Avery was drug roughly into the room where the other lizard people, or Saurians, were waiting. The large one carrying her shoved her to the floor. She managed to keep her face from kissing metal, but her knees took the force of the blow and she winced.
“SIEGE!!”
Her captor quailed back. Siege. So that was his name.
The huge red one with the crest on his head stood up. He was obviously the leader. Long, purple robes trailed to the floor. He was an imposing figure, especially when he yelled, even though it wasn’t directed at her.
“Apologize! Is that any way to treat a guest?”
The fat one seemed genuinely surprised, and mumbled a quick ‘sorry’ to her before backing up. Avery hesitated, then raised to her feet. The room was even more impressive than the massive leader, if possible. She smiled briefly and then lowered her head.
“Um, lizard-leader, thing, sir...uh, could you please tell me what I’m doing here?” Avery made eye contact for a quick second, but not to long. The eyes were windows to the soul, and she didn’t want him to see any of hers.
He smiled, trying to seem warm, but it came off chilling. "Of course, my lady. Of course.“ He gestured around the room. “First to introduce ourselves. I am Dragaunus, and these are my...” He paused, as if looking for the right word. “friends. Wraith.”
The one that she’d punched before nodded. She shivered when she realized that on the top of his staff was some kind of skull.
“Siege.”
The beachball. Avery didn’t even bother to glance in his direction.
“And Chameleon, whom you’ve already met.”
Chameleon? She hadn’t seen him since Siege had nabbed her in the infirmary. He she turned around. He was half-way behind Siege, and, when their eyes met, he looked guiltily away. Avery returned her attention to Dragaunus.
“As for the reason you’re here, we have need of your powers, Lady.”
‘Ah no, not this “powers” crap again.’
“As a Kelph, we would wish to enlist your services if possible.”
“Wait a minute!” She interrupted. At first she may have been scared, but now she was getting pissed. They obviously had the wrong person. She had no special powers, nor was she any Kelph. “There has to have been a misunderstanding. I don’t know what in the hell you’re talking about.
Dragaunus’s face went dead. It was a few moments before he could respond.
“Um, Milady, could you wait outside for a moment. Siege will watch over you.”
‘Oh, great.’
“Uh, sure.” Avery backed out of the room with Siege, leaving the other saurians alone.
******
“WRAITH!!!!” bellowed Dragaunus.
The older saurian cowered. Dragaunus was livid.
“I THOUGHT YOU SAID SHE WAS THE ONE!!!!!!!!”
“I . . .I. . .” Wraith stuttered.
“She is no Kelph! She knows nothing! Now we’ll have to waste our time on killing her!!”
“NO!”
The room went deadly silent. Dragaunus slowly turned his head to face Chameleon. “What. Did. You. Say?” He growled in a voice quaking with fury.
“Uh....” Chameleon burned holes in the floor with his eyes. “Um, I mean, she has to be a Kelph... or at least something powerful.” He put a hand to his head where she’d hit him over the head. “She healed me.”
Wraith nodded, now excited. “Yes, she must have! Lord Dragaunus, when they first transported here, he was wounded.”
Dragaunus leaned back in his seat, rage abated, and puzzlement now his prominent emotion. “But then why would she deny knowing nothing?”
“Uh, boss, if I can make a suggestion, I think she doesn’t remember.” Chameleon still couldn’t bring himself to look up from the floor. What in Duanos’ name had caused him to cry out like that when he’d suggested killing her? They'd done it before.
“Wraith?”
Wraith frowned hand leaned against the staff. “I guess it would be possible.” He then straightened up. “Yes. If that’s the case, then we’d need something to jog her memory...an item, of a sort. Kelph’s rarely travel from world to world without a weapon. Perhaps if we retrieve something, and conduct the right spells, we could trigger her memory return.”
Dragaunus nodded and pointed to Chameleon. “Since you seem so ‘attached’ to this girl-”
Chameleon winced.
“-You can help her find something that would restore her memory.”
“Right, boss.” Chameleon hurried out of the room.
Wraith sat a moment thinking to himself, then he, too, exited the room, leaving Dragaunus to brood.
******
Avery sat on the bed in the small room they’d given her, shivering. Not totally because she was cold.
This whole thing was f**ked. They thought she was something powerful, and wanted her help. However, she wasn’t anything special, at least not like they were talking about.
'Unless....’ She thought. ‘What if it was true?’ She had witnessed that thing that Chameleon had done with the healing, and he had to have done it, but he’d seemed genuinely confused when she had asked him how it had done it. And those visions...
Avery started, tore out of thought by a sharp rapping at the door.
‘Now what?’ She thought wearily. She opened the door, and Chameleon entered the room slowly.
“What do you want?” She asked angrily. She hadn’t forgotten that he’d kidnapped her. He hung his head.
“I’m sorry. Really. I...” He drifted off and looked up at her face. It was clouded and hard. They stood like that for a while, until Avery’s angry scowl softened. She sighed and plunked down on the bed, grimacing at it’s inflexibility.
“Alright, take a seat. What do you really want?” Her voice was tired and haggard. Avery was surprised. She was usually very good at controlling her voice. She’d meant it to be annoyed.
Chameleon hesitated, then sat on the bed next to her. “Well....we were wondering...um.” He paused. Why was he so uncomfortable? This wasn’t like him.
“Speak up.”
“Have you ever had amnesia? Or some sort of memory loss?”
Avery stared hard, trying to keep her jaw from hanging open. She was totally taken aback. “Wha..what?”
“I said..”
“No.” She waved her hand and touched her forehead. “I mean, I know what you said. Yes, I’ve have amnesia.” She stopped, a painful look crossing her face.
Chameleon found himself wanting to tell her to forget it, that he didn’t need to know, but instead he steeled his voice and asked her : “Did you have anything with you when you lost your memory?”
She frowned. “Why?”
“Um.”
“Wait. I’m not going to answer anything else till you tell me some things that I want to know.”
Chameleon fretted for a moment. He couldn’t tell her that they were trying to take over this planet, she was, apparently, very much on the good side. Concocting a quick lie on the subject, he nodded. “Shoot.”
“Why me? What’s special about me? What do you want with me? And, most importantly, what in the hell is a Kelph?”
Chameleon shrugged. “Well, a Kelph is, according to Wraith, a demi-god with all these powers, that is immortal, and also kind of an endangered species, I guess. You’re here because Wraith thinks you’re a Kelph.”
Avery snorted. “I wish.” She said darkly. “I’d never have to pay taxes again.”
Chameleon couldn’t help but laugh.
“Okay, to answer you’re question, yes, I did have a dagger with me.” She frowned, the humor of a moment ago forgotten. “Weird thing.”
Chameleon nodded. “Well, we need to get it.”
Avery frowned, suspicious again. “Why?”
Chameleon smiled. “So we can prove that you’re just a normal human, and they’ll let you go.” ‘I hope’ he added silently.
She nodded, then held out her hand. “I’m Avery.”
Chameleon shook it, surprised that he’d forgotten a name.
******
Dragaunus jerked his head up as Siege entered the room. The red saurian nodded curtly in Siege’s direction, showing he was listening. “Have they gone?”
“Chameleon and the girl just left.”
Dragaunus’s lip curled into a smile. “Good, good.”
“There was something else, my lord?”
Dragaunus nodded. “Wraith is certain the woman is a Kelph, but I’m not. I can tell you’re not convinced either.”
Siege growled and cracked his knuckles. “You got that right.”
“Chameleon, unfortunately, seems to be quite fond of her. Otherwise, I wouldn’t of even bothered letting Wraith send them back to her apartment.” He grinned. “I have, Siege, arranged a test of sorts. If this woman truly is what Wraith expects her to be, than she and Chameleon will live. If not....” He chuckled dryly at the surprised expression on Siege’s face.
“Chameleon?” He asked.
Dragaunus waved his hand dissmissively. “Unimportant. He was useless anyway.”
“So what’s the test?”
Dragaunus pulled something out of his robes. He held up the small device. “Plant this bomb in the girl’s apartment. It will disintegrate the area.”
Siege took it gingerly into his meaty paws, and laughed.
******
The ducks had stopped for ice cream.
After waiting for at least an hour on the road waiting for another signal, they’d grown bored, and, more importantly, hungry. Fast food and ice cream was the logical answer. Wing hadn’t been that pleased, trying to convince them that they should eat something more sustaining, but had been put down by the teams loud objections.
“So Mal-Mal, who’s better, South Park or Buffy?”
“Oh, Buffy, for sure.”
Nosedive raised a finger. “I agree. SP raises you to new levels of undiscovered mirth, but the Buffster could kick Cartmen’s ass any day.”
Tanya giggled, drawing Dive’s attention.
“And you, miss Vanderflock?”
Tanya surprised, pushed her glasses up her beak. “Uh, well, since I don’t, I don’t, since, you know, I don’t watch either of those shows, I can’t really say. I mean, like, I’ve seen you guys watching them but...”
“Kay. Duke, you asked the question first, what about you?”
“Hmm. Buffy, I guess. The girls are all...”
He was interrupted by Tanya’s com exploding into life. Nosedive choked on his Mint chip.
Wildwing rose out of his seat, running to the Migrator. “Come on, team! That’s the signal we’ve been waiting for!”
******
Avery groaned and stepped away from the spot where she had materialized. The whole transportation thing made her physically Ill. She never wanted to do that again.
Chameleon gestured around himself. “So where’s this Dagger?”
Avery stuck out her tongue. “God, Hell if I know. I think (a tentative think) it might be in the bottom of my dressers drawer. One of them.” She began walking down the hall. “This way.”
Chameleon paused. He felt....very odd. It was nice, this feeling, but odd. He shook his head trying to clear it, and followed. As he stepped into the room, he got a face full of shirt.
“Mumph!” He pulled it off, and grinned. Avery was rooting around in her drawers, throwing her clothes into the air, and muttering.
“It’s gotta be in here somewhere.” She flicked her hand towards a bookshelf. “Check there.”
Chameleon shrugged, and rummaged through the books.
DING-DONG. The doorbell's ring made Chameleon jump, andAvery cursed. “Stay out of sight, OK?”
Chameleon nodded, and watched her walk away. ‘Nice legs.’ He jerked. Where did that come from?! He stared intently at the cover of ‘Rose Madder’. ‘She’s human. Human. Human. Alright? Not Saurian. Not attractive. Noooo sir. Not in the least.’
“Yonna! Uh...Hello.” Avery’s voice drifted in.
******
The faint green light had barely begun to fade when Siege was already scouting for a perfect spot to plant the bomb. Carefully (Or as carefully as someone his, ahem, size can go), he hurried past door after door. His eyes slid over a fire extinguisher and remained. There. He slid the tiny circular bomb behind the main body and gentley pressed to adhear it. His finger brushed the trigger button,and He smiled sinisterly. 10 Minutes, and counting.
A tiny bit of of his brain in the frontal lobes,the last spark of good left in him, flickered slightly, and he felt a moment of regret that he would be murdering one of his partners of more than three years, two spent on Earth and one on Puckworld.
Irrevelent.The spark quenched, Siege teleported out.
******
Avery stared at her bestfreind, eyes wide and a fake smile on her face.
“And so, she said I hadn’t passed. Can you believe it?”
She shook her head, the same expression still plastered in place. Yonna frowned. “Girl, you even listening to a word I’m saying?” Suddenly, her eyes went wide. “Hey, wait! You always act like this when you have something to hide. Girl, you got a man back there?”
Avery shook her head, horrified. She knew what Yonna would do next,and hastily jumped out of her seat. “No! Of course not, Yonna!”
Her freind eyed her critcally and headed for the bedroom door. “You’re lying. I know that look! Just lemme see him.”
Avery, leaped forward, knocking some papers on the floor in doing so. She reached for her hand, but it was too late. Yonna turned the knob and cracked the door. Avery put her head in her hands, expecting lots of sceaming. Instead:
“Whoo, girl! What a catch!”
Avery blinked. ‘Catch? A scrawny, squeaky lizard man is a catch?’
Yonna suddenly squeaked in excitement, and leaped over the back of the couch, trying to look inconspicious. Avery stared at her a moment, then turned back toward the bedroom...
...and ran into a muscular blonde man standing in the doorway. She came very close to screaming.
“Avery.....there you are...” and then, in a whisper, he murmered “Is this it?” He streched out his hand, revealing a small silver dagger.
Avery looked up in shock. “Chameleon?!” She hissed. He nodded, and put his finger to his lips. Frowning, she regarded the dagger, and then answered “Yeah, that’s it.”
“That’s what?” Yonna had gotten up and joined them. Chameleon quickly hid the dagger under his shirt.
Yonna glanced at Avery, then batted her lids at Chameleon. “Aren’t you going to introduce us?” She purred.
“Uh...” Chameleon looked acutly uncomfortable. “Um, my name’s...Cameron.”
Avery grabbed Yonna by the shoulders. “And this is Yonna. C’mon, I’ll talk to you outside.” She looked into her eyes hard and frowned. Yonna sighed and gestured towards the door.
“Lead the way.” She turned then and winked at Chameleon. “Hey, see you around.”
Avery opened the door and pulled her out, shutting it behind her. “Hey,Yonna, Uh, I’ll walk you to your car, okay?” She raised her eyebrows.
The other woman giggled. “Sure, girlfreind. I can tell you want some time....alone. C’mon.”
Avery hesitated, sending a last glance back at the door, and nodded. “Right.”
******
Five minues later, Avery hurried up the stairs. Her condo was set on a hill, so her back door was set onto the upperside, you could access it from the ground. However, the main parking lot was downstairs. WAY downstairs. And the goddamn elevator was broken again, too. Panting as she pushed open the door, Avery glanced down the empty hallway, and crossed the threshold onto the red carpet.
She suddenly stopped, placing a hand on the plaster wall. An unprecidented feeling of terror surged into her veins.
‘Red red red ticking countdown blinking flashing ticking numbers red 25, 24, 23...’
Avery gasped and jerked. Bomb! “Ohmigod, ohmigod...” She had to get out! She had to...”Chameleon.” She whispered hoarsely. Pushing herself to her feet, she torn down the hall toward her room.
‘9, 8, 7...’
She almost cried out in relief. Chameleon was standing in the hall.
“Avery! There you are. I was...”
No time! No time! They couldn’t get out! Except, the window...
“Bomb!” She yelped. She had just enough time to see the horrified expression on his face, and then she’d rammed into his midsection, throwing them out the window...
And then realized she was 40 stories above the ground. ‘Wrong side!’
The bomb went off begind her, knocking them even farther out from the building.
Avery felt a piece of wall hit her in the back, and she slipped into black.
To be continued...