Klaxons sounded through the ship, and Fiducius stumbled as the floor beneath him lurched, sending him into the wall. Holding onto his cards with one hand, he stumbled forward, trying to find the other senshi. "Tsaria! Apsyrtus! Strenua!" he shouted, looking around.
The ship had been heavily damaged by the attack that had come, the ship ceasing all movement, now stranded among the rocks that revolved in their independant orbits around them, oblivious to the sail ship's distress. An uneasy feeling lodging in his stomach, Fiducius moved forward as the ship settled again, shouting again.
From a room ahead of him, Apsyrtus toppled out into the hall, laying where he had fallen. "Apsyrtus!" Fiducius shouted in alarm, going over to the man and shaking his shoulder. "Say something, are you all right?"
"Something," the man muttered, spitting out a bit of blood. "Do I get bonus points for being a smartass?"
"Not right now. What's going on?" Fiducius asked.
"That's what I'm trying to figure out. We took some sort of attack that took out our engines. It may have come from the inside," Apsyrtus said, getting to his feet with the help of Fiducius as the ship lurched again. "We need to find the others. Is Strenua responding to your calls?"
"No. I'm starting to get worried. Where are they?"
"Last I checked, Strenua was with Gaussia and the new girl in the infirmary. Let's go," Apsyrtus said, standing. "I don't have your powers, but I've got a terrible feeling about this. We need to find them as fast as possible.
Ahead of them, a scream came from the infirmary, and Fiducius pushed himself ahead, throwing open the door. Barely stopping to think, he cast a card at Gaussia, covering her with a shield that deflected the whip aimed for her face.
Whip?
Fiducius turned, and met Imperatrix's cool gaze, the senshi recoiling his whip. "Hello, fortune teller."
"Imperatrix!" Apsyrtus shouted. "What the hell are you doing? "
Fiducius took a look around the room as he noticed Tsaria was streaked with blood, and his breath caught in his throat. Laying on the floor was the new girl, Riccati, whose confused, terrified eyes were now blank and milky, her chest open with a gaping hole that she couldn't have possibly survived. Laying next to her was Strenua, the alien facedown with a pool of his own blood beneath him. "Strenua!" he shouted in shock and horror.
Imperatrix merely smiled at Apsyrtus, spreading his arms. "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm eliminating the opposition to me."
"What are you talking about? We're your allies, Imperatrix! What did they do to you?"
The other man held up his arm, showing his bare wrists. "It was nothing they did. It was more a realization. This is an army, Apsyrtus, one that's ripe for the taking. I can use this army, give it a new order."
"And you do that by taking others' lives?!" Apsyrtus drew his bow, putting an arrow to the string. "Have you gone mad?!"
The whip cracked out, tossing the bow from the Colchis senshi's hand. "Don't make me laugh, Apsyrtus. You, go up against me? You have no chance."
"I'm not letting you proceed a step further," Apsyrtus said, throwing his head high, a cool gleam in his eyes. "I'll stop you right here and now."
"I don't think you're listening," Imperatrix said, cracking the whip out again. A thin line of blood appeared on Apsyrtus's cheek, but he didn't flinch or break his gaze. "You have no chance against me."
"Imperatrix!" Fiducius shouted, holding up the six of swords. The weapons lauched outwards, forcing the man back. Cracking the whip out again, he observed Fiducius as Apsyrtus retrieved the bow. "So you have a few tricks, fortune teller. I won't make the mistake of underestimating you. I'll tear you down here and now."
"Not if I can help it," Apsyrtus growled, firing off an arrow. Imperatrix knocked it out of the air with a whip, then set his daggers flying at the pair. Fiducius put up a larger shield, the dome protecting the pair of them.
"Tsaria, are you all right?" Fiducius asked, glancing over at her.
She managed a jerky nod, getting to her feet. "I'm fine. He... He...." She seemed to be in shock from Imperatrix's murderous rampage.
"It's okay," Fiducius reassured her softly. "Get out of here. Go find Thais, see if he's okay."
She nodded again, stumbling as she lurched her way out of the door. "He won't be able to save the pair of you," Imperatrix said with a smile. "It's too late for you. Once I eliminate the pair of you, nothing will stand in the way of my power."
"Damn it!" Fiducius shouted as Imperatrix launched more daggers against them, knocking them back with the force as the shield gave way. "What do you want me to do, Apsyrtus?"
Apsyrtus looked around for inspiration. "I have an idea," he mumbled in a low tone so that Imperatrix couldn't hear, and in a few words explained his plan.
"Try all you like," Imperatrix snorted, "it will do you no good." He readied the whip as Fiducius drew another card, lauching at him. Imperatrix merely laughed, knocking out of the air with his hand. "What are you going to do, fortune teller? Paper cut me to death?"
"No," Apsyrtus said, and then there was a smile on his face. "Just give you enough of a distraction for us to put your name on a new black hole."
Imperatrix whirled, turning toward Strenua. The alien, despite his wounds, was on his feet again, holding out his hands, distorting space around Imperatrix to draw him in and crush him on an atomic level. "I don't think so!" the traitor senshi hissed, cracking his whip out at Strenua.
The whip went through thin air. What wasn't thin air, however, was the three arrows that found their way into Imperatrix's back in quick succession, with a fourth through the neck. His eyes widened briefly before he dropped to the ground, blood oozing from his own wounds. Apsyrtus stood over the body, panting for breath, still holding the bow in his hands. "We'll burn the body to ensure there's no more funny business out of him. How...How is Strenua?"
Fiducius returned the card to his deck and knelt by the real Strenua, who hadn't moved the entire time. Turning him over, he could see that he had suffered a similar wound to Riccati, but hadn't let Imperatrix make off with his starseed. His head was also bleeding from a wound sustained, either from Imperatrix or a piece of the ship falling on him. The alien opened his eyes as Fiducius turned him over, focusing on the other senshi and whistling a question.
Apsyrtus knelt next to him, whistling a response, almost unable to complete the notes from his voice choking up. "No...worry," the alien gasped out at last, clutching Fiducius's hand. "I... will go on."
"Strenua," Apsyrtus whispered, tears rolling down his cheeks as he hugged his friend to himself, trying to whistle out a last few notes. Fiducius stayed where he was, letting his friend mourn as Strenua's life slipped away from him. "What did he say?" Fiducius asked at last.
"He asked about the girls. I told him they would be okay." Apsyrtus shook his head, clinging to his friend's body. "Strenua. Oh, gods. I can't lose you, I have so much that I still need you for."
"I'm sorry, Apsyrtus," Fiducius murmured.
"I'm tired of hearing those words," Apsyrtus muttered. "I'm tired of people feeling the need to be sorry. How many more are going to die under my command?" He clutched Strenua's body to himself, shoulders shaking.
Fiducius watched, unsure of anything further he could say. At length he said, "What do you want to do with his body?"
"We need to burn it," Apsyrtus finally said. "Same with Riccati. That will ensure that no one can use their starseeds again. They'll be born again, somewhere else."
Fiducius nodded. "I'll--"
"No," Apsyrtus said, standing and picking up his friend's body. "I'll take care of it."
The senshi of Subamara bit his lip as he watched Apsyrtus leave, worried. Apsyrtus had just suffered another devastating blow, the loss of his childhood friend, and Fiducius was worried about his ability to cope and still lead the war against the Galaxia menace. I think it is hopeless after all, Fiducius thought to himself with a sigh. I should warn Pribram.
A sound made him turn, putting his hand to his cards, and Gaussia took a step back in fright. "Did I startle you? I'm sorry," Fiducius apologized softly.
"You look like hell warmed over," Thais observed. The artist was bleeding freely from a wound to the head and another on his arm, and he was walking with a limp, but he was still alive otherwise. "What the hell happened here?"
"Imperatrix," Fiducius murmured. "He was a traitor."
Thais's eyes widened. "You mean they brainwashed him?"
"No. He knew what he was doing. He wanted to kill all of us. He...." He looked down at the girl on the floor. "He killed Riccati. And Strenua."
Thais swore in his own language, turning away from the sight. "Where's Apsyrtus?"
"Taking care of Strenua. Will you give me a hand?" Fiducius gestured to Imperatrix's body. "We need to burn the body to make sure they don't try and steal his starseed."
Thais made a face, but nodded. "What do you want me to do, Fiducius?" Tsaria said softly.
"Check on the crewmen. See if you can save any of them. We'll take care of things here." She frowned, but did as she was told, turning on her heel.
"That was kind of you," Thais observed. "Though I don't think she liked it very much."
"She just saw Imperatrix murder Riccati and Strenua. How much more can we put her through right now?"
Thais shook his head. "Even so, is it any worse than what we're going through?"
Fiducius dropped the body, pushing him into the trash incinerator. "You didn't see them murdered, Thais. None of them were your close friends. Of all of us, you have it the easiest."
"Subamara!" the artist protested, but Fiducius was already leaving.
It was some time before he found Apsyrtus again. The Colchis senshi had burned his friend's body, and now had the ashes in a small, ornate jar, kneeling in front of the urn. "Apsyrtus," Fiducius said quietly. "Could I join you?"
The other senshi didn't respond, but gestured for Fiducius to come forward. He did so, kneeling in the same manner as Apsyrtus and putting his hands together. The Colchis senshi whistled something in Strenua's native language, then repeated it aloud in human language. "The senshi of Strenua has passed on. His memory is written to our world. His presence has enriched our pursuit of the unattainable. We thank him for his life."
Fiducius nodded in agreement, staying with Apsyrtus, ignoring the eventual ache in his legs from sitting still for so long. "Why aren't you with Gaussia?" Apsyrtus asked finally.
"You sent me to her when she had no one. Now you have no one," Fiducius replied quietly. "I need to be here."
"You should help her. She must be terrified right now."
"And what about you? You just lost Strenua, Apsyrtus. You have to be in pain from that."
"Do you have to keep reminding me?" Apsyrtus snapped suddenly, standing. "I know damn well he's gone! The friend that I've had since childhood is gone. I don't have anyone anymore. Not Tynka, and not Strenua."
Fiducius stood, and then pulled the older man into a hug. "You have me, Apsyrtus. I'm here for you. That's why I'm here. I'm glad I met Strenua and was able to know him, too. I mourn his loss. But I'm more worried about you. Nothing can harm Strenua anymore, but plenty can harm you. Stop trying to withdraw from me. You need to mourn, damn it!"
"I don't have time to mourn!" Apsyrtus shouted. "One of our allies just killed two more of our allies, and that's all we have. There's you, me, Gaussia, and Thais. How are we supposed to win with half the numbers? I'm not a strategic genius. I can't make a plan under these circumstances! But I have to. I can't stand the thought of more of us dying. I don't want to lose you too, Fiducius. But what can I do? I don't know anymore!"
"I don't, either," Fiducius said, tightening his arms around the taller man's neck. "But we can't give up, Apsyrtus. Don't you want to protect Tynka and Strenua for the two of them? What about your home, my home? If we give up, they'll be destroyed. What else can we do?"
"I don't know," Apsyrtus mumbled, leaning his head against Fiducius's shoulder. "I don't know."
"We'll think of something," Fiducius said. "Right now we need to worry about getting the ship back to Strenua to get it repaired. Or to somewhere else, but we're sitting ducks here. Let's go check on the status of our equipment and see what we can find out. Okay?"
Apsyrtus didn't protest as Fiducius dragged him away, saying nothing else. "We'll win," Fiducius repeated, and for the first time, he didn't believe it. "We will."
It was late when a knock came on Tsaria's door. The ship was finally in the hands of their allies, the other ships clustered around, making repairs. After a long period, Apsyrtus had finally gone to sleep, and Fiducius had made sure the man would stay asleep for a while. Ahead of him, the door opened, Tsaria already in her nightgown. "I was waiting for you," she said in a soft tone.
He stepped inside, pulling her into a crushing hug. "Thank you for waiting up for me. I'm sorry I left you alone all this time."
"I just got away from the crewmen not too long ago," she said with a shake of her head. "There were a lot injured in the damage. It made me feel better to help them out at least. I couldn't help Riccati or Strenua, but...."
"Shh," he urged, stroking her hair. "It's okay. You did what you could."
"How is Apsyrtus?" she asked at last.
"I don't know. This has really shaken him. I'm hoping he'll pull out of it, but he's only human. How much pain can one person suffer through?"
"He'll be all right," she told him. "He has you to rely on."
Fiducius shook his head. "I'm only human, too. I'm not even a gifted speaker like he is. I don't know the words I can say to help heal him. Maybe there aren't any."
She sighed, then pushed back a lock of his hair out of his eyes, touching her forehead to his. "You are human. That's what makes us what we are. It's what makes me believe that you can do this, Fiducius. You're human, unlike those monsters that seek only to destroy."
"They're human, too," he said with another slight shake of his head.
"They aren't."
"Imperatrix was human," he told her softly. "He was still capable of evil. He's still human, though."
"Then I don't know what to think," Tsaria said quietly. "I was taught that people are good. What happened?"
"I don't know. I don't have answers any more than anyone else. All we can do is keep trying to find them. Like Strenua," he recalled. "Always pursuing, but never attaining."
"That's depressing."
"Not if you realize the goal is in the journey," he said with a smile before giving her a soft kiss on the cheek. "Let's not talk about depressing things any more, all right? Right now I just want you to think about how I love you. Okay?"
