“You don’t know if you’re right, let alone what you’re looking for,” I retorted.
He flung the rock over the edge, and grabbed another.
“At least that would have been useful,” he said, tossing the rock up in the air and catching it. “Unlike your other little project.”
“You mean the one keeping us from running out of water.” I glared at him. “You know full well how important that is.”
He nodded. “Yeah, important enough it got someone’s attention. Now look what happened.”
“It could just as easily have been you,” I said.
“No, you heard that Seeker. He specifically mentioned your and Father’s little project.” He flung the rock away and reached for another. “And now here we are. Stuck out here when we should be doing something.”
“And what would you do?” I asked.
He nodded off to the west.
“Go searching for them in the only place out here we know people get taken to.”
My eyes narrowed as I stared at him.
“People avoid that place for good reason,” I stated. “What do you hope to accomplish going there?”
“We don’t have to go all the way.” He pointed back north of us. “Just to a water station near it. We can use a terminal to do some snooping.” He shrugged. “Bah, we could do something. Anything.”
He fell silent, walking around in a big circle and grabbing rocks as he went to send them flying off the edge. I contemplated his words, but couldn’t see anyway to accomplish anything or even if he could be right. Part of me wanted him to be, but I knew better. We were so focused on ourselves—Donovan on his pacing and rock throwing, me on contemplating my life—we never heard the raiders approach.
"Drop the rock," a voice said from right behind us.
I started and jumped up, spinning to see who had spoken. A man in clothes one might see anywhere in the Outer Dominances—non-descript colors, flowing body scarf, and a hood—stood there. The only thing that stood out was his eye patch and once-broken nose. He held a pulse gun trained on Donovan, nodding at my brother to drop the rock he held.
Donovan looked at the rock then at me. I started to shake my head, but the next instant he flung it right at the man’s head. The rock hit its mark, sending the man tumbling to the ground, one hand going to his head, the other dropping his weapon.
“Donovan!” I yelled as another man rushed down toward us.
My brother dove toward the first man and, when he stood up, he held the man’s gun in his hand. The charging raider lunged at him, but Donovan brought the firearm to bear and fired a shot square into his chest. A burst of electricity exploded in his chest as he fell past Donovan, his body convulsing from the attack.
“What are you doing?” I asked, grabbing at him.
He swung the weapon around and fired another shot behind me. I spun to see another man tumbling down the hill.
“Move!” he yelled, grabbing my arm and shoving me away from the three downed men.
A rock exploded near me as I stumbled forward, and I heard Donovan grunting as he followed. Shot after shot echoed in the night air as more rocks exploded around us. I heard more men fall as I raced away from the gully we’d stopped in.
A man stood up from behind a rock, a gun leveled at me.
“Freeze!” he yelled.
I stumbled to a halt and Donovan crashed into me. The collision knocked the gun from his hand as he was bringing it around to aim at the man.
“Back away from it,” the man ordered, waving his gun at us.
My sibling and I did so and, as we did, more raiders appeared in the night as fast as the dragons had earlier that day. When they did, I remember thinking it strange we’d managed to not get shot by so many of them. They were a motley bunch of gashed faces, torn, non-descript clothing, and pulse guns. A few were missing teeth, and one had a hole in his cheek I didn't care to contemplate too much.
They herded us back toward where the raiders had been knocked down by Donovan. The first man was up again, one hand pressed to his head.
"Well, well, ya two do make an odd pair to be getting such attention," the first man said. "First, ya get all tangled up in Seekers. Then ya escape a dragon raid. And now ya manage to elude more Seekers." He leveled a glare at Donovan. “And bold to boot. I’ve a mind to be done with ya right now, but I like that in a man.” He shook a finger at my brother. “But ya try that stunt again.“ He jerked a thumb over his shoulder. “I’ll toss ya off the shell, got it?”
I glanced at Donovan, arching one eyebrow. He nodded then just stared at the man.
"Too bad for them we found ya first, eh, Seekers?" he asked, calling over his shoulder.
I looked up to see more men appearing over the top of the ridge. Other raiders came into view, pulse guns out and trained on two men walking among them. I stared in shock at who stood there.
Quentin and Suyef.
#
"Well, Seeker?" the raider asked. "Are these the two ya're after?"
Quentin nodded. "My thanks for finding them. Now, if you turn them over to our custody, we'll be sure to not mention you in our report."
The raider burst out laughing, joined by most of his crew. "Word of a Seeker is about as good as what ya get from a psychic: means different things to different people." He stopped laughing, his face going hard. "Except when a Seeker threatens ya." He turned to look at Quentin. "Ya wouldn't be threatening us, now would ya?"
Quentin held up both hands. "No one is threatening anyone here. We'll just take these two and be gone."
"And what do Seekers want with a couple of Edgers?"
"That's Seeker business," Quentin replied, stepping forward. "They can hardly be of good value to you."
The raider waved a hand at Donovan. "He'll fetch a hefty load of cash, healthy one like him." He gave my brother a glare. “And ya think I’m gonna part with him after what he done to me?” He shook his head, then grinned lasciviously at me. "Her, well, ya can imagine what we'll sell her for."
Donovan growled, moving between the raider and me. I grabbed at his shoulders to calm him, but hid myself from the raider's wandering eyes behind my brother.
"What, ya have something to say?" the raider asked, staring at my brother, nostrils flaring.
"Donovan," I whispered, "don't."
My brother's fist clenched, and he stopped moving forward. He didn't take his eyes off the lead raider, however.
"Don't need ya to look pretty for someone to pay." The raider waved a hand about his head. "If ya feel like expressing yaself again, my boys will gladly have a 'talk' with ya."
All the raiders chuckled, several tossing some jibes in. Donovan looked at them all and shook his head, stepping back from the lead raider and looking down. The pair that Donovan had shot had stood up at last, moving behind the leader and glaring at him.
"See, Seeker, provincials know thar place." The leader turned to look at Quentin. "Thanks to you lot for that bit."
"We'll pay you for the pair," Quentin said. "As soon as we get near an outpost, we can have the currency transferred."
The leader barked another laugh. "Yah, and a squad of Seekers to carry it, no doubt." He spat to the side. "That's what I think of that idea."
Quentin looked over at me, and I could see his mind working even at this distance. I shook my head and shrugged. He frowned and looked at Suyef, who stood ignoring everything and everyone around him.
"The way I see it, Seeker," the leader continued, "not much of a trade here."
"If you won't sell them to us, we'll be on our way then."
The leader laughed and nodded at his men, who, as one, turned their weapons on the pair.
"Oh, I don't think so."
"You can't possibly think we'll go quietly," Quentin scoffed at the leader, but Suyef laid a hand on his shoulder and shook his head once.
"I don't think even two Seekers'd stand up to this many pulse guns
at once." The leader shook his head. "No, see, we can't have ya going back to yar Seeker friends and telling them about us. Leads to problems our employer likes to avoid."
"Your employer?"
"If ya're lucky, ya might meet him. He's a particular distaste for Seekers." The leader chuckled. "S'not a meeting I'd be eager for."
He barked a few orders, and his men hustled the four of us together. The raiders gagged the two Seekers, but left my brother and me unmolested. We kept quiet, nevertheless, as we waited. Older, dilapidated speeder mounts appeared from the surrounding area, but I saw no sign of Quentin and Suyef’s mounts. Clearly, the leader hoped to find them, as he kept sending his men out to search.
After almost a chron, exasperated as his men set off in a new direction, the leader came over and removed the gag from Quentin's mouth. "Where're they hidden?"
Quentin shrugged. "Somewhere inconvenient for you."
"Mind your tongue, Seeker," the leader growled, nostrils flaring. "Remember, I don't need ya to look pretty for the selling."
"I doubt you'll fetch any price for a Seeker," Quentin replied, shrugging. "No one will take the risk."
The leader knelt down to be eye level with Quentin. "No one said they had to know where ya came from, either.” He reached up and grabbed Quentin's cloak below his neck in a fist, pulling him closer. "Now, where're those mounts?"
"I told you already. Somewhere inconvenient."
The leader scowled, shoving Quentin back and standing up as another raider rushed over to replace the gag. The leader moved a short distance away and stopped, staring off into the night. On a whim, I stood up and walked over to him, drawing a disinterested eye.
"I assume you tracked us most of the day?" He nodded. "Did you witness what happened earlier?" Another silent nod. "Did you happen to track anyone else that got away from the attack?"
The leader gazed at me for a moment, eyes narrowed. Finally, he shook his head.
"People don't usually come outta such things," he whispered. "We stayed away in hopes they'd ignore us. We went closer after the beasts left to see if anything was salvageable."
"That's when you saw us," I said.
He nodded. "I'll not lie and say I wasn't stunned. Like I said, no one walks away from such things." He stared at me for a moment. "Why'd they leave ya? I'd wager that makes ya even more valuable to my employer."
I shrugged and returned to my seat. Donovan and Quentin both shot questioning glances at me, but I ignored them. Huddling close to my brother, knees gathered to my chest, my mind got lost in thoughts about my younger brother. Still, part of me couldn't help but ask myself the same question, pondering the possible answers. Why had the dragons left us? Why take everyone else, including Maryn, and leave the two of us behind? No answers came, and a little more of the hope inside me withered and died.
#
I set my stylus down, massaging my writing hand as Micaela stood and stretched. Even that she managed to do with a grace that filled me jealousy.
“Why did Donovan attack them?” I inquired.
She shrugged. “He thought he was defending us.”
“But attacking the raiders?” I shook me head. “What did he hope that would do?”
“I think part of him hoped if we could get away, we might carry on with his plan.” She cocked an eyebrow at me. “People do foolish things sometimes.”
"So you contend the Queen left you for a purpose?" I asked.
She glanced over at me. "I never said it was the Queen."
I frowned at her. "There's only one dragon in the world that fits the size you described. Especially among the greens."
"True, but I never said it was her. You shouldn't jump to conclusions."
I dipped my head. "My apologies."
"That said, it looked like her," Micaela said, a small smirk darting across her lips. "At least, it did to my untrained eye. As to whether or not it was, you’ll have to ask her. Regardless, they acted on her direction, I’ve no doubt of that. And yes, I suspect she had them leave us on purpose."
"Why?"
She shrugged. "Why does the Queen do what she does?"
"For the good of all her people," I replied without hesitation.
Micaela nodded once. "A very apt description. And, has she ever deviated from that pattern? To your knowledge?" I shook my head. "So, I stand by the statement: she did it on purpose."
"So, you know where Maryn is then?"
"We're getting ahead of the story."
I held up a hand to forestall her continuing. "Come now, High One." Her glare stalled me. "My apologies. Micaela. Come now, you can tell me that much, yes?"
She stared at me for a moment before nodding once. "I do know where he is."
I smiled. "Good, he's alive then. So there's hope."
The look that filled her eyes all but drained the good feeling I felt at discovering Maryn's fate. She stared at me, those eyes a deep, sorrowful pool of pain and loss. In that moment, it was very clear that this woman was not to be buoyed by such good news.
As if reading my mind, Micaela said, "Don't let my inability to see the joy in a small thing such as this put out the light you felt." She looked down at the table. "I long for the days when the little things made me happy."
I kept my eyes on her for a few long moments. After a brief silence, she nodded and resumed her seat. "Where were we?"
"Hope withering."
#
The leader gave up his search for the Seeker mounts after what seemed half the night. With the four of us strapped on behind some of the raiders, the group set off into the darkness, traveling along the shell's edge. The dim light made it impossible to see, but somehow the raider piloting our mount knew where to go, dodging in and out of gullies, rocky formations, and along ridges that rose up along the way. It was hard to tell our speed, but it felt fast. I saw nothing that could give me even a frame of reference and so gave up, closing my eyes and leaning in tight to the raider's back.
At some point, I fell asleep, as the next thing my mind registered was the ropes being removed and something pulling me forcefully from the mount. I tried to blink my eyes open, but someone shoved a hood over my head, blocking my sight. A rope appeared in my hand and someone barked instructions not to let go. A tug on the rope pulled me into a walk and a trance of sightless walking and listening for any sign of where we were. Not much light peeked in through the fabric or up from around my neck, so it was still night. Once or twice, my ears caught murmurs from people as we passed them but nothing more. The surface we walked on was smooth, at least, free of rocks or steps. For that, I remember being grateful.
After a blind march that went on for quite a while, I collided with a halted figure and came to a stop. Someone came and took my hands from the rope, guiding me off to one side. With a jerk, the hood yanked clear, and dim light filled my eyes. I blinked away pain in my head and looked around. A room lacking any decor greeted me, the walls a solid gray and a single small window with thick-paned glass set in the wall opposite the door. Two beds stood on either side, more shelves than beds, really, jutting out from the wall with a sleeping pad set atop and a pillow and folded blanket set at each end. To my left stood a door marked "Lavatory," which led to a small cubby. To my right, another was marked "Changing Room." Someone pushed me forward into the quarters, and I looked over my shoulder as one of the raiders led someone else in, head still covered. A jerk of the hood and the raider left Quentin standing with me. The door slid shut behind him, his hands bound together in front of him, a gag still in his mouth. I stepped close and removed the gag.
"Thanks," he muttered, working his jaw a bit. "Sparse living quarters, I see."
I glanced up at him while untying his hands. He looked around with those bright blue eyes before settling them on me. I looked back at my work and finished freeing him.
"Why put me with you?" I asked, moving to one bed and sitting.
He shrugged. "Not enou
gh space to put everyone in separate rooms?"
"Why not put me with my brother?"
"Keep you separated from a friend." He shook his head. "I'm just guessing, here. They might not even know you two are related. I'm shocked we're not all in cells or at least separate rooms. Could really be any reason."
I sighed, lying down on the bed. Exhaustion struck me hard. Something fell over me like a warm cloak, and I cuddled it close, rolling onto my stomach. Only then did I notice Quentin moving away from the bed. A glance over my shoulder revealed a blanket across my back.
"Thanks," I murmured, drifting off to what every ounce of me hoped would be a dreamless sleep.
It wasn't.
Chapter 10 - The Warden
I ripped myself from a frightful dream, shielding my eyes against the light. Quentin sat on the bed opposite me. My heart raced, and my eyes darted about the room, breath coming in short gasps. I pressed a hand to my face and leaned back onto the pillow, eyes closed shut.
"Bad dreams?"
I nodded in answer.
"Must have been. You've been fitful most of the time I've watched."
I peeked an eye open, mild discomfort shooting through my head from the light. "You watched me all night?"
He shook his head. "No, I slept. Just less than you." He nodded at the window. "Woke up after night lifted. I never sleep well if it's not dark." He returned his gaze to me. "You fell asleep fast, but started thrashing about soon after that."
I nodded, taking in a deep breath. It felt good, so I did it again, flushing the negative feelings out when my lungs exhaled. My stomach growled a complaint about its current state. Quentin smiled and tossed a nutrient pack at me.
"They dropped those off after the night screen lifted. Base flavor, nothing too tasty." He nodded toward the door. "Cups in the lavatory, if you're thirsty."
I sat up, ripped into the nutrient pack, and consumed it in a rush. The squishy gel filled my stomach, and a sigh of relief escaped my lips as I leaned back against the wall, facing Quentin. He stared out the mottled glass that served as the room's only window while I looked about the quarters, pondering the predicament.
Rise: Tears (Future Worlds Book 1) Page 9
