Chapter 14
T'Sula Mir separated herself from the others. Her senses expanded and sharpened to take in every minute detail. The air from her re-breather was thick, heavy with oxygen. Her pupils dilated to let in more light. Blood rushed to her limbs, loosening her muscles. The crunch of the debris under her boots thundered in her ears.
"I think we've seen all that we need to for now." Kamira spoke up, interrupting T'Sula's thoughts.
"There's one more thing I'd like to check before we go." T'Sula mumbled. She walked briskly, but tried not to show her apprehension as she walked toward the intruder. She could not see it, except for what she had seen on the Lieutenant's screen.
Walking past a charred table, she brushed her hand across the top, collecting soot as she went. Her fingers raked a broken board, covered with charred debris.
"Well, I guess I was wrong." T'Sula said. She grabbed the board, and hurled it in the direction of the intruder. The board flew through the air, and struck the wall, shattering into dozens of pieces. Dust and soot flew in all directions, outlining the shape of a man, crouched against the ceiling.
T'Sula instinctively moved into a defensive stance, one foot behind the other, forming an L. She raised her fists to a guard position in front of her chest, as the intruder gracefully dropped to the floor. Black soot clung to it like a shell of dust over a glass ball. It left footprints on the floor as it walked toward T'Sula. She flexed her fists in anticipation, waiting and watching the invisible intruder. Time seemed to stand still, rooting her in place, telling her that she needed to be here, now, in this moment. T’Sula’s breath caught in her throat when the soot covered shape stopped less than a step in front of her.
"T'Sula, run!" Kamira yelled from behind her.
"No." T'Sula replied, not taking her eyes from the apparition. In less time than it takes to blink, the apparition darted to the side, away from T'Sula. Not thinking, her leg shot out in a vicious round house, catching the intruder in the chest. The impact shuddered through its body, sending it flying backward, into a charred table. Splintered, charred wood sailed into the air as the table broke and crashed to the floor. The air swirled with a cloud of dust around the apparition as it climbed to its feet. It stalked menacingly toward T'Sula.
The dim lights that the police had set up for the investigation seemed to grow weaker as the apparition approached. T'Sula stood, ready to fight, waiting for the next move. It continued to walk toward her, never stopping, never changing direction. It walked past a supporting pillar that had survived the blast from the bomb. Not breaking stride when it came abreast of the pillar, its arm shot out in a powerful back-hand, snapping the pillar in two.
Continuing forward, the intruder came in front of T'Sula one more time. A step away from her, it leapt into the air, easily avoiding contact with T'Sula, and landing behind Lieutenant Valche.
"Look out!" Kamira screamed, reaching for the Lieutenant. But it was too late. The apparition grabbed the Lieutenant by its head, and easily lifted Valche into the air. A loud, sickening snap echoed through the rubble, as the apparition snapped the Lieutenant's neck. Valche twitched in the air before the intruder dropped the body to the floor, and vanished into the night.
Kamira reached Valche’s body, almost as it hit the floor. T'Sula skidded to a stop by her side. Neither spoke as Kamira gently closed Valche’s eyes. She looked up, catching T'Sula's gaze. Unspoken, the past filled the void between the women. Memories of innocence lost, and dreams never to be fulfilled passed from them in the fleeting moment.
"I guess you were wrong after all." Kamira's voice was barely above a whisper. "What did any of this prove?" Her voice wavered as she fought to keep her temper under control. "Now the Lieutenant is dead, and we have nothing to show for it!"
"You're wrong Kam." T'Sula sighed. "I didn't want Lieutenant Valche to die, but we do have something to show for coming here." her voice and eyes showed none of the resolve that she felt in her heart. Killing was wrong. Nevertheless, sometimes the war spilled over onto the innocents. Innocence was fleeting, and T'Sula could barely remember when she still possessed that most elusive of qualities.
"And what is it that we now have, that we didn't before?" Kamira picked up the data pad that Valche had been holding. Her tone was cold, accusing. She had seen too much death and suffering, and it was long past time to end it.
"We know that the perpetrator is still here, and we know that the Ta'Reeth are involved." T'Sula pointed to the picture of the intruder that was still on the screen of the data pad. "What we don't know is why they did it, and what they were looking for."