the bag organized all the items into groups. I pulled out the top layer to reveal an assortment of larger tools underneath. The MagnEx lay right where it was supposed to be. I grabbed the tool and the bottle of Re-Gen and sprinted back to Kuna.

  This isn’t going to feel good, I warned him.

  What is it? he asked apprehensively.