Lost Energy (8 page)

My Protector's face was pale as she
kept her focus on Teenesee, ignoring Zander. "Shit, this got heavy."

"You don't believe it?"
Zander marched toward her, his control cracking, showing a scared boy. "She's
telling us we're monsters–all of us."

"She's telling us we've been
lied to. Used. Something your Protector has already proven to you."

His body shook, his splayed fingers
showing how much. "What agenda could they possibly have?"

Teenesee answered when Wilma stayed
quiet. "It takes resources to create and maintain what Exemplar has built.
Worlds with the much-needed materials get the best energies to help cultivate
their lands. The others are drained of everything but the weakest, becoming dumping
grounds."

He made a sound between a groan and
a cry before facing me. "You don't believe it, right?"

"I do, but you aren't
monsters, Zander. You're pawns, victims, like everyone else."

"No." Zander stormed from
the room, slamming the marble door in his wake.

I jumped up when Wilma went to go
after him. "I'll go."

It took a few minutes to catch up,
but he could never outrun me. "Zander, wait!"

He kept going until we made it down
the flesh-colored drawbridge and into a field where a few people were digging
up what look like emeralds and slinging them onto horse-drawn wagons. When he
finally turned to confront me, his face was a tortured, tear-stained mess. "You
actually believe it?"

I stopped short, almost slamming
into his chest. "I… Yeah, Zander, I believe her."

"I used to help track down the
traitors, find out where they would've gone by studying their histories. Come
to find out, people who were only guilty of not wanting to accept their
privileged status." He raked a hand through his hair, searching behind me,
watching the emerald farmers. "If what she said is true, I've helped ruin
more than your life."

"Zander, you didn't ruin–"

He shook his head and covered his
ears. "No, don't. Don't give me some bullshit pep talk." He yelled,
kicking at the ground. "I should've known, especially after I found out
about you."

Well, this I could help him with. "But
I wasn't innocent. Mateusz did me a favor, according to Avery. I knew about all
this and tried to start a rebellion."

Disbelief skated across his face
for a second before it changed to something brighter, more aggressive. "A
rebellion? You mean a rebellion against assholes who knew what they were doing
was wrong. Is that the rebellion you're talking about?"

I'd ignore his sarcasm because he
was pissed, but it still festered under the skin. "If I had succeeded, a
lot of people would've died going up against Exemplar." I put my hands on
his chest. "
We
can make sure we do it right this time. Make sure
they don't ever hurt another innocent person or manipulate energy again."

Without even realizing it, I had made
up my mind. I didn't want to stop Cassondra. I wanted to stop her entire
goddamn world. I finally got it. Tarek, as important as he was…damn…some things
had to come first.

"Yeah? And how do we do that?
Didn't you hear Wilma?"

The odds didn't look good, but hey,
it sure as hell beat doing nothing. "We go to the True Wardens first.
Start with the ones who want to stop Exemplar."

He covered my hands with his. "And
then what?"

Picks hitting the dirt coupled with
the farmers' soft chatter in Empyrean tongue filled the space for a few
minutes. What next? I had no idea. "We'll figure it out."

He smiled, some misery leaving his
face. "Great plan, but I'm glad you're here."

"Me too." I went to punch
him in the shoulder. "Hey, nice shirt, by the way. You look like a… Oh,
shit. Oh, shit!
Run
."

In the middle of the field, the sky
crackled and the wind picked up as the atmosphere ripped open, plunking at
least thirty Protectors on the ground. They all wore those sizzling black suits.
As soon as their feet touched the field, weapons were aimed and firing.

The farmers turned into warriors as
they flung the emerald rocks at the intruders, the green shards exploding into fireballs
as soon as they touched something solid. The explosives didn't slow the troops
down much as the flames bounced off their suits, fizzling out.

I grabbed Zander's hand when he
refused to budge, his eyes wide and mouth slack. "Run, goddamnit!"

After a tug on his fingers, his
eyes found mine and determination hardened them. We both took off for the drawbridge,
the heat from Exemplian weapons whizzing past us, getting close enough to burn
the tips of my ears. I kept Zander's hand in mine as I picked up speed, ducking
and dodging the orange flares hitting the ground, igniting the buried emerald
rocks the farmers missed.

When we reached the bridge, my arm
yanked from its socket. Pain shot through my legs and up my spine as I fell to
the glossy surface. I glanced behind me.

Zander lay motionless, his head
sporting a wide gash surrounded by blackened skin.

I scrambled to his side, the pain
in my legs forgotten while I put pressure on his wound, the hoard of Protectors
closing in.

Panicked, I did the only thing I
could. "Wilma!"

CHOICES

W
ilma raced across the bridge, her
heavy body as agile as a sprinter's. "Get down, girl!"

Waving her hand, she swept the
first round of ten Protectors thirty feet back before propelling Zander's body
closer to the door.

I stayed on the ground, holding my
hands out to show her Zander's blood. "Is he gonna die?"

She pulled me to my feet. "Get
indoors. Lock yourself in a bedroom. Go, now!"

I shook my head, watching some of
Teenesee's people drag Zander through the door. When a second wave came in
shooting a relentless string of orange light at Wilma, I jumped up to stand
behind her. The first few taser shots didn't stop her as she waved away five Protectors
and threw a few others. But the barrage didn't let up, the pain becoming
clearer on her face.

I set my focus on the one aiming
directly at her heart. Using moves Farren taught, I jumped into action, getting
a running start before giving him a side kick in the knee. The surprise attack
worked. His body dropped as his weapon switched from Wilma to me. Before he had
a chance to squeeze off a shot, I struck him under his nose and slammed my
hands against his ears. With a little help from Wilma's hand, he flew back with
seven more Protectors.

The sky opened up again. An army
dropped down, too large to guess the numbers.

"We need to leave." My calm
tone betrayed the fear roiling and thrashing in my gut as I stumbled backward
to stand by Wilma.

"Sounds like a good idea."
She closed her eyes and touched her temple.

"What're you doing?"

She kept her eyes closed for a few
seconds more before answering. "Giving Tarek the message." She grimaced.
"Looks like you got your wish."

Didn't that make me feel all dirty
inside?

Clopping hooves on the bridge's
sleek surface had me forgetting my guilt for about a second. Teenesee rode out,
her face hard as her beauty heightened to the point
I
had trouble
looking at her.

Without acknowledging us, she leapt
from her horse and charged to the frontline, meeting the third wave of Protectors
head-on. Most stumbled, their mouths slack and eyes admiring when they stopped
to look at her–the distraction she needed. Her whole body turned to a mass of
reflecting green energy. In an instant, she balled the verdant light with her
palms and threw it at the third and fourth waves of charging Protectors.

Their suits didn't protect them. If
they managed to survive the blast, they lay on the ground thrashing in pain and
blood. I slammed both hands over my nose. The smell of burning flesh forced me
to hold onto my stomach's contents with sheer willpower.

In the stunned silence, with the
agony of the dying and wounded filling the field, Teenesee turned to us. "You
need to leave. Hurry."

I came forward, still mesmerized by
her amped up face. "They're here for me. You'll pay if we leave. Maybe we
shou—"

"You must leave. Remember, close
the lines." She focused on the Protectors behind the casualties, her body creating
another massive wave of green light.

Before I could argue, Wilma gathered
me up and opened her hand to the sky.

∞ ∞ ∞

She dropped us on the doorstep of
Tarek's cabin. Ignoring all the Arcus color, I barged through the door to find it
empty. No point in yelling for him, the whole place was as big as my living
room. "He's not here."

"Oh, observant, aren't you?"
Wilma stayed at the door, not bothering to come in.

"So, what? Do we look for him?"

"Go ahead, but I don't think
the squid are gonna like you any better this time around."

Damn, she wanted me to beg–and I
had no problem doing that. "Well, you can help, right?"

"Nope. He knows you're coming,
and I'm sure he's on his way back from…whatever the hell he does around here."
She lifted her arm. "Stay inside."

"Wait! Where–"

She left, the tear sucking her up
as the wind slammed the door shut.

"Hey!"

Ripping the door open to yell would've
been stupid, but I did it anyway. "Wilma, goddamnit! Come back!"

Squealing and tentacles scaling
bark convinced me to lower my voice. "Please…"

Of course, she couldn't hear me.
Not like she'd come back if she could.

With one last wary glance at the
squid, I shut the door. The cabin didn't offer much in the comfort department,
but Tarek had built every inch. That was enough for me. The bed was big enough
for one person, but still cozy with a thick quilt and pillow. I lay there,
trying hard not to think about our situation moving to the worst side of the
spectrum. A Protector army? Jesus, it took one time for me to break the rules,
and they sent an army…

Oh, no.

Farren broke the rules, too, which
meant everyone in my apartment might have had a visit from the bastards. I sat
up, my heart tapping double-time. When Mateusz waltzed in that morning… When he
took Tarek away from me…

There wasn't anywhere to go if a
few Protectors decided to make Farren pay. Make me pay. Kill my family

I flung open the door to find squid
not ten feet from the cabin. They didn't move closer when they saw me, but they
screamed. Guess they knew the cabin was off limits, and I knew their territory
was as blocked from me.

"
Ugh.
"

I slammed the door. So stinking
frustrating to be stuck while… I didn't even want to think about it. I plopped
on the bed and grabbed the pillow. At least it was something to cling to as I
waited, doing nothing as Exemplians were potentially killing my family.

Nope. Not good enough.

I threw the thing back on the bed,
ready to face whatever wanted to take a swipe at me outside. The damn things
weren't fast; I could outrun them. I just had to make sure to dodge a few
tentacles. Wilma would know if I were in trouble, and so I was gonna get myself
in trouble. She'd have to come get me. Well, hopefully she'd come.

As soon as the door swung open, my
anxiety dissolved.

There he was, stalking through
squid lined on either side of him. His face, that same beautiful face, but
glowing with vivid color.

Tarek.

I forgot about the squid and ran.
They squealed, but didn't move, understanding who was in charge. As Tarek opened
his arms, I jumped, crushing my lips on his.

In a move I remembered well, he
bent to lift my legs and wrapped them around his waist. He kept moving toward
the cabin, never taking his mouth off mine. When the door shut, he set me down,
his dimples almost enough to make me cry. "Miss me, did you?"

"Not at all."

He gave a low growl and kissed me
again. When he pulled away this time, neither of us could breathe without
heaving. "Liar."