“They’re not satisfied with what they have,” he explains, picking at one of the wounds on his arms. “They want more. They know there are other people—humans—out there. They want to find them and take over them. But the thing they really want,” he pauses, looking up at me, “is you.”
I sigh. “There’s never enough for them. Greed. That’s the reason it started and that’s the reason it’ll never end.” I hop down from the crate. “Until I put a stop to it.”
Sylas jumps down next to me, landing unsteadily on his feet. “How do you plan on stopping them exactly?” He looks doubtful that I can do it because it does seem impossible; however, I was created for a reason—to stop this.
Anger burns inside of me as I think of all the people that have either died or turned into some kind of monster because of the Highers’ need for power. Greed. It ruined the world and made it a horrible place of death and fear so they could have their rules; their control. We were all simply walking around, obeying them, but now it’s time to change that; change the future.
“I plan on doing whatever it takes,” I say, scooping up the papers, hoping they have the answers written on them, knowing there’s a chance they don’t. I need a backup plan just in case something doesn’t go right because I will save the world.
No matter what it takes.
Chapter 17
It takes the rest of the day for Sylas to finish changing back into himself. It’s a painful process full of screaming and body shaking. His skin molts off, like feathers, and beneath it is rejuvenated skin. He’s not wearing a shirt and keeps picking off pieces on his back, neck and chest, flicking them onto the floor. He seems to be gaining his strength back by the minute, breathing easier, moving lighter, like the Sylas I first met.
While we wait, I update him on everything that has happened. The escape, Nichelle, Maci falling from the cliff and about Mathew; how I need to take the papers back to him so he can help us find a cure. That supposedly he can read what’s on the papers and maybe find a way to end the Highers’ plan of greed once and for all.
“So other people and colonies really exist.” He muses at this, rubbing his jawline, pacing back and forth to stretch out his legs in front of the crates I’m sitting on. He said they feel extremely stiff from being crooked and bent and it’s sort of hard for him to walk.
“I’m guessing that’s why the Highers are creating their army… they don’t want to risk anyone becoming more powerful than them. I’m betting their plan is to find all the other colonies, send their armies in to round the people up and then take control of them.” He pauses, glancing at me. “Or kill them.”
“It makes sense,” I admit, reaching forward and peeling a stray piece of skin off his arm. “They don’t want the chance of an uprising, so they send abominations to take control of the cities and kill any people who try to resist.”
“I’m guessing that you and I are onto something.” He smiles amusedly at me while picking off one last strip of skin from his stomach. He looks completely normal. “You know what,” he flicks the piece of skin onto the ground, “I feel so much better now.”
I flip the knife around in my hand, playing with it. “You look better now.”
“Better?” he asks with a crook of his brow. “Or sexy?”
I roll my eyes, but my stomach flips. “Glad you haven’t lost your sense of humor.”
“You know you’ve missed it.” He waits, his silence challenging me to say otherwise. When I don’t answer, I’ve pretty much agreed he’s right.
I’m not sure how I feel about that.
“We should probably get going if you’re feeling better and it should be dark by now.” I hop off the crates and put the knife away. “There’s no point sitting around and wasting time.” I walk over and pick up the papers.
Sylas glances around the room. “I need a shirt or something.”
“Well, where did you get the pants?”
His eyes darken. “You don’t even want to know.”
He’s probably right, so I take off my jacket and toss it to him. He catches it and puts it on. It’s large on me, but still a little too small on him. He manages to get it zipped up then we head out a door that leads to the outside. We’re on high alert because of the abominations. Although, I now know how to change Sylas back if he gets bit, I’d rather keep the getting bit on my part low.
Sylas grabs the door handle behind him, but pauses. “What about Aiden?”
I pause, deliberating what the right thing to do is. “Um… I guess we should probably find him.”
“Are you sure?” he questions. “You do realize that the Highers are probably searching for us, right? They have a connection with their army and will probably know that you are here right now…. Plus, they’ll probably figure out that I’m no longer with their group of soldiers and search for me because I know stuff.”
“You think they know that you reversed back to a Day Taker?”
He shrugs. “I’m not sure. But if they do figure it out and find out that you’re the reason why I’ve changed, you will definitely become their top priority.” He lets go of the doorknob and takes hold of my hand, his skin temperature matching mine “You’ve got to promise to be cautious. If the Highers get their hands on you… well, they’ll have what they need to become what they’ve always strived to be. Perfection.”
“Then I’ll just have to make sure they don’t get their hands on me,” I tell him determinedly.
“We’ll make sure,” he presses, his dark eyes turning to liquid black like the ink on the papers that I’m holding. “We’ll make sure that they don’t get their hands on you.”
“You know, you sound so good at the moment,” I say in a light tone.
The corners of his lips quirk. “Don’t tell anyone. I have a reputation to uphold.”
He lets go of my hands and then we head out the door, checking the hallway before stepping out. It’s silent as we back our way down the hallway, the only noises are the soft flaps coming from the plastic above us and the crunching as we step on debris. I follow him down the hall, folding up the papers the best that I can, then reach forward to put them into the jacket pocket that Sylas is wearing. He tenses and freezes from my touch, startled. When he glances at me, I shrug.