The Forsaken

Pretty dumb to get hung up over a boy.” She pauses. “And for what it’s worth, I dumped him because he wouldn’t spend any time with me. He’s only interested in hanging out with his buddies and talking about hunting. But it still hurts.”
    “At least you guys had a relationship. I’ve never even been on a single date,” I confess.
    “You will soon, with the way boys look at you here.” Gadya grins at me.
    Our argument has ended as quickly as it began, like a summer rain shower.
    Just as we move to the edge of the clearing and start walking up one of the trails, I hear a sudden crash. Assassin Elite comes running out of the forest. I gasp, startled, banging into Gadya.
    “Boo!” he yells, cackling wildly.
    “Moron!” Gadya yells back. “Were you eavesdropping on us?”
    “You wish!” He laughs as he playfully dodges a blow from Gadya’s fist. “Your girl talk doesn’t interest me. But it might interest Liam!” He laughs again as Gadya tries to kick him between the legs.
    “Get out of here, you perv!” she yells. Still laughing, he races up the path away from us. Gadya looks like she wants to chase him, but she just sighs. “He’s a good hunter, but he’s so immature, he drives me crazy.”
    I hear him cackling in the distance. “He’s the kind of guy who makes girls wish they were still invisible,” I say.
    Gadya laughs. “No doubt.”
    “What’s his real name, anyway?”
    “Sinxen Ro,” Gadya says, spelling his first name out for me. “He’s really touchy about it, probably because it’s so freaking weird. Everyone calls him Sinxen anyway, instead of Assassin Elite.”
    “Good to know. I like it better.”
    We keep walking, ducking our heads under branches. I’m not even sure where we’re going. “So, what do you think about David?” I finally ask. “He seemed really normal to me. And last night he actually tried to help me and Rika when the drones attacked.”
    “I trust Veidman. If he thinks something fishy is going on, then I believe him. But if David’s who he seems, then he’ll become part of our village, just like you.”
    I nod. “And what about Tiger Strike? What do you really think about it?”
    “Honestly? Rebuilding sucks. I’m burned out. We need to find a way off the wheel before it’s too late.”
    “So you’ll go with the expedition party? I mean, if they leave?”
    “Yup, with the rest of the hunters.”
    “I guess I’ll just stay here in the village with Rika,” I say glumly.
    “If enough hunters go, there might not be much of a village left.”
    I don’t reply. Obviously I’m hoping a lot of hunters decide to stay, because I don’t want to get slaughtered. But I also realize that on the wheel, I might not have the luxury of keeping my hands clean. If I want to stay alive, I might have to get down in the dirt. And fight.

THE CAPTIVE
    THAT AFTERNOON, I VOLUNTEER for another assignment. Veidman needs someone to bring a tureen of vegetable soup to David and the other prisoners, so I tell him that I’ll do it. This is partly because I want to feel useful, but mainly because I want to check in on David and find out if I can help him.
    The tureen is a large, heavy copper drum with a lid on it. Gadya and Rika help me get it into a backpack made from dried hoofer skin, and I hoist the pack over my shoulders. I have a walk ahead of me. The prison kennels are set half a mile from the main camp for security reasons.
    “Watch your back around the prisoners,” Gadya advises me. “Even if David turns out to be okay, the others definitely aren’t.”
    “Yeah, just give the soup to their guard, and he’ll dole it out,” Rika adds.
    “Who’s their guard?”
    “Markus Horvath. He’s from New Portland.”
    I try to loosen the vine straps over my shoulders. They’re biting into my flesh, but I don’t complain because I don’t want to sound like a wimp. “How many prisoners are there?”
    “Fourteen. We had fifteen, but one ran away a month ago. It was a big relief actually, because then we didn’t have to waste food on him anymore.”
    “Gadya likes to pretend she’s heartless,” Rika adds, giving my backpack a pat. “If you haven’t figured that out yet.”
    “I’m not pretending,” Gadya retorts.
    With a wave, I start heading up the path leading to the kennels.
    “Be careful!” Rika calls after me.
    I hike through the forest, my feet crunching on twigs and dried leaves. Thick vines hang overhead, crisscrossing the path like