The blastdoor wouldn't last much longer. I ejected the spent clip from my light machine gun, jamming a fresh one home. One in the gun, one in the belt, and me all alone. Not a good outlook when you're facing something as big and heavy as a rinoceros, and twice as strong. The blastdoor now looked seriously out of shape, and I stepped back a few paces in case it came flying from its hinges when the beast finally broke through. It did. With a screeching sound of hardened steel being torn apart, the heavy door was ripped from its frame and sent flying, crashing to the ground and grinding along it with a wailing sound. A sense of foreboding filled me as the monstrous shape of my adversary emerged from the shadows. For a moment it just stood there, its small red eyes narrowing, fixing their peircing gaze on me. I returned the stare, knowing that my odds were slim, but prepared to take my chances. My foe gave a low, grumbling grunt, sending a stream of steam from its nostrils. Then, with a bellowing roar, it charged.
I turned tail and ran. I ran down corridors, past alcoves I didn't dare hide in in case the Onos found me, over pipes that had crashed down from the ceiling during the explosion a few hours back, through several smaller and larger rooms, then even more corridors. All the while I could hear the beast pounding away at the floor plates behind me, sometimes getting closer, sometimes falling behind a little, but never tiring. I didn't dare look back - if I'd fall over something now or make a wrong turn it'd all be over. Still my pursuer was hot on my heels, several times I felt its hot, humid breath down my neck, but it hadn't caught me yet. The Onos seemed tireless in its pursuit, but my breath was faltering. My lungs were afire, my legs felt like sticks that could give way at any moment. If I wanted to come out of this alive, I had to come up with a plan, and fast. I made another right turn, and found myself at the end of a blind corridor. The corridor turned darker, and as I turned, the Onos stood in the entrance, looming. It knew it had trapped me, that there was no way out, that I could no longer get away. I was reminded of a cat, the way it eyes a mouse in a corner, knowing that it has won, savouring the moment, the pinnacle of the hunt, the moment before the kill. Even better if the prey still tries to resist, to fight to the last. The prey, in this case, thought likewise, as I opened fire with my puny lmg. I could see a few bullets connecting, spattering blood onto the surrounding walls, but most of them just ricocheted off the massive headplate harmlessly. The Onos now came thundering down the corridor, a freight train of flesh and bones. I smacked the emergency sealing button for the airlock bulkhead.
My nemesis lay crushed between the powerful mandibles of the hydraulic bulkhead door. It was still living, but barely. Great gouts of steam mixing with yellow blood came from its mouth and nostrils, the creature taking its last breaths. As I drew closer, I heard what sounded almost like mumbling from the mouth of the beast. I bent down, and as my adversary exhaled for the last time, I distinctly heard it:
"omg h4x"
Topic: The Onos (Read 5721 times)
