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Synopsis

Wren's world has changed. The thing that she fought for, escaping the dome has come to fruition, but it's not the paradise she thought it would be. Most of the shiners have died, and according to James, she is to blame for many of the deaths, a burden which sits heavy on her shoulders. Still some have survived and Wren is determined to keep them safe as they fight to establish a home outside while hiding from the rovers who have weapons that can kill from far away. But as long as she has Pace she knows everything will be fine. Still Wren wonders, as she sees the smoke that continually pours forth from the dome, how did her friends inside fare? Will they ever find out if Lucy, David, Jill and Harry, along with Pace's mother survive the explosions?

Meanwhile, someone else has also seen the smoke. A band of explorers from across the sea arrive in an airship, curious about the dome, and offering help to those who survive. When Wren meets the handsome Levi Addison, she suddenly questions her love for Pace as Levi offers to show her the world from his airship. Does she really love Pace? Or was it just the circumstances that made her think she did? Meanwhile, word arrives from inside via Pip, and Wren is forced to go back inside the dome, a thing that terrifies her more than anything else, to save her friends. Once she's back inside will she be able to escape again?

Excerpt

1

There are moments in history when drastic change comes about. Whether it is for the better or for the worse can only be told after time has passed and stories are written by those who witnessed it. The question that often puzzles me is how do you pinpoint the exact moment, the precise word, or the final action that changes everything for everyone? My own history has to have such a moment, yet I have no idea of how it occurred. When did our forefathers decide that it was necessary to save our race by going inside a dome? Was it the moment they saw the comet in the sky, or was it later, when they realized the deadly implications of its existence? Was one voice responsible for the decision, or were many involved? These things are not taught to us, only that the decision was made.

Was it only a few days ago that our history was taught in two stages? The time before the dome was spoken of in reverent tones, while the time since was nothing more than a cautionary tale to keep the unprivileged in their proper place. There was no alternative to our lives but death. For some of us, that was not enough. We had questions, and we would not stop until we had the answers. As I step out of the slash in the earth that was our home, I realize that our future has changed. There is no going back from this point. I, like my friend Alex, have seen the sky, and only death will keep me from seeing it again.

I can only hope, when future generations look back on this day when we spilled forth from the earth and found that the world was not engulfed in flames as we had been taught, that I will be remembered kindly. That, like the scientists who built our dome, I only did what I thought I had to do to stay alive. Still I cannot help but wonder, as I think about all those who lost their lives, how many deaths will I be held accountable for? Or will the historians even remember my name?

The sky is blue... Alex's last words run through my mind as I stand next to Pace and we stare in wonder at everything that lies before us.

The words that could be written about this moment are meaningless in comparison to what we see. Pace takes my hand beneath the vast expanse of sky, and I realize that Alex's last words did not do the sky justice, because there is so much more to it than the color blue. There are colors I have never seen that are brighter than I can comprehend. The distant horizon is full of them, one fading into the next and the next and the next until I don't know where to look. I don't even know what to call them as they are beyond my understanding. They are more than the reds, purples, and oranges that I have seen before. Those colors were faded and old, covered with ash and soot. The colors that I now behold hurt my eyes as I stare in awe. My mind insists that they could not possibly be real and I have to convince myself that this moment is real. I tell myself over and over again that I am awake and not trapped in a dream.

Cat calls out to us and I turn to the sound. He stands on a large flat rock that starts in the sand, close to the cave entrance, and goes on to jut into the sea. Cat is not happy, and his complaints let me know that I am, indeed, awake. A wave crashes against the rock and showers over him. He lays his ears back in distaste and cries out again, urging us to come back to the safety of the cave.

Pace and I had run ahead of the others who escaped from the flood that destroyed our village beneath the dome. How long will it be before the rest of us find their way out? I take a moment to search the sky for the canary, Pip, who we were chasing when we realized that the underground river would lead us to the outside. I slowly turn and look at the large wall of rock that rises behind me. Somewhere above is what is left of the dome. I shield my eyes with my hands as I search for a spot of yellow. Will we ever see Pip again? Even though I know Pace would miss him, I honestly cannot blame the tiny bird if he chooses to fly away from this place that was our prison. I certainly would fly if I had wings.

I turn back to look once more at the sky and find Pace watching me. His love, so recently declared, shines in his beautiful blue eyes and he lowers his head to gently kiss me. I know from the touch of his lips that he wants me to know how important this moment is to him, no, to the two of us together. My breath catches in my throat at his kiss and I hold it and onto him, until he finally pulls away. When he does, I have to force the breath out and my chest hurts with the effort. I ignore the pain because I see the most glorious thing as I turn to the west. A golden orb hangs right over the water, like a hand dipped into a bowl, part of it beneath the surface and part of it above. It is so very bright and my eyes water with pain, but I can not tear them away from the sight. I blink and blink again because I don't want to miss anything even though my throat feels as if there is a tight band around it.

The orb looks as if it will slide right into the sea. The realization that it is the sun and I am looking at the edge of the world fills me with so much wonder that I tremble. The sea is vaster than anything I have ever imagined, but the sky, the sky is limitless and beyond my comprehension. There is a world outside the dome. It is not flame or fire as we were always told. Instead there is this inconceivable openness that never ends, which makes it close to impossible for my mind to comprehend it. I keep a tight hold of Pace's hand because I am frightened that without him I will fly off into the oblivion that stretches before us. It is hard to understand that everything we've been told our entire lives is a lie. My mind is at war with itself so I try to take a deep breath just to collect myself, but instead all I can do is gasp.

My chest burns and my lungs convulse. I cannot breathe. I am suffocating and I drop to my knees on the sand. My hands clutch at my throat as if someone has wrapped a band around it. Nothing is there, yet the constriction is real. There is nothing I can do to stop it. I don't want to die. Not now, not when I am so close. Not when my dreams have finally come true. Not when I finally have everything I ever wanted.

"Wren!" I hear Pace shouting my name as if he is far, far away. I want to answer him but I cannot speak. I open my mouth and nothing comes out. I claw at my throat as if I can free it from the vise that holds it shut. I pitch forward with the effort to draw a breath. Salty water splashes into my face and my eyes burn and tear. All I can do is blink. Pace catches me and turns me over so I am halfway in his lap. I see him above me, as if he's at the opposite end of a tunnel and his face is full of fear. I grab his arm as my lungs labor for air. A horrible spasm wracks my throat and I feel my eyes bulging. I know I am dying and there is nothing I can say, yet there is so much I want to tell him.

Is this how Alex felt? This desperation to make sure that nothing was left unsaid? He had to welcome death over the unbelievable pain he felt. I was not burned by flame, but my lungs feel as if they've dissolved into ashes inside my chest.

Suddenly Pace flips me over. He bends me over his arm and strikes my back. My insides feel as if they are coming up my throat, and I gag. Thankfully I am able to draw a breath, but as soon as I do I begin to cough. I cough and cough and something black comes out. I feel as if someone has stuffed thick fabric down my throat. I keep gagging and coughing and it keeps coming up, black and horrible and thick. It has been inside me, all this time, killing my lungs, and killing the rest of my body slowly. I want it out. I want all of it out. I want my insides to be free of the coal the same way my body is free of the dome.

I don't know how Pace can stand it. I look at the mess in the sand that has come out of my lungs and it makes me sicker, if that is possible. My stomach joins in the upheaval. I feel as if my insides are coming out, one small piece at a time. I am exhausted. I have nothing left to give, yet it keeps coming. Pace rubs my back and scoops handfuls of seawater and dribbles them on my neck until I slump over his legs, exhausted. I hear voices behind me; the others have found their way out. I should tell them to go back, to ease their way into the air that is so fresh and clean that I feel as if it will kill me. But I can't say a word because my world has once more turned to shadows and I feel myself slowly sliding away into the darkness.

* * *

There are times in our lives when we dream so vividly that it is impossible to tell what reality is and what our minds trick us into believing is real. We stay in the dream, mostly because it is so much better than the monotony of our everyday life until something jolts us to awareness and we wake up, not certain of where we are or where we belong. When it happens to me I close my eyes tight and try to recapture that part of the dream that led me away into a different world, as if I could will myself into that place once more.

I find myself trapped in that half-dream state. My mind cannot settle on what is real. The sounds around me are different than what I am used to. My bed feels strange and my body aches all the way into my bones. My throat feels raw and I am so very thirsty. I lick my lips and taste nothing but salt. Someone nudges me and I have to force my eyes open.

It is Ghost, my favorite pony from the mines. He is curled up against me, and my head is on his side. He nudges me once more with his nose as he does when he wants a treat, and I place my hand on the side of his face to let him know I am awake. Cat lies beside me and sits up as I move.

I blink and gasp at the beauty and wonder of what is above me. The sky is full of points of light: some bright, and some so distant I can barely see them. They are everywhere; no matter where I look I see them.

"You're awake." Pace's sweet and...

Copyright © 2013 by Kassy Tayler

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