The Gathering

by K. E. Ganshert

  Desperate times call for desperate measures.

  What sort of desperate measures will the government go to when it comes to the nation’s refugees?

  “Effective today, trained health care professionals will travel door-to-door to test each individual in the home. If any one member of the household is infected, every person inside that home will go into immediate quarantine. We cannot stress enough how imperative it is that you remain calm and give us your complete cooperation. Please wait patiently until a professional arrives to administer the screening.”

  Screening.

  My breath comes quicker. I stand on shaky legs and move closer, staring at the man on the screen. He sits with his hands folded neatly on the desk in front of him. “Who is he?”

  “The Surgeon General,” Cap says.

  President Cormack takes over—espousing her usual crap. Something about uniting together for the greater good. I don’t pay attention. I’m too busy staring at the Surgeon General. At the very end of the broadcast, he straightens his notes and I find what I’m looking for—the mark. On the inside of his wrist.

  I found the physician.

  And the death knell is sounding.

  Chapter Forty-Six

  An Unexpected Twist

  With the nation in chaos, all forms of communication have been disrupted. Even our expert hackers—Link and Ronie—have a difficult time getting through to anyone to verify what I already know. This virus is the final blow—the death knell mentioned in the prophecy. The symbol on the Surgeon General’s wrist is the only verification I need.

  Cap drops a plate of food in front of me on the table in the investigation room. “Eat.”

  I’m not hungry, but I obey orders. If I’m right—and I know that I am—then I will need my strength. Halfway through the bagel, Ronie enters the room with a ream of paper in hand. “We received confirmation that at least two refugee communities have been wiped out.”

  It’s happening. The Gifting has been herded into the United States and now they’re being exterminated. I think about those little barefooted kids playing on top of trash heaps and nausea balls my stomach into a tight fist.

  Felix taps the eraser of his pencil against the tabletop. “And the screening? Do we know what it entails?”

  “We’re still working on that.”

  I force the last of my meal down and push the plate away. “There’s no virus.” I’d bet my life on it, along with every other life in this room. Considering Link and Luka are among them, I’m obviously more than sure. “The screening is the same one used on pregnant women. The same one used on immigrants and refugees. This virus is a ploy. A convenient way to identify everyone who’s part of The Gifting.”

  Glenda wipes her nose with a tissue. “Wouldn’t the public realize nobody’s dying? Wouldn’t doctors?”

  “How can they when everything is shut down?” Luka says.

  “Exactly.” My knee begins to bounce. Cap was right. The food has helped me focus. “The media has everyone holed up inside their homes, convinced they’ll either contract a deadly virus or be shot on sight if they go outside. All they know is what the media’s feeding them and we know who’s controlling the media.”

  “What are we to do then?” Lexi asks.

  Everyone looks to Felix, our leader. But Felix sits there, his fingers steepled beneath his chin, and defers to me. I don’t shrink away. I sit up straighter. For my dad. “We’ll need Joe to take care of the Surgeon General.”

  Felix picks up the walkie-talkie and tells Joanna to pass along the message.

  I stand and move to the board. The eye. The censor. The idol. All three have been eliminated. The physician will soon follow. All that remains is the king. I turn around and face the group. “It’s time to go after Cormack.”

  Felix nods at me over his fingers, his dark eyes glittering with approval.

  “We have to free her successfully. She needs to come out of this alive, with full understanding of what’s been happening. Otherwise nothing will change. Not the rehab facilities. Not the pregnancy screenings. Not the refugee communities. If Cormack dies or checks herself in to a rehab facility due to lapses in memory, this genocide will continue until every last member of The Gifting is dead.” And if that happens, evil will have free reign. The world as we know it will end. “We need her on our side so she can uncover what’s happening, and then put a stop to it once and for all.”

  The planning begins.

  We’ve done this twice before, neither time successfully. With B-Trix, my weird shield broke the dream apart and chased the hijacker away before we had a chance to explain anything. Sure, we freed her, but it didn’t do any good. She had no idea what was happening, and she ended up dead. I tap the dry erase marker against my palm. “What went wrong with Chief Fredrick?”

  “We didn’t follow through.”

  Everybody looks at Connal, who sits at the table, fiddling with a switch knife.

  “Think about it. Fredrick was one of the key players, wasn’t he? Of course they’d be prepared. He was probably being guarded. They killed him off as soon as he woke up, before he could say a bloody word to anyone. It’s not enough to free Cormack. We need guards of our own. Someone who can get her to safety.”

  Lexi raises a skeptical brow. “Oh, is that it?”

  “We have a secret service bodyguard on our side,” Cap says. “He’s ready to help.”

  I shake my head, because it’s not enough. If our botched mission at Shady Wood is proof of anything, it’s that the enemy has numbers on their side. Those white-eyed soldiers came out of nowhere when we were attempting to free my grandmother and Clive, and at the time, neither were actually on our team. How many more will be there, surrounding Cormack—the king? “The enemy has to know we’re going after the list. Cormack is going to be heavily guarded.”

  Felix drums his fingers together. “What are you suggesting?”

  The room grows quiet, but the answer is obvious. At least to me.

  “We bring our own army.” I look at Link, feeling more and more alive by the second. “While our team is freeing Cormack, you can find the doorway. Once you find it, you can link up two people at a time and bring them through. As soon as they’re out of the dream, you sever the link and grab two more. When we’ve done our job with Cormack, we can pass through before the dream collapses. We’ll have numbers on our side. If the enemy is there, we’ll be able to fight.”

  “I can grab Anna first,” Link says, his excitement matching mine. “She’ll be able to keep everyone hidden.”

  “We can go tonight.”

  “Hold on a second.” Cap raises his arm like a traffic cop. “You just woke up from a three-day coma. Don’t you think you ought to give yourself time to recuperate?”

  “You heard the Surgeon General. The screening has already started. Two refugee communities have been wiped out.” Urgency presses me forward, but Cap eyes me in a way that brings me back to the hub. I was foolhardy once before, rushing into plans without considering all the ramifications. It nearly lost me Luka.

  This time, though, we know who we’re rescuing. And we know what we’re up against. I understand Cap’s concern. Up until that bagel, I could barely walk on my own. Now, however, enough adrenaline courses through my veins, I’m pretty sure I could take on Felix, Cap, and Lexi at once. “Let’s go spar in the dream simulator. If you’re still concerned about my strength, then we’ll wait. But I don’t think you will be.”

  Link catches my eye with a lopsided grin.

  Cap, however, still looks unconvinced.

  “Let’s not forget,” Felix says, “that our fearless leader will have the protection of our newest team member.”

  The announcement comes like a hiccup. “Newest team member?”

  Felix inclines his head toward the boy sitting beside me. The one with the messy hair and three day’s worth of scruff and a mysterious ace bandage wrapped around his right hand. The one who’s supposed to be safe, because he’s no
t going on any missions. My heartbeat goes slightly erratic. Why would he be on the team? There’s absolutely no reason for him to come. “I don’t understand.”

  It happens incredibly fast.

  One second, Connal is leaning back in his seat. The next, he flicks open the blade of his knife and whips it directly at my face. I don’t have time to react, but it doesn’t matter. I don’t need to. There’s a flash of light—so bright everyone in the room covers their eyes. The knife clatters to the table, thwarted from its trajectory.

  I stare at Luka. His green eyes are glued to mine, blazing brighter than the blast of heat that lit the room. The blast of heat that came from him. He threw a shield like it required no effort at all.

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  A Choice

  The room has gone quiet.

  Luka studies me with his head slightly cocked. It’s the same way he studied me my first day at Thornsdale, when I was the new girl. Like he’s trying to read my thoughts. I’m glad he can’t. He wouldn’t like them. My body goes from hot to cold, feverish to clammy—back and forth, like a broken thermostat. “When?”

  “Three days ago.”

  I stare back at him. Three days ago, I destroyed Scarface.

  “I woke up and it was back. All of it. I didn’t understand why until you wouldn’t wake up.”

  Cap rubs his jaw. “We could make a pretty good guess at what happened.”

  “How?”

  “Vivian Rivard told you that Samson found a tumor on Luka’s soul.”

  All the feverish heat in my body pools in my face. I never told Luka that bit of information. I did, however, relay it to Cap via our handy dandy dream phone. I guess I’ve been keeping more secrets than I realize.

  Cap continues. “When you destroyed the individual that left the tumor, you destroyed the tumor as well. It’s what bound Luka’s gifting as your Keeper.”

  The bagel in my stomach churns. I clamp my lips together to keep it down. I destroyed Scarface to protect the people I love. To keep them safe. Somehow, the opposite has happened. Luka has his powers back, which means …

  “You’re looking kind of chalky, Xena,” Link says.

  I swallow the saliva accumulating in my mouth. “Just trying to catch up.”

  “Why don’t we catch up in the dojo? If we’re going on the mission tonight, I want to make sure you’re up for it.” Cap reverses his wheelchair from the table.

  I want to tell him never mind. I take it back. I’m not ready to go tonight. I’m not ready to go ever. But I can’t find my voice. So I follow him with a growing sense of dread.

  As soon as we’re inside, I pour out my mounting anxiety on my two opponents—Lexi and Cap. Connal and Luka stand on opposite sides, watching intently. I pay no attention to the two-person audience. I drum up every ounce of strength in my possession, because maybe if I can drum up enough, the thing barreling toward me—the thing threatening to paralyze me—won’t be a thing at all. Maybe I can be stronger than the prophecy.

  Cap jabs.

  I flip backward, out of reach, then spin around, the heel of my foot hitting Lexi’s jaw with such force, she drops to the floor.

  Connal steps forward. “Easy.”

  Lexi glares at him, then wipes her cheek and clambers to her feet.

  She and Cap circle me like the thoughts in my head. A hidden genocide. Unprecedented peace. The beacon, giving hope for freedom. The Gifting, being led like sheep to the slaughter. The One with the ability to see evil’s mark. The sound of the death knell. All of them, prophecies. All of them, fulfilled.

  Victory must come through sacrifice.

  The thing barreling toward me comes closer.

  Transurgence.

  Kataphagon.

  Luka as dead as Gabe.

  I dodge a high kick from Cap, spin in a quick circle and swipe his legs so fiercely he falls flat on his back with a loud oomph. Lexi throws a punch, but I catch her arm, twist her around, flip her over my body. Her eyes widen as I cock my fist back.

  A burst of light erupts in the dojo and hurtles toward me.

  Another blast follows the first—bigger and brighter—from the opposite side of the room. The two collide in an explosion of heat.

  Lexi tears off her gloves. “Stop being a wanker, Connal. We’re just sparring.”

  “Yer sparring, sure. She’s trying to murder ye.”

  My lungs heave.

  Cap sits up and sets his elbows on his knees, sweat pouring down his face. “I think it’s safe to say your strength is fine.”

  I look at Luka, who threw the second shield to stop Connal’s from hitting me, and I pull my gloves off, too. I can’t keep it inside any longer. I have to know. “What did you and Gabe do during your training?”

  His brow puckers. “Why?”

  “I want to know what he taught you.”

  “You know what he taught me. How to throw a shield. How to cloak you. How to stop you from dreaming.”

  “You’ve already told me about those things.”

  “What do you want to know, then?”

  “The things he taught you that you haven’t told me about.”

  Luka avoids my eyes.

  “You know what Gabe did, don’t you?”

  He doesn’t answer.

  But of course he does. If he didn’t know, he would have asked me about it. He would have obsessed over it. Neither of us said a word to each other about how Gabe died. I close the gap between us and force him to look at me. “Luka?”

  His eyes fasten on mine, only they’re no longer tortured. They are determined and confident.

  It absolutely terrifies me. “Promise me you will never do that.”

  “I don’t need to. Look at you, Tess. You’re stronger than ever. You defeated one of our biggest enemies on your own. With no help. You didn’t just fight him. You destroyed him. I’m pretty sure nobody’s done that before.”

  “That’s not a promise.”

  He stares down at me, his eyes filled with sympathy, but he doesn’t give me what I want.

  “You’ll die.”

  “And you’ll live.”

  The heat billowing in my chest grows hotter. I turn away, fear and desperation clawing and scraping at my soul, frantically scrambling for a solution. A way out. I don’t want to do this anymore. I’ve changed my mind. We need to abort the mission. We need—

  “Are you two going on about transurgence?” Lexi asks. “Because if you are, you have a choice too, you know.”

  “Lex.” Connal says her name in a low growl.

  She tosses him an eye roll. “Oh, sod it, Connal. There should always be a choice.”

  I’ve seen him upset with her before, on multiple occasions. Connal is generally an easy-going guy, but his anima gets under his skin in a big way. Her rejections frustrate him. Her stubbornness drives him crazy. But the look he’s wearing right now is different. His nostrils are flared. His legs planted wide.

  I turn to Lexi. “What do you mean?”

  “Just because he chooses to transurge doesn’t mean you have to accept the sacrifice.”

  “What?” Luka’s monosyllabic question escapes like a yelp more than a word.

  Connal swears. “Dry up, Lex.”

  “You dry up. She deserves to know. It’s a choice for both parties involved.” Her eyes flash at her Keeper. “You can choose to give me your life and I can choose to reject it.”

  “Just like I can choose to give you my love and you can choose to reject that?”

  “It’s not love.”

  Connal swears again, his round face going crimson. I’m pretty sure it’s not from embarrassment.

  “Will he live?” I ask.

  The two quarrelers stop their bickering.

  “If I reject it, does he live?”

  Lexi ignores Connal’s death stare and raises her chin. “Yes.”

  “That’s grand,” Connal says, “and then we’ll all be in the grave. A Keeper doesn’t do transurgence fer nothing. We do it
only when it’s absolutely necessary.”

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  The Whole Thing

  I stride through Headquarters, desperate to get away from Luka’s and Cap’s and Connal’s objections. I need space. I need quiet. I need to think. I barge inside my room to Joanna tweezing her eyebrows in front of our mirror. Luka follows me inside and grabs my arm—to get me to stop, to get me to listen.

  I pull away, not wanting to do either.

  Joanna’s tweezers freeze. She gapes like a fish. “You’re awake.”

  “Unfortunately.”

  She looks from me to Luka. Tension rolls off his body in waves. I’m sure she’s trying to figure out why the pair of us seem so furious about my wakeful state. “I’ll, uh, just give you two some privacy.” She drops her tweezers inside her bag and slips out of the room.

  Luka turns on me. “You can’t reject it. That isn’t an option.”

  “According to Lexi, it is an option.”

  “Not one you would take.”

  “Why not?”

  “You have bigger things than my life to consider. You’re not my Keeper. You said so yourself. It’s not a luxury you have.”

  “I said that when you weren’t at risk of dying.” When transurgence was off the table. When protecting him meant sparing his feelings, not his life. Darkness swirls inside of me, gathering like storm clouds. “I already lost my dad, Luka. I can’t lose you, too.”

  “What about your mom? And Pete? You think either of them can lose you?”

  “What about your parents?”

  “I already told you. I stopped considering their feelings as soon as they tried having you locked up in mental rehab facility.”

  “They’re still your parents. Your mom risked everything to give you life. You should value it more.”

  Luka releases a frustrated growl and rakes his hands through his hair. “This is stupid. We’re fighting over something that might not even happen.”

  “You read the prophecy—victory requires sacrifice.”

  “We don’t know what that means.”