Shadow Raiders - Episode 3.1:

MADNESS

By: Elektra

PLANET ROCK

Lady Jade took her throne and looked over her subjects and their allies, "Now that the Beast Planet is gone, we of planet Rock need not fear anymore! The wars between our planets have ended, and we look towards a bright future with our new allies!"

Cheering and clapping answered the speech. Jade stood up, and walked back to her quarters, leaving the noise behind her.

"Your highness," a familiar voice said as she neared her room. She turned to see Graveheart. He knelt respectfully.

"Get up, you fool!" Jade insisted, "You should know better then to bow to me!"

Graveheart stood up, "Tell me, highness... would it be inappropriate if a mere Miner asked the Ruler of Planet Rock to spend a nice, quiet evening with him?"

Jade went up to Graveheart and kissed him, "Does that answer your question?"

Graveheart smiled, "I guess so. Perhaps our lives can get back to normal now!"

"Lady Jade..." A female voice interrupted the moment. "May I have a second of your time?"

Jade turned to the Rock Quarrior that spoke, "Interrupting your ruler while she's sharing a private moment with another is unacceptable!"

The Quarrior bowed, "Forgive me, your highness. I intended no disrespect."

"You're forgiven. What is it?" Jade asked.

"The Ice Princess, Zera, wishes to know when you will provide her with her next battle lesson..."

"Zera! I didn't think of her lessons when I accented to the throne," Jade thought to herself, "Would you take it upon yourself to teach Zera the appropriate lessons?"

The Rock Quarrior bowed gracefully, "I would be honoured, your highness!"

***

PLANET ICE

Zera looked at the woman in the cell before her. The woman looked extremely distressed, "Hey, little girl! You want to let me out of here?" the woman asked.

"I am not allowed to..." Zera replied.

"I NEED TO GET OUT!" The woman screamed. "DO YOU EXPECT ME TO STAY IN HERE FOREVER?!"

"Ah, such a noisy thing she is! Why you even bother talking to her is beyond me, Ice Princess..." a voice behind her spoke.

Zera turned to see who it was, "Sternum! You came to see the prisoner too?"

Sternum looked at the woman in the cell, "No. I came to see what a caged animal looks like..." he replied.

"Shut up, Sternum! When I get out of here, I will break your bone body in two!!" the woman threatened, and reached a hand through the bars in an attempt to grab him.

Sternum merely sidestepped the hand, and smiled coldly. "My dear Jewelia... I highly doubt you are even CAPABLE of such a thing!" he replied, then turned back to Zera, "May I ask why you are down here visiting her?"

"My father told me Jewelia was a fighter on the Prison Planet. I was hoping she could give me a few tips."

Sternum's deep laugh echoed in the room, "You wish JEWELIA to teach you to fight?? You are taking your life in your hands, Ice child! That woman will KILL you before you even have a chance to defend! Besides, Jade has sent a Quarrior to continue your lessons for her. I suggest you go and meet the lady. She is with your father at the moment in the Ice Palace."

"You mean, Jade won't be teaching me anymore?" Zera asked.

"No. It seems her present position does not allow much time to teach a child how to fight." Sternum answered.

"I am NOT a child!" Zera replied, "And I cannot believe Jade just gave up on me like that!"

"Do not be so harsh when speaking of Jade! She is the ruler of Planet Rock now! You must accept that!" Sternum replied.

Zera frowned, "I suppose you are right, but I only wish she could have told me herself!" With that, Zera walked away.

Sternum was left alone with a caged Jewelia. Jewelia looked at him, pleading, "Sternum! You have to let me out of here!"

"And why would I have to do that?"

"Because, I can't stay locked up forever!" She replied.

"Yes. You can! You are a danger, Jewelia! If the people here knew the real reason you were banished to the prison planet, they would exile you on a nearby moon!"

Jewelia grew agitated again, "I am INNOCENT!!" She shouted. "INNOCENT! I did NOTHING wrong!!"

"Yes, well, tell that to those who died because of you!" Sternum replied.

Jewelia narrowed her eyes, "I broke out of the jail on the Prison Planet! I can break out of this one! You just wait! Just wait and see, Sternum! You WILL get what is coming to you, and I'll be the one to give it to you!" With that, she laughed. A cold, unnerving laugh.

"You are a disturbed woman, Jewelia! And soon, everyone in this alliance will see that!"

***

Zera looked at the Quarrior who stood beside her father, "And why did Jade not tell me herself that she would discontinue teaching my lessons?!" she asked.

"My highness is busy running the planet, Lady Zera..." The Quarrior explained.

"She is too busy to speak to her FRIENDS?!" Zera asked. "How DARE she! You tell your highness that I wish to see her IMMEDIATELY!"

"I am afraid you do not have the authority to ask for such a thing," The Quarrior replied.

"But I do!" King Cryos began. "You will ask Lady Jade that my daughter requests an audience with her - at her discretion of course,"

"Yes, sir..." the Quarrior replied. She gave Cryos a Rock salute, and headed off.

Cryos looked at his daughter, "Do not harbor such anger for Jade. I understand what it is like to run a planet, Zera. You, too, must understand. It is a great responsibility. Sometimes friendships must take a back seat."

"But... she could have told me herself..." Zera replied, and headed to her quarters to await Jade's call.

***

A laser weapon struck down the woman in front of her. The woman she had relied on all her life. Her mother. The girl looked around her. Fighting everywhere. Death. Violence. WAR. It was so beautiful!

Her mother was dead, but she didn't care. She had grown numb to the horrors of war. It had happened a while ago, when she had witnessed a Beast drone strike down her little sister.

Shortly after the incident, Mother had begun to notice something different about her older daughter. Her daughter had become cold, withdrawn, and prone to violent outbursts.

Her daughter had begun to talk of War. Of DEATH. How glorious it all was!

Now, her daughter looked over the carnage before her. They were running away. Everyone was running away! Her hand tightened around the cool metal weapon she held. With a cold smile on her black lips, she pulled the trigger.

Sternum looked at the woman locked up in front of him. She seemed to be staring off into space, "Jewelia?"

"It was all so glorious! The violence! The Death!" Jewelia said. "All of it was so beautiful!"

Sternum shook his head, and decided he no longer wanted to be in her company.

***

"Jade... why did you toss me away like that?" Zera asked the form on the screen in front of her.

"Zera, I didn't toss you away! I wouldn't do that to you! But, I can't teach you what you need to know right now! Being ruler of Rock takes precedence over everything else," Jade's voice became a tad harsher, "Warriors do not let little things like that hurt their feelings,"

Zera crossed her arms, "My feelings are not hurt! I was just... annoyed... that's all!" she replied.

Jade nodded slightly, "Follow your new teacher. If she complains to me about you in any way..." Jade let the sentence trail.

Zera smiled, "I know. I'll hear from you!"

***

Graveheart entered Cryos's throne room slowly. The Rock Miner had just returned from Planet Rock and, despite the pleasant evening he had shared with Jade, something was weighing heavily on his mind. He had to address it, "King Cryos. I want to talk to you about Jewelia..." he started.

"Yes, Graveheart. What about her?" Cryos asked.

"Does she really need to be locked up for so long?" Graveheart replied.

Another voice answered, "It would be better to kill her. It would be SAFER!"

Cryos and Graveheart turned to see Sternum, "What do you mean KILL her?" Graveheart demanded. "How could you even THINK--"

"Listen, Man of Rock!" Sternum interrupted, "Do you know the true reason Jewelia was sent to the prison planet? Do you know anything about her at all... or are you simply swayed by her sweet voice and pleasing looks?"

"What are you talking about?!" Graveheart demanded.

Sternum sighed, "You shouldn't be ashamed. I was swayed... once. Then I saw the true ugliness in her!"

"Ugliness?" Cryos asked.

"The madness behind her eyes," Sternum answered, "The madness that is the true reason Jewelia was exiled on the prison planet."

"She said she crashed on the prison planet - like us..." Graveheart explained

"And you believed her?!" Sternum asked.

"Is there another story?" Cryos replied.

Before the question could be answered, however, several warning klaxons began to flash, and a computerized voice echoed throughout the Ice throne room, "Prisoner Escape in Cell Block D. Prisoner Escape in Cell Block D...!"

Sternum's eyes went wide, "What Cell Block was Jewelia in?!" he asked.

"Cell Block D!" Cryos gasped.

"We must find her!" Sternum shouted, "We must find her before she sends MORE innocents to their death!"

"MORE innocents...?" Cryos asked.

Sternum shook his head, "No time to explain now!" With that, he ran off to aid the guards in their search.

***

Jewelia hid in the shadows of the Ice Prison as she watched the guards running around frantically, "I told you I would get out, Sternum! You should know by now that bars can't hold ME!" Her hand tightened on the laser she held. It's previous owner lay unmoving at her feet. It felt good to hold a weapon once more! So good!

She quickly backed against the wall as she heard footsteps approaching her position.

Walking a few feet away from her was the Ice girl. With a cold smile, Jewelia lifted her weapon, and took aim.

EPISODE TWO

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