Day 14

Fiona Viper slept peacefully next to Ranger. She felt like the world couldn’t touch her while she was with him. She slept soundly, even happily.

A crash woke and startled Fiona.

“What was that?” she asked Ranger.

He looked worried as he looked around.

“Get dressed. Be quick and be quiet.” Ranger said.

Fiona quickly got dressed. She braided her hair and grabbed a poker from the fireplace.

Each room had a fireplace to keep it warm.

The fire had died during the night and the room was very dark. Fiona opened the curtain. It was only starting to get light.

“Hide under the bed.” Ranger told her.

They slid under the bed. Men came in, their boots moved passed them.

“No one is here.” He said to a man in the doorway.

“Someone was here. Find them.” He ordered.

The men moved on. They then heard a bell ringing and a woman’s voice yelling.

“We are under attack! We are under attack!”

The men hurried out of the room towards the woman ringing the bell.

“That was English.” Fiona said “We need to help her.”

Ranger and Fiona then armed themselves and headed towards the bell. Dead men lay on the ground.

“We must check on our friends.” Fiona said.

She took the poker in one hand and Ranger’s hand in the other. She ran to James’ and Lakisha’s room, which was the closest to theirs.

Fiona carefully opened the door. No one was in the room. But Ranger could smell the blood. He walked to the window and looked out.

He couldn’t see anything.

They were in general able to communicate even if exact words were lost, the longer she stayed connect to Ranger the more cross over there was. But when emotions were high it was harder to understand one another, and this was such a time.

Fiona looked out the window.

Nothing was there.

Fiona led the way to Kerri’s room, but no one was there. So, she moved on to Nikki’s room. No one was there either.

“Where are they?” Fiona asked worried.

She heard a commotion and followed the sound of people to the kitchen. Soldiers were keeping all the kitchen slaves trapped.

Fiona looked at her companion.

“Let’s free the slaves.” She whispered.

“There is two of us, seven armed trained soldiers wearing armor, while we are not.” Ranger answered.

Fiona looked at the men. She needed a distraction and then a better weapon. A gun would have been her first option. But numb chucks would also do.

“I need you to go in there. Make a noise. I want everyone looking at you so I can steal a weapon. I will not let anything happen to you.” Fiona assured.

“You’re crazy!”

“They are keeping them hostage, not killing them. Go!” Fiona urged.

“No!” Ranger argued.

Ranger took Fiona’s hand and put his forehead against hers.

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“Do you want them dead?” he asked.

“That’s the plan. Kill them and free the slaves.” Fiona replied.

“As you wish.”

Ranger broke the connection and walked into the kitchen. He hit the one on the back of the neck, the other in the throat. Not a sound left either as they fell limp to the floor. Ranger then struck another in the chest and the fourth he kicked on the back of the neck while breaking the neck of the fifth. The last two looked at him. Ranger’s eyes glowed red. The last two ran tail between their legs. The sound of their feet echoed on the stones.

Fiona at looked him.

“My boyfriend is Sexy.” Fiona, she said to herself.

“Why haven’t you done that before?” Fiona asked Ranger.

“I am a healer not a killer.” He responded.

Ranger told the slaves to find somewhere safe to hide.

“I am impressed.” Fiona said.

“I killed five people. This is not something to celebrate.”

“You saved a room of slaves.” Fiona said, “That should be celebrated.”

“How are you understanding each other?” Lakisha interrupted them.

She and James come out from the wall into the kitchen.

“It’s something that’s been happening lately. The closer we get the more we understand.” Fiona replied.

“Your boyfriend is scary… and impressive.” Lakisha said.

“I’ll ask if he has a brother.” Fiona joked.

Then Kerri–liana Jones appeared.

“Hi.” she said.

“Hi.” They replied.

“We went looking for you?” Fiona said told Lakisha.

“We had to get out of our room. We climbed out of the window and back in through a window below.” James explained.

“You climbed down the stony wall?” Fiona was shocked.

“Yes, we did. My hands are so sore.” Lakisha said showing her cut up hands.

“Ouch!” Fiona agreed.

“Didn’t think you had it in you.” Kerri said.

They all looked at her. Was she being mean?

“Let’s find somewhere safe and find Tẽra” Fiona said.

Ranger led the way, Fiona, James and Kerri followed. They walked to Tẽra’s chambers. But she was not there. Neither was her cub.

They walked to the sick bay. The door was barricaded.

A guy saw them and froze.

“Friend or foe?” he asked in vernacular.

“Friend.” Ranger answered.

“I am Shane West. I was coming to check on my patients.” He told Ranger.

Shane banged on the recovery room door.

“It’s Shane, let us in.”

“What?” Sugar called through the door.

Shane changed to English.

“It’s me. Shane the doctor. Let us in.”

“You speak English!?” Fiona was surprised.

“So, do you it would seem.” Shane replied.

“My name is Fiona. This is Kerri-liana and Lakisha, and James and my boyfriend Ranger.”

“Nice to meet you.” Shane said, “I have met most of you before.” he added.

“Yes, we have met.” James agreed.

They could hear noises behind the door and moving furniture. Finally, the door opened. Shane and the other earthlings went in. Sugar barricaded the door again.

Shane went to Rachael.

“How are you today?” he asked.

“Feeling a lot better. What is happening?”

“We are under attack. It appears that peace talks are an open house invitation for war.” Shane retorted.

“Are you alright?” Fiona asked Shane.

“No, my girlfriend was killed, and my sister was taken. All I have is these sick people and a missing prince.”

“Missing prince?” Fiona asked.

“Yes, Prince Drake, all the Dragon Riders are gone. Convenient!” he stated.

He was not able to hide his anger.

“The Dragon Riders are securing the castle. Why would they leave?” Kerri asked.

Shane shrugged.

He went about mixing herbs and changing bandages. Keeping his mind busy.

“I heard you were missing?” Fiona said to Sugar.

“I was, I escaped with some help from the queen’s minion. That cat thing she’s keeping as a pet.”

“Otchulissa?” Fiona asked surprised.

“So that’s her name. Well, I am back, and the pet is looking for the next missing person.”

Otchulissa was a cub. How was she looking for missing people without Tẽra? Fiona was very confused.

The child Rosaleighm came into the room but not through the door.

“How did you get in here?” Sugar asked.

Sugar knew about the passageways. Maybe she could leave and join the fight.

The child looked at her with uncertainty.

“Are you alright?” Shane asked her in vernacular.

Rosaleighm whispered in Shane’s ear.

“It’s over.” She whispered.

“What is?” Shane whispered back to her.

“The fighting. The queen is in the food room.”

“Is she safe?” Shane asked.

The scruffy child scurried off without answering.

“The queen is in the dining room and it’s over. Is what the child told me.” Shane said looking at all worried faces.

“Over as in the queen is dead?” Kerri asked horrified.

“I don’t know.” Shane said.

“The child spoke to you?” Fiona was surprised “She can’t speak.”

“She can and she did.” Shane said.

Fiona and Ranger and Sugar left the room and headed for the queen’s dining room.

Kerri sat next to Shane.

Kerri watched as Lakisha and James left to see what was left.

“Her uncle raised her after her parents were killed. James told me once. He loved her more than anything. He saved the harvest. Resolved the pest problem that the farmers were having. Tẽra has tried to be a good queen. If she is dead, then her reign made a difference.” Kerri babbled randomly.

So, Shane and Kerri talked. Shane told her his arrival story and Kerri told hers. Rachael also chatted with them. It kept the mind off the idea that Tẽra was now dead, and their only hope was gone.

Fiona and the native warriors ran to the war room to see Joe standing, bodies all around and men on their knees before her with their swords laid before her.

“What is this?” Sugar asked.

Joe looked at them.

“I think I have men.”

Jealousy boiled inside Sugar. But she hid it.

* * *

Nikki and Tẽra hid in the darkness. They could hear fighting about them and some of the voices were familiar. But it was unclear. Tẽra was sitting on Zazo’s lap her head resting against his shoulder, she could feel his pulse in his neck. She couldn’t see him because it was so dark. Zazo’s shoulder was wet from tears. She had been crying from the time she and Nikki killed her attacker and her tiredness had done the rest.

She was holding Nikki’s hand. Nikki was her friend.

She was tired, too tired, over tired. She had so much catching up to do, and pressure on her that she hadn’t slept well for days. When she had slept it was only for a few hours.

General Nathan was closest to the opening which he held closed with all his strength.

General Nathan suspected that Tẽra was not the queen he had served. There were too many differences. Only in appearance was there a likeness and because Queen Tiffany never let anyone look at her. Red hair was all anyone was sure of and Tẽra had red hair.

Zazo stroked Tẽra hair with his hand. The other was on his sword. He could hear the men above moving the table. The door in the floor to the passageway they now hid in was under that table.

An uncomfortable silence followed. No voices, not stomping feet. A muffled tin of a sword on stone, then nothing.

“Wait before you check.” Zazo told General Nathan.

Zazo worried that it was a trap and that the silence was to lure them into a false sense of safety, also he didn’t want anyone else to see the queen as she now was. She needed a strong face to stand up to her enemies.

Then a familiar voice called in English.

“It’s safe.” Fiona told them.

General Nathan slowly opened the hatch. Ranger was standing there. So was Fiona and Sugar and Joe. Men stood at her side, swords in their sheaths.

“Isn’t that Victoria! One of the ambassadors?” Tẽra asked looking at her dead body.

“She and Griffith started a coup. Joe killed them both.” Fiona replied calmly.

Tẽra held her cub. Everyone could see she had been crying but no one asked or said anything.

“Where is Drake?” Tẽra asked.

“The Dragon Riders are gone.” Fiona told her, “I met Shane and he was telling me how they are all gone.”

“Gone?” Tẽra was confused.

Zazo was uncomfortable as more people were coming.

“The queen needs to rest.” He told them.

“I will be fine.” Tẽra said.

“Yes, you will be. But rest, let others handle things for a little while.” He insisted.

“Zazo why would Drake leave when we are betrothed?” Tẽra asked.

“I will find out.” He replied.

“I will.” General Nathan said “Stay with the queen. Protect her.”