by Coralee June
I strained my ear to hear what she was talking about. A faint, low boom erupted, and I widened my eyes in surprise. She was right. Something was happening. I looked up at the flashing light and saw that it had taken on a new sequence.
“Mia—quick. What is the light saying now?” I asked.
Jacob started rubbing against his chains again.
“G—E—T—O—U—T—N—O—W” She spelled out. “Well boys, what do you say we jump this joint?” Mia shimmied out of her cuffs with ease, and if my eyes weren’t swollen and my head wasn’t throbbing, I would have thrown her an incredulous look.
“How?” Cyler asked while she uncuffed him using the guard’s Tablet.
“No time, let’s get the fuck out of here,” Mia said before hitting the snoozing guard across the head with a pipe and stealing his electric gun.
We shuffled down the hall in high alert. I could now hear an alarm going off in the distance as the lights overhead flickered. I sniffed and noticed that the air smelled like an electrical fire and a hint of burnt plastic.
“We don’t even know where we’re going,” Jacob complained. His broad hands touched the ceramic-tiled walls, as if trying to prevent them from closing in on him.
“We follow the sounds of the bombs,” Mia whispered. “Where there are bombs, there’s bound to be a hole in the wall—an opening to get out of here,” she explained.
“Sound logic, but where there are bombs, there’s also—well—bombs,” Cyler bit out sarcastically. I think he hated that he didn’t have all the answers this time.
Huxley coughed, and I noticed blood splatter on his arm and clothes. Fuck. We needed to get him to a doctor. We turned the corner, following Mia’s intuition as to where we should go.
“Where are the guards?” Huxley whispered while crouching low and clutching his stomach.
“Probably all responding to the bombs on the other side of the building,” I suggested.
“Surely there would be some sort of commotion? Someone here?” Patrick asked.
“It’s like they all abandoned this place,” Huxley said with a furrowed brow before covering his mouth.
We were all conditioned to know that abandoned places meant disease. Meant X.
We made a sharp turn left at the end of the hall and the lights went out. My vision was already bad, but now I felt defenseless. The only guide I had was Mia’s labored breathing as she led us. I took small steps.
“Maverick?” Mia’s voice whisper-shouted. “Is that you? Why are you holding a body?” she asked, and the world as I knew it collapsed.
Ash. Oh god what happened to Ash? I wanted to crumble to the ground. I wanted to murder Lackley. I felt Huxley tense beside me, and Jacob sucked in a breath. All I could think of was all the time I wasted.
“It’s Josiah,” Maverick’s low voice scratched out. A brief, blinding relief consumed me. “Look, I don’t have time to explain. Ash is safe with Tallis. We need to get out of here. He’s lost use of his legs . . .” he trailed off.
“Just fucking leave him here,” Huxley said incredulously before checking my shoulder and walking ahead of us.
“I’ll help you,” I said to Maverick, and together we continued towards the bombs. I wanted to leave Josiah behind, too, but knew Maverick probably had a good reason for bringing him.
A bright light at the end of the darkened hallway acted like a beacon to us. White smoke and zipping fuses blasted around us. I kept straining to hear the sound of footsteps, but there were none. We were all that was left. As we walked I noticed something like sand on the floor, with bits and pieces of clothing. Surely we weren’t . . . .
“Heat. Whoever is out there fucking has Heat, look,” Cyler said incredulously while bending down and grasping a handful of sand. It seeped through his fingers. We were shuffling through powdered, dead bodies.
I shivered as I covered my mouth to prevent the kicked-up dust from getting in my lungs. Slowly, ever so slowly, we slunk along the wall towards the new entrance to the building.
“Come on out, boys!” a sharp, masculine voice called to us.
We deliberated for a moment. No weapons. No clue where we were. No clue how to get the hell out of here. I readjusted Josiah’s passed-out body on my shoulder and winced at the pain in my side.
Normally we would have debated on the situation and come up with a plan, but Mia had other ideas. She simply smoothed out her pants and sashayed out through the cracked opening in the building.
“Boys, huh?” she asked with a coy smile. “Now I’m offended. It was a girl that saved their asses,” she yelled out while putting her hands up in surrender. We all stayed behind, listening for any indication that it was safe. I felt totally emasculated letting Mia take charge, but all of us were beat to hell and useless in a fight. After what felt like hours, Mia’s face flashed in the opening, startling us all.
“Fuck, Mia! Warn a guy!” Huxley exclaimed. I tried not to grin at the fact that something rattled him.
“Come out, you’re gonna want to see this. Agrio got us an army!” Mia pranced off, as if she didn’t just spend ten days in captivity.
Slowly we all made our way out, and the sight that greeted us was nothing short of amazing. Bright orange and black striped flags waved in the wind around us, and underneath their glory stood about a hundred Ethros warriors. A tall man with bronze skin and a wired mustache walked towards us. He was decked out in an orange cotton uniform with black medals covering his chest.
“Well, hello there!” he said with a head nod. “I’m Commodore Sebastian Cavil,” he introduced himself, outstretching his hand with a smile. None of us took it. Ethros is where Cyler and Patrick were headed when Emperor Lackley abducted them. We spent our time in captivity assuming Ethros leaked intel.
“Ah, I see you don’t trust us quite yet. Understandable. Perhaps you’ll trust us after you see your Ash? Hmm?” He gestured behind him where one of the soldiers wearing an all-orange jumpsuit was taking off his hat and walking towards us. Long white hair fell around his face. Tallis.
“Tallis, what’s going on? Is Ash with you? What about Jules?” Maverick growled out. Usually it was Cyler that negotiated trade deals and alliances, but I saw him struggling to stand. Blood had gathered in his mouth.
I started to slip under the weight of Josiah’s body, and we slowly lowered him to the dirt ground before I moved to Cyler and helped him sit. Tallis shook Mav’s hand with a smile.
“Ash and Jules are in a safe house outside the city. I figured you wouldn’t appreciate me bringing them to a battle,” Tallis explained with a grin. Thank God.
Commodore observed us with a smile. He looked power hungry and volatile. “And, to answer your question, Maverick. We’re here to take over the Empire.”
Soul of the Elite Preview
Soul of the Elite Preview
The musty scent of manure and body odor filled my nose as I crushed my once manicured nails into the soft earth. It was miserably hot and sweat gathered on my neck, making my black hair cling to my salty skin.
I sighed loudly, hoping that once again the blonde whose name I already forgotten would help me finish my work for the day. Each gardener was assigned a section to manage, and my brothers assigned me the largest one with the least amount of shade. The stifling heat made me sick to my stomach. Every moment spent in the gardens felt like literal torture.
“Would you like for me to help you again?” my blonde, clingy, roommate asked while chewing on her brassy necklace. Brenda? Beth? She was pretty enough, for a Walker, but she was obnoxious and intrusive— two qualities I especially despised. Not to mention, she had an absolutely ridiculous crush on Kemper which she made sure to bring up every chance she got.
“That would be wonderful, Brandy,” I answered in a bored tone while picking dirt from beneath my nails. “After all, you got the smallest section, I suppose it’s only fair that you help with mine.” I looked over at her already finished section and once again cursed my brothers for this ridic
ulous job.
“It’s Becca,” she mumbled while dragging her scythe over towards me. Each day was the same, I woke up at the crack of dawn, ate a sad excuse for breakfast, then suffered through six sweltering hours of pretending to work until Becca came over and did it for me.
Most days, she worked slow, soaking up each moment to chat with me about Kemper. However, today, she moved with an energized purpose. At this rate, we might even be done early which meant I could claim the showers first.
“So…” she began while hunched over and inspecting the moisture in the wheat grain. “Are you and Master Kemp close?” She looked at me through the corner of her blue eyes. I knew she liked him. I also knew her little crush was the reason she was being so helpful. People rarely went out of their way to be nice without expecting something in return.
Even though I knew her motivations to help me were diluted by the pathetic hope that I could miraculously get Kemper to court her, I hated working in the gardens, so I’d dangle the hope that I could set them up for as long as she was willing to help. Which with a bit of luck, would be through the entirety of harvest.
“We grew up together,” I admitted while clumsily gliding my scythe through the wheat. Kemper was too caught up in saving Dormas and his new little Walker whore, Ashleigh, to pay any mind to his best friends’ kid sister. It was Jacob—always Jacob—that I connected with. He saw me, truly saw me. But I wouldn’t be telling Becca that.
“You’re so lucky,” She sighed while fanning herself, in a move that had nothing to do with how hot it was and everything to do with her thoughts about Kemper. How terribly embarrassing. Pathetic little Walker, didn’t she know that pining after someone out of her league made her look weak?
“Skimping on your duties, Jules?” A familiar and annoyingly pompous voiced called out from behind me. Becca turned and smiled while slowly wiping sweat from her raised brows.
“Hello Master Maverick! I was just helping your sister. She’s having some trouble adjusting to the heat,” Becca said in a chipper voice while rowing her eyes up and down his body. I lifted the corner of my lip in disgust at her obvious perusal before turning to meet his disapproving gaze.
“Jules is more than capable of getting her work completed on her own,” he said with a frown. “Go back to the dorms.”
Becca gave me a sympathetic smile before dusting off her hands and walking off. I rolled my shoulders back before slipping into my usual cool facade. It was my emotional armor. Our last encounter, when I was kicked out of my own home, I let my anger slip. Now, I was determined to appear unaffected.
“What are you wearing?” Maverick asked while rolling his eyes and adjusting a large, brown canvas pack higher up on his shoulder. I looked down at my tan, lace skirt and white crochet top. It was hot and not conducive for all the movement my new punishment required, but it was worth it. I didn’t want these other Walker women thinking I was one of them.
“What? It’s a dress?” I replied with a smirk. “The best designer in Ethros made it.”
“You look ridiculous. Why don’t you wear the uniform we provided you with?” Mavericks eyes swept over my section of land and puffed out air in exasperation. I was by far the furthest behind.
“I’ll die before I wear trousers, Mav,” I said with a shiver. I’d have to be desperate to wear those drab uniforms Kemper assigned me.
“Always so melodramatic,” he replied while brushing stray hair from his neck, God I wish he’d trim it. The long hair was so last season. “Look, I need a favor.”
“A favor, or an order?” I asked in a cheeky voice while scratching my arm. My poor, porcelain skin was covered in peeling, red and pink spots. I was in desperate need of a break from the sun. And an aloe bath.
“Can it be both? Can you just for once have enough respect for me to do what I tell you?” Maverick pleaded while grabbing the scythe Becca left behind and making quick work of harvesting my section. I bit back a smile. He just couldn’t help but clean up my messes.
“Can you respect me enough to ask?” I countered while sitting down and biting my nails. “You never ask. You and Cyler just order me around. Never listening to what I want,” I huffed out. I had years of bottled up anger just waiting to be unleashed on him.
“Working in the gardens is your punishment,” Maverick began. “A jailer doesn’t ask their prisoner if they're ok with being in prison,” Maverick joked. Always the philosopher. I cringed at his analogy and the accuracy of it.
“Is that what I am now? A prisoner?” I asked.
“No. You’re our sister. We just want you to become a decent human being, Jules,” he said while swiping another section of wheat. He paused and wiped his brow all while I lazily watched.
“I need you to bring something important to our new Scavengers—“ Maverick continued before I cut him off.
“First Walkers, now Scavengers? Goodness Maverick are we just letting anyone into Dormas now?” I asked while continuing to bite my nails. This was the most Maverick had spoken to me in months, and I was undoubtably messing everything up. Good. I stopped hoping for a family the night I ruined everything.
Maverick stopped working and walked over to his bag. After struggling with the zipper, he pulled out a metal rod with hinges in the middle. After inspecting the top side of it, he walked it over to me.
“There is a boy. Not a Scavenger or a Walker or a Governor—a boy. He’s twelve and lost his leg last year. I made him this prosthetic leg and I’d like you to bring it to him,” Maverick explained and my shoulders dropped slightly. I admittedly had a weakness for kids. A trait I undoubtably inherited from Mom.
“Why me?”
“He won’t let me help him. I visited him two days ago and he gave me the brush off. We’re building a good relationship with their tribe, but there are still setbacks. I know if anyone could persuade someone to do anything—it’s you,” Maverick said in a tone that almost made it seem like a compliment. I couldn’t help but feel proud at that.
“Well, I can be pretty convincing when I want to be,” I said with a small smile.
“I know,” Maverick began while staring at me with eyes full of disappointment. “It’s how we ended up here in the first place.”
Maverick took the knife in my heart and twisted it deeper. I wondered if I’d ever go a day without being reminded of my mistake—Of what I did to Jacob.
“So when do you want me to do this? What kind of idiot doesn’t want to walk?” I choked out, clinging to the subject change. It was easier to be cruel than feel guilt.
“Now, if you can. Do this and I’ll make sure Kemper doesn’t find out that Becca’s been doing your work for you,” Maverick said with a smile before helping me stand and putting the prosthetic leg back in his bag and slipping it over my shoulder.
“Fine, where’s the transport?”
“Oh, no. You’ll be walking. I’d hurry. It’ll be dark in an hour or so,” Maverick replied with a satisfied grin that didn’t quite reach his eyes. I wanted to challenge him. To ask if he’d let his precious Ash walk alone to the Scavenger camp. But I didn’t.
Arguing with Maverick was pointless so I simply kicked up some dirt on his tan trousers and began walking towards the new Scavenger camp. Luckily, I overheard Kemper preparing for their arrival and knew exactly where they were.
“Make Tallis walk you back if it gets dark! He’s their chief!” Maverick yelled behind me. Ah. There was the concerned brother I knew and sometimes loved.
The hot sun disappeared beneath the canopy of the trees and I reveled in the cool shade. The bag got heavy after a while and I found myself regularly shifting it up higher along my shoulder. I cursed my flashy shoes. The black, sequined straps dug into my swollen feet and in a moment of weakness, I wish I would have slipped on the ugly brown work boots Kemper gave me a couple days ago. Why couldn’t I have clothes that were easy to work in but also fashionable? My new station in life was grim.
I welcomed the silence of the woods with open arms.
My roommate, Becca, was a loquacious girl that constantly gabbed about how better her life is in Dormas. Her depressing monologues kept stealing the thunder of my pity parties. How could I possibly feel miserable about my life, when she kept talking about hers?
However, the silence came at a price. It left my mind no choice but to wander into the darkest parts of myself. I thought of Jacob and Huxley and the night that ruined it all. The unrequited kiss I forced on Jacob’s lips. My ignored sobs. The lie that changed everything. Huxley’s triggered response.
The forest lacked its original serene tone, as I fell victim to the thoughts I was determined to ignore. Each step left me feeling less and less confident in my directional skills. The trees blended into one another and I watched the sun for guidance, a skill Cyler taught me as a little girl. However, my exhaustion and rising paranoia about being lost made the sun’s position seem to falter and fade into the cumbersome branches and leaves.
I heard a quick snap of wood breaking in two and spun in the direction of the noise. Most large game had been hunted out of these woods and pushed into the Deadlands, but there was still the occasional drifter. I might be an educated, refined woman now, but I was still my Father’s daughter. I crouched into a ready position.
“The reaction of a warrior, your brother would be proud,” a smooth voice said on my left and I immediately turned just as a Scavenger emerged from behind a tree. He had long white hair with scarring in geometric designs all along his naked torso. Tight, grey pants stuck to his tall and muscular legs. He was lean and observant. His blue eyes never leaving mine, even as I assessed him. “You’ll need to work on your hearing and sense of direction, though. I’ve been following you for a good twenty minutes.” His mouth tilted into a small smile that made my stomach flip.
“I guess Scavengers don’t know proper manners,” I huffed while straightening my hair and raising my chin. “Any respectable gentleman would make his presence known.” The Scavenger’s smile grew an inch and despite his sharpened teeth, I couldn’t help but think the gesture softened his wild exterior. He was handsome—for a Scavenger.