Chapter 146: The Saalistaja
"It might be because she hasn’t worn her armor long enough for it to cycle through her system and heal everything," suggested Ye’tab as he ran a scanner over me.
I think that the hypothermia might still be fucking with my brain because it sounded like they were trying to suggest that my armor was going to fix everything... even stuff that was perfectly normal.
"The sound is only gas bubbles releasing from between my joints," I said slowly, not really knowing how to better explain it. "Every time I move, gas builds up between the joints of my vertebrae. This starts to cause pain after a while, and certain stretches or movements help to remove the bubbles, allowing things to work better."
"That doesn’t explain your wrist," replied Midnight, not looking all that impressed.
"That is the result of gas in the joints as well. However, it could also be a result of osteoarthritis and tendinitis from a reduction in the amount of cartilage surrounding the carpals or from trauma and the swelling of tendons," I shrugged. It really wasn’t that big of a deal. In fact, I was extremely fortunate that I didn’t suffer from carpal tunnel syndrome.
"You need to wear your suit long enough for it to be able to start to work on you on a cellular level," grunted GA, and I turned to look at the hulking alien.
"I really don’t like that idea," I said flatly. I mean, I was pretty sure that nanos taking over a human’s body on a cellular level was the plot of a few movies, and not one of them turned out well for the human. I would most definitely pass on that one.
"Anyways," grunted Ye’tab, cutting through the staring contest that GA and I were in the middle of. I think that the smart male realized that I was not going to budge on that particular issue. "The herb that you were looking for has been found as we brought back 36 sacks full of them."
It took me a second to understand what he was talking about, and once again, I blamed my poor brain functions on the cold and not because I all of a sudden turned dumb from spending too much time talking to Pippa.
"I needed only one sack," I said, confused. "I think..."
"Well, now you have an extra 35," shrugged GA like it was not that big of a deal.
I grunted my thanks, even though I was not really thankful at all. I knew that they faced the cold and brutal climate to help me, but the entire reason I was even here in the first place was because I needed to get away from everything for a while. With a mission that should have taken me at least a week to complete done in less than a day, I would need to return to Jun Li.
And I really didn’t want to be on that ship right now.
There was a chirp coming from the corner of the ceiling, and I looked up just in time to see Night launching himself into my arms.
I caught him before he could get hurt and pulled him into my arms. "Hey, little dude, what’s set you off?" I asked. Night was practically vibrating in agitation, and for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why. One of his legs started to tap my choker, and I looked up at the guys.
Midnight shrugged his shoulders as if he didn’t have a clue either when, all of a sudden, an alarm started ringing in the confines of the fighter craft.
"Warning. Warning. Incoming ship," came the electronic voice of Sha Shou 2.0. There was a brief pause before the warning system repeated a second time. Ye’tab walked over to the command bridge and started to quickly type.
The alarm shut off as suddenly as it started, and we were once again surrounded in blessed silence.
"There are two Saalistaja ships incoming," growled Ye’tab as the screen in front of him displayed two weird spaceships, the like of which I had never seen. The front of the bigger ship looked to be almost like the hood of a cobra, an inverted triangle with a long black line cutting through the center. I wasn’t able to see the rest of the ship as it was practically hidden when you looked at it straight on.
The small ship in front, though, quickly banked, and I was able to see it a lot clearer. From the side, though, it looked like a bird of some kind with a head, belly, and two wings with engines attached to either side. If that was what the bigger ship looked like, too, then they were really the weirdest-looking ships ever.
"Mother ship," hissed GA, and the tension in the room rose that much higher. Night once again quickly tapped my choker, and I understood what he was trying to get at.
I brushed my hand over the left side, and the black nanos flowed out from the necklace, encasing me in a protective shell.
"Under the furs!" shouted Ye’tab as the earth under us vibrated. I looked back to see the screen, and I saw the ships crash landing on the ground, sending a flurry of snow and ice up into the air.
"I don’t understand," growled Midnight as he quickly pressed me back down and tucked the furs up all around me. "There is a solar storm; how could they have been flying around like that?"
"I think that is the reason why they are no longer flying," growled GA, releasing his wrist blades. He spun around to stare at the rear hatch as if we were going to be boarded any moment.
"They are coming out!" shouted Ye’tab, "Twenty-five males from the tribe mother ship, three males from the smaller craft," he continued, updating us all on the situation outside. "They are coming in fast! Weapons hot!"
"Species?" growled out Midnight as he rose to his feet.
Ye’tab and Guardian Angel shared a look before the first male responded.
"Saalistaja."
Silence descended in the X96, and I racked my brains trying to figure out a way to keep up alive and not expose myself at the same time.
