Mom’s lips turn up into a tentative smile, and she waves me to the door. Without a word, I follow her.
When we arrive at the double doors this time, they’re already standing open. Several people funnel their way down to the cavern. At the bottom of the steps, Mom and I rush forward to find several dozen people, mostly in lab coats and armed with computers—their weapon of choice.
Mom glances at her Connect. “There’s no way those ships are going to change direction.”
As she yells for the people within the stairwell to get inside, I move farther into the cavern while several more people hustle into the space behind us.
“Headcount!” Mom yells, and everyone immediately begins calling out numbers. The count gets to twenty-five, but the next person doesn’t answer.
Frantically, my mom looks all around us. “Where’s twenty-six?”
No one answers.
“The ships are near our location,” a man hollers from the back. “We have to close the door.”
But as the words exit his mouth, a man storms through the opening.
“Twenty-six!”
At that, everyone is accounted for and Dr. Ellis shuts the double doors.
“They’re here!” a man shouts, the same one as before.
An intense wave of energy shudders through my body, followed by a rumbling in the walls. Something is happening with the Starfire.
To my left, a woman takes out a scanner she’s brought with her and holds it up to the wall. “You getting this? The wall thickness is growing.” She continues to scan the area, stopping at the door. Her eyes grow as wide as saucers.
Right before our eyes, the door turns to stone.
A collective gasp reverberates throughout the cavern. We’re trapped. But instead of panic, calm ripples through my body. I reach into my bag and pull out the portal device, ignoring the bustle of everything else going on in the room. No one seems to notice as I tap the screen and bring up the coordinates that’ll take everyone directly into the Intersection—if they want to go.
Remaining calm, I walk past everyone gathered near the door—the stone has fully covered the metal—and press my finger to the screen.
Energy crackles and a blue-green circle of light explodes to life. The energy of everyone turning my way presses against me. If only for a moment, I know these people have forgotten what’s happening above.
“We have to trust that the Starfire can protect itself. For now, I can take you someplace safe to wait,” I say.
I face Mom. Her unblinking gaze is locked onto something through the portal, on the other side in the Intersection. When I turn back, I know exactly what stole her attention.
Dad is staring straight at us.
CHAPTER 16
Above Dad’s head inside the Intersection, a fleet of ships floats in the sky on either side of the massive portal structure created by the Starfire. The reinforcements must have arrived. Behind him is the crystal field. The Starfire is emitting a hazy glow despite the morning sun, and Mom gapes at the Intersection’s cyan-infused view.
I rest my hand on her shoulder, calling her attention back to me. “We should get all these people through.” Then I turn to the small crowd. “For now, entering the portal will be the safest option for you,” I shout, so everyone can hear me. “We can regroup after to get on the same page and, hopefully, move forward with Renewal.”
My heart beats wildly at the thought.
Shaking her head, Mom finally comes out of her blank gaze. “Yes.” She waves her hand to the opening. “Everyone, please go through. Renewal can be launched from another Network site. We don’t need to be here.”
Securing their belongings, the people start to hustle into the portal opening several at a time, until all but Mom and I have crossed.
My gaze goes back to the thickening walls and the now stone-covered door. Marveling at the beauty the Starfire has created in this single area gives me a measure of hope that Earth can be healed, and without desolating the Starfire mines on Arcadia. If Kole Harris, Hammond, or whoever else raiding the compound doesn’t destroy this place first, that is.
Mom pulls on my arm, and we race through the crackling opening together. The instant my feet hit the soil of the Intersection, I deactivate the device. The light vanishes, leaving only a halo on my retina for a few blinks.
“Isabel?” Dad frantically pushes his way through the people from the compound, many of whom have stunned, wide-eyed expressions while surveying our blue-green surroundings.
He barely looks at me as he hurries toward us.
Mom is still gripping my arm as if she’s trying to keep me safe. “Richard!” Her voice comes out quivery, and she lets go of me, taking a few steps toward Dad.
When they finally are no more than a foot apart, both stop, locking onto each other's eyes.
“H—how are you here?” Dad sputters, tentatively reaching for her forearm. His fingers touch her skin as if she might break or disappear at any moment.
“I . . . I have so much to explain.” Mom’s breath grows ragged, and then she finally throws her arms around his neck.
Biting my lip to hold in my emotion, I step away from them as Dad embraces her. My parents clutch one another for dear life, and Dad mumbles something into her hair, though I can’t quite decipher it.
Nearby, Dr. Ellis eyes the reunion with a tender smile but steps closer to them, interrupting their private moment with a tap on Mom’s shoulder. “Dr. Foster?”
Letting go of each other, my parents turn their attention to her. “Yes,” they say in unison.
“Cassi.” I whip toward the sound of Javen’s voice as he hurries toward me.
My heart nearly explodes upon seeing him, but the mix of relief and hurt in his eyes shakes me to my core. I’m so sorry I didn’t tell you that I needed to stay behind.
You can trust me fully. I was so worried.
I snake my arms around his shoulders and hold him tight. “I know.”
A relieved smile curls the corners of his lips. “The others are worried, too. Beda wanted to go back for you.”
“Beda wanted to go back for me?” Of course she did. Beda hated me before, but we made a connection and she’s the most loyal, committed girl I know.
“Everyone wanted to go back, but you had the portal device. By the time the other one could have been programmed, we knew you would be long gone and impossible to track. Returning to that alley was suicide—no matter how much we wanted to go.”
My gaze shifts to my parents, who are deeply engrossed in conversation with Dr. Ellis and several of the others. So much for a family reunion.
“Dad,” I call out, and he lifts his head my way. “I need to speak with the others at the lab.”
“Call them out here,” he says.
I shake my head. If he hasn’t been back to the lab, I doubt he knows yet about Irene’s aunt and cousins. “I have to go there first, but we’ll join you soon.”
Conceding, he waves me on. “Don’t be long. We need all the Alku to oversee the Starfire mods on the ships, and Irene should be out here by now. I know she was finishing a project at the lab.”
I return my attention to Javen. “How’d you keep him from knowing I wasn’t here?” I whisper.
Your father was extremely busy with the ships’ arrival, he answers into my mind. And the messages you programmed into the lab’s AI seem to have worked.
I take Javen’s hand in mine and focus my thoughts on the lab. In a blink, we’re standing at the front entrance. We dash inside and I quickly announce, “AI, I need you.”
My false mom appears and Javen’s eyes widen, probably realizing that she’s based on my real mom, the woman he just saw.
“How may I hel—” she asks but I cut her off.
“Your particular appearance is no longer needed,” I say.
“How should I appear when called on?” She tips her head.
“The generic model.”
The AI nods and transforms into a woman wi
th short-cut brunette hair. “As you wish.”
A weight lifts from my chest and I smile at Javen.
I stow my bag with the framed photos in the sleeping quarters and then find everyone in the lab room, including Irene’s aunt and cousins.
All eyes fall on me.
“Where were you?” Beda growls. Her jaw is tense, and her eyelids narrow to slits.
“I’m sorry I worried all of you—” I start to explain.
“You did more than worry us, Cassi.” Irene holds her cousin Grace on her shoulder. I let out a sigh of relief. The Starfire must have been able to heal her wounds from Franky’s men. “If we would have gone back for you, all of us could’ve been killed. You put everything at risk! We had to lie to Dr. Foster several times so he wouldn’t know you were gone.”
My stomach clenches at her outburst. This is exactly why I have no idea how the Starfire chose me as the Protector. There’s too much responsibility, too much pressure. Taking a settling breath, I try to ignore the feeling.
“The crystals called me to stay, and for a good reason.”
“Isabel Foster is alive.” Javen steps up behind me, placing his hand around my waist. His familiar touch immediately settles my tension, and my body relaxes.
Irene’s mouth falls open.
“Your mother died on Earth,” Beda argues, confused. “Vihann has told us this story. She was killed a year before your people came to Arcadia.”
The words “your people” ring in my mind, and I realize that I can no longer hold the secret back from Beda and Yaletha. “I’m not only human.”
Irene’s eyes widen. “This might not be the best time for this, Cassi.” Her attention shifts to her aunt and cousins. “I need all of you to go to the sleeping quarters. Now.”
Ada is quiet, probably still in shock from everything that happened to her today. Who wouldn’t be? She traveled the universe in the blink of an eye and found out that aliens populate the planet where she landed. Now, some crazy Earth girl is saying she’s an alien too, right in front of her.
“I don’t wanna go,” Milo whines. “I’m hungry.”
“Take them to get some food again in the kitchen.” Irene takes Ada’s arm. “There’s still plenty in there. Then get some sleep. You all need it.”
“You need it too, Irene,” Ada protests, holding Milo’s hand.
Ada’s right. The Alku and I need less sleep than Irene, but from the increased darkness under her eyes, it’s pretty obvious she hasn't gotten any for who knows how long.
“We don’t have a choice here, and I found some meds in the first aid that help keep me awake. I’ll be fine. Now, go.” Her eyes plead. “Please? You can’t help here. The best thing you can do is be safe.”
Letting out a resigned breath, Ada concedes and turns with the children. We all watch as they exit the room, and then Beda slams her hand on the door’s panel to close it.
“What are you talking about?” Yaletha immediately asks, stepping up behind Beda.
“I’m part Alku,” I admit. “Paxon and Arcadia are both my home, and my mother’s. The Starfire has been planning a connection between Earth and this world for a long time. From what I can tell, before my mom was even born.”
“But how?” Beda asks, perplexed.
“It doesn’t matter now.” I glance to Javen, and his lips turn up into a small smile. “If we get through this, I’ll explain everything.” I have no idea whether we will get through this. There are no guarantees, and as the Protector, I have a feeling that my risk is higher than anyone else’s here. “What I need you to know is that I think I was brought to Arcadia to make sure both the Alku and the humans survive.”
Yaletha shakes her head in disbelief.
“My mom stayed on Earth because she knew the importance of it, too. Now they need all of us out there at the field. My dad and mom’s Renewal project is nearly ready on Earth. If we can convince Hammond to not mine the Starfire here, then we can activate the Network.”
I grab for Irene’s arm. “No time to waste. We need to join the others.”
In a blink, she and I are on the edge of the Starfire field. Overhead, the sky is filled with small warships displaying the flags of Britain, Spain, and Australia on their sides. There must be a hundred. Any other time, I would have thought the display was massive, but I have no idea what to expect when we get to Arcadia. What Hammond has waiting for us.
Javen, Beda, and Yaletha materialize beside us, and their presence gives me an air of confidence and hope. This is something we can only do together.
Waving them forward to the portal, I spot Mom and Dad standing there next to Howard, who is working on a portable computer display. The senators, Dr. Ellis, Morris, several of Mom’s people from the compound on Earth, Wirren, Vihann, and Zarah have gathered around them.
As I get closer, I spot Mom’s hand locked with Dad’s. Despite the nervousness and adrenaline racing through my veins, the sight of them instantly solidifies my place in our family and this world.
“If we didn’t have so much to accomplish, you would have a lot of explaining to do,” Dad warned me the moment I reached them. “But under the circumstances, and since you are safe and brought your mother with you, we can have that conversation later.”
His statement makes me wonder how much Mom has told him. He can’t know we are Alku, or he would say something.
Giving him a closed-lip smile, I throw my arms around him. “I love you, Dad.”
With a few pats on the back, he steps away. Mom winks at me. It’s good to be Team Foster again.
“As I said.” Dad looks up to the crowd around him and Mom. “Before we make any moves, we must contact those on Arcadia to get an update. If we don’t, we’re entering a battlefield blind.”
“What’s the plan?” I ask.
“Our first course of action is to attempt a peaceful approach.” Mom gestures to Vihann, Zarah, and Wirrin, who are standing a few feet away, behind the Council. “This is important in Alku tradition, and we want to honor it. We will use the portal to go to Arcadia and contact Hammond. We will tell her that Renewal is ready to launch.”
“It’s ready?” I ask. “But your compound may have been destroyed, and you said something is still missing.”
“I’ve run the calculations with my team. We are ninety-nine percent certain that, even without the Starfire from our lab, the Network will be strong enough. And I have to believe the rest will take care of itself.” She locks onto me for a second, her gaze intense. She knows that I could die, we could all die. After a moment, she focuses on the gathering. “Once we commence the protocol, Earth will feel immediate effects. So, if Hammond truly wants to save Earth as she claims, she will agree to it.”
Everything Hammond said while she had me in custody whirls through my mind. “I know there is part of her that believes in saving Earth, but she also wants power. If we do this, it will take that from her. Why not just start Renewal now? Without asking.”
“Because having the World Senate and Hammond on board gives us our best chance. Once we activate the Network, all the locations will be exposed and open to attack. We can launch without one location, but more than that will cripple the Network, with catastrophic results.”
Zarah and Vihann come closer.
“This is our wish—to make peace.” Zarah smiles at Vihann and then moves her attention to Javen.
“I agree,” Javen offers from behind me.
Straightening my shoulders, I nod. “Then what’s the next step?”
Dad glances at the face of his Connect. “We port in forty-five minutes.”
CHAPTER 17
Vihann, Senator Gray and Simmons, along with Howard, Dr. Morris, Tucker, Mom, Dad and I are ushered into a stone-walled conference room at the still-secure location built into the Tahms mountain side.
No one really seems to be in charge here. Luca is dead, and Alina is unable to travel here from Primaro without divulging the location, and most everyone else has been called away
. I can only hope Alina is okay and Hammond hasn’t discovered she’s working for us.
“Is there hope?” A guard’s forehead tenses as he addresses Senator Simmons.
The sense I get from everyone left is that they have been abandoned and are now stuck here without a plan.
“I would love to be confident for you, son.” Simmons crosses his arms over his chest. “Know that we are doing everything we can to come out of this safe.”
The muscles in the guard’s jaw remain tight. However, he gives the senator a curt nod. “Let me know if you require anything else.”
“Thank you,” Dad answers. “Comm access is all we need, other than this room.”
“You still believe contacting Hammond to be the best course of action?” Senator Gray asks after the guard leaves us, pulling her chair closer to the table.
Mom settles into the head seat. “There’s no guaranteed course of action, but attempting one more chance at peace is the right thing to do. If it doesn’t work, then the ships are ready to attack and we will begin Renewal on Earth as soon as the network locations can power up.”
Javen is silent next to me, but the nervousness building in his body nudges me.
Are you ready for this? I ask.
He says nothing but reaches for my hand, interlacing his fingers with mine.
My body is strangely calm, and I’m aware it must be the Starfire’s effects, suppressing negative thoughts. I visualize that calm onto him, but his energy is fast-moving, wary.
Howard pairs his Connect with the comm system, and then the burly man goes to work ensuring that the connection is secure so no one will be able to track our position when we communicate with Hammond.
“If this all goes south, we will immediately port back to the Intersection and launch the attack on Arcadia.” Dad studies the data he’s brought up on his Connect. “Each of you should have this same information sent to your devices.”
Tapping on my screen, I bring up the intel Dad mentioned. “According to this report, Hammond is set to begin the mining tomorrow morning.” Dad’s gaze shifts to Vihann. “Do you believe your people would be ready to defend this location at daybreak?”
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