The Retreat : Berserkers!

Suddenly before the young Ensign could say anything from the wood line a small man came wandering into the light of the campfire. He held tightly to his abdomen which poured blood over his hands.

"Help me!" He yelled.

The nearest person was Rashad who jumped to her feet and grabbed. He began to go limp as she helped him to the ground.

"Who did this to you ?" Rashad said.

"Berserkers !" He said with his final breath.

Just then five humanoids appeared. They stood about 6 feet tall. Their faces were covered in a leather mask with eyes that glowed an eerie red. They moaned and groaned as the startled crew stood and armed themselves with their weapons.

"To your feet." Devore ordered drawing his ninja-to swords.

One of the berserkers walked forward, raising his leather covered in a sestis. The glove was unlike anyone had ever seen before. It was covered in blades similar to a shark's mouth. Suddenly he hit a young sapling with and in one swing cut right through it. The berserker hollered.

"Thank God the safeties are on," Devore whispered to himself.

"Captain," Dakul said. "Let me take care of this."

"After you."

Dakul approached the berserker with his weapon at the ready. The massive hammer was poised. Then he attacked. The berserker lurched forward and with a few passes of his arms the hammer was cut down to toothpicks. However, seizing an opportunity, Dakul used the handle and lunged forwards to the berserkers head but his quick reflexes cut the attack to a simple poke. It was the berserker's turn. He threw a punch however the reflexes of a Cardassian was just a fast. Dakul twisted and turned just barely missing the punch, but the razor sharp blades connected and tore the sinews of his shoulder. Dakul yelped in pain staggering back to the Captain. "Captain ?" Dakul asked grasping the wound.

"I don't understand," Devore said in amazement. "The safety protocols should be on. We are in trouble."

Commander's Devore and Barker materialized into a heavily wooded area. Quickly Chu pointed to a clump of trees where their presence wouldn't be noticed. Once out of sight, Chu started feeling the trunks of the tree until one of them clicked, revealing a holodeck control system.

"It's just as we thought, the safety protocols are off-line." Chu remarked. "Which means that from now on, we have to treat everything we see as a threat."

"Can you disable the holodeck systems from this console ?" Sierra asked.

"I'm afraid not." Chu replied. "This is only a system monitor, we'd need to find the master console to have any chance of disabling the system."

"Then I guess we'll have to find it." Sierra replied.

"First, let's find the Captain and the rest of the crew. We'll have more chance of finding the master console with their help." Chu remarked, closing the panel on the tree trunk.

"So which way ?." Sierra asked.

"That way." Chu replied, pointing in the direction of a path. It didn't take them long to come on another clearing. As they got closer, they saw the bodies of strange creatures. All of them were dead.

"Do you think these are our gremlins ?" Chu inquired.

"They look more like.. Goblins." Sierra replied. "But look at this."

They both saw the device that Sierra pointed out and stepped across to take a closer look.

"It's a type-one phaser, heavily damaged, but a phaser all the same. As far as I'm aware, the Captain didn't bring any modern weapons along did he ?"

"No." Sierra replied. "He wanted everything to be as authentic as possible."

"Then one of our little 'friends' here must have been the 'owner'." Chu said. "Which means the odds may be in their favor."

"Look footprints and from the look of them, their heavy boots." Sierra pointed out on the moist ground.

There were definitely footprints and larger than those that would have been made by the goblins. But most had been covered over, hiding them from sight, whoever had done this didn't want anyone to find them, which probably meant an experienced soldier, someone like Major Phanan or Dakul.

"Let's follow them." Sierra said a clear tone of optimism in her voice.

"Wait a moment." Chu replied. He looked around and found a large branch. Quickly he 'wiped' away the remaining footprints, along with those the two of them had made. "Now we can go."

<Intruder Alert! Intruder Alert!> The computer yelled from within the holodeck.

Captain Devore didn't understand what was going on. He stood there in the holodeck with the rest of his crew ready for battle against the berserkers and now the computer was yelling something about an intruder aboard.

"Brayden. Get behind me. Phanan, Rashad, watch each others' back. Morriden... Morriden ?" Devore yelled looking for the young Ensign. However he was nowhere to be found.

Now, Devore, Rashad, Phanan, and Dakul were alone with these devilish hounds. Brayden and Junora had accomplished what was ordered and was behind the Captain who had his swords ready. The Ninja-tos were drawn and ready. Their razor sharp edges, that could easily slice a man's arm off with one swipe gleamed with the pale light of the campfire. Taline had his pole arm ready. It was an awkward weapon to use, but he was beginning to learn how to work it.

Suddenly the lead berserker advanced upon Dakul who had withdrawn from the battle from the wound he sustained. He now tried to nurse the wound but was now drawn again into the battle. However, just as the berserker tried to attack the fallen Cardassian, Devore caught the thrust with his sword and blocked away the sestis.

"You want something !" Devore said with a small smile. "Bud !"

With lightening speed, the berserker attacked the Captain. With every move, Devore was able to block the attacks. However it came with a price. The swords he had that were tempered many times and folded over itself took hit after hit of the berserker's sestis. With every hit, sparks flew and the mighty swords took nicks and chunks off. Finally with a block from the berserker against the Captain's thrust of the ninja-to, the blade snapped in two. The tempered blade didn't stand a chance as the blade tumbled away.

"Oh boy. I don't like this."

The berserker attacked and dodging the blows, the Captain tried to stay clear from the razor blades of the sestis. Suddenly with a mighty roar, the other berserkers attacked.

"Attack !" Devore responded just as the sestis caught him. The blades slices through the shirt he wore, ripping into the flesh of his chest. With another movement, the same blades that were embedded in his flesh were torn out tearing away more flesh and muscle. Blood started to form as the blades were pulled back. Devore yelped.

"Dad !" Brayden yelled as he lunged forward.

"Brayden, NO !" Junora yelled trying to notch an arrow, but it was too late.

Brayden's subtle attack put him face to face with the berserker. The small daggers that Brayden was equipped with plunged into the berserker in his chest, stomach, but it just stood there. Brayden pulled the daggers out, blood coming from them, but the berserker almost seemed to be smiling under that grotesque mask.

He grabbed Brayden by the throat the smaller blades of the sestis now piercing the thin skin around his neck, and raised him up off the ground. Brayden dropped his daggers and tried uneventfully to pull the massive hands from this neck, but the blades around the back end of the gloves shredded his hands. He felt the grip tighten it was becoming harder to breathe. The world was turning black.

The warm blood pouring from the injury he sustained began to soak his shirt. The darkness that Devore almost set into was brightened as he turned to see Brayden dangling from the massive hand of the berserker.

"No!" Devore yelled gathering all the strength he could muster.

He sidestepped the ugly thing and kicked him in the torso. The surprise cause the berserker to drop Brayden, who fell lifeless to the ground. The berserker tried to hit Devore, but Devore grabbed just above sestis at the elbow and hyper-extended it. The berserker now yelled as his elbow snapped. Suddenly the knife-edge of Devore hand connected to the berserker's neck cause the wind pipe to crush.

Now he fell to his knees grasping at his neck trying to get air, but as Devore began to walk behind him, an arrow came from behind him and pierced the berserker's eye. The arrow head went completely through and now was protruding from the back. The momentum of the arrow at point blank caused the berserker to fly back and laid motionless. Devore turned to look at his son who lie there motionless as well.

"Brayden !" He yelled as he ran to his side and dropped to his knees. "Brayden."

Devore shook Brayden profusely trying to get some sign of life from him, but nothing. He began to cry.

"NO!..... no......" Devore's voice began to trail off as he held his only son close. Junora ran to his side and saw the lifeless arm of Brayden limp in the Captain's arm.

"Is he d....?" Junora asked as sole tear beginning to form.

Suddenly Brayden's hand twitched. Devore through tear soaked eyes pulled him away slightly to see Brayden gasping for some air. "Brayden !"