Annals of the Keepers - Rage

by Christiaan Hile

  Kason stomped the Kryth’s faceplate and ended the warrior’s pain. He shot the Kryth that was still dazed from the strike to his face. The armor-piercing rounds punched a hole through the Kryth with ease. He tracked the last Kryth, blowing holes in the floor with explosive rounds that fountained up, obscuring their view, as he rolled across the floor and gained cover behind a stone column.

  “We’re coming in, Reaver Lead,” Selato’s voice said on his command channel.

  “No, Selato, stay your position,” Kason barked in anger. “Listen to –” his command drowned out by a huge explosion outside. His communication relays went silent for a few seconds in a storm of static. “Selato, report!” he yelled, no longer able to receive any input from the second Reaver team outside. The blast had done something to his channel links. “‘Reaver Team One, sound off!” Kason demanded across the separate channel.

  All team members inside reported back with no technical issues. None were able to contact the second team outside. Kason fired his weapon, running to cover behind another stone column, dodging an increasing hail of plasma blasts from more Korin Shai. Looking back, he saw Kercy fighting with Lintorth Sar. The Kryth’s red cape stood out in the maelstrom.

  Kason tried raising Selato on his channel once again, to no avail. He could see the breach in the outer wall from his current vantage point behind the stone column. He couldn’t see the Kryth gunship that Selato had earlier relayed spotting, but he did see more ships outside. Increasing magnification on his optics showed a large force of Vrae moving towards the compound.

  Kason swore as a large object blocked his sight. He fired with instinct at the beast that must have weighed several tons, hit it, and got swept along in its reckless charge.

  The gel inside Kason’s Reaver suit activated microseconds after the beast slammed into him. The animal’s broad, flat head pushed him down onto the solid surface of the floor. It tried to push him into the ground and smother him, using its weight to its advantage. However, Kason slid across the smooth floor of the building, pinned beneath the beast’s head. Confused why its target wasn’t staying still, the creature continued to push the Reaver around the floor. Kason deployed all his suit’s various blades and struck against the animal’s head, his gauntlet spike penetrating to the bone but stopping at the dense skull. Striking with all he could, he continued slashing until he caught an eye. The beast bellowed in renewed pain as Kason’s blade sliced another eye, causing the beast to raise its head away. Medical icons flashed across his HUD. Most of Kason’s ribs were broken, including some internal organ damage. He coughed, feeling warm blood against his lips and start to crust. He watched as his nanite reserve icon visibly lowered as they strained to repair the broken bones and ruptured tissues, along with icons for which battle drugs were flowing through his system to reduce pain and enhance healing.

  Kason strained to breathe, then instinctively released all his breath at once as he saw the large head slam back down onto him from above, right into the floor. A second impact drove broken shards of bone into his already ruptured organs. The Reaver suit, with protective gel already deployed and all of its protective properties blunting most of the damage, the brute force and sheer size of the beast was still too great to withstand. He felt his rib cage start to cave.

  Kason’s eyes rolled from the impacts. His HUD flashed organic emergency warnings and awaited him to select icons. Reading his eyes for signs of shock and his body’s condition, the suit deployed most of its nanites and battle drugs. Kason’s eyes snapped back in focus, but he still couldn’t breathe. He redoubled his efforts to wound the beast or break free. His left arm broken and dislocated, he stabbed with his broken right arm to slash the throat or another eye. He fired gyro-rockets into the side of the beast, causing more bellows of pain but not stopping its onslaught.

  The huge beast brayed in agony again when the forces of its impacts caused Kason’s boot blade to fly upward into its neck, causing a spray of blue blood as his boot came loose. The creature didn’t rear up, but leaned forward and increased the crushing pressure on Kason through its tremendous body weight. Kason continued kicking at the neck, trying to puncture as many arteries as he could. His right arm clawed at the eyes, or at least where they were before.

  The micro-rockets exploded underneath the body of the beast, shrapnel spraying inside the creature’s abdomen and churning its organs. The weight of the organs and tissues, no longer held by any tissue, sloughed out underneath it. The beast groaned and collapsed, its large and weighty head still on Kason.

  Kason lay there, motionless. Now that it wasn’t smashing him or using any of its body weight behind its head, he hardly felt the pressure. His spine broken and lungs collapsed, he could do nothing but wait for the nanites to repair what they could. It had only been a few seconds, but fixing anything always took longer than breaking. He could do nothing but wait.

  He took in a short, desperate breath as his lungs repaired first. He heard voices in his comms, but couldn’t yet make sense of them, let alone respond. He couldn’t do anything but lay there as he felt his organs stitch up; then, finally, his spine. He wiggled his toes in his boots just to make sure they were still there. Still, he needed to let the nanites do whatever they could.

  Data CELL 59

  The wind whistled through the pass and the swaying trees.

  Madilay and Shawna stopped to rest against a large boulder near a small, running creek.

  Both exhausted from running, they rushed to the small water source and began to gulp it down.

  Catching her breath, Shawna sat on the ground. “Do…do you know where we are?”

  Madilay looked around. “I think so. If we follow this creek up and around, it will lead us near the backside of the camp.”

  “How far?”

  “Maybe two kilometers. I hiked these parts when we arrived.” Madilay looked over at her. “Ready?”

  “I think so.”

  “Let’s go.”

  They both got up and began to run up the creek bed.

  It wasn’t long before Madilay stopped in her tracks upon hearing the sound of a small waterfall.

  “Why’d you stop, Madilay?”

  Madilay looked around. “I think we’re going the wrong way.”

  “I thought you knew the way?” Shawna grumbled.

  Madilay began to run up the creek a short distance.

  She stopped again.

  There was a small waterfall. That explained the noise.

  It pooled into a small reservoir that fed the creek.

  “This isn’t right,” Madilay said, beginning to pace around in thought. “We are on the wrong side of the ridge. We need to go back.”

  “Back? We can’t go back. They’re behind us.”

  “We have no choice. We can’t make it up the cliff. If we hurry back, we may make the bottom of the ridge before they catch up.”

  Shawna was terrified. “They weren’t that far behind us.”

  “They had to go around that deep ravine we left them at. We still have some time, but we need to move fast.”

  The two began to backtrack down the creed bed.

  Their feet were heavy, splashing through the shallow water.

  A larger splash followed.

  Shawna had slipped and stumbled upon the slick creek rocks.

  She screamed out in pain.

  Madilay stopped and went back. “What happened?”

  “My ankle.”

  She helped the director to her feet.

  Shawna winced in pain once more.

  “Put your arm around me. We need to keep moving.”

  Madilay helped her along, limping slower back down the channel.

  “I’m sorry, Madilay. I’m not cut out for this.”

  “Stay focused on your steps. We’re going to make it.”

  “Are you sure?”

  Madilay smiled at her.

  Madilay knew that ravine had bought them a few minutes, but that wasn’t much. Now, with this ba
cktracking and their rest, she was waiting to hear or see those aythra at any moment.

  Nonetheless, she wrapped her arms around her mother and helped her to limp back along the cliff.

  At last, her eyes brightened.

  She pointed. “There. The boulder. That’s the edge of the ridge. Once we round it, we have a straight shot to the camp.”

  The two hurried as fast as their three-legged selves could allow.

  “I think we’re going to make it,” Madilay said.

  Shawna smiled, but immediately winced again with the next step.

  The director began to hobble faster.

  “There you go,” Madilay encouraged. “Almost there. You’re doing great. Just a few more meters and…”

  They didn’t see it, but they felt what could only be described as a sudden force of fangs and claws.

  An Aythra hit the director in the back, splitting the two apart from their armed grasp.

  Madilay fell face-first into the creek.

  Shawna landed in some bushes away from the riverbed.

  The Kryth creature looked at each of its victims, almost deciding which one it would take first.

  It pounced on the director, who had rolled over onto her back, rustling the bushes that caught her fall.

  Madilay got up.

  “NO!” she screamed, and charged the fearsome beast.

  The young woman didn’t make it far to her fallen friend.

  A hand shot out from around a tree Madilay was passing to get to Shawna and caught her square in the throat.

  The arm slammed her against it.

  “And where might you be going?” Lieutenant Solix asked in his bored tone.

  The Kryth moved close to her as the aythra sat hovering over Shawna.

  The creature growled and snapped at its Human prey beneath it.

  “Don’t you touch her!” Shawna yelled out, causing the aythra to clamp its jaws down on her shoulder, eliciting a shrill cry of sheer pain from the director.

  “Stop! Stop it!” Madilay cried out.

  A sinister smile creased Solix’s face. “Oh, the pain will stop, Human. I will have you watch as your friend is devoured by Toxx; then, I will slice your throat, with a shallow cut, to allow you time to watch your own life spill beneath you and contemplate your grave mistake.” He drew his blade and placed it against Madilay’s neck. “Toxx, release.”

  The command caused the creature to remove its teeth from the bloodied shoulder of its victim. Skin came with it and Madilay could see it had bit deep into Shawna’s shoulder.

  Shawna grabbed her mangled limb. Her pain obvious from her clenched face.

  Other barks issued from the ridgeline above as two other aythras and their handlers approached.

  “Now, Human. Your reward for your escape.” He forced Madilay’s head to look down at her mother. “Consider her eyes for the last time. Her anguish is your failure.”

  Madilay wept.

  Tears poured down her reddened cheeks, streaked with dirt and mud.

  Her tired, dirty face was heavy with grief at the sight of the woman who had raised her bleeding on the floor with a beast licking its ferocious muzzle with hunger.

  The Kryth lieutenant’s eyes, no longer their usual bored selves, gleamed with wicked delight.

  His tongue darted across his lips, mirroring his pet. “Toxx,” he said in a slow, deep voice.

  The beast glanced back up at Solix before refocusing on his prized catch, his eyes darting between his master and his prey.

  Solix took in a long, slow breath with pursed lips, then smirked, his emerald eyes wide and unblinking on Madilay.

  “Kill.”

  Data CELL 60

  His attacks came fast.

  Mistuuk was thrusting and feinting his spear at me.

  I parried as much as I could.

  The little guy was fast for his size. I’d seen some moves from him before, but he was fighting on a whole different level now.

  He was trying to kill me.

  I had trouble focusing. As if the syrum I had taken earlier didn’t make that difficult enough, it was beginning to wear off and I could feel the Insight digging into my mind.

  The cold embrace of the Ancient’s thoughts was breaking through the hallucinogenic barrier.

  I needed to do something quick to stop this before we killed each other.

  Glancing back, I noticed Yren and Kayasa were rolling around grappling and trying to gain the upper hand on one another.

  Kayasa managed to get Yren around the throat with the edge of her spear.

  What could I do?

  Every minute felt less and less like pretending to be under the Ancient’s influence and felt more pretending I was myself.

  I noticed the Xty guards would just step away as we vied between them, not interfering.

  It didn’t take me long to spot the crystal gun on the side of one warrior; but, before I could turn back, Mistuuk’s spear tore through my left arm.

  I reached for it in pain.

  It had just grazed me, but still cut deep.

  The little Cuukzen stopped and twirled his spear to ward off any counterattack and to prepare for his next flurry.

  Blood ran down my arm and dripped onto the stone floor.

  I had to make my move now.

  He twirled it again, planted the speartip onto the ground, and vaulted towards me.

  His feet went for my head while he spun the spear and tucked it under him, aimed at my chest.

  I dodged to the side, caught his foot and wrist, and threw him behind me right at the Xty guard.

  The warrior sidestepped and watched with mild interest as the tiny Cuuzken flew by him.

  As the guard turned, I picked up my spear, aimed, and threw it with all I had.

  It flew true.

  Not at the Xty warrior between myself and the Cuukzen, not at Mistuuk who had recovered from his fall, but at the hovering pyramid of blue light behind them both.

  I just hoped it didn’t have a forcefield.

  I felt like I was going to sleep.

  This might be my final thought of my own.

  In my line of work, there are a few short moments in my life when things seem to slow; when I’ve done all I can and am left to wait on what fate decides. All I could do was witness the last glimpse of hope which had sprung from my final act of free will.

  Some give up and leave it to fate alone. Some live their whole lives as if it was written for them. They put their hope in something other than themselves to save them. My hope came from something else. It came from my relentless spirit of survival in knowing that the hope I cling to will see me through my darkest time. My hope is in knowing that, no matter the obstacle, I’ve done my best to overcome it.

  Destiny. Fate. The idea that, once things are in motion, no matter how hopeless they are, one cannot overcome the mass of obstacles thrown in one’s way.

  I am relentless in proving this idea wrong.

  I write my own destiny.

  And, right then, for my joyous ears to hear, my destiny sounded an awful lot like something screaming in surprise and pain from being skewered by a spear.

  The shriek bellowed out from the floating edifice of stone.

  It was the Insight.

  My spear had found its mark.

  My mind’s hazy prison was gone and I blinked with sudden, sober cognizance.

  I was back.

  The mind-controlling blue light of the pyramid flickered and went dark as the final wails of the Insight, whatever it was, ceased.

  All the Xty worshipers, including Emvel, stood in awe at the darkness.

  The waters below bubbled up, spilled out of the center channel, and rushed over the floor.

  The entity’s shrieking continued as white liquid poured down from the hovering object.

  I don’t care the color. Blood is blood.

  I didn’t have time to waste.

  Grabbing for the awe-struck guard to my front, I snatched the crystal gun
from his side.

  At the same time, I held his neck close and took him down to the ground, snapping his neck as we fell backwards.

  I yelled out to the others, “Mistuuk! Kayasa! Take them now!”

  The Cuukzen rolled into action and attacked the nearest Xty to him.

  Kayasa shook off her assault of Yren as she threw the Xty off to the side near the entrance we had come up.

  Yren slid to a stop in the corner, unmoving.

  I used the crystal gun and blasted the large stone giant who stood near the mechanism that controlled the Ancient’s hovering throne.

  The impact hit the Glyphtern in the shoulder, shattering the stone arm holding the chain.

  Loud ratcheting broke the sounds of combat with the throne top slamming down, sealing the Ancient within its pedestal.

  We were all in full melee with the other Xty, not knowing if their long-controlled minds would snap them out of their rage after my attack on the Insight.

  Kayasa was slashing and punching her way through them.

  They were dazed and off balance, trying to cope with their newfound mental freedom.

  We had to take them out.

  We had no choice.

  At least their hesitation gave us the upper hand.

  Mistuuk had drawn the attention of the stone giant with his furious assault on the two guards next to it.

  He had activated Blink.

  The little bot flew around drawing their attention and annoyance.

  The huge Glyphtern charged the little Cuukzen.