Lights flicker
Flames wither
A darkness is spreading
Reaching, seeking to destroy
If they succeed
And the fire dies
Our hope perishes with it
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She sat bolt upright -- a colossal mistake. The world swirled, like water down the plughole, she went with it, falling into the empty depths below.
++++++++++++++++
Images. Something so familiar, and she could almost touch them. What was going on? Nothing, nothing made sense. Where was she? What had happened?
"Mara?"
Everything flew back at once. Her steady heartbeat returned, bringing her back to life.
Again.
"Mara! Answer me!" Two mauve eyes stared down.
Mouth dry and parched, like it had forgotten how to speak. A weight settled on her forehead, cold, wet, yet comforting.
Water trickled down her umber brown face. Then pain exploded on impact, her face searing.
"SHITE!" Memories of the last few hours came flooding back.
++++++++++++++++
Her face stared back at her in the mirror. Mara clenched her hands, her right going numb. Scars lay fresh, etched in her skin, a clumsy job of stitching them, but the best she could do. She resembled... a monster.
Shudders of harsh electricity went up and down her spine. No... remember... breathe... She stared at her tatted grey prison clothes, the bandage restricting her movement still tight around her middle. Shuddering, she could still hear Zafariah's screams.
"Do your wounds hurt?"
Throbbing hard, loud as her heart.
"How long will they take to heal?"
She paused, grimacing. "Not sure, Lad. Nae idea."
His eyes opened, full of fatigue.
++++++++++++++++
"We weren't plannin' on a wild adventure. We're ill-prepared."
Ishali nodded. "What will we do?"
A holographic map of the Zoeini Galaxy emerged on the console.
"We're goin' to an outpost to fetch supplies." The view flew southwards, to a space junk cluster. "Then, to a junkyard. We'll find some parts." She grimaced, sitting up in the chair.
"Are you sure you're okay to move?"
"Think so."
She stood, staring at him. "I'll be useful now. No more flounderin' around like a limp fish." She winced again.
"Fish?"
"Never mind. Strap in. Let's fetch some food."
"Mara!"
"What!?"
Ishali leaned back. "The Irrinos. They're going to attack the Headquarters."
"I'm bloody aware o' that!"
"Shouldn't we tell the Council?"
"Someone else can. News'll reach them. Don't need to bother."
"I don't think anyone knows." His cheekbone scales turned a hot and angry red. "Mara, lives are at stake."
She stared long and hard. "Hah. Lad. If I waltz into HQ, they'll kill me on sight. I'm a convicted criminal!"
Ishali's eyes flickered.
"Listen." She lumbered to the dashboard and flicked the switch.
The High Council Broadcast echoed through the cramped room. Radio static. Blaring sirens. Shouting. An elderly man's voice spoke. Mara's heart lurched.
"We interrupt your scheduled program with some unfortunate news. Reports arrived from our high-security prison. Over 90% of the prisoners escaped in a mass breakout a few days earlier. Including some of the most dangerous people in the galaxy."
The young one's eyes widened. "It worked."
"More shocking announcements. Mara Keres, the criminal, and traitor, has vanished."
The woman's mugshot stared back at them in the holoprojector, lips drawn back in a frustrated snarl. Ishali's heart froze. Silence. She turned off the broadcast.
All color drained from his face. "They're on to you."
"No shite, lad."
"This is an unfortunate complication."
She huffed. "Stay outta sight, stay outta trouble."
"But the Irrinos could declare war at any moment. We need to warn them! Innocent people could die."
She spat, body shaking. "Hah. Tried it before."
He froze.
"First time, they accused me o' treason. Second, they threw me in jail."
"Wait, what?" "If they have a battle comin' to 'em, they deserve it."
"Mara!"
"Set a course for the shipyard."
Eyes narrowing, he turned away.