Zero Point: Chapter 8- Extraction
#9 of Zero Point
Chapter 8: Extraction.
The rain came in a torrent, soaking Brian as he blinked away the nausea of being teleported yet again. He would probably never get used to that, even though he was probably the only human being to have actually undergone the process. However, that was not the Marine was here for... his friend needed help, and needed it badly.
The human glanced around, trying to blink away the queasy feeling that seemed to accompany the Warpstone's teleportation powers. It was all unfamiliar to him, and he would as soon rather not think about it. He had to concentrate on where he was and what he was doing... namely pulling Krystal's fat out of the fire.
He had come loaded for this, and a little better outfitted than he had been on that damned mountain. His M14 was in his hands, primed and ready. He had brought along the M9 as well as his grandpa's Colt, and the Remington was slung on his back... sharing space with his combat pack.
While it was a full-sized hunting piece and a little heavy, the Remington would prove invaluable inside a building. He also had a satchel full of shotgun shells attached to his belt... once again it was heavy, but he was going to need every bit of ammo he could scrape up.
Brian was definitely on some sort of platform over a seemingly bottomless pit. The platform looked large enough to land a Blackhawk helicopter on, and judging by the tracks of mud all around him looked to have seen some recent use. Past the platform was long 'bridge' of sorts, stretching for about two hundred yards to a massive building. The structure itself looked like something out of an Indiana Jones movie, complete with big wooden doors and torches lining the path towards it.
It was time to figure out what was going on, so he started forward down the path that led to the building. "Least it'll be dry." The irony that he had gone for weeks praying for rain during his tour in Iraq hadn't escaped him. "Next time, I'll be more careful for what I wish for." He grumbled to himself as he neared the entrance.
Fifty yards off, he saw movement. Two... things emerged from the shadows near the huge doors as if the darkness itself had given birth to them. They looked like jellyfish, almost... translucent, pink, and lots of tentacles hanging from their bodies. How the hell jellyfish managed to float in the air instead of water was a mystery he wasn't wanting to figure out up close.
Brian's hands grasped his rifle, snapping the firearm up to his shoulder. If they were going to act hostile, he was going to be ready for it. He undid the M14's safety catch and pointed it at the closer of the two creatures. The scope made close-range shooting difficult, but at least the targets were large enough to hit without a precise point of aim.
The closer of the creatures started spinning, its tentacles cutting through the air with a constant rush of air. It was bearing down on the Marine, searching for prey to tangle up and subsequently consume. It got far more than it bargained for.
Brian pulled the trigger twice, the 7.62mm rounds punching through the main body of the 'jellyfish.' The creature cascaded to the stone below, its tentacles going limp. Bullets hurt it, at least. The soldier shifted the rifle, not even waiting for its twin to make a move. He fired twice more, the reports once again echoing off the stone and disturbing the silence. The second creature joined the first, and the victorious Marine cracked a smile.
"Sergeant Lancing... jellyfish terminator for hire." He quipped, approaching the door. The M14 was still out and tracking anything that might move. He wasn't going to be taken by surprise. The portal blocking his progress was massive and made of wood. Even on smooth hinges it took a great effort to open... it either served a ceremonial purpose or was designed for some pretty damn large dinosaurs. Either way he made his way inside, pulling the huge wooden construct closed behind him. Blinking his eyes to get used to the dim interior, he once again looked around.
The main hall, or at least he assumed that was what it was... was decorated sparsely, with no wall hangings, posters, or even signs to guide a visitor. Torches lined the walls, and he could see very fine marble floors and walls. Obviously someone or something spent a hell of a lot of time and money on the place. Was it some sort of church or temple, perhaps?
Brian saw a huge chamber beyond the main hall, and decided to move in for a closer look. There didn't seem to be any jellyfish to hamper his progress, but as he walked his hands exchanged the M14 for the Remington... the scattergun making a far better choice indoors.
Entering the place was like walking into an empty sports stadium. The main feature he noticed was the overall shape.. a cylindrical tower nearly four hundred feet tall, the top of which was at least partially open to the air. He could see rainfall in front of him, but grates in the marble floor in front of him kept the place from getting too wet. A series of balconies extended up the tower, which caused him to look up. He needed to get up there, but he didn't see any stairs.
He did, however, see a decently-sized splotch of blood on the stone several yards away. Something had gotten hurt here... could it have been Krystal? The Marine grit his teeth... whether or not it was his new ally, it was a lead. There seemed to be a trail of the stuff leading towards a dark alcove embedded into the blue-gray stone wall... with no choice left he decided to follow it.
Holding the shotgun at the ready, Brian stepped into the alcove. It had been filled with several shipping crates... holding God knew what. Peering into the darkness, he spotted something slumped against them. Taking a deep breath, the Marine closed in, reaching out to touch it.
The feeling of soft fur greeted his touch... it was probably her. Setting the shotgun down and pulling a small flashlight out of a belt pouch, he confirmed his suspicions. Krystal was slumped against the crate, the olive drab T-shirt she had taken from the Humvee soaked with blood. Moving the light lower, he spotted two stab wounds in her midsection... something had really done a number on her. "Hold on... I'm going to get you out of here."
He set down his pack, reaching into one of its outside pockets and taking out the first aid kit that was tucked within. He had to make it quick... she had definitely lost quite a bit of blood. Taking two large packs of gauze, he lifted her shirt up and pressed them to the still-oozing wounds. After that, a bandage was wrapped around her midsection and cinched tight.
"That's going to have to do." With a sigh he gingerly picked the vixen up in his arms... after being trained to carry nearly three hundred pounds of Marine and combat gear, she wasn't that much of a burden. Still, he would have to put her down in order to get to his weaponry... but he wasn't too far from the point where the Warpstone put him. Easy two hundred yards, at that.
It wasn't going to be that easy, unfortunately. Almost as soon as he crossed the chamber, several shadowy forms blocked his way. He had a bad feeling about this... so he set her down and slid the shotgun off his back. The lead shadow... a huge figure... made its way into the light.
Even to the hardened soldier, the Sharpclaw that emerged was intimidating. Nearly nine feet high and built like a brick Buick, its left hand was missing and sported a wicked set of blades attached to the wrist. Those blades, he noticed, were coated with blood. It didn't take a genius to figure out what happened. He was the one who shanked Krystal.
As the massive lizard took a step forward, Brian racked the shotgun's pump. The reassuring shak-shak sound reached his ears... an obvious warning that he was more than willing to use it. He decided to speak... even though he was certain the Sharpclaw only spoke its native language. "Come any closer and Mister twelve-gauge here blows your ass in half."
The creature chuckled and looked down at the Marine... and to his surprise returned his threat in English. "Brave words from a foolish monkey. I am General Scales... leader, tyrant, and dictator of Sauria. As such, you would be wise not to threaten me." As he boasted, the Sharpclaw general noticed a familiar blue fox on the ground right behind the alien. "I see that the Cerinian I seek is not yet dead. If you give her to me, I will let you live. If not..." Scales left the threat lingering in the air, a malicious grin crossing his features.
The human shook his head. "I don't think so. Hell, might as well do this world a favor and take your ass out." With a grin, he lifted the Remington, but he never got to do anything with it. Several sharp cracks flashed out from the shadowed Sharpclaw, and instantly Brian felt as if he had taken a roundhouse kick from Chuck Norris himself. They all had guns. His shotgun clattered on the cold stone floor as he fell backwards, and he found his hand frantically grabbing for his Colt before he was too late.
His hand wrapped around the .45's grip and yanked out of its holster just in time for Scales to lift his blades. They swiftly came down; Brian cringing and steeling himself for the vicious attack... which never landed.
The General's blades came within a foot of his throat then simply... stopped.... the Sharpclaw's eyes widening as he started to defend himself from an unexpected attack. An intense heat flared over Brian's shoulder as he saw a bolt of fire fly from behind him; striking Scales in the chest. The Sharpclaw tumbled to the ground, snarling in pain.
The Marine looked over his shoulder, taking in the sight of Krystal's badly wounded form holding her staff weakly in one paw. Their eyes met, briefly... the vixen uttering a soft groan before falling unconscious once again. While he wanted to just waste this self-proclaimed General right there and then, the fact they were going to get shot at again took precedence. Without a second thought he aimed the Colt at the other Sharpclaw soldiers and blasted off the entire magazine. A few of them fell and most of them tried to take cover from the rain of .45 pistol rounds.
Shoving the empty handgun back into its holster, Brian grabbed and slung his shotgun. The surviving Sharpclaw were scrambling for their weapons, and Scales was struggling to get up. He was out of time. Hurriedly he scooped the vixen up, making sure she was limply holding onto the staff that had saved both of their asses.
His eyes darted around, spotting a corridor to his left. While the remaining Sharpclaw were getting ready to give chase he darted down it, throwing the comatose vixen over his shoulder to keep one hand free. As the group of enraged lizards ran after them, an idea came to mind. "I hope this works..."
His free hand reached for one of the D-rings on his armor, grasping the M67 fragmentation grenade which lay there. It was a risky endeavor, but so was getting shot at by the lizards. Pulling the explosive device off of his armor, he pulled his pin with his teeth... chucking it behind him. As he did so he pulled Krystal off his back and tried to shield her from much of the blast as he could... scrunching over her limp form.
That turned out to be a major mistake. The grenade fell into the midst of the Sharpclaw, thinking he had chucked a rock at them. The blast was deafening; even the marble hall shook as the explosive charge tore the grenade body apart, ripping the hapless soldiers apart with a torrent of shrapnel.
Brian felt a few stray pieces patter against his armor and tear at his exposed arms and legs... at the distance they were at they weren't too harmful. However, the rumbling continued after the shock wave of the detonation was supposed to cease... and he felt the floor caving in. The sickening sensation of freefall caused him to panic, but he managed to clench Krystal tighter to himself as they fell... stifling a scream as they plummeted into the darkness.
The shock of cold water came next as they hit some sort of half-submerged stone channel. The impact knocked the wind out of him, and he realized they weren't out of danger yet; the channel was slick and he couldn't find any sort of purchase, and they were carried on by the fast-moving water. It was, in essence, the water slide from Hell.
Brian struggled to keep Krystal's head out of the rushing water, just trying to stay steady as they were pushed down the fast-moving channel. His armor and weapons were creating a drag, and he winced as he heard both the rifle and the shotgun scrape against the ancient stone... the weapons were receiving a pounding. However, once the channel ended they would probably fall into a cistern or something... he could see a dim light ahead through the pitch darkness.
As the light rushed closer, a sense of foreboding came over him... something told him he made a huge mistake setting off that grenade. They picked up speed, and the sound of rushing water filled his ears as the opening came closer. Before he could even blink they passed through it... and into empty space.
The iron grip of fear clenched Brian's gut as he realized what had happened. Instead of a cistern, the drainage channel they had been riding in led directly outside... off of the Palace wall. They were in freefall, tumbling through a vast abyss towards a certain death. 'I fucked up.... it's not supposed to end like this!' His mind was racing, trying to figure out anything to slow their descent... but failed. He couldn't even see the ground below; just simply empty foggy space. Somehow he continued to keep his deathgrip on Krystal... if there was some minute chance she might survive he would have to take it.
"I'm sorry." he whispered as they plummeted, the sickening feeling of falling continuing to fuel his fear. All of his life he dreaded something like this; a plane crash or a tumble off a tall building; it was simply ironic to die this way. Surviving all this just to meet your fate in the worst way you thought possible... on a God-damned alien planet.
He looked down at the vixen, gritting his teeth... his fear temporarily replaced by surprise as her emerald eyes opened to gaze into his. It was as if in their last moments she could see into his soul; his thoughts and most basic fears ripped open and laid bare for her to see. Yet, all he could see in her was calmness... calmness tinged with agony. She spoke, a pained whisper that barely reached his ears beyond the rush of the wind as they plummeted to their deaths. "Please... trust me."
"Trust what?" he started to shout... about to shout that he screwed up and they were going to die here... but another bout of nausea started to take hold in his stomach, and the world faded into a swirl of colors and impossible patterns.
"Wake up, lad! Ye're no longer in danger. Get yer arse up and moving!" The voice boomed into Brian's head, snapping him out of a daze. He wasn't dead. He was, in fact, laying on a patch of grass, and the familiar 'Fat Bastard' stone guy was yelling at him. The Marine slowly sat up, his head pounding and his stomach feeling like it was going to rebel on him any moment. "What the hell happened?" he murmured, trying to find his feet.
"Wot th' 'ell happened?" The Warpstone towered above him... looking about as concerned as an animated monument actually could look. "Ye nearly got yeself and the lass killed, that's wot happened!" Brian stood up then... feeling the cling of once-again damp clothes. He was really tired of being wet. "Ye need tae be more careful, lad."
Great... he was being scolded by a damn statue. He sighed and glanced around... noticing that Krystal wasn't there. He had been holding onto her... where was she? "Yeah, yeah. Try thinking on your feet when being chased by a murderous dictator the size of a damn Buick." Without waiting for a response he glanced at the Warpstone. "Cut to the chase. How'd we end up here, and where is she?"
"Alright, lad... if that's the way ye want to play it." The monolith raised an arm and pointed out across Thorntail Hollow. "That lass saved yer life. When ye got 'er outside the Palace... in yer own dangerous manner... she touched minds with me. I grabbed the both of ye. Do ye have any idea 'ow hard 'tis to link up with a fallin' person?" Brian shook his head and sighed. "As to where she is, they've got 'er in the Queen's Chamber. They want ye to go there."
"Left me here, hm?" Without waiting a response, Brian exited the small grove, giving an exasperated sigh. Something told him his reception with the Saurians was a bit cooler than he had thought. Either way, he was going to pay the Humvee another visit... with luck his fatigues would be at least somewhat dry.
To his relief, they were... for the most part. After changing back into his battle garb and taking a few bites off an MRE energy bar, he was ready to 'meet the public.' Brian wisely decided to leave his weaponry in the vehicle, although as a last precaution he stuffed the Beretta under his jacket. He was burning through .45 rounds at a pretty quick pace, and didn't really want to rely on the heirloom too much.
The trek to the 'cavern' where the Queen Earthwalker resided was quite uneventful. They had the Hollow pretty well secured, which was made apparent by the hulking Earthwalker guard by the entrance. It was about to say something in its native language... but recognized the human and stepped aside. Brian took that as a cue to enter.
The quarters were very dimly lit, and only three others resided inside. Tricky was the first to greet him; padding up to the Marine. "About time you got here... your friend's in real trouble." Without even waiting for a reply he dashed to the Queen... his mother standing defensively over a small nest of blankets on the ground.
Krystal was settled on that nest, unmoving. Even in the dim light he could see she was still in pretty bad shape; the bandage job he had done was spotted through with blood. A slight pang of guilt coursed through him... could he have done something different? Tricky's voice distracted him. "She's not doing too well. My mom says she was stabbed by general Scales. He taints his blades with nasty magic to make sure his victims die from them no matter what." The young Earthwalker trembled at this; Brian was unsure if this was from fright or rage.
The Queen spoke next, although just like before he couldn't understand a single word of their language. Tricky nodded at her, and spoke back in kind.... before turning back to him. "Mom says she's slipping in and out... whatever that means. But, there is a way to stop Scales' enchantment."
Brian crossed over to Krystal, kneeling next to the blankets she was laying on. His fingers reached for her neck... he was no doctor but having a nurse for a mother had taught him a few things. He had no idea what sort of pulse a Cerinian should have, but it was both slow and erratic. Her body was trying to slip into shock, but for some reason... she was trying to stabilize herself. "What do I need to do?" She saved his life, even if he had been trying to save hers. He was honor-bound as both a Marine and a friend to help.
Tricky sighed with relief... with his gruff exterior, he wasn't too sure the 'human' would have been this willing to help. He was about to say something, but he was cut off by a pained voice... Krystal's. "B...Brian?" Her paw reached up to him, grasping his hand weakly. "You won't... be able to help with your... tools." The vixen paused as a coughing spell wracked her body, causing her to wince and double over in pain. "P... please. My staff will... help. It needs... energy. Find... the jewels. I've seen... them." The vixen doubled over once again, yet the blessed state of unconsciousness took her before she went through much more pain.
"Christ." Brian muttered. Her staff ran off of some sort of jewel, which apparently this planet had as well. How could he... wait a minute. Those multicolored jewels he found while bringing Tricky back here...
The young Earthwalker was thinking the same thing. "Those strange rocks you brought back with you... that's got to be them!" Tricky rushed for the entrance, practically pulling the Marine with him.
"Hold it, dude." Brian shook his head. "I've got 'em with me. Let's get this over with." Once more the Marine reached into his pack, digging beyond the spare ammunition, food, and other detritus he had collected or had been issued. His hand finally encountered them, which were then pulled out as if they were even more valuable than their appearance suggested.
The human approached Krystal again, holding the jewels in his hand. The vixen was still out of it, but her paw was loosely wrapped around her staff. He gingerly pulled the weapon away from her, examining it to see if there was a slot or something the jewels might fit in.
A receptacle towards the bottom seemed to fit them. He placed one on top of it, and almost dropped the staff when it pulsed softly in his hand; the jewel simply disintegrating whenever the staff absorbed it. A flash of light at some chamber at the bottom caught his eye, and it slowly seemed to fill up just a little. It was some sort of power indicator, then.
Even the second jewel wasn't enough to give the staff more than a mild charge. It would have to do, as he set the staff back into her waiting paw. Even while unconscious, the Cerinian seemed to relax when presented the undercharged weapon; it was apparently able to do something to help.
With a sigh the Marine turned to Tricky. "Now... where do I find more of those suckers?"