After clearing out the looter camp, Gaarurra and I navigated the dark tunnels to return to Spindrall's chamber for a moment to drop off the artifacts and supplies we had scavenged. I used some of the medical supplies we purloined to patch up Cormun as best I could. Mostly, that meant I disinfected the wounds and changed bandages.
Gaarurra had swapped out his rifle for one of the blaster cannons. If it wouldn't have weighed me down so much, I would have done the same. If what I suspected about the queen was true, we were going to need the firepower. Hopefully, the Force would compensate.
Instead, I fiddled with my rifle until I figured out how to change the power pack until we headed out.
We didn't get far before we hit the first wave. In a place as silent and enclosed as this tomb, sound carries a long way. Our firefight with the looters must have stirred up the k'lor'slugs. Without the patrols to keep them down, they came in dozens. Most were hatchlings, but there were adults scattered amongst them.
Breathe in…breathe out.
I raised my rifle to my shoulder and fired one shot at a time, trying for one shot one kill. Beside me, Gaarurra tore through six at a time with each shot from his blaster cannon.
There were no tactics involved. They came at us in a solid wall of gnashing teeth and squirming flesh. We answered with plasma. We barely needed to aim.
I had to switch my rifle to full-auto simply to keep up with the numbers, but eventually the horde slowly whittled away. After we mopped up the last, I swapped out power packs again. Though the barrel of Gaarurra's blaster cannon was glowing red hot, we didn't stop to let it cool down. We left a trail of ichor in the shape of our footprints behind us as we ran. According to Cormun, new k'lor'slugs would be born and at fighting size inside of an hour.
We didn't bother with stealth as we made a beeline for the egg chamber. We didn't stop to engage groups, though we did shoot the ones that got in our way. The faster we got there, the less we would have to deal with in the long run.
As we got closer, I could see signs that indicated something big passed through regularly. Claw marks on the ceiling…and massive pitch-black tunnels carved through the ancient stone.
When we arrived, I noted how SWTOR was yet again inaccurate. Instead of a small chamber, we found ourselves in a cavern the size of a football stadium with a ceiling so high I couldn't see it. And it was completely filled with eggs.
Not a few dozen, like shown in the game. Not hundreds. Thousands. Possibly hundreds of thousands. Before my eyes, dozens started hatching. In the center of all this with a cluster of eggs built up around it was one of the bombs. The rest were presumably buried around the room.
There were less guards than I thought there would be. Just a few full-grown k'lor'slugs that were quickly dispatched with a few shots. That said, there was very little doubt that the queen was nearby judging from the massive holes in the walls and floor.
Gaarurra gave me a questioning look.
I shook my head, "I don't know how to arm it."
The Wookiee nodded in understanding. I didn't need to say anything else. We both knew our jobs. He would arm the bomb while I held off the k'lor'slugs.
I quickly glanced around the room and grimaced. There weren't any good choke points.
"I'll set up here," I stated as I gestured to the doorway we were standing in, "They'll only be able to come at me from two directions instead of all around."
Gaarurra made his own assessment before nodding in agreement. He fiddled with the blaster cannon for a moment before deploying its attached tripod and gesturing for me to take it.
I immediately understood his intent. I slung my rifle back over my shoulder and took command of the weapon. He wasn't going to be able to use it if he was arming the bombs. I assured him I was ready by firing a shot at the biggest cluster of eggs I could see.
As ichor and bits of shell splattered, hundreds of screeching cries rent the air as k'lor'slugs of all sizes started pouring out of every crevice. Garurra drew his vibroblade and charged towards the central bomb, hacking at anything that got between him and it. His enormous hands and feet smashed the eggs around the bomb before he got to work.
That was all I was able to see before I had to get busy. The rest came for me, as I was making the most noise and causing the most damage. The blaster cannon jerked in my hands with each shot, but with the horde coming to me, aiming was irrelevant. A few got too close, but were quickly turned to paste with well-timed Force Crushes.
Things started blurring together. Shot after shot blew up entire groups. The barrel of the blaster cannon started smoking, but I couldn't stop or else I'd be overwhelmed.
Several screeches coming from behind me caused me to briefly unsling my rifle and quickly hose down the hallway behind me with blasterfire. I missed more often than not, but I still managed to put down the group that tried sneaking up on me before turning back to the cannon.
Eventually, it stopped firing as safety protocols overrided the firing mechanism. As much as I wanted to cuss up a storm, I couldn't hesitate long enough to do so. Instead, I drew my sword and pistol.
Now, my knowledge of swordplay could be simplified as "stick the pointy end in the other guy." But with animals like this, skill could be replaced by strength. I didn't need a fancy technique to start carving my way through them, just enough muscle power to drive sharpened steel through flesh.
The hatchlings were easy to kill. Hell, I could get two or three with one wide swipe. The adults had tougher skin, so I used the blaster on them.
Killing them wasn't the problem, but their numbers. If this continued, I'd be overwhelmed.
Note to self: get a flamethrower at first opportunity.
Instead of holding my position, I started carving a path to Gaarurra. I could just barely see his furry form hunched over the bomb. With me making so much racket, the k'lor'slugs were all but leaving him alone.
Suddenly, all of them froze and scattered as the ground started shaking.
Before I could react, a massive brown shape burst out of the stone floor, devouring both Gaarurra and the bomb whole in a single gulp.
"Well…shit," I remarked aloud.
The k'lor'slug queen was indeed big. Much bigger than I was expecting. Like stack two double-decker buses on top of each other big.
I had a peashooter and a piece of sharp metal and there wasn't any rubble big enough to squish her with nearby. This was probably not going to end well for me if I stayed to fight her.
But damn it, she just ate the Wookiee and the bomb!
I fired my pistol at her a few times, only to watch it lightly scorch her hide without doing any real damage. The queen let out a keening screech before barreling towards me. I dove to one side as she charged past.
I tried to swing my sword at her, but it only succeeded at making a loud noise as it scraped against her. I tried to crush her with the Force, only to have my power slough off her.
So I ran. With her blocking the exit, I had to run deeper into the cavern and hope I found something useful. She screeched again and the chase was on. I vaulted over egg clusters, though she crashed right through them uncaringly.
I used the Force to throw small rocks at her face, only to watch them bounce off harmlessly. Despite my inability to actually harm her, I was doing a fairly good job of keeping away from her.
Or I was until I slipped on a puddle of ichor.
I gracelessly tumbled and rolled until I came to a stop against one of the cavern's walls. Despite the world still seeming to spin for a moment, I could still see the meat-grinder that called itself a mouth coming straight at me.
Despite this, I wasn't afraid. Oh sure, there was some fear, but I wasn't terrified. I closed my eyes and waited.
And waited.
I cracked open my right eye to see why nothing had happened and I was greeted by the sight of a small piece of glinting metal sticking out of the monster's belly as the creature froze in place.
As I stared, the metal moved, crudely carving a hole through the beast's hide. Once it was big enough, a familiar shaggy head poked out as Gaarurra pulled himself out, vibroblade in hand. Covered from head to toe in wounds, blood, and guts, the enormous Wookiee made for an intimidating sight.
I breathed out a sigh of relief.
However, Gaarurra didn't seem nearly as happy to see me as I did him. He pointed at the exit and roared before running.
I blinked. Then the pieces clicked and my eyes went wide. I scrambled to my feet and bolted after him.
The queen had eaten the bomb too.
Sluggish from pain, she tried to chase us, but we were long gone before she would have made it halfway across the chamber. When the bomb detonated behind us, the tomb shook beneath our feet.
And I laughed all the while.
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The first book has been completed on Patreon, alongside the second book. You can visit Patreon if you want to read in Advance.
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