The Regenerates (15 page)

“As long as that thing is attached to your body, it means you’re still alive. I call it your life cord. If it breaks, well…yeah. But don’t worry, it isn’t easy to break,” Elias added, seeing the look on Ven’s face.

“So…who are you, anyway? What is this place?” asked Ven.

“I don’t remember,” said Elias, suddenly morose. He stared at his toes. “In fact, I don’t remember anything, how I died or who I was. I just know that my name is Elias and this place is very special to me. It’s alright, though. I’m sure it’ll come back to me, eventually. Plus, I really like it here. Although I do want to know how and why I saw you.” He looked at Ven again. “Who is that guy down there? What’s his problem?”

“He’s no one, really,” said Ven, “I’ll just say he doesn’t like me very much.”

Ven looked around the library. It was large and very old. At the center, a large, rotating globe was covered in dust and cobwebs. The shelves, which housed strange objects and trinkets, were also filthy. The books, however, looked brand new. It was obvious Elias took good care of them. To the far right, Ven noticed a door.

“Hey, have you tried going outside?” said Ven, pointing to it. “Maybe you’ll find something that will help you remember who you were.”

Elias’ face turned white. “There’s something horrible out there, really horrible.”

“How do you know? Did you open it?”

“No,” Elias said, “but when I got here, just like I knew what my name was, I knew that I should
never
open that door. I can’t explain it, it just has to stay closed no matter what.” He looked frightened all of a sudden.

Ven stared at the door again. There didn’t seem to be anything strange about it. “So how do I get out of here?” he asked.

“Oh, you want to leave already?” Elias’ face fell.

“I have to get back. I need to warn my friend how crazy that guy is.”

“Oh, well, if you have to…”

Ven stared at him. Elias was the loneliest boy he had ever seen. How had he possibly passed the time in a place like this, with no one to talk to? But Ven couldn’t stay any longer. “Wait, is there any way for me to look down like you did?” he said after a moment. “If there’s trouble, I’ll have to leave, but if not I can stay for a little bit.” This place, wherever it was, had sparked his curiosity.

Elias looked away sadly. “I don’t think there is. I don’t even know how I did it. Maybe it has something to do with me being dead.”

“Oh,” said Ven. “I’m sorry, but I really need to get going, then. My friend might be in trouble.”

“I think you should be able to get back to your body yourself. Just imagine it.”

“What?”

“Just imagine being back in your body. If you’re here with the life cord attached to you, it must mean that your soul is here, and your empty body is down there. Since you’re not dead, you should be able to go back by just imagining it.”

It sounded stupid to Ven, but since he was, in fact, here, he figured anything was possible.

“If I ever get in some kind of trouble again, try and pull me back, okay?” Ven laughed.

“With pleasure.” Elias smiled widely.

Ven closed his eyes and pictured his body lying on the warehouse floor. Bracing himself for whatever else Kayn had in store for him, he blinked, and opened his eyes.

Dazed and in shock at what had just happened, Ven looked around. Kayn was a few feet away with his back to Ven. He was out of breath and looking down at his hands, panting. To Ven’s surprise, he realized Kayn thought he had killed him, after all. Instead of looking triumphant, Kayn fell down to his knees and cried out in frustration, picking up a piece of junk and throwing it at the wall. Ven stood rooted to the spot, unable to believe what he was seeing. Was Kayn regretting his actions?

Nearby, Coralie had awoken at the sound of Kayn’s voice.

“What was that?” she said groggily, looking around.

Wanting to see what would happen, Ven leaped behind a corner.

“Ven?” She looked around, clearly disturbed, until her eyes fell on Kayn. “Where’s Ven?” she asked coldly.

Kayn didn’t reply.

“I said–” She picked up a sharp metal rod from the ground and held it out in front of her. “
Where is Ven
?”

“He’s not my problem anymore.”

Coralie was about to rush at him with the rod when Ven felt it was time to reveal himself. “Wait!”

They jumped. Kayn fell back. “How–”

“How am I alive? I have no idea. Maybe I’m stronger than you think.”

Kayn stood there with his mouth hanging open. Ven decided he deserved to be a little rattled.
That’ll teach you to try and murder me.

“You tried to KILL him?” Coralie screamed, tightening her grip on the metal rod. Enraged, she lunged and grabbed the collar of his shirt, raising the rod high above her.

“Who do you think you are?” she bellowed, as Kayn dodged the swinging rod. “I’ve had
enough
of you. Do you have any idea what we’ve endured in the past few weeks? Do you understand what it feels like to wake up one morning and discover that you and your parents are going to be hung in public because you chose to stand by your honor? Have you ever had to count down the hours to your own death? You have never had to experience that. You sit on your throne enjoying luxury and passing judgment, while those of us in the lower Quadrants are afraid to open our mouths. Never mind what your father told you, or what your grandfather told you, do
you
believe that’s fair? ”

Coralie’s eyes were wild with fury.

“And yet, despite Ven’s selfless sacrifice, my father is now
dead
, killed by a monster who didn’t even know his name. My mother is out there somewhere, too. I don’t even know if she’s alive or not. So sit and think for a moment whether that is justice, whether all of this necessary for order to be maintained in Cor. You’re only a few years older than we are, and you claim you’re ready to lead a nation, but are you so deluded that you haven’t been able to distinguish between justice and cruelty? You’re powerful, intelligent and charismatic, everything needed in an ideal ruler. But you’re also the biggest coward I have ever seen.”

“SHUT UP.”

Kayn threw Coralie away from him. He was shaking. Ven had never seen him lose control like this.

“Don’t you dare try to understand what it means to rule over a nation with the rules already laid out. Those are the rules that my ancestors have enforced, and I will honor them, because I’m proud of who I am. Ruling over Cor in my father’s place is what defines me. If Coran law says that any threat no matter how petty must be eradicated, then I’ll deal with it myself if I have to, and there is not a single thing that can stop me. You can treat me like a monster, act like I’m the villain in all of this, but I am doing my duty, and you and Ven are no one to try and change me.”

Coralie flung the metal rod at Kayn, who jumped out of the way. Chest heaving, she sat down on a metal box and stared into nothingness.

Without another word, Kayn turned and stomped out, leaving Ven and Coralie alone. Ven sat down a few feet away from Coralie, a knot in his chest. He suddenly remembered all the times her father had helped him with the chores his mother had given him, and the desserts her father used to make for them when Ven visited their house.

“I’m…I’m sorry, Coralie.”

F
or the sake of security, Ven and Coralie slept with weapons that night. Ven didn’t think Kayn would try to kill him again, but he felt it better to play it safe. A little after midnight, he woke up restless, unable to fall back asleep. Desperate to clear his head, he stepped out of the warehouse and into the cool night air.

Ven made his way to the wharf, sat at the edge and dangled his feet just above the canal. Rummaging through the bag Coralie had given him, he searched for something to eat. All he could find were two small sweet potatoes and a round bun. As he bit into one of the potatoes, a bitter, unpleasant taste filled his mouth. In a sudden burst of frustration and anger, Ven flung the potato as far away from him as he could, and it landed with a splash in the water and sank out of sight.

At that moment, Ven pitied himself. He hated sleeping on the cold, hard earth and eating tasteless food, hated having to find factories and old wooden shacks to protect him from the rain. He immediately thought of his warm bed back home, of Hans and Florentine bickering with each other. He remembered when Kayn Stafford had been nothing more than an intimidating celebrity everyone admired from afar. Now, he was forced to keep his guard up, not knowing if Kayn would throttle him and Coralie in their sleep.

Then he thought of Coralie. In all his life, he had never thought he would meet someone as strong as she was. While Ven had some memories of his father, he had lost him when he was still very little. It meant that he had been able to live a wonderful, wholesome life without a sense of loss. But Coralie had lost her father in a matter of moments, in the cruelest way possible.

A strange, rushing feeling began to spread through him. No matter how flawed or weak he might be, he wanted to take care of her. She made him feel happy. It was Coralie who had befriended him so many years ago when he and his mother had lived in the Prentice Quadrant. She had shown him that life there really wasn’t so bad. His time there might have been short but it was still difficult, and Coralie had managed to make it all better. Now, when her life had taken a turn for the worst, it was his turn to be there for her.

As though she had been reading his thoughts, Coralie appeared from inside the warehouse. She took a seat next to Ven and dipped her toes in the water. To his horror, he felt his face growing hot.

“Is he asleep?” he asked, wanting to break the silence.

”Yeah, I made sure. Although I’m armed this time, just in case.”

“Somehow I don’t think that will make much of a difference,” said Ven dryly.

Coralie let out a nervous laugh. She gestured to the second potato in Ven’s hand. “You’re not eating?”

“Not this, I’m not,” he mumbled.

Coralie rolled her eyes. “Fine, I’ll take it then.” She snatched the potato from his hand and took a massive bite out of it.

As she was eating, Ven told her about Elias and what had happened while Kayn was trying to choke him. She stared back at him in shock. “You’re telling me some dead kid saved you from Kayn and pulled you into his afterlife?”

“I have no idea what that was, but I’m telling you the truth. He was there, as clear as you or me. He said he didn’t remember anything about himself except his name.”

“That’s…unbelievable.”

“It’s a form of black magic, isn’t it, communicating with the dead?” said Ven. He clutched the wound on his abdomen. Fear jolted through him. That had to be it. The wound from the Magistrate’s Dagger was making him see dead people. What if it was slowly killing him and he had no idea?

Coralie looked worried. “Try not to think about it too much. We have enough on our plates. Whatever it was, it’s not important right now.” She looked down at the dark canal. “Why do you even put up with him, Ven?”

“Who?”

“Kayn. He’s crazy, you’ve seen it for yourself. We need to lose him, or we may end up dead for real next time.”

“Coralie–”

“What?” she said. “We don’t have to keep taking his nonsense. We can go our separate ways, and figure this thing out on our own.”

Ven turned to face her, frowning. “It’s not that simple. If I screw this up, it’s over for both me and my mother. If we steal the dagger and try to go to Roth’s tomb ourselves, Kayn will hunt us down. I’d like to avoid that, if possible. I don’t like him much, either, but we need him.”

Coralie’s face turned dark. “You may need him, but I certainly don’t. I’m only here because I want to stay with you.”

Ven’s ears turned warm. “Well, of course. It’s the same with me. I know how much pain this is causing you, but at the same time, I need you to stay, even if it’s just for my sake.”

She edged closer, then rested her head on his shoulder and placed her hand on his. An electric current shot through his fingers. “I’m only cooperating because of you. That, and I’d rather not wander around foreign territory by myself. Just don’t go expecting me to save his life.”

“Of course not,” said Ven, breathing in relief.

He could have stayed there forever. He felt tranquil all of a sudden.

“Ven…”

“What?”

Coralie looked at him for a moment, then leaned in close and kissed him, pressing her lips lightly to his.

Ven froze. Coralie’s eyes were closed. He closed his eyes, too, letting the electric current fill him again. He didn’t know how long they stayed that way. It could have easily been three hours, he couldn’t tell.

Finally, she pulled away from him and looked down at the dark canal.

“Coralie, what was that?”

She blinked and her cheeks turned bright red. “Umm…I don’t know.”

Ven raised his eyebrows and feigned coolness, hoping the joyous dance he was doing in his head wouldn’t be visible on his face.

“It’s just that…after that close call, I didn’t want to have any regrets in case…you know, in case we don’t make it.” Coralie fidgeted.

Ven didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know whether or not to take her hand, or leave her to herself. He didn’t know what he was allowed to do.

“We
will
make it,” he said after a moment. “I don’t doubt that at all.”

Coralie turned back to him, her eyes moist. “That was so close. You were this close to dying. I do not want to have to witness that again.”

“You won’t. I promise.”

Coralie had a headstrong look in her eyes. At that moment, Ven didn’t care what protocol dictated. She was right. That had been an awfully close call.

Once more, Coralie leaned in close and kissed him again. All injuries forgotten, Ven closed his eyes and held her hand.

When they let go, Coralie rested her head on his shoulder again.

“Thanks,” she said. “For being – for staying – my friend. I thought when you moved to the Highorn Quadrant, you wouldn’t want to hang out anymore. I’m glad we’re still friends.”