by Nick James
It’s some comfort, and it’s definitely nice not to be alone out here. But I’m responsible for bringing the real firepower.
I’ve had little luck with Drifters so far. Break a Pearl and they come flying out, zipping away from me faster than I can explain myself. And even when I slow one down enough to talk to them, no single Drifter has been able to give me a full story.
Still, with experience comes knowledge. The longer I’ve had to use my powers, the stronger my connection to Pearl energy has become.
I start to feel them now. Even if I can’t connect to every single one, I can sense their location. There are thousands of green Pearls around the world, ready to be broken. They’ll need to be, but not quite yet. First, I’m after Drifters. Particularly those that can still fly.
I broadcast myself to them now. I’ve never really tried it before, but if I can control Pearl energy after it’s broken, there’s no reason I can’t nudge a few Drifters our way as well.
Truly, I have no idea if it’s working or not. I don’t risk opening my eyes to check if any have landed, for fear of breaking my concentration. Instead, I push my thoughts forward. It’s like calling a friend to your side, except I can’t use my voice. It’s deeper than telepathy. This is more gut than mind.
I give it five minutes, max. After that, it’s time to go after Pearls. I managed to hurt Matigo back at the Academy, even if it was only temporary. To deal a blow capable of killing him, I’m going to need more energy than I’ve ever handled before. After what happened back in the reactor chamber in Portland, I don’t know how I’m going to be able to control it all without passing out. I’m no use to anyone unconscious or dead, so I have to be careful.
I begin pulling from all around us, homing in on Pearls that have fallen and ones yet to land. The moment I sense one, I latch on and nudge it in my direction. I notice my shoulders jolting up and down. My face twitches with each Pearl I grab. The more I find, the easier it gets to control them.
I open my eyes and watch them stream at me, looping in the air like someone’s outside tossing them into our circle. Instead of catching them, I let them land beside me, providing another protective barrier around my body. They lie in dormant piles until I need them. I hear the whispers, but even that doesn’t fracture my concentration.
As this is happening, I notice the emergence of the Drifters for the first time. They descend upon us like angels, joining ranks with the Academy soldiers and Fringers. They heard my call.
Within minutes, the halo around Cassius and me pulses with its own share of Pearl energy. For every ten humans, there’s a Drifter. Their green glow adds a buzzing, radiant presence to our battalion.
I pause for a short moment to admire it. For the first time, I allow unrestrained confidence to course through me. We have an army. It’s what all of the Drifters had told me to do, time and time again. I gathered an army. We can win this.
As I continue to pull more Pearls near me, I notice the surrounding Drifters move. One on the right side of the circle holds his hand aloft, pointing straight to the stars. Another joins, mimicking the movement. Then a third. A fourth. Soon, every single Drifter is pointing at the sky.
I watch as energy pours from their fingertips, widening in a large net as it leaves their bodies. One Drifter’s glow intersects with another’s, melding together into a flat plane of green that stretches into the heavens. It takes me a moment to realize what’s happening.
They’re making a shield.
Like the Bio-Nets that used to surround Chosen Cities, the Pearl energy grows until it forms a dome overhead, encompassing all of us inside. The sky’s dulled to a soft green. I feel it emanate in every direction, even as I continue to pull Pearls from outside.
The Drifters drop their hands. The shield remains in place. I’m not sure how long it’s going to last, but the very presence of it gives me hope. Can Matigo break through this?
I’ll soon find out.
The sky darkens. It’s so obvious, I can see it even beyond the green.
My stomach lurches. For a moment, I can’t even breathe.
An army approaches from all angles. They seem to have come from nowhere—simply materialized in the air. I hadn’t sensed their arrival. There’s no warning. No cannons or battle cry or even firepower. Not yet.
I spin to take them in. Hundreds, all at once, making barely a sound as they approach our shield. The darkness is the only thing I can see. They swoop in like locusts—a black plague ready to demolish everything around them.
Some are on foot, others fly. They descend quickly. I stand and look past the glowing dome. This is it.
The Authority.
47
Cassius’s throat tightened. He peered above him, admiring the solid green shield overhead. But it wasn’t long before his eyes focused on what was outside. At first, they looked like a swarm of insects, or a flock of birds circling for prey. But as they neared, he could make out their humanoid shapes—black body armor encasing them from head to toe.
Much of the blackness wasn’t Ridium. That he could tell, even from a distance. Most of the Authority’s Shifters were otherwise occupied, creating the flood that barreled through the country. These were foot soldiers—some wearing jet packs, others on the ground. Even if they couldn’t Shift, it didn’t mean they were any less dangerous, particularly to the Shippers in the outer circle. Not everyone possessed the powers that Cassius enjoyed.
He watched the army beat against the shield of energy, letting loose a volley of firepower. Bursts of red collided with the field, sending crackles across its surface, like sheet lightning. Several detonations went off, weakening the shield. Cassius wasn’t sure which was stronger—red or green Pearl energy—but he wasn’t about to rely on what they had at their disposal.
He felt the Ridium quiver along his body, and imagined all the things he could do with it. Fire had hurt Matigo last time. That was Cassius’s secret weapon, but there had to be a better way to channel it.
The Authority soldiers continued to fight against the energy dome, rupturing more and more cracks the longer they were at it. In a few minutes, they’d be through—if that long. Cassius hoped that the exertion would weaken them some, use up their firepower before the battle really began.
Alkine’s troops held still, ready to deliver an opening volley as soon as the Authority moved in.
It wasn’t long.
The dome shattered, seemingly all at once. Authority bullets and fragments of Pearl energy streamed in a maelstrom around him. The circle of soldiers erupted with firepower. Drifters flew into the air. Others landed. None approached Cassius.
He looked over his shoulder. Fisher, too, had been spared.
That could mean only one thing.
Before he could think about it, a figure swooped down, landing so hard that his feet created a pair of small craters in the earth.
Matigo stood between Cassius and Fisher, arms out to his sides, ready to attack. Cassius watched Fisher turn to face him. He focused on his brother’s terrified eyes for just a moment—could’ve sworn they glowed a faint green—before turning all his attention to Matigo.
Fisher attacked first, breaking a Pearl and funneling the energy in a sideways tornado right at Matigo’s chest. Matigo jumped sideways and avoided most of it, but at least it kept him on the defensive.
Cassius raised a fist, but Matigo struck too quickly, sculpting a pair of Ridium scythes from his shoulders. The blades twirled in a blurred whirlwind, forcing both boys back. Fisher summoned another Pearl, just as Matigo leapt from the ground toward Cassius.
Cassius tried to dodge, but Matigo collided with him, grabbing his shoulders and pushing him into the ground.
His breath escaped him, leaving behind a reverberating thud in his chest. It took all the strength he could muster to summon a shield of Ridium overhead, moments before Matigo tried to squash him with a weapon of his own.
They clobbered each other for several rounds, neither getting past each o
ther’s suit, until a blast of Pearl energy sent Matigo into the air. He twisted awkwardly, pummeled by the stuff, before flying to the ground.
Fisher sprinted to help Cassius up. “We have to work together.”
Cassius ran the back of his hand over his lips, leaving a dark smear of blood on his skin. “He’s too—”
Before he could finish, Matigo whipped around and sent a battering ram of streaming Ridium right at Fisher’s chest.
Cassius watched his brother be carried away, forced through the air until he toppled onto the ground at the far side of the circle.
The Ridium yo-yoed back. Matigo jumped forward, charging at Cassius.
Fire. He had to explode with all that he could manage. He clenched his fist, felt his chest tighten. This couldn’t be small.
A pair of black tentacles surged from Matigo’s midsection, so fast that Cassius barely saw them. Before he knew it, they’d wrapped around his waist, pulling him closer.
Same thing as before, Cassius told himself. He could fight against it. He could pry himself free.
But he didn’t expect what happened next.
With a powerful surge, Matigo left the ground, rocketing straight into the air. He took Cassius with him, holding on so tightly that the wind couldn’t even pull him away.
They barreled past the remnants of the energy shield and soared into the stratosphere. All the while, Cassius fought to free himself. He manipulated his Ridium in a blind panic, barely controlling it. As they flew closer and closer to the stars, it took all the concentration he could muster to simply keep the dark shell affixed to his body. Without it, he knew that the rapidly depleting oxygen would make it impossible to breathe. That, or the air pressure would crush him. The Ridium was the only thing keeping him alive.
He couldn’t conjure fire at such heights. Choices of attack were severely limited. He had no way of fighting back. Matigo could steer him in any direction he wanted.
The sky began to darken. Soon, it would be black. The only thing that made the impossible journey less horrifying was the fact that Cassius had made it before, when he’d first been submerged in the Ridium.
But this was different. Last time, he’d been in control. He’d enjoyed the power of flight, if only for a few moments. The substance could grant this ability, but he wasn’t sure how. He’d formed the bubble to get to the Academy, but that had been when he was back on the ground. Panic clouded all of his instincts.
Matigo’s face was covered. He existed as a dark, humanoid blob in front of Cassius—a weight dragging him up to the stars, breaking gravity.
The last of the blue sky faded. Cassius sensed an other-worldly iciness around him, though he couldn’t feel it directly through the insulation of his suit. Stars pulled into sight. Planets, far in the distance.
Matigo’s coils eased their grip around Cassius’s body. He felt himself tip backward. The darkness of Matigo’s silhouette disappeared, replaced by an infinite amount of celestial landmarks.
Though he couldn’t see every movement, he knew that Matigo had drifted apart from him now. He would fall back to Earth to finish the job he had started with Fisher. He’d separated the two of them. He’d made working together impossible.
Cassius’s arms spread. His legs fell, supported by nothing. He began to float—lifeless, unable to move.
In orbit.
48
I arch my head to the sky, craning my neck to see if I can make out any details. They’re gone. Both of them. They might not be coming back.
I move to a sitting position. My body feels like it’s been crushed under the weight of an entire meteor. I cough, which is incredibly painful. Broken ribs, maybe. Matigo’s attack hit me with seismic force. Worse, I hadn’t been expecting it.
As soon as my gaze moves back to the scene in front of me, I notice a pair of Drifters—no, three of them—shoot into the sky. At first, it looks like they’re retreating from battle. Going to find reinforcements, maybe.
Then, as I watch them disappear into the stratosphere, I realize where they’re headed.
They’re going to help Cassius.
Thank god.
No sooner do they disappear when a dark figure drops into the center of the circle.
Matigo doesn’t even take a moment to breathe or recharge. He hits the ground with the force of a Skyship and steps forward. Blackness pools from his face to reveal his features.
He may have fooled me before, posing as my father, but there’s no mistaking him now. His twisted, hideous expression makes a mockery of my dad’s character. His grinning mouth opens wide, like a lizard’s, ready to boast a victory that’s all but guaranteed.
“One down,” he says, and leaves it at that.
I can’t respond. Even if I could form words, it would only kill time that I desperately need. Instead, I spread apart my arms and call forth Pearls, one from each side of me.
I send them forward at a blistering pace. Matigo doesn’t have a chance to defend himself before I break them.
Twin explosions detonate on either side of him. Before the energy can drift into the battle around us, I curl my fingers and force it right at his body, hitting him with hundreds of jagged jolts of Pearl energy.
He staggers back. Steam comes off his shoulders. It hurts, I can tell, but it doesn’t kill him. Why doesn’t it kill him?
I keep the Pearls coming—two more, exploded and funneled toward him with the same desperate ferocity.
He sends forth a coil of Ridium, trying to hit back. It doesn’t reach me.
I could keep this up, Pearl after Pearl, but after the initial blast, the explosions don’t seem to be doing as much damage. It’s keeping him at bay, but I need something that will destroy him. Forever.
Several soldiers swoop in on either side of us, trying to take me out while I’m distracted. It won’t happen.
I guide streams of energy toward them. An afterthought, almost, and they’re blasted away, lying unconscious in the dirt. This is a battle between Matigo and me. It’s always been, even if I wasn’t aware of it.
Come back, Cassius.
It’s all I can think, even as I’m fighting for my life. I shouldn’t let it distract me, but I can’t help it. I wait for the Drifters to come down, bringing my brother with them.
Nothing.
Matigo continues to throw everything at me. I keep him off-balance, lobbing great waves of Pearl energy at him. Every few moments, one of his attacks breaks through, forcing me to shift from offense to defense. The more times I have to do that, the closer he approaches.
The sounds of battle rage all around us. Our once-strong circle of protection has broken into a vast crowd of chaos—Drifter fighting Drifter, human fighting soldier. There’s no clear way to tell which side is winning, if such a thing even exists in a battle like this.
I try to block it out as easily as I did before, to avoid the thought of my friends being slain around me. I see bodies fall out of the corner of my eye, but I can’t put faces to them. For all I know, they could be Avery. Eva. Skandar.
No. I can’t think like that.
Matigo hits me with a cannonball of Ridium. It flies from his hand like a dark Pearl and connects with my right shoulder, sending me staggering back into the dirt. I steady myself, but not before a second attack blasts into my chest.
This one’s too much. I fall backward, hitting the ground with a painful thud.
In seconds, he’s on me, crouched above my body like a snake ready to bite. His hate-filled face is all I can see now, staring down with a mix of pride and pity.
He leans closer. “Say goodbye to your planet.”
I venture one last glance at the sky, hoping to see Cassius. It’s empty.
Matigo raises his arm in the air. I watch Ridium begin to spike around his fist, creating a jagged, skull-crushing weapon. I’ve got seconds before he brings it down on me.
I pull the energy from around my body, grabbing anything that I can shoot at him. There isn’t much left. I ne
ed more Pearls, but they’re too far away. If I had a minute, I could locate them and bring them closer, but Matigo won’t give me such a luxury. It’s kill or be killed.
The spike continues to form above me. Apparently, he’s not content with murdering me in the quickest, simplest way. He wants to make it terrifying. He wants to create unbearable fear before he does it.
It’s working.
I gather energy, forming a protective shield over my body much like the dome the Drifters concocted at the start of the battle. It won’t protect me forever, but it might buy me a minute while he tries to break through. The problem is, it takes unbelievable concentration to keep it strong. I can’t defend myself and find new Pearls. It’s a losing battle.
His fist comes down on the energy just as it’s finished forming. I watch the shield give way slightly. The Ridium pounds inches from my face. A couple more hits and I’ll be done for.
Cassius. I whisper the word in my head. Come back. I need you.
The images of my dreams come back to me. Cassius disappearing, the fire working its way inside of me. Then I think of Matigo’s words—how desperate he’d been to have Cassius and me together so that he could kill us both at the same time. He’s horrified by what we can do.
Which begs the question: what can we do?
I wish more than anything that I could find out. But Cassius is gone. I might as well fold up and join him. I’m not strong enough on my own.
I wince as Matigo attacks again, breaking the shield faster than I can rebuild it.
Cassius’s fire. It’s been the one reoccurring element in all of my dreams.
Then it occurs to me. All these months, every time Cassius and I fought—together or against each other—he never turned his flame on me. And when it got close, when he saved me from the Authority foot soldier in the Nevada bunker, the fire didn’t do any damage to my body. It’s a reaction to my own energy, just like my parents’ recording told me. And if the fire’s a reaction, that means my body must be able to understand it. To channel it.
