The Siege

The red laserblade swept past the Adherent's ear with searing heat. Too close. Where did these heretics come from? She took a step back and lifted her plazmet shield. Another blow came hurtling down plunging onto the shield, a piercing hiss where it scorched and the smell of melting metal attacked her senses. She pushed forward, summoning her strength and forcing her assailant back. My turn. She wheeled her other arm forward, her dagger firmly held between her fingers and plunged....into thin air. Her gaze briefly caught the remainder of her fighting force. Bodies littering the floor, limbs turned to charcoal, the scent of death all around. The Sanctuary burned, the red-hot smoke fusing with the dusky sand, the attacker's hoverthopters hung overhead, their engines roaring, their proximity suffocating.

Another attack by the red skinned monster before her. With both hands upon his blade, he charged at her, the blade soaring through the static-charged air. She evaded, swung her dagger in his direction and used her shield to cover her face from subsequent attack.

She glimpsed Taryn, moving with an elegant grace, sweeping her own assailant's leg from beneath him and plunging her scimitar into his chest. Another attacker approached from the rear but she sensed him and wheeled around decapitating him in one swoop. A powerful kick to the chest of another as she bore down upon him in a paradox of frenzied control. The blood lust had seized her senses as she tore into her next victim.

The Adherent felt the heat of the laserblade once more as it streaked before her eyes. She blinked, momentarily disorientated and only just managed to evade before another arcing blow swooped down upon her. She felt her arm burn in agony, her shield split as the blade seared her arm. She grimaced, dropping the shield and swung her blade into her assailant catching him between the plates of his armour. He roared and wobbled to his back leg allowing her enough time to stand and reign down a blow.

With another lunge, her blade penetrated the neck, the puncture ejecting a torrent of blood that her assailant tried to stem with a desperate hand. With another blow, she put him out of his misery, screaming at the top of her lungs "May Jade have mercy on your soul!"

She took an deep intake of breath. Truly the water had been spilt today and the blood must follow. Many of her forces were retreating to the seeq entrance. It was the correct defensive posture now, she realised. She noticed that others had barricaded themselves within the council chamber. They were the  final vanguard of the Old Ways desperately trying to preserve themselves. So the dissenters had finally outed themselves.The Council had proven their weakness. They would fall to the onslaught, victims of their own stupidity.  Taryn, meanwhile, marshaled what remained of her battalion, her elite group trained only as she could train them. They formed a tightly closed circle around the Adherent, forcing their way through the enemy as they retreated back, erecting orange energy shields, their hexagonal glow pulsing as the enemy's rifle division fired on their position.

As they emerged into the darkness, the Adherent looked back at the sanctuary, ablaze.

"If this is to be our last stand", Taryn heaved as she spoke, "We do it from the seeq. We marshal them into the tightest corridors and reduce their numerical advantage."

"Who are they?! WHO?". The Adherent spoke angrily as she was hustled down the crooked caverns, her people destroying the lightspheres as they moved further down into the seeq.

"I've not seen their like before. Quiet now."

* * *

The inner sanctum of the seeq felt eerie. The thunderous sound of combat rumbled through the caverns. War cries could be heard. The clank of metal upon armour, the fizz of energy weapons, the shrieks of pain before death.

They were huddled around a table within the Adherent's personal chamber. A map of the seeq lay before them and Taryn was pointing to places on the map, barking orders at her people who rushed off to relay the command.

"Hengeyokai?", the Adherent asked looking up intensely from beneath her brows.

Taryn shook her head "Off-worlders, yes, but these are not Rangers."

"And you're sure of this because?"

"Because we Desert Born make it our business to know everyone else's business."

Another thunderous explosion rumbled through the caverns. The Adherent stared deeply at Taryn who held the gaze. "Then who?"

"I truly do not know, your eminence."

The Adherent looked away and banged her fist upon the table. "We need to get word to the Holy Calina."

"You assume she is not responsible for this?"

"Whoever is responsible for this will pay with their life" - less of a statement than a promise, the Adherent reached for a vial of water, yellow as it was, and poured it upon the floor with deliberate slowness - "The water is spilt. We all know what this means." 

At the first spill of water, all attention in the room has been drawn to the Adherent, a nervous silence permeating through the chamber. We won't spill water so we won't spill blood. She knew the power of her action.