Part 21
"Trance, stop right now. This is a big mistake. You should not be doing this." Rev Bem tried to reason with Trance. She was packing things into a small pack, preparing to go down to the planet after the others.
"I have to Rev. You do not realize what these people are capable of. If they have recovered the knowledge of preparing a pit then Dylan's chances of defeating Tourk are practically non-existent."
"And how do you know this Trance?" Holo-Rommie asked.
"I just do."
"That isn't a very good answer." Rev said.
"Maybe not but it's the only one you are going to get." Having said this, Trance pushed passed Rev and headed toward the docking bay.
"Do you think I should notify Dylan that she is coming?" Rommie asked.
"We have no way of knowing if he is unmonitored. We cannot risk the others knowing she is coming. You may want to notify Harper and your avatar though." Rev replied.
"Agreed." Andromeda replied before doing just that.
Trance debated whether she should go straight to the palace or get Harper and Rommie first. Feeling she would need all the help she could get, she headed for the crash site. She was sure they would know she was coming. She arrived at the site approximately three hours before dawn and set down her pod. The first thing she noticed were the unconscious forms lying scattered around the Maru. She made her way to the ship as quickly as possible, stepping over and around the men. Just as she was about to enter the ship one of the Palorians woke up. The first thing the man did when he spied Trance was to begin screaming.
"Demon! Wake up men! The Demons are back!"
He continued screaming as he made his way toward Trance with a large club. He raised the club and took a swing at her head. She quickly ducked and kicked out at him, knocking him down. But the man's screaming had awakened others and they were all getting to their feet. They all had they same reaction when they saw Trance. They reacted with pure hatred and more than a little fear. Just as they were about to attack her in full force, the door to the Maru opened. Rommie walked out and began firing her forcelance at the ground around the men's feet. Trance quickly ran behind Rommie and entered the Maru. Rommie followed her and shut the door as fast as she could. The door had barely closed behind them before the Palorians began heaving stones and other debris at the ship. Even through the closed doors, the two women could hear the men screaming `Demon' over and over again.
"Hello Trance, nice of you to join us. Mind telling us what that was all about?" Harper asked as Rommie and Trance joined him in command.
Dylan restlessly paced the room he was being held in. Even though his body was tired, his mind refused to let him rest. He couldn't stop worrying about Beka. He had only seen her for a few brief minutes at the bonding ceremony before they were separated again. Those minutes were enough for him to notice the large bruise on her face and several smaller ones on her arms. He clenched his fists in anger. He was unsure how he was going to handle things when the morning came but one thing was sure; he was going to make Tourk pay for hurting Beka. The information Andromeda had relayed from Trance was sketchy at best. He knew he would be forced to fight Tourk in hand-to-hand combat and that it would be a fight to the death but he did not really know anything else. Except that according to Trance "the pit was very deep and very bad". Sitting down on the bed, Dylan buried his head in his hands and sighed. He may have been uncertain of what the morning would bring but he was no longer
uncertain of his feelings for Rebeka Valentine. He loved her and he would die to save her. Unfortunately the only way to save her was to live- to live, and to kill Tourk. Finally exhausted, he fell into a light sleep about three hours before dawn.
Beka woke up with a strangled cry. For the second time that night, her sleep had been interrupted by nightmares of what would take place the next morning. She was unable to forget how happy she been when she had first seen Dylan and Tyr. She was also unable to forget how terrified she had been when Tourk had captured them. Lying back once again she let the tears she had been holding back, flow. For the first time since being brought here, Beka began to think she might not get out of this palace alive. But worse than that her friends might not live either and it would be her fault.
The first thing Tyr noticed as he awoke was the pounding pain in his skull. The second thing he noticed was the complete absence of light. As he tried to sit up he realized he was chained to a table. The chains held his arms and legs firmly in place. A metal collar kept him from moving his head more than a few centimeters. Unable to stay awake, his eyes slowly shut as he slipped back into unconsciousness.
Far below them all, in a small hidden room, a single candle glowed. A glass beaker sat in front of the candle as the room's only occupant carefully measured several different ingredients into the beaker. As the final ingredient was added, a small puff of smoke erupted from the concoction. The liquid turned a bright blue. Taking a small vial from a nearby rack, the person poured the potion into it.
"I will not allow anyone to stop what must happen. My people will survive, no matter what." The person whispered before blowing out the candle and leaving the room.
"Trance, stop right now. This is a big mistake. You should not be doing this." Rev Bem tried to reason with Trance. She was packing things into a small pack, preparing to go down to the planet after the others.
"I have to Rev. You do not realize what these people are capable of. If they have recovered the knowledge of preparing a pit then Dylan's chances of defeating Tourk are practically non-existent."
"And how do you know this Trance?" Holo-Rommie asked.
"I just do."
"That isn't a very good answer." Rev said.
"Maybe not but it's the only one you are going to get." Having said this, Trance pushed passed Rev and headed toward the docking bay.
"Do you think I should notify Dylan that she is coming?" Rommie asked.
"We have no way of knowing if he is unmonitored. We cannot risk the others knowing she is coming. You may want to notify Harper and your avatar though." Rev replied.
"Agreed." Andromeda replied before doing just that.
Trance debated whether she should go straight to the palace or get Harper and Rommie first. Feeling she would need all the help she could get, she headed for the crash site. She was sure they would know she was coming. She arrived at the site approximately three hours before dawn and set down her pod. The first thing she noticed were the unconscious forms lying scattered around the Maru. She made her way to the ship as quickly as possible, stepping over and around the men. Just as she was about to enter the ship one of the Palorians woke up. The first thing the man did when he spied Trance was to begin screaming.
"Demon! Wake up men! The Demons are back!"
He continued screaming as he made his way toward Trance with a large club. He raised the club and took a swing at her head. She quickly ducked and kicked out at him, knocking him down. But the man's screaming had awakened others and they were all getting to their feet. They all had they same reaction when they saw Trance. They reacted with pure hatred and more than a little fear. Just as they were about to attack her in full force, the door to the Maru opened. Rommie walked out and began firing her forcelance at the ground around the men's feet. Trance quickly ran behind Rommie and entered the Maru. Rommie followed her and shut the door as fast as she could. The door had barely closed behind them before the Palorians began heaving stones and other debris at the ship. Even through the closed doors, the two women could hear the men screaming `Demon' over and over again.
"Hello Trance, nice of you to join us. Mind telling us what that was all about?" Harper asked as Rommie and Trance joined him in command.
Dylan restlessly paced the room he was being held in. Even though his body was tired, his mind refused to let him rest. He couldn't stop worrying about Beka. He had only seen her for a few brief minutes at the bonding ceremony before they were separated again. Those minutes were enough for him to notice the large bruise on her face and several smaller ones on her arms. He clenched his fists in anger. He was unsure how he was going to handle things when the morning came but one thing was sure; he was going to make Tourk pay for hurting Beka. The information Andromeda had relayed from Trance was sketchy at best. He knew he would be forced to fight Tourk in hand-to-hand combat and that it would be a fight to the death but he did not really know anything else. Except that according to Trance "the pit was very deep and very bad". Sitting down on the bed, Dylan buried his head in his hands and sighed. He may have been uncertain of what the morning would bring but he was no longer
uncertain of his feelings for Rebeka Valentine. He loved her and he would die to save her. Unfortunately the only way to save her was to live- to live, and to kill Tourk. Finally exhausted, he fell into a light sleep about three hours before dawn.
Beka woke up with a strangled cry. For the second time that night, her sleep had been interrupted by nightmares of what would take place the next morning. She was unable to forget how happy she been when she had first seen Dylan and Tyr. She was also unable to forget how terrified she had been when Tourk had captured them. Lying back once again she let the tears she had been holding back, flow. For the first time since being brought here, Beka began to think she might not get out of this palace alive. But worse than that her friends might not live either and it would be her fault.
The first thing Tyr noticed as he awoke was the pounding pain in his skull. The second thing he noticed was the complete absence of light. As he tried to sit up he realized he was chained to a table. The chains held his arms and legs firmly in place. A metal collar kept him from moving his head more than a few centimeters. Unable to stay awake, his eyes slowly shut as he slipped back into unconsciousness.
Far below them all, in a small hidden room, a single candle glowed. A glass beaker sat in front of the candle as the room's only occupant carefully measured several different ingredients into the beaker. As the final ingredient was added, a small puff of smoke erupted from the concoction. The liquid turned a bright blue. Taking a small vial from a nearby rack, the person poured the potion into it.
"I will not allow anyone to stop what must happen. My people will survive, no matter what." The person whispered before blowing out the candle and leaving the room.