The Koet

"I am the best tracker here, I should--"

"You will not do anyth--"

"There should be enough--"

"Where is Devon when she is needed?"

The voices of his Koet ring out around Jace. He feels overwhelmed; at a loss for words.

One voice stands out above the babble, "What is going on here?!"

Felix. Thank God. "Alright now! Shut up!" His voice is that of a commander calling an order. Felix may look and act like the even-tempered sandy blond cowboy he is, but everyone obeys and immediately falls silent, snapping to attention.

He looks to Jace, seeing that he is at the head of the chaos, and rolls his green eyes, inclining his head, he motions for Jace to speak.

With all eyes turned towards him, Jace begins at the beginning, explaining the recent arrival of the three Bearers of the Mark. He explains how he has monitored their activities and how they are associating with humans. And finally, how they seem to be seeking out high-power humans, with the intentions of turning them from the unmarked humans they are, into a Bearer of the Mark.

Bearer of the Mark. This is what they we refer to our kind as, Jace thinks, remembering his own Marking day. If it is a strand of DNA or an experience or a particularly strong personality that makes us, the Bearers, different, we do not know, but it is known that a human that can stand to bear the Mark is more powerful than any normal human. Definitely, Jace muses, the stranger girl is more than powerful enough to withstand the change. Maybe I could get her to come to my Koet and-- Jace stops in mid-thought. You should be thinking of ways to SAVE the girl from this fate, not trying to get her for yourself, Jace chastises himself.

Because a human who has survived being Marked is no longer considered human, who was anyone to take someone's humanity from another? Once Marked the previous human becomes more powerful, faster, stronger, and smarter with enhanced senses and thought processes. But paired with that are completely different instincts; the need to be with other Bearers of the Mark, the natural aggression, the disgust of humans, and no normal life to return to. Jace sighs, conflicted.

When the Bearers of the Mark ruling class, called the Crown, held together all the different Koets, or groups of the Bearers of the Mark, there was an extreme process for Marking someone, always run by the Crown itself. But with one of the three rulers recently killed, and talk of a revolution, the remaining two Crown Leaders have removed themselves from their Koets. So with the Crown currently in pieces, it is the unspoken rule that no new Marks are made. This breach made by the red-headed leader is even worse than breaking the law because Marking someone without their knowledge and full consent breaks the moral lines that the first Koets were originally built from. The fact that the red headed leader appears to have intentions of Marking someone is scandalous. She would have to have a damn good reason for risking her reputation as a leader -- not to mention risking her neck in the process, Jace thinks angrily.

Outraged hisses and gasps explode around him, his anger echoing back at him. The silence ends.

Jace listens as Ian says, "They must be building an army!"

Alice hears this and scoffs, "Why would they need an army?" Then she turns to Jace. "And what do you think your doing not telling us about more Bearers of the Mark in the area?" she accuses him, anger and hurt in her voice.

Guilt swells in him, but before he can open his moth to reply, a voice rings out from the edge of the clearing.

"We need to act now." It's Ziva. Uh oh, Jace thinks. Ziva is the youngest in the Koet, only 16, but she has been apart of this world since she was 9. Despite her young age she has earned the respect of the Koet time and time again. Her opinion holds weight.

"There is a threat in the area. It sounds as if this... trio is a part of a larger Koet." She shoots a wry glance to Jace. He had not had the thought of more Bearers of the Mark besides the three. He drops his gaze, ashamed to be shown up by her.

"They are a threat and they are here." she continues powerfully. "We cannot afford to sit around and watch them. We must act." Always bloodthirsty, and looking to attack before being attacked. Which, Jace guesses, is explainable by the fact that she is Tanya's Mark. Tanya is her mother to this world and mentor. Tanya was the one to Mark Ziva, and there is always an extreme bond between a Bearer of the Mark and the person that they Marked. They were with each other through it all. They shared the same horrific experiences during and after the Breakaway. They are quite a team, but all Marks and their Mark-ees, so to say, are very close.