022 Nyl Saves Thee'
Just when I consigned myself to death, a great racket sounded to my right. My attackers turned to face the threat. Darts from an arc gun dug into their flesh. A figure emerged from the darkness with head down and shoulders plowing through their line. Arrows and darts bounced off her carapace like flies. With a swipe from her claws, four men collapsed under her feet.
God, let her make it.
An artillery shell punctured her chest armor and embedded in the soft flesh beneath. She faltered. She fell. I used the last of my star burst to clear the area of foes and crawled to my comrade. More shells collapsed around us.
When I reached Thee’, I surrounded us with the unstarlet to conceal our position from the sharpshooters in the surrounding buildings.
Thee’, are you still alive?
I checked for a pulse, but couldn't feel one through her thick exoskeleton.
“Yes, I'm not hurt too badly. It just stings so.”
As more projectiles showered down near us, she shielded me and grew armor to form an airtight shell around us. Small arms and artillery battered her shell in many places. Shudders reverberated through her as each hit splintered her armor further. Death neared Thee'. The unstarlet flickered out as did Thee's mind.
Theila, think to me?
No response.
God, this can't be her end. She has served you so well. Please, save us.
Life seeped out of her body along with her blood.
Theila, wake up!!!
“Ungh”
You are bleeding out, but I will not let that happen. I still have plenty left in me. Drink mine.
“If I do, you’ll become my drone.”
I don't care about that right now. I want you to live.
“But you will lose your will. I vowed to serve you. How can I enslave you?”
Thee', I order you to drink my blood. Time is scarce.
Her tongues flitted out of her mouth to sever my throat, but sliced my cheek instead. I lent my willpower to her body and together we succeeded in slicing my throat. Her tentacle-like tongues dug deeply into my blood vessels to extract the precious liquid. Agony greater than all the physical pain I had ever experienced in the total of my lives seized me. My fists clenched involuntarily around Thee's shoulders. With the withdrawal of blood, my head grew faint. Then searing venom replaced my blood. My twin hearts pumped furiously to spread the poison. The agony ceased.
I existed as an extension of Thee's will. Her tongues still intruded into my flesh, but now they saturated me with ecstasy and brought healing to her shattered body. I loved her with all of my hearts for what she did to me. As she extracted her tongues, contentment filled me.
Metal slammed into Theila, but with the blood I provided, her armor had healed. She rose and I clung to her back underneath her flightless wings. She charged through the streets on her dozens of small legs. Everyone fled before us. To her foes, she was terror incarnate, but to me, my valiant conqueror and dearer than a sister.
A row of canons checked our progress. Missiles pierced her armor with ease and filled her organs with shrapnel. She collapsed. I slid out from under her wings and threw my starlet vainly at the guns ahead. Sufficient time had passed for it to replenish itself, but as Thee's life dimmed, so did my starlet. I dragged her backward as I crawled. My shattered feet offered no aid in the task.
Please, spare me even if you take Theila. I cannot lose Crystal! I prayed to God and simultaneously called for Denrick's aid.
The life of my starlet and Theila were extinguished at the same instant as a shell crushed her head. My screams rent the darkness.
God, why I have begun to serve you and now, you steal my friend. Is my Crystal next?
All content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Please credit Nyla Woethief or Riley Duffield as the author when you share.