“What?” Natalia snapped at her. “Nothing is out of the question anymore.”
But Yalena’s objection hadn’t been borne out of disagreement. She was reeling. The sight of the Chameleon, more than half empty, screamed at her, echoing inside her skull. She’d been in denial of how dangerous this mission still was. She’d thought herself prepared. The blood of her classmates now marred the image of that illusion.
Yalena’s lips trembled. “Reid, Carmen, Sebastian... Who else did we lose?”
Natalia’s throat seemed to pulse. She looked away, and the response came from Dave. “Jasper and Andrej from the Chimera crew.”
Yalena felt small. Smaller than ever before. “It’s all my fault...” she whispered. “They trusted me when I said we were ready for this. We weren’t.”
“We never could have prepared for that,” Alec said. “More time wouldn’t have helped us.”
Yalena swallowed painfully. Nothing could have prepared them for this. Just like nothing could prepare them for what was next.
Natalia turned back to Yalena, gesturing for her to hand over the rest of her soaking clothes. “Take all that off, I’ll sterilize it.”
Yalena obeyed and followed Natalia’s directions for the right settings on the shower. The steam stung her eyes, but she refused to close them. She knew the faces she’d see if she let her eyelids fall.
She never realized the exact moment she took her next decision, but it was final. It swam up in her mind as if of its own accord. Now nothing could sway her from that new course of action.
She pulled on fresh clothes as fast as possible and exited the miniature shower to find Natalia spraying the insides of the Eagle with disinfectant. It was probably wise, but to Yalena, it seemed more like stress cleaning.
Yalena collapsed into her team leader chair, fighting the strangled feeling the emptiness of the Chameleon left her with.
“I’m calling Eric,” she said. “We’re way in over our heads.”
Dave turned back in his seat. “Are we going back?”
Yalena punished herself for a second, thinking how much her modest crew of three would probably like her to confirm that. “No, but they are.”
Leaving no room for any of them to jump in with questions, Yalena dialed Eric.
“Are you all right?” he asked instead of a greeting. Protocol wasn’t something to keep to right now.
“We’re fine,” Yalena said, assuming he’d meant all of them. A small voice in her head told her he’d meant just her, though.
Alec turned on the stealth tech as soon as they neared the treetops. The Eagle kept rising, and Yalena assumed the Chimera was doing the same, although it had disappeared in front of her eyes.
“We can send Dai, Theo and Michael back to you on Bluedrops.” Eric sounded like he had to struggle to produce each word. His voice was so weak.
“Take me off loudspeaker,” Yalena said.
Eric switched to a private channel. “What’s wrong?”
“How about everything?” She sniffed the tears away. “We lost five of our people today. Just like that. In a matter of minutes. We were so delusional to think we were ready.”
“Everyone on our crew knew this was a mission into the unknown. They knew the risks,” Eric whispered, making Yalena feel like he wasn’t completely confident saying this in front of the crew. They couldn’t hear her, but they still got his part of the conversation.
Yalena’s throat throbbed. “The stealth tech was supposed to protect us. We should have known it wasn’t going to be enough.”
“It was an error in judgment.”
Eric’s admission kicked the air out of Yalena’s lungs. She’d expected him to argue back, to try to convince her it wasn’t their fault, but that was the old Eric. He’d been the light in her dark days. Now he stewed in darkness and needed her to pull him out. Only she was a novice at it.
“I need you to turn back,” she said.
“Back to the near worlds?” It didn’t sound like the idea had crossed his mind until then.
“Back to a place where you won’t be risking the lives of everyone on your team every second of every day. The mistake we made wasn’t just believing we could handle the Fian secrets. It was the organization as well. These teams are too big, too many people to keep safe. Perhaps it’s better that we split up like this.”
“I can’t leave you here.” Eric’s tone returned to that commanding note, which always reminded Yalena of his father.
“You can and you will, before someone else gets hurt.” She wasn’t going to give in. “Think about it. I have two pilots. Natalia will handle science and chem. I’ll step in for medical and security.” There was a long breathless pause. When Eric didn’t break it, Yalena spoke again. “With me I have everyone I need for a truly stealth mission. A crew small enough to move undetected—mean and lean.”
“We came here together. We have a mission. We can’t leave at the first sign of trouble.” For a second, he sounded like the old Eric, like the stubborn genius, who’d often been the less cautious of the two.
“Eric...” Yalena didn’t mean to guilt him into it, but the argument he couldn’t refute had already formed. “You’re not running. You’re saving the others. I can’t defend everyone with my vibe.”
Eric huffed on the line. His next sentence was a whisper. “I can’t let you go. I just got you.”
“You always had me, Eric.” She felt her eyes water. “Even before we knew we were family. And it’s our family you need to protect now. Please, get Heidi out of here. You and I both know we never should have brought her.”
Eric cleared his throat awkwardly. Heidi would deem it ridiculous for an entire mission to change course for her benefit. She’d hate the special treatment, especially after she’d been itching to make herself useful again, but Yalena didn’t care. The decision was Eric’s and hers to live with. After the way they’d both grown up, not knowing their birth mother, it came as no surprise that Eric didn’t fight Yalena’s last argument.
“I’ll tell Cooper and the Trinity what we found here and about the Fian border controls. We’ll get ready.”
It was a promise Yalena found only a little comforting, but she nodded. “We lost some really good people today. Let’s not lose more. I know Jen didn’t have time to start Dana’s research yet. I think we should.”
“Are you sure?” Yalena had seen Eric’s question coming. “If it’s research into a bio weapon—that’s rather extreme. I thought we’d find another way to defend ourselves.”
“I thought so too. I hoped so, but so far, we haven’t.” Yalena’s lower lip trembled. “If today was any indication, we need to accept extreme as the new norm.”
Chapter 5. Ice Age
Yalena splashed some water on her tired face, but it didn’t help. The dark circles under her eyes stayed true to their purple hue. Guilt, stress and the feeling of being trapped inside the Chameleon had been taking their toll.
A harsh knock on the door of the microscopic bathroom created an echo inside. Yalena wiped her face dry and opened the door, coming face to face with Natalia.
The girl’s black eyes bore into Yalena with an unforgiving stare. “About time,” Natalia spat out. Then, she pushed to get inside without waiting for Yalena to step aside. Their shoulders crashed and pain stabbed Yalena’s other side, where she’d bumped into the door frame.
She fought a grimace. “What’s your problem Natalia?”
The Moonie flipped a handful of her luscious hair back defiantly. “Let me see, let me see. Oh, right. It’s a skinny half alien that’s about to lead us into the next trap.”
Natalia’s pout froze in anticipation of Yalena’s outburst, but the leader in Yalena couldn’t let that happen. Despite how true each of Natalia’s remarks sounded, she had to keep calm. Nothing could be worse for morale and the success of their next move than Natalia running amok with accusations.
“How many times do we have to go over this?” Yalena forced her voice
to sound firm. Commanding. “A smaller team makes us more agile. The vibe can help us stay alive...”
Natalia made a show of a slow eye roll. “Oh, yeah? Well, forgive me if I’m not overflowing with confidence in you right now.” She whirled around in the door frame, shoving Yalena out with both hands. “We’ve looped around that ice moon twice already. I’ve told you all I can about its composition and environment. But even you’re too freaked out to land, aren’t you?”
Yalena’s jaw set at the stab of that remark. “I’m not freaked out. I’m trying to get us prepped.” It was a lie and the truth at the same time.
Judging by the way Natalia’s eyes narrowed, she knew that. “Something like that freak raptor attack is bound to happen again. You brought us here for slaughter and that’s not what I signed up for.”
Natalia slammed the button on the side panel, making the door close in front of Yalena’s face. Staring at the metallic material and knowing Natalia had to be doing the same on the other side, Yalena whispered, “You know it’s only going to get worse if we don’t stop them.” No sound came from inside the bathroom. “I expect you ready for descent in fifteen minutes.”
Yalena bit on her lip, wishing for the heavy knot in her stomach to untangle. She’d hoped giving the team a little time would help them adjust and collect themselves before the next part of their erratic plan, but perhaps it only was only making them grow more nervous.
She glanced over at Dave and Alec in the pilots’ seats. They had gone rigid—half turned to let their eyes meet—a silent conversation taking place between them, the kind only best friends could have. The kind she’d had countless times with Eric or Jen.
Yalena walked back to the leader’s chair, struggling to contain a sigh. More than anything, she wanted to stretch her legs and venture outside the confinement of the Eagle.
Alec approached from the first pilot seat, his bushy eyebrows rising high on his forehead. “I don’t mean to agree with her...”
“But it’s time to land,” Yalena finished for him. “I know.” She could tell Natalia whatever sounded best, but under Alec’s warm gaze, Yalena had no way of deceiving herself. “I don’t know how to prepare us for what’s next.”
Alec’s full lips tensed. “I don’t think you can. We’ll have to trust the Chameleon to keep us hidden.”
Yalena nodded. “And the vibe to give us a split second of warning.”
Dave turned back in the second pilot seat. He must have given up on pretending not to hear their conversation. His dark complexion hid any signs of anxiety well. “Let’s get this done, so we can go home.”
YALENA WATCHED THE icy moon come closer, until it occupied the entire front window. When Alec dove into the atmosphere, Natalia started her report—seemingly having recovered from her outburst.
“Nitrogen levels are high, so keep your masks strapped on well,” she said. “If you remove your mask here, you won’t be able to breathe.”
Yalena squared her shoulders, tensing. “Any signs of bio activity?”
Natalia sulked, despite delivering on each request. “No release of carbon dioxide or methane that I can detect. The world looks empty.” From the closest workstation to Yalena’s right, Natalia glared at her. “This doesn’t mean they aren’t there, though. I wouldn’t be able to spot a hidden army by small variations in the gases alone.”
Yalena grasped the armrests of her chair tight when she felt the Chameleon plunging down toward the surface. “Would the ice be stable enough to land on?”
Natalia’s big mouth seemed to chew on the question before she replied with disdain. “The Chameleon could never break this ice. The moon is frozen solid. I only detect liquid surface flows around the equator and, based on the two loops we did around this moon, it seems they freeze at night.”
Yalena let Natalia’s attitude slide. “What about the geyser areas?”
“It’s only a little spot around the north pole. I didn’t detect any sort of a construction or settlement around it. What are the odds the Fians just ignored this world on account of not being able to breathe here?”
“Nil,” Alec said, even if his fixed eyebrows suggested he was focused on the landing.
“They’d use it for something, at the very least as a research base,” Yalena said.
“There’s no sign of any base,” Natalia said. “Unlike the...the raptor world.”
Yalena blinked slowly, wanting to glance over the tremble in Natalia’s voice when she mentioned the raptors. She refocused, trying to think like Felix, to see this world the way the enemy would. “Land at the foot of those mountains. They could have built a lair underneath or used the caves below to hide.”
Dave tried to sound optimistic, too. “Plus, it will be easier to hide the Chameleon. Even with stealth tech, it would leave landing marks in the snow.”
Yalena nodded, more to herself than to Dave. The landing was light and comfortable, despite the slippery ice below. Alec flew into an opening in the rocks, where the Eagle fit snugly. The space ahead, between the rocky walls of the opening, was too narrow for the Chameleon.
“We’re on foot from here onward,” Alec said, letting the engine hum die.
Yalena turned to Natalia. “Do we detect any heat signatures?”
Natalia still avoided accidentally meeting her eyes. “The rocks seem to be at least twenty degrees warmer than the rest of the planet, but deeper down.”
Dave positioned himself by Natalia’s workstation, looking down at her holo screen. “Could it be geyser warmth?”
“Doubtful. It’s steady, while geysers would have peak points.”
Yalena tried to ignore the tightness in her throat. “Sounds like an underground construction then.” It was time to kick back into action, even descend into reckless offense again if she had to. Her voice turned to steely resolve. “Suit up.”
It brought her some relief to see that no one argued back.
Yalena unbuckled herself from her seat and pulled on a thin exposure suit, while the rest of the crew followed her lead.
“The pressure is at 1.08 atm, so the suit is mainly to feed us oxygen,” Natalia explained as she screwed in her helmet until it clicked into place.
“Seems smart,” Alec said. “Hiding an army barracks under the rocks on an unwelcoming ice world. Who’d come looking, right?”
Yalena had the feeling he was itching to get to the end of their mission, even if he’d tried his best to sound calm. “We did, and we’ll leave no stone unturned.”
Once all suits were secured, Dave opened the gate of the Eagle. He jumped into a puff of snow, gun raised at the ready. Natalia headed out after him.
“Check the parameter,” Yalena said.
“Thanks for throwing us to the wolves first, boss.”
Yalena left Natalia’s sarcasm on her list of things to care about later. She pulled Alec by the hand. He gently touched the side of Yalena’s helmet in a gesture that would have been endearing if she were able to feel his fingers on her skin.
His warm eyes bore into her. “What is it?”
“We can’t afford to fail again.” Her throat felt tight. “But if we do, there’s only one other place left to go.”
Alec’s eyebrows squelched closer together. He must have guessed the world she had in mind. “Felix still has enemies on Nova Fia. Any army he’s hiding would be in much more danger closer to them.”
Yalena fumbled for the right words. “No, I mean, I do believe the army is here, but if they sense us, if something goes wrong again...” She had to divert her gaze. “I need you to follow my orders. Any order I give, even course Cattleya.”
“If you need me to step in and lead a defense, in case we’re attacked, I’ll do it.”
The resolve in Alec’s eyes chipped away at her confidence. “If something goes wrong again,” Yalena whispered, and this time she knew she had to say it. “If I tell you to leave, you have to leave. Get help.”
She watched the expression on Alec’s face change from
shock to a frown of realization. “We don’t have any allies on this side of the wormhole to ask for help.”
“We do,” Yalena insisted. “Felix must be keeping Sibel and Blaine somewhere. And maybe even...” She couldn’t bring herself to say it, but Alec would be able to sense what she meant.
“Your father?”
“If he’s still alive.”
Alec scratched his lower lip with his teeth in a slow motion. “They’d be guarded more heavily than even a secret army.”
“That’s why you’re the only one who can find them. You don’t have a vibe that will set them off.” Her eyelids fluttered in multiple blinks to interrupt the intense way he stared at her.
“Why are we talking about this now?” Alec motioned to the gaping gate. “We only need to see this army, to understand what’s so unbeatable about them. Now that we’re down to four people, we can’t engage. It would be suicide. So, if we strike out, we’ll regroup later.”
Yalena kept the next statement to herself through pursed lips.
There might not be enough time for that.
Chapter 6. The Chase
The thin layer of dry snow crunched under their boots. It covered the ice that seemed to go all the way to the core of this world. Yalena’s breaths clouded the bottom of her helmet—a reaction against the cold outside.
“Adjust the temperature inside the suit if you get visibility issues,” Natalia instructed, a little too bossily for Yalena’s taste.
She played with the settings until her suit adjusted. She took each step cautiously—the stretch from the Eagle’s landing spot down the crack between the rocks was anything but a path. Jagged rocks covered the terrain, making the otherwise smooth surface look unwelcoming.
Being the last one down, Yalena slipped in her hurry, but Alec quickly pulled her back up.
“You inspire such confidence, boss,” Natalia mocked.
Yalena didn’t even grace her with a sneer. It was Natalia’s talent to always catch her at her worst.
The Hive Engineers Page 4