by Kate O'Hearn
She wasn’t sure what was making her more excited. The proximity of the shard, or the absolute freedom she felt, flying in a clear, open sky. To her left, she saw strange vehicles moving along the ground. She watched one stop and people climbed out. She laughed even louder, excited at the idea of riding in one of those things.
Within minutes, she was rising up the steep side of the mountain that housed the shard. She approached the summit. But just as she sailed over the top, her heart sank. It was full of water.
Lorin landed on the upper edge and gazed down into the black depths. The shard was there, she could feel it, but it was deep beneath the surface. How was she going to free it?
She held out her arms to summon it the way she made Flame shoot from her hands. She could feel the shard, it was right there, but something was blocking it. Lorin fed more power into her command. The ground beneath her started to shake. The harder she tried, the harder the ground shook.
Lorin looked up into the star-filled sky and shouted, ‘I will have the shard! Do you hear me, Emily? I will have it and I will be complete!’
Rage made Flames blaze in her hands. Lorin looked down into the black water and fired two powerful blasts of Flame at it. It sizzled and smoked on the surface. She added more power, hoping to burn her way down to the shard, but no matter how much power she added to the Flame, all she accomplished was the creation of a large plume of steam. Water was filling the crater faster than she could burn it away.
‘You there – don’t move. Stay where you are!’ She was so focused on the shard that she hadn’t noticed soldiers running towards her along the path that ran around the rim of the volcano.
Lorin pulled the Flame back into herself and waited for them to get closer. They would tell her where Emily was.
‘Drop your weapons and put up your hands!’ one of them shouted.
‘I do not have weapons,’ Lorin said.
‘We saw you using a flame thrower. Where is it?’
Lorin held out her hand and it burst into Flame. ‘Do you mean this?’
The men gasped and stepped back. They raised the items they carried in their hands. ‘Who – who are you? How did you get up here?’
Lorin studied them closely. They were young men wearing strange clothes and had serious expressions on their faces. They almost looked like Titans, but there was something very different about them. It was more a feeling than anything physical.
‘Answer my question,’ one of them demanded as he stepped forward. He looked older than the others and appeared to be in charge. ‘How did you get up here?’
‘I flew,’ Lorin answered. ‘Where is Emily?’
‘Flew?’ the man repeated.
‘Yes,’ Lorin said. ‘Like this . . .’ She used her powers to lift off the ground. ‘It is wonderful. You should try it. Now will you tell me about Emily?’
The men’s mouths hung open.
‘How do you know Emily?’ the one in charge asked.
Lorin tilted her head to the side. ‘She is the reason I came here. She has stolen something from me and I want it back.’
‘Well now, miss, if you come with us, I – I’m sure we can help you find her.’
Lorin landed back on the ground. ‘You will take me to her?’
‘Yes, yes of course we will. Just come this way.’
Lorin smiled and started to walk with the men who surrounded her on all sides.
‘What are you?’ she asked.
‘I’m a sergeant,’ the one in charge said. ‘Sergeant Walker.’
‘Sergeant Walker,’ Lorin repeated. ‘I am a Titan. You all look like Titans, but you are different – smaller. You speak differently too.’
‘Titans, miss?’ the sergeant repeated. ‘I don’t understand.’
‘Neither do I,’ Lorin admitted. ‘This is all very strange to me. I have never been to Earth before . . .’ She paused. ‘This is Earth, is it not? Honolulu – Hawaii – where Emily is?’
‘You’ve never been to Earth . . .’ the soldier repeated. He stopped and studied her closely. ‘Where do you come from?’
‘Tartarus,’ Lorin answered. ‘But Phoebe told me I was born on Titus. It was Jupiter and the Olympians who locked us in Tartarus. But we are free now. Soon Saturn will claim Olympus and I will go there.’
‘You know about Jupiter and Olympus?’
Lorin nodded. ‘Yes, Saturn is attacking Olympus right now. He wants me to kill Jupiter, but I do not want to do it. I came here to find Emily and become whole, not to kill anyone else.’
‘I’m glad you don’t want to kill,’ the soldier said carefully. ‘If you come with me, maybe we can help you find her.’
Lorin continued to follow the men when her sandal caught in a weed and she stumbled. Before she fell, the sergeant caught her and steadied her. ‘Careful there, it’s easy to trip up here.’
Lorin smiled at him. He was so nice and friendly and was only a little bit scared of her. ‘Tell me, do all Sergeant Walkers dress like you? I saw others down there by the water that looked very different.’
The sergeant gave her a curious expression. ‘We’re soldiers – this is how we dress.’
‘Soldiers,’ Lorin repeated. ‘You said you were a Sergeant Walker.’
The man started to chuckle. ‘No, my name is Walker. I’m David Walker. I’m a sergeant in the United States Army. But you can call me David.’
‘Oh,’ Lorin said, just as confused as ever. ‘I am Lorin.’ Her eyes landed on the item in his hands. ‘Is that a weapon?’
‘Yes,’ David answered, looking at his rifle. ‘A very dangerous weapon.’
‘Why do you need it?’
‘We’re assigned to keep trespassers away from here.’
‘What is a trespasser?’
‘Someone who does not belong here.’
‘Like me?’
The sergeant nodded. ‘But don’t be frightened. I won’t use it on you. We’ll just help you get down from here.’
‘And then we can find Emily?’
‘Yes.’ He nodded. ‘Then we’ll find Emily.’
The soldiers accompanied Lorin down a long set of stairs. David Walker stayed at her side and helped her down.
At the bottom, Lorin was escorted into a building and then into a large room. She saw other men in there, watching her with interest. There were two men who were different from the rest. They were dressed in dark clothes and had angry expressions on their faces. Their eyes landed on her and studied her intently. There was something about them that Lorin didn’t like one bit.
They stood before them. ‘Report.’
‘This is Lorin,’ Sergeant Walker said. ‘We found her at the top of Diamond Head. She is very special, and is looking for Emily. She says she is from Tartarus.’
Lorin watched the exchange with interest. David Walker was a bit scared of her. But he was even more scared of them.
‘We’ll take it from here, Sergeant,’ the older of the two men said.
The sergeant nodded. ‘Yes, Agent G.’ He looked at Lorin. ‘These two men will take you to Emily.’
Lorin looked into the predatory eyes of Agent G. She smiled back at the sergeant. ‘No, I prefer you to take me to her.’
‘That’s quite impossible,’ Agent G said. He grabbed her arm roughly.
‘No!’ Lorin’s temper flared and she used her powers to drive the two men across the room. They hit the wall with an explosive contact and crumpled to the floor. ‘I will stay with David Walker!’
The soldiers in the room raised their weapons at her.
‘Stand down!’ the sergeant ordered. He turned to Lorin. ‘You calm down too! You can’t go doing things like that. You will get into trouble.’
She felt his fear increasing. Was it of her, or for her? �
�Do not be frightened of me, David. I would never hurt you. But tell them to stay away from me.’
Lorin walked deeper into the room, ignoring the soldiers that watched her every move. She was fascinated by her surroundings. There were so many strange things here. Lights blazed in the ceiling and on a desk. She held her hand above the bulb and smiled at him. ‘This is not fire, but it is hot?’
Sergeant Walker nodded to his men as they carried the two unconscious CRU agents out of the room. ‘It is a light,’ he said to Lorin. ‘It uses electricity, not fire. Now, would you like to come and sit down beside me?’
Lorin did as she was asked and sat beside the desk. She watched in fascination as Sergeant Walker held a strange device up to his ear and pressed several buttons on a small box. Then he started to speak. She could hear the whole conversation. He was talking to someone called Colonel James and they were discussing her. He told Colonel James that Lorin had just arrived from Tartarus and had flown up to the top of Diamond Head. He said she was looking for Emily who had stolen something from her. He added that the CRU agents were being taken to hospital. Colonel James ordered the sergeant to get Lorin to the Honolulu Zoo as quickly as possible. Priority Alpha, Alpha One.
‘What is Honolulu Zoo?’ she asked when Sergeant Walker disconnected the call. ‘And what does Alpha, Alpha One mean?’
The sergeant frowned at her. ‘You heard all that?’
Lorin nodded.
‘My colonel, that is the man I serve, has asked me to bring you to the zoo. It is a very special place and he really wants to meet you.’
‘And Alpha, Alpha One?’
‘That means that you are a very, very special and important girl and he can’t wait to meet you.’
Lorin could sense something from him. He wasn’t telling the whole truth. ‘Is he angry at me because of what I did to those two men?’
‘No, of course not.’ David leaned in closer to her. ‘I don’t think the colonel likes them much either.’
‘Will Emily be there?’
‘I hope so. I do know that they have some very special animals there. In fact, I heard that they have a horse with wings.’
‘Pegasus is there!’ Lorin cried.
The sergeant looked at his men, and then back to Lorin. ‘You know about Pegasus?’
Lorin nodded. ‘I saw him in Emily’s mind. She thinks he belongs to her. But he does not. He is mine.’
As she spoke, Lorin sniffed the air and became distracted by the most overwhelming fragrance. The smell made her stomach rumble. She realized she hadn’t eaten anything in ages and was starving. She rose. As she did, the men at the door stiffened and grasped their weapons. Lorin noticed this, but once again took no notice. Instead she walked over to the next desk. The smell was coming from a large, flat, white box.
‘I said stand down,’ Sergeant Walker said to his men. He walked up to Lorin. ‘Are you hungry? Do you want one?’
When the sergeant opened the box, Lorin almost cried with excitement. She snatched up a small round treat and took her first bite. Flavours exploded in her mouth.
‘These are called doughnuts,’ he explained. He smiled at her. ‘I see you like them.’
‘They are wonderful,’ Lorin said as crumbs flew from her mouth. Before she’d finished the first one, she was starting on a second doughnut. ‘I have never tasted anything so good.’
The sergeant went to a white cupboard and pulled out a tin. He opened the top and held it out to her. ‘Here, drink this and slow down a bit – I don’t want you to choke.’
Lorin looked at the tin and frowned. But when Sergeant Walker took a sip, she understood. She took the can and drank back a large swallow. More sweet flavours danced in her mouth. Her eyes went wide with excitement as she reached for a third doughnut.
One of the men came forward. ‘Sir, Colonel James is waiting for us.’
‘Colonel James can wait,’ the sergeant snapped. ‘Let Lorin enjoy her meal.’
32
When it was dark, Emily and Paelen began to make a move from their hideout. They had made so many twists and turns to escape the police they had no idea where the zoo was and had to ask a woman walking her dog.
‘It’s just three blocks from here,’ she said. ‘Just go down to the end of this street, then turn right and take the first left and in two blocks you’re there. You can’t miss it.’
They thanked her and were on their way. As they got closer to the zoo, Emily’s connection to Pegasus grew stronger. She stopped. ‘Something’s wrong with Pegs. He’s not in pain, but he’s very angry.’
Concern for Pegasus and the others quickened their pace.
Soon they were standing across the street from the Honolulu Zoo. In the dark there was very little they could see. But from what they could make out, it didn’t look anything like a zoo. There was a very tall chain-link fence surrounding it. Bushes and trees grew along the length of the fence and where they thinned, the back of buildings could be seen.
They couldn’t see any animal enclosures from here but they could hear the sounds of animals from inside settling down for the night. Elephants trumpeting, monkey calls, lion roars and even the braying of donkeys mixed with the sounds of roosting birds.
‘What kinds of monsters are making those loud calls?’ Paelen asked. ‘They almost sound like Brue.’
‘I think those are elephants,’ Emily said. ‘They are big grey animals, not nearly as big as Brue, but almost as round. They’ve got a long trunk for a nose, huge ears and tusks made of ivory. They are very beautiful. Sadly, some people on Earth hunt them for their ivory tusks and they’ve become endangered.’
‘Maybe we should bring Brue here one day to teach them not to.’
Emily nodded. ‘That would be fantastic!’
They waited for cars to pass and then crossed the street. Paelen looked around. ‘It is too busy here. We must find somewhere safe to fly over the fence.’
The zoo was much larger than they expected. They followed the fence along several streets before turning a corner and continuing another few streets in length.
‘I think this is a good place,’ Paelen said as they arrived near a delivery gate. ‘I cannot hear or feel anyone around us.’
Nerves bunched in Emily’s stomach. She had never felt more vulnerable. They were knowingly entering a CRU trap without her powers for protection. Emily looked around again. ‘OK, get us over the fence.’
Paelen lifted Emily in his arms and they flew over the fence. When they touched down, they ducked into the bushes to get their bearings. Directly ahead of them was a paved trail. Across from it, a tall fenced enclosure. In the limited light, they couldn’t see what animals it contained.
‘Can you feel Pegasus enough to tell us where he is?’ Paelen asked.
‘I don’t know, I’ve never really had to before.’ Emily closed her eyes. She pushed aside her fear and focused fully on Pegasus. She could see his beautiful face in her mind. Taking a deep breath, she felt for him. The link was strong.
‘I can feel him,’ she muttered softly. ‘He’s still very angry.’
‘Which direction do you feel it from?’
Emily took another cleansing breath and reached out for Pegasus. She felt a light draw. It wasn’t nearly as strong as the pull of the Flame-shard, but it was there.
‘I think he’s there, down to the left along that trail.’
Even though the zoo was closed, there were still a few zoo workers walking around. Emily froze when she saw a group of armed soldiers walking towards them on the paved trail.
She grabbed Paelen and they ducked into bushes and kept low as the soldiers patrolled the area. Keeping off the trails and using the darkness to their advantage, they followed them around from the safety of the bushes that filled the area.
‘If this is a zoo,�
�� Paelen commented, ‘there are not many animals here.’
Emily agreed. ‘It does look more like a park with all these trees. They must give the animals a lot of space.’
They were grateful the Honolulu Zoo had so much greenery to hide in. They were able to zigzag their way through the private areas where the public weren’t allowed.
As they approached a small building, they heard heavy footsteps on the paved trail. Once again they sought the shelter of bushes growing along the side wall of the squat building. They watched another group of armed soldiers on patrol.
‘The place is crawling with them,’ Emily complained. ‘We’ll never get the others out of here. Especially Chiron.’
‘You are right,’ Paelen agreed. ‘We cannot free them. But if we find Fawn she can get the message to Jupiter to meet us at Diamond Head. We can come back here once you have the shard.’
‘That’s as good a plan as any, I suppose. But I still need to find Pegs. Maybe we can get him out. If not, I want him to know that we’re here for him.’
‘He already knows that,’ Paelen said. ‘He can feel you here, just as you feel him, he knows—’
‘No! This is insane! You can’t do this to them . . .’
A desperate voice blasted from the building’s open window beside their hiding spot.
‘Can’t you see what an amazing opportunity this is? They come from another world! My God, that stallion has wings! What about that half-man half-horse? He’s impossible, but he exists and he’s intelligent! What does it take to get you to see the wonder in that? We should be talking to them, learning from them, not locking them away for experimentation. It’s barbaric and goes against everything this zoo stands for!’
Emily and Paelen looked at each other.
‘Bingo!’ Emily mouthed. They crept up to the open window to hear more.
‘I don’t care for your tone, Doctor,’ another voice said. ‘We have allowed you to stay to care for the animals, nothing more. If you can’t do your job, I’ll find someone who can! Your continued presence here is a courtesy. But my generosity will only extend so far. These prisoners are none of your concern – this is a national security issue!’
