The Martians

PERSEUS MANGAL-GRAH

He curses under his breath as the K'tharr charge at him. He was bluffing when he taunted them to come at him all at once. Honestly, he would have preferred them one by one; his right side aches like hell, and he can barely feel his right arm.

He sighs, more of determination than defeat. He can't look pathetic in front of his daughter; he has to show her what he's made of.

He knows he'll be shredded to pieces if he waits for them to come to him. So he does what any sane person would do—or at least what he thinks any sane person would do—he jumps into their midst, plunging into hell itself.

The move is sheer brilliance, sowing confusion among the K'tharr. They reach for him, but their long arms and claws catch each other instead, their own weapons becoming their downfall.

Perseus notices a stark lack of intelligence in their movements now, reducing them to nothing more than mundane beasts.

And dealing with mundane beasts is something he knows how to handle easily.

The K'tharr, in their frantic attempts to reach him, tear into each other, limbs falling like rain around him. If any manage to get close, Perseus either evades or cunningly directs their claws into another of their kind.

He thinks this chaos is all he needs to secure victory; whatever K'tharr remain, he'll deal with easily.

But as with all plans that seem too straightforward, they rarely go accordingly.

A claw digs into his heel from behind, eliciting a scream of pain that seems to jolt the K'tharr back to their senses.

They cease their infighting, turning their attention back to him. Perseus counts ten remaining. He curses under his breath.

They revert to taking turns. Two K'tharr attack; one swipes high, the other snaps low, aiming to trap him in a pincer movement.

Bad choice. Perseus slams the claw of the low attacker into the ground and delivers a devastating kick to the jaw of the high one, its skull shattering into fragments.

Before he can finish off the second, two more K'tharr lunge at him.

He can't assume a defensive stance quickly enough; a claw slashes his thigh, parting flesh, blood gushing out. He falls to his knees.

He does a quick assessment of his body. One bad hand, one injured thigh, and a wounded heel. His mobility is severely compromised—not good.

The K'tharr give him no respite, closing in again. He briefly considers using a forbidden technique but quickly dismisses the idea; the backlash could prove fatal, especially since he's unsure how many more enemies he'll face.

He decides he'll have to do this the old-fashioned way then.

He needs to get in close, knowing it'll cost him dearly, but it's just pain. A claw comes at him; he doesn't evade. Instead, he pivots, allowing the claw to burrow into his arm. Seizing the K'tharr's wrist, he wrenches it, snapping the bone, separating hand from arm.

The creature howls, but its cry is abruptly silenced as Perseus uses the severed claw to slice through its throat.

He tears the four-fingered hand from the K'tharr. Two claws for each hand, now he has weapons, and reach.

The injured K'tharr, its claw broken, attempts to reach for him. Perseus drives two claws from his right hand into its skull. It slumps down instantly; even a K'tharr can't withstand its own claws.

Two more lunge at him, but he doesn't evade. He waits until the last moment, then slices off their heads with a swift, precise motion.

He scans the room. Five remain.

"Come on!" he roars, his voice raw and fierce, no longer bluffing. Let them end this now.

ATHENA MANGAL-GRAH

Athena watches in awe at her father's fighting prowess. She's never witnessed him in such a serious battle before. She knew he was strong; his name is etched in the Warring Archive alongside a select few, including the First Men. He was among the elite.

He had fought in the Ninth Galactic War at just fourteen years old, the third youngest in Martian history. He also held the seventh-longest overtime record in the 'Hundred Days in the Underworld' training, clocking an additional 49 days, 6 hours, 54 minutes, and nineteen seconds. She knew all of her father's history by heart. And she had broken every record of his, except for that one overtime record.

His fighting style stands in stark contrast to hers. She prefers fighting with flair, her movements clean and smooth, almost like a dance.

Her father's technique, however, is grounded, rough, and brutal. But she appreciates the beauty in his approach; it's battle fighting in its most primal form.

He takes damage willingly, using it as an opportunity to inflict fatal wounds on the K'tharr. Athena marvels at how he's still standing. No Martian should endure after taking such punishment.

With the new abilities she gained from observing the K'tharr in the Crimson Nexus, Athena can see better, analyze with greater precision.

She watches her father, absorbing each movement, noting how he wastes no motion, every action purposeful and efficient.

Comparing this to her own current style, she recognizes a significant gap in efficiency.

She realizes she still has a lot of growing to do, but this realization brings her joy. She's nowhere near her prime yet; there's so much more room for growth.

She watches as her father lets a K'tharr's claws burrow into his arm, then sees him wrench the hand free from its arm. She observes him fashioning it into a weapon.

Athena mentally kicks herself for not thinking of that strategy when she was fighting.

After that, he takes no more risks and sustains no further damage. He wields the claws with a beauty that surpasses even the K'tharr themselves, a true master of weapons.

Five K'tharr were left, then four, then two, and then there were none.

He'd single-handedly wiped out several of these creatures, and only she had witnessed this feat.

He rests for a minute before making his way towards her, limping, blood seeping from nearly every part of his body.

Eventually, he reaches her.

His gaze sweeps over her, and he says, "You look like shit."

She eyes him from head to toe, giving him a look that clearly said, "Look who's talking."

He laughs, then so does she.

After a hearty laugh, he says it's time to go and meet her mother and younger siblings at the space fort.

As they make to leave, the ground trembles, and shakes violently.