7
The bloodlust, the darkness, the insatiable appetite for destruction—it was all too much. This place, this stinking planet, was stirring me further into the darkness. The power of my immortality, I knew, was this raging madness, but I chose to overlook it, only choosing to embrace the idea of a long, youthful life. I have to control my impulses, I thought, I need to get myself under control.
“Hold your ground,” the bear hissed, plodding forwards, the axe held firmly in both of its hand. “He is mine, so I will finish him off.”
I straightened up, my right hand over my face, my head throbbing, and exhaled deeply. The cold weather, the strong winds blowing in every direction, only made my inexplicable condition much worse. Holding firmly my rifle, I rocked my body forward, the pain in my leg killing me. The bear and I stood in the middle, facing each other off, both of our weapons in front of us, ready to strike. The wind whirled, the snowflakes brushing coldly against my face, and the ground snow wrapped around my boots.
“Die,” the chimera roared, swinging down its axe in a vertical motion, aiming to cut me in half.
Unable to react quickly, I raised my dagger and rifle up, placing them in front of me, parrying away most of the axe’s power. The barrel of the gun broke in two, the blade bending inwards, as the axe broke through my defense, barely grazing my right shoulder. Pulling back the axe, it raised its right leg, planting a hard kick into my chest, and felling me to the ground. I gasped, spitting out blood, and stood halfway up, my whole body wearing out.
“This is the end, human,” it roared, charging at me, the axe angled above its head.
This is it, I thought, I can’t move my body anymore. I watched the axe coming down at me, in slow motion, like time was moving in a gradual manner, and I held my breath in. And within a meter from me, something exploded in the ground next to me, killing four chimeras on the spot. Another explosion occurred, taking the lives of six more mutant chimeras— the source of the noise was coming from the outpost building. It was the cannons. Someone was operation them. The bear, distracted and angry, stopped its attack, turning its large head towards the outpost.
“Who is doing that?” it boomed, pointing at the building, the back of its head towards me. “Stop them, now!”
Realizing the open opportunity before me, I took my dagger, straightened the crooked spine a little, and made a hasty run for the bear chimera. I took a giant leap, stomping my foot on its back, and planting the knife deep into the back of its neck. It growled in pain, moving around, attempting to throw me off its back, but I wrapped my hands around its neck like my life depended on it. For the next ten seconds, it swung the axe around, growling, attacking its own allies in the process. A cannon shell, to its chest, rocked the foul beast, bringing down the creature to its knees. Once I felt the creature’s power leave its body, I released myself from its neck, landing on the ground beside it. Its bloody axe laid next to it, covered in thick, black blood—my blood—being engulfed by the snow flurries. Sauntering forward, I bent down and picked heavy axe, raising it above my head.
“Weren’t you saying it was over?” I asked the creature, walking behind it, the axe in my hands. “Please, say those sweet words again.”
“You don’t have it within you,” it laughed, tracking me with its eyes, both of its hands supporting the creature from falling. “You are tough, I admit, but you are not a killer.”
“We shall see, won’t we?” I grinned, swinging the heavy axe down, cutting off its right wrist. “I want you to tell me how you feel after.”
“Ahhhh, you stupid human,” it screamed, bending upwards, facing the sky as it began to laugh. “Cutting someone’s hand does not constitute for being a killer, you idiot.”
“Enough of this,” I snorted, swiping in a horizontal fashion, and taking its head off. “I grew tiresome of your foul mouth.”
And even as the head rolled to the side, I could still see his menacing grin, his cold, dead eyes taunting me. I paced back, a few meters, and ran a little before kicking his head off the hill, watching it fly down the snowy slope. The remaining mutant chimeras shifted back, a look of terror on their faces, and stormed away into the blizzard. For now, the easy part was over; after all, retaking the outpost was a strategy designed to offer us the vantage point from the remaining beasts that were lurking around the madman’s lair. On second thought, my reason for aiding these people was not really necessary at all. I mean, I could have just avoided them all, and stormed directly to the madman’s base. Killing him and all of his followers before stealing a ship—an easy plan indeed. That would have been far less complicated, I realized, than aiding these fools.
“Are you okay, Rave,” Salyanna shouted, plodding towards me, one of the men guarding her back. “Come with us to the outpost, this area is not safe.”
“Yes, milady,” I murmured, coughing up blood, as my whole body felt cold and heavy. “Just give me a minute.”
Dropping the heavy axe into the snow, I limped forward towards her, keeping my left hand pressed against my injured leg. My wounds were severe, and for some reason, I wasn’t healing as quickly as before. I had always healed from fatal wounds, the whole process taking less than a few minutes, but this wasn’t the case today.
“Come on,” she whispered, placing her hands around me, the other man taking my other arm. “We have to go before they come back.”
“How did you manage to retake the outpost?” I asked, looking at the brick building, with half of the roof caved in.
“When you left us at the edge of the hill, the chimeras followed you, and upon seeing that opening, we stormed for the outpost, and killed a few of them that remained inside. Thanks to your efforts, we have retaken the outpost, and we can now hatch a plan to lay siege to his compound.”
“You make it sound like it’s that easy,” I smirked, looking at my leg, the bleeding finally stopped.
A man, barely in his late 30s, with a dark goatee, bushy eyebrows, tanned skin, opened the wooden door for us. He moved out of our way, his gun anchored in front of him, a long machete hanging from his holster. It was a little bit gloomy inside, and a long shaft awaited us, leading to different section of the complex. Salyanna and the other man assisted me into the building, moving things out of the way to help me pass easily through. On the walls, there were mounted cylindrical lambs, a grey shelf with staked rifles on the opposite end. The wind howled through the small cracks in the structure, half of the ceiling tiles missing, and the temperature in the building very cold.
“Have you contacted the mayor, Siron?” Salyanna asked, facing a green haired man, who was poking his hair from an open door, on the right. “What news do you bring?”
“Negative! We lost contact with them five minutes ago, I am afraid,” he whispered, his eyes avoiding hers, and his gun on his back. “But I do hope they are okay; that is all we can do for them.”
“I see,” Salyanna replied, lowering her head, her body tensing. “How many weapons do we have?”
“We have enough weapons, but we lack the manpower to hold a siege against the madman’s army,” Jutcer commented, carrying three rifles in both hands, a look of frustration upon his droopy eyes. “Not to mention, we haven’t had a good’s night rest at all.”
Salyanna helped me sit down, against the left wall, and she left with Jutcer, trudging towards the stairs that led to the second floor. Raising my rifle, I checked my last magazine, unclipping it from gun, and checking the remaining bullets in it. Only one third of the full magazine remained, and the ejection pot appeared to be jammed from the inside. In my pockets, I had two grenades, a silver dagger, a handgun with two extra magazines, and two flintlocks. Not my ideal weapons of stealth combat, but considering the circumstances, I couldn’t bring myself to complain. Tilting up, I rocked back to my feet, using the wall behind to stop myself from falling. My wounds were healing slowly than usual, I realized, and that was not good.
“You shouldn’t force yourself up,” Siron muttered, le
aning against the wall, munching on a green apple. “I am rather surprised that you are even alive, let alone moving.”
“Do not concern yourself, on my behalf,” I groaned, wiping sweat off my forehead. “Your concern should be focused on what lurks in those woods.”
“I know, I know that,” he shrugged, taking a larger bite into the apple, a look of distress on his face. “I was just concerned for your safety—there is no need for you to be so hostile and defensive.”
“I will take my rest now, so please show me to an empty quarter,” I said, blinking, my eyes staring at the dusty floor.
“Sure, take that room over there,” he replied, turning his head around, pointing at a blue door, with a rusty, golden knob. “I fear our stay here will be brief, so please take a short nap and be prepared for war.”
“Your advise is duly noted, Siron,” I bowed, limping towards the room. “I shall see you in a few hours.”
I turned my head down, reaching for the doorknob with my right hand, and twisting the knob back. The door squeaked open, a gust of cold wind brushing past me. The small room was rather dark, a bit of dust on the concrete floor, and in front of me, there stood a small, wooden bed, a small table, and a stool. And on the table, there was a strange metal cloak with several running gears—the table was facing a windowless frames, a cloth glued on the frames to stop the snow from coming in. I placed my weapons by the side of the bed, falling on top of the dirty covers, and closing my eyes. Lying on this dirty bed, smelling the molten vinegar on the covers, eased most of my pain and fatigue. And before I knew it, I had dozed off, forgetting all of my troubles of the day.
8
“Hey, wake up,” a voice rattled, my whole body being shook roughly. “The time to depart is upon us.”
“What time is it?” I whined, my eyes still closed, and my hands pressed against my chest. “Has the monsters returned?”
“It is five o’clock in the morning—the light of dawn will be soon upon us,” the voice said, and instead of shaking me up, I was hit in the head by something heavy.
“Ow,” I yelped, opening my eyes, sitting halfway up, looking at my attacker. “Why did you do that?”
“Because you wouldn’t wake up, Rave,” Salyanna responded, her eyes locked on mine, holding the hilt of her gun towards me. “We have been struggling to wake you up for the last hour. Perhaps, your wounds were deeper and fatal than you might have imagined.”
“Are you all ready to move out?” I asked, picking up my weapons, yawning. “Are you all rested enough?”
“I fear rest is the one thing we cannot afford to have,” she sighed, brushing her red hair back, the muzzle of her gun facing the floor. “We will not rest until we have taken the madman’s head.”
“Your words might have power and determination, but this task will not be easy to accomplish, I assure you,” I added, looking at her in the eyes, as I was back on my feet. “I will aid you with all of my strength, but I fear that a few of you might not make it. In fact, it is a possibility that none of us will make it out of the horrible place alive, so I will ask you one more time. Are you prepared for war, for the terrors to come?”
“Remember, Rave, you brought this war upon us; however, I always knew that this day would come, and I am prepared to give up my life for our freedom.”
“And have you recruited many more men to aid us in the conquest?”
“No, I fear that the men we have are all our town can spare at the moment. The rest of the men are in hiding, protecting their family and friends, and they will not risk their life to venture into the madman’s haven.”
“I see,” I responded, flexing my hands, testing the limits of my physical power. “I suppose, it is a reasonable reaction for such a dangerous situation.”
“I saw a light,” Siron cried, rushing in through the door, panting heavily. “I think, I know where the base is.”
“Show us, Siron,” Salyanna screamed, pacing towards him, as her gun rocked in her hand. “Are you sure of this?”
“Yes, come on,” Siron nodded, his hands pointing outside, “hurry up, Salyanna.”
Leaving behind my rifle, I stomped behind them, turning left through the long corridor, and heading up the stairs. The second floor offered no comfort in terms of warmth; the walls had many cracks on them, letting in air and a few flakes of snow, several rubbles of tiles eroding on the floor, and there were blood stains on the left side of the walls. The stains looked thick and fresh, about a day or so old. The chimeras must have moved the corpses of the victims, I thought. Siron stopped by the side of the cannon, looking at us, his hand pointing towards something outside. Salyanna and I moved in closer, following the angle of his hand, peering through the spherical opening in the wall. About ten miles, in the west position, below a mountain, we saw a tiny glimpse of light. Siron, reaching into his grey coat, handed me a pair of magnifying binoculars, a faint smile on his face. I peered through the binoculars, adjusting the strange lenses around, focusing on the area around the light. I noticed a solid concrete structure, the stumps of cut trees, and a few mutant chimeras lurking about. That was his base, I was certain.
“Take a look,” I whispered, handing Salyanna the binoculars, “Siron is right.”
“Yeah, that is the madman’s base,” she replied, exhaling slowly, the binoculars glued on her eyes. “I say, we strike immediately.”
“But we don’t have the manpower to make such a bold tactic,” Siron cried, gripping his gun anxiously. “Do you even have a plan at all?”
“What do you suggest we do, Siron? What is your plan of action, if you even have any? The best defense, in battle, is a good offense. If we don’t seize this opportunity now, they will surely never be another opportunity like this.”
“Well said, Salyanna, well said,” I nodded, patting her back, with a smile on my face. “The only way to end this madness is to take the fight to them.”
Turning around, moistening my chap lips, I spotted a black rifle, wedged behind one of the cannons. It was a different type of gun, far more modern than the one I was using, with an extended magazine slot, and a broader muzzle. The muzzle was pinned against the side of the cannon, with the butt of the rifle sticking out, within my arm’s range. Bending down, placing both hands against its grip, I began to pull back the rifle, attempting to force out the gun with sheer brute force. I coughed deeply, my hands numb and cold, and the feelings in my toes gone. I angled my leg, pressing it against the side of the cannon, planning to use my weight to push off the cannon slightly.
“What are you doing?” Salyanna asked, both of her arms on her waist, gliding towards me.
“I am trying to pull out this rifle, of course,” I snarled, putting all of my strength into my legs. “I want this gun.”
At last, the gun broke free, the force within my own body felling me to the filthy floor. I stood up, shaking my head, and reached for the gun, taking a closer look at the weapon. It was slightly heavy, the grip of the rifle rough and broad, and had numerous scratch marks all over the barrel. I exhaled, cocking the gun back, and pointing it at the wall, my hand pressed slightly on the trigger. This will serve me well, I thought.
“I think we should leave now,” Salyanna whispered, her back against the wall, her gun holstered above her chest, as she tracked something outside. “The mutant beasts are on the move again.”
“Show me,” I said, moving towards her, shifting around one of the mounted cannons, “How many are there?”
“About a dozen or so,” she replied, pointing her index through the spherical hole. “They appeared two hours ago, and they have done nothing but watch us from the shadows.”
“The first thing you need is a distraction,” I added, placing my right hand on the cannon’s breach, my eyes locked on the box of shells beneath it. “One of you will have to stay as bait, operating these cannons, whilst the rest of us advance towards the madman’s stronghold.”
“But that will be suicide, Rave, the person who stays will most
likely be ripped apart,” Siron exclaimed, shifting nervously around, both of his hands holding his rifle. “But then again, running through that forest will be also suicide.”
“If we stay here, we will all be killed,” Salyanna screamed at him, with a look of anger on her face. “The chimeras will eventually find a way to get inside, like they did with the first group of guards, and they will slaughter us all, so we cannot afford to stay here.”
“I trust, you have made your decision?” I interrupted, taking a few steps to the stairs leading downstairs. “I really don’t care if you come with me or not, or whether you all survive this mission or not—the oath I made with the mayor was to kill the madman and destroy his chimera army. So your lives mean nothing to me, if I can be honest.”
“You truly are a monster, as the rumors said,” Siron hissed, blinking, a look of anger on his face. “You might not care about your life, but I care for my life; I have family and friends, and I want to go back to them when all of this is over.”
“Like I said, the only reason why I am aiding your rebellion is for a ship,” I snarled, my head facing the staircase below, and the gun in my left hand. “I truly don’t care less what happens to everyone, when this is over.”
“Why you conniving…..bastard” Siron roared, trudging towards me, with his right, gloved hand clenched into a fist. “You caused all of this, and this is all that you have to say to us?”
“Enough, already,” Salyanna boomed, standing in his path, both of her hands extended outwards, in an attempt to stop him from advancing. “You have made your motives clear to us, Rave, and to be honest with you, I respect you for it. At least, we now know where you stand in all of this.”
“I will leave it to the four of you to decide who will accompany me to the base, and who will stay behind as a distraction.”
“Where are you going, if I may ask?” Salyanna asked.
“Don’t worry, I am going out to thin the herd a little—in other words, I will be outside killing more mutant chimeras. I really want to see how this gun handles against larger foes.”
I descended down the flight of stairs, listening to them bicker in a low tone, the wooden tread squeaking whenever I pressed my feet against it. Jutcer passed by me, nodding at me without ushering a word, ascending up to the second floor. I turned left, plodding through the gloomy corridor, glancing at the objects around me. Most of the lamps, mounted on the both sides of the walls, were not functioning at all. I could hear the echoing wind from the cracks in the structures, and the temperature inside had dropped significantly from what it had been a few hours ago. By the door, they had placed a metal bed frame against it, an empty gun shelf beneath it, and a few blocks of granite rocks in the back, to stop anyone from entering in without permission. Halting, I glanced down, bending my knees, as I picked up two magazines clips. I anchored the gun sideways, releasing the currents magazine from its slot, and jamming one of the full ones inside. I cocked the gun back, releasing the safety mechanism, a smile on my face. My wounds had finally healed, the pain in my leg gone, and for some unknown reason, I felt so refreshed and clearheaded. Although, on several occasions, I pondered on where the bullets inside my body went, or what would happened if my head was cut off—the answers to these questions eluded me, but I never let it bother me. I mean, why complain when you are immortal, right?
“Where are you going, lad?” the last man, an older gentleman in his 50s, with a thick grey mustache, wearing a pair of focal goggles above his head, asked me. “I have barricaded this whole forte, and if you want to leave, please let me know first.”
“What is that noise?” I asked, ignoring his annoying rant. “Is that coming from your arm?”
“Why yes, lad, it certainly is,” he smiled, pulling back his arm with pride. “I lost my real arm ages ago and had to replace it with a mechanical one.”
For a simple town, this is rather amazing, I thought. The whole arm was made from a copper like metal, with gears and bolts lodged into it. Tiny wires circulated through the arm, a large oil filtering device placed behind the elbow. The wrist and fingers were made from several fragments of a thick plastic coating, a glowing bulb on the index finger, and whenever he moved the arm around, clear steam shot through a shoulder pore. It was amazing. I mean, it wasn’t as great and advanced as Cyborg City technology, on earth, nonetheless, it was fascinating. And the thing that I truly liked about this arm was the secret gun, anchored next to his shoulder, with two magazine slots next to his scapula.
“Impressive, right?” he boasted, raising the hand in the air, a load of hot steam blowing out of the arm. “With this hand, I killed six mutant chimeras, and carried a four hundred pounds singlehandedly.”
“It is impressive, and I hope you put that arm to good use, sir, when the chimeras attack us again,” I added, placing my gun on my back, inhaling slowly.
“Oh, I intend to—I can assure of that,” he roared, proceeding to laugh in an egomaniacal manner. “With this arm, I am invincible. Hahahahahah!”
What a obnoxious jerk, I thought. He is so full of himself—I hope a mutant chimera whacks him.
I heard a howling sound, the noise rather close, and then a vicious bang against the main door. The door was slammed again, dust rising into the air, and the triple hinges rattled inwards. The monster, on the other side of the door, roared menacingly as it poured all of its strengths into smashing down the wooden door.
“Stand back,” I warned the man, raising my gun in the air, holding my breath.
A chunk of the door was knocked loose and it hit the metal bed frame; the wind flew in through the hole in the door, and suddenly, a pair of bright orange eyes presented themselves to me. I angled forward, pressing my right foot against the frame, the gun steady in my hands. Firing twice, the bullets maimed the beast in the face, making it writhe in pain. It snarled softly, some of it blood splashing on the door, as it fell against the entry in a loud thump.
“What is going on?” Salyanna cried, rushing through the corridor, her rifle raised above her stomach. “Have they attacked us?”
“I am afraid so,” the elder man, with the steam arm, sniffed, dropping his head down. “It was my fault; I didn’t secure the door enough.”
“This is no one’s fault, I can assure you,” Salyanna smirked, patting the man on the shoulder. “It was bound to happen sooner or later, and at any rate, we must make preparations to leave immediately.”
“Cleiver, we have decided that it would be for the best if you stayed here, and guarded this outpost,” Siron said, moving past Salyanna. “You are the strongest of us all, and you are invulnerable, right?”
“Well, it the shoe fits,” the man joked, his steam arm raised straight into the air, before laughing like a raging lunatic. “Despite hearing those words of praise, despite knowing them to be true for myself, I cannot help but feel you have another agenda and motive, and I want to know what it is.”
“One of us must stay here and man the cannons, creating a breakthrough for the rest of us, as we blitz forward towards the madman’s lair.” Siron responded, his hands on his waist, trudging towards the main door. “But for it happen, as I have explained, we will need a strong man, a man with an unbreakable will, to stay here and operate the cannons, whilst guarding the remaining outpost from the mutant chimeras. So will you do it, old friend?”
“Your words have convinced me so,” the elder man, known as Cleiver by his comrades, nodded with a big grin on his face. “My stomach churned, when you explained to me your reason, Siron. I know that this is a suicide mission and I will probably die, isn’t that right, Salyanna?”
“You can refuse, if you don’t want to,” she replied, shifting her weight around, avoid his solid gaze. “In my heart, I know you are the only one who can do it, and the only one with a high chance to survive against the chimera horde.”
“Is that so?” Cleiver said, turning his head around, facing the opposite end of the corridor, his steam arm clenched into a fist. ?
??If any of you survive, tell my wife and children that I am sorry.”
“No, you will survive and tell them yourself—promise me that, Cleiver,” Salyanna said, pleading with him, her right hand reaching out to him. “You cannot, and you won’t die, okay?”
“Don’t waste your time lying to him,” I interrupted, in a stoic manner, playing with my fingers. “If he stays here, while we make a break for it, he will surely be killed, and I believe that lying to him would be immoral.”
“Shut up, Rave,” Jutcer screamed, both of his fist clenched, breathing heavily down his nose. “From the moment you arrived on this planet, from the moment you came into our lives, you have been nothing but a pain in the rear. Do you feel any remorse and empathy for the horrors you have unleashed?”
“Mind your tongue, Jutcer,” I hissed, popping my wrist in a threatening manner. “Otherwise, I will cut it off and shove it down your throat. If you recall correctly, your people shot at me first, causing me to wreck into this stupid, stinking planet you call a home.”
“Why are we even listening to you? Why are you even accompanying us, if you don’t even care about us?” Siron added, folding his arms, looking at me with a face of disgust.
“Fine, I will go alone,” I muttered, walking forward to the door, and bending down to one knee. “Whether you all come with me or not, it doesn’t really matter to me. Like I said, as long as I get what I want, your lives don’t really matter to me.”
“Enough, all of you,” Salyanna yelled, causing me to turn my head around. “I know that you are all frustrated and angry, I understand that. But if we fight amongst ourselves like this, we will be slaughtered by the mutant chimeras, and the quest will fail. Please, Rave, just this once, will you stay and help us retake this region from the madman?”
“Only if you don’t get in my way,” I replied, twisted my body around, to face them again. “I mean it this time—I will not tolerate any comments, and insults from any of you.”
Just as I finished my last sentence, something slammed against the door, causing the hinges to come loose. It snarled quietly, shaking the ground whenever it took a step. Flabbergasted, we looked at each other, rifles firmly gripped, before turning to the door, taking a few steps back. Long claws, belonging to the massive beast, appeared through the hole in the door, and started to pry it apart. I took it upon myself to make the first move, firing at the creature with every bullet in the magazine. Everyone else joined in after, and together, we managed to push back the creature, maiming it beyond any reasonable doubt.
“We have to go now,” I yelled, pushing away the bed frame, and kicking the shelf next to it down. “Time is the one thing we don’t have.”
“Good luck, Cleiver,” Siron said, taking the elder man’s hand—his other real arm—and giving it a solid shake. “I will see you on the other side, brother.”
“Travel well, Siron,” he replied, turning around and giving Jutcer a manly, light hug. “Take care of Salyanna and the others, Jutcer.”
“I will,” Jutcer nodded, avoiding his gaze.
“And you, Salyanna, take……” Cleiver turned around to hug her.
“Enough with this crap,” I spat, interrupting him, holding the half open door with my right hand. “I am going ahead, and if you want to come with me, I suggest you make come, right now.”
“Sheesh! Okay, Rave, just calm down,” Siron shrugged, pacing towards me, as he anchored his rifle in front of him.
Opening the door wide, we all exited the outpost, except for Cleiver, jumping over two dead mutants, as Cleiver rigged some mines and explosives against the door, before sealing it shut again. Strong winds whirled to the south, the snow still falling to the ground as before. It was so bad that our feet sunk into the snow, knee deep, whenever we walked through it. It was still so dark, the moon was still shining brightly above, and the cold winds blowing hard against us. Some of the trees, to the east of the position, had been felled to the ground and lay against the sides of the hill, like they had been placed there by some unknown assailant. I heard twigs snapping, branches torn from trees, and the sound of unfamiliar footsteps crunching against the thick snow. Obviously, we were being watched.
“Now, Cleiver,” Salynanna shouted, holding a portable radio transmitter in her hand. “Fire all cannons.”
“Roger,” he replied her, with a tone of fear and regret. “I bid you all farewell, and may we meet again, when this is all over.”
The first cannon, on the left wall, fired first, falling three trees, below the hill, to the ground. The second and third cannon were fired as well, which caused the lurking mutant chimeras to scurry away in every direction. We opened fire, shooting down all of the chimeras within range, making our way down the snowy slope. Jutcer lost his balance and spun down a few yards, hitting against a tree with his back. He screamed in pain, his voice drawing a few mutant chimeras, who had been following us from the distance. Salyanna and Siron hastened their pace, guns blazing hot, trying to get to the injured Jutcer, before the monsters got to him. I swung my gun around, shooting down three mutant chimeras, in the head, which were prowling on the unsuspecting Salyanna and Siron. Abruptly, at the second, the cannon shell hit the tree, a few meters from Jutcer, causing it to tilt in a dangerous way to the left side. And this was the same location where Jutcer was lying. The cannon shell had destroyed the tree’s thick bark, which in turn caused a massive amount of piled up snow to fall to the ground. What is that Cleiver doing? I thought.
“Jutcer,” Salyanna cried, plodding through the snow with great difficulty. “Get up, right now, and run for it. That tree is falling towards you.”
Disoriented, he looked up, his gun lying next to him, and struggled to stand up. His teeth were red with blood, his lower lip busted, and a small cut above his head. I would be surprised if he could actually stand up and make a run for it, considering his wounds and current state of mind. And if I wanted to, I could have saved him from this predicament, but I didn’t feel the urge to do anything, except to watch him out of curiosity.
“I won’t let you die,” Salyanna screamed, her red hair swerving wildly, and her fingernails turning into claws.
She leapt into the air with ease, dropping her gun into the snow, making a quick dash for Jutcer. Just as the tree began to plunge down, she landed beneath it, grabbing him with one hand, and making an unnatural death defying leap for the other side. Squinting my eyes, I blinked, questioning myself on whether what I saw really happened, or it was a some sort of snow mirage. Chimeras were strong and fast, I knew, but that was when they were fully transformed into the beast forms. And she had also mentioned that the madman had done something to them, to stop them from transforming—a response I was beginning to doubt very much. How many lies had they told me? For all I knew, this could be a trap, a ruse to get me to follow them into the madman’s hands. Crap!
“I can kill all of them, at any time I want,” I whispered to myself, loading a new magazine into the rifle, exhaling slightly. “After all, they have no idea of who I am, and what my true abilities are.”
“Come on, Rave, come help us,” Siron yelled, waving at me, leaning next to Salyanna and Jutcer.
Looking left and right, I made a slow descent, hopping over the fallen tree, while listening to the sound of cannon fire. The cloaked chimeras rushed past us, making no effort at all to hide from us, headed for some other refuge. Several more trees were felled to the ground by a single cannon shell, a result, most likely, caused by having too much snow piled on them.
“Can he move?” I asked, bending down to my left knee, the muzzle of my gun facing the ground. “We cannot stay here, it is not safe for any of us at all. Cleiver has no idea where we are, and if he stops firing, the beasts will return to attack us.”
“I know,” Salyanna added, swallowing a lump down her throat, her lips dry and cracked. “We can rest here, give him more time to recover, I suppose.”
“Enough with this crap,” I answered back, angry, standing bac
k up to feet. “You all know we can’t do that, and I will not stop you if that is what you truly desire. And if you do decide to stay here, I will leave you and continue on my own.”
“That’s not what I meant,” she argued, standing up, making hand gestures at me. “I know what is at stake—I was just throwing out an idea, just in case everyone agrees with me.”
“Go, Rave, if you want,” Jutcer intervened, a mean look on his bloody face. “Why are you even here with us, in the first place? You only care for yourself, your ship, and your stupid mission.”
“Please, boys, stop fighting,” Salyanna said, standing between us, her index finger pressed against the trigger of her rifle. “This is not the time for any of us to be fighting amongst ourselves.”
“Everyone, shut up for a second,” Siron roared, looking down to focus, “I think I heard screams, like someone was in trouble.”
“From where?” Salyanna asked, her gun following every direction her head turned. “Is it from the outpost? Is it Cleiver?”
“No, that’s the weird part,” he replied, blinking. “It is actually coming from the direction we are headed—about two miles from here.”