“They weren’t exactly clear on what was going on. But if I had to guess, I’d say he’s also being held against his will. I dread to think what’s being done to him.”
“So, ye dinnae think it's a choice?”
“Come on, William. You don’t think he'd abandon us, do you?”
Roger answered for him. “The next words out of your mouth better be ‘of course he wouldn’t’, or sod the arm-wrestle, I'll give you a hiding.”
“Of course, he wouldn't,” William laughed raucously, “and of course ye couldn’t. Ye know I’d kick yer arse. Have ye even transcended yet? Cos I ‘ave.”
“You’re a real dick, Will. You know I bloody well haven’t.”
“Right, you two, quit your bickering!” I seized the opportunity and made my move. “Roger, what do you make of everything that’s gone on?” I asked, making eye contact. I wanted to get a feel for his answer.
He looked at me curiously, no doubt wondering why I was paying particular interest to him all of a sudden. “I wanna kill the Apochros. It's not like adding them to our extensive list of enemies will put us in any more danger.”
“Right… I don’t know that we want to kill them, but I’m certainly not happy with them either. I am also not intending to stay here for years; we need to get free somehow.”
“Damn right, Captain,” he said, before adding enthusiastically, “you know we have your back, we can do this.”
William nodded in agreement.
“Your support means a lot. I’m actually hoping you can help me with an issue we have. These men from the Seshat that we have locked up. I feel like we can’t leave them locked away for however long it takes us to get free. You probably know them; so would you mind helping me convince them to simmer down and rejoin us? You can help too, William, if you think you can.”
“If ye wanting them te disappear, a can dee it fer ya. Just gimme the word, Cap’n. They’re a bunch a wee cocks anyway. So far up Rufus’s arse, a dinnae nar where one ends, and the other begins.” He chuckled, despite just offering to kill five men.
I shook my head. “I’d rather not kill anyone, William. Do you think there’s any way to bring them around?” I asked both of them.
“I'm happy to have a word,” agreed Roger. “I might be able to help at least one of them see sense. But not Graeme. I wouldn’t even waste my breath and can’t stand the nasty bastard.”
“That’s fine by me. Out of the five, he’s the only one I’m happy to leave in there to rot. I’ll make you a promise to schedule in your transcendence too. Then maybe you can work on beating this daft shite in an arm-wrestle and shut him up for a minute.”
William laughed. “Winnit happen. As for Rufus’s arse lickers, I'll just keep ootta sight. There's nee love lost there, an’ a dinnae think a’d be able te keep me hands te meself.”
“Seems like Rufus kept a very unhappy ship,” I said.
“It’s not his fault really,” Roger said, “he's just a bit useless. He wants everyone to like him, but then plays favorites.”
“Nah, worse than useless, he's a bloody menace if ye ask me. The only reason we dinnae get on was cos he was threatened by me. I ‘ad too many friends ya see, and wi’ me obvious intellect ‘n leadership skills. Rufus is nowt but a damn worm, always try’n te wriggle te the top.”
“You just stay here then, William, I don’t need you starting shit with them.”
On our way to where the prisoners were being kept, we passed a Torax, who stood up and greeted us.
“Hello, Captain. Do you need access to the prisoners?”
“Ah, have you been placed on key duty, Amnarr?” I asked with a laugh.
“Yes,” he replied. “I’m stationed along here at a safe distance in case they attempt anything untoward with my mind,” he said nonchalantly. “Just close enough to hear if anyone tries to escape.”
“That’s for the best. I need you to open up a few doors for me, please.”
“Absolutely, which ones in particular?”
“I wish to speak to Rufus first,” I replied, “and Roger will visit whoever is next. The only room we don’t plan on opening is Graeme’s.”
“Of course, Captain,” he said, gesturing for us to follow him further down the corridor until we reached the first room.
“Rufus is in this one,” he gestured, bringing his hand up with a glowing flame. He condensed it just as Koparr and Calegg had done, then deftly cut through the foot-long blob of previously melted metal.
“Good luck, Captain!” Roger offered with a strained smile. “I hope he’s amenable.”
I shrugged. “We will see,” I said before pressing the panel for the door to open before the molten metal cooled enough to reseal it. It slid open smoothly.
Amnarr caught my attention just before I entered. “Would you like me to come in with you?”
“Oh no, I’ll be fine. If you could just make sure Roger can get in the other rooms. I'll shout when I’m done,” I answered, stepping through.
Rufus sat on the bed glaring daggers at me. “So, you finally come to see me again. You realized you can't just lock me up for the years we will be here. I must admit I think it's disgraceful how you have treated me.”
“Rufus, don’t start your shit as soon as I walk in, or I’ll just walk myself the fuck back out and leave you to marinate in your own stupidity. I came to talk civilly, it’s up to you how this goes.”
He sighed, head down in his hands. “I’m not a traitor, you know. I can tell that's what you and Shaun were thinking.”
“It was something we needed to look into, for sure. It was straight-up dodgy as hell, how the Fystr knew where to drop out of their jump, so close to our location. Then offered the survivors amnesty, right over the top of Shaun’s head. Let’s just say, he was fucking fuming about that.”
“I was just trying to provide guidance, though. I didn’t think he’d want to just execute them in cold blood, it seemed a good option.”
“Not without discussion.”
“But Shaun shouldn’t be making those decisions himself, either. We are captains in the Uprising. We should have a voice, yet we do not.”
“You seem to have a complex about being important, but none of this is about you, Rufus. How about, rather than trying to prove points, undermine others and feel superior, you just do your fucking job properly. We need everyone pulling in the same direction and recently you’ve been more trouble than you’re worth.”
Rufus’s face screwed up in anger. “I don’t think that I have! I have tried my utmost to support everything you do in the Uprising. You have just thrown it back in my face. Shaun belittled me at the battle, and again when he wouldn’t let me see Ogun. Not to mention that last meeting!”
“Fuck me, Rufus. I don’t know what to say to you anymore. You’re just blind to it, aren’t you?”
“Blind to what?”
“The purpose of Uprising is about keeping everyone alive, and about defending ourselves against our enemies. It's not about whether Rufus has had his ego stroked enough. Why couldn’t you just do your damn job?” I said, getting up and heading out frustrated.
“Stop! I can see what you’re saying. I promise I’ll make an effort to be more of a team player. Will you let me out now?” he asked, getting to his feet and smiling pathetically.
“You’re just saying that, Rufus! I wasn’t born yesterday, you fucking tool.”
“I’ll be better, honestly.”
“Will you though? That’s what I hoped for, but the shit that's just come out of your mouth makes me think you’ll just stir up even more trouble for me, even after everything we’ve done for you.”
“I wouldn’t,” he reassured me, and I had to admit I was tempted to believe him. But the stupid bastard had to keep talking. “But I’d also love to know what you’ve done for me, exactly, apart from shit on me repeatedly?”
“There it is! Have you forgotten about being transcended? What about sending you a ton of money? Not to mention, lea
ving you as captain of the Seshat after your series of fuckups. That last one has backfired on us spectacularly, seeing as you’ve attempted to pull a bloody coup when we’re in a really precarious situation.”
All pretense of caring about being a team player had gone now. He glared at me with real hatred. I felt a moment of fear that he was going to attack, before I remembered that I was overall much stronger than him, despite the size difference. I primed my mind to hit his nervous system should he lunge. I’d be sure to demonstrate my thoughts clearly on violence against me. “You gonna do it then?” I said into his mind. “I’d almost like you to try. It’d give me great satisfaction, stomping your dumb ass.”
“You think you could?” he challenged back, his mental voice shuddering with rage.”
“You think I couldn’t? I don’t think you have a very high opinion of me, Rufus, and it's coming into conflict with your ability to make good decisions.”
“I was evolved long before you. You only got to transcend because of the freak show helping you!” he screamed in my head.
I had to admit he’d touched a nerve. Would I have been as strong as I was now, if not for Shaun? The answer came swiftly to my mind though. We had helped each other so much. I’d been there to stop him poisoning himself when we first met, saved him from the troll and from doing some other really stupid stuff. I had his back at all times. I looked to Rufus again. “Shit, Rufus, you really are fucked up. I honestly thought I could reach out to you. Goodbye!” I said and made to leave the room again.
“You’re walking around like he’s here, and you're worth something, rather than the useless bitch you are,” he growled.
I ignored his words, but couldn’t ignore the attack that came. I thought I was prepared, but he moved so much faster than I’d expected, thudding into my back with all his weight. I went flying forward into the wall, my head hitting it hard, before falling to the floor, dazed and with Rufus still on my back. The bastard wasted no time in following up the attack, raining down remorseless, heavy blows. Without my relatively high constitution I’d have been finished already, but even so, it hurt like hell. Blood flowed freely from my head and nose.
Worse was that he had me pinned to the floor. Arms trapped and unable to defend my head, or retaliate, I wriggled and bucked, but he was too heavy. I had little choice but to attack his mind. Going straight for his Nerve Centre, I let out a feral growl on finding it locked up tight and appeared in his corridor instead.
He appeared next to me, a snarl on his face as he spat out, “Not as pathetic as you thought, am I?” I was so stunned by his onslaught he actually managed to grab my throat as he spoke when I should have easily evaded the move.
He was right of course. I’d underestimated the bastard, just as the Fystr so often underestimated us, and now he had me well and truly on the backfoot. I felt that pang of fear rise again. Rufus had clearly been training a lot since he’d transcended, probably using the time I’d had him imprisoned, while I’d been trying to keep everything together. I knew I must still have an edge over him though. And there was no way after everything I’d been through that I was letting fucking Rufus kill me. Trying to collect my wits, I left his Mindscape, which removed me from his grip. Then without hesitation, I thrust up as hard and as fast as I could with my back, arms and legs all working together like a damn dolphin. It wasn’t pretty but it was effective, launching him mostly off me while he was still distracted.
I got to my feet in record time, flicking out a kick immediately to Rufus’s abdomen as he tried to stand. As he doubled over, I sent a flurry of wild punches, hitting his face and head from every angle. He tried to cover up before attempting to charge me again. Managing to grab me around the waist, he drove me into the door. While I was definitely winded, the fury I felt had sent me berserk. I repeatedly brought my knee up into his gut, while landing blows to his head, in an uncontrolled frenzy.
He let go of my waist, and hastily backpedaled, trying to get out of my range. “I don’t fucking think so,” I growled, following him like his own shadow, striking again and again, kicks and punches flowing from me in a continuous stream of violence and intent. When he dropped to his hands and knees, raising one hand in submission. I eased up on my assault. He panted raggedly, struggling to speak. That didn’t matter, I didn’t want to hear another word from his mouth.
“Get well acquainted with this room, because you won’t be getting out until we’re released from this place.”
He didn’t answer, just put his hand on the bed frame like he was trying to steady himself and get back up. His hand suddenly moved at speed holding an object that caught the light in a brief flash. I jumped back as fast as I could, not quite avoiding what I could now see to be a makeshift metal knife. It slashed across my thigh, drawing blood and a cry of pain from me. He scrambled to his feet, rage-filled eyes holding a sadistic gleam, with his crude knife held out in my direction. “You stupid fucking whore! Walking around, thinking you’re better than everyone else. Well you won’t be doing that anymore.”
“Why have you got a knife, Rufus?” I snapped angrily.
“Why do you think? So when I got the chance, I could cut your fucking throat.”
I shook my head sadly. The anger hadn’t left me, it had just turned from raging inferno to ice cold.
“You were actually planning to try and kill me anyway?” I asked incredulously.
His only answer was to lunge at me. From the position we were in now, I was able to let my countless hours of training with Elyek take over. I shifted slightly, letting his thrust fly past by mere inches. He put all his weight into the attack, looking to finish me swiftly, but his lack of control caused him to overbalance. I snaked my arm around his neck as he stumbled past me, swinging myself up and around onto his back in one fluid movement. One of Elyek’s signature moves. Then with both arms around his throat, I made a split-second decision. I didn’t have any choice really; if I just attempted to suffocate him, that knife would be coming over his shoulder. So, with all my remaining energy I forced his head upward, twisting at the same time in an explosive move. Then jumped off him as he fell lifeless to the floor. It only took a second for the anger that had me under its spell to shatter and I realized what I had done. I looked at his bloody face, neck bent at an unnatural angle, eyes staring at nothing. As if murdering him wasn’t bad enough, I uncontrollably offered him one last indignity. I spewed all over him.
“Shit!” I exclaimed to myself, wiping vomit and blood from my mouth. “I shouldn’t have done that. Even if the prick did kind of force my hand with the knife.” I slumped onto the bed, trembling as shock set in. I felt like a lead mannequin.
I must have sat there for five minutes, my mind blank. Then there was a sound at the door, and Amnarr’s face appeared at the rectangle. “Everything oka…” He stopped cold, doing a double take of the horror scene inside the room. He slammed the door open and rushed in, before looking at me, then Rufus’s vomit-coated corpse. I couldn’t decipher his expression. Then he came over to me, laying a gentle hand on my arm. “Are you okay? Can you stand, Ember?”
“I… yes, I think so. I am okay. The leg wound wasn’t too deep.”
“Okay,” he replied softly. “Let us get you to someone who can tend to your injuries,” he said tenderly.
His presence and his kindness shook me out of the stupor I’d fallen into. “Thank you, I can heal quite a bit myself. Give me a few minutes, Amnarr,” I said, and delved into my Mindscape. I wished I’d gone in earlier as the pain vanished immediately. I then focused on my holistic repair; it was nowhere near strong enough to heal all my wounds, but after five minutes I was feeling much better. Most vitally I’d cleared the concussion from when I’d hit the wall, and the leg wound that was the most serious of my injuries had closed up enough to get me firmly on my feet. Returning to Normal-State I winced as the pain hit me again, but I was definitely in much better shape. I looked up at Amnarr. “Thank you.”
“I’m just sorry I w
asn't here for you. What happened?”
“Our conversation didn’t go well, and he attacked me. The bastard had the better of me for a while. Once I managed to take control of the fight, he pulled a knife from under his bed. He caught my leg, but I avoided his second thrust and… broke his neck,” I said. Delivering the last few words was tough.
“Foolish man. I am glad you ended him. Such poison should not be allowed to fester. You just need to look at the trouble Calegg’s father causes our entire world to see the danger in that.”
“It brings me some comfort to hear that. Will you come with me? I need to stop Roger from trying to convince the others to rejoin us. Once they find out about this,” I stated, gesturing to the body, “there will be no forgiveness.” As if by some supernatural force, Rufus’s corpse farted in answer. The smell rose quickly, and it was eye watering. We hastily left the room with Amnarr sealing it behind us.
“Are you sure that you should not seek medical attention first?”
“No, it wouldn’t be fair to Roger,” I replied, as we made our way down the hall to find him.
He smiled in acceptance then pointed to a door. “In that room.”
I pressed the pad. Roger sat on one bed and one of the dicks sat opposite, and they seemed to be talking calmly.
“Hey, Roger, you might want to leave your sales pitch.”
“What the hell happened to you?” he shouted in outrage, jumping up angrily from the bed. “Tell me who did this?” The other guy watched me carefully. His neutral expression couldn’t hide the fact that he was interested in what I had to say. I held eye contact with him rather than Roger when I delivered the news.
“Rufus.” I spat the name. “Convinced of his own superiority, he took it upon himself to try and remove the unworthy stand-in leader of Uprising.”
“That bastard! I’ll see to him, Captain. This can’t stand,” Roger said, rising from the bed with his fists clenched.
“He's dead. I broke the weasel's neck after he pulled a knife on me.”
The prisoner jumped up. “You killed him?” he said with shock rather than anger on his face.
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