I held Hazel’s hand and clutched her close.
We hustled down another tunnel and came to an abrupt stop.
To our left, the wall vibrated and throbbed, glowing white-hot.
“We must hurry!” a guard said.
He bolted forward to rush past the glowing wall.
The other guards blocked me from proceeding.
No sooner had the guard stepped into the tunnel than the wall exploded. The plasma struck him side-on and pinned him to the wall. His skin bubbled and exploded in a blaze of fire. Within moments, his atoms were vaporized.
The plasma drill ceased and moonlight swamped the tunnel. Soon, the Changeling soldiers would be flooding through it.
We needed to evacuate. There was no way to defend the Fallen Temple now.
I turned to my remaining guards.
“Head back to your chieftains!” I said. “Tell them to evacuate and meet us at the north entrance. I’ll meet you there.”
The guards refused. “It’s our sworn duty to protect the emperor. We cannot leave you undefended.”
“I’m surrounded by Titan warriors,” I said. “And your duty is to obey my orders. So, obey.”
They didn’t like it, but I was right. They saluted me and took off.
I squeezed Hazel’s hand and turned her around, taking her down another tunnel.
“Where are we going?” she said. “Are we leaving already?”
“There’s no way we can defend the base,” I said. “There are too many of them. And more will come.”
I turned down one tunnel after another, uncertain of which way to go. I only knew which direction we should head in.
Each time I came across a Titan soldier, I bellowed at them:
“Come with me! Evacuate through the north entrance!”
The Titans soldiers were well trained and, upon seeing who I was, obeyed immediately. They paused only to spread the order down each of the adjacent tunnels. Soon, I had a fighting force of three dozen, maybe more.
Damn the Changelings! Damn them all to hell!
When would we get a lucky break? When would we be allowed to find our footing and attack them in earnest?
When?
Soon. But first, we have to escape.
We entered the final stretch that would take us to the north exit. The warriors watched our rear.
Chitter.
Chitter. Chitter.
They were coming toward us. Soon, they would swarm.
I took Hazel and the fighters down another tunnel, and another, attempting to work our way around the approaching Changelings.
Each time, we ran into their ugly chitter of excitement. They were already beginning to swarm and block the exits. We needed to act fast if we wanted to get out of there alive.
I grabbed the Titan beside me. He was young—too young—with large brown eyes and a beard that hadn’t fully come in yet.
“We’re going to have to fight our way out of here,” I said. “Gather the others. We’re going to set up a perimeter here and at the end of this tunnel. Wait for them to head toward us. We’ll open fire first, then you cover their retreat. And give me that.”
He handed me his blaster pistol. I checked the fuel cell.
It was half empty.
It was good enough.
“What about me?” Hazel said. “I want a weapon.”
I looked at her and her protruding jaw. She was being serious.
My warrior empress.
I turned to another soldier and took his pistol from him. He still had his rifle.
I handed it to her.
“Do you know how to use it?” I said.
“Aim and pull the trigger I guess,” she said.
“Pretty much,” I said. “Stay behind me.”
A Titan could take some blaster fire, a human could not.
We waited at the tunnel entrance for the Changelings to show up. The seconds ticked by, then the minutes. I began to wonder if my instincts were wrong and the Changelings had gone down another tunnel.
I checked our position. It was entirely possible they could circle around and get the drop on us.
Maybe the sound I heard wasn’t the Changelings ugly chitter at all. I glanced up at the broken lamps hanging on their frayed line. They creaked and made a similar noise to the chitter the Changelings made.
Could I have gotten it mixed up with that?
Maybe.
And now we were sitting ducks with the exit just ahead. It was only a matter of time before Changelings from another tunnel fell upon us.
Should we hurry to the exit now?
Chitter.
Chitter. Chitter.
It wasn’t the creaking lamps. Easy to mistake but it was definitely them.
The noise they produced at the back of their throats was louder, clearer, and more distinct.
It was the sound they made when they were excited about something.
In this case, slaughtering thousands of innocent Titans.
Not if I have anything to say about it.
I eased back behind the wall and listened to their shuffling footsteps as they came down the tunnel.
I eyed the other soldiers, those behind me and ahead, waiting on the other side of the tunnel. I gently shook my head.
Not yet.
The moment the creatures got close enough, we would lower the boom.
They would have no cover in that narrow tunnel. The only place they could run to was back behind them, where the other teams would be waiting for them.
I peered down the tunnel. Dust drifted in a thick fog that made it difficult to make out anything. I took aim with my blaster pistol, about the average height of a Changeling, and waited for them to appear.
My muscles were so tense, they ached. Ready to fight.
Then it appeared.
Its eyes were small, dull, and black. They had no eyelids. The dust must itch something fierce.
I aimed but I did not fire.
Let them come.
A little further…
A little further…
Now.
I opened fire. The bolt of plasma sliced through the creature’s shell as if it wasn’t there.
The Titan soldiers on the other side of the tunnel opened fire too, blasting at the creatures they could see, and the creatures hidden by the shroud of dust.
I stood before Hazel, protecting her from enemy fire. And there was enemy fire, but it was haphazard and sporadic.
The Changelings disappeared inside the dust cloud. The Titan warriors wanted to take after them but I motioned them back with a hand.
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