You decide to talk, "Speak then, if you don't mind me looking for my friends at the same time." You try to stand, and find that your legs will not hold your weight, "or not. Guess I'm not going anywhere fast."

The Polearm-xenos bows from the waist, its eyes never leaving your sitting form, "When you wake again, I and my kind will have departed. I would congratulate you Wanderer, for standing against the Beings That Should Not Be, and living to tell of it. Accordingly, the strands of fate have shifted, false paths falling away. We may yet meet again as friends on earth crimson." It turns to leave, then pauses, "Tell the Flamebringer that the oath he swore on the Bleeding Shard is fulfilled. He will know what it means." It continues away towards its shuttle.

The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

You can feel the tiredness sinking into your bones, your thoughts as slow as tar on an iceworld. As the xenos shuttle begins to lift, you tap your ear looking for your microbead. Unsurprisingly it isn't there, although you do hear the strident sound of a priority signal coming from somewhere by you knees. You groan as you feel around for it, eventually pulling it out of the mud and flipping it to speaker-mode, "Tristan here."

"Zheeves here, it is good to hear from you sir. the Xenos ship is preparing to break orbit, do you want to stop them?"

You close your eyes as a fresh wave of bumps and bruises start reporting in, "No Zheeves, let them go. Get the doctor on a shuttle headed this way soonest though."

"Already prepared. Zheeves, clear."

You lay back on the stony ground, and let sleep claim you.