Alexis Hilden: Our Lost Knight
The cafeteria of the Lanseal academy was abuzz with noise and activity. Students were laughing, chatting and having a good time. Avan was stealing food from Zeri's plate as he was busy ranting to Cosette about the war and other issues. Melissa was in the far corner, snickering and blushing over how into his speech that he was, he always looked the most handsome whenever he got serious about something.
The cadets were enjoying their break from combat; the last few days had seen alot of action, lots of travelling from place to place on patrol. But, tomorrow they were scheduled to head to the Leanbluff woods to help escort a large Darcsen caravan that was on its way out of Rebel territory and into safety in the north.
Alexis then entered the seating section from the food area and had a tray full of food in her hand as she searched for an empty table. Meanwhile, Avan was watching her as she walked and said to himself, "Man… I still can't believe that Alexis is… a girl…"
Zeri heard him and snorted, "Honestly… how could you not notice?"
"Alexis is generally a girls name after all and don't you listen to her voice when she speaks, it has a feminine sound to it." Cosette added
Avan nervously scratched the back of his head, "It was kind of hard to tell... by the way she dresses and acts all the time, its more like a boy than a girl, thats for sure."
"What's so wrong with that?" Zeri asked, "Anyway, it does not matter to me, Alexis is one heck of a soldier. That's what matters most, I think."
"Yeah, she is!" Cosette said, "She's reliable, brave, selfless and she even cares deeply about the Darcsen students. She does not discriminate against anyone, not even Helmut!"
"Yeah, I guess so… still, I'd like to make up with her. Just not sure how to…" Avan confessed.
"Make up? What happened?" Zeri inquired.
"Yeah, tell us what happened?" Cosette chimed in.
Avan sighed and said, "Well, not too long ago I found out… first 'hand' that Alexis was a girl."
Avan paused, and then Zeri and Cosette could see his face turning bright red from blushing.
"I can't just walk up to her and speak to her normally after I… I…"
"You what?" asked Zeri and Cosette in unison.
Avan gulped, "After I… grabbed her breast. By accident of course!"
"You what?" Cosette nearly screamed.
Zeri shook his head, "Well, I suppose that if you didn't know that Alexis was a girl before that... Then it certainly would be a surprise to find out that way."
"Yeah… now I'm not sure how to approach her after that…"
"That's going to be tough. Because not only did you violate her trust, you violated her body as well." Zeri pointed out.
Cosette smacked him in the arm, " Zeri!"
"It's the truth," Zeri shot back.
Cosette shook her head while her cheeks were puffed up at Zeri, she then turned to Avan and smiled, "Never mind him, Avan. It's simple, just go up to her and apologize for what happened. Alexis isn't an unreasonable girl. She'll listen to what you have to say and I'm sure that she'll forgive you." Cosette offered.
"You got along with her just fine before you found out that Alexis was a girl, once you apologize, I'm sure that you two will go back to the way you were before." said Zeri.
"Just don't sit and leave it for too long, it'll be harder and harder to go, if you don't go now." Cosette added.
Avan nodded and stood up, "You're right, I'm just gonna march right over there and set things right."
And with that, Avan walked towards Alexis, she happened to look up and see him coming as she continued to walk down the aisle. As he got closer, she stopped in her tracks and waited for him to come to her. Though by the look on her face, it was clear that part of her was still upset.
"Hey, Alexis…" Avan said as he reached her.
"Yes, something I can do for you?" Alexis asked plainly
"No, no, I just wanted to-"
"Apologize?" Alexis said, finishing his sentence.
"Yeah…"
"I'll be honest; I'm still fuming about how suddenly you changed how you felt about me after you found out. I thought you knew the whole time."
"No, I didn't."
"Even if you didn't, you've always treated everyone with a good sense of equality, guys and girls. So why should it have mattered to you if I am a girl. I'm still Alexis, your friend and classmate."
"I… I…" Avan muttered, not sure what to say at that moment.
Alexis shook her head and sighed, "It would seem that you are still not ready to accept me for who I am. So I'll leave, until you are ready to properly apologize."
Alexis then made her way past Avan and started to walk away, but she turned and said, "Oh, and Avan-"
Just then she ran into someone else and ended up spilling her entire tray onto that persons chest, "Ah! Watch out!" a female voice cried.
Alexis turned and saw Inghild sitting on the ground; she was a new transfer student who had only been at the academy for a few weeks. But in that time she had already made her mark as a self proclaimed prophet, always telling of misfortune and bad luck that would befall any student of Class G.
As Alexis continued to look down at Inghild, she saw just how much of a mess she had made on her uniform and her white hood, both of which were covered with spaghetti sauce, iced tea and noodles.
Other students nearby turned and watched the spectacle."Oh my, that's going to stain!" Rene said.
"Uh oh… you're in trouble now!" Sofia teased.
She shook her head at them, then turned to Inghild, "My apologies," said Alexis, "Here, let me help you with-"
Inghild suddenly gasped, "A prophecy!" she announced. All of the students around her gasped, "Who's it going to be this time?" Lotte asked, digging out her notepad, getting ready to write down Inghild's next prediction.
"Please don't be me, by all the luck I have left, don't let it be me!" Joachim pleaded.
Avan was constantly a target, so he braced himself, "Oh great… what now?"
Inghild was still on the ground in a sitting position, hands around her blue necklace jewellery, "I see… the color of steel gray... The one who bears steel gray hair. And this color… this dreadful color, black, the color of death itself! And… one more… blue… color of water…"
Lotte was busy jotting this information down, she knew by now that the first color was usually the color of the selected persons hair. The next color was the level of disaster or misfortune. And lastly, by what way the person would meet their predicted fate.
Her eyes scanned the cafeteria and immediately spotted Alexis and the color of her hair, steel gray. "Oh no… I think she means you, Alexis!"
"Me what?"
"She predicts that soon… you will die, by some means of water!"
Alexis shook her head, brushing it off, "Hmph, I do not believe in such mumbo jumbo. There is no way someone can predict when and how a person will die, it's just not possible."
"Do not heed his warnings so lightly, child. His word is absolute; I am merely the messenger for your predicted fate."
Alexis turned and walked away, saying, "My fate, my destiny is my own to decide, not yours."
Inghild sighed, "It is not my decision. It is his."
Alexis then left the cafeteria and was heading back to her room, but was stopped by Avan who came running out after her and shouted, "Yo! Alexis, wait up!"
Alexis turned to Avan, one hand on her hip, "What is it now?"
"It's about Inghild's omen, I think you should listen. She's been pretty accurate lately. And I'd hate for anything to happen to you if-"
"That's enough!" Alexis interrupted, "Avan, I am not going to let something like that frighten me. Because I am not a simple scared little girl, I am a soldier. "
"Alexis, I-"
"Avan, would you be so concerned about me if you had still thought of me as a boy? Or would you slap me on the shoulder like you used to, laugh, and say 'Hey, don't sweat it, buddy!' in your normally cheerful voice?" Alexis then stepped closer and stood nose to nose with Avan, staring deep into his eyes, searching for an answer. Avans lips moved, but nothing came out, soon though, he looked away and stared down at the ground."I knew it… just leave me alone…"
Avan was still worried about this most recent prophecy made by Inghild; he knew from past experience that there usually was some truth to her predictions. So, just before lights out, he headed to Professor Brixhams office, knocked on the door and waited.
"Yes? Who is it at this hour?" Brixhams voice called out.
Avan then entered the room and Brixham smiled, "Ah, Avan, how can I help you today?"
Avan then strode up to his desk, placed his hands on top and said, "Listen, Brixy. I have a personal favour to ask."
"Oh, this should be interesting. " Brixham said while leaning back in his large leather chair and folding his hands into his lap.
"It's about tomorrow's mission, sir. I'd like Alexis to sit out of it."
Brixham tilted his head, "That's a rather unusual request. Explain to me your reasons for asking this."
"I… have a bad feeling about tomorrow's mission, sir. I think something might happen to Alexis if we let her come along, something bad."
"Hmmm… what are you basing this prediction from?"
Avan rubbed the back of his head nervously, chuckled and said, "W-well, truth be told, it was from a prophecy that Inghild spoke of. She predicted that Alexis would soon meet her death by some means of water."
Brixham shook his head and stood up, walked over to his office window and while looking out he said, "So, you want me to ask one of Class G's best fencers to sit out of a very important and humanitarian mission… based on a prophecy made by another student?"
Avan knew how crazy it sounded, but he also genuinely cared for Alexis, so he nodded and said, "Yes, sir."
Brixham didn't respond, so Avan went on, "I already tried to ask her to sit out, but she wouldn't listen. Trouble is, if there's a fight or a mission to accomplish, she just can't stay out of it… but if you ordered her to stay out of it-"
Brixham turned to Avan with one hand on his hip and stared intently at him, not saying a word.
"I guess you can't do that…"
Brixham shook his head, "No, not based on what you're telling me. Alexis is the best fencer your class has, have you ever stopped to think of the other students and what would happen to them if she were to sit this mission out? As a senior member of the class, Alexis is charged with watching over the other fencers and armoured techs and teaching them while out in the field.
Your class needs her, so she stays on the team. There's just too much potential for disaster if she doesn't participate. So, tomorrow, she goes, and that's final. Please see yourself out, Avan Hardins."
Avan then walked out of Brixhams office, rounded the corner and stopped. Anger and worry began to boil up inside him, so he drew back his fist and slammed it against the wall.
The next day, late into the afternoon, the cadets of Class G were escorting three large transport trucks, loaded with elderly Darcsen men, women and small Darcsen children. Walking along side of the trucks were Darcsen teenagers and middle aged Darcsen men and women. Class G's cadets were walking just on either side of the road in columns, Class G's tank was at the head of the convoy.
They had descended much of the high mountain from which the base camp of the Darcsen convoy had waited, but still had quite some ways down to the bottom. Avan walked with Cosette and Zeri on one side of the road, he looked over and spotted Magari, who was carrying a small Darcsen girl on her shoulders. Two small boys were skipping next to her and holding onto her hands. Avan smiled at this sight, he looked further back and spotted Alexis, who was marching with the other fencers and armoured techs in a column.
Avan began to breathe easier, all the while before he was extremely tense and nervous. "Maybe Inghild was wrong this time… maybe everything's going to be ok!"
Meanwhile, less than a mile ahead, was Melissa Dalen, Class G's best scout. It was her job to scout ahead and report any enemy activity to the convoy behind her. She stuck to walking along the side of the road, among the forests trees and bushes while she scouted. It helped to conceal her better, almost to the point that she'd be invisible to friend or foe.
Still, through all the hours of the march, she had detected zero hostiles and had nothing to report. That soon ceased to be, as she heard much movement from the forests up ahead and silent voices. But, for someone as good at concealing herself as Melissa, she braved getting closer to get a better look. And from her position, she spotted a small ambush party of rebels, no more than twenty, composed mainly of shock troopers, scouts and lancers. There were no heavy troops or vehicles, which was rather odd.
Melissa then backed off a short distance, retrieved her radio and spoke, "This is Melissa Dalen, at the head of the column, I have encountered enemy-"
Suddenly, something very large came crashing through the treetops and landing so close behind her that it shook the forest floor itself. It was the first time someone else had ever gotten the drop on her and it was scary. Melissa dropped the radio and began to tremble, then, a blue light began to glow behind her, and the familiar humming sound that always followed came as well.
But as Melissa slowly turned her head, she saw something which she hadn't seen before. It was an artificial Valkyria, no doubt about it, but this unit was much smaller, less armoured and had no shield or lance. It had very large mechanical arms with serrated blades along the forearms and mechanical legs with wicked looking shocks and suspensions for jumping.
The artificial valkyria then drew its arm back and took a back handed swing at Melissa, she ducked and the units serrated blades on its arm easily sliced through the tree that she was next to, toppling it over and onto the road. The dust it kicked up momentarily blinded the Valk from its target and Melissa was able to slip away and ran back along the road towards the convoy. She had to warn the others of the rebels and this new artificial valkyria that she had just encountered...
Meanwhile, Avan crossed the road and walked next to Alexis, though she didn't look over at him as she carried her heavy sword behind her.
"Hey, Alexis. Guess I was wrong about today. We're almost at the bottom and out of danger..."
Alexis nodded, "So, are you only relieved because you didn't have to come to the rescue of a damsel in distress?"
Avan shook his head, "No, I-"
"Don't worry Avan, despite what Inghild said; I don't plan on going swimming anytime soon."
Avan and Alexis then shared a moment of laughter together. Moments later, Avan spotted Melissa come running towards the convoy, he had never seen her run in such a panicked state. Avan ran to the front of the convoy and shouted, "What is it? What happened?"
"Rebels! We're about to be attacked!" Melissa shouted back as she ran.
"Rebels!" A Darcsen woman screamed, causing others to scream in terror, little children to begin to cry and the elderly to hold them close, trying to comfort them
As class chair, Avan rushed up to the head of the column and shouted, "Scouts, shock troopers and lancers to the head of the column! Engineers, medics, fencers and armoured techs, lead the Darcsen citizens to the lower ground! Get them away from here! We'll hold them off!"
Just before Alexis moved to help the others, Avan rushed up to her and placed his hand on her shoulder and said, "Alexis! Be careful! Don't do anything rash out there today."
Alexis broke his grip and shouted, "Avan! Don't worry about me! I can take care of myself!"
The students of Class G then moved out to fulfill Avan's orders. The scouts, shock troopers and lancers moved to the front of the convoy and took up positions among the rocks and trees up ahead. The others began to unload the elderly and children from the trucks. Once they were out, the teenagers and middle aged ones helped to carry the kids and elderly down the slopes to lower ground.
As the front defensive line waited for the Rebels to appear, out of nowhere, something very large and fast sailed over their heads in an unbelievable front flip and landed behind everyone.
"What in the-" Avan shouted. Melissa didn't mention this, that there was an artificial valkyria with the rebels. But what artificial valkyria could perform such an acrobatic front flip, past an entire front line defence of cadets?
The artificial valkyria then began to run, at breakneck speed towards the retreating Darcsens and their Class G escorts.
Avan turned to the others and shouted, "Watch for incoming Rebels!"
He then began to run after the new artificial valkyira. As he ran, Zeri looked over and shouted, "Avan! Where are you going? Hey, Avan!" He then began to chase after Avan.
Not far ahead was Alexis, Mischlitt, Cosette and Magari, they were leading a small group of Darcsen children away from the road. Behind them, they saw something bright and blue coming towards them at incredible speed.
Mischlitt and Cosette broke off from the rest of the retreating units, Mischlitt ordered, "Keep going! Get them to safety!"
Mischlitt and Cosette then moved to block the incoming enemy. While Alexis and Magari continued to retreat with the Darcsen children they were escorting. As it got closer, Cosette began to fire her pistol at the incoming enemy, while Mischlitt got ready to swing her large war hammer at it once it was in range.
However, Cosettes small calibre bullets missed or bounced off the enemies armour. It then only stopped long enough to raise its large mechanical arms up in an 'X' formation and catch the hammer between its two arms and stopped the attack dead cold, despite all the power that Mischlitt put behind her swing.
"That's impossibl-" Mischlitt started.
Next, she saw the glowing blue enemy draw its mechanical arm back and take a backhanded swing at her. She only had enough time to raise her large shield up in an attempt to block the attack. But the hit she took was so hard that her shield shot back and smacked her in the face and forehead. Her shield arm broke like a twig as the shield buckled under the blow. Her small body was then thrown back, ten to fifteen feet from the point of impact.
As Mischlitts body came flying towards her, Cosette threw her pistol away and actually tried to catch Mischlitt. Cosette caught her, but the force of the impact was so great that Cosette was knocked off her feet and rolled along the ground together before coming to a stop and remaining motionless.
Alexis had heard all the commotion behind them, then looked at Magari and the four small Darcsen children she had with her, "Get going! No matter what you hear, don't stop!"
"Ok! I'll lead them out of here!" Magari responded. She then called out to the children and led them in the opposite direction from where Alexis was charging towards this new powerful artificial valkyria.
She waited and then saw the enemy come crashing through the trees, straight towards her. She breathed deep and then raised her shield up and dug her heels into the ground. She gripped her sword and got ready, "Come on… come on!" she said softly.
The V3 then appeared from the nearby brush and charged. Alexis gripped her sword tight, and then turned her hips, putting as much force behind her swing as she could. Her large sword cut through the air… but the V3 clapped its hands together just as the blade was about to hit and actually 'caught' the blade betweens its palms, stopping it dead cold.
"Little boys shouldn't play with knives!" the V3 taunted. It then pulled the sword straight up, Alexis going along with it and was flipped in an arc, landing hard on her back.
Alexis lay on her back, moaning and winded from the impact. Just as she sat up, she saw the V3 still had her sword in its hand and it was drawing it back, getting ready to throw it. Alexis gasped and tried to move to the side, but the next thing she knew, her own sword got stuck in the tree, right next to her head, missing her by less than an inch.
The V3 had missed when it threw her sword at her. Alexis looked back, only to find that it had already left the area, hot on Magari's tail no doubt.
Alexis quickly climbed back to her feet and tried to pull and pry her sword out of the tree, but it was buried deep inside, well over a foot. She only tried for a moment more, then heard the Darcsen children's' screams and cries. Cursing out loud, Alexis left her sword buried in the tree, picked up her shield and went to go help, however she could.
Not far ahead, Magari and the children that she was escorting down the sloping hill came to skidding stop at the edge of a cliff drop, knocking some pebbles and dirt over the side. They all looked down and twenty feet below was a raging river. Its width was far too wide to jump across and the water was flowing so fast that it was impossible to wade through, even if they did make it down.
Before Magari was given time to think of what to do next, she heard something coming crashes through the trees and bushes behind them. The Darcsen children all cried out in terror or hugged one another.
"Hide!" Magari instructed as she moved ahead to block the approaching enemy. It had already defeated the other people she was with, but these were children that she was protecting, so she'd do whatever she could to save them.
Behind her, the children dove into the tall grass and bushes. They raised their heads only high enough to watch their brave Darcsen escort girl try to defend them.
As the enemy got closer, the sound of snapping trees and branches became louder and louder. Panicked, Magari simply fired from the hip, left and right in a sweeping motion. Her gun then dry clicked, empty, just as the glowing blue enemy came crashing through the trees and stood just in front of her.
Magari fell back as the artificial valkyria took a back handed swing at her, missing stomach by less than an inch with its serrated blades. She began to crawl backwards as she looked up at the enemy lumbering towards her, drawing its bladed arm back for a second strike.
"Magari!" the children screamed as the enemy loomed over her.
"AAAAAHHHH!" Alexis screamed from behind them. The artificial valkyria only had enough time to look over its shoulder before a gray haired female slammed into it from behind with her shield, knocking it off of Magari and over the side of the cliff, she too went with it. The two then fell into the raging river below and disappeared beneath the waters surface.
Magari rolled over onto her stomach and screamed, "ALEXIS!"
At the same time, Avan and Zeri appeared from the bushes, "Magari! What happened?" Avan asked.
"Alexis went over the side of the cliff! She's in the water, you have to save her!"
"The water… OH NO!" Avan cried as he dropped his rifle and ran along the bank, searching the white raging waters below. As he searched, he called out, "Alexis! Alexis! Where are you?"
Just then, Alexis' head appeared from the middle of the raging river. Avan could see sheer panic on her face, so he shouted, "Alexis! Swim to me! You have to swim!"
Alexis' head continued to bob up and down in the water, her arms thrashing wildly, she then shouted back, "I can't! I can't swim! I don't know how!"
Avan and Zeri looked at eachother in horror, "She can't swim..." Zeri said.
Avan looked around, trying to think of a plan to save her, "You go and find something, anything that you can use to pull us back onto shore!" Avan ordered as he stripped off his armour and pouches,
"Avan, what are you-"
"Just go! I'm going in to get her, get something you can lower down to us; a rope, tree branch, whatever!"
"Avan! Don't be reckless!" Zeri shouted as Avan ran to the edge of the cliff, then dove in headfirst and disappeared under the raging water. Zeri ran a hand through his hair, looked around and then ran into the forest, to find anything that he could lower down to them.
Meanwhile, Avans' head reappeared above the water and he swam as hard as he could down the raging river, towards Alexis. As he swam, he called out other, "Alexis! You have to try to swim to me! Paddle if you have to!"
Alexis could barely hear him now, something was roaring up ahead. A quick look over her shoulder and she saw alot of mist and spray being kicked up. And that could only mean one thing... a waterfall was up ahead.
Alexis began to panic even more, "Help! Avan! Help me!" she shrieked as she continued to be carried down the fast rushing water.
But it was no use, Avan was still over fifty feet from her and the roar of the waterfall was almost deafening. He stopped swiming and looked at Alexis, she looked back at him, neither saying a word. Avan held a hand out to her, "Alexis!"
Alexis held her hand out and screamed, "Avannnnnnnn!" Then, went over the waterfall and Avan could no longer see her.
"Oh no..." Avan said softly. He then began to backpeddle and swim as hard as he could towards shore, to make sure that he didn't go over too.
At the same time, Zeri reappeard, a very long, thick tree branch in hand. He ran to the waters edge, searched for Avan or Alexis. He spotted Avan first, but he was alone. When he was within reach, Zeri lowered the tree branch to him, Avan took hold and was pulled in and began to climb out of the water, utterly soaked.
Zeri looked around, "What happened to Alexis?"
Avan didn't answer, instead he was running towards the edge of the waterfall. "No... she didn't!" Zeri cried and he too ran, then stood next to Avan as they both looked down at the rough churning and foaming water below.
"I don't see her, do you?" Zeri asked.
Avan shook his head, "No, but keep looking!"
Finally, after two full minutes of searching, Avan or Zeri couldn't find any trace of her. Avan dropped to his knees, "Alexis... she's gone..."
Her body would probably never resurface, they both knew this. Zeri only lowered his head and prayed for her, while Avan clawed at his hair and groaned and growled in pain at the loss of someone so dear to him.
Then, he raised his head and with tears sparkling in his eyes, he thought, "Inghild was right… She knew this would happen. I should have tried harder to stop her from coming."
Not long after, the sun was beginning to set and the small band of Rebels was driven off. Zeri and the other students of Class G returned to Avan, who was still kneeling next to the edge of the waterfall. His head was hung in sadness as he mourned the loss of Alexis. The others just stood and looked on, some with lowered heads as well.
Zeri was sad as well, but something else was weighing heavily on his mind, "Come on, Avan. It's time to go." Zeri said, "We cannot linger here; the danger is far too great. We also have injured Darcsen refugees and class mates, and the rebels that escaped could soon bring even more reinforcements."
Zeri then turned to the others and stated plainly, "Say your goodbyes to Alexis, people. Then prepare to move out!"
Those closest to Alexis stayed behind for a few moments to remember and honour her for her brave sacrifice and to say farewell to her in their own way.
Magari, who was saved by Alexis, stood at the edge of the waterfall and tossed a small Darcsen protective charm doll into the waters below. "Farewell, Alexis, may this doll keep you safe on your next journey… to heaven."
Mischlitt limped towards the edge of the waterfall, her arm in a sling and Cosette was supporting her with an arm wrapped around her. Mischlitt shook her head and said, "Alexis… you gave your life to save my people, and my friend, all Darcsens, without a moments hesitation… I will never forget you for that. Thank you, and farewell."
Mischlitt and Cosette then moved aside as Rene approached with a handful of wild flowers she had quickly picked while others were saying their goodbyes. She then threw her arms out and let the flowers fall from her hands and down into the waters below.
"You saved Magari... my best friend in the whole world, Alexis. I can never repay your noble sacrifice for that, not with all the good deeds in the world. But… whatever goodness I've received for all my years of kindness, let it pass onto you in the afterlife."
Avan then returned with Raymond, her great sword was clutched in his large hands. Avan then turned to Raymond and the others and said, "It only feels right… to let Alexis part from us with all of her gear intact. She departed us with her armour and shield, let us return her sword to her as well."
"Here, here!" everyone said in unison.
Avan then backed off to let Raymond have enough room to perform his parting duty, and then shouted, "Alright, Raymond… Do it!"
Raymond sniffled loudly and shook his tears away, then began to yell, drawing the sword back at the same time. Then, with all of his might, he heaved the sword over the edge and it spun through the air for a few seconds, then plante into the ground next to the waterbed and remained upright.
"Alexis was a brave and model soldier to the very end… and a dear friend to all of us. So I ask you all now to join me in one more salute to the bravest girl I have ever known!" Avan shouted. He then turned on his heels and with his eyes looking straight down at Alexis' shining sword; he raised his right hand up and gave a farewell salute to her.
All of the class, lined up along the edge of the waterfall in rows, then raised their right hands up next to the corner of their brows and gave one last long salute to Alexis.
After a few seconds of silence, Avan lowered his hand and everyone else followed suit. He then turned on his heels and looked at the rest of the class, "We still have a mission to fulfill… so let us move on and get these Darcsen refugees to safety. Class G, move out!"
The entire class then began to leave, but Cosette and Zeri happened to look back and see Avan once again kneeling next to the edge of the waterfall and looking down. They both returned to him, Cosette placing her hand on Avans shoulder, Zeri crossing his arms and sighing.
"Alexis and I… didn't even get a chance to work things out. We left on a bad note…."
Cosette shook her head, "No, you didn't. I saw you two share one moment of laughter and go back to the way you were before. Though brief, I'm sure she left with no hard feelings towards you at all."
Zeri nodded, "Alexis saw you risk your own life to save hers when you jumped into the raging river. I'm sure she's thankful that you tried your best to save her..."
Avan stood back up and turned to Zeri and Cosette, "Come on, let's get these people to safety. Otherwise… her sacrifice will have been for nothing."
Zeri nodded and turned to Cosette and with a wave of his head, the two left. Meanwhile, Avan turned and gave one last looked down at Alexis' sword and said, "I'll miss you, Alexis…"
Avan then left and ran to catch up with the others.
An hour later Class G and their refugees were exiting the Leanbluff woods and were met by Class D from Lanseal academy. The class chair then walked up to Avan and the two shook hands, though Avans face was still devoid of emotion.
"Your new orders are to head back to Lanseal. We'll take over your refugees and see them through the rest of the journey." Class Ds chair said.
Avan nodded, "Thanks…"
"W…we heard about what happened to one of your class mates and we're sorry to hear that. It's never easy to lose a classmate, especially after you've attended class and fought in battle together for so long."
Avan nodded, then turned to the rest of Class G, "Come on, guys… Let's go home."
All of Class G was quiet when they entered the academy at nightfall. Once they were in their classroom, they all crowded around the squads roster on the whiteboard next to the storage lockers. Everyone knew what had to be done, but no one wanted to do it.
Cosette looked over at Avan; his head was still hung low. After a few silent moments, Cosette stepped forward and said, "I'll do it…"
Avan then snapped back to reality, "No… I'll do it. I'm the Class chair."
Avan stepped forward, took eraser and marker from the board and erased Alexis' name from the active duty status. Then with a trembling hand, he moved across the board, over the WIA or 'Wounded in Action' box, then over the MIA or 'Missing in Action' box and finally, hovered over the KIA or 'Killed in Action' box.
Some of the students began to cry softly, others hugged or held their friends close, until finally, Avan wrote 'A-L-E-X-I-S' in the KIA box, dropping the marker as soon as it was done. He nearly fell over but was caught by Zeri.
Avan steadied himself, then laid his forehead against the board and he sighed, "We've never had a death in our class before… we've had accidents, people wounded in battle… but never a death."
"I tried to warn you," Inghild said from the back of the crowd, "His word is absolute, there was no escaping her fate."
Cosette was about to stomp towards her, but Zeri grabbed her and stopped her, but she still shouted, "Then you ask him! Why? Why did 'He' feel that someone so good had to die?
Alexis was one of the best in our class. she was always kind, generous, selfless and brave. Why was she selected to die?"
Inghild shook her head, "I do not know… for I do not question his word. I am simply his servant, his messenger that conveys his prophecies."
"Was it because Alexis bumped into you and spilled her tray all over one of his servants, is that why she was selected? To be punished?"
Everyone remembered that day, and now Sofia began to back away towards the door, "I'm going to give you a much wider berth from now on, Inghild. And if you have any messages or prophecies for me, keep them to yourself!"
Everyone then began to disperse from the whiteboard, some leaving the class, others talking to their friends. Inghild was near the window, looking out at the starry sky and praying with her hands clasped together.
As Avan left the class and then the school, he was stopped just outside by Professor Brixham, "Avan, can you spare a moment?"
"What is it, Brixy?"
"I heard about what happened today and if you want to take a few days off, I will authorize it. You ever close to Alexis, correct?"
Avan wanted to scream and yell at Brixham for not listening to him when he wanted her pulled from the mission. But decided that it would not be what Alexis wanted, so he just responded with, "No, I'll be back as Class chair tomorrow morning. Alexis wouldn't want me to quit, so I'll keep going, for her sake."
"Alright, but if you don't feel up to it, there are others who can take over."
"Thanks, Brixy…" Avan then returned to his room, laid in his bed and stared up at his ceiling, thinking about his friend, Alexis and all the times they had together. Not long after, he was finally able to fall asleep; dreading what the situation in classroom would be like tomorrow.
Back at Leanbluff woods, a few miles downriver from the waterfall, crickets chirped, frogs croaked and owls hooted. The once roaring rapids were now replaced by gentle running water, and, in a pile of drift wood in a small outlet, a young grey haired girl moaned. Her beaten and battered body was held slightly out of the water by the floating logs and branches they held, allowing her head to remain above water.
Very slowly, Alexis' eyes began to open and her entire body ached, her head throbbed and she felt quite weak. She raised her head and looked around, only to find that she was alone and now in shallow, gentle water… she had survived the fall and the rapids, but how?
Her fathers training and her soldiers instincts then kicked in and she moved very slowly towards the shore. Luckily, her feet touched the bottom of the riverbed as soon as she dropped her legs. She limped onto land and towards the edge of the nearby forest and plopped down, utterly soaked to the bone and shivering from the night's cold air.
A quick look down at her uniform showed that much of her armour was either dented or missing, probably from the ride downriver. Good thing for her that she had so much of it to protect her body, otherwise her injuries would have been far more extreme.
She touched her head and it stung, looking down at her hand she saw a small amount of blood. Slight head wound… that must have been why she was knocked out for so long, thankfully a quick check of her other limps showed that nothing was broken.
She touched her hip and found her pouch to still be attached. Alexis then took it off and emptied its contents onto the ground and went through it to see what she still had left. She found a personal first air kit with one ragnaid capsule inside, a flint and striker, bayonet, and a tiny pouch of rations, the barest of bare essentials. But she wasn't complaining.
Within the next twenty minutes, she dug a pit in the ground, gathered twigs and other kindling and lit a small fire, constantly feeding it with bigger and bigger branches until it was of fair size. Now, she wouldn't freeze to death and had a chance to dry off her soaked clothing that she had laid nearby.
Over the next hour, next to the light of the fire, she tended to her wounds with her first aid kit. Cleaning the cuts and bandaging them, using the ragnaid capsule to heal the gash in her head, and anything else that needed tending to.
Now, as Alexis sat by the fire, she found a suitably straight and long branch and quickly began to whittle it into a spear. A very crude weapon, but given the absence of anything better, it would do.
As she was doing this, not far upstream, the V3 lay on its back. The blue glow from its power source was gone. But a gasp from within came as the pilot regain consciousness. But, without power, the suit was useless. So, he quickly climbed out of the suit and looked it over.
"It's first combat trial run and it's ruined… Baldred is going to have my head for this…"
His head then turned down river and in the distance there was an orange glow among the darkness of the night. He ran back to his V3 suit and opened a rear compartment, then took out a hunting knife and a 9mm handgun and set out towards it, quietly.
Meanwhile, Alexis finished her spear and tapped the end lightly with her finger to test the point and it was indeed, very sharp. She then set her spear down and checked her wet clothes, thankful to find that at least her pants were dry. So she quickly put those back on and tightened her belt when-
"Freeze! Put your hands up!"
Alexis' eyes turned down to her spear on the ground, but decided against it. She didn't know how many were behind her. So she put her hands up and stood still.
"Turn around!"
Alexis did so and came face to face with a lone rebel, a quick scan of the area showed that he was alone, just as she was.
"No way… it can't be…" The rebel said, slowly walking towards her while aiming his handgun at her head.
"Stand over by the fire," he ordered.
Alexis sidestepped towards the fire and one step back from it, placing herself just right.
"I remember you now… you're the one who knocked us into the river and ruined my one and only chance to successfully prove the V3s combat capabilities, isn't that right, boy."
His eyes then looked over his prisoner, the two bumps on 'his' chest confused him, "What wrong with you, boy? You're too skinny to have man-boobs."
Alexis shook her head, "Perhaps that is because I am not a man."
"What? You're saying that I was beating by a girl… no way…"
"Want me to prove it?"
A smile spread over his face, with a quick tip of his handgun, he ordered, "This I've got to see. Take off your shirt!"
Alexis pretended to nervously rub the toe of her boot into the ground while putting on a shy act, but what she was really doing was getting her toe under the nearest branch sticking out of the fire pit.
"Do it!"
Alexis sighed and quickly lifted off her shirt, now standing in her white bra and glaring at the rebel. His eyes opened up wide, his mouth a gap and that was when he lowered his gun.
"This is a surprise… to have been beaten by a gir-"
Alexis took advantage of his momentary lapse in concentration and kicked her leg high in the air, branches still aflame, coals and embers flying towards the enemy and striking him. He cried out in pain as he was burned all across his face and body, then looked angrily back up to where his female prisoner was. But, she was gone, some disturbed branches and bushes were rustling, showing where she had taken off into the woods.
Determined not to let the girl who defeated him get away and to get some form of revenge, he took off after her.
"No use running, girl! You've got no chance in hell of getting away from me this time!"
After some running, he stopped to check the surrounding wooded area. He only looked for less than a minute when he heard a girl scream from above. Just as he looked up, he saw something come sailing right towards him, then impact right against his shoulder.
He groaned and fell back against the nearby tree and looked down at his shoulder, only to find a spear sticking out. Now furious, he broke the spear just a few inches from where it was sticking out of his shoulder and threw the other half away.
"It's going to take more than a sharpened twig to stop me!" He roared, then aiming his gun up into the trees and fired all nine rounds while screaming like a madman and spinning in a circle.
By some stroke of luck, a girl came falling out of one of the trees and hit the ground hard, clutching a grazed arm and crying out in pain. He attempted to reload, he was able to get the new magazine in, but wasn't able to pull the slide back and load a round. Alexis had gotten back up quicker than he expected and charged right at him, bayonet now clutched in her hand.
He dropped his gun and caught her by the wrist as she attempted to stab him, then grabbed her by the throat with his other hand and slammed her back against a tree and lifted her off the ground while squeezing with all his might.
Alexis' free hand wrapped around his wrist, trying to pry it off of her throat as she wheezed and gagged. He was just too strong for her, the end looked near. Her eyes then looked down at the broken spear tip, still lodged inside his shoulder. She then reached down and slammed her palm against it, pushing it in even deeper.
He roared in pain, and then threw Alexis hard to the side and she crashed to the ground and rolled a short distance, then got back to her feet. She looked up and saw him charging at her like a bull and she tried to stab him once again, but this time he skilfully grabbed her by the hand and arm. With his brute strength, he painfully twisted her wrist around, so that now her bayonet blade was pointing at her stomach, and then pushed it into her flesh as she screamed.
Luckily, it entered in near the side of her stomach and didn't hit anything vital, but it still hurt like hell. But, he was close enough to her now that she thrust her knee up and hit him right in the groin. As he backed away, Alexis pulled the bayonet out and clutched her now heavily bleeding wound. Tired and injured, she fell on her back, then rolled on her side and remained still.
The rebel was holding his groin and breathing angrily, as he recovered, he reached back and pulled out his long hunting knife and started towards Alexis.
"Playtimes over… time to die!"
Alexis then rolled onto her back, holding his pistol, "Yes, time to die!"
The pistol aimed at him, didn't stop him from charging at her and yelling like a madman. Alexis pulled the trigger as fast as she could while screaming as well. The bullets struck him in the stomach and chest, but he didn't even slow down, knife hand still high in the arm.
His body then fell on top of hers, but she caught his wrist in her hands and stopped him from stabbing her again. When he didn't move or breath anymore, she knew that she had successfully killed him. The problem now was that she was trapped by the weight of his massive body pushing against hers, pinning her to the ground. She groaned and moaned in pain from the wounds she received and the dead weight against her injured body.
That was when she heard it, distance voices, "Over here! The gunshots came from this direction!"
Alexis froze, "More rebels?"
She then tired unsuccessfully to get the dead V3 pilot off of her, but the voices were getting closer, no escape now.
She gave up and let the body fall back on top of her and began to close her eyes, blacking out from the blood loss and pain. Outlines of black bodies circled all around her, their voices garbled and distorted as they spoke.
"Avan… I'm sorry…" Alexis said softly as she finally lost all consciousness.
The next day, back at the academy, Avan and the other students of Class G were sitting in silence in class, hardly paying attention to Professor Brixhams current lecture. Just then, there was a knock at the door and Brixham went to answer it. Avan looked up and noticed a female nurse whispering to him and for the first time, Avan actually saw Brixham open his eyes in surprise. He then quickly walked back to his desk and tapped the top with his pointer.
"Avan, come here, please."
Avan sighed and went to the front, "What did I do this time?"
Brixham then took him aside and whispered, "I'm just been told that… well… I think its best that you head over to the infirmary, as I just can't put what I've been told into proper words."
"The infirmary? Someone get hurt?"
"Just go, trust me."
Avan nodded and headed out of the classroom, hands in his pockets as he walked across the school grounds and finally entered the infirmary a few minutes later. He was surprised to find a nurse already waiting for him.
"Avan Hardins?" she asked.
Avan scratched the back of his head and nodded, "Yeah, that's me alright."
"Come with me." she instructed and began walking down the corridor, towards a room at the very end of the hall. Once she was at the door she turned to Avan, "You may visit for a few minutes, then she needs her rest."
"She?" Avan asked as the nurse moved and he looked into the room.
His eyes widened, his mouth dropped open, his heart beat a racing, "Alexis?"
Alexis, all bandaged up and only semi-conscious looked over and nodded, "Hey… Avan…"
Avan ran up to the side of her bed, collapsed to his knees and continued to stare down at Alexis in utter disbelief.
"It can't be… is this real?" he asked.
Alexis took his hand in hers, and then raised it and held it to her cheek, "Believe it… now…?"
Avan began to get teary eyed, "But I thought… we all thought that you had died…"
Alexis shook her head, "No… I survived the fall… and then the fight… I was also lucky that a passing army patrol came and found me afterwards."
"Fight?"
"The V3 pilot also survived… we got into a scuffle downriver from the falls. But just as our previous fight before, he just couldn't beat me."
"Alexis… I'm so sorry about before."
"No, I should be the one apologizing… you tried to apologize and I wouldn't let you. But, when I was alone, wounded and felt like I was dying, my only regret was that I had hurt you so much by not accepting your apology."
"It's nothing, really. Let's just forget all about what happened before and go back to the way we were. I know now that it shouldn't have mattered whether you were a guy or girl, you've proved yourself to be one heck of a soldier and capable of so much! Heck, you're tougher than most guys I know-"
"Avan..."
"What?"
"Keep it short, please... my head hurts..."
Alexis then began to raise her hand; Avan took her hand without being told what to do, "Friends?"
Avan chuckled, "Yes! We're friends!"
The nurse then broke up the moment, "Alright, times up. The girl needs to rest; she's got a long road to recovery."
Avan didn't want to leave, but Alexis patted Avans' hand, "You can go, Avan. I'm not going anywhere, not yet. I promise."
Avan nodded, "Alright, I'll come see you as soon as I can!"
"And Avan… let the others know, but gently, ok?"
"You got it!"
A few moments later, Avan burst into the classroom, leapt up onto Brixhams desk and screamed, "Alexis is alive! SHE'S ALIVE!"
There was a moment of silence, before everyone all at once leapt up from their desks, tossing their books, binders and in the case of some, their hats into the air and cheered. Some people hugged each other, others cried, like Raymond, who turned into a slobbering mess as tears and snot flowed down his face.
The next day, the entire class went to visit Alexis in the infirmary. She looked much better today as she was now sitting up and smiling at everyone. One by one, everyone welcomed her back in their own ways by hugs, handshakes, pats on the back or 'Get well soon' cards.
There were a lot of tears, happy tears and everyone made Alexis tell them the story over and over again of how she rescued Magari and the Darcsen children, survived the waterfall and lived to fight the V3 pilot and beat him one-on-one.
Finally, Avan said, "So, I guess we're going to have to go all the way back to the Leanbluff woods and get your sword back, right?"
"You still have it?" Alexis inquired.
"Well, we left it back at the spot where we thought that we lost you. As a memorial marker."
"Alright, as soon as I am able, we'll set out to retrieve it." Alexis said.
"But, before that, I have another request…" Alexis looked embarrassed, "I'd like to learn how to swim, would you all be willing to teach me?"
Cosette laughed and said, "Of course! That means we'll have to get you a bathing suit, maybe even a bikini!"
"Are you going to pick out the color?" Alexis asked with a smile.
Sofia smiled, "Nah, I'll help you out with that."
"I never learned to swim through all of my youth and teen years. Father wanted a son, so when he got a girl, he just raised me as if I were a boy. That made things quite difficult for me when I wanted to visit the local pool… I had no idea what to wear. A t-shirt and shorts or a one piece bathing suit, both didn't feel quite right. So I avoided going at all, thus came my problem of never learning to swim.
All the time, I didn't think it would ever become a problem. I've never been more scared in my life than when I was sailing down those rapids, no idea how to swim…"
"Don't worry, we'll teach you so that it'll never be a problem again!"
Zeri smiled and said, "Well you guys, lunch break is almost over. We should be heading back to class pretty soon."
Having already said his welcome backs and all that, Zeri left the room and started down the hallway. That was when he came upon Inghild, for some reason she was in her armour tech uniform and it was covered in mud and grass stains. He looked down at her hands and saw her holding something wrapped in a blue blanket.
"Mr. Zeri, if you would please help me with something."
"Sure, what is it?" he asked.
"See to it, that this is returned to Ms. Alexis," she said while passing the object to Zeri. He pulled down the top and spotted a shiny blade hidden inside.
"Is this?"
Inghild nodded and turned her back to him, "Yes, it is Ms. Alexis' sword. I set out to retrieve it for her…"
She then started to walk away, but stopped after just a few steps, "I admit… I find it strange that my most recent prophecy did not come to pass. For his word is never wrong…"
"Well, think of it this way. We all believed that she had passed away, even held a ceremony for her… so in all of our minds, she was dead."
"Hmmm… I see… that is one explanation anyway…" Inghild then departed from the infirmary, while Zeri walked back into Alexis' room.
"I have something here for you," Zeri said while holding out the blanket covered object. She took it and removed the blanket and stared down at her sword, she closed her watery eyes and nodded to Zeri.
"Thank you…"
Zeri shook his head, "Don't thank me… thank Inghild, she went all the way back to the Leanbluff woods this morning to retrieve it for you. I think… as a sign of her apology to you and all of us."
Alexis smiled, "I hold nothing against her, and should any of you see her, tell her I say 'Apology accepted.'"
Avan smiled, "You got it! Now, focus on getting better, there's so many things that we need to do once you're better!"