Max took a fighting stance, aiming his guns at the Ratillac King, but Orion held up his hand.

  "No. I can't even see this thing's level," Orion warned. "Even if you're stronger than me, this thing is still too dangerous to take on with both your suits damaged. You need to get Slate out of here with Major."

  "What about you?" Max asked, backing towards Slate's slumped form.

  The Ratillac King saw the movement and aimed, firing another ultrasonic blast at Max. Orion stepped in front of it and took the hit in the shoulder, colorful fabric and splatters of blood filling the air.

  "I'll distract him. I make a pretty good target," Orion explained.

  Max turned and lifted Slate carefully onto Major's waiting saddle before climbing up himself. "How are we supposed to get past the main entrance with all those ratillacs waiting just outside?"

  The pink Ratillac King hopped up on the catwalk railing to get a better angle. It too opened its trunk and both rats fired again with a discordant WUB! Skin peeled away from Orion's thigh and stomach as he absorbed the blows. The shoulder wound was already knitting itself back together as Max watched in horrified fascination. Orion reached into his inventory and offered him a stack of brass metal discs.

  "I've been working on these Fire Traps," Orion said. "Line the floor in front of the door with these and open it. Be sure to back up, they aren't strong enough to damage the hallway but they don't distinguish friend or foe."

  Max accepted the traps and mounted Major. Making sure Slate was secure in the saddle, he nudged Major to stand up.

  Orion, "When I give the signal, get out of here!"

  "What's the signal?" Max asked.

  Orion took some quick breaths to hype himself up and charged the Ratillac King. The expression on the King's black visors turned into a yellow exclamation mark of alarm. The rodents fired at Orion, two direct hits slammed into Orion's chest and gut. The searing injuries barely slowed the Org down as he tackled the pink King on the railing.

  Orion screamed as they both pitched over the side, the pink King giving a squeal of dismay. The ratillac's tail snapped taut, dragging the blue King across the catwalk. It scrabbled to get purchase on the handrail and managed to get a grip on the baluster. It stared helplessly at Max as gravity swung Orion and his captive toward the catwalk below. Max heard Orion’s body hit the wall, jostling the platform. The second King lost its grip and went sailing over the side with a squeaky shriek.

  Max shouted over the commotion, "Let’s go, Major!"

  Muscle and machine bunched as Major crouched and took off at a run. They were able to retrace their steps, following the path of carnage they carved getting here. No other ratillacs intercepted them and within minutes they reached the entrance. Max slid off the saddle and scattered traps strategically on the floor before unlocking the door panel. He ran back to Major, shooing the cyworg back as the doors creaked open. As claws and muzzles started to squeeze into the opening, Max whipped out his twin pistols and started firing at the ravenous ratillacs. Several went down, but the others just climbed over the corpses in their effort to get to the fresh meat beyond. Finally the door lurched and opened wider, tires squealing and claws clicked against the tiles as the press of furry bodies flooded in.

  The ratillac at the front had nearly passed the minefield when the first trap went off. An explosion erupted in the middle of the swarm, guts and mechanical parts filling the air. Then a second, and a third went off. Those that weren't initially destroyed were thrown into the air, many landing in struggling heaps. The car parts made standing up difficult for many of them, and Max was easily able to pick these off.

  More explosive traps detonated, painting the hallway walls with blue blood and oil. The doors had opened completely and the ratillacs were concussed, confused and injured by fire and shrapnel. Seizing the opportunity, Max climbed back onto Major's back and grabbed Slate around the waist.

  Major didn't even need prompting. As soon as he felt his rider’s weight settle he plunged forward. Some of the ratillacs snapped halfheartedly at him, but most were too stunned to make the attempt. Just as he was about to reach the traps, Major crouched and leapt over the carnage filled hall. Two more traps went off on either side of the cyworg as he was in the air, flames and car parts peppering his hide. Fur singed and hot metal embedded into Major's underbelly and Max's legs, but they still landed safely on the other side.

  The cyworg didn't even slow down, running back the way they came. Max twisted his body and fired off a few more shots, but he felt the Commander's body shift in the seat. He slid his pistols back in his weapon wheel and adjusted his grip on Slate's waist. He kept an eye out for an ambush, but before long they were pounding down the slope towards Phoenix. Max could see people gathered outside and running towards them, recognizing his cadets and Dr. Birchett's Biosuit among them. As his vision started to blur and his breathing grew shallow, Max just hoped Orion could handle himself.

  Orion couldn't handle this! He was getting thrashed out here, and he'd barely managed to get a swing in! It was like playing some sick game of whack-a-mole, except in this version when you lost the game it bit you.

  The Ratillac King was fast, and Orion's battle sledge was not. When he would swing down at one of the furry bodies, they would skitter away before the blow struck. And when he aimed for one King, the other one snuck up behind and took a chunk out of him. The tail was also a hazard. With both rattilacs zipping around, the tail would try to wrap around his legs like a bolo, creating a tripping hazard on top of everything. All he was doing was creating dents in the catwalk.

  The blue King jumped onto a wooden crate nearby. They blasted Orion with another soundwave at a distance, tearing flesh off his face. The cheeks of the twin helmets started to play a funky synthwave track, mocking him.

  "Boss music," he complained. "Fantastic."

  Orion switched to his shotgun and shot at the blue ragtillac. It leaped off and ran across the railing on one tire, the plasma shot just taking out a chunk of crate. The pink King drove to the other side of him, the ratillacs trying to tie him up again. He leaped into a forward roll as the Ratillac King tried to close the circle on him, landing in a crouch. Once again, Orion marveled about how much more athletic this body was compared to his old one.

  Orion fired again, the shotgun's plasma spread at this range just barely managed to tag one of the pink King in the side. Buckshot holes dented the paint job, and the right tire popped. The bosses screamed and popped open their trunks, firing another barrage of Wubs at him. The Org dove and the shots hit the crate, further splintering the wood and snapping a rope net that tied it to the wall.

  Orion was exhausted. The accumulated wounds from the swarm outside, the bleeding wounds from the Rattilac King's teeth and the sonic vibrations from the music attacks were starting to affect his balance. This thing was strong, just a casual glance and Orion could see his impressively large health bar was nearly depleted. He could take a lot of punishment but he wasn't doing enough damage to even slow the boss down! But if he didn't do something here, the whole Colony could be in danger!

  Orion activated Overclock, switching back to Sunflare. He stood up, reddening muscles starting to bulge through the tears in his clothes. The Rattilac King squeaked with confusion and backed away. The movements seems slower as Orion perception grew sharper.

  Orion's growled, "You hurt my friend. Big mistake."

  The Ratillac King fired another barrage of dubstep at him, and the shots all tore away flesh, exposing blue muscle tissue. Even the Combat Regeneration couldn't completely nullify Overclock's damage over time, as well as outside attacks. But Orion didn't need it for long. He was going to make sure this mousy monarch wasn't going to hurt any of his people again.

  Grabbing Sunflare in both hands he swung down with every ounce of his strength, holographic fire arcing down as he aimed for the Boss. He put everything he had left in him into the attack, veins bulging over bleeding biceps, tusks clenched with effort. The head of the hammer struck, a metallic clang echoing in the chamber and a column of flame erupting from the hammer.

  He missed.

  The blue body jumped back and tugged on their conjoined tail, pulling its wounded pink counterpart back just before the sledge smashed it. The entire catwalk shuddered and there was the sound of grinding metal and a few snapping noises. The two combatants stared at each other, neither daring to move. The groaning grew to a fever pitch and the catwalk sunk a few panels behind the Ratlillac King. With a loud snap, the guardrail crumpled and the catwalk pulled away from the wall.

  The catwalk dropped as it peeled off, angling downward towards the opposite wall. The floor dipped to a thirty degree angle, barely missing the drill. The Ratillac King dug claws into the floor, and Orion grabbed the railing with Sunflare's clawed back, clinging for dear life.

  The floor dipped again with a roar of twisting metal, falling to forty five degrees. The Boss's wheels burned rubber as they started falling back, both chunky rat bodies barely catching the ledge as the catwalk continued to unspool itself.

  There was a sharp jerk as the catwalk caught on something, forward momentum stopping suddenly. The Ratillac King's claws scraped the floor as they were flung backwards, landing on the catwalk a floor below on the opposite side of the tube. They scrambled to their feet and the helmets flashed LED skull and crossbones at Orion. The trunks opened to aim speakers at the helpless Org, the Boss music speeding up to a fever pitch.

  There was a ripping sound above Orion. Tearing his gaze away from certain doom he looked above him. He saw what had stopped the floor from falling out from under him.

  Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.

  The damaged crates were tangled in the screws and rivets of the broken catwalk behind him. The rope net holding them in place was barely keeping it from falling, the torn hemp snarled on rusting screws from the railing. With one last rip the crates were free, sliding down the spiral ramp. Most fell off the side, but the busted one started to careen down the catwalk towards Orion.

  "Nope! I'm out," Orion decided.

  Orion deactivated Overclock and kicked his legs, using Sunflare’s handle to swing himself forward. He stored the weapon when momentum propelled him forward, barely managing to grab the railing on the catwalk below. He pulled himself up with shaking arms, collapsing on the metal floor. Orion struggled to stand as the Boss turned to aim at him. The thrumming bass grew louder as they prepared to fire.

  The crate slid off the ramp and landed directly on top of the blue Ratillac with a sickening crunch. Wood planks fell apart, revealing the crate to be full of iron ore, some of it rolling off and plunging into the empty air below. Blood splattered, and Orion could hear bones and metal shatter under the weight. One of the tires rolled past Orion as he lay there, catching his breath. A chunk of iron fell and smashed the beast’s helmet, the visor going dark. The pink King squealed with dismay, clawing at the pile in a desperate attempt to dig out their other half.

  A twinge of regret squeezed at Orion's heart. It was one thing to smash up a bunch of robots, but seeing animals suffering like this was heartbreaking. Orion struggled to stand, his balance wobbly after all the damage, and at least one eardrum was punctured. After a moment of thought, Orion asked the question on his mind, “Apus, how many animal companions can I have?"

  Apus appeared on his shoulder, speaking in his 'Tutorial' voice. "At your current level you can have one active combat partner. However, you have up to ten companions in your stables. You can switch your combat partner at any allied stables. Why?"

  Orion nodded and limped over to the frantic Ratillac. He knelt and the active King hobbled back, hissing. It was trapped, scared and dying. Orion extended a hand and concentrated.

  [Orion Starbeard wishes to form a partnership with Ratillac King.]

  "Let me help you, little guy." Orion urged, "I can heal you."

  The hissing continued, the helmet scrolling a line of exclamation marks across the screen. But when it was obvious the Org wasn't being aggressive, the expression turned into a blue crying emoji.

  [Ratillac King has accepted your request. Would you like to rename partner now? Y/N?]

  "Later!" Orion shouted. He sunk to his knees and started grabbing chunks of iron, stuffing it into his inventory. Once the smashed King was uncovered Orion used Mend Partner to heal his newly acquired companion. In a matter of minutes the Kings were damaged but both functional. The two halves hugged each other, then clambered forward to hug Orion's legs.

  Orion chuckled gently, "Welcome to the team, Gemini. Now let's go check on our friends."

  As they made their way up to the main level of the Rig, Orion heard the sound of honking and claws clicking on tile. A wave of badly injured ratillacs of all different makes and models rushed around the corner, racing towards them. Orion summoned Sunflare again, but Gemini calmly sat back on their car fins. The cheek speakers started to play a soft, calming vaporwave track. It reminded Orion of an eighties action movie, evoking images of sunsets at the beach and skating with a boombox over your shoulder.

  The ratillac swarm stopped, sitting up to listen. The crowd started to sway calmly at the music. Eventually, the injured rodents all started to turn and wander away. Gemini walked towards the swarm and the rest of the furry mob followed suit. Orion could only walk behind the King as their pied piper song lured the animals away. He did manage to scoop up a few undetonated Fire Traps along the way, trying to ignore the viscera around him.

  When they got back outside, the rodents dispersed, setting off in different directions. Gemini continued to play the music and Orion just shrugged, walking back toward the base. The King was content to follow behind their new partner all the way back to Phoenix. By the time they arrived, there wasn't another ratillac in sight.

  "Guess I'm going to have to start hunting bigger game," murmured Orion.

  After decontaminating, Orion made his way down to the Med Bay in a rush. He burst in the door, expecting the worst, and was immediately relieved to see everything well taken care of in Dr. Birchett's capable hands.

  Slate was propped up on one of the medical tables, getting stitched up by a medidrone. He had an oxygen mask over his face and looked rather pale, but when he spotted Orion he waved cheerfully.

  "He's a little doped up, and needs oxygen, but he's fine." Max stated.

  Max sat on a chair next to the Commander, Dr. Birchett removing chunks of shrapnel with tweezers. There was quite a bit of it that he could see, as well as burn wounds.

  Max followed his gaze, "I'm fine too. Junip says it won't even leave a scar. Now, what the hell are those things doing here?"

  Orion didn't even have to look where Max was pointing. He could feel Gemini hiding behind his legs, watching Max nervously. "They were hurt. I made them my partner," Orion said defensively, "Gemini here also scared off the other ratillacs, so the Rig should be safe to work on. Although I kinda broke some of the catwalks."

  Major Canis looked up from his spot next to his mate, whom Orion had named Aludra. She was healed and getting used to her new prosthetic leg, but still very pregnant. The alpha cyworg had bandages wrapped around him but looked more or less fine. He worfed softly at Gemini, and the King wubbed back. Satisfied that they didn’t present a threat, Major lay back down, Aludra resting her head on his neck.

  "Gemini," Max repeated, staring at the former boss mob. "An entire colony of miscreants, misfits and vagabonds. How is it that you're the weird one?"

  Dr. Birchett looked up from zir work to scrutinize Orion, then glanced at his new beast pal. Ze gave him a slight approving nod."Personally, I think you're fitting in just fine."

  [Mission Available: Nice Place, No Atmosphere

  Professor Queebeax wants you to gather materials to create a BioDome. A working Biodome will protect you from the harsh environments and allow you additional terraforming options.

  Rewards:

  +500-2000 XP

  +1000 Colony XP]

  Orion clicked the Share Mission button and closed the window. It had been about a week since the Rig incident. It had been almost a week and the new guard colonists were getting used to life in Phoenix. Some of them had requested MUTs of their own and had even helped with the expansion. The cadets had trained with Max, but their level had capped off once they had run enough drills. The newbies needed some field experience if they hoped to increase their Soldier jobs, so a trip to the underground city was organized.

  Orion was their guide, accompanied by Gemini. Gemini had become quite popular with the people of Phoenix, the ratillac was curious and quite playful once it had gotten a few decent meals in them. The Terran colonists and Neesya doted on them, sneaking Gemini treats and giving belly rubs whenever Orion wasn't looking. He didn't mind, it was good for morale and he was glad his companions were being taken care of while he worked. Even Slate had a hard time staying mad when the ratillac twins rested their chins on his knees, soulful digitized eyes staring at him apologetically.

  Professor Queebeax had even given him a new prosthetic to match them the color. The new leg was sleek and pink with a decorative fin on the back. It even had a Mod slot where the Professor had added a Scorch Mod cassette, giving Orion an extra fire attack when kicking.

  Even Dr. Birchett swung by to drop off a satchel full of emergency health packs. As Orion distributed the packs among the troops, Max stood behind to talk with the doctor at length. He didn't see the conversation but he thought he saw the doctor leaning over Max and speaking very close to his blushing face, zir hand pressed to the wall near his head.

  The squad consisted of Max, a Grey named Gunmetal who acted as his second in command, and seven guards including the new recruits. Orion hadn't had a chance to learn most of the guards' names except the cadets, Ssteev and Wynn. The other guards all seemed to use nicknames anyway, like Brick and Turbo, but they seemed to change by the day. It got so confusing that Apus eventually adjusted his HUD to show the guard’s names over their head. And so the warden and his new partner led the guards across the maze of walkways that connected the suburban roofs.

  The suburbs were still abandoned, so progress was swift. Orion didn't even see anyone till about halfway to the city. A dark shape was moving across the walkways and Orion signaled for them to stop. Max and the guards crouched behind him with weapons at the ready. Apus took off to get a bird’s eye view of the intruder.

  Recognizing the shape, Orion marvel. "It can't be,"

  The janitor Org was on the path a few buildings ahead. Its rusted foot was still stuck in the yellow bucket, and it was mopping the roof without a care in the world. In the dome projected light of day, the janitor's tusks could be seen poking through a bushy mustache. Orion stared at it through Apus’s eyes, wondering how it had gotten up here. The last time he'd seen the custodial robot was inside a collapsing building.

  Gunmetal walked up beside him with rifle drawn. Orion quietly warned, “Whoa, easy killer! You fire that here and we'll have company in a heartbeat. Besides, he's not hurting anything."

  Max folded his arms, "Please don't adopt this one."

  Orion turned, "Look, it's just one robombie. The skinny ones aren't even that strong, they're just people. Used to be people. We think. Either way, if he's not a threat why can't we just go around?"

  Max gave a long suffering sigh, shaking his head. He met Orion's pleading gaze. After a moment he rolled his eyes and relented, "Okay people, you heard the Director. No attacking unless threatened. He's right that we don't want to draw attention."

  The soldiers kept their guns at the ready but nodded mutely. Orion rolled his own eyes at this and just moved forward. He patted his hip to get Gemini's attention, and the Ratillac King kept close to his heels. By the time the janitor even noticed his presence, Orion was already passing him.

  The janitor gave a synthetic moan and reached out, then let out a confused grunt as he lost sight of the Org. It looked around for a moment before glancing down to see muddy foot, peg and wheel prints in the freshly mopped spot.

  "Mrrrah!" The Janitor grunted. He dipped the mop it carried into the foot bucket, plopped it into the wringer and squeezed the handle to remove the bulk of the water. With a frustrated grumble he started re-mopping the roof.

  Max pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed, "Okay, you win. That is just pathetic."

  Max followed Orion and the janitor gave another slow reaction swipe at him. The rest of the guards shrugged and followed, moving to either side. Unwilling to release the mop, every clawed grab for the passing soldiers missed by a wide margin.

  By the time Gunmetal passed under his elbow, the metallic Org seemed more focused on the muddy tracks than anything. Dipping the mop again, the janitor continued his noble mission.

  By the time they reached the outskirts of the city, romombies started to appear in the streets below. First there was only a scattering of bodies dotting the concrete below. But as the neon lights came into view the city was suddenly crowded. Dozens of big modded robo mutants towered over the masses, and milling about aimlessly. There were even a few Authority Brigade drones stomping around, sirens wailing and truncheons drawn.

  Orion whispered, "Okay, this is what we came here for. Did everyone accept the party invite?"

  The team nodded. All except Ssteev who shook his head. Max simply pulled up the mission and shared it again, this time watching the Jrassk youth press the accept button. Max raised his pistols, "All right, let's level up!"