The flash of blue I caught in the corner of my right eye was a color many people in Zinc feared. I had seen Digitalis more than once in my life, but I'd never been alone with him. My mother would have never allowed it. She was one of those who feared the assassin. Yet I knew he would not kill me. I'd seen it. If I timed my words properly, he would have no reason to.
Holding the package I'd been clutching to my stomach this entire time more tightly, I squeezed my eyes shut, pushing my feet firmly off the ground as I launched myself across Digitalis' path. My shoulder connected to his side, my head bouncing off his chest, the package still in my arms as I didn't try and stop the fall I was about to suffer. He would not catch me. He would not care.
And indeed, I landed on my back, feeling the wetness of the forest ground seep into my clothes and mud on my left cheek. Opening my eyes, I faced him, but then a vision assaulted me. Digitalis had stopped, I could sense his presence, his eyes so curious. I had the ability to stop a vision if I wanted to and end them before they started. I wanted to now, not wishing to waste any time as the Assassin was here, while he wasn't thinking of using his weapon on me. This time, however, was one of those visions that didn't give me the option of ignoring it. This one was powerful; it sucked me in.
~~~~~~~~
"What have you done?!"
Xania had never been a man you could surprise or startle easily. He always had a back-up plan, always some kind of trickery to stay one step ahead. Of course, the only way he'd been able to do this, was because he had Robinia Kowalski.
The boy smiled. "I'm doing what is right."
He had done what was right. He had set Solenum free, and now the control panel Robinia could always be found working behind, containing such a great amount of knowledge, was dripping with water, the machinery destroyed.
Xania was also a man who knew how to get back up on his feet quickly. "I know the legend by heart, Robinia. I do not need you to get Galax or Datura. I shall succeed with or without your knowledge."
Robinia's smile didn't falter. "But will your people still be as obedient when you have nothing left to blackmail them with?" The silence that followed was deadly.
"I am a great king." Xania clipped out.
"You certainly are conniving." Robinia allowed. "But a king you will never be."
Before Xania could take his rage out on the boy, Robinia revealed the hand he'd been hiding behind his back, placing the gun's exit gently against his temple.
~~~~~~~~
A fearful scream ripped its way out of my throat as I tried to push myself out of the vision, but it wouldn't let me. It held me captive within its images, showing me how Robinia seemed to feel right about the decision he'd just made, the one that would release his soul from his body so he may meet the Creatures of Origin. Would they accept him?
I hadn't seen this happen. I should have foretold this! Choking on my sobs, my eyes were finally allowed to open when Robinia's body connected with the floor, showing me one last image of Xania's face. Like me, the Steward had not expected this outcome. Palliums did not take their own lives. It was against their nature. Would the Creatures of Origin protect Robinia's soul nonetheless? Could they ignore the way his life had been used for evil?
Curling myself around the package, I pressed my face into the mud, crying. He shouldn't have died.
"Mallow." Darting my eyes off the ground, I looked up at Digitalis, having nearly forgotten his presence.
"Robinia is dead." I whispered. When one has to deal with too many emotions at once, it is a possibility that the body shuts down. It wasn’t long before mine went numb to the pain I felt as the images kept flashing before me.
The Assassin lent me a hand and after helping me up onto my feet, I could instantly tell that he was having an internal battle concerning his current destination.
"You will not find what you are looking for. He destroyed his machine." Timed words. I knew exactly what I had to say in order to manipulate the Assassin. Although I had not known Robinia had wanted to take his own life, the destruction of the machine had been part of our plan. What had once been attached to it was the very tool that would allow me to manipulate Digitalis to do my bidding.
"Is all his knowledge lost?"
"This package contains a backup of all Robinia learned and knew." It was the boy's very soul. "I will give it to you so you may use it to find what you seek." Although I couldn't see the Assassin's mouth, his eyes flashed with surprise at my knowing. "I am Seer, Digitalis. I know what you wish for, but I do not carry the answer within me. Even if you had found a fitting second to slip through my mother's cracks, my powers could not have helped." I hugged the package tightly. "I have tried, curious to know what is so important to someone with such little feeling. It is part of those things I cannot touch and unlock." Like I had no clue as to why Solenum and Calycanthus didn't have the gift of foresight.
"But what you hold does." He stated, not questioning.
Breathing in shakily, I offered the Assassin the package with trembling hands. "It is yours if you promise me something. This is a deal, Digitalis, not a gift." He did not reach for it yet. If there was one thing about him that made him unlike all other Regius, it was his patience and being able to listen until the end of a story. And because I was not his target, he would not kill me. My death would bring him nothing.
"I promise I shall not lay a finger on Everhart or Esquivel." He knew what I'd ask for.
"Yet you will tell Xania you took care of them," I finished for him.
"Lie to the Steward?" This may have been the first time the assassin showed surprise.
"If you want this, then that is what you have to do." A cold shiver shot down my spine as Digitalis' smile became visible to me from behind his veil and his hands closed around the package.
"What makes you believe I will keep my word?"
"Your loyalty to the Steward is not as strong as it is believed to be."
He stared at me in silence for a long while before he inclined his head. "You have my word, Seer."
Watching his figure fade between the trees, my lips parted and sadness washed over my entire being.
"This is the last time you shall trick me." I whispered at the ground before pointing my gaze up to the sky. "I do not know what you are and what power it is that you hold, but this is the last time you shall use me as your tool." Anger was so irrational sometimes. It led people to talk to nothing, say things they didn't mean, or show others their vulnerability.
I closed my eyes and gritted my teeth as several tree roots erupted from the mud beneath my feet, twirling their way gently around my ankles, mocking my words.
"I will find you." I promised.
There was something evil about the Seer powers. To allow the person who carries the gift to tap into its magic and see what was, is, and will be, something must be taken from the carrier. Although something bigger than themselves guided them to do certain things they didn't always agree with, it wasn't that higher being that paid for the consequences.
Robinia's death, although at his own hands, could be connected back to my decision and actions. While I knew everything happened for a reason, it would not justify the loss of such a brilliant mind. Not in the eyes of the Creatures of Origin. If they agreed to return his soul to their midst, they would need a token. What would they take from me as collateral for his death?
* * * *
Chapter 20
Delph Riddle
Some people say I am lucky.
I didn’t feel it much though. Your parents had to die or abandon you in order to end up in a boarding house like the one I’d landed in. I’d once wanted to know what had happened while dreaming that my parents would come back to reclaim me. It had never happened though, so I’d turned the page and continued on with what I did have. Unfortunately, they wouldn’t be the only people I’d lose in my life.
Acacia had died and then Lupinus lost his way, abandoning what had been left of the 'lost kids'. I’d thought my stre
ak of bad luck had come to an end, but things could always get worse. Calycanthus, a great friend, fell off grid. He'd been missing for months. When Solenum followed, all I could think was that they must have run away together. I was upset that they hadn't brought me with them.
Holly had found her future and home in LV, so it made sense for them not to ask her, but me? Granted, I’d found a place to stay at Helix’s, but unlike Holly, I had still come around on a daily basis to the boarding house to see them.
A disconnected feeling started to grow inside of me, leading me to stop hanging out with Helix as much, avoiding Holly with all I was and blatantly ignoring Marguerite’s presence when she was around. No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn’t understand why Cali and Sol had abandoned me. I’d considered Cali one of my best friends, and while I didn’t see Sol in that same light, I’d shared an intimate moment with her.
As though I’d needed to feel their presence, not able to let go, I’d found myself going to Edge nearly every day after they’d both gone. Holly thought me an idiot, Helix worried and Marguerite pitied me. I thought I was the only one in LV that missed them. Soon, I came to find out I was wrong, the most unlikely person joining me on Edge. My hate for him was more passionate than my friendships with Cali and Helix combined.
~~~~~~~~
"Believe it or not, I'm in no mood to bully you." Although I heard what he said, I didn't respond right away, my eyes fixed on the mop of dark brown hair that was starting to grow on top of his head. I'd always known him to be bald.
"I’m not in the mood for an ass kicking." I muttered as he came to stand beside me, leaning onto the railing as I was. Silence dragged out between us for a while, until I broke it, surprising myself as it seemed I was able to have a civil conversation with this guy.
"You ever wonder what happened to Lupinus?" I didn't mention Cali and Solenum since they had been Brass' main target and it didn't make sense to voice their names in his presence.
"All the time." Brass murmured.
"If she hadn't died, things would have stayed the same." I winced as Acacia entered my mind.
"You know-" Growling, he cut himself off and glared. The anger in his demeanor wasn't aimed at me. Exhaling in exasperation, he ran his fingers through his short hair. "Look, no disrespect, kay?"
Frowning and nodding, I allowed him to say whatever was on his mind.
"I don't think Acacia and Lupinus cared about us the way they did about crater face and skeleton girl." Wrinkling his nose at me, he then pointed his uncomfortable gaze back at the sea. "The way they were always trying not to favor one kid more than the other; they didn't try hard enough." Brass shrugged, giving me a look at a side of him I never thought I'd see or find. He looked hurt. He'd been jealous of the attention they had gotten.
~~~~~~~~
If someone had told me that I would one day understand and agree with Brass, I'd have never believed it. We'd made a sport out of knocking the shit out of each other as we'd grown up. The number of wedgies, shoves, slaps, smacks, bites, kicks, punches, hair pulling, pranks and name calling we'd launched at each other back and forth... Well, I suppose that in a way we were close, just not in the regular sense. But that moment on Edge had us both realize we were a lot more similar than we thought.
From there on forward something happened and the wedgies, shoves, slaps, etc, seemed to dial down quickly, almost cold turkey. I hadn't questioned it. Brass, strangely enough, was someone I could relate to today and I saw no reason to push it away. Of course, not everyone agreed that my newfound friendship was a blessing.
“Delph.” Helix snapped, returning my attention to the dining room table he, Holly, his parents and myself were sitting at. "You're the one who kept going on and on over the years how Brass is always up to no good. What tells you that he isn't just pranking you again?"
Puffing out some frustrated air, he shrugged and looked at Holly. She of course, had to be here because they were practically married at this point. I'd always felt different, but I figured I'm just weird, most likely overreacting and will have to deal with it since they don't seem to mind. I guess now they did mind.
"He's probably just trying to fish all the secrets out of you so he can use them against you later." Holly offered with a flippant gesture of the hand.
Groaning, I ran my fingers through my hair. "We're fucking eighteen years old. Bit old for that kinda crap, yeah?"
"Kids." Aron Peterman, Helix’s dad, butted in, leading all of us to stare as he rarely participated in arguments. "We haven’t assembled today to discuss why Brass and Delph are friends. We’re here to get clarification on why Delph seems to be pulling away from us, Helix in particular.” His wife, Helen, patted his hand and nodded at him. “Delph, you’re not making any effort to make Helix comfortable with the new situation. In fact, you’ve been ignoring him on numerous occasions so you could go out and about with Brass.”
This entire lot was staring me down hard. They had to be kidding! This whole ‘We need to sit down and talk’ was because Helix threw a hissy fit since he didn’t get to spend as much time with me as he wanted? Brat.
"Look," I started, trying to tone down the anger. "I'm sorry my friendship with Brass is pissing you people off, but there's something he and I share that none of you understand."
"I told you he was gay." Holly offered me a raised eyebrow, daring me to tell her she was wrong.
She was wrong. "Idiot.” My turn to stare Holly down, hard. “Have you forgotten Acacia and Lupinus? They were your guardians, too."
This is why whatever friendship I'd once shared with her had vanished. She purposely didn’t want to remember that she’d once been a 'lost kid', and while I’m sure she had her reasons, I just didn’t understand.
"Delph." Helen reached out with one of her hands and the look on her face told me she was about to explain for the millionth time that what’s done is done and that while what happened to the Jacoby's was tragic, I had to move on.
"No. I need some air." Stuffing my hands into my pockets, I walked to the front door, telling them I’d be back whenever before slamming it on my way out.
The boarding house had been a broken family, but a family nonetheless. I couldn't just forget and ignore that part of my life like Holly seemed to be able to do. Then again, she was content with the lifestyle everyone seemed to be leading in LV, whereas I longed for more.
I stepped onto LV's train, not bothering to sit down as I'd be getting off in less than two minutes anyway. Once it stopped, I jumped out and started making my way in direction of the college dorms. I'm sure Brass still had some of his funny cake left that would help me get my mind off of all this.
Knocking on Brass' dorm door once I was there, I didn't wait for him to open or answer before making my way in, sighing as I did so, letting him know that things had whacked out again at the Peterman household. Instead of hearing the 'What's happened now?', I didn't get an acknowledgment to my presence whatsoever, a frown appearing on my forehead as I finally located him by his couch, packing up a suitcase.
"You going somewhere?" I asked curiously, plopping down beside it.
Grinning, he nodded his head. "Yeah, I'm getting out of this hell hole."
I raised my eyebrows in surprise, remembering how often we'd talked about getting out of Lithium Village over these last couple of months. It was a dream that most though was unattainable.
"You coming with me, or you still too stubborn to realize you've got no reason to stay here?" Opening my mouth to protest out of pure habit, I faltered, giving him a confused look. Brass offered me a kind smile, one I'd come to know only when we started to try and understand each other.
"I know it's scary, dude, but let’s face this logically, kay?" Nodding, I gave him permission to make sense of the mud that was currently occupying the space where my brain was supposed to be. "The only true parents we ever had were Acacia and Lupinus, and-"
Sighing, I nodded and finished his sentence. "And even they abandoned us."
>
"Yeah." Brass agreed, zipping his suitcase shut.
"So, where are we going?" I asked, wondering if I should go back to Helix's place and pack a suitcase or say goodbye. I didn't have anything all that important though. Except maybe clothes, but Brass and I were about the same size, and I'd rather borrow his than have to explain to the Peterman's my need to get away. It was so overwhelming; it had been eating at me for a while now. But coming to terms with it and allowing for it to happen was something altogether different than just letting myself dream. Yet here I was, taking that step.
"Cobalt City." Brass butted into my thoughts, waving boat tickets before my face.
Frowning, I took one of them. "How did you know I was going to come?"
Brass chuckled, lifting the suitcase and settling it onto his shoulder. "This was the twenty-seventh argument you had with them. I knew you'd come to your senses and realize that you can't change for their benefit. You're smart like that.” He clapped my back. "And unlike some people, I have no intention of either changing you or abandoning you."
* * * *
Chapter 21
Mallow O’Malley
Pieris, like his son Reed, had more Regius traits than Altor, making it hard to tell which they were. Cypress was more like his mother, Rose. Although the Elder was bald now, he used to have very blue hair and the grey of his eyes was very light which was rare to find in a soldier. You could see the years of training in the man's physique; he looked much more fit and young than many men in their late fifties. His attire was very fitting for an Elder, a simple soldier uniform that was decorated with a side cloak covering his left shoulder, everything in shades of blacks and greys.
The wrinkles engraved on his face were particularly visible now as he stared.
"Pieris." Sage's fingers around the hilt of her short knife tightened in surprise before the blade slipped, falling to the ground. Her yellow eyes were emptying while her light blue hair, so much like Vervaine's, faded to ivory.
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