Mia hummed as she cheerfully loaded the picnic basket, her blond hair swinging freely around her shoulders, her blue eyes bright with excitement. The Thermisens commissioned cloth was finally finished and she was feeling justifiably proud of herself. Their request had been difficult and she had far exceeded her own expectations. Today's outing would be a celebration.
Dancing to her own humming, she left the kitchen, passing Nepehi's work table on her way up the stairs to their loft-bedroom. Knowing she had successfully distracted her mate, she added an extra swing to her hips as she danced, giving him a nice show as reward for preferring to watch her over his clock. She loved it when he couldn't keep his eyes off her. She was glad he couldn't see her smug look of satisfaction as she disappeared into their room.
Shedya was awake in his crib and smiled with dark grey lips, giggling and kicking his feet when he saw his mother. She scooped him into her arms, nuzzling his rosy pink cheek. A chubby pink hand grabbed her hair, tangling black fingernails in the blond curls.
"Ouch, little boy! Your grip is getting stronger!"
His black eyes sparkled in merriment as she juggled holding him with one hand, trying to untangle her hair and loosen his grip with the other. It took a moment, but finally she was free and she placed him back in his crib in an effort to keep him out of mischief while she prepared for their outing.
The low rumbling in the distance started so quietly, Mia didn't notice the change. But the noise grew louder, slowly moving closer and she finally registered the foreboding familiar sound. Her heart raced as the first pounding shots rained down around the village. Not again! Was there nowhere they could live safely? Nearing panic, she ran to the landing yelling Nepehi's name, only to find him halfway up the stairs.
"They're back, they've found us!" she cried. "There was no warning! There's always a warning. None of us will make it to the transports in time! This place was supposed to be different!"
"Calm down Mia. We've got to stay calm! We have Shedya to think of this time. We've planned for this. Can you help me?"
She forced herself to calm down, knowing he was right. She needed to think rationally right now. Prepare Shedya. She knew what to do; she had drilled for this very occurrence several times. If nothing else, Nepehi was always prepared. Waving to him to let him know she'd gotten herself under control, she rushed into their room.
The ground shook and the walls rattled with each pounding blast of weaponry. Not as many would make it out this time. Their little community usually had more warning for evacuation. They had all grown complacent, thinking they'd finally found a home that would accept them. They should have known better.
Ripping open a drawer, she yanked out a vial of yellow liquid and an injector. Everything was pre-measured, so all she had to do was place the vial in the applicator and inject her baby.
She felt bad for Shedya; he'd just woken from his nap. But for what lay ahead, they couldn't afford for the infant to start crying. Everything from this moment on depended on stealth. As her son's eyes drooped closed, a new confidence surged through her, filling her with optimism. They'd done this before, they could do it again.
She heard their front door crash open and she peeked into the common room to find Nepehi surrounded by three black suited Peacekeeper soldiers, all holding pulse rifles. One kept his weapon trained on the Nebari, while the other two began searching the room.
"Where's your Sebacean wife?" one of the soldiers demanded. Their intelligence was more complete this time. It was amazing what some would be willing to pay to wipe out competition, especially abominations such as their community. She knew these soldiers would take immense personal satisfaction in killing them, given the slightest provocation.
"That tralk left me last weeken," Nepehi responded. That was her cue. She needed to quit wasting time. He had put his own life in jeopardy to save theirs, and the only way she could hope they'd all get out alive, was to not be seen when the soldiers came looking.
Snatching Shedya into her arms, she quietly loosened a board in their wall, exposing a small nook big enough for her and Nepehi to crouch in. It would be comparably roomy without him, and she realized she preferred the hiding space when it was cramped with both their bodies. Replacing the board, their niche was undetectable. Nepehi was an excellent craftsman.
The only light was one small crack between the boards, which gave her a partial view of the Common Room. She could see the movement of two soldiers, and luckily, she had a full view of her mate. He was calm, and his demeanor gave her strength. He had always been her strength. Their voices were muffled and she couldn't hear the interrogation, which was becoming more aggressive.
Heavy, measured footsteps ascended the staircase, punctuated by the sound of blasts outside. Ironically, as long as the soldiers were in their house, they were fairly safe from Prowler fire. Slowly they came closer and she counted off each step. Seven, eight, nine...
She heard their bedroom door slam open, and a single set of loud footsteps slowly circled the room. They paused by the bed, the crib, the closet. She pictured the soldier looking under and around each. When they passed her hiding space they paused. She held her breath, willing the soldier to move on.
To her horror, the grunt began tapping the walls with the butt of his rifle, checking for variances in sound. Evidently, the Peacekeepers had learned their tactics. But Nepehi had prepared for that as well, and constructed the walls to sound the same. She didn't know how he'd managed that, and right now, she only had enough thought to thank him in her heart for his foresight.
Keeping one eye on the crack in the wall and one ear to the soldier in the room, she tried to keep track of everything that was happening. The soldier had moved on, continuing their thorough search. She thanked whatever deity that had prevented those butchers from bringing scent trackers, and made a note that the same mistake would probably not happen next time.
Downstairs, one soldier was ransacking the food preparation room, the other keeping guard over the silent Nebari. The sounds of destruction began in her room, and she knew that the crib her mate had taken six monens to hand carve was becoming decimated. At least Shedya wasn't in it.
Mia held her infant snugly in her arms, comforting herself with his warm bulk as her beloved house turned to rubble around her. Abruptly, the mayhem ceased, and for several microts, the only sound was the continuing pulse blasts outside. Then, to her horror, she saw Nepehi grabbed by two soldiers, shoved to his knees and a pistol shoved against the back of his neck.
One of the guards leaned down, whispering something in his ear. She heard him spit at the soldier, yelling, "I told you, they're not here! You already searched!"
Those were the last words he would ever speak. Before the sentence was finished, a single pulse blast echoed throughout the entire house, to Mia, drowning out the sounds of the cannons outside. Time slowed and she felt that it took her beloved forever to fall from his knees to the floor.
She almost cried out. She almost ran from her hiding place to avenge her husband. She wanted to kill them all. But she was alone, weaponless, powerless, and she had her baby in her arms. Now the infant was all that she had left of Nepehi, and she vowed to do whatever was needed took to save him.
To her surprise, one soldier lifted her mate into their arms and carried him outside. She had no idea where they were taking him, and silently called farewell to his retreating form.
The upstairs soldier had evidently finished his task, because he had joined the remaining soldier downstairs, and the two were dumping lantern fuel over the entire room, concentrating on her loom and Nepehi's carving and repair tools. Numbly, she watched as everything left that she had held dear was soaked, knowing what the outcome would be.
That hadn't been her first loom, she reminded herself, trying to keep her thoughts coherent in her grief. She could always replace it, unlike her greatest loss. She choked on a silent sob as her mind returned to the love of her life. She still had her baby. Keep thinking about him, and the life he still had yet to live.
One pulse blast ignited the fuel and the two soldiers quickly escaped through the front door. Already, acrid smoke filled the Common Room, but Mia didn't dare move until she felt sure the soldiers had left. At last, she kicked the panel, sending their camouflage across the room.
A new determination filled her. Nepehi wasn't here to give her direction, but she found that her mind moved quickly, thinking of things he'd taught her in the past. Grabbing her wicker carrying bag, she dumped the spare thread and weaving materials onto their bed. She grabbed the Thermisens' new cloth and hastily covered the bottom, gently placing her son on the material. Luckily, his bag of nutrient supplements and diapers had been prepared, and she shoved that in as well, ensuring his face was not covered, but concealing his body. Putting one arm and her head through the handles, the bag was now nestled across her belly. She was as ready as she was going to get.
Opening the door to the loft produced a face full of black smoke. Slamming the door, she ran to the other side of the room to the only other exit, a small window barely large enough for her to crawl through. It was the only way.
---------------------------------------
The low rumbling in the distance was merely background noise, the kind she had gotten used to filtering away as unimportant when they were on planets. But the incessant noise became increasingly louder, closer, and harder to ignore.
"D'Argo, something is headed this way; maybe we should get out of here," she said interrupting his description of a hand crafted necklace. He had brought her to this system-renowned Market Street in an effort to cheer her, and he had been uncharacteristically descriptive. She'd been feeling guilty about deceiving him, but now her thoughts were turning to the problem at hand, unsure exactly of what that was.
A blast exploded somewhere off to her left, causing a loud repercussion throughout the crowd. Instinctively, she dropped to the ground, ensuring constant contact with D'Argo. "What's happening?" she yelled to be heard over the explosions and the screaming.
"Frelling Peacekeepers!" was D'Argo's response. She felt his hand on her arm, urging her to crawl forword. "Stay with me!" She didn't need to be told twice.
Noise surrounded her. Screaming, pulse blasts, buildings demolishing on all sides of them became a cacophony of sound, making her wish she could childishly cover her ears to keep it away. It reminded her of the time she'd been stuck in Pilot's body. All the sensations were nearly overwhelming.
Surprisingly, she was able to use the memory of the brief time as Moya's navigator to concentrate. The previous training allowed her to shut out unwanted static, enabling her to concentrate on D'Argo and the instructions he was conveying as they crawled and stopped, crawled and stopped.
Now they were running, with D'Argo behind her telling her when to turn right or left, slow down, speed up. She was out of breath, her ears aching from a blast that had landed five denches from her left ear. Her cheek burned from the rocks that had been splattered over her face.
She knew D'Argo was firing his Qualta Blade, and from the grunting and thudding of unknown assailants, had a nasty suspicion he was occasionally using the weapon in hand to hand combat. But she was disoriented without D'Argo's running commentary and, arms outstretched, tried to continue on. What she would give for a pulse rifle and her eyesight right now!
Smoke began filling her lungs and she could smell fire burning nearby, though she couldn't feel the heat of the flames yet.
An unfamiliar arm grabbed her from behind, and all her instincts took over. Her elbow connected with a stomach, eliciting a grunt and a wheezy "Frelling tralk!" from her attacker. Her fisted hand connected with the face behind the voice and she kicked her foot in the general area of where most mivonks would be located on bipedal males. Sure enough, a harsh intake of breath and a moan preceded a thump to the ground.
She smiled to herself, dusting her hands, before D'Argo grabbed her arm, dragging her forward once again. A reverberating screech sailed through the air above them, exploding what had probably been a building next to them. Rock, mortar, shrapnel flew. Chiana felt herself lifted from the ground and counted to ten mippippippi before the ground connected with her body. She felt something in her leg snap, felt the crack of her head against the concrete, and then all went silent.
Chiana realized she must have passed out, for the sounds around her now were markedly different. D'Argo must have carried her to another location. "D'Argo!" she called out, wanting his voice as reassurance. Her call had been drowned by pulse shots, so she tried again. "D'Argo!" she called louder. He didn't respond.
She tried to sit up, but a bout of dizziness sent her back to the ground. She tried to crawl, but searing pain shot up the leg she initially tried to push off with.
She began to panic. For a split microt she was terrified that he had left her too, considering her to be great a burden, but instantly felt ashamed. He was the one individual in the universe who would never leave her. His loyalty was unquestionable.
"D'Argo! Answer me!' she screamed, beginning to realize how alone and desperate she was without him there to help her. He must be hurt, which scared her worse than the battle raging around her.
"Help!" At first she wasn't sure if she'd heard right, but the desperate gurgling plea called again. "Please, help me!"
It was a woman. Chiana had to laugh in the chaos surrounding her. A desperate woman was calling for help to a crippled blind woman. How frelled was that?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
As she lay on the rubble that had once been a neighbor's home, Mia recognized that she was dying. Gratitude warred with desperation. She wouldn't have to endure this existence without Nepehi, but she had failed Shedya. She'd been so close.
After crawling out her window and scaling down her wall, she'd landed on the ground, mapping in her mind the route to the escape pods. Pulling her bag around so that Shedya was nestled against her back, she constantly kept him between a wall and her body as she sneaked around buildings, avoiding troops, ducking pulse blasts from overhead Prowlers.
She hadn't been stealthy enough, and when the soldier emerged from around a corner, she was unprepared. The female soldier shot her twice in the stomach before running in another direction, not bothering to wait for the results.
At first, Mia only felt a painful burning, but after several microts, even that stopped. She knew she had a gaping hole in her mid-section, had seen her insides herself. But her mind had mercilessly shut down her pain receptors, and she was able to stagger forward, her mind now solely on getting Shedya to the awaiting pods.
Holding her guts in, she'd managed to travel several blocks before the loss of blood made her weak enough to fall to the ground. Even then, she made sure to fall forward, so as not to land on her infant. She had to save him. He was all that remained of Nepehi.
Summoning a reserve of strength she'd been unaware she'd possessed, she began to crawl on her hands and knees, promising herself that she could make it, demanding of herself that she reach safety.
But willpower was not enough, and now she lay in rubble, having had only enough strength left to lift the large wicker bag from around her shoulders and lay it beside her in the crude shelter of some large stones.
All she could do now was watch the battle around her, ignored as dead by the enemy and others trying to escape. When she saw Nepehi with a Luxan across the street, she almost rejoiced, before realizing the Nebari was a woman. The Luxan yelled something and the Nebari ducked, just in time for a pulse blast to land where her head had been. Rocks sprayed over the woman, and she visibly flinched, but continued on.
Three unhelmeted Peacekeepers ambushed them and the Luxan boldly fought two, while one went after the Nebari. She had him on the ground whimpering in microts, and Mia took special pleasure in watching the man writhe in agony. Instantly, she loved this Nebari woman and silently cheered her on, wishing her the best. If only she was closer, she'd beg the woman to take Shedya. Who better for her baby?
Once again the Luxan and Nebari began to run, but a Prowler cannon fired, hitting the building directly behind the two escaping. She watched as the two flew through the air, landing metras from their staring point and several metras apart from each other. Neither was moving.
Mia nearly despaired for the two; they deserved to survive. But then, after several hundred microts, the woman began to stir. The Nebari tried to sit up, but fell back, and had been calling to her companion. Now was Mia's only chance to get the attention of the female warrior.
-----------------------------------------------------------
The gurgling cry for help called once again. Chiana had tried to ignore it, there was nothing she could do, but the pain and desperation in the woman's voice clawed at her heart. She had to do something.
"Where are you?" she yelled. "Tell me where you are!"
"Behind... you, across... the street," was the weak response.
"Is there anything between us?"
"Some small... rubble."
"Keep talkin' lady! Let me follow your voice!" An explosion blasted nearby, and Chiana recoiled, arms futilely covering her head. When she was able to think clearly again, she began to pull herself in the direction the woman's voice had originated.
Mindful of her injured leg, she pushed with the other, pulling with her arms. Pain sliced from her ankle to her hip, throbbing and taking away her breath. Gritting her teeth, she forged on. How she was supposed to help this woman, she didn't know. But she was going to try, and crossing this street was the first step.
"Play... dead!" came a haggard cry and instantly, Chiana stopped crawling, sprawled uncomfortably across some crushed bricks. She slowed her breathing, leaving her eyes open, trying not to blink.
Within microts, a large group of heavy footsteps could be heard approaching. One set of footsteps broke away from the troop, and Chiana listened as they grew closer. When they stopped next to her, she knew she was being watched, and held her breath. A boot nudged her head, and she left herself limp, letting her face slam against the rocks. She didn't know how she managed not to grimace, but the soldier must have been satisfied, because he left her, his boots crunching in the scattered debris as he returned to his troop.
She heard several soldiers in the street, probably checking other bodies. Would D'Argo be one of them? At last the boot steps faded, but she didn't dare move.
"They're gone," the woman's garbled voice called, and Chiana realized she was much closer to her goal.
"Keep talking!"
"I... can't." Chiana heard labored breathing and knew the woman was seriously injured. She was fahrbot for continuing this, but some unnamable source was pulling her forward, almost against her will.
Reach, pull, drag, push. Reach, pull, drag, push. She concentrated on one metra at a time, ignoring the sharp stones beneath her and the pulse blasts that continued to rain overhead. "Where are you?" she called again.
"Just... a little... further." She was very close. Three more drags later, she felt her face run into the woman's body. "You're... blind!" the woman realized.
"Kick in the pants, ain't it?" She'd been hanging around Crichton too long. He'd have been proud of that comeback. He should be here, the fekkik, coming up with a really stupid plan to save them all.
"Dying," the woman said on a gasp.
"Not if I can help it. C'mon, together we'll try to get out of here. Help me find my Luxan, and he'll carry you out."
"Not... enough... time." Chiana felt something pushed into her hands. "Dying, you... keep."
"You did not call me over here to give me your prize handbag! I'll drag you if I have to!" Something indiscernible about this woman made Chiana think of Aeryn. She had to save them both. She was irrevocably connected to this stranger now, and she wouldn't let another die.
"You and... Luxan, keep... safe. Keep... Shedya."
She felt a weak hand grasp her wrist and thrust it into a bag. "Shedya," the woman said painfully. Chiana's fingers touched soft flesh, downy hair, and all blood drained from her head. Her heart pounded.
"NO!" she screamed. "You won't do this! You'll raise your baby! We'll get you out!" Tears were streaming down her face and panic was fused into every nerve ending. Aeryn had left behind Brennik, now this woman. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair.
The weak hand grasped her wrist once more, and Chiana felt her finger traveling over a smock, until warm liquidy mush filled her palm. This was the woman's guts. This woman wasn't going to live another 600 microts, and Chiana was powerless to stop it.
"No," she cried weakly, denying the truth, what this woman had tried to tell her.
"Save...Sh..." The woman's breathing was shallow and ragged, but her urgency was still as great as ever.
She clutched Chiana's wrist with all her waning strength, and her sheer stubborn desperation made Chiana think of Aeryn again. And Brennik, a bundle of confusion and tears in her arms the night Aeryn had died. *You knew we'd take care of Brennik and John,* Chiana thought, tears starting to trickle down her face. *You had that at least, Aeryn.*
"I will," Chiana assured, adjusting her body so she could pull the woman's head into her lap. Softly she caressed her hair.
"Thank..." was the weak reply.
Chiana combed her fingers through the woman's hair with one hand, caressed her face with the other. Bombs exploded around them. Shouting and screaming could be heard from several blocks away. Finally, in the comforting embrace of Chiana, Mia drew her last breath, the name Nepehi softly on her lips.
Dancing to her own humming, she left the kitchen, passing Nepehi's work table on her way up the stairs to their loft-bedroom. Knowing she had successfully distracted her mate, she added an extra swing to her hips as she danced, giving him a nice show as reward for preferring to watch her over his clock. She loved it when he couldn't keep his eyes off her. She was glad he couldn't see her smug look of satisfaction as she disappeared into their room.
Shedya was awake in his crib and smiled with dark grey lips, giggling and kicking his feet when he saw his mother. She scooped him into her arms, nuzzling his rosy pink cheek. A chubby pink hand grabbed her hair, tangling black fingernails in the blond curls.
"Ouch, little boy! Your grip is getting stronger!"
His black eyes sparkled in merriment as she juggled holding him with one hand, trying to untangle her hair and loosen his grip with the other. It took a moment, but finally she was free and she placed him back in his crib in an effort to keep him out of mischief while she prepared for their outing.
The low rumbling in the distance started so quietly, Mia didn't notice the change. But the noise grew louder, slowly moving closer and she finally registered the foreboding familiar sound. Her heart raced as the first pounding shots rained down around the village. Not again! Was there nowhere they could live safely? Nearing panic, she ran to the landing yelling Nepehi's name, only to find him halfway up the stairs.
"They're back, they've found us!" she cried. "There was no warning! There's always a warning. None of us will make it to the transports in time! This place was supposed to be different!"
"Calm down Mia. We've got to stay calm! We have Shedya to think of this time. We've planned for this. Can you help me?"
She forced herself to calm down, knowing he was right. She needed to think rationally right now. Prepare Shedya. She knew what to do; she had drilled for this very occurrence several times. If nothing else, Nepehi was always prepared. Waving to him to let him know she'd gotten herself under control, she rushed into their room.
The ground shook and the walls rattled with each pounding blast of weaponry. Not as many would make it out this time. Their little community usually had more warning for evacuation. They had all grown complacent, thinking they'd finally found a home that would accept them. They should have known better.
Ripping open a drawer, she yanked out a vial of yellow liquid and an injector. Everything was pre-measured, so all she had to do was place the vial in the applicator and inject her baby.
She felt bad for Shedya; he'd just woken from his nap. But for what lay ahead, they couldn't afford for the infant to start crying. Everything from this moment on depended on stealth. As her son's eyes drooped closed, a new confidence surged through her, filling her with optimism. They'd done this before, they could do it again.
She heard their front door crash open and she peeked into the common room to find Nepehi surrounded by three black suited Peacekeeper soldiers, all holding pulse rifles. One kept his weapon trained on the Nebari, while the other two began searching the room.
"Where's your Sebacean wife?" one of the soldiers demanded. Their intelligence was more complete this time. It was amazing what some would be willing to pay to wipe out competition, especially abominations such as their community. She knew these soldiers would take immense personal satisfaction in killing them, given the slightest provocation.
"That tralk left me last weeken," Nepehi responded. That was her cue. She needed to quit wasting time. He had put his own life in jeopardy to save theirs, and the only way she could hope they'd all get out alive, was to not be seen when the soldiers came looking.
Snatching Shedya into her arms, she quietly loosened a board in their wall, exposing a small nook big enough for her and Nepehi to crouch in. It would be comparably roomy without him, and she realized she preferred the hiding space when it was cramped with both their bodies. Replacing the board, their niche was undetectable. Nepehi was an excellent craftsman.
The only light was one small crack between the boards, which gave her a partial view of the Common Room. She could see the movement of two soldiers, and luckily, she had a full view of her mate. He was calm, and his demeanor gave her strength. He had always been her strength. Their voices were muffled and she couldn't hear the interrogation, which was becoming more aggressive.
Heavy, measured footsteps ascended the staircase, punctuated by the sound of blasts outside. Ironically, as long as the soldiers were in their house, they were fairly safe from Prowler fire. Slowly they came closer and she counted off each step. Seven, eight, nine...
She heard their bedroom door slam open, and a single set of loud footsteps slowly circled the room. They paused by the bed, the crib, the closet. She pictured the soldier looking under and around each. When they passed her hiding space they paused. She held her breath, willing the soldier to move on.
To her horror, the grunt began tapping the walls with the butt of his rifle, checking for variances in sound. Evidently, the Peacekeepers had learned their tactics. But Nepehi had prepared for that as well, and constructed the walls to sound the same. She didn't know how he'd managed that, and right now, she only had enough thought to thank him in her heart for his foresight.
Keeping one eye on the crack in the wall and one ear to the soldier in the room, she tried to keep track of everything that was happening. The soldier had moved on, continuing their thorough search. She thanked whatever deity that had prevented those butchers from bringing scent trackers, and made a note that the same mistake would probably not happen next time.
Downstairs, one soldier was ransacking the food preparation room, the other keeping guard over the silent Nebari. The sounds of destruction began in her room, and she knew that the crib her mate had taken six monens to hand carve was becoming decimated. At least Shedya wasn't in it.
Mia held her infant snugly in her arms, comforting herself with his warm bulk as her beloved house turned to rubble around her. Abruptly, the mayhem ceased, and for several microts, the only sound was the continuing pulse blasts outside. Then, to her horror, she saw Nepehi grabbed by two soldiers, shoved to his knees and a pistol shoved against the back of his neck.
One of the guards leaned down, whispering something in his ear. She heard him spit at the soldier, yelling, "I told you, they're not here! You already searched!"
Those were the last words he would ever speak. Before the sentence was finished, a single pulse blast echoed throughout the entire house, to Mia, drowning out the sounds of the cannons outside. Time slowed and she felt that it took her beloved forever to fall from his knees to the floor.
She almost cried out. She almost ran from her hiding place to avenge her husband. She wanted to kill them all. But she was alone, weaponless, powerless, and she had her baby in her arms. Now the infant was all that she had left of Nepehi, and she vowed to do whatever was needed took to save him.
To her surprise, one soldier lifted her mate into their arms and carried him outside. She had no idea where they were taking him, and silently called farewell to his retreating form.
The upstairs soldier had evidently finished his task, because he had joined the remaining soldier downstairs, and the two were dumping lantern fuel over the entire room, concentrating on her loom and Nepehi's carving and repair tools. Numbly, she watched as everything left that she had held dear was soaked, knowing what the outcome would be.
That hadn't been her first loom, she reminded herself, trying to keep her thoughts coherent in her grief. She could always replace it, unlike her greatest loss. She choked on a silent sob as her mind returned to the love of her life. She still had her baby. Keep thinking about him, and the life he still had yet to live.
One pulse blast ignited the fuel and the two soldiers quickly escaped through the front door. Already, acrid smoke filled the Common Room, but Mia didn't dare move until she felt sure the soldiers had left. At last, she kicked the panel, sending their camouflage across the room.
A new determination filled her. Nepehi wasn't here to give her direction, but she found that her mind moved quickly, thinking of things he'd taught her in the past. Grabbing her wicker carrying bag, she dumped the spare thread and weaving materials onto their bed. She grabbed the Thermisens' new cloth and hastily covered the bottom, gently placing her son on the material. Luckily, his bag of nutrient supplements and diapers had been prepared, and she shoved that in as well, ensuring his face was not covered, but concealing his body. Putting one arm and her head through the handles, the bag was now nestled across her belly. She was as ready as she was going to get.
Opening the door to the loft produced a face full of black smoke. Slamming the door, she ran to the other side of the room to the only other exit, a small window barely large enough for her to crawl through. It was the only way.
---------------------------------------
The low rumbling in the distance was merely background noise, the kind she had gotten used to filtering away as unimportant when they were on planets. But the incessant noise became increasingly louder, closer, and harder to ignore.
"D'Argo, something is headed this way; maybe we should get out of here," she said interrupting his description of a hand crafted necklace. He had brought her to this system-renowned Market Street in an effort to cheer her, and he had been uncharacteristically descriptive. She'd been feeling guilty about deceiving him, but now her thoughts were turning to the problem at hand, unsure exactly of what that was.
A blast exploded somewhere off to her left, causing a loud repercussion throughout the crowd. Instinctively, she dropped to the ground, ensuring constant contact with D'Argo. "What's happening?" she yelled to be heard over the explosions and the screaming.
"Frelling Peacekeepers!" was D'Argo's response. She felt his hand on her arm, urging her to crawl forword. "Stay with me!" She didn't need to be told twice.
Noise surrounded her. Screaming, pulse blasts, buildings demolishing on all sides of them became a cacophony of sound, making her wish she could childishly cover her ears to keep it away. It reminded her of the time she'd been stuck in Pilot's body. All the sensations were nearly overwhelming.
Surprisingly, she was able to use the memory of the brief time as Moya's navigator to concentrate. The previous training allowed her to shut out unwanted static, enabling her to concentrate on D'Argo and the instructions he was conveying as they crawled and stopped, crawled and stopped.
Now they were running, with D'Argo behind her telling her when to turn right or left, slow down, speed up. She was out of breath, her ears aching from a blast that had landed five denches from her left ear. Her cheek burned from the rocks that had been splattered over her face.
She knew D'Argo was firing his Qualta Blade, and from the grunting and thudding of unknown assailants, had a nasty suspicion he was occasionally using the weapon in hand to hand combat. But she was disoriented without D'Argo's running commentary and, arms outstretched, tried to continue on. What she would give for a pulse rifle and her eyesight right now!
Smoke began filling her lungs and she could smell fire burning nearby, though she couldn't feel the heat of the flames yet.
An unfamiliar arm grabbed her from behind, and all her instincts took over. Her elbow connected with a stomach, eliciting a grunt and a wheezy "Frelling tralk!" from her attacker. Her fisted hand connected with the face behind the voice and she kicked her foot in the general area of where most mivonks would be located on bipedal males. Sure enough, a harsh intake of breath and a moan preceded a thump to the ground.
She smiled to herself, dusting her hands, before D'Argo grabbed her arm, dragging her forward once again. A reverberating screech sailed through the air above them, exploding what had probably been a building next to them. Rock, mortar, shrapnel flew. Chiana felt herself lifted from the ground and counted to ten mippippippi before the ground connected with her body. She felt something in her leg snap, felt the crack of her head against the concrete, and then all went silent.
Chiana realized she must have passed out, for the sounds around her now were markedly different. D'Argo must have carried her to another location. "D'Argo!" she called out, wanting his voice as reassurance. Her call had been drowned by pulse shots, so she tried again. "D'Argo!" she called louder. He didn't respond.
She tried to sit up, but a bout of dizziness sent her back to the ground. She tried to crawl, but searing pain shot up the leg she initially tried to push off with.
She began to panic. For a split microt she was terrified that he had left her too, considering her to be great a burden, but instantly felt ashamed. He was the one individual in the universe who would never leave her. His loyalty was unquestionable.
"D'Argo! Answer me!' she screamed, beginning to realize how alone and desperate she was without him there to help her. He must be hurt, which scared her worse than the battle raging around her.
"Help!" At first she wasn't sure if she'd heard right, but the desperate gurgling plea called again. "Please, help me!"
It was a woman. Chiana had to laugh in the chaos surrounding her. A desperate woman was calling for help to a crippled blind woman. How frelled was that?
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
As she lay on the rubble that had once been a neighbor's home, Mia recognized that she was dying. Gratitude warred with desperation. She wouldn't have to endure this existence without Nepehi, but she had failed Shedya. She'd been so close.
After crawling out her window and scaling down her wall, she'd landed on the ground, mapping in her mind the route to the escape pods. Pulling her bag around so that Shedya was nestled against her back, she constantly kept him between a wall and her body as she sneaked around buildings, avoiding troops, ducking pulse blasts from overhead Prowlers.
She hadn't been stealthy enough, and when the soldier emerged from around a corner, she was unprepared. The female soldier shot her twice in the stomach before running in another direction, not bothering to wait for the results.
At first, Mia only felt a painful burning, but after several microts, even that stopped. She knew she had a gaping hole in her mid-section, had seen her insides herself. But her mind had mercilessly shut down her pain receptors, and she was able to stagger forward, her mind now solely on getting Shedya to the awaiting pods.
Holding her guts in, she'd managed to travel several blocks before the loss of blood made her weak enough to fall to the ground. Even then, she made sure to fall forward, so as not to land on her infant. She had to save him. He was all that remained of Nepehi.
Summoning a reserve of strength she'd been unaware she'd possessed, she began to crawl on her hands and knees, promising herself that she could make it, demanding of herself that she reach safety.
But willpower was not enough, and now she lay in rubble, having had only enough strength left to lift the large wicker bag from around her shoulders and lay it beside her in the crude shelter of some large stones.
All she could do now was watch the battle around her, ignored as dead by the enemy and others trying to escape. When she saw Nepehi with a Luxan across the street, she almost rejoiced, before realizing the Nebari was a woman. The Luxan yelled something and the Nebari ducked, just in time for a pulse blast to land where her head had been. Rocks sprayed over the woman, and she visibly flinched, but continued on.
Three unhelmeted Peacekeepers ambushed them and the Luxan boldly fought two, while one went after the Nebari. She had him on the ground whimpering in microts, and Mia took special pleasure in watching the man writhe in agony. Instantly, she loved this Nebari woman and silently cheered her on, wishing her the best. If only she was closer, she'd beg the woman to take Shedya. Who better for her baby?
Once again the Luxan and Nebari began to run, but a Prowler cannon fired, hitting the building directly behind the two escaping. She watched as the two flew through the air, landing metras from their staring point and several metras apart from each other. Neither was moving.
Mia nearly despaired for the two; they deserved to survive. But then, after several hundred microts, the woman began to stir. The Nebari tried to sit up, but fell back, and had been calling to her companion. Now was Mia's only chance to get the attention of the female warrior.
-----------------------------------------------------------
The gurgling cry for help called once again. Chiana had tried to ignore it, there was nothing she could do, but the pain and desperation in the woman's voice clawed at her heart. She had to do something.
"Where are you?" she yelled. "Tell me where you are!"
"Behind... you, across... the street," was the weak response.
"Is there anything between us?"
"Some small... rubble."
"Keep talkin' lady! Let me follow your voice!" An explosion blasted nearby, and Chiana recoiled, arms futilely covering her head. When she was able to think clearly again, she began to pull herself in the direction the woman's voice had originated.
Mindful of her injured leg, she pushed with the other, pulling with her arms. Pain sliced from her ankle to her hip, throbbing and taking away her breath. Gritting her teeth, she forged on. How she was supposed to help this woman, she didn't know. But she was going to try, and crossing this street was the first step.
"Play... dead!" came a haggard cry and instantly, Chiana stopped crawling, sprawled uncomfortably across some crushed bricks. She slowed her breathing, leaving her eyes open, trying not to blink.
Within microts, a large group of heavy footsteps could be heard approaching. One set of footsteps broke away from the troop, and Chiana listened as they grew closer. When they stopped next to her, she knew she was being watched, and held her breath. A boot nudged her head, and she left herself limp, letting her face slam against the rocks. She didn't know how she managed not to grimace, but the soldier must have been satisfied, because he left her, his boots crunching in the scattered debris as he returned to his troop.
She heard several soldiers in the street, probably checking other bodies. Would D'Argo be one of them? At last the boot steps faded, but she didn't dare move.
"They're gone," the woman's garbled voice called, and Chiana realized she was much closer to her goal.
"Keep talking!"
"I... can't." Chiana heard labored breathing and knew the woman was seriously injured. She was fahrbot for continuing this, but some unnamable source was pulling her forward, almost against her will.
Reach, pull, drag, push. Reach, pull, drag, push. She concentrated on one metra at a time, ignoring the sharp stones beneath her and the pulse blasts that continued to rain overhead. "Where are you?" she called again.
"Just... a little... further." She was very close. Three more drags later, she felt her face run into the woman's body. "You're... blind!" the woman realized.
"Kick in the pants, ain't it?" She'd been hanging around Crichton too long. He'd have been proud of that comeback. He should be here, the fekkik, coming up with a really stupid plan to save them all.
"Dying," the woman said on a gasp.
"Not if I can help it. C'mon, together we'll try to get out of here. Help me find my Luxan, and he'll carry you out."
"Not... enough... time." Chiana felt something pushed into her hands. "Dying, you... keep."
"You did not call me over here to give me your prize handbag! I'll drag you if I have to!" Something indiscernible about this woman made Chiana think of Aeryn. She had to save them both. She was irrevocably connected to this stranger now, and she wouldn't let another die.
"You and... Luxan, keep... safe. Keep... Shedya."
She felt a weak hand grasp her wrist and thrust it into a bag. "Shedya," the woman said painfully. Chiana's fingers touched soft flesh, downy hair, and all blood drained from her head. Her heart pounded.
"NO!" she screamed. "You won't do this! You'll raise your baby! We'll get you out!" Tears were streaming down her face and panic was fused into every nerve ending. Aeryn had left behind Brennik, now this woman. It wasn't right. It wasn't fair.
The weak hand grasped her wrist once more, and Chiana felt her finger traveling over a smock, until warm liquidy mush filled her palm. This was the woman's guts. This woman wasn't going to live another 600 microts, and Chiana was powerless to stop it.
"No," she cried weakly, denying the truth, what this woman had tried to tell her.
"Save...Sh..." The woman's breathing was shallow and ragged, but her urgency was still as great as ever.
She clutched Chiana's wrist with all her waning strength, and her sheer stubborn desperation made Chiana think of Aeryn again. And Brennik, a bundle of confusion and tears in her arms the night Aeryn had died. *You knew we'd take care of Brennik and John,* Chiana thought, tears starting to trickle down her face. *You had that at least, Aeryn.*
"I will," Chiana assured, adjusting her body so she could pull the woman's head into her lap. Softly she caressed her hair.
"Thank..." was the weak reply.
Chiana combed her fingers through the woman's hair with one hand, caressed her face with the other. Bombs exploded around them. Shouting and screaming could be heard from several blocks away. Finally, in the comforting embrace of Chiana, Mia drew her last breath, the name Nepehi softly on her lips.
