The Ven Hypothesis (Kepos Chronicles Book 2)

by Erica Rue

  “Victoria, we can’t. Michael would never allow it, but consider this. Everyone already has a choice. They know that the Field Temple would welcome them if they left. They know there is an alternative. While I understand this is not the same thing, there are many Aratians who are dedicated to the Matching and what they owe to their people. That’s the best we can offer.”

  Victoria pursed her lips. Dione could see the wheels turning in her mind. It was not enough. Nothing except complete compliance would be enough for her, but she saw that this was the only choice. Victoria had seen enough death at the hands of the Vens to agree to this proposal.

  “Fine. We have a deal. Michael will honor it, as well?”

  “Yes,” Benjamin said. “You have my word.”

  Lithia’s shoulders relaxed, and Dione let out an audible sigh, as if she’d been holding her breath. Bel, on the other hand, did not relax.

  “Good. Now that you’ve agreed to work together, you need a plan. Moira has seen what you’re up against. Do you have anything that might work against them?” Bel said.

  Moira and Benjamin exchanged a knowing glance. If Dione noticed, she was sure Victoria had.

  “What is it?” Bel asked.

  “We have—” Moira began, but Benjamin interrupted.

  “Moira, enough. You overstep your bounds.”

  “We need to incorporate anything of use in the defense of the Vale Temple,” Professor Oberon said. Benjamin looked incredibly flustered, as if this whole negotiation had gotten away from him. Truthfully it had. Everyone, including Moira was staring at Benjamin.

  “Tell them,” she said. “It’s our best weapon against these Vens.”

  Benjamin thought a moment before he spoke. “We have prepared some flaminaria vials.”

  This meant nothing to Dione, but Victoria slammed her palms on the table and stood up. “I knew it. I knew you were planning something. How many?”

  “Enough to protect ourselves,” Benjamin said, rising himself.

  “With a preemptive strike,” Victoria said. “You were planning an assault against us, weren’t you?”

  “You actually raided our supply Hub, and now you think we are the violent ones? You Ficarans are the biggest hypocrites!”

  “We needed to steal food because you rejected our trade offers!” Victoria said. “We only used force when necessary. It’s not even close to what you and Michael were planning to do with the flaminaria.”

  “Excuse me.” Lithia interrupted before the dispute could gain any more steam. She directed her question toward Moira. “What’s a flaminaria vial?”

  “Flaminaria… I’ve heard that name before,” Bel said. “In Sam’s logs.”

  “It’s a plant that, when dried and concentrated, becomes extremely volatile when mixed with water,” Moira replied.

  “It’s an explosive?” Dione asked.

  “Yes. It’s localized, but extremely powerful. A small vial of the powder placed in a larger vial of water, if stepped on, could blow off an entire leg.”

  “Then we use it all. Take out as many Vens as we can with it. The fewer we have to face in close combat, the better off we are,” Lithia said.

  “How many vials do you have?” Victoria said.

  Benjamin paused. “Almost a hundred.”

  Victoria scoffed.

  “That could really make a dent in the Vens,” Dione said.

  “And what about the ones who make it to the walls?” Professor Oberon asked.

  “They won’t be able to get in,” Benjamin replied.

  “You hope that. The ones who make it inside the walls will answer to Ficaran bullets,” Victoria said. “I’ll prepare several squads of soldiers. If you’ve got a high vantage point, I’ll coordinate from there.”

  Dione should have felt optimistic, or at least relieved, but she couldn’t, not after that conversation. An agreement born of fear would be short-lived. She had doubts about whether this alliance could last days, let alone the years it would take for Moira to hold up her end of the bargain. With all of the tense situations that could rise up instantly in a battle, things could go very, very wrong.

  31. CORA

  Cora’s world, so bright and organized just a few days ago, was completely in shambles. She had thought the Farmer was going to return. She had thought that the Matching would join her to Will, while her father watched with pride.

  Instead, her father was still gone, she had not seen or spoken to Will since the Matching, and now the evening meals for the Matched couples had been postponed on her uncle’s orders. Uncle Benjamin had returned and called an assembly to share the news.

  “The demons have destroyed the Field Temple,” he said. There was tepid clapping from some until Benjamin cut them off. “And they are coming here next.”

  “Can you be sure?” A grim voice rose from the front of the crowd, and a man stepped forward. “Can an enemy of the Ficarans truly be our enemy as well? Perhaps we can negotiate with them.”

  Cora recognized the man. His brown hair was slicked back against his scalp, accentuating his crooked nose. She tried to recall his name, but her uncle saved her the trouble.

  “Elijah, I’ve seen the destruction myself, and these creatures are brutal beyond anything I could have imagined.”

  Elijah. The name was familiar. He had wanted to speak to her father about the demons before the cavalry left, but her father hadn’t had the time.

  Murmurs swept through the crowd, but Benjamin hushed them and continued. “We have formed an alliance with the surviving Ficarans.”

  Elijah pushed back at once. “That can’t be wise. They were attacking us just yesterday!” Shouts of agreement rose up in the crowd.

  “The Ficarans suffered heavy casualties. The demons forced them to flee their homes. Under normal circumstances, I agree it would be foolish to trust the Ficarans, but Moira examined the body of one of the demons, and the Farmer’s accounts have not been exaggerated. It’s unorthodox, but I promise that the demons are the real threat.”

  “I’d trust the demons before I trusted a Ficaran,” muttered Elijah, loud enough for those around him to hear, but he settled back into the crowd.

  Cora felt sick. The demons were coming, and there was a new alliance between the Field and Vale Temples. She didn’t know which was worse.

  ***

  Hours later, Ficarans with guns were stationed in the streets. Certain areas were still off-limits to them, of course, but they were being quartered in the public buildings by the market.

  What made it worse was that Cora had no idea what to think. Before she met Lithia, her world was safe and logical. Now, she had questions. She had been able to ignore Lithia before, but now that Jai was her match, she didn’t know what to do. Beliefs that had been crystal clear before were now out of focus. She couldn’t see straight. She didn’t know where to look, even.

  No, that wasn’t entirely true. She knew that there was only one way to be with Will, but she didn’t think she could do it. There was no way she could leave her father, her home, and her responsibility. Duty. It was an Aratian virtue, and she was the future Regnator.

  The Ficarans landed their Flyers in the open area where the stage had been just hours earlier. Cora had been watching them from a distance, their loose shorts and dull, sleeveless shirts out of place inside Aratian walls. Then, she saw someone else whose fitted pants and tight white tank top looked even more alien. Lithia.

  Cora needed to talk to her. Lithia had the answers. Cora might not trust her, but she would listen this time. Doubt, she had begun to realize, was a powerful thing.

  Cora caught her newly-discovered cousin on her way back to one of the Flyers. “Lithia, I need to talk to you.”

  The girl looked surprised to see her. “Last time I saw you, you shot me.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “And tried to steal the meds that would save my friend.”

  “My people needed them, too.”

  “Now Moira has them back. There yo
u go.”

  “I need you to tell me more about where you came from.”

  Lithia stopped walking and faced Cora. “You didn’t want to listen before, and you don’t want to listen now.”

  “I do, please,” Cora said. This was not going well.

  “Why? What changed? Finally believe us about the Vens now that they’re knocking on your door?”

  “The Matching. It’s all wrong.”

  Lithia paused a moment and gave her a searching look.

  “Of course, it’s all wrong,” she said. Cora shifted, uncomfortable under her gaze. “That’s it, isn’t it? You got matched with someone you don’t like, and now you want out. How convenient that it only becomes a problem when it affects you.”

  “That’s not fair,” Cora said, blinking hard.

  Lithia’s expression softened. “I don’t have time for this right now. We’ve got to set these flaminaria mines before we lose the daylight. The Vens are regrouping, based on Sam’s satellite images, and we need to get these set up around the perimeter before they arrive.”

  Lithia’s manumed came to life, and Cora recognized Dione’s voice. “Come on, we’re waiting on you.”

  Lithia brushed by Cora and hesitated. “Find me later. We’ll talk.” She jogged to one of the Flyers, which were beginning to take off, each filled with a mix of Aratians and Ficarans.

  Left alone, Cora retreated to the overlook she liked to visit with Will. She reached the top, too out of breath to cry, only to find Will had had the same idea.

  “Cora,” he said, “I’m sorry I didn’t come find you.”

  “Will, what are we going to do?” Cora said.

  “There’s nothing we can do. The Ficaran town was destroyed, and there’s no way they could protect you. There’s nowhere in the world we could be together.” Will took her hand in his. “Do you think the visitors are telling the truth?” he asked. “That there are other worlds?”

  “I don’t know what to believe,” Cora replied softly.

  “That would change everything. It would make the Matching unnecessary, if there are other humans who can prevent population drift…”

  Cora was beginning to understand the danger of believing what she wanted to believe, and Will’s line of thinking felt like another trap. The problem was, Lithia’s story made sense. She’d seen the Calypso. It was like nothing on Kepos. They had their own communicators. She had thought it was a sign from the Farmer, but now she just couldn’t believe that.

  “It would mean everything we’ve ever known was a lie,” Cora said. “But where did they come from? They’re not demons in disguise. We always thought the Farmer would come back, but he never has. And now, after the Matching, I just…”

  “Don’t want to believe anymore,” Will finished her thought. “With all that’s happening, I didn’t want to say it, but more and more things aren’t adding up. So what do we do?”

  “I don’t know yet. Lithia just told me that the demons are getting ready to come here. She calls them Vens and says that they’re aliens,” Cora said. It felt strange to repeat the things that Lithia had told her, now that she might believe them. It felt wrong. But looking down at the Aratians rushing around, everything had to be real. “I think we should help prepare the settlement. We might know about a few weaknesses in the walls that others don’t.”

  “I bet Evy could help with that,” Will said, laughing. “Your aunt still doesn’t know how she escapes half the time when the sentries are told specifically to watch for her.”

  Cora matched his smile and looked into his eyes. She may never have another moment alone with Will. Once the demons were defeated and things returned to normal, she would have to marry Jai.

  As if reading her thoughts, Will wrapped his arms around her in a long, warm embrace. When he let go, Cora refused. Instead, she stepped back just to look into his eyes once more.

  It happened so fast she hardly had time to think, but Will leaned down and kissed her, his lips lingering on hers. Their first kiss. Cora couldn’t bear for it to be their last.

  ***

  When they found her, Evy was sprawled on the floor of her room, cheeks wet and red. She wiped her eyes when she saw Cora and Will enter. Evy rushed to give Cora a hug. She hadn’t seen Evy since she came back in the middle of the Matching ceremony, and this explained it.

  “Did Aunt Amelia lock you in here?” Cora asked. Evy sniffed and nodded. Her aunt wasn’t going to let Evy escape again. As annoying as Evy was sometimes, like when she refused to come home with Cora, she hadn’t meant to worry Amelia. Locking Evy up was the surest way to get her to run again. Cora had more than enough experience with her stubbornness.

  “Well, you’re free now. We want you to help us with something,” Cora said.

  “Like what?” Evy said, sniffing again. Cora could see she was calming down.

  “The Vens are on their way here, so you really can’t go running off, but we want you to help us block off any exits you use to leave the town.”

  Evy looked skeptical. “How do I know you won’t tell my mom where they are?”

  It was a fair question. It was something she would do. “I promise I won’t.”

  “What if you get really mad at me?”

  “Even if I get mad. Here.” Cora kissed her palm and held it out to Evy. “Kiss on it?”

  Evy studied her outstretched hand for a moment before kissing her own palm and wrapping Cora’s hand in her own. “All right, come on.”

  Evy led them outside to a portion of the fence protected by a number of trees and bushes. This stretch of wall had a sentry tower, but it was rather far away, and the summer growth hid them well. Evy was examining the wall, looking for something when Will touched her shoulder and put a finger to his lips. She could hear it, too. Someone was coming. Cora beckoned to Evy, who joined her in hiding behind some shrubs. Maybe someone else had had the same idea, to look for weaknesses in the defenses. Still, she had promised not to give away Evy’s secrets, and she wasn’t inclined to explain what they were doing out there.

  Cora didn’t recognize the strangers’ voices, even when they got closer. She couldn’t tell how many there were in all, but she only heard two distinct voices.

  “Do you see the mark?” a man asked. Cora thought she recognized the voice, but she couldn’t place it.

  “Yes, I’ve found it. You’re sure they are using the flaminaria?” the woman asked.

  “I’ve seen the empty storeroom myself, and the Ficarans are already here. We can’t let this happen. It might be enough to stop the Vens, and we can’t risk it,” the man said. “They are our only hope of discovering the truth the Farmer kept from us.”

  “And the others have already left?” the woman said.

  “Yes, or they will soon. We’ll reconvene before we find our targets.”

  What in the world were they talking about? Cora peered through the bushes to see who was speaking, but the branches and leaves were too thick. All she could see were dark green cloaks. It was odd that they were wearing travel cloaks in the summer season.

  One by one they passed through the wall. Cora could tell because their footsteps grew more distant. It sounded like five or six of them had passed through the wall.

  “Who were those people?” Will said once they were out of earshot.

  “I have no idea. What were they talking about?” Cora said.

  “I don’t know, but I’ve seen them once before,” Evy said. “The green cloaks. I was out catching bugs. I hid, and they didn’t see me. I thought they’d take me home if they found me.”

  When the coast was clear, they examined the wall again, and this time Evy found what she was looking for. Someone had removed a portion of the stone wall and replaced it with a wooden door disguised to look just like the wall. Carved into one of the stones was a symbol, a triangle with a spiral inside it. Cora thought she had seen it before, but couldn’t remember where.

  “This must be the symbol they were talking about, but what does it
mean?” she said.

  “I don’t know. I’ve seen it before on my trips to the farms, carved onto trees in the woods, but I assumed it was something the Ficaran smugglers used to communicate. There’s all kinds of graffiti in the forest,” Will said.

  Cora frowned. Were those Aratians in the green cloaks working for the Ficaran smugglers? If so, what were they up to?

  “So how do we block this entrance?” she said.

  “I brought along sealant. It’s water tight and extremely strong. I thought we might have to patch an Evy-sized hole, not seal a door, but this should still work,” Will said.

  “What about the people who left?” Evy said. “They’ll be stuck out there.”

  “They knew the risks. Uncle Benjamin warned everyone to stay inside the walls. They’ll still be able to come through the main gate, anyway,” Cora said.

  Half an hour later, the secret door was sealed, and they were on their way back to the center of town. She offered to lock Evy back in her room before Amelia noticed, but Evy declined by running off into the market, which was packed with people buying up over a week’s worth of supplies. Shopkeepers were packing up their wares, preparing to leave the shells of their businesses behind. They were taking Benjamin’s warning to heart, which Cora thought was a good thing. They would be prepared. The Aratians had a plan.

  After saying goodbye to Will, Cora ate dinner alone in her room that evening. She didn’t want to feel her father’s absence at the dinner table or suffer her aunt’s wrath. They hadn’t received any more news from the cavalry or her father, but she knew he was okay. The Ficaran Flyers had circled around looking for them, but hadn’t seen anything. Cora looked out her window. The sun was low, still an hour from setting, and its golden warmth gilded the empty market, the walls, and the treetops beyond. He would send them word when he had news, and no sooner. Perhaps in the morning, he would already be home.

  With that hope in her heart, Cora went to bed early.

  32. DIONE

  In the Flyer, Dione watched the video feed from the external cameras. Everything was green and alive, and it was hard to believe that the Vens were on their way.