Page 118 of Pet: Genesis

“T’a Juis.”1 I don’t know what Remus said to her, but she somehow collects her anger, looking back to her brother as she speaks in their native tongue. Her sentence is short, and she makes sure to glance in my direction once more before walkingaway. As she leaves my surrounding space, my body trembles, and my breath feels like it’s been knocked out of me.

Remus chuckles lightly as he gently grabs my arm to steady me.

“I’m glad to see the fire hasn’t completely gone out in you,” he says in amusement. Silence stands between us as I regain my composure, giving Remus time to watch me.

“Breathe. She won’t harm you. Nothing will harm you ever again.” He gently touches my cheek, and I feel a small tingle of warmth emit from his palm.

I finally look him in the eyes, the color creating comfort as he watches me.

“Are you ready?” he asks. I slowly nod my head, and he smiles before standing to his full height.

“Very good. “

The crowd’s roar increases in volume as we approach the large doors at the end of the hall. Remus continues his walk as the Leviathan on either side opens the doors, revealing what lies beyond. I’m momentarily blinded by the light, blinking rapidly so that my eyes will grow accustomed to the brightness of the day.

The sound of the crowd heightens immediately as we step out onto the balcony that overlooks the Leviathan city. The crowd stretches for miles as far as the eye can see. There are also Leviathan in floating crafts above the crowd, taking in the splendor of their leader—or rather, leaders. When I look to my left and right I see that Xion and Ezra both stand on their own separate podiums. Ezra looks much better than when I saw him last, every bruise gone. His hair is still short, unlike his siblings. His smile is wideas he waves. Xion’s smiling as well. But Remus has a knowing expression on his face as he stands proud, looking out over his people.

The same holographic screens Jude and I saw at their celebration for Remus and his siblings float above them as well, just as Remus holds his hand up to silence the cheers. And to my complete and utter awe, the crowd slowly grows quiet until all you can hear is Remus’s voice.

He’s giving his speech in his own language, so I have no idea what he’s saying. But as I watch him and the overall poise he gives, my emotions slowly grip my throat. How I could have mistaken him for anything but a threat is beyond me. He’s completely collected as he speaks, not at all revealing whether or not he has been affected by the events of our planet. If I were his people, I would believe anything out of his mouth as well.

He pauses in his speech, gesturing toward the podium that his sister stands on. The crowd once again explodes in an uproar of cheers, and as they do, Remus’s smile grows. Remus then gestures toward his brother, saying something else that echoes over the crowd. The speech he gives is uplifting for his people and in this moment, I can see the leader not only he is, but the leader they see him as.

The loud roar of the crowd pulls me from my thoughts, and I realize Remus is finished with his speech. He has a small smile on his lips as he waves goodbye to the people, turning away from the ledge. He silently walks past me, glancing at me briefly as he passes.

“Let’s go.”

Remus is speaking to Leviathan nearby as we ready for our departure. Strangely, Remus doesn’t seem in the mood to join the celebration. But as a beloved leader, he must stop and speak with Leviathan.

“Did you enjoy Remus’s speech?” I tense when Ezra gently pushes my hair behind my shoulder as he rounds me, a mischievous smile on his lips. His peculiar-colored eyes watch me with the intent of making me uncomfortable as he awaits my response.

“I couldn’t understand it,” I murmur. He laughs at my reply.

“It’s probably better that you couldn’t. I can’t imagine you would be pleased to hear Remus announcing what happened to your planet’s ‘last hope,’” he teases. After facing Xion, I am wary of Remus’s siblings, especially the one who was trapped in the rebel’s grasp but seems perfectly fine now. The only indication of his time in the resistance is the new length of his hair, which strangely matures him.

“And Iriel? What happened to him?” I ask. The last I saw of him, Remus had viciously crushed his skull right in front of me. I can’t fathom he’s still alive, but after paying attention to Remus’s leadership style, I can’t imagine he would execute him even on the battlefield.

“Iriel is heading back toXyrannisto await trial. Normally, the council that was assigned your planet would handle his crimes, buthis crimes are much more serious than what he’s done on Earth,” he says.

Ezra picks up my confusion immediately, explaining what that means.

“He not only conspired against this planet’s colony, but he conspired to kill The Divine Three. That is punishable by death.” Ezra winks at me as he speaks his next sentence. “Unless, of course, one of them has grown fond of the conspirator, in which case she is offered an entirely new life,” he chuckles.

“Pors’chua relousevais. Ji’ton featralihn?”2Remus’s voice washes over both of us as he gently pulls me away from Ezra. Ezra watches the exchange with slight irritation before straightening his spine and smiling at his brother. He quips something back in their own language before looking back at me.

“Enjoy your new life, Iris,” he chuckles before walking away. I look at Remus in confusion. Whatever he said was enough to make Ezra walk away without so much as a response. Remus seems to sense the direction of my thoughts, answering my question before I can voice it.

“I only asked him to stop terrorizing you. And about the human he took from the resistance,” he says. My eyes widen at his words.

“Sky?” I ask. Remus now looks at me with a strange expression, and I try my best to answer him as he answers me before I canvoice it.

“I met her in there. She was... the lead researcher in charge of him,” I say, purposely, leaving out that she’s the reason the weapons exist and how humanity somehow was able to decipher his DNA.

“She told me she would kill herself before she let him…” I trail off as Remus laughs. He looks at me with an amused expression.

“The same way you tried?” he asks, looking back at Ezra’s retreating form. I immediately know he’s referring to the day we met when I tried to take us both out with that grenade. It makes me wonder what kind of power Ezra wields to have been able to stop such an intimate drug from killing Sky.

“I’m sure she did her best,” Remus murmurs, pulling me out of my thoughts. He silently makes his way to the waiting ship, knowing I will follow. It makes my heart ache for Sky. I recall just how resentful she was when I last saw her. She has a long battle ahead of her, and I can’t help but wonder if she will break as I did. It took me seeing humanity’s true nature and seeing Remus’s full power to understand my choice. But Sky already understood human nature. I fear what Ezra may have in store for her now that she’s caught his attention.

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