Eclipse of the Heart (3 page)

“I think you need to be very careful and assume anyone who
isn’t a friend could be an enemy.”

Of course he would give me a vague answer, he is a religious
leader after all.

“Come on out, dinner is ready and this might be our last
night here as a group. Lancer’s trial could be over tomorrow.”

“Really? Lancer said nothing about that when I came in, he
just laughed at me and then went to make popcorn while waiting for the ripper
TMZ to come on.” I got up off my bed and followed the Reverend to the kitchen
where everyone was waiting for us.

“Lancer, tell me about your trial. Do you think you could be
going back to Earth as early as tomorrow?” I sat across from Lancer at the
dinner table and Ash sat to my left.

“It’s possible. Both sides finished up today. I don’t need
to go to the courthouse until they call me. If the judge has a verdict as early
as tomorrow, I will be leaving the Reverend’s compound either way.”

Lancer proceeded to explain that if he was found innocent
then he could go back to Earth right away, and that would actually be safer for
him. There was a small group that was gaining traction who wanted him out of
the picture. Even his attorney told him he should stay on Earth for a while if
he was set free.

But if he was not set free, then he would be transferred to
a different jail somewhere far from the capital.

“Either way, I think it is safer if you left for home
tomorrow B’Lana.” Lancer looked to Ash to support his suggestion.

“I agree Lancer, I think we should all go home tomorrow. It
is actually safer for B’Lana on Earth. I never would have thought that, but
between the terrorists here and the media, she is too big of a target.”

“Wait, we decided that we were staying until the verdict
came in, why don’t we just stay here in the compound until that happens? I
promise I won’t try to leave or do any more sightseeing or shopping. I do
believe that we should stay here and support Lancer, even if he doesn’t want me
around.” I looked to Ash as I said that as I didn’t want to look at Lancer. My
feelings were hurt. I realized that my attraction for him was starting to go
away, but I still wanted to be friends with him. Lancer did not seem to want my
friendship since he left Earth.

“B’Lana, it’s not that I don’t want you here, it’s that I
think it would be safer for you to go home. That’s all.” Lancer looked at me
and tried to grab my hand, but I pulled it away from him.

“Lancer, just admit that you blame me for your situation. I
know you can’t stand me anymore. Why can’t you just let me be your friend and
try to support you? I am truly sorry for anything I did that caused you
trouble.” I had to look away from Lancer as my eyes started to tear up.

“B’Lana, I don’t blame you at all. And I don’t hate you
either. I’m in a tough situation here. Why don’t we take a walk in the garden
after dinner and we can talk about this?”

“Ok, let’s eat before dinner gets cold.”

After dinner Lancer and I walked out to the garden. I turned
to look at Ash and noticed the sadness in his eyes before he put his stoic mask
back on. I wondered what that was about, but decided I needed to focus on the
conversation with Lancer first. I could always talk to Ash later.

“Lancer, please be honest with me. Since you left Earth you
have either ignored me or pushed me away. What’s going on? I thought we were
friends before you left.”

“B’Lana, if I go back to Earth I will be your squad leader
again. We can’t be anything more than that. I know I kissed you back at HQ in
LA and I’m sorry if I led you to believe that there was more between us. You
need to move on, but not with Ash.”

“Lancer, are you serious? You think I am hung up on that one
kiss? It’s been months. Can’t we just be friends? I don’t know why you kissed
me, but I also know you regretted it the very next day. So just get over it.”

“I don’t think I can.” Lancer said softly as he looked at
his feet.

I threw my arms up in the air and said, “Great! You don’t
know if you can be friends with me? After everything we have been through? You
are the one who insisted on changing me into a hybrid for pete’s sake! Why do
you now feel you can’t be friends with me?” I said while pacing back and forth
and yelling at him.

“It’s not that I can’t be friends with you, I can’t get over
that kiss.” Lancer said as I stood there in shock with my open as I was about
to say something but my mind went blank.

Lancer walked over to me and grabbed both of my arms and
kissed me. I mean he really kissed me. He reached around with one arm to hold
my back while his other hand cupped my face. I kissed him back, but it didn’t
feel like it did last time. It was a good kiss, this guy has talent. But I didn’t
feel the butterflies this time.

Just as I was about to stop the kiss, Fillie flew down and
buzzed Lancer’s head. “Boy if you don’t stop kissing her right this minute I
will breathe fire down on you!”

I backed up and laughed. I didn’t know what else to do. It
was so awkward being caught by Fillie twice now with two different guys.

“Fillie, it’s about time you showed up. You missed all of
the action earlier.” I said to her.

“Well, from where I am flying, it looks like I stopped the
action just in time! I warned you about kissing in the garden.” My face
immediately turned red from embarrassment and I hoped that Lancer didn’t
realize Ash had kissed me there as well.

“Fillie, if I promise I won’t kiss Lancer again, will you
give us a few minutes of privacy?”

“Hmph, I will go inside and say hello to everyone and you
have five minutes. If I don’t see you I will send Ash out to bring you back. Do
you understand?” Fillie flapped her wings in front of my face so hard, my hair
looked like it went through a wind tunnel.

“Yes, Fillie, I understand.”

She flew off to the house and I looked up to Lancer hoping
he didn’t know what I did.

“Soooo, Fillie is um… pretty protective of you? When did she
tell you not to kiss boys in the garden?” Lancer said after he put his hands in
his pockets and rubbed the tip of his shoe along the path we were on.

“The night she joined us. She wanted me to understand that I
was staying in THE religious leader’s house and I needed to be on my best
behavior.” It was my turn to look down at the path.

“B’Lana, is there something going on between you and Ash? I
know you two are close and I have been gone a while. But I get the feeling
there is more than just friendship.” Lancer looked at me with longing in his
eyes as he reached out to hold my hand.

“Lancer, I remember what you told me about him. I know he is
a playboy, even if he tries to deny it. But we have gotten close. We are really
good friends. He has been there for me from the start. And I can’t even count
how many times he has saved me. We train together every day and we usually tag
team fight now as well. When you come back you will see how close we are. But I
haven’t forgotten what you said. I hope you know I really do want to be your
friend.” This conversation had turned awkward since the kiss. I didn’t know
what to say or do. But I knew Fillie was coming back soon.

“I think we better go inside before Fillie comes out here
and gives you a buzz cut.” We both laughed at that and headed inside.

“B’Lana,” Lancer stopped me by putting his hand on my shoulder,
“I do want to try being friends. I appreciate you coming here and staying until
I hear the verdict. I hope you will be there with me we the judge calls us
back.”

“I wouldn’t be anywhere else. Lancer, we are friends. You
and I are bonded, you helped to create the new me. I have your blood flowing in
my veins now. I think we will always be connected. Don’t forget that.”

Ash walked up to us both at that time and asked if we wanted
to play some Sennafae board games. I told him I was up for anything.

So we spent the next few hours playing games that felt a lot
like Earth games. We all went to bed quite late as we were sure that it would
be a few more days before the verdict came in.

We were wrong…

The Reverend woke us all up around 10 am to let us know that
the verdict was in. We had to be at the courthouse by 1 pm that afternoon. We
all hurried up and got ready and ate a good brunch.

We took a lot of guards with us. After the mall incident,
the Reverend didn’t think we should be out with anything less than twenty
guards. I thought it was probably because he didn’t feel safe outside his
compound if I was anywhere near him.

I didn’t blame him, I was toxic…

We all filed into the courthouse a few minutes before 1pm.
Ash and I sat directly behind Lancer. We were all chatting and I could tell
Lancer was nervous. He kept looking at the clock and his right foot was
bouncing so high his knee kept hitting the bottom of the table.

The judge walked in and all talking stopped, you could hear
a pin drop as he took his seat.

“I have made my decision in the case against Lancer in
regards to the charges brought against him for his actions on Earth. Lancer,
please stand up.” Lancer stood up straight and looked right at the judge. Ash
grabbed my hand and held on tight as we waited.

“I believe that Lancer acted appropriately during the battle
with the renegade Rippers at the sewer in LA. I also find that his actions in
regards to changing B’Lana into a hybrid were fitting. I do believe he should
have waited until his superiors gave him the approval, but that may have cost
B’Lana her life. Saving her life was the proper course of action. But I would
caution against this type of action again. Next time wait for the approval from
your chain of command. All charges have been cleared and Lancer you are free to
return to active duty.

“Due to the press coverage, I highly suggest you stay out of
the spotlight for a while. But where you go is up to your commander. If he were
here, I would suggest sending you back to Earth and ensuring that you spend as
much time as possible training B’Lana to help defend Sendryl from the
terrorists who insist on bringing back humans to use as fodder for their
agenda.” The judge looked at me when he said that last part, and then he stood up
and left.

As soon as the judge was out of the room, I jumped up and
ran to Lancer and gave him a great big hug. “Lancer I’m so excited for you!
Does this mean you are going back to Earth with us tonight?”

Lancer hugged me back and then shook hands with Ash, “Yes, I
already heard from the commander; he said that if I was released I was to
report back to Earth as soon as possible. So we are all going home tonight.”

“Reverend, I can’t thank you enough for all of your support
and protection for my friends. I know they would not have made it this far
without your protection. I don’t know how I will ever be able to repay you. If
you ever need anything just let me know.” Lancer seemed to have grown close
with the Reverend during his time on Sendryl. Instead of shaking his hand, he
reached out to hug him.

“My boy, it was a pleasure for me to extend my protections
to you and your friends. Any time you are here, please come and stay with me.

“B’Lana, I would be very interested to hear how you are
developing. I suspect you might have some talents which you don’t yet
understand. If I can help you in any way, please allow me to be of service.”
The Reverend was saying his goodbyes here as he had places to be this
afternoon. We planned to go back to his house and pack up our things and head
straight back to Earth.

However, that was not in the cards for us…

BOOM!

As we walked outside we heard an explosion and felt the heat
from the blast as it threw us back against the building. My back cracked and I
couldn’t get up right away. All I could hear was ringing in my ears and blood
was trailing down my right ear. I couldn’t see straight either. I kept opening
and closing my eyes hoping they would focus.

Ash was next to me and he reached out to me and turned me so
that he could see my face. “B’Lana, answer me B’Lana. Are you Ok? Can you hear
me?”

I looked into his face but really couldn’t see him, his face
was a bit foggy. I saw his lips moving a little bit and still could barely hear
him. His hand came up to cup my face and he kissed me on my forehead and then
on my cheek. That closeness seemed to wake me up from the trance I was in.

“Ash, what happened? Was that a bomb that went off? Is
everyone Ok?” I started to look around and saw several bodies on the ground in
front of us. One of which was Lancer. I took a double take and my adrenaline
kicked in.

“Oh my moons! Lancer, are you ok?” I screamed as I crawled over
to his body. He wasn’t moving and his eyes were closed. He was covered in dust,
rubble, and body parts. I knelt down next to him and felt for a pulse. It was
there, but it was faint.

I took everything off of him and tried to assess for
damages. I had received some first aid training from the Red Cross a few years
before. Trying to remember my training was difficult as I later learned that I
had a concussion.

“Ash, we gotta move out of here. Are the cars safe?” I
asked. He had taken a defensive stance above me and he scanned the area for
enemy forces.

“B, I think the bomb was in one of the vehicles. That’s why
it did so much damage. Look around, nothing in front of the courthouse is still
standing. That rubble over there,” he pointed to the middle of the driveway,
“It used to be a water fountain. And to the left, that used to be two statues
of our founding fathers. I don’t think we could even get the SUV’s going. But I
would be too afraid to try them. We gotta move away from here. I will see how
many guards are still standing and we will carry Lancer to safety.

“Here, take my phone and call my sister. Tell her where we
are and what happened and ask her to round up everyone to help. Also, make sure
she has Netty at the clinic closest to here so that she can look at Lancer once
we get there.”

I called his sister and told her what happened. She gave me
a location to get to with the promise that a fully armed group would be waiting
for us when we arrived. We both agreed that this place was going to be very
difficult to get into once the emergency personnel arrived.

“Ash, I don’t have anything other than a knife on me. I am
lucky I had time to get that back from check-in before the bomb went off. And
why aren’t there any sirens or police or medical personnel coming here? Where
is all of the help?”

At that point we all looked around and knew that something,
or someone, was holding up the help we needed. It was time to get moving, the
three of us were the targets and we knew it. Anyone who couldn’t walk was told
to get inside the building and wait for help to arrive, as it would,
eventually.

One of the guards had run inside and found a few weapons and
something we could use as a stretcher to carry Lancer. I found out that the
Reverend was still inside the courthouse, thankfully. He barely had any
injuries, but decided to stay there as he figured he would only slow us down. I
wasn’t sure that was the truth, but I didn’t want to insist that the religious
leader of that planet follow us to a probable death.

At this point, it felt like we might not make it out.

“Ash, do you think that the judge had anything to do with
this?”

“B, it is very possible. We didn’t even know until a few
hours ago that we would be here. But if he was involved he could have timed
this for the terrorists to attack us. But why would he? He is a member of the
high council. If he is involved, then we can’t trust anyone.”

As I tried to stand, the realization of what he said sank
in. The extreme pain I was in only moments before started to numb when I
realized that the fae government might just be trying to kill me and my
friends.

My eyes glazed over as I took in the entire scene in front
of me. Some of the warriors sent to protect me were laying on the ground in
pieces. The car that was supposed to transport us back, or what was left of it,
was ablaze in bluish orange flames. Whatever accelerant they used hadn’t burned
up yet. I wondered if we would even make it out of the driveway before another
car exploded.

We started making our way to the location Anise gave me,
very slowly. Four of the guards carried Lancer on the stretcher while Ash and I
walked in front of everyone looking for any rippers. The other ten guards who
made it out with us covered the rear and sides.

I was barely hobbling along as my back was knocked out of
whack from hitting the side of the building so hard. I had blood and dust all
over my body and cuts grazed my face and hands.

“B, stop for a minute.” Ash reached down and pulled up the
leg of my pants and found some shrapnel in my left leg.

“Alright everyone let’s stop here and assess any injuries we
might have. Does anyone have a first aid kit or something we can use as
bandages?” Ash took off his shirt and ripped it up to use as a cleaning cloth
and bandages. He took the shrapnel out of my leg and cleaned it up as best he
could then wrapped a strip from his shirt around my leg to try and stop the
flow of blood.

My leg started to feel better and I could walk a bit better,
funny how a piece of shrapnel in your leg makes it difficult to walk.

Fillie found me right after we left the courthouse and she
stayed close above us scanning for any enemies. I was exhausted and having
trouble walking, I didn’t think I would be able to use any of my mind powers.
Thank goodness for Fillie!

“Girlie, you don’t look too good. Can I get you anything?
How about a small water bottle? I bet I could find you one of those around
here.” Fillie was worried about me and fussing over my appearance. I was
covered in dust from all of the debris of the explosion.

“Fillie, if you could find some water for all of us, that
would wonderful. I think we all need it right about now.” I wasn’t going to be
the only one drinking any water. Fillie flew off to look for a store. My mouth
was so dry my tongue was sticking to the roof of my mouth. It felt like I had a
mouthful of dust I couldn’t get rid of.

She flew back to me about ten minutes later with a water
bottle in each claw. We all stopped along the side of road to share the two
bottles of water amongst the sixteen of us. No one got more than a couple
mouthfuls. But it helped.

“Thank you Fillie, please let me know if you see any more on
our path.”

“Girlie, I see trouble up ahead. There looks to be a
blockade on this street. That must be why none of the emergency vehicles made
their way to you. I will go get a closer look to see if friend or foe controls
that blockade. Probably foe.” Fillie took off.

“Ash, I think we need to go down a different path. That
blockade up there is most likely controlled by the rippers. We are not in any
position to fight right now.” I looked at him with pleading eyes. I was
exhausted and I knew the guards were as well. They took turns carrying Lancer
but they were still exhausted.

“I agree B, let’s turn right down this next street and see
where that leads us. I know a few more turns and we will be in a different
district, one that will get us closer to Anise and help, but I don’t know where
the enemy has their blockades set up. We might have to lay low somewhere while
a few go out and scout the area.”

“We could have Fillie fly up higher and check for safe pathways.”
I knew Fillie was not tired and would help us out.

As we turned down another street, we heard a noise. I looked
to my right and saw movement. I brought out my knife and all of the guards
slowly came around us with their weapons drawn as well.

“Whoa, whoa, it’s just me. You know, your friend, Xandrie”
She put her hands up and was walking slowly towards me.

“Xandrie! Am I happy to see you! How did you find us?” I
asked her as I hugged her.

“I was walking towards the courthouse after I heard what
happened. There are multiple checkpoints that are manned by Rippers. Did you
know that? They must have known you were all going to be there today. How did
they know that? This took some serious planning to put in motion.

“Our government is trying to get enough warriors together to
attack the blockades and get you guys to safety. I have water for everyone and
a bit of food too, along with some medical supplies. Who is on the stretcher?”
Xandrie started taking out the items she had in her backpack and passed them
around to everyone.

Xandrie looked at my leg and took off Ash’s makeshift
bandage. Then she cleaned and dressed my wound. She told me I would most likely
need to see a real healer to have the wound cleaned out and get some medicine
so I wouldn’t get an infection.

While Xandrie made her way around our group checking wounds
and redressing them, we all started drinking and eating the snacks she had for
us. After a ten minute break we were ready to go again. All of us seemed to
have more energy now.

Fillie came back to tell us basically the same thing that
Xandrie did, the checkpoints were manned by the enemy. This was a huge effort
on their part. We couldn’t figure out how they knew we were going to be there.
We didn’t even know until three hours beforehand.

Xandrie and Fillie both discussed the best way to get us out
of there. So we headed the way they directed. Fillie would fly around us to
make sure no one was sneaking up on us. However, the safest path was at least
five miles from the meeting spot with Anise. Ash figured it would take us at
least another hour and a half to get there. And that was only if we didn’t come
across anything to slow us down.

Which of course we did…

As we turned down a street that Ash guessed marked the half
way point, someone found us.

“B’Lana, I am surprised you made it this far with Lancer in
tow. But I sure am glad I am the one who found you. It makes up for what you
did to me the other day.”