Page 67 of Xeda

As Tazyn covered his face with one hand, Kaxek leaped over Xeda to kill the skra when twin blades hit him too, one in the jaw, then in the arm when he quicky shielded himself.

Aeriz appeared and leapt for Kaxek, freeing his blades and attacking again.

Xeda could do nothing but watch as they fought. Watch as Tazyn went for the skra, enraged as she slipped away. Slowly, he was losing consciousness, and desperately, he tried to claw his way back to the surface, to stay a little longer.

He saw the girl crawling away. As he couldn't hang on, all he could think was at least she might make it and hopefully Ophilia would too. One last bit of rage swept through him, then only despair as he slipped away.

He'd failed his old queen long ago, and now...now, he failed Ophilia.

CHAPTERTWENTY-FIVE

Ophilia

As soon as the elevator doors slid open, she broke out into a run, flying past a couple of guards down the passage to a set of doors ahead, slamming into them as she stumbled into the facility beyond.

Bright lights and cold steel greeted her as she passed room after room, glass walls keeping them apart. People stared at her as she went by, but they were barely an afterthought. She felt numb save for the dread that sank like a pit of coal in her stomach, poisoning her.

She had been forced to watch to the very last second of the game, watch Xeda lying on the ground unmoving as the others fought around him. Aeriz was able to hold his own until Kaxek got a blow on him across the chest, sending him flying back into a wall. Kaxek was distracted long enough that the little girl Xeda had saved was able to get away just before the time ran out.

The fury on Kaxek was impressive to say the least. Tazyn wasn't too happy either, unable to grab the last seal from his target as he chased the skra female who had injured him. He sliced her good just before the end, but still he had lost. None of them had gotten all their targets in the end, too busy going after each other. Xeda had instigated that fight. He had brought them all down in a way, but it hadn't mattered in the end.

As soon as the timer had run out, she had sprung for the call button on the console, calling to the wardens, begging them to send someone for him.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing, Ophilia?" Sal said, red-faced. "He's dead. That fucking worthless vrisha is dead. He botched the game. He's done."

She didn't listen. She didn't care. She screamed at someone to get him out just as Sal smashed his fist on the console pad, breaking it. The call went out.

"He's done. And you're fucking done, got that?" he said in a low voice.

She shook her head at him, not wanting to believe it. "No," she said softly. "No, he made a mistake, but he's alive, he has to be. We just need to get him to—"

He struck her firmly across the face, sending her to the ground. "Get out of my sight. I'll deal with you later. This is over. The game is over."

This time, fury took hold of her, and for once, she lost her composure. "Fuck you, Sal," she said, shaking. "You bastard."

"What the fuck did you just say to me?"

"I said you're a monster!" she screamed. "He did everything he could. I did. You only care about your money, your fame. But it's bullshit!"

He lunged for her, then stopped as Cristan yelled at him.

"They're taking him," he called, standing near the monitor. "The medics are taking him out. Look at his readings." He pointed to the console where it showed Xeda's energy level and heartrate. It was low, dangerously low, but it was still beating. "He's still alive."

Sal straightened, wiping his mouth. Hands on his hips, he stared at her before turning back to Cristan. "It doesn't matter, Cristan. He's maimed. He can't fight. Better just put him out of his misery."

"No," Ophilia cried softly.

Sal looked back at her, and this time he actually seemed sad, as if he pitied her. "You got a soft spot for that beast, don't you? It's a shame, real shame, Ophilia. You let your feelings get the better of you." He shook his head. "You'll live and learn, kid. You will." He sighed and waved his hand. "Get out. If you try to run, you know I'll find you. I'll take you back and put you in the glasshouse for a week if you set foot outside the gaming center, you got that? So, be a good girl and just go back to your room. And stay there till someone comes to get you."

Shaking, Ophilia rose to her feet. Without a word, she slipped out of the observation deck and as far away from him as possible.

She did go back to her room, but only because she needed the ISpad she was given. Thankfully, Sal had been too furious in the moment to take away her trainer privileges. She took all the sponsor money Xeda had left, and she poured it into his medical fund. He would lose all his enhancements, weapons, armor, everything. But she'd be damned if he would lose his life or any piece of himself.

As soon as she transferred the funds, she called down to the medical bay and told them exactly what they were going to do with him.

To hell with Sal. She knew he would punish her for what she'd done, but he was going to do that, anyway. She would take it all if it meant saving Xeda.

As soon as the medical staff understood what she wanted, she flew out of her room and down to the medical bay. Now, as she walked down the bay hall, she searched wildly from one room to the next until she came to one larger than the rest and saw, through the glass, Xeda lying on his stomach on a table. A surgical machine worked to fix his arm, his back, and the other wounds he'd received. His face was shredded from Kaxek's claws, surgical tape placed over one eye. Tubes were hooked up to his throat and along his working arm, pumping oxygen and medicine. Her eyes fell down to the straps along his legs and lower back, used to secure him, and she wondered if he had even bothered to put up a fight.

---