Under the Never Sky: The Complete Series Collection

by Rossi, Veronica

  “Who else?” asked Reef tightly.

  “Brooke.”

  Gren’s mouth fell open and Twig made a choking sound, which he camouflaged by clearing his throat. No secrets here; they all knew Perry’s history with Brooke.

  As far as appearances went, Brooke had the same advantage as Roar. Men nodded yes first and listened second when she spoke, and that might prove useful. She was as strong a Seer as the brothers, a better shot, and levelheaded in tough situations. A few weeks ago, when the Tide compound had been raided, she hadn’t made a single misstep. They’d been through some bumps, but Perry needed her.

  “And Aria?” Marron asked, his voice rising at the end.

  “Yes.”

  He didn’t miss the stunned looks traded across the flames. Everyone knew she was injured. Everyone knew they’d fought. Or argued. Or whatever that had been. The Battle Room had lived up to its name today.

  “I’m taking Soren, too,” he said, forging ahead. “He’s the only one who can fly the Hover. He’s the only one who can get us there quickly. You said we might only have days, Marron. I can’t waste time traveling to the Komodo on foot or horseback.”

  Perry saw no way around it. He needed speed. He needed the Hover. As much as he wished otherwise, that meant he needed Soren.

  “Just so I don’t mistake you,” said Reef, “these are the people you’re taking with you? You believe this group—the five of you—will come together as a team?”

  “That’s right,” Perry said.

  “You’re betting our lives on that?” Reef pressed.

  Perry nodded. “Sable and Hess have all the brute power. Force won’t work against them. We need to be small and sharp. We’ll have to pierce like a needle to have any chance.”

  Quiet settled over the group again, a few anxious glances turning south. Perry listened to the surf as their tempers drifted toward him, carrying disbelief and anxiousness and outrage.

  The silent roar of the Tides.

  When Perry stepped into his tent, he found Talon still awake.

  “What are you doing up, Squeak?” he asked, setting his bow and quiver against the trunks. It had to be well past midnight.

  Talon sat up and rubbed his eyes. “I had a nightmare.”

  “Hate those.” Perry unbuckled his belt and dropped it aside. “What are you waiting for?” he said, climbing into bed. “Get on over here.”

  Talon scrambled to his side. He thrashed around, his knobby knees banging into Perry’s ribs for a few minutes before he finally settled down.

  “I miss our house,” he said. “Don’t you?”

  “Yes,” Perry said, staring up at the canvas above him. More than anything, he missed the gap in the loft’s timbers. For years he’d been too tall to stretch out fully in that loft, but he hadn’t cared. He’d loved falling asleep with his eyes on a little piece of the sky.

  He bumped Talon’s arm playfully. “This isn’t so bad though, is it? You and Willow don’t seem to mind it.”

  Talon shrugged. “Yeah. It’s not bad. Willow said that Molly said that you’re leaving tomorrow to get Cinder. Why do you have to go, Uncle Perry?”

  There it was. The real reason Talon couldn’t sleep.

  “Because Cinder needs me, just like you did when you were in Reverie. And I need a few things from the Dwellers that’ll help us get to the Still Blue.”

  “If you don’t come back, I’ll be alone.”

  “I’m coming back, Talon.”

  “My dad’s gone. My mom and Aunt Liv—”

  “Hey.” Perry propped himself on an elbow so he could look at his nephew’s face. He searched for a little of himself or Liv, but all he saw—from Talon’s serious green eyes to his dark curls—was Vale. He couldn’t fault Talon for being afraid. But there was no way he’d fail his nephew. “I’m coming back. All right?”

  Talon nodded, the gesture a little dismissive.

  “Do you know what happened between me and your father?” The words came out before Perry could stop them. They hadn’t spoken about Vale yet. About how Vale had sold Talon, his own son, to the Dwellers for food. Brooke’s sister, Clara, too. Unforgivable. But then Perry had killed Vale—also unforgivable. He knew that act would haunt him forever.

  Talon lifted his small shoulders. “I was sick. He sent me to the Dwellers to get better. When I was, you came to get me back.”

  Perry studied his nephew. Talon knew more than he was letting on. Maybe he was saying what Perry wanted to hear, or maybe he wasn’t ready to talk about it yet. Either way, Perry wasn’t going to push. It wouldn’t get him anywhere. Talon didn’t just look like Vale. He was as hardheaded and tight-lipped too.

  Perry lay back down, resting his head on his arm, and flashed on his argument with Aria. Maybe he did have something in common with his nephew after all.

  “You think there are places to fish in the Still Blue?” Talon asked.

  “Sure. I bet there’s lots of places to fish.”

  “Good, because Willow and I found some night crawlers today. Eleven of them. Huge ones. I have them in a jar.”

  Perry tried his best to focus as Talon prattled on about bait, but his eyes grew heavy. He’d just closed them when he heard the shift of canvas.

  Aria stepped into the tent and froze, squinting to see them in the darkness.

  “We’re here,” Perry said. It was the only thing that came to mind. He hadn’t expected her, but a wave of relief swept through him at the sight of her.

  “Hi, Aria,” Talon said, all chirky and bright.

  “Hi, Talon.” She bit her lip, glancing at the tent flap behind her. “I just came to . . . I was going to . . . I guess I’ll see you later?” Her voice rose at the end, like a question.

  Perry didn’t know what to do. Talon lay curled at his side—Aria’s spot for the past few nights. He couldn’t send his nephew away, but he didn’t want her to leave, either.

  “You don’t have to go,” Talon said. He hopped over Perry, to his right side. “There’s room.”

  “Great,” Aria said, and slid in on Perry’s other side.

  For a long second, Perry couldn’t believe she was right next to him. Then he became intensely aware of everything about her. The weight of her arm resting on his chest. The chill her clothes held from the cave. The violet scent he loved.

  “You’re quiet,” she said.

  Talon giggled. “Because he likes you. Don’t you, Uncle Squawk?”

  “I do.” Perry peered down and found Aria looking at him. She smiled, but concern shadowed her eyes. “Did you know that?”

  “Even though I vanished?” she asked, using his word from earlier.

  “Yes. Of course . . . I’ll always . . . like you, Aria.” He grinned, because he sounded like a fool. He loved her—down to his soul—and he was going to tell her sometime. But not with Talon’s knee digging into his kidney.

  Aria smiled. “I’ll always like you too.”

  The way she said it, the way her temper opened up, he knew she’d read his mind and felt the same way. Her lips were close. He pressed a kiss to them, though he wanted more, everything she’d give him.

  That sent Talon over the edge. He lost it, his torrential giggles infectious, pulling them all in.

  A full hour passed before the tent fell quiet again. Perry was covered in legs and arms and blankets, so hot that sweat dampened his shirt. The shoulder he’d dislocated a month ago ached beneath the weight of Aria’s head, and Talon was snoring right into his ear, but he couldn’t remember the last time he’d felt so good.

  Being with the two of them reminded him of the first time he ever shot a bow. Like he had discovered something that was new, but that already fit him perfectly.

  He stayed awake as long as he could, savoring it. Then he closed his eyes and surrendered to sleep.

  7

  ARIA

  Hovers.

  They weren’t her favorite things in the world.

  Aria stared up at the Belswan, taking in its li
quid shape. Eighty feet from nose to tail, the cargo craft still managed to look sleek. The exterior was smooth and opalescent, like blue pearl, the coloration lightening gradually toward the front, like the tip of the craft had faded in the sun, exposing the transparent glass beneath. The tip, of course, was the cockpit.

  “Perfection,” Caleb said reverently. He was still weak, but he’d insisted on coming outside to see her off. They stood on the bluff above the cave as Aria waited to leave on the mission. “Flawless design and craftsmanship. It’s like Gaudí created a modern ship.”

  Aria shook her head. “It is beautiful.” But that didn’t mean she liked it. Only a week ago, she’d stood in the cockpit of this very craft watching Reverie collapse before her eyes. Months earlier, she had been thrown from a Hover onto the hard desert outside Reverie and left to die.

  This time would be better. How could it not be?

  “Where is everyone?” she asked, scanning the small crowd around her.

  A few of the Tides had come to send them off. Willow stood with her grandfather, Old Will, while Flea trotted around, sniffing busily. Reef and a couple of the Six were there, along with others she didn’t know, but so far she was the only member of the team to show.

  Despite having slept against Perry all night, she still felt their argument weighing on her. He wouldn’t talk about how she’d hurt him, and he wouldn’t talk about Roar or Liv.

  It felt like a lot. A lot to go unsaid.

  “They’re just a little tardy,” said Caleb. “They’ll be here.”

  “They’d better hurry.”

  With a thick layer of fog cloaking the coast, she couldn’t see the red flares that had everyone worried, but she heard the storm they’d been anticipating. The distant shriek of the funnels sent a shiver through her.

  Five miles away, she guessed. They needed to leave soon.

  “See?” Caleb said. “Here comes Soren . . . and Jupiter?”

  Soren crested the switchback path that climbed up from the beach, his closest friend at his side. Jupiter walked with an amble that matched his leisurely personality. Today he appeared mellower than usual, having just emerged from days of fever. Like Soren, he carried a bag over his shoulder.

  “What is this?” Reef grumbled. “Someone explain to me why there’s another one of them now?”

  Aria felt Caleb tense at her side. He was one of “them” too.

  Soren stopped in front of Reef and lifted his chin. “This is our second-in-command, Jupiter,” he said importantly.

  Jupiter flipped his shaggy hair out of his eyes. It felt strange to see him outside the Realms. Even stranger to see him without drums and his bandmates. “Hey, Aria and Caleb. And, uh . . . hello, Outsiders.”

  “No,” Reef said. “Not hello. You can leave, Dweller. You’re not part of the team.”

  Jupiter’s eyes went wide, but Soren held his ground.

  He crossed his arms. “If Jupiter goes, I go.”

  “Done,” said Reef. “Good-bye to you both.”

  “Can any of you fly a Hover?” Soren asked, looking around him. “I didn’t think so. We can. Isn’t that what we need? A way out of here? And I want equal representation on this pathetic team.”

  “Equal?” Reef said. “There are forty Dwellers in that cave. You are one tenth our count.”

  “We speak technology, which makes our tenth a hundred times more valuable.”

  A few paces away, Twig turned to Gren. “So are they more valuable or are we?”

  “I don’t know,” Gren answered. “I’m lost.”

  “Get in there, Jupiter,” Aria said, gesturing to the Belswan.

  A dozen heads whipped to look at her. No one stared more intently than Reef.

  “Soren has a point,” she said. “It’s smart to bring someone else who can fly the Hover. We should have an alternate pilot in case something incapacitates him during the mission.”

  Soren’s expression went from smug to shocked as he realized what she’d said.

  Reef’s face underwent the same transformation, in reverse. He broke into a wide grin, tipping his head at her in a gesture of respect.

  “Don’t just stand there,” he said to Soren and Jupiter. “Your first-in-command just gave an order. Load up.”

  Aria hugged Caleb, promising she’d see him soon, and boarded with them.

  The bay doors opened to the cargo hold, a wide, bare space that stretched across the middle of the Hover. She moved to the cockpit at the front with Soren and Jupiter, who dropped into the two seats and immediately began to argue about which button controlled what.

  It didn’t inspire confidence.

  Leaning against the threshold, she watched them while keeping her ears tuned for Perry and Roar.

  She wasn’t worried about bringing Jupiter. He was harmless, and she liked the idea of having another Dweller on the team. The more they could integrate, the better. But Soren was another matter.

  Could she trust him? He had come through for her with Talon. But then he’d also attacked her in Ag 6. And she’d trusted his father, Hess, and look where that had gotten her. Then there was Soren’s attitude and his history with Perry. The only thing he really contributed were his piloting skills, and those were shaky.

  Soren sensed her watching him and broke off with Jupiter. “What?”

  “Are you ready?” she asked.

  His lip curled up—a dead giveaway that he was nervous. “What kind of question is that? Is there a way to prepare for this that I’m unaware of?”

  “You’ll do fine. You’ve flown it already. Just don’t crash.”

  She caught him by surprise. His smirk softened into a more natural smile. “I’ll try not to.”

  Aria heard Perry walk up behind her. His hand settled on the small of her back.

  “Get this ship moving, Soren,” he said, over her shoulder. “Put us ahead of that storm.”

  Through the windshield she saw that the fog had begun to burn off, revealing a patch of sky to the south. There, the Aether wheeled in spirals, a sight both terrifying and familiar. The red flares were brighter than she’d expected, shocking as fresh blood. Seeing them stole her breath away.

  “I was just waiting for you to show up, Outsider,” Soren said.

  Perry had already left, heading back into the cargo hold, leaving a fading warmth where his hand had rested.

  Soren’s mouth pulled into a sneer. “Aria, please explain to me how you can—”

  “I’m not explaining anything to you, Soren,” she said, and left.

  She knew what he was going to say. Perry had shattered Soren’s jaw that night in Ag 6. She knew he found the idea of her and Perry together repulsive.

  At the far end of the cargo hold, she saw Perry duck through the door that opened into a stowage room. Earlier, when she’d first arrived on the bluff with Caleb, she had left her things in the supply lockers back there. She’d found food, medicine, and camping supplies, along with a small kitchen. Most importantly, the room stored their weapons.

  An entire wall of lockers contained pistols, stun guns, bulkier weapons she suspected were for long-range, and other arms used by Guardians. Perry’s and Brooke’s bows would be added as well, along with a few full quivers.

  A packed arsenal, but it didn’t feel like enough. Together, Sable and Hess had at least eight hundred people. She’d seen Hess’s forces as he’d fled Reverie. He’d taken all the Guardians, choosing soldiers over regular civilians. But Sable worried her even more. Maybe he didn’t have the technological prowess Hess had, but he was cunning and completely ruthless.

  They were facing the most capable fighters from both worlds. To succeed, they’d need much more than the weapons stored in the back.

  The engine thrummed to life, startling her. She pulled one of the jump seats down from the wall and sat, drawing the thick harness straps over her shoulders.

  Brooke came in from outside, followed by Roar. Aria heard them walk up the ramp and into the hold, but she didn’t look up.
With only one hand, snapping the heavy closure of the harness was impossible. She fumbled with it, trying not to scream.

  Roar knelt in front of her. “Do you really need help or are you just trying to get my attention?”

  “Very funny.”

  He buckled the harness, hands quick and sure; then he looked up, staring at her thoughtfully.

  His eyes were bloodshot, and fine dark stubble covered his cheeks. It wasn’t him. Unlike Perry, Roar didn’t like scruff. He looked like he hadn’t slept in a week. Like he’d never sleep again. The sorrow in his eyes seemed to go on forever.

  “It’ll heal, Ladybug,” he said.

  Roar was always giving her nicknames. Ladybug had come just over a week ago. They had been on a boat together, moving down the Snake River, when the ship’s captain had called her that. With this memory came others that made her stomach clench. Roar with tears running down his face. Roar unspeaking, buried under thick layers of grief.

  He was speaking now. He was a dark, shifting force.

  Would he ever heal?

  Aria rested her hand on his, wanting to say something that would help. Wanting him to know that she loved him and was sorry about the tension between him and Perry.

  Roar’s mouth lifted, a flicker of a smile that didn’t reach his dark eyes. “Got it,” he said.

  He had listened to her thoughts and heard everything.

  Her gaze moved over his shoulder. Perry stood by the entrance to the cockpit watching them, his expression unreadable. Roar turned and they froze, locked in a hard stare that had no place between friends.

  A prickling feeling crawled up Aria’s spine. Somehow she felt like a barrier between them, and that was the last thing she ever wanted to be.

  Buckled in the seat on the opposite wall, Brooke watched Perry watch Roar. The cargo doors closed with silent finality, and the sound of Soren and Jupiter’s bickering over the Hover’s controls grew louder, breaking the quiet spell that had trapped them.

  Roar moved to the cockpit to guide them back to where he’d seen the Komodo. Perry followed, watchful and focused.

  Soren lifted the Belswan off the ground with a stomach-dropping lurch.

  Across the cargo hold, Brooke scowled. “I thought he could fly this thing.”