After dressing himself, Jacek exited Xenia’s master suite and made for the small holding cell where he and Xenia last observed Katya.
Jacek looked around with bewilderment as he freely strolled through the middle of the BloodStar Citadel thinking to himself, “Who would have ever thought that I, heir to the Heraklinos Empire and sworn enemy to the BloodStar Empire in this war, would have free reign as a prisoner from behind enemy lines.”
Soldiers eyed him suspiciously as he walked through camp; however, none dared to interact with him or even stop him for questioning as they knew he was Xenia’s property. Any offense to him could result in a fate worse than death. After all, they had seen what happened to Master Karasu.
Jacek stepped through the door into the small holding cell area to find a guard on duty. Jacek’s presence caught him by surprise. The guard didn’t know whether to treat him like a prisoner or like a superior officer.
The guard jumped to attention, “Lord Heraklinos. You are unaccompanied. I mean no offense; however, I must ask. Does Warlord BloodStar know of your presence here?”
Jacek laughed and nodded his head, “Don’t worry. She and I are somewhat of a couple right now you could say. She has given me free reign while she is busy with her other affairs during the day.”
The guard gulped and nodded back to him, “Very well. Are you here to see First Seat Katya then?”
The two men looked through the viewing window to see a tired and screaming Katya writhing about on the ground just as Xenia had left her the day before. The guard gave a solemn look, “The glass is soundproof. But if you press that button there, you can hear the audio from within the cell. It is harrowing.”
Jacek looked to the audio button and said, “Keep it muted. I am going in, and I want my conversation with Katya to remain private.”
The guard nodded at him, and Jacek was surprised as he thought to himself, “It seems my relationship with Xenia has garnered me quite the respect. Being in her favor serves one well.”
Jacek braced himself as he pressed a button to open the door to the holding area. As the door slid open, the sounds of shrieking screams burst forth from the room within. Jacek braced himself as he entered to face Katya still inflicted by Compound X.
Katya looked up from her ever-changing position on the ground. Her eyes were red, and tears ran down her face, “Jacek! Help me Jacek! Please help me! God!”
Jacek immediately knelt down next to her and urgently said, “I will! I will Katya.”
Katya continued to writhe and cry next to him, “All I wanted was to train with her! She is an expert with the sword! Why has she done this to me!?”
The door behind him closed and he looked to her and whispered, “She is a cruel enemy Katya. Do as I say, and I think we can help each other.”
He picked her chin up to look at him and with a serious expression said, “Xenia has left you here to die. Will you help me if I can convince her to spare you? My father will undoubtedly be here soon. I will need someone who can freely exit and enter this fortress to deliver a message to him.”
She bit her lip and nodded through the pain coursing through her body. He laid her head back down and said, “I will make haste. If all goes well, I should have you back to full health by this evening.”
He stood and exited the room nodding at the guard as he said, “Thank you soldier. I am off to speak with Xenia now. Do not put a single molecule of gas in that chamber until I return.”
The soldier was surprised, “Sir? This prisoner hasn’t received any additional Compound X since Xenia first gave it to her.”
Jacek looked back at Katya and said, “You mean this is all from one dose still?”
The soldier nodded, “Yes sir.”
Jacek said nothing as he thought to himself, “My God. A true tool of torture. Xenia plans to leave her in pain to die. Despicable.”
He strode from the room without further ado to find Xenia.
_________________________
Elsewhere, in Washington D.C., Jarek and Erika had just landed on a fully loaded AC-130. Several tanks rolled off the plane, and Erika and Jarek followed on foot.
President Monroe greeted them, “Masters! Welcome to the United States!”
Monroe was greeted by stern faces that offered no response. He shrugged the coldness off and said, “Straight to business. I agree we have not a second to spare.”
The three jumped in to an armored Hummer and drove to a nearby building where the other leaders were waiting.
Jarek and Erika entered the room alongside President Monroe to find Vice President Morrow, Senator Hammond, St. Michael on screen virtually, and a familiar but unexpected face… Senator Arthur Davis.
Jarek eyed Arthur as he walked in and said, “You were lucky to escape the massacre that was the siege line. Is it true you have switched sides? Have you come to your senses?”
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Arthur nodded, “It is true. After seeing the effects of Compound X and her lack of care for life… I couldn’t stand it for a moment longer. I am grateful that you all have accepted me back after my misgivings.”
Erika had a sinister black aura around her. She sat down next to Arthur and coldly said, “I will forgive you when Jacek returns to me safely. And if he doesn’t no one in this world will be able to stop me from killing you.”
Arthur gulped, “Out of the frying pan and into the fire. I suppose I deserve as much, Master Sage. You may have my life if Jacek does not return safely.”
Jarek snapped at Erika, “Master Sage! We are here to save Jacek Heraklinos. Not to make more enemies.”
She sat back in her chair and eyed Jarek without saying a word. She was unhappy, and she didn’t care who she made enemies with at the moment.
Jarek sat down and began, “Make no mistake. Erika and I are here to end this war. To rescue Jacek Heraklinos, my son. After this meeting, I plan to travel there with Erika to confront Xenia directly. I would very much like to travel with all of the assistance I can gather from you all. That would mean having you by our side in person, St. Michael. That would mean lending us air support and your Master Chief, President Monroe. And of course, that would mean having your blessing to unleash powerful curses in the heart of your country, courtesy of Master Sage.”
Senator Hammond chuckled, “Our blessing? Master Heraklinos, you have more than our blessing. Wipe the heart of our country from the map. Heart disease can kill the patient, and we have a bad case. We are asking you to save our country.”
Jarek nodded and looked to President Monroe and Vice President Davis who nodded in return to Jarek giving him affirmation. Jarek then said, “Thank you all.”
Arthur then piped up, quietly at first, and then louder, “Excuse me. Everyone. Might I offer some insight?”
Jarek snarled and Erika shot him dagger eyes. St Michael said, “Let the man speak. You may not like him, but he has more recent knowledge of Xenia than even myself. You would all be fools to let your anger blind you from his help.”
Jarek leaned back in his chair, “Very well then, President Davis. Speak.”
Arthur stood, “Your direct approach is admirable as I too believe she should be dealt with as soon as possible. However, I advise against it.”
Erika scoffed, “I bet you do.”
Arthur shot her a look of irritation, “I bet you will too Master Sage if you take a moment to hear me out, or would you rather kill me now and then watch Jacek die as well? It’s your decision. Make it now.”
Arthur knew he didn’t deserve the level of respect as everyone else in the room, but he also knew he had a fountain of information ready to be deployed to help them all, and he wasn’t keen to keep taking such harsh commentary.
Erika rolled her eyes, “Go on, President Davis. I am not killing you today.”
Arthur sighed, “As St. Michael said, you are all fools blinded by rage and revenge right now. You are in a rush where there is none. Have you all forgotten why Xenia wanted Jacek in the first place? She wants him to create an heir!”
President Monroe laughed, “You don’t believe that Arthur, do you? Come on. It’s part of her chess match with us in the political scheme of the world.”
Arthur shook his head, “I believe it literally Mr. President. Xenia has said to me on several occasions that her healing power is a blessing and a curse. She is nearly invincible, yes. She is a great leader, and she inspires those who follow her by performing miracles, quite literally, with her healing powers. She can do lots of things. However, her body leaves her with little need to sleep giving her more time for anxiety and worry. Her body ‘heals’ anything foreign preventing her from enjoying alcohol or drugs.”
He paced the room, “This is why she seeks pain. It is a novel stimulus to her that gives a sort of high. And furthermore, what President Monroe and likely others in this room fail to realize is that her body kills foreign substances injected into her body, including sperm, making it nearly impossible for her to become pregnant.”
The room went wide eyed at Arthur’s information. He continued, “She has told me that only an extremely powerful ki user could make her pregnant. That person is Jacek Heraklinos for her.”
The room was silent. He turned and said, “So there is no need to rush. He is her golden goose. He will not be killed any time soon.”
While many in the room took a moment to digest the information acknowledging that Arthur had a point, Erika was fuming, “No rush!!? No rush?! No rush to save Jacek when he is being raped by the enemy day and night to get her pregnant?! You are a sick man, Arthur Davis! You have spent too much time with her!”
The room went silent following her words. Every man present had internal thoughts and caveats to her words as they thought, “Rape? I’m not sure any man would refuse a goddess such as Xenia on physical attributes alone. Especially a man such as Jacek who has been with her before. Her actions of coercing a man to sleep with her while in another relationship would be wrong, yes. Immoral, yes. Unethical, yes. But rape? Hardly.”
Arthur nodded in acknowledgement of Erika’s concern, “You are right. He may yet be pressured to do things he would rather not. However, he is a Lord. A powerful one who can take care of himself and is relying on us to do the right thing and make the right decisions to rescue him safely and effectively. The right thing would include pursuing diplomacy.”
Jarek slammed the table, “Diplomacy? No! We have tried diplomacy! It has gotten us nowhere. She will not be afforded the avenue of diplomacy.”
Arthur gave a wry smile, “Well. If nothing else thus far, my information has proven you two are acting and thinking rashly. Xenia is most dangerous when she is backed into a corner. She will explode with power. She will purposefully or accidentally kill the very person you plan to save.”
Arthur held no punches as he continued, “You two should know better than me! How long does it take to recover your ki to full power after an utter defeat? Days? Maybe. After being near death like Jacek? A week at least. You need to pursue diplomacy to give Jacek a fighting chance alongside you both. Otherwise, your rash behavior will force his death at Xenia’s hand or even worse… your own!”
Jarek did not like being talked down to and sharply responded, “And what makes you think that she will allow his ki to recover at all!?”
Arthur shook his head, “Have you not heard me at all, Master Heraklinos? It would take a very powerful ki user to impregnate Xenia BloodStar. She wants that more than anything. How is Jacek going to serve that purpose if he has no ki? His sperm are unprotected while he is at anything other than full power.” He eyed Jarek and said, “I was hoping you could put that together without me having to spell it out!”
Jarek slouched back into his chair and nodded, “I apologize President Davis.” He stared off into nothing as he realized Arthur was genuinely informing them of legitimate risks. He said, “It is clear you have more information than us on Xenia. You have also given this a lot more thought than anyone here anticipated.”
Arthur nodded, and Jarek continued, “Let us start from the beginning. With more respect from me and everyone else in this room. Tell us exactly how you think we should approach this if you were in my shoes.”