Free The Vitalis Chronicles: Tomb of the Relequim by Jay Swanson Page B

a minute, but not long enough. Not long enough for the answers to come. He needed time to think, to put the pieces together. This couldn't be possible.
    “ All accounted for sir. Three wounded, two dead.”
    “ Who?” Keaton asked the question before realizing it wouldn't matter. He didn't know any of their names. Guilt joined the realization as Sykes listed off the dead and dying.
    “ You should come have a look in any case.”
    “ We don't have time to bury them, Sykes.”
    “ I don't mean that, sir. Larson opened one of the monsters up. Weird as hell, but it'd help to take a minute if we have it.”
    Keaton just nodded as he stood, and followed the captain dutifully. The whole situation felt surreal. Things like this didn't exist, and if they did they should be in some dark cave over on the Forbidden Continent. Not here. Not real.
    “ Hey, Captain.” Larson knelt over one of the black corpses, knife in hand. The blade was streaked with what looked like tar. “These things are unbelievable, sir. Take a look.”
    He stood and backed up a bit to give his superior some space.
    “ The build of this thing is crazy. It's so taut you'd think every muscle on the bastard was made out of straight tendon. They're hard as rocks.” He pointed towards the gut with his knife. Its entrails were laying on the ground where he'd made the cut.
    “ Look at its organs, like no animal I've ever seen before. You open something that size, say a stag or some large dog, you'll find the chest cavity opens up. Feels like more space than should be there, you know? At least everything fits right. This sucker's compact. Everything in there is under a tremendous amount of pressure. It was work getting through the skin and into the abdominal muscles, but once I did, he pretty much split himself. I recognize the liver and kidneys. But what those things are... and that? I have no idea.”
    Sykes knelt down and stretched the thing's forelegs out. “Almost as long as my own arms.”
    “ And look at those claws, sir. Cat's paws but the claws are like giant eagle's talons.”
    “ These things looked a lot smaller when they were scurrying around.” Sykes stood back up, but his gaze remained fixed on the thing in front of him.
    “ Aye, sir. Stretch em out though? If they stood they'd be close to five feet tall if not more. Their torso is really, really short for how much they've got going on in there.”
    “ Practically no neck either.”
    “ Weird creatures sir. Smell like hell, too. Fur's greasy, meat's beyond stringy. These things are worthless if you're wanting to use them for anything. Couldn't even make a decent stew out of one if you were starving.”
    “ Probably choke on every bite if you did.”
    “ We need to move,” Keaton finally spoke up.
    “ Sir, begging your pardon, but we could really stand to learn a thing or two while we have the chance to open these suckers up.”
    “ As much as I'd like to let you do that, Larson, I'm afraid we don't have time to sate your curiosity. Vasquez is supposed to meet us another five miles north, and there are no guarantees they haven't run into something similar.”
    “Not to mention the possibility that there are more of these things lurking about us now.” Sykes was scanning the area again.
    “ Sirs, we've gotta at least bring one along with us.”
    “ We've got time to keep, Larson. Grab your gear. Sykes, your wounded good to move?”
    “ Aye, sir. Just light injuries.”
    “ Two dead and three scratched... the lottery of war is strange, isn't it?” Keaton mused for a moment longer. “Alright, cut the claw off that thing and stick it in your pack. It's all you have time for and more than you have room to carry. Sykes, get your men together and get some water in them. If Vasquez's convoy encountered these things, we'll have a long run ahead of us.”

    A RDIN LOOKED UP AFTER A WHILE, MAKING OUT THE MAN'S FACE AS BEST HE COULD . He was wearing strange armor. It was bulky and it made