The Mayaware's reign must end.
In a world of demonic beings with a hunger for human flesh and thirst for blood, Hesi Renen knows it well. When her siblings are taken to the harvesting farms, she must do everything she can to get them out, even if it...
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Hesi rounded a corner, and her eyes caught a familiar bob. "Pai!" she whispered, picking her way across a mess of carts and piles of hay for the mules. The mass of dark hair snapped up. Her sister's eyes widened.
"Hesi." Her sister whispered back, pushing other children as she crawled to the grates. She spotted the cage's metal lock. For a civilization who couldn't get language right, they surely advanced enough to know how to protect their possessions. Keys. She needed keys. Or...
Her gaze zeroed in on the slab of rock lying a few steps away. It was slick with dried blood, with some locks of human hair clinging to it. Must be where arms get chopped off. She stalked towards it, but a hand closed around her wrist.
"Hesi, stop," Pai pleaded. Tears streamed down her face and wiped a clean trail down her dust-stricken cheeks. Another chorus of mutters and movement swirled from the children, and Unsu made it to Pai's side. By instinct, Pai wrapped an arm around her brother, and he pressed his face against her chest. "It's useless."
Yes, Hesi might draw attention if she broke the lock with the stone. Mayaware senses were more heightened than humans. They would know she was here. No number of deshet would save them.
She turned back to her sister. "I'll get you out," she said. "Hold still. I'll find a way. Somehow."
Pai shook her head. "That's what I meant, Hesi," she replied. "Stop. It will not get us anywhere."
Her hands slammed against the wooden rails, startling her sister and the rest of the children inside. "What are you talking about?" she demanded. "I won't let you become a part of this madness. I'll get you out, and we'll escape. We'll be free."
"It's not freedom when all we do is run," Pai resoned, her voice thick with an emotion the girl never showed. It was not present after they found what remained of their parents (an arm, chunks of their heads, and an unidentified thigh) and burned them to ashes. When they scattered the soot to be part of the ever-shifting landscape, not a single tear crept down her sister's face. But now...
"Running is better than this hell on Tjarma," Hesi answered, gripping the rails with her calloused hands "Don't fight me on this, Pai. Remember the rules."
"The rules don't hold when we're captured," Pai pointed out. "Because we've never been until now."
Hesi bared her teeth. "Don't turn my wheels around, Pai," she snapped. "I'm getting you out, and that's final."
She stomped towards the slab and grabbed it with both hands. A small voice sparked behind her. "I don't want to ride carts anymore," Unsu said. Her arms froze. Her heart fell to her feet and shattered to pieces.
It was his dream to crest the dune without having to walk, to feel the wind on his face as he dove. They have no idea how to tame horses or even mules, so those weren't viable options. They had different versions of freedom, and to Unsu, it was the feeling of flight, of never having to worry about his toes blistering, his ankles snapping, and his legs scabbing and throbbing.
