“How long have you been here?” I noticed a lot more doors and side tunnels branching off from this corridor. There were actually people wandering the hallways here. They gave us cursory glances, but no one stopped to say anything.
Rasheya shrugged. “I was born here. The Mudarani are born from the side effects of the Tremble, much like you Theosians emerge from the Sandspit’s magical interactions with your mothers’ DNA. When they started using the Tremble as a place to keep the unwanted, the Corp-Rats engendered far more than a holding colony. And they never came out here to find out what’s really going on, though we always keep watch.” She paused, then shook her head and stopped talking. “Through here, please.”
She led us through a door at location 1143, and we found ourselves in a medical wing. The main hall was reminiscent of a hospital, though the equipment we passed was out of date. But outdated or not, the machines appeared to be working, even if it wasn’t the latest technology. Nurses crossed the hall, reading charts, talking with one another, carrying trays with meds on them. I had a feeling that the medical unit saw a lot of cases.
“This is our hospital. As you can guess, there’s more danger than we know how to deal with. Another thing to be aware of, besides the Starklings and the Packravagers and the carnivorous plants, is that the Tremble shifts and changes. You can be walking along one moment and a crack in the earth will open up without warning. Or you might be entering a building and then the door vanishes and you find yourself trapped inside a wall. Of course, the latter is an instant death warrant. Nobody can survive that.”
The thought of being caught inside a materializing wall was petrifying. “Does the reverse hold true? Has someone been caught when some place they’re in dematerializes?”
She hung her head, nodding. “Yeah, actually. One of my comrades—one of the Recon-Team members—was in an aereocar when it vanished out from beneath her. She was flying too low, and got caught in the energy field of the Tremble. She fell to her death.” The tone of her voice told me that her friend had been more than just a work partner.
Jason was frowning. I doubted he’d noticed the inflection in her voice. “So, the way it seems is that the energy surrounding the Tremble extends a certain distance above- and belowground?”
Rasheya gave him a nod. “It does. And it varies depending on where you’re at. We’ve never found it extending into Asylum, but there’s always the chance. So we keep a close eye out and make regular sweeps. Here we are.”
She stopped in front of a windowed door. “You wouldn’t believe how long it took our ancestors to turn these tunnels into viable living spaces. But, they managed. My grandparents were part of the original Recon-Team after Asylum was set up.”
After we found Tam, I really wanted to sit down with Rasheya and have a long talk with her about the nature of Asylum and her life here.
Hans must have been thinking the same thing, because he said, “Question. Why do you stay here? If you can build Asylum and keep it going, then why do you all stay?”
A veiled shadow crossed her face. She brushed her hand over her eyes. “Because when you are born on the Tremble, or when you stay here too long, you can’t leave. Those who try get sick and die if they don’t return. If you can escape before you’ve been here too long, you’ll be all right, but stay longer than a couple weeks and it changes you. I was born here. I can never leave.”
Before we could say anything, she opened the door and we followed her into the room. There, unconscious and lying beneath a heavy cover, was Tam.
Chapter 14
He was under a heavy green blanket, his eyes closed, his hands folded on his chest. For the briefest of seconds I thought he might be dead, but then I heard the faint hiss of breath as his chest rose ever so slowly. I rushed forward, pushing past Rasheya to stand by his side. As I cautiously lifted his hand in mine, the warmth of his body flooded through me and I could feel the life inherent in his heart. He would live. That much I knew.
Rasheya joined me, standing on the other side as Jason, Hans, and Elan gathered around the foot of the bed. “I found him on a recon-mission yesterday. He had fainted. Starklings were moving in to devour him—they don’t wait till you’re dead. I chased them off and brought him back. We had no clue who he was. He’s woken a couple of times, but seems withdrawn.”
“I can tell you why,” Elan said. “When one of the Fae are wounded, especially the Bonny Fae, they go inward to heal. He’s in a deep healing coma and will wake when he’s well enough to stand. By the looks of him, I’d say it won’t be long.”
I leaned close. Coma or not, I had to speak to him. “Tam. Tam? It’s me, Fury. We found you, love. We came to rescue you and we’re going to take you home.”
“You should stay through the night. The storm is only getting worse and you can’t take him till he wakes, anyway. Rest and eat, then we’ll help you find your way out.”
I looked around for something resembling a clock. “What time is it? We’ve lost all sense of time while in here.”
“It’s seven a.m., outer time.”
That meant we had been going all night. “It would be best if we slept till night. If we head out during the day, there’s a better chance the Devani will notice us once we leave the Tremble. That’s the last thing we want. We need to get back to Darktown in one piece, and take Tam to UnderBarrow so their healers can look after him.” I glanced around. “Can we rest in here with him? I don’t like the idea of being split up again.”
Rasheya nodded, a somber look on her face. “I’ll have pallets brought in for you. We can offer you food and warm blankets. We’ll do our best to escort you back to the border of the Tremble, but I’m afraid that’s as far as we can go.”
“We have a boat waiting for us. I hope Laren’s still there,” Elan said. “My brother will sail us back to the Peninsula of the Gods. But going through the NW Quarters isn’t wise. Neither would be crossing through North Shore or Uptown. Even Croix, at this point, is suspect.”
“The Devani are moving.” Rasheya turned at the door. “Don’t be surprised if the Corp-Rats are making a play for more power. They forget the World Shift and all that happened. It seems long past to them. They assume that Gaia won’t move against them again. It’s a dangerous world and growing more so.”
I thought of the Order of the Black Mist. With Lyon and his group on one side, and the Corp-Rats on the other, it was inevitable there would be a clash at some point. The question was, would we be ready for it, and able to survive? Then, a thought struck me cold.
“Can you imagine what would happen if Lyon and the Order of the Black Mist decided to unleash the power of the Tremble and blanket the land with it? Could they even do so? If you want to talk about chaos, that would do it.”
Rasheya gave me a blank look. “Lyon? The Order of the Black Mist?”
“Nothing. Never mind.” I shook my head. “I hope I’m just coming up with random horrors. Go. We’ll wait here.”
As she withdrew from the room, I slumped in the chair nearest Tam’s bed. I wanted him to wake up. I wanted to press my lips against his, to feel him warm in my arms. But I was afraid of hurting him, or disturbing the healing sleep he was immersed in. I restrained myself, simply holding his hand to my cheek and resting my head on the side of his bed as I sat there.
Rasheya returned with several men who looked to be Mudarani as well, all carrying pallets and blankets for us. As they arranged them around the room, I joined her as she arranged trays filled with cheese and fruit. Two other women joined us, a younger one carrying bread and an older one who brought in a tureen of soup. Both women looked a lot like Rasheya.
Rasheya noticed my look. She smiled. “May I present my sisters. Taya is the eldest, and Feranya is my younger sister. They work here in the hospital.”
I held out my hand but Taya ignored it, giving me a friendly yet aloof nod. Feranya dipped into a quick curtsey before shyly stepping back. She looked to be pre-teen, and she
tucked one finger in the side of her mouth, chewing on her nail. The faint sheen of light fur stood out on her face. It was then that I also noticed pale whiskers emerging from the sides of their noses. They were more cat-like than I first thought.
“So the Mudarani aren’t shifters. Or Weres, I assume. But you resemble cats. You said that the energy of the Tremble is responsible for your race, but do you think there might be any connections between you and the Jagulins?” It seemed there might be some connection. But the Jagulins were shifters, come to think of it.
Rasheya shook her head. “No, we’re very different. I don’t suppose the Mudarani will ever fully know how our species began and I suppose it doesn’t really matter. I have no idea if we have any relatives in other countries, but we’re pretty much clustered in small areas throughout the Americex Corporatocracy that are similar to the Tremble. We keep to ourselves, and if the government knows of our existence, they haven’t said anything yet.”
I thought about my chip and how afraid it had made me when I was young. And how now, with it altered, I was forever trying to stay several steps away from the authorities. “Are you afraid they’ll find out?”
Rasheya glanced at her sister Feranya, who shivered, shaking her head slightly. “We try not to dwell on that. For one thing, coming out on the Tremble to find us? Not easy, even for them. But there are things about our race of which we do not speak. Not to strangers, even ones who understand our need for secrecy.” She held my gaze. “I know your kind are prized by the government, and watched. And I know your chip has been altered. Your Bonny Prince talks in his sleep. You’d best tell him watch his tongue when he wakes, lest he talk around unfriendly sorts.”
I caught my breath. What if he had talked where the Devani could hear him? Would they be looking for me even now? I turned to Jason. “Do you think I should worry?”
He didn’t flinch. “We can’t be sure yet. But when we get back, I suggest you hide out in UnderBarrow for a few days until we know for sure. There’s a good chance they would find out about your connection with Dream Wardens and we don’t want them trapping you there.” They might be there even now was what he wasn’t saying.
Rasheya pointed to the food. “Eat. You should eat.”
“How will we get Tam back?” I settled in at the table and picked up a roll, tearing the soft yeasty bread in half. I layered cheese and meat in the bun as Hans, Jason, and Elan joined me.
Elan shrugged. “If he’s still unconscious, we will carry him. My brother can contact Damh Varias for help once the boat nears the Peninsula of the Gods. We have a short-distance encrypted communications relay.” She carved off a slice of cheese and neatly swallowed it. “Good food. Thank you. I imagine you don’t have much extra out here.”
Rasheya shrugged. “We share what we have. Some seasons are lean, others are flush. We’ve learned how to store food for the former, and enjoy the latter without going overboard. We can grow a few crops, though there’s no telling what the Tremble’s going to do to them. One year our tomatoes were as large as bowling balls. We made a lot of sauce that year. Another year, we barely saw them the size of marbles.”
I thought of what she had said—that those adapted to the Tremble couldn’t leave it. “Then, you’re stuck here. So you have to make the best of what you have.”
“That we do.”
“Once we make it out, I’d like to repay you by sending supplies. What can you most use?” I didn’t have much, but I was determined to hit up Hecate in order to repay them. Rasheya had saved our lives. She had saved Tam.
Feranya, as shy as she was, spoke up. “We can use bandages. We’re running low and have nobody on the outside at this point to send them in. We also need baby supplies. Staples. I guess. Anything helps.” As the girl trailed off, Rasheya pulled Feranya to lean against her, holding her gently by the shoulders.
“She’s right. We can use just about anything you care to smuggle in.”
Elan finished her sandwich. “My brother and I run the boats. We’ll manage it. The problem is finding a way to get the supplies into the Tremble to you. Do you have a way of keeping time with the outside world? Maybe we can set up a meet.”
“Down here, yes. If we set up a time we can probably manage it. There are tunnels to the cliffs beneath the Tremble. We could lower a ladder to a boat snuggled up against the coast. The problem is, we can’t go down to get the supplies, so we’d need to rig a method of bringing them up.” But even as she spoke, a ray of hope filled the Mudarani’s eyes.
“We can do this. It will be our thanks for your efforts. We will bring everything we can, because we may not get another chance for a while.” Elan sat back, pursing her lips. “Can we leave through the same route? It occurs to me that the journey back the way we came will be even more dangerous.”
“Yes. We can manage it. But you should rest now,” Taya said. “The trip through the tunnels to the cliff entrance should be safe, but there are creatures who manage to break through our outer labyrinth, as we call it. If we are cautious, we should pass through without a problem. Especially with a larger party.”
“Starklings?” It occurred to me that the Starklings had put me off birds forever.
“No, but just as bad. A few lycanthropes, and other creatures. But as Taya said, we may not see hide nor hair of any of them if we take enough people with us.” Rasheya stood, glancing at the pallets on the floor. “Get some sleep. Tonight, we’ll lead you through the tunnels. Your boat may not be there, but you will be able to use your phones if someone eases out on the ledge over the water. You can call the boat then.”
And with that, she and the others took their leave.
I curled up on the floor beside Tam’s bed. Soon, the sound of steady breathing came from the others. They had fallen asleep and I wished I could. I was on the edge of dozing when a hand dropped over the side of the bed to stroke my hair.
“Fury?” His voice was raw, but Tam was awake.
I scrambled to my feet, holding my fingers to his lips as I settled in beside him on the side of the bed. “Are you all right, love?” I whispered.
He nodded, then blinked, looking around as he took in his surroundings. “Where am I?”
“Below the Tremble, in a place called Asylum. They rescued you from the surface. We’ve come to take you home.” I leaned down, pressing my lips to his forehead. “I’ve been so worried. We’ve been so worried.”
“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.” He struggled to sit up and I helped brace him as he pushed his way to a sitting position. “I tried to get free from the Devani but they caught me. If you had stayed, they would have caught you too.” He paused, pressing his lips together. “I couldn’t let them catch you. Your chip. They would have never let you go.” Suddenly he paused, staring at my face. “What the hell happened to you? You’re hurt.”
I didn’t want to worry him but he’d find out sooner or later. “Lyon’s men jumped me when I was chasing an Abom, which Lyon may have somehow summoned. They beat the crap out of me, bruised a few of my ribs. I’m not fully up to speed, I’ll tell you that.”
Tam wrapped his arms around me but stopped as I groaned. Gently, he drew me into his embrace. “My love, I thought I was protecting you. I’m so sorry. I wasn’t there.”
“You couldn’t have stopped them. There were three. They were all tough, and they were waiting for me. But it pretty much guaranteed my fears that the Order of the Black Mist is after me.”
I leaned against his chest, melting into his arms. The scent of his body, the feel of him holding me, reassured me in a way that nothing else could. I hadn’t realized how much I longed for someone to be with until I had Tam. Now, I harbored the secret fear that he would vanish, swept away by the violent tides that surrounded my life.
“Fury, when the Devani were heading toward us, the only thing I could think about was making certain they didn’t get to you. I couldn’t bear it if they caught you,” he murmured, then pressed his lips to
the top of my head.
I wanted to crawl into bed with him, to make love with him no matter how much it made my ribs hurt, but we couldn’t. Not here, not with the others watching. I settled for holding him close. As he tightened his grip, I gasped again as my ribs protested. He immediately let go and I shifted so that I was lying with my head on his shoulder. Three words were poised on my tongue, but I couldn’t say them yet. I was afraid to say them. But the moment I knew we found him, I also knew that he had won my heart.
“I’m not going to say what I’m thinking right now,” I said. “I don’t want to jinx things. I don’t want to say a word until we get back to UnderBarrow. But I think you know what I’m feeling.”
“Four-letter words raise the ante. But we’re not playing games. We’ll talk when we get home.” And this time, his lips met my own and he kissed me, deep as the ocean, his tongue sliding against my own. And he tasted like honey wine.
We rested in silence, me propped against his shoulder, until he finally let out a long breath. “I suppose we need to talk about what we’re going to do when we get back.”
“About that. I have to ask you something.” Reluctantly, I told him about him talking in his sleep. “Is there a chance you talked in your sleep around the Devani? That you mentioned me and my chips?”
He thought for a moment, then shook his head. “No, I didn’t sleep while I was in custody. That I guarantee you. They exiled me to the Tremble the next day. So you should be safe. But I won’t be. If they find out that I escaped from the Tremble, they’ll send the Devani for me, though I doubt they’d dare enter UnderBarrow, and if they do try, they’ll find a resistance they never dreamed possible. Even though the chances of them discovering my absence are pretty nil if I avoid the sky-eyes, I’ll have to stay out of sight. Maybe I should head to Briarwood for a while. They have no jurisdiction there. Briarwood and the Wild Wood are sovereign nations within the Americex Corporatocracy. They can’t follow me into the woods.”