Loman – Celtic/Gaelic; Bare
Rumigan – N/A
Part 8
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Long shadows outlined the sand and dirt as the three figures made their way towards the port. It was hot, the two suns burning, scorching their uncovered skin, but none noticed as they hesitantly took one step after another. Each could be their last; all of them knew it. Cyrus’s men could be watching, waiting, surrounding them.
Their feet hit the grass with soft thuds as they neared the dormant dock. The sun did little to hide them from any probing eyes, but the lingering shadows were a helpful substitute. Small animals scurried out of their way in haste. All three of them were on a mission; any living being could sense it.
Will’s instincts were on high alert with each sound that he heard. He had never had a first hand experience to test his learned abilities. He had never fought in a war, or battled in hand-to-hand combat. He had never had to strategize or plan an attack … or counterattack, rather.
Before the Festival, he had not the position to do so. He had been a Second In Command – in training. Eamon, and Will’s father before his death, had taught him. The best soldiers and strategists in the galaxy had taught him, and his abilities and instincts were becoming apparent with every decision he made. His inner warrior was seeping through, breaking through … shining through. He was no longer the insecure twenty-year-old boy. Will had seen death and despair and war first hand. He had witnessed his King’s execution in front of the entire kingdom.
And now he was fighting it. He was fighting the evil that Cyrus distributed with every turn. He was doing what he was trained to do, what he was born to do. Every fiber of his being reveled in the newfound prospect.
In truth, he also felt guilty… or at least he should feel guilty. He had witnessed his King’s execution in front of the entire kingdom. He should be sullen and grief-stricken. He should be besot with anguish, unable to move on or get out of bed.
And yet, he wasn’t. He was clearheaded and confidant. Yes, he wished circumstances could have been different, that the King and Queen were still alive and ruling. Perhaps someone could say that he was taking advantage of the situation, relishing in his new status as the affirmed Second. But he wasn’t. He was following his Destiny, his path. He had always known that it would be a hard road to travel, but as long as his ‘family’ was with him, he was more than up to the challenge. Especially if he was able to acquire Cyrus’s head in the mean time.
The three had reached the port shortly after leaving the cave, and were greeted by concrete under their feet and several large buildings above them.
The three young men hid behind a corner catching their breath.
“What now?”
“Wait,” Will said, raising a hand in the air signaling for Alec’s silence. He waited and listened for any sign of movement. There was none. “Okay.”
He turned and nodded to Nic, who turned and nodded to Alec. The three continued down the alley, stopping every few minutes, waiting for Will to determine it was safe.
After reaching the last corner before the concealed hangar, Will stopped again. He turned to Dominic, and said, “Nic, stay here with Alec. I’m going to scout and see if I can find anything … or anyone. Wait for my signal.”
Dominic nodded in agreement.
Will looked over the corner of the building, and then in the other direction. Seeing the coast was clear, he ran off towards the right, headed south. Soon Nic couldn’t hear his footsteps, and knew that he was out of earshot, and ultimately on his own.
If anything happened to him, Nic and Alec wouldn’t know until it was too late.
Nic and Alec sat leaning against the large building, crouched on the balls of their feet. Nic kept scanning their surroundings for any sign of movement, keeping his grip on the laser gun tight. Alec checked and rechecked his equipment. They both wanted this mission to go as successfully as possible. No hang ups, no disasters … and especially no deaths.
After several long minutes of silence, Alec spoke. They were careful to keep their voices low.
“Nic?”
“Yeah,” he said absently.
“You don’t want me on this mission, do you?”
He hesitated. At first, no … he hadn’t wanted Alec to stay with the survivors. It wasn’t normal; it wasn’t protocol. The protectors were expected to remain on Aevar and offer refuge to any and all royal survivors in their time of distress. Especially Alec, who had been an underground protector, of sorts. His safehouse had successfully remained undetected by other planets’ radar. Alec, unknowingly and quite unexpectantly, had been quintessential in the royal family’s survival and preservation.
The fact that Alec had asked to leave the planet had been entirely unsettling, and Nic had found himself questioning the young man’s motives.
But now…?
“Um … well, its not that I don’t want you on the mission. Its just that …”
“You don’t agree with my reasoning,” Alec offered.
Nic furrowed his brows in confusion. “No, that’s not it either. You’re a good guy, obviously a good protector. I understand you wanting to get off the planet. Shit I can’t wait to break gravity and get the hell off this rock … and get Mabyn the hell away from Cyrus. But … I guess I just wasn’t expecting it, you know? Protectors are expected to stay on Aevar.”
“I know.”
And he did know. The night before, he couldn’t help but ask … even though Alec had been entirely certain that Will would deny his request outright, and if he hadn’t been lucky, Will would have demoted him as well. He was walking a fine line with the royal survivors, and was choosing his words and actions wisely. The last thing he wanted was to find himself, or even worse Koen and Isabel, at the hands of Cyrus.
He had a mission, and he would be damned if he was going to fail them.
“Can I ask, why you requested to leave with us?” Nic was giving Alec his full attention now.
“I just feel like … I not only serve Aevar, but I serve Aevar’s leader. With King Eamon dead, that leaves Koen.” He thought for a moment, trying to choose the correct words. “Koen is my first priority, ensuring his safety. Cyrus is a threat, and I feel like staying on Aevar will only put Koen and Isabel at risk. I honestly feel like I have something to contribute. If I didn’t think this was the right thing for them, I wouldn’t be here.”
Nice nodded.
That settles that,
he thought, with a smile.
Alec sighed inwardly, when he sensed that he had won over Nic’s approval.
“How is Mabyn doing, with all of this?” Alec asked.
Nic’s smile vanished.
“Well, she’s pretty scared, I can tell. She tries not to show it, but … you can see it in her eyes. She’s terrified. I wish I could do more for her, but I don’t know anything about kids, you know? I’m surprised she hasn’t figured that out yet.” He laughed shortly, sardonically. “Maybe she has.”
“You’re good for her.” When Nic gave him a surprised look, Alec continued. “She has no one. You saved her life. From what I gathered, she probably didn’t have a father, and her mother was more than likely working constantly. You’re the first father figure, adult role model she’s had in her life. She looks up to you.”
Nic’s eyes grew in astonishment, and asked blankly, “How do you know all of this?”
Alec gave him a smile. “Its my job.”
“I take back everything I ever said.” Nic clasped a hand on Alec’s shoulder in a friendly gesture. “Glad to have you on board.”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Will moved from shadow to shadow, inspecting every noise, every disturbance, every feasible possibility that there were eyes watching them, ears listening to them, soldiers surrounding them. He couldn’t remember the last time that his senses were on such a high alert before the Festival. Ever since that night, his hearing, sight, smell, touch, everything was sharp, elevated, like an inborn, finely tuned weapon. He felt like he literally heard
everything.
And the problem was, he
wasn’t
