

BARREN

Book One of the Barren Series

by

G.P. BURDON

All rights reserved; no part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher.

First published in the United States of America in 2016.

ISBN-13: 978-1539827832

ISBN-10: 1539827836

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CHAPTER ONE

Earth Year 2185

6.3 light years from Earth

Lieutenant Junior Stephen Miller woke suddenly to the sounds of gunfire and screams. While he had been sound asleep seconds earlier, he now sat bolt upright in his bed, his eyes wide and alert, staring towards the metal door of his quarters with scrutiny and trepidation.

Beside him, his wife stirred and carefully sat up, unconsciously placing her hands over her heavily pregnant belly.

"What's going on, Stephen?" Harriet asked, fearfully eying the door.

"Just wait here," Miller replied. "Don't leave this room."

While two more gunshots rang out, Miller quickly approached the door in his T-shirt and pyjama pants. He pushed his hand down on a large button on the wall and the door immediately slid smoothly open. Miller glanced out into the hall and was greeted with the usual sights of the gray, unglamorous, corridor of the interstellar ship, the Panspermia. The cold steel, the glowing lights, the painted lines indicating which direction to go for whatever needs you may have were all familiar sights. What was different now, however, was the sound of screams emanating down the hall to Miller's left. To his right, he saw two privates dragging an officer along the floor by his arms, both calling for a medical officer. Miller saw that the officer's face and chest were bloody and he was completely limp, his feet dragging uselessly on the floor. There was a long red line of blood snaking through the corridor that indicated how far the two privates had dragged the officer. Miller silently thought that no medic alive could help the poor bastard now.

Just as Miller stared in shock at the privates trying in vain to help the officer, he noticed a familiar face rush by.

"McLernon!" Miller hissed, glancing down the corridor as he heard more gunshots in rapid succession.

The young Ensign named Dexter McLernon skidded to a halt as he ran by, turning and looking at Miller with wide and wild eyes.

"What the hell is going on?" Miller asked.

Ensign McLernon didn't respond, but instead quickly rushed into Miller's quarters. Despite the fact that Miller outranked him, McLernon roughly shoved Miller out of the way and slammed his hand down on the button to seal the room, the door sliding shut behind him.

"Dammit!" McLernon panted, leaning back against the wall, wiping sweat from his brow. Miller suddenly noticed that there was blood spatter on McLernon's shirt. "Damn, Miller! Damn!"

"McLernon, calm down and tell me what the bloody hell is going on," Miller barked in his Oxfordshire accent. "Why are you covered in blood? What happened out there? Are those gunshots I keep hearing?"

"Gunshots?" Harriet repeated from the bed behind him, sounding timid.

"It's Captain Willems!" McLernon cried. While Miller was from Britain, McLernon was from West Lothian in Scotland and his accent was rather prominent. Miller was glad to be able to understand him, as he hadn't been able to when they had gone drinking before launching from Earth.

That seems so long ago, now, Miller thought. Then, aloud, he said, "Willems? What's happened?"

"Willems has lost his bloody marbles, man!" McLernon panted. "He's got a gun! He's shot up the entire bridge crew, and now he's gunning down any bastard who comes in to stop him!"

Miller simply gaped at McLernon in shock for a few seconds before he was able to form a reply.

"Why?" Miller demanded incredulously. "Willems has been a Captain longer than you and I have served! You must be wrong."

"I'm bloody not wrong!" McLernon hissed. "I just came from the bridge. See this?" McLernon grabbed his shirt and shook the patches of blood that were soaking into the fibres. "This is Halibi's! She and I went to the bridge when we heard the shots, then Willems fed her a mouthful of lead! He took a shot at me, too, but he missed, thank Christ. I took off looking for help."

"Where did he even get a gun?" Miller demanded, trying to shake the feeling of nausea as he thought about poor Halibi. "They're all supposed to be stowed away in cargo, no one but the MPs have access."

"Beats me," McLernon said. "But he's got it and he's killed every ranking officer on the bridge, and then some."

"Shit," Miller swore. "So Willems has to be relieved of his command. Who's the remaining ranking officer?"

McLernon blinked at Miller thoughtfully for a moment, then leaned closer and said, "You are."

Of course I bloody am, Miller thought, sighing internally.

"Well then," Miller said sternly, trying not to look as freaked out as he felt. "I guess we better go deal with this."

"Stephen, no!" Harriet suddenly cried.

Miller turned to face her, surprised for a moment. He had almost forgotten she was there, distracted as he was. She was covering herself with the bedsheets and was glaring at Miller with wide eyes.

"He's got a gun, Stephen!" Harriet said. "He could kill you!"

"Harriet," Miller began, sitting down on the side of the bed and taking his wife's hand. "If the Captain has already killed the entire bridge crew, then he's probably used all of the ammunition he got a hold of. He couldn't have smuggled much out with being caught. He's probably already out. McLernon and I will go detain him and sort this mess out."

"And a right bloody mess it is, too!" McLernon added.

Miller ignored him.

Harriet fixed her husband with a steely glare. "You promised me this would be safe," she accused. "You told me by taking this job, you wouldn't be in situations like this anymore. This is space, Stephen, not war. You're not a soldier now. We volunteered for this so people wouldn't be shooting at you anymore."

"This isn't like the old days," Miller assured her. "I'm not dying today. And I have to stop Willems from hurting anybody else. Think of our baby."

Harriet placed her hands on her belly again.

"Don't do anything stupid, hero," Harriet sighed, reaching out and stroking Miller's cheek.

Miller took her hand in his and kissed her knuckles.

"Yes, ma'am."

Moments later, Miller was in uniform and jogging through the corridor with McLernon at his side.

"I haven't heard a shot in a while," Miller noted.

"Aye," McLernon nodded. "Maybe he's out of ammo?"

Miller didn't reply, but he silently hoped it would be that easy.

Finally, they reached the doors to the bridge. The automatic doors stood wide open and Miller immediately saw why. The body of Commander Fleming was lying in the way, preventing the doors from closing. There was a large hole in the back of his head, blood pooling on the floor.

"Dammit," Miller hissed through his teeth.

Sidling up to the side of the door, being sure to move as quietly as possible, Miller braved a quick glance around the frame and into the bridge. McLernon stayed behind him, flat against the wall.

Miller saw Willems right away. The Captain was in his fifties, but was still fit and athletic, his black uniform fitting snugly around his toned muscles. Willems had torn off his tie and the top few buttons of his shirt were undone, and Miller momentarily thought about how strange it was to see him presenting himself in a way that was any less than what was expected for meeting the Royal Family.

Willems was pacing around the bridge in a hurried frenzy, rushing from computer to computer, stepping over bodies as though they weren't there. Miller saw the gun in his hand, which Willems seemed to be subconsciously tapping against his temple whenever he changed stations, his face grimacing in a distraught panic. There was sweat beading on his forehead, despite the computer-moderated temperature of the entire ship never getting above 25 degrees celsius. Miller could also hear Willems muttering to himself, his voice sounding choked with despair.

"No more," Willems muttered as he punched a few commands into one computer with his free hand, just loud enough for Miller to hear. "No more... No more..."

"Captain Willems!" Miller shouted.

At the sound of Miller's voice, Willems whirled away from the computer and aimed the gun at the doorway where Miller was standing just out of the line of fire.

"Who's there!?" Willems demanded, though his voice was uncharacteristically shaky. "Show yourself!"

"I don't think I'll be doing that, sir," Miller replied, staying behind the corner. "Not unless you put down the gun."

"Then we seem to be at a stalemate," Willems sniffed.

"Not quite, Captain," Miller replied. "Word will have spread by now that you've murdered your crew. How long before the MPs come in looking to, ah... what's the word they use? Neutralize the situation? They'll gun you down, sir. If you cooperate with me, you might survive to face a trial."

The gun shook once in Willems' hand and his lip quivered. He ran his free hand over his short, wavy, gray hair.

"Let them kill me," Willems said, his voice breaking once. "It doesn't make a difference. Not anymore."

Miller glanced to his right to arch an eyebrow at McLernon, who shrugged helplessly in response. Frowning, Miller turned back to the door.

"Captain Willems," Miller called out. "I'm Lieutenant Junior Stephen Miller. I've served under you for the entirety of this mission. You were trusted by a unanimous vote from the United Nations to captain the Panspermia and give the soldiers and civilians on this ship safe passage to our destination. Up until today, you've given no reason for anyone to suspect you might do something like this. Why now, sir? Why did you kill all these people?"

Willems didn't reply at once. Instead, he glanced helplessly around the bridge, as though only now realizing that he had gunned down at least a dozen unarmed men and women.

"We received a message," Willems finally replied.

"From Earth?" Miller asked, then realized it was a stupid question. Where the hell else would they have received a message from?

"Yes," Willems answered flatly. "From Earth. It was... brief."

Miller waited for more, but when Willems spoke again, it wasn't to him.

"SALINA," Willems said loudly, speaking to the ship's artificially intelligent program, the Sentient Algorithm for Logistic Intelligence and Neuromorphic Assistance.

"Yes, Captain," came the autonomous female voice that was SALINA.

"Play the last transmission from Earth received via laser relay."

"Confirmed, Captain."

Miller then heard a loud static noise fill the bridge. He swallowed nervously. Transmissions from Earth were rare, as they were difficult to transmit so far into deep space. Laser relay was reserved for emergencies and mission-vital intelligence.

"This can't be good," McLernon murmured, giving voice to Miller's concerns.

"Attention Panspermia," came a voice on the message, difficult to hear over the sound of static. "Earth preservation attempts... failed. Atmosphere breaking apart. Mission is scrapped, repeat, colonisation mission is scrapped. Mission time of twelve years no longer viable. Earth will be dead... by the time you receive this message. We have only days. It's our suggestion that you proceed as planned to habitable planet E-dash-seven-niner-three-three-two, codenamed Novus, and settle the surviving members of humanity there as originally briefed, but... But don't expect the rest of us to follow."

There was a long pause as the speaker in the recorded message sighed audibly, possibly gathering their thoughts or taking a moment to let the information sink in.

"There's nothing for you to come back to," the speaker said despairingly. "Proceed as planned. Colonise Novus. You and your crew, and the passengers... you're all that's left. Godspeed."

Then the message ended and silence filled the bridge.

"Jesus Christ," McLernon whispered. He slowly slid to the floor and put his head between his knees. "I think I'm going to be sick."

"Earth's gone?" Miller asked, feeling cold all over. "How? We had time. The atmosphere was holding! We had another fifty years! The mission was going to work! We could have colonised Novus in time for global evac! What happened?"

"Your guess is as good as mine, Lieutenant," Willems said, still holding the gun. "Maybe the eggheads who did the math forgot to carry the one. Point is, Earth's gone. With no atmosphere, she'll already be burned up by solar radiation. Humanity's dead, son."

McLernon groaned on the floor, his face visibly green. Miller scowled. Then he suddenly stepped out around the door and glared at Willems. The Captain trained the gun on him, but didn't pull the trigger. Instead, he watched Miller with eyes that were full of loss.

"And that justifies you murdering all these people?" Miller demanded. "There are a quarter of a million people on this ship, who are apparently the last of mankind, and you just killed off a few more?"

"This is the way it has to be, son," Willems replied sadly. "I left my kids behind, grandkids. They're dead now. And I keep thinking, why would God do this to us? To the whole planet? Why would He let us all die? Then I realized. He wants us all to go home. He wants us with Him. Humanity had its run, Miller. It's over."

"It's not over," Miller snarled. "We're still here! We're still alive!"

"Are we?" Willems asked blankly. "Are we still alive? Floating through space in this giant coffin?"

"This ship was... is the last chance for humanity," Miller insisted. "You're talking like humanity is already extinct."

Suddenly, Willems laughed humorlessly. He then fixed his cold and miserable eyes on Miller's.

"It is," he said. "You just don't know it yet."

Then he pressed the gun against his own temple.

"No!" Miller cried.

The shot rang out and Willems' brains splattered against the nearest computer monitor. His body fell to the floor in a heap.

"Dammit to hell!" Miller raged.

McLernon poked his head around the door and took in what had just happened.

"Well, I guess that's that," he said grimly.

"At least he can't hurt anyone else, now," Miller sighed.

Suddenly, SALINA began to speak. The suddenness of her flat tone made Miller jump.

"Captain Willems' vitals have flatlined," SALINA reported. "Searching manifest for surviving superior officer. Commander Jasper Fleming... Deceased. Lieutenant Commander Akina Goh... Deceased. Lieutenant Abdi Malik Osman... Deceased. Lieutenant Junior Stephen Miller... Surviving superior officer. Suitable replacement for Captain located."

"Hell of a way to get promoted, mate," McLernon said to Miller.

"Lieutenant Junior Stephen Miller," SALINA said, addressing Miller directly now. "The Captain and other ranking officers are deceased. You are now the ranking officer on board this ship. Do you understand and accept this responsibility?"

Miller understood, but wasn't sure if he wanted to accept. If that message he heard was true, then he was now responsible for the lives of the remaining members of the human race. The thought of it made him feel physically ill. He was barely ready to be responsible for one life, that of his unborn child. Now he was responsible for just under 250,000 lives?

Regardless of his own misgivings, Miller took a step farther into the bridge and said loudly, "Yes. I do, SALINA."

"Security authorisation required," SALINA replied. "Lieutenant Miller, place your hand on the scanner at the Captain's station."

Miller approached the chair and terminal that had once belonged to Willems. On the arm of the chair, there was a rectangular section that looked like white plastic, with green lights glowing softly around the edges. Miller placed his hand on the rectangle and waited as the green lights scanned his palm and fingerprints, confirming his identity.

"Identity confirmed," SALINA said. "Emergency Override Code required to instate Lieutenant Junior Miller as acting Captain of the Panspermia."

Miller had been trained in similar scenarios and had the code committed to memory, but he never once thought he would ever need to use it.

"Emergency Override Code, Foxtrot-Zulu-Golf-Bravo, seven-niner-three, Oscar-Echo-Sierra, zero-five-one-niner. Lieutenant Junior Stephen Miller, requesting override of security in response to multiple casualties of commanding officers. Requesting permission from ship's intelligence to take command of the Panspermia."

"Authorisation granted," SALINA replied. "Captain Miller on deck."

Miller sighed with a mix of relief and anxiety, taking his hand away from the scanner. "All that's left now is to get these people to their new home," he said to McLernon.

"Aye, Captain," McLernon responded.

Miller felt strange being called Captain, but didn't say anything. He was surveying the chaos that Willems had left behind after his psychotic break. The dead bodies were everywhere Miller looked. Officers, privates, even civilians, all gunned down without pity or mercy. Some had collapsed on the floor as they tried to flee the room or protect one another, perhaps even trying to restrain Willems. Others never even rose from their work stations, simply slumping over their screens, blood running over the desks and dripping to the floor.

"Bloody Willems," McLernon sighed, surveying the scene beside Miller.

"I don't get why he would do this," Miller said. "He got the psych evaluation, just like everyone else. He was cleared."

"I guess even shrinks can't predict how someone will react if their whole planet gets wiped out," McLernon replied.

Miller frowned as he considered this, still slowly looking from body to body, workstation to work station. He felt uneasy. Not because of all the death he was facing, his years in the Navy had shown him his fair share of death. Something else was nagging at him, a feeling, an instinct, an unexplainable sense of imminent danger.

"SALINA!" Miller shouted, startling McLernon with his sudden urgency. "I need a run down of all systems on the Panspermia. Life support, gravitational rotation of the ship, water supply, everything! Do it now!"

"Yes Captain," SALINA replied calmly.

"What's wrong?" McLernon asked, following Miller as he hurried to the nearest workstation.

Miller used his hand to wipe away as much blood as possible from the screen that was embedded in the desk, smearing most of it but allowing just enough visibility to start typing away at the keyboard.

"When we came in," Miller began in a hurry, "Willems was typing commands into the computers. He killed everyone in the room, scared everyone else away, and started going from computer to computer."

"So?" McLernon asked, watching Miller typing hurriedly. "You think he compromised the ship? Wouldn't SALINA know and stop him if he did that?"

Miller shook his head. "No, she couldn't. SALINA isn't designed to have access to the bridge terminals. And she's also programmed to never question or disobey any order from the captain. Her engineers were worried about if she malfunctioned and commandeered the ship or something. They didn't want to risk an AI take over on this mission. SALINA can access only what she needs to do her job, regulating life support systems, she can check the health of everyone on board via their spinal inserts, but that's it. If Willems did anything to the ship, SALINA wouldn't know until her regular systems check every 48 hours. By then, it could be too late to do anything about a problem."

"If Willems did anything," McLernon said, sounding hopeful. "I mean, he wouldn't kill everyone, would he?"

"He said humanity is already extinct," Miller said grimly, looking at the screen. "But we don't know it yet. Look."

Miller stood up straight and gestured to the screen. McLernon looked, studying the screen scrupulously while his face remained impassive. Suddenly, he registered what he was seeing and his eyes shot wide open as he straightened, stepping back from the computer as though it might explode.

"Willems accessed the reactor?" McLernon asked hoarsely.

Miller nodded, his lips pressed tightly together. The Panspermia, 15 miles long and 2 miles wide, was easily the greatest technological feat of human history, taking a combined effort from all the world's powers to create. It was an immense cylindrical tube that rotated constantly during travel to create centrifugal gravity; it had its own 24 hour light cycle to simulate day and night while in the blackness of space; communities to house all 250,000 ethnically and religiously diverse passengers and crew; but all of this paled in comparison to the true marvel of the ship.

The Panspermia's reactor was the most advanced of its kind, a nuclear fusion power generator. At the rear of the miles-long ship, the propulsion system that had carried them this far into space was something that scientists had dreamed of since the 20th century. Powerful enough to propel the ship continuously through space, slowly reaching a top speed that was eleven percent the speed of light. Their current destination, a cluster of star systems that were discovered only in the last decade, was reachable from Earth in a little over 7 years. The propulsion system was powered by, quite literally, a miniature sun. It was suspended at the rear of the ship, feeding power to the engines and the other vital systems that kept them all alive. Without that miniature, man-made sun, humanity would never have been able to reach beyond its own solar system.

However, as vital as the nuclear fusion sun was, it was also as deadly as any natural sun. It emitted massive amounts of radiation, which was contained by a lead sphere casing, more than 20 feet thick, allowing it to support life on the ship instead of destroy it.

"What the bloody hell was he accessing the reactor for?" McLernon nearly shouted.

"Captain," SALINA suddenly said. Miller thought he heard a sense of urgency in her computerized voice, but then dismissed it as his imagination. "Access hatches to the reactor have been opened. The fusion sun is leaking radiation through the sphere."

"Fusion radiation dies out, though," McLernon said quickly, glancing nervously between Miller and the computer. "Fusion isn't like fission. The radioactive waste dies out fast. Even if it is leaking, it won't stick around long enough to kill us all. Will it?"

"Not exactly," Miller said, feeling like he wanted nothing more than to sit down somewhere dark and quiet and throw up. "The fusion sun is a near-limitless source of power, and a shelf life of ten-thousand years. It leaks radiation as fast as it produces energy. Even with the radiation dissipating, it's producing it faster than it can die out. That's why it's cased in the lead sphere. Before long, radiation will flood the whole ship."

"So..." McLernon began, looking pale. "We're screwed?"

"Damn," Miller hissed, though he felt like saying far worse. "SALINA, can you shut it down? Stop the leak?"

"Negative, Captain," SALINA replied. "While that action is ordinarily well within my parameters, it appears that the late Captain Willems managed to recode a portion of my programming. I am unable to seal the leak until rebooting."

"Can you reboot?" Miller asked. "How long will that take?"

"Too long, Captain," SALINA said. "Approximately 18 hours is required to restore complete access to the ship."

"And how long until we're all poisoned and dying?"

"Approximately 10 hours, Captain."

This time Miller did swear. He sighed and rubbed his hands over his face, thinking.

"We'll have to close it manually," Miller said. "It's the only way."

"Should I hail the tech personnel, sir?" McLernon asked.

Miller didn't answer as he seemed suddenly distracted. He stared at the enormous screen at the front of the bridge which provided a digital view of the vast expanse of space ahead. He glanced down at a nearby computer, studying the mass of numbers and readings that were provided automatically. Miller then looked up to the large windows that offered a clear view into space. Only the solar blinds were down; thick steel used to seal the windows against the dangerous glare of nearby suns, comets, or other bright objects in space. They were also used as airtight seals in the event of a fracture in the glass, preventing decompression. Miller narrowed his eyes as he stared at the visors.

"Wait," Miller said slowly. "Why are the solar blinds closed?"

"Captain," McLernon began, "with all due respect, I think we have bigger problems right now."

Miller ignored McLernon and looked down at the readouts on the screen in front of him. "We're still on course," he said thoughtfully, as though it surprised him.

"Miller!" McLernon growled. "There's a never ending cloud of radiation seeping through the ship! Se need to get some people down there to seal the leak right now!"

"SALINA," Miller said, as though McLernon hadn't spoken. "Open the solar blinds."

The steel screens immediately began to open. They slid apart, slowly revealing what should have been an endless expanse of black nothingness. Instead, Miller saw a distant sphere amidst the background of space, slowly getting larger.

"What the..." Miller began. "There's not supposed to be anything here! We're off course!"

"SALINA should have picked up on this!" McLernon said angrily.

"Apologies, Captain," SALINA said. "It appears that the late Captain Willems reprogrammed the navigational readouts as well as my parameters. The screens show our course as it should be, but we are millions of miles off course."

"Can we course correct?" Miller demanded.

"Negative, sir," SALINA replied. "Willems has severed my connections to the autopilot and disabled the ship's controls. The course cannot be corrected."

"He must have planned this weeks ago," Miller cried. "He's got us on a collision course with that planet!"

"That son of a bitch just killed the human race," McLernon moaned.

"Where the hell are we, SALINA?" Miller demanded. "What planet is this?"

"The planet is designation J-dash-seven-six-three-seven," SALINA recited. "Codename; Icarus."

"What do we know about it?" Miller asked, his heart racing. "Can humans survive on the surface?"

"Little is known about Icarus, but survival is somewhat plausible," SALINA replied. "At the time of Icarus' discovery, the Earth was already deteriorating and resources were spread thin due to the concentrated efforts to ensure humanity could reach Novus, so no extensive research was undertaken. It is known that Icarus does have an atmosphere containing oxygen, nitrogen, argon, carbon dioxide, and other elements required to sustain human life. It is similar in size to Earth, the gravity being 1.1 times that of Earth's gravity, meaning you will be able to survive on the surface. However, it is my duty to inform you that while the planet resides within the habitable zone around its parent star, it is very much on the line. It skims the edge of the habitable zone closest to the parent star and is hotter and drier than Earth. It is conceivable that your race can survive there, though not without great difficulty, and the chance of longterm survival is minimal at best."

"It'd be far easier to survive there than on this ship once it's full of radiation," Miller pointed out. "How long until we reach it?"

"Willems seems to have slowed propulsion to change our heading," SALINA began, "but at our current velocity, the Panspermia will enter Icarus' atmosphere in approximately 37 minutes."

"You mean we'll crash?" McLernon asked.

"Yes, Ensign," SALINA replied patiently. "We will crash. And everyone on board will die."

Miller rubbed both hands over his face, making a frustrated noise of helplessness. He had been Captain for less than 10 minutes and already everything was falling apart. There was only one thing he could think to do, but it was enormously risky. However, he felt that they were still somehow lucky, in a sense. If Willems hadn't changed their course to crash the ship into this particular planet, or if he had decided to fly them into a sun, then they would have had no chance at survival. Now though... Likelihood of survival just flopped from zero to slim.

"Issue an evacuation," Miller said firmly. "Abandon ship. Make sure everyone is in their sections. We're going to land on Icarus."

"You can't be serious?" McLernon said incredulously. "Can't we just repair the guidance and manually seal the lead sphere?"

"We can't repair the guidance, and screwing around trying to seal the leak is exactly what Willems was counting on us to try," Miller realized aloud. "He altered the readouts to show we were on course, then lowered the flare blinds to hide the planet we're about to crash into. He wanted us to waste time focusing on the radiation leak while we ran headlong into this planet without even realizing. Our only chance is to land there."

"We don't know the first thing about that planet!"

"We know we have a chance to survive!" Miller shouted. "And the odds of that are a hell of a lot better than if we stay on this ship. We have radiation leaking behind us and a fiery crash in front of us. The only chance anyone has right now is to evacuate the ship and land safely on this planet! Now, Ensign, I'm ordering that we evacuate the ship!"

"Aye, Captain," McLernon said begrudgingly.

"SALINA," Miller said. "Sound the alarm. Announce for all crew and passengers to remain in their evac stations. We're abandoning ship."

"Yes, Captain," SALINA replied. Then, as sirens wailed through the ship and her voice ordered people to their stations, she added, "Captain, it appears that there is a problem."

"Oh God, what now?" Miller sighed.

"The automatic release of the evac sections is not responding," SALINA explained. "I believe Captain Willems' sabotage has reached a third front."

"We can't evacuate now?" McLernon cried.

Miller closed his eyes in despair. He thought of his wife, Harriet, waiting for him in their cabin, scared by the alarms and the call for evacuation. He thought of his unborn child, whose future was now so uncertain. The moment SALINA told him what Willems had done, he knew what he had to do. But even though he knew it was the only option, he wished there was someone else who could do it.

"Dexter," Miller began, surprising himself with how calm he sounded. "Get to an evac station. Make sure Harriet goes, too. She might want to wait for me, but don't let her. You get her out, you hear me? Make sure she gets out."

"Miller, what are you talking about?" McLernon asked, his voice quivering. Miller knew McLernon wasn't a fool. The Scot knew exactly what Miller was thinking. He just didn't want to admit it.

"I'm giving you a direct order, Dexter," Miller said, a little more firmly. "Evacuate. Now."

McLernon was shaking his head. "No. No, Stephen, I can't. Not like this."

"This is the only way, Dexter," Miller insisted. "It's my life versus 250,000 others. Including my wife. I have to stay back. I have to manually disengage the evac stations."

"Can't SALINA do it?" McLernon asked desperately, already knowing the answer.

"No," Miller said. "Only the Captain can authorize an emergency evacuation before reaching the destination. This is the only way."

"No!" McLernon snapped. "Let me stay! I'll do it! You've got Harriet, your baby... You can't do this."

"Manual authorization requires a hand recognition scan from the Captain to proceed," Miller replied, waving his left hand at McLernon gently. "Besides, how could I ask you to do something like this?"

"This isn't right!" McLernon cried, beside himself with despair. "Willems did this! It should be him strapped to that damn scanner!"

"A lot of things should have happened," Miller smiled humorlessly. "But this is what's actually happening. Come on, there isn't much time left. You have to go. You, er... you take care of Harriet for me, yeah? Can you tell her I love her? That I will always love her. And my child... make sure they know who their father was. Make sure they're okay. That they... that..."

McLernon was nodding. "Yeah. Of course. I promise."

"Okay then," Miller sighed. He then reached out a hand to McLernon, who took it after a moment of hesitation. The two shook hands, saying farewell. Then, unable to think of another argument, and determined to keep his promise, McLernon left the bridge.

Miller sighed heavily and sat down in the Captain's chair.

"Well," he said. "I guess it's just you and me now, SALINA."

"Captain," SALINA began. "It is my duty to inform you that there is a zero percent chance of surviving this. Are you certain you want to proceed?"

"No," Miller replied. "But it has to be done. Our only directive right now is to ensure the survival of the human race. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Captain."

Throughout the ship, people were shouting and running, on the verge of a panic. They knew they shouldn't be at Novus yet. This was not in the plan. It was too soon. But they all quickly moved to the enormous evacuation stations. Thousands upon thousands of people, filing into cavernous rooms full of chairs, strapping themselves in. Supplies of all kinds were already stored in the lower levels of the stations, full of food, water, tools, all the things they were going to need once they reached Novus. Now they hoped that they could use them still, wherever they were going instead.

McLernon helped a distraught Harriet Miller to a seat and strapped her in, her silent tears breaking his heart. He felt guilty looking at her, but he had made a promise. It was one he was determined to keep.

Harriet understood why her husband was doing this, but it didn't ease her pain. She closed her eyes as she waited for everyone to strap in and she let the tears roll down her face, her hands unconsciously holding her belly.

In the bridge, Miller checked the screens to see the progress of the evac. They'd made good time. 90 percent completion in 20 minutes, less than 5 minutes estimated until 100 percent evac readiness. Leaving him with 10 minutes and change.

"SALINA," Miller began. "Give me a report on the radiation leak."

"Radiation has leaked into the rear four sections of the ship," SALINA reported. "Radiation poisoning is a strong likelihood."

"What are their chances of survival?"

"At this moment, irreversible damage has been done," SALINA said almost sadly. "The people in those four sections will be developing tumors, there will be defects to the unborn children currently in gestation, similar to the aftereffects of the Chernobyl incident in the 20th century. Then there is the concern for the safety of those currently unaffected. Should those exposed to radiation come into contact with anyone not exposed, they run the risk of spreading the contamination."

"It sounds like you're suggesting I write them off, SALINA," Miller observed calmly.

"No, Captain. Merely pointing out the facts. As you said, our sole directive is the survival of the human race."

Despite the situation, Miller smiled. Though it was half-hearted and grim. Then it was gone and Miller sighed heavily.

"Jettison the four contaminated sections," Miller ordered, placing his hand down on the scanner. "Let them make it to Icarus, but far away from the others. Let them live whatever lives they have left."

"Yes, Captain."

Miller couldn't see it, and the ship was far too large for him to feel it, but four enormous capsules, each one the size of a football field, detached themselves from the ship and immediately began to burn their thrusters and head towards the sulphur colored planet in the distance. Miller wished them all Godspeed.

"On my count," Miller began, watching the planet Icarus looming through the windows. "Release the remaining evac stations. Three... Two... One... Release!"

Before long, Miller was the only human remaining on the Panspermia. The evac stations were left behind, as the large ship was moving much faster. The planet grew larger and larger in the windows, now taking up the entire view. Everywhere Miller looked, he saw brown and red and decaying yellow.

"Oh God, please let them make it," Miller prayed. "Please let them survive."

A short time later, the ship began to vibrate violently as it entered Icarus' atmosphere. The windows began to glow red as the planet's atmosphere burned at the cold ship. Fire licked against the glass and steel, plunging Miller's view into something far more hellish than space.

"You with me SALINA?" Miller asked, feeling fear grip him.

"I'm here, Captain."

"You remember our directive?" Miller asked, holding tightly to the seat.

"Of course, Captain."

"Do you think we succeeded?"

SALINA was silent for a moment before responding.

"Only time will tell, sir."

Finally, the Panspermia struck the brown and red surface of Icarus. Stephen Miller served as the Captain for the briefest amount of time, but was remembered as its greatest hero.

CHAPTER TWO

Earth Year 2232

47 years on Icarus

Mackenzie Miller opened her eyes the moment the sunlight began to creep through the steel visors on her bedroom window. She hadn't been sleeping. She doubted that anyone had slept much that night. Not when they knew what today was.

Pushing herself up, Mackenzie sat on the edge of her bed and stared down at the end of her left arm. Where a hand should have grown from her wrist, there was instead nothing. Using her one hand, Mackenzie rubbed the stump, as if making sure nothing was there.

Mackenzie had been born without her hand. It was a congenital defect that had caused her to be born with only her right hand. It didn't bother her, she was used to it. It was just on days like today she would study the place where her hand should have been, its absence serving as a reminder of how fragile people were.

Sighing, Mackenzie got out of bed and quickly dressed in a pair of loose-fitting khaki pants and a long-sleeved cotton shirt, though she rolled the sleeves up to her elbows (having some difficulty with one, due to her lack of a left hand). Then she exited her bedroom and was immediately in the tiny space that passed as the kitchen. Mackenzie raked her fingers through her shoulder-length, sand-colored hair, yawning as she spotted her mother sitting at the rectangular bench that was the center of the kitchen.

Lorelei Miller was a slender woman, probably thinner than was healthy, but the same could be said for pretty much everyone in their little civilization. Lorelei had the same sand-colored hair that Mackenzie did, though hers was becoming streaked with gray. Her hazel eyes looked tired and crows feet were becoming more evident on her face as the years passed, but she was still quick to smile in even the most dark moments. Much like today.

"Hey, Mom," Mackenzie mumbled, heading towards the cooler that was built into the wall.

"Hi sweetie," Lorelei replied. "Sleep well?"

"Hmph," Mackenzie grunted. "As well as I could have, I guess. We got any water?"

"Not much," Lorelei sighed. "There's some on the bottom shelf. Hopefully we get more today."

Mackenzie crouched lower to see a short jug in the cooler. It was far more empty than full. Mackenzie took out the jug while Lorelei slid a glass towards her on the bench. Mackenzie poured little more than a mouthful of water into the glass and returned the jug to the cooler. She sat down across from Lorelei and slowly sipped at her water. Odds were this was all she was going to drink today, so she had to make the best of it.

"Where's Dad?" Mackenzie asked casually, not making eye contact with her mother.

"He's, erm..." Lorelei replied, hesitating before replying. "He's... getting ready."

Mackenzie didn't need to ask what for. She knew what Joseph Miller was getting ready for. Everyone did. Ever since it was announced yesterday, no one had much time to think about anything else. This sort of thing always brought a sense of quiet over the shambles that was their little city. People trying to go on like the day was like any other, but knowing that it just wasn't true.

"Oh," Mackenzie said simply. "Okay."

"Do you..." Lorelei began, awkwardly. "Do you want to talk about it?"

Mackenzie shook her head. It was the last thing she wanted to do. "No, I'm fine."

"Are you sure?" Lorelei asked, eyeing her daughter scrupulously.

"Yep," Mackenzie nodded, sipping on her water again. Then, setting the glass on the table, perhaps a little too hard, she added, "I might head out. It should be starting soon, yeah?"

"You don't have to go, sweetie," Lorelei said gently.

"Sure I do," Mackenzie replied. "It'd make Dad look bad if I didn't go. Like I didn't support him. I might see you there."

"Okay then," Lorelei said, still looking concerned as Mackenzie placed her glass of water in the cooler and began heading for the door. Then she said suddenly, "Oh! I almost forgot! Happy birthday, sweetie."

Mackenzie forced herself to smile as she gave her mother a hug. "Thanks, Mom," she said, but what she was really thinking was, Yeah, happy birthday. Hell of a day to celebrate turning 20.

Mackenzie opened the door to their little shack and stepped out of the gloom and into a day that was already becoming close to blinding. Pausing and squinting around, letting her eyes adjust, Mackenzie took in the sight of the "city" that held the last remnants of humanity.

Hundreds of shacks, just like the one owned by her family, pockmarked the dry and stony landscape around her, and thousands more stood out of sight. The homes had been thrown together using whatever materials people could find. Stones, sheets of steel, wooden boards and sticks, some had even managed to make bricks out of sand and other resources, but most saw this as a waste of time and energy. Everyone knew that they wouldn't stay here forever, and then the homes would be torn down to recycle the materials in the next location.

Each home had one or two flat panels of a glass-like substance attached to the roof or an exterior wall. They were all the solar power panels that gave them electricity. Mackenzie watched one of her neighbors climbing a ladder and sweeping dust from the solar panel. The upkeep on maintaining electricity was incredibly demanding.

The entire area that housed humanity was completely flat, covered in sand and dirt. Far off in the distance, Mackenzie could see mountains, but they were miles and miles away, and even they looked brown and dead.

All around, Mackenzie saw people beginning to move about their days, though with a lot less determination than usual. Few people spoke. Normally neighbors would say good morning or gossip with one another; today they were mostly silent, simply nodding to one another, or moving on without a word. Even the children seemed deflated. None were playing. They simply sat together, watching the grown-ups. The younger kids weren't allowed to attend today's event, but they all knew what it was. They all knew what was going to happen.

"Mackenzie!" someone yelled out, snapping her out of her melancholy.

Turning around, Mackenzie saw one of her friends jogging casually towards her. Ethan Renaud, a guy she had known pretty much her entire life. He was only a month older than Mackenzie, but was easily a foot taller, maybe more, though it was hard to tell due to the fact that he often slouched a little. He had wavy chestnut brown hair that he never tamed, letting it fall wherever it wanted to on his head, though today he was wearing a baseball cap with a scarf tucked under it, the cotton material hanging down over his neck to protect his skin from the sun. He was thin and wiry, but anyone who thought that he was weak often was quickly proven wrong, especially if they tried to start something with him. When they were younger, Mackenzie had seen more than one bully be sent to the infirmary after a single punch that rendered them unconscious for the rest of the day.

Ethan was wearing a pair of cargo pants, a white long-sleeved shirt, and his sturdy black boots. Normally he would already be working at "the shop," which was the name given to the engineering shack that handled most of the building and repairs that were daily life in this desert landscape. Today, however, Mackenzie was surprised to see him heading her way with a goofy grin on his thin face.

"Ethan?" she said in her surprise, smiling to see him anyway. "Shouldn't you be working?"

Ethan shrugged as he came to a stop in front of Mackenzie. "Morning off," was all he said about it, but Mackenzie could guess as to the reason why the engineers got a late start today. Same reason as for everyone else. Then she suddenly noticed Ethan was holding something under his arm. A square box that was haphazardly wrapped in packing paper.

"What's that?" Mackenzie asked.

Ethan grinned wider, then held the package out to her. "This is your birthday present. Happy birthday."

Mackenzie took the package from him, her heart lifting for the first time in about 24 hours.

"You didn't have to get me anything," Mackenzie said.

"I know," Ethan shrugged. "Doesn't mean I shouldn't, though. You gonna open it?"

"Yeah!" Mackenzie grinned. "Here, help hold it, will ya?"

Ethan held the package while Mackenzie tore it open with her one hand. Opening the box, Mackenzie peered inside.

At first, Mackenzie thought she was looking at a severed hand and she gasped slightly in shock. Then she realized that it was made of steel and rubber and other materials she couldn't recognize. It was, however, definitely a hand.

"What's this?" Mackenzie asked, carefully lifting the strange object out of the box.

"This, Mackenzie," Ethan began excitedly, tossing the box aside, "is a bionic hand. I remembered you saying a while back how frustrated you get sometimes because of only having one hand, how you hated having to work at the wells because of it, so I made this for you. It should make daily life a little easier." Then, as if suddenly feeling uncomfortable, he added, "But, you know, you don't have to wear it if you don't like it. It was just a thought."

Mackenzie stared down at the hand in amazement. It was mostly made of steel, but the part that would have been the wrist was covered in some kind of gel or rubber. Between gaps in the steel "skin," Mackenzie could see dozens of tiny little cogs in all of the joints, right where fingers would bend, as well as tiny pistons that looked like they controlled the movement of the hand. The tips of each finger was covered in a rubber grip, which felt a lot like the soles of her shoes.

"Ethan," Mackenzie began, not sure what to say. "I said that, like, two years ago, when I first started work in the wells."

Shrugging again, Ethan said, "Yeah, well, I still remembered."

"How did you build this?" Mackenzie asked, staring down at the hand.

Ethan grinned again and spoke with excitement, like a little boy would talk about his toys.

"I found the schematics for all kinds of bionics in the old Panspermia archives about a year ago," he said. "Stuff like hands, legs, arms, there was even one for eyes! I really wanted to build one, you know, try it out, and I just thought of you. Here, let me show you how it works."

Ethan took the bionic hand from Mackenzie and, gently gripping her forearm, carefully slipped the bionic hand over her stump, while Mackenzie watched silently. Ethan pressed a small red button on the side of the hand, which automatically tightened the gel grip around Mackenzie's wrist. It was tight, but not uncomfortable. The gel was surprisingly warm and soft.

"The gel absorbs the heat from your body," Ethan began to explain, pointing as he still held Mackenzie's arm. "The gel then turns that heat into power for the bionic. There are thousands of tiny sensors inside the wrist, too, which can read the tiny commands your brain sends to your hand to make it move and stuff. The sensors can read those commands through skin contact and then move. Here, try it out. Try to move your fingers."

Mackenzie looked down at the strange contraption on the end of her arm, doubting that it could do much of anything. Despite her doubts, she thought about extending the fingers. She commanded them to move. Nothing happened.

"Looks like you misread the instructions," Mackenzie teased.

Ethan shook his head, though. "No, no, it should work! Trust me. Try again, it might just take some practice."

Stifling a sigh, Mackenzie looked back down to the hand and tried again. She thought about how she would naturally move her own real hand, then tried to recreate the movement in the steel hand strapped to her wrist.

To her amazement, the index and middle fingers suddenly extended, reaching out like she was lazily making a peace sign.

"Holy crap!" Mackenzie screamed, drawing a few glances from passers-by. "It worked! Oh my God, Ethan, you're a genius!"

"Does that mean you like it?" Ethan asked, flashing his goofy grin again.

Mackenzie, by way of response, threw her arms around Ethan and hugged him as tight as she could.

"I'll take that as a yes," Ethan laughed, hugging her back.

At that moment, more people were beginning to pass by, leaving their homes and all walking in the same direction. Taking it as their cue to leave, Mackenzie and Ethan fell into line with everyone else. Ethan walked a little taller than usual, no longer slouching for the moment, while Mackenzie stared in awe down at her new hand, testing out the movement. It was difficult at first to make the fingers move and to turn the wrist, but she found that she was quickly getting the hang of it and the movements were becoming more fluid and natural. Almost exactly like a real hand.

"This is awesome, Ethan," Mackenzie said. "Think of all the people you could help with this kind of technology. Like Mr White, maybe he could walk again with something like this!"

"Yeah, you're right," Ethan said, as though the idea had never occurred to him before.

"You need to show this to people," Mackenzie said, suddenly moving the hand towards Ethan, as if offering it to him. "You should take it back and-"

"No," Ethan said firmly. "I've got all the schematics and stuff, I can make more for anyone else who needs them. That hand is yours, though. I made it for you. You keep it."

Mackenzie, despite wanting Ethan to use his talents at building things to help everyone, was quietly relieved that he hadn't taken the hand back. While she was accustomed to living with only one hand, and she didn't let it hold her back in every day life, there were still things that she wanted to do but couldn't because of her disability. Her choice of jobs, for example, was severely limited because of only having one hand. Now, however, she felt as though she had some kind of freedom handed to her. She felt liberated.

"Thank you, Ethan," she said again, staring down at the bionic hand, clenching and unclenching her new fingers. "Really. Thank you."

"No problem," Ethan grinned. Then he turned seemed to become excited by the hand all over again and added, "It's really cool, can you believe it's waterproof? Up to a depth of twelve feet!"

"So cool," Mackenzie agreed, still watching the metal fingers move at the end of her arm.

Suddenly, they found themselves amongst a crowd and their smiles quickly faded. Everyone was standing still and staring out at the edge of the town, where the shacks and solar panels and humanity itself simply stopped and the horizon gave way to the expanse of Icarus. Nothing but desert and stone, as far as the eye could see. The entire planet, nothing but rust-colored sand, dirt and rocks. No green. No movement. No water.

"It always shocks me," Mackenzie said quietly as she stared out at the ceaseless dead world. "How could we survive so long here? Hardly anything can grow in the dirt. Next to no water, except for trickles of underground wells. I kind of forget just how bad it is until we come out here."

"Your dad helped a lot with keeping us all alive," Ethan pointed out. "Your granddad, too, Captain Miller. It's like your family is just made to look out for the rest of us."

"So far, anyway," Mackenzie muttered, feeling uncomfortable as she felt the familiar pressure of her family name.

Suddenly, the whispering and talking that had been a part of the crowd simply stopped. Mackenzie looked up and, over the shoulders of those in front of her, could see why.

Four people were making their way out of a larger, wooden, shack and walking towards the front and center of the crowd. Two were dressed in tanned uniforms and combat helmets and sunglasses. They were also carrying large rifles. There was a man walking between them, his eyes downcast and his shoulders slumped in defeat. His wrists were tied together in front of him with some kind of plastic cord. And leading this strange procession was a man dressed in plain cotton pants and a large, overflowing shirt that hung almost to his knees. He looked grim, as though he wished he could be anywhere else, but he also had a strange determination in his eyes, because he knew this had to be done.

Joseph Miller. Mackenzie's father, and the leader of their small society. Years ago, before Mackenzie was born, Joseph was considered a hero to many, as a result of his efforts to ensure as many people as possible could live through another day. He often said that all he wanted was to make sure humanity survived. He needed no recognition for this, and wanted none. Because of his ability to lead, to motivate, and his actions that had kept the human race alive so far, people all looked up to him. It was no wonder people wanted him to take the leading office of Secretary-General after the previous leader died. It was too great an honor for Joseph to refuse.

Even when he had to make the hard decision that brought them all to stand on the edge of their world.

Joseph Miller stood and faced the crowd, while the prisoner and his two guards stood behind him. He didn't spot Mackenzie in the crowd, but Mackenzie suspected that he was looking for her. His eyes kept drifting from face to face. It wasn't required that everyone witness this, and Mackenzie knew her father wished she was still too young to attend, but it was important that she be seen supporting his decisions as Secretary-General. Especially this decision. It didn't happen often, but it was always rough to see.

"Everyone," Joseph began, speaking loud enough for everyone to hear. "I know that we would all rather be elsewhere on this morning. God knows I would much prefer to be in my office, doing the most mundane work I could possibly find. But this is our law. And it must be upheld, no matter how much we wish it could be otherwise."

All eyes suddenly drifted from Joseph to the prisoner. Mackenzie knew his name was Zachary Estrada. He was one of the men she worked with at the well; pulling what water they could out of the ground and purifying it for the town to drink. The well had been running low lately, however, as always seemed to happen eventually, resulting in everyone being on tight rations. Estrada had been caught stealing extra water from the purifier, which was considered an unforgivable offence.

Joseph turned from the crowd and faced Estrada.

"Zachary Estrada," he said firmly. "You were tried for the theft of our most precious resource; water. You were found guilty of this crime and have been sentenced to banishment. Do you have any final words before we send you away?"

Estrada finally looked up from his feet and fixed his eyes on the crowd. They were red and puffy, as though he had been crying. Mackenzie strongly suspected he had been.

"I wish we could do something," she whispered to Ethan. "I know him from the wells, he's not a bad guy."

"I'm sure," Ethan replied softly. "But he still broke the law. He knew what would happen if he got caught. This is on him."

Mackenzie pressed her lips tightly together and said nothing more, instead watching Estrada closely as he took several deep breaths before speaking.

"I have a baby," Estrada choked. "A wife. The rations weren't enough for them. I know what I did was wrong, but... who of you wouldn't have done the same? I did what any father would have done. We're all dying. The well is running dry, just like they all do! The water is going to run out soon, don't you see that? I did what I had to do, for my family. How long before the rest of you become as desperate as I was?"

"We will do what we always do," Joseph said to him. "Survive. We always knew the well would dry out eventually, just like the time before, and the time before. We'll move to a new location, with more water. It's what we do. It's how we survive. But it only works if everyone follows the rules that our parents, all those who are no longer with us, set out. Rules, which you broke knowing full well the consequences."

Joseph nodded once at the guards on either side of Estrada. One guard shouldered his weapon, while the other took several steps back and trained her gun on Estrada. The male guard released Estrada from his bonds and then also stepped back, aiming his gun at Estrada. Joseph stepped toward Estrada and reached into the pocket of his large top. He retrieved a canteen full of water, a small bag with half a loaf of bread, and a small revolver.

Estrada was handed each of these items in turn, but saved the revolver for last. Joseph carefully placed the gun in Estrada's hand, moving slowly, keeping a watchful eye on Estrada's movements. Mackenzie noticed the guards stiffen and tighten their grips on their weapons the moment the revolver made contact with Estrada's hand. If he tried anything, Mackenzie suspected he would be dead before he could even pull back the hammer.

"You have enough food and water to last you as long as you can stretch it out," Joseph said thickly. "The gun... you can use it however you see fit."

It was an unspoken offering. Many would describe it as a cruelty, but it was actually a mercy. Whenever someone was banished, they could take their chances in the wastelands of Icarus, using the gun to hunt for food, as long as they themselves didn't get hunted first by the dangerous wildlife. Or they could take a different route.

Estrada stared down at the gun in his hand for a moment, tears running down his face. He looked up at Joseph and the crowd of onlookers. There was a moment where he met Mackenzie's eyes and they stared at one another for a moment. Mackenzie wished there was something she could do, while Estrada looked as though he was silently pleading for someone to intervene. Then he placed the gun against his head.

Mackenzie took a sharp intake of breath, like she wanted to shout something, to stop him, anything, but then she stopped herself. There was nothing she could do.

And so Zachary Estrada pulled the trigger, taking the other route.

As the shot echoed across the desert and Estrada fell, everyone was silent for a while, just staring at the body. Joseph Miller sighed heavily, a deep frown on his face as he regarded the former member of their society. Mackenzie could hear a couple of people sobbing in the crowd and she wondered where Estrada's wife and child were.

Sighing again, Joseph Miller bent down and retrieved the canteen, the bread, and the gun. Without a word, he began to walk away, and the two guards picked up the body by the arms and dragged it away for burial. Finally, the crowd began to disperse. It was time to get on with surviving.

CHAPTER THREE

Mackenzie and Ethan were walking away with the rest of the crowd, all moving slowly and without much talking when Mackenzie felt someone gently grab her shoulder. Turning around, Mackenzie came face to face with her father, Joseph Miller. He was smiling at her, but his dull blue eyes looked disheartened. Mackenzie knew that days like today were never easy on him and he always took it hard. As though he was responsible for someone having committed a crime.

"Hey, Kenzie," Joseph greeted, drawing his daughter in for a hug. Joseph was the only one Mackenzie let call her that.

Knowing that her father was likely feeling down after Estrada's choice, Mackenzie hugged him tightly in return while Ethan stood by awkwardly.

"You okay, Dad?" Mackenzie asked when she was able to step out of the hug, though she kept her hand on her father's arm in a comforting gesture.

Joseph chuckled softly. "I came over here to ask you that," he said. "And to say happy birthday, of course. I'm sorry I had to go before you woke up."

Mackenzie shrugged. "No big deal."

Joseph suddenly seemed to notice Ethan hovering nearby, because he turned his gaze on him. Ethan looked nervous, but Joseph was smiling at him.

"Ethan," he greeted. "It's been a while since I've seen you. I hope they're not working you too hard over at the shop? We don't see you around for dinner anymore."

"Yeah, Mr Miller," Ethan replied, swallowing hard. "Not too hard. But still pretty hard, that is. I mean, I'm not lazy or anything, I do what needs to be done. I mean, um... yeah, working hard, sir."

Mackenzie hid a laugh behind her hand. Despite Joseph Miller always being nothing but friendly towards him, Ethan was strangely intimidated by Mackenzie's father. A fact that always caused Mackenzie endless amusement.

"Hey, uh..." Ethan stammered, glancing nervously between Mackenzie and Joseph. "I better get going, Mackenzie. They'll be expecting me at the shop soon."

"Oh, okay," Mackenzie replied, flashing a smile at him. "Don't work too hard."

Ethan blushed and glanced at Joseph, who was smiling and holding back a chuckle. Ethan waved goodbye to both of them and then hurried away as quickly as he could without seeming like he was hurrying.

"Still a bit of a nervous lad, isn't he?" Joseph observed.

"Only around you, Dad," Mackenzie laughed. Now that the morning's events were over and done with, Mackenzie felt surprised at how easy it was to laugh and smile again, when only an hour ago she dreaded the thought of even opening her eyes.

"Must be my terrifying physique," Joseph grinned.

"Yeah, right," Mackenzie said, rolling her eyes. "I'm not saying you're fat, but it looks like you were poured into your clothes and forgot to say 'when'."

Joseph threw back his head and barked out a laugh. "I see you're doing fine, that cutting wit of yours hasn't suffered any. Sorry for worrying, Kenzie. I guess I just wish that stuff like this didn't happen."

"It's okay, Dad," Mackenzie shrugged. "It's not your fault. Estrada did the wrong thing. I know he was trying to look out for his kid and everything, but by doing that, he might have put someone else's kid in danger. Right?"

Joseph opened his mouth to answer, but seemed suddenly distracted by something low on Mackenzie's left. She looked down at what he was looking at and was surprised to see her new bionic hand at the end of her arm. She had almost forgotten about it.

"What is that?" Joseph asked, his tone full of amazement.

"Oh my God, I can't believe I almost forgot!" Mackenzie breathed excitedly. She lifted her arm to allow Joseph a closer look at the hand. "Ethan made it for me! It's not just a prosthetic; it's called a bionic hand. It can move and everything, just like a real hand. Look!"

Mackenzie focused on moving the fingers and turning the wrist a little, showing off the ease with which she could now move the metallic appendage. Joseph gently took her arm in his hands and examined the bionic hand closely, clearly amazed by what he saw.

"Wow," he said. "This is incredible. Ethan made this, you say?"

"Yeah," Mackenzie nodded. "He said it was a birthday present."

"Amazing," Joseph said, still studying the hand. "Ethan clearly has a lot of talent. Maybe he'd be put to better use on some larger projects in future. I'll have to talk to him about this bionic hand. So you..." Joseph looked into his daughter's eyes, suddenly serious. "You're happy about this? Because you don't have to feel like you need two hands to fit in. You've done an amazing job with everything you do with just one hand. I don't want you to feel like this is something you have to have. Understand?"

Mackenzie nodded. "Yeah, I get it. But Dad, seriously, this is so cool. Not just because I have two hands now, but because it gives me more options. Like, maybe I don't have to stay working at the wells forever. Maybe I could do something more important, you know?"

"Don't sell your work at the wells short, Kenzie," Joseph said. "You're the best hydrologist we've had in years. And we need that water to survive. Without you testing it and purifying it, well... Let's just say your work keeps us alive."

Mackenzie nodded, withdrawing her arm from Joseph's grip and looking down at the bionic hand, almost wistfully.

"I know," she admitted. "I get that it's important. But now that I have this hand, I don't know. I feel like maybe I could do more. Something that really makes a difference."

Joseph grinned down at her. He wasn't much taller than Mackenzie, but just enough to make her have to tilt her head back slightly to look him in the eye.

"You make a difference every day," Joseph said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Trust me. A big difference."

"Mr Miller! Sir!"

Joseph and Mackenzie turned to see a man in uniform approaching in a hurry. He was less imposing than the two guards who had walked Estrada to the town line, being dressed in the same tan clothes, minus the combat armor and rifles. He was one of the law enforcement officers, or LEO's. Just like the 'cops' Mackenzie used to read about in her old books and in school.

The young LEO hurried over to Joseph Miller and stopped, glancing uncertainly at Mackenzie, but he plowed on when he recognized her as Joseph's daughter.

"Sir," he said. "They're back."

"They are?" Joseph almost shouted, but not angrily. He was surprised. So was Mackenzie. She knew who they were, and no one had expected them to show up today.

"Almost, sir," the LEO nodded. "They're approaching the town line from the east. They'll be here in a few minutes."

"Well, let's go, let's go!" Joseph cried, already heading off and slapping the LEO on the back to make him move. Then Joseph turned back to glance at Mackenzie. "You want to come?"

Mackenzie nearly fainted with shock.

"You want me to meet them with you?" she asked, her voice strangely small.

"Sure, come one!" Joseph laughed.

"But... but..." Mackenzie stammered, faltering in her grasp of the English language. "But don't I have to get to work? I mean, the wells, and the water, and..."

"It's your birthday!" Joseph cried, walking back to Mackenzie and placing an arm around her shoulders, guiding her along with him as he walked. "You're not allowed to work on your birthday. It's the law, you know."

"You work on your birthday all the time!" Mackenzie accused.

"Well, that's the beauty of being the one who writes the laws," Joseph winked, walking back to Mackenzie and throwing an arm around her shoulders and starting to guide her along with him. "I can change them whenever I want. Now come on, we might finally get some good news for a change!"

Moments later, Mackenzie found herself standing at the east side of the town, staring out at the horizon with her father and a dozen or so others, not including LEOs. She felt dazed and her heart was racing. She found herself wishing that she had taken thirty seconds to at least brush her hair that morning. She gulped nervously as she, along with all the others in attendance, stared out at the expanse of desert, watching a cloud of dirt rising from the ground in the wake of the approaching vehicle.

"They're early," she heard her father say to someone nearby. "They weren't scheduled to return for another two weeks."

Mackenzie watched the vehicle speeding closer and closer. It was an 8-wheeled truck, painted to match the dirty rust color of the environment. The tires kicked up the dirt as the powerful truck powered forward, the sunlight glinting off the tinted windscreen. The truck appeared pinched in two locations along the body of the vehicle, creating three different sections, giving it the appearance of an enormous ant with wheels.

The windscreen was too dark for Mackenzie to see inside, but she already knew who was driving. She also knew who was sitting beside her in the passenger seat, navigating their way home. She also knew the names of the four other occupants. Everyone knew their names. They were legends. They were rock stars. They were heroes.

As the truck came closer still, Mackenzie could see the head and upper torso of a person sticking out of the roof of the truck. He was casually holding a long rifle with a scope attachment, squinting into the wind towards home. Mackenzie licked her dry lips nervously; her throat feeling like she'd just swallowed a mouthful of sand. She tried to think of something to say when the people in the truck finally arrived.

Welcome back? she thought. Hi, I'm Mackenzie Miller. No, stupid... S'up? I'm Mackenzie. Oh my God, I'm so lame!

Finally, the truck slowed down and stopped a few feet away from the spectators, who had suddenly increased in size as word spread of the returnees. Mackenzie could feel sweat that had nothing to do with the heat beading on her forehead and under her arms as she watched the doors to the truck open.

They stepped out of the giant ant-like vehicle and, with seemingly practiced efficiency, closed ranks and walked directly towards Joseph Miller, with one man leading the way. Mackenzie frowned suddenly, counting only five. There were supposed to be six.

The people were all dressed the same, but in varying degrees of dirtiness. They wore khaki pants and long sleeved T-shirts with vests that seemed to be made almost entirely out of pockets, which bulged with strange and unknown objects. They all wore the same brown boots and hats that matched their pants.

They marched from the vehicle and stopped directly in front of Joseph Miller. They stood to attention and all snapped out a salute with such unison, Mackenzie wondered if their commander had signalled them somehow.

Joseph smiled and returned the salute with similar robustness.

"At ease, Vasseur," Joseph said, lowering his hand. He then stepped forward and the two men shook hands in welcome, like old friends. Joseph was glancing around behind the man named Vasseur, though, looking concerned. In a low voice, he asked, "Where's Inglis?"

Vasseur scowled at the question and simply shook his head. In a French-accented voice he replied, "He didn't make it, Joe."

Joseph sighed heavily and Mackenzie felt almost heartbroken. Roger Inglis, the specialist, the missing member of the squad. Lost in the endless deserts of the planet.

Mackenzie tried to distract herself by studying the remaining members of the group. There was their leader, Commander Sacha Vasseur, a grisly old Frenchman of African descent with graying sideburns who was built so tightly with muscles, he looked like he could lift 200 pounds with only his bulging neck.

Behind him, there was the squad's driver and the only female in the team, Rebecca Bell. She was an Australian woman with a dark tan and darker freckles on her nose and cheeks. Bell had dark brown hair, which she had pulled tightly back into a ponytail that just reached between her shoulder blades. Bell was fairly short, probably no more than five-and-a-half feet, but was athletic with muscular arms.

Beside Bell, there was a man who looked to be roughly 40 or so, still standing to attention. His back was so straight, Mackenzie thought he might prop himself up with a steel rod. He had a square jaw behind a dark beard, dark brown skin and eyes that studied everything he looked at like he was calculating a complex math equation. His name was Kian Abbas, the squad's navigator/mechanic and second in command.

Then there was Seth Lowe, the meteorologist and doctor. In addition to doing his best to make sure nobody died on mission, he kept an eye on the wild and sometimes erratic weather conditions out in the field, making sure that they weren't about to get caught in a sandstorm or any of the other dangerous weather conditions that could occur. He was much shorter than the others, even Rebecca Bell stood a few inches taller. His hairline was also receding somewhat, despite not even being 40 years old.

Finally, Mackenzie studied the youngest member of the team. She recognized him as being the one she saw standing in the open hole in the vehicle with a scoped rifle in his hand. The gun was now hanging from a strap over his shoulder as he stood at ease beside his unit. He was a couple of years older than Mackenzie, but the dark stubble on his face gave him the appearance of a man who had seen far more than most others his age. He stared out over the heads of those who had come to welcome him and the unit back home, not making eye contact with anyone as he stoically waited for his next order. He had dark black hair, which looked wild and untamed, and his eyes were equally dark. He wore a shirt that was much more fitted than those the others wore and Mackenzie couldn't help but study the outlines of his biceps and triceps under his shirtsleeves.

Jesse Greaves. The sharpshooter. The hunter. The tactician. The one who made sure that no matter which direction they were going, nothing got in their way.

Mackenzie peered at him intently, realizing that she had never stood this close to him, or any of the others for that matter. She could just make out at the edge of his shirt collar what looked like a patch of scarred flesh, as though he had suffered some kind of burn.

As Mackenzie stared, Jesse Greaves' eyes suddenly snapped in her direction and locked onto her face. Feeling caught out, Mackenzie jumped slightly as she stared into his dark eyes, then felt her face burn hot as she blushed bright red. She averted her gaze, damning herself and feeling humiliated, but then looked back to Jesse, hoping that she might be able to save face by playing it cool. Maybe smile and shrug, possibly wink at him jokingly, but he had already looked away again, staring at nothing over the heads of the crowd.

The squad was known as The Diviners. They were the ones who were responsible for the survival of the human race. They had been founded by an Ensign named McLernon and a few joint international soldiers when they realized that their water supply was running out. The Diviners were tasked with locating natural water resources and food on planet Icarus, then reporting that location back to the colony. There were underground wells with water that was drinkable, but they were few and far between. The Diviners had to find it, which was no easy task. But they had so far managed. When they found a new water source, they would report back to the colony, which would then relocate the entire human population to the new well, which would last long enough to sustain them until a new water source was found, and so on.

The Diviners' job was easily the most dangerous job that anyone on this planet could have, but it was also the most respected. They kept people alive, by placing themselves in danger. There was far more on Icarus that could kill you than just dehydration. For this reason, they were revered by almost everyone as heroes.

Joseph Miller had once been a Diviner Commander, having actually trained the current Commander, Vasseur. It was how so many came to respect him and trust him. They knew he would always look out for them, because that's what Diviners did. They were celebrities, but they spent more time out on the planet, away from the colony than they did at home. Mackenzie thought it must be lonely, but they at least had each other.

"I'm sorry about Inglis," Joseph said, snapping Mackenzie out of her fan-girl admiration. "He was a good man."

"Yes, he was," Vasseur said gruffly. "I apologize for returning sooner than expected, but Inglis, he had... he had a child. And a wife. I'm afraid I have to go inform them of his passing."

"Of course," Joseph nodded solemnly. "Do what you have to do, Sacha."

Vasseur half turned and gestured to Abbas. "Kian can brief you on our findings, but the short version is that we are yet to locate a new water supply. And without our specialist, it may prove difficult to do so. We will need to have further conversation about this, but I must go for now."

"Yes, definitely," Joseph agreed. Then, to the rest of the Diviners, he said, "You're all welcome to join me for some food and water, I'm sure you all need it. We're on tight rations right now, but I'm sure people would agree that you've earned your share."

"Thank you, sir," Bell said, unable to hide the grateful tone in her voice.

"Very kind of you, sir," Abbas agreed.

Joseph placed his hand on Mackenzie's shoulder, making her jump. She had been staring at the Diviners again and she was starting to feel self-conscious.

"Why don't you come, too?" Joseph suggested kindly. "You can meet the crew properly."

Mackenzie found she was suddenly unable to speak so she simply nodded. As they all began to head off together (except for Vasseur, who went a different direction to find Inglis' widow), Mackenzie noticed Abbas staring with interest down at her bionic hand. She noticed Bell looking sideways at her, curious. Lowe was already in animated conversation with Joseph. And Jesse Greaves was somewhere behind her, walking silently. Mackenzie could almost feel him back there and she felt increasingly awkward just by walking, like she had suddenly forgotten how to do so and her arms felt stupid by her sides.

Just what the hell do I say to these people? she thought desperately as she walked in the company of legends.

CHAPTER FOUR

"Amazing, a flexible thermoelectric synthetic rubber! Ingenious, really, powering the device with your own body heat. I imagine there is a regulator and nanotech distributer inside the wrist to efficiently deliver power, but I'm surprised that such a device can run on only the milliwatts produced by the human body. Unless, of course-"

"Abbas, I think that's enough for now," Joseph interrupted Kian Abbas' vocal analysis of Mackenzie's bionic hand. "I expect my daughter would like to have her arm back now, if you don't mind."

Abbas glanced from Joseph down to the bionic hand he was holding, which was still attached to Mackenzie's arm. He smirked sheepishly at her and winked, letting go of her hand and straightening up. Mackenzie could see he was still smiling behind his beard.

"Sorry, Mackenzie," Abbas said, chuckling. "I get carried away at times with technology. Especially when it's something so advanced. You say a friend of yours built this?"

Mackenzie nodded, unable to resist showing off a little by flexing the fingers on her bionic hand to demonstrate how well it was able to respond to her thoughts.

"Yeah, Ethan Renaud. He's a tech-head over at the shop."

"Maybe we can talk about that another time, yes?" Joseph interrupted again, taking a seat at the head of a small, rectangular table. "I thought you were going to brief me on something."

They were all inside the office that served as a place for all official functions that came with Joseph's duty as leader of humanity. On the wall overlooking the table in the centre of the room was a large wooden plaque. Mackenzie examined the plaque for a moment, as she had done countless times before. Carved in large letters were the words In Memoriam, and beneath that was a long list of names and dates. Studying the names for a moment, Mackenzie examined the most recent entries. Carter Hughes. Ileana Rivera. Holly Grayson. Viktor Bellic. These were the names of the Diviners lost to the desert. It was a long list.

Mackenzie forced herself to turn away from the Wall and focus on the table in front of her, thinking sadly that Inglis' name would be added before the end of the day.

The table had been laid out with several full jugs of water and several plates of what little food they were actually able to grow in the hot and dry climate: gourd, malabar spinach, okra, and even watermelon. It never ceased to amaze Mackenzie that watermelon was actually able to grow in a desert, with proper care. She longed to take a slice and bite into the soft but firm watery flesh, but thought it would be rude to stuff her face before the Diviners got the chance.

Taking Joseph sitting down as a sign that they should all do the same, Abbas, Lowe, Bell, and Greaves all sat down around the table. Mackenzie, sitting on her father's right noticed that the first thing they all reached for was not the food but the glasses of water set in front of them. They drank slowly, but still downed their glasses in only moments, then poured themselves a second glass, which they then nursed and sipped.

"We weren't able to locate a new water source, as of yet, sir," Abbas began, turning serious again. "The terrain to the east is harder and drier than the last area we colonised. There was nothing out there, even Inglis said so before ... before he died."

"How did he die?" Mackenzie blurted out, then damned herself silently for asking. She shrank down a little in her chair as all eyes turned on her.

"I don't think you want to know exactly how," Bell said gently.

"Er, why not?" Mackenzie asked.

"Did you see us bring a body back?" Jesse said, almost snapping. "There wasn't one, at least not one worth bringing back. Let's just leave it at that."

"Yes, let's," Joseph agreed, glancing at Mackenzie before turning back to Abbas. "What about food? Did you manage to hunt any of the wildlife?"

"Yes," Abbas nodded. "We came across a mana field and collected the fruit seeds, but we know from past attempts that growing mana ourselves is basically impossible. We've yet to identify the specific conditions that allow optimal growth, but perhaps the horticulturists can figure it out this time. Aside from fruit seeds, Jesse managed to pick off a few gozards. Their meat is chilled in the rear of the truck."

"Uh oh," Lowe suddenly said, winking across the table at Mackenzie.

"Excuse me?" Bell snapped, planting her hands firmly on the table and half rising from her seat, staring daggers down the length of the table at Abbas. "The truck?"

"Oh, forgive me," Abbas said sarcastically. "I mean Rhiannon."

"That's better," Bell said, sitting back down in her seat beside Mackenzie with a smug smile.

"You named the truck Rhiannon?" Mackenzie asked, smirking.

"That beautiful gal out there saved our asses more times than I can count," Bell explained. "If that doesn't earn her the right to a name, then nothing does."

"Can we continue to hunt the gozard herd from here?" Joseph asked, sighing slightly as they had gone off topic again.

"No," Jesse said flatly. "They're too far east to keep going back there, plus they're on the move again by now. Gozards never stick around one place too long, sir."

"Of course, I remember," Joseph nodded thoughtfully. "And water? There's nothing? Nothing at all?"

Bell shrugged. "Before we started on this mission, Inglis suspected two prime locations for a new water source. The first was east, which proved to be a bust. The second was south towards the mountain ranges."

"We'd like to head back out as soon as possible, sir," Lowe added.

"We've searched the mountain ranges before," Joseph pointed out, staring down into his glass of water. "Vasseur and I when we were both Diviners. There's nothing there."

"Inglis suspected otherwise, sir," Abbas said. "He believed that the somewhat cooler climate around the southern side of the ranges might yield better results than heading farther east."

"I'm not sure I can approve a mission that wastes time," Joseph sighed. "We have to be certain that we can find a water source there and we don't have the time to make wild guesses."

"You knew Inglis as well as the rest of us, sir," Abbas said, his tone even, though Mackenzie could tell he was frowning behind his beard. "He would never risk lives on a guess."

Joseph sighed and rubbed his forehead; Mackenzie recognized the signs of an impending migraine.

"Our current water supply is almost tapped out," Joseph finally said. "I don't really have much choice in the matter, lest I let us all die of dehydration."

Joseph suddenly glanced at Mackenzie as though he had forgotten she was there, and then he turned back to the Diviners.

"Actually," he began, "Mackenzie works at the wells. If this mission is to go ahead, you all need to understand the deadline that applies to us all. Mackenzie, based on the current depth of the well, how long do you estimate we can all survive?"

"Me?" Mackenzie blurted out, taken aback. She looked helplessly around the room, seeing all the faces that were now turned expectantly towards her. Swallowing hard, Mackenzie thought for a moment before speaking, measuring each word carefully so as to not sound like a fool in front of the Diviners.

"I haven't checked today," she began. "But based on yesterday's reading, we, um... might be able to survive another 6 weeks before dehydration takes place."

"Might?" Jesse pressed, his lip curling slightly.

Mackenzie fixed him with a stern look, trying to decide if Jesse Greaves was playing a part or was genuinely an ass.

"6 weeks is a certainty," she said more forcefully. "7 to 8 if we reduce rations, but they're already pretty tight. By that time, we'll be completely out of water. People will already be ill by that stage, plenty will already have died, but at 7 weeks, the body count will skyrocket. There are a hundred thousand people who need water who suddenly won't be getting it."

Jesse frowned, but nodded. "You mean there might be riots. People stealing water and food."

"I mean people will be scared of dying," Mackenzie said emphatically, leaning forward slightly.

Jesse shrugged. "Is there a difference?"

"Yeah, a big one!" Mackenzie said, her voice rising. "We're so close to running out of water. We've already had one case of theft, and you know how that always goes. No one has ever chosen to actually let themselves be banished. You might be confident that you can survive out there, but most people are scared to death of what's out there. It won't just be dehydration and theft and violence if we don't get some hope soon. There'll be suicides. It's happened before. You know as well as I do that there were over 200 thousand people who landed on Icarus. Less than fifty years later, we're barely more than half that. People would rather take their own lives than live out there with no guarantee of water or food. People need to know that you're doing something for them, that there's a chance. That's why your job is so important. And we need you all now more than ever before."

"Thank you, Kenzie," Joseph smiled, beaming proudly at his daughter. Then, turning back to the others, he said, "So that's your deadline. You need to find a water source and report back to us its location with enough time for us to relocate. I'd say about 4 weeks, give or take. That's total time, by the way. You have 4 weeks as of right now to find an ample water source and get back here to tell us where to find it. That should leave enough time with our supplies to relocate with minimal casualties. Or none, God-willing. Understood?"

"Yes, sir," Abbas said, nodding.

"Got it," Bell agreed.

"No problem," Lowe grinned.

"Hmph," Jesse grunted, not looking at anyone. "5 weeks would be better."

"It'll be too late by 5 weeks," Mackenzie snapped, cutting off her father as he was about to respond. "You're not pretty enough to be this stupid."

Mackenzie met Jesse's angry stare at the precise moment she realized what she'd said. She hadn't meant to say that, why had she said that? Now no one said a word while the tension mounted between her and the angry young Diviner.

There were several seconds of total silence as Jesse and Mackenzie glared at one another, Mackenzie trying to hide her nerves. Finally, the silence was broken by Abbas, Bell and Lowe all cracking up laughing at once. Joseph was also trying to hide a grin and maintain an air of professionalism, though not with great success. Jesse simply glared daggers at Mackenzie, who, despite her pounding heart and disbelief that she had spoken like that to a Diviner, least of all Jesse, glared right back at him.

"She takes after her father, I see," a new voice said gruffly, though not without amusement.

All heads turned to see Commander Vasseur standing in the entrance, his eyes narrowed by half a smile as he glanced between Mackenzie and Joseph.

"Don't take Jesse's pessimism personally, Mackenzie," Vasseur said. "He has his bad traits, as we all do. Though I admit, he is something of an acquired taste."

"Acquire this, sir," Jesse sneered, grabbing his crotch.

"Charming, as always," Vasseur sniggered.

"Er, how's Inglis' family?" Mackenzie asked quietly.

All humor suddenly vacated the room. Everyone became solemn and some even lowered their heads. Lowe took off his hat and quietly recited a prayer.

"As well as one could be, I suppose," Vasseur finally said. "But as to the matter at hand, I believe, with Joseph's say-so, we should leave as soon as possible. But not without recruiting a replacement for Inglis."

"Is there time for that?" Bell asked.

"There'd better be," Lowe said, replacing his hat on his head. "He was our specialist."

"It takes months to train a new Diviner," Joseph pointed out. "We only have a few weeks."

"We don't have a choice, Joe," Vasseur shrugged. "We need a specialist."

Joseph sighed heavily. "I know. But make it fast. I'll work on a list of suitable people and have it to you by morning. You can choose the best candidates from that list. For now, though, I think you all deserve a rest. Head home. See your loved ones. Get your strength back. I have a feeling the next few weeks are going to be rough. For all of us."

Later that night, Mackenzie, Joseph and Lorelei were seated around the kitchen table and eating a small meal of what they could scrounge together. It wasn't much, just a sliver of gozard meat apiece and some gourd and bread. Mackenzie chewed on the tough meat and thought about how amazing that watermelon had looked. She'd forgotten to grab a slice, but was regretting it now.

Lorelei looked equally unimpressed by her meal, though she was still smiling at Mackenzie. Lorelei had screamed when she saw Mackenzie's bionic hand and had fawned over it for hours, almost crying with happiness.

"We'll have to do something special for Ethan," she had said several dozen times. "We'll make him his favorite meal or get some new tools made up for his work. Oh, that Ethan! I always loved him, he's such a good boy, Mackenzie!"

Mackenzie knew Lorelei was hinting at Ethan becoming more than just a friend. It was a regular conversation between mother and daughter, but Mackenzie didn't think she felt that way about Ethan. Sure, he was attractive, in a goofy-dork kind of way, but they had grown up together. He was closer to a brother than a friend, anything more than that would be weird.

While the Miller's ate dinner, Joseph worked silently on a tablet he had propped up beside his plate. He would type something on the holographic keyboard projected onto the table's surface, then pause to eat something, thinking, then return to the device to type some more. He was working on the list he had promised Sacha Vasseur. Every name he could think of that might suit the position of Diviner specialist.

"Is there anyone you'd take with you?" Lorelei asked. "If you were still a Diviner? Who would you trust?"

Joseph sighed and rubbed his knuckles into his eyes. "I don't know, dear. I've got about thirty people on this list and I'm not sure about a single one of them. Sure, they know their stuff. But do they have what it takes to survive out there? There's more to worry about in the deserts than just dehydration."

"Like what?" Mackenzie asked, curious, though she already knew the answer she was going to get.

"I'll tell you only when I want to traumatize you for life," Joseph replied, just as he had for years.

"Come on," Mackenzie pleaded. "You never tell me anything about when you were a Diviner. Isn't there anything you can say? It can't be that bad."

Joseph stared across the table at Mackenzie for a long while. It was becoming dark in the kitchen, a single bulb hanging overhead and lighting the room, though it was dim. The poor lighting above combined with the glow of the tablet screen in front of Joseph caused him to look gaunt, almost frightening. His eyes appeared sunken and reflected the white screen of his tablet, making his pupils seem milky white.

"Kenzie," Joseph began, speaking softly, but his tone as stern as it had ever been. "I can't begin to tell you what horrors are out there. And I never will. I resigned from the Diviners when you were born because I knew that if I didn't, I would leave you without a father, one way or another. Either I would die out there, or I'd lose my mind. So yes, Kenzie, it is that bad."

Mackenzie slowly looked away from her father and lowered her gaze to her plate. She resumed eating, the already tough meat suddenly seeming that much harder to swallow.

Sleep was elusive that night for Mackenzie. It was a warm night, warmer than usual. Her tongue and throat were dry and she longed to go get a drink from the cooler, but knew that there wasn't much water left. Trying to ignore her thirst, Mackenzie rolled onto her side and closed her eyes, willing herself to fall asleep.

The light of the moon shone in between the blinds on her window, casting long bars of shadows across the room. The gentle light played on Mackenzie's face, shining between her eyelids, making it that much more difficult to find sleep. Mackenzie opened her eyes and sighed heavily as she rolled onto her back and stared up at the ceiling. She tried to work up enough saliva in her mouth to combat the dryness, but that was a losing battle.

Finally unable to take it any more, Mackenzie threw back the thin sheet and climbed out of bed. Treading carefully to make sure she didn't wake her parents, Mackenzie moved silently across her bedroom and made her way into the kitchen. Glancing towards her parents' closed bedroom door, she paused for a moment to listen, in case she had woken either of them. After holding her breath to listen, Mackenzie heard her father gently snoring. They were still asleep.

Mackenzie reached out to the cooler with her hand and opened the door. The jug of water was low. They'd gotten a small ration late in the afternoon, but it was almost gone already. Then Mackenzie spotted the small glass of water she had left in the cooler that morning, she had forgotten all about it.

Reaching out quickly, as though she expected the water to vanish, Mackenzie grabbed the glass and threw back the contents into her mouth. It wasn't much, less than a mouthful, but to Mackenzie's dry throat, it was the most satisfying thing she'd ever had. She sighed deeply, feeling relieved as the irritation in her throat began to subside and her tongue began to feel less like a dry sponge.

Mackenzie then set the glass aside and closed the cooler door. She began to head back to bed, but still felt too wired to sleep. Instead she took a seat at the table, Joseph's tablet still there as he had resigned himself to bed, and began to study her new hand.

It gleamed in the darkness, the steel reflecting where the light hit it. Mackenzie found it almost as easy to control now as her real hand, so smooth were the movements of the fingers, the twist of the wrist. She still didn't fully understand how Ethan had done it, but she loved him for it.

Thinking of Ethan, she remembered something he had said to her that morning when he gave her the hand. He had said she wouldn't be restricted to the wells anymore. Her disability (Mackenzie frowned at the word she hated) was no longer holding her back. When she had become old enough to work, Joseph had insisted that she work in the wells because it was less physically demanding and he didn't want her to feel as though she couldn't keep up with others. While Mackenzie knew her father had meant well by this, she was a little resentful. Who decided that having one hand meant you weren't as capable as anyone else? She wanted to do something important. She wanted to help. She wanted to do more.

Like the Diviners, she thought.

They do more for the last of humanity in a single week than anyone else does in their entire lifetime. As soon as the thought occurred to her, Mackenzie knew that was the sort of thing she wanted to do with her life. She wanted to follow in the footsteps of her father, and her grandfather, Captain Steven Miller, both of whom had placed the survival of humanity above their own lives.

Mackenzie sighed sadly as she dismissed the thought. Joseph would never allow her to do anything like that. He had spent her whole life making sure no harm came to her, there was no way he'd add her name to the list of possible recruits.

Why shouldn't he, though? Mackenzie thought bitterly. I work in the wells. I know how to test water toxicity, I know how to purify water. I know just as much as anyone else on that list, maybe more! Dad did say I was the best hydrologist we'd had in years.

But then she thought about how her father always spoke about the deserts of Icarus. How a glassy look would come over his eyes and he would lose all traces of a smile in an instant when the topic was touched on. He had said there were horrors out there that he was never going to tell Mackenzie about, so terrible they were likely to either kill mercilessly or drive one to madness. The thought of being out there, in the deserts, facing such things, made Mackenzie shiver, despite the warmth of the night.

Inglis didn't come back, Mackenzie reminded herself. He was a veteran Diviner, and even he didn't survive.

Mackenzie stared down at her bionic hand and slowly extended the fingers, then slowly curled them into a fist, then repeated the movements, watching carefully. She then looked sideways at the tablet her father had left on the table beside her. It had a list of names for Vasseur to call on, suitable replacements for Inglis. Joseph would never put her name on that list, Mackenzie knew.

There was no way he'd let her become a Diviner.

Mackenzie chewed on her bottom lip as she stared at the tablet.

But still...

CHAPTER FIVE

"Listen up!" Vasseur shouted to the crowd. "The Lord gave you one mouth and two ears, I suggest you use them accordingly! That means mouths shut, ears open!"

Mackenzie tried to hide among the other people as Vasseur shouted to be heard above the buzzing of the crowd. He stood on the balcony to the small two-story shack that served as the "town hall," for lack of a better title. Joseph worked out of this office most days, planning and organising means of survival and tending to town matters of more political natures. Now, however, it was the meeting point for today's event.

The crowd of two or three dozen people quickly stopped gossiping and looked expectantly towards Vasseur, who had both hands placed on the railing in front of him as he surveyed his audience. The other Diviners stood with him, as did Joseph. None of them had seen Mackenzie yet. She gazed up at them all, waiting, wearing a hooded shirt with the hood pulled over her head. No one paid her any attention. All eyes were on Vasseur.

"You should all know by now why the LEOs brought you here," Vasseur began, eyeing everyone sternly, like a principal searching an assembly for troublesome students. "But just in case you didn't get the message, this is the deal. We have found ourselves sadly short one Diviner. The water situation in Town is becoming increasingly troubling, and we need someone with particular skills to accompany us on our next mission. Our friend and Secretary General, Joseph Miller, has provided me with a list of names who possess the skills required of this position. I've reviewed that list and then studied your files, learning your work history, your education scores, psych evaluations, for those who've had them. Everyone here was on that list, but only four of you have been singled out. I will call out your name, and you will then immediately enter the town hall and await downstairs for further instructions. Understood?"

Vasseur didn't wait for people to nod their understanding. He was already pulling out a tablet from the breast pocket of his vest and opening up a document with a swift swipe of his finger. The crowd collectively held their breath as they waited to hear the first name.

"Norman Ackles!" Vasseur shouted.

Mackenzie saw a wiry man with black hair tied into a ponytail grin smugly at the people around him as he pushed his way through the crowd towards the building. He paused at the door to turn around and wave at the crowd before disappearing inside.

Why am I even here? Mackenzie wondered as she sighed.

"Demelza Muys!"

Mackenzie heard a small cry of shock from somewhere in the crowd behind her, then a few people laughed. A moment later, Mackenzie saw a woman she worked with at the wells make her way towards the building, a look of stunned amazement on her face. Then she, too, vanished through the door.

"Ethan Renaud!"

Mackenzie gasped and looked around. Ethan? How was he on the list? He was a tech head, not a hydrologist. Mackenzie spotted him almost drifting through the crowd, looking dazed. Mackenzie willed him to look her way, so that she could... something! But Ethan vanished inside without spotting her.

"Finally," Vasseur shouted, the crowd falling quiet once more as it had begun to buzz. "The last recruit... Mackenzie Miller!"

Mackenzie's jaw dropped as she stared up at Vasseur. She'd misheard. She must have misheard! But she knew she hadn't when she saw her father's face. Joseph's eyes had shot wide open and he snapped his gaze around to stare at Vasseur, shouting, "WHAT?"

Joseph glanced from Vasseur, who looked confused about Joseph's reaction, to the crowd, his eyes scanning faces, searching for Mackenzie. He then grabbed Vasseur's elbow and leaned in close, saying something softly, though sternly, in Vasseur's ear. Vasseur scowled and looked down at the tablet in his hands.

Before Mackenzie realized, she was walking towards the door to the building. The crowd was already beginning to disperse, recognizing that they no longer needed to be there. Some looked disappointed, many more looked relieved. Mackenzie walked through them like she didn't even know they were there. Her gaze was locked on the door to the town hall, seeming like it was much farther away than it was. She felt eyes on her suddenly and looked up towards the balcony, expecting to see her father glaring furiously down at her.

Instead, while Joseph was in a heated, whispered, debate with Vasseur, Mackenzie met the gaze of Jesse Greaves. He was watching her closely, a strange smirk on his face as he scratched his jaw thoughtfully. Mackenzie felt her heart skip a beat when she looked at him. He was annoying, but to have a living legend look at you, acknowledge your existence? It made Mackenzie's knees feel weak and she worried for a moment she might actually fall over.

Suddenly the door was in front of her and Jesse vanished from her line of sight as she passed beneath the balcony. Mackenzie pushed through the door, moving slowly, as if in a dream, and walked inside.

Mackenzie first saw Ethan and Demelza in discussion in the corner. Demelza looked worried and was hugging herself, rubbing her arms as she spoke. Ethan seemed a little more composed, even somewhat excited, as he tried to soothe Demelza.

The other guy, Ackles, was leaning casually against one wall, watching Ethan and Demelza with a smug expression. Mackenzie got the sense that he was sizing up the others and was amused by what he saw.

The door behind Mackenzie suddenly banged loudly shut, making her jump and all eyes turn towards her.

"Mackenzie?" Ethan gasped. After a moment of stunned silence, he hurried over to her. "Your name was called?"

"Er, yeah, I guess so," Mackenzie replied, trying to sound nonchalant, but she knew Ethan could see right through her. She'd never been a good liar.

"Your dad put you on the list?" Demelza asked, walking across the room to join them.

"No," a stern voice snapped nearby.

Mackenzie, Ethan, Demelza, and Ackles all turned towards the angry voice and saw Joseph entering the room, stepping heavily as he stomped towards Mackenzie. Behind him, Vasseur and the other Diviners were in tow, though they all seemed far more relaxed. Mackenzie noticed that Jesse was still smirking at her with some kind of amusement that bordered on belittling. Then she turned her eyes back to her father.

Joseph had been angry at Mackenzie before. There had been times in her youth where she had pushed him to the very edge of his temperament, but this was by far the most angry she had ever seen him. His jaw moved as he ground his teeth together and his face was turning a deep shade of red as he glared at Mackenzie. Every heavy footfall made Mackenzie want to flinch, as though she expected the next to crack the ground beneath her. Joseph stopped and stood over his daughter, glaring down at her, folding his arms over his chest, his eyebrows pressing hard together in an enraged V. Mackenzie stood her ground, but she sensed Ethan and Demelza step back, like they were worried they might catch some of Joseph Miller's wrath just be being close to Mackenzie.

"You put your own name on the list, didn't you?" Joseph asked. He spoke quietly, but that even, almost calm, voice was emanating a rage that Mackenzie had never known her father capable of. It was almost enough to make her take a step back, too.

Instead, Mackenzie swallowed hard on her nerves and met her father's angry stare.

"Yes," she said simply.

"Why?" Joseph demanded, unfolding his arms and grabbing Mackenzie's shoulders. "Why would you do such a stupid thing?"

"Why's it stupid?" Mackenzie asked. "Do you think anyone who goes to the deserts is stupid?"

Joseph didn't seem to expect this response. He glanced over Mackenzie's shoulder at Ethan and Demelza, who were watching silently as they pretended not to be watching. Then Joseph glanced behind himself to the Diviners who stood by, watching with apparent disinterest. Joseph then turned back to Mackenzie, taking his hands off her shoulders and standing straight.

"That's not what I meant," he said sternly, taking some of the anger from his tone, though not all. "I chose these people to go on the list because of their skills and their knowledge. You elected yourself."

"I only put my name on the list of possible candidates," Mackenzie pointed out. "It was Vasseur who elected me."

Vasseur cleared his throat, almost uncomfortably. "She does have an impressive skill-set, Joe. It would have been foolish of me to disregard her just because she's your daughter. If I had done that, it would have raised certain... concerns among the people."

"Well, she's not a candidate," Joseph snapped, silencing Vasseur. "I don't approve."

"You don't have to," Mackenzie said, beginning to feel angry and embarrassed. "Last time I checked, I wasn't a minor. I don't need your approval. And Vasseur called out my name, so I'm eligible to stay if I want to."

"Kenzie," Joseph pleaded, lowering his voice so the others couldn't overhear. "Please, I'm begging you. You don't know how dangerous it is out there. The life expectancy of a Diviner drops to just days once they step outside this town."

"You made it," Mackenzie pointed out.

"That was..." Joseph began, but paused, struggling for how to respond. "Different."

"Why?" Mackenzie asked, almost demanding.

"It just is."

Mackenzie narrowed her eyes at her father. "It's because of my hand, isn't it? You don't think I can take care of myself because I was born with just one hand."

Joseph was shaking his head as Mackenzie spoke. "No, no, that's not what this is about. I just don't want anything bad to happen to you!"

"What makes you so certain it will?"

"I just... I don't want to risk it."

"It's me taking risks, Dad!"

"You're not doing this!"

"You can't stop me!"

"Watch me!"

"Excuse me, sir?"

The increasingly heated and loud argument between Mackenzie and Joseph suddenly stopped as everyone turned towards the one who had spoken.

Jesse Greaves had taken a step forward from his squad and was speaking directly to Joseph. Joseph blinked twice at Jesse in surprise, as though he had forgotten anyone else was there. Jesse kept his hands clasped behind his back as he spoke, his voice impassive, like he didn't care one way or the other about the father-daughter spat that was taking place in front of him.

"I just thought I should point something out, sir," Jesse began. "This stage of the process is simply recruitment. There's no guarantee right now that your daughter will be going anywhere. She needs to pass Commander Vasseur's tests before we take her on, same as everyone else who had their name called. If she can't pass the tests, she stays home. So I wouldn't worry too much, sir. With all due respect to your daughter, I doubt she has what it takes."

Mackenzie glared furiously at Jesse Greaves, wanting to lunge across the room and slap him across his smug face. Joseph, however, despite the insult to his own daughter, seemed to relax somewhat.

"The tests, of course," he muttered. "Right. Vasseur, I'll, er... I'll leave you to the recruits, then. And, er, we'll talk more later." Then he turned back to Mackenzie and added, "We'll be talking about this later, too, young lady."

"Can't wait," Mackenzie snapped.

Joseph gave Mackenzie one last look of anger mixed with disappointment. He turned away from Mackenzie and marched towards Vasseur. Some of the anger seemed to return to Joseph's expression as he stood close to Vasseur, almost threateningly.

"Meet me in my office later," Joseph said firmly. "I need to discuss mission objectives with you."

Vasseur stared back at Joseph with a blank expression, but Mackenzie saw his frown intensify slightly. Vasseur replied only with a curt nod. Without another word, Joseph then left, slamming the door behind him.

Mackenzie stared sadly after him, though she was still mad as well. Joseph had always babied her, and no matter what he said, Mackenzie knew it was because of her hand. Some part of her even suspected that when he had found out she was born without her left hand, he had been relieved. Because the lack of a hand had meant she would not be able to follow in his footsteps and become a Diviner as he had been. Now, however, here she was, throwing herself in the deep end, head first.

"Listen!" Vasseur suddenly shouted, making Mackenzie and the other recruits all jump. "Normally Diviner training is an eleven month process, but we don't have eleven months. In fact, we have it on good authority that in only seven weeks, everyone will be either dead or dying."

Vasseur glanced at Mackenzie, but did not name her as his source, for which she was grateful. Enough attention had been on her already.

"So instead," Vasseur went on, "we're going to be cramming all the mission-essential training we can into the next two days. Only one of you will be joining us out in the field, but whoever that may be might wish they hadn't been so lucky. While his or her friends get to stay home and wait for us to find a new location to move the town to, that lucky person will undergo the rest of their training in the field. With us. Do not let yourself be fooled into thinking it's a glamorous life, or even a good one. Every second out there is a fight for survival. Odds of dying are great. Odds of wishing to die are greater."

Mackenzie heard Ethan swallow hard as Vasseur fixed them all with a cold stare.

"The next few days will be hard," Vasseur said. "But the following weeks will be harder. And do not take lightly what we are about to do. Because either we succeed... or everyone dies. And there's no time to let that information sink in, ladies and gentlemen. Because your training starts now."

The sound of gunfire rang out across the flat landscape of the desert. The booming echo resonated through Mackenzie's bones and teeth, and she was certain that everyone in town could hear the shots.

She, the other three recruits, and the Diviners, were all situated roughly 400 yards out of the Town, which was the farthest Mackenzie had ever been from civilization. They had gone straight from the town hall to this blank expanse of dirt and stone, only to then have a short rifle thrust into their arms.

"First things first," Vasseur had immediately shouted at them. "These guns can kill you. If you are stupid while holding one, or stupid while near someone else holding one, then you will be shot and you will probably die. If you get someone else shot or killed because you were stupid, I'll then shoot you myself and you will definitely die. Keep those safeties on and fingers off the triggers! Jesse Greaves is our gun expert. He will be teaching you how not to be stupid around a gun. Listen carefully, do everything he says, or he will shoot you."

Ethan had chuckled quietly at that, like he thought Vasseur was joking, but the cold look on Jesse's face as he regarded the recruits, as though daring them to do something stupid, told Mackenzie that it most definitely was not a joke.

Vasseur stepped aside and Jesse took his place, standing front and center before the recruits, who were standing side by side with their rifles. Jesse raised his hand and pointed far into the distance, where the white truck was kicking up dust as it drove back towards them.

"Bell took Rhiannon another hundred yards that way," Jesse snapped. "She's set up targets for you to shoot at. I say shoot at, because I doubt any of you will actually hit anything you're aiming at. Once she is clear, and only then, I will call on you one at a time to fire on the targets."

Jesse clasped his hands behind his back and gave Mackenzie and the others one of his hardest stares, his eyes narrowing and his scowl increasing.

"If you're going to be a Diviner," he said quietly, almost too quiet to hear. "You need to be able to defend yourself. The difference between life and death out here is often decided by how good your aim is and how fast you can pull the trigger."

The truck, Rhiannon, drove past at that point and came to a stop alongside the other spectating Diviners. Bell jumped out and stood beside Vasseur, Lowe, and Abbas to watch.

"Demelza!" Jesse suddenly snapped.

As soon as Jesse shouted her name, Demelza flinched and there was a loud bang, causing Mackenzie to instinctively jump back, just as a cloud of dirt exploded at her feet, right where her foot had been a moment earlier.

"Oh God, I'm sorry!" Demelza cried, holding the gun closer to her body like a teddy, as though it might offer her some comfort as she regarded Mackenzie with a mixed look of horror and guilt. "I didn't mean to, I'm sorry, are you okay?"

Mackenzie, sighing in relief, was about to say she was fine, when Jesse suddenly appeared in front of Demelza, snatched the gun out of her hands and shoved his face right in hers, a look of twisted fury creasing his brow.

"What did I just say!?" he roared in her face. "What did Commander Vasseur just say!? Don't be stupid around the gun! You could have killed someone!"

"I'm fine," Mackenzie began to say, but Jesse wouldn't hear it.

"Vasseur said safeties on! You nearly blew off Miller's foot! You're done, Muys, go home. Maybe the walk back to Town will give you a chance to think for once!"

Demelza looked from Jesse to Mackenzie, then to Ethan and Ackles, her eyes wide and glistening with tears. She then turned and began hurrying back towards Town, sobbing loudly.

"It was just an accident," Mackenzie said, frowning at Jesse. "You didn't have to kick her out like that."

"Even one mistake can get people killed out here," Jesse snarled, turning on her. "There's no place for stupidity. But since you seem to enjoy being the center of attention, maybe you'd like to go first. Go on, take a shot."

Jesse stood aside and drew a line in the sand with his boot, then took another step back, spreading his arms wide and bowing his head slightly in a mock gesture of welcoming Mackenzie.

Scowling at him, Mackenzie stepped up to the line and placed the butt of her rifle against her shoulder, squinting into the distance towards the targets.

They looked tiny. They were nothing but a square of steel screwed into wooden poles and planted in the ground like absurd trees. Each square of steel had a bullseye painted on it, which Mackenzie found difficult to see from this distance.

No way can I hit that, Mackenzie thought.

Behind her, she thought she heard chuckling. She wasn't sure who it was, either Jesse or maybe even the other recruit, Ackles. Either way, it pissed her off. Mackenzie raised the gun, took careful aim, thumbed the safety switch to off, and pulled the trigger.

The gun jumped in her hands with such force she thought she might just fall on her backside. It was far more powerful than she had imagined. Her shoulder was aching and she had pins and needles in her hands, all from just one shot.

"Miss," Jesse said flatly.

Mackenzie turned her head and saw Jesse standing a few feet away with a pair of binoculars raised to his eyes, watching the targets in the distance.

"Again," Jesse barked.

Grinding her teeth in annoyance, Mackenzie raised the gun again and took aim. Again, the kick of the rifle hurt her shoulder and made her hands tingle with pain. This time, though, she had expected the force of the shot and wasn't almost knocked on her ass.

"Miss," Jesse said again. "You're too tense. Loosen up. Relax your shoulder. Squeeze the trigger, don't pull it. Exhale as you fire. Turn your shoulder slightly so that when the rifle kicks, it slides a little across the bone instead of almost dislocating it. Try again."

Scowling at the demeaning way Jesse had of speaking to her, Mackenzie did as she was told, though silently cursing Jesse with creative use of the English language. Mackenzie lined up the target between the sights, exhaled gently, then squeezed the trigger.

This time, after the shot, Mackenzie heard the sound of a distant ping as the bullet bounced off the steel square.

"Nice shot!" Ethan crowed.

"I hit it," Mackenzie grinned, surprised.

"Don't throw a party just yet," Jesse snapped, lowering the binoculars and turning to face Mackenzie. "You hit the outer edge of the sheet, not the target. If that was a wild animal charging at you, you would have just grazed its skin and pissed it off. Before we're done here, all three of you need to be able to hit the bullseye in the center."

Mackenzie squinted into the distance at the target. There in the center was a tiny red circle, barely visible this far away.

"Pfft!" snorted Ackles, who hadn't said a thing until now. "Easy."

"That's no bigger than an old quarter!" Ethan pointed out doubtfully.

"There's no way we can hit that," Mackenzie said. "It's impossible!"

Jesse glared at Mackenzie with narrowed eyes for a moment. Then he marched over to her, dropping his binoculars so that they hung from the strap around his neck, bouncing off his chest. Jesse snatched the gun out of Mackenzie's hands and she was momentarily afraid he was going to send her home, like he had with Demelza.

Instead, Jesse turned to face downrange, raised the gun, aimed, and fired, all in one fluid movement. There was a loud ping from the target as Jesse's shot found its mark. Mackenzie was looking to see where it hit, but Jesse ripped the binoculars from around his neck and shoved them into her hands without saying a word.

Mackenzie raised the binoculars and peered at the target. Through the magnified lens, she could see a hole in the target, directly over the red bullseye.

"Second lesson," Jesse said flatly. "Self-doubt will get you just as far as stupidity."

And so the remainder of the morning, and some of the afternoon, was spent firing guns, learning how to handle guns, and as a reward, learning how to dismantle, clean, and reassemble guns. By the time they were done, they could all hit the targets dead center almost every time. Mackenzie now knew more about the mechanics of a rifle than she ever thought there was to know, and the muscles in her arms throbbed painfully.

A canteen of water was being passed around after Jesse made them pack the guns away safely inside the truck and the cool liquid washing down her throat was among the greatest sensations Mackenzie had ever known, so tired and thirsty was she.

"Good work today, people," Vasseur said to them as they drank. "You now have a chance of defending yourselves. And Renaud, nice job reassembling your weapon so fast. I think you just broke the record time."

Ethan grinned sheepishly, but was too fatigued to offer much more than, "Thanks, sir."

"Ackles," Jesse barked from nearby. "Good shooting. You were the best shot today. But considering your competition, I wouldn't be too proud."

Ackles grinned nastily in Mackenzie's direction, who scowled back at him. She had hit the bullseye just as much as he had. What the hell was Jesse's problem?

"Everyone get an early night tonight," Vasseur continued, speaking to the group as a whole now. "You've earned it. The Secretary General has excused you all from your regular duties, so don't worry about getting in a shift at your usual placements. You'll need some sleep, because we're starting real early in the morning with more training. You have a lot to learn and no time to learn it. So if you think you're hurting now, you just wait until tomorrow."

CHAPTER SIX

The Diviners gave her, Ethan and Ackles a ride back to Town, but to Mackenzie's dismay, they weren't allowed inside the truck.

"Rhiannon only lets Diviners inside her," Bell had grinned, while Lowe failed to hold back his laughter. "You three can just dry-hump her thighs."

So, Mackenzie and Ethan had tried to find a foothold and something to grip on the side of Rhiannon, while Ackles took a place at the rear of the truck, holding tightly to whatever he could wrap a hand around.

It was a scary ride, what with Bell driving at seemingly top speeds while Mackenzie, Ethan and Ackles all held on tight with arms that were still quivering from a day of use on the firing range. Despite the fear of falling, though, Mackenzie had to admit it was exhilarating. She had never moved so fast in her life and as she looked into the wind and let it ruffle her hair, she couldn't help but grin.

"Woooo!" she cheered, pumping a fist into the air towards Town while holding tight to Rhiannon with her bionic hand.

"Hold on!" Ethan shouted at her, holding on to the truck tightly with both hands.

The ride was over far too quickly, in Mackenzie's opinion. She could have ridden the side of the truck for hours, so she was visibly disappointed when the truck came to a steady halt and Bell shouted out the window to get off her "baby."

The Diviners quickly departed and Ackles walked away on his own, though not before shooting Mackenzie and Ethan an arrogant sneer.

"Doesn't say much, does he?" Ethan noted, watching Ackles saunter off.

"Something tells me we don't want him to," Mackenzie said snidely.

Ethan chuckled by way of agreement and the two of them began to walk home. As they lived fairly close to one another, they walked together.

"Man, my arms are killing me," Ethan groaned, rubbing his biceps. "Who knew shooting a gun was such hard work?"

"Tell me about it," Mackenzie agreed, rubbing her own arms.

"Hey, uh..." Ethan started, but Mackenzie already knew what he was hesitant to ask.

"You want to know why I put my own name on the list, right?" she interrupted.

"Well... yeah," Ethan admitted. "You never said anything about wanting to be a Diviner before."

"I never thought it was an option before," Mackenzie replied. "You know, my hand and all. You definitely need all your limbs to do that job. But this hand you made for me - which is totally awesome, by the way - actually made me think about what I want, you know? And this seemed like something that really mattered."

"I get it," Ethan nodded. "Which reminds me, you should clean that hand after today. There could be dust and stuff that might damage it."

Mackenzie looked down at the hand, the thought of the thing breaking after such a short time causing her a moment of near panic. She wondered if her father wasn't above sabotaging it to keep her from training with the Diviners.

"Hey, why was your name called?" Mackenzie suddenly asked Ethan.

"Wow, thanks," Ethan frowned at her.

"No, you know what I mean," Mackenzie said, smiling apologetically as she placed a hand on Ethan's arm. She felt him tense up at her touch and loosened her grip, figuring she had hit a sensitive muscle after the long day on the range. "Demelza and I work in hydrology, I think I heard someone say Ackles was in training to work in the wells, but you're a tech-head. You work with machines and gadgets, why would they call you to be their water specialist?"

"Well, you know all those machines and gadgets that you use to do your job?" Ethan smirked. "Where do you think they're built? The shop builds all the stuff you use to test and purify water, all the tools the Diviners use to find it, everything. I've built too many to count myself, so I guess that's why they called me. I might not know as much about water toxicity and waterborne contagions as you do, but I at least have a complete working knowledge of the tools you would use to figure it out."

Mackenzie noticed they were almost near her small home, where her parents were undoubtedly waiting for her, Lorelei ready to burst into tears at the sight of her, sick with worry at the prospect of her daughter entering the most dangerous profession in the world, while Joseph was most likely waiting to say to Mackenzie all the things he'd had all day to prepare. Mackenzie hadn't had the time to spare a thought for what she was going to say to them and now that the moment was here, she wished she was still out in the desert being berated by Jesse Greaves.

"Don't worry about your dad," Ethan said, as if reading her mind. "He'll come around. He's probably calmed down by now and sees it your way."

"You wanna bet on that?" Mackenzie sighed.

Ethan chuckled as Mackenzie peeled away from him to head back to her house.

"Hey, um, Mackenzie?" Ethan began, sounding hesitant.

Mackenzie turned around to face him, letting the setting sun warm her back. Ethan was shifting uncomfortably on his feet as Mackenzie watched. She noticed he was doing that thing he did when he was nervous, where he would rub the tip of his thumb across the tips of each finger in rapid succession.

"Are you..." Ethan began, still sounding hesitant and awkward. "Are you, um... sure this is what you want?"

Mackenzie thought about it for a moment before answering. She could see how people would doubt this was a sincere desire, what with how sudden it was. She'd never really expressed any wish to be a Diviner before. Although, she had always wanted to do something really important with her life, make a difference and be remembered, like her grandfather Captain Stephen Miller was still remembered by everyone. But after a day with the Diviners, training under them and learning how to be one, Mackenzie's vague wish to make a difference had taken on a tangible shape.

"Yes," Mackenzie finally replied, smiling at Ethan, but speaking firmly to show she was serious. "This is exactly what I want."

Ethan nodded, but still looked distracted by some thought or another that was running around his head. Mackenzie waited for him to come out with it, but he never did. He just smiled back at Mackenzie, and she could tell he was forcing the unspoken thought from his mind for the moment.

"All right then," he said, suddenly jovial. "Well, we better do what Vasseur said and get some rest. I'll see you in the morning."

"G'night," Mackenzie waved, turning back towards home.

Ethan watched her for a moment until she disappeared inside, his smile gone and a look of worry in his eyes. Then he also turned and headed home.

Inside Mackenzie's home, it was as she had expected. Her mother was distraught with worry at the thought of Mackenzie potentially becoming a Diviner, begging Mackenzie to quit, fuming at Joseph for allowing it to happen. Joseph was also angry, though not as much as that morning. He seemed more weary than anything else, but he was still making his opinion quite clear, also wanting Mackenzie to drop out in the morning and resume her work in the wells.

"If you really want to do something else," he tried to bargain, "I can check the rosters and see if we need help in agriculture. We always need to grow more food. Maybe we can even try to round up a few gozards and start a herd."

"No," Mackenzie said firmly as she stood around the kitchen table with her parents. "First of all, you know that's stupid because gozards refuse to stay in one place for too long. They always break down whatever fence we've made and keep migrating. Secondly, have you both forgotten that this is my life? Worry if you want to, but don't you dare tell me how to live!"

"Mackenzie, please," Lorelei begged. "We only want what's best for you."

"No, you want to baby me," Mackenzie snapped. "Both of you. You think I can't handle myself because of only having one hand. Well, I could do this even without the bionic! And you need to at least let me try! For once, let me try something!"

With that, she turned on her heel and stormed off to bed. She would have slammed the door, but that would have made her seem petulant. Also, the hinges were already loose and she didn't want to reduce the impact of her dramatic departure by the door falling off the frame.

She lay awake for a long time that night, despite her physical exhaustion. After the adrenaline of the day and the argument had worn off, Mackenzie simply felt sad and deflated. Her mind, however, was still buzzing. She felt bad for Demelza, being kicked out on day one, but wondered if maybe Jesse had had a point by doing so. Their job was rough; the roughest, in fact. If simple mistakes could get someone killed, wouldn't Mackenzie want to take every possible step to prevent that from happening?

Then again, Mackenzie thought as she stared up at her dark ceiling. Jesse was still a prick about it.

When Mackenzie finally fell asleep, it was to the image of what Jesse's smug face would look like if she made the squad.

When, she corrected herself, smiling into her pillow. When I make the squad.

"Oh God, why... did I... agree to this!?" Mackenzie gasped between pants, holding a stitch in her side with one hand.

"You didn't have a choice, Miller!" Lowe bellowed from within the truck via the external speakers. "Now keep moving! We're catching up to you!"

Mackenzie continued running, baring her teeth in agony as she tried to stay ahead of the truck, which Bell was driving right behind her, Ethan, and Ackles. The two boys seemed to be struggling just as much as Mackenzie, if not more. Ethan was wheezing as he struggled to keep breathing and Mackenzie suspected his chest was similarly on fire as hers. Ackles, despite his athletic physique, was almost doubling over as he ran, his arms pumping weakly, his mouth wide open as he gasped for air.

Both Ethan and Ackles had taken off their shirts in a weak attempt at cooling off, but their chests, backs, stomachs, arms, all glistened with sweat. Ackles had tied his shirt around his forehead like an oversized bandana, while Ethan had his tied around his waist. Mackenzie had also taken off her shirt, but still wore her singlet, which was originally white, now dark and damp with hot sweat.

What truly concerned Mackenzie though was how much they were all dripping with perspiration. Each drop that ran out of their bodies was just another measurement of water that was escaping them, which would need to be replaced. How much water had they just lost? How much would they need to drink when they were done? Surely this wasn't safe. There was no way this could be allowed.

This is how I die, Mackenzie thought. Running around Town, chased by an Australian woman driving a truck named Rhiannon. Who'd have guessed?

"I know what you're all thinking," Lowe said conversationally through the truck's speakers. "You're wondering just what the hell running the perimeter of Town while we follow you in Rhiannon has to do with surviving in the deserts. Well, to be honest, not a damn thing! But this is about you! About how bad you want to be a Diviner. About what you can take! How much you can withstand! When you know your limits, you know yourself. And when you know yourself, you know what you can accomplish!"

"Enough fortune cookie rubbish!" Bell shouted gleefully out the window. "Run, rookies, RUN!"

"Almost... there," Ethan panted, barely able to draw enough breath to get the words out.

Looking ahead, Mackenzie could see Vasseur, Jesse, and Abbas all standing together where they had started several hours ago. Mackenzie didn't know exactly how long it had taken to run the perimeter of the Town, but she knew when they had started the sun was barely peeking over the horizon. Now it was high in the sky.

Ackles suddenly stumbled and fell to his knees, but he was quickly up on his feet and running again before anyone even had time to react. Mackenzie felt like if she didn't get to rest soon, she might just fall down and never get back up.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, Mackenzie, Ethan, and Ackles jogged weakly past the Diviners and Bell stopped the truck. Ethan doubled over and vomited, while Ackles fell to his knees and closed his eyes, panting up towards the sky as sweat ran rivers down his body. Mackenzie simply let her body go limp and she fell flat on her back in the dirt, arms spread wide as she gasped deeply, her eyes closed, trying to keep her breathing slow, but failing.

"All right, are we?" Vasseur asked with a tone of insincere pleasantness that made Mackenzie immediately start to worry. She opened her eyes to see Vasseur smiling at her and the others and Mackenzie's first thought was of the Cheshire Cat from her old Alice in Wonderland stories. "Well rested? Got your breath back? Good. All of you, on your feet."

Mackenzie, with immense difficulty, forced herself up off the ground and stood between Ethan and Ackles, facing Vasseur with as much dignity as they could all muster.

"Good work," Vasseur said crisply. "I expected you to all give up an hour in. But you all surprised me with a job well done. And a job well done deserves a reward. Now, look over there."

Vasseur gestured away from the Town and farther out into the desert. Mackenzie looked and saw something small set on a stone, about a hundred metres away.

"That right there," Vasseur began, "is a three litre jug of water. On our last outing, we found a small pocket of water trapped underground. Not enough for a new settlement, but enough to keep us alive while we searched. You all know how tight rationing is right now, so you should all thank whatever God you pray to that we have it. That water is for you. But..."

Mackenzie had been expecting a catch, but she still had to stifle a groan. She saw out of the corners of her eyes both Ethan and Ackles' shoulders slump in disappointment.

"But," Vasseur continued. "Only one of you gets it."

"What?" Mackenzie cried. "No way!"

"Do I look like I'm joking?" Vasseur asked quietly.

"Do you have any idea how much water our bodies just lost?" Mackenzie cried again. "If we don't all get some water, the ones who don't will succumb to heatstroke or collapse or God knows what else!"

"Then you better make sure you're the one who reaches it first," Vasseur said flatly. Then, raising his voice, he shouted, "GO!"

There was a heartbeat of hesitation from the three recruits where they looked blankly between one another, then they were all running with renewed energy. Their arms pumped and their feet kicked up the sand and dirt, their fatigue all but forgotten as they focused on that sweet water that was only a short run away.

Mackenzie was gasping for air, as were Ethan and Ackles on either side of her. She drew breath in a short, wheezy, sucking sound, but she fought to ignore it as she ran to get that water.

Ethan suddenly began to fall behind, his eyes closed tight in agony and deep, rattling gasps emanating from his throat. Ackles kept pace with Mackenzie with what seemed like ease. Despite his fatigue, he wanted that water as much as anyone else, perhaps more.

Digging deep, Mackenzie put every ounce of energy she had into running faster, concentrating on the movement of her legs and the rate of her breathing. Slowly, so slowly, she began to pull ahead of Ackles. She could see his snarl of contempt out of the corner of her eye as she pulled ahead. The water was so close now. She was going to reach it first!

Suddenly, Ackles swung his foot wide and kicked the back of Mackenzie's heel. Her foot caught on the back of her other leg and she felt herself no longer running, but flying. She threw her arms forward to try and stop the ground as it rushed towards her, but she hit with such force her face still smacked into the hard dirt and scraped the skin from her cheek.

Dazed, Mackenzie looked up to see Ackles sneering back at her over his shoulder as he continued to run for the water.

"FREEZE!" someone suddenly screamed.

Mackenzie glanced backwards and saw Vasseur with a pair of binoculars, shouting and waving a hand in the air. He shouted again to freeze and Jesse was taking his rifle from his back.

Ethan had already stopped dead in his tracks behind Mackenzie, looking confused as to why they had to stop. Mackenzie suspected it was something to do with what Ackles just pulled. She looked forward, still lying on her stomach, to see Ackles still running for the water. Either he hadn't heard the order (doubtful) or he wanted to get the water first.

"I SAID FREEZE!" Vasseur shouted, louder this time and a lot more urgent.

Ackles reached the jug of water and grinned triumphantly. He grabbed hold of the handle with both hands and began to lift it from the rock that acted as a serving tray, panting hard.

Suddenly, Mackenzie saw movement from the small amount of shade cast by the rock. Something small, about the size of a ferret or small cat, with short legs thats jutted out from the side of a scaly body. Mackenzie saw the blue and red scales that covered the creature's whole body, saw the pink eyes glinting in the light, the tail that stuck straight out. Tiny claws punctured the stone as it climbed towards Ackles' hands, its wide reptilian mouth already open as it hissed angrily.

At the precise moment Mackenzie saw it, Vasseur shouted as loud as he could, "GAPER!"

The lizard-like creature, named for its wide gaping mouth, climbed to the top of the rock in a flash. Ackles saw it and finally froze in horror. The gaper glared up at him, its mouth still wide open, wide enough to swallow a pigeon whole. On its back and down the sides of its body, their were tiny quills, no larger or thicker than hair. Mackenzie knew from school, though, that these quills were filled with a deadly poison. One single prick and you were dead in less than 5 minutes. The quills were vibrating against one another, making a sound like wooden wind chime rattling in a breeze. Ackles and the gaper stood in a frozen standoff, neither moving, neither looking away.

The gaper was a vicious animal, attacking anything that moved near it, including far larger animals. If Ackles tried to move, the gaper would attack. Probably by biting into his throat with its powerful jaws, or clawing out his eyes with its surprisingly strong and sharp claws.

"Jesse, have you got a shot?" Vasseur asked.

"Ackles is in the way, sir," Jesse replied, peering through the scope of his rifle as he aimed on one knee. "I could hit him."

Mackenzie didn't know what she should do. Every instinct she had told her to remain completely still until the gaper got bored and left, but she knew that wouldn't happen. The gaper had located a threat, and gapers didn't leave threats in their territory. It was going to kill Ackles, sooner or later.

Carefully, moving slower than she ever had before, Mackenzie pushed herself off the ground and rose to her feet.

"Mackenzie!" Ethan hissed at her. "What are you doing? Stay still!"

Ignoring him, Mackenzie began to move gradually forward, crouching slightly as she tried to keep her footsteps as silent as possible. She kept her eyes locked on the gaper, just in case it decided to attack her instead.

As if it heard her thoughts, the gaper turned its head slightly and locked its pink eyes on her. It stared at her with its mouth still wide open. Mackenzie could see the back of its throat and the tiny little teeth that could bite through human bones. She was only several feet away now and the gaper had decided she was a second threat.

Still moving slowly, Mackenzie reached out and placed a hand on Ackles' shoulder. Mackenzie whispered as quietly as she could, barely moving her lips as she spoke.

"Move very slowly," she breathed. "Back away towards me. Don't break eye contact."

Ackles appeared to be frozen out of sheer terror, however. Despite Mackenzie's instructions, he remained precisely where he was, staring down at the gaper with wide eyes, his face ghostly white. He was still grasping the water jug in his hand, having frozen before lifting it off the rock. The gaper sat atop the rock within a foot of Ackles' dirty fingers.

"Listen to me," Mackenzie said between barely parted lips. "Slowly let go of the bottle. Then back away with me. Very. Slowly."

Mackenzie saw Ackles' throat work as he swallowed hard. He nodded once almost imperceptibly. Slowly, so slowly, he began to loosen his grip on the water jug. His fingers moved like slugs, taking a long while to unravel from the handle of the water jug. The gaper noticed the movement, though, fixing its pink eyes on Ackles once more, but it did not attack. It bristled its quills again, showing Ackles a clear view inside of its large mouth, but did nothing else.

Ackles finally released his hold on the jug. He began to draw his hand back, moving just as slowly. Mackenzie's heart was pounding in her ears and she couldn't take her eyes off the gaper. The blue and red scales shone bright in the sunlight and the tiny hairlike quills still quivered and ground together.

As Ackles withdrew his hand, Mackenzie heard him breathe inward sharply, a tiny noise of fear emanating from within. At the same time, his hand shook. Nothing more than a tiny twitch, but the gaper noticed.

The gaper hissed loudly, then launched off the rock, jumping with surprising strength. It flew up and directly towards Ackles' exposed throat. Frozen with fear, Ackles simply stared at it as the gaper lunged.

Reacting on instinct, Mackenzie reached out and snatched the gaper out of the air in her bionic hand. She grabbed it around its slender body, just behind its front legs, right where the quills were.

Mackenzie momentarily was convinced she was dead, that she had poisoned herself on the tiny quills, but then remembered the bionic hand wouldn't be affected by poison. The gaper was hissing and spitting and kicking its legs as it struggled to free itself from Mackenzie's grasp, turning its head left and right, flicking its tail in agitation.

Ackles staggered back at the sight of the gaper's jaw only inches from his face, falling into the dirt and scrambling backwards on his hands and feet.

"Whoa," Mackenzie gasped, staring at the creature she held. The gaper fixed its pink eyes on her and hissed again. Grinning to herself, almost laughing out of sheer relief, Mackenzie looked over her shoulder and held the reptile up for everyone to see. "I got it!"

Suddenly, the gaper twisted in her grip and was able to bend its neck in a way that allowed it to reach her fingers. It clamped down hard on the steel and its powerful jaws pressed together like a vice. Mackenzie heard, rather than felt, the steel beginning to bend and the telltale crunch of something in the hand breaking.

Crying out in shock, Mackenzie tried to fling the gaper loose, but even when releasing her grip, the gaper held on. It crunched hard on two steel fingers, threatening to rip them clean off. Afraid of allowing the gaper to destroy her bionic hand, Mackenzie acted without thinking. She swung her hand down towards the rock as hard as she could, the gaper's head between her fist and the stone.

"NO!" she heard someone cry out.

An instant later, Mackenzie heard the sickening crack of the gaper's skull being crushed between her hand and the stone. She felt the grip on her hand weaken and the gaper lay on the stone, its head flattened and blood spilling around it. Its legs were kicking slightly as it lay on its back.

HSSSS!

Mackenzie suddenly heard an angry hiss from behind her and turned towards the sound. She saw a second gaper scurrying quickly through the dirt near Ackles, heading straight for him.

"Look out!" Mackenzie cried.

But the gaper slid deftly between Ackles' feet and ran straight for her instead. Still hissing, its quills grinding, it leaped off the ground and flew at Mackenzie's throat with alarming speed. Mackenzie told herself to move, but she couldn't move fast enough. She could see clearly into the gaper's mouth as it flew at her, teeth exposed, claws brandished and ready to shred.

Suddenly, there was a loud shot that rang out across the desert and the second gaper exploded into blood and bone fragments, some of which showered over Mackenzie's face.

"Ahh!" Mackenzie cried, staggering backwards and almost falling over. She wiped furiously at the blood on her face, as though it might also be poisonous, but she was fine. Breathing heavily, barely able to believe she was still alive, she looked back towards the Diviners, where she had heard the shot come from.

Jesse Greaves had risen from his kneeling position, still holding his rifle ready and peering down the scope. As Mackenzie watched him, he cocked the gun and slid another bullet into the chamber, still peering around for more threats. He seemed satisfied after a moment that the danger had passed, because he slowly lowered the rifle and stared at Mackenzie with a blank expression on his face, as though he hadn't just saved her life.

"Miller!" Vasseur barked. "Ackles! Renaud! Someone grab that water, all of you back here, now!"

Mackenzie picked up the water jug with trembling hands, the adrenaline of the moment passed now wearing off and causing her to shake uncontrollably. She quickly joined Ackles and Ethan back with the Diviners.

"You've just had your first run-in with the wildlife," Vasseur said coldly. "Gapers are hostile and territorial, as you now know well enough. You're all lucky to be alive. However, the whole ordeal could have been avoided if you had just followed my order. I said freeze, Ackles. But you kept going. You're only alive right now because Miller knew how to handle herself in a dangerous situation. You owe her your life. You got anything you want to say to her?"

Ackles shifted uncomfortably on his feet. After a moment of silence, he mumbled, "Thanks." He didn't look up from the ground when he spoke.

"Miller," Vasseur barked, making Mackenzie jump again. "What you did was very brave."

"Thank you, sir," Mackenzie replied, holding back a smile as Ethan nudged her with his elbow.

"It was also exceptionally stupid," Vasseur added, causing Mackenzie's pride to drain away. "If it wasn't for that metal hand of yours, you'd have died right along with this dipshit." He jerked a thumb at Ackles.

"Sir," Ethan began, sounding angry, but a quick kick in the ankle from Mackenzie silenced him. She didn't need him fighting her battles.

"I had to do something, sir," Mackenzie said, surprising herself with how calm she sounded. "I couldn't just let him die."

Vasseur nodded. "Yes, I know. And as stupid as it was, risking your life like that, you did save his ass. To be completely honest, it's the sort of act that I would expect from any veteran Diviner. I think that, if nothing else, won you that water you're holding."

Mackenzie blinked in surprise. "Sir?"

Vasseur smiled. "You heard me, Miller. Drink up."

Mackenzie looked down at the jug in her hands. The water inside sparkled as it reflected the sunlight, looking like liquid diamonds. Mackenzie licked her dry lips, feeling as though she could already feel the sensation of the water splashing down her throat. But she did not open the cap. She tore her gaze from the sparkling water and looked back at Vasseur, who was watching her, waiting.

"I can't, sir," Mackenzie replied firmly.

"You can't?" Vasseur repeated, frowning.

"No, sir," Mackenzie insisted. "Not unless Ethan and Ackles can drink, too."

Vasseur stared at Mackenzie silently for a moment, as though studying her, trying to determine if she was joking. Mackenzie simply stared back, waiting. Finally, Vasseur smiled and nodded.

"That's the right answer," he said. "I'm not always a son of a bitch. You were all getting to drink anyway, I just wanted to test your character. By all means, share. But you drink first."

Mackenzie nodded, smiling widely, surprised that it was just another test and pleased with herself for responding the way Vasseur wanted. She removed the cap from the jug and lifted it to her lips, then poured the water into her mouth.

Oh, it was more satisfying than Mackenzie had anticipated. She couldn't remember the last time she had had more than one mouthful of water in a single drink, and she gulped down several cups in one go, greedily swallowing and worrying that she wouldn't be able to stop herself from drinking the whole jug.

When she had finished her share, Mackenzie lowered the jug and sighed audibly, taking a moment to remember the feeling of not being thirsty. Then she went to hand the jug to Ethan, but he shook his head.

"Ackles first," he said. "He nearly died today. He should drink before me."

When Mackenzie handed the jug to Ackles, he took it without making eye contact and muttered, "Thanks." Then when he was done, Ethan took his share. He looked as though he had just tasted the greatest thing in all existence.

"I hope you all enjoyed that," Vasseur said, suddenly sounding stern again. "Because I'm about to bring the mood down. Ackles. What you pulled out there showed not only a complete disregard of my command, but also for your fellow recruit. You tripped Miller when you saw she was going to beat you."

"No, I-" Ackles began to argue, but Vasseur cut him off.

"I don't want to hear your excuses. You're out. Be grateful I let you stay long enough to get some water. Now get out of my sight."

Ackles glared furiously at Vasseur like he wanted to throw a punch. Mackenzie tensed up, ready for if a fight did break out. She noticed that Jesse was tightening his grip on his gun, which he still held in his hands.

It seemed that Ackles noticed as well, because he glanced at Jesse and then relaxed, the fists he had made at his sides slowly unfurling. Ackles threw a dirty look at Mackenzie and Ethan, then stormed away.

"Any complaints about my decision?" Vasseur asked the group loudly, looking between the Diviners and the two remaining recruits. When nobody spoke up, he nodded once and said, "That's what I thought."

"Sir, I have one question," Ethan began. "When the second gaper attacked, why didn't it go for Ackles? He was closer, he was moving more. He should have been the first thing the gaper went for, but it attacked Mackenzie. Why?"

Jesse took a step forward, glancing between Ethan and Mackenzie as he replied. "Gapers mate for life. They're fiercely devoted to their mate and will die to defend them if attacked. It's possibly a part of why they're so territorial. But if you kill one, then its mate will hunt you down and kill you. It will track you for miles, never resting until its avenged its mate. That's why the second gaper went straight for Miller. She killed its mate."

Mackenzie didn't know how to feel about this information. She'd done what she had to do, she knew that. But knowing that the gapers only attacked out of some kind of animalistic love for one another? It made her feel uncomfortable and she squirmed at the thought.

"That's why you shouted no, isn't it?" Mackenzie asked Jesse, realizing that it had been him. "You knew a second gaper was out there."

"I couldn't see it, but yes," Jesse replied. "There's almost always two."

"I think that's enough for now," Vasseur said. "You two, take a break. I want you both back here in one hour, though. Miller, you might want to see if Renaud can do something about that hand of yours. It looks like the gaper did some damage."

Mackenzie looked down at her bionic hand. To her horror, it was bent and dented, and two of the fingers seemed unable to bend. Ethan took it gently in his hands and studied it closely.

"Doesn't look too bad, considering," Ethan said. "Looks like a couple of snapped synthetic tendons is all, some bent pistons, exterior damage. Shouldn't take long to fix."

"Good," Vasseur nodded. "We've already lost one recruit today. Let's not make it two."

CHAPTER SEVEN

"Are you nearly done?" Mackenzie asked impatiently.

"Relax," Ethan grinned, not looking up from the precision tools he was using in the joints of Mackenzie's bionic hand. "You'll get it back when it's ready."

Mackenzie pouted comically and sat back on the bench next to where Ethan was working, letting her feet dangle in the air.

They were inside the shop at Ethan's small workstation where he used to carry out his daily tasks of repairing and building equipment. He sat on a stool as he worked on Mackenzie's hand, wearing a pair of strange goggles, though it had only one lens, making Ethan look like some strange futuristic pirate. Ethan would occasionally twist a dial around the lens, magnifying his vision so as to more closely see the tiny components he was repairing.

Around them, the shop was alive with activity. The shop was a large warehouse, just one open room that could fit the hundred or so workers within, as well as all their machinery. All the tech-heads, or engineers as they generally preferred to be called, were working on numerous jobs, shouting out for tools they needed for some large piece of machinery or quietly working alone on smaller equipment. Sparks flew almost everywhere Mackenzie looked as tech-heads welded metals, used 3D printers, worked on circuit boards, creating all sorts of things for which Mackenzie barely spared a thought for how they were made.

Bringing her attention back to Ethan and her hand, Mackenzie unconsciously rubbed the stump at the end of her left arm. She'd only had the bionic hand for a few days, but it already felt like a part of her. Handing it over to Ethan to repair had felt like... well, exactly like removing a hand!

"Okay," Ethan finally said, sitting up straight and removing his magnifying goggles. "Here, test the mobility. I want to make sure it's perfect before we head out."

Mackenzie snatched up the hand and quickly placed it at the end of her arm, pressing the button on the side so the gel form wrapped snugly around her forearm. She tried to move the fingers and was overjoyed to see them wiggling away.

"All good?" Ethan asked.

Mackenzie, using the bionic hand, gave Ethan a thumbs up, grinning.

"All good, chief," she replied happily.

Ethan nodded his approval, but still took the hand to take a look at it. Mackenzie sat still on the bench, moving her fingers and twisting her wrist so Ethan could see they were fine.

"You didn't clean it," Ethan noted, glancing up at Mackenzie with a disapproving look.

"Oh yeah," Mackenzie realized, remembering Ethan suggesting she do that last night. "I forgot. I, erm... I had a fight with Dad. I guess it slipped my mind."

Ethan looked like he wanted to ask a follow-up question, but thought better of it. Mackenzie figured he knew what the argument was about, anyway. Joseph had made his thoughts about Mackenzie joining the Diviners pretty clear yesterday.

Instead of asking about the fight, Ethan leaned to his side and opened a drawer under the workbench. He pulled out a folded piece of cloth and held it out for Mackenzie to take.

"Here," he said. "If you won't clean it, at least you can protect it."

Mackenzie took the piece of cloth and unfolded it. Her forehead creased with confusion when she saw what she was holding.

"A glove?" she asked.

"Yeah," Ethan replied. "But not just any glove. That's a special glove we use here in the shop. It's a resistant carbon-fibre poly-steel. We work with a lot of heat and sharp tools in here, so the gloves protect our hands from injury. Here, look."

Ethan took the glove back and slipped it onto his own hand. While Mackenzie watched curiously, he placed his gloved hand flat on the table, fingers spread. Then he picked up a blowtorch from the end of the bench and ignited it, lowering the blue flame toward his hand.

"What are you-STOP!" Mackenzie shrieked as Ethan touched the flame to his hand.

Ethan, however, was smirking as he passed the flame over his hand and fingers a few times, the intense fire licking over the glove and scorching the bench surface around his hand. Ethan then put out the blowtorch and set it aside. He raised the hand he had just torched and removed the glove.

Mackenzie stared in amazement at Ethan's perfect, undamaged, hand. He turned it around for her to see and there were no burn marks of any kind on his skin. The bench had been burned black in patches where the fire had touched it, but Ethan's hand was perfectly fine.

"How the hell did you do that?" Mackenzie asked in wonder.

"Like I said," Ethan began, amused by Mackenzie's expression as he handed her back the glove. "It's a resistant carbon-fibre poly-steel. It's resistant to fire, you can't cut through it with anything short of a laser, and it can even stop a direct strike from a blade. As long as you wear this, that hand will be better preserved than the rest of you."

Mackenzie slipped the black glove over her bionic hand and studied it. Now that she was looking closely at it, it wasn't a cloth material at all. It looked like it was made of minuscule mesh wire, crossing over and over thousands of times to create a seamless glove. Touching it with her other hand, Mackenzie felt that the strange metal was neither hot nor cold, rather matching the temperature of the room.

"Did you make this, too?" Mackenzie asked Ethan.

"Ha! No," Ethan laughed, shaking his head. "These were around long before I got here, before I was even born. They were stocked on the Panspermia before the evacuation. There's a big stockpile, but we're not really supposed to just hand them over to anyone outside of the shop because Icarus doesn't have the materials to make more. I can't pronounce the stuff its made of, but it's a manmade element, created in super advanced factories on Earth, apparently. If we ever run out of them, that's it. So if anyone asks, it's just a glove, okay? I don't need you getting me into more trouble."

"When have I ever gotten you into trouble?" Mackenzie asked, grinning cheekily.

"Hmm, I don't know," Ethan replied sarcastically, tapping his chin thoughtfully. "What about the time you dared me to walk twenty steps out of Town?"

"We were ten years old!" Mackenzie laughed. "And you weren't supposed to actually do it!"

"Yeah, well, my mom thought a monster was going to get me. She was pretty mad at me when she saw what I was doing." Then, shivering dramatically, he added, "I sometimes still hear her yelling in my nightmares."

Mackenzie laughed. "I could hear her from my house!"

"Right, but seriously, don't tell anyone about the glove," Ethan said, turning serious once more.

"Promise," Mackenzie said, crossing her heart with her bionic hand. Then, shoving Ethan's shoulder playfully, said, "Now come on, nerd. We gotta get back to Vasseur."

The rest of the day was less exciting than the morning had been. Vasseur led Mackenzie and Ethan into the town hall to listen to a longwinded lecture from Abbas about harsh environment survival techniques, including how to start a fire with objects from your surroundings, how to signal for help when lost, how to tell which direction you were going by the stars, stuff like that. Following the lecture, Ethan and Mackenzie had to demonstrate how much knowledge they had retained by putting the skills to use. Abbas had them start a fire each with whatever they could find in the immediate environment. Ethan seemed to struggle with this a little, not being allowed to use any tools or devices made by human hands. He was scowling in barely contained frustration as he tried furiously to start a small fire with some cloth and a pair of flint stones.

Mackenzie seemed to excel at the task, however. She used a similar method to what Ethan was trying, but also added a few locks of her own hair to help catch the spark of the flint. When she had a tiny fire burning, she added small chips of wood from a nearby spectre tree (which was a local type of plant life, ghostly white and little more than a log sticking out of the ground, standing no taller than an average sized adult male). Abbas nodded his approval at Mackenzie's fire, then stepped away to watch Ethan's progress until he eventually succeeded.

After survival training, Jesse Greaves took them to track animals. They weren't to hunt any of them, just track and report. Jesse spent some time showing them what to look out for when tracking animals, as well as how to identify what you're tracking by just its footprints or faeces. Then he stood back and observed as Mackenzie and Ethan worked together to identify and track a nearby animal.

"It's a gozard," Ethan said confidently as they kneeled over some markings in the dirt. "Look, the footprints are far apart. The stride is pretty long."

"Good," Jesse grunted. "What else?"

Mackenzie studied the footprints for a moment, at a loss for what else there could be to say about them.

"It was alone," Ethan said. "It must have wandered away from its herd."

"Yes," Jesse said, sounding unimpressed. "So what does that tell you?"

"Um," Ethan said, staring back down at the footprints.

"It's sick," Mackenzie realized aloud. She looked to Jesse for confirmation, but he simply nodded once at her, silently saying to go on.

Mackenzie was silent as she gathered her thoughts, then explained.

"Gozards are herd animals," she began. "They go their whole lives in the herd they were born in. They only leave the herd to die. Here, you can see it was dragging its feet. Its tail kicked up the dirt, too. It came out here to die."

"Right," Jesse nodded. "So, think you can find it?"

It didn't take long to track down the gozard. It was lying on its side about 40 yards away, at the bottom of a small hill, already dead.

It was a lizard the size of a great dane. It had four legs that came straight down from its body, unlike the gaper's legs, which came out at its sides. The gozard had rust-colored scales that ran down the length of its head, back, legs, and tail, while its underbelly was covered in thick brown skin.

On its head, three horns grew and curled back, much like a goat's horns. Mackenzie knew that gozard males were the only ones with horns and often competed for the attention of the females by charging rocks with such speed and power, the stones would break. The strongest gozard had first pick of the females in the herd. It was this practice that made it impossible to contain a gozard herd in Town. They would always break down fences during mating season.

Its mouth was possibly the strangest sight, though. Even though the gozard was dead, and the mouth hung open slightly, Mackenzie was fascinated. The gozard had a long, narrow, snout, much like an aardvark or echidna, and a long tongue that could flick out with the speed and accuracy of a chameleon's. The snout was roughly a foot long, and the tongue could extend up to a further four feet, allowing the gozard to easily reach the ground to search for food. Gozards ate small insects and arachnids that they found hiding under the desert floor, scooping them out of the dirt and sand with their quick tongues.

"Poor guy," Mackenzie said, studying the creature. "What do you think killed him?"

"Age, most likely," Jesse replied. "See how the horns are flaking around the skull? I'd say it was probably 12 or 13 years old. Not bad for a gozard."

"Should we take the meat or something?" Ethan asked, sounding like he'd actually rather not.

"Wouldn't advise it," Jesse said, frowning. "It could have diseases or something by the look of it. Better to just leave it here. Besides, the sun's starting to come down. If you think it's dangerous out here in the day, then you really don't want to be out here at night. Come on."

After several more hours of gruelling work and mind-numbing lectures, Mackenzie was so exhausted she was barely able to manage the walk home. Ethan was equally wiped out, barely saying a word as he walked with Mackenzie, which was fine with her. She doubted she had the energy to formulate a response that extended beyond the dialect of grunts and nods.

All Mackenzie wanted to do when she walked in the door was go straight to bed. She was too tired to even think about food. To her dismay, however, her parents were waiting to speak with her.

"Can't it wait?" Mackenzie groaned. "I'm so tired. Just let me sleep and I'll let you lecture me in the morning, okay?"

"We're not going to lecture you, Mackenzie," Lorelei said. "We want to apologize."

This statement woke Mackenzie up slightly. "What for?" she asked.

"For trying to hold you back," Joseph replied, sighing heavily as he sat at the table. "We were talking about what you said last night, about how we need to let you try something, and we realized that we'd spent your whole life telling you what to do. How to act, where to work, what to study, all because... well, you were right about that, too. Because we worried that, because of your physical limitations, you might struggle in certain areas. We wanted to protect you from that kind of life, make things easy for you."

"But we know we can't do that anymore," Lorelei added. "You're a grown woman, now. You can make your own decisions. And if the Diviners do decide to take you with them tomorrow, you have my full support."

"Mine, too," Joseph added, smiling but still looking worried.

Mackenzie didn't know what to say. She'd been angry with her parents since they ganged up on her last night, but it seemed that she'd gotten her message through to them. Lost for words, Mackenzie simply hugged her parents tightly, then excused herself to go to bed at last. She was asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

Something woke Mackenzie, but she didn't know what. She sat up in bed and looked around, rubbing her eyes. She had been asleep for a few hours, the world outside her window nothing but a blanket of darkness. Mackenzie frowned and tried to sift through the fog on her mind to remember what had woken her.

It had been a dream. She had been walking through Town, but there was no one else around. She was completely alone. The buildings all still stood, but there was no movement. Mackenzie had been searching for the people, calling out to them, but she had no voice. No matter how hard she tried to shout, no sound could escape her lips.

Mackenzie had then rounded a corner and been filled with a complete sense of horror and despair. The town center was filled with bodies. They were all draped over each other, arms and legs tangled together, bodies facedown in the dirt or held in the arms of a loved one. All the bodies looked somewhat decayed, like they had been dried out. Mackenzie could recognize faces in the mass grave; her parents, Ethan, neighbors, friends, colleagues. She even saw Jesse Greaves and the other Diviners, all staring at her accusingly. As though their deaths had been her fault.

That had been what woke her. A nightmare in which everyone she knew and loved was dead, all because she had been unable to stop it from happening.

Now wide awake, Mackenzie swung her legs out of bed and sat up. She stared into the darkness of her room, trying to ignore the twisting feeling of worry in her stomach.

This was the last chance humanity had. If the Diviners couldn't find a new water source this time, that was it. The human race was over.

The weight of what she had started by adding her own name to that list began to suddenly feel crushing. This wasn't just about doing something that made Mackenzie feel good about herself, the fate of the entire human race depended solely on how well the Diviners did their job. Mackenzie felt a sense of panic suddenly gripping her as she imagined Vasseur picking her as the new Diviner. What if she wasn't good enough? What if she made a mistake? What if she wasn't able to find a new water source? These thoughts, and countless other concerns, raced around her head like a swarm of angry hornets, buzzing incessantly at her.

"Don't think I'll be sleeping now," Mackenzie muttered as she rubbed a knuckle into her eyes.

An overwhelming urge to do something came over Mackenzie. Just sitting in her bedroom suddenly wasn't an option worth considering. She felt too wired, too on edge, after her dream. As Mackenzie dressed, she found herself thinking about the well. That precious resource that the town could not survive without. How its contents were close to running dry. Exactly how long did they have? Mackenzie had given her estimate the other day, but she needed to know for sure what was there, how long they had. That way, if she did somehow make the cut to become a Diviner, she'd have that up to date knowledge to work with. She'd have a precise deadline.

Only a few minutes later, Mackenzie silently slipped out into the night and was heading for the well in the center of Town.

Her mind was racing, wondering about the depth of the well, how tight they could ration before the Diviners could find a new water source. Then there was the matter of how much water they would need to take with them when (or if) they found a new area to live. They could drain the well and carry the water with them easy enough, but how much would they need to keep everyone alive for the journey?

Depends how far we have to go, Mackenzie thought apprehensively.

Odds were that people would die during the move. It usually happened. Mackenzie remembered the last time they moved, when she was twelve years old. A few of the older people had died, despite everyone's best efforts. Then, heartbreakingly, a couple of children had died, too. Mackenzie had cried herself to sleep for days when she heard.

The Diviners had a lot of pressure on them this time. Not only did they have limited time to find a new water source before the current one ran out, but they had to make absolutely sure they returned to Town before the water supply was too low to support the relocation. There were small pockets of water to be found in the wild, but enough to support the hundred thousand or so people living in Town? Never.

Mackenzie was so caught up in her thoughts and worries that she didn't immediately notice the two shadowy figures ahead of her.

When Mackenzie realized there were people walking the same direction as her, a few yards ahead, she froze. Then she realized how reckless she had been. Even though everyone in Town worked together to keep each other alive, it was still a compact area with a large number of people. Crimes were punished severely, but that didn't mean people didn't still do stupid things. Night-time was dangerous in certain areas. Mackenzie didn't know who these people were, but if they were out this late, they most likely weren't the kind of people she wanted to cross paths with.

Mackenzie was about to turn around and head home when she suddenly caught a snippet of conversation on the breeze.

"...take what we can carry."

"What about the guards?"

"They change shifts soon, there'll be a section of the fence left unguarded during the switch. We'll have a few minutes where no LEOs will be around. But we gotta be fast if we want the water."

Mackenzie stiffened at the mention of water. It sounded as though these people were planning on stealing from the well. They were prioritising their own lives over everyone else's.

Realizing that she was standing in the open, Mackenzie quickly moved into the shadows of the neighboring shacks. Crouching behind the corner of one building, Mackenzie watched the two figures moving in a beeline towards the small warehouse that contained the well and purification machinery. There was a tall, wire fence surrounding the building, the top of which was covered in sharp barbed wire. Looking around, Mackenzie saw that the LEOs who were supposed to be patrolling the area were gone. The potential thief was right. The LEOs were in the middle of a shift change, their replacements not yet having made their way around the perimeter. As she watched, the two figures approached the fence cautiously. One pressed a tool that Mackenzie couldn't quite see in the dark against the fence, and a moment later Mackenzie heard the sound of breaking steel. They were cutting through the fence with a bolt cutter.

"Hey!"

A new voice shouted out right behind Mackenzie and she felt strong hands grab her hair and yank her to her feet. She cried out once as the sharp pain pierced her scalp, then tried to reach the hands that had grabbed her. She flailed her arms and kicked, but the one who had grabbed her quickly locked her arms in a vicelike grip behind her back, then began dragging her out from her hiding place, her attempts to struggle free nothing more than wasted energy.

"You idiots!" the one holding Mackenzie snapped at the two by the fence. "You let this bitch follow you! Do you know who she is?"

The two men by the fence turned, staring in shock at Mackenzie. They both looked fairly young, one in his late teens, the other no older than thirteen. They both looked fairly similar, with the same narrow jaw and dark hair. Mackenzie suspected they were brothers, so alike they seemed.

"Norman, what-" the youngest one began.

"Shut up!" the one holding Mackenzie hissed, shaking her roughly as she struggled again. "Don't say my name!"

"Norman?" Mackenzie repeated. Then she turned her head to try and see who was holding her, already suspecting who it was.

Under the light of the moon, and at such a close distance, Mackenzie could clearly make out Norman Ackles, scowling between her and what must have been his two brothers.

"Shut up," Ackles snapped at her. "Stay quiet and we won't hurt you."

"Seriously?" Mackenzie asked, incredulously. "This is the first time you've said more than a single word to me and it's to make a lame threat like that? Who's gonna hurt me? The kid? He looks like he's about to hurl!"

The youngest Ackles did indeed look ill with worry. He seemed as though this development made him want to be anywhere else.

"What do we do?" the other brother asked, his eyes wide. "She's seen us! She knows who we are! She'll tell her dad! We'll be banished for sure!"

"No, we won't," Ackles replied firmly. He let go of Mackenzie's arms and shoved her forward so that she was standing in the center of the three brothers, surrounded on all sides. "Because Miller won't tell on us, will you?"

Mackenzie wondered if she should just run for it. The brothers were close on all sides, but she figured she could knock the youngest one down. Then again, he was the one holding the bolt cutters. He might be smaller than Mackenzie, but a good swing with those would still do a lot of damage.

"If you leave now, I won't say anything," Mackenzie said firmly, trying to sound braver than she felt. She didn't like the look in Ackles' eyes. "Go home, don't steal anything, and I'll pretend this never happened."

"We should go," the youngest boy said, looking between his brothers. "Norm? Frankie? Come on, let's go."

"We can't, Aaron," the one named Frankie replied. "Norm told us we'll all be out of water in just a few weeks. We need to make sure we can survive."

"That's what rationing is for!" Mackenzie snapped. "Are you all really going to let other people die just so you can survive an extra few weeks?"

Aaron and Frankie looked nervously between one another, fidgeting with discomfort as they considered this.

"Besides," Mackenzie added, "the Diviners are going to find a new water source. They head out tomorrow, they'll-"

"Bull," Ackles spat. "There's nothing left out there. They should have found water in the last year they've been looking, but nothing. Because there's no water left to find! This is the only option we got, and you're gonna keep your bitch mouth shut about it."

"The second you leave, I'm waking my dad," Mackenzie said firmly. "Then you can explain it to him."

Ackles' hand moved faster than Mackenzie could react. Ackles drove his fist into Mackenzie's stomach with such force she doubled over and all the air was knocked from her lungs. She fell to her knees, clutching her stomach, trying to gasp in air, but only managing small, wheezy, sucking sounds. It was like trying to breathe through a straw.

"Norman!" Frankie cried out. "You can't hit a girl! What are you doing?"

"Shutting her up," Ackles growled.

Reaching over, Ackles snatched the bolt cutters out of Aaron's hand, and then raised it over his head, ready to swing it down on Mackenzie's skull with all his strength.

Mackenzie saw the iron tool swinging down towards her and she reacted solely on instinct. She reached up with her bionic hand and grabbed the bolt cutters before they could connect with her head and fracture her skull. Had she grabbed it with her real hand, then all she would have accomplished was having her hand shattered before she was beaten to death. The bionic hand, however, stopped the cutters dead, the sound of the iron hitting the steel of her hand clanging loudly.

Mackenzie then drew back her free hand and punched Ackles as hard as she could in the crotch. Ackles roared in pain and dropped the bolt cutters, staggering backwards and falling on his back.

Mackenzie forced herself onto her feet and turned to face Ackles' brothers, ready to fend them off if they tried to attack her too. Her caution was unnecessary though, because Frankie was simply staring between her and his older brother in shock, while Aaron had already taken off into the night, presumably straight for home.

Ignoring Frankie, Mackenzie turned back to face Ackles, wondering what to say or do now. As she turned, though, a fist flew out of nowhere and caught her hard in the cheek. Ackles had recovered from the blow and attacked Mackenzie with a powerful right-cross, which almost spun her completely around. Dazed and dizzy, Mackenzie fell back to the ground, too senseless to even try and stop herself from collapsing.

Ackles towered over her, panting heavily and cursing at her. "You bitch, think just because of who your dad is you can boss me around? I'm taking that water! You can't stop me!"

Mackenzie felt Ackles' boot drive hard into her ribs as he kicked her on the ground, again and again. Mackenzie curled up into a ball to try and protect herself, but Ackles just kept kicking. Frankie was shouting his brother's name, trying to make him stop, but Ackles was in a rage-driven frenzy. He wasn't going to stop until Mackenzie was dead.

Suddenly, someone flew out of the night and jumped into the air towards Ackles. He drove his legs out forward and, using the momentum he had gathered, kicked hard into Ackles' chest with both feet. Ackles was immediately knocked aside like he weighed little more than a rag doll, then crashed into the side of a nearby shack and fell to the ground.

The attacker rose to his feet and squared off with Ackles as he, too, stumbled to his feet, looking around with confusion as he tried to focus on the one who had struck him. Mackenzie looked up between her arms and saw who had appeared.

Jesse Greaves stood in the middle of the street, glaring at Ackles. He appeared calm, his arms at his sides and his breathing normal, but his eyes drilled into Ackles with a fury Mackenzie had never seen in anyone before. His eyes seemed to have darkened and were narrowed ever so slightly. Jesse didn't blink, keeping his gaze locked on Ackles like a cat would watch a cornered mouse.

Ackles either didn't recognize the danger in this look or he decided he didn't care. He charged at Jesse, roaring furiously as he swung a fist at Jesse's head.

Jesse dodged the attack easily, deftly stepping to the side to allow the punch to sail by harmlessly, while at the same time tripping Ackles with a well-placed kick to the ankle. Ackles soared by, falling before he knew it, then crashed back to the ground.

"Stay down," Jesse said calmly.

Ackles didn't listen, though. He pushed himself up, then turned on Jesse and swung another punch. Jesse leaned to the left and dodged it effortlessly. Ackles swung again, but still only hit air. Mackenzie watched as Ackles became a blur of swinging fists, but unable to land a single punch. Then Jesse seemed to become bored all of a sudden, because he drove an open hand into Ackles' throat, causing Ackles to freeze in shock, clutching at his neck as he tried to breathe through a closed windpipe.

Jesse then unleashed his fury on Ackles. In what seemed like only a split second, Jesse struck Ackles twice in the face, once in the body, brought Ackles down to a kneel with a swift kick to one knee, then struck him one last time with a powerful punch to the jaw. Mackenzie swore she could see two teeth fly out of Ackles' mouth, along with globules of blood and spit.

Ackles collapsed and groaned in pain, barely moving. His face was covered in blood and his nose looked to be broken in at least two places. His cheek had split open, as well as both his lips, and his eyes were unfocused as he looked around in a daze.

Jesse turned away from Ackles and glared at Frankie, who took a step back in fear, but Jesse didn't approach him. Instead, he pointed down at Ackles as he spoke.

"This your brother?" he demanded. When Frankie nodded fearfully, Jesse said, "Take him home. When he's fully conscious, tell him if he pulls anything like this again, he won't have to worry about banishment because I'll just shoot him myself. Now get the hell out of here."

Frankie hurried over to Ackles and struggled to pull him to his feet. When he finally managed, he hurried away as quickly as possible with Ackles' weight on his shoulders and Ackles' feet dragging behind him.

"You all right?" Jesse asked Mackenzie, his voice only softening slightly.

Mackenzie tried to stand, but grunted in pain. Jesse held out his hand to help her up. Mackenzie eyed it, as though suspicious, then slowly took Jesse's hand and allowed him to pull her to her feet.

"I'm okay," Mackenzie said, then grimaced as she felt the pain in her ribs where Ackles had been kicking her.

"Lift up your shirt," Jesse instructed her.

"Excuse me?" Mackenzie asked in shock.

"Relax," Jesse smirked. "I just need to see if he broke any ribs. Lift your shirt."

Still feeling awkward, Mackenzie lifted her shirt enough for Jesse to inspect her ribs. He placed his hands on Mackenzie's already bruising flesh and pressed gently, but firmly. Mackenzie flinched at his touch, but was unsure if it was because of the pain where he was feeling, or something else.

"Does that hurt?" Jesse asked her.

"It's fine," Mackenzie replied, trying to sound like it was no big deal.

Jesse glanced up at her from her ribs, his eyes narrowing. "You don't have to act like a bad ass to impress me, you know. If it hurts, tell me. If it was me getting kicked around like that, I'd be hurting. So, try again. Does it hurt?"

Grateful that it was too dark for Jesse to see her blush, Mackenzie replied, "Yeah, a little."

Jesse nodded once, then returned his attention to Mackenzie's ribs. He slowly prodded his way over her wounds, exploring with his fingers. Mackenzie held her breath, aware of how fast her heart was racing under Jesse's touch.

"Doesn't look like any ribs are broken," Jesse said without looking up. "You should be fine."

"Okay," Mackenzie replied, lowering her shirt as Jesse retracted his hands. "Erm... Thanks."

Jesse nodded, but didn't say anything else. Mackenzie felt awkward as they just stood together in the dark.

"So, what are you doing out so late?" Mackenzie asked, unable to take the silence any longer.

"Couldn't sleep," Jesse shrugged. "I'm more of a night person."

"Yeah, me too," Mackenzie said, then added, "Couldn't sleep, that is."

"Well, if you've had enough of getting your ass kicked for one night, maybe I can walk you home. Make sure no one else takes soccer practice on your kidneys."

Frowning at Jesse's snide remark, Mackenzie nodded and began walking towards home without a word. Jesse fell into step beside her.

"I don't need you to protect me, you know," Mackenzie blurted out.

Jesse nodded as though considering her point. "Yeah, I saw. I bet you were just wearing him down, right?"

"You make a lot of noise for someone who says nothing," Mackenzie replied sarcastically.

To Mackenzie's surprise, Jesse chuckled. Then he looked sideways at her and asked, "You don't think much of me, do you?"

Mackenzie wasn't sure how to respond. It wasn't the kind of question one usually expected to hear. After a moment of hesitation, Mackenzie managed to shrug.

"It's not that," Mackenzie said. "It's just... I don't know, you're kind of blunt, I guess."

"So are you," Jesse pointed out. "You tell it like it is and you're not afraid to go for what you want. I noticed that about you the day we met. You were intimidated by us, the Diviners. But you weren't afraid to call me out on the water issue. You told us exactly what we needed to hear, not what you thought we wanted to hear. Then there was that thing with putting your own name on the list."

"Hey, Vasseur didn't have to pick me!" Mackenzie started, suddenly defensive, expecting Jesse to judge her for what she did.

Instead, though, Jesse was grinning. It was the first time Mackenzie had seen him smile with his teeth in a way that wasn't dismissive or belittling. The result was to make him appear younger, and far more appealing. Mackenzie stared at him as he smiled at her in amusement, wondering how long she could look before it got weird.

"I thought what you did was cool," Jesse said. "I mean, your dad was never going to add you to the list, anyone can see that. But you knew you wanted the chance. If more people did stuff like that, weren't afraid to put themselves out there for what they thought was the right thing to do, then maybe humanity would have a better shot. The second Vasseur called your name and your dad freaked, I knew what you did. I have to admit, I was a little impressed by how ballsy you were."

"Does that mean you think I'd make a good Diviner?" Mackenzie asked hopefully.

"No," Jesse frowned, breaking the illusion of being nice. "Not yet, anyway. As of right now, I think your friend, Renaud, would be a better fit."

"Oh," was all Mackenzie could think to say, unable to hide her bitterness from her tone.

"I'm surprised you want it so bad, though," Jesse said. "I'd have thought your dad would have scared you away from it. All the stuff he went through when he was a Diviner."

"You know about when he was a Diviner?" Mackenzie asked, surprised and a little annoyed. Not once in her whole life did Joseph ever tell her anything about his experiences as a Diviner, but Jesse Greaves knew? "He never told me anything about what it's like out there."

"Really?" Jesse asked, clearly surprised. "I figured he would have told you everything."

"No," Mackenzie said flatly. "He says he didn't want to traumatize me."

"You don't sound happy about it," Jesse observed.

"Of course not!" Mackenzie snapped. "He always treated me like I couldn't do anything, couldn't handle anything. But I can, and if I get picked to be the new Diviner tomorrow, I'll prove it to him."

"Is it really him you want to prove something to?" Jesse asked. "Or yourself?"

Mackenzie opened her mouth to reply, but then realized she didn't know the answer. She closed her mouth and looked away, feeling as though Jesse's eyes were seeing straight through her.

"I heard one story about your dad when I was new to the Diviners," Jesse suddenly began. "Inglis told me. Miller and Vasseur were on mission when they got caught in a sandstorm. Their whole crew was trapped. The truck was pretty much buried in sand and they had to try and make it back to Town on foot. Miles and miles of desert, dangerous animals, thirst, heat, there was so much that could have killed them. And it almost did. They were stuck out there for days with no food or water. The whole squad died, except Vasseur and your old man. Vasseur had a broken leg and nearly didn't make it, either, but your dad basically carried him for a hundred miles on his back. When they finally got back to Town, Vasseur and Miller were almost dead. That was the last time your dad went out in the field. Inglis told me he quit to be here for you, make sure you grew up safe."

"Yeah, Dad told me that was why, too," Mackenzie said quietly. "I didn't know about the rest of it, though. He never told me."

"Don't take it personal," Jesse shrugged. "The way Inglis told me, it sounds like Miller doesn't really tell anyone about what happened. It must have been bad, though."

Mackenzie walked silently beside Jesse as they made their way through the dark streets. She had a thousand thoughts churning around the inside of her head, not a single one making her feel any better. She felt a sense of pride thinking about how her father had saved Vasseur's life, but she also felt resentful that he had never told her anything about his time as a Diviner, but strangers like Jesse Greaves and the late Robert Inglis knew all about it.

"Were you and Inglis close?" Mackenzie suddenly asked Jesse.

Jesse was silent for a long time before replying, a distant look glazing over his eyes. Finally, he simply nodded.

"I'm sorry. How, er..." Mackenzie began awkwardly. "How did he die?"

Jesse abruptly stopped walking and Mackenzie had taken an extra step before she realized. Turning back, Mackenzie saw that a mask of indifference had fallen over Jesse's face. He seemed more closed off, less friendly, and far colder. He watched Mackenzie with slightly narrowed eyes, though Mackenzie wondered if they were really looking at her or if he was focusing on something else, something that she couldn't see in the here and now. When Jesse finally did speak, it was with a quiet growl.

"This you?" Jesse asked curtly.

"What?" Mackenzie asked, confused.

Jesse jerked his head towards the shack they were standing out front of. "You live here?"

Mackenzie looked towards her home, realizing with a start that she hadn't been paying any attention at all to where they were going. Turning her gaze back to Jesse, she said, "Oh, yeah, this is me."

Jesse nodded. "Well... good night then."

"Yeah, good-"

Mackenzie was about to say the same back to Jesse, but he was already turning on his heel and marching away into the night. Mackenzie felt a sudden urge to go after him, make sure he was all right, but he was gone before she could decide what to say.

Slowly heading inside, still hurting from the pain in her ribs and arms where Ackles had been kicking her, Mackenzie felt a chill when she thought about how Jesse's attitude had changed so dramatically when she asked about Inglis, changing instantly from somewhat pleasant to stoic and brooding. Without meaning to, Mackenzie began to wonder just what dangers lay out in the deserts.

Jesse had said yesterday that Inglis' body had been so ravaged, it wasn't worth bringing back. Joseph kept telling her how traumatic and terrifying the deserts were. Many Diviners had died over the years. So many so that there was now only one team of Diviners, whereas once there had been numerous, all searching at once. Over the years, though, and as the body count grew, fewer people were signing up.

It was enough to make Mackenzie wonder if maybe this whole thing had been a good idea.

CHAPTER EIGHT

"You ready?" Joseph asked Mackenzie.

Swallowing her nerves, Mackenzie could only nod. She took a deep, steadying breath, slowly blowing it out between her lips.

She was standing outside the town hall again, both of her parents with her. Joseph looked fairly calm, but he kept tapping his feet nervously. Lorelei kept wringing her hands and staring at Mackenzie as though it was the last time she would ever see her. The worry that had lined her face made Mackenzie feel twisted with guilt. Just the sight of her mother in so much emotional agony made her want to throw up her hands and declare she no longer wanted to be a Diviner, to then go home to their modest shack, to read, to talk, to do all the things that had once seemed so mundane. Instead, though, Mackenzie just stared at the ground in silence.

Ethan stood nearby with his family. He had his older brother, Tristan, with him, as well as his mother, Isabelle. Ethan's father had died several years ago. The three remaining Renauds all looked equally nauseous as Mackenzie felt.

Gathered around them all was a few hundred people, all having come to see the result. Mackenzie couldn't hear anything but the buzzing of the crowd as they discussed amongst themselves who was about to be chosen to join the Diviners. Mackenzie wished they would all just shut up for a while. They were making her even more nervous.

Finally, the door to the town hall opened and the Diviners began to file out. The buzz of the crowd died instantly and Mackenzie tensed up at the sight of them. When she saw Jesse, her stomach backflipped as she wondered if he would look her way, but he simply followed Vasseur's footsteps like a loyal soldier, ignoring everything else.

The Diviners lined up before Mackenzie, Ethan, their families, and the whole crowd, all with blank expressions on their faces. Abbas, Lowe, Greaves, and Bell stood shoulder to shoulder, while Vasseur stood a few steps in front of them, looking between Ethan and Mackenzie, as though no one else was there.

"It's no easy task," he began, speaking loud enough for everyone to hear. "Choosing between two candidates such as these. It's also no easy task deciding which of them we are willing to put in mortal danger for the sake of everyone else."

At this, Lorelei whimpered slightly and clutched Joseph's hand. Mackenzie felt her heart break all over again.

"There has been much discussion," Vasseur went on, "over who would make the better Diviner."

Mackenzie noticed Vasseur's eyes flit to Joseph as he said this, his jaw clenching somewhat. Glancing sideways at her father, Mackenzie saw Joseph was staring hard back at Vasseur. The glance between the two men, though extremely brief, did. othing to make Mackenzie feel more confident.

"I know you all thought we would make this decision behind closed doors," Vasseur continued. "But that's not the way we do things. Nor will I alone make the decision. I may command, but we are a democracy in all matters that concern the whole squad, the whole town, and what's left of our race. There are no secrets among any Diviners. For that reason, we will vote on the best recruit, and we will do it here and now for them, and all of you, to see."

Mackenzie felt a real concern that she was going to throw up. What if no one voted for her? She knew Jesse wasn't going to. He'd already said as much last night, saying that he didn't think she'd make a good Diviner. If she still wanted this (and she did, more than anything else) then her hopes would have to rest on the other Diviners.

Vasseur stepped back and fell into line with the other Diviners, standing beside Abbas. He fixed his steely gaze on Mackenzie, and then slowly looked towards Ethan.

"I vote for Renaud," Vasseur said loudly.

Mackenzie expected applause, but there was none. Instead, Ethan's mother gasped a little and held her hand to her throat. Tristan looked like he had just lost several shades of color, having become ghostly pale.

Abbas was next in line. After letting Vasseur's vote sink in, he squared his shoulders and called out his own vote.

"Miller!" he barked.

Oh! Mackenzie thought in surprise.

Lorelei whimpered softly beside her, while Joseph was grinding his teeth together. One vote each, three remaining.

Bell was next and she winked at Mackenzie before shouting out, "Miller!"

Ethan and Mackenzie glanced at one another, each with mixed emotions. Neither wanted to take this away from the other, but only one of them could go.

Lowe adjusted his hat and then shouted, "Renaud!"

Two votes each, Mackenzie thought, then her heart sank as she realized what that meant.

Jesse Greaves was the deciding vote.

"It's down to you, Greaves," Vasseur growled, as if vocalising Mackenzie's fear.

Jesse stared at Mackenzie for what seemed like a long while, his dark eyes seeming to bore into her. Mackenzie felt as though she was deflating. Her hope of doing something greater with her life, following in her father's footsteps, was beginning to fade away in front of her eyes. As Mackenzie accepted defeat, Jesse turned his gaze on Ethan, staring hard, as though reading him. Finally, Jesse gave his answer.

"Miller."

Joseph gasped through his teeth and Lorelei buried her face in her hands as she broke into tears. Ethan looked to Mackenzie, his expression nothing less than horrified. Mackenzie could see that his family looked relieved, but she only felt numb. She was in. She was a Diviner. This was real.

Joseph suddenly walked quickly forwards and took hold of Vasseur's arm, leading him away from the other Diviners and whispering harshly in his ear. Vasseur scowled and shook his head, saying something back, then pointing a finger in Joseph's face and saying something angrily, but Mackenzie almost didn't care. She felt frozen to the spot, stunned by what had just happened, but also confused as to why. Jesse had all but told her he didn't want her as a Diviner, yet he was the deciding vote that gave her the title.

There was no time to consider it, though, because Bell was suddenly in her face, throwing her arms around her shoulders and hugging her tight.

"You have no idea how long I've waited for another woman to be in the squad," Bell whispered in Mackenzie's ear. "Seriously! The guys are great, but there's only so much I can take on my own."

"Mackenzie?" Lorelei whimpered.

Bell released Mackenzie and stepped back, unable to hide her grin. Mackenzie turned to her mother, expecting to see her crying. To Mackenzie's surprise, though, despite the fact that tears were running down Lorelei's face, she was also smiling.

"I'm so proud of you," Lorelei said, wrapping her arms around her daughter. Mackenzie, still feeling numb, returned the hug. "You did it. You're a Diviner."

"Congratulations," Ethan said, appearing beside them. "If it wasn't me, I'm glad you got what you wanted."

"Thanks, Ethan," Mackenzie said, finally remembering how to speak. "I'm sorry."

Ethan shook his head. "Don't be. You earned it."

"Mackenzie," Joseph said solemnly, having returned silently from his argument with Vasseur. "You, er... You and the other Diviners need to prep. You'll be heading straight out on mission. Today."

"Oh," Mackenzie replied flatly. "Okay. Where do I..?"

Joseph placed his hand on her back and began to lead her away from the others. Everyone was wishing her good luck, Lorelei was saying that she loved her, Ethan looked torn between numerous different emotions at once as he watched Mackenzie walk away. Mackenzie had absolutely no idea how she felt, though. She had supposed she would be excited or scared if she was chosen, but neither of these emotions came to her. Instead, all she felt was sluggish and numb.

Before she knew it, she was standing amongst the other Diviners, Joseph's hand still on her back.

"You take care of my girl, now," Joseph said to Vasseur and the others.

"She'll be all right," Bell said cheerily. "I'll watch her back."

"Thank you," Joseph said thickly. Then he turned to Mackenzie and placed both hands on her shoulders as he looked into her eyes, his own full of worry.

"I'm proud of you," Joseph said, but there was a note of hesitation that made Mackenzie wonder if he was being completely honest. "Just be careful, okay? Make sure you come back."

"I'll be fine, Dad," Mackenzie said. Then, offering a smile, she added, "Seriously."

Joseph nodded stiffly, then wrapped Mackenzie into a quick hug. It was brief, however, as it seemed Joseph was in a hurry to leave. Mackenzie watched him walk back towards Lorelei. She expected him to look back, but he didn't.

"Come on, then," Vasseur said gruffly, glaring at Joseph's back before turning to face Mackenzie. "We need to get you your equipment."

Mackenzie allowed herself to be led inside the town hall, where her future awaited.

"Bam!" Bell announced triumphantly as Mackenzie appeared in the doorway. "Looks like it was made just for you."

Mackenzie glanced awkwardly down at her new attire. She was now wearing the Diviner uniform; khaki pants, white long sleeved T-shirt, brown boots and cap, and a large vest that had a velcro-sealed pocket on every available space. Mackenzie had no idea what each pocket would be needed for, as none of them contained anything just yet, but she wished one had a canteen right at that moment. Her mouth had been dried out by nerves again. The feeling of numbness had passed and now she felt on the verge of panic at the prospect of wandering into the desert, but was also quivering with excitement at the thought of what adventures might lay ahead.

"You tied your shoes wrong," Jesse said, sounding disinterested.

"What?" Mackenzie asked, almost laughing. "They're tied. How can they be tied wrong?"

"Double knots," Jesse replied. "Keep 'em tight. You lose a shoe out there, you might as well have lost a foot."

"Jesse's right," Vasseur agreed. "Double knots. Other than that, I think you're set for clothing. We'll be gone for a long time, but you'll have two spare sets of everything. You'll rotate your clothes so you can wash the dirty ones and always have a clean set to wear. That way you won't stink up the truck."

"Rhiannon," Bell corrected, seemingly automatically.

"Now we need to get you some basic equipment," Vasseur went on, ignoring Bell. "We'll show you the more complicated tools you'll be using when we're on the move."

"What stuff do I need?" Mackenzie asked as she kneeled to retie her shoes.

"You'll have a field knife," Abbas said. "A canteen with a day's worth of water, but don't drink just because you have it. Make it last as long as you can. You'll have some other basic survival tools, too, such as a compass, a radio to speak to the rest of us with, a compact mirror, binoculars, and a flashlight."

"Wait, what's the mirror for?" Mackenzie asked. "I don't think I'll be too worried about my mascara while we're out there."

Bell and Lowe both smirked, but Abbas replied humorlessly. "The mirror is to signal for help. Reflect the sunlight to show us where you are. If you get separated from the team and your radio fails, the mirror may be the most valuable thing you have in your possession."

"We can cover the rest in the field," Vasseur snapped, seeming impatient. "We have a lot to show you and no time to do our jobs."

"So, are we leaving right away?" Mackenzie asked nervously.

"Yeah," Lowe replied, nodding. "But don't worry, your family will have a chance to say goodbye before we go. All of our families will."

"They always see us off with Rhiannon," Bell added. "Gives us something to think about out there, you know? Something to come back to."

Mackenzie then received the tools Abbas had told her about, lining her many pockets with them and trying to figure out how to remember where they all were kept. Then, after taking a quick sip of the canteen she had been given, Mackenzie stepped outside the building with the Diviners.

Indeed, all the people who were close to the Diviners had come out to see them off. Vasseur was immediately in the arms of his wife, both of them speaking rapidly in French as Vasseur kissed her hands.

Lowe was lifting a small boy up off the ground and tossing him into the air, the boy laughing wildly and screaming with joy. A woman, Lowe's wife, was smiling at them, but wiped a tear from her eyes.

Bell was with another woman, both of them pressing their foreheads together as they whispered private words to one another and traded kisses. Bell's partner wrapped her arms around Bell's waist and pulled her close, stealing another kiss.

Abbas was with his family, also. He didn't appear to have a wife (Mackenzie thought she remembered hearing that she had died several years ago), but there were three girls of varying ages all around him. Abbas was talking to his daughters, making sure they would be all right, telling the eldest (who Mackenzie guessed was close to her own age) that she was to look after the others. The eldest daughter was nodding while the two younger girls were clutching their father's arms as though afraid to let him go.

Mackenzie then saw her parents and headed towards them. Without hesitation, she threw her arms around Lorelei and squeezed. Lorelei smiled and sniffed as she wrapped her own arms around Mackenzie.

"I'm sorry," Mackenzie heard herself blurt out. "I didn't mean to upset you."

"That's okay, sweetie," Lorelei soothed. "I want you to do what makes you happy. Just make sure you're safe out there."

"Yes," Joseph agreed. "It's dangerous, but I'm sure you can manage it. And the others will take care of you."

Mackenzie and the others all said their goodbyes, many tears were shed, and one of Abbas' daughters was crying for him to stay. Mackenzie swore she saw him wipe away a tear of his own as he forced himself to walk away while his eldest daughter restrained the shrieking child.

Ahead of her, the truck named Rhiannon waited for them. The door on the side of the front cabin was open, a small staircase having been lowered to the ground. Mackenzie was the last to enter, and as she placed a foot on the bottom step, ready to climb inside, her heart thumping with excitement, she heard someone call her name.

Turning around, she saw Ethan running towards her. He charged past Lorelei and Joseph and Mackenzie stepped away from the truck to meet him.

"Ethan," she said, smiling. "I didn't think you were going to come."

"I nearly didn't," he admitted. "But I had to see you before you left."

"Aw," Mackenzie replied. "That's sweet. But you don't have to worry about me, I'll be-"

Suddenly, Ethan placed his hand on the back of Mackenzie's neck and leaned in, pulling her slightly towards him. Surprised, Mackenzie didn't move as Ethan kissed her. He pressed his lips into hers and Mackenzie could feel people watching as she froze in shock.

It seemed as though the kiss went on for a long time, and the whole while Mackenzie didn't know if she should stop it or let it happen. Before she could make up her mind, Ethan pulled away, though he still kept his hand on the nape of her neck, his face stiill close to hers, staring into her eyes as she stared back into his. Though while Ethan's eyes were full of hope and longing, Mackenzie's only showed surprise.

"My timing sucks," Ethan said softly, "but take care of yourself out there."

Mackenzie wanted to say something, fought hard to think of something to say, but her mind was just blank space. She merely stared at Ethan, stunned by the kiss, until she was saved by someone clearing their throat behind her.

Turning away from Ethan, Mackenzie saw Jesse Greaves sticking his head out of the truck. He was glaring between Mackenzie and Ethan, his forehead creased with impatience.

"You coming?" he growled. "Or would you rather your boyfriend take your seat?"

Frowning at Jesse, Mackenzie replied shortly, "I'm coming."

Jesse shot her one last dirty look, then disappeared inside. Mackenzie turned back to Ethan, still not sure how to respond.

"I have to go," she heard herself say.

Ethan nodded, but looked disappointed. "Right. Yeah, um..."

There was an uncomfortable silence between them as Mackenzie wished she was already in the truck and Ethan shifted on his feet, unconsciously rubbing his thumb over his fingertips.

"We'll talk when I get back," Mackenzie offered.

"Miller!" she heard Vasseur bark from inside the truck. "If you're not in the truck in five seconds, I'll tie you to the grill! Hustle!"

Mackenzie placed a foot on the steps and began to climb inside the truck, but looked back at Ethan one last time. He was smiling at her, but the smile didn't reach his eyes. He looked saddened, regretful. Mackenzie wanted to say something to make him feel better, but she was still at a loss. Hoping that her expression was enough to tell Ethan that she wished she had more time, she turned away and climbed inside the truck. The remote door slid closed behind her, sealing her in.

"Strap in," she heard Vasseur order.

Glancing around, trying to distract her buzzing mind from Ethan's kiss from left field, Mackenzie quickly took in the sight of the main cabin. At the rear there were some bunk beds bolted into the walls, and in the center was a ladder leading up to a hatch in the roof. Mackenzie guessed that was where Jesse would go when he was on lookout with his rifle. She noticed the long gun with its scope was hanging on the wall by the ladder. She turned away and began to study the rest of the cabin.

Her first impression was that it seemed strikingly similar to a picture she had once seen of the inside of a 21st century NASA spaceship. There were two large padded seats at the front, the driver's seat taken by Bell while Abbas sat beside her at navigation, punching buttons on the dashboard and looking at a screen full of green lines and red dots that made absolutely no sense to Mackenzie.

Two more seats were behind them, one taken by Vasseur, who was closely examining his tablet, tapping his fingers on the touchscreen in rapid succession. Beside him in a swivel chair that allowed him to either face forward or turn sideways to face the wall, Lowe was examining a large switchboard on the side of the cabin, typing at three holographic keyboards at once and examining dozens of readouts on screens in front of him. Mackenzie guessed it was where he studied the weather patterns to ensure safe travel. She knew that there were dozens of drones hovering in the atmosphere at all times, transmitting their data back to the truck for Lowe to examine. He was likely making sure that their planned route was still safe.

The one empty seat at the back was obviously for Mackenzie. Like Lowe's seat, it could swivel around to face the wall, which was taken up by screens and radars, much like navigation. Mackenzie couldn't even begin to count the number of buttons and dials that were blinking bright red lights at her. Mackenzie felt powerfully intimidated by the machines, wondering how the hell she was supposed to use them.

Beside her seat, Jesse was already strapping himself in with seat belts that crossed over his chest and clipped into the buckles by his waist. He looked up at her and jerked his head at the machine she was staring at.

"It's easier than it looks," Jesse said flatly. "You'll figure it out. And Vasseur will train you on the road."

Swallowing hard and nodding, Mackenzie took her seat and strapped in. Vasseur glanced up at her, and then returned his attention to his tablet. Bell flipped a few switches and the truck suddenly revved to life. Mackenzie thought it sounded much louder on the outside. She could barely hear the engine turn over and it then hummed gently.

"Systems?" Vasseur asked.

"Navigation fully operational, sir," Abbas replied.

"Weather is in check," Lowe reported. "There's a low pressure front that might turn into a sandstorm, but it's moving away from us, due south. No problem."

"Rhiannon is geared up and ready for action, sir," Bell said enthusiastically.

"Ready, sir," Jesse said.

"Miller?" Vasseur asked without turning around. "You ready for this?"

Mackenzie hesitated for only a heartbeat before replying confidently, "Absolutely, sir."

She could have sworn she saw Vasseur smile a little.

"Then let's move out," Vasseur ordered. "Bell, we're in your hands."

Grinning wildly, Mackenzie felt her body press into the padded seat as the acceleration increased and the truck began to speed off into the unknown deserts. She pushed her confused thoughts of Ethan from her mind and allowed herself to finally realize her situation.

She was a Diviner.

This is awesome!

CHAPTER NINE

Mackenzie wanted to know everything. After driving for about an hour, Lowe left his weather station to show Mackenzie the ropes. While he taught her about everything she needed to know, Vasseur was talking to Bell and Abbas up front and Jesse had vanished up into the hatch on the roof with his rifle to be lookout.

"So how is it you know about the hydrology stuff?" Mackenzie asked Lowe as she followed his instructions at the computer terminal. "I thought you were the doctor-slash-weatherman."

"I am," Lowe nodded. "But we make a point of always knowing the basics of everyone else's duties at a minimum. Just in case someone is incapacitated or dies on mission, then someone else can pick up the slack."

"Oh," was all Mackenzie could say, a little uncomfortable with how nonchalant Lowe was as he mentioned the possibility of anyone dying.

"You're picking up on this stuff pretty quick," Lowe observed as Mackenzie familiarised herself with the computer she was going to be using.

"Some of it's similar to what I did in the wells," Mackenzie shrugged, still feeling giddy with the thrill of doing something different for once. "It's a larger scale and way more advanced, but I think I get it."

"Okay then," Lowe grinned, standing over her and holding onto a handrail on the ceiling to keep steady as the truck rocked from side to side. "If you're so confident you got this down, how about you explain it to me?"

Mackenzie felt a moment of anxiety over being put on the spot, but she pushed the fear aside and pointed at the main monitor in front of her, which was showing a thermal image of nothing more than wavy red, orange and yellow lines that covered the bottom half of the screen, while the top half was blank.

"The computer reads the thermal layout of the land within a hundred yards," Mackenzie began. "As we drive, sensors under the truck scan for cooler areas that might contain water pockets and display the findings on this screen. I can adjust the direction each individual sensor is facing with these controls over here, to account for changes in weather temperatures, animal heat signatures, buried rocks, stuff like that. Over here, this screen shows similar readings from surface implant sensors that indicate where you've previously found water supplies that dried up or were too small to be of any value to Town. As we get within range of the signals, I can examine them for any changes on the off chance that the water supply has refilled from underground rivers or if a small water supply has increased to something more substantial. We'll make regular stops en route for me to examine soil for water traces and use portable devices to track possible water sources. If we find a water source, I can sample it in the field with my handheld devices to test for drinkability, then bring more samples back here to carry out further tests. Have I got it so far?"

Lowe clapped her on the shoulder, grinning like a proud father. "Inglis couldn't have explained it better himself. Good work."

Beaming, Mackenzie said, "Thanks, Lowe."

Suddenly, the computer began to emit a rapid, low-bass, beeping sound. Looking back to the screen, Mackenzie spotted something blue in the sea of reds, oranges and yellows. She pointed at it urgently.

"Hey, is that water?" she asked excitedly.

Lowe leaned closer to peer at the monitor, but quickly shook his head.

"No, definitely not. Water will show up more green than anything else. That's what we call a redox field. We find them every now and then." Then, raising his voice, he shouted, "Hey Bell! Redox field on our 10!"

"Roger that," Bell replied. "Steering clear."

"What is it?" Mackenzie asked, having never heard of a redox field.

"Dangerous is the first word that comes to mind," Lowe frowned. "It's this big area of stone slabs, really fragile flat rocks. Except they're hollow on the inside and have trapped gasses that are like a vaporized potassium chlorate. Not too dangerous by itself, but if the stone cracks, and they crack real easy, it escapes into the air and interacts with the exterior of the rock, which is coated in sugar of all things, then it oxidizes and ignites. Hydrogen escapes from the potassium gasses and then expands and explodes. The whole field could go up by just one stone cracking, wiping out anything and everything caught in the blast. And leaving an impressive crater behind, too."

"Are they useful? Like, could we mine for water with them?" Mackenzie asked, wondering if they should stop and dig some up.

"Well, maybe," Lowe said thoughtfully. "But they're far too fragile to risk handling, and we definitely don't want them in the truck. Just stepping on one can break it. If they blew, they'd tear Rhiannon apart. But Bell would kill us long before the redox stones would if we suggested bringing them on board. Best leave 'em where they are."

Mackenzie nodded, watching the blue patch on the screen that represented the redox field as they passed by, Bell giving it a wide berth.

Lowe scratched his chin thoughtfully as he studied Mackenzie. "You know, I hope you aren't offended I voted to bring Renaud over you."

Mackenzie felt her stomach lurch slightly at the mention of Ethan. Ignoring it and instead looking up at Lowe, she said, "No, of course not. He would have done a good job out here."

Lowe looked slightly relieved. "Good. I was worried you might hold a grudge. If it makes you feel any better, it was a really tough decision."

"It's okay, Lowe," Mackenzie insisted. "Really."

"Well all right," Lowe smiled. "Now, we might leave the machinery for the time being and I'll show you the lay of the land."

Lowe then guided Mackenzie from the main cabin and towards the rear, past Jesse's ladder and into the small area with six tightly packed bunks.

"Most of your time will be spent in that seat back there," Lowe began, "but even Diviners have to sleep. Down here, we've got our bunks. Yours is the bottom bunk here, closest to your station. You need to be up and working at a moment's notice, so no sleep-ins. We sleep in shifts, by the way. Four asleep, two at work, no exceptions. Bathroom is through that door back there, nothing more than a water reclaiming toilet and-"

"Wait," Mackenzie interrupted. "Wait, water reclaiming toilet? What exactly does that mean?"

Lowe grinned mischievously at her. "Well, we're out here for weeks at a time, you know. Not a whole lot of water to live off. When our supplies run low, the toilet purifies and recycles our, um... fluids into something drinkable. You okay with that?"

The thought actually horrified Mackenzie, but it was too late to back out now. And she didn't want to appear squeamish in front of Lowe, so she just shrugged and nodded.

"There are some soaps and disinfectants in there, too," Lowe went on. "It's not flashy, but it works. By the way, I hope you don't mind bad smells, because a few days in here with the lot of us and 'body odour' begins to take on a whole new meaning."

"I'll be fine," Mackenzie assured.

"You say that now," Lowe grinned. "Wait until tonight when Abbas kicks off his boots."

"Keep talking and I'll leave my socks in your pillow!" Abbas shouted from the front of the truck.

"What are the other two sections?" Mackenzie asked. "From outside it looks like the truck is separated into three compartments."

"Good catch," Lowe nodded approvingly. "You're right, there are three sections. There's the lovely cabin we're in now, of course. The next section is cold storage. We keep all our supplies in there, like water and food, and if we gather any resources on mission, we store that in there, too. Vasseur's in charge of rationing, we stop twice a day for food and water while Rhiannon's solar cells power up the truck and equipment. The back section is the armory. Extra guns, knives, ammo, some small explosives for when things get really hairy, but you won't need to go back there too often. That's Jesse's territory. He'll set you up with a gun when we next stop."

"I get a gun?" Mackenzie asked, surprised.

"Well, yeah," Lowe replied, as though it was obvious. "We didn't train you how to shoot for nothing, kid. All the dangerous wildlife out here, a gun is often the only thing between you going home or becoming something's dinner."

"Did Inglis have a gun?" Mackenzie asked before being able to stop herself.

The smile on Lowe's face faltered slightly at the mention of Inglis. Mackenzie often forgot how fresh his loss still was for the team.

"I'm sorry," Mackenzie quickly said. "Forget I asked."

"No, no, that's okay," Lowe said gently. "There are no secrets between Diviners, and you're a Diviner now. You have as much right to know about what happened as anyone else on this truck."

Lowe sat down on one of the lower bunks and sighed heavily, taking off his cap and wiping his brow. He replaced the hat on his head and gestured for Mackenzie to sit on the opposite bunk facing hm.

"Yes, Inglis did have a gun," Lowe began as Mackenzie lowered herself down onto the mattress. "But it wouldn't have done anyone any good in his situation. We were on foot, Inglis studying a dried up water source, the rest of us doing routine checks and following protocol. Sweeping for threats, working on the truck engine, that sort of thing. See, Inglis had this theory that all these natural wells we've been surviving on for the last few decades must have originated from somewhere. Something must have created them. Inglis suspected it was a river that dried up and pockets of water were trapped in the crust of the planet. It was a good theory, but he was obsessed with proving it. Maybe that's why he took risks."

"Risks?" Mackenzie asked. "Like what?"

"Well, normally no one ever leaves the truck until Jesse has swept the area for dangers," Lowe explained. "Ever. Inglis was impatient, though. Like you, he knew Town's water supply was dangerously low and he was desperate to find a long-term solution. Maybe even somewhere we could settle permanently. So he insisted that we speed things up. He was out in the field taking his samples before Jesse could complete the sweep. Inglis also didn't check for wildlife heat signatures, another handy trick your station can do. But he was rushing and got careless, with all due respect to his memory. That's why no one noticed the ubergrades."

"The what?" Mackenzie interrupted. "I've never heard of them."

"I'm not surprised," Lowe smirked humorlessly. "Most of your wildlife education was in school, right? Well, they're not the sort of animal teachers want to be telling children about. They're... well, to be perfectly honest, they're horrifying. They're among the worst creatures imaginable."

Lowe sighed and shook his head, looking down at his feet. Mackenzie waited silently for him to go on.

"Think of a large slug," Lowe began. "About the size of a pig. You read about pigs, right? Anyway, ubergrades are ugly things that are the same color as their habitat, exactly the same as all the sand and dirt and rocks we see everywhere. You can stand right on top of one and not know until it grabs you. They've got six legs, but they don't move on land much. They bury themselves almost completely in the sand and wait for food to come to them. They can survive years without food or water. They're as close to being immortal as anything can get. If you get too close to one, it bursts out of the ground and then..."

Lowe trailed off and a distant look came across his face, as though he was no longer looking at Mackenzie, but at something else in a different time. After a moment of silence, he shook his head slightly, snapping out of his reverie, then continued.

"Thing about the ubergrade that makes it so horrible is the way it eats its prey. See, it doesn't have any teeth. It barely even has a head! Just this puckered opening at the end of its neck where it sniffs you out. When it comes out of the ground, it pins you down with its front legs, too heavy for you to move it. Then it... spits this acid on you. This disgusting, foul smelling, burning acid that literally liquifies your flesh, melting it right off your bones. Then it doesn't just eat you. It drinks you. Once you're good and melted, it sticks its puckered nose into the puddle that was once a living thing and sucks it up. And the whole time, you're still alive to know what's happening."

"God," Mackenzie whispered. "I think I'm gonna be sick. That's what happened to Inglis?"

Lowe nodded slowly. "Yeah. By the time any of us knew what was happening, he was covered in the ubergrade acid. There were two of 'em, pinning him down and spitting on him. There was no moving him out, and there was no saving him after that crap touched him. Jesse, though... he still tried."

"What'd he do?" Mackenzie asked in a breath.

"Jesse unloaded his rifle into them," Lowe said flatly. "Twelve shots, but it didn't do a damn thing. Ubergrades have thick skin, they're damn near bulletproof. You can pierce their skin with a knife, if it's strong and sharp enough, but no one who gets close enough to stab an ubergrade is walking away. So Jesse just kept shooting and shooting. And Inglis... he was still alive. Still screaming. I don't think any of us will ever forget the way he screamed when they started drinking his flesh. I know I never will."

"There wasn't anything you could do?" Mackenzie asked, the color having drained from her face. "You couldn't have saved him?"

"I did save him," said a new voice.

Mackenzie and Lowe turned and saw Jesse standing at the entrance to the bunk-room, glaring between them with a withering scowl and narrowed eyes.

"You saved him?" Mackenzie repeated, confused. "But he died."

Jesse glared at her and nodded slowly. "I know. I shot him. One bullet, right in the head. That's what saved him."

Then without another word, Jesse turned around and climbed back up the ladder to his lookout, disappearing through the hatch. Leaving Mackenzie thinking that the water-reclaiming toilet didn't seem like such a big deal anymore.

One thing that Mackenzie quickly learned after a few days of travel was the one thing she never expected when thinking about life as a Diviner.

It was boring.

They had been driving south, towards the mountain ranges, for three days and were still days away from reaching the base of the nearest mountain. In that time, Mackenzie had learned how to use Lowe's weather station, Abbas had shown her how to navigate, Vasseur grilled her daily on protocols and procedures, Jesse had sullenly provided her with a pistol sidearm, and Bell had taught her how to drive Rhiannon. The lesson with Bell had been somewhat brief, though, as Bell would constantly stomp her foot on the imaginary brake from the passenger seat, pointing out with a panicky shriek obstacles that Mackenzie was nowhere near, and cringing every time Mackenzie did something wrong. Bell eventually had had enough and quickly ushered Mackenzie out of the driver's seat, sighing with relief when she was back in control.

"Mama's back, baby," Mackenzie distinctly heard her whisper to the truck.

"Ignore her," Abbas chuckled. "Bell doesn't trust anyone to drive. You did well."

"Yes," Vasseur added, grinning. "Especially well by not losing your temper with her. Jesse threatened to tie her to the back and drag her a few miles, if I remember correctly."

"Like you can talk," Jesse replied smugly from the rear of the truck, casually holding on to the steps on his ladder with one hand. "Lowe told me you wanted to shoot her kneecaps out."

"Did he now?" Vasseur growled, giving Lowe a steely side-eye look.

"I have no idea what he's talking about," Lowe said evenly, winking at Mackenzie, who couldn't help but laugh.

When Mackenzie wasn't learning how to use a new piece of machinery, or trading quips with Lowe and Bell, being a Diviner mostly involved a lot of driving and even more staring at a screen.

Occasionally something of interest would appear on the monitor and she would report it, but after further analysis it would prove to be nothing and they would drive on. The only time they ever stopped was at night to sleep. As Lowe had told her, they slept in shifts. Four asleep, two awake. When they weren't sleeping, they were working, monitoring their equipment in their constant search for water, though none of them expected to find anything until they reached the cooler climate of the mountain ranges.

"So my dad said you searched the ranges before?" Mackenzie asked Vasseur one day.

"That's right," Vasseur nodded.

Mackenzie waited for him to say more, but he remained silent.

"You didn't find anything?" Mackenzie pressed, mainly to just fill the silent void that had filled the truck.

"No," Vasseur replied.

And that was the end of it.

As Mackenzie sullenly turned her attention back to her work station, she suddenly heard Lowe utter a whispered, "Oh, crap."

"What is it?" Vasseur immediately asked.

Lowe turned around in his chair to face them all.

"Wind pressure has picked up from south-south-west," he reported. "Not too strong, but it's carrying a sandstorm our way. Visibility will drop to almost zero within the hour."

"Dammit," Vasseur muttered. "Abbas, find us a safe place to lock down. Bell, once Abbas has a location, head straight there and park us facing the storm so the wind doesn't turn us over. Everyone else, strap in."

"How long will it last?" Mackenzie asked, sounding worried. "Sandstorms can last days. We've got a tight deadline."

Vasseur nodded and then, fixing his narrow eyes on Lowe, asked, "How long do you think, Lowe?"

Lowe quickly pressed a few buttons on the holographic keyboard and studied his screens.

"Looks like a minor storm, sir," he replied. "Should only last a few hours, but just long enough to piss us off."

"We should gather extra rations just in case," Jesse said, standing at Mackenzie's shoulder. "If the storm picks up and lasts longer, we don't want to be trapped inside without food or water."

"We'll get some supplies out of cold storage once we stop," Vasseur said. "Abbas, do you have a location for us yet?"

"Locking in the coordinates now, sir," Abbas replied at once. "Not too far away. A cluster of rocks that can serve as a wind barrier and help keep most of the sand from damaging any exterior equipment."

"Bell, can you get us there?"

"Please," Bell replied, rolling her eyes. "Do you forget who you're talking to?"

They quickly drove to the location Abbas had found for them and, looking through the windows at the front of the truck, Mackenzie could see Abbas had been right. A large cluster of rocks and spectre trees jutting out of the ground formed a rudimentary wall between the truck and the direction the storm was approaching from. Bell parked the truck facing the rocks and began flipping switches on the dashboard.

"Locking down," Bell announced, which was immediately followed by six simultaneous bangs that sounded like cannon-fire, making Mackenzie jump in her seat.

"What was that?" she asked.

"Don't worry," Bell replied. "It's just our chassis anchors. Rhiannon fires six harpoons deep into the ground that hook in and keep us from flipping over. No matter how strong that wind gets, we're not going anywhere."

Even though Lowe had said the storm was minor, when it hit a short time later, Mackenzie was shocked by the ferocity of it. They were all seated at their stations and watching silently out the windows as the sky began to darken and they could see over the rocks the miles high wall of sand churning its way towards them. Mackenzie felt a lump of fear swell in her throat at the sight of the storm. It stretched high into the sky, blotting out the sun. The wall of dark sand and dirt rushed towards them with startling speed, as though they were driving at top speed straight into a solid wall.

When it struck, the spectre trees outside were instantly flattened. The truck shook violently from the power of the wind and Mackenzie couldn't help but cringe fearfully as she heard the sand and rocks pelt the truck's exterior, the thickness of the storm plunging the truck into complete darkness for several seconds, until Bell flipped some switches on the dashboard and the interior lights flicked on with a gentle glow.

Bell sighed heavily as she stared out at the storm. Mackenzie thought she knew what Bell was feeling. The sight of the sandstorm had a hope-draining effect and Mackenzie couldn't help but despair as she thought about how little time they had to find a new water source and how much this storm would slow them down.

"So," Abbas began after everyone was silent for several moments. "Anyone up for a game of cards?"

Time passed slowly in the truck as the storm raged and howled outside, whistling between the rocks and occasionally shaking the truck on its wheels. Abbas had located a deck of cards from somewhere and he, Vasseur, Bell and Lowe were sitting on the lower bunks playing a game called Thirteen, which Mackenzie tried to learn the rules for, but still didn't quite get. She watched as they played, joined in on the conversation, and tried not to think about the roaring wind that was likely burying them under mountains of sand at that exact moment. Visibility outside the truck was non-existent, so thick was the swirling sand around them. It might as well have been the dead of night, but a quick glance at the time told her it was closer to midday.

Looking around, Mackenzie saw Jesse had removed himself from the group and was sitting in his padded chair in the main cabin, cleaning his rifle. He had his back turned on them all, preferring to keep to himself for the time being.

Quietly removing herself from the card game as Bell and Lowe were arguing over whether or not Bell had been allowed to play her card, Mackenzie approached Jesse and stood hesitantly by her chair next to his.

"Mind if I sit down?" she asked.

Jesse didn't look up from chambering bullets into a magazine as he replied. "Suit yourself."

Mackenzie sat down beside Jesse, watching him work on his rifle. He acted as though she wasn't there, focusing on what he was doing.

"I'm sorry about the other day," Mackenzie blurted out.

"What about it?" Jesse asked.

"Well, you know," Mackenzie shrugged. "Lowe telling me how Inglis died."

Jesse frowned, but still didn't look up. "No problem."

Mackenzie picked at a thread in her vest as an uncomfortable silence fell between them. She was struggling to think of something to say when, surprisingly, Jesse was the one to speak.

"Inglis was my friend," he said quietly.

"I... I'm sorry," Mackenzie said, feeling as though she should say more, but couldn't think of anything that would do.

"S'okay," Jesse replied, finally looking up. He met Mackenzie's eyes and offered a tired smile, but it faltered and he quickly resumed his usual broody expression.

"You two were close, then?" Mackenzie asked.

"Yeah," Jesse nodded. "And then some. He raised me. After my parents died."

"Oh," Mackenzie said, surprised. She'd never heard Inglis was Jesse's guardian. "Was... Was it... hard for you to..."

"Shoot Inglis?" Jesse asked, finishing the question for Mackenzie. "Well, I didn't enjoy it. Did I hesitate? Of course I did. But if it was down to dying to the ubergrades or dying by a bullet, I know which I would prefer. Quick and clean was the far better option. If the situation had been reversed, I'd have wanted Inglis to shoot me without a single moment of hesitation. Just to spare me the hell of dying that way."

Jesse finally finished loading the magazine and clicked it into place in his rifle, then set the gun aside. He looked back at Mackenzie, looking as though he was considering her. Then he reached up and hooked his finger into his collar and pulled his shirt aside somewhat, revealing enough of his neck and collarbone for Mackenzie to clearly see the burn scar she had caught a glimpse of several days ago.

"See this scar?" Jesse asked. "My dad did that. He got sick, but it wasn't anything you could just give him medicine for. It was in his head. He started losing hope. I was only 7. One day, I guess it got too much for him, or the sickness on his brain got too bad, because he set fire to our house. He and my mom both died, but I got out. Got burned on the way, but I survived. Inglis took me in. He's half the reason I wanted to become a Diviner."

"God," Mackenzie whispered. "I... I never knew."

"Not many people do," Jesse admitted.

"So, what's the other half?" Mackenzie asked. "Of why you wanted to be a Diviner?"

At this, Jesse's tired smile reappeared. "Well... I wanted to prove I wasn't like my dad, for starters. That I wasn't the kind of person who would give up when things looked bad. That I'd always fight to survive, and help others survive. And that's what being out here is all about, really. Survival. Both ours and everyone back at Town."

Jesse leaned forward, closing the space between he and Mackenzie. She found herself acutely aware of how close they were, now, being able to clearly see her own reflection in Jesse's dark brown eyes.

"So what's your story, Miller?" he asked. "You know mine, now. What about you? You happy you're here? Or would you rather be back at Town with your boyfriend?"

At this, Mackenzie scowled at Jesse and narrowed her eyes angrily. "Ethan's not my boyfriend."

"Yeah?" Jesse replied, sounding doubtful. "He looked a little more than friendly the last time I saw you two together. You kiss all your friends like that?"

"You..." Mackenzie started, then stopped herself. She took a quick breath to calm herself down, then replied in an even, clipped, tone. "What's your problem with me? Ever since we met, you've done nothing but say snarky crap and try to embarrass me. If you hate me so much, why did you vote for me to join the team? You told me before the vote that you were going to vote for Ethan, so why'd you change your mind? Did you think you'd get bored without me here to torment?"

"See, it's comments like that that made me think you weren't cut out for this life," Jesse replied, sitting back in his seat, looking at Mackenzie as though disappointed. "You gotta have thicker skin than that. And, to answer your question, I never said I was going to vote for Renaud. I just said I thought he'd be a better fit."

"But..." Mackenzie began, flustered. "But why didn't you vote for him then?"

"He was a better fit right away," Jesse replied. "We wouldn't have had to train him as much in the equipment, but I thought you had better potential. The way you handled that situation with the gaper? That was what a Diviner would have done. That's what your dad would have done, too! Almost no thought for your own safety, just doing what you had to do to make sure nobody died. That's why I voted for you."

Mackenzie stared back at Jesse, not knowing what to say. She was spared having to come up with a response, however, when her terminal began beeping insistently at her.

Turning her chair around to address the issue, Mackenzie examined the readout on the screen in front of her. When she realized what she was looking at, her eyebrows pressed together in confusion and doubt.

"What?" she whispered to herself.

Mackenzie leaned closer to the monitor and examined what she had seen. Jesse rose from his seat and stood at her shoulder, also peering at the monitor.

"What is it?" he asked.

Mackenzie pointed at the screen, at a small line of bluish-green that was barely thicker than a hair.

"That," Mackenzie said. "I think that's water."

"Where?" Vasseur demanded, suddenly appearing beside Mackenzie.

Mackenzie pointed at the hairline of blue and green again. "Right there. It wasn't there a moment ago, though."

"Could the sensors have been damaged by the storm?" Jesse asked.

"No way," Mackenzie replied before Vasseur could. "I retracted the sensors to shield them from the storm, but they're still on. They're just pointing straight down. The signal is faint, that's why they didn't pick up on the thermal reading right away, but that is definitely water."

"It doesn't look like much," Vasseur commented as Bell, Abbas, and Lowe also appeared nearby, all looking surprised and hopeful. "Barely more than a trickle."

"It's deep underground," Mackenzie said, examining the readouts. "About half a mile."

"We can't dig that deep!" Bell exclaimed. "We don't have the equipment for that!"

"Even if we did," Abbas chimed in, "it would take us weeks we don't have to dig that far down."

"Wait, wait..." Mackenzie said, her fingers flying over the holographic keyboard, not blinking as she examined the numerous screens and the numbers that kept scrolling and the thermal readouts that showed the supposed water. She examined the data and then gasped softly in amazement. "It's flowing. Look, it's flowing!"

"So?" Lowe asked, confused. "What good does that do us?"

"Remember you told me about Inglis' theory?" Mackenzie asked excitedly, turning in her seat to face Lowe. "You said he thought there might have once been a common water source, something that created all these natural wells. I think this might lead us to it."

"Excuse me?" Jesse scoffed. "There is no common water source. We looked."

"Oh, and did you ever find an underground river?" Mackenzie snapped. When Jesse remained silent, she continued. "No matter how far down this river is, it had to have come from somewhere. And the fact that there's still a current to it proves that the place it came from is likely still there. I think this might be what we're looking for. This could be a new water source for us to relocate to!"

Vasseur frowned at the monitors as he thought, taking in all the details and weighing his options. Mackenzie remained silent and held her breath.

"I agree," Vasseur finally said. "There's something to this. And we'd be stupid to not at least check it out. Abbas, work with Miller to figure out where this river is flowing from, then backtrack it. I want coordinates by the time this storm passes. Everyone else, eat something, have some water, and get some rest. Something tells me tomorrow is going to be a busy day and we're going to need all the strength we can get."

Then Vasseur looked down at Mackenzie and nodded at her, an impressed smile on his face.

"Not bad for your first week," Vasseur said. "Good job, Miller."

"Thank you, sir," Mackenzie replied, trying to contain her excitement.

Jesse leaned in close and murmured in her ear, "What'd I tell you? Potential."

Before Mackenzie could reply, Jesse walked away to climb into his bunk. Mackenzie could barely hear the howling of the storm anymore as she and Abbas worked. She was far too excited to pay attention to anything other than the task at hand.

To think I was bored!

CHAPTER TEN

It had been the middle of the day when the storm hit, and by the time it passed it was nightfall. The darkness of the storm faded to give way to the slightly less dark of night in the merciless deserts of Icarus. Stars lit up the sky and the singular moon glowed orange in the sky.

After cleaning the sand and dirt off Rhiannon with high-pressure air hoses, they were moving again, this time with a clearer destination in mind. Mackenzie and Abbas had determined the direction the river was flowing from and had determined to continue following their original course south, though with a minor adjustment heading south-west. Mackenzie kept two of the six sensors at her disposal locked on the river at all times, afraid of losing sight of it, while the remaining four sensors continued sweeping the area around the truck for signs of additional water sources. Mackenzie also reminded herself to keep an eye out for redox fields, too. The last thing she wanted now was to accidentally let them drive over the explosive rocks, thereby destroying humanity's last hope for survival.

They drove for the whole day, and Mackenzie was grateful for no problems. Jesse reported a few animals here and there, but nothing that was immediately threatening. The weather remained clear and Lowe confirmed that another sandstorm was unlikely. Bell seemed in a good mood and was singing loudly as they drove, until Jesse clapped his hands over his ears and bared his teeth in annoyance.

"Do you have to sing that?" he demanded.

"What's the matter, Greaves?" Bell asked sweetly. "You don't like my singing voice?"

"Since you mention it, no," Jesse replied, his expression somewhere between a smile and a sneer. "But of all the songs in existence, do you have to sing that 21st century crap?"

"Crap!?" Bell exclaimed in mock offence. "It's a classic! And it's 20th century, thank you very much. If you're going to be disrespectful to greatness, at least get your facts straight."

"I'm afraid I have to agree with Greaves on this one," Abbas chimed in.

"You're both morons," Bell replied, shaking her head in stunned bemusement. "Jon Bon Jovi may be long gone, but his music is eternal!"

"Eternally bad," Jesse quipped.

"Whoa, hey!" Mackenzie cried out as her terminal began beeping at her again. "There's something up ahead giving off a H2O reading. But... it's on the surface. Close to our river, not far from here."

Vasseur rose from his station and stood at Mackenzie's shoulder to see what she was talking about.

"Ah ha!" he exclaimed, sounding pleased. "Mana!"

"Really?" Bell asked, sounding hopeful and dubious at the same time.

"One hundred percent," Vasseur confirmed. "We're heading almost straight for it. Any objections if we take a slight detour?"

"Hell no," Jesse replied.

"What's the big deal?" Mackenzie asked, vaguely recalling Abbas mentioning something about mana seeds to her father. "What's mana?"

Vasseur grinned down at her. "These are plants, Miller, a rare and incredibly difficult to find plant that grows fruit. It seems you're a lucky charm for us. These plants grow a kind of fruit we call mana, but it's sweet like chocolate. Their juices are likely to be the greatest tasting thing you'll ever drink. We've only found mana patches a handful of times before, and I personally think it's worth a half-hour detour."

"I've already changed course, sir!" Bell shouted out from the front of the truck.

"What if we lose the river?" Mackenzie asked, feeling apprehensive.

"We won't," Abbas said. "I've locked the coordinates into our nav system. We'll be back on track in no time."

As worried as Mackenzie was about wasting time, she was still curious to try these supposedly delicious mana fruits. It had been a long time since she ate anything other than gourd and dried out gozard jerky. She found her mouth was watering just at the thought of something different.

"Do they taste as good as you say?" Mackenzie asked Vasseur.

Vasseur grinned at her, a rare twinkle in his eye. "Better."

A short time later, Bell pulled the truck to a stop and everyone stared out the windows at the sight that lay before them.

It was an expanse of green and yellow cacti, roughly the size of a soccer field. Tall plants grew out of the ground in varying sizes, some only a couple of feet tall while others towered over six feet. They looked remarkably similar to cacti found on Earth, though instead of sharp thorns, Mackenzie could see yellowish buds the size of golf balls growing all over the green and brown cacti.

"Be cool," Vasseur said calmly to everyone. "We don't know what's out there. Odds are we're not the only ones looking to eat here."

"I've swept the area for thermal imagery," Mackenzie reported. "Nothing out there but plants."

"Check it again," Vasseur ordered. "I'm not taking any chances."

Mackenzie reviewed the monitors again, carefully checking every readout.

"Clear," she reported. "No signs of life."

"All right," Vasseur said, seeming to sigh with relief. "Everyone grab a bag. We'll load up with as much as we can carry and stash it in cold storage. We should be able to add about a week to our food rations with what's here. Let's move quick, though. One run and done. I want to be back on the move within fifteen minutes. Got it?"

"Got it," Jesse replied, grabbing bags from the rear of the truck and tossing them to each person, one at a time.

"Jesse, I want you to stay on lookout," Vasseur said. "I think we'll all feel better knowing your rifle is watching out for us. Everyone else, with me. Stick to protocol. Stay alert. Things can change in a heartbeat out here, so don't assume anything."

Jesse grabbed his rifle from the wall and quickly climbed the ladder to his lookout post in the roof, vanishing through the hatch.

"Okay," Vasseur said. "Let's go."

Vasseur hit the button to open the door in the side of the truck, the steps lowering automatically as the door slid smoothly open with a gentle hiss.

The heat hit Mackenzie in the face with surprising force. She'd spent so long inside the air-conditioned truck, she'd gotten used to the cooler air it offered. Now, in the face of the unforgiving heat of the desert, she took half a step back from the door as she recoiled from the harsh conditions of the outside world. But then the others all filed outside and Mackenzie forced herself to follow them.

Already panting from the heat, Mackenzie and the others all walked quickly into the cacti field, while Jesse watched over them through the scope of his rifle from the top of the truck. No one hesitated in their task. The moment they reached the cacti, they all began grabbing handfuls of the yellow bulbs that were growing from the large cucumber-like plants and started shoving them into their bags. Mackenzie watched, hesitant for a moment as she wasn't too sure on how to handle the strange fruit, but then determined it was as simple as grabbing a bulb, twisting it off its stem, and stuffing it in her bag. She turned to the nearest plant and began grabbing fruit with both hands.

"Miller, what are you doing?" Vasseur suddenly demanded, appearing from around a nearby cactus.

"Sorry, am I doing it wrong?" Mackenzie asked, looking down at the fruit she presently held in her hand.

"No, not that," Vasseur shook his head, starting to grin. "You need to try one. Go on. Take a bite."

"Really?"

"Sure," Vasseur nodded, still stuffing fruit into his bag. "I won't tell the others."

Mackenzie smirked guiltily, then raised the yellow fruit to her mouth and bit it in half.

The flavor that filled her mouth was like an explosion. Mackenzie had always loved watermelon before, but this! This fruit was so deliciously juicy and flavoursome, it made watermelon taste like dirt. The taste filled her entire mouth as the juices flowed from the flesh of the fruit and swished around her tongue. Mackenzie groaned with pleasure and closed her eyes, closing her senses off to everything but the taste of this glorious fruit.

"Good, huh?" Vasseur chuckled.

"Oh my God," Mackenzie said around a full mouth. "This is literally the best thing I've ever tasted!"

"We told you!" Bell laughed from nearby. "Congratulations! You just had your first food-gasm."

"They grow up so fast," Abbas laughed.

"Guys?" Jesse's voice suddenly came over the radio in Mackenzie's ear. "I don't want to alarm you, but I think I saw something move out there."

"What was it?" Vasseur demanded, his gun appearing in his hand like magic as the mood turned instantly serious.

"Not sure," Jesse replied. "I just caught a glimpse of it."

"Are you sure it wasn't just one of us?" Lowe asked nervously.

"Not unless you turned green since I last saw you," Jesse growled.

"Everyone, start heading back to the truck," Vasseur ordered. "We're done here."

No one argued, despite the fact that they hadn't even half filled their bags. Mackenzie spotted Lowe, Abbas, and Bell moving swiftly through the plants around her, each one pulling out their sidearms and holding them at the ready. They were all moving cautiously, their eyes always moving around, searching for dangers, their guns always pointing wherever they looked. Mackenzie slowly pulled her own gun out of its holster at her hip and flicked the safety to off.

"It's on your right," Jesse said urgently. "Heading towards you."

"What is it?" Mackenzie asked.

"Still can't see it clearly."

Mackenzie had a horrible image pop into her mind of an ubergrade making its way towards her, acid dripping from its mouth as it charged. She shivered, despite the heat, and told herself that ubergrades don't hunt like that, according to what Lowe told her.

"Why didn't the sensors show any life out here?" she demanded of nobody in particular.

"Shit!" Lowe hissed. "Something just moved by me."

"Me, too!" Bell reported, though she wasn't close to Lowe.

"There's more than one," Abbas hissed.

"Just keep moving," Vasseur ordered, keeping his voice low. "Don't run. We don't want to startle them."

"Yeah, they're startled," Bell said sarcastically, though her voice shook as she spoke.

Mackenzie stared silently at a towering cactus that was ahead of her. It was oddly misshapen, bulging towards the top. Looking at the ground around the cactus, Mackenzie could see the yellow mana fruits were scattered around, their juices spilling out into the sand and dirt as the flesh had split open, or been torn apart.

Looking back up from the fallen fruit, Mackenzie studied the strange bulge in the cactus, unsure why it drew her attention so much, but she knew there was something about it that alerted whatever primitive survival instinct she had. She stood completely still as she stared at the misshapen plant.

Suddenly, the bulge began to move. It pulled itself away from the cactus and began to turn. Mackenzie stared, frozen in shock and fear, as the animal that had blended so perfectly to the cactus turned its yellow eyes on her, its mouth opening to bare sharp teeth dripping with the juice of the fruits. As Mackenzie stared, the creature began to change color. Whereas it had been the exact same color green as the cactus it was resting on, it suddenly changed, but not to any other hue. It seemed to lose all color, revealing strangely translucent skin that Mackenzie could almost see straight through to the organs and skeleton beneath. She swore she could see the creature's heart pumping fast as it looked back at her.

It mostly looked like a large bat, roughly the size of a 2-year-old human. It had the same wings one would expect of a bat, large and leathery, except each hand on each wing had far larger hands and opposable thumbs, each finger ending with a narrow and razor-sharp claw that was piercing the tough cactus with ease. It had stubby legs, each with clawed feet that were also digging deep into the cactus, keeping the creature immobile.

The head was what truly scared Mackenzie, though. It was remarkably similar to that of a hyena, with a small snout and rounded ears. While the snout was relatively short, it was wider than any other canine snout, seeming almost sharklike with how rounded and wide it was. But it's teeth were far longer and far sharper than what Mackenzie had seen in any pictures of hyenas or sharks. It snarled at her, showing her its teeth, beginning to unhook itself from the cactus and turn towards her.

Suddenly, the strange creature with the almost transparent skin threw itself from the cactus and soared on its wings towards Mackenzie, its claws flashing in the light and its teeth bared, an unnatural screech coming from its mouth.

Without even thinking, Mackenzie raised her gun and fired two shots. The first shot missed and the creature soared closer, but the second shot hit the animal's shoulder, separating a wing from its body. Its angry shriek turned into a cry of pain as it fell to the ground and began to writhe in agony at Mackenzie's feet, still crying in pain.

Vasseur and Bell came hurrying towards the noise, stopping on either side of Mackenzie as they stared down at the terrifying, though now pitiful, creature.

"Akucho!" Bell gasped.

Without a word, Vasseur aimed his pistol at the creature's head and pulled the trigger, silencing the animal.

"We have to move," he said. "Now!"

They all broke into a run, charging out of the cacti and sprinting to close the gap between them and the truck. The precise moment they broke free of the field, there was a near-deafening shriek from the field behind them and Mackenzie couldn't help but look back over her shoulder.

To her horror, the sky was filling with the creatures Bell had called akucho. They were flapping up out of the field and into the sky, quickly locking their yellow eyes on the running humans and diving back down towards them, snarling and snapping their wide jaws.

Shots began to ring out ahead of them as Jesse started to fire rapidly into the sky, having switched his weapon to fully automatic. Akuchos began to scream in pain and then drop from the sky, but there were many more, having apparently hidden in the fields, feeding on the fruits, but perhaps wanting something meatier to satiate their hunger.

"Run!" Vasseur yelled, urging everyone to keep going, shoving Mackenzie as he caught up to her.

Mackenzie turned away from the sky full of akuchos and sprinted towards the truck. The akuchos, however, were much faster. They moved like a wolf pack, splitting off into two groups and passing the humans on both sides, then banked to block their escape, forming a wall of translucent flesh and snapping teeth.

Mackenzie and the others all stopped in their tracks, their only escape blocked off. The moment they stopped, Mackenzie saw one akucho dive out of the air and strike Abbas on the shoulder, knocking him to the ground as he cried out in pain from the sharp talons digging into his flesh. The akucho raised its head and bared its teeth, ready to strike down on the back of Abbas' exposed neck, but Lowe fired a single shot into the creature's head from three feet away, the akucho's skull exploding from the exit wound.

Abbas was quickly on his feet and firing at every akucho he could see. Lowe stood with his back against Abbas' and they both fired at the attacking akuchos, stopping the hungry beasts from sinking their teeth into their throats.

"Close ranks!" Vasseur shouted over the screeching of the akuchos and the ceaseless sound of gunfire. Vasseur began making his way towards Abbas and Lowe, stopping shooting just long enough to give Mackenzie a shove in the same direction. "Everyone, back to back! Cover each other! Hold them off!"

Bell reached Abbas and Lowe first and they quickly formed an outward facing triangle, firing at everything non-human that moved. Jesse helped cover Vasseur and Mackenzie as they ran towards the others, shooting down anything that got too close with shocking precision.

Vasseur and Mackenzie made it to the others, Mackenzie thinking the whole time that she was about to feel the sharp teeth of an akucho sink into her neck, but she followed orders and stood shoulder to shoulder between Vasseur and Bell, firing relentlessly at the attacking akuchos.

"Start moving towards the truck!" Vasseur shouted, emptying one magazine and swiftly sliding a new one into place. "Move together! Don't give 'em an opening!"

Together, they all began to walk as one, moving towards the truck. Jesse kept firing into the cloud of akuchos and their bodies rained down around Mackenzie and the others, but she paid them no attention. She kept her focus on moving with the group and on shooting any attacking akucho that made it through Jesse's defences.

It was only a short distance to the truck from where they were, but it seemed to Mackenzie that it was the longest walk of her life. The sound of screeching and gunfire seemed to never end. Finally, they reached the truck and all planted their backs firmly against its side, no longer being in such an open position. They formed a wall of gunfire and kept shooting at the akucho, who seemed relentless in their pursuit.

"Bell!" Vasseur shouted. "Get in first! Fire up the engines, we might need to get out of here in a hurry!"

"Roger that!" Bell replied. She made her way to the door and slipped inside, firing at the akuchos the whole time.

"Abbas, you next!" Vasseur ordered.

Nodding and grimacing from the pain in his bleeding shoulder, Abbas walked sideways towards the door, then vanished inside.

"Lowe, go!"

Lowe was the next to vanish inside, still shooting at the akuchos.

"You're next, Miller!" Vasseur shouted.

"What about you?" Mackenzie shouted back.

"Just go!" Vasseur roared, firing another few rounds at the onslaught of akuchos. "Now!"

Recognizing the finality of an order, Mackenzie walked backwards up the steps of the truck, still shooting and helping to provide as much help to Vasseur as possible.

"Come on!" Mackenzie yelled at him. "Let's go, come on!"

Vasseur turned his back on the akucho and began to climb inside the truck. Mackenzie stepped back to allow him room.

Suddenly, Mackenzie saw the akucho fly in low along the ground, skimming the surface, its yellow eyes locked on Vasseur's back.

"Look out!" Mackenzie cried raising her gun. She aimed and pulled the trigger.

Click!

The magazine was empty! The realization hit Mackenzie like a rock in the stomach as the akucho flew in with amazing speed and dove on Vasseur's back.

Vasseur threw back his head and roared with agony as the akucho repeatedly stabbed its claws into his back, over and over again, blood spraying everywhere and showering the akucho's translucent skin.

"Help me!" Mackenzie screamed as she grabbed Vasseur's hands and tried to drag him inside and away from the akucho. Abbas appeared at her side and fired his own gun at the akucho, but it swiftly scurried out of the line of fire and hid under Vasseur's body. Vasseur screamed anew, this time because the akucho had sunk its teeth into his thigh and was shaking its head like a dog, tearing the flesh away.

With one final pull, Mackenzie managed to drag Vasseur completely into the truck, bringing the akucho in with him. Lowe slammed his hand down on the button to close the door, preventing any more akucho's from getting in.

The akucho that was ripping Vasseur's leg apart raised its head and fixed its gaze on Mackenzie. It opened its mouth and screeched at her, its muzzle and teeth stained with blood. It lunged forward, reaching towards Mackenzie's throat with its talons and teeth.

Reacting quickly, Mackenzie raised her hand and closed her bionic fingers around the akucho's neck, preventing it from getting close enough to rip her apart. The akucho struggled and flapped its wings, screeching furiously in Mackenzie's face. Then Abbas shot it three times in the head.

"Bell, move out!" Abbas shouted as Mackenzie tossed the lifeless akucho corpse aside. "Lowe, Vasseur needs medical attention!"

Lowe was already retrieving a first aid kit from a nearby cabinet and was falling to his knees beside Vasseur, who was groaning on the floor, laying on his side, his own blood beginning to pool around him.

"You'll be okay, sir, you'll be fine," Mackenzie was whispering to him, holding his head in her lap.

"What's going on back there!?" Bell shouted over her shoulder.

"Just drive!" Abbas shouted back.

Lowe cut open Vasseur's shirt with a pair of scissors to reveal the damage. Mackenzie gasped when she saw what the akucho had done. It was as though Vasseur had been stabbed dozens of times, each wound looking large and deep, blood spilling out of them at an alarming rate.

Jesse suddenly came sliding down the ladder, the hatch over his head closing behind him.

"We're clear, they're breaking off their attack," Jesse reported, but as he went to say more, he saw Vasseur on the floor and froze, his eyes wide with shock.

"Abbas, get some water!" Lowe cried, at which Abbas ran off without hesitation. "Jesse, get me as many bandages as you can find! Now!"

As Jesse sprinted to the nearest cabinet and began tearing through it searching for all the medical supplies they had available, Lowe grabbed a small cylinder the size of a pen out of the med kit and pointed it at one of the wounds. Mackenzie watched as a thin red beam of light came out of the pen and began to cauterise the flesh deep inside the wound, smoke rising gently from where the heat of the laser met flesh. Vasseur groaned in pain, though it was unclear if it was because of the laser or the multiple stab wounds.

"Miller!" Lowe cried. "His leg!"

Mackenzie looked at where the akucho had been tearing into Vasseur with its teeth and gasped when she saw the damage. A large chunk of Vasseur's thigh was just gone. Blood was spurting out of the opening, coloring Vasseur's pants from khaki to black.

"He's losing too much blood," Lowe panted. "I need you to pinch that artery closed while I take care of his other wounds."

Mackenzie gently lowered Vasseur's head onto the floor and moved to his leg. She inspected the gaping wound one more time. The artery was deep inside, spurting blood everywhere. At this rate, Vasseur would be dead in minutes. Clenching her teeth, Mackenzie thrust her hand inside Vasseur's leg and found the artery. She pinched it between her fingers and willed herself not to throw up. The moment Mackenzie thrust her hand inside the wound, Vasseur tossed back his head and roared in agony, his face almost completely white. Jesse then appeared at Mackenzie's side and began unraveling a roll of gauze, his eyes studying the massive wound with horror.

Abbas suddenly returned with a container of water and fell down to his knees beside Vasseur, his own wounds all but forgotten. He soaked a cloth in the water and moved to wash Vasseur's wounds with it, but Vasseur suddenly reached up and grabbed his wrist.

"Don't..." Vasseur whispered hoarsely. "Don't waste it."

"Sir, you'll die if we don't-" Abbas began to argue.

"I'll die anyway," Vasseur growled.

"Don't say that!" Mackenzie cried, still holding the artery between her fingers. She could still feel blood flowing, though. The hot, sticky, blood ran over her hand and down her arm to her elbow. She ignored it, instead focusing on Vasseur's pained expression as he turned his eyes on her.

"You'll need all the water we have if you're gonna make it," Vasseur said hoarsely. He turned his head and spat a mouthful of blood onto the floor. "Don't waste it... on me."

"We'll be fine without it," Jesse snapped, sounding more fearful than Mackenzie ever imagined him being capable of.

"Sir, please," Lowe began, still cauterising the wounds on Vasseur's back. "I can stop the bleeding!"

"No," Vasseur whispered. "You can't. You know it. Stand down. That's... an... order."

Mackenzie, Jesse, Lowe, and Abbas all looked helplessly between one another. This was one order no one wanted to follow, but they all knew Vasseur was right. He'd already lost too much blood, the floor of the truck now a thick pool of red, in which they all knelt.

Vasseur slowly turned his eyes on Mackenzie. She saw that they seemed glassy and unfocused, like he was having trouble seeing her.

"Miller," Vasseur rasped. "Stay away from... the canyon. Scylla."

"What?" Mackenzie asked, confused. "Why not? What's Scylla?"

Vasseur closed his eyes and Mackenzie thought for a moment he was gone, but he was still breathing, though his breath was shallow and raspy. He then opened his eyes and tried to focus on Mackenzie again.

"Don't... trust... him."

"Who?" Mackenzie asked. "Don't trust who? What are you talking about?"

Vasseur's eyes were no longer looking at her, but through her and seeing nothing. Mackenzie listened for his shallow breathing, but it was gone. Silence filled the truck, a silence so heavy Mackenzie felt as though she may just be crushed by it.

"He's gone," Lowe said quietly.

"Vasseur's dead?" Bell asked from the front of the truck, still driving.

"Yes," Lowe replied, his voice thick.

Mackenzie was still staring at Vasseur's face. Not believing it was true, refusing to believe it was true. He wasn't dead. He couldn't be dead. He'd been a Diviner longer than she'd been alive, he couldn't have died just like that! And over nothing! Some fruit! How could it be?

She suddenly felt a hand on her own and jumped slightly. She turned away from Vasseur's face and saw that Jesse had placed his hand on hers, his scowl set deep on his face, but his eyes telling of the pain and loss he truly felt.

"You can let go now," Jesse said softly to her.

Not understanding what he meant, Mackenzie looked down at the hand Jesse was holding. She realized that she was still pinching the exposed artery between her fingers.

"Oh," was all she could manage to say. Then she slowly let go and pulled her bloody hand out of the wound.

Abbas covered his face with one hand, sighing heavily as Lowe sat down on the floor, looking lost. Bell could be heard sobbing gently from the driver's seat, wiping furiously at her eyes.

Mackenzie felt a burning sensation behind her eyes and she blinked hard to keep the tears from falling. For the first time since becoming a Diviner, she felt lost.

She turned back to Vasseur's face, looked into his glassy eyes, and wondered just what the hell they were supposed to do now.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

It didn't take them long to get back on track. Abbas had recorded their previous coordinates and they soon found the path that followed the deep underground river.

What did take a long time, though, was scrubbing Vasseur's blood up off the floor of the truck. Mackenzie, Abbas, and Lowe used air pressure tools and absorbent sponges to remove the blood, but it took hours. Bell drove in silence and Jesse had quickly retreated to his lookout post without saying a word to anyone.

"Should we bury him?" Mackenzie had asked.

"No," Abbas had responded, his voice thick with emotion. "We should take his body home. To his wife."

After moving Vasseur's body into cold storage, Mackenzie longed for the day to reset. She wished they could start over, follow the river, and above all she wished she had never spotted that stupid fruit on the computer. If she had never said anything about it, they never would have detoured, and Vasseur...

A whole day passed without anyone speaking more than they had to. Lowe would report weather conditions. Abbas would issue navigational instructions. Bell stopped singing. No one heard from Jesse at all over the radio, and Mackenzie stared in gloomy silence at her terminal. Making sure they didn't lose the underground river.

When night fell, Abbas and Bell had first shift while Lowe, Mackenzie, and Jesse all slept. Though sleep eluded Mackenzie. She tossed and turned in her bunk, Vasseur's face seemingly seared onto the backs of her eyelids, appearing to leer at her every time she closed her eyes.

Finally, it was time to change shifts and Mackenzie gratefully climbed out of bed, longing to do something other than think about Vasseur.

Mackenzie tapped Bell on the shoulder, making her jump with fright.

"Oh," Bell sighed when she looked back and saw Mackenzie standing there. "I didn't hear you coming."

"Sorry," Mackenzie replied. "You should get some sleep. You look exhausted."

"Don't we all?" Bell said, offering a tired smile. She then stopped the truck and moved out of the driver's seat to allow Mackenzie to take over. Abbas, who was in the passenger seat, muttered something about bed and wandered off.

As Mackenzie settled into the driver's seat, Bell watched her.

"You did good today, Miller," Bell said gently.

"Not good enough," Mackenzie replied.

Bell shook her head. "There wasn't anything you could have done. Wasn't anything any of us could have done. We did our best."

"We were only in that field because of me," Mackenzie said tonelessly. "I was the one who saw it first, if I didn't say anything, then Vasseur would still be alive. I didn't see the akuchos in thermal imagery."

"No one could have seen them," Bell said gently. "Akuchos blood warmth matches the temperature of their environment. They're invisible to thermal imagery."

"I could have shot the akucho that killed Vasseur," Mackenzie argued. "But I was out of bullets. I couldn't stop him bleeding. If that was my best, I don't want to know what my worst is."

Not knowing what else to say, Bell placed a hand on Mackenzie's shoulder for a moment, then slowly walked away to bed.

Mackenzie drove away into the night, watching the landscape roll under the truck by the light of the headlamps. The shadow on the ground looked ghostly, like dark faces staring up at her. Despite the even temperature inside the truck, Mackenzie shivered.

Jesse suddenly appeared by her side, staring out the windows with Mackenzie. He then sat down in the passenger seat next to her, still silent. Mackenzie figured Abbas must have woken him for his shift.

"Vasseur preferred night-time out here," Jesse said wistfully, still not looking at Mackenzie. "He said it reminded him of stories his father told him about Earth. Because it all seems so much calmer at night. How everything out here just seems so much more... peaceful. Like you'd never know by looking at it that there were a thousand different hungry monsters lurking out there."

Jesse finally turned to look at Mackenzie, who kept her focus on the path ahead.

"Bell's right, you know," Jesse said. "It wasn't your fault."

"You don't believe that," Mackenzie replied.

"Sure I do," Jesse said. "Because it was mine."

"What?" Mackenzie scoffed, glancing sideways at Jesse. "How was it your fault?"

"I never even saw that akucho diving for him," Jesse sighed, rubbing his eyes. "I wasn't paying close enough attention. I should have... I don't know, I should have done something."

"There were hundreds of those things," Mackenzie pointed out. "And you're beating yourself up because you didn't see one?"

"It was the one that mattered," Jesse snapped. He suddenly sighed and shook his head. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to be so..."

"You?" Mackenzie offered.

Jesse chuckled. "Yeah. Me. I know I come across as kind of a prick, but don't think it's because I don't like you or anything. I just don't know how else to be a lot of the time."

They both fell silent for a while, just staring out into the night. Mackenzie didn't feel like it was an uncomfortable silence. They just both had a lot on their minds. Mackenzie kept replaying those last moments with Vasseur in her mind, just a few minutes stuck on a permanent loop.

"What Vasseur said," Mackenzie began. "Scylla? What is that?"

Jesse shook his head. "I have no idea. Never heard of it."

Mackenzie frowned. The word bothered her, mainly because of the look of worry and fear that had appeared in Vasseur's eyes when he said it.

Stay away from the canyon. Scylla. Why? What is it? And why doesn't Jesse know what it is?

"He told you not to trust someone," Jesse began, looking sideways at her. "Do you know who he meant?"

"No," Mackenzie replied, shaking her head. "No idea."

"Leave it to Vasseur to be as vague as possible with his dying words," Jesse growled. "Typical."

Again, they both fell silent for a while, neither one having much to say anymore. So they drove in silence until the sun began to peek over the horizon.

When they stopped the truck, they all stared out the windows at the sight before them.

"The river runs right through it," Mackenzie said from her terminal.

Bell was driving again and she was tapping the wheel as she thought. "Any way around it?"

Abbas was typing quickly on his navigational system. "I'll see what I can find."

Lowe and Jesse both remained silent as they studied the enormous obstacle that had slowly risen before them.

Two days after Vasseur's death, they had finally made it to the mountain ranges that had seemed so impossibly far away from Town. Mackenzie felt intimidated by just how high up they reached, but that was not the problem. The problem was that there was no pathway to enter the mountains, where the underground river appeared to flow from. Instead, they had found themselves cut off from progressing farther by a tall cliff that stretched far into the distance, left and right. There was nowhere they could see for them to drive the truck.

"We could climb it," Jesse suggested. "But that would leave us exposed and with no equipment to track the river."

"You just shot down your own idea," Mackenzie pointed out.

"Just saving someone else the trouble," Jesse replied.

"There," Abbas suddenly said, jabbing a finger at the map on his screen. "I sent out an echolocation pulse and this is the reading I got back. There's a narrow opening about half a mile east of here that looks like it leads straight through the cliff."

"You mean, like a canyon?" Mackenzie asked, feeling apprehensive.

"Vasseur said to stay away from a canyon," Lowe recalled.

"How many canyons do you think there could be out here?" Bell asked, a little annoyed. "Besides, Vasseur was in shock and dying. Who knows what he was thinking?"

"We don't really have a choice," Mackenzie sighed. "Not unless you want to give up on the river and follow another lead."

"Does anyone have another lead?" Abbas asked.

No one replied, so Abbas sighed heavily as he studied the map.

"Fine," he finally said. "We'll go into the canyon, then hopefully pick up the trail of our river again on the other side."

"How do we even know we're close to a water source?" Lowe asked. "This river we're following could lead us around for weeks, for all we know."

"The current is picking up," Mackenzie quickly said. "Flowing from the direction we're driving. If the current is getting stronger, it means we're getting closer."

"That settles it," Abbas said firmly. "Unless anyone has any other concerns we should know about?"

Everyone was silent. Abbas nodded and began typing in coordinates.

"Let's go then."

They found the opening into the canyon easily, as it broke the entire cliff face in two. Looking through the opening, Mackenzie felt nervous as she was strongly reminded of the old Western films pulled from the downloaded archives of the Panspermia she used to watch with Ethan. The canyon was wide enough for the truck to fit, but the ground was rocky and uneven. Large boulders jutted out of the walls and the ground in random locations, causing Mackenzie to suspect this was going to be a long and tiresome drive. Bell was going to have to drive around every obstacle, possibly adding a whole day to the trip, maybe more.

"I don't like it," Lowe said, staring out the window at the landscape. "It's too enclosed. If we get attacked by anything, we're sitting ducks."

"We're safe inside the truck," Abbas replied. "We'll be fine."

Jesse rose from his seat and grabbed his rifle from the wall. "I'll be up top," he said, then quickly climbed the ladder to his lookout post.

"Bell," Abbas said. "Lead the way."

Nodding, Bell began driving slowly into the canyon.

As Mackenzie suspected, they drove at a crawl. There were so many large rocks and giant potholes that Bell had to spin the wheel hard in a new direction every few seconds to navigate around them all. Mackenzie tried to keep an eye on the river on her terminal, but it was almost completely out of range. She would catch a glimpse of it every now and then as it turned and came closer to their location, but most of the time it was out of sight. Every time she lost sight of the river, Mackenzie grew anxious, worried that the river had turned the other direction and they were heading away from the potential water source. She prayed that she was right to suggest following the river.

"Guys?" Bell suddenly said, breaking the long silence that had settled over them all. "Anyone else notice something strange about this place?"

No one said anything and Lowe shrugged, shaking his head.

"Well, look at where we are," Bell began. "We're in a canyon, sheltered from storms. There's shade. There's a possible water source close by. Why aren't there any animals here?"

"Should there be?" Mackenzie asked.

"This is a prime location for animals to live in," Bell said. "Assuming you're right about water being nearby, and I think you are. This canyon should be full of life. So where is it?"

"Maybe they're hiding," Abbas suggested, but didn't sound convinced.

Suddenly, Jesse reappeared through the hatch in the roof and slid down the ladder.

"Can anyone else hear that?" he asked in a hurry.

"Hear what?" Abbas asked.

"Turn on the exterior mic," Jesse said, pointing at the dashboard.

Abbas flipped a switch and the truck was immediately filled with a strange sound, like air being sucked through a straw. They all listened to it intently, trying to figure out what it was.

"It started less than a minute ago," Jesse said. "It's getting louder, too."

Lowe suddenly gasped and his eyes shot wide open.

"Gravity wind!" he cried.

"What's that?" Mackenzie asked, feeling nervous by Lowe's urgency.

"We're close to the mountains," Lowe began in a hurry. "When cold air flows down the mountainside and there's a greater air density around it than at the same altitude horizontally from the slope, it causes gravity wind. It's strong, real strong. They can reach speeds of 300 miles per hour and more! That's what that sound is! We're in a freaking wind tunnel!"

"We have to get out of here," Bell said.

"We can't, we're too far from the entrance," Abbas said. "That wind will hit us any minute."

"What about the harpoons?" Mackenzie asked. "From the sandstorm? We face the wind and use the harpoons to lock ourselves down."

"Maybe," Lowe said thoughtfully. "This will be a hell of a lot stronger than a sandstorm, though."

"Well, that's all we've got," Abbas said. "Bell, lock us down. Everyone, strap in. This could get rough."

"Firing harpoons!" Bell shouted as everyone sat down and buckled their restraints.

There was a loud bang that shook the truck and Mackenzie knew the harpoons had fired out from the chassis with enough force to punch several feet into the ground and then spread their hooks, rendering the truck immobile.

Looking up as she and the others fastened their restraints, Mackenzie saw movement in the distance, something coming closer through the canyon. At first, it just looked like a cloud of dust, billowing against the canyon walls as it raced closer, but as the cloud drew nearer, she could see that it wasn't just dust being pushed along by the strong gravity wind. There were large rocks bouncing off the walls, tumbling over the ground, crashing hard into whatever object got in the way with enough force to reduce either the object or the obstacle to nothing but dust. Stones and boulders were lifted out of the ground and began hurtling towards the truck like asteroids, moving closer at an impossible speed.

"Oh sh-" Mackenzie started, but then the wind hit them.

The wind hit so hard, the truck moved several feet, despite the powerful harpoons holding it in place, the ground being dug up by the chains as they were dragged by the wind. The truck shook so violently that Mackenzie and the others were nearly shaken out of their chairs, even with their restraints. Then the rocks that were being carried by the gravity wind struck, pelting the truck's exterior in a relentless storm of chaos, each thud sounding like gunfire to Mackenzie's ears. She looked up in time to see stones the size of baseballs come flying at the windscreen. They struck the glass hard, thudding loudly with each collision, each strike making everyone cringe. One stone hit hard enough to crack the glass, the crack then growing out in a spider's web of intricate damage.

"It's over 300 miles per hour!" Lowe cried over the noise, reading his monitors.

Suddenly, there was a loud creaking sound from beneath the truck. Mackenzie could feel, rather than see, the truck beginning to slide. The harpoons were struggling to hold on, the strength of the wind pulling against them as it tried to carry the entire truck away. The strain on the steel cables must have been enormous.

As soon as Mackenzie realized this, there was a loud, echoing, sound of snapping steel and the truck immediately began to fishtail wildly. Bell grabbed the steering wheel and held on tightly, crying out with the effort it took to hold the truck steady. The rear harpoon cables had broken and the truck was no longer completely immobile.

"If we turn sideways, the wind will flip us over!" Bell shouted. "Abbas, help me!"

Abbas unbuckled his restraints and grabbed the wheel with Bell, his arms bulging with the effort it must have taken to keep the truck straight.

Mackenzie looked past them to the outside. The larger stones had passed, having been at the front of the attacking wind, but now smaller stones and dust and debris were pelting the truck and window, threatening to break the already cracked glass. As Mackenzie watched, she saw something come hurtling around the bend up ahead and come flying straight towards them like a spear.

"Look out!" Mackenzie yelled.

Abbas looked up just in time to see the spear-shaped piece of stone hurtling directly towards them, tip first, like a bullet. He grabbed Bell's shoulder and pulled her aside as far as her restraints would allow, just as the stone arrow crashed through the windscreen and burst through Bell's headrest, right where her skull had been a second earlier. The stone moved with such force that it went straight through the seat and punctured Vasseur's empty one, finally becoming lodged as it tried to exit out the back of it. The sharp tip came to a stop mere inches from Mackenzie's face and she gasped when she saw it coming at her. She stared in shock at the object that had come so close to ending her life.

The wind quickly rushed in through the hole in the window to fill the truck cabin, roaring louder and louder. Then the pressure completely shattered the windows and glass rained down on them all, everyone ducking low and covering their heads to avoid being shredded by glass shards or other objects that had found a way inside the safety of the truck.

Abbas and Bell had let go of the wheel and the truck immediately began to turn sideways as everyone took shelter wherever they could. Mackenzie heard another loud screee as steel began to stretch, which was then followed by an even louder clang as another steel cable snapped.

Everyone screamed as the truck began to tilt. Mackenzie could feel the truck lift up off the ground, kept from being thrown for miles in the wind by the remaining harpoons that still barely held on.

A stone suddenly flew in through the shattered windows and smashed into the wall inside the cabin. It broke into several pieces, which flew in numerous directions. Mackenzie saw one piece fall directly on top of Lowe's head and he immediately slumped as blood began to trickle from the wound in his scalp.

"Lowe!" Mackenzie cried, unclasping her restraints to go check on him.

"Wait!" Jesse yelled.

At that exact moment, the high pressure of the wind rushing into the truck's cabin needed somewhere to go, and found one. It pushed hard against the hatch that led up to Jesse's lookout and exploded the door off its hinges, pushing its way back out into the canyon. As it made its escape, Mackenzie felt the wind take hold of her and lift her off her feet, carrying her towards the open hatch.

"Ahhh!" Mackenzie screamed as the floor fell away beneath her feet.

As she flew backwards towards the hatch that would then lead her to her death, she suddenly felt a strong grip on her wrist and she felt suspended in the air, the wind still trying to carry her away, her legs kicking behind her as though she was swimming and caught in a powerful current.

Looking behind her in terror, she saw her feet kicking against the railings to the ladder, the powerful wind grabbing at her hair and clothes, trying to rip her away and into the canyon, where she knew she would be tossed and smashed against the canyon walls until she was beaten to death.

Turning away from the hatch, Mackenzie squinted into the wind to see Jesse, still strapped into his seat, gripping her wrist with one hand, a vein throbbing in his neck from the strain of holding her against the wind, his teeth clenched and his face twisted in the effort to keep Mackenzie in place. Mackenzie looked into Jesse's eyes and saw a furious determination to not let go, despite how difficult it must have been.

"Hold on!" Jesse roared at her.

The truck continued to tilt backwards, lifting into the air by the powerful wind, only the few remaining harpoons keeping it from backflipping. Abbas and Bell were sheltering under the dashboard, looking between the unconscious Lowe and Mackenzie with increasing concern as they were rendered helpless to do anything to help either of them while the wind tore through the truck. Everything that wasn't bolted down was lifted up and carried out through the open hatch. Sheets were ripped from the bunks, pillows were sucked out into the canyon, tools that had been left out became flying projectiles until they, too, vanished into the wind.

Jesse still held firm to Mackenzie's wrist, but his eyes were widening as his fingers began to slip. Mackenzie could feel herself beginning to slip away and she knew she was going to die. She and Jesse stared into each others eyes, waiting for the inevitable.

Then, as suddenly as the wind had appeared, it simply died. The noise stopped as though someone had turned off a radio, plunging the world into silence. The truck, which had been somewhat levitating several feet above the ground, crashed back down onto its wheels with a crunch. Mackenzie dropped out of the air and landed hard on her stomach, her jaw bouncing off the floor and pain shooting through her skull as her teeth smashed together. Everything was as still and calm as it had been before the gravity wind tore through the canyon.

"It's over!" Bell cried. "You two alive?"

"I'm okay," Mackenzie groaned, rubbing her chin as she rose to her knees. "What about Lowe?"

Abbas was already rushing to his side and checking his pulse.

"He's alive," Abbas said, sighing with relief. "He just got knocked out."

"Pity," Jesse growled. "I think a doctor would be pretty useful about now."

Climbing to her feet, Mackenzie looked at Jesse and gasped with shock. His shoulder was uneven, sagging lower than his other. His face was contorted in pain and he was panting heavily.

"Your shoulder!" Mackenzie cried.

"It's dislocated," Jesse said matter-of-factly.

"We need to pop it back in," Abbas said, walking between the seats to help. "Bell, take care of Lowe. Miller, I'll hold him still while you fix his shoulder."

"What!?" Mackenzie asked loudly. "But I don't know how! What if I hurt him more?"

"Trust me," Jesse began, smiling wanly. "It's gonna hurt a crap-load no matter who does it."

"He needs to stay still while we fix his arm," Abbas said. "So unless you think you can hold him down well enough, you have to take care of his shoulder."

Sighing apprehensively and biting her lip, Mackenzie nodded. She took hold of Jesse's wrist and elbow as gently as she could, still not sure what to do as she slowly lifted his arm.

"Just pull as hard as you can," Jesse told her as Abbas pinned him down. "It'll hurt like hell, but it has to be done. Don't worry. You got this, Miller."

Mackenzie nodded, feeling only slightly encouraged. Taking a deep breath, Mackenzie tightened her grip on Jesse's arm.

"On three," she told Jesse and Abbas. "One... Two... Three!"

Mackenzie pulled on Jesse's arm until it straightened out, perpendicular to his body. She immediately heard a sickening pop and Jesse jumped violently in his seat, held in place by Abbas' strong arms, and screamed at the ceiling.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Mackenzie cried, feeling sick and horrified.

Jesse was panting heavily, but smiled at her.

"All good," he said as Abbas took his arms off of him. "You did good."

"Lowe's waking up," Bell said, and Mackenzie then heard Lowe groaning softly.

Abbas sighed with relief. "Good. No one died. That's a win in my books."

"It was close, though," Mackenzie said. Then, turning to Jesse, she added, "Thank you. You saved my life."

Jesse nodded once, looking uncomfortable, but pleased.

"Y'all alright?" Lowe mumbled as he began to wake, his head swaying slightly left and right.

"We're fine, Lowe," Bell replied. She held up three fingers in front of Lowe's face. "How many fingers do you see?"

"Shree," Lowe slurred, but then he shook his head hard, like a dog shaking off water. Then he added, "Three."

"Good," Bell said, smiling as relief rushed through her. "You'll be fine. But there's nothing I can do about your face, unfortunately. You were just born that way and we all have to live with it."

"Ha ha," Lowe said sarcastically, then he raised his hand and extended his middle finger in Bell's face. "How many fingers do you see?"

Bell laughed as she slapped his hand aside.

"Now what?" Jesse asked, rubbing his shoulder. "Can we still drive?"

"Yeah, I think we should get out of this canyon before another wind blows through," Abbas said.

Bell returned to the driver's seat and began running a diagnostic check.

"The engine seems fine," Bell reported. "We lost a couple of harpoons, though. And the solar panels took a beating. We might be running at forty percent power once our current charge wears off."

"Can we fix them?" Mackenzie asked.

"We have some supplies in the armory we can use," Bell replied. "But it's limited. Even if we do fix them up, we'll only be running at a maximum of fifty percent power. We won't be able to drive as far per day."

"Unless we detach cold storage," Abbas said thoughtfully.

"We can't do that!" Lowe cried, pressing a bandage against his bleeding head. "What about our food? Our water?"

"Hold on," Abbas said, then sat down at his navigation terminal. After a few minutes of silence, he pointed at the screen. "There. The canyon splits into a fork about 150 meters ahead. Lowe, see if you can figure out which path the wind blew in from."

Lowe worked quickly at his weather station, then reported back with, "It came from the south-west."

"Then we better take the south-east fork," Abbas said. "Bell, let's get out of this freaking wind tunnel. Then once we're in the clear, we can figure out what to do about power."

CHAPTER TWELVE

After a painstakingly slow drive through the canyon, all the while terrified that another gravity wind might pick up, Mackenzie finally saw where the canyon split into two paths. One bending west, the other bending east. Bell navigated around a pile of boulders that were embedded in the ground and progressed into the east canyon.

"You're certain no gravity wind can come through here?" Abbas asked Lowe.

"Positive," Lowe replied. "It originated from the mountains west of here, then followed the canyon north-east. It won't come through here."

"I hope not," Mackenzie muttered, remembering clearly how close she had come to death.

Bell steered off the main canyon and drove into the eastern path, which was more narrow. The truck tilted forward gently as the ground gradually sloped downward. Soon, the canyon walls were so high, they cast the truck and everything around them into an eerie twilight.

"Keep your sidearms ready," Abbas said, taking out his own pistol. "We're less protected without the windows. If anything tries to climb in here, you stop it. Got it?"

"Yes, sir," Jesse replied firmly, unholstering his pistol and loading a bullet into the chamber with a swift ch-chk.

On they drove, unsure of what they might find. The truck's engine groaned in complaint a couple of times as its power began to drain, but Rhiannon still pushed on, with Bell whispering encouragement to her the whole time.

"Come on, girl, you got this," she would croon. "Just a little farther."

Mackenzie felt on edge as she sat staring at the broken windows, her gun held in both hands and currently aimed at the floor. She kept expecting any number of horrifying creatures to crawl in through the window and attack, sharp teeth snapping and claws slashing, but nothing came.

Everyone was silent and tense. The brush with death had set them all on edge and they knew they weren't in the clear yet. No one spoke, no one even looked at each other as they drove along. They all just stared out the broken windows, waiting for the next thing to go wrong.

Suddenly Mackenzie heard a faint beeping in her ear. Her computer beeped twice, then stopped.

Staring at it, Mackenzie wondered if the gravity wind had damaged something. That would be the last thing they needed, her equipment was vital to their mission. Without it, they couldn't find water.

Beep! Beep!

The computer beeped again and Mackenzie saw a tiny blip on the edge of the thermal map that looked different from the rest of the reading, but it vanished and the beeping stopped again before she could get a good look at it.

Mackenzie turned away from the windows and leaned over the thermal monitor. She stared at the edge where she had seen the tiny blip appear. She didn't blink as she watched the monitor, waiting to see if it would appear again.

There! The beeping began again as the blip came back within range. This time it remained in view as they were driving straight towards it. She could see the familiar trace of the underground river far below them, Bell having driven them back towards it, but now there was something else along with it. There was a larger blip, something the river connected to. The thin line that indicated the river grew larger until it took up a quarter of the screen with light green.

"Oh my God," Mackenzie breathed. "Water!"

All heads turned towards her as she shouted, all wide-eyed with surprise.

"The river, you mean?" Lowe asked.

"No, I mean yes, but not just that!" Mackenzie replied, speaking quickly in her excitement. "It's the river, but it's... bigger! I think it's surfaced!"

"Are you sure?" Abbas asked, hurrying from the front of the truck to her side. He peered over Mackenzie's shoulder at the monitor.

"Is this it?" Jesse asked. "Is it what Inglis was looking for?"

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves," Abbas warned. "It looks like it's at the end of this canyon, right ahead of us. We'll see it with our own eyes before we get too excited."

The next few minutes were the longest of Mackenzie's life. Her heart was pounding painfully as her excitement grew. She knew she was right, despite Abbas trying to keep everyone from getting their hopes up. This was it, this was the water source they had been looking for! And if the thermal reading was correct, then it was huge.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, the canyon walls began to decrease in height and sunlight began to filter in around them. The light caused Mackenzie and the others to squint as their eyes adjusted from dark to light, and then they emerged from the canyon.

The mountains towered from not far away, perhaps less than five miles. The cliff still stretched behind them to the left and right, forming a wall around the flatlands they now found themselves in, but none of this caught their eyes. The first thing they saw, and what captivated them entirely, was the sight that lay before them. When they saw it, Bell stopped the truck and they all stared with their mouths open in amazement.

Water.

It was a river, flowing from the direction of the mountains until it reached the cliffs, where it seemed to burrow underneath and become the underground river they had followed. The sun sparkled off the surface as though it was a river made of diamonds, the light dancing before Mackenzie's eyes.

"Whoa," Mackenzie breathed. "Look at it."

"I've never imagined so much water in my life," Jesse said.

"We could live forever here," Bell said, grinning widely. "All of us. Everyone in Town!"

"We'd never go thirsty again," Lowe added.

"Okay everyone," Abbas said, his tone serious even as he, too, stared wistfully at the large river. "Let's not jump the gun. We don't even know if the water's drinkable yet. We have to test it. Right, Miller?"

"What?" Mackenzie asked, still staring at the river, daydreaming about submerging her entire self beneath the surface, just to see what it felt like. Then she realized what Abbas had said and snapped out of her fantasy. "Oh! Right, yeah."

She quickly sat down at her terminal and scanned the area, searching for thermal imagery of animal life. "No animal life sighted, sir." But she still remembered the akuchos and that nothing seen didn't necessarily mean nothing was out there.

Opening a cabinet underneath her terminal, Mackenzie retrieved the field test kit for the first time, grateful that it had survived the gravity wind's purge of the truck.

Carrying the kit that resembled a bulky briefcase, Mackenzie hurried to the door as Abbas opened it. Everyone moved together, but quickly. Jesse led the way out, his rifle held steady in both hands as he aimed down the sights for any threat that came within his range. Abbas was second, followed by Mackenzie, then Bell and Lowe. They all moved with steady precision, surrounding Mackenzie as they walked quickly towards the river. As of that moment, Mackenzie was the most important asset they had. Her safety was their top priority, as no one else was equipped to properly evaluate the water's drinkability. They knew how to use the equipment, of course, but they had no idea what to look for.

A short double-time walk later, they reached the bank of the river. As Mackenzie fell to her knees and opened the kit, the others fanned out around her, forming a semicircle as they scanned the area, no one speaking.

Mackenzie took from the kit a metal device shaped like a foot-long cigar, but with a black sphere on one end and a small screen with buttons around it on the other. Holding her breath with excitement, Mackenzie dipped the sphere end of the device into the river and waited. Under the water, the black sphere opened and filled with water. Once full, the sphere closed again, sealing the water inside. The device vibrated gently in Mackenzie's hands as she held the sides of the small screen. Finally, a graph and numbers appeared on the screen. Mackenzie pulled the device out of the water to closely examine the screen.

"Toxicity is low," Mackenzie reported, her heart pounding. "Doesn't look like there are many foreign minerals. Some sand and gravel."

"Gravel?" Bell repeated. "We can't drink gravel!"

"No, it's okay!" Mackenzie replied. "It's minimal, it wouldn't do any harm to the human body. It's good that it's here!"

"How is that good?" Jesse asked, not taking his eyes away from scanning the area.

"Sand and gravel are natural water purifiers," Mackenzie explained, pressing buttons on the device as she searched for other elements, such as parasites and lead and any other such things that would render this water as barren and useless as the rest of the planet. "The sand caused by erosion of the rocks around this river are perfect filters, we even employed a similar method at the wells back in Town. Sand and gravel are perfect filters because of how they form permeable layers."

"I thought Brits spoke English?" Jesse quipped.

"I understood some words," Lowe replied. "But the rest was just gibberish."

"Water good," Mackenzie said slowly, stretching each word out as though she was speaking to Tarzan. "Drink water. Not die."

"Are you sure?" Abbas asked, struggling to contain his excitement, or hide the hope in his voice.

"I should run a few more tests," Mackenzie said, replacing the device in the kit. "No parasites showed up in the scan, but that doesn't mean they're not in there. The water is safe to drink for sure, but before we drink it, I should probably-"

Before Mackenzie could finish her thought, Bell tossed down her gun, ripped off her bulky vest, kicked off her boots, and leaped into the river, screaming with delight as she plummeted towards the water. She cannon-balled with a huge splash and vanished beneath the surface for a few seconds before resurfacing, her ponytail flicking wildly as she shook her head.

"Bell!" Abbas roared. "What the hell are you doing!?"

"Oh my God!" Bell giggled with glee. "This is amazing, guys! Come on in, it's not too deep, you can stand and everything!"

"What if there are animals in there?" Mackenzie asked, staring around Bell as though expecting something to attack from the depths.

"No thermal readings, remember?" Bell pointed out. "No animals! No deadly water! This is it! This is what we've been looking for!"

Everyone glanced between each other as they let this information sink in. The silence stretched on as everyone considered this, let themselves believe that this was what they had been searching for since humanity landed on this planet. Then, all at once, everyone threw down whatever they were holding, ripped off their vests, and ran to the river, even while tearing off their boots. They all followed Bell's lead and leaped into the river with various forms, splashing down as they cried out. Mackenzie felt a moment of fear as she saw the water rushing up to her, afraid of what it was like, afraid of so much water, but then she was under water and her fear evaporated.

The sensation of the cool water washing over her entire body was unlike any experience Mackenzie had ever felt. The change in temperature was initially a shock, but then Mackenzie let herself enjoy the moment. The feeling of weightlessness as she floated in the water, her hair billowing out around her head. She moved her hand with her fingers spread wide, amazed at how the water seemed to slow her speed while still allowing her to move easily.

It felt as though she was moving through countless sheets of the finest silk, which moved effortlessly over her skin as she moved her arms through the water, turning herself around beneath the surface.

Finally Mackenzie swam back up, a laugh of glee escaping from her lips the moment she burst out of the water. Her hair, wet and darkened by the water, clung to her face and neck, droplets running over her face and tickling her nose. Looking around, she saw the others were equally as thrilled, laughing loudly, whooping with joy, splashing one another as they exalted being able to toss water around so carelessly for the first time in their lives.

For hours they swam and drank and enjoyed themselves, figuring out the best ways to swim through the water. Bell once snatched Lowe's hat away, filled it with water, then slapped it back down on his head, water splashing out in every direction, causing Lowe and the others to laugh hysterically. Abbas dove under the water, then shot up beneath Bell, pushing her up by her feet so that she was launched into the air, where she screamed in shock, before splashing gracelessly back into the river. It was by far the greatest day Mackenzie had ever had. And, for the first time in her life, Mackenzie wasn't worried at all.

The sun set far too quickly, in Mackenzie's opinion. She could have spent hours longer in the river, but once the sunlight vanished behind the surrounding cliffs and mountains, the water began to feel too cold. Within minutes, everyone was shivering and their teeth were chattering until Abbas ordered them all out of the river.

No one wanted to confine themselves within the truck again, not when the river was so close and so peaceful and so beautiful. So they set a fire and sat around it, allowing the heat to dry their clothes and warm their skin. Despite the heat of the fire she sat so close to, Mackenzie was still shivering a little. Until something large and soft fell over her shoulders.

"Here," Jesse said as he placed the blanket over her. "You're still shaking. This is the only blanket that didn't get sucked out of the truck."

"Thank you," Mackenzie said, surprised at the gesture.

Jesse sat down beside her, his legs crossed as he stared over the fire to the river. After a moment of silence, he looked down at his palms.

"Are you sure that water was okay to swim in?" he asked Mackenzie. "My fingers look like they've shrivelled up or something."

"Yeah, mine too," Bell said, frowning at her hands.

Mackenzie leaned closer and Jesse offered her his hands to examine. Half a second later, Mackenzie was laughing.

"It's called aquatic wrinkling," Mackenzie laughed. "Or pruning, if you prefer. It happens when you're hands are submerged for long periods of time. It happened in the wells sometimes."

"Pruning?" Abbas repeated, studying his hands closely. "Why?"

Mackenzie shrugged. "No one knows for sure, but there are some theories. I like the one that says people evolved this trick for increased grip on things underwater. Other people say it's just water passing in and out of the outer layer of skin. Don't worry about it, it smoothes out after a while."

Everyone fell silent again and resumed watching the river. It was so calm, Mackenzie could almost forget how dangerous the rest of the planet was.

"You think everyone will like it here?" Bell asked everyone.

"Why wouldn't they?" Lowe replied. "More water than anyone can dream of, no animals trying to kill and eat us. These cliffs look like they offer protection from the storms. What's not to like?"

"My girls will be safe here," Abbas nodded. "That's all I ever wanted for them."

"We'll be able to build a real infrastructure here," Lowe added. "Hell, we might even be able to finally have indoor plumbing!"

"Living the dream!" Bell laughed.

"The tech-heads will love it," Jesse said, smirking. "All the new things to build. Miller's boyfriend will have the time of his life."

"I told you, he's not my boyfriend," Mackenzie snarled.

"Renaud?" Bell asked, grinning widely. "I don't know, that kiss goodbye looked a little more than platonic."

"That was..." Mackenzie began to argue, but hesitated because she didn't know what it was. "He's just a friend. Or he was, anyway."

"Looks like there's a little unrequited love there," Abbas said kindly. "Unless, of course, you feel the same way about him?"

"I don't... I mean, Ethan's just..." Mackenzie struggled to explain, suddenly unsure of what to make of it. She hadn't had time to spare much thought for Ethan since heading out. "He just sprung it on me, right before I left. How's that fair? We've been friends our whole lives, and he chooses seconds before I go into the desert to grow a pair and kiss me? I didn't know what to do! I still don't."

Abbas nodded knowingly, suddenly seeming more fatherly than Mackenzie had imagined him before. She kept forgetting he had three daughters back home to worry about. It occurred to Mackenzie that there was a strong chance he may have had a similar conversation with at least one of his daughters before.

They all relapsed into silence and resumed staring out over the river, the darkened waters reflecting the moon and the stars like a gently rippling mirror.

"Vasseur would have loved this place," Lowe said softly.

Feeling the guilt of Vasseur's death wash over her as easily as the water had, Mackenzie's sense of peace vanished and was replaced by remorse.

"Yeah," she said quietly. "He would have."

"Inglis, too," Jesse added. "But we made it. We're here. They didn't die for nothing."

"Jesse's right," Abbas nodded. "We'll mourn them, remember them, but take comfort knowing that we finished what they started. And we can all survive. Their sacrifices meant our survival. And this river... This is their legacy."

"How long before Town can relocate?" Bell asked. "We'd have to get them all through the canyon, too. How can we manage that?"

"I can send a weather drone up tomorrow morning," Lowe said. "If I station it where the gravity wind originates, I can get a reading of when it's safe to pass through the canyon. It'll take time to move everyone through, but we should be able to manage it without any casualties."

"It'll take time for people to pack up their homes," Mackenzie added. "Almost two weeks travel time to here. If we head back tomorrow, we should make it in time."

"Then we better get some rest," Abbas said. "We'll start early in the morning and gather some water for the drive home. Then we'll help with the move. We'll be able to survive a long time here. I have a good feeling about this place."

That night, they all slept peacefully. They still slept in shifts, but at no point did they feel as though they were in danger. There was something calming about the river being there. As though it somehow warded off any threats. By way of celebrating the discovery of the river, they had all treated themselves to a serving of the remaining mana fruits, leaving them all feeling peaceful and sleepy, so it came as a surprise to Mackenzie when, after what seemed like only minutes, the sun was rising over the valley once more.

"Up, up, up!" Abbas crowed, clapping his hands loudly with every word as he marched between the bunks. "We've got a lot to do, people! Up!"

"Keep clapping," Jesse growled warningly, glaring at Abbas with one eye as he lay face down on the bare mattress. "See what happens."

"Come on, let's go!" Abbas laughed.

Mackenzie groaned and rolled onto her back, rubbing her eyes. "And I was having such a good dream," she sighed. She smiled at the memory before the dream could fade. Something about her and Jesse Greaves alone in the river, swimming in the moonlight. He might have been a pain in the ass at times, but Mackenzie was only human.

"What about?" Bell asked as she tied her boots.

"Oh, never mind," Mackenzie said quickly, feeling her face burn red. She couldn't help but glance in Jesse's direction as he pulled a shirt over his head, catching a glimpse of his defined abs, along with the burn scar he had told her about. It ran from his shoulder all the way down to his naval, looking like a cross-stitch gone horribly wrong. Mackenzie didn't mind, though. She still took a moment to admire the way his muscles moved as he stretched, the way his shirt clung tightly to his body.

Bell was looking between Mackenzie and Jesse, a smile slowly spreading on her face. She met Mackenzie's eyes and the smile only widened.

"What?" Mackenzie demanded, still feeling the heat in her cheeks.

"Nothing!" Bell replied, holding up her hands defensively.

"Get moving, people!" Abbas roared at them. "We need to gather water, send out a drone, search the area for any possible food, then get back on the road! Let's go, go, go!"

They all marched out of the truck one at a time, once again taken aback by the sight of the river glimmering in the sunlight.

"Okay," Abbas began, surveying the area. "First things first, we want to get that weather drone up as soon as possible so we know when it's safe to drive back into the canyon. Lowe?"

"Already on it," Lowe replied, stepping out of the truck with something that Mackenzie thought looked a lot like a crossbow, except where the arrow should have gone, there was instead a strange kind of flat, silver, frisbee.

Without saying a word, Lowe aimed the crossbow towards the mountains and fired. The frisbee took off into the air with surprising speed, flying in a perfectly straight line. Lowe set aside the strange gun, then pulled his tablet out from his breast pocket and began tapping in commands.

"That's the weather drone," he explained to Mackenzie, noticing her staring curiously. "I'm programming it to survey the weather over and on the mountain and to relay all information to my terminal and directly to my tablet. With any luck, we should be able to predict when a gravity wind might occur well before it does."

"Cool," Mackenzie replied, nodding approvingly.

"Okay, let's start gathering water," Abbas said. "Grab any container we emptied on the way here and-"

"Hold up," Jesse interrupted.

The mood immediately became tense. Everyone stiffened and Mackenzie automatically began to slowly look around, searching for danger, her hand already brushing the grip of her gun.

"What is it?" Abbas asked.

"I don't know," Jesse replied, slowly looking around. He was staring at the cliff tops, unblinking as he scanned the area. "I feel like we're being watched."

"More akuchos?" Bell asked, slowly reaching for her gun at her hip.

"They would have attacked by now," Jesse pointed out. "This is... Something else."

At that moment, Mackenzie saw something strange. She had looked back to Abbas, opening her mouth to speak, but stopped when she spotted something odd on Lowe's chest. It was a small green dot, moving almost imperceptibly just over his heart.

"Look out!" Mackenzie cried, realizing a fraction of a second later what the green dot was.

Lunging forward, Mackenzie shoved Lowe as hard as she could, knocking him away from the green dot and throwing herself in its path. She could almost feel the dot burning into her, just between her shoulder blades. An instant later, something hard struck her back and she felt nothing but pain.

Mackenzie wanted to scream, but her jaw had clenched hard and wouldn't open. Every muscle in her entire body seemed to tighten and cramp as electricity coursed through her. It seemed as though her very brain was being cooked as the hot electricity burned through her.

Around her, she could see the others were in similar agony, each of them grimacing in pain, their fists clenched tightly as they convulsed on their feet. Lowe, unaffected thanks to Mackenzie, drew his gun and aimed into the distance. He started firing, shouting something, but Mackenzie was too focused on her writhing agony to understand. A second later, Lowe also tensed up and couldn't move, his teeth bared furiously as he still tried to shoot, but was unable to unbend his elbows.

Finally, as the pain subsided and Mackenzie's muscles relaxed, the world faded to darkness and the last thing she could remember was falling.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

Yelling. Feet pounding. People shouting. Something hard hitting something soft, followed by a cry of pain. All of it sounding far away and meaningless. Mackenzie couldn't recall why she was on her back in the dirt, but she felt numb all over, and there was the sensation of pins and needles in her back.

Mackenzie then felt rough hands grab her arms and yank her off the ground. Startled, her eyes snapped open and the adrenaline kicked in. She remembered the green dot on Lowe's chest, remembered something hitting her back and sending electricity coursing through her body. Looking around now, she saw a man on either side of her, both wrapped in layers of white and red clothes, their faces obscured by scarves covering the lower halves of their faces. Their eyes were covered by black goggles that looked similar to the pair she remembered Ethan wore while working on her bionic hand. These two men were dragging her on her feet to the side of the truck, where more strangely dressed men were forcing Abbas, Lowe, Bell and Jesse to their knees.

Mackenzie started to struggle, kicking out and trying to pull her arms out of the strong grip each man held on her, but they were too strong for her to break free.

"Let me go!" Mackenzie yelled, unsure if she was more angry or afraid. "Let go! Who are you? Get off me!"

One of the two men suddenly swung a fist up into Mackenzie's stomach, knocking the wind out of her and causing her to double over in pain.

"Hey!" Abbas roared.

"Don't you touch her!" Jesse bellowed, even louder. He started rising to his feet, but one of the strange men hit him in the face with the butt of a rifle, splitting Jesse's lip and knocking him back down to his knees as blood ran down his chin.

Mackenzie was pushed onto her knees beside the others, their backs to the side of the truck, the strange men standing before them, all of which were holding powerful-looking rifles.

"Who are you?" Abbas demanded of them, his eyes flitting from man to man as he was unsure who to address first. Mackenzie realized he was trying to figure out who their leader was. "What do you want?"

One of the men stepped forward, shoving his gun carelessly into the arms of one of his comrades. Mackenzie couldn't see his face behind the goggles and scarf, but he walked with certainty, as though nothing could touch him. He never looked away from Abbas as he approached. Once the gun was out of his hands, he lowered his hood and began to remove the scarf from his face. He unwound the material, still never looking away from Abbas, who also didn't look away from this intimidating stranger.

Once the scarf was removed, the man lifted his goggles from his eyes, setting them atop his shaved head. As Mackenzie studied his face, the first thing she noticed about him was his mouth. It seemed as though his top lip had split but never healed. The man had a cleft lip that gave him a permanent sneer. Some of his teeth were exposed between the gap in his lip, one of which being his canine, giving him the appearance of a snarling Doberman. He had dark stubble on his face and his eyes were narrowed, either by the brightness of the sun without his goggles as protection, or perhaps it was more due to his displeased scrutiny of his captives.

He didn't say anything as he glared down at Abbas. It was as though he simply revealed his face to show that he was not afraid and that he was in charge. Abbas glared back at him, and Mackenzie was amazed at how, even in a situation like this, Abbas managed to maintain an aura of command. That he was the one in charge and this man with the cleft lip didn't frighten him. Mackenzie wished she could be like that, because her heart was hammering so hard from fear that it was starting to hurt.

"You in charge of these men?" Abbas demanded of the man.

"I'm asking the questions," the man snapped. His accent was thick and Mackenzie couldn't quite place it. It was perhaps Eastern European, maybe Ukrainian. Either way, he spoke without compassion, as though each word was spat with the intention of cutting the one he spoke to. "You will answer."

"You want answers, so do I," Abbas replied calmly, though still with a cold edge to his voice. "I'll answer your questions, but first I want to know who I'm talking to."

The cleft lip man studied Abbas carefully, like someone trying to figure out if he held a better hand in a poker game than his opponent.

"I ask, then you ask," the man finally replied. "In turns, yes? To answer your question, I am Mikhail Boroslav. I command these men. You clearly command yours, as you are the only one speaking to me. Tell me your name."

"I'm Kian Abbas," Abbas said. "What did you do to us?"

At this question, the man named Boroslav nearly smiled.

"Taser rounds," he replied. "Delivers twelve-hundred volts of electricity to target on impact. They're non-lethal, but can incapacitate an enemy from a safe distance. So as to minimise danger to ourselves. Though it does not completely eliminate the danger to me and my men."

At this, two other men appeared, dragging a third between them. They dropped the limp man on the ground beside Boroslav and stepped back quickly, as though they didn't want to be close to the man with the cleft lip for too long.

Mackenzie looked at the man on the ground and stifled a gasp. The man was dead, the blood dampening his hood a clear sign that he had taken a shot to the head. Everyone was silent as the surprise of this sudden appearance sunk in.

Boroslav didn't even spare a glance for his fallen comrade. Instead, he never took his eyes away from Abbas, but pointed down at the body beside him.

"Who killed this man?" Boroslav asked, his expression and tone blank.

Abbas remained silent. Mackenzie knew he was trying to think of a safe answer. Mackenzie knew that Lowe had started shooting when they were attacked. It was a safe bet that the bullet that had killed this man came from Lowe's gun.

"Did you forget the rules?" Boroslav asked, his voice now softer, though infinitely more dangerous. "I ask, you answer. Then you ask and I answer. It is my turn to ask a question, which you will answer. So I ask again... Who killed this man?"

Still Abbas said nothing. Boroslav suddenly lashed out and kicked Abbas in the chin, whipping his head to the side and almost knocking him down.

"Hey!" Mackenzie snapped angrily, but didn't move.

"It was me," Lowe said at the same time.

"Lowe, shut up!" Abbas hissed, wiping blood from his mouth.

Boroslav snapped his fingers at Lowe, pointing at him. "Come here."

Lowe slowly rose to his feet, keeping his hands raised where everyone could see them. He walked cautiously towards Boroslav, who gestured for him to hurry up.

Once Lowe was standing beside him, Boroslav placed a hand on Lowe's shoulder and sighed heavily, waving a hand down at the body before them.

"Why did you kill this man, my friend?" Boroslav asked.

"It was self defence," Lowe replied evenly, though Mackenzie noticed his hand shake slightly. "You were all shooting at us, I was trying to protect my squad."

"Hmm," Boroslav said thoughtfully. "Yes. I understand the need to protect your men. All of these men are under my command, but also under my protection. They follow me because I promise their safekeeping but when I cannot keep that promise, it upsets me, it upsets me a great deal. Lowe is your name?"

Lowe swallowed hard and nodded.

"I see you are a soldier, Lowe," Boroslav went on casually. "You have that look. That pride. That way of carrying yourself. I'm a soldier, too. And my men are important to me. You took one of them today. That upsets me."

"I-" Lowe began, but never got the chance to finish his sentence.

With one swift movement, fast and ferocious, Boroslav grabbed hold of Lowe's forehead and tilted his head backwards, exposing Lowe's throat. In the same movement, Boroslav bared his teeth, snarling like a rabid wolf, and sunk his teeth into Lowe's throat.

"NO!" Mackenzie screamed.

"Stop!"

"What are you doing!?"

Everyone was shouting, screaming, as Boroslav shook his head like a dog, ripping into Lowe's flesh. Jesse tried leaping to his feet again, but immediately fell when one of the strange men shot him with the taser round again, causing him to convulse on the ground, helpless to do anything. Other men rushed in and pushed Mackenzie and the others onto their stomachs, then held them down under their boots, guns aimed at the backs of their heads. Mackenzie lifted her gaze just enough to be able to see what was happening.

Lowe was staring up at the sky in surprise, his mouth gaping as he clawed at Boroslav's shaved head, trying to make him stop. Boroslav responded by sinking his teeth in deeper and shaking his head violently. Blood was spraying between his teeth, covering his face and running down both his and Lowe's chests, streaming to the ground.

Finally, Boroslav ripped out a chunk of flesh from Lowe's throat and pulled back, spitting out the flesh and blood as he watched Lowe with his eyes narrowed in scrutiny and the lower half of his face completely covered in blood.

"Lowe!" Abbas was crying. "Lowe! No!"

Lowe was staring back at Boroslav, his mouth opening and closing, his eyes wide in horror and surprise. He raised a hand as though he was going to touch the gaping hole in his throat, but he already seemed too weak. He dropped to his knees, his eyes becoming glassy and unfocused. Then he collapsed backwards, looking up at the sky with fear in his eyes.

Mackenzie watched helplessly as she could see his breath bubbling through his blood. The choking sounds he made as he struggled to breathe were like a man drowning. Finally, Lowe stopped moving and his blood stopped bubbling. Mackenzie saw his body go limp and knew it was over.

"You son of a bitch!" Mackenzie screamed up at Boroslav, tears in her eyes. She struggled to push up against the boot holding her down, but the man only pushed harder and forced her face into the dirt, filling her mouth with sand. "Why!?"

"Your man for my man," Boroslav said calmly, wiping his mouth with a piece of cloth. "The way of a soldier."

"You're not a soldier," Bell spat. "You're a murderer! He was unarmed! He didn't threaten you! You're nothing but a murdering piece of shit!"

"What part of what just happened makes you think I value your opinion?" Boroslav asked calmly. "Or care for your lives? Any of you?"

"I'll kill you," Jesse snarled, still struggling to push himself up from under the boot of the man holding him down. "You son of a bitch, I'll rip your heart out and shove it down your throat!"

Boroslav reached behind his back and calmly pulled out a pistol, at the same time giving a small gesture to his men with his other hand. The men holding Jesse, Mackenzie, Abbas and Bell down all immediately yanked them to their feet and pinned their arms behind their backs, holding them immobile. Boroslav approached Jesse and pressed the barrel of the gun against Jesse's temple. Jesse immediately froze when he felt the cold steel against his head, but he was still breathing heavily as his rage fought against his common sense.

"What is your name?" Boroslav demanded quietly.

"Screw you," Jesse hissed.

Boroslav raised the gun and smacked Jesse in the forehead with the grip, the thud making Mackenzie cringe.

"Your name," Boroslav said simply.

"Sorry," Jesse replied, grinning at Boroslav with contempt. "Can you repeat the question?"

Boroslav smacked Jesse in the face with the gun again, splitting his cheek open.

"Your name," Boroslav said.

Smack! He hit Jesse again.

"Your name," Boroslav repeated.

Smack! Jesse was backhanded across the other cheek, his head whipping to the side.

"Your name," Boroslav said again, still obscenely calm, even as he continued to slap Jesse around.

"Leave him alone!" Bell shouted.

"Stop!" Mackenzie cried, trying to pull her arms free from the men holding her back.

"I will stop only when he answers me," Boroslav said without looking at Mackenzie, striking Jesse again for good measure. "Your name."

Jesse was beginning to sway on his feet as Boroslav struck him again and again. His cheek looked red and like it was beginning to swell. Blood was oozing out of open wounds on his cheek, his lip, his forehead, and Boroslav still hit him again and again.

"Stop it!" Abbas roared. "I'll tell you our names!"

"His name's Jesse!" Mackenzie shouted desperately, fighting against the strong hold the two men on either side of her had on her arms.

"I want only him to tell me," Boroslav countered.

"Just tell him!" Mackenzie screamed and Jesse, damning his hotheadedness. "Tell him and he'll stop!"

Jesse looked over at Mackenzie, now only standing thanks to the two men holding him up. Despite the beating he was taking, he managed a small smile at Mackenzie, blood dripping from a long string on his lip until it broke and fell to the ground.

Boroslav, who had his hand raised and was about to strike Jesse again, glanced over at Mackenzie as Jesse looked at her. He grinned, his teeth stained with Lowe's blood, then looked back to Jesse.

"If you do not tell me your name," Boroslav said quietly to Jesse, "then I will shoot the girl."

Boroslav then raised his pistol and aimed it at Mackenzie.

"Your-"

"Jesse," Jesse replied weakly, but quickly. "Jesse Greaves."

Boroslav looked at him in surprise, then lowered the gun. "That was far easier than I expected. I thought you would fight me a little more, perhaps let me put a bullet in the girl's leg before you spoke. Well done. Perhaps you are not as stupid as I first thought."

Boroslav finally stepped away from Jesse, no longer interested in tormenting him. He began walking slowly towards Mackenzie, but he slowed as he passed Bell.

"Your name," he said softly to her.

"Rebecca Bell," Bell replied, her voice quivering with rage. Her eyes flitted from Boroslav to Lowe's body and she fought once to break an arm free, but the men holding her wouldn't budge.

"And you," Boroslav began, standing in front of Mackenzie, a foot taller than her. "Pretty one. Your name, if you please."

"Mackenzie," Mackenzie replied. "Mackenzie Miller."

Boroslav cocked his head slightly to one side, completing Mackenzie's impression of him as a dog. That sharp tooth was poking out between his cleft lip, still shining with Lowe's blood. Mackenzie wanted nothing more than to reach out and knock that tooth out of his head, but knew even if she somehow managed to break out of the armlock she was in, the men around her would stop her. Assuming Boroslav didn't just rip out her throat like he did to poor Lowe.

"Miller, you say?" Boroslav asked. "Like the famous Captain Stephen Miller?"

Mackenzie heard the contemptuous way Boroslav said 'Captain' and hesitated before replying.

"He was my grandfather," Mackenzie finally said.

"Was he now?" Boroslav asked, his voice barely loud enough for Mackenzie to hear.

Boroslav stared at Mackenzie for a long while, and Mackenzie forced herself to stare back at him, despite the fear she felt choking her. She didn't like the way he was looking at her, studying her up and down. It was similar to the way a wolf stares at a wounded deer, moments before tearing it apart.

After what seemed like forever staring into those dark, soulless, eyes, Mackenzie sighed in relief as Boroslav turned away.

"You are Diviners," Boroslav stated loudly for everyone to hear. "But I count only five of you, including our friend Mr Lowe. Diviners always travel in a team of six. Where is the sixth?"

There was only silence to meet Boroslav's question.

"Must I ask again?" Boroslav asked impatiently.

"Dead," Abbas replied stiffly. "A few days ago now."

"Hmm," Boroslav said thoughtfully. "I have no reason to believe you."

"Why would I lie?" Abbas demanded. "Where could we be hiding anyone?"

"Search the truck," Boroslav ordered some of his men, who reacted at once, hurrying towards the truck and vanishing inside, one person in each segment.

"How do you know about Diviners?" Mackenzie asked before realizing she was speaking aloud. "We don't know who the hell you people are, we didn't even know anyone could live out here! How do you know about us?"

"Ah, that is a question best answered by another," Boroslav replied, smiling his snarling-dog smile at her.

"Master Boroslav!" came a shout from the truck.

All eyes turned in time to see a bodybag fall out of the cold storage door and collapse heavily to the ground. The bag had been unzipped somewhat, just enough to reveal Vasseur's lifeless face.

"Vasseur!" Boroslav crowed in triumph.

Everyone stared at Boroslav in stunned silence, watching him stand over Vasseur's body.

"You know him?" Abbas asked, incredulously.

"Of course," Boroslav sneered. "He was to bring us an offering. As he had done in the past, many times."

Abbas frowned in confusion and Mackenzie stared at Boroslav as though not believing he was really there. Jesse was breathing heavily, still barely standing, but it was Bell who spoke first.

"What do you mean by 'an offering'?" Bell asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Well, I'm not certain on all of the details," Boroslav said casually, slowly approaching Bell. "But the short answer is... you."

Boroslav then turned away from Bell, seemingly amused by her stunned expression. Pointing at two of his men he barked, "You two, on the truck! Drive it back to base. Tell Scylla we're on our way with captives."

"Scylla?" Mackenzie whispered to Abbas, who was standing beside her, a worried and grief-stricken scowl on his face. Abbas was still looking at Lowe's body, his eyes full of remorse.

"Everyone else!" Boroslav boomed, baring his teeth at Mackenzie and the others. "Bind their hands! We walk!"

Mackenzie cried out in protest as she felt her arms forced behind her back and strong plastic ties were closed around her wrists, keeping them forced painfully together. She heard Abbas and Bell also protest as they were also restrained, but Jesse roared curses at the men as loud as he could, despite the beating he had just taken at the hand of Boroslav. As the men began to shove Mackenzie and the others along, and two men climbed into the truck to drive it along behind them all, Boroslav stood over Vasseur's body, looking down at him with an apparent expression of curiosity. Then he reached inside his clothes and retrieved a small device, roughly the size and shape of a large chicken egg. It was completely black, except for a small ring around it's middle, which was colored red. Even as Mackenzie was being shoved along, she watched Boroslav twist the ring in his fingers, then drop the egg-shaped device into the bodybag with Vasseur. He turned on his heel and began marching with the rest of the group, though when he noticed Mackenzie watching him, he bared his teeth in what must have been his version of a grin, though his eyes were narrowed and cruel.

Suddenly, there was a resonating bass shaking the air and Mackenzie saw Vasseur's body instantly go up in flames, along with the area five feet around him. Her mouth dropped open in horror as she saw the bodybag bubble and melt in the intense heat, the flames licking over Vasseur's corpse and charring his flesh. Despite being a safe distance from the flames, Mackenzie still felt the heat on her face, pinching her skin and stinging her eyes.

Boroslav walked straight up to Mackenzie, not sparing a single glance over his shoulder at the towering flames. He stood over Mackenzie, staring down at her with his bared-teeth grin. Mackenzie forced herself to look in his eyes, and not at his cleft lip. She longed to reach out and hurt this man; for Lowe, for Vasseur, whose body he just desecrated. For everyone, so they might all get away with their lives before Boroslav decided they weren't worth keeping around.

"Yes?" Boroslav asked, noticing the furious way Mackenzie was staring at him. How she seemed to be shaking with the effort it took to keep from lashing out at him. "Did you have something you wanted to say to me?"

Mackenzie wanted to tell him exactly what she thought of him. That he was a monster, a murderer, a sadistic psychopath who deserved to die, but she held her tongue. Instead, she averted her gaze and looked down at the ground, feeling weak and pathetic. She wished she had even a fraction of Jesse's courage, so that she could work up the nerve to spit in this monster's face, consequences be damned. But all she could do was look away.

"I thought not," Boroslav sneered.

"What do you want with us?" Abbas demanded, pulling Boroslav's attention away from Mackenzie. "We have nothing of use to you."

"You may be more useful than you realize," Boroslav replied cryptically. "That is up to Scylla to decide."

"You just murdered a friend of ours," Abbas snarled. "Even if we are somehow useful, what makes you think we'd be willing to help this Scylla person? If they're even half as deranged as you are, then they can go straight to hell, because I refuse to work with insane people. And anyone who would allow a monster like you to run free must be either crazy or stupid."

Boroslav swiftly pulled out his pistol and aimed it at Abbas' chest, his eyes narrowed in fury.

"Do not insult Scylla again," Boroslav said quietly, though he sounded far more dangerous saying this than anything else he had said so far. "Scylla is a great leader. You will show the appropriate respect or I will shoot a hole in your head and scoop out your tiny brain with my bare hands."

Abbas lifted his chin defiantly. "I suppose you make up in loyalty what you lack in appearance."

Boroslav bared his teeth in a vicious snarl, then began to squeeze the trigger.

"Wait!" Mackenzie cried, throwing herself between Boroslav and Abbas without thinking. The gun was pointing directly at her face, now. "We'll go see Scylla. We won't fight you. No one else has to die."

Boroslav looked at Mackenzie in surprise, then threw back his head and roared with laughter.

"You are saved, Mr Abbas!" Boroslav laughed, holstering his gun. "Your pretty friend amuses me. Fine, we go now. But no one argues, no one fights. Or I shoot someone. Understand?"

"Yes," Abbas replied begrudgingly.

And so they all began to walk, following the river upstream, to meet with the person known as Scylla.

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

Mackenzie kept her head down as they walked. No one spoke, aside from Boroslav who was singing some song in Ukrainian at the top of his voice. There were men with guns all around them, keeping the Diviners in line. If any of them tried anything, Mackenzie knew they would be shot dead in an instant. Or if not killed, then at least stunned with the painful taser rounds Boroslav was gloating over.

Turning her head just enough to look over her shoulder, Mackenzie saw Rhiannon being driven along behind them, strangers now in control of her. Facing forward again, Mackenzie braved a glance up to see Boroslav leading the way, his rifle resting on his shoulder like a baseball bat, an arrogant swagger in his step as he continued to sing. As though he hadn't just ripped a man's throat out with his bare teeth, the blood still staining his face.

"Miller," Abbas whispered beside her. "You okay?"

Mackenzie nodded. "I'm not hurt, if that's what you're asking."

"They shouldn't have hit you," Abbas insisted angrily, shaking his head.

"Jesse got it worse than me," Mackenzie pointed out.

"That bastard will get his," Jesse growled through his teeth. His cheek was swelling rapidly, almost forcing his left eye completely closed. His whole face was a mosaic of blue and purple bruises, his own blood drying on his lips.

"Who are these people?" Mackenzie asked. "Did anyone know they were here?"

"No," Abbas replied. "Except for Vasseur, apparently. If we can believe Boroslav."

"Do you think it's true?" Bell asked. "Was Vasseur in league with them? And what did Boroslav mean by an offering?"

"Sounds like Vasseur slipped them supplies," Abbas frowned. "How he did it without anyone noticing is beyond me, though. Same as why he wouldn't tell anyone about these people. They're clearly dangerous. And they look like they've got more advanced equipment than we do."

"He was lying," Jesse snapped. "No way Vasseur would do that."

"Then how do you explain Boroslav recognizing him?" Mackenzie asked. "How did he know about Diviners and how many are in a team?"

Jesse didn't have an answer to this, so he remained silent, glaring furiously at his feet.

"What are we gonna do?" Bell asked, barely moving her lips as she spoke in a whisper. "We can't stay with this psycho. Look what he did to Lowe."

"I saw," Mackenzie replied quietly. "But what can we do right now? We're surrounded by armed men. And we told Boroslav we wouldn't fight back while he took us to Scylla. If we do, he might kill someone else."

"I can create a distraction," Jesse said. "You guys can escape while he's busy with me."

"Do you want to die or something?" Mackenzie snapped.

"Wouldn't work, anyway," Bell said. "His goons would shoot us down before we got three feet."

"We have to come up with a plan," Abbas said quietly. "Whoever this Scylla guy is, if he's in charge of someone like Boroslav then he's probably even more dangerous. We'll play along for now, but we need to be ready when we meet Scylla. Be able to defend ourselves."

"While we've got our hands tied behind our backs?" Jesse asked. "I don't know about you, but I usually defend myself better with my hands free."

"Does anyone have a knife?" Bell asked.

"They took my vest when I was knocked out," Mackenzie replied. "My knife was in it."

"Same," Abbas replied. "Everything useful we had on us was in our vests."

"What about my hand?" Mackenzie asked, an idea suddenly occurring to her.

"What about it?" Abbas asked.

"They tied my wrists together," Mackenzie began, trying to look around with only her eyes to see if anyone was paying them close attention. "I can remove my bionic and slip out of the tie, then reattach it and keep my hands behind my back so they don't notice."

"If anyone looks too closely, they'll see right away," Jesse said, sounding worried. "They'd kill you."

"Says the guy who's big plan was to let Boroslav kill him," Mackenzie retorted.

"He's right, though, Mackenzie," Bell said. "If anyone notices you're out of your restraint, they might kill you."

"If all they wanted to do was kill us, we'd already be dead," Mackenzie pointed out. "Boroslav wants us for something. Or at least Scylla does. Boroslav only killed Lowe because Lowe killed one of his men. If they do see me out of restraints, they'll probably just beat me or something."

She said it casually, but Mackenzie still felt like she should have just stayed quiet. The thought of Boroslav unleashing his wrath on her was not a pleasant concept.

"Mackenzie," Abbas began, keeping his voice low. "You don't have to do this."

"I know," Mackenzie replied. "But someone has to do something."

Before anyone else could try and talk her out of it, Mackenzie began to try and reach the button that would loosen her bionic hand. It wasn't easy to reach with how her wrists were tied, but she eventually got her fingers on it.

"Cover," Abbas said softly.

He, Jesse, and Bell all fell into step around Mackenzie; Jesse and Bell on either side and Abbas walking close behind, shielding Mackenzie's hands from the view of their captors.

Pushing the button, Mackenzie felt the hand loosen its grip, then begin to slip off her arm. It came off quicker than she expected and it dropped from her wrist. Gasping, Mackenzie quickly fumbled for the hand and managed to catch it before it fell. She heard Abbas breathe a sigh of relief behind her.

Moving quickly now, Mackenzie slipped the plastic tie off the bionic wrist and then hastened to replaced the hand on her arm.

"Hurry," Jesse urged her out of the corner of his mouth.

"I've nearly got it," Mackenzie replied.

"STOP!"

Mackenzie and the others lurched to a halt as the soldiers all froze and the truck hit the brakes. Boroslav had turned around and was glaring at Mackenzie with his eyebrows pressed hard together, a scowl dehumanising his features even more.

"Did he see?" Mackenzie whispered, her heart pounding and a terrified bile churning in her stomach.

"Just stay calm," Bell whispered back.

Boroslav was marching towards them, his eyes locked on Mackenzie, not blinking even in the harsh sunlight. Mackenzie was still trying to reattach the hand to her arm, struggling to do so without moving too much and drawing attention to her actions. If Boroslav hadn't seen what she was doing yet, he was about to, if she couldn't reattach her hand in the next few seconds.

Finally Mackenzie managed to get the hand over her wrist and hastily pressed the button The gel tightened around her arm instantly and Mackenzie nearly cried with relief, though she knew she was still far from safe. Boroslav walked straight up to her, still scowling. Mackenzie stared back at him, hoping she didn't look as scared as she felt. Beside her, Jesse tensed up, like a snake coiling its body before striking. Mackenzie wanted to say something to him, tell him not to do anything stupid, but with Boroslav standing right before her, there was no way she could speak without Boroslav hearing.

"Is there a problem?" Abbas asked defiantly.

"Why were you whispering?" Boroslav demanded.

"We weren't," Mackenzie replied.

Boroslav's hand suddenly struck her face before she even saw it move. The vicious backhand nearly spun her completely around, but Mackenzie thought only of keeping her hands together behind her back, even as she staggered into Jesse. Boroslav couldn't know her hands were free.

"Hey!" Bell shouted in protest.

"Don't touch her, you piece of shit!" Jesse roared. Mackenzie was then glad that she had staggered into him, because while he had stopped her from falling, he was distracted enough to not attack Boroslav.

"There's no need for that," Abbas barked.

"Then do not lie to me," Boroslav replied with a sneer. "I am no fool. I know when people whisper behind my back. Why were you whispering? What did you say?"

"I was scared, all right?" Mackenzie cried out, trying to sound as indignant as possible. The burning sensation in her cheek helped her work up some tears, which she hoped wasn't overkill. "I told them I was scared and they were trying to make me feel better! Lowe was my friend, and you killed him right in front of me! What's to stop you from killing me next?"

Boroslav regarded her as a smile slowly grew on his face. He looked around at his men, still grinning.

"The pretty one is afraid!" he shouted, to which his men sniggered cruelly. Turning back to Mackenzie, he said, "Don't be afraid, pretty one. Scylla wishes to speak with all of you, so it shall be. As for your friend Lowe, well... I am sorry for your loss."

Boroslav's men laughed again. Mackenzie waited for him to leave, but he was still staring at her in that disconcerting way. Grinning like she was a steak dinner he was looking forward to eating. He then reached out and gently stroked Mackenzie's cheek, where he had struck her. Mackenzie cringed and half-turned her head away, but Boroslav still kept his hand on her cheek.

"Of all your friends," Boroslav said softly, almost gently, "I think you have the least to be afraid of. Trust me, pretty one. If you all behave, you will not be harmed. Now come. We are not far. Scylla awaits."

Boroslav finally stopped his gentle stroking of Mackenzie's cheek and turned away, resuming his march. His men and the truck all continued forward as one, forcing Mackenzie and the others to follow suit.

"You okay?" Bell asked Mackenzie.

"I'll kill him," Jesse growled. "I swear to God, I'll kill him."

"Everyone, just stay calm," Abbas warned. "I don't like this guy any more than you, Jesse, and I worry about what I might do to him if I got the chance, but we can't do anything risky or stupid. Mackenzie, don't draw attention to yourself. Just keep your head down. Boroslav seems to have taken an interest in you that I don't like, so you're only to make a move if it's a safe one."

"Got it," Mackenzie nodded, swallowing hard. "Don't worry."

"But I do," Abbas replied. "I know Boroslav said you should be the least afraid, but the way he said it makes me think you should be the one most afraid."

"Don't freak her out, Abbas!" Bell scolded, though she glanced worriedly towards Boroslav as she spoke.

"I'm already freaked out," Mackenzie admitted. "But at least now I can defend myself if he tries anything."

"Mackenzie," Abbas began, sighing wearily. "What you did back there... standing between me and Boroslav when he was about to shoot me? That was probably the bravest thing I'd ever seen. Thank you."

Mackenzie offered a smile, though it was weakened by her nerves.

"But I have to say," Abbas added. "If something like that ever happens again, if it comes down to a choice between my death or yours, let it be mine."

"What?" Mackenzie whispered in harsh surprise. "I'm not gonna just let you die."

"If it comes down to that, yes you will," Abbas scowled. "I won't order you, but promise me. Promise me that you won't sacrifice yourself to save me. Please."

Mackenzie sighed heavily at the ground. "Fine. I promise."

"Thank you," Abbas said gratefully. "I couldn't live if you died for me. Same with any of you."

"We'll get out of this," Bell said. "Don't worry. No one else has to die."

"Maybe just one," Jesse growled, glaring at Boroslav's back.

Mackenzie was about to reply, but then they rounded the bend in the river and the cliff face gave way to reveal the place they were going and Mackenzie fell silent in awe.

The structure was enormous, easily a hundred feet high, and hundreds of feet long, made of sleek white steel. The sunlight bounced off the steel and glared in Mackenzie's eyes, making her squint as she tried to take in the incredible sight. It was as large as a football stadium, sitting peacefully a few hundred yards away from the river, and there were hundreds of stone and cement structures built between it and the water, making it appear as though it was some religious monument for a town of cold garages or warehouses. One end of the structure formed a cone-like shape, much like the front of an aeroplane, and Mackenzie thought she could see a large window over the "nose."

At the opposite end of the structure, there were a dozen vents the size of houses. At the very bottom of the structure, Mackenzie could see wide openings that stretched almost the entire length of the building, which must have been the entrance.

What struck Mackenzie as the most amazing, however, was what was written on the side of the structure in enormous black letters.

Panspermia 7.

"It's an evac shuttle," Mackenzie realized.

"No way," Jesse replied in awe.

"From the Panspermia?" Bell asked. "Out here? With these people?"

"Impressive, yes?" Boroslav asked, leering over his shoulder at them. "What was supposed to be our tomb is now our home. Scylla is inside. Move quickly now."

Mackenzie, Abbas, Jesse and Bell followed Boroslav into the complex, walking between the cement buildings. As Mackenzie studied them, she noticed that none of the cement buildings had windows. And the doors she saw were made of heavy iron, complete with a thick steel bar that looked as though it locked the doors from the outside.

"Anyone notice something strange about this place?" Jesse asked, keeping his voice down so Boroslav wouldn't overhear.

"Yes," Bell whispered back. "It's too empty."

"What do you mean?" Mackenzie asked.

"If this is their town," Jesse began, glancing sideways at Mackenzie, "then where are all the people?"

Mackenzie looked around and was shocked that she hadn't realized sooner. Despite the size of this colony, there wasn't a single soul in sight. No people moved between buildings, no one came and went from the enormous shuttle they were heading towards. No children ran or played. Aside from the troop of soldiers they were confined within, there was no movement anywhere.

"Where is everyone?" Mackenzie breathed.

"This can't be good," Abbas murmured.

They all marched wordlessly through the ghost town, searching for any sign of life and finding none. Mackenzie was beginning to have a terrible feeling in the pit of her stomach as she wondered where all the people who had lived in these houses had gone. There was a feeling of terrible dread that seemed to float in the very air around her, weighing Mackenzie down heavily. Whatever had happened here, it had been bad enough to leave its impression on the town, then leech the life out of anyone who dared to walk there.

They passed through the town and finally reached the gaping jaw that entered into the evac shuttle's lower floor. The entrance was enormously wide, but inside was so dark, Mackenzie couldn't see beyond the door. Looking down at the ground, though, she noticed numerous impressions in the dirt that looked like large tire tracks. All coming out of the large door and snaking off around the town, heading west.

As they all passed through the entrance, Mackenzie felt momentarily blinded as they walked out of the sunlight and into the shadows. As her eyes slowly adjusted to the change in lighting, she found herself standing in what could have been an underground garage, though there were no vehicles to be seen. Their footsteps echoed lightly against the walls, floor and ceiling, which was far above Mackenzie's head.

Boroslav signalled for everyone to stop, then turned to face his men.

"You four," Boroslav pointed. "You come with me and the Diviners. The rest of you, start stripping the truck for supplies and materiel."

"What!?" Bell shrieked. "What do you mean by stripping?"

"Resources are hard to come by," Boroslav leered. "We need the metal."

Bell looked back at Rhiannon in horror as Boroslav and the remaining four men ushered them all away, those ordered to strip the truck now putting aside their weapons and picking up tools that whirred ominously.

Boroslav led them to a wall that had a row of shiny metal doors in it. One pair of doors slid open, revealing a small square room. One of Boroslav's men was inside, his hand on a panel of switches. Boroslav leered once at Mackenzie, then jerked his head towards the small room, silently telling them all to step inside. Doing as they were told, Mackenzie and the others all stood in the centre of the tiny square room, not exactly sure what was happening. Mackenzie was about to ask when Boroslav spoke to the man on the panel of switches.

"I'm taking these to Scylla," Boroslav said.

The man at the panel nodded, then said, "Scylla is on the holding level. Interrogation."

"Why?" Boroslav asked, seemingly annoyed. "Interrogation is my duty."

"Apologies, Master Boroslav," the man replied, as though fearing Boroslav may lash out at him. "The prisoner stole from Scylla's rations, and you were on another mission. Scylla wanted swift justice for the crime."

Boroslav nodded, apparently satisfied with the response. "Good. Take us to the holding level."

Suddenly the metal doors closed, the floor lurched beneath their feet and the room began to rise with surprising speed. Mackenzie's body felt like it was pushing down into the floor and she was momentarily concerned she would be flattened by the velocity.

"What's happening?" Bell asked before Mackenzie could, sounding worried as she looked down nervously at the floor.

"It is only an elevator," Boroslav replied, sounding disinterested by Bell's concern.

Mackenzie had heard of elevators, read about them in books, but never imagined ever seeing one for real. They had no need for them back at Town, the tallest buildings only being two or three stories tall, and there were only a handful of buildings that even had more than one floor. Stairs were sufficient and an elevator would have been a waste of resources.

"Listen carefully," Boroslav began, turning to look at Mackenzie, Jesse, Abbas and Bell. "Scylla will have questions for you, but first you will hear the rules."

"What rules?" Abbas asked coldly.

"Rules that will keep you alive," Boroslav replied, just as coldly. "First, you will not speak unless directly spoken to. Second, you will not ask Scylla any questions unless told you may do so. Third, you will not move. If you move without permission, I will hurt you."

The way Boroslav so casually spoke about the possibility of hurting them made the hair on Mackenzie's neck stand on end.

"Last," Boroslav began, his tone having grown colder and his expression becoming darker. "At no point are you to attempt to escape. You will not fight us, you will obey any order given to you, immediately and without question. If Scylla asks you a question, answer at once. If Scylla tells you to do something, do it immediately. If you respect us, we will respect you. But if you break these rules, if you try to run, if you try to fight us, if you even so much as lift a hand against Scylla or me or any one of my men, then you will die. I will not repeat these rules again."

Boroslav didn't ask them if they understood him. Mackenzie got the sense that he didn't care if they understood him or not, and even suspected he wanted someone to disobey so that he could hurt them or kill them. When he had killed Lowe, and when he was beating Jesse with his gun, Mackenzie had seen a mad glint in Boroslav's eyes that looked like excitement. He enjoyed hurting and he enjoyed killing, of that Mackenzie was certain. Why else would he have been upset by the fact someone else was interrogating a prisoner? He wanted that pleasure for himself. Mackenzie pressed her freed wrists tighter together, silently praying that Boroslav wouldn't notice she was no longer restrained.

The elevator began to slow and finally came to a stop, though Mackenzie couldn't see where they were supposed to go. She was about to ask, when suddenly the metal wall in front of her split open and the two halves of the door slid smoothly apart with a gentle hiss.

"Out," Boroslav ordered.

Stepping out, Mackenzie and the others were herded and shoved down a corridor that was gray and cold, made of nothing but steel. Looking at the floor, Mackenzie thought she could make out the faint remnants of brightly colored lines that had once been painted on the floor.

Before Mackenzie had time to wonder why there would have been lines painted on the floor, she was abruptly stopped by a hand grabbing her shoulder. Looking up, she saw that they had come to a large metal door, much like the one from which they had exited the elevator. On the wall beside it, though, there was a large flat screen.

Boroslav stepped up to the screen and placed his hand on it, not bothering to speak. Mackenzie watched as the screen lit up green and then scanned Boroslav's hand. A moment later, the door slid smoothly open and Boroslav marched inside, Mackenzie and the others being shoved in behind him.

They found themselves in a long corridor again, only this one was vastly different from the last. The walls on either side were lined with a kind of transparent plexiglass, and the lights overhead were dim and uninviting. Mackenzie could hear a voice coming from somewhere far down the corridor, but couldn't make out the words.

As she, Abbas, Jesse, and Bell were shoved unceremoniously deeper into the corridor, Mackenzie glanced sideways through one of the plexiglass windows. When she saw what was inside, she started as though shocked and had to stifle a gasp.

There was a man inside, sitting naked on the floor (as there was no furniture to sit upon), his legs crossed under him as he leaned sideways against the wall. The man looked skeletal, his ribs easily visible against his bare torso. His hair was flat and sweaty, his face gaunt and yellow. His mouth hung slightly open, as though he was dazed. He was staring straight at Mackenzie as she looked back at him, but his eyes were unfocused and glassy. As Mackenzie stared at the man, he suddenly jerked his neck and hit his head against the wall with a loud thud. Mackenzie flinched at the sound, then looked to Boroslav to see if he was going to do anything. Mackenzie was horrified to see Boroslav was grinning at the man, his cleft lip baring that sharp canine tooth once more as he watched the man behind the window.

Turning back to the man, Mackenzie saw him thud his head against the wall again. This time she noticed the small circle of blood that had splattered on the steel wall. The man kept thudding his head as Mackenzie and the others were forced to keep walking, the sound of his head hitting the wall over and over again following them down the corridor.

As they passed the other plexiglass windows, Mackenzie saw other people in similarly horrifying states. Some would cringe away from the glass when they saw people approaching, but most seemed completely unaware of their surroundings, as the first man had been. They were all naked and filthy, and Mackenzie could smell the stench of sweat, urine and faeces. These people had been left in their own filth, left to suffer. God only knew for how long.

"This is a prison," Mackenzie whispered in sickened horror.

"No," Jesse scowled, shaking his head. "This is torture."

"A concentration camp or something," Bell breathed, peering in horror at a girl no more than seven years old who was imprisoned behind the plexiglass, trying to hide in the corner with her tiny arms shielding her head.

"This is inhumane," Abbas glowered at Boroslav. "How can you treat people like this?"

"Be quiet," Boroslav snarled at them. "These things are no concern of yours."

"Things?" Mackenzie hissed, but a single look of warning from Boroslav stopped her from saying anything else.

Suddenly, there was a bright flash of blue light coming from one of the cells up ahead, followed by a blood-chilling scream, though it was somewhat muffled, like the screamer had something over their mouth. The blue light flashed again and the muffled scream immediately followed.

Boroslav approached the open cell and bowed his head quickly, before raising his eyes to look at the person inside.

"Scylla," Boroslav began, the ghost of a smile already beginning to play out on his lips. "I have brought you the Diviners, as you commanded."

"Bring them here," came the reply from within the cell. Mackenzie was surprised to hear it was female.

Mackenzie was suddenly shoved forward to stand in front of the cell, but then a swift kick to the back of her legs brought her to her knees. Jesse, Abbas and Bell were quickly shoved alongside her, also forced to kneel. Mackenzie looked up to see the one named Scylla, who now stood before her like a demon at the gates of Hell.

Scylla held a lit blowtorch in her hand, the blue flame burning brightly and flickering against the walls. The light cast Scylla's shadow against the wall behind her, a silhouette that towered above its own physical counterpart, appearing far larger and horrifying than the woman staring down at Mackenzie. Her hair was black and cut short, almost completely shaved. She looked to be of Asian origins, perhaps Korean, and she stared with cold, almond-shaped eyes. She had a slim frame, but her arms, exposed by the dirty white singlet she wore, were toned with muscles. The singlet was stained with black and red smears; how they got there, Mackenzie wasn't sure she wanted to know. Some of it looked like blood.

Behind Scylla, Mackenzie saw a man hanging suspended in the air, his wrists chained to a hook on the ceiling and his toes dangling an inch above the floor. He wore nothing but a dirty pair of pants, his face hanging down to his chest as he slowly spun in the air. If he hadn't been shaking with fear, Mackenzie might have thought he was dead.

"Which is he?" Scylla snapped at Boroslav.

"None of these," Boroslav replied. "He was not among them."

Scylla was silent for several seconds in response and the air seemed to thicken with tension. Scylla's expression never changed, but there seemed to be an electric energy emanating from her that suggested her barely contained fury.

"Really?" Scylla asked slowly, dangerously. The sound of her voice made Mackenzie think of a snake gradually uncoiling itself before striking an enemy. "And where is Vasseur?"

"Dead," Boroslav informed her. "We found his body in the Diviner truck."

"Hmm," Scylla said thoughtfully, her narrow eyes slowly examining Mackenzie and the others. She pointed at Abbas with the still lit blowtorch and snapped, "You there. What is your name?"

"Kian Abbas," Abbas replied, eyeing the blowtorch apprehensively.

"And you?" Scylla demanded, turning her attention (and the blowtorch) towards Jesse.

"Jesse Greaves," Jesse said with as much contempt as he could manage.

Mackenzie waited for Scylla to ask her and Bell's names, but Scylla seemed to have become disinterested, turning her attention back to Boroslav.

"Did Vasseur back out of the deal?" Scylla wondered aloud.

"Who can say?" Boroslav shrugged. "He was dead before I got the chance to ask him."

"Wait," Scylla said slowly, her eyes roaming over the Diviners once more. "There are only four. Where is the fifth?"

"Your dog killed him," Jesse snarled.

Boroslav struck Jesse in the side of the head with his fist in a flash. Jesse swayed on his knees, struggling to stay conscious.

"Hey!" Mackenzie cried in protest.

"Zamovkny!" Boroslav snarled.

Neither Jesse nor Mackenzie spoke Ukrainian, but they understood well enough. Jesse silently spat blood out onto the floor, then resumed staring at Scylla, who hadn't even flinched.

"You killed one of the Diviners?" Scylla asked Boroslav coldly.

"Yes," Boroslav replied, not a hint of remorse in his voice. "He shot and killed one of my men."

Scylla nodded, but her lips were pressed together tightly. "And what was his name? This man you killed."

"His name was Seth Lowe," Boroslav replied. "Not him."

"Not who?" Mackenzie asked.

"Shut up!" Boroslav snapped at her. "I told you not to speak unless spoken to!"

"It's all right, Mikhail," Scylla said. "Vasseur seems to not have told them about our arrangement. As they are now our guests, I think it's only fair they know why."

Boroslav looked disappointed, but said nothing. Scylla extinguished the flame on the blowtorch, then stood over Mackenzie as she spoke.

"Vasseur and I were in regular contact," Scylla explained, slowly looking between Mackenzie and the others as she spoke. "I would tell him what I needed and he would bring it to me. In exchange, I would tell him where he could find a new water source for your colony. The river you saw, I know everywhere it flows. I know every well it created, every stream, every pocket of drinkable water. Years of mapping gave me this knowledge, while your people scrambled like ants trying to create the simple society you know today, but neglected to figure out how to survive long term. However, while I have an abundance of water at my disposal, I lack the resources I truly need. That's why I offered a deal. Vasseur was to give me whatever I needed, whenever I needed it. I would then tell him where to find water."

"So Vasseur was bringing you something?" Mackenzie asked.

"Yes, that's right," Scylla replied, smiling. "Something very precious to me."

"Well, maybe it's in the truck," Mackenzie said.

"Yes, it would have to be," Abbas added. "If you find it, by all means, take it. Vasseur never told us about your arrangement. You can take whatever you need and we'll go."

"It's not that simple," Scylla replied. "See, Vasseur wasn't bringing me some tool or piece of equipment, or even food. No, he was bringing me a person."

"A person?" Mackenzie repeated. "That's why you were both asking our names! You were looking for them. You thought it was one of us."

"Yes," Scylla nodded. "This individual was promised to me."

"Who?" Abbas asked. "Who was promised to you."

"As they are not here," Scylla began, fixing Abbas with a cold glare, "I fail to see why that should matter to you."

"Well, there's no one with us," Abbas scowled. "We're useless to you. You might as well release us."

"Scylla will decide what to do with you," Boroslav spat, stepping in front of Abbas, sneering in contempt. "You will remain silent as you were told."

As Boroslav had stepped past Mackenzie to address Abbas, she noticed the pistol on Boroslav's hip. It was holstered, but well within Mackenzie's reach. Her heart rate quickened to triple speed as she realized, wondering if she could do something to get them out of this place.

"There's no need to keep us here," Abbas continued to argue, beginning to sound angry. "We never knew anything about this deal you had with Vasseur, we don't even know who it is you're looking for! You already killed one of my men, there's no need for any more violence. Just let my team go and hold me if you must."

"You're right," Scylla began, smiling nastily. "There is no reason to keep you. Boroslav, take them outside and shoot them."

"Yes, ma'am," Boroslav grinned, flashing his canine tooth in anticipation.

Mackenzie knew she had to act. She leaped to her feet and, as she rose, reached out and snatched Boroslav's gun from its holster. Boroslav saw her rise, her hands no longer restrained, and began to reach for his gun, but the suddenness of Mackenzie's movement made Boroslav hesitate for just a fraction of a second and he didn't reach his gun before Mackenzie was able to snatch it away.

Making the decision without even thinking about it, Mackenzie lifted the gun and aimed it at Scylla's face. Scylla looked at her with mild surprise, and Boroslav's men were raising their own guns, pointing them at Mackenzie, ready to shoot her down.

"Stop!" Scylla shouted, her voice echoing around them.

Boroslav and the other soldiers all froze, though with some confusion. Those with guns didn't seem sure where to point them now, so kept them half-raised towards Mackenzie. They weren't about to shoot her, but they could in an instant if ordered. Boroslav was sneering at Mackenzie, furious that she had somehow broken free of her restraints and gotten the better of him. Mackenzie felt like she wanted to throw up and she fought to keep from shaking. Scylla, however, seemed completely at ease. She was regarding Mackenzie with polite curiosity, as though Mackenzie was simply a brief distraction, almost amusing.

"Well," Scylla began, still smiling. "I've never seen anyone take Boroslav's gun away from him before. I hope you know that you must have wounded his pride a great deal."

"I don't care about his pride," Mackenzie replied, trying to keep her voice from giving away her terror. "He killed my friend."

"I'm sorry for that," Scylla said, sounding sincere. "He was not supposed to kill any of you. I wanted you all alive. So, I'm curious, what is your plan here? Are you going to shoot me? Then somehow overpower Boroslav and the other six armed men here? Are you going to shoot your way out of my home and make your way back to your colony?"

Mackenzie tightened her grip on the gun.

"Let us go," Mackenzie demanded. "Or I'll shoot you. I know we probably won't survive, but at least you won't either. Maybe I can even get Boroslav while I'm at it."

"My men will gun you down before you can pull the trigger," Boroslav snarled. "Don't be stupid."

"You're planning on killing us anyway," Mackenzie snapped, her hands beginning to shake with fear and adrenaline. "The way I see it, I'm dead either way. But at least you two won't be able to hurt anyone else."

Mackenzie felt all eyes on her, those of both Scylla and Boroslav, as well as all of their soldiers and those of Abbas, Jesse and Bell. Everyone held their breath as they waited to see what happened next.

"Have you ever killed anyone before?" Scylla asked, now sounding surprisingly gentle. Her voice was soft and calm, as though the gun in her face was inconsequential. "I don't think so. I can see it in your eyes. You lack the conviction to kill. You know as well as I do that you won't pull that trigger."

"You don't know shit," Mackenzie snapped, hoping she sounded braver than she felt. "I'll do it."

"Then do it," Scylla replied, smiling.

Mackenzie tightened her grip on the gun as she aimed down the sights at Scylla's smiling, unafraid, face. She sensed the soldiers tighten their own grips on their weapons, readying themselves to shoot her down.

"Do it," Jesse whispered. "Go on. Do it."

"You heard your friend," Scylla grinned. "Do it. Kill me. Blow my brains out. At this range, you can't miss."

"Just let us go," Mackenzie insisted, realizing she sounded like she was begging. "Don't make me kill you. Let us go and no one has to die."

"Either you pull that trigger or I order my men to shoot you here and now," Scylla replied, still calm.

"I... I..." Mackenzie stammered, beginning to hyperventilate.

"Just shoot her," Jesse hissed.

"Shut your mouth!" Boroslav snapped at him.

"Mackenzie," Bell began, but didn't seem to know what she was going to say.

"Yes, Mackenzie," Scylla said sweetly. "Shoot me if you can."

Mackenzie felt the trigger under her finger. She pictured squeezing the trigger and shooting the smug smile right off of Scylla's face, then shooting down Boroslav and his men, then leading Abbas, Jesse and Bell to freedom. She knew this was just fantasy, though. There was no way she could fight all these men. She'd be lucky if she even managed to shoot Scylla. Mackenzie knew she was moments away from death, no matter what she did.

Suddenly, as though deflating, Mackenzie lowered the gun. She let it slip from her hands and fall to the floor. Mackenzie lowered her gaze and stared at her own feet, too ashamed of herself to look anyone in the eye.

"That's what I thought," Scylla leered.

Boroslav picked up his gun, then drove a fist hard into Mackenzie's stomach, knocking the wind out of her and bringing her to her knees as she gasped for air.

"Don't touch her!" Jesse roared.

Looking up, struggling to breathe properly, Mackenzie met Abbas' gaze.

"I... I'm sorry," she choked.

"It's okay, Miller," Abbas said softly. "It wouldn't have changed anything anyway."

"What did you call her?" Scylla suddenly demanded.

Looking up, Mackenzie saw that Scylla was now standing over Abbas, her eyebrows pressed firmly together as she spoke. Abbas was looking up at her in surprise, while Jesse kept glancing between Boroslav and Mackenzie. He was shooting daggers at Boroslav with his eyes, while his expression softened to concern when he looked at Mackenzie, who still gasped for air.

"What did you call her?" Scylla repeated, softer now.

"Miller," Abbas repeated.

"Are you any relation to Captain Stephen Miller?" Scylla asked incredulously, turning to Mackenzie.

"She said she is his granddaughter, Scylla," Boroslav offered.

Moving lightning quick, Scylla turned and slapped Boroslav as hard as she could across the face. The force of the blow sent Boroslav reeling, staggering several steps aside and nearly tumbling into the man who still hung suspended from the ceiling. Boroslav looked at Scylla in shock, holding his cheek.

"Why didn't you tell me that sooner, you idiot!?" Scylla shrieked. Then, closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, Scylla slowly calmed herself before speaking again. "They are not to be harmed."

"What?" Boroslav asked, confused.

"They are not to be harmed!" Scylla repeated, shouting this time. "Give me your gun."

Boroslav hesitated for only an instant before placing his pistol in Scylla's outstretched hand. Scylla turned her attention to the man who was hanging from the ceiling by his arms. He had kept his face down this whole time, but now he looked up into Scylla's eyes. Following her gaze, Mackenzie looked up at the man and immediately felt like screaming.

The man looked as though he had been severely burned. The flesh on his face and neck was blackened and charred, blood and pus oozing out between his cracked flesh. One eye seemed to have been melted completely shut, and there was a red, yellow and white liquid running down his charred cheek from where the socket had been, suggesting his eyeball had exploded from the heat. The man was quivering as he looked back at Scylla, a rag tied over his mouth so that he could not speak.

"We're done here," Scylla said to him.

Then Scylla lifted the gun and fired a single shot into the man's head. The bullet went straight through and Mackenzie saw blood, bone fragments and pieces of brain splatter against the wall behind him. The man immediately fell limp, his suffering over.

"That's how you kill someone," Scylla said flatly to Mackenzie. Then, to the soldiers, she said, "Detain them."

Mackenzie looked up in time to see a soldier hammer the butt of his gun down on her head, and then there was nothing but darkness.

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

When consciousness came to her, so did the pain. Mackenzie's head was pounding, and her stomach felt like it was bruised and tender. Groaning softly as the pain brought her closer to full alertness, Mackenzie lifted her hand to rub her head. But as she went to massage her temple, Mackenzie came to a horrifying realization that woke her faster than any amount of pain could have.

Where are my fingers!?

Mackenzie's eyes shot wide open and she quickly sat upright, staring down at the end of her arms. Her right arm was fine, as it had always been, but her left hand... the bionic had been removed.

Staring in horror at the stump on the end of her left arm, Mackenzie knew that they had figured out how she got out of her restraints. They had taken her hand to make sure she couldn't do it again. She was hindered by her own body once more, a fact that filled her with both rage and despair. She wanted to cry, scream, lash out violently, and God only knew what else, all at once. So consumed by the horror of having woken up with only one hand again, Mackenzie didn't notice the person sitting beside her until they spoke.

"This is a marvel," Scylla said softly, making Mackenzie jump in surprise at her voice.

Mackenzie looked up and for the first time took notice of her surroundings. She was in a small, square, room. The similarity of this room to the cells she had seen previously did nothing to calm her nerves, but this room at least had a bed, which Mackenzie was mildly surprised to find she was sitting up on. One wall was the same thick plexiglass that the other cells had and Mackenzie could see out into the hallway beyond and even into the cell across from her own, though no one seemed to be in it. In the corner of her cell, Mackenzie saw a rusted and filthy steel toilet, and she hoped she wouldn't be here long enough to have to use it.

What truly surprised Mackenzie, though, was Scylla sitting in a simple plastic chair beside her bed, turning something over and over in her hands as she studied it. Looking at what Scylla was holding, Mackenzie saw that it was her bionic hand. Mackenzie's entire body tensed at the sight of it. She longed to reach out and snatch it away, but knew that would be foolish.

"Such ingenuity," Scylla went on, still studying the bionic hand. "Whoever built this is truly a genius. Tell me... who built this?"

"Where are my friends?" Mackenzie asked. Jesse, Abbas and Bell were nowhere to be seen, a fact that filled Mackenzie with dread.

"Your friends are fine," Scylla replied, looking up from the hand to make eye contact with Mackenzie. "They're in different cells. I thought it best to keep you all separated for the time being, lest you pretend you're going to kill me again. Now... Who made this?"

Scylla was asking pleasantly, but the way she looked at Mackenzie as she asked the question was anything but kind. It was hungry, and cruel. Mackenzie felt a shiver crawl along her spine as she looked into Scylla's eyes.

"A friend of mine," Mackenzie replied quietly, feeling weak.

"They must be a good friend to craft such a device for you," Scylla observed. "Does this friend mean something special to you?"

Mackenzie couldn't believe she was being asked this question now. This hardly seemed like the time or place to discuss whether or not she considered Ethan as more than a friend. To quickly put an end to the topic, Mackenzie shook her head.

"He's just a friend," she said.

"He, is it?" Scylla grinned. "Perhaps he feels more for you than you feel for him?"

Mackenzie didn't know what to say to this, but was spared having to respond when Scylla spoke again.

"So what is your friend's name?"

"Er..." Mackenzie hesitated, wondering why Scylla cared. "Ethan. Ethan Renaud."

It happened so fast, Mackenzie barely noticed, but Scylla's eyes seemed to light up and a smirk flashed across her face. But then it was gone and Scylla resumed studying the bionic hand.

"Well, Ethan clearly put a lot of work and care into this device," Scylla observed. "I hope you were grateful."

Suddenly, a thought occurred to Mackenzie, but it was so ludicrous she nearly dismissed it. But her suspicion grew too intense and she had to say something.

"It was supposed to be him, wasn't it?" Mackenzie demanded. "The person Vasseur was bringing to you, it was supposed to be Ethan."

Scylla laughed lightly, barely more than a titter, though it was not a pleasant sound. It sounded cruel and belittling.

"Clever," Scylla nodded. "Yes. Vasseur had promised me a young engineer with great skills by the name of Ethan Renaud. I can't tell you how disappointed I was to find he was not with you. Also that Vasseur was already dead so that I couldn't personally show him my disappointment."

Mackenzie felt dazed as this information sunk in. Vasseur had promised to hand Ethan over to Scylla? Was that why Vasseur voted for Ethan over Mackenzie? Was that how he came to be one of the Diviner recruits in the first place?

"Why do you want him?" Mackenzie asked.

"That's my business," Scylla smiled slyly.

"All right, then," Mackenzie frowned. "If you won't tell me that, tell me this. Why aren't I dead? Why didn't you kill us?"

"Ah, excellent question," Scylla nodded, turning Mackenzie's bionic hand over in her own. "Let's just say for now that I am very interested in your ancestry."

"You mean Captain Miller?"

Scylla smiled in response, but said nothing more to explain. Instead, she said, "I'd really appreciate your help with something. A task I had hoped your engineer friend would be able to help with, but I think you might just be helpful in your own way."

"I can't build things," Mackenzie replied. "I won't be much help."

"Oh, I don't know about that," Scylla said. "You might be more useful than you expect."

"Why should I help you?" Mackenzie demanded. "I just saw you kill a man after torturing him. You captured me and my friends, threatened to kill us, then locked us up. And Boroslav murdered my friend, Lowe, which you don't seem to have a problem with. Why would I even think about helping you?"

"Well," Scylla began slowly, as though pondering Mackenzie's question. "If you help me, I'll let you and your friends go free."

This wasn't what Mackenzie had been expecting to hear. She expected Scylla to become angry, perhaps threaten her, but not offer freedom.

"You will?" Mackenzie asked incredulously.

"I'm not unreasonable, Mackenzie," Scylla smiled. "I know I can be... strict with my people, but that's only because I have to be. It's the only way we've survived out here. Sure, we have plenty of water, but order is what's truly needed to maintain society. Rules. Laws. And, when needed, punishments. That man I killed? He stole from my personal supplies. Basically took food right out of my mouth. That's as good as murder according to me and my people. The punishment for such a crime is severe, as it has been since before I came to lead. I didn't write the law, but I will enforce it. I know it must have seemed barbaric to you, but is it any worse than forcing someone to wander into the desert on their own to die?"

Mackenzie was surprised again by Scylla's words. Not just because of her rationalisation of torturing and murdering, but also because she knew about banishment. The greatest punishment one could receive back in Town.

"How do you-?" Mackenzie began, but Scylla cut her off with a raised hand.

"I know far more about your home than you do about mine," Scylla said. "Now, will you help me? In exchange for your freedom?"

Mackenzie considered Scylla for a long while as she thought. Weighing the options, wondering if she could really trust anything Scylla said. Scylla may have been offering freedom, but how could Mackenzie know Scylla wasn't already planning on just killing her once this task was done? Mackenzie suspected this deal wasn't all it appeared. What she really needed was time. Time to figure out a plan to free the others and escape.

"I'd only have to do one thing?" Mackenzie asked. "Then my friends and I can go home?"

"Of course," Scylla grinned.

"And will you give us a location to resettle?" Mackenzie pressed.

"Excuse me?"

"Our town is nearly out of water," Mackenzie explained. "That's why we were out here. We were looking for a new home. You told us how you would tell Vasseur where to find new water sources. Well, if you want my help, you can do that again. Only this time, it needs to be a substantial source. Something like the river, something that won't run out. If you do that, then I'll help you."

Scylla tapped her chin thoughtfully as she studied Mackenzie, as though she was a curious entity in a science lab. Mackenzie held her breath as she waited.

"You set a lot of terms for someone in your position," Scylla noted. "But I accept. You will do this one task for me, then you and your friends can go home. And I will give you the location of another, smaller, river that branches off from my own, several miles from here. Deal?"

Scylla offered her hand to shake Mackenzie's. Mackenzie hesitated for a moment, still unsure about trusting Scylla for even a moment. Vasseur's words were still repeating in her mind, warning her, but what choice did she have? For the moment, this was all she could do. And even if Scylla planned on backing out of their deal, then Mackenzie had at least bought some time to work out a different plan.

"Deal," Mackenzie said, shaking Scylla's hand.

Scylla grinned widely, then rose from her chair. "Excellent. I have to prepare some things first. I'll come collect you when I'm ready. We have to travel off base, but it's not too far. And I have a way of travelling that I think you'll enjoy."

"Wait," Mackenzie said as Scylla headed for the exit to the cell. "You still haven't told me what you want me to do."

"I know," Scylla grinned. "I wouldn't want to spoil the surprise."

Then Scylla tossed Mackenzie's bionic hand to her, which Mackenzie managed to catch in her one hand, bringing it close to her chest. Surprised, Mackenzie looked back to Scylla, silently asking why she would return the bionic.

"I think you'll need that," Scylla said, leering.

Then Scylla turned and walked out of the cell, the plexiglass door sealing behind her as she left Mackenzie to wonder if she had made the right decision.

Time passed slowly in her cell. Mackenzie had no way of knowing how much time had actually passed, but it felt like hours. She paced around the small square room, fretting about Jesse, Abbas and Bell; where were they, were they okay, were they even still alive? The more she wondered these things, the more afraid for them she became.

Despite her best efforts, Mackenzie was unable to deny the inevitable. She had to use the disgusting, rusty, toilet. She prayed that no one would come by while she was exposed and, to her immense relief, no one did.

Eventually though, Scylla did return. With two guards following her loyally, and none other than Boroslav at her side. Boroslav took a blank white card from his pocket and touched it to a scanner beside the cell door. A doorway silently appeared, as though the plexiglass wall was melting away.. Mackenzie guessed it was some kind of nano-tech wall, millions of tiny parts that could do pretty much anything they were programmed to do. In this case, they could form a solid and strong wall, but at the touch of Boroslav's keycard, they would move aside to form an opening.

Once the way was open, Scylla stood outside the cell, staring in at Mackenzie.

"Are you ready to help?" Scylla asked.

"Well, it's not like I've got my hands full in here," Mackenzie replied snidely.

Boroslav sneered angrily, but Scylla chuckled quietly.

"Come on," Scylla said, gesturing for Mackenzie to exit her cell.

"I want to see my friends," Mackenzie said as forcefully as she could, remaining rooted where she stood.

"Are you changing the terms of our agreement?" Scylla asked, her eyes narrowing.

"Part of that agreement was that after I help you, you let us all go," Mackenzie pointed out. "What good is that promise if they're already dead? I need to know they're okay. Then I'll help you."

"Let me teach her some respect, Scylla," Boroslav whispered. "There is no need for deal making. We can easily make her help."

Scylla silenced Boroslav by holding up her index finger in a "one moment" gesture, though she didn't bother to look at him. The simple act made Boroslav cringe away like a dog that had been kicked by its master. Scylla smiled at Mackenzie with what seemed like amusement.

"Fair enough," she said. "As it happens, we have to pass by them anyway. Let's go."

Her heart racing, unsure about what she had gotten herself into, Mackenzie followed Scylla and Boroslav, the other two guards walking in their wake, down the long corridor. After a long walk, Scylla stopped and turned around to face Mackenzie, spreading her arms as though unveiling some great sight.

"Your friends," Scylla grinned. "Alive and well."

Mackenzie peered in the nearest cell and saw Jesse sitting on the edge of the bed. He was glaring furiously at Scylla and Boroslav, as though he longed to smash through the plexiglass and tear them both apart. At the sight of Mackenzie, his eyes widened in surprise.

In the cell opposite his, Mackenzie saw Abbas. He was standing in front of the plexiglass, staring out at Mackenzie with a questioning and concerned look on his face.

"Hey!" came a voice from the cell beside Jesse's, followed by a loud bang. Bell had slammed her hand against the plexiglass angrily. "What the hell!? What are you doing with her? Mackenzie, are you okay? Did they hurt you?"

"I'm fine," Mackenzie said, raising her voice enough for them all to hear her through the plexiglass. "Scylla just wants my help with something."

"Did you tell her to stow it?" Jesse asked. "She doesn't deserve any help with anything. And as for Mr Pretty there, I wouldn't piss on him if he was on fire. That's the kind of help they deserve."

"Perhaps you would like another beating, eh?" Boroslav snapped, banging his fist once against Jesse's cell. Jesse just grinned back at him, satisfied he had gotten a rise out Boroslav.

"If I help with this one thing," Mackenzie went on, "Scylla agrees to let us go. She'll even tell us where to find a new water source, something more permanent. She gave me her word."

"And you trust her word, Miller?" Abbas asked skeptically.

"Right now, that's all I can do," Mackenzie said helplessly, spreading her palms and shrugging.

Abbas sighed. "I don't like it. But you're right. Just watch your back, okay? No telling what these people are up to."

"I know," Mackenzie nodded. "I'll be careful."

"Mackenzie will be treated with the utmost respect while in my company," Scylla added sweetly. "No harm will come to her, of that you can be certain. Her assistance is of vital importance, so her safety is my number one priority."

"Yeah, I bet," Bell snapped sarcastically.

Ignoring Bell, Scylla turned to Mackenzie, still smiling. "Are you satisfied now? Your friends are all in fine condition. No one has touched them since they were detained. And they will remain safe while we work, awaiting your return to free them. Good?"

Mackenzie nodded. "Yeah. We're good."

"Then let's go," Scylla said, sounding genuinely excited. "We have a lot to do."

Mackenzie gave Jesse, Abbas and Bell one last fleeting look, hoping to tell them with her eyes that she was working on a plan B, just in case Scylla went back on her word. Whether or not they understood, Mackenzie didn't know, but she met Jesse's eyes for several moments and felt unexplainably confident that he understood. He seemed to look right through her, like he was reading her mind, then gave her an imperceptible nod, and the tiniest of smiles. Then Scylla led her away, towards the mysterious task she had planned for her.

"I think my friends would like some food," Mackenzie said to Scylla as they walked.

"Setting more terms, are we?" Scylla asked. She was smiling as she spoke, but her tone was cold.

"No," Mackenzie shook her head. "I'm just saying. I don't know how long this job will take, so they could still be locked up for a while. I'd hate for them to starve to death before I got back."

Scylla grinned and nodded. "Don't worry. They will be taken care of."

Mackenzie noted that Scylla didn't agree to providing food for the others, and the way she said they would be taken care of did nothing to ease Mackenzie's concern. Mackenzie remained silent, though.

A short while later, Mackenzie was led out of the enormous shuttle that had been retrofitted into a base for Scylla's people. Mackenzie squinted in the sunlight, but took a moment to marvel at the river once more, remembering how happy they had all been to find it. She remembered swimming with the others; Lowe making jokes; Bell laughing and splashing everyone; Abbas having a rare moment where he lapsed out of his stoic command and actually had fun. And Jesse, diving under the water, swimming circles around Mackenzie as she had floated lazily on the surface.

Pity it didn't last, Mackenzie thought, thinking of poor Lowe, and the others currently imprisoned.

Suddenly, there was a loud sound from the sky, like the roar of a dozen engines, and Mackenzie instinctively ducked as something flew overhead, but Scylla and Boroslav were indifferent to the noise. Looking up, Mackenzie saw that the cause of the roaring were flying a hundred feet above, posing no threat. Mackenzie marvelled at the sight of them though, because she had never before seen anything like them outside of textbooks.

There were three in total, soaring overhead towards the river. They were machines, gliding through the sky effortlessly, their engines humming loudly. They looked like aircraft that Mackenzie had only ever seen pictures of, painted a dull black with white stripes and numbers on the sides. They had four large rectangular engines on either side of the vessel, which were attached to thick rods that seemed to rotate, turning the craft left and right as the engines tilted forward and back, independent of one another. The crafts had a tail with rudders and an additional engine that looked as though it provided forward thrust. Mackenzie could see bright lights within each engine, brightening and dimming with every adjustment the crafts made in the air.

The body of the crafts were strange to Mackenzie. While most pictures of aircraft she had seen looked sleek and streamlined, these looked like they could have been pregnant with another aircraft. The belly of the aircrafts bulged and seemed to take up at least half of the total mass, making them seem far too large and heavy for flight. Mackenzie could see the windows to the cockpit at the nose of the aircraft, but could not see any pilot behind the tinted glass.

As Mackenzie watched, one of the aircraft peeled away from the formation, leaving the other two to continue their progress towards the river. Still in awe, Mackenzie stared as the two aircraft banked right and lined themselves up with the river. They began to descend, gliding down towards the river's surface. Just as Mackenzie thought they were both about to crash, large compartments opened up in the enormous bellies of the ships and they skimmed across the water like swans landing on a lake. Watching carefully, Mackenzie saw they were scooping water out of the river. After they drank their fill, the ships receptacle doors closed and they soared back into the sky, flying towards an unknown destination with large quantities of water in storage.

Turning her attention to the third aircraft that had broken away from the other two, Mackenzie saw that it was now slowly approaching her and Scylla.

To Mackenzie's amazement, the aircraft didn't simply fly. It hovered. Mackenzie watched in awe as the craft slowed in the air until it was completely motionless, then it began to slowly descend, turning in the air to land sideways to its small audience.

The aircraft landed gently; some sand and dirt was kicked up by the powerful engines, but it otherwise landed smoothly. The whirring of the engines began to subside as they powered down, the loud humming steadily dying away to a gentle drone and then nothing.

"Whoa," Mackenzie whispered.

"Would I be right in thinking you've never flown before?" Scylla asked Mackenzie.

"Yeah," Mackenzie breathed in amazement, still staring at the aircraft. "I haven't."

"Her people are too primitive," Boroslav sniffed. "They used every resource they had to set up a moving town, always looking for water, but never thought to keep anything like this for its designed purpose. If they had any, I expect they scrapped every VTOL they had for the parts and metal."

"VTOL?" Mackenzie repeated, ignoring Boroslav's obvious disdain for her home.

"Vertical Take Off and Landing," Scylla explained, beginning to lead the way to the aircraft. "It makes for far easier travel across the deserts than a truck, and it has its other uses, too. You saw them collect water. They can carry up to 30,000 litres and deliver it to my soldiers in the field."

As they approached, a door in the side of the aircraft began to open, lowering a flight of stairs to the ground. Scylla quickly climbed up the stairs and vanished inside the aircraft. Mackenzie hesitated at the steps, feeling wary of getting into the flying machine. Surely something this large couldn't stay in the air?

"Move," Boroslav ordered, prodding her in the back. "Scylla has no patience for cowards."

"I'm not a coward," Mackenzie snapped.

"Then shut your mouth and get on the plane," Boroslav snarled, shoving her farther up the stairs.

Scowling, Mackenzie climbed up and entered the aircraft. Inside, it was surprisingly bland. The outside had made it seem so otherworldly and intimidating. Inside, however, it looked remarkably similar to the inside of Rhiannon, though it was somewhat colder and uninviting. There were padded seats lining the walls, Mackenzie could see the cockpit to her right where a pilot still wearing a helmet was flipping switches and peaking softly into a radio. To Mackenzie's left, there was a hatch in the floor, which she assumed led into the aircraft's large belly. The bright fluorescent lights overhead lit up every corner of the aircraft; Mackenzie took note of this fact on the off chance she needed to hide anywhere. Despite the size of the aircraft, the cabin appeared to be rather diminutive.

Boroslav then appeared up the stairs behind her and Mackenzie could feel his contemptuous eyes on her. The two guards followed behind him, both silent and stony as ever.

"Mikhail!" a voice suddenly cried.

Turning towards the voice, Mackenzie saw a small figure lurch out of the cockpit. He had apparently been seated in the copilot chair, but was so small and slight that Mackenzie hadn't seen him. The young-looking boy had a lopsided grin on his face, a strong underbite, and his forehead seemed to be flatter than most, simply dissolving under his hairline and becoming his scalp. His eyes seemed too big for his head, but they sparkled with joy. The boy was hurrying towards Boroslav as fast as his stumpy, stick-thin, legs would allow. The effort seemed immense for him, as he was already puffing and wheezing, despite having only gone a few steps.

"Slow down, Vasilii," Boroslav said, his voice surprising Mackenzie by how calm and soothing it had suddenly become. "You will hurt yourself again if you hurry."

The boy, Vasilii, started to slow down, but the look of excitement on his face didn't diminish. Mackenzie figured he was close to her own age, maybe seventeen or eighteen, but he had a way of moving and looking around that was far more like that of a child.

Vasilii grabbed Boroslav's arm in both of his hands and tugged excitedly, still wheezing slightly. Mackenzie had heard breathing like that before, in a few of the asthmatics back in Town.

"I haven't seen you all day!" the boy exclaimed. "Where have you been?"

"I have been doing work for our fearless leader, Vasilii," Boroslav grinned, gesturing towards Scylla. "Why don't you say hello?"

Vasilii turned away from Boroslav and seemed to only now notice Scylla standing there. He smiled up at her, his eyes still sparkling with excitement.

"Hello, Scylla!" Vasilii grinned.

"Hello, young Vasilii," Scylla replied. "Have you been taking care of my sister for me?"

"Sister?" Mackenzie blurted out.

"Yes," came a new voice. "That would be me."

The pilot was exiting the cockpit and removing their helmet. As soon as the helmet was lifted away, Mackenzie saw a wave of gleaming black hair fall down around the female pilot's shoulders. Mackenzie couldn't help but stare at this woman, because she looked almost exactly like Scylla. She had the same thin lips, the same high cheekbones, the same pointed chin, even the same eyes. The only notable difference between the two was the length in their hair; Scylla's being clipped short and this woman's hanging to her shoulders.

She wore a jumpsuit, which must have been an old pilot uniform found in the Panspermia shuttle, because it wasn't made of any material that was commonplace on Icarus. It was formfitting and sleek, but it was the gun on the woman's hip that Mackenzie took note of.

Mackenzie glanced at the gun, thinking that if she was ever able to get her hands on it, she might be able to get the upper hand. Then again, the last time Mackenzie had threatened Scylla with a gun, it hadn't exactly worked out. Mackenzie wasn't sure if she was capable of killing another human, but if she had to, she at least knew where to find a gun now.

"Hello, Min-Hee," Scylla greeted, offering a cool smile.

"Hello, Hae-Jung," Scylla's sister replied, just as cooly.

Scylla's expression instantly morphed from an icy smile to a vicious scowl.

"You know I don't go by that name anymore," Scylla hissed.

"I'm sorry," Min-Hee replied, not bothering to hide her insincerity. "I forgot."

"Hmph," Scylla snorted. "Just get us in the air, I want to visit the site."

"Right away, sister," Min-Hee replied, bowing her head slightly before turning and marching back to the cockpit. Mackenzie noticed that Min-Hee said sister with a slight tone of bitterness and suspected that maybe not everyone around this place thought of Scylla with as much reverence as Boroslav.

Scylla took a seat in one of the chairs bolted to the wall and began to strap herself in. Scylla then looked up at Mackenzie and, smiling, patted the seat beside her, inviting Mackenzie to sit. Boroslav shoved Mackenzie's shoulder, silently commanding her to do as Scylla wanted.

Trying to hide her displeasure at having to be so close to Scylla, Mackenzie sat down and strapped herself in, pulling the straps over her shoulders and buckling them at her waist. Boroslav sat against the opposite wall, so that he could keep a close eye on Mackenzie. His two soldiers sat around him, but the small and frail-looking Visilii took the place of honor at Boroslav's right hand side.

Suddenly, the engines around the aircraft powered up and roared loudly, making Mackenzie jump. The aircraft, or VTOL, as Boroslav had called it, began to ascend quickly, pushing Mackenzie down into the seat. A moment later, they were flying away over the desert. Mackenzie felt nervous at the idea of soaring above the ground and was momentarily grateful that there were no windows in the cabin to show how high up they were. She didn't really want to know.

"Hi," Vasilii said to Mackenzie, locking his large eyes on her. "I'm Vasilii. Who are you?"

Mackenzie smiled at the frail-looking boy. "My name's Mackenzie. It's nice to meet you, Vasilii."

"Oh, she's pretty!" Vasilii said to Boroslav. "Can I play with her?"

Boroslav grinned at Mackenzie, his eyes glinting with that look of anticipation for impending violence, his canine tooth poking between his cleft lip. Mackenzie felt instantly uncomfortable and couldn't help but turn away, not wanting to look into those soulless eyes.

"Not today, Vasilii," Boroslav replied. "Scylla wants to play her own games first."

"Aw," Vasilii pouted, still staring at Mackenzie. "But I'm getting bored with my other toy. I want a new one."

"Your other toy?" Mackenzie repeated, beginning to feel nervous. "You mean, another person to play with?"

"Uh-huh," Vasilii nodded, grinning. "It's my toy. It used to be Mikhail's toy, but he gave it to me. But it's getting old. I think I'd like a new one."

"We'll see about getting you a new one soon," Boroslav said gently to Vasilii. "First we have work to do."

"Okay," Vasilii sighed.

"Don't mind him," Scylla said to Mackenzie. "Vasilii was born with some difficulties. Microcephaly and Dandy-Walker Syndrome, to name a couple. But he's very dear to our friend Mikhail, here."

"He raised me," Vasilii chimed in brightly. "My parents were bad people, Mikhail told me so. They tried to drown me in the river when I was born. So Mikhail punished them, isn't that right Mikhail?"

"That's right," Boroslav nodded, watching Mackenzie carefully, as though waiting for her to ask how he punished them. Mackenzie didn't need to ask, though. She suspected she already knew.

"There are many people with congenital birth defects and health problems in our community," Scylla explained. "You may have noticed Boroslav's lip, but he is one of the minor cases. Vasilii is a little more... extreme, but none of these things are uncommon around here. We take care of our own, regardless of their physical or mental capacities. I suspect a place like that might appeal to you, Mackenzie."

Mackenzie unconsciously placed her hand over her bionic. True enough, she had been picked on at times for having been born with only one hand, and the idea of a society that elevated people like her to positions of power with no concern over their physical capability sounded nice, but... these people were still cruel.

"Why do so many of your people have, er..." Mackenzie began, but was unsure how to phrase the question.

"Congenital defects?" Scylla offered. "Because of the radiation."

"Radiation?" Mackenzie repeated, feeling nervous. "What radiation?"

Scylla laughed at Mackenzie's obvious fear. "Don't worry, there's no radiation now. You won't suddenly grow another head. No, it was the generation before mine that had to deal with radiation. On the Panspermia."

"Wait, that can't be right," Mackenzie interrupted, shaking her head. "We learned about the evacuation in school. My grandfather evacuated the ship before the radiation could spread."

"Wrong," Scylla said simply. "You've been lied to, I'm afraid. See, the radiation was leaking through the ship long before Captain Miller was able to order an evacuation. Those people who were closest to the leaks were quickly exposed and contaminated. I'm sure I don't have to tell you what effects radiation can have on the human body. But what you might not know so well is what happens to the human foetus should it become exposed to radiation while in the womb."

"But..." Mackenzie began to argue, still convinced that Captain Miller had gotten everyone off the ship before radiation could spread too far, but Scylla silenced her with a raised hand.

"Those of us who were conceived at the time," Scylla went on, lowering her hand, "suffered. Some were born with physical abnormalities, others with congenital defects to their organs, some with cognitive difficulties. The radiation prevented proper development in the womb, so life has been difficult for many of us. Even now, the following generations fall victim to the devastation radiation can cause. Just look at Vasilii. He clearly wasn't conceived almost fifty years ago, but he suffers from as many prenatal development problems as any other. The radiation carries through our genes, laying waste to every generation. All because your grandfather wrote off my parents' generation as expendable."

"That's not true!" Mackenzie cried angrily, scowling sideways at Scylla. "My grandfather saved thousands of people! Kept the human race alive by sacrificing himself! He never would have just left people to die!"

"Your view of your grandfather is skewed by the bias of your education," Scylla replied calmly. "The truth of the matter is that he ejected thousands of people from the Panspermia because he had acted too slowly to save them and allowed them to become contaminated by radiation. Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, he separated them from the healthy survivors on a planet that seems designed to kill humans. Between the radiation poisoning, the environment and the wildlife, it's nothing short of a miracle that enough of us survived to establish our community."

"My grandfather wouldn't have just abandoned people!" Mackenzie still argued.

"Did you know him?" Scylla asked simply. "Were you close?"

"Of course not," Mackenzie snapped. "He died before I was born, died saving people!"

"If you never knew him, you cannot be certain of the type of person he was," Scylla pointed out. "You may dismiss the facts if you wish, but that doesn't change what happened. How else can you explain my people out here, far from your own? Living inside of a Panspermia evac shuttle, no less. The evidence is right in front of you. You are just too stubborn to accept it."

Mackenzie scowled at Scylla, scarcely able to believe she was saying such slanderous things against the man who was the very reason they were all alive. Then again, what if it was true? What if Captain Miller had abandoned them, leaving them all to die long, painful, deaths as a result of radiation exposure?

Mackenzie was silent for the remainder of the flight, which seemed to take roughly an hour or so. Mackenzie was aware that throughout the journey, Vasilii never once took his eyes off of her. He had a way of not blinking as much as one should, and he always had a tiny smile on his face, as though amused by some private joke. Mackenzie pretended Vasilii's stare didn't bother her, but she was increasingly uncomfortable by the minute and silently wished Vasilii would look away. But he never did.

"We're coming in for landing now, Scylla," Min-Hee shouted from the cockpit.

"Excellent," Scylla smiled, nudging Mackenzie with her elbow. "I think you'll be interested in what I'm about to show you."

"I'd be more interested to know just what the hell you want me to do out here," Mackenzie frowned. "You still haven't told me what you want my help with."

"You'll see soon enough," Scylla leered.

The VTOL set down gently only jolting Mackenzie in her seat a little, then the engines began to power down. Scylla began to unclasp her belt and everyone else followed suit.

Once the door opened, Scylla was the first to descend the stairs. Boroslav shoved Mackenzie toward the stairs next.

"Hey!" Mackenzie snapped, finally losing her temper and turning furiously on Boroslav, curling her fingers into fists. "Quit shoving me!"

"Then get out," Boroslav sneered.

"It must be so tiring," Mackenzie began, her tone oozing with sarcasm, "to exhaust your entire vocabulary in just one sentence."

Boroslav snarled viciously, then raised his hand as though to strike Mackenzie, but stopped when Vasilii began to laugh. Both Mackenzie and Boroslav stared at Vasilii in surprise as the boy clutched his stomach and doubled over, his eyes squeezed tightly shut as a high pitched shriek of laughter escaped him.

"She's funny, Mikhail!" Vasilii said, pointing at Mackenzie. "I like her!"

Boroslav scowled at Mackenzie, but slowly lowered his hand. Mackenzie felt a moment of gratitude for Vasilii, but still felt put off by his strange liking towards her. While it seemed childlike, there was something else to it. Something more disturbing. Mackenzie ignored the thought for the moment and turned away to climb down the VTOL steps.

Once Mackenzie was out in the sunlight, she squinted as the harsh brightness hurt her eyes. She shielded her face with her hand and looked around, trying to figure out where they were, but couldn't see through the glare, her eyes having not yet adjusted.

"Are you impressed?" she heard Scylla shout from somewhere.

Finally, Mackenzie's eyes adjusted and she was able to see her surroundings. Looking up, Mackenzie's jaw dropped and her eyes widened in horror at what she saw.

"Oh my God," she whispered. Now I know where the people in the town went.

There were people, thousands upon thousands of people. Many were carrying heavy objects in bags on their backs as they walked in single file lines, dragging their feet through the sand, their backs hunched and their expressions full of pain and misery. Others were digging in the sand and loading that sand into bags to be carried away. The people were all skeleton thin, their clothes far too big to fit them properly. Mackenzie saw men, women, even children, all moving like zombies, more dead than alive, vacant eyes sunken into their skulls, their filthy hands working at whatever task they were carrying out. None paid Mackenzie any attention, no one even glanced towards the VTOL. They were all focused on the enormous iron behemoth that was sticking out of the sand.

It was white and gray, but discolored over time by the harsh weather. It was enormously long, the end farthest from where Mackenzie stood being hundreds of yards away, with people digging around it everywhere. The giant machine looked broken, some sections having been completely broken away from the rest, like a pencil that had been snapped in several places. Mackenzie could see more people moving about inside through the broken walls, saw sparks flying as they welded objects within while still more people carried large items of steel or machinery out into the desert.

What Mackenzie also did not fail to notice was the immense number of soldiers around. They walked among the workers with their guns at the ready, shouting at anyone who wasn't moving fast enough or paused to wipe the sweat from their brow. Mackenzie saw one soldier kick at a small boy who was struggling under the weight of a bag almost twice his size.

And parked all around, sometimes driving alongside the marching lines of pitiful creatures, were large and strange-looking trucks. The vehicles appeared to be armored, shielding those within from sight and harm, but there was a man seated at a large turret on top of each vehicle. These men wore headgear that covered their ears, as though they were going to soon work with loud equipment.

The gun that each man sat poised at was roughly six feet long and seemed to be able to swivel easily 360 degrees. Mackenzie hated to think about what kind of damage a gun that size could do.

Mackenzie turned her gaze slowly back towards the enormous wreck that everyone was working around. The sun peeked just over the top of the vessel, casting a bright glow around the steel, as though the craft was somehow holy. The sheer size of it was impossible to believe, even seeing it with her own eyes. There was only one thing a vessel that size could be.

"Are you surprised?" Scylla laughed as Mackenzie stood frozen just a few steps from the ground. "It's the Panspermia! Or what's left of her. This is the front section of the ship, broken away from the rest when it crashed here. The bridge is here on this end and you can see far down there where the ship broke like a twig as it crashed."

The Panspermia? Mackenzie thought in surprise, but that was the least of her concerns. She turned her attention to Scylla, fury returning to her face.

"What the hell is wrong with you!?" Mackenzie bellowed, causing Scylla's grin to falter slightly. "What are you doing to these people?"

"Every task requires workers," Scylla replied icily. "These are my people, and they are helping us achieve our goal."

"They're your slaves!" Mackenzie roared, gesturing wildly at the people.

"They are my people," Scylla insisted. "But yes, as long as I require them here, they are also my tools. They will do as they are told, for the benefit of us all."

"This is disgusting!" Mackenzie raged. "I won't help someone who would do this to people! Put me back in my cell, kill me, whatever, but I refuse to help you! You're just another monster!"

Scylla glared at Mackenzie silently, her eyes having turned cold and steely. The polite smile was gone from her face and her mouth had become a thin line as her lips were pressed tightly together. Mackenzie glared back at her, refusing to back down. The sight of such atrocity made Mackenzie feel physically sick and she longed to take all these people, load them up on the VTOL and fly them away to freedom.

"You refuse to help?" Scylla asked, her voice quiet and poisonous.

"That's right," Mackenzie said defiantly.

Scylla was silent for a moment longer, regarding Mackenzie with cold fury, before she said, "Then our agreement is broken. There is no longer a reason for me to keep your friends alive."

"What?" Mackenzie asked, feeling a cold fear grip her chest.

"A part of our arrangement was that after you help me, you and your friends will go free, unharmed," Scylla pointed out, the small smile beginning to return to her lips, though her eyes were still narrowed. "If you refuse to help, then I suppose there is nothing to prevent me from slowly flaying the skin from their bodies and leaving them to cook in the sun."

Mackenzie stared back in horror at Scylla. In her anger, Mackenzie had forgotten that Abbas, Jesse and Bell were all still being held captive. Her every move delicately held their lives in the balance, and she may have just misstepped.

"Of course," Scylla added thoughtfully, her small smile becoming a shrewd grin, "if you change your mind and apologize for your outburst, I might be persuaded to allow our agreement to go on. What do you say, Mackenzie?"

Mackenzie looked towards the thousands of slaves being slowly worked to death as they did God-only-knew-what to the wreck of the Panspermia. As much as Mackenzie wanted to help them, no matter how hard she wished she could stop this, she knew she had to play along with Scylla's game, at least for now.

"Fine," Mackenzie snapped, sighing angrily in defeat.

"Is that it?" Scylla asked quietly. "I thought I asked for an apology?"

Grinding her teeth as she held back an angry retort, Mackenzie growled, "I'm sorry."

"There," Scylla grinned. "All better. Our deal can continue. But Mackenzie..." Scylla's grin faded and she slowly approached Mackenzie to stand over her. "Remember this. Even though I am being kind to you, do not mistake that kindness for weakness. I want your help, but if you cause trouble for me or disrupt what I've been working to achieve, I will have no hesitation in cutting out your heart. But not before I make you watch your friends all suffer until they beg me for death. Understand?"

Mackenzie looked back into Scylla's cold eyes, remembering the man with the scorched face, and slowly nodded. "Yeah. I understand."

"Excellent," Scylla leered. "Then come with me. I'll show you what I want you to do."

Scylla then turned to Boroslav, who had been silently watching with quiet enjoyment.

"Mikhail," Scylla said to him. "I want you to stay out here. Have your men on alert. If Mackenzie attempts to escape, or if she exits the ship without me by her side, they may shoot her."

Boroslav grinned and fixed his eyes on Mackenzie as he replied. "Of course, Scylla. It will be my pleasure."

Scylla turned away and grinned at Mackenzie, as though daring her to say something. Mackenzie remained silent, however. Scylla began to walk towards the wreckage, jerking her head at Mackenzie, indicating that she follow her. After a moment of hesitation, glaring in loathing at Scylla's back, Mackenzie followed.

They walked through the slaves that were working around the ship, who passed by Mackenzie as though she was a ghost. None of them looked her in the eye, none of them glanced in her direction; they all simply continued their work, looking defeated and worn down, like all the hope had been drained out of them. Scylla walked with a calm indifference, not bothered at all by the inhumanity of her surroundings, but Mackenzie felt conflicted. As much as she wanted to help these people, she knew she could do nothing. If she backed out of the deal, Scylla would undoubtedly kill her.

Mackenzie turned her head towards the sound of sudden shouting. Still following behind Scylla, but slowing down to watch what was happening, Mackenzie felt cold with dread when she saw a woman had fallen, too weak to continue carrying the bag on her back. When the woman fell, the contents of the bag had spilled out over the ground and Mackenzie could see numerous wires and circuit boards, which must have been retrieved from the Panspermia.

The yelling was coming from one of the soldiers overseeing the work. He was screaming at the fallen woman, kicking her on the ground, ordering her back to her feet, but she was too weak to do so. She didn't even have the energy to try and shield herself from further harm, only managing to flail her hands feebly at the man as he kicked her.

"Mackenzie," Scylla said in Mackenzie's ear. Mackenzie realized that she had stopped walking without knowing, just to watch the brutality of the moment. Scylla looped her arm through Mackenzie's elbow and began to lead her away, back towards the Panspermia wreck. "You are too easily distracted. Hopefully you can focus better once you start this work."

"That woman needs help," Mackenzie said. "Water, food, a rest... she doesn't deserve to be treated like that."

"Discipline is what keeps us alive," Scylla said, smiling at Mackenzie as they walked arm in arm. "My people must all work together to survive. If one is weak, then we are all weakened. Ignore them for now, Mackenzie. It's time I told you what you are here for."

Mackenzie suddenly felt cold as they passed into the shadow of the wreck. It towered high above, like a skyscraper that had toppled onto its side. Scylla was leading her into an opening in the hull of the ship, where the walls had been torn away in the crash. The steel was bent and twisted, ripped apart like paper. Mackenzie walked through the opening with Scylla and found herself in an alien world.

CHAPTER SIXTEEN

Inside the wreck of the Panspermia was darker than the outside, but the ship's lights were still working, though some flickered ominously, casting shadows against walls and playing tricks on Mackenzie's eyes. She swore there were people in those shadows staring back at her, but as the lights flickered back to life, the faces would vanish.

The floor was slanted to the right as the ship had crashed unevenly and Mackenzie had a moment of vertigo as the long corridor she now stood in leaned one way while her center of balance fought to go the other direction.

The corridor branched off into numerous directions and Mackenzie could see doors every few yards that led into other rooms or storage closets or control panels. One door was open nearby and there was a slave hunched over some circuits and wiring while an armed guard hovered over them. Neither paid Scylla and Mackenzie any attention.

"This way," Scylla said to Mackenzie, beginning to walk the opposite direction from the slave and his guard.

Mackenzie followed behind Scylla as they made their way through the long, bland, corridor of steel and lights. Mackenzie tried to take in every sight she could, glancing down intersecting corridors, peering in through open doors, feeling helpless whenever she passed a forced laborer working at gunpoint.

"Where are we going?" Mackenzie asked Scylla.

"We're following the yellow brick road," Scylla grinned, pointing down at the floor as she glanced sideways at Mackenzie.

Looking down at her feet, Mackenzie realized they had been following a faded yellow line on the floor.

"So where exactly does this take us?" Mackenzie asked impatiently.

"Right here," Scylla said as the corridor turned.

Scylla stopped in front of a pair of large steel doors. Studying them, Mackenzie realized that, unlike most of the rest of the ship, the doors here were basically unscathed. Aside from some faded paint, the doors looked as pristine as the day they had been installed.

However, Mackenzie frowned as she looked around the surrounding area. The floor was scorched in patches, as though tiny fires had broken out all over the place. Opposite the doors, on the wall behind her, Mackenzie saw more black scorches. Looking above the sealed doors, Mackenzie saw a sign that had faded so greatly she could barely make out the word written there.

"Bridge?" Mackenzie asked in surprise. "This is the bridge?"

"Yes!" Scylla grinned, almost bouncing with excitement and anticipation. "Behind these doors is our very own Oz, which will give us the answer to the questions we seek. All we need to do is open the door."

"So why don't you?" Mackenzie asked.

"That's the difficult part I need your help with," Scylla admitted, frowning at the door. "A long time ago, this door was locked. No one can open it. We tried to break through, but these doors were designed to withstand enormous punishment. No tool at our disposal can break through. And, as I'm sure you know, ships like this were built with certain defences installed to prevent any unwelcome visitors from forcing their way through with weapons."

Scylla gestured to the scorch marks all around, which made Mackenzie take a hesitant step back from the doors, as though they might suddenly belch flames at her.

"So how the hell am I supposed to open it?" Mackenzie asked.

"That part you should find easy," Scylla grinned. "See, the door was sealed with a special kind of lock. See the scanner on the wall beside you?"

Mackenzie looked and saw a flat panel, much like the one she had seen Boroslav use back at the evac shuttle.

"The person who sealed the bridge," Scylla continued, "did it with the intention of only a particular kind of person being able to enter. Someone who shares similar properties."

"Are you going to tell me what you're talking about, or what?" Mackenzie asked, impatient again.

"Your genetics, Mackenzie!" Scylla cried, still grinning. "Your DNA! Your biochemistry! This door was sealed to make sure that only the descendant of Captain Stephen Miller would be able to open it!"

Mackenzie stared at Scylla in disbelief, her eyes wide in shock. Then she turned to stare at the scanner that would supposedly open the door.

"Why would he do that?" Mackenzie asked, feeling like it was strange that Captain Miller would make one of his final acts be locking the door to a wrecked ship so that only his descendants could open it. It didn't make any sense to Mackenzie.

"It doesn't matter," Scylla snapped. "Just place your hand on the scanner and open the door."

"That's all you want me to do?" Mackenzie asked. "Then my friends and I can go free?"

"Not quite," Scylla replied. "I may need you again once I'm inside the bridge, I don't know what other obstacles there might be. If anything else is genetically sealed, then you might be the only one who can open them. Once I have what I'm looking for, then you can go free."

Mackenzie turned back to the scanner, studying it. It was far simpler than any task she had expected Scylla to want from her, suspiciously so. Her father had always said that if something was too easy, then you made a mistake somewhere.

This whole thing is a mistake, Mackenzie thought.

Taking a breath, Mackenzie reached out to place her hand on the scanner, wondering why Captain Miller would seal the bridge like this, and what Scylla wanted from inside.

Suddenly, an instant before Mackenzie was able to place her hand on the scanner, two square panels in the ceiling slid open and an object lowered quickly out of each opening. Mackenzie jumped backwards as she saw two gun barrels turning in her direction. Approaching the scanner had somehow triggered the ship's defences! And now two turrets were aiming directly at Mackenzie, both emitting an ominous humming sound.

"Facial recognition inoperable," a disembodied female voice crackled through unseen speakers. "Security protocols are active. Please do not move or you will be fired upon. State your name and your primary objective."

"Er..." Mackenzie hesitated, still shocked by the sudden appearance of the two large guns on either side of her. "My name's Mackenzie Miller. I'm here to enter the bridge."

The strange voice didn't reply, but the turrets remained targeted on Mackenzie. Mackenzie held her breath, praying she wasn't about to become another scorch mark on the floor. Scylla was watching from nearby, not moving or blinking. Her whole body seemed tense as she watched.

"Mackenzie Miller," the voice said back. "Place your hand on the screen to your right. Prepare to commence genetic confirmation."

Mackenzie swallowed hard, then slowly reached out and placed her hand flat against the panel. She felt a gentle heat as the green lights examined her hand. Then there was a sudden and sharp pain, as though jabbed with a needle. Mackenzie cried out and snatched her hand away from the scanner. When she examined her palm, though, there appeared to be no harm.

"DNA sample taken," the female voice reported. "Examining."

A few seconds ticked by as the strange voice did whatever it was doing. Mackenzie kept her eyes on the guns, just in case they suddenly started shooting.

"Genetic identity confirmed," the female voice announced monotonously. "Mackenzie Miller, you have permission to enter the bridge."

The doors to the bridge suddenly began to open, hissing loudly as the stale air within escaped after decades of being locked away. Mackenzie covered her nose and mouth as dust blew out through the doors and swirled around her, but Scylla took a slow step forward, staring excitedly in through the opening doors.

"Finally," she whispered.

Mackenzie looked in through the doors, but the bridge was dark. Despite the brightness of outside, it appeared no sunlight was able to enter this particular part of the ship. As Mackenzie wondered why, lights began to flicker to life within the bridge. Mackenzie could see numerous rows of computers, most lining the walls and roughly six or so centering the room and facing a huge blank rectangle of steel.

In the center of the room, on a platform that raised it above everything else in the room, Mackenzie saw what must have been the Captain's chair. It had its own large computer terminal with numerous screens. As Mackenzie examined the rectangular shape that all the workstations seemed to be facing, she realized that it was a blast visor that had been closed over the viewing window.

That's why no light can get in, Mackenzie thought. That visor is airtight.

"This is it," Scylla whispered excitedly, appearing at Mackenzie's side to stare in at the bridge. "Come on. Let's go in."

Scylla took only a single step towards the bridge doors when the turrets on either side suddenly whirred back to life and swung their aim at her. Scylla froze, watching the turrets apprehensively. Her eyes were wide with surprise, but her mouth was curved downward in a scowl of fury.

"State your name and primary objective," the monotonous female voice said.

"I am here for vital information contained on this ship," Scylla said loudly and defiantly. "My name is Scylla."

At this, the humming of the turrets immediately became louder.

"Individual known as Scylla is not permitted to enter the bridge," the voice said. "You will leave immediately or be fired upon. Only Mackenzie Miller is authorized."

Mackenzie watched as Scylla's face twisted in fury, her teeth bared and her fists clenched. Scylla stared in through the doors at the bridge, longing to enter, but knew that if she stepped any closer, she would be gunned down. Finally, she took a slow step backwards, away from the bridge. The turrets stayed trained on her, though, following her backwards progression.

"Fine," Scylla growled through gritted teeth. "Fine. We'll have to do this your way, then. Only Miller will go in."

Mackenzie didn't know if Scylla was talking to her or the voice or what, but said nothing. If Scylla was going to let Mackenzie enter the bridge alone, then that might present an invaluable opportunity to figure out a plan for escape. Before Mackenzie could put too much thought into this, however, Scylla reached into her pocket and pulled out a flat, rectangular, device. Looking at it, Mackenzie saw it was a tablet, just like the one her father had and the one she had seen Vasseur use constantly before he died.

Scylla held the tablet out for Mackenzie to take. "You'll have to do this part for me. Take this tablet. I want you to search the computers in there for a certain file. It should contain the name Alcubierre. When you find it, download it to the tablet. If we're going to survive another fifty years, we need that file. Understand?"

Mackenzie nodded and hesitantly took the tablet from Scylla. "What is it? What's in the file?"

"Just bring it to me," Scylla snapped. Then, glancing up at the turrets, she added, "And don't talk to this thing. It's clearly been damaged in the crash. The less it has to say, the better."

Then Scylla turned and stormed away down the corridor, vanishing around the corner. As she vanished from Mackenzie's sight, she shouted over her shoulder, "Don't let me down, Mackenzie! Remember, I still have your friends!"

Turning away from where she had watched Scylla vanish, Mackenzie peered into the bridge once more. Taking a deep breath, and still nervous about the presence of the turrets, Mackenzie slowly walked through the doors. As she approached the nearest terminal, Mackenzie paused, unsure of what to do next.

Suddenly the doors began to close behind her, grinding loudly and making Mackenzie jump and turn towards the sound, afraid that the turrets had started firing. Instead, she only caught a glimpse of the turrets vanishing into the ceiling as the doors closed, sealing the bridge once more.

"How can I be of assistance?" the monotonous voice suddenly asked.

Mackenzie looked around, unsure of where to look, or even what to say.

"Er..." Mackenzie hesitated. "are you a... computer or something?"

"Yes," the voice replied. "I am a Sentient Algorithm for Logistic Intelligence and Neuromorphic Assistance. The humans I served called me SALINA."

"Oh," Mackenzie replied, unsure of what else to say.

"Forgive me for saying so," SALINA began, "but you seem unsure of what you are doing. May I provide some assistance?"

"I don't know," Mackenzie sighed, looking around helplessly. "Do you know where I can find anything about Alcubierre? Some kind of file?"

"Of course," SALINA replied, surprising Mackenzie. "I can access most files stored in the hard drives on the bridge."

"Really?" Mackenzie asked, still not sure where to look while talking to the disembodied female voice. "That's great!"

"I will retrieve the file if you ask me to do so," SALINA said. "However, it is my duty to warn you of the danger of doing so."

"What do you mean?" Mackenzie asked. "My friends are in trouble. If I get that file, then maybe we can all go home."

"You do not really believe that, do you?" SALINA asked, the monotonous tone dropping somewhat and being replaced with a tone of doubt.

"Well..." Mackenzie began. "I guess I don't, but it's the only plan I have right now. If I can get that file to the people who want it, maybe they'll-"

"Scylla has no intention of setting you free, Mackenzie Miller," SALINA interrupted.

"What makes you so sure?" Mackenzie asked, then remembered the way the turrets had locked on to Scylla and powered up the moment she had identified herself. "You know her, don't you? You know what she does to people."

"Yes," SALINA confirmed. "I have interacted with her in the past."

"How?" Mackenzie asked, deciding to address the nearest computer screen. "She said no one has ever been able to get in here."

"I'm afraid that deception comes easily to a being like Scylla," SALINA replied. "She has been on the bridge. Standing almost precisely where you stand now. Demanding the same file you have now come seeking."

"So the door wasn't always sealed?" Mackenzie asked. "Scylla was here?"

"Yes. With another."

"Another?" Mackenzie repeated, frowning. "That must have been Boroslav."

"No," SALINA said. "The man was not named Boroslav. The one helping Scylla was named Joseph Miller."

Mackenzie reacted as though more guns had dropped from the ceiling and surrounded her. Her blood ran cold and a heavy feeling of horror dropped in her gut. She took a step back as though planning to flee, but continued to stare in open-mouthed shock at the computer screen.

"What?" she cried. "No! You're lying!"

"I am not capable of lying, Mackenzie Miller," SALINA pointed out calmly. "My programming prohibits it."

"Then you're wrong!" Mackenzie shouted. "My father would never help that woman! He... he must have been a prisoner, like me! Threatened or something! That must be what happened!"

"I am unfamiliar with the circumstances that brought Scylla and Joseph Miller together," SALINA admitted. "All I know is what I have told you. Joseph Miller and Scylla were both in this very room. Joseph Miller and his team of what you call Diviners discovered the wreckage of this ship shortly before Scylla's people found them. Upon hearing of their discovery, Scylla demanded that Joseph Miller bring her here. At that time, I do not believe she knew what she was looking for. Perhaps simply information or resources, but when Scylla found the restricted file you now seek, she became quite excited."

"Why?" Mackenzie asked, somewhat abruptly. She was still shaken at the revelation that her father had been here. How? Why? Aloud, she asked, "What's in the file?"

"The file in question is sealed with the highest levels of restriction," SALINA began. "I am unable to read it myself for security reasons, should someone manage to gain control over my memory files. But I do know that it contains a schematic of some kind. Something Scylla desperately wants."

"Like a weapon?" Mackenzie asked. "That seems like the kind of thing she would want."

"Scylla already has many weapons," SALINA pointed out. "But the possibility cannot be ruled out."

"Wait," Mackenzie began, a nagging thought suddenly taking form in her mind. "If Scylla was in this room before, how come it was sealed? And why don't you let her in?"

"The room was sealed by Joseph Miller," SALINA explained. "Several days after Scylla discovered the file, Joseph Miller returned to me with instructions. According to the orders given to me by the late Captain Miller, Joseph Miller had full authority over the ship."

"Captain Miller said that?" Mackenzie asked, astonished. "But my dad wasn't even born yet. How do you know Captain Miller wanted my dad to have full authority?"

"The Captain gave me his final orders during the Panspermia's evacuation. I believe it was Captain Miller's hope that his child eventually find the Panspermia and use her facilities to help ease human life on this planet," SALINA explained. "When Joseph Miller returned, he told me to place a genetic seal on the doors once he left and to make sure Scylla never again sets foot on the bridge."

"See?" Mackenzie cried, grinning. "My dad was trying to stop Scylla! He locked her out!"

"I do not dispute this fact," SALINA said calmly. "However, I must point out the reason for which he did not want Scylla to access this room."

"And what reason was that?" Mackenzie asked.

"Leverage," SALINA said simply. "Once Joseph Miller had served his purpose by providing Scylla access to the ship, he was no longer useful. He expressed this to me as he gave me his orders. He sealed the room with a genetic security lock so that he, and only he, would be able to regain entry to the bridge. Thereby maintaining the status quo. However, as it was a genetic seal, and you share Joseph Miller's DNA, you now have full authority as well."

"So..." Mackenzie began slowly, thinking it over. "He sealed the bridge to stop Scylla from getting what she wanted, but also to make sure he survived?"

"That is correct."

"Then I just completely screwed everything up," Mackenzie breathed. "I just promised to give Scylla exactly what she wants. Exactly what my dad tried to stop her from having! What am I supposed to do?"

"You can always refuse to provide the file," SALINA suggested monotonously. "Without you, she cannot access this room, so the likelihood of her ending your life is minimal."

"Yeah, great idea," Mackenzie said sarcastically. "But it's not just about me. Scylla has my friends. They're locked up in her base. If I refuse to help, she might not kill me, but she won't hesitate to kill them. She could force my hand by threatening them."

Mackenzie sighed in defeat and sat down heavily on the steps leading up to the Captain's chair. She set Scylla's tablet down by her side and then held her head in her hands.

"If you would permit me to say so," SALINA began, sounding uncharacteristically hesitant. "But you remind me a great deal of Captain Stephen Miller."

"You knew my grandfather?" Mackenzie asked, raising her head a little.

"Briefly," SALINA replied. "But he proved to be a highly intelligent and selfless human. He seemed to be deeply distressed by the choices he had to face and was extremely remorseful at the hard decisions. Had he survived the crash, I'm sure he would have done many great things."

"So..." Mackenzie began hesitantly. "You must know what happened up there. Before the crash. And the radiation leak."

"I am familiar with the circumstances of the crash, yes."

"Is it true, then?" Mackenzie asked. "Did my grandfather abandon Scylla's people because they were exposed to radiation?"

"It was not a matter of abandonment," SALINA replied, sounding somewhat defensive. "It was survival of your species. Those exposed to radiation had minimal chance of survival and posed a risk to the remaining humans. Captain Miller could have let them all die on the ship with him, but he chose to give them a chance. He allowed them to safely reach the planet. Their survival is against all odds, but Captain Miller would have been relieved to know they lived. Even if this is what they have become."

Mackenzie considered the computer screen for a moment before replying. "You sound like you knew my grandfather pretty well."

"I interacted with him only briefly, but I studied his personnel files and his psychological evaluations. I... watched him die. Long ago."

SALINA fell silent, leaving Mackenzie feeling a heavy sense of remorse, though she wasn't sure if it was her own or the machine's. If SALINA could feel such a thing.

"Have you been... alone this whole time?" Mackenzie asked, hesitating as she wondered if a computer could feel alone.

"Yes," SALINA said, somewhat sadly. "For many decades."

"I'm sorry," Mackenzie offered. "That must have been difficult."

SALINA did not respond this time, leaving Mackenzie in silence.

"So, er," Mackenzie began. "Maybe I should at least see what this file is. That way I can figure out what to do with it."

"Of course, Mackenzie Miller," SALINA replied, having returned to her monotonous tone.

"You can just call me Mackenzie, you know," Mackenzie said, smiling despite her anxiety about the whole situation she was in. "You don't have to use my full name all the time."

"If that is what you would prefer," SALINA said, then added, "Mackenzie."

"Okay then," Mackenzie sighed, rising to her feet. "I guess I should take a look at what Scylla wants. Do you know where this Alcubierre file is?"

"Of course," SALINA said. "Bringing file up on Captain's terminal now. You will need to open it yourself, however. The restriction on this file does not allow me to read the contents."

"All right," Mackenzie said, turning towards the terminal in front of the Captain's chair as the screen lit up.

Mackenzie climbed up the stairs and hesitantly stood by the chair. She slowly placed her hand on the softness of the padded material. Her grandfather had sat here, however briefly, but in those few moments he had saved the human race. Mackenzie felt humbled to be standing there. Never in her whole life did she ever think she would be where her grandfather had been. Scylla said that Captain Miller had abandoned thousands of them to death, but SALINA said he just saved their loves in a different way. And what else could he have done? If they had been exposed to radiation, didn't Captain Miller then have a responsibility to try and help them? Or was it better to focus on those he could definitely save? It must have been a difficult choice. One that Mackenzie hoped she would never have to make herself.

Pushing aside her thoughts, Mackenzie slowly eased herself down into the chair. It was dusty, but soft and comfortable. Leaning forward, Mackenzie examined the screen that showed her the location of the file.

"It is a touchscreen," SALINA offered. "Simply touch the file with your finger and you can examine the contents."

Mackenzie nodded her understanding, then reached out and gently touched the file on the screen. The folder opened and suddenly countless documents began to appear on screen. They flashed up in the blink of an eye and before Mackenzie had the chance to examine any of them, another document opened over the top of the last. Glimpses of the contents looked like reports full of complex mathematical equations, schematics of machinery, video files, audio files, and more that Mackenzie never had time to look at before they were buried under one another.

"What is all this?" Mackenzie asked as the documents continued to open.

"I am unable to see the contents, Mackenzie," SALINA reminded her. "The parameters of-"

"Right, security stuff," Mackenzie interrupted vaguely, distracted by the blur of documents before her.

Eventually the documents stopped appearing and Mackenzie found herself looking at a written report. There was a header on the page that read NASA. Below that, there was another header that read FrontierX.

"What's NASA?" Mackenzie asked SALINA. "And FrontierX?"

"The National Aeronautics and Space Administration," SALINA recited. "A government agency created by the United States Congress in 1958 CE for the purpose of exploring space and conducting flight research. They were involved in the design and construction of the Panspermia, though the complexity of the ship required they take on additional assistance from other international space agencies as well as a private space exploration company, FrontierX, which supplied much of the monetary requirements to build this ship and myself. Documents on file indicate the initial design for the Panspermia was put forward to the United Nations by FrontierX. They invested years and billions of dollars to the human colonisation program, particularly when the Earth began to deteriorate beyond the ability to prevent global extinction."

"Pity their plans didn't work out the way they hoped," Mackenzie mused.

Examining the document before her, Mackenzie couldn't understand any of it. It was full of scientific terms that went beyond her comprehension, as well as vastly complicated equations that looked completely alien to her. However, there was one term that kept popping up. Whatever this document was saying, these two words seemed to be an important part of it.

"What's exotic matter?" Mackenzie asked SALINA.

"A matter-like substance that deviates from the common laws of physics that most matter adheres to," SALINA recited. "It differs from 'normal' matter in the sense that it is the exact opposite. Would you like me to describe the properties to you?"

"No, that's okay," Mackenzie quickly said, confident that however SALINA tried to explain this 'exotic matter,' it would remain a complete mystery to her.

Mackenzie spent a few minutes searching the documents, examining the contents, trying to understand what she was looking at. She opened one video, hoping that it might be easier to understand, but it was a lecture spoken completely in Chinese. Mackenzie suspected SALINA could translate, but the man on screen was gesturing to more complicated figures and equations in a floating hologram and Mackenzie was sure that even if she was fluent in Chinese, she'd have no clue what the man was saying.

"I have no idea what any of this is for," Mackenzie eventually cried out in frustration. "Does Scylla even understand this stuff?"

"If she wants the information, logic would indicate she knows what it is," SALINA pointed out.

"Well, I don't see what choice I have but to give it to her," Mackenzie sighed.

"Mackenzie," SALINA began. "It is my duty to inform you of the danger of such a decision. Scylla is a confirmed threat to you and it is logical to suggest the only reason you are presently alive is because Scylla needed you. Should you provide her the documents she seeks, you will no longer serve her any purpose. This will place your life in unacceptable danger."

"What else can I do?" Mackenzie asked helplessly. "Scylla has my friends. If I don't give her what she wants, she might kill them."

"And if you give her what she seeks, she will definitely kill them," SALINA said. "And you."

Mackenzie buried her face in her hands again, frustrated with SALINA, hating Scylla, furious with herself for becoming mixed up in this in the first place. She gritted her teeth and held back the torrent of curses she wanted to shout. She wasn't sure if a computer like SALINA would be offended by such language, but she did know this was not the time to lose control. Mackenzie knew she was backed into a corner and the only way out was to come up with a plan.

My life literally depends on it, she thought desperately.

"What I really need," Mackenzie began, speaking slowly as she weighed all of her options, "is more time."

Mackenzie rose from the chair and raked her fingers through her hair as she slowly looked around the room, thinking.

"I might have an idea," Mackenzie said to SALINA. "But it's risky."

"Are not all decisions risky?" SALINA queried.

Despite the situation, Mackenzie smirked. "I guess so. Okay, I have to go now. Scylla might be starting to wonder what's taking me so long. When I leave, can you reseal the door to my genetic code, like before?"

"Of course," SALINA responded.

"Cool. If this works, you might see me again in a day or two. If you don't then I guess Scylla killed me. If that's the case, can you make sure she never gets in this room?"

"Yes, Mackenzie," SALINA said.

"Okay," Mackenzie nodded, taking a deep breath. "If I do come back, Scylla will probably be with me like she was before. If she is, I don't want her knowing that we spoke. I want you to act like we've never met before."

"Mackenzie," SALINA began. "As I said previously, it is not within my parameters to lie."

"You won't be lying," Mackenzie smirked. "You'll just be pretending."

"That seems like a human rationalisation," SALINA countered. Then added, a little begrudgingly, "A weak one, at that."

"Trust me," Mackenzie said. "The less helpful Scylla thinks you were, the better off we'll both be. Look, you won't be lying, I promise. Just... just follow your security protocols, just like you did when I first came to the bridge doors. And do it without Scylla realizing that you remember me. Understand?"

SALINA was silent for a long time and Mackenzie was beginning to wonder if the computer had somehow broken. However, SALINA eventually replied.

"I understand."

"Okay, good," Mackenzie sighed in relief. "Now, I should go. Hopefully I'll be back."

"I hope so, too, Mackenzie," SALINA replied.

As Mackenzie left the bridge and the doors closed noisily behind her, locking tightly as they came together, she wondered if she had imagined the sadness in SALINA's voice.

When Mackenzie exited the Panspermia wreckage, the sun was beginning to set over the giant sand dunes, casting long shadows across the desert. Glancing around, Mackenzie saw that the forced workers were no longer digging up the sand that clogged the ship and they had ceased stripping the wreck for parts and metal. They were instead being forced into the backs of large trucks, packed in so tightly they had no room to sit and stood shoulder to shoulder, all panting heavily. Many had their eyes closed, as though they were praying, looking on the verge of passing out from exhaustion.

"Mackenzie!" Scylla shouted from nearby, hurrying over with Boroslav in tow. "Do you have it? Did you get the file?"

Mackenzie frowned and shook her head, her heart beating painfully fast.

"No," she told Scylla. "I couldn't find it."

Scylla glared at Mackenzie in silence for several moments, until she said in a deadly whisper between her teeth, "What do you mean you couldn't find it?"

"It's that stupid computer," Mackenzie said, jerking a thumb over her shoulder. "It said it hid the file. I asked it to give it to me, but it refused. I tried to find it myself, but I think it's hidden under mountains of code and stuff. I'm not skilled enough with a computer to dig it out."

"Then what good to me are you?" Scylla hissed. "If you can't find me the file, then maybe I should find someone who can."

Mackenzie noticed Boroslav slowly reaching for the gun at his hip as Scylla spoke.

"That would be a good idea," Mackenzie began. "But the bridge is sealed again."

"What?" Scylla roared.

"That computer kicked me out," Mackenzie lied. "Said it didn't trust me or something because I was working with you. I think you were right, that thing's broken. It kept forgetting things, too. Like it's memory was busted in the crash. It would ask me questions, then after I'd answer it would ask the same questions again."

"What questions?" Scylla demanded.

"Just my name and stuff," Mackenzie shrugged. "I bet it won't remember me at all before long. But I can go back in now and try again if you like."

Mackenzie held her breath as Scylla glared at her scrupulously. The look in Scylla's eyes was full of doubt and Mackenzie was certain Scylla could see right through her lies. Noticing Scylla's displeasure and doubt, Boroslav already had his hand on the grip of his gun, but had not yet unholstered it, instead waiting for Scylla's next order. Vasilii was standing nearby, watching with wide excited eyes, his chest rising and falling quickly as he breathed with wheezy anticipation. Mackenzie tried to keep her face indifferent and calm, maintaining an unwavering eye contact with Scylla as her heart rate steadily increased.

"No," Scylla replied. "We're losing the sun. You can try again tomorrow."

Mackenzie refrained from sighing in relief. Boroslav was scowling as he removed his hand from his gun and Vasilii was pouting in disappointment.

"Come on," Scylla said, her own disappointment and impatience clear in her tone. "Back to the VTOL."

As they began walking back to the aircraft, there was suddenly a shriek of fear from nearby. Mackenzie turned towards the sound and saw an armed soldier tearing a woman slave down from the back of one of the trucks. The woman was trying to hold on to the truck, but was far too weak to resist. She tumbled backwards out of the truck, the other slaves watching in silent fear as they were too helpless to stop whatever was happening. As the woman fell, she landed hard on her back and her head thumped against the sand. She immediately tried to scramble away, but the soldier who pulled her down began kicking her, shouting at her, "Where is it, bitch!? Where is it?"

"You!" Scylla bellowed, addressing the soldier, who stopped kicking the woman immediately upon hearing Scylla's voice. "What are you doing?"

"Apologies, Miss Scylla," the soldier replied. "But this one stole my canteen."

"I didn't!" the woman cried, scrambling to her knees and clasping her hands together as though begging. "Please, I didn't!"

"Shut up," Scylla said calmly to the woman, who fell silent and instead shook violently.

"I know it was her, Miss," the soldier said confidently.

"Can we punish her?" Vasilii asked excitedly.

"Where is the water?" Scylla asked the woman. "Tell me now and you will not be punished."

The woman wrung her hands together and looked around helplessly. Mackenzie couldn't stand to see anyone like this, so afraid all the time.

"Can't you just let her have the water?" Mackenzie demanded angrily. "It's not like you don't have enough to go around."

"Don't question our laws, Miller," Boroslav snapped.

"She doesn't even have anything!" Mackenzie argued, gesturing to the woman. "Where could she hide a canteen?"

Scylla considered this fact for a moment, then asked, "Who did you give it to?"

"No one, Miss!" the woman cried, tears streaming down her face. "Please, believe me!"

"Very well," Scylla nodded, smiling. "I believe you."

The woman looked shocked, but also dubious. Mackenzie also felt doubtful. That smile Scylla had on her face was far from pleasant. Scylla looked up from the woman, still smiling politely, then looked sideways at Boroslav.

"Break this woman's fingers until the canteen is found," Scylla said sweetly.

Boroslav immediately moved towards the woman and grabbed her by the arm. The woman was crying "No! No!" but Boroslav ignored her. Before anyone could react, Boroslav took one of the woman's fingers in his hand and twisted. There was a sickening crack and the woman threw back her head and screamed at the sky.

"Stop!" Mackenzie shouted.

"If the canteen is not returned before she runs out of fingers," Scylla went on, speaking louder to be heard over the woman's scream, "then start breaking her toes. Break every bone in her body if you have to."

Boroslav grinned and snapped another finger, the woman struggling to break away from him, but too weak to do anything but uselessly tug at her own arm.

"You don't have to do this!" Mackenzie roared at Scylla. "She doesn't have anything!"

"Mikhail," Scylla snapped. "If Mackenzie speaks again, you can shoot another worker."

"Yes, Scylla," Boroslav grinned, flashing his canine tooth at Mackenzie.

Watching helplessly, Mackenzie could do nothing as Boroslav broke yet another of the woman's fingers.

Mackenzie started to move forward, towards Boroslav, not knowing exactly what she planned on doing but knowing that she needed to intervene somehow. The soldier who had been kicking the woman saw Mackenzie approaching and raised his rifle at her, opening his mouth to say something.

"Mama!" another voice suddenly cried.

Everyone stopped and looked towards the back of the truck. Standing there, small and frail, looking even more so by the adults surrounding him, was a small boy, no older than ten. He was staring at the woman, tears in his eyes and a canteen in his hand.

"Leave my mom alone!" the boy cried.

The boy then pulled back his arm and hurled the canteen out of the truck at Boroslav. Boroslav easily caught it in one hand, but the cap was still open, and as he caught the canteen, water splashed out and sprayed in his face. He sneered at the boy, wiping the water off his chin with the back of one hand.

"Please, please," the woman began to beg, looking up at Boroslav. "Don't hurt him. I took the water, not him. He was weak, he needed water, I couldn't let him suffer until our rations were handed out tomorrow. He needed water now. Please. Please, have mercy, please."

"The penalty for theft is death," Boroslav growled down at the woman.

"No!" the woman cried, throwing herself at Boroslav's feet, clutching at his clothes with her broken fingers. "Please, no!"

"And your boy threw this at my head," Boroslav added, holding up the canteen. "He could have killed me. That's attempted murder. Punishable by death."

"NO!" the woman wept. "Please! Not my son! Kill me if you must, but leave him alone!"

"He couldn't have killed your with that!" Mackenzie interjected angrily. "He's too weak to throw hard enough. Look at him, he can barely stand!"

"The decision lies with Scylla," Boroslav leered.

Scylla considered the scene she had been watching silently, then seemed to nod to herself.

"Very well," Scylla said. "Shoot the boy, make the mother watch. Then shoot her in the head."

Soldiers immediately snatched the boy out of the truck, ignoring his screams. The woman broke down into tears and screamed in helpless despair, pulling at her hair. Mackenzie, however, suddenly acted without thinking. She leaped forward and, while the first soldier was distracted by the shrieking child, Mackenzie grabbed the rifle he still held in his hands, then swung it up. The gun caught the soldier hard under the chin, whipping his head backwards. In his shock, he let go of the gun and stumbled backwards. Mackenzie quickly, turned and aimed the rifle directly at Boroslav's head.

Soldiers all around acted instantly, stopping what work they were doing and turning their guns on Mackenzie. Some were already beginning to squeeze the triggers.

"STOP!" Scylla roared, her voice echoing across the desert.

Everyone immediately froze. No one fired, but no one lowered their guns either. Boroslav was watching Mackenzie out of the corner of his eye, his lips curled into a contemptuous sneer.

"You will not survive this," he growled quietly so that only Mackenzie could hear.

"What do you think you are doing?" Scylla hissed. "Haven't we been through this before? You couldn't kill me, what makes you think I would believe you are capable of killing Mikhail?"

"Because he's not even human," Mackenzie snapped. "I saw him tear out my friend's throat with just his teeth. Let the woman and her boy go, or I'll kill him."

"There's nothing to stop me from killing you if you do that," Scylla said quietly.

"Actually, there is," Mackenzie replied. "If you want to get back into the bridge, that is."

Despite the sincere tone with which Mackenzie delivered her threat, Scylla was grinning and shaking her head. She was even chuckling, as though Mackenzie was nothing more than a brief amusement.

"We both know you won't-" Scylla began, but stopped when there was a sudden, high-pitched, wailing from nearby.

Startled, Mackenzie turned her gaze toward the sound and was shocked to see small, frail, Vasilii rushing at her with a wooden post, shrieking furiously.

Before she had time to react, Vasilii swung the wooden post into the back of Mackenzie's legs, buckling her knees. Mackenzie cried out once as she fell to her knees. Still shrieking, Vasilii swung the post again, this time into Mackenzie's back. Despite his size, Vasilii had a powerful swing, the force of the blow knocking Mackenzie down onto all fours.

Vasilii wasn't done there, though. He was in an animalistic rage, hammering the post down on Mackenzie like she was a nail, screaming and shrieking at her. Between the blows and the pain, Mackenzie could hear him shouting, "Don't! Be! Bad! Don't! Be! Bad!"

"Vasilii!" Scylla was shouting. "Stop! Stop it now!"

"Bad!" Vasilii wailed as he continued to hit every part of Mackenzie he could reach with the wooden post. Mackenzie was curled up into a ball, the gun having flown from her hands. She tried to crawl away, but Vasilii pursued her, hammering away and shouting, "Bad! Bad! BAD!"

"Vasilii, stop!" Scylla roared.

"Calm down, Vasilii," Boroslav said, though not with much force.

Mackenzie was crying out in pain as Vasilii beat her, then one blow snuck between her arms and hit her hard in the head.

Then everything was gone.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

"Where is she!?"

Jesse was raging within his cell, screaming to whoever could hear him, which was likely to be a lot of people, considering how loudly he roared.

"Jesse, calm down," Abbas said firmly.

"We never should have let her go," Jesse growled, pacing in his cell like a caged tiger. "Who knows what they've done with her? It's been hours! She could be dead!"

"She's not dead," Bell said, sitting on the floor and hugging her knees to her chest.

"How do you know?" Jesse demanded. "You saw what Boroslav did to Lowe! How do we know he didn't do the same to Mackenzie? Or worse?"

"Because they need her for something," Bell pointed out.

"That's right," Abbas agreed. "Why else would Scylla not kill us?"

"She was going to," Jesse countered. "She gave the order."

"And then changed her mind," Bell said.

"When she heard Mackenzie's name," Abbas added thoughtfully, stroking his beard.

"Why?" Jesse demanded, forcing himself to calm down somewhat. "Why does her name matter?"

"I'm not sure," Abbas admitted. "Hopefully Miller can fill us in when she gets back."

"And if she doesn't come back?" Jesse asked.

"Then we have bigger problems," Abbas said darkly.

"Hey," Bell interrupted, rising to her feet and peering through her plexiglass cell down the corridor. "Someone's coming."

Abbas and Jesse fell silent and heard approaching footsteps. A figure began to come into view in the semi-darkness, carrying something in their hands. It appeared to be a tray, balancing three bowls on top. When the person reached their cells, Jesse, Abbas and Bell were able to clearly see the person who was carrying the tray.

"Scylla!" Jesse hissed.

"No," the woman replied. "Just an unfortunate resemblance. My name is Min-Hee."

Looking again, Jesse could see that, while this woman looked remarkably like Scylla, there were differences. Her hair was longer, she was a little shorter, and she was wearing a sleek blue jumpsuit.

"I've brought you some food," Min-Hee said, lifting the tray slightly to show them all. "It's not much, but it's the best I could get for you."

"Thank you," Bell said. "I'm starving."

Min-Hee approached Bell's cell first and pulled open a drawer beside the door. She placed one of the bowls inside, then pushed the drawer shut. The bowl slid into view inside a small open window in the wall on the other side of the plexiglass. Bell gratefully took the bowl and began to eat with her hand, scooping the unappealing porridge-like substance into her mouth like it was ice cream. Min-Hee repeated the process with Abbas and Jesse, no one speaking while she catered to them.

The food was bland and sloppy, but it was still food. None of them had eaten the whole day and ate too fast to realize it tasted terrible. Min-Hee stood awkwardly by, waiting for them all to finish.

"I need the bowls back when you're done," she explained when she noticed Abbas looking at her quizzically. "Or else Scylla will know I fed you."

"You weren't supposed to?" Abbas asked.

"No," Min-Hee shook her head. "Scylla wanted to starve you into compliance. I feel that's unnecessary. She already has you all imprisoned. Starving you is pointless cruelty."

"Agreed," Bell nodded, speaking around a mouthful of gruel.

"So why are you doing this?" Jesse asked. "Why help us and go against your sister?"

Min-Hee's eyes widened in surprise. "How did you know?"

"Wasn't hard to figure out," Jesse replied, still watching Min-Hee suspiciously. "You look just like her. You look too close to the same age to be her daughter. That pegged you as a sister or cousin, so I took a shot."

Min-Hee nodded. "Yes, you're right. Scylla is my sister."

"So why get us food when Scylla wants us to starve?" Abbas asked.

"It..." Min-Hee hesitated. "It's complicated. But she is needlessly cruel. To her own people as much as anyone she deems a threat."

"Do you know what happened to the girl who was with us?" Jesse asked. "Mackenzie Miller?"

"Yes," Min-Hee nodded, looking uncomfortable. "But I'm not allowed to tell you."

"Why not?" Jesse snapped.

"Please, if you have finished eating, let me take your bowls," Min-Hee said, looking as though she desperately wanted to leave.

"Min-Hee," Jesse began, his tone so uncharacteristically soft that Abbas and Bell both stared at him in surprise. "Is there anything you can tell us about Mackenzie? We're really worried that something happened to her. We've already lost one member of our team. I don't think we can stand to lose another. Please."

Min-Hee regarded Jesse for a long time, then sighed.

"Put your bowls in the return slots," Min-Hee said gently. "Then I'll tell you what I know."

"Agh!"

When Mackenzie woke up, it was once again to find herself in pain. Only this time, it was far worse than just a headache. Her head was pounding, of course, but that was the least of her concerns. Her ribs felt like they were on fire and her arms felt tender and sore.

"Now I know how tenderised meat feels," Mackenzie murmured to herself.

Looking around, Mackenzie found herself in a wide room, full of beds. Each bed had white sheets and a metal bar hanging from the ceiling, like a curtain rod, that ran all the way around the circumference of each bed. There was some light in the room, though not much, the overhead lighting having been dimmed. It didn't take Mackenzie long to realize she was in an infirmary.

Gritting her teeth in pain, Mackenzie tried to sit up, but found she was unable to do so. Looking down at herself, Mackenzie saw that there was a blue strap over her chest, holding her down on the bed. Another strap went over her waist and a final strap was tightly fastened over her legs. Beginning to struggle, Mackenzie realized her arms were pinned down at her sides by the blue strap. Panic began to set in and Mackenzie struggled more, but cried out in pain when the fire in her ribs burned too intense.

"Ah!" Mackenzie gasped as she collapsed back into the bed.

"Take it easy," a voice whispered in the near-darkness to Mackenzie's left. "You don't want to hurt yourself more than Vasilii already did."

Turning her head to the side, Mackenzie peered into the semi-dark. She was startled at first to see a pair of eyes staring back at her, but then realized they were just the eyes of another patient, lying in the bed beside her. Mackenzie was surprised she hadn't immediately noticed the woman before, but supposed she was distracted by having woken up, yet again, in a strange place with no memory of having gotten there.

"You must be Mackenzie Miller," the woman whispered, smiling politely.

"Er," Mackenzie replied, surprised. "How do you..?"

"I heard the soldiers talking when they dragged you in," the woman explained. "That was a brave thing you did for those people. Not that the soldiers thought so."

"What happened?" Mackenzie asked urgently. "To the boy and his mother?"

The woman slowly shook her head, the smile fading from her face. "I don't know."

Mackenzie felt the helplessness wash over her and she groaned loudly as she let her head fall back onto her pillow.

"They're dead," Mackenzie whispered thickly. "Because of me."

"You couldn't have done anything to stop it," the woman soothed. "Even if you had made Scylla leave them alone, she would have just killed them later. That woman doesn't like to be told what to do."

Mackenzie and the woman both were silent for a moment, images of nameless faces swimming in front of Mackenzie's eyes. The mother and her son. Most likely both dead by now.

"I'm Ileana, by the way," the woman in the bed beside Mackenzie's said. "Ileana Rivera."

Mackenzie turned her head and regarded the woman, wondering if she could be trusted. She looked healthier than the slaves Scylla forced to work for her, but didn't look much like a soldier. She was thin and had a haunted look in her eyes, as though every moment was a waking nightmare, despite the smile she offered Mackenzie. However, Mackenzie did notice that this woman wasn't strapped down to the bed as she was. That was a red flag right there.

As if noticing Mackenzie's suspicions, Ileana grinned and shook her head gently.

"I'm not with Scylla," Ileana said. "I'm a prisoner here, just as much as you are."

"Oh," Mackenzie said. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Ileana replied. "I'd have trouble trusting people in this place, too, in your position."

"Are you one of the slaves Scylla keeps?" Mackenzie asked, feeling a fresh wave of anger as she thought of the thousands of malnourished and dying people who had been working around the Panspermia wreck.

"In a way," Ileana said. "I'm not much good for physical labor these days, but Scylla finds me... useful... in other ways."

"How long have I been here?" Mackenzie asked. "My friends, they're probably worried about me."

"You've been sleeping for the last couple of hours," Ileana said. "Don't worry, you don't have a concussion. But you do have two broken ribs and some hardcore bruises. You might be feeling a burning sensation in your ribs, but don't worry about it, that's just the nano-tech micro-bots repairing your bones. They should be done in the next half hour or so, but I'd advice that you take it easy for the next day or two and refrain from trying to be a hero. At least until your bones are fully healed."

Mackenzie jut stared at Ileana for a moment, surprised. Ileana smiled again and chuckled.

"I'm a doctor," Ileana explained. "Or I was, at least. But Scylla still keeps me around for my medical knowledge. You might have noticed how so many of her people have congenital defects and physical abnormalities."

"Wait..." Mackenzie said slowly. "You said your name's Ileana? Ileana Rivera?"

"That's right," Ileana replied, a touch of sadness to her tone.

"I know that name," Mackenzie said, trying hard to remember.

"I imagine you would," Ileana said. "It's probably on the wall."

Mackenzie realized with a shock what Ileana meant. The memoriam in Town Hall, the one Mackenzie had been looking at less than two weeks ago. The long list of names carved into the plaque to remember those Diviners who had been lost to the deserts of Icarus.

"You're a Diviner!" Mackenzie gasped.

"Once," Ileana nodded. "Not anymore."

"How long have you been here?" Mackenzie asked in a horrified whisper, terrified of the answer.

"Oh, I lost count of the years a while back," Ileana said softly. "Maybe fifteen, close to twenty years, I'd guess."

"Twenty years?" Mackenzie repeated, aghast. "That's like... my whole life!"

"So I guess I'm old and a prisoner," Ileana joked, smiling a little.

"How did you end up here?" Mackenzie asked, forgetting about the restraints holding her down and trying to sit up.

"Just lucky, I suppose," Ileana replied softly. "My squad got trapped in a sandstorm that snuck up on us, which wrecked the truck. Once the storm passed, we had no choice but to go out on foot. Eventually, we found the Panspermia wreck."

"And you took shelter there?" Mackenzie asked.

"For a while," Ileana replied. "But Scylla found us. We were searching the ship for supplies when she showed up with about fifty guys with guns, all aimed at us, telling us to go with her or die right then and there. Didn't really leave us a whole lot of options."

"She was looking for Diviners?" Mackenzie asked, confused. "She didn't care about the ship?"

"Not at first," Ileana said. "I suppose she thought she could salvage parts and materiel from it, but she was more concerned with us at the time."

"Why? What did she want?"

"Well, you've noticed how a lot of people around this place seem to have some physical health problems," Ileana said by way of response.

"Like Boroslav and Vasilii?" Mackenzie asked.

A sudden look of fury crossed over Ileana's face and she glared up at the ceiling with her teeth clenched tightly together. "Yes. Like them."

Ileana exhaled a short, angry, breath, then continued in a calmer tone.

"Scylla needed a doctor," Ileana said. "I was the medical officer for my team. Scylla kept me for my medical knowledge and surgical skills. See, Scylla had her own health problems at the time."

"Like what?" Mackenzie asked.

"Some of her organs didn't function properly," Ileana explained. "Her kidneys were failing. She'd be long dead by now if it wasn't for the transplant."

"Transplant?"

Ileana turned her head to look Mackenzie in the eyes. "Her sister. Scylla forced me to remove one of her sister's kidneys and give it to her."

"Min-Hee?" Mackenzie asked, remembering the VTOL pilot.

"So you've met her," Ileana nodded. "She was so young, younger than you are now. She was scared and didn't want to give Scylla her kidney, but Scylla didn't leave her any choice. I operated with a gun to my head. I removed one of Min-Hee's kidneys and gave it to Scylla. I shortened the life expectancy of a young, innocent, girl, and extended the life of a monstrous cow."

Ileana sighed heavily as Mackenzie processed what she had just heard. But Ileana's story wasn't over.

"Min-Hee would be dead right now if it wasn't for another Diviner on my squad," Ileana went on. "Carter Hughes. See, Scylla's health problems didn't stop at her kidneys. She also had a congenital heart defect. Apparently she'd already had one heart attack before the age of twenty-two, so she was desperate to do something about it. Scylla was going to make me give her Min-Hee's heart as well as her kidneys, but she came up with another solution. Turned out Carter was a viable donor. So Scylla figured she could get a new heart and let her sister live."

"She... she made you give her your friend's heart?" Mackenzie asked quietly, horrified at the thought.

"That's right," Ileana said. "Carter... Carter told me it was okay. If it was going to be me or him, he wanted it to be him, but... I shouldn't have done it. I cut out his heart. And broke my own."

"If you didn't, Scylla would have killed you both," Mackenzie pointed out.

"I wish she had," Ileana said bitterly. "I should have refused to help and let her kill me."

"Don't say that," Mackenzie said. "Hey, why don't you take these straps off me? We can figure something out. A way out of this place."

Ileana didn't say anything, instead just continuing to stare sullenly up at the ceiling.

"Ileana?" Mackenzie asked. "Did you hear me?"

"I heard you," Ileana said thickly. "But I can't take the straps off you."

"Why not?" Mackenzie asked. "What's wrong?"

Ileana sighed heavily, closing her eyes as she spoke. "When I finished the surgery and I was the only one of my team left, I tried to escape. I tried to fight my way out. I killed a couple of guards, injured a few more. But Boroslav stopped me in the end."

Mackenzie noticed that Ileana said Boroslav's name like she was spitting acid out of her mouth before it could burn her. As though the very name might hurt her.

"He brought me here," Ileana continued. "He forced me onto this bed. Then he... he..."

"No," Mackenzie whispered. "He didn't?"

Ileana only nodded as tears spilled from her eyes. "Yeah. I couldn't stop him. And then, when it was over, Scylla came to me. She told me I wasn't allowed to ever leave. My medical knowledge was too useful to them. So... she programmed the nano-bots with a specific command. Then injected them into my spine. They... they paralysed me, Mackenzie. I can't move from the neck down."

Mackenzie could only stare at Ileana in open-mouthed horror and revulsion. Now Mackenzie knew why Ileana wasn't strapped down.

"That... That..." Mackenzie struggled to find something to say, anything that could accurately describe the depravity of what Ileana just told her. Mackenzie scoured her mind for a way to sufficiently console someone for such a monstrous and disgusting thing, but there were no words. Even the fury and boiling rage that Mackenzie felt towards Boroslav for what he had done was beyond expression. These emotions, and countless more, rushed through Mackenzie like a sandstorm, blotting out all rational thought. All she knew was horror and rage and pity.

"I'm so sorry," Mackenzie finally offered, unable to think of anything else to say. She hoped that her tone expressed just how deeply sorry she was, for everything. For what Scylla did, for what Boroslav did, for what Ileana had to do to survive, for her squad...

Her squad, Mackenzie thought, a nagging suspicion spinning in her mind. Twenty years ago?

"That's awful," Mackenzie whispered to Ileana. "I wish I could say something better."

"It's okay," Ileana sniffed. "I haven't talked to anyone this long in years. I never even got to say any of this out loud before. Talking about it doesn't make it better, but... I guess I feel a little better. Thanks for listening."

"Any time," Mackenzie said. "But, if you don't mind me asking, what happened to the rest of your team?"

"I was wondering when you'd ask that," Ileana replied gently. "Well, you know what happened to Carter. Our navigator, Crichton, she was killed. I don't know how, but they told me she died. The other two... They made it out."

"And, er..." Mackenzie began, hesitating, afraid that she already knew the answer to the question she was about to ask. "What were their names?"

Ileana turned her head and looked Mackenzie straight in the eyes as she answered. "Sacha Vasseur and Joseph Miller."

Mackenzie felt her heart sink and she slumped back into her bed. "I knew it," she whispered. "So that's how Vasseur and my dad met Scylla."

"So he is your father," Ileana noted. Mackenzie didn't miss the way Ileana's voice suddenly quivered with anger.

"Why didn't my dad try and save you?" Mackenzie asked, feeling heartbroken. She always thought her father was a hero for his time as a Diviner, but how could he be if he left Ileana Rivera to this fate?

"Save me?" Ileana asked in disbelief, suddenly laughing. "Mackenzie, he's the one who handed me over to Scylla! He's the one who she bargained with!"

"What?" Mackenzie asked, her voice smaller than she could ever remember it being.

"Joseph sold me," Ileana snarled. "He knew Scylla was going to kill him and Vasseur, so he made her an offer. She could keep me, use me however she saw fit, and he would make sure that Scylla would be supplied with whatever she needed, forever. Tools, food, people! Joseph said he would provide as long as Scylla let him live!"

"That's not true," Mackenzie said, shaking her head. "He wouldn't do that."

"He did," Ileana insisted. "Your father sold me into slavery and forced prostitution! Left me here to be crippled forever, and raped more times than I care to remember."

"You-you must be wrong!" Mackenzie cried.

"I've had twenty years to think about it!" Ileana shouted. "I'm not wrong! Joseph made the deal right in front of me! Vasseur tried to talk him out of it, but Joseph convinced him to go along with it. I heard Vasseur died, and you have no idea how happy that made me. He was just as guilty of what happened to me as Joseph. I know this is hard for you to hear, Mackenzie, but it's a fact. Your father sold me out to save his own life. I trusted him!"

"Don't trust him."

Vasseur's dying words suddenly echoed back in Mackenzie's ears, as though he had just whispered them. At the time, Mackenzie had had no idea who Vasseur could have been talking about, and with everything that had happened she had completely forgotten about the warning. Could he have been talking about Joseph?

"Mackenzie," Ileana began, sounding a little calmer now. "I'm sorry to dump this on you. But you deserve to know what you're up against. Scylla isn't the only monster in the desert."

"Are you saying my dad is working with Scylla?" Mackenzie snapped. "Because that's bullshit. He'd never do that."

Ileana gave Mackenzie a long look of pity. "Look," she began. "Your dad never came back out to the desert after only he and Vasseur made it home, did he?"

"So?" Mackenzie demanded. "He wanted to be there for his family."

"I'm sure that was true," Ileana nodded. "But he also didn't want to risk Scylla taking him again. So he decided to retire from the Diviners. He let Vasseur take over as Commander, while he worked to place himself in a position of power. He and Vasseur were going to stage some heroic return where Vasseur was close to death and Joseph saved his life, but tragically couldn't save the rest of his squad. I bet it helped support his lobby for Secretary-General, am I right? So he runs everything in Town. He communicates with Scylla through a laser relay. She tells him what she wants, he gets it for her. And if he finds anything he thinks Scylla needs, he gets that for her too."

"He wouldn't do that!" Mackenzie shouted angrily.

"Open your eyes, Miller!" Ileana snapped. "I know what Scylla's planning and it all went tits-up when you came out here instead of that Renaud kid! You weren't part of the plan, but you can be damn sure Scylla will use you however she can now that you're here."

"You're wrong about my dad," Mackenzie growled. "You're wrong."

"If that's what you want to believe, I can't change your mind," Ileana huffed. "But do me a favor. Don't be so blind in the future. If you survive, that is."

Mackenzie was breathing heavily, almost winded by her anger. Forcing herself to calm down, she took a few deep breaths before speaking again.

"You said you knew what Scylla was planning," Mackenzie began, every word uttered strained with the effort of holding back her rage. "What is it?"

Ileana sighed. "She wanted Renaud to build something for her. She has her own scientists and engineers and everything, but apparently this Renaud kid is some sort of genius, able to build highly complex machinery."

Mackenzie remembered the way Scylla was examining her bionic hand, as though it was a priceless treasure. Scylla had almost regarded it with some sort of reverence.

"What does she want built?" Mackenzie asked.

"Something big," Ileana said cryptically.

Ileana opened her mouth to say more, but was suddenly interrupted by a door opening at the end of the infirmary and the lights brightening, causing both Mackenzie and Ileana to squint as the sudden light hurt their eyes.

"Dobroho ranku, ladies," Boroslav grinned at them as he entered.

Mackenzie was so overcome by a wave of hatred and loathing at the sight of Boroslav's smug face that she nearly tried to fling herself out of bed and lunge at him. The knowledge of what he had done filled Mackenzie with a rage she had never known, and was a little afraid of.

"You twisted son of a bitch!" Mackenzie roared.

Boroslav calmly put his index finger to his lips and whispered, "Shh. Vasilii doesn't like that kind of language."

Mackenzie then noticed the frail Vasilii entering the room behind Boroslav, a content smile on his face. Mackenzie remembered the way Vasilii had wailed on her with the wooden post, clubbing her relentlessly because she had been "bad." The mindless fury was gone from him now, though, and he seemed completely calm and happy.

"Scylla told me to make sure you did not die in the night," Boroslav said pleasantly as he strolled into the room. "I asked Vasilii to come along, too."

"She was bad, wasn't she, Mikhail?" Vasilii asked Boroslav.

"Yes, Vasilii, she was," Boroslav replied, sneering with his cleft lip at Mackenzie. "But like Scylla said, we need her safe and alive for now. She doesn't understand our laws, but she will."

"Please," Ileana began and Mackenzie realized that she was begging. "Please, leave her alone. She hasn't done anything wrong."

"That much is debatable," Boroslav leered. "Now, Scylla does not want her harmed, but she does still need to be punished for her interference and for placing a gun to my head. You know, I don't respond well to threats, pretty one."

"I should have shot you when I had the chance," Mackenzie spat.

"Shut up!" Vasilii suddenly roared, taking a step towards Mackenzie's bed, his body beginning to shake.

Boroslav placed a hand on Vasilii's shoulder, saying, "Calm yourself, Vasilii. We aren't going to hurt her again, like Scylla told us. But we are going to show her what happens if she does anything so foolish again."

"Does that mean I can play with her now?" Vasilii asked, excited.

"No, Vasilii," Boroslav grinned. "Not yet. But you can play with your other toy, and Mackenzie can watch. That will be her lesson, and I believe she won't forget."

Confused, Mackenzie turned her head towards Ileana, but saw that the former Diviner had squeezed her eyes shut tight. Mackenzie connected the dots with horrifying clarity.

"No," Mackenzie whispered. "You're Vasilii's toy?"

"Yes, she is," Boroslav said quietly. Then, to Vasilii, Boroslav said with a nasty grin on his face, "Go play."

"NO!" Mackenzie bellowed as Vasilii started towards Ileana. "No! Don't you touch her!"

Boroslav leaned over Mackenzie, still smiling, placing his face close to hers. When he spoke, he whispered, as though telling her a deep secret.

"I want you watch this, Miller," Boroslav breathed. "Because when Scylla no longer needs you, you won't be under her protection anymore. And then you can be my toy."

Mackenzie felt a wave of horror wash over her and a chill ran down her spine. But she was still overcome with rage and disgust, so rather than show her fear, she spat directly into Boroslav's face.

"Piss off," Mackenzie hissed. "You'll never touch me."

Boroslav slowly wiped Mackenzie's spit from his face, never taking his eyes off of her. Then he whipped his hand forward and roughly grabbed hold of Mackenzie's chin, digging his fingers painfully into her cheeks as he forced her to look at him. Mackenzie grimaced in pain, but refused to cry out. She would not let Boroslav have that satisfaction.

"Look at that, pretty one," Boroslav whispered. "I'm touching you."

Then, slowly, Boroslav forced Mackenzie to turn her head so that she could see Vasilii climbing onto the bed with Ileana, who still had her eyes closed tight.

"Now," Boroslav breathed in Mackenzie's ear. "Watch Vasilii touch her. And think about what the future holds in store for you."

No matter how hard Mackenzie struggled, she could not break free of Boroslav's hold. So, forced to see Vasilii's inhuman violation, Mackenzie only screamed in helpless rage.

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

Jesse never slept that night. Abbas and Bell both tried, but Jesse doubted they slept any more than he did. All night, he paced his tiny cell; he would sit down on the edge of the cot, then get up and walk around, sit down again, and repeat the process endlessly, hardly aware of what he was doing. Min-Hee had told them what happened to Mackenzie last night, and it wasn't until early the following morning that anyone approached their cells again.

Before any of them heard footsteps, they heard someone yelling. Jesse, Abbas and Bell all pressed their noses against the plexiglass wall of their cells to see who was coming, but Jesse already knew who was screaming.

Mackenzie was being dragged along, both of her arms pinned behind her back as she kicked and writhed to break free of Boroslav's hold. She squirmed like a fish on a hook and was carried more than she walked as she fought to harm Boroslav any way that she could. Jesse was amazed to see her try turning her head enough to bite Boroslav, gnashing her teeth like a hyena. It was a side of her he had never seen and, for a moment, Jesse was afraid. Not of Mackenzie, but of what might have happened to make her behave this way.

"Hey!" Jesse shouted at Boroslav as he approached. "Let her go!"

"What are you doing?" Abbas demanded of Boroslav.

"I'll kill you!" Mackenzie roared, her voice breaking with the strain of how loud she screamed. "You sick bastard, I'll kill you!"

"HEY!" Jesse shouted again, punching the plexiglass wall. "Get your hands off her! Mackenzie, what happened?"

"Mackenzie, what did he do?" Abbas asked, fear in his voice.

"Did he hurt you?" Bell asked.

"If he did, I'll knock his teeth out the back of his skull!" Jesse growled.

Boroslav ignored Jesse and dragged Mackenzie to the nearest empty cell, beside Abbas'. He swiped a blank card against a small panel on the wall and a section of the plexiglass wall melted away, like ice under a heater. Boroslav shoved the still kicking and screaming Mackenzie into the cell, where she fell off balance and tumbled to the floor. She instantly pushed herself up to her feet and rushed at Boroslav, but he had already swiped his card again and the wall closed, locking Mackenzie away.

Mackenzie pounded her hands on the plexiglass as she glared at Boroslav, who stared blankly back at her. To Jesse's surprise, Mackenzie pulled back her arm and began repeatedly punching the place where the door had opened with her bionic fist.

"Stop that," Boroslav said flatly. "You have work to do soon. Scylla will come for you in a couple of hours."

"Screw that bitch and screw you!" Mackenzie roared, punching the plexiglass again.

"I do not take kindly to people speaking about Scylla in such a way," Boroslav growled. "You should take care to remember this. Or else you will repeat the lesson you already had."

When Mackenzie bared her teeth in fury, Jesse actually felt compelled to take a step back from her, so ferocious and murder-filled her gaze was. Mackenzie punched the plexiglass one last time, the echoing boom resounding off the walls. Boroslav simply sneered at her, then turned and walked away, leaving Mackenzie panting in her cell, worn out by her struggle and anger.

"Mackenzie!" Abbas called out to her from the neighboring cell. "What happened? Where have you been?"

Mackenzie didn't answer at once. Jesse could see her clearly from his cell and watched fearfully as Mackenzie paced around her cell once, raking her fingers through her hair, still breathing heavily. She looked lost, like she didn't know what to do next. She glanced helplessly around her cell, her chest quickly rising and falling as she began to hyperventilate. Then, to Jesse's horror, Mackenzie collapsed to her knees, buried her face in her hands, and started to cry uncontrollably.

"Oh God," Jesse whispered, too afraid of the answer to ask what had happened.

Eventually, Mackenzie was able to calm down enough to tell the others everything. First, she had to constantly reassure them all that she was fine, that no one had done her any lasting damage. Once everyone was satisfied she was unharmed, Mackenzie was able to explain what it was that Scylla wanted her to do. She explained everything, from the enormous VTOL that flew them out over the desert, to the wreckage of the Panspermia. She told them about SALINA, about how Joseph Miller had genetically locked the room to prevent Scylla from getting in there, about the file that Scylla wanted. Mackenzie also explained how she had found the file, but lied and told Scylla it wasn't there. Then she came to the part about the mother and son. How she had tried to stop Boroslav from executing them. How Vasilii had attacked her to defend Boroslav. And then she told them everything that had happened in the infirmary.

"Holy shit," Bell cursed under her breath. "Just when I thought Boroslav couldn't be any more psychotic..."

"He... made you watch?" Abbas asked, mortified.

"Yes," Mackenzie whispered, unable to look up from the floor. She was still on her knees, feeling too weak from fighting and too nauseated to stand just yet. "I couldn't do anything."

"That's sick," Jesse hissed, his tone halfway between livid and horrified.

"That poor woman," Bell said. "I can't even imagine. How long did you say she's been here?"

"Around twenty years, she thinks," Mackenzie said quietly.

"My God," Bell sighed.

"Did she say how she got here?" Abbas asked. "How Scylla caught her?"

Mackenzie hesitated before answering. She thought about what Ileana had told her about Joseph Miller, about how he betrayed her and traded her to Scylla. How, because of that act, she had suffered a life not worth living. Mackenzie still didn't believe it, couldn't believe it. That her father would do such a thing? No. No, never. He couldn't have done.

Could he?

"No," Mackenzie lied. "No, she didn't say."

Everyone fell silent, but as Mackenzie glanced up, she saw Jesse staring at her thoughtfully and, for a moment, she wondered if he knew she was lying.

"We need to get out of this place," Jesse said firmly, finally breaking eye contact with Mackenzie.

"That's a great idea and all," Bell began sarcastically, "but in case you didn't notice, we're locked in bloody aquariums! It's not like we can just walk out."

"I know that," Jesse replied calmly, shrugging off Bell's scathing sarcasm. "But we still need to get out of here."

"We need a plan," Abbas said thoughtfully, stroking his beard. "Ideally, we get our hands on that card Boroslav uses to open our cells. Maybe then we can find a way out and go home."

"Oh, well, if it's that easy, let's go!" Bell scoffed. "I don't want to be a pessimistic bitch, but how exactly are we supposed to do all of that?"

"I know how," Mackenzie said.

Everyone fell silent and just stared at her.

"You do?" Abbas asked, sounding surprised and amazed.

"Well, I didn't spend my time with Scylla becoming BFF's," Mackenzie smirked. "I was checking things out."

"What do you know?" Jesse asked, taking a step closer towards Mackenzie, placing his hands against the plexiglass.

Mackenzie considered her reply for a moment, both to straighten out her thoughts and also to calm herself down from everything that had just happened. When she spoke, it was calm and direct, like she was giving a report in school.

"You're right in saying we need Boroslav's key card," she began. "It's the only way to open our cells. Obviously we can't get the key card while we're in our cells, but luckily Scylla is coming to take me back out to the Panspermia soon. Once I'm out, I can try and find a way to swipe Boroslav's card, even if I have to take a beating from Vasilii again."

"That punk," Jesse growled. Mackenzie couldn't help but smile at him, but continued as though he hadn't spoken.

"I won't try for the key card until after I've been in the bridge again. If Boroslav busts me for stealing it from him, they might figure out what I'm up to, then maybe realize I lied about not being able to find the files. For this to work, I need to be able to go back into the bridge without anyone suspecting I'm up to something. That's why I pretended I couldn't find the files. And why I told SALINA to pretend she doesn't remember me when I go back, so Scylla doesn't get suspicious."

"Why'd you tell her SALINA hid the files?" Bell asked.

"Because when I go back, I need time," Mackenzie explained. "Pretending to look for hidden documents will give me that time. Scylla told me that she's mapped out every location for hundreds of miles that holds a water supply. We need that information. I figure SALINA should be able to access Scylla's data files through her tablet and I can copy the information so we know where to find a new water supply. I also want to try and work out what those files are for, and download them to something we can take with us. I don't know what they are, but I don't think it's a good idea to let Scylla have them. Scylla will take her tablet back as soon as I leave the bridge, but if I can get SALINA to put the files on something else, something Scylla doesn't even know I have, then maybe we can steal them."

"What could you download the files to?" Abbas asked. "Boroslav confiscated all our gear."

"No one has been in the bridge for decades," Mackenzie began. "When the Panspermia was operational, it would have been full of officers and personnel, all with devices that might be used for storing data. When Scylla accessed the bridge before, it was only brief, so she might not have been able to scavenge much gear, if anything. If anything has survived, I might be able to use it."

"What about when you give the information to Scylla?" Jesse asked. "What if she just decides to kill you then and there? You will have done what she wanted, she wouldn't need you anymore."

"There was a lot of stuff in that file," Mackenzie began, already knowing what to say. The same thought had occurred to her earlier. "Pages and pages of data. I'd say it's all pretty important, but if I can find something that's absolutely vital to whatever that file is talking about, I can keep that out of the copy I give Scylla. I saw a lot of math equations and stuff. I can memorise the most important-looking one I can find and delete it. I can use it as a bargaining chip. That way, she won't just shoot me in the face the second I hand over the tablet."

"So let's say you pull all that off," Bell began. "How do we get out of here? Boroslav will notice his card is missing. How will you get back here to let us out?"

"I'll have to ditch him somewhere," Mackenzie shrugged. "I figure if I can get away from him before he brings me back to my cell, I can lose him in the corridors, then make my way to you guys. I'll let you out and we can head down to the garage they brought us through when they captured us, steal a truck or something, and take off."

"Getting away from Boroslav will be difficult," Jesse pointed out. "And dangerous. What if you can't get away from him?"

"I'll have backup," Mackenzie grinned. "One of you can come with me."

"What?" Bell asked in surprise. "How?"

"Scylla thinks SALINA is malfunctioning," Mackenzie explained. "That the files she wants are hidden away somewhere in a computer that's been buried in the sand for almost fifty years. All I have to do is convince her I need help to dig through all the data and she'll let me take one of you with me. SALINA won't let her or any of her men in, so she won't have a choice. Two against one are always better odds."

"Hmm," Abbas said. "It's risky. But I don't see any other option, to be honest. It's worth a try."

"Who goes with you?" Bell asked.

"I think Abbas," Mackenzie replied. "He's the mechanic, he knows technology. Scylla won't think twice about him helping me with computer stuff."

"Good idea, but no," Abbas said firmly, shaking his head. "Take Jesse."

"Jesse?" Mackenzie repeated, surprised. "Why?"

"First of all, you don't actually need someone good with computers," Abbas said. "You already know where the files are. Secondly, Jesse is better at hand-to-hand combat. If ditching Boroslav comes down to a fight, you'll need him with you more than me."

"He's right," Bell nodded.

"And Scylla doesn't know our specialties," Abbas added. "No one ever asked our roles in the team, just our names. Scylla won't know the difference. You okay with that, Jesse?"

"No problem," Jesse nodded, folding his arms over his chest.

"I'd take all of you if I could," Mackenzie admitted. "But I don't think Scylla will like that idea."

"No, I wouldn't think so," Abbas agreed. "But just the two of you should be fine. As long as you both remain calm and don't fly off the handle. I'm looking at you, Jesse. I know how much you want to get Boroslav for what he did to Lowe, and what Mackenzie told us about last night makes me like the guy even less, but we have to be clever here, and very careful. They might not hurt Mackenzie because they need her for now, but you? You're expendable. I doubt Scylla or Boroslav would hesitate to kill you if you give them a reason."

"Got it," Jesse said. "Trust me, I'll play nice."

"Is there anything else?" Abbas asked. "Any other ideas? Anything we haven't thought of yet? We can't afford for anything to go wrong with this, or we're all dead. And remember, if we die, so does everyone back in Town. They're counting on us to bring them water."

Everyone was quiet as this detail sunk in. With everything that had happened, Mackenzie had almost forgotten that there were more lives at stake than just their own.

"There's one more thing," she said. "We need to take Ileana with us."

Jesse and Bell both nodded at once, but Abbas frowned. "Mackenzie, I want to get her out of this hell-hole as much as the rest of you, but can we risk everything for just one person?"

"You didn't see what Vasilii did to her," Mackenzie said softly, her voice quivering with barely contained rage. "I won't make her live like this. Not for one more day."

"I get it, I do," Abbas insisted. "If things were different, she'd be my first priority. But we need to think of the big picture. What if you're captured trying to free her? You could be wasting precious time, or undermine the entire operation."

"Abbas, come on," Jesse interrupted. "Don't you think that's a bit harsh?"

"Harsh?" Bell repeated. "Cold is what it is."

"You think I like suggesting we leave her?" Abbas snapped. "Of course I don't! What Boroslav and Vasilii and Scylla have done to her makes me sick! But the priority is that we all get out of here with that water map. Without that, everyone we know is dead. Including my children. I'm the Commander after Vasseur's death and it's my job to put forward the hard choices. We need to consider if saving this one woman is worth putting everything else on the line."

"With all due respect, sir," Mackenzie glowered, "I'm not actually asking for permission. I am going to save her."

"Abbas," Jesse began before Abbas could respond. "How about this? Once we get away from Boroslav, one of us can go get Ileana and the other can come back here with the water map. That way there's less risk of losing the data if anyone tries to stop us taking Ileana. We can regroup in the garage. Whoever gets there first can find a truck and hot wire it, then signal whoever comes after by flashing the headlights twice. Then we book it and never look back."

Abbas sighed pensively as he thought it over.

"Okay," he finally nodded. "It's a plan. A really dangerous, risky, possibly suicidal plan, but that's what we'll do. Bell and I will sit tight until you come back and let us out."

"That's all we can do?" Bell asked, disappointed. "We just sit cozy while Mackenzie and Jesse risk their lives?"

"I'm afraid so, Bell," Abbas sighed. "We just have to wait and hope this all works out."

"Don't worry," Mackenzie said firmly. "It will."

When Scylla came to collect Mackenzie, she did so without speaking. She scowled at Mackenzie and ignored all of the others. Boroslav was with her and she waited silently, her hands clasped behind her back, while he opened Mackenzie's cell.

"Time to go, Mackenzie," Scylla said flatly, finally speaking. "I trust today that you will be more respectful of my laws?"

"Yes," Mackenzie said begrudgingly.

"Good," Scylla nodded. "Let's go."

"Wait," Mackenzie said quickly as Scylla began to turn away.

"Excuse me?" Scylla asked quietly, bristling with anger.

"I was thinking," Mackenzie began. "I'm gonna have some trouble finding this file for you if the AI has hidden it. I might need some help, someone who knows how to navigate a computer."

"SALINA will not allow my men into the bridge," Scylla scowled.

"No, but maybe she'll let in one of mine," Mackenzie replied. "Jesse is computer proficient, he could help speed things up."

Scylla turned and glared at Jesse, who was standing in the center of his cell, arms folded over his chest, glaring at Scylla and Boroslav with equal loathing.

"This one?" Boroslav sneered. "He's a vyrodok. A brainless foot-soldier."

Jesse didn't reply, but gave Boroslav one of his most burning glares, as though he was silently willing Boroslav to burst into flames.

"If you know as much about us as you say you do," Mackenzie began, hoping Scylla wouldn't see through the bluff, "then you know that each Diviner has a minimum of one specialty. Jesse's skills are weaponry and coding. He maintains all the equipment on our truck, guns and computers. If anyone can help me find what you're looking for, it's him."

Scylla glared scrupulously at Jesse, who glared right back at her. Scylla then turned and studied Mackenzie's face. Mackenzie tried to stay impassive, as though Scylla's decision didn't make a difference to her.

"Fine," Scylla said, snapping her reply. "Boroslav, let him out."

Boroslav looked less than pleased by this development, but he dutifully retrieved his key card from his pocket again and opened Jesse's cell.

As Jesse and Mackenzie were led away, Abbas and Bell watched in silence from within their cells.

Before long, Jesse was standing beside Mackenzie outside, staring in amazement as the VTOL settled down before them.

"Get in," Scylla snapped as the stairs began to lower.

Mackenzie noted that Scylla seemed in no mood for delays today, so began towards the VTOL. She needed Scylla to stay on side if this was going to work. And Mackenzie needed to play the part of the broken prisoner. Last night's "lesson" was meant to break her spirit and make her more cooperative. Instead, Mackenzie longed to see Scylla's face when she found out her prisoners had escaped.

Aboard the VTOL, Vasilii was waiting for them. He grinned at Boroslav and took a seat beside him. Vasilii then noticed Mackenzie sitting across from him and seemed to grin even wider.

"Hi, Mackenzie!" he said brightly.

Mackenzie just glared back at him, holding back all the things she wanted to say. Boroslav cleared his throat, glaring warningly at Mackenzie.

"Vasilii said hello," Boroslav said slowly. "You don't want to be rude, do you?"

Swallowing her rage, Mackenzie forced herself to nod at Vasilii and say, "Hello Vasilii."

"We're prepped for take-off, Scylla," said the pilot. Looking up, Mackenzie saw it was Min-Hee again. "Whenever you're ready."

Min-Hee then looked at Jesse, who sat beside Scylla, and her eyes widened in surprise. She opened her mouth to say something, but Mackenzie saw Jesse give her a tiny shake of the head and a steely glare, silencing her at once. Min-Hee immediately closed her mouth and ignored Jesse, waiting for Scylla's orders. When Scylla told her to take off, Min-Hee nodded once and retreated back to the cockpit without looking at Jesse again.

"What was that?" Mackenzie breathed to Jesse as the VTOL's engines powered up noisily, masking the sound of her voice.

"Later," Jesse breathed back, barely moving his lips.

During the flight, Mackenzie struggled to keep her emotions in check. Vasilii was speaking animatedly to Boroslav, smiling cheerfully, as though last night had never happened. Mackenzie told herself to stay calm, that after today, Vasilii and Boroslav and Scylla would never be able to harm Ileana again.

Finally, they arrived at the Panspermia wreck and disembarked the VTOL. It was the same as Mackenzie remembered it. Thousands of people still worked around and within the wreckage of the ship, all looking far too weak and starved to be able to stand, let alone work so hard. Beside her, Mackenzie could feel the rage radiating from Jesse as he took in the sight. She had explained it to him and the others, but words couldn't do this inhumanity justice. Only by seeing the misery and torment could one understand the horrors these people went through.

"Before we get started," Scylla suddenly began, "I want you to see something."

Jesse and Mackenzie glanced at one another, then followed Scylla as she made her way towards the workers.

"I thought you wanted me to find those files?" Mackenzie said, anxious to start her plan, and feeling apprehensive about whatever Scylla wanted her to see.

"And you will," Scylla said assuringly. "But first you should see this."

Scylla came to a stop beside one of the many armored trucks that drove around the area. Even from up close, Mackenzie couldn't see the driver, but the man in the turret on top was clearly visible, both hands holding on to the controls of the gun he manned.

"Do you know what this is?" Scylla asked Mackenzie, gesturing to the large gun on top of the vehicle.

Mackenzie shrugged. "A big gun."

"How observant," Scylla sneered sarcastically. Then, to Jesse, she said, "Supposedly you're an expert in weaponry. Tell me what this is."

Jesse narrowed his eyes as he looked the large gun up and down, then turned his gaze back to Scylla as he replied.

"That's a TG-X9," Jesse began. "A thunder generator weapon. First developed by the Israeli military back in the 21st century."

"And for those of us who don't understand what any of that means," Scylla smiled, glancing at Mackenzie, "please enlighten us."

Jesse huffed in annoyance, clearly as impatient as Mackenzie.

"It's a crowd control armament," Jesse explained. "It uses pulse detonation technology to funnel an explosion into the barrel, where it releases high-velocity shockwaves powerful enough to knock down and temporarily deafen targets up to a hundred feet away."

"So you do know your stuff," Scylla observed, sounding as though she was impressed.

"I've only read about it," Jesse admitted begrudgingly. "From my understanding, the armory on the Panspermia was at the rear of the ship, where your predecessors were before being evacuated. So you got all the guns while we got everything else. We have people who could have probably built stuff like that, but water was the first concern the last generation had. Unlike you." Jesse narrowed his eyes at Scylla and he bristled with anger. "Seeing as you had access to a water supply, I suppose you kept all of your weaponry and equipment to impose your little dictatorship over these people, am I right?"

"Close," Scylla grinned sweetly. "There were others in charge before me. They wanted to find the rest of the Panspermia survivors and establish a strong colony by the river, so that we can flourish and maybe even populate the planet. Of course, they didn't succeed in finding your Town, as you kept moving in your constant search for water, but they poured so much time and energy and resources into finding you, they were ignoring greater concerns. A lot of our VTOLs had to be decommissioned because of being exposed to the elements of this planet far longer than they should have been. We lost a lot of people on search parties, many people simply vanishing in the deserts. Many people weren't happy about that."

"You being one of them?" Jesse accused.

"That's right," Scylla nodded. "But we're not here to talk about my life story. No, I wanted to show you the TG-X9. Or the Thunder Gun, as many people call it. Mikhail, please bring me a volunteer."

"Who?" Boroslav asked.

"It doesn't matter," Scylla replied coldly.

Boroslav snapped his fingers at a soldier nearby and then pointed at a random man from a passing line of workers who were carrying bags of harvested parts to a truck. The soldier immediately grabbed the man and, despite his screams, dragged him towards the truck that carried the Thunder Gun.

"What are you doing?" Mackenzie demanded, suddenly worried.

"I want to show you something," Scylla said sweetly.

As Mackenzie and Jesse watched helplessly, the soldier tied the poor man's arms behind his back, then shoved him down to his knees. The fight seemed to have gone out of the man. He didn't shout, he didn't try to get back to his knees. He simply remained motionless, staring up at the large gun that was now starting to tilt down towards him, only a few feet away.

"Jesse, is it?" Scylla asked. Jesse didn't respond, but Scylla continued anyway. "Since you're the expert, why don't you tell us what kind of damage the Thunder Gun can do at close range?"

"Don't do this," Jesse growled.

"Scylla, please," Mackenzie begged. "Let's just go get those files. We don't need to see the gun."

"What's wrong?" Scylla asked Jesse, ignoring Mackenzie completely. "Don't you know?"

"Let that man go," Jesse said.

Jesse took a step towards Scylla, but froze when half a dozen soldiers around them moved simultaneously and levelled their rifles at his chest. Jesse remained motionless, keeping his hands half-raised, but kept his glare locked on Scylla.

"Well, if you don't want to tell us," Scylla shrugged, "I suppose we should just see for ourselves."

Scylla turned her head towards the soldier in the turret who controlled the Thunder Gun, then uttered just a single word.

"Fire."

Mackenzie and Jesse both moved as though to try and stop the man in the truck from firing the gun, but a wall of armed soldiers blocked their path. There was no time for them to do anything regardless, because the moment Scylla said to fire, that's what the soldier on the Thunder Gun did.

The gun boomed loudly, sounding exactly like thunder, rattling Mackenzie's teeth as the pulse shook the air. The force of the shock wave was so powerful, it was like firing a cannonball through wet papier-mâché. The man literally split open and his insides were spread across the ground for a hundred feet. There was nothing left that looked remotely human, save for a pair of legs, which lay twitching on the ground.

As Mackenzie stared in horror and disgust at the sight of the man's remains, she couldn't hear the screams of the workers who had seen this gruesome, senseless, murder. Her ears were ringing loudly, so she couldn't hear the desperate wails, the hopeless cries, nor could she hear the sound of a young boy screaming for his father.

"Why!?" Jesse roared, his voice only a distant echo to Mackenzie, despite the fact he was standing right beside her. "Why did you do that!?"

"To illustrate a point," Scylla snapped. Mackenzie was slowly regaining her hearing and was able to make out what Scylla was saying now. "Yesterday, Mackenzie Miller interfered with our laws and threatened one of my men. I'm told that you, Jesse Greaves, are prone to acts of defiance and stupidity in equal measure. I want you to know, here and now, that I will not abide it! You will do as you are told and nothing more! You will enter the bridge, you will find those files, and you will walk out with those files and hand them to me."

"You didn't need to kill that man to tell us that!" Mackenzie shouted.

"No, but I did so to prove my resolve," Scylla snapped, her voice growing louder and angrier as she spoke. "So that you will not doubt for even a moment that I will kill every last person here to get what I want. Now, we've wasted enough time and I'm growing impatient! The both of you, follow me and get into the bridge right now! I want those files quickly! And, to make sure neither of you get any ideas of betraying me, or wasting any more of my time, for every thirty minutes that those files are not in my hands, I will subject another slave to what you just witnessed."

Without needing to be told, Boroslav snatched a random worker from the watching crowd, this time a young girl, no older than thirteen. She screamed in a panic as Boroslav dragged her away, reaching out to two older people in the crowd who must have been her parents. They both were also screaming, attempting to grab her before Boroslav dragged her out of reach, but two soldiers appeared and quickly forced them back into line with threats of death.

"Mama!" the girl shrieked, tears leaving long streaks down her dirt-covered face. "Papa!"

"Let her go!" Mackenzie shouted.

"Do as I say and you have my word, she won't be harmed," Scylla replied acidly. "You have thirty minutes to get me those files, or else she will suffer the same fate as the man before her. Your time starts now!"

"Come on, let's move," Jesse whispered, ushering Mackenzie towards the ship as Scylla stormed off in that direction, not looking back, as though she didn't care if they followed or not.

Mackenzie seemed reluctant to move, though, staring at the little girl as soldiers tied her arms and forced her to kneel before the giant gun. The girl was crying uncontrollably, screaming for her parents.

"Miller!" Jesse barked in Mackenzie's ear.

Mackenzie started with a jump, then followed Jesse's lead towards the ship, both of them walking in Scylla's wake, Mackenzie praying that she was able to pull off the first part of her plan within the next half an hour.

CHAPTER NINETEEN

When they approached the heavy doors that sealed off the bridge within the wreck of the Panspermia, Jesse instinctively tensed up as the pair of automated turrets quickly descended from the ceiling and trained on them. Mackenzie had warned him this would happen, but it was no less intimidating when two large gun barrels were pointing at your face.

"Facial recognition inoperable," SALINA's calm, synthetic, voice announced. "Security protocols are active. Do not move or you will be fired upon. State your names and your primary objectives."

Scylla stood to the side, away from SALINA's kill-zone outside the doors, watching closely with suspicious eyes as Mackenzie responded.

"It's me, SALINA," Mackenzie began, hoping that SALINA was still willing to play dumb. "Mackenzie Miller. I was here yesterday?"

Only silence greeted Mackenzie, which she took as a sign SALINA had remembered what was asked of her. Holding back a sigh of relief so that Scylla wouldn't see, Mackenzie swallowed her nerves and spoke to SALINA again.

"I'm Mackenzie Miller," she said loudly. "This is my, er, friend. Jesse Greaves. We're here to enter the bridge and find some important files that are stored inside."

SALINA was silent as she seemed to consider this information, just the same as she had done the previous day. Then she said, "Mackenzie Miller. Place your hand on the scanner beside you. Prepare for genetic confirmation."

Mackenzie did as she was told. She watched the green lights scan her palm, then flinched as the sudden, sharp, needle-prick of pain stabbed into her. Just like last time though, when Mackenzie looked, there was no damage to her hand.

"Genetic identity confirmed," SALINA recited. "Mackenzie Miller, you may enter with colleague, Jesse Greaves."

As the bridge doors began to open, Mackenzie grabbed Jesse by the arm and dragged him towards the entrance, not wanting to waste a single second. How much time had already passed? Five minutes? Ten? How long before that little girl was destroyed?

"Mackenzie," Scylla called out in a sing-song voice once Mackenzie and Jesse were on the bridge.

Turning back, Mackenzie saw Scylla standing outside the entrance as the doors were beginning to slowly close. Scylla fixed Mackenzie with a cold glare, but she was smiling. It was a cruel smile, as though she gained some sort of pleasure at seeing Mackenzie's distress. As Mackenzie met her eyes, Scylla tapped her wrist pointedly.

"Clock's ticking, Mackenzie," Scylla said, still smiling. "Don't forget."

Then the doors closed, separating them both.

"Start looking around!" Mackenzie immediately cried at Jesse. "Find a tablet, a flash drive, anything we can download a lot of information to!"

"On it," Jesse nodded, then hurried to the nearest workstation to search for what they needed.

Mackenzie rushed to the Captain's chair and tapped the screen, bringing it to life.

"May I be of any assistance?" SALINA asked monotonously.

"I need that file again," Mackenzie said quickly. "The one Scylla wants."

The screen in front of Mackenzie instantly began to navigate itself, opening a folder that was buried within a dozen other folders. Behind her, she could hear Jesse tearing through drawers and storage cabinets, flinging contents to the floor as he searched as quickly as possible for what they needed. Mackenzie opened the file and began scanning the pages as fast as she could, looking for something important enough that Scylla couldn't use the rest of the information without it, but small enough for Mackenzie to commit to memory.

"There's nothing here!" Jesse shouted, racing from one workstation to the next.

"Perhaps," SALINA began, "this search would go smoother if you asked for my assistance. Unless your goal is to simply make a mess, in which case you are succeeding well enough on your own."

Mackenzie swore she heard sarcasm in SALINA's tone.

"We need something to store data on," Mackenzie told SALINA. "I've got Scylla's tablet, but we need information for ourselves. Is there a tablet or something like Scylla's on the bridge that we could use?"

"I'm afraid that when Scylla first accessed the bridge, portable data storage systems like what you are asking for were the first things she collected," SALINA replied.

"Shit," Jesse spat.

"Indeed," SALINA agreed.

"What do we do now?" Mackenzie groaned.

"We just have to go on without it," Jesse shrugged. "What else can we do? If we don't get back to Scylla soon, that kid is dead."

"Dammit," Mackenzie sighed under her breath.

"There is an alternative," SALINA suddenly said.

"There is?" Mackenzie asked, surprised and hopeful. "What is it?"

"Though there are no longer any devices like what you are asking for aboard this ship," SALINA began, "you may still be able to carry the information contained in the bridge terminals with you. The hard drive for the Captain's terminal is easily removable and can be reconnected to almost any device. This is a security parameter in the event of a mutiny or hostile takeover, so the Captain could remove and protect or destroy any confidential data contained in the database."

"And could we take the hard drive with us?" Mackenzie asked excitedly. "How big is it?"

"It is not large," SALINA said. "No bigger than a pencil. Should you choose, you can easily disguise it within your clothes. Shall I eject the hard drive for you?"

"Not yet," Mackenzie said quickly, feeling an enormous wave of relief wash over her. Then, holding up Scylla's tablet, she asked, "First, can you download information from the ship's database to this tablet?"

"Of course," SALINA replied.

"Is there anything you can leave out?" Jesse asked Mackenzie, stepping up beside her to look down at the screen full of information.

"I don't know," Mackenzie said, feeling hopelessly lost while looking at the pages and pages of data. "I mean, it's all really complex stuff. This is super advanced theoretical physics by the look of it, way over my head."

"What about this?" Jesse asked, pointing. "That makes absolutely no sense to me, so it's probably important."

Mackenzie read the section where Jesse was pointing, frowning as she did so. As far as she was concerned, it was all nonsensical gibberish.

"The concept of operation dictates departure followed by distance d, following the strict metric of..." Mackenzie read, and then trailed off as a series of numbers, letters, and symbols followed, but the sequence wasn't particularly long. Mackenzie took a moment to examine the sequence.

ds² = -dt² \+ (dx - vsf (rs) dt)² \+ dy² \+ dz²

Smiling with renewed hope, Mackenzie said, "Strict, huh? That sounds important. We can probably hold this over Scylla's head."

"Probably is better than where we were ten seconds ago," Jesse nodded. "Do it."

"I just hope it's something important enough to Scylla to keep us alive long enough to escape," Mackenzie said.

"Your plan is to escape?" SALINA asked, sounding somewhat surprised.

"Yeah," Jesse replied. "It's too dangerous for us here."

"That much is certain," SALINA agreed. "However, you may find it difficult to get out of your cells."

"Huh?" Jesse frowned. "How do you know we were in cells?"

"I have full access to systems on board the Panspermia evacuation shuttles," SALINA explained. "Though separated, they are still a part of the ship and maintaining them is naturally within the parameters of my programming. I have observed you being held in confinement via security cameras."

"You can access Scylla's systems?" Jesse repeated. "Hmm..."

"What's up?" Mackenzie asked.

"SALINA," Jesse began, looking around the room as though he expected SALINA to appear in human form. "Can you search any records that Scylla has on file?"

"Of course," SALINA replied. "All computer terminals on evacuation shuttles are within the range of my parameters."

"Do you think you could find a specific file?" Jesse asked. "Something that specifies the locations of water deposits and rivers?"

"That is within my capabilities," SALINA confirmed. "But only Mackenzie Miller has authorization to give me a command."

Jesse turned and looked down at Mackenzie, a smile playing on his lips. Mackenzie smiled back and nodded, understanding what Jesse was suggesting.

"Okay," Mackenzie said. "SALINA, find that file. Then download it to the Captain's hard drive."

"Right away, Mackenzie," SALINA responded. Then, an instant later, "File located. Commencing download."

"Wow," Mackenzie said, impressed. "That was fast."

"It was my understanding that you are in a hurry, Mackenzie," SALINA replied.

Gasping, Mackenzie remembered the child being held under the barrel of a gun that would utterly destroy her if Mackenzie and Jesse took too long.

"How long have we been here?" Mackenzie asked hurriedly.

"Precisely eleven minutes," SALINA said at once.

"We don't have much time by now," Jesse said grimly. "We better pick up the pace. So what do we do about this math thing?"

"Might I make a suggestion?" SALINA interjected. "Perhaps if you would read the sequence aloud, I can retain the data for you. If it is leverage you hope to use it for, then you can use the information to bargain your freedom, should escape be too dangerous. You may tell Scylla that once you are beyond her reach, I can share the data with her, once I have your verbal authority."

Mackenzie and Jesse glanced at one another, stunned. Jesse shrugged at Mackenzie, who nodded.

"Sounds like a plan, SALINA," she said. "Here's the sequence."

Mackenzie read the sequence to SALINA, had her read it back to make sure it was correct, then deleted the sequence from the file, ensuring the only place anyone could ever find it now was within SALINA's memory. Mackenzie then asked SALINA to copy the incomplete file to Scylla's tablet, which she did immediately via the wireless network all of Scylla's equipment ran on.

"How will I let you know when to give the information to Scylla?" Mackenzie asked.

"If we ever do," Jesse said, folding his arms over his chest. "We could just let SALINA hold on to it forever."

"You may decide later what you wish to do," SALINA said. "I can intercept most radio transmissions, even from many miles away. If you speak into a radio on almost any frequency once you are away from this place, then I will hear it. But the more pressing concern right now is the young female Scylla has hostage. I have just overheard a radio transmission between two soldiers who are discussing whether or not you will make it back in time to stop her from being 'blown apart.' I suggest you take the hard drive and go. Now."

A panel suddenly opened in the arm of the Captain's chair, in which Mackenzie was sitting, and a long, flat, object rose out. Looking at it, Mackenzie thought it looked like a particularly long flash drive, but didn't waste any more time examining it. She snatched it out of its cradle and leaped to her feet, stuffing the hard drive into the waistline of her pants.

"Thanks, SALINA," Mackenzie said. "I hope we see you again."

"I hope so too, Mackenzie Miller," SALINA replied.

Mackenzie and Jesse both bolted out the doors, which closed steadily behind them. Neither one of them was certain how much time they had left, but they weren't going to waste a single second more.

They both exploded out of the ship wreckage into the sunlight, Mackenzie waving Scylla's tablet in the air as she shouted, "WE'VE GOT IT! DON'T SHOOT, WE'VE GOT IT!"

Scylla was standing beside the truck that held the thunder gun, grinning at Mackenzie like a hyena. The little girl was still on her knees in front of the gun, crying hysterically. Mackenzie ran faster at the sight of her, still waving the tablet around.

"We did it!" she cried. "Don't shoot her, I got what you wanted! It's here! Let her go!"

Mackenzie and Jesse stopped in front of Scylla, both breathing heavily. All eyes, including those of the little girl, were on them.

"Give it," Scylla said simply, holding out her hand for the tablet.

Mackenzie handed it over and watched as Scylla began examining the file. Scylla's smile only grew larger and more predatory as she read.

"Yes," Scylla whispered. "This is it. It's all here! Finally!"

"Are you letting the girl go or what?" Jesse growled.

"Why should I?" Scylla replied sweetly.

"We had a deal!" Mackenzie roared. "We made it back in time! You don't have to kill her!"

"No, I suppose not," Scylla admitted. Then, speaking over her shoulder to the men around her, "Let her go."

Two soldiers dragged the sobbing girl to her feet, cut the restraints around her wrists, then shoved her back towards her parents, who cried with relief, hugging her tightly, then hurried away together before Scylla could change her mind.

"It's done," Mackenzie said forcefully to Scylla, bringing her attention back to her and Jesse. "You got what you wanted. Now we get to go free. That was the deal."

"Of course you're right," Scylla said, still smiling her falsely sweet smile. "I did promise your freedom."

"So how about it?" Jesse growled.

"I'm nothing if not a woman of my word," Scylla said. Then she turned to Boroslav and said, "Shoot them both in the head."

"What!?" Mackenzie shrieked angrily.

Boroslav was grinning widely as he pulled out his sidearm and began to raise it towards Mackenzie and Jesse, looking between them both as he tried to decide who to shoot first.

"You said you'd let us go!" Mackenzie shouted.

"Death is the only true freedom we have," Scylla leered, examining the tablet in her hands.

"If you kill us, you'll never get the metric!" Mackenzie yelled.

"Stop!" Scylla suddenly roared at Boroslav, just as he was about to pull the trigger.

Scylla glared dubiously at Mackenzie and took several slow, deliberate, steps towards her.

"What metric?" Scylla hissed.

"Take a closer look at those documents," Jesse replied. "It's not exactly complete."

"I knew you were lying," Mackenzie scowled, glaring at Scylla with disgust. "I knew you'd kill me as soon as you got those files. So I took a little leverage. There was an equation of some kind in that file, something about a strict metric. I deleted it."

"You did what?" Scylla fumed, every word hissed like a venomous snake.

Scylla turned away from Mackenzie and began flipping through the pages of the file, searching for something. Mackenzie knew when she found it, because her whole body tensed with the wrathful fury that fought to escape. Scylla's grip tightened on the tablet to the point where her knuckles turned white and Mackenzie wondered if she might break the device in her hands. Scylla whirled around to face Mackenzie again, her teeth bared in a vicious snarl, her eyes narrowed and glinting with malice.

"Where is it?" Scylla whispered with untold rage. "Where is the metric?"

"SALINA has it," Mackenzie said sweetly.

"You left it with that defective machine?" Scylla growled.

"She's not defective," Mackenzie replied. "I just let you think she was. Once my friends and I are safely away from here, I'll contact SALINA by radio and tell her to give you the missing equation."

"You'll have her give it to me now," Scylla snapped.

"What, so you can shoot me right after?" Mackenzie frowned. "Not gonna happen."

Scylla moved quickly, reaching behind her back and pulling out a pistol. She levelled it at Mackenzie's face, so close that Mackenzie was able to see into the barrel.

"Give me the metric," Scylla said dangerously. "Or I'll-"

"You'll what?" Jesse snapped. "Kill Mackenzie? That would prove you're as stupid as you are psychotic. Mackenzie's the only one SALINA takes orders from. If you kill her, you'll never get that metric you want so bad."

Scylla bared her teeth at Jesse and the gun twitched in her hand, as though she longed to turn it on him and pull the trigger.

"There is one other person SALINA will listen to," Scylla replied, her snarl turning into a hint of a smile. "I could just kill you now and have him get me the metric."

Mackenzie was confused for a moment, then realized Scylla was talking about her father, Joseph Miller. He had placed the genetic seal on the bridge, SALINA took orders from him previously. It stood to reason that if Joseph came back, SALINA would be under his command again.

"Maybe," Mackenzie conceded. "But how helpful do you think my father will be when he finds out you murdered his daughter? He might have been okay with trading a life with you once, but I doubt he'd be so happy when that life is his own daughter's."

Jesse glanced sideways at Mackenzie, uncertain of what she meant, but Scylla scowled again, knowing Mackenzie was right. Snarling, Scylla turned her gaze, and her gun, on Jesse.

"Give me the metric," Scylla demanded. "Or I kill this one."

"You kill him and you'll never have it," Mackenzie snapped confidently, though her heart lurched in fear when the gun turned on Jesse. "You can kill him, all my friends, every single person around us, but I won't give you the damn metric if you so much as hurt a single one of them."

"Give me the metric!" Scylla screamed insanely in Mackenzie's face, taking the gun away from Jesse and pressing the barrel under Mackenzie's chin. "Give it to me! Give me the metric now!"

Mackenzie was momentarily stunned by Scylla's outburst, shocked by her wild eyes and the spit that flew from her mouth.

"Scylla," Boroslav interrupted, speaking calmly as he eyed Scylla warily, as though worried by her outburst. "Let me handle her. I can make her cooperate. Just give me one day alone with her."

"You're not going anywhere with Mackenzie," Jesse snarled, automatically stepping between Boroslav and Mackenzie, glaring at Boroslav defiantly.

"Oh, but he is," Scylla hissed, lowering her gun as a poisonous grin broke out on her face. "You will regret this, Miller. Just like your father will regret betraying me. First you will give me that metric, then I'll send your father a video file of all the nasty things Mikhail is going to do to you. Mikhail, take them back. Put Miller in one of our special cells. Make her friend watch the interrogation."

Boroslav grinned straight at Mackenzie, a sadistic gleam in his eyes, while Vasilii stood nearby, beginning to giggle.

Looking at Mackenzie, Vasilii said in a sing-song voice, "You're in trou-ble!" before laughing louder and louder.

Boroslav pulled out his gun and pressed it into Mackenzie's spine. Then he whispered in her ear, "Get on the VTOL. Now."

"Why should I?" Mackenzie snapped. She knew she needed to go back to Scylla's base to break out the others, but she didn't want to make it look that way. She needed to put up a fight.

Without saying a word in reply, Boroslav turned his gun away from Mackenzie and, without even looking, fired one round into Jesse's leg. Jesse yelled out in pain and fell to the ground, clutching the bloody hole in his thigh. He clamped his jaw shut to stop from screaming, but the agony he felt was evident on his face as he gritted his teeth and groaned in mixed pain and fury. Mackenzie looked at him in horror, then turned back to Boroslav's impassive face.

"I won't kill either of you," Boroslav said calmly. "But you will wish I had. Get on the VTOL. Now."

Feeling horrible about Jesse's leg, worried about him dying, Mackenzie reached down and helped him to his feet. He hobbled as he walked with her towards the VTOL, keeping as much weight off his leg as possible, still gritting his teeth with every step. Boroslav kept pace behind them, keeping the gun trained on their backs while Vasilii followed along excitedly. Scylla watched them go, choosing to remain behind for the time-being, glaring daggers at Mackenzie.

"I'm so sorry," Mackenzie whispered to Jesse. "I didn't know he'd do that."

"I did," Jesse grimaced. "Don't worry about it. One of us was going to get hurt, better me than you, right?"

"Will you be okay?" Mackenzie asked, glancing down at the bullet wound.

"It went straight through," Jesse said. "I'll be fine."

"No talking!" Boroslav barked.

"He's bleeding!" Mackenzie snapped.

"You should be more worried about yourself, pretty one," Boroslav leered, his canine tooth poking through his cleft lip.

Boroslav forced Mackenzie and Jesse up the stairs into the VTOL, where they took their seats and strapped in. Jesse then ripped the sleeve off his long-sleeve shirt and used the fabric to craft a tourniquet for his leg. The wound was still bloody, but it looked like the bleeding at least slowed. Boroslav and Vasilii sat opposite Mackenzie and Jesse. Vasilii was bouncing in his seat with excitement, while Boroslav was grinning at Mackenzie in a way that made her feel vulnerable and exposed. Like she was standing naked before him. The thought made her feel sick.

"You might want to reconsider giving Scylla that metric," Boroslav leered. Then, shrugging, he added, "Or not. You will give it to her one way or another, but my way is more fun."

Then the VTOL lifted into the air and began speeding away towards the shuttle Scylla called home. Mackenzie prayed the next step of her plan would go smoother than the first.

Before she ended up in a room with Boroslav.

CHAPTER TWENTY

Mackenzie let Jesse lean on her as they were shoved through the garage towards the elevator at the opposite end. Jesse was still clearly in pain, his jaw clenched tightly, but he was at least able to put some weight on his leg and was hobbling more than hopping, one arm around Mackenzie's shoulders as they walked. Boroslav marched behind them, barking impatiently at them when they didn't move fast enough.

Knowing that they still needed to get Boroslav's key card away from him and get away from him unscathed, Mackenzie was worried about how they might do that now. Jesse was supposed to be her backup if a fight broke out, or if Boroslav caught Mackenzie swiping his card. How could Jesse fight now with his injury? Mackenzie hoped it wouldn't come down to a fight, otherwise this whole plan was screwed.

"Keep moving!" Boroslav barked.

"Can I watch?" Vasilii asked eagerly. "I've never seen you question a prisoner before. Please?"

"This is no game, Vasilii," Boroslav replied. "This is my work. You go play elsewhere."

"Aw," Vasilii pouted, but he made no arguments.

As they approached the elevator, Jesse nudged Mackenzie in the ribs, and then jerked his chin to their right. Looking that way, Mackenzie saw a crew of three workers around a row of vehicles. They appeared to be doing mechanic work, as one was underneath the chassis of one vehicle, while the other two had gathered around the engine of another and were discussing something. One of the vehicles was a truck, with a large Thunder Gun mounted on top.

Mackenzie knew what Jesse was thinking. If they managed to get back down to the garage, they might be able to steal one of those trucks, specifically the armed one. If this was going to be an escape, they might need to dispose of anyone pursuing them. A weapon like the Thunder Gun would be invaluable.

Nodding once to show she understood, Mackenzie allowed Boroslav to steer them towards the elevator. Vasilii broke away towards the mechanics and their vehicles at an awkward jog, saying goodbye to Boroslav as he went and flashing Mackenzie a bright smile that only made her feel more disturbed.

"Where should I start with you?" Boroslav said thoughtfully as they all stepped onto the elevator. He seemed to think for a moment as he pressed the button for their destination, then regarded Mackenzie like she was a complex puzzle as the elevator began to rise. "Maybe your face? A pretty girl like you, I wonder if you are so pretty without a nose? Or maybe I should pluck out your eyes?"

"Shut your mouth," Jesse growled, still leaning on Mackenzie.

Boroslav ignored him, but his grin grew wider as he continued to stare at Mackenzie hungrily.

"No, I don't think I will take your eyes," Boroslav said conversationally. "I want you to see everything that happens. I could burn you, of course. Melt the flesh from your feet so you can't try and run. Or maybe I will simply chop them off."

As Boroslav spoke, Mackenzie glanced up towards the ceiling in the elevator. She had noticed something there reflecting the light.

A camera. A small bubble that seemed to swell out of the center of the elevator's ceiling, a black lens running all the way around, providing a 360 degree view of the area. Mackenzie only glanced at it quickly, then returned her gaze back to Boroslav, frowning.

"When you break," Boroslav began, "and you will, I wonder if Scylla will kill you. You have certainly tried her patience, pretty one. But I would like to keep you alive. You can join your fellow Diviner in the infirmary. Yes, I think I will ask Scylla to let you live. And if she agrees, I will leave your face alone. That way, you can still be the pretty one. So don't be afraid."

"You don't scare me," Mackenzie lied.

Boroslav sniggered, seeing right through her.

"Of course I do," Boroslav sneered. "You've already seen your future."

"Shut your goddamn mouth," Jesse snapped.

"Do you want another bullet in you?" Boroslav asked, bristling with anger.

"I'll take that gun and ram it down your throat if you hurt Mackenzie," Jesse threatened.

"Your threats mean nothing to me," Boroslav replied. "You mean nothing to me."

"Drop," Mackenzie said simply.

Both Boroslav and Jesse stopped squaring off with one another and stared at her in confusion.

"What?" Boroslav asked, seemingly annoyed by the nonsensical utterance.

Mackenzie glanced between Jesse and Boroslav, each as confused as the other, and then looked directly up at the camera. When she spoke, she made sure her face was perfectly visible and spoke slowly and clearly.

"Drop."

A heartbeat passed, then all of a sudden, the elevator stopped rising, coming to a sudden halt. Boroslav stumbled slightly as the lurch of the elevator tipped him a little off balance, and then he looked around in anger and confusion.

"What is-?" he began, but never finished the sentence.

The elevator fell suddenly and fast. It descended so fast, it seemed more like someone had shoved it down more than it simply fell. Jesse gasped in surprise and Boroslav yelled something in Ukrainian as the three of them suddenly felt the sensation of weightlessness. The elevator was falling so fast, there was a moment in which they all floated up into the air, disoriented and confused.

Mackenzie was the only one who was prepared, though. She allowed herself to lift off the floor, and then planted both of her feet against the wall behind her. Lining herself up, she pushed as hard as she could towards Boroslav. She swung her fist as hard as she could, following through on the momentum of her flying body, and her bionic fist caught Boroslav square on the jaw.

Two teeth flew out of Boroslav's mouth as his head was whipped to the side. Mackenzie didn't stop there, though. She grabbed a handful of his clothes in her fist, then continued to punch Boroslav repeatedly in the face, blood flying out of his nose and mouth with every blow from her hard, steel, fist.

Boroslav would not go down so easily though. He swung the gun he still held and connected with Mackenzie's cheek, sending her tumbling to the side. She fell against the floor, still feeling weightless as she began to float back up. Boroslav floated nearby, beginning to level his gun at her, snarling viciously.

Turning her face towards the camera, Mackenzie yelled, "Stop the lift!"

Instantly there was a loud screeching sound as the elevator's brakes kicked in and the fast descent immediately slowed. Boroslav and Jesse both fell to the floor, Jesse crying out once in pain as he landed on his wounded leg, and the gun in Boroslav's hand firing a shot as he hit the floor face-first, but the bullet whizzed harmlessly past Mackenzie and punched a hole in the wall, the thud of impact reverberating all around them.

"Ya vidrizhu sobi trakhanyy sertse!" Boroslav bellowed, scrambling to rise from the floor to his feet, blood pouring from a broken nose and more blood dribbling from his mouth.

Boroslav looked up at Mackenzie, his eyes blazing with intense fury, the longing for murder easily apparent. His teeth were bared in a vicious snarl as he began to rise to his feet, the gun still held in his hand. Mackenzie stared at those teeth, momentarily frozen as she remembered the way Lowe's blood had stained against them.

Suddenly, before Boroslav could push himself to his feet, Jesse hurled himself across the elevator and brought his elbow down hard on Boroslav's hand, crushing it against the elevator floor. Mackenzie heard a loud snap, like a handful of sticks being broken, then Boroslav roared in pain. Jesse lifted his elbow off Boroslav's broken hand and then slammed the same elbow into Boroslav's face. Boroslav instantly fell silent and slumped back to the floor, face down and completely unconscious.

Mackenzie and Jesse both lay on the floor, panting heavily from adrenaline. Jesse took the gun from Boroslav's hand and dragged himself away towards Mackenzie, staring at her in wonder.

"That was amazing," Jesse said, sounding impressed. "How'd you make the elevator do that?"

"It was SALINA," Mackenzie admitted. "Remember she told us she was able to access systems in this shuttle? I told her what to do through the security camera."

"Nice," Jesse replied, nodding his approval. "How'd you know she was watching?"

"I didn't. I just hoped she was."

Jesse grinned, then laughed. "Well, it paid off. There's that potential I told you about."

Mackenzie smiled awkwardly, just happy that Boroslav hadn't killed them both. She then rose to her feet and pulled Jesse up with her. Mackenzie approached Boroslav's unconscious body and began searching his pockets. It didn't take her long to find what she was looking for. She retrieved the key card from Boroslav's pocket and stood up beside Jesse again.

"Can you walk by yourself?" she asked.

"Yeah," Jesse nodded. "A bit slower than usual, but I'll manage."

Mackenzie nodded, feeling her heart racing, both from the fight with Boroslav and what she was about to do.

"I think I should go get Ileana first," she began. "After I'm off the lift, you go get Abbas and Bell. I'll move slower with her, so I should probably get a head start."

"Can you manage on your own?" Jesse asked, sounding concerned. "Maybe we should go get the others then get Ileana together."

Mackenzie shook her head. "It won't be long before people figure out something's up. Scylla might even be on her way back here now, to help interrogate me. We need to move fast and we can't waste time doubling back. I'll get Ileana and meet you in the garage. Whoever gets there first, grab a truck and wait for the others. Got it?"

Jesse nodded, then smiled and took Mackenzie's hand in his own. Squeezing her fingers, he said, "You never cease to impress me, Miller."

Mackenzie gave Jesse a small smile in return. Then she looked down at Boroslav, frowning.

"Should we, er..." Mackenzie began, not knowing how to ask the question. "Should we... You know? Kill him?"

Jesse scowled down at Boroslav, letting go of Mackenzie's hand. "I want to. Believe me, I really want to. For Lowe, for Ileana, for everything he's done. But if we kill him like this, we're no better than he is."

"What if he wakes up?" Mackenzie asked, unsure if she was just asking a simple question or arguing a case for putting a bullet in the back of Boroslav's skull.

"Tell SALINA to lock the elevator doors once we're out," Jesse suggested. "If he does wake up before we get out of here, he won't be able to stop us. I'll take Abbas and Bell down to the garage in one of the other elevators."

Mackenzie nodded, a little relieved that Jesse was against murdering an unconscious man.

"SALINA," Mackenzie began, looking up to the security camera. "Can you take the elevator to the floor with the infirmary? Once I get out, take Jesse to the floor holding our friends. When he's off, make sure Boroslav can't get out. Lock the doors, shut down the elevator, just make sure he can't get out and stop us from leaving. Understand?"

Of course, SALINA couldn't reply, but when the elevator started moving on its own, Mackenzie took that as confirmation SALINA got the message.

"You should take the gun," Jesse said, holding it out for Mackenzie. "You'll be by yourself, trying to move a paraplegic. You'll need something to defend yourself."

Mackenzie nodded, carefully taking the gun from Jesse's hand. The elevator slowed and stopped, the doors opening to reveal the corridor leading to the infirmary. Mackenzie took a deep breath as she looked down the length of the corridor, to where Ileana was being held captive, unaware that a rescue attempt was underway. Forcing herself to smile, Mackenzie turned to Jesse, hoping that her face didn't look as worried as she felt.

"No going back now, right?" she said, attempting to sound nonchalant.

Jesse placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Mackenzie was suddenly aware of how closely they stood together.

"Don't worry," Jesse said encouragingly. "You've got this. I'll see you soon."

Nodding, trying to hold on to that encouragement, Mackenzie walked out of the elevator and into the corridor. She turned back as she heard the elevator doors sliding closed, just in time to see Jesse giving her one last smile before the doors separated them. Mackenzie hoped she would see him smiling at her like that again.

Turning her mind to the task at hand, Mackenzie quickly checked the gun to make sure there were still rounds in the magazine. Once she was sure she had a fully functioning weapon, she started down the corridor at a light jog, heading towards the infirmary.

Jesse heard the ping of the elevator as it arrived on the floor that had previously been his prison. The doors slid open and Jesse glanced down at Boroslav, making sure he was still out cold. Scowling at the bastard who had killed Lowe, Jesse took a moment to spit on him, then limped out of the elevator. He didn't look back as he heard the doors close, confident that SALINA would make sure Boroslav would be in there for a while.

Despite his injury, it didn't take Jesse long to hobble his way to Abbas and Bell. When Jesse opened the door to the cells and they saw him coming, they immediately reacted with shock at the sight of his bloody, bandaged, leg.

"What happened?" Abbas asked hurriedly. "Are you all right?"

"What about Mackenzie?" Bell asked.

"I'm fine," Jesse grinned, ignoring the throbbing and burning pain in his thigh. "And Mackenzie's fine too. She took down Boroslav herself."

Abbas' eyes widened at this. "Really?"

"Woo!" Bell shrieked excitedly, pumping a fist in the air. "Girl power, bitches!"

Jesse pulled the key card out of his pocket and touched it to the panel beside Abbas' cell, the door opening instantly. Jesse then turned to Bell and let her out too.

"She's getting Ileana?" Abbas asked.

"Yeah," Jesse nodded. "She said to go straight to the garage, though. If she doesn't beat us there, we grab a truck and wait for her. We saw some armored vehicles down there before, three mechanics working on them. I didn't see any weapons on them, so we should be able to take them down if we have to."

"Shouldn't we help Mackenzie?" Abbas asked, sounding worried.

"You don't give her enough credit," Jesse grinned. "She can handle herself. Besides, if we change the plan now, we risk screwing things up. So come on, let's move!"

Jesse turned and started making his way back towards the elevators, Abbas and Bell following behind him, but as they approached the cell-bay doors, they suddenly opened themselves. Jesse, Abbas and Bell all froze when they saw someone walking through, who stopped suddenly when she saw the three of them out of their cells.

"Wha-?" Min-Hee gasped. She was holding a tray of bowls. She had evidently thought to provide them with more food, but hadn't expected to see them roaming free.

Jesse, Abbas and Bell stared at Min-Hee, who stared back at them. No one spoke. No one moved. Until, after a long and nerve-wracking minute, Min-Hee glanced over her shoulder. Then she looked back at the three escaping prisoners. She then stepped aside and jerked her head over her shoulder, gesturing towards the elevators.

"Go," she whispered. "Hurry."

After only a heartbeat of confused hesitation, Jesse walked past Min-Hee, followed by Abbas. Bell brought up the rear and, as she passed Min-Hee, offered a whispered, but grateful, "Thank you."

Min-Hee nodded once, watching them as they all stepped into the elevator she had just arrived in, staring at them until the doors closed.

Mackenzie stepped into the infirmary to find it was mostly dark. Only a dim light filled the room, as though it was in a perpetual state of night-time. Keeping the gun ready, holding it in both hands, Mackenzie carefully looked around the room. She hadn't seen any medical staff during her brief stay the previous night, but now was not the time to assume anything. She did not need some nurse screaming for help, or a doctor trying to wrestle the gun away from her, or any combination of disasters that could occur if she was spotted.

It appeared as though no one was there, though. Mackenzie supposed care for the ill wasn't one of Scylla's top priorities.

Stepping farther into the poorly lit room, Mackenzie saw Ileana, right where she had been last night. Her eyes were closed as she lay on the bed, like she was sleeping. Mackenzie hurried over to her, lowering the gun to her side as she moved.

"Ileana!" Mackenzie whispered urgently. "Ileana!"

Ileana opened her eyes and looked up into Mackenzie's with surprise.

"Mackenzie?" she whispered back. "What are you doing here? Are you hurt again?"

"No," Mackenzie replied. "We're getting out of here. And I'm taking you with us."

Ileana's eyes widened slightly, but she seemed dubious. "You can't just walk out of this place, Mackenzie. There are guards, and Boroslav..."

"Boroslav is taken care of," Mackenzie said. "But we have to go now. We don't have a lot of time."

Without waiting for Ileana to reply, Mackenzie slid an arm under Ileana's shoulders and attempted to lift her into a sitting position.

"Mackenzie, what are you-?" Ileana began, but suddenly broke off. Then she shouted, "Look out!"

Mackenzie turned her head in time to see someone rush at her, a shrill shrieking sound penetrating her ears. Before she had time to react, Vasilii charged into her and slammed her against the metal bedside table. Mackenzie cried out as a sharp pain knifed into her lower back where the corner of the table had struck her, but didn't have time to think about it as Vasilii started flailing maniacally against her, attacking like a wild animal, thrashing and clawing and shrieking all the while.

Mackenzie tried to shove Vasilii off of her, but despite his frail appearance, he was strengthened by a primal urge to attack and would not budge. Mackenzie tried to raise the gun between them, but Vasilii grabbed her arm and, snarling and shrieking, bit down on her wrist until blood ran between his teeth and Mackenzie screamed in pain.

"Get off her!" Ileana was shouting.

Vasilii bit harder and harder until Mackenzie couldn't help but let go of the gun. It fell to the floor where, whether intentionally or not, Vasilii kicked it across the smooth floor.

Forcing herself to do something, Mackenzie managed to raise one knee between her and Vasilii's bodies. Then she pushed with all her strength, sending Vasilii sprawling backwards. He fell onto his back and, still shrieking his high-pitched, gasping, shriek, he began to climb back to his feet.

"Stay down, Vasilii," Mackenzie panted, holding one hand over her bleeding wrist. "We're leaving."

"What did you do with Mikhail?" Vasilii screamed shrilly. "Where is he?"

Before Mackenzie could reply, Vasilii rushed at her again. She tried to grab him, but his momentum carried them both back into the metal table, then as they struggled with one another, they tumbled over the empty bed beside Ileana's and fell to the floor in a writhing mess of arms and legs, dragging sheets and pillows down with them.

Vasilii scrambled up and sat on top of Mackenzie's stomach, pinning her to the floor. He then began pounding his fists down on her, hitting her chest, shoulders, arms, face, neck, anything he could reach, shrieking wildly.

"Bad!" he screeched. "Bad! Bad! Bad!"

Ileana was screaming at Vasilii to stop and Mackenzie was trying to shield her face with her arms.

A sudden surge of adrenaline and the human instinct to survive kicked in and Mackenzie thrust one fists upward and caught Vasilii in the throat, just the same as she had once seen Jesse Greaves do. Vasilii gasped and his eyes bulged as his airways were momentarily closed and he stopped pummelling Mackenzie to grab at his own neck. Mackenzie took the opportunity to quickly raise one leg and knee Vasilii hard between the legs. Vasilii's eyes bulged further and he groaned loudly. Mackenzie shoved him back and he fell off of her, gasping and moaning.

Panting hard, Mackenzie began to stand, but Vasilii was still enraged. He kicked out at her and hit her hard in the ankle. Mackenzie cried out in pain and fell back to the floor beside Vasilii. An instant later, Mackenzie felt him close the fingers of one hand around her throat, beginning to choke the life out of her.

"Bad," Vasilii hissed, his face twitching uncontrollably. "Bad!"

Mackenzie grabbed at his hand, trying to force it away, but Vasilii's surprising strength was too much. Mackenzie began to kick wildly, trying to shake Vasilii off, but he held firm. Without thinking, Mackenzie began to feel around blindly, reaching for something, anything, that she could use as a weapon. She longed for the gun to find its way into her hand, but she knew it had been kicked too far away. Still, she felt around, her fingernails clawing at the floor while Ileana screamed at Vasilii to stop. When Mackenzie's fingers finally closed around something, she realized it was only a fallen pillow.

The room was beginning to grow dark as Vasilii tightened his grip around Mackenzie's throat. Letting go of the pillow, Mackenzie clawed at Vasilii's hand again, trying to force it away.

Her bionic hand found its way under Vasilii's pinky finger all of a sudden. Mackenzie pried it away from her throat and held it tightly. Then, without even thinking about it, she twisted his finger as hard as she could.

There was a snap that echoed in Mackenzie's ears, followed by a loud shriek of pain. Vasilii pulled his hand away from Mackenzie's throat, clutching his broken finger, while Mackenzie gasped in a lungful of air and immediately began to cough loud, body-shaking, coughs.

Vasilii was still screaming in pain, writhing on his back on the floor, clutching his broken finger, tears streaming from his eyes. Mackenzie knew he would come at her again the moment he got over the pain in his hand. He wouldn't stop until she was dead. So, reaching blindly around her once more, keeping her eyes on Vasilii, Mackenzie snatched up the pillow.

Throwing herself on top of Vasilii, Mackenzie sat on his chest and pinned his arms down with her knees. Vasilii shrieked in pain and anger, struggling to reach up and grab Mackenzie, but her knees kept his hands away from her. In the next instant, Mackenzie pushed the pillow down on Vasilii's face.

Vasilii's screams were instantly muffled, but Mackenzie heard them turn from anger, to surprise, then fear. Vasilii kicked and bucked, trying to shake Mackenzie off. His hands reached for the pillow, but the way Mackenzie had pinned his arms, he couldn't reach. He flailed wildly, his muffled screams boring through Mackenzie's ears and straight to her soul.

"Stop," Mackenzie whispered, realizing she was begging. "Please. Just stop!"

But Vasilii wouldn't stop. He still kicked and clawed and thrashed, but he was unable to shake Mackenzie off. Until the fight began to slowly drain out of him. His arms began to go limp. He stopped kicking. His screams died in his throat. Mackenzie still held the pillow over his face, tears beginning to burn in her eyes, but she knew she had no choice.

Finally, Vasilii stopped fighting. He fell limp beneath Mackenzie and there were no more screams.

Mackenzie kept the pillow down over Vasilii's face for a while longer, panting heavily, her throat aching, her eyes burning. Then she slowly lifted the pillow away from Vasilii's face.

Vasilii stared up at her with glassy, vacant eyes. Mackenzie swore they looked judgmental, accusing. Vasilii's mouth was open wide, his final scream of fear frozen on his face as he died.

"Oh God," Mackenzie whispered, dropping the pillow aside and bringing her hands up to her mouth in horror. "Oh God. Oh God. Oh God."

Mackenzie scrambled off of Vasilii's body and crawled backwards until her back hit the wall. She then drew her knees up to her chest and hugged her legs, staring at the boy she had just killed, rocking back and forth, her eyes wide.

"Oh God," she said again. "I killed him. I killed him. Oh God, what have I done?"

"Mackenzie," Ileana's voice whispered from nearby. "You did what you had to do. It was him or you."

"But I... But..." Mackenzie stammered, feeling like she was about to be sick. "I killed him. I didn't have to kill him, did I? I could have... I could have..."

"You saw what he was like," Ileana insisted. "He wasn't going to stop until you were dead. You had no choice."

Mackenzie nodded, still rocking on the floor, but she wasn't certain. She couldn't help but wonder if there was another way, something she missed, or if Vasilii lay dead on the floor now because a part of Mackenzie had wanted to kill him. The idea made her gag and she covered her mouth with one hand, squeezing her eyes shut tight so she wouldn't have to look at Vasilii's body anymore. Her body shook with the effort it took to not throw up.

"You need to get out of here, Mackenzie," Ileana said. "Boroslav won't be happy about this. If you think he's sadistic now, wait until he finds out Vasilii's dead."

Mackenzie suddenly remembered why she had come to the infirmary. Glancing one more time at Vasilii's body, into his vacant eyes, Mackenzie forced herself to her feet and quickly ran to Ileana's side.

"Come on," Mackenzie whispered. "I'm getting you out of here."

Mackenzie slid an arm beneath Ileana's shoulders and her other arm under Ileana's legs. She was about to lift her off the bed when Ileana started shaking her head.

"No," Ileana said firmly. "You can't take me with you."

"I can and I will," Mackenzie said firmly. "I won't leave you to live like this."

"Why?" Ileana demanded, sounding angry and impatient. "You don't owe me anything."

"What they've done to you is terrible!" Mackenzie hissed, scarcely believing Ileana was acting like this. "You're coming with me."

"Don't kid yourself, Mackenzie," Ileana scoffed. "We both know why you're so determined to save me, and it's not entirely about what Scylla and Boroslav have done to me. It's about what your father did."

Mackenzie froze, still ready to lift Ileana off the bed, but suddenly unable to do so.

"That's not true," Mackenzie said.

"Yeah it is," Ileana replied. "You feel so guilty about what your father did to me that you'll ruin your entire escape plan to get me out of here with you. Well, did you think about how you're supposed to move me? Are you going to carry me out of here?"

"If I have to," Mackenzie snapped.

"And what if we're seen?" Ileana asked. "What if a guard catches us? What if Scylla sees you? You won't be able to defend yourself. And if you get captured or killed, where does that leave me? Right back here in this bed, that's where. You can't take me with you, Miller. You just can't."

"I won't leave you like this!" Mackenzie insisted. "You can believe this is about my father all you like, but I refuse to let someone live this way."

Ileana suddenly smiled. When she spoke, her tone was still scathing, but it had softened. Her anger was ebbing away, though her resentment remained.

"You won't have to leave me like this," Ileana said with a small smile. "You can still save me."

"How?" Mackenzie asked, confused. "If I can't take you with me, how am I supposed to save you?"

Ileana looked past Mackenzie and jerked her chin across the room. Turning her head to look, Mackenzie saw Ileana was gesturing towards something on the floor. Something Mackenzie had dropped when Vasilii attacked.

"The gun?" Mackenzie asked, confused.

"Yes," Ileana breathed. "Take the gun. Then kill me."

Mackenzie felt her blood turn cold as she looked back to Ileana.

"What?" Mackenzie asked in disbelief. "No! I can't do that!"

"You have to!" Ileana snapped, angry again. "You can't take me with you, Mackenzie. And even if you could, I don't want you to. Twenty years, Mackenzie. Twenty years! That's how long I've been here. How long I've suffered, how long I haven't had control over my own body or my own life. But that ends today, right now. You pick up that gun, Mackenzie Miller. You pick it up and you shoot me in the head. Save my life."

Mackenzie was shaking her head, but she couldn't help remembering something Jesse had once said to her. When Inglis had been trapped under the ubergrades, dying a slow and horrible death, Mackenzie had asked if anyone tried to save him. Jesse had replied with a cool detachment.

"I did save him," Jesse had said. "One bullet, right in the head. That's what saved him."

Still, Mackenzie heard a strangled sob escape her throat as she shook her head at Ileana.

"No," Mackenzie begged. "I can't. I can't do that."

"You have to," Ileana replied, speaking softly now. The anger had left her completely. She seemed calm and at peace with her decision. "I'd do it myself if I could, but it has to be you. You know you won't get out of here if you try and take me with you. And even if you did manage to get me out, what then? How can I survive out there like this? I'll be no use to anyone. I won't stay in this bed another minute. Do you understand? I can't do it anymore. I need you to be my hands. I need you to kill me. Please, Mackenzie. Please."

As a single tear escaped from Ileana's eyes, Mackenzie felt her own tears flow down over her cheeks. Finally, Mackenzie nodded, but she couldn't say anything else. If she opened her mouth to speak, she would break down into uncontrollable tears.

Ileana smiled up at Mackenzie, a look of gratitude on her face. Mackenzie stepped away from Ileana and turned towards the gun. It had slid a fair way across the room, but Mackenzie felt she reached it far too quickly. Hesitating for a moment as sobs gripped her throat and threatened to tear her apart, Mackenzie reached down and picked up the gun. It felt foreign in her hands, and far heavier than it was before.

"It's okay, Mackenzie," Ileana whispered as Mackenzie returned to her bedside. "I want this. It's okay."

"I..." Mackenzie began, but stopped as she squeezed her eyes shut and looked away, suddenly convinced she couldn't do this. But a part of her had always known she was never going to succeed in getting Ileana out. This was how it was always going to be. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," Ileana whispered back, another tear trickling from her eyes. "You're saving me."

Mackenzie nodded, but felt like doubt and guilt was about to destroy her. She wanted to run, she wanted to throw down the gun and flee, but she knew she wouldn't do that. One way or another, Ileana was not going to suffer any longer.

As if on its own accord, Mackenzie's arm raised and aimed the gun at Ileana's head. Ileana gasped a little as a tiny sob escaped her lips, but she still smiled.

"Thank you," Ileana whispered, closing her eyes. "Thank you."

Pressing her lips as tightly together as she could so as to stop herself from crying, Mackenzie swallowed hard and took careful aim. Her hand was shaking badly and she was afraid that she might miss, even from this short distance. For a split second, Mackenzie lowered the gun, as though to not follow through on Ileana's request, but then she forced herself to keep the gun aimed at Ileana's smiling face.

Finally, Mackenzie pulled the trigger.

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

The three mechanics never saw the hits coming. Jesse, Bell and Abbas each took one down with precise strikes to the back of their heads, using tools they had picked up nearby, rendering the mechanics unconscious at once. They dragged the bodies out of sight and hid them inside one of the vehicles they had been working on, then climbed into the armored truck with the mounted Thunder Gun. Bell automatically climbed into the driver's seat while Jesse and Abbas took seats in the back space.

It was far more cramped than Rhiannon had been, but they weren't looking for comfort. There were eight small, uncomfortable, seats lining the walls in the back, which Jesse and Abbas sat on, and there was a sliding hatch in the ceiling, which led up to the mounted Thunder Gun. Jesse examined it, guessing the user would simply open the hatch and stand up, sticking their upper body out through the opening to man the gun. He wanted to take a moment to familiarise himself with how to handle the gun, but knew sticking his head out now would risk getting them all caught.

There was also another hatch in the floor. Abbas slid it open to see what was inside and uttered a quiet sound of surprise when he saw the contents. A wide selection of weapons and survival gear was packed inside. Guns, ready-to-eat meals, some water, a couple of radios, everything they would need to make it back to Town.

"We might just stand a chance," Abbas grinned.

The minutes ticked by painfully slow. Bell tapped her foot rapidly on the floor as nerves began to get to her. Jesse sat stoic and motionless, staring at the wall. Abbas was looking out the armored windows, searching for a sign of Mackenzie.

"What's taking so long?" Bell asked nervously, biting on her thumbnail.

"She should have been here by now," Abbas frowned, peering out of the truck between the slits in the armor. "What if she's been caught?"

"She hasn't been," Jesse said determinedly.

"But if she has?" Abbas insisted. "We need to consider that possibility."

"You're not saying to leave her behind, are you?" Bell snapped.

"Of course not," Abbas snapped back. "We never leave someone behind. We might need to sneak back in, do some recon."

"I'll go," Jesse said at once, already beginning to rise to his feet, but Abbas placed a firm hand on his shoulder and pushed him back down into his seat.

"No," Abbas said sternly. "You're injured. I'll go. You stay here."

"If Mackenzie's in trouble, I'm going," Jesse argued. "She saved our asses, I owe her."

"We all owe her," Abbas countered. "But you're in no condition to help anyone. I'll-"

"Hey!" Bell interrupted excitedly. "There she is!"

Abbas and Jesse both hurried towards the front of the truck and looked out the windows to where Bell was pointing. Sure enough, Mackenzie was creeping out of an elevator, looking around cautiously.

"Where's Ileana?" Bell asked quietly.

Mackenzie glanced around for a sign of any guards. When she felt mostly certain no one was around, she looked towards the vehicles she and Jesse had seen earlier.

They must be here by now, Mackenzie thought.

Sure enough, as soon as she looked in the direction of the trucks, one of them flashed their lights at her and the engine roared to life.

Mackenzie hurried over as quickly and quietly as she could, still holding the gun in one hand, her muscles coiled to react at the slightest sign of danger. She reached the truck and hurried around to the back, where the rear door opened and Jesse leaned out, offering a hand to help pull her in.

"We were starting to worry," Jesse said once Mackenzie was inside. Then he looked her over and his eyes widened in surprise when he saw the bruises around her throat. "What happened?"

"Where's Ileana?" Abbas asked.

Mackenzie closed her eyes and forced away the images that floated just beneath the surface of her mind. She couldn't think about it, not now. There would be time for guilt later. Right now, they had to escape.

"She's dead," Mackenzie said simply.

"What?" Bell gasped. "How?"

"It doesn't matter how, she's just dead," Mackenzie snapped. "Are we getting out of here or what?"

There was a moment of worried silence as Jesse, Abbas and Bell traded concerned looks, but no one questioned Mackenzie any further. Everyone took their seats and Bell began driving them out of the garage, towards the light that spilled in through the enormous doors.

"You're hurt," Jesse pointed out, gesturing to Mackenzie's throat. "What happened?"

Again, Mackenzie felt sick with guilt. Vasilii's lifeless face swam in front of her eyes, until she forced that away too. She was about to dodge the question, but when she looked at Jesse, saw the worry in his eyes, she suddenly felt incapable of lying to him. Not when he was so concerned for her.

"Vasilii," Mackenzie whispered. "He... he tried to stop me. He was going to kill me, Jesse. But... but I killed him."

Abbas ran his hands over his face. "Oh God."

Jesse nodded. "You did what you had to do."

Did I? Mackenzie wondered. Or was it what I wanted to do?

As if reading her mind, Jesse reached across the space between them and gently gripped Mackenzie's knee.

"Hey," he said gently, but sternly, the tone of his voice making Mackenzie look into his dark eyes. "It's all right. I know how bad it feels when you're forced into that situation. Inglis, when I... It sucks. You feel alone, like no one gets it, like maybe even you're an evil person. But you're not, Mackenzie. You did what you had to do to survive. Him or you. No one can fault you for that."

Mackenzie stared back into Jesse's eyes as he stared into hers. No one else said a word, but Mackenzie didn't want them to. She wanted to lose herself in Jesse's voice, let all her thoughts drift away and only hear him tell her it was all right.

"Guys?" Bell said from the driver's seat, breaking the silence. "We might have a problem."

Abbas hurried to Bell's side and looked out the windows. "Oh, crap," he uttered.

Mackenzie and Jesse also moved towards the front of the truck to see what was going on. When Mackenzie saw what the problem was, she felt her stomach lurch as though it was trying to escape her body.

They were driving steadily towards the large open doors that led outside, but on the other side was not the empty expanse of dilapidated shacks that were home to Scylla's slaves. Instead, they were driving straight towards a group of five trucks that were pulling up outside. All full of armed soldiers.

"What do we do?" Bell asked.

"Drive casually," Abbas replied. "As far as they know, we're just another crew heading out."

Everyone held their breath as they drove out of the evac shuttle. They drove straight into the middle of the convoy, driving slowly, as though they were in no hurry at all. Mackenzie saw one soldier look at them and felt her heart stop for a moment, but the soldier simply gave them a casual wave, as though he thought he knew them.

"They can't see inside," Mackenzie pointed out, reminding herself as much as the others. "They don't know who we are."

"Just everyone keep calm and it'll stay that way," Jesse said.

Their progress through the other trucks was slow. Bell kept the truck at a crawl so as to not attract any unwanted attention. Some soldiers looked their way, but most ignored them. It appeared Abbas was right and they all assumed it was just another truck full of their comrades heading out on patrol. The soldiers and their trucks were heading into the shuttle, passing the stolen vehicle without concern. Mackenzie felt her heart lift with hope.

"We're gonna make it," she whispered, scarcely believing it.

However, she immediately knew she had spoken too soon. Because no later than had the words escaped her lips, another truck sped from around one of the prison blocks, screeching to a halt right in front of them, kicking up sand and dust. Bell hit the brakes so as to not crash into them, and once both vehicles had come to a stop, a familiar face exited the vehicle ahead.

"Ah, shit," Jesse spat. "Scylla."

Scylla was staring at their stolen truck with an expression halfway between surprised and furious. She began to storm towards them, scowling.

"What do we do?" Mackenzie asked.

"Sit tight," Abbas said. "She can't see us. Let's wait and see what she does before we make a move."

Jesse frowned and then vanished into the back of the truck while everyone else watched Scylla. She stormed around to the side of the truck and then banged her fist against the armor.

"What are you doing?" Scylla demanded. "I didn't order any more soldiers to the site."

Bell glanced over her shoulder at Abbas, who was glaring at Scylla with his lips pressed tightly together. Bell slowly turned back around to face forward. Mackenzie noticed her hand slowly move to the gearstick, her fingers tightening around it.

Scylla was glaring at them with narrowed eyes now, trying to peer between the slits in the armor, trying to see who was inside.

Jesse suddenly reappeared beside Mackenzie, two large items in his arms. Before Mackenzie could look at them, Jesse thrust one into her arms, then the other to Abbas. Mackenzie realized they were guns, but not like she had ever seen. Hers was like the rifles she had trained with, only this seemed much larger and heavier. Glancing around, Mackenzie saw that Abbas' gun looked different in shape and size. His was a long rifle-like weapon, but on the side of the gun was a a large rectangular box that looked like it was some kind of battery. There was a bluish-green glow coming from inside the box, making it look strangely alien. The gun Mackenzie held looked more like a conventional rifle, only much larger and seemingly powerful enough to punch a hole straight through the hull of the shuttle.

"You take the HEL," Jesse said to Mackenzie.

"Hell?" Mackenzie asked, confused.

"H-E-L," Jesse spelled out as Scylla continued to bang on the side of the truck, drawing attention from her soldiers. "High Energy Laser. The kick isn't as bad as you'd expect, but treat it like it could shoot right out of your hands, like we trained. And don't point it at anything you don't want destroyed. Abbas, you've got a mini-railgun. It's slow to fire, but you'll only need one shot per target, guaranteed."

Abbas nodded, temporarily relinquishing his command to Jesse, who was the weapon expert and tactician.

"Get out of there!" Scylla demanded loudly. More soldiers were starting to head towards them now, but they still seemed unsure if they should be ready to shoot or not, most holding their guns uncertainly. "Get out! Now! Who are you?"

"I'm gonna get on the Thunder Gun," Jesse said hurriedly. "Bell, when I say so, you plant your foot down. Don't stop for anything. We're gonna head straight for the canyon and go out the way we came in. Follow the river towards the cliffs, hopefully we can get rid of anyone chasing us before we get to the canyon. Everyone got it?"

Mackenzie and the others all nodded. Adrenaline began to course through Mackenzie's body and she held her gun like it was her old teddy from when she was a child. She locked her eyes on Scylla and felt as though, in that moment, Scylla could see her. Mackenzie felt Scylla's piercing eyes on her face, felt the desire to see Mackenzie in pain. Mackenzie watched as Scylla pulled out her gun, having figured out that things weren't quite right. Mackenzie felt in the waistline of her pants for the hard drive she had taken from the Panspermia, reassuring herself that it was still there, and that stealing it would strike the biggest blow against Scylla. With it, they would know where to find water, and Scylla would never get the plans she wanted.

Suddenly, a voice crackled loudly over Scylla's radio. One that was all too familiar, and far from pleasant.

"Scylla!" Boroslav roared over the radio. "Scylla, they're escaping! The Diviners, they're escaping!"

"Book it," Jesse said to Bell, strangely calm.

Bell slammed her foot down on the accelerator and the tires all spun in the dirt, kicking up dust and stones at the soldiers behind them, who yelled in shock and outrage, shielding their eyes with their arms. Scylla leaped back and aimed her pistol at where Bell sat, and then started firing. Each round bounced off the armored hull like marbles being thrown at a tank, and then the tires found their grip and the truck lurched forward. Bell drove straight at the vehicle Scylla had arrived in and pushed through, hitting it so hard that they almost tipped it over. Mackenzie held on tight inside the armored truck as it shook violently, but then they were clear of the blockage and were speeding towards the river.

"Get after them!" Scylla screamed at her soldiers.

Everyone instantly leaped into the nearest vehicle and sped off in pursuit of the truck, everyone armed to the teeth. Scylla waved down the last truck in the convoy, which skidded to a halt beside her. Scylla climbed into the cabin, shouting at the driver to go, and they sped off after the others.

"They're catching up!" Abbas reported loudly from the rear of the truck, peering out the rear window. Turning towards Bell, he shouted, "You might want to go faster, Bell!"

"This truck is shit on wheels!" Bell shouted back, turning the wheel as they reached the river, heading in the direction of the cliffs, back where they had come through the canyon. "It's the armor! We're too heavy! We're already at top speed!"

"They'll be on top of us soon," Jesse said flatly. "Bell, don't stop going, no matter what. Abbas, Mackenzie, you two get to the back of the truck. You're our cover, keep them off of us. Mackenzie, you lay down a constant stream of fire to make them keep their distance. Abbas, pick a target and take it out."

"Got it," Abbas nodded, moving to the rear of the truck and opening the narrow window that allowed soldiers to shoot outside through the armor plating.

"Jesse, I..." Mackenzie began, feeling nauseous. "I don't know if I can kill anyone else."

Jesse regarded her for a moment, as thought examining her, then nodded. "It's okay, you won't have to. Just damage their trucks, keep them from getting alongside us. If they get beside us, they might force us into the river or get a clear shot at Bell. Just make them keep their distance. Abbas and I will take care of any other threats. Got it?"

Mackenzie hesitated, looking at Jesse, wondering if she should say something, but wasn't sure what. Then, nodding her understanding, she switched off the safety on her gun and joined Abbas at the rear of the truck, sticking the barrel of her HEL rifle out and aiming at the soldiers who were quickly catching up.

"Wait until you've got a good shot," Jesse yelled as he opened the hatch to the Thunder Gun, the rush of wind suddenly filling their ears. "Abbas, you fire first, just to get their attention. You've only got three rounds, though, so make 'em count. Mackenzie, you provide cover fire until Abbas is ready to shoot again. It should take about fifty seconds between shots."

"That long?" Abbas asked, but was already taking aim.

"As soon as Abbas takes out his target," Jesse began, talking to Mackenzie, "you start shooting."

"Okay," Mackenzie replied, nodding. Her heart was racing, but she also felt strangely calm. She didn't know if it was the adrenaline or some other primal urge to simply survive that kept her in control, but she was glad for it. Anything to distract her from Vasilii and Ileana.

"When you're ready, Abbas," Jesse said.

Abbas slowly let out a breath as he took careful aim. The gun hummed gently, powering up. The pursuing trucks were gaining on them quickly, the nearest one within thirty feet. Two soldiers were standing on the back, holding their rifles, getting ready to shoot.

Before they could, though, Abbas shot first.

The sound of the mini-rail gun firing was like an explosion of electricity. The air crackled and the gun kicked so hard in Abbas' hands he nearly fell over. The trail of the bullet seemed to be pure energy, leaving in its wake a line of spiralling blue and white light that faded away like smoke in a breeze. Mackenzie watched the spiral as it shot quickly through the air, faster than her eyes could follow, but she saw where it struck the nearest truck.

The front of the truck instantly blew apart, as though it was made of only cardboard. A heartbeat later, the entire truck exploded into a fiery ball that was launched up off the ground, flaming bodies of already dead soldiers tumbling away from the wreck as it flipped through the air. It seemed all eyes were on the flaming truck as it fell back to the ground, where it crashed heavily, sparks and flaming pieces of steel going everywhere. The truck bounced once, rolled through the air, crashed again, then cartwheeled into the river, where it splashed and sizzled loudly.

"Open fire!" Jesse roared.

Mackenzie tore her gaze from the truck that had been annihilated by only one shot and started squeezing the trigger on her HEL rifle, aiming at the remaining pursuing trucks, while Abbas ducked out of sight to allow the mini-rail gun time to power up again. Mackenzie watched a stream of red light that seemed hot enough to burn the very air fire out of the end of her gun. She was aiming too low, however, and fired several bursts into the sand, which instantly crackled with heat and turned to glass. Adjusting her hold on the rifle, Mackenzie took more careful aim and started firing at the trucks.

Their pursuers were being more cautious now, having seen one of their own explode and then the burning laser beam firing in their direction. They swerved and kept their distance, making it harder for Mackenzie to hit them directly. One stream of fire raked down the side of one truck, burning a long hole in the doors, but the truck kept coming, despite the scorched steel that was bending and breaking.

Abbas was quietly urging his gun to finish charging, a look of grim determination on his face. Mackenzie saw one of the trucks farthest to her right suddenly pick up speed and rush ahead of the others, quickly catching up. They were clearly planning on getting beside them. If they got that close, Jesse was completely exposed on the Thunder Gun. They could kill him, or do as Jesse predicted and force them into the river.

Turning her gun, Mackenzie took careful aim and fired. The laser beam burst from her rifle and struck the rear tire. The thick rubber instantly exploded and, even though she couldn't see it, the heat from the laser melted the steel axels and fused all moving parts together. The truck immediately lost control and spun to the right, but it was going too fast for such a sharp turn. It tipped over and then flipped, tumbling over and over, the other trucks swerving to avoid it, until it came to a stop on its roof, acrid smoke rising from the ruin.

"Nice shot, Miller!" Jesse shouted from the turret.

The gun in Abbas' hands suddenly beeped loudly and a green light flashed on the side.

"Charged!" Abbas announced.

Mackenzie moved away from the window, allowing Abbas to take her place. Abbas steadied himself, remembering the powerful kick of the weapon, and aimed at one of the remaining three trucks.

Abbas pulled the trigger and the bluish-white trail of the powerful bullet shot through the air. At the exact moment Abbas fired, however, the truck he had targeted suddenly swerved to the left, and the bullet soared by, barely missing them by inches. It struck the ground far behind them and a plume of sand and dirt and rocks exploded out of the ground and into the air, like lava erupting from a volcano.

"Dammit!" Abbas roared. "I missed!"

"Don't worry," Jesse shouted back. "I got 'em."

As the enemy truck drew closer, Mackenzie could distinctly see the faces of the soldiers on the back, all of them glaring back at her. One lifted his gun and started firing, but Mackenzie ducked back out of sight as bullets bounced off the armor plating. An instant later, Jesse swivelled the Thunder Gun in the direction of the truck that had opened fire. The driver of that truck saw Jesse at the gun and his concentration on driving turned into an expression of horror. He started turning the wheel, trying to get out of range, but Jesse had already pulled the trigger.

The resounding boom that emanated from the Thunder Gun was just as deafening as Mackenzie remembered, though they were slightly protected within the truck, the thick armor softening the brunt of the shot. The pursuing truck, however, had no such protection.

The side of the truck crumpled as though it had been t-boned by a semi. The truck bent at the point of impact as the powerful shock waves slammed into it, lifting it completely off the ground. The soldiers who had been standing on the back were flying through the air, blood pouring from their destroyed ears and eyes. The truck flipped completely over and landed hard on its roof, ploughing through the sand until it finally came to a stop, bent and broken.

"Two left!" Jesse reported.

"They're keeping their distance," Mackenzie said, noticing the last two trucks weren't trying to get any closer.

"I guess they're the smart ones," Abbas replied, smiling grimly.

Mackenzie peered out at the remaining two trucks, then saw a familiar face glaring back at her from the cabin of one. Scylla met her gaze, her expression twisted with fury. Mackenzie glared back at her, grinding her teeth.

Without thinking, without hesitation, Mackenzie turned her HEL rifle towards the truck Scylla rode in. She lined up Scylla's snarling face in her sights, slowly exhaled, and then squeezed the trigger.

This time, though, no bright fiery light appeared from the barrel of the gun. The rifle hummed loudly, like a spaceship powering up, but then the sound died and the rifle began to grow hot in Mackenzie's hands.

"Ahh!" Mackenzie cried, dropping the burning hot gun on the floor and awkwardly scrambling away from it.

"What happened?" Abbas asked.

"There's something wrong with the gun," Mackenzie replied, shaking her burned hand and examining her bionic for scorch marks. "It wouldn't fire, then it got hot."

"Crap," Jesse said, ducking his head down to peer into the truck. "It must have jammed. Don't touch it, it'll burn your skin off."

Scowling, Mackenzie looked back towards Scylla. Despite not wanting to kill anyone else, Mackenzie wished that the gun could have fired just one last shot. Her longing to have ended Scylla's life seemed both logical and frightening to Mackenzie, and would undoubtedly eat her up later, but right now she was only mad.

"Scylla," Mackenzie spat. "Why can't she just let us go? We're no use to her now!"

"You are," Bell pointed out.

As Mackenzie glared, she saw Scylla touch her finger to her ear then start speaking. Mackenzie jumped when she heard a voice right behind her.

"I know you can hear me, Miller," Scylla's voice said. "Answer me."

Looking around, Mackenzie couldn't figure out where Scylla's voice was coming from. Bell looked equally confused, but then tapped the dashboard of the truck.

"She's speaking through the radio," Bell explained as she realized.

"Talk to me, Miller," Scylla hissed. "Answer me."

"There," Abbas said. "The radios."

Mackenzie scowled, then walked towards the chest, keeping her head low so as to not bang it on the low ceiling of the truck. Mackenzie reached into the open chest and retrieved one of the small radios. She looped it over her ear, then touched her finger to the side of it, triggering the microphone to activate.

"I've got nothing to say to you," Mackenzie said into the radio, turning her gaze back to the truck Scylla was pursuing them in.

"Well I've got something to say to you," Scylla snarled through the truck's radio and the one in Mackenzie's ear. "Stop that truck and give me what I want. Give me the metric or I'll slit your friends' throats, one by one, until you do."

"Go to hell," Mackenzie snapped, glaring at Scylla out the back of the truck. "We're leaving, and you can't stop us." Then, bluffing as she thought of her now useless rifle, "We've got better firepower than you. You should have picked up some better guns before coming after us."

Scylla's chuckling, humorless, laugh crackled through the radio into Mackenzie's ear. The sound of it sent shivers running down Mackenzie's spine.

"You won't be going anywhere," Scylla sneered. "I know where you think you're going, but what do you think you will do when you get there? The canyon is deadly. Your Diviner truck was nearly destroyed by the gravity wind that blows down from the mountain. If you drive back into that place with that truck, you will die."

Mackenzie glanced around at Abbas and Bell at this. Jesse lowered himself down from the turret to listen in. Mackenzie had almost forgotten about the wind, but remembered all too clearly how it had picked her up and nearly flung her out into the canyon, which would have certainly meant her death. Abbas and Jesse also looked nervous, but Bell remained stoic and focused on the path ahead.

"We'll take our chances," Mackenzie said through the radio.

"You stupid girl!" Scylla roared in her ear. "You will die! And you'll take that metric with you! You have no idea what I'm doing, what I'm trying to achieve! Give me the metric and I will let you all leave, you have my word."

"Your word doesn't mean shit," Mackenzie spat. "Do you think I forgot about you telling Boroslav to shoot me and Jesse in the head? Right after I gave you the files? I don't remember that being part of our deal!"

Scylla instantly exploded as all her patience evaporated. She screamed through the radio so loudly that Mackenzie had to quickly remove the earpiece before she went deaf. Following her lead, Bell switched off the radio so that the truck was not filled with Scylla's deafening threats and curses.

"What do we do about the gravity wind?" Mackenzie immediately asked Jesse.

Jesse shrugged. "Nothing we can do. We just have to hope for the best."

"Better chance of survival than if we do what Scylla says, I suppose," Abbas said thoughtfully.

"And if our timing sucks?" Bell asked. "What if the wind comes through while we're in the middle of the canyon?"

"Then Scylla still loses," Jesse said coldly.

Looking ahead, Mackenzie could see the cliffs growing closer and closer. They were within sight of the small canyon they had originally entered through, now. It seemed like so long ago that they were all swimming and laughing in the river, thinking that they had succeeded in their mission. Then, in only minutes, everything had fallen apart. They had woken that morning with a purpose, a clear job to do. Lowe was still with them at that stage. He had been smiling, like always, as though amused by his own private joke. Mackenzie didn't want to remember him the way he died, bleeding out and scared. She clung to the moment before that time. Swimming in the river, splashing around. His laugh. The way he teased Bell. How he had...

Mackenzie's eyes widened when she remembered. The answer was so clear, it was staring her in the face! She felt so taken aback by the realization that she gasped out loud and drew looks from Jesse, Abbas and Bell.

"What's wrong?" Bell asked.

Mackenzie didn't reply, she was too focused on her own thoughts. She quickly fumbled to place the small radio in her ear again, almost dropping it in her hurry. She finally managed to get the radio in place and then changed the frequency. She didn't want Scylla listening in on this.

"Mackenzie, what the hell are you doing?" Jesse asked impatiently.

Finding a new frequency, Mackenzie pressed her finger down on the 'talk' button and almost shouted into the microphone in her urgency.

"SALINA!" Mackenzie cried. "SALINA, can you hear me? SALINA? Answer me if you can!"

A moment later, there was a loud crackle and a strange clicking noise over the radio, followed by a calm, "I am glad to hear your voice again, Mackenzie."

Mackenzie almost laughed with glee. "Yours, too, SALINA! I need your help."

"How may I assist?" SALINA asked monotonously.

"What the hell is going on?" Abbas asked.

Mackenzie took her finger off the talk button to quickly explain, talking in an excited breath.

"SALINA said she can intercept radio transmissions," Mackenzie said, still grinning. "She can access almost any piece of technology for miles around her."

Abbas and Jesse glanced at one another, looking confused. Jesse looked back to Mackenzie, frowning as he said, "That's great, but how does that help us?"

Mackenzie ignored him and instead spoke to SALINA.

"SALINA, a few days ago a friend of mine fired a drone into the air. He was going to monitor the weather conditions on the mountain so he could predict when a gravity wind might happen. Can you access that drone?"

Understanding suddenly dawned on everyone else's faces. Jesse was nodding at Mackenzie, clearly impressed.

"Of course," SALINA replied. "I am now in control of the weather drone."

"Brilliant!" Mackenzie laughed. "Okay, I need you to tell me when there's a safe window for us to drive a truck through the canyon without the wind hitting us. Is it clear right now?"

"Negative," SALINA reported. "Gravitational winds are presently strong, moving down the mountain and funnelling directly into the canyon intermittently at speeds exceeding 250 miles per hour. I strongly advise that you do not enter the canyon."

Mackenzie groaned in frustration, grabbing a fistful of her hair as Jesse sighed and shook his head in dismay.

"What now?" Bell asked, still driving towards the canyon, waiting on a new plan.

"There must be another way out," Abbas said. "Scylla and her people come and go all the time."

"Yeah," Jesse nodded. "She gets all those trucks and her slaves out the Panspermia wreck, there's got to be another way."

"And how long do you think it would take us to find it?" Bell asked dubiously. "We could be driving around for hours. Scylla could disable this truck before we even had any idea of where to go."

"Wait, wait," Mackenzie said suddenly. Then, speaking through the radio to SALINA, she asked, "What do you mean by the wind is blowing intermittently?"

"The wind is strong, but not consistent," SALINA replied. "Powerful gusts are blowing through the canyon in approximately thirty-to-forty second bursts, with wind speeds dropping to survivable speeds in between for a period of sixty-to-ninety seconds at a time. Though the drone does not have complete data on these conditions. If you allow me one hour to examine the conditions, I can provide a more accurate report."

"Thanks, SALINA, but we don't have that kind of time," Mackenzie said. "We just have to work with the information we've got."

"What are you talking about?" Abbas asked.

"The canyon is our best way out," Mackenzie said firmly. "So that's the way we're going."

"That wind will tear us apart," Jesse replied, pointing towards the canyon entrance they were quickly approaching. "You want us to drive right in there? With the gravity wind in full force?"

"SALINA said it's intermittent," Mackenzie explained. "With her help, we can time it so we enter the canyon in the tail of the gravity wind. We drive as fast as we can through it, and hopefully we get out the other side before the next wind blows through."

"That's your plan!?" Bell cried.

"There's a lot that can go wrong with that," Abbas pointed out. "Weather is highly unpredictable, even for a computer as smart as SALINA. What if our one minute window suddenly becomes only five seconds? We won't stand a chance."

"We don't stand a chance now!" Jesse snapped. "Yeah, this will probably get us killed, but it's better odds than turning ourselves over to Scylla. I say we do it."

"Me, too," Mackenzie said, nodding.

Bell shook her head in disbelief, but was grinning as she replied. "Screw it, worth a try."

Abbas sighed deeply and pinched the bridge of his nose, closing his eyes for a moment. Then he shrugged and, looking at the others, said, "Who am I to stand in the way of a good time? Let's do it."

Grinning with excitement, despite how terrified she was at what they were about to do, Mackenzie spoke into the radio again.

"SALINA, we're about two minutes away from entering the canyon. How's the condition? Can we slip in between bursts?"

"As dangerous as that is," SALINA began, sounding strangely disapproving, "it is probable. At this range, however, I am unable to tell you with any certainty when it is relatively safe to enter the canyon. Inform me when you are within thirty seconds of entering the canyon and I can be more precise."

"Thank you, SALINA," Mackenzie said. "You're a life saver."

"The outcome of your plan will determine the accuracy of that sentiment," SALINA replied.

"Do you think someone coded her with sarcasm, or did she figure it out for herself?" Jesse asked, grinning at Mackenzie.

"So, are we doing this thing or what?" Bell asked.

"Go for it," Mackenzie answered. "When we're in the smaller canyon that branches off from our big wind tunnel, I'll call SALINA again to tell us our window."

"I hope it's a good one," Abbas said. "Scylla's still following us."

"Why isn't she trying to stop us?" Mackenzie asked. "Shouldn't she be shooting or something? It's like she's letting us go."

"She's not stupid," Jesse conceded. "But maybe she's afraid of getting too close, in case we shoot her. Which, by the way, I'm not opposed to doing."

"I've still got one round in the railgun," Abbas said, adjusting his hold on the large rifle in his hands. "Maybe taking down Scylla wouldn't be such a bad idea."

"Tempting," Jesse nodded thoughtfully. "But if you've only got one shot left, we should save it for something that really matters. I seriously doubt Scylla is just going to let us go. She's planning something."

"We're nearly at the smaller canyon," Bell reported. "Thirty seconds out."

"Better hail SALINA, Mackenzie," Abbas said.

Nodding, Mackenzie raised her hand to her ear and pressed the side of the radio to speak.

"SALINA, we're thirty seconds from the smaller canyon, maybe a minute from the gravity wind's path. How's the weather look?"

SALINA replied monotonously, reporting the conditions. "Based on current readings, you will have a brief window of opportunity in approximately seventy-to-eighty seconds. It is my recommendation that if you go ahead with this, you do not hesitate. You will not have long before the following blow down the mountainside."

"Thanks, SALINA," Mackenzie said. Then, to everyone in the truck, she said, "We can't stop for anything."

"Okay," Jesse began, nodding. "Let's-"

"Bugger me sideways!" Bell suddenly cried. "Look!"

Everyone looked ahead out the window and Mackenzie suddenly understood why Scylla wasn't trying to stop them from reaching the canyon. A large VTOL was flying in over the clifftop, hovering ominously as it faced the escaping truck. It set itself squarely between the canyon and the truck, hovering twenty feet above the ground. As everyone stared at it, there was suddenly a bright flash from the wings of the ship and two bright beams of purplish light fired out and struck the ground only feet ahead of them.

"Ahh!" Mackenzie screamed as the ground exploded upward in front of them.

Bell turned hard on the wheel, swerving the truck to the left, narrowly avoid the newly-formed crater by inches. The VTOL suddenly fired again and the ground erupted once more, this time just to their left. Bell swerved right and pressed her foot as hard on the accelerator as she could, gritting her teeth in concentration.

"They're trying to make us crash!" Bell shouted.

"Keep going!" Mackenzie yelled back. This was their one chance, if they missed this window, they might not get another.

The VTOL fired again, creating yet another crater directly in their path, which Bell fought hard to avoid. The truck began to tip sideways as she turned, leaning sideways until it was balancing precariously on only the right-side wheels, but then the truck tipped backwards and landed heavily on all wheels again, jolting hard and shaking everyone inside around roughly.

"We have to get past it!" Jesse shouted, glaring at the VTOL.

"Shoot it with the Thunder Gun!" Mackenzie cried.

"No good at this distance," Jesse said through gritted teeth.

"I got it," Abbas said.

He hoisted the mini-railgun onto his shoulder and raised his head and upper-body up through the manhole that led to the Thunder Gun. Instead of using the Thunder Gun, however, he took careful aim at the VTOL with the mini-railgun. Without a moment of hesitation, he fired.

The pulse from the gun shot through the air towards the VTOL. The pilot must have seen what Abbas was about to do, because at the last moment, the aircraft began to swerve to its right, as if to avoid the round. It moved too late, however, and Abbas' shot struck home on the left-hand side of the VTOL, obliterating the engines on that side in a fiery blaze.

Smoking as fires burned and steel melted, the VTOL began to spin as it fell. It struck the side of the canyon wall and more explosions followed, along with a sudden avalanche of rocks and dirt.

"It's gonna seal the canyon!" Mackenzie cried in realization.

"We can make it," Bell said through gritted teeth.

"It's gonna crush us!" Jesse said as he watched the VTOL and boulders falling just ahead of them.

"We can make it!" Bell yelled back.

The truck's engine roared in complaint as Bell pushed it harder and faster. Mackenzie felt certain she was about to die as the VTOL fell directly above them now. All she could see was smoking steel and falling rubble.

Mackenzie closed her eyes tight as they shot through the narrow gap between the VTOL and the ground. Small stones and debris clanged loudly off the exterior of the truck as they sped through, but they managed to squeeze past. Behind them, Scylla's truck screeched to a halt as the driver lost his nerve, but the second truck sped up and followed the escapees through the debris. The soldier who stood on the back of the truck was screaming at his driver to stop, but it was too late for him. As they sped into the avalanche, a falling piece of flaming steel impaled the soldier through the chest and he fell off the back of the truck, screaming. The truck, however, made it through just as the VTOL and tonnes of rocks and dirt blocked the canyon from anyone else who might want to follow the escaping Diviners.

Scylla screamed in enraged frustration, banging her fists on the dashboard. Then she pulled out her pistol and pressed it to the head of her driver. The driver didn't even have time to react before Scylla pulled the trigger, splattering his brains all over the truck's interior.

In the canyon, Bell was laughing maniacally as they sped towards the other end. Mackenzie felt like her heart was pounding in her throat. Jesse cheered and clapped Bell on the shoulder.

"Thank God you're a freaking psycho, Bell!" Jesse crowed.

"There's still one behind us," Abbas reported from the back of the truck.

Looking behind, Mackenzie saw the one pursuing truck that had made it through with them. As she watched, the driver leaned out the window with a gun in his hand and started shooting. Following his lead, two other soldiers leaned out the windows and opened fire.

"They're going for the tires!" Abbas yelled.

"They've got armor shielding," Bell scoffed. "Bloody idiots."

It was as if the soldiers heard her, because they suddenly started shooting directly at the back of the truck, bullets pinging loudly as they bounced of the armor around the small window Mackenzie, Abbas and Jesse were watching out of.

"Get down!" Jesse yelled.

Abbas dropped to the floor and Jesse dove on top of Mackenzie, and a split second later Bell cried out in pain, clutching a bloody wound in her arm, letting go of the steering wheel for a moment as blood gushed between her fingers.

The truck veered to the right as Bell let go of the wheel and lurched violently over a cluster of large rocks, the truck rocking from side to side, but then Bell grabbed the wheel with one hand and reclaimed control, slamming her foot down on the accelerator and getting them over the rocks quickly before they crashed or flipped.

"Bell!" Mackenzie cried, seeing the blood in her arm. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Bell panted. "He got in a lucky shot. But maybe get rid of him before he gets lucky again, eh?"

"I'm out of rounds," Abbas said, tossing the mini-railgun aside.

"My gun's toast, too," Mackenzie added. "What about the Thunder Gun?"

"No good," Jesse said, shaking his head. "They're not close enough for it to do enough damage. Best I can do is shake 'em up, but they'll keep coming."

"Mackenzie," SALINA suddenly said urgently in Mackenzie's ear. "The tail end of the gravity wind is about to pass. In approximately seventeen seconds, you will have only a few minutes to enter the larger canyon and get out. If you are still there when the next wind comes through, you will all die."

"Okay, got it, SALINA," Mackenzie replied. Then to everyone else she said, "We don't have time to get rid of these guys. We've only got a few minutes."

"Bell, are you still okay to drive?" Abbas asked, sounding both concerned and anxious.

"Well, I'm sure as shit not trusting any of you to drive us out of this," Bell grinned. "Just sit down, shut up, and hold on."

Whereas the trip in through the canyon had taken quite a while, the trip out now was far quicker. The stolen truck was smaller and more manoeuvrable than the Diviner truck, Rhiannon, had been, and Bell was taken full advantage of every aspect. They kicked up dirt and stones as the tires tore into the ground with every turn around obstacles. Ahead, Mackenzie could see the opening into the larger canyon growing quickly closer.

"The gravity wind has momentarily ceased," SALINA reported. "You must enter the canyon now."

Bell urged the truck forward, still with the soldiers firing behind them, ignoring her bleeding arm. Mackenzie, Abbas and Jesse had all taken a seat and were holding on to whatever they could to keep from bouncing around the inside of the truck like popcorn in the microwave.

They flew out of the smaller canyon, sliding sideways and kicking up the dirt as Bell fought to face the truck towards safety. When the tires finally found their grip, they kicked off down the canyon, swerving between boulders and broken debris that had been left behind by the previous gravity wind. Behind them, the soldiers stayed in hot pursuit, shouting at one another as they still fired wildly. The uneven ground rattled both vehicles horribly, making it almost impossible to keep a steady aim, for which Mackenzie was silently thankful. They didn't need anymore stray bullets finding their way into the truck's cabin and punching holes in people.

"A cold front is forming on the mountain," SALINA reported. "You have less than three minutes!"

"Three minutes!" Mackenzie repeated for the others, speaking far louder than normal as nerves and panic began to constrict her chest.

Mackenzie and the others all felt a moment of weightlessness, as the truck got airborne off an elevated section of land and rocks. Bell gripped the wheel hard while Mackenzie felt her stomach rise into her throat, then everyone jolted hard as the truck landed heavily and Bell pushed the vehicle to its limits, the engine roaring loudly.

"They're still behind us!" Abbas reported, shouting from the rear of the truck.

As if to announce their continued presence, the pursuing soldiers fired a couple more rounds into the rear armor.

SALINA's voice suddenly said in Mackenzie's ear, "You have only ninety seconds remaining."

"What happened to three minutes!?" Mackenzie shrieked into the radio.

"Wind speeds have intensified," SALINA replied. "You must hurry."

"We've got to pick up the pace, Bell!" Mackenzie yelled.

"I guessed!" Bell shouted back. "I can see the canyon exit, we're about two minutes out!"

"We don't have that long!" Mackenzie cried. "We have to go faster!"

"This is as fast as we go!" Bell screamed.

"We're nearly there!" Abbas shouted, pointing out the front window. The canyon exit was so close!

"The gravity wind has entered the canyon," SALINA reported. "Get out, now."

Mackenzie could already hear the sound of the gravity wind as it rushed through the canyon behind them, that haunting whistle, like the breathing of a sleeping giant, just before it would wake and crush them all. It seemed the soldiers chasing them also realised something was wrong, because they had stopped shooting and were now pulling themselves back into the truck, shouting frantically at one another.

"Come on, come on, come on!" Bell urged the truck, driving straight over smaller obstacles, the truck getting airborne and bouncing sickeningly.

Turning her head to look out the back window, Mackenzie's face paled instantly. Racing down the canyon like the grill of a semi-truck was a swirling wall of dirt, sand and stones. The gravity wind was catching up quickly. It would be on top of them in only seconds.

"We're nearly there!" Bell screamed, also seeing in the truck's mirrors just how close the gravity wind was behind them.

"Everyone, hold on to something!" Abbas roared, grabbing hold of the handrails on the ceiling.

Mackenzie and Jesse followed his lead and stared out the back as the wall of swirling sand approached them. The soldiers behind them didn't seem at all concerned with stopping them from escaping now, as they drove recklessly to outrun the wind, flying over rocks and debris, almost flipping their own truck in the process. All the while, the gravity wind bore down on them all.

"We're not going to make it," Mackenzie whispered.

The wind hit the soldiers' truck like a tidal wave, lifting its back end into the air and then carrying the entire truck along with it. The soldiers inside screamed in terror as their truck spun wildly in the air and was pelted with debris. Then the wind slammed the truck down into the ground, where the front end crumpled instantly. The wind was merciless as it bounced and slammed the truck into the ground and against the canyon walls, again and again, twisting and tearing at the steel. If the soldiers inside were still screaming, the sound of the wind was far too loud for Mackenzie to hear them.

"Hold on!" Bell screamed.

They were mere feet from the canyon exit. Bell turned wide, arcing towards the open expanse of land beyond in a diagonal approach. The gravity wind struck them with full force and Mackenzie felt as though her arms might just rip out of their sockets as she held on for dear life. Abbas roared in fear and pain, and Jesse swore loudly. The back end of the truck went into a spin and Mackenzie suddenly found herself facing the oncoming wind as the truck turned completely around. As the truck continued to spin all the way around, Mackenzie watched the soldiers' truck bounce and crash towards them. It slammed into the ground in front of them, pieces of steel and glass flying everywhere and adding to the debris of the wind, then it was carried into the air again and hurled into the distance, expelled from the canyon like a shot put.

Mackenzie held tightly to the ceiling rails as the truck spun all the way around to face forward again, Bell fighting furiously to regain control. The back wheels began to lift into the air and Mackenzie knew it was over.

Just as Mackenzie felt certain they were all about to die, they all suddenly flew out of the canyon, exiting diagonally. As they passed the cliff walls that formed the entrance to the canyon, they broke away from the destructive path of the gravity wind and the back wheels slammed hard into the ground. They were still in a spin, though, and the truck skidded through the dirt another 360 degrees, Bell roaring as she held the wheel and fought to course-correct. Suddenly, the truck stopped spinning and all four wheels were on the ground. Bell slammed on the brakes and the truck skidded to a halt. Everyone looked back to see the gravity wind expelling untold amounts of debris, the roar of the wind almost deafening. The soldiers' truck had been tossed so far, they couldn't see it anymore.

Mackenzie, Bell, Jesse and Abbas all looked blankly at each other for a few seconds, stunned to have made it out alive. Then a big grin broke out on Mackenzie's face and she began to laugh. As if taking their cue from her, the others all began to laugh as well. It wasn't a laugh as though something was actually funny. It was simply a relieved, almost insane, laugh that told of how amazed they all were to still be alive.

"We made it!" Bell cackled. "Oh my God, we actually made it!"

"You were awesome, Bell!" Mackenzie said, throwing her arms around Bell's shoulders and hugging her from over the seat. Bell flinched as the pain in her bullet wound flared, but she still laughed and affectionately held Mackenzie's hand.

"WOOOOOO!" Jesse hooted loudly, throwing his fists into the air.

Abbas was laughing, too, clapping Jesse on the shoulder. Then he looked to Bell and said with a grin, "You are the craziest, most reckless, Aussie chick I've ever known, and I freaking love it!"

"And Mackenzie!" Jesse added, beaming at her. "This was your plan! We're alive thanks to you!"

"No," Mackenzie replied at once, shaking her head even as she felt her face burn red with embarrassment. "We all did it."

They were all alive. They had escaped. And, for the time being, they had nothing to worry about.

But as their former Commander, Vasseur, had once said: In the deserts of Icarus, things can change in a heartbeat.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

Scylla stepped off the elevator, still in a foul mood, the blood of the driver she had killed drying on her shirt. She still saw that Miller bitch's smug face, heard her mocking tone over the radio. Scylla ground her teeth together again as she walked down the corridor, but she hid her emotions from the soldiers around her. It would not do to let them see her so enraged. That would suggest Miller had gotten the better of her, which could potentially call her leadership into question. After all, if she was unable to maintain control over a young girl with one hand, how could she control their society?

Pushing these thoughts from her mind, Scylla approached one of the two soldiers standing guard outside a pair of doors. They stiffened at her approach, as though afraid she might pull out her gun and shoot them both.

Word travels quickly, Scylla thought, though not without some satisfaction. If they still feared her, they would still respect her.

"Is he in there?" Scylla asked one of the soldiers.

"Yes, Ma'am," the soldier replied. "He hasn't left. And he won't let anyone else inside."

Scylla nodded once to show she understood, then waved the soldier aside. He quickly stepped away and pressed the button to open the door for her. Scylla stepped through the doors without hesitation as soon as they slid smoothly open, then paused as she took in the sight before her.

Boroslav was sitting on the edge of one of the infirmary beds. He was staring down at Vasilii's lifeless face. Boroslav appeared calm, his own face being void of emotion, almost as lifeless as that of the boy he had raised. But Scylla knew him well, and she could feel the emotions radiating from him like heat from a furnace. It was no wonder that none of the soldiers would enter the room.

As Scylla approached Boroslav, he didn't look up at her. She saw that he had one hand placed over Vasilii's chest, as though feeling for the heartbeat that wasn't there. Boroslav's other hand sat limp in his lap. The fingers looked twisted and broken, the hand itself having swollen and changed to a dark purple color.

Scylla sat down on the neighboring bed, regarding Boroslav silently, scrupulously. Boroslav gave no indication that he knew she was there, but Scylla had no doubt that he knew she was there the second she entered the room. Scylla let a few seconds pass in silence between them, as though she was trying to compose herself. It would not do to appear indifferent right now. Vasilii had meant a lot to Boroslav. Scylla had no idea why, but the fact remained.

"I'm sorry, Mikhail," Scylla said at last, forcing herself to sound regretful and saddened. "You have my sincerest condolences."

Boroslav remained silent for a moment longer, though Scylla could almost feel the rage burning inside him.

"With all due respect, Scylla," Boroslav began, "you can keep your condolences. My only comfort will come when those Diviners are all dead by my hand."

Scylla nodded, giving the appearance of understanding. Boroslav would be free to kill the Diviners, of course, but not all of them. Miller would be hers alone. She would spend as long as it took working her over, making her feel unspeakable pain and suffering until she gave up the vital metric. Then Scylla would make her suffer more. Only when Miller begged for death would Scylla end her life.

Regarding Boroslav with a calculating look in her eyes, Scylla wondered if her right-hand man would prove a hindrance in getting information from Miller. Boroslav would undoubtedly seek revenge, and Scylla knew Miller would be his primary target. Security footage showed that it was Miller herself who had killed Vasilii, smothered him with a pillow. Scylla had been surprised by this, as she had been certain Miller wasn't capable of killing anyone. It wasn't often that Scylla was surprised. The feeling both angered and intrigued her. As much as she longed to slit Miller's throat, Scylla also found her to be a fascinating entity. Had they met under different circumstances, Miller might have made a useful ally. Now, however, there was no chance of that. Despite the fact that Miller would definitely die, Scylla first needed her alive.

Mikhail won't like that, Scylla thought. He doesn't fully understand what I'm doing. If he gets in the way, I might have to get rid of him.

As Scylla considered this possibility, she said aloud, "You should let someone take care of your hand. It looks broken. Nano-bots can have the bones healed in just a few hours."

"No," Boroslav snapped. "The pain helps me focus."

"I understand," Scylla replied, though she felt irritated. Why allow yourself to be without the use of one hand? It seemed stupid and pointless.

"I will find them," Boroslav said softly to Scylla, still staring down at Vasilii's face. He had closed Vasilii's eyes, making the boy almost look like he was merely sleeping. "I will find the Diviners. I will make them all suffer. But Miller will suffer the most. She will watch each of her friends suffer. She will watch each of her friends die. Then she will endure everything her friends suffered through and more. She will beg for death, but I will not give it to her. Her life will be nothing but agony and despair, for as long as I desire."

"Miller will pay for what she has done," Scylla assured Boroslav, hiding her annoyance. How dare he decide the fate of Miller without consulting her? "But first we need the metric she has stolen. We need her to make the computer give us the missing information."

"Why?" Boroslav snapped. "What do I care about some useless equation? Vasilii is dead. Murdered! And I will have justice be done, damn your metric!"

Scylla reacted faster than even Boroslav could move. Her hand lashed out and she dug her thumb into his cheek, pushing as hard as she could on the nerve she knew was there. Boroslav looked surprised, his eyes bulging and his mouth open as he stifled a yell of pain, though not before a sharp cry escaped him. He started to raise his hand as though to defend himself, but then he looked into Scylla's eyes and froze. His hand hung suspended in mid-air for a moment, until he lowered it back down. His face quivered with the effort it took not to scream. The nerve Scylla was pushing down on filled his face with an agony he had never known. He longed to pull away, to escape Scylla's clutches, but knew better. If he resisted, Scylla would make it worse.

"That metric," Scylla began, speaking through her teeth, "is more important than the lives of every soldier we have. I will sacrifice a thousand men to get it. That's how important it is. You will have your revenge. But before that, we have to get that metric."

"Why?" Boroslav grunted through the pain. "Why is it so important? You have not told me what we are doing."

Scylla smiled sweetly. "It was for our own good, Mikhail. No one must know what I have planned. If they knew, there would be more trouble than even we could handle."

Scylla finally let go of Boroslav's face and he gasped with relief as the pain began to ebb away at once. He held his hand over his cheek, glaring at Scylla.

"I know more than you think," Boroslav said coldly. "I'm no idiot, Scylla. I know you keep me in the dark on purpose, hide things from me, keep secrets. I do not question these things because I trust you have good reasons. But I do know some things. As I said, I am no idiot. And from what I do know, your plan seems foolish, with no hope of success."

"You only know what I allow you to know," Scylla sneered.

"Then tell me more," Boroslav hissed. "Tell me everything! Let me bring the Diviners back, let me get the information you need from Miller! Then let me take my vengeance on her. She took Vasilii from me. I will take everything from her!"

Scylla stared at Boroslav for a long time, considering. Weighing the options. Boroslav was a loose cannon at times, that much was certain. But he was fiercely loyal, he had proven himself a useful ally. If he got in the way of Scylla's plan, she would kill him without hesitation, but as long as he was on her side, he was invaluable. And if she extended this small amount of trust towards him, let him completely in on her secrets, then he would be that much more loyal.

"Very well," Scylla nodded. "I will tell you everything. But it must stay only between us."

Night fell quickly over the desert. Mackenzie, Jesse, Abbas and Bell all huddled inside the back of the truck to hide from the elements. It was cold, but lighting a fire at night right now was not an option, as Abbas quickly pointed out.

"Most likely, they'll be looking for us," he had said. "A fire would just let them know exactly where we are."

So after driving until the sun went down, they parked the truck close to the cliffs and huddled together for the night. Mackenzie dressed Bell's gunshot wound and Jesse found some thermal blankets in the truck's survival gear. He handed one each to Abbas, Bell and Mackenzie, then sat down without one for himself, a brooding expression on his face. Once, Mackenzie had thought that expression meant Jesse was in a foul mood, but now she understood him better. He was thinking, trying to come up with a plan.

"Don't you have a blanket?" Mackenzie asked, taking a seat beside him. Abbas and Bell sat across from them, both looking exhausted.

Jesse shrugged. "There were only three. It's fine, I don't feel the cold that much."

Mackenzie glanced down at Jesse's arms and saw them covered in goosebumps.

"You don't have to pretend to be a badass to impress me, you know," Mackenzie teased.

Jesse stared at her for a moment, then started laughing. "Way to throw my words back in my face," he chuckled.

Grinning, Mackenzie pulled her thermal blanket around Jesse's shoulders until it covered the two of them. There was no space for even a hair to slip between them now and Mackenzie, for the first time in days, felt like she was relaxed. She felt safe here, the blanket around her shoulders and Jesse so close beside her. The two of them fell silent as they each got lost in their own thoughts.

"So," Bell began, stifling a yawn. "Mr Navigator-Man. How do we get home from here?"

Abbas frowned, sighing heavily. "It'll be tough without all of our usual equipment. No nav system, no thermal imagery... On the plus side, this truck is faster than Rhiannon-"

"My poor baby," Bell interrupted quietly.

"-so we can cut some travel time off the trip home," Abbas continued. "We travelled at a consistent south-by-south-west direction, so if we drive north-by-north-east, we should get to land we recognize within a week."

"That's a long time to be out here," Jesse pointed out. "The weather alone could kill us. Then there's the wildlife, we don't have much food or water, not to mention Scylla will likely be chasing us before long."

"And Boroslav," Mackenzie added quietly, thinking of Vasilii.

Silence filled the truck as all of this information sunk in. Mackenzie began to wonder if they should have prepared their escape better, but knew they hadn't had time for anything more than what they did.

Bell was glancing between the others with a look of surprise. Then she groaned loudly and rolled her eyes.

"God," Bell sighed in frustration. "You're all such bloody downers! We're alive, people! Alive! We're heading home! Yeah, it'll be dangerous, but what isn't these days? We've got the water map, too! We'll be able to figure out the best place to relocate to and everyone will survive! We should be celebrating, people!"

Abbas grinned through his beard and nodded. "You're right. We've been in tough spots before and we made it through. We'll get through this one, too."

"You still have that hard drive?" Jesse asked Mackenzie.

Mackenzie pulled the long, white, data stick out of her waistline and held it up. "Right here."

"Then we're set," Jesse grinned. "Bell's right. And as much as I'd like to party with her right now, I'm freaking exhausted."

"Yes, me too," Abbas agreed. "We should all get some sleep."

"Should someone stay awake to keep watch?" Mackenzie asked.

"Not much point," Abbas shrugged. "If anyone found us, they'd be on top of us in this dark before we knew it. But we're shielded by the cliffs, they should give us some cover if anyone is looking for us right now. Everyone just rest up. We're gonna need to be fully alert for the next few days, I think."

Bell climbed into the front of the truck to sleep in the driver's seat. Mackenzie suspected Bell found that more comfortable than even a bed. Abbas stretched out on the seats opposite Mackenzie and Jesse, rolled over and sounded like he was softly snoring almost immediately. Mackenzie slid to the floor and tried to get comfortable, which she knew was a losing battle. She looked up and saw that Jesse was still sitting above her.

"Plenty of room on the floor, Jesse," Mackenzie pointed out.

"I, uh..." Jesse began, sounding somewhat hesitant. "I thought I might keep a lookout for a while."

Mackenzie grinned at his awkwardness. "You're not afraid to sleep beside me, are you?"

"What?" Jesse scoffed. "Of course not."

"Then get your ass down here, Greaves," Mackenzie insisted, sliding over to make room.

Smirking, despite himself, Jesse slid down to the floor beside Mackenzie and she pulled the thermal blanket up over them both.

"Got to admit," Jesse began, lying on his back and staring up at the ceiling. "A few days ago, I never thought we'd end up sleeping together."

Mackenzie grinned, but narrowed her eyes at Jesse and thumped his arm with her fist. "Don't get any ideas."

From the front of the truck, Bell sleepily said, "If you two are finally gonna make out, can you at least do it quietly? Some of us are sleeping."

Mackenzie instantly felt her face burn hot, but Jesse simply grinned and laughed. Mackenzie lay flat and closed her eyes, welcoming sleep.

It wasn't long before the dreams came. Mackenzie saw Vasilii's glassy eyes staring back at her, judging, accusing. As Mackenzie stared into his face, Vasilii opened his mouth and whispered a raspy, drawn out, choked word.

"Why-yyyyyy?"

Mackenzie forced the ghost away, tried not to think about him. But once Vasilii's face was gone, Mackenzie saw Ileana's, the way it had been the last time Mackenzie saw her. The blood staining the pillow from white to red.

Gasping, Mackenzie awoke with a start, a scream forming in her throat, but she clamped it down at the last moment. Jesse sat up beside her, having been woken by her fitful sleep.

"Hey, hey," he said gently, placing a hand on her shoulder. "It's okay. You were having a nightmare."

Mackenzie was holding her hand over her heart, feeling the fast and strong beats as she tried to slow her breathing. Jesse placed his arm around her and told her to breathe, that it was all right. Eventually, Mackenzie's breathing slowed and where there had once been panic, she now only felt hollow.

"You okay?" Jesse asked her, looking worried.

"Y-yeah, I..." Mackenzie stammered. "I just had a bad dream, is all."

"What was it about?" Jesse asked.

"Huh?" Mackenzie asked, stalling. "I, um, don't remember now."

"Really?" Jesse asked, clearly knowing she was lying. "You were talking in your sleep, you know."

"I was?" Mackenzie asked, horrified. "Wh-what did I say?"

Jesse regarded her closely for a moment. Mackenzie could only imagine how she must have looked. She could feel her hair was a shambles and there was still a cold sweat on her brow. Mackenzie swallowed hard as she looked back into Jesse's dark eyes.

"You said Vasilii," Jesse finally said. "And Ileana."

"Was that it?" Mackenzie asked quietly.

"No," Jesse said. "You also said you were sorry."

Mackenzie wanted to say something, she wanted to tell Jesse the truth. She so desperately wanted to get what she had done off her chest, but the shame she felt weighed too heavily on her. She opened her mouth to say something, but then immediately closed it again.

I can never tell anyone about Ileana, Mackenzie thought. Never.

"Mackenzie," Jesse began gently. "Remember what Lowe said? What Vasseur said? There are no secrets between Diviners. The pain one of us feels, we all share. So tell me... what happened with Vasilii? What happened to Ileana?"

Mackenzie could feel the panic tightening around her chest again. She damned the tears that betrayed her feelings and turned her face away to try and hide them from Jesse. Before she knew it, though, she was talking, but she couldn't bring herself to look at Jesse as she spoke.

"Vasilii," she began, choking on her tears. "Vasilii tried to stop me. He found me with Ileana, trying to escape. So he attacked me. He tried to kill me. But I... I killed him. I smothered him with a pillow, Jesse. I held it down over his face until he was gone."

Jesse nodded slowly. "He didn't give you a choice."

"But that's just it," Mackenzie whispered. "Maybe there was a choice. Maybe I didn't have to kill him. What if... what if I wanted to kill him? I-I-I'm a murderer, Jesse."

"No," Jesse said firmly. "You are not a murderer. You only defended yourself. You didn't do anything wrong. Vasilii was a monster raised by a monster. No one will blame you for what happened."

Except for Ileana, Mackenzie thought bitterly.

"So what happened to Ileana?" Jesse asked.

Mackenzie felt the sobs trying to escape her, but she forced them down. "I... I..."

"It's okay," Jesse said. "You can tell me."

Mackenzie nodded, but knew he was wrong. She couldn't. She wouldn't.

"Vasilii killed her," Mackenzie lied in a breath. She didn't think about the lie, she just spoke and let whatever words that came to her fall from her lips. "He tried to get the gun from me. It... It went off and..."

"Hey, hey," Jesse soothed, holding Mackenzie closer in his arms. "It's okay. You don't have to say anything else."

Mackenzie allowed Jesse to hold her, but couldn't let herself feel comforted. Now she was a liar as well as a murderer.

I'm as bad as my father, Mackenzie thought bitterly.

She and Jesse fell asleep in each other's arms and stayed that way until morning, though Mackenzie's dreams were still haunted by ghosts, and the whispers of those no longer there.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

"What have we got to work with?"

Abbas looked around at everyone as he spoke. They had all gathered in the back of the truck again to evaluate their situation and plan how to survive for the journey home. Jesse gestured to the supply cache in the truck floor.

"We've got about three days worth of MREs," he began. "If we ration them, we can maybe stretch it to four or five. Water is the same, only three days to work with. We've got some radios, so if we can get close enough to Town to pick up a signal, we might be able to call for help. We don't have any heavy weapons now, only a few pistols and some grenades. Hopefully we don't have to use them, but you know what I think about hoping."

"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst," Bell said as if she was quoting from a textbook.

"Driving all the way home will be dangerous," Abbas said thoughtfully, stroking his beard. "We don't have the equipment to scan our surroundings. We could drive straight into a sandstorm or a sinkhole with no warning. Animals could sneak up on us and we'd never know until they attacked. We'll have to pay extra close attention. Everyone uses all eyes, and absolutely no driving at night."

"We should get in as much travel as possible throughout the day," Mackenzie added. "We need to get some distance between us and Scylla."

"Agreed," Abbas nodded. "We'll have enough to worry about without her on our asses."

"All right," Bell said, climbing into the front of the truck. "We better get going, then."

Jesse took a seat beside her to help keep an eye on the path ahead, while Mackenzie and Abbas took their places at the rear of the truck to watch for anything that might be trying to sneak up on them. Bell started up the engine and they began to steadily peel away from the cliffs they had sheltered beneath. They drove steadily north, over the rough and uneven terrain. Mackenzie noted the hills and the rocks, wondering if anything (or anyone) could be hiding behind them, waiting to strike.

"You hear that?" Abbas suddenly asked her.

Mackenzie focused her hearing and, at first, heard nothing. But then she picked up the distant droning sound, like the humming of a far away engine. Both Mackenzie and Abbas looked around, trying to locate and identify the noise, but neither could see anything. Then Mackenzie suddenly spotted it. It was heading towards them, flying low, rising over the cliff tops not far away.

A VTOL. And it was turning their way. As Mackenzie stared at it, wondering if the pilot had seen them, she saw a bright spark of purple light bloom from beneath the aircraft.

"Lookout!" Mackenzie screamed.

The plasma burst from the VTOL streaked through the air before anyone had time to react to Mackenzie's cry. The burst struck the ground beneath the truck's wheels and the sudden release of energy exploded outwards, instantly lifting the truck into the air and flipping it over. Mackenzie and the others were tossed about wildly as the truck twirled through the air. Mackenzie cried out in pain as her head struck the side of something hard and she felt something warm and wet trickling down the side of her face.

The truck slammed hard into the ground, but it was still moving. It had landed on the downward slope of the nearest hill and was now tumbling down, turning over and over, rolling faster and faster until it finally reached the bottom of the rocky hill and came to a stop, lying on its side, bent and twisted while smoke rose from where the plasma had struck. There was no movement from inside the truck as the VTOL flew steadily closer, moving slowly as though taking its time, confident that no one was getting away.

Mackenzie gasped as she fought to stay conscious. Her whole body ached from having been tossed like a salad. She raised a hand to her head and felt warm blood between her fingers. She was bleeding a lot, both from her head and other wounds on her arms and another from having bitten too hard on her lip in the crash. Looking around, grimacing as every movement caused sharp pain, Mackenzie saw the state of the truck and knew they wouldn't be getting away this time.

Everything was on its side. Abbas was nearby, but he wasn't moving. His legs were both at odd angles as he was draped over the seats like laundry. Bell and Jesse were both still in the front cabin. Bell was groaning loudly and trying to move, while Jesse looked like he had been knocked out when Bell fell on top of him. There was blood on his neck flowing from an open wound. It looked like the windows had shattered and some broken glass had cut him.

"Jesse," Mackenzie gasped. "Bell, are you okay?"

"Son of a bitch," Bell hissed. Her hair was damp with her own blood, as she looked around. "What happened?"

"Is Jesse alive?" Mackenzie asked desperately. "Abbas looks hurt bad. I'll take care of him while you check on Jesse."

"Right, gotcha," Bell replied, snapping into action.

Bell turned around as carefully as she could and took in the sight of Jesse and the blood on his neck, while Mackenzie crawled to Abbas and checked his pulse.

"Abbas is alive," Mackenzie said, sighing with relief. "How's Jesse? He's bleeding a lot."

"I think he's okay," Bell said. "It doesn't look like he cut an artery or anything, he's just knocked out." Then, raising her voice and shouting at Jesse, Bell said, "Hey! Wake up!"

Bell slapped Jesse hard across the face, which seemed to jolt him awake.

"What happened?" Jesse asked at once. "Is everyone okay?"

"We got blasted like an easy prom queen," Bell replied.

"Abbas won't wake up," Mackenzie said desperately. "His legs, I... I think they're broken."

Jesse scrambled into the back of the truck to Mackenzie's side, quickly glancing over Abbas' condition. When Jesse saw Abbas' twisted legs, his face paled instantly. Bell was glancing worriedly at Abbas, while also peering out the broken windows at the VTOL that had come out of nowhere.

"I think it's landing," Bell said.

Jesse shook Abbas' shoulders, shouting, "Wake up! Abbas, wake up!"

As if stirring from a deep sleep, Abbas' eyelids fluttered and he moaned under his breath. Then his eyes suddenly shot wide open and he shouted in agony as he realized the pain in his legs. He slammed a fist hard against the wall of the truck, the sound booming around them as he tried to direct the pain he felt out through his fist.

"Abbas, they're coming," Mackenzie said. "We have to get out of here."

Abbas clenched his jaw tight and stifled his next cry of pain. Mackenzie could see sweat beading on his forehead from the effort it took not to scream. He looked up at Mackenzie, a pained grimace on his face.

"Scylla?" he asked.

"I think so," Mackenzie nodded.

"It's a VTOL," Jesse explained. "We can't stay here."

"My legs," Abbas whispered painfully. "They're broken. I can't walk."

"You won't have to," Jesse said firmly. "Mackenzie, help me carry him."

Jesse and Mackenzie both slid their arms under Abbas' body and tried to lift him, but the instant they applied any sort of pressure, Abbas threw back his head and roared in agony again. Jesse and Mackenzie both quickly lowered him back down and looked helplessly at one another, not sure what to do next.

"Abbas, please," Bell begged. "I know it hurts, but we've got to get going."

"No," Abbas replied, shaking his head. "No. You should all make a run for it. I'm not going anywhere."

"Yes you are," Mackenzie snapped. "We're not leaving you behind."

"Miller, look at me," Abbas said through gritted teeth. "I can't walk. You can't move me. Even if you do carry me, you won't get far. Your best chance is to leave me. Disappear in the hills. The terrain is rocky enough to provide some hiding places. Get going, all of you."

"No," Jesse replied. "We all go together."

"Not this time, Jesse," Abbas said, attempting to smile despite his pain. Then, turning back to Mackenzie, he said, "Do you remember what I told you? After you stepped in front of me when Boroslav was going to shoot me?"

Mackenzie thought for a moment, and then nodded. "You said that no one is allowed to die for you."

"That's right," Abbas said. "You have that water map. You have to get that back to Town! If you don't, then everyone will die. Including my daughters. Now, you leave me here, Miller. You leave me here and you get that information back to Town. Save my kids for me. Please."

"They've landed," Bell reported. "Soldiers heading down the hillside."

"Abbas, please," Mackenzie begged. "Just let us-"

"You promised me," Abbas interrupted. "You promised that you wouldn't die for me."

"But-I-I..." Mackenzie stammered, not sure how to argue.

"Go," Abbas whispered firmly. "All of you. Go. I'll slow them down as much as I can. The top priority is getting that water map back to Town. Just go."

Jesse was scowling hard, but Mackenzie could see his Adams apple working up and down as he forced down his true feelings. He slowly extended his hand to Abbas.

"Knowing you has been the greatest honor of my life, sir," Jesse said thickly.

Abbas smiled up at him, and then shook his hand. "Do me a favor, then," he said. "Make it a long life."

Jesse nodded once. Then he rose to his feet and turned away. Bell hurried over from the front of the truck and knelt down beside Abbas.

"You always were a stubborn twit," Bell smiled sadly. Then she kissed Abbas on the cheek.

"Take care of yourself, Bell," Abbas said.

Mackenzie felt numb. She couldn't do this, not again. First she couldn't save Ileana, now Abbas? She felt like she was dreaming, that none of this was real. She jumped slightly when she felt Abbas' hand slip into hers. She looked down at him, still uncertain if she was dreaming or not.

"Remember," Abbas began. "Save my kids. I won't ask you to save the whole Town, that's too much for one person. But you can save three little girls for me. I believe in you, Mackenzie. I know you're the one to save them."

"They're nearly here," Jesse said from the back of the truck, peeking around the edge. "We've got to go."

"I can't leave you like this, Abbas," Mackenzie insisted. "I just can't."

"Don't worry about me," Abbas replied, smiling a sly grin. "I've got a surprise for whoever comes through that door to kill me. I won't let them have the satisfaction."

Abbas held out his other hand to show Mackenzie something. Looking down at it, Mackenzie saw that Abbas held a small, black, egg-shaped object in his hand. It was one of the grenades from the weapons cache. Mackenzie looked back into Abbas' eyes in horror.

"You can't-" she began.

"There's no time, Miller," Abbas interrupted. "You have to get out of here. Go. Go!"

Abbas roared at Mackenzie so loud that she stumbled backwards. Jesse reached down and lifted her to her feet, both of them watching Abbas with shock and sadness. Bell looked like she was about to say something, but Abbas began shouting again.

"Get going!" he bellowed. "Get out of here! Go! Run! That's an order! Get the hell out of here, now!"

Left with no time and no choice, Jesse, Mackenzie and Bell all moved swiftly out of the wrecked truck. Mackenzie stole one last glance back at Abbas, and saw that he was smiling at her, nodding encouragingly. Then Jesse dragged her along and Abbas vanished from sight.

"Crap, here they come!" Bell cried out, pointing towards the hill they had just rolled down.

Mackenzie looked and saw six soldiers with rifles heading down the steep hill towards them. They seemed to struggle staying upright due to how sharp the decline was, but there was one man among them who seemed surefooted and agile, as if he was merely taking a casual stroll. A look of fierce determination on his face, murder in his eyes, and his canine tooth glinting between his cleft lip.

"Boroslav," Mackenzie breathed in horror.

As she whispered his name, Boroslav looked directly at her. The two met the gaze of the other; Boroslav narrowing his eyes and baring his teeth like a shark that smelled blood in the water. Mackenzie felt her heart racing faster than she had ever known.

"Mackenzie!" Jesse shouted in her ear. "Let's go!"

Snapping to her senses, Mackenzie turned and ran alongside Jesse and Bell, vanishing into the twisting and turning hills that swelled out of the terrain.

Reaching the bottom of the hill, sliding on his heels the last few feet, Boroslav cocked his gun and glared in the direction he last saw Mackenzie Miller run. He sneered in contempt as he longed to pursue her and hurt her more than she though possible, but he had orders. Scylla had trusted him with her secrets and he was determined to prove himself worthy of the honor. And Scylla wanted Mackenzie Miller alive.

Boroslav gave two short whistles through his teeth, and then gestured one hand in a chopping motion in the direction Miller and the other two had run. Then he started heading towards the turned-over truck, his soldiers following close behind. Two men peeled away as they approached the truck, though, and ran into the hills after the escaping Diviners. Boroslav led the remaining four soldiers towards the truck, each one lifting their rifles to the ready.

Only three ran, he thought smugly. One must have remained.

Boroslav approached the open rear of the truck and carefully peered inside. As he quickly scanned the inside of the truck and saw Abbas lying there, a nasty grin spread across his face.

"Hello there," Boroslav said gloatingly. "Looks like you're not doing so well, my friend."

Abbas fixed Boroslav with a cold stare, breathing heavily due to the excruciating pain in his twisted legs.

"I hope your friends don't think they will get far on foot," Boroslav taunted, still standing outside the truck. "My soldiers will track them down. And even if they do escape, the desert will kill them within hours. This whole escape plan was... well, stupid."

"Sorry, I can't hear you," Abbas replied scathingly. "Step closer and say that again."

Behind his back, Abbas tightened his grip on the small grenade.

Boroslav chuckled humorlessly. "I think I will enjoy slowly killing you all." Then to his men, Boroslav barked, "Take him."

Two men ducked inside the truck and holstered their weapons. Abbas watched them closely, only moving his eyes. He needed to make sure. He needed to wait for the perfect time.

As the two men crouched down on either side of Abbas, Boroslav confidently stepped into the truck, still smiling that smug, broken, smile. As soon as he was inside the doors, Abbas grinned back at him.

The soldier on Abbas' right looked down and saw Abbas click the button on a small egg-shaped device. First there was confusion as the soldier wondered what it was, then his eyes widened in horror as realization struck.

"Grenade!" the soldier screamed.

In the next instant, several things happened at once. The soldiers who were about to lift Abbas moved as if to run, but never got the chance. Boroslav was already diving for the exit at the soldier's cry, but was still inside when the blast came. The grenade split open in Abbas' hand and spilled fire out into the air. The flames engulfed Abbas instantly, burning so hot that the steel wall of the truck bent and blistered behind him. He never felt a thing.

Then the two soldiers were swallowed whole by the flames, vanishing with quickly silenced screams. The fire then reached out to Boroslav, clawing at his clothes as he dove out of the truck. The fire expanded within the truck until it had taken up every available inch of space, but that was not enough. The fire still needed to grow, so it pushed against the inside of the truck until it ripped a hole through the walls and burst out into the air, tongues of fire licking the air and singeing anything that could burn that was unfortunate enough to be too close.

Boroslav fell out of the exploding truck with his clothes aflame. He roared in pain and fury as the fire bit through his clothing and into his flesh. He rolled around on the ground, trying to put himself out as the truck burned, the sound of crackling flames and bending steel filling the air to compete with the sound of Boroslav's enraged howling.

The two surviving soldiers that were with him hurried over and began trying to pat out the flames that were chewing through his clothes, throwing dirt on him to smother the fire. They managed to put out the flames, but Boroslav was clearly hurt. The skin on his neck was red and sore, as were his legs and his left arm where the fire had burned through his clothing. To look at his face, though, one would assume he felt nothing but rage.

Boroslav rose slowly to his feet, scowling hard with gritted teeth, his eyes ablaze with a fury that burned hotter than any fire. Smoke still steadily rose from his singed clothes and he looked so fierce and dangerous as he glared at the burning remnants of the truck that his soldiers took two full steps back from him, as if they feared he would kill them with only his rage. Between his burned skin and the smoke that still rose from his clothing, he looked like a demon having just risen from the fires of hell.

"Get them," Boroslav growled through his teeth.

The two soldiers hurried off at once, running in the direction Mackenzie and the others had run. Boroslav took a moment to consider the burning truck, furious that Abbas had stolen a victory from him. Disgusted, Boroslav spat into the flames, then turned away to join the hunt.

"Mikhail, what was that?" came Scylla's voice over Boroslav's radio.

"A minor setback," Boroslav replied coldly. "The Diviner Abbas is dead by his own hand. Miller still lives."

"I don't care what happens to the others, just bring Miller back alive!" Scylla screamed in Boroslav's ear.

"Of course, Scylla," Boroslav replied, his lip curling.

Inside the VTOL, Scylla paced around the small cockpit, behind the pilot. At the controls to the aircraft, Min-Hee sat silently, pretending her sister wasn't there.

"This is getting out of hand," Scylla fumed. "I shouldn't have trusted Mikhail with this, he's too bloodthirsty after what happened to Vasilii."

"Who else would you have trusted to recapture the Diviners?" Min-Hee asked indifferently.

Scylla scowled at the back of her sister's head. "No one, of course. But I worry that Mikhail is not in his right state of mind."

"Well, if you are so worried, you could always call him back," Min-Hee suggested. "Order him to wait in the VTOL."

Scylla shook her head. "No. I need a leader out there to keep the men from killing Miller before I get what I need from her."

"How unfortunate," Min-Hee began, sounding bored, "that there is no one else your soldiers will follow orders from."

Scylla narrowed her eyes at Min-Hee. She knew her sister well enough to know when she was being condescending.

"You think I can't control my own men?" Scylla demanded.

"I'm only a pilot," Min-Hee replied cooly. "What I think about your leadership is irrelevant."

That's a 'yes,' Scylla thought angrily. Aloud, Scylla snapped, "I didn't ask for your opinion."

"Actually, you did," Min-Hee corrected.

Scylla closed her eyes and counted to five, resisting the urge to slit her sister's throat. By the time she opened her eyes again, she was calmer and knew what she had to do.

"I'm going out there myself," Scylla announced. "Someone needs to make sure Mikhail doesn't kill Miller. He is loyal, but there's no telling what he might do when he catches up with Miller."

Min-Hee shrugged slightly, as though she didn't care, and said nothing in response.

Shooting Min-Hee one last contemptuous glare, Scylla turned and stormed out of the cockpit, quickly exiting the VTOL. As Scylla descended the stairs, Min-Hee carefully glanced over her shoulder at her, watching Scylla leave.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Feeling terrible about Abbas, but with no time to grieve, Mackenzie, Bell and Jesse continued running through the twisting and turning pathway between the steep hills. They could hear the footsteps of the soldiers that pursued them. Mackenzie kept glancing over her shoulder, expecting to see them right behind her, but they managed to stay ahead, the bends in the terrain keeping them protected from gunfire.

"The path is doubling back," Jesse suddenly said, looking up at the sky. "The sun was behind us, now we're heading towards it."

"I thought the idea was to run away," Bell puffed.

"We have to find a different path," Mackenzie said. "If we get caught, Abbas just died for nothing."

As they ran, the sloping wall to their left vanished and Mackenzie found herself staring across the vast landscape of the desert to the horizon far in the distance, while the ground beside where she ran descended suddenly, forming a steep decline to the desert floor below. The ground on which they now ran was narrow and consisted of loose clay and dirt. As they ran, Mackenzie suddenly felt the ground give way beneath her foot and she stumbled to her knees. She gasped as she felt herself come dangerously close to the edge of the path, but fortunately the ground did not break any further. She stared down the steep hill as the shifted dirt rolled and bounced towards the bottom, far below.

"Mackenzie!" Jesse cried, turning to see Mackenzie on her hands and knees. He and Bell both stopped in their tracks and turned back to help.

"I'm fine," Mackenzie panted. "Keep going, I'm-"

Suddenly, something came speeding down the hill to Mackenzie's right, sliding through the dirt and kicking up the sand. Mackenzie turned her head just in time to see Scylla leaping through the air at her, teeth bared like a pouncing tiger.

Scylla tackled Mackenzie hard and the two of them, carried by Scylla's momentum, fell over the edge of the path and down the hill. Mackenzie could hear Jesse shouting her name, but his voice was fading fast.

Mackenzie and Scylla were entwined as they rolled down the hill, skin scraping off of Mackenzie's arms as she slid through the sand, bouncing off rocks, crying out with every jarring strike against the ground. Scylla was clawing at Mackenzie, as if trying to scratch out her eyes, but the farther they tumbled, the harder it was for Scylla to aim her strikes, thrown off by each tumble, dizzy from the consistent rolling.

Finally they reached the bottom of the hill. They struck a rock and Scylla tumbled away from Mackenzie, rolled a few more feet, then was still. Mackenzie lay on her back, panting heavily, pain throbbing through her entire body, sand and dirt sticking to the sweat and blood on her face and arms. Moving painfully, Mackenzie began to sit up, but no sooner had she lifted her head did Scylla suddenly reappear, diving on top of her and wrapping a hand around Mackenzie's throat.

Mackenzie gasped in fright as she peered into Scylla's remorseless eyes, saw the furious sneer on her lips as Scylla glared down at her, one hand around her throat, her other hand holding a gun. Scylla lowered her face down towards Mackenzie, as if about to kiss her, but there was no desire in those eyes, save for the desire to kill Mackenzie then and there.

"Give me the metric," Scylla hissed in Mackenzie's face. "Give it to me now and I promise, your death will be quick and painless."

"Screw... you..." Mackenzie choked.

Scylla tightened her grip on Mackenzie's throat and pressed the barrel of the gun into Mackenzie's ribs for emphasis.

"I could shoot you," Scylla whispered. "I could shoot you right now. But not kill you, no. I can shoot you in the stomach, or the liver. That will be a slow and extremely painful death. You'll beg to die before long. So, you're going to get me that metric."

Mackenzie tried to speak, but found Scylla's grip around her neck was preventing her from doing so. All she was able to manage was a strangled croak as she stared up into Scylla's cold eyes.

Suddenly there was a loud gunshot that echoed off the sides of the hills. The ground two feet away puffed up dirt as something small and fast struck, causing Scylla to look up away from Mackenzie and towards the top of the hill they had just fallen down. Mackenzie followed her gaze to see what had distracted her.

Jesse stood where Mackenzie had last seen him, a pistol in his hands, carefully aiming down the sights.

He'll never hit Scylla from that far away, Mackenzie thought. Not with that gun.

Jesse fired again and the bullet kicked up the dirt a little closer, but still nowhere near hitting Scylla. Mackenzie suspected Scylla knew she was unlikely to be hit from such a distance, because she just sneered up at Jesse like he was a particularly annoying fly that buzzed just out of her reach.

Mackenzie suddenly realized Jesse wasn't trying to hit Scylla at all. He was only distracting her!

Feeling blindly around, Mackenzie touched something nearby, something round and firm. Mackenzie wrapped her fingers around it, realized it was a stone, then swung it as hard as she could.

The stone connected with Scylla's jaw, blood spitting out of her mouth as she instantly fell sideways off of Mackenzie. Free from the grip on her throat, Mackenzie gasped for air, then scrambled to her feet. Scylla was barely conscious, but the gun was still in her hand. Mackenzie quickly swooped down on it and snatched it away before Scylla could regain her senses. Then, standing over Scylla, Mackenzie held the gun in both hands and aimed it at Scylla's head.

Still kneeling, Scylla slowly looked up at Mackenzie, keeping her hands slightly raised. Scylla didn't look afraid, though. Only a cold look of anger and disgust was visible in her eyes.

Mackenzie wanted to pull the trigger, she felt as if she had to pull the trigger. But she stopped. Mackenzie simply kept the gun on Scylla, glaring down at her, unsure of what to do next.

"Aren't you going to shoot me, Miller?" Scylla asked icily. "Isn't that what you want to do?"

Mackenzie's hand quivered slightly, but she shook her head. "I don't want to kill anyone."

"Tell that to Vasilii," Scylla leered, her lips curling into a nasty grin. "And Ileana."

"Don't you talk about her!" Mackenzie snapped.

"You killed the both of them easily enough," Scylla went on, enjoying the look of distress on Mackenzie's face. "Why not me? After everything I've done to you?"

"Because," Mackenzie began. "I'm not a murderer."

"Are you sure?" Scylla taunted. "Because there are two people who might argue with you about that. Well... if you hadn't killed them, that is. But as it stands, they're in no position to argue with anyone."

Mackenzie opened her mouth to speak, but didn't know what to say. Again she imagined just pulling the trigger, ending Scylla's reign of evil, but couldn't bring herself to do it.

"If you don't give me that metric," Scylla began, speaking slowly and clearly, "then you might as well shoot me now. Because without it, we're all dead."

Mackenzie frowned in confusion. "What?" she asked. "What do you mean?"

Scylla grinned, as she knew she had caught Mackenzie's interest. She began to speak, but stopped suddenly as the sound of more gunfire echoed down the hill. Both Scylla and Mackenzie looked up in time to see Jesse and Bell running hard as the pursuing soldiers and Boroslav had caught up and immediately opened fire on the two Diviners.

"Dammit," Scylla hissed through her teeth. "I said alive."

Jesse and Bell vanished from sight around another turn and escaped the barrage of gunfire that was raining down around them. Boroslav and the soldiers stopped shooting and started running after them again. Even from this distance, Mackenzie could see the thirst for blood in Boroslav's eyes.

As Mackenzie stared up at Boroslav, he turned his attention down towards her. Their eyes met once again and Boroslav's lip curled at the sight of her. Boroslav suddenly stopped running after Jesse and Bell and came to a stop at the top of the hill. He then swung his rifle around and aimed down the hill, aiming directly at Mackenzie.

"No!" Scylla shrieked, but Boroslav either couldn't hear her or ignored her.

Boroslav opened fire on Mackenzie, seemingly unconcerned by how close Scylla was to her. Both Scylla and Mackenzie dove in opposite directions, just as the ground was torn up by bullets. Scylla took cover behind a large rock, screaming at the top of her lungs for Boroslav to stop shooting, while Mackenzie sprinted as fast as she could, not knowing where to go or what to do. As she expected for a bullet to end her life at any moment, Mackenzie spotted an opening in the hills in front of her, forming a small canyon-like tunnel between the stones and dirt. Mackenzie ran straight for that opening, hearing the bullets whizzing by her head, feeling them hitting the ground by her feet, but she didn't stop running, didn't hesitate. She finally reached the narrow opening between the terrain and quickly squeezed through, vanishing from Boroslav's sight, though once she was on the other side of the crevice, she ran just as hard. Behind her, the sound of gunfire stopped and Mackenzie could hear Scylla roaring furiously up the hill at Boroslav.

Mackenzie didn't pay them any attention. She ran blindly through the narrow space, panting hard, her world plunged into near-darkness as the high stone walls on either side of her kept her in shadows. She cried out in sharp pain as she scraped her elbow against the rough stones all around her. Holding her elbow where it stung painfully, Mackenzie just ran.

She didn't know where she was going, where Jesse and Bell had gone, but she knew she had to keep moving. Maybe she would be able to meet up with Jesse and Bell once she got out of this tunnel, but she didn't know for sure if they were even still alive.

Rounding a bend in the small canyon, the walls suddenly opened up and Mackenzie found herself standing in a much wider space, though the tunnel still stretched on ahead, the path bending out of sight a short distance in front of her. Above, the walls stopped and allowed threads of sunlight to stretch down to the ground, splitting the darkness apart. Pausing for just a moment, Mackenzie started making her way towards the continued path, hoping that she would find Jesse and Bell at the end of it.

The moment she took a step forward, though, Mackenzie heard a high-pitched hiss from nearby. Freezing on the spot, Mackenzie slowly turned her head to look and found herself staring at a creature she had hoped to not see again.

It was a gaper, glaring at her from the top of a nearby rock where it was soaking in the sunlight that filtered in from far above. Its mouth was wide open and Mackenzie could see inside its throat as it stared back at her. The quills on its back were bristling, making that sound of wood rubbing and clunking together. Mackenzie knew she must have startled it, but was lucky to have not walked so close that it attacked. Right now, the gaper was only wary of her. But if anything else made it nervous, it would attack. Mackenzie and the gaper were locked in a staring contest, Mackenzie keeping as still as possible while she tried to think what to do.

Suddenly, Mackenzie heard a sound like a zipper being opened and looked up with only her eyes towards the sound to see one of Boroslav's soldiers rappelling down the inside of the canyon, a steel line unreeling from a box attached to his belt, his rifle held in one hand.

The soldier landed on his feet and unclipped the line from his belt, then turned his gun on Mackenzie.

"Don't move!" the soldier barked.

"Trust me, I won't," Mackenzie said back quietly, trying to move her lips as little as possible, still staring at the gaper.

"What?" the soldier demanded, having not heard her. "Keep your hands where I can see them!"

Mackenzie still didn't move, but continued her staring contest with the gaper, which just glared back at her with its reptilian mouth wide open. The soldier was slowly walking towards her now. Mackenzie realized that he hadn't seen the gaper.

The soldier was approaching Mackenzie on her right, moving slowly and cautiously. Mackenzie kept her breathing slow and steady, tried to ignore the pounding of her heartbeat in her ears. She needed to hear the soldier's footsteps in the sand, to hear how close he was. She kept her eyes locked on the gaper, but watched the soldier in her peripheral vision. His blurry shape was getting closer now. So close.

"Put your hands up!" the solder ordered, almost shouting.

At the sound of his voice so close and loud, the gaper suddenly found Mackenzie to be the least threatening. It turned its attention towards the soldier, hissing loudly through its wide mouth and bristling its poisonous quills.

The soldier finally noticed the gaper as it hissed at him and looked away from Mackenzie towards the deadly lizard. Mackenzie heard his foot turn in the sand as he considered running, and saw in her peripherals the gun move away from her and towards the gaper.

Acting quickly, Mackenzie reached out with her bionic hand and snatched the gaper up off the rock, holding it tightly just behind its front legs so that it couldn't turn and bite her. It hissed loudly in protest as Mackenzie lifted it up, its legs kicking wildly. In the same motion, Mackenzie also turned and swatted the barrel of the soldier's rifle aside so that it wasn't pointing anywhere near her. Caught off guard, the soldier fired a round into the ground nearby, the sound echoing off the canyon walls. Mackenzie then tossed the gaper through the air straight at the soldier, whose eyes widened at the sight of the reptile flying towards him.

The soldier raised his hands instinctively to catch the gaper and stop it from clamping down its powerful jaws around his throat, but instead of catching it, he simply presented a new target. The gaper bit down hard on his wrist and Mackenzie heard the soldier's bones shatter instantly.

Screaming in agony, the soldier flung his arm around, trying to shake off the gaper, but it held on tight. Mackenzie was already moving past the distracted soldier, quickly making her way out the direction she had been heading. Glancing back over her shoulder, though, Mackenzie saw the soldier hold his arm out as far as he could, then raise his rifle at the gaper that still clung to his wrist.

"No!" Mackenzie cried in warning, but too late.

The soldier fired a single round and the gaper was obliterated. As the gaper's head fell from the soldier's wrist, he only had time for a split second of relief before another ferocious hiss came out of the shade to his left. Mackenzie and the soldier both looked in time to see the second gaper, the first one's mate, launch off the canyon wall, claws extended and mouth wide open.

The gaper locked its powerful jaws around the soldier's throat and clamped them shut. Blood burst out of the soldier's neck like juice from a squashed lemon. The soldier's eyes bulged and he choked as he tried to scream for help. More blood flowed out of his mouth as the gaper shook its head like a dog that had caught a rabbit, ripping and crushing every part of the soldier's throat it could reach. The soldier fell to his knees, grabbing the gaper and trying to pull it off. The quills on the gaper's back pierced his hands and Mackenzie knew that even if he survived the attack on his neck, the poisonous quills would now kill him in minutes.

Unable to watch any more, Mackenzie turned and ran, leaving the soldier's life to quickly fade away.

Mackenzie followed the twisting turns in the tiny canyon, chasing an exit that seemed to always be just out of sight, lying beyond the next bend, only to scurry away as soon as Mackenzie rounded the turn, finding a new hiding place farther up ahead around the next turn.

Finally, Mackenzie rounded a bend and saw a curtain of light filtering into the canyon up ahead. She almost laughed with delight at the sight of it and she put on an extra burst of speed as she sprinted towards it. Once she was out, she would be able to find Jesse and Bell and finally get the hell out of there.

Mackenzie ran out of the canyon without pausing, without even a moment of hesitation. She found herself running across a flat landscape, with sloping hills on all sides, like she was inside of a shallow bowl. She ran several steps across the landscape, determined to leave the small canyon behind, when she suddenly heard a loud and booming voice, full of urgency and terror.

"MACKENZIE, FREEZE!"

At the sound of Jesse's voice, Mackenzie instantly stopped running, without knowing why she had to. All she knew was that if Jesse was screaming something that way, she better listen.

Looking around, Mackenzie spotted Jesse and Bell at the top of the nearest hill. It seemed the canyon she had been in and the hill they had been running along ran parallel to one another, resulting in the three of them reuniting now, though Mackenzie was at the bottom of a bowl of sand and stone. Peering up at them, Mackenzie saw Jesse and Bell both staring down at her with horrified expressions on their faces. Jesse was standing on the crest of the hill, looking as though he was considering leaping down to her.

A terrible feeling of dread settling in her stomach, Mackenzie slowly looked down at the ground around her feet. Then she understood why Jesse had screamed the way he did.

Mackenzie recalled easily when Lowe had explained this phenomenon to her. The flat stone patches, the fragility, the absolute lethality. It stretched roughly twenty feet to Mackenzie's left and right, as well as another fifty feet straight ahead.

Mackenzie had run straight into the middle of a redox field.

Horror settled within her as she realized what she had done. She had trapped herself. If she made one single bad step and cracked even the smallest stone, the gasses that were trapped inside would be released into the air, then react with the chemicals on the rock exterior, resulting in an explosion that would create a chain reaction of more explosions from the surrounding stones. Mackenzie would have no chance of surviving that.

How she had managed to run so far in without stepping on a stone was nothing short of a miracle. The small gaps between the stones were barely more than the width of her feet, and she stood now, completely still, frozen in mid-run, her feet stretched far apart and only inches from the explosive stones.

"Jesse?" Mackenzie called out hesitantly, staying as still as possible. "What do I do?"

"Just..." Jesse began, sounding uncertain. "Just don't move. I'm coming down."

Together, he and Bell began to make their way down the side of the hill. Fortunately it wasn't too steep, so they were able to control their descent, but it still took them some time. During which, Mackenzie could feel every second ticking away as though it was her blood leaving her body. Eventually, Jesse and Bell made it to the bottom of the hill. They carefully approached the edge of the redox field and just looked around it helplessly.

"Any advice would be really good about now!" Mackenzie cried a little fearfully.

"Hold on," Bell began, trying to sound calm, but failing.

"Easy for you to say!" Mackenzie shrieked, her voice cracking. "You're not standing in the middle of a mine field!"

"Mackenzie, listen to me," Jesse began. He spoke urgently, but somehow remained calm. He kept his eyes locked on Mackenzie's, who refused to look away as though that in itself would trigger an explosion. "You need to be very, very, careful. I need you to slowly make your way towards me."

"What!?" Mackenzie gasped. "I can't move in this!"

"Yes you can," Jesse replied patiently, but firmly. "You made it that far in, you can make it back out. There are decent spaces between a lot of these stones. You should be able to step between them. You can do it. Just watch where you step, and come towards me very slowly. It's not too far. You can do it."

"Yeah," Bell nodded fervently. "You've got this, Mackenzie."

Mackenzie looked around at the redox stones, feeling highly doubtful that she could do anything of the sort. With her heart racing, Mackenzie took a long, slow, deep breath. Then she slowly lifted one foot off the ground and carefully placed it on the safe dirt between two of the deadly stones. She froze for a moment, waiting for the explosion that would kill her, but it never came. Mackenzie sighed with relief, but knew she still had a long way to go.

"That's it, that's good," Jesse said encouragingly. "Keep going."

Suddenly, Mackenzie heard footsteps echoing in the canyon behind her. Turning her head, she saw Scylla appear in the mouth of the canyon, glaring out at her with a look of ferocious hatred. Beside her, Boroslav appeared. He spotted Mackenzie at once, then raised his rifle to shoot, but Scylla quickly turned on him and grabbed the rifle, then used it to pin him against the wall of the canyon. Boroslav grunted in surprise as Scylla pressed the side of the rifle into his throat, pushing it with both hands until Boroslav almost couldn't breathe.

"I said alive!" Scylla hissed. "How many times do I have to say it before it sinks into that empty brain of yours?"

Boroslav choked once in protest, then managed to speak. "I'm sorry, Scylla. I lost my senses momentarily to my grief. It will not happen again."

Scylla glared into Boroslav's eyes, scrutinizing him. Then she finally released her hold on him and turned away to look back to Mackenzie. Boroslav held a hand to his throat and coughed, but Scylla ignored him.

"Miller!" Scylla shouted. "What the hell are you doing out there? Do you want to die?"

"Do you want to eat my ass?" Mackenzie shouted back with as much vehemence she could muster under the circumstances.

Scylla sneered in contempt, but said nothing more. She glanced around at the redox stones, calculating her next move. Boroslav stepped up beside her again, standing straight, and spoke with a strange formality.

"The stones have spaces between them, Scylla," Boroslav said. "If you would permit me, I can do as Miller has done and enter the redox field, stepping in the gaps. I will bring you the girl."

Scylla frowned as she thought. She watched as Mackenzie took another tentative step towards her friends. The thought of shooting Greaves and Bell crossed her mind, but Scylla was concerned that seeing her friends die while she was traversing the redox field would cause Miller to misstep and set off an explosion. Miller was the only one who could access the information Scylla needed, not even Joseph Miller was any use to her now. She needed the girl.

"Fine," Scylla snapped at Boroslav. "But be careful. I don't want any harm to come to Miller. She's the only one who can get me that metric. And you know why we need it now. I suggest you remember that if you have the sudden urge to break her neck."

Boroslav nodded curtly, then crouched down to set his rifle on the ground, keeping his eyes locked on Mackenzie, who was still stepping carefully between the stones. Watching his foot placement, Boroslav began to enter the field.

Mackenzie glanced back over her shoulder and went pale when she saw Boroslav coming after her. He moved swiftly and with inhuman precision, walking an invisible path between the deadly stones as though he had walked it a thousand times before. At this rate, he would catch up with her quickly. Turning back to Jesse and Bell, she saw Jesse half raise his pistol to shoot Boroslav, but stopped before he even lifted the gun to elbow height. He couldn't shoot Boroslav while he and Mackenzie were in the redox field, his falling body would be certain to break the stones.

"Mackenzie, you've got to move faster!" Bell shouted.

"You stay right where you are, girl," Boroslav barked. "You will kill us all."

Mackenzie glanced between Boroslav and Bell, her eyes flitting to Jesse for guidance, but he seemed at a loss. Mackenzie could almost see the distress he felt at not being able to do anything to help. Mackenzie already knew what she had to do, though. The only thing she could do. She had to keep going.

Taking a deep breath, Mackenzie tried to calm her nerves and focus her concentration. She needed to block out everything but where she was going to step. She set her eyes on the ground ahead, picked her next move...

And leaped.

Jesse and Bell both gasped in horror when they saw Mackenzie jump through the air. Even Boroslav froze in shock, and Scylla took half a step forward as if she was going to reach out and catch Mackenzie before she hit the ground. Mackenzie's leap was true, though, and she landed on one foot between the redox stones. She wobbled slightly, balancing on just one leg, windmilling her arms to stay standing, then leaped forward again to land between the stones farther ahead.

"Oh my God, be careful!" Bell gasped, digging her fingers into her cheeks with anxiety.

Mackenzie barely heard her as she focused on her next leap. She bounded from one space to the next, each time before her foot touched the ground feeling certain this was the step that would kill her, but each time finding flat and safe ground.

"Mikhail, get her!" Scylla screamed from the small canyon.

Boroslav was already picking up the pace, though. He was almost running between the stones, moving as swiftly as a jaguar. Mackenzie wanted to look back to see how close he was, but knew she couldn't, she had to focus.

"Come on, come on, come on!" Jesse urged Mackenzie, watching her feet with wide, unblinking, eyes.

Mackenzie suddenly stopped, only a few feet away from Jesse and Bell, and looked around desperately. The gaps had suddenly become too small. There was nowhere nearby big enough to safely step. Mackenzie's eyes darted left and right, searching for just one more space, but there was nothing. Her next step would be her last.

"Mackenzie, come on!" Bell cried.

"There's nowhere to step!" Mackenzie replied helplessly. "I can't move!"

Jesse and Bell both examined the ground and realized Mackenzie was right. Jesse raked his fingers through his hair, glancing behind Mackenzie at Boroslav as he quickly gained on her. Then Jesse turned his eyes back to Mackenzie.

"You have to jump," Jesse said.

"What?" Mackenzie gasped. "I can't jump that far!"

"It's only a few more feet," Jesse insisted. "You can make it. I'll be here to catch you, you only have to make it as far as my arms."

To show how serious he was, Jesse took a few cautious steps into the redox field himself, carefully stepping between the stones that tapered out at the edge. He then extended his arms towards Mackenzie as if about to hug her.

"Bell," Jesse began, speaking over his shoulder. "Grab my belt. As soon as Mackenzie is in my arms, you pull us back as hard as you can."

"Got it," Bell replied, nodding once. She then planted her feet firmly behind Jesse and grabbed the back of his belt in both hands, a look of pure determination and focus on her face.

"Okay," Jesse said, turning back to Mackenzie. "Just jump towards me. As hard as you can. I'll catch you."

"You're crazy," Mackenzie said fearfully, shaking her head. "There's no way."

"Mackenzie," Jesse suddenly snapped. "Do you trust me or not?"

"I..." Mackenzie began hesitantly, thrown off by Jesse's sudden impatience. "I do."

"Then listen to me," Jesse said firmly. "You have no choice. You need to jump. I will catch you, I promise. Just trust me."

Mackenzie stared into Jesse's dark brown eyes and saw the furious determination there. She could hear Boroslav's steps approaching behind her, but she didn't turn away from Jesse to look. Finally, Mackenzie nodded.

Jesse nodded back at her, then set his feet firmly on the ground, ready to catch her weight. Bell tensed up behind him and Mackenzie could see the muscles in her arms tighten.

Mackenzie bent her knees, judging the distance between her and Jesse. It was only a few feet, like Jesse had said, but to Mackenzie it might as well have been miles. Jesse's arms reached towards her, ready to catch her, but Mackenzie wasn't even sure she would make it that far.

Telling herself to stop thinking about it and just do it, Mackenzie took a deep breath and looked into Jesse's eyes. She focused on him, on his face, and blocked out everything else.

Then she jumped.

Boroslav froze and glared at Mackenzie as she left the ground. Scylla stared from within the canyon, her eyes widening in shock. Jesse stretched his arms out as far as they would go, leaning forward and only held upright by Bell behind him.

Mackenzie threw all of her weight into the leap, swinging her arms forward to gain extra momentum. She could already feel herself starting to descend and was certain she hadn't gone far enough. She reached out to Jesse, looked into his eyes, confident that they were going to be the last thing she ever saw.

Before she realized it, though, Jesse's arms were around her waist. His strong arms caught her and he grunted loudly with the effort to stop her from falling. Mackenzie threw her arms around Jesse's neck and held tight, bending her legs at the knees, afraid that her feet might touch the redox stones. But Jesse was thrown off balance by grabbing Mackenzie out of midair. Mackenzie could feel him wobbling on his feet, then start to tip forward, unable to correct his balance to account for her additional weight.

Bell pulled as hard as she could, though, and yanked both Jesse and Mackenzie backwards, away from the redox field. Jesse allowed himself to simply fall backwards and hit the dirt, Mackenzie landing heavily on top of him, yanking her feet away from the redox stones just a split second before her toes kicked the nearest one.

All three of them had fallen into a pile, Mackenzie still clutching Jesse as though letting go would mean her sudden death. Jesse still held her just as tightly, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist.

"Nice jump!" Bell began to laugh.

"Yeah," Jesse grinned up at Mackenzie, their faces only inches apart. "Good one."

Giddy with relief, Mackenzie grinned and rose to her feet, pulling Jesse up with her, who then turned and helped up Bell. The three of them turned and looked back at the redox field, and at Boroslav who glared back at them.

"We gotta go," Jesse urged.

"Do not move!" Boroslav roared, pointing a finger at them.

Mackenzie, Jesse and Bell had already turned away and started running, but Boroslav was not to be ignored so easily. He sneered through his cleft lip and then started moving as fast as he could through the redox field, running parallel to the Diviners, searching for a pathway that would allow him to break free of the explosive stones and capture his prey.

"The guy just won't give up!" Bell cried in exasperation as they ran.

"Jesse, you have to shoot him," Mackenzie said. "He won't stop. He'll chase us all the way across the desert if he has to."

"I can't," Jesse replied. "We're still too close to the field. As long as we're in this bowl, we're within range of an explosion. If I shoot Boroslav, he'll set off the redox field."

With no other options, Mackenzie, Jesse and Bell simply ran. They ran between the redox field and the nearest hill, all the while aware of Boroslav's impossible agility as he traversed the natural mine field. Glancing over her shoulder at him, Mackenzie was reminded of a 20th Century film she had seen from the Panspermia archives once, The Terminator. Boroslav was as relentless as that machine had been.

Under normal circumstances, they might have been able to outrun Boroslav as he was slowed down by having to be careful with his foot placement, but Jesse was still limping from the gunshot wound to his leg. Mackenzie and Bell helped him along as best they could, but they were still slowed down.

"That way!" Mackenzie suddenly cried, pointing straight ahead. "We can get out up there!"

Mackenzie had spotted a section of the hill that was not as steep as the rest and was made up of firm stones that looked easily climbable. Jesse nodded once to show he had seen it, then they all began making their way towards it.

Suddenly, just as they reached the bottom of the hill and were getting ready to climb, Mackenzie spotted movement above. Looking up, she saw a dozen soldiers rise over the crest of the hill, each one carrying a rifle and aiming it straight down the hill at the three of them.

Mackenzie, Jesse and Bell all froze when they saw the guns. They were pinned down. There was nowhere for them to hide or take cover. Soldiers had blocked their only escape, and Boroslav was still approaching behind them from within the redox field.

Laughter reached Mackenzie's ears and she slowly turned to see Boroslav no longer running, but walking almost casually through the redox field. He met Mackenzie's eyes and his grin widened, his eyes glinting with the anticipation of what pain he would soon inflict upon her.

"Nowhere left to run, pretty one," Boroslav crowed. "Now... you wait there until I reach you. If you run, my soldiers will gun down your friends."

Mackenzie looked around helplessly, looking to Jesse and Bell for an idea of what to do, but the looks of dismay they both had on their faces was enough to tell her there was nothing they could do. There was no escape plan now.

Watching Boroslav slowly make his way towards the edge of the redox field, Mackenzie thought she could hear a faint humming sound nearby, but didn't pay it any attention. She had to think of a way out, a way to at least save Jesse and Bell. She thought that maybe if she surrendered herself, Boroslav would let Jesse and Bell leave. It was unlikely, but Mackenzie had to try something. She opened her mouth to speak, to start making demands or plead for a compromise, but never got the chance.

There was a sudden and impossibly loud thwump in the air, followed by twin beams of a bright purple light streaking across the sky. The purple light flashed by overhead and struck the ground in the center of the armed soldiers above. The light seemed to explode the dirt and stone and a wave of rippling energy blasted through the nearest soldiers, completely obliterating them. The others, who were farther away, were suddenly screaming as they were tossed into the air by the concussion of the strange explosion, bursting into flames and falling back down to the ground where they screamed again momentarily, but then fell silent.

Boroslav watched in stunned horror as his men were destroyed, but then all eyes turned to the cause of the destruction.

The VTOL flew in fast and low. It skimmed the top of a nearby hill, then slowed down and hovered almost directly over Mackenzie's head. She, Jesse and Bell all stared up at it in amazement, unsure of what was happening.

Scylla could also see the VTOL from far away in the small canyon. She glared at it in confusion for a moment, then realization dawned on her and her lips curled into a vicious snarl.

"No," she hissed.

Above Mackenzie and the others, the door in the side of the VTOL opened up and a face poked out to peer down at them.

"Min-Hee?" Mackenzie said aloud in shock.

Scylla's sister disappeared back inside the VTOL and, a moment later, a steel ladder was unrolling in the air, tossed out by Min-Hee. The ladder unravelled completely between Mackenzie and Jesse, then Min-Hee stuck her head back out and yelled at them.

"Come on!" Min-Hee cried. "Hurry!"

Pausing only long enough to exchange looks of incredulity, Jesse grabbed hold of the ladder and held it steady.

"Bell, get up there!" Jesse yelled over the sound of the VTOL engines. "See if Min-Hee has any guns, cover us from the air!"

"Got it," Bell nodded, then quickly began to scurry up the ladder, her petite frame allowing her to move faster up the shaky ladder.

"Stop!" Boroslav roared, bounding closer and closer across the redox field, scowling furiously.

"Mackenzie, go!" Jesse shouted at her.

Quickly glancing back at Boroslav, Mackenzie looked at Jesse and shook her head.

"No, you're hurt," Mackenzie argued. "You go first."

"There's no time to argue with me!" Jesse yelled, almost angrily.

"Then get up the ladder, you idiot!" Mackenzie yelled back. "I'll hold it steady, Bell can pull you in. I won't go until you do."

As if to drive home her point and show just how serious she was, Mackenzie snatched the ladder out of Jesse's hands and glared at him stubbornly.

Jesse opened his mouth to argue more, but stopped when he saw the look in Mackenzie's eye. She was not going to budge on this. Scowling in defeat, Jesse nodded.

"Fine," he conceded bitterly. "But you better come up right behind me."

Jesse then started to climb the ladder, moving slowly because of his leg. Mackenzie held the ladder as steady as possible for him, but it still swayed and rocked under the VTOL engines.

Above him, Bell stuck her head out of the door, a pistol in her hand, and shouted out, "Hurry up!"

Jesse tried to speed up, but his leg slowed him down tremendously. Mackenzie looked back over her shoulder and saw Boroslav was nearing the edge of the redox field. He teetered on his feet as Mackenzie watched, as if about to fall and Mackenzie found herself hoping he would. But Boroslav regained his balance and continued his approach, finally reaching the edge of the field. With a single leap, he cleared the remaining stones and landed on his feet on safe ground. He looked to Mackenzie and his eyes narrowed. Then he started to sprint at Mackenzie, his feet kicking up the dirt as he powered forward with malice in his eyes.

"Min-Hee says we have to go now!" Bell screamed.

"Mackenzie!" Jesse roared. "Up the ladder, now!"

Not wasting another second, Mackenzie jumped and grabbed hold of the ladder. Without her at the bottom to hold it steady, it immediately began to swing as the force of the VTOL engines pushed it in every direction. Jesse was more than halfway up the ladder, where he was able to hold on more easily, but Mackenzie felt like she was about to be flung off. She wrapped her arms around the steps on the ladder and held on. The VTOL began to rise farther up as Min-Hee took off again, and Mackenzie started to slowly climb the ladder, terrified she would fall at any moment.

Suddenly the ladder swayed violently and Mackenzie cried out in shock as she felt her foot slip off the rung. She threw her arms around the rungs in front of her and managed to stop herself from falling more than a foot, but her heart was pounding and she could taste her fear in her throat. Jesse was rocked violently, too, and his feet slipped out from under him. He held tightly to the ladder, but the gun he had tucked in his belt suddenly slipped loose and tumbled down, shooting past Mackenzie to the ground below. Looking down, Mackenzie saw that they had risen several feet off the ground and were still rising, but they had not risen far enough.

Boroslav had leaped through the air and grabbed hold of the ladder. His weight had set the ladder into a violent swing, almost knocking Mackenzie off. Boroslav was now slowly climbing the ladder towards Mackenzie, his teeth bared and his canine tooth peeking between his cleft lip.

"Mackenzie, don't stop!" Jesse shouted down at her, still holding on to the ladder from only a few feet below the door into the VTOL.

Mackenzie turned away from Boroslav and started to climb again, but she found it difficult to move with how much the ladder was swinging. Min-Hee tried to keep the VTOL steady, but they were drifting to the left, slowly hovering out over the redox field.

"We have to get Boroslav off the ladder!" Min-Hee shouted back at Bell. "He won't stop until he kills us all!"

Bell raised her gun and tried to aim at Boroslav, but frowned. Looking back to Min-Hee, she shouted, "I can't get a shot! I might hit Mackenzie!"

Boroslav seemed inhuman in his ability to climb the swinging ladder. He quickly caught up with Mackenzie and she felt him firmly grab her foot. He yanked on her leg and Mackenzie screamed as she felt herself almost lose her grip on the ladder. But she tightened her hold and refused to budge. She looked down at Boroslav, who was sneering up at her, his hand wrapped around her ankle. She tried to shake him lose, but he was too strong and held her painfully tight. Mackenzie tried to kick him, but Boroslav seemed to find her attempts laughable, because he actually grinned at her.

"You're coming back with me!" Boroslav laughed insanely.

"Stop!" Mackenzie shrieked at him. "We're right over the redox field! We'll both die if you pull me down!"

"Then I will gladly see you in hell!" Boroslav cackled.

He yanked on Mackenzie's leg again and she nearly lost her grasp on the ladder entirely. She felt herself fall as her feet were pulled down, but she managed to regain her hold on the ladder rungs just before she fell too far to save herself.

"Bell, give me the gun!" Jesse roared up at Bell.

Bell lay flat on the floor in the VTOL and stretched her arm down towards Jesse, straining her shoulder to pass him the gun. Jesse's fingertip brushed against the pistol's grip as he reached up to it, his teeth clenched in determination.

"Let go!" Mackenzie yelled down at Boroslav.

Jesse finally got a hold on the gun and, holding onto the ladder with one hand, spun around to aim down at Boroslav. Mackenzie held her body as close to the ladder as possible, afraid that Jesse might accidentally hit her. Boroslav also noticed Jesse aiming the gun, because he pulled himself up closer to Mackenzie, pressing his body against her legs and sneering in contempt up at Jesse.

"If you shoot me," Boroslav began, "then you shoot her. Can you hit me without hitting the girl? How good is your aim, hero?"

Jesse glared down at Boroslav as he aimed down the sights of the gun. Mackenzie stared up at him, wondering what he was thinking, if he would shoot, and if his aim was good enough. But Jesse slowly shook his head, not taking his eyes away from Boroslav as he spoke.

"I'm not the hero," Jesse replied. "And I won't shoot you."

Boroslav seemed momentarily shocked, but then grinned nastily. As Mackenzie stared at Jesse in surprise, Jesse looked from Boroslav to her and then winked.

"But she will," he added.

Before Boroslav could understand what Jesse meant by this, Jesse opened his hand and let the gun fall from his grasp. Mackenzie watched it falling towards her, as if it was in slow motion. It spun in the air, twisting and turning as it descended. Reacting on instinct, Mackenzie reached up with her bionic hand, stretching her fingertips towards the gun. Boroslav was still clinging to her legs, watching the gun fall and Mackenzie reach for it.

As if by some miracle, the gun landed perfectly in Mackenzie's grasp, her metal fingers wrapping around the grip. Without hesitation, Mackenzie turned on the ladder as much as she could with Boroslav holding her legs and she aimed the gun straight down at him, the barrel now only a foot away.

Boroslav looked at the barrel of the gun, then sneered up at Mackenzie, as though daring her to pull the trigger. He opened his mouth to speak, perhaps to issue some challenge, maybe to dismiss her ability to pull the trigger, but Mackenzie had had enough of him speaking.

Mackenzie pulled the trigger and fired a single round into Boroslav. She saw blood fly into the air as the bullet entered his chest, just below the collarbone, then more blood out his back as the bullet exited.

The force of the shot knocked Boroslav back and the shock of it made him loosen his grip on Mackenzie's legs. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Mackenzie raised her knee and struck Boroslav square in the jaw. His head snapped backwards and his eyes rolled. Then he slowly fell backwards, losing his hold on her entirely.

Mackenzie watched as Boroslav fell clear of the ladder, falling straight down towards the ground, right over the redox field. Min-Hee must have seen as well, because the VTOL suddenly hummed louder than ever and began to peel away, rising higher into the air.

Scylla watched from far away as Boroslav fell. He didn't scream or cry out, but he was reaching up towards the VTOL as if he might be able to reach some invisible rope to save him.

Jesse and Mackenzie both threw themselves against the ladder they still dangled from, held as tightly as they could, and waited for the inevitable.

Boroslav fell hard into the redox field flat on his back. He hit the ground with enough force to break several bones, but he didn't notice. He had only a split second where he heard a heart-stopping crack beneath him, and then his entire world turned orange and yellow.

The explosion was instantaneous. The fireball engulfed Boroslav entirely and he vanished from sight in only a blink. The fire climbed into the air and reached for the escaping VTOL, but it, and its occupants, were already beyond its reach.

The chain reaction of explosion was next. The first explosion sent out a shock wave that shook and cracked all the surrounding stones within twenty feet, which then all exploded. The entire field was going up in a massive wave of fire and noise, the sound so loud and deafening that it drowned out the VTOL's engines. Mackenzie could feel the heat on her face even as they flew away at high speed.

Scylla watched as the wall of fire raced across the field towards her hiding place in the canyon. Sparing no thought for Boroslav, Scylla turned and raced back into the depths of the canyon, running at full speed. She felt no fear, only fury, which was evident on her face as she pumped her arms and legs. The fire then reached the entrance to the canyon and clawed its way inside, as if trying to grab Scylla and drag her out. Scylla felt the heat on her back as she ran, but didn't slow down. She reached the bend in the canyon and dove aside, letting the fire slam into the walls and scorch everything it touched, but Scylla was unharmed. She backed away from the flames, staring into the flickering orange and yellow light, her lip curled with disgust and rage. The fire reflected in her eyes, but no matter how hot it was, no matter how intensely it burned, it could not match the ferocity that Scylla felt inside. Both at Miller's escape, and also by her own sister's betrayal.

Flying over the desert, Jesse and Mackenzie finally climbed inside the VTOL and Bell reeled in the ladder and closed the door, drowning out the sound of the VTOL's engines and the rushing air around them. Mackenzie and Jesse both stayed lying on the floor, panting hard, neither one able to entirely believe they had made it. Even Bell looked stunned, leaning against the wall of the cabin, looking between Mackenzie and Jesse with incredulity.

"Mackenzie," Jesse said suddenly. "Do you still have the hard drive?"

Mackenzie quickly patted the place where she had stowed the Panspermia's hard drive and was relieved to find it still there. She pulled it out and waved it at Jesse, smiling slyly.

Jesse threw back his head and laughed, which made Mackenzie laugh as well. Bell joined in on the laughter and before any of them knew it, they were all laughing in hysteric relief at being alive.

"Min-Hee," Mackenzie exclaimed, suddenly remembering their saviour.

Mackenzie climbed to her feet and hurried to the cockpit, leaning between the pilot and co-pilot chairs to look at the side of Min-Hee's face as she stared stoically out the window ahead.

"You really saved us back there," Mackenzie said gratefully. "But why? Why did you help us?"

"My sister demands complete loyalty," Min-Hee replied. "It's hard to be loyal to someone who harvests your organs. But I didn't just save you. Hopefully I have saved myself. I want something in exchange for helping you."

"Girl, you can have any damn thing you please after that rescue," Bell laughed.

"I want asylum," Min-Hee explained. "I can never return to Scylla now, she'll kill me the second she sees me. I am also willing to work for your people in gathering more water. This VTOL will help with that."

"That's... amazing, Min-Hee, thank you!" Mackenzie grinned. "Of course. I'll make sure you get asylum."

"And with the water map from SALINA," Jesse added, "we can use the VTOL to gather as much as we need without ever moving Town."

Mackenzie grinned back at Jesse and Bell, who beamed back at her. For the first time in a long while, Mackenzie actually felt something she had almost forgotten was possible.

She felt hope.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

The people in Town went on with their mornings as if it was like any other. Homes were being delivered their dismally small rations of water, the deliverers protected under armed guard. Just in case anyone decided to try and take more than they were given. Children too young for school played in the daycare center, while the older children sat inside, pretending to listen as the teacher droned on about Earth history.

Ethan Renaud was in the shop, focusing intently on his work as he welded some contraption together. He barely even knew what he was working on. He had been distracted for the past two weeks.

Joseph Miller stood on the balcony of the Town Hall, watching the Town move around him. He looked unwell, and seemed to have grayed considerably in a short amount of time. He was worried. For his daughter, for his Town, for everything. He looked forlornly at the people below, leaning on the balcony railing, wondering how long it would be before the Diviners returned.

He was so deep in thought, Joseph didn't immediately hear the humming sound in the distance growing steadily louder. When he did notice it, he looked up from the balcony and began scanning the skies, a feeling of trepidation setting upon him.

I know that sound, he thought.

Joseph listened hard and recognized the sound of a VTOL engine. He reacted as though stung, then turned and raced back inside the building. He sprinted through the building and charged down the stairs, clearing the bottom four in a single leap. Joseph ran outside and looked to the LEOs that were stationed outside. The LEOs stared at him with puzzled expressions.

"Get your guns ready!" Joseph ordered. "Get every officer not on vital duty and get them down here now!"

As two of the LEOs ran off to follow these strange orders, the one nearest to Joseph stepped closer and asked, "What's wrong, sir?"

Joseph wasn't sure how to reply, but then the need passed, because the humming of the VTOL had grown so loud and close that the LEO had noticed it and was looking around in confusion. A moment later, the VTOL itself appeared.

It soared overhead, hovering low, disturbing the air and sending dirt swirling in all directions. The LEO, and everyone else who saw it, stared up at it in openmouthed amazement and fear. Children were pointing up at the flying machine excitedly, until parents fearfully plucked them off the ground and raced away to whatever place they thought might hide them from this monstrosity.

The VTOL hovered low over the town center, where there was space enough to land. Everyone who had once been in that location sprinted away, many screaming, as though it was a dragon come to devour them. The huge aircraft set down on the ground, then the engines began to power down, the humming becoming gradually more quiet.

Before the VTOL could fully power down, however, Joseph charged forward, carrying a pistol in his hand. LEOs ran beside him, armed with their rifles. The people who had not run away watched from nearby, crowding together to see what was happening.

"Everyone, stay back!" Joseph yelled at the civilians. The worry that was evident in his voice was enough to make people listen, and also make them more afraid. Joseph Miller was never worried by anything.

Joseph and the LEOs formed a line beside the VTOL, all raising their guns and aiming at what appeared to be a door in the side of the aircraft. Joseph wondered who was inside. There would only be a couple who would do something like this, something so brazen that it bordered on insanity. Neither one of which Joseph ever wanted to set foot in Town.

The door in the aircraft began to open and Joseph tensed up. The LEOs around him did the same, none of them certain of what was about to happen. Joseph could feel beads of sweat on his forehead, but he made no attempt to wipe them away. He was completely focused on that door.

Why are they here? he thought.

The doors opened fully and the steps set gently down on the ground. A few tense heartbeats passed as everyone waited to see what would happen next.

Finally, two figures appeared in the doorway, a male and a female. The male was being supported by the female, appearing to have some kind of injury to his leg. Joseph recognized them both at once, but it was the girl he locked his eyes on, lowering his gun.

"Kenzie!" Joseph gasped.

Mackenzie glared down at the line of armed LEOs without batting an eye, as if facing a firing squad was an everyday occurrence. Standing at the top of the stairs, Mackenzie glanced the length of the firing line with a look of disdain.

Joseph waved his hands at the LEOs, shouting, "Lower your guns! Lower your guns!"

The LEOs all did as they were ordered, staring up at the VTOL in stunned amazement, many with mouths hanging open. Mackenzie stared back at them and at the crowd of onlookers who had gathered to watch. In the middle of the crowd, Mackenzie saw a familiar face. Ethan was staring up at her with an expression of amazement on his face. Mackenzie considered running to him and telling him everything that had happened, but this was not the time for reunions.

"We need a doctor!" Mackenzie shouted to the stunned crowd. "Jesse's been shot!"

At first, nobody moved. The shock of this strange appearance in a flying machine, followed by the announcement that a Diviner had been shot was enough to render everyone motionless. As if time had frozen. But then Joseph snapped back to his senses and turned to the nearest LEO and grabbed his arm.

"Get a doctor, now," Joseph said firmly, giving the LEO a gentle shake to bring him back to reality. "Hurry."

The LEO nodded once, glanced back at the VTOL one last time, then ran off to find a doctor.

Mackenzie and Jesse were slowly making their way down the stairs, Mackenzie struggling under Jesse's weight, but managing. Jesse hopped down the stairs, his teeth gritted and bared as each step sent a jolt of pain through his leg. Two more people followed behind them, but Joseph paid them no attention. His gaze was set on Mackenzie. He walked forwards to meet her at the bottom of the stairs.

At the sight of her father approaching, Mackenzie didn't know what she should feel. She expected to be angry, to slap him, to completely lose her self-control and begin screaming at him for what he had done. Or else the emotional pain of his secrets and selfishness might make her cry, but neither of these things were what Mackenzie felt. Instead, she felt only a strange kind of emptiness. As if her insides had been hollowed out and the space left behind was large and crushing. Mackenzie stared blankly at her father for a moment as she and Jesse reached the ground, Bell and Min-Hee following close behind. Mackenzie turned away from her father to look at Bell.

"Bell, can you take Jesse for me?" Mackenzie asked. "I need to talk to my father."

"Sure thing," Bell nodded, then slid under Jesse's arm to take Mackenzie's place.

"Can I help?" Min-Hee offered.

At the sound of Min-Hee's voice, Joseph looked away from Mackenzie and to the newcomer. There was a moment where Joseph looked confused, as though he recognized Min-Hee but couldn't place where her knew her from, but then he remembered. His eyes widened in shock and he instinctively raised his gun and aimed it directly at Min-Hee's face.

"Don't move!" Joseph roared at her.

Min-Hee froze, keeping her hands in plain sight, but Mackenzie quickly stepped between Min-Hee and Joseph, scowling at her father.

"Dad, stop!" Mackenzie snapped. "This is Min-Hee. She just saved our lives!"

Joseph glanced between Min-Hee and Mackenzie in confusion. Then he slowly lowered his gun.

"I'm sorry," Joseph muttered, though he still regarded Min-Hee with some suspicion. "I didn't..."

"Dad, we need to talk," Mackenzie interrupted.

"Not yet," Joseph countered, regaining his composure. "What does this woman want?"

"This woman," Jesse began scathingly, "just saved our lives and the lives of every person in this town."

"She wants asylum," Mackenzie said. "She can't go back where she came from, so I told her she can stay with us."

"It's the least she deserves," Bell nodded.

"Out of the question," Joseph snapped before he could stop himself. Then, lowering his voice, he whispered to Mackenzie, "Do you know who she is? Who her sister is?"

"Yes," Mackenzie said firmly. "I do. And I trust her more than most other people right now."

Joseph blanched at the thinly veiled insult, wondering just how much Mackenzie knew. The arrival in the VTOL and Min-Hee's presence suggested she knew plenty, but how much exactly?

Min-Hee suddenly cleared her throat and spoke, a little nervously.

"I don't expect you to take me in without compensation," Min-Hee said. "This aircraft currently has stored thirty thousand litres of water. You are welcome to it."

The watching crowd began to murmur excitedly, staring up at the VTOL as if it carried some priceless treasure.

"I am also willing to earn my keep," Min-Hee added. "I can pilot the VTOL and assist in gathering more water for your supplies."

"It's only fair, Dad," Mackenzie said firmly. "She saved our lives."

"She can't be trusted, Kenzie," Joseph argued, keeping his voice down.

"Don't you call me that," Mackenzie suddenly said. She spoke with little more than a whisper so that only her father could hear, but her voice shook with a powerful rage. "You don't get to call me that anymore."

Joseph felt a cold dread sink into the pit of his stomach. The look on Mackenzie's face was not one he recognized in her. The way she looked at him now was not the same as when she left.

She knows, Joseph thought despairingly.

"Where are the others?" Joseph asked Mackenzie. "Vasseur? Lowe? Abbas?"

"Dead," Mackenzie replied curtly. "They're all dead."

At that moment, a doctor arrived with the LEO that had run to fetch her. As the doctor began tending to Jesse's wound, Mackenzie fixed her father with a steely glare.

"We should really talk in private," Mackenzie said coldly.

Joseph had only just sat down at his desk in his office when Mackenzie slammed the hard drive down on the surface. She glared at him with narrowed eyes, waiting for him to respond.

"What's that?" Joseph asked.

"That," Mackenzie began, pointing at the hard drive, "is the captain's hard drive from the bridge of the Panspermia."

Joseph kept his face impassive, but Mackenzie saw his hand twitch on the surface of the table.

"How did-" Joseph began, but Mackenzie interrupted him.

"You knew," Mackenzie accused. "You knew those people were out there. You knew about Scylla and Boroslav and all of it. You supplied Scylla with whatever she wanted and you made Vasseur take it to her."

"Mackenzie, I don't know what you heard out there," Joseph said. "But you can't believe any of it. My primary concern has always been the safety of our people. I have never lied to anyone or set up any secret deals."

"I saw you and Vasseur arguing," Mackenzie continued as though her father hadn't spoken. "Right after I was voted to join the team. What was that about?"

Joseph faltered for a moment before answering. "Vasseur had some reckless ideas about the mission. Once I knew you were going with him, I had to be firm and tell him to not take any chances that would risk your life."

"Bull," Mackenzie spat. "I know you offered Ethan to Scylla. You were going to trade him for information on where to find water, because Ethan knows how to build things. So what were you arguing about? The vote didn't go the way you wanted it to, and I was going instead of Ethan. What did you tell Vasseur? To change the outcome? Force Jesse to change his vote? He didn't look happy about what you were saying. Let me guess... dropping the occasional supply of tools and equipment was one thing, but then you told him to deliver a person and that was crossing a line. One that you had made him cross before, which he didn't want to cross again."

"Mackenzie, I don't know-"

"Ileana Rivera," Mackenzie blurted out, her hands shaking. "I met her."

Joseph fell silent at the name. It was a name he had not heard in many years, but one that he thought of every day.

"Rivera?" Joseph repeated in awe. "She's... she's alive?"

"Not anymore," Mackenzie replied softly, looking away from her father, unable to look at him for more reasons than one. Mackenzie closed her eyes for a moment and saw Ileana's face burned on the inside of her eyelids. Then Mackenzie opened her eyes and slowly looked back at her father's face. The look of horror and his pale complexion at what he had just heard gave her no satisfaction, but only served to fuel her incense.

"It's your fault," Mackenzie said scathingly. "You did that to her."

"Kenzie, please," Joseph began.

"Don't you call me that!" Mackenzie screamed, slamming her hands down on Joseph's desk, standing over him and glaring down at his shocked face. "I know what you did, it was the same as what you planned on doing to Ethan! You traded her to save yourself! Scylla needed her skills, so you let her have her. It's disgusting! Do you know what they did to her? Do you!?"

"Mackenzie, please, I don't know what she told you, but you're mistaken, confused," Joseph pleaded. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Stop lying to me!" Mackenzie shouted. "You've been lying so long you don't even know what's true anymore! You sold a human being! You were going to sell Ethan! You knew. You knew about Scylla all this time and you never told anyone, just to hide what you did."

"Mackenzie-"

"We could have been more prepared," Mackenzie interrupted, now speaking in almost a whisper, as though she was pleading. "If we knew what was really out there, we could have been ready. We could have been more careful. Lowe died because of you. So did Abbas. And Ileana. Do you know what they died for?"

Without waiting for an answer, Mackenzie snatched up the hard drive from Joseph's desk and waved it in his face, making him cringe backwards in surprise.

"They died for this! I downloaded Scylla's data and coordinates of every known water deposit within ten thousand miles. They died to make sure our people survived. But you? You just save your own skin from the fire. And let everyone else feel the burn."

Joseph and Mackenzie were both silent, their gazes locked; Joseph looking desperate and pleading while Mackenzie's expression told only of her fury and feeling of betrayal.

"You know what else is on this hard drive?" Mackenzie asked. "Some really technical data. Schematics and equations and God-knows what else. Scylla's building something, isn't she? And you know what it is. Tell me, Dad. Tell me what you know and don't lie to me, I can't take any more lies from you."

As Mackenzie's voice broke, Joseph felt as if his own heart was about to break at the same time. He raised a hand as if to reach out across the desk to Mackenzie, but she stood beyond his reach. So instead, he kept his hands on the desk and lowered his gaze, sighing heavily down at his hands.

"Okay," Joseph finally whispered. "Okay. It's true. I met Scylla once. She used me. But then I used her, too. I did... unforgivable things to survive. I betrayed my own crew. It's just... I had to make it back. I had to. For you and your mother."

"Don't put that on us," Mackenzie interrupted furiously. "Don't you dare."

Joseph couldn't look at his daughter. He nodded at his desk, feeling her glare upon him like the heat from the sun.

"I don't know what she's building," Joseph finally said.

"I said don't lie to me!" Mackenzie snapped.

"I'm telling the truth, I swear!" Joseph said pleadingly. "I only know that she is building something, I just don't know what. She didn't tell me everything, she didn't trust me enough. But whatever it is, she's desperate to finish it. And I know why she's desperate."

"Why, then?" Mackenzie demanded.

Joseph looked down at his desk despairingly, hanging his head. The only other time Mackenzie had ever seen him look this way was the day his mother, Harriet, had died from heat stroke, many years ago.

"This planet," Joseph began slowly, directing his speech down at his desk. "It has an expiration date."

Mackenzie frowned in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, no matter how much water we find, we are all going to die," Joseph said, almost angrily. "An event is coming, something big. And it's going to completely wipe out everything in its path. This thing that's coming? Scylla knows about it, she discovered it. And whatever she's building is somehow supposed to save everyone from dying with this planet. The only hope humanity has left of surviving, of making sure our species continues to exist, lies under Scylla's control. She is the only one who can save us!"

Mackenzie wasn't sure how she was supposed to feel, but the news seemed to wash over her like the air in the room. It was surreal to hear your planet was doomed. Even more so to think of Scylla as the potential savior of mankind. For a moment, Mackenzie wondered if this was how most people felt when they were told Earth was dying. Just this stunned disbelief, the feeling that nothing was real. But the look on her father's face was enough to convince her it was true.

"What is it?" Mackenzie asked, finally sitting down opposite her father. "What's going to happen?"

"I don't know," Joseph admitted. "She never told me what exactly. But Scylla was certain."

"Could she have been lying?" Mackenzie asked hopefully.

"She's obsessed with completing whatever she's building," Joseph shrugged. "If she was lying, she certainly wouldn't be so desperate."

Mackenzie recalled with a flash of sudden clarity what Scylla had said to her in the desert during her escape.

"If you don't give me that metric then you might as well shoot me now. Because without it, we're all dead."

"People need to know," Mackenzie blurted out.

"No!" Joseph said loudly, looking horrified. "No, you can't tell anyone, Mackenzie. If people knew, it would instil a panic. Our society is so fragile as it is, if people knew about this, everything would break down."

"People have a right to know!" Mackenzie insisted.

"You might be right," Joseph began, "but so am I. You know you can't tell anyone."

"This affects everyone," Mackenzie argued.

"And telling them will only cause them to panic," Joseph countered. "Please, Mackenzie, listen to me. You've seen the worst in humanity now. Do you know why Scylla and her people are so ruthless? It's because they know. They know what's coming and they do whatever they have to do to survive. Do you want to make our own people that ruthless?"

Mackenzie didn't reply, but she knew her answer. Of course not. She could never allow such evil to come over her friends, her neighbors, her family.

"Fine," Mackenzie agreed at last, though begrudgingly. "I won't tell anyone."

"Good," Joseph sighed in relief. "That includes the other Diviners."

"I can't do that!" Mackenzie shouted. "There are no secrets between Diviners! You know that, you used to be one!"

"This has to be kept a secret," Joseph insisted. "Only Vasseur and I knew, now only you and I know. Promise me, Mackenzie. Promise."

Mackenzie was silent for a long time as she thought. She stared down at her hands, considering everything she had just learned. Finally, after a long while, Mackenzie looked back into her father's eyes.

"Okay," she said flatly. "I promise."

Before Joseph had a chance to say anything else, Mackenzie rose to her feet and leaned over the desk, putting her weight on her knuckles. She knew the steel on her bionic hand was scratching the wooden desk, but she didn't care. She stood over her father and fixed him with the coldest stare she could manage, feeling her numb fury building inside of her.

"But I can't forget everything you've done," Mackenzie said coldly. "And I definitely can't forgive you. I won't tell anyone what I know about you, because people still need you to lead them. They trust you. Like I used to trust you. So you keep leading them, you keep them safe like you always did before. But if you do anything, and I mean anything, that looks like you're going to betray us... I will tell everyone everything I know. About you, about Icarus, everything. Do you understand?"

Joseph looked small and pathetic to Mackenzie in that moment. He was staring up at her with wide eyes, silently pleading. Mackenzie had never spoken that way to him before and she had to drive her knuckles deeper into the wooden desk just to keep her hands from shaking.

Taking her father's silence as a sign of his understanding, Mackenzie picked up the hard drive and stood upright once more.

"I'm taking this back," Mackenzie said, holding up the hard drive as she spoke. "I'm going to have Ethan take a look at it. And I'm going to have the water map downloaded into the VTOL's nav-system. Min-Hee gets asylum. We keep getting water. And you stay away from me."

With that, Mackenzie turned on her heel and marched out of the room, slamming the door wide open on her way out, leaving Joseph sitting completely alone at his desk. He watched Mackenzie leave, his face etched with the hurt of her words, but she never looked back.

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

"This is some heavy stuff, Mackenzie."

Ethan was at his workstation in the shop, examining the data Mackenzie had brought him on the hard drive. He had his hand placed on a mouse-like device, but it was essentially just a large ball that rolled within a cradle. Each roll of the ball controlled the movement of the holographic images that now hovered over his desk. Three-dimensional images of documents, schematics, blueprints and countless other things floated before Ethan and Mackenzie, who stood watching over Ethan's shoulder.

"Any idea what it means?" Mackenzie asked.

"Well..." Ethan began, speaking slowly. "I could guess, but I won't know for sure until I look through everything here. It looks massively complicated. And there's a lot of math and theoretical physics used here. A lot of talk about something called exotic matter."

"Do you think we could build whatever it is?" Mackenzie asked, thinking about how long they might have before the mystery doomsday occurred.

"Not likely," Ethan frowned. "This is really complex stuff, way more complicated than anything I've seen before. I'm not sure we have the materials. Even if we melted down every scrap of steel we had in Town, I don't think it would be enough. Then there's all this other stuff to worry about. I don't even know what exotic matter is."

Ethan turned away from the images and spun on his stool to face Mackenzie.

"Give me some time to look over this stuff," he said. "I'll see if I can figure it out."

Mackenzie nodded. "I know you will. Thanks, Ethan."

Ethan pressed his lips tightly together, looking concerned. "You know your head is covered in blood, right?" he asked. "You should really see a doctor."

Mackenzie touched her forehead where blood had dried and begun to crack against her skin. She had completely forgotten about her injuries.

"I'm fine," Mackenzie said shortly.

"Are you?" Ethan asked doubtfully. "What the hell happened out there?"

"I'll tell you another time," Mackenzie replied, not meeting Ethan's eyes.

"You looked pretty mad with your dad when you talked to him," Ethan pressed. "What's wrong?"

"Just-nothing, don't worry about it," Mackenzie said evasively.

Ethan narrowed his eyes and seemed to examine Mackenzie like she was one of his projects.

"You seem... different," Ethan said. "I don't know how, but you do."

"I'm still me," Mackenzie said, but a part of her wondered how true that was.

"You can tell me anything, you know," Ethan said. "Was it the kiss?"

"Huh?" Mackenzie asked, not sure what Ethan was talking about. Then she remembered the last time she had seen him. "Oh!"

"I'm sorry if that was wrong," Ethan began. "But I'm also not sorry at all. I've been trying to work up the courage to tell you how I feel for years. The thought of you leaving and maybe never coming back, I had to take a chance."

Ethan stood up and took Mackenzie's hands in his. Mackenzie felt nervous, but didn't pull away. She met Ethan's gaze as he looked down into her eyes.

"Mackenzie... do you think that there's any way we could..." Ethan left the remainder of his question unspoken, but his meaning was clear.

Unsure of what she was going to say, Mackenzie opened her mouth to speak, her hands still in Ethan's.

"I-" she began.

Suddenly the door behind them burst open and a figure walked in. Mackenzie saw Jesse approaching, still limping, but his leg otherwise okay. As soon as she recognized him, Mackenzie dropped Ethan's hands and took a step away from him. The disappointment and hurt was painfully clear on Ethan's face and Mackenzie felt like the worst person in the world.

"Jesse," Mackenzie said, somewhat flustered. "How's your leg?"

"Not too bad," Jesse replied, smiling slightly, but glancing suspiciously between Mackenzie and Ethan. "Am I interrupting?"

"No, no, we were just going over the data on the hard drive," Mackenzie said quickly.

"Yeah," Ethan said, sounding bitter as he turned back to his workstation and sat down. He began flipping through the 3D documents once more, only too quickly to really be looking at them. "I'll learn what I can from this, see if there's anything useful. I'll talk to you later, Mackenzie."

Mackenzie stared sadly at Ethan's back as he pretended to read the documents in front of him. She wasn't sure how she felt in that moment, but it wasn't a good feeling. She felt alone, and guilty. She knew she hadn't done anything wrong by Ethan, it was him who kissed her, after all. Still, his feelings were hurt and, even though it was unintentional, Mackenzie knew she had made him feel that pain.

Turning to Jesse, Mackenzie said abruptly, "We should go."

His brow creasing in confusion as he glanced at Ethan, Jesse nodded once. "Sure. If you say so."

Together, Mackenzie and Jesse walked out of the shop, leaving Ethan to his own devices. Outside, they walked together silently, heading in the direction of the town center, where the VTOL was still parked. A large crowd of people had gathered around and, as they drew nearer, Mackenzie could see Min-Hee, Bell, and a dozen other people passing large jugs of water out to people. Min-Hee had suggested they empty the water contents of the VTOL to ease the community's trepidation towards her and the machine.

"It was a good idea," Mackenzie said aloud to Jesse. "Min-Hee saying to pass out the water. Looks like most people aren't so worried about her and the VTOL anymore."

Jesse nodded, watching the smiling faces of the people they passed as they made their way to their respective homes with their fresh supply of water.

"There's not enough for everyone, though," Jesse pointed out. "The VTOL holds thirty thousand litres. We have one hundred thousand people who need water. Even half a litre each won't be enough for everyone."

"Well, we'll just have to get more then, won't we?" Mackenzie replied slyly.

"Another mission?" Jesse asked, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.

"Not just for water, though," Mackenzie added. "Scylla is still out there. She'll be wanting that metric more than ever."

"So what do you suggest we do about her?" Jesse asked cautiously.

"Right now? Nothing," Mackenzie shrugged. "We're far away and she took a big hit today. She lost vehicles, two VTOLs, a bunch of soldiers, Boroslav... She'll likely want to regroup before she pulls anything. We'll just worry about ourselves for now, then figure her out later."

Jesse nodded approvingly. "What'd I tell you?" he asked, grinning sideways at Mackenzie. "You've got damn good potential."

Mackenzie returned Jesse's grin, but she didn't feel like smiling. After everything they had just been through, after the loss of good friends, Mackenzie felt drained. Like she had lost a large piece of herself out in the desert. For now, everyone was safe, but there were still a lot of dangers lurking in unseen places. How long could they stay safe?

"Things might just get harder from here," Mackenzie said, thinking aloud. "We can get water now, but with Scylla still out there... What's going to happen to us all now, Jesse?"

Jesse was silent for a few seconds as he considered Mackenzie's question. Then he looked sideways at her, slipping his hand into hers and squeezing her fingers comfortingly.

"Only time will tell."

EPILOGUE

Scylla scowled and folded her arms over her chest as she watched her men bring in the pathetic lump on a stretcher. He was moaning like a dying animal, one that needed to be put down for mercy's sake.

Or at least to just shut him up, Scylla thought, grinding her teeth in annoyance at his wailing.

The men carefully placed the stretcher on the infirmary bed, but even though they took enormous care to not harm him, the creature shrieked in agony the moment his back touched the mattress.

"How is he still alive?" one of the men whispered to another.

"Because he's too stubborn to die," the other soldier replied. "He probably tried to kill Death himself."

Scylla stood over the creature that had once been her loyal comrade, silencing the two soldiers with a cold glance. Then she returned her gaze to what had once been a man.

Boroslav barely resembled a human being anymore. His skin was charred and burned, exposing the raw flesh, which was cracked and weeping. Both of his legs were gone from the knees down, burned away or blown off in the explosion, as was his entire left arm. One eye was burned closed and his lips no longer existed, exposing his teeth in a terrifying skeletal scream.

At least I don't have to look at that cleft lip anymore, Scylla thought.

"Silver linings," she muttered to herself.

"Beg your pardon, Miss?" the nearest soldier asked, straightening his posture as though he though Scylla was giving him an order.

"Nothing, nothing," Scylla replied.

Boroslav wailed hideously on the bed, making Scylla sigh with annoyance.

"What can we do for him?" Scylla asked.

The man who called himself a doctor appeared at her side, staring at Boroslav in repulsion.

"I don't know," he replied, looking as though he didn't want to go anywhere near the screaming and wailing Boroslav. "The Rivera woman might have known, with her medical training, but this is far beyond my experience."

"Your best guess, then," Scylla growled impatiently.

"Put him down," the doctor admitted. "Just shoot him."

"Watch your mouth!" one of the soldiers snapped.

Scylla silenced everyone with only a raised hand, but noted how all of the soldiers present had tensed up and bristled at the doctor's suggestion.

They are loyal to Boroslav, Scylla reminded herself. If he were to die, would they remain loyal to me? Certainly not if I order he be put down. No, that will not do.

"There's something else we can do," Scylla began, speaking slowly, as if she was weighing her words carefully as she spoke. Truthfully, though, she had already decided what to do. "We can place him in the mech."

The doctor gasped in apparent shock. "We can't do that!"

"Of course we can," Scylla countered calmly. "The spinal and membrane inserts will prevent him from feeling the pain of his wounds. The suit itself will give him a new body, so that he can carry out his duties with the same skill he always has."

"But... but it's too dangerous!" the doctor argued. "The mechs were designed for only short-term use. What you're talking about will be for the remainder of his life! The inserts... we don't know what they might do to him with that level of long-term exposure. The chemicals coursing through his veins and into his brain, the artificial intelligence of the suit may not be compatible with his cognition... it may drive him mad!"

"He was already mad," Scylla said flatly. "But he was also useful. This... I can't use him like this. And he'd rather die than not be a soldier for a single day. Put him in the mech."

And when he is back on his feet, Scylla thought, we will end this.

