“Better than treats, sweetheart,” Diane answered.
“Is it pretties?” Devi’s ears perked up and she yipped with excitement. “I love pretties!”
Diane smiled and held up a stiff puppy-shaped protection vest. “But to get the pretties, you have to try your new vest on before we leave for the auditorium.”
Devi looked up at her humans. “It’s not very sparkly, is it?” She nosed the matte black material. “I want to look pretty for my first day at school. Mother always says it’s important to make a good first impression.” Devi turned her back and looked away. “Won’t. It’s not pretty, and it will pinch me like the last one did.” She snorted her disapproval in case her bonded humans were unclear about her feelings.
Dorene unwrapped one of the tissue paper packages, revealing a sparkly clip-on tie in Academy colors. “It could be worse. Bethany Anne could have said you have to wear full armor like your brothers. The vest isn’t negotiable, Devi, but if you stop all this and turn around, you’ll see all the accessories we got to go with it!”
Devi’s nose twitched, but she didn’t turn her head. “Are those sequins I smell?”
“You’ll have to stop sulking and try on your vest to find out,” Dorene told the recalcitrant puppy, quickly wrapping the tie up again. “I promise the vest won’t pinch. We made sure this one will grow with you–for a while, at least. Sweetheart, it’s important to us that you have some protection when school starts. You’re not just there to learn, you’re also guarding the students.”
“When you say it that way it makes more sense.” Devi huffed and hopped up to rest her front paws on Diane’s knees. “Very well, I will try it on, but then I get the pretties, right?”
“Of course.” Diane chuckled as she fastened the straps underneath Devi. “All done.”
She shook her fur and let out a little chuff. “It doesn’t pinch, but I can’t make a good impression dressed in this! It doesn’t even match my pet-icure!” She held up a paw to show Diane five glittery purple claws.
“Very nice! Did one of the students do that for you?”
“It was Mischa.” Devi’s tail thumped. “I like Masha and Mischa.” Her head swiveled at the sound of crinkling tissue paper. “Are those my pretties?”
Dorene pulled out the sparkly tie and a pair of matching bows and held them up for the puppy to see.
Devi gave her humans a doggy grin. “Now that’s more like it! Are they from ADAM? His bows don’t pinch like the ones from the pet store.” She raised her head so Dorene could clip the tie onto her collar, being careful of the translation device that was fixed to it so she could talk to anyone who didn’t have a chip.
“They are,” Dorene assured her before pressing the bows gently to her ears. “He also told me his team has improved the adhesive so they can be re-worn.”
Diane scratched the top of her head. “You look adorable, Devi. Are you ready to make a big splash at school?”
“I was ready weeks ago!” Devi danced in a circle, chuffing as her tie flapped. “I don’t want to wait. I want excitement! I want to learn!” She flopped down and rolled over with a dramatic sigh.
Dorene tsked. “Now, Devi, we’re about to leave our solar system and travel to a new one. Surely that’s enough excitement?”
Devi sniffed noncommittally. “I suppose so.”
“That’s our good girl,” Diane cooed. “Let’s go see how everyone likes your pretties. It’s time.”
Devi wagged her tail and went ahead, checking that the way ahead was clear for her humans as they walked to the auditorium, just as she’d been trained.
Diane and Dorene gasped when they opened the doors. The auditorium had been transformed. An enormous holo-banner hanging above the stage drew their attention first, the current scene shifting from a superhero-style line-up of Bethany Anne and her Bitches to an animated depiction of the Meredith Reynolds flying through the Annex Gate in a burst of sparkles.
Dorene pointed at the banner. “That is out of this world. What on earth is Max doing? And is that popcorn I smell?”
They headed over to the stage, where the grandfatherly custodian was conducting the teachers. His bushy mustache danced as he shouted directions whilst assembling some contraption on the stage beneath the holo-banner, which now read ‘Happy Exodus Day!’ in rippling neon light.
The sisters wandered through the large open space that had been created in front of the stage by removing the seating rows. The Academy faculty were there in full force, setting up sectioned areas for the expected children. The stage lights alternated bright colors, the fairy-light effect reflected all over the auditorium by the giant disco ball that had been suspended from the ceiling. Decorations were affixed to every available surface, along with balloons and bunting that stretched from wall to wall.
“You weren’t kidding when you said Max was running with this,” Dorene remarked dryly. “Is that...a dancefloor?
“I believe it is.” Diane smiled when they reached the foot of the stage. “The man’s done good, sis. Hey, Maestro,” Diane called up to him. “What is all this?”
Max spread his arms wide, grinning from ear to ear. “It’s great, isn’t it? Everyone who was free came to pitch in when they heard we were babysitting during the crossing. They all wanted to do their part to help.”
He pointed out the various areas being set up. “Soft play for the little ones, sleeping area for when they need naps, dance floor over there with the arcade games for the older kids. Chef Van is setting up a finger-food buffet near the back.” He indicated the soft projection screens mounted behind him in the alcove at the rear of the stage. “Tina, Ron, and Aleksei set up a live feed of the fleet with Meredith’s help. She was already providing access for their dorm party, so it wasn’t a bother. All that’s left is arranging some comfortable seating.”
The sisters drank it all in as they joined Max on the stage.
Max’s expression grew serious for a moment. “None of the kids will have time to dwell on their parents—not on my watch. Besides, this is a big day for humanity, ladies. We should be celebrating!”
Devi looked up at her bonded humans. “Are you two okay? Why are your eyes leaking?”
“Look at how they all came together, Devi.” Diane sniffed.
Dorene dabbed her eye with a tissue. “That’s what we do, dear. Humanity’s biggest strength is the way we pull together under pressure.” She squared her shoulders, seeing one of the new teachers struggling under a full armload of party supplies. “Looks like Katie needs a hand. Come on, let’s go help her.”
Diane was already halfway down the steps. “You don’t have to ask me twice!”
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Etheric Academy, Alpha Class Dormitory
Tina inhaled the aroma of the pizza on her plate happily as she snuggled down into the sofa between Yana and Ron, humming the theme to Star Journey as she waited for the first ship to cross the Annex Gate. The Alpha Class dorm was comfortably overfull, which was just how she liked it.
The events in Wales before the school break had changed the class dynamic. Their tightly-knit group had expanded to include Aleksei, Halli, and the twins, who spent more time with Alpha class than they did their own classmates these days. Even Craig occasionally found time after his Guardian training to hang out with them all.
We strengthen each other, Tina thought. The party was only missing Craig and Halli, and she wished they’d hurry up before they missed the event of a lifetime.
They’d cleared the wall to use as a screen for the projectors Tina, Ron, and Aleksei had set up. The wide off-white space was now covered with windows which showed multiple angles of the fleet gathered at the Annex Gate. The window showing the Annex Gate took up the biggest space in the center of the wall, surrounded by smaller windows showing the remaining feeds in rotation.
Bai Hu bounced about on the sofa next to Yana. He spilled his popcorn on the twins, who were slouched on the beanbag arguing with Nestor and Maxim over the space on the floo
r between the sofa and the table. Everyone wanted to be close to the food.
Aleksei sat off to the side with his tablet in hand, playing with the fleet data as it came in on the feeds Meredith had granted them access to. “Hey, quit it! The order to get ready has been given.”
Halli, out of breath, burst into the dorm and threw herself on the sofa next to Ron. “Craig made it off probation. He’s back on duty.”
Maxim grinned. He’d had fun ribbing Craig about hi probation but he was glad to hear it was over. “Do you know which ship he’s stationed on?”
“The Coach’s Revenge.” She tapped Nestor on the shoulder and pointed at the table. “Food, please. Has it started? Did I miss it?”
“No, you’re just in time,” Maxim told her, leaning back to pass her a bowl of popcorn from the table.
Aleksei waved frantically. “The order to advance has been given!”
Tina linked her arms through Yana’s and Ron’s and squeezed tight. “This is it!” she squealed. “Our very own Star Journey!”
“Space, the ultimate unknown,” Ron intoned.
Tina didn’t miss a beat. “This is the journey of...the Etheric Empire,”
Yana chipped in, “Bethany Anne’s eternal mission…”
The twins were next.
“To leave...”
“The mudball...”
“Behind.”
“To seek out the Kurtherians,” Halli interjected.
Maxim and Nestor shouted at the same time, “And kick their slimy asses…”
“Right back to the Big Bang!” Alexi concluded with a fist-pump.
They collapsed in fits of laughter, including Bai Hu, who had been watching Star Journey with the group and for once got the reference.
“It’s starting!” Yana cried.
“To space!” Bai Hu yelled, jumping up and down on the sofa again in his excitement.
Silence fell as the humans’ fleet advanced toward the Annex Gate.
The first ships entered the Gate, causing the waves within the green circle to shimmer in an opalescent rainbow.
The exodus had begun.
The fleet sailed into the unknown, leaving everything they had known behind. Every soul aboard the ships of the Etheric Empire was filled to bursting with one purpose and one purpose only: to defend Earth from any species that sought to harm the human race.
“Ad Aeternitatem.” Maxim breathed the oath, utterly captivated by the coordinated approach of so many vessels.
He saw the G’laxix Sphaea bringing up the rear, and other Sphaea-class ships holding their positions around the Meredith Reynolds, along with many others. The Black Eagles and the Puck Destroyers he recognized, but most of the rest he did not. “Where is the Coach’s Revenge?”
Aleksei tapped his tablet. “Window eight. We are approaching the Gate.”
The feeds flickered for a few moments before stabilizing once the Meredith Reynolds had egressed.
They cheered when they saw the G’laxix Sphaea emerge from the Yollin side of the Gate, jumping up and spilling popcorn everywhere. Maxim grabbed Nestor in a crushing hug and spun him around. “We made it!”
Then the impossible happened.
The feeds flickered again.
Ten mouths dropped open as the way back to Earth disintegrated before their eyes. An explosion from the Sol side pulverized the Gate on the Yollin side, the force creating a blast wave that flung the wreckage out toward the stars.
Nobody said a word. They couldn’t. Horrified silence grew thick in the air as chunks of the ruined Gate floated by on the wall displays.
Bai Hu was the first to break it, jumping up into a defensive crouch on the sofa. His eyes began to glow. “Jiějiě, what is happening?”
Yana didn’t answer. She shook her head, a single tear tracking down her ashen cheek as she stared blankly at the feeds. Bai Hu looked around frantically, searching for an answer from one of the others.
“The Gate went ‘boom,’ Bai Hu,” Tina whispered.
Ron snorted. “It didn’t go boom. Nothing in space goes boom. It can’t; it’s a vacuum.”
Tina looked at him in disbelief. “Now is not the time to be pedantic, Ron!”
“Oh, please, don’t start, you two,” Mischa moaned. “What’s going on? What happened to the Gate?”
Aleksei shrugged. “It’s gone.”
“That is it,” Maxim whispered hoarsely. “We will never see Earth again. My father… Now I will never know what happened to him.”
Nestor reached out to his cousin. “I am so sorry, my brother. I had also hoped we would find Uncle Nikolai.”
Maxim stared at him with yellowing eyes, unseeing. “I… I can’t do this. I have to go.” He shook himself free of Nestor and ran from the dorm.
“Wait!” Nestor cried, starting after him.
“What is wrong with Maxim?” Bai Hu whispered to Yana, holding tight to her arm.
Yana stroked her brother’s head. “Shhh, Kotenok. He is grieving for his father, who he will probably never see again” she replied quietly. She looked at the others. “I think we should all go and help in the auditorium with the children. They will be afraid for their parents.” She shooed Bai Hu toward the door. “Come along.”
Masha and Mischa had continued to watch the devastation unfold, oblivious to the tension in the dorm. They tore themselves away from the feeds and followed Yana and Bai Hu in stunned silence.
Aleksei remained glued to his tablet, his head bobbing as he looked at the displays on the wall. “I don’t think we’ve taken any losses. All the ships are still there.”
Ron raised his eyebrows in disbelief. “You didn’t count them all!”
“I did, before we went through the Gate and after it exploded.” Aleksei shrugged and let out a strange chuckle. “As long as nobody died, I guess it’s not that big of a deal. It’s not like we’re stuck here forever.”
Tina rounded on him. “Wow, Aleksei! If stupid was dirt you’d cover an acre. We are stranded with no way of getting back to Earth and it’s ‘not that big a deal?’ I expect Craig to come out with stupid stuff like that, but not you.”
Aleksei looked hurt. “I didn’t mean it like that. Why are you being so mean?”
Ron looked pained and patted Aleksei on the back. “Yeah, that was way too snarky, Tina. It’s not Aleksei’s fault, so calm down!”
Tina’s mouth fell open and she looked at Ron incredulously, her fists clenching involuntarily. “Calm down? Calm down? You did just see our only way home get blown to pieces, right? I’m going to the auditorium to help.” She pointed at Ron. “You should go somewhere else. Anywhere else!”
She stormed out, leaving Ron and Aleksei in stunned silence. They looked at each other and shrugged.
“It’s not like we can do anything about it,” Aleksei protested. “BMW will get us back to the mudball. She shouldn’t worry.”
“Try telling her that,” Ron argued.
Aleksei shook his head solemnly. “I would never dream of doing that. My father told me that the greatest advice he could ever give me was to never tell an angry woman anything. I am coming to believe the truth of it.”
As the door slammed behind Tina they heard her final words on the subject.
“UGH! BOYS!”
CHAPTER THREE
QBBS Meredith Reynolds, Etheric Academy, PET Annex
Maxim’s eyes stung and the tears he held back blurred the corridors of the Academy as he tried to outrun his grief. He wanted one more minute–just a second, even–of believing that he would see his father again. Denied that, he wanted to hit something repeatedly until his knuckles were as bruised as his heart.
He swerved around two girls who were just leaving the annex, catching the door they held for him with a gruff acknowledgment as he hurried inside. The corridor around Maxim had a yellow sheen as his emotions disturbed his focus, so he forced them down and channeled the energy into an extra burst of speed.
I will not lose my hold on my wolf!
“Grrrraaagghh!” His fists hit the leather over and over. The pain of his unwrapped knuckles splitting under the power he put into his punches went unnoticed, insignificant compared to the pain inside.
He was utterly alone.
The loss of the Annex Gate meant the destruction of the final tenuous hope he had held of being reunited with his father. His fantasies of Nikolai being found had been dashed into as many pieces as the Annex Gate.
I will never be able to look him in the eye and tell him how his sacrifice shaped the man I am becoming. He will never see my future children or know that the love he had for me will make me strong enough to protect the weak in the years to come.
Maxim’s tears fell freely and he kept pounding the bag, forcing the pain of the present to retreat as he lost himself in memories of the time when he and his father had been inseparable.
As deeply as he loved his cousin and uncle, nothing could replace the bond he and his dad had shared.
“Hey, buddy, you want to give your hands a break? You’re bleeding all over the mat there.”
Maxim jerked at the interruption, startled from the rhythmic trance he had worked himself into. Guardian Commander Peter Silvers, who was behind him, held out a clean towel and looked at Maxim with a mixture of sadness and concern.
Maxim glanced down at his tattered knuckles and took the towel from Peter. “Sorry for the mess, sir.”
Peter chuckled. “Don’t worry about it. I’m impressed that you were able to get down here and work out your issue on the bag instead of going wolf and tearing up the Academy. When Meredith alerted me, I expected to use the trail of destruction to lead me to you.”
Maxim frowned and wiped the blood from his hands even as his nanocytes healed the damage. “I would not lose control like that. My wolf is my responsibility.”
Peter regarded him for a moment, not missing the rapidity with which the young man’s knuckles were healing–or his stoic acceptance of the crushing news. “I think I see why John asked me to do some work with you. Do you wanna talk about it?”
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