Chapter 5, The First Stop
The landscape was nothing more then rolling hills of death and decay. Everything was dust now. There seemed no source of life in this vast wasteland. The scorched earth looked like desert. What used to be great cities looked like lost ruins to him. They talked very little while traveling. They had to focus their entire spirit just to keep moving. -Katana- "We are almost there. Only a couple more hours and we should arrive." Garali's spirit was uplifted for a second, but the fact they weren't there now brought him back down. His arms still looked just as war torn as before and they still felt like they were on fire. -Garali- "Katana, where did the Tamer get its name?" She seemed to hesitate at this question. Almost like she wasn't sure of the answer herself or what he was trying to ask. -Katana- "Dr. Slate was a very intelligent man, but he didn't have a way with giving things names. He named the dampeners what he did because they dampen the spirit, making it undetectable. He also named the Tamers what he did because they tame the spirit. Normally a person's spirit is raging around them and can't be fully utilized. The Tamers tame that force and makes it more focused. Is that what you meant?" He thought it was funny that a genius would give his inventions such simple names. -Garali- "Yes, that is what I wanted to know. I have another question. Why did you kill me when we were sparring?" She hesitated again but this time she seemed angry more then puzzled. -Katana- "You hurt me. The blast to the stomach was rather uncalled for. I guess that, and the fact I couldn't believe someone your age could escape my moves. I over reacted a little but I had to spend my twentieth birthday in the infirmary thanks to you." He felt bad for a second, but then he remembered the even worse pain he had to endure while in Dementia. -Garali- "How can you say such things? Have you ever been in Dementia? How dare you feel sorry for yourself!" She seemed to feel sorry for a second. -Katana- "Okay. I have never felt that before. I've never been in Dementia. Maybe I won't be so hasty next time. I am sorry. I would have felt awful if you hadn't made it out in time. I couldn't live with myself if the first person I saved, I ended up killing. I guess that might be the reason I felt it necessary to save you from that daemon and leave the safety of the transport's dampener." They walked quietly for a while. He wasn't sure how to respond to such an apology. He felt the burning in his arms increase. -Garali- "Ouch!" His arms started sparking now. There were energy bolts flashing across both his tattered arms. Katana turned to see what the mater was. -Katana- "Dam, you really damaged yourself there. Try to hold it together. We don't want the daemons to sense that energy." He tried to focus on controlling the outbursts, but it made his arms hurt even more. Suddenly, she turned to face him again. -Katana- "Stay back!" They were at a ridge now, and she motioned for him to stay behind her. She moved towards the ridge and looked over it. -Garali- "What is it?" -Katana- "It's daemons, a lot of them. I just hope that none of them sense you." He felt his stomach drop. He was in no condition to fight. How many could she take? She backed up a couple of steps. -Katana- "They sensed you! They're coming over the ridge." -Garali- "How many?" -Katana- "Not many, I can take them." Her words sounded confident so he trusted her again. A daemon flew over the ridge, but Katana was ready. She plunged her sword into its underbelly. After suspending it in the air for a couple of seconds, she flung it towards the ground. More daemons came over the ridge and she battled them, blow for blow. She was doing rather effectively. Then, after about ten daemons later, she was thrown beside Garali. She had taken a blow from one of the daemons. -Garali- "Are you okay?" -Katana- "I'll be fine. Only two more stand." She was right. Two daemons stood about to pounce on them only a couple meters away. Katana stood and raised her sword. It started to glow an eerie purple. Those two familiar blasts flew from her blade as the daemons lunged toward them. Both of the daemons were blow far away from the two of them. Katana seemed to have a victory look to her, but only for a few seconds, before she collapsed to the ground. -Garali- "Are you alright?" -Katana-"I'll be fine. I'm just glad that was the last daemon to sense you. The others should have moved on by now." He looked up from her and to his horror; one more daemon came over the ridge. What scared him even more, it looked different. This daemon looked humanoid. It only had two legs and the two scythe-like claws came off of the outside of its arms instead, like weapons. -Daemon- "I will kill you both!" Both Garali and Katana looked at each other with astonishment. -Katana- "You can speak?" -Daemon- "Shut up, I will kill you now." It looked determined, but before it could attack, it jerked its head upwards. It seemed to become frightened. Its mouth opened and a low growl erupted from its throat. To both of their relief and surprise, it decided to turn tail, and run. They couldn't believe what had just happened, but then they heard flapping behind them and their relief vanished once more. Slowly, they both turned their heads to see what scared the daemon off. They both stumbled backwards a couple steps when they saw it. It was another android. This one was much different though. The metal of this one had a gold tint to it and it had two wings that looked like they might belong to some greater being. Slowly, it came down to meet them eye-to-eye. Garali noticed the weapon it carried. Again, it seemed out of the ordinary. It was a green rod, not much longer then one's arm, with a gold five-point start at the end. -Android- "Hello, who are you?" Katana and Garali both seemed to have many questions on their minds. They gave each other looks back and forth before they answered. -Garali- "My name is Garali." -Katana- "And my name is Katana. We are just warriors passing by. We accidentally got separated from the transport ship. We were on our way from the command station delta to command station Beta." He had never heard her give them names before, but apparently, they were necessary now. -Android- "I see. So you will be traveling through the town where I live. I will take you there. You both seem a little hurt to be walking these lands unprotected. By the way, my name is Colleen." Immediately, the only question on Garali's mind was; is she barren also? What is the story behind her? -Katana- "Wait! Can we ask you some questions?" -Colleen- "You can ask as many questions as you wish, as soon as we are safe. Now please, fallow me." She took off into the air again. After about 30 meters, she stopped and turned. -Colleen- "Oh. I forgot. You can't fly without being detected right?" She landed and waited for us to catch up. They walked the rest of the way with no further incident. Garali and Katana could barely move, so talking could wait. Garali was glad to see the dome shape rise up, over the horizon. This one was made entirely of glass, as if it was just quickly built for protection. As they got closer, he could see the hatch that would be to the docking bay. It was not as large or grand as the one in the command station. It was about 4 or 5 meters high and wide. He felt the barrier pass by him and he felt safe again. He worried though. The last few dampeners hadn't really done their job properly. Colleen pushed a button to the right of the hatch, and it opened. He was surprised at the size if the room. It was not anything like the other docking bay. It was room size, maybe no bigger then his room, or even the room he had stayed in during Dementia. There stood only one Tamer, at on side of the room. Colleen took to the Tamer first and the other two waited. It looked as if the android deconstructed around her. Its pieces didn't seem to actually go anywhere; they just went away. She stepped away from the Tamer to let Katana take her place. Colleen looked around eighteen or nineteen years old. It came to him that he must be one of the youngest warriors. Again, the android suit seemed to fall away from her and her normal self came out of the device. He had never had time to actually take note of what the Tamer looked like before. He was always in a rush or eager to move on. Now, he had all the time in the world. It looked similar to a glass tube. It swooshes open as the front moves behind the back half. There are many wires that come off of the device. There was an even larger cord that runs from the top of the device. Around the tube was black machinery, almost like motors or something to that sort. The switch was inside the tube but the door would open and close slow enough so that someone else could hit the switch for you if need be. -Katana- "Don't just stand there, come on." He hadn't noticed they were waiting for him. He stepped into the Tamer and turned on the switch. It felt just as it had when the suit came on except backwards. The heat began across his entire body and the coolness ran from his head down to his feet. He was glad to finally be himself again. The Tamer swooshed open and he fell forward. Once on the ground, he couldn't stand. He felt as if he had no energy and bile was rising in his throat. -Katana- "Come on. You're just not feeling well because you haven't had time to recover from Dementia. You are probably really thirsty and hungry. A good nights sleep will do you well. Oh, and the shot probably made you sick to your stomach too." -Colleen- "Okay, I can take care of you guys for tonight. My house has extra beds and the people here are rather nice to me because I protect them from the daemons." Garali could hardly move and Katana and Colleen were forced to half carry him. The room had another door to it. Colleen, again, pushed the button to its right and it opened. The site surprised him. It wasn't like the base at all. It wasn't even like his home. It was as if a small town had just been placed inside a dome of glass. The buildings looked modern, with their bricks and shingles. -Colleen- "My house is the closest one to the docking bay." She pointed to a house no more then 10 meters to the left of where they stood. It looked no different then the other houses, except it was somewhat larger. Garali was taken inside and placed in front of a table. Everything in the house didn't look at all like what he was used to. He was tried to take in the surroundings but he was too busy keeping himself from throwing up. Katana sat next to him. -Colleen- "I'll get something for us to eat." Garali noticed that, even in all of what he saw, the food was still automated. She brought tones of food to the table. More then he could possible eat. Once Colleen had sat down, the questions commenced. Garali was too busy stuffing his face to add any comments but he listened just as hard. -Katana- "Okay, can I ask you some questions now?" -Colleen- "Sure, what do you want to know?" -Katana- "Well, can you explain how you got to become a warrior?" -Colleen- "Oh, you want my story huh? All right, we have time. It was about two and a half years when the daemons came. I caught wind of talk of sending women off to be child bearers. Apparently, 16 was the minimal age, and I had just turned 16 a couple of months earlier. I didn't like the idea of being used for 5 years. I still had time though; they weren't going to pick the women up for a couple more months. I started researching the new tamer and dampener devices. I learned about how they work and all the theories behind them. When it was a couple weeks before they arrived, I decided to run away. Leaving the Dampeners would be dangerous, so I decided that I would use the Tamer. I snuck into the docking bay and used the device. I used the wrong one though and my body was left inside the bay. My escape was futile but I didn't know. I ran for all I was worth, but I didn't have a warrior's spirit at that time. Unlike what you saw me in before, my suit was a flimsy, mistake for an android. I could barely move but I was determined to find a way out. After a couple of hours, I was attacked by daemons. Apparently, I didn't have enough strength to put up Dampeners. I was killed and put into Dementia. After I awoke, they were going to give me a couple of days to recover. They still insisted on sending me away. I snuck out again. I couldn't even hear so they didn't expect me to do something like that. I found the Tamers again. This time, it was different though. I had wings, and a staff, and I could move with such ease. The doctors said that my spirit must have found new power when recovering from Dementia. They were planning on sending me to a command station, but I refused. I still didn't want to be used. Instead, I decided to stay here and protect this town. They tried to persuade me otherwise, but I stuck to my guns and they gave up. They say that my model of the android is at a different level then all the others. Since I can fly without using spirit energy, I can keep my dampeners up at all times." Garali stopped chewing to ask a question. -Garali- "So, you aren't barren then?" -Colleen- "What?" -Garali- "You can have children then?" -Colleen- "I know that. What exactly are you getting at here?" -Garali- "No, never mind. I'll just keep eating." He felt his face turn red and he figured he could hide it with food. -Katana- "He is just curious because my reason for being outside the New World Program is because I am barren." Again, she used an official term he had never heard her use before. The New World Program: it must be the law forcing the women to repopulate the planet. He was curious why she wouldn't just use these terms the first time she explained everything. -Colleen- "Oh, I'm sorry then." -Katana- "No, it is quiet alright. I got one other question. What was with that Daemon? Do you know anything about it?" -Colleen- "Yes, I know him. He is always around here, stirring up trouble. He can talk and he says there are other daemons that can talk, just like him. Mostly there are only the dumb, life sensing daemons, but some are smarter. Some of the daemons are special, they can think and plan." -Katana- "You have conversations with this daemon?" -Colleen- "No, not really. He usually just says things when we are fighting. He is always trying to lure me into a trap. He hates how stupid the other daemons are. I would say he is rather strong, but I win every time. He always finds some way of slipping off before I can finish him off." -Katana- "Has he said anything of use? Anything that could show weakness or give us an edge?" -Colleen- "Well besides the fact that most of the daemons are really stupid, no. He usually just complains and taunts a lot." Garali was finally getting full. He had never eaten so much food in his life. -Garali- "Okay, I am full now. Thanks for everything. It was fantastic." -Katana- "If you are done eating, then you should probably get some rest. We have a big day, and I would like you as recovered as possible." -Colleen- "I'll show you to your room." He got up and almost fell over. He still needed to be half carried. Colleen took him up the stares to a second floor. He was given the closest room on the left. -Colleen- "We will be down stares for a while still if you need anything." She left back down the stares and he collapsed onto the bed. It was not like the bed he was used to. This one was much softer and he fell asleep almost immediately. He had just enough time to wonder what they were talking about while he slept away his pain.
The landscape was nothing more then rolling hills of death and decay. Everything was dust now. There seemed no source of life in this vast wasteland. The scorched earth looked like desert. What used to be great cities looked like lost ruins to him. They talked very little while traveling. They had to focus their entire spirit just to keep moving. -Katana- "We are almost there. Only a couple more hours and we should arrive." Garali's spirit was uplifted for a second, but the fact they weren't there now brought him back down. His arms still looked just as war torn as before and they still felt like they were on fire. -Garali- "Katana, where did the Tamer get its name?" She seemed to hesitate at this question. Almost like she wasn't sure of the answer herself or what he was trying to ask. -Katana- "Dr. Slate was a very intelligent man, but he didn't have a way with giving things names. He named the dampeners what he did because they dampen the spirit, making it undetectable. He also named the Tamers what he did because they tame the spirit. Normally a person's spirit is raging around them and can't be fully utilized. The Tamers tame that force and makes it more focused. Is that what you meant?" He thought it was funny that a genius would give his inventions such simple names. -Garali- "Yes, that is what I wanted to know. I have another question. Why did you kill me when we were sparring?" She hesitated again but this time she seemed angry more then puzzled. -Katana- "You hurt me. The blast to the stomach was rather uncalled for. I guess that, and the fact I couldn't believe someone your age could escape my moves. I over reacted a little but I had to spend my twentieth birthday in the infirmary thanks to you." He felt bad for a second, but then he remembered the even worse pain he had to endure while in Dementia. -Garali- "How can you say such things? Have you ever been in Dementia? How dare you feel sorry for yourself!" She seemed to feel sorry for a second. -Katana- "Okay. I have never felt that before. I've never been in Dementia. Maybe I won't be so hasty next time. I am sorry. I would have felt awful if you hadn't made it out in time. I couldn't live with myself if the first person I saved, I ended up killing. I guess that might be the reason I felt it necessary to save you from that daemon and leave the safety of the transport's dampener." They walked quietly for a while. He wasn't sure how to respond to such an apology. He felt the burning in his arms increase. -Garali- "Ouch!" His arms started sparking now. There were energy bolts flashing across both his tattered arms. Katana turned to see what the mater was. -Katana- "Dam, you really damaged yourself there. Try to hold it together. We don't want the daemons to sense that energy." He tried to focus on controlling the outbursts, but it made his arms hurt even more. Suddenly, she turned to face him again. -Katana- "Stay back!" They were at a ridge now, and she motioned for him to stay behind her. She moved towards the ridge and looked over it. -Garali- "What is it?" -Katana- "It's daemons, a lot of them. I just hope that none of them sense you." He felt his stomach drop. He was in no condition to fight. How many could she take? She backed up a couple of steps. -Katana- "They sensed you! They're coming over the ridge." -Garali- "How many?" -Katana- "Not many, I can take them." Her words sounded confident so he trusted her again. A daemon flew over the ridge, but Katana was ready. She plunged her sword into its underbelly. After suspending it in the air for a couple of seconds, she flung it towards the ground. More daemons came over the ridge and she battled them, blow for blow. She was doing rather effectively. Then, after about ten daemons later, she was thrown beside Garali. She had taken a blow from one of the daemons. -Garali- "Are you okay?" -Katana- "I'll be fine. Only two more stand." She was right. Two daemons stood about to pounce on them only a couple meters away. Katana stood and raised her sword. It started to glow an eerie purple. Those two familiar blasts flew from her blade as the daemons lunged toward them. Both of the daemons were blow far away from the two of them. Katana seemed to have a victory look to her, but only for a few seconds, before she collapsed to the ground. -Garali- "Are you alright?" -Katana-"I'll be fine. I'm just glad that was the last daemon to sense you. The others should have moved on by now." He looked up from her and to his horror; one more daemon came over the ridge. What scared him even more, it looked different. This daemon looked humanoid. It only had two legs and the two scythe-like claws came off of the outside of its arms instead, like weapons. -Daemon- "I will kill you both!" Both Garali and Katana looked at each other with astonishment. -Katana- "You can speak?" -Daemon- "Shut up, I will kill you now." It looked determined, but before it could attack, it jerked its head upwards. It seemed to become frightened. Its mouth opened and a low growl erupted from its throat. To both of their relief and surprise, it decided to turn tail, and run. They couldn't believe what had just happened, but then they heard flapping behind them and their relief vanished once more. Slowly, they both turned their heads to see what scared the daemon off. They both stumbled backwards a couple steps when they saw it. It was another android. This one was much different though. The metal of this one had a gold tint to it and it had two wings that looked like they might belong to some greater being. Slowly, it came down to meet them eye-to-eye. Garali noticed the weapon it carried. Again, it seemed out of the ordinary. It was a green rod, not much longer then one's arm, with a gold five-point start at the end. -Android- "Hello, who are you?" Katana and Garali both seemed to have many questions on their minds. They gave each other looks back and forth before they answered. -Garali- "My name is Garali." -Katana- "And my name is Katana. We are just warriors passing by. We accidentally got separated from the transport ship. We were on our way from the command station delta to command station Beta." He had never heard her give them names before, but apparently, they were necessary now. -Android- "I see. So you will be traveling through the town where I live. I will take you there. You both seem a little hurt to be walking these lands unprotected. By the way, my name is Colleen." Immediately, the only question on Garali's mind was; is she barren also? What is the story behind her? -Katana- "Wait! Can we ask you some questions?" -Colleen- "You can ask as many questions as you wish, as soon as we are safe. Now please, fallow me." She took off into the air again. After about 30 meters, she stopped and turned. -Colleen- "Oh. I forgot. You can't fly without being detected right?" She landed and waited for us to catch up. They walked the rest of the way with no further incident. Garali and Katana could barely move, so talking could wait. Garali was glad to see the dome shape rise up, over the horizon. This one was made entirely of glass, as if it was just quickly built for protection. As they got closer, he could see the hatch that would be to the docking bay. It was not as large or grand as the one in the command station. It was about 4 or 5 meters high and wide. He felt the barrier pass by him and he felt safe again. He worried though. The last few dampeners hadn't really done their job properly. Colleen pushed a button to the right of the hatch, and it opened. He was surprised at the size if the room. It was not anything like the other docking bay. It was room size, maybe no bigger then his room, or even the room he had stayed in during Dementia. There stood only one Tamer, at on side of the room. Colleen took to the Tamer first and the other two waited. It looked as if the android deconstructed around her. Its pieces didn't seem to actually go anywhere; they just went away. She stepped away from the Tamer to let Katana take her place. Colleen looked around eighteen or nineteen years old. It came to him that he must be one of the youngest warriors. Again, the android suit seemed to fall away from her and her normal self came out of the device. He had never had time to actually take note of what the Tamer looked like before. He was always in a rush or eager to move on. Now, he had all the time in the world. It looked similar to a glass tube. It swooshes open as the front moves behind the back half. There are many wires that come off of the device. There was an even larger cord that runs from the top of the device. Around the tube was black machinery, almost like motors or something to that sort. The switch was inside the tube but the door would open and close slow enough so that someone else could hit the switch for you if need be. -Katana- "Don't just stand there, come on." He hadn't noticed they were waiting for him. He stepped into the Tamer and turned on the switch. It felt just as it had when the suit came on except backwards. The heat began across his entire body and the coolness ran from his head down to his feet. He was glad to finally be himself again. The Tamer swooshed open and he fell forward. Once on the ground, he couldn't stand. He felt as if he had no energy and bile was rising in his throat. -Katana- "Come on. You're just not feeling well because you haven't had time to recover from Dementia. You are probably really thirsty and hungry. A good nights sleep will do you well. Oh, and the shot probably made you sick to your stomach too." -Colleen- "Okay, I can take care of you guys for tonight. My house has extra beds and the people here are rather nice to me because I protect them from the daemons." Garali could hardly move and Katana and Colleen were forced to half carry him. The room had another door to it. Colleen, again, pushed the button to its right and it opened. The site surprised him. It wasn't like the base at all. It wasn't even like his home. It was as if a small town had just been placed inside a dome of glass. The buildings looked modern, with their bricks and shingles. -Colleen- "My house is the closest one to the docking bay." She pointed to a house no more then 10 meters to the left of where they stood. It looked no different then the other houses, except it was somewhat larger. Garali was taken inside and placed in front of a table. Everything in the house didn't look at all like what he was used to. He was tried to take in the surroundings but he was too busy keeping himself from throwing up. Katana sat next to him. -Colleen- "I'll get something for us to eat." Garali noticed that, even in all of what he saw, the food was still automated. She brought tones of food to the table. More then he could possible eat. Once Colleen had sat down, the questions commenced. Garali was too busy stuffing his face to add any comments but he listened just as hard. -Katana- "Okay, can I ask you some questions now?" -Colleen- "Sure, what do you want to know?" -Katana- "Well, can you explain how you got to become a warrior?" -Colleen- "Oh, you want my story huh? All right, we have time. It was about two and a half years when the daemons came. I caught wind of talk of sending women off to be child bearers. Apparently, 16 was the minimal age, and I had just turned 16 a couple of months earlier. I didn't like the idea of being used for 5 years. I still had time though; they weren't going to pick the women up for a couple more months. I started researching the new tamer and dampener devices. I learned about how they work and all the theories behind them. When it was a couple weeks before they arrived, I decided to run away. Leaving the Dampeners would be dangerous, so I decided that I would use the Tamer. I snuck into the docking bay and used the device. I used the wrong one though and my body was left inside the bay. My escape was futile but I didn't know. I ran for all I was worth, but I didn't have a warrior's spirit at that time. Unlike what you saw me in before, my suit was a flimsy, mistake for an android. I could barely move but I was determined to find a way out. After a couple of hours, I was attacked by daemons. Apparently, I didn't have enough strength to put up Dampeners. I was killed and put into Dementia. After I awoke, they were going to give me a couple of days to recover. They still insisted on sending me away. I snuck out again. I couldn't even hear so they didn't expect me to do something like that. I found the Tamers again. This time, it was different though. I had wings, and a staff, and I could move with such ease. The doctors said that my spirit must have found new power when recovering from Dementia. They were planning on sending me to a command station, but I refused. I still didn't want to be used. Instead, I decided to stay here and protect this town. They tried to persuade me otherwise, but I stuck to my guns and they gave up. They say that my model of the android is at a different level then all the others. Since I can fly without using spirit energy, I can keep my dampeners up at all times." Garali stopped chewing to ask a question. -Garali- "So, you aren't barren then?" -Colleen- "What?" -Garali- "You can have children then?" -Colleen- "I know that. What exactly are you getting at here?" -Garali- "No, never mind. I'll just keep eating." He felt his face turn red and he figured he could hide it with food. -Katana- "He is just curious because my reason for being outside the New World Program is because I am barren." Again, she used an official term he had never heard her use before. The New World Program: it must be the law forcing the women to repopulate the planet. He was curious why she wouldn't just use these terms the first time she explained everything. -Colleen- "Oh, I'm sorry then." -Katana- "No, it is quiet alright. I got one other question. What was with that Daemon? Do you know anything about it?" -Colleen- "Yes, I know him. He is always around here, stirring up trouble. He can talk and he says there are other daemons that can talk, just like him. Mostly there are only the dumb, life sensing daemons, but some are smarter. Some of the daemons are special, they can think and plan." -Katana- "You have conversations with this daemon?" -Colleen- "No, not really. He usually just says things when we are fighting. He is always trying to lure me into a trap. He hates how stupid the other daemons are. I would say he is rather strong, but I win every time. He always finds some way of slipping off before I can finish him off." -Katana- "Has he said anything of use? Anything that could show weakness or give us an edge?" -Colleen- "Well besides the fact that most of the daemons are really stupid, no. He usually just complains and taunts a lot." Garali was finally getting full. He had never eaten so much food in his life. -Garali- "Okay, I am full now. Thanks for everything. It was fantastic." -Katana- "If you are done eating, then you should probably get some rest. We have a big day, and I would like you as recovered as possible." -Colleen- "I'll show you to your room." He got up and almost fell over. He still needed to be half carried. Colleen took him up the stares to a second floor. He was given the closest room on the left. -Colleen- "We will be down stares for a while still if you need anything." She left back down the stares and he collapsed onto the bed. It was not like the bed he was used to. This one was much softer and he fell asleep almost immediately. He had just enough time to wonder what they were talking about while he slept away his pain.