by Megg Jensen
"I wish it were that simple," Wade said. "We've traveled far away from Phoenix. The rocks you've seen outside, supposedly the debris from Phoenix' destruction, are an asteroid belt in the next quadrant over. We'd run out of fuel and oxygen before we got back."
"Then what can we do?" Rell asked. "I'm assuming I can't just tell Dr. Anderson to ask the admiral to take us back?"
"We will have to play along with their game, Rell. First, we need to discover what they want from you. Once we know, perhaps we can use it as leverage," Cordan said.
"The next time you meet with the doctor, give her what she wants. Tell her your secrets." Wade frowned. "I wish I could trust her, but she hasn't proven to be loyal to anyone but the admiral."
Rell steeled her fists at her sides. "Okay. I'll tell her everything she wants to know. Hopefully, she'll reveal her hand then."
"Good. Now get back to your room and get some sleep before anyone discovers you're missing. You'll need your wits about you to outsmart the command staff." Wade sighed. "I miss my children. It was wrong of me to spend these years tinkering instead of trying to return to them. I left in the hopes of making peace with the dragzhi. It was a foolish goal. I never should have done it."
Rell thought of Torsten and how much he missed his father. But had Wade never left, Torsten would have stayed in Hadar instead of joining the defenders and getting sent on the mission to find the Key. He and Rell wouldn’t have met. She couldn't imagine her life without him now. "Torsten has become a strong man. You'll be proud when you see him again."
"And Leila?" Wade asked, obviously eager for news of his daughter.
Rell thought about how Leila had tried to kill her, repeatedly. "Leila would love to see you again, too." Despite the wistful look on Wade's face, Rell couldn't conjure up anything good to say about the girl.
"Then tomorrow you'll try to figure out what they want from you." Wade smiled. It was obvious he was convinced his plan would work.
"Sure," Rell said, hoping that going along with him and Cordan wouldn't put her in worse trouble.
17
Leila felt sick to her stomach as she followed her brother and that damned alien through the church down to the tunnels. With every step she thought of Mellok, and how she'd loved him. Torsten had called her a silly girl, but Leila knew from the moment she first saw Mellok years ago that she would marry him.
Sure, she dated around. There were plenty of guys and girls to keep her occupied until Mellok noticed her. She'd even had one dalliance with Andessa a year ago that made their group situation a little bit awkward. That kiss between them underground wasn't their first. Leila didn't feel bad about making Mellok jealous, though she knew it hadn’t been fair to Andessa. It gave Andessa false hope they might get back together, when Leila knew Mellok was it for her.
They were both gone now, and it was Rell's fault.
She'd ruined everything. Leila had tried to make her pay, but the woman seemed indestructible. Even now, after Torsten had sworn he'd seen Rell's dead body, Leila didn't buy it. The tark were too eager to find her alive, as if they knew something the humans didn't.
Leila needed to know the truth. Because if Rell was alive, Leila wanted her dead.
Torsten looked over his shoulder, offering Leila a small smile. Her brother still didn't trust her, but given enough time, they could have their old relationship back. Leila couldn't stand the thought of losing him, too.
Rell had taken away everyone Leila loved. Never again.
"Hey, Tor," Leila rested a hand on his elbow, "why don't you let me go with the tark? I'm afraid it might be too painful for you to talk about Rell's death."
Torsten shook her hand off his arm. "No. I need to see this to the end. If there's any chance..."
A spark of hope twinkled in his eye. Leila cursed silently. In spite of everything, he still hoped the girl was alive. Maybe it was best for him to keep following the tark. Once he heard the truth from the so-called fire dragzhi, maybe he'd finally give up.
Leila moved a few paces ahead of him so he couldn't see her expression. Torsten knew her better than anyone, which had often been useful. Now she didn't want him to know what she was thinking. He wouldn't like it.
As for the fire dragzhi, she doubted they existed. That would mean they'd lived alongside each other since the crash on Phoenix two hundred years ago. The dormant volcano had been well-documented after the crash. The humans had cautiously built near it. In fact, the tower was so tall because it was built to withstand a volcanic eruption. Even if lava did reach the surface, as it had the day they'd battled the dragzhi, it couldn't harm the tower or the people in it.
And now the tark was telling them the lava was actually dragzhi? It was laughable. Dragzhi made of fire? Nothing more than stories meant to scare children into behaving. The tark would get no answers from the volcano.
Leila let out a long breath, her shoulders relaxing. One more ridiculous twist. One they would soon be done with.
Leila could see the wide opening to the cavern that held the mouth of the volcano. She'd been in here once before. Rell had threatened their lives if they didn't leave. Mellok had tried charging her, in an effort to save them all, but somehow Rell had forced him into the volcano, where he burnt to death. The specifics were jumbled in Leila's memory. Torsten had tried to justify it, but all she knew was that Mellok died at Rell's hand. Facts were facts.
They never should have trusted the buried girl.
Passing through the opening, Leila's abdominal muscles tightened. She stood in the entryway, reliving every moment of Mellok's gruesome death.
"Come on, I've got you." Torsten wrapped a gentle arm around her shoulder, pulling Leila along with him.
That ridiculous bald girl and her annoying boyfriend and his disgusting brother traipsed in next to them. The girl flashed her dark eyes at Leila, not bothering to hide her annoyance. The feeling was mutual.
Leila struggled to walk without tripping over her leaden feet. Every step took her closer to the spot Mellok had tried to save her. Where he'd died. Where Rell had murdered him.
Finally, the tark stopped at the edge of the volcano. Leila fought the urge to run ahead and push it into the fire. She wanted it dead, too, for what it had done to her. But she didn't know how to kill it. Leila didn’t like taking a shot unless she knew the vulnerable spots first. Knowing her best chance at escape lay in staying quiet, Leila squeezed her hands in fists and stayed put with her brother.
The tark floated above the volcano, raising its hands out to the sides. It began to ululate, its voice quickly reaching a fevered pitch. Chuck threw his hands over his ears, but the rest of them stood still—waiting for what, they didn't know.
The volcano roiled, and slowly, a bubble rose out of the mouth and into the air. It morphed into a vaguely humanoid shape. "Why have you come?" it asked the tark.
Leila gasped, her hand clapping her mouth.
"Your daughter has been lost to us. The humans believe her dead. Do they speak true?" the tark said.
The fire undulated in the air. "They speak true. These humans have seen Rell's body."
Torsten leaned on Leila as his worst fears were confirmed. Leila did her best to hold up her brother. She would be strong for him, though mostly she was relieved to find out Rell was truly dead. As for the talking fire, well, she’d have to admit maybe they were dragzhi, no matter how unbelievable it seemed.
"Then our pact has been broken," the tark said. "For thousands of years, we protected you from your brethren. It was only recently you were discovered and the planet attacked. It was all due to these humans." The tark spun around, pointing a porcelain finger at their group. "They shall pay."
Its eyes spun red as it floated toward them. Leila stood in front of her brother, prepared to protect him in any way she could. Malia raised her shotgun, pointing it at the tark.
"No!" The being of fire snapped out a tendril, lashing at the tark. "You will not harm them. I said the humans believe Rell dead. I did not
say she was dead."
The tark whirled around. "What? She is alive?"
"Yes," the fire being said.
Torsten let out a small whimper as Leila's heart pounded with renewed anger.
"No," Torsten said, moving toward the volcano. “I saw her with my own eyes. I touched her still flesh with my hands. Rell was dead. I swear it to you." His voice cracked with emotion.
"You saw the truth at the time," the fire being said. "But reality has changed. Rell is alive. I can sense her, though she is now far away. I would know if my daughter was gone. It is one of our abilities. Trust me."
The fire moved closer to Torsten. "You are Rell's intended. I see the bond between the two of you. Believe in me, my son."
Leila clenched her fists. His son? No. Torsten already had a father, one who had died bravely. This thing would never be her brother's surrogate father.
"How can we find her?" Torsten begged.
"She is in space. You will find a way to her. There is nothing I can do to help you," the fire said.
"But you're dragzhi," Torsten retorted. "You come from space. You can take me to her. We can liberate her together."
"I cannot," the fire said. "You must do this. It is your task." It turned back to the tark. "You have always protected me. Now you must protect my daughter."
The tark reached out a hand to Torsten. "We will join forces to save Rell. The gods have dictated it."
"The gods?" Torsten stuttered. "You think these dragzhi are gods?"
The tark nodded. "The liquid and rock dragzhi are cruel, but the fire are kind gods. We do their bidding."
Torsten ran a hand through his hair. He glanced back at Leila, and she could see what he was thinking. Gods. Again. They were back where they started, when they left the tower on the expedition for the Key. Looking for gods that didn't exist.
The dragzhi were not gods. They were evil aliens, ones who had apparently lived on Phoenix long before the humans crashed.
Leila wanted life to go back to how it was before the expedition. Practicing with Torsten in the firing range. Kissing Mellok in dark hallways, his hands roving over her. She didn’t want this life. She refused to live this way.
Once she found Rell, she would kill her. Again. And then she would find a way to destroy the fire dragzhi.
18
Alive. The fire dragzhi said he could still sense Rell. Torsten turned on one heel, stalking off to the side of the cavern, his heart beating so hard it might break his ribs. He needed a moment to himself to process what he’d learned.
He heard feet coming up behind him. A moment later, a strong hand was on his shoulder. "You okay?" Rutger asked as he pulled up alongside his friend.
"No," Torsten answered. "She's alive. We left her there. How could we?"
"We all thought she was dead, Torsten. You, me, Malia. Even that crazy Joshua. Not one of us thought for even a moment she might still be alive. They tricked us." Rutger leaned against the cave wall, his arms folded over his chest.
Torsten hauled off, punching the rock. He drew back a bloodied fist. "We believed them. Why? We knew the dragzhi were out to get us, and yet we left Rell's body there. No wonder they wouldn't let us take her with us. All that crap about scattering her ashes in the stars and how her body wasn't fully human and could hurt us." He shook his fist out, then wiped the blood on his pants.
"It made sense at the time," Rutger said. "There are lots of things we don't know about Rell. It's possible it was all true."
"And what?" Torsten asked. "She came back to life like some a mystical religious figure from Earth mythology?"
Rutger shrugged. "She is the Key."
Torsten opened his mouth to give an angry reply, but quickly stayed his words. She was the Key, but they all knew the Key wasn't a religious object, not like the buried had believed. Rell was flesh and blood, and yet so much more.
"She would hate being used as a religious icon." Torsten knew exactly how Rell would feel. When he'd first met her, she'd believed in a religion greater than herself. Once Rell discovered she'd been worshipping a group of hostile aliens, she quickly changed her feelings. He could imagine her annoyance at what he was about to do.
Torsten squared his shoulders and walked back to the edge of the volcano.
"If Rell is alive, it only gives more credence to her being the Key. She is everything the Hamdal tablets talked about, and more." Torsten glanced at Denestra out of the corner of his eye.
It turned slowly toward him, its eyes flashing blue. "We created the tablets for two reasons. To warn others about the evil the dragzhi were capable of and to revere the fire dragzhi who we worship. But we can no longer protect the fire alone. Rell is the savior we had been waiting for. She is the Key. We will save her and bring her home. She belongs on Setion with her father."
The fire dragzhi snapped and crackled, shooting sparks into the air. "My daughter must be returned to me. Can you bring her back?"
The tark bent at the waist, its doll-like body bending awkwardly toward the flame. "We will do your bidding. We will retrieve the Key."
Hope swelled in Torsten's chest. "There are other humans coming from space to help us within days. I'm sure they can supply us with the ships we need to find Rell. Their technology is much better than anything we have on Phoenix."
Denestra's eyes flashed red. "That is what you think, human. I will not wait days for your fleshy meatbag space explorers to show their faces. We will travel into space, and we will save her."
"How?" Torsten asked. "Don't tell me that barge is equipped for space travel."
"Of course not, stupid human!" The tark floated closer until the tip of its cold nose was touching Torsten's nose. "We have ships that fly into the stars. How do you think we got to Setion in the first place?"
It whirled away from him, leaving a cloud of sand in its wake. Torsten coughed until the the air cleared. His plan had worked. He would leave as soon as possible to find Rell, with the help of the tark. He'd expected the fire dragzhi to offer as well, but the flame only swayed like a snake as it watched their conversation develop, without offering anything.
"Take me with you," Torsten said to Denestra.
"No!" Leila yelled, grabbing Torsten's arm and yanking him backward.
He flailed, barely keeping his balance.
"You can't do this, Tor. You can't leave me alone." Leila's eyes widened as she begged. "Don't go."
Tears streamed down her cheeks, but to Torsten’s surprise they didn't sway his opinion. His little sister wouldn't control him this time.
"You can come with me," he said as he shook her hand off his arm. "You're one of the toughest people I know. I could use you.” He knew she'd complicate things by coming, but he also didn't want to leave her behind.
Leila wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. She seemed so young and helpless, completely unlike the girl he'd grown up with.
"Okay, I’ll come with you." Her voice was barely above a whisper.
"I'm going too," Malia said, standing next to Leila. "And so is Rutger."
Rutger smiled. "Yes, ma'am." He slung an arm around Malia's shoulders.
"As long as you don't make that pew-pew-pew joke the next time we're in a spaceship," Torsten said. "Promise."
"Cross my heart." Rutger traced an X over his chest. He turned to his brother, Chuck, who was standing outside the cavern, his head peeking around the entrance. "You're staying in the tower, big bro."
Chuck nodded, relief spreading over his face. He gave the group a thumbs-up.
Torsten looked back to the tark. "When do we leave?"
"As soon as possible," Denestra said. The tark turned its back on the humans, looking at the fire dragzhi again. "Thank you for confirming what we hoped to be true. We will return Rell to Setion. You can count on us."
"I know I can," the fire dragzhi said as it slithered back into the volcano, becoming one with the lava.
Without another word, the tark flew out of the cavern and ba
ck into the dark tunnels. Torsten followed quickly behind, worried if he didn't keep up the tark would leave them underground. A shuffle to his left grabbed his attention. A pair of hooded figures peeked out of a tunnel.
“And what of us?” one of them asked. “Are we to stay underground with the volcano? Will it require a sacrifice?” Their eyes rested on Chuck.
He backed away, his hands in the air. “Hell, no.”
“No one is getting sacrificed. Not today. Not ever.” Torsten motioned to the two buried. “Come out, please. Go with Chuck to the tower. There we have food, water, and shelter. You’ll be safe.”
“Safe?” One of the buried asked. “Rell told us the same, and Markel died for believing her.”
“I swear,” Torsten held out his hands, palms up, “no harm will come to you in the tower. Never again.” He avoided looking at Leila, knowing all of their fear stemmed from the orders she’d given to shoot Rell if she moved closer to the tower. “Go with Chuck. Please.”
“We will consult with the others and come to a decision soon.” The two figures disappeared as quietly as they had come.
“I’m outta here. If they come knocking at the door, I’ll let them in, but I’m not staying down here any longer than necessary.” Chuck turned on one heel and made his way out of the cave.
"We’re ready now, Denestra," Torsten called ahead.
"I care not who comes and who stays," the tark yelled back. "It only matters whether or not you can keep up."
The echo of feet reverberated in the cave system until Torsten had to put his hands over his ears as they all ran after a flying Denestra. Emerging from the tunnel to the staircase that would take them into the church, Torsten grabbed Leila's hand.
"You afraid of falling down the stairs again, big brother?" Leila asked, a grin on her face.
"Yeah, something like that." Torsten held tight to his sister, not out of love, but because he wanted to keep her close.
As they piled into the tark's barge, Torsten sent his sister ahead with Malia. A small nod from Malia told him she would keep an eye on Leila.