The Lion's Hunt: Part 4

Click Here for Part III or Click Here to Start From the Beginning.

PART IV

Commander Vyuum made two quick hand gestures, and the five Kurin soldiers moved as one from the silent order. Each of them aimed their firearms in the direction of the erratic breathing, ready to silence any Surion soldier they found. What they discovered, though, was not an enemy combatant. Sat in a pool of their own oil like blood and propped up against one of the support struts was a single Kurin soldier struggling to breathe and just barely keeping a small, trembling, projectile weapon pointed in the direction of Etom’s approaching team. The large body of a dead Surion, wearing the ornate brown and gold garb their troops were known for, was sprawled across the injured Kurin soldier, crushing their legs, pinning them to the floor.

The injured soldier's eyes darted back and forth behind their helmet. Their vision blurred as the figures approached. Bleeding and bloodied, the soldier had to accept that it would be impossible to survive another Surion encounter under the current circumstances. Hands shaking, the injured Kurin turned their blood-covered weapon on themselves and readied to take their own life but hesitated and peered into the black one last time. At second glance, the silhouettes that approached were off. They were too long, too tall, too narrow. But still potentially a threat. If the injured Kurin warrior hadn't paused, they wouldn't have seen Etom’s team step into view. More importantly, they would have taken their own life and scrapped their role in this mission for nothing.

Tensions eased as Commander Vyuum’s team took up defensive positions around their injured comrade. It took two soldiers to pull the dead Surion body off their bleeding ally, leaving a trail of muck behind them. Etom’ knelt beside the wounded soldier and squeezed half a canister of honey water into one of the ports on their armour. The skin of the living layer absorbed the fluid and quickly found its colour before shuddering to life, but the soldier inside made no effort to move. Etom' would’ve had to find another way to conceal a deep look of concern if not for the faceplate. The injured soldier tried to speak, but blood gathering in their mouth behind their own faceplate took away their words.

Even with the lack of insignia and rank medals, Etom’ recognised Commander Heiyan’Khul by the length of their twin tails, the lower half of which lay soaked in a pool of mixed purple blood. Commander Khul's breathing was laboured, and the amount of blood leaking from some unknown wound were both indications that their injuries might prove fatal. Moving them might make their injuries worse, but Commander Vyuum was unwilling to leave any soldier behind, even one that seemed this potentially close to death.

There wasn’t really a decision to make. Commander Khul could not stay here, so reluctantly, and with much effort from ageing muscles, Etom' hoisted the injured Kurin commander to their feet, in the process drawing Heiyan’ off a six-inch spike that lanced outwards from the support strut they had been leaning against. Etom’ handed Commander Khul off to Corporal Lawal as blood spurted from the wound. With the foreign object now cleared, the living layer of the armour was quickly able to seal the breach as Olin’ struggled to keep the injured commander upright. The armour would do what it could in terms of protection but could do nothing for any internal damage Commander Khul might have sustained.

Seeing the blood dripping from Heiyan’s long dark tails, Etom’ immediately regretted the decision to move them, but the thought of a captured Kurin was repulsive. Etom’ had to get them out. All they had to do was figure out how to do that, but the reality of the situation was that Commander Khul would likely not survive the trip back to the surface. The journey was almost half a day long, and Heiyan’ had almost certainly suffered internal injuries. No one on Etom’s team had the tools to stop those kinds of injuries, but the need to be concerned for the wellbeing of Commander Heiyan’Khul was abruptly taken away.

The first shot tore through Commander Heiyan’Khul, not splitting them but tearing them apart from the waist up and spraying blood and entrails in every direction. Their armour could do nothing in the face of such power. Corporal Lawal, who had been the now deceased Commander’s crutch, was covered in gore and long strands of hair. The Corporal froze in place as what was left of Heiyan’s body fell apart in the their arms. Scarcely a foot away and also covered in Heiyan’Khul’s entrails, Commander Vyuum reflexively ducked and evaded the next shot, taken over in part by shock and partly by training. Another blast from the same direction singed the air and cratered the floor where the Commander had stood barely a moment before. Etom’ pounced in Olin’s direction, crashing into the stunned soldier and knocking them from their stupor. Then all hell broke loose.

Descending from the roof of the cavern was another platform from one of the other elevator shafts, but the area was still so dark. The Kurin could only see the enemy on the platform when those on it fired their weapons, causing flashes of light to briefly wash over the large figures. The Kurin force, all except Olin’Lawal, who was now frantically darting for cover, returned fire, but the platform’s slowing rate of decline kept the advantage with their Surion adversaries. Rekla' and Etom' instinctively moved to take cover behind the nearest support strut. By the time they had sufficient protection, two of their squadmates had fallen. Etom' cursed their losses but now wasn’t the time to lament.

Olin’ ducked behind a metal trolley that sat on a set of tracks then tucked into the smallest shape possible. The soldier’s choppy otherworldly shrieks were drowned out by the torrent of laser blasts that repeatedly thrummed against the cart, vibrating through the old metal, keeping the soldier coiled.

The platform continued its slowing downward journey. As it did, it made the angle to pick off the sizable Surion force more favourable, but there were so many of the bulky warriors. Kurin weapons would lose their charge before they managed to take out all their enemies, but it wouldn't come to that as the platform the Surions rode became consumed by fire.

Deep guttural cries of pain could be heard through the blaze as a single line of exhaust smoke trailed off into the darkness. In the pointed direction, barely visible at the range, was yet another platform dropping into the cavern. Commander Vyuum’s elation at the arrival of the Heavy-Arms Team was matched only by the despair of their actions. While they celebrated from their platform as fire flickered across the way, Etom’, always having to think several paces ahead but grateful their lives had been spared, cursed at the likely outcome of the situation. Another rocket launched into the inferno caused the platform to peel and fall from its rigging, confirming the Commander’s concerns. The thunderous crash of metal sent smoke and debris swarming across the cavern, causing those on the cave floor to have to steady themselves against the sudden rush of wind. The dust settled as the Kurin soldiers on the platform whooped and cheered louder than they had before, but Etom’s heart sank. They had no idea what they had just accomplished.

Minutes past and the two companies met and exchanged hugs, hive fives, and spirited jokes that put them at ease amid the glow of the fiery blaze. With nothing to burn, the fire was quick to extinguish itself. Corporal Lawal wasn’t a part of the teams' reunion. Instead, Lieutenant Kyuul found the Corporal across the way just coming to their senses. The soldier's armour was covered in grime as they cowered behind the trolley as what passed for Kurin adrenaline wore off. Olin’Lawal looked up at the Lieutenant as they approached and was sure their face was fixed in judgement and disgust, hidden behind their armour’s faceplate.

Replaying the last few minutes, Olin’ was amazed to still be alive. Commander Vyuum had been swift, agile, and decisive, and had even managed to save the Corporal’s life, but what had Olin’ done when tasked with protecting the injured Commander Khul? Frozen and let them die. And then, without sparing a thought for their teammates, Olin' had ran and hid as members of their squad died too. The Corporal hadn’t even thought to fight back. If this story was told, only shame would follow. Every Kurin soldier knew Commander Vyuum was a war hero. To have acted so pitifully in front of them, Olin’ would struggle to meet the gaze of the soldiers among them, especially the Commander. There would also likely be more punishments meted out to the Corporal later as well, but they’d have to find another way to discipline the young soldier as being referred to as a Shaved Tail by their peers when senior staff weren’t in earshot wasn’t making much of a difference. Olin’s tail had already been cut short for failures before this mission. To perform so poorly again was a gut check. Another shaving wouldn’t be punishment enough, but whatever that punishment was going to be, to have it served by Commander Vyuum would hurt the most.

There wasn’t a soldier in the Kurin ranks that didn’t revere Commander Etom’Vyuum, but any chance of Corporal Lawal emulating the Commander seemed to have passed. Commander Vyuum was a war hero. Olin’Lawal was barely functional as a soldier. It couldn’t be left like this, with the other soldiers looking at the Corporal with such contempt. Olin’ was desperate to make amends, but what feat could be performed that could put a soldier back in the good graces of their comrades? Olin’ wasn’t sure but hoped a chance at redemption wouldn’t wait too long to emerge.

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