Featherlight (14 page)

“Why
do I need guardians?”

“Although
no one from our city will try to harm you, there are many men that might try to
force you to look at them. If they manage to pin you just before starting the chase,
it will not take long for the bond to be sealed,” she said.

It
seems like the more answers I received, the more questions appeared.

“That
has gotta be against the rules of nature or something. That’s not fair!” I
exclaimed. “And what bond are you talking about?”

She
said, “A bond is formed after a chase is completed. It solidifies the couple so
that no other man may chase the woman.”

Great.
Just great. In the back of my mind, I had the reassurance that I could always
run away if I were chased and taken. That safety net vanished into thin air.
This shindig was permanent.

“The
Sentinels sound like a marvelous idea,” I admitted both sarcastically and
seriously.

We
starting banking towards back of the Tower. The nearby flying lullary took no
notice of our aircraft as it discreetly entered a small garage-door sized
opening.

Part
XIII

We
were in a small, short tunnel. The powerful vehicle’s lights lit our downward
path, and we soon rounded a corner. I gasped. It was a giant underground
hangar. Aircrafts of all shapes and sizes gleamed under the industrial lights.
The pilot slowly cruised past machines that would put all Earth airplanes to
shame. I might have spotted the ship I had changed in, but I couldn’t be sure.
There were so many.

Our
vehicle slid to a stop. Samantha immediately climbed out, and I followed suit.
The cool air smelled crisp with metal and oil.

Suddenly,
my awe-struck observation of the hangar was shattered by the echoed drumming of
shoes hitting the solid concrete. The noise was ominous, but I refused to allow
my hands to shake.

For
the first time, an odd sensation hit my nose. It wasn’t exactly a smell as much
as a sense, almost like a pheromone. I glanced at Samantha. Worry for me had
just scarcely touched her eyes. I gave her a slight smile to distract myself
from the knowledge that I could now smell emotions. How creepy was that?

The
constant marching beat that was slowly growing louder. The echo in the hangar
forced the sounds to scatter, but Samantha seemed to know from where they were
coming. She took my hand, gave it a reassuring squeeze, and then gestured for
me to follow the pilot, who had begun purposely striding across the room.

I
walked behind the man and a little to his right, because, somehow, it made me
feel less like a child. Sam followed us both. The footsteps grew deafening
after passing a massive aircraft, and I discovered that the noise was coming
from our right.

A
formidable mass marched towards us. They moved as a single unit and all wore
grey. Although I couldn’t tell from my low view, I guessed that they were
marching in a 10x10 block. My insides twisted with fear. Power leaked through
the air.

Nervously
glancing at Samantha, I noticed that she was still calm. I forced my heart to
slow.
Show no fear.

They
showed none of the flawless grace like the other lullary
.
These men were
pure power. A few movie references entered my head, but I quickly discounted
them. The powerful war men in movies were attractive (The fact that they all
decided to fight shirtless helped). All the people in front of me were
terrifying. Perhaps it was simply the fact that I was actually
there,
as
opposed to simply watching the action. I was as attracted to these men as I was
to a shark. Since I did not have a shark fetish, my attraction was a -4 on a 1
to 10 scale. Yep. Fear does that to you.

Why
was I thinking about that? I needed to be focusing on how I would survive the
next hour and remain man-free. As a group, they halted.

“This
is our elite guard, the Sentinels,” Samantha introduced.

You
could have heard a pin drop. Actually, that phrase was no longer accurate. With
my improved senses, hearing a heartbeat in this silence would have been easy.

Sam
called them the Sentinels. I now have my own name: The Angels of Death.

“They
cannot chase, so you do not have to worry,” Samantha said.

Her
words were not very assuring, since I was more afraid of their presence than
their chasing potential. It did serve to snap me out of my fear, at least
outwardly. I nodded my head in their direction and kept completely still. Their
gaze was on me. I refused to squirm, opting instead to hug the book tightly
against my chest.

My
wings had slightly opened, I assumed as a result of feeling fear. Their eyes
watched as I pulled my snowy white wings in close, hiding them from frontal
sight.

One
man stepped forward. The only difference between him and the rest of the group
was a small red pin on his grey outfit. Dull brown wings were visible over each
broad shoulder. His head, like everyone else’s, was shaved.

Dark
grey eyes moved to Sam as he said, “They discovered Rene. The overall mood is
not negative. The city is eager to glimpse her, so the Marshal suggested a
casual blocked formation.” Jeez, what was this guy, a robot?

“Do
you predict any violence?” Samantha asked him.

He
replied, “Only if a chase is triggered. In that case, we have orders to do
whatever necessary to protect the girl.”

His
tone left no doubt in my mind that “whatever necessary” included killing.

He
directed his next words at me. “The Marshal also informed us that you are not
practiced in resisting the chase. Is this true?”

I
nodded, trying not to feel ashamed.

“Then
keep your eyes lowered. We do not want to test your resisting limits today.
Lady Marshal, stay by Jacqueline’s side.”

With
those words, he melded back into the Sentinel mass. Another silent command made
the group surround us. Even though I had more than enough room at the center of
the formation, I still help claustrophobic. Our group began casually striding to
the large doorways that led into a brightly lit hallway.

The
Sentinel’s pace seemed out of place; it was too forced. These men were more
comfortable marching than they were walking. Nevertheless, we soon arrived at
the hallway and began ascending the semi-steep slope. My stomach tightened with
more nerves, almost like my body could feel the city’s excitement at my
arrival.

I
kept my eyes trained on one of the Sentinel’s wings. Amazingly, I got to see
each individual petal. The man directly in front of me could not see me staring
unabashedly at his wings, and so I did. They were a dark brown closer to his
back, and gradually turned grey at the tips.

Each
grey shirt had a long cut down the back, letting their wings show. Actually,
now that I thought about it, I’m sure almost every piece of clothing on Auro
was made like that. All of their wings were the same dull brown, and it blended
well with their clothing.

The
chrome hallway seemed endless, and before long my new and improved ears heard
the faint murmur of many people. Our group abruptly halted, and I had no choice
but to stop with them. A golden blur was coming towards us.

“Stop!”
John's voice called out.

The
flying blur landed in front of us. Due to my short height and too many
Sentinels in front of me, all I could see was John's angry face.

“Get
her out of here. Take the jet,” he commanded.

Immediately,
the group about-faced. Feeling out of the silent command loop, I slowly half
turned.

“We
can't walk. Peter is on his way,” John said quickly. “I'll take her.”

He
began striding towards me, the Sentinels parting like the Red Sea. I took a
step away. So much for my protection.

“I
will do it,” Samantha said, taking my hand.

Since
flying with Samantha seemed to be the lesser evil of two evils, I didn't
protest. John looked like he was about to argue, but he held his tongue.

“King
and his son were planning on forcing a chase when Jacque entered,” John told
us. “Any minute now they will realize that she won't show, and they will come
after us.”

John
looked at my book. “I’ll take this for you.”

I
was too confused to protest, so I handed it over silently.

“Were
they going to use force?” Samantha asked as she lifted my legs with her left
arm. I held on to her neck.

“King
brought the Guard,” John answered grimly.

I
did not feel comfortable. Not only because I wasn't a touchy-feely person, but also
because it seemed like an intimate hold. Leave it to me to be more focused on
my travel arrangements than the bad guys coming after me.

Samantha
slowly flapped her wings, lifting us in the air.

“Contact
Rene,” she said.

“Already
did,” John replied.

My
stomach dropped as we began flying back to the hangar, taking only a fraction
of the time it took us to walk. The wind whipped my hair, and I had to hold on
even tighter to keep from falling.

Within
seconds, we arrived in front of a sleek, black aircraft. Rene was inside the
open door, and Samantha set me down gently inside the entry. John landed by me,
and the jet suddenly came to life, purring quietly.

“The
King found out. They're heading this way,” Rene immediately told us.

“Go
to the flats. Quickly,” Samantha said from beside the jet.

The
door slid closed, leaving Sam silently hovering outside.

“Wait!”
I cried.

“She
is staying,” John said.

He
was sitting in front part of the jet, helping Rene direct it out of the hangar.
Since the inside of the jet was open, I could keep a wary eye on him from the
passenger area. I glanced out one of the windows.

The
Sentinels stood guarding the door, and their leader was conversing with a large
man. Peter stood beside him, looking livid. Luckily, our jet was far away from
them, near the door.

We
silently rose, and our jet turned for the hangar exit. Peter noticed us and
flew over the Sentinels, climbing in the nearest plane. His father followed,
ignoring the Sentinel leader. Now that our jet faced the exit, I had to run to
the opposite side to watch all the action.

The
Sentinels stood still, apparently confident that we would escape safely. Peter
and the 'King' had lifted their plane into the air, and it began slowly
turning. I felt a jerk as our own jet violently accelerated, and I was nearly
thrown backwards.

“Sorry!”
John yelled, somehow hearing my startled yelp.

“They
won't catch up to us,” Rene said, gracefully walking into the passenger area.

She
was able to walk over and sit without once faltering. Since I couldn't even
stand, I made an intelligent decision and took a seat beside her.

“They
won't catch us,” she reassured me again as I cautiously watched the fading Tower.
Peter and King were slowly growing smaller as we sped away, but I wanted to be
sure that we kept them far behind us.

Rene
told me, “This is by far the fastest vehicle we have. There is no need to worry.”

Sure
enough, my worries faded as we left the city behind. With my head leaning
against the cool glass, I fell asleep.

Part
XIV

“Jacque,
we're here.” Rene's voice broke my dreamless sleep.

It
took me a minute to realize where I was. Outside, I saw a flat landscape with
short trees and small bushes. Although I lived in the Eastern part of Texas
with large green trees and plenty of green grass, this place reminded me of
home. For the first time in my life, I felt the tiniest bit of homesickness.

From
my side of the jet, I couldn't see any buildings. The ground stretched out almost
endlessly, and both suns shined overhead. I stood and stretched luxuriously,
letting myself fully awaken.

“Why
did we leave Roya?” Now that I was out of danger, I had plenty of questions.

“Do
you remember Peter?” Rene asked.

“Yeah.”

“His
father, King, is in charge of the common lullary. Any who have brown wings and brown
eyes are his,” Rene said. “Once he found out there was a folium, he planned to
ambush you in the Tower. Luckily, we learned about this before you entered. The
Marshal decided that you would be safer out here, because the King and his son
are relentless. You would not have been safe in Roya.”

I
assumed, “I'm guessing that they wanted to ambush me so that-”

“Yes.
So that Peter could take you.”

I
swallowed. That was peachy.

The
first thing I saw upon jumping off the jet was a house. It was large, but not
elaborate. It had four or five stories and was built for efficiency. The
outside walls were tan and brown, and the top floor had a large, open balcony
that surrounded the outside.

It
seemed uninhabited, and the only other building in sight was a large carport
that could hold two or three plane-sized machines. Actually, I guess it could
be considered a hangar.