FIRESTORM:

The next day, Grace kissed Zayne hello before trying the next set of keys. The instant click of the lock caught them both by surprise. They laughed as Grace swung the cage door open. Zayne raced out and scooped her up in his arms. They got used to the bars being a barrier between them, and now the spark from their connected bodies exploded inside them. Their veins glowed with excitement.

Someone banged on the door from outside, ramping up their emotional frenzy to a boiling point.

“I changed the combination.” Grace gave a naughty smirk. “They can’t get in. The hazmat suit man will never hurt you again, Zayne. We’re safe in here now. Let’s wait until they leave. Then we’ll run.”

“No,” he said. “I face them. Now!” He dreamed of the chance to get back at his captors every night for the last few years.

“Be careful!” Grace said as Zayne grabbed a shock stick from a nearby shelf for added protection. He motioned for her to stay back and moved to the door with precision.

Grace tiptoed behind. Despite taking another injection of the mysterious serum earlier that morning, she wasn’t prepared to face anyone head on.

The thirst for vengeance took over as Zayne thrust the warehouse door open. It smacked the hazmat man in the face and knocked him back. Zayne kicked him while he was down and pounded the shock stick into his torso. The man convulsed on the ground and passed out.

It was too easy. Zayne wanted more of a fight. He wanted that man to suffer as he had. He readied his knife to go in for the kill, but Grace grabbed his hand to stop him.

“Come on, let’s get out of here,” she said. “You’re finally free.”

Zayne realized he had stepped outside the dank building for the first time in years. He was finally free! Joy replaced all desire for revenge. With arms outstretched, he closed his eyes and smiled as the sun shone down on him from behind the Grid. The warm breeze tousled his jet black hair.

Grace smiled and said, “Let’s charter a boat off this God-forsaken island.”

“First…” Zayne ripped the faceplate off the man’s hazmat suit, revealing his face.

“No Tinga,” he said to Grace.

She leaned in to get a closer look. “I don’t recognize him. Who is he?”

Zayne picked the man up, dragged him inside the warehouse, and threw him into the cage. He locked the door and took the key.

“We ask him later,” Zayne said. “We find Father and Mother now.”

Grace nodded, happy they found the monster behind the madness.

Zayne, her hero, took her by the hand. They ran out of the warehouse giggling.

Zayne felt more alive than ever. He had his freedom, his girl, and he would soon reunite with his family after spending years in that cage. He couldn’t wait for Grace to meet all the loved ones in his village.

On the way there, he stopped to splash fresh water on his face from the stream. It felt so good. He drenched his hair with it. Water trickled down his sculpted chest. He splashed Grace, and she screamed with delight. She splashed back, and they chased each other in the crisp brook.

Zayne led Grace through a field of vibrant flowers. He picked a bloom for her. She smelled its beauty and tucked it behind her ear. They exchanged sweet kisses in the fragrant meadow.

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Grace looked up at the Grid. "Do you ever wonder why the Grid is there and what it's made of? The big mysteries of life, that's what keeps me up at night."

“I show you the beauty of this land,” Zayne whispered. “Join me to protect the bounty.”

Zayne grabbed Grace’s waist, pulled her into his body, and caressed her soft skin. He stared into her deep brown eyes and kissed her neck. She melted into him.

The beautiful moment ended abruptly by wailing calls from the wild creatures of Bennu Island. They were close, and they were hungry. Zayne moved to protect Grace.

The Bennu birds used to be kind, but things took a dark turn a few years before he was captured. First Tinga’s son disappeared, then another boy. Tinga went to the nests in search of his boy and was lucky he lived to tell how he got his hideous face scar that creeped Grace out so much. The daily threat of Bennu attacks shook the villagers, who had always worshipped them. The birds turned on them, signaling to the elders a disharmony they didn’t yet understand.

“What should we do?” Grace asked.

Zayne looked over his shoulder and confirmed they were being stalked. The ruthless beasts hunt in packs, and three sets of beady eyes watched the couple from their hiding spots.

“Run!” Zayne whispered.

He pulled Grace forward. They broke into a sprint as three Bennu scavengers pounced from the trees. The creatures lunged forward to bite their heels, but narrowly missed. The powerful beasts thrust their wings and flew after their prey.

Grace looked back to see the birds for the first time. They were huge, with a wingspan and height at least double hers. Skin so scaly, talons large enough to grab her head and snap it clean off. Their dragon-like heads and long necks lunged forward to attack violently.

Zayne wished he kept that shock stick. Instead, his best protection was to run as fast as he could. He hoped Grace would keep up, but she struggled and stumbled. A Bennu bird snapped its sharp teeth at her. Zayne turned around and punched it in its long, drooping face. The defense was effective because of all the injections he’d received. Zayne was strong, that’s for sure. Was he truly indestructible? He hoped not to be tested by a Bennu’s razor sharp talons.

“Firestorm, help them!” Jackie cried.

Before I could say anything, Jackie reached deeper into the stream and knocked one bird away like an invisible hand of God.

“Jackie, leave it!” I yelled.

The change Jackie made in the stream was meaningless, but I didn’t want her going rogue trying to affect things before she understood the big picture. We needed to stay focused.

The other two birds roared, and despite her terror, Grace got back to her feet. They ran away, hand in hand. Zayne would never leave her. He wouldn’t let these creatures get the best of him, not after all he’d been through.

The birds took flight, swarming overhead.

“Here!” Zayne yelled as he pulled Grace toward a nearby cave.

They ran inside for cover. Zayne slid onto his back like a baseball player sliding into home. He kicked a Bennu bird that dipped its head into the lip of the cave. The bird screeched.

Grace grabbed a rock and threw it at the creature. It recoiled, realizing they weren’t easy prey. The swarm of birds called out a warning as they flew away.

Grace and Zayne embraced, out of breath and sweaty from the deadly chase.

“I never saw them before,” Grace said. “I only heard them. They’re terrifying.”

Zayne checked to make sure she wasn’t hurt. There was a small bloody gash in her abdomen. She winced when he touched it. Her skin slowly healed itself. She hadn’t had many injections, but there were clearly some low-level benefits from what she had received.

“I’m okay. We’re safe,” Grace assured him.

She softly ran her fingers down his arms and pulled him in close. He recoiled when she brushed against the scars on his back, so she refocused on his chest instead. Goosebumps formed under her touch. There was no longer a cage to separate them physically, and she was eager to take advantage of that fact.

As Grace leaned in for a kiss, Zayne gasped and exclaimed something in his native language.

“What is it?” Grace turned to see a field of radioactive eggs glow green.

“Whoa, what are those?” Jackie asked from the slipstream.

“Bennu eggs,” Zayne whispered, almost in response to Jackie. “My family… We tell them. We protect the island and all its bounty.”

Before Grace could respond, the scene grew dark and faded away.

“Firestorm, what’s happening?” Jackie cried. “I’m losing my… grip!”

“Stay focused,” I told Jackie. “You have to see what happens next.”

“I… I can’t. Something is sucking me out of the stream. I feel weak against it…”

Jackie cut out.

I quickly pulled myself out of the stream to find Jackie. Why had she been pulled out of the slipstream? I knew time was short, but that was less than expected. I couldn’t lose her, not before she saw everything she needed to help me enact my plan to take down Life Rite.