A/N:

Woah, I'm alive! How about that? Also, here's a very short chapter for you! Thank you to all of those who have followed, favorited, and/or reviewed this story. In fact, thank you to everyone who has even taken the time to read this story, even though its updates are lacking.

"You fled?"

"I had no choice, Nest Mother," Karmak stuttered, weaving her webbed fingers together as her reptilian tail tucked between her legs. She withered under her Nest Mother's venomous scowl.

"You had the Plant within your grasp, and you simply ran away?"

"T-There was a human there. He knew who we were. He discovered us!"

"So what if a mere human finds you?" The Nest Mother snarled. Spit fell from her fangs, and onto the stone floor in front of Karmak. The acidity began to eat away at the stone. Karmak couldn't help but shiver and take a step back.

"What was I supposed to do?"

"KILL THEM!" The Nest Mother shrieked, her voice echoing through the tunnel halls. Loose chips of rock crumbled from the ceiling, and Karmak could swear that the very ground had shaken. Karmak whimpered, leaning back on her haunches and hiding her face in her webbed hands. The other Eintaks in the throne hall were unaroused, well accustomed to their Nest Mother's temper.

"B-B-But you d-don't understand!" Karmak argued, albeit timidly. She was trembling from head to talon, and she clenched her jaws as she talked to keep her fangs from chattering. "Humans are already endangered on Gunsmoke. We shouldn't just -"

"So you would choose their lives over the lives of your own family?" The Nest Mother's tone turned icy - a stark difference from the uproarious tone she had possessed mere moments ago.

"N-No, never!," Karmak gasped, her heart freezing. "I would n-never!" The Nest Mother settled back down on her stone throne, her massive form making the very rocks lean back.

"You managed to locate the power source, but did little more than that," the Nest Mother began, her voice booming, yet calmer, like the rumbling of thunder. "You failed to obtain the power source, you failed to lead your underlings to victory, and you chose to protect the lives of the humans over ours. Such negligence cannot go without punishment."

"M-My most m-merciful matriarch," Karmak squeaked, looking up in horror. Her eyes were met with the sight of her mother's jagged fangs. "Surely you could...f-find it in your large heart to allow m-me to make it up to you, s-somehow! Perhaps there is some...task I could-"

"Silence!"

Karmak snapped her jaws shut, feeling her heart dropping.

"You will be taken into custody until I have spoken with the council about your fate. Regardless, you have been stripped of your privileges as an Eintak officer, and your underlings will be given to a more responsible command."

"Yes...Mother Dearest."

OoOoOoO

"So is this it, then?" Martha asked, shielding her eyes from the twin suns with a hand. In the distance, she could only see sandy hills, with lines distorted by heat waves. "We just keep walking? Are we going to a different town?"

"Different town? No way!" Vash shot back with a double-take as if offended. "We're letting the locals cool off for a bit, then we're going right back in. I'm certain that those weird people will be back to threaten the Plant."

"Okay," Martha nodded, furrowing her brows in thought. "New question. What exactly is a Plant? Is it like a power plant?"

"That's right, my clever angel!" Vash gushed, causing Martha to roll her eyes. "But it's not just for energy. It generates food and water as well. Without the Plant, the town could fall into ruin."

"That's incredible!" The Doctor, who had been deep in thought, chose this moment to speak up. "A power plant that generates food and water… what kind of technology is that? Who made the plants?"

Vash snapped his mouth shut, for once, stricken silent. Martha thought she could see a flash of concern in his eyes before he quickly took on a confused persona. "I'm not really sure what you're talking about," he chuckled, scratching the back of his head. "The Plants have been around since before I was born, so I couldn't really tell you."

The Doctor must have caught the same look that Martha had, because he clearly didn't look impressed.