Dissension 1

by Katie Salidas

  “Here!” Mira huffed and held out her arms, awaiting the cuffs.

  A second handler appeared behind her and tossed the cuffs to the woman, who immediately clamped them around Mira’s wrists. The initial sting of the silver made Mira groan. She hoped it hadn’t been too loud. Showing weakness in front of the handlers was just inviting trouble, and she was already in enough trouble with them as it was.

  “You’re late,” Mira said, hoping instead to cover the pain in her voice with taunting. “We were going to go to the party without you.”

  “Silence, slave.” The pure hatred in the male handler’s voice was unmistakable. His command was stern. She wished she could see his eyes. He could sound as mean as he wanted, but the truth, the fear, would show clearly in his eyes. Unfortunately, he too wore the dark shield hiding his features. “Let’s get her back quickly,” he said to his partner.

  “Yeah. She’s in a mood alright. And I don’t feel like dealing with it,” the female handler responded.

  Mira felt the butt of a rifle jab into her back. “Move,” the male handler ordered.

  “Would it kill you to ask nicely?” Fresh blood and a win in the training arena had done wonders for her mood, but dealing with the handlers was quickly souring it.

  “No talking,” the male handler shouted.

  “All right. All right. Sheesh. You people. So uptight.”

  “Shut up!” the male commanded again. He flashed his UV torch at the back of her neck.

  Heat singed her skin. Ten times brighter than outdoor light, the UV torch’s instant blast of pain took her breath away. Mira hadn’t intended to, but as she flinched, shrinking back from the sting, she snapped her cuffs in two. She swung her free arm wide and hit the female handler so hard Mira knocked her to the ground.

  The male had his torch at the ready, aimed right at Mira. “Don’t move.”

  With the female handler down, and the hallway empty, it was now or never. She would have to be quick. Once an alarm was raised, it would be all over for her. But if she was fast enough, she might just make it to an exit. A full face blast from the UV torch was worth the risk. She lunged straight at the male handler, overtaking him. Itchy as his trigger finger was, he couldn’t get a flash on her in time. She slammed him to the ground and then smashed his helmet a few times for good measure. He wouldn’t be seriously hurt — those brain buckets were good for something — but when he did finally wake up, he’d have one hell of a headache. That was karma enough for her.

  Secure in the knowledge that he was incapacitated and wouldn’t be chasing her down anytime soon, Mira took off down the long dark corridor. Down one dark hallway and up another, Mira ran without knowing exactly where she was heading. Everything looked the same – no signs, no arrows to point in any specific direction. Every corridor had the identical stark walls, unmarked doors, and annoyingly bright fluorescent lights. Another way to deter escape. The entire place was set up like a giant maze. Was she heading toward the exit, or back around to where she had just come from? Still, hoping against all hope that she was heading in the right direction and not in circles, Mira continued on amid the blaring sirens and flashing red lights.

  Round one turn and then another, Mira was beginning to feel hopelessly lost. She’d been escorted to the arena, training hall, and prison areas so many times she knew the routes by heart, but she was well out of bounds now.

  Knowing she was short on time, Mira quickly rounded another corner and came face to face with a double set of guards.

  Surprised and not as prepared as the handlers, they did not have their UV torches to hand. Mira had no problem incapacitating them and left them quietly on the ground, unconscious but still alive.

  Before she had a chance to stand, the hair on the back of Mira's neck prickled. An uncomfortable weight of unseen eyes settled on her. Dread sank to the pit of her stomach. Busted...and so close to escaping. Someone else was there, watching her. She felt it, but what was more unsettling was the fact they had yet to announce themselves. Guards would shoot first and ask questions later. Someone lurking in the shadows… there was no telling what game they’d be playing.

  Mira turned around and stood next to the guard she had just felled. It didn’t take much for her to find the source of her unease. A pair of mossy green eyes scrutinized her from the opposite end of the hall.

  Heart pounding, she stared back at the man attached to those quizzical eyes. Human, no doubt. But he didn’t carry a weapon. Nor was there any fear in those green eyes of his. On the contrary, alone in a dark corridor, he stood his ground, lifting his head, and stared Mira down like an alpha from some long lost wolf pack.

  The strangeness of his manner caught Mira by surprise. For a few moments too long, she stood dumbfounded, trying to process who he was and what her next move should be. His face seemed oddly familiar, though at the moment she couldn’t place where she’d seen him before.

  The strange man was tall and well built, but that really didn’t matter much. Mira could take down vampires larger than she with no problem. But that wasn’t the thing stopping her from making a move. Judging by the deep plum of his suit, he was a man of some power. Only the Elite – those in the ruling class – were ever permitted to wear such an audacious color. As desperate as Mira was at that moment, she needed to tread carefully. Being caught escaping — again — would earn her more time in the lightbox, but injuring an Elite could have her staked out in the middle of town square awaiting the dawn.

  “Aren't you going to finish him?” the man asked, his tone calm, soothing, as if he genuinely wanted to know the answer.

  “Why don’t I finish you instead?” She hoped the warning in her voice would be enough to deter him, but still the man remained unfazed, like some stoic statue across the hallway. What was he playing at? And why was he just standing there, calmly, giving her every opportunity to strike? Did he really place so little value on his life?

  “You could kill me, sure, but ask yourself how that is going to help your situation.” Spoken like a true Elite. He had to be up to something.

  She didn’t like the smugness in tone, but felt at a loss as to how to continue. She could be on him in a fraction of a second. Crush his windpipe, and maybe buy herself a few more minutes to find the exit, but she was lost and had already wasted too much time. However, her inaction was almost certain to earn her some additional reprisal as well.

  The corner of his lip quirked up. “I take it by your lack of response, that you’ve decided against harming me?”

  Damn him! He knew she couldn’t take the risk. “For the moment, I guess.” Mira did not let her own uncertainty leach out into her voice. She attempted to sound self-assured, as if she were the one in charge at that moment.

  “Well.” He let out a little sigh. “I’m pleased to hear that.” The strange man smiled congenially. “But, we will have to sort out what to do with you. It appears you’re out of bounds here.”

  “You gonna help me back to my cell?” She threw her contempt at him. Bastard Elite! What did he know about boundaries?

  “The thought had crossed my mind, yes.”

  “Of course it had. Too bad I was heading in the other direction.” Mira casually flicked her hand toward the hallway to her left.

  “Wonderful, seeing as that is the way back to the cell block.”

  He was toying with her, like a cat with a mouse, Mira was sure of it. Whatever he had planned was sure to end with her enduring more punishment time in the lightbox. Mira pursed her lips. She wanted more than anything to be rid of him, but at this point she’d dug herself in too deeply to back out. Punishment or no, she had to play his little game. The alternative — certain death — was not worth the risk.

  “Relax. I was only joking with you.” He held out his hands in mock surrender. “Please. I mean you no harm. But, in all seriousness, you know you can’t leave. Not like this.”

  The way he delivered those last words piqued her interest. “Are you saying there is a better w
ay to leave?”

  Mira picked up the heavy footfall of a few more guards headed in her direction. The human must have heard them too, because for a brief moment he turned his attention to the hallway.

  “Perhaps. But that all starts with how you manage the next few moments.” The Elite closed the distance between them, stepping confidently toward her as if she were as harmless as a kitten.

  Part of her wanted to kill him and move on, even if there was no chance of escape, but the truth was plain: Her hesitation had ruined all chances she might have had of getting away.

  Mira’s shoulders slumped. “Fine. What help can you be?”

  His moss-green eyes met hers and for a moment Mira felt they were on even footing. “Let me take you back, myself. No weapons.” There was a genuine kindness in the way he spoke that did not fit his species or station. He held up his hands as proof that he had nothing to harm her with. “Just walk calmly with me, and I will ensure no reprisal comes to you.”

  Utterly confused, Mira could no longer hold the anger in her voice. “Why would you do this for me?”

  ‘Politician’ was her first thought. How much publicity would he receive for single-handedly bringing in a vampire?

  “Why didn’t you kill those guards?” he responded with equal measure of curiosity.

  She glanced down at the unconscious men and felt a twinge of sorrow. Their breathing was shallow but steady. They’d be out for at least a little longer, but when they woke, with heads pounding, they’d wish they were dead. “They got what was coming to them, but just because they’re pricks doesn’t mean they deserve death. They’re just trained idiots doing their job.”

  One of the Elite’s eyebrows quirked up. “Interesting,” he chuckled. “They aren’t always the smartest of the litter. But don’t you need their blood? Don’t you crave every last drop?”

  “Of course I crave blood, like you do a hamburger or potato chips, but, like you, I do not need to gorge myself on them all day long. Only a little at a time is needed to satiate my hunger. Any more than that is gluttony.” Mira hoped he caught her little jab at him. Those of the Elite were no strangers to indulging in whatever they wanted, whenever they wanted it. They were the definition of gluttons. “The pint or two I need daily will not kill anyone.”

  Embarrassment flashed across the Elite’s face for the briefest of moments before it vanished. “I guess I always assumed…. Never mind. Come. I hear the guards approaching. Allow me to escort you back, and we’ll chat about all of this later.”

  He stepped forward cautiously and lifted his hand to grasp her by the arm.

  Reflexively, Mira’s lip curled into a sneer. She didn’t want to trust this man — humans could never be trusted — but she had no other choice.

  Allowing him to take hold of her arm, she gave the Elite a look of warning and a quick flash of her fangs.

  Looking as if he was trying to remain unfazed by her feral growl, he held his head high and pierced her with his mossy green gaze. “Follow my lead.”

  “Fine,” she managed to say, though she had many other choice words in mind.

  A group of five handlers came to a sudden halt in front of the Elite. Masks covered their faces, so Mira couldn’t see the expressions, but the surprise and shock was clear in their gasps.

  “Regent,” the lead guard called out, bowing his head immediately. “Are you okay?”

  Regent? That’s where she’d seen him before. From her vantage point down in the arena, she’d never gotten a good look at his face, but she remembered seeing the man eating his steak at the last battle. He was as Elite as you could get in the Iron Gate. Second only to the Magistrate who ruled over all the human cities, he was top dog. Why the hell was he helping her? Now Mira’s curiosity was really piqued.

  “Thank you for the quick response, Handlers. But the situation is under control. I’m just having a little chat here with, I’m sorry, what was your name?”

  No human ever asked her that before. Her handlers called her by her cell number; her master called her slave. The rest of the world called her gladiator. Why was this human, this Elite, pretending to be so nice to her? “Uh… Mira.”

  One of the Handlers grasped his UV torch and took a step toward the pair.

  The Regent smiled congenially. “Thank you, Mira. Yes, I was having a little chat with her about conditions in the lower cell block.” He tightened his grasp on her arm as he addressed the armed Handlers. The warmth of his large hand felt deliciously wrong on her cold skin.

  “Sir, please step away from the vampire.” The lead handler held his UV torch up at the ready. Behind him the other handlers had their weapons raised as well.

  “Ease up, gentlemen. We’re fine. But, if you’ll escort us, I need to return Mira to her place now.”

  No one would dare to disobey an Elite. Grumbling behind their masks, they trained their UV torches on Mira, no doubt longing for the opportunity to blast her with them. The lead Handler looked down to his wrist and punched in a code on a thick electronic bracer, his com-link. “Central. We’ve found the missing gladiator. Returning her to the lower cell block now.”

  A few moments of static followed by another voice confirming what had been said. A second later the alarms silenced. Mira was never more thankful. Their shrill screams were extra annoying to her enhanced hearing.

  The head guard waved them forward. “This way, sir.” He led them down the corridor to the left.

  The Regent, still grasping Mira’s arm firmly, set the slow pace as they walked back to her cell.

  All eyes were on them — human security and vampire alike — as they walked quietly through the cell block. Some vampires stood from their mattresses and gasped as Mira passed their cells, being handled by the Regent himself.

  “Code, please,” the Regent demanded as they reached Mira’s cell.

  The guard lifted his wrist and punched a few buttons on his com-link bracer, and then entered the ten digit code into the lock panel.

  Mira noticed immediately that the tones had changed. She did not have to look down to know that the code was different. Damn, they were quick! The cell doors opened and the Regent released Mira. For the first time in years, rather than being tossed, shoved, or thrown down, Mira casually walked into her own cell. The experience was quite novel.

  “We will talk again very soon. Do you have a Patron?” The Elite’s congenial tone continued to shock her, even more than the fact that he’d asked her Patron status. Again his curious moss-green eyes met hers without animosity. This man was a complete conundrum to her. And he wanted to see her again? Possibly be her Patron?

  Taken aback, Mira stuttered, trying to find the words. “N…sorry… no, I don’t.”

  “I will speak with your Owner.” With that, the Elite turned and walked away.

  The cell doors closed, but Mira remained standing where she was, dumbfounded.

  Chapter 6

  Time moved slowly for Mira. Running the events of the evening through her mind, she stared up at the ceiling as if it might somehow hold some answers for her. She should be dead. Or at the very least strung up in the Hall of Punishment awaiting her next torture. Instead, she had been allowed to return to her cell, unharmed and unpunished, with a potential offer of patronage. There had to be something else going on.

  Soft bells chimed seven times, marking the hour. Morning. Not that it made any difference to Mira. Even if she could stand the sunlight, she was still a creature of the night. She should be sleeping. She needed sleep. There was no telling what the day would bring, and it was in her best interest to be rested and ready for action.

  Mira tried to convince herself to relax. Tried to order her mind to clear. It almost worked, until she heard the creak of metal doors opening. Someone was coming, and not just any someone. Mira expected the worst when she heard her Owner’s fast paced clip-clop echoing down the corridor. She’d rather deal with her handlers or go another round in the training arena with Tegan before dealing with Olivia.<
br />
  “What the hell did you do this time?” Angry and demanding, Olivia’s shrill call pierced the early morning silence.

  Mira had too many questions running through her head at that point and no answers, or at least no good answer for herself or Olivia. She knew no matter what she said, it was bound to aggravate her already annoyed Owner anyway.

  Before Mira could form a coherent sentence for her Owner, Olivia barked, “Talk. Now. I want to know everything that happened.” Her foot tapped out an impatient rhythm on the concrete floor.

  Mira didn’t have to look up to know her Owner would be staring her down, hands on her hips, positively seething with anger. Not because she was upset that Mira had not answered her yet. That was simply Olivia’s normal stance when dealing with Mira. Rather than stand on ceremony, she continued to lie on her mattress. “I tried to escape. I got caught. I’m awaiting punishment.”

  “Oh, and I wish I could give it. Trust me, you troublesome little leech. Do you know how much that escape attempt of yours cost me?”

  Olivia’s tone was dangerous, but Mira just couldn’t help herself, now that she knew she was in the clear.

  “You’re good for it,” Mira said, not bothering to hide her smile.

  “Oh, I can afford it, but you’ll be the one paying back the damages.” Olivia’s angry voice had suddenly turned wicked. She laughed, and that piqued Mira’s interest.

  She sat up and looked at her Owner. “The usual pound of flesh I assume? Can we postpone the tanning salon until after my nap? I’m a bit tired at the moment.” She knew she shouldn’t have said it, but she just couldn’t help herself. She loved getting a rise out of her Owner – or any human, for that matter.

  “You think you’re untouchable, don’t you? That’s all about to change. You’ll learn a new meaning of the word ‘touched’ soon enough. Well, after you’re prepped, of course.”

  Prepped?

  Olivia sounded as if she were truly enjoying this new devious plan of torture. Mira chanced a glance up to her Owner’s face. A smile, twisted and cruel, met her, and the glint in Olivia’s hazel eyes said that Mira was in for a whole new world of trouble she’d yet to encounter.