Of Claws and Scales

2

Thane clenched his jaw, his face stone. He waited with his fingers clenched into tight fist, but he moved not. He stared through the glass of his spacecraft at the dark, retched plant of the Issyn. Iedreon-71 was located the outer rings o f the Arid Galaxy, one hundred and fifty eons from his home planet Cheon-47. He had traveled over a dozen light years to exact his vengeance upon the species who had kidnapped more than a quarter of his kinfolk, females-mothers, daughters and friends.

Iedreon was a desolate planet with no sun or not moons to give it light. The creatures of the planet thrived in its darkness, skittering. Home only to the Issyn, no plants or other creatures thrived only the dominant spider-like species and the captured females who harbored their young. Bile rose in the back of his throat. He took a deep breath to settle his nerves. His reptilian tongue flicked as was his habit.

With a small flick of his wrist, he signaled to his squadron. More than fifty vessels, commanding officers and warriors under his command stood poised ready for war. Thane began his descent into the desolate planet that made his skin crawl. Once past the atmospheric barrier, he signaled one again and flicked off the thrusters of the craft to quietly glide down to the surface.

Once settled, he quickly exited the craft. It was time. He would leave not one of the Issyn alive. Thane shifted into his natural skin. Fingers into claws. Scaled skin into a hardened armor. His second eyelid slid over to reveal his final shift into the night vision of his reptilian slits. He flicked his tongue and led the way.

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Zora shivered in the dark of her confinement. Prostrate on the hard ground with her arms tucked underneath her body and her legs curled to the side. She blinked in the darkness though she could see nothing as slight tears slid down her cheeks. Her heart yearned to be home, where she had not a care in the world. Where she could squash the threatening arachnids under her boot. Where there were no obscenely large spiders trying to figure out how a human could bare their future generation.

A shiver wracked her body again. She couldn't stop shaking. Whether it was from the cold or her fear, Zora couldn't decide. Her body stopped a moment when a dark cloud of despair filled her heart. She shifted her body on the ground when the pain from the bruises on her hips became too much. For the past week, she had suffered an unfathomable amount of prodding and tests. The Issyn would check her and examine her and try to figure how to impregnate her only to hiss in anger at the frailty of her body.

Zora uttered a low whimper as she shifted again. She was so cold, her teeth chattered. Her imprisonment was quiet. She leaned her head on the side of the examine table only to feel another chill rack her body. Maybe she would become sick and then be done with it all.

A skittering of claws echoed against the stone walls. Zora made herself as quiet and still as possible, even though she knew how feeble it was-the Issyn being the greater predator. More skittering rumbled through the walls followed by hissing and a roar so deafening she froze in terror. She feared the worst. She feared the Issyn, but now hearing the way the spider-like creatures cried out and ran through the compound Zora now feared the unknown.

Zora wrapped her thin arms around her knees and bit her lip to keep from crying. The noises were getting louder and she grew more frightened by the instant. Tears leaked from her wide eyes, she trembled as she heard the hisses and pounding of heavy bodies unlike the clicking, skittered gait of the Issyn. Zora could hear several creatures running past her hole of imprisonment. She held her breath for an instant hoping she would be unseen. As the horde of pounding legs grew quieter she let her breath out. She straightened her legs and crawled to peek around, naturally trying to see if she was safe and alone. Not seeing or hearing anything, Zora stood up stretching her arms.

The heavy pounding of the unknown creatures came rushing back. Zora panicked and ducked back down trying to stay hidden. Unlike before where the creatures just ran past her hole of confinement. She could hear hissing and growls as one of the creatures ducked and crawled down into her dark space. The scratching of claws against hard stone.

Zora froze, arms tucked in as she tried to make herself as small and quiet as possible. She concluded the darkness made everything worse. All of her senses were heightened in terror and her heart beat rapidly in her chest. Around the corner of the table, just a few feet from her side, she caught the hiss of the creature as it flicked out its tongue, testing, searching. She could do nothing but turn her head in the direction of the creature. Her eyes wide but seeing nothing. Zora's chest heaved though she tried to stay as quiet as possible. The rapid beating of her heart making it impossible for her to take quiet, shallow breaths.

The creature rounded on her and its tongue flicked near her face. She could feel the movement of air just inches from her nose. Zora panicked and screamed, trying to crawl away. The creature grabbed her leg pinning her down with sharp claws that poked dangerously against her tender flesh. Zora trembled. She was finally going to die being eaten by some rabid creature of the night. The creature crawled over her, flicking its tongue out sensing her. She froze as it flicked in the narrow hollow of her neck.

This is it, she told herself bracing herself for what she knew was to come.

Instead, two arms wrapped around her body and carried her up and out of the dark hole. The creature ran, heavy feet pounding on the hard stone. Claws scratching. Zora closed her eyes. The sudden movement made her stomach churn and she moaned. The creature tightened its embrace on her and flicked it tongue again in the hollow of her neck. Zora's shoulders quivered as the foreign feeling.

The creature ran out of the compound and Zora could hear hissing and screeches of agony as the enemy of the Issyn slaughtered every last one of them. She turned her head trying to tune out the chilling noise and let the warmth of the creature's body seep into her cold frame. The creature continued to run and Zora didn't fight it. She knew that she was of the weaker species and just hoped that her luck would turn out to be a little better than the last.