CHAPTER 23

Salvia landed in his arms. They held on each other tight and for a moment the world seemed to stop spinning and things around them turned idle. Then Salvia felt a strong arm grabbing her from behind, breaking them apart.

Vassago was standing behind her, holding her arm tight, pulling her away from Ardeth.

"I told you that you will have plenty of time fooling around with this human later." He said.

"I’m not fooling around, Vassago. And this human has a name. Now, let me go!"

Vassago did not listen to her, instead he turned his attention to Ardeth.

"You. Get away from her." He said.

"NO!" Salvia struggled, but Vassago was too strong to fight.

"You have no rights…." She kept struggling.

"I DO." A too familiar voice replied from behind them.

Salvia turned to see Troy standing not too far away. He was looking at her. His face was dead serious. Salvia could not help shivering. He was right. He had every right regarding her life and Eryc’s. He had been appointed their guardian, because the Emperor thought that the rebellious twins needed extra attention. Thus, everything regarding them should come through Troy first.

Salvia looked at him with watery eyes. She gave up struggling and let Vassago guided her away.

"I’m sorry, little one. I didn’t mean to hurt you. Did I hurt your arm?"

Vassago asked her, rubbing her arm softly. He was the strictest person, and the only one among them who dared to oppose Troy. The very reason why he was appointed as Troy’s counselor. But among the 4 brothers, Vassago was the one that spoiled Salvia and Eryc the most. He hardly turned down their requests. And he often sent surprised gifts to the twins. Sometimes he treated them like children.

"Tell me where it hurts. Here?" He rubbed her arm again.

Salvia cried and suddenly she felt sick of all this. Yet she did not know what to do. Tears of desperation were running down her cheeks. She knew Ardeth would not dare to confront her brothers. No one had.

Unexpectedly, Ardeth took some steps forward to face Troy.

"She chooses to stay with me. You can’t take her away." He said.

All eyes turned to him now. Everyone was now looking at him, a human who was standing to challenge a Dnunian Crown Bearer.

Troy smiled vaguely and lifted his left eyebrow.

"I already did. What will you do about that?" He accepted Ardeth’s challenge.

"Will you fight me, human?" He proceeded.

Ardeth stepped closer to him. "If it’s what it takes."

Salvia cried, "No. Ardeth, you don’t fight him. No."

"If you win, you will take Salvia. If you loose, Myadorya will take you." Troy said.

"No! No! It’s not fair." Salvia struggled in Vassago’s arms.

"Ardeth, you can’t fight him He’s the best swordsman there is. Please Troy, I will do everything you say. I will. Please don’t hurt him. Please let him go." She screamed and cried.

"Shut up, Salvia." Eryc was tensed. He knew that this was the moment of truth for Ardeth to determine his future with Salvia. He knew that Salvia understood the situation completely, but she was afraid to imagine the risk. She was scared that she would end up loosing Ardeth.

Eryc came forward and stood beside Troy. He let Strego out of the scabbard and gave it to Ardeth.

"You need a better weapon than scimitar to fight Myadorya." He said, handing it over to Ardeth’s hand.

"Let him choose his own weapon!" Sharc shouted from behind them.

He came forward and threw Lothya, The Sun to the sand. Janoj followed him and threw Sillnarya, The Shadow. It fell beside Lothya.

Vassago laughed out loud. He let Salvia go. He came forward and threw his sword to the sand.

"You can use Narnya if you can even lift her up." He laughed.

Salvia followed and threw Strega down to the sand. She remained silent.

General Gunn saw all this with awe. He had never witnessed such events before. The six swords were mighty and magical. For Dnunian warriors, seeing the swords was enough experience to carry to the grave. Not to mention touching them. This man, Ardeth Bay VII, had used Strega in the battle. And now, all the Princes offered him to use the mighty swords. It was such an unimaginable honor he had received. It was a great honor to die for Troy. And it was a greater honor to have a chance to fight Myadorya in a challenge. Every Dnunian warrior would envy him.

Ardeth weighed each sword carefully. He knew about these mighty swords, but he had never had a chance to see them. Now, they were all laid before him. He would like to use Strega again, but it was too heavy for him. Strego was the same as Strega. Narnya was definitely out of the choice, it was made especially for Vassago’s physical ability. He couldn’t even lift it up from the ground. Sillnarya was less heavy but its tip was too flexible. Ardeth had to learn to use it first before knowing how to direct it to the way he wanted. Finally he chose Lothya. It was the less heavy and the most similar to his own sword back home.

Ardeth swung the sword to weigh it in his hand. Chief Bay approached him and whispered some words in his ear. He handed him a black cloth and patted his shoulder.

"Good Luck." He said.

Ardeth now turned to face Troy. "I will take Salvia." He said.

With these words, people cleared the way to make space for the fight. Troy smiled and he started to swing Myadorya. Rainbow color followed the swords, almost covered his body. Ardeth kneeled down and took the black cloth to his eyes and tied it behind his head. His sight was now totally covered. He was blind.

People gasped as he did so. But it was a very logical thing to do. The Chief was smart and cunning. He knew that Ardeth would stand no chance against the blinding light of Myadorya, so he suggested Ardeth to cover his eyes and use only his hearing to fight. Basics training for a Med-Jai warrior included this kind of fight to sharpen the sense of hearing and to master the fear. Ardeth had been taught well by his father. Although he never admitted himself to be a true warrior, the blood of a Med-Jai Chief ran strong inside him.

Troy was amazed, but he could hide his surprise. He merely stood there, waiting for Ardeth to get prepared for the duel. People murmured in amazement, some commented on his bravery. Vassago went forward and cried out loud:

"LET THERE BE A FAIR FIGHT! SILENCE!!!"

When his words ended, Ardeth leaped on his feet. Troy adjusted his G-Belt to match the earth gravity. Now his body bore the same pressure of gravity as a human. He moved forward and swung his sword to Ardeth. Amazingly, Ardeth followed his movement exactly and managed to block his sword. Troy moved faster circling him, but once again Lothlya followed him closely. Troy blocked the attack with his sword and he moved on. He jumped and Ardeth seemed to lose him for half a second, but when his left foot touched the sand, Ardeth turned to his direction. Lothya was drawn towards his chest. Troy leaped again and swung Myadorya while he was still in the air. A half second would buy him time to strike Ardeth. But Troy was wrong.

Ardeth heard a hiss in the air. He knew it was the sound of a sword swinging against the air. He quickly blocked the attack and placed Lothya between his face and the hissing noise. A moment later he could hear a clanging of two metals and he felt his wrist trembled from the force of the collision. Troy was very strong, and his sword was much heavier than Lothya. Having blocked a few of his attack caused his wrist to ache. One or two more blows might slip Lothya away from his hand. He could hardly feel his grip now because of the forceful blows he had to block. Now he had to use both hands to block Troy’s blow. He turned to his right at the right time to block another blow. He heard his footsteps moving and the hissing of Myadorya’s movement in the air. He pursued the sounds, drawing Lothya and attacked Troy. He felt a collision again. This time it was really hard that he almost let his sword fall.

Suddenly Troy saw an opening in Ardeth’s defense. He almost lost his grip on Lothya and while he was getting prepared to attack, Troy jumped behind him and swung his sword. Ardeth turned his body around but he was too late. Myadorya cut deep and long into his left arm. Yet he didn’t yield. He came back on his feet and attacked Troy in return.

Ardeth could hear his footsteps going in circle around him. He quickly pushed Lothya towards it and when he missed he swung the sword to the source of the hissing noise in the air. But once again he made a mistake, for Troy instead of leaping away from his attack went directly to meet Lothya. Lothlya cut Troy’s right shoulder, but Troy rolled on the sand and tackled his feet. He sacrificed his shoulder to get to his feet. It was a good move that Ardeth had not expected.

Ardeth fell on his back to the ground and Lothya flew from his grip. Next he felt the coldness of steel on his neck. He grabbed the cloth covering his eyes and threw it away. Troy was looming above him with Myadorya drawn next to his neck.

"I lost. Myadorya may take me." Ardeth said.

Troy smiled and swung his sword.

"NO!!" Salvia cried.

She struggled to free herself from Vassago, and this time he let go of her. Salvia ran all the way to the center of the arena. She saw Troy swinging Myadorya and knew that she was too late.

Unexpectedly, Troy put the sword back into its scabbard. Ardeth frowned in surprise. Then from the audience he heard someone’s clapping hands. Then, everyone followed. In a second it had become roaring noise of victory.

Ardeth stood on his feet and looked around in confusion. He cupped the gaping wound in his arm with his hand. The blood was dripping fast. Green blood stained Troy’s suite, but the wound was not bad. Dnunian blood was unlike human’s iron-based blood. It was copper-based, just like Vulcans’.

Salvia let out a long sigh as she stood quite a distance behind Troy. She dared not come closer. Eryc followed her and held her hand. The other Princes came to them too.

As the noise died down, Troy walked over to Salvia and took her hand. Then he said to Ardeth,

"You past the test, Ardeth Bay."

He took Ardeth’s hand and joined it with Salvia’s, saying: "Welcome to Dnunia."

The audience cheered once again. Ardeth took Salvia’s hand and pulled her closer. They kissed and the cheering grew louder.

Salvia broke the kiss and she went to Troy. Troy’s face suddenly changed softer and he smiled and nodded as if understanding what Salvia was going to say.

"You planned all this?" Eryc voiced Salvia’s unspoken question.

"Yes, my dear brother. We all did." Janoj answered.

Sharc came and hugged Eryc, "Sorry, we couldn’t tell you ‘cause you are telepathically linked to her."

"That’s why Troy moved so slowly. I thought he was too tired from the fight against the dragon. I should’ve known better." Eryc shook his head, smiling widely.

"I thought you never care." Salvia said.

"I know what you two are thinking." Troy hugged Eryc and Salvia.

"You think I’m cruel, cold and care nothing about you." He kissed them on the cheeks.

"You are wrong. I, like all the others, care a lot for both of you. I love you like my own children. I took you in my arms the day you were born. Father was away in one of his official duties. I held you close in my arms the day our mother died, again father was not there. That day on the cemetery I made a vow that I would fill your lives with my love. I know it will not replace the love of a mother, but I know that father would be too busy to take care of you, so my love would have to be enough for both of you. But as years go by, I realize, that I have a different way to show my love to you."

Troy hugged them again and caressed their cheeks, kissing their foreheads.

"Unlike others who spoiled you with gifts and beautiful presents, I’m not saying it’s wrong, but I prefer to show my love in another way. I want both of you to learn to live free, but responsible. I want you to live happily not blindly happy. You know what I mean don’t you?"

Eryc nodded, "Yes, all the exercises and classes we had to take."

Troy smiled, "Yes, some of them. But that’s not exactly what I mean. I mean that you two can live happy in Dnunia. Everybody respects you, does what you order, gives you what you wish to have. But you have to see beyond that. The title you bear comes with responsibilities."

"When you came to me for my agreement to form The Soul Foundation, I was unsure if your motivation to help the war victims and refugees was merely for fame or it was because you cared for them. My doubt only lasted 2 months though. I’m so proud of you. And I’m also happy that you have one hell of a negotiator to help you."

He turned to Ardeth and was surprised to see him. Ardeth looked paler and his clothes were wet with blood. He was still standing firm though and listened to all he had said.

"Dr. Faric, check on him!" Troy commanded.

"I’m all right, Your Majesty. I only need some water." Ardeth said, bowing slightly.

Yet Dr. Faric and one Starfleet doctor rushed to him.

"You’re dehydrated. You need to sit in a shade." The Starfleet doctor said.

"Excuse me, Your Majesty, I have to attend to your wound as well." Dr. Faric said.

"Go ahead." Troy said.

Dr. Faric checked on him for a while and smiled.

"You too, are dehydrated, Your Majesty. I suggest we all rest in shadowy place. I believe it will take 30 more minutes before our portal is open."

"Then follow me, Gentlemen. I will lead you to the oasis." The Chief said.

They all left the battlefield. Some carried the dead and some helped the wounded. Among the people, Salvia saw a familiar figure. It was Hazanah. She was lying on the ground, her right hand were cut off, her head was tilted awkwardly and blood trickled down from her mouth. Salvia turned her face away from her. She had been a good fighter, but not good enough to fight this war. A Med-Jai warrior came to check on then carried her away for better treatment. Salvia came to her and held her hand. Hazanah looked up to see her.

" I forgive you now, Hazanah. Holly Yagnar had taken your hand for the disgrace you did to me. You have paid dearly for the mistake you made. You will remember me for the rest of your life and whenever you see that handless arm, you shall regret that once you possessed a jealous heart. Goodbye Hazanah. Live free."

Hazanah was too weak to speak and she looked confused. It would take sometimes before she realized what Salvia had been talking about. But Salvia cared no more about her. She was too happy to care for her.

A moment later, the oasis was crowded with people. Med-Jai warriors, Stafleet officers, and Dnunian soldiers were gathered in the shades of the rocky mountain. The day was clear and bright. The heat was increasing as the sun went higher.

The Princes and Princess, together with Stafleet top rank officers were invited to sit in some tents. Chief Bay served them with cold water and dates, and some pillows. He knew that non-of these people were used to the heat of the desert.

CHAPTER 24

Salvia rested her head on Ardeth’s chest. He was leaning on a heap of pillows. Her brothers were all sitting in Chief Bay’s large tent. Captain Picard and Commander Willam Riker were also there.

"So tell me how long you planned all this."

Eryc said to Sharc, who was lying lazily on some big pillows. He was munching dates and seemed to like the fruit.

"Don’t ask me, little brother. Ask Vassago. It looks to me Janoj and I are also left out in some parts."

He smiled, tossing one fruit to Janoj, who was beginning to close his eyes in sleepiness.

"Well?" Eryc demanded Vassago.

The big man smiled widely, looking at Troy who was busy conversing with Captain Picard and Chief Bay. He turned to look at Salvia and Ardeth who were now kissing and seemed to be ignoring everybody else but themselves.

Eryc followed his gaze and rolled his eyes.

"Hey, Ardeth! Aren’t you even curious? These guys had played you for a fool!" Eryc once again threw one fruit to get Ardeth’s attention.

At the mention of the name, both Ardeths turned to look at him. Vassago laughed and started to speak.

"We noticed how you work, Ardeth Bay. You may not be too good at swords, but you’re damn good at words. So Troy and I decided to give you a test. Just to make sure that you are worth having our dear Salvia. We made plans to arrange a duel between Janoj or Sharc and you. So the four of us were all involved in this little scheme. But…"

"I was too busy and had totally forgotten about it until 5 months ago." Troy interrupted.

Vassago nodded and continued, "One day Troy saw a subspace message reporting your success in bringing together two worlds at war, and one of them became an ally to Dnunian Empire. That reminded him about you and Salvia. So he asked me to re-arrange the plan. It was such a coincidence that Salvia wanted to run away to visit you, Ardeth Bay. Troy thought that this was a perfect time to carry out our plan. I contacted General Gunn and arrange everything. I, however, forgot to tell Janoj and Sharc about the new development. Sorry, brothers. I was too busy arranging so many things because this so called perfect time was actually a complicated timing." He smiled.

"Are you saying that her escape to my place was monitored?" Ardeth asked.

"Yes. Everything. We sent Ambassador Moor as a guarantee to Starfleet that Salvia’s landing in Egypt was not an espionage action. And Starfleet sent Captain Picard and his crew to protect her… or rather spy on her. Am I right, Captain?" He chuckled.

Captain Picard and Commander Riker laughed softly and nodded.

Ardeth suddenly laughed out loud, "And I was dead worried that night." He continued laughing and cuddling Salvia’s hair.

"Sometimes, Salvia, you can be a pain in the ass." He laughed again and held her tighter.

Salvia shook her head and closed her eyes, smiling. She didn’t care about what they were talking. All she cared was being with Ardeth.

"Then things went all wrong." Sharc continued.

"If only you remembered to inform us about this, Sharc and I could come earlier and prevented all this." Janoj said to Vassago

"Don’t blame him, Janoj. I asked Vassago to do something before proceeding to Earth. That was why he came late. I guess now it’s time to show it, Vassago." Troy said.

Vassago smiled and went out of the tent. A moment later he came back carrying something wrapped in cloth. He handed it over to Troy. Troy looked at Ardeth and motioned him to come.

"Come here Ardeth."

Ardeth went to him and sat in front of him. Salvia was now watching with growing interest.

"When I said Welcome to Dnunia, I meant Welcome to the Family, Ardeth Bay." With that he handed it to him.

Ardeth received and un-wrapped it. Everybody who looked at it was stunned. Ardeth was now holding a scimitar in his hand. It was similar to his own scimitar, but the hilt was carved in Dnunian art. It was light, but when he took a closer look on the blade he could see that it was made of the same material as the other mighty swords. He examined the carvings on the hilt of the scimitar. It was similar to those on Strega. But the flowers and leaves carvings on his scimitar were of those that usually grew in the desert.

"It’s yours now, Ardeth. You must give it a name." Troy said.

Ardeth didn’t know what to say. Salvia sat next to him. She kissed him and whispered.

"Let the Chief name it for you." She said softly in his ear.

Ardeth turned to Chief Bay and handed him the scimitar.

"Will you please give it a name, Chief Bay?" He asked.

The Chief smiled and took it. He examined it for a while, admiring the craft.

"This is a fine scimitar. I should name it Horus, a symbol of wisdom." He said returning the scimitar to Ardeth.

"Then HORUS it is, Your Majesty." Ardeth said to Troy.

"Troy. You may call me Troy, Ardeth. Horus is the name of your sword. It will be announced once we are home…. together with the date of your engagement." Troy smiled.

Salvia let out a scream and leaped and hugged Troy, making him breathless. He laughed out loud. It reminded the others of the old days when they were children. Troy used to laugh that way when he had succeeded to fool them or tricked them. It was a long time since they heard him laughing so freely that way. He was too consumed with his duty as the crown-bearer. Some said that his coronation day was only 2 months away, but no one knew about it for sure except for the Emperor himself.

Troy held her tight and kept her head on his chest. He was still laughing. When finally Salvia let him go he grabbed her again and kissed her. It was a long time ago since he had a chance to cuddle his beloved sister, so this time he wouldn’t let her go that easily.

Salvia screamed and laughed as he tickled her and kissed her. When he stopped, she was out of breath and laid her head on his chest lazily.

"Thank you Troy. Thank you so much. I love you." She said.

"I love you too, my dearest." He kissed her forehead.

Salvia went back to Ardeth and the two lovers were kissing again, ignoring everyone around them.

"I love you, my sweetheart." Ardeth said.

"Will you promise to stop calling your computer Kalila?" Salvia asked.

Ardeth chuckled, "I see that now you understand what it means."

Before Salvia could answer, Ardeth claimed her lips into his and she gave in to him. Troy watched them and smiled.

________________________________________________________________________

They were all gathered in front of the portal. It was small and looked less frightening than the passageway. The Starfleet officers had begun entering the portal. One by one they went into the hole and came back to the 24^th century where they belonged.

Three quarter of the Dnunian Soldiers and The Princes were already left. Only Eryc, Salvia and Ardeth, and the remaining of the Soldiers were left. Salvia was saying goodbye to Chief Bay.

"Goodbye, Ardeth. Thank you for everything." She kissed him lightly on his cheek.

"No, I thank you for everything. I wish you happiness, Salvia. I know he’s the right person for you."

He hugged her and caressed her hair for a moment, then let her go. Ardeth told Eryc and Salvia to go first. He needed to speak alone with the Chief. When he saw them both disappeared into the hole, he walked towards The Chief.

"All the years I only knew you from the records and holograms, Chief. I am honored to meet you in person. We didn’t have much time to talk, but that doesn’t matter to me. I was thrilled to remember that I once fought side by side with the great Chief Ardeth Bay. Thank you, Chief. This experience means a lot to me."

The Chief smiled.

"Ardeth, you are the last of the Med-Jai. Salvia told me enough to know that you were not interested in all this." He waved his hand around.

"She said that you never consider yourself a warrior. I can tell you one thing, my son. You are not only a warrior, you are a Med-Jai Chief. True, you do not command warriors like I do, but the blood runs in you. You are the Last of the Med-Jai and it is your duty to pass the legacy."

"I’m not…." Ardeth’s words hung.

"I see no problem in that, my son. Salvia is also a warrior by blood. She will give you brave sons and beautiful daughters. Pass on the Med-Jai legacy to them. Promise me."

Ardeth finally nodded, "I promise you Chief Bay."

The Chief hugged him and whispered something in his ear.

"Take care of her and love her. She may look tough in the outside, but inside she is fragile. Your love and understanding is all she needs. But do not spoil her. She will grow mature when the time comes. Trust me on that."

He let him go and pushed him softly, "Now go back to her. She’s waiting."

Ardeth looked into his eyes. For a second or two he thought he had seen something there. Suspicion slipped into his mind. But when he looked into his eyes again it was gone. He pushed his dirty thoughts out of his mind.

"Goodbye Chief Bay." He said.

"Good journey, my son."

Ardeth walked into the portal as a different man. He touched the hilt of Horus and felt it. He walked with much more confidence in him. He walked fast to face his future. Somehow he knew in his heart that his future would not be of Ardeth Bay, but it will be the future of The Med-Jai tribe.

The Chief watched him from a far. He smiled as he saw him touched the hilt of his scimitar. He knew he could trust the fate of the tribe in that man’s hand, Ardeth Bay VII, the Last of the Med-Jai.

THE END