Revelation: Chapter Four

Irinon was in a small cell, strapped to a chair by her hands and ankles. It was cold and mostly devoid of moisture. She had put herself into a deep meditative state. Her entire body shivered as the cold crept deeper into her, down to the bone.
-”Come on, girl. You can do this. Stay alive, just stay alive...” she said to herself within her mind. The Khuryhan creaked and rumbled, as if it were alive. She snapped out of her trance, taking in a long breath of the cold air. Straining herself against the restraints, she couldn't feel them loosening. With a sigh of despair, she closed her eyes and tried to fall into the meditative state once more. The cold gripped her even harder now, making it impossible for her to detach herself from reality.
-”Shit. Can't believe I helped Shulnha and those humans. This is what you get for helping others.” she scolded herself. Her hands and feet began to go numb, as the cold air burrowed deeper into her flesh. Raising her head, she tried to look around the cell. The dim lighting made it difficult to discern any detail
Straining against the shackles once more, the metal clinked against the chair. Grunting with dissatisfaction, she rattled the chains. She leaned her head back and stared into the silvery light emanating from the ceiling. Suddenly, the door hissed and a guard stepped in.
-”Stay quiet.” he grunted and smacked her in the face with the butt of his rifle. Blood splattered from her mouth onto the wall a few meters away and slowly began running down.
-”Hah, is that the best you can do, big boy? Kind of distasteful hitting a woman tied to a chair though, isn't it?” she challenged the guard. He raised his rifle once more, this time striking even harder. Irinon keeled over from the blow, blood seeping from her mouth and chin. Laying on the floor, reeling from the pain, she watched the guard leave and the door close. Cringing as she shuffled her body into a more comfortable position, she thought of the lush jungles she played in when she was younger.

As she lay incapacitated on the floor, she began thinking of ways to free herself.
-”Okay.. I need to get free, that's obvious. But how?” she muttered to herself. Laying on the metal floor, the cold spread through her body even faster now. Sighing, she laid her head on the floor and closed her eyes. Her thoughts began to wander.
-”I wonder if those others got Shulnha off the Khuryhan alright? Ah shit.. Shouldn't be thinking about that right now.” she mumbled to herself, her voice echoing ever so slightly in the cell. She opened her eyes to look at the small pool of the blood on the floor.
Her body began to shiver as the room became colder. Laying her head on the floor again, she closed her eyes. Her breathing slowed down considerably. Trying to occupy her mind with other thoughts so that the pain wouldn't be as obvious, images began to flood her mind. From past assassinations, her childhood, places she had visited. Her body fought her mind and was losing, she felt dizzy and as if she was passing out. She felt her body going numb and a surreal feeling of stepping out of her body. The last conscious thought that went through her mind, was if the Endarians were monitoring her somehow. Then, nothing but black.

Admiral Julirian sat at his post on the bridge of the Khuryhan. Sunken into his own thoughts, a soldier interrupted him.
-”Sir. We have lost all thermal signatures within the cell where the Serkasian is. Should we investigate?” he asked, carefully. Julirian leaned forward on his seat. Clenching his fist, the soldier heard the leather stretch.
The Admiral turned to the soldier.
-”She dies and I will make sure you take full responsibility for it. Now, go!” he growled. The soldier bowed his head and left. As he was running through the corridors and hallways of the ship, he radioed ahead to the guard patrolling the cellblock.
-”Arniel, check on that Serkasian. We lost all thermal signatures from the room. I am on my way right now.” he yelled in the communications in the neckpiece of his suit. The guard by Irinon's cell quickly opened the door and stepped in. The warmer air from the hallway flooded the cell. It was almost impossible to see in front of oneself. The guard carefully stepped forward and felt with his foot as not to step on Irinon. The cell door closed behind him and the carbon dioxide scrubber began to work harder to take out all the CO2 in the cell and pump fresh oxygen for the prisoner. Stepping forward, the guard's boot hit the chair. He could hear the shackles rattle against it. He pressed the small button by his neckpiece to call in that Irinon had escaped but before his finger even stretched out, he was dead. His entire body crashed into the floor, with Irinon squatted on his back. Her eyes were still closed, her breathing slowed and barely noticeable. With a large inhale, she opened her eyes and stood up.
-”It's a shame I had to kill you, but didn't your mother teach you not to hit women?” she smiled. Kneeling down, Irinon rifled through the guards belongings.
-”Let's see here... keycard, going to need that. Mass accelerator pistol, distasteful and loud but not worth the extra hassle. And... oh, now this is a nice blade, Mr. Guard. I think I'll take it, thanks.” she said, as if the guard was alive. She tucked the knife in her boot and stood up. Knowing there would probably be other guards coming, she took a deep breath of the oxygenated air and opened the door. Peeking out, the hallway was completely devoid of life. Realizing that she couldn't breathe in the carbon dioxide atmosphere of the Endarians, Irinon had to figure out how to move around the ship. Turning around to face the body of the guard, she sank into thought. She knew some of the Endarians had Multiple Atmosphere Conditioning nano-chips. She turned the body around and looked for the incision where the chip might be located. The body was already nearing rigor mortis and made it difficult for Irinon to turn the body.
-”Shit! He doesn't have one.. how the hell am I going to get out of here now.” she cursed. Standing up, she shook her head and leaned against a wall.
-”Won't be long before another guard comes barging in here and sees me with that corpse. Come on, Irinon, think!” she told herself. While in her thoughts, an Endarian guard walked through the door, holding his plasma rifle. Irinon was startled and stared right into the guard's eyes, or what she thought were his eyes through the visor of his helmet. For what seemed like an eternity, they just stared at each other, not a single word crossed either of their lips. Irinon's muscles began tensing up, in anticipation of a fight.
Suddenly, the guard lowered his rifle. Irinon narrowed her eyes. Was he trying to provoke her so he could report the incident as getting attacked and discharging his weapon as self-defense? Or was there a deeper motive to his actions.
-”... I take that as a sign that you're not going to shoot me. That's a relief.” Irinon said, quite confused. The guard was as still as a prowling animal. He let his rifle drop to his side.
-”Here, take this. You may need it for your escape.” he said, breaking silence. The guard stretched his arm out with all of Irinon's equipment. Her eyes widened as she took the items and equipped them.
-”Thanks. I'll repay you somehow. What's your name?” she asked the guard. He shook his head.
-”Names are of no consequence at this moment. Your escape however is. Leave, quickly before others arrive, I will stall them as best I can.” the guard spoke as he turned his visor from mirror to clear. Checking that everything was in order, Irinon looked up at the guard. Staring into his eyes, she couldn't shake the feeling that everything wasn't as it was supposed to be. Narrowing her eyes once more, she realized that the guards eyes were glowing orange.
-”I have to repay you somehow. Meet me at the hangar bay when you get the chance. I'll be waiting inside my ship, alright?” she said as her suit initialized itself and began pumping oxygen into her helmet. The guard relaxed visibly.
-”Thank you. I will meet you there as soon as possible. Ker'ie'ley.” the guard said. Irinon recognized the last word he said. It was an ancient Turic'el wish for good luck. As the adrenaline began coursing through her veins, her legs picked up the pace and she ran. The corridors flashed by as her legs tried to out-pace each other. From the briefing, she tried to recall the blueprints of the Khuryhan. As the adrenaline peak was nearing, Irinon began feeling more comfortable, just like in a fight. Her focus peaked and everything seemed to slow down around her.

Admiral Julirian sat in his seat, staring out into the warping space around the bow of the ship. Steepling his index and thumb together, thinking of the medals and praise he would get for turning in the most dangerous assassin in the known galaxy. Deep in his thoughts, he didn't notice the guard walk up next to him.
-”Sir. It would seem that our detainee has escaped, Irinon Myuraji. She killed one and incapacitated another of our guards, sir.” the guard said. Julirian snapped back into reality.
-”Is that so... Well then, that took long enough.” he said, still staring into the rift horizon. The guard frowned briefly.
-”Should we capture her again, sir?” the guard asked. Julirian stopped rubbing his fingers and leaned forward to stand up from his seat.
-”No. Let her have her fun. You are free to chase her, but do not hurt her. I want her to be fighting fit once we reach Endara. The Council have a plan for her...” the Admiral said, quite pleased with himself. The guard bowed and left, signaling the other guards in the bridge to follow him.

Irinon was breathing heavily as she raced through the hallways of the dreadnought. It had been weeks since the briefing and she had some difficulty remembering the floor plans. Stopping at a junction to catch her breath, she looked around. The hallways stretched for dozens of meters in all directions.
-”For Insha's sake! Why do these ships have to look so alike on the inside. It's like a fuckin' maze.” she exclaimed, trying to catch her breath underneath the words. Looking into each hallway, she began to feel frustration rearing its ugly head.
-”Looks like I'll play a game of eeny-meeny-miny-mo...” she quietly muttered to herself. As she was deciding which hallway to go down, she heard guards behind her, one of them barking orders. Realizing it was now or never, she picked a hallway and ran as fast as she possibly could muster. The guards came around the corner behind her and yelled at her to stop. A few plasma bursts struck the walls around her as she dodged the shots. She came up to another junction, where she ran around the corner and jumped up into the ceiling structures. Stretching out her legs and arms, she jammed herself between the walls. One of the guards came sauntering under her, his plasma rifle shouldered.
-”I suggest you show yourself, Serkasian!” he yelled. Irinon smirked as the guard stopped under her. She dropped herself on top of his shoulders and locked her legs around his throat. Dropping his rifle, he struggled to loosen the grip. Irinon dropped her upper body down, put her hands on the floor and pulled with her legs as hard as she could. The guard flipped over and landed face first into the floor. Irinon got back on her feet.
The guard shook his head and got up on his knees. Seeing her stand there, he charged towards her. She vaulted over him and turned to face the guard. He began walking towards her, his fists raised and ready to fight hand-to-hand. She stayed still, merely watching his every move. As he swung his fist at her, she dodged. Blocking and dodging all the follow-up attacks, another guard came around the corner. As the unarmed guard swung his fist again, she grabbed his arm and kicked him in the back of the knee. He fell to his knees and Irinon put one of her legs around the guards throat while reaching for the blade from her boot she had acquired from the cell guard. The new guard raised his rifle, but too late as the blade had already punctured through the visor of the helmet and embedded itself in the eye, all the way up to the hilt. The guard crumbled as dark red, almost black, blood sprayed from the cracks in the visor. Turning her head to the guard she held in the strangle hold with her leg, she twisted her entire body quickly, until a snap echoed through the hallway. As she released the now-dead guard, she could hear more running down the hallway.
-”Goddamn amateurs...” she hissed. Knowing that they would come around the corner soon, she jumped back into the ceiling structures. Her breathing was heavy as she stayed still on top of the structures. The guards came around the corner.
-”Check on them!” one of them yelled, probably the leader, Irinon figured.
-”They are both dead, sir. This one has a broken neck and the other one is quite clear on how he died. Orders?” another voice spoke.
-”Gods have mercy on their souls... Spread out. We need to find her before she kills more of our men.” the leader spoke. Her body screamed as her muscles began to be taxed beyond their capabilities.
-”Come on, leave!” she hissed quietly. The guards went separate ways. When she figured they had gone, she dropped down. As she was crouched, she quickly checked that both directions were clear. Just as she stood up, a straggling guard walked around the corner.
-”Shit!” she exclaimed and started running toward him. Moments later, the guard turned around only to see her charging him. Walking backwards and fumbling with his rifle, his body leaned back a little, just enough for Irinon to step up on his thigh to launch her upward. Her second step landed on the guards chest and as she kicked as hard as she could, her body was now airborne. With all her strength, she twirled her body around and ejected her wrist blade. Everything seemed to slow down around her as she began falling down. The guard was still staring into her eyes with a terrified expression. Just as she fell close enough, her wrist blade sang in the carbon dioxide air, slicing the throat of the guard. The dark red blood sprayed like a fountain as the guard put his hands to his throat. Falling to his knees, his face was filled with intense pain and terror.
Irinon landed on the metal floor, with her wrist blade arm stretched out in the position it ended up in after the slice, one of her knees touching the floor and the other in a crouched position. Her other hand was on the floor, balancing her trained body. Her head was hung down and her eyes staring at the floor. A few droplets of blood dripped from the blade. Irinon's head was filled with white noise. Standing up, she retracted the blade back into its hidden state and began walking back the way she and the guards had come from. Her frustration grew stronger as she doubled back to where she started.
-”Why can't I remember the layout of this ship?!” she growled.
Stopping for a minute, she closed her eyes and tried to remember. She could feel every inch of her body pulsate as her breathing steadied. Suddenly, her eyes opened and she recalled the layout.
-”Right, right, left, right, left, right, right. Not that hard, now is it, ol' girl?” she told herself. Picking up the pace, her first thought was just getting off the Khuryhan as fast as possible.
Coming around the last corner, a rifle butt struck her in the head. She vaulted violently in the air and belly-flopped onto the floor. Trying to get up, her arms gave out under her weight and she crashed back into the floor.
-”Did you honestly think I would let you escape? After what you have done? If your answer is yes, you are sorely mistaken, Irinon Myuraji. The people of Endara are expecting an execution today.” a voice said. Irinon was dazed by the strike to the head, but she recognized the voice as Admiral Julirian.
Turning around on her back, she could see the Admiral standing over her with a mass accelerator pistol pointed at her.
-”Is that so? Well then, I hope I have something to wear to the party. Wouldn't want to show up like this.” she said defiantly. Julirian barked at the other guards to pick her up and put her back in a cell. As they picked her up, she looked at the Admiral.
-”You know you won't be able to get rid of me. Once I escape, I'll make sure your head is the one that is going to adorn the bow of my ship.” Irinon hissed. The Admiral laughed and then pistol-whipped her. The blow was hard enough to make her pass out.

She woke up a few hours later, in another cell that was much colder. This time, she was restrained to the wall, hanging from her arms and legs. She had also been stripped of all her clothing except the skin-tight shorts and tank-top-like shirt. Her entire body screamed from pain, she had been mercilessly beaten while unconscious. Looking down at the floor, her eyes peered away to her abdomen. It was full of large bruises. She had some difficulty breathing, her first thought was that she must have had a broken rib or two.
-”Fucking assholes...” she managed to mutter into the cold and highly oxygenated air. Forcing herself to look up, she saw her hands strapped against the wall with plasma shackles.
-”Alright. Doesn't look like I'll manage to break those...” she laughed quietly. It was quite clear to her that she had no way out now, unless some massive miracle would happen, which she figured was as unlikely as winning a game of Carnage. Her wrists burned as almost her entire weight was supported by them alone. Her body began to ache even more now that she was fully aware. Cringing and groaning, she thought that it must be at least another half a day before the ship would reach Endara. Knowing that there was nothing she could do, her thoughts began to go blank and the pain receptors numb as she fell into a deep meditative state.

-”Wake up!” someone yelled and her entire body shocked with sub-zero temperatures as she was suddenly pulled out of her meditative state. The guard had hosed with water that amplified the cold air in the room. Small icicles began forming where the water was dripping off her body.
-”It is time for the Endarian people to witness the execution of one of the most dangerous assassins of our time.” Julirian said, peering through his narrowed eyes. Irinon screamed as the cold penetrated down to the bone.
-”Get me off this goddamn wall and to the execution already!” she yelled, her body shivering involuntarily. The Admiral stared at her, quite satisfied that she was suffering.
-”All in due time, child. First we will let you suffer a little longer.” Julirian laughed. Irinon's face turned to rage and her breathing became erratic. The small clouds of vapor appeared with each shallow breath. The Admiral turned around on his heels and left, the guard in close suit.
-”Julirian, you fucking coward! I will kill you, your family and all your disgusting relatives! You hear me?! Julirian!” she yelled at the closing door. As Julirian removed his mask he had while in the cell, an advisor from the Sovereign's Court arrived. His regal dress swaying and dragging on the floor. His hands were crossed in front of him, as if he was praying.
-”Councilor Trakian. It is an honor.” Julirian said, bowing deeply. Trakian stopped in front of Julirian and waited for him to rise.
-”No, Admiral. The honor is all mine. Quite an impressive ship you have here, she has served you well?” the Councilor inquired. Admiral Julirian smiled and nodded.
-”Am I correct to ascertain that the prisoner is in there?” Trakian asked, pointing at the door.
-”Yes, Councilor. We will transport her to the arena. Have you acquired the beast?” Julirian asked.” Councilor Trakian nodded.
-”Quite a fierce one. It killed half a dozen men before they managed to subdue it. A young male, as specified by you.” he said, his voice instilling admiration among the guards. Julirian smiled once more.
-”Perfect. The Nothik will do its job, I am certain and by the sounds of things, it will be a short show.” The Admiral and Councilor began walking away form Irinon's cell. The guards stood by the sides of the hall and saluted as they passed by.
-”The Sovereign would like to hand you the Fleet Nova for capturing this dangerous criminal, Admiral. The ceremony will be held after the execution at the Palace.” Trakian said. Julirian's eyes widened.
-”The Fleet Nova? By the Gods... I have truly been blessed. The Sovereign is to hand it to me personally?” he said, clearly impressed. Councilor Trakian smiled.
-”Indeed, Admiral. He was quite pleased when heard that you had captured her. It is a shame the, what did they call themselves, humans? managed to escape.” he said. Julirian's expression went grim.
-”I am not certain it would have been for our best interest to keep them. They have an entire fleet, the remaining of their kind, wandering somewhere outside of our space. Their technology is fairly primitive, compared to ours, but they do have the capability to destroy our ships. One of ours, the former captain of the Hyurhan, is with the escapees. After they escaped, we hadn't the time to follow them. As of right now, we do not know where they are and what they are planning.” he explained. Trakian seemed to be in thought as they arrived at the hangar bay.
-”What are they doing here and where did they come from?” he asked. Julirian shook his head,
-”From what they told me, is that their world was consumed in a war and are now looking for a new world to colonize. But I, for one, do not trust them in the least. They are a high-strung and volatile species.” Julirian explained. The Councilor raised his hand to his chin. The Admiral barked orders at some guards standing in the hangar bay to prepare Trakian's shuttle back to the surface.
-”That is not for you to decide, Admiral. I will discuss this matter further with the Sovereign and the rest of the cabinet. I am certain they are interested in this new species. If the Sovereign agrees, I will ask for the Triumvirate to assemble.” Trakian said as he shook Julirian's hand. The Admiral shook his head.
-”Bastard politicians... always the same.” Julirian hissed as the Councilor's shuttle lifted off.

Back in the cell, Irinon could feel her body temperature dropping dangerously low. Trying to do lift-ups to keep herself warm, she failed miserably. The pain on her wrists increased and she could feel her arms going numb. The water had frozen on her body and she felt like thousands of needles being stuck into her.
-”You bastards! Let me go!” she yelled, or what she thought was a yell but was in fact barely audible. The shivering had become more intense and almost impossible for her to control. Her legs had gone numb several minutes earlier. Losing all hope, her eyes began to close and she could hear how her heart beat became less frequent. Just as her eyes closed, several Endarian guards came into the room.
-”Take her down and into the medical bay. The Admiral wants her in top condition for the execution.” a husky voice barked. The guards rushed to take her down. The plasma restraints withdrew into the wall and two of the guards caught her falling body.
-”She does not seem to be breathing.” one of them said. The husky-voiced one stepped forward and knelt. Putting his fingers on Irinon's neck, he couldn't feel a pulse.
-”Shit. Get her to the Intensive Care Unit, stat! She has gone hypothermic and her heart has stopped.” he yelled at the guards. They picked her up and laid her down on some hover-stretchers. Racing to the ICU, the husky-voiced one had begun laying thermal blankets on her to increase her core temperature.
-”Faster! We cannot lose her like this, not after all the trouble they went through to get the Nothik for the execution!” he yelled at the guards. One of them stopped to call the ICU personnel to prepare for incoming.
Rushing through the doors of the ICU, they laid her on the bed.
-”Keep pumping oxygen. Get me five CC's of nano-adrenaline, now!” the husky-voiced medic yelled. As a doctor came with the syringe, the medic felt his way through the Serkasian's chest.
-”Damn Serkasians! Why is it so hard to find a soft spot...” he mumbled as he kept pressing his fingers on her chest.
-”Finally!” he exclaimed and jabbed the needle into her heart. As the nano-adrenaline emptied from the syringe, they waited. Suddenly, Irinon jumped up and inhaled loudly. Falling back into the bed, she was barely conscious.
-”Calm down. Your heart stopped as a result of the hypothermia you endured. I just injected you with some nano-adrenaline. Now that your heart is pumping again, we will be administering warm liquids. The execution will be stayed for another day or two at least. Thank whatever you believe in, it is a good time for that.” the medic said while leaning over Irinon. The rest of the ICU personnel take over and the medic with the guards, leave. Irinon looks through her blurry eyes at the Endarians around her. A doctor steps up to her.
-”Go to sleep, Serkasian. We need you to be fit and fighting once you have recovered.” Irinon manages to scoff at the doctor before she falls asleep.

Two days later, Irinon wakes up in a recovery unit in the medical bay. She tries to move a bit, noticing that she is quite stiff from lying down for so long. Turning her head, she scans through the room. No one else is there. Lifting her arm, it snags on something. She lifts her head to look and saw that she had been restrained to the bed.
-”Oh, now that's just fucking fantastic. I've been out cold for the past couple of days and they decide to tie me to this goddamn bed.” she mumbled as she lay her head down again. As she stared into the sterile white ceiling of the room, she noted to herself that she was not in any pain. A doctor walked in and picked up a holographic console off the table.
-”Ah, you are awake. The execution was postponed for the time you were critical, but it seems you have recovered quite nicely. Those new nanobots are quite the miracle workers, would you not agree?” he said as he perused through the chart.
-“Nanobots...?” Irinon thought to herself as she looked at the doctor. He looked back at her and let a tiny smile off at her.
-”In either case, you will be transported to the capital in a few hours, where you will be sentenced. The escort detail is on its way as we speak.” the doctor said. Irinon rolled her eyes. She raised her head once more and looked at the door out of the room. A guard stood outside, seemingly uninterested in the on-goings around him.
-”Are these restraints really necessary?” she asked the doctor. He raised his eyebrow as he looked up from the holo-chart.
-”Yes, they are. We know of your kind. Even unarmed, you are as formidable as a contingent of Vorkaari warriors. Do not play coy with us, Serkasian.” he said as he fiddled with the chart. Irinon shifted her head and looked away from the doctor, sighing with contempt. The doctor put down the holo-chart and left the room.
Irinon could hear voices outside. Raising her head again, she looked through the window of the room. It was painted over with some sort of white paint, but seemed to let a lot of light past it. She counted five, maybe six endarians standing outside. She figured it must have been the escort detail sent from the surface to take her.
-”... and here she is. You are free to take her when you wish.” the doctor said while walking back into the room. Five soldiers, dressed in all matte-black armor stood behind the doctor. They had the standard issue plasma rifles cradled in their arms and also Arc Batons strapped to their right thighs.
She had read about the arc batons; they are capable of multiple functions. The first, and most commonly used, was the function where it could arc a shock across several meters to stun the intended target. With one hundred-thousand volts, it would leave even a Vorkaar a drooling mess on the floor. Overloading ones nervous system, the target would be incapacitated for hours. The second, was that it could be used as an improvised explosive device, by setting its power core to overload.
Two of the soldiers stepped forward and slung their rifles behind their backs. Taking out their arc batons, she heard the charging noise from them. A sharp and quick whistle. She knew the batons were dangerous and would one be used on her, she would become a drooling, incapacitated sack of meat on the floor.
-”Sit up.” one of soldiers said. She did as asked and a third soldier approached to release her from the restraints. The two who stood behind the doctor held something, Irinon noticed. The glance she saw, it seemed to be some sort of harness.
-”Stand up, and step forward.” the commanding one said. As she stepped forward, the two from behind the doctor stepped forward with the harness.
She recognized it from when she was on Endara during the Defense Minster's assassination contract. She had seen dangerous convicts wear them, a guard on both sides with the arc batons inserted into the indentations on the side of the harness. She figured the point was, that if the detainee was troublesome, they could shock them with the arc batons. The two with the harness came up to her and strapped her into it. Tightening the straps around her body, she felt quite uncomfortable.
-”Place your hands in front of you.” the commanding one spoke. Irinon thought his voice was quite pleasant. Such a shame that he probably was a sadistic bastard, she figured as the guards worked on the harness. Just as she placed her hands in front of her abdomen, plasma restraints shot out of the harness' energy array. The soldiers with the arc batons attached them to the harness.
-”Very well, let us go. Move, dead-row.” the commander said. As Irinon began walking, the two guards on her side lead her from behind. The commanding one walked in front of her and the last two on each of her sides. She felt safe, even though walking to her death. It wasn't a long way from the medical deck to the hangar bay. Irinon was quite saddened, wishing that Shulnha or his new friends would come to save her. But, fully aware that taking on an Endarian dreadnought in orbit of Endara would be nothing more than suicide.
Coming out on the flight deck, she saw the sleek and slender hull of the shuttle. The bluish-silvery hull shifted in the fluorescent lighting of the bay. It made her a little dizzy. The soldiers holding the batons shoved her to move faster.
-”Quit shoving, for fuck's sake.” she told the soldiers. They looked at each other, then shoved her even more. She scoffed at them as they pushed her forward. Turning her head, she saw an Endarian marine walking at the far end of the hangar. As he passed by what seemed like empty space, Irinon saw the marine disappear. Raising an eyebrow, she wondered what it could be. As the soldiers shoved her into the shuttle, she realized that it must have been her ship and that the marine who vanished was the Turic'el in disguise. A smile crept on her face as the soldiers forced her to sit down.
-”Prisoner Transport 8394-1/A requesting take off permit.” the pilot said. Irinon looked into the cockpit and noticed that it was one of the soldiers who had escorted her who was the pilot. Still smiling that she had an ally on the inside, she looked at the three black armored soldiers sitting around her.
-”So... anyone had some R&R lately? Maybe gotten lucky with the better half?” she asked, seemingly happy. The soldiers ignored her.
-”Wow, so you're some kind of hard-asses, aren't ya? What are you, Third Hand?” The soldiers looked at each other, then at Irinon. The commander looked at her.
-”The Third Hand is nothing but a child's story. Now, stay silent.” he said. Irinon laughed.
-”Oh yeah, sure. Nothing but a story fed to your kids... What about Adaan? What kind of bullshit story did you feed the public about that? Hmm?” she hissed. One of the soldiers stood up and struck her in the head with the stock of his rifle.
-”The commander told you to be silent!” he yelled and sat down. The breather mask cracked from the blow and her lower lip began bleeding. She cringed as she stretched her chin and licked the blood off her lip.
-”Seems like I hit a nerve there...” she mumbled from beneath the mask. The shuttle was only a few minutes away from hitting the atmosphere of Endara.
-”We are going to hit the atmosphere soon. Buckle up and hold tight.” The pilot said over the intercomm. The others strapped themselves into their seats. As the shuttle began rattling and shaking, Irinon's thoughts went back to the Turic'el and her ship. Wondering if he was following the shuttle or simply returned to the Turic'el home world. The shuddering soon stopped as the shuttle passed into the atmosphere of Endara.
-”We are through. It will be another few minutes until we arrive at the capital.” the pilot said. Irinon took a long breath and tried to recall what she could of the planet.

Endara was a planet covered entirely by cities. The capital of Endara is called Vyurhan which houses the Sovereign, his cabinet and one of the three Triumvirate Chambers.
The buildings and spires reached toward the sky, the largest ones over four kilometers in height. Built in the same bluish-silver metal as their warships, in certain light the cities would look like the oceans of a water planet. Civilian Personal Vehicles, or CPVs, traveled between the buildings, as if on roads. Looking from high in the sky, several million CPVs could be seen, speeding between the skyscrapers and spires. Over fifty billion Endarians live on Endara, trillions more spanning across the entire Endarian empire. Down on the surface, the walkways were covered in white stone. Arches and pathways made out of this stone were everywhere. To an untrained visitor, one could get lost within minutes of entering any one of the cities.
Endara had been a barren planet since its birth, millions of years ago. Very little vegetation and water was present then and now. The Endarians were the only species to evolve on the planet, the only ones who breathe carbon dioxide in the known galaxy. This made them stand out in the larger picture. The Vorkaar are the only other species that can breathe carbon dioxide, and even then, it is only temporarily. This makes it difficult for other species to invade the Endarian systems without proper breathing equipment.

Irinon opened her eyes. She recalled more than necessary about the world, nothing that would help her avoid her sentence. She felt the shuttle set down.
-”A clean landing. The Sovereign sent a message as we were on our approach that we are to transport the prisoner straight to the arena.” the pilot told the others over the intercomm.
-”Arena?” Irinon said quietly. The soldiers who were overseeing her, stood up and pulled her up with the batons.
-”Get going.” the commander said. The soldiers shoved her along as the door of the shuttle hissed open. The warm air of Vyurhan greeted them. All of the soldiers took off their helmets. Irinon looked at all their faces. They were wrought with scars and other signs of battle.
-”You are Third Hand!” she exclaimed as she recognized the commander. He was one of the operatives that was in Shulnha's unit back when they cornered her on Adaan. He looked at her with anger.
-”See this scar? I got it as a parting gift from you on that damned research vessel. I have been waiting for seven long years to see you die.” he growled as he drew a finger through the large scar on his face. Irinon remembered him, as clear as day. He was one of the first of the unit she incapacitated on the vessel.
-”Don't think I'll feel sorry for cutting your pretty little face, lizard. I tried to save my own ass.” Irinon roared. The commander looked at her, his rage clearly visible in his eyes.
-”Call me a lizard one more time and I will cover the landing pad with your remains.” he growled, raising his rifle to her head. Irinon pressed her chin against the barrel.
-”Do it, you fuckin' lizard...” she hissed from between her teeth. Their faces were nearly touching as they stared each other down. The commander roared as he stepped back and grabbed his arc baton. He smashed it into her ribs. She screamed and faltered as the blow connected. He reared his arm to strike again, but the others stepped up and talked him down.
-”Vrhaan! You are only playing into her hand hitting her like this. Let it go and watch her execution from the stands. We will take her there.” one of the others spoke. He grunted and threw his baton on the ground. Turning around, he walked quickly away from them. He turned his head back and watched as the others began walking to the surface connecting elevator.
-”I hope you are pleased with yourself. What do you hope to gain from antagonizing us since you are on death-row?” the one who stopped Vrhaan from hitting her further. Irinon cringed as she tried to press her arm against her side.
-”Absolutely fuckin' nothing. Whatever you have in store for me is probably ten times worse than having my brains blown across some shitty landing pad.” The other soldiers shook their heads as they began shoving her along to the elevator. Irinon had trouble walking, with broken ribs. For every other step she had to cringe as it hurt more and more.
-”We will shoot you up with painkillers before you are sent out to the arena.” one of the escorting soldiers said. Irinon shook her head.
-”Hell no. You shoot me up with painkillers and you can kiss your goddamn show goodbye. If you want me to put up a half-decent fight with whatever you have waiting for me, I need to be crystal clear, understood?” she hissed at him. The soldier shrugged and proceeded to lead her towards the elevator. As they stood there, waiting for the elevator to arrive, a series of high atmosphere sonic booms echoed among the buildings. The soldier knelt down and raised their rifles to the sky. Irinon tried to cover her ears as best she could as the booms were loud.
-”Sonic booms?! No ships should be flying beyond the speed of sound, especially here.” one of the soldiers said. Another spoke on his communication system. Irinon overheard the soldier speaking with what appeared to be a flight surveillance officer.
-”What were those sonic booms? An Ara'kaian scout?! How did it get through? No, it should be impossible to rift that close to a planet, the gravity well would distort the window and make it unstable. How close?! Mother of our gods... That should be physically impossible, the amount of time the ship must have spent in hyper rift would damage the engine. Very well. Inform the public that there will be massive EM storms for the coming days.” One of the soldiers wondered what had happened.
-”It seems that, somehow, an Ara'kaian scout made it passed our defenses. The preliminary calculations shows that it was in hyper rift for at least two weeks, maybe longer. That should be impossible, its engine should have overloaded. Furthermore, it exited roughly 10 kilometers above the atmosphere which means there will be massive electromagnetic storms for a few days. Our destroyers are following it as we speak.” he explained to the others. Irinon stood up from her kneeling position. The elevator doors opened as the soldier grabbed their arc batons.
-”Wonder how much the scout saw?” one of the soldiers asked. Another shrugged.
-”Probably the entire damn city, for all we know. Wish we could capture one of those scouts and have our scientists have look at it.” he said. The others agreed with a grunt. Irinon was looking down at her plasma restraints and the harness. Sighing with contempt at the guards, she turned her towards them. They had fairly prominent horns, nothing like what the Sovereign and the cabinet had, but she could tell they were somewhat high up in the caste. She could feel the elevator coming to a halt.
-”Ground floor.” the voice in the elevator said. Irinon noted that the voice was fairly pleasant, female. As the doors opened, another flush of warm air washed over everyone as they lead her out. She could see a matte-black transport vehicle with a pair of similarly clad soldiers standing next to it. The vehicle was completely devoid of any markings or the like and Irinon thought it was because it was a Third Hand prison transport. The two soldiers by the vehicle saluted as they arrived.
-”Here she is. Be careful with this one, she can get under your scales quite easily if you let her.” one of the escorting soldiers said. The vehicle guards nodded and grabbed their own arc batons. The escort crew released their batons and left.
-”Oh happy times! I get to ride in a black, unmarked van! I hope you have something sweet, like a pastry, inside. I could really dig into some right about now.” Irinon smiled at the guards. They shoved her in the back and attached the arc batons to the walls. As the doors closed, it was pitch black inside. She moved her legs as far away as she could, to try and figure out if there was something on the floor. The vehicle jolted as she felt it lift into the air. She couldn't feel anything with her feet, so she stretched them as far as she could. The tip of her shoes barely touched something. Pushing herself against the harness, she cringed as one of the straps pressed on her side where Vrhaan had hit her.
-”Aghhh!” she screamed as the pain grew. Her foot was touching something hard. She tried to get it around the item and pull towards her. Not being able to see anything, she took off her shoe and felt the item with her bare foot. It was cold, probably metallic, she figured. It had some sharp edges and what she felt like were buttons. Pushing herself to press the buttons with her toes, a small light flickered on. Looking down at it, she moved her foot across the light, feeling the material underneath. It was smooth and cold. Stepping back as the straps were pressing too hard on her ribs, she tried to lower her entire body to see what the light was. As she narrowed her eyes, she could make out what looked like words.
-”Is that my...” she mumbled to herself as she tried to make out more of the words. A few minutes later, she realized that it was her wrist console. This made her happy, as she figured the rest of her equipment were in the vehicle as well. Relaxing herself, she closed her eyes. The faint hum of the engine filled the small space she was in. The pain was lessening in her side, as she took long, slow breaths from the breathing mask. It was leaking since Vrhaan had hit her in the face with his rifle when they were descending from the Khuryhan. Her focus peaked as she could feel every slight movement the Third Hand transport made.
The hum of the engines increased as the vehicle was setting down. Irinon had no idea where they had taken her, but she assumed that they were somewhere in the vicinity of the arena they had spoken of. She heard the soldiers step out. As they opened the doors in the back, light flooded the small space. It blinded Irinon for a few moments, before her eyes accustomed.
-”We have arrived. Your execution is scheduled to start in a few minutes. We will release you so you can put on your own equipment. That way, you will at least have a fighting chance. It is a shame that you are injured, but I am certain that you will give us quite the show.” one of the soldiers said as the other held his rifle pointed at Irinon. He went up to her and took the arc batons off of the harness. When the power cut, the plasma restraints turned off. The soldier proceeded to release the straps holding the harness in place and lifting it off Irinon.
-”Put your gear on.” he ordered. She looked at him, then turned around and picked up her suit. Pulling it on and zipping up, she sat on the bench. Cringing as she leaned on her bad side, she picked up her boots and put them on. The soldiers looked at her, making sure she didn't do anything.
-”You know, this isn't the first time I've had guys checking me out when I get dressed.” Irinon smiled. The two endarians looked at each other and shook their heads.
-”Get on with it, we do not have all day.” the one who released her grunted. Picking up the wrist console- and blade, she strapped them on her forearms. Tucking a large knife into her boot, she picked up the two sheathed short swords and strapped them on her lower back. Deftly clicking around on her wrist console, the suit came to life and tightened around her body. Exhaling with a short and heavy breath, she took a long breath from the breathing mask and threw it on the floor. Attaching three diodes above her left eye, she went to pick up her helmet and drew it over her head. With a slight hiss, it sealed itself.
-”There. All done. I hope you enjoyed the show. Now, where to?” she said. One of the soldier cocked his head quickly, showing her to step out of the vehicle. As she hopped out, she faltered her landing as a sharp pain shot through her side.
-”Ahhh...” she cringed as she put her hand on her side. The suit squeaked a little as she began walking alongside the soldiers.
-”We are on our way.” one of them said on his communicator. The other shoved Irinon along with his rifle. She looked up at what she believed was the arena.

It was large, built out of light-colored stone, perhaps sandstone, she figured. It grew larger and larger as they closed in on it. She could hear the crowd inside already roaring. She thought it might be a full house, executions like hers must have been a rare treat for the Endarians. Her heart began to race as they stepped into a dark hall. Her eyes needed to adjust for a minute before she could see anything inside. The lighting was shoddy at best, ancient even. Suddenly, the crowd erupted into roars and cheers, somewhere above her. They were beneath the bleachers, somewhere.
-”I suggest you consider it an honor to be able to fight for your life on this arena. It has seen dozens of creatures from all around the galaxy, tens of thousands of convicts' blood spilled into the dusty soil. Centuries of fights have been seen here. Much less lately, however. It is truly a shame. Ah, I hope you fight well and give the audience a good show for their credits.” one of the soldiers said as the other went and sat down on an old wooden chair, in what looked like some make-shift bar. She sighed as the soldier pushed her forward towards, what looked like a corral of some sort.
-”So, I'm an animal now then? You guys sure do have a funny way of treating your prisoners.” she scoffed. The soldier looked at her with an empty expression.
-”Oh shut the fuck up already.” he said as she shoved her with the rifle. She stumbled into the corral and turned around. The soldier had already closed the heavy set steel door. Trying to push it open, the door stood in front of her, unwavering, even a little scary, she thought.
-”Well, shit. What now?” she said out loud. Turning around, she could see tiny cracks in structures around her that let in some sunlight. The crowd was roaring and cheering. Irinon closed her eyes and put herself into a meditative state. The sounds around her began to blur together and eventually became barely audible.
Coming back into reality, she heard an announcer over the loudspeakers.

-”Good evening, ladies and gentlemen! Our last fight of the night is going to be a real treat for you veterans. From the hot and humid jungles of Dhaskhan, comes our creature; a fierce and dangerous animal, weighing in at over 1000 kilograms. Rumor has it that six men lost their lives retrieving it and as they arrived to Vyurhan with the creature, it broke its restraints, leveling an entire city block. Oh yes, it is truly a biological machine of pure destruction; the fearless and brutal Nothik!” the announcer hyped the tens of thousands who were there. The crowd screamed and roared. A cold shiver shot through Irinon.
-”They got a fuckin' Nothik for me to fight?! Motherfuckers!” she yelled and kicked the dry dirt on the ground. Her anger boiled as her body tensed up.
-”How the hell do they think I'll manage kill something like that? For fuck's sake...” she said out loud again. The announcer went on.

-”And, in the other corner... A beautiful, silent, agile and deadly assassin from the absolutely astonishing world of Serkasj... Irinon Myuraji! You may remember her from some years ago, when she infiltrated our beloved city and brutally murdered Defense Minister Khuri Dhasjyab. Now, I do not know how a little, skinny girl like her will ever best a Nothik, but she should provide us with one hell of a show tonight! Let the blood of the unjust be spilled on this golden soil!” the announcer hyped. The crowd roared even louder and Irinon felt like they were about to tear the whole arena to the ground. She could feel each beat of her heart through her entire body. Her palms began to sweat. She had fought dangerous creatures before, but the Nothik was in a league completely on its own; the top of the top of the food-chain. Uncertain of how to kill it, especially since she was not one-hundred percent. The announcer interrupted her thoughts.

-”Are the combatants ready?! Is the crowd ready?!” he hyped everyone. Irinon's heart began race even faster. Her breathing became shallow and all that calm she had accumulated through her meditation, was now gone. She was on the verge of panicking.
-”Release the Nothik!” the announcer yelled. Irinon could hear the heavy gate on the other side screech as it opened. The low growls and grunts of the Nothik were audible across the arena and the roaring crowd. The creature lumbered slowly out into the arena, small clouds of dust rising from underneath its paws. It looked carefully at the roaring crowds around it, its head hung low. The ivory horns gleamed in the main-sequence star's shine, small droplets of saliva dripped into the dry sand. It stopped roughly halfway across the arena and raised its head. The muscles rippled underneath its thick hide, its yellow-brown scales almost golden in the sunlight. The crowd went silent as they admired the creature. Suddenly, it raised its head into the air and roared with a fierceness the audience had never seen before. It had smelled its prey.

Irinon paced in the small corral, looking through the cracks in the door at the Nothik. She felt restless as she peered at the creature. Trying to calm herself down as best she could, she heard the door to the corral open.
-”And now... our convict.” the announcer said calmly but with excitement. The Nothik stared into the darkness of the corral, showing its teeth. Saliva dripped from its mouth as it sneered. Irinon stepped slowly onto the arena. Her entire body trembled as she looked directly into the eyes of the Nothik. Her palms were sweaty and sticky. A pearl of sweat ran down from her brow as the creature lowered its head. It let loose a low growl, as its muscles rippled across its shoulders. Suddenly, it began charging towards Irinon. Her eyes widened and she dodged it narrowly. The Nothik ground to a halt and turned toward her. She got off of the soil, some of the finer dust covered one side of her suit. The creature followed her every move carefully, as if studying its prey. The crowd was displeased that she had dodged the charge. She looked up at the audience, there must have been thousands, maybe tens of thousands watching the fight. The adrenaline rushed through her veins as the Nothik began running towards her with its horns presented. She ejected her wrist blade and waited for the Nothik to come close enough. As it picked up in pace, its head lowered. The ivory horns glinted briefly in the sunlight.
-”Come on, you overgrown piece of maggot meat!” she yelled. Her body tensed up. As the Nothik was about to hit her, she jumped into the air, towards the creature. It raised its head to try and connect, but missed. Irinon vaulted in the air. As she landed, she quickly turned her head to see the monstrous body of the creature grind to a halt, kicking up a massive cloud of dust. It roared as its gigantic paws stomped on the loose soil.
-”I won't be able to tire him out, no way in hell.” she told herself. As the Nothik turned around, Irinon put one leg in front of the other and ran straight toward it. The audience began cheering as the creature roared and lumbered toward her. She jumped forward, readying to strike with the blade. In mid-air, she noticed the Nothik had tilted its head to the right, presenting the left side horns toward her.
-”Shit!” she exclaimed as she tried to turn herself away from the horns. She managed to divert herself a little, but the longer horn tore through her suit and cut a long surface gash into her side. She crashed into the dirt, a huge cloud rising around her. She screamed as she put her hands to her side. The crowd was ecstatic, cheering at the Nothik. It stopped short of hitting the arena wall and turned around, slowly strafing around the bleeding Serkasian. Irinon rolled in the sand as she held her side. Blood was pouring through her fingers as she bit her teeth together. Her breathing was heavy as she stared into the yellowing sky above the arena.

-”Oh no! It looks like our Serkasian convict is down and out of the game!” the announcer said excitedly. Irinon heard it and mustered enough strength to get back on her feet.
-”Looks like you were wrong there, Drinahn! I cannot believe that she is still standing, not after a blow like that.” another announcer said. As Irinon held her left hand to the wound, the other announcer replied.
-”It would seem so, Alkhaar. Our Serkasian friend appears to have even more fight in her than we first expected!” Irinon looked down to her side, the blood had stained her entire left side. Retracting the wrist blade, she watched the Nothik prowl. With slow and methodical steps, the creature sneered and grunted at her.
-”Alright... you're one point up, you bastard... Let's see if we can't even the score.” she hissed between her teeth as she reached for one of the short swords strapped to her lower back. The pain began to burn on her side and she cringed briefly before the Nothik went for another charge. She caught it at the last second, and ran towards it. As they were about to collide, Irinon slid on the loose soil and dropped herself to the ground. Hoping that the creature had slow reflexes, she waited for it's lumbering mass to pass over her. She lay as still and flat to the ground as possible. A deep, dark shadow crept over her and as the creature passed, she struck her blade into the softer tissue on the belly-side of the Nothik. As it lumbered past her, she quickly got back on her feet. The crowd let loose a collective sound of awe, as the creature shrieked in an ear-shattering growl.
-”Haha, gotcha!” she exclaimed. The Nothik faltered slightly with its steps. Some of the black blood seeped down the blade and into the sand. The crowd stood up in awe.
-”Wow! An amazing show of force by our convict. Realizing that the thick, scaled hide of the Nothik was impregnable to her weapons, she went for its soft spot, absolutely astonishing!” Alkhaar yelled excited.
-”I could not agree more, Alkhaar. It seems that she has more aces up her sleeve than we had given her credit for. I wonder what her next move will be since she is even with the Nothik?” Drinahn asked.
Irinon stared at the wounded animal as it tried to remove the blade, but it was out of reach of its tail and head.
-”That must have angered the creature, Drinahn. At least it looks angry, how would I know? I am just a lowly caster over here at the Vyurhan Arena!” Alkhaar laughed. The crowd cheered.
Irinon took out her second blade from her back and began walking toward the wounded creature. The Nothik sneered at her as it began lumbering towards her once again. Irinon picked up her pace. As they were on a collision course again, she side-stepped the Nothik and jabbed her blade into its soft tissue in the tail. The creature kept running, with her hanging for dear life on the hilt of the blade.
-”Goddamn... stay still!” she yelled at it. Its tail flailed wildly from side to side as it dragged her through the dusty soil. A large, thick cloud of dust rose into the air. Irinon flicked her wrist and the wrist blade rushed out. Looking down at the short sword, it had began cutting down alongside the tail.
-”Oh no...” she mumbled as she flailed in the air as the Nothik whipped its tail around. Striking the wrist blade into another soft spot in the tail, she took the short sword out and held it in her free hand.
-”Now this is amazing! The Serkasian is leapfrogging across the Nothik's body with her blades! I wonder what she is trying to achieve though? What are your thoughts, Drinahn?” Alkhaar asked.
-”I have not the faintest clue, but whatever she is trying to do, she must be tired having to hang onto its tail with all the throwing around going on.” Drinahn responded. The crowd cheered and then settled down to watch what was happening.
Irinon's arms began to go numb as she held on for her life. She had slowly crawled up to its rear leg and the hide began to get thicker. The Nothik shrieked for each strike that went through the soft tissue as it tried to get rid of its assailant. Striking the short sword underneath one of the impregnable scales, she hopped onto the creature's spine and squeezed her thighs together to try and stay on. She wrenched the blade as hard as she could to try and pry off the scale. Slowly and surely it began to loosen and just as it broke off, the Nothik kicked with its hind legs and the scale flew off. Irinon looked at the scale barreling toward her head and before she could evade, it struck her helmet visor, cracking it severely and throwing her off the Nothik's back.
-”Oh my goodness! She managed to pry off one of the scales, but it backfired horribly as it flung into her helmet. I hope she is alright, for the sake of the continued, absolutely epic fight.” Alkhaar exclaimed. Drinahn's jaw flopped open as he stuttered in the caster booth.
-”I.. do not know what to say. Our Serkasian convict is lying the sand and is not moving. Did the scale cause any serious damage, we do not know. The Nothik seems to be very wounded however, and is circling the convict from afar. The blades are still stuck in its body as well!” Drinahn said dryly.
Irinon lay in the warm, dusty sand. Her vision was blurry and her head felt confused. The sound of the crowd and announcers on the loudspeakers were all a garbled mess in her ears. Trying to move her body, she felt as if she couldn't.
-”Irinon... Irinon? Irinon.... Irinon!” a voice yelled in her ear. She blinked her eyes a few times before responding.
-”Who is this...?” she said, mumbling. There was nothing for what seemed like hours, before the voice came back.
-”Ker'ie'ley.” the voice said, followed with what seemed like labored breathing. Irinon's eyes widened as she heard that Turic'el word again.
-”You!” she exclaimed as she pulled herself up from the dirt. Looking around at the sky, trying to spot her cloaked ship, she couldn't see the tell-tale ripples.
-”Where are you? How did you get this channel? It's encrypted with the latest Serkasian anamorphic protocols!” she asked with a stern voice. She heard the Turic'el's breath whining in her earpiece.
-”I am in your ship, orbiting Endara. I followed the shuttle they took you with. Luckily their radar system has not picked up the ships signature. The announcers yelled as they saw Irinon sit up.
-”It looks like our convict is not out just yet! Although, she is just sitting there. The Nothik is still circling her, oh my, this is turning into quite the show!” Alkhaar exclaimed. Drinahn agreed. The crowd roared with excitement as they watched for Irinon's next move.
-”I can.. pick you up, if you wish..” the Turic'el said, clearly forcing the words from his mouth. Irinon frowned as she listened to her new friend.
-”Are you alright? You sound like you're having some problems.” she asked. After a brief grunt, the Turic'el responded.
-”This Endarian body is dying. Our physiology is not intended to blend and it was a known risk when I was sent on this mission. If you do not hurry with what you are doing, I might perish alongside the Endarian host.” he said laboriously. Irinon cringed as she got back on her feet. Her vision was still slightly blurry, but she could see enough to finish the fight with the Nothik.
-”Just hang on. I'll be done with this in a few minutes. You can set the auto-pilot to land at the arena, that way you won't need to strain yourself anymore.” she said as she started walking toward the Nothik. There was black blood stains all over the dirt and body of the creature.
-”You... need to die!” she yelled at the Nothik. It roared loudly at her. Someone from the crowd threw a rock at Irinon, but missed. As it rolled on the dirt and stopped in front of her, she picked it up and threw it at the Nothik to antagonize it. The rock struck the creature in the face and it backed up a few steps, shaking its head. Just as she had thrown the rock, Irinon started running towards the wall of the Arena. The Nothik followed her at full speed. It was much quicker than Irinon, and as she looked back, she could see his blood red eyes closing in.
-”Come on, faster!” she told herself. Realizing that she would not make it, she stopped and turned around. Staring into the lumbering heap of muscles coming straight at her, her body tensed up. Just as the Nothik was about to ram into her, she jumped over it. The creature crashed into the wall a few meters away. As she sailed in the air for a moment, she landed gracefully, kicking up a cloud of dirt. The Nothik turned around, stumbling as the blow to its head was hard. Irinon stood up and ran towards it. Jumping on its tail, she pulled out the blade stuck in the spot where she tore off one of the scales. Sheathing it in the scabbard on her back, she climbed up onto the Nothik's back. It could feel her clambering to its scales, it shook its body as hard as it could.
-”Stay still, you goddamn piece of overrated meat!” Irinon growled. She failed to hold on and found herself lying in the dirt again. Quickly getting back on her feet, she watched the wounded animal stumble around. She strafed the creature and waited until it was parallel to her. She began running towards it, just as she was a few meters from it, she dropped to the ground and slid underneath its massive body. The dirt ruffled under her suit as her speed slowed down. Laying almost flat to the ground, she pulled out the second blade that had been stuck in it's underbelly for quite some time. The crowd was going wild in the stands and the announcers hyped them up more.
-”Oh I believe it is time to change the playing field a little, would you agree, Alkhaar?” Drinahn exclaimed excitedly.
-”I agree, very much so, Drinahn. Raise the pillars!” Alkhaar yelled.
Four stone pillars rose from the dirt, forming a perfect square between them. The pillars rose up to 10 meters into the air. As Irinon whipped the second blade, a long stream of blood flung into the dirt. Turning around as she heard the announcers excitement, she saw the sandstone pillars.
-”Oh! I can use those. Idiots gave me an advantage.” she smiled. The Nothik shook its head, clearly still confused from running into the wall. Looking back at the creature, she quickly picked up her pace and ran towards the closest pillar. There were small indentations across the pillar where she could grab with her hands and place her feet. Clambering to get to the top before the Nothik would ram the pillar, she deftly jumped up to each indentation. The creature looked up at her and sneered, saliva pouring out of its mouth. Roaring ferociously, it began barreling towards the pillar. Irinon looked briefly over her shoulder.
-”Oh fuckin' shit. You're tougher than I thought. Must be all bone that head of yours.” she said as she continued climbing. The creature grunted and growled as it made its way toward the pillar. Irinon's arms and legs burned as she pushed herself harder and harder to reach the top. The gash on her left side had coagulated but tore open again. Her entire body screamed for mercy but she ignored it as best she could.
The Nothik was only ten meters from the pillar, as she reached the top. Kneeling down, she watched the lumbering animal lower its head to ram the pillar. Squatting down and putting her hands down on the pillar between her legs, she closed her eyes. Steadying her breathing, she waited for the pillar to collapse. The Nothik was blinded by rage and didn't care for its well-being any longer. As it crashed into the pillar, it broke off the base and began falling on top of it. Everything seemed to slow down around Irinon as she felt the pillar beginning to fall. Standing up and spreading her arms to the side, she jumped forward and started rolling forward in the air. The pillar crashed on top of the creature, crushing its spine and part of its ribcage.
Irinon seemed to sail an impossibly long time in the air before landing in a kneeling position on the dirt.
-”... The Nothik... has been defeated?!” Alkhaar panicked. Drinahn looked at him, then at the arena. The crowd was as silent as a crypt, only the gentle breeze of Endara could be heard. As Irinon stood up, she could hear a familiar noise in the sky.
-”Finally, I'm going home...” she sighed heavily. Looking back at the Nothik, she felt sorry for it. As her ship began landing in the arena, it blew up a gigantic dust cloud, blinding the crowd, announcers and even the cameras that were filming the whole event. Irinon walked up to the suffering creature, kneeling by its head, she put her right hand on its face. She looked into its eyes and saw nothing but pain and despair.
-”You put up one hell of a fight... It's the least I can do...” she said softly. It seemed as if it understood what she said and she saw a glint of gratitude in its eyes. The dust cloud was so thick, that she could barely see a meter ahead of her. Taking out one of the sheathed blades, she looked down at it.
-”I can't believe I'm going to do this...” she said, holding back. The Nothik growled at her, as if telling her to do it. She knelt down and turned the blade so that the hilt was facing the sky. Closing her eyes, she hesitated for a few seconds, before driving the blade into its skull. Holding it down with the weight of her body, the Nothik whined and struggled for a few seconds, before dying. A sudden wave of sorrow washed over Irinon and tears began welling down her cheeks. Then a sense of serenity followed. Pulling out the blade, a small spurt of blood followed.
-”I'm sorry...” she managed to mutter from her sobbing. Caressing the face of the Nothik for a moment, she stood up and turned around to face her ship. She could hear the crowd and announcers yelling on the other side of the thick dust cloud. The roar of the fusion engines was deafening as she came up to the access ramp. The Turic'el had lowered it just for her. Jogging lightly up the ramp, she closed it from a button on the inside.
-”Alright, let's get out of here...” she said as she pulled her helmet off. Walking up to the cockpit, she saw the Turic'el disguised as an Endarian sitting in the other seat, breathing laboriously. Irinon cringed as she sat down and pressed some buttons. Taking the ship out into the orbit, she turned her head to the Turic'el.
-”I... I need a new body, quickly!” he said. She tapped deftly on the glass screen in front of her, setting coordinates for Rohk'nar Anchorage.
-”I'm heading to Rohk'nar. Do you think you have that long?” she asked as the rift engine engaged. She saw he was in much pain.
-”Unlikely. It is straining me beyond my capabilities to keep this body alive and I am growing weary. After our first blending, we cannot survive outside of a host body for more than a few hours.” he said, his breathing very shallow. Irinon had stood up and gone to fetch a medical kit to treat her gash.
-”What about me then? Can't you stay in my body until we reach Rohk'nar or something?” she asked as she poured some disinfectant into the wound.
-”Hah. I thank you for your offer, however. Being that, what you are, I dare not risk all my memories falling into your hands. I have a very important position in the Turic'el Hierarchy with access to all of our research, science and military divisions. Codes, documents, identities of our top secret agents spread across the galaxy... With all the knowledge I possess, you could bring down the Hierarchy single-handedly.” he said, looking at Irinon treating herself. Taking a suture-laser out of the kit, she put a thick piece of leather in her mouth.
-”Hold on.” she mumbled as she pointed the laser to the gash and began searing it shut. Groaning and grunting, the stench of burnt flesh filled the air small cockpit of her ship.
-”You really should let someone else do that...” the Turic'el said. Irinon stopped briefly and agreed before continuing. After a few minutes, she was finished. Putting some lotion on the cauterized gash, she wrapped it in a bandage and taped it up.
-”God, I hate doing that...” she said as she spit the piece of leather out of her mouth. She looked at the Turic'el and for a split-second believed it really was an Endarian sitting next to her.
-”Listen... I do have a single person stasis pod in the back, but it's been broken for months now. Everything checks out on the diagnostics and I've reassembled it five times already, and I still can't figure out what's wrong with it. You said you were a scientist, right?” she asked. The Turic'el turned toward her.
-”I never said such a thing. How...?” he was surprised. Irinon laughed briefly as she swallowed a pair of capsules from the kit.
-”I just got that feeling when I met you on the Khuryhan. It's unbelievable that you passed off as marine guard, how you pulled that off, I'll never know. Anyway... if you can help me, I might be able to fix the pod and we could keep you on ice until we reach the Anchorage.” she said. The Turic'el nodded. Irinon stood up and went to the stasis pod.
-”All stasis pods are fundamentally similar. You told me that you have done everything you could think of, correct? Then, my best assumption is that there is a conflict in the component crystals. Remove them and bring them to me.” he said. She knelt down and opened the small compartment that housed the crystals. Carefully, she pulled one out after the other, making sure she didn't bump them into each other or the surrounding casing. Handing the crystals to the Turic'el two at a time, he lifted them towards the light in the cockpit.
-”Do you have anything that is capable of magnifying? I cannot see the crystalline structures by naked eye.” he asked. She thought for a moment, until she remembered that there was a toolkit in the ship. Going up to it, she took out a device with which engineers check for micro fissures in the hulls of ships.
-”Would this do? I mean, it's not exactly meant for looking at crystal structures, but...?” she asked. The Turic'el nodded.
-”That will do fine, thank you.” he said as Irinon handed him the device. For a few moments it was silent in the cockpit, as she sat down and raised her legs onto the console.
-”So?” she asked impatiently. The Turic'el looked up at her, quite displeased. Shaking his head very briefly, he went back to studying the crystals. She sighed and rolled her eyes as she leaned back in her seat.
-”Hmmm....” he grumbled after a while, -”It would seem that the crystalline structure of the stasis crystal itself is in disorder. A powerful electrical charge might be able to reconnect the structures. An Arc Baton would be perfect, you did not happen to acquire one by any chance?” he asked. Irinon shook her head.
-”Then, I fear my life will be over soon.” he said, saddened. She put her legs back on the deck and turned the seat toward the Turic'el.
-”What's your name? In case you die, I might be able to inform someone or at least scratch your name into the tombstone.”
The Turic'el looked at her.
-”De'muir Sro'chel.” he said quietly. Irinon smiled.
-”It's nice to meet you, De'muir.”
-”Likewise, albeit it has been a short acquaintance.” he said. They both leaned back into their seats. Staring into the warping space around them through the window with nothing but the hum of the engines audible.
-”Oh! I nearly forgot to thank you for saving my life back there. I would've probably gotten out myself after killing that Nothik but.... thanks.” Irinon said happily.
-”You are very welcome. You do know our two species have a relationship? Tenuous but still a relationship. It would have looked careless in my report to have left you to die since I was fully capable of that.” he forced a smile. They both laughed slightly.
-”Since you are a scientist, do you know anything about Nothiks? After I killed the one in the arena, I felt... emotional. More so than ever before.” she asked curiously. De'muir leaned forward and put his hand to his chin.
-”We have studied them for centuries. They are not like the mana'mi or harul. They are very much sentient and intelligent, beyond what we had hoped when we first discovered them on the Dhaskhan planets. The Nothik hate being incarcerated and even more, being forced to fight. More than likely, it knew it was either you or it when it was released onto the arena. You did it a favor by ending its life, and it is good to know it took some of those Endarians with them when they captured it. As for the emotions you felt, they secrete a solution that, based on what their last thoughts' emotions were, become embedded into the solution at a molecular level and then secreted into the air around the creature. It is their way of communicating with each other and other species. It is quite fascinating. Their range of emotions are, at the very least, as complex as yours and mine. It would have been amazing being on any of the Dhaskhan planets, as all of the Nothik mourn their loss with a truly beautiful and soul shattering song.” he explained. Irinon had lifted her legs up on the console, listening intently.
-”I felt a deep sorrow and then a sort of “everything's going to be alright” feeling. I think it was sad that it had to fight me and once it died, it was... happy. Such a strange situation.” she said. De'muir hummed and agreed.
Irinon put her feet on the deck and stood to go get a drink of water, when her eyes fastened on the Endarian plasma rifle leaning against the seat De'muir was sitting in.
-”You know, we might not have an arc baton... but we have your rifle.” she smiled. De'muir got out of the seat and picked up the rifle.
-”We have one issue, however. How are we going to lead the electrical charge from the power cell to the crystal?” he wondered just as Irinon turned around to get that drink of water, he saw the two swords on her lower back.
-”Your swords! They could be used to lead the current into the crystal.” he said excitedly. She stopped and turned around slowly.
-”Uh, what? No. No, no.” she protested. De'muir stepped forward. Looking intently into her eyes, he quickly side-stepped and swiped one of the swords out of its sheath.
-”Yes, they will do nicely. Hand me the other, please?” he said as he laid the crystal on a small table and the sword with its tip against one end of the crystal. Irinon sighed and gave him the second sword.
-”I have to be very carefully when I press the tip against the crystal. In its current state, it is very fragile, much more so than normally, if you have any other damaged crystals, I could show you?” he asked without looking at her. She opened a small cabinet at her head level from where she picked out a damaged crystal she had kept for some reason.
-”Here.” she said as she handed the crystal to De'muir. He stood up and took the crystal. Putting his hand into a fist, he crushed it without effort. It turned into a fine dust.
-”I must admit, we are quite lucky that your ship has not taking any sudden jolts or tremors, otherwise this would have happened, without a doubt.” he said as he opened his hand. The dust lay lightly in his hand.
-”Unfortunately, this dust is hazardous to anyone who breathes it. The dust particles are sharper than any blade you have ever seen and would shred the lungs with just one breath.” he said as he carefully poured the dust into a cup that was on the small table. Irinon walked passed De'muir to get the rifle. Picking it up, she removed the power core.
-”Here. What next? Some sort of wiring I'd imagine?” she asked, watching him turning the power core on his hands. Suddenly he grabbed his chest, grunting in pain.
-”Argh! Ah.... this body's heart is beginning to fail. We need to get the stasis pod active immediately.” he said. Irinon looked around to find some sort of wiring to lead the current.
-”Goddamnit! I had some conduits lying around here somewhere.” she growled. De'muir sat on the deck, watching Irinon as she frantically searched for the conduits.
-”Oh, here they are.” she said. Handing them to De'muir, he attached them to the swords and power core. As De'muir sat down on the floor, Irinon walked back to her seat and watched the jury-rigged device that he had assembled.
-”Primitive, but it will have to suffice. Are you ready?” he asked her. She nodded, leaning back into her seat. He initiated the core. The crystal began to glow faintly as the energy surge passed through it. It was all over in a few seconds.
-”Was that it? I expected more of a fireworks show, to be honest.” Irinon said playfully. De'muir looked at her, then rolled his eyes and stood up.
-”Give me the micro fissure scope.” he said as he leaned in towards the crystal. She grabbed the device from the table and gave it to the man. Without looking at her, he took the device and put in front of his face.
-”Hmm, looks like it worked. The structure is intact and in order. Try inserting it now and turning the pod on.” he said. Irinon grabbed the crystal from his hand and inserted it back into the compartment with the other crystals. Closing the lid, he stood up and powered the stasis pod. It whirred, higher in pitch until it disappeared.
-”Seems like it's working now. Hah, never thought I'd get it fixed. Thanks.” she said and smiled. De'muir nodded, pleased with himself. Taking off his suit, she looked at him. The suit crashed into the deck as he stepped in the pod.
-”It'll be another two or three days before we reach Rohk'nar. I'll wake you when we get there, alright?” she said. De'muir nodded.
-”Once we arrive, I would request that you look for a new host. It should not be difficult to find someone. Promise them long life and all their diseases cured if need be. Ker'ie'ley.” he said, closing his eyes. The glass hatch closed itself with a hiss and the pod filled with what seemed like a blue tinted liquid. Suddenly, it flashed with a bright white and the liquid-like material solidified around the Endarian body.
-”Sleep tight.” Irinon said as she checked that his vital signs were stable and that the pod worked. Confident that everything was as it should, she unzipped her suit and pulled it down to her waist. The cool air of the ship felt nice on her skin. Looking down to her side, it was entirely purple and sensitive to the touch.
-”Agh, goddamnit. That's gonna take awhile to heal.” she said as she reached into the medkit on the table. Taking out a pair of pads, she ripped off the adhesive cover and pressed them to her side.
-”Oh, that feels so much better...” she mumbled in relief.
The pads were designed to accelerate the natural healing process by introducing several stem-cell based compounds into the affected areas, soaked up through the skin or open wound.
Sitting down and leaning back in her seat, she looked to her other side, where the Nothik had gashed her. Running a finger through the pad she had placed over it, she could still feel some pain through it.
-”A centimeter deeper and I would've bled out. Lucky me, then.” she thought. She programmed the on-board AI to calculate dropout points along the way, clear from anything dangerous. Looking out through the window at the rift horizon, she felt like she hadn't slept in days. Her eyes began closing, her body demanding rest. With a yawn, she dozed off.