The inside of the large cavern in which the Banshees found themselves was warm, and the air was breathable, so everyone had relaxed and switched off their life support belts. Lee Carter had discovered some ancient script carved into the wall above one of the inner doorways bored into the cavern in which the Banshees stood. Though faded and dulled by the passing of countless millennia, the alien characters could still be clearly discerned, though she couldn't read the language. She thought they looked vaguely familiar though, and that bothered her. How could she recognize script that was millions of years old on a planet 500 million parsecs from Earth? She knew exactly who to ask.
"Jo, can you make out this writing?"
"Jo?"
"It says 'Svagata Kurnugi'," replied a loud, gruff, male voice.
Carter and the five other members of Banshee Squadron spun on their heels to face the unexpected and unfamiliar voice. Beside the brazier in the center of the cavern stood a hulking brute of a man, human in appearance though it was difficult to tell in the dim torchlight. He was bedecked head to foot with furs and vital body areas were protected by what looked like large armadillo shells. His head was crowned with a huge animal skull, while a brass plate adorned with the image of a scorpion covered his chest. In one hand he carried a tall spear, and the other gripped a spiked club. Crowded behind the hulk were twenty more barbaric-looking humanoids, though these were clad in simple skins and rags. Their eyes were wild though as they leered at Carter and the others, jostling and shoving each other to get a better look at the newcomers.
The hulking lout took a thunderous step forward and addressed Carter again. "It means 'Welcome To the Land of No Return'." The fearsome sneer on his face belied his words however, and Carter recognized his lecherous leer for what it was. She doubted she or the others would enjoy the sort of 'welcome' this hulking animal and the rabble behind him had in mind.
The worst thing she could do however was to show fear or weakness, so Carter took a step forward and demanded in her toughest voice, "Where's Jo Schmidt? What have you done with her?"
The hulk's lurid grimace grew wider and he took another step forward. "Are you challenging me, woman?" By the evil light in his eyes it was plain he hoped so.
"It wouldn't exactly be a fair fight," replied Carter, holding her ground. "For you, I mean." Behind her she heard Max chortle under her breath.
Carter's defiance only seemed to encourage the hulk, however. "So, you think you can best Nergal in a fight," he roared, thumping his chest with his club. Behind him, the crowd of followers grew more restless in anticipation of the coming spectacle. The hulk's leer grew more confident. "Nergal makes it fair for you, woman. I throw down my weapons." He tossed aside the spear and club, took off the skull helmet and tossed it too, and the crowd behind him cheered. "Now we fight!"
Carter felt along her waist to where her phaser was holstered, and out of the corner of her eye saw Sam and Alex's hands edge towards their own weapons. She hated to take unfair advantage of these primitives; it just seemed wrong using advanced technology against a bunch of cavemen armed with knives and sticks, but it was their own fault for picking on a bunch of girls. She nodded in acceptance of Nergal's proposal and took another step forwards, taking firm hold of her phaser's grip. "When I win, you will tell me what I want to know."
Matthew Cross decided he had seen and heard enough though. They were here to find a way home, and a fight, no matter how quick and one-sided, wasn't going to accomplish that. Instead, it would probably end their chances of ever finding someone sympathetic to their cause. Besides, there was no way he was going to just stand by and let a girl fight that hulking bruiser. He stepped forward now and said, "Hold on just a minute here! Nobody's going to--"
His sentence was choked off by the sudden appearance of a strong grip twisting his arm around his back and the sharp edge of a foot-long knife pressed to his throat. He felt another hand relieve him of his phaser. At the same time more barbarians materialized out of the shadows behind Max, Sam, Alex and Dexter, and in less than two seconds, all were restrained and disarmed with the swiftness and precision of a crack military unit.
Carter jumped aside at the emergence of the ambushers and yanked out her phaser, leveling it at Nergal. "Release my friends!" she demanded.
But Nergal's response was just a cruel laugh that sounded more like a hyena yelping than something that would come out of a man's mouth. "I have a better idea," he said once he'd recovered from his evil mirth. "You give me the pistol before my friends slit your friends' throats."
From behind her, Carter heard Captain Cross say, "Don't do it, Commander. That's an order. Don't give in to these animals..." but the thug holding him twisted his arm higher, making Cross cry out in pain.
"Do not make the mistake of thinking I am bluffing," said Nergal. His voice had become low and sonorous, and all hint of mirth and lechery were gone from his expression, replaced by a murderous intensity. "Now-- hand over your weapon and the belt around your waist. You have three seconds.
"One."
Carter thought frantically, trying to figure a way out of this mess. She could easily gun down Nergal before he could touch her, but there was no way she could target all the thugs holding her teammates and prevent them from killing everyone in retribution.
"Two."
And how did this caveman know about phasers and the forcefield belt around her waist? These people were obviously not quite as primitive as they appeared on the surface. Or they had come in contact with advanced technology before. Either way, it spelled hope for Carter and her party for finding someone to help them leave this place. But she had to live long enough make use of that information.
"Thr--"
"All right!" shouted Carter. "All right. You win. Here." She tossed her phaser aside, careful to make sure it landed well away from any of the rabble, then unfastened her life support belt with its protective forcefield projector and let it slip from her fingers to the dirt floor. She felt naked without her tools, and dashed off a quick prayer to the Great Bird of the Galaxy to help her remember her Starfleet unarmed combat training.
Nergal's visage resumed its accustomed feral snarl, and he advanced another few steps until he was standing no more than two yards from Carter. "Come, woman. Now I teach you who is master here!"
"If I win, you will release my friends," said Carter, stepping clear of the life support belt.
Nergal's sneer grew more oily as he said, "Of course. By my honor, they will go free if you win." Carter was pretty sure the man had no honor though, and would without hesitation kill them all if things didn't go his way.
His false assurance made, Nergal advanced, fists clenched ready to deliver incapacitating blows. Carter stood her ground and fell into a fighting stance, her own fists raised in a classic defensive position. He lunged at Carter and swung his arms in what should have been a devastating swipe, that would have been such had it connected. But Carter little more than shrugged and the meaty fist missed her left ear by considerably more than the thickness of a coat of paint. And then she was on him, her own fists pummeling his chest and belly.
He roared with rage and tried to throw his thick arms around her, to crush her into submission. She danced back and he embraced empty air. She followed up with a nasty round-house kick to his side and a one-two punch right in the nose. Nergal staggered back, stunned and disbelieving. Behind him, the crowd brayed in anger that their leader had taken hits from this comparatively tiny woman. Someone flung a rock at Carter and it hit the back of her right knee, causing her to stumble. Nergal was instantly on her, and this time his sweeping arms connected. He locked them around her waist, pinning her arms to her sides. The veins on his forearms popped out and his biceps rippled as he slowly squeezed.
"No fair!" cried Alex. She and the other Banshees struggled against their captors, outraged at the blatant cheating, but the knives at their throats kept them from breaking away and helping their wing commander.
Carter struggled valiantly, but Nergal's arms were like two iron boa constrictors, coiling ever tighter around her. She gasped for air, feeling the blackness of oblivion creep into the tattered edges of her consciousness. If she could only get her arms free, she could gouge his eyes or box his ears, but they were held fast. Sensing victory, Nergal roared in triumph and tightened his grip yet more, lifting Carter clear off the ground so that her feet dangled and kicked feebly. She groaned with the pain and saw stars swim before her vision as the darkness encroached. She couldn't draw breath anymore, and with her fading consciousness knew it was over.
Just as all hope was lost, a new voice echoed throughout the cavern. It was a commanding woman's voice, and it cut through the din of the bloodthirsty crowd. "Release the newcomers, Nergal!"
If Nergal heard the command, he paid no heed, instead shaking a feebly twitching Carter up and down in his deadly bear hug.
The owner of the voice stepped through the crowd, an old woman. She wore the same tattered clothing as the rest of the denizens, but had a regal bearing that brooked no disobedience to her demands. "Nergal, obey me!"
Nergal turned his head partway to address the old woman but didn't relax his death grip on Carter. "This is none of your concern, Ereshkigal!" he growled between his clenched teeth. "This is between me and the newcomers."
"Everything that happens in Kurnugi is my concern. Now release the woman or suffer the consequences!"
Nergal screamed his rage at the old woman's ill-timed intervention, but grudgingly succumbed to her will. He dropped Carter to the ground where she lay panting and wheezing, unable to stand after nearly being asphyxiated. He nodded to the thugs who were holding Cross and the others, and the daggers keeping them prisoner were lowered. Sam and Max rushed over to their commander and helped her up. Nergal cast one last venomous glare at Carter, a look which promised revenge, then turned to the old woman. "This is not finished, Ereshkigal," he snarled. "One day you will go too far and then I will kill you and take your place."
"That day is not today, Nergal," replied the old woman steadfastly. "Now take your minions and go!"
With one final growl, Nergal stomped from the cavern, knocking aside several of the crowd which had made the mistake of getting too close. Nergal's thugs collected their master's discarded armor and weapons and hurried after him, but they also carried away the Banshees' confiscated weapons and equipment.
"Hey wait! They're taking our stuff!" yelled Dexter. He started to go after them, but Cross grabbed his arm and held him back.
"We'll get it back later," he said. "Right now you'd just start another fight." He went over to where Carter was standing, mostly on her own by now, and said, "You all right?" Carter nodded.
"She's fine," said Max. "And she would'a' won if that giant lummox hadn't cheated!" The pride in her wing commander was obvious in her voice.
Satisfied, Cross next turned to the old woman, Ereshkigal, who had been waiting patiently. "Thank you for intervening," he said sincerely. "I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't shown up when you did."
Ereshkigal shrugged dismissively. "Nergal would have crushed to death the one he was fighting, had you and the young man killed, and added the three remaining females to his harem... or had them killed too, since I don't get the impression they would have gone willingly into that kind of servitude." That last was said after noting the fiercely indignant look on Max's face at her mention of a harem. "But come. You must be tired after your long journey. Let me show you what little hospitality we can afford."
"Thank you, ma'am," replied Cross politely, "but we're not planning on staying long. We're just looking for someone to show us a way to leave."
At that, Ereshkigal laughed, though her laugh was sympathetic and not cruel and mean-spirited like Nergal's was. A look of great sadness came over her face as she beheld the hopeful faces of the six newcomers. "This place is Kurnugi," she said as if that simple pronouncement explained everything, but their uncomprehending expressions told her they needed more. "The 'Place of No Return'," she added. "No one leaves here. Ever."
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