United

by Melissa Landers

  “But why would they seed planets that are toxic to them?” Jake asked.

  “Because worlds that support our kind are in short supply,” Cara said. Jaxen had told her so. She blinked as the clues fell into place. This was the reason the Aribol had launched probes instead of making direct contact, and why they’d sent the hybrids to do their dirty work. “That’s why they need suits for a ground invasion—protection from the elements. Maybe their suits can filter out normal levels of phosphorus, but a pure concentration would be too much.” There was only one thing she didn’t understand. “So why haven’t they destroyed phosphorus mines on L’eihr?”

  “Maybe because our population is smaller,” Aelyx said. “We all live on a single continent, so there’s no need for a large-scale ground invasion. One or two shockwave pulse ships would be enough.”

  Larish shook Cara’s arm. “We have to go back to the ground!”

  She checked the altitude gauge. They’d almost reached the stratosphere. “We can’t. There’s no time.”

  “For this, we’ll make time. We just discovered a weapon against the Aribol—a weapon so deadly they sent Jaxen to destroy it in advance of an invasion. That alone implies their fleet or their suits can be penetrated by the elements.”

  She bit her inner cheek and slowed the shuttle.

  “None of us knows how to use this,” he said, gripping the staff. “It might not save us. Go back and let me gather some soil.”

  “But the phosphorus concentration will be low.”

  “If it’s toxic enough to them, a small amount is all we need.”

  “I agree with Larish,” Aelyx said through the speakers. “You return to Earth. I’ll keep going and find the weakest access point on the Destroyer. I’ll report back and tell you where to meet me.”

  Without wasting another second, Cara turned the shuttle around and dropped through the dark, wispy clouds toward the Earth. While they made their descent, Jake finished his report.

  “The brainwave-seeking probe picked up signs of life on the opposite side of the planet from where we landed. We’re there now. We haven’t seen any life forms, but there are definite signs of an advanced civilization here.”

  Cara glanced at Jake’s hologram. He stood in front of a futuristic building, smooth and mirrored in a rounded triangular shape, like a twenty-story shark fin peeking above the ground. Half of its gleaming exterior was blackened, probably scorched by whatever force had decimated the other side of the planet.

  “Be careful,” she said. “Just because you can’t see them doesn’t mean they can’t see you.”

  “I’m using the probe to track the …” Jake trailed off and turned his head to peer at something out of the frame. He squinted and leaned forward, straining to focus as if he couldn’t believe what he’d seen. Then his expression went blank and he ended the transmission without another word.

  Cara’s stomach sank. “I assume he found those life forms.”

  “I’ll try to contact Ayah,” Syrine said.

  While Syrine made calls from the backseat, Larish helped Cara navigate to the nearest farm, where the soil would contain a higher concentration of fertilizer. She landed in the middle of a cornfield, blowing stalks in every direction, and cut the thrusters while Larish rushed outside and filled a satchel with dirt. For good measure, he stuffed his pockets, too. Then he was back in his seat, bringing the musky scent of earth with him.

  “Nothing,” Syrine said as the shuttle lifted off. “I can’t reach the Voyagers.”

  Cara started to suggest reporting the incident to The Way, before she remembered the evacuation. Alona was long gone, and the Voyagers were on their own. But then something else occurred to her, and she snatched her com-sphere to issue a summons she never thought she’d make again.

  Alona answered from her seat in the transport dining hall, a bite of l’ina suspended an inch from her lips. “Miss Sweeney? I didn’t expect—”

  “I’m sorry to interrupt,” Cara cut in as she sped toward the moon. “But there isn’t much time. We’re about to attack the Aribol ship.”

  Alona dropped her utensil. “To what end?”

  “To destroy it by any means necessary.” Or die trying.

  “I’m listening.”

  Cara conveyed all of Jake’s information, emphasizing the theory that several elements on Earth and L’eihr were poisonous to the Aribol. “I don’t know how far you’ve traveled, or if you can make it back to L’eihr in time to stop the Destroyer—”

  “Or if stopping them is possible,” Larish added.

  “—but I figured you’d want to know.”

  The shuttle broke through the clouds, and the Destroyer loomed near enough for her to make out a line of bolts along the hull, each one wider than her craft. “I should go,” she said. “I have to coordinate with Aelyx. Good luck, whatever you decide to do.”

  “And to you, Miss Sweeney.”

  No sooner had the transmission ended than Aelyx pinged her on the com-system. “I found a way inside. Are you almost here?”

  She peered around for his shuttle before remembering they were both cloaked. “Where are you? This mission won’t last long if we fly into each other.”

  “I’m at the ship’s northern tip, anchored behind a large, boxy vent. You can’t miss it. Land on the side that’s been dented by an asteroid.”

  She approached the ship and veered north, watching the hull pass below her in a blur. If the Destroyer had seemed large from the ground, that was nothing compared to seeing it up close. A cold ball of fear congealed inside her. Anything this massive had to be staffed by hundreds of crew members, maybe thousands—each with the ability to manipulate minds. Even if she infiltrated the ship, how long would she last?

  “Breathe,” Syrine said, resting a hand on Cara’s shoulder, which she hadn’t realized was clenched halfway to her ear. “Fear will cloud your logic. Try to let it go.”

  Cara made an effort to release the tension in her muscles as she piloted her way to the boxy structure Aelyx had described. She landed near an oblong dent in the hull and contacted him to let him know she’d arrived.

  “Stay there. We’ll come to you,” he said. “That way we can consolidate to one shuttle and leave the other behind as an emergency escape.”

  “What should I do?”

  “On my mark, disable the cloaking mode. I’ll dock beside you. Then use the manual override on the ventilation controls and open the door, just like you did when we left the transport.”

  “Be prepared to help us,” Elle called. “The change in pressure is disorienting.”

  They worked quickly to minimize the time the shuttles were visible. Because they’d done this before, the process went off without a hitch. A few minutes later, Aelyx, Troy, and Elle had joined Syrine in the backseat, the three of them shivering violently but otherwise unharmed.

  Troy rubbed his palms together to generate heat. “Smells like dirt in here.”

  Larish, who’d grown frustrated with the unresponsive staff, set it down and passed his satchel to the back, sprinkling the center console with grit. “Everyone fill your pockets. It might not help, but it can’t hurt.”

  Cara scooped a handful from the bag. “So tell me about this entrance.”

  “It’s part of a ventilation system.” Aelyx pointed a dirt-stained finger at the box. “Watch.” A burst of steam shot out from the top of the structure, instantly crystallizing into ice. “The grating along the top is thinner than the rest of the hull. We can use the shuttle as a battering ram to break through.”

  “But where does the vent lead?”

  “I have no idea,” he admitted.

  “So we could be flying into a boiler, or worse?”

  “The shuttle is built to withstand heat and radiation … to an extent.”

  “To an extent,” she muttered darkly.

  “I’ve been all over the ship, and this is the only access point. All the hatches and exterior doors are sealed.”

  “
So assuming we make it inside and don’t fly into something that disintegrates the shuttle, then what?”

  “We’ll find an airlock that leads to the interior corridors. From there, it’s a matter of navigating to the hangar and destroying the fleet.”

  She bit her tongue. He made it sound so easy.

  “I have an alternate suggestion, assuming we learn how to use this.” Larish lifted a Nova cube. “I’ve never met a fuel that wasn’t combustible. If we exhaust all other options, one of us can use the staff to detonate the ship’s fuel core.”

  Nobody spoke, but Cara knew they were all asking the same silent question.

  Which one of us?

  Larish found an old protein pack wrapper and began tearing it into thin segments. When he’d finished, he arranged six strips in his hand so only the tips were visible. “If it comes to that, we’ll do our best to evacuate to the shuttle before detonation. Whoever draws the shortest strip will stay behind and set off the explosion.”

  One by one, all six of them pulled a strip. As Cara extended a clammy hand to retrieve hers, she reminded herself that she would rather die by choice than become a puddle of flesh. But despite her bold thoughts, she instantly began comparing the length of her strip to the others.

  Hers was the longest.

  She released a quiet breath. But her relief turned to panic when Aelyx raised his stubby strip. He set his jaw to put up a brave front, but he couldn’t hide the gleam of fear in his eyes.

  Cara shook her head.

  “Don’t,” he said in a firm voice. “This is only a last resort, so put it out of your mind.”

  If he thought she could do that, he didn’t know her very well.

  The ship’s hull rumbled hard enough to vibrate her seat cushion. The noise went on for several moments, reminding her of the motorized drone of a garage door opener. With a gasp, she spun around to peer out the window. From the belly of the ship, a tiny pod burst into the blackness and descended toward Earth. It was shaped like a teardrop, with the same mirrored exterior as the building she’d seen in Jake’s hologram.

  Aelyx followed the direction of her gaze. “It’s not part of the fleet. Anything that small has to be a shuttle.”

  “That must be Jaxen’s ride,” Troy said. “We’d better hurry. It won’t take long for the pilot to figure out there’s no one down there to rescue.”

  And then the invasion would begin.

  “Wait,” Elle said. “I assume that noise we heard was the hangar door opening. But after the shuttle left, I didn’t hear the noise again.”

  Cara gripped the wheel and lifted off, bringing the shuttle around. The hangar could still be open. If she kept the shuttle cloaked, she might be able to fly right inside the ship without the Aribol noticing.

  She punched the accelerator and careened toward the underside of the ship. Metal whizzed in her periphery. She was halfway to the hangar when she heard the telltale rumble that signified the hatch beginning to close. The engine couldn’t propel her any faster, but that didn’t stop her from leaning forward in her seat and choking the life out of the wheel. She rounded the bottom curve of the ship and saw the enormous hatch drawing against the hull, revealing a glint of light from inside. With nothing more than a sliver of space remaining, she barreled straight ahead and clenched her teeth.

  The shuttle slipped beneath the hatch with a scrape of metal that sent sparks bursting across the windshield. The craft wobbled. Alarms blared from the control panel. Aelyx leaned up from the backseat to silence the alarms while she squinted through the sparks and steadied her course.

  “Please tell me the cloaking mode is still working,” she said.

  “According to this, it is.”

  She stabilized the shuttle and slowed the thrusters too quickly, causing her to lurch forward in her harness. From behind, bodies thunked against her seatback. As the hatch sealed shut with a creak of its massive hinges, she silenced her engine and idled in place, taking her first look around the hangar. What she saw made her eyes wrench wide. Endless rows of silvery ships were anchored to the floor, thousands of them stretching in every direction.

  “Whoa,” Troy breathed. “We’re toast.”

  Cara had to agree. The sight of the entire fleet assembled in one place made her feel like an insect beneath a boot. The overhead lights dimmed, prompting her to scan the room for movement. All was still. “It doesn’t look like the ships have been manned yet.”

  “Maybe we can flush them into space,” Larish suggested.

  Cara didn’t know how they were going to do that, but when she considered the alternative—sending Aelyx to detonate the fuel core—she snapped out of her trance and piloted the shuttle to the far end of the hangar.

  She landed adjacent to a sealed doorway and cut the thrusters, then glanced around to ensure they were alone before disabling the cloaking mode. As she stepped out, she took a tentative breath to test the air.

  It was breathable, consistent with what she knew of the Aribols’ home world. And much like that planet, the temperature inside the ship was sweltering. Sweat slicked the back of her neck and clung to her hair. The room wasn’t simply hot. It was downright swampy. A rasping noise filled the air, and when she checked for the source of the sound, she found a floor vent releasing a cloud of steam.

  Aelyx had noticed it, too. “They must need heat and humidity to survive. We should split up. You stay here and find a way to destroy the fleet. I’ll go inside and look for their thermal system. If I can shut it down, it may solve all our problems.” He extended a hand toward Larish, who handed him the Nova Staff. “If not, I’ll find the fuel core.”

  Cara sent him a cutting look. That wasn’t an option.

  “You’ll need this.” Larish gave him a cube. “The sphere only captures and redirects energy, not that I was able to make it work.”

  While Aelyx tucked the cube in his back pocket, Cara approached him and tried to lock eyes with him for Silent Speech. He refused to hold her gaze, instead pulling her into an embrace that felt an awful lot like a farewell.

  “No.” She wriggled free and held a finger in his face. “No hugs, no kisses, no parting words. This isn’t goodbye.”

  “I’ll do what I have to do, Elire,” he whispered.

  “I know.” She gripped her hips and leveled a deadly serious gaze at him. “And if it comes to that, we’ll face it together.” When he opened his mouth to argue, she cut him off. “What if our roles were reversed? What if I’d drawn the short straw? Would you leave me alone to sacrifice myself?”

  “You know I wouldn’t.”

  “Then don’t expect me to do it. It’s not fair.”

  He hesitated.

  “Promise me we’ll face this together,” she pressed. “Or I won’t be able to focus on what we have to do. Distractions could get me killed.” She knew that would sway him.

  “All right. I promise.”

  Troy called, “Hey, check this out.” He rubbed a hand over the door, and the material melted to the floor, revealing an airlock chamber. He pulled his hand away, and the door materialized again. “Here’s our ticket inside. Let’s get a move on.”

  “I’d better go,” Aelyx said.

  “I’ll hold you to that promise.” Cara bowed back as he leaned in for a kiss. “Nope. I meant what I said. This isn’t goodbye.”

  He laughed softly, shaking his head as if he couldn’t decide whether he found her stubbornness annoying or impressive. He took a step toward the door. “No goodbyes.”

  Chapter Nineteen

  As Troy extended a palm to reopen the door, Aelyx caught his wrist and stopped him. Troy delivered a quizzical glance, and Aelyx checked over his shoulder to ensure Cara’s back was turned. “Stay with the group. I’m going alone.”

  “Like hell,” Troy cried, then lowered his voice to a hiss when Aelyx shushed him. “I can’t do any good in here. I don’t know squat about alien tech, but these Marine-issue boots were made for kicking ass.” He jabbed a finger toward the
interior of the ship. “That’s what I can do in there.”

  Aelyx leaned in and spoke quietly. “I need you to stay with your sister.”

  “Why?”

  “Because I drew the shortest strip.” Surely they both knew what that meant. “I need you to make sure Cara evacuates to the shuttle, even if you have to forcibly drag her there and hold her in her seat, which will probably be the case.” He gripped Troy’s shoulder. “Can you do that for me?”

  Troy drew a long breath and rubbed the back of his neck with a heavy hand. He didn’t speak, but the tension in his face told Aelyx he’d asked too much. When this was over, Cara would never forgive either of them.

  “Look,” Troy said. “I know I gave you a lot of grief when you started dating my sister. But I know how she feels about you. She really”—he grimaced—“loves you, so I figure the best thing I can do for her is to go through that door and watch your back.”

  “But there’s no reason for all of us to—”

  Troy cut him off by scrubbing a palm over the door and stepping through its disintegrating material into the airlock. “You coming, or what?”

  Aelyx strode inside the chamber and resisted the urge to argue. The harder he pushed, the deeper Troy would dig in his heels. If he had to, he would evade Troy and force him to return to the hangar.

  The door rematerialized and the chamber filled with the sound of rushing air. Once pressure was optimized, the opposite door dissolved to reveal a dimly lit passageway stretching at least fifty yards into the distance. Aelyx hesitated. Ahead of him, billows of steam rolled across the walkway in thick clouds. The effect reminded him of last year’s Halloween festival at Midtown High, when the seniors had filled the halls with artificial fog and strobe lights, and then hidden in wait to frighten unsuspecting freshmen.

  “Jesus,” Troy whispered, pulling his T-shirt away from his chest for ventilation. “It’s like a haunted sauna in here.”

  Moisture had glued Aelyx’s shirt to his own chest. The choking humidity made him wonder if the Aribol were partially amphibious.