Slam! The stinger crashes next to me, the creature begins increasing its speed now. It sweeps with its claws trying to clamp on me. The Bipki drones follow me still, the creature claws the air, but they are quick and evade it. A shriek from the beast as it slams its tail again trying to get these drones, a moments reprieve is all I need.
Taking a deep breath, I slide under the beast, pulling my rope out now, the Bipki drones follow close behind, trying to catch me, but I am Ulima, forsaken in the old tongue of my people. There is not a Bipki in existence I cannot fool. Shuffling underneath, I move in the shadow of one of the legs, letting the dusting of the sand obscure me. The cord is not strong enough to tie the legs of the Emperor Scorpion, but I am willing to wager it is enough for what I need. Making a quick knot in the rope and sticking close to the legs I wait for my prey.
The first Bipki hums past my ear and I strike throwing my rope around it, it whirs forward and back wildly, the knots tighten. It tries to take me with it, but I wrap a length just in time around one of the creatures eight legs. It feels the pull and turns to snap at the Bipki which moves backwards to avoid it, slacking the rope enough for me to pull it again. I cut the end of the rope and wait for the next Bipki doing the same, tying it to another leg. The Emperor Scorpion chitters louder, stomping at the ground trying to get me with its legs, snapping at the Bipki with its claws. The third Bipki comes, and I throw the rope catching it, but the end tangles around my foot before I can tie it off. Sekat.
It pulls me from under the belly and into the air by my ankle, my abdominal muscles burn with fury as I reach for my foot, I grasp the rope and begin climbing it to the Bipki drone. Managing to reach it, I wrap an arm around its orb shaped body, it is no larger than my head. My blade stabs between its plates and begins to pry the shell loose.
It dives downwards now, and I slam into the ground, it drags me through the sand as I struggle to hang on. Someone jumps on top of me, slowing the pull to a drag. I don’t have time to thank them, I rip the back panel off and short the wiring with the tip of my blade against the inside wall, we slide to a halt. I turn to see who has helped me, but I feel a push, knocking me out of the way of a stinger.
“Watch out Kada.” The person who has saved me twice now says. In the old tongue Kada - Bonded Brother. There is only one person in this world who would call me this.
“Arrum?” I say jumping out of the way of the next tail strike.
“Who else would save you from yourself?” he says, throwing a blade into the creature’s mouth. It snaps up the blade, a trail of blue blood falls down the corner of its mouth where the blade had cut the softer tissue. I take note of this.
“How did you know it was me?” I yell at him, distracting the beast so he can jump away.
“There is no one else crazy enough to do this.” He laughs pointing to the Bipki drones still attached to the legs of the beast.
“What is the plan?” I holler to him.
“The plan?”
“You rescued me this time, we use your plan!” I yell back over the noise of the crowds, a grin on my face.
“Well - to be honest, my plan was to help with your plan. Saving you not enough?” He yells over the chittering of the scorpion.
I cannot help but laugh aloud at this, hope filling my heart once more.
“This is the plan!” I say diving for the downed Bipki and throwing it at the beast which greedily snatches it up, swallowing it whole.
“That is not a plan…” He begins but then stops as the Emperor Scorpion begins to squeal and thrash wildly, the mandibles of its mouth trying to drag up what it just swallowed.
It is too late; the acid is burning through the housing of the Bipki’s energy core.
Boom - from inside the beast, blue blood sprays from its mouth, smoke coming from its chest as its own acid eats through the holes the blast made, sizzling tissue not adapted to its stomach acid.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
“Ladies and Gentlemen! The first Gana Emperor Scorpion has fallen, using a drone no less, my - we have some creative Hunters this year. Remember sponsors bidding is open on all hunters.” Marcus the announcer says.
A tremor runs through my hands as they imagine strangling him. I push the thought down and I look around the field, we are indeed the first to slay one, the weapons provided are not adequate to deal with the threat. My hands clench as I realize we are meant to fail, but I do not lose heart, my friend is with me now. Together there is no fate we cannot defy.
“We help the others.” I say finally after a long pause, now moving towards the twitching corpse of the scorpion.
“We only have two more Bipki though.” He says.
“Then we change the dynamic.” I say now upon the carcass, the stinger dripping its venom freely, I coat my blades in it, a grin forming on my lips.
“Clever Ulima.” Arrum says to me, jumping up and doing the same. We carefully wrap the blades in the torn cloth of our cloaks.
Before we go, Arrum helps me wrestle the other Bipki drones down from their tethers, quickly I remove their cores, an Ulima must always use what they can, whenever they can. Now we move with swiftness towards the next beast.
There is a team of seven men and women taking turns distracting this Emperor Scorpion, each trying to strike at the joints to no avail. I see a score of my people lay lifeless in the sand, foam and blood spilling from behind their masks. My rage rises, the anger in me swelling, now is not the time, so I push it down and focus.
“Join the rotation!” one of them yells at us as they dive out of the way. The person next to them jumps at the joints, their blade sliding off without finding purchase.
Ignoring the man, I rush forward sliding under the belly, I need to get to the front quickly. The beast spins wildly slamming the ground with its legs, I move swiftly to its mouth rolling outward, its beady eyes lock on me and I toss the cloth wrapped blade into its open mouth, it snaps shut on it, drop of blue blood rolling from the corner of its mouth, my plan has worked.
Diving to the side quickly I try to run, the claw snags my cloak, sekat. It pulls back, throwing me through the air, dragging me towards its mouth. The acid drips down onto my iron mask as it lowers to eat me, its smaller claws attached to its jaw reach down to me.
A battle cry fills the air, Arrum rushes the beast, blades in both hands slicing my cloak as he goes, freeing me from its claws. He dives under the belly pounding the blades hilt to draw its attention. Another man jumps towards the eyes of the scorpion, managing to cut the outer lens. I roll backwards to my feet and run.
“Keep your distance!” I yell at them, throwing off my mask, the acid burning through it.
“No - we have it, press it!” Another yells, moving forward getting knocked over by the claw.
“Trust me! It is already dead!” I scream to them, grabbing the man’s leg and pulling him away as the stinger narrowly misses him.
They look to me unsure of whether to believe, in their eyes I see the fear, the glow intense in their gaze.
“Trust him!” Arrum yells backing away from the beast.
The behemoth stops suddenly, making a violent chittering, then it backs away slowly at first, then quicker as it thrashes wildly, foam beginning to form around its mouth. It takes a full minute for the blue blood to start running fully from its eyes. Arrum comes to me now taking off his mask as well, he grabs my shoulder, a grin from ear to ear.
“Another Emperor has fallen!” Marcus yells, the crowd roars “Can you believe it! This just in, it’s the same Hunters who killed the first! I smell a bidding war!”
My wrist buzzes nonstop, I am tempted to dip it in the acid, but I don’t want it to eat through my arm. Arrum looks at his wrist now curiously, then at me. I shrug to him, we do not have time to check these notifications, our people are dying.
“Sekat…” one of the men says stepping over the beast as it finishes its death throws.
“How did you kill it?” Another asks me, coming up closely.
“The venom, like the annoying man said, it can kill them.” I say jumping up to the back and moving to the dripping tail “Dip the blade and wrap it. The mouth is soft, it will cut itself, before the acid can destroy the venom.”
The others join me, looking over the wrapped blade as I try to hand it to them. They back away warily not wanting to touch it. My jaw flexes, do they not see the people dying around us? Now is not the time to be meek.
“Jugar Salek!” Arrum yells at them, pounding his chest, he grabs the cloth wrapped knife from me and runs towards the next scorpion. In the old tongue his words mean - Find your Courage.
“Sekat. Fine - I will do it.” Another man says, Arrum’s words have reached him. He hands me his blades and I dip them, he rips from his cloak some cloth and takes the blades in it. Running to another Emperor Scorpion.
“Vitar!” a woman cries as she grabs one of the venom blades and departs, in the old tongue it means - Strength of Will.
The others give me their blades freely now, I can see the glow of their Kuwathi eyes from behind the mask, it is not fear I see anymore, it is courage, the hints of pride’s flame igniting in them. It fills me now too, after I finish all their blades I move with a fury in my step. They will not break us. We are the Kuwathi, there is pride in us still. Still enough left to clutch the blade and battle our fates.