The Sankari Legends Book One: The Scars We Hide
Chapter Nineteen: Megan

Just tomake sure things are clear, my sister and I don’t have a good relationship witheach other. When we were younger, back when we lived in Satama, we wereactually pretty close. I looked up to her more than anybody, except maybe Zig.But that was before she went full-konna and left our family with Dad. Ofcourse, Dad had left to protect us. Brittany had left for selfish gain.

Our firstreunion in Suba and then every meeting since had all gone very similarly,namely Brittany taunting me and trying to convertme to the konna side, and me adamantly refusing to listen to her.

Now wasn’tany different, except that I was really not mentally prepared to deal with her.My mind was still spinning from the memory barrage I’d gotten from fixingAlec’s (and consequently everyone else’s) memories. I was trying to understandwhy they all had been missing in the first place, and also how my memories hadbeen altered. I’d tried to forget things before, but never had been able tosucceed. The whole thought of not only my friends’ memories, but also my own,being twisted and changed, had me lost in a cloud of confusion.

So whensuddenly I was wrenched into her takot world,I was beyond disoriented.

“So, youfixed the memories then?” Brittany asked me, hands on her hips.

I didn’tanswer her at first as I tried to get my bearings. When she’d used her takot powers on me earlier—back whenSabin, Tyler, Emmalie, and I were about to go rescue Alia and Alec—she’d leftour setting in the same place we were already in. She simply just made theothers disappear from sight and hearing, so it was just the two of us. But whatshe was showing me now... this was a nightmare. A memory I’d tried to repressfor as long as I remember. As I looked around, I realized we were back in ourold home in Satama. Outside, the fires raged, just like they had the nightBrittany had left us. I frowned, wondering why Brittany would choose for us tobe here.

“Payattention, little sister,” Brittany chided. I snapped my head back to face her,heart pounding, and fixing her with a pointed glare.

“What doyou want, Brittany?”

“We need totalk, Meggy,”

“Aboutwhat?”

“About you,dear. Because you’re in the wrong place. You’re on the wrong side.”

“Like youknow anything about me,” I snarled, my shoulders tensing.

I reachedfor my gun, but once again was rudely reminded of the fact that I didn’t haveone on me. Not that it would’ve mattered right now. We were in a mental world.Anything I did here wouldn’t actually affect us in the real world. So even if Idid have a gun to shoot Brittany with, it would be pointless.

I frownedat the thought. Would I actually shoot her? Despite the fact she was a completewitch, she was still my sister—still family. I struggled with the idea ofkilling anyone, even when it was necessary.

“Oh, but Ido know a lot about you. For example, right now, you’re thinking about if youwould be able to kill me or not, which I replace very interesting by the way. Thefact you struggle so much with the concept of killing, though your main weaponchoice is guns.”

“Guns havemore uses than just killing people,” I argued, internally wincing at my weakargument.

Brittany,obviously, wasn’t convinced.

“You know,I had hope for both you and Zach at one point,” she said, as if I hadn’t evensaid anything. “Both of you’ve been really disappointing, but someday I think…someday you will see things from my side.”

She sigheddeeply with a faraway look in her eyes before turning shrewdly back to me. Witha smirk, she added:

“Of course,you always showed far more promise that Zach, so I do have that to look forwardto.”

“Screwoff,” I snarled.

“I can’thelp but wonder what you believe happened with the memory wipe, Megan? I mean,obviously your memories were affected to. It would take someone ridiculouslypowerful to wipe even your little boyfriend Alec’s memories, but to wipe yours?Who could do that?”

She wasplay acting, toying with me, and from the look on her face I knew she wassavoring every second of it. I glared at her, annoyed at her stupid cockiness. Asthe links slowly came together my glare turned to a look of shock and confusionas I struggled to understand what I’d just realized.

Only a minnen would have the kind of powerneeded to perform a memory-wipe like that. As far as I knew, I was the only minnen in Sankruus. I was the one who wiped and rewroteeveryone’s memories—my own included.

“But… thatisn’t… why?” I asked under my breath, mind racing, pillaging my own memoriesfor any other missing details.

Brittany’ssmirk grew wider. “Don’t give yourself all the credit, little sister.”

I narrowedmy eyes at her, slamming a barrier around my burning thoughts. “What did youdo?”

“Oh nothingmuch… just convinced you that your friends had found out about you being a kalahati and because of that they shunnedand rejected you. You got so emotionally worked up you lost control of yourpowers and POOF!Everyone’s memories are rewritten because you couldn’t handlethe pressure.”

“What doyou have to gain from me changing everyone’s memories?” I asked, trying to keepmy voice steady. Was I really that afraid of people replaceing out my secret thatI would make them all forget even being friends with me for the past threeyears? Her words shook me to the core. I couldn’t believe that was the case.

“Thatwasn’t part of my plan,” Brittany admitted. “I was just testing you, trying tosee how you would react if you thought everyone had turned on you, and althoughit was unexpected,” she pointed at me, “you performed stunningly, and farhigher than my expectations.”

I couldn’tstop my mouth from dropping open. “You did this… made me do this, just for you sick enjoyment?”

“Yes.” Theword was concise and unapologetic.

“Before youget too angry about my involvement,” she continued, my hands clenched at myside, “really consider it, Megan. Pre-memory wipe, you had told your friendsabout your powers, but not your parentage. Why?” Her smirk morphed into anaccusatory glare, “Because you knewthat you’d be shunned and even worse, probably ejected from the academy.” Shetook a step closer, eyes burning bright as she twisted what I feared most intoa spearhead of words that pierced the deepest parts of me. “What’s to say thatyou wouldn’t have intentionally cleared their memories if they happened to replaceout your secret? Hell, what do you even need me for? You would’ve done this allon your own! All to protect yourself from the rejection of your preciousfriends.”

Myautomatic response to that was to scream NO!They were my friends, they would understand! How could I even consider myselftheir friend if I would even entertain the idea of doing that to them?But…something wavered in me, a thin fault line in my resolve, threatening tobreak open and swallow me whole. WouldI do that to them?

No! Stop thinking like that Megan! I shook my head, trying to shake her out. I was letting my guarddown. Brittany was getting deeper and deeper into my head. She was altering mythoughts.

“Stopresisting it, Megan,” Brittany called to me. She knew I’d caught onto hermanipulation.

“Get out ofmy head!” I shouted in response. Somehow, I felt my body move in the physicalworld as well, releasing a strangled cry at the same time. Progress.

Brittanyrealized this too. A look between irritation and hatred flashed across hermidnight blue eyes as she lost her smirk vanished.

Around us,the fires of Satama blazed. The flames roaring louder as Brittany tensed.Something moving in the edge of my vision snagged my attention. Our parentsappeared. Brittany turned too as our mom and dad embraced for what I couldeasily imagine was the last time before our dad ran out the door. It was thenight he had left us… but for a very different reason than what Brittany hadleft, I realized as it was her past self to appear in the vision next.

“How areyou doing this?” I asked as we watched her and our mom have and argument endedafter a few moments with Brit storming out of the house and slamming the door.

“I’m notdoing anything, little sister,” Brittany shouted.

Wait, didthat mean I was doing this? But how…

“Megan!”

I heard thevoice before I felt the hand slip into my own. Suddenly, Alec was there,standing beside me, his hand intertwined with mine.

“Alec? Whatare you doing here? How are you here?”

He shookhis head. “I came to help!”

“Aw look,your knight in shining armor came to save you,” Brittany cooed. The flamesgrowing quieter as she regained control. I shot her a glare, silently cursingthat was all I could do.

“Alec, youshouldn’t be here,” I whispered, praying that somehow Brittany wouldn’t hear.“I’m a mental power. I can handle Brittany’s attacks. But you…”

“I knowMeg,” he said, squeezing my hand. “She’s already trying to get inside my head,I can feel that much. But… something’s blocking her.”

I felt myhand heat up from where it had contact with his. I glanced down and saw therewas a pale glow forming around it that snaked up Alec’s arm and spread aroundhim in a weird sort of aura. My eyes widened as I realized what was happening.

“I think… Ithink I’m blocking you from her,” I said. I looked over at Brittany, who wasgiving me a pointed glare of hatred. So much for the “nice sister act”.

“I don’tunderstand how,” I continued, careful to move my lips as little as possible.“But somehow your contact with me lets you be here without being absorbed intoyour own takot world.”

“Satama.This is Satama, the night it burned,” Alec said slowly, looking past me to seethe memories of my family that night. His gaze landed on me last, hisexpression unreadable but firm. “Megan… Do you… do you have any control of thisplace? What we see? Or what Brittany shows us?”

I opened mymouth to answer only to close it and resort to a nod.

It didn’tmake much sense, but that seemed to be exactly the case. For some reason, I wasstill in partial control of what was happening—or at least, my subconsciouswas. Either way, that explained the visions of the past Brittany and I hadseen, which no doubt had been caused by my minnenabilities being affected by both of us and probably Zig’s presence close by aswell (I wasn’t sure how I knew that, but I could sense my brother wasn’t faraway from us just as easily as I could feel Alec’s hand in mine).

I realizedwith a jolt that because I still maintained partial control of the situation,Brittany’s powers couldn’t affect me. And also, I should be able to form my ownattack on her…

I glancedat Alec, who gave me a slight nod of confirmation. Through our connection(whatever kind of connection had been formed when he took my hand), he couldtell what I was asking without either of us having to speak a word or even meneeding to really think it all the way through.

He knewwhat I was asking him to do, and he knew what I needed to do. I could feel the reluctance roiling like a rain cloudin his head, but I needed him to follow through with this if we wanted in haveany chance at incapacitating my sister.

He squeezedmy hand reassuringly before letting go. I immediately felt the empty spacewhere his hand had been, but tried not to dwell on it. Instead, I concentratedon knives. I may not have had them on my physical body, but in my mind anythingwas fair game.

“So youalready scared off your boyfriend?” Brittany scoffed and looked superiorly atme, “I can’t say I’m surprised, I mean, look at you, and look at this!” Hervoice rose as she waved her hands at the burning house around us, “What saneperson would ever want to be a partof your life?”

My handswere quivering, the shaking making its way up my arms and down the rest of mybody. Mixed with the flames were flickering images, slips of memories, patchesof sound. My heart pounded and raced in my chest, the sound overpowering thefire, beating in time with her words as they bounced around my head, looking toreplace purchase. I grabbed the words. Snatched them off of their track. Threwthem away as a bright white light, pure and beautiful, swept through my mind. Iam not alone.

I opened myhands, snapped my head up, and with every fiber of my body, pushed out thewords.

“You’rewrong.”

Just as shestarted to laugh a hand slipped into mine. Familiar callouses met my own, andthe light flowed from his hand to encompass mine until it had spread over mywhole body.

“Oh, so youfinally decided to join the party, huh Zach?” Brittany chided, taking note ofour brother’s appearance. “Surely you aren’t going to make the same mistake youdid last time.”

I didn’tknow what she was talking about, but as she spoke Zig’s hand tightened aroundmine. His face held a pained expression and his eyes swirled with emotion thatI couldn’t comprehend. Instead of addressing her, though, Zig spoke to me.

“We onlyget one shot at this, Megan,” he said, his voice quiet but firm. “Let’s make itcount.”

I smirked.“Proceed with the ass kicking, big brother.”

Thenwithout hesitation, I felt the energy rise in him, a raging maelstrom ofdarkness surrounded in a veil of white, and with our combined force we pushedthe energy directly into the mind of our sister and watched as she flew intothe burning wall behind her and fell to the ground, unmoving.

Thank you, Iwhispered in my mind to Zig.

He let outa half smile, smothered in exhaustion, and then threw an arm around me as hestumbled forward. I caught him and relief surged through me as I saw the wallscollapsing around us, deteriorating now that Brittany was no longer consciousto maintain them. I was so relieved that I didn’t even feel the pain from mywounded shoulder until suddenly Zig’s full weight was on it. I sank to myknees, holding Zig up as best as I could, despite my shoulder beginning toscream in pain.

Worry about that later, I mutteredto myself.

The worldwas becoming clear again, and I blinked a few times to clear away the last ofBrittany’s mental world takot worldand squinted as the real world filled in around me.

ImmediatelyI felt someone crouched beside me, and focused to hear what they were saying.

“Megan,” itsounded like it was coming through a thick wall. I looked over and saw Alecsitting beside me, looking like he was shouting, but only sounding like awhisper. I shook my head and pointed to my ears. He nodded quickly and thenwaved at someone else to come over. I let my eyes close as a wave of exhaustionswept over me. My eyes flew back open as I felt something hot along my shoulders.

What is-

It wasZig’s arm, it was burning me. I smelled smoke and burning clothes as I threwhis arm off and quickly moved to crouch in front of him.

My stomachturned when I saw what was happening. Zig’s arm was a roiling mess of blackfog, emitting sparks and slowly moving to cover his neck and chest. Myexpression turned to sheer panic as I looked around for help.

Zig startedto fall sideways and I instinctively moved to grab his shoulders, and thenhissed in pain as my hand made contact with the dark energy.

“Someone!”I’d found my voice, “Please!”

I saw KCacross the garden, accompanied by my former drill leader and the leader ofZig’s mission team Layne Blythe. The two of them were moving towards us,concern on their faces. Their attention shifted from me to Zig, looking to seewhat the problem was. KC’s face fell into one that mirrored my own when she sawhis arm, and Layne’s shut into a steel trap, her eyes narrowing when she sawit.

In a blinkthey were by our side, KC having teleported them over to us.

“Please,” Ihad tears in my voice, “what’s happening to him?”

They bothfell to their knees in front of Zig.

“Megan youneed to move.” Layne’s voice cut—strong and clear—through my rising hysterics.Alec grabbed my arm and hauled me up, wrapping his arm around me - my legsstill not stable enough to support my own weight - as I watched Layne and KCtry and save my brother.

Layne puther hands on either side of my brother’s face and leaned in close. KC grippedhis hand and shut her eyes beside him, her other hand pressed into the ground.

“Zig. Ziglisten to me, right now.” Layne’s voice wasn’t sharp as it had been a minuteago. It was soft, but commanding.

“Zig.” Hiseyes fluttered to open, and then slammed shut as his body lurched forward. Layneput a hand on his good shoulder to steady him, and leaned her forehead againsthis.

“Fight it,Zig. You have got to focus.”

Hisbreathing became labored, and sweat was pouring down his face. I watched,transfixed and unable to help, as the black around his arm started swirlingaway from him, and towards KC’s palm on the ground.

His bodyshuddered and the black flew back a few inches towards his arm.

“You are incontrol, Zig.” Layne’s voice was firm, leaving no room for argument. “It has nopower over you, you are its master. Command it.”

For lessthan a second, half of a heartbeat, my brothers eyes flew open and bored intoLayne’s, and what I saw sucked the air straight out of my chest.

His eyeswere black. Gone was the turquoise blue that had always shone in them. Theywere a moonless midnight. Black fires burning, a tortured look that I knewwould be seared into my memory for as long as I lived.

“I-It’stoo-” he ground out between clenched teeth as his body shuddered and the blackmoved again towards his neck.

Layne movedher mouth beside his ear and said something that I was unable to hear.

I watchedin amazement as my brother’s body became rigid, tremors wracking his frame.Layne held him in place and the dark energy lifted, much more quickly, and flewin a spiral towards the ground where I now realized KC had opened a smallportal.

It hiccuppedbackwards and KC chimed in, one hand still clutching Zig’s, “You’re almostthere, come on Zig.” Her arm broke out in a tremor as the dark energy reachedthe mouth of her portal.

“Hold it,KC” Layne commanded. “You have to keep it open.”

KC nodded tightlyand I watched as Zig ground his teeth together, and the last of the black lefthis fingertips. The first part of the tendril was entering the portal. Hejerked his head up and with a strangled yell the remaining dark energy flewinto the portal. It closed without a sound and Zig lurched forward, his bodylimp and his eyes shut.

Layne andKC caught him, and I took a tentative step forward.

“Is… ishe…” Tears were running down my face, but I didn’t care.

Layne letKC hold him as she stood and turned. Her breathing was still ragged as sheswiped a hand over her brow to remove the sweat shining on her face.

“He’s goingto be fine,” she allowed a small smile and closed her eyes, “He did it.”

Slowly Iwas emerging from my cocoon of shock. I could feel the gears in my headturning, whirring in my mind as I processed what I had just witnessed.

Zig, why?

“What justhappened to him?” Alec asked, obviously unsettled by what had just occurred.“Why were his eyes…?”

“It’s whathappens when he uses his powers like that,” KC said softly from her spot on theground, Zig’s head cradled in her lap.

“Likewhat?” Alec’s voice sounded strained. I glanced up to see his eyes filled withan unreadable emotion. Was that fear? Disgust? I ran my fingertips under my owneyes, brushing away the tears that I was trying hard to hold back.

I knew whatLayne was going to say before she even said it.

Layne letout a resigned breath and explained, “Zig is a shield. You know this, but…” shepaced in front of me, a crease forming between her eyebrows. “But when he useshis powers…” She looked up, searching for the word. “Offensively, not to just protect someone, but as a weapon, he hasto harness the dark energy inside of himself.”

“He knewthis would happen!” I shouted, startling Alec.

“Megan…” hesaid slowly. I didn’t look up at him but instead directed all of my attentionat Layne and KC. I couldn’t hold it back anymore.

“Why wouldhe risk that if he knew it was going to do this to him?”

“He’s onlydone it once before, on one of our first missions as a team.” Layne let out aresigned sigh. “We almost lost him, and it took half a day to talk him down andanother hour for KC to replace a portal to send the energy through. I ordered myteam not to say anything about it.”

“Why...”Alec started.

“Because,”Layne cut him off, “if it got out that Zig had dark energy inside of him—thathe was part konna—, or even worse, that he couldn’t control it, you know whatwould have happened to him. It’s the same reason Megan never told you or theothers about her parentage. It’s a huge risk to take.”

I couldfeel Alec’s eyes on me, but I refused to look at him. I didn’t need to look toknow what he was thinking.

“What didyou do then?” I asked Layne.

Herexpression hardened into a scowl. “After that we all worked together, keepinghis secret, and helping him train to control it and preparing for if it everwere to happen again.”

“Thank theCreator we did,” KC said quietly, brushing some of Zig’s hair out of his eyes.“Without the training I don’t think he would’ve made it through this again.”

Her wordsstruck a chord deep inside of me, and I saw in them what I’d longed for mywhole life. Acceptance. More than acceptance, support. Zig’s team knew hishistory and his powers and they didn’t run or turn him away. No, they took himin and helped him, made him better. I turned to look towards Alec and saw hissoft expression as he looked at KC and Zig without judgment in his eyes. Whydid I have such little faith in my friends?

“He’s goingto be alright though?” I scrutinized Layne’s face as she answered.

“He shouldbe fine, although it might take him a while to wake up.” A smile ghosted acrossher lips. “The first time this happened he slept for a day afterwards and thenwoke up and ate a week’s worth of breakfast rations.”

“Thatsounds about right.” I allowed a small smile of my own to slip onto my lips.

But Laynecould tell I didn’t fully mean it. She studied me for a few tense secondsbefore speaking again.

“Megan, youdo know your eyes have changed color, right?”

Iautomatically reached up to touch the edge of my temple, not that that would’vehelped. Alec turned towards me and noted the change as well. He looked back atLayne.

“Do hereyes change for the same reason?” he asked. “Because of her konna side?”

Laynenodded grimly. “It’s the first sign that dark energy has an affect on her.Zig’s eyes change too, on occasion. It was more frequent before we all began towork together to help him control it.”

“Before thefirst time… this happened,” KC said, nodding towards my unconscious brother,“his eyes started changing a lot more frequently. We didn’t really know what itmeant. Even he only had a partial guess about it.”

I cast myeyes towards the ground and thought through the times I knew my eyes hadchanged color. Alia had mentioned something about it around the campfire theother night, and I had heard Sabin’s thoughts about my eyes changing colorwhile we’d confronted Mecah. There no doubt had been other times before andsince then that my eyes had changed. I reached to tug on my ponytail—a nervoushabit I’d had since I was young—but realized my hair was still down.

Alec tookhold of the hand I’d reached up with. I glanced up at him and took in thecomforting expression on his face. He could tell I was scared, and that seeingZig go through what he just had only gave me even more reason to worry aboutwhat might happen to me. But Alec didn’t care. I could see it in his eyes: hecared only if I was safe, not what might happen down the line.

Layne turned to kneeldown by Zig but shot back up when we the sound of shattering glass filled theair followed by a loud string of swears that sounded suspiciously likeAlia that reverberated across thegarden.