Ordinaries: Shifters Book II (Shifters series 2) (23 page)

Chapter 43

A History Lesson:
I Know . . . Sounds Boring, But It’s Important!

–TANNER–

“That will never work!” Piper yells, slamming her fist on the makeshift table. “This is ludicrous!” she exclaims, shoving her face in mine and growling, “a display like that in the open will bring a firestorm like you’ve never seen.”

Marcus smiles and leans against the cold wall of stone. Baccas nods his head, agreeing with Piper. E wears a shocked expression, not sure which side she should be on.

“Go on,” Lee says, as he studies the city layout spread over the table.

“What?” Piper shouts. “You’re actually listening to this . . . boy?” she asks in disbelief.

“Hear him out,” Lee tells her, as she huffs.

I look at Lee and nod. I know I’m really not supposed to be in here, but their whole plan was to set off minor explosions and try to kill as many Enforcers as possible. It’s no wonder this has never amounted to anything more than an inconvenience for the Gaian Council.

After each small terrorist attack, the Enforcers round up several Ordinaries—whether they were involved or not—and publicly execute them, sharing the footage with the other colonies as a warning. It accomplishes two things, neither good. Suicidal zealots cheer publicly, causing them to be rounded up and sent to Twelve. Stupid! But worse, the vast majority cower in their homes and workplaces trying desperately to live their lives unnoticed.

From what I see, Piper is the stupid zealot type.

I look at Lee and ask, “You can make sure it’s broadcasted?”

Lee smiles and nods. “To the whole colony.”

“You mentioned the wide area network. If we tap into it, can we control the entire network? The other colonies?”

“It won’t be long, but once it’s out, they can’t stop it.”

Piper shakes her head. “The only thing this idiotic plan will accomplish is our annihilation.”

“You know what your problem is?” I ask Piper. “You overestimate their people and drastically underestimate yours.” She looks to Lee for support, but doesn’t find any. “Can’t you see? You outnumber them a thousand to one.”

“You have no idea what they’re capable of!” Piper shouts.

“The boy’s right,” Marcus says, stepping away from the wall. “I’ve seen it.”

“What have you seen?” Piper asks. “Look at you—a Shifter that ran like a frightened child when they discovered you were a traitor.”

Marcus doesn’t fall for her taunt. “I’ve seen a group of children band together and send the Shifter forces fleeing. Kyle?”

Kyle jumps at the sound of his name and looks at Marcus.

“Tell them about . . .” Marcus pauses. “Earth.”

Everybody looks at him.

“Um . . . Earth?” he asks, clearly not comfortable with public speaking.

Maybe it’s just this group. Talk about a tough crowd.

“What do I tell them?”

“Just tell them what you told me.” Marcus smiles.

“Well,” Kyle starts. “I keep hearing everybody call it the ‘Lost Colony’. It wasn’t lost. It was liberated.”

“Liberated?” E asks.

“Yeah,” he continues. “When our ancestors were on the artifact . . .” He stops. “Um . . . the original colonial ship, they decided they’d had enough of the oppression. The land was rich in resources and already populated. They knew the Shifters would exploit the resources and oppress the natives. They wanted to stop it.

“It was risky, but they had to try. Their only advantages were the Shifter arrogance and amount of Ordinaries willing to fight. As expected, when they landed the natives worshiped them. They marveled at the ships and the strange abilities the Shifters possessed. It didn’t take long for the Shifters to take everything for themselves. They took slaves and forced the women to marry them.

“Our ancestors helped the natives build huge structures to honor the Shifters and praised them as gods. They used the ships to create markings on the land only visible from the sky, which would serve as a map to lead future travelers to their location.”

“Our ancestors collected all of the people and offered a great day of celebration. This day the gods would be praised and given a tour of the great structures that honored them. That’s how they got them.”

Kyle looks around at everyone staring at him.

“What happened to them?” a voice calls from the group.

“The Ordinaries designed the structures kinda like a roach motel.” He looks around at a bunch of blank stares. “Once enough of them got far enough in, it sealed. As far as I know, they’re still in there. The Shifters left were stunned. The Ordinaries attacked. Many of our ancestors died, but the shock and overwhelming numbers were able to defeat them.”

“Tell them what the markings on the land were about,” Marcus says.

Kyle shrugs and says, “If another ship came, it would lead them there. Basically they would do it again, which they did.”

“That was two thousand years ago,” Piper says. “What does that have to do with today?”

“I know that two things are still true,” I tell her. “The Council is arrogant, and the Ordinaries outnumber them. What we need is to give them a reason to believe they can win. Once they see that, they’ll stop hiding. They’ll join us.”

–RYLAND–

When I wake up, I’m lying on a cot in one of the faux wizard ships. The AI, a young man who flickers between looking like my father and Marcus, stands guard over me. When he realizes I’m watching, he stops flickering, choosing instead to look like a young boy with reddish hair and hazel eyes.

“Which ship is this?” my voice croaks. I want to concentrate on something, anything else.

He furrows his brow for a moment, his slow brain calculating a response. “This ship is captained by Riglee Markins,” his robotic voice answers without any inflection.

They must not have put any upgrades into the software here. It’s like the original chat thing with those computers from the eighties that you sometimes find in science museums. You know, except he’s a holographic projection a million miles from Earth.

“Where is my brother?” I ask, my voice cracking slightly.

His face freezes for a moment, then he says, “I do not understand your command.”

I sigh, frustrated and sore and sad and completely numb all at the same time. That’s when another voice pipes up. “They’re all having some big meeting with Piper. Apparently, we’re preparing for some sort of psychological warfare.”

The voice belongs to Kae. She sits up from the cot across the open room. Her hair sticks out like a crazy, white-blond Afro.

“What are you doing here?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.

“Piper doesn’t want the ‘Viper’ anywhere near her . . .” Kae rolls her eyes and she smiles at me. “So, Kai sent me here to rest and look after you. I’m supposed to try to focus my energy on calming you down.”

I realize now why my emotions range so thoroughly. I feel her frustration at being here, my own grief, and the numbness she’s sending in my general direction, which is supposed to be comforting. “Can you practice your weird psychologist crap on someone else?” I ask, irritated.

Kae frowns, and I feel her disappointment in the pit of my stomach. She isn’t trying to be rude. She isn’t trying to force these emotions on me. She doesn’t know how to control it, and she isn’t exactly accustomed to rejection.

“Sorry . . .” I mumble.

Kae shrugs at me, with a tiny smile. “It’s okay.”

I glance around. The AI seems to be frozen in place. “Where’s Sol
é
?”

“You put her on The Council, remember? She’s supposed to be involved in all the planning and stuff.”

I nod mutely. After a long moment, I finally decide I am curious enough to ask. “What psychological warfare?”

Kae shrugs again. “Piper warrior lady doesn’t really want me to know about anything, but apparently they’re broadcasting a video across the colonies.”

“And how exactly is that supposed to help us win the war?” I ask, my voice hollow.

Kae shrugs. “You’d be surprised how often fear alone can win a fight for you.”

“Or depression . . .” my voice says quietly, seemingly against my will.

Kae nods. “Emotions are a powerful tool.”

“Which is why you’re here babysitting me, I suppose,” I say, giving her a weak smile.

She returns it.

“Okay,” I say, dragging myself out of bed. “I have to do something now. Would you like to get into trouble?”

Kae perks up, eyes shining. “Are we going to crash the meeting? No—we are going to attack the Shifters. Wait—what
are
we doing?”

She’s so excited she can hardly think straight. Her sentences are flowing so rapidly, interrupting one another. I can’t help but grin.

“We’re going to go get some payback!” I say.

Kae jumps to her feet, ready to follow me into whatever trouble I’m about to get us into.

Chapter 44

Seasick or Carsick or Airsick or Space-sick

–TANNER–

“I don’t think this is a good idea,” I tell Alice as I get a bed ready next to my brother on The Wizard.

“Shh, she’ll hear you,” Alice whispers, looking to see if Mel reacts. “Be nice to her, Tanner. She’s been through a lot. Besides, she needs time with clean air. You know that.”

I look over my shoulder and see Mel staring at me from across our sleeping quarters. She meets my eyes and her lip twitches in a half smile. I return a tense grin, wave, and look back at Alice. “Look at her. Can you honestly say she doesn’t creep you out?”

“Don’t worry, General Tanner. I’ll be right here to protect you from the little girl,” Alice mocks at me.

Bryce smirks.

“It’s not funny,” I whisper. “Where’s Ryland? She should be here, too.”

Alice feigns offense and says, “You think
I
can’t protect you?”

I glare at her.

Alice chuckles and says, “Kae is with her. Kai went to check on them. If she’s feeling better, he’ll bring them here.”

“Here you go, Mel,” E says, as she and Baccas enter the sleeping quarters carrying several items. E eyes Alice and me, as if we’re up to something—which we totally aren’t—and says, “You don’t have to stay here. We can still take you to the dome.”

Mel crosses her arms and drops them to her chest. “I told you. I’m not going back there.”

Baccas smiles. “We can talk about it in the morning.”

E shoots Baccas a concerned look. He pats her back, and she relaxes. “Well, let’s get you comfortable then.” She places a soft bunch of linen, kind of like a pillow, at the head of the bed and picks up a folded blue blanket. Mel’s eyes look concerned as E holds the corners and throws it out to cover the bed. E’s shoulders drop as she looks at the blanket.

“I’m sorry,” Mel pleads, looking between Baccas and E. “I can’t help it. I have to.”

“Listen, Mel,” Baccas says, sitting on the blanket and running his hand over the pattern. “Supplies aren’t easy to get out here. You know we can’t keep anything like this.”

“Why not? We’re already breaking the rules, aren’t we?”

E starts to fold the blanket. “Being a Twelver is one thing. They will broadcast our execution for this.”

“Wait,” I say, jumping to my feet. “What is it?”

E stops and stares at me as I walk over to her. I touch her hand, and she lets the blanket fall back to the bed. I look at it and trace the white pattern sewn into the dark blue material.

“It’s an O. For Ordinaries,” Mel explains.

“It’s perfect, Mel,” I tell her. She gives me an unsure smile. “Do you have more of these?”

Her smile fades. “They get rid of them.”

“We have to,” E says. “They’re a death sentence.”

Baccas furrows his brow. “Why do you need them?”

E shakes her head. “Well, it doesn’t matter. This is the only one, and we’re getting rid of it now.”

I look back at Bryce and Alice and say, “I was just thinking: this is kind of like—”

Bryce cuts me off. “A revolutionary flag.”

“A what?” E asks.

Alice says, “A flag. Don’t you have flags?”

Baccas and E shake their heads, not understanding.

I explain. “On Earth, we create flags, kind of like these, to stand for things, like movements or countries or whatever. We put them on poles around important buildings and carry them into battle. It gives people something to fight for; something to look to for hope.”

“What if we had more?” Baccas asks.

E gives him a harsh glare.

“We could distribute them,” Bryce says. “For tomorrow’s demonstration.”

Alice adds, “For everything. What do you think The Council will do when they find out you’re not afraid of them anymore? That millions of Ordinaries are banding together?”

“I may have a few,” Baccas says.

“Baccas!” E shouts.

“Are they similar to this?” I ask.

“They’re all the same,” he says. “Every time we get a blue blanket . . .”

“I like blue,” Mel says, smiling.

“You lied to me!” E yells. “You said you burned them. You could have gotten us all killed!”

“I couldn’t,” Baccas explains. He cups his hand around Mel’s little face and tells her, “I never told you, but it makes me proud. You were always so brave, so proud of who you are.”

Mel smiles, and a tear traces her cheek. She hugs Baccas.

“You did good, Mel,” I say. Maybe I’ve been too hard on her. I keep thinking about how terrible my life has been. Compared to hers, my life is like a fairytale. “I’m proud of you.”

Mel smiles and says, “Thank you, Tanner.”

Kai bursts into the room and shouts, “She’s gone!”

We all spin around.

“Who’s gone?” Alice asks.

“Ry!” he says, trying to catch his breath. “Both of them! Ry and Kae! They’re both gone!”

–RYLAND–

Kae and I are sprinting toward the dome that is Nine’s only inhabited space, neither of us really having any sort of plan as to how we are going to do anything useful. It doesn’t really matter, I suppose. The truth is, I just needed to do something, anything.

When we reach the door that we used last time, I hesitate. I have no idea if this door is regularly guarded by Ordinary rebels or if that is only on certain shifts. We could be walking right into a trap, and no one even knows we’re here.

This was not exactly my wisest decision, but I’m not in the mindset for thinking things through. I want to punch someone, and since I can’t go to Six and find those “buckleads” from Seven, this is my only option.

Kae is standing behind me, her frizzy Afro of white-blond curls practically buzzing with excitement. I can feel it welling in the pit of my stomach, driving me forward to do something that I may or may not regret later. We didn’t even bring sunglasses to hide our eyes.

I take a deep breath, and open the door. Inside, there’s no one. It’s quiet and dark. Apparently, at night, even the Ordinary slaves get to go home. That comes as a surprise.

I hiss at Kae to follow me and close the door as quietly as I can. Of course, in the silence of the room, the resounding boom of the door makes me jump. Everything here is eerie. I can’t imagine this being anyone’s home. Then again, I’m not sure anywhere you are forced to work or die is truly a home at all.

I know exactly what I want to do now that we’re here, but I don’t know where to begin. I remember overhearing some of Piper’s people discussing a prison transport being sent to Twelve soon. I want to free those prisoners, send them back to their families.

“Kae,” I say. Her wide eyes shine in the faint light, glistening with anticipation. “If we find a Shifter, can you get him to give up some information?”

Kae’s brow furrows. “I . . . I think so. Maybe, I mean. But that’s a terrible idea. I think I can do it. But if I don’t, we could die.”

She flits between anxiety and excitement so quickly that I feel as though I’m on an emotional roller coaster. I’m not sure if it’s simply because she was fixated on controlling my emotions earlier or if she’s getting stronger, but her weird, empathetic Viper thing is crazy.

I nod. “I trust you.”

She nods back, biting her lip slightly. We have a plan now. I know what to do.

We sneak through the empty passageways, strangely looking for the very people that we should avoid, looking for the guards who would like to kill us because they will tell us where those prisoners are. We will free them.

We will save them. We will save someone. We
have
to.

The first Enforcer we find—thank God—is a younger man with kind blue eyes. When he sees us, he reaches for his radio, no doubt to report people out late after what I’m assuming is some sort of curfew. Kae sends forth waves of calm and happiness.

The man stops as Kae asks, “Can you help us?”

I feel fear knot in my stomach. He’s smiling, but he looks so confused. He doesn’t understand what’s happening to him.

“How can I help you?” he asks.

I realize that, with his age, he cannot be a Shifter. He is an Ordinary who chose to work for them so that he would have food, privileges, and relative safety. I wonder how long that will last after tonight.

“We have a few questions for you,” I say.

He eyes me warily, but Kae bounces, grinning in front of him. “Can you please just answer a few questions? I promise, we just need a little help.”

He nods slowly, his blue eyes clouded with uncertainty, but the smile still plastered on his face. I understand the feeling. Kae’s emotion thing is so weird.

“Do you know who Piper is?” I ask as Kae looks at me, her brow furrowed with confusion. This is not what she expected me to say.

“Piper is the rebel leader, hiding somewhere within the dome. We have been hunting her for years. We almost caught her once . . .” he trails off, eyes glazing over.

I glance at Kae, trying to get her to keep him calm but focused.

“What happened?” I ask.

“Her sister, Evelyn, turned her in to save her boyfriend.”

“Evelyn?” I ask, confused. I’ve never heard of an Evelyn. “Did she die?”

The Enforcer shrugs. “Her boyfriend did, and Piper lost an eye. No one ever found Evelyn again.”

Kae is wriggling so violently that I look at her. “E!” she says.

So, E betrayed Piper to save the man she loved, and left the dome forever when it didn’t work. No wonder there is so much tension between them. No wonder they hold so much hate.

“Where are the prisoners?” I ask.

The man furrows his brow, his blue eyes clouded like a rainy day on Earth. “Prisoners?” he asks absentmindedly.

“They’re about to be transported to Twelve,” I say, eager to know.

I feel Kae tense, and suddenly the man is nervous. His eyes are clear, and he reaches for his radio.

“Kae,” I hiss. “Calm down!”

Kae takes a deep breath, and I suddenly feel calm again.

“Where were those prisoners?” she asks sweetly, fluttering her eyelashes in a way that looks more like a spastic child than a flirtatious teenager.

“In the sub-terrain, level 9C.”

“Thank you!” Kae says, bouncing. “Please don’t tell anyone that you saw us.”

“Or it might get you killed,” I shrug, heading toward the weird glass elevators.

When Kae and I manage to sneak into an elevator, I feel my muscles tighten with worry. Any guard who happens to glance at the elevator will see us. We will be caught, but I have to do something. For Clay.

Kae excitedly punches the button for 9C, and it asks for a code. She looks at me with wide, round eyes.

I shrug, and I type, “R-I-A-N.”

The elevator takes off with a whoosh, practically knocking us both to the floor. It flies through the air, then underground, which takes us sideways and backwards so quickly my stomach churns. I don’t get seasick or carsick or airsick or space-sick, but this elevator makes me want to hurl.

The thing pings, and the doors open to a crowd of Enforcers. Apparently, 9C is their headquarters. I think the guard dude could have warned us about that.

Even at night, with a short staff, there are like twelve of them.

I sigh. Here we go again.