Stephanie Thomas - Lucidity

by Unknown

  “What I am going to tell you is going to sound impossible, but it isn’t. Seer Brandon is now in the medical bay, being tended to because of this … this thing that has happened. He is the proof that this impossible thing isn’t impossible at all.” I put my arms on the table and run a hand back through my hair. “There is someone else out there. Someone who is not the Dreamcatchers or the Seers. They have some sort of technology that I can’t quite put my finger on.”

  “What do you mean?” Jeremy asks, somewhat more intrigued now.

  Echo chimes in now, adding to the conversation as if he has always belonged here in this room. As if he was always on our side. “They fly in a ship that are much more advanced than our own. While we were on our mission to save Seer Gabriel from the Rogue camp, this ship descended upon us and attacked.” He looks between the both of us, pausing there. “The rest of it kind of happened very quickly, but from what I remember, there was a loud noise—”

  “A humming noise.” I shiver as I recall the horrible, mysterious sound.

  “Yes, a humming noise. It got louder and louder, and then Beatrice—er, Your Keeper—told us all to close our eyes, and we did.” Echo’s words lilt and he mournfully continues, “Well, most of us did. Seer Brandon didn’t close his eyes in time. We didn’t find out until we retreated to our ships and high-tailed it out of there that he had inadvertently been exposed to this white light that left him completely blind.”

  “Sounds a little like something we know, doesn’t it?” Jeremy folds his hands over the table with a calmness that belays the dire situation we are in.

  At first, I don’t know what he is alluding to. How could this possibly be like anything I’ve ever known? I never even knew other people existed in this world aside from the Dreamcatchers, the Seers, the Citizens, and the Rogues. Now, these other people are coming around—in a ship even—and I am supposed to somehow be familiar with their weaponry? A horrible, deceptive device that takes the powers of …

  “The Beacon.” My heart sinks like a stone. Pushing my hair back with both of my hands, I exhale a heavy sigh as the consequences of this connection swirl around my mind. “I don’t understand … ”

  Jeremy says, “I don’t either, but it seems strangely similar, doesn’t it?”

  “Ugh,” is my intelligent reply.

  The three of us sit in silence until Echo speaks up. “So, what does it mean? If the technology is the same, did the Seers know of these people already? Did they know of you?”

  “Just, just stop with the questions for a moment.” I rub my temples in worry. Or maybe I am trying to summon the answers to these impossible questions from somewhere deep in my brain. It would be so much easier that way. “We still need a plan.”

  “We do,” Jeremy agrees.

  “Somehow, we need to gather some intel on these people. Where they went. Where they are going. What other weapons they might have… ” I tick off each point on one of my fingers. “We need to do it as quickly as possible. I don’t want to find out later that they are making a B-line to the City while we are all bumbling around like a bunch of fools.”

  Jeremy nods his head and pulls out a datapad, flicking through the information. I see face after face scroll over the screen as he filters through the Seer directory. “Who do you want to send?”

  “Come up with a small team, whomever you think is the stealthiest. Send them back to the Rogue camp to do some reconnaissance. Tell them to look for parts of the ship, take pictures of the remnants of the damage left behind. They must scrutinize everything and anything they think will be important, and they have a day to do it.” I shift my gaze to the windows, which open up to a view of the City. “If they can push it to less than a day, that would be even better. Our dome is not fully repaired yet, and until it is, we may as well paint a target on us for this thing.”

  “Very well, My Keeper.” Jeremy stands and bows his head then exits the room with military precision.

  Just as soon as Jeremy is gone, I pull off the leader’s mask that I put on to convince him I know what I am doing, even if we are both well aware of the fact that I have no idea what I am doing at all.

  “I am sure it will be fine, Beatrice. I’ll even have the Dreamcatchers help out with the mission. We’re going to fix this,” Echo assures me and reaches over to put his hand on mine. With his touch, an overwhelming calm comes over me, and I suddenly don’t feel so harried any longer. It is almost addictive, this feeling, like an invisible string pulling me close to Echo, or a voice convincing me that even the worst things aren’t really so bad after all.

  I crave this from him, but I also know that I need to stop myself from feeling this way. When everything is all said and done, Echo and I will go our separate ways … if we are still alive.

  I keep my hand under his, and in my head I count down from ten. I can allow him exactly ten seconds. This arbitrary time limit seems reasonable to me, and it makes it a little easier when I slip my hand out from under his and rise to stand. “I am going to go check on Gabe. You are welcome to stay here if you want. It’s probably the safest place for you anyway.”

  Echo laughs nervously and runs his fingers back through his platinum blond hair. “Yeah, being the leader of the City’s sworn enemy probably won’t lend me any freedoms, huh?”

  I smile with a shrug. “Not like I’m much better, seeing that I’m your wife.”

  “Touché.” Echo grins, his smile melting away my worries.

  It’s going to be hard to walk away from him when this is all said and done.

  ***

  The infirmary is mostly quiet, the calm before the storm. Being here to see Gabe again is almost surreal, considering that the last time I was here, I practically left him to die so I could run away with Echo. It makes it even harder to understand why Gabe would even give me a second chance. Would I have were I in his shoes?

  I find him and Brandon in one of the rooms in the back. Gabe is up out of bed and hovering over Brandon, who sits in a chair, his head hung low. I hear him sniffling, and Gabe is murmuring quiet, comforting words while holding Brandon’s hand. I clear my throat, drawing Gabe’s attention to me.

  “Who is it?” Brandon’s fingers close around Gabe’s hand and he looks in my direction, though it’s in vain.

  Gabe smiles at me, but it is pitiful and sympathetic. “It’s just Beatrice, Brandon. Don’t worry.”

  “Keeper Beatrice, remember.” Brandon lightheartedly corrects Gabe, which eases my worry for him.

  “Gabe had it right the first time.” I grin and walk to Gabe’s side. “Well, sort of. I don’t know when you ever call me ‘Beatrice’ unless you are mad at me or I am in trouble for something.” Cocking my head to the side, I look up at Gabe. “Are you mad at me?”

  Gabe’s smile widens into that devilish grin of his. “Nah.”

  “Hmm.” I tap my chin with a finger, feigning confusion. “So, I have to be in trouble then, right?”

  “How could you be in trouble when you are our Keeper?” Brandon laughs. Seems like not much can keep his happy-go-lucky attitude down for long, not even being blinded and nearly killed.

  “True.” My gaze slips over Gabe’s broken and bruised face. His left eye is almost swollen shut, the skin an uneasy twilight blue that fades into a darker purple. There’s a large, jagged cut across his right cheek, and where the skin is flayed, it is raw and pink. “Hasn’t anyone come to patch you up yet?”

  Gabe acts as if he has forgotten that his face looks like he ran into a brick wall at a million miles an hour. A brick wall with jagged, pointed spikes sticking out of it. “Oh, this stuff?” He points to the cut on his cheek. “It’s no big deal, Bea. You know me better than that.”

  I snort and roll my eyes. “Yes, I do know you better than that, which is why I insist a medic come over here right now and patch you up before it gets infected and disgusting and your whole face falls off.”

  Brandon’s vacant eyes go wide, his eyebrows arching in surprise. “His face is go
ing to fall off? Really?”

  Gabe starts to laugh and squeezes Brandon’s hand again. “No, Brandon. My face isn’t going to fall off. This is just Bea’s way of being overdramatic so she gets what she wants.”

  “If I wanted to get what I want, I’d just order them to do it, huh?” I poke Gabe in his ribs, and he smirks again, then leans into me so our arms are pushed against each other.

  “No need to order anyone to do anything, Bea. If you want me to be seen, your wish is my command.” Gabe waves over to one of the few medics who are lingering off to the side in a huddle, peering our way and whispering to themselves. No doubt, they have lots to say about me, but I’m too busy to care.

  One of them rushes over, bows to me first, and then turns to Gabe. “Need me to fix this up for you, Seer Gabriel?”

  “Yes, please. I don’t need any girls looking my way and admiring another manly scar I’ve acquired in battle.” Gabe lets go of Brandon’s hand and mutters the words seriously, but breaks his facade by winking my way. “Just kidding.”

  “Mmhm.” I let the medics do their work, and leave Gabe’s side to sit next to Brandon. “How are you holding up?” I take his hand now, seeing as Gabe is no longer holding it.

  “It’s strange, not being able to see anything. I don’t know how to explain it. It’s just like someone turned the light off on my whole world, and now I’m just sitting here in this horrible, lonely blackness.” Brandon’s words are haunting and cause a shiver to ripple over my skin. “I don’t like being alone, Bea.”

  I bring my other hand over his, cradling his fingers between mine. “No one does, Brandon. We are going to find a way to get your vision back, I promise.” I really shouldn’t promise these things, and Brandon probably knows it, since he only nods sadly in response.

  “So, do you have some sort of plan?” Gabe looks at me from the corner of his eyes, keeping his head perfectly still as it is being tended to.

  “Yes. Seer Jeremy is putting the team together, and Echo is assembling some Dreamcatchers as well. I am sending them back to the Rogue camp to see what they can find.” I hate saying it because I hate the fact that I have to send anyone back to that abysmal place. “Hey … ” I call to Gabe, my voice soft.

  “Hmm?” He touches his cheek when the medic is done with it, feeling the sticky goop that helps it to heal faster.

  “They didn’t hurt you too badly, did they?” I feel guilty about it, and how could I not? At every turn, here I am abandoning Gabe over and over again when he needs me the most.

  “Please, Bea, you know I’m stronger than that.” Gabe brushes my concern off with a wave of his hand, but that’s not good enough for me.

  “I’m serious,” I urge.

  Gabe turns to me, his eyes still shadowed in bruises, his face still partially swollen and tender. “I am too. Don’t worry about any of that, Bea. You did what you had to do, and I’m not ever going to hold it against you.”

  “Aren’t you two just so sweet together,” Brandon mocks with a goofy grin that almost makes one forget that we are in a huge mess. Almost.

  Chapter 23

  This is the first time the Seers and Dreamcatchers have publicly worked together. This is what I’ve wanted since I became the Keeper, though it’s certainly not under the circumstances I wanted.

  Echo, Gabe, Brandon, Elan, and I wait at the gates of the City as three Dreamcatcher ships approach. Not too long ago, we’d be bracing for a war, but right now, I am anxious to hear about what they’ve found. It’s been a day since they’ve been away at the Rogue camp, searching for anything at all and nothing in particular, and I’ve not heard from them since their departure.

  The ships touch down in front of us and the hatches hiss open. From inside, Jeremy and his group of handpicked Seers start down the ramp toward us. The other ships also open up, reminding me of clams when their shells part and allow for a peek inside. The Dreamcatchers disembark, and the whole group stops behind Jeremy when he gets to me.

  “My Keeper.” Jeremy bows his head and I return the gesture to them all.

  “Seer Jeremy,” I begin, sweeping my gaze over this rather curious scene. I smile at it and nudge Echo. “Do you see this?”

  Echo grins down at me. “Looks like you did what you wanted to do.”

  “For now.” I don’t stop smiling though, even in spite of the gravity of the situation. “With this little group … but it’s amazing all the same.”

  Gabe clears his throat. Was it jealously?

  “Right.” I pull my shoulders back, the smile gone. “What do you have to report, Seer Jeremy?”

  Jeremy levels his gaze with mine. His uniform and skin are dusty with dirt from the plains. The sun has bronzed his face enough to leave white circles under his eyes from where he wore protective glasses of some sort. The Dreamcatchers are wearing their helmets, in full military uniform, just as they were when we originally invaded the camp. “You wish to do this here?”

  I glance sidelong at Gabe, then turn to Echo. Neither one of them seems opposed to debriefing here, so I nod. “Yes. What did you find?”

  Jeremy draws in a slow breath, his chest rising up and staying there. As he exhales, he begins his report. “Carnage. The camp has been wiped off the map, so to speak. Hardly anything exists in that space to even suggest a camp existed there at all. The earth is scorched black, debris and bodies are littered everywhere. Scraps of cloth leftover from the decimated tents are blowing freely in the wind.” He draws a hand back through his hair, gripping on to the roots like he is trying to pull the images from his mind.

  I swallow, not wanting to hear anymore. That carnage could have been us. It could have been Gabe.

  It could still be us.

  “Go on,” I command, urging him to continue.

  “What was particularly concerning were the patterns that were left on the ground. Big, round, perfectly-formed circles of black, and between the circumference … nothing. Not even remnants of the debris around the outside … absolutely nothing.” Jeremy tries to paint the image in our minds, and I shudder to think of a weapon powerful enough to eliminate anything. Everything.

  “That doesn’t sound good at all,” Gabe mutters.

  “Just wonderful,” Elan chimes in, his words dry and without emotion.

  “And there weren’t any Rogues? They were all eliminated?” Echo asks, glancing to his own commander, who steps up beside Jeremy and pulls off her helmet.

  “Your Highness.” The Dreamcatcher bows first. “We couldn’t find any signs of any life back at the camp. I know when we left there were many people we were fighting, but when we came back … ” She exchanges a haunted look with Jeremy. “It is too quiet there. Just the wind moves, everything else is still.”

  With a shiver, goose bumps form on my arms under the sleeves of my robe. For a minute, no one says anything, and I am grateful, because I’m having a hard time willing my mind to process how we are going to defend ourselves against something that can just make other somethings or someones stop existing.

  “Did the trail of debris or the marks left behind seem to lead off in a certain direction?” I ask.

  The Dreamcatcher nods her head, but Jeremy is the one who responds. “Yes. They are heading in this direction. We didn’t see any signs of them on our way there or back, but they have to be out there somewhere. I suspect they are lingering around in the atmosphere where we can’t see them.”

  Elan looks up into the sky, scanning it through squinted eyes. “Up there?”

  “I think, but I don’t know for sure.” Jeremy holds his holopad out toward me, and I take it. “We recorded our findings on there. Feel free to look through what we have and upload what you need to your own device.” He brushes some dust off his sleeve, and a little puff of dirt jumps into the air and dissipates. “With your permission, My Keeper, I’m going to get cleaned up, and then we have lots to talk and think about.”

  “Yes, please. Everyone is dismissed. I’ll call us together again soon.” I
look down at Jeremy’s holopad and brush my thumb over the screen to wake it up. The first picture that shows up is of a giant plot of land with little bits and pieces of this and that scattered everywhere. Hell, those little bits and pieces could be that of people, and I’m grateful that they are too far away to decipher if that is what they really are.

  “Gabe, Elan, Echo, do you mind coming back to my quarters with me so we can put together some ideas?” I ask my friends, since I wouldn’t dare ever try to order them around.

  They agree, and on our way back to my quarters, I can’t stop thinking about those pieces, and how if Echo and I weren’t quick enough, they could have been pieces of Gabe.

  Somewhere along the way, I take Gabe’s hand, and he squeezes my fingers tightly.

  Somewhere along the way, I glimpse at Echo, and he quickly looks elsewhere, but not soon enough to hide the sorrow in his gaze.

  We retreat back to my room and sit down around the too-large table that was probably built for no other reason than to plot over. Echo sits down with the grace of royalty, but Elan and Gabe half-plop down in their chairs with little-to-no poise at all. Gabe kicks the heels of his feet up on the table and brushes a few wisps of his hair out of his eyes, while Elan leans in on his elbows with a look of consternation on his face. Or maybe it’s a look of disapproval, as his gaze is pinned solely on Echo.

  I clear my throat, redirecting Elan and everyone else’s attention back on me. “I want to hear your opinions on the matter. I am not going to make any decisions without your input.” I sit down with a sigh. “The truth is, I don’t want to make any choices by myself. This is … ”

  “Too much?” Echo completes my thought with empathy.

  “Stupid?” Elan doesn’t complete my thought. Nor is he too empathetic. “What more of a plan do you need than to find these fools and go after them?”

  “Do you know where they are?” I reach for my bottle cap necklace and run my thumb over the crinkled edges. Elan shakes his head, and I smirk. “That’s what I thought. Really, Elan, I need you now. I know you want nothing more than to put these people in their place for doing what they did to Brandon, but I cannot afford to lose any of you, or any more Seers. It is our duty to protect our Citizens, and whatever or whomever this enemy is, they aren’t going to stop for any of us.”