Skyla watched as time ground to a halt around her, screeching to a stop as the metallic smell of blood seeped into the air.
Maia's face crumpled in pain and her mouth formed a small 'o' as she slid gracefully to the ground.
Someone was screaming. Subconsciously, Skyla knew it was her, but consciously...all she knew was the dagger handle sticking out of her closest friend's chest, and the distinct red patch beginning to blossom at her breast.
She was still screaming as Baen turned on her, his eyes dark and unrepentant. Without warning he charged at her, knocking her clean off her feet and picking her up in his arms as if she weighed nothing.
Only when he began to run away did a jolt of realisation shoot through Skyla.
She began screaming in earnest, only one word falling from her lips - Maia. She called her friend's name over and over, her voice cracking and wavering like a broken radio.
Baen half carried, half dragged her out of the hydroponics chamber. She offered no resistance, her mind was still with Maia...and Maia's blood.
He pulled her deeper into the facility, the sounds of fighting fading around them as he dragged her on.
Skyla started to struggle, her mind finally catching up. She tried to free herself from Baen's grasp, but he was too strong.
Still she struggled, screaming all the way as her throat began to turn raw and she felt the muscle began to tear. She barely noticed as Baen shot down a small group of Rangers who were in the wrong place at the wrong time. They collapsed to the ground without a sound, having no time to react as the Novalian swept passed them.
Skyla lashed out, her limbs flailing as she tried with all her might to pull away from him, straining with the effort.
Baen paused momentarily and smashed Skyla into the wall and her screaming was cut off abruptly as she was choked into a stunned silence.
Spots danced before Skyla's eyes and her vision dimmed as she fought desperately not to black out, but while she battled to stay conscious, Baen continued to drag her through the facility.
He halted by a door and shoved her through it, sending her sprawling onto the floor.
As Skyla lay on the ground, her limbs unmoving as her head whirled, Baen began drumming on the panel beside the door, urgently punching commands into the computer.
Skyla couldn't see where they were as her eyes refused to focus, but it felt like an open room of some sort.
The Novalian cursed as the system was unresponsive. Abandoning it, he swooped down on her, heaving her to her feet before she could retaliate. He dragged her over to something and dropped her onto it before climbing on behind her.
Skyla just registered it was a hoverbike as it whirred into life. She knew she should be fighting back, but her head was spinning and her brain felt like mush and all she could see was Maia's beautiful face crumpled in pain.
Baen manoeuvred them around unseen obstacles and out of a door.
All of a sudden they were out in the open and surrounded by greenery, and fresh air whipped through Skyla's hair as they sped off.
It was only when Baen changed gear and increased their speed that Skyla realised exactly what was happening. Baen was taking her into the jungle of Florana, away from the facility, away from Ratchet...away from Maia.
And she began to fight, her movements slow at first but getting wilder as they plunged deeper into the undergrowth. She made to turn and scratch Baen's face, hoping to gouge his eyes, but he ducked away. He cuffed her hard around the head and for a moment Skyla was preoccupied with not throwing up, keeping her balance and staying conscious all at the same time.
A sound reached her ears and she leaned over to the side doggedly to look behind them.
Something was speeding after them, smashing through the vegetation as it closed in. It was a person, but Skyla couldn't see them clearly, only the vague outline of someone whose feet appeared to be on fire, leaving a trail of white behind them.
Baen noticed them too as he drew his gun and glanced back briefly to fire several shots. The figure dodged them all, swinging something that reflected the shots harmfully into the trees. The Novalian was forced to refocus on steering, giving the figure time to gain.
Suddenly, the hoverbike jerked right and Skyla was nearly dislodged from her seat. She just managed to keep a grip on the seat and spent the next few seconds fighting to keep it as the bike veered this way and that in an effort to throw of their pursuer.
But the figure kept coming regardless, ducking more of Baen's shots as they came closer with each passing second.
They were a couple of metres away when Skyla saw, from the corner of her eye, the figure throw something at the hoverbike, something large and metal and familiar looking.
Their aim was spot on as the hoverbike's back engine crumpled in and fell away with a clatter, the vehicle beginning to spin out of control. Baen wrestled with the bike, trying to rein it in, but it quickly became obvious his actions were useless.
Grabbing Skyla, he leapt off with her as the bike smashed into a tree trunk, bursting into a great ball of fire. The heart blasted over Skyla's fur as she crashed into the ground, but she had no time to recover as Baen set upon her.
The struggle was brief as Skyla was still disorientated, and a moment later she found herself held up against Baen, a dagger to her throat.
The figure had slowed when they'd crashed and stopped before them, standing a few feet away.
"Let her go," they ordered and Skyla recognised their voice instantly. It was Ratchet.
"Or what?" Baen retorted, "you so much as move an inch and I'll slit her throat." Ratchet froze to the spot, his wrench half raised as alarm shot across his features. Then he composed himself,
"I swear...if you don't let her go, I'll hurt you more than I intend to," he muttered dangerously. Baen laughed, a dry chilling sound that made the air freeze and crack around them.
"So she's told you about me, has she? How much?" the Novalian asked.
"Enough," Ratchet growled.
"But I bet not everything," Baen sneered. Skyla tried to move, to pull away from him, but he held her firm, pressing the knife a little deeper into her throat,
"No, no, my dear, don't struggle," he murmured in her ear, his voice as cold and slippery as an eel, "you'll only make things worse for yourself."
"Let her go, Baen," Ratchet demanded, unintentionally taking a step forward and raising his wrench. Skyla hissed as the blade just broke the skin of her neck, blood welling up around it. Ratchet froze again. Baen smiled.
"No, I don't think I will," he answered silkily. There was a rustle from Skyla's left and Ratchet's eyes flicked over to it. As quick as lightning, Baen had drawn something from his pocket and chucked it into the bush. He yanked Skyla away as the bush exploded and bits of bark flew towards Skyla, splinters digging into her skin. A small metallic form was catapulted from the bush and crashed against a tree trunk, sliding to the ground where they lay still.
"Clank!" Ratchet cried, rushing towards his motionless friend. Baen used the time to heave Skyla away and further into the jungle, out of sight of Ratchet who was temporarily engrossed in his friend.
Slamming her up against the tree the Novalian held Skyla in place, his knife once again at her throat.
"I should kill you," he hissed in her face, "for what you've done. All the trouble you've caused me over the years, and now this," his eyes were like that of a venomous snakes, just waiting to strike. He paused and for a moment the two just regarded each other, Skyla drawing in raspy breaths as her heart thudded heavily in her chest, unable to speak for the lump in her throat.
"And yet..." Baen went on, "it seems such a shame to kill you," he trailed the knife point along her jaw, "you are my crown jewel after all." For a moment, Skyla could do nothing and stood helpless before him as his gaze bore holes into her skull. Two black orbs of despair, lifeless and desolate as they sucked the light and life from around them. They were so unlike any other person's eyes, so unlike Ratchet's that were always so full of honesty and gentle humour, so unlike Maia's that were always overflowing with love and kindness...
Skyla choked, Maia's eyes...Maia...
"You killed Maia," she blurted, her voice wavering with barely contained emotion. Baen's mouth curled into a cruel smile,
"The Cazar? Yes, I did, didn't I?" he answered smoothly, his voice like black venom steadily dripping onto an open wound, "and now..." he paused and raised the dagger, angling it at her chest, a wicked grin plastered across his features, "I'm going to kill you in precisely the same way. Any last words, my dear Lombax?."
Everything stopped moving around Skyla and she saw only his eyes and his smile, silently mocking her from the depths of darkness.
A cloud of red descended over her as anger began to boil in her belly like a great pit of lava. Her whole body shook with rage and her hands clenched into fists, her nails digging into her palm so hard they drew blood. Eyes overflowing with the molten fires of pure hatred, she locked gaze with Baen.
"I'll kill you," she whispered in a hollow, empty voice not unlike the grating sound of metal. Baen's eyes had just begun to widen as she brought her knees up and kicked against him with all her might. Taken by surprise the Novalian stumbled back a pace before regaining his footing, but he was too late. Skyla was on him in a flash, her anger pouring into her a strength she didn't normally possess. She screamed like a wild animal as she tore into him, kicking, punching and scratching every inch of him. She attacked with all the power and hatred of a demon, hell-bent on causing another the greatest amount of pain.
Everything he'd put her through, every torture he'd inflicted on her...she began to repay him for it all. But it wasn't enough.
Even as he buckled under the raw power of her attack, she knew that no matter what she did, how much she hurt him...he would never suffer enough for what he had done.
Baen collapsed to the ground after what seemed like hours but was more like minutes, his body battered and bruised and bleeding all over as his fine clothes now lay in tatters.
Skyla stood over him, his knife in her hand as her eyes continued to burn. She hadn't gotten away unharmed as he'd put up a fight and she too bled from numerous wounds, and she couldn't breathe properly through her nose as he had smashed it into a bloody pulp.
Dripping with blood she looked down at him, her greatest foe, her knife poised for the kill she craved to make.
And Baen laughed.
It was a weak sound, strained with effort, but it had a scornful tone that rang through as clear as day. Skyla gazed at him in shock as he continued to laugh.
"I should never have let you go," he spluttered, his lips coated with navy blood that shined black against his skin. Skyla frowned at his words,
"What do you mean?" she demanded. Baen chuckled again,
"My dear girl, did you honestly think I would just let you waltz out of my facility?" he was struggling to speak but his words still came clear as his blood began to soak into the ground.
"I knew where you were every step of the way," he told her with a light cough. Something spasmed in Skyla, like an electric shock to her innards,
"You what?" she whispered.
"I tracked you, my dear. All the way to Sarathos. When we lost the signal, I presumed you'd been eaten by a Leviathan. How wrong I was," he laughed again, spraying her with drops of blood.
"You knew where I was?" Skyla looked at him in disbelief, "then why did you let me go?"
"To see what happened," he answered, "I wanted to see how you reacted to your...'freedom'. I should have known better though, things didn't go quite according to plan," he chuckled as if realising some joke. Skyla was paralysed in shock for a moment. Then all of a sudden she remembered. The chip. The one Ratchet had removed from her arm. Hadn't Clank said it was a homing device? She'd forgotten all about it...until now.
"That's how you found me," she murmured, "on Eudora. You found me and...killed the Enyd." Her eyes darkened once again to azure flames.
"No, my dear, you killed those forest dwellers," Baen told her with a twisted smile, "if you had not escaped, they would not have died, your Rilgarian friend would still have legs and...Maia would still be alive." Skyla blanched at this,
"Shut up," she whispered furiously in a strangled voice, "shut up. You have no right to even speak her name." Her eyes were burning with such white hot fire that had Baen been a man of simple heart he may well have melted at her gaze. But as it stood, Baen had no heart to melt.
"I'm sorry," the Novalian muttered, his voice dripping with sarcasm, "have I upset you?"
Something hot was sliding down Skyla's face. Raising a hand she touched her face lightly and felt something wet on her cheeks. Examining her fingers, she saw a mixture of tears and blood at their tips.
"And now look at you..." Baen continued conversationally, "returning to rescue your friends. How...sweet."
"Skyla!" cried a voice and the grey Lombax turned to see Ratchet running towards her, something limp hanging on his back. He stopped when he realised what was happening and walked the last few paces with a stiff hesitance.
"Ah, Ratchet, how good of you to join us," Baen smiled at the sandy Lombax, his eyes dancing with demonic glee. Skyla's brow furrowed as her mind picked apart his words and the Novalian's smile widened. Then it hit Skyla.
"You...you knew?" she whispered disbelievingly.
"My dear, of course I knew," Baen responded arrogantly, the mocking tone ringing in Skyla's ears like the tolling of a great bell.
"Knew what?" asked Ratchet suspiciously.
"About you, my dear boy," Baen told him with another smile, like that of a shark. Ratchet frowned.
"You...kn-knew about R-Ratchet a-and you...d-didn't tell m-me?" Skyla's voice shook with anger and she was barely able to get out the words. Baen laughed, a horrible guttural sound,
"Now why would I do that?" he mused aloud, "no, no, your ignorance was far more amusing."
"You...let me think I was the only one?" Skyla asked in a hoarse voice, not quite believing it all as rage clogged her veins.
"Yes, I did, is that so hard to believe?" Baen asked mockingly, "and it was all going so well...until you met this so called 'hero'," he ended with a disgusted glance at Ratchet. The sandy Lombax tensed up at this, but before he could reply Skyla let out a choked wailing cry and launched herself at Baen. She landed on top of him and pressed the dagger to the base of his neck, her chest heaving with broken sobs. Her vision blurred as hot tears streamed unchecked down her face. She tried to wipe them away with her free hand but only succeeded in coating her face with more blood.
"What are you going to do? Kill me?" the Novalian challenged her huskily.
"Death's too good for you, you...you..." Skyla hissed and spluttered on her words, her sobs preventing her from saying any more. She couldn't stop crying as drop after drop of salty liquid fell steadily from her eyes, sinking into the ground where they disappeared without a trace.
"So what then? If you're not going to kill me, what are you going to do?" Baen goaded her, "lock me up like a common criminal?" Skyla shook her head without thinking.
"What then?" Baen repeated nastily.
"You deserve to suffer," Skyla growled in a high pitched tone, the knife digging deeper into his neck.
"And how is that going to happen?" Baen retorted contemptuously, "you think I'll suffer in jail? You think that if I spend the rest of my life behind bars, everything will be alright?" His eyes locked onto hers, sucking her into their foul depths.
"Whether I live or die, nothing can change the past."
The darkness in his eyes clutched at Skyla, threatening to drag her down into a pit of hopelessness and despair. She was trapped by them as they beckoned to her, leading her further into the dark. And she felt herself begin to fall.
"Skyla," a soft voice called to her, bringing with it a glimpse of light and a flicker of hope. In it, there was only a gentle request, quietly begging her to return to them. With great effort, Skyla tore her eyes from the darkness and looked to the light that came from beside her, emanating from one whose face held only peace and understanding.
"It's up to you," they murmured quietly, their gentle voice echoing in her mind. Skyla paused, letting their words sink in as her breathing slowed and the tears faded away, a calm descending over her like a blanket. She inclined her head in acknowledgement and looked down on the Novalian with a new eye.
Instantly, memories crashed over her as she saw him for what he was. She remembered when he bought her, when he beat her for the first time, and all the times after that, being tortured by him, being tortured by others because of him, being lied to and tricked all this time, being told she was the only Lombax alive when he knew that it was a lie. Baen was a demon from Hell itself. If anyone deserved death, it was him.
Skyla raised the knife above her head, preparing to make the final blow.
But Baen wasn't finished.
"Ask yourself this," he whispered and she hesitated against her will, and then his voice took on an ancient tone as he whispered, "what would Maia do?"
His words flew at Skyla and like an arrow to the heart they found their mark.
Anything else he'd said would have seen her make the kill. But now he'd placed all his cards on the table...and it was a winning hand.
Skyla balked and her aim faltered, but Baen didn't even more as he lay watching her, waiting to see what she would do, leaving his throat deliberately exposed.
Skyla's mind was screaming at her to finish it, to kill the man who had caused her so much suffering, to kill the man who had lied to her for years on end and laughed at her ignorance...to kill the man who had murdered her best friend in cold blood.
But she couldn't.
She couldn't do it.
Because Maia would not kill.
Maia would not kill, not ever, not even someone like Baen who deserved death.
Maia wouldn't do it.
So neither would Skyla.
Before she could think any further, she leaned forward and stabbed the knife into the soft ground beside Baen's head. His eyes glinted with knowing malice at her, but she refused to meet them.
"I will not kill you," Skyla muttered in a hollow voice, her heart feeling as if it had turned to iron, "I will not be dragged down to your level." The weight of the world was on her shoulders as she stood up, threatening to crush her under it. But she stayed strong...somehow.
A hand touched her arm and she looked up to see Ratchet looking at her with a curious expression. It wasn't condemning her, or praising her, but it was asking her a question, a question she knew required an answer. And she understood, and knew her answer at once. Because there was no other way for this to happen, no other way for her to be free.
With a final glance down at Baen, she turned away and nodded once. Ratchet drew his shotgun,
"Skyla may not be a killer," he said coldly and the Novalian's eyes widened as the sandy Lombax pointed the gun at his head, "but I am."