Imperium

Chapter 12: What You Love Most

She hits the ground again, feeling the hard dampened surface of the stone ground. Her sight returns, and she hears voices approaching her. When she lifts her head, she sees that she's in broad daylight and surrounded by shipping crates and a massive storage compound is to her right. But she also sees the more important thing, armed soldiers coming her way.

Edith tries to get up quickly, but the pain covering her body stings and makes her drop to her knees, just as the soldiers reach her and grab her by her bicep, pulling her to her feet and she winces against the pain from the fast motion.

"Who the hell are you? How did you get in here? This area is off limits to... Wait," the man who grabbed her examines her face more closely. She tries to pull her arm back, but another soldier grabs her other arm. "Damn... Must be our lucky day," he chuckles and looks to another soldier who isn't holding her as she struggles to break free, but also trying to not reopen her wounds or worsen the pain in her chest.

"Officer 253, cuff it," one soldier says. Her arms are pulled behind her back roughly, making her bite her tongue to not yelp against the sharp pain the movement brings. Once her wrists are fastened together by thick, black metal cuffs, the soldier who put them on her rushes over to the compound and begins pushing the massive metal door open.

Edith feels as the two soldiers holding her start forcing her towards the compound, but she tries digging her heels into the cracked stone pavement, but one of them kicks the back of her heel and the pain makes her legs buckle again, letting the soldiers successfully shove her through the door and into the main area of the compound.

She shakes her head to pull her mind back into the moment, and she sees that in the center of the room is Colin, sitting in a chair with his head down and metal cuffs around his wrists, fastened around the chair and behind his back. Standing over him is a woman who currently has her back turned to Edith and the soldiers, but her attention is grabbed once the soldier who initially grabbed her speaks.

"Commander Harvey. We brought you a gift. We think you'll really like this one," he snides.

Edith's EPC burns a bit as she realizes who she's staring at. Jane looks away from Colin and back over her shoulder to lock eyes with Edith, and her predatory scowl that was just directed at Colin shifts into a smirk and a threatening glare.

Colin looks up as well and sees Edith fighting to get away from the soldiers, and judging by the fury in her eyes as she looks at Jane, she doesn't plan on running. His eyes widen and his breathing hitches. "Edith..." he shudders and shakes his head.

Edith growls and rams her shoulder against the soldier on her right, but the action seems to have hurt her more than him. She never lets her eyes fall from Jane and it only makes the burning increase, which worsens the sharpness in her chest.

Jane strides towards her, making Edith fight more, but she freezes once Jane is directly in front of her and she grabs her throat, forcing her to stop moving. She chuckles. "Now, if only that annoying emo kid was here too. What was his name again... Cree? Oh, and of course the irritating dykes, can't forget them. Then we could all have a nice big reunion where I make your lives a living hell for ruining the one good thing I had going. Wouldn't that be fun, Princess?" she hisses and nods to the soldiers. They let her go, just in time for Jane to grab her instead, then throw her to the ground.

Edith lands on her side and coughs weakly, feeling her body throb in pain from her stitched wounds from her recent surgery, but the worst pain is still the crack in her EPC.

"Leave her alone!" Colin barks and fights against the restraints keeping him bound to the chair. Jane ignores him and watches Edith feebly try to stand up, but just as she gets to her knees, Jane walks over and kicks her in the side, knocking her back down.