//------------------------------//
// Chapter 8: Trixie's Experiment 
// Story: An Alien in Need, is a Friend Indeed 
// by Word Worthy 
//------------------------------//

	“How goes the construction of the machine, engineer?” Inquired the silken, arrogant voice of Trixie, as she watched the floating Huragok go about its business within the cramped confines of her caravan. “It better be complete. Trixie’s patience is not infinite!”	

After a few more moments of slowly drifting about the focus of his work, Lighter Than Some turned to face the unicorn with his beady black eyes. He whistled affirmatively, and Trixie’s face drew into a pleased grin.

“Excellent. Trixie possesses the power source we require for its activation,” she proclaimed sweetly, approaching Lighter Than Some’s new creation. Floating to make way for her, the engineer chirped in curiosity. His captor’s unusually cheerful mood caused the Huragok to calm in her presence, and he was no longer in distress. This was a significant development for Lighter Than Some, especially when the unicorn’s usually abhorrent behavior was taken into account.  

Trixie noted the curiosity in the delicate alien’s tone, and peered at him for a second. “Indeed, it was found in Canterlot, just as the Great and Powerful has promised.” Using her telekinesis, Trixie opened up her saddlebags and brought out the object to show to Lighter Than Some.

“Behold, engineer, the might and majesty that is the Alicorn Amulet!” As Trixie announced it dramatically, a thunderclap from the rainstorm erupted outside and lightning flashed through the window, briefly illuminating Trixie’s face in the dim lighting of the caravan.

Lighter Than Some glowed purple briefly, as Trixie floated the amulet into the grasp of one of his tentacles. It was of elegant design, with a rather dark color palette in mind. The silver and black head of a red-eyed Alicorn jutted out from the central piece of the necklace, with the Alicorn’s raven black and blood red wings spread out symmetrically on either side. The center housed the source of the amulet’s dark power, a polished red ruby inlaid in the darkened silver, which itself almost seemed to flow, as if alive, across the surface.

Lighter Than Some twirled the powerful artifact around in his tentacles thoughtfully, humming quietly to himself. The Huragok found the magic energy it radiated fascinating and alien to him. Trixie watched him inspect it for awhile impatiently. Then, as her patience finally waned, she said, “Enough pandering to your idle curiosity, engineer. Insert the new power source into the device!” She motioned her foreleg towards the strange object near them. “Trixie wishes to see that it actually works.”

Obediently, the Huragok complied. Floating back over to his creation, he inspected the object and looked for the power receptacle. 

The machine itself was surprisingly simplistic in its design, consisting almost entirely of a glimmering silvery box, about half the size of Trixie and Lighter Than Some’s bodies. The silver surface was immaculate and played host to several glowing magical runes and arcane symbols, while the top was dominated by a small circular opening, the natures of which only Trixie and the Huragok could know in detail.

Dexterously, Lighter Than Some navigated the bulk of the Alicorn Amulet towards the receptacle, a second smaller rectangular opening on the box’s side. Almost at once, the surface of the box seemed to sense the presence of the artifact, and the opening shape changed to mirror that of the Amulet almost perfectly.

As Trixie looked on, impressed, the Huragok inserted the Alicorn Amulet. The glowing runes on the box’s sides pulsed with an even greater vigor, casting rays of blue light all across the room.

Grinning once again as she scrutinized the machine, Trixie said, “You’ve done well, Lighter Than Some.” She raised a hoof to his head to rub him affectionately. He tensed slightly, but did not retreat from her. “See? Trixie can be kind and generous to those who obey and assist her, my dear,” she cooed, before her voice began to accommodate a hint of malice. “However, the Great and Powerful Trixie has no tolerance for those who should fail in their duty to her. Do you understand?”

Lighter Than Some hummed softly in agreement, and Trixie approached the machine. She looked from the schematics papers on the floor to the actual machine, and nodded with her eyes closed, satisfied. Humming triumphantly, Trixie ran her other hoof over its energized, pulsating surface. She could sense the mysterious mechanisms working within, and the energy of the Alicorn Amulet surging into her. Trixie’s grin only grew.

Looking from the machine and then to the Huragok, her magenta eyes began to glow an ethereal red. Lighter Than Some curled up slightly in fear at the sight, before Trixie averted her gaze from him and made her way towards the door.

Not looking at him, she declared, “Now that Trixie knows the machine works, it is time to find a suitable...guinea pig for Trixie to test it upon.” She turned to face her alien assistant one final time. “I have seen one of your compatriots, not of the two here, but a new one from a starship land nearby after those explosions near Ponyville.”

This caught Lighter Than Some’s attention, and he emitted a whistle of surprise, to which Trixie nodded. “Indeed, my floating little minion. Your Covenant have arrived to try and retrieve you. If the strange book Trixie managed to steal from that fool Discord is correct, you must be very important to them.”

Recalling the events on Harvest, Lighter Than Some hummed plaintively. For a moment, Trixie’s eyes returned to normal and she approached him again. “Oh, fear not my dear, it will be all right.” Suddenly, her eyes glowed once more, and she smiled, almost sadistically. “By the time they see what remains of this ‘guinea pig’ when the Great and Powerful is concluded with her experiments, so great will their fear be, that they will be swift in their egress from our skies, never to be seen again!” 

Trixie finished her statement off with a bout of cruel giggling, before turning her back on Lighter Than Some again and bursting outside into the rain-soaked Everfree Forest, slamming the door ominously behind her. Watching Trixie gallop away through her caravan’s small window, with only the quiet purr of his creation to keep him company, Lighter Than Some was unsure of whether to be relieved, or paranoid, from the unicorn’s declaration.



	

Far from the treacherous marshes and shadowy vales of the Everfree, Twilight Sparkle, Dadab, Rarity and the others were dealing with the fallout from the Brute Ferus’ sudden and unprovoked attack.

After having given everyone a few moments to rest and regain their bearings at the Golden Oak Library, Twilight had rushed Rainbow Dash, Chur, and Applejack to Ponyville General Hospital post haste. The former had both protested, while Applejack had uncharacteristically gone along with little argument. 

It was the mid evening now, and Spike, Dadab, and Twilight were all outside the room where the three were being looked at, sitting around tensely in wait. An important guest was arriving to address the entire affair of alien life appearing in Equestria directly, and it was up to Twilight to greet them.  Fluttershy, Rarity, and Pinkie Pie in the meantime, were inside with the others as well as one of the medical staff, Nurse Redheart. 

The three mares were working alongside Redheart, doing whatever they could to help out. Fluttershy was adept with treating injuries from her years of work with animals, and Rarity used her observant eye to help the nurse find specific points of injury, while Pinkie Pie mainly tried to keep the situation pleasant for everyone, with largely mixed results on her part.

Redheart bustled efficiently about the sterile, white, but still surprisingly warm and cozy hospital room. In no time, she had Applejack put into a reclined position so that her bruised neck could slowly mend itself, while Pinkie Pie kept her occupied with some of her silly stories. AJ tried her best not to roll her eyes as the well meaning party pony rambled on.

Coming next to Rainbow Dash, the process was a bit more complicated for Nurse Redheart. With Rarity’s telekinetic assistance, she and Fluttershy had to restrain Rainbow slightly as they pulled each spiker round from the bone folds of the pegasus’ wing. Rarity cringed in disgust as the last of the two inch spikes were pulled out along with a few drops of blood, all the while Rainbow Dash barely stifled a scream.

“Ow, owwww! Just leave em’ in! Leave em’ in, dammit!”

Fluttershy hushed her, and spoke in as best a reassuring voice as she could. “Rainbow, its alright, they’re all pulled out now. The pain should numb away gradually.”

“Gah, that hurt! If that oversized monster is still alive somehow, I’m gonna rip him to shreds when I find him!” Dash muttered through gritted teeth. Applejack heard the commotion from the other side of the bed curtain and started to moved in a worried fashion, but Pinkie Pie doubled her efforts in distracting her.								

Redheart had conducted the entire removal procedure with a neutral, professional gaze, but her face was now solid and stern as granite. “Rainbow Dash, you will do no such thing. By doctors’ orders, none of you three are to engage in any physically demanding activities for an entire week.” Rainbow attempted to argue, but Redheart’s expression as she moved to continue her work indicated it was not at all up for debate. With the spikes removed and disposed of, Redheart and Fluttershy wrapped Rainbow’s injured wing carefully in gauze, set the bones back into their proper order, and put the entire appendage in a sling.

“Ah, there we are,” Redheart proclaimed with a sight of relief, rubbing her hooves together. The nurse’s bright pink mane, formerly in a bun, was now loose and slightly tangled from trying to work against Rainbow Dash’s struggling, as well as having to deal with the mare’s repeated attempts to argue. 

With Rainbow Dash treated and left to stare worriedly at her wing, Redheart set about the next task. “Now, onto the...whatever Chur is supposed to be,” she mumbled under her breath. "The dragon lady..."

Rarity and Fluttershy followed her over to Chur's section. The Kig-Yar looked odd, the way she slouched as she sat up in the hospital bed. Having heard the ruckus in Rainbow’s section of the room, Chur was feeling slightly uneasy as the three examined her chest dubiously. Her armor and shield gauntlet had been removed and set on a table at the foot of the bed. Upon returning to Twilight’s library, the Shipmistress had discovered her needler apparently spent of ammunition, and she had promptly tossed the now useless weapon into some bushes on her way to the hospital. 

“Now Chur, is there anything you can tell us about your people’s anatomy and physiology, such as the configuration of your bone structure, perhaps? Normally I would give you an x-ray, but for all I know, that might melt you, or something.”

Chur'R-Yar shook her feathered head. “I am no Kig-Yar medical expert, but what I do know is that our bones are quite hollowed out, given our natural agility.” 

Fluttershy’s face lit up a bit behind the shadowy veils of her mane. “Hollow-boned? So are birds and pegasi like me and Rainbow Dash!” 

Rarity looked at her with confusion as to the relevancy of the fact. Nurse Redheart however, already understood its significance. “Wonderful news, then! We should be able to set your damaged ribs back into place with the same materials we use to heal pegasi who get injured in flight while doing them weather jobs. You’re in luck, alien.” Redheart winked reassuringly at Chur, then dashed to another corner of the room, gathering what she needed from a cabinet. 

Unsure of what to expect, Chur gulped. Rarity noticed the jackal’s apprehension and patted her on the shoulder gently. “Don’t worry Chur, dear. Redheart’s one of the most capable medical mares in the whole region! If anypony can heal an injured creature  previously unknown to conventional science such as yourself, it’s her.”

After a few more seconds passed, Redheart appeared around the curtain with an abnormally large syringe. “Now, we’re going to have to put you under first, or else its really gonna be painful.”





“I just don’t understand it.” Twilight declared, pacing the room. Beside her, Spike and Dadab sat together on a bench, watching her go back and forth. 

“The two of you appear and are as peaceful as ever, erm....mostly. Then, another of a different species appears and starts attacking us for seemingly no apparent reason!” Twilight looked at Dadab with incredulity. “Just what in the world is going on with your Covenant? Are they an empire of interstellar crazies?”

Spike held up a hand to Twilight, stopping her pacing. “Whoa, c’mon Twi, that might be a bit too...broad, don’t you think?” Twilight looked as if she wanted to debate, but Spike raised an eyebrow.

In the time since he blew the attacking Jiralhanae straight out of Ponyville with high explosives, Dadab had been experiencing a massive mental conflict, which caused him to be incredibly delayed in his own response to Twilight’s inquiry. Finally collecting his thoughts on the matter, Dadab prepared to speak, but something, or rather, somebody, cut him off.

“Spike is correct, Twilight. We should ensure we have clear knowledge of the situation before we jump to any serious conclusions,” a regal voice proclaimed smoothly from nearby.

All three turned their eyes and saw the form of Princess Celestia enter into the largely empty waiting room. Two guards followed her in and took position at the entryway. The rest of their detachment were already scouring around town, in search of any evidence of other potentially hostile hammer-wielding monsters. Many still believed that the Jiralhanae was just a previously undiscovered type of barbaric beast race the Everfree had happened to cough up, like it had the Changelings in ages past.

“I...” Twilight sighed, and rubbed at her neatly-kept mane. “Your right, Princess, I’m sorry everyone. It’s just that it was all so sudden, right out of the blue! The creature seemed almost as if he were possessed. It’s a miracle no one else was hurt.”

Celestia smiled as much as the seriousness of the situation would allow her to. Regardless, the smile still managed to appear warm and radiant. “I’m sure our friend Dadab here agrees, isn't that so?” The white alicorn turned her gaze to Dadab, who was experiencing the same feeling he would get when seeing the Hierarchs in person, given the way that the alicorn towered over him.

“Huh? Please forgive poor Dadab, Holy One. I take no offense in boss Twilight’s words. Jiralhanae attack me, a Covenant deacon for no reason! I'm not sure about Shipmistress Chur'R-Yar, but I’m not part of the crazy Covenant any longer, I understand now why our Unggoy ancestors rebelled years ago.”

This seemed to trouble the Princess, as things were beginning to resemble the perfect ingredients for a powder keg diplomatic incident. “Dadab, could you please inform me on how you and your compatriots arrived here, especially the one that threatened some of my own citizens?” 

Although the word ‘please’ was utilized, it was clear to Dadab that her question was not a mere request. Getting out of his seat and carefully formulating his words, Dadab responded, “I’m not sure how Jiralhanae arrived, likely by spaceship. Me and Chur'R-Yar practically woke up here, Dadab theorizes it may be slipstream space supernatural teleportation, but I'm not sure exactly how.”

“A space-faring vessel, incredible. So there are more of your people, then?” Celestia inquired, quickly and urgently.

“Teleportation, through outer space?” Spike murmured to himself, his eyes lighting up in wonder at how such a thing were possible.

“Yes, unless the Jiralhanae flew in on some tiny ship, but that’s unlikely. Bad guy shouted something about an engineer, a Covenant race we call Huragok, being missing on your planet, so it could be anything from a corvette to a giant assault carrier!”

“An alien warship, in orbit above our planet! How could our astronomers not have detected it? What if they are all hostile like the last Jiralhanae?” Twilight inquired worriedly. 

Dadab shrugged helplessly. “Day approach, light pollution maybe? Dadab not so sure. The Covenant are at war with another civilization. That could explain brute bad guy’s short temper, but after what I have seen, Dadab wants no part in the Covenant anymore.”

Celestia gently tapped her hoof down on the tiled floor, catching Dadab’s attention. “Will they simply leave, if they fail to find this, ‘Huragok’ as you call it?” The Princess’ regal smile disappeared, and her pleasant face hardened sternly. “Please understand, deacon, that Equestria and the majority of her neighbors cannot afford to risk going into a war with a space faring civilization. The damage that they could wrought here in a single day alone, would be catastrophic.”

"Especially if word got out that we were being invaded. Do you remember that radio broadcast about aliens attacking from Manehatten eighty years ago that turned out to be a hoax, Princess?" Twilight said, looking worrisome. "The War of the Worlds...the mass panic all over the world..."

"Yes, Twilight."

Shuffling nervously, Dadab looked at the concerned faces of Spike, Celestia, and Twilight. “I’m not sure one hundred percent guys, but with the war against the Human heretics beginning, I theorize that they will have to give up their search sooner or later, and then they will leave us in peace. I wouldn't worry too much, but still be cautious.”

“What of yourselves?” Celestia pressed on. “Are they not looking for you, as well?”

On this matter, Dadab was certain. “No, we're supposed to be dead! Shipmistress disappeared when our ship, the Minor Transgression went bye-bye in a huge explosion. I remember nearly being crushed by the hammer of another Jiralhanae chieftain, after I fought him with this,” Dadab pointed a stubby finger at his plasma pistol. “In all honesty, I’m not so sure what I should do next, or what will happen. All Dadab knows is that he does not want to deal with or return to Covenant anymore, he honor the Forerunners in his own way.”

With that said, Celestia abandoned her stern expression, and her demeanor became tender again. “Thank you for being straightforward and sincere with me, Dadab. If it is indeed true that they shall take leave of our world soon, then all the better that you and your Shipmistress Chur'R-Yar stay here, for otherwise you would carry knowledge of our world's inherent vulnerability to your warring peoples.” 

Celestia raised an eyebrow, before continuing. “To be straight forward with you Dadab, I would rather the Covenant not know of this planet, and that includes whoever they’re fighting and whatever other space faring species that may exist out there. With the 'War of the Worlds' radio broadcast in mind, this world is far from being ready to make first contact, let alone Equestria. Simply having you here is risk enough.”

While the Unggoy expressed his agreement, Spike said, “Welp, looks like you and the lady who looks a bit like one of my kind are stuck here forever, then”  

In response, Dadab hopped once and sniffed at the air, before replying. "Dadab understands, I am happy with this. Where do we stay however, Holy One? I need a place to get methane, so having a unicorn around would be nice!" 

“Please, please! You may call me Celestia, it will suffice.” The alicorn replied, slightly flustered by the Unggoy's choice of words. “Perhaps Twilight or some of her friends could make accommodations? If not, I would be more than happy to provide you a space in the castle over in Canterlot.”

“I could probably make room for one or the both of you, until a more permanent arrangement is made,” Twilight offered, after a moment’s thought. Dadab nodded graciously at her. “Now that I think about it, Rarity also might be willing to grant a room to Chur'R-Yar, if their whole business agreement works out well.”

Spike approached Dadab from behind, and tapped him on the back, causing the Unggoy to jump around in fright, nearly dropping his rebreather mask to the floor. Spike stared at him funny, then quickly recovered, grinning. “Looks like you and I are going to be roommates. I hope you enjoy sorting through books and running errands five days out of the week” He uttered the second sentence mischievously under his breath.

Celestia smiled at the three, before making her way towards the hospital room containing the others. “Come now, let’s see how everyone’s holding up. I promised the Mayor I would check to make sure you were all doing well.” All four of them made their way into the room. Celestia immersed herself in conversation with Nurse Redheart about her three patients, while everyone else discussed the specifics of the afternoon’s spontaneous events.





Trixie dropped an alien’s bulky body onto the floor of her caravan with an immense thud. Looking around the interior of her caravan, Trixie used her magic to close the door and to dry herself and the body she had brought in with her.

It had taken almost all the energy the Alicorn Amulet had provided her in a single hour to carry the furry bipedal beast, but now he was here, and taking up a large amount of floor space. Seeing the engineer toying around with something in the far corner, Trixie turned and addressed him with impatient eyes. “Trixie found him just where she expected, an impact crater near a camp full of purple containers and some of the little crab-looking aliens. Lighter Than Some, does this beast still live? He is useless for Trixie’s experiment unless he still draws breath.”

The engineer ceased whistled musically and began scanning the Jiralhanae, reading his vitals. The aliens’ hide and fur were horrendously burnt, and several of his bones were either dislocated or completely shattered. What little equipment that remained, the brutes bandoliers and weapon straps, were fused to his body from the past intense heat.

The first scan came up inconclusive. 

“Well? Is it, or is it not, alive?” Trixie demanded. 

Lighter Than Some hummed in frustration, then ran the scan again. Finally, impossibly, the results came up positive. The brute’s heart was still pumping blood, and brain activity was slight, but largely dormant. It was almost as if the creature’s body was in a state of extreme hibernation, likely a survival mechanism. 

Turning to face her, Trixie noticed that Lighter Than Some had some new device she had not seen before, strapped to his side. “What is that, Engineer?”

To her complete and utter shock, a deep baritone voice emitted from the Huragok’s new apparatus. “This one is alive, but barely. By all rights, its body shouldn't even still be in one piece, oh Great and Powerful One.”

“You...can talk.” Trixie declared, leaning back and lifting her foreleg. 

Lighter Than Some looked at her and blinked his beady little black eyes. "Communication device. This one created it from an old radio wave-emitting device you had laying around."

Trixie quickly recovered, and regained her default haughty gaze. “Impressive... Nevertheless, it is inconsequential. Let us begin with our experiment; help me activate the machine, won't you.”

“Of course,” Lighter Than Some replied. His new voice device faltered slightly, and the baritone voice assumed a comically high pitch, similar to that of a young foal's. “Right away. Oh dear...this device requires adjustment...”

Both of them made their way to the machine, Trixie telekinetically dragging the disfigured unconscious body of Captain Ferus. “Let the experiment begin!” Trixie exclaimed with a truly malevolent cackle. 

Lighter Than Some made sure that the Alicorn Amulet was still in place and functioning properly, while Trixie tapped her horn on the runes circling the opening on the top surface of the cube. Both the amulet, the cube, and Trixie began to pulse with an ominous red aura.  

Fazed by the sudden light show, Lighter Than Some reeled back and hummed urgently, his voice alternating between deep and high pitched. “Oh dear, this one hopes we have not doomed us all.”

Trixie grinned and continued her cackle as her eyes lit up white with pure energy, and her silvery mane billowed in a nonexistent wind. The azure unicorn then directed her growing aura at the prone form of the brute. “Now, let us see what my creation can truly do!”

In a jolt, the brute managed to regain consciousness. He roared with a piercing intensity that threatened to shake the wooden walls apart. Despite Ferus’ apparent muscular and skeletal damage, his body was able to stand upright as the scarlet-crimson aura engulfed his form. Ferus attempted to reach out and attack the unicorn, but it was impossible. The eyes of the Jiralhanae lit up like Trixie’s, and then the built up energy released all at once.

In a flash of light, smoke, and noise, Trixie’s experiment ceased. Her body was jolting with the massive amount of new power she now wielded, supplemented by what she had just extracted from Ferus. Lightning crackled around, emerging from her horn. As an afterthought, the Great and Powerful Trixie looked down at what remained of the Jiralhanae.

Watching from a corner, Lighter Than Some said, “It would appear the machine is...is a...success...oh Great and Powerful Trixie...” The Huragok’s simulated voice stammered from his sheer shock at the machine’s true abilities. 

“Indeed. As I have said, you’ve done well, my floating friend.” Trixie levitated something she had brought in with her alongside the brute’s body. She dropped the massive gravity hammer on the floor in front of Lighter Than Some. “Since you like to tinker, feel free to toy around with this beast’s weapon all you want, Trixie’s reward to you. Now, you must excuse her, she has some cleaning to do, and more plans to make!” 

Trixie set about her task, chuckling, then humming a pleasing melody to herself as she teleported the brute away and erased the scorch marks on her floor. “First, a message to those meddlers of why they need to leave our solar system right this instant, then it will soon be time to deal with that accursed Twilight Sparkle!” 





Tartarus and the Prophet of Regret were in one of the muster bays of their starship, overseeing the deployment of the next lance of Unggoy, Kig Yar and Sangheili infantry down to the camp Ferus had established in the Everfree.

“Tartarus, would you mind indulging me as to why your supposedly most elite warrior has suddenly gone missing?” Regret shouted, slamming his fist down on the armrest of his throne. The floating chair tilted ever so slightly from the action.

The Chieftain growled irritably at him, holding a plate of slow-roasted thorn beast in one of his palms. “Perhaps he has gone native. I said he was my most elite, but not exactly my most disciplined.” He took a bite of the meat, smacking his lips together in a most impolite manner.

“The High Council does not settle for failure, Chieftain. If you and your forces cannot succeed in locating this Huragok soon, I will be forced to replace you with someone who can! If neither these lances nor Ferus report in that they have the engineer in hand within five days, I will...” Regret was interrupted by a loud bang.

In the center of the gravity lift platform, a massive discharge of red energy and yellow lightning broke out. As soon as it dissipated, something emerged. The new thing carried with it the smell of burnt flesh, that was not coming from Tartarus’ meal. Regret let out a shriek, almost falling out of his gravity throne. 

“By the Gods!” Tartarus spit out the hunk of meat he had been chewing, his stomach nearly doing a barrel roll in his abdomen. Several nearby Unggoy crate movers fled the room in terror, screaming and shouting at the tops of their lungs, their elite overseers chasing angrily after them. The gravity lift was now littered with the heavily charred remains of Ferus. Half of his body was almost nonexistent, having been burned away by forces neither Covenant leaders could begin to fathom.	

The San 'Shyuum's reaction was instantaneous. “Tartarus! Go to the bridge and plot a slipspace jump back to High Charity, at once! Have your crew expunge and destroy all records of this star system’s location from our data banks, leave no trace!”

“But, but Your Grace, what of the munitions and personnel being deployed on the surface?” Tartarus inquired in exasperation.

Regret slammed his fist down again. “Just do it! Those warriors knew what they were pledging the moment they took their oaths, let them die fighting whatever lurks down there. It would bring more honor than for them to fall at the hands of the Heretics elsewhere! We cannot afford to unleash yet another vicious race upon us in this war, humanity is more than enough!”

Tartarus pounded his own fist to his chest, bowing and clutching the head of the Fist of Rukt. “Of course, noble Prophet.” With his order in place, Regret floated away down a corridor, heading to his private chambers, shouting down anyone unfortunate enough to cross his chair’s flight path.	

Tartarus watched the San ‘Shyuum disappear with a sneer. With his appetite lost, Tartarus threw the rest of the thorn beast down near the corpse of the brute captain. At the top of his lungs he roared, “Dispatch a cleaning detail here, at once!” He then made his way hastily to the bridge, muttering angrily to himself.