I WANNA BE SAVED, neteyam

Ch 27: Defeat

Ayatney was in the midst of climbing back up when an explosion was set off, shaking her off of the metal beam.

Her breath was knocked out of her when she landed on her back. Groaning, Ayatney rolled over onto her stomach, pushing herself onto her feet. She could make out the sound of screams and gunshots as she tried to regain her bearings, moving out of the way when rubble fell where she once stood, the flames barely licked her skin.

Ayatney was forced to go out in the open, as climbing up to scout out enemies was no longer an option.

A bullet bounced off of the dark metal, startling the girl as she ducked, covering her head in the process. Searching for her small blade, Ayatney pulled it out from beneath a large hefty box, only to see that it what was left of it was the wooden handle and a bit of the sharpened rock. She scowled to herself for being so careless, the only thing guaranteeing her and the girls survival was broken.

Another bullet was shot in her direction, making her drop what was in her hands. She crawled out of the way of fire and hid behind, what seemed to be, a wall. Peering around the corner, she was able to make out Tuk and Kiri who still sat bound to the bright yellow rails.

The man, who started this all, was squat behind heavy duty boxes of ammo. If she killed him, all of this would end. If she killed him, they can go back to learning the ways of the reef. If she killed him, she could go back home. When she kills him, she can return back to where it's safe, in Neteyam's arms.

The flashing orange lights hurt her eyes as she slowly crawled over on her hands and feet. With every breath she took, she felt like time slowed as she neared him.

Tuk and Kiri spotted Ayatney, she had been missing this whole time and they had thought of the worse. It seemed as if she was in a trance, like a predator creeping up on its prey with only one goal in mind... To kill and eat them up.

The human to the left of Quartrich hit the floor with a heavy thud, an arrow lodged in his chest, causing Quartrich to turn and look over. He spotted Ayatney just as she lunged for him, there was no time to move out of the way so he raised his arms to block himself from any serious damage.

He let out a cry in surprise, her weight making him stagger on his feet. Though his legs were supporting both of their weight, they eventually went tumbling. Both on the ground, Ayatney took hold of the hand that was holding the sharp weapon. Sitting on his stomach, she held onto his wrist as she repeatedly slammed it into the floor, effectively making him release it.

His free hand came up and punched her across the face, knocking her off of him as he switched their roles. He sat on top of her, wrapping both of his hands around her slim throat. Quartrich screamed in her face as he squeezed.

Tuk and Kiri screamed out in fear, watching the girl get strangled. Though despite both not being raised as warriors, they fought against the restraints holding them back.

Ayatney was desperately scratching at any exposed skin, digging her nails into his forearms and his face. A gleam caught the corner of her eye, hands scrambling against the floor to search for the object, she finally grabbed the handle before lodging it into his thigh.

The man cried out in pain as Ayatney gasped for air. They both rolled around, gathering their composure. The man was first to stand, pulling out the weapon and throwing it to the side as he limped over to where the girl still lay wheezing.

Using his good leg, he kicked her in the stomach. Once or twice seemed enough but if Quartrich needed her to stay down, he'd have to do a lot more damage. With each blow of his boot hitting her ribs, Ayatney let out screams of pain.