Fawks (Dragons of Kratak Book 4) by Ruth Anne Scott (26)

Except for letting me out of this chamber.

I sipped from the glass and watched some strange looking birds swooping low over the sea when I heard the chime on the door sound. I set the glass down and stood up, waiting for the guards who'd been stationed outside the door to open it.

The door slid open with a whoosh to reveal Riley standing there with a wide smile on her face.

“Hello, Hatare,” she said.

“Good afternoon, Your Maje – ”

Riley raised an eyebrow to cut me off – silencing me instantly. She'd talked to me about that more than once.

“Good afternoon, Riley,” I corrected myself.

She smiled. “Much better,” she said. “Much, much better.”

I grinned at her. I wasn't used to being so casual with somebody of Riley's station. Though I'd rebelled against the social norms of Unduthian society, some of those lessons were still deeply ingrained in me – such as showing deference and respect to those in positions above me. They were apparently hard habits to break.

“I have a surprise for you,” Riley said.

“Oh?”

She turned to the doorway and Byr walked in, his eyes on the floor and his eye markings giving off a soft glow. He was obviously embarrassed and feeling a little self-conscious. It took a moment, but he finally looked up at me, giving me a shy smile.

“Hi,” was all he said.

Seeing Byr standing there, whole and healthy again, sent a wave of relief rushing through me – a wave stronger than I'd expected to feel. While it was true that we barely knew each other, we'd been through so much together. I felt closer to him than I'd ever felt toward anybody in my family. I felt somewhat bonded to him. A kinship.

I smiled and rushed over, throwing my arms around his neck and pulled him into a tight embrace. His body was stiff and he hugged me back awkwardly, apparently, not quite sure what to do with himself.

I looked over at Riley who was staring back at us with a satisfied smile on her face. “I've arranged for the two of you to have a private tour of the gardens,” she said. “You'll be accompanied, of course, but I'll make sure to tell them to remain discrete. I apologize for the need.”

I stepped back from Byr – whose face was flushed and eye markings glowing brightly – and turned to Riley.

“Thank you, Riley,” I said. “You've been nothing but gracious and kind to us. And I'm eternally grateful for the care you gave to Byr.”

“Y – yes, thank you,” Byr said in a quiet voice.

“You're both very welcome,” she said. “Now, if you'll excuse me, I have some matters to attend to. When you're ready for your tour, just signal the guards outside the door.”

I nodded and gave her my thanks again. She favored us both with another smile and departed the room, the door whooshing shut behind her. There was a short beep as the lock engaged, leaving Byr and I alone, standing in the middle of the room staring at each other awkwardly.

I cleared my throat and decided to address the elephant in the room. “So, I guess you're going to be staying here with me.”

Byr nodded and looked down at his feet. “Yeah,” he said. “I guess they do things a little differently here on Optorio.”

I laughed. “Clearly.”

I took Byr by the hand and guided him out to the balcony. I took the seat I'd been sitting in and motioned for him to sit in the seat beside me. He did, but he sat on the edge of it, his back rigid and straight, looking anything but comfortable.

I sighed. “Might as well get used to it and relax, Byr,” I said.

He gave me an awkward smile and sat back in the seat, but looked no more comfortable. I just laughed and poured him a glass of wine. He took the glass and looked at the thick, dark purple liquid. I knew what was running through his mind – it had taken me a little while to get used to it as well. We didn't have anything quite like it back on Unduth.

“Don't let the appearance put you off,” I said. “It's actually really delicious. I've never tasted anything like it before.”

He smirked at me. “It's not how it looks,” he said. “We just didn't get a lot of fancy wines like this out on the fringes.”

I immediately felt bad for making a stupid assumption. I'd grown up in such a bubble that even though I believed in equality for everybody on Unduth, I sometimes forgot that not everybody had the luxuries I'd enjoyed growing up. The dismay with myself must have been clear on my face because Byr gave me a serious look.

“I'm sorry,” he said. “I didn't mean to make you feel bad. I was just trying to make a joke. Apparently, a really bad one.”

I shook my head. “No, it was a stupid thing to say,” I said. “I sometimes forget that the things I take for granted – ”

“Wait,” he said, holding up a hand. “We're probably making this harder and more awkward than it needs to be.”

I laughed. “Probably,” I said. “I tend to overthink everything.”

Byr joined my laughter. “Well, at least we have that in common.”

“What do you say we just enjoy the wine and our view,” I said.

“Sounds good to me,” he said.

We sat in a companionable silence for a few moments, sipping our wine. I had to admit that it felt nice to be with Byr again. Sitting there next to him, enjoying a peaceful afternoon – it just felt right. With the cool breeze blowing in off the ocean, the delicious wine, and the sun beating down upon our faces, I could almost forget that we were actually sitting in a prison cell.

Almost.

“What do you think?” I asked, as I drained the last of my wine. “Ready to go enjoy the famous Optorion palace gardens?”

Byr smirked. “Sure, why not?”

We set our glasses down and got up, heading for the door. I pushed the button on the control panel and a moment later, the door issued a soft beeping sound – the door unlocking – just before the door whooshed open, revealing the guard standing there.

“Yes, ma'am?” he asked.

“Riley said we can go for a walk in the gardens?”

“Of course,” he said. “We'll be your escort. Are you ready?”

I nodded. “We are.”

He stepped back and motioned for us to step out of the room. “After you.”

“Thank you,” I said.

We walked out of the room and headed down the hallway, the two guards behind us keeping a respectful distance. Byr looked uncomfortable and kept glancing over his shoulder at the guards.

“Relax, Byr,” I said. “We're in no danger here.”

“Hard to relax when there are a couple of guys with guns behind me.”

Knowing how close he'd come to being killed by General Gravus just before we met, I had to understand his point of view. But I wanted him to relax. I wanted him to enjoy our time out of our cell – I knew I wanted to enjoy it. It was going to be tough to enjoy it though, with somebody as tense and jumpy as he was in that moment.

“They're here for our protection as much as anything,” I said. “Those rebels might try infiltrating the palace to grab us.”

He looked at me. “You think so?”

I nodded. “Absolutely.”

I had no idea if what I'd just said was true, but it certainly seemed to make an impression on Byr. He relaxed – slightly. But it took a tremendous amount of effort from him, I could tell. One of the guards behind us gave directions as we walked, never saying more than “turn here” or “turn there.”

Eventually, we stepped out of the palace and into one of the lushest, greenest, most beautiful gardens I'd ever seen. It put the palace gardens on Unduth to shame. There were bushes with brightly colored flowers everywhere. Tall, thick bushes had been trimmed in different, odd, yet beautiful shapes. Large trees lined a pathway, their branches hanging down and forming a natural tunnel of sorts.

A stream ran alongside the path and in it, were large, colorful fish swimming just below the surface of the water. All around us, birds and animals moved through the trees, their calls filling the air. There was something a little bit magical about the place. Its beauty was undeniable.

And more than anything, I was just thrilled to be able to get out, stretch my legs, and breath the clean air of the gardens.

I linked my arm through Byr's and I felt his body tense up. I pulled him close and walked arm in arm with him. I didn't want him to feel awkward around me. After all, we were kind of stuck in this whole thing together.

“So, what do you think of this place?” I asked.

His eyes were wide as he looked around in wonder. “Honestly, it's the most beautiful place I've ever seen.”

I smiled. “I was thinking the exact same thing.”

He looked over at me and smirked. “Are you telling me that you didn't have any place like this in Kinray?”

I shrugged. “There is a palace there, sure. And the palace has gardens,” I said. “But nothing like this. Not even close.”

“What about where you lived?” I asked, almost afraid to mention his life back on Unduth. “Was there any place even similar to this?”

He shook his head. “Nothing,” he said. “The closest thing we have to a garden is this one place near the edge of the forest – but honestly, it's a couple of trees and bushes. Nothing like this.”

I nodded. “What's your favorite memory from growing up?”

He looked over at me, an inscrutable expression on his face. “My favorite memory?” he laughed. “If you're trying to learn interrogation techniques, you're pretty bad at it.”

I nudged him with my hip and laughed. “I'm trying to get to know you,” I said. “It occurred to me that even with everything we've been through, we don't know much about each other.”

Byr nodded. “That's true. We don't,” he said. “Well, I guess my favorite memory was when my mother would read to me at night, just before bedtime. I always loved the stories she read to me. And I loved spending time with her. That was our time together and I relished it. It means even more to me now that her health is failing.”

I looked over at him. “Failing how?” I asked gently. “What's wrong with her?”

Byr sighed and looked grief-stricken. “She contracted something called Wynzen's Syndrome,” he said. “It's a – ”

“Yeah, I know what it is,” I said. “I've read up on it extensively. And I'm so sorry, Byr.”

There was no cure for Wynzen's – which was bad enough. But the truth of the matter is that it was a long, drawn out, and incredibly agonizing way to die. There was a very high percentage of people who contracted Wynzen's who chose to end their own lives rather than face the years of agony and torment.

“Thanks,” he said. “I just wish I could be there with her right now. Assuming she's even alive, that is.”

I cocked my head and looked at him. “What do you mean?”

“Gravus' troops took her,” he said. “Threw her into the camps. Along with my little brother and sister. I'm assuming they've already been killed.”

We stopped on a bridge that spanned a river that had water that was so clear, it was like looking through glass. Fish, big and small, all with colors that were vivid and bright darted below the surface. The sun was starting to slide toward the horizon, casting the sky in vivid shades of purple and red. The light hit the surface of the water and sparkled like liquid gold.

I turned to Byr and took his hands in mine. “You can't give up hope,” she said. “You can't just assume that.”

He shrugged and I saw tears in shimmering in his eyes. “I'm not naive, Hatare,” he said. “I know what happens in those camps. My brother and sister were small and weak. And my mom, with her health problems, she – ”

“Until we know for certain, one way or the other,” I said, cutting him off, “we'll operate under the assumption that they are all still alive. And we are going to do everything we can to get them out of there. Have them join us here, where they'll be safe.”

“Us?” he said, his voice barely more than a whisper.

I smiled. “Us,” I said. “We're in this together.”

He gave me a tight smile and we stood there, looking into one another's eyes for a long moment. Had this been another time, in another circumstance, I knew it would have been one of the most romantic evenings of my life. What girl couldn't resist a stunning sunset, a beautiful garden, and being with somebody as handsome and kind as Byr?

Even still, with circumstances being what they were, I felt my pulse quicken as I looked at him. His eye markings were glowing, telling me that he too, was being overwhelmed with emotion – and I found myself hoping he was feeling about me the same way I was feeling about him.

I couldn't deny the feelings for him that were growing inside of me. It was true that I had little experience with men – I'd remained locked away and sheltered while living in Unduth with my family. But there were plenty of men around my family's compound – some who'd even flirted with me. So, I knew enough to know that Byr made my heart pound and my pulse race in a way that nobody ever had before.

When I was younger, I'd made a list of all the qualities I hoped to find in a mate. Kindness. Compassion. Intelligence. A sense of daring. A quick wit. A passion for learning and adventure. Those were some of the things I wanted in my dream lover. And I vowed to myself that I would never marry a man who wasn't my equal in all of those things, who didn't tick off the boxes on my personal checklist.

And as I stared into his eyes, I knew that Byr had ticked off most, if not all, of them.

He was a good man with a good heart. And seeing the hurt in his face not only broke my heart, but made me determined to do something about it.

“I'm sorry to interrupt, but it's time we get back to the palace.”

Byr and I turned as one and found our escort standing at the foot of the bridge – shattering the moment we'd been sharing – looking mortified for having interrupted us. I looked back at Byr and sighed.

“I suppose we must go back,” I said.

He shrugged. “At least it's a nicer room and will be far more comfortable than that room in the hospital they stuck me in.”

I smiled. “Always the optimist.”

“Sometimes,” he said and flashed me a grin.

Chapter Four

Byr

“So, you never answered the question,” I said.

“What question was that?”

“Your favorite memory growing up.”

We sat at a table that had been set up in our chamber – and contained a lavish feast. There was more food on that table – for one meal – than I saw most months back on Unduth. The food was so foreign and exotic – and delicious. Everything I tried was amazing and I couldn't wait to try what was on the next plate.

I looked over at Hatare and saw that she was delicately picking at the feast, sampling this and sampling that – probably proper table manners in Unduthian society. But I'd never seen so much food – fantastic food at that – and couldn't seem to contain myself.

Though I tried. I didn't want to make myself look bad in front of Hatare. I didn't want her to think that I was some uncultured, mannerless savage – though, in comparison to her, that's exactly what I was. I couldn't help but feel like I'd snuck into some high society gathering of the Unduthian elite.

“My favorite memory?” she asked.

I nodded. “Your favorite memory.”

She sat back in her seat and looked up at the ceiling, sipping from her glass of wine, looking as if she were searching her memory. The fact that it took her so long to come up with something made me sad for her. She was a girl who had everything – at least, in comparison to me – and yet, I seemed to have better memories more readily available in my heart and mind than she did.

I thought it said a lot.

“I suppose it would be learning everything I did with my tutors,” she said slowly. “Some of them really opened my eyes and helped me become who I am today.”

I looked at her and shook my head. “Lessons with your tutors? Really?”

She nodded. “Oh, it wasn't just books and dry lessons,” she said defensively. “There were some adventures as well.”

“Oh? What kind of adventures?”

“Well, one time, I went to Unduth's Crystal Gardens,” she said. “It was beautiful. Yet a little cold and sterile, in a way. But it was an educational experience. One I recall enjoying quite a lot. There was also the trip I took to the Magma Falls of Xryn. Spectacular in a completely different way.”

I finished chewing what I'd just taken a bite of – some noodle dish with seasonings that were like an explosion of flavor in my mouth. I thought I could eat that all night long and be happy. I quickly washed it down with a sip of wine.

“All of your favorite memories seem to be – educational in nature,” I remarked. “What about your family? No fond memories of them?”

She shrugged, an expression of sadness crossing her features. “We were never really all that close,” she said. “My mother and father viewed me as a commodity. A chip to be used to better the family's station in society.”

Listening to the sadness – tinged with plenty of bitterness – in her voice made my heart ache for her. But in a grim way, I found it endlessly fascinating as well. To think that somebody who had all of the luxuries in life as Hatare did, could sometimes be as miserable as those of us with nothing, was something of an eye-opening experience for me.

“Did you have any siblings?”

“A couple of older brothers and sisters,” I said. “But I haven't seen them in quite a long time. I do have one little sister though. I love her to pieces – but she's already been completely indoctrinated into Unduthian society. She just can't get to the Academy fast enough.”

There was no sadness, only bitterness in her voice as she spoke of the Academy – the training ground for proper Unduthian women. I didn't know very much about the Academy, but what I did know made me glad that I was not a woman, and not in the upper echelons of Unduthian society.

I gave her a small smile, anxious to turn the conversation in a different direction – perhaps, one that was lighter, more fun. I was dying to see Hatare smile because I found it entirely intoxicating. It seemed to transform her face and her entire being.

I raised my wine glass. “To us then,” I said. “To making new memories and building new worlds.”

“To us,” she said, tapping her glass against mine. “That is something I can get behind entirely.”

We talked as we feasted for a while longer – well, as I feasted. Hatare had stopped eating long before my gluttonous urges were sated. Eventually, though, I was too stuffed to continue eating and pushed myself back from the table.

“That was amazing,” I said.

She nodded. “I have no complaints,” she smiled. “They've fed us well here.”

We stood up from the table, taking our glasses of wine, and strolled out onto the balcony. The twin moons of Optorio were both high in the sky, casting their light down upon the sea and making it sparkle like a pool of silver. I leaned against the railing and stared out at the ocean, breathing in the salt air.

“I really like it here,” I said.

“I do too,” Hatare replied. “Though I'm looking forward to the day we can actually get out and explore a bit more.”

I nodded. “That would be nice.”

I felt Hatare's hand on my arm and I turned to her. She was looking into my eyes, giving me a soft, enigmatic smile.

“Thank you,” she said.

I cocked my head. “For what?”

“For this,” she said. “Without your help, I wouldn't be here. I'd probably be in that slave factory back home. Without you, I never would have made it to Optorio.”

I shrugged. “I don't know about that. You're a clever, resourceful girl,” I said with a chuckle. “I have no doubts you would have found your way here on your own.”

She shook her head. “I doubt it,” she said. “You saved my life, Byr. You really did. So, thank you for that. Thank you for everything.”

I looked into her eyes and saw something I couldn't place. Some emotion filled her face that I didn't recognize. Her eye markings glowed as bright as the moon, but gave me no real indication of what she was feeling. In that moment, I wished more than anything, that I could be in her head, listening to her thoughts.

Hatare was beautiful. More than beautiful, she was radiant. Ethereal. She was, without a doubt, the most beautiful woman I'd ever seen. And what made her all the more attractive was that she didn't even seem to realize it. She didn't seem to know just how stunning she truly was.

We looked into each other's eyes a moment longer and with my heart thundering in my chest, I leaned down and kissed her.

Chapter Five

Hatare

The moment Byr's lips touched mine, an explosion of sensation went off in my mind – and through my body. I'd never kissed a man before – my parents had made sure to keep me well segregated to prevent their commodity from being spoiled before the wedding.

But as he kissed me, it felt like small electrical shocks were flashing through my body from head to toe. As his tongue slipped into my mouth, swirling and dancing with my own, it felt like my every nerve ending was on fire. Kissing Byr seemed so natural to me and our mouths seemed to fit together like they were made for one another.

Slowly, our kiss ended and Byr pulled back, looking down at me with eyes that were wide with fear.

“I – I'm sorry,” he quickly stammered. “I didn't mean to overstep my bounds. I know – ”

I cut him off by pressing my mouth to his once more, this time not waiting for him to make a move. I slid my tongue into his mouth and kissed him just like he'd kissed me. I knew I was inexperienced and in completely foreign territory, so I tried to just do what he'd done – trying to apply what I'd just learned.

His body reacted to me and he pressed my back against the railing, his kissing becoming a little more urgent – and filled with a lot more passion. I ran my hands over his broad back and shoulders, kissing him harder and harder. I couldn't get enough.

It felt like something was awakening in me – something I never even knew existed. My passion was like a beast waking up from a long slumber needing to feed to sate itself. I dug my nails into Byr's shoulders as we kissed, wanting – no, needing – more.

His hands were tentative on my back – as if he felt he shouldn't be doing what he was doing. He was hesitant, as if he were scared and maybe thought that he shouldn't be kissing me. I broke our kiss and looked up at him. His eyes were wide and his lips were trembling.

“It's okay,” I said. “I want you to.”

“A – are you sure?”

Biting my bottom lip, I nodded. Part of me thought that I shouldn't be doing this – that I shouldn't be giving in to these lustful cravings. But that was the part of me that had been programmed by people like my mother and father. They'd taught me to always remain pure. Pristine. To only give myself to my husband – the man they chose for me.

But I was a free woman. Free of thought. Free of spirit. Free of heart. And free of body. I would not give myself over to somebody who had been selected for me based on the amount of prestige I could earn the family. No. Never. I would give myself to somebody I cared for. Somebody I wanted to be with.

Byr took a step back, but held on to my hands. He looked uncertain. Scared. But I saw something else in his eyes – desire. He wanted this as much as I did. But he was holding himself back out of fear. Fear of what though?

“What's scaring you?” I asked.

“Back on Unduth, I could have been thrown into the camps just for looking at you,” he said. “If they knew that we'd – kissed – they could have executed me on the spot. The upper class doesn't mix with the scraps.”

I gave him a small smile. “We're not on Unduth anymore, are we?”

He looked out at the ocean, a strained look on his face. He was torn between the stupid traditions of our culture and his own longings and desire. I believed that Byr cared about me. I could see it in his eyes whenever he looked at me – at least, when he wasn't guarding his emotions closely. And I knew that he desired me.

Just as I desired him.

Taking hold of his hand, I pulled him off of the balcony and into the bedchamber. He followed me, his footsteps heavy, reluctance born of fear painted clearly upon his face.

“We're in a new world, Byr,” I said softly. “We're free to make our own choices. Be who we want to be. Be with whom we choose. And I choose you.”

I let go of his hand and reached for the clasp on the gown I was wearing. I unhooked the clasp and let the gown fall where it lay in a heap at my feet. Byr looked from the gown on the floor, letting his eyes travel up my body. He licked his lips, his eyes growing wider as he took in my naked form.

But he stood statue still, frozen and rooted to his spot. I wasn't sure if it was still fear or whether he was in awe of what he was seeing – I was obviously hoping it was the latter.

“You want this, don't you?” I asked softly. “To be with me?”

Byr looked up from my naked body, meeting my eyes and the look of pure desire in them was all the answer I needed. Which was good, because he opened his mouth to speak but no words seemed to be forthcoming.

I gave him a salacious grin as I stepped forward and kissed him again. I took his hands and slid them up my belly, putting them on my bare breasts. His breath caught in his throat, but it seemed to renew his passion as he kissed me harder, squeezing and cupping my breasts.

Byr leaned down and took one of my breasts into his mouth, licking and sucking on it, drawing a soft moan of pleasure from me. I'd never experienced anything like this before and my body tingled, shivers running up and down my spine. Feeling his hands and mouth on my body was an ecstasy I'd never known before and it only made me hungrier for more.

With one of his hands still on my breast, Byr kissed me again. But he slid his other hand down my body, letting just the tips of his fingers trail across my flesh. I shuddered and closed my eyes, exhaling a long, soft moan. I felt him slide his hand between my thighs and felt a chill shoot through me.

I looked at him, biting my bottom lip, and slightly parted my legs for him. He kissed me again as he slid a finger inside of me, moving it in and out slowly and gently. There was a fire burning between my thighs, but I also felt how slick and moist I was at the same time.

I clamped my fingers into his shoulders as he started to slide his finger in and out with a little more speed and force.

“Oh, Byr,” I gasped. “That feels so amazing.”

He gave me a small smile and kept doing what he was doing – which felt amazing. He kissed me again as I felt a pressure building up low within me. I'd pleasured myself enough times to know that my climax was coming.

I moaned and ground my fingers against his hand, taking his fingers deeper inside of me. The sensations inside of me built quickly – and more intensely – than they did when I was alone and pleasuring myself. And then all of the sudden, the wall within me burst and I was flooded by the most electric, intense sensations I'd ever felt. My whole body spasmed and I cried out, digging my nails into his flesh.

I was overcome by the feeling of fire tearing through my body as I orgasmed. My breathing was shallow and ragged, but I looked up at Byr and smiled.

“That was amazing,” I gasped.

Byr returned my smile and raised his hand to his mouth, licking my juices off of his fingers. Watching him taste me sent another wave of desire rolling through me that I couldn't contain. I stepped forward and kissed him, sliding my hand down his stomach and began to rub him through his pants. I felt him growing long and thick beneath my touch and when I grabbed hold of him and squeezed, he let out a soft moan.

He looked into my eyes, the lust burning brighter than the Optorion sun. I unfastened his pants and let them fall to the floor. As I pulled him backward toward the bed, he fumbled with his shirt, finally managing to get it off and tossing it to the floor.

I smiled as I climbed onto the bed, pulling Byr along with me. I parted my legs and let him lay on top of me. We kissed and I reveled in the feeling of his flesh against mine – growing more excited by the feeling of him pressed against the warm, wet center of me.

“I need you, Byr,” I moaned. “I need you inside of me.”

He held himself up on his arms, looking down at me and smiled. I felt him pressing himself harder against my opening. And then I gasped, my eyes shooting wide open, as I felt him enter me. There was a brief shock of pain – but that was quickly followed by a warm wave of incredible pleasure.

“A – are you okay?” he asked, concern in his eyes.

My breathing was still a little ragged, but I looked back up at him. “I'm wonderful,” I wheezed. “So wonderful.”

Byr grinned at me and began to move his hips, sliding himself deep inside of me again and again. I arched my back, moaning and calling his name, as he plunged into me. The sound of our bodies connecting, flesh meeting flesh, echoed around the chamber – as did our moans and groans.

The pressure was building up inside of me again. Quickly and more powerfully before. Byr looked down at me, his movements becoming almost frantic. Gone was the steady rhythm he'd been in before and it felt like he was losing control of himself, his thrusts becoming ragged and urgent. I thought that maybe he was building up to his own climax.

He squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth, letting out an animalistic growl. I knew I wasn't going to last much longer and didn't think that he would either. I raised my hips to meet his thrusts and wave after wave of pleasure rolled over me as I felt him sliding deep inside of me.

Almost without warning, I felt my own dam break and I cried out as I orgasmed again, my whole body shaking and trembling. A moment later, Byr groaned and his body shuddered as I felt his warm, wet seed filling me up. He collapsed on top of me, trying to catch his breath.

Eventually, he rolled over and lay next to me – I put my head on his chest and trailed my fingertips over his stomach. I looked up at him and smiled – and when he looked back at me, I felt my breath catch in my throat. For in that look we exchanged, I saw something I never expected to see in his eyes – love.

Chapter Six

The next morning, my body was a little bit sore as we found ourselves being escorted out of our chamber and through the palace. Riley had arrived somewhat early to find us still lying in bed together. Her smile was knowing and Byr's face flushed, his eye markings glowing wildly, and he couldn't even meet her eyes. When she looked at me, I gave her a shy smile in return – I knew that this was what she'd wanted for Byr and me, but it wasn't something I actually thought would happen.

Byr looked over his shoulder at the four guards who followed us and then over at me. He cleared his throat.

“So, where are we going?” he asked.

Riley turned and looked over her shoulder at him – and he quickly looked away. She laughed.

“You're meeting with my husband, King Jendrish, this morning,” she said.

I already knew that, of course. I'd had a conversation with Riley while Byr had fumbled around in the bathroom, trying to clean himself up and get dressed. I wasn't sure why, but I felt a certain kinship with the Queen. I was comfortable around her and didn't feel like I needed to hide who I truly was.

I didn't know what to expect when Riley opened a door and ushered us inside. The guards took positions outside the room and Riley escorted us in. It was a beautiful room made from a dark, polished stone. The chamber was softly lit and shelves lined three of the walls and were crammed with what seemed like millions of different books. The fourth wall was made entirely of glass and offered a view of Optorio's rugged coastline and sparkling red ocean. It was a room I thought I could be very happy in for a very long time.

“Are you two hungry?” she asked, her tone turning playful. “I know that I'm always starving after a good workout.”

I thought Byr might pass out from embarrassment right then and there. His face colored, his eye markings glowed, and he sounded like he might choke. I couldn't help but laugh along with Riley. I didn't know what it was, but I felt no shame over what Byr and I had done. It had been beautiful. A loving experience. And I saw no reason to feel bad about it.

Byr, on the other hand, looked like he wanted to just crawl under a rock somewhere and hide. I wasn't sure why he felt so self-conscious about what we'd done. It was a natural act between two people who cared for one another.

Riley seated us at a table that had been laid out with a spread of food that looked every bit as amazing as the feast we'd had the previous night. I sat – with Byr on my left – and leaned back in my seat. We had to wait for the King to arrive before digging in – and I found myself hoping that he would arrive soon. I was absolutely famished.

Following my lead, Byr sat back in his seat and waited along with me. A moment later, a door at the other end of the room and a tall man with very pale skin, eyes a shade of blue I'd never seen, and long, dark hair stepped inside. He smiled wide as he took a seat at the table across from us.

“You must be Hatare and Byr,” he said. “Riley has told me much about you.”

Riley leaned down and gave her husband a kiss. Then she looked at us. “I'm going to leave the three of you now. You have much to discuss.”

And with that, Riley disappeared through the door Jendrish had arrived through. He looked over at us and motioned to the food on the table.

“Please, help yourselves,” he said. “Eat as much as you'd like.”

I grinned over at Byr and we both dug in, sampling from a wide variety of the food on the table.

“Thank you for seeing us, Your Majesty,” I said.

The King waved me away. “Please, call me Jendrish,” he said. “I feel much the same way about formalities as my wife.”

The conversation throughout breakfast was lively and entertaining. Jendrish told us all about himself and how he came to be the King of Optorio. He was a charismatic and engaging man – and yet, he still retained a sense of humility. I knew that some government leaders could be pompous and arrogant – I'd seen enough of them in my day. But Jendrish wasn't like that. He seemed to have more in common with Byr and me than any other government leader I'd ever met.

Eventually though, breakfast ended and we pushed ourselves back from the table. A crew of palace employees immediately swooped in and began cleaning up the plates, hauling everything away, and leaving a bare table in their wake.

Jendrish leaned back in his seat and looked at us, the expression on his face inscrutable. I suddenly felt awkward and afraid. Beneath the table, I reached out and took Byr's hand. He gave my hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze.

“Hatare,” Jendrish began. “Tell me why you fled your home.”

“Honestly, I wanted to be free,” I said. “I could not stomach the thought of being forced into a marriage that I did not want or choose. The thought of being auctioned off to somebody based on what I could earn for my family – just no. The societal norms of Unduth are reprehensible and anathema to who I am as a woman.”

Jendrish nodded and gave me a small smile. “Riley told me that you were a spirited young woman,” he said. “I can respect the fire I see in you.”

He turned his attention to Byr. “I understand that you stand accused of some terrible crimes back home,” he said. “I've been told that you are suspected of being part of a group that is responsible for a series of bombings within Kinray – bombings that have taken the lives of many Unduthians. As you know, we are having problems with our own group of terrorists. It's not an issue I take lightly.”

I felt Byr's body tense and could feel the anger radiating from him like heat from the sun. “I had nothing to do with any of that,” he growled. “I'm not part of some rebel group. All I do is work and take care of my family. My mother is – ”

Jendrish nodded and gave him a sympathetic look. “I understand that your mother is very ill,” he said. “And I'm sorry for that. But why is it they believe you are one of the rebels?”

Byr shook his head. “I don't know,” he replied. “The first I heard about anything like that was when some of the government soldiers showed up at the factory I work at and almost executed me.”

“Where a bomb went off, killing some of those government soldiers,” Jendrish said.

Byr looked down at the table. “Yes,” he replied. “But I had nothing to do with it. I swear it to you.”

Jendrish sighed. “I believe you.”

Byr looked up. “You do?”

The King nodded. “I do,” he said. “I was a soldier for a long time. I know the look of a killer – and you're not it.”

Relief seemed to color Byr's face and he gave the King a small, relieved smile.

“But that doesn't change the fact that the Unduthian government is asking for your return to face trial,” Jendrish said. “And your father is also demanding your return, Hatare.”

Any sense of relief Byr and I were feeling suddenly evaporated. Jendrish seemed torn, but his expression was grave. And it was in that moment I knew he was going to send us home.

“My hands are tied,” Jendrish said. “Unduth is an ally of ours and has been for a long, long time. It's not my place to interfere with their affairs of State. I can't impose my rule upon them.”

“If you send us back, they're going to execute Byr,” I said quickly, my voice rising. “And my father is going to do – I don't even know what to me.”

Jendrish sighed and leaned across the table. “Which is why I'm so conflicted about this whole affair,” he said. “The last thing I want is for anything to happen to either one of you. Riley is very fond of the both of you – and frankly, after spending this morning with you, so am I.”

Byr and I shared a look – one of fear, but one of guarded hope as well. I knew we'd put Jendrish in an impossible situation. Affairs of State are tricky matters on the best of days – but harboring fugitives like Byr and me made things all the more complicated. I did not envy the position we'd put him in. But at the same time, I hoped he would do all he could to save us from the fate that awaited us back on Unduth.

“The Unduthian government is sending an envoy to meet with me,” Jendrish said. “We will discuss matters and see if we can't come to an agreement one way or the other.”

I nodded and gave him a grim smile. It was about the best I could hope for under the circumstances.

“I don't want to give either of you false hope,” Jendrish said. “But just know that I will fight for you. I will do all I can on your behalf. I give you my word.”

“Thank you,” I said softly.

Byr nodded. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

“Jendrish,” the King gently corrected him. “I will talk to the both of you very soon.”

After giving us one last look, Jendrish stood up and left the room. Byr and I stood up when the doors opened and the guards filed in to escort us back to our room. I recognized the one man as the guard who'd escorted us through the gardens the night before. He gave me a small smile and a nod, as if seeking to reassure me that everything would be okay. I smiled back at him and took Byr by the hand.

As we walked down the hallway, I looked up at him. “Things are going to work out,” I said. “They're going to be okay.”

A cold finger of fear slithered its way down my spine and the knot in my stomach clenched painfully. Byr's smile was small and grim and I knew that my reassurances had fallen on deaf ears. But then, I was having trouble even convincing myself that what I'd said was true.

Chapter Seven

Gravus

I was met at the spaceport by a contingent of Royal Guardsmen. I wasn't expecting the pomp and circumstance a head of state might receive, but I wasn't expecting to be under guard from the moment I touched down, either.

It was obvious to me that King Jendrish was trying to send me a message. Give me a little show of force to make sure he knew that Optorio was strong. Message received.

To show that I was not a threat and was there not to fight, but to have an open and honest discussion, I left my own personal guard on the ship as I was led to the transport that would take me to the palace. It had been against Tok's strongly worded suggestion, but I did not want to create an atmosphere of tension and hostility right off the bat.

I was smarter than that and knew that more times than not, you got what you wanted when you appeared to be reasonable.

Though I was representing the Unduthian government as a whole, in truth, my services had been retained by the girl's father, Minister of Defense Borask. She was his only concern and was paying me good money to secure her safe return to Unduth. As for the boy, the Unduthian government was paying me to bring him back so they could execute him as a terrorist – in public, no doubt. They did like to put on a show.

I liked working jobs like this – doing the same amount of work for double the money.

I was shown not to the formal throne room where I assumed my visit with the King would be held – but to a small library instead. The door was closed behind me and I found myself in a small, intimate room. A table sat in the middle of the room and shelves lined all four walls. Books took up most of the space, but various other interesting objects – things I wasn't familiar with – lay on others.

The room was dimly lit and carried an interesting scent in the air. It was pipe smoke, but of a blend I couldn't quite identify. A door in the far wall slid open with a whoosh and in stepped the man I'd come to see. I gave him a low, formal bow.

“Please rise,” Jendrish said. “And have a seat.”

“Thank you for seeing me, Your Majesty,” I said. “I appreciate your time and attention to this matter.”

“Of course,” the King replied as he sat down at the table. “Unduth has been an ally for a very long time, and their concerns are my concerns.”

The reference to the longstanding alliance between Unduth and Optorio was for my benefit – and to let me know that the stakes in this situation were very high. He was a clever man. Intelligent. I didn't credit most soldiers with an abundance of brains. Most were content to point at what I told them to point at and pull the trigger. But Jendrish was obviously a very clever man. And I could appreciate that.

“The Unduthian Ministers wanted me to express their gratitude for Optorio's continued friendship.”

One of the palace servants bustled into the room carrying a tray filled with refreshments. She was a good looking girl and as I eyed her up and down, taking all of her in and imagining what I'd like to do with her, she seemed to blush and walked quickly from the room without a word. If the King had noticed, he had the good grace to not say anything about it.

“Please, help yourself,” Jendrish said. “The Optorion wine is especially good.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.”

It had been a long flight and I was hungry, so I piled some of the food onto a plate and poured myself a glass of the wine – and the King was right, it was very good. Unique. So very different from the wines I was accustomed to on Unduth.

“I trust your flight was smooth, General?” Jendrish asked.

“Indeed,” I replied. “And thank you for the refreshments, they are delicious.”

The King raised his glass to me in response. “So, tell me General, where do the Ministers stand on the situation with Hatare and Byr?”

I chewed the delicacy I'd been snacking on and washed it down with a swig of wine before answering.

“They hope that you will honor our – as you noted, longstanding – alliance and turn over citizens of Unduth without delay, of course, so that they may stand trial for their crimes.”

Jendrish nodded and sipped from his glass of wine. “That is an understandable, even reasonable position to take.”

“Is there another position that can be taken, Your Majesty?”

“I'm a little unclear about something,” Jendrish said. “What exactly are their crimes?”

“The boy is facing very serious charges of sedition and terrorism,” I said. “And he needs to answer for those crimes.”

The King looked at me thoughtfully for a moment. “Of course,” he said. “As you know, we have our own troubles with seditionists, and I take those allegations very seriously indeed. I assume you have evidence that supports his ties to these crimes?”

I took a sip of wine and set the glass back down. “It's not my place to adjudicate his particular case, Your Majesty,” I said. “Personally, I have no stake in that game. I'm here merely to oversee the transfer of the prisoner so that he may stand trial.”

“You're here to negotiate for his release,” Jendrish said. “At least, I believe that's what you meant, since it's not a given that I will allow him to be taken yet.”

“Of course,” I replied.

Jendrish was testing my patience. He knew that under terms of the planetary alliance, he was obligated to send a wanted fugitive back to stand trial. And he had to know that I'd been properly briefed on terms of the alliance before setting foot on Optorio. Which meant that he was angling for something.

“We're both soldiers, Your Majesty,” I said. “I'm not particularly well-versed in the language of politics and diplomacy. May we speak freely?”

Jendrish nodded. “It would be preferred.”

“Very well,” I replied. “The terms of your alliance obligate you to send the boy back. You know this of course,” I said. “It's not a matter of you allowing me to take them back. It is your obligation to do so.”

Jendrish looked at me but said nothing. He merely sipped from his glass of wine and waited for me to continue.

“So, what is it you're hoping to gain by playing this game?”

He set his glass down and smiled at me. “It's not what I'm hoping to gain, General,” he said. “It's what I'm hoping to secure for both Hatare and Byr.”

“And what might that be?”

“Freedom for the girl,” he said bluntly. “She should not be forced into a marriage she does not want.”

“It is not my place to say otherwise,” I said. “Nor is it yours.”

“True,” he replied. “But I wasn't finished. I also want to ensure fair treatment for the boy. I happen to be convinced of his innocence and I will not send him back to Unduth only to see him executed because his guilt was predetermined.”

I sighed. “With all due respect,” I said, “You have no leg to stand on here. You have no standing to demand these things of the Unduthian Ministry.”

He shrugged. “Actually, I do have standing.”

“And what might that be?”

“Under terms of our planetary alliance,” he said, “Unduthian soldiers are not permitted upon my soil without my prior knowledge and consent.”

“I don't unders – ”

“See, I know for a fact that the Unduthian Ministry has had soldiers on Optorio searching for Hatare and Byr,” he said. “Furthermore, I know for a fact that some Unduthian soldiers – attached to your outfit, coincidentally enough – took part in the battle in the plaza that brought those two to me.”

I felt my face growing warm knowing that he was right. I'd taken measures to hide the identities of my men, but he'd obviously been able to discover it anyway.

I cleared my throat. “I don't know what – ”

“General,” Jendrish interrupted me, “as you noted, we're soldiers. Lying to me is far from honorable, so please do not insult my intelligence. I know it was your men in the plaza that night. They were there to pay the rebels a tremendous amount of money in exchange for Hatare and Byr. So, not only were Unduthian soldiers on Optorion soil – in clear violation of our treaty – but they were helping fund terrorism on my planet. I'd say that gives me plenty of standing to make some demands of my own.”

Jendrish was a shrewd and clever man. He'd grown into his role on the throne far more capably than I thought he would when I'd first learned of his coronation. He had me – and the Unduthian Ministry – dead to rights and he knew it.

“Here is what is going to happen,” Jendrish pressed. “If the Ministry accepts my proposals, I can overlook the very clear and very serious violations of our treaty. Call it a good faith gesture. The last thing I want is to have what has been a very good relationship between our two worlds for a very long time to be – damaged.”

“I believe the Ministry will feel the same way about maintaining solid relations with Optorio,” I said.

I took a sip of my wine, feeling utterly humiliated and angry. My reputation was going to take a big hit because of this fiasco. I knew the message I was going to have to deliver to the Ministry wasn't going to be received well. It was my fault we were in this predicament – even though I was operating under their orders. But they wouldn't see it as anything but my failing.

Jendrish nodded. “I am happy to hear that.”

“I will, of course, need to speak with the Ministry about your – proposals.”

“Of course,” he replied. “Also, please let them know that to see that my – proposals – are kept, I intend to send a delegation headed by my wife to oversee the transfer.”

I rubbed my jawline, feeling my irritation with the man growing. He was really pushing it – but knew he had the advantage. It was a smart play – press while you have the high ground. It's what I would have done – which earned him a measure of respect in my eyes. But, it was still irritating.

“I will inform the Ministry,” I said. “Is there anything else?”

He shook his head. “No, I believe that will be all.”

I inclined my head. “Very good. I will go back to my ship and place the call to the Ministry to discuss your proposals. We can meet again tomorrow?”

“I'll be waiting.”

Chapter Eight

Hatare

“I don't want to go back,” I said, a feeling of dread shooting through my heart.

Riley looked at me with sympathy in her eyes. “And I don't want to have to take you back,” she said. “But Jendrish has to look out for the well-being of his people. And there was a very real possibility that had he not agreed to this, it could have led to war.”

I sat next to Byr who sat hunched over with his head down. I could see the fear and uncertainty in his face. Reaching out, I took his hand and tried to give him a reassuring squeeze. He didn't respond. Not that I could blame him, really. We were being sent back to a planet where he was going to be tried and very likely executed as a terrorist.

My stomach was in knots and my heart pounded inside of me just thinking about it. But Riley said she did have some good news to share with us. We'd gotten settled into a comfortable cabin on the transport that was taking us back to Unduth and she'd plied us with food and drink – neither of which, Byr had touched. He'd barely spoken since Jendrish had broken the news to us.

While I was hurt and angry, I also couldn't blame him. Optorio was bigger than Byr and me. And while it would have been nice to see him grant us sanctuary, Riley was right – the welfare of his people came first and foremost. I didn't have to like it, but it was something I could understand.

Not only that, but the idea of innocent people dying in a war – because of us – didn't particularly sit well with me either.

The transport had broken the Optorion atmosphere and we were well on our way to Unduth by the time Riley had joined us in the cabin. I could see that she felt miserable about what was happening – but like her husband, she was in a no-win situation.

She took a seat at the table and I poured a glass of wine for her. As I watched the thick liquid filling the glass, I idly wondered if that was the last time I was ever going to taste the wine I'd grown rather fond of. She took a sip as she settled back in her seat and looked at the two of us.

“So, Jendrish was able to secure certain considerations for your return,” she said. “And as much as I hate that you have to go back at all, at least it will be on favorable terms.”

“What terms?” Byr asked, his voice full of bitterness and anger.

“Well, first of all, the Unduthian Ministry has insisted that you stand trial for the charges levied against you,” she said. “But, you will get a fair trial – and I have every confidence that your innocence will be proven.”

“A fair trial,” Byr scoffed. “Right.”

“I know you're skeptical,” she said. “But you will be properly represented. I'm here to make sure that the terms of this agreement are met to my satisfaction. If there is even the slightest whiff of impropriety, you will be coming back to Optorio with me.”

“Which is all fine and good,” Byr countered. “But you're going to have to leave sometime. And then what?”

“I will have certain – safeguards – in place to make sure the terms of this agreement are upheld,” she said.

“What sort of safeguards?” I asked.

She gave me a small smile. “The kind I can't really talk about. But rest assured that I will be monitoring everything that happens here. There's no way in hell I'm throwing you to the wolves and abandoning you.”

I gave her a soft smile I hoped looked more genuine than it felt. “I will feel better knowing you will be keeping an eye on us.”

Byr said nothing, his eyes still focused on the floor beneath his feet. I couldn't imagine what was going through his mind as he sat there, knowing he was going to be standing trial for crimes I knew he didn't commit. Couldn't have committed.

She reached across the table and took my hand, squeezing it firmly. “I like you, Hatare. I like you a lot. And I'm going to do everything in my power to see that you live the life you want to live.”

“What is going to happen to me?” I asked softly. “Once we get back. I can't imagine that my father is going to be in a very forgiving mood.”

She sighed and looked down at our hands. “I don't know what's going to happen with your father,” she said. “But I do know that Jendrish was able to secure an agreement on your behalf. You are not going to be forced into the Academy, and you will not be forced to marry somebody you do not want to marry.”

My smile was weak, but I felt a genuine blossom of hope in my chest. “Really?”

Riley nodded. “Yes, really.”

“How are they going to enforce that,” Byr said, looking up at me. “Once Riley leaves Unduth, how can they guarantee your father isn't going to pack you up and ship you off to the Academy anyway?”

I could see the hurt and fear in his eyes – fear of losing me. I knew he thought that once we returned to Unduth, that things would go back to being the way they were on our world and that we would be kept apart by our class differences.

But I wasn't about to let that happen. I squeezed his hand and looked deeply into his eyes. “Do you trust me?” I asked.

He cocked his head, clearly confused by my question. “Of course I trust you.”

“Then trust in me when I say that they are not going to keep us apart,” I said. “If my father breaks his word and sends me off to the Academy, trust me when I say that I will find my way out and find my way back to you. We will be together no matter what world we're on and nobody is going to prevent that from happening.”

I looked at Riley – tears shimmered in her eyes and she smiled at me. She'd obviously seen what was building between Byr and I long before either of us had. She'd fostered and encouraged it to grow. And because of her, we'd found our way to one another – and had overcome our fears – together.

He gave me a small smile in return, but I didn't see a whole lot of hope in his eyes. Of course, though I talked a good game, I had no idea what was going to happen once we got back to Unduth – and I was forced to go back home to my mother and father. About the only thing I did know was that they weren't going to pack me up and ship me off without a fight. If they thought they could force me into the life they wanted me to live despite giving his word that they wouldn't, they were going to have a real big fight on their hands.

“Anyway, I wanted to let you two know what was going on,” she said. “We'll probably be getting to Unduth soon, so I want to give you both some time alone together.”

I looked up at her and felt a genuine gratitude in my heart for her. “Thank you, Riley. For everything.”

She looked at us and gave me a warm smile. “Don't say that like this is the last time we're going to see each other, Hatare,” she said. “Because it's not. I meant it when I said I really like you. And I will see you again soon.”

With one last smile, she turned and walked out of the cabin, leaving the two of us alone. I turned to Byr and squeezed his hand, trying to get him to look up at me. Reluctantly, he did and the look in his eyes broke my heart. There was little more than hopelessness and despair. He seemed resigned to a fate that ended with his death.

“Look into my eyes,” I said. “Look deeply. Tell me what you see.”

He looked for a long moment and then shook his head. “What am I supposed to be seeing?”

“You're supposed to be seeing how much I care for you, Byr,” I said. “I – I love you.”

A look of absolute surprise crossed his face. He looked at me like I'd sprouted another arm out of the top of my head or something. I couldn't believe those words came out of my mouth – but I couldn't deny how I felt, either. And what I had said was truly how I felt. I loved him. I loved Byr.

But I was scared putting that out there like that, not knowing how he felt about me. I had an idea that he felt much the same way, but until he said it, I couldn't know for sure. And it made me nervous. I stared at him, waiting for him to say something. Hoping it would be what I wanted to hear.

“I love you too, Hatare,” Byr said, his eyes wide, as if he couldn't believe he was saying it either. “But the way we feel about each other isn't going to save my life and it's not going to prevent your father from sending you to the Academy, either.”

“Maybe not, but I have faith in Riley,” I said. “I have faith that she's going to be able to make the Ministry as well as my father hold to their word.”

His smile was wry. “I wish I had the same faith you did.”

“They're not going to keep you and I apart, Byr,” I said. “If you believe in nothing else, believe in that. And who knows, once you are cleared of the charges and set free, you and I can go anywhere. We can build a new life. Maybe we can even settle on Optorio. It doesn't matter to me as long as we're together.”

He gave me a smile, but I could see the hollowness in his eyes. He didn't believe he was going to be cleared of the charges. He didn't believe that we were going to be together. He believed that his fate was already sealed.

I gripped his hand tighter and looked at him earnestly. Leaning forward, I kissed him with all of the love and passion I felt in my body and soul for him. When I finally pulled back, looked him in the eye.

“Never give up hope, Byr,” I said. “We are going to get through this together. We are going to be okay.”

His expression was sad, as if all hope had already been lost for him. “I hope you're right. I'd like nothing more than if you were right.”

“I am right,” I said. “You'll see.”

Chapter Nine

Byr

I wish I'd felt even half as confident that things would turn out right as Hatare did. But even as she'd spoken to me, I could see that she didn't entirely believe what she was saying either. I could see the shadowed, guarded look in her eyes. Yeah, she had hope, but I didn't think she truly believed that once Riley left Unduth, that her father or the Ministry would hold true to their word.

But knowing that she felt about me the way I felt about her lifted my spirits. Even if I was going to my death, I knew that I could at least hold on to that. Riley loved me. And I loved her. We'd somehow found our way through the winding paths of Unduthian society and class-based culture to each other. We'd found love for each other when the world told us that we shouldn't. That we couldn't.

That had to count for something, didn't it?

Well, if nothing else, it eased my heart and my soul. If it wouldn't protect me from what I was sure would be a swift execution once we got back to Unduth.

Riley, with her contingent of guards flanking us, marched us through the halls of the Ministry, with Unduthian soldiers leading the procession. My stomach was in knots that were constricting painfully and my heart thundered in my chest. Hatare gripped my hand and looked up at me with love – clouded by fear – in her eyes. She was as nervous as I was about what was happening.

“We'll be okay,” she said softly to me. “Don't lose hope, Byr. I love you.”

“I love you too,” I whispered back.

It amazed me how easily those words now came to us. Though, it almost felt like we were trying to say it as often as we could in anticipation of never being able to say it to one another again. But then, I was admittedly, in a very fatalistic frame of mind. Not that I could really be blamed. I just didn't have a lot of faith in the idea that a government who would seek to execute me for a crime I didn't commit – a crime they never truly investigated – would be faithful to their word to give me a “fair trial.”

A pair of large doors was opened and we were escorted into the middle of a massive chamber. Made of polished white and black stone, it was as beautiful as it was intimidating. I was standing in the seat of power in Unduth – the Ministry.

The government soldiers took up positions along the walls, leaving us facing the real power in Unduth – the Ministers themselves. They sat behind imposing looking desks on raised platforms. They looked down upon us with hostility and open disdain. I glanced over at Hatare and saw her raise her chin as she stared defiantly at one man in particular – Minister of Defense Borask. The man I knew to be her father. He stared back at her with barely controlled fury. I half-feared that he was jump down from his podium and try to throttle her then and there.

Hatare reached out and took my hand, squeezing it gently as she gave her father a very pointed look. His eye markings glowed brightly and the look in his eyes was unadulterated contempt. Riley, flanked by two of her guards, stepped in front of us, putting the eyes of the Ministers squarely on her. She'd effectively cut off my line of sight to the men seated before us.

I felt somebody standing close behind us and when I glanced over my shoulder, saw Vink standing there. He looked down at me and tipped me a wink.

“Ministers,” she said and inclined her head. “My name is Riley, I am the Queen of Optorio. My husband, King Jendrish, informed you that I would be coming.”

“He informed us,” one of the men said, his voice echoing around the chamber.

“Then you are aware that I am here to ensure that the terms of your agreement are upheld to his satisfaction,” Riley said.

“I don't know that I would call it an agreement,” another voice came and judging by the way Hatare's body tensed, I assumed it was her father. “More like extortion.”

“Need I remind you, good Ministers, that Unduthian soldiers were used to spill blood on Optorion soil? That is a clear – ”

“No, you need not remind us,” Hatare's father cut her off. “And the last thing we need is to be lectured by a – human.”

He spat the word out with nothing short of disrespect and disdain. I saw Riley's back straighten as she stood taller, her demeanor growing decidedly colder.

“Your hostility is not necessary,” Riley said. “It was not we who initiated this affair. Nor was it we who violated terms of an age-old treaty.”

“Let's all calm down,” came another voice that sounded like an older man who was attempting to soothe the rising tensions. “We have no need for hostility. Our friendship with Optorio is long and very appreciated. And we have no desire to see that friendship damaged in any way. We freely admit that we made some – mistakes.”

“Mistakes that would not have been made had it not been for – ”

“Defense Minister Borask, you will be silent. Or you will remove yourself from this chamber,” came the older voice. “As I was saying, we made some regrettable decisions. And for that, we apologize.”

Riley's posture softened – somewhat. “I appreciate your sentiments, Minister,” she said. “And I will be sure to pass them along to my husband.”

“Now, as for what has been agreed to,” the man went on, “please, rest assured that we will abide by it to the letter. The boy will be given a fair trial and a vigorous defense. He will have every opportunity to prove his innocence.”

“That's really generous, since I'm innocent,” I muttered. “But it's a lot harder when you're presumed guilty from the start.”

Hatare gave me a look of concern and a soft smile. Vink nudged me from behind and when I looked back at him, he gave me a disapproving frown and a shake of his head, his message clear – now was not the time for sarcasm. Fine.

“And that is appreciated, Minister,” Riley said. “I will be in regular contact with his counsel to ensure that justice is being served in this case.”

“As you wish, Your Majesty,” he said.

“And as for Hatare,” Riley went on. “I want to ensure that she suffers no – indignities – for her behavior. She is a remarkable young woman and should be valued as such.”

“I appreciate you giving me advice about raising my daughter, Your Majesty,” Borask said, bitterness and sarcasm dripping from his mouth. “And rest assured, I will take it to heart.”

“Minister Borask,” Riley said. “Hatare is an intelligent and independent-minded young woman. Rather than trying to force her to conform to your will and locking her away in what is essentially a prison.”

“I hardly call marrying into one of Unduth's wealthy families a prison, Your Majesty,” he said. “Her every need and desire would be catered to. She would want for nothing.”

“Nothing but freedom and intellectual stimulation,” Riley said. “She is a woman with enormous intellectual gifts. Somebody who could be a tremendous boon to your society if nurtured, rather than snuffed out.”

“Your Majesty, with all due respect,” Borask said, his tone icy, “I will raise my daughter as I see fit. Though I appreciate your concern.”

Riley tilted her head. “That being said, you have also made some assurances for her safe return.”

Borask sighed deeply. “Yes, and I will honor my word,” he said. “Hatare will not be sent to the Academy. Nor will she be married against her wishes. We will violate centuries old custom and tradition for my stubborn daughter.”

Riley turned and looked at us, an inscrutable expression on her face. She cast her eyes to Vink and I saw something pass between them – she didn't believe them. She was not satisfied that the terms of the agreement would be upheld. I could see it in her face. Then I felt Vink's hand on my shoulder, his tension coming through his touch.

I cut a quick look over to Hatare – she was so busy staring daggers at her father that she'd missed everything that had just transpired. I nudged her with my elbow and she looked at me. I tried to convey my anxiety with my eyes. Riley and her men were going to take us out of there, take us back to Optorio, and judging by the tension in Vink's body, as well as the fact that his men were slowly and subtly crowding closer to us, they were expecting a fight.

“Ministers,” Riley began, “I came here in good faith and with the best of intentions. However, I am not fully – ”

Her words were cut off as an explosion rocked the building. The stained glass windows set high in the walls exploded inward and smoke came pouring through the openings. There were screams, shouts, and the sound of weapons firing all around us. I felt a hand on my back, pushing me down to the floor. Hatare was right next to me, huddled up next to my body.

Visibility in the chamber was next to nothing, and one of the last things I saw was Riley being surrounded by her guards, pulling her out of the chamber. She'd had her hands out and was calling for Hatare and I. But my limbs felt heavy. Like dead weight. I couldn't stand and I was having trouble even thinking.

I looked down at Hatare and saw that she was shaking her head and blinking her eyes, seeming to be fighting to stay awake. My vision was beginning to blur and I was feeling lightheaded. I suddenly felt hands on me, roughly pulling me to my feet.

The last thing I remember was seeing two men in helmets with protective breathing equipment staring at me.

Then the entire world went black.

Chapter Ten

Hatare

I slowly came to and felt lightheaded. There was also a dull ache in my head and my eyes felt raw. Honestly, I felt like I did after the first time I'd indulged in a little too much wine. I turned my head and saw Byr sitting up on a bed next to where I was laying. He looked at me and I watched as relief flooded his face when I opened my eyes.

He jumped off his bed and sat down on the edge of mine, helping me into a sitting position. I wrapped my arms around him and embraced him tightly. We were alive. I had no idea where we were, but we were alive.

Everything in the Ministry had happened so fast, it had all been so chaotic, that I didn't even have time to process everything that was going on before I'd blacked out.

“Where are we?” I asked, my throat feeling burned and dry.

“Drink something first,” he replied.

Byr took a glass of water off of the table that sat between our two beds and helped me take a drink. The cool water soothed my parched, aching throat. I drained the glass and set it back down on the table, turning my attention back to Byr.

“Where are we?” I repeated.

He shook his head. “I don't know, Hatare,” he replied. “My best guess it that we're in a cell somewhere beneath the Ministry.”

“What happened?” I asked. “I – I remember that something exploded. I remember a lot of smoke and people shooting. And then I remember somebody pushing us face down onto the floor. Next thing I know, I'm waking up here.”

“That's about what I recall,” he said. “I think that maybe the rebels they're having a problem with bombed the Ministry.”

I nodded and suddenly felt profoundly lucky that we'd survived a terrorist attack. But just as the relief entered me, so too did a wave of anxiety.

“Riley,” I said. “What happened to Riley?”

He shook his head again. “I don't know. The last thing I remember is seeing her being hauled away by Vink and her guards. I think they may have gotten her back on the transport and headed back to Optorio.”

“Without us?”

“She was calling to us,” Byr said. “I don't think leaving us was her idea. I have a feeling that Jendrish had ordered Vink to get her out of there if something happened.”

I nodded. I couldn't blame Jendrish for being concerned about his wife's safety and for taking steps to ensure that she returned to him alive. In his place, I probably would have done the same thing. But I looked around the room, at the four bare walls that surrounded us, and felt a wave of despair. If Byr was right, and we were locked in a cell beneath the Ministry, there was no way Riley was going to be able to enforce the agreement she had in place with the Ministers. In the wake of a terrorist attack, all they had to do was claim that we'd been killed and they'd then be free to do with us as they wished.

My despair was slowly giving way to despondency as I realized just how dire our situation was.

The door to our cell whooshed open and a tall, broad-shouldered man with light violet skin and dark hair tinged with silver stepped into the room. He carried an authoritarian air about him. He was imperious. Commanding. Imposing. And I wondered if the Ministers had sent him in here to torture us – just to get their fun started.

“Oh good, you're both awake,” he said.

“Who are you?” Byr asked.

Byr shakily got to his feet and put himself between me and the man, trying to protect me. I could tell though, by the way he was swaying on his feet, that he was weakened – and most definitely in no condition to fight.

“Relax, Byr,” said the man. “I'm not here to hurt you or Hatare.”

“T – then, why are you here?” I asked.

The man put his hand on Byr's shoulder and gave him a fatherly smile as he helped him sit back down beside me. He then moved over to the other bed and sat down on the edge of it, staring straight at us.

“I have to admit, I've been looking forward to meeting the both of you for a little while now,” he said.

I exchanged a look with Byr. What was he talking about? “Did the Ministers – did my father – send you in here to beat us? Torture us?”

The man laughed as if it were the funniest thing he'd ever heard. Eventually, his laughter died down, but he looked at us, a small smile playing upon his lips.

“Hardly,” he said. “I'm not with the Ministry. I'm with the group that just bombed the Ministry, actually.”

“You're with the rebels,” Byr said, anger in his voice.

The man nodded. “My name is Yurat,” he said. “I command this faction of our rebellion, yes.”

“Because of you people, I was almost executed,” Byr seethed.

“That is regrettable and I apologize for that,” the man said and actually sounded sincere. “You were never meant to get caught up in all of this.”

Byr's expression darkened as his anger grew. “My family – ”

“Is safe,” the man said. “When we heard what happened at the factory that day, we staged an assault on the prison and rescued the families that had been taken. Your mother, brother, and sister are all safe and are in a secure location.”

“Where?” Byr asked. “Where are you holding them?”

The man looked down at his hands and then back up at us again. “I can't tell you that just yet, Byr,” he said. “Security risks and all that. But please know that we are taking good care of them. They are safe. Well fed. And they miss you.”

“Take me to them,” Byr demanded. “I want to see them.”

“I'm afraid I can't do that just yet,” the man said. “But in time, I can absolutely take you to them.”

“What do you want with us?” I asked. “If you're truly not with the Ministry, why did you take us out of there?”

The man looked at me with approving eyes. “There's the question I was hoping to hear,” he said. “I heard you were sharp.”

“That's not an answer,” I said.

“Indeed,” he said, his smile growing wider. “The truth of the matter is that we bombed the Ministry specifically to save the two of you.”

“To save us?” Byr asked, disbelief upon his face.

The man nodded. “Yes, to save you,” he said. “You didn't really think the Ministers were going to hold up their end of the bargain, did you? Oh, I think the Optorion Queen believed they would and she did her best on your behalf – ”

“Actually, no,” Byr said. “She didn't believe them. I saw it in her face just before the bomb went off. She had just started moving her men into a position to protect us. I think she was going to tell the Ministers she wasn't satisfied that they were operating in good faith – and was going to take us back to Optorio. But then the bomb went off and – well – we ended up here.”

“Huh,” Yurat said. “Perhaps, I misjudged her. Perhaps, I underestimated her and her ability to suss out the garbage from the truth when dealing with a bunch of vipers like the Ministers.”

“Riley is one of the smartest, most intuitive women I've ever had the privilege of knowing,” I said, feeling the need to defend her. “If she thought they were not going to be true to their word, she was going to pull us out. Not nearly get us killed.”

Yurat gave me a good-natured smile. “I apologize for the theatrics,” he said. “But I assure you that you were never in any danger. The explosions you heard were from the gas bombs we'd planted in the chamber. It was a fast acting sleeping gas. Anybody breathing it for more than a few seconds took a nice, long nap – as you found out. And we used shaped charges to blow the windows in the chamber. Ultimately, it was a lot of flash and dazzle, but you two were perfectly safe the entire time.”

“I don't understand,” I said. “Why go to all that trouble just to get us out of there? Why does what happens to Byr and me matter to your rebellion?”

He cocked his head and looked at us as if we were alien beings – or were rather dense. “Because of who you two are?”

Byr and I exchanged a questioning look. “Who we are?” he asked. “What does that mean?”

“Well, look at the two of you – lower-class boy, upper-class girl,” he said. “You two have come together despite your class differences – and from what I've heard, even found love despite those differences.”

I shook my head. “I still don't understand what we have to do with your rebellion.”

“It's because you two symbolize everything we're fighting for – equality,” he said. “We fight for a world where we're not defined by the station we're born into, but where we're measured by the content of our heart and character.”

Byr and I looked at each other. I couldn't speak for him, but I was floored by what Yurat was telling us. We were symbols of his rebellion? I wasn't sure what that meant, let alone what we were supposed to do about it. We never signed up to be that. I couldn't speak for Byr, but I had no interest in being the symbol for somebody's cause.

Yes, I shared the same goals as the rebels – a world without class distinctions. But I had no interest in fighting. In hurting – even killing – innocent people. To me, that was just as evil as the class segregation enforced by the Ministry.

“You see,” Yurat said, “the truth is, our people have been losing heart. Losing faith that we'll ever actually be able to defeat the Ministry and change our world for the better. Morale is low and our rebellion is hanging on by the thinnest of threads.”

“And what does that have to do with us?” Byr asked.

“Because when we heard the two of you were coming back to Unduth – clearly in defiance of Ministry law – people began to rally around the idea of you two,” he said. “You've become something of a celebrated couple in your absence. And a very potent symbol of the rebellion.”

I shook my head. “I don't want any part of this,” I said. “I didn't ask to be your symbol.”

Yurat shrugged. “Ask or not, it's what you've become,” he said. “The two of you represent the best in us – you are the physical embodiment of the world we want to build.”

I looked over at Byr and saw something in his eyes that concerned me – something in what the man was saying was really speaking to him. I could tell that Byr was really connecting with Yurat's sales pitch. I took him by the hand and squeezed it, forcing him to look at me.

“Are you really listening to this?” I asked.

“We talked a lot about building a world where we could be free to be who we are,” he said. “To love and be with who we want. They are trying to build that world, Hatare. Don't you want to be a part of it? Be part of something good and noble? Be part of bringing down the Ministry and the very structure of the society you ran away from in the first place?”

I looked from Byr to Yurat and then back to Byr. There was something about what he was saying that resonated with me. It was almost the same speech Yurat had given us, but with Byr, it was more personal. It was more real. He – unlike Yurat – was able to connect with me.

I couldn't say that I was completely on board with the idea of joining the rebellion. But the thought of bringing down the patriarchal power structure that had tried to control my life – and take Byr's – was appealing. And part of me felt that after all of my ranting and raving, if I chose to sit on my hands and do nothing to change a world I professed to want to see changed, I was nothing more than a hypocrite. Or even worse – a coward.

“I don't want either of you to say anything just yet,” Yurat said. “I am not going to pressure you one way or the other. All I will ask of you is to come talk to some of our people. Hear their stories and then decide for yourselves. If you choose to walk away, we'll let you go free and clear. No hard feelings. But if you choose to stay – you can be part of building a brand new world.”

Byr squeezed my hand and I looked into his eyes. He was already all in on the idea and was just waiting for me to catch up. I was surprised to see him so eager to fight – but then, given the fact that he was a hair's breadth away from death, I couldn't say I blamed him. I turned and looked at Yurat.

“Okay,” I said. “Let's hear what your people have to say.”

“Excellent,” Yurat said. “Everybody is excited to meet the both of you.”

Book 4 – Love & Rebellion

Chapter One

Hatare

“It's really an honor to meet you,” the man said to me as he extended his hand.

I shot a quick look at Byr who gave me a small, subtle shrug. Hesitantly, I reached out and took the man's hand and he pulled me into a tight embrace. To say that I felt awkward would have been a massive understatement. Not knowing what else to do, I looked at Byr as I patted the man on the back. He released me a moment later, a wide smile stretched across his face.

“I can't wait to tell my wife that I met you,” he said and then looked at Byr, taking his hand and pumping it furiously. “The both of you. Your presence in this camp has really increased morale, believe me.”

The man turned and trotted off, leaving Byr and I standing there, staring at one another.

“You may have to get used to that,” came a voice.

We turned and found a woman who looked to be just slightly older than me standing there. She was tall, lean, had pale violet skin, blue eye markings, and a long mane of silvery hair shot through with a deep purple. She was a beautiful woman. But I could also tell by her bearing and demeanor that she was not a woman to be trifled with – she obviously knew how to take care of herself.

“I'm Manyr,” she said as she stepped closer to us. “I'm one of Yurat's lieutenant's. He tasked me with showing you two around.”

Byr motioned to the man who'd just accosted us. “What was that all about?”

Manyr smiled. “You two are pretty much celebrities around here.”

“Excuse me?” I asked.

“Walk with me,” Manyr said.

We walked through their encampment. With squat, low buildings made of stone, it looked like a military installation. But one that hadn't been used in a long time – such a long time, the forest had grown up around it and reclaimed the land.

“It took us a while, but we finally got this place refurbished,” Manyr said when she noticed me looking around. “Once upon a time, this was the Ministry of Defense. But when the capitol of Unduth was moved to Kinray, this place was left to rot. It's not the most luxurious place you're going to find, but it suits our purposes rather well – most especially, because it's mostly forgotten and very well hidden.”

I looked up to the soaring trees around us and noted the thick canopy overhead. It was pretty well obscured from the air and certainly seemed like an ideal place to hide an army. And looking around at all of the people milling about, it looked like that's what they had there – an army.

“What about heat sensors and thermo-imaging?” Byr asked.

Manyr gave him a smile, as if surprised at his knowledge. Frankly, I was surprised by his knowledge. But I knew there were still many things about Byr I did not know.

“We manufactured some of the thermo units at the factory where I worked,” he explained. “I got to know a bit about them.”

“We've got heat deflector plates mounted to the roof of every building in the compound,” Manyr said. “And we also use a dampening field to help eliminate detection by sound.”

I cocked my head and looked at her. “To eliminate detection by sound?”

Byr nodded. “The dampening field essentially encloses us in a bubble of silence,” he explained. “Which means that the government ships wouldn't be able to detect sounds coming from within the camp. Between the heat deflectors and the dampening field, this place is pretty much invisible from the air.”

I was impressed. Not only that the rebels had such a well-planned and coordinated base, but that Byr seemed to know his way around it pretty well. I was surprised that he was so knowledgeable about things like this. Clearly, there was much about him that I didn't know.

Manyr looked at him, obviously impressed. He just shrugged it off, but I looked at him curiously.

“I read a lot,” he said.

I got the feeling that there was more to that story than he was letting on – a lot more. But he didn't seem inclined to talk about it and I wasn't going to press him. At least, not in front of Manyr. Though we all were supposedly on the same side in this fight, I didn't know them and I didn't quite yet trust them.

We walked along with Manyr as she pointed out the various buildings in camp and told us what their purpose was. Along the way, she introduced us to a good number of people – all of whom seemed excited to meet Byr and me. Way too excited. It was strange and uncomfortable – to say the least.

The last stop on our tour was a small building behind their main planning and operations center. Manyr said the building served as their main social hub. To me, it looked like a rundown old bar – the sort of place I would expect to see in the marketplace out on the fringes where Byr was from.

We stepped inside and I was immediately overwhelmed by an aroma that was beyond amazing. It made my mouth water and my stomach grumble – reminding me that it had been a little while since we'd last eaten.

“Are the two of you hungry?” Manyr asked.

Byr and I shared a quick look. “Starving,” I said.

Manyr clapped her hands together. “Excellent,” she said. “So am I. Let's have some lunch.”

The interior of the place looked a lot nicer than I'd expected judging by the outside of the building. The floor was a polished wood, the tables – though nicked and scratched – were clean and still in good shape.

A long bar made out of a dark stone, ran almost the length of one side of the room. Booths line the walls and tables filled the middle of the room. The interior was painted in rich, green colors that made the room feel a little smaller and more intimate. The whole place was clean and well maintained. And with music playing while people carried on animated conversations, it had a pleasant, lively atmosphere.

She guided us to a booth near the rear of the building – and I was conscious of all the eyes on us as we passed through the room. If Byr noticed, he gave no indication. We took a seat and a moment later, a young woman bustled over to our table, setting three mugs of a dark, brown liquid down. She gave us all a smile.

“Three plates, Manyr?” she asked.

Her eyes lingered on Byr as she spoke and I couldn't help but feel a small spike of jealousy lance through my heart. He looked up at her and smiled, but seemed to be missing the flirtatious gleam in her eyes. The girl was about my age, had milky white skin, and long, red hair shot through with streaks of black. She was pretty – I couldn't deny it.

“Yes, please, Dojar,” she said.

“I'll bring them out shortly.”

With one last lingering look at Byr, the girl – Dojar – turned and walked away from the table. And from where I was sitting, she put a little extra swish in her hips – probably for Byr's sake. But he seemed to be blissfully clueless about it. Instead, he turned and looked at me and all I could see in his eyes were his feelings for me.

I wanted to throw my arms around his neck and kiss him on the spot.

“Looks like you've got a fan,” Manyr said with a grin.

Byr shrugged. “Well, I'm afraid that I'm already taken.”

“I can see that,” Manyr replied.

I wasn't sure, but I thought I detected a hint of jealousy in Manyr's eyes when she looked from Byr to me. He was a very handsome man, there was no question. It didn't surprise me that he drew the eye of women all around. But the fact that he only seemed to have eyes for me – it made my heart do flip-flops in my chest.

Beneath the table, I took his hand and gave it a ferocious squeeze.

“Well, she's surely not the only woman you're going to have to fight off, I'm sure,” Manyr laughed.

Byr smiled, a little self-conscious. “Won't be much of a fight, I'm afraid.”

Manyr laughed as she looked at me and I could have sworn I saw the challenge in her eyes. Was she really trying to challenge me for Byr's attention and affections? Or was I simply being a paranoid, silly and insecure little girl jumping at shadows that weren't there?

“Anyway,” Manyr said. “Like I mentioned before, you two better get used to the attention because you're almost royalty around here.”

I nodded. “Yeah, I was hoping you'd explain that.”

Manyr shrugged. “You are the symbols of our resistance,” she said. “You embody our reasons for fighting this fight.”

I looked at Byr, still not understanding. I knew that Yurat had given us a sales pitch that touched on that theme the night before, but everything that had happened had my mind spinning and I hadn't really retained it all. Judging by the look on Byr's face, he was struggling to recall that particulars as well.

“I'm not sure how we are symbols of your resistance,” I finally said.

“What we are striving for here is true equality in Unduth,” Manyr said. “A world without rigid class structures. A world where upper-class and lower-class don't exist – where we're truly free to do and be whatever we want. A world were a girl from a rich and powerful family can fall in love with a boy from the fringes – and not have that seen as a bad or abhorrent thing. We are fighting to build a world where anybody can start from nothing and really become somebody. We want a world where people are not only able to, but encouraged to build a better life for themselves.”

I was still holding on to Byr's hand and looked over at him. What she was saying really resonated with me. It struck a powerful chord. And I could see in his eyes that it had the same effect on him as well. I gave him a small smile that he returned.

But even still – I forced myself to remain somewhat skeptical.

“You certainly talk a good game,” I said.

Manyr's smile was rueful. “You're right to be cautious, of course,” she said. “But ask yourself this – if we meant to do you harm, or were agents of the Ministry, why would we have gone to such effort to rescue you? Why would we have bombed the Ministry building to pull you out of there?”

They were good questions and admittedly, I did not have the answers to them. It was just that so much had happened, I didn't know who to trust.

“Perhaps you were trying to gain our trust,” Byr said. “Staging a raid and supposedly saving us could go a long way to doing that. To making us believe that you are on our side.”

Manyr shrugged. “It's a fair point,” she said. “But to what end? What would be our purpose in such a deception?”

I took a sip of the drink Dojar had brought for us and lamented the fact that it wasn't the delicious Optorion wine I'd gotten used to. Byr also took a drink and I could tell by the expression on his face that he didn't have an answer for Manyr's questions.

“I've always been taught that the key to any good lie,” I said. “Is that you disguise them in some shred of the truth.”

Manyr nodded. “It's a very effective tool of propaganda, I agree.”

“So, what if what you are saying is true – that Byr and I have become potent symbols of the rebellion,” I said. “If you were actually agents of the Ministry and were somehow able to discredit or destroy us, you would hurt the morale of the rebellion tremendously. Perhaps destroy it completely.”

Manyr gave me a small smile. “That's an interesting perspective,” she said. “I know I can't convince you that we're on your side or that we're not actually agents of the Ministry. That's a fact you will have to come to on your own.”

“And how will we do that?” Byr asked.

Manyr gave him a small shrug. “Talk to our people. Get to know them. Listen to their stories,” she said.

“Do you know where my family is?” Byr asked, suddenly changing the subject.

She nodded. “I do.”

“I want to see them.”

She shook her head. “We can't take you to them yet, Byr,” she said. “I wish it were otherwise, but for their safety – as well as for the safety of our people – we can't take you to them yet.”

He sighed, a deep rumbling sound. “Then when?”

“Soon, I hope,” she said. “That's a decision that Yurat will have to make when the time is right.”

“When the time is right?” I asked, feeling angry on Byr's behalf. “He's been worried about his family since they were taken. Since they were thrown into a Ministry prison camp – ”

“A prison camp we raided to free the families who were unjustly taken because of our actions,” she said. “It was a costly operation that put us all at risk.”

“I think that allowing Byr to see his family would go a long way toward easing his mind,” I said. “Toward making him believe that you are who you say you are – and not agents of the Ministry.”

Manyr sighed, but then gave us a small smile. “I never expected that you two would be so cynical,” she said. “Or so stubborn and mistrusting.”

I shrugged. “If you'd been through what we've been through,” I said, “you might be the same way.”

“Perhaps,” she said. “Though, we haven't had the easiest time of things either. But, you're right. And I'll talk to Yurat and see if we can get Byr some time with his family. Soon.”

“Thank you,” Byr said and gave her a small smile.

I knew there was nothing behind the smile other than politeness, but seeing him smile at her still made me feel insecure. It was ridiculous beyond words, but a needle of jealousy pricked my heart anyway.

Dojar arrived with three plates heaping with some amazingly delicious smelling food. I recalled smelling it in the marketplace in Byr's village – something I'd never smelled at home. To me, this was how people were supposed to eat. Meals should be enjoyable – not simply show pieces.

“We'll talk more business later,” Manyr said, a small smile touching the corners of her mouth. “But for now, let's just forget about it and enjoy a meal together as normal, everyday Unduthians.”

I could get behind the idea, of course. But even with her declaration to table our business until later, she was still giving us a sales pitch to join the rebellion. At the moment, there was no such thing as a normal, everyday Unduthian. At the moment, there were the rich and the poor. The have and the have-nots.

We dug into our meals and it was every bit as wonderful as it smelled. It was just as delicious as the food we'd had on Optorio – just in a different way. It was certainly better than the fare I'd grown up on – food that was as bland as it was pretentious. The steaming plate of noodles with seafood was richer, filled with flavors that were layered over more flavors. It made my mouth sing with enjoyment.

The conversation throughout our meal was lively and filled with a lot of laughter. It was easier than I thought it would be to put all talk of the rebellion – and our role in it – aside and just focus on getting to know Manyr as a person. I found her to be witty and clever – and incredibly intelligent. She was fun to talk to and I had to admit, in another time and another place, I could see us being friends.

But we weren't in that other time or place. We were in the here and now. Caught in the middle of a war with two sides pulling at us. And though her message of equality resonated with me, I just couldn't be sure which side she was actually on.

Not just yet.

Chapter Two

Byr

“So, are the two of you feeling any better about us? About being here?” Yurat asked. “I know that Manyr told me you had some – misgivings – initially.”

Misgivings was one way to put it. At first, I had been excited by the idea of being a part of what I was seeing – of fighting the oppression of the Ministry and building a new world. I'd allowed myself to get caught up in the moment.

But that moment passed and I'd found myself having some of the same troubles and doubts that Hatare had expressed. How did we know for certain that this wasn't an elaborate ruse being put on by the Ministry? I'd read a lot about the psychological warfare governments on countless worlds had waged against their people to force compliance and quash dissent.

I thought that having some healthy skepticism at the start was probably a good thing.

“I think that you have a very well run group here,” I said. “Efficient. Seem to be pretty well trained.”

“They're very well trained,” he said. “And willing to lay down their lives for the cause. But you didn't exactly answer my question.”

Yurat looked at me with a raised eyebrow. I knew what he'd meant and what he wanted to hear. I just wasn't ready to give it to him yet. I didn't know why, but I still had a few lingering reservations about throwing myself wholeheartedly into this fight.

And if I had to hazard a guess as to the answer, it had everything to do with Hatare. I suddenly had something to lose. I knew it was selfish and it was probably wrong, but I couldn't help it. I felt like I'd been given a gift by finding her – by having her feel for me the way I'd come to feel for her. And I worried that getting involved in this war was going to end badly – that either one of us would die, or that we'd lose the fight and nothing would change in Unduthian society.

I feared that we'd be back to two classes of people and that Hatare would be forever beyond my reach.

We were free. Part of me thought that we should take that freedom and run with it. Far away. That we should start that new life on a new world we'd talked about – somewhere far, far away from Unduth and this coming war.

“I suppose I didn't,” I said softly.

“I can see that you're still having some doubts,” he said. “Some internal conflict. Why don't we talk about it and see if we can't ease your mind some?”

Yurat moved over to a cabinet and took out a bottle of a dark blue liquid. I recognized is as Unduthian Gort – a pretty potent liquor usually manufactured on the fringes. It most definitely wasn't a drink that the Unduthian elite would ever partake in.

I was alone with Yurat in his office in the main building. Hatare was off somewhere with Manyr – a situation I knew Yurat had set up to give us some time alone to talk. Man to man. I had a feeling he was going to press me hard to join the rebellion.

“Ever had Gort?” he asked me.

“Once or twice.”

He nodded as he poured us each about a quarter of the glass and raised it to me. I picked mine up and returned the toast, then each of us drank down the liquid. I wasn't overly fond of the stuff, and it hit me the same way every time – with a feeling like fire sliding down my throat just before a solid punch to the gut.

With our glasses empty, Yurat refilled them. I picked mine up, but held it in my hands, not ready to down another one just yet. I didn't know why, but I felt like I needed to keep my wits about me.

We'd been in Yurat's encampment for about a week. We'd talked to more people than I could remember – and all of them had been beyond excited to meet Hatare and I. Yurat and Manyr hadn't been kidding when they'd said we were celebrated within the rebellion – treated like conquering heroes. And yet, what had we conquered? What had we done to deserve such a warm and heroic reception?

Nothing. We'd done nothing at all but run and hide as we tried to survive.

It was for that reason – among many others – that I was so uncomfortable with all of the attention and praise we'd received since coming to Yurat's encampment. We didn't deserve it and to me, it felt really far over the top. So over the top that it bordered on the insincere – and almost like manipulation in a way.

“So, what is it that's holding you back, Byr?”

I shrugged. “Just not sure this is what I want,” I said. “I'm not much of a soldier.”

Yurat looked at me. “Lot of us felt that way at first,” he replied. “Some of them have become my most trusted and valuable fighters.”

“That's great for them,” I said. “I'm just not sure I have it in me.”

“You might surprise yourself with what you find inside of you,” Yurat said as he took a sip of his drink.

I stared down at the glass in my hand, watching the dark blue liquid as I swirled it around. Yurat poured himself another one before looking at my still-full glass and frowning.

“Know what I did before I joined the rebellion?” he asked. “I was a farmer. I grew crops – or at least, tried to. There isn't much that grows out on the fringes, as I'm sure you know. And what I did manage to grow, the Ministry took half. My duty to help Unduthian society, they called it.”

“That's terrible, Yurat,” I said. “And a story that's all too common on the fringes.”

He nodded. “That it is, son,” he said. “And that's part of the problem, don't you see? This government thinks they can do whatever it is they want to us and then expect us to just lie down and take it.”

I nodded. I agreed with what he was saying. Which, was part of the problem. I had absolutely no love for the Unduthian government. I thought they were oppressive, cruel, and downright evil. At least, to those of us not fortunate enough to be born into the right family.

“I can see that you're afraid – ” Yurat began.

“I'm not afraid to fight,” I said.

“No, I didn't think that, son,” he said. “I can see there is a fire in your spirit. And I know you feel about the Ministry the same way we do. But I can see that something is holding you back. If I had to guess, I'm thinking it's Hatare.”

“That's not true. Why would you say that?” I sounded a little too defensive, even to my own ears.

His smile was gentle and kind. “Because a lot of us have gone through the same thing. Have felt exactly how you're feeling right now,” he said softly.

“I doubt that.”

Yurat looked at me evenly. “I had a wife,” he said. “Her name was Antul. Beautiful woman. We grew up together, knew each other all our lives. She was the only woman I've ever loved.”

“What happened to her?”

A shadow crossed over Yurat's face and I could see that he was holding his anger in check – though it appeared to be taking a tremendous effort on his part.

“Ministry soldiers killed her,” he said. “Shot her right in front of me when I'd finally had enough and refused to let them take my crops.”

A profound silence settled over the office as we both stared into our glasses. I didn't know what to say to that. But then, there didn't seem to be anything I could say. It did however, highlight the exact reason I wasn't running to join the fight –that was the last thing I wanted to see happen to Hatare. If she were to be killed because of my actions – or inactions – I didn't know how I was going to live with myself.

“I chose to fight because of Antul,” he said. “Because I don't want anybody else enduring what I had to endure.”

I shook my head. “I don't want anything happening to her.”

“Of course you don't,” he said. “I can see that the two of you care about each other a lot. But ask yourself this – what kind of a world do you want to live in? And maybe more importantly, what kind of a life can you two have together if nothing ever changes here?”

I didn't say a word and merely stared down into my glass. I didn't want to share what was going through my mind with him. But when I glanced up and saw the way he was looking at me, I had a feeling he already knew.

“Unless of course, you were thinking of building a life with her somewhere other than Unduth,” he said.

“Could you blame us?”

“No, not at all,” he said. “Though, I won't lie and tell you that I wouldn't be a little bit disappointed.”

“Disappointed?”

Yurat nodded. “That you could turn your back on your people like that,” he said. “When your people need you the most.”

I had no answer to that and so, I remained silent and simply stared down into the glass of liquor I was never going to drink.

Chapter Three

Hatare

I walked through the encampment with Manyr, talking to people and receiving plenty of adoration – adoration I did not want or feel comfortable receiving. I knew what she and Yurat were up to. By splitting up Byr and me, it gave them each time alone with us to work on us about joining their rebellion.

I wasn't sure if Manyr thought that having people heaping praise on me was going to win me over, but if that's what she thought, she was going to be in for a rude awakening.

To her credit though, she didn't push her agenda or politics on me. In fact, we spent most of the afternoon just getting to know more about one another. She asked me all about my life in Kinray, wanting to know what it was like growing up as the daughter of one of the most powerful men on the planet. Having grown up on the fringes, she couldn't conceive of the world I'd grown up in – the world she now wanted to burn to the ground.

Truth be told, she and I shared a vision about that – wanting to see Unduthian society shattered into a million little pieces.

“So, this Academy,” she started, “they train you to be a wife?”

We stopped beside a small stream that ran alongside the camp and sat down, enjoying a pleasantly cool afternoon. All around us, birdsong filled the air, as did the smell of cookfires burning within the encampment.

“They train you to be a proper Unduthian woman,” I said. “Who is then fit to be the wife of a prominent man in society.”

“That sounds – ”

“Like a fate worse than death.” I finished for her.

Manyr laughed and nodded. “Yes, that it does,” she said and then grew serious again. “Would you have really killed yourself?”

“That was my plan,” I said quietly. “I didn't feel I had any other way out.”

“So, what stopped you?”

I gave her a soft smile. “A – friend of mine. She worked in our household, but she was always a friend to me,” I said. “She convinced me that taking my own life wasn't the way and that I should run. Run far away.”

Manyr remained silent a moment, trailing her fingertips in the cool water of the stream. Despite my earlier insecurities and petty jealousies, I was starting to grow quite fond of Manyr. I no longer thought she was trying to steal Byr from me. I just thought that she was a true believer in the cause she was fighting for and recognized him for the asset to that cause that he was. I could definitely see in her eyes that she was willing to do whatever it took to convince him to join them.

Not that I could blame her for that. Byr was a big, strong man – and was highly intelligent. I had no doubts that he could be a real leader of their rebellion – and knew that people would follow him. Though he could be a little quiet at times, he was a compelling man. He had a forceful presence about him – a presence I didn't even think he realized he had.

But as a person – and not the recruiter for the rebellion – I really liked Manyr.

“Well, I think that for both you and Byr, your friend helped you make a wise decision,” she said. “After all, it allowed the both of you to find each other.”

I nodded. “Yes, and for that I am thankful,” I said. “I never expected to find somebody I cared about, but – ”

“Life has a strange way of intervening,” she said. “And helping us to see and find those things we might have otherwise missed out on.”

“Absolutely,” I said. “What about you? Is there somebody in your life?”

A look of profound sadness crossed her face – it was like a cloud covering the sun. She looked at me with eyes shimmering with tears she was refusing to let fall and her eye markings glowed faintly. She scrubbed at her eyes, wiping away the tears and clenched her jaw as she tried to compose herself.

“His name was Puyt,” she said. “He lived a couple of villages over and I met him in the marketplace one day. He was a beautiful boy. Big, strong – in a lot of ways, Byr reminds me of him. I think that's why I had such a strong reaction when we met – and I apologize if it seemed like I was throwing myself at him or something. That was never my intent.”

I reached out and took her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. She looked at me as a lone tear rolled down her cheek.

“Anyway,” she said. “He and I joined this unit together. When we were younger, we talked a lot about helping build a better world and decided to do something about it. We were out on a raid together about a year ago now. The intel we had was bad and we walked into a trap. Gravus and his men were there waiting for us. Twenty of us went in and only three of us got out.”

“Oh, Manyr,” I squeeze her hand tighter. “I'm so sorry.”

Her smile was grim and rueful. “I remember seeing it happen like it was only yesterday,” she said. “We were in full retreat. We'd just gotten back to the transports and Puyt lifted me in – practically picked me up and threw me, actually. And when he grabbed on to the rail to climb in, I saw him take three shots to the back.”

She sniffed loudly and didn't even bother trying to check the tears that were rolling down her face. I put my other hand on top of hers and held it there, trying to bring her some sense of comfort – an empty gesture, I was sure.

“His eyes were on mine the whole time,” she said. “He hung on to that rail and I reached out to grab his hand. To try and pull him aboard. Two more shots hit him in the back and that was it. He fell off the back of the transport and we took off. That was the last time I saw him.”

I wanted to pull her into an embrace, but hesitated. Though I was starting to really like her, the truth was, we still barely knew each other and I didn't know how she'd react. I didn't want to overstep my bounds – it was the Unduthian training still etched into my brain. I settled for tightening my grip on her hand, just to let her know she wasn't alone.

“I can't even imagine how horrible that must have been for you,” I said softly. “I'm so sorry, Manyr. I truly am.”

She looked at me and gave me a grim little smile – a smile that didn't come close to reaching her eyes.

“It's not your fault,” she said. “I think, if there is any silver lining to be found, it's that after Puyt's death, I became a better soldier. A better fighter. It didn't take me long to go from foot soldier to where I am now – one of Yurat's lieutenants. But there isn't a day that goes by that I don't wish for Puyt to come back to me – even if I am never anything more than one of Yurat's trigger pullers. Of course, if I'm being really honest, there are days I wish Puyt and I had simply moved away somewhere together and started our lives together – somewhere there wasn't an armed civil war in progress.”

I looked down and a small smile touched the corners of my mouth. I knew exactly how she was feeling. There were times I wished that Byr and I would simply go somewhere we could start a new life together. Somewhere far away from class warfare, strict cultural norms, and of course, the presence of a rebellion trying to overthrow the government.

Somewhere we could just be free together and be free to love each other.

“It's why I fight,” she said softly. “I don't want anybody to ever have to feel like I feel.”

I understood exactly what she meant – and felt exactly the same way. I just didn't know that I could do what she was doing. I knew how to defend myself thanks to plenty of lessons – lessons I should never have had thanks to those rigid Unduthian societal rules – but I didn't consider myself to be much of a fighter.

She scrubbed at her face with her hands, trying to wipe away the tears. “Anyway,” she said, “that's in the past. I need to keep my focus in a forward facing direction. Always forward.”

That sounded like something straight out of Yurat’s playbook. And in thinking of Yurat, my mind immediately went to Byr. I wondered how he was doing – and how he was holding up under the pressure I knew Yurat was exerting on him to join. I knew that Byr already had plenty of sympathies with the rebels – who wouldn't, having endured what he had. Would Yurat find that piece of leverage he needed to pull Byr to their side?

And if he did decide to throw in with the rebels, what would that mean for us? Would he expect me to join him? Would he insist that I stay away from the fighting? Was becoming a part of their fight something I wanted?

I wanted Unduth to be a better place for all of us – regardless of what family we were born into. But I knew a war was going to kill a lot of people. They always did. I wanted Unduth to be a different, better place for everybody. I just wasn't sure what the right path to get there was.

But I also wanted a life with Byr. A chance to build something special. Maybe one day, even a family. I'd come to care about him very deeply and I worried that if we decided to go to war with the rebels, one – or both – of us might not come out of it alive. That small, selfish part of me wanted to grab Byr and go somewhere far away – to another planet entirely, and build our life together.

I'd never felt more conflicted about anything in my life.

Chapter Four

We sat together beside the stream for quite a while as Manyr gathered herself. When she finally felt composed enough, we got to our feet and walked back toward the encampment. By the time we got into camp, Manyr seemed more like herself again. She was a tough, strong woman and I had to believe that emotional outbursts like the one I'd witnessed were rare for her.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

She nodded. “I'm fine,” she said. “Thank you for asking.”

And that was it – with those few words, she'd made it clear that she didn't want to speak about it again. Perhaps, it was that she was viewed as a leader within the rebellion and didn't want others to see her crying or upset about something. It was an impulse I could understand – there were more than a few times I'd had to stuff down everything I was feeling. That wasn't how a “proper” Unduthian lady behaved. A “proper” Unduthian lady bore her emotions with a stoic grace and never let others see them distraught or otherwise upset.

Which wasn't the healthiest way to go about things.

“So tell me,” I said. “When this grand rebellion of yours succeeds and the Ministry falls, what then? What will you do?”

She looked at me, her expression serious. “We will give the power back to the people,” she said. “Where it should have always been.”

“And how will you do that?”

“By electing a truly representative government,” she said. “Drawn from the people, who will work on behalf of the people to ensure that we all prosper. We will do away with things like the Academy – because no young woman should ever have to endure something as terrible as that. The people will be free to build their own lives in the manner of their choosing – not because of the family they happened to be born into.”

It was a little speech that really spoke to me. Really tugged at my heart. I agreed with the goals of the rebellion – I just wasn't sure how I felt about the methods they were using to achieve them. Terrorism? Bombing government buildings and possibly killing innocent people? I didn't know that I could ever be on board with that.

“Do you really believe it's possible?” I asked. “That we can have a government that truly does work on behalf of the people?”

“I wouldn't be fighting this war if I didn't believe that, Hatare,” she said.

A young girl ran up to us and threw her arms around Manyr. She couldn't have been much older than Pysh and in some ways, reminded me of my little sister. The girl had long white hair shot through with streaks of light blue, a pale blue skin tone, and dark eye markings. She was a pretty girl and had that air of innocence, sweetness and vulnerability that my sister had. It was as if living in an armed encampment, surrounded by war, hadn't diminished the light inside of her one bit.

And it made me smile.

She looked up at Manyr with something like reverence in her eyes. It was clear that she worshiped the woman. Not that it was surprising that a young girl would look up to Manyr – she was a woman well worth being admired. But when the girl looked at me, her eyes widened and her smile grew even broader.

“Vyla,” Manyr said. “This is Ha – ”

“Hatare,” the girl finished. “I know who she is. I mean, who doesn't?”

Manyr laughed and I could feel the heat rushing into my face. I didn't like being the object of so much attention. Living in my father's home, I had always managed to exist on the outskirts, never calling attention to myself, content to be left alone. The only time their attention was on me, was when I was being groomed to go to the Academy and boost the prestige of my family.

And I hated every last second of that attention.

“H – hello, Vyla. It's nice to meet you, ” I said – not really knowing what else to say.

She reached out and took my hand, giving it a gentle squeeze and then looking at it – as if she couldn't believe that she was actually touching me.

“It's an honor to meet you,” she replied. “I've heard all the stories about you. When I get older, I want to be a freedom fighter just like you and Manyr.”

“Hopefully, by the time you get to be our age,” Manyr said, “there won't be anything you need to fight for.”

“Stories?” I looked over at Manyr questioningly – but the woman wouldn't meet my eyes.

“You know, like the one about you and Byr single-handedly taking on and beating those Ministry soldiers when you were on Optorio,” she said, almost breathless with excitement. “What was it like? Killing all of those evil men? I mean, twenty of them? By yourselves? Were you scared?”

My head was spinning and I was feeling incredibly embarrassed standing there in front of the girl, getting credit for a story that wasn't true. Who had told her such a blatantly false story? Byr and I hadn't done anything. We'd defended ourselves when we'd been attacked by the rebels on Optorio, but it was Vink and his men who'd done the actual fighting. The only thing Byr and I did was act as bait in Vink's ambush for the rebels.

“I – I think there's been – ”

“Let's give her a little space to breathe now, Vyla,” Manyr cut me off. “She can tell you all about her adventures later. We're on our way to go talk to Yurat.”

The girl looked a little disappointed, but smiled wide. “Okay, but I really want to hear about all of the things you've done,” she said.

“I'll make sure she does,” Manyr said. “Run along now, Vyla.”

The girl turned and ran off, a lively bounce in her step. I turned to Manyr, my eyes wide and my mouth hanging open. Manyr was still refusing to look me in the eye, which told me that she knew something about what the girl was talking about.

“What did she mean?” I asked. “What stories was she referring to?”

Manyr shrugged and looked out into the encampment. “You're a hero to some of these people, Hatare,” she said. “A living hero. You should be flattered by the attention.”

“Flattered by stories that are completely untrue?” I asked. “Byr and I did nothing that girl was talking about. We were nothing but bait in a trap for some rebels on Optorio. We certainly didn't kill twenty men.”

“The way I understand it, you killed a few of them,” she said.

“Out of absolute, desperate measure self-defense,” I replied.

She shrugged again. “Stories sometimes get exaggerated by people in the telling.”

“And who is doing the exaggerating, Manyr?”

She chewed on her bottom lip and still wouldn't look me in the face. It was then that I knew what was happening and why Byr and I were being fawned on like we were the most important people in the universe – because they were being spoon-fed a pack of lies.

“I think we should go and see Yurat now,” I said.

Manyr nodded. “Perhaps, it's best.”

We walked in silence through the camp and I kept my eyes on the ground before me, determined to avoid contact with anybody else now that I knew their adoration of me was based on fabricated stories. After what seemed like an eternity, we reached the main building and stepped inside.

The corridor was quiet and there weren't many people milling about. It was surprising. Given that this was where their war was discussed and planned, I'd expected it to be a hive of activity. Instead, it was virtually empty – or at least, it seemed to be.

As our footsteps echoed around the corridor, I glanced into the rooms we passed and found some people engaged in various activities. Some were seated at tables wearing headphones and seemed to be listening intently, jotting down notes on pads before them. Others seemed to be studying vid-screens intently – though I didn't catch exactly what they were looking at.

“These are our offices of monitoring and surveillance,” Manyr said, as if reading my mind. “We keep tabs on the Ministry as well as their troops. It helps us plan more effectively.”

I nodded and we walked on a little further until we reached an office door. Manyr touched the chime-pad on the wall beside the door to announce our arrival. A moment later, the door whooshed open and we stepped into Yurat's office.

Byr turned and looked at me, giving me a smile – though I could tell it was somewhat forced. When I saw Yurat seated behind his desk, I felt a wave of anger wash over me.

“Come, come,” he said, his voice full of cheer. “Welcome. I trust you two had a nice afternoon?”

Manyr looked at me for the first time since we'd been stopped by Vyla and I could see the apology behind her eyes. We did have a nice afternoon – one that was relaxing and enjoyable. I thought that we'd grown a little bit closer and in her eyes, I thought I could see a genuine fondness for me. But I knew that she was more committed to her cause than anything – even friendship.

“It was a lovely afternoon,” Manyr said. “I had a very nice day with Hatare.”

I nodded. “I enjoyed Manyr's company,” I said. “She's a remarkable woman. But I think it's time we had a talk, Yurat.”

He looked at me with an incredulous expression and then glanced over at Manyr. But she looked down at the ground and said nothing. Yurat sat back in his seat and took a sip of a dark blue liquid and looked at me. Byr looked at me with questions in his eyes.

“Okay then,” he said, setting the glass back down. “I suppose it is.”

“I'll take my leave then,” Manyr said, sounding relieved to be able to get out of there.

The door slid closed behind her and I took the seat next to Byr. He was holding a glass of the strange blue liquid but didn't seem interested in actually drinking it.

“Is everything alright, Hatare?” Yurat asked. “You seem upset.”

“Well, I've just found out the reason Byr and I are being treated like conquering heroes around camp,” I said. “Why people are heaping praise on us.”

“Oh?” Yurat asked. “And why might that be?”

“Because they're being lied to,” I said. “They're being told stories about us that just aren't true.”

Yurat looked at me and I could tell that he was not surprised – which told me that he was one of the people responsible for those stories in the first place. Byr looked from Yurat to me, a thousand questions swirling in his eyes.

“Did you know, between the two of us, we killed twenty of the Ministry's best soldiers when we were on Optorio?” I asked. “You remember, the night you were almost killed.”

Byr's eyes widened in surprise and he looked back at Yurat. “Is this true?” he asked. “You're telling stories about us that you know aren't true?”

Yurat shrugged. “It's a matter of perspective, I suppose.”

“But why?” Byr asked. “Why would you make up stories like that?”

“Because it's effective propaganda,” I said. “It's a way to make people believe in their cause to get them to join.”

“It's a way to keep people inspired,” Yurat corrected.

“If you have to resort to lies to inspire people, I think your rebellion is already lost,” I snapped.

“I think you're seeing this the wrong way,” Yurat said.

“Oh? And what other way should I be seeing this?”

I was outraged and angry. Perhaps, more angry than the situation actually warranted. I was aware of that and yet, couldn't seem to rein in my emotions. I realized that it was because there was a significant piece of me that believed in this fight. Believed in these people. And to find that they were using lies and distortions – pure propaganda – to draw people to their side felt wrong. More than wrong. It felt like something the Ministry would do.

And for me, it hurt a lot to believe that this movement that had captured my imagination was founded upon lies. Not to mention the fact that it called its legitimacy into question in my mind. Because if they were going to use Ministry tactics, how were they any better than the Ministry itself?

“The sentiments are absolutely true,” he said. “The fact that you two found each other and have formed this bond despite your social and economic differences is inspiring to a lot of people. It makes them believe that they can have a world where there is true equality. There's nothing untrue about that.”

“How inspiring can it be if you have to make up lies to sell it?” Byr asked, finally setting his glass down on the edge of Yurat's desk.

“I think you're focusing on the wrong things,” Yurat said. “Okay, yes, we did alter a few facts to lend your tale a little more weight and substance. We wanted people to see that you were risking everything and were as committed to the fight as they were.

But the reality is that people are inspired by you regardless of what you may have done. You two embody the very spirit of this rebellion. You two – just by virtue of being who you are – wield a lot of power and influence. More than you even realize. I can't even begin to tell you the difference around camp I see since we brought you here. The people are energized in a way I haven't seen before. Inspired. They really believe we can win this fight.

So, if I had to stretch a few truths here and there along the way to give these people strength and a belief in this cause – well, I'm not going to apologize for that. Nothing I ever said was an outright lie – it was merely stretching the facts a bit as I knew them.”

Byr and I exchanged a look. “If your cause was so just, why the need to lie to inspire people, Yurat?” I asked.

He sighed and ran a hand over his face. “I do not mean this to sound condescending – ”

“Which means this is about to sound really condescending,” I cut him off.

A rueful grin touched his face. “Perhaps. But that it not how it is intended. Just know that,” he said. “The both of you are young. Fiercely intelligent, don't get me wrong, but there are certain things you come to know only through age and experience.”

“Things like what?” Byr asked.

“That people want their heroes to be bigger than life,” he said. “And believe it or not, that's what you are to these people – heroes.”

I shook my head. “We're not heroes though, Yurat,” I said. “And I think these stories – ”

He raised a hand and cut me off. “The stories are nothing,” he said, pointing at both of us. “You two defied the Ministry. You defied a system that oppresses and crushes them. Whether or not you choose to acknowledge or accept it, the two of you embody the hopes and dreams of every person in that camp right now.”

Byr and I shared a look and sat in an uncomfortable silence. I didn't know what to say, and it was apparent that he didn't either.

“Join us,” Yurat said. “Be part of this. Be part of us. We could really use your help.”

I cleared my throat. “And if we choose not to?”

Yurat shrugged, but looked almost distraught by the prospect. “Then you'll carry on with your lives while we fight for a better world, I suppose.”

“So, you'll just let us walk out of here?” Byr asked.

A small, grim smile touched Yurat's lips. “You've never been prisoners here,” he said. “You've always been free to come and go as you please. Just like everybody else in that camp out there. You're free to make your own decisions – that's the world we're fighting and dying for.”

I looked at the floor beneath my feet, a strange and sudden feeling of shame washing over me. These people were sacrificing everything to make a better world – the kind of world I wanted to see Unduth become – the kind of world I'd long talked about from the safety of my pampered existence.

And one question continued rattling through my mind – what was I willing to sacrifice to see that world come to be?

Chapter Five

Byr

I rode in the back of the darkened transport, Hatare by my side. With no windows in the passenger compartment, I couldn't get my bearings. We had no idea where we were going, just that Manyr showed up before dawn and told us to get dressed and ready to move out. There was a knot in my stomach that was tightening almost painfully, and a sense of foreboding that had settled down over my shoulders.

“I have a bad feeling about this,” Hatare whispered.

Not that she needed to whisper – we were alone in the back of the transport. Manyr and another man I didn't know where piloting the vehicle to where ever our destination was.

“Yeah, I'm not feeling too sure about this myself,” I replied.

We rode for more than an hour before the transport slowed and I felt it settle to the ground. Hatare and I shared a look, not knowing what to expect. I stood up and moved to the rear door, my body tense and ready for whatever came next. Hatare crowded close to me, looking equally as ready and determined to face the situation.

The ramp on the back of the transport lowered with a hiss revealing nothing more sinister than Manyr and the other pilot. Hatare and I walked slowly down the ramp and I looked around, still expecting to see some looming threat.

“Did you two really believe we'd bring you all the way out here just to shoot you or something?” Manyr asked, a smirk on her face.

I looked over at Hatare and then back at Manyr, giving her a sheepish grin and a shrug. She just shook her head but smiled.

“Paranoia is a bad thing, my friend,” she said.

“Where are we?” Hatare asked.

Manyr looked over at Byr. “You'll see,” she said. “Come with us.”

We followed Manyr into a forest – one that didn't look all that much different than the one where their encampment was. But we'd been traveling for more than an hour and couldn't have been anywhere near the camp. Which showed me how little I actually knew of my own world – I hadn't realized how much of it was covered in such thick, lush forest before.

We followed what looked to be a well-worn path, the thick canopy overhead not letting through much of the morning sunlight and leaving much of the world around us in thick, gloomy shadow. I felt Hatare take my hand, her small, delicate fingers intertwining with mine. I looked over and gave her a small smile I hoped was reassuring.

Manyr and the pilot – both armed, I noticed – walked ahead of us on the path. Their heads were constantly moving around, scanning the area, their weapons held at the ready. They were tensed and ready for an attack – which made me wonder if we were in danger out there. And if so, what we were doing out there to begin with.

Paranoid or not, I began to worry that Manyr was going to hand us over to the Ministry to collect the rewards on our heads, much like the rebels on Optorio had planned to do. Only this time, we didn't have a group of elite soldiers like Vink and his men backing us up.

After half an hour of walking the path, we came to the base of a large stone cliff. The black stone was jagged and craggy and covered in vines and moss. Manyr and the other man stopped and turned to us, a small, enigmatic smile playing upon her lips.

“Where are we?” I asked.

Instead of answering my question though, she pulled a small device off of her belt and pushed a button. Behind her, the rock seemed to melt away, revealing a doorway in the stone cliff face. Hatare looked as startled as I felt, staring at the sudden appearance of an entryway into what appeared to be a solid rock wall.

“Cloaking technology,” she said, answering our unspoken question. “We were able to steal it from the Ministry. And I have to say, it's proven to be quite useful for a number of things.”

“What's beyond that doorway?” Hatare asked.

“Maybe a little something that will lift your spirits,” she replied.

Manyr motioned for us to step through the doorway and I gave each a quick look. I was still feeling a little trepidation, but realized that if they had intended to bring us out there to kill us, they'd already had more than enough opportunity. Hatare gave me a small shrug and then turned and walked through the doorway – and I followed closely behind.

We walked into a large cave – one that had a seemingly endless catacomb of tunnels that branched off the main room. It was well lit, outfitted, and what surprised me the most was that there were dozens of people milling about. I looked at Manyr who was giving me a smile.

“This is where we hide the people we've managed to rescue,” she said.

My eyes grew wide and I felt a brief stutter in my heart. “You mean – ”

“Yes,” she said. “Like your mother and siblings. Let me take you to them.”

I was trembling and my heart was beating wildly in my chest. I hadn't believed them when they told me that my family had been rescued and was alive. And part of me had already come to terms with the fact that they were dead. Had accepted it. But now, walking down the corridor behind Manyr, knowing that I was going to see them again? I couldn't believe it.

I looked down at Hatare to find her smiling up at me. She grabbed my hand and squeezed it, seeming to be genuinely happy for me. Acting on impulse, I leaned down and gave her a quick kiss on the lips, which seemed to make her smile grow a little wider.

We followed Manyr through a twisting series of caves and passages. Honestly, I didn't know how anybody navigated their way down here without getting lost.

“We don't know who built these caves and tunnels,” she said over her shoulder. “But they've been invaluable to us. It might seem easy to get lost, but don't worry. All of these tunnels eventually lead back to that main cavern. So, if you happen to lose your bearings, just keep walking. Eventually, you'll get back there.”

I nodded as we stopped at a doorway to another cavern. I glanced in to see a group of people, but didn't immediately see my family. I wanted to speak. To say something, but I was suddenly overcome by a wave of emotions that choked all of the words right out of me.

“It's not the most comfortable of places,” Manyr said. “But it keeps everybody safe. And that's probably the most important thing.”

“Thank you,” I was finally able to croak out as I looked her in the eye. “Thank you for saving them. For keeping them safe.”

She gave me a small smile. “That's what we do,” she said. “Now go, they're waiting for you.”

Manyr walked away, presumably heading back toward the main cavern. I stood outside the doorway and looked at Hatare, my thoughts and emotions spinning wildly out of control. She took both of my hands in hers and looked at me.

“Go in there,” she said. “I'm sure they can't wait to see you as much as you can't wait to see them. You have much to catch up on.”

I gave her a small, weak smile. I had no idea why I was hesitating or what was holding me back. Perhaps, I was afraid that they would blame me for Gravus and his soldiers taking them in the first place. Perhaps, they would blame me for not being there to protect them.

Hatare squeezed my hands harder. “Byr, there is nothing to be afraid of. Your family loves you and seeing you alive and standing there in front of them is going to make them happier than you even know.”

She was right, of course. But I was still afraid. Afraid that they would blame me for having to live in a cave with a bunch of strangers. But Hatare wasn't going to let me stand out there dithering any longer. Tightening her grip on my hand, she pulled me into the cavern.

Chapter Six

In all, there were probably twenty or twenty-five people in the cavern. Large lights had been set up in the corners, bathing the area in a soft, yet bright light. Tarps had been used to section off areas, making “rooms” within the cavern, giving the people inhabiting them some semblance of privacy.

Voices and laughter echoed off of the stone walls as we walked through the cavern and all eyes turned to us as we passed. The people I saw were clean, appeared to be well fed and well cared for. It wasn't what I'd expected to see from a group of people hiding in a cave.

“Byr?” a small voice squeaked.

I turned and saw Gynta standing there, a look of utter shock on her face. Hopa stood beside her, his face no less surprised.

“Byr,” Hopa said. “Is that really you?”

The pair of them looked bigger than I remembered. Taller. More grown up. Or perhaps, I was just imagining it. Hatare looked at me standing there, rooted to my spot and nudged me with her elbow.

“Go to them,” she whispered.

I took a step forward, a broad smile crossing my face. But a step was all I got before the two of them launched themselves at me, throwing their little arms around my waist and holding on to me tightly. They both looked up at me, their smiles wide, their eyes wet with tears.

“I was afraid we'd never see you again,” Gynta said.

“I was afraid you'd died,” Hopa said.

I pulled myself out of their grasp and knelt down so I was eye-level with them. Tears rolled down their smooth cheeks and I wiped them away before ruffling their hair. I bit back the emotions that were threatening to take control of me and tried to keep the tears suddenly welling in my eyes from falling.

“Well, I didn't die,” I said. “I'm right here, as alive as either of you. And I am so glad to see you two. I've missed you so much.”

They both threw their arms around my neck and squeezed me so tight, I was afraid I wasn't going to be able to breath.

“We've missed you too,” Gynta said.

After a few moments, I stood up again, but kept the kids close to my side. I looked into their little living area and saw my mother sitting up on her bed staring at me. Tears rolled down her face and her smile was small, soft. She looked as if she couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Extricating myself from the little ones, I stepped toward her and dropped down onto my knees, taking her hands in mine.

“I'm so glad to see you alive,” I said. “When I got back to the village, I was – ”

“It was terrible,” she said. “I was afraid that was going to be it for me. But more than anything, I was scared for you, Byr. I didn't know what happened to you.”

I gently pulled her into an embrace, taking care to not squeeze her too tightly. Her disease made her body ache and the last thing I wanted to do was cause her pain.

“It's a really long story,” I said. “Maybe one day I'll tell you. But more importantly, how are you feeling, mother?”

“Actually, I feel better than I have in a long, long time,” she said. “They are taking wonderful care of us here. The doctors have given me medicine that takes away a lot of my pain.”

I nodded and looked her over, having a hard time believing what I was seeing. She actually looked a lot healthier than the last time I'd seen her. She had color in her face and her eyes had somehow regained that life and sparkle I remembered from my own childhood.

But then, in the village, she'd had no choice but to suffer through her disease. I was happy to hear that she was being treated by actual doctors.

“So, that's the girl I've heard so much about,” my mother said, a small grin on her face.

I felt the color rising in my face. “Her name is Hatare,” I said softly.

Gynta and Hopa were sitting on the ground outside the room with Hatare, who appeared to be entertaining them with stories. They all laughed together and for the first time in a long time, I saw my brother and sister smiling. Real, genuine smiles. It made my heart as happy as seeing my mother looking better.

My mother nodded. “You two are quite the story,” she said. “Defying the Ministry, escaping to Optorio, killing some of the government's most elite soldiers – and finding love that shatters the Unduthian societal norms along the way. It's definitely, quite the tale.”

I grinned at her. “I'm afraid some of the particulars have been blown out of proportion,” I said. “Not by our doing.”

She nodded. “I know,” she replied. “I can smell a good propaganda story when I hear one. But, unlike some, this one is for the right reasons.”

My mother had been sick for so long that I'd forgotten that she and my father used to be highly political. They attended meetings and rallies where forming a resistance to the Ministry was discussed openly. My mother and father believed in equality for all. Always had.

But then he'd died and she'd fallen ill – and those ideals just no longer seemed as relevant as trying to survive.

“She's a beautiful young woman,” my mother said. “And I can tell by the way she looks at you that she's in love with you. Just as I can tell by the look in your eyes that the feeling is mutual.”

A small smile touched my lips. I could never get anything by my mother. She had always been as intelligent as she was observant – a deadly combination for a child trying to pull one over on her.

“She's remarkable,” I said. “Amazing. I've never met somebody like her. I never thought I would, actually.”

“And if you two hadn't started changing things in Unduth, maybe you wouldn't have,” my mother said.

“What do you mean?”

“I mean that the two of you started something,” she said. “And I hope you'll see it through.”

Chapter Seven

Hatare

At Byr's urging – and with the promise that he'd see them again soon – the kids had run off to play with a few friends they'd made in the shelter. I sat on a chair next to Byr, and we were facing his mother.

“My name is Loya,” she said. “And you are Hatare. It's nice to meet you.”

“It's very nice to meet you as well,” I replied. “Byr has told me much about you.”

I was a little nervous as she looked me up and down. I felt as if she were taking my measure and judging my worthiness of her son's affections. Having grown up in a family – and society – where nothing mattered but the amount of status and prestige you brought to a relationship, it was a unique experience for me. And more than a little bit unnerving.

“I am glad to see you're well,” I said. “Byr has told me about your – illness. But I'm glad to see that you appear to be on the mend.”

She smiled at me. “It's okay, child,” she said. “I've already accepted the inevitability that I'm going to die because of this disease. Nothing to be done about it. And no use trying to soften it.”

I gave her a small smile. Acknowledging such a thing went against everything in me – or at least, the training and conditioning I'd received throughout my life. A proper Unduthian woman never made mention of the negative, and only tried to see – as well as enhance – the positive.

But I was nervous sitting there in front of Byr's mother, and when I was nervous, I apparently tended to fall back on old, bad habits.

“I fear you're going to be fighting those impulses for the rest of your life,” his mother said, giving me a soft, gentle smile. “What they put you girls through is unconscionable.”

Byr looked over at me, a sympathetic expression on his face. He sort of knew what I'd gone through – only because I'd explained some of it to him. And while he was always concerned and sympathetic, I also knew that he'd never fully understand the way we were shaped and molded from a very young age by our families.

And maybe because she was a woman, his mother seemed to grasp the emotional impact of an Unduthian woman's “programming” better than he could. Not that it was a knock on him, it was just – different.

“Thankfully, I'm free of that now,” I said. “And fortunately, I have the love of a good man.”

I squeezed Byr's hand and gave him a shy smile. Having admitted my feelings in front of his mother, I was suddenly feeling vulnerable and exposed. But his mother reached out and squeezed my other hand, giving me a smile that looked – approving.

“Byr is a good man,” she said. “But I think that in this case, maybe the both of you are fortunate to have found each other. Especially in such a difficult time.”

I nodded. I could agree with that.

“I want my son to be happy – and your happiness is important to him, which makes it important to me as well,” she said. “But I fear there are going to be trying days ahead.”

I nodded. “That seems to be certain.”

“What are you two going to do about that?” Loya asked.

I looked over at Byr who gave me a small shrug. “We're still deciding about that, mother.”

“What is there to decide?”

“Whether or not we want to be part of this war,” I said.

Her smile was small. “You're already a part of it.”

“We've heard that we've been turned into propaganda pieces by Yurat and the rebels,” I said.

Loya shrugged. “I've heard a few stories of your heroic deeds,” she said. “And that's all they are. Stories. But they serve a bigger and better purpose.”

“How is that any different from what the Ministry does?” I asked. “Telling lies to manipulate the people?”

“You can't think of it in terms like that, dear,” she said. “On the surface, you're right. It's manipulation. However, it's not so black and white as that. I've been talking to plenty of people since I've been here and from what I understand, this rebellion is hanging on by a thread. The dream of a free Unduth, a world where we have freedom and equality is balanced on a knife's edge.

But you two – with what you've done, you've inspired the people. You've brought more people to the cause than you know. It's infused the rebellion with a life and energy that was sorely needed. Without it, the rebellion might have come to an end. And Unduth would go on as it always has.

So while yes, Yurat and the others may have exaggerated certain events, it wasn't malicious or to get people to support something evil. It was to bring people together. To fight for a better world for all of us.”

Byr smiled. “I take it you're of the opinion that we should fight.”

“I'm in no position to tell you what you should do, sweetheart,” she said. “All I know is that if I were able, I'd most certainly be out there. But my life is not your life. You are free to make your own decisions. But what are your alternatives?”

“We could leave Unduth,” I said. “Maybe go back to Optorio. Maybe somewhere else.”

She nodded. “That's always an alternative, of course.”

“Would you come with us, mother?” Byr asked. “If we decided to leave Unduth.”

Her smile was one of regret. “No,” she said. “I may not be able to fight, but I can still do some things. And I vowed to help Yurat any way I could.”

I was surprised that Byr's mother was such a – radical. But perhaps I shouldn't have been. He'd told me that when she was younger – and healthier – she'd been a woman of strong opinions and convictions. One who wasn't afraid to speak her mind. It was something I could admire and made me like Byr's mother quite a lot.

I just didn't know if we could – or should – follow in her footsteps.

Chapter Eight

After spending another hour with Loya and the kids, it was time to say goodbye. And I could tell that Byr was having a hard time with it. He'd only just gotten them back and now he had to leave them all over again. It was especially tough for him, not knowing what the future held – for any of us.

I watched him hug his mother and siblings, clinging to them tightly, and promising that he would see them again soon. It was a promise I hoped more than anything, we would be able to keep. In the short time I'd been with them, I'd come to like his family a great deal. His mother was a straight shooter and somebody I could absolutely respect. And his siblings were beyond adorable. How could I not like them all?

We sat in the back of the transport, on our way back to the camp and I could see that leaving them was weighing heavily upon him. But he also had a small grin and lightness of spirit he didn't have before. Seeing his family had done wonders for his soul – which was probably Yurat's intent behind arranging the get-together.

“Your mother looks well,” I said.

He nodded. “Better than I've seen her in a long time.”

He pulled me close and wrapped his arm around me. I leaned my head against his shoulder and let myself enjoy being so close to him. Byr was an amazing man and I felt lucky to have found him. He kissed the top of my head and we rode the rest of the way back to camp in a comfortable, companionable silence.

I hadn't realized I'd drifted off until Byr was shaking me awake. When I opened my eyes, I found him smiling down at me.

“Enjoy your nap?” he asked.

“Apparently, so.”

The rear ramp of the transport lowered and we stood, walking down the ramp. Manyr was standing there with a small smile on her face.

“Thank you,” Byr said. “I – just – thank you.”

She nodded and looked at him. “You're welcome,” she said. “It was about time you got to see them.”

“I'm really grateful that you've given them such good care,” he said. “I don't think that's a debt I can ever repay.”

“There's nothing to repay,” she said. “We're trying to take care of our people. That includes your family.”

There was a sincerity in Manyr's voice that told me she wasn't just giving us the standard join our rebellion recruiting pitch. She genuinely believed in caring for all of Unduth's people. She was obviously in this for all the right reasons – reasons that I was in full agreement with.

Of course, I had to recognize that my hesitation was born of selfishness. Not only did I not want to die, I didn't want to lose Byr in the fighting either. We'd overcome tremendous odds to find one another in the first place. And all I wanted was to build a life with him.

Was that so wrong?

Of course it wasn't wrong. But perhaps, asking others to sacrifice, to give their lives, so that I could build my life with Byr – and contribute nothing to the cause – was wrong. If the revolution was successful, and they brought down the Ministry, how would I be able to look at myself and know that I was living beneath a blanket of freedom and did nothing to help? How could I allow myself to reap all the benefits but make none of the sacrifice?

“So, listen,” Manyr said. “We have a raid tomorrow. It's a pretty important mission and Yurat wanted me to ask you to come along. No pressure, but we'd love to have you by our side if you want to be there.”

“What time are you pulling out?” Byr asked.

“We leave before dawn.”

I nodded. Clearly, Byr and I had much to talk about. “Okay, we'll give it some thought,” I said.

“That's all we can ask,” Manyr said before turning and walking away.

Hand-in-hand, Byr and I walked back to our quarters. It was a moderately sized room that had the basics, but not much else. There was a bed that was functional, a desk, a dresser, and a private bathroom – for that, I was thankful at least. There wasn't much in the way of decoration, and it was all very sterile. But then, I had to continue reminding myself that this was a military installation, not a holiday resort.

The door slid closed behind us and Byr pushed the button that locked it, giving us some privacy. I walked over, sat down on top of the desk, and looked over at him.

“So, what do you think?” I asked. “Did you want to go on tomorrow's mission?”

He looked away and wouldn't meet my eyes. “I'm not sure yet.”

I let out a small, soft laugh. “Oh really? Because I tend to think that you've been sure for a little while now.”

He walked over and stood in front of me, pulling me into a tight embrace. “I'm not sure what to do here, Hatare,” he said. “Unduth is my home. Our home. It feels right to fight for it. To tear out the bad things and replace it with something better.”

I didn't disagree with what he'd said. Not at all. I was simply – scared. Scared of losing him. Of losing the life I'd dreamed of building with him.

“You're right,” I said. “We should be willing to fight for our world. I just – I don't – ”

He cocked his head and looked at me. “What is it?”

“I know it's selfish,” I said. “I just don't want to lose you. Part of me wants to pick up and run somewhere far away from here where there is no war and there is no danger. Somewhere we can be safe.”

“It's selfish,” he confirmed. “But it's also a very strong impulse in me too. I don't know what I would do if something happened to you, Hatare. And I don't really want to find out.”

“But at the same time, you feel an obligation to help make Unduth the world we want it to be.”

He nodded. “Exactly. There is no easy answer to this.”

I smiled. “I don't think there are any easy answers to the most important questions in life.”

I put my hand behind his neck and pulled him down into a kiss. It was soft and chaste at first, but then the fire and intensity grew. Our tongues swirled and moved together in an intimate dance as I ran my hands through his long hair. Byr ran his hands up and down my back and he stepped closer to me. I wrapped my legs around him and felt the fire in the center of me begin to grow as we kissed.

I pulled back and looked him in the eye as I helped him slide his shirt over his head. He tossed it to the floor as I planted soft kisses upon his chest, gently nipping at his skin. Byr pressed himself against me and I could feel his arousal, feel how much he needed me, and it only stoked my own inner fires.

Byr helped me pull off my own shirt and it joined his on the floor. His mouth and tongue explored the soft skin of my chest and he made me gasp as he licked and sucked on my breasts. I ran my fingertips across his soft skin as I arched my back and gasped as he gently nibbled on one of my nipples.

I slid off the desk and looking him in the eye, unbuckled his pants, letting them fall to the floor at his feet. He stood before me, completely naked, and entirely beautiful. I reached out and took him into my hand, relishing the feel of how hard he was, feeling his body radiate with an inner heat. He moaned low in his throat as I tightened my grip around him and began to stroke him, slowly and gently at first.

“Hatare,” he gasped.

He pulled me closer to him, cupping my breast and running the tip of his tongue along my neck as I continued to stroke him. Byr groaned and threw his head back as I squeezed him even tighter, quickening the pace of my hand as it moved up and down his shaft.

I felt Byr's body tense and he quickly pulled away from me. He looked at me with a wild-eyed expression, his breath coming in short, ragged bursts. His eye markings were glowing bright and he was trembling. Byr leaned forward and kissed me hard and passionately. His hands fumbled with my pants, finally managing to slide them down my legs. I stepped out of them, feeling the fire between my thighs burning out of control.

He picked me up and set me down on the desk. Using his hands, he gently parted my thighs and stepped in close to me. I bit my bottom lip as I looked up at him, desperate to feel him inside of me. I wrapped my legs around his waist and pulled him in close. The tip of him was pressed against my opening and it was driving me crazy.

“Please, Byr,” I said, looking up at him.

He kissed me again and slid himself inside of me. The rush of sensation was immediate and overpowering. My entire body felt like it was being electrified from the inside out so much that my skin hummed with it. Slowly, he started to move his hips, sliding himself deeper inside of me before withdrawing then moving inside of me again.

My breath caught in my throat as he began to pump his hips a little harder and a little faster. He sucked in a deep breath as I dug my nails into his shoulders and cried out. I arched my back as he slid deeper inside of me, setting my entire body on fire.

He was thrusting himself deep into me, making my legs quiver. My breath was shallow and ragged and I was overcome with such emotion and sensation, that I felt my eyes begin to burn with tears – tears of happiness and bliss.

“Byr,” I gasped. “Yes, more. Don't stop.”

He buried himself deep inside of me and I felt his body tensing up. He looked at me with eyes that seemed frantic as he continued pumping his hips furiously. The sound of our bodies slapping together echoed around the mostly empty room, blending with the sound of our ragged breathing and moans of ecstasy, creating a beautiful symphony in my ears.

His fingers dug into my back and his breathing grew more labored, the trembling in his body more pronounced. A pressure was building low inside of me and I knew I wouldn't last much longer. Byr was bringing me to the brink quickly and I knew that when the wave came crashing down, it was going to be powerful.

I cried out as he drove himself deeper inside of me than he'd ever been and felt myself falling over that edge. My body spasmed and I called his name as an explosion of sensation tore through my body. I shook and trembled, tears spilling down my face and I dug my nails into his back.

His body felt like it locked up for a moment and his face froze with a look of pure ecstasy etched onto it. And then he shuddered and let out a groan that sounded more animal than anything. A moment later, I felt him pulsing inside of me and felt his seed filling me up.

We stayed like that for a long moment, trying to catch our breath. And for me, trying to get my head to stop spinning. My body felt like I'd touched a live wire and I was still buzzing with the sensation. A moment later, he looked up and kissed me.

“I love you,” he said between ragged breaths.

“And I love you,” I said and kissed the tip of his nose.

Eventually, he slid out of me and stood up. We kissed once more, but it was a softer, gentler kiss. Though the passion still burned in the both of us, we were spent. Byr carried me over to the bed and laid me down in it before climbing in beside me. Our bodies pressed together, we snuggled beneath the covers as the dark curtain of sleep descended over us.

My body and mind still tingling and filled with love, I let myself be pulled under the dark waters of sleep.

Chapter Nine

Byr

The sun was just beginning to crest the distant horizon. Hatare, Manyr, and I were crouched in thick, overgrown bushes at the edge of the forest. A large building and a road sat before us – a building that appeared to be empty to me.

“Here, look,” Manyr said as she handed me a pair of glasses.

I reached out and took them – though moving in the armor they'd provided us was difficult because I wasn't used to it. I felt like an idiot walking around before we left camp. Everybody else moved free and smooth in their armor and I felt like a child playing dress up. Of course, as awkward and clumsy as I looked, Hatare looked twice as awkward and clumsy.

But I wouldn't make the mistake of pointing that out to her – again.

The more I moved around though, the easier it got. I was getting used to wearing the stuff. Not that I thought the armor would do us a lot of good. If I got shot, I didn't have a whole lot of faith the armor would stop it from tearing through me.

Slipping on the glasses, I was stunned – I could practically see right through the walls of the building. Inside, I saw that the building was hardly empty – there were a dozen armed soldiers inside. Taking the glasses off, I handed them to Hatare, who slipped them on and had the same reaction I had. Honestly, I had no idea that sort of technology even existed. I knew it wasn't common tech out on the fringes, meaning it very likely had to have come from either off-world, or from inside the capitol itself.

Handing the glasses back to Manyr, I smirked at her. “So, it looks like you have somebody inside the Ministry who's given you some pretty nice little gifts.”

She shrugged. “Let's just say that we have a lot of friends,” she said. “More than you might think. And some who are very generous.”

“So, why are there twelve armed soldiers in that building?” Hatare asked. “Out in the middle of nowhere?”

“There's a shipment coming through,” she said. “Our mission is to intercept it.”

“A shipment of what?” I asked.

“Arms, mostly,” she said. “An army can never have too many weapons, right?”

There was something about the way she'd said it that told me she was holding something back. That there was more to the story she wasn't telling me. I had no clue what it could be, but there was most definitely something going on.

She looked over at me and smiled. “I'm glad to have you with us,” she said. “Both of you. I can honestly tell you that the spirits of the fighters on this mission are higher than I've ever seen them.”

I looked away and said nothing – as did Hatare. Neither of us had grown anymore comfortable with the idea that we were heroes or that we'd done anything worthy of admiration.

“Here it comes,” Manyr said. “Keep your head down and keep yourselves safe. You don't need to join the fighting.”

Hatare cocked her head and looked at her. “Then why are we here? I thought you wanted us to fight.”

And then it dawned on me. “No, they want us here to inspire the troops,” I said. “They want us here because they think the troops will fight harder for them.”

Manyr looked away – clearly, I'd hit the nail on the head. And it really made me angry.

“Is that true?” Hatare asked. “Manyr? Is that really why we're here?”

She sighed. “It's not my idea. And it's not the first time I've disagreed with Yurat on something,” she said. “I would rather have you two fighting alongside us. We can use all the help we can get. But Yurat is afraid that something will happen to you two. He's afraid that if one – or the both of you – were to die, it would destroy morale among the troops.”

“Well, it's nice to know that he's more concerned about morale, than our actual lives,” Hatare said, her words dripping with sarcasm.

“He's very committed to the cause,” Manyr replied.

“Right, well, we're here to fight,” I said. “We're not here to hide in the bushes and be somebody's inspiration.”

“Besides,” Hatare said. “I tend to think they'll be more inspired if they're fighting shoulder to shoulder with us. Though, I still think the whole thing is overblown and stupid.”

Manyr looked from Hatare to me and then back again. I could see that she was conflicted. She'd been ordered to keep us safe and yet, her natural impulse was to let us fight with her. Finally, she nodded.

“It's not like I can keep you two from doing your own thing once the fighting starts anyway,” she said. “But stay with me. If nothing else, just stay with me.”

That much, we could agree to, at least. The sound of the transport grew louder and then I saw it coming down the road and moving quickly. There were two of them, and they finally slowed as they neared the building. Dust and debris swirled in the air as the two hovering vehicles lowered themselves to the ground with a thud. A moment later, the engines on the transports shut off, leaving a profound silence in their wake.

“Hold until I give the order,” Manyr whispered into her comm set. “Do not break position until I give the order.”

The fighters were spread out and hidden amongst the trees and bushes of the forest. We couldn't match them in terms of firepower, but we could outnumber and outflank them – which we were currently doing.

The rear doors of the transport lowered and I felt my body tense. I'd never been part of a battle before and I was not ashamed to admit that I was more than a little nervous. I looked over at Hatare – her eyes were focused on the transports and it looked like a small grin tugged at the corners of her mouth.

“Are you okay?” I asked quietly.

She turned and looked at me, and her smile was more pronounced. She was apparently enjoying this. Was excited by the prospect of the fight – which surprised me. She'd had as many reservations and misgivings as I'd had, and yet, there she was spoiling for a fight.

“I'm good,” she said. “I'm ready for this.”

I nodded and despite my best efforts, felt some of her enthusiasm rubbing off on me. This was our first step on the journey to building a better world. And I then realized that what excited her was not the fight itself, but being part of a movement that was fighting for the right thing. That was fighting for the people.

A moment later, a couple of government soldiers came down the ramp, their weapons at the ready, and looked around. A second pair of soldiers from the other ship joined the first two, and they stood there, as if waiting for something.

“Hold tight,” Manyr said into her comm device.

A door on the building opened and all twelve of the soldiers I'd seen through Manyr’s glasses came filing out. They exchanged handshakes with the four who'd just arrived and then they all stood around talking. They looked relaxed, as if they didn't have a care in the world.

“Now,” Manyr said into her comm device. “Everybody move now.”

All around us, the world was lit up by laser fire. Our troops, carefully hidden among the landscape, opened fire and started cutting the soldiers down in a hurry. The others moved swiftly to get to cover and started to return fire. The sounds of men screaming and rifles firing filled the air with a horrible, terrifying noise.

“Follow me,” Manyr said.

We picked our way down the wooded hillside and came out on the road behind the transports. The three of us, careful to stay under cover, moved down a path through the tree line and found ourselves behind the remaining soldiers. The battle was still raging, but it was a battle of attrition at that point. The bloody bodies of the soldiers who'd fallen littered the ground.

As we emerged from our hiding spot, we counted five soldiers remaining. Their attention was so focused on our men hiding in the forest in front of them that they never saw us coming. Not until it was too late.

The three of us brought our weapons to bear at the moment one of the government soldiers was turning around and spotted us. Acting almost as one, the three of us opened fire and cut down the remaining soldiers in a matter of moments. I felt a sense of triumph as I watched their bodies slump over and fall to the ground. I felt a sense of satisfaction looking down into eyes that were forever open and unseeing, and just staring at the sky.

“All clear,” Manyr called, holding her fist up in the air. “We did it.”

Around us, the forest erupted in shouts of joy as the men came out of their hiding spots. As I watched the fighters filtering down toward the road, I counted four less than we'd started the day with. They all gathered on the road and congratulated each other.

“I thought I would feel some sense of guilt or remorse,” Hatare said.

I looked over and found her staring down at one of the dead soldiers. She simply stood there, looked into his eyes, and let a cruel smile flicker upon her lips.

“I don't though,” she said. “I actually feel – good. Righteous. Like we did something profoundly good today.”

I nodded. “I know what you mean. I was surprised that I felt so justified and righteous about taking lives.”

“I don't feel a shred of remorse over what we did,” she said softly. “What does that say about me?”

I stepped closer to her and took her by the hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “What it says is that you're a revolutionary. That you're willing to fight – and die – to make this world a better place for everybody. And that's not a bad thing.”

She looked up at me, a broad smile touching her lips. “It's not a bad thing at all.”

Manyr stepped over to us and put a hand on each of our shoulders. “Fantastic job, the both of you.”

It wasn't that we really did all that much. After all, what we did consisted of sneaking up behind a group of guys and gunning them down. But it did do one important thing for us – it gave us our first taste of combat. And we'd passed our first test – the ability to not freeze under pressure. I thought we'd passed it with flying colors, in fact.

“Come, let's go see our prize,” Manyr said.

We walked around to the rear of one of the transports and Manyr punched a button on the outside to lower the rear hatch. A moment later, the ramp touched down in the dirt with a thud, and we all stood there, a look of dumbfounded shock on all of our faces.

“What is this?” Hatare finally asked, breaking the silence.

Crates lined the middle of the transport – no doubt, filled with weapons – but it was what was lined up against the walls that had caught our attention. Or rather, whom. People lined the walls of the transport. In fact, it was all women. Young women – and all of them I noticed, were scraps. They'd been chained to the wall of the transport and looked at us with wide, scared eyes. I felt a dark and abiding rage begin to bubble up within me as I looked at the girls – girls who'd been torn from their families and who were no doubt, going to be sold into one form of bondage or another.

Hatare rushed up the ramp and tried to comfort some of the women who were sobbing. “Can we get a key or something to start letting these girls loose? We need to get them out of here. Now.”

A couple of the fighters who'd joined us at the foot of the ramp, sprinted into the compartment of the transport to help Hatare free the girls. All the while, Manyr stood there looking at them with an expression of concern upon her face. It obviously bothered her that these women were chained up and were being hauled somewhere like livestock. I could see that as plain as day.

But one thing I noticed missing was an expression of surprise. She knew exactly what we were going to find when we opened up the back of those transports. And she knew exactly how deeply it was going to bother both Hatare and I.

It seemed that her recruitment efforts never, ever stopped.

Chapter Ten

Hatare

The next few weeks were a blur of activity. Yurat had us going on an increasing number of raids – raids that seemed to get more difficult with each passing day. With each successful raid, the Ministry responded by increasing the number of soldiers and weapons arrayed against us. We lost a lot of fighters, but we were gaining much in terms of weapons and supplies. Not to mention the fact that we'd most definitely gotten under the skin of the Ministry and were now being seen as a legitimate threat – one they could not afford to take seriously.

Yurat wanted a war and it appeared that he was getting his wish.

The other thing that was happening was that as our success grew, so too did the numbers of fighters joining our ranks. Yurat attributed it to our presence, but the reality was that with each successful operation, the legitimacy of the rebellion grew. People began to see – many for the first time – that a new world where equality and freedom of choice were absolutely possible. And given the number of people flocking to the rebellion, a new world was exactly what the people wanted.

No doubt the Ministry was paying attention to that. And no doubt, they were terrified of it. The Ministry had always used fear and oppression to rule the people. To keep them compliant and subservient. And the Ministry relied on the “customs” and “traditions” of Unduth to perpetuate the system of inequality that hurt so many.

And now, with momentum on our side, Yurat felt that it was finally time to take the fight to the Ministry itself.

We rode in the back of the transport and my stomach was in knots. I was always nervous before a raid, but this was different. This time, we were staging an assault on the building that housed the Ministry itself. And I knew, probably better than anybody going into battle just how difficult that was going to be. The Ministry – the seat of power in Kinray and all of Unduth – was an armed fortress.

Byr must have sensed my unease because he took my hand and gave it a squeeze and leaned down to plant a soft kiss on my cheek.

“You okay?” he asked.

I shrugged and gave him a small smile. “About as good as I can be,” I said. “I just have a bad feeling about this.”

He nodded. “Yeah, I'm not convinced it's the smartest move either.”

I looked over at Yurat who was huddled near the front of the transport with Manyr and a few of his top lieutenants. The conversation they were having was animated and there seemed to be some disagreement between them. And when Manyr looked over at me, I could see that she wasn't sold on the idea that attacking the Ministry the wisest course of action either.

But Yurat was feeling optimistic after our string of successes. Our swelling ranks bolstered that confidence – recklessly, in my opinion.

“We're ready for this,” Yurat said, the irritation in his voice plain. “Now is the perfect time to attack. They will never see it coming.”

Yurat's lieutenants looked down, none of them willing to say a word. He was older than all of them, had more experience fighting this war, and they apparently didn't think it was their place to contradict him.

Yurat moved to the middle of the transport and looked at all of us riding with him. “I know you're scared,” he said. “I know you think I've lost my mind. But believe me, we are ready. We've never been more ready. This is our chance. Our moment. If we can seize control of the Ministry, put them all in chains and parade them out for the world to see, the back of this government will be broken. We will have won. And when we do that, we can go about the business of building the world we've talked about for so long now.

We have the men, we have the firepower – we just need to find the will. So, dig deep everybody. No, this won't be an easy fight. I expect it to be bloody and brutal. I expect heavy casualties. But dig deep within yourselves because I also expect victory. We can win. We will win.”

His rousing speech was motivational – even I felt some stirrings of optimism within me. And I could see it reflected on the faces of the soldiers around us. Yurat was a leader. He was able to inspire people to do things they wouldn't normally do. Things that maybe they thought they couldn't do.

I was just hoping he wasn't leading us all to our doom.

The transport slowed and settled down to the ground with a solid thud. The rear ramp lowered, letting in a cool breeze and the dying light of the afternoon. The transports – seven in all – had all settled down in a clearing in the middle of Kinray called the Park of Reflection. All around us were long pools of water that were normally so still, they could be used as mirrors. But with the amount of activity generated by the transports, ripples and small waves marred the surface of the pool, sending water splashing over the sides. Statues of great Unduthian “patriots” were scattered throughout the park, their faces always grim, seemingly cast in a perpetual disapproving frown.

I recall having spent time there with my family – quite a lot, actually. Not because we were having a fun, relaxing family outing, but because it was required by my father. He'd wanted us to learn and immerse ourselves in the history of our culture. He'd wanted us to learn about what it took to be a great and valuable member of Unduthian society.

And if we won the day and I had any say in the matter, this park was going to be absolutely obliterated. I would set fire to it myself. Happily.

“Okay, listen up,” Yurat called into his hand held loudspeaker. “No doubt, the Ministry knows we're coming now and are probably scurrying to rally their troops. It's going to take a little time for them to assemble, which gives us our window of opportunity. We strike hard, we strike fast, and we strike now.

This is our moment, people. This is what we've been fighting for. We will win this day and look back upon it as the day we broke the back of an oppressive regime and gave Unduth back to the people – where it so rightly belongs. I believe in you all. Fight hard and we will carry this day.

Battalion commanders, you know your assignments. Take your troops and head out. Move quickly. Be ready to strike on my command.”

All around me, was a flurry of activity as the fighters assigned to each battalion commander scrambled to fall into a formation and took off at a trot. As I watched them go, I couldn't help but feel a dark sense of foreboding. I didn't know how many of those eager, optimistic faces I was going to see again.

The knot in my stomach tightened painfully and I could see the same tension in Byr's face when he looked down at me. Neither of us knew how this was going to go, but neither of us were feeling particularly good about it.

As had become something of a tradition in our battalion, the fighters filed past us as they formed up, tapping both Byr and me on the helmet. According to Manyr, they thought it – and us being with them – brought them good luck.

But touching our helmets wasn't going to stop a laser from ripping them open. I played my part though and smiled, tapping each one of them on their shoulder plates as they filed past. The last thing I was going to do was kill morale. If they believed it, then who was I to take that away from them?

“Okay, let's move out,” Yurat called.

Our battalion began the march toward the Ministry – and as had been ordered by Yurat, Byr and I were forced to bring up the rear. Up ahead, I could see the spires of the Ministry building shooting skyward, the dark stone casting an ominous presence against the dusky sky. We were close and drawing ever closer.

Byr grabbed my hand and squeezed it. When I looked up at him, I saw an urgency and intensity in his face I hadn't seen before.

“Whatever happens,” he said, “however this all plays out, just know that I love you. That you are the best and most important thing to ever happen to me.”

I squeezed his hand in return. “Stop talking like this is going to be it,” I said. “Don't even think it. I love you, Byr. And we will get a chance to build our lives together. In a better world.”

I said it as earnestly as I could, but deep down I had my doubts that we were going to come out of this mess alive and intact. I only saw this battle ending two ways – either the back of the Ministry would be broken, or the back of the rebellion would be. This fight felt like it was for everything. And though our fighters were passionate, I didn't know that they were ready enough to actually defeat the Ministry's trained, professional soldiers. Maybe in a year or two, with intensive training – but that was time we didn't have. The fight was on now.

The sound of explosions tore through the air and were powerful enough that they shook the ground we were marching on. I looked over at Byr who looked back at me, the same questions going through my head reflected upon his face.

“Yurat apparently had advance measures in place,” Manyr said almost angrily, as she fell into step beside us. “Measures he didn't even tell me about.”

Another series of explosions shook the world around us, filling the air with the smoke. Up ahead, I saw people on the streets, normal Unduthian citizens, running for their lives, the sound of their shrieks and cries saturating the air. I looked up and saw columns of smoke rising in front of the dark spires, obscuring my view of them.

Another series of explosions went off, more powerful than the first.

“It's smart,” Byr said. “Soften up the defenses in advance of the ground troops.”

Manyr nodded grudgingly. It was clear she didn't like being kept out of the loop. She looked at us again and gave us a grim smile.

“It's been my honor to serve with the both of you,” she said. “Good luck and I will see you once this is over.”

She ran off before either of us could respond because the battle was on. Byr and I stopped for a moment to stare open-mouthed at the scene before us. The bombs had torn gaping holes into the Ministry building and fire could be seen through them. Debris littered the ground – as did bodies. So many bodies. Some of them were soldiers, some were people who'd been unlucky enough to be within the blast radius when the bombs went off.

I gritted my teeth, not happy with the loss of civilian life – but knowing that in a war, it was inescapable.

Yurat was urging his troops forward. Red lasers lanced out as the Ministry's soldiers, clad in the traditional white and red armor took up a defensive position, trying to hold off Yurat's advancing fighters. His troops were acquitting themselves well. They found what cover they could and returned fire, felling a good number of soldiers along the way.

The sound of rifle fire and explosions filled the air and I wondered how the battalions tasked with assaulting the rear of the building were doing. The plan was to breach both the front and the back and pin the Ministers inside, where we would be able to put them in custody – or kill them outright, I assumed.

There was so much smoke and laser fire, so many people running around, that it was dizzying. I had a hard time keeping track of anybody. I searched the battlefield for Manyr, but couldn't see her. I watched as half a dozen fighters were torn to pieces by fire from the soldiers rifles, their bodies falling limply to the ground.

“Come on, Hatare,” Byr said. “I'm not waiting back here where it's safe.”

I nodded. It was against Yurat's orders, but I was with Byr – I wasn't going to let other people die for me. If I wanted to be a part of this new world, I needed to earn my place. We sprinted toward a stone barricade that stood near the fence of the Ministry's courtyard. Crouching down, I stared into the lifeless eyes of one of our men. I touched his forehead gently and said a few quiet words.

Trying to keep beneath the barricade as much as possible, I got to my knees and started squeezing off shots. Byr's face was determined as he took aim and fired at the soldiers. I watched as most of his shots went high or wide. With a small grin on my face, I fired two shots and watched two soldiers fall.

I gave him a wink. “Looks like somebody needs to spend more time on the range.”

He gave me a lopsided smirk. “When did you get to be so funny?”

Byr pushed me down below the barricade a moment before it was hit by return fire. The sound it made as the lasers bounce off the stone was a high pitched whine that I found eerie. It sounded like a spirit – perhaps the spirit that came to claim your soul when you died.

Getting back up to my knees, I peered over the barricade and watched the government soldiers fall one by one under the withering fire of our fighters. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. The tide of the battle was definitely in our favor and for the first time, I actually believed we were going to win the day.

Yurat waved his arms, encouraging his fighters forward. Beneath a blistering barrage of cover fire, Yurat and his men flooded into the courtyard. Though some of his men fell, they took more of the soldiers out than they lost. Byr and I stood up and joined the flood of fighters heading toward the Ministry's doors. The courtyard was soon overrun by Yurat's troops and victory appeared to be imminent.

Which was, of course, where everything unraveled.

The giant twin steel doors of the Ministry – built to be imposing and to convey power – creaked open. The shadowy interior of the massive main corridor was obscured, but it was what came pouring out of that open doorway that nearly stilled my heart.

The black and red armored soldiers of General Gravus – the most deadly fighters on Unduth.

“Oh no,” Byr whispered.

Gravus' men fell into a formation – one line kneeling, one line standing behind them – and laid down a withering burst of gunfire. I watched as Yurat's fighters seemed to fall by the score. The reputation of Gravus and his mercenaries was widely known on Unduth and inspired no small amount of fear and intimidation. It made Yurat's men hesitate – and that in turn, led to their deaths.

Gravus' men advanced on Yurat's fighters, cutting down more and more of them. The rebels, knowing the tide of battle had turned against them, began to flee. Many ran past Byr and me, abject terror on their faces.

I watched Yurat wave his arms, trying to implore his fighters to remain. He brought his weapon to bear and started firing at Gravus' men. He dropped two of them before half a dozen lasers pierced his body.

He fell to the ground – dead. And in that moment, I knew that was the fate of the rebellion.

“We have to go,” Byr said as he grabbed my hand and started to drag me backward. “We need to get out of here.”

I started to turn with him to join the retreating army when out of the smoke that filled the air above us, something emerged that made me stop. I looked up and watched as a small ship hovered over the courtyard. It sat motionless for a moment, just hanging above the fight – and then it laid down a massive burst of fire.

I watched, shocked and speechless, as Gravus' men fell beneath the fire from the ship. And then it moved back up into the thick clouds of smoke and was gone. Like it had never been there to begin with. Byr looked at me, his eyes wide.

“I have no idea,” I said.

I watched his eyes grow even wider as something behind me caught his attention. I spun, bringing my weapon to bear, but he put his hand on my shoulder, making me stop.

“Wait,” he said.

A column of men in plain black armor, wearing helmets that obscured their faces, came rushing into the courtyard. Yurat's fighters parted, clearing the way for the men in black – and like us, their faces were etched with astonishment.

The men in the black armor paid no attention to us, but quickly took up positions in the courtyard and began laying down a heavy field of fire. What remained of Gravus' men were cut down quickly, efficiently, and ruthlessly.

More of the black armored men emerged from inside the Ministry building – they'd apparently worked our plan to completion. They'd apparently cleared the Ministry of all threats. And just like that, the battle was over. Gravus' mercenaries and the Ministry's soldiers had either all been killed or had made their escape somehow.

In what seemed like a matter of moments, the day had gone from won, to lost, to won again. And yet, it wasn't Unduthian fighters who had claimed the day.

“Who are they?” I asked.

Byr shook his head. “I don't know.”

My immediate thought was that an alien military force was using our civil war as cover for launching an invasion – an invasion meant to enslave Unduth. I kept my weapon at the ready. I didn't know what was going on, but I was going to fight.

One of the black-clad soldiers approached us. He stood a moment staring at us – though, I couldn't see his face from behind his darkened helmet.

“Who are you?” I asked.

“You two,” he said, his voice sounding tinny and robotic coming out of his helmet's comm device, “come with me. Now, please.”

Byr and I exchanged a look and he gave me a small shrug. We weren't being threatened, we weren't told to drop our weapons, we weren't being held at the point of a weapon – and he'd used the word please. If this was an alien invasion, it was the politest one I'd ever heard of.

We followed the man out of the courtyard and back toward the park where our transports had originally set down. There were a number of other, smaller craft in the park now. All black and bearing no markings of any kind – like the armor of the mysterious men.

“Follow me, please,” the man said.

He touched a control panel on the side of one of the black crafts and a door slid upward, revealing a dimly lit interior. We followed the man inside and he closed the door behind us, touching another button that presumably locked it. The feeling of apprehension was thick within me and the knot in my stomach was as tight as it had ever been.

I looked over at Byr – his face was tight with tension and I could see that he had a tight grip on his weapon. What was going on here? Another soldier in that non-distinctive black armor stood up as we entered the cabin and looked at the man behind us.

“Are we secure?”

The man behind us nodded. “We're secure.”

“Losses?”

“Two,” the man said. “Both have been secured as well.”

“Good,” said the soldier in front of us.

My grip tightened on my weapon as the soldier reached up and removed his helmet – and then my heart almost stopped entirely. The soldier wasn't a man – it was a woman.

It was Riley.

I turned around, already suspecting who the second soldier was and smiled when I saw that I was right. It was Vink. I shook my head, not believing what I was seeing or what had happened.

“It's nice to see you two again,” she said. “You're looking a little battle hardened, but none the worse for wear.”

“Thanks to you,” Byr said, heaving out a big sigh of relief.

“But how?” I asked. “Why did – ”

Riley smiled. “We didn't,” she said. “We were never here.”

“Yeah, but – ”

“Optorio cannot be involved in the internal conflicts of other planets,” Vink explained. “The King of Optorio cannot tell another world how to govern their people. Which is why officially, he has taken no position on the rule of Unduth and has taken no sides in your civil war.”

Riley nodded. “Optorio and Unduth have been allies for a very long time,” she said. “And Jendrish is unwilling to do anything that would jeopardize that longstanding friendship.”

I nodded, finally understanding. Jendrish couldn't take a public position, so he'd sent in a covert force to help us claim victory. The relief I felt was as thick as the smoke in the air outside. I couldn't believe it and felt weak in the knees because of it. Byr put his arm around my waist, helping me keep my balance.

“I just – I can't believe this,” I said. “I don't even know how to begin to repay you for – ”

Riley shook her head. “There is nothing to repay. Remember? We were never here.”

“Right,” I nodded. “Of course.”

“You're free now,” Riley said, “to build your world. To build it in the best way you can.”

I stepped forward and threw my arms around Riley, our armor making it an awkward, clumsy hug, but I hugged her tight nonetheless. When I finally released her, I turned and did the same with Vink – which was made even more awkward given the fact that he wasn't the hugging type. But we managed.

We stayed and talked with them a little while longer – it was genuinely nice to see Riley again. She was somebody I respected and admired a tremendous amount. And I couldn't have been more thankful to her than I was in that moment.

Eventually though, they had to go. Riley and her troops couldn't risk being seen or recognized by anybody.

Hand-in-hand, Byr and I stood there, watching the last of the Optorion ships ascending through the clouds and into the atmosphere.

We were left alone with each other – and a new world to build.

Chapter Eleven

It had been a year since the day the Ministry fell. And in that time, we'd taken some great strides toward building a new, better Unduth. One of our first acts was to establish a truly representative government – one that would work for all the people. All of the old customs and traditions that had governed Unduthian life for so long, had been abolished.

Of course, there was plenty of resistance to our reforms. That had been expected. But we handled them as best we could.

Manyr had survived the fight at the Ministry and had risen to a prominent position within Unduth's new government. Having done plenty of research on other world governments, we had adopted a parliamentary style system, which meant that Manyr was our Prime Minister. She was accountable to our two co-equal houses of government, but she was in effect, our leader. All final decisions rested with her.

It was a good first step, but hardly the only one. True change and progress was going to take time. Although the people on the fringes embraced these reforms and yearned for genuine equality, the former upper-class remained largely resistant.

Knowing that we could wind up with another coup on our hands, we'd formed a military to protect the interests of the people and our government. Our military would do our very best to maintain peace and order, but we also made it clear that we would quell any uprisings aimed at taking us back to Unduth's old ways.

There were plenty of mechanisms in place for the people to air their grievances with the government – and I truly hoped that people would use them. That was the only way to have an effective system of governance – participation by the people and government accountability to the people.

Byr and I did our best to stay out of the formation of the new government. All we wanted was to live a quiet life and enjoy this new world of ours. But try as we might, Manyr and her people wouldn't let us go. Not entirely. She named us special ambassadors to Optorio. It was an honor and one we could not refuse.

Plus, it wasn't too taxing and allowed us to see Riley and Jendrish again quite often, so the position had its perks. The King and Queen of Optorio were good people and had become true friends to us and I counted my blessings for it.

Byr and I stood on the balcony of our new home overlooking the bright lights of Kinray. As I watched the streets below bustling with activity, knowing that these people lived beneath a blanket of freedom and equality, I couldn't help but smile.

Byr's family lived in a nice house within the city and we saw them often. I'd grown close to his mother and actually felt like she was more of a mother to me than my own had ever been. Though her diagnosis was still terminal, the doctors were doing a fantastic job of extending her life as long as possible. My hope was that they would one day soon, find a cure for the disease that ravaged her body.

Even a year later, the reality that we'd done it, that we'd destroyed the Ministry and had won our fight, was overwhelming and at times, still unbelievable to me. But we had. And I was happy. And as I looked over at Byr, I realized that I was happier than I ever thought I could be.

I raised my glass to him. Riley had sent along a few cases of that amazing Optorion wine I'd grown so fond of – and I was eternally thankful for the gift. But this was to be my last glass of it for a while. As I looked at the liquid by the lights of the city, I lamented that fact – but also rejoiced in it.

“To my dear husband,” I said.

He touched his glass to mine, sounding a soft clinking noise. “And to my dear wife.”

We each took a sip, looking deeply into one another's eyes. “We did it,” I said. “I still can't believe it, but we did it. Unduth is becoming the world we've always wanted it to be.”

He nodded. “It is. And I couldn't possibly be any happier than I am right now.”

I raised an eyebrow at him. “No? Don't think so?”

He looked out over the city, a satisfied smile spreading across his face. “I don't think so. This is everything we've always wanted.”

I took another drink of the wine, savoring it. “Well, it's sad that you don't think you can be any happier,” I said, feigning a pout. “Because I have news I thought would make you the happiest man in the galaxy.”

“Oh?” he asked and took a sip of his wine.

A slow, broad smile spread across my face. “I'm pregnant.”

The sound of his wine glass shattering against the tile beneath our feet punctuated the look of complete shock on his face – and both made me laugh.

“A – are you kidding?”

I shook my head. “No.”

He scooped me up, wrapping me in a tight embrace, tears flowing down his cheeks – just as they were flowing down mine. He set me down and looked at me, his expression stunned but happy. Byr opened his mouth to speak but found he didn't have words, so he closed it again, instead, pulling me into another embrace.

And we stood there for a long while, embracing beneath the lights of Unduth's moons and the lights of Kinray, happy, in love, and best of all – free.

THE END