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  “They will have plans for all of us – one by one...I doubt we will see them again, Mack and Cora were chosen for that sick ritual and as for Jinx...He's terrified. If he doesn't co operate...”

  “He will!” Jody said, “He has to, they all will – Mack and Cora did, so will he. I know he's not ex army or had the kind of experience Mack has had of hostile situations but Mack will get him through it. None of us are going to die! We just have to keep remembering, whatever it takes to get us through this, we just have to do it and get through...And I need to get out of here. Mack gave me the gun, he gave me a plan and I need to start working on that plan!”

  Zeke got up, glanced to the guards who stood at a distance, confident the humans could not escape their prison, and he went over to the grille that separated the two cells and looked through the mesh.

  “Come here...”

  Jody let go of the grille, tore her gaze from the escape pod where the drapes were down as her thoughts stayed with Mack and the others as she joined Zeke.

  “I want to come with you. I think if we distract the guards there's a chance we can get out of this alive...” he glanced again to the guards, keeping his voice low, then carried on with his explanation: “If we can break free of the guards, there's the forest - a straight route back to the ship. But the forest is full of those creatures, they're not stupid, they're not as primitive as they seem - they knew how to take a ship apart and how to remove the escape pod for the queen to use as residence - how did they know to do that? Ask yourself!”

  Jody stared at him.

  “What do you mean? They ripped up a ship and turned it into a dwelling -”

  “But it takes knowledge to do that. Suddenly they all understand our language since Lazzarra tapped Mack's mind. These creatures are clever. I've learned a lot about studying the enemy in hostile situations because I'm in security... And I'm telling you, there's something about this alien race, I don't know what it is yet, but it makes no sense...they are too smart for savages!”

  “I disagree there, they just got lucky with taking the ship apart - and maybe that mind tapping thing is in their genetics. I just want to know how to get out of here. You said the forest was no good, so where, then?”

  “Underground,” Zeke told her, “To the back of the camp there's some rocky, arid land...where the dry lands bleed into the forest. I see a chance there – the rocky parts are cavernous, we could find a way in to the cave system and keep heading East, towards the old mines.”

  “Why?”

  His dark eyes lit up as he started to smile.

  “When the mining corporation pulled out they left the digger droids behind. If those droids are still in one piece we can travel back around the forest, reach the ship, call to earth and tell them to reactivate the satellite that controlled the droids...if they change the signal to a combat mode with instruction, those droids can tunnel under the settlement, up and out and destroy the tribe.”

  “What about Mack and the others?”

  “Mack's been in combat situations before. He'll handle it, and he can get Jinx and Cora out of there, too.”

  “But he won't know it's coming!” Jody exclaimed.

  “It's our only chance,” Zeke told her, “Are you with me, or not? Because I'm going for it...I'm not waiting around to be next on their list of who to abuse or torture.”

  She nodded.

  “I'm with you, Zeke.”

  He turned his head and looked to Tina and Jules.

  “Come with us. You have to try, You won't survive much longer in this place.”

  Tina stood up.

  “Okay,” she said quietly, “I'm with you.”

  Jules was already on his feet, and he looked to the locked door.

  “So what's the plan, distract the guards, make a run for the back of the camp? We'd have to take the long way around, behind the dwellings and then behind the escape pod area - that's heavily guarded!”

  “It's our only chance!” Zeke said sharply, “We might make it, we might not - I'd rather die trying than give up and wait to be their next victim!”

  “I'll call them,” said Jules, and he went over to the locked door, grabbed the bars and gave it a shake.

  “Hey! We want to see the queen! Bring us Lazzarra!”

  The two guards turned, their lips parting into a snarl, angered at the demand to see the queen, and as their double row of sharp teeth bared, Tina fixed her gaze on them, her face pale as she trembled, but found her voice.

  “We demand to see Lazzarra!” she said, “The queen must see us now! Now!”

  “Now!” added Jules.

  “Now!” yelled Zeke and Jody in unison, and the guards unlocked the doors, as one pulled Jody from her cell, the other had gone into the second, more crowded cell, as the occupants surrounded him and he reached for his blade.

  The guard who had an iron grip on Jody's arm looked over to see the commotion, and as his grip loosened she broke free, slammed him hard, sending the guard staggering to middle of the cell. As he turned, teeth bared and dark eyes glittering, the cell door slammed and locked behind him.

  Then she darted into the adjoining cell, catching the handle of the raised blade as the guard staggered, the other, imprisoned guard thrust the blade of his weapon through the bars, thrusting towards the humans.

  “Now!” Jody said, her arms still raised as she stayed behind their attacker, pinning the weapon in the air.

  Zeke gave him a shove, and he hit the wall, the blade of the other guard's weapon sliced through his body clean and out the side, as both guards continued to struggle, one to free his blade, the other jerking a dance of death as the blade that impaled him twisted and tugged.

  “Let's go!” Zeke said, grabbing Jody's hand.

  They ran from the cells and into the corridor, where up ahead, Zeke noticed two paths to choose – one led to the open hatch at the back of the vessel, the other... He started to smile.

  “Quick. We need to make a detour! See that symbol on the door? “

  As they ran towards it, her hopes of getting through this alive began to rise as she saw the weapons warning.

  “The armoury!” she said.

  “I'm hoping...Yes, I think I can...”

  As he spoke, Zeke was keying in a sequence on the numerical pad beside the door.

  “I thought the power was off?”

  “Power's in sleep mode... locks still open, I just used the universal code for urgent weapons release...”

  The door slid open.

  “Grab what you can!” Zeke announced as the others caught up and he tossed laser pistols to Jules and Tina. She turned the gun over in her hands, and he quickly took it back, powered it up and handed it back to her.

  “If they chase you, shoot them, if you see them and they see you, shoot them,” he told her, “Shoot anyone who gets in your way between here and the caves, okay?”

  Tina nodded, looking at him fearfully as she wondered if he was wrong about finding caves, and then she held the gun cautiously, her finger away from the trigger as the others prepared to leave and she followed, remembering Zeke's advice.

  They made their way back up the corridor, then out of the hatch and into the forest, where Zeke led the way, edging around the back of the dwelling huts, past men stirring foul smelling broth that turned up skulls with double rows of pointed teeth. Other skulls were mounted on posts, lining the border that divided this place from the rest of the forest. Jody looked up and tried not to picture her head on one of those poles if they failed. Then shouts came from across the camp as guards ran from the direction of the holding cells.

  Suddenly the camp erupted into uproar as the males scattered about the place, those who had not been on guard duty picked up weapons, and the place was a blur of running savages, heading for the woods, dashing about the settlement, all seeking out the escaped prisoners.

  “We have to run for it!” Zeke said, his gaze fixed on the rocky terrain that broke through the back of the settlement. The p
ath from the back of the final hut to the rocks was clear, and Jules led the way, clutching the pistol as he ran. Then a blade sliced down, his hand hit the ground still clutching the weapon as he fell to his knees screaming as blood spurted from the severed stump like a fountain of crimson.

  Zeke turned, saw the savages piling on to him, dragging him away as his screams echoed about the camp and the blood ran stark red on the ground, making a trail in the dirt. More of the guards were heading their way, the screams acting like a siren, homing in on the fugitives.

  Zeke reached the rocks first, then grabbed Jody's arm as she looked back.

  “Come on, we have to leave him!”

  He disappeared into the shelter of over hanging branches and shaded boulders, and as she followed, climbing higher for cover. Tina caught up, her face and clothing was marked with a liberal spray of blood that had hit her when Jules had been attacked. She fell to her knees, frantically scrambling for the rocks, then Jody held out her hand, as Tina reached for it, and she started to climb.

  As the sound of blade hitting bone cracked through the air, Tina's body trembled as her face drained of all colour and a glassy look of terror covered her gaze. She let out a strangled cry, gripping on tight as she looked into Jody's eyes. Jody looked down through the gap where branches and boulders gave a narrow view to the ground and saw her leg, severed at the knee, lying on the ground as two of the savages grabbed it, one paused to suck blood from the stump, and then they ran off with it as below, her attacker gave another tug.

  “Jody...” Tina whispered, and Jody knew it was too late.

  “I'm sorry!” she said, and pulled her hand from her grip as Tina was whipped sharply downwards, hitting the ground below as blood ran from the wound as she shivered and trembled and cried out as the alien savages paused to lick the warm blood that ran from her butchered limb, then they lifted her, and she was carried from sight.

  “You couldn't have saved her.”

  She looked up at Zeke, who had climbed a way ahead, as he beckoned to her she started to climb, glancing down more than once but seeing no sign of the savages – they had Jules and Tina, perhaps two lives had been enough to ensure their escape...

  “I let her go!” she said tearfully as she joined him where the rocks turned away from the settlement and a sharp sea breeze was in the air, “I let her go, Zeke!”

  “You had no choice,” he reminded her as she saw a look in his eyes that said he had gone into survival mode, “They cut her fucking leg off, what did you want to do, drag her up the mountainside, leaving a trail of blood for them to follow? They clearly have a taste for us - our blood, at least...we have to keep climbing. When we see a break in the mountain, we go in...if we follow seaward, follow the water...there has to be water...it will lead us to the coast. From there we can take the long way around, the mining site is close to the coast...”

  Now they were free of the tree tops and the settlement was far behind as Jody clung to rocks and watched her footing, following Zeke as he took the lead.

  “I thought they respected women...but they killed her!”

  “She disrespected the queen by breaking out. I guess that's instant death for anyone...”

  The look she had seen in Tina's eyes as she let go of her hand still haunted her.

  “I'm still the one who let her fall.”

  Zeke paused, they were now on a slope that led upwards, and just up ahead, a wide crack in the rock face yawned dark.

  “And there is our way in,” he told her, “Let's just concentrate on staying alive and maybe Mack and the others will stand a chance too, right?”

  She nodded, thinking now of Mack and Jinx and Cora, still trapped at the settlement. Then as Zeke made his way into the cave he paused, holding out his hand as Jody negotiated the rocky ground. She grabbed his hand and he helped her inside and together they made their way into darkness, losing all trace of light save for the shards of sun that fell in from cracks in the ancient stone as they placed their hands on the sharp rocky walls and made their way downward, where far below, the gap tightened but beyond it came the sound of the trickle of water.

  As the bodies of Jules and Tina were placed on the steps that led up to the colonist's ship, the savages roared in celebration as large containers were placed beneath them, their heads were raised by the hair, and their throats were slit. As the blood began to flow, Lazzarra turned her head, smiling widely as her dark eyes glittered, observing from the escape pod as the curtain had been pulled back allowing her to witness the spectacle.

  “We drink together,” she said, and Mack's stomach turned over as he shifted his hand closer to Cora's and he gently gave it a brief squeeze.

  “Jules and Tina didn't make it...but the cells are empty. Looks like Jody and Zeke got away...There's still hope.”

  Cora said nothing in reply, frozen to the spot as she stared in horror at the sight of the bodies being drained of all blood.

  Then as Jinx sobbed again, Mack turned, no longer caring he was still naked, as he looked to his best friend who cowered sobbing at the feet of the alien queen.

  “Save yourself,” he said quietly.

  Jinx looked up into the dark eyes of the creature with the sharp, pointed teeth.

  “Please don't kill me!”

  She folded the razor shut and looked down at him, then her mouth turned into a thoughtful smile as she stroked his hair.

  “Pretty human...” she rasped, “Pretty...”

  Jinx drew in a slow breath to pull his shattered nerves together and slowly got up.

  “I will obey you,” he said quietly, and stripped off his T shirt, kicked off his shoes and then unzipped his jeans and stripped them off, revealing his nude body.

  “You know what, Mack?” he said as he glanced at his best friend, “I really shouldn't have gone commando today...What a time to leave my pants at home!”

  And then he laughed nervously as something in his eyes shone between despair and desperation, mixed with the threat of looming insanity.

  Lazzarra's gaze shifted over his slender, toned body. She smiled as she took in the sight of him, then ran her hand down the dark hair that covered his chest, noticing his flawless skin.

  “You are not a warrior?”

  “No,” he said, fighting tightness in his throat as he looked into her black eyes, “I am a pilot, Lazzarra. I fly great ships through the skies to other worlds...But I can make fine sons. I have had three wives and seven children... “

  Mack shot him a sideways glance, smirking as he approved of Rik's tactic – Jinx had never been married. He had a couple of kids from relationships long gone and they were grown up now, both in their late teens. But Lazzarra didn't know that...

  “Keep going, Rik...” he murmured.

  “...And I can make you many fine sons, Lazzarra. When my cock is hard it is very big. You will like it...But Mack is your choice of warrior. I am no warrior so I should serve you in another way. Let me be Cora's play thing...her toy?”

  Cora gave a gasp. Jinx shot her a quick glance and winked. She got it at once, he was trying to keep them all together...

  Then he gave a gasp as Lazzarra's hand wrapped around his cock and she began to rub it, admiring its length as she waited for him to harden.

  A look of panic came to his eyes.

  “I...I can't...not like this...not in front of other people...Oh shit...I can't...”

  As his eyes filled with tears, she smiled again and let go of him.

  “You are pretty,” she said again, “I give you to my sister.”

  He gave a gasp as his eyes widened in alarm.

  “I want to stay here!”

  “You go to my sister,” she said, “She knows what to do with you...She help you...” and she touched his flaccid penis again, then drew her hand away.

  “What will she do?” he asked fearfully as he broke out into a sweat.

  Just then the curtain was lowered, as another female entered the escape pod. She was pale with the gold tint t
o her skin just like the others, but jewelled suds glittered at her cheekbones and her dark eyes were framed by long, pale lashes that matched her platinum hair. Like her sister, she had an hourglass figure, and her nude body was visible through a sheer gown of pale yellow.

  “Vishcarra,” Lazzarra said warmly, “A gift...”

  She walked over to Jinx and looked up and down his sleek, toned body, and then she thoughtfully stroked his cock and ran her fingers through his pubic hair.

  “She's touching me...” he said in panic, his voice strangled by fear as the two alien sisters admired his body together.

  “What ever it takes...adapt and survive,” Mack murmured, reminding him of the vow they had made whilst in the holding cells.

  Chapter 7

  Lazzarra looked to Mack and Cora.

  “When the dawn comes,” she announced, “We shall eat together. We eat our kind. You, shall eat yours.”

  Mack fought a rising urge to vomit as he understood at once - the cannibal alien tribe who feasted on their own considered it only right that the chosen humans should also have a grand feast – of their own kind...

  “Of course...” he said in a hushed voice, as Cora looked to him in alarm.

  “What the fuck? We have to eat Tina and Jules?” Jinx looked terrified.

  “Whatever it takes,” Mack reminded him again, still fighting off nausea he could not allow to show in front of the alien sisters.

  Then Jinx shot Mack a look of horror as Vishcarra took him by the hand and led him through to the next room. She gestured to the servant girl to follow, and then the door slid shut firmly behind them.

  “Do not harm him!” Mack said in alarm, turning to Lazzarra.

  She smiled.

  “He will not be harmed. My sister has her ways...he will grow to like her ways...he must.”

  From the next room he heard Jinx give a cry of panic as he begged the alien women to release him.

  “Please let me go...Oh no.... Don't...get that away from me!” he yelled.