Chapter 110 The Devoted

"And now I have become Death, destroyer of worlds."

-Oppenheimer

Emma

Two days. That's how long we've been here. That's how long Burns has been trying to wake up Rain and Storm, or who they used to be. On the nightstand next to the bed are two occupied cryotanks, waiting to be shipped off planet.

Two days. And in all that time, Burns hasn't slept or eaten anything.

I'm watching from the doorway, not sure what to do. He looks pale and tired, but he's not giving up. He's softly talking to them, calling them by different names, trying to get them to wake up. Is that what he had to do to bring me back?

On the other side of the bed, Finn is silently watching Burns' effort. He has hardly moved from his spot. At first he was still wary of Burns, but now he only seems curious.

I sigh. We can't keep this up much longer and Burns needs to rest.

Blake appears next to me. He looks at the bed warily and then at me. "We need to leave soon," he says softly, "or we'll draw attention."

I nod. "I know." Rain and Storm run the Healing Center. If they don't show up for work soon, someone will come looking for them.

In the room, Burns is lowering his head onto his arms and lets out a sigh. "Emma," he whispers.

I swallow and walk up to him. Carefully I kneel down at his side and sigh sadly.

"Why are they not waking up?" he asks hoarsely. I don't answer and I don't think he expects me to.

"I tried everything," Burns says. He sighs and rubs his eyes. "We should never have come to this planet. We have no business her." He swallows. "How did you wake up?"

I bite my lip and take his hand. "Perhaps... they were already gone from the start."

"I have to try," Burns rasps.

"I can cover for you," I tell him quietly, "go eat something. Take a shower. After that you can come back again."

Burns seems to contemplate for a moment, but then he shakes his head. "No. I can't leave them alone."

Blake now enters the room as well. He places a hand on Burns' shoulder. "It's too late, Burns," he says kindly, "they're already gone. It's not your fault. You tried. But we have to leave." He sighs. "And burry the bodies."

Burns rubs his eyes. He seems to come to himself. "We can't burry them," he says. He looks at the two empty shells, "they might be found." He swallows difficultly. "We'll have to burn them. The house too."

We look at each other. I don't think any of us wants to admit it, but what Burns said makes sense. What if they use the bodies of these people and put another Soul inside to find out what has happened? They'll find us.

Blake is the one that takes the decision. "We'll gather everything in the house that we can still use and take it with us." He glances at the bed. "We'll have to make it look like an accident."

I feel like I'm going to be sick. I know these people aren't really alive anymore. Their organs are deteriorating. And after two days of trying everything, they won't be coming back.

That doesn't mean it's not making me uncomfortable. Those were people.

"Emma," Blake says to me, "why don't you take Burns to the guestroom? He needs rest and you've hardly slept as well. I'll take care of things here. I'll come get you."

Still a little dazed, I nod and tug Burns' sleeve. He quietly follows me to the next room. It's the room Sky used when she stayed here. I feel strangely nostalgic.

Burns sits down on the bed and hides his head in his hands. I silently thank Blake for taking on the job. I don't think neither I nor Burns would have the strength to do it.

Slowly I sit down next to Burns. "Why don't you get some sleep?" I suggest softly, "I'll see if I can find you something to eat."

"Stay," Burns mutters when I stand up. He glances at me from under his hands. "Please?"

I nod and sit back down. "Okay." My eyes take in his tired expression. "I'm sorry," I say.

He lifts his head and looks at me surprised. "You have nothing to feel sorry for."

"If we hadn't met," I say, "you wouldn't be in this situation. You wouldn't be forced to choose between your kind and mine. Rain and Storm would still be alive and I..."

My words are cut off by Burns' lips. "If we hadn't met," he says hoarsely when he pulls away, "I would never have understood what life really means."

I shake my head and he cups my cheeks. "Thank you," he says softly.

"I didn't do anything," I say confused.

His smile is warm and tender and instead of answering, he kisses me again. And again, more urgent this time. Every kiss feels like fire and I am on fire too.

I kiss him back and I taste sweat and salty tears and fire.

We fall back on the bed and I forget about the world outside these four walls.

Now there's only Burns and me.

And fire.

***

I must have slept, because the next time I open my eyes, the sun that shines through the window is already setting.

But that's not what woke me up.

There's a discrete knock against the door. I lift my head confused and take in my surroundings. I'm tangled up with Burns, who is sound asleep. The sheets are crumpled and our clothes are everywhere.

Heat spreads to my face and a smile.

There's another knock and my face feels even warmer. I know exactly who it is and the fact that he's knocking so discretely tells me that he knows exactly what's been going on in this room.

How can I ever face Blake now? He'll make fun of me forever.

But I know I can't hide here much longer. The danger is still real and becomes more pressing with every second we stay here.

"Yeah," I say, but my voice comes out as a whisper and I clear my throat and try again. "We'll be right there."

Blake's answer is so soft that I hardly recognize his voice. "We'll wait downstairs."

I don't reply. Next to me, Burns is stirring and when I look at him, I find him watching me through hooded eyes. "Hey," he whispers.

"Hey," I answer shyly.

"Was that Blake?"

I nod. "He wants to leave soon."

Burns sighs and sits up. "We better get dressed then." His hand traces my cheekbone "I'm just gonna take a quick shower and then I'll come downstairs."

"Okay," I whisper.

His eyes that move over my face are filled with tenderness and I don't want to move, but I know we have to.

I watch him until he has closed the bathroom door and sigh. Reluctantly I climb out of bed to get dressed.

...

I pause in the living room and take some time to look around. Memories of Sky's times here flood back into my mind and I pick up a picture from a nearby shelf. It's strange to see my own face in the frame next to Rain and Storm, laughing like there's no concern in the world.

Without giving it much thought, I pry the picture from the frame and put it in my back pocket. Then I move towards the kitchen.

Finn is sitting at the counter, working down a plate of spaghetti with sauce.

Blake looks up when I enter and I expect him to make some sort of joke about me and Burns, but he only nods at me and smiles. "Hungry?"

I nod. "Yes, thank you," I say softly. I look around the kitchen. Several boxes are on the floor and table, filled with food, bottles, cutlery, plates, blankets and clothes. I even see some books and pens and paper. In another box are batteries, light fixtures, medicine, shoes and a few random objects like bottle openers and plastic containers, a microscope, jewelry.

Blake follows my look and smiles sadly. "They won't need it anymore. It would be a shame to leave it all behind."

I pick up one of the books. It's a book about human anatomy. I almost want to laugh. The Soul medicine can cure anything nowadays without opening up a patient.

Instead, the book makes me sad and I place it back.

Blake is watching me calmly. He fishes something from his pocket and places it in front of me on the counter. "I thought perhaps you'd want to keep these."

I look down. Two wedding rings. Rain and Storm's. I tentatively touch them. Simple, gold bands. A date inscribed inside. I swallow and lock my hand around them. "Thank you," I say and wonder how he knew.

Carefully, I unclasp my necklace and let the rings slide on until they rest against the silver musical note. I reach to put the necklace back on, but Blake stops me.

"Let me," he says and he moves to stand behind me. His fingers lightly brush my neck as he locks the clasp. He pulls away and sits down across from me. "I moved the van to the back of the house," he says, "I didn't want anyone to remember seeing it."

I nod. It sounds like a sensible idea.

Burns walks into the kitchen. He hardly looks at the boxes and sits down beside me. Blake stands up and puts a filled plate in front of him which he starts eating without comment.

I think this is the most uncomfortable situation I've been in since meeting Burns. None of us really seem to know how to act or what to say. Even little Finn is quiet. He has finished his food and is now watching us silently.

It's quiet for a while and then Burns speaks up. "Where are they?" he asks softly.

Blake immediately seems to know what he means and points to the side to the table where two cryotanks are blinking a light.

Burns nods gratefully. "Thank you."

"Sure," Blake nods, "is there anything else you want? Then we should load up the van and get going."

"I'm ready," Burns says.

Blake looks at me and I nod in agreement. I'm more than ready to leave this place.

"Okay," Blake says. He looks at Finn. "Go help load up the van. I have some things to finish upstairs. Listen to Burns and Emma. They'll tell you what to do."

Finn nods meekly and glances at us. I sigh and stand up. I pick up the first box and walk out the backdoor.

When the van is loaded, I walk back to the kitchen and take one of the cryotanks. Burns appears at my side to take the other. "Where will we send them?" I ask.

"I don't know," Burns says, "we sent Sky to the Dolphins."

"Some other planet then I suppose," I say thoughtfully. For some reason I'm not comfortable with the idea of the three of them ending up together, but I do want to send Rain and Storm together. They were together on their last planet. I'm not so cruel as to break them up. "How about the Mist Planet?"

Burns nods. "Okay."

"Ready?" Blake steps into the kitchen with a grim look on his face, "I've already set fire to the bedroom. We should go."

We follow Blake to the van and I take one last look at the house. I'm not sure what I'm feeling right now. It's all one big turmoil.

"Emma?" Blake touches my shoulder and I look up. Burns is already at the wheel. Finn is in the back. "Come," Blake says kindly.

I hug the cryotank tighter against my chest and climb into the passenger seat. The second cryotank is at my feet. Through the upstairs window I can see black clouds of smoke filling the room and I have to swallow a lump in my throat.

We drive away while everything behind us goes up in flames.