Krollia

by Steven Donahue

similar. Looking into the bowl, she saw four small bugs crawling around in her food. She picked them out and tossed them onto the ground. Normally, that would have grossed her out so much that she would have dumped the rest of her food, but she was so hungry that she didn’t care.

  Jola leaned forward and frowned. “Don’t do that,” he said. “The moss beetles are the best part. And they have lots of protein.” He picked up two of the bugs that were still close to the table and he ate them. Mia turned her head and tried not to vomit. That was it. She pushed her bowl forward and stopped eating.

  Pinto laughed. “You have to forgive his table manners,” he said, nodding toward Jola. “He is 328-years-old and he still eats like a child.” Mia nodded. “I hope you are ready, Mia,” continued Pinto. “Your training begins this morning.”

  Mia pressed her lips together. “From what you said last night, I guessed that.” She drank her cup of water and stood up. “Where do we start?” she asked. Pinto rose and told her to follow him. He and Jola gathered up their bowls and cups. Mia did the same. She followed them to a basin where the dirty dishes were stacked. The old man then led her to one of the huts.

  Pinto knocked on the outside of the hut. A moment later, Crey appeared. The boy wore a helmet, a chest protector, and padded pants. He smiled when he saw Mia. “Good morning, Savior,” he said to the girl. “Are you ready for your training?”

  Mia nodded. “I am. But call me Mia.” She playfully tapped the top of his helmet. “Let’s get started, Rambo,” she said. He shot her a quizzical look. “Never mind,” she said. Crey nodded and marched like a good soldier to an open area a hundred yards from the huts. On the ground were two swords and a set of protective clothing.

  The girl put the clothing over her own garments and picked up one of the swords. It was surprisingly heavy. Crey laughed as he picked up the other weapon. He swung it around like an expert. “Don’t worry, you will get used to the weight.” He aimed the tip of his sword at her. “Well, Mia Sword, Second Savior from Earth, let’s see what you can do.” He swung his weapon at her and she instinctively raised her blade to protect herself. The force of his swing knocked the weapon from her hands and it fell with a thud onto the ground.

  Mia bit her bottom lip. She bent down and retrieved her sword. After taking a deep breath, she tightened her grip on the handle. “It is important to have a firm grip,” said Crey, “but don’t squeeze it too tightly. You’ll break your wrists if you do.” He moved beside her and showed her how he held the weapon. Crey guided her through a series of exercises to improve her familiarity with the sword. Soon, she was maneuvering it with grace and ease.

  They sparred for more than an hour, lightly at first, then more intensely as Mia gained confidence. “You are a natural,” said Crey, during a short break. “Just work on keeping your elbows close to your body. That will help with your control and you won’t tire so easily.” After another hour of sparring, they finished that lesson.

  Crey led Mia to a rock formation where several stones were lined up on top of the rock shelf. Two laser pistols were also on it. The boy picked up one pistol and showed it to his student. “Have you ever fired a weapon like this?” he asked. She carefully took it from him, holding it like a wounded bird. She shook her head. He positioned the weapon in her hand. “First lesson, always make sure the safety is on.” The boy showed her where the switch was. “Until you’re ready to fire, that is.”

  He kept his hands over hers and raised the pistol to line up a shot. “Look through this sight gauge, aim and fire,” he advised. He looked at her eyes. “Ready to try it?” She nodded. Crey let go of her hands and took three steps back. “Take a deep breath, let it out slowly, then try to hit the targets.”

  She followed his directions and let out a slow breath of air. Then she aimed and fired. Her first shot was too low and it hit the wall. Her next was too high. She took another breath and made the necessary corrections. She fired again, hitting a target rock, which exploded into several pieces. She turned to Crey and smiled. “I did it!” she yelled, precariously waving the pistol.

  Crey put up his hands. “Careful,” he warned. “The safety is off.” He moved toward her and lowered her hands. “Second lesson, never aim it at a friend.” She quickly apologized. “That’s alright,” he replied. He backed up again. “Keep practicing.” She fired several more shots, some hitting the targets, some not. Crey lined up more rocks and offered more advice. They worked on this lesson for two hours before stopping for lunch.

  Crey and Mia spent the afternoon riding the horse-like creatures that Mia had seen earlier. She learned that they were called Prikes and that they were stronger, faster and smarter than the horses she had ridden on Earth. Her equestrian experience helped her learn how to ride and control the animals. Soon, she was at perfect ease with the strange creatures.

  Crey spent the next four days intensively training Mia. The Narlands received daily updates from their spies at the Emperor’s home. They were able to better track Jake’s whereabouts, and soon they could even predict where he would be held on any given day. This data was invaluable as Pinto planned the rebel offensive.

  There were two goals: rescue Jake and remove Rol from power by any means necessary. As her training progressed, Mia realized that these weren’t just games. She was preparing for a real battle with real casualties. Mia began to wonder if she were up to the task.

  The girl found her mind wandering during one of the strategy sessions Pinto led with the rebel fighters. Pinto asked her a question and she had no idea what he was talking about. The old man nodded at her. “Can I please have a moment alone with Mia?” he asked those gathered. The others left. Pinto sat down across from the girl at the dining table. “What is wrong, Mia?” he asked.

  She shrugged and looked down at the table for a moment before she peered up at the old man. “I know how important all of this is,” she said. “I want to rescue Jake and take him home, and I know you want your freedom from Rol.” She stopped and clenched her fists.

  “But you are worried,” he said. She nodded. “That is natural. Everyone involved is worried, but this is what we must do for our freedom.” He gently tapped her hands.

  Mia nodded again. “It’s just that I’ve never killed anything before, much less a person,” she said. “I’m supposed to be some great warrior but what I’ve learned in the last few days goes against everything my parents taught us.” She stood and moved toward the hut door. She looked out at the night sky before turning to face Pinto again. “I believe that killing is wrong. Not just because I was taught that, I really believe it to be true.” She took a breath. “So how can I justify what you are asking me to do?” she asked.

  Pinto smiled. “We also believe that killing is wrong. That is why we need to depose Rol. His greed and arrogance have led to the deaths of thousands of Narlands and Terrasells.” He rose and took a step closer to the girl. “Sometimes serving the greater good means making difficult choices. We would love to fix our problems without violence, but unfortunately that isn’t an option. For us to be truly free, we must fight for our freedom.”

  Mia sat back down and thrust her head into her hands. Her body began to shake. Pinto slowly sat down across from her again. After a moment, she looked at the old man. “My world has faced that problem many, many times.” She closed her eyes for a minute before they fluttered back open. “I will do what is necessary to save Jake and help your rebellion. But I will only fire on someone if I absolutely have to.”

  The old man folded his hands on the table. “That is all we ask,” he said. They sat quietly for a few minutes until the other attendees returned. Pinto moved back to the head of the table and resumed the briefing. Mia paid closer attention to the meeting.

  The rebels spent the next three days preparing for the assault. Mia was closely trained by Crey, and their friendship began to grow. They were sword sparring one afternoon and the boy had his hands on Mia’s hands as she held her
weapon. He was offering advice on positioning when he suddenly stopped talking. Mia glanced at his face to see what the problem was when he awkwardly stretched upward and kissed her.

  Mia guided the sword to the ground before she spoke. “Crey. Thank you. That was really nice of you.” She paused and tried to think of what to say. “I know we’ve spent a lot of time together and it has been fun, but,” she stopped again with her hands in front of her. The boy nodded and took two steps away from her. She followed closely behind him. When he turned back around, she continued. “Crey, I want nothing more than to get Jake and go home. I don’t want to stay here. Do you understand?”

  The young warrior smiled. “You don’t owe me anything,” he said. “It was a stupid thing to do and I won’t do it again.” He picked up his sword and pointed toward hers. “We should continue,” he said. Mia gently rested a hand on his shoulder for a moment before turning and retrieving her weapon. He charged toward her as the lesson continued.

  Pinto gathered the rebel troops together that night. He led them in a prayer and then spoke to them about the mission. “Fellow Narlands, tomorrow is the day we have waited for, for a long time. Our ancient texts told us