by G. Bailey
“Did you get white clothes?” I ask Maxx.
“Nope. Clearly, they don’t care what I’m wearing,” he replies, and that worries me. If they aren’t giving him clothes, then that means they are not letting him out of his room. Maxx and I don’t talk any longer as I force myself to eat some of the soup and the stale tasting bread before drinking all of the water.
I pick up the bottle and smell it, finding out it is shampoo like I suspected. When I glance back around the room, I see the towels folded on the floor in the corner of the room that I missed before and glance back up at the camera. I am not taking my clothes off when I wash my hair, that’s for sure. I pick up the new clothes, seeing a white vest top and joggers, with flat black shoes at the bottom of the pile. I have to shake them out a little as they are so vacuum packed that they are flat.
“I’m going to wash my hair and get changed. It doesn’t seem like there is anything else to do,” I explain to Maxx, who must be eating, by the sounds of it.
“Break the camera first. I broke mine,” he tells me, sounding protective.
“Good idea,” I reply, looking at the camera which I doubt I could reach.
“Use your powers to do it. Trust me, it will be a lot easier,” he replies.
“How do I use them?” I ask.
“Close your eyes and feel the light, or dark light in your case, going to your hand. It should feel like it’s burning for a moment before the power releases. Dark light will shine out of your hand hot enough to burn the camera in moments,” he tells me.
“Couldn’t you use your powers to escape?” I ask.
“Trust me, if you saw my toasted room you would know how much I have tried to do just that. There is something in the walls that blocks my power. It’s likely why they aren’t coming into this room, because they know I could escape if given a chance,” he tells me.
“Seems like it’s down to me then to get us out,” I mutter.
“I always have a backup plan, Freckles. We will escape,” he says as I get off the bed and walk up to the camera. I look into it for a little while, knowing full well that someone will be pissed at me for breaking it. I hold my hand up in the air, right in front of the camera and do exactly what Maxx said, feeling my hand burn hot for a second. I open my eyes to see pink light burning away the camera into ash, and it keeps burning until the wall fades away to reveal a blue metal right behind it which doesn’t burn.
“Did it work?” he asks.
“Yes,” I reply, staring at the metal and having the urge to touch it, but I know it will burn me. At least I can shower in peace now. I walk back to my bed and pull Maxx’s shirt off, leaving it by my pillow before getting out of my jeans and underwear. I grab the shampoo and turn on the shower, loving how it is actually warm and seems to wash away all the guilt and how disgusting I feel, a little bit. The shampoo doesn’t smell of anything but soap, but it does the job, and I scrub all the dirt off my body with it before grabbing a towel. I dry my hair off and run my fingers through it, trying to make it look at least a little okay before pulling on the joggers and vest top. Even though I feel clean, it doesn’t help how guilty I still feel. I sit back on the bed, twirling the empty bottle of water around for a while, hearing Maxx walking around his room. Just as I lie back on the bed to try and nap, the sound of my door unlocking makes me sit up sharply. A guard opens the door, wearing all black clothing and I think he is human as I don’t sense anything strange about him. The guard doesn’t look at me, but he does speak, holding a weapon that is similar to a gun in his one hand, and a bag in the other.
“Your daily outside activity is now. Wear these.” He throws a pair of black boots and a thick, old looking coat at me out his bag before stepping back, clipping the bag onto his back.
“Be careful, Freckles,” Maxx warns as I pull the boots on, which are a little too big but not enough to make me trip, before putting the massive coat on that smells like old people who live with lots of cats.
“I will,” I reply to Maxx before walking out the room and hoping that I get to see Landon to make sure he is okay.
Chapter 8
Aura
The guard walks just in front of me down the corridor and to the stairway after unlocking the door, holding his hand on the scanner. Instead of going up the stairs, we go down a level instead. At the bottom of the stairs is another door which the guard opens and holds for me to walk through. I step outside into the clearing inside a rocky cave with a massive gap at the top which lets the snow in. The door slams shut behind me, but I don’t take my eyes off the dozens of people in the cave clearing, walking around and talking to each other. Most don’t notice me at first, but I sense they are all lights, and the few that do notice turn to stare at me. When a few of them look at me with pure hate and start walking over to me, I step back until my back hits the closed door. Each of them glows a light colour, the colours mixing together into a blur of lights. They all have old cloaks on, pale skin and they are thin. I doubt the darks are looking after them. For some reason, I want to run away from them without trying to defend myself, and I glance down at my hands, seeing them burning a bright pink as my body clearly wants to fight. Landon suddenly slides right in front of me, holding his hands out to his sides to protect me I assume. I take a deep breath of relief that Landon is okay, feeling my hands cool down. I stare at Landon’s back for a while, wondering what is different about him when I realise he has a white glow to his skin that tells me he must have used his powers like I was forced too. The thought just makes me feel sick.
“This is Aura Scott. She is not one of them! Her mate is Maxx,” the moment Landon says Maxx’s name, the lights just stop and nod their heads almost in sync with each other. Just saying Maxx’s name has such an effect on them, and it makes me curious how they even know of Maxx.
“We will pass the message around,” the one on the right says, a woman who isn’t much older than I am, with dark brown hair, a serious expression, and ripped clothes showing through her tatty, black, fluffy coat. She looks less thin and, well, sick than the rest of them. Her eyes run over me briefly, finally meeting my own, and to my surprise, she bows her head in a respectful manner. The people turn and walk away, leaving me staring at Landon’s back until he turns around to face me.
It’s clear Landon hasn’t been sleeping, the dark circles under his eyes and how stressed he looks tells me that much. His hair is messy, matching the patchy grey coat he has on over white clothes underneath. Landon smiles at me though, like nothing has changed when everything has.
“If anyone gives you trouble, tell them who you are to Maxx,” Landon says, smiling tensely as he walks to me, and I move off from the door to get to him. Landon hugs me tightly, whispering closely in my ear, “Are you alright?”
“Not really, but we have to be stronger than them,” I whisper back before stepping away as I hear footsteps near us. Maxx is right. If there is any chance of us getting out of here, I can’t fall apart. My father taught me better than that anyway. I glance over to see Iris in a fluffy, torn coat walking through the snow to us, her head down so I can’t see her eyes until she looks up when she gets to Landon’s side. Iris looks like a shell of the beautiful girl I knew. Her once straight, perfect hair is cut short into a messy bob that stops under her ears. Iris looks like she hasn’t stopped crying in days, and her pale eyes are so broken as she looks at me.
“I’m so, so sorry Iris. I will never forget that Abby tried to save me,” I tell her honestly. If I could change anything about my past so far, it would be to try and save Abby.
“Just don’t die now, and enjoy your life. Don’t let her die for nothing, and promise me something,” she says, lifting her face higher so I can see her tear-stained cheeks and distraught expression more. I used to be jealous of how perfect Iris was and jealous that Maxx is promised to her. Now, it doesn’t seem that way anymore. Life has a way of making jealousy and silly emotions drift away, leaving only the painful ones. The ones you wish weren’t there beca
use they feel like they could rip you apart.
“Anything,” I simply reply, more emotion coming out with that one word than I wanted.
“When you get a chance, kill Austin for what he did. Make sure it is painful,” she demands, holding her hands in fists. “Only you can get close enough. Abby deserves revenge.”
“You can’t ask her that,” Landon interrupts.
“I promise,” I reply before Landon can say anything, keeping my firm gaze on hers so she knows how serious I am. Austin will die, and I won’t stop until it is done. For Abby, for the woman he made me kill, and for everything he has done so far. Iris stares at me for a second in understanding before turning and walking away, with Landon and I watching her go for a long time in silence.
“The Iris I used to know is long gone now. She is like a shadow of herself,” Landon comments, and I silently agree. The fact Iris didn’t ask about Maxx or even want to know about him says everything I need to know. This Iris is lost in her grief for her sister. I watch as Iris stops by two older women, the one puts her arm around Iris and holds her close whereas the other one looks over at us before walking our way.
“Who is that woman? She feels familiar,” I admit, looking at her black hair in a messy bun, the high cheekbones and her blue eyes. The woman keeps her eyes locked on mine as she walks over, pulling her faded black coat closer around herself as she walks.
“Can’t you guess?” Landon chuckles just before the woman gets to us and stops right in front of me. She places her hands on my shoulders, before pulling me into a tight hug. I almost want to push her away, but I feel relaxed around her. Clearly Landon thinks she is safe as he doesn’t move to stop her either.
“Keep my boy alive, won’t you? He is stubborn and arrogant like his father who believed he could save the world without paying a price for it. Our job as their mates is to tell them when to stop and when to attack,” she whispers to me, her words are nothing short of a plea sounding like a demand.
“You’re Maxx’s mum?” I question as she pulls back, removing her hands from my shoulders and smiles at Landon. The more I stare at her, the more I see how much they look very similar. Maxx and his mother have the same eyes, the same hair colour and even tone of their skin.
“Of course, my human name is Linda though. Who else would I be?” she asks, smiling at me like I should know that.
“Maxx will be happy to hear you are okay,” I say, knowing at least I have some good news to take back to him today.
“Is my boy alright?” she asks.
“Yep, but they don’t let him out his room, so he is getting annoyed,” I explain. Annoyed is an understatement. Maxx is getting angry, I can hear it in his voice, and I don’t know how long it is going to be before he snaps.
“Of course they don’t let him out. Our lovely hosts know he would murder them all in a blink if he got out that room,” she says. “My son is more powerful than anyone here. Even you.”
“I wouldn’t fight him, so that’s not an issue,” I reply, thinking back to when Maxx tried to fight his way to me outside his house and how many darks were needed to stop him. I think they only managed to stop him because he was desperate to get to me and because of those drugs they use to knock you out.
“I know. Landon has told me all about you guys and how you are as stubborn as Maxx. I look forward to seeing you together in the future,” she replies. “Sharing the true light has a price…though I do not worry about you both.”
“True light?”
“It is not my place to tell you anything that I am not sure off. I was too young when my planet was lost because of the true light,” she explains to me. “The rumours of what the true light is are just that, rumours.”
“I’ve heard it a few times…I just don’t know what it is,” I reply, feeling very curious.
“Time will tell all secrets of the true light. If it is what I suspect, we must get you and my Maxx out of here,” she replies, her eyes going to Landon, and he nods. I know I am missing out on some information here.
“Maxx is sure he can get us out,” I tell them.
“I bet,” Linda muses, the corner of her lips tilting up, but from her simple reply, I feel she won’t be telling me anything more right now. A cold breeze pushes my coat in the air, and I pull it around me, trying to keep some warmth. Though the boots I have on must have holes as my feet are slowly getting wet and cold.
“How many people are in here?” I question, looking around at all the people walking around in groups, flashing glances my way every so often. Most look curious, some look fearful, whereas others are just staring like they are listening in to the conversation.
“This is one of three groups. So…a lot,” Landon answers me.
“Why would they risk letting you all out?” I muse, looking around. Surely it is dangerous to let them hang out in groups.
“There is something in this mountain that makes sure we are weak and almost like humans. Yet I think it makes you two more powerful. I’ve seen something like it before,” Linda answers and looks straight up. I follow her gaze to see blue metal in the rocks above, shining against the light. The same stuff that I found in the wall of my room. Why would they put it in my room though if it is to make lights less powerful?
“That’s why you can’t just flash out of here?” I reply. I knew there had to be a reason they all just didn’t leave and why Maxx can’t.
“Yes. Though if you could learn how to flash, you could get Landon out and leave,” she suddenly replies, and I stare at her with wide eyes. Not that I have a single clue how to jump, but if I could learn it, I could get out of here.
“I could get Maxx out instead, and then we could both come back,” I muse, looking at Landon for his reaction. He nods, rubbing his unshaven chin as he thinks it over. Linda, though, shakes her head.
“A light can’t flash through the dark light. Just like you couldn’t flash with Maxx,” she explains to me. Well, there goes that idea.
“Then it doesn’t matter, I’m not leaving without Maxx,” I say, crossing my arms in frustration, well aware how that makes me selfish because it could be Landon’s only way of escaping. I know if I couldn’t get Maxx out, I’d just come straight back.
“Told you, very stubborn just like someone else,” Landon chuckles, not seeming pissed off in the slightest but more amused as he laughs with Linda. A loud buzzing noise interrupts us, and I turn to see a door opening behind us. The white haired man steps out with four guards and walks straight up to me, stopping extremely close which makes me uncomfortable.
“Be careful,” Linda warns me, and I glance behind to see her dragging a very worried looking Landon away.
“It’s time for us to have our chat.” I don’t get to say a word or goodbye to Landon and Linda before he places his hand on my arm, and he makes us flash away.
Chapter 9
Aura
We reappear in a room that looks like a study with tall bookcases lining the walls, stuffed to the rim with books and files on some shelves. The warmth of the room instantly hits me, making me feel like I’ve just stepped into a fire after being stuck in ice. There is a thick red rug under my feet and a massive wooden desk in the middle of the room with a computer on it, three chairs on one side and a big leather chair on the other. I’m surprised how I am not even the slightest bit bothered by the jump like I thought I would be. Or like I was last time Austin did it. The man lets go of my arm and walks over to the big leather chair, sitting down like he owns the room. I cross my arms and stand still, waiting to see what he wants exactly.
“My name is Okeken. I know I did not tell you that last time we spoke,” he starts off, his words slow, and I have no doubt everything he says to me is practised to make me trust him. Something I will never do, but I know there is no point messing around by informing him of that.
“What do you want?” I demand.
“For you to see who you are meant to be. What you truly are to the people of the dark,” he replies,
again sounding like every word is practised and a lie.
“And what do you think that is?” I ask, playing along with his game as I look away to the rest of the room. There is one door with no scanner in sight, and other than that, it looks like a library with the number of books in here. All of them look old, well used, and they are gathering dust. Okeken almost looks like he fits into this room.
“Our leader,” he replies, shocking me. That was not what I expected him to say.
“What?” I reply, almost chuckling in surprise.
“I want to tell you a story I was told as a child on our home planet. Will you sit and at least hear me out?” he asks, stretching a hand out in the direction of one of the chairs on the other side of the desk.
“Do I have a choice?” I ask, curious. This man is claiming I am meant to be their leader, yet it doesn’t feel like I am leading any part of this conversation. I’m curious to whether he is asking or demanding I sit down when it’s clear I don’t want to listen to his stories.
“No. Now sit down, Aura Scott, and listen for once in your goddamn life before I call my son in here and let him make you listen,” he demands, his voice showing how pissed off he is with me. I only smile back at him, annoying him further, though I bite my tongue and sit down, knowing he will call his son in. I don’t want a fight with Austin, not yet anyway. I need to learn more about these people…and their weaknesses, if I want to escape.
“As humans have their fairy tales, we have our own myths. It was said the true light once created the planets and our people. The true light was two people, given incredible power, and they were the leaders of each race. They passed away eventually, but on the day they died, they both told a prophecy which spoke of a new true light being born,” he says, linking his hands together and resting them on his stomach as he leans back in his chair, looking up at the ceiling.
