Kaul woke to the sound of scaping. It was metal against the concrete floor. He could hear the ping as the thin metal vibrated as it was dragged along the floor around him. It was coming closer and closer.

"I know that sound," Kaul wheezed. The burning in his throat made it difficult for him to breathe. He didn't know if it was from the feeding tube or the gas that he had breathed in. All he knew was that he could barely make a sound. "It's a bladed staff."

A sudden pain shot through him. The blade went through his leg. He cried out in pain. His scream echoed through the small room.

He sucked in the air, trying to work through the pain. As soon as he breathed out again, pain shot through his shoulder. The blade had been slammed into it so far that it exited out of his back. He screamed, unable to hold it in.

Kaul believed that whoever had the staff was one of three girls. The only ones who used the weapon were Aleigha, Jada, and Niki. He didn't know which one of the girls was in front of him. All he saw was darkness.

When his scream ended, the blade of the staff was pressed to his other shoulder. This time, it pushed slowly as if in slow motion. His captor let him feel it as it slowly entered his shoulder and then pressed through the skin of his back. The blade pinged against the wall behind him. Kaul screamed the moment it entered. He didn't stop until after it was roughly yanked out again. His captor did not say anything during the entire process.

Hanging his head, weak from the loss of blood, Kaul sucked in more air, trying to breathe through the pain.

He heard the sound of footsteps leaving; it sounded like more than one set, but the ringing in his ears prevented him from being sure. The metal door banged closed, leaving him in silence.

After what felt like hours, the distorted voice spoke. "Your time in this room is nearly over. I think soon, you will feel the sun on your face before you are executed," the voice told him. "I can see why Travis liked to torture. He would change his victims frequently because he got bored with them easily. I understand it now. I'm not like Travis; I will never torture another, but you deserve it."

Kaul thought about it. His mind raced as he tried to figure out who was speaking to him. There were very few who would know the exact details of Travis's torture methods. He could only name three. Jada, Hope, and Mia. The only one of them who used the staff was Jada. It had to be her. It had to be. No one else fits.

"Jada?" he asked in a whisper. His tone would go no louder. "Your Jada."

The Voice laughed. It was a dry laugh. It was a mocking laugh. "You will find out soon enough."

There was a slight pause before the door opened slowly. Kaul felt the sharp pinch of an injector going through his neck before everything in his mind faded, leaving him unconscious.

Kaul's captor waited for Kaul to be completely unconscious before removing the shackles from his wrists and ankles. Pulling him onto a hover bed, they dragged him out of the room.

Quickly activating the cloaking shields, one on Kaul and his bed, the other on themself, and headed toward the entrance of the tunnel.

Stopping at the front, they slid the door open only a crack and looked out. There were no guards tonight. Pulling the door wide enough for the hover bed to float through, they pushed the bed inside the dome and then quickly closed the door to the entrance of the tunnel.

Making the hover bed float toward the prison, they passed Jada's home. Jada was looking out of the window toward the door. The captor smiled. Jada knows it was opened. There was a frown on her face as she stared at the now-closed door.

Moving Kaul closer to the prison building's front lawn, the captor watched around them. There was no one there. It was too late in the evening. Most were sleeping. They would wake up to Kaul shackled to the prison. He deserved death, but it was promised to Jada.

Once at the prison, Kaul's captor dragged him off of the hover bed and onto the grass. Taking the pile of shackles off the bed, the captor quickly bound Kaul and then attached the chains to the pillars at the entrance of the prison building.

Once finished, they pushed the bed quickly to the medic storage room, then pulled the cloaking shield off the edge of the bed and deactivated it before rushing back to Kaul to take the cloaking device off of him. He needed to be found in the morning. It was important that they found him in the morning.

Once his cloaking shield was taken from him and deactivated, the captor rushed toward Jada's home. She was still looking out the window at the closed entrance of the tunnel. The captor made sure to stand in front of the window Jada was in and deactivated their cloaking shield. Jada's gaze moved to the captor. She curtly nodded before turning around to go to bed.

The captor rushed home. Tomorrow, when they find Kaul, Jada will execute him.

*** *** ***

Guard Commander Drevick walked to the prison to relieve the overnight staff. He had work to do. He had to find Kaul. Orik found out Jada's secret. It was that she could no longer have children, clearing her from being the one that took him.

Trei had said that even that information didn't sit right. There had to be something else. He kept saying that she had to have taken him. The pieces he was seeing didn't add up.

When Drevick got to the prison building, he noticed a lump of fabric in front of the pillars at the entrance of the prison. When he got closer, he realized what it was. It was Kaul.

Drevick pulled his comm link and set it to call two at once. He needed to call Council Leader Vorik and Trei.

"Kaul has been found bound to the pillars of the prison structure," he stated into the small device.

Two separate voices came through the comm link immediately. "On my way," they echoed. Both saying the exact same thing.

Once they responded, Drevick studied some of the wounds. The injuries to Kaul's shoulders and leg looked familiar. Lifting his comm link, he called several more to come. "Aleigha, come to the prison now." He ordered and then set it to call the next one. "Orik, come to the prison and bring your mate," he told him. Then to the last one. "Trei, when you come to the prison, bring Niki," he ordered.

Drevick waited for everyone to arrive. He paid careful attention to the girls. He wanted to see all of their reactions.

Niki and Trei came first. She looked at Kaul, her face going pale as she squeezed the bundle in her arms tightly.

Guard Commander Drevick could tell that Niki didn't have anything to do with it by her reaction.

Aleigha was next. She looked at Kaul. His eyes had been burned away. His shoulder pierced. Her own face paled as she turned away, throwing up in a bush beside the nearest dwelling to her. She squeezed Finn in her arms, trying not to do drop him while she threw up.

"Two down," Drevick whispered to himself.

Orik and Jada came next. Trei, who had moved close to Drevick, stood as the two men watched them closely. Jada looked at Kaul; they could see the anger on her face as she looked at him. "He better not be dead," she hissed. "He's mine to kill!"

Jada rushed up to him, looking at all the wounds. When she saw his burned-out eyes, she fell to her knees and threw up on the grass. Seeing the empty eye sockets was too much for her.

Drevick and Trei looked between the three girls. "This doesn't make sense," Trei whispered. "The wounds were made by a bladed staff. All three of them fight with one. Is there anyone else that does?"

"Not that I know of," Drevick whispered back. He didn't want to be heard.

"Now what?" Trei asked. "When is the serum supposed to be finished?"

"According to the tech, it was finished last night," Drevick whispered. "I think Jada, Niki, and Aleigha are going to be the first ones questioned using it," he said, pressing a message into his wrist communicator.

Trei flinched. "Has it been tested on a human to make sure it's safe?"

"Yes. One of the human prisoners. It worked perfectly," Drevick responded. "I wouldn't allow it used on my mate if it weren't."

They watched as Jada wiped her mouth and took the bladed staff out of her boot. With one smooth motion before anyone could protest, she extended it, then, in a wide arch, swung at Kaul, taking off his head.

Council Leader Vorik rushed up just as Jada's swing ended. She threw the staff on the ground as if it had burned her, falling to her knees, and began to sob uncontrollably while everyone watched.

Council Leader Vorik went to the body and peered down at it, seeing the injuries. The long piercing in his leg and each of his shoulders. Kaul's wrists were raw from his shackles. The thinness of his frame. Walking to the severed head, he peered down at the face. He gasped when he saw the burned-out eyes of Kaul.

Vorik turned to Jada. "Did you do this to him?" he asked, pointing to the eyes, then the body.

Jada shook her head in denial, not saying anything. She looked like she was in shock.

Renn suddenly walked up with two medics with him. Trei immediately took Drake from Niki, while Drevick took Finn.

The two medics and Renn positioned themselves behind each of the girls. One each went to Jada, Niki, and Aleigha.

Vorik scanned them and then quickly nodded. As soon as he did, each of the medics quickly injected the girls with the truth serum.

The girl's faces were slack, eyes unfocused as they began to collapse. Each of the medics caught them as they began to fall, preventing them from falling to the ground. Vorik went to Niki first.

Vorik stood in front of her. "Did you have anything to do with Kaul's injuries or disappearance?" he asked her.

"No," Niki stated, her voice monotone. Her eyes were unfocused, staring at nothing.

"Do you know who did?" Vorik questioned.

"No," Niki stated, her voice never changing,

Vorik moved to stand in front of Aleigha.

"Did you have anything to do with Kaul's disappearance or his injuries?" Vorik asked Aleigha.

"No," Aleigha stated in a monotone.

"Do you know who did?" Vorik asked, continuing his questions.

"No," Aleigha responded.

Vorik moved to stand in front of Jada.

"Did you have anything to do with Kaul's disappearance or his injuries?" Vorik asked.

"I took his head," Jada stated in the same monotone as the others.

"Did you take Kaul?" Vorik asked.

"No," she responded.

Vorik looked at Drevick, then Trei before going back to Jada.

"Did you do any of the injuries he has sustained besides taking his head?" he asked.

"No," Jada responded.

Vorik sighed. "Do you know who did?" he asked.

"Yes," Jada responded. "Kaul had his men go after her and her mate. She wanted to play with him before I killed him."

There was shock on everyone's faces as they stared at her. Niki and Aleigha were oblivious to Jada's confession. They were still under the influence of the truth serum.

"Who was it?" Vorik asked.

"She was taught by her brother. He liked to torture," Jada responded. "She learned from him. He liked to torture her. She knew how, so she wanted to do it to Kaul for harming her mate and trying to kill her."

"What is her name!" Vorik yelled.

"Hope," Jada responded.

*** *** ***

Council Leader Vorik brought Jada and Hope inside the council chambers. Jada was still under the influence of the truth serum. Trei was with Niki and Aleigha as Jada and Hope were being interrogated further.

Jada sat in a chair at the long council table. Hope sat in a chair in front of the table, bound with shackles; a medic stood behind her, ready to inject her with the human truth serum.

Council Leader Vorik first looked at Jada. "Why did Hope help you?" he asked evenly.

"Because he tried to kill her and her mate. We made an agreement," Jada stated, her voice still monotone from the truth serum.

Vorik turned to the medic, giving the sign to inject Hope. Seeran and Orik stood against a wall surrounded by a wall of guards. There was a grimace on both of their face.

Once injected, Vorik stood in front of Hope. "Why did you torture Medic Kaul?" he asked.

"Because he nearly killed my mate," she stated, her voice monotone.

"Did you blind him?" Vorik asked.

"Yes, I used the burnout chemical to flood his cell, but not enough to kill him," she stated. "Killing him is Jada's job, even though she didn't really want to. She knew she had to for the safety of the people of the dome."

Vorik tried to ignore the fact that Jada didn't actually want to kill Kaul but felt she needed to. "Are you the one that used the bladed staff to inflict wounds on Kaul?" Vorik asked Hope.

"Kaul deserved to suffer for what he did. He decided humans were the problem. The real problem was the Ramesians invasion. Without it, Humans would not have rebelled or turned into zombies. They would not have been cured to be plagued with the residue that was killing them. He blamed those problems on humans but did not see who really caused them," Hope stated.

Vorik sighed. "How do you feel about Ramesians?" he asked.

"I do not judge a race for the actions of one soul. I love my mate. He is Ramesian. I know the Ramesians were controlled. I do not blame them for what they did under the influence of the serum. I blame Kaul for his choices. He killed his family because Ramesians caused problems with humans. He blamed the humans for those problems the Ramesians caused. He deserved to die. He consciously destroyed lives without being under the influence of the controlling serum. I will never torture again. I am not my brother. It was my job; I made an agreement," Hope finished. Her voice is monotone.

"What agreement?" Vorik asked, watching Hope carefully.

"I made an agreement to take him until I was finished with him. Then, I would return him for Jada to kill. I promised I wouldn't kill him. Only Jada gets to kill him," she stated.

"So your agreement was that you would take him to torment him because of what he did to you and your mate, and when you were finished, you would give him back for Jada to kill? Is that it?" Vorik asked.

"Yes," Hope stated, her voice monotone.

"How did you get him out?" Vorik continued.

"I used a hover bed to transport him. I used a cloaking shield to hide him," she continued.

"How did you hide him without the scanners from finding him?" Vorik continued.

"I used a space blanket to hide him from the sensors," she stated.

"Did Jada know you hid him with it? Did she know where you took him?" Vorik asked.

"No, no one knows where I took him," she continued.

Jada suddenly convulsed, a mint green foam coming out of her mouth; as her eyes rolled back into her head, she collapsed.

Vorik rushed forward, catching her to prevent her from falling onto the floor. As he picked her up, he carried her to Orik and motioned for the medic to see what was wrong with her.

As the medic scanned her, reports came in that something was wrong with the prisoner they tested the serum on. A medic was sent to the prisoner immediately. Orik carried Jada to the clinic with the medic in tow. As soon as he exited the room, Hope suddenly convulsed, collapsing to the floor.

Vorik barely had time to catch her. The second alarm sounded, and Trei called in. "Send a couple of medics. There is something wrong with Aleigha! Niki also!" Trei had called into the comm link. There was panic in his voice as the comm link went silent.

Drevick rushed out to find Aleigha, taking a medic with him. When he got to Niki's dwelling, where Trei was watching them, both girls were in the same condition as the others.

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