He regarded me with caution but nodded.
“I need to find Kia Lynn. Please tell me where this Beck and his ship crashed.”
“You must be Zoe Dawn,” he said, sinking back to the thin cushion. “Do you have some parchment and something to write with?”
I glanced back at Anna Rain. She sighed, but reached into her side pocket and pulled out a writing utensil and what looked like a tiny book. She handed them both to me, and I gave them to Dax.
He scribbled inside the book, then waved me over. “The only issue with finding the ship is it was still cloaked when I left it.”
His gaze shifted toward me, but I just gave him an expectant look, waiting for him to finish.
He slightly nodded. “We passed through this valley on our way to the digging machine. When Malcolm picked us up, we were on the other side of this mountain pass. Do you have a way to get over there?”
“My legs,” I replied with a nod. “I run fast.”
His brows furrowed from my answer. “Do you understand this map?” he asked, handing it to me.
I looked at his drawing. He had marked where we were and then led me through the mountain pass. “I think so. I will figure it out. Thank you, Dax.” I ran from the room.
I heard Anna Rain fumbling to lock his door. Reaching the top of the staircase, I turned and saw her scrambling to catch up to me. For a brief second I thought about locking her inside, but I needed her to teach me how to use their moving machines. They weren’t much faster than running, but at least I would not be tired.
“Open the door,” I demanded, pointing at the door that led outside the barrier. I remembered the machines were on the other side, lined against the wall.
“I can’t,” her voice quivered. “If I let you leave, I will be punished.”
“Am I a prisoner here too?”
“No,” she replied, slowly shaking her head. “But we need you.”
“I will not do you any good without Kia Lynn. Teach me to ride your moving machines and I will return with her.” I tapped my fingers on the door and gave her a nod.
She pressed her hand on the scanner, and the door slid open. Pushing at the farthest machine, she shifted it off its stand and into the sunlight.
“To start it, you just have to press this green button.” She pointed at the button on the right handle bar. “Then, to move forward, you press on this foot lever. To stop, you press on this one.” Her finger moved from the right lever and over to the left. “That is it. But Zoe Dawn, why can’t you wait—”
I wrapped my arm around her neck and squeezed it. “I am so sorry, Anna Rain. You won’t be out long, but this will give me a head start.”
Anna Rain threw her one good elbow back, nearly hitting me in the ribs. She squirmed against my hold on her but slowly relaxed. As soon as she was out, I dragged her back inside the building and left her on the floor just inside. Shutting the door when I was back outside, I then swung my leg over the moving machine and took off to rescue Kia Lynn.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Invasion
ALEX
“What do you mean she has left the barrier?” Malcolm yelled, his face flushing a deep scarlet.
The woman shrank back. Her guard’s uniform was soaked with sweat from running around the sanctuary, searching for Zoe Dawn. “Randall and Anna Rain have followed after her. That is all I know at this point,” she whispered frantically, holding her hands out in front of her as if to block Malcolm’s fury.
I jumped up from my seat. “Please free Dax,” I interjected. There was a sense of doom washing over me, and I needed the one person I felt safe with to be with me.
“It is not the time, Alex,” Malcolm snapped. His focus turned toward me and his expression softened. “I apologize for my tone. Uniting you three women is like herding cats, and my patience is growing thin.”
I almost smiled at the comparison of us three being cats. It seemed fitting, but I was too anxious to have Dax with me again. Not because I thought he could fix anything. He had a way about him that calmed my mind, and I was craving some reassurance right now.
Malcolm dismissed the woman who had brought us the news of Zoe Dawn. “She is more like a serpent,” he muttered as he sank back into his chair.
We were in his office. Earlier that day, Zoe Dawn had left me with the butterflies. Connecting with them and the nature of this sanctuary had been the highlight of my day. I swear they had planted messages in my mind, and I was still trying to unravel their meanings.
When I had come to Malcolm after supper to tell him I could not find Zoe Dawn, he had sent the guards to look for her. The news they brought us indicated she had slipped away on one of their singles, a machine similar to a motorcycle from the twenty-first century, except it did not have wheels but hovered about a foot off the ground.
“She asked you to fetch Kia Lynn earlier today,” I said, reminding him it could have been avoided. “It is a wonder you really believed she would sit still and wait.”
Aly knocked on the wall next to the open door. “May I come in?”
Malcolm waved her in.
“I heard of Zoe Dawn’s elusive escape.” Aly stepped to my side, her eyes never leaving Malcolm. “What is the plan to retrieve her?”
“The ship is damaged from last night’s rescue,” Malcolm replied with a deep sigh. “We had hoped to have it functioning earlier today, but we are thin on extra parts. I have to trust my guards will be able to intercept and return Zoe Dawn and possibly Kia Lynn.”
“That’s it,” I said, bouncing on my toes. My gaze flashed from Aly, then back to Malcolm.
Malcolm’s brows lifted in question.
“My parents can help.”
“I thought you said their ship was stripped of parts,” Aly replied. Her shoulders sagged in defeat.
“You need to contact them anyway,” Malcolm said. His hands tightened into fists as his eyes closed. “You are dismissed, Alex.”
I stared at him for a moment, but his eyes remained closed. Aly shrugged when I turned her way. Rolling my eyes in annoyance, I stomped from the room and headed for their elevator—or, as they called it, the lift. A few minutes later, I was standing near their landing strip, watching several anamans and humans work on the damaged ship.
After activating my screen, I flipped on my locator beacon and opened the channel to my family. Immediately, Dad’s face appeared just above my arm.
“Alex.” His tone was frantic, filled with fear and relief. “Where are you? Are you okay?”
I knew I had worried them. It was selfish of me to have waited so long to open contact with them.
Swallowing back a rising sob in my throat, I nodded in response. “I am fine, Dad. Can you see my locator beacon?”
His head turned away, then it bobbed up and down. “Yes, there you are. We have repaired the ship and will pick you up.”
“Alex.” Mom’s face jumped into view, splitting the screen between the two. “I have been absolutely terrified! Where have you been?”
“It is a long story, Mom,” I replied, sagging against a tree stump and sliding to the ground. “I am safe, and I have discovered a new community that needs my help.”
“Help with what?” Dad snapped, his expression hardening.
I spilled my entire journey to them, starting with me leaving the ship to track down Dax and the parts he’d stolen. They listened quietly. When I reached the part where Jako attacked me the night in his village, Dad’s face turned a bright red.
“But I am fine,” I said to reassure him, but was unable to stop tears from streaming down my face. They knew I was lying. I wiped the tears away with the back of my free hand. “Regardless, I am safe now, and I have three friends who need help. They are with Beck and Jako.”
“We should pick you up first.” They spoke in unison.
I shook my head. “Please save them first. Their ship is being cloaked by your machine, and I don’t know how they will be found, but if anyone can piece together
their whereabouts, it would be Uncle Henry.”
Mom interjected. “Henry doesn’t have time for this.”
“I know I do not deserve to ask for anything, but please, I need you to bring them here.” My free hand pressed into the side of my skull where a headache was pressing against it. “I will explain once we are all together.”
“No promises, Alex,” Dad said as he fidgeted with something outside my view. “We are finishing the final repairs of the ship and will notify you when we are on our way. For now, stay inside the shield.”
“Alex, I love you,” Mom whispered. I could see the worry in her eyes. “We will see you soon.”
The screen flickered, and they were both gone. My heart ached to have my Dad’s arms around me, protecting me from this world. Irritation clouded my mind as I pivoted on my heels and stormed back into the building, running straight into Tiordan and Malcolm.
“I want to speak to Dax,” I demanded, squaring my shoulders at the two men.
They glanced at one another, and both shivered. My muscles tensed with a deep rage that sparked from my core and washed through every cell in my body like an ice-cold waterfall. The men stepped back, and Tiordan waved one of his hands as if to block my unseen force.
My gaze dropped to my fingers. The tips of them were blue. Gasping from the realization, I folded my fingers into my palms and pressed away the ice forming inside me. I lifted my chin, and inwardly winced when I saw the frost spreading across the large, open space and the crackling against the strain of the windows.
“I don’t know how to control it,” I whispered, my gaze turning to Tiordan.
His sparse whiskers across his chin glistened with ice, but he smiled at me. “You are stronger than you realize. Where the power begins is where you control it.” He wiped away the condensation on his cheeks and chin. “Dig deeper, Alex.”
I squeezed my eyes shut and focused on what I felt inside. Power twisted like a funnel and as I focused, it led me to my chest. My heart center. A lightbulb flashed on in my mind. Dax had mentioned it when we first met. It glowed bright green, illuminating the center of my elemental abilities, along with my anaman enhancements. It had been there all along.
When my eyes fluttered open, I focused on Tiordan, whose expression had relaxed, and the frost was gone from his face and clothes.
“I knew you would find it,” he said as he approached and took my hands within his. “Meeting you and Zoe Dawn has been an absolute dream come true. I am beyond excited to witness the healing you will bring to our beautiful planet.”
Malcolm crept forward, obviously reluctant to engage with any more of my emotional outbursts. “I will have Dax brought here, but he will continue to be locked in a room near yours until we trust his motives.” He turned to look at Tiordan. “I do not want a repeat of Viktor.”
As Malcolm walked away, the ground quivered. He froze, and Tiordan’s fingers tightened around my hands. Then the ground shook violently. The walls rolled, and the ceiling cracked. Malcolm pushed Tiordan and me outside the building, then pressed on something in his ear, similar to what we used on the large ship to communicate with one another.
“They are breaking through,” Malcolm said, turning away from us. “Bring the prisoner to the landing pad and then gather all the guards together. We need to be ready for an invasion.”
“Is that Tatum’s machine?” I asked, suddenly realizing what was happening.
Tiordan shot me a sideways look. “Yes, it is. They want Kia Lynn, but she isn’t even here.”
“She will be here soon if my parents choose to pick her up on their way here,” I said, tucking my hands into my jean pockets.
Malcolm whirled around. “Your parents’ ship is fixed?”
“Yes. I asked them to stop for Kia Lynn and Zoe Dawn on their way here.” I held up my right arm and held on to Tiordan with my left when the ground shook again. “I activated my locator beacon. They won’t be long now.”
All our eyes shifted to the three approaching figures. One of them broke away from the other two and sprinted toward us. Dax’s smiling face came rushing through the trees. Warmth filled my chest as I lunged forward and threw myself into his arms.
He squeezed me tightly around my ribs, nearly choking out my breath. I laughed, then he leaned back and smoothed the strands of hair from around my face. “Is it my imagination, or did you actually miss me?”
I poked him in the ribs, and he jumped back a foot. “Just those dimples.”
He grinned, deepening his dimples. He wrapped his arm around my shoulders as the ground shook so violently, I nearly toppled to the ground. The building swayed, and pieces of it crumbled to the ground and struck the dirt only a few feet from where we stood. Dax dragged me toward the ship, with the two guards, Malcolm, and Tiordan following right behind us.
An explosion ricocheted through the air. I looked at the sky, and a dark film of dust flew high above us, coming from the direction of the butterfly swarm. I tumbled back and threw my hands above my head, directing the element of water to settle the spray of dirt.
“Alex, contact your parents,” I heard Malcolm shout, but I could not see him through the cloud of particles. “We need them here now.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Air and Fire
KIA LYNN
I was parched. The last time Leed had brought me water, he had poured most of it over my head. It had been cooling, considering the heat beating down on me all day long, but now my tongue was so dry it was sticking to the top of my mouth, and whatever perspiration I had left was beading across my forehead.
Covyn lifted her head. “How long have I been chained up?” Her eye was swollen like mine, and she had a long gash down her cheek and neck.
My head swam, so I blinked a few times before her words registered. “I was beginning to think you were a figment of my imagination.” I brought my knee up to my nose and used my kneecap to scratch an itch. “It hasn’t been that long. You must have finished fixing the ship. Do you remember anything?”
She glanced my way, then looked toward the ship. As she did, the sun dipped below the horizon, and we both released a sigh of relief.
“When I get my hands on Leed and Beck, I will strangle them both,” Covyn hissed between clenched teeth. She hiccupped, then hung her head again.
“What do you think their plan is for us?” I asked, trying to keep her engaged.
Covyn shook her head. “They need you, but me...”
She didn’t need to finish the sentence. Beck had no reason to keep her around if the ship was running, unless it was to imprison her for future maintenance. The cloaking mechanism was up and working again. The only indication there was a ship was the open bay door.
From the other side of the ship, Antoine limped toward it, held up by another male guard.
“They found Antoine,” I told Covyn, pushing at her with my foot. “He must have wandered off after the crash.”
“Fantastic,” Covyn grumbled, not even bothering to look up.
From behind me I heard shuffling. Someone was back there, but I had seen all of Beck’s crew enter the ship already. I strained my neck to see behind me, but there just wasn’t enough light to see far out.
“Kia Lynn,” a familiar voice hissed.
My ears perked up, and I twisted as much as I could. “Zoe Dawn, is that you?” I asked as quietly as possible.
“Yes, sister,” she replied. “I have come to rescue you.”
I could hear the pride in her voice, and it brought a smile to my face. Zoe Dawn would always be my favorite person.
Covyn’s head twitched, and she turned it slightly to look at me. “Did you hear that?”
I nodded as a heat swelled around my wrists, then the restraints shattered and fell to the ground. My arms trembled as I eased them forward. Almost all the feeling had left them. I shook them as I watched Covyn’s restraints redden and shatter as well.
“Come on,” Zoe Dawn whispered.
I turned aro
und to see her beautiful face. Her bronze eyes stared back at me with an intensity of fear I had never seen from her before. She waved her hand from her hiding spot behind a large patch of vegetation.
I stumbled as I pulled myself to my feet. My legs quivered from my weight, and a dizzy spell had me leaning against the ancients’ metal pole Leed had secured me to. I held up a finger at Zoe Dawn. Once I got my footing, I leaned down and heaved Covyn up from the ground. She swayed but then stood still, holding her arm tight against her side with the fractured rib.
“We need to get to Zoe Dawn,” I whispered to her, pushing her spiked hair from her face. “Do you see her?”
Covyn’s face tilted toward Zoe Dawn. She squinted, then nodded.
“Follow me,” I said, taking her hand and creeping forward.
The earth swayed underneath my feet. That one felt less like me and more like the actual ground moving. My gaze drifted up to meet Zoe Dawn’s, and her stunned expression solidified that thought.
“Where do you two think you are going?” Jako yelled.
I lurched forward, stumbled through the brush and flowers, and finally landed next to Zoe Dawn. I glanced back. Covyn was lying on the ground with Jako and Leed standing above her. Leed had his weapon pointed at her head as Jako yanked her to her feet.
Covyn squealed out in pain. Her hand pressed into her side as she bit down on her trembling lip.
Jako’s eyes snapped over to Zoe Dawn and me.
“Well, look at that,” Beck said, sauntering behind the others. “Now we just need to find Alex, and we will have all three.”
Zoe Dawn handed me a canister of water. I chugged it and handed it back to her.
“Are these the keefies who hurt you?” she asked, running her finger over my swollen eye.
I nodded, my attention never leaving Beck.
“You touched my sister!” she yelled at the three men, cracking her knuckles on both hands. She then pressed me behind her. “I will make them wish they had never met you.”
A flame burst from her open palm, and the three men jumped back, dragging Covyn with them. A smirk rose on Beck’s lips, and all kinds of violent acts flashed through my mind that would wipe it permanently from his face. Zoe Dawn stepped forward, holding out her other palm. That one lit up as well.
Marked Chaos Page 20
