A/N: First off, Thanks for the follows and the favorites! You guys are awesome and amazing. There are a few of you that are really gonna like this chapter, I think. ;)
I was wavering between two chapters or three... I have decided on three. No two... I think... yes, three, I like three...
I do not own Pitch Black, Dark Fury, Chronicles of Riddick, or Riddick, nor do I own their characters or the story lines. I own only Rehtaeh and any new characters that I may add, and any plot changes that may happen within.
I really hope you enjoy the story! :D
Chapter 37
*Rehtaeh*
She was standing in the field of grave stones looking at the familiar landscape. Taking in the bushes and vines that were twining themselves around the grave stones, the land was silent, not serene, it was far too quiet for that. Taking in the fresh mountain air and the watching the trees sway in the distance, she didn't see when the woman first appeared to her out of the mists. The woman was tall, strong. She was a warrior of some sort. Her long hair was braided away from her face and she wore armbands and bracelets. She looked tribal in many ways. "You must come to Furya, Rehtaeh. You must come to Furya to learn your true path." The woman reached out and gently touched her face. Her hand was warm and there was a gentle comfort to it. Then she was gone and her vision faded into blackness. Never before could she remember such an all encompassing darkness as she slept.
When she woke, the woman was gone. She looked around the hospital room disoriented and lost for a long moment and then she remembered all that happened. She needed answers to questions. Where was Jack, why the hell had she turned on her like a rabid animal? Where were Carolyn and Heath? How long was she sleeping? She wondered if Carolyn and Suleiman were both still in the hospital, and as she looked around she realized that she was in the intensive care unit. Just down the hall from the room Suleiman was in last time she visited. She was hooked to a IV, so she closed the drip, unhooked the needle and turned off the machine. She pulled off the other monitors they had on her and found a pair of cloth pants. She went to the washroom and went in search of Imam.
Imam wasn't visiting Suleiman, but she followed the boys scent and found him just waking up from his own long sleep, she looked him over and was happy to see he was recovering nicely. They talked about Jack for a long time, he was arguing that Jack was blaming herself for problems that were not her own. She countered that she was sticking her nose into those troubles and making them her own. She told him about the incident that put her in the hospital and they fell into silence. Jack had a lot to answer for. Her impulsive actions resulted in both of them being in the hospital. They both wondered where she was. Rehtaeh's instinct reared up again that the girl had run away. She tried to shake the thought off but it stayed anchored in her mind.
It wasn't long before Doctors and nurses poured in and found her sitting on the edge of Suleiman's bed swinging her legs gently. Heath, Imam and Lajjun followed closely behind them. There was a lot of hugging and gushing, and Imam and Lajjun both sent heartfelt prayers to their God. The Doctors insisted on checking their patients over, so Rehtaeh and Suleiman gave each other a hug and Rehtaeh went back to her room.
Rehtaeh shocked them all when she came into the hospital with such a severe injury. They did not have the equipment needed to heal her spine so the only thing they did for her was give her some healing medication to kill the bacteria and ensure that the wound healed effectively. Her vital signs went all over the map and they had a hell of a time trying to keep her in normal ranges. Within hours of medical treatment her body dropped into a self induced coma. The Doctors were astounded by her healing capabilities. It had been a clean cut, her spinal cord completely severed and the Doctors believed she would never walk again. They were surprised not only that she survived, but that she woke up and walked away from her bed as though nothing happened. After several rounds of testing and testing and more testing Rehtaeh had enough and told everyone to back the fuck off. She was not their Guinea Pig.
The Doctors told her that she was in a comatose state for two weeks, and other than the heart rate and brainwave monitor they had no indication whether treatment was working or not. Heath told her that Carolyn was at home with the babies, exhausted and working through postpartum depression. The only reason he came to the hospital was because of the emergency call that Rehtaeh had disappeared from her bed. He then broke the news that Jack ran away the day after Rehtaeh went into the hospital. He told her that she stowed away on a ship headed for the Lupus system. Jack wrote Heath and Carolyn a note telling them that she was going to go after Riddick. The girl was certain that she killed everything she touched. She told them not to follow her. Then she just disappeared in the middle of the night. Just as Rehtaeh predicted when things got tough the kid turned tail like a rabbit. Heath was planning a trip to go after her, when he told her this, she changed the subject. She was not interested in going after someone who didn't want to be found.
When he tried to argue with her she just looked at Heath and growled. "Take me home. I want to help Carolyn and the babies."
Alex, Mark, and Evan, all boys, they were a handful from the very first day. The moment Rehtaeh walked in the door to meet her grand nephews, her life was filled with joy. She did everything she could to make things move smoother for Carolyn. Allowing her one on one time with each of her sons so that she could bond with them, and at the same time making sure the pilot got enough sleep and time with Heath. The only thing Rehtaeh wanted was for Heath's little family to be successful, which would have been hard with one baby much less three. So she became their nanny in many ways, just trying to help out, and not step on any toes.
The babies were three months old when they boarded the massive new ship Rehtaeh bought and headed off into outer space. None of them were going into Cryo, so there was enough food on board to feed an army, but that was okay it was a big ship. There was more than enough room on board for everything the babies needed. Even specialized pressure pods for the babies during lift offs and landings. The ship was fully equipped. It was a space yacht, made specifically for family travel, Heath and Carolyn looked at her in curiosity when the ship was delivered. Rehtaeh had no use for a ship such as this. It wasn't until they were already up in deep space that Rehtaeh handed Carolyn and Heath the deed to the ship. She bought it in their name for their growing family.
Heath and Carolyn were going to Lupus 5, with hopes of finding Jack. So much happened since the crash of the Hunter Gratzner that they didn't blame her for her horrible actions. There were few twelve year olds who could survive what she did without some traumatic effect. Carolyn and Heath however still loved Jack, even after everything that happened they wanted to give the kid another chance. They tracked her to Lupus 5, finding that she had joined up with the Mercenaries there. Rehtaeh was just along for the ride. Since Jack didn't have the guts to apologize to her face, Rehtaeh was not ready to forgive her yet. Yes, Jack seemed remorseful at the time, but she ran away before she could take ownership for her actions.
"I can stay with the babies, why don't you two go after her?" Rehtaeh asked Carolyn, as she reluctantly strapped her gun belt to her hips. "She's not going to want to see a ghost."
"You have to go, Rehtaeh. She needs to know you forgive her." Carolyn chided. Rehtaeh growled under her breath. She didn't forgive her. The only reason she was here was for Heath and Carolyn.
"She would have to do some major apologizing before that's gonna happen, and you know it." Rehtaeh growled as she put on her new glasses with the transitional lenses before stomping down the ramp, following Heath out into the city. Finally she had glasses that would suit all of her needs.
Heath and Rehtaeh caught up with Jack at the training facility with the crew that had taken her in. They had left Carolyn at the ship watching over her babies. Rehtaeh got a bad vibe from the crew the moment they encountered Jack's new 'friends', especially when they tried to get too friendly with her. She approached their ship under peaceful terms asking to speak with Jack. It was a young punk at the door with blonde hair and a five o'clock shadow, he seemed to think he was God's gift to women, "I'll let you see Jack after you bring me some joy hot stuff, how 'bout we go get it on."
"How 'bout I drop your ass on the ground here, and go look for Jack by myself?" Rehtaeh responded coolly, rolling her eyes.
"You really think you can take me, pint size?" The man looked her up and down with a sneer.
She responded with a sucker punch to the jaw, and a knee to his junk. The man fell abruptly into an agonized heap, "Yeah, I do."
She stepped past him and entered the building, she found Jack in the living area. Heath stepped out of the dark corner by the door and followed her. The ship was a bit of a dive, but then she had high standards, the furniture was ripped and worn, stained with who knew what. There was a general film of grime that covered everything, and the stale and moldy scent in the air sent Rehtaeh's stomach rolling. It was awful, and Jack was living in this mess. She looked at Jack as she was being teased by several larger guys. "So what's the deal Jack? We weren't seedy enough for you?"
"Rehtaeh!" Jack said, shocked at her sudden appearance. There was a flash of happiness in the girl's eyes followed by fear, then smothered by something darker. The curious glances by the Mercs between Rehtaeh and Jack made them both wary. Heath's presence immediately had everyone on edge. He was so intimidating even when he was just standing watch. Jack stalked over and grabbed her wrist hauling her into the dirty galley kitchen. Heath guarded the door making sure they were not interrupted. "What the hell are you doing here? I thought you were dead."
"Obviously you thought wrong. You should know by now I don't die easily." Rehtaeh said softly as she looked up at Jack, who had grown another inch in the last six months. The apology she hoped for never happened, in fact there was even more hostility than ever before. As though Jack blamed her for what happened. The remorse Jack showed when she held Rehtaeh was long gone, and in its place was a calculating coldness. Rehtaeh's instincts continued to be dead on. "And I should ask you the same thing, Jack, what the hell are you doing here? Why the hell are you running around with Mercs?"
"They're gonna teach me the drill, give me a piece of the cut." Jack said, and then sneered at her, "Better than that pansy assed meditation you were trying to get me to learn. What the hell can you teach me, Rehtaeh? How to paint? No thanks. How to shoot? I already got that covered. How to fight? I didn't learn anything from you in two months of training. Maybe if I had I would have been able to stand up for myself. You're still a fucking coward."
"You stabbed me in the fucking back and ran away so who's the real coward Jack? I gave you a chance. I saved your life how many times? I even tried to teach you the old martial arts. It's not my fault you kept dropping your fucking guard." She narrowed her eyes at the teenager; this kid just seemed to want to push her buttons. She never seemed to have a problem with anyone else, only her. "You have a listening problem that borders on absolute ignorance and arrogance. How was I supposed to teach you anything if you can't obey simple instruction?"
"My opinion is that it was the teacher and not the student." Jack goaded her, her eyes flashing in anger. Rehtaeh was not going to fall for it. Jack was a typical teen, she had all the answers, and no one around her could possibly understand what she was going through. Typical 'poor me' mentality. Rehtaeh rolled her eyes, 'How the hell did my mother go through this with seven of us? I can't handle one!' She thought.
"Funny, in my opinion it was the irresponsible teen blaming everyone else for her problems." This conversation was not going well. Rehtaeh knew she could have handled it better, but really the kid had a smart mouth and needed it smacked. Secretly she hoped that she and Jack could reconcile their differences. It was obviously not going to happen. The girl told her to her face that she hated her, and then she had gone and proved exactly how much. Carolyn wanted her back though and Rehtaeh would do almost anything for her adopted sister. She took a breath and mentally stepped back before trying again. "Look, I am here on Carolyn's behalf, not my own. I know you hate me Jack, but you love her. Go back for Carolyn."
"Carolyn is weak. She let you and Heath walk all over her. You know you were running around behind her back." Jack taunted her; her voice was snide, harsh. "Why would I want to be around someone so weak that she couldn't even keep her own husband from a home wrecker?"
"It's always the same old pathetic lines with you isn't it? You are either really deaf or really stupid Jack. Heath and I have never and will never be involved. That would be incest. Not interested, thank you very much. He is my personal body guard; I pay him to follow me around. It's his fucking job." Rehtaeh growled at Jack, she reached her limit. There was a lot that she was willing to put up with but doing the same old dance was not going to get them anywhere. If Jack couldn't learn to listen then there was no point in even trying. "You could go back because for some idiotic reason Carolyn loves you. As for me, I am still very angry with you. I could have taught you everything you wanted to know, but you want everything the easy way and honey that's not how life works. If you really think you have got it golden with these creeps then stay."
"I think I'll do that, Rehtaeh. They can teach me to track down Riddick, you can't do that. Or can you? You were his whore weren't you? Maybe he told you where to find him." Jack stalked towards her, trying to intimidate her. Rehtaeh didn't back down, as soon as she came near her she slapped the girl, hard. Then as the girl stumbled back in shock, she hit her again with the other hand.
"That's for calling me a whore, you spoiled ungrateful twit." Rehtaeh snapped at her, her rage was quickly rising. "As for Riddick, the last thing I would do is tell you where he went. You would probably get him thrown into a slam by leading these jackasses straight to him. Lucky for me, he didn't tell me where he was going. Get your head out of your ass, and think about who you are hurting, Jack. This involves more than just you."
"Get out, don't come back." Jack growled at her, holding a hand to her stinging face, tears brimming at her eyes. "If I ever see you again, I will kill you."
"You tried once Jack, and failed. Go ahead and try again. I'll be waiting." Rehtaeh growled at her and walked out, brushing past Heath on her way. She waited for him outside while he had a few words with Jack. Rehtaeh knew Carolyn would be deeply hurt by this, she felt she was responsible for this child and she had been deeply shocked by Jack's actions.
Heath stepped out of the house several minutes later and they headed back to their ship, "You told her you didn't know where Riddick was, but I know you do. How did you get away with the lie? You are a horrible liar."
"I was telling the truth, Riddick didn't tell me where he was going. I saw his possible destination on a star map." Rehtaeh shrugged as she walked beside him. "What did you say to Jack?"
"I told her that she needs to get her head out of her ass and realize we still love her, before it's too late. I also said that if Riddick wanted to be found he would come back on his own, I said some other things too, but they're not important." They left, respecting the girl's wishes and didn't look back. Carolyn was devastated when she got the news, she really did love the girl. Heath did keep tabs on her, as a form of respect for Riddick, since he would want to know what happened to her. As much as Rehtaeh tried to stay cold she still listened in whenever Heath brought up any leads he had on her.
After a year of travel from Lupus 5, stopping only to swap power cells and resupply, their first destination was Furya. Heath was so excited to show his new family his home. When they arrived what they found was complete devastation. The planet was desolate, and it was cursed. What had not been destroyed was locked in a state of half death, half life. They called out to see if there were survivors but there was nothing and no one. If there were they were hiding. There must have been someone there after the devastation happened; there were grave stones and markers covering mass expanses of land. The landscape reminded Rehtaeh of her nightmares and she began to cry grieving the loss of starting anew in the world of her brothers. Heath mourned the loss of his people and Carolyn consoled both of them. They looked on the Alliance planet logs and found out that the planet was destroyed by war over twenty five years earlier.
Rehtaeh was awed by the sheer beauty of the planet. Even in the state of half life that it was, the similarities to earth were astounding, the mountains and vistas, the long flat plains that would have had animals of all kinds roaming over them. All of it reminded her of her childhood home. The moment Rehtaeh stepped onto the planet she felt an overwhelming love and connection to Furya as well as a tremendous weight on her chest that stayed with her long after she left its atmosphere.
The atmosphere was still breathable, livable, so they decided to go explore the remains of Furya. Each one of them carried a baby in a baby carrier on their backs. The boys were eighteen months old. They were walking among the rubble trying to find anything that could possibly explain what had happened to the planet. Where had the people of Furya gone? Heath walked into an area that was once a town square; there were the remains of a fountain and a tall statue of a woman had been toppled. Rehtaeh found a plaque, and rubbed the dust and debris off of it so she could read it. "The Heart of Seven"
Heath came up beside her. When he spoke his voice was solemn. "One of dad's friends had it made in memory of you after you 'died'. He told dad that you were the only Furya that was worth the trouble. Dad agreed with him."
They walked along what once was a street towards a coliseum type building. Rehtaeh and Carolyn followed Heath through the rubble into the building through a buckled archway. From the looks of the building, it had once held a library or an archive. There were the remains of computer desks as well as toppled bookshelves. Time and the elements left devastation in their wake, there were brittle pages, buckling spines. Nothing that Rehtaeh touched was worth salvaging, still Heath continued to search, for what? Rehtaeh had no idea. She moved away to look at the remainders of murals on the walls. She found a portrait of her brothers, the plaque said 'Furya Founders' and listed their names. She moved along to the next one and found herself staring up at a man she knew long ago in her youth. They grew up together. He was her crush when they were in school, before her A.D.S. made her life hell. Her feelings for him didn't change, even though her A.D.S. made it impossible to be near him. She even remembered his name. Grayson R. Brennan.
"You knew him?" Heath joined her. He was holding a large tome of a book in his arms. It was perfectly intact. She looked at the title and was blown away. 'A Complete History of Furya'
"Yeah, I told you about him. I had a crush on him in school." Rehtaeh said distractedly. "We tried dating once but the A.D.S. made it impossible."
"So he is the one who pushed you over the edge?" Carolyn softly, her eyes were sad as she joined them.
"Do you really have to tell her everything?" Rehtaeh smacked Heath on the shoulder as she laughed softly.
"I didn't think it was a secret." Heath said his face was apologetic.
"It's okay, I was teasing. To answer your question, yes, he was the one who pushed me off the rocker, so to speak. I didn't realize that Grayson Brennan was part of the research team." Rehtaeh turned back to the handsome man on the wall and studied the painting of her old friend. She wondered if her eyes were playing tricks on her, because she could see traces of Riddick in the painting of Grayson. She shook her head; she never thought that she had a 'type' of guy she preferred. Maybe she was wrong.
"Well he wasn't known as Grayson Brennan while he lived here. You must have made quite the impression on him because he was the one who had the statue built of you." Heath said as he flipped through the pages of the large book. "Dad said he got into trouble on earth and had to change his name in order to be allowed on the mission. I knew him as Grayson Riddick."
He was skimming through the book, flipping pages, as the women looked at the paintings. Rehtaeh turned suddenly and looked at Heath. Her nephew was oblivious. "Wait. You are saying that Grayson is Riddick's many times great grandfather?"
His whistle made both women turn back to look at him expectantly. He looked up at Rehtaeh. "Yes, and that's not all. Apparently about a hundred years after his death the Furya and Riddick clans fell into a major feud, it was still ongoing at the time of publishing. Which was-," Heath flipped to the front of the book.
"When, when Heath?" Carolyn asked, her voice was breathy with awe. Rehtaeh couldn't believe this.
"Thirty years ago." Heath said quietly. "When did the Alliance say this happened?"
"Twenty seven years ago." Carolyn said looking between Heath and Rehtaeh.
"So you are saying that our family and Riddick's are like the Hatfield's and McCoy's of Furya; or the Capone's and Moran's?" She started to laugh, when both of them looked at her in complete confusion. She had been worried they were related somehow, only to find out that they were supposed to hate each other. She started to laugh hysterically for several minutes. She hiccupped and said, "We are the fucking Montague's and Capulet's of Furya. Romeo and Juliet, star-crossed lovers, destined to die together yet alone."
"On the plus side you now know for a fact you are not related." Carolyn said wryly, which made Rehtaeh laugh even harder.
"No, I only had a crush on his ancestor. Does that make me some kind of weird pedophile?" She was in hysterics, she could barely control her emotions. She settled into a shadowed wall.
"Whoa, Rehtaeh! You are doing it again, you are disappearing." Carolyn grabbed her hand and made her refocus. This had been happening more and more often since she woke up from her coma. Whenever she lost control over her emotions and she was standing in a shadow she would start to fade away. "With Alex on your back, might I add?"
"Shit sorry, is he okay?" Rehtaeh asked craning her neck to look back at the happily gurgling baby boy. "Apparently he didn't mind the darkness."
"That's our cue." Heath said softly, "We need to take you to see these Elementals. We need to find out what they know about your strange ability."
"You mean my 'Cloak of Darkness'?" Rehtaeh said softly, turning back towards the painting of Riddick's ancestor. Her best friend, he told her he was going away, but she had no idea that he was going with her brothers. She made an oath of eternal friendship with him; he held a very special place in her heart. And now she had an even greater bond with his many times great grandson. She looked at the mark on her left hand. The faint 'R' tingled as she reached out with it and touched his hand in the mural. She was jolted into darkness.
There was nothing but inky blackness around her. The woman from her hospital dream came to her in the darkness. Her familiar voice joined with the voice of another, a husky harsh comforting voice, "You have found our history, read it Rehtaeh. To go forward you must go back. Your quest continues with Zephora. Find her on Quintessa." Then the voices faded away. Rehtaeh blinked and she was back on Furya looking up at the face of an old friend. She shook her head and turned to follow Heath and Carolyn back to the ship.
They were about to go up the ramp when Heath stumbled and hit his knees. Mark started crying in the pack as his father jostled him unintentionally. Heath's hands were shaking and he was sweating profusely. Carolyn ran to his side, and anchored him, "Heath! Are you alright?"
"I don't know, Carolyn. This has never happened before. I feel so weak." Heath said struggling to stand. Rehtaeh and Carolyn both helped him to his feet and helped him to the medi-bay on the large yacht. Carolyn took care of the children while Rehtaeh hooked Heath into the scanner. His blood levels were low, his blood pressure was up, his vitals were all over the map. They used the manufactured blood supply available in the Medi kit and Heath had an immediate reaction and got steadily worse. Rehtaeh did the only thing she could think of and did a live transfusion of her own blood. It worked and his vitals leveled out. Once Rehtaeh got Heath settled into his bed, Carolyn stayed with him while Rehtaeh took the ship into space. They needed to get to Quintessa quickly, not only for her troubles, but for Heath as well.
Once they were on their way, Rehtaeh followed the vision's advice. She read the history of Furya from cover to cover. It was a rich history, but it was not her own. Her name was not mentioned once. They only mentioned her brothers as the founders, even her parents from earth were named, but her name was never mentioned. The only reference to her was as the 'Heart of Seven' statue that was built by Grayson Riddick. It was rumored to be what started the feud, since both the Riddick's and the Furya's claimed a hand in its creation. Neither clan could prove their claim, since the history and legend of the statue was lost over time. When it was time to do repairs to it, there was no reference to what the woman might have looked like or who she might have been.
She was truly the sister time forgot. She was not a part of any history books. Even on earth her timeline was wiped by the Alliance, and she was never a part of her brothers' lives on Furya. Heath swore to her that she was not forgotten in his lifetime, or the following generation, since the stories were passed on to the grand children. Her brothers and Grayson kept her stories alive. As far as Rehtaeh was concerned it was just another piece of her puzzle that she finally had in her grasp. 'Heart of Seven' according to Grayson Riddick was the middle child of seven, the one Furya worth fighting for. 'The Source' was the woman who donated her ova to the creation of Elementals on Quintessa. And now the 'Sister Time Forgot' was explained as well. All that was left to learn was the Shadow Mage and Red on Black. Those were the missing pieces.
"Hey Heath?" Rehtaeh looked up from the heavy tome, "What are these blood bond rituals they are talking about?"
"Dad told me you created them. Don't you remember, Rehtaeh? The family kept them as an honor to you." Heath asked her with his eye brow raised he was helping Carolyn put the boys down for a nap. Rehtaeh's eye brows shot up. She remembered clearly. The day her brothers left for their mission, she forced them to blood bond with her. One at a time she cut an 'F' for Furya into the fleshy part of their right palm, and they cut an 'F' into hers and she made them swear. 'Furyan Warriors, Battle Sworn, Battle Fought, Bound by Blood, We Stand as One.'
She whispered it and he echoed her. "And the other? For marriage, is it the same as well?"
"Well yes. There is the marriage oath." Heath looked at her oddly. "Dad said there was a third one. You swore a blood oath to someone you cared for deeply, but that it hurt you horribly."
"Grayson and I shared a blood oath before he left, it was a bond of friendship. It went 'United by blood, my heart entwined with yours, until we meet again.' I always wondered why Grayson marked me with an 'R'." She showed him the faint 'R' carved into her left hand. "But I told Jacob that the oath for marriage was 'Warrior, Lover, Mate, Bound by Blood, Heart and Soul United, Until the End of Time'. The idea was that a person willing to swear a blood oath with their lover should mean that they were swearing their souls to one another. I never thought that the ritual would still be in use, look."
"Started by the Furya's in days of settling, the blood oath is still a practice that binds our people together. A warrior blood bond, ties together a group of warriors, to give each other strength in times of trouble. A marriage blood bond ties together a mated pair until the end of time. A blood oath is not for the faint of heart as there is no reversal of either bond, once the oath is made, the bond stays intact. It has been proven that those Furyans that engage in a blood bond have the most successful unions." Carolyn read out loud. She looked at Heath, and quirked a smile, "sounds daunting. How is it done?"
"Well if we were to marry, I would carve my initial into your left palm, and you would carve yours into mine, then we would say the words at the same time." Heath told her gently taking her hands into his. "Will you bond with me, my mate?"
"Yes, Heath, I thought you would never ask." Carolyn laughed. Rehtaeh pulled both of her blades from her gun belt and handed one to Heath and the other to Carolyn. They each carved an 'F' into each other's left palm, then allowed the blood to swell can collect in their palm. Then Furya and Fry were united and bound in blood as they said in unison. "Warrior, Lover, Mate, Bound by Blood, Heart and Soul United, Until the End of Time."
"Why did you use 'F' and not 'G', Heath?" Carolyn asked quietly.
"It was the Alliance that wanted me to change my name. In my heart and soul I will always be a Furya." Heath told her. Rehtaeh quietly closed the massive book and carried it out of the room giving the newly bound couple some space. She moved to the bedroom that she was staying in and put the book on the bedside table. For someone that was forgotten by the universe, her brothers had embraced her influence, and kept her alive in every way they could. She was honored and humbled by their love.
As they journeyed through the galaxy Heath continued to keep tabs on Jack until she disappeared again. She was off the books, beyond any satellite feeds that they could monitor or tap. Her trail once again gone cold, he could not find a trace of her. All of them feared the worst, but they just couldn't bear to give up. Rehtaeh kept her heart cold, she was not about to let her guard down when it came to Jack.
They were half way to Quintessa when they landed in a space port for unloading of merchandise for Rehtaeh's distributors and for refueling and restocking supplies for their journey. Rehtaeh checked in to the dock, filled out the forms for resupply, and headed into the main port buildings. Heath and Carolyn were staying with the ship and their boys. Rehtaeh needed to walk. She found that as much as she loved traveling deep space, it reminded her too much of Him. She would get hit by the overwhelming desire to go after him and had to shut it down somehow, so she would get some real gravity time and go for a walk or a bite to eat. She walked into a pub for a bite to eat and a drink, when she felt someone quickly approaching her from behind, the warmth she felt told her exactly who it was. She turned in time to see Jack attacking, her knife raised in her hand.
She blocked the knife hand, grabbing her wrist and used the girl's momentum to twist her arm and disarm her. She elbowed Jack in the stomach and then again in the nose as she doubled over. She pulled on Jacks arm and her hips to haul the girl over her shoulder and dropping her to the ground, she kicked the girls discarded knife out of the way and pinned her struggling body to the ground. "Still no guard, I see. Someday Jack, you are going to regret turning your back on what I offered to you and when you do, I may not welcome you back. Be careful about burning those bridges."
"Names not Jack, she's was weak, I am Kyra." The girl looked at her with complete hostility, "Why the hell are you following me?"
"Are you on drugs, Jack? Your paranoia is through the roof. I have no desire to follow you, I have better things to do than chase after some ungrateful shithead." Rehtaeh told her, her own voice had gone cold, as she sealed up her love for the girl.
"I said my name is Kyra, now." Jack said as she struggled underneath her, they were drawing a crowd. The girl got her left hand loose and went to hit Rehtaeh. She blocked it easily, and slammed her elbow into the girl's shoulder, popping the joint out of place. Jack screamed in pain.
"Nope, you are still Jack. Jack the rotten little girl, who cares only about what she wants, too self-centered to give a shit about the welfare of those who love her." Rehtaeh sighed as she stood, pulling the girl to her feet. "Until you prove you are worthy of a new life, a new name, you will always be Jack to me. Jack Shit."
Rehtaeh turned on her heel and left the pub, leaving the enraged fourteen year-old screaming profanities at her retreating back. With a dark satisfaction Rehtaeh enjoyed the open rage that was directed at her, this time she deserved it. Leaving the girl injured and in a state of vulnerability, she had finally given the kid a taste of her own medicine. Maybe Jack would learn from it. Something inside Rehtaeh held on to that small hope, the rest of her seethed in rage. She went back to the ship, helped finish loading up supplies and they got back under way. She didn't tell Carolyn or Heath what had happened right away, she was too angry, too hurt by the second attempt at murder by a girl who she once loved so deeply.