Edmund could hear Reo’s startled yelp behind him, and he felt a surge of protectiveness mixed with increasing irritation. Of course this damn fool realizes it now, when I’ve already had to drag his sorry ass out of harm’s way!
“Yes, you’re damn right this place is a goddamn war zone!” Edmund roared back at Reo, not taking his eyes off the group of terran marines cowering behind their flimsy barricade. “And it’s all because of that damn Zerg infestation that’s just about to overrun this shithole!”
The terran marines opened fire, bullets ricocheting off the organic armor of Edmund’s Zerg brood as they surged forward, driven by the hive mind’s singular purpose. Edmund’s claws flexed, itching to tear into the soft flesh of the enemy, to paint the ground with their blood as he had done so many times before.
But first, he had to secure Reo’s safety, had to get the man he loved to a place where he could no longer be threatened by the horrors of this war. Damn it, why does he have to be so fucking stubborn, so hard to protect? Edmund mused darkly.
“Shut up and hold on to me, you damn idiot!” Edmund growled, his voice a menacing hiss. “Unless you wanna end up as Zerg chow, you’ll stay glued to my side until I say otherwise!”
With that, Edmund lunged forward, his clawed hand lashing out to grab the first marine he reached. The man screamed as Edmund’s claws sank into his flesh, dragging him out from behind the barricade and flinging him bodily at his oncoming brood.
The Zerg swarmed over the flung marine, his screams ending abruptly as they tore him limb from limb, his blood splattering the ground in a gruesome, crimson pattern. The other marines opened fire, desperate and terrified, but it was too late.
Edmund’s brood was upon them, and there was no escape. Hydralisks unleashed barrages of spikes, zerglings screeched as they clawed and bit, and ultralisks smashed through the barricade with brutal, devastating power. The terran line crumbled, and panic set in as they realized the futility of their resistance.
“Reo, stay the fuck behind me!” Edmund roared, his voice booming with psionic authority as he turned to face the oncoming tide of flesh and blade. “I ain’t gonna let a damn thing happen to you, you hear me?”
