A whole month passed before Skyla got into another fight. She'd been doing so well, ignoring all the irritating comments from the guards and avoiding Taktar and his friends as much as possible. She did her best, for Maia's sake, but deep down, she knew it couldn't last.
The day she snapped was just like any other day. She was in the middle of her chores, feeding the Rilgarian Lesser-Spotted Bat, when Taktar cornered her.
"You've been avoiding me," he muttered, leaning against the cage wall. Skyla glanced around the complex. There was no-one else around and the nearest guard was outside the main doors. She couldn't stay; it was too risky, knowing her...and him. Squaring her shoulders, she shoved past him and made to leave. His reptilian arm shot out and blocked her path,
"I didn't say you could leave." Scowling, Skyla turned to look at him. She had to look up by a fair amount, as he was at least a foot and a half taller than her,
"I don't need your permission for anything...and yes, I have been avoiding you, for good reason." The Snivelakian smirked,
"Why? You scared?" Knowing exactly what he was up to, Skyla refused to rise to the bait. Taking a breath to control her rising irritation, she tried to duck under his arm. Something grabbed the back of her shirt and pulled her back, and she suddenly found herself backed up against the cage wall, with the reptile bearing down on her.
"I still didn't say you could leave," he growled softly. Swallowing a harsh reply she looked up at him with steel in her eyes,
"I'm not scared of you, Taktar." The guard only moved closer, cutting off her escaped routes.
"Oh really?" he murmured, "are you sure about that?" His breath hit her nostrils and her nose wrinkled at the awful smell,
"Geez, Taktar, haven't you heard of toothpaste?" His hands slammed either side of her head in response, making the cage walls vibrate,
"Don't play games with me, Lombax."
"I'm not playing games, I was asking a valid question," Skyla countered, "your breath reeks."
"I'd watch your tongue if I were you.'Cos I am this close to ripping it from your mouth," the reptile threatened menacingly. Skyla swallowed instinctively but drew herself upright as best she could in the confined space, determined not to let him win by pure intimidation.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you. Baen wouldn't look too kindly on you mutilating his 'possesions'," she spat out the word, but was being truthful. On Baen's orders, she was to be kept in (near) perfect condition at all times. No matter what she did wrong, physical punishments never included scars. Baen was ever so careful never to 'damage beyond repair', as he put it. That didn't make the punishment any less painful, simply less visible.
Ripping her tongue out would definitely qualify as irreversible damage.
"Maybe not your tongue then, maybe I'll just beat your hide like last time," Taktar sneered.
"You didn't beat me," she snapped, "Drako intervened before I could take you down." He chuckled cruelly,
"You could never take me down."
"Oh yeah? What about the time in the mess hall? Do they still tease you about that Blargian Soup?" she goaded him, taking her turn to injure pride. The guard's eyes flashed dangerously and it was clear he knew exactly what she was referring to,
"That was an accident," he hissed. Skyla only smirked,
"Sure it was, you're just too scared and to admit I did beat you."
"I swear, if you don't shut up right now I'll..."
"You'll what?" Skyla interrupted in a harsh, mocking tone, "Attack a creature half your size...again? Face it, Taktar, you're nothing but a pathetic, spineless coward." All at once, she found herself pinned against the cage wall by his hand around her neck.
For a moment, the two creatures simply regarded each other, hate ablaze in their eyes; flaming orange against searing hot blue.
"Go on then...hit me. You c-coward," Skyla's voice was a little strangled as his fist tightened around her neck, cutting off her oxygen as he began to crush her throat. Taktar's eyes were narrowed to slits and it looked like he might not let go until his victim was unconscious, or worse. Then, an idea came to him.
He abruptly dropped her and she fell to the floor, landing on her bum with a painful thump. Wincing in pain, Skyla massage her throat to regain her ability to breathe, scowling up at the reptile. He scrutinised her for a minute as if mulling something over, then shook his head,
"That's incredibly rich, coming from a Lombax," he commented, a new line of attack forming in his head, one that would reap better, more pleasing results...
Skyla's brow furrowed in confusion,
"What?" The reptile looked at her,
"Calling me a coward? I'm not the coward."
"What are you saying?" Skyla asked slowly, her eyes narrowing in suspicion. He gave her a look of mock surprise,
"What, you mean no-one told you?"
"Stop playing games, Taktar," she growled violently, unknowingly echoing the reptiles former words as she struggled to get upright. Once on her feet again she glared at him. A small smile playing about his lips the reptile bent down a little so his face was level with her own.
"You don't know how the Lombaxes became extinct?" he asked incredulously. Skyla simply looked at him blankly. When she'd ventured to ask Maia about the lack of Lombaxes she was told that no-one really knew what had happened, but that the Lombaxes were nowhere to be found in the universe anymore. Although she had suspected her friend of hiding some of the truth, Skyla had simply accepted this fact and dropped the subject. The Lombaxes were gone, and she was alone. That's all she needed to know. Noting the look of confusion on the girl's face Taktar smiled with mean-spirited sympathy.
"There, there, there's no need to be confused," he patted her shoulder none too gently in a patronising manner. "It's ok if you don't know what really happened..." he went on, "in fact, it's probably better." Skyla looked at him with conflicted uncertainty,
"What happened?" she murmured, her curiosity getting the better of her, even if her mind was screaming at her not to listen and to get away from him.
"Oh, I'm sure I'm not the person to ask...surely your Cazar friend told you?"
"Tell me," the Lombax growled, the atmosphere tensing around her like a stretched rubber band.
"Well, if you insist," he paused for effect, savouring the deliciousness of the situation, why hadn't he thought of this sooner? "They ran away," he said bluntly. Skyla blinked.
"What?"
"They ran away," the reptile repeated, thoroughly enjoying the look of shock on the young female's face. She'd had this coming for years. "They were faced with a single enemy, and they fled. They ran away." Skyla shook her head in disbelief,
"No, you're lying. Lombaxes would never run away, not from anyone or anything."
"But they did," Taktar sneered, "and they left you behind." She looked at him sharply at this, her eyes flaring up briefly, but he continued before she could reply, "so you see? I'm not the one who's a coward. It's your own extinct race who are the cowards. All of the Lombaxes who fled...pathetic, spineless, cowards."
Skyla's whole body began to shake as anger began to take ahold of her,
"You're lying," she whispered, her voice wavering with brittle emotion. Taktar only laughed, too blinded by his brutal mirth and delight at her ignorance to see the thunder building. The Lombax's head snapped up, her ears flat against her skull and her fists clenched, with eyes overflowing with anger and hate and pure, unbridled rage. "YOU'RE LYING," she screamed, and attacked.
If the guard outside hadn't heard the commotion, it is unclear how far the two creatures would have damaged each other. Certainly, when they were wrenched apart by several guards, both were bleeding from various cuts and gashes and Skyla's uniform was once again torn in a number of places. Thankfully, Taktar hadn't drawn his blade on the Lombax so the cuts and gashes were caused by claws only.
Still, Drako wasn't happy.
"You idiots!" he shouted at them as they were held back by guards, both panting heavily from exertion.
"What were you thinking? I thought I told you no more fighting and look at you! Why didn't you listen to me? Fools, do you know what this means? Now I have to punish both of you, and Baen will have to be informed and gods know what he'll want to do to you..."
"He already has been informed," came a smooth voice and they all looked up to see the calm Novalian striding confidently towards them. The guards and Drako bowed their heads respectfully,
"Sir," the Head of Security began, "I wasn't aware of your presence, I am sorry about this." The blue skinned man waved his hand in a lazy, dismissive gesture.
"Save you apologies. Now...what happened here?" he turned his gaze upon Skyla who shuddered in spite of herself. His eyes contained such ruthless brutality that they seemed like a black hole, sucking all the good from the galaxy into their icy depths.
Biting her tongue, Skyla refused to answer, but held his gaze unwaveringly. The ghost of a smile played about the Novalian's lips at her defiance and he turned on Taktar,
"You, tell me what happened." The Snivelakian swallowed before replying,
"We had a fight, boss," he answered, looking at the floor, afraid to meet the void-like eyes.
"Why?" Baen's voice slipped and slided like a snake into the ears of those present, ringing in their heads like a dull bell.
"We...I..." the reptile trailed off miserably. Baen raised an eyebrow and looked enquiringly at Skyla, his eyes demanding an answer. The Lombax stared back, shooting daggers with her eyes, before replying.
"I attacked him," she said in the strongest voice she could muster.
"Why?"
"He provoked me."
"How?" There was a pause.
"He lied to me," she murmured softly, glaring at Taktar. Baen registered hurt, anger, fear and confusion all in her eyes. He could hardly stop from smiling.
"How so?"
"He can tell you."
"No, you tell me."
The girl's mouth clamped shut stubbornly and Baen smirked.
"Very well," he then addressed Drako, "when is the next hunting party due to go out?"
"Tomorrow morning, sir," the Head of Security replied, his stomach clenched with dread. Baen nodded,
"Excellent. Have this guard assigned to the group as a front-runner." Taktar gave a small whimper of fear and Drako glanced at him quickly. He looked like he was about to be sick. He didn't blame him. It was a harsh punishment for so commonplace a crime, but he knew better than to argue with the Novalian so gave a stiff, short nod,
"Yes, sir."
"Dismissed. Bring her to my quarters and send for Professor Xavier."
In vain, Skyla struggled against the guards as they dragged her after Baen as they left the complex. Taktar was taken in another direction but their eyes met briefly and Skyla wondered if the fear in his eyes should make her pity him. She decided against it. Being assigned to the hunting party as front-runner was bad...but not bad enough to make her pity him. Instead, she focused on what lay before her.
Knowing it was useless to struggle; she shook the guards off and walked on her own, head held high. She passed a few other slaves who looked at her incredulously. No doubt she looked a state with her torn clothes, bloody fur and messed up hair. One of the slaves was Jaymz and he gave her a shocked, disbelieving look that said 'what have you done now?' Unable to communicate effectively she mustered a smile back at him, trying to convey that everything was alright. He didn't look convinced.
All too soon, they'd taken the holo-lift up to the private quarters, where Baen and any guests of his stayed. His own quarters were reasonably large and expensively decorated, echoing his ego and tastes. There was a main room, and several other doors leading off into various other rooms that presumably led to his bedroom, bathroom and the like. In the main room there was a lush sofa with a massive TV screen in front of it, equipped with sound systems and the full works for top cinematic/gaming experiences. There was also a bookshelf that covered part of the wall, and a variety of potted plants scattered about on side tables. A desk stood to the side with chairs either side, its surface clear with only a computer screen on the top. The whole place was ridiculously tidy and felt like it had never been lived in, and was just there for show.
The Novalian sent away the guards, leaving them alone. Without a word, he gestured for her to sit in the chair opposite the desk. Skyla didn't move as he fetched two glasses from a dispenser in the wall. He took a seat opposite her and pushed one of them towards her.
"Sit," he said in a cool voice that demanded obedience. Slowly, Skyla took a seat. The chair looked expensive, and she was bleeding, so if he wanted blood all over it, then she'd be happy to oblige. But she left the glass where it was. It was a clear liquid, and looked harmless, but she knew better than to judge by appearances.
"Are you going to tell me what happened?" he enquired, his voice like ice sliding down her back. Skyla gazed back, her expression calm but her heart thudding rapidly.
"I attacked him," she said simply, holding her voice steady.
"Why?"
"He provoked me."
"How?" There was a moment of silence and Baen took a casual swig from his glass, swilling the liquid absently as he studied her with his keen, dark eyes, "what did he say?"
"Nothing," she replied quickly, then winced. What an obvious lie...
"Nothing?" Baen arched an eyebrow, "Forgive me if I don't believe you. If he had said nothing you would not be sitting before me with blood running down your face." Skyla raised a hand and touched her cheek. It came away wet and sticky with blood. With an irritated sigh she pushed the hair that had matted on her forehead to the side. Baen's mouth curled into a sly smile,
"What did he say?" he repeated.
"Things that made me lose my temper," Skyla answered vaguely.
"Like what?"
"Things," the Lombax replied. She was trying to get away with minimum details, not wanting to have to explain herself to him. But he was having none of it.
"I'll have to ask you to be more specific, my dear. What, exactly, did he say that sent you into a fit of rage?" Baen asked lightly, but there was a warning in his eyes. A warning she knew well not to ignore. Skyla looked down,
"He said that Lombaxes were cowards because they had run away," she muttered lowly, but the Novalian heard. He suppressed a chuckle or dark mirth, instead clearing his throat softly,
"I see," he murmured.
"Is it true?" she blurted before she could stop herself, then instantly regretted her words. "Tell me it isn't true," she attempted to correct herself, but her voice betrayed her by shaking a little with emotion. Her thoughts were divided. Half of her wanted to believe that Taktar had been lying about everything, but at the same time, she'd seen the glee in his eyes that told her he had been telling the truth. Baen looked at her solidly,
"It is indeed true." Skyla's ears slumped against her skull and her head bowed slightly, as if under some great weight.
"What happened?" she mumbled quietly. Baen set his glass down and leaned back in his chair, placing his elbows on the arms and putting his finger tips to his chin. Skyla was struck once again by how handsome he was. A strong, muscular figure with striking features and sleek long hair, he could be any females fantasy...were it not for the utter lack of life in his unforgiving eyes. Shoving the thought from her mind she focused on holding his gaze, determined not to break down in front of him.
"The Lombaxes were faced with an enemy who threatened to exterminate all of their kind. So they fled, into another dimension, as the story goes."
"Lombaxes never run from their enemies," Skyla scoffed, but in it there was a hint of half-heartedness. Baen raised an eyebrow at her mockingly,
"And you would know?" Skyla flushed and scowled,
"The Lombaxes were a highly intellectual race with technology unlike any other," she answered, repeating what Maia had told her a while back, "why would they flee before an enemy when they could have easily defeated them?"
"My dear, you are making some terrific assumptions," Baen chastised her like a child, "yes, the Lombaxes were advanced and adept with technology. They were even clever enough to escape into another dimension. So we can only assume that the enemy they faced posed either the utmost threat to them...or they simply ran out of fear." Skyla frowned heavily at this. She could tell he was being honest, but brutally so. How was she to know if the Lombaxes had fled as a first or last resort? She only hoped it had been the latter, but she'd never know. Something he had said snagged in her mind,
"Another dimension?" she asked sceptically.
"Apparently. Needless to say, no-one has seen a Lombax since. Well, very, very few," his eyes glinted at her and her own blue ones narrowed. If he was telling the truth and the Lombaxes had fled...into another dimension, could that then mean they might still be alive...?
"No doubt you are wondering if the Lombaxes are still alive, but in another universe," Baen interrupted her thoughts, as if reading them, "that is, of course, a possibility." Skyla's heart fluttered slightly at his words. "But of course, it is impossible for them to return, even if they did survive the path between dimensions."
"Why?" Skyla asked, her voice with a small mewling tone that was streaked with pain.
"Because all of their technology was destroyed when they left. Their journey to the other dimension was a one way ticket. They will never return," Baen watched as the brief glimmer of hope died in the young Lombax's eyes. Skyla thought for a minute, clutching at straws,
"But what if they found another way? They took their technology with them presumably, surely they could create another path home..."
"Dear girl, there are not just two dimensions – ours and theirs. Oh no, there are hundreds, thousands of dimensions. If they, or we, succeeded in making another passageway, between two dimensions, the odds of linking up theirs and ours are astronomical. It's impossible."
"Some might have stayed behind..." Skyla muttered feebly, the fight fading in her as she realised how badly she was losing.
"If that was the case then they would have revealed themselves to the galaxy by now," Baen countered dismissively, then leaned forward before she could answer, "think about it, do you really think I would have paid a million bolts for you if I thought there might still be Lombaxes out there?" Skyla looked at him in a slight daze as he shook his head, "We will never see the Lombax species again, not in this universe."
Baen's words were like a knife in Skyla's back. She'd always been told she was the last of her kind, enough creatures had said it to make it true. But it had never really sunk in. Secretly, she'd always had her doubts, and hopes. That maybe, somehow, they were all wrong and, somewhere, there'd be another Lombax. That's why she'd never asked in depth questions about her kind. She was too fearful of the truth, content to maintain her dreams in her own bubble of ignorance. But now, the bubble had been burst and she was confronted with the truth. The cruel, painful truth. The Lombaxes had run away. They were gone. When she died, that would be it. No more Lombaxes. Ever.
Baen nudged the glass towards her again,
"Drink up." Almost mechanically, Skyla raised the glass to her lips and downed it in one, barely registering that it was just water.
At that moment, the door buzzed but Skyla hardly noticed as Baen called for entry. Professor Xavier hurried into the room, carrying several vials of multicoloured pastes as well as some bandages.
"Oh Sky...you silly child," the little Peluchian reprimanded her gently. Turning the chair to face him he examined her face and ran his eyes over her injuries.
"We've just had a little chat, Professor, and she's in a state of slight shock, but she'll be alright. You may go when you're done." Baen got up and went into one of the other rooms.
Xavier scolded Skyla quietly as he worked, cleaning her wounds with one ointment, treating them with another and wrapping them in bandages. The Lombax made no sound throughout the procedure, remaining in her dazed state, not even reacting to his touch. When Xavier finished, he capped all of the vials and tucked them away into his pockets.
"Right, that's you all patched up. We best get you home." Skyla looked up at him and only then did he see the tears that glistened in her eyes.
"I'll never go home, Xavier. I'll never have a home," she murmured, her voice wavering a little. Xavier looked at her in surprise before placing a comforting hand on her uninjured arm,
"This is your home, Sky."
"No. It isn't, this isn't my home, it's my prison," the young Lombax spat bitterly, eyes flaring with anger and unimaginable pain.
"I wasn't talking about the facility, Sky," the scientist answered her honestly, "this is your home because it is where you are loved." Skyla's brow knotted together in mild puzzlement, as if she didn't quite understand. Xavier looked at the confused creature before him and his heart when out to the tormented soul.
"Sky..." he began but she cut across him.
"They're not coming back," she whispered, head bowed once again. Xavier blinked, a little bewildered,
"Who?"
"The Lombaxes. They'll never come back. I'm alone," she clarified hauntingly. The Professor shook his head to himself, what had Baen been telling her now...? He'd presumably told her what had happened to the Lombaxes, though knowing him he wouldn't have lightened the blow in any way. It would have hurt the young Lombax. Hurt a lot, by the looks of it.
"They may never return," he chose his words carefully, 'but that does not mean you are alone and cannot have a home. You are surrounded by those who love you and care for you, Sky. And the loved are never lonely." She raised her head, a glimmer of life visible in the depths of despair contained within her eyes. Xavier smiled encouragingly, willing his words to get through to the young female,
"You're not alone."