I rub at my temple. Pain is blossoming again. Maybe it’s from what I’m about to say. “I’m coming. For reasons I don’t know yet, transporting has become difficult for me. But if we have an emergency, I need to be there with you for a quick exit.”
Javen eyes me, the slight wrinkle between his brows reappearing.
I mouth, “I’ll be okay.”
He purses his lips, then says to Wirrin, “We’re going with you, too. General Atkins and the rest were captured by Hammond because of us.” Pain swims in Javen’s eyes. “And I should be there for Cassi.”
I squeeze my fists together, knowing he’s not going to like my next words. But I’m confident they must be said.
“No. You all need to stay here and recover.” Wirrin is still pale and Beda is dozing on the cot.
Javen studies them as well. “But I can go,” he insists. “I’m ready to fight, if I need to.”
I bite the inside of my cheek, knowing that Yaletha still needs to be given her new Connect. She will need help recovering, and Javen must be here for her.
“Of course you’re ready, but your people need you. You’re the best one who can help them deal with their confusion.” I glance at Beda, her skin still with a grayish cast. She’s normally so strong. There’s no way we can bring her and expect her to make choices that would be safe for the group. “And I can fend for myself.”
“She’s right, Javen.” Irene steps up beside us. “So far, the Alku’s transition hasn’t been easy. The Starfire Connects are working, but everyone needs more time to purge the sedatives out of their systems.”
Javen groans and rakes a hand through his hair, but he eventually nods in agreement.
I wrap my arms around his waist, and he returns my embrace as our eyes lock. “A good leader does what is right for his people and not always what’s right for himself,” I say quietly.
“You know this is what needs to happen,” Irene says and then returns to checking Beda’s device.
Javen’s lips form a thin line, and he inhales deeply. “You and Irene are right, and I don’t mean to doubt your abilities. You have done amazing things and are capable of caring for yourself. You rescued me.” He tips his head and that adorable wrinkle forms between his brows again. “I just don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all.”
“I know. I’m not sure what I’d do without you, either.” I stretch up on my toes and kiss him. It’s short and sweet, but the connection reminds me of how much I appreciate him.
After a moment, I turn toward Luca. His attention is fixed on us. But he quickly darts his gaze away as if he’s both curious and embarrassed to have seen our affection. I can’t help but think of when he tried to kiss me, but I mentally flick the memory away. Despite my dislike for him then, he’s helping us now.
“Let's go,” I say.
Luca and I race to the docking bay. He enters his authorization code at the computer near the door, running his finger down the display in search of an available ship.
“That one.” He stops at one of the listed ships. “It’s a little larger than I’d like, but it’s equipped with an emergency pod.” He pairs his Connect with the screen and selects the ship. “It also has low-level cloaking tech to help us avoid detection.”
We jog to the far side of the bay, past several small ships to a large hover. The outside has a dark, mottled appearance for camouflage.
Luca taps his Connect and the ship door slides open. He hustles me inside. The space is relatively large and has at least twenty seats inside. To the back, I spot the partially visible pod Luca spoke of, one that looks like it’s able to fit two or three.
Luca closes the hatch and takes the pilot’s seat, and I sit in the co-pilot’s, even though I have no clue how to fly this thing. He activates the controls, and the ship hovers off the ground while the hidden exit in the mountainside opens. Luca steers the ship from the bay and follows the coordinates from his instructions.
About an hour later we land in a clearing. No civilization in sight.
“What next?” I ask as we exit the ship.
He taps on his Connect. “I’ve alerted them to our presence, so we wait.”
Just as the words leave his mouth, I spot a group of people walking from the forest into the clearing where we landed. I recognize General Atkins first. Her body is more slumped and tired than the last time I saw her, but her dark skin and hair are unmistakable.
Luca and I dash toward the group.
“General At—” Luca says.
“They never should have sent you this early,” Atkins cuts him off. “We would have been able to survive out here for a few days. There could be patrols looking for us. Who knows if you’ve already been spotted.”
“Well, we’re here,” I say.
“Then we should leave stat.” She waves to the rest of the group. I count fifteen—quite a few less than the number who fought at the mine. Were the rest killed there, or does Hammond still have them in custody? I don’t ask.
Without protest, the group loads into the ship.
Atkins hurries to the pilot’s seat and pushes Luca aside while taking over the controls. “This ship has an emergency pod?”
Luca nods.
“I want you and Cassi in one. If we are detected, you need to fly away and hide. Those pods maneuver a lot more quickly than these ships.”
“We came all this way,” Luca protests. “We can’t just leave you.”
“You’re not leaving us. We may need to split up to mitigate the risk. The first ship they’ll spot is the largest, and we can’t put all our eggs in one basket. Plus, this ship has weapons,” she says. “We’ll use them if necessary. We’ll cover you.”
Luca grabs my arm and pulls me to the back of the ship. The silver-gray vessel at the rear is small, barely fitting two people. We squeeze around the pod’s sides and slip into the available seats.
“We’re in,” he says.
“I’m opening the exit,” Atkins relays through the comm.
As she says the words, a hatch opens to the outside. Luca flies us out of the main ship and, when we’re at a safe distance, rotates the pod around to face the larger vessel.
On the navigation screen, nothing else shows but our two ships.
“Follow me,” Luca says to Atkins and then maneuvers around.
“Are you setting the course?” I ask.
“No,” Luca says. “I have the location memorized. That way, there’s nothing in the data stores if we get captured.”
My chest constricts at his words. This must work. Capture isn’t an option.
“We’ll hover lower to the ground than usual. Paired with the ship’s cloaking tech, flying under the radar will keep us less visible,” Luca says into the comm.
“Understood,” Atkins says.
The pod glides forward, and we’re off. Out the port window, I watch the ground while squeezing my fingers together. As the miles pass, neither Luca nor I speak, as if doing so might ruin our chances of getting away safely.
Beep.
I whip my focus back to the display.
Beep.
“What’s going on?” Several yellow dots appear on the screen about twenty miles out from our location.
“Ships.” He taps on the comm. “But I can’t tell if they’re in pursuit yet.”
“I see them,” Atkins says.
“You think they're onto us?” Luca asks.
“Not sure yet,” she says, her voice crackling through the comm. “Maneuver off course slightly to check.”
My heart pounds against my ribcage as I watch the yellow dots.
Luca edges the pod to the right. The yellow dots immediately veer to follow.
Chapter 23
“We have to go! Now!” Luca yells into the comm, but I know he’s directing the order at me as well as Atkins.
I need to transport us into the Intersection. It’s the only way. Gripping my armrests, I close my eyes and summon the Starfire within me. Tingling warmth fills my body and
everything else falls away. I envision porting the entire ship across the dimension. But before I can, fire rips through my body. My body jolts as if I slammed into a wall at full force. I clap a hand over my mouth as I release a piercing scream, my eyes shooting open.
“What’s going on?” Luca asks.
My body shudders with pain and I gasp for breath, my mind spinning. Are the Protectors blocking the Starfire?
“Are you okay?”
“Just go. We need to go,” I mutter.
With a jerk, Luca maneuvers our small ship around.
“We have to help them,” I cry out through my fingers.
“We can’t,” Luca says. “If we stay, we all die.”
“Let’s go then,” I whisper.
The emptiness inside consumes me as if I’m already dead. Dad’s face flashes through my mind. He has no idea what’s going on here, and I have no clue what’s happening on Earth. I could die any moment, and he wouldn’t know until he returns to Arcadia . . . if he even does.
I lower my hands from my face and reach for the spot on my finger where Mom’s gold ring has been for over a year. The spot is empty, and I mumble a few words to Mom to help keep Dad safe. Not that she can hear me.
“You’re going to need to split away from us,” Atkins says. “Your ship is small enough. Try to lose them in the forest. I’m ordering you to abort your mission, Powell,” she says. “We’ll be the diversion.”
“Atkins,” I say. “We’ll get help!”
“No, you won’t. We were stupid to escape. It was all a setup to get to either you or the Alku. It had to have been. They were too prepared, and I fell into the trap.”
Through the front window, I can see Atkins’s ship turn and head back the way we came.
“Leave—and radio silence.” Her stern voice crackles through the comm. “Don’t make me waste what I’m about to do.” The comm goes dead.
Luca’s hands fly over the controls, and our ship shoots off over the ground.
I bring up the topographic map on the screen in front of me and scan through the surrounding area. I point to a spot on the chart where there’s a vast, dense forest. We should be able to descend into an open field right before the tree line begins.
“We can hover close to the ground here and then maneuver the ship into the forest,” I say.
Luca wipes the sweat from his brow. “Press the spot on the screen and follow the directions.”
I tap the area where we need to descend.
Confirm destination? Yes or No
I tap the “Yes” and a chime sounds.
“Can you track Atkins’s position? “I ask.
Luca punches a few buttons on the screen, and Atkins’s location lights up on the display. Surrounding her icon are enemy ships in red.
“She’s surrounded,” I mumble under my breath, then glance at our destination timeline.
2 minutes, 24 seconds
“I’m sorry, Cassi,” Luca says in a shaky tone. “I’m sorry for everything.”
“What are you talking about? You need to hold it together since you’re piloting this ship.”
He eyes the swarm of ships surrounding Atkins on the screen.
“I was a jerk to you, and I’m sorry I tried to kiss you,” he says. “I was trying to work my way up the ladder, and I should never have used you.”
“Why are you telling me this now?” I demand while watching Atkins’s ship head this way, Hammond’s ships close behind.
“Because if we die, I don’t want to leave it unsaid.”
“Why is Atkins’s ship heading toward us?”
“What?” Luca homes his attention back onto to the display. “She’s firing on them but there are too many. Those ships are pushing her toward us.”
“Why?”
“I have no idea. But at their speed, they’ll overtake us before we can escape into the forest.” Luca’s fingers tap the console. The ship jolts into higher speed, pressing my body into my seat.
My eyes stay glued to the screen. I can’t read all the data, but I know enough to be certain Atkins’s ship is moving faster than we are.
Several red dots leave the formation and close in on us. Luca attempts to increase our speed again as he mutters a few curses under his breath.
I close my eyes and call for the Starfire again, but nothing happens. In frustration, I flick open my lids and pound my fists on the arms of my chair. What good is the Starfire if it won’t work?
Beep.
An alarm!
Beep.
Two ships now flank us.
“I have to put the pod down,” Luca says. “Can’t think of a better idea unless you can do something to get us out of here.”
I take in a shallow breath and shake my head. It’s over.
Forced to the ground by Hammond’s ships, our hover descends into a small clearing and then drifts to the cover of tall trees. Atkins’s ship remains in the sky, no longer firing on the enemy. Then an image flashes onto the screen in front of us—Hammond. My eyes widen at the sight of her.
“If you attempt to escape, I’ll blow up the other ship.” Hammond raises her eyebrow as if to taunt me.
“You’re bluffing,” I growl at her. “You would have already blown them up if you were going to.”
She turns, looking off screen and nods.
“Wait, wait!” I yell and peer through the front window.
Fire explodes through the ship above us and I scream in horror. Flames and metal shards burst across the sky, and the vessel crashes to the ground. I recoil from the glare and wrap an arm around my stomach. Nausea pools in my gut and I hold back the urge to retch.
She blew up all the massacre survivors from the mine—General Atkins is gone. They’re all gone.
“What did you just do?” Luca yells.
“Cassiopeia?” Hammonds stern voice comes from my wrist again and wrenches my attention away from the carnage. “You will surrender immediately.”
“Why are you doing this?!” I scream. “It’s not right. You know it’s not right!”
“Exit your ship and stand down within thirty seconds or you will suffer the same fate.”
The screen goes black, and Luca and I are left alone in the pod.
My arms pull at my sides as if I’m holding bricks in each hand. What do I do? With shaking hands, I release my safety belt. Luca glances at me, his eyes swimming with uncertainty, and then unlatches his own before activating the top hatch. It slides back with a snap and the acrid smell of a burning ship hits my nose. Slowly, we push up to stand. We don’t have a safer option than surrendering at this point. Maybe the Starfire will come back and I can try to use it later to transport us out.
We step from the small pod with hands in the air.
I close my eyes as they flood with tears and try not to peer at the burning ship. But they flutter open when a vessel whirs above me. Hair blasts off my face and I cough as smoke swirls around us, especially when a black hover lands nearby.
As soon as the vessel kisses the ground, four soldiers armed with large laser guns hustle out, pointing their weapons at me and Luca. Behind them, Hammond steps from the ship. Around her neck is the very Starfire crystal she yanked off me in Primaro.
Stay calm, Cassi. You still have a chance since they haven’t killed you yet. Max and Dad are on Earth now getting help. You just need to stall and not die in the process.
Two guards on my left proceed to pat us down for weapons.
“You won’t find anything,” I mumble to my guard. I still barely know how to even fire a gun.
“We can’t be too safe,” Hammond says.
“She’s clean, ma'am,” the guard says.
“He’s clean, too,” the other guard says after patting down Luca.
I scoff. “Told you.”
Hammond tightens her jaw and steps in, no more than a foot from me. “This is not the time for your teenage attitude, Cassiopeia. There is so much more at stake here than you understand.”
Try me. The words dance on the tip of my tongue, but I bite them back.
A shiver runs down my spine as she shoots an icy glare my way, and I focus on a tree over her shoulder to avoid doing something I might regret.
Hammond holds her ground for a moment. “Good, now escort Miss Foster into the hover.”
The guard grabs my upper arm, pinching my skin, and I grit my teeth as he nearly drags me to the craft. I crane my neck around for one last look at the wrecked ship, still burning on the grass behind us.
Luca is carted before Hammond, the guards’ weapons trained onto him.
Hammond swivels her steely gaze to the nearest guard. “Kill him.”
Luca’s eyes widen.
“No!” I scream.
But the word is barely from my mouth when the guard shoots a blue laser blast at Luca.
He crumbles to the ground. Dead.
A small cry whimpers from my trembling mouth. The guard bracing my arm whips toward the ship. I can’t see him anymore—Luca. Dead. So many people dead. Tears roll down my cheeks, my chest squeezing until I can only pant for breath.
The guard shoves me into a seat against a wall. He straps me in and makes sure the body restraint is secure, then grabs my hands and snaps a metal device on them. The other guards board and two sit across from me, their weapons trained my way.
Hammond is the last to board and, to my surprise, positions next to me, the fourth guard flanking her opposite side.
“Take us back,” she calls out to the pilot.
“Yes, ma’am,” he says, and the hover raises from the ground.
Hammond leans into me and whispers, “When we get back to Primaro, you are going to teach us how to use this . . . what did they call it? Oh yes . . . Mother Starfire. It is everything Earth needs.”
My stomach tightens. She must have tortured the information about the Mother Starfire from one of Atkins’s people. “You mean the ‘deserving’ people on Earth,” I mutter as tears continue to drip down my cheeks.
Anger radiates off Hammond. I try to lean away from her, but the restraint belt over my chest keeps me locked in place. Her fingers dig into my cheeks and under my chin.
“You insolent gir—”
The Starfire Wars: The Complete Series Page 49