Tainted Wings

Chap. 13: Kadaj

“I’ve always been jealous of her wings. She always has the freedom to fly away at anytime, get away from her problems.” She takes a deep breath. “I remember, one time I was talking to one of my old friends, and she said she was scared of the sky. It looks so . . . liberating to me though.” She opens her eyes, and reaches upward. “Skylar, your wings, I want them too. It would feel so . . . good.” She looks to me once more. “If you ever see Jayias or Skylar again, can you say hi for me? I haven’t seen them in a while.”

I tried to hold them back for so long, but a tear actually slides down my face. I nod, because I don’t think I can even talk right now. 

“Everything is so wrong right now, I think I’ll be going now, and I’ll be back when everything is right.” Her eyes close one more time, and they don’t open again. She’s not even talking anymore. I start shake her.

“Meela? Meela!? You can’t leave! Not yet!” I shake her more, but she won’t wake up. I stop finally accepting reality. “We’ll never forget you Meela, you really were a good friend.” I weakly get to my feet lifting her up. I have to face the consequences. They can hate me all they want, but they need to know that she’s gone.

I start in the direction in which she came, and I’m determined to find the rest of them, and protect them will all my might.

I’ve been walking for hours and I still haven’t found anyone. I’m starting to get weaker than I already was. I drop to my knees, struggling to hold her off the ground. I only have one other choice.

“Alice! Kiera! Dan! Axel! Leo!” Each one of their names rips my throat raw, but I have to get them to come. “Anyone! Please! Come here!” I keep yelling, but no one comes. I look down as Meela’s lifeless face, “I’m so sorry Meela, I tried my best. I really did. I told you everyone gets hurt because of me.”

“Kadaj?” 

Finally. I think to myself, I turn around and find both Alice and Kiera standing there. Both of their eyes light up at the sight of me, but quickly fades as they discover Meela in my arms.

“Oh no . . . no it can’t be. No, no, no!” Alice drops to her knees in despair, her face hidden in her hands. Speechless, Kiera just brings her hand over her mouth.

“I’m so sorry. I was too late.” I lay her down on the ground and the two of them make their way over. They sit there crying over her, saying how they can’t believe it over and over. I just sit here silent. I don’t want to say anything more and make it worse.

We sit there for a bit, while I listen to them cry. I feel awkward, not being able to do anything, or say anything. They both soon calm down though, and ask me to tell them what happened, so I tell them how Akaito came from nowhere and slain her.

“So you had nothing to do with this?” I look up in disbelief. Kiera still doesn’t seem to trust me. She looks right at me with her blue eyes, she’s dead serious.

“I swear I had nothing to do with it. I was just traveling and she found me, and then next thing I know Akaito popped out of nowhere. He must be following me!” I get up as fast I can and scan the trees above.

“What are you doing?” Alice asks placing a hand on my shoulder.

“Making sure he can’t to either of you if he is following me.” They both look at each other, Alice nods.

“We would appreciate it if you would travel with us, since it’s just us two now.”

“What happen to the guys?” An image flashes in my mind. The face of the president, and I know now that he’s with the guys. Now I know why Akaito is only following me and not the guys, they’re already covered.

“Well, we split up trying to find Skylar.” I start to shake my head.

“No, no, no. This isn’t good.” I start to pace back and forth trying to figure where they could be. One of them could be dead by now.

“What’s the matter?” Alice seemed to be troubled now. She should be, considering the position they’re all in.

“The thing is one of them is a traitor and they’re all in trouble. Who thought of the idea to split up?’

“Seth, he thought we would find her sooner.”

“Who’s Seth?”

“That guy in the black cloak, at least that’s what Skylar told us his name is. He didn’t come out when we last saw you.” I shake my head.

“Well I saw him, and he was lying. What he was really thinking was that it’d be easier to kill you off.” They both look at me in awe, but I meant what I just said. “The guy you know as Seth, really isn’t just a normal Haldrin. He’s the one who creates them.” I pause and let it sink in. “He’s the leader of the whole Haldrin project. The president.” Kiera puts her hand to her mouth again, and Alice looks so pale I think she’s about to pass out. “What was his full name that he gave you?”

“Seth P. Chrior. Why?” I rush around to find a stick, and push away a pile of snow to find some soft dirt. I carve the name in and rearrange them. I successfully spell out Christopher using the letters in his fake name. I was right, he is the President. He just changed the place of the letters in his real name to make up a fake one.

“This is why.” I point to the words in the dirt. Right now neither of them knows the meaning of them. “The first name is the name you guys know him by, the second one is his real name. Doctor Chritopher.”

“Then why did he help them escape? Why is he trying to kill us off?” Alice asks. I think it over for a moment. Maybe there was something he had said before that would let me know, but there was nothing.

“Maybe he helped them knowing it’d be easier to expose of them in the wilderness. And he’s trying to get rid of you, because he knows we can defeat him.” Kiera suggests. 

“Are we really that strong?”

“Not sure. But what I am sure of . . . “ I look at them in the eyes. “He’s worried we just might be. He’s scared of us.”