Shattered Sphere – Entry 5

Jack slammed me against the moldy hull of the vessel. His antique knife pressed tightly against my throat and I felt it pass through the first two layers of skin. Had it been only us I would have wasted no time turning that blade on his bowels, but the bastards had my sisters. They were not ready. I couldn’t let them be hurt, not now. Jenna continued to sob, her adolescent mind defensively numbing itself away from this foreign brutality. Arial remained silent, but I could see the defiant resolve in her eyes. She would kill every last one of these mercs, or herself, before she would give in to their despicable intentions. But she wasn’t ready to wield this strength. In truth, none of were.

I felt my jugular pop as the blade sank inward. Air rushed out from the opening as I yelled in pain, then blood rushed in and I began to choke. I could hear Arial screaming as I sank to the floor. Blackness began filling my vision. Jack turned around to face my sisters, “Resist and you’ll end up like that,” he laughed, “you may anyway.” My heart was racing to compensate for the rapid blood loss. My vision was completely gone and only the faint sounds of Jenna’s sobs and the hungry jeers of 8 mercenaries remained. Then I felt the final heartbeat. Then I felt nothing.

Jack barked an order to secure Jenna in her quarters. He would take Arial first. The others would have their turn after him. He leaned over her while his men pinned her in the chair. She kept her eyes locked on his. Fearless, resolute… hate filled. Jack enjoyed it.

The silver mist began to leak from my torn throat, then my mouth and nose. My eyes ignited, become a white tempest of fire and electricity; silver mist now leaking from the outer sockets. I could suddenly see everything: the outside of the ship, the bridge, the galley, the corridor as Jenna was being led away, the room we were in, Jack loosening his belt, Arial’s knowing smirk, myself… I could see myself standing now. Silver mist covering my body like a new layer of skin then bleeding off in wisps, light casting a faint glow from my eyes, the gash in my neck bleeding the mist.

Jack’s men yelped and he quickly turned to see what they were seeing, what I was seeing. His eyes widened, mouth gaping in disbelief and he suddenly felt something he hadn’t felt since he was a boy, terror. I stepped out of time, moved past him and into the corridor grabbing Jenna’s two escorts and dragging them back to the room. I heard their necks snap the moment I moved them. They were already dead, but I wondered if they would see their surroundings suddenly change before their bodies realized what had happened and their dim lights extinguished. I left them standing next to Jack. The other six would suffer. I pushed my fingers, fists, and blade hands through their limbs and torsos. It was as effortless as treading water and the silver mist repelled their fluids from my flesh. When I had finished I placed a hand on Arial. She looked up at me. “Are they all dead?” I nodded slowly, “all but Jack… we still need him.” Jenna rose from the chair and we walked over to his frozen mass. He was still facing the wall he felled me upon. Jenna took his prized antique blade and we stepped back. I breathed in for the first time. The silver mist rapidly flowed into me. My eyes returned to their normal dark shade, the wound on my neck closed, my heart began to beat and my vision returned to a singular point of reference. We slipped back into time and heard sudden and final screams of the six mercenaries I had cut down. We didn’t bother to look at them, our eyes were fixed on Jack. The two men I left beside him collapsed at his feet. He looked down at them then turned dumbfounded toward us and his dead and dying men behind us. Jenna jumped forward with a flying snap kick to his face. His nose split and he stumbled back against the wall and slipped down into my spilled blood. Jenna pounced on him, pressing the blade firmly against his throat. “You will complete your service and deliver us to the Aspen Plains, or you will die…” she smirked, “you may anyway.”