What hurts more? Love or Betrayal?
Nyla watched the remains of Vermeen's body, lying helplessly in his office. She had quickened his death before the area was flooded with his cadets. Nyla trembled with fright and guilt. There were other ways she could have punished him for what he had done to her, but she should never have killed him. She sniffed loudly, feeling so vulnerable she couldn't stop the tears.
At the same time, she begun to see that it was inevitable. Shyva couldn't be united with a father so cunning and dangerous. Vermeen would've have weaponized her for combat. He would never see her true potential. Nyla on the other hand believed Shyva would be better off with her. She was pushing her daughter to discover herself. A mother's purpose nearly fulfilled. Her shaky hands suddenly stiffened over her weapon as she recollected eliminating an enemy whose love would continue to haunt her.
She would never have envisioned all that would remain of a powerful Lord's head would be cracks and bits of his skull covered with blood and gelatinous fluids, surrounding a hollow hole. He was lifeless. His face had paled and there wasn't much left of his face. Tears swam across the valleys of Nyla's cheeks, pooling on the floor.
"We had a wonderful life. I promise to care for our daughter." She gnashed her teeth, determined to carry out this task.
Just before leaving, a sliver of an object glinted over Vermeen's table. It was an unnecessary distraction, but her nerves were on their end, and she felt a tug behind her neck. Vermeen was always up to something. Rolling her eyes, she strutted to his desk and found the silver button hidden halfway underneath a titanium cube. Nyla pushed the button, and a hologram bearing information about a masked face surfaced.
Nyla squinted her eyes and grasped her ammunition so hard she felt pain. It was one of Vermeen's boys, the one rumoured to have no face. She had seen him before. The disappointing fight with Shyva. The slowly whirling halogen board showed the following details:
Name: Vakiyv
Rank: Second Corps Commander.
Origin: Classified.
Skills: Classified.
Warning: Dangerous.
Memory deduction: Messerayf found on Shyva's mission. Object claimed by the Dome.
Nyla's eyes flashed with anger. How did he know about Shyva's mission? Had he been stalking her? What was his intention towards my child?
She knew so little about Vermeen, yet he knew so much about her and her missions. How long had they been spied upon? Just how long? She had to find this masked Lord; she feared he was as dangerous as he stated.
Flashes of lightning cut through the sky, breaking an ancient veil and revealing a new world—one she had never seen before. Shyva was attracted to the beautiful colours this new life offered—bright skies and a natural ecosystem the Dome lacked. The Dome engineered most of its animals and plants from materials extracted from the Old World.
There was no pain or violence in this new world. Numerous animals floated in the sky, oblivious of her presence. Shyva glowed with happiness; her heart soared with contentment. It was beautiful to watch the unfolding event. There wasn't the Dome to think about or the fights that consumed lives. The young warrior craved this peace and was distracted by a feminine voice that shot a slight shiver down her spine. "Who's there?" Shyva swirled around, looking for the source of the voice, but no one seemed to be in her company. This raised so much alarm because she feared fighting an unidentified enemy. One without form or face. She ran the possibilities and seemed to be on the losing side every time.
"Show yourself, coward." Shyva's heart raced, and she took a defensive stance to fight till the end.
"I mean you no harm."
"That's easy for you to say when you're hiding."
Shyva's calmed her racing heart, rocking her gaze in every direction. The slightest movement in the desert kicked her instinct.
"Hello, Shyva." An iridescent glow appeared behind her. When Shyva noticed, she sprang a few feet away. The glow revealed someone who appeared lifeless but moved and spoke like a woman. She was streaked in blue lights. Her blunt bob bounced from side to side as she studied Shyva, turning her head left to right. She was clad in a white-fitting body suit, and it was difficult to tell the colour of her skin as lights bounced off her image, but she was cast in blue and grey lights. Her round face wore a warm smile.
"Who are you? How do you know my name?" Shyva tilted her chin, sizing this model up.
"Do not fear; I'm an ally. I'm Anika."
"I don't know who you are. I can't trust you."
The holographic lady walked closer, but Shyva raised her voice and said, "Stay right there." The intruder obeyed, bending her head to the side so her short hair covered her face. She wore a smile underneath the layers of hair and swung her neck back in position, facing Shyva.
"You're fascinating. It's a pity you don't know much about who you are yet. It saddens my heart you live in such frustration. Grasping onto something that you can't reach."
"What do you mean?" Shyva lowered her shield as Anika's words piqued her interest. These narratives were true, but how did she learn of Shyva's plight?
"You know what I'm talking about."
Shyva was drowning in her thoughts that she didn't notice the hologram standing beside her. "You want to know the truth, then you have to seek answers. So much is happening. Look." She stretched her hand to the shreds of the veil, widening Shyva's eyes, "A new world."
"Is this real?"
"It's real if you want it to be. Just like the old world before it turned to dust."
This is so beautiful. It's believable.
"But I must tell you something. Not everything…" The hologram glitched.
"Not everything…" she glitched yet again, and a resounding echo followed, disorienting Shyva, who shielded her ears with her palms. The intruder's face wore terror as she looked into Shyva's eyes. "What's wrong?" Shyva tried touching her, but every time, her hands passed through her Anika, the image. "What are you trying to tell me?"
"Don't believe everything you're promised." Shyva needed help understanding this. She repeated Anika's warnings.
Soon, a massive whorl of darkness encroached upon them, devouring the vision of the new world. Shyva staggered, a tear sliding down her face at the tragedy, until she saw Anika struggling to speak through the glitches. Shyva neared her, hoping to hear something from someone trying so hard to say something. The darkness was a parasite, devouring everything around them, consuming the light and causing an earth quake.
"Ru…"
"I can't hear you."
"Run, Shyva, run." These were Anika's last words before she disappeared. If Shyva hadn't noticed the doom to befall her, she saw it now and ran, looking behind her shoulders. Where would she escape on that vast land of sand that bore no home or shade? With little light left, she saw a humongous figure hiding in the shadows. It was darker than darkness, almost reaching the sky. She saw part of its face that wore a skull, and it held a glistening gold spear by its side. Shyva couldn't tear her eyes away until she fell and crawled on her bottom, her hands paddled the sand and her eyes were fixed on the approaching entity. She shook violently and could tell it controlled the destruction and was no ally. What is this thing?
She feared deeply because no one could save her—not Vakiyv, not Nyla. She would have to save herself, but the swallowed ground was gaining on her as she struggled to her feet. Unfortunately, she fell into the endless pit.
Shyva rose from the rugged cave floor and came face to face with piercing white eyes staring at her.