Ardeth heard the gun click and he quickly stood up.

"Catlanda, watch out!" he cried a split second before the triggor was pulled.

There was little thinking as the two heard his cries. They heard the gun from the back of the room and the bullet heading right for them.

"Spire, shield!" she cried above the screams as she instinctively raised her arms.

The yellow eyes glowed from on the table. The bullet was knocked from its current path to the window, where it shattered it into pieces. Pyram growled at the new development as he watched Ardeth hurry up to Catlanda. He held onto her shoulders as she held onto the Spire with a death grip.

"Are you alright?" he frantically asked her.

She nodded her head as she gave him a hug.

"She knows now to use it and well for that matter," he whispered to himself as he lowered the gun.

The kids began to quickly mill out of the room as Pyram's men began to hurry in. Rick stationed himself near the Medjai as Alex ran over to his mother and uncle. Erin and Kari were clinging to each other for dear life, unable to move. The men aimed their guns at the small group of four. Ardeth held Catlanda close to him. Marok and Rick were both prepared.

"What's this? Four of you against several of us? How pathetic! And it is you Ardeth after all. It's so nice to see you again after all this time. It will be a pleasure to finally kill you," Pyram commented, laughter tracing his voice.

Ardeth growled himself.

"What is he talking about? Ardeth?" asked Rick.

"I thought I recognized him. He is Pyram and is part of the same group of mauraders as Laron and the men we encountered last year. I met him several years ago when we met out in the desert and dueled for a bit before a sandstorm came upon us. I thought I saw him die then and there," Ardeth explained.

"We were after the Spire, which we'll get now," Pyram replied before pointing a gun at Catlanda. "Or she will die."

"You will not get it. Not now, not ever," Marok told them.

"She will never give it to you scumbags," Rick told them.

Pyram glanced behind him at the men.

"I do not think so. You are vastly outnumbered," he said with a smile.

The three men in the small group stood their ground before the first of the bullets were fired. Ardeth pushed Catlanda to the ground, the bullets flying past his head and he fell hard onto his severely injured shoulder. He gasped in pain and held onto his shoulder as he laid on the floor. Catlanda stood over him, protecting him. Pyram hurried over to her and he pulled out his sword.

"This is real funny. The leader of the Medjai being protected by a woman," Pyram said, laughing.

"It's funny to you but dead serious to us," gasped Catlanda, holding out the Spire.

The two blocked each others attacks before she knocked him to the floor. She raised the Spire over her head.

"You will pay for what you've done my people," she told him angrily.

Next thing she knew, she was looking at the floor and a gun was pointed at her back.

"Don't move or die," the man ordered her. "Now give up the Spire."

Her grip around the Spire loosened and she fell into semi-consciousness. The man picked it up and cheered. Ardeth couldn't help but watch the scene play out before him. He slowly moved away, his hand slightly blood from his shoulder, but was stopped by a stinging and painful sensation in the lower part of his leg. He looked to see that Pyram grabbed a large piece of glass and shoved it into his leg. He was raking it downward. Ardeth tried to hold back the cry of pain as best as he could before the glass was taken out, then he cried out. He tried to scramble away but was unable to. Pyram stood up as he watched Ardeth start to bleed on the floor and hold onto his painful shoulder.

"Now, you are mine and you cannot stop me," he laughed as he stepped on the Medjai's shoulder.

Ardeth cried out even louder.

00000

Rick and Marok were doing better with their battle. The American shot down some more men before heading to help Marok, who finished the men before him.

"How're you doing?" asked Rick.

"Fine. How're you doing?" Marok replied.

"I've been better than being attacked in a school," he replied.

"Well, let's go help Ardeth and Catlanda," suggested Marok.

Their jaws dropped to their floor when they saw the scene before them of Ardeth and Catlanda on the floor. She was partly conscious and he was terribly bleeding from yet another wound, this one coming from the leg.

"Oh man are you going to get it, hurting my friend like that," Rick snarled at Pyram, whose stare went to him.

"Oh, it's only you O'Connell. You're pathetic," he said, who was now heading towards him.

"Noone calls me pathetic and gets away with it," Rick told him as he lifted his guns.

Marok rushed to Ardeth's side as Pyram was distracted by Rick. He saw the gaping wound in his leg and Isis sitting by his side, whimpering. Ardeth was close to the point of unconsciouness again as Marok tried to stop the bleeding.

"I can't believe you're taking all this torture Ardeth. It's unbelievable," he whispered.

Erin watched as Pyram was now facing off against Rick when she saw Ms. Langrid out of the corner of her eye attacking Evie and Alex. She held Evie by the collar against the wall.

"Mom!" cried Alex.

"Thank you for raising such a gullible son and leading the Spire right to us," thanked Caroline with a huge smile on her face.

"You're not welcome," retorted Evie, trying to free herself.

Jonathan put his arms around the woman's neck and pulled her away from his sister.

"Get away from her," he told her.

The teacher struggled to free herself from his grasp.

"Someone help me here," he pleaded.

Kari quickly grabbed the woman's feet and the two soon had her pinned to the ground. Erin took this opportunity to run over the female Medjai, who was slowly getting to her feet. She frantically looked for the Spire as she became fully aware.

"They have it," Erin told her, causing her to groan.

Evie watched the man who had it. He had his back to her as she quietly walked up behind him and she grabbed it out of his hands. Evie proceeded to hit the man over the head with it before he could do anything else.

"Not anymore they don't," Evie said, holding tightly onto it.

Rick circled around with Pyram doing the same thing. Pyram was laughing.

"Try as you might. You won't defeat me. Ardeth had the chance to and even he couldn't do it. What makes you think you can?" he asked.

"A unknown strategy," Rick replied with a smile.

"And what exactly is your strategy?" wondered the robed man.

"Like I'm telling you," the American replied the smile turning into a grin.

Isis came up from behind him and bit Pyram in the leg, causing him to scream and fall to the floor. Rick walked up to him as she loosened her grasp.

"Now that was my plan. Now you can't go anywhere except for jail for attacking Ardeth and Catlanda," Rick told him, turning away. "Isis, keep an eye on him."

He hurried up to Ardeth as Isis licked her lips, keeping an ever watchful eye on her prisoner. Pyram gasped when he saw what he thought was a smile...

Catlanda were already present at the scene and at Ardeth's side. The Medjai was shaking all over from the blood he already lost. She and Marok were frantically trying to stop the flow of blood from the wound.

"Oh god, please don't leave me now," Catlanda whispered, the tears flowing freely down her face.

TBC...