Apocalypse Before Finals - Julie Steimle (bts book recommendations .TXT) 📗

over each other, scrambling to get back into the hole in the wall. Mr. Demmon was the last at the opening, eyes wide as he beckoned to the rest to hurry. He paused with one look at Jafarr. Groaning he then ran back to get him, pulling on his jacket. "They'll kill you, Jafarr! Come on!"

But Jafarr would not be moved from Zormna's side. He gently pushed off the man's grip, standing closer to Zormna, waiting for the possible chance that her plan would backfire and her fellow soldiers would not remember her at all until it was too late.

Whatever had caused resistance inside the door gears broke and in a snap, door spread open, pouring blinding light into the hallway. Dark silvery shadows stood in the doorway in the forms of ten men with guns, which was undoubtedly meant to be a forbidding sight - enough to scare away a few vagabonds standing outside their door or a handful People's Military officers pretending to be one dead Alea. But as the light illuminated the hall, the soldiers within saw the very Alea whom they had presumed was dead, folding her arms in such familiar consternation that they almost dropped their weapons. They also took in Jafarr, whom they recognized. For a moment they took the both of them as mirages. They hardly noticed the frightened middle-aged man with them.

Zormna marched into the district's open hallway at once. "Are you going to let me in or not?"

With a start, Jafarr quickly followed her to keep pace. Mr. Demmon still clung to Jafarr's jacket, struggling fruitlessly to stop the young man, and yet even more stunned that none of them had been shot. The crowd of soldiers parted automatically, eyes wide on Zormna specifically as if she were a ghost. The trio did not get any father than the front lobby, which was brightly illuminated and only as wide as a one-car garage. Most of the soldiers there were coming in from the long side hallways which ran a fair distance in both directions and smoothly curved, narrowing just slightly as it went deeper in on one side. Zormna felt immediately home. And yet the place felt unusually desecrated. It had all the wrong feel - too tense.

In the gatekeeper's booth to the left of the entrance, a portly-looking man rose from his seat, blinking at the three persons who had entered the hall - gaping mainly at Zormna, especially eyeing her stolen PM attire. "Alea Zormna! It is you! We thought you were dead!"

The man jumped out of his seat immediately, running over to her amidst the murmurs from the soldiers in agreement. He stopped just in front of her, not daring to touch her in case she vanished in a puff of air like a ghost.

Irritably, Zormna shook her head. "As you can see, I am not dead. Why did you think I was?"

The portly man bowed his head with a glance at the other soldiers there. "The Kevin thought you were dead."

Zormna blinked dryly. "What?"

All the soldiers nodded, rumbling together in agreement.

One soldier stepped from the group said, "The Kevin and Salvar were crying over it for days. When the PMs arrested the Kevin, he didn't even put up a fight. He was so upset. He kept on saying all was lost."

As if her insides froze, Zormna stiffened. "Why did he believe I was dead? He sent me off on special projects. He didn't even check in on me. What happened?"

All the soldiers shrugged.

"We don't know. We thought he got secret information about it. Alea Salvar has locked himself in the communications room and won't speak to anyone."

Jafarr chuckled. "That's a good use for a communications room."

All eyes quickly turned on him. Many of their stares turned hostile. And why not? The last time Zormna had caught the infamous Jafarr Zeldar had been had been in the Zeta District compound. Several of these soldiers had handled his capture, and they were bitter about his subsequent escape.

"What are you doing here?" Alea Brren scowled especially at Jafarr.

Zormna immediately grabbed Jafarr's uniform sleeve and pulled him next to her. "He's with me."

The effect of her words and actions on the room was like she had just dropped a bowling ball in the middle of dining room table set for a Christmas feast.

"But he's a criminal!" "But haven't you always hated him?" "But that's Zeldar!" "You have got to be crazy!" Their yells and exclamations came out in an unwanted barrage, which made Mr. Demmon shrink in fear, looking to the door.

Jafarr sighed, rolling his wan gaze toward Zormna.

"Quiet!" Zormna set her fists on her hips.

The room silenced immediately, a number pulling back.

"I know who he is," Zormna said, shooting piercing glares at everyone in the room. "I know what he does, and I know what I think about him."

Looking at her, Jafarr wondered exactly what she meant by that last statement.

She continued. "I trust him explicitly."

With a smile, his shoulders relaxed. For some reason he needed to hear it as well.

"Are you mad?" the Alea burst out again.

Zormna shook her head. "Look. I've been with him for the past year - "

They drew in breaths, including Mr. Demmon.

"And he didn't abandon me on Partha like the Kevin had," she snapped. "Besides, I have been wanting to join the rebellion for over three years now. And we no longer have time to waste." She turned to Jafarr. "Can you call those others into the compound? I think they're still too freaked out to listen to me."

Jafarr nodded, nudging Mr. Demmon to let go. Both shouted into the corridor, "It's all right. Come on in."

Half of them had already evacuated into the wall, but some had lingered, watching from the moment Zormna and Jafarr had marched into the door.

The gate keeper rushed to Zormna side, hissing through his teeth with sharp glances Jafarr's way, "You don't know what you are saying! They're criminals! The entire rebellion is - "

"The rebellion against our lousy government is not a criminal organization," she snapped, beckoning the other soldiers to make room for the people they were letting in. A few had already come, seeing and believing they would be safe. "They've rescued people. And are fighting for freedom. But the People's Military murdered my parents. And they undoubtedly destroyed the families of most of our soldiers in the Surface Patrol."

"You don't actually know that," Alea Brren replied disparagingly.

"I do know that!" Zormna shot back. "You might be a recruit, and you might think the status quo is fine. But I have hated it for years. But even that aside, do you know that the People's Military is doing right now?"

The Alea pulled back from her, staring.

"Right now they have gone to Partha to take control of that world," she said. "That is breaking the law! Our own law! What is the Zeta District for if we are not keeping the borders from criminals coming to Partha? Hmm?"

The room went silent. Many were pale, not believing her report.

"I saw it myself," she said. "We just left in the middle of it."

"No way," one of the soldiers murmured, his eyes watching Jafarr urge a couple of kids to step aside the door and make room for others coming.

She turned to face that soldier. "Oh yes. An invasion. All our laws concerning maintaining our borders have been broken by our own government."

"Because all the Tarrns are dead," someone else murmured.

Zormna stiffened as someone else had snapped back, "No Tarrn talk!"

"I think we can talk about them now that they are all dead!" that first soldier bickered in retort.

Jafarr quickly looked to her, leaving those he was helping. Zormna had closed her eyes, clenching her teeth.

"So Alea Salvar is in the communications room, is he?" she finally said with a military pivot toward the forward tunnel now, marching into it a few paces.

"Yes." Alea Brenn nodded, following her breathlessly.

Zormna nodded. "Ok."

She looked about the room. Finding Mr. Demmon in the small cluster that had come in so far, she smiled. "Hurry up and get the rebels hiding in the hall to come in. No doubt Jafarr will need their help in rallying the rest of his group to arms."

"You really are the Alea Zormna Clendar, aren't you?" Mr. Demmon murmured, gazing more fully on her.

Zormna bowed at him with a reverent nod, meeting his eye.

That was enough for him. Mr. Demmon stepped back to the huge open door. He called once more into the hall, his voice echoing into the blackness, "Hurry up and get in! This is legit!"

 It took a while for the others out there to trust what they were hearing to be real. Once Jafarr and Mr. Demmon convinced them that they were safe to come inside, in fact that it was better that they do come inside the compound in case PMs came around, the rebellion members swarmed into the entrance hall. They gazed in awe at the perfect space there - doing it also with a little fear.

But that fear was warranted. The Surface Patrol officers stared at them so critically that the rebels pulled together at one side of room. Most of the soldiers looked like they'd just as soon arrest the lot. Of course many among the ranks believed that Zormna was making a terrible mistake letting such people into the compound. However, both Zormna and this cluster of rebels proceeded to the communications room in the center of the compound, realizing that she was the only protection they had from the soldiers. Though no soldiers stopped them, the Surface Patrol officers followed closely in case they had to deal with these 'thugs'. Zormna led the way. Mr. Demmon took up the rear as Jafarr hurried ahead to be with Zormna in case things went south and she needed an ally.

Zormna pressed on the com button at the door the moment she arrived, hailing the singular occupant.

"Salvar, let me in. It's Zormna," she said with less fury than at the front door.

The door slid open immediately.

A young strapping red-haired man of nearly seventeen years stood before them, shorter than Jafarr by an inch, just as broad in the shoulders, and looking extremely surprised. His vibrant red hair was cut the same as it had been when she last saw him - except perhaps a little neater - almost buzzed short on top and long in the back. Yet now wearing the important uniform of a head Alea, in white-and-black, he looked incomparably dignified - except for the fact that he gaped at the sight of her.

"Zormna! I told you..." But then his eyes immediately fixed on Jafarr, whom he recognized. "What is he doing here? He's not - " And then he realized the enormity of the crowd behind them who were not in uniform. "They're not - " Fixing his eyes back on Zormna he growled out, "What are you doing here? I told you to stay on Partha!"

Zormna marched into the room. "And I told you I was coming back, Salvar. Now what have you been doing about the PMs that are invading Partha?"

The young man flushed. His glaring eyes shot towards Jafarr before he turned toward her, ignoring the rest of the people that had followed Zormna into the room. "The PMs aren't my jurisdiction. My jurisdiction - "

"Your jurisdiction is Partha, if you are acting Zeta leader. And Partha is being taken over by the PMs!" Zormna's scowl of disgust spoke volumes. Currently it said she wanted to punch him.

Alea Salvar bristled. He was only somewhat surprised by this news. His apathetic expression said he couldn't care a smidgen for Earth.

"Well, we've had problems," he bit out, shooting Jafarr another dirty look.

Both Jafarr and Zormna rolled their eyes. It had seemed so utterly synchronized that Alea Salvar pulled back, looking at the pair.  

"What problems are more important than a world full of people?" Zormna demanded, "And our laws?"

Jafarr wisely remained silent. He was already reading this redhead