Strange Skies

by Kristi Helvig

  Max sighed. “I’m just so thirsty.”

  “I know. I’ve been there.” I eased the bottle to his mouth. “Just little sips for now, though, okay?”

  He swallowed a few more times. “That’s better,” he said. He looked up at me. “You know I should be dead now, right? James saved my life and I could tell that even he seemed surprised by that.”

  I nodded. It’s good he hadn’t been able to see the extent of the damage to his throat. Max reached up tentatively to touch his wound and I slapped his hand away. “Don’t do that. You heard James—leave it alone for a few hours to make sure it heals right.”

  Web sat on the floor near us and pressed a clean cloth against Becca’s arm. “It’s not too bad,” he told her. “Little more than a nasty scratch, really.”

  Markus smiled at me and patted the floor next to him. “Take a load off, sweetcakes. Nothing to do but wait for now.”

  I scooted next to Markus and let my head fall against his shoulder. The only feeling I knew lately was tired. Web comforted Becca who broke into tears from time to time, while Max fell into a much-needed sleep. At one point, his head lolled to the side and I worried it would tear his neck open, but Markus followed my stare and patted my hand in reassurance. Just as my eyelids threatened to close, I glanced out the window. The sky had a pinkish-orange cast to it, tendrils of light threading their way through the gray.

  I jumped to my feet. “Where are they? Why aren’t they back yet?” Kale and his men would be back at any moment if they weren’t already. “C’mon, Markus, we have to get James and the rest of them.”

  Max stirred, but didn’t wake. I looked down at Becca. “Stay here with Max, okay?”

  “Where do you want me?” Web asked.

  “Near the door,” said Markus. “That way, if we’re in trouble you can keep the hatch open for us.”

  Markus and I powered up our guns and ran out into the dawn. For someone who despised running, I’d done more of it in the last year than in my entire life combined. Once this was all over, running was going into my file of “Things I Never Want to Do Again.”

  We only made it about a hundred yards before we saw Alec hobbling toward us with James and Reed. Ian and another guy—Bez, I guessed—were with them. Relief shot through me.

  They got closer. “Hey,” said James. “Found Ian and Bez heading our way. Told them what happened with Max.”

  “Glad you guys are okay,” Markus said.

  “It’s good to be okay, but I wish Edgar was too. Hey, I’m Bez … you must be Tora. Sorry I couldn’t be at the meeting.” He extended his hand.

  I shook it and looked at Alec. “How is he?” I whispered, not sure if Kale might have already landed near the woods.

  “It was worse than he thought,” said James. “But I think he’ll be fine.”

  “No burnin’ laser is going to keep me down,” said Alec with a grin. Reed had her arm linked through his. Despite being injured, he sure looked happy.

  “Becca’s alive,” I said. “She has a slight injury.”

  “And Tyler?” Ian asked.

  I shook my head. “Tyler died saving her.”

  “That sounds like him,” said James. “Those two were tight. She okay?”

  Markus answered. “I’m gonna say no. She keeps bursting into tears right as I’m trying to get some shut-eye. You got meds for that?”

  “Just pain meds, but all they’ll do is make her tired.”

  I thought about Kale’s drunken reaction to the meds back in the bunker on Earth after his leg was injured. “Why didn’t the meds affect Max the way they did Kale?”

  James smiled. “I might have given Kale way more than he needed.”

  Markus grimaced at me. “I can’t believe I ever got it on with her. All that crying and whining … geez. I like my girls a little tougher than that.”

  A bomb could be dropping overhead and Markus would still be assessing hookups.

  Web waved to us from the hatch. “Ian, Bez, right on! Glad you guys made it back.”

  A ship roared overhead. Since Alec couldn’t move quickly, I ran to protect the group from behind. Markus sprinted for the door. Kale would see us if he was flying low enough. I dared a peek upward. The ship passed overhead followed seconds later by another ship, and another. I stared in horror as they went by. It wasn’t Kale.

  It was the Consulate.

  Chapter EIGHTEEN

  “CONSULATE!” I SCREAMED. “GET INSIDE.”

  James encouraged Alec to lean on him, while Ian and Bez helped to get him to the door. Reed reluctantly let go of Alec’s arm so the others could help him to safety. As soon as we got inside the hatch, Markus closed the door. I ran to the window. The sky was clear—no sign of the Consulate ships that had passed over. Lucy whined as she circled anxiously around all of us, stopping to lick the dried blood on Alec’s leg.

  “It’s okay, girl,” Alec said. He sat down and let Lucy curl up in his lap. Ian and Bez exchanged back-slaps with Trent.

  Just when I thought maybe the ships hadn’t seen us, one of them circled back. Though Markus’ ship would be hard to spot from the air thanks to the camouflage, Max’s probably looked like a nice, shiny target, right along with the bar and command center. I looked down in frustration at the standard-issue gun in my hand. A crap load of help it would be against the Consulate.

  “What the hell do we do?” I asked.

  There was a moment of silence followed by the whine of the first bomb. The explosion was deafening and the ground shook under the ship. It had to be nearby, and I wondered which target was gone.

  Markus groaned. “This is a load of déjà vu crap. I could’ve lived my whole life without going through this hell all over. And it’s not like we even have a bunker door to hide behind.”

  “What’s going on?” Max rubbed his eyes and stood up on wobbly legs.

  “We’re under attack,” James said. Trent, Ian, Bez and Web stood at attention as though waiting for orders.

  Becca burst into tears again, and Alec and Reed tried to comfort her. Markus leaned in toward me. “Seriously, what the hell was I thinking? Emotional and fragile is really not my type.”

  I smacked him. “We’ve got bigger problems here, you know?”

  “I know,” he said. “Shame you don’t have those überguns, huh?”

  James met my eyes. “If Kale thought an attack was imminent, he wouldn’t have hidden the guns far away. It wouldn’t make sense. Not if he planned for you and me to help him fight the Consulate.”

  “But Sonya implied that the guns were somewhere romantic, or that Kale took her somewhere romantic at least,” I said. “The only place I can think of that fits that description is the beach, but it’s not like he’d bury the guns in the sand.”

  “Wait, Sonya said the guns were somewhere romantic?” James asked.

  “Yeah, I told you that. Oh no, wait, I heard that at the command center meeting … Why?”

  James looked sheepish. “She mentioned a few times that she’d love for me to give her a private tour of Kale’s ship when he got back. Something about the Resistance leader’s ship being a turn-on or something.”

  “Shame she’s on the wrong side,” said Markus. “She is so my kind of girl.”

  “Knock it off. She’s a total burner. Also, she obviously likes men in power. Your drunk-and-falling-down routine probably didn’t impress her much.”

  “I’m a changed man,” said Markus. “Maybe we can convert her.”

  The image of Sonya walking her fingers up James’ arm was seared forever in my brain. But what sealed her fate was her role in Dad’s murder. “We’re not converting her. We’re killing her.”

  “Fine,” said Markus, “but I get to kill Kale for what he did to Britta.”

  It was the first time I’d heard him acknowledge what had happened. Either James had told him the truth or he’d figured it out on his own.

  “Back to the point,” James said. “The guns have to be on his ship. Wherever that
is.”

  “Can you find his com channel?” I asked.

  “He’s always used a protected channel. We’ll have to find the actual ship.”

  Trent sighed. “If he saw the Consulate ships, he wouldn’t come anywhere near here. Wouldn’t he just wait for them to blow us all up?”

  The answer had just hit me. “He thinks his only chance to take out the Consulate once and for all is with those guns. He needs us.”

  James nodded. “His entire mission is revenge. He won’t be afraid of them.”

  “So if he’s looking for you two, where would he look?” Ian asked.

  “He didn’t know where our camp was,” James said. “Best guess would be the bar or command center.”

  “Which are probably blown to smithereens,” noted Markus.

  “It’s worth a shot,” I said. “Kale and company might be in that area at least.”

  James surveyed the lot of us. “The injured stay here—Max, Alec, and Becca. Trent and Bez, you guys watch over them in case something goes wrong. Keep in touch through the com.”

  “Wouldn’t it be better to have more able-bodied persons helping out?” Reed asked. She shot a glance at Alec. “I mean, I could stay too.”

  Her reluctance to come with us was about more than wanting to be with Alec. I’d seen the fear in her eyes before when she realized she’d actually have to use her gun.

  “Sorry,” said James. “We need all the help we can get in case there are Consulate forces on the ground.”

  Alec smiled at her. “I’d go if I could walk on my own. At least I’ve got Lucy. She’s a pretty tough soldier herself.” Lucy licked his hand in agreement.

  Max was a little more steady on his legs than before. “I want to help. I’m feeling better.”

  I shook my head. “I appreciate that, but after all the work James did to bring you back, you’re going to sit here and you’re going to like it.”

  James raised an eyebrow as he double-checked his weapon. “Listen to the lady, Max. You’re no good to us dead.”

  Fresh sobs erupted from Becca. “I don’t want to die.”

  Web looked grateful that he wasn’t the one assigned to stay behind. Like he’d rather face Consulate soldiers than comfort Becca for another minute. How she ever got to be a member of the Resistance was beyond me. Ian just looked angry, like he wanted revenge.

  “We ready?” James asked.

  Web and Ian snapped to attention. “Ready, sir.”

  “Sure,” said Markus, twirling his gun in his hand. “Let’s get this over with.”

  Reed came and stood by my side. “I hate this part.”

  I nodded. “Me too.” But I was grateful that we didn’t have to put on sunsuits and worry about our oxygen supply on top of everything else.

  Markus opened the hatch and we filed out into the daylight. Another bomb dropped in the distance and the ground shook so much that I fell to my knees.

  “You okay?” asked Reed.

  I dusted myself off as I stood up. “Never better.” All I wanted was to lie in the soft, pink sand again with James at my side. Instead, I was traipsing through the woods after Kale and the Consulate. A girl couldn’t catch a break.

  Markus put a finger to his lips. We were supposed to be silent in case of ground troops.

  “Look at you being all rule-abiding,” I whispered in annoyance.

  His smug expression made me want to punch him. I hoped he wasn’t trying to impress Reed, because it was pretty clear she had a thing for Alec.

  It was warm outside but the clouds remained despite the light break. The sun peeked through once or twice. A gray pall enveloped everything and a heavy mist hung in the air. We decided to head straight for the bar since it was the closest building.

  James and Web walked in front of Reed and me. Markus and Ian hung back behind us. The burned-out hull of Max’s ship smoked ahead. It had taken a direct hit.

  “Maybe it’s not a bad thing,” said Reed in a low voice. “With all of them dead on there.”

  “Yeah, just a shame for Max to lose his ship.” I know how Markus felt about his ship, and assumed it was probably the same for Max. It was an even stronger bond than I’d felt about my first gun, Trigger.

  No birds chirped and those pretty winged insects were nowhere in sight. They’d probably fled from the destruction. Those Consulate burners were already destroying a whole new planet. They’d never stop. Unless someone stopped them.

  Reed leaned over and spoke in a conspiratorial whisper. “So, I was just wondering about Alec—”

  Another bomb hit not far away and reverberations rippled through the trees. I steadied my legs to keep from falling again.

  “What else is there left to hit?” I asked. They must have taken out the bar and command center by now.

  “The camps,” said James.

  I hoped the Resistance was smart enough to avoid the camps and that the Consulate was bombing nothing but empty huts.

  I realized that now that the Consulate had Dad’s trigger formulas, they wouldn’t need me alive. Killing everyone related to the Resistance would be their goal.

  Soon enough we reached what once was the bar. It had burned to the ground. Guess there were downsides to building with wood instead of thermoplastic.

  “No sign of Kale. Should we move on to what’s left of the command center?” I asked.

  “Yeah,” said James. “Steer clear of open areas so we’re not seen from above.”

  We kept to the densest cover. We’d made it halfway to the command center when Kale and Sonya stepped out from behind a group of trees.

  “About time you showed up,” Kale said, casually examining his weapon. “I’ve got some guns I was hoping you could use.”

  James and I exchanged glances. From Kale’s matter-of-fact tone, you’d never know that he’d just murdered my father. I’d play along for now. Act like I had no idea my dad was dead. Act like Kale hadn’t gone to great lengths to have me killed a few short months before.

  I’d do anything to get my hands on one of my weapons and take him down for good. I’m sure he wished the same about me. The fact that I was thinking more like Kale bothered me, but I couldn’t help that I hated him so much.

  Markus clenched his fists. I reached out and patted his arm. It wasn’t time yet.

  “Nice to see you again too,” I said.

  Kale’s smile was forced and his cheerful tone couldn’t have been more fake. But you had to give him credit for having ginormous balls. “Tora, let’s let bygones be bygones, water under the bridge, as people used to say on Earth. We’ve got Consulate burners after us and I think we have a chance if we all work together. What do you say?”

  “Why should we trust you?” I asked. “You and I have had a bit of a rocky relationship—”

  That was the understatement of the year. Like saying Earth had been water-challenged.

  Kale held out in hands in a gesture of goodwill. “—but I think we can get past it. We both want the Consulate off our backs, once and for all, and I have guns that can make that happen … if you’re willing to use them. Then we can go our separate ways and pretend this never happened.”

  I loved how he called the stolen guns his. Whatever. He wasn’t going to live long enough to go anywhere once I was done with him. I forced a smile. “Well, Kale, that sounds like a deal that benefits all of us. It’s so nice to be on the same side again. I hope these weapons of yours are nearby.”

  Sonya looked briefly at James, confusion and hurt in her face. Even a hint of guilt. I bet she hadn’t fully realized what she was getting into with Kale. She must have felt my gaze because she turned and fixed her eyes on me. Her demeanor changed and she looked as though she could impale me with a stare.

  Kale turned. “No time to waste. Follow us.”

  Ian shot James a questioning look.

  “Let’s go with them,” said James. “We’ll all stick together for now.”

  I glanced at James and he nodded slightly. We unders
tood each other. As soon as we had the guns, we’d take them down. We hurried after Kale and didn’t have to go far before we arrived at his ship, which had been buried under several large branches. His men stood guard. Kale opened the hatch and motioned to James and me. “Just you two.”

  Web walked up next to us. “Bad idea,” he said to James under his breath.

  “It’s fine,” James said. “We’ll be right back.”

  I frowned. Splitting up in the past hadn’t worked out so well for Britta, but James raised an eyebrow at me. He seemed confident in what was about to happen. We approached the ship and Kale waved James and me on board. “After you.”

  Sonya and Kale’s pilot tried to follow us but Kale stopped them. “No need, soldiers, you can wait out here with the others.”

  I’m not sure whether it was the fact that he relegated her to standing with his other men or the fact that he called her “soldier,” but the look on Sonya’s face was murderous.

  As I stepped through the hatch door, panic gripped me. The last time I’d been here, I’d run for my life back out this hatch—away from James—and onto a strange, shifting planet. My heart thudded as I tried to calm myself. I wasn’t much safer this time around, but I’d take anything over James pointing a gun at me again.

  Kale took us to the same small room where Britta had once forced me inside a human transport container. I actually missed that scrappy girl, though I’m sure not as much as Markus.

  The containers of guns were stacked against the wall. Dad’s guns. I walked over and dug through them. James came up to my side but remained silent.

  My eyes fell on Trigger and memories flooded back. All the times I practiced with Dad as he showed me how to aim with precision and, later, after my family was gone, sitting with Trigger, my sole companion, and yearning for a way off Earth. How pathetic that memories of fighting for survival were the “good ole days.” As much as I loved Trigger, I needed something powerful, something like my favorite boulder-killing gun, B.K. I’d blown so many rocks to bits with that gun, and then James had turned it against me.