TRANSFORMATION SEQUENCE COMPLETE!
TEMPORAL FLOW RESTORED.
Wasting no time, Syd was already activating her Abilities before her feet even touched the ground. A crackling, scythe-shaped violet blade emerged from the back of her right wrist, then was obscured along with the rest of her body when Prowler Mode came online.
Aww, yeah. Assassin Time just got renewed for a second season!
Back by popular demand, Ryan agreed. Are you ready to make some noise?
Um, Ry, isn't that kind of the opposite of what Assassins are supposed to do? Before he could respond, she added, Hey, I'm kidding. Kidding! Jeez, you don't have to worry so much. Laughing under her breath, Syd patted him on the shoulder as she stalked past. You want to see a distraction? I'll show you a distraction.
Syd disappeared into the entrance that the two Blasters had been guarding.
A few seconds later, she came hurtling back out, sprinting at top speed.
Fuck! Change of plans! she sent. There's a – I have no fucking idea what that thing is, but it's really big and it's got way too many legs!
While she spoke, the thing in question emerged from the tunnel, spilling out into the junction in a riot of chitinous plates and long, spiny limbs. To Ryan, the mottled-brown, bus-sized creature looked like a nightmare cross between a centipede and some sort of deep-sea crustacean. Its flat, oblong head, flanked by multiple pairs of independently-scissoring jaws and seeming to lack anything resembling eyes, whipped back and forth as it searched the cavern for prey.
Don't move, Ryan warned her, forcing himself to remain motionless as well. It's a Crurian Brute. They're ambush predators that hunt by sensing vibrations in the ground. I've seen them a few times before... they're a species that the Zorvax bring in from offworld to use as guard dogs. Uh, guard bugs. Whatever.
Wait, you're telling me that thing isn't just a transformed monster, it's an alien, too? Syd asked. Are they intelligent?
Not even a little bit. As long as you stay still, it won't be able to find you.
Right. So, um, I guess we'll just... stay still, then?
The Brute had halted, half-in and half-out of the room, when the human whose footsteps it was pursuing suddenly disappeared from its senses. Confused, it clacked its pincers, waiting impatiently for its quarry to make a movement.
It's scary-looking, I know, but they're really not any more dangerous than those transformed wolves you beat up. He paused, considering. Well... maybe slightly more dangerous, but you can handle it. I'll give you an opening. Careful not to shift his feet, Ryan bent his knees and scooped a loose chunk of stone off the ground. You remember that trick you said only works in stealth video games?
An underhand toss sent the rock clattering noisily down the passageway. It bounced, skipping off the ground several times, before finally rolling to a stop a few feet beyond Syd's position.
The Crurian Brute immediately exploded into motion, arrowing towards the source of the sound.
Syd didn't need any further encouragement. The glowing, half-visible Energy Claw snapped out, catching the passing monster in the middle joint of its front limb. Carried by its momentum, the Brute continued barreling forward even as the leg crumpled beneath it, allowing the ion blade to slice through several more in quick succession.
Her outline flickered, then faded back into view as Prowler Mode deactivated.
Screeching in pain, the alien beast tried to arrest its charge. Clawed feet skittered for purchase on the rough stone surface as it fought to turn itself around. Ryan stepped closer, ducking beneath a flailing limb, then brought his prybar down with a loud crunch on one exposed joint after another.
The creature wavered, growing increasingly unsteady as their attacks continued to chip away at its supports. It let out another, louder wail as it crashed heavily to the ground, the sound cutting off abruptly when Syd plunged her sizzling blade into the gap between the plated exoskeleton that protected the Brute's head and torso.
Steam filled the tunnel, followed by a brief, dazzling flash of light as the Crurian's transformation reverted.
Eugh, wow, that's fucking gross, Syd remarked, looking down at the alien arthropod, which was now merely the size of a boa constrictor. I figured it might look less ugly after it transformed back, but... hey, Ryan, how do you think the zoo would react if Amy dropped this thing off on their doorstep?
More approaching footsteps cut off any response he could have given to the question.
Damn. He'd hoped that the three enemies they just took down were the last of them. The inability to access his area map was throwing him off. How many Enforcers do they have stationed down here?
I can rid of these guys, Syd promised. No sweat.
You don't have to fight them, Syd, Ryan cautioned. Just get their attention, then head for the entrance. He jerked his head in the direction of the tunnel behind them, and she nodded. As soon as you're clear of whatever it is that's interfering with our communications, link up with Amy and Cat. Their Changers must be almost out of time by now, and they might need a hand.
This novel's true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there.
Got it. Syd paused, then darted in to plant a quick peck on his cheek. Be careful, boss. I'd hate to lose you.
Ryan ducked low, hiding himself in the shadows, and waited.
Two identical, purple-armored Decoys shimmered into existence, flanking Syd on either side. Moments later, one of the copies blew apart, catching an Energy Beam that had been intended for her. The Assassin whirled, dashing away in the direction they'd come from, and her remaining Decoy followed.
A Blaster thundered down the hallway in pursuit, rushing past Ryan's impromptu hiding place. More of them followed, enough to account for a full squad if he included the pair they'd already dropped.
Which meant, he hoped, that there shouldn't be any left inside.
Once the procession had ended, he pushed himself away from the wall. Still moving in a crouch, he continued deeper into the base.
***
Gunfire crackled and explosions thumped, the sounds muted and oddly distorted by their passage through the swirling aperture of the open portal on the other side of the room. Standing before it, silhouetted by the azure glow, a human could be seen speaking to a pair of squat domed shapes.
"– team leader says that they're gathering up their casualties and preparing to exfiltrate," Professor Henson said. "Resistance is much heavier than expected, and they're running out of time on their Changers –"
A burst of shrill Zorvax speech interrupted him.
"Unacceptable," Ryan's Implant translated. "Such primitive opposition –"
The Zorvax was interrupted in turn, his words drowned out by the roar of an unmarked, black-painted helicopter that swept past the portal aperture. Streams of tracers poured from its open side doors. Distantly visible, the figures of Enforcers could be seen scrambling for cover in its wake.
"– such primitive opposition should be no match for Zorvax technology."
"The humans have an expression," mused another Zorvax voice. "Quantity has a quality all its own."
"Just so, Station-Captain!" Henson eagerly agreed. "That's the problem our teams have encountered. On an individual basis, the opposition would be no match for our Enforcers, of course, but..."
"But?"
"...but they have an overwhelming numerical advantage at the moment. If we retreat and regroup, then perhaps we could..."
Tuning out the man's excuses, Ryan swept his gaze around the teleportation chamber. By Zorvax standards, it was crude work, roughly square and measuring perhaps a hundred feet from one side to the other, the walls and ceiling bare stone, while metal grating covered the floor.
The space was dominated by the long, boxy shape of the portal generator. At the machine's center was a whirling spherical collimator that threw ribbons of green light across the room, surrounded by bank after bank of polished-silver gravitational lensing arrays that allowed it to function and contained in a grid-like, tubular framework. Beside the generator...
He grinned.
There.
Beside the generator, dwarfed by the colossal machine, stood a squat, featureless, waist-high oval cylinder.
A command terminal.
And, even better, a Zorvax officer who could give him the required access.
Perfect.
If they were talking about recalling the Enforcer teams they'd sent out, though, he'd need to move fast.
Taking care of the professor would be the first step. The man had served his purpose, and now it was time for him to get out of the way. Ryan considered introducing the back of his head to the prybar he was carrying, but after a moment of hesitation, he decided against it.
He'd made a promise to Amy.
Besides, driving his knuckles into the nerve cluster at the base of Henson's neck served just as well. Ryan caught the unconscious body as it dropped and tossed it unceremoniously through the portal. If the man came to, then the government goons below could figure out what to do with him.
Ryan's sudden appearance caused the Zorvax officers to began jabbering in alarm, a squeaking, hissing racket that he put a quick halt to by kicking over the nearest of the two hostile environment transports. The small vehicle, which resembled like nothing more than a child's scribbled drawing of a toy car, tipped over onto its side, its three wheels spinning futilely in the air. Turning, he snatched up the other transport before it could trundle away, struggling only slightly to lift the three-hundred-pound weight off the ground.
"Forward-Commander-Two!" the occupant of the tiny vehicle shouted.
"Not anymore. That title belongs to some other guy now, or so I was told," Ryan corrected the alien. "Anyway, I need you to do a little favor for me, okay?"
"It would be best if you surrendered immediately," the Zorvax blustered. "If you cooperate, it may yet be possible for you to be reinstated in your previous position –"
Ryan could see the ripples of agitation traveling up and down the alien's slimy body. Placing the vehicle on its side next to the terminal, he leaned over to tap a finger on the side of the transparent dome that separated them.
"Listen, Station-Captain... uh, Station-Captain whatever-your-name-is. I'm not here to get my old job back. All I want you to do is activate the terminal, use your officer credentials to sign in, then disconnect and leave it open."
"What could you possibly hope to achieve with this show of defiance?"
"That's for me to worry about, not you. You ought to be more concerned with doing what I tell you to do, because otherwise I'm going break this canopy open. Now, I'm just a human, so correct me if I'm wrong, but... that would expose you to the local gravity, wouldn't it?"
"Ha! The canopy of a hostile environment transport is practically indestructible."
"Practically indestructible, huh?" With a thoughtful frown, Ryan began applying torque to the attachment point that connected the dome to the chassis. Nothing. He pushed harder. The frame of the little vehicle let out an ominous creak. "How confident are you in that word, practically?"
The Zorvax officer flinched at the sound. Its beady black eyes swiveled on their stalks, darting frantically around the room.
"We don't have a lot of time, Station-Captain. I'll give you until the count of three, okay?"
"The count of three? Is this another human idiom?"
Ryan sighed.
"It means I'm going to start counting out loud. If I reach three and you still haven't logged in, then I guess we'll both get to find out if you're right about how indestructible these things are."
"Even should you manage to carry out your plan and escape –"
"One," he said, tapping on the dome again.
"– Zorvax Star Empire would not allow such an affront to stand –"
Another tap.
"Two."
The alien seemed to deflate, shrinking down into its padded seat.
"...very well. You make a compelling argument, human."