by Britt Nunes
No’ll pointed in front of himself, and I gave him a sharp nod as we zeroed in on our target. My frequency tech picked up on bits of panicked thoughts. There was a lot of mental screaming, so I was grateful it couldn’t transmit for very long.
As we marched up to our target, a shadow fell upon her.
NO! The thought was so loud it almost sounded as if it had been spoken.
“You can’t have any of my children!” Door’is barked.
She was quite fierce, a detail I’d never fully realized until now. Door’is threw Hattie behind her back, puffing out her chest and squaring her shoulders.
No’ll was already trying to communicate with her. She shook her head as if trying to muffle his thoughts.
Captain, it’s me, No’ll, he thought.
It was easier for the ones who had grown up with the Idiosyncratic frequency to push their mind’s voice out into it. For someone who had never experienced anything like this, communicating back was very difficult.
Les’ette is right here too, No’ll thought next, touching my arm.
He kept repeating his thoughts, because he knew she was only getting bits and pieces of them. I couldn’t wait until Dr. Upton’s serum was made available to us. What would happen to the Federation when it was? Would there be chaos and war? Would the citizens accept the truth or cling to propaganda? I had to hope that things would get better. Being around No’ll made it easier to grasp for the light.
Door’is took a step toward us. Her eyes turned glassy as the mobile side of her lips puckered out.
“It’s really you!” Door’is cried.
Yes, Captain, No’ll confirmed.
He reached for Hattie, and this time Door’is shifted out of the way. Hattie’s face was awash in tears. She had no way of knowing that her father had been keeping an eye on her with the help of the transmitter in her hat. She didn’t know that the only reason they’d given her up was for her protection. All she saw were terrifying Astronauts come to abduct her.
“Bern’e’dette, I want you to go with them,” Door’is ordered her.
“No!” Hattie screamed, placing her hands on her hips firmly.
I knelt closer to Hattie, trying to tap into my still shaky ability. I was trying to push the image of the two of us, and what we looked like under our suits, into her mind. Ern’ist said if I mastered that, then it wouldn’t be long before those images would go from inside the mind to outside.
“Les’ette?” Hattie whispered, not wanting to believe it was true.
She leaped at me, grabbing hold of my suit and bawling. I hugged her back just as tightly.
“Stay safe,” Door’is said to us.
No’ll gripped her shoulder and gave it a squeeze. I reached out and grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze as well. I hoped she knew how grateful I was for everything she had done for me.
“Now, go,” Door’is commanded.
And for the last time, we followed her orders.
|Acknowledgments|
ALL PRAISE BELONGS to Jehovah. Thank you for all that you have done, and all that you have given me.
Thank you to all the beta readers that took time out to read a draft of Idiosyncratic. Your advice and insight was very helpful.
To my awesome editor Tiffany! Thank you for taking on my project, and all your diligent work.
Thank you to the young writers in my life. Your questions and excitement are so encouraging, and were the motivating force behind this novella!
A warm thank you belongs to the Gonzalez family. You all have nestled inside of my heart. Thank you Jillian for bring me into your fold. Your support means so much.
To Tabitha, without you this story never would have been thought up. Thank you for encouraging me to write a novella last minute, it gave me no time to second-guess anything and all the excuse to let my imagination run wild. Thank you for your constant and cheerleading support!
To those that keep reading my work, and new ones who just discovered it, thank you so very much for your interest!
|About the Author|
BRITT NUNES is a dork with an overactive imagination. She is addicted to rich words, adventurous sci-fi, sweet romances, and massive amounts of coffee. She is the author of The Etched Tales. Britt writes for young adults.
BrittNunes.com