Three Square Meals Ch. 090

"Now that was fucking awesome!" she exclaimed, eyes shining in delight.

***

Alyssa rolled the Invictus and pulled back on her flightstick, bringing the battlecruiser around behind the wrecked Kirrix carrier. The derelict shuddered as it was flayed by neutron beams, the energy weapons melting huge trenches across its flanks. As if to repay the still-living Kirrix for defiling its dead crews' tomb, the ruined capital ship soaked up all the damage intended for the Invictus, keeping the white ship safe from harm.

"Ten more seconds for the Nova Lances," Calara muttered, eyes fixed on the weapon loadout. She darted an anxious glance at Faye. "I'll aim for the one at the rear. Hit the closest carrier with everything we've got, they're just entering the upper atmosphere!"

"Okay, turning!" Alyssa warned them both, repeating her earlier manoeuvre.

The Invictus executed a partial roll, then began to pull up, Alyssa keeping their topdeck directly facing the closest carrier. As she pushed the throttle forward, the Invictus shot out of cover, sixteen Photon Lasers slashing into the lumbering Kirrix vessel. The prow continued to come about, with the six double-barrelled heavy cannons opening fire next, the shells streaking across space to smash into the blunt nose of the insectoid ship. The subsequent explosions caused catastrophic damage to its foredeck batteries and wiped out its sensor arrays.

Sickly-green beams sailed around them, most of them missing as the Kirrix gunners struggled to hit the incredibly fast battlecruiser. Most that is, but not all...

Eight columns of energy slashed across the Invictus' topdeck, armour plates melting and buckling as beams burned multiple furrows in the hull. A savage explosion rocked the battlecruiser as one of the heavy cannon turrets detonated, the huge weapon ripped apart by the Kirrix's furious attack. As the debris cleared, it looked like some vicious beast had taken a pair of four-clawed swipes across the Invictus' hull, tearing a hunk of flesh from its savaged hide.

Calara ignored the wailing alarms and the riot of red splashed across damage control, focusing intently on the firing arcs of the Nova Lances. As soon as they'd cleared the protective cover of the wrecked carrier, she had primed the hugely destructive weapons, starting up the massive surge of power they needed. The instant the firing arcs clipped the upper decks of the furthest Kirrix carrier, she pulled the trigger, unleashing the pulsating sphere of energy gathered off the bow.

The scorching beam sliced through the capital ship like it was melting butter, obliterating everything in its path. The Kirrix drone carrier died before that ferocious column of energy did, a hundred-metre-wide trench carved straight down that left nothing but a few glowing chunks of outer hull to the sides of that doomed ship. Alyssa kept the flight stick pulled right back, lifting the prow until it was lined up directly with the cratered front of the closest carrier.

Pressing down her thumb buttons, Calara started pumping Singularity Driver rounds into the prow of the enemy ship, pulverising the superstructure and silencing its immense neutron beam battery. The massive impacts knocked the Kirrix capital ship askew, momentarily saving it from destruction at her hands. This was the last of the carriers though, so the Latina was happy to take her time, eyes narrowing in anger as she sought retribution for the destruction of one of the Invictus' Heavy Cannons.

Rounds continued to thump into the carrier's misshapen hull, the forward section turning into a grotesque parody of a vessel, the front third caved in on itself. The Kirrix ship stopped shooting back as fire control was destroyed, but it had already lost most of its forward batteries in any case.

"Just finish that fucker off," Alyssa blurted out wearily, waving a hand at the offending ship. She slumped back in her chair, pulling off her Paragon helmet and dropping it on the floor. She started rubbing her temples with her fingertips and let out a low moan. "Fuck me... I'm totally wasted!"

Calara shot the blonde a worried glance, not even looking at the firing solution as her slugs ploughed through the Kirrix ship and shredded its bridge. "What's the matter?" she asked, frowning with concern.

"Just tapped out..." Alyssa replied with a heavy sigh. "Now I know how John must feel... you girls sucked me dry!"

With the destruction of the last ship and Faye killing the alarms, a blissful silence descended on the Combat Bridge. Calara rose from her chair and darted across to the Pilot's Station, kneeling beside Alyssa and giving her a tender hug.

Faye stared at the angry crimson splashed across damage control, a worried frown creasing her brow. She glanced at Calara quizzically. "You can see the future and this was really the best option?"

Calara nodded as she turned to look at Faye. "Yeah, pretty much. It could have been a LOT worse..."

"Didn't you two promise John you'd return his ship without a scratch?" the sprite continued, looking at the blonde and brunette nervously.

Alyssa let out a despairing groan. "Yeah, and he'll probably make me fix it all to teach me a lesson..." She darted a glance at the depiction of the Invictus' shredded armour, her cerulean eyes widening in horror. "Holy fuck... All those armour plates!"

***

The horrible sound of chirping Kirrix grubs grew steadily louder as Legionnaire Jodrun was transported deeper into the bowels of the hive ship. A couple of the civilians had snapped under the strain of their mounting fear and tried to bolt, only to be shot by the escorting guards. He could hear fresh groaning above his head, with those civilians now stuck on a motorised sled like he was, earning nothing from their bolt for freedom except an agonising wound from a neutron rifle.

A Kirrix soldier loomed overhead, staring down at him with its uncaring and hideously alien compound eyes. It slapped some kind of foul-smelling gunk on his wounded arm and head, causing Jodrun's injuries to itch uncontrollably for a couple of minutes. As the chittering sled undulated onwards, he was forced to admit that his wounds actually felt a bit better. That provided scant comfort as he realised the Kirrix were just making sure he'd stay alive long enough to incubate a batch of their disgusting grubs.

He heard low moans of terror from the civilians around him and he darted a frantic look to the side, seeing the horrified looks on their faces. He'd never seen such a look of abject despair and revulsion before, his heart pounding away in his chest. There was a strangled cry of pain from somewhere deeper in the room, quickly followed by sickening squelching noises.

His sled jerked to a halt, then began to slowly ratchet itself up, lifting him to a standing position. Jodrun wanted to look away, but he couldn't help himself, his eyes locking on the hideous Kirrix monstrosity that came into view. Standing over ten-feet-tall, the six-limbed Hivelord was hunched over a prostrate Trankaran male below it. The Kirrix had mounted the weeping civilian, its mandibles twitching as it pumped spheres along its transparent ovipositor and into his helpless body, bloating out his midsection with its lethal spawn.

Legionnaire Jodrun gagged with revulsion at the sight, watching as the Hivelord finished its foul mating and pulled itself free. It turned to face him, an unnatural and terrifying hunger in its black insectoid eyes. Jodrun's mind nearly snapped at the realisation that he was going to be next; that he'd be subjected to the vilest of rapes, resulting in a certain death-sentence as the implanted grubs ate their way out of his body.

He thrashed violently in his chitinous bonds as a pair of Kirrix soldiers approached, a terrifyingly long syringe clutched in one of their claws. He'd heard rumours of the Kirrix's paralysing toxin, knowing it would keep him pliant and unresisting for the Hivelord, yet still able to feel everything...

The closest Kirrix grabbed his arm, pulling back the evil syringe and preparing to stab it into his arm. At the last moment, there was a gut-wrenching screech, sounding like metal being viciously torn apart. Jodrun jerked his head to the left, wondering what nightmare was about to be unleashed on him now, when a huge white blade suddenly plunged through the side of the room. It slashed to the side, then chopped down, carving a gaping rent through the wall.

Everyone in the room stared in utter astonishment as a huge chunk of the hull was suddenly ripped away by a massive armoured fist, revealing the enormous white chassis of some kind of giant robot. The Hivelord screeched in furious indignation at having its sanctuary violated in such a manner. A twin barrelled set of cannons was shoved through the side of the ship and the Hivelord's shrill screams were silenced in a blazing blue flash that left Jodrun half-blinded by its intensity. He heard the high-pitched sound of some kind of laser weapon being fired and when he finally regained his sight, all the Kirrix in the room had been cut down, steaming holes blasted through their bodies.

He stared at the white-armoured mech in shock, then spied a Terran female through the clear canopy in its cockpit. She locked eyes with him and gave him a warm smile.

Jodrun had never considered Terrans to be particularly attractive before, but at that moment, his raven-haired saviour was the most beautiful sight he'd ever seen.

***

Ailanthia grinned at her master, overjoyed to hear his laughter, even though it was filled with mocking scorn.

"Wonderful..." he chuckled, shaking his head in amusement. "The lengths he goes to save these disgusting monstrosities. As hilarious as it is mystifying..." Her master sat back in his chair, a broad smile on his face.

"My Lord...?" Ailanthia asked hesitantly. "Would you mind if I asked a question?"

"Ask away, my dear," her master replied, turning to focus his dazzlingly beautiful eyes on her. "I'm feeling particularly benevolent after this evening's marvellous entertainment."

Ailanthia darted a nervous glance at the glowing holo-images in the darkened room. "This John Blake seems to present no threat whatsoever. Why haven't you simply eliminated him?"

He smiled at her fondly, her heart skipping a beat as she revelled in that affectionate glance. "Now where's the fun in that, Ailanthia? Haven't you ever yearned for a change after all these long years? Haven't you ever grown... bored... of the same tedious routine?"

She bit her lower lip, unsure how to answer him. The recent changes to their relationship were all she'd ever dreamed of, so she nodded and replied breathily, "Yes, you're quite correct, My Lord. Experiencing new things can be quite wonderful."

"Quite so, my dear," he replied, dazzling her with his smile once again.

"My Lord...?" she asked again. She blushed and placed a hand on the gentle curve of her cum-filled belly. "Might I ask why you've stopped filling the vats?"

He eyed her rounded stomach, a gleam appearing in his eyes. "Do you object to my recent attentions?" he asked archly, but there was a dangerous undertone to his voice.

"Of course not, My Lord!" Ailanthia gasped, shaking her head frantically. "I-I just wondered... are you not planning on returning home to expand your legions as soon as your conquest is complete?"

Her master sat back in his chair, looking away into the distance, an odd expression on his face. Ailanthia watched him in respectful silence, waiting for him to speak.

Finally, a faint smile crossing his lips. "I think that's quite enough questions for today, Ailanthia." He rose from his chair and gestured towards the door for her to proceed before him.

She bowed to him respectfully. "Of course, My Lord."

He followed her from the room, his eyes riveted to the delightful sway of her hips and the firmness of her compact cheeks. "Let us retire to my chambers, Ailanthia," he murmured, fascinated by the enchanting view. "I seem to have acquired a yearning to experience something new this evening..."

She glanced at him over her shoulder in shock, then nodded, lowering her eyes submissively. "Your wish is my command, My Lord," she replied, a thrill of excitement coursing through her veins.