SHANAZER, THE LEGEND

'I am the one who is going to take her out?' shouted Drago. 

'Drago, I am best at shooting bow and arrows. Do you know that?' asked Dexter.

'Huh! Dexter, what is your bet?' Shrugged Aragon.

'Well! Two million after we share the bounty!'

'It's a deal!' Aragon yelled as he set up his bow and arrow to hit the target.

It was raining heavily in a dense thick forest, six arrows flew in the air, aiming to stab her when she tripped and fell to the ground. As the spears flew ahead, she could see one hit the tree trunk in front of her while others disappeared in the shrubs. She got up on her feet and resumed sprinting in a zigzag direction, left and right. She twisted her head to look behind when she saw fifteen flying spears coming her way.

At this point, she was convinced that she was done, but she did not reduce her speed. Actually, she accelerated, she was about to be hit when she slipped over a cliff. The falling was trailing at the speed of light. She could not scream, a sudden death was better than a sharp spear penetrating one's back, then to the heart, bleeding slowly, it was kind of excruciating and more painful, she thought. Forty-four Assassins were after her, and wanted to get something from her which she didn't know.

At this moment Shanazer chose to close her eyes, she had to let go, the wind blew in her face, its sound clearly whistled in her ears, peace filled her heart. Death had finally come face to face with her. In seconds, she would go to an unknown place where people who die go to. There was nothing left behind, no regrets, no family to worry about and, of course, no friends. She had been running all her entire life. Perhaps death could grant her the freedom she had sought from age nine, this brutal rough world where everyone else hunted her life, and was wanted, like a thief, a criminal or a murderer, a bounty of two billion U S dollars was on her head, dead or alive.

Who had ordered this hit? What's important about me? Why do they want me dead or alive? These questions were on replay in her mind. 

Gandaska city was not an easy one to live in. Two things ruled: dare to get rich, or die trying or become a fighter. You had a chance to extend your miserable, pathetic poor life, which no one cared about. If you are as weak as Shanazer, running was the third option to survive on. The latter was what she could afford. It cost her nothing except a strong will to breathe. As bad as it was, two billion U S dollars lay over her head. 

'Where is she?' Shouted Dexter.

'She can't possibly disappear just like that, right?' Shrugged Drago.

'Keep searching?' Commanded Aragon. 'That's two billion US dollars at our fingertips!'

The portal where she dropped from had just closed, on a sandy dry desert lay the breathless unconscious body of a girl. Was she really dead?

'Is that a corpse lying down?' inquired Anna. 'Let's check it out?' Replied a man in his seventy's and walked towards it. They moved closer to see if there was a sign of life in it. It looked completely dead from a distance. The old man knelt down, put his two fingers on the nose of this young girl, there was a very small breath coming out. The old man breathed a sigh of relief as he calmed his nerves down, 'Is she alive Uncle?' Anna questioned.

'Yes, come help find some sticks?' Asked as he went to find some sticks.

He began dragging the tied body on a stretcher made of sticks. The place where the girl had landed is called Veena city. It is the land of the living. The planet could be called Ventrander. During this era, people were scattered on lots of planets in the Milky Way Galaxy. However, it was a new Ventrander. Things had turned upside down, living things were getting extinct, this had been going on for two thousand years, at least they were not as bad as they were in Gandaska city. Here the rich, knowledgeable and most powerful ruled the city but were quite civilized. 

The old man sat next to the young girl, waiting for when she would become conscious. He murmured to himself, 'Rascal, when shall you awake? It has been five days now, though your breathing has improved, it seems death does not like you that much, so come on? Open your eyes and keep this old fool company. Maybe I could redeem myself of the evil I have done on Ventrander and God could be merciful and grant me peace at last as I die.'

The old man's name is Tairen Exon. He is an ex-military officer. To his fellow ex-men, today's generation, he is a war hero. Well, his biggest failure was not saving his lovely wife from a heart attack. He is a veteran. For him, that was not enough to compensate for his wife's life. He dreamed of leaving a legacy, an identity of his blood, but the universe was not very considerate, he cannot argue with it nor blame it, it was after all his responsibility to keep her safe and prevent her from dying, so he had been carrying that blame and burden for the past thirty-five years. 

There was a loud thud as the girl's body landed on the floor, from the height of a four-meter bed, and she started jacking forcefully as she tried to breathe, rise and sit. At the same instant, she coughed out clotted blood which gushed out of her mouth like a hot spring.

This aroused Tairen Exon from his reveries. He gazed at Shanazer with curious eyes, as his calm gentle voice could be heard, 'Relax young girl, you are safe here with me.'

He said softly, trying not to alarm her, without touching her, for she was startled, scared, confused and touching her would worsen her state. He went on, 'Take your time to breathe in and out.' Shanazer became calm, as she did what he instructed her.

The old man kept observing the strange young girl patiently and with tender eyes. He was a veteran, therefore, he knew exactly how to deal with any disturbing situation and when a person was under trauma. Tairen continued encouraging her, 'You are doing great, yes go on and take your time.' The same process of breathing in and out.

Shanazer was back to her normal self within a few minutes. 'Anna!' he shouted, 'Bring me water, food and a towel.' Tairen instructed.

A few minutes passed when Anna appeared, 'Oh, she is awake?' Tairen signaled with his hand to make sure Anna shut her mouth. Received a towel from Anna and offered it to the girl, who wiped her mouth, and he gave her a cup of water. She took it and drank it all at one gulp and breathed out heavily thereafter.

The old man served her some food. As she started eating, Tairen Exon kept a graceful observation. The girl looked like she had not eaten for such a long time, and was also pretty strange at the same time. 

He predicted that the girl might not be from the same city as him. Shanazer was quietly eating. You could just hear the teeth grinding the food, the sound of food breaking and that of food passing through her throat.

'My name is Tairen Exon,' he began, 'She is my niece, Anna, and you are?' The girl waited to swallow the food first in the mouth before she could speak, however, Tairen Exon voiced again, 'Take your time, it's not like I am going somewhere any time soon.' The girl had swallowed the food, patiently she waited for Tairen to finish talking, 'Shanazer Athens.' She replied.

The old man was pleased to see that she could speak perfectly well, although with a different accent, which made it difficult to tell her whereabouts. But it's fine now, because they have a long way to get to know each other. 'What is this place called?'

Shanazer inquired, getting ready for the expected outcome. She wanted to know because she could trust no one, the people she had encountered were always after her, or wanted to abuse her. They all had their selfish motives, she was geared up to run. That was her lifestyle from the time she was nine years old.

Now at fifteen years old and extremely on guard. She had an automatic stimulus, her life was like a chess game, she had to read the other person's moves carefully, and make a swift move before the other one does.

Today it's this unusual, unique person. She couldn't easily figure him out or perceive his thoughts. On the other hand, she was grateful for the hospitality and kindness he had shown her. Even if, it's like that, she cannot take things for granted; humans are complicated beings.

The old man smiled in an honest way. Shanazer could see the genuine brightness on Tairen Exon's face, it seemed he had been reading her thoughts, 'So you are not from around here, I assume?'

He continued smiling as he paid attention to Shanazer's face and body expression. Shanazer nodded her head twice, Tairen Exon gave a short grin, 'welcome to Veena city, you can stay here with us while you find your way into this city.'

On a planet in the Milky Way Galaxy, in Gandaska city, an old folk sat on his graceful throne in the Palace of Granadatorator, found on Karadan, addressing an army of assassins, 'You are all pathetic? How can you fail to capture a fifteen-year-old girl? Even failing to kill her?'

Everyone was quiet and trembled in fear.

'I am super disappointed with you all. She was the greatest treasure one could possess and if we modified her, the future of our planet might have been great. How did she create a portal?'

They just gazed at each other, not knowing how to respond to the question. He then continued, 'She must be on another planet in the Milky Way Galaxy, looking for a way to find her is our next mission. Canbayoo! Raise the bounty to fifty billion US dollars and post it on all the planets!' He commanded.

'Dead, or alive?' Asked Canbayoo, who was one of the council members and a commander of assassins.