Delivered: A Young Adult Dystopian Romance (The State Series Book 7)

by M. J. Kaestli

  “We need to go over our plan, especially my speech.”

  He let out a deep sigh. “Okay. What’s our timeline?”

  Freya leaned forward. “As soon as possible. Tonight, if we can. Rumors will spread like wildfire. We need to make our stand before the Advisors slander us to the community.”

  Colin winced. “It’s too late for that. I mean, people might still like you, but…”

  “I think you’re probably right. They’ve been defiling your reputation for years. But we’re not doing this for political gain, it’s to give everyone a choice. Either they move with us so we can truly be free of the State, or, they take their chances here.”

  “I’m afraid Faris is right. Few will listen to us.”

  Her lips pressed together. “Colin, there are risks on both sides.”

  He slowly nodded before lifting his eyebrows. “Yeah. I think I know more about those other risks than most, having spent each summer in those mountains.”

  Her chest tightened. She didn’t want to hear about it. If he told her how dangerous it could be, it would reflect in her speech. There were risks either way, but she knew deep in her core that traveling through the mountains could end their lives, long before the State arrived.

  Chapter 2

  Freya

  Butterflies flitted around in her core, a constant reminder of their looming peril. She wished she knew where they were going, and if they would make it there alive.

  Faris’ billowing voice echoed from outside the building. “Welcome one and all. Gather in nice and tight.”

  She chanced a quick look out the window frame. A humble crowd had gathered, but it didn’t look nearly large enough, not if they wanted workers to build a new home.

  There have to be at least three-times this many people living here. Where are they?

  “Today is a momentous day,” Faris began again. “Freya, our former Head of State, our Queen, has awakened.”

  Gasps echoed around the group, growing into enthusiastic cheers.

  Once they settled, Faris said, “Please welcome Queen Freya to our colony.”

  The crowd erupted into applause. Nausea rippled through her core. Colin simply intertwined their fingers, guiding her toward the door. “It’s time to go. You got this.”

  She took a deep breath, feeling as though her limbs were made of ice. “I’ve got this.” She breathed deeply. “I’m only going to make an announcement which will create the first divide in the colony and abdicate, that’s all.”

  He squeezed her hand again. “See, you got this.”

  She took another step forward, hesitating briefly at the door.

  “Would you just bloody get out there already!” Aakil yelled to their backs.

  As they stepped through the doorway into the bright sunlight, she squinted into the boisterous crowd.

  They’re happy to see me, their Queen, because they don’t know what I’m about to tell them.

  Her throat went dry as they reached the edge of the balcony, realizing that there was no microphone. If the crowd booed or even enough of them murmured, they could easily drown her out. In all her public addresses as the Head of State, she never had to depend on the strength of her own voice to carry her message. And this was certainly a message she needed all her faculties to deliver.

  Colin stepped back, standing close behind her. She wanted nothing more than to have him glued to her side, gripping her hand to ensure she didn’t faint. But they had decided that as Colin had been labeled an alarmist, it was best she deliver their message.

  She licked her dry, salty lips, hoping her voice would carry through the desert air in her throat. “Greetings, Colonists.”

  It wasn’t much, yet the crowd burst into applause once again. They displayed a spectrum of emotions: pride, adoration, excitement, unity. Her heart swelled for these people. They had worked so hard and built a remarkable home.

  We can do it again.

  “Welcome everyone. I am pleased to see you all,” she paused and looked around, “although I feel many of you are older than I remember.”

  The crowd laughed. She was glad they could see humor in the situation because she couldn’t. There were no young people gathered before her.

  Maybe Faris is right. Hardly anyone remembers me.

  “Many years have passed since we were last together. I would be remiss if I didn’t acknowledge how impressed I am by this colony. It is such a great honor to stand before you, a people who have worked together, who have labored to build this new home.” She looked down, her eyes moistening. “It is an honor to be the Queen of what I’m sure is the proudest nation humanity has ever produced.”

  The crowd broke into applause once again, but she couldn’t get caught up in their excitement. Her eyes filled with tears, threatening to escape at any moment.

  “It’s important you understand how proud I am of what you’ve become. You’re truly an extraordinary group of people. That’s why, it is with a heavy heart that together with my partner Colin, we abdicate our titles as monarchs of this colony.”

  A silence fell over the crowd. Confused looks passed between the colonists, soon becoming a murmur which grew into a roar of protest.

  Colin stepped forward, grabbing onto her hand once again. “Yes, together, Freya and I have abdicated. It has been an honor to serve you, but we’ve decided it is time for us to move on.”

  His billowing voice seemed to carry better than hers, causing the crowd to mute their bickering. Freya swallowed hard, knowing it was time for her to perform her duty, the reason Colin woke her early.

  “My people. I was your proud leader who helped to overthrow the State, so we may all have a better life free of our oppressors. Unfortunately, our freedom is merely an illusion. We aren’t free at all, as our spacecraft never left Earth.”

  Some people gasped, many shook their heads disapprovingly, casting their gaze away from the balcony where she stood.

  Freya waved Aakil over. He passed her the book they retrieved in the mountains. She held it by her side and pressed on. “Colin and Aakil discovered something while in the mountains. They found proof of a previous civilization. That civilization couldn’t be alien, but relics of our pre-State history.”

  She held up the old tattered book. It’s worn, faded cover on full display. “This is called a book. It was what humanity used to read before the Great War. The words printed inside are written in English, which is how we are certain the State tricked us. Colonization was nothing more than a hoax. For 22 years, they gave us updates about a spacecraft which never launched into outer space. Meanwhile, they not only kept our colonists on Earth, but on the same continent.”

  The crowd’s murmur grew into a boisterous protest.

  “Come and see for yourself,” Colin yelled. “Take a look at this book and see the evidence before you.”

  The crowd’s murmurs died down, especially since several of them had already turned their backs and walked away. One of them cocked his head to the side and yelled, “What’s it about? The book.”

  “Someone named Harry Potter,” Aakil answered.

  “Who’s that?” The man asked.

  Aakil shrugged. “A boy wizard?”

  Freya rolled her eyes, wishing they had planned this section a little better. “Remember, before the State took power, books were for entertainment. This is a work of fiction.”

  More in the audience guffawed, sneered, and turned their backs, departing the area.

  “How do we know it’s real?” Another called out. “Maybe you brought it with you or made it yourself.”

  Colin’s jaw tightened. “And why would we do that? How would we do that?”

  “You’ve been trying to get us to leave this place since we got here. Now you’ve woken your partner and filled her head with your crazy stories.”

  Freya passed the book off to Colin and stepped down from the balcony. “Colin didn’t tell me anything. Before I became the Head of State, I was the groundskeeper at the State
House. I recognized the vegetation as the same as what I worked with under the dome. The plant life wouldn’t be identical on another planet.”

  “You’re a nut job, just like your partner,” someone yelled as they turned their back and walked away.

  Too many are leaving. I need to do something.

  She raised her hands in the air. “We are abdicating because we’re leaving this community in one week’s time to travel through the mountains, where we plan to build a new home on the other side. The Advisors have informed us they will remain in this community. We came here today simply to offer you an invitation to come with us. The choice is yours.”

  Aakil stepped forward and took the book from Colin, holding it high in the air. “I’ve got the book right here. How about those who want to see for themselves, come and take a look. Those of you who aren’t interested, can go about your day. That’s your call. As Freya said, this is an invitation not a command.”

  Aakil threw the book down on the balcony beside them; the heavy thunk struck with more force than Freya would have thought possible.

  Some crowd members turned and walked away, some came closer, and some stood indifferent, waiting for more.

  Aakil turned back to them. “Sorry, didn’t mean to burst in, but I’m done with this bullshit. We’ve been telling the Advisors for years that something’s up.”

  A lingering audience member spoke up, “How do you know the State will come for us? They haven’t yet, and we’ve built an army.”

  Colin descended the steps before he answered. “We don’t. Maybe their plan for us got messed up somehow and they haven’t been able to act. But they will recover. And when they do, our army will be useless against them if they send an airstrike. And if they do, they’ll just sit safely inside that mountain of theirs and push a button. Not a single one of them will get hurt, and none of us will live.”

  Freya rubbed her face. During her term, she had been nervous before each address, yet it had always turned out so much better than she imagined. This address had played out exactly as she feared, if not worse.

  Most of the crowd had dispersed. No one came to have a closer look at the book. There was no way to recover from such a poor reception. But regardless of their results, it was time to pack.

  Chapter 3

  Freya

  She tugged on the dark leathery meat clasped in her back molars to tear off a chunk. Her stomach hadn’t yet adapted to the weight in her gut from eating meat, but if she wanted to hurry, she had little food options.

  “Do you think you’ll be able to swing by today?” She called out to Colin, who was still dressing in the bedroom.

  “Maybe. We’ll see.” He stepped into the kitchen. “Everything okay?”

  Her gaze flickered down to the jerky and decided she’d had enough. “Yeah, I just feel bad.”

  Colin grabbed a small piece for himself. “About leaving?”

  Her shoulders slumped. “Yes. No. Everything.”

  “Oh, dear.”

  She scoffed. “I feel like my time is being wasted sitting in the town hall. I don’t think I’ve convinced anyone else to come with us. Maybe my time would be better spent if I helped you pack instead.”

  He stepped in closer, wrapped his arms around her, and placed a kiss on top of her head. “You’re exactly where you need to be. I can’t get through to these people, but maybe you can.”

  Her eyelids pressed together. “But I’m not, though.”

  “You can’t save everyone.” He kissed her head again. “But every person you talk to, you have a chance to save. That’s far more important than packing.” He pulled back enough to look down at her. “Besides, your muscles have atrophied. You’ll do better sitting as much as possible before we start up that slope.”

  Her eyes moistened as she gazed into his eyes. “What if I can’t make it up the mountain? I’m so easily fatigued. What if I’m too much of a burden that, between me and all our supplies, we don’t make it?”

  He rocked her lightly. “We have four days left. That’s four entire days for you to get stronger, and you will. You’re already sturdier than you were on the first day. Don’t you notice how much more energy you have?”

  She grumbled in response.

  Colin pulled back, gripping both her arms. “I think you need to stop worrying about the trip until we take it. Just go, sit at the table, and talk to each person who wants a moment of your attention. Aakil and our team will take care of all the packing.”

  She knew he was right. Worry wouldn’t help them. This was just what had to happen, regardless of how impossible it felt.

  They made their farewells and headed out in separate directions. Before she arrived at the town hall, a line up had formed. Everyone who was old enough to remember Freya as the Head of State wanted to speak to her. Most wanted to tell her a story of how her actions impacted them, giving them the strength to fight and survive without the State’s rule.

  They all seemed to want to share their devotion to her yet had no intentions to cross over the mountains. It was such an odd combination. Some would shed tears and want to hug her, then closed by expressing how much they would miss her.

  Aakil suddenly arrived beside her after pushing through the crowd. With complete disregard to the next person in line, he slapped a large map on the table in front of her. “You see this.” His finger jabbed at the image. “This is the map I was telling you about.”

  “Yes.” She leaned in. “I figured as much.” She shifted her focus from the lineup, hoping that any who overheard Aakil would also see the evidence and reconsider.

  “People used them before the war. It’s of the United States of America, what these lands were called before the State took power.”

  This is good. It might sway a few fence sitters.

  “You see this red X here?” His finger tapped. “This is where I found the maps and books.” His finger traveled sideways. “I think this is where we are, in or near this spot called Portland.”

  She nodded, reflecting on the vegetation. “Yes, the Western Hemisphere. That’s where the Douglas Firs are located.”

  Aakil nodded. “Colin said the mountain where the State gathered everyone was called Cheyenne.” His finger slid across the map, tapping once again. “That’s in Colorado Springs.”

  Nausea instantly stirred in her core. “But that’s so close to here.”

  “If the story Colin’s mom told him about Chastity’s mom was true, then there was probably a surviving tribe somewhere between the dome and mountain. I found a radio in that shelter. According to these markings, it looks like whoever was in the shelter was in communication with a group of people in Idaho.” He slid his finger upwards. “If I can get it working, I will find out if there is still anyone there who can help us, just like Chastity’s mom was helped by another group of survivors.”

  Her heart fluttered. She knew there could be surviving communities outside the dome, but somehow seeing the map’s markings made it seem real. Maybe they could find a group who would help them.

  This could change everything.

  “What do you need to fix the radio?”

  Aakil shrugged. “I won’t know if it’s broken or in mint condition until I adapt a power source.”

  She twisted in the stiff wooden chair to look at Aakil. “Can you do that? Before we leave?”

  “I’m working on it.” He shrugged. “What few solar panels we have are in high demand. As you may have noticed, there aren’t a lot of lights on around this place. I’ll have to build my own, then splice into the power cord, then I can see if it works.”

  She squinted. “Was that a yes or a no to my question?”

  Aakil scoffed. “It was a I don’t know, followed by a hard no; I won’t have it fixed before we leave. I’ll have to tinker with it on route.”

  Her skin blanched. “Then why are you talking to me about this?”

  She instantly winced, regretting her words. It became abundantly clear that his motivation for dis
cussing the details now, publicly, was to help sway more of the colonists to join them.

  “Freya, I’m so happy you asked.” He theatrically threw his hands out sideways. “Because I want you to know why my sled will be so heavy before people bitch about it when they take a turn pulling it. I can’t just bring some food and clothes. As the Chief Scientific Advisor, I need to bring tools and equipment, and that old radio isn’t exactly light either.”

  Freya’s eyebrows furled. “Of course, Aakil. I expect you need to have a heavier sled than the rest of us. We need you to build solar panels and such when we get to our new home.”