As the creature stalked the camp, it studied the group carefully.
Five of them.
Three sleeping.
Two standing guard.
From the darkness, it watched as the small 4-armed one began to dive into sleep after it's wistful watch. The creature's gaze shifted to the object clutched tightly in the human's arms.
Its prize.
A low growl rumbled in its throat as it began creeping toward the camp.
Then it stopped.
The tall chitin one was starting to stand again.
The creature withdrew into the shadows.
The Vescrin was already rising from his position, stretching as he scanned the darkness.
"Hey boss?" he called out. "Want me to go see what it is?"
The leader thought for a moment before shaking his head.
"No. I need everyone here in case something happens."
The Vescrin shrugged and continued stretch preparing for guard duty, dragging his left arm across the thick plates of chitin covering his torso. His hand stretched past the large rock where the slaves had been eating a few hours earlier.
Suddenly he jerked his arm back.
A wave of searing pain shot through him.
"AHHHHHH!!!"
He stared down in horror.
A chunk of his hand was gone.
Two of his three fingers had vanished completely.
Blood poured down his arm.
"AW WHAT THE FUCK?! IT TOOK MY FUCKING FINGERS!!!"
The moment a chunk of the Vescrin's hand was ripped away, the creature bolted from the camp at staggering speed.The entire camp jolted awake.
Everyone stared in shock at the mangled hand, realizing that whatever or whoever had done this was powerful enough to maim a Vescrin.
Kestin the flufftar now awake spun toward the leader.
"See?! I told you there was something big out there, boss! That's the thing I was talking about!"
The leader stared down at the object clutched against his chest.
Greed flickered in his eyes.
"We're using it."
The entire group froze.
They all knew what those words meant.
The injured Vescrin clutched his arm while the slaves hurriedly wrapped his hand in cloth.
"You sure you want to use that?" he asked through clenched teeth. "You know the ris—AH!"
He slapped Evrin aside.
"You little shit! That hurt!"
The Flufftar was already gathering the most valuable supplies from the camp and explaining.
"Don't bother, Rist," he said grimly. "Once he makes up his mind, it's too late."
The leader pointed toward the darkness where the creature had been.
"Exactly!"
His voice trembled with fear.
"And the thing I saw out there is supposed to be DEAD!"
He clutched the object tighter.
"It's an Adaptic."
Silence fell over the camp.
"Those vermin were supposed to be EXTINCT!"
Rist's single crystal eye widened.
"Wait… isn't that the species people were talking about a few years ago? The monsters from Dome Four that adapt to whatever they consume faster than anything else?"
The leader slowly shook his head.
"Yes… but this one is from Dome Three."
Rist's crystal eye widened even further. Even the slaves looked stunned.
The Flufftar began packing their belongings faster, his four arms moving frantically as he stuffed supplies into the pack on his back.
"How is that possible?" Rist asked. "Those things are supposed to be weak unless they're part of a swarm."
The leader sat down heavily and placed the prized object between his legs before digging into the ground with his hands and metal claw arm.
"It came from Dome Three with its Apex," he muttered.
He continued digging.
"It should have died by now. It's probably one of the lesser members… maybe even an evolved one."
He paused.
"Or it hatched from a dormant egg. A higher-tier swarm member could've hidden one extremely well."
He glanced toward the darkness.
"Humans and the like hunted that species to extinction across all three domes after the Apex fell."
A grim smile crossed his face.
"But I guess… we missed one."