body forward as fast as he could, hoping to be quick enough to avoid the beast’s grasp. It’d been disturbed by the energy bar incident, but now it was seriously aggravated thanks to the sound of Rolan’s gunshot. The energy bolt from his weapon climbed high up into the sky and lit the way for the path Flynn followed. In retrospect, he figured he would’ve thought about how Rolan planned to save him while he ran, since there was no chance Flynn could outrun the creature, but the only thing on his mind was getting away from the apex predator.
His heart raced faster upon hearing the furious galloping of the beast closing in behind him, growling to dishearten its prey. For a moment, he got onto a short stretch of hard-packed clay and was able to pick up a little speed, widening the gap for a brief time, but it didn’t last. He needed to buy more time. He spun around and held his weapon out, ready to fire. It didn’t seem like anything would’ve been able to stop the creature’s wild descent upon him, but he pulled the trigger anyway like his life depended on it and, sure enough, something gave.
A flurry of energy bolts spewed from the weapon, striking the animal in several places; enough to stun it briefly, but it shook off the hits within seconds and continued its charge, now enraged by the pain Flynn had inflicted upon it. He nervously pulled the trigger again, but nothing happened; he must’ve been out of ammo, or energy, or whatever it was the Subterraneans used to power their weapons, and he didn’t know how to reload.
“Rolan!” Was all he could shout, still holding the weapon out like it would magically save him before certain doom claimed his life.
A Clever Trap
Contrary to all expectations, the beast stopped meters away from Flynn and circled him slowly, measuring its prey before striking. He supposed the hukka wanted to be certain there were no more tricks in store before it pounced on him, as if that were some twisted form of optimism to go along with the few seconds more he had to live.
All he could hear in the desert night was the low rumbling of the injured and aggravated creature before him, hideously carried on by a low undertone of cautious steps. It held its body in a suspended spring, waiting to unleash itself on Flynn while saliva poured out in strings from its wickedly grinning maw.
It was the end, he thought, but just as Flynn resigned himself to his death, he heard a faint shouting in the distance and a deep grumbling. Suddenly, a thunderous roar fragmented the scene and put the frightened beast on the defensive; Rolan had burst in out of nowhere with one of the recon vehicles, revving the engines repeatedly.
“Get in!” He waved his hands violently at Flynn, who took about two seconds to oblige, darting inside the cab of the buggy and holding on tight as the accelerator powered on. “Hold on!”
Sand and rocks flew as the vehicle fought for traction, finally getting its way with the desert surface and launching forward. Amazingly, the beast hadn’t given up, instead giving chase to Rolan and Flynn as they made their escape. Flynn, still disoriented by the near-death experience, couldn’t believe Rolan’s maniacal laughter flooding out of the driver window as he taunted their pursuer.
“Ahahahaha! Come on! Over here! Hahahaha!” Although it was wounded, the hukka’s speed was no laughing matter; it threatened to latch on at any moment and tip the vehicle over in its fury.
Overseer Vale’s Rumination
Overseer Vale wasn’t sure about sending the human with Rolan. Honestly, she was hoping the alien would just die out there in the desert and Rolan would return alone with the ‘bad news’, but she feared the opposite might happen.
What if Rolan died trying to save the human? How horrible that would be!
She didn’t know what she would do without Rolan. She really liked him, a lot. Sometimes he was rash and annoying, but he was also easy on the eyes and a
His heart raced faster upon hearing the furious galloping of the beast closing in behind him, growling to dishearten its prey. For a moment, he got onto a short stretch of hard-packed clay and was able to pick up a little speed, widening the gap for a brief time, but it didn’t last. He needed to buy more time. He spun around and held his weapon out, ready to fire. It didn’t seem like anything would’ve been able to stop the creature’s wild descent upon him, but he pulled the trigger anyway like his life depended on it and, sure enough, something gave.
A flurry of energy bolts spewed from the weapon, striking the animal in several places; enough to stun it briefly, but it shook off the hits within seconds and continued its charge, now enraged by the pain Flynn had inflicted upon it. He nervously pulled the trigger again, but nothing happened; he must’ve been out of ammo, or energy, or whatever it was the Subterraneans used to power their weapons, and he didn’t know how to reload.
“Rolan!” Was all he could shout, still holding the weapon out like it would magically save him before certain doom claimed his life.
A Clever Trap
Contrary to all expectations, the beast stopped meters away from Flynn and circled him slowly, measuring its prey before striking. He supposed the hukka wanted to be certain there were no more tricks in store before it pounced on him, as if that were some twisted form of optimism to go along with the few seconds more he had to live.
All he could hear in the desert night was the low rumbling of the injured and aggravated creature before him, hideously carried on by a low undertone of cautious steps. It held its body in a suspended spring, waiting to unleash itself on Flynn while saliva poured out in strings from its wickedly grinning maw.
It was the end, he thought, but just as Flynn resigned himself to his death, he heard a faint shouting in the distance and a deep grumbling. Suddenly, a thunderous roar fragmented the scene and put the frightened beast on the defensive; Rolan had burst in out of nowhere with one of the recon vehicles, revving the engines repeatedly.
“Get in!” He waved his hands violently at Flynn, who took about two seconds to oblige, darting inside the cab of the buggy and holding on tight as the accelerator powered on. “Hold on!”
Sand and rocks flew as the vehicle fought for traction, finally getting its way with the desert surface and launching forward. Amazingly, the beast hadn’t given up, instead giving chase to Rolan and Flynn as they made their escape. Flynn, still disoriented by the near-death experience, couldn’t believe Rolan’s maniacal laughter flooding out of the driver window as he taunted their pursuer.
“Ahahahaha! Come on! Over here! Hahahaha!” Although it was wounded, the hukka’s speed was no laughing matter; it threatened to latch on at any moment and tip the vehicle over in its fury.
Overseer Vale’s Rumination
Overseer Vale wasn’t sure about sending the human with Rolan. Honestly, she was hoping the alien would just die out there in the desert and Rolan would return alone with the ‘bad news’, but she feared the opposite might happen.
What if Rolan died trying to save the human? How horrible that would be!
She didn’t know what she would do without Rolan. She really liked him, a lot. Sometimes he was rash and annoying, but he was also easy on the eyes and a
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