A True Hero

7 - Legend of Galacta Knight

Nicolette

"Why did you leave us?" Kyle begged. I couldn't see anything, and the air was cold. I could only hear voices. They guilted me, begging me to explain why I had been so weak.

"Why didn't you try?" my mother pleaded.

"You could've done something," Austin said.

"But you did nothing!" Alex finished.

"You aren't worthy of the title of a ninja," my father whispered. Then the lights came on.

There they were, my whole family. They looked like they had just come up out of the grave. My father was drenched in blood from the waist down, and his legs were contorted in painful angles. My brothers all had some limb bent out of shape, and dragon teeth stuck in their bodies. My mother's dress was stained in crimson, and her hair was tangled. I tried to speak, but couldn't open my mouth. It was as though someone had glued my mouth shut. Besides, I don't know what I would've said.

They all stood in a circle around me, each yelling at me. I wasn't good enough, I had failed, I had let them down and the kingdom... Everyone but Zac had screamed some insult. I spun to face him, and my hands went to my face. His head was misshapen so that he couldn't open his mouth...that's all I'll say. His blue eyes, once so bright and hopeful, were now clouded over and bore into my soul. Everything hateful he had to say was daggers in his gaze. I could feel tears dripping down my face, and I dropped to my knees, shut my eyes and covered my ears. I couldn't even scream in this nightmare.

Progressively, the insults turned to one word.

"Nicolette...Nicolette..." the voices said. I refused to open my eyes, lest I should see the disfigured bodies of those I loved. "Nicolette! Please, wake up!"

Am I dreaming?

I opened my eyes and was flooded by light. I gasped and squinted before looking around. I could tell I had been under the influence of anesthesia, for my vision was blurry and I wasn't fully aware of what was happening. I only knew that my arm had an IV in it and I was still dressed in my white evening gown. My head had been bandaged, but it felt a lot better.

"Hey there," said the voice. I squinted upwards and saw a fair-skinned woman with long, wavy white hair in gray armor. She had navy blue straps crisscrossing her abdomen with a dark blue diamond in the center, and a matching dark blue cape. Around her head was a white headband with a red gem in the center, complete with a red and white strand tied in the back. Her soft brown eyes calmed me. She had her arms folded and resting on my bed railings and had dark pink cheeks. "I'm Amai."

"Glad to see you're finally awake," said a green warrior with a red mohawk on the other side of the bed. He had a small V-shaped mask that covered only his eyes and mouth. "I'm Sir Falspar," he continued with a wink.

"He WISHES he was a 'Sir'," Amai sneered, resting her chin on her arms.

"Hey, I'll get knighted soon," he retorted, leaning against the other railing. Amai rolled her eyes and chuckled.

"He and I were on the team that saved you," she explained. My eyes widened.

"So...you know Meta Knight?" I whispered. I had found my voice.

"Oh yeah, that goofball," she chuckled more. "He was on the team too, along with a guy named Jecra."

"Where is he?" I asked, sitting up. Goofball? Amai stood up and pointed to a bed behind her.

He was there alright, bandaged and hooked up to a heart monitor, but another girl was standing by his bed and holding his hand. She was light gray and had shoulder-length hair. She wore light pink armor and a fuchsia cape with a white sword strapped to her side. When she turned her head to look at Meta Knight, I saw her deep fuchsia eyes. She was beautiful.