Uncharted

[Caira Ayryn]

The audience gasped with anticipation, the host quoted her words in an annoying tone, “Does she really intend to do this?”

Merik held her gaze for a moment. Caira explained, “I’m not going to give you any, they’ve already done something to your energy. And if this room really is Omnilium suppressive there really is only one choice.”

Before he could protest, she put the prism bottle to her lips, followed by the sphere and the cube. All three seared down her throat in a rolling cascade of fire. Her trachea strained and her esophagus became an inferno of heat. The crippling Prime fell to her knees and began to grasp her abdomen in a grieving agony. Her hair streaked with changing colors and turned from its usual dark brown to a faded blue before morphing into every color and settling at last, into black deeper than a raven's feathers. Her throat croaked out the words, “Let’s leave.”

Yet the Prime could barely stand, much less adventure once again into the dangers of the desert again. Merik’s expression grew into a pale horrified gaunt as their host responded, “What? And let the audience miss this?”

The comment enraged Merik who growled, “Why you-!”

Suddenly the chains around his arms broke free and his palms closed the announcer’s neck. Silence descended into the stadium and later laughter as another hostess came on the field and spoke, “Wow, looks like Frank bit off a little more than he could chew, let’s look back at the Prime girl and see how she’s doing.”

Cameras zoomed in on the Caira’s agonized expression, her nose had wrinkled in dismay of all the dark magic that burned her from the inside. Her eyes paled into silver as her agony that she fought with the convulsions of her stomach that slowly subsided into calm waves. She surmised the strength to stand on her wobbling legs and leaned against a tripod, the female reporter shoved a microphone in Caira's face and asked her a few questions regarding her 'husband.'

“Huh? I’m not married,” her eyes glanced over to Merik, whom had grown a crowd of security guards around him and even that didn’t stop him from beating Frank up.

“But, surely you must be. There’s a ring on your finger.” the reporter like woman reasoned.

Caira blinked, the announcer was right, there was a gleam of gold on her finger. The weight hadn't been relevant enough for her to want to discard it after they had lied to those bandits, but even responding to the question was painful, and Caira was only able to do it with a grimace. “Nope. Holding this for a friend... It isn't mine.”

“What’s a pair of Primes like yourselves doing in the middle or rather outskirts of the desert? And what do you plan to do now?- Oh wait, the producers are telling me to add in a bonus segment! This is very exciting ladies and gentleman! A Prime Special on the Ultimate Game!” Caira didn’t see what relevance any of the questions had as they continued and it felt like she was going to puke up blood.

What's this lady saying? Caira couldn’t wrap her mind around the idea of television,“I don’t need any bonus segment. I’d like to leave.”

The host looked befuddled, “Oh! But if you stay we can offer you a reward beyond anything you could possibly ima-”

Merik came from behind and loomed over the hostess who recoiled in fear, “Didn’t you hear her? We’re leaving.”

Two vaulted doors were opened to show the light of dawn as the anchorwoman annotated their departure, “Alas, two the great Primes depart from the stadium and head off into the world of infinite sand. Who were they? What are their aspirations? We may never know. JOIN US NEXT TIME on theee Ultimate Game!”