Part 9
"What promise?" Hiram asked fearfully, although he already knew the answer.
"The one where I promised I would personally kill the bastard that hurt Beka. "Dylan replied calmly. Bending close to his captive's ear, he whispered, "You shouldn't have touched her, Hiram."
The room was eerily silent for a brief moment. The silence was broken by a small crack; a sound much like that of a dry twig breaking underfoot.
Dylan slowly released his grip on the now lifeless body, letting it slide callously to the floor. Inhaling sharply, he turned his head and began retching violently. After a moment he rose, unsteadily to his feet and once more walked toward Beka. Dark thoughts ran through his head during the short walk, but he resolutely pushed them to the back of his mind and shut them up tightly. All that mattered right now was getting Beka out of there and back to the Andromeda Ascendant so that Trance could help her. He would deal with his own guilt and demons later. He wrapped his arm around her waist, wincing as he noticed how she was more than half starved, and reached up, releasing the hook that she had been chained to. He would have to find a key to release her from the metal cuffs around her wrists. Lowering her body to the ground as gently as possible, he quickly removed his shirt, wrapping it around her in hopes of offering her a modicum of warmth. He quickly went to the Enforcer's body and searched frantically through his clothing, finally finding the tiny key in one of the pockets. He released Beka's final bond and scooped her up, holding her tightly against his chest to keep her as warm as possible. He had just started toward the door when he heard the ominous squeak, indicating someone was forcing it open. Unable to fire his forcelance with any accuracy while carrying Beka, Dylan faced the door stubbornly, determined not to let anyone hurt Beka again.
The door swung open to reveal the large outline of Tyr. He stood, framed in the doorway with his weapon drawn. He immediately lowered it when he saw Dylan standing in front of him, cradling Beka's broken body.
"Is she.?" he started but was unable or unwilling to complete the question.
Dylan shook his head. "She is alive but only just. We have to get her back immediately. Where is Rommie?"
"She is standing watch at the end of the corridor. We were fairly certain you had to be somewhere along this hallway and wanted to keep any unwelcome company at bay. "
Nodding again, Dylan began to move toward the door. As he passed Tyr, allowing the Neitchzen to get a good look at the horrors inflicted upon their crewmate, he heard Tyr's sharp intake of breath and a hastily muttered pledge to make the person responsible for Beka's torture pay for what they had done.
With a sharp jerk of his back towards the room he was exiting, Dylan said, "Don't worry about it Tyr. The debt has been paid in full."
Glancing at the already cooling corpse laying in an unceremonious heap, Tyr nodded his head once and then turned and followed his Captain out the door.
The crew of the Andromeda met with little resistance on their way out of the complex. Few men were foolish enough to try and stop them. Those that were foolish enough, quickly learned what it meant to stand in the way of an angry Neitchzen and an even angrier android when a close friend of theirs was hurt and in need of immediate medical attention.
"What promise?" Hiram asked fearfully, although he already knew the answer.
"The one where I promised I would personally kill the bastard that hurt Beka. "Dylan replied calmly. Bending close to his captive's ear, he whispered, "You shouldn't have touched her, Hiram."
The room was eerily silent for a brief moment. The silence was broken by a small crack; a sound much like that of a dry twig breaking underfoot.
Dylan slowly released his grip on the now lifeless body, letting it slide callously to the floor. Inhaling sharply, he turned his head and began retching violently. After a moment he rose, unsteadily to his feet and once more walked toward Beka. Dark thoughts ran through his head during the short walk, but he resolutely pushed them to the back of his mind and shut them up tightly. All that mattered right now was getting Beka out of there and back to the Andromeda Ascendant so that Trance could help her. He would deal with his own guilt and demons later. He wrapped his arm around her waist, wincing as he noticed how she was more than half starved, and reached up, releasing the hook that she had been chained to. He would have to find a key to release her from the metal cuffs around her wrists. Lowering her body to the ground as gently as possible, he quickly removed his shirt, wrapping it around her in hopes of offering her a modicum of warmth. He quickly went to the Enforcer's body and searched frantically through his clothing, finally finding the tiny key in one of the pockets. He released Beka's final bond and scooped her up, holding her tightly against his chest to keep her as warm as possible. He had just started toward the door when he heard the ominous squeak, indicating someone was forcing it open. Unable to fire his forcelance with any accuracy while carrying Beka, Dylan faced the door stubbornly, determined not to let anyone hurt Beka again.
The door swung open to reveal the large outline of Tyr. He stood, framed in the doorway with his weapon drawn. He immediately lowered it when he saw Dylan standing in front of him, cradling Beka's broken body.
"Is she.?" he started but was unable or unwilling to complete the question.
Dylan shook his head. "She is alive but only just. We have to get her back immediately. Where is Rommie?"
"She is standing watch at the end of the corridor. We were fairly certain you had to be somewhere along this hallway and wanted to keep any unwelcome company at bay. "
Nodding again, Dylan began to move toward the door. As he passed Tyr, allowing the Neitchzen to get a good look at the horrors inflicted upon their crewmate, he heard Tyr's sharp intake of breath and a hastily muttered pledge to make the person responsible for Beka's torture pay for what they had done.
With a sharp jerk of his back towards the room he was exiting, Dylan said, "Don't worry about it Tyr. The debt has been paid in full."
Glancing at the already cooling corpse laying in an unceremonious heap, Tyr nodded his head once and then turned and followed his Captain out the door.
The crew of the Andromeda met with little resistance on their way out of the complex. Few men were foolish enough to try and stop them. Those that were foolish enough, quickly learned what it meant to stand in the way of an angry Neitchzen and an even angrier android when a close friend of theirs was hurt and in need of immediate medical attention.
