My eyes flew open. I saw nothing but splashes of sky blue and white for a second, then I blinked. Was I in Heaven?
No, the sounds of shrieks and clacks still ebbed on, but were softer now. The domed ceiling still loomed far above, the hatch of the escape pod now dark with...stars and darkness. My mind floated in clouds for a moment and I felt a lightening in my chest, as if some burden were now lifted that I hadn't realized I'd been holding. My skin tingled, kissed by a soft hum. I could sense people around me. Opening my lids was like peeling open the skin of a banana; I felt sticky with dirt and sweat, particles of rust and slime crusting my skin with a layer of...otherness. My brain tracked all of my senses tenfold now, compared to before, making me panic for an instant. It came at me in a wall of sound, feeling, taste of blood and sweat, smells of death and emotion...
I turned my head. Lirah was there, but her bare back was to me as she defended against the little gremlin creatures. The mouth spines that had attacked us the first time were now embedded into the nearby wall. They swiped their tentacle arms at her legs and stomach, but she somehow kept them at bay by keeping her two forefingers and middle fingers to her temples. There were five of them, all in a huddle of spindly black limbs and wiry, fuzzy bodies.
And there was Rowan, two daggers cutting the air as he killed two Sharves. The first by a blade to the forehead, and the second ended up armless and then ran through in the ribs. To my left was Jace. I don't think he had noticed my presence here yet, but he moved in a whirlwind of graceful strikes and parries. A corona of energy enveloped him, a gaseous mixture of green and gray that kept anything from attacking him from behind.
My heartbeat filled my head. It was quickening and slowing in irregular intervals. I couldn't decide if I was angry or tired or afraid. The tingling in my skin was crawling to my finger tips as I moved to my hands and knees, then pushed to my feet. This getting knocked down every five minutes was getting really old. I decided I was irritated. There. A sort of mean satisfaction mixed with it as I looked on the fighting that seethed around us all. There were more Morfilian than Sharve, thank God, but there were plenty on the ground as well. Dead. I was the observer looking through an imaginary glass window at a specimen.
My hands lifted of their own accord. White sparkles of light plumed around the tips. I cocked my head. How interesting. A bird-like curiosity got me to put my hands in front of me, palms facing each other. I thought of the Sharves, pinning them down like ants, so that they would just stop. They all froze in place. The Morfilians that had been fighting them froze also, but with shock instead of force. I smiled. Then I clapped my hands together.
All of the Sharves were swept to the center of the spacious hall, bundled into a group of their own with a resounding squeal as multiple wet feet were dragged. The Morfilians backed up, their eyes flying around. They figured it out real quick. in the corner of my eye, I saw Jace's pale form slowly approach, but he would break my concentration if I looked at him. I felt a familiar tightening in my chest, the sitting energy waiting impatiently for a purpose.
Change, I thought. My inner self nodded with approval, but my real consciousness was an observer. It sat on the sidelines as it watched from it's high vantage point, analyzing and coldly learning with note taking.
I lifted my hands in a quick flick, like an aggressive prayer. The Sharve bodies jerked, spasming and shrieking. Someone to my back stiffened. I sensed it, could smell the surprise and recognition of what I was doing. There must have been at least a hundred of the disfigured aliens left writhing in the group, combined with their little black minions. All of the features distorted, slowly morphing into something else. The gray skin veined through with dark red was melting into something different, patches of hair sprouting from their pores. The gremlins, already having been fuzzy, just grew it longer as the tentacles shortened and thickened.
Their features stubbed out, then elongated into the different colored furs of all textures. It took all of a minute, but when it finished, the Morfilian crowd was in utter silence. A hundred dogs stood where the Sharve had been; they were of various breeds and shades. For a few breaths, they were still and shocked, then they began to bark and squirm, some even rolling to their backs. Whines and growls filled the empty space, bouncing off of the curved edges of the room.
"Skyler," someone said behind me. I turned to find a blond woman with extraordinary violet eyes. She was beautiful. "Please don't do that again in front of anyone."
"I don't know who you are," I replied flatly. But I knew she was the one who had known what I was doing. She flipped a small strand of hair over her shoulder in a familiar gesture that itched at me.
"I'm your mother," she said almost inaudibly. The Morfilans around us were slowly crowding around me, whispering and chatting among themselves. Some had their hands to cover their mouths in surprise. But this woman in front of me was not my mother. And I didn't know why she'd tell me not to do what I'd done again; I didn't even know what I did. Or how. It had just happened. She saw the doubt in my eyes.
"I am. Trust me for now, and I will show you later. We must get out of here. Right now." She took my arm as Jace made it to my side. He didn't hug me or kiss me, but took my other arm. My skin zinged with awareness where our skin met, and I bit my lip. The yearning to do more ate at me.
"Where are we going?" I asked. My voice shook. My knees were weak, and my body felt like a wrung towel.
"Away," Jace murmured. Jaric stood at the edge of the gathering, arms clasped behind his back. His bright eyes studied me and then looked at Jace with a knowing that made me question if I liked him. He strode ahead of us as we neared. He cleared a path for us with his arms, the other Morfilians seeming to know who he was. Someone of some importance apparently, Jace's second. Rowan and Rayne began behind us, then Jaden. He was covered in blood. I scanned him for any injuries, but found that it was mostly enemy blood. I caught the burning glare that Jace threw his way.
"Where are we going?" I asked to distract him.
"Away," Jace said curtly. "I need to clear you to go home." He paused right behind me and half turned back to the crowd that faced us. In the free hand that didn't grip my arm was a small black remote looking object. He pressed the button. A cloud of something gaseous and white began to pour into the space we'd fought in. Then He turned back and pulled me along.
"Clear me?" I echoed as we entered the tunnel my captive group had come through. I couldn't help but glance back at the carnage and aliens behind us, who suddenly fell quiet as the gas reached them. "Of what?"
"The Council needs to know why we sent the First General's troops into battle. It is kind of a big deal," Jaric remarked with dark humor. "Especially since a good number were injured or killed. The remaining numbers will follow."
"And they saw you do what you did," Jace added quietly. "It has changed things. We can only hope the gas helps."
Jaric was silent, but the blond woman sucked in a breath. Her arm tightened. Lirah trailed our little group in silence. I suspected, with the sadness I had felt earlier, that she was trying to deal with the loss of time and loved ones still. Over three thousand years of time lost was...unthinkable. I wanted to comfort her, but from what I was hearing and sensing, I was in some sort of trouble myself.
"So...what does this mean?" My voice echoed on the damp walls.
"You are going to our planet," Rowan said. I jumped at hearing him speak for the first time. "You will go to trial, most likely, and be judged. If they find out anything, that is."
The meaning was clear. If anyone told them about what I did, what I was, and the...Mingling between Jace and I... I zipped my lips closed. I ticked off many things that could be seen as illegal to them, the Forbidden Law coming into effect with even my birth. I wanted to squirm. I would essentially be put under a microscope and be analyzed, then discarded like-
"We are almost there," Jaric said. Ahead was a glimmer of light that barely became apparent the closer we got to it. I found out why when we cleared the doorway; a glass pane was set into the opposite wall of the little metal chamber that preceded a dark hallway. I skidded to a stop, yanking my arms free from Jace and the blond alien.
"Do I have any choice in this? At all? I'm not one of you."
"Yes you are," Lirah said softly. "But you are different."
Jace turned to me fully, putting his hands on my shoulders. He lowered his eyes to mine and studied my face. "You have the choice, but if you go back to Earth without seeing them first, you will continue to be hunted forever. Forever is a long time."
Forever? I didn't have that long. I was still...half human. That would take part in my biology as well, right? My stomach dropped. Did I want to live forever? All important questions. I swallowed. If they found out what I was, they would hunt me forever anyway. But then a random question popped out of my mouth, probably a protective mechanism to divert the attention away from me. "Are you two related?" I looked at LIrah and then at Jace.
They glanced at each other, then caught. Then quickly analyzed each others features before looking away. Lirah had her arms crossed over her bare chest, and it seemed the blond woman with odd violet eyes noticed this at the same time. She took off her long sweater and offered it to the naked alien before stepping back again.
"Thank you," Lirah murmured, wrapping the fabric as tight as possible around herself. Then she looked at me and nodded. "Yes, we are related somehow. I do not know how far it goes, though."
Jace sighed. "When are you from?"
I stared at him with my mouth popping open. "You know that she's from a different time?"
He nodded, mouth set in a grim line. "It is well known that the Sharve capture various organisms from planets and keep them as specimens to snack on later. It is a ghastly practice they have always done. Think of it as fermenting your food. Instead of taking their energy of course, but who knows which is a better fate."
In horror, I stared at Lirah. "Do you remember all of what they did to you? Are you still...normal?"
She looked at the floor, glowing eyes dull and subdued. Her hair was stringy around her neck, still sticky with goo residue. "I'd rather not." But then she looked up at Jace again, shifting from one foot to another. Such a human gesture. "She says over three thousand years ago."
Jace nodded with thinning lips and turned away on a heel. "We must go." But then he stopped, back going ramrod straight. He looked to Jaric, who looked back quizzically. Their black robes were matching, with the exception of symbols and colors that were worked into Jaric's. They seemed to speak without words, coming to an agreement with their eyes. Jace turned to me and Lirah, carefully peering at Lirah, then at the blond woman.
"What is it?" she asked. She tapped her foot, also a familiar movement. Maybe she was my mother. Even her posture, now that I was watching for it, was so much like my mom's when she got into an irritated, thoughtful mood.
"We could say that she-" he gestured to Lirah "-is the one we were to rescue. That she is to be the one they question and look over..."
"No!" I blurted louder than was necessary. "No, she's innocent. And she wasn't the one seen doing...whatever it was I did."
Jaric nodded in agreement. "She is correct, Jaceannel. One of the others will speak of what happened and Skyler would be found, somehow some way. Only time will tell with the memory gas."
Jace gritted his teeth and angrily swept back some loose hair. "The Council does not know which one is the girl we were coming for. We could say Lirah is the one, and say Skyler was just an Earth Bound. A full blood born there, a native. Or a descendent even, that would be normal also. Not a half blood. It would make more sense if Lirah is related to me that I would want to save her."
Jaric crossed his arms over his chest. His eyes reflected the little light that entered the metallic room. The Morfilian combatants were catching up with us. Their loud, pounding footfalls were in perfect unison, approaching to join us in whatever we were leaving in. Then he spoke up.
"We can try that. And say that the Sharve influenced what was seen by gas means. They have been known to do such barbaric things during battle, and it would not raise suspicion."
Jace and the blond woman nodded eagerly. I was still uncomfortable. "What would that mean for me?"
Jaric shrugged. "That you must still come with us, but lay low and show no more of that ability of yours. Act...weak. Normal humans with Morfilian blood descended from generations do not pack such a punch as what you did, so you need to show the bare minimum of what you can do." But then he looked at me closer, eyes scanning down my face and right arm, stopping on my eyes. "But you have those markings. And the eyes. They are the eyes of the king."
Jace and the blond woman stiffened. I just sucked in a deep breath, because that was a problem. I hadn't thought of it, and neither did Jace apparently. "How did you get those, anyway?" Jaric continued. I assumed he referred to the markings.
"I don't know," I replied truthfully. "I was cut by a Sharve back on Earth, and they were stitched up. But then I was taken and...Changed. And I guess this happened." I gestured to my face. I still hadn't seen it, and was sure I looked like a freak of nature no matter how light they were.
"We must keep moving. They are in hearing range," Jace spoke up. He hooked his arm in mine again, and we moved toward the hall. "We will continue this discussion on the ship," he whispered. "You look as beautiful as ever, do not worry Skyler. I am glad you are-alright." He breathed out, regaining his composure. I squeezed my arm around his, blood flooding my cheeks as I felt...my mother? stiffen again.
But then I noticed that Jaric didn't react. I suspected he knew more than he let on. The darkness of the hallway we were entering was total, even more so than the previous hall. I couldn't see an inch in front of me. I pondered how much they had let him in on. Obviously everything. Were the others going to the alien planet also? After all, it was technically their home. I slouched my shoulders, a mental tiredness erasing the fire that had driven me earlier.
I guess I would find out soon enough.
***********************************
Jace's POV
We got to the battle ship in record time. The army had found an alternate route to the hatch, half milling about the first ship and the rest filling the other.
I could not forget the new look to Skyler. It pricked at my control; what had they done to her? It took...an intense trigger to initiate the full Change in a half blood. If it was left alone and not catalyzed, it would happen eventually on its own, but the individual would most likely be in their late twenties. The physical pains Skyler had been experiencing were as expected, and would have lasted for a long time. But this... And now the permanent markers of where the Sharve had Marked her. The reminder of when I was not there for her, not quick enough. It did not help that I was unable to touch her, to speak to her the way I wanted to, in front of my people and in the disregard of the Law.
I kept silent as we congregated in the battle room. The long table was full of a mix of human and Morfilian cuisine: pizza, braised chicken and vegetables, meat pies... I caught Skyler openly staring at the Morfilian options. They ranged in bright colors and shapes. She poked at a juav, wrinkling her nose at the wrinkled, florescent purple hue to the skin of the native Morfilian fruit. Then she moved onto a burlch. It looked more...human...and she added it to her plate.
"It's a Morfilian pastry," I commented in her ear. She shivered and smiled up at me. Her eyes were much more refined now: they were the true shape of a leaf, the hazel changing and swirling in a constant, soft mixing of color. I was momentarily mesmerized. I had never seen such a feature on anything before. Even her mother's eyes, though I had not seen them without the influence of the Elixir, were more subdued. Like the whisking of paint. Not quite blended, but mingled shades nevertheless. Jaric had been correct-they were exact replicas of our king's. This would be a problem if any of our people saw them closely.
She shrugged shyly, placing a piece of pizza next to the burlch. "I'll try it then. Can't be too weird, right?"
Now I grinned. "You will soon see."
She elbowed me in the ribs, and I could not help but laugh. The foreboding was clear. I could see her eyeing the piece of food like it might change into a spider. In the corner of my eye, I saw Jaric watching closely. I sobered.
"Are you hungry?" I asked her. She had been gone a long time, after all.
She thought about it. The trademark wrinkle between her brows appeared, and my heart flipped. She was still Skyler. My Skyler. "I don't really know, actually. I don't even know how long I was gone, but...after what they were doing to me, and changing..."
When she trailed off, I wanted to punch a wall. I knew it. They had been doing things to her, most likely my worst fears. What they had done to our kind for millennium. They just had to play with their food; damn their nature and disgusting habits. Animals. I was not hungry anymore, but to put her at ease, I would shove it down.
"You were gone for nine days," I murmured as we sat down. "You must eat then."
She sat and stared at her plate, almost like the thought was foreign to her. I would not touch my plate until she did. She tentatively picked up her pizza and nibbled. I relaxed. Soft conversation babbled around us as civilian fighters and official troops grabbed heaping piles of food and either stood around the edges of the room or sat. They obviously had a keen curiosity about Skyler as they shot her glances or purposefully avoided her entirely. The gas was working slowly, but the only thing that really grabbed their interest was the fact that she sat with me- normally, I was alone and preferred it that way unless I had business to discuss.
"When can we talk?" she whispered around a mouthful.
"Later, when everything is quiet and we can grab a meeting room alone. The doors seal, making it soundproof from the other side."
She nodded, chewing thoughtfully. I attempted to not stare at her bare shoulders, sides, and legs. My appetite suddenly resurged. I ate a meat pie as the pale smoothness imprinted into my memory, and she seemed to sense my changes in mood. Her eyes went to my face and we shared a smile. I hungered for it, after having her taken from me. I did not want to take my eyes away for longer than necessary.
"So, can I eat your food if I'm...you know, sort of like you? Any side effects I should know about?"
I nearly coughed up my bite, taking a swig of mead. Our version of mead was spicier than humans'. It trailed fire down my throat and it woke me up. Clearing my throat, I said, "Yes, you can. But they will take you getting used to, because they are so different from what you know. A world apart, you could say."
She rolled her eyes. "Pardon the pun?"
A throat was cleared behind us. We twisted to see Maeris, her arms crossed and head cocked. "May I join?"
Skyler shrugged again, but didn't say anything. I nodded, and her mother sat on the other side of her daughter. There was silence between us, until the raised voices of two warriors took the attention of the majority of the room.
"Why did we waste our time?" one growled. The other one was Jaric. He was standing in a coiled posture of stone, arms crossed and legs at a seemingly casual distance from each other. But I knew better. He was ready to get physical if necessary. He pointed at LIrah, who sat huddled in a back corner next to Rayne and Jaden.
"For her. Do you not wish to save one of your own?" Jaric asked with deadly calm. "A fellow Morfilian? One related to the First General, one as important as your worthless hide?"
The soldier balled his fists. He had a Sharve mark running down the side of his neck that resembled a thick scar. He stood a foot shorter than my second commander. He looked almost at a loss for words. "She cannot be the one we came for. Many of our citizens go missing, due to the Sharve, and yet you do not go to retrieve them. Why now? Why her? We all saw her-" he jabbed a finger at Skyler "-do what she did."
Now I stood up, my chair scraping noisily as I appeared three inches from the soldier's side. He stiffened, but did not back down. He raised his finger to his nose in a mock greeting. "Greetings, First."
"You will address my second in accordance," I said, with the deadpan quality that I felt. I would not hesitate to put him in his place. I let a tendril of power curl around us. It shivered over our skin, the flash before the full force of a lightning strike. "I was informed that gas was released into the place of battle. We were fed hallucinations. What we think happened did not happen. Do you understand?"
He stared at me reproachfully, pale red eyes unblinking. But then, ever so slowly, he receded. He knew what would happen if he did not back down. I would squash him. Erase him. "Yes, First General. Apologies to the both of you. Have a good meal."
He backed away, leaving the gathering. I looked at Jaric coolly, and he jerked his head to the table. "Go eat. I'll deal with any other...undesirables."
I lifted an eyebrow. "Yes, because it looked to me like you had that under control."
He quirked a half smile. "Brother, I always do. It is what makes a situation in your favor, to appear as though they are in the upper hand."
"Whatever you say. I am leaving you to it." But I knew that would not be all that we had to deal with. Much, much more was to come.
The rest of the meal passed without a hiccup. The crowd slowly dwindled, trickling out of the room to attend wounds or rest. For the ones that lingered, other than Rayne, Jaden, Rowan (I gritted my teeth), Maeris, Lirah, and Jaric, I ordered to leave.
"What went on while you were there?" I asked Skyler quietly. "If you do not want to answer now, it is alright, but it is important. Do you have any wounds that need attention?"
She shook her head. "I was stabbed, but that seems to have healed when I changed. And it's okay." She paused, looking down at her hands. Maeris put a hand on her shoulder, and an uncomfortable look came onto her face. I caught Maeris's eye and nodded.
"Okay then, I'll show you now," she told her daughter. She shed the pale image she had worn for the past couple of days. Her hair turned russet again, waves replacing the straight blonde wisps. Her face slowly changed shape, ever so slightly, her eyes lightening from violet to the swirling hazel of Skyler's. They glowed now, not as muddy as her human, Elixir induced image. Skyler jumped, scooting her chair an inch away.
"Really?" she cried. "You kept that a secret too? Jesus, Mom. As if there wasn't enough to take in." She rubbed her face, hands shaking. "It's all happened so fast. I don't know if I'm crazy or just...dammit."
Maeris dropped to her knees, arms going around Skyler's shoulders. "I had to, for your own good. Imagine if I had told you before. You would not have believed, and if you did not Change, then it would be unnecessary."
"I would have!" Skyler exploded, getting up and shaking her mother off. The rest of us glanced at each other. This was not a conversation for an audience. Skyler glowed with new life and power, the scrap of green cloth she wore just barely clinging to her form. I wanted to offer her more modest attire, but that would obviously have to wait. "No wonder I did what I did. Because of you. And now I'm left with all these questions that no one will or can't answer. You can see how that would be frustrating."
"Ask away," Maeris said simply.
Skyler's eyes flickered from face to face, settling on mine for an instant. The color of them shifted from green to gray, catching the light with an ominous lack of emotion. "How does this work? Me being a half blood. What happens now that I've...Changed?"
Maeris sat back in her chair, the fight leaving her shoulders limp. I noticed Jaric stared at her, dawning understanding lighting his face. I had omitted the information of the lost princess. I winced.
"You are about eighty percent Morfilian, since that half of you has become dominant. It seems to have finished the process back in the fight. You've...inherited my ability, which is why you have my eyes. It is a genetic stamp of your lineage, but I am sure Jaceannel has explained that to you already," Maeris said dryly. "I don't think Riley will Change. He's already so old, past the usual point of it taking place. I never thought this would happen, because your father is so human. But when you were obviously in pain, constantly...I balked. I debated for a long time to tell you, to explain it all.
"But then you were taken, and in the hospital, people were always around. I was planning to sit down and tell you when you came home again. I'm sorry, really. But it's happened this way."
Skyler stared with unblinking focus at her mother's face. I held my breath. I wanted to reach over and hold her hand, soothe the situation and the new wounds that no doubt scored her on the inside. She hadn't yet spoken of what they did, but a part of me wanted to leave her be. But I knew somehow that that was the wrong approach. Now I knew why my touching her didn't work as it had on other humans and Morfilians. I almost wanted to smile.
"What about this ability? And others?" Skyler asked. Her eyes roamed the room, catching on a screen across the room. It depicted four points around the ship, stars shining merrily amidst the cushiony darkness that pillowed them like jewels. One was much larger than the others, flaring bright and blue. Home.
"You're a half blood, honey," Maeris said quietly, taking Skyler's hand. "The way your body handles the abilities will not be the same as mine. I can Shift, but you...well, we don't know yet. We've not seen what you can do, other than you Shifting a mass of other beings. Which, might I say, is a feat of its' own. It's never been done before."
Skyler's eyebrows inched up her forehead. "What? So now I'm a freak, even among half bloods?"
Maeris smiled. "It'll be okay, Skyler. Just don't reveal it to anyone else. I will probably need to Shift some of your features so that the Council won't pick out the way you really look. Especially your eyes obviously."
She looked at me. "I agree," I muttered, even though the thought of changing anything about Skyler was...unconceivable. Skyler looked between us.
"What about these?" she asked, gesturing sharply at the swirling runes that imprinted lightly into her skin, their shimmery curls running over the left side of her face and arm. But it continued along her ribcage, I could see, the shift she wore revealing her sides. I pointed this out. Her eyes widened, then narrowed with annoyance. "That one is from being stabbed, I guess. Is this normal?" she asked. "Do other Morfilians have these...tattoos? Or half bloods?"
Jaric spoke up now, having sat quietly in the corner to watch. "No. They usually scar, because when they're received, it's in a fight somewhere where no Healers are available. That is why you see some of our troops with the Markings. But..." he trailed off, a hand going up to cup his neck in thought. "Maybe they are only appeared because they happened before you Changed while still healing."
Skyler huffed a piece of hair out of her face. "Great. Perfect."
"Will you answer my question now, or do you want to talk about it later?" I asked gently. She stared at the floor. She had been in this mood before, but never so long. But I had to bring the attention back to it, I had to know.
"They broke my bones," she rasped. "They dragged their talons through my skin. But I don't remember if half the pain was what they were doing, or if it was the Changing."
A storm bubbled in my chest, and I had to close my fist over the ball of energy the engulfed my hand. Jaric glanced at me, a warning in his eyes. My friend, the only one I had had since birth. The others were...acquaintances. The court was a rough crowd. But now Skyler would be exposed to their treachery, the lot of them slithering in the snake pit that was the inner workings of the government. We were no better than the human monarchs of times past.
"You will be safe now," I growled, reaching over to brush her hair back. I ignored Jaric's look, and the others small intake of breath. It was Forbidden, I knew, but I would not be given the chance in the coming events. She closed her eyes, leaning into my hand. Her cheek was petal soft, and I could not help but stroke it as such. Maeris looked away, her cheeks going scarlet.
"We will be arriving in a day. We must rest and converse more later," Jaric commented, clearing his throat.
"I agree whole heartedly," Rayne said, jumping up and clapping her hands together. It did a good job of breaking the tension in the atmosphere. Relief flitted over Skyler's face before it was gone and she was standing.
"Come," I said, gesturing for her to follow. "I will show you to a bunk."