by Lucee Joie
And, knowing that I have finally bonded with a woman, there is no way that I want it to end so quickly. No, I will do whatever is within my power to stay alive and to protect her as well.
A black hole of a cave looms ahead and my stomach clenches. My everything clenches. Nothing good can come of this, of being led into the darkness and being consumed by it. Still, I squeeze my fists together until my nails dig into my skin and brace myself against whatever is coming.
One of the Qorcin grabs at my wrist and pulls roughly at my arm as I slow down. Even though I know there is no choice but to enter the cave, I do not want to do it. My body responds. I slow my pace and the Qorcin tugs at me as I do so. White-hot agony slices through my midsection. Still, I struggle as I grit my teeth against the pain.
“Hurry up!” the man says and I want to pull against him but the cold rod of a laser at my back convinces me otherwise.
Moving forward, I finally enter the dark and I am taken back to the point in time when I was a child, to when my parents were taken from me. Marir and I hid in the darkness then as the Ochek raided our house and took our parents. We never saw them again but that wasn’t a requirement in order to know that they had been sold into slavery. It was a normal occurrence for our kind.
Now, here I was, being taken by the Qorcin and I wondered if my life would now be the slave route. I hoped not. In fact, I wished death over that.
Even through my terror of the situation I was stuck on the fact that it was unusual for the Qorcin to take others for slavery.
Unless they were hired heavies for the Ochek.
My blood runs cold with the prospect. The only thing worse than the hired heavies is if they work for the Ochek.
“Hello Bivir,” a voice says in front of me and even before my eyes can fully adjust to the dark, I know who it is already. “It seems that I didn’t kill you already.”
Emperor Thahars steps up closer and I tremble with fear.
Chapter Eleven: Danika
“They’ve been gone a while,” I say as my gaze shifts to Marir. “That’s bad, isn’t it?”
“I think we have been made a fool of,” Marir finally says. “I think Bivir has been taken captive.”
I gasp in shock and it comes out like a sob. Mainly because it is one. “Who were those people?”
“They are the Qorcin and if you thought the Ochek were mean, they have nothing on the scope of these guys.”
“Why did you let Bivir go with them, then?” I can feel anger blazing like a white-hot searing heat.
“I thought they were highwaymen, that they were just your normal robbers. I should have known better.”
“Should we try to track them?” Dorir asks. Marir nods her head in reply.
“We need to be careful, though. They might have people hiding in wait for us.”
“Seriously, what’s the likelihood of that?”
Marir frowns at Dorir before answering. “They took Bivir right out from under our breath, we need to be more careful this time. Your average Qorcin might be stupid but I don’t think these ones are.”
“What do they want?” I ask.
“Considering they were questioning us about the Prennia, I would imagine that you or the emperor has something to do with all of this.”
“Me?” I am shocked that they would implement me into the situation. “There is no way that I would want any harm done to Bivir.”
“Maybe not,” Marir answers. “However, it doesn’t mean that this didn’t happen on account of you coming here and asking for help.”
“Hang on a minute,” I reply, anger flaring. “I am not the only one involved in a rebellion.”
“No, but you are the only one who came from the very organization from which we are trying to overthrow. It may have been an accident or it may have been intentional. Regardless, it is still the same, Bivir has been taken.”
Marir’s gaze bores into me and I feel the weight of guilt blanketing me. Yes, this is at least partly my fault.
“Can we stop laying the blame here,” Bogol butts in. “Bivir is gone and we need to bring him back.”
I turn my sights to Bogol, at least he had his priorities straight. “What can I do to help?”
“You need to stay here,” Marir answers. “Even if you have nothing to do with all of this, it’s best if we keep you far away from the situation at hand.”
“Oh, hell no!” I exclaim. “I am not staying here or being left out. I want to save Bivir as much as you do.”
I stare Marir down. There is no sweet way in hell that I am staying here. Bivir is in danger and we just let it happen. No, I need to be involved, I need to help fix this.
“Let her come, Marir,” Bogol says.
“I can offer medical assistance, if needed,” I say, trying every angle.
Marir’s gaze flips between us and I can see the indecision creeping in between her tightly clenched jaw. Finally, she nods her head.
“What’s the plan, then?” Bogol responds and we launch into what to do next.
I gaze through the closing day. The sky is darkening, becoming purple and the shadows are long enough to make me question everything that I see. Letting the branches go, the leaves slowly cover my view until I can no longer see the entrance to the cave.
“I can still only count three,” I say. It confirms what Bogol and Marir have said earlier.
I am worried that there is some sort of trap afoot, that if we should step inside the cave, we will be faced with a multitude of Qorcin. However, Marir insists that they are not that smart or organized. Likely, what we see is what we get. Still, they were smarter than us when they walked Bivir right out from under our noses so I am yet to believe this assumption on the race.
“We wait until it’s fully dark,” Dorir says as he steps out from the scant path. “The only weapon I have seen so far is the one the leader has. Not that weapons make any difference to them. They are far more dangerous in hand to hand combat.”
I swallow hard. I will not be going in with them as I have no fighting skills. To this, I concur that I would be more trouble than it’s worth to be in the thick of it. Plus, if anyone is injured, I need to be ready to help.
No, I will stay here, by the sidelines. Watching, waiting. It will be horrible. Bivir’s fate is in the hands of others and I am terrified that he will die.
If he hasn’t already.
I swallow that thought down. I cannot lose my shit right now. Nor can I worry about what I don’t know. To do so will put everyone at risk. No, I need to be ready to play my part, to help people should the need arise.
The sky progressively darkens and I hold my breath as I wait. Marir places a hand on my shoulder and the ache there becomes apparent as soon as she does so.
“Relax, Danika,” she says before moving on.
I try to loosen my shoulders, to take another breath. But the tension is so high that my jaw aches and my fingernails have made little bloody crescents in the palms of my hands.
Turning, I watch as Marir checks her weapon. She is nervous, too. Countless times she has inspected her weapon or wiped it down. The others do the same in the fading light.
According to the Brux, our only advantage against the Qorcin is the fact that we have weapons. While this race is brutal at fighting, they are less skilled with weapon use.
Ideally, Marir would like to take out the three Qorcin quietly and from a distance. However, this won’t happen. They come out in a group, or not at all. If they were to come out individually, there would be the opportunity to take at least one or two out separately and quietly. However, they appear smart enough to suspect this plan and have remained in a cluster or hidden since we arrived here two hours earlier.
I look upwards as a cloud moves over the rising moon, darkening our location even further. It is only temporary, though, and I turn back to the cave entrance once the sky lightens once more.
“Shoot!” Marir hisses and I am confused about the sudden instruction.
In t
he space of the few seconds that I took to look at the moon, one of the Qorcin has come outside. I hold my breath as Dorir takes aim. He shoots low, aiming for the man’s chest and not the bony protrusion across his head. The red of blood sprays out with the sound of the laser being used.
The man looks up, as confused as I am with what is happening. He has managed to bring up his weapon before being hit and a pulse of fire shoots out as he falls. An arc of bright light crosses the clearing and scorches the tree next to me. I squeal in surprise and duck down lower.
“Attack!”
The voice comes from the left of us and I swivel. The other Qorcin are there. They have no weapons on them. However, they don’t need them. Already, they are attacking. The brute force of them is amazing to watch–even if it is entirely deadly.
One Qorcin has lifted a Brux up high over his head. He turns and throws the man towards the cave. I watch in horror as the man swings through the air, flying with more force than I thought possible and hits the wall of the cave. An explosion of red sprays out as the man drops to the ground, dead.
“Stay low,” Marir hisses at me and I don’t have to be told twice. I throw myself at the ground, my body flat to the leafy detritus of the forest floor. The smell of rot and decay fills my nostrils as I cover my head. Through the scant branches on the bush in front of me, I can see the feet of Qorcin and Brux alike as they battle to the death.
I can see flashes of gunfire as Marir and Dorir move in. Bogol isn’t there but I only know this because it is his job to stay high in the treetops and shoot as required. I have no idea if he is actually doing this because there is so much gunfire that the whole clearing is ablaze with light. I struggle to see who is winning, who is falling. Bodies are starting to mount up.
A loud boom explodes and the noise assaults me. I feel the pulse of it as it pushes into me and my ears are suddenly ringing with the sound. I cover my head as a shower of debris rains down on me.
I try to hold my breath but there is no point and I pant raggedly as bits of dirt and sticks continue to fall. Choking smoke fills my lungs and now I am coughing. If the Qorcin want to know where I am, if they want to take me out, then I am an easy target now. I have no choice but to wheeze and cough but I can also hear others doing the same as the smoke continues to cover us and blocking our view.
Other than the sound of dropping debris and the occasional cough, there is no gunfire anymore. No shouting, no screams as people died. Instead, the ringing in my ears envelops me. It is terrifying as I wait for the next phase of the battle.
The silence stretches out until the murmurs of people start to rise. Someone coughs once, another calls out. Then, the crash of someone coming through the bushes towards me.
Closing my eyes, I wait for the inevitable. I expect this is where I will die, on some strange but beautiful planet, surrounded by people I have only known for a short time but who are kinder than those I have recently escaped from.
Hot tears prick at my eyes. I may have been forced into this strange life of mine, abducted and then abused. However, my happiness afterward has been too short. I want to know Bivir more, I want to lay with him, love him, have his babies, and show them how wonderful the world can be.
Yet, here I was, about to die at the hands of yet another brute.
“Danika?” Marir’s voice is quiet, unsure, as though she is searching for me. “Are you all right?”
I roll over to face Marir as she squats down next to me. “What happened?”
“One of the Qorcin threw a bomb,” she replies.
“Who’s hurt?” I say as I jump up. I cough once, clearing my throat and spit into the undergrowth. My fear is forgotten as I charge forward to help the wounded.
“Plenty are dead,” Marir says quietly as she follows closely behind me. “Bogol, Hutir, Tuve, many of the others. Dorir is still alive, though.”
I shudder as I think of the waste of lives. The Brux are good people. They are kind, helpful, and always ready to do what has to be done. They deserve to head the Galactic Union, to rule the universe, not the Ochek. Yet, it is these traits of theirs that are the exact reasons why they are not rulers.
I enter the clearing and the chaos of bodies assaults me. Everywhere there is the fallen and blood and body parts. I am horrified by the carnage. Stopping short, I gasp at the mess.
Then, a man groans and my instincts take over. I rush to him, kneeling down and immediately start checking his body for injuries. There is blood everywhere and I assume that some of it isn’t his.
“It hurts,” the man moans as I gingerly touch his arm. Bent at an odd angle, it is likely broken.
“I need painkillers,” I shout out over my shoulder. I have no idea who I am talking to but don’t have time to worry about that.
As I tend to other wounds, Dorir dumps a satchel down next to me. I rummage through as I utter thanks to him. Pulling out a bag of pills, I offer the man a couple, wishing that I had better medications, ones that would act more quickly to alleviate this man’s pain.
“Where’s Bivir?” I can hear Marir saying and I look up briefly. She is entering the cave, her weapon out in front of her.
Searching the ground, I try to locate the Qorcin but can only see the original one that Marir killed.
Where are the other two?
I force myself to turn away from Marir, to stop thinking about Bivir’s fate, and concentrate on another injured person.
Time feels like it is speeding forward as I work. Everywhere, people are injured or dying. Two I have not been able to save, their injuries beyond my capacities. Still, plenty of people have been only minimally hurt and I tend to them as I wait for Marir to return.
In that regard, time drags. Constantly, I am looking up towards the cave opening, waiting for an appearance. I am terrified of why it is taking so long for Marir and Dorir to return.
Finally, I hear Marir call out to me and I race over when I see her and Dorir helping Bivir out of the cave.
He is alive!
I can’t help myself and rush forward, showering him is kisses as soon as I reach him.
Chapter Twelve: Bivir
“They knew that you had followed them,” I say as Danika hovers over me, checking me for new injuries. I know that I have none but enjoy her attention. “Well, they didn’t know it, they just assumed it. They’re smart enough to realize that others are savvier than they are so expect the worst.”
Marir nods at me, her brow furrowed as she thinks things through. “What did you tell them?”
I want to lie; I want to say that they asked me the same questions over and over and that I gave away no information. However, I can’t tell Marir untruths. Danika either.
It hurts that Marir knows me so well, that her first question isn’t what did they ask me but, rather, what did I tell them. I know that she means to ask me how badly I have slipped up. At least she didn’t phrase it that way.
“I said nothing to the Qorcin that I hadn’t already said before I went with them.” I can see Marir visibly relax as she rolls back her shoulders and leans against a tree trunk. She tries to hold back the whistle of breath that she is anxious to release. Marir doesn’t know that this is the better news, that there is more coming and that it is all about to get ugly from here on in. “Emperor Thahars, on the other hand–”
I can’t even finish what I am saying before my sister is jumping to attention. She pulls her weapon up and darts her gaze around the clearing. “Where is he now?”
Danika has paused in attending to me and I reach out and squeeze her hand. I wish that all of this had never happened. Not the bit where I met Danika but the bit where she has to be so fearful of the likes of Emperor Thahars. I desperately wish that she didn’t have the trauma of what the Galactic Union have done to her.
Looking at Marir, I can tell that she is already assuming the worst. It is what she has likely suspected all along, anyway. Our kind usually assume the best of each person. Marir is not like that. She has always seen
the worst in people and assumed the same. It doesn’t lead to so many disappointments, she has always told me.
It is her way of coping with the loss of our parents, I suppose. Everyone we know has lost parents to the Galactic Union–one way or another. Her behavior, her reaction to the situation is certainly unique and one which I cannot understand. Although, her perception has also saved us on numerous occasions. So, I value her opinion above all others as a result.
“I have no idea where he went. He received a message and left immediately. Whether he is still here on Bruxland or if he has located somewhere else, I cannot say.”
Marir is still on high alert. However, she has relaxed the hold on her weapon. Turning towards me, her gaze meets mine and I wish that I didn’t have to say the words that are about to come.
“What does he know?”
At least Marir has made it easy for me.
“He knows that we have something to do with the rebellion on board his ship. Although, I get the impression that he thinks we are more involved than we really are.”
“What about me?” Danika asks in a squeak of a voice. “Does he know that I am here?”
Already, she knows her worth, I realize. She knows that Thahars would never risk a human escaping and alerting their planet as to what is really going on outside their small view of the universe.
I shake my head. “I made sure that I didn’t make a mention of you, or of any of the women that I know by name.”
“How did he know about us?” Marir interjects.
“Well, that’s kind of interesting,” I reply. “I actually believe that he had no idea that our planet was involved. I honestly think that the Qorcin told him about us, that the small group that stopped us alerted him to our location and that is the first that he heard about it. He seemed to come into the conversation at a loss, somehow, like he didn’t know where to start with asking me questions.”
