Ancient Hunter

I walked back through the ruined part of the cavern wondering if I was doing the right thing. Moon Shadow and Running Deer followed me.

“You going to be alright mother?” Moon Shadow said.

I turned to her I was still having difficulty speaking to a glowing green holo. “I will be.” It was a lie I had a bad feeling that things were going to go wrong. I was having difficulty shaking it off.

We walked on the feeling of apprehension growing. Finally we arrived at the dais. I turned again a regard the two Keepers my heart heavy.

“Are you going to be alright?” I said echoing the question Moon Shadow had asked me.

“We will be and sorry,” Running Deer said.

“For what?” I asked automatically.

“For being cowards,” Running Deer stated her eyes on Moon Shadow.

“If you hadn’t been here then I would have been all alone. And you’d be wherever the others are? At least I know some of you are safe.”

Running Deer said nothing it was hard to read her face. I pulled off my pack and hugged it to my chest I didn’t want a repeat of my decent. I’d managed to repair the straps, Gudbjorga would have been proud of my needlecraft.

“Goodbye,” I said.”

“Be safe mother.” Moon Shadow had her head bowed.

“You will be careful,” Running Deer said adding. “Make sure you keep in contact with Moon Shadow.”

“I will,” I promised but I didn’t know how good my promise would be. I raised my hand and the panel appeared under it. There was a suddenly flash of light and I felt myself fall.

Blinking hard in the harsh sunlight I could feel the heat of the desert wash over me. Slowly I lowered my hand my pack still clutched to my chest. As my eyes adjusted I realised I wasn’t alone. A number of combat armoured figures encircled the dais their coil assault guns raised and pointed at me. They had the grey and green patched armour of the Confeds but their pauldron flashes said Alliance. I felt heart sick the Alliance had found me Admiral Komana’s warning in my mind. It looked as if my luck had run out.

“I don’t suppose you’d let me walk away?” I asked the nearest soldier. I heard someone laugh behind me and turned to face them. The person laughing was a short female soldier in armour her face covered by her helmet. A T’Arni I guessed and I was sure the voice sounded familiar.

“Gwen you are funny,” the voice said sound amused.

I was now more certain I knew who was under the helmet. It made things difficult since I’d knew who had sent her.

“Lieutenant Thorda that you?”

“Nice of you to remember this time.” She took off her helmet. “Stand down Marines!”

Her Marines lowered their weapons and strapped them to the front of their armour.

“At ease!” a sergeant barked and the Marines relaxed.

I was dreading what was coming next. I still had too much to do as much as I wanted to go back into the cavern I was sure Thorda and her Marines would follow. I didn’t want the remaining Keepers put under that much pressure nor did I want to reveal them to the world.

“What happens now?” I asked reluctantly.

“Come on the captain wants to see you.”

“I’m not travelling to the ship.” I had to put my foot down even if it would be ultimately futile.

“She’s not far,” Thorda assured me.

“Do I have a choice?”

“You do but I’m the one that gets reprimanded if you don’t see her. And so far I’ve got an untarnished record.”

“Well if you put it like that. Far from me to blemish your records.” I replied.

Thorda led me through the ruins to an open area where a shuttle was Alliance markings on it side. Two dropships sat with it guarded by a half dozen Marines.

“Expecting trouble?” I said to Thorda.

“Not really but it pays to be alert. The Locals acceded to our demands to land.”

“I’m surprised Commander Weredale allowed that?”

“The government granted us access she had to back down.”

“Oh that’s nice of them?” I said sarcastically.

“Say what you like they owe us for fighting off the Orsini and for being slow on the uptake about the plot to destroy us.”

I hated that she was right. Yet I was the one that stumbled of the plot to destroy the Valorous Star and the capital city and I was the one to foil the ploy to blow up the hotel with everyone in it. “Look, sorry I get it,” I apologised to her the ship had been the target to discredit the Alliance.

Thorda shrugged and carried on walking towards the shuttle. She stopped outside and pressed the button to open the door. “The captain’s in here.”

Inside one of two sets of seats and been converted into a bed. A figure lay on it a cloth covering her head. She’d kicked her regulation dress shoes off to reveal a pair of grey socks underneath. Strawberry blonde hair like a wreath spread out under the cloth.

“Close that damn door!” the figure called out.

My heart lurched at the familiarity of the voice. “Xenai?” I called out softly.

Xenai raised the cloth slightly then lowered it. “Gwen,” she said as she sat up visibly wincing as she did. “Close the damn door LT you’re letting in too much light.”

Thorda closed the door sealing me in the dim light of the shuttle’s emergency lighting. She was outside I was in here with Xenai alone.

“You ok?” I asked. She looked vulnerable not her usual affirmed self.

“Apart from a mind ripping migraine I’m ok.”

Even in the dim light she looked flushed.

“Are you sure about that?” I was concerned.

Xenai grimaced. “This is what comes from over use of my tepe powers.” She gestured to the seat opposite. “Sit, you don’t mind if I lie down and listen as you fill me in with your exploits and the reason why you are here?” She lay back down covering her face with the cloth.

Xenai was one of the few people that knew the truth about the Keepers. I had allowed her to walk through my mind. “It’s a long story,” I assured her.

“I do want to hear it all I haven’t heard your voice in too long.”

“I don’t know how much you know,” I admitted The last time I’d seen her was on Alfheimir. “I told her about the ambush in Vasarakaupunki and how I woke chained to a wall. Then how I was beaten near to death only to have Digger heal me. It reminded me of my debt to Mother Sophronia Palkkasir. She died confronting the Prophet armed only with a sword. I spoke about my escape and finding help then my encounter with the Prophet. Mother knows what would have happened to me if Mother Sophronia hadn’t caused a diversion. I was picking too many Valkyrie habits I kept invoking the ‘Mother of All’. It gave me time to shoot the Prophet unfortunately it wasn’t fatal. I did manage to get a blood sample it didn’t prove the Prophet was an alien. What it did prove that the Prophet was a male posing as a female. No right minded Valkyrie would follow a male.

Xenai sat up again looking less flushed. “We didn’t know that,” she said thoughtfully. She smiled at me. “Just listening to you talk makes me feel better.”

“Good,” I said with some feeling. I continued telling of the attempts on my life and the battle at the hall of the Elders. Then Komana, ordering my exile to Earth.

“Mother shouldn’t have done that.” Admiral Komana was Xenai’s mother. “After all you’ve done for her?”

“So I was back on Earth.” I spoke again saying how Lady Broaden sent me back to the Confederacy via Paranova. I told Xenai about the events aboard the Ariadne and the aftermath. Then about my second encounter with the Prophet and the fact I’d been used as bait to draw out the separatists. “I don’t think it was Lady Broaden’s idea,” I assured her.

“Not on my watch,” Xenai declared making me feel better.

I carried on detailing what happened on Davenport.

“I got the reports on the Rhosani. Luckily for General Osward he quelled the insurrection.” Xenai gave me a look. “Gwen you been through a lot and here we are making it worse.” She paused giving me her eye. “Now we come to crunch. What are you doing on Saros?”

I knew I would have to tell her.