Imperial Orders

♕The Great Meetup♕

Tuofah nodded, understanding. She didn't even know if she was going to get out of there, much less Aikoro, but there was nothing else she could do. She steeled herself, looking away as the Acolyte tapped her lips with his fingers, indicating that she should open her mouth. For a moment, she resisted, pressing her lips tightly together, but the intimidating presence of the High Priestess was too much to bear. Tears flowed freely down her cheeks, their salty taste flowing into her mouth as she opened it, allowing the Acolyte to grab the tip of her tongue and pull it taut. He raised the knife with his other hand, bringing it so close that Tuofah could taste the heat emanating from its surface.

And then, seconds before he could do the deed, the doors of the Temple flew open, revealing a row of ten Djareny warriors dressed in full First Legion attire complete with their signature maces known to weigh as much as a small child. The knife fell from the Acolyte's hand as he cried out in shock, and Tuofah tested the chain on her handcuffs, making sure that she could break through it at a moment's notice.

It didn't take the High Priestess long to react. In seconds, both Tuofah and the Peenutz were surrounded by Acolytes.

The Djareny force parted, revealing a pompous-looking Vendyr Serpis in an expensive green coat and black pants. Behind him, two Djareny pushed a wagon topped by a glass cube. Inside it stood Nexetra Serpis herself, dressed in robes of crimson silk so fine that she appeared to be bleeding all over. The entire room fell deathly silent: clearly, the Ikmanonites' memories of Nexetra were not so fond.

"Thank you, primitive inhabitants of Earth, for apprehending the two people I have been looking for and so kindly delivering them straight into my hands." Nexetra was the first to speak, her mocking words accompanied by a wry smile. "The moment I found out they were headed toward you, I knew I would not have to lift a finger. Once again, High Priestess Idala, you have brought me exactly what I need." She let out a jeering laugh as she held up her hands to display the Armlets, identical to Tuofah's, that adorned her pale, slender wrists.

"You promised that you would not come back to harm my people. The girl is a Daughter of Ikmanon, just like you, and she belongs here.

"Insolent human!" This time, it was Vendyr who responded, raising his cane threateningly. "Do you know to whom you speak? This is Nexetra Serpis and the First Legion of Djara! Your people have no way of defending yourselves, yet you make demands before us? Hand over the girl and the boy immediately, or I will release my daughter from her cage and there will be no one left to tend to your little temple. Not even corpses."

At this, the Djareny marched forward, faithfully towing Nexetra along behind them. They lined every row of benches in the temple, some even marching upward toward the dais. Now, the High Priestess and her acolytes stood down, as even Idala realized that she was no match for the savage Djaren Nation. Two Djareny separated Hugo from the Peenutz, turning him around and preparing to lead him out of the temple, while two more came for Tuofah. Nexetra raised her hand, about to give the order to return, when yet another small crowd burst in through the Temple doors.

Hominan soldiers. Tuofah watched in disbelief as several dozen troops marched in wielding colossal ray guns and dressed in the typical gray camouflage of the Hominan infantry. One soldier stepped out of their midst just as some of the Djareny warriors began to tap their maces impatiently against the floor.

"High Priestess Idala, Lady Nexetra Serpis, I am Admiral Rey Houke of the Hominan Empire. On behalf of Prime Minister Saara Remy and Emperor Zionus Tyllanie of Homina, I am here to arrest Tuofah Lynnstrijker and Hugo Lennez Pearce for multiple counts of theft, fraud, and disobedience of imperial orders."

Tuofah watched, mildly amused, as the humans and the Djareny eyed each other with animosity. Right now, almost no one was focusing on her and the Peenutz. This moment of confusion wouldn't last for long. Pulling her hands sharply apart, Tuofah tore away her handcuffs.

"Hugo! Now!" she screamed, channeling all her power into her feet as she willed the floor beneath her to fall away. First, it crumbled, cracks spiderwebbing across the tile. Then, it gave. Tuofah gasped as she fell through, shutting her eyes to avoid filling them with debris until she finally landed on something hard. She blinked, noticing that the tunnel she was in was lit from above with some kind of green, luminescent rock. Looking up through the gaping hole she had just created, she watched Hugo break free from the Djareny with a wild yell, jumping into the tunnel with the Peenutz close on his heels. 

Blindly, desperately, they began to run, not knowing where they were headed or if there was even a way out. As expected, it wasn't long before they came to a fork in the path. Tuofah put her hands against the wall and concentrated, feeling the path of both tunnels in her mind's eye, but no matter how far she followed the movement of the densely packed earth, she was unable to find a point where either tunnel led to the surface. 

"Left!" It was Aikoro. She and Ben had finally caught up to the Peenutz. They had shed their heavy Acolytes' robes for their lightweight mesh clothing underneath.

"Why should we trust you?" Hugo narrowed his eyes. 

"They want to get out of here even more than we do," Tuofah interjected, taking off into the left tunnel. 

"Also," Aikoro said discreetly. "They're coming." 

The shouts and heavy footsteps of their pursuers were now audible from farther back in the hallway. Signaling to Ben and the Peenutz, Hugo dashed off to the left, following Tuofah. Aikoro stayed behind, placing her hands on her hips as the confused mob of humans and Djareny alike approached her. 

"They went that way!" she exclaimed, pointing to the right and smirking as they unthinkingly listened, dashing off into a tunnel that led to nowhere. As soon as the last of them was gone, she hurriedly disappeared off to the left, running at top speed in an effort to catch up to Ben and the Peenutz. Once she delivered the news of what she had done, the group slowed down their pace, taking a moment to catch their breath until began to see what looked like natural light. 

"I think that's the way out," Tuofah pointed to a narrow beam of sunshine on the ground. The rest of the group seemed to agree as they followed it to the end of the tunnel: an exit hole plugged with a large boulder. 

"That'll take days to push out of the way," Dot observed. "Hugo's not as strong as he thinks he is." This comment was immediately followed by a slap on the cheek from her captain. 

"I don't think so," Hugo grinned slyly. "We have a Daughter of Ikmanon." 

He was right. Tuofah already had both arms outstretched and was concentrating on the boulder. First, it quivered, and then, it rolled away, exposing a clear path out into the sunlight. 

"You're lame," Hugo complained as he grabbed the edge of the rock, hoisting himself up and out of the tunnel. "I thought you were going to blow it up or something." 

"The Armlets help me control my powers- they don't give me new ones," Tuofah rolled her eyes as she followed him, stepping out onto the hillside. From what she could tell, they were on the other side of the hill- completely out of the visual field of those in the temple. 

"So, how are we getting out of here?" Aikoro asked, crossing her arms. 

"We've got a ship. It's not far from here, actually-" 

"That's enough, kids." The Peenutz simultaneously turned their heads to see none other than Admiral Houke, surrounded by at least ten Hominan soldiers, all of whom had their ray guns pointed at them. "You're coming with us. There's someone important who wants to see you. All of you," he clarified, darting his eyes over at Aikoro and Ben. 

Tuofah's gaze lowered to the ground. The Empire had her. All these years dodging her imperial orders, and the empire finally had her. 

..........

This chapter contains one Marvel reference and one reference to my book, Lights. Try to find one, or both, and you just might win a shoutout in the next chapter ;) 

<3 Queen Sara