The Earth Dwellers

“It’s not safe,” I say. “And there’s only limited space. We need every—”

“—soldier we can fit,” she says, finishing for me. “She’s getting big, but I’m sure I can carry her on my shoulders for a half hour if I need to. This isn’t a request.”

I think of what it will mean to Adele to have her whole family together soon after we find her. “And she’ll stay in the cave when we march on the city?”

“Of course,” the general says.

“Done,” I say. “Roc and Tawni can look after her.”

“Did my nose just itch?” a voice says from the corridor. Roc walks in, holding Tawni’s hand loosely.

Tawni immediately goes to A

At that, General Rose laughs. “I might be getting old, but I’m still tough. And I suspect you’re made of tougher stuff than anyone thinks.”

“Trust me,” Roc says, interjecting, “we all know the kind of stuff Tawni’s made of. I can’t say anything fresh without getting a palm print tattooed on my cheek.”

“He gets slapped a lot,” Tawni says.

“Why does that not surprise me?” A

“Because it’s Roc,” I say, without blinking.

“Soooo,” Roc says, “why did I hear my name? And Tawni’s too?”

“You’re babysitting Elsey while the big kids go fight,” I say. “You’ve been volunteered.”

Roc frowns. “By whom?”

“Me,” I say, punching him in the shoulder.

He sighs. “I’m sure my presence and wooden sword will be missed on the battlefield,” he says, “but I am injured.”

“Good,” I say, glad to hear him agree without a fight. Even if everyone else I care about will be in danger today, at least Roc and Tawni and Elsey will be safe.

~~~

Time passes with the speed of an inter-Realm night train. Transporter after transporter leaves from what used to be the secret cave on the outskirts of the Capitol, and which now is as well known a place as the palace.

We cram as many soldiers as we can fit into each load, just like all the other subchapters are doing. The half-hour ride to the surface will be cramped and miserable, but surely no one’s thinking about that right now.

I shake the hands of each man and woman that board the transporter, thanking them. It’s strange to see sun dwellers and moon dwellers and star dwellers mixed together, like they’re no different from one another, like they weren’t trying to kill each other not so long ago. When I look into their eyes, I can’t tell the difference. They’re just people. Just soldiers. Why were they fighting in the first place? I’m not sure anyone really knows the answer.

I could have gone ahead with the first load because I’ve been to the surface before, but I’d rather make sure everything runs smoothly, that everyone leaves on schedule.

When the next to last transporter shoots up the glass tube, into the rock-lined tu

I see nothing but her. Her sparkling green eyes grim with determination. Her knuckles white as she grips the gun. A swirl of shimmering, obsidian hair as she turns, aims…

BOOM!

The eruption is sharp and real in my memory, but even it’s a lie. When Adele shot the monster who was my father, I didn’t even know it was happening because Roc was gasping for air, bleeding from a self-inflicted stab wound in his gut. Dying.

But not dead.

When I hear the camouflaged gate to the not-so-secret cave whir open, so do my eyes. The image of Adele’s face fades as I blink away the false memory.

Tawni and General Rose enter, talking like old friends. Behind them, Elsey grips Roc’s hand, swinging it. When she sees me, her eyes light up.

“Tristan!” she says.

She releases Roc and runs to me, her one arm swinging awkwardly and slightly off-balance, hugging me around the waist. As I squeeze her tightly to me, the gesture feels so…normal. Like I’ve hugged Adele’s sister a million times over a million years. Like I’ve known her my whole life and like we never left to assassinate my father.

“I missed you, Else,” I say, feeling my chest tighten at the sight of the stump that used to be an arm jerking and almost reaching out. Like it wants to hug me too, not understanding why it’s not able to anymore, why it’s not long enough to do so. Because of my father’s command. The one that killed Ben and maimed Elsey.

“I missed you, too,” she says, looking up. “I prayed for you every night.”

I raise my eyebrows in surprise, still gritting my teeth at the memory of Elsey bleeding on the floor, screaming and screaming until the shock and the pain sent her into a fitful sleep. “You did?”

Elsey nods fervently. “You and Adele and Tawni and—”

“Not Roc?” I say, feigning astonishment. “Tell me you didn’t pray for him, too.”

She giggles and swats at me. “Of course I did. I prayed the most for Roc after he got hurt.”

“He stabbed himself, you know.”

“To save your sorry a—” Roc starts to say.

“Language,” I say, cutting him off.

Elsey giggles again. “I’ve heard worse than that, you know,” she says, matter-of-factly.

I’m sure she has. When her parents and Adele were dragged from their home and sentenced to life in prison, Elsey was taken to an orphanage in a rough part of the Moon Realm. Not an ideal place for a ten-year-old to grow up. I plaster a smile on, even though every muscle in my face is trying to pull my lips into a frown.

“Even still,” I say, “Roc should be kept away from children whenever possible.”

“I’m not a child,” she says, hands on her hips. “And Roc is a perfect gentleman.”

“See that, Tristy?” Roc says, grabbing me around the shoulders. “I’m a perfect gentleman.” He does a perfect imitation of Elsey’s overly formal way of speaking, all the way down to the high pitch and raised chin, which sends her squealing with laughter.

She tries to grab his hand again, but he darts away, and she chases him around the cave, leaving her mother shaking her head and the engineers cringing as Roc nearly crashes into something—a control panel for the transporter, I think—that looks expensive and complicated.

“You better watch out, Tawni,” I say, “it seems you’ve got competition.”

Tawni brushes a loose strand of blond hair away from her face. “Don’t I know it. Since we met up, those two have been inseparable.”

For a moment—just a moment—I forget where we are and why we’re here. As I watch Roc dance out of another attempt by Elsey to grab him, I wonder whether we could ever experience true happiness in a better time, in a better place.

I hope so. Otherwise what are we fighting for?

Roc and Elsey don’t stop their game of tag until the now-empty transporter descends slowly from the roof. No one speaks as the doors open, revealing the dimly lit interior.

“Ride’s here,” Roc says u

“This will take us above?” Elsey asks.

“Just wait,” Roc says, “the surface is the coolest thing you’ll ever see. Try not to get bit by the flying monkeys.”

Elsey’s eyes widen. “There are fly—”

“Usually the twelve-legged mountain lions will protect you from the flying monkeys,” I say. “Don’t worry.”

“Although if they’re really hungry, sometimes they prefer little girls to flying monkeys,” Roc adds, tickling Elsey.

Giggling, she pushes him away. “They do not!”

“Guess you’ll find out,” I say, stepping into the glass enclosure.

General Rose presses a button to open the cave door, ushering in a dozen soldiers. “It’s time,” she says.

Roc, Tawni and Elsey step in next to me, followed closely by the final group of soldiers. A

The door closes and we shoot straight through the ceiling.