Keeper of the Lost Cities: Rebuild [COMPLETED]

Chapter Seventeen - MARUCA

"I can feel her emotions," Stina whispered, chest rising and falling shakily as she tried to control her breathing. "The human's. She's probably fifteen feet away, and—"

"If you don't start cooperating, missy, I'm gonna have to resort to unpleasant tactics, and we both know you don't want that." The voice was soft, but it carried in the wind.

Male human. Probably late thirties or forties.

"And there's him," finished Stina, looking pale even in the dark.

Maruca chanced a quick peek of the clearing. She caught sight of a girl, probably their age, in a tight-fitting dress and jewelry, pressed against the trunk of a tree opposite them. In front of her was a man in a dark hoodie and jeans. His hand was outstretched—he was probably pointing a gun at her.

Maruca narrowed her eyes. It was a tactic she used to clear her mind; instead of focusing on her pounding heart, the movement of her lids brought her mind to what was important, what she was seeing.

Obviously this man wanted to do harm to the girl, but to what gain? More importantly, did it even matter?

"Give me the necklace, or I'll plant a bullet in your brain," the thief snapped.

The girl whimpered, trying to take the chain off, but her hands were shaking too badly.

The thief shoved her against the tree, pressing the gun to her forehead. "Do you want to die?"

Tears streamed down the girl's cheeks. "N-n-no! Please, I'll g-give you m-my money!"

"What do we do?" Stina hissed.

Maruca met her eyes. "You stay behind that tree."

"Wha—Maruca, no!"

It was too late; she sprang out from behind the bush. "Hey!"

The thief spun around and shot, but a force field was already up, shielding Maruca and the human girl. In the yellow light, Maruca saw the thief's gray eyes widen, his mouth opening and closing. He shot again, but the shield deflected the bullet into the tree right next to him. Cursing, he dropped the gun and ran.

"No!" Maruca yelled, opening a crack in the barrier and running after him. Her heart pounded so loudly in her ears she barely registered the footsteps behind her, and then—

"Ack!" she yelped, crashing into the ground. Someone was on top of her; she started thrashing. If she got them off, she could form another force field...

"Stop it!" Stina grunted, voice much closer to Maruca's ear than what was comfortable. "It's me, you idiot!"

Maruca stopped struggling. "What are you doing?! Get off me!"

"Your welcome for saving your life," Stina grumbled, rolling off Maruca and brushing her dress.

Maruca leapt to her feet. "'Your welcome'? He's gone, Stina! He saw!"

"Obviously—but who knows if he has more weapons, plus it's too dark to see, and you don't know your way around this city."

"But—"

"Maruca. Maybe he'll come up with a half-baked explanation, or completely push the memories out of his mind. Sometimes humans do that."

"And sometimes they don't."

"What do you mean, 'humans'?" a trembling voice asked, and Maruca stiffened, then relaxed as her brain went through the whole oh-right-there's-a-human-still-here-wait-is-she-gone-whew-no-she's-not process.

She turned to face the girl, who was actually very pretty now that Maruca was closer; she had light brown skin, dotted with freckles, and dark eyes.

Maruca had always assumed that humans didn't care about appearances as much as the elves did. They were ugly but still lived, fell in love, conquered lands. It was actually inspiring. But maybe she had it wrong.

"I'm Maruca," she said, pushing the emotions aside and taking a step toward the girl. "This is my partner, Stina."

"You didn't answer my question," the girl pushed. "You said 'humans.' I don't understand."

"It's okay—I wouldn't either. But there's a way you can. We're staying at a campsite, less than a mile from here. We can help you."

The girl's eyes were skittish, jumping from Maruca to Stina to the gun on the ground. But she must have seen the truth in Maruca's eyes—or perhaps she simply wanted to be around people for a little while—and she slowly nodded. "Okay."

Maruca smiled and reached for the girl, stopping at the last minute. That... would probably make her uncomfortable. Plus, the last thing they needed was another runaway human.

So instead she waved her hand and started walking back to the campsite, trusting the girl would follow.

As she passed, Stina picked up the gun, holding it at arm's length, as if afraid it would go off on its own.

Maruca wasn't sure if it would; she wasn't familiar with human technology. All she knew was that the device was powerful—and dangerous. They would have to show Belisia, get her opinion.

The thought made her sigh. The Ancient hadn't outright said it, but she'd clearly indicated Maruca and Stina were not supposed to leave the camp.

But Maruca didn't regret it. She'd saved a life—a human life—and the success gave her hope that she could do it again, and again, and again, until the whole species was safe.

It was a start in the right direction. A start toward progress. Toward rebuilding.

Maruca grinned—she couldn't help it. She didn't care if Belisia threw a fit, or even Fitz for that matter. She had saved a life! The adrenaline kept her from collapsing; she really was tired—she'd been up all night because of Lesedi—and she figured the same applied to the other two girls.

Maruca wasn't familiar enough with the camp to know when they had reached it, but as soon as she took a step between darkness and silence, then firelight and chatter, she felt the last remnant of tension fading from her shoulders. They were safe—for now.

The human gasped beside her, eyes wandering the rows of tents and campfires. Maruca gave her a few moments to soak it all in before nodding toward the center tent.

"Let me introduce you to a friend of mine, if you want. Or you can head back to wherever you're from. The choice is yours."

The girl met Maruca's eyes. They were so shiny Maruca could see her reflection in them—firm, but steady. She looked so much like how her mama had, before the Purities had come.

Maruca's pride was replaced with a deep sadness, and in that moment she understood the human's fear, the hesitation. If she chose to stay, there would be no going back. She wouldn't be the same—she would have to sacrifice a part of herself, as Maruca had sacrificed a part of herself on that day.

But it made them stronger.

Maruca had found a purpose.

As for what the human would find? Maruca didn't know. All she knew was that it would be worth it.

"I understand," she said to the girl, needing to say it out loud. Even if the human left, at least Maruca would know she had done all she could. "You don't have to do this."

The girl broke eye contact and took a deep breath. She was shaking, her voice unsteady, but she managed an, "I want to stay."

Maruca couldn't help smiling. "Good. Your life is never going to be the same."