~Aliens and Hybrids and Bigfoot...Oh My!~

~Aliens and Hybrids and Bigfoot…Oh My!~

A quick glimpse of the battlefield revealed a dire situation. Straight across from her position on the wall, a horde of Drachonians were marching from Lucifer’s temple across a plain strewn with dead military soldiers. Farther to her right at the base, Shewuma saw the black van behind a pile of rocks. Out in front, side by side and alone, Jimmy and Debbie stood ready to fight to the death. “This is all my fault,” she murmured. A lump of pride rose in her throat even as relief that they were still alive swept over her.

As her Hybrid army climbed and formed on the 40 foot wall, Shewuma was shouting orders and strategy. “It’s completely enclosed. There’s a large force of Drachonians moving across the plain. Our Tech has silenced the firearms and plasma rifles. It’s all hand to hand now. We’re outnumbered. Fight as one. Cap’n Dick, take the humans to the ground. Drachonians work in threes, don’t let them get behind you. Remember the poison in the Drach’s claws. Body blows are a waste. Go for their heads and throats. Papa, flank the Drachs with your Callans. They’ll be vulnerable from the side.”

Across the divide was the massive Annunaki Commander Scar in his royal robe looking straight at her. He boomed out some orders and the attacking Drachonians broke into a run straight for her lovers. She had to cut them off. “KACHINAS WITH ME, SUWANTA!” She leapt from the wall and hit the ground running followed by Kachinas screaming their war cries.

Muscular and bulky Cap’n Dick startled the humans Corrine and Daniel, as he effortlessly scooped them up in his arms and jumped to the ground. They squealed like children on a roller coaster. He sat them down, a little dazed. “You know what to do?”

“Yes,” said Corrine. “We’ve been over it with Shewuma many times.”

“Be careful.” He took off with amazing speed for a man of his girth.

Corrine said to Daniel, “We need to find a sniper nest.” They looked around and Corinne pointed to the obvious place. “There. On top of the van. Let’s go.”

When Jimmy and Debbie first heard Shewuma’s war cry roll across the battlefield, they felt as if they had come back from the dead. It was beyond relief, more than being saved. They looked at each other with new fire. “She came for us. Let’s go, Jimmy!” They bolted forward to do battle.

From the din of war, Jimmy picked out Cap’n Dick’s voice hollering a Deep Creek saying to the Callans. “Off your ass and on your feet! Out the shade and in the heat! Let’s get it Boys!” Hearing his Grandfather’s voice sparked a surge of power in his body like he had never known. The deadly, unexpected wedge of Callans ripping in from the side rattled the enemy. The Kachinas with their fierce war cries led by Shewuma cut off the Drachonians and the momentum of the attacking force was lost. Even outnumbered three to one, the battle hardened Kachinas fighting in pairs were unstoppable. The Drachs’ confidence faltered. With ferocity that crushed the opposition, the Hybrids tore through the enemy ranks.

Debbie hit the first line at full bore. Pumping with adrenaline, she fought possessed, her steel moving with blurred precision as she cut her way into the enemy ranks from on top of the dead Drachonian bodies she left in her wake. Such was her savage blitz that they began to pull back from her demoralized, which only fueled her resolve.

When Jimmy reached the fighting, he leapt over the first line. With a cry of “SHEWUMA!” on his lips he landed in a thicket of waiting machetes. Ignoring cuts and blows that would have taken down most, Hybrid or Alien, his katana dealt death all around him. So ferocious was his assault that the Drachonians began to give him way.

Shewuma heard Jimmy’s voice heralding her name and it unleashed her bloodlust. She fired her bow with blazing speed, often pulling an arrow from a dead Drach and using it again before he had hit the ground. Anything unlucky enough to get close tasted the edge of her tomahawk. Like the bow of a ship parting waves, they fell before her barrage of stone and bone. A small faction of Drachs in the rear broke free and ran back toward the temple until they saw their Commander, the scaly rock giant of an Annunaki waiting and daring them to be cowards. Fearing his wrath more than death, they returned only to be the last of the enemy to die.

Jimmy looked out across the sea of corpses and body parts. The cries of the wounded and the pungent myriad of battle smells was oppressive. Odors of sweat, fear, pain, and death were almost unbearable. But it all washed away when he looked to his left and saw Debbie standing there, the desert wind blowing her hair and her blades and forearms dripping with green Drachonian blood. She was magnificent. Farther past her his heart jumped when he saw Shewuma pulling arrows from the dead. Kachinas and Callans alike stood taking it all in. It was an eerily calm moment as everyone realized the day was won. They all stood bloody and breathing heavily.

Debbie and Shewuma were watching Jim. He pointed his katana toward the temple signaling for them to press forward. Both women nodded. Shewuma saw Scar standing defiantly at the temple entrance with his arms crossed. She raised her bow to signal a charge when Debbie froze everyone with a searing red telepathic HOLD in each mind. All stopped and watched in disbelief as massive trap doors hidden by the sand, opened. From underground, Alien and Hybrid soldiers marched up from both sides of the temple. Not just Drachonians but Moles, fierce underground dwellers bred by the Drachs. There were also Ebones, larger, stronger versions of Greys. Very fast and dangerous. They were genetically created by the Greys to be their protectors until going their own way, much like the Sasquatch race had done with the Anunnaki. An endless stream of fighters poured out of the openings and formed up on each side.

Debbie spoke to everyone’s mind, “Get the wounded and gather as many weapons as you can. Then fall back to the rocks. Let’s move!” The remaining warriors crowded in behind the van and the pile of rocks. Most were disheartened or visibly shaken. Jimmy, Debbie, Papa, and Shewuma got up on top of the van, slightly buckling the roof. They stood and waited until all eyes were on them.

Debbie spoke first. “You’ve beaten impossible odds and the many Gods of War bless you all. But we’re not done.”

“There must be a thousand out there,” declared Odell.

“Yes, maybe more,” said Papa.

“What do we do?” Odell asked.

“We do what we’ve always done,” said Papa. “We fight.”

“So, we’re just going to die?” said Jeb.

“No!” roared Shewuma. “We’re going to die well. We are all holy warriors and they will know this before the end.”

“Yes! We fight to the end!” proclaimed the Eagle.

“We fight for our kin!” bellowed Cap’n Dick.

“Yes! Yes! Too!” came from others in the group.

“We will die well!” cried the Wolf. The fervor spread and their courage returned.

Bursting with pride for their warriors, Papa, Shewuma, Debbie, and Jimmy stood side by side on the plain facing the horde that now moved slowly toward them. In a line behind them, Kachinas and Callans stood with stony faces. Human Archers Corrine and Daniel perched themselves on the roof of the van. The advancing army kept increasing their pace until they were coming at a full run.

When the enemy was close enough to put Corrinne and Daniel into play, Debbie stepped up and held her Dragon Blade high. “What do you say we kick some ass?” she said to the minds of her tattered militia. With Papa, Jimmy, and Shewuma at her side, she started moving forward and her doomed army followed.

Debbie heard Corrine calling her name. Looking over her shoulder she saw Corrine pointing up to her left. She stopped the advance with a mental “HOLD.” In the darkening western sky a group of dots were moving their way. Debbie magnified her sight to maximum. They were birds, condors, close enough now for all to see. The advancing enemy was almost halfway to them and was oblivious to what was coming. There were forty birds that flew over the wall and landed, still moving toward the horde in a cloud of dust. But they were no longer birds. Now they were a herd of wild stallions bearing down on the enemy in a full gallop. At the last second before contact, they revealed themselves. Sasquatch, a group of four clans. Bigfoot from Western Canada, Skunk Apes from the swamplands of Southeast U.S., Wowies from Australia, and white Yeti from the mountains of Northern Asia. Debbie and Shewuma recognized Custos, their leader.

With a bloodcurdling scream Debbie charged, and her troops followed. Custos and his allies slammed into the evil hosts. Their fighting style was primitive and devastating. While absorbing incredible amounts of damage, they hurled alien body parts in every direction. Green Drach blood rained down. Scores of enemy soldiers were dead before the first Sasquatch fell. Even The Annunaki Commander Scar, had joined the battle to help his army regain their momentum. Feeling weary and defeated only moments before, the Callans and the Kachinas damned the overwhelming odds and surged forward.

Jimmy saw Scar nearby leading a force of five Drachs. They were targeting the Yeti and taking a heavy toll. “SCAR!” Jimmy yelled at him.

The Alien Giant looked his way. A mass of fighting bodies seemed to part magically as they walked toward each other. Jimmy flourished his katana and pulled a Buck hunting knife from behind his back with his left hand. Scar removed his robe and tossed it. Wearing only a golden battle girdle and some makeshift goggles, he swung his spiked flail and gestured to Jimmy, daring him to approach.

Jimmy heard Debbie’s voice in his mind. “I’ve broken through. I’m going for Lucifer.”

Stepping on two dead bodies to see over the conflict, he spotted her running across the open space for the temple. A short distance behind her were three Drachonian assassins.

Scar would have to wait. Debbie was first and always his priority. The lapse in focus cost him. Right then, Scar moved in and took a free shot at Jimmy’s head with his swinging spiked ball. At the last possible second, Jimmy managed to lean away and get the Katana in front of his face, absorbing some of the blow. It still sent him a good twelve feet and into a triad of Drachs that were taking down a badly injured Kachina. The katana ended the Drachs quickly and he turned to face Scar once more. He couldn’t help Debbie just yet. “Shewuma,” he hollered, knowing she could hear him anywhere on the field. “Debbie’s going in.”

He heard Shewuma’s voice say, “I’ve got her.” Jimmy faced Scar in a defensive crouch. Scar was completely relaxed. He looked casually over his shoulder at Debbie running for the temple and said to Jimmy, “Too bad. I wanted to fuck her. But when Lucifer gets done with her, there won’t be anything left.”

Fueled by a jealous rage, Jimmy attacked. He ducked under the flail’s swipe and landed direct hits in close with his katana. He then rolled backward and away, deflecting a blow from Scar’s mighty fist and came up ready. To his dismay the katana had no effect on Scar’s plated skin. From a perfect shot by Corrine an arrow bounced off Scar’s head just above his ear. It barely left a scratch.

Scar laughed. “Your puny weapons can’t hurt me. I’m a God. Now where were we?” He seemed to have a total disregard for Jimmy or his blades. “Oh, yes, your wife. Well, she’s as good as dead. But maybe I can still get ahold of that Indian slut.”

Jimmy needed a different tack. As Scar spoke, Jimmy studied him for a weakness. He wasn’t fast, but he was most definitely strong. The eyes and groin were protected. Vulnerable apparently, but not accessible. The slate scales that were his skin connected where they lapped. Not unlike the chainmail armor of the Middle Ages except for the joints. They were overlapped but not connected. For mobility, of course. Getting his katana between them would be difficult at best. He wasn’t even sure that a stab to the knee or the neck would affect him that much. Three Drachs were attempting to flank him, but Scar waved them off. “Back away. He’s mine.” As Scar watched them retreat, Jimmy realized that his neck turned freely. There was no contact whatsoever between his head armor and the armor of his chest and shoulders. Jimmy knew what he had to do. A Guillotine would rip that head off. He had the wrestling skills but was he strong enough? He threw his Katana and Buck knife to the ground. Scar flourished his flail. In the process he accidentally cracked open the head of one of his own men and tossed the weapon aside. With a look of bewilderment Scar said, “You think to defeat me with only your strength?” He laughed loud and deep. “You are a fool.”

Jimmy went into his old college wrestling stance. “And you’re an arrogant asshole.”

From deep in his throat, Scar released a thunderous growl and charged.

After Shewuma answered Jimmy’s call, she cut a swath through a group of snarling Moles with her zombie axe and like Debbie cleared the fray. She saw Debbie sprinting for the temple with Drachs on her tail and more up ahead guarding the front door of the temple grouped in threes as usual. In full pursuit, Wu put the axe back in her belt and took inventory of her arrows. Only three left. Her tomahawk and all her knives were gone as well. Multiple gunshots rang out from the main fight. The combustion-suppressing tech had dispersed. That was in the Callan’s favor. They were all equipped with 9mm semiautomatics. An intrusion on her ethereal space prompted a glance over her shoulder. Three Ebones were following her about one hundred-fifty yards back. She would never outrun them. They were crazy fast, maybe faster than Debbie. Three arrows weren’t enough for Ebones. Projectile kill shots to Ebones were consistently unreliable. With multiple unconnected brain hemispheres, the only sure way to take them out was up close and personal. Oh well. All she could do for now was keep going. Her main concern just then was covering Debbie’s gorgeous ass. Soon enough Shewuma realized that she wasn’t gaining on Debbie. Manipulating her hormones was pushing Debbie’s body to superhuman limits. Shewuma had no chance of catching her. But the three Drachs following her weren’t so lucky. Shewuma was within twenty-five yards of them now. She nocked an arrow. Head shots would be tricky with all of them running in the same direction. She fired three times. They all went down, but only two were dead. The third was writhing hysterically in pain and trying to pull the arrow from the back of his neck. Wu heard three shots from Debbie’s Beretta. She looked up in time to see the Drach guards at the temple entrance crumple and fall. “Good shootin, Tex,” Shewuma said under her breath. She retrieved her three arrows from the downed Drachs, finishing off the wounded one in the process. She saw Debbie enter the temple and looked back at the pursuing Ebones. They were too close. Better to end it now. Squatting to make a smaller target just in case, she studied the Ebones. The two on the outside were armed with machetes. The one in the center was armed with a rifle. It was a .22 caliber long gun. That made no sense. Why bring a .22 to a fight with Hybrids? Then it hit her. Only one explanation made sense. Devastators, .22 caliber bullets drilled out and filled with lead Astride. Toxic and explosive. Killing Hybrids with bullets took perfect shots and a miss would just make them angry. But any hit from a Devastator would definitely take them down if not out. In a few seconds he would be close enough to begin taking high percentage shots at her. She had to act now. A crazy idea occurred to her. She took one arrow and broke off the fans of the arrowhead with her teeth, making it a bullet head like those used in target practice. She took her shooting stance and nocked the arrow. He was within fifty yards now. The machete wielders kept coming, but the rifleman stopped and took a bead on Shewuma. She knew their training: Aim center mass and fire multiple rounds. The beauty of the .22 in the arms of a powerful Ebone was the lack of recoil. While sighting down the arrow, she slowed her time sense and concentrated on its trigger finger. As soon as the finger began to move, she released the arrow and threw herself backwards. As she arched back toward the ground, she felt the wind of the bullet as it missed her by a fraction of an inch. But her shot was perfect. As trained, the Ebone kept firing just as her bullet head arrow jammed into the barrel. The second Devastator hit the arrow and blew, igniting the other bullets in his magazine. The resulting explosion caused the other two Ebones to look back and see pieces of their partner all over the ground. With cries of rage, they closed on Shewuma. She pulled her zombie axe and tapping it against her palm, waited patiently.

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