Starsnatcher - Trapped In An Alien World [COMPLETE]

Chapter 6.8

Now, our chances were better than ever before. Ay had himself, that blonde woman, and that alien. I had Kira and myself. When we first met, I didn't have my stone yet and Layla was still on his side.

We wouldn't get a better chance than that.

Kira and I walked all the way back from where we came with her memory as our guide.

Unfortunately, we ran into an immediate problem. When we entered a former living cabin, we encountered forming blobs of Cherub. It learned how to deal with its energy problem.

Kira shot down the blobs with her blaster.

I contacted Crick. "Captain, you might need to eliminate more of the solar panels."

After a delay, Crick answered. "Are you still dealing with pandemic-affected enemies? Should I blow the station up and send you escape pods?"

"Not yet! We have to rescue an alien with precognitive abilities, Ay can't be allowed to lay his hands on it!"

Another delay. "I might be able to destroy more panels. However, judging from my observations, your enemy has rich reserves of energy stored in the station. It is highly unlikely that it will run out of fuel before you do."

"What's taking so long?" Kira asked.

While I was busy talking, she shot blast after blast at the reforming blobs. All four walls around us showed signs of melting. Cherub knew we were here and sent as many blobs as possible in our direction.

"Find a weak spot so that we can tear through!" I said.

"That's what I'm trying!"

All of a sudden, a bomb impacted next to us. It tore apart the blobs near the left wall and fried its tissue through dangerous radiation.

"C'mon!" said a robotic voice. It came from a red-and-purple hovering spider-drone. "I know it's me you really want, isn't it?"

All remaining blobs moved in its direction. Good to see that Layla was at least willing to help against Cherub, even if not against Ay.

Kira and I took the opportunity to run into the room that was now free. It turned out to be the machine room. Still the same cabinet-sized nanofactories as before, still the same piles of debris.

On closer inspection, it might have been a new room. The previous room contained nothing but decay and death, nothing but debris, rust-streaked factories, and the occasional pipe that fell off.

This one, however, housed an object that proved to be an exception to the rule. It was an enormous sepia pillar that extended into the air like a satellite mast. Style-wise, it reminded me of the Seizers' monoliths with its smooth surface and imposing aura. Was it a Primogenitor computer? If humans had boxes and Seizers had monoliths, maybe those guys had pillars?

Two familiar faces stepped out from behind the pillar. Ay and that accomplice of his. Their Primogenitor preferred to stay behind the pillar.

I couldn't help but notice a new terminal Ay held in his hand that he didn't have before. Was this the Cipher? Did we already come too late?

Kira had a finger on her blaster.

"Give back Precog," I said. "Now!"

"Precog?" the blonde woman asked. "You really need to stop giving nicknames."

"I am disappointed by your banter," Ay said, "but at least you seem to have grown stronger by now."

"Yeah, and I'll kick your ass in a fight if you've got the balls."