by SJ Moquin
A flash of white clothing up ahead caught her attention. Her mom. A sigh of relief washed through her as she saw her mom waiting just on the other side of a large tree. Nia threw her arms open, her lips turning up a brief moment before they disappeared. Heavy arms grabbed at Gwelle, knocking her off balance mid step. Somewhere in the distance she heard her mother’s high-pitched scream, but only the bite of bark and stones registered as she skidded across the forest floor. Gwelle pushed herself up on her hands and knees, shaking her head, but the fog didn’t leave as the forest spun in a blur of glowing colors around her.
Large, calloused hands wrapped around her neck, choking, strangling. A slow realization hit her. That’s why she couldn’t focus. The hands choking her. It was enough to startle her into action. Gwelle tugged, pulling at the fingers but couldn’t budge them as the blur of lights darkened around the edges of her vision. Panic turned to fear, fear to strength. Rearing back, pain pierced her head where it connected with a man’s nose. The hands loosened as she scrambled forward, pulling herself up as she went.
Bracing herself on the nearest tree, she turned as Wyn’s angry face came into view heading straight towards her. Blood dripped from his broken nose distorting his deceptive good looks. A face she once thought of as kind, but no more. She now stared into the face of a monster who wore a disguise better than anyone she’d ever met. He grabbed for her, his hand gripping her arm as pain laced upwards from the wound she’d yet to look at. Bringing her knee up into his stomach, she shoved him as he doubled over.
Gwelle stumbled towards her mother who’d ran closer to help. Tears were streaming down Nia Airda’s face as her daughter tried shoving her away. The only thought in her mind was to get her mom to safety, but Nia gathered her in her arms, dragging her with her as they ducked between two trees just as a pistol blast singed the bark beside their heads. Running towards her in the dark, Raiden’s tall form appeared like an answer to her deepest prayers. She pushed her mom forward towards the man she loved knowing she had to time this just right or it would be for nothing.
“Take her. Keep her safe,” she urged, as she spun blocking Maxon from the two people she loved most. She’d gladly give herself up to keep them safe. Did he listen? Did her mom? She wasn’t sure and had no time to look back over her shoulder. She hoped Raiden’s protector nature would kick in and ensure her mom was safely escorted away even if it wasn’t what he wanted to do.
She held her arms out in a symbolic form of peace, of giving up, as a snarl flitted over Wyn’s features. He stalked towards her, dried blood on his face, pistol in his hand pointing right at her. The fear she thought would come, was actually waiting for, never reared its ugly head. Instead, she remembered. Remembered her dad. Remembered how he’d tug at her hair before placing a kiss on her brow every time he left for his shift. Gwelle remembered that last time, before he walked away forever, although at the time she hadn’t known it would be.
Neill Airda must have sensed something, or maybe he knew the secret mission he was going on was dangerous. He’d turned around a few steps down the corridor, holding his arms open. It was the only invitation her ten-year-old self needed. Closing her eyes now, she remembered the feel of her father’s arms around her that last time as she ran into his embrace. As if tugging the peace from her memory, wrapping it around herself, she felt him there with her. She felt her dad cheering her on. She’d never forget.
“What did we do to you, Wyn? I thought we were friends. Friends don’t hurt each other.”
“You know nothing about friendship, Gwelle.”
“And my mom? Was that all fake? Just a way to get close enough to finish me off?” She could tell she’d struck a nerve with the jab. A flicker of his former self flashed across his features before a menacing smirk replaced it. She had no delusions she could get through to that other man, the kind, soft-spoken science officer. He’d already thrown that life away when he planned the attack on the Zanareens and tried killing her and Raiden. But maybe… maybe she could distract him long enough for her mom and Raiden to reach safety. She’d heard steps running away, so all she could do was pray they left.
“You don’t understand. You never will. You’re just a child.”
“A child you want to kill.” Maxon’s blue eyes narrowed as he stepped forward. She took a step back on instinct, regretting it immediately. Determining to stand her ground, she imagined her feet planted firmly deep into the Varax soil. He stopped a couple paces away, close enough she could have reached out and touched him if she’d wanted.
“You have no idea what I’ve went through or had to give up. But the sacrifices I’ve made will be worth it in the end. You can’t see the bigger picture, Gwelle.” She hated the sound of her name from his lips but kept herself from flinching.
“But I want to understand. Tell me why you… why you’ve had to give up so much,” she coerced remembering Corsin’s pacifying tone from earlier. Maybe it’d work again, although Maxon looked beyond words at the moment. He shook his head, glancing into the dark briefly before staring at her. For a minute, she thought he wouldn’t take the bait, but then he started rambling. Everything pouring from him as if unburdening himself of the evil living inside him would somehow cleanse him of his actions.
“It’s the only way. I was chosen to fulfill a task my grandfather couldn’t. He told me so before he died. He hadn’t meant to kill your father and Jefferson Beckham. It happened as they struggled for control of the shuttle. He wanted to take care of the native problem himself before they returned to Deliverance. And he would’ve if not for them interfering. Once he returned, he was different, changed. Something had happened to change him while they were here, more than just the deaths of his two top protectors.”
“But why us? Why after all this time?” Gwelle whispered afraid of interrupting him but needing to understand.
“That part is harder to understand,” he replied, conflicted emotions flitting over his face before it hardened once more. “Before his death, Grandfather Breton made me swear to secrecy about the natives and promise him I would find a way to ensure they wouldn’t harm our people. You see, the ships that brought us to safety weren’t made to run indefinitely. He’d foreseen the same problems happening to us that were present in the Endeavor. Luckily it didn’t come to pass, but we had to find a home world before it did. That’s why settling on Varax was so important and I was to let no one hinder that.”
Maxon’s hand wavered, the gun shaking as he gestured with the other lost in his tale. Gwelle half listened, her mind trying to form possible solutions to the situation she found herself in. But his words drew her back, her mouth dropping at what she heard.
“Breton recorded everything he’d seen while on the journey back. Everything that happened on that shuttle was recorded. The vid files stored on a data tag and given to me to study. For years I refused. I thought he’d lost his mind while on the return trip. One day not long after we settled, I watched it again for the first time in a long, long time. I saw them. I’d never seen them before on the images. How or why I noticed them that time was a mystery. Just after the accident, they appeared from nowhere. The shuttle already in the upper atmosphere. A flash of white. That’s all I thought it was at first. But paused at the right moment, I saw their slim pale features.” Maxon’s voice grew shakier, louder as he spoke holding Gwelle entranced despite her wishing to hear no more.
“Don’t you see. I hadn’t really believed him. But if they were real, then everything else he rambled to me was as well.” Gwelle shook her head.
“I don’t see…”
“He told me he’d seen you and Raiden. He’d seen you grown, destroying everything we’d worked for. Siding with those… those barbarians. Handing over our hard-earned home. I hadn’t believed him. Thought he was crazy in fact. And when you and Raiden parted ways, it was relief. But once I saw those… those creatures on that footage, I started watching you. And when you and Raiden began speaking, I knew I had to finish the mission he�
��d given me.”
“This was their home before it was ours. We are the intruders, Maxon. You can’t be so delusional…” His hand flew through the air, and he slapped her across the face. Gwelle stumbled backwards, tripping over roots before sprawling at the man’s feet. She had so many questions, but she’d not be asking them. Not now. Anger spread across Maxon’s face as he leveled the laser pistol directly at her chest, his finger squeezing the trigger. Her eyes closed tight, anticipating the pain at the sound of the blast. But it didn’t come.
Her eyes fluttering open, she watched in slow motion as Raiden leaped between her and Wyn. The whir of the blast echoing loudly in the night forest just before he crumpled in front of her. A scream sounded out around her. A stryx crying out. No. Not an animal. Her. Tears streamed down her cheeks as the anguish cry tore from her throat. She scrambled towards Raiden on all fours over the rough forest floor, Maxon and the danger forgotten.
Red bloomed beneath where Raiden lay. Bright red. How could she see it so clearly in the dark, she wondered? She let the strange thought numb her as she lifted his head in her lap tearing at her sleeve before pressing the torn cloth to his chest above his collar bone, just above the armored vest he wore. The fighting around her finally registered through the grief clouding her mind. She tore her eyes away from Raiden’s still form for a brief second, just enough time to see Maxon crumple from a blast. His broken form emptying of blood on the Varaxian soil beneath him. On the other end, Corsin stood still, his eyes locking with hers.
She tore her eyes away from the chaos around her looking back to the boy she loved. She pressed harder, her hands slick with his blood. Raiden’s eyes fluttered open, glazed over in pain for a moment before they focused on her face leaning over him. His lips turned up, sending a fresh stream of tears down her cheeks.
“H...hey, Beautiful.”
“Raiden...” Gwelle caught back a sob before continuing. “You shouldn’t have. You should have left with mother. I was keeping you safe.”
“I’d do it… it all over again. As long as you’re alive, my heart… lives on.” Pain etched each of his words, chiseling straight into her heart. Closing her eyes, she opened her heart to him, sharing his pain.
“I love you, Raiden. I’ve always loved yo...” Her words trailed off with an anguished cry escaping her lips as she opened her eyes. Raiden’s eyes rolled back before they shuttered closed. “No, no, no!”
“Let me through! Gwelle, move. Let me help him.” Her mother’s firm voice filled her grief-stricken mind. Blinking through the tears, she saw her mom pushing away the protectors who’d been standing guard around her unknown to her during her grief.
“Mom…” She didn’t want to leave Raiden, still holding him close. But she knew. Time was running out.
“It’s alright, baby girl. Let me see him.” Gwelle nodded, numbness seeping to fill the gaping holes of pain shooting through her. She lowered his head, watching as her mom removed the cloth she’d been holding over him, immediately yelling for her med kit to be found.
Gwelle stumbled as she stepped back, giving her mom space to work. Strong arms caught her, steadying her. She looked up into Corsin’s steel-blue eyes. The tears she tried so hard to hold back unleashed once again at the pain in his gaze. He pulled her into an unexpected hug, letting her cry against his shoulder becoming the surrogate father she needed at the moment.
“We have to get him back to Nova-Zera,” her mother called after several minutes.
“Nia,” the chill in Corsin’s voice coursed through her as she pulled away causing her heart to flutter. “You know…”
“There’s no other way. We don’t have the right equipmen…” Gwelle sank to her knees as her mother’s words faded to oblivion. She reached out, her hands shaking as they hovered over Raiden’s face before she jerked them back, staring at the stains covering them. She shook her head side to side as reality sat in. She was losing him, losing the only boy she’d ever loved. The very same boy who’d loved her as long as she could remember. Somewhere in the far distance a night prowler howled. But even the thought of dire lyx’s couldn’t scare her more than she already was at the thought of going through the rest of her life without Raiden.
The pain her mother must have felt all these years ripped through her. She’d spent most of those years feeling sorry for herself or closing herself off. Had her mother needed her and she hadn’t been there? More than likely yes, but she knew Nia was strong and she’d never let that pain show. Squaring her shoulders, ready to accept the dire situation, not because she understood, but because she must, Gwelle stood when a bright shimmering light grew around her. Not now. She understood little about the calling or being chosen by Varax, but this was definitely not the time she wanted to be learning.
She needed to say… say good-bye, she thought fighting a growing voice inside her head.
‘Touch him,’ the voice echoed. ‘Touch the protector.’ It was an oddly musical, strong yet soft voice. And while the voice hadn’t said Raiden’s name, she knew. She knew because those invisible strings were back tugging her back down onto the soil beside him. Guiding her.
Her mom scooted back, staring at her without saying a word. She wanted to ask why, when she looked down at her outstretched hands. A glimmer shone from each finger, spiraling up her arm beneath the torn sleeve. It glittered, twirled like the bioluminescence of the animals and plants she’d studied since being here on Varax. So long the scientist tried figuring out what caused it, but now she knew. Varax itself fueled it. Its lifeforce, its energy, flowed through even the living creatures of the planet.
“It is alright, Gwelle Airda. Listen. Do what the sight is telling you to.” Looking up, Jexxa knelt on the other side, her pale hair pulled away from her face making her look much younger than Gwelle knew her to be. “We’ll do this together. You and me. Both chosen by Varax for a time as this.” Jexxa’s soft spoken words gave her courage and strength.
She reached out, laying her blood-stained hands over Raiden’s wound. Jexxa lay her hands-on top of Gwelle’s. A tugging, tingling grew in her fingers, passing through to her hands from where the Zanareen princess’ cool skin touched hers. The shimmering grew until the entire area where Raiden lay was lit bright enough to see the bright red against his paling skin.
Gwelle’s stomach turned over, fears beginning to creep back in for a moment. One look at his once sun-kissed face, the dark purplish circles growing under his closed eyes sent a jolt of courage back through her. Whatever was happening, whatever Varax wanted from her, she would gladly give if it saved him. Jexxa murmured something in her language, the same lyrical lilt present in her speech as the words still chanting in her mind. Varax. Varax speaking to her, or through her.
Gwelle closed her eyes, saying a prayer of her own for the man she loved. Remembering Raiden’s shining eyes, broad smile, strong arms, she could almost hear his deep voice now. Tears brimmed her eyes unwanted as she tried to push fears aside, to focus on what was at stake. Again, his deep voice sounded in her ears as if he’d just spoken her name, soft and tender like the night he’d first kissed her.
“Gwelle.” Her eyes flew open, the glow that had encompassed them gone, but enough light from the two moons above showed her exactly what she’d hoped. Raiden stared up at her, his green eyes bright with life. He tried to rise, wincing as he did.
“Don’t.” She tried holding him still, but he continued until he was sitting beside her. His good arm pulled her close while the one nearer the wound lay in his lap. She buried her head in his neck. “I thought… I thought I’d lost you,” she sobbed, releasing her fears for once and for all.
“You can’t get rid of me that easy, Beautiful,” Raiden teased, pain still in his voice but life there as well.
“He’ll need rest, and to be examined once we reach Nova-Zera,” her mom said gently, giving her a concerned look. She would have much to explain once they went home. Jexxa nodded in agreement before moving away to give them a semblance of priv
acy as protectors moved to clear the area from the battle and secure the remaining deserters.
“Thank you,” Raiden said tucking a loose hair behind her ear.
“No. Thank you for loving me enough to put yourself in harm’s way.”
“I would do it all over, you know that?”
“I do.”
“Be sure to remember that next time you get angry with me,” Raiden whispered.
“I would never… Fine. I’ll remember,” Gwelle began denying until Raiden quirked one brow up at her.
“That’s my girl.” Raiden pulled her close, his lips brushing hers in a promise. A promise of what lay ahead for them. A kiss she would always remember.
Epilogue
Gwelle looked over the square cleared of everything except the stage at its far end. Earlier today, Knox had flapped around like a bird to the song the littles sang. Now he stood across from them, Lark looking on with adoring eyes. Strings of lights wove among the banners which flapped in the breeze surrounding the square. They lit the field as musicians took their place to begin the evening festivities. It was hard to believe it had been a year since the first festival celebrating their settlement. A year since the Zanareens made themselves known to the entire colony, and a year since Raiden had returned to her.
She glanced to where he stood, a broad smile on his face as he laughed at the antics around them. The many tables which had been used for the huge potluck dinner lined the opposite end of the clearing, many of the older members of Nova-Zera sitting around them still. She, Raiden, Knox, Lark, and Jexxa stood nearby smiling, talking, and laughing with the many people stopping by in twos and threes to say hello or to wish them well.
Rix’s dark gaze caught hers across the clearing where he sat laughing with his mom, Jade Asama. Jexxa had used her connection with Varax to speed the dark-haired botanist's healing. There was a sadness in his eyes, both thinking about the friend they’d lost. Kana would always be remembered. It was an unspoken memorial between them. She nodded knowing she’d never forget the events of their first year on Varax, as she turned back to her friends gathered around.