I sit here thinking about the battle. Half my men were lost, we won but many were lost. I wondered why I bothered to fight any more. After all I had nothing to fight for, nothing to live for now. But I cannot die. The doctor bandages my wounded shoulder. I know the wound will heal in a matter of hours. It is my left shoulder. Had it been my right then it would heal in minutes. That is because half of my body is no longer?hmm, what is the right word to use? I would say human, but then I am not human, I am Ceolothian.
Perhaps I should start from the beginning; maybe then you will understand what I now am. Many millennia ago, I am not sure how many exactly, my people were at war with another planet. My ancestors were no match for those from the other planet and Ceolothia, their home world, was destroyed. Fortunately many were evacuated before the destruction of Ceolothia and were taken in by the people of Brunnis, the Brunnen G, out of gratitude for this act of kindness, the survivors of Ceolothia vowed to protect the Brunnen G. And so, what were to be known as the guardians, where created. Each household of the Brunnen G had at least one Ceolothian as a member of their family. The Ceolothian would act as a protector for the members of the household. They lived by a strict code of honour and duty. They would in no way become emotionally attached to any household members except to treat them as brothers or sisters. Then there was the most important rule. The Ceolothian would vow that they would die before any harm came to the Brunnen G family. And that was how it was for thousands of years.
As time passed the Brunnis Sun began to go supernova and even though attempts to stop it succeeded, the sun could no longer support life on the planet. Then the Brunnen G made their journey into the Light universe and their Guardians went with them.
Once on this new home world, life returned to normal and everything was as it should be until the insect wars. Though we were victorious in our fight against the insects, a terrible disease swept the land. The Brunnen G were not effected by it, but almost all the Ceolothians were wiped out. The only survivors were 3 men who protected a group of scientists working on a cure. It was too late to save any more than the three. The Brunnen G did not want the Ceolothian race to die out; they were now part of the Brunnen G society.
The only way to ensure the Ceolothian survival was to use DNA from the survivors to artificially create new life. Those who were created were just like any Ceolothian would be had he been born naturally, and I say ?he? because they could only create men as they only had the DNA from men. As the Ceolothian numbers began to slowly increase, they once again trained as Guardians. But as there were still so few, only the highest members of Brunnen G society could have a Guardian. They went to lords, generals, priests and such like. This continued for many centuries.
Then one day, the wife of a Brunnen G nobleman gave birth to a son. Now they needed a Guardian. None were available so one had to be created and this is where I come into this story.
No one is exactly certain about how I was created. But for the first time in nearly one thousand years a female Ceolothian was ?born?. For the first few months of my life no one knew what to do with me; should I be trained as a Guardian? Should I be trained as something else? Should I be kept in a lab and studied to find out how I ?occurred?? It was finally decided to train me as a Guardian as one was needed.
They called me Ardria. It is the Brunnen G word for protector.
So I trained and I trained. I wanted to be the best and in the end I was the best. I excelled in all areas of training, yet no one disliked me for it, which I found surprising. I passed my training and at the age of 14 years I met the person I would spend the rest of my life protecting. He was a year older than me and training to be a warrior.
Being only a child I did not take a great deal of notice of what he looked like. Not like now. Now all I think of is his face, his body, what he was like when we were together, and I fight with the image of his death in my mind.
But at the age of 14, I merely bowed my head in respect and said those binding words; ?I will die to protect you, my Lord Kai.?
Kai became a warrior and the years passed. We fought in battle together; I never left his side. We were known throughout Brunnen G society as an inseparable and deadly team, and we were. Things began to change when I was 19 years of age. We were no longer children and no longer felt like children. But he was Brunnen G and I was Ceolothian, nothing could happen between us. Well nothing was supposed to happen between us.
We had both been injured in battle, I had a wound across my stomach and Kai had a deep gash on his shoulder. I immediately turned my attention to treating him, as I was trained to do, before concerning myself with my own injuries. When we were both treated we sat there in silence, both of us half undressed and avoiding each others gaze. I sat there for what felt like hours before I looked at him. I reached out my hand and brushed aside the strands of hair that fell in his eyes. He then took my hand and pulled me closer. I hesitated for I knew this was something I should not be doing. I opened my mouth to speak but stopped when he placed a gentle finger on my lips, ?I love you, Ardria.? He whispered. Then we kissed. Slowly, passionately, deeply. He moved his hand down my back and put his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him still. I placed my hand on his neck as we kissed again. Slowly I moved it across his shoulder and down his chest, feeling the warmth of his body. I lay back on the bed, slowly, pulling him back with me until we were both lying down. I winced slightly as the weight of his body pressed against the wound on my stomach. He pulled back slightly, and moved so he was by my side. I was once again about to speak but he stopped me with another kiss. I placed my arm around his neck and we were locked in this passionate embrace. I will never forget that night.
The next morning, Kai?s commanding officer found us together. The following hour I faced a disciplinary court. I could have lost everything, my place, my title, even my life. I would have done if the Time Prophet had not told the magistrates that Kai must not lose me as his Guardian. She had seen into the future-past and we must fight the battle with His Shadow together. The battle against His Shadow was the last time we fought together.
We were losing the fight. Our world was being destroyed and our comrades killed before us. Soon it was only Kai and myself left. We did not know what to do and were dodging fire from His Shadow?s ship when I was hit. I began to spin out of control before I hit something, I don?t know what it was, but it threw me through some sort of window. I felt what I think was glass cutting deep into my arm and stomach. I remember little of what happened next, I was aware of great pain all down the right side of my body. I turned my head slowly as I opened my eyes. I looked down at what was left of my body. My right arm had been sliced off at the shoulder. The majority of my stomach and chest had suffered the same fate. The outer side of my right leg was torn to shreds and I could feel blood dripping down my neck and chest so I knew something had happened to my face. My head fell down onto my left shoulder. I took in little of my surroundings and began to close my eyes when I saw Kai. As a last futile resort he flew into this weapon of destruction. He lay there, unable to move as His Shadow approached him. They spoke and His Shadow ended Kai?s life by driving a blade into his heart. As he died, Kai turned his head slightly and saw the mutilated remains of the girl he loved. He whispered my name with his last breath; I will never forget that moment. I closed my eyes. I cared about nothing anymore and waited for death to take me. But death never came.
I awoke a century later. I didn?t know where I was or who I was. I saw His Shadow. He approached me and laughed lightly at my confused state. He then explained to me what they had done.
They had taken my body and placed me into a cryostasis chamber while I was still alive. The Divine Shadow?s scientists had then used me to experiment with new organic-cybernetic techniques. The result of this was that I now had a ?complete? body again. I was now half robot, that?s what it looked like to me but I accepted it, but the robotic parts of me were ?alive? in a way. They had used proto-blood to animate the cybernetics and it had had an unusual side effect. The proto-blood had fused with my own blood; this had resulted in my body being able to heal itself from any injury. They said I could not die. Apparently they had tried to kill me but had been unsuccessful. The proto-blood also appeared to have stopped the ageing process; I still have the body of a 19-year-old. For many months they did more tests. They tried to find out if I was vulnerable, if I could be destroyed. They couldn?t find out. To this day I do not know if my existence can end. I have suffered many great injuries over the centuries but I have not died. It seems that my body will shut itself down to repair what is damaged. This can take minutes, hours, days, even weeks, but I always wake up, I am always healed.
I appeared to be indestructible and this was to His Shadow?s liking and he used me as a mindless assassin and guardian for himself. This job I performed for almost two thousand years. Somehow I regained my memory after meeting a group of rebels from the Dark Zone. I did not know what to do. His Shadow found out I had my memory back and was trying to kill me but the Dark Zone rebels intervened. They took me back with them to their planet in the Dark Zone. I fought with them out of a sense of honour and duty I had now regained.
That is how I am here, in the Dark Zone, sitting in a surgery as a doctor bandages my shoulder. I don?t want to be here, I want to die. All I have now is a memory of a man I loved, a man I do love even though he is gone. But my thoughts are interrupted. Word has reached me that three strangers, two men and a woman, are being attacked by our enemy. I go to battle once more. It is all I have now.
I met with the other fighters I would command at the gates to the small city in which we lived. We picked up our weapons and put on the black masks we always wore. The mask covered all the face below the eyes; it was difficult to identify who was beneath the mask. The masks were worn as a symbol of the rebels but also acted as protection against the gas weapons our enemy threw at us. The enemy is known as Tydaux, The Tydaux and the Reldan, the rebels, once lived together in harmony. But rulers changed and the people split into two groups. The Tydaux drove the Reldan out of their homes and now there is civil war.
I armed myself with my usual weapons, a dagger and a staff with blades in the ends that can retract. I also have a weapon on my wrist. It is the one I used when in the services of His Shadow. It had become known among the Reldan as the scorpion blade.
We reached the battleground a few minutes later, it was soon going to be night and the light was fading quickly. The strangers were greatly outnumbered by the Tydaux and were not putting up much of a fight. The woman and one of the men obviously had no weapons and he cowered behind her. It was the other man who caught my attention. He was attempting to keep the Tydaux back to let the others escape and he did so in a manner which told me he was definitely some kind of warrior. But his clothes worried me. He wore the black uniform of the cryo-assassins His Shadow used, a member of my team pointed out that he also had a scorpion blade much like my own but we were too far away to make out who he was.
I was unsure whether we should help. I knew His Shadow wanted me destroyed and he could have sent this assassin to do it, but I went by the code that my enemy?s enemy is my friend and ordered the attack.
We took the Tydaux fighters by surprise and used this to our advantage. I ordered three of them to get the strangers to safety. The man and the woman he was hiding behind were taken out the way but the assassin was in the middle of the fight. I attempted to get to his position but was interrupted when four Tydaux challenged me, two in front, two behind. I adjusted my grip on my staff. With a tiny movement of my hand one of the blades sprang out. I drove a blade through the chest of one man in front of me. Another slight movement and the second blade appeared, the man running at me from behind ran straight onto it. Spinning the staff I easily decapitated another man and had the point of a blade touching the final man?s neck. I stared coldly at him and saw before me the face of a child. This fighter was no more than 16 years of age. I moved the staff, cutting him across the cheek, then lowered it to the ground. I could see the relief in his eyes before he ran off.
I turned and once again headed in the direction of the third stranger. Someone ran at me with a knife, the image of His Shadow driving the knife into Kai?s heart flashed through my mind, I killed this man easily and then killed everyone who stood in my way. When I was only a few steps from the stranger someone hit me from behind. I fell to the ground. I managed to roll onto my back before my assailant could do anything else and drive my dagger into his heart. But now I was down, I was vulnerable and the Tydaux knew this. Before I could get to my feet a blade went through my shoulder and pinned me to the ground. I suffered many injuries as more and more Tydaux attacked me, I was unable to keep them back and thought that maybe this was the end. I was tired now and I closed my eyes. Nothing happened. I opened my eyes again as someone pulled the blade in my shoulder out. I looked up and stared in disbelief. It was?but it could not be?was it real??was it a ghost??my rescuer was?Kai. I closed my eyes and shook my head to clear my thoughts. I looked up again, he was gone.
The Tydaux called a retreat and another Reldan came to my aid. I was very dazed and the next thing I remember I was back in the doctor?s surgery. I was almost healed and weakly smiled at the doctor who frowned at me.
?Ardria, you must be more careful.? He said concerned.
?You always say that, Doctor.? Was my reply, he smiled slightly.
?Yes?well next time there will not be much of you left to say it to.?
I smiled and sat up as he finished treating me.
?Well you?ll be fine for now,? he shook his head, ?but one of these days I?m sure they?ll be bringing you to me in pieces.?
I smiled again.
?Any word on the strangers?? I asked him.
?They are still unconscious, the effects of the gas are lasting a while.?
?But all three of them will be fine??
The doctor looked at me confused.
?Three?? He shook his head, ?there were only two.?
?Two? No there were three, two men and a woman.?
?I only saw one man and one woman.? He said shaking his head again. I quickly left the surgery, shouting back a thank-you, and went to find Cehl, another fighter leader. I found him talking to some other high-ranking fighters.
?Cehl!? I called to him and he turned.
?Ardria! Are you all right? I wasn?t expecting to see you around yet.?
?That?s not important right now.?
?Very well?what did you want??
?The doctor tells me we only returned with two strangers.?
?Yes that?s right.?
?What about the third?? I asked, he shook his head.
?We didn?t find a third.? I brushed aside the hair that had fallen in my eyes.
?But he was there.?
?I?m sorry Ardria, we only found the two and there is no one left on the battlefield.? I leant against a nearby wall and muttered, ?Maybe it was a ghost after all.? Cehl frowned slightly.
?What do you mean??
?Today, on the battlefield, I saw?I saw??
?You saw what??
?I saw Kai.?
?Kai?? Cehl looked at me unconvinced and trying not to smile.
?I?m serious Cehl,? I was annoyed by his expression.
?You mean you saw his image, as you always do. That?s the reason so many Tydaux end up dead.?
?No?I didn?t see his image?I saw him?he was there?fighting?? I tried desperately to explain, but I was beginning to doubt myself. I gave up and headed back to the Doctor, maybe I wasn?t all right.
?Ah?Ardria?? the Doctor looked pleased to see me, ?those strangers of yours are awake.?
?Thank-you Doctor.? I said as I went into the room they were in. The man was rubbing at a lump on his head and complaining about the situation to his female companion. He stopped in mid-sentence when he saw me. I took a step closer.
?Welcome,? I said with a friendly smile, ?to the city of the Reldan.?
?Erm?thanks.? The man said glancing nervously to the woman, I continued.
?I apologise for what happened when you first arrived, you met with the Tydaux, our enemy, they see anyone they don?t know as a threat.?
?We noticed.? muttered the man as his gaze shifted to the door. Cehl came into the room with the Doctor and the Reldan ?leader?.
?I am Ardria, and this,? I turned slightly to introduce them, ?is Cehl, a fighter leader, Doctor Terho and the Commander of the city, Lord Menok.?
?Pleased to meet you all,? the woman stood up, ?my name is Zev and this is Stanley.? Once the formal introductions were over we began to talk about why Zev and Stanley had come to the planet, then Stanley interrupted.
?Hey, where?s the dead guy??
?What?? Menok was not expecting that question, Zev looked around and suddenly looked worried, Stanley continued.
?The guy we were with in the fight.? I looked over to Cehl who avoided my gaze. Then Zev started to panic.
?Where is he? Where is Kai??
?Kai!? I looked at Zev.
?Yes?Kai, our companion, you know him?? I could not reply, my mind was racing with what could have happened. I hurriedly left the surgery and went to the fighter quarters. I asked some of my trusted friends to help me in what could be a suicide mission. They said they would. We took our weapons and masks and before anyone could stop us, we were heading towards the major city of the Tydaux.
We approached the city using small, light crafts, we call them flyers. There were four of us, myself and three talented fighters, Hal, Lye and Tor, all of whom I trusted my life with. We surveyed the gates of the city from our position, we were hidden by a rock formation but still had a clear view. The walls were high, guards were inside, and there was no way to open the gate from outside. We moved to a side-wall and decide one of us would have to go inside alone. I decided to go, I?d put these men in enough danger already and couldn?t ask them to risk their lives to hunt for a?dead man.
I dropped down soundlessly on the other side of the wall, I looked around but there was no one in sight. I moved along, hiding in shadows and alleys, until I heard two Tydaux talking. They were discussing the stranger that had been brought back from the battle. I approached them silently. With one movement I had slit the throat of one and had my dagger pointed at the throat of the other. I motioned for him to go back into the alley, he did so and I followed, dragging the body of the other man behind me. I dropped this body and pressed my dagger against the throat of the other once more. I was about to get information from him when I noticed a cut on his cheek and realised it was the same boy from the battle. He recognised me also; he stood there, staring at my eyes, frozen in fear. I looked at him and sighed.
?Please?don?t kill me.? He begged. I ignored his plea.
?I need information.?
?Anything?but don?t kill me?please.? He was shaking, I sighed again.
?Where are you keeping the stranger from the battle??
?In?in the science lab.?
?Where is that?? He pointed across the street. ?Very good.? I lowered the dagger.
?Are you going to kill me?? he asked in a quiet voice, I didn?t answer. Then he spoke again in an even quieter voice, ?You let me go before.? I looked at him for a while. I couldn?t kill him, he was too young. I traced a finger down the cut on his cheek.
?I won?t kill you,? I spoke harshly, ?but that doesn?t mean others won?t, understand?? He nodded. I brought the hilt of my dagger down against his temple and he fell to the ground. I looked across the street to the building he had pointed to. There didn?t seem to be anyone about. I crossed the street and went in. It was quiet, too quiet.
I went up the nearest staircase and at the top looked down the corridor. There was a guard by one of the doors. He had to be in there. I silently edged along the wall, closer and closer, I levelled my arm with his chest, and fired my scorpion blade. He fell silently and I entered the room and crouched down behind some equipment. I could see a group of scientists gathered around a table on which was a clear box, I couldn?t see what was in it. What I could see was a body in some sort of holing cell, chained to the wall, without a head. I frowned, not too sure what my next move was going to be. I listened to what the scientists were saying.
?We should remove the brain, see how it works.? Said one.
?No, no, no, we should attach it to the body again.? Said another
?No we should dissect the body.? Interrupted a third
?Don?t be a fool, that won?t get us anywhere.? Argued the first.
?What?s this substance?? a fourth scientist was holding a jar up. I made my move. It?s proto-blood.? I said standing up, the scientists turned and stared. I quickly disposed of three of them with my scorpion blade. I turned to the one with the proto-blood. ?I?ll take that.? He handed it over, then passed out, I decided to leave him. I walked over to the box on the table and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw what was inside it. I knelt down, so my head was level with the one in the box, and stared, not sure whether to believe what I saw or not. For the first time in over two thousand years I know he is really here, and I?m looking at his head in a box. I closed my eyes and rest my head against my arm on the table. Then I heard someone speak.
?Could you please get me out of here?? I looked up slowly and there was Kai?s head, eyes now open, he looked at me and repeated the question. I looked for a way to open the box, and then I heard shouting outside. I opened the box but left his head on the table and looked for the keys to open the cell. Finding these I grabbed the head and released Kai?s body. I gave the head to the body, Kai put himself back together and turned to thank me. He was about to speak but was interrupted by me grabbing his arm and pulling him out of the way as Tydaux guards fired at us.
Looking around I saw our only hope of escape was the window. I ran over to it and forced it open as Kai kept the guards back. He joined me at the window.
?Where do we want to go?? he asked, I noticed that his voice was different, colder somehow. I turned and fired at another guard.
?The alley across the road.? It was the first time I had spoken to him and he paused for a moment as if remembering something. He shook the thought aside and as I fired at the guards, he fired out the window, attaching his blade to a banner stretched across the street. Using his free arm he grabbed me around my waist. I turned slightly and put one arm across his shoulders and we jumped.
We landed easily on the street below and Kai detached his blade from the banner. Neither of us moved for a few moments, still holding each other. Kai looked at me, unsure who I was as I still wore my mask. But this was not the time to tell him as the Tydaux guards were catching up with us. We ran down the alley, jumping over the two bodies that still lay there. In minutes we reached the wall where my comrades were. I signalled to them and a rope was thrown over the top. I hauled myself to the top of the wall and helped Kai up as the guards were beneath us and trying to pull him back down. We jumped down from the wall, boarded the flyers and headed for home.
Cehl and some of his men with Zev and Stanley were waiting for us when we returned. They approached my flyer once I had landed, I sighed as I got out. Cehl spoke first.
?What the hell did you think you were doing?!?? He shouted.
?Calm down Cehl.? I said.
?Calm down? You could have been killed!?
?No I could not,? I shook my head and went to get my weapons from the flyer.
?Well the others could!? Cehl said following me.
?They did not go into to city.?
?So that makes it all right for you to do this?? He grabbed my arm and turned me to face him.
?I had to get him? I stared at Cehl coldly.
?Get who?? He looked confused for a moment, ?You mean Kai??
?Yes? I moved out of his grip and turned to Kai who was standing by the flyer, he looked at me again as if trying to remember something, but then dismissed it and took a step forward.
?Thank-you,? he said glancing from me to Cehl, ?I appreciate what you did, even though you do not know me.?
?Oh, she knows you!? Cehl looked at Kai, who returned the look with a questioning gaze.
?She does??
?Yes, hardly ever stops talking about you.?
?I do not understand.? Kai looked back at me, ?Have I met you before? You do seem familiar in some way?who are you?? He titled his head slightly to the right. I lowered me head slightly and reached to undo the clasp on the back of the mask. I removed it, still keeping my head lowered, and shook my hair loose. I closed my eyes for a moment to prepare myself for whatever was to happen next. Opening them again I raised my head slowly. I met his gaze as he slowly straightened his head. Neither one of us moved or spoke. A thousand times I had dreamed of one day finding him again, but now I had, I could think of nothing to say and neither could Kai.
Zev took a step towards Kai and rested her hand on his arm. ?Kai?? she tried to get his attention, ?Do you know her?? Her hand dropped back to her side as Kai raised his hand. The tips of his fingers just brushing my skin, he moved his hand across my right cheek, again tilting his head slightly, while his eyes betrayed his confusion. Time seemed to stand still as centuries of loneliness, pain and longing came to an end. I raised my arm and took his hand in mine, feeling my heart beat faster as I closed my eyes again and remembered the night we were together.
?Would someone tell me what the hell is going on?? Stanley demanded, his voice dragging me back to the present day and situation.
Kai pulled his arm back and turned to Stanley. ?This is Ardria.?
?Who?s Ardria??
?She is!? He said turning back to me.
?And how do you know Kai? Zev demanded stepping protectively in front of Kai.
?She was my Guardian? Kai stated offering no further explanation.
I looked at him ignoring Zev and Stanley?s bewildered looks ?I am your Guardian.?
?A Guardian?s contract expires with the death of the one they must guard. I am dead.?
I did not know how to answer this. I took a step back and looked at the ground, the walls, anywhere but Kai?s expressionless face. Stanley was still trying to understand what was going on. ?What?s a Guardian?? he asked.
?A Guardian is a Ceolothian who vows to protect a member of the Brunnen G for life.? Kai explained.
?WHAT?!?? Stanley was now more confused than ever.
?It?s a long story,? I said, ?all you need to know is that I vowed to protect Kai from all harm and I will.?
?But he?s been dead for two thousand years!? Zev remarked.
?I know?I saw him die.? I said this fighting back a mixture of emotions as that image once again flashed through my mind.
?You saw him die, how is it you are still alive?? She asked.
?Yes?how?? Kai asked.
?After His Shadow killed you, I was placed in cryostasis and used by the scientists to test new organic-cybernetic technology.? I explained, ?The proto-blood needed to activate the technology fused with my own blood and has appeared to give me?immortality.?
?You mean you can?t die?? Stanley was still confused.
?I do not think so.?
?You expect us to believe that?? Zev looked at me.
?It is true,? Cehl interrupted, ?I have seen her come back from battle in states that would have killed the strongest men, but she always recovers.?
Zev was still not sure if she believed it or not, Stanley had given up on the situation, Kai just looked at me, no emotion showing. Cehl sensed the tension between us and decided to change the conversation. He called over one of the men nearby. ?Send word to Rhay, tell him that we will have a feast tonight to celebrate the victory today.? Stanley was very interested now.
?Feast? As in lots of food??
?Yes.? Cehl looked at him.
?Food!? Stanley was grinning, ?Did you hear that Zev? Real food!? He looked at Cehl, ?Will there be chicken??
?There will be everything you want.? He replied and headed for a nearby building. ?This way, if you please.? They all followed him, I waited for a few moments before I heard a voice call me.
?Ardria? Are you joining us?? I looked up and it was Cehl.
?Yes.? I muttered and walked towards him.
I took my usual place at the table, next to the Reldan leader Menok, and the feast began. There was music and dancing and everyone was eating heartily, all but Kai and me. Menok turned to me. ?Not eating Ardria?? he said with a mouthful of food. I didn?t look up.
?I do not feel like eating.?
?Hmm?? Menok frowned and took another bite of the meat he had in his hand, ?I don?t understand you sometimes.? He started talking about how wonderful the food was, I wasn?t listening, but he still carried on talking. I was trying to resist the urge to hit him when I stood up, ?Would you excuse me for a moment?? I left before he could reply.
I went up out onto the roof, it was partly a balcony. It was peaceful there, away from all the celebrations. It was a warm night, a slight breeze that blew gently every now and again cooled my skin. I looked out into the vast night sky, sighing as I leant against the railing. I remembered times when I used to gaze at the sky on nights like this, on my home world?with Kai. I sighed again as I thought of him. He was so different now, so cold, emotionless. I wondered how different I was now to how I was then. Does he even remember what I was like then? Does he care? Does he?feel?anything any more? My thoughts were interrupter by movement behind me. My training as a Guardian, assassin and warrior took over. I remained motionless for a few moments, listening, working out the intruder?s position. Turning suddenly I fired my blade, it wrapped twice around the neck of the intruder before embedding itself in the wall. I looked at who it was, a slight smile spread across my lips, I tried to hide it as I approached the 'intruder?. I took my blade from the wall and unwrapped it from the person?s neck.
?I?m sorry Cehl,? I apologised, ?I did not know it was you.?
?I guess it?s okay.? He replied, rubbing his neck. ?You?re pretty good with that blade.?
?Yes, I am.? I replied coldly. ?I have killed many with it.?
?You sound like Kai.? Cehl remarked. I turned away from him.
?Did you come up here for a reason?? I asked her, wishing he would just leave.
?Yes I did.? He replied seriously. ?I wanted to make sure you are all right.?
?Why wouldn?t I be?? I still faced away from him.
?You?ve acting strangely ever since?? he stopped
?Ever since what?? I turned to look at him. He took a deep breath.
?Ever since Kai arrived.? He said bitterly. I said nothing and looked away again, out into the vast night sky. Cehl carried on talking but I was no longer listening to him but one phrase penetrated my thoughts, ?He?s dead, get over it.? I stared directly at Cehl for a moment, and he stared at me, without warning I swung a clenched fist at his jaw. The unexpected and well-aimed blow hit him so hard he fell, rolling onto his back he looked up at me. I stared coldly back then turned on my heel and went back down to the main hall. Menok began to greet me but I walked straight passed him without a word and out of the building.
For a few minutes I stood outside, running my hand through my hair to get it out of my face I felt a sudden pain. I looked at my hand; it was bleeding from where Cehl?s teeth had split my skin. I frowned as I felt blood in my hair where it had dragged across the wound. I looked at my hand more closely in the light from a nearby window. The blood was too red. The fusion with the proto-blood had turned it pale and I knew it should not be this colour. I noticed as well that my right arm felt tired and stiff, more indication that I needed to replenish my proto-blood level. I looked down the street to the Doctor?s surgery and was surprised to see the lights on. I headed towards the building, the Doctor wouldn?t mind if I got more proto-blood now. I opened the door without knocking or making my presence known. I closed the door behind me and removed the top half of my black uniform, the same one I had worn while in the services of His Shadow. I looked at my shoulder, there was a wound there also. I wondered when I had done this and concluded it must have been during the rescue. A door opened behind me, I turned expecting to see the Doctor and I did but he was not alone. With him stood a man in the same situation as myself, half undressed. I let my eyes wander over his naked chest and bit my lower lip slightly before looking into his eyes. With the Doctor stood Kai.
Silence descended on the room, the air so thick with tension you could truly cut it with a knife. The doctor shifted nervously, a slight frown appearing on his face. It was obvious he didn?t want to be there. Though I?m not sure why, the situation didn?t effect him as it effected me. I thought of the options I had. I could completely ignore Kai and talk to the doctor, ignore the doctor and talk to Kai, ignore them both and carry on with the proto-blood transfusion as I had planned or I could leave. I also frowned slightly, those were great options. A wave of relief washed over me when the doctor spoke.
?Well,? he said nervously, ?now there are two of you here, I?ll need more proto-blood.? With this he quickly turned and left. My relief was gone. For a few moments I stared at the door the doctor had gone through and debated joining him on the other room, then I shifted my gaze back to Kai, I don?t know how long I stood there and looked at him but after a while he tilted his head quizzically to one side in such a way it made my heart melt.
?Why do you look at me like that?? He asked.
?Cryo-assassins were more well preserved than I thought.? I muttered to quietly for him to hear properly. He frowned slightly, I needed a way out of this, I decided to change the subject. ?We should give the doctor a hand.? I said as I walked over to a table and started setting up a machine.
?Yes, we should.? Was his reply. I began pressing buttons to get the machine set to the right levels. When I had finished I turned to look at Kai.
?I wonder what is taking the doctor so long?? I muttered.
?I do not know.? Kai replied. I leant back against the table and pushed an annoying strand of hair out of my eyes. Then I noticed Kai looking at me. I frowned at him slightly. He nodded to my shoulder. ?You should do something about that.? He said. I shrugged.
?The doctor will sort it out, whenever he gets back.?
Kai looked around the room and then walked over to another table and picked something up, from my position I couldn?t see what it was, he then walked back over to me. He used the cloth he had picked up to clean up the blood on my shoulder, then set about bandaging it up. I smiled at him, ?Last time we were in this situation it was me doing that for you.? I said quietly, but this time he heard me.
?Last time in this situation?? He asked uncertain of what I had meant.
?Yes?back from a fight, injured, half undressed.? I looked up at him and for a moment he looked away before slowly turning back to meet my gaze.
?Yes?last time you did do this for me.?
?You remember??
?How could I forget?? As he said this, there was a flicker of emotion in his eyes. I smiled warmly and subconsciously wound my fingers in the lock of hair that hung down the side of his face, it was something I used to do what we were both ?alive?. Kai looked down at my hand. I stopped and untangled my fingers while muttering an apology. As I pulled my hand back he took hold of it and as he looked down I could tell that there was something inside of him he could not understand and was trying desperately to work out. With my free hand I gently traced the outline of his jaw and slowly moved my lips closer to his. Kai pulled back slightly and began to speak.
?I?we??
?Shh?? I interrupted placing a finger on his lips, then moving it down his neck and resting my hand on his shoulder, then I once again moved closer. Just as our lips lightly touched, the door opened.
We moved apart instantly, and acted as if nothing had happened. Something we had learned to do very well when trying to keep our relationship a secret on our home world. Kai stepped back and turned to see who had entered, I sagged back against the table and mentally cursed the doctor.
The doctor stood there grinning nervously holding a jar of proto-blood in each hand.
?Well here we are,? the doctor said, ?enough for both of you now.?
?Thanks Doctor.? I took one jar from him. The doctor turned to Kai and frowned.
?I have no idea how you administer this,? he said apologetically and held out the proto-blood to Kai, ?can you do it yourself??
?Yes I can. Thank you Doctor.? Kai replied, taking the jar.
The doctor looked very relieved at this and then turned his attentions to me. He looked at my now bandaged shoulder and very slightly frowned.
?Kai took care of it.? I explained.
?I see,? The doctor replied, ?however he didn?t take care of your hand.? Holding it by the wrist the doctor examined my hand and frowned again. ?You hit someone??
?Yes.? I muttered.
?Who?? The doctor inquired.
?Does it matter??
?Yes, I want to know who I can expect in here tomorrow with, by looking at your hand, could be a broken jaw.? The doctor waited for a reply, I gave none.
?Ardria??? he persisted, still I said nothing. ?Ardria!?
?Alright, alright,? I sighed, ?I hit Cehl.?
?You hit Cehl!? This shocked the doctor, ?Why in all the Dark Zone did you hit Cehl??
?It was something he said.? That was all the explanation I was going to give considering that Kai was the reason I?d hit him and Kai was still in the room. The doctor, knowing that was all the explanation he was going to get, dropped the subject and carried on sorting out the proto-blood transfusion in silence.
When the transfusion was finished I went over to the other side of the room where I had left the other half of my uniform, glancing across to Kai, who was also finished and now fully dressed. I quickly put on the tunic, grabbed my jacket and checked that my brace was firmly attached to my wrist. As I was about to leave the door to the surgery opened and in walked Cehl, holding an ice pack to his jaw. The doctor frowned at me, Cehl sat down and sulked, Kai just watched, I left. Once I was outside I relaxed slightly and decided that the best way to avoid any further awkward situations was to go home and go to bed.
I walked slowly down the dark streets, occasionally glancing over to where a light was on, but it was late and almost everyone was asleep. Everyone except the two drunk soldiers who staggered towards me, leaning on each other for support. One of them had a bottle in his hand was attempting to drink its contents, but was failing to do so and getting the drink down his shirt. His companion was singing, or at least was trying to sing but wasn?t making a vast amount of sense. Sighing, I carried on towards them, stepping into the road to give them room to pass. The singing drunk stopped and looked at me for a while before attempting a salute. While doing this he let go of his friend who promptly collapsed, causing the singing drunk to giggle uncontrollably. I sighed again and waved away the salute, then placed a hand on the drunk?s shoulder to focus his attention.
?I think it?s about time you went home.? I said authoritatively but gently.
?Yes?you?re?right.? He slurred back. The soldier looked down at his friend. ?What about?What about him?? he finally managed to say.
?I?ll sort him out,? I replied, ?you go home.? With this the man headed off down the street in a rather wavy line and regularly bumping into things. I looked down at the other man who was groaning slightly. Turning him onto his back I could tell that he wasn?t going to be waking up any time soon, so I decided to take him home myself. I took his arm and threw him over my shoulder with no trouble, due to the fact my cybernetic technology had increased my strength remarkably. It wasn?t exactly the best course of action but it would do.
I carried the unconscious man to his house and knocked on the door. His very worried looking wife opened it.
?By the gods, what happened to him?? she exclaimed.
?A little too much to drink, that?s all.? I replied, at which her worried expression turned to one of anger and annoyance. She gestured indoors and I followed her into a room where I set the drunken man down on the couch. His wife was muttering to herself as she went to get a blanket for him. When she returned her husband was beginning to wake up. I decided this was a good time to leave and excused myself, politely accepting her thanks but refusing her offers to stay a while.
As I stepped back onto the streets I could hear the faint rumble of thunder in the distance. It was going to rain. And this little detour meant I wouldn?t get home before the storm began. Sighing again I set off towards my residence at a quick pace.
I was right, I didn?t get home in time. The downpour caught me a few blocks away and by the time I reached home I was soaked to the skin. I went inside and took my jacket off, throwing it over the back of a nearby chair. Then I went upstairs, grabbed a towel and attempted to dry my hair. Going back down the stairs, I went first into the lounge area and turned on the heater to warm up the cold house. Then I went into the kitchen and picked up the notes on the table, one was from Dnyher, saying she?d made up with her boyfriend and was living with him again. The other was from Zeofia, she was staying with her mother for a while.
?Both housemates gone,? I thought aloud, ?I have the place to myself?again. It was common for my friends to come and go like this, they only stayed here when they needed to, so I was often alone in the house. Returning upstairs I went into my room. It was a simple room, all it had in it was a bed, dressing table and wardrobe. There was a small desk in the corner, which I sometimes used if I didn?t want to work in the study downstairs. There were no extra chairs or dressers like there were in the other bedrooms in the house. My friends had often tried to convince me to do something with my room, they said it was too dark and depressing. Zeofia once suggested I paint the room pink to brighten it up. But pink doesn?t really go with my appearance. The clothes I wear are always black and I still applied the dark, gothic style make-up that I wore when in the services of His Shadow. That look was a part of me now, it also helped to strike fear into the hearts of our enemies so the look had been copied slightly by soldiers, who now line their eyes with black and draw intricate patterns on their faces before going into battle.
I looked at my reflection in the mirror, the dark make-up was now streaked down my cheeks in thick black lines.
?What a mess?? I muttered and decided the best option was a shower.
There was a knock at the door. Quickly I got out of the shower and grabbed a dressing gown and towel. I headed downstairs, whoever it was knocked again, I tied the belt of the dressing gown and began to towel dry my hair as I opened the door. Outside, in the rain, stood Menok, Zev, Stanley and Kai. Menok smiled nervously, ?Erm?can we come in??
"Sure?? I said slowly, stepping back to allow the four of them to enter the house. Closing the door I turned to look at Menok. ?How can I help you?? I asked him.
?Well the thing is Ardria,? he replied ?we didn?t arrange for any accommodation for our guests.? He paused and gestured at the other three. ?And due to the weather they can?t go back to their ship, so??
?So you were wondering if they could stay here?? I interrupted.
?Erm?yes.? He smiled hopefully. I paused for a moment. Menok?s smile faded, I could tell he thought I was going to refuse to let them stay. I turned to Zev and Stan. ?Sure you can stay here, it won?t be a problem.?
?Good.? Menok was smiling again. ?Now, as I was saying before??
?Goodbye Menok.? I interrupted again, opening the front door.
?But?? He started.
?Goodbye.? Menok took a step towards the door.
?But??
?I?ll see you tomorrow.? I took a small step, forcing him further towards the door.
?I was just going to say?? He stepped outside and I swung the door closed.
?Ardria!? He called through the door.
?Goodbye Menok.? I called back sweetly, he stormed off through the rain. I turned back to the others. Zev was trying to sort her hair out. Stan was wringing the rain from his soaked cap and Kai, as always, just stood there. I held out the towel I had brought downstairs to Zev, she took it and started to dry off her hair.
"There are rooms upstairs to the right, the kitchen is there and the lounge there,? I gestured to the two rooms, ?make yourselves at home.?
?Thank you,? Zev said, smiling slightly, then she looked down at her wet clothes, ?do you have anything I could borrow??
?The last room on the right,? I motioned upstairs, ?there should be some clothes in there that would fit, you?re about Dnyher?s size.?
Zev headed off upstairs, Stan turned to me. ?So who?s Dnyher?? He asked.
?She?s one of my housemates.? I answered.
?Oh I see.? Stan replied with a slight grin.
?But she and Zeofia are not here.? The grin disappeared as I said this.
?Well I guess I?ll be going upstairs.? Stan climbed the stairs, mumbling something about his luck on the way. This left me with Kai. I decided the best thing to do was pretend the events in the surgery hadn?t happened, at least for now. So I tried to make the conversation as light as possible.
?Well, I don?t know what you?re going to do.? I said to him.
?What do you mean?? He asked.
?Well, there are only two rooms upstairs, except for mine, so there?s nowhere up there for you.? I began to explain.
?It does not matter, the dead do not??
?The dead do not sleep, I know, the dead also don?t eat or drink, so there?s not much point in you staying in the kitchen. I guess you?ll have to stay in the lounge during the night.?
?That is fine by me.?
?Right, this way then.? I lead him into the lounge. The room was considerably warm now as I had left the heater on for quite a while. I sat down on one of the armchairs, Kai looked at the other for a while before deciding to sit down. Now came another awkward silence. I sat there twisting my fingers this time through my own hair, which was now drying and forming loose curls. I was desperately thinking of something to break the silence but I didn?t have to as at that moment a scream came from upstairs.
Both Kai and I were up in a flash and heading upstairs to find Zev running down the corridor and a startled Stanley poking his head out the door. I reached the stairs first to find Zev shouting at me.
?There?s something in there! Some kind of creature!? She pointed to the room she had run out of.
I went to the door to the room and moved my hand to my wrist to ready my brace, but it wasn?t there. I had taken it off to go in the shower and left it in my room. There wasn?t time to get it, so with Kai at my side I opened the door.
The creature that Zev was screaming about leapt out of the doorway, too quickly for either Kai or me. It pounced, hitting me full in the chest and knocking me backwards. I fell to the ground with the animal landing on top of me. Kai aimed at the creature but paused. Stan shouted at him, ?Kill it!? Zev shouted an agreement but still Kai did not shoot. He stepped back to allow the other two to see the animal licking my face.
I sat up and the creature nuzzled at my neck. Standing, I picked it up. The other three watched as I tickled the cat-like creature behind one ear. The animal purred in contentment.
?This is Santana, she?s an adante tiger cub,? I introduced it to them, ?She belongs to Dnyher.?
Zev and Stan shrank back as I walked towards them with the tiger. I stopped when I was standing by Kai who looked at the animal with interest.
?An andante tiger?? He asked, ?I thought that they were extinct.?
?So did I, but when I visited Brunnis, I found a family of them and brought them back here.?
?Why?? Stan asked
?The sun was about to go super nova.? I replied.
?You were on Brunnis when the sun was going super nova?? It was Zev who asked the question.
?Yes,? I replied, turning to her, ?why??
?We were on Brunnis, just before the sun went super nova.? Stan answered my question, keeping his eyes warily on the tiger cub.
?You were?? I exclaimed.
?Yes, we were.? Kai confirmed. ?Where on Brunnis were you??
?Near the arctic region of Hammun-Trey, in the Southern Hemisphere.?
?We were in the north.? Kai replied, that was the end of that conversation. We all stood there for a moment. Santana was shifting her weight in my arms, as I moved to compensate for her movements she freed one paw and found considerable amusement in trying to catch the lock of Kai?s hair that hung down the side of his face. Kai reached out a hand and gently stroked the tiger?s head, tracing the black stripes that contrasted against the rest of her white fur. The cub moved in my arms again so I set her down on the floor. She promptly went over to Kai and circled his legs looking for more attention, staring up at him with her sapphire blue eyes, she then went to investigate the other two strangers. As she approached Stan he backed further into the doorway in which he was standing.
?It?s alright,? I reassured him, ?she won?t hurt you.?
?She attacked me!? Zev argued, ?And you!?
?She?s young, she only wanted to play,? I tried to explain, ?she just gets carried away at times, she doesn?t know her own strength.?
But Zev was not interested and growled at the tiger when it came towards her. This frightened the cub who ran back to me for comfort. Kai looked down at the cowering animal as I tried to calm it down, he gave a look of disapproval to Zev before turning back to me. ?Is Santana the only tiger?? he asked.
?No, we breed them,? I answered him, ?not far from here there is an enclosure.?
?So why is that one here?? Stanley asked.
?Her mother died and no others would adopt her, do Dnyher is hand rearing her.? Stan nodded in understanding while Zev continued to glare at the cub.
?Well would you kindly rear it out of my room,? she said bitterly, ?I would like to get some sleep.?
?Santana, downstairs.? The tiger followed my orders and trotted downstairs, heading straight for the kitchen. I turned back to Zev, ?I?m sorry, I didn?t know she was here.?
Zev just pushed past me and went back into her room. Stan also said goodnight and went into his. I went back downstairs, followed by Kai.
Once in the kitchen I sighed and looked at the cub who stared hopefully back at me. I gave the tiger something to eat and then went back into the lounge with Kai.
?Well tonight?s been interesting.? I muttered, loud enough to be heard.
?Yes, very.? Was the reply. Santana finished her food and came into the lounge. She jumped up onto my lap and purred as stroked her head in the same manner Kai had done.
?You look tired.? Kai commented.
?I am,? I said, ?I think I?ll go to bed.?
I stood up and the tiger growled a slight protest for being moved as she was getting comfortable. I turned back before going out the door to see the cub curling up on Kai?s lap. I smiled slightly, ?Goodnight Kai.? With that I went upstairs.
I closed the door to my room and flopped down on the bed. I lay there with my eyes closed for a few minutes before standing to get changed into my nightgown. The silk fabric felt cool against my skin as I climbed into bed. I turned out the light and settled down to sleep. I slept soundly for the first time in centuries. Gone was the nightmare of seeing Kai murdered at the hands of His Shadow.
But my peaceful rest was short lived. At dawn I was awoken by the sound of the city alarm. We were under attack.
Within the next minute I was wide-awake and out of bed. I looked around for my clothes. They were right where I had left them - in a heap on the floor. I mentally cursed myself for leaving them there. Picking them up I could tell that they were still wet from the rain and therefore unwearable. Quickly I crossed to the other side of the room and opened the wardrobe. This wasn?t a time to be picky about what to wear so I put on the first items I came across. I pulled on the trousers and looked around for my boots. Putting them on I reached for the top I had taken out. It was a soft leather bodice that had to be laced up all down the front. I cursed myself again - I could have chosen something easier to put on. It was too late to change. Once I was dressed, quick and practised hands applied my trademark make-up in seconds. From waking up to being ready had only taken a few minutes. As I was heading towards the top of the stairs, fixing my brace to my wrist as I went, Stan and Zev were emerging from their rooms, still half asleep.
?What the hell is going on?? Stan asked when he saw me.
?We are under attack.? I kept my explanation short.
?Can we do anything to help?? Zev called to me as I headed down the stairs.
?Stay here for now.? I called back to them. When I got downstairs I went straight to the lounge to get my other weapons. Fixing a dagger and a whip to my belt and grabbing my staff, I turned to se Kai looking at me.
?What is going on?? He asked, concerned.
?The city is under attack.? I replied, heading for the front door, Kai followed.
?Can I be of assistance?? He inquired. I thought for a moment.
?Yes, maybe you can.? We both exited the house, followed by the tiger cub.
?Santana, upstairs, stay.? I ordered the animal and she obeyed. I closed the door after she had gone back inside and called to another soldier.
?Who?s attacking?? I asked him.
?The word is it?s arak-nyds.? The soldier replied before running off to join his fellow soldiers in the main garrison building. I swore under my breath.
?What are arak-nyds?? Kai asked, seeing my reaction to the news.
?A species bred by the Tydaux, they set them against us in battle.? I sighed, ?The last time we faced them?it was a massacre.?
?Then perhaps we should go and stop them.? Kai said.
?Just you and me?? I asked with a slight grin, ?Just like old times.?
?Yes?? was the vague reply. Kai?s attention was elsewhere. I frowned slightly but ignored his lack of concentration.
?Well let?s go.? I said, turning down the street in the direction of the garrison. This brought Kai?s attention back to the situation and we set off for the building.
The garrison was in chaos. I scanned the room for the highest-ranking officer but couldn?t find anyone. The soldiers in the hall were rushing everywhere but doing nothing. I pushed my way through the crowd with Kai following close behind me. I climbed up onto a table that had been pushed to the side of the room. I tried to call the men to order but to no avail. I needed to get everyone?s attention and fast. I took out my whip and uncoiled it. Then bringing it down onto the table and with a flick of the wrist it created an ear-piercing ?crack?. The room fell silent, all eyes on me. I smiled slightly to myself, then concentrated on the task at hand.
?Right everyone listen carefully,? I addressed the soldiers, ?we are under attack and we need to be organised. I want everyone lined up in their regiments, NOW!?
The soldiers all moved around the room beginning to assemble. I jumped down from the table and grabbed a nearby sergeant.
?Where are all the officers?? I asked him.
?I don?t know. You?re the only one I?ve seen.? The man replied. I wasn?t actually an officer, but due to my experience and abilities I unofficially held the rank of general, the highest rank. I let the sergeant join his regiment and turned to Kai. I was about to complain about the lack of officers when the door opened and in they all walked. They headed over to where I was standing with Kai. Menok and the commanding officer, General Jscan, came closer than the rest.
?Ardria, we need to talk to you.? Menok whispered urgently. The three of us went into a smaller adjoining room.
?What is it?? I asked the two men.
?It?s arak-nyds.? Menok answered.
?And your point is??
?You have had the most battle experience against them,? Jscan continued, ?how will we defeat them??
?The same way we did last time.? I answered.
?But that became a massacre.? Menok protested.
?There is no other way,? I continued, ?we have nothing to use against them. The only way to defeat them is hand-to-hand combat.?
?You are sure there is no other way?? The General asked hopefully. This was the first time he had faced the arak-nyds and was nervous.
?There is no other way.? I confirmed.
?But?? Menok began to protest.
?Menok!? I shouted. ?For once would you just shut up!? Menok shut up. I turned back to Jscan.
?There is no other way General. I?m sorry, but there isn?t.?
Jscan nodded and we left the room. Back out in the main hall the soldiers turned to us, some whispered to each other, but most were just anxious to have rumours confirmed. The General didn?t know what to say to them. I felt sorry for him, it?s not easy telling people they?re going into battle and it?s likely they?re not coming back. I climbed back up onto the table.
?It has been confirmed that the arak-nyds are preparing to attack.? I paused to let the rush of whispers and gasps die down. ?The arak-nyds are a strong enemy and it will be a hard fight. But we have defeated them before and we will defeat them again!? I waited this time for cheers of agreement to cease. ?Always remember, you are Reldan!? More cheers, I got down from the table.
?Nice speech.? The voice belonged to Cehl.
?Thank you.? I smiled slightly and looked at his bruised jaw. ?And sorry about??
?It?s alright.? He interrupted, I nodded. The General was still making his speech and giving orders to the men. As they began to march out to the battlefield someone began to sing and was soon joined by the others.
?Yo-A-O. Yo-A-O, home var ray?? as the song continued Kai looked at me. I grinned sheepishly back.
?You taught them the Brunnen G anthem?? He asked me.
?Yes. They like to sing the song of our ancient homeland. It fills them with pride.? I told him, I then began singing with the soldiers and to my surprise so did Kai.
Once outside the city walls we could see our enemy lined up to attack. The arak-nyds were not a pretty sight. Each one stood about 8 feet tall. They had a spider-like appearance but only six legs. Each arak-nyd was equipped with powerful pincers/fangs emerging from it?s mouth. The pincers could crush a man and it?s legs could easily impale a person. They were beasts the Tydaux kept lock in small cages so by the time they fought us they were not in the best of moods. One arak-nyd let out an ear-splitting shriek, which triggered to others to do the same. It was a truly terrifying sound. I closed my eyes for a moment and took deep breaths to control my emotions. I walked to the front of the line and looked out to the enemy, they easily outnumbered us. This was going to be a difficult battle. The first of the arak-nyds broke the line and charged towards us, it was followed by several more. The battle had begun.
Many of the Reldan soldiers had never faced an arak-nyd attack before, they were understandably frightened. I glanced to my right and saw the front line of a battalion begin to falter. I quickly moved to their location to give them support and encouragement.
?We?re gonna to die!? One man was saying repeatedly. I turned my back to the battlefield and spoke to him only. My words were interrupted by a cry of warning.
?Ardria! Behind you!? I spun round to see an arak-nyd towering above me. As it brought down one of it?s claw-like legs I leapt to the side, narrowly escaping. I got to my feet only to jump out of the way once more. I had managed to keep the beast?s attention and drew it away from the petrified soldiers who watched the fight. As I rolled out of the way once more I realised that I had to beat this monster and make it look easy to ensure the soldiers would fight. As I got up I pulled my whip from my belt. The arak-nyd reared up for another attack. As it did so I coiled my weapon around the creature?s back leg and pulled it sharply forward. The arak-nyd fell onto it?s back. I circled it to get to it?s head. I released one blade on the end of my staff and edged closer to kill the creature. The animal stopped it?s thrashing and stared at me. This was something I was not used to. Normally they kicked around to get back onto their feet but this one just stared.
Then before I knew what was happening, not only did the creature flip itself over but it also shot out it?s tongue like a lizard and coiled it around my foot, something I had never seen before. I was dragged along the ground towards the jaws of the waiting creature. I had lost both my whip and staff and could not get to my dagger. The only chance I had was my brace. I aimed and fired, cutting cleanly through the arak-nyd?s tongue. The screaming animal reared up once more. I scrambled to my feet and ran back to my dropped weapons, then as the animal reared once more, I coiled the whip around it?s fangs. It took all my strength to pull it?s head to my level. I glared at the creature when we were eye to eye, it seemed to realise I had won the fight and looked back at me, it was completely still, blood dripping from it?s mouth where the severed tongue rested. With once sweep of my staff I sliced through it?s neck almost cutting off the head completely.
I ducked out of the way of the gush of black blood as the dead body dropped to the floor. I turned back to the row of soldiers and flashed a wicked grin.
?You see,? I said breathlessly, ?they?re not that hard to beat.? This sparked a cheer from the assembled men who then raced forward to meet the next group of charging arak-nyds.
I ran a hand through my hair to push it out of my eyes, someone placed a hand on my shoulder. I turned to see Cehl. He took off his mask and smiled.
?Interesting tactic,? he said grinning, ?nearly getting yourself killed just to lift the men?s spirits.?
?It takes more than an arak-nyd to kill me.? I grinned back.
?Here, you forgot this.? He held out to me my mask. I took it and put it on as he replaced his own. Then we both went back into the battle.
The fight was long and hard. There were mutilated bodies everywhere, the sol was soaked with blood. I put an end to the life of another arak-nyd and knelt down on one knee to recover my breath and view the situation. The battle was nearly over, there were only a few arak-nyds still fighting and now we outnumbered them. But there was one arak-nyd that was attacking two men, and the men were losing. Both of them were on the ground, one rolled onto his back to see the creature rearing up to take the final blow. I picked up a spear that was lying on the ground next to me and threw it at the rearing animal. The spear accurately embedded itself in the creature?s chest and the arak-nyd fell backwards as it died. I ran over to the two men. One was getting up but the other lay still. As I neared them the man spoke to me.
?Ardria! Am I glad to see you.? I recognised the voice instantly.
?Tor! Thank god you?re alive.? Then my thoughts turned to the other man. I knelt down and gently removed the mask.
?Hal! Hal!? I looked over the unconscious man to find he had serious injuries and swore as I saw how serious they were. Tor echoed my words as he saw his friend. I turned to him.
?Where is Lye?? I knew the three always fought together.
?He?s dead,? came the reply, ?cut in two by one of those.? As he finished the sentence he angrily stabbed his spear into the body of an arak-nyd. I could not believe what he had just said, for a moment I was silent.
?Well I?m not going to let two of my best friends die!? I said as I picked up Hal, Tor followed me back to the city. I placed Hal on a stretcher and let him be carried off by two medical officers to be treated. Tor looked on as the officers left.
?Go with him.? I told him.
?I can?t leave the battle!? He protested.
?Yes you can.?
?No I can?t?
?Don?t make me order you.? I smiled at him as he nodded in appreciation and headed off after his friend.
I walked back into the middle of the battlefield. The last arak-nyds were either dead or had run off. I coiled up my whip properly and reattached it to my belt, as I did so I knocked my dagger to the ground. I knelt down to pick it up. As I reached out for it I stopped. The dagger was lying next to something very familiar. I picked up my dagger and the other object. It was part of a brace. I checked my own, it was intact, that meant what I held in my hand could belong to only one other person - Kai.
I stared in shock at the brace for a minute until I realised that it was attached to something. Pushing unrecognisable remains aside, I found what it was attached to.
?Great,? I thought aloud as I picked up the severed arm, ?now where?s the rest of him??
I stood up and reattached the brace properly and turned as I heard someone call my name. Cehl walked over to me.
?Ardria,? he began, then paused and frowned, ?you?re holding an arm?!?
?Yes I am.?
?Why?? He inquired.
?I?m hoping to attach it to the rest of the body.? I said matter-of-factly.
?Right?and who?s body would that be??
?Kai?s.? Cehl looked at the severity of the wound on the arm.
?And you expect him to have survived that??
?Cehl, Kai is dead, he can survive anything.? Cehl was thoughtful for a moment before he agreed with me. We were about to start talking again, when a small group of soldiers approached us.
?Have we won sir?? One of them asked, addressing me. I looked around.
?I think we have.? I replied. ?Get everyone together, any casualties are to be taken back to the city. Once that?s done, regroup here.?
The soldier nodded and went to carry out their orders. Cehl tapped me on the shoulder. I turned and looked in the direction he was pointing. A familiar figure was walking towards us, missing an arm.
?Kai!? I smiled at him when he reached us. Kai looked down and saw his arm, I held it out to him.
?Thank you,? he said, taking it, ?I was looking for that.? Once Kai had reattached his arm, we all headed towards the city. Suddenly Cehl stopped.
?What?s that?? he asked. I listened for a moment. In the distance I could hear drumbeats and shouting, no, it was chanting, almost singing. I turned and gazed over the battlefield. Just coming into view I could see an army.
?Dear god?? I whispered.
?What?? Cehl had not yet seen them.
?The Tydaux,? I answered, ?the Tydaux army.? Both Kai and Cehl scanned the scene until they saw what I saw. The entire Tydaux army was marching towards the field.
I ran back o the city. Finding the soldiers able to fight I quickly gave them orders to collect weapons and return to the field. When they were all assembled I realised how much trouble we were in. There was less than a third of our original number able to fight and we were outnumbered by the Tydaux, six to one. Not only that but Cehl and I were the only officers left. I scanned the soldiers and found who I was looking for.
?Tor!? I called to him, ?You?ve just been promoted to captain.?
?Captain?!? He exclaimed in disbelief.
?Yes. Now you and Cehl take half the men to the north, the rest of you to the south, Kai you?re with me.?
We parted with half the men each and went to the positions I had stated. Cehl knew what I was doing so I had no need to explain the details to him, this was an ambush we had used many times before. As Cehl got his troops into position behind the hill to the north, I positioned my half to look as if we were going to attack.
?Will this work?? Kai asked me.
?I hope so.? I replied.
?I think you may have more to worry about than the army on the ground.? Kai stated.
?What do you mean?? I asked and followed his gaze to the sky. Above us was a fleet of fighter ships.
Before we had a chance to react the ships launched their attack on my group of soldiers and Cehl?s. With bombs being dropped almost everywhere and some type of gun being fired everywhere else, we had no chance. Then the fighter ships called off their attack and the ground troops began theirs.
What followed was hours of vicious hand to hand combat. Even though we were far fewer in number and already tired, the Reldan soldiers managed to reduce the Tydaux numbers so we were almost even.
Although numbers were even, strength was not. The Reldan soldiers were tiring and losing the battle. I tried to help as many people as I could, but even I was beginning to tire and the light was fading as the sun began to set. I continued to fight my way through to my comrades to assist them. As I did, I was intercepted by a group of Tydaux soldiers. There were four in front of me an at least three behind. Even with my skill I could not fight them all off. As I was fighting one man, another came up behind me and struck me around the back of the head with the hilt of a sword. I dropped to my knees and as I tried to get up I felt another blow to my back. Even in this situation I managed to kill another of my enemy, but this caused the remaining men to become even more vicious. Someone slashed at my back, cutting through the leather and deep into my skin. I tried to turn but another blow sent me backwards. Lying on my back I was aware of laughter above me.
The Tydaux men repeatedly kicked me in the stomach, chest and ribs. Someone stabbed a spear into my leg and someone else cut my arm with a sword, the blood soaked my clothes. For a moment they paused and I used that moment to kill another of them using my brace. Once again I attempted to stand but was prevented from doing so when an enemy soldier swung a club at my head. I could not move out of the way of the blow and it hit me full force. I was sent flying forward, dazed and dizzy I attempted to stand but could not. I fell back down to the ground. I was kicked onto my back by another soldier and I could hear them talking above me.
?The Reldan is still alive.?
?Well then let?s kill it!?
?Wait, I wonder who it is.? As the person said this someone reached down and removed my mask.
?Is that???
?It?s Ardria, the immortal from the Light Universe!?
?So what, kill it!?
?No! Take her back to the general.? I felt myself being picked up and thrown over someone?s shoulder. Blood dripped down my arm and forehead, the rough handling caused more pain and I felt sick. The noise of battle was still all around me. But then things began to get quieter, I assumed I was near the enemy camp, but I remembered no more.
I remember little of what happened next. I was vaguely aware of someone being very pleased at my capture. Then there was a ship of some kind, once aboard I remember someone injecting me with some type of drug. After that there is nothing at all.
I opened my eyes to find myself staring up at a metallic ceiling. My head was pounding and every inch of me seemed to hurt. I turned my head to the left, only to be face to face with a wall. Turning to the right, I could see the rest of the room I was in. There was a small table nearby with an assortment of beakers, some empty and some filled with brightly coloured liquids. There was also some sort of control panel on the wall above the table, but what it controlled I didn?t know. The rest of the room was pretty empty, a few more tables with nothing on them were pressed up against the other metallic walls. I focused on the door. It appeared to simply be an opening. I watched it for a while and a slight red shimmer confirmed my suspicions. The doorway was protected be an energy field. Not only that but there were guards outside, I could see two, one either side of the doorway, but there were probably more. I sighed slightly and decided to look for a way out anyway. I tried to sit up. I couldn?t.
I realised that I was tied to whatever it was I was lying on. I struggled against the bonds that held my wrists, ankles and waist tight, but to only cause myself more pain. I stopped and thought carefully about the situation, only to come to the same conclusion - I was in big trouble!
I stared back up at the ceiling and frowned, I had to find someway of getting out. I wasn?t to popular with the Tydaux at the best of times but after the mess I had caused while rescuing Kai and the battle, they would be seriously unhappy.
My thoughts were interrupted by voices outside, they were asking to be let in. I heard the energy field being turned off and then back on again.
?Well well, look who we have here.? Someone said happily, ?I never thought I?d see the day when the renowned Ardria would be locked in one of our cells.?
I turned to look at the man who was talking. With his long black hair, dark eyes and tanned skin I recognised him instantly. I also took note of his clothes, the black outfit was adorned with golden patterns and he wore a deep red cloak over one shoulder.
?Lescoyt!? I smiled sweetly at him, ?Look at you. Dressed up in such finery, and all for little old me.?
?I see you still have the same old charm.? He replied, frowning at his sniggering companions. ?Well that?s not going to get you anywhere,? he knelt down so we were on the same level, ?You?re mine now Ardria, and you?re going to pay for all the humiliation you?ve caused me over the years.?
?All the humiliation? That?s going to cost a lot.? I told him, a slight smile playing on my lips. The other people in the room began to snigger again. Sighing in annoyance Lescoyt stood up and glared at the others, they stopped sniggering instantly. He turned back to be and flashed an evil grin.
?Professor Aporan,? Another man stepped forward, he had grey hair, glasses and a white coat on. I recognised him as the doctor in the lab that I didn?t kill while rescuing Kai, ?She?s all yours.? Lescoyt continued to smile as he left the room, leaving me with Aporan, two other men and a woman.
?What exactly are you planning to do?? I asked Aporan as he approached me with a syringe.
?Nothing for you to worry about, my dear.? The professor replied as he filled the syringe, I looked at it warily. ?Not afraid of needles are you?? he asked mockingly.
?No, only of what might be in them.? I responded. Aporan smiled slightly.
?Don?t worry, everything?s going to be fine.? He spoke softly as the substance was injected into my bloodstream. Then everything went black again.
I woke up staring at the ceiling again, but it wasn?t the same ceiling. Replacing the metallic shine of the other room was stone, stone that was grey and dull with age, there was even moss growing between some of the joins. I looked around this new room, it was completely bare except for the bed on which I lay. I sat up, I was no long restrained. I attempted to stand but was overcome with dizziness and nausea. I was forced to sit back down and so looked around the room again. There was a doorway, I assumed it too was guarded and protected by an energy field. I tried to see if there was anything on the walls, but the poor excuse for a light that was attached to the ceiling didn?t help. I slowly stood up again, this time successfully. I went to the wall on my left and ran my hand over it. The surface of the stone was cold and damp, in certain places there was a slimy substance, but due to the lack of light I couldn?t tell what it was.
Further along the wall there were metal rings, undoubtedly used for chaining up prisoners. Reaching the corner of the room, my foot brushed against an object on the floor. I knelt down to see what it was. It was so dark in this part of the room I couldn?t see it, but I could smell it. There was the unmistakable stench of rotting flesh. I decided not to pick the object up and instead moved away from the area. I examined the right wall, it was the same as the other, perhaps a little damper and there was more of the slimy substance coating the rock. I approached the doorway. I carefully held my hand up considerably close to the opening. I watched as the electricity jumped from the doorway to my hand, it was like a tiny bolt of red lightning. It produced a slight shock, nothing dangerous but enough for me to pull my hand away. Without turning the field off there was no way out. If I tried to pass through the energy field it would deliver a fatal dose of electricity that not even I could survive.
I sat back on the bed and sulked, cursing myself for getting captured and for not finding a way out. Leaning back against the wall I managed to cover my hair in the slimy goo that seemed to be everywhere. But I didn?t really care, I was too fed up to care. I decided to indulge in feeling sorry for myself, and did so for what I think was a few hours. Then the energy field was switched off.
Three people walked in, Professor Aporan, someone I didn?t know and Lescoyt. Lescoyt was first to speak.
?Enjoying yourself down here?? He smirked.
?It?s great, I love the accommodation,? I watched the unknown person put down a tray of food, ?oh look, room service!? I turned back to Lescoyt and gave him another sweet smile. His reaction was unexpected. Lescoyt took a step forward and stuck me across the face with the back of his hand, one of his many rings cutting my face.
?Maybe that will teach you not to be smart!? I spat angrily. I thought it was best not to reply so remained silent while rubbing my jaw slightly. Lescoyte stormed off muttering to himself and was quickly followed by the professor. The stranger remained a while, watching me. I tried to ignore him at first and sort out my bleeding cheek but his presence annoyed me.
?Are you standing there for any particular reason?? I asked bitterly not looking up at him.
?Here.? Was the only reply. I looked up and saw that he was holing a cloth out to me. I took it and noticed there was a substance soaked into the material.
?What?s on it?? I asked the mysterious person.
?It?s a mixture of things,? he replied, he was very nervous, ?it will?it will stop any wounds getting infected.? He finally managed to say.
?Thank you.? I smiled warmly at him. ?It is nice to be shown some kindness.?
?I am only trying to repay your kindness.? I looked at him confused, he continued. ?When my brother found out you were captured he told me about how you spared his life, twice.? I knew who he was talking about.
?I see. Thank you again.? The man nodded and turned to leave. As he neared the door he stopped and turned back to me, pausing for a moment to think, he made a decision.
?Don?t eat the bread.? He whispered and left. I looked down at the tray as the energy field was switched back on. On the tray were a few scraps of food, mainly old meat and bread, and a glass of what looked like water. I tried some of the meat, it was awful, going rotten so I didn?t eat any more. The only other thing to eat was the bread, which looked nice, but I took the young man?s advice and didn?t eat that either. I assumed it was drugged with something. I only drank the water. I was glad I didn?t need to eat that often to survive, another advantage of my cybernetic body. I looked again at the bread. It was the only edible thing on the plate, I came to the conclusion that they were expecting me to eat it and therefore ingest whatever had been added to it. I looked around the room again, and then had an idea. I took the bread and hid it behind the rotting thing in the far corner, I think it might have once been an arm or hand, whatever it was it proved the perfect place.
I sat back on the bed and used the cloth I had been given to clean the injuries. The substance on the cloth stung the wounds but I could tell it was worth it. After doing this, I began to get bored. There was only so much entertainment you could get from throwing bits of meat across the room at the plate, and my accurate aim didn?t really help. I tried singing to myself but that annoyed the guard and he kept yelling at my to shut up, after a while I did. I sat on the bed bored, attempting to get the mess out of my hair. I gave up and went to sleep instead.
?Time to get up.? Is all I heard before being shoved off the bed. I landed on the floor with a thud. Half sitting up I saw two guards and Aporan. Muttering as I stood up, I dusted myself off and looked at the professor.
?Now Ardria.? Aporon said as the guards moved behind me. ?Are you going to come along peacefully or do we move you by force?? The guards grabbed an arm each, I shrugged them off and smiled sweetly at the doctor.
?I?ll come along peacefully.? I replied.
I followed the doctor out of the cell and down a corridor, the guards behind with weapons trained on me at all times. Walking past other cells many prisoners, all Reldan, called out to me. Cries of joy of seeing me alive, cries for help all rang through the corridors. We passed quickly through this area and into the next. It was full of examination rooms, like the one I had first woken up in. I stopped outside one of the rooms. Inside, three scientists were struggling to restrain the animal that was on the table.
?Kitran, lie still.? I called through the energy field. The tiger did so, but looked at me with sad eyes, I could tell the animal was scared and in pain. The guards pushed me along the corridor but one of the scientists called for them to stop and asked Aporan if she could speak to me. He reluctantly agreed but insisted I be restrained. I had no say in the matter as the guards locked my hands behind my back. I was taken into the room where the tiger, Kitran, was.
?I am Doctor Megsal.? the woman told me, I did not respond so she continued. ?You appear to know this animal, could you tell me what it is??
?He is an andante tiger.? I replied after a while.
?An andante tiger, I?ve never heard of them.? Megsal said, turning to her colleagues who all shrugged.
?They are not from this planet.? I told the doctor.
?Oh, where are they from??
?Brunnis, the planet where my ancestors were taken in by the Brunnen G.? I answered her, she looked as confused as she did before.
?And why are they here??
?The sun was going super nova,? I explained truthfully, deciding it was the safest thing to do, ?so I brought them back here.?
?I see,? Megsal nodded and wrote something down on a nearby pad, I couldn?t make out what she had written. ?And is Kitten??
?Kitran.? I corrected.
?Oh yes, of course. Is Kitran the usual colour for such a tiger?? She inquired.
?Why do you ask?? It was now her turn to be truthful.
?We have some other tigers, some are not black and white but entirely black.?
?You have Nocturn and Shadkar, they are only part andante tiger, I?m not sure what other breed.?
?Nocturn and Shadkar?? The doctor muttered as she wrote something else down.
?Yes, they mean nightfall and shadow in my old language.? I added helpfully.
?You know them by name?? Megsal seemed amazed at this.
?Yes.? I confirmed.
?And you can control them??
?I can ask them to do things, whether they do or not is up to the animal.? That was the annoying thing about the tigers, like all cats they could totally ignore you at times.
?Could you ask that one to do something?? She pointed and Kitran.
?I can if you untie him.? Megsal nodded to the other two in the room who removed the tiger?s restraints.
?Kitran,? the tiger looked at me and I smiled slightly, ?Yelante, mescean nol turami.?
The tiger jumped of the table and walked slowly in my direction, Megsal hid behind me.
?What did you say!? She stammered.
?I only told him to come over here.? I said innocently. ?In the language of my ancestors, he understands it better.?
?Everything alright Doctor Megsal?? Aporan called form outside.
?Yes.? She answered.
?Mancote helna fortona.? I said quickly. Kitran circled round behind me, the doctor ran to the other side of the room to join her colleagues. I grinned at them. ?Quanto, kilmas corante.? I added. The tiger slashed at the restraints around my wrists, easily breaking them. I rubbed my wrists then knelt down and stoked the tiger?s head. ?Don?t make a sound.? I told the three scientists, Kitran growled at them and they nodded.
I debated whether this would be a good time to escape, the tiger seemed to be thinking the same thing as he walked over to the door. I smiled at him, I had to admit that Kitran was one of my favourite tigers.
?Professor Aporan?? I called, ?Are we going to go where ever it is you want to go??
?What? Oh yes.? The field was turned off, I placed my hands behind my back as if they were still restrained. Luckily Megsal and her colleagues said nothing. I stepped back out into the corridor and looked around. There were ten guards, eight were each guarding one room and the two who were with me, there was also the Professor, I smiled slightly, he would make the perfect hostage.
?Mortalna Kitran!? I shouted. The tiger leapt at one of the guards and knocked him to the ground. I kicked the other nearest one in the stomach, as he doubled over I brought my knee up and smashed it into his face, knocking him unconscious. The next guard fired his weapon. I rolled out the way, picking up the weapon of a fallen guard on the way. I got to my feet and fired, disposing of three more guards, Kitran was also easily defeating anyone who attacked him. Within minutes all the guards were either dead or unconscious. I turned on the Professor. He was shaking almost uncontrollably but managed to put his hands in the air.
?Please?don?t kill me.? He begged, Kitran growled at him, ten sat down at my side, being fully grown, his height was level with my waist. I placed a hand on the tiger?s head and looked blankly at Aporan.
?Give me one good reason why I shouldn?t.? I had no intention of killing him but I was enjoying watching him try to come up with an idea. He blundered through several attempts at a reason, all unconvincing and he knew it. Kitran yawned and looked up at me, I looked down at the tiger and laughed. Aporan, in the middle of another attempt at a reason to let him live, looked at me, unsure what to think.
?My dear professor,? I smiled sweetly at him, which scared him even more, ?I had no intention of killing you.?
?You didn?t??
?No.? I walked behind him.
?So what are you going to do with me?? He whimpered.
?I?m going to use you as a hostage,? I replied, ?And a human shield if the occasion arises.? The professor tried to laugh but only succeeded in producing a nervous squeak. I smirked and it truly looked like Kitran was doing the same.
?Let?s go.? I said, grabbing Aporan by the back of his shirt and forcing him forwards.
I glanced into the next room, it was empty, as were many in the corridor. As we came neared the last room, Kitran began to growl softly. Looking inside I could se why. There were at least seven scientists in the room, gathered around two tables. On each of the tables was a large black tiger. I switched off the energy field and stood in the doorway of the room. The scientists were startled for a moment, I demanded that they release the tigers, they didn?t. However with the threat of killing the professor and letting Kitran loose on the rest of them they quickly complied with my demands. The tigers were released and I left the scientists locked in the room. Quickly I checked the two black cats for injuries, but both seemed all right. They were almost identical. Both pure black and slightly smaller than Kitran. The only difference between them was that Nocturn had green eyes and was female, Shadkar had blue eyes and was male.
With all three tigers safe with me, I forced the professor towards the door at the end of the corridor.
?Open it!? I ordered him.
?No!? he stated defiantly. I glanced down to Kitran who snarled at Aporan, Shadkar and Nocturn did the same. The door was quickly opened.
We went into the next corridor, it was deserted, as was the next, and the next. I looked around suspiciously. This escape was easy, too easy.