New Zion

Ryan stared across the table to the Avian standing in front of him. He looked strong, but the lines on his face betrayed both his age and profession.

“First Mate Harikēn, was it?” the grizzled man nodded. Ryan stared into his eyes for a moment. “So, what was it that you wanted to talk to me about?” Harikēn scratched his beard.

“I’ve got a request for you,” Ryan remained expressionless.

“Well, I could figure out that much. We don’t exactly get very many Avians ’round here, much less high-ranking ones. So, what did you want?” Harikēn let out a long breath.

“I need to borrow your son for a bit,” Ryan shook his head.

“I can’t just lend out my son to whoever comes along and asks. He’s his own person, so you can ask him yourself,” Ryan said. Harikēn sighed.

“Yes, yes. The Captain is already doing that. It’s just that there is a bit of a complication in what I’m about to ask,” Harikēn said. Ryan raised his eyebrows.

“What’s my part in this?” Ryan asked. Harikēn was unmoving.

“I need you to provide me with something that I can’t really get on my own,” Ryan shook his head.

“You know what, before we go any further, I need to know what’s in it for me,” Harikēn smiled.

“Due to the nature of this request, and what I need your son to do, if you ask, I will do everything in my power to ensure that you receive. Within reason, of course,” Ryan smiled.

“Of course. Well then, my friend, you and I have ourselves a deal,”

Aria sat up in her chair and stretched. Looking down at her sketch, she almost threw it into the paper waste bin but decided against it.

“Well, I suppose I should at least try to finish it. Then I can find my mistakes, and correct them,” She said aloud, yawning. She touched the Phoenix necklace around her neck, then moved the Plumeria flower hairclip to a different angle. Aria got back to drawing the hairclip. The doorbell rang. Standing up, she sighed. Looking down at her drawing one last time, she began walking towards the front door. ‘Did Claire forget something again?’ She made it to the main entryway. ‘Probably. She’s always in a rush to get to work,’ Aria opened the door, and froze.

“Aria Amarante, I presume?” A tall, male Avian stood in the doorway, with three more silhouetted behind him. Aria nodded. “We need you to come with us,” He said in a matter-of-fact tone.

“And if I refuse?” Aria challenged. The Avian shook his head, sighing. He raised his arm halfway up, hinged his hand, and the three other ones rushed her. They pulled a black bag over her head. Aria couldn’t see anything, as she began to struggle. ‘Why are they doing this? What do they want with me?’ they grabbed Aria by the arms and pulled her forwards. Aria kicked at what she thought was one of the guards. The man grabbed her ankle and pulled. She fell to the ground.

“Tie her up, then put on the harness. We can’t have her moving around as we fly. It would probably kill us as well as her, making this whole trip a waste of time,” Aria began lashing out, but the Avians held her down. They finally managed to tie her arms and legs, and they began to put on some type of harness made of straps. She began wriggling around, trying to make things as difficult for the Avians as possible.

Aria felt one of the Avians hands on her shoulder, so she rolled in that direction. One of them swore, making Aria smiled. “Knock her out if she’s causing you too much trouble,” Aria heard the first one say. She kept kicking, heard another curse, then she felt a sharp prick in her arm. Her mind became foggy, and then she fell into the darkness.

Ryan leaned against the window frame in his office. The warehouse was about halfway complete. A knock came at the door.

“Enter,” Ryan said. Arik entered the office and walked up to Ryan.

“So, when are you going to get those dogs? When we dropped by the pound, remember that they said they won’t hold onto them forever; especially if someone else is showing interest in them,”

“Well, I honestly don’t know what to do about it. I can’t decide what I want them for. They’d be great for hunting, guarding, or even entertainment,” Ryan sighed. Taking out a pen and paper he wrote down ‘Hunting would be finding other agents, guarding would be bumping them off. Maybe I could send them to attack Night Town. Entertainment would be to feed them false information. What should I do?’ Arik looked at Ryan and shrugged. Ryan sighed.

“Fine. Get Phil and bring them in,” he said. Arik nodded.

“We’re getting dogs?” Ryan looked around Arik to see Sophie bouncing up and down in the doorway. Ryan blinked. Arik chuckled.

“Well, yes. Arik has some things he’s gotta get done, and then he and Phil are gonna go pick them up,” Ryan said. Arik strode out of the office with a big smile as Sophie sprinted past him. She jumped at Ryan, and he picked her up.

“What kind of dogs are they?” Sophie asked. Ryan furrowed his brow.

“Well, they’ll be what are called timber wolves. Back on earth they were quite dangerous, but we’ve been able to breed them to still have killer instincts, but they’ll bond perfectly with their owner, and be able to understand them. But they can be any colour you want,” Ryan said. Sophie thought a moment. Those Avians have some pretty insane tech, Ryan thought.

“I want one that’s white with light blue patches!” she said. Ryan smiled.

“And what do you think your brother would want?” he asked. Sophie didn’t give it a second thought.

“White with red patches,” she said. Ryan nodded.

“Ok. I’ll give them a call,” Ryan said as he put Sophie down to pick up the phone. Sophie grabbed his arm. He looked down at her.

“The same red as that pretty girl that Cole was with,” she said. Ryan smiled.

“So, Phil. How long has it been since you started working here?” Arik asked as he and Phil walked down the central staircase.

“Twenty-five years, 254 days, 12 hours, and thirteen minutes,” Phil said. Arik blinked.

“That’s fairly… specific,” he said. Phil shrugged.

“I was addicted to drugs, alcohol, and sex. Of course, in my case, all three of those required money. As you can see, I was fully capable of getting it, which let me feed my addictions. Although, it had gotten to the point where no one would hire me because I was always drunk or high, and I ran out of money. Ryan stumbled upon me one day. He was wearing a fancy suit, so I tried attacking him to get what money he had on him,” Phil said. Arik Chuckled.

“And how did that turn out?” he asked. Phil shrugged.

“I didn’t even know what had happened. I was just face-down on the ground. Ryan looked me in the eyes, and for the first time in my life, I saw something other than disgust or fear. He actually looked happy to see me. He picked me up off the ground, and gave me a job offer. Of course, it had one condition,” Phil said. Arik raised an eyebrow.

“Sober up?” he offered. Phil laughed.

“Well, that’s what he said, but how he did it…” Phil shivered. “He threw me into a locked room where the only sensory input I ever got was food and water clattering into the room and some annoyingly cheerful song was played on loop. I thought I was going to go insane, but he let me out before I lost it. He broke most of my will. Thankfully, he didn’t want to do anything other than push me beyond my limits, and get me clean. Although, that didn’t get rid of the craving for alcohol or the drugs,” Phil said. Arik blinked.

“So, what do you do about the cravings?” he asked. Phil smiled.

“They’re still there. I know that there are ways for me to get rid of it, but I think it’s better this way,” Phil said.

“Why? What if you go back to using again?” Arik asked as he opened the door to the back field.

“Well, I think that it’s the Don’s way of telling me that I am stronger than my addictions, and that they are not a part of me. It’s him showing his faith in my abilities and strength. And the Don is not someone to disappoint,” Phil said. Arik glanced at him. Phil had a slight smile.

“And the threat of going back into the room with the awful music has nothing to do with it?” Arik asked. Phil grimaced for a second, then chuckled.

“That is the part that I don’t want to think about,” he said as they approached the first wolf Terra. “You; the Don want’s to speak with you,” he commanded. The wolf Terra nodded and followed him. They approached the next one, who was working on the warehouse.

“Come with us. The Don wants to see you,” Arik said. The wolf Terra handed his tools to another worker and followed them.

“So, I bet you’re wondering why I called you here today,” Ryan said. The two Terra were about to respond when Ryan chuckled. “Never gets old…” he muttered.

“Yes Don Avalon, we would like to know,” The one with white hair replied. Ryan studied both of the Terra. Their expressions gave nothing away, but their tails were twitching, along with their ears.

“As the only two wolf Terra employed by the family, how have you been treated thus far?” he asked. The white haired one smiled.

“I’ve been treated as an equal. Of course, there is a difference between the different levels of the hierarchy here, but I’ve not been treated differently because of my species,” he said. The deep blue haired one nodded in agreement. Ryan’s smile broadened.

“I’m glad. So, I have one question for you, and I hope that it isn’t too personal,” Ryan began.

“Anything,” the blue haired one said. Ryan didn’t stop smiling.

“Why are you informing on me to the government?” Ryan asked. The Terra remained silent. “Well? If you are being treated so well here, then why would you betray me? Betray us?” Ryan continued. He looked at both in turn, then slammed his fists down on his desk. “I took you in! I treated you as family, and this is what I get? Or was this the plan all along? Were you snitching from the beginning?”

“Sir, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” the deep blue haired one said. Ryan turned to him.

“Is that so? Then why do we have letters that you tried to send to your handler?” Ryan asked. The Terra blinked. “We know that you’re communicating with them. Now tell me why!” Ryan yelled.

“I don’t believe that you should have the power that you do. I’ve been trying to find a way for the government to be able to come in and replace you!” he yelled back.

“And why might that be?” Ryan asked. The deep blue haired Terra clenched his fists.

“You cover it up when your son kills or maims people and then turn around and punish us when we kill someone! My only friend killed the man who murdered his family, and you had him whipped and booted out! He died on the streets!” the Terra yelled. Ryan cocked his head.

“Oh, you mean Johnny. That’s because I had a plan to expose the murderer’s crimes and get him arrested. He would have gone to prison, and I remember that he had had his way with the women of the family as well. If your friend had known anything, he would have let me send the murderer to jail, where the man would suffer for a long, long time. I would have made sure of it. But your friend didn’t listen to me,” Ryan finished. The Terra blinked, but he started to growl. He jumped over the table at Ryan, reaching for his throat. Phil stepped forwards and back-handed the Terra hard enough to send him flying into the wall.

“Get him medical attention, then place him in the room,” Ryan said. Phil’s eye twitched.

“Me, sir?” he asked. Ryan shook his head.

“No. Arik, would you kindly?” Ryan asked. Arik nodded and picked up the blue haired Terra, carrying him out of the room. Ryan turned to the white haired Terra.

“And what about you?” He asked. “What’s your explanation? Do you think I’m corrupt? Do you think I’m not cut out for my job? Did I indirectly cause the death of a loved one?” the white haired one shook his head.

“Sir, I’m sorry, sir,” he said. Ryan cocked his head.

“No excuse, no denial?” He asked. The white haired Terra shook his head. “What’s your name?” he asked. The Terra looked up.

“My name is Aasim,” the white haired Terra said. Ryan smiled.

“So. Was it money?” Ryan asked. Aasim shook his head.

“No sir. It has nothing to do with your treatment of me. Sir, the government took my daughter and have left her with Namhaid. It does not excuse my betrayal of the family, but, when I think about my daughter… I just…” A tear collected at the edge of Aasims eye, but he blinked it away. “I will face any consequence. I only ask that you save my daughter,” Aasim stood tall, his ears and tail still. Ryan stared into his eyes, watching, waiting. Finally, he spoke.

“I understand. But I should have been the first person you came to. We could have worked out a plan, thrown them off, and bought time to find your daughter. She may be back by now if you had come to me first,” Ryan said. He let out a long breath. “I will make sure that your daughter is saved. You will bear the punishment for betrayal. After your daughter is back in your arms, of course. We wouldn’t want to give it away that we know,”

©2017