29
(Fenjaday)
Towani
The group of A’mara moved silently along the alleys of Towani City. They found the Mestari nightclub, which was still serving drinks to boisterous drinkers, drowning out any sounds the A’mara might have made and muffling their imprints on the leya.
Janika and the other A’mara entered the corridor alongside the nightclub. The ziplift was at the end.
As if playing a juvenile game, they all barely squeezed into the lift car. Any other time, Janika would have loved being squeezed next to Coomar, but she was completely focused on what would be found at the bottom of this ride.
“The buttons don’t go low enough,” Vanti commented.
Janika saw Zarma reach for the buttons through the leya and concentrate on the correct floor for a moment. The ziplift started moving steadily downwards, to the bottom level, then still lower.
“Cyanus, we will have only moments to disable Païsan,” Zarma advised. “He is powerful, so must be the first target. Lucao and Saisha, your primary focus will be your maqlas. Samek, rescue Denica. Janika, cover us. Vanti, Coomar, fill in where needed.
All nodded as their goals were made clear.
The lift stopped and the doors opened.
The A’mara found themselves in a small foyer of sorts. It looked like a dead end. Janika watched as Zarma closed her eyes and let the leya find the entrance for her. “It’s those lockers,” she said.
Moving the lockers was easy, what was behind was another story. Cyanus tried to use the leya to open the door. “Leya-imprinted magna-seal – the best kind,” he reported. “Can you break one of those?”
Zarma nodded. “It’s hard, but I can, especially when I have your help.” She closed her eyes again. Janika and the others joined in, focusing on releasing the magna-sealed door. At last, there was a very soft click and silently, the door slid open.
Janika followed closely behind the abári, her shaze already drawn, ready to cover the woman in front of her. She knew Zarma recognized Païsan as they rounded the corner. Half a dozen shazes were already drawn, another half dozen Veledas started hailing them with laser bolts.
<Change of plan!> Zarma called to all of them. <Shazes now!>
She felt Zarma and the leader try to throw each other against the walls as Janika concentrated on meeting and returning fire until several Uugli were knocked to the floor by their own Veleda bolts. <Even field now!> she called, grinning.
Everyone engaged in fighting, Janika saw an opportunity. <See if you can disable the magna-chambers!> she sent to Coomar.
Coomar heard her. As he moved, Janika moved with him, keeping him well covered as he searched for, and found the power source for the magna-chambers. He ran to the victims quickly.
<They’re hurt!> Coomar cried out mentally.
<Vanti!> Janika cried. <They need healing!>
Vanti ran to the victims and began to tend them while Janika and Coomar deflected bolts away from her. Saisha, Samek and Lucao’s shazes leveled the field to reduce Cyanus and Zarma’s load. Zarma was still engaged against the leader.
The clashing was wild, sending showers of sparks around the room. Suddenly, Janika saw one opponent take a wild swing allowing Cyanus to step in and end the battle, as the opposing man slid, lifeless, to the floor.
Janika then looked to Zarma who managed to send Païsan’s shaze flying. Zarma quickly stepped up and clamped magna-cuffs on him.
The leader apprehended and most other members dead, unconscious or seriously injured, the few who remained no longer wished to fight, ending the battle just like that.
“Echis!” came a cry and a woman ran to the fallen man, weeping.
Fighting over, Lucao and Saisha went first to Ja’tel, who was barely conscious. “He’s stable, but very weak,” Vanti gave her assessment.
“Hovercart please,” Janika called, seeing that Zarma was still busy with the Uugli leader. “Lucao, take Ja’tel to hospital. He will need treatment for malnourishment, but otherwise, he seems fine, right Vanti?”
Vanti nodded.
Then, they looked at Saraca, who was awake, but groaning in agony. “She’s bleeding internally,” Vanti said, holding her hands over the woman.
Janika took a vial off her belt. She parted Saraca’s lips and put a drop in her mouth. “That should give her some strength,” Janika said. “Coomar, another hovercart! Saisha, Samek, please take her to hospital as quickly as possible. She’s going to need emergency surgery.” Coomar and Janika carefully used the leya to move Saraca to the hovercart. Saisha and Samek worked to take the woman out.
Janika and Vanti moved to Denica.
“She is still unconscious,” Vanti said. She held her hand over the patient. “Broken bones and concussion.”
Janika gave Denica a drop of the liquid medicine as well, hoping it might do her some good.
“Coomar!” Janika called. He was already at her side with the third hovercart. She smiled at him, but was back to business. “Vanti, Coomar, help me get her to hospital. She should be fine, but she needs treatment.”
“Everyone else, follow them to the hospital,” Zarma said, bringing Païsan with her. “Cyanus, look around and see if anything has been missed.”
“You guys call yourselves A’mara!” Païsan insulted them, telling Zarma everything they’d done wrong.
“Who won this battle?” Zarma asked him. He fell silent for awhile.
Janika waited with Vanti and Coomar for the lift to return. She saw Zarma and Cyanus looking around carefully. Several gangsters lay dead. The injured ones had already been removed by the survivors, and the leader was still with Zarma. Just as the lift returned, she saw Cyanus and Zarma prepare to carry the gangster up the stairs. She wondered about it a few moments until she heard the alarm sounding. The lift doors closed and it started moving them up.
Coomar and Vanti looked at her, concerned. “I’ve heard Zarma talk about how Uugli like to get rid of evidence,” Janika said.
“I smell smoke,” Vanti said.
“They’re going to destroy the building!” Coomar realized aloud.
The lift opened and they hurried outside where there was quite a commotion as the remaining nightclub patrons were being evacuated due to the fire alarm. The smoke smell was stronger. The fresh air outside was rejuvenating, but before she could get too far, another shot from a Veleda hit Denica in the chest.
“Hurry!” Janika said urgently, tears running down her face.
Cyanus came sprinting out of the building followed by Zarma who was hampered by the leader. Cyanus tackled the remaining assailant to the ground and fitted him with magna-cuffs with leya-dampeners.
An explosion ripped through the building behind them.
“Kinokei,” Zarma called through her PCS link. “I need a couple of people who can escort prisoners to Irola for me.”
“I’ll find someone. I presume you’ll put them in our holding cells for a few hours?” Kinokei confirmed.
“Yes. They will do very well,” Zarma replied.
Janika, Vanti and Coomar got Denica into the hospital where Janika informed staff about the known injuries. They took the young woman away to treat.
“Saraca? Ja’tel?” Janika asked another staff member.
“The woman is in surgery as we speak,” the nurse replied. “She has internal injuries of the like we’ve never seen before. It’s like she was stabbed multiple times, yet no flesh wounds. You may see the man though – he’s in recovery.”
They went to see Ja’tel who was awake and sipping on a medicinal tea to help nourish his depleted body.
Zarma and Cyanus joined them a few minutes later.
“Saraca is in surgery,” Janika reported to them. “I don’t know how Denica is… after that Veleda bolt.” She started crying and Vanti helped her into a chair.
“I wanted to commend you, Vanti and Janika,” Zarma said. “You, as well, Coomar. The way the three of you worked together in battle. It takes great teamwork to do what you did tonight. Vanti, you tended to victims while a battle was raging. Coomar, you covered for her, protecting her and our victims from further harm. Janika, you took to leadership like I have rarely seen, and never from you before.”
“But Denica…,” Janika sobbed.
“She’s a strong young woman,” Zarma replied.
“The other young woman is in a coma,” a nurse came out to report. “I cannot lie that she is in bad shape. That Veleda bolt may be too much for her.”
“Keep us informed,” Zarma said. “I think we all need sleep. There is nothing else we can do tonight.”
“Nina will be glad to know that Païsan is in custody.” Cyanus said. “Good night, Abári. I hope you sleep well.”
“I must talk to Jerreck first,” Zarma replied. “He is waiting for news. Then, I hope to sleep.”
Supplemental Materials
Character Guide and Glossary
Terrenden Atlas pages
Please catch up!
Rebound of Power –
Meet Iyva, a homeless teenager in Irola with a strong connection with the leya. Totally untrained, her power rebounds catastrophically, leaving her close to death. A Nameless hero saves her life, but hides. Anyone would be proud to teach her, but will she choose the safe, trustworthy A’mara or the shady ones who teach her what she wants to learn? Can she trust her hero… the Nameless One?
This story actually wraps around four other stories: Friendship on Fire,Courage to Trust, Elect to Change and Ocean of Empathy. Currently, they're only available separately, but I do plan to republish the collection as a whole - I just haven't got there yet.
Don’t forget!
I’m still offering 1 Steem Basic Income share for any minnow who asks me a question which prompts an “Ask the Author” post! I’m thinking about putting these into a Dbooks ebook all its own, actually.
Image Credits:
Birth of the Neví cover art based on:
Shaze divider based on:
- Sword image from Wikipedia Commons
All maps/editing by myself on GIMP and Photoscape, both free programs.
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Any names or characters, businesses or places, events or incidents, are fictitious. Although the penalty of knowing me in real life is that you will influence the creation of my characters; any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
Writing and artwork copyright myself 2005-2018 – all rights reserved.
If you are interested in helping me publish these works, please contact me on Facebook or Discord, viking-ventures#2883.
Lori Svensen – A'mara Books & Viking Visual
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