“I think I know,” Jay says. We all turn our attention towards him.
“Isabelle had a book on Twin Heeds, or their hidden power. And according to the book, in order to maintain that power, the Twins have to be connected.”
“I was holding her hand the whole time,” Rio informs him.
“No, not just physically. You and Miku have to be close, emotionally.”
“What?” Miku says in disbelief.
“If you two are arguing, keeping secrets, and generally not connecting like family members should, your power to heal each other is weakened.”
“Are you saying that if I have a fight with Miku, suddenly I won’t be able to heal her?”
“You guys are growing apart as brother and sister for whatever reason. And the more distant you two are, the harder it is to heal each other.”
“What’s going on with you guys that’s causing a rift?” Ameana asks.
Miku and I exchange a quick glance.
“Nothing,” Miku says, keeping her head down. We all turn to Rio.
“Well, she’s keeping something from me. But then again, so is everyone in the room,” Rio says.
“I don’t know what your issues are, but Miku you can’t keep things bottled up. We all know what’s inside you and although we know Redd is gone, let’s not give her a reason to come back,” Marcus cautions.
“So because of Redd I can’t have a few secrets?” she demands.
“We’re just saying if you’re unhappy with something you need to speak up,” Jay says.
“I’m fine. And Rio’s fine.”
“Then why did it take so long for you to heal?” Jay pushes.
“Well, I’m sorry I didn’t heal fast enough for you,” Miku snaps.
“Yo, be easy. I was just ask’n,” Jay says, taken off guard.
“If your healing powers are tied to your relationship with Rio then you two better fix it,” Marcus demands.
“What do you want me to do?” Miku says clearly irritated.
“Fix it. Whatever you’re not telling Rio, for whatever reason, suck it up and tell him. You two cannot grow distant. Your lives depend on it.”
Suddenly, Tony pops in on a Port.
“Man, I love this thing! Sellers hardly ever get to ride them,” Tony exclaims as he does tricks up and down the room on the Port.
He takes a look at the very serious faces around him and wisely decides to stop playing around and get off the Port.
“Do you have a mixture that will tell us who the traitor is?” Jay asks.
“Well I—”
“—wait,” Marcus says.
Tony looks at him, confused.
“Rio is right. We can’t rely on Tony’s mixtures to tell us who the traitor is. The fact of the matter is, if we don’t trust each other, there is no team,” Marcus says gravely.
“I agree,” I say softly.
“So what now?” the Twins ask.
“I refuse to believe after everything that’s happened one of us could be an outright traitor,” Marcus says.
“It is pretty hard to believe,” Ameana says.
“Well, then how the hell did the Quo know we were coming?” Jay asks.
“Well, I’m guessing ‘the eye’ told them,” Tony says causally as he sets up his mixtures and gadgets on the table.
“What’s ‘the eye?’” Marcus asks.
“That’s what we call the being on the other side of a Mind Tracker.” He explains what a Mind Tracker is. He then points to a mixture in a nail polish size bottle.
“This is Cream. It turns red when a device is being used to spy on someone near its location. It was black when I left my shop. And now…”
“It’s red,” Marcus says.
“Someone’s been watching us,” the Twins conclude.
“Yes. Now let’s see if we can find out who the Mind Tracker is set on.”
“How would we do that?” Jay asks.
“When it gets to the actual person the Mind Tracker is set on, the liquid will evaporate,” Tony replies.
He then walks by each of us. The liquid remains. The last person he comes near is Ameana.
Right before our eyes, the liquid completely disappears.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN:
OMNIS FALLS SILENT
“I need to see Ameana, alone,” Marcus commands.
We all go into Jay’s room and leave the two Guardians alone to talk. Once again, it isn’t difficult to hear them because they are loud and pissed.
“I really tried to go with you on the Rage thing but now, that’s done,” Marcus orders.
“You don’t know for sure that Rage did this.”
“C’mon, Mimi, you can’t be this blind!”
“Okay, it was probably him.”
“Gee, you think?” he barks.
“I’ll take care of it.”
“You mean you’ll break up with him, right?”
“I mean I will handle it.”
“Ameana—”
“—Marcus, just give me a chance to handle this my way.”
“Rage warning the Quo could have gotten us killed.”
“I know but—”
“—and worse, he could have gotten you killed. Have you ever thought maybe that was his plan?”
“He had a million chances to take me out if that’s what he wanted to do. And why would he bother saving my life if he was just gonna try and kill me a few months later? ”
“I don’t know and right now, I really don’t care. We can’t go on this mission knowing that some out-of-his-mind Akon is following our every move.”
“So because he loves me he’s out of his mind?”
“If he loves you so much, why has he been spying on you?”
“I don’t know.”
“This lovesick act really isn’t you.”
“So what is me? Walking around pissed off and bitter because my boyfriend broke his vow and left me for a human?”
“Why do we always have to go back there? There have been two guys since me. Why can’t we move on?”
“That’s what I’m trying to do. Thomas is the guy I want to move on with, Marcus.”
“Well, then you really have a problem because if we have one more issue with Rage, we’re going to take him down.”
“You don’t have to worry about that because if he doesn’t have a good reason for what he did, I’ll kill him myself,” Ameana says.
She then calls out to Tony. He looks at us, shrugs his shoulders and goes out into the living room. Jay cracks the door open and we watch as Tony enters the living room.
“What do you need?” he offers.
“Can you take the Mind Tracker off me?”
He takes out what looks like a laser pointer and points it at Ameana. A red beam travels down her body.
“Okay, that should do it,” Tony says.
“Rage can’t see or hear what we’re saying?” Marcus asks.
“No.”
“Good, I’ll be back,” Ameana says, getting on a Port.
“We don’t have a lot of time, we have to meet Eta and stop game night from happening,” Marcus reminds her.
“Be right back,” she says as she disappears.
“So even after spying on us, we’re supposed to be cool with this Rage and Ameana mess?” Jay asks, entering the room with the rest of us close behind.
Marcus clears his throat and steals a quick glance my way.
“No, we’re not cool with it. Tony, we need a way to watch them,” he says.
“Marcus, we can’t spy on Ameana,” Miku protests.
“The hell we can’t,” Jay replies.
“It’s not fair,” Miku insists.
“Miku, she is with the First Akon. Do I think Ameana is evil? No. But that doesn’t mean Rage won’t try to use her to get to us. I mean he has already,” Rio says.
“It’s true, Pretty, I hate the idea of spying on Ameana, too, but we need to keep an eye on Rage,” Marcus informs them.
“Tony, how do we
do it?” Jay asks.
“Well, that’s where it gets tricky. You can’t use a Mind Tracker to keep an eye on Rage because you guys hate Rage and since Mind Trackers are made by Paras, they read your intent. It knows that you mean Rage harm, so it won’t show you his movements.”
“Then what do we do?”
“Well, the good thing about Mind Trackers is that they can’t read the intentions of a human.”
“So only a human would be able to watch Rage?” Rio asks.
“Yes.”
They all turn to me.
Great. That’s what I get for not having any wings.
“Okay, I’ll watch him. As if Ameana doesn’t hate me enough, now I’m spying on her boyfriend.”
Tony takes out a small plastic watch and tells me to focus on Rage. The more I think about him, the clearer the picture gets. Finally I can see Rage standing in an alleyway. The others can’t see him even though they are looking right into the Mind Tracker.
The scene taking place between Rage and Ameana is a very personal one. I tell the team that I’m uncomfortable looking into her personal life and they remind me this is about saving Ameana as well as keeping an eye on Rage. I reluctantly recount the scene taking place between the couple.
Ameana pops into the alley on her Port. Even before she gets off , she hurls Rage to the other side of the alley with a swift movement of her hand.
“Wait! Let me explain,” he begs.
She sends him into the air once again. I swear I can hear his head smash against the wall. She gets closer and begins hurling any and everything at him. She throws a metal rod only inches from his head.
“Hey, that one almost got me!” he shouts, pissed.
“How could you spy on me?” she screams.
“I had to,” Rage replies.
“That’s not a reason.”
“Look, I had to keep an eye on your team. That’s the only way I was able to convince the Sage not to harm you.”
“You made a side deal with the Sage?”
“I made a side deal that helps us.”
“ARGH!” Ameana screams so loud both Rage and I wince.
Rage scrambles to get up from the pile of debris Ameana buried him in.
“What? I was doing it for us,” Rage reminds her.
“I can’t believe I keep falling for the same guys over and over again.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
“You are just like Marcus.”
“Hey, I am nothing like your pansy ex,” he says, genuinely angered by the comparison.
“No, you two are exactly the same. Both of you just do whatever the hell you want. You never stop to think about the other person.”
“Hey, I was spying to save you.”
“Why do guys always think we need to be rescued? Seriously Thomas, do I strike you as a girl in need of rescue? Do you see me throwing my hair down a tower waiting for you to climb up and save me?”
“No, but I—”
“—Shut up!” she shouts.
She is so livid her hands are shaking. She closes her eyes and when she opens them again, she strains to speak calmly.
“You and Marcus both get into relationships and then act like you are in it alone. That’s what made Emmy leave Marcus in the end. He made decisions concerning her without her. You do the same and you will end up alone just like him.”
“I don’t care about Marcus or your team. I only care about you.”
“Then why did you tell the Quo that we were coming?”
“I didn’t. I told the Sage so I could hold up my end of the deal. I watched the battle, fully prepared to come in if you needed me. Ameana, you’re the only thing I care about.”
“This isn’t how you show me you care! Argh, why are you so—”
“—evil?”
“I wasn’t going to say that.”
“Well, you should because again, that’s who I am. Why do you keep trying to change me?”
“Thomas, I’m not trying to change you, I’m trying to love you.” Then she shakes her head and looks down onto the ground.
“Maybe this whole thing is just—doomed. Maybe you were right,” she says quietly.
“I’m sorry I spied on you. I now know that’s it’s not okay to do that. But the Quo are going to win this battle. There’ll be no more Angels anywhere in the world. I don’t want to lose you.”
“Then help us.”
“Yeah, right. I’ll just join your team,” he jokes.
“Well…we need all the help we can get.”
He looks at her as if she’s lost her mind.
“Ameana, Marcus would never allow that. And he’d be right. I could care less if the Guardians are dead or alive. I only care about you.”
She closes the gap between them and whispers in his ear:
“My team is my family. I can’t bear to lose another family. Don’t help us because you like them. Help us because you love me.”
The subject of letting Rage into the team is a short lived one; in fact before Ameana can even get the words out, Marcus cuts her off.
“--Rage is NEVER going to join us,” Marcus vows.
He speaks with such finality, Ameana lets the subject drop, at least for now.
After meeting with the Shadow Servant, we learn the Foundation is located in a small house a few miles outside of a village called Hofit in Israeli. It’s a one-story home that looks like it could fall apart at any moment.
The wind blows gently through the trees and provides shade to the house. It looks like a place that has yet to be hit by modern conveniences like the web or washing machines.
“This is so cool, it’s like stepping back in time,” I tell Jay.
“Yeah, I’m really not feel’n it,” he says, looking around at the dusty, vastly deserted area. We find Eta standing at the door, waiting on us.
“Please come in,” Eta says.
We enter to find a group of men and women who I’m assuming are Quo. They vary in both race and age. They gather around a large wooden table and look over documents that, based on their faded yellowish color, are very old. We enter and take in the simple yet warm feel of her home.
“This is my grandmother, Nipoe,” Eta says, pointing towards a plump woman with a round face and inviting smile.
“Marcus, it is a pleasure. We have heard of your team and it’s our honor to welcome you to the Foundation. Please have a seat.” Her voice is soothing and makes me feel calm. I wonder if that’s her power.
Eta pulls out chairs for us to sit.
“I’m sorry but we really can’t stay. We want to help you get as many Angels out from the Yard as possible but we also have somewhere else we need to go.”
“We’re sorry to sound rude,” I say, hoping we haven’t somehow offended her.
“You are off to find the Shoma, yes?”
“How did you know about that?” Marcus asks.
“We are sort of Angel historians. That is in addition to being Quo. All of these ladies and gentlemen have studied your society for many cycles. We have heard mention of the Shoma but had no real confirmation until now,” she informs us.
“Well, then you know we are short on time. What is your plan to get the Angels out and how can we help?” Marcus says.
“I’m afraid getting the Angels out is only the first step. It’s about changing the way our society views yours. We have to make the Quo see that they’ve been lied to by the Sage and that Angels can be trusted.”
“Look, that’s sounds really great, but we don’t have time to teach a class in tolerance. We’re on the clock,” Jay says.
“There’s more at stake here. Please let me explain,” Nipoe says.
Marcus looks at the team and begrudgingly signals for them to sit down.
“The Sage has long sought to have power. He first did this by vowing to help the Council in any way he could. He gave of himself tirelessly. He knew that sooner or later the Council would reward him. When they gave him the gift o
f foresight, he literally saw his chance.”
“According to our findings, there is a good chance that the Triplex was placed in the human because the Sage suggested it,” one of the members adds.
“Seriously?” I ask, feeling a chill run down my body.
“Yes, it is likely he foresaw that Marcus would fall in love with you. And in order to get the Triplex out, he would have to go see the Three Sisters. And you did just that.”
“Then the rest of the plan was that we kill Lucy’s son and get the Amulet from him. That way the Quo could go free,” Marcus concludes bitterly.
“The Sage orchestrated our freedom because he needed an army to destroy the Angels. He got exactly that.”
“How did he turn the Quo against us? We have never even heard of you guys and suddenly, you’re attacking us,” Miku says.
“The humans have a saying, ‘The opposite of love isn’t hate, it’s indifference.’ This is the case here. To the Quo, Angels hated us so much they were indifferent to us; like we were nothing. And let’s not forget, we were trapped in our own city,” she reminds us.
“Yeah, that was the Council, not us,” Rio replies.
“The Quo really don’t differentiate between the Council and Angels. All they know is that because they can’t fly, they were oppressed.”
“The Council did what they did because they didn’t want to upset the balance. Not because the Quo can’t fly,” Jay objects.
“That’s not the way the Sage tells it,” Eta says.
“And the Quo believe everything the Sage says?” Marcus snaps.
“Why not? You did,” a female Foundation member counters.
“So the Sage led them to believe that attacking us was the best thing to do,” Ameana says.
“No, he convinced them it was the only thing to do. The truth is many Quo attack out of fear.
They don’t know what to expect from the winged ones.”
“So we should feel bad for you guys?” Marcus scoffs.
“No, but you should be a little more understanding.”
“Your people killed off most of our friends. And tonight they will try to do away with another ten thousand of us. So with all due respect, screw you and the sympathy you think you deserve. We’ll stop game night ourselves. Let’s go,” Marcus orders.
He gets up from his seat and signals for us to follow him out the door.