"Are you ready Rakara?" I ask her as I can see she's uncomfortable in the battle suit she's wearing.
"I really can't wear a skirt?" She asks looking at her body that the suit shows off every curve beautifully.
I smirk but reign it back in. "No, trust me when we start fighting, you won't even care."
"Thank you, Sin. Yes, I am ready." She gains some confidence as we step out of the locker to join Bavarthos and the rest of the men joining us.
Bavarthos does a double take of Rakara, making me smirk in understanding. He catches my smirk and shakes his head at me, "Don't you say it Sin."
╮(. ❛ ᴗ ❛.)╭
Warmth spreads through me as I mutter lowly, "What?! I wasn't going to say anything."
"Sure..." He walks ahead of me and I take my moment.
"Bow, chicka, wow, wow."
He stops and turns to me and I hold my arms up, shrugging as I burst into laughter. I had been teasing him every time I caught him this past week staring at Rakara like she was his oasis in the desert and it flustered him every time.
Rakara gives me a pointed, confused glare. "What is so humorous involving this brown chicken and brown cow?"
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I can't help the snort of laughter that escapes me, leaving Rakara even more confused.
"Do not pay attention to her, Rakara. She is merely being an incorrigible debauchee."
Rakara shakes her head even more confused, "About a brown cow and chicken? I do believe that I am missing some crucial information as to why this is humorous."
Bavarthos sighs, "I'll explain this to you when all this is over. We need to go before Sin loses what is left of her sanity."
"B! That's not nice." I say in mock offense that's quickly erased with giggles.
"Forgive me, my love." Bavarthos says to Rakara before turning to me and quickly grabbing me and planting a kiss on my lips.
My eyes widen as I push him off, all humor gone. Wiping my mouth off, I yell, "WHAT THE HELL B!"
Bavarthos wipes his own lips in disgust before fuming, "Would you rather me slap you?! We're about to go to the battlefield and your laughing like a hyena!"
He's right, I have been losing it. I've been prone to fits of laughter and breaking down in tears at random moments this last week too. I need to focus.
"Sorry, you are right. Coping mechanism?" I give him a faint smile feeling stupid. I'm over a hundred years old, been through more difficult situations than I care to think about and I'm acting like an idiot when I need to be focused. I set my mouth in a thin line, determined.
As the rest of men showed up, I got my act together and once we were all confirmed, Bavarthos returned my magic and we were gone. Instantly we are surrounded by the sounds of gunshots, bombs, and screams.
Making my way to the tent that I knew the commanding officers would be in, I announce our arrival. Immediately they tell us where we are needed and we make our way over. I look to Rakara who looks ahead of us, terror and resolve both flash across her face. She lifts the gun and takes aim and starts taking controlled shots out into the enemy that she see's pop out clearly.
She shadows me and Bavarthos as we move around along the edges of the buildings that we're using as shields.
The Erlking's forces have backed off from directly assaulting the city in sheer numbers, but we have not been able to gain ground or push them back. We end up fighting on the front lines for two days,when suddenly something moving off in the distance is creating a scene.
"Hey B? Do you see what I'm seeing?" I ask him pointing in the direction of the chaos.
"Hold on." He stills and goes silent.
"What B?" I ask as I start to zoom, but he grabs me up restraining me.
"Sin, it's a trap. There is no way that he could have escaped. I'm taking Rakara and heading back to the workshop. DO NOT BRING HIM THERE. DO NOT TELL HIM ANYTHING. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!" Bavarthos shakes me gently.
"Is it John, B?!" I ask turning to go save him.
"SIN! LISTEN TO ME!" He shouts in my face. "THE ERLKING WOULD NEVER ALLOW HIM TO ESCAPE AND THAT IS MOST LIKELY A TRAP. DO NOT TELL HIM ANYTHING AND BRING HIM ANYWHERE NEAR THE WORKSHOP!"
"I HEARD YOU B!" I shout back, before turning and running out to start picking off soldiers to leave him a path to make his way through. I turn and B and Rakara are gone. I turn back around and continue picking off soldiers. I slowly realize, Bavarthos is right. This looks like John, but John doesn't fight like a battle raged barbarian. This looks like a show for us, to make it look convincing.
He should be overwhelmed, but he's making his way through there fairly easily. My gut wrenches, my heart feels like it's been stabbed. How cruel of a monster to use one's own heart against them.
A small part of me, hopes Bavarthos is wrong, even though I know he's probably right. I still cling to my hope as I keep firing taking out soldiers that are stepping up to fight John as he escapes.
"Why is he not just snapping to here?" One of the soldiers asks nearby.
"Good question soldier..." I snap to him and snap back with him still swinging the sword he had in his arms.
"AHH!" John is still caught up in his battle cry.
"JOHN!" I yell out towards him, making him calm down and look around.
"SIN! My love!" He walks over to me and embraces me, tears rolling down his face.
...John's POV.....
Watching this imposter wrap his arms around my wife, enrages me but I can do nothing. I'm chained to the chair watching this play out on a screen while the Erlking laughs at his little show.
She has to know that's not me! I would never call to her like that!
"It seems your wife has taken the bait, John. Oh this will be fun to watch." The Erlking laughs wickedly, sticking his feet up on the back of one of the slaves he's forced on to their knees.
Come on Mary, you have to know!
I think to myself as Mary, begins to push him back from her as she scans him. I watch as she quickly starts leading him to one of the medical areas.
"Turn up the audio feed! Switch to his eye view!" The Erlking shouts out and I hear the audio coming through. My clone had microchips with microphones and cameras implanted in his eyes and ears that was giving us the 'show', as the Erlking put it.
"...are you hurt?" It's a medic that's checking my clone, doing a normal screening and hooks my clone up to an IV drip with fluids and vitamins. Mary stands with her arms crossed off to the side, chewing on the inside of her cheek.
She knows that is not me, I can see the look of fire in her eyes as she scans him. She is figuring out how to handle the situation though.
There is my smart woman that I love. She knows. I can not let the Erlking know that though, so I will have to be careful.
I struggle against the chair still, letting a tear escape from my eye as I watch. Once the medic is gone, Mary approaches my clone slowly.
"How did you escape, John?" She places a palm on my clones face, putting on a mask of concern and curiosity. The Erlking chuckles, not knowing she's faking her concern.
"I was kept in a cage by one of the mages. They were starving me, the only thing I was allowed was water. They made the cage shock me and I couldn't get out. All I could think about was if I was ever going to see you again." My clones voice breaks and I grit my teeth at his little act.
Mary takes his hands and she asks again, "Then how did you get out?"
My clone sighs, "To be honest, luck. One of the soldiers that was guarding me.... I guess he was sympathetic to me, or he's one of our undercover soldiers. He unlocked the cage and left the blade near by. He didn't say much except, 'Get ready. I say NO and you take the sword and get going, don't look back just go.'" My clone sniffles and the video becomes blurry.
He's crying? Wow, they made sure to make him a good actor and seem believable.
"Sin, I don't know who he even was, but he saved me. They were going to send me to the Erlking, tomorrow." My clones sobs can be heard as the video goes dark.
I hear Mary shushing him with comforting words but soon the video comes back as we see her lifting my clones chin up to look at her. "I've got to contact HQ, let them know you've made it back to us. Stay here and let the IV finish, I'll be back shortly." She leans down and the soft smack of a kiss can be heard being left on my clones head.
"That mother fucker!" I struggle cursing my clone. This makes the Erlking chuckle as he shuffles his legs on the back of the slave.
My clone lays back on the gurney, looking at the IV that's in his arm. The medic comes back and asks him if he's in any pain and how long it's been since he's ate. After hearing from my clone he seems to think for a moment.
"Alright, I'm going to give you an anti-nausea medication, and then give you some food to eat. You obviously have lost weight, and I don't want you to throw up when you eat. Your body has been through enough already. So I'll be back in a moment."He leaves and Mary comes back when the medic comes back with a tray.
My clone sits up as the medic comes back. "I thought you were going to bring me food?" My clone asks.
"I am, but first I need to give you anti-nausea medication, I just inject it into your IV line." He says nonchalantly and Mary smiles at my clone, distracting him.
"You are hungry? I will go get you some food. What would you like, John?" She smiles at him, taking one of his hands into hers and squeezes it, waiting for his answer as the medic injects the IV.
"You might feel a little drowsy at first, but it should wear off after a few minutes." The medic says.
"Thank ..." My clone blinks, making the video go black and then light again, "yoou. Wast's did you jusf gife me?" The slurring is worsening as his eyes keep blinking. Then stay shut.