Evil Hearted You

Iccythria was a temperate yet tortured world that suffered from a harsh tug-of-war between two moons.

Xion gazed at the view as the Fortuna's Grace's flyer descended through a purple shattered haze to the surface below.

He raised a brow at the landscape's wild-hued andesite rock and rhyolite basalts that had erupted from underground volcanoes.

Its exterior was pockmarked by violent volcanoes, energised by tidal forces due to the proximity of its two moons, EKRT (Ekarat) and SCRT (Sucarat). As such, it experienced intense volcanic activity.

Because it orbited within its star's habitable zone, it was close enough for liquid water to exist on its surface—and could maintain an atmosphere. The temperature wasn't hot either because its host star was so small and cool.

It was tidally locked, with a permanent day and night side.

The planet was also showered with ionised energy particles from the nearby uninhabited planetoid XYRI (Xyeri) and its radiation belt, which resulted in stunning purple-laced auroras in Iccythria's thin atmosphere.

Its rocks and mountains were a distinct violet, crimson, and black. Owing to the vast deposits of xentium-imbued sulphur, much of which erupted from its 700 active craters.

Some of its most spectacular volcanoes of Iccythria spewed ash and lava hundreds of miles into the air, across shipping lanes and the moons' surfaces.

Yet it was here that a collective of poor nomads from Earth settled. They'd cobbled enough money for a small fleet that had roamed the vast galaxy over 20,000 years ago.

They'd landed on the bleakest and barren planet in the System, dug into the mountainous, volcanic rock, and built dwellings, tunnelling deep to create caverns of magnificent beauty.

Under the roiling surface, they'd designed a society that delicately balanced a conservative tradition that discouraged the use of technology and a worldly Pegasi-leaning culture that favoured innovation.

The two disciplines coexisted, conquering their planet and its resources together. They mastered mining and jewellery, turning the planet's largest city, LeCythi, into a thriving trading centre.

Despite Iccythria's importance as a significant source of Pegasi's minerals, the world was less politically crucial than other empires. The Iccythrians preferred it this way, keeping a subdued profile System-wide.

Within the planet, however, the various clans had battled for control of the planet for decades.

Iccythria's mineral wealth had brought unprecedented foreign attention and exposure, and the nomadic tribes had found it increasingly difficult to manage their sudden fortunes.

Power moves, land grabs, and succession conflicts were rife between the Houses, leading to assassinations, war, and feuds.

Ascetic wandering cults rose from the resulting chaos, and they retreated from their fellow tribes and clustered into conservative cloisters that shunned the outside world. Others amongst the well-heeled mining class took the opposite stance and embraced Pegasi fashion, food, holo entertainment, and pleasure-seeking pastimes.

LeCythi, the Iccythrian capital, was tucked into a dark summit crater of a stratovolcano that had risen tall through the accumulation of alternating lava and pyroclastic deposits.

In minutes, the whisper-soft craft touched down on a landing pad on a platform beside the grandiose ALMQ Palace, guarded by towering structures and armed gendarmes.

Massive rock-hewn doors built into the volcano swung open as it did.

Xion's impending and fokkin' unknown fate pressed down on him as he stepped off the ship, flanked by the criminal brothers and Katya.

The oppressive aura of power and wealth emanating from the castle only fuelled his grit to escape this dire situation.

The ALMQ sentinels led the way through the palace's opulent halls, their footsteps echoing in the silence as they approached an imposing entryway.

With a sweep of one gendarme's hand, the doors swung open to reveal a lavish chamber.

Inside, one man sat on a gold and sapphire-adorned dais chair at the end of a long table.

Up close and in person, His Highness K'Sumi Hinata Alamaq was even more sneering, snobby and oily.

Xion shivered with disgust as he stood before the throne, his gaze unwavering despite the weight of uncertainty that gnawed at him.

Behind him, also under guard, filed Katya and her brothers.

They bowed and curtsied deep in front of their King.

Xion did no such thing, jerking his chin in defiance at the simpering royal.

‘What do you want from me?' the Rider drawled.

The man on the dais regarded Xion with a look of mild amusement, his lips curling into a condescending smile. ‘What do I want from you? Oh, Sable Rider, so, so much.'

Xion's jaw clenched at the arrogance dripping from the man's words. He had dealt with influential and entitled individuals, but this man exuded a new level of hubris that made his skin crawl.

‘You see, Sable Rider,' the man continued, tapping his jewelled fingers together, ‘I have a little problem that needs your distinctive touch to solve. If you refuse to cooperate, let's say the consequences will be less than favourable for your friends here.'

Katya's sharp breath behind him only fueled Xion's resolve. He may have been backed into a corner but refused to bow down to this pompous tyrant.

‘Name it, and I'll see whether I can procure it for you.'

The King leaned with a slight smile. ‘I need your metanoids.'

Xion jolted. ‘My fokkin' what?'

‘Those tiny cybernetic robots in your arteries.'

‘Whatever the fokk for?'

‘For whateverthefokk I want. I am the King, and I hold all the cards.'

Xion's eyes narrowed at the demand, his mind racing with the implications of what the man on the throne was asking for.

The metanoids in his bloodstream were not just machines; they were a part of him, enhancing his abilities and granting him an edge in battles.

The thought of anyone other than a Rider controlling them sent shivers down his spine, knowing the chaos and destruction it might unleash.

‘What? Do you think you can siphon them from me and use them at will? They don't work like that.' Xion's voice dripped with disdain, his posture tense and ready for a fight.

‘You've no idea what my scientists can achieve.'

Xion breathed in, nostrils flaring, getting irritated with the conversation. ‘I don't know what kind of sick game you're playing, but you won't touch what's mine.'

The man on the throne chuckled, the sound grating on Xion's nerves like nails on a chalkboard. ‘Oh, I'm afraid you have no choice in the matter, Sable Rider. You see, we have ways of making you cooperate.'

His eyes flicked to Katya.

Xion's stomach twisted into a knot at the thought of anyone hurting her, let alone her children, wherever they were.

He had always prided himself on remaining one step ahead, but now he was stuck in a chess game with a player who held all the pieces.

‘We have her odd family, whom she hid from Iccythria many years ago, staying at a facility nearby as my guests.'

His Highness K'Sumi Hinata Alamaq activated a control on his wrist comm.

A holo display shimmered over the vast table he sat at, revealing a life feed of a cluster of children.

They were huddled in a bland room.

Amongst them was an older woman who bore an uncanny resemblance to Katya.

‘Mada, Kaaia,' the woman behind him moaned. The Rider's heart sank even as he tagged a pretty curly-haired girl prancing at the back of the room without a care.

‘Evil fokker,' he muttered.

Just then, Mirage ghosted into his neural link.

I caught all of that, Xion. There could be a way out of this.

She proceeded to tell him how.

He flared his nostrils and sucked his teeth.

Is this the only way?

For now.

Fine. Please do it.

Out of the corner of his eye, Xion caught the fear in Katya's eyes.

He gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, steeled his resolve, and focused on one thing, one goal: survival. Not just his, but for the innocent on his watch.

‘I concede. I'll let you do it,' he growled, brimming with defiance, ‘but only if you let Katya, her children, and her siblings go unharmed.'

The monarch raised an eyebrow, his lip curling in triumph.

‘It's a small price to pay for the metanoids,' the King said, his voice cold and calculating. ‘House D'Hanna, you are free to go. Guards, take the Rider away.'

Xion turned and nailed Katya with a look. He sliced his eyes to her brothers, the guards at the door, and then back to his bonds.

She pursed her lips and gave him a tiny nod.

She'd gotten the memo.

His vision exploded with a blow to the back of his head. As he sagged to the floor, he only hoped she had the wits to execute her part well.

Xion woke with a start, struggling and resisting the synth steel cuffs that were holding him down.

He turned his strapped head, wincing at the limited movement, but he tried regardless.

Catching sight of a cluster of people gazing down at him from behind a plexiglass wall.

Fokk, he was an experiment rat. Again.

Vivid memories of the endless torture he'd endured in a lab like this one, at the hand of the crats, crowded his mind, and panic hit.

Xion struggled against his restraints, feeling the cold shackles dig into his flesh. The disinfectant in the air nauseated him, a scent that triggered agonising flashbacks.

An icy voice called out. ‘Begin.'

He was familiar with that intonation.

K'Sumi.

The King of Iccythria was about to harvest his noids.

Xion's breath hitched as he sent a frantic neural link command.

His limbs relaxed with relief when Mirage pinged back.

Just then, an apparatus on a swivel headed towards him.

It looked like something out of a torture chamber.

The instrument descended to him, its sharp edges glinting in the sterile light. Sweat broke out on Xion's brow, and his heart thumped against his ribs as memories of past experiments flooded his mind.

‘Do we need to go down this route?' he rage quipped. ‘Let's discuss this, perhaps find another solution.'

K'Sumi smiled, his eyes gleaming with a sinister glint. ‘Oh, we've already gone too far to stop now, my dear Xion. Your time has come.'

Mirage, I'm ready. Deactivate them as soon as he siphons them out of me.

Are you sure? As I warned, it will make you vulnerable and weak, and our neural link will also be affected.

Please make it so. I can't give them unprecedented access to my noids. It'll trip the balance of power, and lord knows what they want to do with them.

Mirage sighed. Alright. But I won't shut down all of them. I'll leave a few active and hide them in your arm marrow where you had the synth steel plate put in after your injury a few years ago.'

‘That's a good plan. Let them drain the rest. But retain a small neutron of power in each to make them think they're still potent.'

I've got you, Mirage said. I'll keep pinging you and maintain this open link until you regenerate.

Sante.

Above him, the needle-like apparatus descended, and Xion braced for the inevitable agony.

Its proboscis sank into the flesh just over his bicep, and he almost bit through his tongue to stop from screaming, unwilling to give his captors the satisfaction.

Then came the sensation of his metanoids being sucked out of him.

It was the most excoriating pain he'd ever experienced.

Gritting his teeth to the point of bloodletting, he writhed in his bonds, his vision going black for a moment as his life force was drained from him.

‘Nada!' he cried, finally giving in to the anguish, his voice echoing off the cold, sterile walls.

K'Sumi observed with a twisted smile on his face.

In moments, the Rider lost consciousness.

The last thing he parsed was the ominous silhouette of K'Sumi, a shadowy figure in the glass vestibule beyond looming over him, a smug glint in his eyes.