Page 62 of Uprooted
It raises its longest limb and strikes the plexi with a bang. The porter holds and the alien tries again, attempting to stab through the barrier. Its sharp pointed leg bounces off the porter. It scrapes its claws against the glass with a piercing screech.
I finally find a grip on the harness, and I push the release button. I fall behind the seat and take a shuttering breath, finally out of sight of the Atorum. I peek around the seat and the creature senses my movement. It goes into a frenzy trying to break through. Each strike pushes the porter deeper and deeper into the ground.
A tiny fracture splinters across the surface above me. From that one break, a web of cracks radiate across the whole porter. Faint tinks and pings echo as the cracks spread. Reinvigorated with the sign of progress, the alien finally gets one jagged leg through the glass. The Atorum's leg is jammed in the hole it created, and it struggles to pull itself loose. Chest heaving, I squeeze my eyes shut, readying myself for what comes next. Time stands still while the creature works to get free.
The ground shakes with impact and a shudder runs over the porter.Boom. It happens again, this time closer. My teeth rattle with every impact. I can’t tell where it’s coming from or what it is. I squeeze my eyes shut trying to think of a plan. The next thing I know, the alien is ripped free from the porter, leaving behind its leg still embedded in the plexi, black ooze dripping down the disconnected leg onto the seat I had just been occupying.
I watch through the splintered glass and see the Atorum trapped in the Allometradon’s mouth. It violently tosses the creature aside. She swings her massive tail to hit the Atorum again. She misses and smashes into the porter, fully shattering the glass around me.
Without looking back, I climb over the shards of glass and run as fast as I can towards the base. I hear the two creatures fighting behind me. The sounds of their struggle stop when the Allometradon’s bellow echoes across the field. The same screech from before follows and I hear a heavy body hit the ground with the force of an earthquake. My steps falter for a fraction of a second before I can right myself and pick up speed.
I keep running, pumping my legs as fast as I possibly can. I just need to get to the base. The gate is in view. I’m so close. I’m almost there.
The menacing clicking from the Atorum is back and gets louder as it catches up to me. I don’t dare turn around to see how close it is. I keep my head forward and urge my legs to move faster. I scream for help as loud as possible as I charge forward, my lungs burning. The clicking is next to my ear and right when I brace myself for impact, a bright blue beam shoots over my shoulder. A shriek is cut short when the light hits it. Black ooze explodes all over my back and I drop to my knees drawing in air between sobs.
44
Aro
A rush of adrenaline collects in my body—first in my hands and feet, then it moves to my chest as Elowen is driven away. I sent her to the safest place I could think of in that moment.She’s okay. She’s safe. She is getting far from here. I repeat those words over and over, trying to reassure myself that I did the right thing. The veins in my arms throb as blood rushes through. I roar at the painful concentration of power gathering in me. The hard plates under my skin thicken and lock into place over my torso. I relinquish control to the predator inside of me. Every cell in my body is tuned to destroy. Somehow, I have a memory of this unfamiliar power.
The heat from the explosion warms my back and I turn towards the muradome to see Atorum smashing their way in. Others lie broken and oozing on the ground from the porters’ plasma cannons.
I step over a motionless black Atorum lying on its back, legs curled up into its body. I grab the largest leg and rip it off in one swift motion. I need something sharp. I check the weight of my new weapon and swing it around, loosening my shoulder muscles to ready myself for a fight. The leg whistles through the air as I slash it back and forth, ready to inflict some damage.
An Atorum drops down right in front of me. Its black scales ripple back and forth on its disgusting body. It quirks its head at me and its circular jaws creak, grinding together as the creature bares its teeth at me. It circles around me slowly, measuring me up.
I make the first move and barrel towards it. With a quick lunge, I slash with my improvised weapon. Black scum pours out from thewound as it makes one last lurch towards me. I knock it aside with another swing nearly slicing it in half. The Atorum shrieks and collapses into itself.
Another Atorum rolls towards me, spinning on its spiked legs. I take a swing and slam it into a tree. It recalibrates and comes at me again. Right before I make contact, it extends a leg and slashes my exposed side.
White hot pain radiates from my ribs. I push against the cut and my hand comes away bloody. The sight of my blood sends me into a rage. I jump into the air and come down hard on the Atorum’s back, smashing it into the ground with a roar. I repeatedly stab down on the creature until it’s no longer twitching.
I resume my mission to get to the dome. Plasma cannons boom all around, blasting the invaders apart with blue beams of hot light. The fire has spread to the forest canopy, lighting up the sky with an eerie orange glow. By the time I get to the cargo bay it’s engulfed in flames. There’s nothing there to save.
A porter slides to a stop right behind me. The door swings open and Maak has a deranged look on his face as I climb in next to him.
“Hop in—we’re killing bugs,” he says.
I take control of the plasma cannon as Maak spins us around. The thick blue arc clears everything in our path. Spindly legs and severed torsos fly out from the plasma cannon blast.
I watch, horrified, as three Atorum merge into one large body, and it triples in size. It approaches a smashed open porter where a Tilak soldier is trying to crawl his way out from under the wreckage. The canon is useless against the huge Atorum.
Maak turns the porter, giving me a direct line of attack. I open the door and step halfway out. I toss the alien leg above me and snatch it from the air. Holding it like a spear, I lean back and throw with all my strength. It impales the giant Atorum and pins it to the ground.
Maak speeds towards another trying to smash its way into a porter. We crash into both, pinning the disgusting bug between us and the other porter. Black ooze covers the plexi, nearly blocking our entire view.
“Dammit!” Maak says and activates the shield-cleaning blade. It spreads around the thick sludge, making it worse.
“Can you take care of that?” he asks.
“You made the mess. You clean it up.”
He unbuckles and jumps out of the porter while I continue working the cannon. He rips the sleeves off his shirt and gets to work cleaning the shield. All he manages to do is spread it around more. I pick off each Atorum as they step into my narrow line of sight, until none are left.
* * *
I step out and survey the damage. Smoke is still rising up from the destroyed muradome. A swarm of drones pour chemical dampeners on the growing fire. Broken trees hang at awkward angles. Puddles of black ooze splotch the landscape. I try to slow my ragged breathing, there is nothing left to kill, but I can’t seem to convince myself that the threat is gone.
