Unleashed

by Tiffany Roberts

  He proceeded onto another road that branched off the right side of the square and was soon walking along the outside wall of the gardens. Clusters of vines and flowers hung over the top of the wall as though it were a reservoir overflowing with greenery. He entered the garden at the first archway.

  Orishok was satisfied with what he and Quinn had accomplished inside. It wasn’t anything like Kelsharn’s original plans, in which everything was balanced and precise, and every color had its place, but this was truer to life — chaotic, almost random, but lush and full. They’d used seeds and cuttings from the surrounding area to grow dozens of different plants and trees and had even received some seeds from elsewhere on Sonhadra, like the etchi seeds from the plant-like Kahav valos, and the electric and water valos, the Ghian. The etchi fruit reminded Quinn of something called chocolate and caramel, and she seemed unable to get enough of it despite its odor.

  He walked on one of the many winding paths toward Quinn’s most likely location — the field where she’d taken to growing food. He found her there on her hands and knees, digging root vegetables from the dirt and depositing them in a basket beside her.

  Orishok’s heartstone warmed and thrummed like it always did when she was near. The dirt streaking her arms and face made her all the more beautiful to him.

  “I have returned, heart of my heart, but not with the bounty I promised,” Orishok said.

  Quinn started, dropping the root in her hand and pressing a palm to her chest. “You scared me!” She laughed, dusted her hands off, and pushed herself to her feet. “I didn’t expect you to—” She turned, eyes rounding as they fell on Nina. “Um… Orishok, why are you carrying a little girl?”

  He crouched and carefully set the child on her feet. “This is Nina. She needs a place to live.”

  Quinn glanced at him before kneeling in front of the girl, a warm smile lifting her lips. “Hi, Nina. Were you out there all alone?”

  “Orishok found me.” Nina stepped closer and touched her fingers to the strands of blonde hair that had escaped Quinn’s hair tie. “He’s right. You are pretty.”

  Quinn chuckled. “Thank you. You are too.”

  “I don’t have a father, and mama died.”

  Quinn sucked in a breath, looking up at Orishok with her brows high.

  Nina thrust her hands into her hair and tugged at it. “I’m sorry! I did it again. Please don’t be scared of me!”

  “Shh.” Quinn took a gentle hold of the girl’s hands and tried to pry them from her hair. “It’s okay.”

  “Nina’s mother was changed on the Concord,” Orishok said, “and the changes passed to Nina. She can see into minds.”

  Tears had left streaks in the dirt on Nina’s cheeks by the time she finally stopped resisting Quinn and lowered her hands. Quinn drew the girl into a hug, rubbing her palm up and down Nina’s back. Nina wrapped her arms around Quinn in a desperate embrace.

  “I’m not scared,” Quinn said. “I was surprised, but not scared. It’s okay.” Her smile was touched with sadness as she looked up at Orishok, her eyes shimmering with tears. The meaningfulness of her expression struck him deeply; this child had been through so much in her short life, and she deserved safety, comfort, and happiness. Sonhadra was a harsh world, but that didn’t mean the young had to face it alone and unshielded.

  “You can stay here with us, Nina,” Quinn continued. “You’re home now.”

  Five years ago, Orishok had been gifted with Quinn. She had been the first step toward reclaiming his life despite what Kelsharn had done to him and his people. She’d become his tribe. Now, they had Nina as well, making their tribe just a little larger, making a family. Nina’s circumstances had been terrible, but now there was a chance to do right by her. To fight back a bit of the darkness in the world. To teach and grow in ways he had never considered.

  He knelt beside Quinn and drew both her and Nina into his arms. “You are part of our tribe now.”

  Chapter One

  15 Years Later

  Nina lay in the thick grass with her eyes closed and her face turned toward the warm sunlight. “You should have seen Unali today, Kreshok. Her flowers were in bloom, all covered in tiny dew drops, and the moment the morning sun shone through the trees, it set her aglow.” Nina smiled, folding her hands over her stomach. “You’d like her, I think. She’s a little shy and doesn’t talk much…but neither do you.”

  She opened her eyes and stared up at the puffy white clouds drifting across the bright blue sky. A soft breeze rustled the grass and leaves around her, blowing loose strands of her hair across her face. The quiet rasp of vegetation and the soft sighing of the wind were the only constant sounds within Bahmet.

  “If you’re interested, you should approach her soon. Dalegan has his eyes on her. In fact, he can’t stop looking at her.” She smirked to herself; though the underlying tragedy wasn’t funny, even Orishok had commented on the way Dalegan’s face had frozen while turned toward Unali’s remains.

  Kreshok made no response, not that Nina expected one. These were her people, her tribe, just as much as they were Orishok’s — the statue-like remains of them, anyway. She’d spent hours wandering the city with Orishok through the years, talking with the fallen valos as friends and family. They’d provided her comfort in that time; she never had to worry about accidentally prying in their minds or causing them inadvertent pain. There was only blissful silence. Peace.

  But today was different. Today, Nina felt oddly…hollow. Empty.

  Lonely.

  What would it feel like to have someone look at her the way she imagined Dalegan looking at Unali?

  The way Orishok looked at Quinn?

  She’d always known her parents loved each other deeply, but now that she was older, Nina found herself noticing subtler details.

  Too many details, she thought, blushing.

  “Gah!” She rubbed her eyes hard, as though it could wipe away the mental images of her parents together. Over the years, Nina had learned to block out most of the thoughts everyone unknowingly projected, but some still seeped through — especially those that were paired with particularly strong emotions. And the love and passion Quinn and Orishok shared…

  It was an undying flame, impossibly bright and fiercely heated, and Nina craved to feel that for herself. There was someone out there who could share that with her…wasn’t there?

  She sighed and dropped her hands to her sides, looking skyward again.

  She’d been plagued by nightmares for most of her life, but now that she was older, when her dreams weren’t frightening, they were the sort that left her wanting when she woke, the sort that made her body hot and achy after the imagined caress of shadowy hands and mouths. Those dreams served only to remind her of how lonely she was despite the constant companionship of her parents.

  That loneliness was her own fault. Nina had chosen to isolate herself from others. She rarely left home, preferring the serenity and solitude of Bahmet, and when her mother’s friends and their families came to visit, Nina usually hid away until they were gone.

  It was better for everyone that way. Quinn’s human friends had been aboard the same ship, and none of them and escaped without experiencing their own horrors aboard it; though their scars were different, their pain was similar. No matter how hard they tried, none of them could forget. Those traumatic memories lurked just beneath the surface of their consciousness, waiting to strike when their owners were at their most vulnerable. Waiting to strike Nina in her nightmares.

  Quinn had gently encouraged Nina to get out more. They’d gone a few times to Corfoha, the stone valos city in the mountain, when Nina was a child. While Quinn had visited with her friend Zoya, Nina had played with Zoya’s three daughters — one of whom was the same age — until one day the trio had teased her. In retrospect, their teasing had been harmless, but Nina had been so angry that she’d unintentionally emitted a mental blast to get them to stop. She would never forget their cries of pain, would never forget th
e fear and accusation in their eyes.

  Most of all, she’d never forget the disappointment in her mother’s expression. But Quinn never once punished Nina for what she’d done. As upset as she’d been, Quinn had always understood how hard Nina worked to control her power and loved her no less for her mistakes.

  Nina’s guilt over that day had never faded.

  There’d also been the trip to Utopia. Nina had gone only once, and the anxiety and panic she experienced had been crippling. She’d been young, only eight or nine years old, and her mental shields hadn’t been quite as developed as they were now. Being surrounded by so many people who’d lived violent, tortured lives had been overwhelming and terrifying.

  It’d been easier to hide at home with the two people who meant everything to her, who understood her, who loved her unconditionally. Quinn and Orishok weren’t her birth parents, but they were her mom and dad.

  “Nina!”

  Nina sat up when she heard her mother calling. “I’m here!”

  Quinn and Orishok entered Nina’s view when they came around the corner of a nearby housing unit. Quinn’s face brightened as she met Nina’s gaze, and she hurried over.

  “We’re going to visit Zoya, Rock, and Vlunn,” Quinn said and held up a hand as Nina opened her mouth to speak. “I know you don’t usually want to go, but would you please consider it? I have something I’d like to talk to you about, and I think the trip would be a good time to discuss it.”

  Orishok slowed to a stop next to Quinn. His glowing green eyes settled on Nina; their unnaturalness had frightened her the first time she’d seen him. That fear had been dispelled the moment she’d glanced into his mind.

  Despite all he’d done — all he’d been forced to do — Orishok had a kind soul.

  “I…” Nina dropped her gaze to the ground. “Not this time.”

  “Nina, you know they don’t—”

  “I can’t, Mom. Not yet.” The wariness and fear Zoya’s daughters had experienced that day remained fresh in Nina’s mind. What if she lost control again? Those people were like family to Quinn. How could Nina forgive herself if she hurt them again?

  Orishok placed a finger beneath Nina’s chin and tipped her face back up. “You cannot allow it to make you afraid, Nina.”

  “I know,” she said, taking his hand in hers. His was a touch that could kill with a thought, but he’d shown her nothing but gentleness. She squeezed his hand; he was her father, her lifeline. “I’m just not ready.”

  “Oh, Nina… That was years ago, and it was an accident. Everyone was fine, and you’ve grown so much since then.”

  “I just… I can’t. I can’t…”

  …can’t face them.

  Orishok frowned. “I do not enjoy leaving you here alone.”

  “I’m safe here. I’ve always been safe here. And you’ve taught me how to protect myself in case anyone trespasses.”

  His frown deepened. He didn’t have to voice his thoughts — and Nina didn’t need to read his mind — for her to know what he was thinking. A significant portion of his hundreds of years in Bahmet had been spent alone and unfeeling until Quinn had come. Orishok’s touch had meant death, so he’d isolated himself from the world. His power — power he’d never wanted, had never asked for — had controlled him for so long.

  He worried that Nina, in her own way, was following the same path.

  Nina couldn’t argue that; she harbored the same fear.

  “We just want you to be happy,” Quinn said, placing a hand on Nina’s shoulder and giving it a gentle squeeze.

  Nina’s eyes teared up. “I am happy. You’ve given me a life I would never have had otherwise.”

  Orishok wiped a tear from her cheek with his thumb. “And still you deserve more,” he said softly.

  “When we get back, we need to talk, all right?” Quinn said, searching Nina’s eyes. “It’s something I’ve wanted to bring up for a while, and… I just want us to figure it out before it becomes an issue.”

  “We can talk now, Mom.”

  Quinn smiled and shook her head. “It can wait a little longer. Don’t worry about it. When we get back will be soon enough.”

  “Be safe, child,” Orishok said. “We will return in a few days’ time.”

  Nina nodded and threw her arms around her father before he could step away. His body was hard — he wasn’t made of flesh and blood, after all — but she didn’t care. She hugged him tightly. “I love you.”

  He drew both Nina and Quinn into an embrace. “And I love you, my heart.”

  When Orishok pulled away, Nina gave her mother a quick hug and watched her parents walk away until they disappeared around the corner of a building.

  Brushing her damp eyes, she looked at Kreshok. “Am I a coward, Kreshok?”

  He said nothing, but he didn’t have to; Nina knew the answer. She was hiding from life, keeping herself locked behind the walls of Bahmet where she knew she’d be safe, loved, and protected by the two people who meant the most to her. But she didn’t have anyone else.

  She felt like she was only living a partial life, a half-empty life. If she stayed here forever, she’d never find a mate, would never know the kind of love her parents shared. But in Utopia…

  In Utopia, there were many humans. Humans her age, humans who could provide a different sort of companionship.

  “I could go to Utopia,” she said. “I could find someone there.”

  She imagined Kreshok asking her about her psychic abilities.

  “I’m in control now. I know how to block out their thoughts. Well, mostly. I just…just need someone who can look past all that, someone who’ll talk to me, someone who I can touch and who will touch me back.”

  She felt oddly guilty speaking those words aloud, even if Kreshok wasn’t alive to hear them. But apart from her parents, these long-dead valos were her only friends.

  “Do you think mom and dad would be worried if they came back to find me gone?”

  Stupid question. Of course they would be.

  Why not go to Corfoha? The thought came in what she thought of as Kreshok’s voice, deep and raspy.

  “I don’t want to go to Corfoha. They know me there. They’ll…they’ll remember what I did.” She cringed and shook her head. “No one knows me in Utopia. It’d be a fresh start. And this would be my decision; I’d be doing this on my own.”

  Kreshok’s usual silence continued, leaving only the sound of wind and rustling leaves.

  “You’re not much help.” She sighed and drew in a deep, steadying breath. “Okay. I’ll leave them a note.” Stepping away, she called over her shoulder, “Better make your move on Unali while I’m gone, or Dalegan will make his first.”

  Nina followed the stone-paved streets through the city. She greeted every valo she passed by name, offering each a smile. When she reached home, she wasted no time in gathering supplies for the journey. Though it was only two or three days to Utopia, she packed a bit more than she’d need, making sure to include extra food, a fire starter, and a spare knife.

  She’d grown up on Sonhadra and had traversed the lands around Bahmet with her father for years. She knew the way to Utopia, knew almost every inch of land between it and her home, but she also knew Sonhadra was dangerous to everyone, no matter how skilled. It was always better to be prepared for what could happen than to be unequipped for what did happen.

  Nina strapped on her belt and dagger, slung her bag over her shoulder, and left a note on Quinn’s slate board before grabbing a spear and heading out. Excitement thrummed within her. She could do this. She would prove to her parents that she was strong enough, that she wasn’t scared.

  She’d prove to herself that she wasn’t a coward.

  When she reached the place where the barren path out of the city met the first vegetation, Nina’s steps faltered. She’d crossed this border countless times since Bahmet became her home, but this was different. Now she was leaving. In her fifteen years here, she’d never left to search for anyth
ing other than food, whether by hunting or foraging, and had never done so alone. This was a search like she’d never undertaken — a search for people, conducted without the protection her parents provided.

  Nina hated that she was so scared.

  There are good people in this world.

  Quinn’s friends from the Concord — Zoya, Lydia, Preta, Charlie, Lucie, Aveline, Deja, Yahiro, Amber, and Kira — were proof of that. Some of them had done bad things, but they were good people despite those past actions. Many of the people of Utopia were likely similar; in their old lives, they might’ve been criminals, but here they were just survivors coming together to thrive, just people working hard to earn everything they had. Nina just needed to set aside her anxiety and self-doubts to break past her own crippling fear.

  Nina wasn’t the only one who was different. Many of the humans who’d been imprisoned on the Concord had been changed, just like the Creators had changed the valos from what they had been into what they were now. Some of the humans had passed their changes to their children; it was in their makeup, in their blood. Nina wasn’t the only one with superhuman powers. It was even possible there were other people out there with the same abilities as her.

  There was no sense in worrying about all that now; this was the easy part of her journey. She’d known these woods since she was a toddler. Though many of the things lurking within the trees were frightening, they were all things she’d dealt with before — wild beasts, tripping roots, unseen pitfalls. They were familiar fears. She was confident in her abilities. Her father had taught her well.

  The hard part would be when she emerged on the far side of the forest to find the walls of Utopia standing before her.

  Taking in a deep breath, Nina stepped into the grass. The blades whispered against her legs as she approached the tree line. She released a shaky exhalation when she passed between two twisted trunks and entered the shade of the canopy. Leaves rustled overhead in the gentle breeze, branches creaked softly all around, and distant animals made their calls. The safety of Bahmet was behind her now.