Flock

Chapter 8

I was afraid to look away from Clark in case she disappeared. I was only fifty percent sure that she wasn't a figment of my imagination so I sipped my tea slowly, the cup never lifting farther than my nose so I could keep her in my sights. I held my teacup in my hands, the warmth seeping in through my fingers. My hands were still trembling slightly, whether with excitement or fear, I wasn't entirely sure. After Clark had disentangled herself from my embrace earlier she had ordered a few people standing around us to prep a room for me.

Then she reached out and took my hand, gave it one firm squeeze and led me back to her quarters with the promise of answers. I haven't received any, and I'm not sure if it's because she doesn't want to tell me, or my arrival is just that surprising to her.

The town was similar to Javink, sooty, dirty, and crowded in the middle. Clark's residence was on the other side of the town, and as we wandered farther away from the town square we saw fewer people. But the people we did pass paused in whatever they were doing and saluted Clark as we passed.

Kiliyan had vanished the moment I took my eyes off him. When I asked Clark she just waved her hand, "He's been away too long, he has other things to attend to."

Her apartment here was the same size as my flat in Javink, except it was much nicer. Her bed was partitioned off from the room by a foldable wall, and it didn't look like it was on the floor or moth-eaten. The hearth was burning, a small fire —not enough to stifle the room, but pleasant.

There were maps tacked up on every available wall surface, and a large square wooden table sat in the very center of the room covered in papers that Clark was currently rummaging through. Her hands were deft as she sifted through page after page before she selected one, and sighed. She stared at the sheet, her mouth a thin line.

I took another slow sip.

Clark turned toward the walls, scanning them quickly as she turned from one map to another. Finally, she turned to look at me. "Come here, Ollie," she gestured for me to stand next to her. I set my teacup down gently and took my time walking over to her. She didn't rush me. She only watched me in silence.

When I was standing in front of her she smiled. It wasn't a happy smile. Her mouth turned down, "I'm sorry."

"For what?" I asked. Her comment startled me. I didn't understand why she would be apologizing. I know why she had left Javink—I just hadn't known she survived her escape.

"For leaving," she said. She handed me the sheet of paper in her hand. It was dated at the top; 4 July, 75. It was the day she had left Javink; left Oswald.

"You had to," I shrugged. "They would have killed you on the spot."

She nodded. "But perhaps my death would have encouraged them to rebel."

I snorted. "You're kidding right?" I crossed my arms across my chest and cocked my head. Clark seemed tired, which I thought was just because she was fifteen years older than when I last saw her but there was a shadow behind her eyes. I looked down at the paper in my hand again. It was a letter to a person named, Illia. There were some smudged letters on the page as if the person who was writing it had been crying. The scattered blurs were random, unevenly spaced, and sloppy so they couldn't have been put there purposefully.

"What is this?"

"It was a letter written to the First Colony. Their leader, Illia, is a Kryjia but she is known to have sympathy for the human population. It's rumored that she even prefers their company over her own race. That letter was sent to her by the previous mayor of Javink."

"If he wrote her a letter, then how come you have it?"

"It never got to her," Clark responded. I couldn't help the eye roll.

"I see that. Why not? How did you get it?"

"I intercepted the letter."

I glanced down at the letter, it was a call for help from Javink. The mayor, Klaude, was pleading with Illia to send aid. Clark must have seen the surprised horror on my face because she hurried to fill in the blanks that were popping up in my mind.

"I know what it looks like, but that's not why I intercepted the letter. If I thought that Klaude was being honest in his request I wouldn't have stepped in, but I did. It's the reason I was forced to leave—Klaude's agent was bragging in the pub. Kept talking about a war coming, that humans needed to make sure they were siding with the right leaders or they may end up dead."

Clark started pacing the room, her hands twisting as she walked.

"Klaude was planning a massacre—the Council was working with Klaude to overthrow Illia. They weren't happy that she was treating us as equals. A quick and bloody war would rid them of Illia's followers and would get rid of a bunch of able-bodied humans who were too eager to please them."

"That doesn't make sense though," I said. "Why would any human side with the Kriyjia?"

"People do a lot for greed, Ollie."

I didn't respond right away. I stared down at the letter in my hands and back up at Clark.

"So is this Illia's camp?"

"No, it's mine."

"Have you gotten in contact with Ilia? Is she helping you? Why didn't anyone come back to Javink to help us?"

I knew the questions were spilling out of my mouth in a torrent, but I couldn't stop them. My head was spinning and I hadn't even begun asking about the Kriyfem in my pocket, or Kiliyan, or the dead Kriyjia male I left in shattered pieces back home. I rubbed my temples.

"I met her once, when I first left Javink to warn her. She didn't believe me at first. She thought I was trying to stir up trouble for her, but she learned pretty quickly that I wasn't some pot-stirrer. She took a little too long to trust me, though." Clark's tone was grim, and her mouth pressed into a thin line before she continued. "The First Colony was destroyed not long after I left Javink, not even a whole year. The Council took over the First Colony; as far as I know Illia was imprisioned—possibly even killed. Once our only potential ally was taken out, I had to regroup.

"I found this place on accident. I was wandering the tunnels back from the First Colony. I knew I couldn't go back to Javink, but I didn't know where else I could have gone. Klaude didn't last long in power, so I may have been able to sneak back in but I couldn't risk that. Not for myself, or the town, or even you and Bogan."

"Does he know you're alive?"

"No, and he can't know. I've been watching Javink, and you. It's why Kiliyan was there to help you when you needed it. As careful as you thought you were being, Kiliyan wasn't the only Kriyjia to notice that you could touch the Kriyfem, or that you were experimenting with it."

I was so careful when I was experimenting, made sure the blinds were closed, even moved to the edge of the city so less eyes were even looking at me.

"How did you know Kiliyan would find me?"

"Because I assigned him the task. It's the only reason he would have revealed himself and brought you here."

"So he brought me here to protect me?"

Clark picked up her tea, took an unsatisfied sip and put it back down. "Not quite—you are very unique Ollie. We aren't sure what your origins are but you can touch the Krifyem and not die. At first, we suspected that you might be part Kriyjia, it has happened once or twice; but based on your appearance it seems less and less likely."

"Then why can I touch the Kriyfem?"

"We don't know, so not only did we bring you here for your protection, but possibly for the protection of others. We're hoping you can help us in our rebellion."

The face of the male Kriyjia flashed in my mind. I wasn't brought here because I was special. I was brought here because I was dangerous. And Clark wanted to wield me before the Kriyjia could.