Jed crashes into me, grabs me.
“S’ven, I am sorry, but it is the only way! My father told me the augury, that only the Enhanced survive, and he said if I love you, I had to save you, give him control of your soul because it is the only way to make sure you are safe and—”
I see the exact moment on his face when he sees his father. His eyes widen, his mouth drops open, his temples pulse.
Raleigh smiles at Jed, takes out his gun. A revolver. “Thank you,” he says. “Thank you for giving Shania to me. Thank you for ensuring the Chosen Ones will be victorious.”
I barely hear Raleigh’s words. All I can do is look at him, try to see him as older. Because he’s a grandfather—and suddenly that’s all I can think about. Jeena is his granddaughter. Oh Gods. But he doesn’t look old enough, Raleigh doesn’t look old enough. He looks younger than Jed.
I feel sick, see myself in Raleigh’s eyes and quickly look away.
Jed stares at Raleigh. “What… Ensuring? You said…” He looks at me, then back to Raleigh. “You wanted her? She makes the difference…” He shakes his head, frowning. Then his arm goes around me. “Where is this safe house you have for us?”
Raleigh laughs. “Oh, yes, there’s a safe place. A safe place for each of you.”
He lifts his arm up slowly. So slowly I almost don’t notice the action. Almost don’t see him lining up his aim, almost miss the small movement of his finger going to the trigger.
But I don’t.
I scream, throw myself at the ground. Dust flies up, all over me. I taste blood at the back of my mouth, hear my heart pound in my ears. The gunshot echoes, over and over again. And I look up. I see it. Somehow, I see it all, even though I shouldn’t.
The bullet gets Jed in the chest.
He falls. Just like that. Jed’s eyes latch onto me. And I want to run, want to run to him, and I don’t know why because I hate him, because he’s done all of this. Because all of this is his fault.
“S’ven…” His voice tries to grab me.
I swallow hard. My body tenses up until every inch of me hurts.
Jed’s gurgling. His throat is… And the blood, it’s seeping out. Not gushing like it did when I stabbed him in the tube; it’s a small trickle, what little energy he has left after the kavalahs.
My stomach twists. I try to point to Jed… Jed on the ground, still alive, barely… I try to get Raleigh to do something. To help him, because Jed needs help.
And Raleigh does.
The second gunshot fills my ears.
Raleigh laughs. “I do wish he’d kept my name though. Maybe then I might’ve kept him. He never even knew how important you are, Shania. What a shame, he died not knowing the real augury. He believed me all too quickly, poor sod.”
Choose your companions carefully, Seven. Some are not worthy… They will lead you down the wrong path… They won’t mean to…but they cannot help it.
The bison’s words flash through me—words he said before, when he told me Raleigh would always be able to find me—words I haven’t thought of for a long time, words I didn’t know I hadn’t remembered. But now I go cold, and I know those words were about Jed. He led me down the wrong path—toward the Enhanced. He didn’t mean to. But he couldn’t help it. Not if Raleigh was playing him.
And now he’s dead.
I clap a hand to my mouth. My chest pounds, I stare at Raleigh. His lips twist, and he leans into me, as if he’s sharing a secret.
“It’s a shame to kill him, really. Especially when he was in love with you. I could tell, by the way he looked at you when he was looking after you, after you were beaten. It was rather disconcerting really, looking through your eyes and having my son stare back at me like that.”
My eyes….
My gaze jerks toward him. “How? My eyes—how?”
And I don’t know why I’m asking, how I’m even managing to speak after….
Raleigh smiles. “I tried to get control of your soul myself, before that boyfriend of yours stabbed me. I didn’t manage it, and we only get one attempt.” He shakes his head. “But I did get a tracker on you, on your eyes, though I couldn’t activate it for a few days—the one on your ears didn’t work so well, but I heard some conversations—like that one in the Turning, when they mentioned killing that female Seer, poor girl.”
I stare at him. No. This can’t be happening.
“Really, though, Shania, you should thank me. I got Jed to protect you, keep you safe. Even got him to keep Corin alive when there was that scene with the executioners—I don’t want you grieving, do I? No. You need your Seer powers, Shania. And wasn’t Jed good? He followed my orders. You’d probably be dead, if it wasn’t for him. It was a nice touch too, him finding a way to block your Seeing dreams—didn’t expect that. But it worked—and he had the kavalahs in place for you before he even knew of the soul transferral that would require them. Brilliant. Saved time. Well, Jed always was innovative.”
I stare at him, don’t know how he can talk about his son so casually, keep his voice so light, not when….
That’s when I make the mistake of looking at Jed’s body. I see the blood, the lifelessness in his eyes. He needs sending off, sending to the New World. I start to cough, feel my throat squeezing together.
“You killed him.” My lips start to burn, and I can barely speak. “He did what you wanted, and you killed him. You had his soul, and you….”
Raleigh leans closer. “It was too much of a risk. Advising his soul as well as yours would’ve used up too much energy—sending him the instructions was hard enough… But I managed to keep you safe and alive while I waited until Jed’s powers were strong enough to bind you to me. It was extraordinary—the lava even seemed to help him heal his abilities quicker.” He clicks his tongue.
I just stare at him, feel empty, hollow. Jed’s body… Nausea rises in me.
“I was worried though, Shania, leaving you with the Zharat, letting you suffer so long. I am sorry. But the timing had to be right—there were so many variables—it was best to leave you there. If I’d gone in and got you both out as soon as I knew where you were, many things could’ve gone wrong and it would’ve been much longer before you were bound to me—and there’s always a risk of death when we launch a rescue, for the Untamed and us. I couldn’t risk either you or Jed dying before you’d been bound to me—that’s why I didn’t want a mass-conversion operation on the cave until you were safe with me…in case you got killed. But I knew my men would launch one after you discovered the infiltration, and then the gas eruption started, and the shock of it increased Jed’s powers further.”
He turns and looks at the body of his son, a fond expression on his face.
I try to turn away—to move, to run—but I can’t.
Just—can’t.
My body…pain…sudden pain….
“And I knew I had to act then, Shania.” Raleigh grins euphorically, and he seems lost in his own world. “Jed was strong enough! And I had to make sure Jed saved you, my darling—because the timing was getting tight, and the steam was coming through and guns were firing. I had to tell him the augury—well, I adapted it a bit—make him bind you to me as soon as possible. And what a good boy he was—eager to follow my instructions, to get you out of there. Protect you from everything. He really believed he was saving you. His love, his desperation was quite sickening.” He shakes his head, a slight look of amusement on his face. “Well, it worked perfectly, the timing in the end. It’s all fine now. And you and me—we’ll achieve wonderful things.”
My stomach tightens as I stare at Raleigh.
Fine?
My eyes glass over.
“Your son is dead, and you think this is fine?”
Raleigh leans in closer, then looks back at Jed’s body. “Well, he would’ve had a heart attack soon.” He shakes his head. “All that sleep deprivation while he commanded the spirits to block your Seeing dreams, it wasn’t doing him any good. High blood pressure, irregular heartbeat�
�not to mention the effects of the kavalahs feeding from him every night before they went to you. And they would’ve continued to drain him.” He purses his lips for a few seconds. “No, it was kinder to kill him. He’s free now. He served his purpose.”
He served his purpose.
“But you’re not violent,” I say, and the words sound stupid, but it’s what I was taught, growing up. Even if it is wrong now.
I start to choke, eyes streaming.
Raleigh looks at me. “You know now, don’t you? Why I’ve wanted you for so long, why I had to let you go—become Untamed again—when I had you at New Kimearo?” Instead of waiting for an answer, he continues. “Playing the long game was worth it. If I hadn’t, you wouldn’t have become the Seer the augury, the Gods, speak of—you know the augury, yes? It’s your powers. You’re the most powerful Seer, and you’re mine. It’s a shame really that Waskabe will claim you at the end.”
Waskabe. The name makes me go cold.
You will now be under the control of the Enhanced.
I look at Raleigh. Under his control.
Every part of my body tells me to run. Every single part. My muscles are twitching, yet I can’t—my body is locked.
I go cold.
“Oh yes,” Raleigh says. He leans forward, until his face is a mere inch from mine. “Your soul is mine to advise, mine to control. And I’m a good advisor. If you resist my direct control, it’ll only hurt you. ”
I try to pull away from him, but I can’t move—still can’t move.
Raleigh smiles. “You are mine. You’re not getting away, Shania. We’re going to do great things together. First, we’ll work out what your amazing Seer powers are. Then, we’ll work out how you’ll convert all the Untamed—or kill them—and finally end this war.”
He grins at me, and the world stops.
I stare at him, then I’m falling, crashing into the ground. My powers. My Seer powers… How I’ll use them to end the rest of the Untamed?
Me.
Sweat breaks out across my face; I feel it, sticking to me. I try to pull away, but can’t. Try to just flex my fingers, but—
Pain lashes through my body. I scream.
You will now be under the control of the Enhanced.
If they have you, they’ll have all the Untamed.
I’m the key, and they’ve got me.
I will wipe out the Untamed….
No.
I scream.
I won’t. I can’t.
It will not be me who destroys the Untamed.
My arms jerk in front of me, and then I’m getting to my feet. My knees knock into each other.
“No, Shania. I don’t think you understand. You’re under my control now. You can’t just go where you want, you can’t just try and leave.”
But he’s wrong. I manage it. I take a step backward, feel him fighting me. I feel it in every muscle of my body, every part of my brain, every part of my soul that is still attached to my body.
But I do it.
I turn, I fight through the pain.
And I run.
I make it two steps before the real pain starts in: my ankles, burning. The heat spreading up. Hot, white flashes. I start to fall, twisting around.
I scream, try again. But… My legs—they’re…not working. Not mine. Not my legs. Not my—
More pain. It’s like—like the torture… Just pain. Pain. Pain. Pain. I’m crying, feel the tears. No, it’s sweat. Sweaty and horrible—my skin. My skin. Something’s not….
Breathe, Seven!
I drag in more air, start to choke.
“Get back here, Shania! Obey me, and the pain will stop.”
No. No. No.
Another step, just about manage it. I try to look up ahead—need to fix on a landmark, aim for that. That’s what I do when I’m running, and I’m the fastest runner the Untamed have.
The Untamed.
I gulp, start to choke as more pain wraps around me. But it’s not like normal pain. It’s getting worse. Not numbing. Eating me.
But I do it, lift my head higher, force myself to see through streaming eyes, and—
I inhale, sharp.
They’re all around me. The Enhanced. They’re everywhere.
Hundreds of them. Men and women. They each look different. Not the automatons that chased us before. They’re each individual. Like Raleigh. But they’re not coming for me, not stepping closer. They’re stepping away, in all different directions but me. And they’re shouting: More over there, getting away! and It’s too late for them, convert what you can.
The mountain rumbles, something hisses near me, and heat splashes against my skin. I skid on loose stones, feel tension rip through my leg, feel my muscles burn, swell, getting ready to burst. I look down the mountainside, steep. Orange, everywhere, in rivers. Too bright, my eyes.
Get away. Keep running.
I take more steps. But there’s nowhere to go!
“You’re only hurting yourself, trying to fight my control!”
A second later, I hear him grunt, and something sizzles. Then there’s wet spray over my back. I scream.
“You can’t get away, not when I control your soul, your actions, your body, Shania! You can’t resist my plans for you now,” Raleigh screams. “You will do as I say, and I’ll teach you how to use your Seer powers. We’ll save them all, Shania! You’re going to find them all, Shania! Find all the elusive Untamed, across all the lands, the ones who’ve been hiding. And you’ll covert—or kill—them all: every single last Untamed creature.”
Pain drips down my spine, and I want to smile—there are still some Untamed out there, the Zharat wasn’t the last tribe.
But I’m going to find them, the others. And that’s what stops my smile; the end of the Untamed, it’s going to be because of me. It really is.
If they have you, they’ll have all the Untamed.
And they’ve got me. The Enhanced have finally got me—all of me. And I can’t get away.
I retch, bend over, watch the vomit spew from my mouth. Smell its acidity as it burns.
I manage a few more steps before more pain lashes. White hot pain, it goes up my legs now, shredding my thighs, my hips, my stomach. And the gold marks on me, burning. My chest tightens, gets too tight, and—
I fall, smack my head on something hard. See darkness dance around me, like mist. And then—then I’m getting up. I think I am. Put my hand down on something sharp. Thorns. Feel my flesh tear. I see red. Blood.
My stomach curls.
I push myself up, panting.
But this. Raleigh? This pain. How?
Something snaps within me as I manage a few more steps, but I’m crawling. So they’re not steps; I don’t know what they are. But I feel it snap. Hard and quick and—
“You won’t get far!” Raleigh yells. “You can’t resist this, not when I can control you. And my men are all around here. You won’t get past us. You can try if you want, but you’ll still do as I say.”
I turn, but it’s not me moving. It’s my body. Rotating back to him. He’s farther away than I thought. I’ve made it farther than I realized.
I have to try. Can’t give up.
I force myself to stand, grab my leg, try to turn my foot around and—
“Seven.”
The man appears in front of me. Four hundred feet away. The man who—
I freeze, feel my chest tighten. No. No. No. It can’t be. But it is.
It’s him.
I shake my head. A clone. A clone. Just a clone. Because there are more behind him. More dark figures, but I can’t see their faces.
But they’re clones. I know that. They have to be.
But he called you Seven. Esther’s words dive at me. I feel sick as I look at him, as he walks toward me.
He’s smiling. Smiling broadly. Smiling how he never smiled before. His teeth flash, his eyes throw more light about.
“Stop it!” I turn back—turn away from the man—and shout at Raleigh
, tell him to stop it. “You’ve already got me!”
But Raleigh’s laughing.
And—and the Enhanced man is here.
He’s here. Right in front of me.
It’s him.
No. He’s dead.
But he isn’t. He’s here. Esther was—oh Gods. And that dream, that warning, the conversion….
“Get the augmenters in her, Tomas,” Raleigh shouts to him. “We need to get back to the base.”
My body jolts. I look at the Enhanced man in front of me—because I have to just see him as another Enhanced man, as Tomas, now. That’s who he is.
He’s got a gun. But it’s not like anything I’ve ever seen before. Because I can see the bullet. Except it’s not a bullet.
It’s a vial. A murky concoction fills it, but the color’s changing.
And the pistol is aimed at me.
“Oh dear,” he says. “You’re not still resisting this, are you? Why didn’t you tell me how much better it is to be a Chosen One?”
His voice even sounds the same.
“No… no… no…” But I’m mumbling, my words are barely audible.
Thr—no, Tomas—steps up to me. His eyes make me feel sick, but I force myself to look at them. To try to see him under the mirrors. To hope that maybe he’s still in there. I survived it, so he can. He doesn’t have to be Tomas.
But all I can focus on is the iron sheet under his left eye. Facial reconstruction? That’s what the Seeing dream said… The last vision I had… But that isn’t… This isn’t reconstruction.
“Just one short, sharp prick,” he says, and he moves the gun closer to me, drops it down about a foot, so it’s lined up with my right thigh. “You’ll feel so much better then, when you wake up. All the fear will be gone, and then we can save everyone. And we have the Eriksens too—my dear Esther, and her cocky brother. You won’t be alone. Raleigh said he’ll convert them, as soon as possible—we’ll all be together again.”
My muscles seize up as my gaze jumps back to his face. I try to focus on him, but can’t. They’ve got Corin. Esther and Corin. They’ve got them.
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