by Drew Briney
“Ladies and gentlemen, we terribly regret the circumstances we find ourselves in and apologize to you for having to observe this tragic accident.” She paused as she visibly made efforts to retain her self control and then, turning towards Blaze, who largely remained in shock, she added, “and we apologize to Blaze as well. It appears clear to me … that your competitor managed to disable your protective suit and your safety monitor and that he managed to smuggle an authentic weapon into the simulator contrary to all of our established rules.” Another pause allowed the emcee to master her emotions again and gave the audience a moment to process her words before continuing. “Was the weapon enhanced?” she asked with genuine sincerity. “It looked enhanced to me.”
Grateful that he wasn’t being thrown from the frying pan into the fire but unaware of Evelia’s influence upon the emcee, Blaze nodded in acknowledgement and said with a voice loud enough to be heard by a good deal of the audience as well as the emcee: “yes … it delivered a powerful electrical charge that nearly knocked me out.” He wanted to say something more about his upcoming hearing, Dr. Boyd, his regret for using Jerron’s sword, and perhaps a host of other things but his tongue was tied – so much for taking control over the situation. As he turned over a few things he might say, he held the sword out handle first and approached the emcee to deliver the weapon to her.
“I’m so sorry,” she responded, accepting the bloody weapon while quickly setting it aside. “This incident will be subject to careful examination. Until then, would you like to be excused for the rest of the tournament or are you game for another round?”
The question took Blaze entirely by surprise – he would have expected that the tournament would be put on hold for weeks. She offered the question as if he would be fighting later this afternoon. His legs were sore and his forearm still stung but none of his injuries seemed severe. He would bandage them up before the next round and they should be fine so long as he was extra cautious about defending them in the next few rounds.
“I’m game,” he coolly answered, nodding and drawing an applause from the crowd that was noticeably less raucous than earlier – and less enthusiastic. The emcee mustered a charming smile that was calming to the young warrior and then looked back at the crowd.
“Again, I’m so very sorry about this tragic incident,” she began. “We will postpone the remaining tournament contests for a few twenty-four hour cycles while we take care of Jerron, check our equipment, and look into what happened here today. I’m sure some of you will not feel like watching more of the tournament. We understand … and we wish you well.”
With that very awkward announcement, the emcee stepped down from the podium with a dazed look in her eyes, as if she couldn’t believe what she had just done. Blaze looked deeply into her eyes while she stepped down and understood that something beyond the ordinary was happening here. When she looked directly into his eyes, he could see it: she was in shock and barely cognizant of what she was doing. Her reaction to the situation would have been much less governed and reassuring to the crowd had she been on her own. For her, what she just did was nothing less than heroic and she couldn’t explain where her fortitude had come from. Blaze glanced up at Evelia who forced a small grin in return and bowed her head slightly at the young warrior.
“Thank you for how you handled that,” Blaze graciously thanked the emcee. “That was an impressive exhibition of inner strength.”
Receiving the compliment as best she could, she nodded at Blaze with her hands covering her mouth and let out an audible cry. “Excuse me,” she answered, controllably rushing towards the back rooms where she could be alone.
“HOW DID YOU DO THAT?” Blaze whispered in Evelia’s ears as soon as she made it down to the simulator where he was waiting. He expected an armed escort to lead him back to his room so he felt somewhat rushed to get some information.
“I’m really not sure,” she blandly answered. “I just wanted her to be strong and composed and to make sure everyone understood what just happened. I didn’t tell her what to say. I did not make her do anything. … I just hoped hard and it seemed to help. I’m just learning remember?” she asked rhetorically, a little unsure of herself.
“Well, whatever you did,” Blaze continued in very hushed tones, “I am very grateful you did it.”
“I’m grateful you are okay,” Evelia responded. “How bad are your legs cut?”
“I am not sure,” Blaze answered, “but they do not seem too bad. They feel tender but I do not need to limp so I guess the cuts are not too serious – despite the bleeding,” he added as he looked at his blood soaked suit. He felt like sitting down to carefully inspect his injuries but decided not to do anything just yet: the guards would be here soon. He then considered going back to the dressing room to get some bandages and his regular clothes but observed simulator personnel locking up those rooms with noticeable haste – one of them was carrying his malfunctioning safety monitor. Apparently, they were not taking any chances that someone might come along and tamper with evidence. They forgot my suit, he noticed. Despite that positive development, he felt his heart sink as the image of Jerron returned to his mind.
“It looks like our day is freed up again,” Evelia remarked, trying to be as composed and as cheerful as possible under the circumstances.
“Yeah,” he answered, allowing his mind to more freely think about his problems. “The hearing is tomorrow. Maybe everything will get sorted out at the hearing.”
“Yes!” Evelia enthusiastically responded. “Finally, you are getting back to your normal, positive self!” She paused a moment, pleased with her observation. “Tomorrow, everything will get back on track and we can focus on going to the magic woman’s home moon.”
“Or, maybe we can discuss the possibility of going back home now that she has died,” Blaze countered. “There is no further need to go to her moon if we are not going to try to colonize it’s planet.” His voice had been increasing slightly in volume, making Evelia dart her eyes around nervously. Aware of his mistake, Blaze looked around as well.
“Do not be so sure,” Evelia countered again as she considered the diminishing crowd. The audience was largely gone and Blaze observed two of his escorts leaving with the rest of the crew. Surprised, he wondered whether or not he was no longer under house arrest and looked around more carefully. With only a few dozen people left in the large auditorium, it was quickly evident that there were no soldiers present to cuff him and lead him back to his room.
“Let’s go,” Evelia suggested, coming to the same conclusion as Blaze.
“Did you do that?” he asked with a cocked eyebrow.
“No,” she answered. Weird, huh, she whispered in his mind.
Yeah.
Then, uncomfortable with talking silently like that, he asked her out loud: “What did you mean by ‘do not be so sure’? I am pretty sure she is dead.” There was no hint of teasing in his voice.
“True enough,” Evelia answered, “but we still need to go to her home. I have a message for her parents.”
“Are you serious? You want to travel through a half dozen galaxies just to deliver a message?” he nearly shouted in surprise.
“Well,” she answered, “that is one way to look at it – but there are other things about the magic woman’s plan that we still need to accomplish and there are things to learn from her people. Trust me,” she almost purred like the magic woman, “it will be worth every moment.”
With that answer, she winked at Blaze, grabbed his hand, and began walking away from the simulator. Her actions cheered his heart and left him feeling exceptionally conflicted as his thoughts returned to the image of the gruesome corpse he created only moments before.
“DID YOU BY CHANCE NOTICE the stadiums seats?” Evelia asked, tightening her hold on his hand and swinging it a little while holding Elayuh in her other arm.
“Not really,” Blaze conceded, trying to recall anything unusual about them but only recalling that they were all
attached to one another.
“They were very ergonomic,” she began with a big smile aimed at the young warrior.
“Earth what?”
“Ergonomic. They are designed to fit your body so that they are more comfortable. While you sit in them, they change shape slightly to adjust to your form. Everything about this ship is so perfect! I love all of the finishing touches like that – and the drinking flowers – are they not wonderful? Everything here is so well thought out, so well built, and so convenient. I think it is wonderful what the other Orders have done. …”
“So you noticed that too?”
“What?”
“The other Orders. They had different information than us, different technologies, different focuses. It seems that each Order could have been so much more if we would have been all together. It is like that saying – the famous one – the sum is greater than the parts?” Blaze outwardly appeared a little frustrated but from his energy flow, Evelia estimated that he was more perplexed over the issue rather than upset.
“I think it is exciting that we are all together now,” Evelia countered. “Just think how amazing this crew is going to be when we get all of this new talent working together and building upon what we have.” Evelia had always been charismatic when she was passionate about something but she was so full of hope and excitement now that Blaze couldn’t help but notice that she seemed more charming than ever before.
“Freeze!” The words came out of nowhere and chilled the air. A few soldiers were turning the corner in front of them and a half dozen others were running behind the couple. The sound of their shoes clanking on the organic flooring sounded like a small team of horses traipsing down the hallway. Evelia looked up at Blaze and gave him a look that seemed a cross between a gesture of comfort and an unintended exposé of her annoyance. As the soldiers drew closer, he noticed that they each bore a black star near their team insignias and wished he had his staff with him.
Meanwhile, his instincts took over. He determined that there were seven men behind him, mostly of average height and build with one larger man tailing the others. He probably stood a good seven feet behind Blaze and was lagging behind the others not because he was overweight but because his muscular build lowered his cardiovascular endurance. He would be slower moving but his blows would be more powerful than the smaller men who outran him. All soldiers carried pistols or other weapons that shot energy projectiles. Although relatively quiet, the clanking sounds of the pistols were easily discernible. The three men in front of him were out of striking distance without a weapon but he ventured that, with a diversion, he could close the distance quickly enough and disarm the closest soldier if the opportunity presented itself.
None of that mattered though. This was checkmate … for now.
“We’re taking you in for questioning,” the senior soldier directed. He looked to be over fifty years old and unfit for the duties of the military. His age wasn’t uncommon in the Orders but Blaze was a little surprised to see someone so old in charge of a military unit as Dr. Boyd had very clearly leaned towards choosing younger people to be members of his crew. Looking at Blaze’s suit, the older man crumpled his brow and seemed to reconsider. “Looks like we should probably escort you back to your room first so you can change out of your simulator suit,” he mused.
And so you can get your staff. Leave it in cloaking mode, adjust the settings to prevent projectiles and set it to stun. Oh – and set it for vocal instructions in case things get messy, she instructed, while sending him a visual image of holding the cloaked device in an offensive holding position, closely held parallel to his body but loosely gripped so that he would not draw attention to an odd hand placement that might give away the location of the invisible weapon.
How do you know about all of these functions? Blaze asked.
“You look a mess,” the officer chided.
I told you I’ll tell you later, Evelia answered Blaze a little sharply but also a little cheerfully.
“We better get you cleaned up a little,” the senior officer added.
“Sir, that won’t really matter will it?” a junior officer – probably the next in rank to the senior officer, Blaze estimated – half whispered, half grumbled in the senior officer’s ear.
Trouble, Blaze intuited.
“To his quarters,” the man in charge ordered and everyone followed.
TWENTY-FIVE MINUTES LATER, Blaze, Evelia, Elayuh, and several soldiers wound their way around a final corner where more soldiers were waiting. Blaze had taken time to quickly wash and bind his injuries and to prepare himself for whatever might be ahead. Although soldiers watched him nearly every moment of the trip, they left him to himself when he made a trip to the bathroom to retrieve the staff and they failed to inspect his boots that held small throwing stars sheathed on the interior side where they pressed against his upper ankle.
“Well, look here,” boomed a deep voice with a sardonic tone as the door behind them shut.
“Lock,” came the order of one of the soldiers behind Blaze.
“I didn’t know the trouble maker was a daddy,” mocked the nameless man with the strong voice, “and I didn’t know his girlfriend was such a fine little thing.” His voice was menacing and left Blaze bristling. The large man was now casually walking towards Evelia and letting his eyes wander. “And she looks like she’s dressed to entertain doesn’t she?” A number of encouraging chuckles echoed throughout the room as he got closer to her.
Steady, Evelia instructed. Blaze wasn’t even aware that she was anticipating his moves. She sent Blaze a mental image of herself thrusting her free arm in front of her while turning the baby away from the man. He instinctively understood that this was his signal to do whatever he was planning to do – but not before then. Without any words exchanged, her plan was crystal clear without any words shared.
“You two saved Master a lot of trouble,” the deep voice boomed again, looking particularly carefully at Blaze. Blaze couldn’t tell if he was scowling at him or just carefully assessing the young warrior. Unwilling to give him the slightest advantage, Blaze offered nothing in return apart from a blank look that showed he was listening. “The way the magic woman handled Dr. Boyd was brilliant,” the man continued. “Master couldn’t have performed the execution any better. But we can’t have any competitors aboard this ship so we need to come to an agreement. … We need to secure your support. We need to be assured of your loyalty,” he finished. This time, his look towards Blaze was more discernible. This wasn’t a meeting for negotiations; this was a meeting for intimidation.
“Sweetheart,” he flattered as he slowed his pace down, nearing Evelia. “Before we start the questioning, I need a little favor from you.” Blaze fumed and felt an arm grabbing his shoulders from behind as if to warn him to stay passive. Five foot ten inches, one hundred eighty five pounds, fairly strong, inexperienced or not very bright, Blaze concluded with nothing more than the grip for guidance. With no words forming in his mind, Blaze further concluded that the grip would not restrict his intended first move – nor his second. Blaze kept his eyes meticulously aimed at the man walking towards Evelia but his focus was upon his peripheral vision. Evelia couldn’t wait much longer before the man could touch her and that would ruin her intended effect.
The moment Evelia’s hand started moving forward, he was ready. Rotating his right wrist and only moving his left wrist forward no more than two inches, he twisted the grip of his staff and pushed his hand forward another few inches. The movement was barely discernible to anyone besides the man gripping Blaze from behind and that movement was only enough to make the man tighten his hold, thinking that the young warrior was only beginning to consider an attack. But that thinking was wrong. The attack was already over.
The large man with the booming voice crumbled to the floor, the apparent victim of some magical blast emanating from Evelia’s forward palm thrust. The jovial atmosphere within the room dissipated like spilled water in a desert: gone so q
uickly, one doubted if it had ever really been there in the first place. Taking a small step forward, Blaze placed his left foot in front of his right foot, pointing his toes towards his right. Then, spinning around, he discretely rotated the staff and touched the head of the man behind him. He also crumbled to the ground but there was no apparent reason for his fall to anyone watching so he too appeared to be the victim of some sort of magic, some unknown power. Stepping over the man, Blaze continued his spin until his back was pressed against Evelia’s back.
“Who is this Master?” Blaze demanded. “I will negotiate with no one else.”
A few men chuckled in response but Evelia and Blaze could easily discern that their laughter was tainted with nervousness. These men were undoubtedly well educated and void of irrational superstitions but they now had visible, undeniable reasons to consider a legitimate belief in magic – with this sort of paradigm shift, men become uneasy, unstable, and unpredictable. Blaze could perceive this in their various postures.
“Who is he?” Blaze demanded before giving them reasonable time to answer his first query. One brave, confident soldier began walking towards the couple as if he was entirely unacquainted with the concept of fear.
“No one meets Master until they swear allegiance and receive the mark,” he explained, raising his hand and pulling down his sleeves to reveal a half burned, half tattooed symbol on his upper forearm. It resembled a creature but it was too small and the man was too far away to get a clear idea of whatever it might be. “Thirty men surround you with enough blasting power to entirely disintegrate both of you one millisecond after I command it,” he continued. “Do you really think your theatrics are intimidating enough to stop my command?” With his last question, he raised his right arm slightly in front of him and above his head. A plethora of guns raised at the same time and the man grinned towards Blaze and Evelia as if to mock their efforts.