The Regenerates (24 page)

“Spoken like an intelligent young gentlemen,” said Seer. “Shen, do you mind showing them to their rooms? I could use an afternoon nap myself after all that talking,”

S
eer’s penthouse took luxury to a whole new level. Ven and Coralie stared in awe at every piece of furniture and decorative ornament they could find. Ven was in such a good mood he even invited Kayn to join their tour, though Coralie refused to look at him. They also got to know every member of Seer’s party. Ven discovered that Seer had given them all a name: The Regenerates.

“That’s a neat name,” said Ven. “It sort of fits.”

“Yeah,” said Renny. “Seer is oddly creative that way.”

She was about his age and had a large star tattooed on the side of her face. Her long hair was tied in a plait and much like the rest of the Crionians they had seen, it was more than one shade of color. In her case, three different shades of blonde. Her sleeveless top was fitted and tucked into loose black pants and her boots were unbuttoned. Throughout the short time they had been here, Ven hadn’t once seen Renny not carry food. Even now, she held a clear bag of pineapple buns in her hand and dove into them gleefully.

Coralie was transfixed on Dorian, turning pink every time he spoke to her or answered a question, much to Ven’s annoyance.

King, Shen’s acting partner, had tried to get to know Kayn.

“So what’s the palace like?” Ven heard him ask.

“It’s…nice,” said Kayn awkwardly.

For dinner, Shen prepared a massive feast. Ven hadn’t eaten so much since those banquets in Cor. That seemed like such a long time ago. Even Kayn threw away his usually formal disposition and heaped mountains of food on to his plate.

Later that night, after they had eaten their fill, Seer and the others took them to see one of Dorian’s musical productions. The theatre was immense. Hanging from the endless ceiling were thousands of glimmering streamers. Ven tried to take the seat next to Coralie, but Seer got there first, leaving him to sit next to Kayn on one side and Shen on the other.

As the lights dimmed, the stage illuminated and Dorian appeared at the center, surrounded by a dozen background dancers. Dorian and the others were dressed in prim black and white suits. As the show went on, Ven watched in admiration. Dorian was very talented, and during every one of his numbers, cheers and screams erupted throughout. The energy in the crowd was infectious. A few seats down, Coralie was cheering, too. Cor’s musicals looked quite pathetic in comparison, but Ven felt that wasn’t entirely fair. He had quickly come to learn that Cor wasn’t nearly as advanced as everyone in the city claimed and was as Rogin bluntly put it, ‘technologically obstinate.’

Beside him, Kayn appeared to be transfixed by the stage. Ven had always been curious about the kind of leisure activities he participated in back home, or if he did anything like that at all. Even Kayn had to be human.

“Have you seen any of the musicals in Cor?” said Ven. The theatre was so loud he had to shout.

Kayn gave him a strange look. “Sometimes.” He turned to the front again.

Ven looked back at the stage awkwardly.

“Have you?” Kayn said after a moment.

Ven cricked his neck as he turned back to Kayn. “What? Oh, yeah. I used to take Coralie.”

“Oh.”

They didn’t say anything more throughout the show. Occasionally out of the corner of his eye, Ven could see Kayn looking at him strangely.

When the show ended, Coralie rushed up to Ven and grabbed his hands. “Isn’t Dorian just amazing?” she squealed. It was quite unlike her.

“Thanks, Coralie,” grinned Dorian, who had just come from backstage. Ven found himself unconsciously giving Dorian a distasteful look as he smiled at Coralie.

“Subtle.” Kayn appeared beside him. “Sorry, but even I’d rather go for Dorian than you.” He snickered and walked away. Ven grabbed a bag of snacks from Seer’s hands and was about to fling them at Kayn’s head when Seer yanked them back.

“No one touches my snacks,” he said. Ven found it hard to believe that this very boy had kicked a fully-grown man across the other end of a room.

They returned to the penthouse late that night. Coralie shared a room with Renny while Ven and Kayn had rooms to themselves.

As he burrowed under the soft covers, Ven began to feel restless. After several minutes, he got out of bed and tiptoed passed the sitting room. He opened the large glass door that led out to the cruiser’s landing pad and inhaled the cool night air. He breathed in awe when he saw the view. Crion was spectacular whether it was night or day. By night, Crion’s cityscape was a neon stream of color and light. Ven sat on a long lounge chair and gazed at the commotion.

They were almost done. The dagger was going to be purified and he could finally return home. A combination of relief and empowerment was spreading through him. Amidst the fear, apprehension and grief of the past little while, Ven couldn’t ignore how little he had known of the outside world while he was still living in Cor. Before all of this, he had never slept in a lush, green forest at night, had never seen the vivid blue of the ocean or smelled salty air. He couldn’t imagine a world where people were allowed to speak out against their city’s leaders without fear of death. What must that be like, to be able to say whatever you wanted and not be punished?

He thought of all the danger he had faced, how many times he had rubbed shoulders with death. It had never mattered how physically strong a Highborn was in Cor. He swallowed in shame.

Ven suddenly remembered the Vigor in his pocket. He couldn’t think of a better time he would need it than for the upcoming task. But did he? It wasn’t like they were alone anymore. They would have seven accomplished fighters accompanying them. He pulled the packet out of his pocket and stared at the neon blue powder.

A few minutes later, the door clicked open and Seer appeared. Ven jumped and tried to stuff the Vigor back in his pocket.

“You had better throw that crap away,” Seer said as he plopped down on the lounge chair beside him.

“I was just–”

“Save it,” said Seer. “Everyone knows what that is. It does work, but you really don’t want to give it a try, I promise.”

“Why?”

“Because like most opiates, it causes your body’s normal functions – in this case muscle growth – to slow down if you don’t keep taking it. Throw it away, Ven. It’s not worth it. There are plenty of strong people out there who don’t need Vigor.”

Ven sighed and got up. He walked towards the edge of the cruiser platform and stared over the edge. He looked at the powder one more time before turning it upside down and emptying the contents, letting the breeze blow them away and out of sight.

“You’ll be glad you did that, trust me,” said Seer. “I know people who wish more than anything that they hadn’t been given that stuff. What are you doing out here, anyway?”

Ven didn’t answer. A mixture of regret and relief filled him as the neon powder flew away. He returned to the lounge chair and took a deep breath. “I just thought I’d admire the view for a while.”

“Nice, huh?”

“Yeah. How did you all get here, anyway? If you’re from Cor, how did you get papers?”

“Markis took care of that,” said Seer. “He felt it was appropriate that for our
second
life, we get to experience what we never got in Cor.”

“So is that why you call yourselves the ‘Regenerates’?”

“Cool name, huh?” Seer puffed out his small chest. “It was my idea.”

“Yeah.”

Seer stretched out his legs and folded his arms behind his head.

“You said that you were all sentenced on Abolition Day,” said Ven after a few minutes. “If you don’t mind me asking, what was your crime?”

Seer said nothing for a moment. “It was just me and my older brother,” he began, still lying on his back. “He was a few years older than Kayn. We were in the Patrician Quadrant, so we had it alright, I suppose. My brother had a health problem that caused him to become extremely violent. He was really remorseful afterwards but he couldn’t control it. We decided to keep it under wraps so he could find a job. One day when I was in class, a teacher came in and told me that my brother had killed one his colleagues. They didn’t know what had made him do it, but he and I were both sentenced. The rest is…yeah. I know he’s happier, wherever he is.”

Ven listened to the story in shock and anger. He suddenly felt disgusted for all the times he had complained about having to do his mother’s chores while drinking from jewel-encrusted silver cups.

“It’s alright,” said Seer. “None of that is important anymore.”

Ven stared at the bright, flickering lights of the structures in front of them and listened to the hum of cruisers zipping by. “Seer, after the dagger is purified and Kayn goes back to Cor, Coralie won’t have anywhere to go. Her name is still on the list of Sentenced. Plus, her father is dead and her mother is out there missing. I have to go back because my mother is still there, but I’m really worried about Coralie.”

Seer laughed. “You idiot, we’re not going to leave her out on the street. She can stay with us. I mean, she’s practically no different from us, right? She was sentenced, but survived. This is
her
chance at a second life. We’ll try to find her mom if we can, too.”

“Thanks.”

“Yeah, yeah. Now go to bed. I’m not letting you nap on the way there.” Seer yanked Ven to his feet as though he was light as a feather and dragged him back inside.

That night, Ven slept better than he had in days.

They woke up early the next morning. After a hurried breakfast, Coralie, Ven and Renny helped to load their massive cruiser with necessary supplies and weapons. Kayn and Shen joined in, and soon they were ready to leave. Rogin hopped into the driver’s seat, while the rest of them jumped into the back.

“This thing is huge,” said Coralie, looking around the back of the cruiser. It was big enough for several people to comfortably live in and even contained a small kitchen and three small beds.

They sat down and fastened their safety belts. This time, Ven made sure he got the seat next to Coralie. She smiled at him. He felt like he hadn’t spoken to her in a long time.

“Are you excited to go home?” she asked him.

“I’m more excited to see my mom,” he said. “Hans and Florentine, too. I can’t wait to tell them about everything I’ve seen.”

“Oh…”

Coralie suddenly looked down at her lap. Ven wanted to hit himself. What was he doing, bringing up his mother?

“Don’t worry, Coralie,” he said nervously. “Do you know what Seer told me yesterday? He said if you can’t live with us in the palace, you can stay with them! They would even help you find your mom.”

She looked at him, surprised. “Seer said that?”

“Yeah.”

“Oh…Ven, even if Kayn or the elders let me, I’m not going back to Cor. I was going to try and find my mother even if it meant going alone. But this is great! I’m so relieved. I was a little worried about what was going to happen to me after all of this.”

Ven could feel his fingers going numb. “Then what about…us?”

Coralie tightened her fists and stared down at her lap. “Ven…I love you. But your mother needs you, and my mother needs me. That night in Lamparth, whatever I did, I meant it. It wasn’t just…out of the blue. But I was so relieved at not losing you and being with you again that I didn’t stop to think ahead. It’s my fault.” She look up at him slowly. “Why don’t we take a break until all of this is over?”

Ven said nothing and turned away from her. A strange anger was rising in the pit of his stomach. He knew she was doing the right thing, but it still hurt. Why couldn’t they make it work? It wouldn’t be that hard. Didn’t she even want to try?

“Ven? This doesn’t change how I feel about you at all. You believe that, don’t you? We’re just taking a break.”

Of course he believed it. But he wasn’t about to tell her that. He could feel his heart sinking.

“Right, is everyone buckled in?” said Seer.

“Yeah, we’re all set,” Shen called behind her. Moments later, the cruiser’s engine rumbled and the vehicle took off with great speed.

“Ven,” said Seer, “you mentioned something about getting exact directions to Hygon Pass from Doon. Hand over that map, would you?”

“You don’t know where Hygon Pass is?” Kayn said derisively.

“We have a general idea,” said Shen, “but if you’ve got a route already laid out, we’re going to take it.”

Ven passed the map to Seer.

The cruiser was now high in the air. Ven and Coralie looked out the window down at Crion. The sparkling city grew smaller and smaller until they could see nothing but glimmering dots in the distance behind them.

Ven didn’t say a word to Coralie as they flew. Occasionally, she would point out a beautiful landmark but Ven paid little attention, looking up only for a moment then staring back at his knees or fiddling with his safety belt.

After a couple of hours, the wondrous and majestic Ellor Peak towered in front of them.

“Is it really possible to climb it on foot?” said Ven.

“Actually, yes,” said Rogin. “The bigger cities like Crion and Muran hold expeditions to the top.”

“Have people been to Hygon Pass, then?”

“A few.” Meares adjusted his safety belt and turned to Ven. “Heading down the peak from the other side isn’t practical and since Hygon Pass isn’t as scenic as the surrounding areas, no one really bothers.”

After a few minutes, they began to hit turbulence.

“It’s okay,” said Shen. “We need to fly high above the peak, and the higher we are, the more turbulence there is. It’ll pass soon.”

But the turbulence didn’t pass. It went on for almost ten minutes and got stronger and stronger. Ven grasped his armchair tightly.

The cruiser jolted and Ven felt his stomach rise. “What was that?” he said, gritting his teeth.

“Nothing,” said Seer. “Just a jet stream.”

When Ven turned his head for a moment, he saw Seer whispering something frantically in Rogin’s ear. He frowned.

This time, the cruiser jolted so hard that Ven thought his neck would snap. “Ouch! Dammit, Rogin, what’s going on?”