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Red Death: Red Death, #1
Red Death: Red Death, #1
Red Death: Red Death, #1
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Red Death: Red Death, #1

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Unfairly branded as traitors, Aaliss and her rather odd, younger brother, Wilky, flee Eden and seek refuge in the one place she'd never expect—the land of the Soulless, a medieval world, filled with magic, witches, and where the Red Death plague affects all.

  • WINNER: Pinnacle Book Achievement Award—Best Science Fiction (Dystopian)

As a Guardian, Aaliss was trained to keep the Soulless away from Eden. Now she's forced to turn to them for help. Hunted by those in Eden, she strikes a deal with a surprisingly charming prince—the cure for safe passage—but can she trust him?

Only Wilky knows how to make the cure and the king's time is short, but can they survive the many challenges needed to gather the ingredients?

Aaliss yearns to return home to clear her name, but when her heart tugs her deeper into the world of the Soulless, she questions everything she once believed. Has her soul been taken? Will she and Wilky fall victim to the Red Death, or might they die sooner in the center of a battle that threatens to tear apart the Soulless world?

Or... might Aaliss finally find, against all odds, what her heart has yearned for all along?

Perfect for fans of George R. R. Martin, Brandon Sanderson, and Sarah J. Maas.

  • FINALIST: Readers' Favorite Book Awards 2017—Young Adult Fantasy
  • FINALIST: Eric Hoffer Book Awards 2017—Young Adult

EVOLVED PUBLISHING PRESENTS the first thrilling book in the award-winning "Red Death" series of sword & sorcery/epic fantasy/dystopian adventures. [DRM-Free]

 

LanguageEnglish
Release dateNov 26, 2016
ISBN9781622533190
Red Death: Red Death, #1
Author

Jeff Altabef

Jeff Altabef lives in New York with his wife, two daughters, and Charlie the dog. He spends time volunteering at the Writing Center in the local community college. After years of being accused of “telling stories,” he thought he would make it official. He writes in both the thriller and young adult genres. As an avid Knicks fan, he is prone to long periods of melancholy during hoops season. Jeff has a column on The Examiner focused on writing and a blog on The Patch designed to encourage writing for those that like telling stories.  [AUTHOR OF: A Point Thriller Series; A Nephilim Thriller Series; Chosen Series; Red Death Series]

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    Red Death - Jeff Altabef

    Chapter 1 – Aaliss

    Aaliss nearly growled, her mood foul. Weary from a long day, she wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed, stuff her head under a pillow, and fall blissfully asleep. Instead, she found a note perched on top of her bed like a bad omen. She sighed and carefully unfolded the paper and read her young brother’s precise handwriting.

    He wanted her to come to his lab, and although he phrased it like a request, he was really summoning her.

    For a long moment she stared at her bed, tempted to slip under the sheets, but she really had no choice. Wilky would wait for her all night and the next day until she came for him, and she didn’t want him sleeping at the lab again.

    She trekked across the Compound to his lab and stood before him.

    Wilky crossed his arms against his thin chest. He was a good-looking boy with bright blue eyes, the family’s jet-black hair, strong features, and a thin muscular frame. We’re starving them.

    Aaliss glanced behind her brother and into the holding pen. Three Guests her age, two girls and one boy, sat slumped with their backs against the wall.

    They do look gaunt.

    Somehow the unwanted thought bullied its way into her mind before she could prevent it. Wilky had a way of doing that—making her see the world differently, the way he saw it—and now, when she looked at the captives, she saw only skin and bones and desperation.

    She waved at the Guests in what she hoped would be a dismissive gesture, but she failed miserably and felt a little foolish. They’re Soulless, Wilky. The devil has claimed them. We’re not supposed to worry about the Soulless.

    Her words sounded hollow even to her, and a chill swept down her spine. She had begun to doubt Eden’s most fundamental teachings, which scared her. Once doubt crept in, where would it lead?

    Wilky stayed silent and intensified his glare until his eyes carved straight through her chest and into her soul. He might be thirteen, but he had the eyes of someone much older and wiser, someone who knew truths he should never have known.

    Time ticked on, the two locked in a silent tug of war Aaliss knew she would never win. Born stubborn, Wilky would stay, arms crossed and eyes glaring, for as long as it took for her to cave in.

    A fire three years ago had claimed their parents, and she had been responsible for him ever since. Sometimes she wanted to strangle him, but he was her brother, and she loved him, and the two had forged a team of sorts. Piers, their oldest brother, completed the group, but he was... well, he was Piers, and that made him more of an honorary member of the team than a full-fledged participant.

    They do look hungry.

    She sighed. Okay, I’ll find Piers and see if he can rustle up some food. But you know I’ll get into real trouble if a Priest catches me sneaking into the Parsonage.

    Wilky shot her a sideways glance and a small smirk.

    They both knew she was too highly trained, too skilled to get caught.

    This can’t wait until tomorrow? she asked.

    He shook his head.

    She groaned as she left the lab, retraced her steps through the Labyrinth, slipped her way to the stone circular staircase that led to the Parsonage, and cringed when she saw a full moon through a narrow window. She didn’t believe in superstitions as much as other people she knew, but a full moon portrayed an ominous sign. She didn’t scare easily, but the devil used the moon to create mischief, and a full moon meant danger.

    No one else traveled the staircase at this time of night, so she crept up the steps unseen until she reached the top landing and a locked door. Unlike the other doors into the tower, which were made of wood, a heavy steel door protected the Parsonage where the Priests lived. A red light glowed by the handle, with a keypad to its side.

    She approached warily and peered through a small window. The full moon reflected back at her as if spying on her, waiting for her to be discovered. She had no excuse to visit the Parsonage this late, and if the High Priest caught her, she would get in trouble. If he suspected dark motives, her punishment would be severe. Still, she had come this far and could not disappoint Wilky. She said she’d go, and she kept her promises.

    She pressed six on the keypad three times, and held her breath as the light turned from red to green. The combination for the lock changed daily, but a glitch in the system allowed three sixes to work every time.

    Wilky had told her the secret.

    She had no idea how he had discovered it. She assumed he must have overheard someone talking about it, but when she asked him, he would not say.

    I must be crazy, she muttered to herself, and exhaled as she edged the door open just far enough to peek down the hallway.

    Flickering candlelight danced through the corridor, casting shadows that looked like living creatures, as misshapen and dangerous as those that lived in the Zone—the heavily wooded buffer area between Eden and the Soulless.

    Aaliss patrolled in the Zone. As a Guardian, part of her job was to make sure the Soulless never learned of Eden’s existence. In that darkness, she was one of the dangers for the unwary. Not so here in the Parsonage. Priests ruled in Eden.

    She focused on her destination and ignored the shadow creatures, willing them away. You are not real. With no one in sight, she slipped into the hallway and glided toward the fourth door on the left.

    A tall, thin Priest knelt at a small wooden altar in the small chamber. Two years older than Aaliss, the handsome nineteen-year-old wore the robe of the newly initiated Priests. He had many of the same features as Wilky—chiseled chin, short straight black hair, and bright blue eyes—but that revealed only part of her brother’s story.

    The fire that took their parents had severely damaged the other half of Piers’s face, the side not visible from the doorway. Half his body had been badly burned, leaving him disfigured and suffering with weakness and pain in his left leg and arm.

    Relieved to find him alone, she entered the small prayer room and silently closed the door behind her. As the smallest and plainest chamber in the Parsonage, it had just enough space for the small altar, a chair, and perhaps four people standing close together. Although simple and small, it was Piers’s favorite place to pray. She’d known she would find him here, as he always prayed before he went to sleep.

    He knelt on alternating black and white marble tiles. All the floors in the Parsonage were made from the same tiles—white for truth and purity, and black for lies and evil. Just like the Priests’ robes—the initiates wore black with white sashes, and the fully-ordained Priests wore white robes with black sashes. Only black and white existed in Eden—gray and the doubts that accompanied it had no place here.

    She crept toward him, shadow-quiet, a sly smile creasing her lips. She could move like a ghost when necessary.

    His lips moved as he concentrated intently on his prayers. He knelt at the altar, his back rod straight with his head bowed piously.

    When she had snuck close to him, she poked him on the shoulder.

    He leaped forward with a start and let loose a soft shriek.

    She forgot about the moon and the shadow creatures, and laughed freely while he scowled at her. It felt good to laugh; she so rarely laughed anymore.

    Are y-you crazy? he stammered as he straightened his black robe. You almost sent me to the next world!

    You’re always so easy to startle. Her smile faded as she studied her brother’s face and lifted her hand to touch him. You have a bruise on your cheek.

    He looked away before she reached him. What are you doing here? You could get into real trouble.

    She balled her hands into tight fists. "Did he do that to you?"

    I spilled the Sacred Drink yesterday. I was careless. My leg gave out, so I had to be taught a lesson. The Book of Jacob tells us it is a sin to waste food.

    "But it was an accident. He has no right to hurt you. Doesn’t the Book also tell us to be kind to our fellow Edenites, always, especially those who are hurt? ‘Care for your brothers and sisters, always, for in this world you are each others’ keepers against the Soulless ones.’ She narrowed her eyes. I’d like to teach him a lesson about following the ways of the Book."

    Piers turned and gently wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "It’s okay, Ally. It doesn’t hurt, and I spilled the Sacred Drink. Besides, he is the High Priest. The Creator speaks through him. Sometimes he must be severe to teach the proper lessons. There’s a plan, and the Creator has given us the High Priest to explain it to the rest of us. These mysteries are hard to understand, but we must accept them."

    She softened in his grip and spoke false words. You know what’s best. She still wanted to teach the High Priest a lesson, maybe punch him in that round face and feel her knuckles crush his flat nose, but she told her brother what he wanted to hear. Life was hard enough for Piers without adding to his burdens.

    He smiled with the only side of his face that could, but it made her feel better.

    When he released her, he stepped backward and frowned. Your hair looks long.

    Guilt ripped through her. As a daughter of Eden, she knew the consequences of bending the rules—shame and humiliation if caught by a Priest.

    She smoothed her black hair. Hair grows. I’ve been gone for two weeks!

    Your hair is almost touching your shoulders. You know the Word. Vanity is a sin. You should cut it before anyone notices.

    "Yes, Father, if you say so." She bowed her head.

    He failed to take the bait and renew one of their old arguments. Instead, he asked, So, why did you risk coming here? I planned to see you and Wilkiford tomorrow.

    She frowned. It’s our Guests in Wilky’s lab. He’s upset. He says we’re starving them, and I think he’s right. They’re thin, Piers, and they have a wild look in their eyes. It’s not right to treat them that way.

    He raked his hand through his hair and started pacing, limping slightly, his left boot swooshing quietly against the marble floor. Do you care about how the rancher treats the cattle or the farmer the chickens?

    Don’t sermonize to me, brother! Heat flushed her face. These people are human beings. I’ve spent time with them. I’ve gathered some of them. They have no souls, but they’re not livestock.

    He stopped pacing and let his arms drop to his side. "Yes, but the Creator has stripped away their souls. They’re not like you or me. They are the Soulless. He’s punished them for their wickedness! We risk His wrath if we have anything to do with them. It’s all written in the Book of Jacob. ‘Though the Creator has saved but a few of us for His greater glory and the promise of a new beginning, ever be on your guard.’"

    No one quoted the Book like Piers. His piety had become almost all-consuming since the fire, and Aaliss hated it. Before the fire he was fun, daring, even rebellious. Now he’d wrapped himself up so tightly in the Book that none of the old Piers had room to breathe.

    I know all about the Book, brother. I listen to the Reflections every night when I’m not on patrol. It’s easier to believe the Soulless are damned here in the Parsonage. You don’t spend time with them, or gather them from the Zone for our experiments. Tears rushed unbidden to her eyes. You know how Wilky gets. When he grabs onto something he won’t let go.

    I understand. Our Wilky is a special boy. He sighed. What do you want from me?

    All I need is a loaf of bread. Everyone knows food is plentiful in the Parsonage. The rest of us aren’t so lucky.

    It’s important that we Priests have enough energy to care for Eden’s spiritual soul. I don’t.... He paused when he saw the tears in her eyes. I suppose it’s natural for Wilky, of all people, to become attached to the Soulless. Stay here. Let me see if I can find something in the Pantry.

    He limped from the room, careful to close the door quietly behind him.

    Left alone, Aaliss studied the two portraits that hung on the wall behind the altar. One depicted Jacob, the original Guardian of Eden, and the other, the High Priest. Both wore identical robes and expressions. She wondered how long it had taken the High Priest to copy the prophet’s confident yet solemn face.

    The weasel would have wanted it just right.

    Both sets of eyes seemed to stare at her, boring into her, questioning her. Unnerved, she slipped to the window. The view from the Parsonage stretched to Eden River and the Zone beyond. The moonlight sparkled off the river, but the Zone crept beyond it like a long black shadow. Her heart raced as her keen eyes searched for the evil the full moon would surely bring.

    She wondered about the world outside of the Zone. The Zone is wild, but what lies beyond it?

    The Priests told stories of the Soulless, describing them as wicked, uncivilized, cannibals even. But how could they know? None of the Soulless she had gathered or killed seemed much different from the Edenites. And no one ventured beyond the Zone. The land of the Soulless was forbidden, a place shrouded in mystery.

    Piers returned carrying a round loaf of bread in a fine but plain linen cloth. The moon has no power over us. We are Believers. Purity, Faith, and Strength.

    He understood her better than anyone else, and sometimes she thought he could read her mind. I know, brother. Purity, Faith, and Strength.

    Would his opinion change after a night in the Zone under a moonlit sky?

    He triumphantly handed her the bread as if it were a trophy. This was all I could find.

    Thanks. I knew you would help.

    He held onto the bread for a few seconds before releasing it to her. I’m going to speak to Wilky tomorrow. This cannot continue. He has to understand the difference between Edenites and the Soulless. It is not good for him to get so.... He seemed to search for the proper word. ...Confused.

    Chapter 2 – Aaliss

    Aaliss watched as Piers shuffled down the hallway and into the flickering candlelight. She’d be happy to leave the Parsonage. She never felt comfortable here. She always got the odd sensation that the Parsonage was more dangerous than the Zone—a silly notion, but it rippled through her now.

    Piers stopped a few paces from the door and gave her the all clear signal.

    For a moment the firelight lit his scarred face and the shadows played their games, creating a version of Piers Aaliss didn’t recognize—morphing him into something wicked.

    That’s not my brother. It’s simply the shadows and the full moon up to their tricks.

    She shook her head to clear it, eased her way into the hallway, and headed in the opposite direction from her brother, back toward the circular staircase. She moved swiftly until she noticed light seeping from the cracks in the doorway that led to the corner room, the one closest to the staircase. Someone had left the door open by the slightest amount.

    Her heart hammered against her chest as hushed voices escaped from the other side of the door.

    She glanced back at her brother, who waved her on toward the staircase, yet the door with the light and the voices pulled her. The staircase led back to Wilky and her bed and rest. She wanted to go that way, yet her eyes focused on the sliver of light inviting her to the other door.

    She couldn’t just turn away from the voices, so she crept toward them and quieted her breath to sharpen her hearing. The words became clearer as she drew closer, and she glimpsed into the light.

    The High Priest stood with his back to her, but she’d recognize him anywhere. As a large man, his ample flesh waggled when he spoke, and he still wore the purple robes from preaching the Reflections only a few hours earlier. If that wasn’t enough to identify him, she saw the thin braid that fell halfway down his back like a serpent. As a direct descendant of Jacob, he never cut his hair. Everyone else in Eden had short hair. Only the male Blood Relatives were allowed to wear their hair long, and tradition decreed that they must always wear it in a braid.

    When she was a child, she dreamed of yanking that braid. Now she wouldn’t mind doing far worse to the High Priest as payback for all the vicious things he had done to Piers.

    The High Priest spoke in a hushed baritone voice. The Creator works in mysterious ways. He has fulfilled the prophesy through the strange boy. We have what we need.

    The large bulk of the High Priest blocked the second speaker from view and muffled his words. She inched the door open to better hear the conversation and perhaps see the identity of the second speaker, but the High Priest stood in the way like a boulder.

    Malachi, are you sure we have the formula? asked the mysterious voice.

    Yes, I’m certain. It was right there in front of us for hundreds of years, though it took that strange boy to find it. A simple mushroom and a flower, and the cure works instantly. The Red Death will have no power over us. Our blood will remain pure. We have been delivered.

    She inched the door open, desperate to see the face of the other speaker. She wanted to know who this ‘strange boy’ was that he kept mentioning.

    This changes everything. How quickly can we make the cure? The second voice became clearer and sounded familiar, but she still couldn’t identify it.

    The High Priest shifted his weight as if he stood on uncertain ground, and lowered his voice. Making the cure will not be a problem, but we must be careful. The cure presents us with a unique opportunity. Eden Day is less than three months away. Everyone partakes of the Sacred Drink at the high festival. We could slip the cure into the drink and inoculate the entire community without them knowing.

    She pushed the door open another inch to hear the reply, her heart dancing in her chest. If the High Priest turned, he would spot her, and she would spend a long time underground in the jails. It was possible he’d never release her.

    The Creator speaks through you, the mystery man said. If we secretly slip them the cure, then we can claim responsibility for this miracle. Our power would be absolute.

    The High Priest chuckled. Exactly. We could march two or three Soulless among the people without fear. The prophesy will be fulfilled, and no one will dare question us. Ever.

    She gripped the bread hard, breaking the crust as sweat soaked her back. She glanced at her brother, who still lurked in the hallway as a lookout. Unaware why she had stopped, he waved for her to continue to the staircase, but she could not move. She needed to hear more.

    The High Priest turned, and for a heartbeat it seemed as if he would walk out the door and straight into her. Luckily, he stopped halfway and grabbed a cup from a table.

    What about the boy and his family? asked the stranger. They will know the truth. They create too large a loose end.

    The world stopped spinning.

    The boy and his family? Her mind spun. Are they talking about Wilky and my family?

    The High Priest answered, Do not concern yourself with them. Jacob has shown me the answer in a vision. Now I understand why He told me to assign the boy as a researcher at such a young age. Tonight will be their last. The scarred one is still useful. His devotion is strong, and I can bend him. Also, it would look too suspicious if the entire family vanished. Some remember the unusual circumstances behind the fire and the popularity of their parents.

    The High Priest moved to the side, sliding just enough to reveal the face of the second speaker.

    Aaliss’s stomach soared and she tasted bile.

    Agreed. Her uncle, President Aibel, smiled with a slight lift of his chin, as he raised a pewter cup of the Sacred Drink to toast the High Priest.

    A jolt ripped through her, and her knees buckled. The High Priest and her uncle meant to murder them tonight. Rage burned inside her.

    Do I have time to save Wilky?

    She glanced at the door to the staircase, not sure if she should run or confront them. If she entered the room and shut the door, she could hurt them both badly, and then kill them. They deserved a painful death, and it wouldn’t take long. Yet Wilky’s safety had to come first. The High Priest’s men could already be on their way to the lab, and Wilky would stand no chance against them without her.

    Piers’s voice wafted down the hallway. Father Isaac, what are you doing up at this time? He shifted his body between Aaliss and the Priest to shield her from view.

    Jacob’s Braid!

    She cursed the full moon. She had no time to spare for the High Priest and her uncle—she’d have to come back for them.

    With her head spinning and chest heaving, she dashed toward the staircase and plunged back into the darkness. No lock barred entry from this side of the door. After all, no one worried about the Priests leaving the comforts of the Parsonage.

    The High Priest heard voices in the hallway. He wobbled to the door and looked for the source, but found the corridor empty. Doubting his own ears, he turned back to the President, who poured another cup of the Sacred Drink.

    Crumbs on the otherwise spotless floor crunched under his sandal—a few bits of bread on a white tile.

    Curious, he muttered to himself.

    Aaliss raced forward taking the stone steps two at a time. She automatically switched into her Zone state, senses on high alert, and stopped only when she reached the ground floor and listened for the sounds of pursuit. No shouts, footsteps, or doors slammed—no sign that anyone had noticed her.

    With any luck, the High Priest expected them to be sleeping in their residence. That should buy them some time, maybe enough to escape.

    She pulled open the door to the Compound and plunged forward into the building’s sprawling ground floor. She sprinted forward until she reached the shiny steel door that led to the Labyrinth, and unlocked the door with a key from a chain around her neck.

    As she reached for the doorknob, a deep voice grumbled from behind her, Hey, you, what’re you doing out so late?

    She had been reckless in her haste and silently chastised herself. Caught, she turned and smiled, her boots squeaking against the tiled floor as she came face to face with two Monks.

    Monks patrolled the hallways late at night, looking for unholy behavior. Most people feared them. Their authority stemmed from the High Priest, which made them virtually all-powerful.

    She faced two Monks who could not look more opposite from each other.

    One cast a big shadow, literally. Big and burly, he towered over her, a red cloak straining tightly around his broad shoulders. He held a whistle in his hand, but upon seeing Aaliss, he pocketed it in the folds of his cloak, and an unfriendly sneer twisted his ugly face.

    The second one was short and thin with a long face and scary-looking hollow eyes.

    I’m just headed to the Labyrinth. Aaliss tried to appear annoyed, rolling her eyes and tapping her foot. I’ve got work that can’t wait. They treat us like slaves.

    The big Monk stepped toward her. He smelled of that night’s dinner, which, in truth, hadn’t smelled good when it had been served. What’s that you’re carrying?

    Jacob’s braid!

    She’d forgotten the bread. It’s just something for... for my brother. He missed dinner tonight because he’s working late. She tried to keep her tone light, as if being caught with food was not a major infraction of the rules, but it was.

    The Monk’s beefy fingers flipped open the linen wrapping. Priest’s bread. He smiled at his partner. Thievery is a major sin, Abner. What should we do with her?

    Abner smirked, his long face turning cruel as he looked Aaliss up and down with nasty, appraising eyes. She’s cute. I’m sure we can think of some way for her to do her penitence.

    Aaliss acted on instinct and tossed the bread at the big Monk’s face. When he lifted his paws to catch it, she kicked his left knee hard. The blow buckled the brute, dropping him to his knees, and she swung her right elbow into his temple. The Monk groaned and wobbled, and she immediately chopped the edge of her hand against the base of his neck, which sent him to the floor unconscious.

    Abner tried to grab her, but she caught his wrist and brought his arm down hard against her knee, dislocating his elbow with a sick popping sound. He groaned, and she grabbed him by the shoulders and rammed his head into the steel door. The Monk staggered back a step, his nose bloody, and she knocked him unconscious with a roundhouse kick to the head. Just to make sure he was out cold, she booted him hard in the ribs, and grinned slightly at the sound of bone breaking.

    You deserved that and worse, you pig!

    The Monks would never have approached her if they knew she was a Guardian, but she was young, in plain dress, and didn’t have any weapons, so they had been none the wiser.

    She dragged them one at a time to the other side of the steel door, and remembered to grab the bread right before it closed. She bound their hands with the rope they used to cinch their cloaks, and tied their feet with their bootlaces. They’d be unconscious for a while, but eventually they’d wake and bring others.

    Time was short, but she’d known that already.

    Three stories below ground level, the Labyrinth consisted of a honeycomb of tunnels and labs where a dozen different research teams worked. Wilky was the youngest researcher in Eden’s history and, accordingly, assigned the smallest, least convenient space—farthest from the entrance door and closest to the Zone.

    She flew down the concrete steps, praying he would be safe. No one else was working in the Labyrinth at this time of night, so she expertly wove her way past dark labs and through empty hallways. She held her breath when she reached his workspace, used her key, and shoved open the heavy metal door.

    He calmly sat on a stool waiting for her, safe.

    She exhaled. I’ve brought food, Wilky, but we’ve got to go. She pushed the bread toward him, her hands shaking. Something terrible has happened.

    He casually slid from the stool and took the bread.

    You don’t understand. They’re coming for us. We’ve got to run!

    Wilky strolled past a desk littered with a dozen test tubes, two microscopes, and one computer, and stopped at the holding area. Two-inch thick glass walls separated three holding pens. One contained the three starving Soulless, one held a single girl about the same age as Aaliss, and the third was empty.

    Aaliss glowered at him as he opened the food delivery chute and dropped the loaf into the pen that housed the three Guests. It landed softly, and the largest of the three, a boy a few years older than Aaliss, snatched the bread and broke it into pieces to share with the other two.

    She started to urge Wilky on, but then noticed some provisions by the door that opened to the tunnel, which led to the Zone—four woolen cloaks, four leather satchels, her small crossbow, a two-foot curved short sword, and her full-body black ostrich-skin jumpsuit. The ostrich skin was extraordinarily soft and warm, and well broken in. It was her most precious possession—her Guardian uniform.

    How did you know we needed to leave? She placed her hands at her hips. Did you overhear something and not tell me?

    He ignored her question and asked one of his own. Piers?

    She shook her head. "I couldn’t get him, but he’ll be fine. They won’t harm him. I heard the High Priest and our uncle talking. They need him for appearances. You and I, on the other hand, they’d rather not have around."

    His eyes became suddenly wet, and tears trickled down his cheeks.

    She hadn’t seen him cry since the fire, and her heart twisted. He’ll be okay, Wilky. Don’t worry about Piers. Our brother knows how to take care of himself.

    He nodded, but she thought he didn’t really believe her, so she added, We don’t have much time. I’ll come back for him later. We’ll figure something out.

    He pointed at the girl who sat alone in one of the holding pens. Need, was all he said.

    She sighed and shook her head. We can’t bring her. We have to move quickly, and she’ll just get in our way. All we need is each other.

    He stood firm by the door to the holding pen, and said, "Need!"—with more conviction this time.

    She knew that look on his face; no one could argue with him when he got that look. One time he went four days without washing because he didn’t like the texture of his soap, of all things. She had to whittle off an inch and practically sand it to make it smooth enough for him.

    She could drag him along by the ear, but they would get caught that way. He needed to move and move quickly, which would only happen on his terms.

    You know the alarm will ring when I open the door to the tunnel. All the Monks will know something is wrong!

    He folded his arms against his chest.

    She sighed. Do we need the other three or just this one?

    He shook his head. Only the girl.

    Okay, we’ll take her, but we have to go now! She stomped her foot in frustration, retrieved two gas masks from the table, and checked to make sure they had a full two-week charge. That’s the maximum amount of time they would have together, as they could not risk being in contact with the Soulless girl unprotected.

    The Red Death was easily transmitted through air, so just being near a Soulless would cause infection. Those contaminated died young, never lasting beyond the early twenties. If an older person encountered the disease, death came almost instantly. No known symptoms foretold the disease except what showed in the eyes. The children all knew the rhyme: ...eyes turn red, you’ll soon be dead.

    Aaliss watched Wilky as she changed into her jumpsuit.

    He held two beakers in his left hand and a dropper in his right. He squeezed fluid from each beaker into the steel door’s lock. Smoke spiraled upward and an acidic odor filled the room, as the metal fused together and melted the lock.

    Nice work, Wilky. Fully dressed, she approached the holding pen with her key in hand, and looked back at her brother. Are you sure we have to take her? This is crazy. She’s going to slow us down.

    "Need!" He grabbed his cloak and glared at her.

    She regarded the girl again, whom she’d gathered two days earlier. The girl had been odd and constantly talked to herself in a language Aaliss did not understand, but she’d taken direction and seemed harmless.

    Aaliss donned a gas mask and made sure Wilky had his on securely, and then she opened the glass door and waved for the girl to follow her.

    The girl tentatively stepped forward.

    Wilky gave the girl a cloak and a satchel, and motioned for her to follow him.

    Aaliss unlocked the door to the tunnel into the Zone. Dread filled her as she peered back at the lab.

    A large framed picture of Jacob hung by the door. Underneath the photograph was the Guardians’ sacred motto: The Soulless are Not Human. To Kill in Jacob’s Name is Just.

    Red lights flashed.

    An alarm blared.

    She grabbed her supplies and turned to push them forward, but Wilky and the girl had already started to run—straight toward the Zone and the full moon.

    Chapter 3 – Piers

    Piers smiled as bright sunlight kissed his face. The pain in his arm and the weakness in his leg had vanished, and he stood tall and straight, strong and whole. He rubbed both sides of his face and felt nothing but smooth skin—the scars had disappeared. His toes brushed lightly against the soft grass in the courtyard on a perfect spring day.

    Rebecca stood beside him—lovely Rebecca, his Rebecca. Red highlights sparkled in her short wavy brown hair, and her wide chocolate eyes shined lovingly. They both wore plain ceremonial wedding robes the color of freshly fallen snow. A yellow rosebud hung from Rebecca’s neck, fastened by two strings of white twine twisted together. The flower symbolized their love, and the twine the life they would lead together.

    Piers’s parents hovered next to him, with Aaliss and Wilky at their side. They all

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