Deserter: Chapter Eleven-The Bathroom

For the first time in five years, Rain had nightmares. She twisted in her sheets and woke up screaming. The voices of beaten slaves rang in her ears and she covered them with her hands, bending double.

Must have been triggered by the killing, she thought miserably. She remembered the first time she killed. It had been her mother and her mom’s boyfriend. She hadn’t had a single nightmare from that, but when she’d seen the slaves getting beaten she’d woken up screaming for months. She’d watched families tortured in front of one another and it had ripped her apart.

“What have I become?” she cried out to the empty room. I’ve become just like the people I hated most, she told herself.

The sun was beginning to peek through the curtains covering her window and she turned away from it and rolled off the bed.

Rain landed on her hands and knees. The carpet felt rough on her skin and she pushed herself upright, groaning.

Her pants were slung over the foot board of the bed and she grabbed them and began tugging them over her bare legs. Ven had given her a fresh shirt and she pulled that on as well, than sat on the edge of the bed to tug on her boots.

Rain tied her hair back from her face and stumbled numbly out of her room and down the stairs. She could feel that Ven and Brand were gone and figured they were out ship hunting.

The sun burned her eyes and she shielded them with her hand. There were many people about and she avoided them as she walked aimlessly through the city. Of all the times for my conscious to make a reappearance, why now? she asked herself over and over again.

Brand had said they were looking for their sister, and that she might be on Titan. Rain knew she couldn’t go there though, because that’s where Ranger HG was. She wasn’t willing to risk being caught, but convincing Ven that going there wasn’t the best idea wasn’t going to be an easy task.

Her senses returning to her, she continued to look around the city, images of Nick and Gina flashing a torturous pain through her mind.

The city was teaming with people, even at this early hour, and through other people, Rain picked up scents and sights that intrigued her. She traveled the universe, but she’d never really allowed herself to go into big cities, for the express reason of a sensory overload. But after years of practice, and finally getting a good handle on her abilities, she was able to filter emotions and thoughts projected at her by the citizens of the city.

There were also people that hid their emotions, and she noticed that some were better than others. She was looking upwards at an amazingly tall skyscraper while she walked, when she slammed into a woman. The woman shot her a look through bright silver eyes and her nostrils flared. Rain was unable to pick up any emotion from her whatsoever, and the woman retracted mentally when Rain tried to pick something up. It was the same reaction she got from Ven, and even Brand. The eyes were eerily similar, as well.

Where was it Ven had said they were from? Trys something or other. Rain had heard of Trysians before, and had been told that they were deadly because of their sensory perception, and the ability to heal with amazing speed. And they were fast. Reaction time was shorter in Trysians than in any other form of humanoids in the known universe. Not to mention they could smell pheromones and determine your mood from that. It was almost as good as being empathic.

Feeling odd from the nightmares and the guilt that plagued her, Rain flowed with the growing crowds. When she finally took the time to wonder where she was, she found that she’d crossed half the city in a few short hours. She checked her watch. Okay, a few long hours. She’d left her room around six am, and now it was ten p.m.. It was dark and the streets were beginning to empty out.

Rain shivered and turned back towards the hotel, rubbing her chilled arms. She’d been so deep in thought she’d forgotten to eat and she had a sudden urge to pee. She ducked into a bar and was forced to pay a six credit cover charge. She flashed her teeth at the bouncer who’d charged her and flashed him an image of sharp teeth on some giant cat type animal. He blinked at her dazedly and let her pass, goosebumps raised on his flesh.

Rain grinned to herself then, and pushed her way to the back of the bar. The sign indicating the women’s’ bathroom was a welcome sight and Rain brushed by a group of stogie sucking chicks on her way in. She bumped one harder than the woman seemed to appreciate and the lady turned on her, long nailed hand pulled back to strike.

Seeing the ready strike heading for her face, Rain ducked and pulled her blade at the same time, not even thinking. When she saw it was just some lady with a bad attitude, and not someone that might come after her, Rain just pulled back her fist and decked the woman, sending her sprawling and unconscious to the floor. The woman’s three companions turned on her immediately, and Rain used all her concentration to send them images of her kill the night before. The sight of her covered in blood flooding their minds made them squeal in terror, and they fled, leaving their unconscious friend on the floor. Rain laughed so hard she almost wet herself and ducked into the bathroom.

A loud sigh echoed from her stall and when she came out and washed her hands she was confronted by one of the three still conscious woman, and she had a couple big guys with her.

Rain flashed them a bored look and continued to wash her hands. She dried them before turning to stare at them fully, one dark brow raised questioningly.

“That’s her!” the woman, declared, pointing a long crimson nail in Rain’s direction.

Rain sighed and lifted a shoulder casually. “Uh, yeah, its me. Who else would I be?”

The woman sneered. “You punched out Shelly, you cunt!”

Rain’s hackles stood up suddenly. That was not something you called a woman. “I’m not going to ask you to take that back, but I am going to beat the shit outta ya now. Just be glad I’m not going to kill you, like I did them.”

She flashed the group of people images of everyone she could remember killing. At least all the more bloody ones. The men shifted uncomfortably and the woman looked ready to faint, her face suddenly drained of color.

That done, Rain crouched low and coiled her muscles for the attack, feeling the blood rush through her veins. She didn’t pull her knife, because that would mean she’d end up killing someone, and she was strangely wary of doing just that. One of the larger men advanced on her, and she dropped him with lightening speed.

Her first attack was a fake strike to the head, and when he lifted his arms to block the blow, she launched herself forwards and kneed him in the groin. He cupped the offended appendage and doubled forward. Rain then followed up by leaping straight up and coming down on his spine with her elbows, planting them in his back. He howled and fell to the ground, trying to grab both injuries with his hands, and writhing on the floor.

The second man leapt at her, a growl emanating from his throat, and Rain sidestepped his clumsy attack, leapt upwards and spun, landing a hook kick to the back of his head. When she landed, she grabbed him in a sleeper hold until he passed out, then let his limp form drop to the ground.

The other guy, seeing what she could do, pulled a gun. Rain froze and gazed at the extended weapon.

“Don’t move,” he ordered shakily, but his hand was steady. Rain didn’t move, her body eerily still.

He advanced on her, the woman watching with a smug smile on her face.

Rain, seeing him gain some control and think that he had her now, dropped down onto her haunches and then jumped up and forward, hitting the underside of the gun with both hands. The man’s arm flew up and she grabbed at the gun.

Before she could twist it around and pull it from the man’s hand, it went off and the bullet thudded into the ceiling.

Undaunted, Rain grabbed the gun in a practiced twist and pulled it away, suddenly aiming at the man. There was now a crowd of rubber necking bar patrons gawking at the door, but Rain waved the gun at them and they backed away warily.

She stalked meaningfully over to the woman, pulled her blade and held it to the woman’s throat. “You could have gotten me killed, *cunt*,” she hissed. The woman gulped and looked over Rain’s shoulder to the man, who was now one gun short, pleadingly. He glanced away, his ego badly damaged. “I could kill you,” she added, seeing and feeling the woman’s fear. Adrenaline rushed through her, and the urge to slit the woman a new grin was almost overwhelming, but Rain still held back.

Instead, she decided to leave the woman a reminder of herself, and tangled her fist in her hair. She pulled the woman’s head back, exposing her throat. Muscles contracted and Rain watched them tighten and loosen over and over again. The woman’s long blonde hair was thick, and with an evil laugh, Rain put the razor sharp edge of the knife into the hair and began to cut it away. The woman whimpered, and Rain forced her to her knees.

No one moved, the entire bar had gone silent. Standing back, Rain admired her handy work. The woman looked a bit like a shaved dog now. Her hair lay in clumps around her and what was left stood on end. But that wasn’t much, being as Rain had only left an inch or so on the woman’s head.

The woman covered her head with her hands, and Rain laughed. “It’ll grow back. Christ, people, I only wanted to use the damn bathroom!” Then she left, laughing her way out the door.

Rain wouldn’t have been laughing, though, if she’d known James had just landed in New-New York, and he’d already gotten a sniff of her location. The hunt was beginning.

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