Part XIV: New Day & New Beginnings
In the light of the dawning sun after their considerably tumultuous night, Mayte escorts the trio back to their quarters. The tension in the air between herself and Tyr is overwhelmingly thick, made from a combination of his guilt, her blame and the question of how they are to get past both in order to coexist with each another. Dylan and Trance, on the other hand, are visibly still under a great deal of strain by the experience to notice any of this. They just want to forget it any of it ever happened.
"Are any of you hurt?" asks Mayte, looking at their somewhat disheveled appearances.
"I have a bruise on my arm, but other than that, I'm all right. Just a little roughed up." answers Trance, rubbing her arm.
"Ditto for me." Dylan seconds. "Just roughed up."
"What about you, Anasazi?" she asks, even though she knows it's a loaded question.
"I'm fine." he answers, knowing the hidden implications behind her asking.
Just then, storming down the corridor is Lysandra, heading in Mayte's direction. She looks as if she's angered about something. "What in the hell happened last night?!" she screams at her.
Trying her best to defend herself but finding it very difficult to talk over Lysandra's screaming, she tries to explain. "Lysandra, I was doing my job."
"Oh, is that so? Funny, that's not what I've been told." she explains. "From what I've been hearing from some of the other pride members, around 3:00 this morning, you were away from your post and Tyr was in your place guarding the room. Is this true?" Tyr figures this is Mayte's opportunity to use his faux pas against him to save her own skin. At least, that's what he would do in her situation, but instead, she did something that completely shocks him.
"Yes, it's true." she begins, "I know they could have been killed because of my gross negligence. I never should have left my post and I deeply apologize for my actions." Tyr was completely floored. He couldn't for the life of him figure out why she was covering for something he was responsible for.
She had already made her apology, but Lysandra isn't through reprimanding her. "Mayte, your brilliantly executed combat strategies are like none I've ever seen before or since, you're a excellent bounty hunter and tracker and your skills as a fighter are insurmountable which is why I put up with your poisonous pro-human/anti-Nietzschean philosophies and overall insubordination, but my patience is wearing very thin." Believing he has heard enough, Dylan feels he should interject on the young warrior's behalf.
"Lysandra, listen... I don't really know the true circumstances behind what happened last night other than the fact we were ripped from our beds by an angry mob of Nietzscheans and almost killed by them but, at the same time, we were save by this very remarkable fighter before any real damage could be done. For that, we are very grateful to her for being, as far as I'm concerned, in the right place at the right time."
"Yes, exactly." Trance concurs. "She really did save our lives."
Lysandra, still somewhat skeptical, looks over at Tyr for his input. "Have you anything to add in her defense?"
Tyr stands silently for a couple of seconds staring first at Lysandra, then at Mayte. He knows she put her neck on the line covering for his mistake, but he's not sure why she's doing it. What exactly does she want from him in return? He ultimately comes to the conclusion that the tension and rivalry between them aren't worth the energy to continue, especially since she's proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that she deserves his respect and gratitude.
"No. Dylan and Trance have already expressed how we all are feeling. I have nothing to say to the contrary."
Feeling she's been outnumbered, Lysandra finally stops her verbal persecution and back down. "I've heard enough. Let's just try to get back at the task at hand. With so little time allotted to us, there is literally no rest for the weary." she points out to them. "It's morning now and we have to get to work, sleep or no sleep. Now, Mayte... take Tyr to the surface and show him where the Kill Zone is and the other plotted out perimeters. Dylan and Trance... follow me into my quarters for a debriefing."
After receiving their orders, Tyr and Mayte walk side by side heading back to the elevator. They stand on the platform as it rises, being driven half mad by the uncomfortable silence between them. They know there is much to be said right now, it was just a question of who was going to make the first move. Mayte, being the kind of person she is, decides to make light of the situation even though she knows her brand of humor is lost upon Tyr.
"So, what's new?" she asks, jokingly. He immediately sees what she is trying to do and although he's really not in the mood for this, decides to play along. "Nothing I can think of right off the top of my head. What's new with you?" She smiles at his so-so comedic effort. They had to admit it wasn't the best tension breaker they could have thought of, but it was a definite push in the right direction.
"It seems that I owe you an apology." he admits reluctantly, staring forward trying to avoid eye contact. "I clearly underestimated you."
"Yes, you did." she agrees, looking up at him, smiling. They stand there for a little while as the uncomfortable silence returns for the moment. Mayte attempts to break it again. "So, tell me... is this the beginning of a truce?" looking up at him, batting her puppy dog eyes in an attempt to look adorable. He just shakes his head and gives a half a smile, just like he does when Trance has those occasional bouts of cuteness that catch him off guard. "Call it whatever you like."
Still sensing the tension in his voice, she walks around in front of him so she can talk to him face to face. "Listen, Tyr... contrary to what you might believe, I'm not your enemy. We're both here for the same reason, are we not? You don't have to like me and I'm not sure if I like you, but let's try to make this whole ordeal as painless as possible. Do we have a deal?"
Granted, it wasn't the lengthiest or most poignant speech he had ever heard, but she did make a significant point with it. He decided to let his defenses down for the time being. "All right, it's a deal."
When they arrived back on the surface, they were greeted by a beautiful sunrise. The essence of last night's fight still lingers in the air, hot and thick. All around them they could see splintered trees, broken branches and many square feet of earth that has been turned up in the scuffle. The clearing looks more like a huge vehicle had driven through it than a fight having had occurred.
"It looks like we have our work cut out for us." she comments. "First things first... the broken branches and splintered trees need to be cleared. The area near the compounds entrance needs to look like it's uninhabited. The last thing we need is the Dragons to zero in on this spot." Taking in what she just said, Tyr looks around at the surrounding plant life. "Maybe you should consider clearing a few more trees, not too much though. Just enough to see the skies a little better. With the exception of the clearing, there is no way to see through the dense vegetation when the Dragons arrive. That is, unless you have lookout towers."
She knows he said it as a joke, but it inspires her enough to give her an idea. "I think I have your lookout tower. Follow me, Anasazi."
She walks in the opposite direction of the clearing, heading out of the overshadowing embrace of the lush wooded area towards a group of distant rock formations about 1 or 2 kilometers westward. On the side of the formations is a steep, hook shaped cliff that seems to be hanging there out of sheer will. To Tyr, it looks extremely unstable and felt in the long run, would probably end up being more of a danger to them than an aid.
Tyr and Mayte hike through a rocky footpath that leads upward to the top of the formation. The higher the two climb, the steeper it get. After a while, they were literally clawing the grass and small plants on the ground to keep themselves from tumbling back down to the bottom. Mayte turns her head around to see if Tyr is still close behind her or if he needs her assistance. He appears to be struggling a little. "Anasazi, are you doing okay? You look like you need some help."
Face down on the ground, he looks up at her as if he's offended by what she's insinuating. "No, I'm fine!" Just as he finishes his declaration of independence, he loses his footing and slowly begins to slide backwards. Seeing that he does indeed need her help, quick as a flash, she reaches behind her and grabs him by the wrist. The weight shift that occurs by her, a 125 pound woman, trying to keep him, a 220 pound man, from sliding down the side of the slope ends up making her lose her footing also and now both begin descending toward the bottom towards the jagged rocks below.
The two start sliding down faster. Mayte quickly reaches for a knife on her weapons belt and drives the blade into the ground like a spike making her and Tyr's decent jerk to a halt. He looks up to see what's happening only to see this very tiny woman tightly gripping his wrist with her right hand and the handle of a knife rammed in the ground with her left. She looks back down at him with expressions of unbelievable pain and discomfort flashing across on her face. The weight of trying to hold them both on the slope is about to split her in two.
Quickly, he follows her lead by grabbing a knife out of his weapons belt and driving it into the ground. Seeing that now he is able to support his own weight, she lets go of his wrist and rubs the sore muscles in her shoulder, relieved that the initial danger is over. "T... Tyr, are you alright?!" she yells, concerned.
"I'm going to live." he answers, grunting and groaning, trying to get his footing back.
"Good." She looks back toward their destination and realizes that although they slid back a few feet, they were still close. "Let try to get our footing back. We're not that far from the top, Anasazi." Both of them dug their heels back in and continued on their way, using their knives to assist them.
As they got higher up the slope, the land seems to have flatten itself out and after awhile, they were able to walk upright again. The hard part is over, now come the payoff. Still a few feet away from the edge of the seemingly unstable cliff, Mayte bravely walks forward to see if her predictions are right. She slowly positions herself on the very edge and looks downward. With an smile lighting up her face signifying that her assumptions were right, she turns around and motions Tyr to see it for himself. He hangs back still not fully trusting the stability of the cliff.
"Come on, Anasazi, this is what you wanted to see, is it not? You can see everything you need to see from here." she informs him, trying to coax him to the ledge. "Come... your lookout tower awaits."
"It doesn't exactly look that safe to me. Maybe we should try looking for a better place."
Walking back toward him with a look of concern on her face, she tries to reassure him. "Don't worry, I've never let any of my soldiers down before and I'm not going to start now. I wouldn't let you fall. I should think you of all people would have figured that out by now."
For some strange reason, Tyr believes her. He isn't sure if it's what she said or how she said it, but it's enough to make him take those first few steps to the edge of the cliff and look downward just as she did. It was high enough to see over the trees overshadowing the entrance of the compound and all the land that surround it. Also, it gave them access to miles and miles of clear, undisturbed sky that would allow them to see the Dragons when they land instantly. Not only that, the view was spectacular. Blue skies, lush trees and plant life that seems to go on for miles.
"Well, what do think?" she asks, not quite sure how to translate the expression on his face.
"I think that I'm very impressed, young Jabari." he answers, looking directly at her. She gets a strange feeling that he isn't talking about the view.
