top of page

II

"Here. Let me do it," a familiar voice offered. The princess flinched in surprise. She shifted to lay on her side and looked up to see Roskavna holding out her green hand. The Tayan too had deep purple eyes, but her skin varied from a light green to a rich brown. Her blonde hair, ending just above her knees, was tied back in a ponytail. Used to seeing it shimmering in the Milky Moon’s light, Paeosfu noticed it was dirtied from battle. Her towering height wasn’t the only thing that set her apart from many Tayans. Her right ear had undergone a cybernetic enhancement. Whether her ear was originally damaged or Roskavna simply opted for an upgrade was left a mystery.


Roskavna grabbed the yēoñogou from Paeosfu's hands and limped ahead. The Tayan uttered, "By the time you get there, they'd be dead."


Roskavna was the first rebel officer to accept Princess Paeosfu within their ranks. She used to work in the gardens inspecting the imports and exports and helping to ensure their planet brought in no incompatible species. The work was brutal and often rewarded unjustly. When the opportunity to join the rebels arose, she didn't hesitate.




The officer followed the growing cries of trapped Tayans. Squeezing through the pipes, she sucked in her rather large body as much as she could and breathed out a heavy breath once she made it to the other side. She was built like a block, so maneuvering around the fallen pipes was difficult. Before finding the princess, her small team of four was left to scour the debris for more survivors. If she knew the destruction would be this bad, she would have kept around more of the smaller rebels to help with the recovery.


Closing her eyes, Roskavna focused on the Tayan’s voices. Her altered ear focused on the sounds that were the loudest. We will save you, she thought, feeling the yēoñogou squirm in her hand.  The staff once about the length of half her forearm had activated with her thoughts and lengthened to stand just past her mid-section. The four orbs rotated about the center, and the yēoñogou hummed.


“Final stage, activate,” she commanded, planting the staff into the ground. She recalled seeing this type of yēoño among her weapon collections. Luckily Paeosfu found a yēoñogou that had been modified. It no longer served its original purpose, yet she imagined it would come in handy if they were to face Imperial forces again. The yēoñogou unfurled for the last time to lengthen to her height.


“Final stage, activated,” the staff projected into her mind. Twisting a couple of the orbs sent out a large, holographic blue trapezoid that she could adjust at will. Anything in range of the points can be manipulated.


Roskavna tightened the range before sending several pipes into the air and shifting those just out of the perimeter.


Three rebels who agreed to stay behind to help Roskavna recover the living and the deceased’s cores moved in to catch the falling rebels.


Wide-eyed, surprised, and grateful she wasn't the sole rebel survivor of the fiasco, Paeosfu flinched and looked behind her.

Page

2

© 2017: Operation: UGAWTS || Princess Paeosfu: Journeys of the Abstract Princess || The Survivors

bottom of page