The Goddess Crystal

Chapter 1: Hello to You, Too

Asphalt and cobblestone crumble underfoot as Skye and I walk down the decimated streets of Forget-Me-Not City. Soldiers and civilians alike mill around, most cheering and happy over the fact that President Blackthorn's dead.

I'm not among them, and neither is Skye. He's the one who killed Blackthorn—his own father—after all. I owe my sobriety to the fact that I found out what Skye went through under the 'care' of his father, and because my parents are somewhere in the City, not even caring enough about me to ask anyone.

So you can't blame me.

Lots of people stop to stare at us as we pass—at Skye, specifically. Maybe they notice his coloring—the silver hair, the aquamarine eyes—and realize he's rich. Or, rather, his parents are (were, I correct myself) wealthy. But when you're the son of the most prominent and influential politician in the City, it's to be expected.

Especially when you're walking and holding hands with a person who's colorings are considered sub-par. Put simply, I'm 'poor' in most eyes.

Once upon a few months ago, when the Shade Law was still active, anyone who had 'bad' colorings, like brown, for either eyes or hair—both, even—was looked down upon by the rich, who often chose the most unusual and unnatural colors they could afford.

But that changed—well, the Law, anyways—when Blackthorn died at the hands of Skye and the rebellion won the bloody war it started so long ago.

And, now, we're looking for the rebellion's base. It's funny to think that Blackthorn tortured me to get that specific information, which I didn't even get until months later. And, after that, Skye, however accidently, destroyed the one thing that Mr. President could use to control others physically: the ring.

Maybe he wasn't completely insane when he said that the legends of the Goddess Crystal, a shard of which was the gem of the ring, was reality rather than just folklore.

The path to the Goddess Pond comes into view within minutes of us leaving the house—or, rather, what's left of it after the soldiers who stormed it were done with it. We make a left.

The trees give us trouble, and one whacks me in the leg, right on my gunshot wound in my upper calf. I lurch forward and swear.

"What happened?" Skye asks, looking over his shoulder and stopping. "Is it your bullet wound?"

"Yes," I hiss painfully, trying my best not to cuss the hell out of the stupid branch. "Goddess, that hurts!" The scab's cracked, blood trailing down my leg. Not so pretty, huh?

"Why don't we take a rest? You shouldn't be pushing yourself so hard; we don't have the ring anymore, so you can't get it healed without proper medical attention."

"Yeah, yeah, I know," I say, wincing as I straighten up. "But let's keep going; we're almost there. I want to yell at my parents for leaving us behind back there."

He watches me, unwilling to let me win this fight so easily. "Just a few minutes, if not for yourself, but for me. I don't want you to go lame in the leg."

I raise an eyebrow. "'Lame in the leg'?"

"It means to be handicapped in the leg, usually with a constant, incurable limp."

I laugh and stumble my way over to a nearby dead log, trying to ease myself down without cracking the scab again. "I know what it means, Skye. I just find it weird that you're use the term. I mean, it is pretty uncommon and old-fashioned."

He sits down next to me. "You know that's the way I talk, Jill."

I roll my eyes. "I wouldn't have ever guesses, judging by the way you called me 'Maiden' before I told you to stop doing that."

"I still don't understand why you don't like being called that."

"I told you, already."

Skye glances at me and chuckles. "I know, but your reason seems incomplete to me, like there ought to be something else you haven't told me."

"Like the reason you gave me about why you were there on my roof when we first met?"

He stares at me for a few seconds before shifting his gaze, suddenly uncomfortable. "That's not the same thing."

At a loss for words at his reaction, I ask, "Why're you suddenly so defensive? I was just joking. What's wrong?"

Skye tenses, still not looking at me. "Never mind. It's nothing you should worry about."

"Skye, it has to be something. Why can't you tell me?"

He stands up quickly, making me jump slightly. "We should be going."

"Skye—"

The bushes brush apart, loud and crashing. Black combat boots are the first thing to break through the foliage, and my eyes dart up. The person the boots belong to seems very familiar.

"Jonathan? Jonathan Brook?" I ask, walking over to him. When he continues to watch me without recognition, I decide to use the nickname I gave him when were younger. "Jack? It's me, Jill. Your cousin."

He blinks, adjusting the strap the goes across his chest, hand dropping from the gun in his holster. "Jill? Shit, you've grown. Where's Blythe?"

"Just because I'm three years younger than you doesn't mean I'm still a kid. Mom's somewhere," I say, then realize something. "Shouldn't she be at the base? A rebellion soldier said my parents asked for an escort there."

Jonathan, who I nicknamed Jack after the nursery rhyme, laughs and smiles roguishly. "Must've missed them. The base has gone crazy ever since—" He notices Skye, who has stayed silent throughout the exchange. "Shit, is that—?"

"Skye Blackthorn," Skye says stiffly, narrowing his eyes at Jack. "Who are you, may I ask?"

Jack laughs, ignoring the falsely polite hand Skye offers. Instead, he walks over and claps him on the back. "Captain Jonathan Brook, Jill's cousin. But you can call me Jack." He looks at me and grins. "I still don't know how your nickname stuck."

I smile evilly and sing, "Jack and Jill went up the hill—"

He laughs. "I know, I know. Yeesh, don't get that stuck in my head."

Skye clears his throat, brushing Jack's hand off of his shoulder. "Captain? Somehow, I doubt someone as young as you is a captain."

Jack's grin doesn't waver as he motions us to follow. "Funny story, actually. Once a lot of high ranking military men started to die off—some call foul, but that's beside the point. They needed replacements. Just so happens that I'm one of the best here."

I roll my eyes and flick his ear. "They probably only promoted you because you pulled some strings. You were always good at getting what you wanted out of the adults when we were younger."

"You're just jealous of my amazing good looks."

"Yes, that's totally it."

"I'm happy you've finally admitted it."

"Are you sarcasm impaired or something?" I smile at Skye, hoping to bring him into the conversation, but he just walks with his head down and doesn't react when I take his hand.

Jack watches us, raising his eyebrows at me. "You guys together or something?"

I bite my lip, realizing Skye still hasn't told me what's wrong. I'll ask him later. "I—"

"Yes, we are." Skye looks up, finally, smiling slightly. How is the most popular person in school so...anti-social? "We've been together since before the battle where Jill got shot. Months before, even, I think."

"Yeah?"Jack asks, stopping. "And she's been shot? Where?"

"In the leg, but don't worry; it's fine," I say, my wince disproving my statement instantly.

"Really?" Jack turns to Skye, serious yet still completely at ease. "When was she shot?"

"Before the Starry Night Festival. She refuses to go to the Hospital or even take it easy," Skye says.

"Well, that's certainly Jill for ya. There's a Doctor on duty at the base, so—"

"Am I invisible?" I ask, not daring to look down at the blood that's dried on its way down my leg. Instead, I focus on Jack's forearm protectors. "Don't I get a say on my treatment?"

Jack puts an arm around my shoulders, laughing. "Of course you do. We're just not letting you have it."

Trying to shrug off his arm—which is quite heavy actually; he must be doing a lot of physical work, but something tells me that the thick, brown leather jacket and forearm armor he wears adds to the weight—I say, "I like how you're both bonding over taking away my medical freedom. Why do I have a bad feeling about this?"

"Don't worry, little cousin," Jack says, messing up my bangs. "Nothing bad'll happen. I don't think I'm that stupid."

"Yes, Jill. It's not like we're going to do something incredibly foolish."

"'I think'? That's very reassuring, Jack," I say, glaring at him. Turning to Skye, I look at him seriously. "Trust me; with my cousin, it's much more common for idiotic things to happen."

Jack laughs roughly, grinning and starting back on the path we were taking. "Are you still sore about that creek incident? It's been years!"

I huff, letting go of Skye's hand and crossing my arms. "Hey, it was your idea, but I was the one who ended up soaked to the bone!"

"You're the one who wanted to catch that fish. 'It's pretty,' you said."

"You`re the one who pushed me in. I had scrapes after that, and it was to pretty!"

"It was a fish."

"A damn rainbow fish."

"A damn rainbow fish that got you soaked."

"I said, you pushed-"

Skye breaks up our squabbling with a well placed comment. "We're here."

"We're what?"

Jack smiles and walks a bit faster, his combat boots crunching gravel underfoot. "We're here. See what I mean?" He points to the surprisingly large and well-hidden structure built beneath the boughs of the large oak tree next to the Goddess Pond. "Crazy."

Crazy, indeed, I think, watching all the people run around. I try to find the small meadow near the Pond, but quickly realize I can't see it and that we couldn't have gotten to this area if we hadn't taken the path we had taken, thanks to the wall of briars.

Jack smiles at our stares and my obvious wonder. "Welcome to the infamous base of the rebellion."

"Well, hello to you, too," I mutter under my breath when I spot my parents who wave but don't smile at us. Well, shit.

Welcome to my new story, the sequel to The Shade Law, my other fanfic. Please, do go read it, so you can understand what's happening. What'd you think of the first chapter? What'd you think of my take on Jack?