Aeon Legion: Labyrinth (35 page)

Overton held up a hand. “The
school nurse said it was just a small cut. She won't even need
stitches and there doesn't seem to be any serious trauma.”

Beth narrowed her gaze. “I
don't understand. Terra has never been violent at home. Stubborn yes,
but she never acted in anger or rage.”

Fred rubbed his forehead. “We
had no problems last year. Was she provoked?”

Overton leaned back in his
chair. “It doesn't matter if she was provoked. She needs to
understand how to resolve her problems without violence.”

Beth turned to Terra. “Well,
young lady? Explain yourself.”

Terra looked up at her
parents. “She called me dirt girl.”

Fred raised an eyebrow.
“That's it? That's not even clever. Could you at least have waited
for her call you a curse word or something?”

Beth pursed her lips before
turning to Fred. “Don't encourage her.”

Terra crossed her arms. “She
had everyone calling me that.”

Overton shook his head. “You
can't just ac–”

Terra stood. “They do it
every day!”

Overton spoke in an even tone.
“They are just words.”

Terra glared at Overton. “She
had a boy keep pushing me down.”

Overton gestured to Terra.
“Then you should have gone to a teacher for help.”

Terra clinched her fists to
her side. “Val would have just gotten another boy to push me. She's
the real problem. The teacher likes her more than me so the teacher
won't help.”

Overton's eyebrows drew
together. “Is that why you attacked Valerie? I don't understand.
Her teacher adores her.”

Terra glowered. Teary eyed,
Terra folded her arms and sank into her seat, remaining silent.

Overton sighed, rubbing his
forehead. “Mr. and Mrs. Mason, the truth is that I called you here
for more than this incident. Has she been giving you trouble at
home?”

Fred and Beth shared a look.
Fred finally spoke. “Not really. We have a little trouble getting
her to do her chores.”

Beth rolled her eyes. “And
good luck getting her to stay clean. She is always playing in the
dirt and tracks mud in the house constantly.”

Overton shook his head. “Not
that. Behavioral problems regarding social skills. Does she play well
with other children?”

Fred and Beth were silent for
a moment. Fred then spoke. “Well, she doesn't play with other
children. No other children live near us.”

Overton nodded. “I see. I am
concerned. Her teacher has brought to my attention that Terra has
difficulty making friends. Even before she started throwing rocks at
people.”

Beth looked at Terra. “Is
this true?”

Terra glared at Beth. “They
all hate me because they think I'm strange. Because I don't like the
things they like.” Terra looked away. “They like boring things. I
like stones. Stones are interesting. I found some dolomite today.
Yesterday I found magnetite which can be used to make iron. That iron
can have carbon added to it to cast pig iron. That pig iron can then
be refined into steel.”

Overton stared at Terra for a
long moment. “That is... interesting. You have a lot of knowledge
on metallurgy, but maybe you could make more friends if you tried
some different things? People can be interesting too. How can a stone
be better than a person?”

Terra looked Overton straight
in the eyes. “Stones don't hurt my feelings.”

∞

Beth and Fred had Terra sit in
the kitchen. Terra could tell this would not be pleasant from the
silent car ride home.

Beth faced Fred after putting
down her pocket book. “Will you be okay with your boss?”

Fred sighed, opening up the
cabinet. “It'll be fine. I just have to work another shift this
Sunday to make up for it.”

Beth sighed. “As if we
didn't see each other enough already.”

Fred shrugged while rummaging
through the cabinet. “It'll be okay. They can't keep you down
forever at the office.”

Beth rubbed her forehead. “I
don't know. This damn glass ceiling. And now this at the school! And
with the mortgage...”

“It will be okay,” Fred
added. He took out a sizable whiskey bottle from the cabinet.

Beth turned to Terra. “Terra,
you need to at least try to get along with the other children.”

Terra stared at Beth without a
change in expression.

Beth grimaced. “Don't be
like that. Me and your father do not have time to keep you out of
trouble at school on top of all our other problems.”

Terra continue to stare.

Beth shook her head. “Listen
he–”

The phone rang. Fred moved to
get it.

Beth stared at Fred, her face
pale.

Fred hung up the phone.
“Collection agency.”

Beth put her hand over her
mouth. “God. I don't know how much longer I can do this.”

Fred poured himself a glass of
whiskey with shaky hands. “I got a few things I can sell to make
the next payment.”

Beth folded her arms. “What
about the one after that!”

Fred slammed the whiskey
bottle on the table. “Damn it! I don't know!”

Terra shrank back in her seat,
tears forming in her eyes.

Fred frowned, one of the few
times Terra had ever see him frown or angry. “I am doing everything
I can! I'm pushing seventy two hours a week as it is. At least you
get air conditioning!”

Beth put her hands on her
hips. “You think it's easy for me? They pay me a pittance to
babysit corporate officers who take credit for my leadership!”

Terra started crying.

Beth turned to Terra. “Stop
crying! Crying never helps! It only makes things worse!”

It was too much. Bullies could
push her down, but seeing her parents like this. Her instincts took
over and Terra ran out the front door to the one place she felt safe.
With tears in her eyes, Terra kept running until she came to the
quarry. There she climbed down onto the first tier and curled up
amongst stone.

Terra liked the cold stone.
Stone didn't feel, it didn't cry. She stared at the stone for what
felt like a long time. What if she could be like the stone?
Unfeeling, cold, and impervious. That was what she wanted to be right
now.

Terra stopped crying. Stones
don't cry. She let the feelings bleed out of her until only her will
remained. From now on, she would be stone.

“Terra!” Beth cried in the
distance.

“Terra!” came Fred's voice
nearby.

After a moment Terra saw the
shadow of someone peering over the edge of the quarry.

“I found her!” Fred
yelled. He climbed down and tried to pick up Terra.

Terra shook her head. “I
want to stay here.”

“Is she okay?” Beth asked,
peeking over the quarry.

Fred sat next to Terra. “She's
fine.”

Beth climbed down and embraced
Terra. “I am so sorry! I didn't mean to yell at you. We are all
just having a really bad day. That's all.”

Terra looked up at her
parents. “It's okay. I won't cry ever again.”

Fred and Beth stared at Terra.

Terra cast her gaze upon the
cold stone. “Stones don't cry. Stones can be fine when they are
alone. I want to be as strong as stone. Unfeeling stone.”

Remember that each tiro
captured grants a week of both extra rations and leave, but keep your
guard up. They can and will kill you and your team if you are not
careful. Bear in mind that they are recruits, but recruits who have
already been through three weeks of Kali cursed nightmarish training.
In addition, watch out for local wildlife. Don't neglect terrain. Don
your masks and good hunting.”

-Message from Central Command
to all pursuit forces

T
erra
woke
, expecting a hard day at school. Instead she remembered where
she was and wished she could trade it for a hard day at school.

Hikari was up, but moving
slowly while trying to stifle a yawn. Her once smooth hair was now
twisted in a mass, while a black smudge covered much of her face.
Hikari's bloodshot eyes looked up at the sky at the sound of a
passing jet. Terra paid it no mind at first.

“What is that sound?”
Hikari asked as she grew alert.

“Just an aircraft, probably
a jet. Wait...” Terra stopped when she remembered she was in the
cretaceous.

They both took cover nearby.
When the sound passed they relaxed.

“A timeship from Saturn
City?” Terra asked as she scanned the sky.

Hikari remained alert and
still. “Better to not take chances. Just like those soldiers in
black.”

“Wait,” Terra said,
turning to Hikari. “Soldiers in dark uniforms? You saw them too?”

Hikari nodded. “A few days
ago. They attempted to track me. I evaded them. I assume they are a
part of the test.”

Terra frowned. That would be
just like Lycus to throw them an unexpected twist in the middle of
the training.

Terra and Hikari grabbed what
they could and set out for the tall mountain to the east. Hikari's
protests against finding the rest of the team now vanished.

They walked forward, both
careful to cover their tracks and passed two camps on their travels.
One was occupied by a group of tirones from another team. Terra
recognized Tacitus in the camp. They had built a small fort.

“Show offs,” Terra said in
a low tone. They both moved on not wishing to draw attention.
Thankfully, his strike team appeared watchful for another enemy. With
their focus elsewhere, Hikari and Terra sneaked by without trouble.

They passed an abandoned
second camp. Boot prints covered the ground while the blasted stumps
of trees still smoldered.

“What manner of weapon did
this?” Hikari asked, inspecting a scorched tree.

Terra inspected the burnt
debris. “I wondered if someone smuggled in some big guns?”

Hikari shook her head. “I do
not like this. We need to find the others now.”

Terra shifted uncomfortably at
seeing Hikari worried. Hikari turned to face movement nearby. With a
flash of motion, she jumped into a nearby cluster of brush and threw
another tiro into the open.

Terra gritted her teeth and
moved to defend herself, but sighed in relief when she recognized
Zaid.

∞

Hikari did not apologize for
attacking Zaid. She did, however, return with him and Terra to his
camp without protest. Zaid explained that he had visited the
abandoned camp after he heard a commotion the night before. Other
camps had been attacked as well.

With the strike team assembled
they pooled resources over the next few days. Terra gave Zaid and the
others a brief lesson on dinosaurs. Zaid shared obsidian daggers with
the rest of the team. One teammate had made water skins while another
had made a bow. Even Hikari helped by showing everyone how to build a
smokeless fire pit in the evening.

A tiro looked to a nearby herd
of dinosaurs in the distance. The herd was barely visible in the
fading light. “So you say these giant chickens–”