Prophecy

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

The setting for this story is pre Pitch Black. All the usual disclaimers apply. Please do not use my original characters/storyline without my permission.

Any reviews/comments are appreciated.

Enjoy.


PROPHECY

It was going to be another one of those nights again, she just knew it. Both the moons were full, which was bad enough in itself, but add that to the eclipse and it just reeked of lunacy. She shook her head as she ran the grimy cloth across the well worn bar, mopping up the spilt amber liquid and tossing it into the small sink behind her. It was crowded tonight. It was crowded every night but tonight, more so than usual. The patrons were a sad and sorry lot, thieves, murderers, pimps and worse. They were a bunch of pathetic losers, living out their lives in the seedier side of town.

What the hell does that say about me? she thought as she surveyed her domain. At least business was good. She was covering all her debts and had placed enough aside for some of life’s little luxuries. Neither she, nor her two beautiful little girls will be doing without. Smiling, she glanced over at her two angels and they beamed back at her, before returning to their dinner in the small kitchen adjacent to the bar. Not only was this establishment her place of business, she also called it home.

“Hows it going luv?”

She transferred her gaze back across the bar and locked eyes with a typical unkempt patron. His long, greasy hair was pulled back in a ponytail which only emphasised his receding hairline. He smirked cockily and mumbled something.

“If you want something, you need to speak up. I can’t hear you.” She couldn’t stand the ones that mumbled just so you would have to lean in closer to hear them, the ones that thought they were just too cool to make an effort. He adjusted his weight to the other foot and curled a lip that back in the day could’ve belonged to someone described as handsome but that would’ve been a long time ago.

“Gimme a double black poison, straight up and don’t be watering it down.”

She grimaced at him and turned to fill his order. In the background she heard a slight commotion but by the time she returned with the drink, it was all over. Looking around she saw nothing out of place. Resting the drink on the counter she smiled politely and told him the price. He glanced at his drink, then at her chest, then looked up at her face and smiled wickedly. Tilting her head to the side she asked, “Is there something else I can get you?” Licking his lips, he reached out and grabbed one of her breasts and squeezed. “How much for these?” he drawled.

Before she had a chance to reach below the counter for her weapon, the man had been lifted into the air and thrown onto the bar on his back, his drink spilling everywhere. In complete shock he struggled to get up before he realised that he had a hand clamped around his throat. The fingers started to bite into his skin as the hand began to squeeze, blocking off his oxygen supply. Wide eyed with fear his gaze followed the muscular arm up to strong broad shoulders and a shadowy face. Slowly moving out of the shadows the assailant leaned down and stared into his captive’s eyes.

“Richard,” she breathed in disbelief.

Without moving his head the assailant shifted his gaze to her and she caught a glimpse of mysterious glowing eyes. His lip curled for an instant then he returned his attention to his captive. Glaring menacingly at him he snarled, “Touch her again and I will kill you.” Suddenly his other hand shot out and just stopped short of another man’s throat, the edge of his sharp blade grazing the pliable skin. He turned his head and looked at the new would be assailant who was now frozen to his spot. “Are we clear?” he asked and the man nodded fearfully and backed away. Slowly turning back to his original victim he asked again, “Are we clear?” The man nodded as much as he could under the circumstances and the vice-like grip on his throat slowly eased. Once he was free he scrambled to his feet and all but ran out the door.

Straightening to his full height he surveyed the room then returned his gaze to her. She raised an eyebrow at him. “Nice to know that chivalry isn’t dead but I don’t recall ordering a knight in shining armour.” They glared at each other.

“Riddick!!”

He turned to see a little girl beaming at him and he smiled until he caught a glimpse of the smaller child, his expression darkening.

“Cute kid.” He turned back to look at her. “It seems every time I see you, you have added another one to your collection.”

“Hmmph, funny that,” she mumbled and turned to pour herself a drink. As she lifted the glass to her lips she felt his breath warming her ear and could all but feel his powerful body only millimetres from her own. She hesitated for a second then downed her drink in one gulp. He leant his head down to her shoulder then inhaled deeply as he straightened up beside her. She closed her eyes and fought back the butterflies that threatened to flutter through her. “It’s been too long,” he growled.

She turned and looked up at him through her dark lashes. “Whose fault would that be?” she asked and pushed past him. He grabbed hold of her forearm, stopping her in her tracks, forcing her to turn back and look into his eyes. They stood like that for an eternity, contemplating each other, reliving the past, imagining the future. Even after all this time it was still unnerving looking into his luminescent eyes. She could almost feel the primal energy emanating from his taut muscular body, could almost taste the animal instincts coming to the fore. If a wild beast could take on human form, it would look like him. But he wasn’t a beast. That was a misconception that so many people made. He was very intelligent, very resourceful and completely in tune with his primal side. He was a victim of circumstance and instead of letting fate rule him, he chose to turn around and bite it on the ass. She understood this about him, more so than most but that did little to comfort her.

A dismembered voice in the darkness yelled “Patrol,” causing a myriad of beings to disperse, forcing dealers to stuff their wares back in their secret compartments and thugs to lean nonchalantly against walls.

“Are they here for you?” she asked raising an eyebrow.

He shrugged, “aren’t they always.” He let go of her arm and moved to jump over the bar but she caught hold of him this time.

“Go with the girls, they’ll hide you.”

He turned to see the two girls waving madly at him to follow and he smirked. “There are only four of them; I’ll be back in a minute.”

“Unless you plan to take it outside then I’d rather you didn’t.”

He looked at her curiously. “Why?”

“My insurance policy doesn’t cover ‘Acts of Riddick’.”