Into The Big Black Empty.



Klinger has reluctantly agreed to Sil’s conditions and the team gathers round to outline a plan, it is almost a certainty that they have Samantha Bliss probably in a cave underground. He takes a homing transmitter from his field pack as he tells Lifeguard what they are about to attempt, Lifeguard happens to agree with Sil.
“Sounds like a plan Klinger.. Do you trust her?”
“Yeah I guess so, she’s really light on her feet, and she can get right up on them before they even know she’s there hopefully.”
“Command tells me that she’s a bit blood thirsty.”
“Yeah? Well in this line of work, I’d say that you’d almost have to be. I‘ll stand by Sil.”
He turns to face her as she is pulling her jacket up over her shoulders. He hands her the transmitter showing her how to turn it on and off.
“As soon as you turn it off, it will kill the signal, and then Lifeguard will tell us where you are, we will try to follow you so we don’t get too far behind, and Sil?”
“Yes?”
“Try and remember that your just a scout, if there too many or you aren’t sure of what to do. Wait for backup.”
She smiles at Klinger and then again at Priss.
“Don’t worry Mr. Klinger, I’m a big girl, and I can take care of myself just fine. You just remember that when I call.. Don’t be late.”
She disappears over the hill and Klinger and Priss watch her move into the shadows. He looks at Priss and winks.
“Well miss hot legs, it looks like our baby girl is all grown up now.”
Priss sits up abruptly and casts him a curious look, clearly not grasping his attempt at humor. He pats her on her knee softly. And slowly kisses her on the forehead.
“Relax sweets, its just a little joke. I do that sometimes when I’m nervous.”
She looks back at the cascading night, as it surrounds the sand covered hills.
“You are nervous for Samantha?.. Or Sil?”
“Both baby doll…. Both.”
He musters team Alpha, in five minutes they would begin to trace Sil’s path into the hills.

The Seventh Soldier.



It is 4:30 am in the Malti Desert, and it has taken the female Red known as Sil all of thirty five minutes to locate the whereabouts of Samantha Bliss, she lay on the ground by a fire. She is clearly awake, but Sil can sense that she is very weak, there are only four wraths watching their prisoner, as she surveys the surroundings for others that may be hiding. They are in a deep cave of rock that has three deep tunnels going into the sides of the cave walls, they offer no light or clue as to what may hide in them. She reaches down and turns off the tracking box that Klinger gave to her so Lifeguard could trace her steps, she might have to wait for as long as thirty five minutes for her backup to arrive, Samantha she thinks, needs help now. Sil then makes a decision, she stands letting her anger build with each step that she takes towards the Wrath’s, The first sees her and tries to attack, but she leaps onto its chest quickly, while pulling out the two Sai’s in one smooth motion , it reels as she drives both blades into its skull while riding the body to the ground, a second joins the fight . The Sai spins in her fingers and she launches it, striking the second wrath between the eyes, it falls and she retrieves the blade and now stands between the two remaining Wraths.. But something from the corner of her eye, more Wraths. Perhaps two or three in the shadows, there is a crunching noise and then the awful hissing sound that they make when they are dying. There are more here than she realized before, but Sil knows that she cannot let them win, one of the Wraths swords falls at the edge of the firelight and she holds her breath, it is then that she sees the huge human hand grasp the sword and lift it from the dirt, and when the giant form of Ajax steps into the light Sil Knows.. Yeah buddy now it’s a fight.

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