towards the Pipe’s entrance. Suddenly there was a barrage of shots,
with rounds exploding near him. Somehow, they had seen his motion there in the
shadows and were firing at him.
He pressed the button, the last valiant act of his long
life. His head and chest errupted from explosive round impacts, just as massive
explosions rippled along the rock walls, blowing tens of thousands of tons of
rock through and over the suddenly faster rushing horde.
The few men in position to see what happened saw the
incredibly fast reaction of many of the creatures as they leaped into the air,
pushing off the sides of the walls and individual boulders to gain height. It
didn’t work for most of those in the vanguard, as the crushing rocks buried
them. It was impossible to see what happened to those around the bend of the
curve, but the explosions must have caught many of them the same way.
Only three Krall escaped the explosion and wall collapse in
the front. From screams of rage well behind them, they knew other warriors
survived farther back. Strung out to fit through the narrow canyon, some had
been clear of the blast, but many clearly were injured and angry that a prey
animal had tricked them, after fleeing from them for so long.
The three warriors entered a berserker’s rage at the loss of
so many clan mates, particularly from the insult inflicted by a weak cowardly
enemy.
The three, as one, virtually screeched rage as they ran
towards the next bend, emerging from the choking dust. When they rounded the next
curve, they could see a hand of humans running, as if in slow motion to the
Krall’s senses, passing between rows of the parked wheeled human transports.
Like robots linked by the same software, all drew both of their pistols and
pulled the triggers repeatedly.
There was only a single shot heard, because they had used
the last of their ammunition firing en masse at Saul, in an excessive barrage.
That one final round was armor piercing, and passed through the upper left
shoulder of one of the engineers running away. He went down, but the rest continued
running, as they looked over their shoulders to see the three gape jawed
terrors gaining rapidly on them.
It would only be four or five leaps and the three warriors
would have their hated prey. They passed the first of the transports when one
of the humans, apparently resigning itself to death slowed and faced them. One warrior
drew a short sword, to carve pieces from this human, to eat as it and the other
humans watched.
It was that delightful thought he still had in his mind, as
he suddenly departed the Great Path, the route to improving the Krall’s breed
of warriors. These three killers lost all status points for this day’s killings,
when the human that had slowed pressed the button of a second detonator.
He watched the explosives buried in the roadway shred even the tough tissues of
the three Krall.
Grodol learned of the disaster of the pursuit of the humans
from an octet leader that had lost five of her warriors in the blast at the
canyon. There remained only sixty-eight effectives, and two hands of warriors
that might live, but were unable to pursue the enemy due to multiple lost
limbs, or crushing injuries. Many were pinned under slabs of rock even several
warriors could not move.
This particular octet leader, clearly angry with her
commander, had communicated her report on an open channel that every warrior could
hear. Grodol knew that this level of insubordination foretold more than a
disgrace and loss of breeding points for him. His particular gene line would
end. An honorable option was to turn berserker and fight humans until killed. However,
he had no clear successor.
The leader of a hand of octets, ordered to follow Grodol back
to the ship, eliminated this difficult decision. He did that by erasing the
stain from Graka clan. He shot Grodol in the back of the head. There was a
consensus of octet leaders that this was the most efficient way to resolve
with rounds exploding near him. Somehow, they had seen his motion there in the
shadows and were firing at him.
He pressed the button, the last valiant act of his long
life. His head and chest errupted from explosive round impacts, just as massive
explosions rippled along the rock walls, blowing tens of thousands of tons of
rock through and over the suddenly faster rushing horde.
The few men in position to see what happened saw the
incredibly fast reaction of many of the creatures as they leaped into the air,
pushing off the sides of the walls and individual boulders to gain height. It
didn’t work for most of those in the vanguard, as the crushing rocks buried
them. It was impossible to see what happened to those around the bend of the
curve, but the explosions must have caught many of them the same way.
Only three Krall escaped the explosion and wall collapse in
the front. From screams of rage well behind them, they knew other warriors
survived farther back. Strung out to fit through the narrow canyon, some had
been clear of the blast, but many clearly were injured and angry that a prey
animal had tricked them, after fleeing from them for so long.
The three warriors entered a berserker’s rage at the loss of
so many clan mates, particularly from the insult inflicted by a weak cowardly
enemy.
The three, as one, virtually screeched rage as they ran
towards the next bend, emerging from the choking dust. When they rounded the next
curve, they could see a hand of humans running, as if in slow motion to the
Krall’s senses, passing between rows of the parked wheeled human transports.
Like robots linked by the same software, all drew both of their pistols and
pulled the triggers repeatedly.
There was only a single shot heard, because they had used
the last of their ammunition firing en masse at Saul, in an excessive barrage.
That one final round was armor piercing, and passed through the upper left
shoulder of one of the engineers running away. He went down, but the rest continued
running, as they looked over their shoulders to see the three gape jawed
terrors gaining rapidly on them.
It would only be four or five leaps and the three warriors
would have their hated prey. They passed the first of the transports when one
of the humans, apparently resigning itself to death slowed and faced them. One warrior
drew a short sword, to carve pieces from this human, to eat as it and the other
humans watched.
It was that delightful thought he still had in his mind, as
he suddenly departed the Great Path, the route to improving the Krall’s breed
of warriors. These three killers lost all status points for this day’s killings,
when the human that had slowed pressed the button of a second detonator.
He watched the explosives buried in the roadway shred even the tough tissues of
the three Krall.
Grodol learned of the disaster of the pursuit of the humans
from an octet leader that had lost five of her warriors in the blast at the
canyon. There remained only sixty-eight effectives, and two hands of warriors
that might live, but were unable to pursue the enemy due to multiple lost
limbs, or crushing injuries. Many were pinned under slabs of rock even several
warriors could not move.
This particular octet leader, clearly angry with her
commander, had communicated her report on an open channel that every warrior could
hear. Grodol knew that this level of insubordination foretold more than a
disgrace and loss of breeding points for him. His particular gene line would
end. An honorable option was to turn berserker and fight humans until killed. However,
he had no clear successor.
The leader of a hand of octets, ordered to follow Grodol back
to the ship, eliminated this difficult decision. He did that by erasing the
stain from Graka clan. He shot Grodol in the back of the head. There was a
consensus of octet leaders that this was the most efficient way to resolve
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