My Etheral Form

Chapter 6

My Etheral Form

Episode 6

My ethereal form.

I relaxed some as the scalding water poured down my back. Today's failure, replaying through my head. I sighed out loud. Why, was it so hard taking this guy down? He was fast I admit it, but it had to be something we were missing or just not understanding. Not only was it hard to take him down, but it was getting harder each time we failed. We were good. Not boasting, just factual observation. We were great even but compared to Xanth we were a complete waste. There had to be something we were doing wrong. I replayed Xanth's earlier takedown of Masha. Even with Masha's invisibility activated, he could still predict where the hell she was. It was completely perplexing. Even I had trouble tracking Masha, but somehow Xanth did it with complete ease. Even though Zaylee had him distracted. He took them both down in minutes it was astonishing to see and scary to believe.

I blinked. An image flashed in mind. Xanth had just reversed Daisha's attack on Kira, and I remember it being the perfect time to take him down. His eyes were focused elsewhere, leaving him wide open, so I thought. I had launched forward-thinking it was the opportune time to strike, but it was like he had already seen me coming. He didn't even look in my direction, and I was on my back before I could blink. It was insulting, actually like I didn't even cause him enough threat to gather his attention. Whenever we did attack him. He never looked in our direction always it was like he...… I froze in place, something finally clicking in my head. He was not predicting anything. I just figured out how to take Xanth down. I smiled wider as I concluded. I pushed my now curly hair out of my face before grabbing the soap off the shelf. I sniffed it and paused. Its smell almost bringing me to my knees. It smelled almost like the white flower trees from my homeland. The wonderful, sweet, scent bringing back memories I had long thought lost to me. Distant laughter and voices of my birth ancestors rang in my ears, almost as if they were still here with me. I squeezed the soap deforming the oval shape. They weren't here, and neither was she. I quickly cleaned myself and roughly threw the soap back on its shelf. I forcibly cut off the overhead faucet. I briskly walked over to the air dryer. Strong hot winds shot from tiny holes located in the ceiling, and the sides of the walls. I rotated, making sure that my skin and hair were completely dry before grabbing my dark wear from another shelf. My custom-made dark wear consisted of a dark long-sleeved thermal shirt and coal-black shorts that stopped mid-thigh. I waved my hand, and the door to the cleansing room opened. I stepped out into the hallway, my bare feet echoing across it. As the cold air whispered across my skin goosebumps, peppered it and the aches in my muscles rose. Every inch of me was sore down to the bone. I looked down and noticed bruises on bruises were forming on thighs. Gods, the man hit unbearably hard and showed absolutely no mercy.

I walked quickly down the empty hallways running my hands along the cold, wood walls. The hallway was lit by Bioluminescent winged creatures native to this long-deserted planet. Drakson called them prædictas Fatales. They floated around in their clear container. There white wings glowing softly casted weirdly shaped shadows on the tan wood. Some of the creatures bounced off the walls, seeking the outside world. They illuminated the dome-like structure of the building. Windows on the walls showed the star littered night sky. A large planet with purple rings could be seen next to the indigo-colored moon. The red sands from before were now black to the eyes, but tiny sparkling crystals reflected the moonlight. This place was, indeed, beautiful. I turned away from the window and continued walking down the hall. The structure we stayed in housed at most 2 relaxation areas, a cookhouse, four cleansing room, and seven resting rooms. I would know, considering Drakson gave us a dramatic enough tour of this place. I turned down a hallway that housed the resting rooms. Drakson was the first door on the left along with; what was now, Masha, Zaylee, and Daisha's rooms further down and located on the right side of my room and a metallic door leading to Kira's room. At the very end of the hallway was one door that led to Xanth's room. We no longer had to share a room anymore, which was bliss in not having to deal with Zaylee and Kira's bickering in the morning. The only downside was choosing whose room would be used for strategizing. I went to the left side of the hallway and wrapped my knuckles around a door. I was hoping that Masha was already in her room, and not still at the training area with the others. The door slid open, revealing an angry-looking Masha. Her serpentine pupils narrowed before expanding. She stared up at me for a second probably, deciding whether or not to chew me out or not. I smiled at her before signing. "Let's get the rest of the team together. I have a plan, and this time it's going to work."

"And how do you know this for sure, Mute? Mistakes are something we cannot afford to make." Daisha warned, a frown spreading across her face. She was sitting on the ladder that led to the second bed of the room. Her golden-brown locks clicked and clacked as she leaned back. Zaylee grunted in agreement as she leaned back, resting her hands on the arms of the chair. Kira and Masha shared glances. If the tension and fear in the air was any indicator of the somber mood in the room. The dark look in Daisha's eyes made it clear none of my teammates liked my idea. Still, I never took their doubt to heart. It just meant they were worried. Xanth's warning of punishment was enough to put us all on edge. I understood their fear, Hell, I was timid about this idea as well. There was no telling what discipline Xanth had in mind for us, but I also understood I had been through worse. Even then, I had never let fear stop me in the past and will not let my fear stop me now. Masha's bed creaked as I rose to stand in the center of the room. I paced back and forth for a minute. I needed to convince them that this was our only option, and this plan was going to be the winner. Eyes watched my every move before I paused midstride. "I understand you are afraid, but the worse has already been among us. Elvira herself sought that when she trained us. Xanth cannot do to us what the snake queen has not already done." Masha translated for the girls after I finished signing my words.

"Ain't that the scripture," Zaylee spoke in agreement before I continued to sign my reply. "When have we ever let fear guide us. I never did so in the past, and I don't plan on doing so now. I could be wrong, sure, but we all have been wrong before. Still, we came back on top more determined than ever to win." Everyone shook their heads in agreement around the room. A light sparkling in the melancholy mood made it hard for me not to crack a smile.

"Alright, Mute, say your right about this. What's the plan? Are we just going to stroll right in, twirling our swords, demanding Xanth's surrender?" Kira said condescension, dripping in her voice. She leaned back against the wall crossing her arms over her chest. Her usual ponytail was now in the form of a braid, and it slid over her shoulder as she shook her head in disagreement. I never even bothered to look in her direction as I replied. "No, but what we can do is this…" Everyone leaned forward as I went over the plan, their eyes brightening with interest. A smirk grew on Masha's face as I finished. Kira and Daisha exchanged a deadly look as smiles grew on their faces. "Now, this is something I volunteer to go first for."

Zaylee admitted, a dark shadow passing over her features as the Fatales luminescent lights flickered in and out. She had an eerie look in her eye that was almost enough to creep me out. Almost. "Good, then we are in an agreement then. Tomorrow we hunt." I signed a smile creeping across my face as well.

I shifted in my stance as I stood alone in the middle of the training area. My arms were posed behind my back as I waited for Xanth and Drakson' s arrival. Their footsteps, echoing down the hall as they approached the door to the training area. Everyone else was hidden away, but I could still feel their presence. The air in the room crackled not with agitation but something completely different. Excitement. It crackled through the air sizzling across my skin. Goosebumps peppered my stiff arms as I waited. Every single one of us ready for the inevitable. We had arrived earlier than intended. The room still lit by the Fatales, but their lights dimmed as the planet's star rose. The greenish-yellow light of the planet's sun slowly crept over the horizon. The rays slipped through the panels of the triangle-shaped windows. I stiffened as their footsteps stopped. Shadows passed under the door. It slid sideways, revealing a well-rested Drakson and an angry-looking Xanth. He strolled in his white robe, billowing behind him. His chest was exposed. His tan, muscular stomach flexed as he strolled toward me. His long, black hair was now tied up into a knotted bun. It was neat and tight except for a few strands that caressed the sides of his face. Drakson stood a few feet away as he crossed his arms.