We crawl out of the manhole in the ground, the top made of fiberglass and chrome. The trees are lush with leaves, birds chirping as if we are not here. The forest is tranquil, even with the Bloods hidden in plain sight, living just a few feet under the dirt. Transports wait for us. That is what Auryn meant? By my blood, how did they get this? The transport is sleek like I remember them to be, the steel sculpted and cut to perfection. The birdbody trembles with power, windows bulletproof, of course. A big cage is what it is. Someone could burn alive inside, and still, the fire would not escape. The inside can fit up to eight people, perfect for the amount of people going. They're already inside, sliding bullets into their chambers with a resonating click. The door is open for me and Jaxon. I climb inside. I'm given a rifle, and adrenaline electrocutes my blood. There is no time for fear anymore, but focus. I've been on missions harder than this. This should be as easy as a hot knife slicing through butter. I'm shocked to see that my magazine is already full. Surely, they don't trust me enough to give me a loaded gun. I could easily shoot them all when we get there, and run. I'm glad no one can read my mind. Don't test them, Ilvera.
Jaxon doesn't fidget, and neither do the rest of them. But, I do. My fingers twitch as I bounce my leg, and Jaxon notices. He braces his leg against mine so I'll stop. "That's driving me crazy," he mutters, looking out of one of the windows. Olivia beams at me, winking. "You've got this girl. I trust you." Encouraging but not enough. The transport takes a left, then a right, and the map appears in my head. Auryn and her brother, Brennon, share a food packet, devouring what's inside. This is just another day for them, another mission. I've gotten used to the comfort of the castle, not being in imminent danger every day. They choose this, Ilvera. They put themselves under a bounty and now there's no going back. "You know, there were healthier ways to make a change. You guys didn't have to be put under a terrorist label." Six eyes stare back at me, some confused, some irritated. "What were we supposed to do? Fill out a petition to make our world equal again. Hey, Oxuris, just wanted to let you know that we don't think your laws are right. Please don't slaughter us for saying so," Auryn snaps. I straighten at her tone, grinding my teeth together. "I would have understood." She places her rifle on the ground, resting her elbows on her knees. Her gray eyes brew a storm with her irritation. "You out of all people know what happens if someone speaks against your empire. They end up tortured and dead," she states. Jaxon shifts away from me, crossing his arms over his chest like a child. "I have the power to keep you guys alive if it came down to it." I lie. I know for a fact that if the Bloods ended up on our doorstep, asking for change, they all would be killed on the steps. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, princess," Jaxon states. He clenches his fists, and I scowl, staring at the metal floor beneath me. He's such a child.
The transport rolls to a smooth stop and Auryn snaps into action. "Move out," she barks. We file out one by one, and my boots land on a red sewer grate. Brennon and Jaxon get to work removing the grate, pulling on it with all their force. It complies, screeching against the concrete surrounding the drain as it lifts. I'm the first down the ladder, metal prongs digging into my palms with rocky ridges. Darkness envelopes me, and I look up through the opening to the world above me. Auryn is next, followed by Brennon, Jaxon, Olivia, and James. Auryn adjusts the strap across her chest, and the duffel bag on her back shifts with it. "Let's go, princess. We don't have all day," Brennon states. I fight the urge to roll my eyes, treading forward carefully. My fingers run across the stone, footsteps echoing in the silence. Water flows beneath my shoes, in a small stream towards what should be a canal. There are two ways we can move, forward, to the ocean, or left, towards the inside of the city, where we are headed. I turn left. In these underground pathways, it's eerily quiet, the only sound audible are our heavy breaths and combat boots. "I've been down here once," I state, trying to calm them with a story. They're silent, waiting for me to continue. I can feel their tension, their fear. Even the bravest of soldiers should feel some fear. That fear can either keep you alive, or it will kill you. "My brother and I were on a mission, and our father forced us to go down here, to fix the water plug before the sewers flooded and caused the ocean levels to rise. He said if we didn't succeed, he would lock us down here, and drown with the rest of the city." My hand tightens around my rifle, and my heart clenches at the memory. "It did end up bursting. Blayne, my brother, and I almost drowned that day. I was so afraid. But, the fear slowly led to anger. I was furious that my father sent us down there. If we died, it would be on him," I continue, breathing heavily. "I was twelve. Blayne was fifteen. We survived because we were desperate." Auryn is next to me now, walking in line with me. Her face is solemn, angry... for me. "I'm sorry," she says quietly. I shrug, a smile growing on my face. "It's alright. Now he and I joke about it, about our faces when we were so close to death, the things we said. We've been through worse." Rats scurry across my boots and I swallow to keep the bile down my throat. Jaxon kicks some of them away, and James isn't strong enough to hold in his vomit. I look away. "You'll get used to the stench. It's not that bad once you're down here for a while." Brennon holds his hand over his nose, trying his best not to inhale. I remember the day we left the sewers. We'd been trapped for hours, my blonde hair a dirty gold from the dirt and the urine. My brother and I have been through so much together. I don't know how to live without Blayne.
The light shines through the new grate, and I hear voices overhead. "We're here," I whisper. I place a finger on my lips to silence the group, pointing overhead to the feet stepping over us. Auryn takes her place as the leader she is, climbing up the prongs and peering through the holes to see. She ushers us upward, moving the grate with her hands. Funny, two strong men struggled to lift one of these grates but Auryn did it all on her own. She pushes it slowly, peaking her head over the edge before climbing out completely. I follow and so do the rest. We end up in the supply room immediately. Anyone can peer through the gate, and catch us. I push the thought away. Me and Jax position our guns through a space in the shelf, searching for suspicious Sentinels. He narrows his eyes, focused on the task at hand. I admire his ability to push everything aside and snap into action. The rest of them ransack the supply room, grabbing ammo boxes, food packets, wrap blankets, and anything they might need. They're quiet, the Bloods behind me, hasty as they shove necessities into their duffles. "Three minutes. Speed it up." A bead of sweat rolls down my spine, and I tighten my grip on the rifle. Jaxon adjusts his mask, and my breath is ragged through my own.
They gave a scrap to me so that it would be harder to recognize me. My hair should be identification enough if they see me on the cameras because so far, I'm the only person I know with bright green eyes and snow blonde hair. It's pulled into a braid, thanks to Olivia. My heart tightens at the thought of her behind me, and I look back, to see if she's alright. She's focused as well, grabbing as much as she can, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration. "Hey. Hey!" A woman Sentinel points her gun at us, and I sneak under the bottom of the shelf, sliding under and hiding behind the cover of other shelves. She seems to only notice Jaxon and the rest of the Bloods. The wall next to the door works as a great hiding spot. I reach through the gate, grab her armor, and pull. Her head hits the gate door with a slam, and she drops unconscious. "I could have just shot her," Jaxon says. My fists clench, and I return to my previous position. "No killing," I spit. His eyes darken with annoyance, and I fume, wiping my forehead roughly. "Only a matter of time before they see her on the ground," I inform, glancing back at the rebels. They only nod, and I watch as the duffles slowly bulge with items. What have I become? I'm robbing my own military compound.
Shots ring out through the gate separating us from them and I crouch, bullets pinging off the metal crate by my head. "Move out now!" Auryn yells. She jumps through the opening of the sewer drain, not bothering to take the ladder. She rolls and soon follows her brother. We run like the rats that are in the drain, and I take the lead once I get underground. I push my legs past the burn, used to the strain on my muscles. "Falcon come in! Dincers at the vantage point now! We've been seen!" Auryn yells into the walkie-talkie, cursing when no one answers her. "If they're not there, this is going to get a whole lot harder," I yell back. She clips the walkie back onto her belt. "Thanks for stating the obvious, princess. Shit!" She rips the cloth from her face, her chest heaving with exertion. Jaxon presses his hand against the small of my back. "Faster, they're following us!" He booms. I close my eyes. We have to succeed. The familiar passageway appears on my right and I speed through it, my hands already gripping the prongs. A small purr rumbles above and I cry out in relief. "The transport's here!" I yell back. I jump into the transport, settling into my seat. One, two, three, four, five, six, I count as their bodies follow behind me. "Go!" We yell in unison, and the transport takes off with incredible speed.
James grins at our success, spitting at the bottom of the transport. "Take that, you pigs!" I frown, trying to calm my fast breaths. Once again, all I hear are our breaths. "James do not celebrate. We're not safe yet," Auryn states, peering through the back window to see if we're being followed. I do the same. "They're not going to follow. They didn't have enough time," I say. Auryn glances at me, a cold stare. "You don't know that," she murmurs. The tree line appears, and my hands tremble with anticipation. We took a detour, in case they did decide to follow us. By my blood, I'm glad they didn't. Not because they would capture us, but because I don't know what the Bloods would do if they did. Would they shoot to kill? My heart drops in horror. Gray smoke whisps above the trees, and fumes of fire lick at the sky. No, my mind whispers.
Jaxon is the first on the run, and I follow him, chasing after the danger. We run towards the Hideaway, and my bottom lip trembles. This was me. This was for me. "Abigail!" Jaxon shouts, and her head snaps in our direction. I search through the crowd, looking at the survivors covered in soot and grime. People work on dragging people out of the manhole and I press the cloth against my face to keep the smoke from assaulting my lungs. "Liam. Where's Liam?!" I shout. The blood drains from Jaxon's face and I don't hesitate. It's stupid, it's ridiculous, but I don't care. I run from the cries, and the sobs, and jump down the manhole, tumbling onto the stone floor. I suck in a breath, the sharp pain shooting up my leg making it hard to breathe. Fire burns down the hallway, the flames casting shadows across the corridor. The lights no longer work, and I head towards the only place I know that smart boy would go. My feet race towards the mess hall, fighting the urge to turn around and leave. I can't leave Liam. I can't. What kind of person would that make me?
Shock stills in my core, watching the scene in front of me. The ceiling is collapsing in on itself, and on the far side of the mess hall, the right metal stairway has melted away. This couldn't have been a normal fire. They were bombed, and there was an explosion. "Liam!" I shout, coughing smoke out of my lungs. "Ilvera," his little voice screams. He's curled up in a corner on the second floor, looking around him in terror. I cry out in relief, running after the left stairwell as fast as my legs will allow. My feet stumble, fear assaulting my senses. My mind chants, he's so close, he's right there, he's so close, he's right there. Liam lets out a high-pitched scream, the ceiling between me and him falling into a heap of debris and dust. Hot metal rods poke through the concrete, long nails, things that can puncture if you give it the chance to. My hope becomes a dying, flickering flame, small but no longer burning hot. I can't get to him. All I want to do is wash his fear away, to take him away from all of this. "No. No." Jaxon skids to a stop at my side, fear making him look like a child. I see the resemblance between the man and the boy. They look the same, Jaxon's face becoming Liam's, their features drowning in similar terror. "Ilvera," he says slowly. His throat bobs and his face is set in lines of sadness, of longing. "You don't want to see it," he whispers, his voice trembling with sorrow. I shake my head, pointing at the block of stone, unable to form words. "Help him! Just-. Ju-. NO! NO, LET ME GO!" I screech, thrashing in Jax's arms, bound around my waist, pulling me away from him. My fingers wrap around the metal rail, fighting against the man dragging me away.
My scream doesn't sound like my own, my eyes don't feel like my own. The ceiling collapses, and Liam is gone with a sickening squelch. Blood blends with the silver metal, and his arm hangs over the ledge of the catwalk. My legs fall beneath me and I can't hear, I can't hear, I can't hear anything. Maybe this is all a dream and I will wake up in the mess hall with Olivia and Veronica, listening to them tell stories. I sob, my chest shaking with pain. Jax's mouth moves but that's all I see, his lips moving. My cheeks are wet with tears. He can't be gone. How can he just die, like that, in front of me? A face emerges from the darkness of the mess hall, lights flickering above her. Ivy. She runs for me, and Jaxon's leg gets caught under a steel beam. He crashes to the ground, and I'm sucked back into reality.
I roll away from where she digs a knife into the ground, the point chipping at the stone. "Ivy, don't do this!" I yell. She snarls, lunging after me again. "Ivy!" Jaxon yells. He pulls himself towards me as best as he can, and I realize he got rid of his burden, the beam thrown to the side. She wraps her arms around my neck, and I choke under her crushing grip. Her features turn into a monstrous evil, glaring at me with murderous intent. I bring my knee up into her spine, and she cries out but doesn't let go. Black edges at my vision, and I cough, attempting to dig my fingers into her eyes. I don't escape her grip in time. "You should have died, royal bitch." A sharp pain stabs at my side and she bolts for the doorway, but Jaxon shoots her three times, the pistol in his hand smoking from the barrel. One shot to her back, one to her waist, one to her head. She drops, and I stare with wide eyes. The hilt of the knife in my side is stained with my blood, and I stand with watery eyes. "Come on," Jaxon growls in my ear, lifting my arm around his shoulders and taking most of my weight. "We have to move, or we're going down with the rest of this shithole," he says quickly, limping up another flight of steps toward the exit. We're going to make it.
We collapse once we reach the outside of the Hideaway, the grass tickling my cheek. We hack away, the smoke clogging our ability to breathe. Jax and I cough unceasingly, with fire and soot in our lungs, poisoning us from the inside. Abigail grabs Jaxon's arm. "Liam?" Her eyes seem to betray her feelings as if she somehow knows he didn't make it. My side throbs as my wound oozes blood, but I leave the knife there, to keep from bleeding out. Jaxon groans, trying to contain sobs of his own as a string of spit hits the ground below him. "Capturing targets," a muffled voice says. Abigail's eyes widen. "Move out! They've found us!" Jaxon must have grabbed the Sentinel's walkie-talkie while she was unconscious. They run deeper into the forest. There's only one way that leads. They're headed towards the ocean. "Get up!" Jaxon yells. I do as he says, but we don't go the way the rest of the Bloods go. "We're leaving them! Where are you going?" He gives me no answer, limping north, towards the city. "I have a plan. You have to trust me. There's no time for us to get to where they're going. We have to go somewhere else." Sentinel sirens erupt from behind us, the red and white lights flashing near where the Hideaway remains. "Jaxon, you're wanted and my country wants me back. Do you know what this means?" He grunts, pushing us faster, farther, the both of us trading each other's body weight to move as fast as we can. He looks at me momentarily, the gravity of what we've done swimming in his eyes. "We're gonna be on the run," he says hastily.
The deeper into the city we get, the quieter the sirens get. We've entered a neighborhood, called Oceanside. Where are we going? Houses of white and icy blue surround us on either side and he turns right on a road, our chests heaving with exhaustion. The cul de sac appears around the corner, and he hustles towards one of the houses. He pounds on the door. Silence follows, and he pounds harder. "Shit," he mutters. I hear footsteps before he does, only because he's spitting curse words under his breath. "Wait. Wait, Jax someone's coming," I say breathlessly. The footsteps are heavy, but light at the same time. "Tashi, open the door, dammit." The door swings open, and the man standing before me has black hair and dark brown eyes. A dragon tattoo runs down his forearm, stopping at his wrist. "Jaxon? What the hell are you doing, man? Get inside." We rush inside, the both of us collapsing against the floor.
Grief is a taciturn darkness, approaching when you least expect it. It grabs my throat now, pushing out sobs that I want to keep inside of me. My hand trembles against the knob of the knife lodged in my side and I breathe out shakily. There's a stairwell, made of white planks of wood, and an oak railing. Flowers with blue lilies decorate the wallpaper, and if you keep walking, you'll end up in a parlor, decorated with a dark blue bookshelf, stacked with books, magazines, and seashells. On the right of the corridor leading to the lounge room, is a kitchen. "Take this, Ilvera." Jaxon offers me a pill, and I take it. Pain pill, I guess. He yanks the knife out, and I yell in pain. "What the hell?!" I slap his arm, sucking in a breath through gritted teeth. "Do you have a med kit?" I ask the man, Tashi. He grins at me, his mustache and goatee moving with it. "You're not going to need it," he states. My eyebrows furrow and I watch as the wound in my side heals within a minute. Eyes wide, I watch them share a grave look, glancing at me. "What is that? What'd you give me?" Jaxon waits for something, and so does Tashi. "When is it going to kick in," Jaxon asks. Tashi shrugs. "Maybe she just doesn't get abilities. Happens to some people." Abilities? Jaxon nods. "Ilvera, it's a long story. A story I don't want to tell." Tashi wrinkles his nose in disagreement. "I think you should, Jax. It's pretty life-changing." Jaxon makes a face. "My little brother just died. Can you give me a moment? At least she's alive." Tashi's grin drops. "Liam is dead?" Tashi asks in a hoarse whisper. I shut my eyes to shut them out, to shut out this conversation. The tears on my cheek begin to dry, but my body decides to make up for it, providing new tears to replace the old.
Everything is smudged, the world warping around me and I can't get this stupid ringing out of my ears. They converse in hushed voices in the living room, but I haven't moved, no matter how much they've tried to make me stand. The scene keeps replaying in my head, like a repeating vinyl record. My brain keeps pressing the rewind button. He's so close, he's right there. "It was your Empire," Jaxon says quietly, the world quiet and still around us. The trees sway in the breeze of the ocean winds outside, and I watch the leaves float to the left and right. My eyes pop out of my skull. "Do not blame him on me." His eyes skim over my face, but he doesn't look angry, only exhausted. "If they all die, it'll be on you. His death is on you too. Your a woman, Ilvera. If you had just let your sister die after she was shot, you would have been Queen. You could have stopped this." I stand on wobbly legs, pointing a finger at his chest. "Do not blame that little boy's death on me," I warn, my bottom lip trembling. He pushes my hand away, his chest heaving with fury. "That boy had my heart, and you know he did," I spit. Jaxon hits the wall by my head and I flinch. "That boy was my brother," he growls, turning on his heels and stomping up the stairs. I jump when a door slams upstairs. My eyes search desperately for a pager, and I sigh with relief when I find Jaxon's on the floor across from me. Fury burns inside me. 1-1-4. My fingers fumble with the tiny buttons. Fine. I'm the enemy? Fine. I dial the number and it rings. I'm going home.