The Gifters

Chapter 6

Chapter Six

Sage and I see a patch of light at the far end of the vent. We have been crawling through the dark tunnel for hours and the stench is miserable. Dead bones of animals crunch underneath my knees and spiders hang in every corner. I feel like the walls of the vent will cave inward and swallow me up. I am thankful for the sunlight up ahead. Finally, we near the light and see the end of the vent. Sage pushes the grate open and we climb out. 

I inhale the fresh air like I’ve never smelt it before. I am so grateful to be on the ground again. I look up at the sunlight and stretch my ams out wide to feel the warmth of its rays. I give the sun a hug and lie on the viridescent grass. Sage kneels down next to me and picks the petals off an auburn flower. One by one, they slowly float downwards and softly land on the grass. The clouds are pink and the sky is gold. It must be late evening because the sun is starting to set.

“I hate to ruin your moment of peace, but we should get going. We need to form a war plan,” Sage declares.

She’s right, we need to go. I wish I could stay here and lie on the fertile soil for eternity, listening to the birds sing and the bees buzz, but I can’t. The people of Assiduous need me and I can’t let them down. 

I stand up and brush the dirt off my faded blue jeans. Sage gets up and doesn’t bother to run her fingers through her grey hair and brush out the grass. She signals me to follow her and walks toward a tall bush. Sage takes out what looks like a finger tip sized remote control and pushes the black button on it. 

Without warning, the air around me starts to spin and I fly backwards. I land on my back on the dirt and groan. I lay on the ground for a minute or two and slowly stand up. I look over my shoulder and see the Transportation Tube. I cover my face with my hands as I am reminded of the horrible feeling of nausea I experienced.

“No way. I am not going in there again. Not a chance,” I shake my head at Sage.

“Cara, I’m sorry. It’s the only way to return to Assiduous,” Sage apologizes.

“Thanks, that makes me feel a whole lot better,” I say sarcastically.

Finally, I agree to get in the tube for the sake of saving Assiduous. Sage and I aren’t safe here, the security guards are looking for us. If we need a quiet place to form a war plan, we need to return to Assiduous.

Sage hops into the tube and waits for me to join her. I cautiously walk towards the devil mechanism and step inside of it. Before Sage presses the button, a boy maybe a year older than me runs in front of the tube. He has dirty blonde hair, hazel eyes, and a look of desperation on his face.

“Stop, don’t leave! My sister and I want to assist you! Don’t go!”the boy shouts. Behind him, his sister run towards us. She has beautiful blonde hair a little past her shoulders and freckles on her nose. The girl looks like a Greek goddess as she flashes her perfect teeth at me.

“Don’t be afraid, we will help you! We will save you from the guards!” the girl yells to us. 

I am shocked. I don’t what to do. Should we trust the boy and girl or leave without them? They seem desperate to help us. It’s like we are their last hope. I wonder why they want to help us so badly. I realize that this could be a trick and they are merely acting. Although, their desperation seems real. Sage and I will need more fighters in order to win; maybe this is fate. 

“We need to trust them,” I tell Sage. The glass door to the tube slides open and I make my way towards the brother and sister. They each smile and give me a welcoming hug when I greet them. I feel a little better about my decision.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” the girl says.

Afraid of a stranger who can become an obstacle in my path of success, I back away slowly towards the tube. One footstep at a time. I’m almost there when the boy says, “Why are you going back to the tube. Your going to leave me and my sister here for the guards? They will find us and beat us to a pulp.”

His words grab my attention.

“The guards are after you?” I ask.

“Not exactly. They are gathering all the people of Naturistica in the main village. As we speak, they are sending out troops to look for you two. The representatives are afraid you will break the peace of our world if we do not catch you,” the girl informs.

“Why do you want to help us?” I question.

“We feel you are innocent and it’s selfish of Naturistica to not help Assiduous. I’ve heard stories about the accident and how Assiduous is dying. We want to help you restore your world. If it dies, it will mean the death of Earth. We want to minimize the number of deaths by helping you in the war,” the boy confirms.

“Alright, get in the tube. We need to get out of here,” I say.

“I’m Emery and this is my brother Edel. It is an honor to help you.”

Emery and Edel shake my hand and get in the tube. The glass door slides shut and Sage presses a button to start the tube. 

As the tube starts to spin faster and faster, I see two Naturistica guards run around the corner of a building nearby. One of them stops in his tracks and spots us.  “They’re over there!” he shouts and points at us.

They run towards us, but fortunately, it’s too late. We are all knocked to the ground as the tube shoots up into darkness, leaving Naturistica behind.