* * *
“Aeria? What are you doing here? Where is Aithos?” Kira asked, unable to hide her alarm.
“Aithos has some business to attend to, so he can’t leave the planet yet. He asked me to escort you back to the palace,” Aeria replied with a strange look on her face.
“Oh…” Kira replied, unconvinced.
“Don’t worry, you’re safe in my hands. Besides, it will give us a chance to get to know one another.”
Kira didn’t like where this was going. Something didn’t seem right about it. “Sure, I guess,” she replied dryly, giving Aeria a suspicious look.
The conversation ground to a halt as the transport room came to life. Aeria got into the driver’s seat of the transport and waited without saying anything. Again the wall at the end lit up and started disintegrating, revealing a swirling vortex. Everything in the room started to slide into it as it had before and a few uncomfortable seconds later, they were on Tython again.
Coming to on the other side of the portal, Kira shook her head, trying to shake off the effects of the transporter. She was pleased to find that she didn’t feel nearly as nauseous this time but that did little to ease the anxious feeling she had. She didn’t trust Aeria one bit, and something about the way the goddess was acting made Kira trust her even less. “Let’s hurry; we need to speak with Velion.” Kira insisted, eyeing Aeria suspiciously.
Aeria smiled again and said, “Of course. Just try to hang on; I drive a bit faster than Aithos does.” With that Aeria walked over to the driver’s seat and powered the vehicle on. Driving out of the transport building at breakneck speed the three of them sped wildly out into the night air of Ishkur. It took everything both girls had to not fall off the vehicle as Aeria sped through the city.
After a few minutes Kira was relieved to see the palace ahead, meaning that Aeria had been true to her word. The sisters exchanged relieved looks and prepared to disembark as the transport approached the palace hangar. Aeria flew into the hangar and gracefully came to a stop near the previously spilled container.
The three of them disembarked and Kira and Kaya started walking towards the hangar exit. Before they could make it there, Aeria spoke up, saying “Where are you going?”
Both girls stopped and turned to look at her. With an impatient tone Kira replied, “To see Velion, of course.”
“You won’t find him in the palace. If you wish to speak with him we will need to take a ship up to the Trident,” Aeria explained.
Kira squinted at her, trying to decide if Aeria was being truthful. “How do you know he isn’t here?” she asked skeptically.
Aeria sighed in exasperation, rolling her eyes as she replied, “I do know a thing or two more than you do, young one. I didn’t get to be third on the council by not knowing the plans of my father. I assure you, he is not in the palace.”
Kira looked to Kaya who just shrugged with a “how would I know” look on her face. Sighing, Kira decided there was no other choice. If Velion wasn’t in the palace, as Aeria insisted, then their only chance to speak to him would be to go with her again. “Fine. Take us to the Trident,” Kira gave in.
Aeria grinned and said, “This way; we’ll take that ship over there.” She pointed to a cargo ship parked about twenty yards away. The three of them made their way to the ship and boarded it once the doors were opened. It became clear that Aeria wasn’t overly familiar with this type of vessel as it took her several attempts to open the doors and a few more to get the ship up and running.
“Never flown this type before?” Kira jeered.
Aeria fixed her with a reproachful look and said, “A member of the ruling family rarely has the occasion to perform menial labor like cargo transport; so no, I haven’t flown this type of ship before.” The catty response satisfied Kira, so she didn’t press the issue. Instead she sat in one of the co-pilot seats and strapped herself in, suspecting that it might be a bumpy ride. She was right.
The takeoff was one of the most terrifying experiences she’d ever had, as Aeria nearly crashed the shuttle into the hangar wall twice, something that only seemed to sour the goddess’s mood further. Once Aeria finally gained an understanding of the controls things went better, but leaving the atmosphere was still more jarring than her last experience. This made Kira regret not suggesting that they take her ship, which had been parked in the next hangar bay.
Aside from the rough start, everything seemed to be going as planned until Aeria started navigating away from the Trident. Kira didn’t notice at first as she was lost in her thoughts about the news her father had given her; if she could even call him her father anymore. She kept wondering who the stranger was, and why he picked their mother to have children with. Why would he leave them alone on an uncivilized planet? Why hadn’t he told them that he was their father?
The questions just kept piling up and it wasn’t until she decided to push the thoughts away that she noticed something was amiss. The trip to the Trident shouldn’t be taking as long as it was, and by the uncomfortable look on Aeria’s face, something was wrong.
“Where are you taking us? Why don’t I see the Trident anymore?” Kira asked, realizing she shouldn’t have let her guard down.
“I’m taking care of a problem first,” Aeria replied coldly.
There was a sinking feeling in Kira’s stomach. “Problem? What are you talking about? We need to meet with Velion, we have very important news.”
“What news? That you aren’t who we thought you were?” Aeria spat back at her, engaging the autopilot and getting to her feet. Kira blinked, not knowing how to respond. Aeria, taking her silence as confirmation of her guilt, continued, “Oh don’t you think I already know? How long have you been plotting in secret with the rebellion? What are they planning?!”
Kira’s heart sank as she realized her folly. Aeria had followed them and had watched the conversation with their father. She was the shadow in the trees. “Aeria, it’s not what you think. We weren’t meeting with the rebellion!”
“Spare me your lies! I saw your treachery first hand, just as the note said I would. What were you meeting about? What is the rebellion planning? Who is the cloaked figure you discussed?” Aeria demanded wildly.
“Note? What note?” Kira didn’t understand.
“Don’t play stupid with me! I know your treason! Tell me what I want to know right now!” Aeria screamed.
“Treason? Aeria it’s not like that. We went to see our family, that’s all. We aren’t part of the rebellion,” Kira pleaded with her, but her words fell on deaf ears.
Aeria shook her head and said, “So be it. You can take your secrets to your grave. I’m putting an end to this, once and for all.” Aeria unlatched Kira’s restraints and ripped her out of her seat. Kira tried to fight back but Aeria was too strong for her, and before she knew it, they were leaving the cabin of the ship. Using her immense speed and strength Aeria drove Kira to the back of the ship, into the cargo bay.
Kaya came running up after them and screamed, “No! Leave her alone! We didn’t do anything wrong!” She started pounding on Aeria with her fists, but the blows did nothing. With a motion as if she was swatting an annoying fly, Aeria swung her left hand behind her and knocked Kaya to the ground. This drove Kira to madness, but it was too late. Before she could do anything Aeria threw her into the back wall of the cargo container. With lighting fast speed the goddess pressed a button on the bulkhead, and before Kira could recover, the interior cargo bay door closed, sealing itself shut.
Immediately bright yellow lights started flashing and an automated female voice rang out, “Emergency evacuation procedure initiated. Thirty seconds until total decompression.” Kira’s heart sank as she realized what was about to happen. The cargo bay doors would open in thirty seconds and she would be thrown out into space. Running over to the interior door, Kira peered through the glass at Aeria and desperately screamed, “Fine! You caught me! I’m the traitor! Not Kaya. She didn’t know, she’s innocent. Whatev
er you do, don’t hurt her! If you want to kill me then that’s fine, but she never did anything!”
Aeria turned to look at Kaya, who had crawled over to her knees and was sobbing and begging her to open the cargo doors. Turning back to Kira she pressed the com button and said, “So be it, I won’t kill her. But before the end, she will wish that I had. We’ll see how she handles the wastelands of the underworld after we torture her for information.”
“Twenty seconds to total decompression. Manual override will be locked in ten seconds,” the automated voice called out.
Kira looked down towards Kaya and yelled, “I’m sorry! I love you, Kaya!”
Kaya sobbed harder and screamed, “No!! Let her out! She’s lying! She’s not a traitor!” but Aeria wouldn’t budge.
“Ten seconds to total decompression. Manual override is now locked,” the voice called out as the air in the room started to move. Kira could feel the air getting thinner as the room grew horribly cold. She looked at her sister one last time, and mouthed the word “goodbye” before turning to face the door. If she was going to be thrown into the depths of space then she would meet her demise head on, greeting death with a smile instead of fear.
“Five. Four. Three. Two. One.” The cargo bay door opened and everything was sucked out into the void, including Kira.