by Josi Russell
Ethan glanced at the door, feeling as if he were back in the cage in the city. “Can we leave if we want? Go outside? Go back to the lake?”
Sybillan seemed surprised but hurried to assure them. “You may go at any time. We, unlike the Others, do not want to keep you against your wishes.” He stopped for a moment. “It should be said, too, that if you wish to leave the planet, if you wish to continue on to your destination, we have ways of allowing you to do so. You may wish to consider that possibility as well while we are away. We will discuss the matter upon our return.” Without waiting for a response, the two beings shimmered and disappeared.
Ethan and Kaia were again left alone.
Chapter 27
Ethan sat down, reaching for a delicious-looking pastry. “Do you think this is really possible?”
“What?”
“All these new abilities, these beings that may or may not help us, the whole thing.”
“I guess,” she said around a bite. “We know that we can read each other’s minds. We know that you did something pretty out of the ordinary back there. We know that my bruises are gone, even though they should have taken weeks to heal. Something about us has changed, and the only explanation seems to be that we’ve been modified. If that’s true, then they’re right—the Others are close enough to destroy whole civilizations. I don’t think that if they begin evolving that they will be content to just rule Beta Alora. They’ll spread out and eventually all organic life could be under their control. We have to do something if we can.”
Ethan nodded. “But, maybe, Kaia . . .” he said haltingly. “Maybe they don’t need both of us. Maybe I could help them get back in by myself . . . and we could send you on to Minea . . .” He trailed off as he saw the disbelief in her eyes. “I saw the look on your face when he said they could get us off the planet.”
“Of course I want off the planet. Of course I’d go on if I could. But leave you here—” She grabbed his hand. “To face those monsters alone—no way, Ethan. We go together or we stay together.”
Their minds were open to each other; the words formed internally an instant before the ears processed them. Ethan felt a strange and powerful connection with Kaia. He felt her fear, her determination, her horror at what lay in the city, and another emotion, one centered on himself, that he pushed out of his mind, back toward her. He pulled his hand away.
“Okay,” he said, “we’ll see what they come up with.”
* * *
When Sybillan and Lassaya returned, they were joined by many more glowing creatures. The first thought Ethan had as he looked out at them was that they were beautiful. Absolutely beautiful. They were translucent, luminescent, every shade of every color that he could think of. Their presence was overwhelming. They stood outside the walls of the little cottage, waiting as Sybillan and Lassaya entered and invited them outside.
On the wide warm hillside, the Alorans greeted Ethan and Kaia. Ethan sensed an acceptance from them, a kind curiosity. He heard their voices in his mind, welcoming him, and he tried reaching back toward a few of them. He saw from their expressions that he was succeeding, however awkwardly.
Sybillan spoke in Xardn. “My new friends, we have discussed the possibility of using your unique skills to help us gain reentry into the city. My companions and I feel that it is logical to attempt this for the good of our society. We also hope to help you liberate your captive passengers. At this time, we need to meet and devise a reasonable plan of action, one which will offer us the best probability of success. We invite you to join us for planning.”
Ethan searched for equally formal phrases. “We are both honored and anxious to join you.” He translated quickly for Kaia.
Sybillan, Lassaya, and the other Alorans settled down on the hillside and indicated that Ethan and Kaia do so, as well. The gathering felt more like a family reunion than a war council. Ethan got the distinct feeling that though this was of more interest to these Alorans, they were still not in an intense state of concern over it.
A glowing green Aloran, who Sybillan introduced as Drammen, who sat near Ethan began to speak. “My friends,” he said in a booming, gentle voice. “Through a series of events, these new friends have been brought to us. They are humans, as you have heard, and have recently been through the class advancement experiments that the Others have been working on. They are called Ethan and Kaia. These specimens have shown remarkable advancement, as you will learn should you try to unite with them in mind, though they tell us this is not usually possible for their species. Ethan, the male, has demonstrated energy control. Kaia has demonstrated advanced tissue regeneration. While these are great abilities for them, they also indicate the progress that the Others seem to be making toward forced class advancement. As we know, even their small successes in the past have had dire consequences. It may be time that we attempt to regain control of the city and put the experiments of the Others to a stop. Ethan and Kaia are desirous to reenter the city to access their ship and continue their journey. As their desires coincide with ours, we may be able to join with them to accomplish both of our goals.” He looked over the crowd. “We would like you to discuss this matter amongst yourselves and join our discussion as your insights surface.”
He turned back to the small group from the cottage. “We see promise,” he began, “in the fact that you were able to evade the Others and find your way out of the city. Would you mind explaining how that happened?”
Ethan glanced at Kaia. “Which part?”
“Start with your initial escape, after you experienced the energy pulse that knocked the Others down.”
Ethan and Kaia related their escape and then listened as the Alorans evaluated the intricacies of their story. The Alorans examined the energy pistol, affirming that the elements from Beta Alora, in their natural form, were affected by energy pulses and were able to block transport. The streets in the city were made of these natural stones, which was why the pistol had worked on the street. However, blasting their way into the city with the energy pistol wouldn’t work, because the outer walls were made of resequenced elements.
The Alorans were interested to hear of the key players in the auction and the details of the experimentation. It was an offhanded comment, though, that caused the most dramatic reaction.
Ethan was explaining the strange suburbia that they’d been taken to. “It was obviously patterned from Minea,” he said. “The houses, the furniture—everything looked the same except, of course, that it was all that strange transparent building material. But the oddest thing was the smoky sky. Like something was between us and the suns.”
Sybillan stopped him. “That’s simply the dome of the energy field that surrounds the city. But I’m sorry, did you say something about a new building material?”
Ethan wanted to talk more about the dome. “Well, it’s probably not new to you.”
“No, did you say the houses were transparent?”
Ethan didn’t try to hide his confusion. “Yes, like all the buildings here. Only, in the city everything is smoky-looking, and here it is all very clean and clear.”
“Do you mean to tell me that our buildings are transparent to you?”
Ethan felt a realization dawning. “They’re not transparent to you?” he asked in awe.
“Of course not,” Sybillan said. “They are built out of classanite, a mineral extracted from the planet and resequenced to suit our needs. This material is dense and opaque, even after resequencing.”
Ethan’s head was spinning. “Let me be clear. You mean that you can’t see through the buildings?”
Sybillan shook his head. “No.”
“Why would we be able to see it?”
Kaia spoke up. “Maybe we just see in a whole different spectrum than they do here. Maybe classanite allows our visible light frequencies to pass through, like our glass does at home, so our eyes can see through it in a similar way.” Ethan translated and many conversations started up throughout the meadow. Groups could be see
n making excited gestures as they communicated.
“Whatever the reason,” Drammen interjected, “perhaps it could be an advantage.”
“Is this, too, an effect of your genetic manipulation?” Lassaya asked in English.
Kaia shook her head. “No, we could see through the walls from the time we got here.”
Lassaya repeated her words in Xardn and the Alorans plunged into discussion again. Their conversations had taken a much more hopeful turn.
“Why are the buildings here clear and the ones in the city are smoky?” Ethan wondered aloud.
“The only difference is the energy shielding that runs through the walls and the buildings of the city,” said Sybillan in Xardn. “It connects at the city’s edge to the dome, creating an effective barrier. We created it to fortify the city against the Others, but now it prevents us from entering.”
“So we see the energy in the classanite.” Ethan explained to Kaia. “It makes the walls look foggy in the city. But here, since there are no energy barriers in the walls, they are perfectly clear.”
Kaia considered, then asked, “Couldn’t you create goggles or something to let you see through the walls, too?”
Lassaya answered her. “We haven’t used much extraneous technology in many spaces of time, but it is possible.”
“We won’t have time for that,” Ethan said impatiently. “They could start experimenting on our people any time. We have to work with what we’ve got. If we can use seeing through the walls to our advantage, then we will, but if not, we have to get in there anyway. What are the weaknesses of the outer wall?”
Drammen spoke. “There are none. They are constructed of classanite. The energy field runs through them and joins seamlessly with the dome above.”
“What about the portal where they brought our ship in? It must have been at the top of the dome.”
“Yes,” Sybillan said. “The portal can be opened by turning off the energy field directly above the statehouse. That opens a round gate in the top of the dome. Your ship is most certainly directly below that portal, in the statehouse hangar. When we were attempting to contain the Others, we made it the only way on or off the planet. Unfortunately, by gaining control of the city, they gained control of the portal as well.”
“Can it be reached?”
“Not without ships. Again, we have only one left, and it is also in the statehouse hangar.”
Ethan considered for a moment. “It sounds like we’ve got to get to the statehouse. Everything critical is there. Supposing we can breach the outer wall, how do we get to the statehouse?”
“I will attempt to send you an image of the city,” Syblillan said.
Ethan blinked as a picture appeared in his mind, like a memory. He recognized immediately that it was designed from the Xardn symbol for “governing.”
He saw the city laid out around him like a giant wheel, the statehouse and the portal at its hub. The main streets stretched from that hub out to the walls, and the force field arced above it all like a giant bubble.
His attention was drawn to nine gaps in the outer wall: gates. “If we can’t get to the portals, how about the gates? Is it possible to get through them?”
“No, they are protected by one-way energy pulses, like the tunnel you came through,” Sybillan said. “Without shielding, you can exit the city but not enter it.”
Ethan ran a hand through his hair and stood, pacing around the little knoll. He looked off over the groups of Alorans, discussing possible options. They were Class 15 beings. If they had not been able to retake the city before, how could he hope to do it now?
“So the energy is what keeps you out?” he asked.
Lassaya nodded. “To touch it causes neural overload for us, effectively shorting out our neural impulses.”
“So to get you into the city, we have to do away with the energy field?”
The Alorans nodded in agreement.
Kaia broke in. “How is the barrier maintained? Is there a power control center?”
Lassaya answered in English. “Yes, in the statehouse, but there are also substations along the nine major streets in the city that boost the power to the outer wall and the dome.”
Kaia stood, too. “So if we disabled one of the substations, part of the outer wall would be passable?”
Lassaya nodded. “There are inner walls, as well, that would need to be breached, but some of them are not on the energy field grid. I assume they are guarded by the Others, but they are not protected by the energy pulses.”
Ethan grabbed a stick and drew in a small patch of dirt. “So if we can get through a gate, we can start working on the substations. Would destroying substations get us into the statehouse?”
“No,” Lassaya said. “The statehouse has energy shielding as well. It will have to be disabled from inside the statehouse.”
So first the gates, then the inner walls, then the statehouse. At least Ethan felt like they were actively forming a plan, and every step got him closer to Aria.
When the last of the Aloran suns reached its cradle on the edge of the meadow, the Alorans dispersed, leaving in Ethan and Kaia’s minds a clear understanding of the plan they’d formulated to infiltrate the city. Also in their minds was an unmistakable recognition of just how unlikely success would be.
Chapter 28
The wall of the city stretched as far above them as they could see. It was made of classanite, just as the Alorans had said, and it felt smooth and cold where Ethan and Kaia stood against it. On the other side, not far away, stood guards, their armor shining dully in the late afternoon sun. The guards stood with their backs to the wall, staring in toward the city and discussing the day’s events.
“I’ve been at this post for three sunsets,” said the first. His smaller claw was missing. It had been severed, and the arm above it was only a stump.
The other, whose armor was an inky green, responded, “What have you done to earn such an unfortunate assignment . . . and such a cruel punishment?” He indicated the missing claw.
The first growled back, “I was in the auction hall . . .”
The green one made a low sound. “That is most unfortunate.”
“Only the end of the incident. The auction itself was stunning.”
“Did you buy any of the specimens?”
“I did. Two specimens should be delivered soon. It is my hope that through the experiments I will find a way to replace this.” He waved the stump quickly and then brought it back to his side.
“The delivery is taking longer than expected?”
“The ruler has not yet authorized the awakening of the ship’s cargo. Many believe . . .” and here the creature’s voice dropped conspiratorially, “. . . that if the ruler recaptures his two pets, he will retain the others still longer.”
“So there is some truth to the rumors that he has already begun experiments on the humans.”
“It would seem so. I believe he will keep those we purchased until he is sure that his specimens are not sufficiently changed and further experiments are still necessary.”
Ethan felt a flood of relief. The passengers still slept. There might be a chance to get to them after all.
Kaia’s voice entered his mind. “What are they saying?”
“Just chatting. One of them was in the auction hall. He’s apparently in trouble for it.”
She squeezed Ethan’s arm. “He wouldn’t be happy to see us, then?”
“No. They’re also saying that Traxoram hasn’t awakened the other passengers yet. We may still be able to get to them in time.” He shot a quick smile at Kaia and then surveyed the opening between the two guards. It shimmered as the energy pulses protecting it ran back and forth between the sides. “I’m going to practice one more time.”
Ethan pressed his back harder into the wall. He closed his eyes, focusing all his attention on a spot somewhere in the middle of his chest. Consciously, he flooded his mind with the images of Aria in the auction hall, of her sleeping in t
he hold as the first Alorans he’d ever seen crowded around like she was an oddity. He felt the anger rise, as he knew it would, and he held it in the center of his chest as Sybillan had taught him to do. As he held it, it grew. The emotions that fueled the growing power were anger and love and fear and desperation. When he felt they would overtake him, he placed his palms straight out in front of him and released the pent-up energy through them.
A small wave shot from him, destroying a rock a few inches from his foot. The fragments of rock flew back at him and Kaia and against the wall, making a small clattering sound.
The big green creature spun around, peering past the energy gate that guarded the entry. “What was that?”
The other creature shrugged. “Probably nothing. It’s always nothing.”
“I’ve never heard anything like that at this post before,” the green creature said. “Perhaps I will go investigate.”
“Perhaps you’ll find yourself in shackles. You are aware that we are not to deactivate the energy gates for any reason until the human ship has been unloaded.”
The green one nodded. “You are right, of course. Still, how much worse would it be to miss the possible reentry of—”
At that moment, Ethan stepped into his line of sight and fired the strongest energy pulse he could muster. There was time for a brief look of surprise to cross the beast’s features before the pulse from Ethan hit the gate, intensifying and amplifying as it travelled past the energy waves there. The other Aloran was half-turned toward them when it hit him. Both creatures flew backwards and lay motionless on the other side of the still-pulsing gate.
Ethan and Kaia exchanged a glance. They had never expected the plan to work this far. It was encouraging to see the guards bested, but there was still a nearly insurmountable problem. They walked to the energy gate, peering through its wavy surface. It was as the Alorans had described, neatly encased in the surrounding wall, leaving no place that one could slip through. For an Aloran to touch it, Sybillan had explained, meant neural overload and paralysis for days. Though it hadn’t been tested, it was reasonable to assume that for a human to touch it would be much, much worse.