Oriehn

Chapter 32- Taliesin

Chapter 32- Taliesin

I looked up, frantically searching for a hiding spot and coming up with none. It had not mattered anyways, as the door had swung open to reveal a rather stunned looking Dr. Prose. "What—" He started, clutching the door knob with white knuckles. "Guards! Wardens! There is a—"

I advanced, pouncing on the doctor, smothering his voice by covering his mouth with my clenched fist. He trembled at my touch, struggling against me. His meager attempts at escape were easily overcome, but I looked back to a startled Alice. "I will have to subdue him," I spoke softly. "It would be easier to just kill him."

"No!" She swung her legs over the side of the bed, wiping her eyes. "No. You are not to kill him."

"Alice, he is responsible for thousands of deaths, his hands are soaked in blood. He deser—"

"I said no," She emphasized. "You are not to kill him. You do not have the divine authority to administer that form of justice."

"Fine," I grit out, grasping his head and turning it forcefully. "I won't kill him." I took my palm, lining it up with his ear, releasing my grip on his mouth to hold him up by his shirt collar. With a slam, I clapped his ear, and watched as the doctor's eyes rolled up and he slumped against my hold. "I didn't choke him this time either. Consider it a favor."

I dropped him to the ground with a thud. "Wh-what did you do?" Alice crossed the room, leaning over him. "He is still breathing but—"

"He appears dead?" I filled in. "It is an old combatant trick, although the Venery have perfected its use in stealth based operations," I rustled through the doctors pockets, and took his lab coat off of his unconscious body. "I forced air through his ear canal, rupturing it. If this method is used once more, it could puncture his brain. In most cases, that would be fatal."

"How...humane," She trailed off, watching as I donned the lab coat to cover my stained clothing.

"It is silent and effective. I would not be complaining. We do not have long before the wardens become suspicious of his absence."

"Do we have a plan?"

"To escape? Yes."

"What is it?" She pleaded.

"We gather everyone from their cells, and we run." I said shortly.

"Run?" She sounded incredulous. "They can hardly breathe. You can hardly expect the Oriehns to stand on their own two feet, let alone walk out of this joint."

"Do you have a better idea?" I snapped, and then placed over to the vent. "We need to move, Alice. Quickly."

"Yes, I believe that I do," Alice replied calmly. "We commandeer a capsule, and drive it up to the cell block like a valet service for refugees."

"We would draw the attention of everyone in the research facility!" I weaved my fingers together to form a step for her, and kneeled on the ground. "Get up,"

Alice hurried over, placing a delicate foot in my palm and clutching the edge of the air vent. "We would be large enough to draw fire, and shield all of the prisoners."

I grunted, lifting her up into the vent, then propped myself up, sliding in behind her. "Too large to fit into the hallways." Alice was silent for an extended second, the sound of cloth on steel accompanying us as we crawled quickly through the ducts. "Take a left up here," I directed.

"What if we took the shuttles instead? The ones prepared for the flights of the head scientists and leaders of the rebellion." Alice suggested.

"Do they even have those?" I frowned lightly, following Alice. She paused and shrugged, turning to face me.

"I think so... Yes. They were prepared to transport the leaders to view their carnage once the humans won the war."

I froze, watching as she crawled further down. "What do you mean? Did they win?" I whispered fearfully.

"You are still alive, are you not?" She called back.

"Yes, but how is that relevant?" I breathed out. "Alice, did they win the war?"

"They think they did." She said, and my breath caught. Alice shook her head and continued, "They called their massacre on Crete a victory. And yet..." She trailed off.

"And yet?" I inquired, cutting her off.

"And yet, there are rumors of several isolated garrisons on Crious resisting human advances."

"Survivors?" I furrowed my brow, though she could not see it in the dim light. "How can that be?"

Alice looked away, and resumed her slow crawl. "You would know better than I," she looked over her shoulder and smiled. "Captain Taliesin Graile."

"After we left, the exodus continued?"

She nodded. "Only changed locations. Thousands of Oriehns may yet survive, in addition to those we will release today."

"Incredible," I blew out. "Decimation is very challenging to achieve on an immortal race, but I had thought that those shot down were taken down to Earth to die slowly from their wounds."

"Many did," She stopped, and I looked around her. Light filtered in slits, striping her face. We had arrived at the prison. "But the few who did not suffer debilitating injuries ran."

"And now it is our duty to them to bring back as many of those who were not so fortunate in battle," I concluded with a note of finality. "Do you honestly think that the shuttles would work?"

"Perhaps not as well as the capsules would. They are shorter, and narrower, and they were not made to be fired upon. But they are all we have."

"Are they easy to reach?"

"Easy enough. Further back in the facilities hangar, but there is a pathway we can travel through mostly undetected," She bit into her thumb nail. "While we are pirating the shuttles away, we should leave a group of survivors here to unlock all the cells."

"So we pause to unlock a few, explain to them the plan," I grabbed her shoulder. "And then we take off."

She nodded. "It sounds too easy from up here."

"Secluded, in the dark, hidden from danger and the eyes of the enemy," I chuckled dryly, grabbing her hand. "We have survived harrowing escapes before, you and I. We will be fine." She smiled, artfully masking her fear. "Will we be able to fit everyone?"

"Yes," She looked down from the vent to the occupied cages below. "It will be tight. But they will fit."

"Then they will have to do," I hesitated. "For the sake of our people."