Alarm claxons pierced the air, their shrill cries echoing through the starship's corridors. A sickly yellow light engulfed every panel in the ceiling and floor, casting an eerie glow. Yellow being the universal color recognised in GFSC starships as the “something is going to explode soon” warning. Oblivious to the impending doom, Sean Davenport stood naked and paralyzed amidst the chaos, his senses overwhelmed by the alien sights and sounds.
The walls were emblazoned with scrolling text, a rapid barrage of cryptic symbols and urgent warnings. The messages cascaded down the narrow passageways, each repetition heightening the sense of impending catastrophe. They revealed multiple hull breaches, sealed compartments engulfed in flames, and the faltering energy shielding that safeguarded the ship's fragile existence. The text flickered and danced, a relentless reminder of the starship's dire state, yet, Sean Davenport was rendered useless, unable to decipher the dire warnings as they slipped through his trembling fingers.
Stumbling around in partial blindness from the concoction that was injected into him by a trio of small, gray skinned, bug-eyed aliens in an attempt to euthanize him, Sean Davenport was given the unfortunate luxury of being another human in a long line of humans that had been abducted from Earth for unwelcome experimentation. Sean found himself alone in an alien ship, lightyears away from home, and now bombarded from all sides by flashing lights and high pitched alarms. Acting purely on instinct, Sean Davenport did the only thing that came naturally to him. He screamed and tried to run in any direction that didn’t end with him having a face first encounter with a wall.
Sean wiped and rubbed his eyes furiously, trying to ebb the flow of emerald green tears that obscured his vision as he bounced off of wall after wall. His limbs burned, his eyes burned, hell even his hair kind of tingled from whatever was in that syringe.
As he clumsily made his way down the nearest hallway, the ground shook under him, sending him sprawling to the floor.
“God, I swear, if you get me through this,” Sean begged to his deity, “I swear I will never drink and wander out into a field again! Ugh!” He picked himself up from the floor and through his minimal vision chose a new direction and continued down another corridor on his uncertain course, but with less speed and more caution. As he ventured down his new path, an explosion contained inside a previously unseen room threw its containing door out into Sean’s path. He could feel the heat and the impact through the metal floor grate and decided that was the wrong way to go. A course correction sent him down another hall and as he entered it, jets of fog and ice cold liquid rained down on him, encouraging him to quicken his pace and exit to somewhere, anywhere that wasn’t here.
Sean began to feel the effects of the euthanasia subsiding as he fell into a new and darkened room filled with large metal shipping containers. He had given up trying to win the war against the green goo in his eyes, so he just kept them closed as he fumbled around the ship. Once he was able to find a guiding wall, Sean slumped down to the floor and propped himself up in a sitting position against it.
“Okay Sean, get it together,” the unfortunate man said to the shipping container filled cargo room around him.
“Let’s just. Lets just go over what you remember before going blind. You were out drinking with Jarred and Paulina at that barn party out in the sticks. Then you needed to pee so you went to find a bathroom and got pointed outside. You stumbled outside and wandered out to where the cars were. Some asshole threw something at you from his car window, called you the N word, and you gave him the finger before he drove off. You found your bush and started to do your business. Bright lights, then you were strapped down naked on a table.” Sean rolled his shoulders and shook out his hands, the pains that racked his body moments ago had slowly given way to a kind of tingling, pins and needles, just on the edge of numbness feeling deep in his muscles.
“Bunch of mouth clicking and clacking like some African sounding shit, then you saw them.” Sean said with a bit of a chuckle as he continued replaying his recent memories,
“Grays. Fucking Grays. Real fucking Grays. Black eyes, big ass heads, skinny arms and everything.” Sean crossed his legs and propped his head up with his arms, resting his elbows into his thighs, discovering that the pressure seemed to heighten then dissipate the pins and needles in the area. He continued his thoughts out loud through gritted teeth and between grunts of a mixture of pain and relief as he started kneading his right leg with his fist, working his way down his right leg.
“They clicked and clacked something to each other. Ugh! Took turns waving different colored flashlights in your face and talking to each other.” Sean was satisfied with the current condition of his right leg and began to work his left in the same manner.
“Oh, God that hurts! And then they pulled that needle out and stuck it in a jar. Oh man! They stuck it in your arm and shot you full of something purple and thick. Then it all went to hell for them.” Sean completed his deep tissue massage up and down his thighs, calves, and feet. He was no masseuse nor would anyone ever argue against that claim, but after the light beating of a massage he performed, his legs and feet seemed to return to being fully functional. Sean tried to stand and was granted an unwelcome trip several feet into the air. Sean, lacking any sort of extra propulsion, fell quickly to the ground and hit the metal grating below him with a thud and a groan, his limbs sprawled out in every direction.
“UH, huh huh!” was the new noise that escaped Sean as he rolled onto his back. Sean opened his eyes and blinked, taking another chance to try and see through the stinging goo that impaired his vision. Much like his legs, his eyes stopped burning, the sensation replaced with an unwelcome and irritating numbness. Sean forced and ground his knuckles into his closed eyes, much like the treatment for his legs, and upon opening them discovered his sight returned to normal.
“So what now?” he asked himself. “I’m not getting off this spaceship without some help.”
A neighboring vessel materialized from the void, its cloaking field dissipating like a shroud of darkness unraveling. Revealed in all its horrifying glory, the predatory alien ship had ruthlessly pierced the hull of the Feather Fall, anchoring itself in place like a malevolent parasite. Its jagged, serrated exterior resembled the gnarled talons of a cosmic predator, its metallic appendages sinking deep into the vulnerable metal of the captured vessel.
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“Statement of triumph. Boarding spikes have broken through their shielding. Hull has been penetrated and ship anchored, prime.” The pilot of the predatory vessel communicated to its leader. Bathed in a blood-red light that cast eerie shadows, a monstrous reptilian beast with translucent white skin emerged, looming over the pilot. Standing at a towering height of seven feet, it possessed a grotesque amalgamation of six legs, each ending in blade-like talons that scraped against the metal floor. Two of its legs had been replaced by fully cybernetic equivalents, fitted with razor-sharp blades that gleamed with malice. A swarm of robotic appendages worked diligently, welding the final portion of a cybernetic arm to the creature's shoulder, their mechanical movements emanating a chilling precision. As the last connection was secured, the cannon affixed to the end of the robotic prosthetic began to emit an ominous whine, causing a vivid blue light to surge along its length, growing in intensity with each passing second. The reptilian creature sneered, baring its augmented shark-like teeth, a menacing display of alternating polished silver metal and yellow-stained fangs. Its six eyes widened revealing their sickly purple irises, the pupil breaking the purple disc in quarters with thick black slits. The air grew heavy with the impending danger as the creature raised its cybernetic cannon high above its head, triggering a chorus of other similar weapons powering up in response. With the groaning fanfare of stronger metal bending weaker, thinner metal, the chamber became awash in a sickly yellow glow, intensifying the foreboding atmosphere that pervaded the room.
"Meat!" resonated the chilling command from the primarch, the leader of this nightmarish horde. The declaration reverberated throughout the ship, met with a macabre harmony as his loyal troops echoed the message with sinister fervor. The Annura, creatures born of savagery and fiendish purpose, prepared to unleash their terrifying onslaught, their predatory instincts driving them forward in a relentless pursuit of their prey. The boarding party burst through the opening created by their ship and the hunt for sentient prey had begun.
Scrambling talons and the heavy thudding of dense alien footfalls echoed as the Annurian boarding party poured into the Feather Fall. Like an ichor flowing onto pristine tile, the group spread out and took up practiced positions executed for maximum damage and overlapping fields of fire.
"Statement. Certainty. This section is cleared by this one, prime," one of the Annura communicated in a harsh, guttural language, the words dripping with a wet and unsettling tone.
"Statement. Continue the hunt. This one still smells meat," came the reply from the leader, who stood at the center of his ranks, his attention unwavering. The boarding party consisted of only fourteen of his lesser brethren, but it would be more than enough for this seemingly simple ship, this disappointingly empty ship. Pressing forward into the starboard side of the starship, the hunting party moved in pairs, their various weapons held at the ready. Each entrance to a new room was met with raised weapons and snarls, only to find them devoid of any prey, which earned them growls or hisses of disapproval for the lack of suitable quarry. A roar came from the front of the hunting party, followed by a bleating, inhuman scream. Blaster fire echoed down the corridor escorting the panicked beating of hooves on steel grating and a Renee, a tall bipedal goat-like alien, dressed in a white lab coat charged through the hall, dodging the Hunters sharp claws and prosthetic, bladed appendages. The Renee narrowly avoided being captured by several hunters, but was struck in the throat by a large arm cannon that hit with enough force to take the caprine creature off its hooves. The successful Annura stepped out of his hiding place and bent over the Renee, grasping it by its horn and began dragging it back to the hole in the side of the Feather Fall they created. A laugh broke out among the Annura, a kind of deep motor-like rumbling reminiscent of the growl of an alligator. Once the laughter subsided the group was back on high alert, as no member of the hunting party wanted to be returning to the ship empty-handed now.
Suddenly the ship lurched underfoot, the impact causing several Annura to stumble or lose footing and fall. The yellow light that was flooding the ship blinked and then powered off completely. A low whine began to sound in chorus as the eyes of the Annura began to glow a high intensity purple, bathing each section holding a Annura in a bright and focused purple hue. With a weaker jolt, the lights and power returned causing the Annura to wince and trumpet in discomfort as their eyes returned to normal function.
All heads turned to the end of the hallway, the air suddenly thick with the metallic scent of fresh blood, a tantalizing aroma that signaled wounded prey. The boarding party raised their weapons, poised for the thrill of the chase, as a fast and elusive figure darted into view. A mere shadow became the target of a hailstorm of energy weapon fire, followed by a charging frenzy of roaring reptilian monstrosities, eager to ensnare the foolish entity attempting to escape its inevitable doom. The shadow darted and weaved, a tantalizing dance that frustrated its pursuers with each near-miss, a trail of blood serving as a morbid breadcrumb trail that made the chase all the more exhilarating. Until, at last, the game reached its foregone conclusion. With a precise shot, the shadow's caster was grazed by blasterfire and swiftly set upon by three hulking, tooth-filled maws, the powerful necks and cybernetically augmented jaws of the hunters rending the prize into four separate pieces.
In a thunderous gallop that resonated throughout the corridor, the remaining bloodthirsty creatures caught up with their charging brethren, their eyes filled with envy as they discovered the remains of their feast. The primarch swiftly approached the remaining piece, examining it with a mixture of curiosity and disdain before tossing it into his gaping, drooling maw. With a disgusted snarl, he promptly spat the offending morsel onto the deck.
"Statement. Confusion. This is not a fresh kill. Where is the quarry?" demanded the primarch, his face contorted into a mask of impatient rage. However, before the primarch could receive an answer, a blast door descended from the ceiling, separating him and a few others from the rest of the boarding party. Trapped within the confined section of the corridor, they found themselves further imprisoned as another blast door sealed off their exit, both doors displaying the universal symbol of danger in various languages, their alarming words radiating an intense red hue.
The primarch raised his arm, charging a shot capable of melting through the outer hull of a standard shuttlecraft. Yet, before he could unleash the torrent of destructive energy, a screen flickered to life within the sealed room, emitting a cacophony of strange noise composed of alien voices. It displayed an image of an unfamiliar vessel, accompanied by the emergence of prey writing characters appearing on the screen, one after another, synchronized with the eerie noise.
"Demand. Query. What does that say?" the primarch asked, wariness etched in his voice as he eyed the perplexing display. A lesser Annura approached the screen, deciphering the alien script for his leader.
"Confusion. It is a statement, but not. They are requesting an exit for their females or our females," the lesser hunter relayed, “This one is not certain which.”
"Demand. Tell them no! Tell them we will eat them! They are prey, and we are the predators. Their meat will be ours!" The primarch's voice carried a menacing edge as he commanded his subordinate. The lesser hunter reached out and touched the screen, triggering a sudden hissing sound which reverberated through the corridor. The hunters grasped at their throats and fired their blasters futilely at the impervious blast doors and walls, leaving only scorch marks on their satin metallic finish. In a swift and chilling turn of events, the lesser hunters collapsed to the floor, overpowered by an unseen force. The primarch, driven by his dwindling strength, lashed out, striking and clawing at the screen in a desperate frenzy, until finally he too fell, succumbing to unconsciousness brought on by
the rapid decompression of breathable atmosphere.