SDIV Chapter 11 Pt2

Clari had waited her turn, circling the enraged Tauran’s head whilst her Master appeared in no danger. However, when Grishak rose to his full height, towering over Cornelius, she struck. Corrosive liquid arced out, impacting on the Tauran’s face and arms, and allowing Butt to strike again. Satisfied she moved away, looking for the opportunity she was sure to come.

Blood loss weakening him, Grishak knew he only had one chance. He swung his axe experimentally, trying to work out how to compensate for the unbalancing effect of Burton’s corpse, and at last he grunted, in some small part satisfied that he was ready. He shuffled back, positioning himself, and waited.

Cornelius ignored the ineffectual swinging of the beast’s axe. He was, by now, angry not only at this enemy but at the general injustice of the Universe. A little violence would cure him of his ire. With a cry he leapt forwards, ducking under the axe’s swing and slicing his knives forward.

Using the weight of the attached human, Grishak swung and in a half-fall, sliced the axe through the wooden supports to one side. With a groan, the already half-destroyed wall, collapsed entirely, burying Cornelius in a cascade of rubble.

Grishak grunted, the end of the lance still sticking out from his back, and slowly made his way over to the opposite wall. He pushed the end of the wood against the hard surface and placed both of his hands against the ex-Inspector’s rapidly cooling chest.

With a slow and inexorable pressure, digging his hooves into the floor, he pushed. His muscles bunched and strained as gradually the body moved; little by little the wooden shaft slid gratingly through him. Sweat streamed from his forehead, mixing with both his blood and that of the defunct Burton.

When there was enough of a gap, he reached for his axe, nearly falling as the change in the weight distribution dragged him down. He heaved himself back upright, roaring in rage as the wood inside him grated and tore. Taking hold of the axe’s head in both of his hands, he smashed it down repeatedly until the combined assault snapped the shaft. Free of the weight, he raised his arms to the sky and screamed, before he slowly and methodically moved towards the fallen Cornelius.


Flagship
Unknown Location

“This is fun,” commented Shan, as he watched the scene unfold, “I now see why my erstwhile Masters enjoyed the death and destruction so much.”

There was no reply and Shan sighed in mock resignation.

“Everyone is a critic,” he said, nodding to his men. There was a double crack, and the remaining players slid to the floor. Not dead, merely subdued, for the moment.

“Now,” said Shan, speaking aloud, “we really need to see what this machine is capable of. Time for a little escalation I think.”

Tapping various characters on the holo-screen, he ran through the available inventory, chuckling as he found one particular entry. With more determination, he moved the now active piece to the in-play board and zoomed local camera links in to watch more closely.

“Oh my, yes indeed,” he breathed excitedly, “this is about to become very interesting.”