Invaded (Alienated, #2)(6)
She couldn’t find the nebula, but she noticed twin moons and then the muted blue planet that would become her new home.
A wide expanse of ocean wrapped around the globe, interrupted by a single tan continent and a sprinkling of tiny islands. Thick clouds obscured her view as the shuttle jettisoned into the atmosphere. Once their craft broke through the haze, rows of beige-capped mountain peaks greeted her, jutting proudly against a sky the exact shade of slate. At their base, a placid sea stretched to the horizon and kissed the rising sun.
Cara faced the opposite window to take in forests of majestic redwood-size trees, their silver leaves sparkling like quartz in response to the morning rays. Her eyes widened to absorb it all. She tried to find some hideous flaw in the landscape to prove that Aelyx had exaggerated the magnificence of his world, but every atom in her body sang with its beauty.
As the shuttle descended, she could make out a settlement in the distance. She quickly identified the capitol building based on its position at the heart of the city. Offices, apartments, shops, and dormitories splayed out from the humble three-story structure like satellites in orbit, each as neutral as the next. It seemed that architecture, like every other aspect of life on L’eihr, focused on practicality over aesthetics. The small city reminded Cara of how the ancient, sandy-colored ruins in the Middle East might have looked in their prime.
When she turned toward the other window, she caught Jaxen observing her reaction. He held her gaze for a few beats and leaned forward as far as his restraints would allow. “What do you think?”
As soon as Cara found her voice, she told him, “It’s spectacular.”
“I think so, too,” he said. “This is the smallest of the five precincts, but it’s my favorite.”
“For good reason,” Aisly added. “Everything important is here: the academic and scientific archives, the genetics labs, the cultural galleries.”
“Not to mention your government,” Cara said. The tiny capital reminded her of Washington, DC. “Do all ten members of The Way live here?”
“Yes and no.” Jaxen gestured out his window toward the city. “We rotate living in different precincts and shuttle to the capital when we need to convene. It allows us to oversee the local governments while ensuring each region’s needs are fairly represented.”
“Except Alona,” Aisly said. “The head Elder always resides at the capital.”
“Kind of like our president in Ameri—” A sudden dropping sensation made Cara gasp, and she glanced outside to see the shuttle touch down in the shorn beige grass outside the capitol building.
Once her heart quit thumping, she scanned the open courtyard, noting a cluster of silver-leafed willow trees and shrubs near a side entry. At this early hour, there was only one L’eihr in sight: a middle-age guard standing at attention near the front entrance. Cara’s eyes darted to the iphal holstered to the man’s side. It was a handgun of sorts, but with the power to stop a victim’s heart with a concentrated pulse of energy.
Welcome to L’eihr. Start anything and we’ll end you. Have a nice day!
Cara unbuckled her harness and waited for the dozen passengers ahead of her to de-board. Then she followed her brother down the shuttle steps and paused to draw her first breath on an alien world.
The air was warm and humid—slightly heavier than she’d expected, smelling faintly of bitter citrus. It was an oddly pleasant scent, especially compared to the exhaust fumes she’d grown accustomed to on Earth. The gentle morning sun warmed her shoulders, a sensation she hadn’t felt in weeks. Until this moment, she hadn’t realized how much she’d missed the feel of sunlight on her skin. The main transport had provided ultraviolet lamps to encourage vitamin D production, but they couldn’t replicate the breeze that stirred loose wisps of hair against the back of her neck. She’d missed that, too.
Right away, she noticed Earth’s vibrant color spectrum didn’t exist here. Aelyx had once compared L’eihr to Midtown in winter, when the few remaining leaves had shriveled and turned brown. It was a fair comparison, but much less dreary. These tan leaves glistened with an opalescent sparkle that made Cara want to string them together and wear them around her neck.
She observed a great stone wall in the distance, hugging the rolling hills until it disappeared behind a multistory apartment complex. She wondered what was on the other side and why they bothered with walls when shuttles could easily fly over them.
“A credit for your thoughts,” said Jaxen, studying her again with a smile.
“A credit.” Cara laughed at his spin on the American expression. “Guess my pennies are worthless here.”
Jaxen held up his wrist. “Your nano-chip will track your credits, among other things.” He strode to the doorway and gestured for her to follow. “Come here and I’ll show you.”
Cara glanced at her inoculation scar. She’d forgotten that in addition to a thousand vaccines, the medic had implanted a data chip beneath her skin.
Jaxen pointed to a light switch–size box affixed to the outside wall. “There are stations like this everywhere—even inside your quarters. Hold your wrist under here, like this.” When he demonstrated, a beam of light danced over his flesh. “The system will scan you for personalized notifications.”
Cara extended her arm, palm up. Seconds later, a woman’s soft voice ordered, “Cah-ra Sweeney, please report to the first Aegis at your leisure.”