The Host ¤ The Next Chapter

The Host ¤ The Next Chapter: 30

The Host ¤ The Next Chapter: 30

(Song - Radiactive by Imagine Dragons)

May

Healer Blossom continued out the door with the crowd, but I was stuck behind with whoever had grabbed my wrist. It wasn't a polite tug, which could only mean a Seeker had gotten ahold of me. Whether it was Skyfall or Blackfire, I had no idea. I put on my best Soul-happy face and turned around.

"Yes? Is there something wrong?" I asked, coming face to face with Seeker Skyfall.

The male Soul seemed baffled, or very confused, and he let go of my wrist. I let it fall to my side. His eyes swept the room and the parts of the hallway he could see. Seeker BlackFire was no where in sight. Was that what he wanted?

"Um, yes, excuse me." He apologized for taking me to the side so roughly. "I want to ask you about a patient you had. Is that alright?"

He meant Jenny, I thought. He wanted to know what happened to her AND May. Skyfall had no idea that I was standing right before him. All his trails must have gone cold. He couldn't shift through the Healer's documents, after all, without a permit saying so.

"Of course." I replied because I had no other choice to agree. If I hadn't, then I would look suspicious. "Do you know their name?" I asked.

"Her name was May, average in height for a young lady and had bright red hair. I don't know if you remember, but I saw you escorting her to her room." Seeker Skyfall spoke quickly, hoping I'd know something.

I was about to open my mouth, but his eyes happened to trail down to my name tag. He wanted to know my name, but I'd forgotten I'd never changed it.

Skyfall's eyes went back up to my face again and he took me by the wrist again. Before I could complain, he pulled me into the room with him and closed the door off. Seeker BlackFire was no where in sight, but I supposed he didn't want to take any chances.

"May." He stated firmly. I could tell he knew it was me and I couldn't lie.

"That's me..." I sighed.

"Where have you been?" Skyfall demanded. "I tried looking for you everywhere, but it was like you'd dropped off the face of the world."

"I sort-of did." I admitted, earning a confused look from the Seeker. 

This was the moment. Did I tell him what happened or keep my mouth shut? He was a Seeker and could report my fall-out to the Order. I didn't know what the punishment for treason was for Souls, but if it was anything violent, obviously the Order covered that up. I'd have to chance it. If Seeker Skyfall turns me in fine, but if he doesn't, then maybe I could gain a new ally.

"I was taken captive by rebel humans." I said the sentence before I could think twice.

Skyfall looked like I'd just slapped him in the face. "You...you were what?" he asked, wondering if he heard me right.

"I was taken captive by rebel humans." I repeated. "But I wasn't tortured or left to starve. They took care of me. I would have stayed with them, but my head got pretty cramped with..."

"Jenny." Skyfall finished. "That was the name of the original human inside that body, wasn't it? You let her go by switching out bodies." he sighed as the details fell in place. "And you got stuck here, playing Healer because you had no where else to go."

I didn't say anything.

"May, if anyone found out what happened to you, you'd be labled as a fall-out immediately." The Seeker said in concern, studying my face.

"I realize that." I hummed. "The only threat I have right now is you---if you decide to turn me in."

Skyfall looked at me as if I was crazy. "I'd never." he breathed right away. "Your opinion might not match what the Soul collective should be, but that's not a crime. You are who you are. Nothing can change that, no punishment or threat."

"You sound like a fall-out yourself." I commented on the side.

He frowned. "Perhaps I am."

I blinked. Now it was my turn to not believe what I was hearing. "What?"

"I'm a fall-out." Skyfall confessed. "I used to agree with the Order---when it was just one planet or two. Now it looks like they want to take over the entire universe. Us Souls got the hosts we required. The other planets we've taken over was only in greed and selfishness---something we wanted to prevent. However, the Order went blind, thinking that we could spread our peace galaxy-wide. They made up excuses for why this or that planet needed to be taken over."

"Then help me." I spoke up at the right moment, attracting his attention. "Help me get in contact with the human rebels. If I can tell them they need to take the problem out at it's source---the Order---then they can still save their planet before it's taken over completely."

"May..." Skyfall sighed. "I'm afraid it's not that simple...." he eluded.

"I know it goes against everything you've been trained to do, but the humans deserve to keep their planet. They were here before us. We don't have the right to take that away from them." I intervened quickly. "But after all this change," I gestured to everything around us with my arms, "I think they've learned their lesson. We don't have to take over a planet to ensure peace. We can guide and help them alter their world to get rid of their problems."

Seeker Skyfall's lips pressed into a thin line before he spoke. "The Order has been around for too long. Peace cannot last under one rule. It has to be passed from generation to generation to remain the striving goal. People can become corrupt after they've had power for too long."

"Which is exactly what has happened to the Order." I countered when he stopped speaking. "So help me bring them down. It won't mean the end of all Souls. Rather, it'll be a new beginning for us AND the humans. It might be too late for the other planets, but at least we can save this one and stop future planets from being invaded."

"You're right." Skyfall suddenly agreed. "The Order needs to come down and now's the perfect time. They're trying to brainwash the young Souls. We can tell them differently."

"You'll help me?" I asked, wanting to hear his final decision.

"I will." He agreed. The look in his eyes told me this wasn't going to be a betrayal. Skyfall was in and he wasn't going to back out. "But first," he inturrupted me before I could speak, "There's something you need to do. Healer's transfer from center to center, but not often. We'll have to be able to move a lot to reach a lot of people without making you look suspicious."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "What are you saying?" I asked in confusion.

Skyfall looked me straight in the eye. "You'll have to become a Seeker."