THE KEEPERS RISE

Chapter 16 - Out of Sync - Part 4

*Remember to click the play button to listen to the soundtrack as you read!*

Titus didn't like what he saw outside the tiny cell window. He and the three other captured Keepers had been alone with each other and their thoughts for days, and his hunger was slowly morphing into aching pain. Now, to greet them, an unfamiliar planet was looming into view. A thick, ominous layer of smoke obscured its surface, and the few visible patches of land and sea seemed stained gray. "Guys, come see this." Pecci and Lenora exchanged glances and got up to join him, but Iyan stayed in the corner of the room and focused his attention on his shoes, looking miserable. "You can't stay there forever," Titus cajoled.

Iyan didn't budge. "What could there possibly be to see?" he spat back.

"The Light must be on their way to help us, and you act like we're screwed already," Titus groaned, flipping around to face him. "What's your deal?"

"Do you really think it's reasonable that a band of mercenaries could hold up the Light Council for this long?" Iyan said dryly.

"I'm sure the Council has their reasons. The Red Wolves could have swarmed their whole flagship, after all."

"Titus, there is no way anyone is coming to save us," Lenora scowled. "Help would have been here by now, no matter how much trouble the Red Wolves caused on Dameon's ship." Pecci nodded, decisively crossing her arms.

Iyan pulled his legs close, shivering despite the ship's unpleasant heat. "Something's not right," he wavered.

"You always think-" Titus abruptly went quiet. He could hear faint conversation and the approaching footsteps of five or six humanoids outside the cell. He stood stock-still, listening intently, and the rest of the Keepers followed suit.

"It's nearly 1900 hours," a man said casually. "Nic and Marka should be on the surface by now, with the Councilor and the bug."

Bewildered, Titus glanced back at the other Keepers with his mouth hanging open. "Trycho and Councilor Quin are here?" Iyan murmured in disbelief.

The group stopped right outside the Keepers' cell. "I'll let them know you're on your way," someone replied before walking away alone.

The cell door, which had been closed for so long that Titus had forgotten it was there, suddenly slid open with a hiss. Compared to the red magic blocking their stones, the light that flooded in from the hall was blinding, and he shielded his eyes, squinting at the doorway. He could just barely make out the silhouettes of five humanoids. One of them snapped, "Let's not keep the admirals waiting." It was the man who had spoken first in the hall.

The four others seized the Keepers and tapped their claw-shaped cape clasps. Red magic reached down from hidden stones within the clasps, merging with the blocking magic on the Keepers' Powerstones and cuffing their hands together. Iyan was pulled roughly to his feet, and he snarled at his aggressor, "You've got no idea what I would do to you if my stone wasn't blocked." The Red Wolf snorted and rolled his eyes.

The woman in charge of Pecci buckled a tight strap around the archian's beak, and the last Red Wolf sauntered into the room, surveying the Keepers haughtily. He had many more silver stripes on his uniform's sleeve than the other officers did, showing his higher rank. Finally, he said, "All right, let's go." They tapped their clasps again.

The cell walls faded away excruciatingly slowly, and they reappeared in a long hallway with doors on both ends. The air was cold and fresh. Under their feet, a huge Red Wolf insignia was set into the ground, and a flat silver ring encircled it. The ring was spinning wildly around them, but it started to slow down once they all appeared, accompanied by a loud mechanical whir.