Your brothers and sisters in arms are dead and you must bring the glory of their final fight back to their families. The Decatur was not expected in any ports for a few days, so you will need to survive past this night. You can go back when you are rested. You might be able to make a shelter with the ships Solar Mag Sails. You have hope.
Still holding your Lightstone you grab the sand slug and its cries are just like those of a baby. You curl up on a comfortable drift of sand and begin to sing the songs of your ancestors. You gently caress its rubbery rough body. It struggles to free itself, but it quickly succumbs to your lullaby. Sand slugs are not normally dangerous, though their mouths secrete a numbing toxin. They have been known to adhere to large whale beetles and Mega Mu in a parasitic relationship.
It slowly calms and stops fighting, then gives off a calming trill. The purring sound relaxes you and though you are here to ease its stress, it is equally relaxing you. With very little fight your exhausted body and mind quickly fall asleep.
When you wake the light is gone, reduced to a subtle glow emanating from the worm. Your first thought is that it has eaten the Lightstone. You go to rub your eyes but your hands will not move. You try to climb to your feet, but you cannot. Are you still asleep, is this a dream?
And then the truth rolls over you with a wave of dread.
You’re arms and legs are gone and where they should be, is instead, the snake like mouth holes of the sand slug. It has used its numbing agent while you slept and eaten both your arms and most of your legs, each head feasting on a limb of its own. Two others are digging into your gut, and as you scream you realize there is no one but the worm to hear it.
Eat or be eaten, kill or be killed, such is the way of Victory.
Song of the Ancestors
Momma Momma cant you see,
What the CIMBRI done to me?
Put a Vorpal in my hand,
told me to protect this land.
Strapped me up with rage from hell,
Taught me how to kill a Fel.
Put me in a combat zone,
Made me think a lot about home.
I thought about my mom one night,
And turned my brands black in a fight.
Then CIMBRI said to me,
One is all and all are to be free.
So if I die in a combat zone,
Box me up and ship me home.
Pin my medals upon my chest,
Tell my momma I did my best.
Make sure they bury me deep,
And lay rift blades at my feet.
Tell the Daci not to cry,
Cause to be a Teuton is to do or die.
