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"Got it." Shoving his comms unit away, Jervaise escorted me forward the last few meters to the throne room alcove. The other elite were putting earpieces in their ears and releasing the locks on their weapons. Inserting an earpiece as he tugged me towards the wall, Jervaise put my back to it. "How much attention did you pay to the layout of the throne room, Princess?"
Closing my eyes, I imagined the room. "There are fifty windows, and the fire exits are two windows located halfway down each side and the main window at the far end. The room is…"
"That is great," Jervaise cut in. "If anything happens and we get separated, you run for that back exit and get out of the palats. Cross through the courtyard behind the royal guard's compound and find their fire exit. The entry code is the year of settlement. Do you know it?" I nodded. "Good. Get inside, find a hide, and stay there ‘til we come to find you." Turning his back on me, Jervaise and the other five elite formed a semi-circle around me.
"A merc ship is lapping the palats. They're making a grab for her again," Elite Utz growled.
"This is too well-organized for this short notice. They'd already planned this and were just waiting for an opportunity to present itself," Jervaise grumbled.
The ice floor was crackling to the right with the sound of several footsteps at a run. "Hartwin," I near sighed in relief.
Turning his ear to the sound, Jervaise shook his head. "Wrong direction." He touched his earpiece. "We've got incoming from the compound direction, sounds to be ten bipedal." Not all mercs walked on two legs. "Have any of the guard got through?"
Because they'd switched to earpieces, I didn't get to hear the response. But by Jervaise's reaction, it wasn't positive. "Blackness. The others have hit the trap. Whoever this is isn't our backup. Assume hostile."
The five men before me fanned out across the corridor facing the oncoming footsteps. Their heights and build formed a high wall which stopped me from seeing what was coming. "By the darkness of a black hole," Jervaise cursed. He turned to me quickly. "Go, now. Do what I told you."
In the gap he'd created, I saw what was coming at us. There were four Avalonian mercenaries, two of the short, burly Meta mercenaries well known for their brutality, and two quigs. Quigs were a tripedal race that was barely civilized, but enough to take paid work that involved violence of any sort. My eyes bulged. Hesitating, I started shaking my head; they weren't who you'd hire for a kidnap.
"Run, Princess!" Jervaise ordered. Shoving me into the throne room, Jervaise pulled the door shut.
Turning to assess the empty throne room, fear roared through me. Cyrans were the best soldiers in our galaxy. They couldn't protect me and fight, so they were doing the smart thing and getting me away from the action.
Locating the fire exit on the far wall, I ran like darkness for it. Considering my speed, I crossed the length of the throne room before the first roars of the fighting broke out in the ring. Reaching the main window quickly, I pushed on the emergency exit. An alarm pealed through the palats as I threw the window open and flung myself out into the summer heat of Praldia.
Halfway across the courtyard to the royal guard's compound, the merc ship flew down low above me. Looking over my shoulder, I spied three Avalonians landing only a few meters behind me. While I was still running toward the compound, I knew I wouldn't have time to key in the code to get in with the men not far behind me.
Changing direction, I kept running for the prince's residence. There was a pool between the first guard compound and Luther's building. If I got there, I could disperse in the water, and no one would be able to find me or take me. As I rounded the guard compound's furthest wall, two Meta's dropped from the merc ship in front of me. There was nowhere to run but away from the palats.
Angling for the ocean, I bolted for the edge of the cliff. Both guard compounds' back door burst open, and royal guards sprung out at a chase to get to the men who were chasing me. Slowing when I neared the edge of the bluff, I looked overhead as the merc ship swung low behind me. A hand grabbed my shoulder, and I reacted instinctively.
The symbol for air flash-burned on my spine at the same time the one for sharpness came alive. My air ribbons whipped out from wrists, but this time they were sharp razor-wire. They flicked up, the Avalonian screamed as his hand separated from his arm.
Reaching the cliff edge, I looked back just as another Avalonian sprung from the merc ship a few meters from me. Flicking out my ribbons, I seized him around the throat. He countered using a fire sash to repel my ribbon before it grabbed his neck, turning himself into a living fireball. The ship settled just above me. Turning back to the cliff edge, I ran the last few meters and dove, plummeting to the raging ocean below.
A mechanical roar sounded as the ship dived after me. Blocking out everything, I focused on speeding towards the surface of the ocean. Concentrating, I activated the water symbol on my natal chart. Just as I was about to hit, I released my physical hold so that I was on the edge of dissipation to prevent injury.
Diving beneath the waves, I sank to the bottom before completing the liquefaction. Two bodies disturbed the water around me. Avalonians who followed me over the cliff or who dropped from the ship. They wouldn't find me. There was no physical body to find.
ChapterEleven
The sun was setting, and everything was quiet again when I reached the beach several kilometers north of the castle. The current dragged my molecules north past the cliff, but I resisted being pulled out to sea. Only when things were peaceful did I rematerialize and swim to the beach. Naked, having lost my clothes when I dissipated, I popped my eyes above water and assessed the forest opposite the beach.
After going the day without food and staying out of my body for so long, I was exhausted. The longest I’d ever dissipated before was thirty minutes. With the sunset, I guessed it had been nearly six to seven hours this time. Avalonians were only built for short bursts of energy output because they needed to refuel often.
There was a Cyran royal guard stationed a few hundred meters up the beach. As I listened, I could make out a few more in the forest not far away. There were always patrols through the woods, but I’d never seen one standing openly on the beach.
Standing up, I started stumbling towards dry land, the waves helping to propel me forward. The guard spotted me and was running towards me in an instant. His hand pressed his comms unit in his ear as he ran. “I’ve got the princess.”
Tapping his uniform clasp as he neared, allowing his shirt to swing open, he pulled it off and wrapped it around me. Slipping my arms through the sleeves, he pressed the clasp to close it. Cyrans were so tall that the shirt was huge on me, almost like a loose short dress, reaching my knees.
“Thank you,” I rasped. Barely able to stay upright, I leaned into the guard, and he supported part of my weight with his arm around my back. Once we were entirely on dry land, he closed his eyes in concentration, and the teleportation channels closed around us.
A breath later, we were in the entryway to the Prince’s residence. Hartwin was in front of me, scooping me into his arms before I could take a step. Cuddling into his shoulder, I whimpered a little as he carried me to the inner quarters. Medic Ellery was there waiting.
Taking me straight into the bedroom, Hartwin laid me down on the bed. “Make it quick, Ellery. When I contact the Prince to let him know we have found her alive, I want to be able to tell him she is safe and healthy.”
“I’m fine,” I moaned. “Just exhausted. I need food and sleep. Though, not necessarily in that order.”
