The Desert is Cold in the Dark [Dark Data]

[Jim Raynor]

Jim grimaced at the ringing in his ears. Somerled's summoning of a lightning bolt had wracked the entire temple, the small enclosure rebounding and magnifying the resounding boom. Even in his closed visor, the sound penetrated easily, it a little muted.
 
"Son of a ... kid, tell Somerled to give us some damn warnin' the next time he decides to crack the air with electricity, huh?"
 
Raynor wasn't all that angry at the gaunt storm weaver. His inability to finish off the desert monster with his grenades had pissed him off and left him with little options to try a second time. At least Somerled directing nature's fury into one of its hands had done the trick; Jim couldn't see any sand pooling to recast itself. Maybe they had done enough damage that its self healing had been reduced, or limited? He could only hope that was the case.
 
Another pleasant side effect of his failed chain explosion, discounting the downpour of sand that allowed the monster to keep the fight going, was the opening of the temple to the elements. The lightning bolt had done wonders, and now rain pelted through the gaping hole in the roof, soddening the desert monster. Jim didn't have water or ice readily on hand so he hadn't conceived of affecting their foe with it, but since Somerled's rain dance, it fell in undulating sheets, soaking into the creature.
 
The bright gold of the creature's composition darkened into a heavy tan. It roared, raising its remaining hand over its head to block the precipitation, but it only distributed the moisture into another part of its body. The creature realised this, lowering its hand and snaking away from the rain, but the hole spanned at least five metres, and the water already absorbed by its body made its movement sluggish and jerky.
 
On the other hand, if any of them took a hit, the thickened sand would hurt a hell of a lot more.
 
Jim looked to Somerled. Pain and exhaustion written on his face, it was a wonder he continued to stand after that monumental effort. Raynor hadn't spotted the skeletal gunslinger lately either; perhaps he or Sun Ogong had finished that corpse's holiday from the grave?
 
The desert monster grumbled, its tone lower and more feral than before, rolling towards Somerled. Jim doubted the slim man had the strength left in his thin bones to escape safely, let alone re-engage.
 
Jim raced across the temple, his metal legs slamming on the temple floor. The wind howled through the cavity in the roof, hurling arrows of rain against his armour. He squeezed robotic fingers around his Impaler rifle as the water splashed between their bends and joints, trying to loosen and pry his grip from his lifeline.
 
"Hey, ugly!" Jim called out. "You want some of this?"
 
Raising his weapon, Jim pulled on the trigger. A swarm of angry spikes exploded from the barrel and screamed towards the desert monster. The jostling of his sprint threw off his aim, landing fewer of the bullets than normal, but the ones that found their mark burst through the sandy mass with great force and leaving holes in their wake.
 
The violet eyes fixated on Somerled intensified and snapped to Jim.
 
"Yeah! Come get it!" Raynor baited.
 
The desert monster bellowed and slid after Jim with fervent desire. Jim spun and ran back the way he came. He had gotten the reaction he wanted, but he misjudged how fast his enemy could move. Maybe the sand was drying or he was acclimatising to the heaviness of his body, but the desert monster moved with a swiftness he hadn't shown before.
 
Sweat beading on his forehead, heart thrumming in his chest, Jim picked up the pace. His eyes locked onto his destination; an unbroken pillar, though with a few chips and chunks removed. He needed a few seconds to perform his attack, and he briefly wondered if he should have prepared before invoking the beast's ire, but his concern for Somerled had to come first.
 
Jim felt the rumble of the sand monster as it barrelled after him. Fallen debris drowned in its form as it slid over and through it; no physical obstacle was going to stop it from reaching the terran commander. He slapped a hand on the column and flung himself to its other side.
 
"Adjutant, Project Hellfire, now!"
 
"Authorisation code re-"
 
"No time for Swann's dumb games, adjutant! Override code R4 dash YN zero R!"
 
"Override code accepted. Executing Project Hellfire. Stand by ..."
 
Jim readied himself for the marine armour to shut down to draw the necessary power, but the adjutant spoke. "Reducing CMC-400 power combat suit energy to 20%." A loud crackle boomed beside Jim, and he felt full control of the suit return. "Project Hellfire activation successful."
 
Grabbing the Hellfire missile pod that had just been teleported in, Jim hoisted it onto his round shoulder and took aim. The desert monster had somehow gotten right on top of him. Panicking, Jim pulled the trigger, knowing full well he hadn't the time to line up the shot properly.
 
The missiles launched, snaking in all different directions. Five of the eight explosives missed their mark entirely, veering off and blowing new holes in the walls and roof of the temple. The remaining three looked like they would skirt over the beast's head, but instead they connected with the top of its head.
 
Jim sailed backwards from the force of the explosion. When he got up, he noticed the desert monster's eyes had been blown clean off, and was making no effort to reconstruct them.
 
"Heh, bein' blind must just be the ticket to a win."
 

952 words.
Jim used Hellfire missiles (Tier 1 Super Attack - 5/11 SP left). Most missed but a couple hit the desert monster in the face, destroying its eyes and leaving it blind. Up to Ogong if it reforms them or not.