Kai waited, and waited, and waited. Her elbows got tired and she laid flat on the ground. She stared at the ceiling and continued to wait for Lillian to return. She began to count the drops of rain she heard from outside. Drip. Drip. Drip.
When Kai had counted eighty-four drops of rain from outside, she heard the door close and footsteps headed her way. She watched as Lillian walked towards her, shot her a smile, nodded her head towards the bed, and continued walking. Kai worked her way off the ground and followed Lillian to the bed. In Lillian's hand was a letter that had been unopened. They both got into bed and pulled the covers up to their hips. Lillian handed Kai the letter and gave her a nervous smile.
Kai looked down at the letter in her hand. It was addressed to her and had been sent from General Hoax at the base. Kai had no idea what the letter would say and she tried to be brave and stay calm. However, Lillian knew her too well and she grabbed Kai's hand and began to draw shapes in her palm. Kai's face grew a thankful smile and she looked back at the letter. She slowly ripped open the letter and held it in her shaky hand. She took a breath and focused on the letter.
It read,
Dear Warrior #268,
You and the princess have been requested to Base #74, located a mile outside of the town of Southwood. You are to be there at ten am on Tuesday, the fourth of June. You will be questioned on your journey progress and be checked thoroughly. The princess will be going through the same process. If you are to not show up we will find you and the princess will be assigned to a new warrior. This is a routine process so we know what can happen if something were to go askew. You have no reason to fear if you have nothing to hide. Non-Far Domande.
General Hoax
Base #4
Kai had to reread the letter a few times before she looked up towards Lillian. Even though Lillian had taken hold of her hand, it was still shaking. After Kai fully comprehended the letter she lifted her head and her eyes met Lillians. Lillian had a look of puzzlement spread across her face and her eyes were filled with curiosity.
She had no idea what this letter meant. Even though there were clear instructions and warnings, Kai's mind still went fuzzy and she struggled to focus. She couldn't believe what they were asked to do. They had to go to the base, and Kai hadn't been to one since she left her training and she didn't know if she would be able to handle all the flashbacks and memories.
"I-I-It," Kai stammered. She tried to keep her eyes connected to Lillian's, but her breath began to shake and tears filled her eyes.
"It's okay, take your time" Lillian soothed. She reached her hand behind Kai and started to rub her back. She waited for Kai to calm down and did what she could to help. "Breath in, Breath out."
Kai followed Lillian's breathing and soon she had calmed down a little. Lillian brought her hand back in front of her and used her other hand to draw shapes into Kai's palm. She slowly reached her hand towards the letter in Kai's shaking fist. She looked at Kai and waited for a nod of permission and Lillian wrapped her hand around the letter. She grabbed the letter and began to read.
Kai watched Lillian's eyes scan the page and she tried to focus on her breathing instead of her thoughts. The room was silent as Lillian read the letter in her hand. Her face was stone and Kai couldn't read it, they were both trying to stay so calm. Lillian read and reread the letter until her eyes met Kai's once again.
They stared into each other's eyes until Lilian spoke first, "So," she started, "I guess we have to go tomorrow."
"I guess so," Kai whispered in response.
The room fell silent once more and the rest of the night felt like a haze.
* * *
There they were standing outside the steel doors leading to the base. They had arrived just on time and were waiting to be let inside. Their hands were by their sides and not grasping together. Kai knew better than to hold her hand, she wasn't supposed to get attached. However, the lack of contact caused Kai's hand to shake a rate faster than she was comfortable with.
She tried to calm her mind but the only thing in her mind were memories. Memories from those years in training, the pain and suffering. She had never been to this base, but it looked pretty similar to her base. Kai didn't know how she was gonna react when she went inside. And to top it all off, she couldn't be with Lillian to calm her down. Kai was anxious for the meeting in the base and she knew that it was going to be a long day.
They looked at each other one more time before the large metal door slowly opened and two guards walked out towards the pair. They stopped right in front of Kai and Lillian and conferred with each other. They were wearing grey bodysuits and silver chest plates. On their feet, they wore black boots with thick soles. Around their shoulders were dark cloaks, ones similar to Kai's. Her blood went cold for a moment because of the similarity in their cloaks. Finally, on their shoulders were small black patches with their numbers written in white. Kai had worn something similar when she was training, and her mind didn't let her forget. Kai could feel the change in her own two feet, as the two guards shifted from foot to foot. She was brought back to her days in the uniform and her mind went hazy again.
The two guards finished talking and conferring, and then turned towards the two women. One of them stepped forward and looked Kai's way.
"Warrior Number?" He demanded. He had the number 885 on his patch.
Kai's mind froze and short-circuited. She hadn't been asked for her number of years and every time she was asked she remembered being punished. Kai had tried to push all those memories out of her mind, but they were now flooding forward. Her hands began to shake and her eyes pricked.
"ANSWER ME!" He yelled at Kai. He was fuming and obviously didn't have a lot of patience.
" 268." She answered.
He nodded and the second guard walked towards them. He commanded, "Follow us."
The two men turned around and walked in perfect unison. Another thing that Kai remembered. Their heavy boots made a rhythmic sound as they walked and Kai tried to focus on that instead of all the memories and emotions resurfacing. The two guards, followed by Kai and Lillian, walked through the metal door, which led to a long hallway. Similar to the door, the hallway was lined with metal and had lights running along the walls. Now and then there was a door with a scanner and plaque. The first thing that came to mind was how similar it was to the base at home. She had walked through this hallway so many times she could do it with her eyes closed.
They didn't turn towards any of the doors and instead continued down the hallway. It seemed to never end, but Kai tried to focus on the noises made by the boots and not her racing mind. Her chest was rising and falling at an inconsistent rate and it was becoming hard to breathe. Her mind was yelling at her. Get out of there! Run! Breath! Get Out! But Kai kept walking. She knew that Lillian could tell she was anxious, they had gotten close enough where Lillian knew what Kai looked like when she was anxious. But neither of them could do anything. They had stolen glances and small smiles, but it wasn't enough to calm Kai down fully.
Kai was staring ahead and focused on her breathing when she felt a small brush against her hand. Kai's heart jumped and her blood ran cold. She looked to her left and saw Lillian next to her with a smile spread across her face. Her eyes were full of worry and affection. Kai took a deep breath and looked down at their hands, Lillian's was subtle brushing against Kai's. It was a small gesture but every time their hands touched, her skin tingled and she was filled with a sense of warmth and comfort, something only Lillian could provide her. Her heart rate calmed down and her mind settled. She looked up at Lillian once more, slowly showed her a smile of gratitude, and turned her head back to the front. And that is how they continued to walk the rest of the way.
They reached the end of the hallway and in front of them was a large door with a silver trim. Lillian and Kai shuffled apart and waited for further instructions. The two guards turned to face the women.
"Okay Princess, you are going to go with him," he pointed to the guard on his left, "You #268, you are coming with me." Guard #885 commanded.
Kai stepped towards the guard and shot Lillian one more look before following him through the door ahead of them.
* * *
After, they were in another hallway, though not as long as the first, finally they reached a door with a scanner. The guard scanned his card and the door clicked open. Kai followed him in. Inside, there was a small table and two chairs. There were no windows and only one light. The walls were all painted black and the room felt smaller than it was. She took a seat and placed her fidgeting hands in her lap.
"Wait here," He ordered before walking out and slamming the door.
She didn't move.
The room was growing smaller and smaller and Kai felt like she was gonna pass out. This was a bad idea, she needed to get out. Kai stood up and began to pace. She needed to control her racing mind or she would pass out. Her breathing picked up again, and she began to hyperventilate. Her hands were shaking more than before and the room was slowly getting darker. Kai's head began to ache as she tried to calm down. Her heart was pounding and sweat was forming on her forehead. A sense of panic and fear swept over her body. She forced herself to sit down before she did anything crazy. She grasped the table with her hands, and soon her knuckles began to turn white.
Kai forced herself to think of Lillian. What would Lillian say? What would she do? Kai removed her hands from the table and started to draw shapes in her palm. She closed her eyes and focused on the shapes. Her mind calmed down and her breathing slowly settled. Focus on the shapes, she told herself.
Soon after, guard number 885 returned, Kai had fully calmed down and continued the draw shapes. However, he was with a woman who was wearing long pants, and a dark shirt, a very similar cloak, and the same boots. She had light skin and her brown hair was pulled into a loose pony. She didn't have a number and was holding a pad and pencil.
She walked towards the table and sat across from Kai. She had a smile plastered on her face, but it was nothing compared to Lillian's. Kai stared at her and waited for her to speak first. She did.
"Hello, My name is General Aadya." She spoke, her voice was confident and she continued to share eye contact with Kai. She had an underlying accent but Kai couldn't place it from where. She stuck out her hand, and Kai followed shaking hands.
"Hi," Kai responded, her voice was low but she kept eye contact.
"You can go now," She directed towards the man still at the door. He nodded and left, closing the door behind him. She turned back towards Kai and continued to speak. "I am just gonna ask you a few questions about the mission so far, okay?"
Kai nodded in response. She hated how General Aadya was treating her like a baby, but she bit her tongue. She just needed to get through this integration.
She smiled and said, "Great." She opened her pad on paper and took a glance before looking back at Kai. "Overall, How has the mission been going so far?" She questioned.
"Good," Kai replied. Her voice was monotone. Honestly, the trip was better than good, but they did not need to know that.
"Care to elaborate?" General Aadya continued.
"No."
"Okay then, next question," she took another peek, "How has the princess been acting?"
"Good."
"I am gonna need a little more than that."
Kai took a breath. "She has been listening to me and following orders, She hasn't tried to talk to me or get close. We are keeping our distance, and focusing on getting to the castle." Kai lied. She kept a straight face.
"Okay. Have you run into any problems while you were hiking or town hopping?"
"Besides the weather, no."
She looked down at her paper and started scribbling something down. "Okay, a few more questions." She continued to scribble down notes. Kai waited for her to finish.
"Are you prepared for the end goal?" She asked Kai.
Kai's blood ran cold but her face didn't shift. Answer the question! Her brain yelled at her. "Yes, I have been given the blade and have been preparing," She spoke with her monotone voice.
"Are you mentally prepared?"
"Yes."
They held eye contact and Kai did her best to keep her face straight, she needed to sound believable.
General Aadya nodded and continued her notes.
"Final question," she reassured. Once she finished writing she looked back at Kai and said, "Any Questions?"
Kai summoned all the confidence she all and confidently said, "No."
Aayda nodded and stood up, "Follow me." Kai listened and stood up as well. They left the small black room and headed down the hallway. They entered another room, this one was a little brighter. Unlike the last room, this one had white walls and silver trim. There was a small elevated square on the floor and two tables on the perimeter in the middle. There were two other people in the room, talking. When General Aadya and Kai entered the room they stopped and waited for instructions.
"Go stand on the pad." She commanded.
Kai listened and walked towards the elevated square. General Aadya made her way towards the other two and they spent a few moments talking. Kai took the time to focus her thoughts back on Lillian. She hoped she was doing okay. Were they interviewing her? Hopefully, she was safe. Kai swore if they laid a finger on her, she would tear this place down.
"We are going to do a quick examination, just to make sure you are healthy." A younger man in glasses and a white cloak spoke.
Kai nodded and they began to take a look at her. They took notes of her height, weight, and flexibility of her legs, arms, and neck. Two men were doing the examinations and General Aadya was in the corner talking to Guard number 885, he must have returned at some point. She let the healers do what they needed, and tried not to put up a big fuss. She just needed this to get over with.
Once they finished with the basics, they took a look at her ears, nose, and mouth. They took notes on their findings and continued to examine Kai. Kai started at the wall with a stone-cold expression. She had been trained to show no emotion, and it was finally coming in handy.
When they finished with that they moved on to her heart rate and blood pressure. Kai moved from the platform to a chair where they took a few tests. Kai continued to stare away and focus on the wall. She tried to clear her mind of what was happening and focused on Lillian and her plan to escape. It was the only thing giving her hope.
Finally, after all the tests one of the two men spoke up, "We are going to give you a quick shot in your arm."
Kai nodded for permission, not they needed or wanted it. Kai had no idea what was in the shot, but she restrained from asking. She pulled down her shirt and exposed her shoulder. The first thing she saw was the light slashed scars running across her shoulder. She had forgotten they were there, and she hoped she wouldn't react poorly. She cleared her mind and focused back on the wall.
She felt something touch her shoulder and she jumped. Her heart skipped a beat and panic filled her entire body. Her breathing picked up again and her head was pounding. She looked to her left and saw one of the healers staring at her.
"Just do it," Kai fumed.
She felt the prick of the needle in her upper arm and she focused on not jumping. She could feel the insert of the mystery liquid and the pressure of it in her veins. She was not a huge fan of shots but she focused on her breathing and Lillian. Unknowingly, she began to draw shapes in her palm.
"All done," He reassured. Kai felt a small bandage being placed against where the needle once was and her shirt being pulled up again.
General Aadya appeared in front of Kai and directed her towards the door. "Let's go."
* * *
They reached the area where Lillian and Kai had first separated and they waited.
"Once the princess arrives you two will be able to leave." General Aadya spoke with force. "I am going to leave you here because there are guards everywhere."
Kai nodded in agreement.
"Don't forget we are waiting for you to succeed, you have been chosen for this for a reason." She hissed.
Kai started her in the eyes and her face was stone cold.
"Non-Far Domande," She finished before she walked away.
"Non-Far Domande," Kai responded with confidence.
General Aadya walked towards one of the doors and left Kai's view. Kai waited and waited for Lillian to return. She was significantly calmer now and then earlier, which gave her time to focus on their plan of escape.
After a few minutes in the room, a door opened and out walked Lillian. She looked the same and didn't seem to be shaken up. They saw each other and quickly walked towards each other. Kai wanted to wrap her in a big hug, but there were guards everywhere, so they restrained themselves and headed toward the hallway leading outside.
Their hands brushed a few times throughout the walk back to the large metal door and it brought a welcome and warning feeling that Kai had missed. Once they left the base and headed back to the hotel, Lillian grabbed her hand and they felt complete once more. After an hour of walking back, they reached their destination and walked into their hotel room. They kicked off their shoes and got onto the bed. Lillian grabbed both of Kai's hands and started to draw shapes. She gave Kai the look, and Kai instantly broke down. Tears ran down her face and her breathing became rapid once again, Lillian wrapped her into a hug and gave Kai the opportunity to cry it out, all the pain and trauma.