REVOLUTION: A Rebel Among Monsters ✔

Twenty-Two••A Little Too Easy

The covered crystal carriage reached them at last, and Melaynia's terrified thoughts tucked somewhere in the rear of her mind. Valnia shoved her inside and shut the door behind them.

"I told you not to speak until we got in here," she said as she crawled into the front seat. She placed a key in the slot, gripped the directional level, and the machine came to life.

"And I told you that I was scared," spat Melaynia, her upper lip curling. "Do you not care about that?

"Assume the responsibility." Valnia didn't bother to turn around. "You demanded this special treatment, didn't you? To bypass your excellent test results and forfeit yourself to the emotional and physical tests to get your way? Yet you're scared?" Her tone was so clipped and cruel Melaynia wasn't sure if the woman directing their carriage was her sister. "It's too late for that. You brought this fear upon yourself."

Had Valnia ever been sweet and caring, as their mother had implied?

Whoever this is... isn't the same person.

Valnia tugged the lever again, and the transport spun to the street, taking off at a steady speed. "Automatic," said Valnia as she let go of the stick. "Our destination is pre-programmed, and we'll be there in an hour or so. Finley Point isn't far." She spoke with such neutrality, as if she hadn't been an absolute ice queen seconds before.

One hour didn't allow Melaynia much time to interrogate her. And in any case, with such an ever-changing attitude, she doubted she'd get any straight answers out of her.

She peered out the window, confused why Valnia came off so mean, so irritable. Did the Monsters tell her to be like that?

Every moment that passed only amplified Melaynia's yearning to run away. Every silent second and discouraging, albeit brief, looks from Valnia made her more reluctant to go through with this secret mission. Or to collaborate with the Eldians. Because what ruler in their right mind would turn two sisters against one another?

The Impians would have given her answers, she bet. And that was why they were cast away; because they revealed too much. And they didn't manipulate Ceruleans into fighting their family wars.

She watching the tall buildings as they swerved past them, and was more and more inclined to seek out the Eldian's supposed evil siblings.

At one point, Valnia twisted her upper body to Melaynia, her eyes a veil of impenetrable mystery. "When we stop in Finley Point, I'll debrief you and go over instructions. After that, as Lexa said, you'll be on your own."

Melaynia's mouth opened, but she had no voice nor any energy to muster some half-hearted reply. She didn't trust herself to not fling questions at Valnia... and she didn't trust Valnia. So she nodded, then gazed outside, bedazzled by the sparkling blue waters flowing beneath the Transportation Bridge. She'd never been so far from home, and despite her concerns, the adventure excited her. How she yearned to jump out of the carriage and swim to some exotic island somewhere. To evade Valnia, Lexa, the Monsters, and form her own army... made of sea-shells and turtles.

She would have chuckled, but didn't want to draw attention, to make Valnia think the air was no longer thick with tension.

***

Finley Point was mesmerizing. Towering, modern structures, bushy, basil-colored trees that fluttered in the wind, shiny materials she ignored the names of. An atmosphere of freshness welcomed them as they exited the carriage, and Melaynia smiled—until she took note of Valnia's cold eyes.

They'd halted at the Finley Point City Hall, a wooden building of a few stories high, with stone accents around the windows and violet flowers hanging from frames. The area was bustling with people, and nearby were restaurants with tables on balconies, tourists haggling over prices in merchant shops, and lumber-themed souvenirs clutched in children's hands.