Changing of the Glads (7 page)

Max faded in the distance.  She was sure he was worried about reaching this Kilapon place before the sun sank.  Vile liquid bubbled up in her throat, burning it.  She swallowed hard and leaned against the bumpy bark of the nearest tree.  The ground shifted beneath her.  One leg shot out to catch the sudden change, but her senses tricked her, and she clattered to the ground.

Now the steady drum of continuous slamming gates filled every inch of her skull as she lay in the poking needles.  She lifted her hand in an effort to signal Max and bring him back.  The sudden movement shot sour liquid into her mouth, and she barely managed to turn her head as it bubbled out and ran down the side of her face.  No strength left to call out.  No way to fight the pain or signal her position to Max. 

Now, even her eyes refused to open.  The bile rose again and bubbled down the side of her face while she lay helpless to do anything about it.  No longer could she lift the boulders that were her arms and legs.  Every joint cried out.  Even her most trying bout in the arena never affected her like this.  Was this what it felt like to die?  Would Max even notice
she wasn’t with him anymore?

A finger traced her brow.  “Zalphia?  What is wrong?”

Opening her eyes a sliver, she tried to answer, but her stomach rolled and the liquid bubbling out of her mouth was all she could muster.

“No! No!”

The sound of his voice tore at her pounding head, and she squeezed her eyes shut.  She tried to raise her hand and halt his words, but it barely cleared the layer of needles before dropping back down. 

Kill me now.  Put me out of this misery.

This was more than she could endure.  If he cared at all for her, he’d end it.

Max slipped an arm beneath her neck and lifted her head. “Zalphia, please, try to open your eyes.  Look at me.  I know that it hurts, but I need to see your eyes.”

She clenched her teeth, stuffed the pain back the best she could, and managed to make her eyelids flutter.  Light shot a bolt four times stronger than the lightning stick straight into her brain, and a shriek ripped from her throat.

“No, it cannot be.  Oh, dear Selestia. Platy chipped you.”

His words ripped through her, pulling muscle from bone and arching her back.  Another scream echoed through the trees.

As Max laid her back down, the simple poke of the needles against her legs stole her attention.  How could she feel that when pain more intense than anything she’d ever suffered serrated every nerve?

“Zalphia... can you hear me?”

She managed a subtle nod, but the movement sent a million knifes cutting through everything from her eyes to the back of her head.

“I must remove the chip, do you understand?”

Stop talking.  Stop the pain. 

She didn’t care what he did now.  If only he would quit adding more to what she already bore. 

“I have no painkillers.  Nothing to deaden the area in which I need to work.”

She managed to brush a finger against his knee.  Whatever this chip was, she wished he’d hurry and get it out. 

“
Pleaaaseee.”  The sound of her voice sent shock waves rolling over every inch of her body.

Max entered her mind.  He tried to lead her to their spot with the tree and the tinkling water, but he faded before she could grab his hand.

Hold on to my voice.  Listen to the music.

He sang to her. 

More pain joined what was going on inside as she felt Max working just above her hairline. 

A flap of skin folded over her aching eyes, turning the red she was seeing through her closed eyelids to deep ebony.  Everything faded when she felt his blade sawing into her skull.

***

Soft cello music dimmed as Zalphia came back to consciousness.  She floated on a feathery cloud, and a light breeze cooled her fevered skin.  Darkness met her eyes when they opened.  No longer did the tall trees reach for the sky. Instead, they grew sideways, but no branches, leaves, or green graced the trunks.  Grass grew overhead, not on the ground where it belonged.  It reminded her of a cage.  However, there were no bars covering the way to the outside.  A solid wall of wood surrounded her and the only opening, which sat on the wall opposite where she lay, was covered with more wood. 

What was this place?  Somehow it seemed familiar, but try as she might, she couldn’t place why or what to call it.  She slid her hands over the material covering her.  It felt like water but solid and smooth.  Her head rested on another type of cloud.  One so soft she seemed to float.  Reaching up to her hairline, she felt a raised ridge. The pounding was gone, replaced by a gentle, calm feeling. 

Max.
  His mind remained inside hers, holding her tenderly.  His strength flowed into her body. 

She sucked in a quick breath.  This feeling – she’d felt it before when she had been hurt during her first match in the arena.

The door opened, and Max entered, carrying a stick with flame on the end, which he placed in a holder on the wall.  “Zalphia, you’re awake.  Thank goodness.”  He pulled a chair close and sat.

She reached for his hand.  “Max, what happened?”

He took her outstretched fingers between his palms.  “The Glad trainer put a tiny grain inside your head, tucked into your brain.”  He pointed to his head.  “In the gray matter.  That way, if you moved too far away from her, your brain... well, you would die.”

“Platy would never kill me.  I’ve never done anything to try and leave.  Besides, she adored me and the winning I did.”

“That maybe so, but the Glad arena is harsh.  Do you not know that trainers have been killed and their Glads stolen?  Platy made sure that would never happen.  Everyone must be aware because no one tried to steal you.  I have been stolen seven times since I began to fight.”  His shoulders slumped, and his eyes darkened.  “I am sorry.  I should have recognized it would be so.”  He brushed her cheek with his finger.

Closing her eyes, she let his presence seep into every inch of her.  When she opened them again, she smiled.  “You’re so good to me.  How do you know about the tricks and secrets of the arena?”

“Simeon taught me all he thought I needed to know, but I never dreamed I might have to do something like this out here in the wilderness.  And cutting you the way I did, I feared I would be the one to kill you.”

“How could you kill me?  You were saving me from – what did you call it?”

“A chip.  You could not understand.  I had to open up your head and take it out.  A very delicate procedure to be performed with only just a knife.  It was necessary to use the poison from the sticks on you, and for that, I am sorry.”

“I don’t remember anything but the pain.  Thank you.  You saved me. Again.”

“You still have no understanding about us, but you will.  Are you hungry?”

“How long have I been asleep?  And where are we?”

“You have been unconscious for three days.  For all that time, I tried to heal you, but it has been slow.  I was afraid I went too far into your brain and left you unresponsive.  You have no idea how glad I am to see your eyes open.”

She reached up to the raised ridge where he had cut into her head.  “How’d you do all this?”

“That is not important.  What is important is that you are alive and awake.  Now, are you hungry?”

“No.”  She glanced again at her surroundings.  “This place is strange.  What is it?”

“It is called a cabin, a hunter’s cabin.”

“Cabin?”

He nodded.  “A place the hunters stay while searching for game.  After securing meat, they return to their homes.”

“Hunters?”

“There is so much to teach you.  But for now, you need your rest.”  He placed a hand against her cheek.  He knew every part of her, and every part of her reacted to even the slightest touch.

“Max, stay here with me.”

He scooped her into his arms, sat, and rested her in his lap. 

Her limbs sagged and felt like the lead weights she used during training.  Resting her head against his bare chest, she listened to the slow rhythm of his heart.  Warmth flowed through her like sunshine rising over the mountains back home as day began. 

He pressed his lips to her hair.

The simple gesture sent shivers racing up her spine.  She wished for more than a simple kiss and being held in his massive arms.  More than the closeness of his skin or the mere touch of his hand.  She wanted something to curb an appetite that had nothing to do with hunger, yet growled for relief below her stomach.

“Not yet, my love.  You must heal.”

“What?” She pulled away from the warmth of his skin and looked into his eyes.

“You want to become one with me, but you are not well enough.  There will be time.  He put his hand on her cheek and gently pressed her head back against his chest.  “Soon.  Very soon.  I have not the will to resist for long when it comes to you.  As soon as you are well enough, I promise, we will be one.”

She had no idea what he was talking about, becoming one, but sensed it would be wonderful.  For now, she would stay content to be held.  To feel him close and know this special being was hers.  He knew so many things and was content to just hold her when he wanted something she only had an inkling existed.  Something she longed for with every fiber of her being, although she had no idea what
it
entailed.  She closed her eyes and wondered, then drifted off.

CHAPTER 7

The twittering of birds called to Zalphia’s foggy mind and teased her eyes open.  Sunlight seeped through the strange sideways trees.  She tried to lift her head.  Crap, it was heavy.  She might as well be trying to lift someone twice her size instead of simply rising into a sitting position like she did every other morning.  Letting her head fall back, she was grateful for the feathery cloud beneath it.  Wouldn’t want to break things with her rock-like head.

“Max?” 

The sound of a raspy whisper barely slipped past her cracked lips.

Coming, Zalphia.  Be patient, I will be there shortly.

Gathering what strength she could muster, she once again fought to raise the dense weight which had become her head.  Air barely sifted between her hair and the cushiony surface of the pillow before the world tilted sharply to the right and spun away.  Closing her eyes, she once again relaxed and let her head plop down.  Had removing a chip, as Max called it, also taken away her ability to remain upright?  She wouldn’t be able to fight if the trackers showed up here.  Heck, she doubted she could do anything but lie here and watch them kill Max and her or let them haul her away to be crushed beneath the stones.  Would she ever recover enough for them to flee?

The door flew open, and Max rushed to her side.  “It is all right, I am here.”

“My head.  Something’s wrong with the world.  It slid away from me.”

“I know, love.  You have not fully healed yet.”

She opened her eyes and reached for him.  “How long will it be?”   

Concern etched on his face, he rested a palm against her cheek.  “I do not know.  I truly expected it before now.  I am very sorry, but we must leave right away.  Those who pursue us are but a day away.  With your condition, we will be unable to move very fast.  We cannot take the chance they will catch up to us.  You will have to allow me to carry you.”

She couldn’t ask him to carry her.  He’d already done that during the skunk incident.  She couldn’t expect him to shoulder all the supplies and her besides.  He had already done more than he should have on her behalf.  Taking a deep breath, she summoned every ounce of strength and pushed him away. 

“No, I’ll walk.”  She fought with her rock-like head and managed to raise it from its cradle.  Gritting her teeth, she sat and then shoved against the bed with all her might, managing to straighten her back. 
There! I’ve done it.

The floor slowly spun off to the left, and Zalphia stepped to the right, trying desperately to remain vertical in this tipsy world.  That simple action caused the floor’s speed to increase, and she shuffled quickly with both feet, trying to keep pace.  Her arms
windmilled frantically as balance would be the key to remain standing.  Then she grabbed for something, anything to help her counter the quickness with which the floor raced toward her head.  Nothing availed itself to her grip, and she felt the battle being lost.

Max’s hands slipped around her waist as her arms pummeled his face, and she closed her eyes.  The sensation of falling ceased, and she slumped against him. 

“Do not try that again,” he said. 

She opened one eye and met his determined look. 

“I
will
take care of you.  You are no longer required to make your own way.  I am here to watch over and protect you.  Do you understand?”

She nodded, and the world spun again. “Ugh.”  She closed her eyes and waited for the spinning to stop.  “Son-of-a –.”

His fingers covered her lips. “Please, no cursing.”

“That’s not cussing.  It’s describing the way I feel.”

She felt more than heard his chuckle.  “Whatever you say.  But from now on, please refrain from that phrase.  I do not like it.”

“Okay.” One eyebrow lifted.  “Sorry I hurt your ears.”  Even as the sarcasm left her lips, she felt the pain she inflicted on him deep within her own chest.

“Max?”  She opened her eyes and laid a hand against his cheek.  “I’m sorry.  I didn’t know you felt so strongly about it.  I’ll watch my language.”

He merely nodded and laid her back down.  “Lie still while I gather our provisions.  I wish you had time to eat something, but we must hurry.”

Everything spinning made her stomach uneasy, and the mention of food caused a rolling deep inside.  “Oh.”  Her tongue flicked out, and she pulled it back in.  “I’m not sure eating would be a good thing right now.”

He hurried back to her.  “Are you all right?”

“Maybe some water.”

He raised a skin pouch to her mouth, and cool water dribbled down her throat.  Just as she felt she might get a good gulp, he took it away.  “Not too much. It will make your stomach worse.”

Easy for him to say.  Her tongue almost filled her mouth with its excessive bulk.  Even her cheeks felt twice their normal size.  Fire scalded her throat, and the water barely began to grab at the licking flames.  Not only that, but the pounding of dehydration thrummed inside her head like distant thunder during a storm.  No, she needed more of the soothing wetness to alleviate her symptoms.

“Just a couple more swallows?” she begged.

“Fine, but just a bit.”

The pouch again touched her lips, and she sipped slowly.

“That’s enough.”  Max withdrew the water.  “Better?”

“Yes, thank you.”

The simple generosity in his eyes, mixed with everything her body was enduring, tightened her chest and pooled tears at the corner of her eyes.  Was it the way she felt or the concern and pain she saw mirrored in his gaze that garnered this reaction?  She had no idea, but a tear slid toward her hairline. 

Max scooped her into his arms.  “It will be all right.  I am here.  This surgery has cost you greatly.”

“Surgery?”

“Me cutting the chip from your brain.  Your emotions were tempered by it.  Now they are free and flowing.  I suspect you will feel more than you ever have before.  It will take some getting used to.”

The mere mention of emotions sent her back to the early days of Glad training.  Platy had constantly reminded her that emotion was bad.  Smiling would bring punishment.  But tears?  Tears were the ultimate sign of weakness.  Zalphia had been schooled, tortured, and trained until no matter what they inflicted upon her, nothing showed on her face. 

Had she not learned to suppress it all by herself?  Could it be that no matter what they did, she hadn’t been good enough, and Platy stooped to outside means to drive emotion from her Glad?  If there had been a chip, why did she still feel guilty each time she killed a training
partner or another Glad?  Wouldn’t that be impossible?  She learned to stuff those emotions in the place inside her mind where they wouldn’t affect her.  If Platy resorted to using a chip, how come the guilt remained? 

As Zalphia recalled all she had been put through to become the fighter she was, she hit a wall as hard as rock, and something inside shattered.  Her chest burned, matching the sensation in her throat.  It was true.  She hadn’t been able to stifle emotion on her own. 

Swallowing hard, she fought the squeezing in her lungs and blinked at the tears swimming in her eyes. 
Noooo
.  She was stronger than this.  One choked gasp, and the sorrow let loose.  Tears streamed down her face, and great sobs shook not only her frame, but her thoughts as well. 

She
was
weak.  Weak as those who she’d seen display this sort of behavior in training.  She hadn’t managed it all on her own.  Platy
chipped her
to eliminate emotion
. 

Max slid her onto his lap, rocked back and forth, and sang softly in her ear.  “Hush, now, my darling.  Darling, don’t you cry.  I will hold you until night descends and the angels fly by.  When morning wakes us, we will be close to home.  Then you will see, my darling.  I never left you alone.” 

The melody pulled her from studying her weakness, and the words sent her back to the strange tree with the drooping branches.  Peace flowed from his mind into hers.  Like a breeze during a hot summer night, it cooled her skin and sent the pain tumbling into the distance.  Max continued singing, and snippets from a time she couldn’t quite remember flashed across her mind. 

She set a succulent meal on the table.  “Dinner’s ready.”

Max appeared and pressed a kiss to her cheek.  A small boy, the spitting image of his father, dashed in and slid to a stop but still crashed into the chair.

“Slow down,” Max scolded. “Now apologize to your mother.”

“Sorry, Mother.”

Zalphia smiled and ruffled the boy’s hair.

Coming back to the present, Zalphia wondered if she and Max had been together on a different planet.  “Did we have children?” she asked.  “In our other life, I mean.”

The singing stopped, and a drop of moisture landed on her cheek.  Leaning back, she looked into his face.  She’d never seen him look vulnerable or sad, but if mental pain affected him in the arena, this was more intense than that.  “What happened?  Tell me why you’re sad.”

He slid her to a sitting position so they could see each other’s faces.  “This is difficult to explain.”

With one finger, she wiped a second tear from his cheek.  The side of his mouth that wouldn’t turn up made a deeper line.  His shoulders slumped, and defeat marked his demeanor.  

“Try.”  Whatever bothered him was connected to a powerful emotion, one which Zalphia could almost feel lurking deep inside herself.  Could she feel this, too?  Was the outward signs of his pain causing her pain also?  She didn’t know, but she had to find out.  She would never allow anyone to hurt him.  Although, at the moment, she would be helpless to stop them.

“It is complicated, my love.  There is so much for you to remember.  And I do not believe now is the time to discuss this.”

“I need to know.  Max, you’re so strong, so capable.  What could bring tears to those eyes?”

He took a ragged breath.

“Please, I need to know.  Did we have children?”

He nodded.

“What happened to them?”  She could tell by the look on his face it wasn’t good.

He shook his head.  “Not now.  You must heal, and we must be on our way.  We will discuss this another time.”  The sadness lifted, and he tenderly gazed at her face.

This was the man she knew.  The gentle giant who cared more about her than anything.  The one who entered the Glad arena specifically to rescue her.  A bubbling feeling from deep inside rose and drove her fingers to his face.  She ran her thumb through the poky hair along his cheek then traced their curls down to his jaw, stroking the prominent bone there.  She couldn’t help it.  She reached for his neck and pulled him close.  His breath heated her skin and need stirred deep within. 

“Oh, Max.”

He caressed her neck with one finger and then slid his hand down her back.  “I want it, too.  But you are not well, and we must flee from this place.”

What was
it? 
Pulling back, she gazed into his face.  Would he show her the thing which eluded her, yet filled her with a strange desire?  She hoped so. 

He took her face in his hands and studied her for a moment.  His eyes intense and bluer, if that were possible, than she had ever seen them.  His tongue moistened his bottom lip, then he
raked his teeth across it. Taking a ragged breath, he closed his eyes.  The heat of his quivering breath sent tingles up her spine, and when his lips touched hers, a shudder shook her.

She slid her arms around his neck, and he pulled her closer.  The kiss deepened and caused a churning inside.  She’d felt this before, very long ago.  Even before her mother and the Glads.  Her tongue took a life of its own and reached for his.  Weaving his fingers into her hair, he pulled her closer as his tongue rolled over hers, tantalizing and sparking excitement like she’d never known.  As suddenly as it began, he stopped and pushed her from him. 

The mere act of him pulling away seemed to rip her in two, wrenched her heart, and burned at her eyes. 

His eyes grew round, and he turned his face toward the opposite wall.  “No!  We cannot do this.  Not now.  Not here.”

Fear gripped her, and she clung desperately to his neck.

He turned back to her, his face clearly showing that he, too, felt the same turmoil.  “I am not leaving you, Zalphia.  It will be all right.  We must run from the trackers and leave this place.”

“I know,” she said, her voice shaking.

He laid his forehead against hers.  The mere touch of his skin on hers calmed her. The panic of just a moment before fled as his mind pushed peace into hers. Her fluttering heart slowed.

“I promise. We will be one as soon as possible.”

She sighed against the curve of his neck, fighting the urge to hold tighter. 

“It is the emotions ruling you.  Lie down while I finish gathering our things.” 

He lowered her back to her resting place and busied himself packing their supplies.  She watched as he moved around, awed by his mere presence.  If the chip had been stifling her memories of him and squelching her emotions, well then... something boiled fierce and ominous deep inside.