“Yeah. I think so. Besides, I know how you like to make an entrance.”
He grins at me and nods.
“You know me so well.”
He heads around the corner, so he’s out of sight when the newbies arrive. Over the last few weeks, we’ve become the de facto decision makers on who goes where and what job they get. The first two days are usually enough to determine who’s going to be a warrior, and who isn’t.
I’m dressed in my battle gear; black hoodie, red mask, dark jeans and boots with my sword on the left side so I can draw it with my right hand. I have a new crossbow, since I left the old one in the Tower, dangling on my right hip. My prosthetic arm is in place with the robotic hand instead of the blade. There’s an optional covering to make the fingers and palm look more lifelike, but I prefer the ‘raw’ look with the servos, gears, and wires visible under the clear nano-plastic. I’m trying to make sure that anyone who wants to be a Shayd warrior understand that this is not a joke. People get hurt…people die.
The doors to the lift open and the small crowd filters slowly into the room, moving as a group probably out of fear of the unknown as they gaze wide-eyed at the surroundings. There are six of them accompanied by Thad, one of many Shayds who came here after the attack to help bolster our numbers and decided to stay. He herds them forward with a firm but gentle voice.
“Come on, everyone, gather around Eve up there,” he says, pointing to me.
Some of them move to the front of the group, while others tend to hang back. Part of my decision has already been made for me, I realize. Among the braver, are a boy who looks to be about fourteen and a girl around fifteen years old. He has dark, short hair and an expression that shows he’s seen more pain and suffering in his life than someone his age should. The girl, on the other hand, has long blonde hair tied back in a loose ponytail. Her eyes are kind and full of humor, but there’s a something powerful hidden behind them.
“Let’s go,” I say, waving them forward. “It’s going to be a busy day.”
There are three that seem more than just timid as they hang far back and seem reluctant to make eye contact or come any closer. I approach the group and make my way through the little crowd until I reach the trio. They are all young, probably less than eight years old. I crouch down in front of them and smile, trying to ease their nerves.
“Are you scared?” I ask them all.
Two of them, a boy and a girl nod slowly, while the third just stares at me without answering.
“It’s okay. We can do this another time,” I say before nodding at Thad. “Can you take these three back down and talk with Mother?”
“Sure,” Thad replies. “Come on, you three, we’re going to go relax for a bit and maybe talk with some other people.”
They seem relieved and the third child, a little boy, takes a step forward and hugs me.
“Thank you,” he says as a tear slips down his cheek.
I pat his back gently and whisper in his ear.
“You’re welcome. Now go with Thad, okay?”
He nods and wipes his face before the four of them head back toward the lift. I turn around and face the remaining recruits. Besides the two teenagers, the third ‘applicant’ is a woman, maybe about thirty years old with short red hair and fierce brown eyes. She reminds me of Kateri, and she stares at me with a critical gaze. I can feel her sizing me up from top to bottom.
“So,” I say, “What are your names?”
“Aaron,” the boy says.
“Rebecca…I mean…Becca.”
“Okay, Aaron and Becca,” I repeat their names to ingrain them into my memory.
I turn to the older woman.
“And you?”
“What’s your name?” she asks in return.
“Eve. Yours?”
“Alexis.”
“Well, Alexis, and everyone else, it’s been about a week since you arrived, so it’s time for us to decide if you have what it takes to become one of our warriors or if some other job might be a better fit for you.”
“How?” Alexis asks.
“Just some quick tests,” I reply.
“Like?”
I pivot and take a swing at her. She dodges to the right and takes a small step back, her fists raised, ready to counterattack.
“Like that. We’ll take a look at how well you do and make our decisions.”
Alexis looks at me, a little smirk on her face.
“What if we don’t pass?” Becca asks.
“Then we have three choices. You can elect to train to get better, we can decide that something else might be better for you, or you can just decide that you don’t want to be a fighter.”
“You keep saying we. Who’s we?” Aaron asks.
“We is me and my partner,” I say, gesturing to the side of the room.
Jax walks out from around the corner and everybody freezes. Aaron and Becca take a step back, but at least they don’t run. Alexis stands her ground, her head tilted to the side as she studies him.
“Is that a demon?” Aaron asks, his eyes wide.
“Yes,” I answer. “He is a demon.”
“And my name is Jax.”
Alexis takes a step closer, her eyes locked on him.
“I thought we were in the business of killing demons,” she says. “Is he a prisoner?”
“We are, and no, he is not. He’s a friend, one of many that we have made in the Abyss,” I reply.
“You’re allies with the demons?”
“Some of them.”
“Okay, so this is more complicated than I expected,” Alexis says.
“Just like the real world, right?” Jax says with a grin.
She smiles back at him.
“I suppose so.”
“Are we all okay with this?” I ask, looking at all three of the new recruits. I get three nods in response. “Good, let’s get started.”
Two hours later, I’m leaning against the ropes in one of the rings watching Alexis and Jax go at it. Aaron and Becca are stretched out on the floor a few feet away, their clothes soaked with sweat, recovering from earlier rounds with me. All three of them are impressive, but Alexis is in a class of her own. She’s standing toe-to-toe with Jax, trading blows and showing no sign of tiring.
“Hey. My turn,” I say, stepping forward.
Jax doesn’t say anything, but his expression is one of relief and exhaustion.
“Good job,” he says to Alexis, a wry grin on his face.
“You too,” she replies, returning the smile as she wipes a heavy sheen of sweat off her brow.
“Watch yourself,” Jax whispers to me as he passes.
I take in a deep breath, trying to boost my already flagging energy reserves. Alexis looks rested, but something tells me it’s a facade, designed to intimidate.
“You ready?” I ask as we stand face-to-face.
“If you are.”
I step back quickly, taking an offensive posture, my fists up. She does the same and we move slowly around the ring, just studying each other. She throws a weak initial punch which I dodge easily. I know she’s just testing me, so I give her a sly wink in return. We continue ‘dancing,’ moving closer and then farther away, tossing in the occasional trial attack for a few minutes…until…
I charge forward, feigning a punch to her left side, but she reads me like a book and kicks out with her right leg. Luckily, somehow, I slip to the side, barely avoiding the impact. She smiles at me, her eyes full of fire. This time, it’s her turn to go first. She tries a high kick with her left leg to the ribs and I drop down, swinging my leg out and catching her right ankle. She takes the hit, but instead of trying to withstand the blow, she goes with it, rolling away and springing back to her feet in a matter of a second or two.
“Nice,” she says.
“You too.”
She nods at me and we begin dancing again, weaving, and bobbing around the ring.
“Come on, do something,” Jax says. “It’s not Zumba class.”
&nb
sp; Becca and Aaron, who are standing at the edge of the ring now, join in.
“You can take her,” Becca calls out.
I’m not completely sure who her is, but Aaron makes his support obvious.
“Let’s go, Alexis!”
I look over at him and point my finger.
“I’ll remember that,” I say with a sideways grin.
She suddenly throws a punch at my face and I dip down and slip to the right, she counters my move and attacks with a left-handed swing catching me in the shoulder. I stumble back, quickly regaining my footing. She advances on me and I step back, but only so I can launch myself off my right foot with more power. She tries to dodge the attack, but I anticipate her reaction and slam my upper body into her right side, knocking her back into the ropes.
I retreat quickly, preparing for the inevitable counter-attack. She bounces back, a fierceness in her eyes, coming at me full-force when something invades my head…
K ~ Eve?
I’m caught so off guard, I let my hands drop down to my sides.
E ~ Kateri?
K ~ Where…are…you?
I don’t even have time to respond before Alexis barrels into me, smashing her knee into my right side, directly into my still healing ribs. A cry of pain erupts from me as I fall backward. Jax leaps over the ropes, catching me before I hit the ground.
“Shit!” Alexis says. “Sorry.”
I try to think of something to say to Kateri but the pain is making my thoughts all muddled. “I have to go,” I say, pushing myself away from Jax.
“What is it?”
“Kateri!”
“Holy shit! Go, go, go.”
Ignoring the searing pain in my ribs, I throw myself over the ropes and take off running toward the lift.
“Who’s Kateri?” I hear Alexis ask.
“Her girlfriend. She was—” and I don’t hear the rest of it.
By the time I get to the elevator I’ve managed to control some of the shooting pain, which allows me to think.
E ~ I’m on my way.
K ~ Not going…anywhere.
Her thoughts seem heavy, sluggish and confused. My heart is pounding so hard, it feels like it’s going to explode as I stand in front of the lift waiting for the doors to open.
“Come on!” I yell while clenching and unclenching my fists.
E ~ Kateri?
For a moment, there’s no response until finally…
K ~ Yeah.
E ~ I’m coming.
K ~ I…know.
The doors slide open and I dart inside, punching the button for the dormitory floor. It seems to take forever before we start moving. I pace back and forth, anxiously waiting for the car to stop. Thoughts from other Shayds keep invading my head and I struggle to wade through them while searching for any additional ones from Kateri.
The elevator stops and as soon as the doors are open enough, I squeeze through the opening. Two young boys are standing waiting for the lift and I nearly knock them down.
“Sorry! Sorry!” I yell as I sprint down the hall toward our apartment.
I haven’t picked up any more thoughts from Kateri since boarding the elevator. I start to think this is all in my head. When I reach our place, I slap my hand against the pad and the door slides open. I rush inside, my eyes darting around the room, searching for her. I half-expect to find her sitting on the couch drinking a Coke and smirking at me, but she’s not and when I look over at the bed, there she is, just like always.
I feel my heart sink and I slowly drop to my knees, leaning against the side of the mattress. It’s quiet except for the faint beeping of the monitors.
K ~ Took you…long…enough.
I jump to my feet and stare down at her. Her eyes are closed, and her breathing is slow and steady.
E ~ Kateri?
K ~ Who else?
E ~ What is happening?
K ~ Not sure. Where…am I?
E ~ In our place. In bed.
K ~ Why?
E ~ You’re in a coma.
K ~ What?
I look over at the monitors, and her heart rate is slowly speeding up.
E ~ You don’t know this?
K ~ No.
E ~ What do you remember?
K ~ Not…much.
E ~ What about Clay and the explosion?
K ~ A little. What…happened?.
E ~ You were blown off the roof, but you landed on one of the lower balconies. You hit your head pretty hard.
K ~ Are you hurt…too?
E ~ I was.
K ~ Was?
E ~ I’m better now.
K ~ Better? How long?
For a few seconds I don’t reply.
K ~ How…long!
E ~ Three months.
Her heart rate spikes immediately, and I place my hand on hers, gently squeezing her fingers.
E ~ Try to stay calm, baby. Can you feel my hand?
K ~ I…think so.
I glance at the monitor, and her pulse and heart rate begin to drop. I sit down on the edge of the bed.
K ~ You were…hurt?
E ~ Yeah.
K ~ Bad?
E ~ Not good.
K ~ Not funny.
E ~ Sorry.
K ~ Tell me.
E ~ Later.
K ~ Now.
E ~ No. You need to get better first then I’ll tell you, or open your eyes and you can see for yourself.
There’s a quiet pause where I sense nothing from her and then finally…
K ~ Fine.
E ~ I’ve missed you so much.
K ~ I’m sorry.
E ~ For what?
K ~ I don’t remember…missing…you.
I squeeze her fingers and smile as a few tears run down my cheek.
E ~ That’s okay. You’re lucky.
I lay down on the bed next to her, draping my arm across her waist and burying my face in her shoulder. I cry on the outside and she…she weeps on the inside.
Over the next ten days, Kateri makes amazing progress.
Her hand moves.
She squeezes my fingers.
Her eyes open for a few minutes, although she doesn’t seem to actually focus on anything.
She responds to verbal commands with small hand or leg movements.
Longer periods of semi-lucid alertness are combined with a few scattered words.
She begins eating and drinking with assistance, although she still seems out of it.
The morning of the eleventh day I slowly open my eyes and look over at her. Her head is turned to the side and her eyes are open, staring directly at me. For the smallest fragment of time, I get the terrible feeling that she’s dead, just gazing at nothing, but then she blinks, and my heart leaps into my throat as I wait for her to speak.
“Morning,” she says, her voice quiet but strong.
“Morning,” I reply, my voice sounding like the weak one.
I reach over and touch her face with my right hand. She closes her eyes for a moment and a tiny sigh flits into the air between us.
“You came back to me,” I say.
“How could I not?”
I move closer and I press my lips against hers and all the emotions I had been holding back for three months, suddenly burst forth and I cry like a baby, unable to stem the tide. I feel her hand touch my neck and it just seems to stoke the tears. It takes me a while to pull myself together, the whole time she gently strokes my neck and shoulders. She’s smiling at me when I look into her eyes and I feel like crying again, but I hold back.
“How do you feel?”
“Tired, but okay.”
“I thought I’d lost you forever,” I say, reaching over and touching her face.
“I told you that could never happen.”
I nod and smile at her.
“You did.”
“Tell me now,” she says.
“Tell you what?”
“What happened to you? You said you were hurt.”
&nb
sp; I’m lying on my right side, so my facial scar isn’t visible, concealed by the sheet and pillow, and my left arm is still covered by my pajamas.
“Maybe we should wait.”
“We already waited.”
I sigh and frown.
“It’s bad.”
“So?”
I sigh quietly, but the look of love in her eyes bolsters me.
“Are you sure?” I ask.
“I’m sure.”
I sit up slowly, keeping my left arm at my side while turning my head so she can see my scar. I close my eyes and wait…and then I feel her fingers touch my face, the tips slowly tracing the line.
“I told you it was bad,” I whisper, still not looking at her.
“Eve. Open your eyes,” she replies.
I take a deep breath and then finally open them.
“Our scars prove that we are still here, they are evidence that we will not be defeated,” she says, quoting one of my favorite authors. “They are beautiful because they show that we overcame our demons.”
I can feel tears threatening to burst forth again as I take her hand in mine, holding it against my face. Maybe it’s because she can feel my emotions and can tell I’m about to lose it that she speaks again, a mischievous grin on her face.
“Also, it makes you look like a total fuckin’ badass.”
I chuckle and then we both laugh, and I finally let that breath out I had been holding, but my smile fades quickly.
“What? What is it?” she asks.
All Things in the Shadows II Page 27