Thirteen Rising

by Romina Russell

  “That’s the Everblaze,” she says, following my gaze. “It’s a fire that’s never gone out. Our forebears used to burn our warriors’ souls there so their spirits could rise to Helios, and our Zodai still carry on that tradition. Phaet is the most special part of our House,” she adds, and I think this is probably as gentle as her voice gets. “It’s always been a warrior’s world . . . a land where the spirituality of the Zodai and the might of the soldier meet.”

  I follow her onto a dirt path that unfurls in the direction of the stone fortresses, and I pan my gaze across the closest group of Zodai, their faces growing more distinct as we approach. When their familiar features sharpen, my breath catches as I make out Mathias’s dark locks and Hysan’s golden head.

  They’re speaking apart from the others, and I don’t see Mom or Pandora or Brynda or Rubi nearby.

  Rather than picking up my pace, my legs seem to grow heavier at the sight of the guys, and I stop moving altogether the instant it hits me that Skarlet is taking me right to them.

  “Don’t you want to see your boyfriend?” she asks, her tone almost taunting.

  I thought the tension between us was something I brought back from the Sumber, but now I realize it’s coming from her, too. I guess Hysan must have told her about us . . . and I don’t think she’s used to coming in second place.

  Rather than answer, I step off the dirt path and cut across the grass in a new direction, away from the crowd. I don’t elaborate, and Skarlet doesn’t ask.

  “Then how about a shower?” she offers instead. I glare at her, and she crinkles her nose. “You smell awful.”

  Rolling my eyes, I ask, “Do I have a room somewhere?”

  “This way.” She marches us toward the forest, and I don’t look back because I don’t want to risk Hysan or Mathias spotting me. So to keep focused on what matters, I ask, “What happened when I shot Crompton?”

  “When their master fell, his soldiers prioritized his life over the mission, and they rushed him to safety, leaving you behind. The Guardians knew the master would likely return for you, so you had to be hidden. General Eurek agreed to give you sanctuary here.”

  When we reach the shade of the tree line, I can’t pry my gaze off the oranges and reds and golds of the foliage. I’m so busy looking up that I nearly walk into a pair of giant Rams, and I only steer myself away at the last moment.

  Skarlet laughs, and I turn to see that she was watching me—and most likely hoping I’d collide with them. I bite down on my lip to keep from calling her what I think she is, and I take in the two enormous creatures I nearly hit, ogling at their curved ivory horns and muscled backs.

  One of them is black furred and white horned, the other white furred and black horned. They look terrifying, but they don’t seem the least bit interested in us.

  After being asleep for so long, my muscles are sore from all this walking, but I won’t give Skarlet the satisfaction of seeing my weakness. Still, I’m relieved when a stone keep comes into view—much smaller than the three fortresses on the hilltops—its doors wide open.

  There’s no guard by the entrance, nor do I see much in the way of security, not like there was inside the mountain. This whole forest feels like a secret garden where Arieans can let down their armor and just be themselves. It’s like the Majors’ own version of Zenith and Paloma’s hideout.

  We step into a cool, dim chamber outfitted with a sitting area of lumpy and mismatched couches, a couple of wallscreens, and dozens of shelves stuffed with ancient-looking paper books. “The dining hall is through there,” says Skarlet, pointing to a stone corridor that leads beyond this room, “and the bathrooms are downstairs,” she points to a staircase at the other end of the space. “Got it?”

  I nod. I guess that’s the extent of our tour.

  “So where’s my stuff?”

  “In your lodgings,” she says, and she marches across the keep to a door at its other end. When we step through it, we’re outside again.

  On this side of the structure, the forest’s trees are more spaced out, and sitting between them are massive, multihued tents of every fashion—I see a black one studded with silver stars, a rainbow one with color-changing stripes, a hi-tech one that projects a slideshow of holographic captures, and more.

  “Every Zodai picks out their tent and chooses where to place it,” says Skarlet as we wind through them. I keep waiting for her to slow down, but her pace stays brisk. When I finally think I’m going to pass out, I see flashes of blue, and excitement replaces exhaustion, quickening my steps.

  “Hysan set yours up,” says Skarlet, and I almost stumble when she says his name. “He thought you would want to be by the water.”

  As the golden trees thin out, we step into a clearing, and blue overtakes the view. A sparkling cobalt sea hugs the forest, and on its banks, on the outskirts of the woods, stands a silky sapphire tent that’s larger and lovelier than all the others I’ve seen.

  I follow Skarlet through the entrance flap into a beautiful domed space with a central, star-shaped ceiling window where the tent’s fabric becomes clear and daylight shines through. The ground is blanketed in white feathers, and there’s a wide bed with deep blue sheets. There’s also a polished wooden desk and a small area that’s blocked off by a sapphire curtain; on its other side is a floor-length mirror, a vanity, and a rack of hangers with silky clothes I don’t recognize in bright reds, blues, and greens—the primary colors Librans love.

  My Wave sits on the vanity’s tabletop, my traveling case is on the white-feathered floor, and beside it is Nishi’s lavender levlan bag.

  Tick, tock, tick, tock, crab.

  My gut knots up, and I feel like I’m going to be sick.

  “Bathrooms are at the keep, so unless you want to rough it, grab your toiletries and head back up there when you’re ready,” throws Skarlet over her shoulder as she walks out. “I have to check in with my troop, so I’ll see you in the dining hall in an hour for dinner.”

  I’m starting to see why Arieans are so physically fit if just going to the bathroom is this taxing. When she leaves, I try to gather the energy to trek back up to the keep to bathe, but I can’t. My muscles are more drawn to the sea.

  So I strip off my Lodestar suit, leave the tent naked, and walk into the cobalt water.

  I lose track of the minutes as I float freely on my back, hoping the orange sunlight can penetrate the darkness coating my skin. I want to inhale the salt of the sea and the musk of the trees, but Phaet might as well be another nightmare world. I can touch it, but I can’t taste it.

  When my fingers look like prunes, I finally swim back to shore. Since I didn’t bring a towel with me, I’m naked and dripping wet when I slip inside the sapphire tent—where Hysan is already waiting for me.

  7

  GLOWING IN HIS GOLDEN KNIGHT suit, Hysan holds a red robe open in his hands. His vivid green eyes fill with light as I approach, and his happiness weighs so heavily on me that I have to drop my gaze.

  My head is still bowed as I reach him, and I twist around to slide my arms into the silky red sleeves. “I’ve missed you so much,” he murmurs behind me, his breath brushing my ear as I cinch the robe’s belt closed.

  Even though he’s right here, his cedary scent smells faint, like I’m only remembering it. I pull away quickly and pad to the tent’s opening. Then I breathe in a lungful of fresh air and stare out at the darkening day.

  Helios’s dimming light combined with the Ariean sun’s red rays now dyes the water bloodred and saturates the sky with combustible clouds. It looks like we’re boiling inside a cauldron, only I can’t feel the fire’s flames.

  I can’t feel anything.

  “How are you, Rho?” asks Hysan, who’s still standing where I left him. Since he was careful not to touch me while he helped me into the robe, he must already realize something’s off between us.

  He pro
bably picked up on it as soon as he learned I was awake and didn’t go straight to him.

  “Can I get you anything?” His tone grows tighter in my prolonged silence. “Would you like some food? Are you in any pain?”

  “What happened at the Cathedral?” I ask, still staring at the infernal world beyond this tent.

  “Mathias and I reached the hall in time to watch you and Aquarius fall. His soldiers were stunned to see him go down, and all they cared about was hauling him to safety. They left you and Ophiuchus behind . . . but they took your mom.”

  I close my eyes, snuffing out what’s left of the daylight, and the first real feeling since awakening tugs on my chest as I think of my proud, strong mother being held captive. I have to help her after I’ve saved Nishi.

  After all, she only came to the Cathedral to protect me. She had a life she enjoyed among the Luminaries, and she abandoned it to help me with my cause. Because she’s always placed her duty to the stars above her own happiness.

  Above her House.

  Above her family.

  “The Marad also took Aryll.”

  Hysan’s voice brings me back to the present, and I repeat the name in my head until I remember.

  Aryll.

  It tastes like venom, and I’m tempted to spit it back out. Swallowing the impulse, I keep my gaze focused outside, on the scarlet sea. “I shot him.”

  “Yes,” says Hysan, the word so soft I barely hear it. I can’t tell if it’s pity or disappointment dampening his voice—nor do I want to turn around and find out.

  “Since the Scarab’s poison has a twenty-four-hour grace period,” he goes on, “I’m sure the Marad was eager to get out of there and administer the antidote to both Aquarius and Aryll.”

  “And Nishi?”

  At last I spin around in anticipation of the answer I’m seeking above all others. “Where is the Tomorrow Party keeping her? What’s the rescue mission? Is Brynda helping with the plan?”

  Something like understanding flashes in Hysan’s gaze, and his expression clears. Like he’s been rifling through all the possible explanations for my mood and has finally found the one that syncs up. Now he can adjust his act accordingly.

  “We know the Party left Primitus,” he says, bringing up the warmth in his voice, like a musician tuning an instrument. “But we don’t know much more than that yet. We’re in the midst of forming a galactic army for the first time in a millennium, and new Zodai volunteers are arriving daily. There’s a lot going on—but we haven’t forgotten her.”

  I don’t know what’s going on inside me, but somehow the fact that Hysan thinks he has me all figured out bothers me. I feel like I’ve become one of his devices: He just has to say the right sequence of words, and I’ll fall back in line and follow his lead.

  I’ll just accept that he’s been too busy to put any thought into rescuing Nishi.

  “Rho . . . I know you need time to recover, but this base needs you,” he says, and even from a few paces away I can see the vulnerability softening his incredible eyes. “The Houses unanimously voted that when you recovered you would be leader and tiebreaker of our operation, reinstating the power of the Wandering Star position. So I’d like to get you caught up on everything as soon as you feel up to it.”

  Part of me is listening, but most of me is marveling at how he even knows that I need him to stay completely stationary right now. His feet have been locked in place this whole time, like he’s trying to limit his presence in my space.

  And yet, I feel the same discomfort as when I awoke in the hospital and the youngest healer said he’d been visiting my room daily. The better Hysan behaves, the less certain I am about him.

  Even though I know my nightmares in the Sumber weren’t real, I can’t shake the sense of distrust that slid into my heart. The feeling that I should have trusted my instincts about him.

  “So Ophiuchus is here,” I say, desperate for anything that will drown the doubt from my skin and mute the memory of Hysan pressing Skarlet against the countertop. It wasn’t real.

  And yet, the distrust I feel now is real. Hysan lied to me so easily the night of the ball—that whole time we were together, he knew my mom’s story, and he didn’t say a word. Worst of all, I don’t even know why it’s so surprising to me, since he lies to his own people every day.

  “He’s been unconscious this whole time, like you.”

  I blink, and it takes me a moment to remember we’re now talking about Ophiuchus. “Where is he?”

  “We have him secured in the mountain, and healers are monitoring his vitals. He’s physically fine, but he’s in a medically induced coma because we can’t be sure how powerful he is in this form. We also can’t be certain he won’t contact Aquarius psychically as soon as he’s awake. So until we know more, we’re keeping him sedated.”

  I try to care, but I can’t even muster up some curiosity. At this instant, Corinthe is carving up Nishi’s skin, tormenting her to the point of death and then pulling back so the dream won’t end. Nishi will remain in overwhelming pain, without sleep or friends or hope, until I rescue her.

  If her subconscious doesn’t break her first.

  I’ve already lost my brother and Dad and Deke. I won’t lose what’s left of my family. There’s no care left in me for anyone else.

  “Any word from the master?” I ask. “Any more Marad attacks? Anything on that front?”

  “Nothing new, and Piscenes are still in their comas. More are dying every day—we still haven’t found a way to reverse the Psyphoning’s effects.”

  I let out a heavy exhale. It’s getting harder and harder to tell apart the real nightmares from the imagined ones.

  “I’m getting the sense you’d rather be alone,” says Hysan tentatively, and on the last word his perfectly pitched tone cracks.

  I take a step toward him, and for the first time, I notice his face is blanketed in a light layer of stubble, like he hasn’t shaved in days. “How’s Neith?”

  His shoulders slump forward, and his touseled golden locks fall over his eyes. “I have to inhabit him manually without activating his artificial intelligence in case Aquarius tries taking him over again. I’ve been keeping him disconnected from holographic communications and shielded from the Psy at all times. Since Guardians have to travel Veiled, I’ve just been claiming he’s in flight as often as I can.”

  He sounds so tired, and a part of me wants to take him in my arms and comfort him. My feet carry me forward another step, but then the thought of his warmth makes my joints lock up in protest, and I come to a halt. “Does the whole Zodiac know Crompton is the original Aquarius yet?”

  Hysan looks disappointed at the distance that’s still between us, but he answers my question. “The other Guardians present at the Cathedral plead our case to the Plenum and to their Houses. Any Zodai who wants to join our cause is either here or on their way here. But most remain skeptical, and since Aquarius hasn’t said anything yet, nor has the Tomorrow Party issued any statement, our accusations have been met with silence, which prolongs people’s indecision. I’m mostly worried about what Aquarius is planning during his silence.”

  This time Hysan takes his first step toward me, and I realize we’re now close enough to touch. He holds out his hand for mine, and sucking in a quick breath at the prospect of feeling something, I place my palm on his.

  But when our fingers interlock, the pressure feels just as faint as when the healer touched me. Like the numbness from the Sumber hasn’t worn off yet.

  Or maybe I just came back different.

  Less awake.

  Less alive.

  But there could be a way back. . . . Ochus once said the worst possible fate is being truly alone—no hope, or future, or escape, or loved ones—which was how I felt in the Sumber, until I found Nishi. It’s how she’s feeling now, nonstop, until I get her out of there.

/>   According to Ophiuchus, the only thing that could cure that condition is opening up to someone. And now that Stan is gone . . .

  Well, Hysan is all I have left.

  Maybe if I confide in him about what I’ve been through, he’ll understand why it’s so important we rescue Nishi. Why she can’t wait.

  “In—in the nightmares,” I start, staring into his leaf-green eyes, “I saw Nishi.”

  Hysan’s brow scrunches with curiosity and concern. “You’re certain it was really her?” When I nod, his expression clears a little, and he says, “I’ve heard stories of people who claimed their consciousness were linked together in the Sumber, but it’s extremely rare—it usually just happens with twins. Your connection with Nishi must be very strong.”

  I faintly feel his fingers tightening around mine, and I keep my gaze steady on his as I say, “Hysan, you don’t know what it’s like in there . . . there’s no time, no break, no hope. And Corinthe . . . she found me, and she . . .”

  Sadness softens his expression, and he tugs on my hand like he wants to pull me into a hug. “I’m so sorry, Rho—”

  “This isn’t about me,” I say quickly, drawing away and releasing his fingers. “Corinthe has Nishi now. She’s going to make her suffer until I save her. I don’t know how long Nishi can hold on. Every instant is a lifetime for her. We have to help her now.”

  “We’re going to help her, Rho,” he says seriously. “I swear it. We’ll hold a meeting first thing tomorrow to get you up to speed on what’s going on, and then we can consult the other Houses on the best strategy for a rescue operation—”

  “No, now!” I insist, anger coursing through me and making my voice shake. “When Blaze took Nishi, I told you I was afraid the Party would torture her, and you said they wouldn’t, that they needed her allegiance too much to hurt her. You were wrong. I need your help to fix this, and we can’t just sleep on it. We need to act!”