Project - Prometheus Ch. 05

As they fell back, Luminia pounced on another one from behind, slicing his throat open, spraying his friends with his lifeblood. Korsa used this distraction to gut two more of them as they turned to face the other woman, ripping open their bellies and spilling their intestines on the ground. Panicking, one warrior tried to flee, only to be cut down by one of the other women prisoners who had filled the room. Seeing they were overwhelmed and outmatched against the fierce warrior women, the remaining survivors dropped their weapons, raising their arms in surrender.

The girl risked peeping out from behind Korsa, seeing that the males who had tormented either on their knees in surrender or dead where they lay. She then looked up at Korsa, seeing the fierce warrior she was and oddly, she wasn't afraid. Something inspired her to become like this woman one day. A woman who fought with all the courage and zeal of the warriors she had heard of in stories, someone who would not be broken.

She then attached herself to Korsa, hugging and crying, offering her gratitude for the rescue. In that moment, the warrior that Korsa had become fled, and she became the tenderhearted doctor again. Drawing the little girl in, she hugged her back, making soothing shushing noises, intoning to her that it was ok, the bad men had been beaten.

While Korsa knelt next to the girl, Inari and Priya grabbed one assailant each and plonked them into one of the many chairs that dotted the room. Keeping them at knifepoint, Luminia interrogated them, wanting to see what exactly they knew. The men were displeased that they had been overpowered and bested, but they co-operated, hoping they didn't wind up like their friends did.

"Luminia, would you mind asking where they put our things? It's getting a little chilly, even for me," Korsa said as she paced, doing what she could to keep her blood flowing. Nodding, the alien woman asked the relevant questions, and they grudgingly told her, not wanting to risk any more than they had to.

"Your..... clothing and things..... are in the next room," she stated, pointing to a small doorway to their left. Sighing, Korsa made a beeline for it while Inari and Pree continued playing sentry. A few minutes later, the red-skinned woman walked out, her arms full of the jumble of armor, weapons and clothing that belonged to them. Some garments were torn but were intact for the most part.

Breathing out, Korsa took a seat and rested, the tidal wave of adrenaline wearing off. Gritting her teeth, she tested her arm and leg, finding them sore but healed, mostly. Korsa figured that the bones had set and had nearly finished their remodeling though aggravating them with the recent fighting had likely slowed the process down. It would slow down further before she had time to properly rest, but there was nothing for it.

Standing up, she dug through, finding her vacc suit and several of her armor plates, which she sorted. She saw that her underwear had been torn in several pieces, so she shrugged and shed her rags, before sorting out her vacc suit. It had been turned inside out, so she had reset the garment, before tapping the panel to have it loosen. Stepping into it and fitting it to her frame once again, she tapped the panel, and it tightened to fit her. Having sorted through her armor, she saw that a good amount of the plates were missing.

She took a guess where they would be, but decided to have Luminia ask that question. Grumbling to herself, Korsa reattached what plates she had left and was thankful that they hadn't taken her helmet. Fitting in on, she was glad to see that the onboard computer was still intact and went through her diagnostic checks.

"Inari, Priya, your turn," Korsa stated as she walked over and took her place, leveling her swords at the prisoners. Their eyes grew wide and fearful as she stood before them, their once calm demeanor, rattled.

"Ask them where the rest of my armor went. I have a good idea, but I want confirmation as where they are," Korsa asked Luminia.

"Of... course."

Turning to all three, the questions she shot at them conveyed her displeasure and they seemed all too eager to answer.

"The chief of Yahk'shurt.... has your armor. Took for himself.... liked the way it shines and..... how hard it is. Gave second arm pieces to..... his son," Lumi replied.

"I thought as much. Did you learn anything useful from these three?" Korsa queried.

"Yes. I learned that my mother....... and other clans.... will be killed and..... broken," the alien said, with a quaver in her voice.

"What do you mean?"

"Chief tricked my mother, making her think.... he wants to talk for peace. He took all warriors with him, leaving....... behind these to watch us," she swept her arm to indicate the beaten warriors that were currently seated. "He has many warriors, waiting outside..... settlement. When he gives signal, they will strike and.... overwhelm my people and he will... break my mother, so no one thinks to fight back."

Korsa felt for the young woman, knowing full well the importance of family and how they needed to be protected. She cast her glance over to Inari and Pree, knowing full well that they were listening. They were back in their winter gear, looking and smelling better, but with grim looks on their faces. Though Luminia hadn't asked them yet, they knew that the question was coming.

"I need to get back.... to my mother. I need to help her..... and my clan. You fight... with the fury of the gods. Please, will you help us?" the young woman pleaded with them. Looking at each other, they all understood what would likely be asked of them and though this wasn't their fight, they owed her. If it wasn't for Luminia, they'd all have suffered a grim fate indeed.

"We will, but we will need everyone here to help. They need to find clothes, whatever weapons they can find, before we head back to our ship," Inari cocking her sidearm.

"Thought they'd have taken that," Pree noted as she picked up a crystal axe and dagger.

"Signature grip on this baby. No one but me can use it," Starwitch grinned as she slid it back into her hip holster. Smirking back at her lover, Priya tightened her coat around her as she stepped forward to stand with Korsa.

"Your ship? Why are we not going to my clan?" Lumi asked, distressed that her newfound friends were deserting her.

"Simple, we have weapons that will turn the tide against the Yahk'shurt clan. These weapons will make anyone who uses them, deadlier than their most trained warriors," Korsa stated matter-of-factly.

"How?"

Having turned from the seated males for a moment, the one furthest from the group of women attempted to make a run for it. No women were near him or noticed him, as he darted for the exit, but Inari saw him out of the corner of her eye. Faster than thought, she drew her sidearm in smooth and practiced motion, lining up her shot. She squeezed the trigger; the bullet ejecting from the barrel at an extreme velocity.

Not even a millisecond later, the man's brains, along with most of his face had been splattered all across the nearby wall and floor and he was dead before he even hit the ground. Nearly everyone in the room saw what had happened, especially the remaining males and if it were possible to cower in fear further, they would likely have done so.

"That is how effective our weapons are," Korsa said, eyeing the remains of the man with disinterest. "When is this surprise attack supposed to happen?"

"When night falls, when.... peace talk is happening," Luminia responded.

Inari stepped over to one of the crystalline windows that let the light in and from what she could tell, it was still morning. The problem was, that it looked like it was almost noon, from what she could tell.

"Which way is our ship? If they refuse to answer, maim them in whatever way will make the co-operate," Inari spat, bringing her pistol to bear at the seated prisoners. Smirking, Lumi asked them and they eagerly answered, not willing to turn out like their friend had just minutes ago.

"I know where, but do you have many weapons like that?" she pointed at Inari's gun. "If you do, we will win, but must hurry. Day is half gone."

"Well, let's muster up. We're burning daylight," Inari commanded.

Most of the women had returned by then, having gone searching through the fortress for whatever they needed. Korsa quickly took command, directing Luminia to have the children and elders stay behind, as they weren't able bodied enough to fight. They quickly remanded the last two males to cells below, sticking them in separate cages. Once that was done, the remaining women gathered whatever supplies they would need and stepped out into the daylight.

The group quickly navigating their way down the steep pathways that wound around the sheer ice walls surrounding the fortress. Korsa had everyone gather, so they could be heard, as Luminia translated her words.

"Listen up! I know that your clan is in danger and that the Yahk'shurt are preparing themselves for battle while yours are not. They will expect an easy battle, one which will break the will of your families and loved ones, making sure they will never resist. Will you let this happen?" her voice resounded across the area.

"NGLAU!" was the loud reply from everyone there, which Korsa took for 'No.'"

"Good! Now, for your clans to have a chance at victory, we will have to go to our ship and retrieve our guns," she gestured to Inari who hefted her pistol in the air for all to see. "We have many of these, which will fell many of the Yahk'shurt, but we're out of time. We need to get to the ship, retrieve the weapons and get to your clan settlement before nightfall."

"We will have to run the whole way and must still have the strength to fight. I know that none of you are warriors and if any of you want to stay here in the fortress, you will not be thought of as a coward, if you stay."

Korsa's words had a galvanizing effect on the crowd as none of them stepped away to retreat to the safety of the fort. They all stood their ground, awaiting their orders. Smiling, Korsa continued, "If you're all ready to exact justice on this sadistic and brutal clan, then follow me and try to keep up."

With that, Korsa turned and started in a long, loping run, her strides clearing the distance across the tundra. Alongside her, Luminia kept up, her legs marching into a rhythm and pace that matched Korsa's for speed. Directly behind them, every able-bodied woman trailed them, their pace matching those in front.

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On the Perseus, the rest of the crew was enjoying a lunch of quesadillas, with sour cream, hot salsa and iced tea, as they all convened in the Officer's Lounge. There was an air of trepidation about, since the crew on the ground aboard the Darkstrider, had failed their latest check in.

"I'm sure they'll be all right," Alex told them, trying to calm down both Nats and Talon. Though he meant well, Natalya knew her crew mates and they would have never missed a check in. Something had happened and in the deepest recesses of her mind, she feared the worst. Though, until the dropship was finished building, there was nothing that any of them could do at the moment.

"Let's hope that it's a communications glitch with their gear," Natalya hoped. "The cold of the planet may be interfering with the comms equipment, so..."

"That is a distinct possibility Chief Vostrikov," Jaesa chimed in over the loudspeakers. "The cold of the planet surface, atmospheric composition and several other factors are interfering with my capacity to detect them. Thankfully, the atrophy to the sensor grid isn't as severe as I'd surmised earlier, so once the calibrations have concluded, I will have full sensor functionality within a few hours."

"That's good news Jaesa, thank you," Nats replied as she stood, downing the last of her iced tea. "Well, I should really get back to the shipwright sector. That dropship isn't going to build itself."

"Before you get lost in the intricacies of shipbuilding, I would have you stop by the engine room first," Alex commanded as he finished his plate. "A manual calibration is required for Jaesa to bring them fully online."

"Very well, sir. I'll get right on it," the chocolate-skinned woman chirped in response. Though she didn't like the idea of being delayed, it was important to fix the engines. Besides, it might just distract her enough to stop worrying over her crashed crew mates. Nats knew full well that even if they got into trouble, that they could take care of themselves. After dispensing with her plate and glass, she double timed it out of the lounge, heading for the monorail station.

"Taal'ani, what else is on your plate today?" Captain Tomisic asked as he cleared away the dirty dishes.

"Well sir, I was going to head back to the archive and study up more on the ship's systems, and speak to Jaesa about how she maintains the systems."

"Very good," he smiled, nodding at the cat-girl, dismissing her to her duties. She lingered a moment, eyeing up the young captain, but then headed out the door before garnering any unwanted attention. Kasumi noticed and huffed quietly to herself, until she realized that she was alone with the captain for the first time, since she woke up. Keeping her professional face on, she faced him as he asked his questions of her.

"Report Commander. Anything new with our prisoner since yesterday?"

"Not unless you count the fact that she appears to enjoy human cuisine far more than any of us do, which is to say no, sir," Kasumi responded, trying her best to keep her tone and posture all business. Inwardly though, she was squealing like a fangirl, beyond ecstatic she could finally be around the Captain, without his attention being diverted by Natalya.

Smirking, the soldier continued, "Though I noticed in more than one instance, how she seemed to be looking me over, checking me out, so to speak."

"Oh!" Alex said, mildly taken aback by the direction the report had taken. He gave Kas a quick once over and found the commander quite attractive, especially since she had divested herself of the bulky armor plating the day before. "Can't say I blame her for looking, if you don't mind me saying so, Commander."

Blushing furiously at the compliment, Kas couldn't help but swoon a little as she said, "Thank you sir and if it's all right with you, you can call me Kasumi, if you wish."

Cocking an eyebrow, Alex responded, "I may just do that..... Kasumi."

Hearing her name roll off of his tongue, Kas was feeling a little weak-kneed, but she forced herself to steady up. She was a Commander in United Earth Alliance, not some school girl mooning over a crush! Though she had to admit, it felt good to have his undivided attention for once.

"If that's the case, I wonder how she'll receive me, when I bring down her meal," Alex said as he prepped a plate out of the leftovers.

"I'm sorry, sir?"

"You're relieved of prisoner interrogation for the afternoon Commander. I will take over for the next few hours. Who knows, she may just talk to me, considering it's just you she's seen," the captain said as he placed a lid over the now laden tray.

"Thank you sir," Kas said as she finally calmed down, still giddy from the compliment she received from him. "I'll head down to the gym then, sir. I could use a workout after being a popsicle for the last six hundred years."

Chuckling at the joke, Alex took the tray and left out the door, heading to the monorail station. Taking a deep breath after he left, Kas fanned herself as she sat down and took in what had happened. She was glad he wasn't acting blind or dead, and that he'd actually noticed her. Maybe she had a chance at popping out more in his mind?

Kasumi then smiled to herself evilly, coming up with something that, should he visit the gym at any point, he might well be seduced. Knowing she was going to need a couple of things from her quarters, she jogged back along the corridor, back to the officer's deck.

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Alex sat with the tray on his lap, as the car sped along the maglev rails, headed for the brig. He couldn't believe that he hadn't noticed the young marine under his command and was only really seeing her now. She certainly was an eyeful, especially with some of her more exotic features popping out. Though he was enjoying some more forbidden thoughts that were rising to the surface of his mind, he kept them in check. He was sleeping with Natalya and though their relationship had just started; he didn't want to jeopardize it.

Thinking of Nats had shifted his focus to the ebony-skinned beauty, and of the night they had shared just recently. He growled as he remembered how her ass jiggled as he was plowing her from behind, crying out for him to hammer her harder. He was jolted out of his reminiscing when the car slowed as it arrived at the Brig station.

With a pneumatic hiss, the doors parted, allowing him egress from the car. Stepping out while keeping the tray balanced, he walked out, maintaining his military stance and decorum. It didn't take him long before he reached the main brig area as he found two sentries standing guard over the entryway. He nodded to them as he passed; the door opening for him as he approached.

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Shazza was busy doing some body weight exercises since she was not being given any equipment with which to maintain herself. She was just finishing her routine as the door opened to admit her captor and though she loathed the questioning; the food was enjoyable. Only, it wasn't the fiery redhead that stepped through the door, but a powerfully built male, and a large one at that!

The set of his shoulders and the gait of his walk was enough to have her mouth watering. She saw that he was wearing a uniform of some sort; she assumed that he was someone of importance on this ship. The ribbons and markings on his epaulets, signified a rank, but she couldn't figure what exactly. The moment she looked at his face, she knew that this man would be worth her time to seduce. His chiseled features evoked strength and power and his brown eyes danced with a sense of mischief. Despite being of an entirely different species, she could feel an immediate attraction to him.

Shaking herself out of her lust fueled haze, she looked at him and saw that, Kasumi had earlier, he held a tray in his hands and she could smell a distinct aroma of food. As she brought her hands together happily, she couldn't help but notice her state of undress. Shazza had discarded the shirt she wore beneath as it was both stained and smelly, but that didn't mean that she didn't need clothing.

The young officer seemed to have noticed her state as well and looked her over and she could sense, approval for how she was built. He handed the tray he was carrying to one of the blocky cell guards before retreating to a wall section nearby. He then pressed his hand to a panel that lay to the right of the area and a clunking sound echoed through the space.

Various rectangular shapes had popped out of the wall next to him and he pulled on one of them, to reveal a drawer. He pushed his hand into it and rummaged around in it until he found something and pulled it out. It was a largish bag that looked like it contained clothing within it. Once he had it, he closed the drawer and barked a one-word command and the remaining drawers and cabinets pulled shut once more.

He walked back to her cell and activated the serving window as Kasumi had before. Once the arms were in place, the field inside the small window dropped and he slid through the plastic-wrapped package. Once he had done that, he barked another command and a partition rose up from the floor, enclosing a nearly half the space within the cell. Small, but powerful lights activated within the area, bathing it in a soft, yellowish white, luminescence.