A Warrior's Mind, a Lover's Heart
Chapter 26: The warrior's will.
Authors Note: The chapters from here on out are going to get very dark. For awhile. Consider yourself warned. There will be sensitive topics talked about.
Everything was blurry, light waving around as if trapped under water. He could hardly see, couldn't move much. Shaking his head, Teyshan focused his four golden hues on the white wall, hoping to gather his scattered head together into one single thought. That's when it was all coming together for him. He had been taken hostage by the other Prothean. Hayshek. Gazing down at his arms, Teyshan pulled at his bonds despite knowing he wasn't able to get away. Another painful twinge beat at the side of his head causing Teyshan to briefly close his hues. That's when he heard footsteps closing in on the room he now occupied. Teyshan didn't bother to rush and open his golden hues. All he wanted to do was wake up from this horrible nightmare. The Prothean focused less on those heavy footsteps and more in on his biotics. Maybe if he could get them fired up high enough he would be able to break free from his bonds and escape. Taking a deep breath in, Teyshan focused all of his attention on his hands. His biotics beginning to flare. The Prothean's top lip quivered. Pulling hard at his bonds, he could feel the metal tightening around his sore wrists. Jerking hard against his cuffs, the Prothean's biotics flared out, unleashing a singularity. Yet his bonds didn't budge. Hissing in slight pain, Teyshan opened his golden hues gazing down at his bloodied wrists. It wasn't going to work. His head was beginning to pound even harder. He would have to wait for the right moment before he tried again.
Before Teyshan could even catch the flying blur out of his right secondary eye. He felt a hard object crashing against the side of his temple, more blood dripping down his brow. The young Prothean slumped in his chair, his thoughts scattered once more.
"You are foolish to think you could escape from me." The voice spoke Prothean. Teyshan opened his golden hues, his vision wavering from darkness to seeing the very blurry form of Hayshek looming over him.
"No you are the foolish one Hayshek. Do you honestly think my team won't find me? Do you honestly believe they won't take you down?" Teyshan hissed back. The Prothean language almost feeling foreign on his lips. Javik would always speak the human English out of respect for the other team members. Occasionally their conversations would be in Prothean, but never for long and never often. The human language was beginning to feel more natural for him to speak then his own 'dead' language.
"I do not care that they find you alive or dead. You are here to be broken. I am here to break your team. To break your pet's heart." Hayshek's voice was cold.
"I won't bet on it." Teyshan snapped back.
"It seems like our useless empire has taught you one thing." Hayshek stepped away from Teyshan's chair. Dropping the metal rod he had used to smash into Teyshan's head onto the floor.
Teyshan bared his teeth at Hayshek. His golden hues narrowing at the other Prothean.
"Why are you so against the Empire." Teyshan's voice dropped an octave. His golden hues staring the other Prothean down, maybe he could find a way to make him crack. On anything.
"It was over the fact they had let lesser, weaker species into the Empire. All those weaklings ever had to do was bow down to the Empire and they welcomed them in with open arms." Hayshek hissed. Turning himself away from Teyshan, the other Prothean crossed his arms behind him. Shifting his weight to one leg.
"All because you deemed the others as weak." Teyshan's voice grew quiet.
Hayshek turned himself around. His dark hues narrowing at the young Prothean. Taking a step up to him, he leaned down, his gaze growing cold, dark. Teyshan could feel his gut twisting.
"Shouldn't of taken the avatar of truth this long to figure this all out. The Empire had allowed weaklings in. They needed to be taken out. Yet they didn't take them out. Didn't extinguish them like they should of. That was why the Reapers killed us all." Hayshek reached up. His boney fingers wrapping around Teyshan's throat a sick smile growing acrossed his face.
Teyshan pulled his head back, feeling those fingers wrap tightly around his fragile wind pipe, squeezing just sharply enough to cause the young Prothean to feel the blood pump harder inside of his head. Teyshan pulled at his bonds, his head pounding. It didn't take long for the Prothean to feel his consciousness slip. His vision darkening.
Melina had occupied the same chair for the past several hours, longer then she had cared to admit. The woman seemingly was stumped on something. She had gotten pretty good at identifying relics in the dig site. Yet Teyshan stared down at the woman as she raked her fingers through her curly tresses.
"I don't understand.." The woman muttered.
"Do not understand, what Melina." Teyshan moved over to her side, kneeling down. Those golden hues gazing over the relic she was almost glaring at.
"What.. This is.." She sighed.
"Well." Teyshan breathed in.
"Don't tell me. I want to figure this out." Melina looked up, her dark hues bright. A playful smile growing acrossed her cheeks.
Teyshan reached up and gently grasped the woman's chin with his fingers, turning her head to face him. A warm smile pulling at the sides of his lips. The Prothean's golden hues searching her soft face.
"What is it.." Teyshan's eyes widened a bit, the Prothean was tempted to just tell her but he knew she wanted to figure this out.
"A…" Melina turned herself to face him, sighing a bit. "A memory shard?" She asked.
"Yes." Teyshan smiled even wider, running his fingers down her cheekbone and over her lips.
"You are making it hard for me to concentrate." Melina laughed.
"Good." Teyshan rumbled. His hues narrowing.
#
Melina was sitting at her desk, her fingers drumming over and over trying to keep her thoughts from running to anything dark. The woman's hair was a complete mess. She hadn't bothered to brush it ever since they had gotten back to the ship. The woman needed to get her act together if she had hoped to ever find Teyshan again. Javik was relying her now more then ever for help. Ringing her fingers through her messy hair, the woman pulled her hair up into a tight bun, closing her eyes for a moment. Breathing in slowly, Melina opened her cloudy hues. Slowly standing up from her desk, the woman turned herself to only be met with Dean standing not to far from her.
Broken. He looked incredibly broken.
Biting at the back of her lip. Dean was the last person she wanted to see or talk to at this moment. Normally he would have been one of the first people she went to for support. Dean had always been a stable part of Melina's life. Now? She wasn't so sure.
"Melina." Dean whispered.
"Yes Dean?" Melina crossed her arms.
"Can we talk?" The man inquired.
"Dean…" Melina sighed. "Honestly that is the last thing I want to do right now." She had to be blunt.
Dean's head sank, his blue hues gazing down at the floor. His form slumping a bit. Shoulders low.
"I just wanted to say I am sorry." The man looked back up at Melina, she could see tears gathering at the corners of his eyes.
Her heart sank.
"What you said really hurt Dean. I never would of expected you to tell me that. Anything but that." Melina snapped. Perhaps a bit to harsh for how broken up this man was, but she wanted to make sure he understood just how bad it had hurt her. Melina straightened herself a bit, her cloudy hues narrowing. "Specially you out of all people." The woman shook her head.
Dean's head sunk once more. "Truly I am sorry. Please forgive me. Perhaps not now but sometime. I ask that you forgive me." Dean shook his head a bit and immediately turned himself away from Melina, walking back down the hall.
Melina felt bad for snapping at him so harshly even after he had come to her to apologize, but the woman needed time to let this go. Soon, but not right now.
Breathing out deeply. The woman straightened herself up and walked down the ships hallway, making her way down to Javik's office. After stepping down a set of stairs and down another hallway the woman stopped at the Elder Prothean's door. Reaching up she pressed the access pad to the door and dropped her arms down by her side. Melina counted down the seconds until the door slid open and took a step inside, her cloudy hues meeting with those ever stern golden eyes from Javik.
"Melina." He simply greeted her.
"Javik." She nodded.
The Elder Prothean was sitting at his desk, two of his golden hues gazing down to the data pad nestled in his hands. Javik's top lip pulled back, almost sneering. Walking over to the Prothean's side Melina gazed down at the data pad.
"Any leads?" She inquired.
"No.. Not any solid leads Melina. We have not gotten any more reports of colony attacks. Not since we intercepted Hayshek's last attack. And well since Teyshan has went missing." The Prothean signed.
Melina sucked in gulp of air, breathing out slowly. Narrowing her hues her mind began racing. Pulling away from the Elder Prothean's side, the woman leaned back against the desk, crossing her arms in front of her.
"Do you think, it might be that Hayshek has finally built himself a base?" Melina's brows rose. "I mean if he's not taking the time to attack anymore colonies then he has to go somewhere and we know for certain he won't show up on Earth of Omega." The woman tipped her head.
"That Melina, is smart. No point to wasting resources." Javik lowered the data pad on the desk, his golden hues narrowed.
"Now we just need to figure out where." The woman pulled her weight off of the desk and back on her feet.
"What do you suggest?" Javik gazed up at her.
"Colonies.. We need to look at colony data. Find where the majority of the attacks have been located and start there. Perhaps if he found his base early he would go out and attack the closest colonies until he started getting more confident and attacking colonies further away." Melina nodded.
"Teyshan was smart to have chosen you." Javik slipped.
Melina's eyes widened a bit. Her breath hitched. This was quite the compliment coming from the elder Prothean. "Thank you Javik." She gave him a weak smile.
"Remain strong Melina, we will find him." Javik gave her a curt nod before turning away from her.
Authors Note:
Hey everyone. I am so sorry for basically abandoning this story. I have been incredibly busy the past few months. Also Mass Effect Andromeda has taken up a lot of my free time and this past chapter was turning out for me to write. Updates the next few weeks will be slow. I will be up in Canada for the month of August. Though I refuse to just leave this story permanently hanging. I've been at it for 2 years now? Buh. Thank you for all of the love. Happy Reading!