Captive (Among Us Logic)

In the Flesh

The invaders towered over the crewmates by a good four feet. They had thick arms and broad shoulders, making their figure even more imposing. They had faces like eagles, with deep-set eyes and mouths halfway between reptilian jaws and avian beaks. Their skin, smooth and slightly slimy, shone a bright lavender in the Skeld's lights.

When the crewmates didn't move right away, the invaders pulled their weapons on them -- blaster rifles with glowing energy cells and bayonets bolted to the muzzles.

"Ah!" Captain exclaimed, backing up towards Player. "It's worse than I thought."

The taller alien barked out something at the crewmates. Player didn't understand the words, but he could pick up on the anger. To his surprise, Captain responded. The white Bean gave a reply, in a tone that barely masked his anxiety.

"What did they say?" Player asked Captain..

"They asked to speak with the leader. That's me."

"Yeah, but for what?"

The other alien glared at Player and said something curt to him.

"Stop talking," Captain whispered to Player.

"What?"

"Shhh."

Captain continued the conversation, his leaderly demeanor quickly evaporating. He and the invaders had a short but heated exchange. Then he sighed and turned to face his crew.

"These are Alder," he told them.

There was an awkward beat of silence. The shorter Ald adjusted the scope on their rifle.

"A species from the Laertes asteroid field," Captain elaborated. "They want the impostors among us to reveal themselves. They said they won't kill any of us if the impostors surrender."

"Does that mean they're on our side?" Gnome inquired.

"Not even close."

From within the small crowd, Bro balled up his fists and scowled. "Fine! I'll take them on. I've got a gun, too!"

"He was an impostor?" Player wondered aloud uselessly. He supposed that explained Bro's beastly attitude.

The bold, if not brazen, blue Bean stormed up to the Alder, pushing aside Captain.

"You want me? Come at me!" he boasted. He cocked his gun.

The shot would never go anywhere. In a blur, the shorter Ald swept him up, seizing him by the legs and head. There was a sickening cracking sound as the Ald's hands twisted in opposite directions. They let go, and Bro's body flopped to the ground. They glared at the surviving crewmates. For added measure, they picked up the gun and snapped it in half, as though it was a twig.

The crewmates stared in horror. Player kept looking back and forth at Bro's corpse and the attackers. He could hear some of his peers shouting in alarm, Mother hyperventilating, and a dull thud as Stoner outright fainted.

Captain panicked. In desperation, he cried out for his crew to do what they did best--

"Everyone, scatter!"

So they did, with Beans fleeing in all directions. Player thought he saw Captain diving towards Stoner as if to pick up his unconscious comrade, but he couldn't hang around to make sure. As he ran away, he heard one of the Alder shouting urgently. He retreated towards the south end of the ship, near the engine block. Maybe he could hide in a storage container or in Electrical. Mother scurried past him in the hallway, eye wide in fear and desperately clinging her children close.

As Player ducked into Electrical, he could hear shots ringing out. The Alder's guns used energy cells to propel their shots, which made loud cracks not unlike a gunpowder-based firearm. Player knew as much as that from his training. The strange thing was, he could hear multiple guns going off at once, more than two guns for the two Alder who had threatened them. With the realization, he could feel himself sinking like a rock tossed in a lake.

Oh God, he thought. They've called reinforcements. There are more of them aboard.

More space pirates had arrived to back up the initial two, and now the Skeld's crew had dispersed throughout the ship. Now, any chance they stood of fighting back had flown out the window -- for crewmates, it was all safety in numbers.

Player crouched between the distributor and the fuse box. He mentally cursed out Captain for the white Bean's obsession with splitting up the crew. Now he didn't know what to do. The Skeld wasn't a big ship, and there was no telling how many attackers were roaming the halls at this point. It wouldn't be long before someone found him in his little hiding place. Even in the dim light of Electrical, his red fur stood out like a beacon. Hey, there's a crewmate here! A Bean, right here!

The doors slammed shut abruptly. For once, Player was grateful for the doors in Electrical shutting. The surviving impostor, whoever they were, must have done it. It gave Player a strange sense of relief. The impostor, actually trying to help the crew -- what a thought! The situation would almost be a little funny, if they weren't under attack from a much bigger threat.

Player's relief didn't last long. The doors to Electrical sparked, whined, and then opened back up. A set of hands, eight fingers to each one, wedged themselves into the crack. The attacking Ald pried the doors apart and stomped into the room. Their gun crackled. Player tried to push himself deeper into the gap of his hiding-place. The sound of his own heartbeat muffled the hum and fizzle of Electrical's appliances.

The alien hadn't discovered him yet. They paced around the room, their gun tilted for attack and their eyes scanning the surroundings. Player wheezed slightly from nervousness.

Maybe he had made a noise that was just too loud, or it was a stroke of terrible luck -- after all, Player was no stranger to bad luck -- but in that moment, the Ald spotted him. The purple alien swiveled to face him and lunged toward him with blinding speed. One moment they were standing in the middle of the room, the next they were two inches from Player, with him staring down the barrel of their weapon.

Aflush with adrenaline, Player darted out of his hiding place and attempted to flee. He didn't get very far; the Ald grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and flung him backwards, closer to them. Player skidded across the floor, his legs giving out under him. By the time he was up on his own feet again, the Ald had blocked his way out and was pointing their gun again.

"What do you want from us?" Player asked in desperation. All that the space pirate heard, though, was cute chattering sounds, punctuated by an indignant squeak. Their shoulders shook as they let out huffs of laughter.

Even a worm will turn, and so the red Bean felt he had no option left but to fight. He leapt at his attacker. He latched on to the front of their body armor, clawing and slapping with all his might.

Which, compared to this juggernaut, unfortunately wasn't much. The Ald peeled him off them and tossed him to the floor. Player stood up in time for them to clock him with the butt of their gun.

Crewmate down.