Scene 13 - Origins: Part II
I don't trust them.
Brianna's thoughts were interrupted by Artemis talking on the team's telepathic link. It had been an hour since they left the cave and the two strangers on board the bioship were fascinated with M'gann's mode of transportation.
We have to remain on our guard.
A familiar masculine voice rang out and Kaldur'ahm looked at the brunette worriedly. The mission was not authorized by the League and attempts to contact them had failed. Apparently the leaguers were out fighting crime, as usual. Brianna's family were asleep and she could not verify the story with them. All the pyro could do was to record a message and she passed it to Zatanna who protested staying behind in Mount Justice.
"We need someone to stay behind just in case we need assistance. Please Zatanna, you will get your chance in due time. We don't want to risk incurring your father's wrath again." The 'princess' pleaded with the magician and the young girl sighed before giving Brianna a silent nod and pocketing the holographic note.
Ember, you alright?
The little flashback was gone and the female teen hero gave Robin a reply. Yeah, I was just deep in thought…
It was a good thing they coaxed Miss Martian and Superboy to come along. They would not have been able to communicate silently without the green alien's help. It was a pity that Wally was off on a private jaunt with his family, they could use the extra brains on this mission but Brianna had to make do with what she had now.
Apparently, the remaining people of Adrinz have sought refuge in an abandoned chateau somewhere in Europe and the trip was going to take a few hours. The team planned and plotted telepathically while occasionally conducting a conversation out loud to ensure their secret link was not blown.
All the telepathic chatter was giving Brianna a slight headache. There was just so many back up plans and orders to follow. The blonde Atlantean seated beside her noticed her fatigue and said, "We should get some rest now. We're going to have a long journey ahead."
The seats slowly transformed into sleeping pods and Ember's eyes drifted shut to get some temporary respite from all the things that have transpired so far.
The sleep re-energized everyone on the ship and upon waking up, they were half an hour away from landing. Charlene and Gregory had little smiles on their faces as if they were relieved to be home.
Brianna sat up and stared out of the window, watching the green plains roll by beneath her eyes. Her mind was a total blank and a feeling of uncertainty rose in her chest.
The minutes passed by in a blink of an eye and soon, the team was walking into the chateau. They were greeted warmly and ushered into a lounge by the people of Adrinz who were dressed in uniform blue cloaks.
Some light conversation was exchanged between the residents and the team before Superboy mentioned impatiently, "I think we will have time to chat after we discover the truth of the thing hunting you." His arms were crossed and his blue eyes looked like it could pierce through steel.
Not wanting to anger a Kryptonian, Charlene immediately turned to the brunette pyro. "We have something to discuss with you personally, Brianna. It is confidential and only people from Adrinz are allowed to know about it."
Brianna turned to her friends before giving Charlene a response, "Alright."
Noticing the girl's slight hesitation, the older woman added on, "Don't worry. They will be briefed about the infrastructure about the chateau and see if they can help out in any way. They will be treated as our honoured princess's guests."
A telepathic link was established once again but as Brianna walked away from her teammates and towards the other part of the chateau, she could feel the link weaken and that made her a little nervous. The walk was long as they passed through several corridors and they finally entered what appeared to be a cosy office.
"Make yourself at home, Your Highness."
Brianna sat down and a tray of tea as well as snacks was served while Charlene took out a stack of papers. "Have a bite, you have not had any food yet. Your well-being is our immediate priority, princess." Obliging, the brunette ate the sandwiches while the woman laid out the papers on the table. They had sketches of weird looking hooded humanoids and in each sketch, there appeared to be a cylinder in the humanoid's hand.
"This is what we know about the hunters. They seek to find the Adrinz Fire which is what you possess. These barbarians are not aware that only Adrinz royalty have them so they cruelly capture anyone who has the Adrinz ancestry in them in order to get the flame. That cylindrical object apparently captures the essence of the fire. Unfortunately, they kill everyone who does not possess the flame…"
Charlene whispered sadly and Brianna's heart sank. So many innocent people died and the monster was looking for her all along. People have died in her place! Taking a sip of tea, Brianna could only rasp a soft apology, guilt wrecking her soul.
"We are relieved to find you Brianna… That means our quest has finally come to an end. We can now wield the flame to protect us."
Something about that sentence sounded off and the pyro whipped her head up, "Wield the flame? My flame?" Then, the world started to spin around her and her vision was slowing black out.
Charlene pulled her hood up and took an object from a drawer. "Correct." A devious smile was etched on her face and poor Brianna just realized that she fell into a trap. The drugs were overtaking her system and she struggled to talk to M'gann but the brunette fell unconscious.
Brianna's neck ached badly and she felt a dull throbbing pain on her forehead. She could hear angry voices shouting in the background about 'putting too much sedative' and her eyes fluttered open.
Not again… The brunette thought as she found herself tied to a chair, being captured once more. Brianna groaned and lifted her head up to view her surroundings which was a small, dim room. The door in front of her swung open and Charlene strolled in, "Well, looks like you're finally awake. Welcome back."
Ember could only stare at Charlene in contempt as the woman jabbed the cylinder on her forehead and the pyro winced. So that was where the pain was coming from… Nothing seemed to happen and Charlene growled. "It seems I can only get your flame when you use it. The Guardian of Adrinz is really cunning…"
The lady whirled on her feet and slapped Brianna hard on the face. Her head jerked to the side and she could feel the sting burning on her cheek. "Why are you doing this?" The pyro hissed angrily while Charlene glared at her.
"It's simple. We want power. Your great ancestors threw us out many centuries ago. We're simply taking our revenge." The woman paced up and down before adding on, "In case you're curious, we were just an organization long established on Adrinz. We were merely studying the flame for scholarly purposes but the king suddenly cast us out of the kingdom one day, leaving us to fend for ourselves. Do you know how many starved to death because of that?!"
Brianna continued to stare hard and stayed silent. "Such a heartless monarch does not deserve to wield the Adrinz Fire! He did not fulfil his promise to take care of his people. He left us for dead! We need the flame!"
Charlene took a whip from her waist and lashed it towards the brunette who failed to close her eyes in time. A loud scream emanated from Brianna's mouth and warm, sticky blood trailed down the left side of her face. It split the skin from the top of her eyebrow, hit the white of her eye which was now red and the wound continued down her cheek.
"H… hurting me is no use. I am not like the grandfathers before me. I did not commit the crime…"
The monster in front of her violently pushed the chair against the wall and pressed against Brianna's right shoulder, dislocating it with a pop. "SHUT UP!" Charlene roared as the poor brunette let out another cry of pain. "You will pay for the sins of your ancestors."
The torture went on for what seemed like hours as pain coursed through Brianna's body. She could feel bruises forming and although her improved suit protected her from fire, it was not body armour and the impact went through the fabric and into her muscles. "The more you hit me, the more I won't use my powers!" The pyro gritted her teeth and cussed at the mad lady.
A small, short dagger was jabbed into her thigh and Brianna yelled in agony, twisting her body as the chair fell to the floor. It hurts… it hurts so bad! She thought to herself and a worried voice spoke in her head.
Ember?! You're hurt?! Where are you?!
M'gann… It hurts so much… H… help me… Before she could talk any more, she lost consciousness and the link was cut off.
She was swimming in the darkness and her head was pounding but something called out to her within the black depths. A warm, fatherly voice whispered in her ear. Brianna… I am the Guardian of Adrinz. I will help you… I will lend you my power…
Somewhere deep in her mind, Brianna agreed to his request and she rapidly woke up in real life, breaking the rope and the chair in the process. Her eyes and hair glowed with bright orange fire as she swiftly took out the grunts in the room with one arm, leaving Charlene speechless. The woman was about to sink the cylinder onto Brianna's skin when the raging pyro knocking it out of her hand and pinned her to the wall with a knee. Grasping the woman's neck with a glowing hand, she dragged the bitch upwards as she flew.
"Y… you can fly?" Charlene said weakly as Ember's hand slowly choked her. The girl grinned a creepy smile as she angled her arm slightly and a small blade slid out of her wrist compartment onto the woman's flesh. It was a slick move, choking and close to slashing her with the same hand.
"Yes. There are things about me that you don't know. I think I will enjoy this…" A slight ethereal voice rang out from Ember's mouth as the palm around Charlene's neck heated up, burning the lady. The blade pressed so hard onto Charlene that a thin droplet of blood oozed out upon contact. She was about to do the finishing blow when the door burst open with Superboy and a blunt force separated her from Charlene.
Miss Martian had her hand extended outwards as her eyes glowed green. Everyone was staring at the flaming Ember and the pyro continued to fly towards Charlene. Risking dehydration and burns, Aqualad caught her by the waist and managed to restrain her.
"Let me go! She deserves it!" Ember yelled at the shaken woman who held a hand to her neck as Artemis proceeded to tend to the burn.
"Brianna, calm down! You're safe now!" Kaldur shouted firmly as the teen in his arms continued to struggle and trash about. Robin flung something from his hands and a dart landed on Ember's neck as she screamed once more before falling asleep for the umpteen time. The glowing fire on her hair and eyes were extinguished as her body slumped in the Atlantean's arms.
Inspecting her injuries, Kaldur'ahm's heart broke. What did they do to her? He would get his answers later as Captain Atom and some major Leaguers stormed in to assist.
Her mentor's face hardened at the sight of his protégé. "Evacuate to the bioship now. We'll take it from here and join you soon," Nathaniel Adams said tensely and Aqualad nodded as he gingerly carried his crush out of harm's way.
To Guest: I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'll be updating every month.