by Lea Ryan
Chapter 12
Rain fell the next morning when I awoke. Bree poked me in the arm. I knew it was her by the smell of vanilla and flowers, and I was happy. Then I remembered my circumstances. Celeste was gone. I was trapped at the compound.
“Good morning, sleepy head.” She rested her head on her arms, which were folded on my blanket. Her smiling face was inches from mine.
“What time is it?”
“Breakfast time. Six in the a.m.” She pulled on my arm, pretending to attempt to drag me from the bed. “Come eat with me.”
“Alright. I'm getting up, already. Let me get dressed.”
I usually don't do six in the morning, but the rest of them did. Most of my fellow ravagers were busy cleaning up their sections of the dorm, putting clothes into footlockers, tying shoes, listening to the radio. They were all wide awake. I, on the other hand, was not. I tried to force my eyes into focus while I retrieved a t-shirt and some pants from the backpack in my footlocker.
Bree hopped onto the bed to watch me get dressed, “You're a scrawny thing. My brother would probably let you work out with the guardians if you want to put some meat on those bones. They take a three-mile run through the nature preserve every morning. I bet he would let you go if you think you can keep up.”
My brain clicked on and recalled that I was supposed to gather information about the enemy. First priority was finding Michael, but I would make note of this tidbit of information for Gideon. I had visions of snipers in the trees next to the boardwalk, roosting among birds, lying in wait for Vic and his boys to pass. The guardians wouldn't expect an ambush. They'd be sitting ducks.
I was starting to think like Gideon. I shuddered.
The cafeteria was packed. Bree and I moved through the line, dragging trays in front of small plates of food. I felt like I was in high school again. This ordinary looking scene in such a bizarre circumstance was almost surreal, which didn't stop me from eating practically everything I could get my hands on.
I didn't see Michael in the sea of faces around us. I asked Bree if the ravagers and healers ate at the same time. I couldn't tell who was what just by looking at them.
“Yup. Everybody should be here.”
“I don't see my brother.”
She said, “He works in the garden, doesn't he? We can check there later.” She wasn't concerned at all, so I went along.
She and her friends at the table talked about a new irrigation system they were working on for the flower garden at the back of the compound. Bree was on the planning committee. For someone so brainwashed, she was surprisingly intelligent. The healers sitting across from us, Max and Greg, had devised a system that detected the level of moisture in the air. When the humidity dropped to a certain level, the sprinkler system would turn on.
“The only problem we have is the different levels of moisture needed by different species of flowers. Too much for the lily isn't enough for the geranium, and they were planted such close proximity there's no way to water one without drowning the other.” Max pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose.
“Fire the botanist.” Greg snort-laughed.
They were genuinely nice guys. Most of the people I'd met at the compound were nice. They might have even been normal before Llewyn got her hands on them. I didn't want to see them eradicated. I wanted to save as many of them as possible, maybe find a way to keep them out of Center custody when all this was over.
We were alone in the cafeteria, finishing our breakfast, when I asked Bree, “Does Llewyn stay in a dorm?”
“Of course not! She has her own quarters beyond the temple. She needs a lot of time to commune with the Divine Ones. Her work is exhausting.”
“Can I see her quarters?” I shouldn't have asked such a dangerous question.
She cocked an eyebrow at me, “We aren't allowed in there, but I can show you some other cool stuff.”
I would search for my brother as we went. The first stop was the room I'd seen the previous evening with the skylights and trees. Her hand on the scanner gained us access.
“Can everyone get in here?”
“Not everyone.” She grinned, “I have a higher security clearance than most people because of my work and my brother.”
“I was with Llewyn in this room last night.”
She hugged my arm as we walked, “You're fortunate the mother has shown a personal interest in you. That rarely happens. She must have a great plan for your future.”
Why did she invest so much time in me? Did she sense a lack of faith? Did she sense I might betray them? No. She knew about my job with the Center, knew I might have access to the imprisoned souls she needed.
“Something like that.” I muttered.
We strolled down the winding paths through the gardens. Bree explained the pipework overhead, how it drew water from the river outside and filtered it before finally sprinkling it onto the plants inside. The system was a bit of genius. How long could innovation keep Bree from Llewyn's knife?
We crossed into a Zen garden complete with Asian-style stone lanterns and an ornamental bridge over sand. We sat together on a bench nearby. I stretched my arm across the back, and she rested her head on my chest. I liked having her there. It almost felt real, like we could have a real relationship. Then I remembered the grimness of her situation. I had to stay focused.
“Do you mind if I ask kind of a weird question?” I said.
“Ask away.”
“Who bankrolls this place? This facility is pretty amazing.”
“We pool our resources. New people bring material possessions, skills and their money.”
Typical cult story. I should've guessed.
She continued, “We have accounting geniuses who invest the money. We have all kinds of people here.”
“What kind of people are the guardians?”
Bree pulled away to look at me, “Are you thinking of volunteering?” Her smile was even wider than usual.
I wasn't thinking of joining Vic's gang, not ever. They looked like a bunch of muscle-bound morons.
“I don't know. Maybe. I have to fit in here some way, right? Have a role?”
She clapped her hands and jumped to her feet, “This is a great idea! I love it. I'll talk to Vic for you. He'll let you in; I just know it. Come on, I'll show you where they work out.” She held out her hand for me to take it.
Well, that was almost too easy.
We left the Zen guardian behind for a destination that wasn't so Zen. We made a trip through the lobby, during which I made a quick search for Michael. Again, I didn't see him. I started to worry. If he was still free to move around, he would've been seeking me, too. We would have found each other by then.
Victimizer and his goons had probably locked him up due to his association with Celeste and me. However, if they no longer saw me as an enemy with her gone, why would they keep him stashed away?
The door into the guardian lair was more secure than the others I'd seen. It was made of steel and had a mechanized deadbolt hooked up to yet another hand scanner. Bree gained access, and then we entered a pitch-dark room.
“Lights.” She said, and the tract lights overhead obeyed by flickering to life.
We descended a set of stairs to a basement floored in polished red wood. A touch of sweat stench mingled with bleach hung in the air. A mirror ran the length of the wall in front of a neat line of mats similar to those used in my high school gym, only these were black, premium-grade models.
“Let me guess. This is where they hold their dance classes.”
She giggled, “Not quite. They practice hand-to-hand combat in here. My brother has a black belt. Tae kwon do.”
We rounded a corner to a workout room with machines and free weights everywhere. Plastic dummies and punching bags were gathered on the other side.
Bree turned me around to pull me by my shirt, “Sometimes, when I know no one is using the room, I come down here to be alone.” She reeled me in and kissed
me, which would've been much more enjoyable had we not been in a place her much larger, much meaner brother practiced beating the crap out of people. I found a way to enjoy it, nonetheless. We ended up against a wall of dark glass.
She finally pulled away, and I asked, “So what if he found me in here making out with his sister?”
“He would punch your lights out.” She smiled coyly and kissed me again.
I opened my eyes while we were kissing and spotted something that changed the game. It reminded me of the liquor store in my neighborhood in Chicago. They attempted to go upscale by installing a wine tasting room with fancy lamps and leather armchairs. They had cordoned it off with a wall of glass that gave it a fishbowl effect, so the commoners could get a good look at the party.
The room on the other side of the glass in Vic's gym was suited more for his idea of fun. Dark-wood cabinets on three walls held artfully illuminated guns on racks. Pistols, shotguns, sniper rifles, AK-47s gleamed in the light - ready for Vic and his thugs. One case was reserved primarily for grenades and ominous canisters bearing warning labels.
“My God.” I couldn't hide my horror. I was no stranger to the sight of weaponry, but that was an arsenal. I had never seen so many objects used in the dealing of death in one place.
Gideon and his enforcers wouldn't stand a chance against heavily armed and trained ravagers. No wonder their previous raid had failed. We would fail, too, unless we could come up with some genius plan. The worst part was that there were more guns than guardians, far more, which meant people like Bree could take up arms to defend the compound if necessary. My legs went weak.
“What's wrong?” She saw what I was looking at, “Oh, don't worry. Those are just for self-defense. We've only had to take some out once. You'd be surprised how closed-minded people are. The mother says we'll always have to be vigilant because 'normal' society doesn't appreciate the extraordinary. They like to keep the world as predictable as they are.”
I recovered from the shock long enough to suggest that we leave before her brother found us there. I had a feeling he wouldn't appreciate my presence. “Hey, do you mind if we look for my brother? I still haven't seen him. I want to make sure he's okay.”
I breathed easier once we had exited the violent underbelly of the compound. I didn't want to go back there unless I had to, which I would if Vic decided I was guardian material. That meant hanging out with him and his fellow meat-heads. I would do it if I could stop Llewyn from killing Bree and other assorted decent people, even if it meant taking 'practice' hits from the Victimizer.
Rain kept most of Llewyn's family inside. They talked and played games in the lobby, stretched out with books in the library. Some of them polished furniture or swept floors or were engrossed by whatever was on their laptop screens. At my request, we searched the cafeteria kitchen, the greenhouse, even a front office, all without luck. I ran out of unlocked doors and communal spaces.
Bree did a reasonable enough job of showing concern, offering reassurance and entry to certain secured rooms. We went wherever she could take me. I did notice, however, that her suggestions for places to search were far between. She was compliant, but seemed reluctant to offer any real help, and whenever we happened upon a guardian, she tensed up.
“Maybe he's with the mother. She devotes much of her time to assisting individual family members with the search for enlightenment.”
Enlightenment. They gave Emma a Ceremony of Light when she reached it. If Michael was with Llewyn, it wasn't because he sought this enlightenment willingly.
“Where does she assist with these searches?”
Bree lowered her voice, “I can't say. There are some parts of the compound I haven't seen yet, rooms that are off-limits to almost everyone, like the mother's living quarters. Vic and only a couple of others are allowed.”
“Where?” I insisted by locking eyes with her.
“Beyond the temple.” She offered in a hushed voice. “Entry is forbidden to all who aren't blessed. It's sacred ground.”
Guardians were always stationed at the carved wooden doors. There was no way I'd be able to get in there on my own. I couldn't overpower trained fighters. I needed a good plan before I did anything. I let the subject go for the moment.
At lunch, we sat with Max and Greg again. I asked if they'd seen Michael around. They hadn't. No one had.
“I could check the feeds from the security cameras.” Max offered and reached for his bag under the table.
I kicked myself in the ass for not thinking of that. Any place with that many guns would have eyes on every nook and cranny. That could have saved us a lot of time and energy. Instead, Bree had manually taken me from room to room on a wild goose chase. Had she not thought of the surveillance system or was she stringing me along?
“Wiring up the cameras was the first job I had when I came to the compound. There's actually a monitor room at the west end of the building. Only guardians, the mother, and maintenance technicians are allowed in there, now. I still have the software on my computer, though.”
“I don't think that's a good idea.” Bree glanced around to check if anyone was watching us.
“Why would you say that?” I asked. I was sick of the barriers and sick of not knowing whether she was working with me or against me. I kept calm.
“I just don't want to get in trouble is all.”
As Max powered up the laptop, the temple bell toned.
“Darn. Guess we'll have to check later.”
“No, wait.” I put my hand out for the computer.
He slid it from my grasp, “Sorry, gotta go when the mother calls.”
“We'll check later.” Bree assured me.
We filed into the temple, taking seats as we'd done before. We didn't sit as close to the front, which made me more comfortable. I didn't like being so close to Llewyn while she wielded power over that large of a crowd. I made another count of the guardians while we waited. I scanned for the tattoos. Four by the door, more at the ends of the aisles. I counted twenty five, which was close to what I had estimated before. I included Vic in that count. No doubt he was with Llewyn, preparing for whatever this was about to be.
“This isn't another ceremony, is it?” I asked Bree.
“No. This is just meditation. The ceremonies don't occur very often. We meet here for group meditation a couple times a week.”
I used the opportunity to evaluate the entrance to the forbidden section of the compound. I assumed it was the stage door because it was the only other door leading from the room, aside from the way we'd come in. Interestingly enough, there were no visible locks, no hand scanners. It just looked like a regular door. Either the heavy security lay on the other side, or Llewyn and Vic decided that her influence over her 'family' was potent enough to keep them away.
As Llewyn entered through the stage door, a few of her minions pulled the shades on the windows to darken the temple. She sat on a cushion at the center of the stage, right where Emma met her end. She crossed her legs.
The crowd fell silent, and I heard a low-level hum accompanied by a vibration. I put my hand onto the floor in front of me and felt the pulse of electricity.
“Do you hear that?” I whispered to Bree.
She shushed me with a finger to her lips.
Llewyn raised her arms over head like she'd just made a goal. Everyone dropped from the benches onto their knees on the cushions in front of them in a synchronized motion.
Then I felt it, the same energy from the plant room with Llewyn. The Sidera were present, unseen and undulating among those of us still occupying our physical bodies. They moved onto my legs and up my arms. I didn't think they would hurt me. I closed my eyes to wait for the sensation to pass. My shoulders, my neck. I couldn't move. They swallowed me completely.
When I opened my eyes, vacuous space stretched before me, infinite seas of stars, flowing like tides and streams against the darkness. I couldn't breathe. My body was gone. I had become one of them - the Sidera.
We shot past the solar system, among nebulas, past planets and comets. We flew, the many fragments of just two potent souls. The heavens were our playground, but we did have a destination.
We arrived at a pair of clusters of other Sidera who waited for us. With no command necessary, we crisscrossed, sorting ourselves into ravagers and healers as if this journey were part of our programming. I fell into line with the rest of them, and then I knew.
I knew everything Maructe did, heard the language of the universe. I felt his memory of betrayal and the failure of his family when they couldn't save him from his mortal fate and the searing agony of his death in fire. His thoughts were my thoughts because I was him. All of us were.
His rage rushed through us. Maructe was no harmless entity. He would have no sympathy for the rest of the human race. I would be part of this thing that could end all life if it chose to.
The Sidera shifted to form the shape of the statue in the temple, only the size of a moon. The creature walked up from the mass, wading through us all until we found our place in the shape of its body, and when he was almost complete, Maructe threw his head back in a roar that thundered throughout the universe.
Darkness fell over me, and the next I knew, guardians were opening the window shades in the temple. I was sweating and gripped by nausea. I couldn't think. I couldn't see through the blur my vision had become.
Llewyn's voice echoed, “I am privileged to announce that Michael Tomlinson has attained enlightenment. His Ceremony of Light will occur tomorrow. Join me in celebrating his life as we prepare for his ascension.”
They cheered.
I left the temple on trembling legs. The horror I'd just witnessed and the announcement that my brother was up next for sacrifice had numbed me so thoroughly, I wasn't sure if I would ever recover. I headed for the door that opened to the side of the building, toward the garden and the boardwalk leading into the nature preserve.
“Where are you going?” Bree trotted along behind me.
“A walk.” I managed to choke out the words without vomiting.
“But it's raining.”
I didn't care. I burst through the door, into the mist of a rain, the sky forever feeding the flood. If I got lucky, it would consume everything. Once outside in the fresh air, I was able to force my lunch back down my gullet.
To my dismay, Bree followed, “What's wrong?”
“I just want to be alone for a while.” I stepped up to the boardwalk. She wouldn't relent.
“I should have warned you about meditation beforehand. I forget how intense it can be sometimes. Our visions usually don't go that direction.”
“I'm fine. Just go back inside. I'll meet up with you later.” I needed to get my bearings. My inner compass was spinning.
“I don't want to leave you out here.”
I sped up my pace, into the trees where the white cranes roosted with no regard for the weather. Several yards down the boardwalk, the river pushed against the planks, its surface breaching the floor.
“What if you fall in?” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Don't be sad about your brother. The Ceremony of Light is an honor. You should be happy for him! At least you know where he's been and that he's safe. Please come back. We can have some cocoa.” She looked pitiful in the rain, her hair and clothes sopping wet, the worry in her eyes. I cared about her, but I couldn't handle any more crazy just then.
“I won't fall in. Just give me a few minutes alone, okay? Then we'll have cocoa.”
She gave an uncertain smile.
“Hunter.” A familiar voice said from behind me.
I turned to find Celeste. Her wings arched up from her back, huge and completely covered in feathers. The sight of her reminded me of the fact that I wasn't alone. God was out there somewhere, the real God.
“Celeste.”
Bree backed up, “What's she doing here? You got rid of her.”
I didn't know what to say. I wasn't about to send the angel away again, especially after witnessing what I had during meditation. I shook my head at Bree. She hightailed it back to the compound.
“You have no idea how happy I am to see you.”
Instead of responding, Celeste embraced me.
“Where's Gideon? I need to talk to him right now.”
She withdrew to answer, “He's on the road. Back this direction.” She took my hand to lead me farther away from the compound. We ran, which was okay with me. Victimizer and his boys would be after us in a matter of minutes.
Gideon and Nigel had parked on a gravel service road close to part of the boardwalk on the other side of the river. We scrambled up a rise to meet them next to their SUV.
Gideon got right down to business, “I requested volunteers for this little suicide mission of ours. Turns out some of the enforcers like dancing with death. More of them joined up.”
“They're going to sacrifice Michael tomorrow.”
“Well then, you'd better find us a way to get in. What's up with the guards?”
“They aren't armed most of the time.”
He laughed, “Ravagers are constantly armed, if you haven't noticed. You saw guns?”
“They keep them in a locked room in a basement. Only select personnel have access.” I didn't want to give him an excuse to massacre everyone. Bree, Max, Greg, they weren't violent. The guys weren't even ravagers. They were completely harmless.
“Why am I sensing hesitation?” Gideon asked. “Are you sympathizing with these psychos?”
“They aren't psychos, not all of them.”
In all honesty, Vic probably was psycho. That guy couldn't wait to kill. I could see it in his eyes whenever he looked at me.
“If you turn on me -” Gideon started.
“Yeah, I know. You'll blow my head off. I remember.” I waved off the threat.
“I don't want to have to add you to the primary target list. You're more of a security risk than they are because you know how we operate. I'm serious.”
“Trust me, after what I saw today, I'm ready to end all this resurrection stuff. It's too real for my taste.”
“So what are we looking at as far as arms?”
“Everything from pistols to AK-47s. Some grenades. Canisters that probably hold some noxious, life-threatening chemical weapon. Not enough for the whole compound, but there are more guns than guardians, which reminds me - they're trained in martial arts. Tae kwon do from what I've heard.”
“Martial arts are the least of my worries.”
Too much time had passed since Bree ran off. The guardians would be on us any second.
I said, “You have to go before they get here or the mission is over.”
“You could come with us, you know.” Nigel offered. “How much more intelligence do you think you'll be able to gather, especially now that they know Celeste never left completely?”
“I have to find Michael.”
“That's more than he would've done for you.” Gideon spat on the wet ground before climbing back into the truck.
Celeste urged, “Please come with us.”
“I can't. I'm sorry.”
She hugged me again, got into the back seat, and they drove off into the rain and the wilds of the nature preserve. The road curved, and the red glow of the taillights was gone.
I descended the hill, sliding in mud to reach the boardwalk. Llewyn accompanied by Vic and other guardians met me halfway back to the compound. She stood, a vision in the misting rain and the breeze tossing her dark hair. The tattoos covering her body shone with moisture, even in the deeply overcast day. As always, she wore no shoes. The river water seemed to reach for her.
“This brings me great sadness.” Llewyn moved aside to let Vic go by.
He practically salivated at the prospect of causing me harm. I did consider running, but the chance to run had passed. I had enough time to wish that I had gone with the others as he pulled back his fist and landed a skull-cracking right hook that sent me into unconsciousness.
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