Warp Riders

Deikan picked up a lemon from the machine and bit into it, the sweet-sour juice running down his chin. He was a full-blooded Bondi Norn, with shiny blue fur and an unruly mop of blonde hair. He wore sandals on his feet, a pair of colourful shorts and a loose red jacket.
"Deikan!"
He turned to the voice. It was Pol, a Chi Chi Norn, running towards him. She looked frightened.
"What is it?" Deikan asked.
"Grendels! Here!"
Deikan dropped his lemon and ran. He moved surprising fast for a Bondi, but his travel had toughened him. He hated Grendels. He had barely been in this world for a month and they had arrived. He dashed into the lift with Pol leaping in beside him. He punched the button, and the doors closed with a whoosh. A second later, and they were on the lower floor.
He saw the Grendel there. It loomed in the darkness, a shadowy green shape with big teeth and breath foul enough to peel paint from the walls. It moved towards Deikan, stamping on huge feet. It knew it could easily kill the two Norns. They were frail and weak, whereas he was large and strong. They couldn't stand up to his powerful, crushing blows and slashing claws. Deikan reached into the inner pocket of his jacket and pulled something out. The Grendel slowed, blinking slowly. Then it remembered
itself. Strong, powerful-
Deikan loosed off two shots to the head. The Grendel fell backwards with a thud.
- and dead.

Deikan blew away the smoke and slipped his gun back into his pocket. Pol looked at him with a mixture of wonder and jealousy.
"One day... You're going to tell me where you got that. You're full of surprises, Deikan."
Deikan sighed. He had been given the gun by Czek, a veteran of the Warp Wars. The last Deikan had seen of him was on Beachworld, the place Deikan had grown up on.
"No more Grendels?" Deikan asked.
"No," said Pol. "That was the only one."
"Guess again, Norns," rumbled a deep, green and scaly voice from behind them.

The Grendel was taller and leaner than the one Deikan had killed. He had a tall orange mohican, and actually wore a ragged leather tunic and tattered leather trousers. He had a large, complex tattoo down all one side of his face, intricate blue loops and spirals down to his neck and all over his arms. Deikan pulled out the gun and pointed it at the Grendel's face. The scaly creature quickly pulled a long knife from his belt and regarded the gun suspiciously.
"Weapon?"
"Yup," said Deikan.
"Better than mine?"
"Yup."
"Why bother fighting then?"
Deikan watched, astonished, as the Grendel put away his knife in his belt. Try as he might, he couldn't believe what he had just seen. The Grendel had actually put away his weapon. He blinked. The Grendel had spoke. It wore clothes. It had a knife. Something didn't add up, but the Grendel probably could do that as well. Deikan blinked again a lowered the gun.
"Good," said the Grendel. "I think we best introduce ourselves. This will be my new home, until it is time for me to travel again."
"What's the Warp like?" Pol asked. The Grendel stared at her with interest.
"Ah, a native," he said. "The Warp cannot be explained by you or
I. Your body is broken down into tiny pieces of energy and sent across a network of Portals spanning distances we cannot comprehend. Only the Unaqui know of the true working of the Warp."
"Unaqui?" Deikan asked.
"The creators of the Warp, and the Portals. Long gone now," sighed the Grendel. He stuck out a paw. "I am Grym."
"Deikan," mumbled Deikan, feeling slightly odd as he shook the scaly hand. "This is Pol."
The Grendel nodded and looked over Deikan's shoulder at the other Grendel's corpse. He sighed, then smiled.
"Such is life. The work of that mystery weapon of yours, I presume?"
"Yup."
"Ah," grinned the Grendel. He ran a long tongue over his lips and looked around. "Food?"
Deikan pointed to the lift, but stopped. Slouching in the lift was another Grendel. He wore similar ragged clothes to Grym, but looked stronger and heavier. He had drawn a long knife from his belt and was using it to pick between his teeth.
"Brother," he hissed at Grym, eyes blazing. "I see you are with the filth again."
"Kordaan," said Grym, simply. He pulled out his knife and spat neatly between the other Grendel's feet. Kordaan looked down slowly and snarled.
"For that, Grym, you shall die much, much slower."

Kordaan leapt at Grym, fangs bared. Grym sliced upwards with his knife, tearing a gash in Kordaan's side. The Grendel howled and curved downwards with his blade. It missed Grym and struck the ground. "You're faster," snarled Kordaan.
"No, you just suck more," chuckled Grym, and surged forward. Kordaan leapt back and roared, saliva spraying from his mouth. He thrust his knife at Grym, running a deep wound down on leg. Kordaan grinned, bloodstains on his fangs.
"Had enough, weakling?"
"I'm just warming up."Grym muttered, circling his brother warily. Suddenly there was a mechanical whirr from behind him. He half turned, keeping on eye on Kordaan and the other on where the noise had come from.
It was a small machine that he had not noticed before. But there was something eerily familiar about it, something he couldn't place... Taking advantage of his brother's distraction, Kordaan leapt. The machine whirred again, and three wing-like fans opened up. They sparkled with energy, and too late did Kordaan realise what it was.
The numbers appeared on the display: 089274. Grym threw himself for safety, and Kordaan rolled to the side, bracing himself against the howling wind. Suddenly Deikan remembered where he was. He pulled out his gun and pointed it at Kordaan.
"Leave! Now!"
Kordaan roared and leapt at him. Deikan fired the gun, and the bullet ripped through Kordaan's side. He howled and lurched, clutching his side. He groaned, blood seeping through his claws. Blearily, he focussed on Deikan, filling up with rage. He staggered forward, knife drawn, when Grym slammed into him. Forgetting his knife, he began to beat Kordaan senseless, repeatedly plunging his claws into the open
wounds.
"Grym! The Portal!" Deikan screamed. The Grendel looked up and reached for the button to turn it off. He had almost reached it when a
clawed hand, covered in blood, gripped it tight.
"Oh no," whispered Kordaan hoarsely. "You're not doing that."
Deikan raised the gun again, but the dying Grendel was shielding himself behind Grym.
"Interesting weapon... furball... I must get one... for myself!"
Kordaan wheezed, coughing up great amounts of blood. "Now... you're going to save my... life!"
"No can do, reptile," spat Deikan.
"Then... a life for a life it is!" Kordaan snarled and threw Grym into the nearest wall. Unsteadily he got to his feet and rushed at Deikan, fangs bared and claws at the ready. Deikan aimed his gun, but it was ripped from out of his hands before he could pull the trigger. Kordaan lifted him up in the air by his neck, his arm quivering at the weight of the Bondi Norn.
"I... will kill you... with my bare hands..."
Deikan gasped for breath against the crushing grip of the Grendel. He kicked and fought, but felt his strength drain away.
"Stop!"
Pol rushed at the Grendel, holding a makeshift club. Kordaan struck out with his other hand, knocking her backwards. She tumbled into the Portal, disappearing in a flash of light.
"Pol... No!" Deikan gasped, struggling limply. Kordaan snarled weakly and tightened his grip.
"First... the girl... now... you!"
Suddenly Kordaan's eyes glazed over. His grip tightened, then fell limp. His jaw dropped, and his weak, irregular breaths stopped altogether. He collapsed on the floor, his dagger sticking out of his back. Grym stood over him, swaying slightly. He took the gun from Kordaan's limp claws and handed it to Deikan.
"Pol..."
"The Portal is still there, Deikan. We can go after her."
"But there are thousands of worlds out there..."
"Then we search all of them until we find her. This whole mess is my fault, for bringing my brother here," said Grym, laying a paw on Deikan's shoulder. The Bondi Norn looked up into his face and nodded. He remembered Czek, and his old stories of the Warp. He tucked his gun into his pocket and stepped towards the Portal.
"Then we ride."

Stories

Chapter 2