Enemy Lines Ch. 08

The alien's skull fractured under a ceramic and titanium boot, crushed to a pulp by close to two tons of custom Overlord armor. Shifting forward, the toe of the boot hooked under the dead xeno's freq blade and kicked it upward where it was caught and casually crushed by a massive gauntlet.

"Arbiter..." The merc's voice was quiet, nervous, as he approached the figure from behind.

The Arbiter turned, towering over the smaller human.

"What."

"It's the Queen, Sir. They want you to know that the satellite you told them to hold over the last insurgent camp has picked something up. A large vehicle arrived, and a smaller one left, heading east." The merc explained, avoiding contact with the Arbiter's bizarre black eyes.

"Iiiiinteresting... Ready a transport and two gunships. I want to leave in 20 minutes." The Arbiter chuckled, shooing his subordinate away and lighting a cigarette.

*****

Nate finished setting up the camp stove and straightened up, surveying his surroundings. They had parked on an outcropping of rock under the overhang of a cliff, out of sight of satellites or drones. The sun was setting, filling the sky with a beautiful tapestry of oranges and reds. Ketri was perched on the edge of the outcropping, hugging her knees and staring blankly into the distance. He approached her slowly, sitting down beside the little alien. They sat there silently for a few minutes, before Nate heard her shift and felt the gentle pressure of her leaning against him as she scooted over and pressed her head against his upper arm. He turned his head and looked at her. She was staring back at him, but bit her lip and looked away as they made eye contact. He moved his arm back and put it around her slender shoulders, pressing her close to his side. She nestled her head into his chest, and wrapped her arms tightly around his torso with a soft, quiet whimper. He bent his head and pushed up the brim of her cap, kissing her on the forehead.

"You alright there, Ket?" Nate asked softly, squeezing her shoulder.

"Yeah." She muttered, face still buried in his chest.

"Dinner's going to be ready in a minute. You should come eat."

"Ok." She said, letting go of him.

Nate straightened up and reached out a hand to help her to her feet. She clutched his hand in hers, holding it tightly as they walked back to the truck. Ketri sat down on the bedroll Nate had set up as he tended to the stove. A few stirs and packet of flavoring later, he left it to simmer and walked over to the truck to dig for mess tins.

"Nate?" Ketri piped tentatively.

"Yeah?" He responded, turning his head to see her lying on the bedroll, looking at him questioningly.

"C-can we just cuddle for a bit? It's cold..."

"Sure!" He chuckled, stepping over and laying down next to her.

She surged into his arms, holding him tight with her arms around his chest and her tail around their legs. He caressed her in return, pressing her close to him and stroking her head. She closed her eyes and purred softly as he worked his hand down her head and began to scratch her behind her ear. Nate shifted his other arm up and began to scratch behind her other ear. Her head pushed back against his fingers and her purring intensified. She looked so cute, her big eyes mostly closed, ears pressed back against his fingers, beaming happily at him. He started to stroke the entire length of her ears, gently rubbing the thin, velvety skin between thumb and forefinger. Ketri's purrs turned to whimpers and he felt her urgently rubbing her body against his, squeezing his legs tightly between her shapely thighs as the heat between them intensified.

"Ohhhh yes..." the alien girl whimpered, her brow wrinkling as one dainty little fang peeked out of her lips. "Keep doing that!"

"I didn't know your ears were so sensitive" Nate chuckled, pinching the tips and making Ketri squirm happily.

"They get more sensitive when I'm in heat..." She purred, blushing and nuzzling her forehead into his cheek.

"Did you wanna...?" He started to ask.

"Yes!" Ketri chirped before he could finish, grabbing eagerly at the magzip of his suit.

She got the suit down past his waist while he pushed the straps of her top off her shoulders, pulling it down to reveal her plump breasts. Nate slid down her body and pressed his face into her soft, warm mounds to kiss her sternum. She whimpered with joy and hugged his head tightly, pressing her tits firmly against the side of his face. He continued to kiss her chest as his hands made their way down to her belt buckle and deftly undid it. They rolled around together, squeezing and kissing as they kicked off their clothes until Ketri was partway on her side, with Nate mostly ontop of her. He had started to stiffen the moment he'd felt the heat of her sex against his leg, but now he was definitely ready to go. So was Ketri, if the juices seeping inbetween their legs were anything to go by. Nate carefully guided his tip into the quivering entrance of his alien's slit, then reached around and grasped the base of her thick tail in his fist. She blushed dark red and squealed as he gave her tail a tender squeeze and cradled her cheek in his other hand.

"P-p-p-please... Please put it in... D-don't t-t-tease me!" She whimpered plaintively, biting her lip and lashing her tail around in his grip.

"I dunno..." Nate said teasingly, smiling at her and ever-so-slightly leaning back from her as though he was about to get up. "I should really check on the food..."

"I swear I'll bite you right on the nose!" She pouted at him.

Nate grinned wider and leaned in for a kiss. Just as their lips caressed eachother, he clasped his hand tight around her tail and used it to pull himself all the way into her. Her eyes bugged and she tried to shriek as her insides clenched on him like a hot, wet vice, but he filled her mouth with tongue before she could get anything out. He slowly pulled out, feeling her tender tunnel collapse behind him, then pushed deep in, giving her tail another pull. Their mouths broke apart to gasp for air, and he pushed her back into the bedroll, reaching down with his free hand to cup her left breast. He began to slowly increase the rhythm, squeezing her breast and pulling her tail with each stroke. She let her head fall back and began to moan in earnest, clutching her other tit and rubbing her groin, pushing her ridge against his shaft inside of her.

"Unf... unf... unf... Unnnnnf.... oh! Oh! Oh YES! M-M-More! More! Unf... Unf..." The little Sha'dee whimpered and gasped as he thrust into her again and again, feeling her clench and release, churning and kneading him with her insides.

"Oh Ketri... Oh Ketri... Oh god..." He grunted, pulling her tail harder and leaning back, changing his angle of attack to plow directly up into her most sensitive spot.

Ketri was clearly in ecstasy, her eyes rolled almost all the way up into her skull, long, slender black tongue hanging out as her pants and gasps turned to fog in the cool night air.

"I'm... Oh! Oh! Oooowwwaaaaaa..." Ketri stammered. "I'm g-g-gunna -unf- gunna c-c-cuu..."

She let go of her breast and let her hand fall away from her groin, laying back against the bedroll and writhing uncontrollably under him. Nate released her tail and bundled her up in his arms, shifting ontop of her and holding her tight so she couldn't struggle. She threw her legs around his waist and clenched tight on his torso with thick thighs. Nate's vision was starting to blur and the heat between his legs was becoming unbearable. To his relief, Ketri started to sing and he could finally release, pushing all the way in and squeezing her as tight as he dared as they came together.

He rolled off of her, panting with exhaustion and drenched in sweat. They lay on their sides, looking contentedly into each others eyes and getting their breath back. Ketri nestled in close and cradled his head, pulling it comfortably into her cleavage once more. She pressed her right cheek against the top of his head and began to purr. He smiled and wrapped his legs around hers, encircling her slender waist with his arms as he felt the vibration of her purring through her jaw and neck. They snuggled like that for a while, then Ketri rolled over and they lay like spoons, Ketri half-dozing and purring quietly while her mate nuzzled his nose in behind her delicate ear. Nate snaked his arms in-between hers and her trunk, and cupped a plump, tender Sha'dee breast in each hand. He massaged them gently, feeling the velvety-soft firmness and the heavy weight of them in his palms.

As he was about to start playing with her nipples, Nate noticed a whistling, bubbling sound. He raised his head and looked over to see the pot furiously boiling over. Ketri noticed his head movement and turned to look too. They both looked at eachother simultaneously and burst out laughing, each with a big, stupid grin on their faces.

"Do you want me to get it?" Ketri asked.

"No..... I'll do it..... Five minutes..." Nate mumbled, letting his head drift back into its resting place.

*****

They had been driving for a few hours the next day when Nate began to feel uneasy.

"Hey Ket, turn the music off and rev down for a second?" He shouted over the sound system and engine noise.

The music vanished and the engine slackened off, allowing Nate to turn up his helmet's aural sensors and listen closely. There was something off alright. In the distance, from behind them, a low, droning rumble.

"System, Voice control" He murmured under his breath into the throat mic.

A command box opened in his HUD. > voice control activated

"System, Isolate sounds"

> working > working > done

The HUD showed him a list of sound signatures.

"System, Identify"

> working > working > working > 5 match(s) found > sig1= Light ground vehicle, model absent from data (prob 98%) > sig2= Wind (prob 96%) > sig3= OTS/G-578 Gunship (prob 89%) > sig4= OTS/G-578 Gunship (prob 92%) > sig5= OTS/TT-783 Heavy Troop Carrier (prob 87%)

"Ooooooooohhhh shit." Nate said slowly.

"What?!" Ketri replied, breathlessly.

"GUNSHIPS! GUNSHIPS INBOUND!" Nate yelled, grabbing the gun mount's spade grip and swinging it around to scan the horizon.

"FUCK FUCK FUCK!! Did they see us?" Ketri asked, frantically slammed on the gas and sending the truck rocketing forward, swinging around and making a beeline for a canyon system to their right.

"System, Track signature 3, distance, speed and heading" Nate instructed the helmet.

> working > working > tango locked > distance= 10km > speed= ~950kph > heading= direct intercept course > register tango as hostile? y/n

"Yes, yes, system, register as hostile. Also register sig4, sig5 as hostile."

> confirmed > sig3 registered as Tango-1 > sig4 registered as Tango-2 > sig5 registered as Tango-3

"They're coming right for us! I don't think we're gonna make it!" He yelled to Ketri, slapping the charging handles on his guns.

"System, identify weapon system in FOV."

> confirmed > HMG-8832 15mm railgun dual mount

"System, activate targeting computer. provide firing solution for Tango-1 with weapon system in FOV"

> working > firing solution available > engage aim assist? y/n

"Yes."

> warning: target out of range, hold fire until reticle is red

A small green circle and dot reticle appeared in Nate's vision as he felt his arms shift position, guided by the armor.

> Tango-1 in range in > 5 > 4 > 3 > 2 > 1 > tango in range, engage

"EAT SHIT!" Nate roared, and slammed his thumbs onto the firing lever.

The guns roared to life with a heavy, steady thump that shook the entire truck and sent vibrations through Nate's chest. The gunships were mere specks on the horizon, but approaching fast. Nate fired in short bursts, making sure to keep the gun from overheating.

"Why aren't they shooting back?!" Ketri yelled.

"I don't know but I'm not complaining!"

The enemy aircraft were fast looming in Nate's vision, undeterred by his fire. Of course their armor was too thick for anything smaller than an autocannon, but he had at least hoped to damage their sensors or weapons, force them to land or turn back.

"I can't get any more power out of her!" Ketri cried out, glancing back at their rapidly gaining pursuers.

"Don't bother! Those things can go supersonic!" Nate replied in frustration, disengaging the computer control and firing a couple manually aimed bursts at one of the gunships' engine intakes.

Both gunships decreased their speed and swung outward and around, blocking their path. Ketri slammed on the breaks and threw the truck into a skidd, trying to swing them into a 180 only to find their path again blocked, this time by the dropship. The truck came to a stop, both occupants staring defeatedly as the dropship's forward ramp sunk deep into the sand and a column of Overlords marched out. The armored Humans broke ranks, each line stepping to the side and bringing their assault guns to low ready. Nate hauled the gun around just in time to line up a bead on the enormous figure strolling nonchalantly between the lines of Overlords. Before Nate could pull the trigger there was an earsplitting crack and something exploded in his face, destroying the breaches of both guns. As the smoke cleared, Nate saw that the towering Human had come to a stop, an enormous hand-cannon smoking in his armored gauntlet.

The former Merc reacted quickly, throwing himself out of the vehicle and drawing his rifle as he rolled into a crouch. He fired an HE-DP smart grenade from his launcher, directly into the oncoming foe's chest. As the fumes of the explosion cleared, the figure was still advancing, his chestplate scorched and smouldering slightly. Unnerved but still running on instinct, Nate switched to his kinetic option, peppering his opponent with automatic fire. Slugs slammed into the pale white skin of the Arbiter's exposed, grinning face and neck, rupturing skin and splattering a thick, black liquid across the sand. The tattered, bloodied face twisted into a sneer as, to Nate's horror, the wounds began to close of their own accord, destroyed tissue regenerating and coalescing back into it's former shape.

Nate dropped the rifle and drew the Captain's freq cutlass, hands shaking. The Arbiter raised his gun again. It was a strange, ancient thing, with a revolving cylinder behind bulky, slab-sided rails and an exposed hammer.

"Go ahead you bastard! Kill me! You're not gonna take me alive!" Nate roared, brandishing the sword unconvincingly.

The Arbiter laughed, a deep, booming sound dripping with scorn, and continued to saunter towards Nate. Nate gritted his teeth, pressed the trigger and swung the sword at the cyborg's chest. Before it could connect, his target sidestepped and Nate found his sword arm locked in the vicelike grip of the Arbiter. His assailant cracked his jaw and spit something heavy and hard into Nate's face, leaving a sting. He looked down instinctively to see a deformed bullet roll across the sand.

"Drop the toy." The Arbiter rumbled, starting to twist Nate's arm.

"From my cold, dead hands!" He hissed, fighting back the pain.

The Arbiter cocked his head, then lazily swung his pistol to the side of Nate's head and slowly, deliberately thumbed back the hammer. Nate turned his head to see Ketri still trying to extract herself from the cap, staring directly down the barrel of the Arbiter's gun.

"How about now?" The Arbiter said, his voice steely with determination.

Nate sighed and released his grip. The sword fell to the ground with a muffled thud. The Arbiter grinned like a shark, and slapped him across the chest with an open fist, sending him toppling into a dune. He heard Ketri shrieking and hissing as the powerful gauntlets of Overlords seized him and restrained him with titanium zip-ties, disconnecting his armor's electric leads rendering him limp and helpless in 300lbs of armor with no power. Ketri was similarly bound, and both of them were tossed unceremoniously into the hold of the dropship. As the ramp closed Nate caught one last glimpse of their vehicle, drenched in flamer fuel, the Arbiter casually flicking a cigarette butt into the cab.

His last memory was of a steel boot slamming into his face, then everything went black.

*****

"That's everything." Nate finished his story, staring daggers at the Arbiter across the table.

-Chap. 8 fin-