chapter 7

I had to admit, even I was a little startled when that Dragul jumped out from under the trees.

We'd stopped a little distance away from the others and I'd stayed back with Buddy. I had a feeling Thia wanted to try and handle this on her own and I wanted to let her. But just in case, I did keep a hand by the small of my back, ready to grab my knife if I had to. But when that beast charged with that great roar, I couldn't help but back up a little. Only a second later, Iktheor has impaled the beast. I stared in surprise. It's not just that he won't hurt her. He doesn't want her hurt at all.

I noticed a flash beside me, turned to see what it was, and when I looked back, Iktheor had been struck down, the commander standing over him. I thought he was still recovering.

But I had other things to worry about at the time. Thias arm was bleeding pretty bad from a long cut all along her forearm. James had managed to sit up and was cradling her. I thought about going to her but before I got the chance, her father was beside her. Maybe I should give them a moment.

It was only when Maggie picked her up that I stepped forward and offered to take her back myself, so that they could focus on the others.

It was only after I'd set her down in the infirmary that the situation: after the commander had heard we'd gone after Iktheor, he'd been running on pure adrenaline to try and stop him but once that had been dealt and the adrenaline started wearing off, he was actually worse off than before; the others were starting to wake up but only for short periods of time; James and Zee were battered and bruised but not seriously hurt. As for Iktheor - he was safely behind bars in their custody.

I watched myself as they cleaned Thias wound, revealing a cut that curved all down her forearm, from the side of her wrist to the tip of her elbow.

They'd given her an anaesthetic while they cleaned it so that she wouldn't feel the stinging. It wasn't until it was bandaged up and in a sling that she started to wake up and ask about her dad. I was starting to wonder just how much I should tell her when she grabbed my wrist with her free hand. "Please don't lie to me.

I swallowed. "He's alive." I decided to start with that reassuring positive.

"But he's not ok."

Was it that obvious? "We can't give up. He certainly won't."

With a small smile, she nodded. "You're right. He's probably too stubborn to die."

Holding back a snicker, I said "That'll be where you get it from." And we both chuckled.

Whatever happened, I was confident enough that we could all get through it together.

(Thias pov)

Once I was deemed well enough to leave the infirmary, there was only one thing I wanted to do. I might've been a little fuzzy after that Dragul hit but I could still remember those words. "Isynier is alive!" I needed to know more. My arm was in a sling but that wasn't really a major issue. I'd already been reassured that my father was alive, I left the infirmary with only this one thought on my mind, before I realised I didn't know where he was being kept. Groaning internally, I accepted I would have to ask one of the others. I had hoped I could do this without anyone knowing. Resigning myself with a sigh, I headed towards the lounge, figuring that would be the most likely place to find them.

When I got there, I was surprised to see Sky with his back leaning against the wall. His arms were folded over his chest and he was leaning heavily on one leg but otherwise he seemed fine.

"Hi." I said, somewhat awkwardly.

The corner of his lip curled upwards with a small smile. "Brain and Cid still need a bit more time but I'm well enough. At least to be allowed to leave the infirmary and come here for a little more rest."

I chuckled softly. "Progress. That's good. Um…" I looked around, hoping to see James or Zee. I liked Sky well enough but he was always one of the more uptight, stricter people here. I doubted he would've told me what I wanted if I asked, and if he knew then he was bound to tell others and they would be forewarned. Unfortunately though, Sky seemed to be the only other person in the lounge.

"Is there something you wanted?"

I weighed my options: risk asking Sky or wait and try to find someone else.

Before I could properly decide however, he'd already figured out what it was I was after. "I heard about what happened. About what he said." He slowly moved off the wall to turn to face me, only to - seemingly casually - reach out an arm to further lean on it. If he was in pain, he was doing a good job at hiding it as he looked squarely at me. "You shouldn't go chasing rumours. Especially not ones spread by…"

"No." I cut him off, the determination flooding into me. "I want to know what he knows about my mother. And this isn't just a rumour. He knows something."

He just looked at me.

When I couldn't stand the silence any longer I said "do you know where he is or not."

"I do. But I'd be damned if I let you go there and talk to him alone."

I laughed sarcastically, moving away. "One way or another, I have to find out. I don't care if I have to search everywhere. If I have to sneak around at the dead of night when there's no one else around. I just gotta know."

He sighed, this time moving fully away from the wall. "Your father isn't going to like this."

My father doesn't need to know. I almost said but I stopped myself, realising I could never ask someone like him to keep something like this a secret from my dad.

With that in my head, it took a few seconds to notice he was heading towards the door.

"What are you doing?" I asked, hurrying to catch up with him.

"I said I wouldn't let you go alone but I can take you there."

Iktheor was being held in one of the lower cells, where the sun barely touched and there was little light. There were bars on one side of these cells - the side that looked into the corridor. The other sides were walled off. I recognised Iktheor at once, sitting with his back against the wall, one leg up on the cell bed. He looked almost nonchalant.

Now that I could actually see him, I was suddenly afraid to talk to him.

I felt Sky's hand reassuringly placed between my shoulder blades. "I'll be right behind you the whole time and if things seem to be getting too much, I'll step up and end it immediately."

I heaved a deep sigh and walked forwards.

He didn't look up until I was right in front of the bars. A part of me was hoping he would be the one to speak first but he seemed to be waiting for the same thing from me. Trying not to gulp, I opened my mouth to say something…

"I had a feeling you would come to me." He said, before I could get any words out.

But I wasn't ditard. "I still want…"

"I know what you want. You want answers." He leaned forward, swinging his legs down. "About your family. You're parents. I imagine you have even more questions about your mother than you did the last time we spoke."

It was somewhat unnerving that he knew exactly what I'd come here for but a small part of me was also relieved. It meant I didn't have to ask.

He was now leaning all the way forwards, elbows resting on his knees, his metal fingers clasped together. "Do you want the full story, princess?"

Slowly, I nodded.

"Well then best try to make yourself comfortable. This could take a while.

"Annubus was the son of a female shadow and a miner. I suppose it was natural that he wanted to be a warrior, so much so that as soon as he was old enough, he signed up for space patrol. That was how we met. Though I was a year ahead of him, he learned fast. Rose up quickly. He was good. They used to call him 'Ace', for his initials. We were friends but at times I had to admit I was jealous. How could he have gotten so far ahead when I started first?"

Was that a rhetorical question or was actually expecting me to answer?

"Does it really matter?" I said, in case he was waiting for me to talk before carrying on. "Besides, I wanted to know more about my mother."

"Ah, but little one, I was just getting to that. You see, I was there when he first met your mother. A stunning and thoughtful young woman escorting her kid sister who also wanted to sign up. A skinny little thing but that only made her more adorable. Perfect golden fur, pale hands, long and somewhat unruly blond hair and green eyes that shone like a night sky just before the sun came up. Quite the contrast to her sisters chestnut and brunet. We both saw them. I even encouraged her to go talk to her."

"You're wrong." I'd been waiting for the right time to tell him this. I didn't want to interrupt the descriptions. "They knew each other before that. They were at school together." I'd heard the story from both Steeve and aunt Rose.

"Were they?" He seemed totally unfazed by the contradiction. "That might explain a few things. You see, she came to him. I don't know exactly what was said but I know he promised to watch over her sister because after Rosina did sign up, he always kept a close eye on her - giving her extra training and stepping in when she was picked on. And she kept coming back, the lovely Isinyer. People started to notice. People started to try their luck."

I didn't want to even think about what that meant.

"Those people thought she was only coming back to make sure her sister was doing ok but I knew better. She wasn't just being a good older sister and she wasn't just grateful to him for looking out for her. She kept coming back for him. To be with him, that was what she wanted. I only spoke to her a few times but I knew whenever I saw her that she was the only thing I wanted."

I blinked, taken aback. Strictly speaking, Metoids didn't reproduce the same way other species did. Physical attraction wasn't a thing for them. But they could still feel passion. And, from the sounds of it, desire.

"Even after he graduated and they married, I would've done anything to be by her side."

"Is that why you kept her in a cave?"

He stopped, as if he hadn't expected me to know about that. "I had to make sure she survived. To keep her safe and hidden away."

"Even if it meant she was miserable."

He sat up straighter. "I did my best to make her feel comfortable." he sounded almost offended that I thought otherwise. "I brought her food, covers, books, even a battery powered cd player that I figured would still work in the cave and a bunch of cds to go with it."

"But you kept her from her family."

"Well I genuinely believed her family was dead." he started to sound pretty aggressive now "I thought I was all she had now. I kept telling her so. I was no fool, I knew she would never love me but she could've shown a little appreciation. What was the point of holding a candle to those who were long gone!"

Unable to take it anymore, I took a step back with a gasp…

and felt Skys hand clasp my shoulder. "That's enough."

I'd almost forgotten he was there. I worried suddenly that he might've heard everything that had just been said but I was also relieved that he was there to get me out of it when I needed. I knew pretty much all I wanted to know now.

(Jay's pov)

It was more breezy higher up the mountain but I quite liked the feel of the wind.

After everything that had happened, I suddenly couldn't bear to be in the base anymore. Even the forest felt too close. So I'd ridden back to the place where it happened. I'd found the clearing, the cluster of trees where the Dragul has come from.

The way people told it, they made it sound like Iktheor had gone for Thia while she was pinned down but I didn't think that was true. He'd impaled the beast when it went for her. And that brief distraction had cost him his freedom.

I knelt by the beast's giant corpse, which had just been left there amidst all the confusion. If it was still alive, I'd've had half a mind to thank it but then again it had also sliced open Thias arm. Instead I Explored the trees, discovering the place where the Dragul has made its nest: a spot near the edge that overlooked the city. I guess Draguls like looking down from high places too.

It's dead. It won't mind if I stay here for a while.

Even as tall as Nebulas Rise was, it was still nowhere near as tall as the mountains. We weren't even near the top and already it looked like we were level with the top of it.

I stood leaning against a tree, wishing I'd brought my sketchbook and pencils. The sunset from hear looked even more stunning than from the top of Nabulas Rise. I suddenly felt the urge to go all the way to the top of the mountain and draw the view from each side of it. But, as reckless as everyone said I was, even I knew it wasn't safe to wander the wilderness at night, so I emerged from the trees with the promise that one day, that would be exactly what I did.