“I don’t like this, Saturn.” She said as they walked along the stone corridor.
“You’ve made that abundantly clear, Olivia.” He said, trying not to smile. She got so mad when he didn’t take her seriously.
“I can’t even run right.” She pouted, looking down at her feet. “Awkward.”
“Of course it’s awkward. You’ve refused to be a Hauke for more than a few minutes at a time your whole life. Once you get used to it, it feels just as normal as being a Tze’el.”
“Lies.” She hissed, squinting up at him. “Besides, you’re an ugly Hauke.”
“You think all Haukes are ugly.”
“You’re an especially ugly Hauke.” She insisted as they started up the stairs.
“You have to marry me anyway.”
She didn’t laugh at his joke. He looked down at her. She was frowning in concentration, her brow was wrinkled. “When, Saturn? Have they decided?”
“Probably when you turn nineteen. Can’t have an underage queen, can we?”
“How are we supposed to rule when we’ve never met any of our people? How is it just going to become magically safe for us? Even the Dael can’t seem to get us out into the open. We’ve been locked away here for fifteen years.” She glanced up at him, “Seventeen for you. And it’s still not any safer than it was the day we came. And I’m not marrying your ugly Hauke self.”
He smiled at her transition, stopping before the large wooden door, leaning against the wall. “Show Arif.”
He waited outside as she presented herself to Arif. He could hear their murmured conversation. He was being a little strict with her, but maybe she needed it. So long as Arif kept playing bad cop, he could continue to coddle her a little. She deserved that at least. She walked out, her head down. “Saturn?”
“Don’t worry about it, little one. Let’s go the caverns. We’ll practice your projection, then fly.” He put his arm around her shoulder, giving it a squeeze. “Don’t worry about Arif tonight.” He kissed her hair, pulling her along. He hesitated when he felt the tremor she couldn’t. The Tze’el were much more sensitive to small changes.
“What?” She asked, looking up at him. She may not be able to feel the small changes around her, but any small change in him caught her immediate attention.
“Nothing,” He said, “Probably just the guards blowing off some steam in the caverns again.” The second tremor sent them both into the ground. “Run!” He screamed, grabbing her hand and pulling her along.
“I can’t!” She stumbled again, falling. She wasn’t used to running as a Hauke. It was a completely different sensation then as a Tze’el. Her legs wouldn’t work. And she was panicking. She couldn’t change back, she couldn’t concentrate. He scooped her up in his arms, his wings not even feeling the extra weight. She clung to him, burying her face in her chest. He could feel the terror radiating off of her. This was her worst fear, being trapped as a Hauke. Defenseless. Powerless.
Within seconds there were six guards flanking them. Within a minute, there were twelve. They were all in agreement. The portal. They didn’t know how, but every entrance had been breached. They only had precious moments to get to safety. The very walls around them were crumbling. Two guards pulled open black doors, Saturn turning sideways to make it through the narrow gap. The portal glowed. It was ready.
Arif was standing in front of it. “Go. I’ll seal it.”
“Arif –“ Saturn said, for the first time feeling uncertain.
“NOW.” The old Dael shouted. Saturn flew into the glowing blue. He was immediately encased, but it was safe, not a prison. It was warm. Light. He breathed a sigh of relief. They were safe. He didn’t know what was coming, but they were safe. Together.
She started to move away from him, but he held her tighter. “No, little one.” He whispered.
The panic in her voice made his heart race, “Saturn!” He could feel it then, she was clinging to him.
Something was wrong. Something was pulling her away. He clenched his arms, holding her so tightly it hurt. It didn’t stop her, she was being pulled from his grasp. “Saturn!” She screamed.
“Olivia! I’ve got you! Don’t let go!” She was almost completely out of his grasp. “Hold on!”
“Saturn!” She screamed again and she was gone.
“Olivia!” But there was nothing. Silence. She was gone. "Olivia!"
When she opened up her eyes, her heart racing through her chest. All she could see was blue sky. White clouds. It was peaceful. She’d never seen the full sky. Except in pictures. But this was different. The shade of blue was off. The trees were wrong. Even the clouds were the wrong shape. Nothing about this was right. She realized she was floating in water. She immediately jerked her head up. “Saturn!” She shouted. “Saturn!” Nothing but silence, the echo of her own voice across the water. It too sounded wrong. She looked down and tears filled her eyes. Pale. Hauke. She swam toward shore, laying in the white sand as soon as she could. She felt exhausted. And scared. The last thing she remembered was being torn from Saturn. Now she had no idea where she was. Or how to get back to Saturn. There were no guards. No Arif. Nothing but this really strange lake. And this really strange sky. And these really strange trees. The tears kept flowing from her eyes. And this stupid Hauke body.
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