Page 6 of Rising

Reina

Ireleased a breath I hadn’t even realized I was holding and shifted on the couch to face Moe as she took a seat at the edge of Amaia and Jax’s bed. “How are you feeling?” I asked.

Amaia had been worked up, though she tried to hide it. Which, to my dismay, meant that she’d forgotten that Jax had been a brother to Moe. I needed to check in and make sure at least one of my friends would be okay while the other entered self-destruct mode.

Before she could answer, a knock came from the door. “I’ll get it,” she said quietly, always quick to avoid emotions.

She glided across the room and turned the metal lock. Seth slid through the heavy wooden door and pulled Moe into a tight embrace. They exchanged no words, but for the first time in hours, I saw my friend’s posture relax. Though they never admitted to it or acted on it to anyone’s knowledge, their chemistry was undeniable. The Ice King and Queen. Although my brother pushed me away years ago when we arrived at camp, I could tell they both brought each other a sense of peace and warmth.

My brother faced me and glanced away as I met his eye. “Are you okay?” I inquired, considering the fight he started moments before. If it could even be called that.

“Just fantastic, little sister. Though I appreciate the concern, some of us are distressed over more pressing matters than how people are feeling or whatever the latest apocalypse trend is.” He gestured towards my pleated work pants that were rolled at the ankle stylishly. They showed off the closest thing I’d put on to combat boots, Doc Martens, and a lacy tank top.

He’d never appreciated the transition I’d made from farm girl clothes to apocalypse-chic. A middle-class suburb with couture clothing that still had the tags on surrounded us. I worked in a lab most days. What was the point of living through an apocalypse if I couldn’t enjoy the smaller thing’s life never offered me before?

He continued, “Like an almost slain friend laying not even a full block away. Has anyone even been to talk to him? Asked him what he saw? Will he live?” He scanned over my body, eyes as icy and full of storms as ever.

We had never sat down to discuss what had changed between us since we got here. I was too nervous to hear the truth. I had always suspected settling here and seeing ourselves prosper while our family never made it out of Montana drove him insane. Though I would never have the spirit to say those words aloud. It would open Pandora’s box.

We were never super close during The Before. I’d spent my childhood admiring him, seeking out his attention, but it had never been well received. He’d always been closer to our oldest brother James and his twin Hunter, and while him and James could pass for twins, Hunter and him were fraternal. Which left a lot of room for Hunter and I to favor each other as our dark features made us family outliers aside from our deep blue eyes. I understood, but it still hurt every time I was on the receiving end of his harsh gaze.

For a while on the road, I thought there was hope for us in this new and scary world. He’d taught me to fend for myself. We spent days at a time riding our horses, once pets turned transportation and weapon, searching for a safe place to go. He’d saved my life more than once, and I his. He’d reminded me of funny childhood stories while we crossed through Yellowstone. Distracting me from the human-like but not quite screams that rang out around us at night, always gave me the extra bite of food or the last drop of water before I’d learned to control my gifts. Then we arrived here and things changed.

“I’m concerned too, Seth. We all are. But there isn’t anything we can do but wait. He hasn’t woken up yet, so no one’s been able to question him and he was in too much pain to ask anything before. When I took the pain away, he passed out. His vitals are stable for now, but his body is trying to heal. Moe got what she could from a vision, but as you know, memories are only told from one perspective.”

I forced my brother to face me, eyes wide and chest forward, begging him to see me as his little sister from the farm.

Moe cleared her throat. When the tension imploded between Seth and I, she typically tried her best to stay out of it. Occasionally, like now, she’d step in as a distraction to save me from the discomfort of the situation. “I think Amaia just went to check on him. We should give them some privacy in case he’s awake. Come on, let’s clean off and see what’s left to grab for dinner. I heard they scored big on the fish this morning. If we’re lucky, they’ll be some stew left.”

I forced my mind to focus on the excitement of fish stew. Since the bombs went off, our oceans had suffered. With less light coming through, marine algae had died off from the drop in oceanic temperature. It wasn’t as devastating as scientists had predicted, but the effects on marine life were bad enough that a good batch of fish was a luxury.

Moe walked me back through the Scholar Building to her quarters, opting to wear something of hers in order to let Jax and Maia have their space. We passed through a long well-lit hallway and by the Public Library. A place of gathering for those who enjoyed reading and the monthly historian accounts to gather news from the other compounds around the territory, and entered Moe’s private study. As the most powerful Scholar in the territory, her abundance of knowledge graced her with working right under the Head Scholar. Working under him purely because of her disgust with having authority and being responsible for others, she enjoyed having freedom over her research and time.There are other qualifications besides power that make a great leaderis how she weaseled her way out of that one.

As soon as the door opened, I was greeted by the earthy aroma , and a hint of dust and Oolong tea in the air. Her desk in the corner next to one of the reinforced windows was covered in piles of books as usual. The shelves had books turned every which way, caked in dust with the only proof they had been used recently being a break in the soft white, leaving drag marks towards the edge. The leather couch had been angled as if she recently needed a boost to reach the top shelf, and a half-filled teacup sat on the edge of the arm.

“You know, I’m a sucker for an organizing Sunday, Moe,” I offered for the millionth time, and she ignored me for the millionth time.

She kicked open her sleeping quarters, handing me a pair of ripped black jeans and a black hoodie with a grin on her face. “Oh, Moe, ever the most fashionable.”

Encouraging the friendly banter, she fluttered her lashes and put on her best impression of my booming voice. “Only the best for the best of friends, Reina.”

Maybe Seth and Maia’s chaos had rubbed off on us, but after the intensity of the day we released our tension in laughter. Sighing, I fell onto her bed, sprawled out imitating a snow angel.

“I need you to do something for me, Moe.”

Her head tilted slightly to the left, accentuating the sharp angles of her cheeks. “You want me to ask Seth what he saw, don’t you?”

I nodded, rolling onto my stomach, and threw my head onto the stiff mattress. “Ow, this thing is like a brick, Moe. But yes, I don’t know why he hates me, but he does. I’m just concerned what happened today may bring back what happened to Hunter.”

She pursed her lips together and moved them side to side, considering the repercussions this could have. Even she couldn’t predict Seth’s temper.

“I’m sorry, I can’t exactly go to Mattress Firm and ask them for their most expensive Tempurpedic.” Moving to go sit near her antique vanity, she picked up her brush, moving the wet blue-black hair from her eyes. “And your brother doesn’t hate you, Reina, he’s more concerned about you than he lets on.”

Her way of telling me she would ask.

Moe braided her hair back and out of her face, and I walked towards her bathroom. Studying myself in the mirror as I washed my face at the sink, I willed my water magic to keep it running from the aqueducts that ran in between the walls, thanks to the Tinkerers. The pale skin on my face was still red from the night chill, heavy raindrops, and the overall intensity of the day. The reflection in the mirror stared back pathetically sorrowful. If only I could pull the sadness from myself that my magic let me pull from others. I watched as I forced myself to pull the soft smile that typically rested on my face and tried to bring some light back into my eyes.

“Ready to go?” Moe said, coming up behind me.

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