Ordinaries: Shifters Book II (Shifters series 2) (13 page)

Chapter 23

It Only Took Two Days to Change Six

–TANNER–

I hear voices, but I don’t recognize them. It’s not Kai or Ryland. Too young. Giggling and whispering. I try to open my eyes, but it’s bright. I raise my arm to block the light then groan, realizing my stomach hurts.

“What’s up with the green light?” I manage. I remember what happened, sit up, and shout, “Devon!” Pain hits me hard, forcing me to collapse on the bed and grasp my gut.

“Your wife told us to watch you,” a young girl says.

“She said to make sure you didn’t get up,” a second girl tells me.

They look about ten. Each with long sandy brown hair and plain dresses. They continue to giggle as Fluffy tickles them with his licks.

“What?” I ask, looking back and forth.

“We told her, ‘Count on us! We’ll take care of him,’” one of them tells me as she stands at attention. Then they smile at each other and return to petting Fluffy.

“
Who
told you?” I ask, trying to sit up again.

They both gently push me back down, and Fluffy growls as if to tell me to stay put. Unfortunately, I can’t do that even if the pain in my stomach is making my body burn stronger than I have ever felt.

“Your wife, silly,” one of them says maintaining a warm smile.

“Yeah, she’s
so
pretty,” the other one tells me with a slight giggle.

“If you ask me,” the first one says, “ I think she’s lucky.”

They look at each other and agree. “Yeah, she’s lucky.”

“What? We’re not married!” I tell them. “She’s my sister.”

They look at each other like I just told them I’m the Easter Bunny or something—not that they would know about Easter here. Or would they?

“But you’re old,” one of them tells me.

“Oh, I’m old?” I ask, teasing them. I always liked kids. They remind me of my little sister. I gulp and force my mind away from thoughts of Peanut.

“Yeah,” the other one says. “Besides, she can’t be your sister.”

“Oh, yeah? And why is that?” I ask.

They both give me a look like I’m a crazy person. “You’re weird,” one of them says. “I’m gonna go tell your wife you’re up now.”

She runs out of the room, Fluffy at her heels, leaving me alone with the other one. I look around. The room is small with green light flowing through one tiny window. I am on the only bed, which is not comfortable. Old crates serve as furniture.

I look back to see this little girl with her face way too close to mine, staring at me. “You’re the One, aren’t you?” she says, still staring. “My name’s Elly. This is my room. And Alli’s. Our families live together. Alli thinks it’s your wife. Or your friend. I don’t think so. I think it’s you. Your eyes are pretty.”

“Um. What do you think I am?” I ask.

“The One,” she says, annoyed, like I’m supposed to be able to keep up with her. “From the prophecy. Are you? I like your hair. Does it hurt to get stabbed? I bet it does.” She speaks so quickly, her different thoughts all running together.

“I’m not really sure,” I tell her.

“Well,” she says, tilting her head. “It either hurts or it doesn’t. You’re supposed to lay down.”

“Yes,” I say. “It hurts.”

I push myself up and spin my legs off the edge of the bed, trying to maintain the momentum I need to stand. I have to find my sister. The last thing I remember is Devon walking away from me.

My thoughts wander back to Devon. They never stray for long. There was something about that look she gave me, I think. I know she’s not a traitor. She can’t be. It doesn’t make sense.

But . . . no, it’s impossible.

The other girl, Alli, leads Ryland into the room and points saying, “See, he’s up.”

“What are you doing?” Ryland scolds, her hand resting lightly on Fluffy’s head as though he’s her anchor. “You’ve been stabbed. You have to rest.”

“I tried to tell him,” Elly says, giving me a look like she’s my mother.

“Ry,” I start. “What’s going on? Where are we?”

“I told you,” Elly says.

“I know, Elly. Thanks,” I tell her and turn to my sister. “How long have I been out?”

She tells me I have been sleeping for two days. She yells at me for not letting her know about the plan. After being scolded for several long minutes, she finally explains how Viktor was able to follow the iPhone signal and sneak an entire regiment into the Delfis quadrant. We have taken most of that entire area. It would seem that nearly a quarter of the inhabited parts of the planet are under our control.

Lena and Devon were able to escape, but she doesn’t think they got off the planet. In fact, Sol
é
has seen them hiding somewhere amidst a canopy of white leaves. We’re sure they’re here. Somewhere.

Ryland has apparently hypothesized they are hiding here somewhere, waiting for their fleet to arrive. Then they will bring the battle back to us.

“That’s what I need to talk to you about,” I say. “There was something different about Devon. It wasn’t her.” I shake my head. “I mean, it was her, but it wasn’t.”

“That’s enough, Tanner,” she says. “You have to face it. Devon is a traitor. You saw her.”

“No,” I tell her.

“Geez, Tanner!” she yells. “She tried to kill you!”

I stand up and almost fall. I steady myself and eye Ryland. She knows she can’t stop me. “I need to know what’s going on,” I snap. “I need to talk to Sol
é
, to catch up with Marcus and our progress here.”

Fluffy growls, but Ryland spits, “Fine!”

I reach my hand out for her help, but she looks at it before turning on her heel to storm out of the room, leaving me there alone. Everyone else has gone with her as though she has some sort of invisible dog-and-little-girl-magnet attached to her.

I slowly, painfully follow her down a narrow hall, using the walls on either side to hold myself up despite the intense pain I am feeling. The hall opens to a larger room filled with people. Conversations stop, and all eyes focus in my direction.

–RYLAND–

I know I’m being harsh with Tanner, and a part of me cringes after what he has just gone through, but I have to prepare him for the worst. If Devon really is a traitor, then he needs to be ready. He needs to be prepared to fight her if necessary.

He can’t see her as the woman he loves if she turns out to be the enemy.

Sol
é
hasn’t been able to clarify what’s happening with Devon. My dreams have been just as confusing. In some, Tanner is a traitor, in some Devon; and in others, we are all fighting together. Sol
é
and I haven’t been able to decipher what’s real and what is merely fantasy, let alone what’s when or why any of it happens at all.

No one else even knows about my strange dreams. I have to sneak away to even speak with Sol
é
about them in spare moments, trying to puzzle out just why this is all happening to me. I’m no prophet.

Tanner, on the other hand, doesn’t even have a clue about what has happened on this planet in the last two days. Everything has changed. This once docile and oppressed Ordinary populace has turned on its Shifter overlords. There are fights and skirmishes breaking out all across the planet, but most of it is unorganized, chaotic.

In order to make this work, we will need to rally our troops and create a battle plan. We have intercepted a communication headed off the planet and know they have called for reinforcements. They want to make an example of us here and now.

Before those reinforcements arrive, we need to prepare this planet for war. We need to create an army out of these rebels and somehow integrate our own people into it. This has been challenging as our group has no real hierarchy, and their group distrusts any Shifter Young we brought with us. You know, despite the fact that most of us are orphans and refugees because of the same people that have been oppressing them. I don’t know why they can’t see we are just like them. We have a common enemy, and we should work together.

I know . . . It’s exactly what Tanner said about Marques. But we’re kids, not murderers.

No group wants to take orders from the other. This is what I have been dealing with while Tanner has been out. Because for whatever reason, the only people anyone will listen to are Marcus, Kai, and me.

Alice has actually been extremely helpful as well. She has a warrior’s mind and a kind heart. Anyone would want to fight alongside her. The Ordinaries love that she is on our makeshift war council despite not being a Shifter or Keeper, and our own people see her as some sort of martyr after word about Gale got out. Alice isn’t very happy with Clay or Kai, but she’s put her shell back on, pretending that it isn’t killing her inside.

Fluffy has helped as well. They don’t have dogs on this planet or pets of any kind. Seeing one as cute as Fluffy following me around has somehow made me seem like less of a threat to our new allies.

All conversations quiet as Tanner follows me slowly through the crowded halls. Everyone knows what he has been through, and no one knows what to say. No one knows how to help him.

“Tanner,” Marcus nods, hardly looking up from the maps in front of him. “Glad you’re up. We’ve got so much work to do.”

“What is all this?” Tanner asks, his brow furrowing.

“Maps, strategic books, lists of recruits, lists of supplies, lists of weapons . . .” Kyle says. I ignore him as he continues rambling on.

Tanner holds up his hand, interrupting Kyle’s flow. “I don’t understand.”

“You didn’t really think we won this planet with that skirmish at the base, did you?” Tori, one of the Ordinary rebel leaders, asks gruffly.

“Well . . .” Tanner mumbles.

Tanner’s biggest concern was Devon, not the war. It’s all he thought about for weeks. He spent all his free time on the ship watching her video, deciphering any clues he could find. He’s been so worried about rescuing her that actually winning the war was not high on his list of priorities.

“Ryland,” Marcus scolds, “You’re going to be late.”

“Sorry!” I snap, my mind returning to the task at hand. “Tanner, they’ll have to catch you up. I’ve got a supply run to make.”

I sprint down the hall, knowing that Kai will be grinding his teeth in frustration. He hates working with Clay, and he hates being stuck here. As I burst into our hangar, I see Mona flittering around in
my
form, touching Kai’s face. Kai is smiling.

“What the heck, Mona?” I snap. “I thought I told you that you aren’t allowed to do that!” Fluffy growls right along with me, as angry with Mona as I am.

Mona gives me a devious smile, her creepy, shimmery form making me shudder. I hate it when she looks like me. Then she changes back into Clay’s mom.

Kai glares at me for a moment before saying, “You’re late,” in a flat, bored tone.

“Tanner’s up,” I shrug in response, keeping my voice cold.

Clay steps into the doorway of the ship and grins at me. “Ryland!” He bolts toward me and wraps me in his arms.

A warm feeling blossoms in my stomach and slowly spreads to my fingers and toes. He plants a soft, warm kiss on my lips, and I smile as he pulls away. Clay may be odd, but his warmth is something I need right now.

“Tanner’s finally awake?” he grins.

I nod. “He’s angry and confused, but at least he’s alright.”

Clay’s face darkens momentarily, but brightens again quickly. “You ready to get off this dreadful base?”

“Dying to!” I squeal as he squeezes me before setting me on the ground. I can’t believe how quickly things changed between us after our rescue. He was so grateful to have me back, safe. He was so open and warm.

His exuberance thrills me as he finds his seat. His joy for flying this ship makes me excited for this run, even if it is just a supply run.

Kai, on the other hand, climbs into the ship, eyeing Mona as he takes the furthest possible seat from us. “Let’s just go,” he says angrily. “And Ryland, get your dog off the ship.”

I turn to glare at him. “Fluffy can stay on the ship with Clay. He’s fine,” I snap.

Kai’s been so dark lately, even more bitter than usual. I wonder if Devon’s betrayal has shocked him to the core and reminded him to stay away from others. I know he still hurts from the loss of his parents.

We are only flying for a few minutes when the ship makes a whirring sound, which I now know means we’re landing. To the west, I can see the buildings that mark the edge of this town. That must be where we’re headed.

“What’s on our list?” I ask Kai, nodding to Clay as he prepares the ship for cargo, Fluffy happily bounding along beside him.

As Kai and I leave the ship, we break into an easy run heading toward the town. “Guns,” Kai says shortly.

“Guns?” I gasp. “Where are we supposed to get guns?”

“The local Enforcer unit,” Kai says, as bluntly as possible, no emotion at all.

“Abandoned?” I ask.

Kai shakes his head no, and my stomach drops.

We are about to fight Shifters. There is a chance that we may have to kill some of them. Even knowing we are fighting for freedom, liberty, and equality, I still hate the idea of killing another person.

I wonder why they sent us on such a dangerous mission; they usually try to keep us safe. But Kai, Clay, and I are the best team they have. Kai and I are excellent fighters, and we are able to work in unison.

Bryce has been placed on a team with several Ordinaries from Six. They are usually the ones who take dangerous missions like this, always volunteering for suicide. I have spoken to Marcus several times about keeping Bryce out of trouble. Perhaps this was his solution.

My legs ache pleasantly as we run into town. I love the feel of running, knowing that I am somehow helping others.

Before we even round the first corner, a blast takes out the wall a mere six inches behind me. I may have moral issues killing them, but they have no problem killing us. I sigh as Kai and I crouch into defensive positions.

So much for my good mood.

Chapter 24

Fifteen Minutes Ago Would Have Been Better

–TANNER–

My entire world changed in two days. Apparently, my sister and Kai are some kind of elite covert ops team. Marcus tries to fill me in on what’s been happening while I was sleeping. The Ordinaries in the room don’t appear to like having me included in their planning. It’s only Marcus and me—with Alli and Elly, staying so close to me it’s almost like I have an extra couple of arms.

Despite the awkward resistance of the Ordinaries, a makeshift war council has been assembled. The J’s and Ordinaries are working for us, trying to put together a network and monitoring system while keeping us informed of the Shifter movements. I ask Marcus where the others are, and he tells me they are setting up a secondary command center.

Kyle and Sol
é
are mostly working together on making sense of her visions, preparing what they can for our upcoming battles. Clay has been too busy piloting to really be much help leading. That’s left Marcus mostly with only Cooper, a strong leader among the Shifter Young; Greg, a strong leader among the Tyros; and Alice, popular with the Sixers, to lead alongside the rebel leaders.

Our council isn’t exactly productive.

I kneel down, look at the two girls, and tell them, “I haven’t eaten in days. I’m so starved. Could you help me out?”

They both nod and smile. They look at each other before running out of the room. I don’t know what they eat here, but it’s gotta be better than nothing.

I stand up, lean close to Marcus and whisper, “I have to talk to you.”

“So talk,” he replies. “We have much to do.”

“In private,” I say.

He eyes me and quietly says, “Your sister already filled me in on what happened. I’m sorry, Tanner, but we have to work with the information we have.”

I’m shocked he is so matter-of-fact. “You don’t understand.”

“No, you don’t understand!” he shouts back. “This is not a game! People are out there dying! What we are doing here, in this room, at this moment, determines who lives and who dies. Don’t you get that?”

I shrink under his stare. As I look around the room, I realize that Marcus is right. For the people in this room, we are talking about their family and friends. “Okay,” I tell him. “You’re right.” I’ll talk about it later though. There was something off about the way Devon responded, even if no one else saw it. I will figure it out. She
can’t
be a traitor, can she
?

I ask him to show me what they have. There are several areas circled in red. He tells me that those are heavy casualty sites—almost entirely Ordinaries, most of which are the innocent mine workers, not our rebel allies. There are lots of them. This is worse than I thought. I point out the black markings and ask, “And these?” He tells me they are rebel strongholds. I look up optimistically and say, “That’s good, right?”

Miles speaks up. “For now. We don’t have the supplies to hold off much longer. We have greater numbers, but they have more weapons, more food, and more advanced tech. Plus, their ships are coming; they just have to wait us out.”

“Where can we get more supplies?” I ask.

Tori—who has become one of the strongest Ordinary voices on our fractured council—answers, “What they have is heavily guarded here, here, and here.” He points out a few locations north of us.

“How is it guarded?” I ask, remembering that there is not a large population of Shifters on this colony.

“They have concentrated their efforts here,” Tori says, pointing to two different fronts to the south of the supply areas.

I point at the map and draw a circle with my finger saying, “What if we come around here and—”

“Won’t work,” Miles cuts me off. “The area is mountainous. That’s why they set up there. The few natural passes that do exist are heavily monitored.” He points to two dark areas in the mountains and says, “Here and here. They have actually embedded themselves into the rock. They used some of our mining gear and miners to create it. That’s how we have this much intel.”

I frown for a long moment before asking, “What if we can take the system down?”

“Not possible,” Tori states, shaking his head.

“I’m not asking if it’s possible,” I say, staring him down. “I’m asking what could you do if it were off-line?”

The Ordinary commanders both shake their heads. Marcus stands straighter and says, “Answer the boy.”

Miles answers, “They would not expect it, but—”

“You haven’t seen what I have,” Marcus tells them. He points at me and says, “This boy turned an entire armada of Colonial war ships on each other.” He stops to let them meditate on that information for about a minute before continuing. “Gather what you require, and we will follow his plan.”

The leaders nod hesitantly. I can tell they don’t trust me.

A younger man runs into the room and says, “They were detected.”

“Who?” Miles shouts.

“The supply run,” the man says.

“My sister?” I ask.

He nods, and we all race to the communication center. Over the speakers, I can hear gunfire and shouting. Someone screams in pain, making the speakers buzz. The communications guy says they are in the munitions building, but they’re pinned down. They need backup.
Now
.

“We need to go!” I shout at them. Several Ordinaries are gathering strange looking weapons and throwing ammunition over their shoulders.

I grab a weapon and start to collect some ammo when Tori says, “Not him!” I look up, and he’s jabbing his finger at me.

“It’s
my
sister!” I yell back.

“Tanner,” Marcus chides.

“I’m going,” my voice is firm.

“No,” he says. “You’re not. You’re not ready yet. We need you here.”

Marcus and several men hurry out of the building, leaving me here to listen to the com feed, completely helpless. Or I should say, useless.

The two little girls rush into the room holding some plates of food. “There you are! We brought your food, and nobody was there,” Alli says, frowning sternly at me.

“Yeah, where did everybody go?” Elly asks, eyes wide in wonder.

–RYLAND–

My hair is now officially full of some hideous orange dust, making me look like a Troll doll. Kai is shouting at me to stay down. He, on the other hand, pulls a weapon from his side and jumps up to shoot above the half wall we’re crouched behind.

Before I have the chance to scream, to tell him not to hurt anyone, to stop him, a shriek rips through the air as a Shifter drops to the ground. The shooting ceases for a moment, and the screaming fills my mind. I know that is the sound of a dying man.

Then a shot blasts the wall directly in front of me, knocking me to the ground. My ears ring, and I can no longer hear anything. I shift just in time to bolt from the ground before I’m torn apart by that now familiar blue light.

The ground where I was only a half second before explodes into a shower of rocks and dust. My throat aches, and I realize I, too, am screaming. I know that I don’t have a choice. I have to fight now or I will die here.

Kai is trying to shoot at the Shifter Enforcer, but he’s trapped behind the short rock wall by a third shooter. I see he’s on the roof of a small building about a block down the street to the south. I believe it’s a house located directly next to the Enforcer headquarters of this town. He is using this home as his vantage point to shoot at us.

This area is one of those marked on the map as a heavy casualty area. If I’m remembering correctly, Ordinaries stopped hearing from their family in this area not long after our fight with Lena. Apparently, the Shifters here thought that the easiest way to avoid rebels infiltrating their town would be to eliminate every Ordinary in the area.

I shudder. Whoever’s house that was probably doesn’t live there anymore.

I take a deep breath and launch myself in the direction of the rooftop, landing directly behind the Shifter. He whirls on me, his weapon aimed at my chest. Before I have time to think about what I’m doing, I twist the weapon in his hands. As he pulls the trigger, his face contorts into a mask of pain.

He falls to the ground, and I have created my first casualty in this war. My hands are caked with his blood, and I feel as though it seeps through my skin, my muscles, my bones and stains my soul. He lies on the ground, and I wonder if he had a family, a mother, father, sister, brother, wife, kids . . .

Kai takes out the final shooter with brutal efficiency, and then we’re entering the Enforcer’s building. Hiding behind a desk is a mousy woman in a gray-brown smock. Kai raises his weapon toward her, but I jump between them.

“She’s Ordinary!” I shout at Kai. “She just works here.”

Kai frowns at me, then lowers his weapon. We take in the small building, completely filled with weaponry. There are guns, stun guns, nightsticks, and even grenades with grenade launchers. My stomach heaves as I think of what these weapons will be used for.

As I stop myself from vomiting, Kai begins loading weapons onto a cart to take back to the ship. The Ordinary woman still stares at us in fear, hands raised.

“Are you alright?” I ask her, trying to calm myself.

She stares at my hands. I try to breathe as I remember I’m covered in blood. I’m covered in the blood of a man she worked with every day.

“We won’t hurt you,” I whisper, my voice barely audible.

“Just leave her,” Kai snaps. “Our mission is almost complete.”

I whirl to glare at him. How can he be so cold? “This isn’t just a mission, Kai. We’re at war to rescue these people from their oppression.” I point emphatically at the poor woman on the ground, eyes wide with terror. “These people!”

Kai rolls his eyes. “I’ll take this back to the ship and return for the rest. You need to be ready to go by the time I get back.”

I settle myself on the floor a few feet away from the woman. She slowly lowers her hands, but she still trembles like a leaf. Her body is so thin and frail that it’s a wonder how she survives the shaking.

“My name is Ryland,” I say as calmly as I can manage.

Her eyes grow impossibly wide like a cat’s. “Ryland?” she says in a hollow voice. Her voice sounds like hunger, a ravenous empty sound that tears at my soul.

I nod softly. “What’s your name?”

She furrows her brow as though she is not sure how to respond to this question. “They said you were here to destroy us.”

I shake my head softly. “No, we’re here to make sure you get treated fairly, equally.”

She stares blankly at me as though the concept of equality is completely foreign to her.

“It isn’t right,” I continue. “They shouldn’t have better things than you or be able to treat you badly simply because you aren’t like them.”

“But . . .” she shakes her head in awe. “No one is allowed to say that. If you say that, they kill you.”

“They can try,” I say quietly, my voice a firm whisper. “But I’m a Shifter, too.”

“That’s impossible!” she gasps. “They killed the young!”

“Not all of us,” I say with an encouraging smile.

“What will happen to me now?” she asks, frightened as a lost kitten in a downpour.

“Would you like to come with me?” I ask.

“Why?” she asks nervously.

“I’d like to be your friend,” I say, smiling softly.

Slowly, she nods. I extend my hand. She hesitates for a moment, eyeing the blood there, but reaches out her pale, semi-translucent hand to take mine.

As we rise to head outside, Kai appears. He makes a small huffing sound as he sees us, but he doesn’t say anything. He puts the rest of the weapons on the cart before following us out into the fading day.

Just as we exit the building, ships appear around us. My new friend rips her hand from mine, the blood making it stick just a little as she backs away, gasping in horror.

Marcus leans his head out of the door of the ship directly above us shouting, “I thought you needed help?”

Kai gives him a glare. “Not anymore.”

“We could have used your help about fifteen minutes ago . . .” I grumble.