The smell was wretched. It smelled like the time she’d been walking along the beach with her father. They’d come across a dead igao, it looked like its belly had exploded. There were rotting guts oozing out of it – much to the delight of the sea birds that were making a meal of the rotting carcass. “Baba, why did the igao die all the way up here, away from the water?” She was raised by both parents, but her father was by far her favorite. These times alone, exploring the natural wonders on the Planet of Portals with her father, had ensured that she too would be an explorer.
“This isn’t real Le, you need to wake up. You’re in danger”
“What are you talking about?” She looked up at his kind blue face. He looked worried.
“Le, you know you can’t be here with me, you’re not a child anymore. Le WAKE UP NOW, you’re in danger.”
Why was her father yelling at he? He never raised his voice, especially not to her. She started to realize something was very wrong, her hands were restrained. And… her eyes were very heavy. She continued fighting her way to consciousness, her head felt thick. Lelelu finally managed to open her eyes, just a slit at first. She was in a filthy room, there was no furniture, only walls that look like they’re made from steel. Struggling, she managed to sit up. Her hands were tied but she wiggled enough to be able to loosen and then remove the cord. As she stood, she felt everything around her shift, she was light headed. Placing a hand on the wall, she closed her eyes and focused on her breathing, it was coming back to her now.
After a visit to Myaad she was on the way back to the Planet of Portals – her sensors had detected a ship approaching her position. But then they went silent, non-responsive. In fact her entire ship seemed to stop responding to her. She could feel her ship traveling very fast but in what direction she couldn’t tell. Then she was boarded. The memory made her wince. It was the VReoria. Two of them had gotten past her shields and transported to her bridge. She tried to fight them off, managed to call for M, and then they released a gas of some kind. That was where her memory ended.
Her stability had returned. Lelelu checked for her earcom link, it had been removed. She patted her hip, looking for her pulse weapon, gone of course. She started scanning the walls for a door. She either had to escape or be ready to attack her captors if they entered this cell. She found what looked like a doorway in one of the walls – she positioned herself next to it and waited.
The Muse of Mischief 