Astrid clutched the sheets so hard she felt like her fingers would break. She closed her eyes and tried to breathe evenly. Rune. It’s Rune. A volley of emotions slammed into her chest as she tried to process it. She opened her eyes and saw him from a new perspective. That of a hope fulfilled.
“Rune?” she whispered.
He just smiled. The smile was so genuine it made her grin. Then something hit her.
“Wait...you have a twin brother?”
He grimaced, “Unfortunately.”
She was silent, waiting for him to continue.
He sighed, “I’ll start from the beginning. Mist and I endured the harshness of being red-and-blacks together.” His eyes gained a far off look, “We helped each other, but eventually we both grew restless. Mist decided to leave first and I decided to follow a couple of years later. We found each other hiding on the outskirts of Velee and reconnected. It turned out that Mist had been committing thefts here and there, but never truly made himself known. I, on the other hand, had this strong desire to help people that are outcasts, like us. Here in my tribe we have many people who are considered outcasts by their societies, but have committed no wrong. Anyway, I decided as I met more and more people like me that we needed a refuge. A place where we can all belong. So I founded a new tribe. I tried to convince Mist to join me, but he is a coward.” His eyes darkened in a way that made Astrid’s heart miss a beat.
Something had changed in Rune over the past two years. I suppose I’ve changed as well.
Rune continued, “He was afraid that we’d be attacked by the other tribes. Velee especially. When the Veleens dub someone as an outcast, they’re quite vicious about persecuting them. I’ve only seen him once since then, but there are rumors about his exploits as a criminal. He’s bad news, Astrid.”
Many thoughts swirled through her head, Why was Mist so kind to me? Why did he bring me here? How did I never meet him in Akayta? A strange feeling of intrigue ran through her. I wish I could talk to him more. I’ll probably never see him again.
Astrid just didn’t know how to respond. She stuttered over several syllables, but ended up in silence.
His eyes softened as he looked at her, “I know this is all new to you, Astrid, but you’re home. This is where I belong, and this is where you belong also.”
There was something about this whole, exhilarating situation that made Astrid’s heart race. It was plunging, but at the same time rising. She was in complete control of her decisions at this moment. And that had never happened before. If she got herself in trouble it would be her fault, but she had the opportunity to make her own choices.
No more being shackled by the system. No more of Effie’s comforting protection. The knife cut both ways.
chapter six
No more need for fear. Despite the realization, the fear of no friends— no people she could truly trust— gnawed at her heart still. Maybe you can make a friend instantly, but that doesn’t mean you trust them. Trust takes time, no matter the circumstances.
Astrid was suddenly jolted out of her thoughts when Rune stood up and said, “You must be hungry and tired. After all, you were just saved from deadly Veleen poison. I’ll let you rest. We can talk more later.”
He turned to leave. She held out her hand and asked the question at the forefront of her mind, “Why did Mist care for me if he is so intent on his own safety? He carried me almost the entire way after rescuing me from a mob of bloodthirsty merpeople.”
Rune froze and slowly turned, “Mist only helps people if it is to his advantage. That means that you have something of value that he wants. Avoid him.”
He was out of the room before she could reply.
Silence fell uncomfortably. Questions battered her thoughts in an unending cycle. She turned to Ris.
“Would you be terribly annoyed if I asked a few questions? To tell the truth I feel pretty lost right now.”
Ris turned from her post and smiled hesitantly, “I’m not supposed to tell you anything about our complex until Rune gives official approval...but I know him and I can tell that he’s going to. I’ll start with the basics.”
“You already know that you’re in the Star tribe. There are only about five thousand of us. As he told you, we’re a group of people that are considered outcasts. We live together, work together, and support each other. We have operatives in all the tribes who are working toward making them more friendly toward people like us. Rune has an ultimate plan that he’s working toward to completely eliminate prejudice and violence from the tribes, but most of us don’t have all the details yet. Pieces are falling into place every day. We’re just waiting for the time when he gives each of us an assignment, then we’ll follow it. Eventually we’ll all get them he says. So... you know him?” she asked curiously.
Astrid took a deep breath. She wanted to believe in this utopia led by a boy who used to be her closest friend, but it seemed too good to be true. Maybe that’s just because all my life people have been cruel to me. I’ve almost stopped believing that good exists. I need to learn trust, and this is the place to do it. Of all things, it’s led by my friend.
“Um...yeah. When he still lived in Akayta we were good friends. Then he disappeared and...I didn’t know what happened to him until now.”
She stared down at her hands. He hadn’t told her he was going to leave. He’d just left. The last thing he’d told her was to never let her mark restrict her. She never thought she’d see him again, but here he was.
And then there was Mist. She’d seen so many things and met so many new people the last few days that she felt like the entire world was new. But Astrid wasn’t sure if she liked this new world.
She slept for several days on and off. On the third morning she woke up to Ris shaking her shoulder.
“You’re ready to go now,” she said kindly.
She sat up groggily, even in her sleep the words, “go now” caught her attention. She began to panic. Where would she go? She couldn’t go back to Akayta and the Veleens would tear her apart. As she finally became completely awake, she realized that Ris just meant she was healed.
“Am I allowed to stay?” she asked hesitantly.
This world was so fresh. She felt lost. The only person I can depend on is myself. I don’t have Effie anymore.
“Actually, Rune wants to talk to you again. I wouldn’t worry though. We’ve only ever turned one person away,” she replied reassuringly.
“Who did you turn away?” the question popped out before Astrid had time to think about it.
Ris’s ice blue tail squirmed. She looked uncomfortable, like maybe she shouldn’t answer, but she did anyway, “Mist. He came just a few months ago and asked Rune to let him in. Rune said he didn’t qualify as an outcast anymore and that he wouldn’t risk our safety for that of a criminal. I’d suggest not talking about it with anyone here. It’s kind of a...sensitive topic since he’s someone so close to Rune.”
Astrid nodded with shock. Why would Mist want into a tribe that he originally refused to join? Maybe he’s on the run. Rune said he’d been committing thefts. What about Mist’s strange reaction to me?
She just couldn’t forget the look on his face as she spilled her heart out to him. Curiosity nagged at her, making her want to understand him. She wanted to know him better, despite herself.
“Oh, yes. Here. I’ve some clothes you can change into,” Ris said, turning away then picking up and giving Astrid a bundle of simple black clothes with a metallic look. It was the Star uniform.
“I’ll leave you to change, then I’ll take you to Rune.”
Astrid nodded in understanding. After she changed, she wandered out the door hesitantly. Ris was waiting there, her full cheeks highlighting her smile.
“Come on.”
Astrid followed her down colorful halls decorated with all kinds of art. Everything from murals to mounted statues. They were surrounded by doors in the twisty hall. Eventually they came to a door labeled, “The Guider.” Ris stopped
and knocked. A voice called, “Enter.” The door opened automatically.
“You’ll do fine,” Ris whispered encouragingly before she turned and swam away, leaving Astrid at the door.
She timidly entered. Even if this was someone she used to know, she didn’t feel like she knew him anymore. The room was round and cream-colored. Opposite the door was a curved blue desk. Rune sat behind it, reading something on a tablet. His magnetic eyes moved upwards when the automatic doors closed behind her. He sat back in his chair, expression unreadable.
“Take a seat,” he said, gesturing to a comfortable chair.
She did as her heart rose into her throat and she studied her friend. He seemed so different. They’d been apart so long that she didn’t feel comfortable around him anymore. Hopefully that would change. He’d been her closest friend. He’d been so much more than that...they had shared trials and their deepest feelings. He was like a part of her. Then why was she so uneasy? It would take time to remember that bond.
He watched her for a moment before saying, “Of course you can stay, Astrid. Ris told me that she explained to you about us. Normally it take a long time for someone to earn my trust enough to be assigned to a mission. But I know you, and I trust you. So you will be given a mission very soon. Once your assignment is chosen, you’ll go through a small amount of training to prepare you for your particular job.”
Astrid was shocked. I can’t go on missions! I...I’m not right for that type of thing..I can’t...I just can’t do it!
“But I’d mess something up!” she exclaimed.
Rune smiled slightly. “I know you. You can’t see it, but you’re meant for greatness. There is something different about you from all other red-and-blacks I’ve seen. You hide behind a mask of being afraid and incompetent, because you know that anything else would seem out of place for a sixteen. But if you let that mask go, you’re just as confident as anyone else out there. You dare to do what’s right. I heard about what happened in Velee. If you don’t call that brave, I don’t know what you call it.”
Astrid blushed. Mist called it “unknowing,” she remembered, his words coming back to her mind. Her heart pounded as she felt like she was holding back millions of emotions. The description he’d just given of her didn’t sound right. Maybe he thought that she was brave, but she was scared. Scared to be something people would reject.
Astrid knew, though, that there was a small wisp of truth in what he was saying. If something needed to be done to help someone, if it came down to it, she would act— even if she was uncomfortable. She took a deep breath.
Everything rushed at her, trying to be overwhelming. It doesn’t have to be. It’ll be fine.
“I need you to explain to me about the core. That might require making some major changes to our plan,” he said.
“Well, the melions’ cadence has gotten off-kilter. They’re going to explode in less than six weeks.”
He looked shocked for a moment, but then his gaze became thoughtful.
“Is there any way we could do something to fix it?”
“I doubt it. The melions are tiny particles deep within the core. It would take forever to isolate them and figure out how to stabilize them. I think the only solution is evacuation.”
Rune’s mouth twisted into a grim line as he crossed his arms. “I’ll have to think about this.”
After a moment, his face brightened slightly. “I’m sure everything will be fine. Now that we have business out of the way, I want to just talk with you. I haven’t seen you in ages.”
Astrid laughed, which surprised her. There were few times in her life when she actually laughed. And Rune was the cause of most of them.
“I don’t know what to talk about. I haven’t been doing anything extraordinarily interesting.”
“Well, then let’s talk about how you’ve been feeling. How are you, for real?” he asked, his eyes piercing hers.
She sobered. She barely let herself experience her feelings, she wasn’t about to begin spewing them off to someone else. Except I used to talk about them with Rune all the time. She looked into the familiar green eyes. Why do I keep thinking of him like he’s a complete stranger? Yes, we’ve been apart for long time, but he remembers...and I remember what we went through together. I know him. I should trust him. He’s still the same person. Still...I’m not ready to talk about my emotions.
“Well...you know. I think you’re the one we should talk about. Look at all you’ve been doing! When am I going to get a tour?” she smiled.
“How about now?”
“Alright.”
His smile wasn’t a grin, in fact, she hadn’t seen him grin yet, which was one of the things she remembered about Rune. The Rune in front of her had a small smile, but it held a silent confidence instead of jocularity. Their time apart had taken its toll on him. He got up and led her down the halls. They were outside in a few minutes.
Astrid was amazed at what she saw. It wasn’t necessarily the architecture or size of buildings that made it astonishing, it was what they stood for. Mermaids and mermen swam about smiling and talking. There was a great sense of camaraderie. She saw everything from nineteens to people with no markings at all, but they were all talking to each other. No one thought they were better than everyone else. It seemed like heaven to her. There weren’t any of the rough, “I don’t care about you” attitudes she’d seen in Velee, and there wasn’t any of the disdain she’d seen in Akayta. This is truly incredible. The world seemed to be opening up. It was like she’d had a dark, stifling case enclosing her all her life, and a hole had just been cut in it, letting fresh, clean breezes sweep around her.
As for the buildings, they were glossy, gently curving structures, many of which were a vibrant blue. Surrounding the entire area was a tall, solid, white dome. The complex. Mist said the complex. Ah! Why do I keep thinking about Mist?
A voice interrupted her thoughts, “What do you think?”
She turned to Rune with a smile. “It’s more than I could ever imagine. Amazing.”
His eyes softened as he took her hand. “You’re amazing, and I’m glad to have you back.”
Chapter seven
Astrid was with Rune as silent tears floated from his face. She sat by him quietly. That was all she could do as they rocked back and forth together.
“She’s gone. My mother’s gone, Astrid.” His tear-filled eyes held her own for a moment before he looked back down at the ground.
Tears began falling down her own cheeks. Ellidah was a strong force in his life and in Astrid’s for that matter. She’d never put up with the notion that red-and-blacks were inferior. Though he didn’t say it, the double digit district loomed over Rune’s future.
He gazed back up at her. “That’s the last of my family. There’s no one else.”
Astrid reached over and took his hand.
She didn’t tell him that things would get better, she didn’t tell him that it was okay. She was just there for him, there to share his pain. As she put her arm around his shoulders, she was there for him as he had always been for her.
As Astrid woke up, the dream left a pang of sorrow in her heart. Memories like that would never be erased.
She sat at a table in the large, maroon-colored cafeteria of the complex three days later. Ris sat across from her saying something every now and then, but Astrid wasn’t really trying to carry on a conversation. She wore one of the black shirts with mid-length sleeves that many wore. It was the official uniform, but most preferred to wear their own clothing as a form of expression. As for her, she felt like an automaton, missing that sense of individual identity. The outfit felt safe because she knew what it stood for. She hadn’t brought extra clothes with her when she’d fled Akayta anyways.
Her eyes wandered over the surrounding faces, then stopped at one that sent shivers down her spine. In the young crowd, an old man stood out. He had a scraggly grey beard and eyes that held malice and deviance.
Ris saw where she was looki
ng and leaned forward, her eyes flashing with fear. “His name is Cog. Avoid him,” she whispered.
“Why?” Astrid asked.
Ris just gave a small shake of her head and glanced down at her food.
There was an awkward pause, but Astrid’s mind moved on from the menacing man and turned to a new topic.
“Have you been on a mission yet, Ris?”
Ris got that uncomfortable look on her face again. Astrid was starting to recognize it.
“You have a knack for asking about things that are supposed to be under the radar,” she said, shaking her head. She lowered her voice, “Here, missions are pretty...secretive. We don’t talk about our missions or ask others about theirs. I will tell you though that, yes, I’ve been on one mission. There are different types of missions, but we only know about the types that we’re assigned to.”
“Why is it so secretive when everyone here knows the goal you’re working toward?”
“The main point of our system is to avoid giving the plan away. If someone is caught, they can’t tell what they don’t know. No matter how much they might want to. Say they were tortured. The damage to us as a community would still be minimal
Astrid nodded, but to her it didn’t make much sense. It smells too much of deception. It would be more likely to inspire loyalty and unity if everyone knew the plan. But this is Rune I’m talking about. He’d never do anything underhanded, and in a way I guess it does make sense. I just don’t agree with it. Practically, she understood. But it seemed so rife with the potential for corruption. She put away her misgivings.
She’d spent the last few days with Rune, thinking, talking, and relaxing. She hadn’t seen Ris since the hospital. But that morning Ris saw her sitting alone, and joined her. Another question popped up.
“What do you spend your days doing?”
In Akayta there were theaters, art houses, and a variety of other recreational buildings. Even though she’d never been able to enter them because of her status as a sixteenth child, she’d sat outside of them many, many times wondering what they were like inside.
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