We moved with silent purpose toward our next target. Two hours later, we came upon a clearing packed with tents and Zirans. There were 51 Zirans. The tents were half that number. They were brown and black to match the forest dimness and appeared large enough to accommodate three occupants. Occupants of a Ziran sized variety. In the middle of this encampment was a raucous knot of Ziran soldiers. They were yelling and pounding their knees with their fists. Almost all of them were unarmored, their weapons scattered on the ground. There were no guards posted anywhere. All semblance of order befitting a military outpost was non-existent.I zoomed in to see what the excitement was all about. I couldn’t get a decent visual through this cluster of giants.“It’s a duel,” said Tione.“Really?”“Yes. I saw three of them on Redeen. One was a duel to the death.”At that moment, part of the crowd gave way as a pair large of bodies, burst through the gap. Two entangled Zirans crashed to the ground. They rolled about, growling, biting, gouging. Then they were back on their feet, trading thunderous blows to the accompaniment of wild cheers from their companions. Sweat streamed down their bare physiques like waterfalls.I was fascinated in a sordid way. I had heard about Ziran duels, but never saw one in person. A sprinkling of Zirans were scattered in other parts of the camp. They were attending to other matters, oblivious to the commotion. Several were drinking from black flasks. I could only assume from their staggered motions that the liquids from which they partook was a little stronger than water.“Drunk Zirans,” quipped Tione. “That’s a novel sight.”I grinned.“Sir, I’ve got something.” That came from a soldier named Toler. He was positioned on the other side of the camp. He transmitted his visual feed to me, enabling me to see what he was seeing.I muttered an oath. Tied to a tent support was a human female. She was naked and bloodied, her wrists bound above her head. There was life in the captive, but not much more than a fleeting breath of it. She was unconscious on her feet, a wretched testament to Ziran brutality.I saw a Ziran approaching her. His lumbering gait, which he could barely manage as he trampled forward, conveyed massive inebriation. He held a broad blade. How many hours…days had they spent torturing that woman? And now this Ziran was intending to kill her. He would probably deliver a swift killing stroke. After that, what? Dismemberment? I couldn’t allow that.“Toler, take him out!”“Gladly, sir.”The Ziran loomed over the captive, his blade raised. And then the weapon fell from dead fingers as a pellet sliced through the back of his head.Toler’s shot inaugurated a hell storm of pellets and energy beams from our concealed positions around the camp. I shut down the feed from Toler and took aim at the duel spectators. I killed three of them, then dispatched one of the duelers with a staccato burst that shredded his bare skinned torso.We advanced into the camp, shooting every standing Ziran. A few Zirans had the presence of mind to return fire. Kemlock bolts from inside a tent sizzled past me. I zeroed in on the tent, stitching every square inch of its canvas covering with burning pellets. A soldier next to me leveled a rec barrel on the tent. The structure disappeared in a roaring whoosh of flame and directed energy.More tents exploded. A Ziran was flushed out of a tent, appearing too disoriented to realize his camp was under attack. Someone lobbed a grenade at his feet. A second later, a flash torched him.Five Zirans at the far end of the camp tried to make a stand. They performed a death dance to the tune of a blistering crossfire. Three Zirans made a dash for the forest. One laid down a blaze of cover fire in a near 360 arch. Tione dove to the ground as the bright shaft of a Kemlock bolt streaked over her. She put a pellet through the shooter’s chest, ending his barrage.I riddled the second Ziran before he disappeared into the foliage.The third one halted as if he’d collided with a tree, then fell backwards, smoke whirling from his cratered torso. The Ziran ran into a savage series of kill shots administered by a soldier blocking his path to survival.All shooting stopped in a heartbeat.I came across a wounded Ziran. His legs were charred stumps. He looked up at me, his mouth quivering, weak sounds emanating from it. Was he cursing me or begging for mercy?I strapped my ME5 over my shoulder and detached the Breed Five pistol magnetized to my thigh harness. I bent down, pressed the Breed Five to his forehead and triggered it. The ground beneath the Ziran’s head erupted in clods of gore and dirt.I looked around for more Zirans to put out of their misery. The camp was strewn with their bodies. Seeing no survivors, I ran over to where the captive was held. She had been untied and was lying on the ground.Farrin hovered over her, a wire thin applicator running from his armor to a tiny incision in her wrist. Healing fluids flowed intravenously into the woman; potent stimulants that should have instantly revived her. But she wasn’t responding.“I’m increasing the dosage,” Farrin said. He raised one of her shut eyelids. “Heartbeat is faint…too faint.”After a minute, Farrin’s applicator withdrew into its slot. “She’s dead.” He never looked away from her.Disappointment stabbed me. That woman’s survival would have been a perfect cap to this victory.Tione stood next to me. “We can’t leave her here. The Zirans might cut up her body just to vent their rage.”I nodded. “I damn sure won’t let that happen. We’ll conceal the body somewhere in the forest. Let’s go.”
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