Earth(43)

"Shut it, will ya?" One of the guards grabbed her arm, pulling her into him as they walked. "Once you get to camp, there'll be plenty more to cry about."

She recoiled from his breath. He laughed and shoved her away. The rest of the prisoners instinctively crowded around her, shielding her from more bullying.

"Quit messing with them," another guard whispered to his coworker. "You're just jealous because the prisoners eat better than us."

The man grumbled, but didn't outright protest.

The girl stopped crying, but her hiccups and deep, shaky breaths continued to float back to me. I couldn't just abandon them. It was because of me they were here. Apparently, they weren't the only prisoners. How did One Less manage to hold Elementals?

Somewhere up ahead, a dog barked. I flinched at memories of my penguin guard dog on Galapagos Island. The feeling of my power drained, heavy limbs, and the bitter taste of hopelessness raced through my body. Whether there was a place like that close by or not, I couldn't let that happen to anyone else, much less my people.

Without thinking, I reached for my powers. By now it was muscle memory. They didn't come, only pain greeted me. My head spun, splitting open as I fell to my knees. I just managed to crawl to the side of the trail when I vomited, spewing my insides all over the flora and its annoying, consistent buzzes of electricity.

Desperate, I reached for my powers again. Like a drug locked away from me, I panicked at the absence of magic. I felt hands on my back, but the voices around me were drowned out by the roaring in my head. I threw up again, dry heaving stomach acid now. The puke-covered plant life raced up to meet me.





* * *





"Easy there, princess."

I took two steps forward and manipulated the gun out of Shawn's hand in a lightning quick move Alex showed me once. I turned off the safety, took aim, and pulled the trigger.





Chapter 26





Camp





A mullet swayed in front of me. All business in the front and a party in the back. The mullet disappeared as a head swiveled. Overgrown eyebrows and a square chin greeted me.

"You must be Erika," I said. My mouth was sticky and dry at the same time.

She smiled. "They brought you in yesterday, and you've been asleep since. Must've been one helluva fight – wish I’d been there."

"No you don't." I tried to shake my head; a sharp stabbing pain shot through it.

"Here." She held a canteen of water to my lips. I took a drink before she eased it away. "Doctor said not too much."

"The prisoners." I tried sitting up. My head felt like it would split open.

"Whoa, whoa, easy there." She pushed me back down, it didn't take much.

I blinked away the pain.

When Erika came back into focus, she was looking over her shoulder. She turned back to me, whispering, "What business do you have with the prisoners?"

I didn't answer. My hands went to my head, making sure it was intact.

"Listen," she said, "I don't care – but other people will. All I'm sayin' is be careful who you say things around."

I tried to nod, but then thought better of it. "Sure, thanks."

She put a blanket over me. "They said you was one of mine when they brought you here. I went along, but I ain't never seen you before – at least not in my camp."

She stared at me, unblinking. I was going to have to tell her something. "It's…I'm new here – and there are…things…going on in camp that I don't want to participate in."

She held up her hand. "Stop right there – no need to go any further. Several of us that run with a different crowd, but the majority of my group is just seeking shelter. You’re welcome to bed down with us. There are just a few rules."

"Okay." I could handle rules.

"First, we follow the rules of camp. Everyone pulls their duty – I can't protect you from that."

"Okay," I repeated.

"Second, no drama."

I liked her already. "Is there a third?"

"I think the second rule covers pretty much everything else. Now, I've got clearance to keep you on bed rest for another two days, but then I gotta put you back on rotations. What were you on before?"

"Um…" I couldn't think clearly. What duties was the camp likely to have? "Kitchen." I pressed my lips shut. Kitchen? I couldn't think of a worse duty – which was why it probably popped into my head. "But I hate it." I added.

She raised an eyebrow. "Could be worse – could be latrine."

I crinkled my nose.

She sighed. "I'll see what I can do – someone will be in every few hours to check on you. In the meantime, stay put."