The Key

by Brian Fisher

  Chapter 76

  The sun bore down on T'Sula, threatening to blister her skin, and steal away the water in her body as she climbed the canyon wall. Dust choked her breathing, and rocks bit into her unprotected hands as she pushed herself higher. The edge of the canyon loomed just ahead, barely thirty meters away, when she saw them.

  T'Sula looked up, straining her neck as she did so. Standing in her path was a squad of Ta'Reeth. They had come to the edge of the canyon, and they were looking out over the vast expanse.

  As quickly as she could manage, T'Sula worked her way to her right, trying to reach a deep rend in the wall. She reached for another handhold, when her footing crumbled out from under her. Rock slashed into her arms, legs, and hands as she slid down the canyon wall, desperately clawing for anything to stop her descent.

  T'Sula fell for a handful of minutes before she felt her feet strike something firm, and then it too gave way. She fell a few more meters, and then abruptly stopped. She lay still for a moment, too stunned to move. As she opened her eyes, she saw a creature standing over her. It had a woman's face and slight build, with thick black scales covering her body and needle like spines protruding from her shins and forearms.

  The woman fixed T'Sula with an intense gaze that though it was fearsome, showed a warmth and beauty that T'Sula did not expect.

  "You should not be here." the woman whispered. "It is not safe for people like you."

  "It's not safe for anyone." T'Sula replied quietly as she climbed warily to her feet. She watched as the other woman stepped back, keeping a safe distance away from her. "I'm not going to hurt you."

  "It's not me that I'm worried about." she watched T'Sula with her crimson eyes. "I don't want to hurt you."

  "You won't hurt me. I promise." T'Sula smiled. "What's your name?"

  "Gabrielle." the other woman smiled and started to relax. "What's yours?"

  "T'Sula." T'Sula stepped forward. "My name is T'Sula Mir."

  "Mir?" Gabrielle laughed lightly. "Your name literally means peace. Are you here for peace?"

  "My name means peace? I didn't know that." T'Sula shook her head at the irony. She was named for peace, but all that she had ever known was war. "Since you asked, yes, I am here for peace."

  "And how, exactly are you going to bring about peace, T'Sula Mir. You're just one person." Gabrielle asked quietly as she started looking outside of her cell.

  "Sometimes one person is all that it takes." T'Sula turned and followed Gabrielle with her eyes. "If I can find a way to stop the First, then peace will have a chance."

  Gabrielle continued to search the sky and rocks surrounding her prison for something that T'Sula could not see or hear. She moved quickly now from side to side, and searched from the opaque floor to the ripped ceiling.

  "If you don't do as I say right now, you won't ever get the chance for peace." Gabrielle turned and faced T'Sula with a quickness that even she found impressive. "Don't question me. Just do what I say."

  T'Sula studied the other woman for an instant before she nodded her compliance. She had come this far on her instincts, luck, and unforeseen allies. Now was not the time to question. It was the time to act.

  "Take your blades and cut through the wall. We need to get into that crack, and we need to do it quickly." Gabrielle sounded calm as T'Sula drew her bayonets and sliced through the membrane that served as a wall. Without talking, both women took hold of the rock face, and quickly climbed into the crack.

  "Deeper, all the way to the back." Gabrielle quietly urged.

  T'Sula did as she was told and squeezed as far back into the crack as she could. She braced herself against the rocks, so that she wouldn't have to hold her own weight, and waited for more instructions. She could smell the rocks, the dirt, and the spice of the scrub that was hardy enough to survive here. It served to remind her of her home on Bakesh and the mountains near the monastery.

  "Don't be alarmed. I won't hurt you." Gabrielle whispered as she pressed close to T'Sula, covering her with her own body. Slowly, her onyx scales faded, turning the same dark brown as the surrounding rocks. As Gabrielle's color changed, her sent drifted from a deep musk, to the dry earthiness of the rock and scrub.

  T'Sula waited for long moments in quiet astonishment before she heard it. At first, T'Sula couldn't identify the quiet clicking sounds that came from the canyon, and then she saw them. Clinging to the canyon walls, were dozens of Ta'Reeth with long spidery legs that easily gripped the jagged rocks.

  The Ta'Reeth skittered back and forth across the canyon walls, methodically probing each and every crevice, looking for her. They were small creatures, only about half the size of a man, but they were quick, and their razor sharp pincers flashed through the air with blinding speed.

  T'Sula forced herself to stay calm as half a dozen of the creatures came probing into the darkness. She watched as they probed closer, coming within centimeters of her and Gabrielle. The creatures stopped, and stared at the women, with their black, compound eyes, before they turned and left to search somewhere else.

  "Climb. Now." Gabrielle insisted quietly. "We don't have much time."

  "What?" T'Sula asked as she started to climb. She knew that she probably shouldn't be asking too many questions right then, but she felt that she needed to know what was going on.

  "You'll see." was all that the other woman offered before the fighters struck. The ships vectored in, keeping a tight formation as they wove through the massive canyon, before finally unleashing a devastating barrage of plasma on the place where T'Sula and Gabrielle had been only moments before. The canyon itself shuddered from the impact and devastation wrought by the three Ta'Reeth ships. Vegetation erupted in small gouts of flame, and rock boiled, then slid down the canyon wall, incinerating everything in its path.

  T'Sula did her best to shield herself from the heat and falling rocks as she climbed higher and higher. She didn't look back for fear that the destruction, and loss of life, would be too much to bear. As she climbed, her resolution grew ever stronger that she needed to bring the First to justice of some kind. She had to stop the killing. She had to stop the war, no matter what the cost was.

  Long minutes passed before the Ta'Reeth fighters ceased their barrage on the canyon wall. When they were finished, thousands were dead, and the Grand Canyon was forever changed, forever scarred by the incendiary hate of the First.

  Long after the fighters had left, T'Sula and Gabrielle reached the rim of the canyon. The light began to fade as the women hauled themselves, battered and exhausted, out of canyon and to the relative safety of the nearby rock formations. Neither spoke as they lay back against the still warm earth and waited for night to fully fall.

  "Why did you help me?" T'Sula finally ventured. She had asked herself the question a hundred times during the climb out of the canyon, but never once gave the question a voice.

  "I thought that if there was anyone that could possibly help us, it was probably you." Gabrielle replied out of growing darkness. "After all, you are the only one that has ever made it this far. It seemed like the right thing to do."

  "Fair enough." T'Sula leaned back and closed her eyes for a moment, listening to the sounds of this foreign world.

  "Why aren't you scared of me?" Gabrielle asked quietly. "I'm a monster."

  "No, you're not." T'Sula replied. She looked purposefully over at the woman that had just helped her. "Monsters don't help people when they need it. They willfully hurt others, and have no remorse for their actions. They don't care about anyone, or anything other than themselves. You are not a monster."

  "Thank you T'Sula Mir." Gabrielle whispered before she stood, and looked out of the rocks, toward the darkened canyon. "We should be going. If we stay here any longer, they will find us."

  "Alright. I've got to get something off my bike." T'Sula stood and stretched. The short rest had been good for her. Her cuts and bruises were gone, and she actually felt refreshed enough to begin again.

  T'Sula kept to the
deep shadows as she led the way from their hiding place, to the place where she had hidden the Buell. She had hidden it well, and the bike was unmolested when she opened the contoured saddlebags, and pulled out the modest array of rations and tools.

  "What are you doing?" Gabrielle asked, studying the equipment that T'Sula had neatly arranged on the ground.

  "I have to go back." T'Sula laid her rifle down, and then pulled out her pistols. Setting one down, she took the other and disassembled it, methodically inspecting it for any damage, before cleaning the parts and putting the weapon back together. "Do you know where I can find the First?"

  "The First never leaves the Arena." Gabrielle knelt in front of T'Sula. "If you are going to do what I think you are, you won't survive it. The Arena is held above the canyon, and guarded at all times. No non Ta'Reeth has ever been there and lived to tell about it."

  "I know that I won't live through it." T'Sula stated bluntly as she rose to her feet. The moonlight played over her beautiful features, hiding her concerns, and giving more weight to her words. "I have something that I need you to do for me, Gabrielle. I need you to take this talisman north." She reached into her pocket, and pulled out the stone that Pike had given her. She felt the marks etched in it, as she caressed it with her fingers, before she placed it in Gabrielle's hand. "Take it north, to the tallest mountain, and give it to the Ta'Reeth named Pike. Tell Pike what has happened here. Can you do that for me?"

  "I can help you here, but I will do as you ask." Gabrielle turned to go, then stopped and looked back at T'Sula. "Be careful. I will be sad if you die."

  "Thank you for your help, and please be careful." T'Sula glanced up, only to see that she was alone. With only herself to rely on, T'Sula ate some of the rations, and finished cleaning her weapons. When she was done, she cleaned up and stowed everything that she didn't need in the saddlebags.

  After she sealed the saddlebags, and secured the Buell, T'Sula ensured that she had everything she needed and set out. It was fully dark now, so keeping hidden was a simple matter of staying out of the moonlight as much as possible.

  She moved quickly and silently, slipping from one shadow to the next. Her target loomed in the distance, straddling the massive canyon on four immense legs that anchored into the rock with feet that stretched a full fifty meters across. The legs themselves spanned thirty meters, and were encased in thick grey bone. At the center of the canyon was the arena itself, easily five hundred meters long, and every bit as wide. The bowl of the arena was as dark as the legs that supported it, and nearly two hundred meters deep.

  T'Sula kept to the shadows as she crept ever closer to the arena. The darkness became complete, and started to fade into daybreak before T'Sula reached the nearest part of the mammoth creature. When she came close enough to touch it, she saw that in true Ta'Reeth fashion, the arena was indeed alive. Constantly growing and evolving, the arena fed itself from the nutrients of the earth, and the water from the river far below.

  Before she thought better of her actions, T'Sula climbed atop the giant foot, and walked out onto the leg. The wind started to blow as she moved forward. She refused to allow herself to look down as she unslung her rifle, and started to run. Her path was a constant climb, continually arching toward the center, toward the heart of the arena.

  The pale morning light silhouetted T'Sula against the sky as she sprinted the last few miles of her journey. Eventually, the Ta'Reeth sentries found her, and flooded into T'Sula's path. They blocked her way with their bodies, and brought their weapons to bear. Arm mounted plasma cannons belched fire at T'Sula as she ran through the early morning light.

  Without even thinking about her actions, T'Sula brought her rifle up to her shoulder, and acquired her first target. Her aim was steady as she ran, firing a three round burst into the head of each of her targets. One by one they fell, until there was only a single sentry left standing. The distance was too short to use her rifle, so T'Sula closed the distance even more. She kept running straight at the Ta'Reeth, and finally, at full speed, she took her rifle stock and butt stroked the sentry in the face. The creature's head snapped back with a sickening crack. It was dead before its knees buckled, and it fell to the river below.

  Now that she had been found, time was shorter than ever. She knew that in mere moments, the entire arena was going to be bristling with Ta'Reeth, and her chances of success had gone from slim, to non-existent. If she didn't find the First in a matter of minutes, everything would be over, and she would have failed.

  T'Sula growled at herself for thinking such things, and pushed herself that much harder. She quickly slung her rifle over her shoulder, and started to climb the side of the arena. The bone was rough, and had a fair amount of holds that allowed her to climb quickly. She lost herself to the climb, thinking of nothing other than reaching the top as fast as she could.

  What T'Sula saw when she reached the top of the arena stopped her in her tracks. Several hundred thousand Ta'Reeth filled the bowl of the arena. Each of them stood, staring at her.

  Slowly, T'Sula pulled her rifle sling off her shoulder. She checked to see how many rounds she still had, and brought the weapon up to her shoulder. She didn't have nearly enough rounds to stand and fight, but that didn't matter anymore. It wasn't the fact that she was going to die this morning. It wasn't even the thoughts of revenge and justice that had driven her for so long that allowed her to act. Someone had to stop the First. Someone had to step forward, after all of these years, and all of the pain, to force the fighting to finally end.

  T'Sula flipped a switch on the side of her weapon, and brought the enhanced optics online. She methodically swept the weapon back and forth, quickly covering the entirety of the arena. As she moved, the computer in the rifle recorded every Ta'Reeth present. She kept the weapon trained on the enemy as she ran a quick search for the First. Nothing showed on the computer.

  Finally, T'Sula lowered her weapon. She took a deep breath, and then screamed as loud as she could. "I am here to challenge the First Ta'Reeth! Show yourself!"

  She waited for a moment, preparing to yell again.

  The arena shook as every voice Ta'Reeth thundered in unison. "Who are you, to come to my home and challenge me?"

  "I am T'Sula Mir! I challenge you!" T'Sula screamed back. "Quit hiding behind your drones!"

  "I do not hide." the voice that came from behind her was strong and steady, confident beyond anything that T'Sula had ever encountered. "You will pay for your impertinence."

  T'Sula turned to face the voice, not sure what she would find. As she turned, she brought her rifle up, and blocked the back fist that would have shattered her temple. The force of the strike bent the weapon nearly in half, rendering it useless. T'Sula moved with the force of the blow, spinning into a back kick that sent the First hurling backwards.

  As the First fell, T'Sula set her ruined rifle on overload, and hurled it into the crowd of Ta'Reeth. The weapon flew out into the expanse, and exploded in a brilliant flash, taking hundreds of Ta'Reeth soldiers with it into the either.

  "You will die for that!" the First howled, scrambling to its feet. Glistening talons flashed out of its fingertips, as the Ta'Reeth leader began to circle T'Sula. It watched her every move as they mirrored each other, searching for any weakness to exploit.

  T'Sula kept her distance from the First, feinting jabs and kicks, measuring her opponent's reactions to her every move. The creature that she now faced had more combat experience than any other being in the galaxy, but she could not allow that to hinder her thoughts and actions. She had to prevail here, now. If she failed, now there would be nothing to stop the Ta'Reeth from conquering the galaxy. She had to stop the First. She had to give the Ta'Reeth the freedom to choose not to fight.

  T'Sula and the First continued to circle each other, like two ends of the same rod, connected but never touching. T'Sula's right hand drifted down to the pistol strapped to her thigh, lightly touching the weapon, but not grasping it, not yet. Her eyes stayed fixed o
n her opponent, watching to see what the creature would do. She was aware of her surroundings, and of the Ta'Reeth that were watching them, but she was still unprepared for the arena to move beneath her.

  The bone surface beneath her feet was still there, and still as hard as she expected, but it pitched heavily to the right, then even harder back to the left. The movement continued, and intensified, nearly throwing T'Sula to her back. She spread her stance slightly, compensating for the motion, and that was when the First struck.

  The Ta'Reeth leader was fast, much faster than T'Sula had expected. Its talons slashed in, striking her faster than she could dodge, ripping into her ribs with a fiery pain that left her breathless. Before she could twist away, the First pressed the attack, ravaging her wounded ribs with a bone cracking series of kicks.

  Bolts of white-hot pain shot through her body, starting at her lacerated side, and burying its blistering tips in the center of her brain. T'Sula could feel her strength being leached away by the poison that had entered her body. She fought through the pain as she stepped closer to the First in an effort to stop the relentless pounding to her ribs, and give her body a chance to heal.

  T'Sula wrapped her arms behind the First's neck, and slammed her knee into the creature's groin as hard as she manage. She steadied herself slightly, and then raised her knee again and again, until finally the First's armor cracked, and blood began to trickle out of the wound. She ignored the constant barrage of strikes that battered every part of her body. She refused to release herself to the bloodlust that started to burn deep inside. The pain from her ribs was gone, and all that she could feel was the need to defeat her foe.

  T'Sula raised her knee, to strike again, but the First was ready. With a powerful heave, the Ta'Reeth wrenched T'Sula away, and thrust her to the edge of the arena. The arena bucked and jolted as T'Sula slid, headlong toward the edge. The rough bone bit deeply into her skin, lacerating her body before she slid to a stop.

  The jolting motion of the arena caused T'Sula to grab hold of the rough bone surface, keeping herself from tumbling over the side. She forced herself to look down, to gain strength from what she saw, knowing that she would see the defiled canyon, with the ruined waters far below.

  What she saw, was not what she expected. Instead of the canyon and river, there was the dry, rugged terrain that she had crossed not so long ago. From the corner of her eye, T'Sula could see motion. The arena was indeed a living creature, and it was walking north. It was going the way that she had come.

  With T'Sula momentarily distracted, the First struck again. First came the knee strikes to the back, and the talons that ripped into her muscles, and then the armored fists began to pound the back of her head.

  "You would challenge me?" the Ta'Reeth mocked her as it drove her face into the bone plate that covered the mammoth creature on which they rode. "I know who you are T'Sula Mir. You are nothing! Nothing more than a speck of dust, compared to the entirety of me."

  "Funny, I'd never even heard of you until recently." T'Sula sneered as she twisted her body around and faced the First. Her face was a mask of blood, her nose and cheekbones were shattered. She grunted hard as she thrust her hips up, dislodging the First from her chest. Through sheer force of will, T'Sula brought her legs up, and managed to wrap her feet around the First's head. She used her weight, and considerable strength to bring her feet crashing back down to the deck. The First fell backward, with its head rebounding off the armor plate.

  T'Sula took advantage of the freedom, and scrambled to her feet in time to see a familiar starship streak through the sky with two Ta'Reeth fighters close on its tail. Seeing Vengeance coming for her fueled her in ways that she hadn't believed were possible. Corin was coming for her. He was here. If she could only find a way to defeat the First, anything was achievable.

  He had come for her.

  T'Sula ignored the debilitating pain of her mending body. She stepped forward as the First rose to its feet. The Ta'Reeth began to advance, but T'Sula snapped a front push kick into its lead knee, instantly snapping the kneecap. She chambered her leg, and as The First stumbled forward, T'Sula crushed the creature's face with a powerful sidekick. As she kicked, she drew her bayonet, and spinning out of the kick, she used her momentum and thrust the blade through the thin armor under the creatures chin, burying the steel deep in the Ta'Reeth's brain.

  "Your reign of terror is over." T'Sula Mir sneered at the First as its body crumpled to the deck, never to rise again. She turned, and looked out over the expanse of the arena. The rolling motion of the giant creature came to a stop, and all noise ceased. Hundreds of thousands of Ta'Reeth warriors faced her in silence, and then fell to their knees.

  A single warrior rose from the ranks and came forward.

  "You have defeated the First of us." the warrior knelt at T'Sula's feet. "My people are yours to command, my Queen."