Maynin walked silently in the heat, thinking about everything Danrox had just told her. The desert seemed to be the only place she could ever call home, it was quiet and mostly peaceful. The sun blazed mercilessly at the peak of its journey in the sky, surrounded by a circle of vultures. But the young saiyan hardly broke a sweat. She listened to the sound of the insects as her mind wandered. The barren wasteland gave her protection and solitude, a place to think and explore as long as she wished. Most people think the desert is empty and dead, most people are wrong, it's full of life. Maynin hopped up onto a boulder, scanning the surrounding land. Anyone who wasn't experienced or familiar with the outdoors would think it all looked the same, but she knew this place despite its lack of any good landmarks.
Maynin felt a twinge of some emotion, she knew it wasn't excitement for sure, or sadness, it was something all its own, something she had no name for. Puzzled, she took one last glance at the land she had just walked, she jumped off the rock and continued strait ahead. It took a lot of courage to keep going, she had tried so hard to banish this place from her mind for so long, to be blissfully unaware of the events that had taken place. She shook her head. She had come for a reason, to face her past. It tormented her dreams and even played before her while was awake once. There would be no more denying she had ever had a family, no more running away from what was left to haunt her.
The saiyan was so lost in thought that she almost missed the wall of rock that loomed ahead of her. Maynin stopped and stared at it for what seemed like forever. The reddish brown dirt and stone littered with strong footholds and small caves had been so inviting before, but now they were almost sinister, taunting her to try and climb the steep slope. A flash of memory brought her back to reality, of a younger version her and a halfling boy with a lopsided smile, racing to the top. There was the sound of falling rocks, a scream, and then deathly silence. Maynin pushed the thought away, not wanting to feel ashamed for simply watching the pile of rubble he had disappeared under and the stain of blood that only seemed to spread farther before turning around and walking away casually. Sorva. The name came back painfully.
Maynin kneeled down beside it. After a few silent moments, she spoke. "Hello, Sorva." She tossed aside the rocks, uncovering a gleaming white skull. "I'm sorry you lost." The skull held its grin. She smiled back and knocked on the top of it. "You were always so forgiving, such a good person, thank you." She saw nothing wrong with talking to the skull. She uncovered the rest of his body and buried it properly. "Bye." She stood up and kept walking around the mountain. After only a few short minutes of searching, she found the tunnel that led her to the cave on the side of the cliff face. My first place. She thought wearily. She stood at the mouth of the cave for awhile, making excuses for herself not to go in. Maynin took a hesitant step into the shadow, shielding her from the sun. She stopped at the remains of a fire pit and lit it once more. Another memory. The screams of a girl she almost liked and the unforgiving flames separating the two. No, no I never knew her...never liked her, she held me back. She thought desperately. Of course you knew her! You let her die just like the rest of them! She told herself scornfully. Jamiku. Sighing, Maynin sat down beside the fire and began to piece together what had destroyed her chance of a normal life.
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Sparren crept through the house quietly, carrying a sharp knife instead of his sword. No one else was home, besides himself and Clove, but she didn't know that. Clove. He didn't need her anymore, he had Bani now. Sparren tightened his grip on his blade, he thought he could only love her, why didn't she tell him he didn't have to? He didn't need her anymore, she tricked him. She would pay. He let his insane thoughts circle around in his head as he opened the door to their bedroom. "Clove? It's me."
A saiyan lady was sitting with her back to him on a window seat, her feet drawn up beneath her. She turned around in pure disbelief and joy. "Spar! You came home!" She stood up and wrapped her arms around his neck. "I missed you so much!" Sparren hugged her back and held her at arms distance away. "There's something I have to tell you! You'll love it!" She promised. Sparren gave a cracked up grin. "Me too!" He drew her closer and shoved the knife into her heart. Clove's eyes widened as her blood splattered all over him. "S-......Spar?" She squeezed his shoulder before collapsing at his feet. Sparren laughed, that was much easier than he thought. She was usually such a suspicious person. Had she not been blinded by his return she probably would have given him a good fight. Wiping the blood off his knife on her sleeve, he walked out the door, satisfied that he was now free to love Bani.
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Maynin hadn't realized that she had been reaching into the fire, it burned like it should. She quickly snatched her hand away, but then stopped herself. She put a hand over her heart, feeling it beat faster than usual. She looked back reluctantly at the burning coals, she would need one to keep calm for this next part. The one she hated most and stayed clear in her mind. She picked out an ember and held it tight, feeling it burn away at her palm. "I'm ready." She said out loud as she went over the worst day of her life.
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Maynin didn't understand what was happening, why Danny and Toryn were so angry and afraid. There was a man standing in the doorway, watching them like a hawk watches his prey. Toryn has almost crushing her, trembling as he stared right back at the man. He had found them hiding and dragged them out. The man looked at her lazily. "Toryn, what the hell do you have there?"
Toryn shrank back and growled. "No one! Just a kid!"
"Just a kid, huh? Then what kind of kid are you? Child snatching is frowned upon you know." He gave him a rough pat on the head before turning back to Maynin. "Hello there, you are...?"
Danrox took a step forward. "Leave her!"
Sparren barely glanced at him. "I'm only being polite. Well? ANSWER ME DAMMIT!" He roared and wretched Maynin away form Toryn. After a few moments of staring her down, his already tiny pupils seemed to shrink more as he realized who she was. "You're my daughter, aren't you? So that's what that bitch was talking about!" He pulled out a switchblade as she tried to wriggle away. "You'll die too!"
"No!" Danrox leapt at him and knocked the knife away. Sparren immediately struck him across the face before throwing him onto the ground. The two fought fiercely as Maynin crawled back over to her older brother. "Toryn, who is that?" Toryn seemed to choke on his words."May, that's daddy." Maynin shook her head. "No it's not! I don't want him to be my dad!" He hugged her. "Neither do I." He hesitated before continuing. D-did you know he killed mommy? I'm sorry, we should have just told you." Maynin teared up. "No....is that what happened to everyone else too? Is that why we couldn't go see Simitara? And Asher and Rygon?" Toryn refused to cry for her sake. "Yes, he killed them all. Maynin, don't be sad." Maynin watched as the two warriors crashed through the wall that led to the kitchen, yelling and cursing."How? Simitara can't sing for us anymore if she's dead, and I'm not going to play hide-and-seek with Ash and Ry anymore, aren't I?"
There was a loud cracking noise as Sparren swung Danrox into the edge of a counter at a breakneck speed, knocking him out instantly. He staggered back over to the cowering children, beaten and bloody. It looked like Danrox had gotten a hold of a large knife and attacked him with it. Sparren was bleeding all over, looking like some wild animal had maimed him near death, Maynin was afraid that Danny would be worse. Sparren looked at Toryn with some strong emotion that she couldn't make out. "Son...Kill them. Toryn, help me and I'll let you live."
Toryn snarled and backed away from his father. "Never! You're a monster Sparren! How could you kill your entire family just for some woman?! I hate you! I hate being your son!" He shoved Maynin into a cabinet and charged their father. Sparren growled. "Fine. You'll pay and die along with them if you care so much!" After a long struggle he held his son by the throat and lifted him off the ground. Toryn kicked and yelled. "Danrox! Danrox wake up!" Sparren smiled and gathered a ball of crimson ki. "Bye Toryn, it was nice having you around for awhile." He shoved the ki into his torso, watching it slowly burn through him as the boy screamed and fought. When it was more than halfway through his chest, he dropped him on the ground. Maynin burst out of the cabinet and kneeled down beside her dying brother. "Toryn! Don't go! Please Toryn I'm begging you! Please!" She sobbed into his shoulder as she forced him to sit up. Toryn gave her a pat on the back. "Hey....easy." He took a few raspy breaths before continuing. "Hey, don't go crazy.....sweetheart." He added mockingly. He went limp and Maynin set him back down gently, crying.Toryn was her hero, her knight and protector, always saving her from a good scolding and teaching her about anything that seemed to interest her in the slightest. Now he lay smiling and teasing her even in death.
Sparren laughed at the two of them. "Oh that's so cute! He thought he could protect you! He even called you sweet! This is just too good!" He chuckled a bit more before grabbing Maynin in order to do the same. "Alright then sweetheart, I'm a good father, so I'll send you with him!" He gathered more ki in his hand. The girl was no longer able to hold back her tears. "Daddy please don't!" She cried, desperate enough to call him that. Sparren froze for a split second before pulling her up to eye level with him. "Listen here you little piece of shit! I'm not your fucking father! You're nothing! Not mine!" He gave her a violent shake. "RIGHT?!" Suddenly Maynin felt something pierce her chest, but it wasn't ki. She looked down and saw the tip of something shiny, she followed it and saw Sparren standing with a shocked expression on his face, the shiny thing had gone right through him. He spat blood all over her face as the blade twisted and drew back. Sparren fell to his knees, revealing a extremely injured Danrox standing behind him, katana in hand. He collapsed as well.
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Maynin felt drops on her hand and was surprised to find herself crying. The tears made the ember sizzle and hurt even more. She dropped it and saw that the coal had actually started burning through her hand. She thought of Toryn smiling again and blinked back more tears. She dug around with her other hand until she found the bandages she had kept buried when she had played in the cave as a child. She cleaned the wound like her brother had showed her and sifted through the other small treasures she had buried when she was younger.
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Danrox watched Maynin play with a large rattlesnake, teasing it and then dodging the bites with a laugh. She seemed so innocent, like any little girl should, but he knew she was far from that. She was crazed. Something snapped in her when her brother had died. He thought back to a few hours ago.
"Danny!" Let's play a game!" She said happily as she jumped on the couch. "You have to catch the knife! It's easy!" She threw the blade at the man, who was half asleep at the time. When Sparren had slammed his head into the counter, it had given him permanent damage, slowing his senses and completely taking away his ki sense.The blade embedded itself deep in his shoulder. He jumped up and looked at her, surprised and bleeding. Maynin giggled and did a flip off the couch and onto the coffee table in front of him. She spun the blade, drilling it deeper before pulling it out slowly. "Aww! Danny! You lost!" Then she ran out the door, laughing.
Danrox shook his head sadly. He had to send her away for awhile, until she could get better. I'd be hard going a year or two without her, but anything to bring her back to sanity. There was the possibility that she could end up worse all by herself in space, but he'd just have to figure that out.
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Maynin laid down on the cold floor, she smiled triumphantly. She had finally gotten rid of those silly training robots. Every time she destroyed one, it would just fix itself and crawl back under the tiles in the floor, only to appear again randomly later. This time she had destroyed the main chip, preventing them from coming back. She didn't remember how long she had been stuck in space, she had demolished the speaker that told her such things, along with almost everything else. She wished she hadn't broken the robots though, they weren't real, but they were company, the speaker that told her to calm down might have even been nice to have around. Maynin frowned. She tried to remember how much time she had left last time she checked, two months? Three? She didn't know. Where was Danny? How old was she? Why did he send her away? Maybe he didn't like her, maybe he was trying to kill her out here. No! Danny loved her! But then why did he leave her alone? No! She would wait, she would be strong and behave for what ever time she had left. She moved for the first time in thirty-eight hours, chewing at her knuckles absentmindedly, a common habit for young children. Gently at first, but then more angrily, she started bleeding and saw the white of bone.
She would wait. Even if she was alone.
In the dark.
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Three years later
Danrox waited patiently for Maynin to come home from playing outside all day. She'd been like that since she came back from space. She left early, not even eating before leaving the house until nightfall, sometimes not coming back for weeks at a time. She insisted that she just didn't like having a roof over her head, and that she was playing a game with some kids. It was funny, she never once used the word friend, just kids. The worst part was that when she'd returned from her long trip, most of the flesh had been ripped off her hands. He had taken her to the hospital to get them healed, but a few very faint scars still remained on her knuckles. He heard the door open and close, and her footsteps enter the room.
"Maynin?! Are you okay?!" He asked standing up and walking over to her. She was covered in blood, a few deep cuts on her, but she seemed pretty blank. The girl looked at him, as if dazed.
"It's not all mine, Danrox, I'm fine." She said causally, as if she was talking about the weather.
"Danrox? What happened to Uncle Danny?" He asked, worried.
She shrugged before walking right back out the door. Danrox grabbed the back of her shirt. "Hang on a second! You're not leaving again so soon!" He said calmly, knowing that raising his voice would make her angry. She looked at him.
"I can do as I like, it's not like you're actually going to do anything about it." She said before removing his hand and flying off. Danrox sighed and watched her go, what kind of seven year old leaves for weeks then comes back sticky with blood? He shook his head, had he not cared enough? Maybe she still hated him for sending her away. He'd only tried to make her better, and gave her nothing but affection afterwards. But still, she'd only turn him way and disappear back into the desert. If only Toryn were still here, he'd make things right.....
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Maynin watched the sun set slowly, thinking about the dozens she'd watched with her brother. She knew he wouldn't want her mourning anymore, he'd always tease her and pull her hair and drag her around until she laughed and had to stop being sad. She smiled at the memory. That was new. Smiling at memories. She played with the object in her hand, one of Toryn's little wooden animals. The gift had been for her second birthday, a small pantherish-lion thing with no real purpose. She put it back in the little tin box with the others, and stuck it in her pocket. She curled up on the ground and fell asleep, not wanting to go back to her second home just yet.
((END)) ((Word Count- 2,971)) ((I'll put up pictures later.))
