Chapter 27: Truth and Reconciliation
Surrounded by the all-too-familiar purplish float-stone infused walls of the Royal Palace, Lieutenant Nia Ennis held her medic gun at the ready; the rest of her companions, including her beloved Captain Abel Ramsey was ahead of her checking the perimeter.
Underneath, Nia saw a Kruptosian soldier—out of his chest, blood almost as red as his skin streamed out like a river. Yet another casualty in this war.
The battle had been bloody, but the Cainite assault was smooth—all things considered. Kruptosian soldiers had been securing areas little by little. Yet the Hawkguards of Ra had put up a stiff resistance, so much so that Captain Enosh seek to end this quickly and so focused his attack on the throne room, the location of which he had been informed by captured hawk warriors as where King Horus and Princess Thalya was currently being holed up in.
All throughout the assault, Nia felt as if she was reliving her captivity at the Royal Palace: the hallways where Actae was taking her to the King, the throne room of her fateful encounter, the places she saw when hawkguards under Thalya’s command were dragging her to be executed by walking the plank… Nia even encountered the gilded cage that she and Thalya were imprisoned in.
Thalya.
The very thought of the Kruptosian Princess brought a frown to Nia’s face. Thalya had tried to kill her, there was absolutely no ambiguity on that. She was a murderess. And she was the one responsible for her captivity in the first place.
Abel’s argument to Nike when the lionesswoman held that knife over Thalya’s throat on why she shouldn’t simply end it… how Thalya had helped them all, how she had enabled their adventures and the encounter with all the companions—Melia, Turtey, Nike, Muwatalli, even the rescue of Rick. All that felt like it had been years ago, those justifications began to wear thin.
“Lord-of-Heaven, have pity on me.”
Nia paused, that voice wasn’t of anyone she knew. A masculine voice from below, and soon she found the source. The bleeding Cainite was still alive. Quickly, Nia knelt beside him, medic gun in hand, and pressed the trigger.
The wounds closed, it was not as bad as she had feared. And soon, the Cainite soldier stabilized. He looked up to Nia, his face betrayed shock—not at being healed, for the pistol of recovery was part of Cain’s arsenal, but at who was healing him. In truth, that soldier, a common man of the Dark Mountains, had never seen a Sethite woman before.
“Relax,” Nia said, smiling. “You’re fine now. Just rest, okay?”
Still unable to move, the Cainite simply nodded.
But unbeknownst to the two of them, a hawk warrior had broken through the back. It was a sneak attack. Seeing Nia busy with her work, the hawkman rushed with a mace in hand, ready to strike.
“Look out,” the Cainite cried out, pointing beside Nia with all his strength.
Nia looked to see the hawkman upon her, and it was too late. She closed her eyes, fully expecting to be struck.
But the attack never came.
Metal clashed with stone; the hawkman’s mace kept at bay by the stony Kruptosian stun baton.
Nia opened her eyes to see her savior. “Abel!”
The clash between Sethite and hawkman continued as one seek to overpower the other. But the Cainite soldier, recently healed, watched the struggle, and saw a clean line of sight. Out of his holster, he grabbed his phaser, and fired.
The hawk warrior collapsed to the ground. Dead.
Abel wasted no time, and looked to his beloved. “Nia. Are you okay? You’re not hurt, are you?”
“I’m fine,” Nia said, smiling. “You saved me again. Thanks, Captain.”
Abel nodded, his expression bashful. Like most men, especially of his temperament, he never quite knew how to respond to compliments from women, especially ones he found attractive.
Then Nia looked to the Cainite soldier. “Thanks, for your help too.”
The soldier smiled in return.
Abel tapped Nia’s arm. “Good job, Lieutenant. Now let’s keep moving. Enosh told us we’re close to the throne room.”
“I see,” Nia said, then paused.
“I know what’s on your mind,” Abel said, a reminder to Nia what she had related to him beforehand. “King Horus, this Actae woman… even Thalya. We’ll do this together.”
As he said this, Abel reached out a hand towards the kneeling Nia.
Nia took it, returned back to her feet, and saluted. “Yes, Captain. I’ll follow your lead.”
***
“Claudia!”
The bloody sight of the his beloved wife stabbed brought King Horus of Ra out of his stupor. His ennui and desire of pleasure was all but gone, replaced by rage—pure blinded rage.
And the target: Princess Thalya of Kruptos.
With lightning speed, Horus flew to the sight of tragedy, and he quickly tackled Thalya to the floor. The hawk king’s strength threw her with such force, and she hit her head on the floor.
Now the red-skinned princess laid on the floor limp, eyes closed. Her knife clattered next to her. Horus eyed the weapon quickly. The hawk king stopped and snatched the bloody knife, and raised it up high ready to deliver the death blow.
The knife in the hand of Horus swung…
… and struck the obsidian blade of a Dragonguard.
***
Abel looked to the messy chaos of the throne room. A hawkwoman—Lady Actae—on the floor bleeding, Enosh having just rebuffed King Horus’ attack, Thalya also lying on the floor helpless.
The hawk king quickly retreated, knowing that he was outmatched with just a knife. But as if on cue, a squad of Hawkguards entered in from the other entrance of the throne room. One of them handed Horus a lance, which the hawk king took as his own.
Now the lines had been formed on the throne room, as if to deliberate the very fate of Ra itself. King Horus and the Hawkguards on one side with the wounded Actae behind them. On the other side, Enosh and the Cainites along with Abel and his companions guarding the still helpless Thalya.
“Hand over the woman, Cainites,” Horus cried. “She has a lot to answer for.”
Enosh shot back, “I will not, foul hawk. To think that the King of Ra would commit murder in his own throne room. Is this how you hawkmen treat your women?”
“She is the murderer!”
So the Hawk Tribe and the Dragon Tribe looked to one another in hatred, one waiting for the other to strike, so as to provide the excuse to kill. Yet neither truly wanted the battle.
For the men of Ra, they had been pushed to the brink of their own royal palace, they had enough of the fighting, no desire for killing other than in self-defense. For the Cainites, they desired only for the recovery of their princess. With Thalya now safe in the hands of Enosh, they had no more reason to fight, other than to make their escape.
Both sides had reached an impasse, neither willing to attack, yet neither willing to back down.
And it was up to Captain Abel Ramsey of the UEC Space Force to intervene…
“Wait,” he said, stepping forward. “Please lay down your weapons for now.”
Enosh furrowed his brows. “What are you scheming, Abel Ramsey?”
“I’m not scheming, Captain,” Abel said. “But I’m seeing something very striking, neither one of you wants to make the first move. None of you wants another bloodbath.”
Horus, his rage now subsided, responded, “You have a point. But I am not letting that banshee go. Not after what she’s done to my Queen.”
“Queen?” Enosh said in confusion. “What are you talking about? You have no Queen.”
It was then that Nia interjected, “But he does, Sir Enosh. That wounded woman there, Actae, she is actually Queen Claudia, the first wife of King Horus.”
Enosh’s eyes widened. “Impossible.”
“It is true,” Horus said. “I have just learned of this. I am surprised Lady Nia knew.”
“She confessed it to me,” responded Nia. “But more importantly, she doesn’t have much time. Let me heal her.”
“I beg your pardon, Lady Nia?”
At this, Nia showed her medic gun. “Right now, Your Highness. Time is of the essence!”
Horus nodded, and acquiesced. Deep down, he knew he had nothing to object to. After all, his beloved Claudia had trusted her with this information.
And so without wasting any time, Nia rushed towards the wounded Claudia. Abel moved beside her, as if to protect her. But in truth, he was also a part of this process. The UEC Captain’s hands closed the gaping stab wound of the hawkwoman. And Nia fired her medic gun; with great focus and determination, she maintained the right level energy.
Then decisively, but slowly, the wound closed. And Queen Claudia of Ra had officially stabilized.
With the job done, Nia took a sigh of relief and looked ready to collapse; she fell into the arms of Abel, who was quick to catch her.
Abel grinned. “No sleeping on the job now, Lieutenant.”
“I suppose I have been doing that a lot,” Nia said, smiling. “But in my defense, job’s finished now.”
***
Once stabilized, darkness did not linger much longer for Queen Claudia. She opened her eyes once she perceived light, and saw the relieved faces of many a hawkmen, including her husband’s.
King Horus, tears in his eyes, quickly embraced her. “Claudia, Claudia, Claudia,” he said. “I have been such a fool.”
But the Queen looked to her husband lovingly. “So have I, my love… so have I.”
And King and Queen kissed each other with love, love long overdue.
They were so lost in each other that they forgot those around them. Yet those people were happy for them, and not just the hawkmen who were grateful their king regained his happiness for the first time in years.
Even those in the side of the Cainites, including a certain Sethite and two lionfolks among them, were joyful.
Rick grinned. “All’s well that ends well, right?”
“Indeed,” Muwatalli said. “Though after all the trouble he has put us through, some part of me is disappointed that I didn’t get to tear his wings apart.”
Asmunikal placed an arm on the Lion Chief’s shoulder. “Worry not, brother. We still have a lot of work to do.”
“No kidding,” Rick said. “With how bloody this battle’s been, I don’t think Cain wants to occupy this city, so he’ll probably leave with Thalya. Mission accomplished, sure but that still leaves us with the question of Nia. And not to mention where do we stand now with both the Cainities and the hawkmen. We also need to regroup with Melia and everyone else back on the Star Surfer.”
“Hah.” Muwatalli grinned. “And that’s just biting the first chunk of the prey.”
Rick frowned. “I’d rather go with scratching the surface, but sure. Ouch.”
Asmunikal wrapped her arm around Rick’s, and smiled as she looked to him. “One thing at a time, my beloved.”
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