Exceptional

by Jess Petosa

“Here you go. I’ll give you a few extra just in case. But in my opinion, Allona, you have always been able to do great things with out being Exceptional.”

  “Thanks, Sir,” she said. She pushed herself out of the chair and walked over to the door, knowing that she needed to find the others and leave.

  “Oh, and Allona,” the old man added.

  She turned. “Yes?”

  “My name is Kemp.”

  WHEN ALLY RETURNED TO HER HOUSE, Stosh, Sabine, and Willow were all waiting. Willow’s eyes were looking less glazed over and she even smiled when she saw Ally.

  “Are we ready?” Ally asked.

  Stosh nodded, handing her a pack. “As ready as we’ll ever be.”

  They cut through town and entered the woods on the north side, taking one last look back at the settlement. Ally knelt down by a large oak tree that marked one of the four corners of their settlement. Ordinarys had been carving their names into it for centuries, and the trunk was crowded with the writing.

  She pulled a knife from her pack and carved her mother’s name into one of the few empty spaces she could find. “I’m sorry I couldn’t save you mother.”

  Stosh came up beside her and put a hand on her shoulder. “Do you think the others will leave? Do you think they’ll head south like you asked?”

  Ally turned her back on the settlement and stepped into the woods. “I hope so, Stosh. I really hope so.”

  Epilogue

  Luke watched as Pax and Byron stood and surveyed their surroundings. The third Guard, the one who had managed to escape being vaporized, still lay on the ground. Pax dropped to one knee and pressed his fingers against the fallen Guard’s neck.

  “Dead,” he said before standing again.

  Luke rushed forward and grabbed Pax by the front of his Guard uniform, pushing him roughly. “Did you have to shoot Asher?”

  “I panicked,” Pax responded, holding his hands up in the air. “You told me to make it convincing. He was just an Ordinary.”

  Luke looked back to where Asher’s body still lie. His body was positioned in an awkward angle, and his eyes were still wide open, staring up at the night sky.

  “He was a friend,” Luke responded.

  “What shall we tell your father?” Byron asked.

  “This wasn’t supposed to happen.” Luke motioned to the carnage around them. “If I had any idea--”

  “What’s done is done.” Byron strapped his gun to his back and stepped over the fallen Guard’s body. “This is why I brought four of the lowest ranked Guards with us. I’ve been around long enough to know to prepare for the unexpected.”

  “I still don’t understand why we had to do all of this,” Pax said.

  “If Ally thinks she is being followed, she’ll flee to the Wilderness, and tonight. If she thought she made a clean getaway, she might have tried to come back for me. Or even stay and convince me to come with,” Luke responded.

  “Would have?” Pax asked. “Gone with her, I mean.”

  Luke looked at the ground. “I didn’t want to have a chance to find out.”

  “Your father will be furious,” Pax pointed out.

  “Untrue,” a voice came from behind them.

  Aden stepped out of the shadows and joined their group, four Guards following close behind him.

  “Father.” Luke tried to keep his voice calm.

  “This was actually quite a clever idea,” Aden said with a laugh. “Although I will miss the opportunities to use Ally’s abilities to better our City.”

  “Are you going to go after her?” Luke asked.

  Aden shook his head. “No, I think it is best that we let Ally and her little friends wander into the Wilderness. She was only a distraction. She is a distraction.”

  Aden motioned to a Guard behind him and the man stepped forward, a cylinder shaped device in his hand. Luke couldn't react quick enough, and before he could raise his arms, two of the Guards had him in a choke hold. The other Guard, and Byron, were holding down Pax.

  “This will really be for the best, Luke,” his father said. “Tomorrow you will wake up with no recollection of Ally, and in turn, she is no longer here to produce any reminders.”

  “Don’t do this.” Luke struggled against the Guards holding him.

  “You’ve already let her go physically,” his father smirked. “Let me help you with the mental part.”

  The Guard holding the memory-swiping device stepped over to Pax, who was also struggling against the Guards, and pressed the device up against the side of his head. He entered some information into the side and pressed a green button. The device let out a high-pitched whine and a bright flash of light emitted from the end touching Pax. Luke watched as his best friend slumped to the ground, unconcious.

  The Guard approached Luke next.

  “Don’t worry Luke, you’ll remember the important parts of the last month, just not the part that include Ally. She’ll be but a shadow in your memories.”

  “One day,” Luke spat. “I’ll remember, and I’ll hate you for this.”

  Aden just shrugged and turned his back, leaving Luke alone with the Guards. The device pressed into the side of his head, and he listened as information was entered into the controls. He squeezed his eyes shut and thought silently.

  I will not forget you, Ally.

  I will remember

  I will remember.

  There was a flash of bright light, and then darkness.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  I wouldn’t even be writing these words if it weren’t for my dear friend Andrea, who urged me to push myself in my writing and move forward with my ideas. Thank you for reading each and every draft and revision, and giving me your open and honest opinions. To Alexis, for helping to edit my final drafts, and putting up with my constant questions and doubts. And for sharing in my GIF obsession when we both needed something other than writing to talk about. To BoSh, for being there for me through the ups and downs of the writing process, and for pushing me this far. To my husband and children, for putting up with me during this long and tiring process. Maybe now I’ll find some time to do the dishes.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Jess Petosa is a Philly girl transplanted to the middle of Amish Indiana. Somewhere in between chasing two toddlers and meeting her one hundred books a year reading goal, she writes young adult fiction.

  This is the first book in the Exceptional series. You can expect the second book to be available in late 2012 or early 2013. You can check her blog for more updates.

  http://jesspetosa.blogspot.com