#damaltrix

Emily trembled as she stared at what remained of her assailant. One minute she was expecting to die. The next the Captain was set ablaze. Emily averted her eyes away from burning flames to the woman who caused it.

The woman was tall and stoic with off white and navy blue armor. In her left hand was a flaming hammer that faded away as she approached. She removed her helmet, letting her blond hair fall against her strange, blue flesh. Her already glowing, pale yellow eyes sparkled when she smiled as she knelt down so she was face to face with Emily. Was she an angel?

“ Are you alright, little one?” the woman asked with a silvery voice.

Emily nodded and and wrapped her arms around her shivering body. She hadn't realized how cold she was. When lighting cracked across the sky Emily let out a shriek as she covered her ears. The small child began to sob uncontrollably. She wanted her mother. She wanted to be in Damaltrix’s arms and hear her soothing purrs. Emily heard a twig snap and snapped her head up to see that the woman had gotten closer.

“ You poor thing,” the woman cooed softly as she reached out to the frightened child. “ Let's get you home so you can get warm and dry!”

Emily let out a high pitched scream and scurried away from the woman. Emily was on her feet and running back down the trail to Damaltrix. Damaltrix had to be alright! She was probably looking for Emily right now…

Right?

As soon as Emily emerged from the trail she took in the sickening sight; bodied littered the ground with violet blood already seeping into the earth. Nearby was a group of of Eliksni clad in gold and Humans armed to the teeth surrounding someone by a tree. When Emily got closer she felt her heart almost stop beating in her chest.

Damaltrix was slumpt against a fallen tree covered in blood. The top of her helmet was cracked open, forcing her dark mane to be exposed to the cruel weather. Her breathing was short and labored and her four, glowing eyes were squeezed shut in pain.

“ Mom!” Emily cried and ran to Damaltrix’s side before giving one of her arms a firm shake. “ Mom, please wake up! Please! Get up!”

“ Oi,” a male voice behind her said. “ Where’d you come from, Kid? Ya need to move outta the way so we can take care of the captain.”

Emily spun around and screeched at the man as he grabbed her arm, causing him to leap backwards into a Vandal.

“ Holy Hell!” The man shouted. “ She sounds like an Eliksni!!”

The air around her began to crackle around her with energy as she glared at the group. As if she was the storm. She brought her glowing hand up and aimed it at the man that tried to move her and for a moment Emily thought she saw the lightning take the shape of a dagger in her hand; but before she could do anything a hand seized her wrist and gave it a harsh squeeze. The power that had flooded Emily before was gone in an instant and her vision blurred from exhaustion. She looked and met the glowing, golden eyes of the woman from earlier before Emily fainted into her arms.

———

Damaltrix groaned. Her entire body ached as if she had been hit by multiple Pikes. When she opened her eyes she found herself in a strange room with medical equipment. A medical-bay? That would explain why everything smelled sterile. Her mind immediately went to Emily. Where was she? Was she safe? The Captain tried to sit up and hissed in pain as her wounds began to throb.

< I would’t do that if I were you,> a voice purred. < You will just reopen your wounds.>

Damaltrix’s head snapped to the side and saw the Baroness sitting in the seat beside her with a tablet in her clawed hand. The other Eliksni wore casual, gold robes with a tan trim and fox fur draped on her shoulders along a deep violet sash around her waist. The way the Baroness sat spoke of her noble birth and her higher rank.

The Baroness set the tablet down and smiled as she looked Damaltrix in the eye. < My name is Falyn,> she introduced. < Baroness of Kings and sister to the Kell.>

< I don't care who you are,> Damaltrix growled. < I don’t even care about where we are. The only thing I care about is the wellbeing and the location of the pup that is in my care. Where is Emily?>

< I assure you she is safe, Young Mother.> Falyn shifted in her seat enough so Damaltrix could look past the Baroness. A couch sat under the large window and curled up under a soft-looking blanket with strange, yellow ducks was Emily.

At the sight of the pup’s sleeping form Damaltrix felt her maternal instinct kick in to scoop the small creature into her arms and nuzzle her while making sure no harm had been inflicted. But when she tried to sit up again the Baroness placed a hand on her shoulder and easily forced the Captain back down with little effort.

Damaltrix glared, < Let me go to my pup.>

< You are in no condition to leave this bed and you can’t take care of her while you are bedridden.> Falyn said cooly before turning her head to look at Emily. < She is a curious little thing, isn’t she? My colleague had to stop her before she could release the lightning from her fingertips.>

< ‘Lightning’?>

“ She’s referring to the Arc energy,” an Awoken woman replied as she strolled through the door. Her hypnotic, glowing yellow eyes gazed into Damaltrix’s as she smiled.

“ Ah, Terra, I’m glad you arrived.” Falyn said, “ Damaltrix, this is Terra. The colleague that I mentioned. In fact: she and her husband are the ones that will be taking care of the child till you are better.”

“ I can take care of her,” Damaltrix retorted before she lowered her voice to a whisper. “ Please. There is something about that pup that you wouldn't understand—that I still don't understand.”

“ You mean about her being a hybrid? We already know.” The Baroness tilted her to the side and when Damaltrix gave her a baffled look she continued, “ We have been keeping a close eye on you both for a few months now. We even overheard your conversation with the Kell of Winter—quite bold of you to insult him directly!”

The Captain was stunned to silence. They knew who she and Emily were. These people have been tracking their movements. A realization came over her and she stared at Falyn. “ It was you,” Damaltrix whispered. “ It was you that we saw while crossing the valley yesterday!”

“‘Yesterday?’” Falyn frowned, “ You've been unconscious for three days. But to answer your question: yes. It was my nephew and myself that you saw on the ledge on the day of the attack.”

Damaltrix felt sick. If what Falyn said was true, does that mean that Emily hasn't left her side since they were brought here? Has she eaten anything?

Seeing Damaltrix’s distress Terra spoke up, “ I’ve been coming here to check on the child and made sure that she was eating. However, any attempt I’ve made to remove her from the room sent her into hiding. Please, Damaltrix, we all want Emily to be safe and healthy. The hospital is no place for a child; let me and my husband take care of her till you're better.”

Damaltrix opened her mouth to speak, but quickly closed it when she heard Emily begin to stir from her slumber. Emily rubbed her eyes as she sat up and yawned. When the haziness left her vision Damaltrix saw a spark of joy fill the pup’s eyes. Emily leapt off of the couch in excitement, ignoring the other two adults in the room and without thinking she grabbed the Captain’s arm before immediately retracting her hands when Damaltrix hiss in pain.

“ I'm-I’m sorry!” Emily stammered, “ I forgot you were hurt!”

“ It's alright,” Damaltrix said softly and stroked Emily’s hair. “ I know you didn't mean to, Pup.”

The child purred as relaxed under the Eliksni’s warm hand and gave her a toothy grin, “ Oh! You should have seen Miss Terra, Mom! So, that mean Captain was chasing me through the forest and Miss Terra came out of nowhere and created a fire hammer out of thin air!”

“ Solar,” Arius corrected, “ She make a hammer using her solar energy.”

Damaltrix chuckled before it turned in to a violent cough and groaned from the throbbing pain in her chest. She glanced over at Terra and Falyn and saw the glint of curiosity in the Baroness’ eyes.

“ Emily,” Damaltrix wheezed. “ I need you to go with Miss Terra for a while. It will be safer with her.”

“ But I want to stay with you,” Emily protested with a frown.

“ Please don’t argue with me, Pup. I promise I’ll join you when I'm better.”

Damaltrix watched Emily reluctantly take the Awoken’s hand and leave the room. Now all that remained was the Baroness who was still perched in her seat.

Falyn eyed her for a moment before she spoke. < You made the right decision, Young Mother. The Head Nurse was growing impatient. You have my word that the Pup will be safe in Terra’s care.>

< I’ll believe it when I see it,> Damaltrix huffed. < Tell me, Baroness of Kings, you had the chance to let me die and kill Emily. Why let us live?>

< Honestly?> Falyn stood up and picked up the blanket that Emily had left behind. She held it up to the fluorescent lights as if some secret would reveal itself. < Curiosity got the better of us. It is rare for a hybrid to survive infancy. Even rarer for them to look fully Human! We want to see what she will become. But more importantly: we want to know her parentage. What House flows through her veins.>

< ‘We?’>

It had been three days since Emily and Damaltrix had fled their home. Damaltrix never showed it, but Emily knew that her adoptive mother was exhausted from the constant travel. Sure they’ve stopped every now and then to eat and drink. But the Captain was always on edge, jumping at every little sound and hiding in the cover of the thick trees if a Skiff flew overhead.

But now they faced a dilemma.

Ahead of them was an wide, open valley with a river flowing gently in the center with a couple trees here and there. Far off in the distance was the next part of the forest. They could either take the risk of crossing the valley with no cover, or they could go around the mountains; Emily watched Damaltrix glance out the doorway of the rundown hut that they had found, obviously looking for any signs of trouble. After a moment the Eliksni turned to the small child.

“ We will cross the valley,” Damaltrix announced as she rested her upper hands on handles of her shock blades. “ If we leave now we should be able to reach the other side by nightfall.”

“ Are you sure its a good idea?” Arius spoke up as he floated between them wearing the new Servitor shell that Damaltrix had crafted. “ Shouldn’t we wait and rest before we make the journey?”

The Captain shook her head, “ We’ve rested long enough, Arius. The sooner we leave, the more distance we’ll put between us and the Trackers. Now come. We mustn't delay ourselves any move than we already have.”

Emily stood up and followed the large creature out of the hut and began their long trek through the valley. The air was filled with the sweet scent of flowers and the sounds of birds and the flowing river and their footfalls on the barely visible path. It wasn't long before something glinting caught her eye. High on a ridge were a group of Eliksni wearing similar armor to Damaltrix, but it was yellow instead of teal. Two of them were much larger and stood out from the rest of the group.

“ Mama?” Emily spoke nervously as she tugged on the Captain’s cloak and pointed to the group. “ Mama, are they the Trackers that you were talking about?”

Damaltrix didn't stop walking, but looked to where Emily was pointing. “ No, Emily, they are not the Trackers that I spoke of. That is a patrol from House of Kings; though, it is a concern to actually see them out in the open…”

“ Why?” Emily asked and tilted her head in confusion at Damaltrix.

“ House Kings,” Damaltrix started as she pondered how to fully answer the question. “ Is the strongest house of them all, but also the most secretive. My House along with House of Devils worked along side them during the Battle of Twilight Gap.”

“ So this is their territory?” Arius asked peeking out of his hiding spot.

Damaltrix nodded, “ It must be. The two larger ones are Baron and Baroness—a rank higher and are born nobility. Let us hope that they let us pass through and not attack us.”

Emily looked back up at the Kings patrol and watched as one of the Barons lean over to the other and say something before leaving with some Dregs and Vandals. The first one stayed behind with a few of their own crew and almost seemed to lock eyes with the young guardian. Emily only looked away when her mother called out to her when she fell behind and hurried back to the Eliksni’s side. When she glanced at the ridge the group was gone.

Hours later they were over the halfway mark in their journey through the valley when dark storm clouds began to block the sun. At the sound of rolling thunder threatening to pour rain on them the strange duo moved faster towards the distant trees.

“ We’re almost there,” Damaltrix said reassuringly. “ And with the storm we should be able to throw the Trackers off our trail!”

Emily opened her mouth to respond, but immediately clamped it shut when a new sound filled the air. She squinted at the dark, clouded sky and quickly pointed to the skiff illuminated by the lightning as it made its decent. “ Mom, does that skiff belong to House Kings?”

A high pitch shriek filled the air as Damaltrix scooped the tiny child into her arms, “ That is not House Kings; its the Trackers! They found us!”

As the Captain sprinted for the safety of the trees Emily wiggled up to peek over Damaltrix’s shoulder. She watched the Dregs and Vandals hop out of the skiff and a Captain that looked larger than her alien mother. The Captain stood to his full height as his underlings shifted eagerly. It was only only when lightning cracked across the sky again and the first drops of rain came down did the large creature release a battle cry.

At the tree line Damaltrix set Emily down and shoved her towards the dark forest. “ Go!” She yelled and turned to face the enemy with her shock blades drawn, “ run as far as you can go. I’ll hold them off for as long as I can!”

Before Emily could protest Damaltrix released a roar and charged at the large group head on. She watched as a blade sliced a Vandal’s chest open and heard its pained cry as it fell and laid motionless in the mud. Emily remained frozen in her spot, too terrified to move as the rain began to pour down.

“ Emily! We have to run!” At Arius’ voice she finally spun around and darted into the thick forest. Mud covered her boots as she splashed through the puddles and thorn bushes scraped against her face and snagged her clothes; behind her gunfire, roars, and shrieks of pain filled the air. Emily tripped and let out a pained cry as she landed face first into a mud puddle with a hidden tree root. She brought a hand up to her forehead and groaned as she sat up.

“ Let me take a quick look,” Arius said as he popped out of her small pack. The small drone scanned her with the light and murmured, “ hmm…just a small cut. But nothing I can’t fix!”

-Six Months Later-

It was late afternoon when Damaltrix finished repairing the communication console as she listened to Emily play outside. After traveling for two months they discovered a den abandoned by House Devils with broken consoles and other things that could be salvaged and decided to make the den their home. At first she thought it was strange that the place would be abandoned, but after speaking with Arius -a name that Emily decided to call her ghost- they agreed that it was possibly because they were chased out by Guardians. So for four months Damaltrix and Emily scavenged what they could to fix the consoles and Damaltrix also took the time to teach Emily to speak Eliksni and some Eliksni customs.

Damaltrix held her breath as she hit the power button and thanked the Great Machine as the console whirred to life. She quickly typed away as her clawed hands danced across the screen; someone from her house will eventually answer her call. But when the line finally went through her joy was extinguished as her blood ran cold when a terrifyingly familiar growl came through.

< Hello, Valkyrie. Or should I start calling you ‘Damaltrix, the Deserter’?>

< Draksis!> Damaltrix stammered in shock, < To what-to what do I owe the pleasure of speaking to you directly, My Kell?>

Draksis snarled, < Don’t act so shocked! You knew that eventually that you’d have to answer for abandoning your post, Damaltrix. SPEAK! Why have you shirked your duties?>

< I did not abandon my post,> Damaltrix replied quickly as her heart hammered against her chest. < My skiff was shot down over the EDZ and I was the only one to survive the impact, Sire.>

< And it took you a year to find a way to contact your House? I thought you were a Captain not a pathetic Dreg!>

Damaltrix flinched at the Kell of Winter’s harsh voice, < My apologies. I truly tried to find a way to make contact! It just…took longer than I had hoped. I also came into possession of something odd.>

< Define ‘odd’, Valkyrie.>

Before Damaltrix could say another word Emily bounded up to her and wrapped her small arms around the Captain’s leg. The pup looked up at her with a cheerful grin, “ did you finally got it working, Mom?”

There was a eerie silence before Draksis spoke slowly, < What the hell was that?>

< My Kell,> Damaltrix started quickly. < Please allow me to explain! I found a Pup—>

< Human or Awoken?>

< —Human. She was originally dead, but I saw her revival with my own eyes—>

< So It’s one of the dead thieves,> Draksis growled.

< —Well, yes…but, my Kell, I don’t think this Pup is truly Human. There are things that she does that are Eliksni! She purrs, snarls, and-and she can consume Ether! Well…only a small quantity, but her body can handle it with no complications!>

< It’s a Half-breed!> Draksis’ thundered. < There is now a way for you to redeem yourself, Damaltrix. Kill the abomination. Kill It and It’s weak light! Only then can you return to the House.>

Damaltrix looked down at Emily whose eyes were wide with horror. She knew Emily understood most of the words that was spoken. The Captain gently stroked the little guardian’s brown hair before taking a shaky breath and addressed the console. < No.>

< What did you just say to me, Wretch?>

< You heard me perfectly well, Draksis.> Damaltrix stood tall as she growled at the console, < I refuse to kill her! I don’t care about her parentage nor the fact she is a guardian. I will gladly raise her as my very own, even if it means I have to live in exile for the rest of my days. And I refuse to take orders from cowardly Kell who is afraid of a child!>

The Kell was silent for what felt like an eternity. But when Draksis finally spoke his voice was filled with venom, < You dare refuse a direct order from your Kell? Very well. Since you refuse to kill the abomination then you can join It in death! The Trackers have already been dispatched to your loca—>

Damaltrix grabbed the crowbar and swiftly brought it down over and over till the console was nothing but sparking scrap metal as she silently cursed herself. The Trackers. How could she have forgotten about them? They were the best that Draksis had and were capable of traveling for days, even weeks without rest. One thing was true was that they wouldn't stop till their target was either captured or eliminated.

And she had led them here.

With lightning speed Damaltrix gathered what she could before scooping Emily into her lower arms and bolted from the den. She had to put as much distance her and the Trackers as possible. It was a good thing that there was no snow on the ground or else it would be far easier for the Trackers to hunt them.

“ Where are we going?” Arius asked as he popped out of Emily’s small, fur pouch. “ What was that about?”