by Caryn Lix
“Can’t you do anything to stop him?” Mia demanded.
Doubt flickered in Eden’s eyes. “Gideon was different at the beginning. Stronger. A force. He saved every soul in this building. He’s personally pulled me out of harm’s way on three separate occasions. Convincing people to turn against someone like that, even when he’s behaving erratically … no one wants to betray the man who saved them. Including me.”
“He’s going to kill us, isn’t he?” I asked it quietly and without emotion. I’d already long since assumed that was the case, and Eden’s silence did nothing to convince me otherwise. I didn’t need Gideon’s power to know the truth of this one. “He can’t afford to let us join, not if you’re low on supplies. He doesn’t know us. Are you okay with that? With murdering a bunch of people for no reason?”
“I wouldn’t …”
“You might like us if you got to know us,” I suggested, forcing a smile I didn’t feel. “We’re not such bad people. We’re hardworking, and we’re brave.”
“I know. And I appreciate the risk you took, raiding the outer neighborhoods. I just …”
“Wait.” I exchanged glances with Mia, who shrugged. “What do you mean, the risk we took?”
Eden considered us for a long moment. Then she grabbed a crate, pulled it over, and sat down. “Okay,” she said. “I’ll answer your question if you answer mine. Where the hell did you come from? Because it sure wasn’t from around here.”
I bit my lip, debating how truthfully to answer. But then … I wanted Eden to trust me. That had to go both ways. Besides, what was she going to do with the information? “I have no idea where we came from,” I said at last. “Or maybe I mean I don’t know where we are. Or both. We were on a spaceship, and it was about to blow up. I … borrowed someone’s power and reached for someplace safe, somewhere far away from the ship.” Somewhere to help us defeat the aliens, I added to myself ruefully. Apparently, my subconscious had ignored that part of my request. “And … we woke up here. We’re from a different planet, a different solar system. Nowhere close, I think.”
I expected disbelief, but she only stared at me a moment, then nodded slowly. “That actually tracks,” she said. “It explains why you don’t know things you should. You’ve survived by sheer luck, you know.”
“We don’t know,” I said, fighting to keep my frustration under control. “We don’t know anything.”
“It’s why we stick to the city center. The outlying neighborhoods, they’re the territory of the creatures we call the zemdyut.”
The sand-torn devastation breathes. Awakens. Conquered.
The hive writhes.
Shifting beneath the surface. Beneath the minds.
Shifting sands. Shifting times.
Something has changed.
Conquered?
This planet lives again. New life, new breath. Familiar. Creatures that have followed and stalked and wreaked havoc in the past, now delivered, ready for the harvest. The attention divided, the threat compelling, the power drawing.
Two places. One mind.
FIFTEEN
IN ONE WORD AND TWO syllables, everything fell apart.
I jerked upright, my heart stuttering over itself, the air rushing from my lungs in a single breath. My world shrank to Eden, to the fear on her face, her lips moving but her words inaudible over the dim, sharp rush of a nonexistent wind filling my ears.
I’d heard that word before, the slight foreign lilt to it.
Zemdyut.
Alien.
“They’re still here,” I whispered.
Beside me, Mia had gone cold and rigid, a statue made of ice.
Eden froze, her features a mask. “You know the zemdyut?”
“This is Liam’s world,” I said. I’d known that, of course, but part of me had hoped I was wrong, or at least hoped the aliens had left this place alone. Maybe when I piggybacked on Liam’s power, I’d accidentally tapped into his memories of a safe place, because this sure as hell didn’t fit my definition.
“Who’s Liam?”
“He’s the one whose power I borrowed to get here. He teleported to our solar system, and he told me about the zemdyut. But we already knew about them. We just didn’t have a name for them. They attacked our world too. They killed my family. We came here looking to escape from them.” I shot to my feet. Eden tensed, standing as well, but I didn’t care at the moment. I needed to move, to burn off some of the terror clawing at my soul. I’d thought we’d left the aliens behind, but we hadn’t. We’d followed them.
Still … maybe I could use this information to forge an escape from our current mess. I turned to Eden, lowering my voice. “We are exactly the same,” I told her, making no effort to hide my desperation. “Both of our worlds, our families, are victims of these creatures. Please don’t let Gideon murder my friends after they’ve survived so much.”
“I don’t …” Eden hesitated. “I’ll talk to him,” she said at last. “Sometimes he listens to me. But you’d better pray your people don’t come in guns blazing, because no power on the globe will stop him if they do. His protective impulse is on overdrive. If he scents even a hint of a threat to the safety of the people in this building, he will scorch the earth to defend them.”
I had more questions, hundreds of them threatening to trip off my tongue, but she was already backing out of the room.
What were the chances of my friends not coming in shooting? It depended whose voice prevailed. Mia was here, so that was a small mercy. I only hoped Priya’s head for strategy was enough to urge caution.
Eden left us the light, and the bag. After a moment Mia pulled it toward herself, rummaged around, and began calmly cleaning and bandaging her foot. “She didn’t take the dart,” she remarked, as if she were suggesting a stroll along the beach. “She must have known we had it. That’s something.”
I shook my head, barely able to speak, let alone mimic Mia’s calm tone. “Mia, what she said … the creatures. They’re here.”
Mia sighed, leaning against the wall and popping open a canister of water. “Honestly, I’m getting used to them chasing me. I’d almost prefer it. At least that way I know what we’re up against.”
I blinked. She seemed tired, more resigned than I was accustomed to. “Are you all right?” I asked.
She shrugged. “I’m fine. This is just how things go. One disaster to the next. If you’re hanging with me, you’d better get used to it. There’s never a break. That’s your problem: you’re always trying to think things through. But some of the time, most of the time, all we can do is wait for the next thing to happen and react.”
I resisted the urge to comment that her philosophy hadn’t gotten her very far in life, since she’d spent the last five years or so in a prison cell on Sanctuary. I took a water canister of my own and drained half of it in a single gulp. “Well, I’m going to keep using my brain,” I said dryly, “even if you’d rather wait for something to show up so you can throw things at it.”
At that moment the entire building seemed to heave. I stumbled, losing my balance and crashing into a metal shelf. I grabbed it to keep myself standing as the world restored itself, the shelves teetering dangerously before deciding to stay upright.
Our eyes met, and Mia grinned. “See what I mean?” She caught the shelf behind her and used it to drag herself to her feet. “I think we’ve spent enough time in this storeroom.”
“Great. I agree. If you can think of a way to get us out …”
The room gave another lurch. Mia seemed prepared for it and clutched the shelf for balance. I, on the other hand, almost went over. “You should probably come here,” she said.
“Mia, what … ?”
“Hang on.”
I suddenly realized the temperature in the room had been climbing gradually and was now unbearably hot. My hair stuck to my neck in a sweaty clump, and as I stared at the metal outline of the door, I was pretty sure it started to glow red. “Oh boy … ,” I muttered.
&
nbsp; The next instant, the door smashed inward, colliding with the wall. A blast of heat followed it. If the back of the door had been warm, the front was half melted, especially around the padlocked area, which bubbled and blistered, twisting in on itself.
Standing silhouetted in the remaining space, Alexei rolled his huge shoulders. “There you are,” he said. “This is the third room I’ve checked.”
From behind him, someone shouted, and something crashed. “What’s going on?” I demanded.
“Full-out war, as near as I can tell,” he explained pleasantly. “Mia mine, what happened to your leg?”
“Some prick shot me.” She waved that away like it didn’t matter. “Cage and Matt?”
“I found them already.” He smiled grimly. “I ducked away from the battle to rescue the lot of you and heard Cage and Matt shouting and banging on the door.”
“And everyone else?”
“In the fight.”
“Then that’s where we should be too.” Mia stepped on her bad foot and winced. It was the same leg she’d injured on Sanctuary, the one that never fully healed, even with Reed’s help.
“You’re in no shape to fight,” I told her sharply. “Wait here and—”
Mia snorted and shoved past me, hobbling to Alexei’s side. He met my gaze and shrugged, slinging his arm around her waist for support. “Let’s go.”
I threw up my hands in disgust. They obviously weren’t going to listen to me. They never did. Sometimes Cage got through to them, but even that was a rarity. I fell into step behind them and we vanished—Mia’s doing, no doubt.
The second we emerged into the storeroom, the noises of battle intensified. They seemed to come from overhead. Shouts and gunshots echoed through the cavernous space, blasts of what sounded like explosives. “Hurry,” I said sharply, pushing past the other two and charging for the stairs. I reached inside and summoned a burst of speed, meaning Cage was close by. That alone calmed my racing heart at least a little.
I shot up the stairs well ahead of the others, my visibility restored, and emerged into the dark room where we’d first met Eden and Gideon. Here the battle was even louder, and the building shook. I still couldn’t see much, but a flare of light illuminated a nearby window, and I charged over to it.
Outside, the street had become a battlefield. I couldn’t even tell who was on whose side at the moment. People were crouched behind abandoned vehicles. A few low fires burned. Every now and then, someone popped up and lobbed what might have been a homemade explosive. I was pretty sure that would be Gideon’s people. But how could I tell? Maybe Priya or Hallam had come up with something. Either way, I needed to get in this fight, and I needed to do it on the right side.
Alexei and Mia approached behind me. “Over here.” Alexei indicated a door I hadn’t noticed. I went through it and found myself in an open space, probably part of the store at one time. Huge glass windows, mostly broken, lined the front wall. Outside, the battle raged, although no one seemed to have noticed us yet.
Noticed us … I peered down. Sure enough, I was invisible again.
“What do we do?” I cried. I had to shout to be heard over the noise, which kind of kneecapped the invisibility, but who cared? We had to act. This was madness, and if it kept going, everyone was going to die. “Where’s Cage? Where’s Priya? Where’s anyone?”
There was a snick, as if Alexei had drawn a blade. “One way to know for sure.”
“Hang on. You can’t just wander out there. Even invisible, you’ll probably get hit by a stray projectile. We need to think. We need to—”
“What did I tell you about that?” Mia demanded. She popped into visibility and wiggled her fingers, producing the long dart I’d pulled from her foot. “No time to think, Kenz. Let’s act.”
And as much as I hated to admit it, she might be right. Maybe we did have to jump in. I couldn’t stand here hoping a plan would occur to me. I opened my mouth to admit as much—
And an ear-shattering roar split the shadows outside.
The remnant obliterated.
Defeat.
Death.
Taste of blood and bile and metal.
There can be no retreat.
SIXTEEN
MY HEART PLUMMETED THROUGH MY knees and into my feet. I’d heard that roar before. “Oh my God,” I whispered. “It’s them. The aliens. They’re here.”
The street went silent, the alien presence piercing through the battle as only a new enemy can do.
A moment later, a familiar figure emerged from behind a nearby vehicle: Eden, her arms extended in a gesture of peace. “Cease fire!” she shouted. “Everyone get inside now! And I mean everyone, damn it!”
“Cortez,” snapped Gideon. I pivoted, searching for him, not finding him. “Get behind cover. And the rest of you, ignore that order! We keep going until this is over!”
Eden blinked into the darkness. “If you want to get torn to shreds, be my guest,” she said at last. She spoke clearly and calmly, her voice carrying through the night. “Anyone who feels differently, get inside and get belowground. Now.”
For a moment I thought nothing would happen. Then a stream of people emerged from the perimeter, maybe a half dozen of them. They ran for the building, darting past our once-again invisible forms in their rush for cover.
Eden jumped through the window. I quickly withdrew, feeling behind me until I caught Alexei’s arm. He slipped his hand over my elbow and pulled me against him. We pressed to the wall. Mia breathed unsteadily on Alexei’s other side; his heartbeat thrummed against me. We watched, and we waited.
Sure enough, a moment later another roar echoed through the night—this one closer and louder. A shudder went through me, and Alexei tightened his grip, pulling me closer. I twisted my nails into my own palm, clamping my jaw shut. Silence. We had to stay quiet.
Gideon emerged from the shadows and leaped over the glass. Something moved behind him—not the aliens, though, not yet. Maybe Cage, slipping closer. My heart stilled. Were all of my friends out there, waiting to be torn apart?
Eden and Gideon faced off in the center of the room. “What the hell was that?” Gideon snarled. He spun and kicked a display table. It upended, its contents scattering across the room. Something clattered to his feet, and he stomped on it, grinding it to powder beneath his boot before turning on Eden. “You don’t give the orders around here. I do. Do not ever, ever contradict me again.”
Eden drew her small frame high and straight. “I followed you into that battle, but I’m damned if I’m going to watch the zemdyut kill our people to prove a point.”
“We’ll discuss it later. Get downstairs.”
“No.” She jerked her head toward the street. “We’re taking the newcomers with us.”
Someone moved outside again, and another roar answered the first, seeming to come from the opposite direction. Gideon spun and fired randomly, a different weapon this time, creating tiny explosions where his bullets landed. “Stay back!” he shouted. To Eden, he said, “Get inside.”
“Not without them.”
Gideon’s face twisted into a monstrous scowl. He raised his gun and pointed it at her. “Get inside, Cortez.”
Instead, she took a step forward. “Gideon. I know what you’re going through. I know how much you miss them. Your wife. Your kids.”
His entire body froze. “You don’t know what you’re talking about,” he said, each word a dagger.
“I miss my daughter, too. So much. Every day.” She held out a hand, advancing on him. “Gideon, please. Think back. Remember who you were. You keep saying you want everyone safe. How is getting our soldiers slaughtered by the zemdyut going to accomplish that? How is starving in this prison going to save us? It’s time to make changes. Time to take action.”
He leveled a finger in her direction. “Changes get people killed. And this isn’t the time or place to—”
“To leave a bunch of innocent people to die? Is that the man your kids would have wanted you to be
come? What would Lisa have said?”
“Keep my wife’s name out of your mouth!”
She took another step forward. “I know you’re fighting for our people. I still believe in you, Gideon. Don’t let me down. Drop that gun. Let’s get these people and take them inside. Let’s help them. And just maybe they can help us, too.”
Gideon half hunched, the gun trembling in his hand, still aimed at Eden. His body twitched, his mouth twisted, and he resembled nothing so much as the villain from the first arc of Robo Mecha Dream Girl 5, Yumiko’s mentor she’d worked so desperately to save. I was pretty sure I was watching the same thing play out in real time. Because Eden was not going to be able to convince Gideon. I knew it. By the tension radiating off Alexei and Mia, they did too.
So what did we do? Watch him shoot her? Try to intervene? What?
Just then, the decision was taken out of our hands. Gideon jerked his arm straight and targeted Eden’s forehead. “If you don’t move this second,” he said coldly, his voice solid again, “I will kill you. Anyone else who showed me this kind of disloyalty would be dead on the floor by now. We are out of time and options. Get. Down. Stairs.”
Eden spread her arms wide. “I’m not moving.”
“Then I’m sorry.”
But even as he tightened his grip, another monstrous howl split the night air, this one so loud and so close all of us jerked upright.
Eden recovered first.
It was over almost before I blinked. She flew across the space between them, propelled by her power, and smashed into Gideon. They fell to the floor, struggling. The gun went off, and …
And Eden got to her feet, staring at Gideon’s unmoving form.
My jaw tensed so hard, agony splintered through my neck. I took a half step forward, but Alexei caught my arm. I couldn’t see his face, but the slight tremor in his hand mirrored my own shock and dismay. What we’d just seen … was it self-defense? Murder? Something else altogether?
