Greetings Readers!
The first week of the new year is done. I hope it has treated you all well. Things are slowly getting better on my end, but the horrible client is still riding me hard. Soon that'll be finished though, so I am keeping my head down and just getting it over and done with.
I am a little behind in my Introduction Chapters. I am hoping to have some time over the weekend to work on them in detail and release them throughout the rest of January. Until then, enjoy interacting with the Queen of Saith, Saasha.
The Queen waved her words away and repeated the words, this time with more of a commanding overtone. This time Saita took the glass but as she did her right arm was grabbed and the Queen said. “Slowly.”
“Yes.”
The Queen held onto her arm for a few more seconds before releasing her and allowing her to sip at the water. However, upon sipping the drink she realised it was some kind of sweetened liquid.
“You’re pale as a ghost. I can hear your heart from here. Can’t believe my brothers let you fall asleep in this condition. You’d think as doctors they would be smarter than that.” The Queen got to her feet and went over to the door of the room.
She looked left, then right, nodded her head once and then pulled the door closed. Saita put the glass down and crossed her legs under her with a grimace. Her feet and legs ached and all she wanted to do was to lie in a hot bath but as she looked up, she saw that she was still attached to what she assumed was more of the saline solution.
“Well then, let’s chat Saita Karesh.” The Queen allowed her tail to hang free and leaned against the door she had just closed.
“I don’t go by that name anymore.” She said as she looked away from the Queen. “Would it be rude to eat while we talk?”
Saasha indicated with one hand that Saita was welcome to eat. Tentatively the young woman took up a quarter of what looked like an apple and took a bite. The texture was that of an apple but yielded a watermelon taste. Not unpleasant but confusing.
“What is your given name then?”
“S-AY-8-A.” Saita shrugged as she continued to chew the odd fruit. “That was my designation as I was turned into a weapon as a toddler. That’s what you want to talk about, isn’t it? Can we skip the pleasantries and just get to the point?”
“Interesting.” Saasha grinned. “Do you want me to call you by your weapon serial number or do you have a name you want to go by?”
Saita blushed and simply said. “Saita.”
“Saita it is then.” Saasha made her way back to the chair she had previously occupied. “It doesn’t really get better.”
“Excuse me?”
“The nightmares. Certain things will fade with time, but the nightmares always scratch open old wounds.”
“How would you know?” Hissed Saita before she could stop herself.
Saasha chuckled and raised the bandana to reveal her blindness. “Do you think I got this playing a children’s game?”
“I didn’t want to pry.”
Saasha snorted and said, “Odd use of words since it looks like yours was pried from your face.”
“The claw marks came well after my eye was replaced. If it weren’t already biomechanical it would have been taken.”
The two women sat in awkward silence as Saasha spun the old bandana around one finger slowly.
“What are your aspirations Saita?” she asked after some time.
“Can we please get to the point? I am well aware that I stink, and I really, really want to have a shower.”
Saasha chuckled and said with a grin. “You remind me of my husband when we were younger. Never liked a long-winded story. He wanted facts, statistics, and he wanted them presented as shortly as possible.”
Saita didn’t miss the hand holding the bandana being brought to a flower that had been embroidered on the Queen’s top. She could hear the pain in Saasha’s voice and knew the man that had been her partner was no longer with them. She sighed and decided to play along. “I don’t have any.”
“Bolx tells me you are an S-class fighter under the Dreg Lord Chaka. Was this your goal?”
“Your Majesty I have no aspirations as my life is so fractured and distorted that the last 18 months was the longest period I have had since my earliest memories of 13 years old where I could think.” Saita dug her fingers into her hair and grimaced. “I have been told I will be a Princess. Then I would get the crown. Then that I was a weapon, wrong on so many fronts that I can’t even count. Then once more lost for four years. Only to come back to see everything, everything, had changed and I would have to war against the man that promised me a home, a family. I literally cannot plan a day in advance without something pulling the rug out from under me. I have no aspirations because I don’t have time to think!”
“And your family?”
“The only family I have is my son and I am never allowed to see him again.”
“Bolx never mentioned a child.”
“Well don’t worry, it’s not his.” Said Saita spitefully. “Another thing that I did not have control over. Genetically mine but not born of my body.”
“So, like Larden then.” Saasha smiled a little. “We had a surrogate carry him.”
“I am not bonding with you over my son.” Snapped the human.
“I am prying.” stated the Queen as she crossed her arms. “But you must realise that all I know about you are the ravings of your father when he threatened to use you against us.”
“He is no longer my father, or didn’t you get the memo? I am banished.”
Saasha waved this away before saying. “Again, not important.”
“What do you want from me?” begged Saita as she dropped her hands to her lap.
Saasha crossed her legs and leaned back in the chair. “It is simple Saita. You are a weapon. Kessa and Aastii have researched what they can, and it is not good. You are basically an overcharged battery that is waiting for a place to cause destruction.”
“I didn’t ask for this!”
Saasha held her hand up and stared at Saita sternly. “I assume you have had some court manners drummed into you, so I expect you to act the part of a dignitary while you are on my planet.”
Saita rolled her eyes but kept quiet. Saasha only laughed and said, “None of my sons ever had the nerve to talk back to me so it is somewhat refreshing to find someone who can. Just don’t make a habit of it. You are after all the very first human to be invited here. You are what I will base my thoughts on when it comes to your cousin and whether I invite him to see your fights.”
Saita felt as if her stomach dropped out of her gut, and she felt herself pale. “Please don’t do that.”
“It is protocol. Those who are invited to the Games are a way to gain allies and support for my cause. It has been some time since the war, and I think it is time for old wounds to be cleaned and properly dressed.”
“I am not a good representation of my species. You should look to Kiai, she is…”
“I know about her and Barik. They are far too busy developing that planet that would have been a real thorn in my side. She is a good person but no, I want you.”
“Is it because Bolx likes me?”
“A bit of yes, a bit of no.” the Queen laughed. “Actually, mostly no.”
Saasha threw her arms in the air and muttered. “Where is Bahn when I need him!”
“Bahn?”
“The man that gave me the life I have now.” she smiled sadly. “He died saving my son and I owe him the world.”
She took a deep breath and said. “Saita your current condition doesn’t bother me in the slightest. My biological father was banished for decades before I knew of his existence. I don’t care about your banishment. I am concerned about this.”
She leaned forward and touched a mark that was descending along the inside of Saita’s inner arm. “You were born, stolen, and then made into what you are today. Genetically you are superior to those of your race. That said the mechanical part of you is concerning, greatly so. Inside of you is something that generates immense power, a power that shouldn’t be inside a human, or anyone for that matter. This device is something alien and ancient and should never have been dug up. You realise this and that is why you hide. It's why you ran solidly for a week without thinking, eating, or resting, all to burn away what you perceive as a sin. You want to be rid of what was done to you and I think at first that was your father’s plan, but madness took him and now here we are. Now normally I would not allow something like what is inside of you to be allowed in the Games, but Kessa assures me that none of your marks have rescinded after your test, so the machine was not having an influence on your endurance ability though it is driving my brothers insane trying to understand it.”
Saita pulled away and rubbed at her arm and Saasha continued. “Preliminary results show that no foreign chemicals are being produced so there is no reason to not include you in the Games. So, congratulations on that. I will be inviting your King as a show of good faith. How the two of you interact with one another is up to you. If you wish to ignore his presence, then that is fine, but he will be asked to come to my planet and I will tell him you are here.”
Saita sighed and looked at her swollen feet and grimaced at the discoloured toenails.
“Then, as you are on my planet you will abide by my laws and not embarrass your species as your father has. Is that clear?”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
“The next thing I want to bring up may be a sensitive subject and it has been suggested that I avoid doing this, but I need to look out for my people.”
“Then why place me with your family if you are so…?”
“This is not the time for you to talk girl, now is the time for you to listen to what I have to say.” Saasha raised a single finger. “Once I am done talking, you can have an input. Clear?”
“Yes.”
“The person who built what is inside of you goes by the name Edzeeker, correct?”
“Yes,” growled Saita.
“And you know he is not Kai?”
“He is a Dekai, he has wings.”
“Glad we are on the right page then.” Saasha scratched at an old scar on her jaw and then said. “You have met Larden, and you have likely heard of Brucel.”
“King Brucel?”
“That’s my youngest.” she smiled warmly. “Those are my blood sons, but I have another that goes by the name of Jethron. Ironically, we thought he was Kai too when he first came to us.”
“There are more Dekai?”
Saasha could almost feel the surge of energy coming from the girl in the wake of her fury. “They aren't an endangered species you know. They are just somewhat out of phase with this particular universe. I feel that to understand what this thing is inside of you I will need to talk to him, but I need your word that you will not harm him at all.”
“The last time Edzeeker showed his face I nearly tore his throat out with my teeth,” said Saita simply.
“Noted. I will make sure that he stays at the castle and doesn’t go to his childhood home.”
“Why are you doing this? What reasons are there?” demanded Saita.
Saasha grinned, mimicking her mother. “My uncle allowed a woman in the Guard, and I think it is time to have allied species in it.”
And there you have it. Saasha is considering have Saita join the Royal Guard. This has a huge significance for the Saith. If you don't know who the Royal Guard are, have a look over the Introductory Chapters and have a read. They are an interesting group of warriors.
For those of you just joining us, please note that this the third book in the Fell Dragon series. Follow this link to read the two earlier books:
Fell Dragon Book 1
Fell Dragon Book 2
As the series continues, it will combine with another book series I wrote. To avoid confusion about what is happening, introductory chapters will be introduced separately so that you don't have to be lost. However, these chapters will contain spoilers. You can find these chapters here:
Races Explained
Banishment
Royal Guard
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Haven't read the other parts yet? Follow these handy links:
Part 18>>You are Here>>Part 20 (Friday)