Gemini of Emreiana (13 page)

The stage was close. I was ready to jump on it. I heard a charging buzz, a loud boom, and like a boulder I felt a force slam into my right shoulder. Everything was fuzzy and my mouth went dry. My vision went black.

My eyes groggily opened, but everything was a blur. I heard blasts and screams. I felt cold, sweaty hands lift me. My chest hit something hard. I blinked. I was thrown over a shoulder. Everything was spinning. I was thrown onto the stage. I blinked again. Everything started to become clear, but my head felt like it was about to explode. The pain in my leg felt like a thousand knives had been stabbed through it, and my face felt like it had been stoned by huge rocks.

I looked at my rescuer, Kyle.

"Get her to safety!" he screamed at one of the Garnix. I turned my head and saw Aaronmon trying to keep the area covered. Kyle then grabbed a urex and turned to face the warriors. He blasted it, bringing three to the ground.

One of the garnix started to lift me up. I started to regain my senses as the pain set in more. I fed off of the garnix's feelings. Fear was better than pain.

He picked me up in a cradle and started to head behind the stage, but before we could make it, there was a sonic blast. I saw an object fly into the air and hit the stage with a loud thud.

My stomach dropped as I saw Kyle's body laying on the floor.

"NO!" I screamed, but it came out as a squeak. "No!" I screamed again.

The garnix started to walk faster. He said something in Emréian, but I ignored him.

"Let me down!" I struggled from his arms still screaming. My eyes burned heavy with tears. Finally, I was released.

I stumbled, making my first steps. My leg was definitely broken. I ignored the pain. I crawled over to Kyle.

"Get her out of here!" I heard Aaronmon scream at the garnix.

The garnix yanked my arm.

"I can't leave him!" I screamed, the tears now falling from my cheek.

There was another sonic boom, and the other garnix that was with Aaronmon went flying. I knew we were all going to be dead soon, but I didn't care.

"Get her out of here!" Aaronmon said taking another shot, but instead the garnix grabbed a urex and began firing at the warrior.

I didn't even care how many there were left. I finally reached Kyle. I grabbed his cool hand. His chest rose weakly. He opened his eyes slowly.

"Carson." His voice was weak.

His feelings were strong. His feelings came out like a ray of sun, warming my heart and soul; it eased every bit of pain I had. They washed over me like an ocean wave and carried me away with the current, leaving the rest of the world behind. It was love. It was the love he had for me.

I smiled and my tears fell onto his cheek.

"I love you, too," I said.

His feelings became weak and his eyes closed. Then, there was nothing. I was ripped back into reality. I held Kyle's limp hand. Aaronmon ran over to me quickly. He scooped me up in his arms. The one remaining garnix covered us. There were still five warriors left.

I didn't ask for any of this. I didn't do anything wrong. These people did not do anything wrong. Kyle did not do anything wrong.

I reached inside myself and pulled up every bit of pain I felt. I separated it from my soul. I inflicted it onto the warriors. They stood motionless for a moment, and I watched their face twist in agony.

I pushed harder. It was soothing to watch them fall to the floor.

The garnix looked at me. There was a slight bit of fear coming from him. He pulled up his urex and aimed at the warriors. I barely paid attention when the blast was released. I focused on the pain. I focused on the warriors. There was another blast, and the last ones were gone and with them any disconnection I had from the pain. Every bit of it hit me like a brick. My heart felt stripped and hacked at; my gut felt heavy and sickening. I gasped for air and released a sob. I let my head fall into Aaronmon's chest and released the pain in tears.

Over the past week, Earth tried to recover from the attacks, but the war that had started continued to destroy the planet. The day of Graduation, Alice was not alone in the attacks. Every capital of the U.S was hit, as well as capitals from other major countries. However, only Alice had encounters with the Borian warriors. The humans could not understand why and everyone was starting to ask questions.

Earth was not the only victim. Emréiana's ships were attacked. The planet was lucky because of the strong guard on it, but a few other planets had no such luck. Amara lost their world capital as well as the Morgons. Helentania had declared a universal war. They wanted resources. They wanted control. They wanted it all.

Alice was almost completely taken out by the Bremoir. Luckily, most family homes were located in the country, away from the attack on the city. Most of the homes were empty because of the death of their owners or the loss of a family member. Kyle had a closed casket funeral. I couldn't bear to watch them put him in the ground, so I only went to the service. Even then, the heartbreak from everyone around me shattered my heart. I loved him so much. I thought I was doing the right thing to protect him, but no matter what I would feel guilty, because he loved me...

When I paid my respects to his family, I was concerned at the lack of emotion they gave me. Kyle's father shook my hand firmly and thanked me for being there. There was no heartache; there was no sadness. There was just angst. I was confused, especially to see his mother wait silently behind him. She didn't seem to give off any type of emotion.

I shrugged it off. There were plenty of people who had lost loved ones this past week who didn't know how to feel. Most felt sad or angry, but even I didn't know how to feel anymore. So instead, I fed off of everyone else's emotions.

After the service I talked to Meagan about Kyle's death and how he saved me.

"We were listening to your speech when the attack started,” she explained. “I was about to run behind the stage, but Kyle told me and a few other students to follow him. We hid in the concealed room that comes out from underneath the stage. His parents were there too. We heard everything going on outside, and Kyle kept watching from the cracks. Then when he saw you get hit…" Meagan's eyes started to swell. "He ran out to get you."

Meagan and I never discussed Karlie. We both knew it probably wasn't good, so we avoided talking about her. Karlie and Principal Wilken had been taken prisoner by the warriors during the attacks. No one wanted to discuss what they thought was happening to them after seeing the brutal attack. Even the news had a hard time covering the events that went down in Alice. Most survivors did not want to relive it.

We found Trish's body among the others. She never made it through the trap door; a sonic blast had gotten her. I was relieved that she wasn't tortured. The Emréians held a custom service for her. They sang Emréian songs and prayed, to whatever god Emréians prayed to, before they lit her body on fire. I stood in the back to watch. I didn’t feel like singing. I didn’t feel like praying.

Aunt Trish was like a parent to me. She raised me; she protected me. I gripped my mother’s hand when they lit her body. I knew it was their custom, but before it felt like she was just in a deep sleep. Now that she had no body to wake up to, I knew she was really gone.

Our grieving period was shortened by the reality of the universe. Even though the battle was over, the war had just begun. Boys were being sent off to learn the ways of the army and the government, and people were being informed of everything they needed to know.

We had finally showed ourselves to the planet. When everyone started asking questions about Alice, survivors mentioned Aaron and the others fighting them off. We prepared ourselves. We knew Earth would be frightened.

It was early in the morning. Our ship was ready to take us home, and we had a secure area and map to leave without provoking the Bremoir. The white ship picked us up from the house. It hovered over and dropped a tall elevator. I didn't know what to expect. I thought we would be teleported or something. Aaronmon had a good laugh when I brought it up.

Right before we left the atmosphere, we broadcasted a message for Earth. I didn't know all the technological details, but the point was it intercepted all the channels. I stood in front of the Emréian screen that was recording me, and I read the speech I had prepared.

"Many of you are wondering why Earth has been attacked on numerous occasions. Many of you have questions concerning Alice. I am here to tell you the reason why. Eighteen years ago I was sent here as a baby to be protected. The Bremoir, the species of the planet Helentania, also the planet that attacked Earth, want me dead because I am the heir to the throne of my home planet, Emréiana. There is a full, long history about this war, but I would like to apologize that Earth has become involved. I have always considered Earth my home, and I would still like to do so. Right now, we are leaving for a duration of time, but I have provided Earth with protection. History of this war and many other need-to-know facts are being uploaded for view. I have representatives talking with government officials about the safety of the citizens and things to come. This will all be public knowledge for you.”

“I would like to take this last minute to address Alice and everyone I grew up with. I am sorry you had to go through this. I didn't even know about myself until over a month ago. I was hoping to be able to leave the planet before there was harm done, but I have failed. Every one of you are important to me."

After I finished the message, I walked quietly to my room. I knew there was no going back to Earth. Everyone now knew what I was.

The room was  surrounded by white metal walls, and the floor was covered in a light shade of blue. There was a foam mattress resting on the floor. I guessed they didn’t use bed frames here. I rested on the built-in pillow and stared at the ceiling. I remembered Aaronmon telling me that the ceiling projected a hologram type screen. I could use my abula to connect with it.

I knew that my abula was programed to receive Earth's frequency, and I debated whether or not I should tune in and see what people were saying about the broadcast. I decided against it.

Instead, I turned it on and tuned into Emréiana's broadcast. I was actually curious about the news there.

Instead of seeing an anchor, there was a voice speaking in Emréian while video clips were being shown. There were Emréians with the aríenom symbols on their neck. The plant talented aríenoms had plants growing and dancing, while weather talented ones were forming grand beautiful ice sculptures. There were a group of people standing around a capritus in awe. I figured he was pressing visions into their minds. Vérigolés were dancing around like nymphs. One even walked over to a couple that was arguing and said something to them. They looked at each other lovingly and grasped each other's hands.

Then the video went back to an aríenom that was ice sculpting. It looked familiar. I took a closer look and paused it. It was me! I picked up the abula and pulled up the holographic menu. There had to be a way to have English subtitles. Finally, I figured it out. I pressed play.

"The crowd celebrates as the princess continues her trip back to Emréiana. The lost princess, who was thought to be dead, will be wildly celebrated. Princess Carsona was thought to be killed in the attack that took place eighteen years ago. Instead, she was sent with her Aunt Terishin to a planet called Earth. Earth has not accessed information to get around the universe on their own, but is no longer in the dark about what lies out there. Emréiana has provided Earth with protection. It is still unknown what technological information will be given to Earth, or if they can be trusted with it.”

"Emréiana has a lot to celebrate, despite all the political complications. Emréians and other worlds are eager to know how Carsona will rule or if she will decide to rule at all. It has been said by a garnix that she does not desire to rule the planet, but she is strong either way. If she decides to take the crown, she will have to bond. There have been a few speculations as to who this will be. Her father had plans to bond her with a close family friend if they took well to each other. Only the royals know of Dynamen Annut's choice of the Emréian who would bond with her. Rumors have surfaced that Lenai Carsona was close to a male human."

I shut the abula off. I couldn't bear to hear anyone talk about Kyle. I did what they wanted. I did it to keep him safe, but it still didn't matter.

I contemplated the crown. I still didn't know anything about ruling, but I knew we had to win this war. Could I trust anyone else to win it? Could I trust myself to win it?

I knew what the decision was going to be. Most royals were raised for this, but I wasn't. That didn't mean that I couldn't learn. Even though I knew that Aunt Trish had kept my origins hidden from me, I trusted that she raised me under Emréian beliefs and rules. I would take the crown. There was a knock on the door.

"Come in," I called out. The door opened.

"How are you doing?" Aaronmon stepped inside.

I shrugged.

"I thought we might go over some Emréian today, get your mind off things, and help prepare you." I took in his scent as he walked by. He always smelled so good. He sat at my desk.

"That sounds okay. I need to understand what everyone is saying." I pulled up a chair next to him and added, "Especially, if I’m going to help rule."

Aaronmon's surprise didn't shock me.

"You’re going to take it?" Aaronmon's eyes stayed on mine.

"Things are different now. I know that no planet is safe, including Earth. I can't sit back and watch what happens. I want to know that we are safe," I said firmly.

Aaronmon nodded in agreement.

"I'm going to need a lot of help though," I said.

"Don't worry. You have me and your mother. She is still the Krea anyway. You can learn while she is still in rule."

"That’s another thing." My heart began to race. "I know that the Lenai to be has to take on a husband..."

I could feel Aaronmon become uneasy. He shifted in his seat.

"I want to know who it is," I finished.

"Carson," Aaronmon said, his eyes never meeting mine. Then he cleared his throat. "I didn't want to tell you this before. I mean- I wanted it to be your choice."

I stood there in silence watching him. His embarrassment was growing and making it increasingly difficult not to make my own cheeks flush.

"I want you to know that even if it wasn't for this reason, I would still... I mean."

As confused as I was by his gibberish, I knew exactly what was about to come out from his mouth.

"Aaronmon?" I asked him.

"Huh?"

"It's you isn't it?"

His cheeks turned red, and he stood up.

"I meant to tell you before, but I didn't want to upset you. You love Kyle, and I know that."

"Aaronmon." I stopped him, but stayed sitting in my seat.

He kept quiet.

"Okay." The words from my lips almost felt foreign.

"Okay?"

"We will get married, or bond- whatever," I said after taking a deep breath.

Aaronmon regained his posture.

"I don't want you to bond with me just because you have to," He said sternly.

"What other choice do I have?" I asked, almost angry that he would go there.

"Don't get mad." He closed his eyes and sighed. Then he took my hand and helped me stand up. My heart raced being so close to his body. "We don't have to rush a bonding process. When we bond in a ceremony, we will later bond physically. Emréian hormones are different from Humans. When we bond it will be as if there were no other feelings for each other before it. There will be no stopping those hormones from over taking us. I know we are compatible, because even now your scent is..." We both blushed. I realized that his spicy vanilla scent that attracted me was his pheromones. Even being this close to him, his scent, his warmth, his breath, all made my stomach flutter.

I lifted my head to meet his eyes. I could feel his breath on my lips, and I knew they were inches from mine. I wished they were closer. I wanted to know if they were as soft as they looked. I wanted to be reminded what it was like to feel that kind of warmth again. Then, I thought of Kyle. How could I so soon? I started to feel guilty.

Aaronmon pulled away and quickly the room felt warm.

"You’re still in mourning. I won't push you." Aaronmon took a step back.

"I'm sorry," I said looking at the ground. I realized I had pushed my feelings onto him.

"Don't be. We will have a ceremony one day, but it doesn't have to been soon. There is still a while before you take the throne. I don't want any of it until you’re ready."

I looked up with a half-smile. I was thankful I would be bonded to someone like Aaronmon. He took a step closer and pressed his lips to my forehead.

"We will study tomorrow." He smiled and left the room.

I picked up my abula, figuring I would continue to study by myself, but I found it extremely difficult.

In two weeks, I would arrive at the planet Emréiana. I would announce that I was planning on taking the crown. It wouldn’t be easy. There was still a lot I had to learn, but knowing Aaronmon would be there by my side soothed those fears. For the time being, my main priority was to keep every planet safe from the Bremoir. We may have lost the battle, but I would not allow us to lose the war.