by Harper North
“I’m sorry. But I won’t change my mind.”
I breathe in deeply and exhale. There’s no use trying to convince her. At least not yet. She’s seen too much of what the EHC is capable of.
The guard levers himself off the desk as Emma stands, making her way back to the door. “You can stay the night at our settlement, but you will need to leave in the morning.”
Elias shakes his head, but before he can try to convince her again, I stand and say, “Thank you.”
A few moments later, we’re escorted back through the farming area and up a side path. The guards walk ahead with Emma while Sky, Elias, and I linger behind.
Sky leans into me. “Let’s try again in the morning, okay?”
“Maybe. Everyone’s tired now.”
I pick up the pace as Emma leads us back up the winding path to the building. Several Dwellers are scattered around with the people of the settlement. For the first time in a long while, their faces look content. A Dweller woman with red hair and a grey, torn sweater smiles her thanks to a passing guard, the same guards that held their guns on us not long ago. It’s amazing how a good meal can change one’s attitude. Another Dweller pats his belly and yawns.
A female guard comes from down the path, Lacy just behind her. “There are tents set up for you,” she announces to the group, pointing to an area beyond, where five sturdy tents stand beside one another.
“Three people per tent,” I call out as the group shuffles their way toward them.
“Great,” Lacy says, stretching her arms over her head. “Fin, you coming?”
“In a second.” As tired as I am, my mind’s still racing from the day’s events. I need a few minutes to figure things out.
Jase and several Dwellers follow the guards. Elias comes to my side, saying, “Don’t stay up too long. We’ve got a big day ahead of us tomorrow.”
“I won’t.”
I turn back down the darkened path, looking for an area that will give me some privacy. Only a few lights illuminate the way, but my eyes are used to dimness. It almost feels welcome. Familiar. I wander to the ridge and gaze out across the mountain’s valley. It’s nothing but a big, open space, but somehow it calms me. It’s as if I can throw all my worries and fears into the nothing. Chirping sounds come from all around, and somehow, they too relax the tension that’s made its home in my shoulders and chest.
“You know, you shouldn’t be out here alone,” a voice says behind me. “No telling who lurks out here in the dark.”
I jump and look back, then relax again and smile. “Hey, Sky. I just needed to think.”
He comes around to my side and gives me a wry smile. “Alone?”
I shrug and turn back to face the giant, empty space ahead of me. “I just can’t get over everything that’s happened.”
“I know.” Sky leans against the rock wall next to me. “Only a few days ago we were stuck underground, hiding, and now we’re eating all this fresh food, breathing clean air—”
“Not all of us,” I say, my voice dropping. “So many Dwellers died in that blast. And Bricks—”
“There’s nothing you can do about that. We all took chances when we joined the resistance.”
“Even if we defeat the EHC, I’ll never forget the look on those people’s faces. I let them down.”
“You’re too hard on yourself. Come on,” he urges, digging in his bag. He pulls out an apple. “This will make you feel better.”
“Doesn’t your stomach hurt from all that food?”
Sky’s lips quirk into a smile. “Come to think of it, yeah, it does. But I don’t care.”
I laugh and take the fruit from him.
Sky grins. “I snagged a few of those red things in the pod, too.”
“Always the scavenger,” I say, tucking the apple into my cargo pants’ pocket.
Sky leans his head back against the stone wall. “Of course.”
I let the fresh air fill my lungs. Maybe Sky’s right. Maybe I’m too hard on myself. I glance over and find Sky’s face much closer to mine than I remember it being. My heart pounds as his eyes study mine. He leans even closer, and in half a beat, our lips press together. I want to stop him, but I don’t. Instead, I drift into him, resting my hand on his chest, reveling in the safety of his strong arms around me and his soft mouth on mine. For a split second, my worries vanish.
As I take a small step closer, a twig snaps beneath my feet, and I pull away.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that,” Sky whispers, looking away.
“It… it’s fine,” I mumble, running my hands through my hair. I can’t let my guard down. “I’ve just got a lot on my mind.”
He stares back at me as if he doesn’t know what to say.
“I should go,” I say finally.
Sky shakes his head. “No, I will.”
With that, he backs away and disappears in the direction of camp. I sigh. I want to go after him, but that is a terrible idea.
I stand for a few more moments on the ridge. If only we could stay here at the settlement forever. Things could be different. I could pretend that nothing’s going on out there. My heart is a tumble of emotions, but I need sleep. And to forget Sky and I ever kissed.
I turn and start back toward camp when a shadowy figure flickers across the path. My spine stiffens.
“Fin?” sounds a voice I recognize as Elias’.
I breathe out a sigh of relief. “Hey. Thought you were one of Emma’s guards.”
“I just came out to make sure you were okay.” Elias’ eyes linger questioningly on me for a moment.
Heat washes up my neck and I try to wipe it away, but it’s no use.
Did he see Sky and me?
“I’m good,” I manage to say. “Walk me back?”
CHAPTER 8
It’s a weird thing waking up above ground. Instead of hearing the low, thrumming hum of the generators or Yasay’s bellows to “wake up” and “get to work”, there’s silence.
Well, not complete silence. Different sounds. New sounds. There’s some sort of high chirping and the crackling of leaves. I close my eyes again and take it in. Maybe if I throw the sleeping bag over my head, no one will notice if I stay in here, but that’s impossible.
I sit and shift my legs over the side of the cot. After a moment, I stand and stretch, feeling calmer than I’ve felt in ages. Thankfully, my stomach doesn’t ache too much. In fact, I wouldn’t mind another one of those orange fruits.
“So where did you go last night?” Lacy asks, yawning in the bed next to mine.
I shrug. “Just to get some fresh air. Think things through.”
“Gotcha,” she says, shifting her legs around to the floor. “Guess we better pack up, huh?”
I nod. “It’ll be a long hike today.”
Lacy sighs. “It’s a shame to leave this place. It’s so easy here.”
“Easier than I ever thought life could be.” My thoughts drift back to Sky and the warmth of his arms around me, his lips on mine. My chest warms in embarrassment. I pull up my shirt a bit and zip up my bag. “I’ll meet you outside, okay?”
“Okay,” she yawns.
A dim glow hovers along the horizon. I make my way over to the meeting area in front of the building where we had dinner last night. In the pale light, I make out Kate and a few other Dwellers.
Kate comes over to meet me. “Are we leaving today?”
“I’m afraid so.”
I spot Elias and Jase standing with Emma and her guards, our confiscated weapons leaned up against the wall behind her. The guards turn and hand them back their guns.
I pull my shoulders back. “Grab some provisions,” I say to Kate. “Then tell everyone we’re leaving.”
I listen to my own order and load up with water and food. A few minutes later, it seems everyone’s gathered. The grey-haired guard hands me my gun. I grip it firmly and march back to Lacy, Drape, and Sky.
“You feel safer with that?” Sky asks, swinging his
bag’s strap over his head.
“You know what? I do.”
Sky smiles. “Well, if you need anyone to protect you—”
“The gun will do just fine,” I say, looking at the weapon in my hand.
Sky raises his eyebrows, then cracks a smile. “I’d better go join Elias.”
“Yeah,” I say, doing everything I can to conceal the fact that my heart is racing, and it’s not because of our journey today.
“Excuse me?” Lacy says, suddenly standing too close, Drape at her side. “What was that?”
I inch back and shift my gaze away. “What?” I ask, fully aware that I can never hide anything from the two of them.
“I think it’s pretty obvious,” Drape says.
Clenching my jaw, I look back at them. “It’s nothing.”
As a guard passes, Lacy reaches out and snatches her gun back from his hands. “Thank you very much,” she snaps, examining it. When she’s done, she looks back up and catches my eye. “Listen, whatever you’re up to with Sky is fine by me. Just don’t play dumb. You were flirting.”
I open my mouth to say something, then clamp it shut. Lacy quirks an eyebrow at me, then grabs Drape by the elbow, pulling him to the front of the group.
Please don’t go talk to Sky, I beg in my head, and to my relief, they keep their distances from him.
I brush off the embarrassment and turn to Jase, who’s climbing onto the largest rock on the path.
“This has not been the journey we expected so far,” he shouts as a hush falls over our group. “But I’ve been at this business of fighting the EHC long enough to know that the unexpected is the norm. Emma has been gracious enough to offer her hospitality, but it’s time for us to go.”
Jase looks to Emma, who nods, before he continues.
“I did speak with her this morning, and she is happy to allow anyone who wants to stay to do so. The road ahead is going to be difficult, and if you feel it’s the right choice to stay, then do it.”
One of the dwellers who was injured in the cave-in raises his hand. I’m sure he knows he’d slow us down.
“Anyone else who’s not coming, please see one of Emma’s guards before we leave. For the rest of you, we head to Mason’s camp in ten minutes. Make sure you have enough water, so you don’t die before we get there.”
Jase jumps off the rock. Oliver and Knuckles whistle. Lacy lets out a loud hoot and a few others cheer.
Emma sidles up beside me. “Nice speech,” she says, smirking.
“Jase is obviously motivational,” I reply.
The corners of her lips turn down slightly. “I’m sorry we can’t help you more.”
“I’m sorry, too.”
“I can’t see years of research lost on a whim. The work we are doing here is important.”
I lean into her. “So is ours.”
She nods and waves for me to move on. “It’s time for you to go.”
Spending this bit of time with Emma has been different from what I’m used to. Adults don’t have any family connections underground. They just stick to their work and have their limited interactions with others. When you’ve been a miner for so long, you understand it’s better to keep a low profile to avoid extra responsibilities. Emma’s different. She cares for people. She looks out for them.
We begin heading down the path to the mountain’s edge. The air is still cool, but with the sun rising, it’s quickly changing. My shirt is already clinging to my skin, sweat beading on my brow. The sparse vegetation around the camp leads to lusher green leaves, sparkling in the sunlight. Up ahead, the path winds down the mountain, snaking around large boulders. It’s a long way down. Below, the valley floor is still in shadow. I squint to make out the details—maybe a tree or two, more rocks—but it’s hard to see. It’ll be at least a day of walking and climbing.
“This is where I leave you,” Emma says, breaking into my thoughts. “None of us go further than here.”
Elias clears his throat. “Thank you.”
“Are you sure you won’t join us?” I ask.
“Good luck,” she says, and with that, Emma turns and heads back the way we came.
Jase continues leading the group down the path. Elias hangs back until he reaches my side.
“It’ll probably take us all day if we walk the trail.”
“Maybe longer.” I raise a brow. “You’ve got another plan?”
“Jase and I were talking it over.” He reaches into his bag and pulls out a coil of rope.
“Rappelling?” I ask. “Down this mountain?”
“It’s faster,” he says. “And everyone has the skill.”
Just as I open my mouth to argue with him, a whirling vibrates through the air around us. I steady myself against a rock as pebbles and dirt roll down the side of the mountain onto the trail where we stand.
“No,” I gasp, looking back up the path. My eyes lock with Emma’s, only a hundred feet or so from our location. I turn back to face the cliff’s edge as three large hovercrafts with EHC symbols on their sides rise in front of us.
Emma turns, yells for her guards, and races toward the settlement.
The settlement!
We’ve led them straight to it. It had to be Yasay. We should have told Emma he escaped.
My ears pound and tears well up in my eyes as a guttural roar escapes my throat.
“Where the hell did they come from?” Lacy growls.
My hands clench and unclench at my sides. “Yasay must have followed us up the vent.”
“But the hovercraft?” Lacy cocks her gun. “How did they get here so fast?”
One of the hovers flies over our heads the way of the settlement. My stomach rolls. I turn to Elias, who shoves the rapelling ropes back in his bag. “Let’s move!” he shouts. “We’ve got to get out of here!”
Most of the Dwellers have already run for cover, but true to form, Jase, Oliver, and Knuckles stand on the cliff’s edge, ready to fire on the two remaining crafts.
“Don’t!” Elias shouts. “You need to find cover. Those hovercrafts have—”
Boom!
Fire rips from the rock face just behind us. Dust fills the area as it trickles down. I turn to see the closest hovercraft readying to fire again.
“Go, go, go!” Jase yells, racing past us.
Everyone who hasn’t hidden sprints back toward the camp. Emma and her guards are already out of sight. From overhead, lines of rope drop every few feet from the ships, and a moment later, operatives slide down behind us.
“They’re everywhere!” Sky yells, eyes full of worry.
I hold up my gun and drop my provision pack. “Then we have to fight.”
A scream from behind me pulls me around. The Dweller woman, Kate, claws at an op, who forces her to the ground. I run in her direction, but I’m not fast enough. The Leech shocks her. Another operative grabs her and the two disappear back up a line and into the hovercraft as more blasts and screams drift from the settlement.
“We’ve got to help them!” I yell to Elias, who’s already running down the path back to the settlement.
When we reach the settlement, I see the building where we had dinner has been demolished, nothing left but broken pieces of smoldering wood and rock. Emma’s guards stand in formation, firing on the hovercraft above. Several operatives dodge the gunfire, and a Leech cries out as he tumbles from the craft and lands with a thud on the ground. I raise my weapon to the sky and pull the trigger. The gun kicks back against my shoulder, but I ignore the searing pain and continue to fire. Elias, Jase, and the others do the same. Soon, it’s twenty of us against the hovercraft.
After a few more rounds of fire, a clanking from the hovercraft echoes across the mountains, followed by a screech of tearing metal. It’s going down. We must’ve hit some critical systems.
“Move, move!” Elias shouts.
We scatter. I run for my life, climbing over rocks and past trees to get out of the way. I stumble over a tree root, scraping up my leg, but the
re’s no time to think. I pull myself up and keep running. The screeching sound gets louder. I turn at the last second to see the craft lurch sideways, then fall from the sky.
I take cover behind a rock and shield my head as the ground shudders. More rocks fall down the mountain and a plume of dust rises into the air before sifting down again, covering everything and everyone as far as I can see. I cover my nose and mouth, but no matter how hard I try, the dirt gets into my lungs, making me sputter and cough, spitting a few times.
I find Drape crouched beside me, grabbing his hand, and pulling him up. “We have to find the others.”
He wipes dirt and tears from his eyes, smearing into mud on his cheeks. “Got it.”
Stronger together, we stand and race forward. Between the trees, there are more operatives from the other crafts, still descending and grabbing people from the settlement. A taller op decked out in full riot gear shocks a boy who’s running for cover. The operative tugs on his line. I charge him and smack the end of my gun against his temple, sending him crumbling to the ground before I grab the kid.
“Where am I going to put you?” I say, smoothing back the kid’s hair and looking around. I find another rock, just as big as the one I took cover behind, and hide him there. Swallowing hard, I take in a deep breath. Part of me wants to stay hidden here too, but I need to help the others. Have to. I did this.
Smoke and dust float through the air, and the acrid smell of things burning is everywhere. Somewhere to my left, people scream, and gunfire erupts. I reach instinctively for my gun, but it’s gone, lost in the trees and boulders behind me. Helpless, I block out the screams and keep going, telling myself I can come back for them, but knowing they’ll already be gone.
I stumble back into the settlement, into the chaos, shielding my mouth and nose from the smoke filling the air. Just ahead, no more than thirty feet, Sky lays sprawled on the ground. The pain on his face pulls at my heart, and I run to him, pushing past our people, but two ops beat me there. They strap Sky to the line, and in a flash, they ascend.
Sky is gone.
“No!” I scream, scrambling to catch the end of the line, but it zips up out of reach.