Renegade
#8 of Shades of Grey
This story features the character Rio, who belongs to my good friend DS-Rio. You can find out all about him here: http://ds-rio.sofurry.com/
Renegade
This story is set four months prior to Shayde's Story.
The desert heat rippled the bare landscape, making the sandy terrain waver like an oven. There was hardly a single sign of life, save for the wave-like patterns made by the sand-winder snakes, and the faint tracks of several large vehicles. Several such vehicles were now rolling through the dunes, heading towards a distant destination.
Inside one such vehicle sat a group of furs, all decked out in military outfits. The motley group consisted of a panther, an otter, a dingo and a sand-dragon. They were all sitting in the back of a large cargo truck, rattling and swaying with the movement of the truck. The panther and dragon sat stony-faced, old pros at this game. The dingo was visibly jittery, being a new-comer to the group, and was anxious to make his mark. The otter was between the two groups, not quite an old hand, but not green either. He was a grey otter, with a black chest, belly, forearms, and inner thighs, and he was resting with his eyes closed, yet not asleep.
'I still don't know why you don't use one of these, Sam,' drawled the panther, holding up a large sniper-rifle. The otter, Samiake, looked up slowly to take in the weapon. It certainly looked impressive enough, with a scope that locked onto the shooter's target, making it almost impossible to miss, and a special addition that allowed the weapon to fire without so much as a whisper of noise.
Samiake sighed. 'I don't use those wastes of metal, Lopar, 'cause I'm good enough with this.' He reached down by his feet and produced a longbow. The bow was longer then the rifle and it took up almost all the remaining space in the truck, not that there was much to spare in the first place. 'And, I've told you before, my name is Samiake, not Sam.' He glared at the panther, 'don't test me, kitty.'
Lopar looked into the otter's eyes, a mixed expression on his snout. He wasn't going to pick a fight with Samiake, not here. Though he was older and more experienced then the otter, Samiake had an air about him that made everyone around him nervous. Something about his piercing red eyes, they spoke of hidden talents not yet shown...talents that would make even the hardest soldier pale.
'Okay, Samiake...keep your pants on.' He gave a slight chuckle with this statement, a jibe at the fact that Samiake didn't wear pants, just a loincloth, tied around his waist by several cords.
Samiake sat back with a sigh. People just didn't accept different anymore. So, he went around in a loincloth, so what? He'd seen a lot worse before. At least he had some decency. He carefully lowered his bow to the ground, and picked up a set of gauntlets, sliding them onto his arms. These gauntlets had metallic claws on the end of each finger, allowing Samiake to attack at close range if needed. During his time in this army, he'd used them far too often, and had only just got all the blood out of them. Of course, the gauntlets served another purpose, but Samiake didn't want to expose that right now.
Checking the fit of the gauntlets, Samiake noticed the dingo sitting opposite him. The dingo's wide eyes were locked on the gauntlets, in awe of such devices. Samiake grinned slightly and snapped his fingers. The dingo jumped slightly, and looked up into Samiake's eyes; his ears folding back as he looked at the red eyes.
'What you lookin' at, kid?' asked the sand-dragon, Firolf. He was the oldest member of the group, and completely at ease with the situation. He was almost sprawled out on the seat, his wings slightly unfurled to take up more room. His sandy-coloured hide allowed him to blend in perfectly with the terrain, making him an invaluable member of the team.
The dingo looked down quickly and muttered something inaudible. The dragon gave a snort.
'Oh, look at that Samiake...you have an admirer...' Delighted by this wit, he burst into laughter.
The panther laughed along with him, while the dingo blushed as red as his fur. Samiake frowned, taking in the embarrassed canine, and directed his gaze to the other two. It would be so easy to shut them up...just a single motion...but no, he wouldn't risk his secret for this. There were other ways...more discreet ways...
He got up and sat down beside the dingo, not too close as to make him more uncomfortable. Leaning down, he spoke quietly into the dingo's ear.
'What's up kid?' The dingo started again, and looked up. Seeing Samiake so close, he blushed even deeper and looked back down. 'Nothing...' he muttered.
'Well, obviously something's eating you. What's wrong? Come on, tell me. I won't bite.' When the dingo didn't respond, he tapped him on the head. 'Hello? Anyone home?'
The dingo looked up and sighed. Keeping his mouth as still as possible, he said. 'I'm scared...'
Samiake knew what he meant. They were on their way to a secure facility in the desert, to try and rescue some ambassador. This ambassador had been captured and held for ransom, and the government wasn't willing to pay the fund, and so had sent in this team to get him out. He was being held by a group of terrorists, who were willing and more than capable of killing hundreds, should their demands not be met. A lot rode on this mission being successful.
'Hey, don't worry about it. I've got your back, kid. You just stick with me, and everything'll be dandy.' Samiake stuck out his paw. The dingo looked at the appendage for a second, then gave a small smile and shook paws. 'What's your name, kid?'
'Josh,' replied the dingo. 'And you're Samiake, right?' he continued, careful to use the right name.
'Oh, only to people I don't like. You can call me Sam.' Josh smiled even more at this, but a guffaw from the left wiped the grin away.
'Oh, isn't that sweet, Lopar...Sammy likes the kid as well...so cute.'
The dragon was paralysed by mirth, completely taken over with his own wit. Samiake growled low in his throat and stood up. He walked over to the dragon and, before he knew what was going on, Firolf found himself pinned to the wall by his throat, with Samiake's clawed gauntlet digging into his neck.
'Now, listen up, dragon! I don't want to hear another word out of you! Leave the kid alone!' Firolf struggled against the otter's grip, but couldn't move an inch. Samiake dug his claws in deeper, drawing out beads of blood.
'Why...you...little...' Firolf spluttered, half out of rage, half from lack of oxygen.
Lopar saw the approaching fight, and stood to help out the dragon, but at that moment, the truck lurched to a halt, sending all four tumbling to the ground, and releasing Firolf from Samiake's grip. Massaging his throat, the dragon glared at the otter, wondering if it was worth continuing the brawl. But at that moment, the door opened, and the driver called them out. They had arrived.
The landscape was dominated by a mesa that rose out of the sand like a top-hat. Built into the mesa was a door. It was beyond this door that the ambassador was being kept. It was shut tight, with many sensors and devices pointed at it, ready to sound the alarm should any approach it.
The group was hidden from view by a small sandstorm, whipped up by Firolf. The sand-dragon was able to whip the sand into a vortex that shielded them from sight, but allowed them an unhindered view of the surrounds.
'I don't see any way it, sir,' reported Lopar. He was surveying the area with some high-powered binoculars, and was talking to their commander over a com-unit. 'This is a pretty tight operation. I don't think even a flea could get in there un-noticed.'
'I have a way for you to get in,' came the reply. 'I have contacted a source, and they have agreed to lend me one of their infiltration experts. He should be arriving soon. Until then, just sit tight.'
'Affirmative, sir. Lopar, out.' Lopar dropped the connection, and then turned to the others. 'It looks like we're about to have company. There's an infiltration expert on their way, to help us into the building.'
Firolf rolled his eyes and sighed gustily. 'Great. That's all we need; another greenhorn.' He cast a derisive glance over to Samiake and Josh. 'This team is so green already, it's almost sickening.'
Samiake was sitting on the sand, his eyes closed again. His bow was slung over his back in its quiver; curiously, he didn't have any arrows. At this last jibe, Samiake cracked one eye open and glared at the dragon.
'You know, you were as green as Josh once before,' he said. 'From what I hear, you almost blew your first mission by breaking down and crying in the middle of a very delicate time.'
Firolf coloured, the shame of his first mission still at the forefront of his mind, even though years had rolled by. Even Lopar couldn't contain a snort of mirth from this fact, which he quickly stifled under his paw when Firolf shot a glare his way.
Josh was sitting a bit apart from the group, and was looking to the rear, keeping a lookout. Suddenly, he tapped Samiake on the leg.
'Hey, Samiake,' he said, still looking out on the desert, 'what's that?' He pointed to a disturbance a few hundred metres away. It was a dust-cloud; similar to the one's made by an object moving fast. It was getting closer, very quickly.
'Hey, guys? I think we're about to have company...'cautioned Samiake. Lopar and Firolf had barely turned around when the dust-cloud screeched to a halt before them, showering them all with a wave of sand. Coughing and sputtering, Samiake peered through the dust to see what it was.
Standing before them was an anthro dragon, maybe slightly bigger then Samiake. He was covered in a red hide, with black stripes along his back and arms. Instead of horns, he had sail-like ears, and he was wearing a military-style outfit, complete with a gun holster, fingerless gloves, and bulging pockets obviously full of spare ammunition. Slung on his back was a small bow with arrows, and hanging off his hip was a sheathed sword, almost like a katana, but not quite. The dragon surveyed the spluttering foursome with bright yellow eyes, a grin plastered on his maw.
'Hi there!' he said with a wave. 'My name's Rio. I think maybe you knew I was coming?' He glanced around at the others, waiting for them to clear the dust from their eyes.
'Are...are you the infiltration expert that was loaned to us?' coughed Lopar, and he sneezed, trying to dislodge half the desert from his nose.
Rio nodded. 'Yup. I'm on loan from my unit for the duration of this mission, or until you don't need me anymore.'
Firolf was regaining his composure, and his annoying behaviour. 'So, Rio,' he made 'Rio' sound like 'mould', 'what makes you so special? You're barely old enough to be drafted, let alone be out on your own! Where's your handler?' Lopar chuckled at this. Samiake was getting really annoyed with the two older soldiers. They seemed to feel the need to belittle anyone around them, and Samiake's patience was fast running out.
Rio didn't say a thing. Suddenly, he seemed to vanish, and suddenly reappeared right behind the sand-dragon. 'I don't need a handler,' he said. 'I can handle myself quite well.' Firolf turned to Rio, but the red dragon vanished just as quickly as before.
'Where'd he...' said Firolf, before he was suddenly hit in the stomach by something. He staggered back, and yelled in pain as another invisible something battered him. Suddenly, Rio reappeared, holding his sword up against Firolf's exposed neck.
'See? I'm quite quick enough to keep up with the 'big boys'.' Rio was grinning at Firolf, pleased with the reaction he brought out. Lopar stalked forward quietly to ambush Rio, but Rio quickly pulled out his gun and cocked it at the panther, stopping him in his tracks. 'Oh no you don't kitty.' Rio said, without taking his eyes off the dragon. Lopar looked at him for a second, before retreating a step.
Rio withdrew his blade and sheathed it. 'Now,' he pointed to the mesa. 'Is that where we're headed?' He looked around at the others; Firolf finally nodded slightly. 'Okay, so what's the plan?'
Firolf shot Rio a quick glance full of anger, but decided against picking another fight. 'Well, seeing as you're the infiltration expert, it stands to reason you'll be opening the doors for us.' Samiake rolled his eyes; even when being professional, Firolf couldn't help but be annoying.
'You'll take Samiake with you. He'll be able to cover your back while you do whatever you do. Lopar, the new kid, and I will hang back and wait until you signal us, and then come on and do the whole hero thing, rescue the ambassador, and get out. You think you can handle that, whelp?'
Rio spun his gun around on his finger nonchalantly. Seeing Firolf had finished the debriefing, he nodded. 'I think I've got it. You guys just be ready for us.'
He walked over and grabbed Samiake's shoulder. 'C'mon Samiake! Let's do this!' He tugged at Samiake's shoulder, trying to budge him, but Samiake wasn't moving. He glared at the sand-dragon. 'Why are you taking Josh? You don't even like him.'
Firolf snorted. 'I want things done, and I don't think you could do that with this kid ogling you with every step! He stays with me, until we finish.'
'It's okay Samiake, I'll be fine.' Muttered Josh quietly. But Samiake wasn't convinced. He knew Firolf was up to something. He reached into his bag and pulled out a small black ball of spongy material, and palmed it to Josh, while shaking hands.
'If he tries anything shady,' murmured Samiake, 'just break this, and I'll come for you.' Before Josh could reply, Samiake straightened and took off, followed by Rio.
'Wow! This place is huge!' whistled Rio. They were standing before the door of the mesa; the security devices were all melted blobs of useless metal, thanks to Rio's fiery breath. He put his ear to the door and listened for a moment. 'Nope...can't hear a thing. This must be some seriously thick metal.'
Samiake groaned. He finally got away from the laughing duo back there, only to get saddled with a dragon who thought he could hear through about a foot of solid metal. He looked around to try and find a way in, but he couldn't see anything, save the door before them.
Rio took a step back from the door, and turned to Samiake. 'So, what do you think?' he asked.
'Why ask me? You're the infiltration expert here. You do what you think is best.' Samiake growled. Rio grinned. 'Really?' Samiake nodded. 'Great! Let's get in there.' He then stepped up and knocked on the door loudly, the sound echoing down the corridor beyond.
Samiake's eyes widened and he grabbed Rio by the shoulder. 'Are you crazy?! What are you doing? They'll hear you.' Rio grinned again. 'That's the idea. Just leave it to me, Sammy.'
Samiake growled deeply. 'Don't call me...' he was interrupted by a slight sound from the door. It was opening. Quickly, he flattened himself to the wall beside the door, Rio on the other side.
A rifle snout poked from the door, wielded by a uniformed fox. The fox stepped outside, followed by a wolf. Both looked around, and both were hit suddenly by Rio's speedy attacks, dropping like flies. Rio rummaged in their pockets and produced two I.D cards, flipping one to Samiake with a grin.
'See? All good. Now we can get in.' He dragged the fox off to the side and propped him up against the wall, Samiake doing the same with the wolf. Samiake was reconsidering his opinion on Rio. He was a very cluey character, and obviously not one to cross, seeing as he could strike with invisible speeds.
They walked down the corridors slowly, making sure nothing was coming. Samiake was looking to the sides, searching the shadows for foes, while Rio kept a lookout forward. Samiake spied a computer bank, and crossed to it, using the wolf's I.D card to gain access to the network.
'What are you doing, Sammy?' asked Rio, a touch too loudly for Samiake's liking. Samiake frowned, but passed over the nickname; Rio wasn't annoying, so he didn't really mind. 'I'm trying to find out where they're keeping the ambassador. I'm searching for areas where guards are always posted.'
He scanned the lists before him, brow furrowed as he took it all in. 'There!' he pointed to a list that contained names all hours of the day. 'Two floor up, and five corridors along...room 206. Come on Rio, let's go.'
Samiake turned to Rio, but the dragon was already halfway down the corridor. Samiake hissed at Rio, but he didn't listen, so he ran up to Rio and grabbed his shoulder.
'What the hell do you think you're doing?! You can't just run off like that. We have to do things properly.'
Rio snorted, exhaling a tiny red flame. 'Yeah, but doing things properly is so slow. Your ambassador could be dead already, and you want to keep going slow?'
'No. I want to do things quietly, without any problems. Look there,' Samiake pointed to the ceiling, where several red lights winked; security cameras. 'One more step, and this entire facility would know you're here.'
Samiake rummaged in his bag again, pulling out several small black balls. Rio looked at them 'What are those?' he asked. 'Ink balls,' said Samiake shortly. He took aim at the red lights and hurled a ball at them. A slight splat, and the light winked out. He continued to do this until all the cameras were disabled. Turning to Rio, Samiake grinned. 'Come on...let's get going.'
It wasn't easy getting to the room. Several times, they had to duck into other rooms to avoid patrols, but they finally made it to the room adjacent to the ambassador's prison-room. Samiake activated his PDA and contacted Firolf and his group.
'Okay, we're in. All security is disabled. Just head up to the elevator corridor, and I'll meet you there'
'Okay Samiake. We're on our way. Just keep that whelp out of sight,' came Firolf's reply.
Samiake looked over at Rio, who was spinning his gun on his finger again, looking around the room in a bored way.
'Hey, Rio, can you keep an eye out? I've got to go and let the others in. They don't have passes.' Rio holstered his gun and nodded, then withdrew his blade and held it out, ready to attack. Samiake really wanted to stay and see what Rio could do; if he used his sword in conjunction with his speed, he'd be able to lacerate foes before they knew they were dead. But he had a job to do; the others were waiting for him.
'See you when you get back, Sammy,' said Rio, with a grin. He held out a hand to shake, his long tail whipping behind him. Samiake gave a small smile and shook hands. 'You too, Rio. It was good having you around.'
He left the room and padded back to the elevator, stepping in as soon as it arrived. As he selected the ground floor, a slight nauseous wave shook him. Something was wrong. He closed his eyes, and saw Josh's prone form, laying on the ground a few metres from the elevator doors, the remains of the black ball crushed under his fingers. Samiake's eyes snapped open; something had happened to Josh! He jabbed the button repeatedly, as if it would get him there quicker, and finally the doors slid back. Samiake sprang out, looking around for the dingo. He saw him, lying in a pool of shadow, off to the side. He ran over and crouched down, rolling Josh over, and exposing a massive bloodstain on his chest. There was not a spark of life left in him.
'No!' whispered Samiake in horror. He looked from Josh's face to the red stain and back again. Not Josh...he was too young...to new to die like this. He looked up, and saw a shadow move towards him. Before he could react, a heavy weight slammed into the back of his skull, knocking him out instantly. He toppled over onto Josh's body, a trickle of blood oozing from his head as Firolf looked down at his prone form.
Samiake slowly returned to consciousness, aware only of the throbbing pain in his head. He slowly opened his eyes, only to find himself tied to a chair in a darkened room. He was bare of his weapons, including his gauntlets and bag, but thankfully he was still wearing his loincloth. He growled; without his gauntlets, he couldn't do much unless they were touching him.
He peered into the gloom, and was able to just make out a shape by the far wall. The shape moved, and suddenly light flooded into the room, making Samiake wince in the harsh glow.
Before him stood a polar bear, dressed in a plain military outfit. The badge on his chest showed that he was the commander of the facility. The bear's soulless black eyes burned into Samiake's.
'So,' he drawled, 'you're the little otter Firolf told me about. I don't know what he was getting at...you don't seem all the intimidating to me.'
'Firolf...Firolf is a spy?' rasped Samiake; his throat was bound to the chair by a thick length of leather, making it almost impossible for him to move.
The bear grinned. 'That he is. The best spy I have. So good, not even your army had an idea he's a spy. What makes him special is that he doesn't fit the profile of a spy, because he makes friends, and I use that term very lightly. Your panther friend is also dead, though he put up a bit of a fight.'
Samiake tried to process all this, but his head was throbbing too hard. The bear leaned forward slightly, casting a deep shadow before him. Samiake glanced at the shadow...it was just a little too far away...
'Now, little otter, you're going to tell me what happened to my men upstairs. They've all been sliced to ribbons, and you're the only one here. And after you've told me that, you're going to contact you base and convince them to give in to my demands. And then, you'll tell me everything else, even if I don't want you to, cause it'll be the only way to stop the pain I'm about to inflict on you.'
The bear pulled a remote from his jacket pocket, and pressed a button on it. Instantly, an electrical charge ran through the chair, which was connected to a generator, sending pain lancing through Samiake's body. Sam suppressed a cry of pain, but only just, and he had to bite his tongue to do so. Blood flowed from his mouth as he glared at the bear.
'Go to hell...'
Rio was bored. It wasn't his fault; he just got bored quickly. He had already defeated all the guards in the corridor, and was now waiting for Sammy's return.
'Aw, screw this,' he muttered, and left the room and returned to the elevator. He'd go and find Sammy, and give him a kick for making him wait. As he waited for the lift to arrive, he grinned as he thought of the otter. He was such a funny guy, with his gruff manners, and his grey and black fur looked so soft and cuddly...
The lift arrived with a 'ding!' and Rio stepped in, only to be brought up short by the sight of a wide streak of blood on the floor, as if something, or someone, had been dragged. Rio stared at the streak, and then sped out of the elevator and down the stairs, arriving at the ground floor much faster than the lift. He looked around, and saw the streak starting from a corner, where the body of the dingo was lying. Rio paled...someone had been knocked out cold, wounded, and then dragged to another floor. Suddenly, he heard a slight groan, and looked around to see the panther, propped up by the wall, a long blade of some yellow substance pinning him like an insect. Amazingly, he was still alive, but only just.
Rio padded over to the dying feline and crouched beside him. Lopar opened his glazed eyes and looked at Rio. He took a breath, more blood than air.
'F...Firolf...spy...' he coughed and spattered Rio's jacket with scarlet blood. 'Sam...in...d...danger...'
Rio bit his lip, wondering what he could do. Lopar took one last breath and exhaled, his life petering out with the breath. The yellow blade sunk into his chest suddenly crumbled...like sand...
Rio stood up and sped back to the stairs. He would visit every floor, until he found the one with the streak. He pulled out his gun and loaded it, ready for anything.
Samiake's fur was scorched in several places, and his body was wracked with pain from the electrical shocks that the bear continued to administer. But Samiake had an iron will, and would not divulge the information, no matter what happened to him. He kept one thought in his mind: Firolf had to pay.
The bear was getting angry. So much electricity had been delivered to the otter's body, he should be singing like a bird, but he just sat there and said nothing. The bear gave a bellow of rage, and leaned forward to deliver a blow to Samiake's face, with enough force to sever it from his neck. As he did, his body cast a shadow from the harsh light above, and the darkness lapped up Samiake's leg.
'Finally,' thought Samiake. His eyes flashed red, and the shadow pulled free of his leg like a living thing. It stretched out and wrapped around the bear's paw before it could strike the otter. The bear's eyes widened at the sight before him. Samiake grinned savagely through his pain. 'Oh, bad move, and I mean that literally...'
The shadow restraining the paw flexed, and a smaller off-shoot gripped the bear's arm. The larger portion gripping the wrist forced the joint back and up, while the smaller one kept the arm straight. Pain lanced through the bear's wrist as it was stretched to its limit, and suddenly a dull snap echoed through the room as the joint broke. The bear roared with pain as the shadows travelled up his arm to his elbow, swiftly snapping that as well, finally arriving at the shoulder, which provided even less resistance then the other two. By this time, the bear was almost passing out from the pain, and it was only his own shadow that kept him upright.
The two shadows drifted up the bear's shoulder to his neck and cheek. Suddenly, the bear realised what was about to happen, and he began to whimper, and odd noise to hear from a bear. Sam grinned again.
'Now, be a good boy, and go to hell.' He flexed the shadows, and they wrenched the bear's neck sharply to the side, snapping the spine. The bear dropped to the floor, released at last, and the shadow curled around the chair and severed the ropes. Samiake pulled off the leather restraint and massaged his throat. The shadow wound around his leg like a faithful dog, and went back to its proper place under the bear's body.
Sam picked up his stuff, which was conveniently in the same room. Slipping on his gauntlets, he grinned. 'Now, where are you hiding, Firolf...?'
Samiake walked down the corridor, plucking shadows from the area around him as he did. He had a feeling he'd need them all eventually. Suddenly, he heard a noise up ahead, and flattened himself into the shadows. A shape blurred around the corner, and Samiake launched out, gripping the creature by the throat and binding it with dark ropes.
'Hey! What's the big idea?' cried the prisoner. It was Rio. Sam quickly unwrapped him and put him on the ground.
'Sorry Rio. I didn't know it was you.' Sam rubbed the back of his head, and winced as he felt the large bump there.
Rio was staring at the shadowy tendrils that flowed around Samiake's body. 'That,' he said as he pointed, 'is cool! How are you doing that? Is that your G.O.N?'
Samiake frowned. 'What's a G.O.N?' he asked.
Rio smiled slightly. 'I guess not. A G.O.N is a genetic ability people have where I come from. They stem from the dragon Nuker, who possessed many powers. G.O.N stands for Gene Of Nukar. Mine is super speed, but my friend Lazz has the ability to camouflage himself perfectly. The only thing is, G.O.N required life energy, or Quintessence, to work. If you don't have any, you can't use it.'
'Well, this isn't a G.O.N, it's just something I was born with. I almost drowned someone when I was a kid, but I've gotten a lot better with it. I can do it as long as a shadow is touching me, but I can use my gauntlets to manipulate them in whole new ways.' Samiake explained.
'Oh,' said Rio. 'That's still pretty cool...' Just then, an explosion rocked the building. Samiake stumbled and Rio fell over. They both picked themselves up, and they ran towards the source.
'What was that?!' asked Rio.
'How should I know?! I've been a bit tied up myself!' Samiake replied. They ran out into the main room of that floor, and saw a hole in the wall. Sam ran up to it and peered out, shielding his eyes in the dusk-light that lit the desert with a sullen red glow. Far in the distance, he could just make out a shape.
'What's that out there? I can't quite see it,' Samiake muttered. There was a gust of wind, and Rio was gone, turning into a fast-moving shape. He stopped a distance from the object, then sped back to the mesa.
'It's that sand-dragon, Firolf!' he reported to the stunned otter. Samiake was in awe of how fast Rio was. 'He's a spy! Did you know that?'
'Yeah, I heard a rumour,' said Samiake with a tight grin. He pulled out his bow and walked to the hole. 'I'm so glad he's still alive. Now I have the pleasure of tearing this guy to pieces!'
He reached for a swirling shadow, which formed into an arrow. Samiake plucked it out and loaded his bow, taking aim at the distant target.
'You can't be serious!' cried Rio beside him. 'He's way too far away. Not even Cross Wing could hit that.'
'I don't know who Cross Wing is, and I don't care. Just watch.' Sam replied. He closed one eye and set his sight on the distant target, before releasing the shot. The black arrow shot across the sandy terrain, hitting dead centre on the distant vehicle's wheel, blowing it out and making it meander to a halt.
'That's AMAZING!' shouted Rio. 'You're like a sharp-shooting sniper! But you still missed him!'
'I wasn't aiming for him. I want to kill him myself,' replied Samiake. 'Can you get me over to him?' he asked. Rio nodded and picked the otter up, much to Samiake's surprise; Rio was stronger than he looked.
Suddenly, Rio sped out of the room. Samiake was hurtling along in his grasp, the wind whistling though his fur, and he quickly placed a paw over his loincloth, before it could blow up and expose himself to the dragon. Rio saw this, and grinned. 'Aw, spoil-sport...' Samiake would have replied scathingly, but there wasn't enough stationary air to inhale properly with. After about 30 seconds of mind-bending speeds, Rio screeched to a halt, sending up a spray of sand, and deposited the slightly wind-blown Samiake.
'That was fun...' muttered Samiake as he flattened his fur. Rio grinned. 'You think so? Cool. I have to go back there, check everything's okay with the ambassador. You sort this guy out, okay?' Without waiting for a reply, Rio rocketed away. Samiake sighed and shook his head, then looked around.
Firolf was just getting out of the truck, cursing the vehicle, as if it was its fault it had crashed into the dunes. Samiake started towards him, flexing his fingers in his gauntlets.
'Hey! Firolf!' he called. The sand-dragon looked up and around. His face clouded with rage.
'What are you doing here?!' he bellowed. 'You're supposed to be dead!'
'Yeah, funny how that works,' quipped the otter. Firolf narrowed his gaze.
'No matter. You will be dead soon. This is my terrain. I am invincible here!' With a roar, he swung his arm forward, causing all the sand before him to condense into a blade and streak towards Samiake, leaving a deep gouge as it passed.
In the seconds before the blade hit, Samiake reached out, pulling the shadows from the dunes into his gauntlets, and formed them into giant claws. He swung his arms at the sand-blade, shattering it into motes. As the sand cleared, Firolf saw Samiake standing there, the shadows extending the clawed points of his gauntlets, so they were significantly longer.
'Seems I also have a bit of an advantage here...' said Samiake, looking around at all the shadows cast by the twilight.
Firolf roared again and launched himself forward, forming a smaller blade from the sand. Samiake blocked the swing from the blade and slashed at the dragon's side. Firolf yelled in pain as the dark claws bit into his side, drawing out blood. He sank into the sand, leaving Samiake to look around, waiting for him to reappear.
'Come out, come out, wherever you are...' called Samiake. He heard a noise behind him, and Firolf exploded from the sand, encased in sandy armour. The dragon grabbed at the otter, and Samiake slashed again with his claws, cutting off a part of the armour, but it wasn't enough. The sand at his feet condensed and refused to release him, trapping him as Firolf swung his armoured fist at Samiake's chest. The blow connected with a dull thump, sending all the air exploding from Samiake's lungs, sending him to his knees. The sand was there to welcome him, and wrapped around his arms, trapping him even more. He felt himself sinking into the sand; Firolf was going to bury him alive.
Samiake glared up at the dragon above him, still trying to gasp in air.
'Coward!' he hurled at the dragon. 'You're a coward! You killed your friend, and you killed Josh, a new kid who knew NOTHING about this!' He tried to raise his hands, but he couldn't budge the iron grip of the sand.
Firolf sneered down at him. 'So what! I may be a coward, but I'm a smart coward, and a well payed one at that. At least I'm not a loser, like you and the others!'
Samiake stopped struggling. Loser. The word penetrated his still-sore skull and slammed around his brain. A growl started low in his throat, gradually building in volume until it rippled out of his mouth in a primal roar of fury. His eyes flashed red, and the silver mark on his forehead darkened to black.
Firolf watched all this, suddenly not as cocky as he was before. Something was happening, and he didn't like it. He made the sand consume Samiake faster, hoping to bury the otter before whatever he was doing happened. But he was too slow.
All the shadows in the area suddenly pulled free of the ground and streaked towards the otter, swirling around him like a small, localised tornado. They layered themselves on Samiake's fur, coating him in a thick black cover, forcing the sand back and away as they travelled down his arms to the gauntlets. Firolf tried to hold him down, but Samiake tore free from the sandy grip. Samiake stood up slowly, his red eyes glowing from the black mask covering his face and body. Firolf took a step back, fear worming its way into his brain as he beheld Samiake at his full power. Shadows dripped from his body, only to wind lazily back up his legs.
'You're...you're a monster!' shouted Firolf, but there was no venom in the accusation, just fear.
'I'm a monster?' came the reply. 'I'm a monster?! You killed an innocent CHILD, and you call me a MONSTER?!'
Samiake raised his arms, and two lengths of shadows shot out to attack the dragon. Firolf tried to dodge the streams, but one of them clipped his shoulder. Where the darkness hit, he could only feel clammy coldness. He suddenly felt weak, and looked down in horror as he saw his own shadow ripple, trying to free itself and join with the others swirling around the shadow-magnet that was Samiake. What would happen if his shadow left him, Firolf didn't know, but he didn't want to stay and find out. He turned and tried to run away, but a flood of shadows had pooled under his feet, latching onto them and holding him fast. He wobbled, but stabilised himself; he didn't want to fall down, into that pool. Instead, he turned as best he could, and let out a weak moan of terror.
Samiake was walking forward slowly, streaks of shadows tumbling off his arms, chasing themselves around his legs like unruly children. He raised his arms, sending thick cords of shadows out to wrap around Firolf's arms, gripping them tight. Another such cord wrapped around his neck, sending shivers down the dragon's spine at the clammy touch. Firolf tried one last attack, forming a spear out of the sand and sending it hurtling at Samiake, but the shadows coating the otter grabbed the sand before it hit, crushing it back into its previous state. The pool of darkness at Firolf's feet suddenly lifted, making him rise out of the shadows, leaving two more cords wrapped around his feet and lower legs. All five cords of shadows pulled tight, and Firolf felt the pain deep in his body as the cords pulled more.
He tried to struggle against the bonds, but it was no use. Their grip was like iron, and they wouldn't yield for anything. Firolf was now suspended a few feet above Samiake, who was looking at the doomed dragon with his piercing red eyes, the only spot of colour in the dark figure before him.
'Please, Samiake...don't...don't do this...' pleaded the dragon. A small part of his mind was horrified he was begging, but the rest was locked in abject fear.
Samiake spoke again. 'You beg for mercy? Why should I give it to you?! You didn't give it to Josh, or even to Lopar. How many others have you killed like this? You will never get the chance to do so again!'
The cords stretched out even more, pulling at the tendons in Firolf's body. Pain ripped through him as he was pulled to his limits, but it didn't stop there. With one last, wrench, the five cords ripped the dragon asunder, sending his extremities hurtling into the desert air as if launched by slingshots. Blood spattered the landscape, the moisture quickly absorbed by the still-hot sand. The pool of shadows below Firolf's torso rose up and crushed the body into powder, other such pools searching for the other parts to do the same.
Samiake closed his eyes and breathed deep, trying to calm himself. Eventually, shadow by shadow, he calmed down, sending the shadows back to their proper places. The mark on his forehead lightened to silver again, and his eyes lost their glow as he was finally uncovered, leaving him with only his own shadow. He flopped down on the sand, traced a finger through it, and just thought.
Rio found him an hour later, still sitting there. The dragon took in the scene; there was so much blood that had been shed, that no all of it had been absorbed by the sand. Streaks of the stuff patterned the sand, leaving little doubt in Rio's mind what had happened.
He sat down next to Samiake and said nothing. Eventually, Samiake spoke up.
'You know what buddy...' he said in a bitter tone. 'I've had just about enough of this. I've had it with this army, where even high level officers can turn out to be nothing more than low-down spies. They're gonna drum me out of the force anyway, so I might as well leave under my own terms.'
Rio was puzzled. 'Why would they do that? I can attest to Firolf's treachery, so you can't be charged with it.'
Samiake sighed. 'It's this power. No-one trusts someone so closely connected to darkness. They're afraid of what I might do...of what I CAN do.' When Rio raised his brows, Samiake sighed again. 'I've been through this before. All I want is to help people out, but as soon as they find out what I can do, they either want to turn me into a weapon, or want me as far away as possible.'
They sat in silence for a few minutes watching as the sun finally slipped below the horizon. Finally, Rio spoke up.
'Why don't you come back with me? The armies there don't shy away from powers. You'd be welcomed for who you are, not what you are.'
Samiake considered it. 'I don't think so. I think I'll stay here, and try to work something out. But thanks for the offer Rio.'
He stood up and brushed the sand off his rear. He reached down and helped Rio to his feet. 'What happened to the ambassador?' he asked.
'Oh, he's fine,' replied Rio. 'A bit shaken up, but fine. I walked him home...' He grinned, and Samiake could imagine the high-speed ride the ambassador experienced.
'Listen, I have to go now. The mission's over, after all.' Rio said.
'Hey, Rio, wait a minute. I want to give you something.' Samiake rummaged in his bag, pulling out a red and black headband, handing it over to the dragon.
'What is it?' Rio asked.
'It's a power-saving headband. It'll reduce the amount of Quintessence you need to use to use your power, so you can use it more. Our government has developed chemicals that imbue various abilities to objects, and I thought this may come in helpful for myself, but...maybe you could use it more.'
Rio looked at the headband, and then tied it on his head. He grinned. 'It kind of tickles...' he said. Suddenly, a note sounded, and he checked a device from his pocket. 'Great. I have to go see the representative from my army. He's got a new mission for me.'
He put the device away, then extended his hand. Samiake shook it, smiling up at the dragon. 'We should do this again some day,' said Rio.
'Yeah, but maybe next time, not with the traitorous spy.' Samiake replied.
Rio winked. 'I'll hold you to that. Until then, work hard, and soar high!'
Samiake covered his eyes as Rio jetted away, sending up even more sand in his wake. He lowered his hands and looked at them. Splotches of Firolf's blood were still there. He closed his hands tightly into fists, and looked out into the distance. He didn't know what the future held for him now, but it was certainly going to be better than the present...
He walked over to the vehicle in the sand, pulling out his arrow and using it to block the hole it left behind. Casting a last look over the half-destroyed mesa base, he turned the key, reversed, and drove away.
To Be Continued.