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Yet another AQ story. Rae's life is changing again (nothing new there). This is what I come up with during history class... Civil War inspired. Enjoy.

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It was another typical day on the Amazon Island. Rae sat in the Java Hut with a bunch of the other Amazons. They were having a meeting over coffee while Rae sharpened her sword. "I have news," Queen Cyan spoke up. "What's up?" Rae called from across the table. "What's up?" Cyan chuckled. "What's up? That's how you address a queen?" she joked. Rae grinned. "Ok. Let me try this again. What's going on?" Cyan became serious. "I've heard reports of trouble in Athens." "What kind of trouble?" Falcon asked. "War." "War?" "Yes. It's rumored that war is going to break out there." "I heard that they were having trouble with the Spartans again," Larc added. "I need somebody to go there and size up the situation," Cyan continued. She looked over at Rae. "Rae, I'd like you to go and see what's going on in Athens in terms of war. Take care of things." Rae looked at her sharp, shiny sword. "No problem. No problem at all..." "You're awfully nonchalant about this..." Rae shrugged. "Well, let me ask you this: What's another war to me?"
Rae left her Amazon sisters in a state of confusion as she exited the Java Hut and headed toward the portals. Cyan understood and Vicky did somewhat. Saran and Olympia had begun to catch on as well. What was another war to a bunch of Amazon warriors? Rae sliced the air with her blade as she walked. "War," she laughed. "Just another game to be played..." She reached the portals and secured her sword. Without looking back, Rae stepped into the swirling portal and her surroundings melted around her.
What Rae didn't realize was that she was stepping into total chaos. Still, it didn't move her at all. The battle between the Athenians and the Spartans was way more intense than she had expected. In fact, it was like a slaughterhouse. "Well," Rae said aloud. "Seems as if there's a war here." She raised an eyebrow as soldiers sliced through each other. The ground was a river of blood. "Yes, I'd say that this is war material." She looked around. Athens was in total chaos. Soldiers were ransacking the place. Families were running, trying to escape the slaughter. Men were fighting bravely…or so they thought. Rae rolled her eyes. Suddenly she heard a battle cry from behind her. She turned swiftly. A young man…perhaps only a few years older then her…was running toward her with his sword raised high. He was an Athenian, and he was yelling, "Die, Spartan scum! Die!" "Spartan scum?" Rae laughed and drew her sword. She met the man at swordpoint. He had fierce determination in his eyes, but Rae could see that he was frightened. "You don't even know the first thing about war do you?" she hissed. "And you do? You attack us mercilessly!" "I have no mercy for those who falsely accuse me," Rae spat. The man raised his sword. He was pretty fast for an amateur, but Rae was faster. She ran him through. He gasped. Blood spilled over the ground as he slid off of her sword. Rae drew her sword back. "Don't be so quick to accuse," she said. "What… you're not a Spartan…" "No kidding. See where your foolishness took you?" "You have no mercy either! You're just as bad as them…" Rae smirked. "Perhaps I am." The man's eyes were wide as he drew one last breath. Then he died. "Worthless fool," Rae whispered. Suddenly there was a scream. Rae looked up to see a woman and children running toward the man. "Otris! Otris!" the woman cried. The children surrounded the man. The woman looked at Rae. "You did this? You, an innocent girl, did this to my eldest son?" Rae shrugged. "Maybe I did." Anger flared in the woman's eyes. "My eldest son! Have you no compassion? You're young and yet you're cold! How can anybody so innocent looking act like this?" Rae's face was expressionless. "Now we have to live in pain for the rest of our lives!" "Well, lady, that's war," Rae said. The woman raised her hand and slapped Rae…hard. "That's not war! That's slaughter! You murdered my son for no good reason. I hope you rot in Tartarus for what you've done!" Rae was shocked. How dare that woman slap her… "I have no reason to stay here. I'm going home." She snapped her fingers and the swirling blue portal appeared. Rae stepped through the portal. She had no regrets about what she had done...none at all.

When one becomes nonchalant about their position in life, something must be done to teach them a lesson. When one forgets about what's important, they must be reminded. It was time for a change. It was time for a reality check… and a wake up call.

Rae hit the ground…hard. She sat up quickly. "Ow." Then she looked around. "What in Tartarus is this?" She was at the edge of a forest. It was mid afternoon she guessed, but her surroundings were completely unfamiliar. "Where's the Island? What's going on?" She snapped her fingers. No portal appeared. "Where's the portal?" She snapped again. Nothing. "Hello! Portal, appear! I want to go home!" Still nothing. "Where am I anyway?" She decided that she should have her sword in hand, just in case. But when she reached for her sword…she found something else. "What…" she held the object in both hands. It was long and fairly slender. It was made of some sort of metal and had some type of trigger. "I wonder what this is… and what it does." She pulled the trigger. The thing boomed loudly, catching Rae totally off guard. She dropped the object, her heart beating fast. "What in Tartarus was that? What's going on here? Where's my sword?" "Soldier!" said a voice from behind her. "What?" she turned. Standing there was a man. He was dressed almost exactly like her, in a navy soldier uniform. He had light brown hair and blue eyes. "You're a girl?" he asked, surprise in his voice. "Well of course, what did you think?" "There are no female soldiers in our regiment! Where did you come from?" Rae couldn't find words. "You're a spy!" the man said. "No!" Rae said. Things were getting stranger by the minute. "I'm not a spy, I can assure you of that. Why are you dressed like me anyway? And stop pointing that thing at me. It makes me nervous. You don't know when it can go off." The man gave her a strange look. "You're not from around here are you?" "Obviously not." "Well, you are dressed in the Union uniform, so I don't think that you're a spy." "This isn't a Union uniform or whatever you said. This is the outfit of the legendary Merquise!" The man lowered his weapon. "Whoa. You seem a bit confused." "No, you're the confused one." "Such a sharp tongue for a lady." "What?" The something clicked in Rae's brain. "Wait a second, what year is this?" "I knew that there was something up with you. This is the year 1862." "1862!!!" Rae dropped to the ground. "By the gods! I didn't even know that this year existed! This must be the future… this must be…" The man knelt beside her. "Are you all right, ma'am?" Rae nodded. "Yeah, but I'm in the year 1862." "Well, we all are. Let me get your weapon for you." He picked up her weapon. "Nice gun you've got here." "So this is a gun… Why do I have a gun?" Rae muttered. "You must have some type of amnesia. How can you not know? We're fighting a war here. I don't know why you, a lady, is here, unless you're with the medics of course." "But I'm not," Rae said. The man raised his eyebrows. "We'd better sit for a minute then. I want to know who you are and where you're from." Usually Rae wouldn't stand for petty interrogation, but she was at a loss at the moment. So, she sat down next to the man. "I guess I should introduce myself. My name is Dave Sanders. I'm sixteen years old. This is the first war that I've fought in." "My name is Rae Merquise. I'm sixteen years old also. I…" Rae stopped. She couldn't tell him about the wars that she had been in. For some reason, she felt that it wouldn't make any sense to him. "This is so different from the Island," she muttered. "Island?" Dave asked. "You mean to say that you're from an island? Is that why you don't know much of what's going on?" Suddenly Rae had an idea. "Yes, that's what I meant. You see, I was in a shipwreck as a child. I washed ashore on an island with this gun. I had no recollection of anything. One day I set sail on a small boat that I had built. It landed on the shores of this place and I've been wandering ever since." "I see…" Dave said. The story sounded quite farfetched to him, but it was sort of plausible. "Where am I anyway?" Rae asked. "The Union… the former United States of America. This is the state of Maryland." "You said that you were fighting a war?" "Those damn rebels. They've beaten us every time. I swear that we will win a battle soon. We will!" Rae was impressed by the determination in Dave's voice. His first war…and he was so innocent. Rae saw the innocence in him. That kind of innocence made Rae uncomfortable. It was almost as if she wanted it… but couldn't grasp it anymore. Had she really become that ruthless? "I should be getting back to camp," Dave said. "My sentry time is almost up." He stood. Rae looked up at him. "I guess you should come along with me," he said. "It's not safe for you to be out here by yourself." "I can manage," Rae said, her old spark coming back. "Can you use that gun?" They stood in silence for a moment. Rae growled then stomped her foot in frustration. "Damn it! No!" "Thought so. Nice mouth." Rae was shocked. She never let anybody talk down to her like that before. She opened her mouth to speak. Dave held up a hand. "Save it," he said. "And move along…"
Rae had never felt so helpless and confused. She followed Dave in silence, trying to absorb her situation. Her trained instincts weren't helping her now. "Here we are," Dave said. Rae looked at the camp that spread before her. There must have been at least a thousand men milling about the camp. Rae was at a loss for words for a moment. "By the gods," she said to herself. "Come on," Dave told her. Rae had no choice but to obey. She walked with Dave through the camp, trying not to make eye contact with the men. For the first time in a long time, Rae felt a bit intimidated. "Hey Dave," said a rough voice. Dave had stopped and Rae stopped next to him. She was disgusted by the man before her. He looked rough and downright crude. He grinned at her. "Dave, aren't you a bit young? I'll take her off your hands if you want." Dave smiled. "Thanks, but no thanks." Rae noticed that quite a bit of soldiers had gathered around them. They were snickering and whispering among themselves. Meanwhile, the man spat. "Boy, you listen to what I say. We get the girls first, then you get them." Dave smirked. "I'm sure that your wife would like to hear that from you." The man's face went red with anger. Without warning, he took a swing at Dave. The crowd of men cheered as the two began to fight. Rae rolled her eyes. "Men," she sighed. Then she dove right into the fight. "Boys, boys! Stop it!" Dave was shocked. He had never met such a fearless woman. The rough man was still swinging. It was time for the fight to end. Rae kicked the man's legs from underneath him and pinned him to the ground with her foot. "I told you to stop. I mean it." The man lay on the ground, dazed. The other men were all silent. "Who are you, girl?" came a shout from the crowd. "My name is Rae Merquise. I am here to…" she thought for a moment. "I'm here to assist you in the war." "A girl?" another man laughed. "Hey!" Dave said. "You guys don't know of the legendary Rae Merquise? She's only the best sharpshooter in the Wild West!" Murmurs of interest went through the crowd. "What?" Rae whispered to Dave. "Play along," he replied. Rae nodded. "He's right." "Shoot something!" said the men. "Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!" the crowd chanted. Rae positioned the gun as she had seen Dave do. She prayed that her skill with weapons would pull through. After all, the gun was just another weapon. "What should I shoot guys?" "I know!" one of the men shouted. He came through the crowd, an apple in hand. He placed the apple on Dave's head. "Shoot the apple off of Dave!" he cried. Rae's heart began to pound as the shouts of "Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!" got louder. She took a deep breath. Dave stood still. He was frightened, Rae could tell. He knew that she had never shot a gun in her life. Rae positioned the gun. "Target set," she said. The crowd hushed. "And fire!" Rae shouted and pulled the trigger. The gun went off. Rae closed her eyes…and the men cheered. She opened her eyes slowly. Dave was standing there, frozen. The apple was everywhere, but Dave was in one piece. Rae broke into a big smile. She secretly thanked the gods. It was hard enough being in a strange world, but killing off the one person who was kind to her would have hurt beyond words. The soldiers crowded around her. "Where do you come from?" one asked. "How long have you been shooting?" The questions kept coming. Finally, Rae held up a hand. "Excuse me. I have some business to attend to. I'll talk to you guys later." Then she went to Dave. "Come back down to Earth, Dave. It's over." Dave snapped out of his fear. "Oh my God!" he whispered. Rae rolled her eyes. People were so fearful of the silliest things… "I think it's my turn to sit," Dave said. "Come on. I'll show you where my tent is." Rae followed Dave. She wasn't fearful of the soldiers anymore, seeing that she had won their respect by doing such a trivial task. When they reached the tent, both of them sat. Dave removed his boots and shook his head. "That was horrible," he finally said. "I must admit that I was scared." "Scared?" Rae asked, her eyebrows raised. "You're a soldier. How can you be scared?" "I…" Dave hesitated. "What? I won't laugh at you I promise." "I'm afraid of war. I really am. The upcoming battle will be my first." "If you're afraid, then why did you become a soldier?" "All of the men are fighting for their country. I want to fight to protect my family as well as my fellow countrymen. I want union once again. The president has the right idea when he says that he wants union again." "President? What?" "Abraham Lincoln." "Oh…like a king or queen?" "Did you fall into some sort of time warp or something? We gained independence from the king decades ago." "Wow. Where has the time gone?" Dave shook his head. "You seem to be hiding something. Why can't you remember anything? You don't remember history… you don't know of the war or the president…" "I told you, I was shipwrecked. Sometimes I just forget things. It's like amnesia." "Do you remember your family?" "I do. I had a mom, dad, a brother, and many sisters. My sisters still live, I know." "So, aren't you going to look for them?" "They're in my heart. That's all I need." "I miss my family," Dave admitted. "I hope for their safety. I hope that Rachel's ok." "Rachel?" "She's my best friend," Dave said and smiled. "But I'm in love with her. I plan to propose to her when I return from war. Here, look at this." Dave pulled something from his coat. It was like a painting. "What's this?" Rae asked. "A photograph of Rachel and her brother, Tom." The photograph was black and white, but the girl was very pretty. Her brother looked quite familiar to Rae. She looked from the photograph to Dave and gasped. Now that she though about it, he looked quite familiar too. "Well, it's nice to have love in your life," she finally said. "You don't?" "My life is war. My life is blood. I have no love anymore. I connect with nobody and I ask for no help or pity." "I'm sorry, but I can't agree with you. You shouldn't be afraid to ask for help…you shouldn't be afraid of peace. War just causes pain." "It's the only way. To ask for help is to be weak. I have no fear." "I still can't understand where you're coming from, however, I think of you as a friend. You do seem fearless, but everybody has fears." "Let's change the subject," Rae said. "I like this photograph…that's what you call it right? Where can I get one, if possible?" Dave didn't speak again about war or fear. He suspected Rae greatly now. Her story was just too bizarre. There was no woman that spoke of war as she did. Most women, no, most men, feared war. Rae seemed to live off of it. He put his questions aside. "There's a man who takes photographs in the camp," he said. "I'll take you to him if you want." "Yes, I'd like that. Thank you."
Dave and Rae walked through the camp once again. Now the soldiers would shout "Hello!" or wave to them. Dave seemed to be getting more respect now that Rae was with him. Maybe it was because he hadn't showed his fear when Rae had shot at him. They reached the photography spot. Dave went to talk to a man and handed him some money. The man motioned for Rae to step in front of a box-like object. Rae obeyed. "What do I do now? Smile?" "If you like," the man said. "Hold it!" Rae shouted. The man looked up. "Yes?" "Dave, come be in the photograph with me so that I can remember you." "Ok!" Dave stepped next to Rae. "Let's smile," she said. "Smiling will let me remember a bit of peace." Dave agreed. They smiled and the man took the photograph. He handed it to another man who rushed it into a small wagon. "So what's that man doing with the photograph?" "Developing it," Dave said. Rae walked over to the camera and examined it. "This is very interesting." "It's a camera," the photographer said. "How does it work?" "It's difficult to explain… unless you want me to give you a whole speech." Rae laughed. "That's quite all right. I'll figure it out myself. When will my photograph be ready?" "Ten minutes, but it won't be completely dry," the photographer said." "All right. I'll wait." Rae was still examining the camera when the other man emerged from the wagon. "Miss, your photograph is ready." Rae ran over to the man and took the photograph from him. "Wow! This is amazing!" She was extremely impressed. Dave looked over her shoulder at the photograph. "Do you like it." "Of course. I'm gonna keep this forever!"

Meanwhile, back on the Amazon Island.

"My Queen, has Rae returned from Greece?" Olympia asked Cyan. The Enforcer wanted a report. Rae had been away for too long. "She hasn't returned yet," Cyan answered. "I'm beginning to wonder if something happened to her." "Do you want me to take some troops to Greece to find her?" Olympia asked. Cyan thought for a moment. "No. Rae is loyal. She'll come back, I know she will."

And back at the Camp…

Dusk had fallen and now most of the soldiers were talking, playing games, or doing other activities to keep their minds off of the war. Rae and Dave sat at the mouth of Dave's tent. Dave had been telling Rae stories of his childhood and of his family. Rae listened intently. She didn't tell Dave much of her past since she wasn't supposed to remember it. Now Dave was writing a letter to Rachel. Rae was looking at her photograph, still in awe. It was dry now and Rae really liked it a lot. The only visual records that she had ever seen were paintings. This was something completely new and different. Maybe she'd figure out a way to introduce it to the amazons. Suddenly a shout rose from the camp. A soldier was riding through. He was shouting something. As he came closer, Rae heard it. "Battle tomorrow! There's going to be a Battle tomorrow! The Generals had a meeting earlier today! General Lee's battle plans were found wrapped in cigar wrappers! We have the upper hand, boys!" The soldiers whooped and cheered. Dave's eyes were wide. "A battle…" he whispered. "My first battle." Rae could see his fear. "Don't let your nerves get to you," she told him. "Tomorrow you must become void of emotion. You can't question what you're doing. You must fight to survive." "I…I will." Rae sat next to him. "By the way… Who are these generals? You never told me." "General Lee is the main commander for the enemy troops. Our General is General Burnside." "Oh. He'll be the one to lead us tomorrow?" "Yes." Dave looked at Rae. "I know that we've known each other for barely a day, but I must tell you something." "Ok." "You seem very reckless when you speak of war. It seems like a game to you. I think of you as my friend now. As your friend, I just wish that you wouldn't burn your life away with war. That is what you're doing. Burning away your emotion…your life. You are war, aren't you?" "No!" Rae said. "I'm not war. I'm a soldier of war." "Just think of what I said," Dave told her. "We should get some sleep. Tomorrow is battle day. I want to be ready. You can sleep on my bedroll and I'll take the floor." "Oh, that's ok. I…" "No, I insist." "All right then." "Good night Rae." "Good night Dave."
Trumpets blared early in the morning, calling for the troops to assemble. Rae and Dave joined the troops in front of their General's tent. Rae clapped a hand over her mouth as he emerged. General Burnside…was one of the funniest men that she had ever seen. His mustache seemed to go from his face fight up to his hair. He looked awfully foolish, Rae thought. The troops became silent as General Burnside began to speak. "Soldiers," he said. "Our battle plan is this. We are to cross Antietam Creek and attack on Lee's right side. We will leave this camp at ten sharp. That is all." The men began to rush to their tents, packing up in anticipation. Time flew by and soon they assembled once again. Burnside gave his orders and the time for battle began…
Rae was on alert as soon as the creek came into view. Somehow she and Dave had been put in the front line. Rae held her gun and silently looked around. All was still, but Rae could sense men somewhere on the other side of that creek. Suddenly Rae heard a shot. A gun had gone off…and the battle began. For hours the soldiers battled. Rae went right along with them, firing her gun. She saw men falling everywhere, blood spilling from their bodies. Those gunshot wounds looked horrid to Rae. She wouldn't admit it, but they frightened her. "No fear. I am fearless," she repeated to herself. Burnside's soldiers finally got over the bridge and began fighting their way forward. It was then that Rae saw the faces of their enemy. Men…ordinary men. Everybody was charging. Bullets were flying. Rae turned to Dave. He was frozen. "Dave! Snap out of it and keep going!" she shouted over the noise. "I can't," he said. "You've got to!" "No!" and then Dave turned around and ran. "Dave! Come back! You're gonna get killed!" Rae ran after him. "Dave!" He disappeared into the chaos. And Rae felt pain. With a scream, she went down. "What in Tartarus…." She looked at her arm. A small hole was in her arm. "I've been hit," she said. "I've gotta keep going!" She kept running, in hopes of finding Dave. But then… two more bullets hit her, one in the leg and one in the shoulder. Rae went down, pain shooting through her body. Everything was red… everything… And Rae blacked out.
The fight was over and done for now. Antietam Creek was silent now as the sun began to go down. Rae woke up, but she couldn't move. Her wounds were still bleeding. She had to get out of there. She had to find the troops. Rae crawled over the rocky ground. She was still at a loss on how such a tiny object could cause so much pain. She was also stunned at everything she had seen that day. Men being blown to bits…falling all around her as she kept going on and slaughtering. Now, bodies lay everywhere. Some of the men were alive, but dying slow and painful deaths. Rae couldn't watch them die. War…was becoming less and less of a game to her. She kept going. "Will I make it out of here? Will I make it out alive?" she asked aloud. No reply…just moans of dying men. Rae coughed and tasted blood. The ground, she noticed, was stained red. Then something made her stop. A man sprawled on the ground in his own blood. "Dave," Rae whispered. "Not you too…" But it was true. Dave was dead; two bullet wounds were in his chest. Rae was angry…but she didn't feel that familiar lust for blood. Instead she felt something rushing back to her. Her emotion? Tears of pain began to stream down her face. "It's not fair! Dave was innocent! Why the innocent? Why? It's just not fair!" Rae wailed and held one of Dave's cold hands. He had been the one to help her… he was her first friend in that strange world. Now he was gone like so many others. Rae couldn't stop her anguished crying… and didn't even notice her surroundings change.
"It's not fair! It's not…" "Rae!" said a familiar voice. It was Teflic. Rae suddenly became aware that she was back on Island. "My gun! Where is it? Where'd it go?" Rae tried to feel for the gun, but couldn't even feel her arms. Something clattered to the ground beside her. "What's that? I can't turn…" "It's your sword," Teflic said. "My…wait, where's my gun?" "What's a gun? The only thing here is your sword. See?" he showed her. "By the gods," Rae muttered. Meanwhile, Teflic looked at the gaping holes in Rae's arm, shoulder and leg. "Where were you? What happened?" "Something was messed up. I think that there was a fault in time lines. I was transported into a war." "A war?" Rae nodded seriously. "A horrible war. I've got to get these wounds cleaned and patched up before they get infected." She struggled to stand. "Do you need help?" Teflic asked. Rae looked at him for a moment, thinking of Dave's words. Teflic looked back at Rae, waiting for her standard 'No, I'm fine.' Instead, her eyes dulled and then brightened. "Yes, I'd appreciate it." Teflic was shocked, but he helped Rae up. Something about her had changed. Rae never asked for help. Now she seemed…weak? Teflic helped Rae until they reached the front of the healer's hut. "You take it from here?" he asked. Rae nodded and Teflic became invisible. "Ashana!" Rae called. "Ashana! I can't move!" The healer came to the door of the hut. She was horrified at what she saw. Ashana had never seen wounds like Rae's. "Rae, we thought you were in Greece!" "I was…sort of. Never mind that. I need help." Ashana quickly helped Rae inside. Rae lay down on a cot. "Where did you get these wounds? They're strange indeed." "A gun. It's a weapon that is deadlier than an arrow." "Where is the weapon." "I…don't know." "Well, I'll set to work on these wounds. It might take a long time…" "Take as much time as you need to." Rae closed her eyes. "Just wake me up when it's over."
Ashana let Rae sleep after the "operation" was over. She was quite surprised that she had pulled three metal pieces from Rae's body. She had contacted Cyan as well. Cyan was studying the metal when Rae woke up. "My Queen!" she gasped. "What the hell happened to you?" Cyan asked. "War," Rae said. "Ashana took these from your wounds," Cyan said. "Bullets," Rae whispered and took the three tiny metal objects in her hand. "Bullets?" "I know that you are aware of what bullets can do. Ashana can tell you about the extent of my wounds. I've got some thinking to do. Ashana!" The healer appeared. "Rae? Are you feeling better?" "Yes. Am I well enough to leave?" "I believe so." "Thank you." Rae stood and smiled at the Queen and Ashana. Then she left, the three bullets resting in her palm.
Rae returned to her hut in the forest. "No more war," she said. She pulled out the photograph of her and Dave. "No more." Rae changed her clothes into a simple white shirt and a pair of brown breeches. She folded her soldier uniform and put it in her trunk. Then she took her sword and her dagger and set them beside the uniform. "When I'm ready, perhaps I will return to you. Until then, farewell." Rae shut the trunk. Then she tied a small pouch around her waist and dropped the three bullets into it. "War…is good for nothing." And then she burst into tears.
Cyan had decided to let Rae be on her own. What she had noticed was that Rae hadn't worn her soldier uniform in weeks. However, the situation in Athens was becoming bad and they had called for help. The amazons were going to go in. Rae was sitting by the ocean that day when Olympia and Cyan came up behind her. "What was the situation when you left Athens?" Olympia asked. "Bad," Rae said. "How bad?" "Slaughterhouse." "We must go and fight," Olympia said. Cyan nodded. Rae shook her head. "Not me." "What?" Cyan asked. "I'm not going." "You are an amazon. That means that you are a soldier in the amazon army. You must go if your superior officers command it." Rae stood. "If I go, I will be of no help. What will you do if I want to stay here? Will you drag me to war?" Olympia was speechless, but angry. Cyan touched her shoulder. "We must go. Leave Rae here for now." "But… insubordination…" "She'll come. It's in her blood…" The two amazons left to organize the troops. Rae looked at her scarred palm and thought of what Cyan just said. "Is it really in my blood?" she asked the ocean. The roar of the waves was all that she heard. "I thought so. It seems…as if my blood… is nothing but poison then."
Rae watched as the amazon troops left the Island. For a few hours, she had pondered. "We are nothing but killing machines now," she said. "The cycle of killing must be stopped!" Rae ran to the portals. She was going to Athens.
Rae knew that she was in the right place, for she saw her amazon sisters fighting the Spartans…and some of the Athenians as well. Whose war was this anyway? Even Cyan was fighting…with no mercy it seemed. Rae watched the Queen. She seemed different now. All of the fighting amazons did. Rae had no weapon…no defense. Now Cyan was fighting a man. A woman and children were watching, in fear. Rae recognized them. The family…the boy she had killed. The man that Cyan was fighting must have been his father. Cyan didn't know what Rae had done, but Rae decided that she couldn't let the Queen kill that man. "Cyan! Don't fight with him!" Rae shouted and bolted across the street. "Rae! What are you doing? Where's your weapon?" "My heart is my weapon. You can't kill this man!" "I don't want to kill him, but he keeps attacking!" "He's suffered a horrid loss!" "How do you know this?" "I was there!" The man began to fight with Cyan again. Rae could tell that Cyan was becoming angered by the man's actions. She raised her sword. It was time to end this. "No!" Rae screamed and jumped in front of Cyan's sword. The sword repelled from her, as if an invisible shield had appeared. "Rae!" Cyan said warningly. "She who burns her life away has no purpose. She who slaughters mercilessly will gain nothing!" Cyan gasped. Rae seemed to speak of herself…and then again, Rae seemed to be a new person. "I'm not fighting anymore," Rae continued. "War brings pain and sadness. War burns life and emotion. I'm putting that fire out!" She turned to the man and his family. "Get away from here. Don't be afraid to run!" The man looked at her for a moment. The woman did as well. She knew that face… "I know you, don't I?" Rae was frantic. "Perhaps you do, but that's the past. You must move on so that the war doesn't destroy your life anymore." The man stepped back to his wife. They looked at each other and ran. Rae turned back to Cyan. By that time, Olympia and Saran had come up beside the Queen. "Insubordination! Again!" Olympia shouted, furious. "We'd better confine her, my Queen." Cyan nodded, though she wasn't sure what it would do. "Rae, you're to have solitary confinement for a month," Olympia said. "You will surrender to amazon law." Rae dropped to her knees. "If it must be that way, then I will." "Saran, take her to the Island," Olympia commanded. Saran nodded. Rae didn't resist at all. Instead, she followed Saran, triumph in her heart.
Not soon after, Cyan had called for all forces to stop the battle. The amazons returned to Island life. And Rae… Cyan sighed. That girl kept changing and changing. She hadn't fought when being taken to confinement. She hadn't uttered a word. Cyan was confused again. Rae had been opening up to the amazons little by little. Now she was closed and mysterious again. What would she do now? Cyan had finally begun to understand Rae…and now… she was back to square one.
Rae sat in the amazon prison. She didn't care about her confinement. She embraced it instead of killing it. Rae slowly pulled the photograph from her shirt pocket. "Dave, I promise you that I will make the right decisions. I will not burn my life away anymore. I'd like to fight again…for peace, but I can't pick up a weapon right now. I don't know if I ever will again." A tear slipped down Rae's cheek. "I can't kill anymore. I just can't. She who burns her life away has no purpose. She who burns her life away will regret it in the end. No, Dave, I promise that I, Rae Kione Merquise, will not submit to the burning fire anymore."

End