Rook Winters - Weight of Ashes

Kane stood, set the tablet on his chair, and stretched, his back popping as he twisted side to side.

A voice in the back of Elle’s head warned her that this was a bad idea. He was a soulless monster, not someone to be trusted. But what choice did she have? She sat up and spun in the chair so her legs hung over the side. She still had lingering fuzziness from whatever they’d drugged her with earlier. Reflexively, she reached to the place on her neck where she’d felt a sting right after Court had fallen.

“Court, is he alright?”

“Yes, he’s fine. Come on, let’s get this started. Since you were just sedated, I’ll give you the first shot for free.”

Elle rocked forward and landed on her feet. A newfound desire to attack ignited in her veins. She took a tentative step toward him and he responded by closing the distance.

“Come on,” he yelled.

He was close enough that she could see the saliva glisten on his tongue as he shouted.

“Let’s see what Master Zheng taught you.”

That surprised her. “You know Master Zheng?”

“Yes, I do. He kicked my ass once. Only once.”

His smug grin infuriated her. Master Zheng’s training showed her dozens of possible attacks, his likely counterattacks, and the results if he did give her the first hit for free. She decided on a crotch hit to inflict fast and serious damage. He deserved it. She let her foot fly, and he caught it as he shifted to one side. She hopped on her free foot to keep from falling.

“Hardly sportsmanlike. Lesson number one: there’s no such thing as a free hit.”

He twisted her foot, and she jumped awkwardly so the rest of her body would follow the twisting ankle and avoid an early injury. She clipped his face with her boot as her legs spun. He released her and stepped back, rubbing his chin. A tiny smear of blood came away on his hand.

“First blood. Very good. Now we have ourselves a fight.” He crouched into a defensive stance and waited for her to make another move.

Kane knew she wanted to attack him. He would use her disgust and anger to his own advantage. She knew it and she didn’t know how to stop herself.

For several seconds, her rational brain held her back. Then he glanced up at the corner where two walls met the ceiling.

She seized on his distraction, lunging and driving her palm up into his chin. His arms swung in defensively and she slapped them down, keeping them away from her head and torso. She kicked at his legs then landed a glancing blow to his groin. Kane stumbled back, and Elle pummeled his stomach with a burst of rapid fire punches.

She didn’t relent, staying close until she had backed him up against the edge of the room. He braced himself against the wall and used his extra weight to force her away from him even while she was attacking.

Keep going , she told herself. Don’t give him a reprieve.

She hurled herself back at him and jabbed at his face. Somehow he got a hand up and slapped her incoming arm to one side. Her fist stopped at the wall. She heard the crunching and snapping of things in her hand before she felt the burning pain surge up her arm.

Kane’s other hand sunk into her gut and for a moment she couldn’t think straight. He grabbed the wrist of her throbbing arm and twisted. He didn’t have much leverage but between his size and her pain, he was able to angle her away from himself. She swung her free arm wildly but didn’t connect with anything.

Her leg got tangled with his and she felt herself losing her balance. In a flash of terrifying clarity, she saw how this would play out. He’d found the advantage; she wasn’t going to win. Her focus shifted to self-preservation as she weighed options for minimizing injury.

She tried leaning away from Kane but with surprising dexterity, he planted a foot on her hip and sent her stumbling across the room. She crashed into her chair with a sickening thud.

“Pathetic. Maybe you and your sad little forest friend belong together in prison after all.”

So many parts of her hurt that she wasn’t able to focus on just one. She wanted to stop, to give up.

Court… He wouldn’t give up if our places were swapped, he wouldn’t stop as long as he had breath.

She had to give as much as he would. That thought drove her on. She pushed herself back to her feet and bobbed in a defensive pose. One hand was already starting to swell. Best to avoid using it. Her side hurt with every movement.

Cracked rib, maybe? Need to be careful.

Kane had a disgusting grin on his face.

“Maybe I spoke too soon. Back on your feet after that? Good for you. Master Zheng would be impressed, but I think we’re done here.”

He brushed his hands down his shirt as if trying to smooth wrinkles or remove dust that wasn’t there. He started to reach for the tablet he’d set on his chair but stopped when Elle hollered at him.

“We’re not done. Not. Even. Close.” Spit flew from her mouth. She couldn’t stop now. She’d help Court or she’d be unconscious.

His smile morphed into something sinister.

“Very well.”

He came at her like a blur with a volley of fast punches and kicks. She deflected a few and took the impact of even more. One of his swings grazed her injured hand and the momentary distraction of the pain gave him an opening to hook her leg and drop her to the floor. Her side felt like it had been stabbed. She grabbed onto his leg and instinctively curled herself around it to make it harder for him to hit her. The move knocked him off balance and he fell to one knee.

He was over her now and Elle feared she’d made a critical mistake. But then he braced himself with a hand on the floor and Elle saw an opportunity. She stretched her neck and was just close enough to reach his forearm. She bit as hard as she could, forcing back her revulsion as her teeth sunk deep into his flesh.

Kane screamed and pulled his arm away, which caused him to topple over sideways to the floor. Elle rolled over to her back and kicked at him frantically. Her boot scraped over his ear then her other foot hit the side of his face and she heard something crunch. He tried to roll away from her and she kicked the back of his head twice before he was out of reach.

Don’t stop, don’t stop, don’t stop , she told herself but she didn’t want to keep going.

Kane’s face was scratched and a line of blood was hanging from his mouth. He pulled himself up using her chair, which she saw was bolted to the floor.

His confident expression was gone, and he seemed to struggle to look at her. He was almost to his feet, and she realized with newfound panic that he was going to attack again. Her legs flailed as she tried to get back up without using her bad hand or aggravating her burning ribs. Kane flinched at her motion and lost his balance. His face bounced off the armrest of the chair then his head cracked against the floor. He rolled from side to side on the floor briefly and moaned. He didn’t get up.

Elle ran for the door only to discover that it didn’t have a handle or control panel. There was no way to open it.

“No,” she shouted.

She grabbed his tablet, which was lying on the floor cracked but functioning. She tapped and swiped but it repeatedly flashed UNAUTHORIZED.

“No, come on, something has to work.”

She tapped harder then started slapping the screen with her palms.

Settle down, L37. Work the problem.

She took a few centering breaths and looked at the screen with more focus. The door clicked before she’d pressed another button and exhilaration washed over her. She glanced at Kane on the floor and made the split-second decision that she would run. The door slid open and for an instant she saw the spark of a Scorpion before everything flashed white then stopped.