“Buddy, those things don’t come off. They’re on for life,” Sully said. He tugged at his own collar. It wasn’t exactly like Coraolis’s, but it served a similar purpose.
“There has to be a way. What if someone’s conviction was overturned? What if they were pardoned?” Coraolis asked.
“January doesn’t buy workers that are likely to get pardoned,” Sully said, but he sounded thoughtful. He tapped his fingers on the desk. “There could be medical emergencies that force them to take off the collars. I’ll look into it.”
“I’d be grateful,” Cor said. “You’re a real friend.”
“Wait until I succeed before you thank me. What’ll you do with it off, anyway? Sprout wings and fly away?” Sully asked.
“Something like that. We need to get off this planet. We can’t do that with the collars on,” Coraolis said.
Sully frowned. “You can’t do it with them off either. I’m sorry to break my word, but I won’t help you with this. I don’t want to see you get shot.”
“I won’t get shot. I have abilities beyond anything you could imagine. That’s how we did what we did at Ian’s World, and it’s how we’ll escape here,” Coraolis said.
Sully scoffed and pulled his plate in front of him and started to eat, slicing into the fruit and shoving chunks in his mouth like it’d done him an injury. Coraolis waited. He wasn’t going to win this by fighting. He’d already seen how stubborn Sully could be and how used he was to getting his way.
“I’m sorry if I upset you,” Coraolis said. “I know you value our companionship.”
“That’s one way to put it. You’ve brought an ease into my life I didn’t think possible. I’m not ready to say goodbye to that. I won’t,” Sully said.
Coraolis smiled. “Who said anything about saying goodbye? You can come with us.”
“I can come with you?”
“If you’d like.”
Sully stared at him, then snorted. It sounded like he was trying to bury a laugh.
“All right, I’ll take that gamble,” he said. “But if you get caught, I don’t know you. Got it?”
“Got it,” Coraolis said, and they shook on it.
CHAPTER TWENTY
Coraolis’s bed was shaking. No, it was his shoulder. Somebody had a grip on him and was shoving him back and forth. They were rocking him to wakefulness. He grunted, trying to shove his sleep-fog away.
“I got it,” Sully said. “Wake up, Butch.”
“It’s Coraolis,” he muttered. “Who is that? Sully?”
“That’s me. Now get up. My buddy Rickard cobbled this thing together. It might get your collar off…or it might zap your hair white.” Sully tried to look noncommittal. “You should probably stand in the open so you don’t catch something on fire.”
“Were you a conveyance salesman in another life?”
“Funny. Remember what I said. If this don’t work, you didn’t get this from me. I don’t know you, you never heard of Rickard.”
“Of course,” Coraolis said. “I trust you, Sully. Let’s do it.”
“He trusts me,” Sully muttered under his breath. “All right, buddy. Let’s get it over with.”
He threw off the covers and stood, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. His room was all but pitch black. The only light came through the narrow window; the grounds were well lit at night. The hall lights should have been on, but the cell doors were closed and locked at night. They shouldn’t have been able to get out and move around until morning, when the doors were released.
He looked at the top bunk to check on Julia. Her silhouette was there, perfectly still, her breathing even. He wouldn’t have known she was awake if she hadn’t spoken.
“Cor? Is this the friend you were telling me about?” she asked.
“Yes, this is Sully,” he said.
“Hello, sweetheart.” Sully gave a little bow of his head. “This won’t take a minute.”
“This is Julia,” Coraolis said.
“I figured.”
Coraolis moved to the middle of the room. Sully rose up on his toes to get a better look at the collar, then pressed something against the lock. Coraolis had a moment to look at it; it looked like a cross between a screwdriver and a TV remote. There was a click. The next thing he knew, he was on the floor with the smell of burned plastic up his nose.
“Cor?” Julia leaned over him, her fingers seeking the pulse in his throat.
“Hey,” he said.
He propped himself up on his elbows. He felt different. His hand went to his neck, and he smiled. Of course. The collar was gone. He was free, or as close to it as he could be. Joy and relief matching his own welled up from his dragon. He was as pleased as Coraolis his soulmate was returned.
“Where’s Sully?” he asked.
“He left after you collapsed. I thought he was getting help, but it’s been a long time,” she said. “I was worried.”
“I’m all right.”
They embraced, and things felt a little more right with the world. His body felt like he’d run a marathon, but the rest of him was energized. His abilities as a Mystic had gotten a very long rest.
“I won’t get away with this long,” he said. “If we’re going to escape, it’ll need to be tonight.”
She nodded. “I’ve got a few ideas. I thought we’d have more time to plan, though.”
“It’ll be all right,” he said.
Coraolis felt for the collar around her neck. He didn’t have Dante’s tricks with portals, but he’d developed a special relationship with energy. He’d been able to generate and control a form of fire in the Astral Plane, and he sensed its kinship with electricity in the physical plane.
He found the place where the collar closed. He shut his eyes to focus. A stream of silver flame surged beneath the collar’s surface. It wasn’t metal as he’d thought, it was closer to a resin. The wires and circuits inside did have metal parts and would be as susceptible to shorting out as one could hope. That must be how Sully’s gadget worked, by overloading the collar with electricity. Thankfully, he could do the same without electrocuting anyone.
Energy gathered between his index fingers and thumbs, forming two tiny silver suns. Tendrils of energy reached across the gap, each sun trying to touch the other and close the circuit. He fed them power, encouraging the connection.
They touched. Silver fire burned through the wires, melting them to slag. The power winked out of existence and the collar cracked open.
“She’s back.” Julia sighed in relief, rubbing at her neck. She smiled. “Oh, I’d almost forgotten how it felt.”
“Let’s free the others and get out of here.”
His trick with the electricity was enough to open Dante’s and Jack’s door, then he repeated the trick with Barbara while Julia woke the guys up and got them up to speed. Soon, the group was gathered in Barbara’s room.
“Now that we’re all free, we need to talk about escaping this planet,” Julia said.
“Agreed. The guards won’t take it well if they see us without our collars,” Dante said. “What do you suggest?”
“I don’t think we can count on stealth. They keep the grounds lit up brighter than daytime out there. We need to go outside and make for the medical center,” Julia offered.
“Why the medical center?” Barbara asked.
“Because the walls of the base are too guarded for us to break through unseen. We need to get as far as we can without being noticed. Once they see us, it’ll be difficult to get anywhere without hurting someone.”
“Then what?” Jack asked.
“J-5 has the only surgical center on the planet,” she said. “It’s got a direct connection to the landing zone.”
“Which will have ships,” Barbara said. She clapped Julia’s back. “I like how you think, Ronasuli. You should have been an admiral.”
Julia turned slightly pink. “I’ve been working on this plan for a while, in case the opportunity came up.”
“So far,
it sounds like a good plan,” Dante said.
“Well, that’s the whole thing,” she said. “I haven’t had a chance to explore the medical center or figure out how to deal with the guards. This isn’t like Doomslayer. All the weapons I’ve seen here are deadly.”
“I’ve got an idea about that,” Jack said.
Coraolis followed the others out of the cell. If they came upon any locked doors, he’d have to open them too. Each door and collar had taken a piece of his reserves, but he felt fine. It was far more efficient than burning through a lock as Dante had once done, and it let the others keep their reserves full.
Once in the hallway, he paused next to the first locked door. He knew the occupants. They were on their way to becoming friends of his. Cole had killed someone, but he felt true remorse for his actions. Troy, as far as Coraolis could tell, was innocent.
He wasn’t leaving either of them behind. He pressed his hand to the lock. When the door shorted out, he opened the door and leaned inside.
“We’re leaving,” he said. “Hurry if you want to join us.”
The others were waiting for him when he turned around. Dante lifted his heavy eyebrows, silently asking a question.
“I know we can’t free everyone, but we should help the ones we can,” he said.
“Just so it doesn’t slow us down,” Barbara said.
“It won’t,” Coraolis promised.
That turned out to be inaccurate, but no one called him on it. Cor used his abilities to unlock every door. Troy and Cole took turns waking up the inhabitants and inviting them along on the escape. Not everyone believed them or thought it was worth the risk. While that was a pity, no one wasted time arguing.
***
By the time they reached the exit, a crowd of twenty had joined them. It was just under half the number Coraolis had tried to free. He hoped the ones who stayed behind would be treated well by the guards. If there were any mistreatment, at least it would be temporary. As soon as they used the device on the universe, cruelty and punishment would be a thing of the past. Crime would soon follow into oblivion.
Jack stopped them before they opened the doors. He gathered everyone, as close as twenty-five people could press. The other convicts were nervous about being so close to the draconian Mystics but followed Jack’s directions to squeeze together.
“I’m going to try something,” he said. “For this to work, I need everyone to stay as quiet as possible. Move slowly, and don’t get too far from me.”
“What are you doing?” Julia asked.
“I think I can make us unnoticeable. There are so many of us, though, I don’t know if it’ll work for certain,” he said.
“If it gets us out of here without a fight, my strength is yours,” Julia said and took his hand.
“Witches,” someone muttered. “Why didn’t they tell us Mystics could do this?”
“Not just any Mystics,” Coraolis told them. “We’re…kind of unique.”
He looked at the mutterer and smiled, trying to look harmless. The convict stared back, jaw thrust forward. He didn’t look trusting, but he still pressed into the crowd, as close as the rest.
Something cool descended on Coraolis from above. It felt like being submerged in cold water without getting wet. Cor took a few experimental breaths and found that he could breathe.
The door opened, and the crowd spilled onto the grounds. The night was clear. Artificial lights blazed too bright to let them see the stars. Everything within the prison walls was lit up with spotlights. Every shadow had been extinguished, and there was no place a person could hide from the guards atop the walls.
Coraolis realized he was holding his breath. Jack walked head down as he kept his power up. It was either an illusion or wonderful mental trickery. Coraolis was impressed.
They walked across the open ground, keeping to Jack’s pace. His face was washed-out pale when they were halfway to their destination. When they reached the door, he was trembling, and leaning on Dante.
Cor peered up at the walls and the shadows that were guards. He tracked their movements and held his breath whenever they paused, or when the searchlights passed over their party. The guards only stopped for a moment then started moving again. The searchlights moved past the convicts without as much as a hiccup.
He heard some of the humans around him gasping about the miracle, but Coraolis kept an eye on Jack. He was weakening. Every step he took was shorter and more hesitant. Coraolis moved up and took his other side.
That was how they entered the intake room, with its hard chairs and the front desk walled in by bulletproof glass. Sully leaned on the counter, chatting with a tired-looking woman.
“So, remember, I’ve been here for hours.” He slipped a paper-wrapped packet through the opening in the glass and the woman took it. “I’ve got that thing that’s going around.”
The woman took the packet and peeked inside, then sighed. She shook her head, but she slipped the packet into her pocket.
“One of these days, Sully, they’ll get you on camera. Then nobody will be able to help you.” She stopped and frowned. She looked directly at Coraolis. He had a moment of panic before he realized she was looking through him.
“Did you leave the door open?” she asked.
Jack froze. Everyone else followed suit. The door slammed shut and Coraolis jumped.
“No,” Sully answered, wondering at his own memory.
The woman stood and backed away from the front. She squinted as if she were facing a bright light. A red button on the back wall glowed softly. She backed toward it and put her hand up, ready to push it.
“Please don’t,” Julia said.
She moved to the front of the crowd to press her palms against the glass. She breathed like someone in the middle of running a six-minute mile. The woman froze with her hand halfway to the button.
“We aren’t going to hurt anyone. We just need to get out of here,” Julia said.
Sully’s mouth hung open. He stared at Coraolis, and Cor realized his friend could see them. He left Jack with Dante and made his way to the front.
“You’re okay? I thought you was dead,” Sully said.
“I’m okay for now, but we need to get off this planet,” Coraolis said.
“Wow. I’m sorry, Coraolis. If I’d known, you know, I woulda stuck around,” Sully said.
“Don’t worry about it. We all do impulsive things when we’re afraid. Would you like to come with us?” Coraolis asked.
“Hell yes,” Sully said. “Rita, baby, you want to come? We’re getting off this mudball.”
Rita brought her hand back in and held it against her chest. Julia wasn’t speaking. She simply radiated love and comfort. The nurse was half entranced, half distracted by Sully.
“Are you sure about this, Sul? These guys are freaks,” she said.
“Yeah. They’re good people. Can’t you feel that? We can go, and then we can get hitched like I said,” Sully said.
Rita laughed. “Were you planning on asking me anytime soon?”
Sully got down on one knee, where Rita couldn’t see him, but she laughed again anyway. It was a kind laugh, but she wasn’t taking anything Sully did seriously. She grabbed a keycard from a doctor’s coat hanging on the wall and let herself out.
“You guys are in a heap of trouble,” she said to Coraolis.
“Not yet, we aren’t,” he said. “Do you know the way to the landing zone?”
“Oh, sweetheart, that isn’t the place for you. It’s guarded twenty-four seven. Come on this way.” She grabbed Sully’s hand and pulled him to his feet. “If you mean it, don’t make a show out of it,” she muttered at him, then took off down the corridor.
Rita’s key card got them into the examination area. They followed her through the offices beyond to an elevator. One by one, she took groups of convicts up the elevator, returning each time for as many would fit. Sully complicated things by staying there with her in the lift, a hand on her waist, and taking up spac
e.
The Mystics went last. Rita swiped the keycard and pressed the button labeled R. She swiped again when they reached the top and pushed another button. The Mystics stepped out onto the roof, and she followed. The elevator doors stayed open behind them.
It was dark, being above the street lamps and searchlights. The only source of light were the stars, lurking behind wispy clouds, and blue lamps sent into the surface of the roof. They were set in a circle around a ship.
“This is the emergency boat,” Rita explained. “It’s for collecting people for surgery, but it’s also for emergency evac in case of a riot. You might have noticed the director’s office is on the top floor of the building.”
“Let’s stop admiring it and get on board,” Sully said. “Any of you guys know how to fly?”
“I think I can swing it,” Barbara said. “Julia, you’re my copilot. Everyone else, find a place to strap in.”
***
Any hope of stealth vanished with the first roar of the ship’s engines. Coraolis took the jump seat in the cockpit and strapped in behind their two pilots. He heard the others settling in behind. It was crowded for twenty-five, but everyone squeezed inside, and the hatch closed.
Coraolis closed his eyes as the ship began to rumble. He let go of his body and rose up into the Astral Plane. Dante was already there. They were surrounded by rough representations of the prison buildings. Lights flickered at random intervals on the grounds below.
They drifted from the ship to another cluster of buildings. It had to be the landing zone. Energy surges rippled through the ether. More lights danced, and there was a distinctly angry quality to the energy there. He could imagine the pilots on the other side, scrambling to bring down the escaping ship.
Then he didn’t have to imagine it; a portal opened in front of him, giving him a clear view of the landing zone. A single fighter was about to lift off. Others were still going through pre-flight checks.
“Let ‘er rip, Cor,” Dante said.
Coraolis pulled silver fire from the air and molded it into a sphere the size of a baseball. He threw it through the portal as hard as he could, then made another. The first one struck the fighter’s thrusters. Smoke burst from the engine, and it died before the ship cleared the ground. Coraolis turned his attention to the other ships, disrupting one engine after the other until he ran out of targets.
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