Moving toward the rest of the Varnathi researchers felt like walking through an alien fever dream. The Grimveil plants grew denser with each step, their bulbous stems reaching nearly three meters high, pulsing with that unnatural beat that made Luca's skin crawl. Thick, viscous fluid oozed from their waxy surfaces, and the air itself seemed to shimmer with toxic particles.

[Flora Scan Complete] Species: Grimveil Plant (54 Tucane - RI-297) Classification: Succulent Cell Structure: Specialized secretory cells clustered in apical regions with pressurized fluid chambers Photosynthetic Analysis: 23% efficiency, adapted for low-light toxic environments Genetic Sequencing: Logged Risk-Category: Hazardous Mineral Content: High concentrations of rare earth elements and bioactive alkaloids Coordinates: Logged Notes: Large cylindrical structure reaching 3m height. External surface displays prominent vascular networks. Crimson secretory cap contains volatile healing compounds that respond to mechanical stimulation.

The Varnathi researchers moved carefully between the plants, their scanner devices beeping softly as they approached the larger specimens. Luca studied them as they worked. Unlike his team's fully enclosed armor systems, the Varnathi wore only light protective gear: thin chest plates that looked more like lab coats than battle armor, and breathing masks connected to small tanks strapped to their backs. Their heads and tails remained completely exposed. Pointed ears twitched at every sound, dark eyes alert and intelligent.

Twenty Varnathi total: fourteen researchers and six guards, all looking dangerously exposed in this toxic hellscape. The guards carried plasma weapons, but their gear was even lighter than the scientists'.

Matriarchal society? Luca wondered, watching the group dynamics. All the orders seemed to be coming from the female researchers, while the males (including the guards) deferred to their commands without question.

Vulnerable as hell, he thought, comparing their minimal protection to his team's sealed combat suits. No wonder they needed an escort.

"Contact," Zoe's voice whispered over the comms, tense and alert.

Luca's senses kicked in immediately. There in the undergrowth, movement patterns all wrong for the wind. His gaze flicked to Zoe, a silent nod passing between them as they edged back toward the group.

Large green-scaled creatures rushed out from the dense vegetation, bodies slick and perfectly camouflaged until they moved. They were massive. Easily three meters long, built like giant monitor lizards with thick, muscular bodies and powerful claws that could probably shred metal. Beady eyes locked onto the Varnathi, as if they were examining prey, their forked tongues flicking out to taste the air.

"Defensive perimeter, now!" Luca barked over the comms. "Spread out, don't give them clustered targets! Emily, get those scientists behind cover! Danny, Joey: heavy armor front, protect the civilians!"

Never seen anything like these before, but they look dangerous as fuck, Luca thought, feeling distinctly exposed in his light scout suit. Danny in his heavy powered armor could probably let one of these things chew on his leg without breaking through the plating. But Luca? His scout armor was built for mobility, not built to withstand a bite like that.

"Sporefangs," one of the scientists hissed in terror. "They hunt in the deep toxicity zones."

The Sporefangs lunged, their fangs glinting as they sank into two of the Varnathi guards' limbs in near silence. The guards staggered, eyes widening with panic as paralyzing toxin took hold, dropping them helplessly to the ground. Before anyone could react, the creatures dragged their victims into the shadows of the larger plants.

"Yary! Hosk!" One of the female researchers cried out, her fur bristling as she watched her guards disappear.

Luca squinted through the green haze of toxic spores, trying to distinguish the remaining Sporefangs from the vegetation around him. Their scaly hides blended perfectly with the waxy plant surfaces, making them nearly invisible even when moving.

Can't hit what I can't see.

Luca activated [Target Lock Assist], feeling his own interface engage. Suddenly, the camouflaged creatures lit up on his visor with highlighted outlines, their heat signatures cutting through the visual confusion of the toxic environment.

Plasma blaster steady, Luca took aim as the targeting assist fed him trajectory data for the concealed Sporefangs. He squeezed the trigger, felt the energy build, and released. The shots struck true, piercing the green haze to find their marks even as the creatures tried to blend back into the foliage

"Chris!" Luca barked over the comms. "We need suppressing fire on the left flank!"

Chris raised his plasma assault rifle and opened fire in full automatic. A wave of scorching plasma sliced in a wide arc, the rapid fire mowing down the foliage as he unloaded, forcing two Sporefangs to break cover. The creatures hissed and retreated deeper into the plants, but not before Emily's bolts caught one in the flank, sending it crashing into a cluster of Grimveil stems with a wet thud.

The lead researcher flinched at the burnt landscape. "Careful! Those plants—" She checked the damage, her voice trilling with urgency. "We need them. Do not repeat that."

The remaining Sporefangs circled for another approach, but Luca was ready. He drew his plasma tomahawk, weighing in his hand and activated [Trajectory Focus], before chuking the weapon. The plasma blade caught the lead creature across the neck, dropping it instantly. The other Sporefangs retreated with angry hisses.

"Shit, guys, we can't let them pick us off like that again." Luca said. "Danny, Joey, take opposite flanks, ten meters out, get ready to draw agro. Zoe, find high ground and keep overwatch. Chris, Ryan, run a tight circle around the scientists. Nobody works alone."

[+48,214 XP] [+14,142 credits]

The lead researcher was already approaching them frantically, her scanner beeping with increasing urgency. "The Grimveil plants! We must collect samples immediately! The disturbance has triggered rapid chemical breakdown. We have minutes before the compounds become useless!"

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

"Movement above! Multiple contacts!" Zoe called.

"What?" Emily asked the researcher. "We're about to be under attack again!"

"Please," the researcher insisted, her ears flat with desperation. "The compounds break down within minutes of stress exposure. This is our only chance!"

Danny's multitool was already beeping frantically as he moved toward the nearest plant. "Luca, I'm reading massive bio-chemical cascades. These plants are literally shutting down their compound production in real-time!"

Shit. They weren't kidding about the time limit.

"Fine," he decided. "But we do this fast, and we do it covered. Zoe, keep eyes on those shadows. Emily, overwatch. Everyone else, help them collect their samples. We've got maybe three minutes before those flying bastards dive on us!"

The team scrambled into position around the largest Grimveil plants, forming a messy but effective perimeter. Luca's visor displayed a countdown timer, helpfully supplied by Danny, as the plant compounds degraded: 2:47... 2:46... 2:45...

"Two and a half minutes!" Luca barked. "Move your asses, people!"

The extraction technique looked deceptively simple. Gentle strokes along the waxy stems, just the right pressure to coax toxic fluid to drip into collection vials. The Varnathi scientists demonstrated the method.

"It's all about timing," the lead researcher explained quickly, her voice tight with urgency. "Too much pressure damages the membrane and ruins the compounds."

Danny was the first to try, his heavy armor making him look comically oversized next to the delicate plants. His first attempt produced a jet of iridescent liquid that splurted up into the toxic sky and nearly hit Chris as it landed

"Easy there, big guy," Chris chuckled nervously, ducking. "Save some for the vials."

But Danny was already leaning closer to one of the Varnathi researchers. "What's the molecular structure of this compound? The way it responds to pressure suggests some kind of non-Newtonian properties."

Ryan snorted over the comms. "Danny, translate it for them. Newton was a human, remember?"

But the female researcher's ears perked up with obvious delight, completely understanding. "You understand fluid dynamics! Yes, the Grimveil secretion exhibits thixotropic behavior. Viscosity decreases under applied stress. Most fascinating for our medicinal applications."

System must be translating this shit, Luca thought, watching the seamless scientific exchange.

"Medicinal?" Joey stepped forward, his medical training engaged. "What kind of treatments?"

"Regenerative cellular therapy," another researcher chimed in, utterly ignoring the danger flying above, her tail swishing with excitement. "The compounds can accelerate tissue repair by factor of twelve when properly processed."

Emily moved closer to Luca, watching him struggle with the extraction technique. "Here, let me show you," she said, placing her gloved hand over his, guiding it in a slow, steady motion along the waxy stem. "You've got to be gentle. Think of it like coaxing, not squeezing."

Embarrassing, Luca thought, but he let her guide his movements. The liquid began dripping steadily from the red bulbous top unpredictably.

"See?" Emily said with that teasing tone he knew well. "Even the toughest scout needs a little guidance sometimes."

"Thirty more seconds!" Luca shouted. "Finish what you've got and prep for contact!"

The Varnathi researchers kept working, filling their final vials as the shadows overhead grew larger and more ominous.

"Time!" Luca barked just as the first piercing screech split the air.

Shadows swept over them as massive, talon-clad creatures dove from the toxic sky above that looked suspiciously like Virelings. Probably had poisonous talons too.

"Here they come!" Zoe said as she went Ghost, lifting her plasma sniper rifle and firing the first bolt. Her shot struck a Venowraith in the shoulder, sending it veering off course with a furious cry.

The chaos escalated immediately. More of those Venowraiths circled back, their numbers seeming endless. Luca activated [Heightened Awareness], painting threat assessments across his visor. The creatures certainly knew what they were doing. Using coordinated dive tactics, they attempted to separate the group and target the vulnerable scientists.

They're smart. Too smart.

Chris hammered the trigger from his assault rifle, hitting a Venowraith mid-dive. The creature shrieked as plasma seared through wing membrane, struggling to regain altitude while trailing smoke.

Ryan's plasma shutgun roared to life, wide bursts of energy creating a deadly wall of fire in front of the scientists. The spread pattern forced the Venowraiths to break formation, unable to dive through the overlapping plasma fields.

Joey positioned himself protectively near the Varnathi, his heavy armor serving as mobile cover while his plasma blaster tracked aerial targets.

Danny saw three Venowraiths banking toward the exposed scientists and activated [Taunt]. "Get over here, you flying pieces of shit!" he roared, his voice amplified through his armor's external speakers.

The creatures immediately shifted course, diving straight for him instead of the vulnerable Varnathi. His plasma warhammer connected with the lead Venowraith in a satisfying crack that sent the creature crashing into the ground, while the other two circled back for another pass at him.

"Luca!" Emily's voice crackled in his ear, urgency sharp. "To your left! Three incoming!"

Luca whirled, spotting the trio of Venowraiths diving straight for him in a coordinated attack pattern. His [Reflex Shot] ability triggered automatically, granting enhanced reaction speed as time seemed to slow.

With enhanced reflexes, he rolled aside, letting two creatures overshoot their target while bringing his sniper rifle up to track the third. A quick burst caught it in the center of mass, dropping it immediately.

Luca drew his plasma tomahawk and activated [Trajectory Focus]. The ability kicked in, his interface calculating optimal throwing arcs. The enhanced accuracy felt like having perfect aim as he threw the weapon at another Venowraith.

The tomahawk's plasma blade sliced clean through the creature's wing joint. It crashed into the toxic ground with a bone-jarring impact, twitching once before going still.

The other two Venowraiths banked hard, coming around for another pass, but Zoe's rifle crackled. A clean headshot took down one while the other swooped away, screeching its fury as it retreated beyond the range of their weapons.

Finally, with collective shrieks of frustration, the remaining Venowraiths pulled back, circling high above before vanishing beyond the treeline. Their cries faded into the toxic mist, leaving an eerie quiet broken only by the team's heavy breathing.

[+192,857 XP] [+56,571 credits]

Luca retrieved his tomahawk, watching the empty sky while his abilities cycled down. Around them, the Varnathi researchers clutched their precious sample vials, several crying softly for their lost guards.

"Power consumption report," he called out, needing to know their tactical situation.

"Eighty-seven percent," Emily replied, checking her blasters.

"Eighty-five," Danny added, his warhammer still humming.

The others called out similar numbers. They were burning through power cells faster than expected, and they'd barely begun their escort mission.

"The research station is 14 kilometers through the densest spore concentrations," the lead researcher said quietly, securing her vials with shaking hands. "The creatures will only become more aggressive as we cut through their territory."

And we just burned through five percent of our power in two fights, Luca thought, doing quick tactical math in his head.

"Found a loot box!" Chris called out as he opened it.

[Item acquired: Power cell]

They weren't just escorting NPCs anymore. They were protecting people. Real people with names and purposes and knowledge that could heal their own kind.

"Then we move fast and smart," Luca announced to the combined group. "I'll go up with Zoe, Danny, and Joey; you take the rear guard. Scientists in the center. Em, Ryan, and Chris, stay with them. We get to that research station, we get you your samples processed, and we all go home alive." And you can go back to sleep in the stasis pods, he thought glumly.

He paused, looking directly at the lead researcher. "What's your name? Your real name?"

She blinked in surprise, then straightened with visible dignity. "I am Dr. Pol Ers'Lya. These are my colleagues and... my friends."

"Well, Dr. Pol," Luca said, surprising himself with how much he meant it. "We're going to get you and your people home safely. That's a promise."

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