Beet’s voice echoes in the room. “He’s crying again. What have you done?”
“Nothing!” says Helios, alarmed.
I burst out laughing and dry my tears. “I’m good. Just happy to be alive.”
Helios inspects my wound and starts cleaning it. “You’ll need a few stitches.”
I nod absently as I feel theBeetleshake. “Are we moving?”
“We’re putting some distance between us and the bay,” Griffin says while monitoring us.
I wonder if he doesn’t entirely trust me with his lover. He’s like Stellan, cautious. I can’t blame him. Not after what I just lived through.
Stellan… I’ll need to get in touch with him. I miss him so much it hurts.
But first, I need to find a way to rescue Vex. I can’t leave her with the zealots. They’ll tear her piece by piece and give her as an offering to some old god.
“I need to hurry and get back to my truck before it disappears,” I announce out loud. “I’m going after them. I’m getting Vex back.”
I wince as Helios pulls the needle and thread through my skin.
“She requested you don’t come after her,”says Beet.“She just wants you to be safe.”
“She was taken because of me. I’m not letting her get sacrificed.”
“Alone?” Helios asks.
Fear slithers into my heart. I’m painfully aware of my inadequacies and my brush with death, but I can’t abandon her.
I sigh. “If I have to.”
“Or you can stay with us,” Helios says. “We’re going after them. Beet seems to have taken a liking to your friend Vex.”
“It’s been a while since I conversed with a brilliant mind,”says the AI.
Helios glares at the ceiling. “Hey! We’re brilliant minds!”
“Of course, honey,” she says, obviously lying.
I should laugh, but new tears spill from my eyes. Tears of relief. I’m going to save Vex with the help of the legendaryBeetleand the Devil of the Wastes.
8
Tantalizing moonlight.
“The half-gods—that’s how we started calling the mutant children in our lab—do not function like you and me. They function on instincts. Smell, touch, light… They are more attuned to the minor changes in their environment. They can feel when you lie, smell your fear, taste the danger in the air. They have to be taught how to act like humans from a young age, to not make everyone else uncomfortable. Some learn fast, others… well. Others stay unsettling.”
Extract from the testimony of Allan Rickford, a scientist who worked for the Revival Project, 2056.
ALASTAIR
We watch as Scylla walks back into the green waters afterdevouring Leonard and Janice. The two mercenaries have been at my side for years and survived many raids and attacks. Their deaths cut deeper than a sharp blade, but I have no tears to spare. When I was younger, I learned to never cry—water was scarce in the wastelands before my fathers adopted me.
“I’m sorry,” says Stellan at my side.
I look at him, surprised by the softness in his voice. Stoic Stellan, who rarely shows emotions other than anger or cold efficiency. People always whisper that Perri is the best part of him. But I wonder…
I can’t help but wonder.
