Tai Tek turned striking Javonna across the face knocking her down. “You want that bastard Torak you can have him.”
Javonna screamed just as Tai Tek shot her with the laser pistol. “He can have your whining corpse.”
River put her fist in her mouth as she stared at Javonna’s unseeing eyes. She watched as Tai Tek turned to move towards the mouth of the cave. River followed trying not to notice Javonna’s blood seeping into the dirt floor of the cave. There was nothing she could do for the woman. She almost felt sorry for her. River moved slowly behind Tai Tek knowing she would only have one chance to stop him.
River was just about to step out into the center of the cave to get a good throw when two huge shadows appeared on either side of the cave. Two Tearnats moved to stand before Tai Tek.
“Where are the others?” One of the creatures hissed.
“They are dead. It was a trap. Torak, his father, and brothers knew about our attack. Gril Tal Mod and his mate helped.” Tai Tek said coldly. “You were supposed to have taken care of them.”
“They had left before we could kill them.” The other creature hissed. “We must leave before we are discovered. We will have to regroup. The star ship is ready.”
Suddenly one of the creatures turned with a growl looking into the cave. “I smell a female.”
All three men turned to look down the cave where River stood pressed against the wall. River stood frozen for just a moment before she gasped in terror. One of the creatures moved with incredible speed towards her. She didn’t even think before throwing one knife after another. The creature growled before falling and sliding to a dead heap at her feet. River turned and took off running as fast as she could towards the door leading into the passageway. A low growl followed her and she could hear the thump of the other Tearnat behind her. Just as she felt the creature’s hot breath on the back of her neck she heard a yell for her to get down. Falling to the hard ground, River curled into a tight ball just as a blast from a laser pistol knocked the creature backwards into the rock wall of the cave.
Torak’s heart was in his throat as he heard the roar of the enraged Tearnat. He had broken into a run moving in a blur through the tunnel. He saw River running back towards him just as a huge Tearnat was about to impale her with one of its long claws. Yelling for River to get down he fired his laser pistol on full charge at the creature hitting it in the chest and knocking it back. The Tearnat’s hard chest plate would protect it to some degree from the blast but it at least got it away from River. Reaching down, Torak gripped River by the arm swinging her up and behind him as the Tearnat shook off the blast.
“You are dead, Kassisan scum.” The Tearnat growled as he pulled out his double-edge battle sword.
Torak threw the laser pistol to the side. The full charge combined with his previous use had drained it and it was useless. Pulling his own sword he gripped the handle charging the blade which glow a bright blue.
The Tearnat swung his sword at Torak’s head. Torak bent at the last second slicing up and across the Tearnat’s chest opening a deep line over the hard breast plate. The Tearnat roared out in pain and surprise moving a step back and touching his chest. A dark red stained its clawed hand.
“The blade on this can slice through anything, including your breast plate.” Torak growled back.
The Tearnat hissed in fury at Torak. “I will kill you and mount your mate. She will die under me, Kassisan. I will enjoy fucking her and watching her scream as I tear her apart from the inside out.”
Torak smiled cruelly, “Dead men don’t fuck.” With a turn he sliced a deep cut across both of the Tearnat’s thighs.
The Tearnat screamed out in rage as he swung his blade again. His blade cutting a thin line across Torak’s chest as Torak fell back. The blade had continued until it struck the wall. Little bits of rock rained down on River and Torak as the creature pulled back his blade to strike at Torak again. Torak struck hard and fast cutting deep wounds in the Tearnat’s arm rolling to the side. The Tearnat was now bleeding from numerous cuts, some of the deep but none of them fatal.
River worried about the cut on Torak’s chest watching as the front of his shirt turned red with blood. River bit down on her fist again as the Tearnat swung his sword at the same time as it kicked out one of its legs striking Torak in the stomach throwing him back against the rock wall. Torak grunted barely bringing his own sword up in time to deflect the Tearnats from ripping him in two. River let out a cry as the Tearnat pinned Torak against the wall pressing his blade closer to Torak’s neck. Unable to stand the thought of losing Torak, River let loose a series of the crystal stars lining the Tearnat’s back from neck to waist with the sharp stars.