The Ungar skidded to a halt, clearly confused. “How do you speak the language of the Masters?”

Alan tried to remember what he had planned to say. In the heat of the moment it was difficult to remember. “I am a new design of the Masters. I’ve been sent to secure the Vault of Galthierian and keep any enemy presence away. You are interfering with my duty.”

“The Masters are dead. They perished many millennia ago. You are a deceiver!”

“Then how do I speak to you in the Masters language? I tell you the Masters are not ALL dead. Some remain. I have been sent with this new form, to preserve their rightful knowledge and acquire new forms of other species to be used to rebuild the broken places.”

The Ungar hesitated. The ground rumbled again. The Ungar took the sword and raised it high. With just the one hand it spun the blade and thrust it deep into itself. The Ungar’s form burst into a brilliant white light that projected into the ground and high up into the sky.

That wasn’t exactly one of the outcomes Alan had planned for. He turned and ran. He wasn’t sure if he could make it or not at this point. “Sara, where are you?” He was beginning to breathe heavy. There was no answer. “Sara?!”

There was more ground shaking. He was so focused on sprinting towards the perimeter he didn’t even notice it gaining on him. The roar of vattaux nearly made him piss himself. He looked back just in time to see the mecha reach down and scoop him up into it’s mouth.

Alan yelled out in panic. “Don’t crush me in here!”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

She still didn’t respond. The vattaux mecha was running for all its worth, claws digging deep into the ground to maintain traction. The gait of the mecha seemed to be off. He was shocked it was operational at all.

The mecha came to a stop and let Alan back down to the ground as gently as it could. The ground was rumbling louder and louder. This time it wasn’t letting up. Sara had gotten them to a high hill overlooking the site of where the outpost had been. She climbed out of the mecha and stood beside him and watched.

The surface of the site shook and began to sink from the center and quickly spread to the outside. Almost like water falling down a drain whose plug had just been pulled. The ground caved in a good 25 meters down. The sides slushed in forming a smooth crater.

“It’s done. No more Ustobo on the planet,” Alan said.

“I’m glad I didn’t have to try and fight that Ungar with the vattaux mecha. I’m not sure if I could have done it without killing you.”

“And what would you have done if it killed me first.”

Sara looked up at Alan and smiled. “Killing it would have been the last thing I did before that pit swallowed me up too.” She took his hands into hers. “It didn’t kill you or me though. Now that Ungar and the Ustobo are gone. So we can work on other things. More relaxing things.” She smiled. “And some fun things.”

“I still have to face the Saru for all the deaths.”

“They’re free from the Ustobo on this planet because of you! Don’t forget that.”

“For now anyway.” Alan looked up to the red sky. “Hopefully they give us a bit of a reprieve. Let’s not hang out in the open and give them an excuse to make another attempt at getting rid of us.”

Those that remained returned to the Vault of Galthierian. Gallithar didn’t emerge from his hibernation. The conditions apparently not being met yet. Alan and Sara worked with the Saru to help them become independent once more and made preparations for taking back their solar system. Alan also made preparations for the soon coming mercenary group that was still on their way. But that is another story.