“Gray hovercraft dead ahead, Your Majesty,” said a sharp-eyed satyr serving as the lookout on King David's flagship hovercraft, the Chain-Breaker.
“Thank you Argus,” replied David Byrd as he directed a four-armed insectoid to increase the speed of the hovercraft, “Boarding party, garb your weapons and take cover!”
The king's loincloth flapped in the wind, but he was too focused on last-minute preparations to care about his modesty. Several hnau, all of whom were humanoid, save for some animal-like feature, clutches spears made from the giant mushrooms native to the underground land they called home. Around each of their necks hung a necklace of carved bone that would protect them from what was to come. They all huddled next to the metallic railing as the Chain-Breaker sped over the sea of lava.
On the other hovercraft, the crew of five Grays turned their bulbous gray heads and focused their expressionless black eyes on the approaching vessel. United in purpose, they focused their minds on the Chain-Breaker.
< SIGMA, I DETECT SEVENTEEN HNAU ABOARD. DO WE HAVE ROOM IN THE BELOW-DECK SLAVE PENS?> asked one of the Grays.
< AFFIRMATIVE, RHO. PREPARE THE STUNNERS. > came the response.
Back on the Chain-Breaker, David absent-mindedly played with the necklace of Behemoth teeth around his neck. A gift from his beloved Mira, it had proven decisive in freeing many from the tyranny of the Grays. Once again, he would call upon the strange property of the bones to protect him.
A voice came, unbidden, into his mind. It spoke with authoiry and conviction.
< SURRENDER YOUR VESSEL. >
Some of the hnau on deck winced from the mental command, but ultimately, they all resisted, as the bones and teeth around their neck turned ice-cold.
“Prepare to board!” shouted David as he threw a grappling hook at the Gray's hovercraft. Once it was secure, he pulled on the rope to tie the two vessels together as they floated inches above the lava.
The Grays aimed small, boxy rods at the hanu that leapt over the railing. They fired and five of the boarders fell to the deck. However, David and a few others advanced on the Grays, spears in hand. After fiddling with the rods, the Grays aimed and fired again, just before the boarders got into range to stab them. This time five shots were aimed at David.
Whatever settings on the rods allowed them to stun other hnau, they had not been properly calibrated to stun a human. David staggered back, his limbs felt like jelly, but he was still up and conscious. The other hnau were stabbing at the Grays and one was already lying on the deck, bleeding out from multiple wounds.
One of the surviving Grays tried to flee for the safety of the pilot's cabin, but David urged his limbs forward and he staggered forward like a drunk. There was enough strength in his faux-inebriated state to pierce the torso of the Gray.
The momentum carried both of them forward and they tipped over the far side of the hovercraft. David's foot was caught on the railing, but the Gray plunged into the lava with a small splash. The last he saw of it was the feet of the Gray kicking ineffectively, before completely submerging into the lava. A psychic scream briefly reverberated in the king's head.
Dangling by a foot, his head only a meter away from the lava, David knew he was in trouble. His weakened body had not recovered from the blast of the stunners and one foot could not hold his weight long. Just as he fell toward the lava, a couple of hands grabbed his leg and he was hauled up to the deck. The first thing David saw when he came over the railing was the bearded face of Argus.
The other hnau had killed the remaining Grays and were in the process of fleeing the captives in the cargo hold. Ten satyrs came up on the deck, free from the cages below.
“My King,” said Argus gleefully, “my brethren are free thanks to your timely intervention.”
“We will take them back home, and I grant you leave to stay with them, if you desire,” said David.
Argus was silent for a moment. Looking back and forth between the rescued satyrs and the king, Argus finally broke the silence.
“I wish to return to my people.”
“Very well Argus, may you be blessed among your hnau,” David said.
An hour's journey later and the satyrs were all delivered back to their island. King David used the goodwill gathered from the rescue to secure an alliance, should the Grays attack. As a parting gift, he left the captured hovercraft for the satyrs to use.
Finally, after another three hours, the silver dome came into view. Home.
Just outside the dome, stood David's adviser Arakh. He was tapping his artificial leg against the ground. David sighed. He knew what that meant.
“Your Majesty,” called out Arakh, “an urgent matter requires your attention.”
“Balfour and Vilhelm arguing about the boundaries of their fields again?”
“Yes,” began Arakh.
“It can wait until tomorrow. There is something even more urgent I must do.”
Once the hovercraft was secure, the king dismissed everyone and entered the dome. The clickity-clank of scaly claws against the metallic floor greeted his ears. Round the corner sped a blurry bundle of feathers that almost came up to his waist.
“Daddy!!!” came the joyful cry of a young girl.
“How is my little Sasha?” David asked as he scooped her up and kissed her on the forehead. Just like her mother, she was mostly humanoid. However, with her bird legs, feathery tail, and wrist feathers, she would never be mistaken for a human.
“Good. Wanna have a tea party?”
David grinned and agreed. Apparently, tea parties are universal for all little girls, no matter what kind of hnau they are.
The sound of claws on metal came again and David glimpsed Queen Mira. She was wearing her regal royal robe and golden crown. Her measured steps were not too fast or too slow. Only the fact that her tail was wagging more than a puppy at a tennis ball factory betrayed her elation at seeing David again.
“It's just us dear,” David said. With that, all pretense of royal detachment fled from Mira and she came over to embrace her husband, showering both David and Sasha in kisses.
For a single moment, David allowed the inevitable war with the Grays, land disputes, and forging alliances to leave his mind and replaced all of them with what was most important, his family.
“Let's have that tea party,” David said, “there is nothing more important than that right now.”
Picture Credit: "4-hovercraft-a.jpg" by Exiliados drl Olimpo is licensed under CC by 2.0
I hope you enjoyed this story, which is sort of a mini-sequel to 'Enslaved By Grays In The Center Of The Earth'. You can read Part I of that story here