Brynn Phytrelia Pt. 02

The one called Thelo came closer to Brynn, both of the men smiling malevolently at her.

Brynn sneered at them. "Don't touch me!" She snapped, shoving his hand away from her.

Hadir cried out as his arm caught fire, but Thelo stepped forward. While Brynn's focus was on Hadir, he swung his fist into her face. His fist was nearly the size of her head.

One second Brynn was fighting, struggling for ground with Moranna's henchmen, and the next she was moving, almost in slow motion, as the unforgiving freight train collided with her head, knocking her off her feet, and causing her to fly, like a rag doll, into the cargo bay bulkhead. She was only vaguely away of leaving the ground, and then she wasn't aware of anything...

*

Brynn put a hand to her head, pressing where the pain was. She winced. She realized that there was blood on her hand now. She started to feel the disorientation fading as she came back to reality. Then the questions started.

Where had those men taken her? Hadn't Idris-? And where was she now? She gasped and sat up. She hadn't been grabbed outside the inn. She'd gotten on a ship, and there was Idris, and some woman...

She got to her hands and knees and then tried to stand, stumbling against the bulkhead and holding it for support as she examined her surroundings. Idris was sprawled on the floor a few arm's-lengths away from her. She struggled to keep her balance as she leaned against the bulkhead as she walked. When she was closer, she moved to her hands and knees again, calling out to him.

"Idris. Captain." She said gently. He didn't move. Don't panic yet, she told herself. Panic does no good in this moment. "Ophelia? What happened, what's wrong with him?"

The blue image came into focus on the floor next to Brynn. "He is alive, Mistress. He is just unconscious."

Idris didn't move. His eyes were closed and the subtle movement of his chest, up and down, was as good of an indication, as anything else, that he was not dead yet. But he was otherwise motionless.

Brynn bit her lip, looking around. "Do I need to...take him to his room?" She said. "Will he wake soon? Do you know?"

The image shook her head. "There is nothing physically wrong with him, Mistress. Nothing that I can detect."

"O-kay. Then to bed with him. There must be a stretcher, or something similar, somewhere? Ophelia, where is it? It would make things much easier on both of us if I did not hurt him trying to move him."

"There is an anti-grav unit in the medical bay. I will use the corridor lights to help you find it." The image pointed, the corridor lights dimming as only the ones leading to her destination remained illuminated.

"Right." Brynn said shortly. "Of course."

She stood again, shakily, and watched as the wall pushed out into the corridor and the complicated process, of unpacking the medical bay, completed. Once she got the anti-grav unit back in the cargo bay, she managed to lift for his shoulders, then his legs into it, and tucked him on securely, fastening the straps so he wouldn't roll off. It activated and lifted Idris from the floor. She tested the control and found it easy to maneuver, pushing him into his room. She pulled his boots and socks off, took a damp cloth and wiped at his face. There was no blood, just dirt from the cargo bay.

She watched him for a long moment and then looked around for a place to sit. She frowned and moved to the aperture, hesitating in the doorway. "Ophelia, let me know if he wakes up or appears to need anything. Please."

She stepped through into the corridor and heard the whir of the closing room. Once she was away from Idris and back in the cargo hold, she felt her emotions bubbling through what wall she had used to suppress them. Fear and rage flooded her and she screamed, slamming her fists against the walls, again and again, screaming nonsense and anger and she broke into wild sobs and fell against the bulkhead, her hands and forearms holding it as she slid down to the floor. She screamed again slammed her palm on the ground. She only stopped when she felt dizzy and exhausted.

She felt nausea creeping up on her, her stomach roiling. She tried to calm herself and the nauseous rage reared in her again. She slammed her fists into the wall, as if trying to break it down, then turned and paced. She was breathing hard. Flames sparked around her, but she did not allow herself to release the firestorm she wanted to. Her body could not damage the ship's cargo bay, but her flames could. She closed her eyes and breathed deeply, calming her nerves and felt the heat dissipating as she lay on the floor, holding herself.

She stood in the aperture now, looking at Idris. He hadn't stirred while she was away. She washed her face for real in the sink and walked to sit on the edge of the bed. "I didn't mean for you to get hurt." She said. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you." She lay back and rolled to her side, facing him, waiting for him to wake up.

Idris stirred, a little at first, and then his hands worked to try to get on either side of his body so he could try to sit up. He was grumbling a little, the groaning noise nearly inaudible at first. His right eye fluttered a little, peeking open as he worked to try to sit up in his bed.

"Maybe you should just lay still." Brynn suggested, grabbing his shoulder and pulling him back down. "Just wake up for a minute, and then sit up." She held her hands against his shoulders to interfere with his movements.

He absently tried to push her arm away as it took his shoulder, but the strength behind his limbs was weaker than he remembered. He grumbled, unable to overcome her strength to sit up out of bed. His hands moved to either side of his head as his eyes rolled around in his skull.

Brynn sighed. "Stubborn man." She said. "Now is the moment you decide to be a stereotypical male?"

He opened his eyes slowly and began speaking to Ophelia instead. "Ophelia...what is our status?"

The image appeared on the side of the bed and began speaking in a matter of fact tone, listing each system. "Life Support: Stable & Online. Artificial Gravity: Stable & Online. Inertial Compensators: Stable & Online. Sublight Engines: Offline. Antispace Travel systems: Offline. Astrogation: Offline. Structural integrity: Stable. However, I am detecting minor damage to outer hull where Atalanta was dragged across the launch deck of the ship we were boarded from. The damage has effected the belly of Atalanta's hull. Nothing serious enough to breach, even without immediate attention, but it is advised that it be repaired prior to a prolonged trip. Combat systems: Offline. Our weapons systems have been disabled and our armaments pilfered. They took their time, Captain, and made sure to leave us with absolutely nothing. In our current status, we are not capable of defeating a sublight corvette."

He groaned and sighed, closing his eyes and lying back on the bed. "Do you know where we are?"

"No. Atalanta's astrography database has been purged, so I am not able to even determine a direction for us to go. We are adrift. The Delethirian woman shot us back out into space after they subdued Mistress Brynn and left us here to die.

He turned and looked at Brynn, his eyes struggling to stay open. "I'm so sorry, Brynn..."

"It's okay." Brynn said immediately. "There is nothing you need to apologize for. Just rest and we'll figure everything out when we can. The life support is working and we're not dead, so...we have that."

He closed his eyes and laid his head back. "Yes...for now. But we may starve before someone finds us. Or go insane." He sighed and shook his head. "You shouldn't even be here..."

"If it becomes a choice between those who were chasing me and being here, with you, I choose you," Brynn said. "Don't think that I regret coming on ship with you. The only thing I regret was that I could not help. She...she took power from you?" Her voice gentled. Brynn's fire was troublesome, but it was as much a part of her as her own skin. To lose it was...unthinkable.

His expression grew serious and he instinctively avoided her eyes. "I...yes...she did. It's more complicated than I can explain right now."

She let him sit up and he looked at her, his gaze distant and unfocused. He shut his eyes for a long moment and seemed to lose his balance. He braced himself with outstretched arms and just sat there, waiting for his head to stop spinning. He pushed up from the bed and went to leave it from the side opposite where Brynn was, hoping the distance would prevent her from stopping him. "We...we need to get...we have to get the..." He stumbled and caught one of the cabinets for support, pushing himself up on his feet with his arms for a long moment before his strength failed him and he rolled away from it, landing on his back on the floor. He grunted with the force of the impact, his words coming, with difficulty, through the discomfort. "But...I may need...to check and make sure the floor...is still here." He nodded, closing his eyes. His hands moved to the side of his head again.

Brynn was at his side in a moment, wishing he hadn't put the bed between them. "Stop moving." She ordered. "You are confined to your bed until Ophelia and I both sure you can stand without falling. We won't starve. I have incredible luck, you'll see, and we will just have to try to figure out what we can do while you rest. If that's understood, I'll help you back in bed, alright?"

He grumbled and shook his head again. "No really," his words interrupted by a long, deep yawn as his eyes lazily fluttered. "I...I just...I need to...to check..." He yawned again. He opened his eyes, reaching up for the cabinet he'd just tried to use to support himself. "I should signal..." He groaned as stood and his legs shook under his weight, and he looked to the bed, his expression defeated as he frowned. He sighed and reached out to her, deciding to let her put him back in bed.

Brynn held on as he moved over to the bed again. She pulled the sheets back for him to get in. She put the back of her hand to his forehead. It was a useless gesture since Ophelia could see his temperature anyway, and Brynn's hands wouldn't be able to really tell if he was too cold. Still, it made her feel better and he didn't seem to mind. "Do you want anything?" She asked. "Or can I do anything to make you more comfortable?"

He lied down on his back with his knees in the air looking at the ceiling. "No. I'm fine."

Brynn stood, looking down at him for a long moment, as if waiting to see if he would try to get up again. He watched her, and sighed, closing his eyes and very quickly falling asleep. She left him again, and made her way to the cockpit.

"Ophelia?"

"Yes, Mistress?"

"Please tell me if he tries to move again? And...can we send out a call for help, or something? Is there anything I can do to help?"

The image appeared on the console next to her. "I am afraid not, Mistress. The only thing we can do is simply wait here for someone to run into us. Captain Chariton might have a better idea in regards to a logical or helpful course of action, but I am afraid that I have very little to provide, in that regard. However, if you wish to remain in the cockpit, while the captain sleeps, I would be happy to let you know when he wakes up again. May I ask: is there anything specific you would like to try to accomplish?"

"Well, I can follow instructions." Brynn said, though doubtfully. "If you can talk me through maybe setting up some sort of...distress signal, maybe...or maybe..." She faltered. "This is a mistake. I made a mistake. I should have told her to take me instead, or...take...take it..." She felt sickened at the thought of losing her abilities. She felt the emotions welling up again and schooled herself into pushing them back down. "If there is absolutely no way I can help, I guess I will stay with Idris. That way, I can at least make him stay where he is for a while."

"More than likely, sending out a distress call will only invite someone who would cause us even more distress. In the meantime, it is likely that Captain Chariton, if nothing else, would enjoy the comfort of your presence. And since he appears to be having such a difficult time handling his own recovery, I think that your plan is the most logical thing you can do right now. As to whether or not the twilight mistress would not have simply killed you and left Idris here, wallowing with guilt for the pain he had brought you, it is likely that his choice brought about the least amount of suffering for both of you, despite what it seems to have done to his physical strength."

"Small comforts." Brynn frowned and stood again, returning to Idris's room. She stood at the aperture for a long moment, watching him sleep with that harsh look on his face. She sat beside him on the floor and propped her chin up in one hand, frowning as she looked over him. Once Idris awoke and felt up to it, perhaps she could help him, but it had to wait. She reached out, delicately, biting the inside of her cheek. Her fingers brushed his hair back, examining his face where that awful woman hit him. When she touched him, he stirred, and allowed his eyes open a little, his hand moving up to try to find her fingers. He didn't make another sound.

Her eyes widened when she realized he was awake, looking like a kid with her hand in the cookie jar. "Did I wake you?" She asked, her voice tight. "I didn't mean to, Id-er, Captain..."

He smiled, shaking his head. "No," he said simply, and held the palm of her hand against his cheek, his eyes closing as he took a deep breath. "It's fine." He let go of her hand, sitting up, very slowly, and turned to look at her straight on, his legs moving to come off the side of the bed. "How long..." He wrinkled his forehead, looking around a moment. "How long was I...asleep?"

She stopped, her face falling. "Only a few minutes."

He frowned and nodded. "I feel like I've been asleep for hours. Oh this is so inconvenient."

Brynn frowned. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to- I'll leave you alone." She stood and moved to rush away from him.

Idris reached to stop her, but wasn't fast enough. "No, Brynn, I didn't mean..." He groaned and got to his feet. He made it to the corridor before the alarm started. "Oh, what now?!" He stopped and realized that it was the proximity alarm. He turned away from where Brynn had gone and rushed to the cockpit.

Brynn poked her head out and watched him moving away from her. She started after him, following the corridor around, and then saw the door to the cockpit close in front of her face. Her jaw dropped and she huffed. "Well, fine then." She turned and walked back to the galley, sitting at the table again.

Ophelia met Brynn in the galley, standing on the table and looking at her. "Good evening, Mistress. Can I help you get something to eat now?"

"He even shut the door on me, Ophelia!" Brynn muttered. "Not like I can be trusted or anything." Her voice was sarcastic as she covered her eyes. She scrubbed her face for a second, growling under her breath, then put her head down on the table, feeling sick and dizzy. Perhaps it wasn't only her temper that had her so out of sorts.

Ophelia nodded. "Yes, Captain Chariton is not authorized to make contact with Admiral Durron with unsecured assets in the room, so he closed the bulkhead door during the duration of their communication. I am sure that once he has completed the conversation, he will reopen the door and meet us in here."

Her head shot up off the table. "I'm sorry but, you said that all very fast. Can you play it back for me? Did you say that Idris is in there talking to someone?"

"Affirmative. He's speaking with Admiral Durron. The Avenger is providing him a proxy buoy to compensate for his antispace transmitter damage."

"Oh, uh...that's great. I'll just wait here until he is done then." Brynn said weakly. She grunted a little as blackness started to creep in on her. She felt weak and run down. It was so overwhelming and sudden that she didn't have time to think about it more than to let her head rest on the table. She fell into an uneasy sleep.

Idris came into the galley to find her asleep. He frowned and sighed. He looked at his chronometer and shook his head. He'd been locked in the cockpit for nearly an hour. His shoulders fell as he moved closer, seeing some of her wounds for the first time, most notably the gash on her head where her face had hit the bulkhead. He leaned down close to her, moving quietly as he tried to get a better look. He looked around and considered trying to move her while she was unconscious, but he wasn't sure if that was the best course of action at the moment.

Brynn felt his eyes or her, as surely as she felt the ache that was settling in each muscle. Her head flew off the table and she looked at him, trying to force the sleep off. She looked a little disoriented and sounded groggy as she spoke. "Oh, are you finally finished?" She asked, rubbing at her eyes. "My apologies, I did not mean to fall asleep."

His expression fell as he nodded. "Yes...I'm sorry. I didn't even know what was happening, and I didn't have time to tell you. Anyway, the good news is that you don't have to stay here anymore. I worked out arrangements for you to get out of here before anything else happens."

"You...?" Brynn said, and felt bitterness well up. "You want me to leave?" For some reason, although he was really only supposed to give her a ride to the next destination he was going, it disappointed her that he'd push her off so quickly. But then again, he'd already sacrificed a great deal to keep her safe. She couldn't expect him to give even more, considering that she had nothing of her own to give him.

His mouth fell open a little, and he fidgeted. "I...well, no...that's not-" He shut his mouth and huffed air out of his nose. "That isn't what I said."

"I mean, of course. I won't trouble you any more than I have, and I am...I..." She couldn't think of what she wanted to say. Or rather, what she wanted to say was stuck in her throat, making her face hot and her eyes blur, so she didn't say it at all.

He shook his head. "It's...no...no, it's not that." He groaned a little, holding up a hand for her to stop. "I...just...assumed that, when they get here, you would want to get as far away from here as you could. Not that I haven't shown you a good time, being hunted down by psychotic Gifted harvesters, and getting thrown around on my ship and-"

She shook her head. "Gifted...what? What do you mean?"

Idris shook his head. "It's what they're called. I mean, it's what you're identified as: a Gifted. You know, a person who has abilities that are not statistically common or are of a supernatural nature?"

Brynn was caught off-guard by this. "I didn't know there was a word for-" She shook her head, bringing herself back. "But why? Why would you assume that?" Brynn asked, and perhaps it was her lack of sleep after everything else. "I never wanted to leave you. I mean, leave here." She stopped. "What I meant was, if you don't mind...I wouldn't mind sticking around to help. Because, well, you already know, you know, and not many will be okay with me being around if they knew, so...if you're fine with it..." She stopped again. "I could be, like, a crew member." She muttered. "Unless you want me to leave. I can learn, maybe...?"

He was at least considering her words. "I...it's not that I don't want you here. Your company is..." Color started to burn his cheeks as he shifted. "And, it's nice...for...another person to..." The color grew darker and he shifted again. "Anyway...it's just, if something happens to you, I...I don't know that I could live with that." His shoulders sank and he looked at the floor.

"I can take care of myself." Brynn said, and reached out to pull at his sleeve, making him look at her. "And if I run into a problem I can't handle by myself, it's a big problem. I mean...if I had been alone, I'd be gone. I'm only here at all because you were with me, each time. If you really want me to be safe, you should keep me closer. That way you can bail me out if I'm in over my head, right?