Page 41 of Savage Union (Brutal Universe #2)

40

JESSINA

I started walking. What else could I do? I picked what I thought was the general direction the spaceport might be in and headed that way.

Luckily, Turk had given all the men—myself included—a shot of translation virus to enable us to understand and read the local languages. Eventually I saw a sign that said,

“Spaceport, 14 clonocks” with an arrow pointing in the direction I wanted to go.

I had no idea what a “clonock” was or how long it might be, so I had no choice but to keep trudging. I occasionally got stares from the Salashions who were driving or walking along the same road, but they didn’t seem to be a very friendly or nosy race. None of them spoke to me or bothered me, much to my relief. They just went on along with their business. In fact, no one said a word to me in the two hours I spent walking back to the ship until I came into a more populated part of the city.

At least, I assumed it was more populated. I was passing by a building that had a glowing neon 3-D sign hanging above it. In the reddish light from the sun, which was beginning to go down, the words were lurid.

“Girls, girls, girls!” the 3-D letter proclaimed in neon pink and lime green. “Try the famous Salashion double-cunny! Yes, our girls have TWO!”

But it wasn’t just the sign that got my attention. Chained up out front of the establishment, which was obviously a whorehouse, was one of the spikers. This beast was even bigger than the one I’d seen at the spaceport and it looked mad. Its gray spikes were tipped with red and orange and they were rattling together, making a menacing sound like a thousand angry rattlesnakes. Its eyes were flaring orange and gold and its lips were curled back to show long, curving fangs.

I stayed clear of the creature, glad that it was chained to the side of the building. But just then the front door opened and two people came out—a man and a woman. And one of them was familiar.

“You can’t just not pay—you tried ‘em both!” the woman shouted. She was Salashion with four arms and long black hair that reached down to her ankles. Her dress was askew and hanging off one shoulder, showing that she apparently had four breasts as well as four arms.

The man, I saw, was Jerx. He was fastening his uniform trousers as he walked.

“Fuck you, lady—both of ‘em were so loose I couldn’t feel a damn thing!” he snarled.

“My twats are nice and tight!” she shot back. “Maybe the problem is your tiny dick!”

I didn’t want to get into the middle of this—or be seen by Jerx—but there was nowhere to hide. Well, except a large metal bin that smelled like a dumpster across from the whorehouse.

There was no way I was going to climb in that thing, but I didn’t mind hiding behind it. I hurried over, meaning to duck around the backside, but just then I heard someone calling my name.

“Hey, Cass! Hey, Catamite!”

With a sinking heart, I realized it was too late to hide. Jerx had already seen me.

Trying to act nonchalant, I half-turned to face him.

“Hey, how much of that did you see?” he demanded, jerking his chin at the angry Salashion sex worker who was standing by the spiker and still shouting at him.

“How much of what?” I asked blandly. “I’m just headed back to the ship.”

“Thought you were the Captain’s date today?” He raised his eyebrows at me. “Didn’t he take you to his top secret bargaining party?”

“We split up. I mean…he’s around here somewhere,” I added, realizing belatedly that it was a bad idea to let Jerx know I was out here all alone.

“Oh yeah?” He made a show of looking around at the empty road behind me, still ignoring the angry sex worker. “I don’t see him anywhere.”

“He’s around,” I said again, wishing I had thought to lie earlier. “Anyway, I’m headed back to the ship.”

“No, you’re not.” Jerx caught me by the arm—my hurt arm—and spun me around to face him fully.

“Ouch!” I snapped, trying to pull away from him, but he wouldn’t let go.

“Hey, there’s somethin’ different about you, Catamite,” he remarked, studying my face. “What did you do? Why is your hair longer?”

I reached up to feel my hair uncertainly. Of course it had been growing all this time and it grows quite fast. Now that the Synth projection of me as a man was gone, its true length was revealed and it was almost down to my shoulders again.

“I didn’t do anything to it,” I mumbled.

“It looks good—it’s pretty,” Jerx told me. “ You’re pretty—a hell of a lot prettier than that whore I just fucked!” He nodded at the sex worker who was still giving him looks that could kill. “Bet your asshole is tighter than either one of her pussies,” he added.

“Leave me alone!” I jerked my arm around from him at last. “Captain Turk won’t like it if he catches you bothering me again.”

“Well, who says he’s gonna catch me?” Suddenly Jerx grabbed me by both shoulders and dragged me close to him. “Damn, been wanting to do this ever since that night in the shower,” he informed me. His breath, blowing in my face, smelled like sour ale and unbrushed teeth. “Now I’m gonna stretch out your tight little ass on my cock.”

“Stop it! Leave me alone!” I gasped, twisting in his grasp. “Do you want to get whipped again?”

“Nah, I’m not gonna get whipped.” Shoving his face into mine, Jerx leered at me. “Because as soon as I’m done with you, you’re dead meat. I’ll slit your fucking little Catamite throat and throw you in the trash. Captain won’t ever know what happened to his pretty boy.”

“No! Help!” I struggled to get away but his grip on me was too tight. Desperately, I tried to remember some of the moves Turk had shown me.

Think! I told myself desperately. What did he say to do? What did he teach you?

Reaching up, I gripped both of Jerx’s brawny forearms in my hands, I braced my feet and rocked backwards, pulling him off his center of gravity. He lurched forward, toward me, and I allowed myself to fall onto my back, still pulling him with me.

“Ooof!” he gasped as I kicked him in the stomach as he came down. “You’re…gonna fucking…pay for that…you little bastard!” he panted.

But I was already twisting away from him. I had a brief, hot moment of excitement—I had done it—I had gotten free! I started running…only to feel a strong hand wrap itself around my ankle and pull me down.

It was my turn to gasp as the wind was knocked from my lungs. I kicked backwards but Jerx must have dodged because my foot didn’t connect with anything.

“I’ll…have you…yet,” he panted and began dragging me towards him. “Just…hold still…and it’ll be over…soon!”

“No!” I shouted, and kicked again. “No, leave me alone! Leave me?—”

My words were drowned out by a deafening roar and then a scream. Twisting my head around, I saw a sight that froze my heart.

The spiker that had been chained up outside the whorehouse was now on the loose and it was right on top of Jerx. It was huge—a mountain of angry beast— and it was digging its claws into his back and growling.

“Oh my Goddess!” I gasped. Jerx had let go of my ankle so I could have crawled away or even gotten up to run, but I felt frozen to the spot, watching as the horror in front of me unfolded.

Jerx wasn’t frozen. He was screaming and writhing under the massive beast, trying to get away. But he was pinned down—he might as well have tried to get out from under a stone wall that had fallen on him. The massive creature had him and wasn’t letting go.

“That’s right—get him!” I heard someone shouting. “Bite him—tear him! Do it, Fluffers!”

Looking up, I saw the sex worker that Jerx had stiffed (in more than one way) cheering the spiker on. She must have let it off its chain to attack him, I thought dimly. And had she really named it “Fluffers?”

These were the thoughts that were going through my head as the giant spiker opened its jaws and bit off Jerx’s head. There was a ripping, crunching sound and then blood spurted everywhere .

“Oh my Goddess,” I breathed in horror.

Finally, my paralysis broke and I was able to scramble up on my hands and knees. But my actions drew the spiker’s attention. Still crunching on Jerx’s head, like a kid with an extra-large piece of candy in his mouth, it turned its orange gaze on me.

I froze again. Oh Goddess, was I going to be next? Was I going to die here, like Jerx had?

Suddenly I heard a familiar voice say,

“Jessina—don’t move!”

I couldn’t have moved if I had wanted to. I was trapped now—caught in a staring contest with the enormous spiker and unsure of how to extract myself from the situation.

“Hey, don’t point that blaster at my Fluffers!” I heard the sex worker saying.

“Get him away from my crew member then,” the deep voice demanded. “He’s already killed one of them!”

“Only ‘cause he wouldn’t pay,” the sex worker shot back. “Used both my twats, he did and didn’t give me so much as a trimblub for my trouble.”

I didn’t know what a “trimblub” was—maybe one of those weird square coins they used here? But I was sure that the deep voice belonged to Turk.

“Get him away from my crew member,” he insisted again.

“Can’t. He’s eatin’. Won’t leave until he’s finished,” she said sullenly.

“I need his body to take back to his family!” Turk protested.

“Too bad. He’s hungry. Ain’t nobody can stop Fluffers from eatin’ once he starts. Less maybe you want to try?” she demanded.

“No.” Turk sounded frustrated. “Jessina, listen to me,” he said. “I want you to back away— slowly . Stay on your hands and knees and don’t make any sudden moves.”

“I…I’ll try,” I breathed. “But what if…if he goes after me?” I was still staring into the bright orange eyes of the huge spiker and my heart felt like a lump of ice in my chest. My hands were cold and sweaty too. I was right on the edge of death and I knew it.

“I have my blaster on him. If he comes for you, I’ll shoot him,” Turk promised. “But try not to give him a reason to come for you—move slow!”

I did as he said. Still looking into those orange eyes, I began to back slowly away. Fluffers growled menacingly at me but he didn’t move to pounce. Instead, he looked down and took another bite of Jerx—crunching into the dead man’s shoulder with his long incisors.

I felt my stomach do a slow forward roll and wondered if I was going to be sick. But I couldn’t afford any sudden moves and puking would definitely involve said moves. Grimly, I swallowed to keep down my gorge and continued backing away.

At last I felt Turk’s hand on my elbow, helping me to stand. Never taking my eyes from the spiker, I rose with his help.

“Good,” he murmured. “Now we’re both going to just back away slowly .”

We did as he said, stumbling a little on the road since we couldn’t see where we were going. I don’t think I’ll ever forget that sight. The dead, headless body with the enormous cat-like spiker sitting on it, ripping off chunks in the bloody light of the setting sun. And standing beside it, the half-naked sex worker, glaring at us defiantly as she stood over the gory scene with absolutely no regrets.

It was burned into my memory forever. But what came next was worse.