Chapter
14
The air calmed and the clouds gained control of themselves again. Pools of water rippled in the evening breeze. The supernatural storm had in a sense cleansed the east wing of Arcadia. The suet and ash had been blown and washed away; the buildings wore a cleaner polycrete look. The water was crystal clear instead of the normal grey mud. In the center of a large pool sat a lone woman.
Nevaeh lifted her head to the sky, her hair, her body soaked. She inhaled hard as she caught her breath. She felt weak, no energy left to move, she just wanted to rest. But there was no resting in Arcadia. Resting got you killed. Her knee ached as well as her shoulder. She hadn't even realized she had been hit there. She reached for her SMG and brought it close to her. Nevaeh wished she had some fresh Eridium. The small sphere on her necklace was dim; it had lost its glow. The alien ore had lost its power; her powers would take an extended amount of time to recharge after a use like that.
Off in the distance Fastwater could hear the sound of engines; she knew Black was coming to find her.
"Black…" she radioed over her ECHO COM. Nothing, she figured she was too far.
"Fastwater, what's your status?" crackled Glorious Black's voice.
Fastwater laid back in the cold water, "I need extraction." she said, her voice exhausted. Moments later Nevaeh could feel the warm gusts from the engines of the Alcatraz above her. A blue light surrounded her body as she began to float upward into the hull of the hovering aircraft. Nevaeh was safe and could recover.
After no more than a day's rest Fastwater was on her feet again. She sat in the Ops terminal eating her breakfast. Black walked in from the COM room to find his tracker was healthy again, "Wish I had some health-vials for you, but it looks like we need to restock." he said.
"I'm fine thanks, it was a good thing you came when you did Black." Fastwater replied.
"I know, if there's anything you need let me know." said Black. He sat in the adjacent seat and looked at her, "Wish I had some Eridium."
Nevaeh's head quickly turned to meet Black's, her eyes fierce and her face stone. "Relax, I know you're a Siren. Your markings were showing when we picked you up. I dressed your wounds and covered your secret. I will tell no one." Black said honestly.
Nevaeh gazed down at the grated floor of the bridge; she felt she could trust Black's word. Though she was not comfortable with the idea of having more than the few people she deemed privy to know, having knowledge of her secret. This made her a target. "Thank you." she murmured.
Glorious Black looked deep into her eyes, he was probing for something. "You want to know where they went huh?" she said before Black could open his mouth.
"You read my mind." he said.
"They headed east out of the city." Nevaeh answered. Black nodded and clasped her hand. Then he stood and made his way to the deck of the Alcatraz. Fastwater swiveled her seat back around and stared into the terminal.
An image of a beach, a cold drink, and a faceless partner sitting next to her popped into Nevaeh's head; but suddenly disappeared as she pushed the thought from her mind. In her line of work, and who she was now… She could never have a life like that. She was in too deep. Nevaeh felt the gentle motion of the ships thrusters and knew they were on the move. Black must have found something to follow. Fastwater closed her eyes, and in the darkness of her thoughts, she took comfort in the thought that maybe, just maybe, there was someone out there she could share her life with.