The Real Enemy [Klance]

Chapter 7

           

Keith stood absolutely still for a moment trying to process what he should do next. Shiro surely remembered being rescued right? Well, the shock and every other trauma he may have experienced while escaping might have altered his memory a bit, but he had to have remembered something.

He had disappeared for over a month and most of the Blade believed that he had died escaping once Ulaz left him to get out on his own. Ulaz had been very adamant about it the entire time, claiming that Shiro was stronger than the others and would help them. That Shiro was calculating and strong and always found a way to defeat all of the Druid beasts Haggar sent after him, and live to tell the tale. It was a skill many of the Blade members lacked. The Beasts were cunning and overpowered.

But Takashi Shirogane always found a way to win.

That was all Ulaz had needed to believe that Takashi would be their savior.

Ulaz's daughter had been on guard duty that morning along with five other Blades. They had been patrolling the temporary base that had been set up on the outskirts of a forgotten solar system that housed a few heavily forested planets.

Keith was only five.

Kolivan and Thace had been called out to investigate the area and see if it was even worth setting up a permanent base that would hopefully be able to house some members of the Blade who needed to hack into Galran databases without being disturbed. It was a tedious business and they needed a more stable environment to work in that wasn't in the ships or in galactic areas that screwed with the signals.

Keith had been begging them for weeks to take him on a mission with them. He had been expecting something with action and adventure. Neither Kolivan nor Thace wanted to take him anywhere, but due to his constant prodding he managed to worm his way into this mission.

He had been exploring the base on his own at the time; the others scouted the planet's immediate surroundings. He had made it into the canteen and was trying to convince the heavily armed 'lunch lady' to make him a snack when he heard the first sounds of gunfire. It cracked through the air and resonated in his bones.

The lady quickly scooped Keith up into her arms and pulled him behind the counter where she deposited him and told him to stay put.

Keith had thought to himself, "It's probably just practice shots." But was quickly told otherwise by the piercing screams of a nearby Blade. Keith's heart pounded loudly and he peeked his head over the counter to try to see what was going on. There was only a small doorway that he could see out of, but it was more than enough for him catch a glimpse of the situation.

There was screaming now coming from all directions as Blade members poured out of the buildings to the front of the camp. Swords and guns were drawn equally and all were being used with deadly precision.

Or at least, what should have been deadly precision.

The monster that everyone was fighting was at least thirty feet tall and glowing purple. It was shaped like a spider; with multiple legs and a few sets of glowing eyes. And on its back was what looked like a larger version of the Blade's blaster guns.

Every shot that the soldiers shot and every slice the soldiers made had hardly any effect. They bounced off harmlessly and sometimes ricocheted back at them, causing entire offensive lines to drop to the ground. The spider simply stomped around, crushing Blades beneath its feet as if they were bugs to be squashed.

The Blade was losing and the spider hadn't even used the enormous gun fused into its back. All Keith could do was watch as all of his friends- family­- died in the wake of this massive creature.