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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Lazybones" data-source="post: 5214419" data-attributes="member: 143">Thanks, Canaan. Recently I've turned my attention to novels, both polishing up some of my older work and developing a few new ideas. My current goal is to have at least two of my novels self-published using Smashwords by the end of the year. This will probably be my last EnWorld story for a while. * * * * * Session 23 (September 29, 2008)Chapter 97Catalina fought a surge of terror as the alien monstrosity slammed down Hadrian and loomed over her, a memory of what the things had done to her before warring against her control.  A voice in the back of her mind screamed at her to drop her weapon and run, but she somehow overcame it, lifting her weapon and firing it into the alien’s torso.  The alien turned, and as she looked up into its face she could see that the chryssalid was in bad shape.  Its eyes were covered by a nasty film, and a black froth ran from its jaws and trailed down its chest, glistening in a half-frozen mass.  Its movements was as powerful as she remembered, but clumsy, and she was able to leap back as it lunged at her, those deadly claws, and the implantation tentacle between them, seeking her flesh.  She was struck hard, a glancing blow, and felt a stabbing pain follow as her shoulder impacted the floor.  She skidded and rolled with it, coming back up onto her feet as the chryssalid stumbled after her.  It swung again, missing her by a good two feet, its claws tearing apart a slender stone pillar, spattering her with shards.  She ran back, getting clear before she could recover.  Unfortunately, it fixed on the next closest adversary, which happened to be Mary. “Leave me alone!” the Indian doctor yelled, as the chryssalid lurched toward her.  The two collided hard, an impact that the human caught the worst of, falling over onto her back, bits of stone crunching under her armor.  The chryssalid reared up, lifting its claws like long daggers, knocking aside Jane, who’d lifted her rifle but who was flung aside before she could pull the trigger.  The thing let out a monstrous, agonized hiss, and lunged, the claws coming down toward the center of Mary’s torso.  Vasily slammed into the thing from the side, and this time it was the alien that gave way, as the Russian, augmented by several hundred pounds of human and alien technology, drove the two of them into a formation of mushroom-shaped green and purple rocks.  The little forest was crushed under their impact, and the chryssalid roared again as it reared up, lashing blindly at its attacker.  It caught him across his faceplate with an armored elbow, and Vasily was knocked onto his backside, groaning as the back of his helmet slammed hard against the cold stone.  The alien stumbled as it fought to get back to its feet, crushing the remains of the stone formation under its flailing limbs.  Plasma bolts blasted into it as the Alphas unleashed their full firepower into its body.  Jane dragged Mary clear and then pulsed several shots from her plasma rifle across the alien’s back.  Vasily took advantage of the barrage to roll over and crawl clear, toward the heavy plasma cannon he’d dropped earlier.  The alien roared as more shots tore into it.  James emptied his plasma rifle, then bent to help Vasily to his feet.  He hefted the plasma cannon and turned in time to see the alien emerge from the glowing wreath of plasma that had churned its torso into a gory mess.  One arm dangled from a few twining sinews from its shoulder socket, and part of its face had been blasted away, including one eye and part of its jaws.  It could barely walk, but some instinct drove it forward, its remaining claw stabbing out toward Vasily.  The Russian held his ground until it was nearly on top of him, then he fired the cannon.  The plasma bolt struck the alien in the chest, reversing its momentum and flinging it backward, until it struck the wall of the cavern.  With a final gurgling hiss it collapsed, its remaining limbs twitching once more before it fell still.</blockquote>

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