Revenge of the Captured

Chapter 10

I stayed in my room aboard ship for the remainder of the day and tried to stay alert and awake; but sleep overtook me.  I dreamed of strange things that felt familiar, yet somehow I knew that I had never seen anything like this before.

A tall dark haired young woman looked between the trees at the man standing in the glade illuminated by moonlight. The rest of the forest was covered in darkness, the trees grew so thick that they shut out any light the moon tried to give. She swiftly and silently made her way down the slope, entering the glade behind the man. His presence radiated with evil energy. Her mind screamed at her to run. But she forced herself to put one foot in front of the other. When she was five feet away, she stopped. The man turned around and closed the distance between them and stood directly in front of her.

"Kahina Moonshadow." The sound of his voice made her shudder with hatred. "It's been a long time."

"The Blade of Blood. That's what you call yourself now?" Kahina narrowed her eyes. "The name describes you perfectly. You slaughter the innocent as well as the guilty!" Her voice was dripping with hatred.

"Come now Kahina, I'm not that bad. Besides, you slay as many as I do."

"You have no excuses for what you have done, Zandar Bladerunner!" She clenched her fists.

"Do I need any?" He grinned as Kahina stepped back in disgust.

"You haven't changed one bit. You're still the same man you were when you left!"

"That was five years ago. I'm 25 now. Can't you leave the past behind?" He stepped toward her, but she moved away.

"Four years wasn't nearly enough! Why did you come back!?" Kahina's voice was filled with years of pain and anger. "I never wanted to see you face again! Not after what you did!"

"You know exactly why I've come back." His voice was harsh. "I want revenge. I came back to take what is mine."

Kahina struggled to suppress the years of pain that were struggling to leap out as tears filled her eyes. "Killing my sister wasn't enough for you? What more do you want!?" She said brokenly.

Bladerunner flinched. "You know is was an accident that Ayperi got killed. My initial target was Anton, not your sister!"

"That doesn't change anything! You killed them both! And now you come back after four years to do what!? Take over the empire!?"

There was a moment of silence. even the woods had gone completely still, only the sound of their breathing could be heard. The Blade broke the silence.

"I meant what I said the day I left. Look, I have all the forces I need.... I'm only missing one crucial piece..........You."

"You're a Blade. You don't need me."

"But your the only one who can rival me. You know that."

"In order to ensure you succeed, you would have me join you?" Kahina rolled her eyes. "I should have known."

"The way I see it, you have two options." He growled, shoving her against a nearby tree and setting a knife to her throat. "You either join me, and become my ally. Or I kill you. Either way. I will get my revenge. I loved you in the past..." His eyes softened a moment and then hardened again. "But I will kill you now if that's what it takes to ensure my success."

Kahina looked him straight in the eyes. " To the world you are a Blade.....To me........ You will always be the man who broke my trust." She closed her eyes. "Kill me."

I woke up with a start, my eyes snapped open. "What kind of a weird dream was that supposed to be?" I muttered. I knew it was something more than a dream but I couldn't place what it was exactly. A vision? A memory? 

I wanted to close my eyes and go back to sleep. Instead I tossed and turned trying to figure out what my dream had meant. The names I knew from my history lessons when I was a young girl. Zandar Bladerunner had been my great-times-a-million ancestor. He had also been the First Great Emperor; but this Kahina Moodshadow puzzled me. I'd never heard much about her before. I only really remembered her being Zandar's lover and later on his Empress. I couldn't even remember what country she hailed from. 

I propped myself into a sitting position on the bed when I heard footsteps coming down the hallway. "Whatever that dream was about, its gonna have to wait."