* * * Someone was following her. Savara glanced over her shoulder. She could not see anyone, but her intuition told her otherwise. In her peripheral vision, and flash of grey. She spun around. Nothing. But there had been something. Weaving her way in and out of the crowd, she attempted to lose her follower. Turned around again. There. She saw him only for a split second, but he was there. The same hooded kig-yar she had seen at the docking station. And now he was following her. Terrified, Savara felt her heartbeats quicken and reached down with her hands towards her belt. The small plasma knife Sorran had given to her was still hooked there. It offered a little reassurance, but not much. Holding her medical books close to her chest, she doubled her pace towards the infirmary. An alleyway to the left. Perhaps she could lose her tracker in there. She ducked in quickly, pushing through a group of people. If she could just find one of the constabulary, she'd be safe. Abandoning all pretences of normality, she began to run, her footsteps echoing throughout the dark, empty alleyway. Savara turned the corner, and found herself face to face with the hooded kig-yar. He reached out a hand towards her. In a flurry of instinct and remembrance of what training her father had, against protocol for a female Sangheili, given her she managed to draw the knife out, activate it and plunge it into the kig-yar's left hand. He screeched as blood was drawn, and stumbled back a little. She took the opportunity to run back the way she came, breath heavy now. One of the constabulary was at the exit of the alleyway. Relieved beyond belief, Savara ran towards him desperately. The Sangheili looked down at her as she approached. "Thank the gods," Savara praised as she moved next to him. "Sir, a kig-yar just attacked me back there." Immediately, the constabulary drew out a plasma rifle and aimed it at where she pointed. Her attacker came stumbling out, clutching his side in agony. "Is that him?" the Sangheili asked her. She nodded with terror. As did the kig-yar, but without the terror. Suddenly, she found her arm held in a vice like grip by the Sangheili constabulary. She moved to scream in surprise but her mouth too was then covered. Her plasma knife simply bounced off the shields of the constabulary when she moved to stab him, and it fell to the ground. "Lady Grymar'ii," the kig-yar hissed as it drew closer. "Quite the fighter." "What do you want?" Savara whispered with fear when the Sangheili loosened his grip around her mouth slightly. The kig-yar threw back his hood, and stared at her with those big, bulbous red eyes. "Not to hurt you, if that it what you think. I am known as Kazakk, son of Lanik. The Sangheili holding you is my partner. We were sent by your father, my lady. To bring you home. " "He can't do that!" Savara protested, struggling once more. The taller and stronger fake constabulary restrained her easily. "Not legally," Kazakk admitted, shrugging. "That is why we were sent. You know your father cannot have any more children in his position." "Because he is now impotent, you mean," Savara spat out spitefully. Kazakk looked for a moment as if he would strike her for such an insult, but decided against it. He smiled calmly. "Either way, you are his sole child. You should be bearing young of a respectable mate now and continuing your regal lineage, not gallivanting across the dangerous galaxy where harm could befall you. We are taking you back to your family's estate upon Terin." "You can't!" Savara screeched one last time. Kazakk's eyes flashed a darker red, and he suddenly raised a hand. [i]Slap![/i] the sound rang out like a sharp crack as his clawed hand struck her across the cheek, drawing a few drops of fuchsia blood. She cried out in pain, screwing her eyes shut. Kazakk glared at her. "Being away from home has corrupted you, child. You must learn your place. I am sure your father will beat this rebellious side from you," he spat out. Savara glared at him. "How dare you touch me--" she began, flinching when Kazakk raised his hand again. It never touched her. Encapsulating the kig-yar's hand was a much larger, stronger one. That of a Sangheili, armoured by the golden and crimson of honour guard armour. Stepping into the dim light, the honour guard spun the kig-yar around and grabbed Kazakk's neck. The honour guard didn't even need to use both hands to snap it. The kig-yar bounty hunter's corpse fell to the ground. All of this took place in seconds. The Sangheili bounty hunter restraining Savara didn't even stand a chance to properly retaliate as the honour guard drew out a plasma sword from his belt, deflecting the plasma shot fired at him with ease. With his right arm, the honour guard tore Savara from the bounty hunter's grasp, even as his left sunk the blade into the stomach of her would-be-captor. Savara had simply cowered to the side, turning her eyes away from the gore. When she opened them again, she found the faceless mask of an honour guard staring down upon her, hand resting comfortingly on her shoulder. "Are you well, Savara Grymar'ii?" he asked in a gravelly voice. Right now though, it sounded to her like a chorus of cherubic angels. She nodded meekly, wiping a few tears from her eyes. "Why did you save me?" she asked in a quiet voice, wondering too how the honour guard found her in such a secluded and dark alleyway. The honour guard looked away. "All I can say is that someone is watching over you. Go, you will be safe now." She hesitated then, and looked back at the still corpse of Kazakk and then his Sangheili accomplice. Both sights chilled her; she saw cadavers often in her profession, but never had she seen one brought about by herself, even if it had been indirect. When she turned back to thank the honour guard, he was gone. All that remained was a cold wind sweeping through the alley, brushing the blood of the bodies along the ground in complex patterns like some sick form of art. After what must have been five minutes of her simply crouching down in the corner and trying to process what had happened, she rose to her feet and shakily stumbled away, hand resting nervously upon her stomach. She knew she would not have the strength to tell Convalescence of what had happened. * * * "Well done," Restraint lauded his guard as he returned to him, looking unpleasantly down at the blood staining his hands. Passersby in the district noticed but did not dare say a word. The honour guard was not one within his inner circle; the minister trusted him but knew he was a religious zealot, and to even suggest the Journey was a lie would be dangerous indeed. The honour guard sighed as he cleaned his hands in a nearby fountain. "I don't understand. She is just one of trillions in the Covenant. I am not saying that I am not glad I helped her, but I do not understand why you sent me to watch her. What is she to you?" "Not a lot," Restraint confessed. "But she means the world to one which everything depends upon, and so she must live." "... I don't understand, minister," the honour guard protested. Restraint smiled kindly. "It matters not, my son. One does not need to understand the meaning behind one's will to follow it." "Her father is a very powerful Imperial Admiral," the honour guard argued, watching the blood wash away and eventually be ionised by the cleansing agents in the water. "I may have scared the bounty hunters away for now but they'll be back." "Which is why I want you to take a quarter of my guard and watch her at all times. Keep her safe, child." "If you are so sure, minister," the honour guard began hesitantly. Restraint nodded. "I am." "Incidentally, Restraint," the honour guard added, checking around for any possible threats as the minister sat in the artificial sunlight. "That Sangheili who was staying with you. Pel, was it? He's gone." "I know," Restraint affirmed, smiling. "Without even so much as a word goodbye. I do not begrudge him, though. We must all forge our own paths in life." "With all respect minister, I am glad he's left. I am a good believer myself as are we all, but Pel is a whole other matter entirely. I walked in on him flagellating the other day." "Awful," Restraint agreed sadly. "Why people believe that will quicken their journey is beyond me." "I've never seen the allure in it myself, minister. Well, so long as you know he's gone then I have no issue with it. I will go relay your orders to some of the other guard, and we will watch over this Savara closely." "Thank you. One day the reason will become clear."