Opheliac (11 page)

“We always told you, you were different.”

“No,” Orlando whispered.

“And for a long time I didn't think either of you would need to know just how different you are.”

“No!” Orlando screamed, grabbing his head with his hands. Psychic energy pulsed through the room, causing the pictures to rattle against the walls and a vase to nearly tumble off a table. He squeezed his eyes shut.
This isn't happening. I'm having some kind of a nightmare. I'm not an
alien.

A gentle hand squeezed his shoulder; a touch he recognized belonging to his mother. “I understand this is probably hard to hear. Since you're involved now, and things are starting to get worse, we decided it was time you knew the truth. For a while, we thought this planet would stay safe, that things wouldn't change. You would grow up here and not know the difference or tap into your powers. We were naïve for thinking we could keep you in the dark forever. And it made us sad…not being able to share our heritage with you.”

“So you just decided to take us along for the ride when war broke out?” Orlando snapped. “Take us to a foreign planet and abandon me and Lyssa?”

His father scoffed. “Don't be silly. We would have never left home if you were in the picture. No, your sister was conceived on our first trip over, and you were conceived and born in the city you were named after. The war wasn't even happening then.”

“Why leave?”

Both of his parents gazed at one another. His mother nodded, tears brimming her eyes. Exhaling slowly, his father offered up a weak smile. “Just because there was no war didn't mean there was no civil unrest. Our nation, however, was exploring space for other reasons. We wanted to know more about Earth, which had been discovered a long, long time ago by another country on Altura. Your mother and I studied foreign culture and history. Earth happened to be one part of my doctorate, I guess you could say, so when a job opportunity came up for us to travel we took it. For a while we sent back samples and data from all of our travels. When the war became official, we were called upon to act as ambassadors to the Earth governments.”

Orlando took in his father's tale, trying to come up with a coherent thought. “So you were seriously back on Altura all of this time you went away? Is that where you've always gone?”

“No, we went there shortly after we were last here, and returned in December to the Earth atmosphere. The journey between the two planets takes around two weeks.”

“That's it?”

“Technology is a lot more advanced for us, remember? Our ship is faster than most, but it isn't a pleasant two weeks. It takes almost that long to recover from the trip itself. Most take the longer route, which lasts around a month or two.”

Nodding was about the only thing Orlando could manage to do. “So you know everything about what's happening here.”

“More than you think I do.” His father gave him a pointed look. “I'm not sure I approve of your involvement. You're much too young to be fighting this battle. Plus, it is clear your abilities are quite strong and you are not being properly trained in how to use them. You would benefit a lot from having a formal teacher.”

Orlando rolled his eyes. “You know, I thought the same thing at first, but what makes it okay to tap other teenagers my age instead of me? Seems a bit hypocritical, don't you think? If they can do it, so can I. They need me, and…I want to do this. After everything I've seen, I can't let the other tribes continue to hurt and kill my classmates. What they're doing isn't right. As for me learning how to use my powers, I'm doing just fine on my own—kind of what I'm used to.” He made sure to glare at his father for good measure.

“I had hoped for you to join our tribe rather than the Rosalotuve.”

“And your tribe is which one, exactly?” he asked, his voice shaking.

“The Nassalmvan, or gold tribe. Don't misunderstand me, the red tribe is one of our allies. I work closely with your leader's father. They're a good people. If you were to be involved, however, I would prefer you do it where I can monitor your safety so we don't have anymore…mugging…incidents.”

Orlando groaned. “First of all, I don't need a babysitter. Okay? I can take care of myself just fine. Second, the mugging incident had
nothing
to do with the war. That was a personal project.”

“Care to elaborate?”

“No.” There was no way he would tell his parents about Dallas's resurrection. Not only would they not understand, they could call Dallas's parents and make things even more complicated than they already were.

With a sigh, his father took another sip of coffee. “I'm still not putting my approval of you working with the Rosalotuve.”

“And I don't think there's any way you can stop me,” Orlando said darkly. “I'm not going to switch teams just because it will make you feel more comfortable. You don't get that kind of courtesy.”

“I'm still your father, and you're still a minor,” his father replied icily.

Shaking his head, Orlando stood from his chair. “For a few more weeks, I'm still a minor. Chances are, you're probably not going to be around for much longer anyway, so tell me no all you want. It won't make a difference. Lock me in my room, but as soon as you leave, I'll get right back into it again. Red tribe, gold tribe, they're allies, so I don't see why you should be bothered. I could be working for the bad guys.”

“We can discuss this further later,” his mother said, surprisingly calm. If Orlando didn't know better, he almost thought she approved.

It was almost enough to make him feel guilty.

“I'm not sure if there is a lot to discuss,” Orlando said. “But yes, we can talk about it more later. Right now, I'm too…I don't even know…too
something
to talk about this.”

“Sit,” his mother insisted. “Please. Let me give you the rest of your gifts first.”

With a sigh, he shoved his hands into his pockets. “How about another time, Mom. I'm sure they're awesome, I just…” He glanced at his father. “I have a lot to think about.”

“Of course,” she whispered. “I understand. Do you want me to come up with you and help you get settled into bed?”

She wanted to tuck him in, something he could barely remember her doing from when he was little. The childish side of him thought it was a fantastic idea, but the part of him growing up made him decline. How would it look in front of his father if he acted like a baby, anyway?

The pain and the shock of what he'd just been told had Orlando fleeing the room in desperation. A lot of space was needed if he had any hope of processing everything. He ran up the stairs, the ponda in his hands.

“So this is what animals look like on Altura,” he said softly.
And I'm an alien. Sure, I may have been born here, but my DNA is still not from Earth. How different did Alan say Alturans were from Earth people? Was it a lot? Are we the same species? If we aren't, does that mean I won't be able to have kids with someone from here? Is Dallas like me? He must be, since our parents are close, and if he is, he has to know the truth. After all, he got all of life's answers in the great beyond.

Without thinking, he reached for his phone so he could call Angela and lament with her over the news. Just as he finished dialing her number, he stopped himself from actually putting the call through.
I can't tell her. There's no way I can tell anyone else. They'll all look at me like even more of a freak than I already am. People already give me special treatment. I don't need even more of it because I'm an alien.
Should I tell Alan, at least? What is he going to think of me?

So much was uncertain. He opened up his text messages and typed in a message for Dallas.

“I got a better place for you to stay. I'll pick you up tomorrow after school.”

Orlando had bought him a phone and a basic plan to use. They could talk later. While Orlando's stomach was still queasy and his desire to go to school—to do much of anything—was at an all-time low, staying home would not be an option. Not only had he missed enough class as it was, but he wasn't going to let his parents win. He would not be relying on them for support.
I've gotten along just fine without them for this long, I don't need them to get me through this either. Besides, I'm just an alien from another planet. It's not like it's the end of the world.

He closed his eyes and bit back tears.
If that were true, then why does it feel an awful lot like it? Why me?

Alan had gone straight to bed once he returned to his ship. The meeting hadn't left him as frustrated as he anticipated. Everyone was a lot more cooperative. Having his team's support created one less stress factor in his life. His work was going to get a lot more complicated fast if his tribe planned on making a huge strike against his enemies.

According to the information taken from Sprout's memories, the Basatlavan is in debt to the Gelandrosimbol. It certainly explains why they joined forces. What brought it on, I wonder
…He flipped the page of his information, kicking his feet up onto the desk in his room. Alan would have preferred to work elsewhere, but if he left his bedroom, then his roommate might find him. The last person he wanted to see was Jaes—not until he could find something the great prodigy didn't already know.

If he searched through his memory, perhaps he'd figure out what he was missing. Alona had been his everything for so long. When the war first started to get more intense between their two tribes, she'd spoken about it a lot.
I wish I'd paid better attention.
Then maybe I would have seen what kind of a monster she is…or I could have stopped her from falling off the deep end. Think. There has to be something she told me that's useful.

****

Alan kissed gently along Alona's jawline. “I still don't understand why you have to leave. All you have to do is file a petition, and you get to stay here with me. Then we can get married like planned and when
we
want to.”

Her eyes closed and then she shifted out of his arms. “I can't just file a petition and stay. I have to go back home and deal with this. My family is counting on me, and they are too important to me to risk the consequences of letting my people down. I wish you understood, but I'm not surprised you don't.”

“I do understand, but your whole family could take asylum here. You'll be a part of
my
family, and then we'd all be safe from this entire mess.” He hated war. The fighting had been going on for a few years. Every time he thought things were almost resolved, the conflict only got worse. His people weren't even involved in the problem and neither were hers, yet for whatever reason, their two nations continued to fight.

“If you understood, you would never have proposed such an idea. My parents would never come here. You know how they feel about you.”

“Yes, they hate my guts,” he muttered. “Thank you for the reminder. I suppose I should give up on my hope that someday they'll accept me.”

She nodded. “That would probably be best.”

“But you love me. That's all that matters.”

Alan was so confident of that fact. Alona's love kept him going when everything else in life seemed pointless. His father was a great war hero, his mother a well-respected member of the community. Then there was him, passing his classes at a level considered average, and no life direction to go off of. Most young people his age had a trade, a passion, or at least a subject they enjoyed or excelled at enough to make it their life's work. The only thing Alan had passion for was her.

She gave his hand a squeeze and a pat as if trying to be encouraging despite the lack of emotion present in the gesture. If she was feeling something, he couldn't figure out what it was. A lot of times, he had a hard time deciphering her. Unlike most women, Alona did not wear her heart on her sleeve. For the most part, he liked her cool exterior and relaxed nature. There were moments, however, where he wished he could figure out what she was thinking. Then he might not doubt her quite as much. If they couldn't trust one another, they would have a lot of issues in their marriage…whenever he could get her to agree on a date to actually marry him.

“Maybe we should elope,” he suggested. “If your family is never going to approve of us, what's the point of having the big celebration? We can have a small, intimate moment, and then you'll be considered whatever nationality you choose according to Rosalotuve law.”

“I can't do that.”

“Why not?”

“Because then you'll be a part of my family.”

“Yes, and?”

“If you become a part of my family, then my problems will become your problems,” she said.

Alan shrugged. “That doesn't bother me.”

“It bothers me. I would prefer my problems stay as far away from you as possible.” She pulled away from and held herself tightly, shivering. He'd never seen her afraid before, but he imagined this was exactly how it looked on her.

Determined to prove his love, Alan moved closer to her once more and wrapped his arms around her. “Alonauxoonamondae, whatever you're dealing with, I can help you. Together, we're stronger than you doing everything on your own.”

“You wouldn't understand what is going on, anyway. In fact, you might think less of me,” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

“I doubt it. Nothing could make me think less of you.”

“Even my being a Gesubsavat?” Her soft blue eyes gazed up at him, wide and full of tears. Alona didn't cry.

He was frowning so hard, it gave him a headache. With a great deal of caution, he wiped her eyes dry. When Alona was anything but her usual stoic self, the last thing he was supposed to do was draw attention to it. But he couldn't stand the sight of tears—not on her.

Inhaling slowly, Alan forced her to meet his gaze with her own. “I don't know what that means. Whatever it is, it can't be as bad as you think.”

She let out a sour laugh. “You're naïve.”

“Optimistic is the term I prefer.” He licked his lips, wondering if he should dare ask the question on his mind. In the end, he decided he needed to know. “Will you tell me what that word means?”

Alona narrowed her gaze, eyes piercing into his soul as if they were daggers. “No.”

****

Why had she been so angry? If she hadn't reacted so strongly to the question, he would have pursued the subject more. Nearly a year and a half later, and he still didn't understand why his asking had been so upsetting to her. Not long after that conversation, Alona had left for her home nation again. The fighting between their two peoples became even worse. For a while, the two communicated through letters. When those stopped, he joined the military in hopes of finding her. He did, on Earth, and he almost wished he hadn't. Ignorance was supposed to be bliss. The war had changed them both. While he felt more mature and older beyond his years, he was almost positive her changes were much worse. Alona had gone from kindhearted to evil. The girl he had grown to love would never justify murder in the name of science.

Unless I didn't know her like I thought. She's right; I was naïve.
He rubbed at his face.
I should have taken her more seriously. I need to figure out what a Gesubsavat is. That is my key. I was an idiot to have pushed that information aside.
Chastising himself wouldn't do any good, though. What he had thought was respecting her privacy ended up quite possibly being the biggest mistake of his life. A mistake he would have to remedy.

A knock on his door snapped him out of his thoughts. He opened his door and held back a groan when he saw Jaes at his door. Not like he should have been surprised. Who else would come visit him while on the ship? No one sought out his company for the sake of pleasure—not outside of Jaes, at least. Alan had become a necessary business associate, and that was all he would be for as long as his superior continued to disrespect him.

“Yes?” Alan asked.

“I had a free moment,” Jaes said. “We haven't done much beyond work lately. Perhaps you would like to join me for a run?”

Alan didn't feel much like running. The wide, hopeful gaze Jaes held, however, put guilt into Alan's heart at the idea of saying no. “Yes, I suppose I could do that.”

“Great! I will meet you in the hallway in a few minutes. I need to change.”

“As do I,” Alan said with a forced smile. The moment Jaes disappeared from his sight, he shut the door and got together an outfit he could work out in. It didn't take long for him to get ready. When he walked out into the hallway, Jaes was already stretching.

Upon seeing him, Jaes's face lit up and he led the way to the door. “I'm sure you're busy, so I appreciate you taking the time to come with me. There's an old parable from home I try to live by. Play without work makes no fruit, but work without play—”

“Makes an unhappy man,” Alan finished. “I used to say that to my father a lot. He'd point out that I tended to be more like the first man. The one who doesn't do the work and produces nothing.”

“So now you're trying to overcompensate by working all of the time?” Jaes raised an eyebrow, glancing over at him as they walked.

Shrugging, Alan put his hands into his sweatpant pockets. “There isn't much else for me to do. If I'm not working, I'm stuck with nothing.”

“Then we'll just have to incorporate more fun into your life. You are by far the tensest person on this ship, and that is saying a lot since I spend quite a bit of time with our commanding officers.” His friend paused, holding open the door for the ship gym. There were a number of peers lingering toward the entryway, talking and lifting weights. Most tried to be subtle about watching Alan and Jaes together. A few blatantly stared, their conversation pausing.

Not one to be in the center of attention, Alan made his way toward the ship track toward the back of the room. It was a mile long, circling around the ship a number of times. For the most part, the path was dark and dull, lit up by the overhead lights and nothing more. There were two spots that made the track his favorite place to be. One was an overhead view of the small garden in the center of ship, and the other was a stretch of path that provided a nice view of Earth. His peers didn't use the track as much as he thought they would. For some reason, they preferred the boring treadmills and stair climbers.

For a while, he and Jaes were quiet. Then he noticed how his friend was looking at him rather expectantly.

“What do you want me to say?” Alan asked. “Admit to being stressed out? Yes, I am stressed, it's true. There is a lot of weight on my shoulders at the moment.”

“Your project is a big task to take on,” Jaes agreed. “Sir Orioltogorthan seems to think that you've bitten off more than you can chew.”

Alan rolled his eyes, knowing it was probably not a wise gesture to perform but doing it anyway. If they were spending time as just friends, he should be allowed to express himself however he saw fit.

Laughing, Jaes picked up speed in his jog. “I had similar thoughts. What Sir Orioltogorthan doesn't understand is how complicated the Ilotus is. I'm working with it to try and uncover old data for the Yumsaltanz. They're hoping to have enough evidence retrieved from it to make a strong case against the other tribes in front of the
Alturan Unification Committee . There is over three hundred years of information stored on it. It's absolutely fascinating. I get overwhelmed trying to think about where to begin. Which is why, I confess, I've been looking more into your projects than my own.”

“Because they're simpler,” Alan muttered. “I see.”

“Because they are more interesting than ancient politics and stories.” Jaes gave him a pointed look. “I'd much rather be working on the formula for the drug, to be honest. For whatever reason, it isn't as much of a priority. Figuring out the next move for the Basatlavan, however, is. What you're currently working on is the most important thing on this ship. Sir Orioltogorthan seems to think that once we capture your ex-betrothed, the war will end.”

“I believe you've mentioned something similar to me before.”

Jaes nodded. “Do you remember how a long time ago I mentioned there being a leak on the ship, and how many here thought it was you before you proved yourself loyal to us?”

“Yes,” Alan said quietly. The reminder of the rumor still stung him.

“I think I know who it is.” Jaes voice was hushed, and he glanced up toward the cameras further down the track.

The news startled Alan so much, he almost stumbled over his own two feet. “You do?”

“I
think
,” Jaes repeated. “What I do know for certain is the leak is one of the high-ranking officers on this ship.”

Alan pretended to be surprised, but he wasn't the best actor in the universe so he probably only looked stupid. His father had said something similar to him not long ago. On one of Alan's previous missions, his father was one of the leaders. Similar concerns had been raised during their bittersweet reunion.

“Why are you telling me this?” Alan asked at last. “Shouldn't this be something you mention to someone who can do more about the issue?”

Jaes shook his head. “I'm not sure who I can trust. The way I figured it out was the way things conveniently went wrong on your last mission. Only a few of us knew about going to retrieve the Ilotus. Now that the device is in our possession, I'm concerned for its safety. What I do know for certain is someone here on the ship has been communicating with someone else on…Earth.”

“And how do you know this? The phone logs state as much on a regular basis. You know that we are in communication with a number of the governments on Earth.”

“Perhaps I should be more clear then,” Jaes said. “This conversation was one I accidentally eavesdropped on. The voices were distorted on both ends and speaking in a language called Spanish, not one I am fluent in. When I went to check the logs, there was no record of the call ever taking place. I'm positive it was the leak, and from what I heard, he or she was speaking about the Ilotus. That was the one word I recognized.”

A deep frown formed on Alan's face, and he pinched at the bridge of his nose. “How did you eavesdrop on this call in the first place?”

“Is it important for you to know?”

“Yes,” he stated. “If you expect me to trust you and believe you, as well as tell you everything I know, then you should be willing to do the same.”

Jaes swallowed. “I was returning from a trip to Earth. Since I've gotten your teleportation ability, I've been practicing frequently and making a lot of evening trips to the planet in my down time. It isn't a skill I've told anyone else about. I know that as soon as I do, Sir Orioltogorthan will change your duties, as well as bombard me with more—because I'm the prodigy. I'm only one person, and I do have my limits. For the time being, this is my only way to escape.”

“I've used my teleportation for similar reasons. Not to mention the ship can get a bit stuffy and suffocating after a while,” he said.

“Yes, precisely. I had just returned. Because I still make a lot of noise when I teleport, I've been refraining from coming back to our room. People might hear me. Instead, I've chosen the warehouse closet. It's far from everyone. Few venture there in the first place. Special clearance is needed to even enter the area.”

“Special clearance you have, I assume.”

A small smirk formed on Jaes's lips. “There is nowhere on this ship I'm not allowed, it's true.”

“Convenient.”

“Very.” Jaes grew quiet as they passed under the camera. After a few paces, he picked up the conversation again, his voice still low. “Which is why one of our superiors has to be involved in some way or another. That kind of access is not easy to get, or steal. When I popped back into the warehouse, they heard me. I was able to get out of the closet before they found me, and heard them say it was probably the ship making noises. For a few minutes, I stayed behind so I could listen, and I had a device that helped amplify the sound. Not like it did much good since I couldn't understand a word of it.”

Alan snorted. “Yet you knew they were explaining the ship as making noises?”

“Because that part was in English. A language I know. In fact, I'm positive they were speaking English before I arrived.”

“I see. Then I wouldn't trust that you weren't caught.”

Jaes averted his gaze to the floor, nodding slowly. “Something similar ran through my mind in my later reflections of the event. I'm telling you all of this just in case something happens to me, or in case you see or hear anything. You have a way of figuring things out that the rest of us can't.”

“That's only because I'm working behind the scenes with little guidance or rules,” Alan pointed out.

“For the most part, but your project with the Ilotus is fairly high-profile on the ship. A lot of our teammates have been talking about it. They're surprised, but I think you're earning their respect. You saw how much they stared at you when we came in.”

“Yes, I did. I thought it was because I was with you. After all, you are the prodigy who has befriended the ship klutz.” Alan scowled at the thought. He was far from being a klutz. It wasn't his fault he had a lot of bad luck. “It wouldn't surprise me if they thought I was your slave or something.”

It was Jaes's turn to roll his eyes. “You are far too uptight. They're curious about you, nothing more.”

Alan didn't have a response for him, so he pressed onward with their jog. They would be approaching the view of Earth soon. Seeing the planet always cleared his head. “I'm not uptight.”

“Tell me about something that isn't related to work. I'm tired of talking about it,” Jaes said, laughing.

Was there anything in Alan's life that didn't revolve around work? When was the last time he'd done something for himself or anything resembling fun? “You'll just have to be disappointed, because I don't have much to talk about. Unless you want me to tell you about the stupid computer game I played while I was killing time.”

“It's a start. Has anything changed with your betrothed? What about your charges? Have you heard from your family?” Jaes eyes seemed to light up.

Alan peered over at him. “You want to gossip?”

“Remember, my family doesn't want to contact me. I have to live vicariously through you,” Jaes mumbled. “And my charges aren't as social with me as yours are with you. In that aspect I'm a bit jealous.”

His comrade was much more lonely than Alan had realized. The guy liked to unload his emotions and secrets, not to mention be around peers who treated him like an equal. No wonder he'd so desperately sought out Alan's friendship.

After a moment of quiet passed, Alan decided to indulge his friend. “I haven't heard anything from my family or home since I spoke to my father last. Letters are few and far between, given the distance they must travel, as well as the security checks. The last one I had received from my mother was good news. I think both me and my father being gone is hard on her. At the end of my service, I plan on leaving and going back to her for good. I don't want to be gone from home anymore.” He risked a glance at Jaes, unsure of what he would think of his confession.

Jaes nodded, scratching his chin. “Understandable. You don't want to see this whole thing through to the end?”

“I'm hoping the war will be done by the time I'm finished. That's another five years away. Anything could happen between now and then.” It felt like a vain dream to have, but it got him through the long nights of being so far away from his family.

“Sometimes I feel the same way, but I don't think I have the same luxury as you do to leave as soon as my time is done. It'll be expected of me to continue, which is fine. I like my job. What I don't like about it is how isolated it makes me. When my leave time comes, I'm thinking about traveling around on Earth instead of going back to Altura,” Jaes said.

Alan cracked a small smile. “There is a lot to see here. I'm ready to go back. The whole reason I joined the military was so I could find Alonauxoonamondae again. Now I have, and…”
Everything feels like a complete waste.