Chapter 5: First Impressions

Our leaders did not take kindly to being threatened, but the Sages later declared that it was not them who would destroy humanity. They explained that they had come on behalf of one of the Three Great Dragons, and that he would lay waste to our civilization if we did not release his daughter, the White Dragon. As the Sages finished their explanation, they vanished along with their entire vessel. No one knew where they had gone, but I suspected that the Sages were never there to begin with.

Éclair woke up in a white room similar to a laboratory, or a prison cell. She lay on a metal table in the center of the room. Various devices and equipment surrounded her glowing blue and orange. One floating monitor, which beeped to the rhythm of her heartbeat, showed the outline of a human body, which Éclair assumed was a schematic of her own body.

Éclair could almost believe that she was in a hospital, if not for the smell of decay and the signs of death. Stains of blood littered throughout the white room. Most of it seemed to be red human blood, but some of it was green or yellow, which could’ve belonged to any number of alien species. Then again, many alien races had red blood cells like humans, so even the red blood might not necessarily be human.

Bloodied equipment had been scattered all across the room on various surgical tables. Éclair knew these were definitely not medical equipment as the jagged pieces of metal glinted with an evil light. With horror, Éclair realized that she lay trapped in some kind of interrogation room, and worse, that she would most likely be the next victim.

Éclair instinctively tried to sit up, but found that she couldn’t move. At first, she thought she’d been paralyzed, but then she looked down to see a glowing, yellow ring floating around her body and the table. It was a paralysis field, specifically designed to contain Elemental powers and use the energy against their owners by creating a field with the Elemental’s own psions.

Éclair was unable to move anything from the neck down. Without thinking, Éclair attempted to summon her psions, but found that her connection to her inner energies had been severed. This kind of equipment was top of the line, reserved for only the highest levels of the militia. Whoever held her either had ties to the Tarrus military or was extremely wealthy. Either way, it didn’t bode well for Éclair.

As Éclair waited helplessly, she couldn’t help but take note of all the lethal tools around the room and wonder what kind of horrors she would soon be subjected to. One machine looked something like a buzz-saw, the only difference was that its blades glowed with a yellow light like fire.

One machine looked like a helmet, but had an antenna on top that glowed with blue electricity like a miniature lightning storm. More weapons of torture sat in full display like trophies. A jagged knife covered in blood. Surgery blades all covered in blood. Some kind of black metal rod with razor-sharp spikes at the end of it, again, covered in blood. Everything in the room denoted one single common theme, and it made Éclair sick to her stomach.

The smell alone would’ve been enough to put Éclair on edge. The stink of decay seemed almost palpable. Éclair quickly realized that her captors had purposefully let her wake up in this particular room so that she could see the bloody torture devices. Another form of torture, but on the psychological level so that Éclair would tremble in fear at what lay ahead.

Even though she knew that, she couldn’t stop the trembling of her lips, the excessive rising of her chest, or the rapid beating of her heart. Éclair was far from becoming a Third level Elemental, or even a Second Level for that matter; she had yet to undergo the tests of pain. She had been through numerous challenges as an Elemental, but not the Torture Test. Éclair understood the inevitability of torture, but it made things worse considering the possibility that she wouldn’t have the strength to endure it. Éclair slowly willed herself to calm down.

Relax Hamashe. Just calm down! Remember what your godfather taught you. We live in the now, we do not live in the future. To live in fear is to try to live in the future, a future that you can never know until you live through it.

Fear is irrational and irrelevant. It destroys your ability to think, keeps you from making the decisions that just may be the difference between life and death. Some of the worst tragedies in history could have been avoided if the people involved responded with reason instead of with fear. There is nothing to fear but fear itself. Fear is the enemy.

“Fear is the enemy,” said Éclair quietly to herself.

Éclair had heard those words spoken to her countless times by her mentor. When she was enslaved in the mines by the Morlocks, she heard herself saying those words over and over in the dark of her cell when they let their prisoners sleep. She remembered so many nights that she exhausted herself to sleep by saying those words out loud over and over again.

And now, here I am because of my own stupidity! Back in the same position that I found myself in five years ago! Only this time ... there won’t be anyone coming to rescue me.

Éclair quickly admonished herself for such pessimistic thinking.

What am I saying? Those guys are crazy about me! Surely they’ll come ... especially Leon.

Do you really think they care that much for you?

Éclair gasped. The voice had returned. She remembered it now. The voice that she heard in the dark water. The voice that had once been a comfort to her in the darkness of her enslavement.

And even if they do, how can you be sure that they can save you? In the end, we are all prisoners, my dear. We are all bound to one fate. And that is death.

It had been a long time since Éclair had heard that voice. After Leon rescued her from enslavement and took her to the Ministry of Fire, the voice that comforted her for so long, had been her only companion and protector in a sea of pain ... that voice had suddenly turned against her.

It whispered things, evil things that made her wake up in the dark of night screaming in terror. So, Éclair decided to banish the voice. She told it to go away, and for a while, it did. And now, almost five years later, it decided to make a comeback.

Before Éclair could come up with a suitable response to silence the dark voice once and for all, she heard a noise outside. With a hiss and some gas vapor, the door at the opposite end of the room slid open. In stepped three people.

The one in the center came dressed in a dark blue dress suit, expensive leather boots shining brightly, and a golden sash strapped across his chest. The man had a flawless face, but with such plastic and artificial features that Éclair found him disturbing. He had a thin mustache and cruel brown eyes that locked on Éclair with disgust.

The other two humans, flanking either side of him, were a little more difficult to read. One was a tall black man with a bald head and no distinguishable features. He had on a black business suit, but something about the man told Éclair he was no simple merchant. He wore sunglasses even though they were indoors, and his careful bearing implied the gait of a seasoned killer.

As for the last visitor, she was a young girl with blonde hair and deep blue eyes. She wore a simple blue dress that would’ve been fashionable a few eons ago, during the 1950s on Ancient Earth. She looked a little over fifteen or sixteen, not much older than Éclair, and her face seemed innocent and sweet. However, innocent or not, something about the girl unnerved Éclair. She moved almost identically to the big, bald guy.

This girl, as young and pretty as she looked, was also a professional predator. The fact that she could feign innocence made her an even greater threat than the large man at her side. The nobleman, though arrogant and pompous, certainly posed no threat physically. However, his companions made Éclair’s skin crawl, as if a sixth sense warned her of danger.

The nobleman sneered down at Éclair. She got the faint sense that she had seen him somewhere before, but for the life of her, she just couldn’t remember where. With her danger senses heightened to their maximum, Éclair instinctively felt around with her hands for her Ministry medallion that she kept in her pocket. It didn’t follow the normal code of technology, and so it might still be able to transmit a signal, even if the room was shielded.

“Lost something?” said the black man in a quiet voice.

As the bald man spoke, he held up Éclair’s golden medallion on a chain with the Ministry of Fire’s symbol of the lion and the dragon. Her animated creatures within the medallion looked agitated.

“You won’t be needing this anymore,” said the guard as he threw the medallion to the ground and smashed it to pieces beneath his boots. “And don’t bother struggling. This paralysis field is equipped with a Shandaran-class generator. It’s capable of holding any Elementals with Third Level of mastery. By your gear, you’re only a First Level.”

“Who are you, and why have you abducted me?” asked Éclair, trying to show no emotion.

The nobleman stepped forward. “La jeune fille, I’m afraid I’ll be the one asking the questions here.” The nobleman spoke with a slight French accent that positively drizzled with aristocratic arrogance. “First, you will give me your name, and then you’ll give me everything else.”

Don’t panic Éclair. Just remember what Zand taught you. As hopeless as things may seem in the present, that doesn’t mean that they can’t change in the future.

With cold resolve, Éclair faced her aggressors. “I’ll give you my name, but that’s all you’ll get from me. My name is Éclair Kaves. Now tell me this. Why have you abducted me? What is the cause for this unbridled act of aggression against the Ministry of Fire?!”

The man sneered. “Your name is Éclair. You do realize that is not a proper French name?”

“Yeah, I know. My parents named me after some ancient pastry or something. It’s kind of a pet peeve of mine,” replied Éclair irritably.

Well, he does have a French accent, so I guess he would know about these things.

“But that’s beside the point. Why have you kidnapped me?”

The nobleman shrugged arrogantly. “Leave it to uneducated Elemental barbarians to be uncultured. At any rate, why you are here is simple. You are a liability to my plans ... a liability that I intend to correct. My associates noticed on the scanners that you were snooping about in the secret gateway room that our Mystic, Hamma Steel, built for us in the Ministry of Fire.

“You’ve caused quite a stir for us. We had planned to detonate that room after the battle had begun so that the explosion would’ve been blamed on the Water Elementals. Galzar, here, decided to bring you here to my headquarters in District 9, simultaneously detonating the room to get rid of your little friends. I want you to tell me everything you know about our plans and who you learned them from. You will also tell me who else may know ... and you are going to tell me right now.”

Éclair suddenly had a horrible realization. “Are my friends ... are they dead?”

No! No, it can’t be true! No matter what this snake says, I refuse to believe that my friends could have died so easily.

Instead of answering her question, the nobleman took a step forward and leaned over Éclair. “I remember you from the Ministry. That hair, that face, and those eyes. They are difficult to forget.”

The man leered down the length of Éclair’s body and turned back to her with a lecherous grin. Éclair already knew that she wouldn’t like this man before he even started talking, but now she was pretty sure she hated him and wanted to stab a piece of ice in his throat the first chance she got.

“Given a year or two, you would have grown into quite the exceptional beauty, no doubt.” His voice was smothered in innuendo, but his eyes were full of loathing, as if just acknowledging her beauty was a sin.

“Glad you approve, Mr. Creepy Man,” said Éclair. “Unfortunately, you’re not my type. I’m not really into perverted old men, no matter how rich.”

The blonde girl stifled a giggle, which almost made Éclair reevaluate her opinion of the teenager. The nobleman turned to the young girl and slapped her hard across the face with the full force of his arm. The girl staggered slightly before standing up straight at attention, all previous mirth from her face gone.

“Purtain, I’ll deal with you later,” said the noblemen before turning his contemptuous sneer back to Éclair.

That blow looked strong enough to send a grown man tumbling, but she just stood there and took it, observed Éclair. She’s probably a lot stronger than she looks.

“You don’t remember me, do you?” asked the nobleman. “You were rushing off to the market with that disgusting half-breed boy in tow. Even if you are a tainted Elemental, I would think you would still have some shred of humanity left so as not to associate with such beasts.”

Éclair’s eyes narrowed in rage. As annoying as Ryan could be sometimes, Éclair still considered him a good friend, and she would rather suffer Rachel’s taunts before allowing someone to belittle Ryan simply because of his heritage.

“You would do well not to insult my friends, sir.”

The nobleman back-handed Éclair across the face. It stung, and it left a slight trail of blood from Éclair’s mouth, but she took it in silence. “And ‘you would do well’ to show me the proper respect. I am a pure skin after all, and therefore, I am your superior. An untainted human uncorrupted by alien trash! Unlike you revolting Elementals, I am a perfect specimen of humanity, as we were meant to be.”

“How can I respect you if I don’t even know who are?”

The man raised his fist to strike Éclair again, but then smiled and lowered his hand. Éclair knew that he would hardly be able to resist the need to introduce himself, and no doubt brag a little ... she had seen his type many times before. More importantly, it would distract him long enough for Éclair to figure out an escape from her bindings.

Éclair had heard that some Elementals could break paralysis fields if they focused their psions enough. However, one had to be very powerful to do so, and it also depended on the strength of the field. The bald man said that the paralysis field imprisoning her possessed a Shandaran class generator, capable of containing a Third at the very least. Éclair was only a First, but that didn’t mean breaking it would be impossible for her.

Paralysis fields often proved temperamental against more powerful Elementals, and Eramar always told her that she possessed more psions than was the norm for Firsts. If she kept the nobleman talking long enough, maybe it would be possible to slowly charge her psions and overload the paralysis field with a sudden burst of energy. The nobleman wouldn’t be a problem. That would just leave his two lapdogs to deal with.

“You’ve no doubt heard of me,” said the nobleman with a dramatic sweep of his hand. “I am Lord Jefferson Gregory, the scourge of the Ministry of Fire, and soon-to-be Emperor of Tarrus.”

Éclair immediately recognized the name, which made her like the man even less. “You’re that prick of a politician who keeps increasing our taxes! You’re also the man foremost responsible for most of the pollution in Fernady City because your factories aren’t up to code. I still can’t believe that we haven’t been able to get a case against you all these years.”

Lord Gregory seemed pleased by Éclair’s assessment, as if taking it as flattery. “The Ministry of Fire has been a thorn in my side for many years. I am delighted to know that the feeling is mutual.”

Suddenly, a revelation came to Éclair. “You’re the true culprit behind the war! Thousands of Elementals are going to die because of your petty sense of superiority!”

“I certainly hope so,” said Lord Gregory, leaning toward Éclair menacingly. “Because my ‘petty sense of superiority’ is the only thing that will bring to heel the corruption of the cursed Elementals and propel humanity into a new age of prosperity, with me paving the way for our future.”

“You know, you’re starting to remind me of another fanatic from Ancient Earth,” said Éclair dryly. “He had a thin mustache too.”

“Fanatics disrupt society, and my goal is to save it! The Elementals have been a blight on humanity for far too long!”

Éclair scoffed. “Oh, you people weren’t saying that when they saved Tarrus from the Parasites of Black Star. Or when they thwarted the space pirates who nearly drove the Empire to bankruptcy with their raids. Oh! And how about the time that the Elementals helped defeat the Dark Dragon Lords, a force that would’ve not only destroyed humanity, but most of the known universe.”

“Silence your insolence,” cried Lord Gregory as he back-handed Éclair once more. “You dare speak to me with such heresy? Do you not know your own predicament? Do you not know where you are? This is the room where we’ve kept Elemental prisoners like you locked in chains and at our mercy.

“They thought they were so powerful, so superior, and yet it was I who made them bend their backs in submission. I who had them screaming in agony as they all died a most painful death. I could do the same to you. I could have you killed right now. I could torture you within an inch of your life ... have you begging for death before the end. It could take hours, even days before we let you die. The road to death is very long indeed, and very painful, you Elemental whore!”

“Sticks and stones, dear,” said Éclair with a smirk, taking a cue from Ryan.

Lord Gregory’s face turned red with suppressed rage. If Éclair was doomed anyway, she figured that she might as well have a little fun with the ‘honorable’ Lord Gregory.

“You obviously have not had very many dealings with experienced Elementals; otherwise, you would have been better equipped. Elementals are trained to withstand the most horrendous torture, and judging from what I’ve seen around me, you do not have much skill in that department.”

For a brief moment, Lord Gregory appeared confused. “What do you mean?’

Éclair was only speculating, but since she met Lord Gregory, she had reason to suspect his incompetence in certain areas. “This room is a sham! There is way too much blood for prolonged torture. I’d say that most of the victims brought in here died within minutes of their so-called ‘long’ roads to death. This is not a torture chamber, it’s an execution room.

“You expected me to tell you everything I knew right off the bat, that’s why you left me in here to see your handiwork, so that I’d be afraid of what you might put me through. However, most of the equipment in here would kill a person almost instantly. From what I’ve been able to gather, you are good at two things, covering up your dirty little secrets, and ordering people about.

“But I don’t think you are incredibly skilled at prolonged torture, and I doubt your lackeys are either. I’m sure they’re both gifted assassins; however, they look like the types to have devoted all their skills to their profession. Plus, assassins don’t take prisoners in general, so why bother learning the proper methods for torturing people?”

As Éclair spoke, she focused her mental energies in an attempt to touch her psions again. Although the paralysis field suppressed her psionic energy, she still possessed a modicum of synchronicity with her psions. Eramar once made Éclair train for days on low psionic reserves. Time for all that training to pay off. Slowly, very slowly, Éclair gathered what psions she could, concentrating their energies in her gut.

“Also, if you think that ordinary means of torment is enough to break me, then you’re wasting your time,” continued Éclair with her taunting lecture. “Unless you have a professional interrogator in here with the proper equipment to keep me alive while causing pain at the same time, then you will never make me crack.

“I am an experienced Elemental after all, not a child you picked up from the street before their instruction. I was trained to withstand things that no normal human ever could.” It was partially a bluff, but one which Éclair hoped would pay off.

Gregory stared dumbfounded, and Éclair knew that she had been correct in her analysis of the room. She even thought she could detect the faintest smile of admiration coming from the big black guy. Although it appeared that Éclair was just laying quietly on the table, she had continued charging her psions while still maintaining a calm demeanor so as not to reveal the strain she put herself through.

While Éclair had Lord Gregory reeling, she’d also been feeling out the strength of the paralysis field with her psions. She calculated that one strong burst of energy would be enough to partially weaken the field’s intensity, and then it would all come down to her physical strength.

Just a few seconds more, and I’ll have destroyed this paralysis field!

Turning back to the one called Galzar, Lord Gregory sputtered, “SLITHE! GET ME A PROFESSIONAL INTERROGATOR IN HERE, NOW!”

Slithe? thought Éclair. That must be the man’s last name. Have I heard that name before?

“Sir, communications are down due to the EMP detonation within District 8,” Galzar Slithe answered. “The Water Elementals wish to limit the communication system of the Ministry of Fire as much as possible. I’m afraid that it is currently impossible to contact any of your other agents at the present.”

“WELL, CAN’T YOU TORTURE HER, THEN?!”

“Sir, I can try, but as the girl says, I am unfamiliar when dealing with the physical constitution of Elementals, which is several times greater than that of most humans. It will take many hours before I can get anything useful out of her, and by then she would have been too damaged to speak.

“She was correct when she said that none of the equipment in this room is meant for prolonged interrogation ... plus, this facility lacks the necessary medical equipment to revive her should the interrogation prove too strenuous. I’m afraid that she has us at an impasse.”

Éclair steeled herself and focused all her psions into breaking the field. The field suddenly flashed with electricity, and the lights dimmed. Lightning scorched Éclair’s skin, but not enough to be fatal, at least not for an Elemental.

The pain was excruciating, but Éclair forced herself to push on. It took all of her willpower just to keep herself conscious, but somehow, even with her vision failing, she managed to muscle her way out of the energy binds that held her in place.

With a cry of pain, Éclair jumped off the table and punched Lord Gregory in the face, sending him sprawling to the floor unconscious. She made for the door when the blonde girl suddenly blocked her path. If the teenage girl had been surprised by Éclair’s sudden escape, she certainly didn’t show it.

The other assassin seemed perfectly at ease while casually crossing his arms with a bemused grin on his face, as if this were just an everyday occurrence. He made no move to stop Éclair. Perhaps he was confident in the girl’s abilities; however, he would soon learn not to underestimate Éclair Hamashe.

Éclair instinctively fell into her Vok’Gar stance, her years of training in the Saurian martial art under Grafael kicking into high gear. She struck at the girl with an open fist while simultaneously bringing her leg around to sweep the girl off her feet. The girl predicted both attacks, blocking Éclair’s fist while jumping over her leg sweep, moving with speed and grace that went beyond most Elemental fist fighters.

Éclair knew that this fight wouldn’t be easy, especially in her condition. Éclair went on the offensive, alternating between punches and kicks, then jumping off the walls from side to side in order to disorient her opponent. The blonde girl was quick and dodged or blocked Éclair’s every blow with little difficulty.

Suddenly, the blonde girl went for a counterstrike, slamming Éclair in the gut with a quick jab. Éclair was driven breathless momentarily as the blonde girl jumped completely over her head and tried to land a kick at Éclair’s temple. Éclair rolled out of range of the kick, and still recovering from the earlier blow, moved sluggishly in response to the blonde girl’s lightning-fast jabs.

Éclair wanted to use Elemency on the blonde girl, but after barely escaping from the paralysis field she was in no condition to be shooting any ice. Her psions had been completely drained. Eramar had told Éclair that if she tried to use Elemency while her psions were drained, it would mean using up her very lifeforce. In other words, she could die. So Éclair had to rely on physical brawn for this fight, and in that she was obviously no match for this assassin.

The girl drove Éclair into the wall, still unleashing blows like a machine gun. Every punch that Éclair dodged dented into the metal-plated wall behind her with a loud thud!

She’s not only fast, but she’s strong, too. Not as strong as Grafael, but strong enough. However, her pattern is also predictable. She possesses a singular relentless style of martial arts that tirelessly batters away at her opponent. She tries to make up for a lack of defense with a constant offense, forcing her opponent to stay on the defensive so that they have no means of a counterattack. However, if I can use her energy against her somehow, I can strike where her guard is weakest.

From constant sparring matches with Grafael, Éclair had learned to analyze the behavioral patterns of a person while they were in combat. Every sentient being, whether human or otherwise, possessed an unconscious preference to certain actions, much like the way habits are formed.

Just like most people favor one arm instead of the other in writing or everyday activities, so too is it true in combat. The power in the girl’s left arm was much greater and faster than her right arm. This meant that Éclair had to attack the girl from her right side.

As the girl relentlessly battered Éclair with blow after blow, she finally pulled back her left fist for a final strike. Éclair made like she intended to block the attack as she raised her hands. However, at the last second, Éclair sidestepped the punch.

The blonde girl put too much power into the attack, and as a result, her fist went deep into the wall behind Éclair. When the girl tried to pull her fist free, she found the exercise useless as her fist had buried itself too deeply into the wall’s interior. In this instance, having too much power proved to be a liability.

Éclair used the opportunity to attack the girl on her right side. As Éclair predicted, the blonde girl wasn’t nearly as proficient with her right arm as her left, and one arm proved hardly sufficient to block Éclair’s onslaught.

Éclair used a combination of high and low punches, landing a few good hits to the blonde’s gut, abdomen, and throat. Then she jumped in the air and twisted around to place a kick to the girl’s left temple. She hit the girl so hard that her hand dislodged from the wall as she staggered back. Éclair expected that the fight was over now; however, the girl didn’t fall over, but just stood there, as if she were shocked that Éclair had managed to win a blow against her.

Then something unexpected happened. The girl’s hair changed from blonde to raven black. Her skin became green and greasy. The girl raised her head towards Éclair with black splotches dotting her face. She looked more feral than before, wilder. A trail of red blood dribbled from her mouth, but other than that, she seemed unharmed. Her eyes had changed too. They were yellow and green, and so large that they reminded Éclair of the creatures that set fire to her mansion so many years ago.

“You’re a Goblin,” said Éclair in surprise.

Sensing an opportunity from Éclair’s shock, the Goblin girl mimicked Éclair’s move from earlier, using a well-placed roundhouse kick to her head. Éclair slammed into the wall behind her and slumped to the ground. Her body went numb with pain and her vision dimmed. The last thing she remembered was the hunched form of the creature, Galzar, standing next to the Goblin girl; the creature that Éclair mistook for a man.

Ryan started to understand what the big deal was about Hannah’s mysterious vehicle. They stood in the hangar amidst thousands of ground vehicles and star ships. All of them were impressive, but not quite as impressive as Hannah’s ride.

“IT’S A FREAKIN’ TANK!”

“It’s not just a tank. It’s a behemoth! That gargantuan monstrosity is bigger than my den,” said Grafael in awe.

The Saurian spoke the truth. The mega-tank was at least the size of a mansion, with a cannon nearly as big as most starfighters. The cannon was attached to the back in a way that made it look like a scorpion’s tale. At the front of the tank sat a massive lion’s head with actual blue flames shooting out of the mouth in miniature explosions.

Gold and silver armor plating shined throughout the exterior. Spikes jutted out of the giant wheels for vertical motion. This thing could travel over almost any terrain and knock down anything in its path that disagreed with it. Below the bright pink letters that said Lioness were more military-styled letters that read ‘Mecha-Titan A-1: Manticore Class.’ The beautiful vehicle almost brought a tear to Ryan’s eye.