His Gold Assassin

Part 2

 "I am here to rescue you," I said aloud to the nearest of the creatures in the cells. There were maybe thirty or forty of them total but in each cage there were only five or six.

"You?" One of them asked as he stepped forward. I had no idea of knowing if this particular Hermeef was the captain of the ship that had stolen Aurum wares but it did not matter to me. Their punishments would be equal.

"Yes. But I seek a reward if I am to do so. I know your species and the valuable information and items you keep on hand for bartering." The Hermeefs in the cage in front of me looked at one another before seeming to decide something. Hermeefs could talk with the position of their eye stalks so whatever they were saying was beyond even my computer's translating system.

"We have some valuables with us that those insulate creatures took from us after kidnapping us. We will make a rescue worth your while." I looked at the slug in front of me from behind my shielded helmet while holding no trust in the promise of pay. I knew that they would attempt and fail to slay me as soon as they were free, just as they had done to two of the guards that had been protecting the stolen items.

"Where are these valuables? If I am to trust you, then you must trust me enough with the answer." Another lie. I knew they would not trust me yet I hoped that one of them would be stupid enough to answer the question.

"I did not see where the thieves put our stuff," the Hermeef standing in the front said, spitting mucus as he talked. The green, slimy substance coated the bars of the cage and slowly slid downwards. Despite not wanting to get any closer to these creatures than I already was, I knew that the generals and queen would prefer a more hands-on and gruesome approach when dealing with these traitors.

"They took it to the floor above us to lock it away." I couldn't see a change in the Hermeef's face in front of me, but I could hear a whimper behind him from the slug that spoke up with the location of the items.

"Thank you for this information." I touched a few buttons on the arm of my suit which caused a red light to appear in the upper corner of my vision as my helmet began to record everything in front of me. I pulled out a small handheld proton projector and began to cut through the lock of the cell. Once the lock was completely lasered through and useless, I put away the device and grabbed two of my hand knives from my thighs. I nudged open the cage door with my foot and stepped into the cage. The Hermeefs focused their eyes on the knives now in my hands.

"Thank you," the Hermeef in front of me smiled a toothless grin that dripped slimy green goo. Even with this creature's slug like face, I could discern that he was uneasy.

"It's my pleasure," I lied. "The queen of Aurum sends her regards." With the quickness and planned movements I had mastered over the years, I moved throughout the cage and began slicing through the five Hermeef's throats, allowing none to escape my wrath. I grabbed the last Hermeef, the one who had done all of the talking, and pulled his head back by his eye stalks so my camera would catch the gore and my words that followed in the next seconds. "No one steals from Aurum, and especially not from its Queen." With that, I sliced through the Hermeef's throat, making sure to cut far enough that would allow for a sure yet slow death. I was putting on a show, a disturbing one, but one that the generals and the queen would enjoy nonetheless.

I stepped forward and wiped my knives off on the edge of my boots before replacing them in their holsters. The other Hermeefs in the other cages had begun to make quite a bit of ruckus so for the sake of not exposing myself, I pulled out two blasters. I walked past each cage while aiming and shooting each Hermeef in the head. Even with them pressing themselves into the back of the cages and wiggling around, my training allowed me to end them all with a single shot each. Once the last Hermeef fell to the ground with a burning hole in his head like the others, I ended my recording.