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landed on my feet.
    Not far beyond the front bumper, Alip and the guards raised their W-9’s, and started firing at a huge swarm of Oiins. Ket, ket, ket, ket!
    One of the insects came to rest on a guard’s sleeve. They stung him.
    The guard howled in pain, fell to the ground and went into convulsions.
    Ieeb squeezed the trigger. Bullets tore many insects to shreds.
    As a buzzing sound grew louder, Oiins started circling us. The wind died down. Otherwise, they would have gone back to their hives.
    I lifted the weapon and squeezed the trigger. Flames engulfed hundreds of them.
    Other insects droned louder, a nervous wracking sound. Nnnnnnnn.
    Some came to rest on my pant leg. Chills ran up my spine.
    A guard fired. Bullets ripped their heads off.
    I yelled, “Good shot!
    “Why don’t we stand with our backs touching? Otherwise, the insects can sneak up behind us.”
    Everyone else nodded and all of us turned around, leaned against each other and started firing. Ket, ket, ket, ket!
    As bullets tore Oiins to pieces, more insects descended. At the same time, they emitted a loud droning sound, a noise that sent shivers down my spine.
    I raised my barrel and the flame swept across them. Behind me, a guard’s W-9 chattered faster. Ket, ket!
    To my left, a guard shouted, “Gos, aim higher.”
    A guard’s W-9 chattered faster, the sound coming from behind. “I did. There are thousands of them.”
    “Aim higher, Gos!”
    The wind blew harder. Several insects took off. Soon the rest of them left.
    Ieeb sighed. “We got lucky. If it weren’t for the wind, they would have killed us. There aren’t enough of us to stop them.”
    A worried expression marred Alip’s face. “Let’s push the giag back onto its wheels, and head for Rougt.”
    Alip stooped and touched the fallen guard’s neck. “Biw is dead. Gos, after the giag is upright, put his body into the back seat. We need to bury him.”
    Gos wiped sweat off his forehead. “Fuck. What a lousy way to die.”
    As light rain started falling, all of us pushed the vehicle’s roof. The giag budged, about an inch.
    Alip yelled, “It’s too heavy. Wait a second.” She hurried over to the trunk, opened it, and returned. “This should work.” She shoved a jack underneath a door. The jack began humming as it raised the giag slightly.
    Everyone pushed. The vehicle tipped over and its wheels hit the ground. Cronnnc ! All of us piled inside.
    Gos muttered, “Biw is heavy.”
    Alip started the engine.
     

Chapter Fourteen
     
     
    Eighty yards ahead of us, a huge fallen tree was blocking the road.
    Alip grumbled, “Shit.” She rammed her fingers through floating icons of the steering wheel. The giag veered right and went onto the shoulder. As the engine roared louder, switching into a lower gear, we passed the tree. After bouncing over rocks, the vehicle turned, and went back on the road.
    Behind me, Gos announced, “Biw stinks. He’s starting to decompose.”
    Alip nodded. “I can smell it.”
    Ieeb scowled. “If the wind dies down, the Oiins will attack. There are so many of them. We don’t stand a chance.”
    Behind us, a guard grumbled, “Fuck this. What good is my money if I’m dead?”
    “Alip, does Obno pay you well?” I paused.
    “Yes. I’ve made more money in the last couple of months than I’ve ever dreamed of. When winter comes, I’ll leave, go back to Heuv. That’s a small town near Wcip. I have two sons. They’re staying with my sister. Shit, I miss them.”
    Just over one hundred yards down the road, I spotted another fallen tree, likewise blocking our path.
    Alip banged her fist against the door. “Damn it! More problems!”
    The tree moved.
    Ieeb gasped in horror. “That’s no tree, it’s a Tiel!”
    Ten yards beyond the left side of the road, gigantic bushes began shaking. Not far behind them a huge cobra-like snake, a Tiel, a species with amber concentric rings around its mouth, raised its six-foot-diameter head and hissed.
    Behind us, the