He removes his green mask and smiles at me with that charming, gleaming smile of his. I look away.
“I don’t want to work from the shadows, Cross. Murdering people, stopping something from ever happening in the first place; this is not my style. I just want to bring peace in the world from the light. Conquering all the mysteries and bringing to light new technology and mysteries to solve...that’s my style.”
My tone is offensive, but it’s meant to be this way. I’m done following men with pools of blood in their hands. Being a Chronicler was my dream since I was a small child, and it would take more than a handsome man to change that.
Except if that man was Jay. Then, maybe...
“Who’s there?” I suddenly feel a presence hiding in the shadows.
Cross must have noticed the man way before me because he doesn’t even flinch. Moreover, the man is standing dangerously close to him to be just a stranger.
“I see you trained her well, Swamp. He could spot me even before I gave away my position. She’s better than I expected,” he says.
Cross is looking at me with the same melancholic glance he darts at me every time he wants to apologize for everything he has done. I’m not sure who the man with the gray mask is, but I don’t care. We’re getting close to Yaerus. One of these days, we’ll be able to see the planet, my home planet, at last. Not that it matters. The Purge is almost certain now.
“She has some ways to go before becoming as good as you, Mist. But she’s on the right path,” he says.
The two men look at me for a moment without saying a thing. Their eyes are pinned on me, but also seem like they see beyond me at the same time. I turn around to gather my things and head to my room when I spot a man standing at a breathing distant from me. I scream, lose my footing and fall to the floor. “What the fuck?!”
Someone giggles behind me. That Mist-man seems to be enjoying himself. Another man with a gray mask is now standing above me. He must have been standing behind for some time now, concealing his presence at such a degree that I couldn’t even feel him breathing on my neck.
“Let me introduce you my brother, Nebula. He’s the best assassin of the Organization, almost coming up to par to your master, the best assassin that ever passed from the Organization.”
Damn, these men are crazy. I still have many ways to go before getting to their level it seems. Nebula stretches his hand to help me get on my feet. Surprisingly, I decide to accept his help.
I wipe the dust off my clothes and turn to watch the men behind me. The one named Mist sounds amused, but Cross seems less than apathetic. It’s like I’m not even here for him anymore. Something changed inside him since these men arrived.
“What’s going, Alec? Did Pyro send you?”
All those strange names. Mist, Nebula, Swamp. My theory that their organization is religiously-based gets stronger by the minute.
“Are you sure you can use our names carelessly in front of her? She might be your apprentice, but...”
“I’m not his apprentice. I’m just a Chronicler that wants to learn how to protect herself. That’s all,” I quickly correct him.
Without ever removing his mask, the man turns to look at me, observing me. “Your girl has guts, doesn’t she? But it seems she can’t control her mouth yet. Maybe a friendly spar would fix that.”
I raise my fists and dare him to attack. Something inside me tells me that this is a big mistake. But Alec never takes a step towards me. A second later, I notice that Cross has raised his hand ever so slightly to stop him.
“You’re not here to test anyone, Alec. Tell me now, what Pyro wants? What’s his plan? I suppose if any of us has a plan, then he’s the one.”
Alec sniffs and stands down. I’m not sure what he would do to me, but after he relaxes his fist, I see a tiny keyboard hiding back into his uniform. He’s a hacker, a man of wits, certainly not on par with the skills of a fighter like me, I’m sure.
Well, I’ll never know now.
“Pyro had a plan the last time I saw him, but it’s as crazy as all his plans are. Hell, the man actually managed to tear down the Great Embassy on Yaerus before anyone knew about the scheme the humans had set up.”
Tear down the Great Embassy? What is he talking about?
“Pyro should have been called Crimson if you ask me. He’s not fire, he’s the color of blood itself,” Cross says.
I feel anger boiling inside me. I remember the faces of my two dead friends, the two Originators on Yaerus.
“Yeah, yeah. He thinks so too. But the others gave him that name for a reason, and I’m sure he’s going to honor it at long last.”
“Leave the chit chat for later, Alec. What’s his plan? Where he’s heading to? He’s not on Yaerus, that much I know.”
For some reason, the other man stays silent for too long. He turns and looks at me or more correctly, behind me. His brother takes a step forward and stops in front of him. They start moving their hands, using sign language to communicate. That means that Nebula can’t talk. I wonder, is it because of the Organization or something else entirely?
The men seem to disagree with each other; Nebula uses sharp, strong signs. It’s like he’s shouting in his own way. Alec seems calmer, collected. He does want to get this over and done with.
Some time goes by before they’re done. Then, they both turn and look at Cross. The man hasn’t changed his expression at all since the two gray-masked men arrived. I can’t tell if he’s angry, anxious, or just bored. He’s just...mundane.
“Look. We were ordered to inform you that Pyros is heading off to Zeania. There was no order to brief you up about his mission, but...”
He seems to think it over. Even so, his brother stretches his hand and helps him go on.
“But we’re afraid that Pyros has gone crazy during this last year. We have assassinated more people than every other team, Swamp. And every time we ask him what’s going on, we get the same excuse. It’s for the Cause. But among the victims were innocent humans, even some teenagers. How can a teenager be a danger to the Cause, Swamp?”
Cross lowers his head; he suddenly looks like those old paintings, the light casting a sinister shadow on his eyes. He knows more than he’s letting us believe.
“I understand. Don’t worry over it, brothers. I will take over from now on.”
Cross turns and gets ready to move out from the room when Alec stops him. “Wait. It’s not over. We also kidnapped a young, female Phadh, the Sector 6 ambassador’s daughter, Swamp.”
“Yeah, I figured when I first saw it in the Grid. He had to find a safe way into Zeania. Only a Phadh can get on the planet unobstructed. He did the right thing.”
“He made us use human weapons.”
Something on that last sentence makes Dale lose his composure. He punches the wall with his free hand. I’m not sure what’s going on, but I have the feeling that my stupid feud with him has suddenly arrived at an end.
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Chapter Fifty
Jay
It’s dark; darker than I remember. I look around me and see nothing. It’s like my whole consciousness is locked into a dark box. I can’t breathe, can’t see, I can’t even think straight in here.
I try to move forward, but
something stops me. I can’t control my body. Or maybe, someone doesn’t want me to go down that way. I search inside me for the other Jasih’s voice, but he’s nowhere to be found.
For some reason, being alone scares me. Now that I’ve found him, I don’t want to be alone again.
A picture of Eladia pops in my mind. It takes me a moment to recognize her; she has her hair down, waving above her shoulders, caressing her back. She’s beautiful, more beautiful than ever. I want to touch her, to feel her smooth skin, her soft breasts.
Her image keeps me company until an explosion of light suddenly blinds me. I close my eyes, but it doesn’t help. Light manages to pierce through my thin eyelids and make the darkness behind my eyes burn. It’s torture, a never-ending punishment that I can’t bear.
Jasih.
A woman’s voice echoes inside my mind. Is that voice hers? She certainly doesn’t sound like her.
Jasih, you’re close. You have to keep moving, she says.
Close? Close to where? To do what? What is she talking about?
Jasih, open your eyes.
I want to decline, but it doesn’t seem I have another choice. I feel like I’m trying to avoid the unavoidable. Maybe opening them will stop the burning after all.
I do it slowly, carefully. At that moment, everything changes. I’m back on that roof, in the forest of the cemented trees, the place where the buildings don’t float like Mosa. I turn my head and see a woman appear behind me.
She nods at me and points at something on the horizon. I follow her finger and see the imprint of a falling object leaving a long, burning tail behind it, getting closer to the ground fast.
“What is this? Where am I?” I yell, but she doesn’t answer.
She just looks at me.
Jasih, you have to keep moving. Your race, the Esuh, needs you. You have to keep moving.
“I don’t understand! Moving where? To do what?”
She disappears before giving me a clear answer to my question. The object in the sky is now closer to the ground. What is this? Why do I see this vision? What does she want to tell me?
A moment passes and a girl runs into the roof. I gawp when looking at her.
“It’s you!” I say out loud.
She looks at me; she’s scared. She’s holding a small, metal thing in her hand. I’m not sure what it is, but it must be important. The young woman is hurt, seriously hurt, but it doesn’t stop her from moving, not even for a second. Most of her face is covered in blood, and her hands shake.
“Help me! You have to help me. I can’t leave this place, and it’s about to get hit by that thing over there. It’s going to destroy the whole planet. You have to do something,” she says without ever taking a breath.
“I’m not sure what you want me to do. I can’t stop a meteorite with my bare hands. Maybe if I had...”
“No, no. It’s not a meteorite. It’s something else, something far more dangerous. You have to help me.”
I’m not sure what she’s talking about, but I’m happy she’s here, even if she’s half crazy already.
“Look, my spaceship is close. I can take you to my friends and--”
“There’s no time! Goddammit, there’s no time!” she yells and falls on her knees.
The blond girl bursts into tears, into heart-breaking sobs. Something bad has happened to her, but I’m not sure I understand. I would help her if I could. I would surely do.
I turn to check the falling object.
“Shit! What the hell?”
The big object has changed its trail, and it’s heading straight for us. I stand still for a moment, trying to find a way out of its course when I hear the sound of feet running towards the end of the roof. I have a bad feeling about this.
Everything happens so fast that I can’t keep up. The object is getting really close to us; I can now clearly see that it’s a giant cube, big enough to destroy the whole city in the imminent impact. The girl is now standing on the edge of the roof, one foot hanging above the empty space. She suddenly seems determined to end her life.
“No! Don’t-” I try screaming, but my voice doesn’t even get out of my mouth.
The girl jumps from the roof, leaving nothing behind but the memory of her presence there. However, the weirdest thing comes right after, when the cube gets really small, small enough to fit in her hand, and follows her down.
A flash appears a moment later; I cover my eyes with my hand, but I can still feel the warmth of the flash for the rest of my body.
When it’s over, I open my eyes. I’m suddenly down to the base of the building, standing next to the dying girl. The cube beside her is still red, five strange signs inscribed around her, beating like a heart.
“Fuck! Are you alright?” I get close to her quickly. But, when I touch her, her body collapses under a dust-filled cloud.
I squeeze my fists hard enough to hurt them, but it’s not enough. She’s the second person I could do nothing to save.
I feel useless. I feel cold. I feel alone.
I start shaking, freezing. Something is wrong with me. I can’t control my limbs. I look down on my body, and I see a black, oozing substance coming off my body and connecting to the cube.
And then, excruciating pain comes. I scream, roar, try to pull my skin off my body, do anything to stop the pain.
“Hey! Hey!!! Wake up! What’s wrong with you?”
I open my eyes. I’m on the ground. I look around me and see gigantic trees and a young lady with a bizarre, brownish complexion looking at me.
“What...what’s wrong? Where are am I?”
“You’re in Zeania, the Phadh planet. What’s wrong? Did you forget?” She stops, waiting for an answer. When she understands that I can’t give her one, she keeps talking. “Five minutes after we got here, a flash came from your pocket, and you passed out. You’ve been out for an hour now, and it’s getting dark. We have to find a shelter.”
It was the cube again, right? The fucking, Nusae Cube. Fuck. I’m on the verge of pulling it off my pocket and tossing it on the ground, but I know it’s futile. It’ll probably fly back to me. But this vision was fucking twisted. The girl dying, me getting covered by that black thing.
And then, somehow, out of nowhere, everything clicks inside me. At that moment, I finally remember who I was, what was my mission back on Primordial Earth, why my people vanished.
“Alyce, we have to go. Now. We have a mission to complete,” I say to her.
She seems surprised for a moment but doesn’t say a thing. We’re both trapped in this hellhole for now, but I’m unreasonably happy. I finally remember who I am.
Chapter Fifty-One
Eladia
Three days...three days have passed since the brothers with the gray masks suddenly appeared in the training room. For a Class 1 spaceship, four people living in a tight place is fairly comfortable. For me? Well, it’s obnoxious. It was hard enough having to put up with Cross alone, but now that two more people from his organization were added to the crew, the level of discomfort rose significantly.
With Cross spending most of his time plotting something with the siblings, I spend most of my time alone. Not having a sparring partner anymore, I end up training all day, throwing hollow punches on a punching bag, trying to let off some steam.
I can’t keep my mind off him. Jay is in my mind all the time. When I’m sleeping, when I’m eating, when I’m training, I can’t stop thinking about him. What he’ll say about my new haircut or what he will do when we first meet? Will he kiss me? Will he hug me? Will he...?
“You’re doing it wrong.”
I lose my focus in the middle of a high kick and almost sprain my ankle. Luckily, the first thing that Cross taught me was how to fall and not injure myself.
“What the hell? What’s your problem, sneaking out on me like that?”
It’s Alec, the blabbermouth.
“If I were your enemy, you would be dead by now. You have to be ready to do anything, anytime. Ha
sn’t Swamp taught you that?”
I sense a judgmental tone in his voice. “You think you’re better than me?”
He smiles; I can tell even with his face hiding behind his mask. “It’s not a matter of what I think. I’m sure that I’m better than you. You think that because you had a rough year you’re in better shape than me? You’re greatly mistaken,” he says and takes another step towards me.
Immediately, I feel an ominous aura coming from him; this man isn’t kidding. I lower my head and breath in. I relax my muscles and lower my guard, welcoming him in.
Alien Romance Box Set: Romantic Suspense: Alien Destiny: Scifi Alien Romance Adventure Romantic Suspence Trilogy (Complete Series Box Set Books 1-3) Page 93
