United (The Guardians Book 2) (12 page)

Nicky appeared from nowhere right in front of her underneath a wave of water. He coughed and groaned, and behind him came the scientist. . .then Hue. . .Cadby. . .Ward. . .

That was everyone. They'd all made it!

She cried out in elation until she realized that two of them, Cadby and the scientist, weren't moving.

Ignoring her aching chest and pounding head, Gable pulled herself up and raced past Ward to drop down by Cadby's side. Behind her, she heard Zay do the same with the scientist.

She ripped off his backpack and tilted his head back. He wasn't breathing!

“Don't you dare die on me,” she choked out. She couldn't lose him too. Not Cadby. He was one of the only people left in the whole world that she could truly rely on, that she
loved
. The only other person who mourned Sacha almost as much as she. They were linked in so many ways.

Pulling his mouth open, she pressed her lips against his and breathed into his mouth before beginning CPR.

“Come on, Cadby!” she demanded, her eyes filled with terrified tears. “Come on! Wake up.”

Suddenly he convulsed. He let out a hacking cough and turned to throw up a crap load of water – it was the most wonderful thing Gable had ever seen. She sat back on her heels and closed her eyes in sheer relief, praying to God for thanks for the first time in many, many years.

Cadby rolled onto his back and looked up at her, his familiar smile lighting up his whole face. “We made it.”

“We sure did.”

He laughed; a crazy gesture, yet she understood because the same exuberance was running through her own veins. Cadby reached up quickly to grab her face between both hands, placing a playful kiss on her lips. Though it surprised her, it was short and sweet and friendly and she didn't mind a bit.

Grinning, she helped him stand. Hue and Ward slapped him on the back (because they were men and they were lame and that was the only way they could show him they were happy he was alive). Nearby, Nicky and Zay were each holding one of the scientist's arms.

She rolled her eyes in exasperation. “I can stand, you guys.”

“You almost
died
,” Zay pointed out.

“We all almost died.”

“Yes, but you
really
almost died. I'm not letting go of you this entire trip, you realize that?”

Shaking her head in amusement, she didn't argue any further; probably because she knew it wasn't exactly a realistic threat.

It was nice watching them, Gable decided. Those guys were a team, but they were also a family. She couldn't ever imagine fitting in somewhere like that.

Ward slung a wet arm around her shoulders. “We're all here!” he called out, giving a whoop of exhilaration. “We made it. We made it to Zawavia! The faerie freaking realm!”

Whether it was from exhaustion or lightheadedness or just pure relief, they all began to laugh. Quiet little peals at first, quickly morphing into uncontrollable bellows that had them bending over and holding their sides.

Yet though they celebrated, Gable could see a sliver of darkness in each of their eyes. It was a feeling she knew well, a feeling she'd become very familiar with in her year spent with Pablo. The experience they'd all just shared, almost dying like that, forcing themselves off the edge of that boat, knowing they could drown. . .they wouldn't forget it, not ever. Being forced to confront death head first changed a person in so many ways.

“This beach is incredible,” Cadby breathed, when they'd finally calmed down. “The sand is perfect; I've never seen anything like it.”

He was right. They'd landed – or appeared, or. . .swam? – onto a long, seemingly endless stretch of tropical beach. The sand beneath their feet was finer and smoother than silk, a shade of white Gable hadn't even known existed. Not too far away, the ocean splashed gently into the sand, playfully tossed around by a gentle, warm breeze. It sparkled with a myriad of fantastical colors – blues and greens and purples, like someone had sapped all the color from a million brilliant gemstones and mixed it together. It was unlike anything they'd ever seen on earth.

“Check out that sky,” Zay marveled. It glowed orange and red, with swirls of pink and green in the setting sun. Two moons were already rising; one silver, and a smaller in the palest green.

“But it was morning,” Nicky pointed out with a frown. “I mean, it was morning, right? How long were we in the water?”

“Time moves differently here, I guess. Different realms and all.”

“Good point.” Nicky scratched his chin. “Gotta say, it's not as
different
as I expected. Apart from the awesome ocean which I'd totally wanna swim in if I wasn't shitting scared of the water for
life
now, and the extra moon, and the time difference. . .”

“And this air,” Ward added, lifting his chin and inhaling deeply. “Have you ever breathed in anything so fresh?”

“Not in any of the countries I've visited,” said Hue. “And I've traveled a helluva lot. It feels good, right? Rejuvenating.”

“Exactly.”

“Well, aside from all that,” Nicky decided. “I guess I was just expecting the place to be weirder.”

Cadby eyed him, amused. “You look disappointed.”

“Naw, he's right,” Zay agreed. “It's definitely not as weird as I thought it'd be.”

“Um, you guys. . .” the scientist spoke up. Unlike the rest of them she was no longer facing the ocean. She'd turned in the opposite direction and was staring at something with rapt attention.

Almost in unison, the rest of the group turned. Behind them lay a vast rainforest, with trees wider and taller than anything any of them had ever seen before. They'd been so mesmerized by the sea and the sky that they hadn't even noticed it, but now they had, it was hard to tear their eyes away.

Gable felt her jaw drop as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing. “Well. . .there's your different, Nicky.”

“You don't fucking say.” He shook his head, gaping.

There was something about the rainforest, something
wrong
. Something intensely creepy about the trees and the forbidding darkness that lay beyond the beach. Not only were the trees bigger than they were back home, but they were
pulsing
, as if they were alive and watching them right back. Vines ran up the trunks, though they were dark and thick and. . .oddly skin like.

Cadby grimaced. “They look like
veins
.”

“They're kind of horrifying,” the scientist agreed. She glanced at Zay. “We have to go in there, don't we?”

He nodded reluctantly, though he still couldn't seem to drag his gaze away from the rainforest. None of them could. It was like watching something horrific, an awful car crash that no one could look away from even though the sight of it was sickening. “We need to get off the beach – it's too exposed. Pablo's partner will have guards and they could patrol here any minute. We need the element of surprise – with our low numbers it's the best thing going for us. We need. . .” He sighed. “We need the cover of those
trees
so we can make camp before night completely falls.”

“I kind of hate your logic right now.”

“Yeah, I know. Me too.”

They dragged themselves back to their abandoned packs and pulled out the weights.

“We should bury them,” Hue suggested. “Don't want the guards stumbling across them and getting suspicious.”

“Good idea.”

It didn't take them long to finish their task, and soon they were hoisting their considerably lighter packs and cautiously entering the eerie rainforest.

“You know,” Cadby mused as they started to trek. “Those weights were kind of a good thing. Now that I've held the pack
with
them, it doesn't seem so bad without them.”

The poor guy was going to have some seriously aching muscles the next day, but Gable didn't have the heart to tell him.

The air inside the rainforest, though not quite as fresh as on the beach, was still warm, but it lacked the dampness that usually came with the terrain. Gable was grateful; she was finally beginning to dry off.

Darkness shrouded them the further they walked. There were no clear paths so they had to cut their own, beating their way through thick foliage and scraping their hands raw as they climbed over fallen tree trunks and sharp rocks. It was hard, relentless work.

They'd been walking in near silence, too busy trying to catch their breath and keep themselves from falling to make conversation, when Ward suddenly came to a stop. “I feel weird,” he mumbled, holding a hand to his head. “I need to sit down, just for a minute.”

“Me too,” Cadby agreed, looking paler than normal. He stumbled, and Gable jumped to catch his arm.

“I can see a clearing up ahead,” said a worried Zay. “Come on, we can rest there.”

When they got to the clearing, Nicky immediately dropped to the ground, gripping his head between his hands and groaning.

“You too?” Zay asked, but was immediately distracted by the scientist, who slid down and pressed her face to her knees.

Zay and Gable glanced at each other, at a loss. “You okay?”

“I feel fine,” she replied. Better than fine. The air really had done her wonders.

“So do I. Hue?”

“I'm great.”

“It's just the Outcasts,” Gable said as realization dawned. “Zawavia is affecting them. Terelle said this would happen.”

“It's not too bad,” Ward tried to assure them from where he was sat on a fallen log. Even as he spoke, thin, grassy vines shot up out of the ground and wrapped themselves around his legs, like they were desperate to get close to him. But when he closed his eyes and took a deep, calming breath, they shrank back down. He was good at controlling himself. “The dizziness and head pounding has passed. I just feel unstable, like there's a boatload of adrenaline rushing through my veins. It feels like a serious caffeine high, only turned up a hundred notches.”

“Terelle said you might be stronger,” Gable reminded him. “but your powers will be unstable.”

Zay nodded. “I know it must be hard, but it's important you try your best to keep your powers under control. You especially, Ward. Cadby, Queenie and Nicky's powers are mostly mental, but your earth powers could do some serious damage if left unchecked. I'm talking earthquakes just for starters.”

“I know. I'll try.”

“I don't think I'm so bad now either,” the scientist spoke up. She'd pulled her face away from her knees though she still had them tucked tightly to her chest.

“I didn't know she was an Outcast,” Hue whispered to Gable.

“Psychic,” she told him. “Specifically a seer. But I guess it's supposed to be a secret or somethin'. Don't tell your bosses.”

“My lips are sealed. I won't tell a soul.” She knew he was speaking the truth. If they made it through this mission in one piece, the seven of them would be bonded for life. They would always protect one another, no matter what.

“I'm okay too,” Cadby called. “I'm pretty sure I can keep control so long as I concentrate.”

“What about you, Nicky?”

Nicky didn't answer Zay's question; he didn't even seem to hear it. He was kneeling on the mossy ground, hunched over with his head gripped in his hands as he mumbled something low and incomprehensible. His black hair was sticking out at all angles from where he'd pulled at it in distress. Out of all of the Outcasts, he seemed to be having the worst time of it.

“Nicky,” Gable breathed, running to him and dropping to her knees. She yanked both of their packs off and peeled his hands from his face, holding them tightly in hers.

“There's too many.” He squeezed his eyes shut and lowered his head. She wasn't sure if he even realized she was there. “There's too many.”

“Too many what, Nicky?” she asked gently, rubbing her thumbs over his wrists. He was trembling.

She'd tried not to care for him, tried really, really hard. Not only because caring about people led to loss and pain and emptiness, and not only because she didn't have
time
to care for anyone when all she wanted to do was bring Sacha home. But because after everything she'd done for Pablo, after all of the choices
she'd
made, she didn't feel like she
deserved
to have people to care about. And then Nicky had barged back into her life like a raging bull, shattering her carefully built walls to pieces and she just couldn't help it. She couldn't help but care, and seeing him in so much pain and distress made her dark heart ache.

He glanced up at her with red rimmed, haunted eyes. “Too many shadows. Too many lost souls. All the people Pablo had murdered. . . There's so many of them. They were tortured, Gable. Tortured and tested and locked away until they wished for death just so they could finally be free. But they're not. They're lost and they just want to go home. They're all trying to get to me at once and I just can't. . . I just can't. . .” He closed his eyes again and shook his head, over and over and over again until Gable had to press her forehead against his to stop him.

She slid her fingers up his strong forearms and over his muscular shoulders until she was cupping his cheeks in her hands. “Just try to concentrate on me, okay? Look at my face and concentrate on me. Drown them out until you can clear your head.”

Nodding, he opened his eyes. They were unfocused, but the longer he gazed at her, the stiller he became, until his trembles had all but vanished.

“He needs to help them,” Cadby told her as he sat down next to them. He placed a sympathetic hand on Nicky's shoulder. “Back home he's gotten good at switching if off when he needs to, but with Zawavia increasing our powers, he's too overwhelmed. Helping them find the light is the only way he'll get any peace and the only way he'll be able to continue with the mission.”

“Drugs'll help,” Nicky muttered. Gable wasn't sure whether or not he was kidding.

Cadby glanced up at Zay, who was watching on with concern. “We'll need to make camp here. If there's as many lost souls as I sense there is his energy will be almost depleted after he's helped them all. He won't be able to do anything other than sleep for the rest of the night.”

Zay nodded. “This seems like a good a spot as any. We've walked far enough away from the beach for tonight.”