Scorched Souls (Chosen Book 3)

by Jeff Altabef

  “Juliet only did what she thought was best,” says Troy. “Let’s focus on the future and what we do next.”

  “Right,” I say, thankful for the life preserver. I catch them up on events, including my battle at Aaric’s compound, the civil war that threatens to split Deltite society in half, and the enhanced humans they’ve been creating with Deltite DNA.

  When finished, I look away from them and toward the window. I left out the linking serum that Aaric and I drank, and my fears about being an abomination. I can’t discuss those with my parents here, and not with all their lives at stake. They have to come first. Then maybe I can face my own situation, if there’s time.

  Akari speaks first. “They’ve created an army of people with special abilities like us?”

  I turn back toward them. “Not an army, but enough of them to make a difference. They also don’t have abilities like we do. They’re stronger, faster, and smarter than average humans, and some have mild telekinesis skills, but none have the special abilities that we possess.”

  Blake whistles. “Well, that’s awfully smart of them. These hybrid humans will end up in the highest places in our society. It will certainly make taking over the planet a whole lot easier.”

  “There’s more.” I end by summarizing the differences between Alphian and Deltite philosophies. “Aaric is a logician. He wants to partner with us to bring order to the universe, to bring peace here and to other planets that aren’t as developed.”

  More certainty fills my voice than I expect. Have I decided that he’s right? Would Earth be better off with his help?

  “I don’t like it,” says Connor. “We don’t need his help to straighten out our own bloody planet.”

  “I’m not so sure,” says Troy. “We’re destroying Mother Earth. Maybe he can help restore balance. We have to change our relationship with the planet somehow or the prophecy will be fulfilled and Mother Earth will expel us.”

  An argument erupts, and I turn away from them feeling woozy. It’s been a long couple of days and my head starts to split open, the pain knifing down my back and carving its way to my toes.

  Finally, my dad speaks up, cutting through the argument. “We don’t need to decide the fate of the world now. We need to focus on the bomb before there’s nothing left to fight about.”

  That quiets the group, and allows me to speak up again. “We think the Heart Stone is hidden nearby. My grandfather collected ancient Native American artwork that had images of Alphians on them. There must be clues hidden in those paintings. If we find them, we’ll have a chance to figure out where it’s hidden. We found one of the hides at Roundtree’s house, but I left it behind. The fire must have destroyed it.”

  “Not so fast.” My father removes the hide from under his shirt. “I thought it might be important so I grabbed it when I went upstairs for the bat.” He unrolls it and puts it on the table.

  “Lisa, have you seen anything similar among my father’s collection?” asks my mother. “I know my father collected these. Maybe he hid them in the vault?”

  She shakes her head. “He didn’t leave them here. I’ve never seen anything like this.”

  While everyone inspects the hide, I lean against a chair, my body heavy, and my hands clammy. When I turn my head, I see Sicheii out of the corner of my eye.

  He’s in the kitchen making his favorite lunch: eggs, salmon, scallions, and cheese all mixed together. The food smells wonderful and he smiles at me.

  I close my eyes and shake my head to clear them. When I reopen them he’s gone.

  Blake separates from the others and walks toward me. “There’s only one problem. I don’t trust... you. Ever since they captured you in New York, you’ve been acting weird.” He turns to make his case to the others. “She decked Connor and didn’t tell any of us what she was up to. We find her with the Prime Elector, and now she tells us to trust him.”

  My temper fires up and the world pixelates so sharply it’s hard for me to make out shapes. “Can’t trust me!”

  Blake turns toward me, and his face shatters into a thousand little dots, and then a heartbeat later combines and refocuses.

  My body feels like it might explode. “What have you sacrificed? I lost my grandfather. I saw him murdered! I couldn’t stop the Seeker. It was my fault. My fault! I should have protected him, but I watched the life leave his eyes. He....” Tears fall now, angry and hot against my cheeks. “I’ve sacrificed... I’m an....”

  My body’s soaking up too much energy and I’m on the verge of losing control.

  Everyone stares at me like I’m nuts, hate and suspicion filling their eyes: Blake, Akari, Connor, even Troy. Their faces shift in and out of focus. I’m transported back to Hampton Court Palace and see again the hate pour out of them after I decked Connor.

  I shake my head and this time I’m back at the cemetery with Sicheii—all those graves and none with my name on it. They all die and I’m spared.

  How can they trust me?

  Sicheii is frowning at me. “Be the rock,” he says.

  “Maybe I’m not strong enough,” I mutter.

  He fades, and I’m left with the others, struggling to breathe. Their expectations suffocate me. All I see are their tombstones. Not mine. Never mine. Do I betray them in the end? Is that what Sicheii’s telling me? Do I always have to stand on ice that spider webs from my feet?

  I can’t stay here or I’ll burst.

  I turn and the door explodes before me.

  Barrett

  We step into the night. A smattering of stars fill the sky, and I feel lost and far from home. Of course, I am far from home. Not measured by time of travel, but in space and isolation and the incredible responsibility my father has burdened me with.

  We walk in silence for a few minutes, the clatter of our boots the only source of noise. Storefronts line both sides of the narrow cobblestone streets. Most of the stores are closed, but as we reach a main street we see a few lit restaurants in the distance that teem with life.

  Alpha doesn’t have streets like these. Our architecture is different. We mostly use the planet’s abundant crystals for building materials, some opaque for privacy and others translucent for light, but that’s a superficial difference. The deeper distinction, the one that cuts through our two societies, is reflected in the close proximity in which these humans live. Alphians treasure their privacy. We space apart our residences so they cannot be seen from one to another.

  Aaric leads the way, crosses the main street, and heads down a narrower one.

  I close my eyes for a second and wonder what this place looked like when my father first visited over two hundred years ago. Certainly the streets were not here, nor the buildings.

  I sigh, and as the air puffs from my mouth, so does my last shred of hope. A small part of me still hoped my father wasn’t always a cold-hearted logician, a slave to calculations and formulas, probabilities and outcomes. There’s no way to fool myself any longer. He had barely lost his hair when he condemned this planet to death in his mechanical, logical way.

  I’ve tried to embrace my rational side to be more like him, to make him proud of me, but my emotional and spiritual sides always speak the loudest. When I go back home and pass the final test, I’ll tell him that I want to become a priest. He’ll be so disappointed that he’ll never speak to me again, but I can’t live the logician’s life and deny my true passion—to live beyond logic to a higher calling. Mom would have understood, but she’s gone, and I’ll be on my own.

  Aaric interrupts my thoughts. His face looks much like mine in the darkness. We have the same jawline, high forehead, and deep-set eyes. “It must have been difficult to grow up on Alpha.”

  “Difficult? We have the best of everything—perfect weather, tastiest foods, richest wines, the finest teachers and spiritual advisors. I would think you’ve had a much more arduous time of it.”

  “All that beauty and the quest for perfection can shackle a person, stifle his natural curiosity, and squas
h his drive to transform the universe. I grew up on a wild planet, one more primitive than this one. We had to hunt to survive, and yet I would not have switched places with you. The lessons I have learned are invaluable. Stand in a forest with an empty stomach and drawn bow and you learn the true nature of the universe. You also learn a thing or two about what you are capable of achieving.”

  “I’ve never thought about it that way.” I assumed Alpha was the ideal place to grow up, but now I find myself jealous of him. He’s tested himself in ways I’ve never dreamt about.

  “How long have you been on planet?”

  “One week.”

  He pulls me to a stop and stares at me for a long moment, and I see a touch of wildness in his eyes. His gaze pierces into me, beyond skin and muscle and bone, as if he’s trying to see into my soul to assess whether it’s worthy. I can’t help but wonder what he finds.

  “Not long, but long enough,” he says.

  “Long enough for what?”

  “To understand. Humans are not soulless beasts who deserve to be extinguished as if they never existed. They are not as evolved as Alphians, but that is only a matter of time. Early Alphians did not posses the abilities we do now. Only after they tapped into the power of the crystals did they truly excel. It took time, and given time, these humans will evolve also. Maybe not in the same way, but they will... perhaps even into something better. Who can say?”

  “That’s if I give them time, you mean. Right?”

  In a cosmic practical joke of epic proportions, we stand together on an odd street in a far-flung planet neither one of us can call home, deciding the fate of billions of people we barely know.

  He nods and we continue walking. He’s correct about us of course. Alphian society started over a hundred thousand years ago. We went through a long primitive phase, not dissimilar to humans. We wasted much blood on senseless wars and pillaged the planet’s natural resources. Then we became enlightened and learned a better way, but our teachers mostly bury that history. They’d rather focus on the Enlightened Age to prove our superiority to the universe’s other creatures, as if we were always higher in the natural order.

  “It is a shame we have just met,” he says. “I have a brother, but we rarely see the world the same way. We will have to make up for lost time—you and me. Do you have any siblings?”

  I shake my head and imagine what it would have been like for us to grow up together. Perhaps he could have chased away some of the loneliness.

  “Tell me about Alpha.” A wispy quality fills his voice and a bounce livens his step. “Is the stadium as wonderful as people remember?”

  I smile. “I’m not sure what your Memory Historians have recorded, but it’s hard to imagine anything more beautiful. When filled, the colors dazzle and the energy feels like riding a powerful wave. It’s almost indescribable.”

  He smirks. “Sounds fantastic. Too bad I will never see it.”

  I pause and look at him quizzically. “From what I understand, Deltites want to conquer Alpha and take back the home planet. Given your way, you’ll take Alpha in no time.”

  “You do not understand much, cousin, but that is not your fault.” He shrugs. “You can only evaluate what they tell you, but it has never been our goal to conquer Alpha. We simply desire to tame the rest of the universe, to bring order from chaos. We wish to let the lesser beings live to their fullest potential. And humans... well, they have much potential.”

  I study his face and aura and find no dishonesty. He could be adept at hiding his true feelings, yet I feel his sincerity as if he’s speaking from his heart.

  We turn a corner and skirt a young couple locked in a passionate embrace—a public show of emotion that would make any Alphian cringe.

  How much potential do humans have?

  I’ve spent enough time with the Chosen to experience their worth, their passion, their capacity to love, and their souls. They might be special among humans, but surely others have the same qualities.

  Who are we to eliminate them? How would the Creator judge us if we did?

  My mind starts to ache, so I kick a stone down the street and change the subject. “So, if you’re the Prime Elector, who were those Deltites we fought at the house?”

  His eyes pinch together, barely masking his anger. “A few nonbelievers who will be thinned from the clan.”

  When we round another corner, he stops at an intersection and locks his eyes onto mine. “We are at a crossroads, cousin. What will you do? Will you murder all these people, just because your Elders are cowards? If they want to stop us, they simply need to oppose us and test their energy and purpose against ours. That is the way of our people, Barrett, son of Aarvlic, descendant of an Original Family. This plan to blow up the planet is not just. It is not in keeping with our traditions. There is no honor in it.”

  He looks earnest and doubts swirl in my mind. My father’s logic is flawless, as usual. Earth would give Deltites a huge asset. It would make war between our two people more likely, and much blood would be lost between us. If I could rely solely upon logic, my answer would be easy, but that is not my way.

  When I consider the spiritual implications of destroying the planet, the decision becomes infinitely more difficult. I wrestle with the same concerns I’ve had since the start, only now I’ve experienced something of human beings that tilts my perspective. If I had never met the Chosen, maybe I could take the easy path, but the easy path is not always the right one.

  Aaric is right: humans do have potential and souls. I won’t turn my back on my beliefs just because it’s easy. That would be cowardly, and although I may be many things, a coward is not one of them.

  My decision starts to firm. I won’t condemn this planet if I can save it, but I’m not ready to trust my cousin just yet, so I shade the truth. “I haven’t made my final decision, cousin. Not today, at least.”

  “Would it make a difference if your mother would have wanted you to save this world? She did not die by accident. Your father had her killed while she was off-planet.”

  The oxygen blows from my lungs, and I have to fight the urge to double over. “How could you... know anything about my mother?”

  “I am sorry, cousin. That was tactless of me. Let me explain. We have spies on Alpha and know much about what is happening on the home planet. I know your father wants to be Leader and has much ambition. Your mother contacted us through a... network. She desired to prevent a war between our two people. Your father learned that she had contacted us and had her killed. She had become a liability. He could never become Leader if her perceived treachery were revealed.”

  Did my father kill her because of his all-consuming ambition? When he told me about her death, there was no sadness in his thoughts. He seemed angry more than anything. “She never told me about this. She was a traitor?”

  “No, she was not a traitor. She merely wanted to open up communications to avoid the... avoidable. I am sure she never told you because she did not want to involve you. Your father might have seen you as a liability as well if he had found out.”

  I grit my teeth. The puzzle pieces fit too well. That worm had my mother killed because she was politically inconvenient for him. The back of my eyes sting, but I won’t let tears fall in front of my cousin.

  He frowns at me. “I am sorry to be the one to tell you. It is hard when we realize the universe is nothing like we assumed. I thought it best that you be fully informed before you make your decision.”

  I nod, and we resume our stroll, walking in silence for some time. I wish I were shocked by what Aaric just told me, but I’m not. A small part of me has always suspected my father was involved in my mother’s death. Perhaps that’s why the divide between us only deepened after her passing.

  When Aaric and I pass the same storefront for the third time, he pats me on the shoulder. “Shall we talk about lighter topics? The humans probably need more time before we return.”

  “Sure. There’s nothing I can do about my father f
rom here.”

  “Have you linked with someone special?” He winks at me. “I imagine you must have many potential suitors.”

  “I haven’t committed to anyone yet, but there is one who’s special,” I confess. “Her name’s Cassandra.”

  Cassandra is my only true friend, the only person with whom I share my secrets. Father doesn’t know, but we agreed to take the final test on the same day to stop this insane competition between our two families. He’d say that was illogical, that the strongest should rise to the top.

  We don’t see it that way. We share a bond, but we never talk about our future, the one after the final test. I don’t know what she wants or even what I want. We could become linked, live our lives together, drink the marriage potion together. Our bloodlines are a good enough match; the Arrangers could not refuse us. I think I want that, but we face so many headwinds, and I haven’t gathered up the courage to ask her yet.

  “Cassandra is a lovely name. She must be special.”

  “What about you?”

  “I am working on it, but it is hard to settle on just one,” he says with a rueful smile.

  “Tell me about Juliet Wildfire Stone. She’s intriguing. She’s different from the other Chosen. My father is worried about her.”

  His back stiffens and his jaw tightens—slight, almost imperceptible changes, but enough for me to notice.

  “Worried about her? Why?”

  “The calculations behind her DNA fusion were particularly complex. My father based them upon a certain genetic combination, a combination she does not possess. I’ve only met her for the first time today, and I can tell that she’s stronger than the others.”

  He forces a blank expression on his face, as if he finds nothing interesting in my query, and says, “She’s the Alpha. Her DNA fusion was supposed to make her different.”

  I grab his arm and force him to stop. “We both know there’s more to it than that. She could be an abomination. If her power grows uncontrollably, she’ll be a danger to anyone near her. I’m—”

  He yanks his arm free. “Juliet is not your concern. I will see to her health and safety. Rest easy, cousin.”