by Kate O'Hearn
“Where are you going?”
There was no answer as Tryn vanished into the trees.
* * *
Brue was rubbing Pegasus gently as Jake sat on the ground beside the fallen stallion. “Just hold on there, boy,” he said, stroking the stallion’s face. “We’ll get you some help real soon.”
As he waited, he kept speaking, but he wasn’t sure if it was for Pegasus or for himself. “I know Zephyr, and she looks an awful lot like you. She’s been hurt too. We came here to get you guys so you could help her.” He sighed heavily. “Those Mimics are sure causing a lot of trouble. But don’t you worry. We’ll go to their world and get Emily back.”
At the mention of Emily’s name, Pegasus’s breath caught. Then it became weak again. “That’s right, Pegasus. We’ll rescue Emily. Tryn has told me all about her. How you two are always together. I’m really looking forward to meeting her. And Riza, too. I hear she’s beautiful.”
After what seemed an eternity, there was loud rustling in the trees again. Tryn crashed through and ran over to them. He knelt beside Pegasus and pressed a silver vial to the stallion’s neck.
“What’s that?” Jake asked.
“I haven’t a clue,” Tryn said. “It’s some kind of injection. Arious was talking too quickly, and most of what she said didn’t make sense. But she produced this and said I had to get it into Pegasus immediately.”
“Okay, you got it into him,” Jake said. When there was no change, he shrugged. “Now what?”
Tryn sat back on his heels. “I don’t know. Arious said it should restore some of the energy that’s been drained out of him.”
“Did she say how long it would take?”
Tryn shook his head. “He’s very weak. It will take some time.”
Jake and Tryn settled down beside Pegasus to wait. While they did, Tryn stroked the stallion. “When I was a child, Pegasus told me the story of how he and Emily met. I was reminded of that when Zephyr collapsed. It felt like history was repeating itself.”
Jake shook his head. “Nope, I haven’t got a clue what you’re talking about.”
“When Zephyr collapsed and Astraea crawled over to her, she was lying beside Zephyr with her broken leg in a splint.”
“Yes,” Jake said. “So?”
“So, not long after Emily met Pegasus in New York City, they were both wounded. Emily’s leg had been hurt by a Nirad and Pegasus had been shot by the CRU. Pegasus told me that Emily lay with him while the CRU agents interrogated her. In doing that, she saved his life.”
Jake started to nod. “Astraea has a hurt leg just like Emily had, and she was stroking Zephyr just like Emily stroked Pegasus.”
“Exactly,” Tryn said. “It doesn’t really mean anything, but I saw the bond between them. Astraea will be destroyed if anything happens to Zephyr.”
“Nothing is going to happen to Zephyr,” Jake said. “Pegasus will recover, and then we’ll get the ambrosia to her.”
As they spoke, the stallion’s breathing grew stronger. “I think it’s working,” Tryn said. “Pegasus, it’s me, Trynulus. We’re here. Try to wake up.”
One of the stallion’s wings fluttered.
“He moved!” Jake cried. “Did you see that? His wing moved!”
Tryn nodded. “That’s it, Pegasus. Come back to us. We need you.”
“Yeah, Zephyr needs you too!” Jake added.
Little by little, Pegasus started to wake. He was soon moving a hoof, then another wing. He nickered weakly.
Tryn rose and pulled Jake up. “He told us to stand back. I think he’s going to try to get up.”
Jake sighed heavily and stood up. “I’d hoped I could understand him since he’s older than Zephyr and has been hanging around with Emily. But all I heard was a neigh.”
Tryn stepped back. “Pegasus cannot speak English. Emily could understand him only once she became a Xan. Before then she was just like you. Humans can’t understand him.”
It took several more minutes before Pegasus was strong enough to climb to his feet. Even then he needed Tryn’s help to stay up.
“Arious said to bring you down to her when you are strong enough,” Tryn explained.
Pegasus’s head was low, and he nickered again. Tryn looked at Jake. “He’s asked us to help get him there.”
Jake, Tryn, and Brue struggled to assist the large stallion through the jungle and into the clearing. By the time they reached the Temple of Arious, Pegasus had recovered a bit more and was able to walk on his own, though he was very weak and slow.
Getting into the temple was fairly easy. However, the stairs leading down to the supercomputer were a different matter completely. As Brue was too large to fit in the stairwell and Jake wasn’t strong enough to help hold him, it took all Tryn’s considerable strength to keep Pegasus from falling down the stairs. He stood in front of the stallion and braced him with each step.
Tryn was out of breath and panting heavily when they finally reached the lower level. Pegasus nickered softly.
“You’ve very welcome,” Tryn panted.
They made their way down the long corridor and found the door to Arious still open. Tryn and Jake escorted Pegasus in.
“Pegasus,” Arious said. “I am so pleased to see you! Come closer.”
Pegasus clopped closer to the consul. A small door opened on the mainframe, and a tiny speck of red light appeared and started to spin around Pegasus.
“That’s Arious Minor,” Tryn explained. “It’s the mobile version of Arious Major.”
When the light finished, it went back into the mainframe, and Arious said, “Tryn and Jake, please go outside and leave Pegasus with me. He requires additional treatment.”
“We can help,” Tryn said.
“Yes, you can,” Arious said. “You help by going home and telling your family and the other Rheans what has happened. We are going to need their help, along with all the Olympians and Titans, to take on the Mimics.”
Jake shook his head. “No! We have to go back to help Zephyr. She’s dying.”
“I am so sorry, Jake,” Arious responded. “But informing the Rheans is critical to combating the Mimics. It won’t take long. Then you can take the ambrosia to Zephyr.”
“But my people are not warriors,” Tryn said.
“Very true,” Arious agreed. “And I am not suggesting they fight. We will need help with weapons, caring for wounded, and many other things.”
“And milking the snakes,” Jake offered.
“Indeed,” Arious agreed. “They should at least be notified so they can decide their involvement. The Mimics pose a great threat to them as well. I have no doubt they have their eyes set on Xanadu now that the Xan are gone.”
“I understand,” Tryn said. He went up to Pegasus and patted his neck. “I hope you feel better soon, Pegasus. Zephyr needs your help, and we have to save Emily and Riza.”
Pegasus pressed his head to Tryn and then looked over at Jake and nickered. As they left, Jake asked, “What did he say?”
Tryn smiled. “He thanked us both and says he owes us a debt. Though the debt is to Brue, really. I wouldn’t be surprised if she was the one who buried him, to hide him from the Mimics.” Tryn paused. “I guess she really is the Mother of the Jungle. She cares for everyone and everything.”
Jake nodded. “She sure does. I just hope Pegasus recovers soon. I hate leaving Zephyr alone this long.”
“Me too,” Tryn said.
They exited the temple and picked up their skateboards. “Come on,” Tryn said as he climbed onto his. “It’s time you met my family.”
18
THE SUN WAS UP, AND the heat of the day was already brutal in the Mimic camp. Astraea was lying beside Zephyr where she’d fallen out of the sky after the Mimic’s touch.
Zephyr moaned and started to awaken. “Oh, my head is killing me again. I told you this was a bad idea.” She looked around. “What happened?”
“You were hit by a Mimic tendril and then you kinda crashed.�
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“Crashed?” Zephyr cried. “I have never crashed in my life. Not even when I was young and learning to fly.”
Astraea chuckled. “I was there, Zeph, remember? You crashed plenty of times.”
“Maybe, but it was in water. That was different. I’ve never crashed on land and hurt myself.”
“Well, you crashed spectacularly last night,” Astraea said. “I’m fine by the way. Thanks for asking.”
Zephyr looked over at her. “Are you all right?”
Astraea was trying very hard not to let the pain from her leg show. “If you’re asking if my leg is broken again, the answer is yes.”
“I’m so sorry,” Zephyr said. “But it was your idea to play hero and try to fight the Mimics from the sky.”
“And it worked, too,” Astraea said. “They’re all gone.”
“Really? But we’re still in their camp?”
Astraea nodded. “We couldn’t go back to the cave. When Darek took the torch back to help Cylus, he found the tide coming in. Apparently, it floods completely during high tide.”
“The cave is flooded?” Zephyr panicked. “We have to get Cylus and Render out of there!”
“Calm down. It’s already been done.” Astraea pointed across the camp to where Darek was helping Render and Cylus. “See? They’re safe.”
“How long was I out?” Zephyr cried.
“Quite a while,” Astraea said. “The Mimic held on to your leg a long time. Then you hit your head. So you were kind of knocked out twice.”
“No wonder my head is pounding so much.” Zephyr moaned. “But how did you get Cylus here?”
“Once all the Mimics were gone, Darek found the controllers and commanded the Shadow Titans to stop fighting. A couple were too damaged to work again, but most of the others were all right. They repaired themselves and were able to carry Cylus here. We now have twelve working Shadow Titans under our control. They’ve circled the camp.”
Zephyr was still looking at the centaurs. “How is Cylus?”
“Not good,” Astraea responded. “Darek managed to seal his wounds, but he’s lost so much blood. He needs ambrosia.”
“We all do,” Zephyr said. She continued to look around and neighed in surprise at the sea of snakes surrounding them. “How did you get all the snakes here?”
“We didn’t. They followed the centaurs. I guess they realize it’s safer to stay with us than in the cave.”
“I’m not so sure about that,” Zephyr said.
“Sure about what?” Darek asked.
“Keeping the snakes here in this camp. The Mimics must know what’s happened by now. They’re sure to send more.”
“And we’re ready for them,” Darek said. “We’ve got our Shadow Titans surrounding the camp, and the snakes are here with us. The Mimics would have to be insane to try to get us. If we can just hold out until Jake and Tryn get back, we’ll be fine.”
19
JAKE FOLLOWED BEHIND TRYN FOR what felt like half a day. The Rhean settlement was farther away from the Temple of Arious than he’d expected.
“Tryn, why is your home so far from Arious? I thought you would be closer.”
Tryn shook his head. “No. Riza told us we could settle anywhere we wanted, and the elders chose this place. It is far enough away from Arious that we can govern ourselves. There are many other regions and species that are refugees from disaster just like we were. Some don’t even know that they’ve been brought here. So even though Riza and Emily visit regularly, most of the Rheans won’t leave our area until our world is ready for us to return.” Tryn pointed up at the sky.
Jake looked up and saw the shadow of an immense red moon. Back in LA he used to love it when he could sometimes see the moon during the day while the sun was out. But this moon was a lot bigger and brighter, and it appeared to be close.
“Whoa, what is that?” Jake asked.
“Our home world, Rhean,” Tryn said. “Riza and Emily brought it here from across the universe when our sun went supernova.”
“They what?” Jake choked. He nearly stumbled off his board. But the board wouldn’t let him fall and righted him again. “Are you telling me that two people actually brought an entire planet here?”
“Not people—Xan. Yes, they did,” Tryn said. “That’s how powerful they are.”
Jake was studying the outline of the large planet orbiting Xanadu. He could hardly believe that it was once across the universe. “So you can’t live there?”
“Not yet. Rhean is still establishing a stable orbit, atmosphere, and environment. When it’s ready, my people are planning to move back. For now we live here. I was born here, so I would prefer to stay on Xanadu. It’s my real home.”
Jake frowned again. “But if Riza and Emily were powerful enough to bring it here, couldn’t they just, you know, snap their fingers and make it livable?”
“They could, but Riza’s not like that. She believes in letting it happen naturally. And it is happening, but slowly. When it’s ready, the New Rhean will be genuine, and not artificially created.”
“That is awesome,” Jake said, gazing up at the red planet. “I hope I get a chance to see it someday.”
“Me too,” Tryn agreed. “But for now our region will have to do. There it is.”
Jake could hardly believe what he was seeing. Up ahead, the jungle ended on a glistening shore. Then there was a wide river, and across the river stood a beautiful glistening city that went on as far as his eyes could see. There were tall buildings with slanted roofs lining busy streets. There were also what looked like a lot of parks, as trees grew around the buildings. A long suspension bridge crossed over the river and connected the city to the jungle, but there were no people or vehicles on the bridge as they approached.
“Wow,” Jake breathed. “This place reminds me of Los Angeles. But with cleaner air.”
They crossed over the water and entered the sky over the city. Tryn directed his skateboard toward the outskirts of the city. Here the buildings weren’t so tall and there were more trees, grasslands, and ponds. The streets were wide and homes lined either side.
To Jake it looked like an American neighborhood. At least it did until he saw a group of silver-skinned people looking up at them curiously.
“There’s my house,” Tryn said excitedly. “And my dad and Fiisha!”
Tryn maneuvered his skateboard until he touched down in the spacious backyard of one of the homes. A tall man was picking fruit off a tree. Beside him a large animal covered in mottled gray fur was waiting to eat any dropped fruit. It was the same animal Jake had seen in one of Tryn’s photographs the first night he’d met him. It looked even stranger in real life—like a hyena crossed with a giraffe and a hippo. The animal saw Tryn first and started to grunt and jump around.
“What is it, Fiisha?” the man asked. He turned, and his face lit up. “Tryn!”
“Dad!” Tryn jumped off his board, ran up to his father, and embraced him tightly.
This was the most excited Jake had ever seen Tryn—though he had changed a lot since they’d first met.
“What are you doing here?” his father asked.
Jake touched down and looked at the man Tryn had told him was from Earth and had once been a CRU agent. His hair was long, curly, and black, and his blue eyes twinkled with joy as he embraced his son. Jake noticed that he spoke with a thick English accent.
“Who is this?” Tryn’s father asked as he turned to Jake.
“Dad, this is Jake. He’s from Los Angeles.” Tryn went down on his knees to play with the excited animal. “He was found on Titus.” He looked up at Jake. “Jake, this is my father.”
Jake offered his hand. “Nice to meet you, Mister…?”
“Just call me Ben,” he said as he shook Jake’s hand. “What does Tryn mean you were ‘found on Titus’?”
Tryn rose and became serious. “Dad, there’s big trouble. You must call the elders together. We’re all in terrible danger. Titus has been invaded. Jupiter a
nd the council are hiding on Earth, and Riza and Emily have been abducted from here. The Mimics are going to kill them and take over the universe.”
“What?” Ben said. “Mimics? What are you talking about?”
“Let’s go inside,” Tryn said. “I want to see Mom and Triana, and then we have to talk.”
* * *
When Tryn had told Jake he had a little sister, Jake had never imagined that he meant a beautiful girl just a year younger than him. Triana was bright and outgoing and very excited to meet him. In appearance she was much like Tryn, with dark hair and deep blue eyes with bright sliver flecks. Unlike Tryn, she had double dimples in her silver cheeks and asked a thousand questions.
Tryn’s mother was stunning with her silver skin and blue hair. When Tryn first saw her, they started speaking the language of the Rheans, which to Jake was just a lot of excited squeaks, clicks, and grunts.
Tryn pulled away from his mother and brought her closer to Jake. “This is Jake.” Then he introduced his mother. “Jake, this is my mom.”
Ben stood beside his wife. “You won’t be able to pronounce her name any more than I can, so in English, we call her Tara.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Tara,” Jake said.
“And it is lovely to meet you,” Tara said with a strong accent that ended with a click at the end of the sentence.
“Come, sit,” Ben said. “Tell us everything.”
They all sat around a dining table as Jake and Tryn explained what they’d been through, from Jake’s first appearance on Titus to going to Nesso’s world and then finding Pegasus near death.
“We never knew,” Ben said. “No one reached out to us here.”
“I don’t think they could,” Tryn said. “From what I gather, the attack was fast. The Mimics took everyone.”
“Perhaps it was to stop them from warning us or seeking our help,” Tara suggested.
While they spoke, Jake asked permission to release the snakes from his pack. They were then settled on the table and joined Nesso in eating some ambrosia.
“So, you can communicate with Nesso, and their venom is deadly to the Mimics?” Tara asked as she studied the small snakes drinking nectar and eating ambrosia.
