33. Hyx

The wooded clearing is completely silent. It is like the impending battle has cast a pall over the place. Even the forest dwellers are holding their breath.

"What are you waiting for?" Elyzin goads. "We can circle one another all day if you like."

"Why are you doing this?" I ask, stalling for time while I await an opening.

"Because I must," he replies cryptically and lunges at the same time.

I step quickly, evading the blow. Managing to spin so that I can catch him off guard before he recovers, I kick him in the back. I know I don't have much for weapons – I wasn't exactly preparing for a showdown now. So the first thing I need to do is disarm him.

I have sparred with Elyzin more times than I can count. I know how evenly matched we are. I would say that over the years in our friendly matches, I won more times than him. But not enough to make me confident of victory. He is still a formidable opponent, and I am on my guard.

But I can use my familiarity with him to my advantage. I do just that, lunging as he falls to the ground and the sword clatters from his hands. Already, he's reaching to recover it, so I desperately try to get there a second before him and kick it as far away as I can.

Though it's officially out of his reach now, I am not foolish enough to believe I have the upper hand just yet. I'm sure he has a trick or two up his sleeve, and all I have is a dagger.

I make my own lunge, and sure enough, he pulls out a laser whip I wasn't even aware he had on him. It flicks out, threatening to disarm me in one easy move. But I know Elyzin well enough to use it to my advantage.

While he's using the whip, his right side is vulnerable. I fake a step left, and while he flicks the whip in that direction, I turn abruptly the other way and graze his arm. There is a scalding hiss as his skin is seared away.

Elyzin cries out and breaks from our parry. "Fuck," he says with passion. "You were always clever on your feet."

He comes straight for me, lips pulled back from his teeth, in a ferocious attack. But I counter easily, which annoys him even more.

In his anger, he makes a bold move, and it almost pays off. He rolls low and flicks the whip at my ankles. I have to leap high to get free. I land awkwardly and almost fall, whilst he stands elegantly out of his roll and turns like a dancer. He bears down on me with his hands, and it's all I can do to defend myself from his savagery.

There is a fierce light in his eyes, almost as if they are lit from behind by a red fire. He pushes his attack some more and has me hopping backward to stay out of his range.

Shit, he's serious.Until this moment, I hadn't fully believed he was out to kill me. I thought he just wanted to make a point. The familiar feeling of utter betrayal ripples across every lifetime, firing my own anger.

"No!" I cry. "You will not take it all from me again!"

I smash into him with all my force, driving my anger and frustration home with both my fists, dagger still in hand. I know I'm making risky moves, but I have to stop this cycle of bitterness and hate.

My sheer brutality pays off. I manage to strike him across his arm, almost severing it just above the elbow. The whip falls lifeless and limp, and Elyzin falls back screaming.

I watch in horror as broken wires and tubes thrash from Elyzin"s partially severed arm. They writhe about until they find their missing half and then begin to knit back together.

"What are you?" I ask in horror, keeping my plasma knife pointed firmly at his throat.

I feel Libby come up beside me. She gives a little gasp when she sees the cyber components within Elyzin"s damaged arm. I wish she would stay out of the way.

Elyzin looks between myself and Libby, and then back at the weapon I'm holding. His lips pull back in a snarl. "The Bargaron sees you as a threat. I've been tasked with keeping you apart."

"I don't even know who the Bargaron are," I protest. "How can we be a threat to them?"

"They are ancient enemies of the Ishani," he informs us. "It does not suit them for the Ishani race to come back to power."

"Neither of us is Ishani, not anymore," says Libby. "What danger could we possibly present? We just want to live a peaceful existence. Are the Bargaron afraid of two people being in love?"

I can see his arm is almost healed now. The fibers have joined together and the skin is puckering around the wound. If I wasn't watching the process with my own eyes, I would never believe it.

"It is what your love will produce that worries the Bargaron. The seeding of the Ishani race. You and your unborn children are a threat to the Bargaron"s plans."

Libby glances apprehensively at me, but I do not take my eyes off Elyzin"s face. His arm looks whole now, and I am on my guard for any sudden move.

"If you had simply stayed apart, you would have been safe," he goes on. "In every lifetime, I tried to keep you apart first. There is still enough of your friend left in me to try that as my first option. But you insisted on running around, trying to find a solution to be together. I could not risk you finding that solution. You and Libby were determined to be together even if it meant death."

"So, you're saying there's a solution?" demands Libby.

Elyzin looks annoyed, as if it is true and he regrets letting it slip.

"Every lifetime, the Bargaron grows stronger within me," he says, ignoring her question. "You cannot beat me. The Bargaron will always find a way."

I realize the red fire I noticed in his eyes when we were fighting is actually a cybernetic quality as it flares with his anger.

"Elyzin," I say, looking deeply into his eyes. "If you're still in there, you can fight this. It doesn't have to be this way!"

The anger flashes again. "You cannot have him. He is ours now." I am sure there is a robotic tone to his voice now.

"No," I say firmly. "Elyzin. I have known you since we were kids. And more than that. I have known in all my lifetimes. You can fight this. For the sake of our friendship. This is not you."

Elyzin"s face looks broken all of a sudden. "I'm sorry, Hyx. I can't fight it. They're too strong. Why couldn't you simply stay apart like I wanted you to?" There is desperation in his eyes, and I can see he is losing the battle.

"No," says Libby, her voice fraught with emotion. "We can't simply stay apart. It's not possible for us. And we will find each other in every lifetime, even if we only have a few months together. You cannot keep us apart forever," she finishes with a sob.

"I'm sorry, Elyzin," I say. "I have to agree with her. We are destined for one another. Our souls are entwined throughout the ages. It is a bond neither of us can ignore."

"The Bargaron cannot win against the force that binds us. If we're only together for a day, then a day is what we'll take. We would both rather die than be pawns to the Bargaron!" says Libby hotly.

I feel pride swell my chest, and I turn to look at my fierce woman.

Elyzin spots his chance, kicking out with his boot and almost taking me down.

Libby screams and dives for cover. I automatically step between them in order to shield her retreat, giving Elyzin the chance to scramble to his feet.

"Fuck," I curse. "I don't want to kill you Elyzin," I say. "Please, fight whatever powers are controlling you!"

Elyzin bares his teeth in a feral grin. "Go fuck yourself, Hyx," he replies.