Deserter: Chapter Sixteen-The Capture

“Rain, wake-up.”

Rain’s eyes fluttered open to stare into deep golden eyes and a shock of black hair over a dark forehead. “Brand. You’re better,” Rain mumbled sleepily, sitting up quickly and shoving her hair from her face. She reached out and touched his young face lightly. “Ven? Where is she?”

“Yeah. I’m fine, and so’s Ven. Are you?” Rain saw genuine concern in his young face and felt warmth suffuse throughout her body. No one had ever cared about her before. She liked it.

“Yeah. I’m fine.” She shoved herself off the table to her feet. Brand led her through the white halls to what looked like a cafeteria.

“C’mon. I’ll take you to Ven.” Brand led her through the white halls to what looked like a cafeteria.

Ven was sitting at a table with three trays of food in front of her. She grinned at Rain. “Food,” she said as Rain sat across from her, and Brand next to his sister.

Rain leaned over the tray in front of her and sniffed appreciatively. “Real food,” she breathed.

They all dug into their meals appreciatively. None of them had eaten for close to three days. The food was hot and although it was hospital food, it was the best meal they’d ever had. Or at least seemed like it at the moment.

Full and content to sit still for a moment, the strange companions conversed quietly over the table. Rain felt herself opening up to the pair and discovered she even liked them... and talking to people normally for once. She was free for the time being and sitting here with people was nice and refreshing. Rain wanted this for herself. She’d left the Rangers. Maybe now she could have a normal life, and maybe she could start with staying with Ven and Brand. Live in a real house. Maybe meet a nice guy, forget her past and all the things she’d done. Start over.

“... so we’ll leave in an hour,” Ven was saying and Rain snapped her attention back to the present.

“Uh, right. All my stuff is still on the ship and so your guys’ stuff. So we can grab some food and head on outta here, right?” Rain questioned as they all stood to their feet.

Ven nodded. “We have to pay, though. For once I think I’ll do things conventionally and avoid further notice. Lemme give Sam the creds and we’ll begin checking supplies on the ship before we leave.”

“Okay. Me and Brand will meet you back at the ship.” Rain turned to Brand. “C’mon, kiddo. Let’s get workin’.” She slung her arm around his shoulder and they walked away.

Ven grinned to herself. Rain was getting soft for her little brother and Brand was taking to Rain like the sister he missed so much. They had to find Gyn. Gyn would like Rain and Ven was sure Rain would like Gyn. Rain seemed to want to be free of the whole Company mess as her and Brand did. Maybe she could come with them. There was always room in the Wolf misfit family. Nothing like a fellow Company reject to keep the atmosphere warm and friendly.

~~~~

Rain handed the list to Brand and they began checking things off for their journey. “Where are we goin’ anyways?” Brand asked.

“After your big sister if I remember correctly. Last I heard of her she was headin’ to some place called Dres-Aries. Do you know it?” Rain questioned.

“Beans?”

“Check.”

“Dres? Really? Shit, Rain, me and Ven were just there! That’s where we came from! Jerky?”

“Check. Don’t worry about it. This was a while ago. About six months, I’d guess. And if you were there, you know Dres is a good sized planet. She coulda landed at any one of the colonies. Or even one of the bigger settler cities.”

“Water?” Brand checked off jerky from the list.

“Check,” Rain answered.

“Yeah, I guess you’re right. But what if she was lookin’ for us? And we missed her? We shoulda stayed with Jack... we told Riddick we’d look after her...” he trailed off.

“Riddick?” Rain asked sharply.

“Uh, yeah. Big bald guy from the Ring Cruiser? He dropped off a girl my age on Dres and we said we’d take care of her. But that was almost a year ago. We just left there a month or so ago. She can take care of herself.”

“I know who Riddick is. We’ve met, for lack of a better word.” Brand raised a dark brow at her. Rain looked away. “What do you know about Riddick?” she asked, changing the subject.

“Nothin’ really. He just showed up one day on Dres. Dropped off Jack, askin’ if we’d take care of her. Ven said no problem, but we didn’t know how long we’d be there. Riddick said that was fine, waved to Jack and took off again. Said he was lookin’ for someone but didn’t bother to mention who. Then we go and run into him on the Ring Cruiser where you were prisoner. Jack says Riddick is a slam escapee.” Brand looked down at he supply list in his hands, pen ready. “Hydrated crap?”

Rain held up a box that said full syth meal, just add water. At least it wasn’t in a tube. “Check.”

~~~

James saw the small town loom over the horizon and set down quickly. The sun was low but still bright and he recognized the ship Rain had taken off in. He walked over to it cautiously and looked around. No one in sight.

Rain walked next to Ven as the three of them got ready to board the ship and take off. A sharp, malicious force entered the edges of her mind and she grabbed Brand by the shoulders and yanked him back behind a building. Ven shot her a sharp look and Rain motioned her to follow them.

They hid behind the building together and Ven and Brand stared at her questioningly. “Someone is hear. I think its that guy that got us back on Rhea,” Rain whispered.

Ven cursed sotto voce and peaked around the corner. “Now what?”

“I think he’s after me. He looks Ranger. Chances are he could be after you two about Gyn though. The infamous Ranger killin’ family would look good on his record as caught by him. I’m pretty sure its me though he’s after.

“Ven, you go out there. He might not recognize you. If he does, holler. I’ll come runnin’,” Rain directed.

Ven nodded and headed out.

James turned in time to see a tall blonde woman coming towards him. She was heavily armed but didn’t look threatening. Her long hair was pulled back into a low pony tail at the base of her neck and she smiled at him. Something seemed familiar about her.

“Hey there, little lady. Do you know who owns this ship?” James asked, spreading the charm on thick.

“Why, yes. I do. It’s mine. What do you want with it?” Ven asked, using her best friendly smile and voice on him. He thought his Ranger status would charm her. He was dead wrong. She wanted to rip out his throat with her teeth. Nothing was more hated by her then the Company and its cronies that it called Rangers.

“Yours?” he questioned.

Ven nodded. “Mine. What do you want with it?”

“Couldn’t be. Everyone flying this thing was half dead and bleeding when I saw them last. You look fine,” James answered.

Ven knew who he hadn’t looked so good either when they’d left him. His throat had been slashed. His voice was raspy now, and there was a wicked scar that stretched across his throat. “Mend chamber, buddy.” Ven drew her blade in one hand and pulled her revolver with the other. “And I owe you a bullet in the chest. Rain!”

Rain heard Ven call for her and took off, Brand beside her. They both pulled their blades and guns and stood next to Ven.

“Rain. Ranger number 1081983-DLS, you are under arrest by order of The Company. You need to give up your weapons and come with me,” James stated, trying to sound confident in the face of this woman who hadn’t looked half so dangerous in her picture. Her green eyes blazed defiantly at him and she looked ready to spring. He felt a strange fear enter his mind and strange images flashed in his mind.

“I don’t think so, pal. The three of us are going to board that ship, and we’re going to kill you first. We all owe you a little something from the last time we met. Don’t we, guys?” she finished, addressing Brand and Ven.

Brand bared his teeth at James and edged a bit closer. He was as tall as James and in a lot better shape, despite his youth.

“Rain! Hey, wait up! I need to ask you something!” It was Sam, and with him came distraction. In the next few seconds, everything exploded.

James dove forward, tackling Brand who had turned slightly towards Sam. His gun flew from his hand and he fell hard beneath James’ much heavier weight.

“Brand!” Ven screamed his name, diving towards the two men locked in a killer’s embrace on the dirt.

Rain turned on Sam. “Get the hell out of here, Sam!”

Sam hesitated, staring at the scene unfolding before him. “What’s going on here?” he demanded.

“I said LEAVE! Now beat it!” Rain didn’t wait to see if he followed her directions and turned to the three people twisting on the ground.

Brand scrambled out of the melee, leaving Ven to hold off James. Rain dived in, grabbing a handful of James’ hair in her fist and pulling his head back. Ven slashed viciously at his face with her blade, but missed when he pulled back his hand and slammed it into her face. She cried out and Rain was shaken from her place on his back.

They rolled on the ground some more and Rain suddenly found herself pinned beneath Ven on her stomach, James crushing them both to the ground. Brand reached for her hand and she grabbed it, letting him pull her out, then they both turned on James and Ven. There was a scream as James finally wrestled the gun from Ven’s iron grasp and pistol whipped her across the temple with it. She went limp beneath him and James stood to face Brand and Rain, leaving Ven’s limp form on the ground.

“Ven!” Brand cried and tried to rush to her side but James tackled him again.

Rain dove in and suddenly there was a gun shot. Molten heat seeped into Rain’s stomach and she removed her hand from her abdomen where she’d grabbed it compulsively. It came away sticky and red and she looked up into James’ face. Brand launched himself at him but caught a hit in the head same as his sister, falling unconscious to the ground.

“Shit,” Rain breathed, looking back at the blood quickly slipping out of her. “And just when I was getting good.” She looked up at James. “You killed me, you bastard.”

~~~

Riddick sat on the bed in Rain’s room and looked around slowly. She’d been gone a while now. Who knows where she’d gone? Ven and Brand had disappeared, too. But where? Damn, something didn’t seem right. He needed to find Gyn Wolf.

***

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