Galactic High

A loud scream of inhuman pain bellowed around as the creature on the other side of the wall felt the fury of heavy plasma fire. Jack didn’t let up, quickly demolishing the wall in front of him. He immediately charged through and properly saw the creature he got.

Like a grotesque mockery of human and beast, it had crooked, emaciated limbs that logically should not have been strong enough to support its gaunt frame, yet as it stumbled back it still moved with unnatural speed and grace. The skin stretched tight over its skeletal body was a sickly, unnaturally pallid white, translucent enough to reveal the dark veins pulsing beneath the surface.

Its long, clawed fingers were more akin to talons, each claw sharp as a blade and dripping with a foul dark ichor, but the most horrifying part was the head, which to Jack closely resembled an elk’s at first glance, antlers and all. It had a clear, malevolent intelligence with sunken eyes set deep in hollow sockets that gazed at him with a dark hunger and a maw lined with jagged yellow teeth stretched into a hideous grin.

Jack knew what it was from stories he’d read on Earth. He’d had his suspicions ever since he first met this type of creature on the boat, but couldn’t believe they’d be real!

Skinwalker. Wendigo. Goatman. Rake. It had many names across the stories he had read, but it was very often the same thing - an evil shapeshifting monster determined to sow pain and division.

He would show no mercy.

Jack unleashed a volley into the thing as it shakily stumbled backwards along the ground trying to recover. Jack quickly pushed forward as the others followed him out…

Sephy immediately followed, turning towards the cabin door where, sure enough, there were three of the smaller creatures stealthily lying in wait with spears, clearly having expected them to exit that way.

Being lit up by the fire back at the cabin, Sephy could see that these smaller creatures had mouldy greenish-brown skin, limbs that resembled lengthy lines of tendrils of vines, white, lidless eyes and small mouths that sneered at her as the lead monster pulled its arm back, ready to throw its spear like a javelin.

The Skritta swiftly brought up her plasma rifle and shot a three-round burst, aiming centre of mass and striking true. The impacts of plasma fire caused the flesh of the small creature to puff up and explode in three solid, smouldering craters before it dropped to the ground, squirming and splattering dark, sap-like fluid across the ground.

The other two reacted quickly, moving to take cover behind a nearby tree, but the Skritta caught another one with a snapshot while it tried to dive out of the way, spraying more black sap into the undergrowth beyond.

‘Damn, these guys are smart even with their primitive weaponry!’ Sephy realised, before movement on the ground caught her attention, as the creature she downed was getting back up! The wounds she’d inflicted upon the thing were shrinking and it wasted no time in lasting out with its spear, taking advantage of her microsecond of contemplation. Sephy quickly shuffled back out of range with the aid of her wings, before double-tapping the thing.

“Watch out! Little ones are tougher than they look!” The Skritta warned as she backed off to stay close to her friends, not following the two creatures that went into cover. Nika was next out of the door, covering the right-hand side of the cabin. Spotting movement among the underbrush, she let off a few shots to act as tracer rounds, lighting the creatures up enough for Chiyo to slow them down, making them easy targets for Nika’s follow-up shots and Alora’s manabolts.

“Cover Jack!” Alora ordered, and the group quickly followed behind the human as the Skinwalker’s limbs bent and cracked as the monster pushed itself up from the ground with unnatural dexterity, swiping at Jack with elongated claws. The human dodged to the side, the swipe hitting the tree behind him and leaving a huge, deep gouge…

“Aegis!” Jack yelled out, summoning his shield and bracing as the Skinwalker whirled around with inhuman speed, lashing out with its other hand. The razor-claws scraped against the runic metal plating of the Clan Bharzum shield, producing a sharp, grating sound that sent vibrations up Jack’s arm, though the human held firm. His muscles strained against the heavy impact before he shoved back, catching the Skinwalker in its skull-like face with a shield bash, sending it reeling backwards with an inhuman shriek.

Bringing up his rifle, Jack unloaded into the Skinwalker with a blinding burst of plasma fire, the close-range blast slamming into the monster’s chest as its body convulsed with the impact. A dark, viscous fluid seeped from its wounds, reeking of such a foul decay that it almost forced Jack to throw up. The Skinwalker growled, far more from anger than from pain, its glowing milky eyes narrowed in hatred before it roared out into the night with a last gasp of fury, the sound being abruptly cut off as Jack silenced the creature for good.

The creature’s body collapsed to the ground, what remained of it a charred, smoking husk. The dark ichor that had oozed from its wounds like a sponge now seemed to blacken and corrupt the very earth where it spilled even as its stink caused everyone to back away from it out of reflex.

But that wasn’t what really set the group on edge…

All around them, a chorus of similar howls rose up in reply to the Skinwalker’s deathcry. First one from the depths of the surrounding forest, then another from further away, then several more, each echoing the Skinwalker’s cry in a terrifying symphony that filled the night. Though even the closest howls were distant, there was no doubt in any of their minds that each one was close enough to be a threat.

“We need to move,” Alora told the others, spurring them on. “I don’t know how they found us, but we can’t stay here!”

“Where could we go?” Jack asked. “Further into the forest?”

“No way!” Sephy shook her head emphatically. “The enemy has the advantage there! Three of the smaller ones were right outside the cabin door! These guys are sneaky!”

Sephy’s right. Chiyo nodded. They are even hidden to my powers, though that shapeshifting creature has a very evil aura about it that I can detect…

“I got a bad feeling from it too.” Alora shuddered. “Like it's some kind of anathema to nature itself…”

“Plus it’s fuck ugly.” Nika shrugged with a grimace. “It can’t be too long until daylight. I suggest we keep moving carefully and maybe try and give any pursuers the slip if we get the chance. Definitely keep to open ground so nothing can sneak up on us.”

“If you’re sure, but I wouldn’t take that for granted in this fog!” Jack warned, watching their backs with his heavy plasma rifle. It didn’t seem like anything was immediately attacking them, but his instincts were screaming at him that they were being watched.

Alora, can you maintain a blessing? Chiyo asked.

“I was just about to suggest that.” The Eladrie chuckled dryly despite the situation, before she began chanting a prayer under her breath.

“Father Quemos, Holy Everlight. Strengthen our spirits from the horrors that stalk this land. Let your light be a barrier, a wall of purity to strike back the wickedness we face and protect us from this evil!”

From Alora’s palm a pale, weak light shone and intensified, forming a ring around the Eladrie which slowly expanded, passing harmlessly through the members of the group before stopping with a diameter of about 10 metres centred on Alora.

As the light touched Jack he could feel the soothing, protective energy for just a moment before it seemed to fade away just as quickly, and he looked to the others in concern, having a sense that something wasn’t working as it should.

That’s weak, Chiyo commented to Alora without any heat. This place must be having a countering effect.

“It shall have to do,” Alora stoically told them. “Failing that, our superior firepower will more than make up the shortfall.”

“At least that’s a tried and true solution!” Sephy quipped, nudging Jack as she did so, remembering his act of deforestation from the boat.

“Try and conserve ammunition just in case,” Nika warned. “Yes, proximity to Dante may give us more to work with, but it’s best not to test that theory too hard during a Run.”

“Shall we get moving, or do you need to cast some more spells?” Jack asked Alora, who shook her head emphatically.

“No, let’s move. Tight formation, stay within my ring of light.” The Eladrie ordered. “I can cast weaker spells on the move if I need to, or we can stop, but we shouldn’t stay here. There’s definitely more of those shapeshifters around.”

I’ve never heard of such a creature before. Chiyo shook her head.

“I have,” Jack replied, causing heads to spin around in surprise as they moved. “We’ve got stories and urban legends from Earth about Skinwalkers where I’m from, but I never expected to actually face one!”

That’s a surprise… Chiyo pondered. Perhaps there is some truth in those stories of yours. Do they say anything else?

“Yeah.” Jack nodded, recalling the stories he’d read as he checked his ammo. He moved to the front of the group to take point, scanning the treeline as they quickly made their way down the path into the open ground beyond. “Kill them with fire.”

“Well…good thing it isn’t raining anymore, then,” Sephy quipped.

“No, but we’ve got more of this fucking fog,” Nika cursed as she looked around. “Not to mention those damned lights!"

Sure enough, as the group cautiously made their way through the dense fog, a familiar, unsettling glow began to emerge in the distance. At first, the lights were faint and few in number, simply flickering orbs barely visible through the thick mist, but as they all continued pressing forward, the lights grew brighter, their ethereal glow cutting through the fog like pale lanterns, floating eerily above the ground.

Don’t rely on those lights to see! Chiyo cautioned, with Alora nodding as she maintained her ‘Dancing Lights’ spell hovering slightly above them, alongside Sephy’s drone.

As if in reply, the air around them grew perceptively colder, and a familiar faint, almost imperceptible giggling carried on the wind.

“Don’t lose your focus!” Nika warned as she walked backwards, maintaining a rear guard.

I’m going to use the Cane of Travel, Chiyo informed them. Last thing we need is us tripping up in the dark!

“Good idea,” Alora agreed as they slowed down to allow the Ilithii to channel her psionic power. Jack felt his footsteps become much more stable and better paced, almost like he was walking down a pavement rather than the wilderness, which when he glanced down, looked uneven and treacherous, with a patchwork of jagged rocks, twisted roots and thick, tangled underground poking out through the fog.

Every now and then, the ground would suddenly dip into hidden gullies filled with the muddy, stagnant water of the recent rain or a few small, rocky outcrops that forced the group to climb and scramble despite Chiyo’s enchantment on them all.

Throughout all this, the ghostly lights danced around them in the distance, never coming too close but always visible, moving in step to them or simply disappearing and reappearing as if the lights were playing a game, mocking them with their movements and daring them to come to them. The eerie whispers continued to plague the group, sometimes rising to a cacophony of dissonant voices, other times falling to a faint murmur just on the threshold of Jack’s hearing, though what they were saying was unknown to all of them.

Dante growled loudly as they went, his focus changing from a particular light, to something not even Jack could see in the distance, the ‘dog’ maintaining his glowing patterns to give them enough light to work with as sparks of electricity occasionally zapped between his twin tails, ready to unleash.

“Talk to me guys,” Sephy spoke up as they carried on. “This shit is scary.”

“We’re still here, Sephy,” Nika answered. “And yeah I don’t like this either. I have no doubt our enemy is keeping tabs on us, so keep your wits about you.”

Their progress slowed as the mist around them seemed to grow thicker with each passing minute, with the ghostly lights growing more numerous as they crept along, the malevolent whispering increasing relentlessly as they did so. Jack moved with a cautious confidence, his heavy plasma rifle held at the ready, the weapon’s faint hum serving as a small comfort against the noise around them.

Until suddenly, the whispering stopped, and the ghostly lights all turned off.

“Holy shit!” Sephy jumped in alarm, bringing her plasma rifle up in a panic as Dante let out several angry barks, his markings glowing even brighter as they kept moving.

Calm yourself Sephy! Chiyo placed a reassuring hand on the Skritta’s shoulder. You’re not alone, we’re right here with you!

“Yeah…” Sephy sighed, taking a few deep breaths. “Sorry…”

“Don’t be,” Alora whispered, clutching one of her holy symbols wrapped around her neck. “It’s toying with us, trying to break us. We won’t let it.”

For several minutes after that the wilderness was unnervingly quiet, with everyone on edge as the sounds of whispering they’d gotten used to was now completely absent, with the only noise to break it up being the squelching of wet grass underfoot. Though Jack could have sworn he heard some kind of shuffling in the background, and he focused his senses.

He suddenly halted, raising a hand to signal the others to stop. He narrowed his eyes as he peered into the mist ahead. He didn’t quite know what he was seeing, but something really didn’t feel right. It was as if the air felt thicker and more oppressive, with the stench of decay that hadn’t been present previously.

“What is it?” Nika whispered as everyone tensed up.

“Something’s up…” Jack growled softly back, as he stayed still and focused on his surroundings, until…

“CONTACT!” He yelled a split-second before the air around them was filled with a choir of evil laughter as the ghostly lights suddenly reappeared barely a few metres away from them. Jack fired into the closest one, and for just a moment he could have sworn that he saw a face in the centre of the light looking at him in sheer hatred before his shots connected, causing the light to fizzle out, though the human had no idea if any damage was actually done.

‘Shit! Are these some kind of Will-o-Wisps or something?’ He thought to himself as the others bunched up back to back, opening fire on the lights as they flickered in and out of existence, before one suddenly blinked in close to Jack, its pale blue light growing brighter as the thing opened its translucent maw and unleashed a blast of some kind of smoke at Jack that caught the human dead centre.

Jack felt the effects immediately as the temperature plummeted in an instant with the icy blast. His armour, already slick with moisture from the humid night, began to freeze solid, a layer of frost quickly encasing the metal as his breath crystallised in the air.

Death Candles! Chiyo warned as she raised a wall of force to block two more of the creatures about to try the same thing. Watch their breath!

Then, without warning, the ground erupted around them.

Several massive shapes burst forth from the earth, sending a shower of dirt and decaying vegetation into the air. Though Chiyo had previously described them as short and stocky shadows, these creatures looked much larger up close with broad, hulking forms that seemed to merge with the surrounding flora. Their thick, spongy skin was a mottled mix of dark green, brown and sickly white, covered in a slick layer of moss and fungal growths.

Their faces were almost featureless, with no visible eyes or mouth that Chiyo could see, just a bulbous, unnatural mockery of a humanoid head crowned by a massive, domed fungal cap that dripped with moisture and spores. The only sign of life was the faint, rhythmic pulsing of their bodies, as if the very earth itself was breathing through them. Where hands would normally be, they had massive, club-like appendages, each ending in sharp, jagged ridges that the Ilithii had no doubt were capable of smashing through armour and bone alike. Their feet, wide and flat, were sturdy, with fungal tendrils that trailed along the soil.

In the shadows of these new creatures, Chiyo spotted a few more of the smaller creatures like they’d faced at the cabin crouching low to the ground and taking cover behind the new creatures, covered in a similar blend of fungal growth and vegetation. Though as the Ilithii kept part of her consciousness focused on this new threat, she noticed how some of the smaller creatures seemed to be changing themselves somehow, as she watched the torso of one seem to grow a plate of bark around it like a piece of body armour.

Watch out! The small ones have some kind of bolstering magic! She called out to the others. One of the smaller creatures clambered onto the shoulder of one of the bigger ones and shot a crossbow bolt at the Ilithii, which she was just able to deflect with her abilities, sending it straight towards one of the Death Candles which puffed out of existence. She focused her efforts on defence and lashed out at the smaller creatures attacking at range.

“We’re surrounded, we need to punch ourselves a way out!” Nika yelled as she shot the large monster nearest to her, the searing light cutting through the fog and slamming into the large, fungal body. The creature recoiled from the plasma fire, patches of its wet flesh burning and smoking under the intense heat. But even as they staggered back, the large creature remained on their feet, their resilience surprising the Kizun. She cursed under her breath and adjusted her aim, targeting the folds in the legs with greater success as the creature dropped to the ground.

“Shit! How do I handle you?” Sephy cursed rhetorically as the large walking mushroom in front of her raised its arms in a shielding gesture, presumably to protect their more vital parts as she took aim with her plasma rifle. Using her smartlink she angled her gun just right as she fired, lining up a plasma burst that partly slipped past a gap in the creature’s defences, taking it in one of its ‘shoulders’ and causing the club-like limb to hand uselessly at its side, giving the Skritta more than enough opportunity to finish it off. “Go for their joints!” She told the others, hoping they could hear her.

“Krealash!” Alora called out as she finished her spell, causing roots and vines to burst out of the ground to restrict the creatures attacking them. Though they did nothing to stop the Death Candles targeting Jack - the vines simply swiping through the incorporeal creatures - they did lash out at the other creatures, though to Alora’s horror the smaller creatures quickly did something to counter the effects and cause the vines to go dormant.

“Mother Tree, guide us!” She whispered under her breath as she summoned her spiritual weapon, the spear of light bringing her great comfort as she just about ducked a clubbing blow from one of the large creatures attacking her before thrusting and sticking her spear into the white flesh of the monster, but not avoiding the back swing which clipped her on the shoulder, sending her backwards into Jack.

“WOOF!” Dante barked out angrily, eyes sparking with righteous fury at the monsters, before sending a powerful bolt of lighting jumping between several of the smaller creatures, striking them dead instantly.

‘Bad things. Evil. Must destroy. Not safe!’ The ‘dog’ thought to itself as it charged up another bolt of lightning, growling at the Death Candles attacking Jack. ‘All working together! Dark Presence! Really bad! Master in Big Danger!’

“Agni!” Jack yelled through chattering teeth, thrusting his hand forward and blasting the nearest Death Candles with a jet of fire, countering their blasts of cold and warming himself up in the process as several malevolent screams snuffed out along with the lights. “This way!” He called to the others as one of the hulking beasts staggered his way.

Seizing the opportunity, Jack drew his axe from its place on his back with a well-practices motion as he charged forward and swung with both hands at the creature, even as it tried to twist and turn out of the way of the incoming blow, catching it in it’s exposed side, biting deep into the pale flesh. Pulling his blade free, a now familiar, dark viscous fluid seeped from the wound, stinking of decay as the monster pulled back, only for Jack to close the distance again, catching the beast in its stumpy legs and tripping it up before slamming his axe into the mushroom-like head again and again until it stopped moving.

The gap in the enemy ranks widened, and the group wasted no time in rushing through it before the monsters could cut them off once again.

There’s a outcrop up ahead! Chiyo told them.

“Make a dash for it and hold there!” Nika growled as she grabbed something out of one of the pockets of her rig, twisting then tossing it behind them towards the creatures that were giving chase, before running like hell. “Grenade!”

If the monsters knew what it was, there was nothing they could do as the grenade arced through the air, its metal casing glinting dully in the bare light before it landed amidst the mob of pursuing creatures, laying there for just a heartbeat…

Then the grenade detonated with a blinding flash!

The chemicals ignited instantly as the explosion released a roaring cloud of thick, acrid smoke and burning fragments that scattered in all directions. The hulking fungal beasts nearest the blast were engulfed by the firestorm, their thick fungal bodies sizzling and crackling as the hateful chemicals stuck to them, burning with a fierce intensity as the noxious black smoke of their melting, rubbery flesh mingled with the white phosphorus fumes.

The smaller creatures fared no better as their more delicate forms were instantly engulfed, the chemical flames spreading across their bodies like a wave of death. Their shrieks were brief as the intense heat incinerated them almost instantly, only leaving the stench of burning mycelium and vegetation behind.

The group didn’t stop to admire the burning destruction behind them as they dashed for the outcrop and stopped to take a look around. Several shadowy forms were approaching in the distance, and the whispers around them were angry.

“Sephy, use your drone and find us a path!” Alora ordered, as the others took aim and engaged at range, dropping several creatures as yet more approached.

“Got it!” The Skritta replied, remotely giving her drone some commands while maintaining suppressing fire against several of the smaller creatures. “Tracking enemy movements, keep pushing North.”

“I’ll take point!” Jack called out as Sephy pointed to where ‘North’ was, leading the way as they didn’t pause, not wanting to be encircled again.

‘Why not?’ An intrusive thought whispered up at Jack, as he reached to his back and pulled out the blunderbuss after spotting another of the larger, hulking beasts approaching them. This one had several of the small creatures on it, and looking closely he could see that they were doing something to the clubbing arms, almost like they were willing the limbs to harden up and widen to act as shields as the giant mushroom approached, alongside a few others.

Jack aimed directly at the leader, and pulled the trigger.

The blunderbuss roared to life with an ear-splitting blast, as a massive plume of smoke erupted from the barrel, followed by a spray of fiery projectiles that shot forth in a wide, devastating arc. The force of the blast was a mighty one, the recoil sending a jolt through his entire body, but the effect on the monsters was nothing short of spectacular.

The flaming plasma shrapnel from the blunderbuss tore into the lead creature with brutal force, shredding its thick fungal hide and punching massive, gaping holes through its body. The sheer power of the shot was overwhelming, as the hulking creature seemed to disintegrate before Jack’s eyes, its form collapsing in on itself as the force of the blunderbuss shredded it from the inside out, and looking side to side, it wasn’t the only one, the arc of the blast taking the whole group out. Chunks of fungal matter flew in all directions, splattering across the ground and coating the ground around them with a slick, greenish slime.

“Holy fuck!” Jack exclaimed as he stared at the gun wide-eyed, as the hinge of the break action automatically loosened and dispensed the half-melted battery. It sucked he didn’t have any fresh ammo for this thing…

Everyone! Watch out! Chiyo exclaimed suddenly as she lashed out with a water blast. Something’s casting!

Sure enough, above the whispers of the Death Candles around them, there was a new voice. It was one the Ilithii had heard before, or close to it. A feminine cackling was carried in on the wind, though she recognised the words of power within the laughter. Chiyo focused her senses, before looking to the source as it was accompanied by a low, guttural growl that seemed to reverberate through the night air.

From the darkness ahead, three figures slowly emerged, and Chiyo instantly recognised the dark presence of two Skinwalkers flanking something new.

Leading them was a twisted, crooked figure that shuddered with its cackling chanting. Tattered, filthy robes clung to its emaciated frame, swaying as it slowly moved, with gnarled, razor-clawed hands gripping a crooked staff that seemed to pulse with dark energy. As it looked up, Chiyo could see that the face was that of a grotesque old crone, unrecognisable of any species she knew of, with hollow eyes that glowed with a sickly yellow light, and a mouth twisted into a cruel, mocking smile that revealed rows of jagged, blackened teeth. It raised a single clawed finger to point at the group as it finished casting its spell and cackled a single, comprehensible word, its voice dripping with venom…

“Doom!”