“Why do you need Molly?” Olivia’s dad asks.
“Because she’s the only blood relative I’ve got here.”
As I was lying in bed last night thinking things over, I realized the answer has been in front of me since the moment the Parker’s realized Molly was my sister. It took learning that Tū and Tāwhiri were twins, having Shane confirm that there is ambient power lingering on earth, and learning that power recognizes blood relationships to finally get me to see it.
“We already knew power could be shared between siblings, but I had no idea how important that was until we realized that when power is truly combined it accesses the latent energy in the world and increases it beyond what it should normally be,” I explain. “That alone is important, but we’ve also learned that power can follow blood connections without explicit direction. That’s what we need to test.”
It’s barely enough information to get my point across, but everyone takes what I’m saying at face value by this point. They’ve all gotten used to getting half-answers and having to be careful around Caretakers. Gesturing to Sloane, I set Molly back down on the ground and we all head for the couch. Molly crowds in next to me while Sloane takes up position on the coffee table so she can face us both, after I explain what’s happening to those who can’t see Sloane.
“Molly, I’m going to try to find the connection between your power and Mason’s, okay?” When Molly nods, she continues. “All I need you to do is focus and use a small amount of your power. Mason will do the same.”
“What are you going to do?” Molly asks, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
Sloane offers a gentle smile. “I’m just going to feel your power and see if I can determine what it is that allows power to transfer between the two of you. It’s part of my gift.”
Still seeming skeptical, Molly shakes her head and takes my hand. I’m sure Sloane backing up her desire to come with us when we first left Olivia’s house gained her some major points in Molly’s eyes, but she’s still leery of trusting someone she doesn’t know very well. A few seconds later, though, I feel her power being called up and put to use exploring the strange house through her ability to see with her power. I follow suit, bringing up my power and agitating it enough to ward off the chill of the house I suspect is only used for meetings like this.
That’s all that happens on my end of this first stage of the experiment. I have no idea how long it will take for Sloane to find what she needs, so I just keep warming the air section by section. I don’t know if anyone realizes that’s what I’m doing, but when Sloane finally signals that I can stop, everyone in the room has their coats off and is sitting more comfortably than before.
“Well?” I ask Sloane.
Her face puckers in thought before speaking. “It’s not what I was expecting. I know you’ve mentioned how everyone’s power has a different feel to you, but I don’t experience people’s power like that. To me, it’s more like different layers of texture. Stronger power feels sturdier. More defined abilities feel…thicker, I guess. It’s how I judge a person’s potential power and strength. Finding some sort of commonality between the two of you was a completely different task.”
“Did you find anything?” I ask. Surely this wasn’t all a waste of time. There has to be something to this blood connection. It felt right the moment the idea entered my mind.
Sloane folds her hands in her lap and huffs. “What I found was…I’m not sure it’s going to make sense. To me, what it feels like is layers of clothing. This is putting it simply, but it’s like Molly’s wearing a fuzzy wool sweater and you’ve got on a leather jacket, but underneath all the layers, you have the same…skin.” Sloane sighs in frustration. “That sounds stupid.”
“No,” I say, “I think I know what you mean. On the outer edges of our power, we have our different talents and potential, but the core of our power is the same.”
“Similar,” Sloane corrects. “It’s not identical, but yours and Molly’s core is much more similar than yours and mine.”
Glad for her initiative, I ask, “You compared our power to yours, then?”
Sloane nods. “My core is very different from either of yours, which makes sense since we’re not related, but there’s the tiniest, thinnest layer in all three of us that’s not just similar, but exactly the same.”
“What does that mean?” Molly asks.
Twisting her hands together, I can tell Sloane is unsure, but she answers as best she can. “I think it’s like DNA. Everyone except identical twins have a unique genetic code, but when you get down to the basics, we’re all made out of the same basic building blocks. I think that one layer I’m feeling is where we came from, our connection to the first parents.”
“Can you show us how to find that?” I ask. I have a few ideas I want to test out, but none of them will really work if Sloane can’t show Olivia how to do what she just did.
Sloane reaches out for both our hands, smiling now that she’s being asked to do something she has more confidence in. “I’m usually trying to show someone where they need to go rather than where they came from, but I should be able to show you what you need to know.”
Even though there is a Caretaker Officer, Olivia’s parents, and Evie in the room with us, it feels like we’re alone as Sloane’s power guides us through the layers of our power to the most basic part of who we are. For me, I feels like moving through different electric fields. Some are more like static while some feel like a thrumming. It’s not until I hit something more solid, a deep hum that feels both strong and fragile at the same time that the movement stops.
Under Sloane’s direction, I move my focus to Molly. The bumblebee hum I’m familiar with hits me first, but then Sloane shows me that Molly’s power is also made up of so much more than just her happy buzzing. Down through the layers, I feel the strength that made Sloane so sure Molly was a fighter and the softness that makes her compassionate like Olivia. It’s only with Sloane’s guidance that I feel how similar our powers really are. They lean in different directions, Molly’s toward action and excitement while mine falls more on the side of caution and stability, but the thrum of power feeding us both is almost identical.
Beneath everything else is that deep hum that binds all Aerlings together. That is what I need more than anything else. That is what Olivia needs to find the Mother. Opening my eyes when Sloane pulls back her power, I ask, “Can you show Olivia how to do this?”
Sloane’s nod is slow, but sure. “I’ll help her find the binding layer, and I should be able to help her develop her Seeker abilities so she can track it and hopefully lead us toward the Mother, but it’s not going to be as simple as a hound following as scent.”
No, I suppose it won’t. “How many Aerlings are on Earth right now?” I ask.
Grimacing, Sloane says, “I don’t have an exact number, but somewhere in the neighborhood of two thousand. It used to be a lot more.”
Olivia’s dad blows out a long breath when I fill them in on what Sloane found and said. I look up at him and can tell right away that he understands my plan. If Olivia can be taught to feel that baseline of power connecting all the Aerlings back to the first parents, my hope is that she’ll be able to use that familiarity to locate the Mother. She’ll have to sort through two thousand Aerlings, first, though.
“That may take too long,” Olivia’s dad says.
“It will take a lot of power to reach all the way across the world, too,” says Sloane quietly.
Her comment makes my heart twist. I know how to make Olivia’s power reach much further, but I can’t bring myself to do it. Eager tugging on my arm says I’m not the only one who’s figured that out either. “I can do it, Mason,” Molly begs. “I can help you make Olivia’s power stronger. We’re siblings. You said it helps. I can come with you and help Olivia.”
Part of me wants to say yes, but every other cell in my body repels the idea. Even Sloane looks sick at the idea of exposing Molly to that. I don’t know how to tell
her no. It will crush her…again. We’re all each other has. Even knowing our parents are back in the Aerling world waiting for us to return, what Sloane said in the car dims that pull to go home. I’m Molly’s family. Olivia’s parents and Evie are the ones who love her and protect her. They’re who she knows and loves.
“Molly, I don’t think the connection to the Mother will be one way.”
Scrunching her face up, Molly demands, “What does that mean?”
Sloane reaches forward and takes Molly’s hand gently. “It means that when Olivia finds the Mother, the Mother will find Olivia, too. She’ll know we’re trying to find her and stop her. She may run, but she may come after us, too. Anyone involved will be marked. If the Mother chooses to come after us instead of running, she won’t stop until she has everyone involved, even you.”
“I promised to keep you safe, Molly,” I whisper as I pull her into my lap. “I won’t risk you getting killed just to find the Mother. We’ll make it work on our own.”
Looking up at me, Molly’s bottom lip begins to quiver. I expect an argument about needing to stay with me. What she says proves she understands so much more than most people ever give her credit. “You can’t protect just me when all the Aerlings are in danger.”
Pride in her compassion and strength fights with my fear of putting her in danger. One day, she will make an incredible leader, but not when the cost could very well be her life. “I can’t not protect you, either.”
She doesn’t argue this time. Instead, she presses against me, tugging my arms around her more tightly. We’ve been gone such a short time, but already this little girl is so much more grown up than before. Her future shouldn’t be in question at eight years old. No child should have to wonder if their world will be destroyed and they’ll be left orphaned. I want to tell her everything will be all right, but the only way it will be is if we see this through to the end.
Chapter 23
Wisdom
(Olivia)
This whole traveling between worlds thing is getting a little easier with every trip. Hayden may not think so as he stands doubled over, trying to catch his breath, but I only feel slightly winded this time. When I stand and take stock, I’m mildly surprised to find the room empty. Mason and Sloane didn’t know exactly when we’d return, and I doubt they’ve just been sitting around waiting on us for the last three days. Thinking of the time gap, I grab my phone off the nightstand just to double check it’s consistent.
Yep. Three days gone in the space of what was for us only a few hours.
Sighing, I drop the phone back on the nightstand after making sure there aren’t any messages from Mason. By that time, Hayden is recovered. He starts to say something, but a voice from across the room startles us both into jumping. I nearly faint when my least favorite Aerling god materializes into view, sitting completely relaxed on the armchair in the corner.
“What are you doing here?” I demand.
Hayden has enough composure to ask a better question. “How did you find us and get into our room?”
Tū’s body moves with frightening grace as he stands to face us. “Did you really think it would be that difficult for me to find you? You carry my brother’s power. My power. That is simple for me to track. Haven’t you puzzled that out yet?”
I’m not sure what he means by that, but I’m more than a little freaked out. “How long have you been sneaking around like this?”
“Since shortly after you left my compound,” he says casually. “There’s not a place on this world you can hide that I won’t be able to find you, little Escort.”
I feel sick. How long has he been in this room? Dread creeps up my spine as I consider every move we might make from this point on. Will he be there…watching? What has he already seen or heard?
Hayden has a different reaction. Anger, deep and fast-flowing, lights his eyes as he stalks forward. I reach out to stop him, but he pulls out of my grip and ends up toe to toe with an Aerling god. Boy’s got some serious guts. I have to give him that, even if I fear he’s about to get trashed.
“You lied,” Hayden growls.
Tū rolls his shoulders casually. “That is entirely possible. You might care to mention what you think I lied about, though. Just so we’re clear.”
Clearly irritated by Tū’s blasé attitude, Hayden’s own shoulders bunch. “About whose fault it is that the Aerling world is dying. You want to push off all the blame onto the Mother, but you’re just as much to blame as she is.”
A flicker of confusion passes across Tū’s eyes before he reverts to his usual indifference. “You should be careful who you believe on these topics. All I’ve ever done since being trapped here was try to stop the Mother from destroying both worlds.”
“So killing Aerling children, stealing their power, that has nothing to do with the shortage of power in the Aerling world?” Hayden demands.
The way Tū’s jaw tightens alerts me that something is off. I don’t say anything just yet. Instead, I wait for him to defend himself. He doesn’t disappoint. “Yes, killing the Aerling children gives me their power, but I only keep it to prevent it from reaching the Mother or Father and to give me enough strength to overpower her. She takes just as many Aerling children, if not much more, than my Sentinels ever have. She was the first to begin harvesting them. Their power is better off in my hands than in hers.”
Those first disappearances, they weren’t Tū, I realize. They were the Mother, siphoning off fresh little bundles of power wherever she could find them. It must have taken her a while to realize that power left behind when Aerlings died here of natural causes wasn’t something she couldn’t access. Always greedy for more, she decided to go directly after the source of power. She was against the Aerling children being created in the first place.
I can’t agree with Tū’s response to that problem, but I am beginning to believe any extra power is better off in this psycho’s hands than the Mother’s. She goes so far beyond any clinical definition of psychotic behavior that I don’t even know what to call her.
“That doesn’t change the fact that what you’re both doing is killing your home,” I say.
Tū scoffs at me. “How could a handful of Aerling children killed each year do so much damage? Even after centuries, that would never be enough power lost to cause the Aerling world to fail.”
“It would if Tāwhiri used up the majority of his power to contain the Father and had to draw on the world’s innate power to keep creating Aerlings after the Father abandoned helping him,” I say.
That is enough to knock the condescending expression off his face. “What? My brother did what?” Tū demands when he recovers from his shock. “What was he thinking?”
“He didn’t have a choice, Tū,” I explain. “The Father grew too greedy and stopped helping him create more Aerlings. He turned on him after a while. Tāwhiri knew he needed an army and enough Aerlings to keep Earth going. He didn’t have enough. It took nearly everything he had left to lock the Father up and hold him there. The world’s power was his only other option.”
I hope for understanding, but I’m not surprised by his outrage. Bellowing in anger, Tū slams his fist down on a nearby table, cracking it straight through. “The world’s power is not ours to take,” he snarls. “He should have found another way. He should have stopped hiding, stopped pandering to the Father, and forced him to help us end this. He was always too soft! Too eager to believe that everyone had more goodness than greed. My brother was a fool!”
“Fool or not,” Hayden snaps, “he’s gone. We’re the only ones left to stop the Mother.”
“We need your help, Tū,” I say carefully.
Tū’s gaze swivels from Hayden’s glowering face to mine. “My help? I came to you and your Aerling for help to end this. I am not strong enough on my own and I cannot defeat her.”
“How did she defeat your brothers?” I ask. “I know about how Aerlings can combine their power to make it greater than it would be with each per
son on their own. Why didn’t you all confront her together?”
Erupting into a volcano of frustration, Tū roars. “We did! How do you think we were able to separate them in the first place? It took all of us combining our power just to manage pushing her out of the Aerling world to Earth! We were scattered by the shock of so much power being put to use. Tāwhiri, coward that he was, refused to help. He alone was not cast out with the Mother. Before the rest of us could regroup, the Mother fell upon her own children and destroyed them by some secret method. Aerlings are not capable of killing their own through violence.”
“How do you manage it then?” Hayden growls. “How did you skirt around that rule and kill so many Aerling children? Innocent bystanders like Levi.”
Inches away from each other, a terrible fight is brewing between a god and an untrained, newbie Escort. I hold my breath, afraid to step in and terrified of letting them clash. Tū’s fury crackles around him like it did in the valley, sparks of electric anger dancing around his body. Hayden is so focused, he doesn’t even seem to notice. My hair is standing on end for more than one reason.
“Sentinels are not Aerlings,” Tū snarls. “They only contain enough of my power to open their senses to the Aerlings’ presence on Earth and protect them from being killed by power except for a Warden’s blade. Even I cannot stop that. They are still human, though.”
“But they’re linked to you closely enough that the power of each dead Aerling flows back to you, right?” Hayden snarls. “More power, that’s what this always boils down to with your kind.”
“I am not my parents!” Tū shouts. “I am trying to save both worlds!”
Crowding Tū with a darkly menacing glare, Hayden says, “How’s that going so far?”
“You stupid little human child,” Tū growls. “You have been involved in this war for five seconds compared to the millennia I have worked to find a solution! How dare you question me! You know nothing of my loyalties or what I have given up to survive and protect my home as long as I have. You know nothing at all!”
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