by J.T. Stoll
Vero leaped.
Axe at her side, she chased a form fleeing through the air, ready to swing up and launch a fireball. Somehow, she knew that’s what was supposed to happen, as though it had already happened. That fleeing form would die. She would swing, and he would die.
Only this time, nothing happened. Jed turned in midair. Their weapons clashed. Diotein shattered in her hands. And Dek—who she remembered being dead—jumped from behind to attack her. They both smashed into her, and the three fell tumbling to the ground.
Where were the others? Where were Pieter and Neil and Gloria? Was Pieter injured? Was he whole?
Jed sat on top of her, smirking. With her strength, she should have been able to push him off; he felt like a boulder. He just sat there, grinning and grinning and grinning.
“More are coming, little girl. The rift is open. Can you taste the breeze from Ruach?”
Dek lifted his mace and smashed in her skull. The scene went dark.
And she heard snoring, Bella’s loud snoring. Was she dead, alive? Sleeping, awake? She turned over.
A dark park—it seemed somehow familiar—surrounded her. Jed fell from the starless night sky. Diotein was whole and in her hands again.
She threw her weapon to the ground and ran. She just needed to get away, needed escape, needed freedom. But no matter where she ran, Jed followed just behind, his sword ready. She stumbled over dark roots and bushes.
Something exploded behind her, illuminating the park like day. Bushes went from black to green; trees burst from barren darkness into pink and purple blossoms. Playground equipment flashed to playful crimson and sapphire. The burst knocked Vero onto her face.
She flipped over and prepared for Jed to pounce on her. A blazing white light floated between them, edges moving like the swells of the ocean. Jed dissolved as he touched it. That light washed away guilt, washed away fear.
A single word filled the air: “Continue.”
She stayed on her back, staring into the white form. The sound of Bella’s snoring returned, followed by the feel of a tightly wrapped sheet. The park faded, and Vero opened her eyes to see her room.
Only, the form remained. It floated just above her bed, unearthly and beautiful. The backdrop of her room, unlike the park, remained dark except for a slight red tinge from Bella’s alarm clock. As in the dream, it gave her a sense of wholeness and comfort, though fear crept in at seeing something so alien floating in her room.
Her reflexes activated her soul armor. She jolted fully awake, and the light vanished into a faint afterimage. It had to have been some trick of her brain, a leftover from the nightmare. Perhaps a trick of the eye, like floaters when you press on closed eyelids. She released her armor.
But it had felt so real. The memory gave her a funny sensation, an ache, a yearning to see it again. She could have stared at it for hours. The sight of it had banished the guilt and pain of just a few hours ago.
Vero’s heart hammered. Fully awake, she felt a clarity that she hadn’t experienced since the night with James. Fear had clouded her choices about Ruach. Now she didn’t feel that fear. And one thing was clear: All their talk about escaping after eliminating Jed and Dek was an excuse, an excuse to hide Ruach from the rest of the world, to try and preserve their lives as they were. That was impossible, especially now that she’d killed. No, she couldn’t rewind time.
What now? That question had seemed too terrifying to ask just a few hours ago. Continue? No, they weren’t warriors, weren’t heroes. But they couldn’t just hide either. They’d tried that, and they’d been found. It would happen again. Those soul armors drew trouble.
But as more Ruachians came through, her home would become a battle zone, and people would die. She had to prevent that. The best way? Give the soul armors to the government and let them handle it. They were way more equipped than four high school kids. Who knew what that would do to her life and her family, but she had no better options. In a way, it was courageous.
Vero sighed and rolled onto her side. So much for sleep.
13. Victory