The Enemy Part 4 By valerafon An earth man and an alien woman battle on a distant planet. This work of fiction should not be read by anyone under the age of 18. Please do not read further if you are offended by graphic violence and sexual content. Chapter Four Shedevil I was hit with three powerful blows in succession. The first came to my midsection. It was delivered with an unearthly power and it doubled me up and nearly made my knees buckle. The second blow followed almost immediately and was delivered by the palm of her hand to the top of my forehead. It had the reverse effect on my body. The sheer power from it straightened me up, and its force made me stagger backwards. I was still conscious, but barely. My face was a bloody mess, but bravely I tried to fight on. Instinctively, my hands tried to move back into a defensive posture, but they wouldn't respond to my direction. Several of her earlier blows had been directed at my arms and now they failed me at this crucial moment. Even as I faced my adversary, I knew I was now powerless to fend of another one of her onslaughts. I struggled to stand waiting for her next move, unable to react or even try to protect myself. I had no final trap, no unorthodox ploy that would save my bacon one last time. My endless bag of tricks had finally run out. At this point, I knew the battle had already been lost. Now, I calmly stood facing my adversary awaiting the inevitable. I had fought the good fight this past week on this alien moon, but she had finally prevailed, and my coming doom seemed certain. As I waited for the final blow and oblivion, my last few moments seemed to be playing out in slow motion. I even had time to wonder if this always happened in the final moments of battle before eternity beckoned. In these final endless moments, my last thoughts turned to my adversary as she approached. Her face was untouched by the battle and seemed to radiate with excitement as the moment of the kill neared. And what a face she had, beautiful, feminine, but still with an unearthly quality to it that had bedeviled my thoughts ever since I had landed on this alien moon. Maybe, it was those eyes of hers that haunted me. They were not like anything I had ever seen before. Oh, they were human enough, and their green shading was not unusual, but something was different. Then in the twilight it dawned on me. It was that piercing stare of hers. As night approached, her eyes radiated incandescent green with the same look and feel to them that a cat possesses when its eyes are illuminated by light. But her eyes were only a momentary distraction because in the next instant, she was upon me ready to deliver the final blow. I knew instinctively that it would be the death blow. Her red hair was blowing in the wind as her body flowed flawlessly into proper martial arts position. As I watched her helplessly, my mind asked another question. Why did she have to look so magnificent? Then an ironic thought hit me and made me laugh in the final moments. Had her great beauty been her best weapon and had my reaction to her appearance been my one fatal flaw? The final blow came from the back of her right elbow. It hit me squarely on the chin and sent me sprawling to the ground. For some reason, I was still alive. Why was I still alive? Had she pulled her punch? Somehow, I lifted my head slightly so I could look up at my tormentress. She was standing over me in triumph with her eyes still ablaze, but they burned with a green fire. It was at that very moment that she started her war cry. It began from her chest and moved to her throat. It built first as a deep basal sound, and then got much shriller. The sound was made with the tongue and the roof of her mouth. Ya ya ya ......Yaaaaaaaa! Ya ya ya ......Yaaaaaaaa!........Ya ya ya.....Yaaaaaaaa! It continued to build as she began to wave her arms wildly in the air. The sound continued to rise and I realized this signaled the final moment of victory. Then as quickly as her battle cry began, it ended. She slowly lowered her head from the heavens and regarded me again. The flush of triumph was still apparent on her face. At this moment, no words needed to be said. The message she was conveying was clear. I have vanquished you and now you are mine! I felt a strange calm envelope my being as she fixed me once again with her eyes. I tried to pull my eyes away, why couldn't I? This time her look was penetrating. As I stood there hypnotically held by those flashing green eyes of hers, they seemed to reach deep inside of me and possess me totally. I couldn't move a muscle nor did I want to move. Then at that very moment, I heard her pull something from her sheath, but still I couldn't pull my eyes away from hers. My mind had gone to some place beyond this world to a place beyond caring. Slowly, she dropped down on top of me till she rested comfortably on my stomach, the whole time her eyes never left mine. Then slowly she raised something above her head as she looked up exultantly to the heavens. It was then that I saw it. It was my knife. She was about to kill me with my own knife. Quickly, she grabbed my neck with her free hand in another gesture of dominance, and prepared the knife for its final plunge into my broken and defeated body. I took my last breath and waited. It was at this very moment that I heard another. Something or someone was moving closer to get a better look. It was only then that I noticed him. It was the unicorn. That very same unicorn that had invaded my dreams so many times before. He looked down at me with a pitiful look on his face, and then incredibly he began to speak. "You know you never had a chance," he told me, shaking his head in pity. But even as he did so, his mood quickly changed and he began to laugh. In the next instant, I heard her war cry again, I saw the knife plunge downward, and then I felt it enter my body. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" I yelled. I awoke with a start. I was still screaming, "NOOOOOO!" It took me a few seconds to realize where I was. I was still propped up against the rock where I had fallen asleep the night before, sweat was dripping from my brow. I looked nervously about, but all was calm and quiet. I took a deep breath and tried to gather myself. The dream or rather the night mare seemed so vivid, so real. I realized as I looked out across the plain spread out before me that some of my recent dreams had come true. Was this how it would end for me? Did I really have no chance? As I scanned the plain for my adversary in the early morning twilight, I told myself to get a grip. I had always managed to survive in the past and this would be no different. Nothing moved below on the plain. I took another deep breath and turned towards my small little encampment. Before I had my ration of coffee and beans, I slowly started my morning ritual. It was a martial arts routine which focused me and prepared me for whatever the day may have in store. But today, my adversaries face kept intruding into my thoughts. It was hard to focus on only my routine....God she was beautiful! "Focus!" I heard myself say, and slowly her face started to recede into the distance till it slowly disappeared completely. Even as I got more deeply into my training routine, one stray thought plagued me. Was I doomed? Dreams are powerful and most of my most recent dreams, about this woman, had already come true. Would this one come true as well? I assured myself as I got even deeper into my routine, that dreams can be changed. "Just focus!" I said once again. Believe in yourself for its all that you have, and its all that you have ever needed. ------------------------------------------ Her eyes opened and instantly she felt a tremendous pain coming from the area of her stomach. When she looked around, her whereabouts shocked her. She was lying in a cave. She could tell that she was badly wounded. There was a piercing pain in her belly. All she could remember about what happened was that she had finally caught him and that soon this game wound end and then she would be going home. Then there was a shot. She remember moving easily out of the way and then there was another shot almost instantaneously, and then darkness had quickly overtaken her. It was just not humanly possible for anyone, even a Gamulan, to aim and shoot again so quickly. How had he done it? Then another thought occurred to her. Were there two humans? But she didn't have long to dwell on that thought because she heard a sound and saw the human enter the cave. He was carrying a small animal by the ears, and it looked like it had just been killed. In his other hand was the knife. She recognized it immediately. It was the knife he had lost to her in their first encounter that ended so disastrously. Was he going to use it on her now? That would be ironic, she thought, even as she steeled herself for the worst. When he saw that she was awake, he stopped preparing the animal and regarded her for a few moments. There seemed to be no blood lust in his face and his eyes seemed to reassure not threaten. Those eyes of his! They had haunted her from the very beginning. She could not completely understand the contradiction they posed to her. They seemed out of place for a warrior so deadly, so ingenious in battle. Instead, of burning with a fire, they seemed to radiate something else. A serene calmness she thought. He had an inner peace about him she could never attain. Even in battle his eyes never changed and she felt herself being drown to them against all her defenses and all her training. They were so alien, so male, and his eyes seemed to be a window on his soul. Even though they had never spoken to each other, she seemed to be able to read and understand his thoughts. Instead, of making her worst fears come true, he laid the knife down and smiled at her. At least she thought it was a smile. Do humans smile? Or does it mean something else entirely different? Still holding the babraat, he spoke some words in that unintelligible gibberish that they spoke. She remembered other humans in the arena speaking similarly. She had no idea what they said then, and no idea what her adversary was saying now. In the arena one didn't wear the universal communicator, and they were not allowed to wear one hear either. Their words, in the arena, hadn't been important. They all died anyway, but they did die bravely she remembered. Now, the shoe was on the other foot, and she truly wished she could understand what he was saying. But his eyes did convey safety, but were they just another ingenious trap of his? Then another more important thought entered her mind. She wondered why she hadn't thought of it immediately. Why was she still alive? Why hadn't the human killed her? She just stared at him for a few seconds, then she tried to get up. The Pain!...My Goddess, the pain!...The pain was just to intense for her to move, and she felt so weak too. She had never felt so helpless and so out of control in her entire life. As soon as the human saw her move and the pain overwhelm her, he immediately dropped the babraat and came to her side. Carefully and almost tenderly she thought he eased her body back down. From somewhere, he produced a wet rag and tenderly dabbed her forehead with it. It was all so confusing. Why was he doing this? But she couldn't dwell on that thought for too long either because another even more painful emotion washed over her. It was then that she realized that she had lost. She had failed the Goddess, she had failed her people, she had failed the queen and Tiani too. She was so ashamed. Her eyes were open, but she tried to block out the real world and slowly she started to say her mantra to her Goddess the all powerful Heim. She could only hope that she would be forgiven. Almost at once, the cave became an indistinct blur and then it slowly faded and another more glorious image started to appear in its place. It was the Goddess Heim in all her majestic glory. For some reason, she could now move. She prostrated herself at the Goddesses feet and begged for forgiveness. "My Goddess, I am so sorry. I let the human win. I have failed you." The Goddess smiled tenderly down at her before she spoke in that low rich contralto voice of hers, "My child, you have not failed me." In her zeal for forgiveness, she interrupted the Goddess, "But I have, My Goddess. The human still lives." The Goddesses smile broadened and she said in an even a more tender voice, "My child, all things work to my design." "Then, I am to die?" she asked humbly and lowered her head. "In essence, my child." She looked at the Goddesses beautiful face and said serenely with complete supplication, "Thy will be done." The goddesses smile became even more tender as she explained further, "You shall die here on this small moon and than be reborn, and your offspring shall someday inherit the galaxy." She looked at her in confusion. How could her death change everything? And she was to be reborn? Even as she thought of this, another fear even more important than dieing slowly took hold of her being. Did not Gamula already rule a sizable portion of the galaxy? And what was to happen to Gamula? "And what of Gamula?" she asked almost afraid to hear the Goddesses answer. "My first creation is imperfect. The second will not be." She looked away from the radiance of the Goddess and down for a moment in contemplation of her words. How was Gamula imperfect? Did we not follow the holy texts precisely? When she looked back up, the Goddess was already fading from view. "How will this all come about," she managed to blurt out. The goddesses image became more substantial again and she said, "Trust your instincts." Then the Goddesses image faded again and the cave became reality once more. With reality, the pain in her stomach returned. She became aware of the human once again, and he was still dabbing her forehead very tenderly. At that moment the pain in her stomach grabbed her once again, and one way or another, she knew that her death was a real possibility. Almost on cue, the human stopped his ministrations and looked deeply into her eyes. For a moment, it was as if she could read his soul, and there was no evil there. His smile broadened and he slowly lowered his head. When she realized what he was about to do, it was already too late. Their lips touched lightly at first and then he kissed her with more passion. Even as they kissed, her mind yelled out, "NOOOOOOOOOOOO!" She awoke with a start. Glaxxana was still screaming, "NOOOOOO!" The unicorn, which had been sleeping peacefully at her side jumped up and started to whiny and kick. It took her sometime before she could settle him back down. When he was calm again, she had time to reflect on her nightmare. She was dripping in sweat and shaking, and that reaction was unacceptable for a Gamulan warrior. She quickly gathered myself, said her morning mantra, and prepared for the The Retow. Just a few minutes into her daily ritual, she felt her body relax and her mind begin to focus. The unicorn sat peacefully by her side and watched her intently as she went into her breathing techniques and into the martial art routines which had to be performed precisely or she would shame her clan and the Goddess. Slowly, Glaxxana took in air and then in an even slower manner, she exhaled it. As she got deeper into the breathing, her hands and body started to move in a very precise manner, and she felt herself relaxing even more. Slowly her momentum built and her movements quickened, and she felt a power, an energy seeping into every pore of her being. With this energy came confidence that the machine that was her body could perform anything....do anything....overcome anything or anyone, and it was not arrogance, and she knew this instinctively, for she was a Gamulan warrior. Still Glaxxana felt a kernel of shame or more accurately she felt afraid, but of what? She knew she was not afraid to die, and what ever the Goddess had in store for her was a divine plan that could not be questioned. Then where did this shame come from? In her heightened state, her mind saw the answer immediately. Glaxxana's mind played the last part of the dream over again, and she saw the kiss once more. Deep inside of her something stirred. Her shame was clear. She had enjoyed the kiss. Quickly, she increased her breathing and her movements became a blur of motion. Slowly, the dream faded and her purpose became clear and her heart again became a warrior's heart. With her resolve strengthened, the human's fate was sealed once more. As Glaxxana finished the Retow, she opened her eyes and said out loud, "You shall soon be mine, human. And there is nothing that will save you from your fate." Her renewed vow made her feel at peace with herself once again. After all, she had done nothing wrong. It had all been just a bad dream. And with her purpose once again clear, she hungered for the chase. She quickly drank down a nutrient packet, cleaned up the campsite, and mounted her new friend and ally. As they headed off in pursuit of the human once more, with her renewed vow still echoing in her ears. Glaxxana had just one more moment of self doubt, and that was in the precise meaning of her last words. ----------------------------------- Back on Gamula in the council chambers, the five most powerful women in the Gamulan Empire were watching a diversion on the vid screen as they waited for news from Regna. Marsana from Attack Clan was taking on three Corsair males in a handicap match. Corsair was the most recently conquered planet and the newest member to the Gamulan Empire. Many on Gamula waited anxiously for the first matches to be set up and beamed throughout the empire. The Corsair males were still somewhat of a novelty back on Gamula, and the other hundred or so conquered worlds were also curious. Marsana was wearing nothing above the waist and only the skimpiest of briefs below. Her rather large breasts stuck out proudly and defiantly as she circled the males. Her breasts were large, but they were also very firm. She knew they would be a distraction for the males as they fought, and they were proving to be just that. Her magnificent body gleamed with sweat as she systematically destroyed the males arrayed against her. Her only weapon was a fighting staff about six feet long, and she wheeled it with precision and grace as the males clumsily attempted to attack her. A laugh track was added and was used after each blow struck by Marsana. The Ruling Council members were all watching intently and would laugh themselves after each male was sent sprawling or was made to look particularly bad from one of Marsana's precise moves. The Corsair males were a striking contrast to Marsana. They were as tall as Marsana's 6' 5'' frame, but they were much stockier looking when one compared bodies, and they had none of the graceful aspects of Marsana's sleek and agile form either. Their light blue skin had a somewhat leathery appearance to it as well. What made them look particularly threatening was the six inch horn which protruded from their foreheads. It made them look almost like bulls, and in fact their attack strategies resembled bulls. They would rush forward trying to overpower and overwhelm Marsana with their bull like rushes, but their was no coordination at all to their attacks. For variety, each male was armed with a different weapon. One male, the best of them, brandished a sword. Another had a long curved knife which was the favorite weapon of the Corsairs in battle, and the third sported a huge battle ax. He was particularly ineffective, by the time he swung it overhead he had already been hit with so many blows as to render him ineffective or to send him sprawling. In fact, he had not yet delivered a blow with his ax. Their lack of coordinated effort was their one great weakness, and was the main reason their planet and all their colonies were overwhelmed in less than a week. Back on Corsair the Gamulans were already teaching the dominant males a new lifestyle. One in which organization and subservience to the females of Gamula was a prime directive. Some of the more promising males had already been shipped offworld back to Gamula, and were dispersed as prizes to the ruling clans or prepared as fighters in many of the local arenas. This was the first match beamed across the entire empire and the Corsairs were proving somewhat of a disappointment. They would have to undergo rigorous training if they were to become more suitable opponents. It was even suggested that their futures were not as gladiators, but rather as servants or manual laborers. After all, they were exceptionally strong. As the match continued, it was apparent that the males had absolutely no chance. Their rushes already showed less energy and it appeared that they were already losing the will to continue. If only one Corsair rushed Marsana her movements would be particularly slow and deliberate and extremely precise. This emphasized her complete mastery over the alien males and could be used as a training aid to many of the young Gamulan women who were watching. If the Corsairs were all on their feet at the same time, which was rare, and they all rushed Marsana at once, her movements though just as precise and meticulous were delivered so quickly as to be almost a blur to the unaided eye. In fact, these would be shown over in slow motion on video replay. As the match wound down to its inevitable conclusion, the leader of Attack Clan looked on with increasing pride in her newest prot'g'e. She turned to Nianna and casually commented, "She will make a great leader someday." Niana turned to her greatest adversary in the council and nodded, but it was a half bored nod. Nianna knew Tyranna would not misinterpret the meaning conveyed in the nod. Back on the Telescreen, the match was just about over. Two of the males were already sprawled out and unconscious laying on the clay like dirt of the arena floor. The third was staggering about oblivious to the match. In fact, his sword had already fallen from his hand. Marsana maneuvered her staff deftly and precisely once more so that it was perpendicular to her body. She then bowed for the cameras. The sound track let out with a loud cheer. What she did next was pure theater. She called for her assistant and handed her staff over to her, again to another loud roar. Than she went into a martial arts position with her hands. It became quickly apparent that she was going to dispatch the last male using only her hands. When the male staggered over, she hit with six or seven crisp blows to the head and body. Each blow was delivered so quickly that only the slow motion cameras could show how each was delivered and where the precise point of impact was located on the Corsair body. Afterwards, Marsana moved away from the male and again bowed for the cameras. Then the cameras panned over and moved in for a close up as the male started to teeter from the blows, till finally he fell over. It was apparent to all that the male was already unconscious long before he fell. Again, another round of cheering filled the arena from the sound track. Back in the council chambers, each woman voted on her key pad as did all of Gamula. Even members of the hundred conquered worlds were allowed to vote. Although, their votes only counted one fifth as much as a Gamulan vote. The tally was quickly tabulated and the results were shown on the vid screen. The vote was about nine billion against to just over a billion for. Back in the arena, the red light went on and a buzzer sounded that signified the audience was not pleased with the match. The Corsair males had proven a disappointment even though officials had tried to portray it as a comedy early on. Marsana acknowledged the will of the people and called for her assistant. Her aid appeared with the ritual knife. Although the males would not lose their lives, they did have to pay a penalty. With other alien males that usually meant ritual castration or some other suitable punishment. Marsana had already thought of a penalty far worse for the Corsairs. The two female warriors walked over to the nearest Corsair and turned him over. Marsana then placed her sandaled foot on his throat to signify her complete mastery of the male as her aid cut. His horn came off surprisingly easy, and it did not bleed much either. This time it was Nianna who commented back in the council chambers, "She has a fine feel for theater, doesn't she?" It was a comment intended to aggravate, and it didn't miss its mark. Nianna was particularly adept at the needle. Tyranna turned towards the old queen and said somewhat sarcastically, "She is a great warrior! At least, she wins her battles." Niana knew that barb was a reference to Glaxxana. Almost a week had passed since she had been dropped on Regna and yet the personal combat between her and the human was still raging, and to make matters worse the human had been first to draw blood. Nianna stiffened her body in a queenly pose as she watched the telescreen, but she did not look towards or answer her chief adversary. Instead, she chose to exercise her royal prerogative and remain quiet as she watched. Tyranna watched the queen intently for a few moments and when it was clear that there would be no answer, she did not offer anything further, as was the rule. Instead, she turned back towards the telescreen with a big smile on her face. Meanwhile, back in the Arena, the same ritual had been performed on the other two males, and know Marsana fastened the three horns to a belt and held them aloft proudly for the audience to clearly see, again to great acclaim from the sound track. For the poor Corsair males being dehorned meant that no Corsair female would ever mate with them again. Although, the males were still fully capable of mating, no female would ever consider a hornless male for a mate or even for casual sex, for that matter, which the Corsairs did with a flourish. To make matters worse the horns would not grow back and these males would loose all status among the other males as well. As more assistants came in to drag the males off camera to medical aid, Marsana looked to the camera and announced that since these three were no longer suitable gladiators, that she would take them into her household and train them as her personal servants. Her compassion got her the loudest roar yet from the sound track, and even the ruling council, including the queen, applauded. That brought an even bigger smile to Tyranna's face. Afterwards, the screen was turned off, raised, and the lights were brightened in the council chamber. Feeling particularly full of herself, Tyranna commented, "Now that's a fine champion!" That comment was just too much for the queen to have to bare. She played her ace. She turned angrily to Tyranna and asked, "Are you saying that the Goddess Heim chose her champion poorly?" "Why no, my queen. Its just that its taken so long." In a more controlled voice Nianna responded, "We should not question the Goddess. Her ways can be mysterious at times, but she will reveal her plan to us in her own good time." Tyranna's smile faded, and she reluctantly nodded her approval to Nianna's words. It was then that Dariana the Captain of the Council Guards entered the chamber in humble supplication. With head bowed, she walked up to the bench where the five rulers presided. Nianna was at the center with two other council members on either side of her. The farther you were from the center signified, to all, the farther you were from the seat of power and you wielded much less influence as well. Holding an end seat also signified that you were most likely a newer member to the elite council. With head still bowed, Dariana stopped directly in front of the queen and waited. The queen not being able to mask the concern in her voice asked hopefully, "Well, my child. Do you have some news?" Dariana looked up and said tentatively, "My queen, I have just been in contact with the Meridians." She paused for just a moment to let her words sink in, but not so long as to anger the queen, and then she continued, "The Meridians have no further news. Except that their sensors indicate that both combatants appear to be at full strength." The queen nodded and with a wave of her hands dismissed the captain, who moved off immediately. The queen took a deep breath and said with as much conviction to her words as she could muster to the other council members, "Well that is good news. Glaxxana has completely recovered and I'm sure she will dispatch this earther in quick order." Then more forcefully she added, "She will prevail." Tyranna looked at the queen but she bit her lip and did not add anything of her own. Instead, she nodded as did the other council members. The old queen took another deep breath and did not let the other members hear her next thoughts. To herself she said even more forcefully, SHE MUST PREVAIL! ----------------------------------- After breakfast, I cleaned up the campsite and prepared to leave. But before I did, I decided to take one last look across the plain. My worst fears were immediately realized. In the extreme distance, I saw a black dot moving towards me. For a split second, I felt my heart skip a beat. I knew all to well what that black dot was even before I pulled out my visoculars. I reached for the pocket on my left shoulder, where they were located, and prepared to look through one of the most indispensable pieces of equipment I carried. Even as I scanned back across the plain with them, I could never quite believe how many important tasks they performed for me. They were much more light and compact then their predecessors of a few centuries before and they performed so many more useful functions as well. I could look out across a great distance and see my target in great detail, day or night or in any weather. I could also get an exact distance to the object as well, and I could feed in a standard walking, running, driving, or flying time and get an exact time as to when the target would be at my location. If it was a multiple target and they were talking and looking directly at me, I could place a pair of earphones in my ears, as I did now, and the device would gather the sound waves and amplify them enough so that I could hear their conversation. The devise was so sensitive that I could even amplify the sound enough to hear the targets heart beating, if I so desired. This time, when I scanned back at the black dot coming towards me, it immediately resolved into a familiar form. It was indeed my adversary. She was riding a unicorn and she looked like a Valkyrie right out of the Norse legions. The image I was looking at somehow seemed familiar to me. It only took me a second to realize that the image, I now scanned, came right out of one of my most persistent dreams. My first one in fact. The one that had been plaguing me the longest, even when I was back in training aboard the wheel. It was hard for me to digest this latest turn of events. It came so quickly after my dream or rather my latest nightmare. I told myself to get a grip and scanned the distance to target. She was ten kilometers from my position and her rate of progress meant that she would be at my position in under two hours. I had to move and move quickly, but I had no plan this time, no cunning trap. I had used the last several days replaying our first encounter over and over in my mind. I had found no weakness in her attack strategies, and her awesome skills did not fill me with confidence either. She was stronger, faster, and a far better shot, and she employed some kind of special fighting technique I had never seen before, and had no defenses against. This new and devastating technique seemed to counter my martial arts training quite well. I also now believed that many of her senses were much more acute than my own. Just as one would expect in a dangerous predator in comparison to her prey. I could only hope I was more intelligent. It might be my only hope. I knew after our first encounter, she would be more wary and less overconfident. It was her one weakness, but it had proved to be only a temporary one, and not fatal. So far, I had drawn a blank as how to proceed. She avoided all my standard traps with annoying regularity. So I retreated, biding my time, and she always came on relentlessly leaving me no other option but to continue our endless cat and mouse game. I turned from the scene before me, and looked about. I hadn't even settled upon a direction to flee. Then I remembered the large volcano that dominated the landscape that I was about to enter. It was a foreboding landscape with jagged rocks, endless gullies, canyons, and gorges, and the ground shook at times and expelled toxic smoke in some areas. It was a landscape from Dante's worse nightmare. A scene from right out of hell, and it seemed appropriate somehow to take this path. After all, a tenacious shedevil was chasing me. I knew from a visocular reading that the volcano was six kilometers to the Southeast. That seemed as good a direction as any to go. In my death dream, I had seen no volcano and the terrain was markedly different as well. Well, at least I wasn't going to meet my fate in this scary place. I immediately shook my head in disgust at my own thoughts. My last thought had really angered me. Fatalism was not an option. I could never let down my guard even for a second or she would see to it that it was my last mistake. No, I could die anywhere and at any time, and that is what had always sustained me in my most difficult situations, and it kept my mind agile enough to find an out. Just then, I heard the volcano's distant rumble. Maybe, the volcano would supply me with an answer. In any case, I had nothing to lose in choosing that direction. Despite the fact that my time was getting short, I turned and looked at the image coming towards me once more. I could make out a few sounds from the unicorn as he moved, and I saw her pat his head as they plunged on. I decided to spend a few moments studying my adversaries. First, I looked at the unicorn in greater detail. He didn't seem to be laughing. Then I filled my field of view with her determined face. It was so unbelievably lovely with that long red hair of hers flowing in the breeze. She was the most beautiful creature I had ever seen and she was also the most deadly I had ever encountered. With almost a remorse to my voice, I said out loud, "I must kill you, and your friend too, if need be." I quickly turned way, but I hesitated for a moment and something drew me back to her image in the visoculars. This time, I turned the volume up to maximum and listened to her heart beating. It was sometime before I turned away and headed for the volcano in the distance. ----------------------------------- Donavan was sitting in his chair gazing out at the earth as the man entered. He was a young man in his early twenties and he bore an uncanny resemblance to the man that occupied most of Donavans waking moments. The captain walked quietly up to Donavan's chair, but he did not disturb the old man's thoughts. Instead, he patiently waited, looking out at the spectacle of mother earth. It was just as inconceivable to him as it was to Donavan that this small blue speck in the middle of nowhere could come to rule a great Federation and thus a great part of the known galaxy. It was another few moments before the old man felt his presence. He turned to find a younger version of Bannon staring back at him. It was unsettling, even though he knew what the young man looked like. Indeed, the whole Federation knew this man's features well. He was the only person ever to enter the arena and return alive. Finally, the initial shock gave way to Donavan's uncanny charm. "Welcome, Captain Danning. I've been looking forward to meeting you!" The young officer returned the pleasantries as best he could, but he did have other concerns. "Thank you, Sir. This is a great honor, but can you tell me when I can return to my unit?" Donavan offered the man a chair with the wave of his hand, and as the Captain seated himself, he continued on with the pleasantries. "I hope you're fully recovered and feeling fit?" "Yes, Sir.....And that's why...." Donavan interrupted the Captain and continued on with his own agenda. "Good!....Good! We can't have the greatest hero of the Federation feeling subpar....Now can we?" The young man was quiet for a moment then undeterred from his goal he asked once again, "Sir, I would like to see my family for a few days then go back to my unit." Donavan looked at the young man. He was stubborn and unyielding he thought and not easily deterred from his goals. But of course, he had to be that way. How else could he have risen so far so fast at a such a young age and how else could he have proven worthy and been chosen for an arena roster. In that moment of contemplation, Donavan decided to tell the young man the truth. Not the whole truth, but at least as much as he thought he could get away with. "Son, I'm afraid you won't be going home anytime soon...I've had you assigned to the Earth Security Forces....And be assured, the order comes from the highest echelons of the Federation." "But, Sir!...My unit...." "Your unit can wait. I may have need of your considerable talents elsewhere." The Captain calmed himself and asked, "And what may that be, Sir." Donavan ignored the young man's question. Instead, he said jovially, "Call me Donavan, everyone else does." With a nod of his head the Captain signaled that he would accede to the old man's wishes. "Good, Now tell me all about your Arena adventure and don't leave anything out." "Sir, a Donavan, there is a very detailed report. I'm sure you've read it," the Captain said awkwardly. "Yes...Yes..I've read it twice, but I want to hear it from your own mouth," Donavan said a bit testily. "I need to know everything about the Gamulans that you know. It may save many lives someday." The Captain nodded and immediately went into his story. Like most overachievers, he was very thorough, very thorough indeed. Donavan listened spellbound taking everything in and often interrupting the captain at some crucial point asking for a clarification of the story or for the captain's own interpretation of events or just for more detail. Several times, the Captain closed his eyes and actually remembered more. When the Captain was finished, Donavan asked for more, "Tell me more about your assignment in the arena." The Captain was tired, but he nodded his approval and started to talk again. "I was part of a two man team. We were assigned to try and pinpoint command and control for the other side and then to take out the Gamulan leader." "A very good strategy," Donavan said excitedly. "We don't know how the Gamulans would react if they lost their leader early on." "That's what we wanted to find out," the captain countered. "It may have tipped the balance in our favor." "Go on..Go on..And did you find their leader," he asked even more excitedly. "We had to move slowly. If we were spotted. I'm sure we would have been target number one. From our vantage point we saw many of the major skirmishes, and to our horror none of them ended satisfactorily," the captain recollected sadly. "It must have been a great temptation to intervene," Donavan added knowingly. "Yes, it was during one of these firefights that my partner left me to help. I tried to stop him, but he was so young. He was killed almost immediately as were the others." It was at this point that the Captain broke down and wept. The old man put his hand on the young man's shoulder to comfort him. "I couldn't help them!...My orders!....My duty!" "Yes..Yes," Donavan said sympathetically. "You did exactly what the Federation expected of you. The young man dried his tears and said, "I did..didn't I?" Donavan comforted the young man some more and asked further, "And did you find Command and Control?" "Yes, Sir. It became apparent to me that even though there was no apparent pattern to the Gamulan attacks, in actuality there was." "You didn't say that in the report," Donavan asked a bit startled. "At first, Sir, I attributed my success to just a feeling I had and to dumb luck, but as I think about it now, there was a definite pattern to their attacks. Have you ever seen bubbles in a liquid? There appears to be no pattern to that. Or are you familiar with Chaos theory?" he asked. Donavan shrugged his shoulders and answered, "Not really!" "Well, Sir, Bubble theory as well as Chaos theory are hobby's of mine. They give pattern to something where there appears to be none..I should have remembered that," he said angrily. "Don't be so hard on yourself, Captain. Remember, you were seriously wounded and not expected to live." "Still, Sir, I'm trained to remember. "Well, remember for me now," Donavan entreated. The captain nodded his willingness to continue and slowly started to talk again, "The enemies attacks were like the surface of an expanding bubble with no central point. But slowly, I realized that there was a central point. It just wasn't centrally located." Bubble theory, it was way beyond Donavan, but he managed to say, "Go on." "Slowly, I made my way to there command nexus. And that's when I saw her." "Their leader?" "Yes! And she was behind an obstacle and out of sight of the cameras and she was fixing her hair." "Her hair? She had hair?" Donavan said with a gasp. "Yes, I had forgotten that point too in the report," The Captain said sadly and a bit ashamed. "Go On," Donavan urged. "Yes, she had pulled her elastic covering slightly off her head so she could reattach a microphone to her ear." "Did she look human?" Donavan asked incredulously. "Yes!...Yes very human!...And her hair was a flaming red in color," the captain said in an astonished voice as he remembered the incident for the first time as well." Then he broke down again and sobbed out," I'm sorry, Sir. I should have remembered." With a wave of his hand, Donavan said sympathetically, "Battlefield amnesia. Its common with severely wounded soldiers." The captain nodded and then continued, "She wasn't aware of my presence. She must have been far too busy with the battle to notice me. I crept closer and had a clear shot when at that very moment, I was hit from behind with a energy blast. I had just enough time and energy left to turn around and see another Gamulan come out from her hiding place. She was obviously guarding the leaders back." And then almost as an after thought the Captain added, "I should have accounted for that." "Captain, don't be so hard on yourself. You lived through a very traumatic battle. You saw most of your compatriots die as well. And if it wasn't for both of your sensors failing at the same time, you would be dead too. The Meridians said that an occurrence like that is a million times a million to one." "Yes," the Captain agreed, "I'm sure if my sensors hadn't failed, the Gamulans would have fired into all the dead bodies until they had found me." Donavan asked sincerely, "And could you imagine how traumatic that would have been for everyone watching?" Again the Captain nodded. "Well, enough for tonight," Donavan said wearily. He was tired too. Besides he wanted time to digest everything he had heard. Some of which was simply incredible. Before the captain left, he asked a bit hesitantly, "Donavan, you never did tell me my assignment." "In due time, Captain, in due time...For now, your dismissed, but I will want several more sessions with you in the coming days." The captain nodded wearily and then he turned and left. Donavan followed him right out the door with his eyes. And when he was gone, Donavan said to himself, You're my ace in the hole, Captain....I always hedge my bets. ----------------------------------- I had been traveling for many hours. The day was fading, and the many ridges, bluffs, and gorges made my trek to the volcano very slow going. It seemed like the Volcano in the distance wasn't getting any closer, but I ranged it with the vis and came up with a distance of only three kilometers. During the day, I had not seen my adversary again. The terrain was too rocky and afforded to many exceptional hiding places to expect to see any one at a distance. I did wonder if the unicorn had become more of a hindrance than an aid in this terrain, and if the shedevil following me had abandoned her new friend yet. Somehow, I doubted it. For better or for worse, the unicorn had become a player in all this. I just didn't understand how or know why. Nearby, was a patch of aqua weeds, I stopped just long enough to pull a few up by the roots and squeeze them between my fingers. As the life giving water trickled into my mouth, I wondered if my adversary had closed the remaining distance between us. Her energy was limitless and with the aid of the unicorn she could be anywhere, even in front of me by now. It was the first time since I had landed that I felt control of my situation slipping from my grasp. I had always been a step ahead of her, but now she could be anywhere. I had to come up with a plan, any plan. I always felt more in control when I had trap ready to be sprung. After my water break, I slowly made my way up and over the rocky expanse of a large ridge. Below, in a rather large ravine, was exactly what I was looking for. All around were several newly opened fissures from which smoke or some poisonous gas was being expelled, and smack in the center of this rocky ravine was a crater filled with magma. I made my way to the edge of the hell hole, the heat was unbearable, and I found it difficult to look down, but look down I did. About twenty feet below was a bubbling boiling caldron of red hot magma. The devils brew, I thought. This was one dangerous place. Exactly what I was looking for. Something to even up the odds. Maybe, distract the enemy enough for me to pull off one of my more outrageous traps. I looked in every direction. My way seemed barred. There would be no easy way to get across that hell hole, but I didn't see it as an obstacle, but rather as an opportunity. Here, in hell's kitchen, I would make another stand. And maybe, just maybe, I would find a way to overcome the shedevil following me. To be Continued..... In chapter five, Bannon's latest trap is sprung. Will it work? And what is Donavan plotting? And what about the dreams. Which one if any will come true?