One
Juno went in first. She ducked through the doorway, checked left, right and all around. Deeming it safe, she signalled for the rest of the team to follow. They filtered in after her, one by one.
The air inside was cool and stale. Rows of benches flanked a wide central aisle which led up to the preacher's lectern. Beyond that were the choir stalls and at the far end was a humble wooden altar. Apart from them, the room was deserted.
Aisha shivered. She didn't like churches. They reminded her of Sunday mornings from before the war, when she would have to don her smartest, itchiest dress and squash her feet into those tight, black shoes before being dragged to the weekly service. Her local church had been stifling hot in the summer and icy cold in the winter, with hard wooden benches that were tough on your rear all year around. Worst of all though were those endless sermons, where some preacher would drone on and on about the greatness of the Valkyria and Mum would constantly jab her in the ribs to stop her from nodding off. Because of all that, she had come to associate churches with wishing she could be somewhere else and being inside one now made her uneasy. As if the fact they were in a warzone hadn't already stretched her nerves to breaking point.
The door thudded closed behind her, making her jump. She took a breath to calm herself down and instinctively looked to Juno for reassurance. The blonde scout was busy scanning the room for enemies and didn't return her gaze.
"Come on then, let's go," she said quietly. "But tread carefully. This place might be trapped."
It didn't seem likely. Every surface was coated with a film of dust, suggesting that no-one had been in here since the Imps had invaded this town. Nevertheless, Squad 7 had not won all their famous victories by being careless. The team formed up and began to make their way slowly down the right side of the room. Juno took the lead, rifle held before her. Lynn followed closely behind, scrutinising every row of pews they passed as though expecting an enemy hidden in each one. Catherine and Nadine came next and finally Aisha herself brought up the rear, nervously checking over shoulder with every other step.
At one time the responsibility of covering the team's backs would have thrilled Aisha. It would have made her feel like a true member of the team, not just a child tagging along for the ride. She had worked and fought hard to establish herself in Squad 7 after all and, having participated in several successful missions, felt that she was finally seen as a worthy comrade in arms by her fellow Sevens in spite of her youth and small stature. Today however, the confidence she had built up had deserted her to be replaced by a restless fear that made her palms prickle with sweat.
It was Isara's death that had shaken her of course. It had affected everyone in the Squad, even those who hadn't been friends with her. For Aisha, the death of their Darcsen tank driver hadn't just meant the loss of a comrade. It had shattered her illusion of Squad 7's invincibility. Up until then Welkin's brilliant tactics, along with the Sevens' own talents and teamwork, had meant that only a handful of them had been killed in action since the squad's formation. Isara's death had come as a devastating reminder that as proficient as the men and women of the Squad 7 were, they were still just fragile flesh and blood, always just a well-placed bullet away from death.
Isara had died because of a careless mistake. Now Aisha feared that she would be the one to make the next fatal error that put herself, or another Seven, in a grave.
At least everything had gone to plan so far. The country towns of northern Gallia made for a much more favourable battleground than the open beaches of the Marberry Shore and Juno's team had managed to sneak to the church through the back streets without running into the enemy. Yet Aisha's nerves had been frayed the whole way there. On several occasions she had nearly fired at shadows, only to realise that the movement she had seen had been a curtain blowing in the wind, or a stray cat stretching on a street corner. She knew she was letting her fear get the better of her, which ironically made her all the more likely to make that fatal mistake. Realising that had made her feel even worse of course.
Even now they were inside, she was still anxious. The church was peaceful on the inside but the muted sounds of gunfire in the distance reminded her that she was still on a battlefield. She suddenly wished she could bite her nails. Since she was at the back of the group, Juno wouldn't have even been able to scold her. Unfortunately with her gloves on she couldn't get at them, no matter how badly they itched to be bitten. She sighed and tightened her grip on her Mags. In an attempt to calm herself down, she recalled a mantra that Juno had taught her and began to recite it under her breath.
Terrors cause errors...terrors cause errors...terrors...
She was so preoccupied with her mutterings that she almost walked straight into Nadine's back. The Darcsen girl had stopped and now pointed up at something. "Look," she said. Aisha followed her finger to a majestic stained glass window on the other side of the room. It portrayed an angular flame made up of several bright triangles on a dark background. The late summer sun shone brightly behind it, creating the illusion that it was burning like a real fire and casting brilliant shades of red, orange and purple across the room.
"It's beautiful," Nadine breathed, staring up at it dreamily.
"That it is," Catherine agreed with a nod. "But Nadine my dear, you do know what it's meant to represent, don't you?"
"I know, I know. It's the Darcsen Calamity isn't it?" Nadine replied, a little dismay in her voice. "But it's very pretty all the same."
Catherine chuckled and shook her head. "You are a funny one."
Aisha looked at the window again and tried to come up with an insightful comment that would sound make her grown-up. Before she could chip in with anything, Juno cut her off.
"Hey, cut the chatter," she called from out front. "We're on a mission. Stay focused."
"Yes Ma'am," chirped Catherine, teasing her with a salute. Juno frowned back at her.
Despite the reprimand Nadine stayed looking up at the window, a ponderous expression on her face. "The church window was an intricate network of vibrant colour," she said out loud. "Like a jigsaw puzzle made from a rainbow." She smiled and pulled a tiny notebook out from her back pocket. This was a familiar sight to those who knew her. She would jot down the simile to use in her novel later.
"Nadine!" Juno snapped. "Come on!"
"Sorry, sorry." Nadine hastily returned the notebook to her pocket and hurried to catch up.
Aisha noticed that she hadn't had the chance to write anything down. Feeling a little sorry for her she tottered up beside her and leaned close to her ear. "Don't worry Miss Nadine. I'll remember it for you," she whispered. Nadine gave her a grateful smile over her shoulder.
Aisha smiled back. It made her happy that she could help out the Darcsen girl. She had only become friends with her recently but had quickly come to admire her. Just like Juno, she was intelligent and confident in herself, not to mention pretty – with flawless skin and a soft featured face that was exquisitely framed by her short ebony hair. She was also good-natured and got on well with everyone in the squad, bar the Darcsen haters (and even with them she was patient and took their scorn with good grace). But of all Nadine's qualities, it was her writing that impressed Aisha most of all. She envied her commitment to creating something beautiful with words, to be so passionate about her craft that she would even write down an idea in the middle of a battle, if that's when inspiration came to her. She hoped that someday she too would find something that she could be so devoted to.
For now she was just happy that Nadine was on their team. Seeing her act so normally in the middle of a battle had relaxed her a little and taken the edge off her fears. She watched the Darcsen girl's back as she walked ahead of her and made a mental note to thank her later on.
The team reached the far end of the church and came to a small wooden door. This would be the entrance to the bell tower. From up there Catherine would have the best vantage point that this small country town had to offer and would be able to provide sniper support to their comrades fighting in the nearby town square. Before the mission Aisha had thought it wrong to use a holy building for such a purpose, but then Catherine had glibly reminded her that trying to kill a Valkyria had been far more blasphemous. If they were damned already, they might as well take advantage of a convenient tall building.
Juno tried the door but found it to be locked. She huffed in frustration.
"Corporal Coren, let me," Lynn said. She drew her leg back and hammered it into the door three times. The old lock crumbled under her heel. Grasping the handle, she yanked the door open to reveal the spiral stairs up to the tower.
"Thank you Lynn," Juno said, seeming taken aback that the soft-spoken Darcsen was capable of kicking a door in. "Okay then, let's get up there. Aishee?"
"Yes Junie?" Aisha replied. She knew she shouldn't use her nickname while on a mission, but then Juno had started it.
"I'd like you to stay down here and keep a look out. Raise the alarm if anyone comes in. Okay?"
"Aye, aye!" Aisha replied, saluting with forced cheerfulness. In truth she dreaded the prospect of being left alone in the church but she didn't want to let her big sister down. If staying down here was Junie's order, than stay down here she would, no matter how frightened she was.
Juno smiled and patted her firmly on the shoulder. A gesture of appreciation, not from an adult to a child, but from a comrade to a comrade. "Thanks Aishee. I'll send Lynn down to join you once we have Cathy all set up."
With that she turned and headed up the steps, the others following close behind. Nadine started to go after them, but paused on the first step and turned back to her.
"If you get bored while we're gone, try thinking up some more descriptions for me," she said. "Now that I've seen that stained-glass window I'll pretty much have to write a church into the story somehow!"
The suggestion surprised Aisha. She couldn't imagine why Nadine would want her of all people to help out with her story. The only creative writing she had ever done were simple poems and short stories for language class. "I'll give it a try," she replied awkwardly. "But I don't think I'll be much help. I'm not a writer like you."
"Oh anyone can be a writer," said Nadine with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Find something interesting and put it in words. That's all it takes. Come on Ai, put that child's imagination of yours to work!" She gave her a wink and quickly headed up the steps before Juno could shout at her for holding them up again.
Aisha sighed as she watched her go. For a moment she had been flattered that Nadine had wanted her help, but being called a child had deflated her again.
She returned her attention to the room. Now that she was left all by herself, she felt her anxiety growing again. The church was suddenly very large and very lonely. The shadows which they had checked just moments before started to appear threatening again. Her finger tapped restlessly against the Mags. She stripped off her left glove and chewed on her thumb, biting a large chunk of nail off and toying around with it in her mouth. Perhaps she would follow Nadine's suggestion after all. Anything to distract her from her fears.
"Find something interesting and put it in words," she said, repeating Nadine's words out loud. She scanned the room, trying to find that 'something interesting'. Nadine had already described the most interesting feature of the room – that stained glass window. What else was there? Her eyes dropped below the window to the display just below it. Propped on the table was a large silver plate. It was the size of a small umbrella, with ancient runes intricately embossed around the edges.
"The plate was shiny like...a fish," she said. She grimaced as soon as the words came out. That had been awful.
"The plate was shiny like...a mirror." Better, but not very original. This writing lark was tougher than she had thought.
As she tried to think up more ideas, something else caught her eye. A tiny figurine was stood just beside the plate. Curiosity overcame her and she wandered over to get a closer look.
As she had suspected it was Lucinda – the dancing Valkyria child. She wore a gleeful expression as she danced, her hair spread around her like a cape, hands tossed above her head in childish abandon. Legend had it that long ago she had danced across the night sky and everywhere her dainty foot had landed, a new star had been born. Aisha no longer believed the tale was true of course, but it had enthralled her when she was younger. Indeed she had mortifying memories of pretending to be her, prancing around the garden with flowers in her hair.
For a moment she was tempted to take it with her. After all, with the rest of the devastation in the village who would miss this one little figurine? But then she imagined the scolding faces of her parents. They would be ashamed if they knew she had stolen something. Not to mention Juno would never let her keep it if she found out. With a sigh, she set it carefully back on the display table. The Imps would never have been so honest if they had found it first, she thought begrudgingly.
Well, if she couldn't take her, at least she could describe her. Surely she was capable of that, even if she lacked the necessary skills to describe a silver plate.
"Lucinda danced happily through the night sky like a com..."
Before she could complete her sentence she saw motion in the corner of her eye. Something was moving in the reflection on the silver plate. In the shiny polished surface, Aisha saw the large church door swinging open.
She reacted just in time, hurling herself to the floor. Machine gun fire tore through the air above her, ripping into the display. The plate clanged down in front of her face, closely followed by Lucinda, who smashed into pieces on the floor.
Imps! How did they find us?
She crawled behind the nearest pew and fumbled for her weapon, inwardly scolding herself for being caught off guard. Hadn't Junie told them to stay focused just moments before? There was no time to berate herself further. She had to fight back. With a shriek, she rose over the pew and squeezed off a burst of fire. The Imps dived for cover and her bullets struck nothing but stone.
She swallowed nervously. By her count four Imps had made it into the church, with several others outside the main door waiting to funnel in. More enemies than she could ever hope to take down by herself.
"Junie!" she yelled. Her cries were unnecessary as the others had already returned from the stairwell with guns blazing. They took cover behind the first row of pews on the other side of the church from her. Juno fired rapidly at the Imps closest to them whilst beside her, Lynn sprayed the aisle with bullets. At the far end of the row Catherine had taken Nadine's rifle and was firing slow considered shots at the Imps by the door, while the Darcsen girl herself was rummaging through her pack for ammunition and grenades.
Even though the rest of the team were back in the church, Aisha still felt very much alone. They were barely five metres from her, but she was separated from them by the wide central aisle. If she tried to cross it, the Imps would gun her down in a second. She was trapped by herself on this side of the church and it was all her own fault. If only she hadn't left her post to look at that stupid figurine...
"Stay at it, Aishee!" Juno called from across the church, bringing her out of her fearful trance. Heeding her leader's words, Aisha started to fire on the Imps again.
She emptied a magazine without hitting a single enemy. Every time she picked out a target they ducked back under a bench or behind a pillar. They were being cautious it seemed and only returning token fire. Even though the Imps outnumbered them heavily, they were taking no chances with their lives and as a result only one of them had fallen since the fight had started.
They're playing games with us, Aisha suddenly realised. They know we'll run out of ammo eventually and then they can close in. If it stays like this, we're done for.
She cast another fearful glance across to Juno. If their leader had a brilliant escape plan up her sleeve, it wasn't obvious in her determined expression.
As she rose to fire again, Aisha noticed a fifth Imp who had made it into the church. She didn't know how she had missed him before since he was the largest of all of them. And now, to her horror, he propped his lance on his shoulder and took aim at them.
No way. He's going to use that in here?
He certainly was. With a whumph, the missile took flight. Juno and the others instantly hit the deck. The missile flew over their heads and exploded in the wall behind them, showering them with stone. To Aisha's relief, all four heads popped up again. They were shaken but not hurt.
We can't take many more of those, she thought desperately. Even if the lancer didn't hit them, he could easily blow away their cover, bit by bit. The thick wooden pews were sturdy but they certainly wouldn't stand up to an anti-tank missile. Aisha bit her lip so hard that it bled. Her fears were coming true. Unless the tide turned, they would be the next Sevens to join Isara in death.
Her frantic thoughts were interrupted when Juno's voice came to her through the gunfire. "Aishee! We're going!" She looked across to see the blonde scout gesturing at the far church wall. Her heart leapt. The blast from the lance had left a hole was large enough for a person to fit through. Ironic though it was, the enemy themselves had given them an escape route.
Except Aisha wasn't able to reach it. The lancer had fired at the others. The hole was on their side of the church, separated from her by a river of gunfire. It meant that the others could escape easily but only by leaving Aisha behind. Her throat clenched in terror. Would Junie really abandon her to save the rest of the team? Was that her duty as the leader?
She thrust a hand out at Juno, as though she could reach across the church and hold her back. "Wait! Don't leave me!" she squealed. Then she saw Juno pointing at something behind her. Aisha looked over her shoulder to see a door in the vestibule behind her. Of course – that would be the entrance for the choir. How had she not realised it was there?
"Time to go!" Juno called. "Shield eyes! Flash-bang!"
It was enough words for her to get the message. Aisha turned and clamped her hands over her eyes. A second later the church erupted into blinding light as the stun grenades exploded. Aisha wasted no time – with her eyes screwed shut she made a crouching run for the door. She caught the handle with her outstretched hand and turned it.
The door didn't budge. It was locked. Aisha's heart skipped a beat. In a few seconds the Imps would have recovered. And if Juno and the team had escaped though the hole, she would be left as the sole remaining target in the church.
She threw herself at the door, but only succeeded in bruising her shoulder. Then she realised that the door opened inwards. Without time to even think, she stepped back and fired into the lock. Splinters of wood sprayed back at her, scratching her face. She ignored them and charged shoulder first through the remains of the door.
No sooner had she stumbled into the alley beyond then she heard the crack of a rifle. Before she could react, a bullet tore through her side. She cried out, more in surprise than pain, and threw herself to the other side of the alley. Another bullet shot into the ground, just in front of her foot.
Sniper. Figured they would have covered the exits.
She felt her lips quiver and suddenly realised that she was whimpering. She clenched her fist and pressed it to her forehead, fighting back the urge to panic. If she lost it now she was dead. She had to calm down and think, had to break the situation down into the simple facts. The sniper was somewhere across the street and couldn't get a clear shot at her while she was tucked around the corner of the alley. But so long as he was there, she was trapped. There was no way she could rejoin the others while he had his cross-hairs on the alley's exit.
First things first. She wasn't going anywhere until she had tended her wound. With trembling hands, she brought out her canister of Ragnaid. As she tried to twist it open, she dropped it and it rolled away from her. She snatched it up again before it rolled out of reach. Lifting up the side of her uniform, now sopping with her blood, she applied the Ragnaid. Her side flared up in agony as her flesh regenerated and she threw her head back to yell. The pain pierced her vision with bright flashes but she forced herself to hold the canister steady until the wound had healed. Her legs gave out and she fell back against the wall, gasping wildly.
All she wanted to do now was to curl up in a ball until the pain died down. But there was no time, it wasn't safe to stay put. As she stumbled to her feet again she heard footsteps approaching from down the alley. Aisha looked over. "Junie?"
No such luck. It was Imps from the same group as those who had entered the church. She was trapped; there was no cover between them and her, but if she left the alley the sniper would pick her off in a second.
She didn't think up the idea. It just happened. With a jerk of her arm she tossed the Ragnaid canister into the street. The opportunistic sniper fired and the bullet zipped past her. In that moment she darted out of the alley, away from the approaching Imps. She looked both ways down the street, desperate to find cover before the sniper reloaded.
There. A doorway. She threw herself into it, in the same motion turning around so that her back hit the door. As she did so, she brought up her Mags and fired. She was facing the alley at an angle now and gunned down one of the Imps just as he emerged. As his bloodied body collapsed into the street, she caught the slightest glimpse of two more of them as they ducked back into the alley.
Keeping her Mags trained on the alley, she took a moment to collect herself. Even though her wound was healed, taking that shot had shaken her. She drew in several deep breaths and tried to put her frantic thoughts in some sort of order.
Junie. Got to find Junie.
She fired at the alley entrance once more to ward off the Imps, then ran out of the doorway and down the street. She hugged the walls to stay out of the sniper's field of fire, breaking away only after she had rounded the church.
She ran into the side-street and immediately skidded to a halt. There was that hole in the church wall through which Juno and the others had escaped. However there was no sign of them in the alley. In their place were a team of Imps, standing in a circle gesturing angrily at each other. One of them saw her and pointed her out with a shout. Aisha fired first, bringing one of them down before they had even turned to her. She ducked around the street corner just as they began to return fire.
Junie, where are you? Had the team already been wiped out by the Imps, so soon after escaping the church? The thought made her giddy with fear but she tried to shake it off. No time for that now, she had to defend herself.
She listened for the gap in their shots then poked out to attack again. She got off a short burst of fire before it suddenly ceased with a click that froze her blood.
Oh no...
Her magazine was empty. That had been the last of her ammo.
Nothing for it, she would have to flee. Tossing aside her now useless Mags, she turned away from the alley and began to run. Her feet pounded the concrete hard, fuelled by blind panic. With every step she expected a sniper's bullet to take her in the back of the head, or a burst of fire to tear her in two, spilling her organs across the street. Somehow she survived each step long enough to take the next one, but still feared what the step after that would bring.
Unburdened by the weight of her weapon and with fresh terror coursing through her veins she ran faster than she ever had before. Faster than she had ever run on the school track. Faster than she had run on the obstacle course when she was proving herself fit to join the militia. And even faster than last summer when she had played Capture the Flag on the school camping trip – when after snagging the flag she had pelted through the maze of trees, chased by the grasping hands of the enemy team.
This time there was no safety zone to run to. This time to get caught was to die.
In the top of her vision she saw buildings up ahead. The street ended in a T junction. Without breaking her stride, she headed down the left branch. She had barely taken a step down this new street before she stumbled to a stop with a terrified gasp. Ahead of her two Imps crouched behind sandbags. She had run straight into an enemy guard post.
For a split-second they seemed just as surprised as she was, unsure of whether to fire on a lone child, even one wearing an enemy's uniform. Their hesitance gave her the chance she needed to dive behind an abandoned flatbed before their machine guns started up.
The truck vibrated behind her as the bullets struck it and the windscreen shattered, showering her with glass. Aisha crouched low, eyes screwed shut, hands over her ears, teeth biting down on her lip to stop herself from screaming.
They're everywhere! I can't get away!
She was pinned down. The guard post blocked her way forward and if she emerged from her cover they would shot her to pieces. Even if she was able to retreat, the street she had come from would be packed with any Imps that had followed her from the church. To make matters worse her side was shrieking in pain again. The running had torn the wound open again and this time she didn't have any Ragnaid to heal it. Things looked bad. If she could have reached her nails right now, she would have bitten them bloody.
Every part of her was trembling. She grabbed the wrist of her right hand to steady it. Then she took out her pistol from the holster on her belt and checked it was loaded. At this range it might as well have been a pea-shooter, but it was the only weapon she had left.
When the initial barrage stopped she poked around the truck and fired twice, ducking back as the machine gun rattled the van again. She had only seen the post for a split-second but that had been enough to see that only one Imp was there now. Where did the other one go?
She knew of course – he was moving to flank her. While she was concentrating on fending off the Imp still at the guard post, the other would sneak up and take her out from behind.
Aisha's eyes darted all around her. She checked the windows of the surrounding buildings and the other side of the flatbed. No sign of him.
Where is he?
This was it, she suddenly knew. The realisation of her fears. There was an Imp ahead of her, one hidden and God only knew how many were following her from the church. The fatal bullet could come from anywhere. And here she was, all alone with her strength dribbling away with the blood down her side, and nothing but a puny pistol to defend herself with. Like an isolated King piece, circled by Knights and Rooks, powerless to prevent the imminent checkmate.
No! I don't want to die!
She saw movement on the edge of her vision. She fired on instinct, only to see a flag fluttering in the wind. Something else on the other side of her. Her shot startled the crow, which flew away. Suddenly she saw hidden hunters in every shadow of the street. Every slightest movement seemed to threaten her life.
Screaming she raised her pistol and fired at everything around her – at a tavern sign rocking in the wind, at the shop windows across the street, at the swinging door of a derelict building beside her. When the pistol was empty she slammed in another magazine and continued firing at her unseen enemies. She became a creature of pure self-preservation, desperately fighting back against anything that might attack her. Hunted prey acting only to survive.
The machine gun fired into the truck again and bullets soared over her head. She tore her lungs apart with her scream. She slotted in a fresh magazine, even in her panic realising that it was her last one. The final seven bullets between her and oblivion. Her trembling finger hooked around the trigger as she peeked around the front of the truck, desperate for her final shots to count.
"Ai!"
The voice came from nowhere. With a scream Aisha spun around, threw out her pistol-arm and fired twice. The motion threw her off balance and she fell painfully on her wounded side. Agony nearly blinded her but she scrambled straight back to her feet again, ready to confront her assailant.
Only then did she realise her mistake.
Nadine seemed more surprised than anything else. Her hand travelled up to touch the hole in her chest. It came away bloody. She regarded the scarlet liquid dripping off her shaking fingers with puzzlement. Time seemed to stop for Aisha as she registered a sight too terrible to comprehend.
Oh no. Oh no, no, no, no, no.
And then the clock started running again. Nadine's legs melted from under her and she crumpled to the ground like a puppet whose strings had been severed.
"Miss Nadine! No!" The pistol dropped from Aisha's limp fingers as she flew to the Darcsen girl's side. She tucked her arms around her, raising her head. Nadine coughed harshly, jerking in Aisha's grasp and spewing blood down her uniform.
The Imp's machine gun sounded again but now it was only background noise to Aisha's ears. All her fears of being alone and cornered by Imps had evaporated in the face of something so much worse. She was too flustered to think straight. A million screaming thoughts tore through her head. How had this happened? How could Nadine even be here? What should she now do to help her? She knew she had to tend to the wound, but somehow she couldn't summon any of the first-aid training she'd been given when she'd joined the militia, her own panic blocking the crucial facts at the very moment when she needed them most.
Ragnaid. That was it. She needed Ragnaid.
Then she remembered with dismay that she no longer had her own canister. She'd thrown it away to distract that sniper. Did Nadine still have hers? With her free arm she rifled through her pockets. Her quivering fingers touched the canister and she yanked it out.
Her hopes were dashed in a second. The canister was light, almost empty. When she twisted it open, the mineral didn't glow.
"No, no, no!" Aisha shrieked and dashed the canister on the ground so that it split open. She dabbed her fingers in the residue on the inside of one of the shards and touched it to Nadine's wound, hoping she could still heal her.
It wouldn't be enough. And it never would have been. She could have had all the Ragnaid in Gallia at her disposal. It still wouldn't have been enough to heal a bullet to the lung.
With an ugly gurgle Nadine coughed up more blood. The confusion in her face had become fear now. Her breathing came fast and shallow as her body desperately compensated for her punctured lung. She feebly clutched at the wound, trying to stem the bleeding with her own hands but they kept sliding off her body back to her side. She babbled something at Aisha but no words could get beyond her frantic breaths. It was surreal to think that this pathetic creature had been cheerfully making notes for her story only a matter of minutes ago. Now the same girl was dying in her arms. Dying from a bullet wound that Aisha herself had put in her.
No. This can't be. It...it's my fault she's...
"Miss Nadine...I'm sorry. I'm sorry!" Aisha yelled, as though by apologising with all her heart she could take back the bullet. Nadine didn't respond to her. Her lips had gone snow white, a vivid contrast to the scarlet blood that was spilling off them. Only her eyes showed any life now. The shock had faded from them and now they settled weakly on Aisha, asking one simple, terrible question.
Why?
Aisha's eyes burned with tears. It was a question she couldn't answer. It had just happened in a moment of terror and madness.
"Aishee!"
Juno's voice came like the call of an angel. Relief washed over her. Junie was here now. Big Sis would make everything all better, wouldn't she?
The scout came running from the street behind, firing wildly at the Imps in the guard post. Her fair hair was streaked with grime and one of her lenses had cracked. She came down beside them and leaned in close, her body stiffening as she took in the horrific sight of Nadine's wounded body.
"Oh no," She grasped Nadine by the shoulders and shook her hard. "Come on Nadi, stay with us." When the Darcsen girl didn't respond she whipped out her canister of Ragnaid, twisted it open and pressed it to the injury. The skin reacted to the glowing mineral and healed over the bullet wound. Neither of them were fooled – the superficial wound may have been repaired, but it was only masking the deeper damage the bullet has done.
Juno clenched her teeth. "Damn," she muttered. "She needs a medic now." She turned away from Nadine long enough to tug Aisha's arm up and heal her own wounded side. "Are you hurt anywhere else?" she asked her sharply – a demand for information rather than an expression of concern.
"No, but she..." Aisha stammered, flailing her arm at Nadine. No words were coming. "Her. Help her. Help..."
"NADI!"
Lynn came sprinting out of the dust, closely followed by a concerned-looking Catherine. She slid down to her side and grasped her by the shoulders. "Nadi, please! Just hang on!"
"Lynn, I need you to cover us!" Juno barked.
"But Nadi..."
"NOW!" Juno shouted, pushing her away with her free hand. Lynn threw her an anguished look, but rose to join Catherine in firing at the enemy.
In the back of Aisha's mind, she knew she should be supporting them in providing cover. But she couldn't have, even if she had had a weapon. The shock had immobilised her, leaving her as a mere observer of the situation. She could only watch as Juno desperately tried to tend to the dwindling Darcsen. Her hand went to her mouth and she bit her fingers through her glove.
Please...save her...please...
Juno stood up, shaking her head. "There's nothing for it. We're going to have to move her. Cathy, Lynn, you'll have to cover us." She grasped Nadine's limp arms. "Aishee, can you stand? I'll need your help to carry her out of here. Aishee?"
Aisha had barely heard her. She was staring down at Nadine. Her head had fallen to one side and she was totally still. No breath on her lips, no pulse on her neck. Still in a way only the dead could be.
She was done. Nadine was gone forever.
And I'm the one who killed her...
It was too much for Aisha. Suddenly her mouth was too dry. Her heartbeat exploded in her ears. She tried to stand but her vision blurred and her legs gave out beneath her. The last thing she remembered was Juno's arms catching her as she fainted away to a land of blissful darkness.