The team moved fast.
Skylar's heart rate kicked up. His suit's biomonitors displayed the spike. Adrenaline flooding his system.
He pressed his back against a crumbling wall. Rifle aimed toward the eastern approach.
"What species?" Lyra asked. Her voice steady despite the situation.
[Negative ID] Veyra's voice came back tight. [Not in the database. They're... they're not part of the Eclipse Syndicate.]
"What?" Captain Voss's voice dropped to a dangerous level. "Repeat that."
[These aren't familiar signatures, Captain. The biosigns are foreign, most likely a new species birthed after Oblivion Verge's desertification. They're large and fast. These are—]
SHRIEK!
The first scream tore through the air before she could finish.
It didn't sound human but something completely different.
It came from the north. High-pitched. Keening. Like metal scraping against metal.
Then more came from the east. The west. The south.
Surrounding them. Blocking out all escape routes.
"Veyra, visual!" Captain Voss demanded.
[Negative! They're moving through the buildings. Using the structures as cover. I can't get a clean—]
Suddenly, something moved.
Skylar saw it from the corner of his eye. It was two meters tall, moving very fast. Sticking low to the ground. Skittering between two half-buried structures. It looked like a centipede with multiple pincers for mandibles, and over ten legs.
"Contact east!" he called out.
His rifle spat energy bolts. Blue streaks cutting through the air. Striking sand and metal, missing the creature by inches. It dodged skilfully and before long, the thing was already gone.
"They're testing us," Ren growled. His cannon hummed. Charging plasma. "Figuring out our positions."
"Then let's not keep them waiting." Captain Voss's voice was ice-cold. "Veyra, illuminate the area. Full spectrum flares. Now."
[Deploying!]
Three objects launched from Veyra's position. They arced high. Then burst.
White light flooded the ruins. Harsh. Blinding. Every shadow banished.
And in that light, Skylar saw them.
Insectoids with ten scythe-like legs and segmented bodies covered in black chitin that reflected the flare light. Mandibles that clicked and snapped. Eyes, too many eyes that glowed amber.
Twenty of them, maybe more, were closing in from all sides.
"What the hell are those?" Lyra breathed.
[Unknown hostile lifeforms] Veyra's voice was clinical now. More professional. [Marking targets. Priority threats are the three largest specimens. Center mass. Aim for the joints between armor plates.]
"You heard her!" Captain Voss raised his rifle. "Light them up!"
The Hollow Expanse erupted in fire.
Energy bolts. Plasma bursts. The roar of Ren's cannon shaking the ground. The creatures screamed back. That same metallic keening. They charged.
Despite their size, they were fast. Too fast even.
The first one reached Ren's position in seconds. It leaped with a shriek. Mandibles spread wide.
Ren's cannon caught it mid-jump. The blast carved through its thorax. Chitin and ichor sprayed. The creature's body hit the sand in two pieces.
But three more took its place.
Skylar fired controlled bursts, picking his targets. One creature's leg joint. Another's eye cluster. Precision shots.
His training took over. His mind went quiet. Just the rifle. The targets. The rhythm of combat.
A creature broke through on his flank. Getting too close.
He pivoted. Slammed his rifle stock into its face. Chitin cracked. It staggered.
Lyra's shot took its head off clean.
"Thanks!" Skylar called.
"Watch your six!" she shot back.
Another creature was closing fast.
He spun. Fired without aiming. Muscle memory kicked in.
The bolt caught the creature in its thorax. It stumbled, but kept coming.
He fired again. Again. The third shot punched through its armor. It collapsed dead.
"They're adapting!" Ren shouted. "Learning our firing patterns!"
He was right. The creatures no longer charged straight, head-on like deers in front of headlights. They weaved, using the jagged terrain as cover. Coordinated their attacks.
Smart. Terrifyingly smart.
[Captain, more signatures incoming!] Veyra's voice cracked with strain. [Another wave. Twenty-five. Maybe thirty. ETA two minutes!]
"Fall back to the building!" Captain Voss ordered. "Defensible position! Move!"
The team retreated. Fighting the whole way. Skylar's rifle overheated twice. The cooling system struggled to keep up.
They reached the intact building. The same one they'd been about to enter.
Ren went in first. Cannon sweeping the interior.
"Clear!"
They piled inside. Captain Voss was last. He planted a proximity mine at the entrance. Armed it.
"Barricade the other entrances," he ordered. "Ren, set up your cannon facing the door. Veyra—"
[Already in position, Captain] Her voice came from above. She'd found a perch on the building's second floor. [Sightlines established. I can cover the main approach.]
"Good." Captain Voss checked his ammo counter. "Skylar, Lyra, check for alternate exits. We might need to—"
BOOM!
The building shook.
Dust rained from the ceiling. The walls groaned.
"What was that?" Lyra asked.
BOOOOMMMM!
Another shake. Harder this time.
Something slammed into the building's exterior. Then again. And again.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
"They're trying to bring it down," Ren said. His voice flat. Matter-of-fact.
[Confirmed] Veyra reported. [They're ramming the support columns. The building won't hold for much longer.]
"How long?" Captain Voss demanded.
[Five minutes. Maybe less.]
Skylar's mouth went dry. They were trapped. Surrounded. And their shelter was about to become their tomb.
"Captain..." Lyra started.
"I know." Captain Voss's jaw set. "We need an extraction now. But we're a long way from home."
He activated his comms. Switched to the command frequency.
"Team-D to HQ. Request immediate evac. Coordinates uploaded. Multiple unknown hostiles. Team-B status still unknown. Repeat, request immediate—"
Static.
Just static.
"HQ, do you copy?"
Nothing.
"System's jammed," Skylar said. He checked his suit's systems. "All long-range comms are dead."
BOOM!
Another impact followed. The building shuddered. Cracks spider-webbed across the wall.
"Alright." Captain Voss's voice stayed calm. "New plan. We fight our way out. Head for higher ground. Get above the jamming range. Call for evac once we're clear."
"That's a lot of ground to cover," Ren pointed out. "A lot of creatures between us and there."
"You have a better idea?"
Ren was quiet.
"Didn't think so." Captain Voss checked his rifle. "Veyra, you lead from above. Find us the path with the least resistance. Ren, you're on point with that cannon. Skylar, Lyra, you're with me. We move fast. We move together. Clear?"
"Clear."
The building shook again. Harder this time. A chunk of ceiling fell. Crashed near Ren's feet.
"Time to go," Captain Voss said.
They moved to the entrance. Weapons ready. Veyra launched another flare. The ruins lit up again.
"On three," Captain Voss counted. "One... two..."
Something moved inside the building. Not in front, but behind them.
Skylar spun. His rifle came up.
A section of floor collapsed inward. Sand poured through. And from that hole, more creatures emerged. They'd been digging. Tunneling underneath.
"Contact rear!" he shouted.
The building erupted into chaos. Creatures poured in from below. From outside. Everywhere at once.
Ren's cannon roared. The confined space amplified the sound. Deafening.
Skylar fired. As he moved he fired again. His training was everything now. No thought. Just reaction.
A creature lunged. Lyra shot it. Another took its place. Skylar dropped it.
They were being overwhelmed. Too many of this desert creatures.
"Breach and clear!" Captain Voss ordered. "Punch through! North exit! Go!"
Ren's cannon carved a path through. The creatures scattered. Screaming as they died.
The team ran out into the open. Into the desert. Into more creatures waiting.
But at least they could move now. Maneuver. Use their speed.
Skylar's glider deployed. He activated it. Lifted off the ground, gaining altitude.
Below, Ren stood ground covering fire. Captain Voss and Lyra flanked him. Moving as they fired. A coordinated retreat.
[Higher ground is three hundred meters northwest] Veyra reported. [I'm marking the route. Stay on the path. There're minimal hostiles.]
Three hundred meters away. That was an eternity in combat. But it was their only chance.
They ran.
The creatures followed. Never giving up chase.
Skylar's rifle overheated again. He threw it away, switched to his Helix Blasters and kept firing.
Two hundred meters.
Ren suddenly went down. One of the creatures got too close and tackled him. Its weight enormous.
"Ren!" Lyra pivoted. Running back.
"Keep moving!" Ren roared. His hands found the creature's mandibles. Held them apart. Straining. "I got this!"
He circulated his Aether, activating his Level 13 Gene-Seed. His armor's power assist also kicked in, increasing his strength.
Servos whined. He twisted. The creature's mandibles snapped with almost equal power. The force tore through the suit's handguard, piercing his palm. But due to the adrenaline, he didn't feel anything or even noticed it.
The creature shrieked as its mandibles broke. Ren threw it off. Stood. Grabbed his cannon and disintegrated the muda4ker.
"Fucking Beast!" he spat, hatefully.
With a hundred meters left, the ground rose in front of them. Rocky outcroppings stood tall like natural fortifications.
[Almost there] Veyra urged. [Come on!]
They soon reached the high ground. Scrambled up and turned.
The creatures suddenly stopped their pursuit. All of them. Simultaneously.
They stood at the base of the rocks. Watching hesitantly for a while before disappearing into the darkness.
"Why did they stop?" Lyra panted. Her suit's life support working overtime.
"I don't know," Captain Voss admitted. "But I'm not complaining. Veyra, try the comms again. See if we're above the jamming."
[On it]
Silence ensued.
Everyone breathed hard as they checked their ammo and body for wounds.
Then Veyra's voice came back. Different this time. A little shaken even.
[Captain... you need to see this.]
"What is it?"