***
Suki and Tarek buckled into the seats at the table. Gideon climbed into the cockpit with Druinn and Myri. Birdee sat up in her bed and Tern carried her to a chair at the table and buckled her into it. She leaned her head on Tern’s shoulder as he buckled himself in next to her. Lucius was lying in his bunk staring at the ceiling looking annoyed. He didn’t buckle up. Lena didn’t care. Lena chose a seat between Tarek and Tern. As Lena buckled in, she felt the ship vibrate as it rose into the sky.
Suki pulled out a deck of cards. Signaling to the others, she dealt them a hand and started teaching them a new game. Birdee and Tern only watched. Birdee kept her head against Tern’s shoulder. He stroked her hair with his fingers and whispered into her ear. Suki slapped her hand on top of the deck of cards. Lena didn’t know how Suki could act so calm after what had just happened, but her calmness was contagious. Lena relaxed and even found herself laughing as they played together.
After about a half hour of flying, Myri informed them that they weren’t being followed and that they were beyond any of the Priestess’ radars. Suki put her cards down and unbuckled herself. Stepping to the closet, she pulled out another outfit. Lena thought it looked like a shirt Azara would wear. Turning her back to the group she removed her Defense uniform. She pulled Azara’s shirt over her head and belted it at her waist, forming a tunic-like dress. Its skirt fell in a diagonal down her leg.
Lena had never realized how tiny Suki was. She would never be able to wear one of Azara’s shirts as a dress. Luckily she didn’t have to. Suki had packed both of them several outfits before leaving Arc. Suki threw one to Lena. Lena went into the bathroom and changed into the jumpsuit. It reminded her of the uniform she wore as a servant, but when she looked in the mirror she couldn’t help but feel beautiful. Her servant’s outfit had been baggy and a dull gray. The outfit Suki had packed flattered her. The blue brought out the color of her eyes. She loved how the cargo pockets accentuated her hips. She was glad Suki had an eye for fashion. She’d never have picked this for herself.
Walking from the bathroom, and saw Birdee. She looked awful. Dirt and grime streaked her bruised face. Her once wildly curly hair hung in matted knots around her face.
“We have a few hours. Let’s get you cleaned up,” Lena said.
Birdee suddenly looked more alert than before. She blushed as Tern carried her towards the ship’s bathroom. “Ya think you’re going ta help me?”
Birdee’s voice was barely audible, but the teasing behind it caused Tern to blush. He sat her down on a chair that pulled out of the shower wall. Birdee caught his hand. Her eyes softened as she met his.
“Thank you for finding me,” she said.
Tern tucked his chin, he didn’t need to reply. The love on his face explained everything.
Lena shut the door behind him and turned to Birdee. Carefully she helped Birdee remove her dirty clothes and started the shower. Lena dabbed a washcloth at Birdee’s back. Birdee hissed between her teeth.
“I’m so sorry Birdee,” Lena said, looking over the bruising and cuts that covered Birdee’s back. “I think you might have some broken ribs.”
“Figured I did. Hurts somethin’ fierce,” Birdee answered. “Those and my knee,” she added. Lena looked down at her leg. The purple of her knee was only less shocking than the swelling around it. It looked over double the size it should have been. Lena quickly finished helping Birdee wash, then wrapped a towel around her.
Lena tried to straighten Birdee’s knee to splint it. Birdee arched her back and screamed. Lena ended up stabilizing it still bent. They remained quiet for a few minutes while Lena did the best she could to treat her cuts.
“Ya ever gunna tell me what happened ta Jonah?” Birdee asked.
Lena’s hands stopped dabbing antiseptic on Birdee’s back. So many images and feeling swarmed her mind. Lena felt herself biting down on her lip to stay calm. Tasting blood, she relaxed her jaw. She couldn’t bring herself to look at Birdee.
“He died,” Lena finally said. She kept her hands busy by wrapping and rewrapping a bandage in her hand.
Birdee’s head fell and silence filled the space between them. Birdee waited until Lena slowly started recounting the story the best she could, from the time they left the facility, until he died on the cliff.
“I’d never have suspected,” Birdee said, wiping the tears from her eyes. “Jonah was my friend. Lena, I’m so sorry.”
Lena wiped her own tears away. “I’m sorry too,” Lena said. A knock at the door caused Lena to shake her head clear and force a smile.
“Suki found ya some clothes,” Tern said, opening the bathroom door. “They migh’ not be pretty, but better than wha’ ya had on.”
Birdee pulled the towel she held closer to her chest. Tern blushed and diverted his eyes towards the mirror where Birdee’s bruised back was reflected. Terns blush turned to a scowl. He opened the door wide and walked in.
“She did this to you,” Tern growled, maneuvering in the small bathroom to examine her back. He brushed his fingers across her bruises. “She can’ do this anymore,” Tern said.
“I know,” Birdee replied.
Gideon stood in the open doorway. On seeing Birdee’s back reflected in the mirror, his face matched Terns. “Do you think you can get your people to take a stand against the Priestess?” Gideon asked Tern.
“I don’ know,” Tern said. “Are ya formin’ a resistance, Gideon?”
Gideon kept his lips pressed together for a moment before speaking. “I’m gathering information. Seeing what allies we might have if we did take a stand against Selene.”
“My people like to keep to themselves. They take pride in standin’ away from the technology that surrounds Mir. They like rulin’ themselves. Though, they all have a great respect fer Birdee. Maybe if they see what’s been done ta her…”
“Well, everyone here is getting’ a hootin’ good look.” Birdee attempted to laugh, but it quickly turned into a cough.
Gideon and Tern both blushed. Issuing their apologies, the boys left the bathroom while Lena helped Birdee put on the clothes Tern had given her.
“Do ya think ya can beat the Priestess?” Birdee asked as Lena tenderly helped Birdee on with the shirt she’d been given.
“I’m not sure,” Lena replied. “But you remember that explosion we analyzed at Defense training?”
“I remember. We tracked the bombers.”
“Yes, and the last image we saw was of Thora standing on the lake shore of Everleigh. She has some type of server that has information on it about what’s controlling Gideon’s father. I think if we can see what technology Selene has, we can counteract it. And maybe even hinder Selene’s power. At this point, we don’t know much, though. Gideon’s right when he says we need to gather more information. Hopefully, Thora will know more as well,” Lena said.
“We’re really going to Everleigh?” Birdee asked.
Lena nodded. “We really are.” She smiled. It was good having her friend back.
Chapter Thirty-Nine
Suki pointed to the mountains ahead. They rose like a giant wall rising directly from the valley floor. Peaking through the ridges of dry, barren ground, spots of white crystals sparkled in the sunlight of the new day. The mountain terrain looked rough and very few trees scattered the mountainside. Snow dusted the topmost peaks.
Lena’s eyes squinted as she leaned in her chair towards the window.
“Not the mountains you remember, are they?” Gideon asked.
Lena turned her seat towards him. “I’ve just never seen them from this side,” Lena answered. “I remember them being so much greener. And trees. Where are the trees?” Lena swiveled back towards the window.
Staring at the mountains, she envisioned what they looked like from the Everleigh side. She remembered evergreens and maples and how in the fall, the whole mountain would glow with the leaves' bright orange and yellow colors. And most of all she remembered the crystals and how the sun would hit them, s
ending dancing rainbows to the ground.
Gideon chuckled. “The Monmark side of the mountains has a drier climate than the Everleighan side,” Gideon said. “Where you see rocks here, you’ll see vegetation in Everleigh. Don’t you worry, as soon as we fly over this ridge, you’ll see the mountains you remember.”
“Do you think it’ll be worse than we remember?” Lena asked.
“Some things aren’t the same as we remember them to be,” Gideon said.
Lena’s heart dropped as she turned to Gideon.
He was smiling. “Some things are even better.” Gideon gazed at her, his eyes sparkling with second meaning. Lifting his hand, he gave her a child-like punch to the shoulder.
Lena smiled back. Having Gideon with her was better than she ever remembered.
Lena turned her attention to the town of Monmark settled at the base of the mountains. From where they flew, the town was only a dark shadow on the desert ground below. Even as a child, Monmark was a wild, ill-educated city. A stark contrast to the booming city of Everleigh on the other side.
A jerk of the ship caused Lena to grab the edge of the table. “What is happening?” Lena yelled. Gideon jumped to his feet and ran up the ladder into the cockpit. Lena undid her seatbelt and ran after him.
“We’ve lost power,” Druinn yelled, as he frantically searched the gauges. “Fuel is fine. Gauges are correct. Everything is fine. What is going on?”
The ship lurched, its nose falling in front of them. Lena lost her footing and fell into the back of Myri’s seat. Gideon grabbed a handhold on the wall. His arms jerked as the ship dove. Druinn pulled at the controls straightening out the nose.
“What’s wrong with it?” Lena asked, grabbing Myri’s seat.
Gideon’s eyes widened. He looked down into the cabin. “Luicius,” he said. Releasing his handhold, Gideon jumped down from the cockpit, ignoring the ladder.
Lena pulled herself to the ladder and made her way down as the ship lurched again. Gideon had already stepped to where Lucius was buckled in a seat against the wall. Gideon grabbed his shirt and pulled him up. Lucius’ belt dug into his legs keeping him from rising to a stand. He floundered under Gideon’s grip.
“What have you done?” Gideon yelled.
The ship lurched again. Lena grabbed hold of the bunk. She looked at Gideon. His countenance was brimming with anger.
Lucius' lips curled into a snarl. “You didn’t think I’d let you get to Everleigh,” he chortled. “Oh, you did.” He shoved Gideon away. “Then you’re even dumber than I thought.”
Gideon clenched his jaw. Flexing his hands at his side, he took a breath that filled his chest.
Lucius smiled. His face was filled with conceit as he started to chuckle. “The Cimmerians are coming for you,” Lucius said.
At his words, Gideon balled his fist and hit Lucius square in the nose. Blood splattered the walls as his nose bled freely.
Lucius grabbed at his face and screamed. Gideon turned his back on Lucius and climbed back up the ladder. Lena looked at Lucius grabbing his nose and scrunched over in pain. He glared as he inclined his head and rested it against the wall behind him. Lena followed after Gideon. The ship lurched once more knocking her off the ladder. Her arms pulled her to a stop as her feet scrambled for a solid wrung. Regaining control she climbed after Gideon into the cockpit. Placing herself behind Myri, she widened her stand to keep her balance against the dying ship. Suki climbed the ladder behind her and now stood between the seats, studying the landscape.
“We’re not going to make it over the ridge,” Druinn called, as he started to decelerate the plane.
“Pull right,” Suki directed. “Get as close to the mountain as you can. If the people of Monmark see us, we’re going to have bandits on our tail.”
Druin increased the glide and turned so the ship ran parallel to the mountain. “We’re going to have a rough landing,” Druinn yelled.
“Further to the right,” Suki instructed. Druinn readjusted his direction.
“Buckle up,” Gideon screamed down to the cabin.
Lena stood frozen at the back of Myri’s seat. They hit the top of a rocky outcropping. Lena’s feet slid from under her. Gideon caught her from behind and pushed her into the jumpseat nestled into the wall behind Myri.
“Stay there,” he yelled at her. The ship lurched again. He grabbed the back of the pilot's seat.
Druinn grabbed at the manual controls. “Myri, grab the control. We need to straighten the wings,” he yelled.
Putting her foot on the dash, Myri began pulling the control towards her. Her face contorted as she strained against the plane’s pull. Gideon reached around Myri and grabbed the control with her. They pulled together until the nose leveled out. The airship rose momentarily before dropping towards the ground.
“Brace yourselves,” Gideon yelled down the ladder to Tern, Birdee and Tarek as he pulled himself into the seat next to Lena’s.
The plane fell from the sky as Druinn maneuvered it to have as much air resistance to slow it as possible. The ship hit a large boulder. It jerked, spinning halfway to the side as it dug itself into the ground. Lena's head hit the back of her seat. She felt the restraints hold tight against her. The ship landed, bounced and landed again. Dirt sprayed the windows as the ship skidded to a stop.
“Is everyone okay?” Druinn yelled. Releasing his belt he looked at Myri first. She let out a breath of tension and laughed.
“Let’s not do that again anytime soon,” Myri said, as she unbuckled her restraints. Rubbing her shoulders she stretched to the side.
Lena reached her own trembling hands towards the release button of her restraints. They whipped back into the wall behind her. Lena shakily got to her feet. Grabbing the wall, she walked the few steps across the cockpit and climbed down the ladder. Everything was slanted to the side making walking that much harder.
She looked around the ship. Loose items that had been sitting in the ship now lay scattered on the ground. Blankets and pillows from the beds lay in bundles in various places. Even some of the secured cupboards lay open after the rough landing, their contents making the ship a mess.
Tern knelt next to Birdee surveying any damages she may have incurred. Birdee kept pushing his hand away telling him she was no worse off than before. Tern looked skeptical. Still, he helped her stand on her good leg.
Tarek stretched from side to side as if doing some kind of exercise routine. He looked un-phased by their unplanned landing and the fact that his father’s ship had just crashed.
Suki stood glaring at Lucius. Her prosthetic fingers tapped against her crossed arms. She looked like she wanted to jam her robotic arm against his throat. He looked back at her without remorse.
Gideon climbed from the cockpit, saw Lena and rolled his eyes. Grabbing a cloth from where it had landed on the ground, he walked up to Lena. Only when he placed the towel on the back of her head did she realize she was bleeding.
“You get hurt more than any other person I know.” He slipped her loose hair away from her face and behind her ear. “Are you okay?” he asked.
He stood right in front of her. She could feel his breath on her face as he spoke. Lena felt her insides tingle as she looked at him.
“Eves, are you okay?” he asked again, brushing his thumb along her jaw.
Lena realized she’d been staring. Looking away from him she felt her cheeks turn red. Reaching back, she placed her hand over where he held the cloth at the back of her head.
Gideon stared at her and his fingers brushed her arm as he dropped his hands from her head. He smiled before stepping away and walking towards where Tarek stood on the other side of the ship.
Myri walked towards Lena. Going to an open drawer against the wall, she pulled out some cream. Turning Lena away from her, she grabbed the cloth Lena held and dabbed the cream on the back of her head. As soon as the cream was applied, Lena felt the wound tightening.
“That was a rush,” Lena said. She felt the back of her
head. Looking at her hand, she saw no new blood. Whatever Myri had put on her had closed the wound.
“The landing? Or how Gideon looks at you?” Myri replied, raising her eyebrows at Lena.
Lena’s eyes darted to Gideon then back again. She felt her cheeks grow hot. Unable to answer, she lowered her eyes and tried to find something else to focus on.
Myri laughed.
Druinn came up behind Myri and put a hand on her back. “I’m going to take a look down below. See if I can figure out what Lucius did to make us fall from the sky like that.”
“You could just ask him,” Myri said.
“That would require talking to him,” Druinn replied. “Something I’m not willing to do.” He opened a hatch and slid into the space below.
“Never thought marriage was going to be this exciting,” Myri said. She walked to the table, beckoning for Lena to follow. Typing in commands she pulled up the coordinates of their landing. “The good new is, we’re not far from Everleigh. The bad new is, we’re still on the Monmark side of the mountains. We can’t be sure they didn’t see our crash.”
“Let’s assume they did,” Suki said. “We’ve got to get through the mountains as fast as possible.” Suki grabbed a bag she’d packed when they were flying and started looping her hands through its straps. “I can lead us to the path I took as a child,” Suki said. “But once we get to Everleigh I don’t know what kind of difficulties we’ll encounter. Or where to even look for Thora.”
Lena nodded.
“What are we going to do with the idiot?” Suki asked.
“What makes you assume I’d want to come with you in the first place?” Lucius said, through the bloodied hand that still held his nose.
Gideon glared at Lucius. “Are the Cimmerians close?” he asked. “Do you have a tracking device on you?”
Lucius only tightened his jaw in response.
“Should I tie him up?” Suki asked excitedly.
The Children of The Resistance (The Mir Chronicles Book 2) Page 20
