Chapter 40: By the Throat

Grunting in pain, Sergeant Ledoyen struggled to climb out of the freezer.

Taking her hand to help her out, Pampaa said, "What do you mean, there's a spawner onboard?"

She took a strained breath between each short burst of words. "During the attack. He snuck away. I tracked him back. Back here. I think he killed someone and took their clothes. Disguised himself."

"That is alarming." Pampaa ran a seemingly casual glance around the compartment.

No one seemed to notice him. Most of the pirates were busily repairing areas of the ship that took a beating during the chase. Others loaded fresh ammo into the turrets. There were jobs to do and not enough people to do them. Everyone appeared to belong.

But Pampaa didn't know all their faces.

He tried not to allow paranoia to set in. Still, the idea of a spawner going wild onboard, popping out dozens of copies of himself in such a small area, chilled the blood.