Page 16 of Beast Unburdened

“Secure him,” I said instead, and with a look of relief, the two started complying. “Watch the damn ready room and shoot Frek if he makes an appearance.” Then I bent down and slung Kitan over my shoulder, the male was badly hurt, dying. Maybe if I got him to the Doc in time he’d be able to save him. A male could hope.

I followed my nose as much as I could but I had to backtrack twice, my scales twitching at the loss of time. Securing the ship was important and it wasn’t done, with Frek barricaded in the ready room I knew he could still do us some damage. Saving Kitan’s life if at all possible was just as important though.

My jaw firmed in determination and tendrils of fire blew from my nostrils. I could do this! I would save us all. I wasn’t going to lose another male.

*

Abigail

Luka made a good show of having me lie down on the cot and slowly scanning each portion of my body. Lying through his teeth he claimed I had internal bleeding and bruising and set about ‘fixing’ me up. The comments had made Uru laugh so I guess it was believable.

The next thirty minutes were filled with fake healing procedures, mostly with the handheld scanner thankfully, and research and re-synthesizing things at the panel next to the bed. Luka took a blood sample twice to supposedly confirm a theory. I was starting to worry he had to actually give me a shot again like that first night when the door suddenly slid open.

My heart soared in elation, yes! That was the cavalry, they had secured the bridge! Then I realized it was Geramor and he was by himself. The blue-furred male glared at us all, his eyes firmly settling on Uru who’d straightened and was reaching for the pain controller.

Geramor’s mouth stretched open freakishly wide, showing off rows upon rows of terrifying shark-like teeth. Uru squealed in fear but the switch was hit and I saw the attacking gladiator twitch in pain. Saw Uru’s look of victory.

I rose, searching for the nearest weapon but Luka beat me to the punch. The doctor was on Uru with such quick stealth I barely saw him move at all. Then he jabbed a hypodermic needle into the Krektar’s neck and with a hiss, the male collapsed. Immediately he grabbed the controller and turned off Geramor’s collar.

Luka didn’t know of Ziame’s distrust of this male, didn’t know that I didn’t trust this either. Why was Geramor here and not Ziame? I couldn’t imagine he’d send anyone in his stead, except maybe Sunder, but likely they’d think we were safe in here and wouldn’t come until the bridge was secure.

My suspicions were confirmed when Geramor rounded on Luka, his mouth closing down to normal proportions. “Take off my collar Doc, now!” he ordered and his foot snapped out so quick it blurred, spinning the pain controller Luka had been holding right out of his hand.

He was tugging the weapons off Uru’s belt the next moment and rounding on us, blaster raised. “Hurry the fuck up!” he snarled with menace. Luka stared at him for a moment, his black eyes wide open and then he slid a look at me as if asking me for permission. At my silent nod and rather helpless shrug he moved to a cabinet and pulled out some tools.

Germamor was pacing back and forth, casting an anxious look at the door behind him and then urging the doctor to hurry up rudely. My eyes darted to the pain controller he’d kicked away, it had landed in a corner and I started to very slowly drift that way, trying to make it look like I wasn’t really moving.

When Luka told Germamor to sit down in front of him so he could get at the collar the shaggy blue male lifted the blaster and pressed it right up against the doctor’s chest, “No funny business! Or I shoot your heart out.”

To my shock, the Doc’s mouth lifted into a smirk and then he shifted his body, “Then you need to aim a little more to the right, yeah like that. My heart’s on the right side.” I nearly stifled a hysterical laugh at the angry, slightly baffled look the shaggy blue-haired gladiator gave Luka.

Then my foot was on the controller and I hesitated, wait any longer and Luka would have the collar off and the controller would be useless. If I pressed that damn button now would it cause him to blast a hole in Luka’s chest? I couldn’t risk it, we couldn’t afford to be hurtling through space without a healer.

I think that the doctor was trying to move as slowly as possible when he opened up the collar, stalling for time. But eventually, the thing dropped from Geramor’s throat and the male was free. He immediately raised the blaster and cold-cocked Luka in the face so that the doctor collapsed on the floor with a strangled yelp. He didn’t get up.

“You are coming with me,” Geramor barked my way and he approached and grabbed me firmly by the arm, starting to haul me out the door. I dug in my feet, slipping and sliding across the floor on my heels, sadly, though beautiful they did not provide adequate traction. With another firm yank, I stumbled out of the medical room with Geramor.

Changing tracks I followed him, my heels clicking on the metal flooring, “Where are you taking me? We’re on a spaceship, there’s nowhere to run.” Unless there was actually something like a smaller ship docked or in a hangar bay or something? An escape pod? Didn’t ships have those in sci-fis?

The shaggy blue male didn’t deign to give me an answer, simply hurrying me along through several hallways, some lined with doors, some not. I was lost within seconds but sadly he seemed to know just where he was headed.

I tried again, “Seriously where are we going? Why are you taking me?” But the guy stonewalled me completely until we, at last, reached some kind of hangar bay where it looked like two smaller ships were indeed parked.

With a sinking feeling, I realized I was seriously about to be kidnapped a second time this week. If this asshole got me off this ship I knew I was done for, I doubted that Ziame would be able to find me then. I had to stop this somehow.

“Why would you even take me? Ziame, also known as the Beast, he’s going to murder your ass. You get that right?” I said, hoping to get some kind of response from him. He was still holding onto me tightly with one hand and working on a panel beside a door in the side of the shuttle. When it slid open I dug in my heels again, fighting to keep him from dragging me aboard.

It was no use though, Geramor was simply too strong and he didn’t care about harming me either. With an angry snarl, he picked me up and hurled me into the ship. I rolled over the floor, slid a good three feet, and then slammed hard into some metal paneling.

I saw stars, my head throbbing from the impact and my body aching all over. The sound of my pain finally loosened his tongue though; he laughed while he headed for the pilot’s seat at the front. One look at the door showed me it was closed.

“We are leaving, I am not sticking around with those uptight moral righteous freaks. If I do I’ll never get a decent meal.” He swung his head around, maw gaping disturbingly my way. As if it wasn’t clear he meant that I was a decent meal he actually stuck out a black tongue and licked his lips.

Then he faced front again and started his pre-flight check or whatever it was. Flicking buttons and lighting up panels, the engines vibrating to life. Damn it! Shit! Fuck! This was not going right. It was just my damn luck to instigate an uprising and then get taken by a flesh-eating monster.

“Of course, if you’re actually pregnant from that obnoxious idiot you’ll make me a fortune. Guess you’re in luck and I won’t eat you just yet,” he muttered in an aside. His attention was on the controls, I didn’t think he thought I was much of a threat. He was right of course, even though I was tall for a human woman, I was on the small side to this asshole. Ziame had only a little in height on Geramor, though he had far more bulk.

“Geez, what a relief,” I said, trying to keep him distracted while I searched for a weapon. “Get eaten now or sold into slavery later along with my child. Fun choices!” I pitched my voice bright and bubbly as if I was talking about flavors of ice cream and saw how Geramor looked over his shoulder at me in confusion. I guess sarcasm was lost on this guy.