A True Hero

18 - Storms and Fire

Meta Knight

Nicolette's ship came back over a week ago.

She came barreling down in a horribly broken spacecraft onto the Enterprise landing pad and nearly crashed. It made sense since she had no idea how to pilot a starship. The Captain hadn't put her through the "class" yet to earn her license.

I was trying to busy myself with training when I heard her ship squeal onto the runway. I was dueling Jecra, a favorite pastime between the two of us, in the training room. He and I often trained together to clear our heads and talk. 

We both immediately knew something was wrong when we heard Nicolette's ship. Any licensed soldier wouldn't crash land. The specific sputtering of the engine told me it was a single passenger starship, and only two of those had left recently, and one several weeks ago. The latter had returned yesterday.

We sheathed our weapons and sprinted to the platform. Trouble brewed in the air, and now, looking back, I wish I had left Jecra go to her by himself.

When we found her in the ship, she was caught in a smoking cockpit under the dome. Nic had new and improved armor, surprisingly, including a samurai-like metal skirt and golden sashes that crossed her chest and held the Bushido Katanas on her back. But that wasn't what caught my attention.

She was covered in blood.

She looked tired, stressed, angry and sad all at once. She didn't even try to open the glass around her as the smoke filled up the cockpit and started to suffocate her. At the time, I wondered why she wasn't trying to save herself; now, I know why.

I used my sword to stab the jammed glass near the metal lip along the base of the dome while Jecra pulled down on the ship. Using my leverage and his strength, we pulled the glass right off of the ship. The smoke diffused into the air and left her unconscious.

We pulled her out and rushed her into the infirmary, where Amai was waiting with her team of medics. I supported Nicolette's head and Jecra her legs as we placed her on the awaiting blood-stained table. Nurses ran about me, calling for supplies and medicines, when Nic murmured something faintly.

I didn't catch it at first, so I leaned over her as she repeated, "Where's...Yamikage..."

"Meta Knight, I need you to leave now," Amai said. I looked behind me and saw her lacing an apron up over her navy blue jumpsuit. "With all of that blood, there's gotta be something bad."

"I don't think it's her's," I whispered.

"Who's else could it be?" she retorted, tieing her long white hair back into a high ponytail.

"I don't know, it's just...could you run a DNA analysis, please? I'm going to wait for Chrys's starship." She glanced away while quickly changing her gloves, then looked back and nodded. I sighed and thanked her, then followed Jecra out of the quickly crowding room. I trusted Amai with Nicolette; she was one of the best nurses, as well as martial arts fighters, we had on this ship. I would go as far to say as the best in the entire army.

Jec and I went to the lobby and sat in the same window seat Nikki and Chrys sat in together after fighting Magolor. It had become a place of refuge for the two girls; it was quiet, peaceful, and open. Also, it was the only place to get a full view of the landing pad outside. Any ships coming and going could be observed from there.

"Thanks for waiting with me, Jec," I said.

"It's what family does," he replied, using a phrase Arthur said all of the time, then he took off his mask and shook both hands into his spiky, messy blond hair.