“Wow, Ky. You’re brighter than I thought you’d be.” His face contorts as he squints against the light.
I extend my hand to help him from the floor, but its visual effect distracts me. I lift it before me, spreading my fingers. The light seems to make up my insides, shinning out just beneath my flesh. I drag my hands over my arms, and it feels like my skin. Only my appearance has changed. “Can you see my heart pumping?” I ask, but the sound seems to be coming off of me instead of being made by my mouth.
Danny makes it to his feet. “Yep. Can you turn it off?”
I twist my torso, checking my front and rear, looking for a way to turn myself back to normal. “Is there an off switch?”
“Focus on returning to your regular state.”
I focus on myself, a being without light, and the beam around us fade. I look over my regular hand. “Okay. Cool.” I shake myself out, feeling a sudden heat warp my body then fade away. “Agh!” I scrape my hand over my flesh.
“It’s hot. You get used to it the more you use it. But it can be quite uncomfortable.”
I look myself over. My skin’s flushed red, and I still wear these ridiculous satin shorts and tank, now dirty and dingy from my adventures. “Have you always known about me?”
He shakes his head. “Not until Trade Officer Grandin visited the base. He saw me the day he visited you. He and my parents had a close relationship, and I’ve been privy to a lot going on recently.”
Turning into a beam of light is cool, but I’d prefer the ability to self-heal. I sit on the floor, careful to protect my side. The energy it takes to reveal the Itteix side of me is inundating me, and while I’m glad I know now—the detail of what this is to me and how it affects me—I have a lot to accomplish, and I don’t see how it fits into my plan.
Then I consider, “Let me guess…You’re here telling me all of this because someone wants me to do something. A mission?”
Danny nods. “The Guidance is working with the Vojin. They are not all to blame, but Arletta and Richard are. They need to go. And we’ll need to eliminate the Vojin.”
I chuckle at the word we. It’s always us and we when people make their request, but when it’s time to go out there, we’re no longer a unit. “Anyone can do this. You can do this. You know how to be an Itteix much better than I do. Blind them, then shoot them in the head. Boom. Done.” I lay myself back on the floor and let my eyes close as I breathe, energy draining. “Does this feeling last long?”
Danny paces the floor, “Taking them out isn’t going to be that easy,” he says, ignoring my questions. “They are hunting aliens like us. I didn’t tell you this because I wanted you to see what you are, but the more you use your power, the more the hue glows around you. A clear tell that you’re Itteix.”
I try to jolt up, but the broken rib stabbing my side keeps me down. “Come again?”
“A golden nugget to them is a Creation who’s an Itteix. They’re identified—”
“I know,” I cut him off. “By their display of emotions. Even Arletta knew I was Itteix—I’m assuming. Everyone knew but me. My emotions bombarded me. They were slow at first, starting when I was a kid. I seemed to learn them one by one. I could recognize them by the way they affect me, my reactions. And when I took the human emotions class, I could finally call them by name. And learning them seemed to wake them up even more.” I keep my breaths short so I don’t have to expand my lungs. “Frustration and anger seemed to be okay to display, but when I would show worry, concern, these would earn me a side-eye. I learned to hide them because no other Creation showed them, though I saw them in Normals all the time. I realized I was different. And I didn’t know why.”
Danny huffs and plops down beside me. “You are their ace in the hole, Kylie. Worth billions, and they can use you to create more of you. The advantage they have, having someone like you on their team, is that you can be used to attract more. Itteix have the ability to draw in their own kind. We’re stronger in groups. Our energy is next level. Our best defense is electricity.” Danny lifts his index finger, holding them three inches apart, pointing toward each other. Violet electric currents pass between them. “Our bodies are also weapons. Deadly. But we can’t heal on our own. Although, if our power is blended with Creations…” He trails off.
“And add in the Vojin mixture…” I nod, still unable to lift myself from the floor. “They want that too, for their ability to control the cerebral cortex.”
“Shit,” he sighs, head shaking, hung low. “We can’t allow them to succeed.”
“Listen,” I say. “I was sold on taking them down when I found out they were taking out Creations. I just need to find Marc first and the generals. Sean too. Even Collins. Once I find them, we’ll figure out how to stop the Guidance and the Vojin. Just let me rest here for a second. To catch my breath and recover.” With every word I speak, it feels like I ran a mile.
“We don’t have that kind of time. The longer we take, the more Creations lose their lives. Eventually, they’ll all be wiped out, and those mind-controlled child Creations will be on the hunt for Itteix. That’s most of the Trade members.”
“Mm-hmm.” I can’t open my eyes, and sleep sinks down on me.
“I believe you can do this, Kylie. And I’m here to make sure you do that. So here.” He grabs my left hand. “Activate your healers, and I’m going to pass on to you my energy.”
“We can do that?” I ask.
“Once. And then the passer dies.”
It takes all of my remaining energy to snatch my hand from his. “No,” I whisper. “You’ll explode.”
Danny shakes his head. “I’ll fade out. And that’s okay. If it protects the last of us, I’m willing to give it up.”
“I’ll be fine after I lie here.”
“You’re going to pass out and won’t wake up for days. It’s a side effect.”
I feel defeated. It’s a feeling I’ve not experienced before. There are no options to weigh. I can lie here and let the world go to hell. Or I can get up from here and fight for everything that’s right. The complete opposite of what I was designed for, going against our leaders.
“Sometimes,” Danny says, “ends have new beginnings. And I’m not saying you’re the beginning, but maybe you’re the cure for the end.”
I lift my left arm from my elbow, fingers spread, flexion circles already activated. Danny meets my hand, and with every beat of his pulse, I feel the energy flow through me. My chest swells as I heave a lungful of air, and though my body doesn’t heal, the pain is bearable.
Danny goes pale. I try to take my hand away, but he grips it tighter. “Don’t,” he says. “It’s…better to…have it all…than…” He slumps over.
“Danny.” I jump to my knees and shake him with my free hand. “I’m sorry.”
“Shh.” He squeezes my hand, and a slight shock zaps between our palms. His arm goes limp, and his body rests against the floor.
Chapter Twenty-Three
*Marc*
“Marc! Are you alive? Have you found her yet?” Sean shouts through the earpiece.
I throw my hand over my ear to block out the whistling of the wind rushing through the tunnel. “I’m alive. We were deterred by these children with colorful hands trying to kill us.”
“Aww,” he sings. “I bet they’re adorable.”
“Shut up. They’re not. They’re killing off Creations.”
“Well that’s a bummer. Where are you?”
“We came upon another group of Creations who also live underground. They’re going to show us to a tunnel that leads directly under the Guidance Inn.”
“Cool. Keep us updated.”
Beams from flashlights held by a few of the nine Creations leading us down another tunnel flash over the rugged walls and bulging rock. Seits and I follow behind them, avoiding slicing our arms or legs on the walls. The tunnel opens up to a square space with a lantern sitting in the middle of the floor.
“It’ll be getting dark soon,”
the girl with the pink nails says. She extends a greeting hand, saying, “I’m Ellie.” I shake her hand. “Marc and Seits, right?”
“Yeah. You’re connected to that other underground Creation group.”
She nods. “They warned us to look out for you.”
The bunker isn’t as flashy as the others. Rugged concrete makes up the entire space, and it’s one large area. No cots or cases. They lie on the ground on pallets or blankets. “Aren’t you all uncomfortable down here?”
Ellie shrugs. “We’re used to it.” She waves for me to follow her, and I trail her steps to a pile of blankets stacked against the wall. She grabs a couple and hands them to me. “Take a load off for a few hours, at least until the sun rises.”
I sit on the ground and stuff one of the blankets behind me to prevent the sharp edges of the rock from stabbing into my back. Seits sits beside me, and I hand her the other blanket.
“I’m going to shut my eyes for a couple of hours. Then be back at it. Is that okay?”
Her eyelids droop over her eyes, and her shoulders slump against the wall. I nod. “We’ll take the night to regroup.”
Ellie sits on my other side. She brings her nails to her mouth, and a soft clicking sound alerts me to her actions. I look down at her from the corner of my eyes. She spits the nail bit across the ground and moves to her middle finger.
“Hey,” I say, shooing her with the flick of my hand. “You’re going to need to get away from me.”
“I bite when I’m bored. I don’t eat them.”
“I’ve noticed.” Unlike the other bunker, they don’t have water, so I know she’s not washed her hands. We’ve climbed through rubbish and crawled through the tunnel, every inch of us is covered in dirt. I grimace and look away from her.
“You’re not a people person, are you, Marc?”
“No.” Snores and the biting of her nails drown out the silence. Silence is my comfort zone. I need the world to slow down so I can become one with my thoughts. I reach over to Ellie and pull her hand away from her mouth. “I’m sorry, I can’t take that. I can literally hear you chomping off your nail.”
Ellie chuckles and sits on her hands. “So this friend you’re after, she’s worth risking your life for? I mean, you don’t seem like that nice of a guy.”
I snort. Under any other circumstance, I wouldn’t. I especially wouldn’t leave Sean for another. But I’ll put my life on the line for Kylie, and it feels like I don’t have a choice but to do this. “Yeah. She’s worth it.”
Ellie lifts her shoulders near her ears and offers a soft smile. “So you’re not as heartless as your maverick personality implies.”
“Don’t try to read me, Ellie.” She leans against my shoulder, and I scoot away from her. “Please don’t touch me.”
Ellie moves from my side to sitting on her knees in front of me. “Have you ever thought that what’s sending you after your friend is more than just hope for her well-being?” Her blonde eyebrows lift to her hairline as she waits for my response. It won’t be nearly as interesting as she hopes.
“How do you mean?”
Her voice drops to a whisper. “Mine was Zyan. I’d cross every valley for her. I lost her eight months ago. And I miss these weird feelings she gave me where the hairs on the back of my neck would stand on end when our eyes would meet, and this creepy feeling would attack my stomach. She mentally took me to so many places all while I stood still, and I miss it.” She nods, looking away from me. “When a Creation sticks their neck out for someone other than their twin, I know why.”
I shrug. “What’s your point?”
“Because of my carelessness, I lost Zyan and my brother Odin. He tried to kill her, so I killed him, and she was taken by the Guidance.”
I prop up my leg and rest my arm against it. Annoyed with her stalling, I roll my eyes. “Still waiting on you to get to the point, Ellie.”
Deflated, Ellie sighs. “Fine. I thought incriminating myself would help you to open up, but I see you’re stubborn.”
“Or you should say ‘thank you for not blowing my head off after I recklessly admitted I’m an implant.’”
Ellie’s eyes grow wide. The thought just now crossing her mind.
I lean my head back against the rock and close my eyes. “Go to sleep, Ellie.”
She continues, and I grumble. “The attraction and affection were completely accidental.”
“Do people fall in love on purpose?” I say in an uninterested tone. I was finished with this conversation as soon as it started.
“I don’t know, Marc. I just want to know if she’s still alive.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose. The Creation allows a few tears to fall. She throws her face in her hands. It could all be an act. Like she said, and she was likely telling the truth, she’s wanting to incriminate me. I’d never admit my feelings to anyone, but Kylie. So that’s out of the question. But I don’t know why she’s here, bothering me with this. “Are you going to be okay?” The tone of my voice comes out deep and heavy with my head still laid back.
“Would it be okay if I traveled with you? I’m not much of a fighter. I mean, I’ve held a gun like, once. I just want to know if Zyan is still alive. I won’t be much trouble, I promise.” She holds up her right hand as if to pledge her allegiance.
I look away from Ellie, wondering what about me would make her feel comfortable enough to expose herself. Why she thinks I wouldn’t slit her throat on the spot for admitting to the feelings these domestic Creations believe deserve death. For this Zyan, maybe for her, death is worth it. She’s willing to put her life on the line at the cost of what may be the inevitable, if only to make it back by Zyan’s side. That’s what loves does. It convinces you to make stupid decision, like run into a herd of Zombies, plot to take on the Guidance, just to feel peace in your heart, on a planet peace will never exist.
I nod at Ellie and say, “Come here.”
She scoots closer as I pull out my handgun. I eject the clip, unload the round in the chamber, and hand it to her. “Holding it is different from firing off a round. There’s a kickback you won’t expect when you fire it, but now, you can say you’ve held a gun twice, and Marcain taught you the proper way to hold it.” I adjust the handle in her palms and pull her index finger from the trigger. “You don’t need your finger on the trigger unless you’re about to shoot.” I turn down the corners of my mouth and shrug, saying, “It prevents you from accidentally shooting yourself.”
She chuckles and rubs her fingers across the barrel. “Thank you.”
I teach Ellie the handgun from holding it to shooting. After she’s relaxed, I agree for her to join us. In fact, we’ll need all of them to make it through the Guidance’s soldiers.
I wake Seits, shaking her shoulder. “We need to get a move on.” It’s been four hours, and I can’t sleep a wink, not yet.
Seits rises and rubs her hands over her head then her eyes. “Yep. Let’s do it.”
Ellie’s at my side, quiet now that she knows she’s coming with. Had I known when she started biting her nails and mumbling over nail bits that all she wanted was to talk me into coming with us, agreeing to it would have been the first thing out of my mouth. She knows the way through the tunnels anyway.
The lantern on the floor is turned down, casting a soft yellow hue over the underground cave, shining light upon the sleeping Creations. The other eight lie on the hard rock, blankets thrown over them.
Seits steps to my side, looking over the Creations as she shakes her head. “This is no way for us to live. Hoarding underground like Zombies. When did we become the monsters?”
I shrug. “Your guess is as good as mine. Maybe the day they put targets on our backs and turned us against each other.”
“But why?” Ellie asks. She doesn’t wait for an answer and hustles across the floor to a large bag next to one of her sleeping friends. She scrambles through it. “I’ll pack us some water and snacks.”
I huff. “We don’t need that stuf
f, Ellie.”
Seits bumps my arm with the back of her fist. “Just let her get it.”
I bash my fist against my palm as I say, “Every minute we aren’t moving is a minute wasted. We don’t know how much time we have or even if she’s okay.”
“When we get there, and if we get snatched, there won’t be a way for us to get out,” Seits says in a calm, unhurried voice.
I take in a lungful of air and huff out the words, “I’m not worried about that.”
We watch Ellie take items from one bag and stuff them into another. I want to tell her to hurry up, but I try to have patience, seeing she’s doing her best to help.
Seits stretches. She closes her eyes and tilts her head back, yawning. After a thought that appears to keep her eyes closed a little longer, she straightens her neck and looks over at me. “If the shoe was on the other foot, Ky would be looking for you too.” She takes a pause. “I’ve never seen the type of elation in someone that I did in Ky that day she was trying on dresses. It sparked something in me I’d never acknowledged before.”
“Like what?” I ask.
The muscles in her jaw twitch. She rolls her shoulders and simply says, “Not exactly sure yet. But I want to know. I want to experience it again.”
My left brow reflexively rises. I’ve never heard anything like that before, a Creation’s behavior having such an influence over another, it intrigues me. Her involvement was completely unnatural. If Kylie had revealed any desire for my joy or her affectionate emotional state, Seits should’ve reported her immediately. But she encouraged it.
I don’t question it. Not yet.
Ellie comes back to us and tosses me the backpack. I catch it and ask, “You’re ready now?”
Ellie gives me a tight smile and winks.
Static alerts me to a distant voice coming through my earpiece. “Marc.” The voice comes in choppy, buried under the noise. “It’s Kylie. Marc…there?”
I drop the backpack and race for the tunnel, hurrying to the spot I was able to clearly hear Sean before. “Kylie?” I say when I make it a quarter-mile from the bunker.
Ominous Order: A Young Adult Post-Apocalyptic Dystopian Series (The Separation Trilogy Book 3) Page 19
