Slave Line (The Young Ancients)

by Power, P. S.

  "All of it? That's a bit much to ask isn't it? I'm just the one woman after all."

  Tor shrugged and climbed up into the craft that was almost invisible in the dark away from the city, only the front lights of the Larvals four wheeled ground transports showing them anything but Halifax in the distance.

  "Of course it's too much to ask of any one person, but you don't have to do it alone. No one does. You have friends, and everything will turn out in the end." Even if he did have to kill an army of assassins to make it happen.

  "I love you Tor." Her words were soft and nearly got missed in the ringing his ears was doing. He heard it though.

  "I love you too. I always have. I have to go now. If... well, there were ten more in town, we don't know where they've gotten to. You all stay safe. Tell everyone that I'm fine and will be back. Eventually. If they see me, make sure they know to pretend they don't. I mean everyone, everywhere." He had a plan after all. If people knew to look for him, even if they tried to hide that they knew it was him, it would get back to the Larval.

  He could draw them in using rumor and a bit of bumbling no doubt. All Tor needed to do was the worst bit of hiding ever, at the right times.

  Then he got in the Carriage and took off going straight up, heading off in a random direction as fast as he could go when he got to about seven or eight thousand feet. It was due South he thought, but that didn't matter. In the morning he'd fly to Tellerand and make sure he got "lost" for a while. Making a point of being loud and calling attention to himself in the strange land. In the end there was only one place in the world that he could really hide though, which even the Larval should realize with a few minutes thought.

  Noram.

  He couldn't blend in anywhere else and probably didn't have time to learn how.

  The trick, of course, would be spreading the killers out enough so that he could find them before they got to him in a vulnerable moment. He could do it.

  He didn't have a choice.

  Otherwise he might end up running forever as his life faded away without him.

  It occurred to him, as he flew off into the night, that for perhaps the first time in his entire life he was truly free. Nothing dictated his thoughts or actions, no one was around to tell him what he should do or who he had to bow to.

  There were no friends either, no people to care for and help, no lovers to hold him when the night got cold and dark. It would be lonely for a while, maybe centuries, but he had to do it to protect them. Everyone he loved.

  After a few minutes he noticed that there was a single star visible to the right, then a second one. He steered toward it and watched it until it faded as the sun rose.

  Being free was nice... but kind of sad.

  It wouldn't be that way forever though. For now he just had to hang on and stay one step ahead of what was coming.

  Whatever it really was.

  First he had to get past the Larval and then there were some Ancients that he needed to talk to.

  Alone.

  After that he had some work to do, because no one was stealing his life, or planet, without a fight.

  He wasn't a slave after all.

  Not anymore.