Free A Warrior's Revenge by Guy Stanton III Page A

into
darkness. Ambient lighting came back on within seconds to
illuminate the room, but the lights of the technology were all
gone.
    The red haired woman lay shaking violently
up against Loric, who looked like he didn’t know what to do. The
Abby woman said, “It’s been too long!” as she gripped her hands
together in frightful worry.
    Concern overcame fear and Kana stepped
forward toward Loric and the woman. The woman was in shock, as Zora
would’ve said.
    “I need blankets. Lots of them!” Kana said
and Eshta rushed forward with a castoff pile of them and helped her
wrap up the woman, as they gently laid her down onto the floor that
had drained free of water.
    The glowing blue eyes found Kana’s face and
she felt the woman’s words whisper into her consciousness, “Thank
you.”
    This was all too weird for Kana, but she
pushed on to care for the woman all the while really hoping that
the woman couldn’t speak directly into her head and that she had
just fancifully made that part up. Minutes went by and the woman
stopped shaking and started to look around the room and study each
member of the group assembled within the room.
    Kana couldn’t help but admit how awkward it
felt to sense the blue eyes turned upon her. They were both
mesmerizing and terrifying. She didn’t know what to think about
this strange woman other than that she had manners.
    Ellanara lay on the floor. She wanted to cry
and scream, but she didn’t want to freak out the gathered woman
anymore than she had. They would not even meet her gaze for long
out of fear of what they saw. It was hard not to freak out herself
because of what she had done to accomplish the work assigned to
her. No one wants to be a freak, but clearly in the eyes of these
girls she was made one by her eyes alone.
    Ellanara looked upward and met the gaze of
the man, who was the only one, who wouldn’t break eye contact with
her. She sensed strength and pain.
    “What is your name?” She whispered finding
her natural voice again.
    “Loric.” He said back softly in
response.
    It was all too much for Ellanara, as she
felt the rise of emotion carry her past any means of self-control.
Brokenly she said, “I wonder how many fathers one has to go back
from yours to get to mine? It seems just like yesterday that my
father was here standing beside me.” Her body jerked on a sob and
Loric picked her up off the floor and hugged her tightly to himself
for a long moment.
    “Is everything gone?” Ellanara asked against
his shoulder as he held her.
    “Yes.” Loric said with an awful finality to
his one word statement.
    “But at least you have survived.” Ellanara
said patting Loric’s cheek, before she started to struggle up to
her feet. Loric helped her and remained close by to give her
support if she should need it. Ellanara looked about, only to see
that Abby had already shown the others to their sleeping quarters
and that she was alone in the room except for Loric and the dark
skinned girl, who looked so much like her older adopted sister
Zarsha.
    Feeling quite wobbly on her feet Ellanara
step toward the girl that she surmised must be Loric’s, “What’s
your name?” She asked.
    “Kana.” The young woman said hesitantly.
    Ellanara smiled, “You’ve told me your first
name and I already know your last.”
    Kana reacted with surprise, “What is
it?”
    “It doesn’t matter; it’ll end out the same
as mine in the end I imagine.” Ellanara said pointedly looking at
Loric, whose complexion reddened slightly. Kana glanced down
looking embarrassed, as she too caught Ellanara’s drift of thought,
in reference to her and Loric being together as a married
couple.
    Ellanara, bolstered by being able to stand
and then walk, said, “I’m going out one last time to say
goodbye.”
    “I wouldn’t do that! It’s not good!” Loric
said warningly.
    Ellanara turned and gave him a direct stare
that was lit up by the intensity of her blue eyes, “I know. I
wouldn’t have