Disclaimer: No Esca. Don't Sue.
Author's Note: Yikes-I really need to update more! So sorry loyal reviewers (or those who are still reading this and have not died of boredom waiting for it)! I am soooo sorry! Don't worry, it won't happen again! So, with that settled, read! (And if I somehow manage to screw up this promise you have full permission to email me and give me lots of flames)
Sisters till the End
This is dedicated to Pablo/Cecil because he is such an awesome writer and he has inspired me to go farther. Thank you Pablo/Cecil for your awesome story and your awesome talent!
Chapter Seventeen: Protectors Hiding, Questions AnsweredTime was running out.
Zorya only had a few more seconds of silence before the screeching of the alarms went off in her ears. Only a few more seconds of peace and quite, with the exception of the clicking of the lock that she was picking.
She had been prisoner only a few days but that was enough for her. Captivity was for animals and not for her. The pacing and waiting and dependence upon one's captors made her stomach turn. Was she some simple-minded animal and not the beloved Black Panther of fables that old coots told around the fire in a bar? The most prized possession for those who retained her memory? She was royalty, prestige, and most importantly, she was higher then that. Old cells and scant conditions were totally opposite of the other in her eyes, like two men standing face to face, one trying to gauge the other's first move. It was a stand off. A cell was a cage, scant conditions were liberating.
Click. The locked door that had once been her poison was now her knight in shinning armor. It swung open without much protest from the hinges and she smiled. Only a few more seconds left of her peace…
Jumping forward like a predator on a fresh scent of wounded prey, she bounded from the cell and began to run down the hall. Every thing around her became a blur as she sped towards her freedom; the only thing on her mind. She would be free in only minutes.
Outside, she ran down the identical corridors that harbored the exact pattern of her cell that she had just left moment ago. Her feet pounded against the hard linomium floor. A steady beat rose up in her breast and her breathing soon fell into the steady beat. That was how she ran when on the run. That was how any animal ran. You find the beat and fall into it and everything comes as naturally as breathing.
It was simple beat yet so complex in thought and movement. The rhythm that ran through her body was like the blood in her veins. Her mind was one with her body and for once she was clear of thought. Until...
A sight flashed through her mind like a flickering light. She stopped, confused by its presence, and brought her eyes back into the world around her. What was that? She wondered, as she stood straight. The alarms had not yet gone off and she was almost free of the accursed place so why had no one noticed her escape? Frowning, Zorya looked around again, curious, and saw that the corridor ran into another, just around the corner.
Hmm, what could this be? She silently walked up to he corner and pressed herself against it. If the alarms had not gone off at her escape could that mean that perhaps Zaibach was busy with something else? Or had she just caught an easy break? All too convenient, she thought. The timing, the lack of alarms… If I believed in luck I would say that I hit the lucky jackpot. Zaibach must be busy with something more important then me…
Peeking around the corner Zorya almost fell over at what her eyes saw before her. Two men dressed as Zaibach soldiers, of no particular team nor rank, were carrying an unconscious Scott down the hall, heading away from her. Scott? She wondered, her eyes wide. Why was he…? Oh God. He had been captured! Captured by Zaibach who probably already knew his secret.
Should I save him? She wondered. No, of course not! He's not a part of your job any more. You're free! Leave now and forget about the stupid boy.
The thought was concrete in reason and she found no wholes in it. Yet still she couldn't move. Something inside was making her look on and actually care. Care about the stupid boy from the Mystic Moon who held the fate of everyone in his hands without knowing it. The imbecile, immature, whinny, spoiled brat that brought out something in her.
What? What am I thinking? Get those thoughts out of your head! She told herself, pulling away and running down the corridor, away from Scott. There are better things to do. Mostly getting out of here!
So she ran. Finding the rhythm once again she fled from the Vione not even looking back to see what had happened to the boy that had started this journey. She ran around the Vione without being seen for an hour before finding an empty shaft that led to an air duct, which in turn led out of the Vione. Crawling around in tight spaces was not something she preferred to do but as she unlatched the last air vent and fell into the safety of the trees she was certainly glad Zaibach had not made any advances in technology.
Watching from the safety of her tree, she watched as the Vione continued forward not even aware that it was missing one passenger. A satisfied smirk came over her. Once again the Black Panther had avoided misery and death upon an enemy's ground. Yet still something bothered her. It went beyond Scott's presence on the Vione and past her being captured. It was focused on the reason behind why she was captured, the reason she had gone to Coran's cabin and had lurked in the bushes as she heard of the Protector and his journey to the Dark Star base to rescue Scott.
Purposely she had gone along, following them in silence and sure they were unaware of her presence. Why though? She had been glad Scott had left her. Oh so happy. Why had she gone to seek him out? Because, she said to herself, sure and unwavering in her stand on the subject, you know that you could get a good price for him if you recaptured him and sold him to the highest bidder. A girl's got to eat.
Still the answer didn't seem to satisfy her. Her stomach seemed empty and cold at the supposed answer and told her to rethink her stand. But Zorya, being the stubborn child she was, ignored it and jumped down from the tree. "So, back in a forest, huh?" She questioned, looking around to find her bearings. She had been in this forest before too.
"Yes, you are," came a voice. Zorya started, surprised that she had not heard the intruder before jumping down, and started to run but something heavy hit her across her back. She fell forward as she felt something tight wrap around her torso and squeeze-not a little but a lot. With a muffled cry she fell to the ground, bound, and without a weapon. "So, so, so, a little assassin that fell from the Vione. I wonder who it could be," the voice taunted as Zorya struggled to free herself from her binds.
There was a foot on her shoulder and with a very rough push she was rolled onto her back, staring up at the face of Coran, the very person she had sought after just days before. He looked at her face and gave a snort. Zorya cocked an eyebrow at him and stopped struggling, her hands starting to fiddle with the ropes. She could get out of this. Right now she did not want to talk to another assassin.
"Ah, the famous Black Panther has finally fallen. To me, of all jokes," Coran said, cocking his head to the side and smirking the same smirk that had been on Zorya's face just moments earlier. "Tell me, Dear Panther, why did you allow yourself to be caught by me?"
Zorya saw the look in his good eye. He thought he could get answers out of her. Hah, the fool! She thought. He'll get nothing. "I don't know why you think I'll tell you any thing," she said, a slight tone of superiority in her voice. "Just because you happened to "capture" me."
She had thought that the comment you send him over the edge. Make his ego deflate a little. Hell, she thought that for once she would be able to fight someone. The exact opposite happened-he started laughing. The shock that she received was immense and she lay there, stunned, as he continued you laugh. "You think that you can anger me with that comment?" He said, looking at her. "You are even more pathetic then I thought!"
Then it happened. In a lightning second she had a very sharp dagger to her throat and the angry eyes of Coran glaring a hole into her head. The cold blade was digging into her neck and she was suddenly very sorry that she had said anything. God, he moves so fast! She thought, glaring back at him. "You are very wrong, little girl! Now, tell me what you know and maybe you'll live," he sneered, his face inches from hers.
Fear started coursing through her blood and she tried to resist the urge to suddenly start telling him everything. Yet she held back. She had nothing to tell him! Still, that dagger was starting to make her bleed… "Alright, alright! Zaibach captured me and I escaped. Scott is on there! Third deck I think! I ran away! There, you happy?" She yelled suddenly, singing like a canary.
Coran got an insane smile on his face and sheathed his dagger. Zorya noticed that it had crimson liquid on the blade. Shit, she thought as he gave a fake bow and ran off, quickly disappearing into the forest. Anger flared up in her very quickly. He had violated her! He had made her tell! How dare he! "You'll pay for that!" She yelled after him. "You'll pay for that! You hear me? You'll pay!"
If only she knew that Coran was laughing at her words and that what she thought was her beating heart was actually the sound of the Protectors coming towards her.
Author's Note: Aren't I mean? Zorya is getting pushed around and poor Scott I think he's been passed around to almost everybody-almost. Well, I apologize again for the long lack of non-posting. I had G.L.A.P.W.O.S. syndrome ("Got Lazy And Preferred to Write Other Stories") but now I'm back! So, review please! I really want feedback on this!
~The Shadow That Takes Form as a Kat~
~~ShadowKat~~