The human was no match for our cunning.

I bristled, listening to their footsteps approaching, languid, dragging. They had been weakened, maimed from the encounters with our brethren outside. Yet, somehow, it had survived long enough to make it this far... It was strong... Door after door slammed open as it searched for sanctuary, growing closer and closer to the room in which we awaited it. Anticipation crackled through my veins as I approached the door, waiting in the silent dark, knowing that soon it would be mine. The empress would be pleased with the honor and glory I bring to her with this conquest.

As soon as the door opened, I saw its face register fear and understanding before quickly slamming it shut. But it wouldn't be enough. We were faster, stronger, smarter. I lunged at it in my bio-suit, determined to claim what was rightfully ours.

But my suit only clanged against the door, the human's strength and intelligence thwarting my attempt. Frustration boiled within me as I fell to the ground, seething with anger. How dare it deny me?

I could hear its labored breaths on the other side of the door, wounded from our previous encounter. A string of expletives burst forth from the creature. "Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck."

My comrades and I circled around the door, trying to find a weakness in their defenses. But it had barricaded us inside. Their groans of pain taunted me. Blood began to pool under the doorway, and I cursed. It was going to bleed out long before I could begin transference. Before any of us could begin. I pushed forward and tried to shove my claws beneath the door, but the spindly appendages were too thick to go more than an inch or two beneath. I saw the shadow of the human's fingers dance away from my grasp.

Just when hope seemed lost, I heard the feral growls of my own kind - infesting the creatures these humans called "Dogs," vicious beasts somehow tamed and domesticated by the homo sapiens. Aramat, we called them, after our god of the hunt. My heart leaped with excitement; the Aramat would bring us our prey. The human bellowed at it, a deep and booming voice echoing down the hall as it issued a final challenge. My admiration for the creature grew. To face down an Aramat and not flinch was worthy of respect.

I hesitated. I had not seen any weapons on the human when it opened the door, but its survival to this point may well have meant it was capable of fending off the lone warrior approaching it.

My fellow soldiers bristled with excitement and eagerness as we anticipated our triumph over this pocket of resistance. We were young and hungry for battle, eager to prove ourselves worthy to serve the empress.

Two more Aramat voices joined the fray and my frame trembled with joy. I knew this human would be mine. I had already shown, if only to myself, that I was more intelligent and faster than my brethren currently alongside me. Whilst they bumbled over one another, clambering and falling from edges and ledges, I easily and nimbly danced through the throng of bodies, nary ever being touched.

A wicked growl came from the hallway, much closer this time, catching everyone's attention.

At this point, the Aramat were secured around the door like a vise, the human trapped. Yet, it did not submit, bellowing defiance once again. "Well come on then, you fuckers! COME AND GET ME!"

"Prepare," I heard one of the Aramat whisper in my mind. "We have it." My brothers and sisters, responding to the telepathic call, seethed around me. I, however, sat and waited, patiently moving out of the way of my brethren's erratic movements.

Without warning, the door flew open. I paused, processing what I had just witnessed. The door had actually been opened, not pushed through. The human had opened it, it was not ripped open by the force of their bodies colliding with it. I glanced at the doorframe and the lack of damage confirmed my suspicions.

The human flew backward, grappling with the monstrosity that had collided with its chest. As the pairing hit the floor, in a fluid motion, the human jerked upwards with one hand, and I saw a glitter and flash of light enter into the Aramat's ribcage. It staggered and howled in rage as the blade cut deep into its cavity. My fellows pressed in, but a hiss escaped the injured beast "Do not!" They retreated. I was still in the same spot. Watching. Waiting. This human was clever. It had opened the door. It was up to something, and I would find out what before making my move.

The Aramat snapped and lunged, but the human held its arm firmly in the air, twisting the knife deeper and shouting in pain as the Aramat's claws shredded through its flesh. They were going to kill it if they kept this up, and I would lose my prize!

The other two Aramat bound into the room, and as they did so, one of them caught the door and it banged all the way open, and then to my dismay, slammed shut. The human's eyes gleamed and it bared its teeth in a strange way0. "It wants to be trapped in here with us, why?" I mused to myself. I shifted slightly, circling around to sit by its head, away from the teeth and claws of the newly arrived Aramat soldiers. Wouldn't do to get kicked across the room.

With a wrench and a clatter, the Aramat twisted its claws deep into the human's chest and it gasped. The human's grip on the blade fell away and with a quick shake of its torso, the Aramat dislodged it and tossed it away, spinning in the dark and bouncing across the floor.

"Prepare," it whispered to us again. It opened its great maw and slowly, maliciously began a descent towards the human's head. The human panicked and struggled, thrashing their arms and legs, but the flanking Aramat bit down on its legs, eliciting a shriek of pain as they did so. The lead Aramat took the human's head in their mouth and gingerly turned its head to one side. The human struggled once more and I saw a gout of blood erupt from their face as the Aramat's teeth sunk deep.

The room, lit by the dim red glow, was filled with the chaos of the skirmish. The human's cries echoed off the walls, but it was less pain and more anger - its defiant spirit apparent even in the face of overwhelming odds. The Aramat were relentless, their primal instincts driving them to tear and rend. Yet, amidst this brutality, I remained poised, analyzing every move of this extraordinary creature. Not my companions, not the Aramat, but the human. It was magnificent.

I couldn't help but admire the human's resilience. Even as it lay pinned and mauled, its spirit refused to break. Its singular remaining eye, though filled with pain, burned with a fire that spoke of unyielding will. I sensed something more within this being, a depth of cunning and determination that was rare even among its kind. It was not just another prey; it was a worthy adversary. I had to have it.

Suddenly, the human's hand moved stealthily. Its movements were subtle, almost imperceptible amidst the chaos. But my keen eyes did not miss the slight shift,, their elbow moving with purpose. For the first time, I noticed that it had had one hand buried inside some kind of container attached to its waist. When had it done that? Had it been there the entire time?

The human's fingers groped inside the pack, searching for something. I tensed, my instincts warning me of impending danger. This was no ordinary human; it was a survivor, one who had outwitted death at every turn. What trick did it have up its sleeve this time?

A small click reverberated through the air. Imperceptible among the screaming and snarling, but I heard it nonetheless.

As the human's hand emerged from the pack, my eyes widened in shock. Clutched in its grasp was a small, cylindrical object - a grenade. The realization struck me like a bolt of lightning. This human was not just fighting to survive; it was fighting to take us down with it. In that instant, I knew that our triumph would be short-lived. The human's final act was not one of surrender, but of defiance - a final, desperate gamble to ensure that its end would be our end as well.

With a swift, determined motion, the human pulled the pin. The hiss of the grenade's fuse filled the room, a harbinger of the impending explosion. Panic surged through me, a primal fear of imminent destruction.

Leaping towards the human, I aimed to snatch the grenade and hurl it away. But the chaos around me hindered my movements. My brethren, unaware of the danger, continued their assault, their ferocity blinding them to the threat that now faced us all.

As the seconds ticked down, the room became a maelstrom of terror and confusion. The human's final words, "Enjoy your last meal, you fuckin' bitch," echoed in my ears as the grenade rolled out of its grasp. What did these words mean? They were powerful and timeless and shook me to my core.

The Aramat holding down the human's face to the ground realized its error, but too late. Time seemed to slow as it veered away, finding its brothers between it and a tightly shut door.

Each moment stretched into an eternity as the realization of our impending doom settled upon us.

The human rolled onto their side, laughing weakly.

That was it! My opening!

I jumped high into the air, landing on the lead Aramat's back, causing it to hiss and snap at me, but I didn't care. Another throw of my body had me collide with the wall, and I once more put everything I had into another burst. I leaped at the human warrior's exposed spine and...

Success! I felt the legs of my suit attach to it. I urgently thought about the processes necessary to begin infiltration. The human slumped. "No, you don't, you thitra," I hissed at it.

THUD

The explosion knocked me senseless, even inside my suit. There was a dull roar, and all the air was sucked out of the room. The drill beneath my tender appendages had opened and started working already, and I could feel the air passing by, we were soaring through the

THUD

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