{Earth}

With Kyle gone, Silence predicted dissension among the nervous lesser beings.

There.

The Progeny’s people finished discussing their plans and turned. Turned and looked at her. These were not friendly looks.

Of course.

Silence remembered little of her life. The time and place of her birth. Who raised her. How she came by her training. All lost to her. But she retained a decent comprehension on the behavior of sentient creatures in mass.

In a time of crisis, turn on the outsider.

She considered opening her blue wings, breaking through the glass, and flying away. To find Kyle, the only person with a key to her memory and her forgotten mission. Another, more disturbing, temptation presented itself. Slaughter them all. End their confusion, their concern. As if answering the temptation, a wave of blue light pulsed beneath her skin.

They stepped back. Except Lynn. The young woman with her dark complexion and fun twisted hair visited an unexpected kindness on Silence since her arrival at the Ecology. The human shared her clothes with the Icarean woman. Fixed her hair. Showed her how the toothbrush worked.

Now the woman known as “Chief” gazed at Silence with harmless curiosity. Decision made, the Icarean female brushed the blue stripe in her otherwise black hair from her eyes and walked over to the Chief. The males watched in suspicion.

Chuckling wasn’t polite. Silence gave them a decent amount of trouble since her arrival. None of it intentional. But, alas, it left a lasting impression. So, when she reached Lynn, the Icarean female held out her hands squeezed together at the wrists. “You may arrest me, but not the males. I’m in your custody now, Chief Lynn.”

Silence broke her last pair of nacre cuffs. She felt the seam in them, the weakness, and split them apart so they shattered into precious dust. Kyle took custody of her after that. He promised to restore her memory. For their benefit, she wouldn’t destroy the cuffs this time. But… “I want to find him to learn why I was awoken.”

“No cuffs. We’ll confine you somewhere comfortable until we understand better what your role is in this current catastrophe.”

Lucas said those words. He reminded her of… someone or something from her past. His golden eyes fueled the urgency in her to continue her mission. He also loaned her clothes with legs almost as long as her own. The t-shirt she wore now belonged to him. Barely long enough to brush the tops of her thighs, she liked the males’ reactions to her exposed skin. Especially Kyle’s. Except Smith. He never reacted to her, not even so much as widening his brown eyes. She caught him staring at her only from the peripheral occasionally. Like now.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Silence searched Lynn’s eyes, waiting for her judgment.

Mrs. Chief nodded. “I hate to do this, Silence, but we don’t really know you. And the man that vouched for you—”

Lynn’s breath hitched, and she swallowed her words. The memory haunted her.

“Yes.” The Icarean female offered nothing to console the stricken human woman. Kyle survived somehow. Conscience—Andrew—believed that. The younger woman’s brown eyes found her gray ones again. So great was their height difference that Silence slouched to maintain eye contact. Meanwhile, that mysterious purpose screamed for her return. “Let’s begin.”

Smith accompanied Lynn to Silence’s new cell. The others scattered to rescue trapped Progeny. Her two jailors deliberated on the subject. Bored, she let her thoughts drift. How could she find Kyle? Scouring this planet, even on wings, might take her a year. Cinder, two years. These people underestimated the task ahead of them, but without knowing the full potential of their resources—

The resources that survived the attacks, anyway. Whoever wanted to cripple them knew exactly where to hit. That implied a spy. Silence understood spies. But not why. She hoped the Shadow would let her help. At least long enough to find Kyle—

The Icarean prisoner of war, Twenty-One, waited at the glass front of his cell as they rounded the corner. Everyone paused awkwardly in the corridor. The very, very large Icarean male gazed at Silence. Not with attachment. With kinship. For a moment, they reconnected as Icari. Proud warriors of Cinder. Why not?

Silence broke into a smile, implying that she looked forward to the next time. He returned the expression. She suspected it was his first one in a long time. Even as the two pulled her along, she kept her gaze locked on his. The both of them up to a special brand of mischief only Icari understood. Fun, casual sex as escapism from the horrors they survived. Getting caught only enhanced the experience. Impressed, he shook his head playfully at her trouble-making and left the entrance before they shoved her through a door. The extra secure cell they kept the Imminent prisoner. The same one the ancient Seamswalker murdered him in before causing this calamity.

Silence clicked her tongue and turned on her jailers. “How long?”

Lynn stood in front of Silence and faced her like a proper warrior. “So much happened. We need to assess the damage and find out if there are any casualties. I know you understand.”

The taller woman nodded slowly.

“I know you can break out of here.” She sighed and gestured exasperatedly. “But on good faith, please stay here until we can interrogate you. Andrew seems better, so maybe he can search your intentions. And if Kyle is alive, we’ll find him.”

“I want to help.” Silence meant it.

Smith took a step closer and reasoned, “We know. The best way you can help is to stay here for now until we know more. Can you do that?”

Lynn also looked up at her, expectant and entreating.

Silence hated this. The unknown mission clawed at her muscles, her lungs, and her heart. They stood in the way.

No…

She took a deep breath and calmed herself. No. The amnesia stood in the way. They wanted to help her.

“Very well.” Silence sat with her legs stretched out in the middle of the floor and looked up at them both. “I will stay here while I wait for you.”

Obviously expecting more resistance, they shared a bewildered look before Lynn sighed in relief. “Thank you.” They both took their leave.

With them halfway out the door, Silence called out, “Send in Twenty-One whenever you like.”

Lynn’s groan echoed in the cell.