In Enemy Territory - Shannon West Page 0,63
or so if you’re lucky. I don’t want this to be over too soon. And besides, you’ll have your human mind to help you. No mere animal—even a shifted one—can contend with that. I expect you to do well, or at least I hope you will. The sport will be so much more interesting if you manage to hold out a while. Now forgive me. I have to go deal with this Bonnett and whatever he’s trying to do. You have a short reprieve, so use it well and perhaps make some scheme to outwit the tiger. I don’t think you’ll be successful, but you should try. It will make it so much more interesting for me.”
Chapter Eleven
Had he really thought humans were attractive? Well, yes, he did. And he still thought so, even though this particular human was seriously trying his patience.
Rasc was shouting as he paced up and down the floor. “Trust me, you said. Don’t worry, you said!” Rasc ducked as another large kitchen knife flew past his head. “Great plan! These people are going to kill us!”
Kylon pushed him behind one of the overturned tables. “Shut up and stay down.” He shoved a disruptor in his hand. “Barricade that window and use this on anyone who comes over here. I’ve got it set on stun.”
The first trouble after they took over the dinner area had come from an unexpected source—the servers. They began to throw whatever they had at hand—knives, ladles, trays, even food—at the prisoners, and they were much more fierce than Kylon had ever imagined they would be.
Perhaps they were afraid for their lives, but he’d given the men strict instructions that none of the servers were to be hurt. The guards too, if they didn’t force their hand.
He left Rasc safe behind an overturned table and still spluttering with rage, while he jumped back into the fight. One older Gatifreyan server had hidden behind a shelf and was aiming a huge cleaver at Pax’s head when Kylon spotted them and took them to the ground, using the same carotid pressure hold on them, so as not to hurt them too badly. He ducked a couple of trays and managed to get all but that one server rounded up and herded or dragged into a large pantry area, where he locked them in and breathed a sigh of relief. Their shouts and curses still rang out, but no kitchen utensils were flying around, so Kylon counted that as a win.
Things had started out so well. Over the last few days, Kylon had quietly talked Pax through the Krag Harr hold the Tygerians used to incapacitate the enemy without killing them. He could only talk about it without arousing the suspicions of the guards, but he had demonstrated to Pax on his own body the area to do the hold properly, and messages had been sent up and down the cell blocks at night, explaining and refining the plan further. Cutting off the blood supply to the brain could incapacitate an enemy in six seconds, and much longer than that could easily kill him. A hard blow there could cause a blood clot, which could travel to the brain and kill an opponent as well, so the pressure had to be extremely light. He showed Pax how by demonstrating on his wrist, and by having the others Pax had chosen practice it at night in their cells. He arranged with Pax, who assured him he could whistle, to do the signal. When Pax had given Kylon the okay to go ahead, they’d made their move.
When Pax’s whistle had come just after they filed into the dining hall, Kylon had taken out the first guard, simply by means of walking past them and having Rasc jostle him “accidentally,” so that he fell against one of them and then quickly used his fingertips to disable them. It took only seconds, much faster than he’d ever been able to execute the move before, proving the anecdotal reports had been correct. The other prisoners soon had their targets disabled as well. Rasc had already warned Gerta-sek, the server who was his contact, not to be at work that evening.
Efficiently, Rasc, Setin, Egam, and several of Pax’s men gathered the disruptors and dragged the guards over against the wall, setting Setin and Egam as guards. Kylon shouted for any of the prisoners who didn’t want to be involved in the escape attempt to get out while they could, and there