CHLOE inched nearer to the woman working next to her. She glanced cautiously at the Agonotti guard posted over the field. He wasn't looking at them. She moved closer and the other woman moved closer to her as well.
"Ramah?" she whispered. "What's happening? I heard the shouting and cheering from the arena."
"I didn't get that close. It sounds like they have all shown up for something important though." She continued to dig and seed the ground as she darted between the guard posts with her eyes. "They seemed very excited about something that's happened there."
"Excited?"
"Yes, some of them were actually smiling when they began to leave the arena."
"I've never seen any of them do that."
"Neither have I. Whatever is going on, it's not going to be good for us."
The Agonotti guard turned toward them from the short tower between fields. They dug again, looking only at the ground, not at him and not at each other. They began to inch away as they continued seeding the ground on their knees. Ramah's back ached from the constant hard labor.
The guard stepped down from his perch and began to walk slowly in their direction. The women didn't dare raise their heads to look at him, but they saw his feet shuffling the dirt-definitely coming toward them.
The Agonotti guard stood there, staring down at them both for a moment, but did not say a word-they rarely did speak to humans. The women continued with their work as though nothing were amiss. Terror raced through them both.
Then the Agonotti guard snatched Chloe up by her throat and hoisted her into the air. Ramah became still, her hands still covered in dirt and a digging tool in one. She thought of using the tool as a weapon. But that would get both of them killed for sure.
Chloe struggled in his grasp, trying to breathe. Her hands wrapped around his wrist trying to support her own weight and prevent her neck from breaking. As the guard lowered her to eye level she looked into his face. He had the look-the nightmarish look of a predator about to tear into his captured prey. She saw no mercy in those black pools, no regret, not even a notion of afterthought; only bloodlust.
An explosion shook the ground. They turned to find several fireballs rising above the area near the ancient arena. Within seconds each concussive aftershock reached them in the fields.
The guard tossed Chloe aside without further consideration and shot away toward the battle, faster than any mortal. Ramah went to help the young woman as she groaned from the fall. At least she was alive. She saw several small fighters diving in and around the warehouse area. Tendrils of dark vapor rose to engage the attackers. The Agonotti cloud grew quickly as more fighters buzzed in from the hills beyond the compound.
"What's happening?"
"I think the rebels are attacking," Ramah said.
"I've heard of some who were fighting the Agonotti, but never have seen any of them," Chloe said rubbing her throat.
A low hum quickly grew in intensity coming up from behind them. They turned to find ten larger transports flying in low over the fields. The side compartment doors slid back revealing armed men and women motioning with their arms for the women in the fields to hurry to the transports.
"They're coming to rescue us!" Ramah shouted. "Come on!"
The two women ran as hard as they could, their bare feet slugging through the loose soil of their planting. Women swarmed in from every area of the fields trying to reach one of the nearby ships.
Desperation overpowered every ounce of pain Ramah felt. Her legs and her back ached, but she did not care. If it killed her to reach one of those ships, at least she would die among people, free from her murderous captors.
Ramah heard explosions bursting back at the compound area behind her. She didn't have time to look. Her only hope hovered about four feet off of the ground in front of her. Other women climbed in ahead of her-would there still be room? There would have to be-she would cling to the landing skids when it took off if she had to.
When Ramah got to the ship, she pushed her way through several other women, all of them trying frantically to get onboard. One of the men grabbed her and hauled her up into the transport bay as another fired the gun turret. The available room grew smaller by the second and Ramah saw the Agonotti running back toward them.
The Agonotti carried human weapons and fired them at the transport ships as they approached. There had no more time to rescue anyone else-the Agonotti cloud closed on them as well.
Ramah saw small groups of women groping after the ships as they began to lift off, carrying as many people as they could. Beyond the open door and the turret gunner, Ramah saw Chloe clamoring for the hull as the ship rose beyond her reach. Her heart sank as her friend clawed the metal hull-screaming for them to wait. Ramah hear her voice above the other pitiful cries as their hope slipped up and away from their grasp.
Shots clattered around inside the cabin as the men tried to get the compartment door shut. One of the men was hit and fell forward to the ground below. A woman next to Ramah was hit then spun in a daze with blood streaming down her face and neck. She collapsed into a heap at Ramah's feet. The women cried and screamed as they tried to duck down inside the compartment to avoid the gunfire chasing them into the sky. The men shouted orders at one another.
Finally they got the door closed. More shots clanged into the metal hull, but none seemed to penetrate. The pilot whipped the ship around, throwing the passengers to the deck that weren't holding onto the stability handles dangling by cables from the ceiling. He pushed the throttle hard and the transport engines groaned carrying them away from the Agonotti's slave fields.
The gunfire dissipated and some cheered as they blasted away from the former danger. Ramah sat quietly. She closed her eyes and tried to catch her breath. Chloe was still back there. If she was lucky, they had killed her and the others quickly for trying to escape. Otherwise, only day to day terror remained for them.
Ramah listened to the engines as the whole ship trembled with the force of them. It was like being cradled in a strong father's arms as far as she was concerned. Ramah's exhaustion quickly caught up to her and for the first time in many months, she felt like she might actually be able to sleep soundly.