Seth Karlo

[Seth Karlo]

Tanned eyelids slid open.

Green eyes poked into view.

Seth groaned, his breath condensing in the air in front of him. His body ached. Moving forwards, he desprately tried to shield some of his body from the icy air. Futilely he moved his hands up and down his legs, trying to rub some warmth into his naked body.

After electrocuting him for 2 day's, the Blood Dragons left him in an offshoot from the airlock. Every now and again the air would get extremely thin, making his breaths ragged and short, and it was constantly freezing cold.

He didn't have long left to live.

He prepared to die, lying back and closing his eyes. He imagined all the girl's he wished he could have kissed. He wished that he had never watched that girl be raped that night. He wished he had never killed those men. He wished he could be stronger... He was ready to die.

Then he heard it. A slow, low chuckle. Someone was laughing at him.

He looked up, seeing one of the guards looking at him.

"Hello little one... go on then, die already... I'm bored standing here."

Seth collapsed on the ground after he had sat up, he refused to die with this freak, this thing staring at him.

"Go to hell mate, and stay there." he muttered.

The guard sneered.

"You're in no position to make threats small one... hah, I could kick your ass with one hand behind my back!"

"Then why don't you?"

The threat was veiled, low and dark, and the guard hesitated. But not for long. With a growl he slid the bolt on the door open, turning off the comm device he had been using.

"A duel?" Seth drawled, "How dull..."

The guard was carrying something, Seth's sword... with a grin the guard threw it at him.

"A duel, yes... to the death."

Seth drew his sword as the guard drew his own. Immediatly Seth saw that this fight would be difficult. He was holding a longer sword, almost 3 and a half feet in length. The guard had drawn a shorter sword, a Wazikashi. This would allow him to be quicker, and in Seth's state, that would be a great disadvantage. And of course, the guard was wearing typical stab-proof vest and head plate, Seth was naked.

They took up the classic stance, the tension thick and dense between them. Slowly it built, until suddenly the guard shot forwards, his feet moving in quick small steps to keep his center of balance correct. Seth parried his thrust quickly, moving to the side.

Within Seth's body adrenaline and endorphins started to go into overdrive, his tired and beaten muscles performing better than they had ever done while he was in a usual state. His brain, usually idling, was transformed into a fast thinking, devious machine. His arms felt light and nimble instead of heavy and lumberous, his feet felt as if he had been given wings, bearing no weight at all.

And Seth realised one thing, all this guard knew was an advanced form of the ancient sword duelling technique kendo. Kendo was to real sword fighting what Fencing was to real swashbuckling. In Kendo, if you didn't hit your opponent in the right areas, mainly the torso, you didn't get any points.

Seth really didn't give a rats ass about points. He wanted to win. So when the guard made a second pass, Seth dropped to one knee and sliced the mans legs off at the quads.

He fell to the floor screaming in pain.

"Didn't-" Seth began.

"Anyone" He cut the mans left arm off.

"Tell" He cut the mans right arm off.

"You I was a good sword fighter?" He sliced the mans head off, wiping the blade on his clothes. Quickly moving, he took the guards clothes, grabbing his second sword from the table outside his death room. He saw two more guards on the way back towards the hangar bay, and he proceeded to slice there heads off aswell, enjoying inflicting pain on those who had stood by and cheered as he was electrocuted and humiliated.

He managed to make it to the hangar bay without major incident, and spotting a small fighter seperate from the others, slid over to it. He pushed open the door to the cockpit with one hand, the other holding a blaster he had found.

It took him a minute to figure out how to bring weapons online, but it was satisfying blowing up the main fighter wings of Kyoto. Grabbing the flight yokes, he brought the ship towards one of the docking points, firing a missile into the door.

Behind him smoke billowed, and screams were heard over the radio for him to be shot.

But he didn't care... he was free.

Next stop: Getting his Hawk back.

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