

## Facing the Breach

a novel by Cy Bishop

Copyright 2014 Cy Bishop

Smashwords Edition

With special thanks to:

God, my patient family, Google,

and Jessica Dodson for the fantastic cover

Chapter 1

Li Kichida looked up from the array of geological samples in front of her, her eyes resting on the sterile metal wall of the laboratory. Beyond that wall stood a towering dome, coated with tints and polymers to protect from radiation, and beyond the dome sprawled miles of red dust, craters, and cliffs. She smiled. Some days she could hardly believe that she actually stood on Mars.

The equipment in front of her chimed, drawing her attention back to the samples. Red text on the display told her that her attempts to find a new soil formation had failed. For the umpteenth time. And each time, she couldn't help feeling like she'd personally let Earth down.

That was the whole reason she stood on Mars today. The tongue-in-cheek bumper stickers about strip-mining Earth first turned out to be prophetic. Best estimates put Earth as uninhabitable within just three or four decades. Colonizing Mars was humanity's best chance for survival. But with Earth's nutrients depleted, starvation would ravage the population unless they could get staple crops started on the red planet. Early estimates had been optimistic, but further study uncovered significant problems, the main one being the lack of certain nutrients crucial for a nutritionally balanced mix of fruits, vegetables, and grains. One politician joked that they could sustain everyone on asparagus with the current soil makeup on Mars. He'd quietly resigned from office less than a month later.

"Hey."

The voice startled her. She glanced up at the woman working in the station across from hers.

Michelle Lamoureaux raised her eyebrows and glanced down at Li's equipment.

Li blushed. She'd been spacing out again. "Sorry," she mumbled, quickly cleaning up her failed test. Plexiglas beakers clacked against each other and emitted acrid smells as she gathered them to dispose the waste. She needed to grab some more samples and figure out a new approach.

"Didn't you know, M?" Michael Karney said from his station beside Michelle's. "Li's solving all our problems inside her head when she does that. You shouldn't disrupt the process."

Li kept her eyes on her work, wishing her cheeks weren't so warm.

Michelle made a face at him. "Be nice, M."

He grinned. "You just watch. She's the one who'll come up with the magic answer. It's always the introspective, quiet ones. She'll put the A-team over there to shame."

Li's flush deepened as she glanced over at the section Michael indicated. Isla Osbourne, the lead scientist, worked there with a select few. They always came across as polite, but their underlying superiority complex reminded Li of a high school clique.

"They'll never know what hit them," Michael concluded, then set to humming.

Michelle rolled her eyes.

After discarding her refuse, Li crossed the laboratory to the sample table. It was more of a bin, really, filled with plastic jars containing samples from the mines surrounding the colony. She picked up one of the samples and sighed. One year. That's all the time they had to find something—anything—native to Mars which could grow staple crops without supplemental nutrients from Earth. If they failed, NASA claimed to have 'other options' to explore, but everyone knew it would be a shot in the dark, literally. Load everyone up into ships. Take off into space. Hope to find a habitable planet before supplies ran out.

The colonization team pressed the matter, asking for more than just a year, but time wasn't on their side. If they took more than a year and still failed, it meant less time to search out a new planet—and greater risk of failure. The UN decided that the risk was too great. This was their only chance to make Mars work.

Li barely glanced at the labels on the samples, easily identifying most of the samples by sight. Basalt, iron, silica... More of the same, nothing new to jump out and scream, "I'm what you need!" She finished gathering a small armload. The excavators worked hard in the mines, bringing in hundreds of new samples each day, but never anything new in the three months they'd been at work. Well, less than three months. The first couple weeks were spent constructing the colony on the planet's surface. And the couple days they lost because of—

She turned her back on the bin and returned to her station. No point in thinking about that now.

Her equipment was rearranged. She frowned and looked up to find herself staring at Vera Stevenson. Not Michelle.

Vera paused, an awkward expression on her face. "Your table's over there, honey."

Li turned. She'd walked right past her station.

A couple of nearby scientists failed in their attempts to pretend not to notice her. A couple others didn't bother hiding their snickers.

Her cheeks burned again. "Sorry." She scooped the samples back up. Dropped one. Hastily retrieved it. Returned to her real station, her eyes glued to the floor. Ignored the looks.

M&M made no comments, much to her relief. Neither even looked up at her.

She exhaled and set up the new collection of samples. Time to focus. She knew what she was looking for; something new containing calcium, or some mix that could emulate calcium. Others working in the lab and the adjacent hydroponics building had their own theories, but all her tests led her to the conclusion that calcium was really the key missing element for self-sustainability. She was sure of it.

Matteo Alvarez strode into the lab. "Osbourne."

Li, along with nearly all the other scientists, watched with curiosity as Isla looked up from her work to address the colony's appointed leader.

"Yes?"

"We require a replacement excavator for tomorrow."

Li's heart skipped a beat.

Isla straightened, setting her tools down. "I'll see who's next on the rotation."

Most of the others already returned to work. The search for new samples outranked the laboratory's experimentation, so anytime an excavator fell ill or injured, one of the scientific staff filled in. Nearly everyone had been in the rotation by now.

Except Li.

The thought of standing on the actual surface—not the metal plating that formed the colony's foundation, but leaving her own footprints in the actual dust of Mars—left her nearly dizzy with anticipation. But she'd figured out the truth weeks ago. Her name had never come up because it wasn't in the rotation. She had worked up the courage to ask Isla about it, and Isla said that her expertise with minerals made her more valuable in the laboratory than in the mines.

But that wasn't the truth, and Li knew it. She was a little forgetful sometimes, a little spacey. They didn't think she was reliable enough to go on excavations.

"Kirk Fenster," Isla called.

Li bit back a frustrated grunt. Kirk? Again?

Kirk looked equally perturbed. "I was just out there."

"Your name's next," Isla replied, setting aside her datapad. "We all take our turns."

Li glanced over at Matteo. He nodded, looking satisfied. Every time she'd tried to speak up before, to speak in her defense and convince them that she could be trusted with the responsibility, she'd caught herself. He was an excellent leader: decisive, firm, caring, and confident. And talking to him scared the crap out of her.

It was his eyes, really. His black hair and bronze skin made his blue eyes all the more intense. His solemnity didn't help, either. She couldn't remember seeing him smile, ever. Rundy, Matteo's wife and her best friend, always told her she shouldn't be so intimidated, but moments like these made her want to blend into the wallpaper rather than speak up.

"Good," Matteo said. "Fenster, be ready to—"

"Li could go," Michael called.

All eyes turned on her.

Her heart stopped entirely.

Matteo raised an eyebrow. "Come again?"

Michael didn't even look up from his work. "She hasn't been in rotation yet."

"That's right," Kirk chimed in. "I've already been out there twice, and she hasn't even had one turn yet. She should go."

"Doesn't he seem eager," Michelle murmured.

"He hates going out there," Michael replied under his breath. "Claustrophobia."

Matteo glanced at Isla, then addressed Michael. "Thank you for addressing this concern. After review of Kichida's results, we've determined that her work here is too crucial for her to leave."

"No, it isn't," Kirk snorted. "She does the same stuff everyone else here does." He gave Li a sidelong sneer. "On the days she remembers what she's doing, that is."

A few people chuckled. Li's cheeks flamed anew.

Matteo's eyes flashed. His expression turned severe. "That's hardly called for."

Kirk looked down and kept his mouth shut.

Isla cleared her throat. "Mr. Alvarez, may I speak with you?"

A quiet rumble filled the room as the scientists murmured, trying to pretend they weren't watching Matteo and Isla's private conference. Li's eyes remained on her work, shame spreading through her entire face. Why couldn't she just focus like everyone else?

"Kichida."

Matteo's voice startled her. She looked up.

"You will be joining the excavators tomorrow. Come here, please."

"Yes!" Kirk whispered.

Li stared. Had she just heard him right?

"You as well, Fenster."

Kirk paused, but reluctantly crossed to Matteo's side. Matteo glanced back at Li and raised an eyebrow again, waiting.

She'd heard him right. He was really going to let her join the excavators. Heart soaring, Li hurried to join the men.

Matteo spoke in lowered tones. "Kichida, you will be expected to show up on time and prepared for the excavation. If you fail to do so, Fenster will take your place."

Kirk groaned. "So I'm going out after all."

"No, I can do it," Li quickly said. "I'll be there. I'll be ready. I promise. I—"

"You'll be with Malson's team. You'll meet with him in the away room after the teams return this evening for an orientation and briefing."

Li couldn't stop her smile. Not only did she get to go on an excavation, but she would be working with Jess Malson. He was one of the few excavators who didn't feel a need to draw social lines between the excavators and the scientists. "I'm familiar with it. I mean, all the procedures for excavations. I've studied the manual enough I've almost got it memorized."

Kirk snorted.

Matteo frowned at him, then returned his attention to Li. "Regardless, the orientation is required for any non-excavator taking part in an excavation. Just follow protocol."

"Of course, sir." She straightened, trying to look as competent and obedient as possible.

He nodded sharply and left.

"Don't screw it up," Kirk said.

"I won't," she promised, but he already walked away. She sighed and returned to her station—the correct one this time.

"You know he's only like that because he can't distinguish samples half as well as you can," Michael said.

She smiled, but Kirk's comments didn't bother her anymore. Not with the thrill rushing through her veins. She would finally walk on Mars.

The last few hours of work crawled by, but finally the numbers clicked into place. While the others chatted and took their time closing down their stations, Li scrambled through ending procedures and locked down her samples. She had to get to the away room in time.

A voice of reason in her mind pointed out she didn't really have to rush. The away room wasn't far—just down the broad walkway that ran between the lab and the side of the cafeteria, then a sharp left turn to continue along the cafeteria's front face. The entrance to the away room stood almost directly across from the cafeteria's entrance, a design feature the scientists guessed was to make sure the excavators stayed happy.

Though she knew she didn't have far to go, she hurried anyway. Didn't want to risk being even a second late.

She dashed out the door and almost ran into Rundy. "Oh! Sorry."

Rundy took a step back, blonde ponytail swinging. "You must be starved."

"No, I'm not going to the cafeteria." Li grinned and tried to keep from bouncing in place with excitement. "I have an orientation to attend."

Rundy's eyebrows shot up. "They're finally letting you on an excavation?"

"I can't believe it, either." Li stopped, her eyes narrowing with a sly smile. "You said something to him for me, didn't you." As his wife and head of security, everyone knew Rundy held a certain amount of sway over Matteo's decisions.

Rundy tsked. "You know mommy doesn't play against daddy like that." She glanced down the walkway toward the building that housed the away room, a low metal structure that pressed against the side wall of the dome stretching high overhead. "The excavators are back in. You probably want to get to that meeting."

"Right." Li turned. "Thanks!"

"Good luck," Rundy called after her as she scurried on.

The away room throbbed with sound and activity. Of the eighty colonists, fifty were excavators, making this section one of the busiest areas. A few brushed past Li in the doorway, carrying bags loaded with new samples. The geologist in her wanted to follow for a chance to peek inside, to see if anything new stood out, but she knew it would all be more of the same. Besides, her place was here now.

Lockers lined the walls and stood in rows, filling the room aside from a large aisle down the middle. Excavators swarmed the lockers, jabbering away as they removed and stored their envirosuits, filling the room with a steady buzz of voices and clattering equipment.

The massive, circular airlock dominated the far end of the room. Li avoided looking at it as she walked toward the middle of the room, glad when she was able to turn away from the heavy door and go down the short side hallway that led to the meeting room.

She hurried in and found that her rush wasn't necessary. She was the first one there. Empty tables filled the room in neat classroom rows, with one smaller table near the front. Teacher's desk, she thought with a wry smile. A couple of gray lockers were tucked in the corner near the smaller table, nearly camouflaged against the utilitarian metal walls.

She sat down at one of the back tables and folded her hands in her lap. Then rested them on the table. Then smoothed invisible wrinkles from her lightweight thermal pants and folded them in her lap again.

Settle down, she scolded herself. She was acting like a teen on a first date.

She smiled. Not a bad analogy. Her first time in the mines. The first couple weeks of drilling surface samples on a grid had, as they'd predicted, produced no results. If they wanted to find their missing links, they had to go deep. The mines, over the last couple months, had become a network of tunnels stretching far beneath the surface. She tracked the progress each day, wishing she could be out there, crawling through them, watching for some new color or texture or glint of metallic ore to catch her eye. M&M even told her early on they thought she was the best choice for helping excavations because of her eye for identifying samples by sight. She didn't think she was that much better at it than any of the other scientists, but they insisted that if they had anything to say about it, she'd be out there more often than not.

She shifted her weight. Glanced at the empty hallway as the clatter of excavators faded from the other end. Was she in the right room?

A peek at her watch told her she was just early. That's all. She sighed and leaned back in her seat.

"You're early," Jess said as he walked in.

She sat up. "I didn't want to be late."

He leaned on the table at the front of the room, chiseled face looking even more prominent in the artificial lighting. "They're finally letting you go out, huh? Good for you. We've got a couple others coming in for refresher, so just give it a minute." He scrolled through a datapad briefly, then set it on the table and opened one of the lockers. A full suit hung there, ready for demonstration.

"I know we all had to read the manual before the mission, but have you looked at it since?" he asked, pulling tools from the bottom of the locker.

"A few times."

"How many makes 'a few'?"

She glanced down. "I'm pretty familiar with it."

"Great. If you don't mind, I'll have you help me with the suit demonstration. It's just a review of how it goes on, all the connections, things like that."

"Sure." Her heartbeat picked up. She'd be trying on an envirosuit. Tomorrow she'd be wearing one for real.

A lanky, greasy excavator whose name she didn't remember paused in the doorway. He saw Li and rolled his eyes. "So I have to sit through baby school just so some egghead doesn't feel singled out?"

Jess's eyes turned hard. "Have a seat, Brent. I think you know why you're here. Unless you'd like a reminder?"

Brent's lips twisted downward. He plopped into a seat.

A few more wandered in. She recognized two of them immediately from their matching wild red hair and pale blue eyes. Digby and Waugh. They'd met for the first time on this mission, though they were so similar in appearance and personality that everyone concluded they must be twins separated at birth. She couldn't remember if 'Digby' and 'Waugh' were their first or last names, but those were the names everyone called them. Another man she didn't recognize, skinny with sunken eyes and mousy brown hair, trudged in behind them, bringing the faint smell of body odor with him.

"That's all of us," Jess said, straightening. "Quick introductions—Brent, Digby, Waugh, and Trevor, this is Li. She'll be joining our team tomorrow."

Trevor eyed her. "So we have to go through a lecture just for an egghead?"

Jess picked up his datapad. "Do you really want me to go through the specific reasons why everyone's here?"

Trevor made a sour look similar to Brent's, but kept his mouth shut.

Li kept her mouth shut, too. The 'baby school,' as Brent had put it, wasn't just for non-excavators, but also for any excavators who neglected the safety regulations.

Digby grinned. "We're here because we don't listen."

"Bad listeners," Waugh agreed cheerfully.

"We prefer the term 'listening challenged.'"

Brent rolled his eyes again.

"Let's get started." Jess set his datapad back down. "The goal of excavating is to collect mineral samples, as many and as varied as possible. You collect a sample, you move further down, you collect another sample. It's okay if you can't tell the difference in the rock types by looking, but try not to collect too many of the same type."

As he continued through the spiel, Li's mind wandered to visions of what the tunnels would look like from the inside. Dark and musty, like the coal mines on Earth? No, not musty. No atmosphere. She wouldn't be able to smell from inside the envirosuit, anyway.

"Li?"

She looked up.

Jess smiled. "You ready for the suit demonstration?"

"Oh. Right." She quickly stood and joined him at the front of the room.

Brent sighed and leaned back in his chair to emphasize his boredom.

Jess ignored him and handed Li the envirosuit. "Proper suit alignment is crucial on the surface. Step into the legs, being careful to keep the left arm steady. That's where the suit monitoring system is, which gives you feedback on suit pressure, oxygen levels, and everything else you need to know out there. If you let it twist too much while pulling the suit on, the wires can become crossed."

Li carefully slid the suit on under his guidance, being extra careful of the left arm. Once in place, the monitor flashed, ready for the rest of the connections to be made. Jess talked her through attaching the air tanks on the back, running the hoses correctly into place, and engaging the monitor.

"Perfect." He handed her the helmet. "Once it's in place, the lock will automatically engage, and the oxygen flow will begin."

She couldn't stop the smile on her face as she took the helmet from him. This was it. This was for real. She pulled it over her head and slid it into place. A clicking sound told her when the lock engaged.

Alarm klaxons blared, screeching an urgent alert over and over.

Li's entire body froze. Terror flooded her system in a wild panic.

She stood in a hallway, talking and laughing with friends.

The entire place shook.

Stars twinkled in blackness.

Air rushed violently past her ears, tearing at her arms. Trying to suck her life away.

Screams. People screamed all around her. Screaming for help. Screaming to shut it down. Screaming...

"Li! It's okay! Calm down!"

Hands shook her. She flailed at them. They had to shut it down! They had to—

Someone gripped her arms, holding her still. The helmet unlatched.

The alarm fell silent.

Li gasped in air. The world around her slowly returned to order. She was safe in the meeting room. There was no breach here. Jess stood in front of her, the helmet in his hands. Digby and Waugh held her arms, immobilizing her moments before, but now keeping her from falling over. Brent and Trevor remained seated, staring with slack jaws.

Her heartbeat gradually dropped back into human levels. She sucked in ragged breaths and felt her face warm in shame. It had been months since the incident on the shuttle. She should be over it by now. Everyone else was. "Sorry," she managed to whisper. "I, um, I..."

"It's fine," Jess quickly cut in. He set the helmet aside and gave her a cautious hand disentangling the rest of the suit. "I should've warned you that would happen. It just meant the comm system wasn't active. That's essential, to have a working radio out there, so the monitor sets off an alarm if it isn't active when the suit's on."

"Right. Of course." She'd even known that. It was in the manual. Her cheeks grew hotter.

Digby and Waugh hesitantly returned to their seats. Li followed, gaze still fixed downward.

Jess hung the suit back up. "Well." He cleared his throat. "If anyone has any further questions about the suit, I can answer them after the meeting. Let's move on."

Trevor glanced over his shoulder at her. Snickered.

Li didn't hear another word of the meeting. There was no way they'd let her out on the surface after that. How could she have let herself get so worked up? Of course she was safe here. There was no breach. She was fine.

But in that moment, hearing that alarm... it had all been so real. Too real.

Her breathing was finally returning to normal. Not that it mattered.

She'd finally gotten her one chance, and she'd blown it.

Chapter 2

The soft buzz of the alarm tore Li from empty dreams of failure and missed opportunities. Her roommates dragged themselves out of their bunks, yawning as they gathered their clothes and toiletries to head across the hall to the bathroom.

Abigail Brightman, a graying, matronly woman, paused by Li's bunk. "What's wrong?"

"Who said anything's wrong?"

"Usually you're the first out of bed. Feeling sick?" She reached toward Li's forehead.

Li gently blocked the doctor's hand. "I'm fine." She sat up and made a show of starting the morning's routine. Abigail seemed content enough to continue on, but Li's heart wasn't in it. She knew what was coming. She'd show up at the away room only to find Kirk already there, suited up and laughing at her while he told her to go back to the lab.

Or maybe it would be Matteo himself delivering the news. She gripped her clothes to her chest at the sudden burst of dread. Jess would have told him about her performance last evening. Matteo would be there to meet her, and everyone would see him talking to her. The way news traveled in the colony, they probably already knew why.

She squeezed her eyes shut. If only she could just climb back under the covers and make it be tomorrow instead.

Li finished her morning routine and trudged to the away room. Might as well get it over with.

The room only held a few excavators and team leads suiting up, arranging gear, and checking off checklists. Jess looked up as she walked in. "Finished breakfast already?"

Li exhaled. "I figured I'd stop here first." She could take her time drowning her sorrows in overly sugared coffee after she'd gotten the official word.

"You'll want to get a good meal in before we leave. We'll be out there all day, you know."

Li stopped, her heart fluttering. "Wait—you mean I'm still going out today?"

He grinned. "Why wouldn't you? Go on, get some food and get back in here."

"But... I..." She stared for a moment, uncomprehending.

He raised his eyebrows and nodded in confirmation.

She was going out.

Li squealed. "Thank you!" she managed to squeak before charging back out the door and across the walkway to the cafeteria. Out on the surface, she'd have a nutrient-rich drink to sip through a straw valve as she worked, but the manual said a healthy meal beforehand was crucial for comfort and health while working. And she intended to do everything by the book from this moment on. By some miracle she'd gotten a second chance, and she wasn't about to blow it again.

The cafeteria was a riotous mass of people. Excavators horked down food, laughing and talking around full mouths. A handful of scientists quietly sipped coffee in the back corner. A couple of security officers cracked jokes with diners while making sure no one got too unruly. Li hurried through the buffet-style line, grabbing randomly at the heartiest-looking dishes.

"Slow down, white rice." Chun Hei Kim grabbed a bowl of oatmeal out of Li's hands and put it back on the counter. "You're gonna make yourself sick before you even get out the airlock with this junk."

"The manual said—"

"Who you gonna listen to, a book made by a bunch of stuffy white guys or your sister girl?" Chun Hei grinned and put a few more dishes back before grabbing a fruit bowl. "There. Perfect." She looped arms with Li and dragged her toward one of the tables.

Li followed willingly enough, torn by Chun Hei's random show of friendliness. The excavator had declared them best friends from the moment they met, being the two 'token Asians' on the mission, as she put it. But the petite woman had been quick to jump on board with the excavator superiority complex, preventing them from spending much time together. Not that the distance bothered Li much. She'd always found Chun Hei a little too brash.

They sat at one of the excavator tables. Li recognized both Trevor and Brent, though neither acknowledged her presence aside from an initial snort.

"So then we get out there on the hog, and Malson's riding me for being too close to the edges, and I was like, dude, what are you, my grandma or something?" Brent said.

Chun Hei joined the others in their raucous laughter.

Li took a few bites and tried to avoid eye contact.

"Your grandma," Trevor repeated, laughing loudly again.

Brent slapped him on the back. "You know how it is. They always want to drag us down, get on our backs for every teensy thing. It's not like we're gonna roll in the tunnels, right?"

Another round of laughter. Li picked up her pace, ready to be done eating and out of there.

"Yeah, it's not like they can roll in the tunnels," Trevor snorted. "Not enough space."

"You know what it really is," another excavator cut in, "they just want to put a good show on for the eggheads."

"Exactly." Brent's eyes fixed on Li. "So no one goes running back to Alverez to tattle on us."

Li kept her eyes on the food in front of her. Maybe she could eat the rest while she walked.

"Hey," Chun Hei spoke up. "Don't say crap like that."

The others quieted.

"Not with an egghead sitting right here!" she continued, then burst out laughing, toast crumbs spraying onto the table.

The others joined in, elbowing Chun Hei and giving her high-fives.

Li swallowed the rest of her juice and stood, grabbing her tray.

"Aww, look, she's running off to tattle now," Brent said, a wicked glint in his eye.

"Don't be like that," the other excavator said. "We're just joking around. Don't you have a sense of humor?"

The others chimed in their agreement.

"Sorry," Li mumbled, her cheeks warming. "I just want to get suited up."

"Don't go tattle," Trevor snorted. "She's just gonna tattle."

The others seemed to ignore him, still staring at Li.

Chun Hei stood and threw an arm around Li's shoulders. "Hey, she's not like that. She's cool. My sister girl, right?"

"Sure," Li managed to say before ducking out from under the arm and heading to the counter to return her tray. She only had a banana left; she could eat that on her way out the door.

"Don't sweat it. They have to make a big deal about how much more important they are than anyone else. You know it means nothing," Chun Hei prattled on as she walked behind Li.

Li nodded noncommittally.

"Those boys are all stupid, anyway. Think they're kings of the world." She deposited her tray and fluffed her hair. "Always think the girls are swooning over every word. You watch for that out there, sister girl. Don't let those boys pick on you—or try to pick you up!" She laughed loudly.

Li glanced back at the table. The others had resumed their loud chatter, but Trevor still seemed to be staring at her. "Can I ask you something? Has Trevor always been, um..."

"A weirdo? Yeah, he's a real head case." Chun Hei waved her fingers dismissively. "I think he has that 'spergers disease or something, you know, can't talk to people right. But he gets his quota every day, so no one really cares." She grinned. "He tried to hit on me once, can you believe it? Ew much."

Li stuffed a bite of banana in her mouth to avoid responding.

Her quietness seemed to suit Chun Hei just fine, as the other girl continued jabbering to the disposal where Li tossed her peel for the hydroponics compost, out of the cafeteria, into the away room, and to their lockers, which turned out to be side by side.

"Little Miss Kim," Jess called. "Give Li a hand with her suit if she needs help."

"I'm on it," she replied before giving Li a broad grin. "Guess we're gonna be exca-buddies!"

Great, Li thought. She forced a smile and endured the younger woman's prattle while they prepped their equipment and suited up. Li was careful not to put her helmet on yet. The comm systems weren't active. She wasn't about to risk a repeat of yesterday.

"And I was so nervous my first time out, you know, but it was all cool. Me, I was like, are we sure these suits are strong enough to hold up out here? Mining's kind of rough and all... But these things can handle." Chun Hei bumped her locker door a couple times to demonstrate. "I mean, you don't want to run into one of those walls at top speed or anything. They get these sharp edges with the stuff we've cut out and all that. But just walking around down there, getting the job done, these things hold up fine."

"Right." Li double-checked her air tank connections.

"And be careful how you hold the OL," she continued, poking at the small, hand-sized tool hanging off Li's belt. "The laser isn't gonna hurt you or anything, but you don't want it turned the wrong way. The suits are tough, but not that tough." She snorted. "Waugh almost took his arm off this one time, did I tell you? He was reaching for this great big—"

"If you two are ready, head for the lock." Jess walked past, giving both of them an appraising once-over.

"Yeah, you just keep looking 'cause you ain't getting none of this," Chun Hei called.

"Whatever you say, Little Miss Kim." He gave the next excavator the same inspection.

"He says he's just checking the suits, but I know what he's checking," she confided in Li. "Come on, white rice."

Li let Chun Hei pull her onward, but slowed as they neared the airlock. Her heartbeat sped up.

Excitement, she told herself. I'm excited that I finally get to go out on the surface.

An alarm screamed in the back of her mind.

She closed her eyes. Took a deep breath. Clamped the images out. This is the airlock, she told herself. It's different. It's meant to open. And I'll have my helmet on.

Her helmet. She glanced down at the monitor on her left arm and confirmed that the comm system was active. Good, no alarm. She pulled the helmet on and locked it in place. The airlock may be different, but there was still no way she was about to get close to it without her helmet secured.

"You coming already?" Chun Hei demanded, making a show of tapping her foot, though it translated awkwardly through the bulky suit.

The other woman's words were muted through the helmet, but Li was able to make them out clearly enough. "Let's go."

Several other excavators already gathered at the airlock door, all with helmets in hand. A few snickered at the sight of her; whether it was because she was an egghead or because she already had her helmet on, she wasn't sure. At that particular moment, though, it didn't really matter. She could see past them, through the double airlock doors, out to the surface beyond. Where she would be standing in just a few minutes. Suddenly the airlock didn't seem so scary.

The same polymer that heavily tinted the rest of the bubble covered the windows in the airlock doors as well, but the front of her helmet wasn't so thickly tinted, with the necessity of clear vision in the underground mines. As soon as those doors opened, she'd see the red surface of Mars as it was for the first time, not darkened by layers of polymers and plastics. Just her and Mars.

Jess and a couple other leaders climbed up on a nearby bench and called for attention. Jess read from his datapad. "Listen up, final instructions. First, you must all remember..." He glanced up from the tablet. "Yadda, yadda. You know the drill. Get out there, get the samples, keep your ears on the radios in case anything changes."

The excavators let out a whoop in unison before clamping their helmets down.

Li craned her neck, watching the massive airlock door.

One of the other excavator leads pressed a button on the adjacent terminal, and the door slowly rolled aside.

Li scrambled to enter the airlock, but was impeded by the steady trudge of the others.

"Slow down, white rice," Chun Hei said over the radio. "You're gonna fall on your face before we even get out there."

Li couldn't hear the other excavators laughing through the helmets, but she could see the smirks they gave her. She blushed.

"Channels clear," Jess said into the radio. His tone seemed to scold.

Chun Hei shrugged, once again making the movement large to show through the hefty suit.

The inner airlock door slid back into place, closing the excavators inside the massive airlock.

Li forgot all about her embarrassment and stretched upward, watching with heart in her throat.

It seemed to take forever, but finally the red light above the exterior door turned green. The door held steady for a moment, seeming to hold its breath in expectation just as she did. Finally, the massive door groaned open.

Li remained rooted in place as the other excavators wandered past her, heading for the bulky surface vehicles that would take them into their respective mines. The sun hovered just above the horizon, glowing through the red dust spread through the atmosphere, creating a faintly orange layer in the sky before it spread upward into dark shades of blue. A stiff wind kicked up more dust and bombarded Li's suit with myriad particles. She instinctively flinched, then chuckled at her own silliness and relaxed, standing straight and letting it come.

The colony rested in relative safety at the base of a cliff, now towering to her left. Everything else before her spread out with a gradual rise and fall, polka-dotted by gray and brown surface rocks. It felt so much like the desert back home in Arizona that she immediately felt like she belonged. Only this wasn't Arizona. This was Mars.

"Everyone out of the lock," an unfamiliar voice said on the radio.

Li blinked and realized that she was the only one still standing in the airlock. She stepped forward, her boots clunking against the last couple steps of metal surface. Then a muted thud. She looked down at the faint plume of dust rising around her foot. Her heart jumped to hummingbird speeds.

She stood on Mars.

The airlock door clunked behind her. She took another step and looked back as the door chugged back into place. Looked down at the footprints. Her footprints. On Mars.

She giggled. Her brain felt like it was exploding from the sheer force of awesomeness.

"Let's get going," Jess said.

Li turned. The other fourteen members of Jess's crew already sat in the hog, some of them staring at her and waiting. It occurred to her that she normally would have blushed, but she was too excited, too thrilled to let a little embarrassment slow her down. She clumped toward the hog, fumbling with the controls on her arm for a moment before remembering which button controlled the radio. "Sorry. I'm here."

Waugh offered a hand and helped her into the last empty seat. The hog lurched forward before she had a chance to settle in. She thumped heavily against the seat.

"Watch it, Brent," Jess scolded.

"Everyone was seated."

The hog accelerated, kicking up more clouds of dust around them. Li adjusted her position and checked her monitor. Everything still looked fine. Chun Hei was right; the suits were designed to stand up to rough handling.

"You watch yourself," Chun Hei said, giving Brent's shoulder a light push. "We Asians stick together, you know. You don't want me going all 'crouching tiger' on your butt."

"Channels clear," Jess said. He sounded tired.

The radio quieted down, to Li's relief. She looked up, around, twisting her shoulders awkwardly so she could see the sides as well, soaking in every square inch she could see. Craters pockmarked the surface from the previous attempt to gather shallow samples, punctuated rarely by dark, gaping holes marking the mine entrances. Two of the four mines dug into the surface of the cliff, Mine One near the airlock and Mine Four all the way on the other side of the colony. Mines Two and Three sank into the surface, forming an almost perfect connect-the-dots square around the bubble with the cliff mines. She knew from the schedule they'd be at Mine Two today, just under a mile from the airlock.

The trip went faster than she expected, and when Li spotted the maw in the ground ahead, bordered on each side by wind-whipped flags, she almost wished they'd been assigned to Mine Four so she could drink in more of the sights around her. But as they drew closer, she felt a new thrill of excitement. She would be inside the mine, seeing the ore layout for herself, examining the layers, searching for that missing link. A tiny hope whispered from the back of her mind: maybe she'd find it today. Maybe she'd find the needed ore to save Earth.

She grabbed the upper rollbar and pulled herself up, craning her neck for a better view of the approaching mine entrance. Most of the surface rocks had been cleared away from the hole, thrown free in the blasting process. Even the dust still held lines, showing a clear image of the blast pattern which had only been partially softened by the continuous winds.

One of the front wheels hit a large rock. The entire hog lurched. Li gasped as she lost her balance, scrambling to regain her grip on the rollbar before she pitched over the side.

Waugh grabbed her arm and pulled her back into her seat.

She landed heavily. "Oh!" She blinked a couple times to recover her composure, then fumbled with the radio again. "Thanks."

"First rule of hogs," he grinned. "Remain seated at all times."

"Keep your hands and arms inside the vehicle," Digby added from behind them.

"Flash photography is prohibited on this ride."

"DisneyMars is not responsible for any lost or stolen items."

"Do we have to listen to this?" Brent asked.

"Yeah, do we have to listen?" Trevor chimed in.

Jess turned in his seat, and Li could see him shaking his head before he activated his radio. "Tone it down. Let's just get out there and get our job done."

The hog once again quieted. It rumbled and rattled over the last few meters, then dipped into the black hole. Lights immediately flashed on, bright headlights in front illuminating the tunnel ahead and threads of light running the length of the clunky vehicle.

Li sank into her seat as blurs of gray, brown, and red flashed by on each side. The hog's speed outside had felt reasonable, but in the narrow tunnel, seeing the walls fly past too quickly to see clearly, it felt downright suicidal. She suddenly understood why Jess would scold Brent for his driving. Her stomach twisted, threatening to return her morning's meal. She squeezed her eyes shut and focused on taking deep breaths.

The hog lurched, shook, tilted around corners, and finally jolted to a stop. Li clung to her seat, still trying to quiet her body. She heard Jess delivering a few random orders, but the words faded into the background, as did the rush of people scrambling out of the hog and heading off to work.

A tap on her shoulder startled her.

"Ready to go?" Jess asked.

She blinked. The hog rested in a small sort of hub, still a tight space, but significantly better than the tunnels. And at least the walls weren't moving this time. A handful of stationary lights illuminated the area, strung with wires that extended to further lights lining the smaller tunnels extending from the hub. A dim light from her monitor added to the glow.

"We're mainly working in these tunnels here," Jess said, waving toward the north and east tunnels. Most of them sloped gently upward, though a few remained level as far as Li could see. "Grab a sample bag, pick a tunnel, and go nuts."

Li carefully climbed out of the hog, holding onto it a moment longer to determine that her body would, in fact, cooperate. Straightening, she went to the back of the hog and pulled out a sample bag. It hung lightly on her shoulder, filled with empty sample jars made from a thick, clear plastic. Jars waiting to be filled. The last traces of nausea melted away into a renewed delight.

"So I just pick a tunnel?" she asked, turning around slowly to take in the entire hub. While the north and east tunnels mostly seemed to move upward, the south and west ones frequently dipped downward. "Is something wrong with those tunnels?" It seemed to her that deeper digging would be the best way to find new results.

"We've already worked those ones over thoroughly. If we aren't finding anything new in a tunnel, then we move on." Jess again gestured to the north and east tunnels. "We're working on these ones now."

She wandered closer to the east tunnels. One angled somewhat southeast, and though it seemed flat, she could barely see a faint downward dip at a bend near the end of what she could see. "Is this one okay?"

"Uh... yeah. That one should be fine." Jess stepped into the tunnel after her. "It's your first time out here, so I have to—"

"Witness me taking a sample to make sure I understand the procedure correctly," Li said, reciting almost word-for-word from the manual. "Right." She walked further, her eyes scanning the walls. All of the earlier thoughts and feelings faded as she focused on the one thing she knew better than anything else in the world: rocks. Basalt colored the walls with variegated gray tones; the occasional patch of iron oxide broke up the grays with patches of dull reddish-brown. Nothing out of the ordinary. Though she did note Chun Hei hadn't been joking about sharp edges on the walls. It looked less like the work of professionals and more like the work of Leatherface with a chainsaw.

"Just grab a sample. Of anything," Jess said.

Li blushed. He still followed her, waiting for her to take a sample, and she was keeping him from his job. "Sorry." She selected a particularly thready patch of basalt and removed her OL from the clip on her side. Remembering the excavator's warning, she double-checked the direction she held it before activating the laser. It emitted a pale yellow light and made quick work of the rock, delivering a small sample into her waiting plastic jar. She deactivated the OL, marked down the location of the sample, and put the jar back into the sample bag, making sure to slide it on the other side of the dividing canvas. By the time the day was over, all of the sample jars would be on that side with none left on the 'empty' side.

"Did I do it right?" she asked, turning back to Jess.

His expression seemed to be halfway between impressed and amused. "I've never had an egghe—a scientist who got it right on the first try. Nicely done." He waved toward the end of the tunnel. "You should find an orange flag from where the last person stopped working. Just pick it up from there, fill your bag, and meet us back at the hog when you hear the day-end call. And let me know if you have any problems."

"I will, thanks." Li clutched her sample bag close and hurried down the tunnel. It dipped slightly just before bending southward. She followed the curve and stopped. The tunnel forked from there. One branch went further south and gradually sloped downward. The other held level and continued southeast. She peered down each branch, but couldn't spot any orange flags.

Jess said the south tunnels were done, but this tunnel wasn't. And her instincts still said deeper tunnels were more likely to lead to new discoveries. She turned south, keeping watch for any orange flags as she walked.

The tunnel grew steeper further in, the walls still featuring more of the same ores they'd found before. After about a kilometer, it joined another tunnel, a wider one.

She paused. How far south had she come? The new tunnel seemed like it'd been fairly thoroughly dug, with sharp edges indicating cut marks from the floor to the ceiling. She only took another moment to study it before concluding that it must be one of the south tunnels. The narrower tunnel she'd come from didn't look as thoroughly excavated, though, so she retreated a few steps back into it and set her bag down. Might as well start here as anywhere.

Within minutes, she fell into an easy rhythm, cutting, collecting, and bagging the samples. She focused on one area, trying to work her way a bit deeper into the wall. There wasn't much point in sampling what they already had, but who knew what might be hiding just behind the familiar. Hours slid past, punctuated only by the occasional rest to sip purified water from one tube or the chalky nutrient drink from the other.

Li dug into her sample bag for a new jar and came up empty. She'd already filled all her jars? She double-checked, digging through the empty side of the canvas flap, but found nothing. Sure enough, she'd already finished her bag. She checked the monitor on her arm. They still had a couple hours of work left. She could start on a second bag.

Shouldering the full bag, she turned back to the tunnel. The wider south tunnel drew her gaze. After working in one cramped spot, she was ready for some breathing room, so to speak. With any luck, it might be a shorter trip to the hog through this tunnel than by backtracking to the fork in the original tunnel.

She'd only taken a few steps in the south tunnel when the ground rumbled beneath her feet. She grabbed at the wall, pulling back only when she spotted the sharp edges, but the rumbling stopped before she lost her balance. Mars was more tectonically stable than Earth in many ways, but marsquakes still hit from time to time, minor enough to be more of an annoying distraction than any real danger. She shook it off and took another step.

Something slammed into her from behind, smashing her into the wall. Sharp edges dug into her shoulder, arm, and chest, knocking the air from her lungs. A limb flailed at her, then was gone.

Li coughed and stumbled back from the wall, trying to restore order to her rattled brain. A faint buzzing sound filled the helmet, then quieted. She coughed again and put a hand on the wall between edges. Coughed. Her chest burned. Her left shoulder ached. Everything seemed foggy.

She frowned with the next cough. Something wasn't right. She'd had the wind knocked out of her before, but this felt different. Like the air was thinning. And why wasn't her vision clearing yet?

The fog. It wasn't in her vision. It was in the tunnel. Her suit was venting oxygen.

Terror squeezed her chest. She lifted her left arm to check the monitor only to find a garble of lights flashing behind a splintering crack across the screen. It fizzled and emitted smoke which mixed with the oxygen pouring from the hole in her suit just a bit further up her arm. She clamped her right hand over the tear, but the tunnel continued to fill.

The radio. She had to call for help.

Another cough shook her body as she reached for the button. Air rushing out. Images flashed past her eyes.

No. She closed her eyes and shoved the images away. This was different. This was different.

She found the radio button. "Hello?" Her voice came out thin, pinched. She coughed and tried again. "I need help!"

Her voice fell flat. The monitor blinked out, dimming the tunnel.

The radio was dead.

So was she.

Chapter 3

Li struggled upright and clamped her hand back over the rip in her suit. No. The other excavators weren't far. If she could reach the hog, they'd see something was wrong and take care of it. Emergency suit repair, extra tanks—all at the hog. She just had to get there.

The cloud seemed to hang steady around her. She coughed again, harder this time. Was she out of air? Panic froze her feet in place.

Have to move, she told herself. If you stay put, you're dead.

Her legs finally cooperated, stumbling weakly forward. Even in the lighter gravity, the suit dragged her down, weighting each step. The sample bag fell from her shoulder and dragged at the corner of her elbow as she staggered onward.

The cloud dissipated behind her. She was out of air.

Her lungs burned, but she pressed on. Had to get to the hog.

A form loomed ahead. She fought to wave her other arm, to try to catch their attention, but could only manage a weak, flopping motion. She stumbled and fell against the wall. Pushed herself up. Staggered closer.

The figure turned. Skinny face, sunken eyes. Trevor.

He frowned at her and said something. She heard a faint crackle, but her radio was too damaged to receive his words.

She lifted her left arm, trying to show him the broken monitor. The torn suit.

The tunnel twisted around her. She landed heavily on her side.

Trevor's face hovered above hers, confusion meshing his eyebrows. She tried to speak, to tell him she needed air, to beg for help. Nothing came out.

The tunnel swayed again, then faded into oblivion.

* * *

A quiet beeping sound pierced the darkness. An alert. Li struggled against unresponsive limbs and sluggish thoughts. Something was wrong.

"Easy," a voice called over the beeping.

Didn't they hear the alert? She fought harder and found herself sitting upright. Where was the breach? They had to get it closed!

Abigail appeared in front of her face. "That's ENOUGH."

Li blinked, her chest heaving. She sat on a bed in the infirmary. A dark blue curtain closed off the end of the cubicle walls to separate her from other patients. Overly bright lights above gave the sterile metal walls a sickly look.

Her shoulder and chest ached, but felt generally intact. A plastic mask pressed into her face and made her skin itch. Oxygen. A clip on her finger glowed red, monitoring her heartbeat. The beeping sound wasn't an alert; it was just the monitoring equipment. No breach. She was safe.

Abigail gently eased her back onto the pillows behind her. "There, you see? You're safe here."

It took Li a moment longer to regain the rest of her composure. "I was in the mine."

"Trevor radioed for help and got you back to the hog. They patched your suit, put fresh tanks on, and rushed you in here." Abigail flashed a small light into Li's eyes. "Tell me your name."

"Li Kichida."

"Today's date?"

"Uh..." Li blinked.

Abigail leaned back and tilted her head, a vaguely amused look on her face. "Do you know where you are?"

"The infirmary." Abigail said nothing, so Li continued. "In the colony. On Mars."

The older woman smiled and gave her a satisfied nod. "Good enough for me. Looks like they got you patched up before any permanent damage could set in. You've got some significant bruising, but no breaks or fractures. Does it hurt to breathe?"

Li took a cautious breath in. "My chest hurts, but I don't think breathing makes any difference."

The curtain rattled, and Nikolas Federov poked his head in. "Rundy is here, asking—ah, you are awake. Is good."

"Thank you," Li said, feeling a new blush forming. Nikolas was the youngest of the medical staff, tall with dark hair and a good-natured smile that made him seem like a teddy bear personified. More than once she'd considered asking to eat with him in the cafeteria, but she'd never worked up the nerve.

"If you are prepared, Rundy is to see you," he said, disrupting her thoughts.

"You can take some time to rest if you like," Abigail said, her tone implying that the offer was more of a recommendation. "Rundy can come back."

"No, I feel all right."

Nikolas nodded and vanished.

Li adjusted her position and winced at a sharp pain in her shoulder.

Abigail tsked as she removed the oxygen mask. The smell of antiseptic and sterilizing alcohol replaced the ozone smell of the fresh oxygen. The doctor left the heartbeat monitor in place, so the beeping continued. "You'll need to take it easy for the rest of the day, probably tomorrow as well."

The curtain rattled again, this time admitting Rundy. "In one piece?" she asked.

"Pretty much."

Abigail straightened. "I'll give you my report when you're done." She bustled out of the cubicle, closing the curtain behind her.

Rundy plopped into the chair Abigail vacated. "You gave us a good scare. What happened to you?"

The beeping was starting to grate on Li's nerves. She pushed it aside, reminded herself that it was just a monitor. Not an alarm. Nothing was wrong.

She took a deep breath and focused, thinking back. "I'm not sure what it was. I was heading back to the hog to get a new sample bag, and someone ran into me."

Rundy frowned. "Ran into you?"

"There was a little quake—I think whoever it was got startled, because they were running really fast. I fell into the wall, and my suit got damaged."

The petite blonde leaned back, her eyes narrow. "And you didn't see who it was?"

"I didn't really see anything. I was walking in the tunnel, and next thing I knew, I hit the wall. They were gone before I could see who it was."

"You said there was a quake. Could you have been hit by a falling rock?"

"It wasn't big enough to shake anything loose. Besides, it felt like a person." Li paused, eying her friend. "Why? What's wrong?"

"I just need to ask the team some follow-up questions."

"None of them saw anything?"

Rundy's expression turned contemplative. "Trevor was the only one anywhere near that tunnel—the others corroborate that—but he said he'd only just walked into the tunnel because he thought he saw someone in there." She blinked and shook her head, ponytail swinging. "Like I said, I just need to ask a few follow-ups. You rest and get better." She stood, then paused. "I'm glad you're okay."

"Thanks. Me, too."

Rundy left, and Li heard her and Abigail speak in low tones. She couldn't make out what they were saying, and it was getting harder to hear them over the beeping. Was it getting louder? She squirmed, wishing there was a way to turn it off.

By the time Abigail returned to her bedside, Li was on the verge of crawling out of her skin. "Can we turn off that alarm?" she blurted out before the doctor had a chance to speak.

Abigail paused, giving her a critical once-over. "It's bothering you?"

Li looked down, unsure how to answer. She was being irrational, she knew that. But knowing her feelings were irrational didn't make them go away.

The doctor reached over her head and flipped a switch on the machine. The beeping stopped, but now Li heard it in concert from the adjacent cubicles. A heavy shudder rolled through her body.

Abigail tapped a finger on her chin, then checked the equipment again. "Maybe you'd rest better back in your own bed."

"Could I?" The question came out a little too quickly, too eagerly, and her cheeks warmed again.

"I'll check in with you after my shift's over, and I want you to come back in tomorrow morning for a formal follow-up."

Relief coursed through Li's body from her head to her toes. "Thank you so much."

Abigail's eyes reflected understanding. "I think you'll be more comfortable there. Give me a moment to check you out properly and get someone to walk you back to your room."

"I don't need—" Li started, but the doctor cut her off.

"Just a precaution. Stay put for a minute."

Li had to keep herself from tapping her foot as she waited. She checked around herself and saw that she still wore the lightweight clothes she'd had on under the envirosuit. Her shoes sat on the floor just under the bed. She settled back in place and tried to keep her foot from tapping again. Thankfully, the curtains rattled before too much longer. "Am I all set to go?"

Nikolas grinned. "So eager for leaving?"

Red-faced, Li backpedaled. "Um, I just, I mean..."

"Is okay. I rest better in own room, too." He grinned in a charmingly lopsided way and removed the clip from her finger, deactivating the rest of the equipment. "I tell them we should allow, but they say is too inconvenient for us. I say, I don't mind trip to dorms, but is not my call." He patted the edge of the bed. "Sit here."

Li sat up and turned so her legs hung over the side, taking it slow. Her aching arm and chest protested each movement.

"Follow the finger," Nikolas said, holding up his finger and moving it slowly back and forth, then up and down. Li obediently tracked it with her eyes.

He grinned again and nodded. "Is good. Need a hand?"

She shook her head and cautiously stood. A new complaint came from her side, but it was no worse than the others. She took a few practice steps and found herself stable, so she slid her feet into her shoes. "I'm ready."

"Looking good."

Li's cheeks immediately flamed.

Seemingly oblivious, Nikolas continued on as he held the curtain for her. "You have always had speedy recovery?"

"I guess," Li mumbled as she passed him.

"Is good. But don't push it, yes? Take the time you need." He fell into a casual silence as they walked out of the infirmary. The small building nestled in the corner of the lab and the away room, kitty-corner to the cafeteria. Again, designed for easy excavator access. The two-story dorm building rested on the other side of the cafeteria, making their walk relatively short.

"So, what is it like out there?" he asked, looking at the away room.

Li followed his gaze. Warmth spread through her as her mind replayed all she'd seen during the hog ride. "Bigger than I thought. It reminded me of home, just... different."

"It must be an amazing sight. For real, that is. Not just through bubble."

"Yeah." Her eyes widened as her dull brain finally made the connection. "I'm sorry—I forgot you've never seen it."

He shrugged. "Med staff was occupied during building of colony."

Because of the incident. The same reason she'd never seen the surface before today.

She took a deep breath. "Well, I'm sure you'll get a chance before we leave. No one should come all the way out here and not leave any footprints."

"We will see. I am not certain tourism will be top priority if mission fails." He flashed a self-deprecating smile.

"It doesn't matter. Everyone should have a chance to see it." She cast a hesitant smile. "We'll start a petition."

He laughed. "I will be first to sign." He stepped in front of her and opened the dorm door.

She blinked, surprised they were already there. The walk seemed to go faster than it should have. "Thanks."

A few people hung out in the main room, which was filled with exercise machines, couches facing viewscreens, and a handful of game tables. There shouldn't have been anyone there. It was one of the days when all excavators worked. Most days the teams rotated to give one team the day off, but once or twice a week, Matteo sent the fifth team out for demolition work. But as she glanced around, she realized the few people were from Jess's team. They'd had to come in, too. She saw Digby and Waugh entrenched in a fierce game of Candyland and waved.

"Hey, good to see you up and about," Digby called.

Waugh nudged his token forward a few spaces while Digby wasn't looking, then gave her a grin and a wink.

"Thanks," Li said. She chuckled and shook her head.

Nikolas walked her to the door in the middle of the left wall, which lead to the women's dorms. "I trust you can manage from here. Call if you need anything."

Another blossom of warmth flushed through her. She quickly opened the door. "Right. Thanks."

He waved and disappeared behind the closing door.

The first hour of rest felt amazing. The second hour dripped into boredom. The third was downright unbearable. Li sat up and looked around the empty room. If she had to lay alone in silence any longer, she would scream. She grabbed her reading tablet and headed back toward the main room. A little background noise while immersed in a book would do her a world of good.

As she walked in, Chun Hei waved from the other side of the room. "Hey, white rice! What're you doing out of the infirmary? You look terrible!"

Several of the excavators stared. A few snickered.

Gee, thanks, Li thought. "They said I could rest here instead."

Chun Hei shrugged and went back to jabbering with the others.

Li found a relatively quiet corner and curled up on the corner of a couch. The lightweight furniture was the same metallic gray as just about everything else in the colony, but at least had been designed with a sort of hammock-style support system, making it comfortable enough.

She looked down at the book on her tablet screen, but felt a heavy awkwardness settle around her. Like she was being watched. Looking up, she found Trevor sitting across from her. Glaring.

Startled, she swallowed. "Um, hi. Thank you—I heard you saved me."

He leaned forward, his knee jumping in a hyperkinetic pace. "Didn't realize they were going to make all of us come in just because of a little accident."

"Oh. I'm sorry—"

"And they wouldn't let us go back outside, either. They should've. Stupid to make everyone stop working just because someone can't keep her suit in order. Should've let us go back outside. They should've."

Li glanced around, part of her hoping someone else would step in and speak up on her behalf. A few other excavators gave Trevor funny looks, but no one else spoke. Chun Hei seemed oblivious to what was going on, and Digby and Waugh had apparently finished their game and left while she was resting. She didn't know anyone else well enough to think they might help her.

"Well," she tried again hesitantly, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean for it to happen. Someone just ran into me, and—"

"I don't think they did," he interrupted. He now leaned so far forward that his head was past his knees. His eyes fixed on her, wide and intense. "I think you made that up because you were clumsy and tripped and fell and just were clumsy and it was your fault. They should've let us go back outside."

"Trevor," Brent snapped from the other couch. "Shut it."

Trevor glared at him for a moment, then returned his attention to Li. "You know what? They shouldn't have let her out in the first place. She didn't belong out there. Can't have people outside who can't handle a little alarm." He jumped from his couch and was in Li's face before she had a chance to react.

She froze, staring at him, thoughts racing too fast to sort out or get any clear idea of how to react.

His face twisted madly. "Er, er, er!" he shouted, imitating the suit alarm.

Brent grabbed him and shoved him back. "Knock it off!"

Li's mind still twisted through a jumble of confusion, too stunned to respond, but her body recovered faster. She bolted for the door, pushed through into the women's dorms, and didn't slow down until she reached her room. She slammed the door shut behind her hard enough to knock down the gossamer curtain Abigail had hung over the door's porthole. She gasped in air, still trying to sort through what had just happened. Why on earth was he so mad at her? It had been an accident. Just an accident.

She closed her eyes and forced her breathing to slow. Her chest ached anew, the bruises aggravated by her sharp movements. She had to slow down, take it easy. It was okay. She was safe in here.

She picked up the curtain and put it back in place with shaking hands. Sat on her bunk. Realized she'd forgotten her tablet in the main room.

She wasn't about to go back for it.

Why had he gone nuts on her like that? She closed her eyes. Chun Hei said he'd always been a little strange and had trouble with social situations. That's all it was. He was upset about having the workday cut short and didn't have a more socially appropriate way to express it, so he lashed out at her.

He must really love his work, she thought.

Unless it was for some other reason. The idea crept into her mind like a bad odor. Someone had run into her. Trevor had been the only one near the tunnel.

What if he'd been the one that caused the accident? He could be lashing out because he was afraid he'd get caught.

She shook her head and pushed the thoughts aside. He might not be socially adept, but that didn't make him so reckless he'd injure someone and not stop to make sure they were okay. In fact, she couldn't think of anyone on Jess's team who would do that.

Which left what? Aliens?

The thought made her snort out loud. Now she was the one acting crazy. She closed her eyes and rested on her pillow. Her heartbeat had finally slowed back to normal. It was okay. What happened in the tunnels was just an accident. And Trevor... was just Trevor.

A tap on her door made her heart jump again. She sat up. "Who is it?"

"Rundy."

Rundy? She probably had more questions about the accident. "Come in."

The door slid open. Rundy stood in the doorway. Jersey Bains, a burly officer with a tight crew cut, peered over her shoulder.

"Are you alone in here?" he asked.

"It's clear," Rundy said. She stepped in. "Go back to the witness statements."

Jersey nodded sharply and strode back down the hallway.

Li stood. "Is something wrong?" Security was permitted access to cross-gender dorm hallways, of course, but it was rare. Male officers only entered the women's dorms in urgent situations.

Her friend seemed on edge. "You want to tell me about the fight?"

"Fight?" She stared blankly. Sure, Trevor had yelled at her, but she'd hardly call it a fight.

"Between Brent and Trevor?"

Even blanker. "I..." Li looked around as if the answer would somehow be written on the walls of her room. "I didn't see... Oh. Brent pushed Trevor. Is that what you mean?"

Rundy stared a moment longer, then shook her head and sat down, her demeanor relaxing. "You didn't see the fight."

"Just the push."

"Why don't you tell me what happened before that."

Li looked around again. She didn't really want to get Trevor in trouble. He'd just been upset. And she didn't want to give him more reason to be mad at her. "Uh, Trevor seemed upset about something, and Brent pushed him, and I left."

Rundy's expression didn't change, but Li saw the skeptical shift in her friend's eyes. She winced internally.

"We had to come down here and break up a fistfight between Trevor and Brent," Rundy said. "Trevor insists it was your fault."

Li's jaw dropped. "My fault?"

Rundy raised an eyebrow and waited.

No graceful exit for this one. Li sighed, looked down, and told Rundy about Trevor's strange behavior and bizarre accusations. "I don't know why he was treating me like that. I guess he was mad that they all had to come in after I was hurt."

"And you saw Brent push Trevor?"

"He pulled Trevor away from me and—I didn't see much." Li swallowed. "I... ran." She wished it didn't sound quite so lame.

"Has Trevor spoken to you like this before?"

"Not really. I mean, you know how excavators get, but he never said any more than anyone else."

Displeasure flitted across Rundy's face before the professional expression settled back in place. "Anything else I should know about?"

Li took a moment to think it over before shaking her head. "Like I said, I ran out of there."

Rundy stood and held out a tablet. "I believe this is yours. If you think of anything else, radio." She paused, the professional look slipping into compassion. "Sorry."

"Thanks." Li took her tablet. "It just..." She shuddered. "It was weird."

Rundy nodded. "I'll personally have a word with Trevor about harassment."

"You don't have to—"

She held up a hand, professionalism restored. "I'd do the same for anyone. The attitude the excavators have developed toward other members of the colony is unacceptable, especially when it leads to this sort of thing." She turned and left.

Li looked down at her tablet and sighed. Reading no longer appealed. All she wanted to do was pull the blankets over her head and make this day be over already.

Chapter 4

"Wake up!" Abigail chirped, rousing Li from peaceful unawareness.

Li grunted and opened one eye.

Abigail immediately shone a bright light into that eye. "How do you feel? Any changes?"

Scrunching her eyes shut in protest, Li sat up. "I'm fine."

"Come on, I let you come back here on the condition that I give you a follow-up after shift."

Reesa Anderson chuckled from where she stood near her own bunk. "Give her a second to wake up before you go blinding her."

A displeased look crossed Abigail's face, but she sat back and folded her arms, waiting.

Li gave Reesa a grateful smile. She didn't see the taller woman very often, as Reesa worked in the adjacent hydroponics section rather than the smaller lab, but she'd always felt a sense of camaraderie as fellow scientists.

"Ready?" Abigail asked, all but tapping her foot on the floor. "If anything's wrong, it's my neck on the line for letting you come back here, you know."

"I'm fine," Li repeated. She let Abigail resume her examination, breathing in, moving limbs, and tracking fingers on command. The sleep had done quite a bit of good; her chest still ached, but not as sharply as before.

The examination seemed to take twice as long as normal, but the doctor finally gave a satisfied nod. "Looks good. You still need to check in with the infirmary first thing tomorrow for some follow-up scans, and you should take the day off and rest."

The memory of empty hours and sheer boredom made Li's nose wrinkle. "I'd rather just get back to work."

Abigail folded her arms again. "You need to give your body time to recover."

"It's not like her job's physically demanding," Reesa supplied. She twisted her coarse black hair into a messy bun. "She just sits at a table. That's pretty restful. Besides, she won't get much rest around here. You know how loud and rowdy all the excavators get when they're all kept in."

"They're in tomorrow?" Li asked.

"Oh, yeah, you didn't hear." Reesa flopped onto her bunk, examining chipped red nail polish on her toes. "We calculated a 78% probability of meteor strikes in our area tomorrow. Based on the figures, it probably won't hit close enough to us to worry. Even if it does, nothing's gonna be big enough to cause any real damage. But I guess Mr. Alvarez wants to play it safe."

"It's prudent when the probability's that high," Abigail said, giving Reesa a scolding frown. "The infirmary only holds so many people, after all."

The door swung open and admitted Yvette Benoit, her varied blonde highlights dimmed light brown from her shower. She yawned and scrubbed at her hair with a fluffy towel. "What are we unhappy about today?" Her French accent thickened her words, but only slightly.

"Who said anyone's unhappy?" Abigail asked.

"Your frown."

Reesa giggled. "She just thinks I don't take insignificant risks seriously."

"You don't have to work out there on the surface," Abigail retorted. "Nor do you have to patch up said people."

"That reminds me," Yvette said, casting a glance at Li, "I heard what happened. I'm sorry you were hurt, but I bet you were happy to be back inside the safety of the colony." She shuddered delicately. "I have only been out once, but I dread every time that my name will be called again."

"Actually, I wish I could've been out there longer. I hadn't—"

Yvette shuddered again. "Those suits are dreadful, don't you think? I'm much happier at my station in hydroponics. Plants I can relate to. Rocks? So dry and barren. Ugh." She wrinkled her small nose, then waved a hand dismissively. "Busy day tomorrow. Goodnight."

Reesa rolled her eyes. "The princess has spoken. I guess it's time for lights out."

"Sleep is essential for health," Yvette sniffed. She looked at Abigail for support.

Abigail stood and turned to Li. "First thing after breakfast, infirmary. Got it?"

"I'll be there," Li promised. She was relieved to pull the blankets back over her and settle onto her pillow. Her roommates' chatter usually amused her, but after everything today, it just gave her a headache. The lights flicked out, and she closed her eyes, glad to be done with the day.

* * *

Li waited patiently while one of the medical assistants, Charita, operated the scanning equipment.

"And... done," the chipper woman said, gesturing for Li to sit up. "Abigail will be over to talk to you in just a minute."

As Charita scurried away, Li moved over into the more comfortable chair beside the scanning bed. At least she was on the far side of the infirmary from the bed cubicles—far enough not to hear the rhythmic beeps.

Abigail walked up, scrolling through information on her datapad. "How do you feel?"

"Better." She'd been relieved to wake up and find only residual soreness, like she'd worked out too hard the previous day. Her chest still felt stiff, but going through her morning routine had loosened things up some.

"I still think you should take today to rest."

"I'll go nuts just sitting around." She raised her eyebrows in what she hoped was an endearingly pleading expression. "I'll take it easy in the lab. I'll even limit my trips to the sample bin. Please?"

Abigail sighed and shook her head. "If you feel any new pains—any at all—I want you right back in here. Deal?"

"Deal." Li started to jump up from the chair. The stiffness slowed her movement, but failed to dent her enthusiasm. "Thank you so much. I promise to take it easy."

She walked to the door just as Matteo walked in.

He raised an eyebrow. "Kichida. I was just coming to get a report on you."

"I, um, I'm all fine," she said, feeling a sudden burst of irrational nerves. "They even said I could go back to work today."

"Light work," Abigail supplied from behind her. "Very light."

"If you need another day off to rest, you should take it," he said. "The lab will wait for tomorrow."

"Thanks, but I don't need it."

He tilted his head to look at Abigail behind her. Abigail nodded.

"Carry on, then. Ms. Brightman, let's speak in your office."

Li stepped aside so Matteo could pass, then hurried out of the infirmary. Relieved to be free of the overly sterile building, she followed the walkway to the lab. She'd never been happier to be going to work in her life.

"Welcome back," Michelle greeted as Li approached the table, carrying a large selection of samples.

Michael took the samples from Li and set them at her station. "Let me know when you need more. I'll get them."

"I can carry them. I'm just a little sore, that's all."

"Don't bother arguing," Michelle said, measuring a mixture. "When M gets it in his head that he's a knight in shining armor, no measure of sense can pierce his cloud of delusion."

"Milady." Michael bowed with a flourish, then returned to his station. "Fair Princess M doth speak verily, by jove."

"You're mixing up eras."

"What rot."

Li perched on her stool and smiled. Everything was back to normal.

She fell into routine easily enough, sorting, checking, testing, mixing, experimenting, and doing everything she could think of to come up with some new combination or test that hadn't been tried yet. A moment of excitement passed where she thought she achieved a completely new and unexpected reaction, but it turned out she had just mixed up two of the testing liquids.

The first couple times her sample collection grew low, Michael jumped up and returned with a fresh tray for her. As the hours passed, though, he reluctantly allowed her to retrieve her own samples, becoming absorbed in his own work.

Michelle glanced up as Li stood to gather another batch. "It's almost lunch time. Might as well just head for the cafeteria."

"I'm on a roll." Li took care of her refuse and headed for the sample bin. The traumas of yesterday faded in the comfort of routine, and she already found a glimmer of hope returning that next time the excavators needed an extra hand, she might get sent out again. For the time being, her standard determination drove her onward. She would find the right solution. She had to.

She picked through the sample jars on autopilot, having memorized all of the available samples. More of the same, as always. New ideas flitted through her head as her hands collected the jars. Maybe if she...

A flash of color caught her eye and froze her hand in place. Purple and teal swirls shone from one of the sample jars she'd unearthed. She grabbed the jar and studied the sample. Not only were the colors foreign, but the fracture pattern was like nothing she'd seen before. For the first time since the excavations began, she couldn't identify a sample by sight.

Forgetting about the other samples she'd collected, Li hurried back to her station, turning the jar over in her hands as she went. Particles flaked off the edges, but the core sample remained intact. Soft. She couldn't wait to get it under a scope and examine it close up. She set the jar on her station and gripped the lid.

Isla tapped her on the shoulder. "Head for lunch."

Startled, Li jumped. "Oh! Right. I will, I just need to—"

"Normally I'd be fine with you doing whatever you want, but Abigail made it clear she's holding me personally responsible for your health. So go eat lunch, or I'll tell her you aren't cooperating."

Li hesitated, torn. The sample stared at her from the jar, taunting her to uncover its identity, to possibly even find it the missing link everyone searched for. But Abigail had the authority to take her off duty for medical reasons. Better to go, eat fast, and get back to the sample rather than risk being pulled from work entirely.

Sighing, Li covered her work station and trudged out the door. She joined Michael and Michelle at the end of the buffet line in the cafeteria. The cafeteria was full almost to capacity with all the excavators off duty. Thankfully, most of them had already gotten their food, so the line wasn't too long.

"What's got you?" Michelle asked.

"I just found a unique sample, but Isla made me come eat."

"Forced to acquire nourishment," Michael said. "Those barbarians."

Li pouted. "I was going to eat after I figured out what the sample was."

Both of them stared at her briefly. "You mean there's actually a sample that stumped the great Li Kichida?" Michael asked, exaggerating his impressed tone.

"I told you, it's unique."

"Must be quite unique," Michelle said. She grabbed a tray and loaded up a plate. She frowned at the plates of glop on the counter. "If I knew we were having SMOMS today, I wouldn't have hurried."

One of the excavators on kitchen duty frowned at her. "What?"

"Steaming mass of mystery substance," Michael replied cheerfully, loading up his tray. "Just like Mum used to make."

The excavator gave them a dirty look and went back to work.

Li helped herself to a plate. It didn't look too bad, and it vaguely smelled of meat. Some of the contents were even recognizable. "Anyway, it was so strange. Sort of purple and teal swirls, almost iridescent, like a shell, but only moderate softness. Bizarre fracture pattern, too. I've never seen anything like it before."

A chill pricked the back of her neck. That heavy, awkward feeling of being watched. She looked up and found Trevor standing on the other side of the counter. He glared at her through one good eye, the other one swollen shut by a purple bruise.

She looked back down and grabbed bowl of assorted veggies. Rundy said he blamed her for the fight. No point in saying anything and making matters worse.

"Problem?" Michael asked.

Li glanced over and saw him returning Trevor's glare.

Trevor shot a dagger look at Michael, but said nothing.

Michael leaned closer, his eyes narrowing into a fiercer expression. The two men glared at each other in silence for a moment.

"See? I can make faces, too," Michael said.

Trevor's eyes darkened further, then he spun on his heel and stormed to the back of the kitchen.

Michelle rolled her eyes. "Quit causing trouble, M."

"I deny everything." He grinned at Li and grabbed a second helping of dessert.

They found a table near the back populated by fellow scientists with enough empty spaces for them to sit together. Li dug in, still unnerved by Trevor's actions. Another reason to get out of there as fast as possible.

"But in all seriousness, what's his deal?" Michael asked.

Li shook her head. "It's nothing," she mumbled around a mouthful.

"Need me to beat him up for you?"

She shook her head again.

"I can make it look like an accident. 'Honest, Rundy, I saw the whole thing. He tripped over something and fell on his face. Ten times.'"

Li almost choked. She managed to suppress her laughter long enough to safely swallow. "Thanks, but it's okay." Trevor was still mad about his excavation being cut short and yesterday's fight. She figured since most of it was because of having to come in early, once he got back into the routine of excavating, he'd be fine again. Hopefully.

Michael and Michelle settled into comfortable chatter with the other scientists while Li hurried through the rest of her food. "See you back there," she said, standing and grabbing her tray. She didn't linger to hear any response, heading straight for the tray-return counter. Visions of the sample flitted through her mind, a tantalizing new puzzle. She couldn't wait.

The hallway between the cafeteria and away room stood empty, creating an echo chamber for her footsteps. The sound bothered her the first time she heard it, but after a couple dozen late mornings, she was used to it.

Until a second set of footsteps joined her own. She glanced back over her shoulder.

Trevor grabbed her and slammed her against the cafeteria wall. "You took it from me. You stole it!" he shrieked, his face purple.

Pain shot through her chest, matched by terror. "What?" she managed to squeak out. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

He yanked out one of the kitchen knives and thrust it at her face. She screamed, trying to push away from him, but his grip on her was too tight.

"Give it back!" he screamed.

"I don't have it! I didn't take anything!" She pressed flat against the wall, unable to take her eyes off the tip of the blade inches from her face. Her legs threatened to give out at any second. Her heart pounded in her ears almost loud enough to drown out her own voice. "Please, Trevor, stop!"

"It's mine! You can't have it, it's mine, you stole it!" He shook her, bashing her against the wall again. "Give it to me!"

Tears burned trails down her cheeks. "Please!"

Michael slammed into Trevor, tackling him to the ground. The knife rattled across the metal surface and came to a stop a few feet away.

Michelle pulled Li a few steps back, thumbing her radio at the same time. "Security, outside the cafeteria, immediately."

"Get off me! She stole it!" Trevor shrieked, struggling against Michael's grip.

Michelle turned her radio off, popped open the cover, and tugged a wire free. "M, back."

Michael immediately let Trevor go and scrambled back a distance.

Trevor lurched to his feet, turning his fury on Li. "Give it to me!"

Li stumbled away, panic clouding her mind. Why would Michael let the maniac go? "No, stop him!"

Michelle stepped forward and pressed the wire against Trevor's arm, squeezing some button at the same time. His good eye went wide as his body jolted and seized. He crumpled to the ground.

"Did he hurt you?" Michelle asked, calmly tucking the wire back in place.

Li stared, still trying to get a full breath of air in her lungs.

Michael took her arms and helped her sit on the ground. "Take it easy. You're safe now."

The door to the cafeteria flew open. Jersey jogged out, nightstick in hand. "What happened?"

Li barely heard Michelle explain the situation to the security guard. Everything seemed to rush around her, her mind struggling to catch up and process what just happened.

Michael straightened, one hand still on her shoulder. "I'll take her to the infirmary."

His words pushed through the cloud and brought clarity to Li's mind. "No." She took a deep breath. "I'm okay. He didn't hurt me."

Jersey nodded. He crouched beside Trevor and secured the man's wrists behind his back. "Do you know why he attacked you?"

She shook her head and shakily pushed to her feet. "He kept saying I took something from him, but I didn't. I don't know what he was talking about."

Rundy strode into the walkway from the opposite direction, coming from the administration building tucked in the corner beside the dorms. She took in the scene and frowned at Trevor's form on the ground. "Report."

"Cobb attacked Kichida. Karney intervened, and Lamoureaux..." He paused. "Lamoureaux incapacitated him."

"How?"

Michelle held up her radio. "The batteries were designed to hold a significant charge for excavations and other lengthy surface missions. With a slight adjustment, they can release the full charge at once."

Rundy stood silent for a moment, then pointed at Jersey. "We didn't hear that."

"Yes, ma'am."

Michelle opened her mouth, but Rundy held up a hand. "I don't want to hear it. You incapacitated him; that's all I need to know." She surveyed the group again, her eyes pausing on Li. "Jersey, bag the knife. Put Cobb in holding and the knife in evidence. Michael, give him a hand, then give your statement at the office. You, too, Michelle."

The willowy security officer moved to Li's side as the others followed her orders. Once they left, Rundy faced Li. "You and I are friends, and I admit that sometimes I give you more latitude than I should. But you need to tell me what's happening between you and Trevor."

Li opened her mouth, stunned by the implied accusation. "Nothing! I mean, I don't know. Last night I figured he was mad at me because he had to come back in early, and he was glaring at me in the cafeteria, but I thought he was just still mad about yesterday. He kept saying I stole something, but I didn't. I swear!"

Rundy scrutinized her, then sighed. "Check in with the infirmary, then come to the security office and give your statement."

"He didn't hurt me." Li wrapped her arms around herself. "I'm just... shaken."

Her friend put a hand on her shoulder. "I'll walk you to security."

The next hour passed in a haze. First she waited in the security office, pretending she couldn't hear Trevor screeching from the cells on the other side of the wall. Then she looked the other way as Jersey passed her with the knife in an evidence bag and placed it in a cabinet on the far wall. The sight of the shiny metal turned her stomach.

Then she gave her statement, then gave it again, then reviewed everything that happened between the incident last night and the attack after lunch. Then went over it again. Then went back over every interaction between her and Trevor, ever. Michelle and Michael finished their statements long before she did, and Rundy dismissed them with a vague warning about not modifying standard issue equipment.

Li fought the urge to put her head down on the desk after reviewing her statement with Rundy yet again. "Can we be done?"

Rundy studied the datapad a bit longer, then set it down. "Yes, we're done. But if you think of anything else, no matter how insignificant you think it is, contact me immediately."

"I will."

"And I want you to take the rest of today off. No arguments."

Though her body had stopped visibly trembling, Li still felt shaken enough that the idea of hours of silence in her room sounded appealing. Her focus was too scattered to work, anyway. "I will."

Rundy looked briefly surprised at her cooperation, but nodded. "I can have someone walk you there."

"It's okay. It's just next door." With Rundy's nod of assent, Li stood and left, walking down the long, empty hallway past the administrative rooms to the building exit. A door clicked shut, and she jumped a mile. It took a full minute to convince her racing heart that no one was after her.

She'd made a good call, she concluded. There was no way she was in shape to go back to work.

The sample. The image of the swirled mystery sprang back into her mind. She'd forgotten all about it. She paused just outside the door of the admin building, wanting to go crawl in bed but pulled by an equal desire to uncover the sample's identity.

No, she decided. Her brain was still too scattered. Better to focus on the sample with a fresh mind tomorrow.

But she couldn't just leave a mess at her station, either. She'd go and secure her station properly, with the sample tucked inside for her return tomorrow.

She turned and walked along the backside of the cafeteria in the hallway between it and the massive hydroponics building, holding herself once more. She wished she had a jacket to pull tighter around her body, but in the temperature-controlled dome, outerwear was unnecessary. She appreciated the constant thermostat, but missed the comfort. Right now, she wanted as many layers covering her as possible.

What could Trevor possibly have thought she stole? And why bring it up at lunch—if he thought she'd taken something from him, why didn't he ask her about it last night? He'd certainly had plenty of opportunity to say something.

Maybe he didn't realize it was missing last night? But why would he think she was the one who took it? And what was 'it,' anyway?

She shook her head. She was mentally chasing her own tail. Rundy and the security team would figure out whatever had gone missing, find it, and set Trevor straight. They'd figure it out.

She followed the walkway's curve to the left, coming around the side of the cafeteria that faced the lab, and hurried through her workplace's door. A few of her coworkers stopped and stared openly as she walked in.

Michelle approached. "I thought you'd be going back to your room. Didn't they give you the rest of the day off?"

"I just need to shut my station down."

Michelle frowned. "We could've done that for you. Go ahead and rest. We'll take care of it."

"Thanks, but I want to see to that sample myself." Li ducked her head against the stares and went to her station. She pulled back the cover, ready to take care of business and be done.

A blank space stared back at her.

She froze, then checked around her. No, she was at the right table. She looked behind her equipment, around the sides of her station, under the table, under the stool, everywhere.

The sample was nowhere to be seen.

"What's wrong?" Michael asked.

"That sample, the one I told you about? I can't find it," Li said, digging through an assortment of jars on her station. All were the same old. No mystery sample.

Michael leaned back to peer at the floor. "Where'd you leave it?"

"Right here in the middle of my station! I put the cover down, and it should be right here..." She moved a few things around, staring at the surface of her station as if she could will the sample back into existence.

"Why don't you go ask Isla if anyone else has been by your station while we were gone? We'll take a look around," Michelle offered.

Grateful, Li agreed and hurried over to Isla's table. "Excuse me, but did anyone go by my station? I'm missing a sample I was about to work on."

Isla frowned, then shrugged. "I didn't see anyone over there. Just get a new sample from the bin."

"It was—" Li stopped, uncertainty catching her. If she'd just misplaced it, set it down somewhere else and forgotten about it, there was no need to make a big fuss and get others involved. They already thought of her as too forgetful as it was. "Right. Thanks."

She returned to her station. "Anything?"

"Nothing like what you described," Michelle said apologetically.

"Maybe I set it down somewhere else."

"Where?" Michael asked.

She looked around. She wouldn't have put it back in the sample bin. And she hadn't gone anywhere else today—just the bin and her station. And she was sure she'd left it under the cover at her station.

Li closed her eyes. "I don't know."

"It's been a hard couple days for you." Michelle's voice was soft. "Why don't you go back to your dorm and rest? Michael and I will keep our eyes open here."

Li's eyes snapped open. "You think I'm seeing things."

"Not at all. I think you're stressed out as it is and don't need one more thing to worry about."

She hesitated, but finally nodded. "Thank you."

Doubts plagued her as she walked toward the dorms. As Michelle pointed out, she'd faced a lot recently. What if she'd just imagined the sample? What if she was getting upset over a trick of the mind? It wasn't like she'd never mistaken anything, anyway. She was always spacing out and forgetting things. Was it too much of a stretch that she might start imagining things, too? The thought sent a shudder through her body, and she hugged herself again.

Her footsteps echoed around her, sending a new shudder as she walked the hallway between the cafeteria and the away room once more. Where Trevor attacked her. She picked up the pace. The sooner she got to her room, the better. Sleep was all she needed. Just like yesterday. Sleep, and everything will be better tomorrow.

She hoped.

Chapter 5

Excited chatter yanked Li from full immersion in her latest James Bond story. She reluctantly looked up from her tablet as her roommates swarmed her bunk, jabbering excitedly about the rumors and gossip they'd heard. The last thing she wanted was a rehash of the day's events, but she knew Abigail was the only one who'd respect requests for peace. It'd be best to just answer their questions and get it over with.

Yes, Trevor attacked her. Yes, it was most likely because of the fight yesterday, but it was hard to tell for sure. No, Yvette, no aliens were involved. Yes, he had a knife. No, he didn't manage to stab anyone. Yes, M&M came to the rescue. No, Yvette, it's doubtful Trevor was being mind-controlled by aliens. No, he didn't have a gun—how would he have gotten a gun in the colony, anyway? No, he didn't make terrorist demands, just babbled about something being stolen. No, I don't know what. No, Yvette... just no.

Thankfully, Abigail picked up on Li's disinterest in the topic and quickly exited the conversation. Reesa and Yvette took some time to go through their questions, but finally grew bored and engaged in some light gossip while preparing for bed. Li escaped into the bathroom across the hall only to find another bombardment of questions awaiting her from the other ladies there. She took care of her business and fled as soon as she could.

She briefly wondered if it was even worth hoping that things would die down by the next day. It hardly seemed likely. Maybe she should ask for another day off so she could hide in her room. Excitement in the colony was rare, but with any hope, Digby or Waugh would break the regulations in a particularly impressive way again and take the attention off her.

The room was dark by the time she returned. Yvette had already demanded lights out for her beauty sleep, apparently. Relieved, Li climbed into her bunk and closed her eyes. Clamor continued in the hallway for a few more minutes as the rest of the ladies in the adjacent rooms finished with the bathroom and returned to their rooms, then blissful silence reigned. Li sighed, content. She closed her eyes and, as the minutes melted past, felt herself drift into a light doze.

Footsteps created a new rhythm in the hall, waking her. Someone making a midnight trip to the bathroom? Li shook her head. It was none of her business what someone else was doing.

The footsteps slowed outside her door. A shadow passed over the window curtain.

Li's heart skipped.

A light knock came from the door, drawing a near-squeak from Li's throat.

"Ms. Kichida? Are you in there?" The voice was deep and gravelly. Jersey.

Li scrambled out of bed, her stomach twisting itself through a contortionist routine. What did security want with her, and why so late? Did something else happen? She hastily pulled on her pants and tugged a clean shirt over her tank top.

She cracked the door and blinked at the moderate hallway light. Jersey's broad shoulders filled the door frame.

He peered past her into the room. "Is anyone else in here with you?"

Li stared blankly. "Uh... my roommates?"

"Anyone other than that?"

"No." She managed to swallow past the anxiety squeezing her throat. "Why? What's wrong?"

"Wha's go'on?" Reesa mumbled sleepily.

Jersey eyed the room once more, then stepped aside. "You need to come with me."

She stiffened and wrapped her arms around her body. "What? Why?"

"Rundy asked that I bring you somewhere safe."

Her heartrate doubled. "Safe? Why?"

He paused. "I'll tell you on the way. But we need to leave now, miss."

Questions tumbled over each other like newborn kittens as she grabbed her room key, slid into her shoes, and stepped into the hallway. "What happened?"

Jersey took off toward the main door at a brisk clip. "We have a situation. Rundy felt it would be best if you were somewhere secure until the situation is resolved."

"What situation?" Li had to jog to keep up with the tall guard's stride. "Why me? What's..." An unwelcome connection snaked into her mind. "Is it something to do with Trevor?"

His jaw muscles tightened, but he didn't answer.

Possibilities and fears buzzed around her, slowing her pace. "Did he... did he escape?"

Jersey turned. "Everything is under control. I just need you to come with me. Quickly, please."

Li hugged herself again and picked up the pace. Suddenly all she wanted was to stay as close to Jersey as possible. If Trevor got free and came after her, she needed all the protection she could get.

The main room, with dim lights, empty tables, and chairs sticking out at random angles, hummed with ominous energy. She walked faster, almost stumbling on the back of Jersey's heels in her rush to press close to him. Every dark shadow seemed to move, hiding a determined killer.

Jersey slowed briefly. He awkwardly put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. I won't let anything happen to you."

She swallowed hard and managed to nod.

He opened the dormitory door and stepped into the outer hallway between the dorm and the cafeteria. The dome stretched high above them, stars dimly visible through the tinted material. Li didn't bother looking, focused on staying as close to Jersey as possible.

Jersey glanced right, toward the admin building, and abruptly stopped. He pushed Li behind him.

"What? What's..." Li froze at the sight of a lanky figure staggering toward them.

Trevor.

Blood streaked his clothes, looking almost black in the dimmed lighting. His lips moved in a low mumble. He gripped the kitchen knife in one hand, the same knife he'd tried to attack her with before. Remnants of the evidence bag still stuck out at angles from under his white-knuckle grip. He lumbered steadily in their direction. Her direction.

Another squeak tried to break free from Li's throat, but fear clenched her too tightly to allow it to break free. She stumbled backwards.

Jersey held up a hand, still facing Trevor. His other hand drew his nightstick. "Stop there, Mr. Cobb. You need to put the knife down and come with me." He pressed the radio and spoke in lower tones. "Security to the dorms, urgent."

Trevor's voice rose to a higher pitch. "No, no, outside now... go outside now... No knife, no stop, can't stop me now, have to get outside..."

Jersey raised his nightstick. "Mr. Cobb, stop where you are."

Trevor slowed. Glassy eyes remained unfocused, staring through Jersey. "Can't stop... It's stolen... I know where it is, I'll get it back, outside..."

The glassy eyes shifted and suddenly focused. On Li.

His face twisted in rage. "You! You stole it!" he shrieked.

"Stand down. Drop the knife!" Jersey shouted.

"It's MINE!" Trevor raised the knife and charged, his hatred intent on Li.

Li screamed and stumbled backwards again. Tripped over her feet. Landed flat on the metal ground.

Trevor tried to dodge around Jersey, but the burly security guard caught his arm and sent him tumbling backwards. Shrieking madly, Trevor regained his feet and scrambled forward again, his fury still fixed on Li. Jersey grabbed him and lunged for the knife.

Li screamed again, scooting backwards as fast as she could. Had to get away. Had to get to safety.

Trevor clawed at Jersey with one hand, the other swinging the knife wildly. A dark gash appeared on Jersey's arm. Jersey cursed and swung the nightstick, slowing Trevor's crazed attack only briefly. He grabbed again for the knife, catching Trevor's wrist.

Trevor shrieked. Swung his free hand in a frenzy. Kicked. Twisted his body in a sort of tackle. The two men tumbled over each other, rolling toward Li. She screamed again.

Both men fell still.

Li froze, fear squeezing her chest. She stared at the mound, indistinguishable in the lighting. Who'd landed on top, Jersey or Trevor? Was she safe? Should she run? Did Jersey need her help?

She couldn't move. Couldn't breathe.

The mound finally moved. Jersey stood, panting hard.

Trevor remained still, his sightless eyes fixed on the dome above. The knife stood upright in his chest, buried to the handle. New rivers of black stained his clothes. The smell of copper filled Li's nostrils.

Li's lungs constricted further. She couldn't take her eyes off the grisly sight.

Footsteps echoed in the hallway. Rundy jogged to them, Avery Ferra right behind her. The security gear seemed clunky on his wiry frame, and his light brown hair stuck out at random angles, giving him an almost comical appearance.

Li felt her chest finally relax at their approach. She knew Avery as one of the guards who often checked into the science lab during rounds. He had always been friendly toward her. And of course her friend's presence brought immediate comfort.

Rundy's narrowed eyes took in the body, then turned on Li. "Were you hurt?"

Li shook her head, still recovering her breath.

Rundy turned to Jersey.

He lifted his injured arm. "He nicked me, but nothing severe, ma'am."

"Get to the infirmary. Avery, secure the body. Li, come with me."

Li followed her friend in a daze to the security office. She closed her eyes as she dropped into a chair opposite Rundy's desk. She would've been perfectly happy to never see the inside of this office again for the rest of her life.

"Here." Rundy set a steaming mug in front of her. "Drink this."

Li eyed it, but didn't take it.

"It's tea. It'll settle your nerves." Rundy sat down behind the desk and studied her. "Go on."

Li took the mug and reluctantly sipped. The drink warmed her throat and, as promised, steadied her. "Thank you."

"What happened out there?"

She closed her eyes. She didn't even want to think about it, much less talk about it.

Rundy put a hand on her arm. "You're safe here. It's over. He won't come after you again."

Tears burst free without warning. Li pressed her hands over her face, but the image of Trevor's corpse continued to haunt her eyes. After a few seconds, she felt Rundy's arms wrap around her, and she wept into her friend's shoulder.

As the tears subsided, Rundy leaned back. "Take a minute if you need. The questions can wait."

Li took a tissue from the box on the desk and blew her nose. "I'm okay. I just... I don't know why he went after me like that. I don't know what I did to make him so mad at me."

Rundy returned to her seat. "I don't think it was anything you did. The way he was talking when we brought him in, he wasn't entirely in his right mind."

"But why me?"

"Crazy people do crazy things." Rundy leaned forward. "You ready to tell me about it?"

Li took another sip of the tea. Took a deep breath. Feeling distant, she gave a brief summary of what happened. Jersey came to her room and led her out to the hallway. Trevor walked toward them with a knife, talking weird about going outside. Trevor saw her and attacked. Jersey fought back. The knife ended up in Trevor's chest.

"And that's it? He didn't say anything else when he attacked?"

Li shook her head. "Just more about how I stole something from him."

"All right. Would you like to go back to your room, or would you like to stay somewhere more secure?"

She knew what her friend hinted at; the security office had a back room with a cot for guards who needed a nap during longer shifts. "No, I'd rather just go back to my room." Trevor was... no longer a threat. She'd rather just try to get back to normal. As normal as possible, anyway.

Rundy nodded. "I'll walk you there."

The two women remained silent during the walk back to the dorms. Rundy paused to give Li a hug outside Li's dorm room. "Call me if you need anything."

A new lump formed in Li's throat. She nodded. "Thank you."

She slipped into her room, her footsteps muffled by Yvette's steady snore. She climbed into her bunk, fresh tears making new tracks down her face. Curling up into a ball under her blanket, she chided herself. There's nothing more to cry about. It's all over.

Trevor's gone.

* * *

Loud whispers punctuated by shushing noises pulled Li awake. She blinked at her roommates, who huddled near the door in quiet conference.

Yvette spotted her open eyes and practically lunged at her. "You're awake! Were you there? Did you see it? Reesa said you got up during the night. What happened? Tell us everything!"

Li blinked again. "Uh, what?"

"Trevor! Didn't someone come to the door last night? Reesa said someone was here. You left, didn't you? Did you see it?"

Li's heart sank. News had already spread? So today would be spent under assault of questions yet again.

"Give her some space to breathe," Abigail scolded. "Honey, if you didn't see anything, it's okay. We just heard about it ourselves."

"Trevor's dead," Reesa said, eyes wide. "All work's cancelled today for the funeral. Of course Matteo and Rundy aren't saying anything about how it happened, but I heard he tried to escape security and got beaten to death."

"Charita said he killed himself," Yvette said.

"I've heard a few different things," Abigail chimed in. She glanced at Li. "Reesa said she heard you get up last night."

Li looked at three pairs of expectant eyes staring at her. She wasn't ready for this. She couldn't. "I..." A handful of weak lies trailed through her mind, but her mouth refused to cooperate. She'd never been a good liar. She finally shook her head. "I'm sorry. I don't want to talk about it."

Yvette's face lit up. "I knew it! You saw something, didn't you! What happened? Did he attack you again? Did—"

Abigail folded her arms, stepping between Yvette and Li. "The girl said she doesn't want to talk about it."

Yvette looked like she wanted to protest, but the mama bear glare from Abigail silenced her. She reluctantly turned and went back to her own bunk, pouting. "It's not like there's much else to do. Not until the service, anyway."

Li closed her eyes, but her stomach growled, subverting her attempt to pretend this day wasn't happening. No choice but to face it.

She felt only mildly better after washing and dressing for the day. All the gossip about Trevor's death corroded the normally relaxing effects of her routine. And the image of his body still burned fresh in her mind, keeping relaxation at bay.

Her stomach growled again, directing her steps to the cafeteria. She walked through the doors to find a swarm descending on her, questions dive-bombing from every angle. Her chest constricted at the mass of faces surrounding her, and she wished she'd just skipped breakfast. It'd been foolish to venture from her room at all.

"That's enough!" Michelle stepped in front of Li, glaring the crowd down. "If you have questions, ask security."

Michael stood at her side, arms folded.

"We have a right to know!" one of the excavators protested.

Michelle put a hand over her radio. "Then I'll call Rundy, and you can tell her all about your 'right to know.'"

"You know Rundy won't tell us anything," another whined.

"Oh, shut it and back off before Michelle gets annoyed," Michael said. He examined his fingernails in a deliberately casual gesture. "I hear she still has that special radio modification."

The mob dispersed in seconds.

Li almost melted with relief. "Thank you." It was the first time the gossip mill had worked to her favor. Apparently everyone had heard about how Michelle stopped Trevor the first time.

Michelle put an arm around her shoulders and walked her toward the buffet line. "Come on, let's get you some breakfast."

"I'm sorry to inform you that you're stuck with us for the rest of the day," Michael added. "Like it or not, we're your new shadows."

"Quit sounding like a creeper," Michelle scolded.

"Li doesn't mind a creeper." He flashed a grin at her. "Do you, Li?"

"Not today, I don't." She gave them both a grateful smile, then grabbed a tray.

"'Scuse me," Brent grunted, shoving in front of her. He gave her a dark glare, then turned his back on her and loaded up some food.

Michelle's eyes narrowed, and she slid around Li to stand between her and Brent.

Li glanced around, startled by his venom. Other members of Jess's team sat at a table together, all glaring at her. She quickly looked down. Did they blame her for Trevor's death?

"Hey, Brent!" Chun Hei greeted loudly. She stood with her back to Li. "Our table's over there. Certain people aren't invited, of course. We don't allow certain people to sit with us anymore." She flounced off, still keeping her back to Li.

"I'm so disappointed," Michael said, his eyebrows knitting upward in a sad look. "And I was really looking forward to hearing some jokes about how lame scientists are."

Brent shot another dark glare over his shoulder.

Michelle led the way to a quiet table near the back once they finished gathering their food. "Ignore them."

"I don't get it," Li said, sitting next to her. She looked down at the few measly dishes she'd chosen. She didn't particularly feel like eating, but she knew she ought to. For nutrition's sake. "I didn't kill Trevor. It's not like I wanted him dead or anything. So why—"

"I'm stopping you there," Michelle said. "They lost their friend and have egos the size of their workspace. They're just lashing out. It has nothing to do with you personally."

"I can still beat them up for you," Michael offered, sitting across from Li. He leaned back and sized up the table where Jess's team sat. "Okay. I can beat up most of them for you." He looked again. "Some of them." Another glance. "Would you believe two?"

A sad smile pushed at the corners of Li's mouth. "Thanks."

"This'll blow over. Just stick with us until then." Michelle flicked her hair back over her shoulder. "Don't let them get to you."

A few more scientists joined them at the table, some voicing their support. Li was just grateful they didn't pounce on her with questions. She pretended not to notice when they opened their mouths and were shot down by a severe look from Michelle.

Jersey's voice caught Li's attention. "Sir, I believe this is a mistake."

She glanced back and saw Matteo stop to face the security guard.

"You've expressed your feelings," Matteo said, his voice dropping to the point that Li could barely hear. "I've made my decision."

Jersey scratched the back of his head, looking aggravated. A bulge under the sleeve of his uniform marked the bandage covering the previous night's wound. He lowered his voice as well. "With all due respect, I've worked closely with the excavators. Their work is a comfort to them. They'd be grateful if we let them go outside and spend at least a few hours working after the service is complete. Besides, Trevor wasn't so well-known and liked that the others will be crippled by grief. They'd rather let things go back to normal."

Those intense blue eyes flashed. Matteo straightened, seeming to tower over Jersey even though he stood almost half a head shorter than the other man. "Trevor may not have been popular. And yes, he may have acted bizarrely at the end. But he was still one of us. The reason he came out here was because he cared enough to sacrifice his time, even his life, to try to save all of mankind." The leader's voice rose a couple decibels, but still remained tight and controlled. "We will respect and honor his memory, just as we would for any other member of this colony. Just as we have done. Tomorrow we will return to business as usual, but today we will take time to mourn and honor the dead. Is that clear?"

A muscle in Jersey's jaw twitched three times before he broke eye contact. "Yes, sir."

Matteo spun on his heel and marched out of the cafeteria.

Jersey scratched the back of his head again, then looked up and caught Li staring.

She blushed. Her mind raced, trying to come up with some sort of cover. "Um... I wanted to thank you."

He stared.

"For saving me. Last night." She remembered too late to lower her voice. Everyone at her table and the tables nearby leaned in close, staring intently in hopes of gleaning new gossip.

Jersey gave a brusque nod and marched after Matteo, though his steps fell heavily enough to almost be classified as a stomp.

Li felt the eyes on her and blushed harder. She stuffed two bites into her mouth in rapid succession to avoid any questions.

"Eyes here," Rundy called from the front of the room, gaining everyone's immediate attention. "We need to clear the room to prepare for the service. Please take care of your trays quickly and return to the dorms. If you haven't finished, box your food and take it with you. The service will be at 1100. Several members of the medical staff will be available between now and then, as well as after the service, if you need anyone to talk to."

Michael shoveled down the rest of his food as he stood. "C'me on," he said, the words barely intelligible through the mouthful of food.

"Swallow before you talk," Michelle said.

He swallowed hard. "If I must."

She rolled her eyes and gave him a small push forward, then looked at Li and waited.

Li took another bite and stood. As soon as she followed Michael, Michelle stepped in behind her, once again creating a sort of perimeter. A few people tried to ask questions as the colonists jostled into a rudimentary sort of line, but M&M once again deflected all such attempts, to Li's continued relief.

Someone sidestepped into Li, knocking her off balance. She glanced up, startled, and found Brent's glare on her again.

"Hey!" Michelle elbowed him aside.

He glanced at Michelle, seemed to contemplate something, then reluctantly stepped out of Li's space. "Matteo shouldn't let someone who causes so much trouble stay here in the colony. So much trouble. Shouldn't stay." With that, he shoved his way forward through the mass of people.

Chun Hei followed behind him. She stepped closer to jostle Li, but Michelle deflected her.

"That's enough," Michelle said, her face dark.

The petite Asian woman narrowed her eyes at Michelle, but finally gave Li a sneer and pressed on. The rest of Jess's team filed past, elbows pushing others aside. A couple looked like they might try to elbow or push Li, but Michelle's chilled expression and radio in hand made them think twice.

Irrational shame weighed on Li's shoulders. It wasn't your fault, she reminded herself. Like Michelle said, the team was just lashing out. Still, she felt her throat tightening. And when even Digby and Waugh turned frowns on her as they passed, heat stung her eyes, threatening to form into tears.

Michelle's hand squeezed her shoulder once the team had passed. "You're doing fine."

She wasn't. She couldn't even swallow past the lump in her throat.

When they reached the counter, Li found herself dumping her mostly untouched food in the compost bin. She'd originally planned on getting a box, but now the smell only turned her stomach. She dropped off her empty tray without bothering to look at the person behind the counter, much less thank them, and hurried out the doors so fast that she almost lost M&M in the process.

Her friends caught up in the hallway. Michelle wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "Do you want to go talk to someone?" She paused. "I think Nikolas is one of the certified counselors."

The comment caught Li off-guard, nearly enough so to unblock her throat. It would be nice to talk to Nikolas again. And she certainly had reason to, of anyone in the colony.

But that would mean talking about Trevor. And about what happened last night. After all the rehashing in security, that was the last thing she wanted.

She forced herself to take a deep breath and swallow the lump back down her throat. Shook her head. "No. I'm okay."

Michael eyed her, his expression communicating that he didn't entirely believe her. But he simply nodded. "Of course you are. We colonists are a tough breed, you know." He took up whistling as he led the way to the dorms.

M&M did their best to keep her occupied in a secluded corner of the main room, to chat and goof off and fend off curious questions from others. But each minute ticking past piled more weight on Li's shoulders. It wasn't her fault, really. But in a way, it was. If she hadn't been there, if Trevor hadn't seen her, maybe he wouldn't have attacked. He and Jersey wouldn't have fought. Trevor wouldn't be dead.

She closed her eyes and pressed her hands over her face, tears once again threatening her eyes.

M&M sat down on either side of her. Neither said a word. Li felt awkward at first, but their presence became soothing. Her friends didn't think it was her fault. They were sticking with her.

She wasn't sure how much time passed before Michael gently tapped her shoulder. "Hey. It's time."

"You don't have to go if you don't want to," Michelle added.

Li took another deep breath. Stood. "Let's go."

They once again took up positions on either side of her, taking their job as bodyguards seriously. The same mass that had slowly filed out of the cafeteria once again flowed around them like cattle trudging from one pen to the next, but this time no one bothered trying to speak to Li or ask her questions. Whether it was because of M&M's presence or because of the occasion's somber tone, she wasn't sure.

The cafeteria had been transformed. All the tables had been folded upright and moved to the front, closing off the serving area. A temporary platform stood in front of them, and the benches rested in rows to face the platform. The cafeteria had only been rearranged in this way once before. Li only dimly remembered it. She'd still been a little too hazy at that point.

A chill soaked through her chest and arms. She shivered, folded her arms around her body, and pushed the memories away. Too cold. Too recent.

M&M led her to a bench near the back, and they all sat together just like they had in the main room. Except Li didn't hide her face this time. She sat upright, trying to battle the cold and shame still seeping in. This wasn't about her. It was about Trevor. He was a good worker, she told herself, and we're here to honor his memory.

Hard to honor, her brain whispered back, when your last memory is of him lunging at you with a knife.

She clenched her teeth. Forced herself to remain upright.

The back of her neck tingled. That same awkward feeling like someone was watching her. She glanced over her shoulder to find Jess's team gathered a few rows back, staring directly at her.

"She actually came?" said one of them, a woman with wide-set eyes and a young face. Li couldn't remember her name. It didn't escape Li that the excavator deliberately spoke low enough to be barely audible over the rumble of people filling the room. "I mean, really? She came?"

"I guess she's too thick to take a hint," Chun Hei said, her lips twisted in a scowl. "Too thick. That's how she always is, you know. Too thick."

"Some people have no shame," Brent replied to the woman. "No shame. She should be ashamed."

Li quickly returned her gaze forward. She did feel ashamed. More than they knew, probably. Her hands started to rise to cover her face.

Then they stopped. The scientific side of her brain poked at her, more insistent with each moment. Something was off, odd, and it bothered her. It bothered her even more than she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

She glanced back again, met more cold glares, faced forward. What was it?

Michelle turned with her this time, apparently noticing Li's backward glances. "Oh." She leaned closer. "We can still leave if you want."

Li shook her head, barely hearing her friend's question. The excavators looked a bit more disheveled than normal, but that wasn't it. They were spewing venom in her direction, sure, but that wasn't it, either. Something about what they'd said...

She sat up straight as it hit her. They were talking funny. They kept repeating phrases or words in an almost childish way.

The same way Trevor had talked.

Chapter 6

Li stood before fully knowing what she planned to do with this information.

M&M started to rise, but she waved them back down. "I'll be right back."

As she shuffled out to the aisle, doubts crept in. So what if they were talking like Trevor? Sure, it was unusual, but it didn't necessarily mean anything. Maybe they were doing it on purpose as some bizarre way of honoring his memory.

Besides, what did she expect anyone to do about it? Tell them to stop talking? She was being silly.

She saw Rundy near the cafeteria doors, directing the final stream of stragglers. Li shouldn't bother her, not so close to starting time. Rundy was busy enough as it was.

But something propelled her feet forward regardless.

Rundy saw her coming and took a half-step back from the doors to give them an ounce of privacy. "What's wrong?"

Li hesitated, caught off-guard. She hadn't realized her face made it so plain that anything was the matter. "Sorry. I don't think it's anything. I didn't mean to bother you."

"You aren't bothering me." Rundy pointed the next few people toward an empty spot on a nearby bench. "And let me decide if it's anything."

Of course. Rundy was head of security; she heard everything from major problems to petty complaints. She'd know if this was something to worry about or not.

"Jess's team—"

"I know they've been bothering you. I told my team to keep an extra eye on them, but we're stretched a bit thin with everyone in today."

Li shook her head. "No—I mean, yes, they have been, but that's not why I'm here."

Matteo stepped up onto the stage and looked straight to Rundy.

It was time to start. Too late to say anything. Li waved a hand. "Sorry. It isn't—"

Rundy cut her off, looking more friend than security officer. "Spill and spill fast."

"They're talking strange. It's choppy and repetitive, sort of like how Trevor talks." She winced. "Talked."

The security officer returned. Rundy's lips pursed. "You're concerned about how they're talking."

"Yes." As lame as the concern sounded in her head, it sounded exponentially lamer out loud. "It's probably nothing. I'm sorry. Don't worry about it." She spun and hurried back to her seat before Rundy could say anything else.

She stopped at the end of the row and frowned. No empty seats. M&M hadn't saved her seat? A few people stared up at her. A full thirty seconds passed before she realized she was standing at the wrong row. Cheeks warming, she backed up a couple rows and spotted Jess's team, still glaring. Ducking her head, she counted a few rows forward and finally spotted her friends.

By the time she planted herself firmly back in place between Michael and Michelle, Matteo had already begun speaking. She kept her head down, not hearing the words. She was just paranoid. Making a fool of herself. Who made a big deal out of the way other people talk? Isn't it their right to talk however they want? She'd acted like an idiot. At least Rundy was the only one to see her behave so ridiculously.

But still, it was an oddity, her scientific mind argued. All abnormalities are worth noting, whether in ore samples or human behavior.

"He mostly kept to himself, but those who knew him well knew him as a hard worker," Matteo continued.

Another chill crept through her. She wrapped her arms around herself again. She should've taken M&M's suggestion to skip the service. She wasn't doing anyone any good by sitting here, listening to a droning eulogy that stirred old memories as well as new feelings of guilt and shame.

Too late to leave now. Everyone would see her.

Li closed her eyes and pressed her hands to her face. If only she could turn invisible.

"Working with rocks all day, outside in the mines, can be trying, but he was always eager..."

"He was outside!" Brent shouted.

Startled, Li turned to see him standing. Everyone else also stared. Even Matteo stopped speaking for a moment before resuming the speech.

But Brent wasn't done. "He was! Outside! They kept him from it!"

Jersey shuffled into the row and quietly spoke to Brent. Li noticed Avery and one of the other guards, a skinny guy she'd heard someone call Giles, hovering rather close to Jess's team. Rundy must have positioned them there.

Li blinked. Had there been some merit to her observation, after all?

Brent shoved Jersey away. "No! You have to listen. No one listens. No one listened to him!"

"Yeah!" The baby-faced woman leapt to her feet. "He should've been!"

Before anyone could respond, the rest of the team jumped up, some even clambering onto the bench, shouting over each other in an apparent competition to see who could make the least sense.

Avery and Giles climbed in, trying to help Jersey pull the excavators back off the bench and escort them toward the door. Jess jogged over from the other side of the room, a distressed look on his face. But even his barked commands went ignored.

Michelle rose and tugged at Li's arm. "Come on," she whispered, giving Michael a poke. He blinked away from the action, caught Michelle's eyes, and nodded with instant understanding. Standing, he led the way out of the aisle.

Li didn't get it at first. But then she saw several other people in the nearby benches cautiously, quietly evacuating toward the front of the room, leaving a clear path to the exit and a wide margin around Jess's team. The excavators grew increasingly agitated, even as Rundy joined in the mess.

"No!" Brent suddenly screeched. He punched Jersey hard enough to send the man reeling. Several people gasped in shock, and the crowd shrank further back. "You can't make me go!"

His strike seemed to change the tone in the others. Three other excavators jumped on top of Jersey, swinging wildly. Chun Hei grabbed a handful of Avery's hair and clawed at his face. Digby and Waugh shoved past Giles, knocking him down, and bolted out the exit. A couple others on the team grappled with Jess. Another man attempted to body-check Rundy and landed flat on the floor for his efforts. But two others quickly turned on her, lunging with outstretched arms.

Li cried out. "Rundy!" Other voices lifted with hers, shouting in fear and panic.

Michelle darted forward, face pale and radio gripped tightly in hand. Michael stepped forward as if to follow her, but stopped and stayed at Li's side, to her relief.

Brent spotted her and shouted something incomprehensible. The entire team froze, then dashed after Digby and Waugh, vanishing in moments.

Michelle slowed to a stop beside the bench and helped Giles to his feet.

Rundy dusted herself off, barking out a string of orders that Li couldn't quite hear. A buzz filled the room as people clung to each other, jabbering in shock over what they'd just witnessed.

"Everyone, sit down," Matteo ordered, his clear voice of authority slicing through the chaos.

The crowd pulled Li and Michael along with them. Within seconds, everyone was seated.

Matteo's eyes scanned the crowd for a second. Examining. Calculating.

"Malson, Bera, and Wikoff, secure the door," he ordered. "The rest of you, remain here and stay quiet. As soon as the dorms are clear, we will escort you there until the rest of the colony can be secured." With that, he strode off the platform and joined Rundy near the back of the room. The two of them spoke briefly with the security team, then the whole group disappeared out the door.

Jess beckoned the other two excavation team leaders to his side. The man stood tall with coloring that verged on albino. Li vaguely remembered talking briefly to him once, but couldn't remember what about. She also couldn't remember if he was Bera or Wikoff. The other one, a roundish woman, she didn't recognize at all. But that was normal—excavators didn't socialize with scientists.

In spite of not knowing them personally, she felt better seeing them take charge. The excavation team leads often stepped in to help security, since the security team was so small.

While the buzz quickly resumed, the three leads pushed a table in front of the doors to create a temporary blockade, then took their positions to stand guard beside it.

Michelle found her way back to Li and Michael. "That was... unexpected."

"That was nuts," Michael agreed. "Certifiable boingo material."

Li held herself.

Michelle caught her eye. "They were acting like Trevor."

"I heard them talking like him earlier. I thought it couldn't mean anything, but..."

The willowy woman wrapped an arm around her shoulders again. "See? I told you it had nothing to do with you."

"Yeah," Michael said. "This means even Trevor's thing had nothing to do with you."

Li stared at him, an unspoken question on her face.

"Think about it. Was that sort of speech and behavior normal for any of those people?"

"I don't know. I only went on the one excavation."

"But you knew some of them before then. Like Chun Hei. Is that how she normally talks? Does she usually attack security guards like that?"

Li shook her head.

"The fact that all the members of a certain team are exhibiting specific symptoms that fall outside their normal range of behavior is more indicative of an external factor, such as a virus, than any sort of personal vendetta," Michelle supplied.

Li's scientific mind chimed in that M&M's explanation was logical. "What sort of virus would do this?"

"Beats me," Michael said, whistling cheerfully.

"But it makes much more sense now," Michelle said. "Trevor's irrational behavior was fueled by some sort of external contaminant."

"Which would make an awesome band name. External Contaminant." Michael nudged Li. "We should get on that."

"Sure. First thing in the morning." The words slipped from her mouth without thought.

He laughed. "Was that—was that a joke? Did Li Kichida make a joke? Someone mark the calendar!"

Michelle leaned over to jab his ribs. He gave her a wounded look, but resumed grinning once she was no longer looking.

A virus. Li held herself tighter. She'd been out on the surface with these people. Could she have been infected? No, she wasn't talking like they were. Or was she? Would she even be aware of it if she did? Did crazy people know they were crazy?

The hum of voices grew as panicked, confused, frightened people tried to process what happened. Louder and louder, like the buzz of a million bees.

Maybe she was already crazy.

"Hey," Michelle said, interrupting Li's thoughts. "Rundy and Matteo will have this nipped in no time. They'll catch the excavators, and we'll sort out what's happened."

"Team Alvarez always gets their man," Michael chimed in.

Li's fingers clenched. "I was out there. With them."

A look of understanding passed between M&M.

"So was Jess," Michelle said. She gestured toward the door with her head. "As you can see, he wasn't affected, either."

True. Li looked back over her shoulder. Jess stood rigid by the blocked door, his eyes narrowed and watching for any movement. He'd organized the others. Whatever had turned his team crazy obviously hadn't reached him.

The door swung hard, slamming into the table. Li's heart jumped, sending a startled cry from her mouth. Several others yelped in surprise as everyone spun to stare at the entrance.

"It's me," Jersey called from the other side. "Open the door."

Jess and the other two leads quickly pushed the table aside.

Jersey strode into the room, his eyes making a brief sweep of the space. No one moved or spoke, their questioning eyes fixed on him.

"The dorms are clear. Everyone is to return to their rooms in a quiet and orderly fashion. The entrance to the building will then be secured until the threat has been contained. You will receive notification at that time. Until then, maintain complete radio silence except in the case of emergency."

Li closed her eyes and tried to keep her breathing under control. Locked in their rooms? With crazy, violent people running free in the colony? It was like a nightmare.

"Please form a line in an orderly manner," Jersey finished. "Quietly and calmly."

Like a choreographed horde of zombies, everyone slowly stood and began shuffling forward, their eyes reflecting the same dissociative shock that numbed Li. It didn't last long, though.

"Let me through!" someone shouted, pushing past Li in a frantic dash forward. The cry broke the spell for a handful more, and they began to rush to the exit as well.

Jess gave a sharp, commanding whistle, and several excavator leads jumped in to help him catch the runners.

"That's enough!" Jersey barked out. He glared over the crowd. "Security is guarding the walkway to make sure everyone gets to the dorms safely. But you must keep yourselves in order."

Only a couple murmurs of protest sounded before the dull-eyed shuffle resumed.

Li's heart sped up faster the closer she got to the doors. It nearly coded when she stepped out into the hallway. The same hallway where Trevor attacked her. Her eyes darted back and forth, searching the corners, jumping to attention at any small movement. Fear squeezed her muscles until she could barely move.

Avery stood just outside the doors, nightstick in hand, watching the people file out. He scanned the far end of the hallway every few moments. Another guard, Paavan, stood a few yards further down, similarly scanning the next hallway.

Li forced herself to breathe. Continue forward. Rundy's team was on guard, watching closely to make sure nothing happened. It was going to be okay.

Jersey stepped in beside her, almost bumping Michael aside. "Ms. Alvarez requested I make sure you get to your room safely."

She forced herself to take another deep breath. "I'll be fine."

He remained at her side without comment.

Li glanced around, feeling slightly uncomfortable at being singled out. "I don't want anyone to think she's playing favorites."

"No, ma'am," he said, sounding startled at the thought. "Ms. Alvarez was concerned... That is, as there seems to be some animosity toward you from..." He stalled, searching for words.

"I get it," she said before he could say anything more. Jess's team seemed particularly angry toward her. Rundy was afraid they'd seek her out.

Ice ran down her spine. She shivered and held herself again, her eyes darting even faster to seek out any extra movement, any sign of coming attack.

Jersey nodded awkwardly.

M&M shuffled forward to press in tighter on her other side. She felt a little better, hemmed in by people she trusted to help her if anything happened. Still, fear kept her chest in an iron grip until they stepped into the main room.

"I can get her to her room from here," Michelle offered, moving toward the women's door.

"I'll escort you both," Jersey said. He didn't slow his stride for a moment.

The fear returned. Li stared at him, her feet dragging. "I thought you said the dorms were already cleared."

"They are. Ms. Alvarez gave me specific orders to see that you are safe in your room."

She forced her legs onward. Of course the dorm was already clear. Rundy was just being cautious. That's all.

When they reached her room, Jersey took a moment to double-check the interior, again reassuring her that it had already been cleared. "All the entrances have been sealed except the front one, and that will be secured and closely guarded once everyone's inside." He paused, an awkward look on his face again. "Don't worry. We'll get them."

Li's head bobbed in a frenetic sort of nod that she didn't fully believe. "Right. Thank you."

Abigail already sat on her bed, eyes wide with shock. Reesa stumbled in shortly afterwards, looking the same.

Yvette hurried in behind her, eyes alight. "Did you see? I knew it all along! Their minds have been taken over by the aliens!"

Abigail groaned and shook her head.

Something twitched inside Li. Bubbled upward. A snicker escaped.

Yvette glared at her.

Li quickly looked away, but accidentally caught Reesa's eye. A smile twitched at the corner of the woman's lips.

Another giggle choked out.

"Don't laugh!" Yvette pouted with a stomp. "I'm serious!"

The dam broke. Li doubled over, unable to stop the laughter. Reesa burst into giggles, and Abigail followed soon after.

Yvette scowled at them all.

It took a good five minutes before Li was finally able to get herself under control. Abigail leaned against the side of the bunk for support, wiping her eyes as the last few giggles trailed off.

Reesa collapsed into her own bunk, gasping. "Oh, I haven't laughed like that in ages."

"It wasn't funny," Yvette snapped. She climbed into her bunk and turned her back on them.

"Oh, don't be sore," Abigail said, still grinning. "We weren't really laughing at you. That was just a healthy outlet of all the tension."

Yvette kept her back turned.

Li wiped her own eyes and took deep breaths, feeling better. Somehow, she found herself believing what she couldn't convince herself of before. The security team would catch the excavators. They'd figure out what had gone wrong and make it right.

Everything would be okay.

* * *

Li woke and stared blankly at the darkness around her, disoriented. Her mind groggily pulled the pieces back into place. They'd spent the afternoon and evening trying to distract themselves, crowding around Abigail's tablet to watch a movie, then reading in their separate bunks, but had finally given in and quietly whispered their theories about what might have happened. Li had crawled into bed at that point; she'd finally managed to feel better and didn't want to spoil it by dwelling on the madness around her.

And now she was awake.

She tilted her head to check the softly glowing red numbers above the door. 0300. Way too early to wake up. She rubbed her eyes and blinked again. Reesa occasionally complained about waking up in the middle of the night, but Li had never had that problem. So why was she awake now?

She lay still a moment longer, trying to sort it out, but her eyelids kept drooping. Must have been all the tension. Just a fluke. She yawned and closed her eyes again.

Scritch.

Her eyes flew wide. A scraping sound. Just above her.

She leapt out of bed and dashed to the lights without conscious thought. Flicked them on.

Reesa groaned and blinked sleepily, raising one hand to shelter her eyes from the stark glare. "Wha..."

Li's heart pounded, but as she frantically scanned the room, she saw nothing out of place. Abigail snorted in her sleep and rolled over. Yvette's snoring only paused for a moment, her eye mask slightly askew.

No one else. Nothing else.

She exhaled. Tried to quiet her still-frightened heart. It was okay.

_Scritch_.

Reesa sat upright. "What was that?"

Li's eyes fixed on the ceiling. The air vent at the corner.

Her fingers tightened into fists. Someone was in the vents.

No, she told herself. That's stupid. The vents aren't big enough to hold a person. She'd seen the designs herself. No one but a midget could fit in there. No one in the colony was that small.

Abigail propped herself up on her elbows and stared at Li through one eye, the other still closed with sleep. She yawned. "What're you doing up?"

Reesa climbed off her bunk and backed toward the door beside Li, staring at the vent. "Did you hear that?"

Li managed to nod, mind still racing. Reesa had heard it, too. Something had to be in the vent. But what could fit in there?

Screee...

Abigail scrambled off her bed and joined them at the far wall, staring at the vent with large eyes as the high-pitched scraping noise continued. "What is that?" she squeaked.

Yvette's snore cut off sharply. She lifted her eye mask and scowled at them. "What's going on?"

"Get over here," Reesa hissed. "There's something in the vent!"

The petite woman's eyes flew wide. She untangled herself from her blanket and darted to Reesa's side.

"It can't be," Abigail whispered. "The vent's aren't big enough."

The scraping sound grew louder. Li jumped, pressing backwards. Her head bumped the edge of the curtain rod. It jolted loose, dropping over her and Reesa, covering them in gossamer material.

Reesa squawked and flailed at the material. Yvette jumped away, pressing a hand over her heart.

"It's just the curtain!" Abigail hissed. She quickly stepped in and helped them free, letting the curtain and rod drop the floor.

The vent cover shuddered.

All four women pressed themselves against the door and wall, eyes fixed on the cover.

"They must be small enough to fit inside," Yvette whispered, panic turning her voice into a squeak.

The aliens. Li's eyes remained fixed on the vent cover. Ridiculous thought. But the vent was too small for humans. What else could it be?

"We have to call for security," Abigail whispered. "Who's got the radio?"

Reesa pointed with a trembling finger. The emergency radio lay on top of the small table at the other end of the room. Under the vent.

"Go get it," Yvette whispered.

"You go get it!"

"I'm not going near that thing!"

The vent shuddered again.

Li jerked backwards, hitting her head on the door again. Her heart pounded against her ribs, which seemed tighter by the second. What was that thing?

"I'll get it," Abigail said, her voice barely audible. She took a deep breath. Shuffled forward half a step.

The vent flew free.

They screamed. Abigail jumped back, almost running into Li.

A bent metal rod waved at them for a moment before disappearing. Manic laughter echoed down the vent.

Li stared, uncomprehending. It took her a moment to piece it together. Their room sat near the main room. Someone had pried off the vent cover in the main room, fed the pole down the air vent, and used it to knock their cover off. But why?

Abigail stormed to the radio. "Sick joke! I'll have them scrubbing toilets for a month!"

A prank. Li exhaled, her chest finally relaxing. Someone, probably from the men's dorm, thought it'd be funny to scare some of the girls by making some noise in the vent. They probably didn't even know whose room they'd targeted.

Yvette rattled off a few sentences in French. From the look on her face, nothing she'd said was ladylike. "Call security to come lock them up!"

"They're probably already on their way back to their room," Reesa said.

If they went to the main room, maybe they'd catch a glimpse of who did it. Li turned.

Brent stood outside the door, staring at her through the window with crazed eyes.

Chapter 7

Li screamed. Her feet stumbled back away from the door.

"What?" Abigail turned and screamed as well, dropping the radio.

Reesa and Yvette jumped away from the door, gasping.

Brent stared a moment longer, blood streaking the right side of his face. His eyes flicked downward.

The doorknob began to turn.

Li's body responded before her brain could kick in. She darted forward, slammed her body against the door, and gripped the knob with both hands. The edge of it bit into her hands as he pushed harder, struggling to force his way in. She pressed the lock button, but it wouldn't activate. Not with the doorknob partially turned.

Abigail rushed to her side and grabbed the doorknob, crushing Li's fingers and helping slow the knob's movement, but it was too late. The knob twisted. The door jolted inward.

"No!" Li's feet scrambled for leverage.

Reesa slammed into the door, shoving it shut, but it bounced back another inch.

Li glanced at the window. Three other members of Jess's team had joined Brent, shoving at the door. One clawed her fingers at the window when she saw Li looking.

A squeak of terror escaped Li's rapidly closing throat. She braced her shoulder into the door and pushed with all her might. It inched inward again.

"Yvette! The radio! Call security!" Abigail cried, grunting as she strained to push the door shut.

Fingers curled around the edge of the door, wiggling and grasping at them.

Yvette clung to the corner of her bunk, staring at the window with wide eyes.

"Yvette! Get it!" Abigail shouted.

Someone slammed their full body weight against the other side of the door, pushing it further open. Brent's arm snaked in and caught Abigail's hair. Abigail screamed and clutched his wrist, losing more ground.

Reesa wedged her foot into the base of the door and raked her nails down Brent's arm. "Come on, push!"

Li could barely breathe, could barely hear over the pounding heartbeat in her ears, but she buckled down and shoved alongside Reesa. The door battered into Brent's arm, drawing a cry of pain from the other side of the door.

Abigail clawed at Brent's fingers and freed herself from his grasp. "On three! One, two, three!"

They pushed as one, nearly taking Brent's arm off. He quickly drew it back through the door as soon as it relaxed, but then pushed again, regaining a little more.

"Again!" Abigail barked. "One, two, three!"

The door slammed shut. Abigail slapped the lock.

It engaged.

Li slid to the floor, struggling to breathe. Her chest finally loosened its grip. She panted for air.

Reesa stormed past Yvette and grabbed the radio, switching on the emergency channel.

Abigail pressed a hand against her forehead as Reesa called for security. "We're safe now. They can't get in."

_Thud_.

The door shook.

Li squeaked and jumped to her feet, scrambling to brace the door again, but it didn't budge.

Brent body-slammed it again from the other side with a loud bang. It still held.

Li slowly backed away, unable to take her eyes from the window. The other excavators joined in, slapping their hands against the door and the Plexiglas window, clawing, pushing, struggling.

Abigail moved to Li's side and clutched her hand. "They can't get in," she repeated.

The door shuddered under another blow.

"Hey!" Reesa shouted, stepping to the window and waving the radio at it. "Security's coming! They're going to get you!"

A couple of the excavators ran at that. Another gave one last bash, then fled.

Brent stopped fighting the door. He stood outside the window, hateful eyes fixed on Li.

Her breath caught. Abigail squeezed her hand.

He remained still for a long minute, then turned and walked away.

No one moved for another minute. They stared at the window, watching for any signs of movement, of further threat, but none came.

Yvette melted to the floor. "Is it really over?"

"Fat lot of help you were," Reesa grunted, glaring at her.

"I didn't want to get infected!"

Reesa opened her mouth, eyes flashing with anger, but Abigail stopped her.

"It's okay. They're gone now." The matronly woman gave Li's hand one last squeeze before releasing it. "And security's on the way."

Li couldn't stop pacing the floor as they waited. Three steps left. Turn. Three steps right.

A tap came from the door.

She jumped a mile, her heart nearly stopping in place, and scolded herself. It was just security. She knew they were coming. She shouldn't have been so startled.

"The door locked?" Rundy asked through the window.

"Yes," Abigail said, stepping forward to open it.

"Leave it." She listened to Abigail's quick description of what happened, then met Li's eyes. "Everyone's okay?"

"We're fine," Abigail said. "They didn't get in."

Rundy waited until Li nodded before she spoke again. "Good. Stay put and keep your door locked until you hear from security." With that, she turned and strode down the hall, barking out orders. Moments later, Jersey's voice came over the radio, ordering everyone to lock their doors and report any sightings of Jess's team.

They sat in silence for another hour, but the outside noise died down before long, and the late hour began to wear at them. Yvette crawled back into bed first. Abigail kept dozing off until Li finally told her to go back to sleep.

Reesa leaned on the side of the table next to Li for another half-hour before giving up. "I don't think they're here anymore. They must've escaped into one of the other buildings."

Li nodded. Her stomach twisted, unconvinced.

"You should get some sleep, too," Reesa said. She crawled into her bunk. "You can leave the lights on if it makes you feel better."

It took Li a long time to respond. "No. It's fine." She turned the lights off and climbed into bed. Pulled the covers tightly around her. And stared into darkness.

* * *

A clattering sound in the hallway startled Li awake. She sat bolt upright and was rewarded by a sharp pain through the base of her neck from sleeping in a half-upright position.

Someone shouted. She forgot the pain and climbed off her bunk. Crept to the window, afraid of what she'd see on the other side.

The hallway stood empty. The lights flickered with a dull, yellowish glow. The emergency back-up lights.

Another clang echoed from further down the hallway.

A scream.

Li's heart flipped, then stopped when someone slammed into the door beside her.

"What's that?" Reesa gasped, craning her neck to see out the window.

Li pressed a hand over her chest and took deep breaths. "You scared me!"

"Someone's out there?" Abigail asked, joining them on hesitant feet.

Yvette curled in the corner of her bunk, holding her blankets tightly near her chin. "Again?"

"I heard someone scream," Li said, finally getting her pulse back under control. She reached for the light switch.

Reesa caught her hand. "If there's someone out there, we don't want them seeing our light on."

Abigail hurried to the radio and flipped it on. "Hello? Security?"

Nothing but static.

Li moved closer to the window and craned her aching neck, trying to get a better view. "I can't see anyone out there." Something caught the corner of her eye. She pressed closer to the edge of the window, hoping against hope that it wasn't what she thought it was.

Red streaked the opposite wall.

Bile seared the back of her throat. She instinctively stepped back, gagging.

"What? What is it?" Reesa lunged to her former position and craned her neck to see. She gasped.

Another scream rang down the hallway, fainter this time. Further away.

"Blood," Reesa whispered, staring with wide eyes set in a pale face. "That's blood."

Abigail clutched Li's arm and helped her sit on the edge of her bunk. "What in the world is happening out there?" Terror cut into her normally steady voice.

Li swallowed hard, fighting the bile back down. She stood up, unable to remain seated, and returned to Reesa's side.

"I can't see anything else," Reesa whispered, her fingertips turning white from pressing them against the edge of the window.

"Security? Hello?" Abigail called into the radio again, her voice increasing in volume until she was nearly shouting. "Is anyone there?"

Clang.

"Shh!" Reesa snapped.

Li craned her neck again, but couldn't see anything else. The sounds seemed to be getting quieter. Still, images of excavators banging on her door flashed through her mind. Were they coming back? She double-checked the lock and found it secure. Somehow the act didn't make her feel any safer.

Another rattle sounded, but even fainter.

No one moved for a long minute. Li and Reesa strained to see through the window. Abigail occasionally whispered into the radio. Yvette trembled and occasionally let out a tiny squeak.

Li finally spoke. "Are they gone?"

"I can't tell." Reesa stood on her tiptoes, face pressed flat against the door on one side of the window, trying to see further down the hallway.

"I still can't get anyone," Abigail said, setting the radio down. "I think the system's down."

The hall lights flickered out, plunging the room into darkness.

Yvette screamed.

Startled, Li screamed in response. Reesa yelped.

The lights came back up.

"Don't do that!" Reesa yelled at Yvette.

"Don't yell at her! She's scared!" Li snapped, still trying to quiet her frantic nerves. If this kept up, she was on the short list for a heart attack.

"We're all scared." Abigail climbed onto Yvette's bunk and put an arm around the tiny woman's shoulders. "Something's wrong with the power, too. We'll just have to be ready for it to cut out on occasion."

A new pang of fear shot through Li. If the power went out, what would happen? Would the attackers reach them? Would they lose oxygen?

No, she reassured herself. The locks were manual. The vents allowed in plenty of air from the bubble. They were still safe. Sort of.

The four women remained silent for a minute.

"What do we do now?" Li finally asked.

"We have to find out what's going on," Reesa said.

Yvette trembled harder and shook her head, her mouth forming a 'no' without any sound.

Abigail also shook her head. "We should stay here. Security must know something's wrong by now, even if no one's been able to call on the radios. They'll come soon. We just have to wait."

"What if security isn't even around anymore? That isn't pudding on the wall out there!" Reesa skittered to the other side of the window and pressed her face close, trying to see the other direction. "They might not even be looking for us. We have to find out what's going on and see if there's any way we can help."

"Last night, security told us to stay locked in our rooms until we hear from them again," Abigail pressed. "We need to follow orders. We're safe here. They can't get in past the locks."

"Then what happened? If the locks keep us safe, then how are we hearing screams?"

Abigail didn't have an answer to that.

"It's been quiet for a while now," Li finally said. "They might be gone."

"Best time to check it out." Reesa reached for the doorknob. "Before they come back."

"Don't let them in!" Yvette shrieked.

Reesa paused, looking back at Yvette and Abigail. She sighed. "Stay here and lock the door behind me if you have to. But I'm not just waiting around. If they have a way of getting in the rooms, we'll be trapped in here." She turned to Li and raised an eyebrow, waiting.

Li's chest tightened again. The thought of going out into the hallway, possibly facing the excavators again... She couldn't.

On the other hand, staying put wasn't appealing, either. If Brent and his crazed coworkers had found a way to get through the door locks, she'd be dead. There was no other way out of the room. And they hadn't heard anything from the hallway for at least two or three minutes now. Reesa was right. If the excavators had left, their best shot was to go now. Maybe they could find Rundy.

Rundy would know what to do.

"Well?" Reesa demanded, hand on the knob. "Coming or staying?"

Li glanced back at Abigail and Yvette. "Lock the door behind us."

Yvette squeaked again.

Abigail joined them at the door. "Be careful."

"If we find somewhere safe, we'll come back for you," Li promised.

Reesa pulled the door open, poked her head out, and checked both directions. "Clear." She lifted one hand and motioned forward with two fingers.

Abigail rolled her eyes. "Thinks she's a commando. If you find trouble, run and hide. Don't let her talk you into taking dumb risks."

Li nodded and stepped into the hallway after Reesa. The door clicked shut behind them. Locked.

Panic rose from her belly, clawing at her lungs. There was nothing protecting her now. No more locked door between her and the people who wanted to hurt her.

Reesa tugged on her arm and made the same two-finger motion forward, back toward the main room.

Li forced herself to take a deep breath. The excavators weren't there now. She was safe. They just had to find Rundy. She glanced the other direction, and her stomach turned at the chaos littering the hall. Buckled doors bent outwards, swinging on loose hinges. Poles and other bunk parts lay where they'd fallen, askew on the floor or leaning against walls at odd angles. Most were broken in some way or another, casting odd shadows with the dim, golden lighting.

Her brain resisted, but her eyes still took it in and forced her to acknowledge it. Blood. The tangy smell of copper filled the space. The smear on the opposite wall was only one of several stained places, though there were no injured people or bodies that she could see. It pooled on the floor in a couple places, streaked the walls in others. Further down the hall, it even dripped from the ceiling. Bile choked Li once more.

Reesa tugged her arm again, more emphatically this time.

"We should check," Li whispered, gesturing back down the hall. "In case someone's hurt."

Reesa scowled, put a finger to her lips, then went through a series of impressive and official-looking hand signs.

"I don't know what that means," Li whispered, shrugging helplessly.

The dark-haired woman rolled her eyes. She picked up one of the discarded poles and tested its weight, then nodded. 'Go,' she mouthed in an exaggerated way, motioning with a hand at the same time. 'I'll watch.'

Li nodded and stepped deeper into the dorm.

The lights went out.

She froze in place, unable to move forward in the blackness. Didn't want to trip over a bed part. Didn't want to step in someone's blood.

Yvette's wail rang loud enough to be heard through the closed door.

Back on.

Li exhaled, checked herself, and continued forward. The next door hung open, bent outward. Like someone from inside had forced their way out. Odd. She peered into the room, the area only partially lit by the hall's dim lighting. The bunks lay in pieces, obviously donors to the mess outside. No signs of people there. Whoever left their blood on the wall must've left already. Or something.

She shuddered at the morbid thoughts and moved on to the next room. The lights in that room flickered in time with the hall lights. The bunks were in similar disarray. No people.

"Hurry up!" Reesa hissed.

Right. The excavators could return at any moment. Li took a deep breath and hurried to the next room. Nothing. Next one. Same.

She slowed as the approached the next one. A large puddle of blood nearly blocked the doorway, which hid behind a bent door creaking on one remaining hinge. She skirted around the puddle and peered inward. No lights. She hesitated, then carefully stepped over the puddle, stomach turning as she tried to avoid any contact with it.

Inside. Safe. She exhaled and squinted, looking for any signs of people. Nothing. She turned around to make the same cautious, large step to leave the room.

A hand grabbed her ankle.

The lights went out.

Chapter 8

Li screamed as she tumbled backwards. Hit the ground hard. Pain reverberated up her spine, aggravating her neck. The grip on her ankle tightened. She screamed again, kicking wildly. The hand let go.

The lights came back on.

"I'm coming!" Reesa hollered. Her feet pounded in the hall.

Li scrambled to her feet, crouched and braced for another attack, eyes searching the dark room.

Something on the floor moved closer to the door.

She yelped and took another step back.

Reesa stopped on the other side of the puddle, pole raised above her head to strike. "Where?"

"Wait!" Li put a hand up. "Reach the lights!"

Her roommate leaned forward, caught the doorframe, and reached in to flick the lights on.

Vera lay on the floor between the two women. Blood caked her shoulder and cheek. She moaned.

"Vera!" Li knelt beside her. "What happened?"

The scientist's mouth worked a couple times. "Help... me..."

"Where are they?" Reesa demanded, pole raised once more. "Which way did they go?"

Vera shuddered. Her face was pale, her eyes turning glassy.

"She needs help," Li said. She glanced around. The locker that should hold a med kit hung open, battered, empty. No time to hunt for it. "Help me get her to Abigail."

Reesa reluctantly surrendered her pole and helped lift Vera. The two of them carried the injured woman back down the hall to their room.

Once they reached their room, Reesa pounded on the door. "Abigail! Let us in! Someone's hurt!"

They heard Yvette frantically pleading Abigail not to open the door, that it was a trick, don't let them in, but Abigail ignored her and flung the door open. Her eyes widened briefly at the sight of Vera. Her face turned grim. "Put her on a bunk."

Li led the way to her own bunk as Abigail locked the door behind them. Reesa hovered while Li did her best to help Abigail clean and bind the wounds.

"I'm not sure how much good we did," Abigail said. "We need something to control the bleeding and the pain. I need to get her to the infirmary."

"We have to find the others," Reesa said. "That's our first priority."

Abigail opened her mouth to protest.

"There might be others who were hurt," Li interrupted. "But Rundy will be with them. She'll know what to do."

The doctor paused a moment longer, but finally nodded.

"Come on," Reesa said, giving Li a tug. "We're losing time."

Abigail again locked the door behind them as they left.

"I'll go with you to finish the sweep," Reesa said quietly. "Move fast. We've got to get out of here before they decide to come back."

As Reesa retrieved her pipe and jogged to the end of the hall, Li picked up where she left off, trying to work as quickly as she could. The space felt too empty, the only sound coming from her shoes' muted thumps on the metal floor and the occasional squeak from broken doors swinging free.

Reesa met her in the middle. "Find anyone else?"

Li shook her head. "You?"

"One of the med assistants. The Indian girl."

Li turned, startled. "Charita? Is she hurt?"

"She's dead."

Li froze in place, unable to speak for a moment. "Dead?"

"Come on. We have to find the others." Reesa strode down the hall. Her shoulders shook, though it seemed she was trying to hide it.

Li closed her eyes. Dead? How? What happened?

Something inside her scolded her foolishness. What did she think all that blood in the hallway was from, fairies? Of course someone was dead.

Acid burned her throat once more, and this time she couldn't hold it back.

Reesa remained silent while Li coughed and wiped her mouth. "Come on."

Li spat, trying to clear her mouth of the vile taste, but nothing would fix that. Just like nothing would fix Charita. She hadn't known the girl well, but the assistant was nice and good at what she did. And now she was gone.

"Come on!"

Li forced herself to take a deep breath. Turned. Find Rundy. Find Rundy, and everything would be okay. She jogged to catch up with Reesa at the door to the main room.

Reesa looked at her with one eyebrow raised.

She nodded.

The other woman gripped the pole, put a finger to her lips, made a few more unfamiliar hand gestures, then flung the door open. The lights intensified their flickering, staying off more than on, giving only brief flashes of the main room.

A man shouted and charged at them.

Reesa shrieked and hefted the pole.

Li let out a cry, stumbling backwards in surprise, but she caught a look of the man's face in a brief flash of light. "Wait! Stop!"

"Stand down," Rundy's voice barked out.

The man slowed. Another flash of light confirmed what Li thought she saw: Kirk. Blood smeared the top of his forehead, but the crazed look in his eyes was more out of fear than madness. He wasn't affected. Nor were the group of people gathered behind him.

Reesa lowered her pole.

"Rundy!" Li couldn't remember feeling so relieved in her life. She squeezed past Reesa to rush to her friend's side. "What happened?"

Rundy pushed an unruly lock of hair back out of her face, her ponytail disheveled and barely holding together. Her uniform sleeve was torn, and blood droplets spattered her clothes. Aside from a split lip, she didn't seem injured. "The excavators—"

"Jess's team," Li said. "But we didn't see them again after they tried to get into our room."

"No." Rundy exhaled. She looked like she'd aged ten years. "All of the excavators."

Li stared, uncomprehending.

"All of them?" Reesa burst out.

"They went nuts, just like the others," Giles said.

Stunned, Li looked around at the group. Scientists. Medical staff. Security. Most of them appeared as shell-shocked as she felt. Several cradled hastily bandaged wounds. Isla sat on a chair near the edge of the group, blood staining her shoulder, eyes dull and vacant.

"Was there anyone else with you?" Rundy asked, glancing back toward the women's door.

"Abigail and Yvette. And we found Vera," Reesa said. She stood straight, looking officious again. "We swept the bottom floor, but Vera's the only one we found."

Still alive, Li thought. Vera's the only one we found still alive. Reesa hadn't said it, but her face did.

"Then let's keep going," Matteo said, stepping past Rundy.

Li jumped and scurried aside. She hadn't even noticed him in the crowd, she'd been so focused on Rundy.

The small crowd followed without word as Matteo led the way to the women's door. He glanced back at Reesa. "Where are the other survivors?"

Survivors. A pang shot through Li's chest and pierced the bottom of her stomach. Her brain still couldn't quite accept or even acknowledge what was going on. They'd been attacked. People were hurt. Even dead. Because of the excavators. She knew it, but she couldn't get herself to believe it, no matter how many times she repeated it to herself.

"In our room, sir. First on the right."

He nodded. Jersey opened the door, peered down the hallway, then made the same two-finger motion forward as Reesa had used. The group silently followed him in.

Michael stepped to Li's side. "Did you see M?"

She shook her head. "But she's on the second floor. We didn't check that yet."

"Right." A gash decorated one cheek that was turning purple.

"What..." She couldn't come up with any other way to word it. "What happened?"

The grim look on his face made him seem foreign, like a perfect stranger. "Did you know Jess was my roommate?"

Her hand pressed over her mouth without conscious command.

"I woke up to him shouting, attacking our other roommates. I helped pull him off, but he threw me into a bunk, then ran out of the room." He shook his head. "We went to look for help, but the hallway... It was a battlezone."

The group stopped outside her room. Matteo knocked and called for Abigail to open the door.

Li stared down her own hallway, at the blood and discarded poles and boards. Her mind filled in what she couldn't see, the excavators attacking, the others fighting for their lives.

Michael glanced at her. "You kept your door locked?"

"We heard clangs and shouts, so we stayed down."

"You were the smart ones, then."

Abigail escorted Yvette out of the room, sleep mask askew on her forehead, eyes still wide and unfocused with fear. Once Yvette joined the larger group, Abigail spoke quietly with Matteo.

He frowned, conferred with Rundy, then addressed the group. "I want anyone too injured to walk on their own in this room with Ms. Brightman. Jersey, stay with them and keep the door locked until we return."

"Others should stay too, no?" Nikolas asked. "Scientists, assistants, they cannot help."

"Yes, we can!" Reesa protested, waving her pole.

"It's true, sir," Jersey said quietly. "They aren't trained to handle this sort of situation."

"None of us were," Matteo muttered. He eyed the small crowd, his eyes resting on Yvette's glassy eyes for a moment before he spoke again. "The room isn't big enough to hold everyone. We can leave a few behind, but only those who most need it." He nodded to Rundy.

She moved through the crowd, sending the most injured and shell-shocked back into Li's room. She paused beside Li, but walked on without sending her back.

Li swallowed. She'd rather hide in the corner of her bunk with Jersey guarding the locked door. But Matteo was right. There were at least fifteen people there, and the room, designed for efficiency rather than comfort, would barely hold eight, especially with injured people who needed to lie down. Li was well enough to keep going, so she would remain out.

Once Jersey shut and locked the door, Matteo led the way to the other end of the hallway, he and the security team giving the rooms a cursory check.

"Mostly excavators housed on this floor," Rundy said. "With any luck, we'll find more survivors upstairs."

Giles and Avery stayed to the back, frequently checking over their shoulders. Li's stomach turned again. Reesa said the excavators might come back. Would they find the group moving through the hallway? Li shivered and found herself pressing closer to Michael.

He glanced at her, and she blushed, restoring an appropriate distance. "Sorry."

"Don't worry about it." His attention already returned forward.

The lights flicked out.

"Hold!" Matteo ordered.

Li stumbled into someone in front of her before realizing that 'hold' meant 'stop moving.' She gripped the handrail and waited while the security team and Matteo pulled out small LED flashlights, cutting into the blackness around them. They continued forward, but as the seconds passed, her brain began to whir. How long had the last blackout been? Not this long. They were getting worse? What if the building lost all power?

What if it happened to the dome?

Air rushed from her lungs. She couldn't get it back in.

No. The airlock automatically seals in case of power issues. They weren't in any danger. She had to tell herself that several times before her chest unlocked. She sucked in a breath.

The lights returned, dimmer and flickering worse than before. At Matteo's command, the security team kept their flashlights on, improving the inadequate lighting. Li took a few more deep breaths and tried to convince herself that everything was going to be okay.

The group stopped at the top of the stairs.

"Keep your eyes and ears open for any survivors," Matteo ordered. "Medical, be ready to help. Security, watch for potential threats. And everyone stay close. We move as a group."

Li had to focus to keep from pressing close to Michael again. Shadows moved strangely over the walls and floors, the bright flashlights meshing with the pale, yellowed light from above. The hall remained quiet, like below, so much that she could hear everyone breathing around her. Even her own breath seemed inordinately loud.

She held back as others peered inside the rooms. There wasn't much she could do here. She wasn't strong or brave. She couldn't help. Useless. The only reason they brought her along was because she was healthy enough to walk and hadn't turned into a brain case. She just had to hope she didn't do anything wrong and get someone else hurt.

The first few rooms cleared, empty. Someone was dead in the fourth room. A scientist from hydroponics. Li didn't know her, but Reesa gasped and looked paler when Rundy identified the body. The woman's lower lip trembled briefly, but she jutted her chin and marched onward with the group, her hands tighter on the pole.

The next door was jammed. Jersey and Paavan bashed it in.

Michelle lunged at them, radio extended, eyes wild.

"M!" Michael shouted, brushing past Li and rushing forward.

She jolted, paused, then stepped back, focusing on her friend. "M?"

"It's okay. It's us."

Her eyes roved briefly over the group, then she nodded and straightened, lowering the radio. "Four others in here."

"Good work," Matteo said, peering past her into the room.

Li could barely see over a mass of shoulders around her, but the security team's lights flickered over a few figures huddled in the room.

"How many injured?" Nikolas stepped forward. "I will treat, then we continue."

"Just some scrapes and bruises."

"Really?" he asked, one eyebrow raised.

Michelle glanced down. "I pulled in as many as I could grab when it started. A couple ran out to fight. I'm not sure what happened to them."

Michael squeezed her arm. "Come on. We're checking all the rooms."

The other survivors quickly joined the group, two of them staring with stunned, dull eyes, another trembling and murmuring to herself, and the fourth looking ready to start swinging at any hint of a threat. Michael returned to Li's side, Michelle close to him. Her face looked even paler than usual in the odd lighting, but she seemed to be pulling herself together.

"So it's affected all of the excavators now," she said, her eyes forward as the group moved on.

As the rest of Li's mind drifted in shock, fear, and confusion, the scientist in her latched onto Michelle's statement. "So it must be something common to them specifically."

"But not any of the staff who've helped the excavators," Michelle continued. She nodded at Kirk. "Even people who've gone on multiple excavations appear unaffected."

"Then it must be related to their work, but only through repeated exposure. Something to do with the suits, maybe?" Yvette's alien theory popped into Li's mind. She quickly dismissed it.

"Or the planet itself," Michelle said. "It could be psychological, some effect of working in envirosuits in a foreign mine for an extended period of time."

"Great. As if they weren't crazy enough as it is," Michael said.

"Is not psychological," Nikolas muttered.

Li glanced up, startled. She hadn't realized he was listening. His handsome face now featured a haggard look and a long cut that barely missed his left eye.

"Why not?" Michelle asked.

He looked embarrassed for a moment, as if he hadn't meant to speak out loud. "It... I only mean, they all have same symptoms at same time. If psychological, each would have different response, and not at same time."

"Right." Li nodded. "People respond to psychological stresses differently. We wouldn't be seeing such consistent behavior."

Michelle tilted her head a few inches to the right, miles away in thought. "They didn't all have the symptoms at the same time. Jess's group exhibited them first."

"And Trevor was before them," Michael said. "He was the engine for this crazy train."

"Train..." Li paused. "Is it possible that the others were triggered by Jess's team going nuts? And that they were first triggered by Trevor?"

"Possible, though that would suggest a psychological component, which we already determined is unlikely," Michelle said.

Michael shrugged. "I just said that as a joke."

"All right, everyone stay close," Matteo called.

Li looked up and realized that they'd been lagging behind. The rest of the group had already reached the stairs at the other end of the hallway. It didn't look like they'd found any more survivors.

Matteo led the way downstairs, back to Li's room to collect the others. Abigail and the medical assistant who stayed behind with her had managed to clean and bandage the worst of the injuries there, but a few people were still unconscious or too injured to walk on their own power.

"What now?" Abigail asked, voicing the question on everyone's minds.

"Were there any overnighters in the infirmary?" Matteo asked.

Abigail shook her head. "Unless they came in after hours."

"I didn't get any reports," Rundy said.

"Then we have to assume we've found everyone left," Matteo said.

Li looked around the group. This was it? Only about twenty people. It didn't seem possible. But then, excavators made up a majority of the colony. Her brain automatically flicked through some quick math that she really didn't want to do. Eighty colonists. Fifty excavators. Twenty survivors. Ten people missing.

Or dead.

She shivered.

"So what now?" Abigail repeated.

Matteo eyed the room, then the hallway. Li could almost physically see the gears whirring in his head.

Rundy stepped closer and spoke quietly to him. Her hand lingered on his arm an extra moment.

He squeezed her hand, then let it drop as he stepped forward to speak to the group. "This room is still secure. We're going to keep it that way, a safe place for the wounded." He addressed Jersey. "Barricade the door after we leave, and don't open it for any reason until you hear from us."

"Sir!" Jersey straightened. "As I've had some experience facing this before, I hoped I might go with you."

Matteo frowned.

"Actually, I'm glad to hear his request," Giles said. "I might be a better choice to stay behind."

"Your leg?" Rundy asked. Li craned her neck and saw that his left leg featured several makeshift bandages.

Giles looked embarrassed, though he held himself upright. "It's not bad enough to keep me from my duties, but it might be best for me to stay put and guard the room."

She nodded and turned to her husband. "Giles will keep the room secure."

"Very well." Matteo returned his attention to the group. "We need to alert mission control on Earth, to let them know what's happened."

"Will they send help?" someone called.

His face hardened briefly. "It's... possible. They may have some directions or protocol for us to follow in response to the threat." He cleared his throat and continued. "We need to reach the communications room in the administration building and send a message to Earth."

Abigail straightened. "We should take the wounded to the infirmary. I need more than an emergency medkit to care for these people. Besides, we need to figure out what happened to cause this. Best I can figure, it must be some sort of medical condition to strike them all at the same time like this. We'll need to do some tests in the infirmary."

"That will come," Matteo said, "but for now, our primary focus has to be communicating with Earth. Stay here with the injured, and we'll return for you once we have orders from mission control." He turned back to the others. "We'll have to be careful. We don't know exactly where the excavators have gone. Keep your eyes open and stay close."

With that, he gave some quick orders to the security team, once again making sure the group remained surrounded by armed security guards.

Li shivered again as the group slowly filed out of the hallway into the main room, stopping just inside the front door. They were going back outside the dorm. Trevor had attacked her on the other side of that door. Would the other excavators be there, waiting, trying to get them? She held herself tighter.

Jersey opened the door, checked the outer hallway, the nodded to the others. "Clear."

The group filed out into the hallway. Li's breath caught as she stepped out the door. Whatever damaged the power in the dorms had apparently affected the whole colony, though not as badly. The dim glow showed the backup generator had kicked in. The sky above hovered dark.

She looked around as they continued to the right, heading for the admin building. No crazed excavators charged them. No sounds, save the occasional squeak of their shoes on the metal walkway. No signs of coming attack.

"We'll be all right," Michael whispered. "We'll figure it out."

"How do you know?" Li whispered back.

He grinned, the old Michael returning for the first time. "Because it's us."

Even Michelle smiled.

Reesa held the door for everyone to file into the admin building. She gave Li a reassuring nod.

Li exhaled. They were inside the next building now. The lights were dim, but not flickering. No blackouts here. No attacks here. Safe.

A door slammed further down the hall.

Chapter 9

Matteo, Rundy, and the security team grabbed their nightsticks, moving forward. Rundy quickly ordered Avery back to guard the door.

Li realized she was clinging to Michelle's arm and forced herself to let go. Still, fear electrified her muscles once more. Someone else was in the building. One of the excavators. Or more.

Not necessarily, she reminded herself. Ten people missing. Maybe some were dead, but others could still be in the colony. It could be one of them. Maybe someone saw the commotion in the dorms and ran to the security office.

That's all it was. One of the missing people. It had to be.

The security team continued down the hall at a slow but steady pace, opening doors, checking rooms, and making a few of the same hand signals Reesa used. The rest of the group remained huddled at the other end by Avery, watching intently.

Rundy and Jersey disappeared into the security office.

Another door slammed.

Li gasped and gripped Michelle again.

Matteo gestured, and Paavan stepped into the office.

The seconds dragged. Li's hands tightened on Michelle's arm, her eyes fixed on the door at the end of the hall, ready to bolt at the first sign of attack.

The door slid open.

Rundy stepped out, and Li let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding.

The security lead shook her head and waved the others down. "A cell door was hanging loose." The grim look on her face said there was more to the story.

They hurried forward to join Matteo and the others at the communications room, adjacent to the security office.

Reesa gasped and stopped in the doorway, one hand over her mouth. Several others had similar reactions.

Li stood on her tiptoes and craned her neck to see between the heads in front of her.

A shower of sparks drew her eyes to the shared wall with the security office. A massive hole with jagged edges created a new passage between the two rooms. Cover panels littered the room along with half the equipment that used to be installed on the wall. Most of what remained was cut in pieces. Only a few monitors remained intact.

"Oh, no," Li whispered, covering her own mouth. The communications equipment. The excavators had destroyed it. But why?

The hole in the wall answered her question. The door into the security office featured extra measures to be break-in proof. The wall between the offices wasn't quite as secure. The communications equipment was just collateral damage.

"What'd they get?" Matteo asked.

"It looks like they tried to break into the weapons lockers, but failed. I'll have to check closer for anything else," Rundy said.

He nodded, his eyes still fixed on the hole.

"The backup system in your office?" Rundy asked, her tone even more businesslike than normal.

Matteo shook his head. "It relies on the connection hub here." His eyes roamed over the mass of wires and shattered computer boards. "They never anticipated this level of damage when they designed the systems."

"We have no way of contacting Earth?" Reesa asked.

A muscle in Matteo's jaw worked for a moment.

Li squinted at the chaos on the floor around Matteo's feet. There had to be some way...

He straightened. "It appears that we will have to operate on our own for the time being. We—"

Li saw it. The system router.

"I can fix it!"

Everyone turned and stared.

Heat flooded her cheeks.

"You?" Kirk snorted. "She doesn't know what she's talking about. She can't even remember which table she's working at on any given day."

"Still gets more accomplished on any given day than certain other scientists who will remain unnamed," Michael said.

Kirk's face darkened.

"Enough, both of you," Matteo ordered. He faced Li. "Kichida?"

Her chest tightened, and her tongue stuck to the roof of her mouth. "I can... I mean, I think, if we can get the system router..." She took a deep breath. "If it isn't too damaged, I mean, and if we can get it reconnected to a power source..." Her eyes flickered around her limited view of the damaged room. Maybe it was too far gone. She shouldn't have said anything.

Kirk snorted again.

Matteo stared at her a long moment, then looked over the rest of the group. "Anyone trained in electronics?"

No one spoke up. Nearly all the technical staff were excavators, only working on the equipment on an as-needed basis. No one else knew how to fix the machines.

Matteo's gaze fell on M&M. "Lamoureaux? Karney?"

Michelle shook her head. "I can make small modifications to existing systems for alternate uses, but nothing this complex."

"Nope," Michael confirmed.

"But she knows what she's talking about," Michelle added.

Before Li could speak or react, Michelle had her by the wrist and dragged her into the room, Michael right behind them. Her blush deepened.

"She has no idea what she's doing!" Kirk snapped. "Quit wasting time!"

"You don't know that." Reesa stepped forward, putting her face in Kirk's. "For all you know, she's a tech wiz, and you're the one wasting time."

"Yeah, right! Her?"

Li picked up the system router and turned it over in her hands. A light still flickered on the edge.

"What do you need?" Michelle asked.

"We need to connect this to a power source. And I need to find the hub and see if it's still intact."

Michael took the router from her. "Leave this part to us."

"She's gonna make it worse!" Kirk protested.

Matteo looked at Rundy.

Rundy eyed Li for a moment, then nodded. "If she says she can do it, she can do it. Let her try. We need to check the office and see if the excavators managed to take anything."

Most of the group followed Rundy and Matteo through the gaping hole into the security office. A few lingered, watching Li and whispering. Her hands shook. She hated having an audience. What if she screwed everything up?

But she couldn't make it worse than it already was. She repeated that a couple times, then forced herself to focus on her work.

"Got it," Michelle said, returning to her side with the router in hand. Three lights now blinked steadily.

"Hold onto it until those two turn steady." Li carefully moved around some rough chunks of metal, pushing the serrated edges further from her, then crouched to see the underside of the still-intact equipment. It didn't take long to find what she was looking for.

"They're steady," Michelle reported. "What's the plan?"

"Direct wire into the hub."

"The software won't accept that," Michael said. "It'll freak out and start projectile-vomiting split pea soup. Or something."

"So we tell it that it isn't directly wired." Li grunted as she tugged a wire free. "And use one of our radios as the hardware."

Understanding lit M&M's faces. "We need an A/R resistor, then," Michelle said.

"And a charger lock," Michael added.

"Can you find those?"

"On it."

By the time the rest of the group returned from their inventory of the security office, the security team now carrying tasers in addition to their nightsticks, the three of them had the necessary connections in place.

"Do you have it?" Matteo asked.

Li cringed inside. She would've preferred a chance to test it privately, without the audience. Especially without the boss breathing over her shoulder. "I think so."

He nodded and waited.

She took a deep breath. It had to work. It had to work.

Li set her radio to the correct frequency, then threw the switch on the hub.

It sputtered out a few sparks.

Kirk rolled his eyes. "Told you."

"Fenster, I believe I told you that was enough," Matteo barked.

He frowned, but shut up.

"I got it," Michael said, crouching under the console.

"It could be a bad resistor," Michelle said.

Li checked the connection to the radio. Adjusted the frequency. Still nothing. She felt Matteo's eyes on her. Her hands shook again.

"It's not the resistor," Michael reported.

Li's mind raced. She couldn't think straight. Not with all these people staring.

Michelle looked up at her. "What do you think?"

Li clenched her teeth. Forced herself to breathe. Just one breath.

It clicked.

"The resistor. It's on the back setting, right?"

Michael stared. "Oh. Uh..." He leaned back under the console. "Now it is."

Li flipped the switch again.

The radio crackled.

Relief flooded her system so sharply that she almost melted into a puddle on the floor. She managed to compose herself enough to hand the radio to Matteo. "Just a moment." She crouched to the hub controls and manually entered the settings, connecting first with the satellite, then with the mission control building. "You have an open line. It might not be secured."

He nodded and spoke into the radio. "Mission leader Alvarez calling mission control. Mission control, respond."

The radio remained silent. The enhanced satellite system had eliminated the lengthy waits of the past, but it still took several seconds for messages to pass between the two planets. How long? Li glanced back at the hub. How long had it been? Maybe she hadn't gotten it connected right. She felt everyone's eyes on her again. She'd screwed up. She'd let them all down.

The radio crackled. "Mission control. This isn't your usual reporting time, Alvarez."

Li felt like melting again. This time she let it come, dropping to the floor and sitting beneath the hub.

A few others sighed in relief, and Reesa even let out a little cheer. Michael lightly punched her arm and gave her a thumbs up. Kirk glared at her, but she found herself not caring.

"We've had a situation," Matteo answered into the radio. "The communications equipment was damaged, so this line may not be secure."

"Understood. Continue."

"The entire excavation team has begun exhibiting the same symptoms as the others I reported yesterday."

A long silence passed. "The same?"

"Yes, sir."

"Did they hurt anyone?"

"They attacked their roommates and anyone who came to help, then fled the dorms. Eight are dead. Two unaccounted for."

Another long silence. "All of the excavation team?"

"Yes, sir."

"Standby."

"Sir, I—"

"Standby."

Frustration flickered across Matteo's face as he lowered the radio.

Li couldn't help feeling sorry for him. She'd never thought about how he had to answer to someone above him. She wondered briefly if he was as intimidated by that person as she was by him.

Rundy put her hand on Matteo's arm. Their eyes met. He nodded, his professional expression returning.

The hub whined.

Li scrambled onto her knees, flipping the cover open to check the connections. Loose in three places. One nearly coming undone. "Sir, we may not have much longer."

He raised the radio again. "Mission control, this line may not last. Please respond with directions."

A minute passed before mission control answered. "Are you alone? Is this conversation private?"

Matteo's eyes flickered across the others. "Yes."

"Abort mission and return home. Try to capture and sedate the excavation team, but if you can't, leave them behind."

Li gasped, her response echoed by several others in the room.

It took a moment before Matteo spoke. "Sir, that's almost fifty people."

"Do what you can. We can't send out any more personnel or supplies. We have an entire planet to worry about, Alvarez. We're marking your mission a failure and launching phase two."

Matteo closed his eyes. "Sir—"

"You have your orders."

The radio fell silent.

Li whirled back to the hub. All three connections were still secure, though the one had gotten worse. "It shouldn't have lost signal like that. I can try to reconnect—"

"It wasn't cut on this end," Matteo said, his face dark.

"But they have to do something," Reesa protested. "They can't just leave us. The excavators outnumber us!"

"And we can't just leave the excavators," Michelle added. "They're sick. They need help."

"You want them to waste resources on eighty people? Less than that, actually." Kirk folded his arms. "Besides, we don't even know what happened to the excavators. They could all be dead by the time help makes it out here. Twenty people versus the entire remaining population of Earth. They're just being smart." He nodded toward the door. "If we're careful, we can make it to the lander and return to the shuttle before the psychos even know what's happening."

Li stared, shocked. Just leave? How could they?

"How could you be so heartless?" one of the medical staff asked, her eyes wide. "We can't just leave them to die!" Some chimed in agreement while others sided with Kirk.

Matteo put a hand up. "Enough! Quiet, all of you!"

The room fell silent.

He looked around at each person, eyes narrowed, face firm. "What we aren't going to do is make any rash decisions or waste time bickering." His eyes met Rundy's. Held for a moment. "We don't know what happened to cause the excavators to act this way. It's our duty to our friends and coworkers to attempt to help them before we evacuate. We'll take any we can save, either by finding some way to cure them or, as mission control said, capturing and sedating them."

Kirk rolled his eyes and muttered under his breath.

Rundy took over, barking out orders to direct the group back into the hallway to return to the dorms.

Matteo moved to Li's side and held out the radio. "Good work, Kichida." He nodded to M&M. "You two, as well."

"Thanks," Michael grinned. He headed toward the door with Michelle.

Li felt a blush returning, not from shame this time. "Thank you." She reclaimed her radio from the MacGuyvered mess. A blinking light on the side caught her eye. Of course. She almost laughed out loud at the realization. "Sir, I think we may have restored the radios, as well." She reopened the hub to check. The unstable wire had fallen loose, but that would only affect the long-range communications. All the other connections still held.

Matteo lifted his radio. "Alvarez to Alvarez."

An exclamation came from outside the door, then his radio crackled with Rundy's voice. "Alvarez here."

Several cheers rose, then the line buzzed with chatter as others tested out their own radios.

Matteo's shoulders relaxed in relief. "Excellent work."

Li's blush deepened. "Thank you. Again." She put the cover back in place, feeling better already. A thought crossed her mind, and she paused. "Sir, why did you tell mission control you were alone?"

A trace of a wry smile crossed his face. "The way I see it, we're all in this together. There's no point in keeping secrets. I'm going to need everyone's help if we're going to get through this." He glanced down at the hub. "I didn't know you had technical experience."

"I don't. Not formally." She glanced down, the heat in her face spreading to her ears. "I used to tinker. Unofficially."

"Voided a few warranties in your time?"

She looked up, startled by the almost teasing tone of his voice. He smiled.

She smiled back. "A few, sir."

"Good for us." He turned and joined the group in the hallway.

A door slammed.

Li jumped and bit back a sharp word. "That stupid loose door—"

Screams rang from the hallway.

Chapter 10

Li leapt to her feet and dashed to the door, hovering at the edge. A mass of bodies charged down the hallway, pipes and jags of metal raised over their heads, screeching out an attack cry. The group turned into a ball of chaos, people screaming and pushing their way back into the communications room, others dashing forward to join the defenders, Rundy shouting orders above the fray. Li only caught a glimpse of her friend braced at the front, Jersey beside her, before the fleeing colonists pushed her back into the room.

A thudding sound and more shouts came from the hallway. She struggled, pushing her way through the crowd, trying to see. Reesa stood in the doorway, pipe in hand and extended forward like a lightsaber, shaking only slightly as she braced herself. Li managed to get just behind her elbow and peered out the door.

Two of the excavators already lay on the floor. The others swarmed the security team, fighting, clawing, bashing with everything they had. Avery's taser brought another down, but he was swarmed by three more. Rundy ducked under one attack only to be broadsided from behind. Jersey slumped against the wall, one arm dangling at his side, the other swinging his nightstick and barely fending off two attackers. Li couldn't see Paavan or Matteo.

Michael pushed past her and stepped into the hall, a long chunk of metal in his hand.

She caught his arm. "What are you doing?"

He glanced back and spoke loudly, loud enough for the others in the communications room to hear. "There are more of us than there are of them, but not if we just sit back and leave the security team to do all the work." Then he spun and darted into the fray, swinging wildly as he went. Michelle followed close behind, wrapping a wire around a pipe. The wire trailed behind her. Most likely still attached to some power source on the other end.

Kirk wrestled his way free of the crowd a moment later, makeshift weapon in hand, face red. He glanced back at the others. "I'm not chicken."

"Come on!" Reesa shouted, racing after him.

Her cry, or perhaps the loss of their last line of defense, broke the spell. Others charged out, some with chunks of consoles or metal they'd grabbed off the ground, the rest swinging bare fists.

Li's chest tightened. Michael was right. They outnumbered the attackers. If everyone joined in, even people like her who didn't know the first thing about fighting, they'd come out on top. She retreated into the room, eyes frantically searching until she found a pipe-like length of metal. A handful of others stared at her with wide eyes, clearly unwilling to move from the safety of the room.

Returning to the door, she took a deep breath. You can do this, she told herself. You can do this.

Her feet wouldn't move.

Coward. That's all she was. Come on, she mentally scolded. They need you!

But as hard as she tried, she couldn't get her legs to cooperate.

She gave up. Braced herself in the doorway. If she couldn't get herself to join the fight, at least she could stand and protect the others. She looked over the fight, trying to spot her friends.

The attackers seemed to have realized the truth of Michael's words: they were outnumbered. They fought even more wildly, but now the defenders had the upper hand. Rundy sent one spinning and caught the next before he could get a strike in. Michael held a few at bay while Michelle moved in, forcing them back with her sparking weapon.

A scream caught Li's attention. An excavator tore free from the mess, glared at her in the doorway, and charged.

She yelped and took a half-step back before remembering. She was defending the room. She couldn't run. She managed to force herself forward, coming a few inches into the hallway, braced to meet the attacker.

He shrieked as he charged, weapon raised and ready to strike.

Li screamed, closed her eyes, and swung her pipe like a baseball bat as hard as she could. It clanged against the attacker's weapon. Shock reverberated up her arms and to her spine. She gasped as the pipe slipped from her suddenly numb hands.

The excavator's weapon clattered to the floor, spinning further down the hallway, but that didn't stop him. He lunged at her, hands outstretched and clawing toward her face.

She stumbled backwards. Her lungs refused to take air. Had to get away. Had to find safety.

Someone behind her cried out. No. She couldn't run. She had to protect them.

The excavator swung.

She screamed and flailed. His fist caught her forearm, sending another echo of pain up to her shoulder.

Anger boiled up inside her. Everything seemed to blur red. She screeched and kicked as hard as she could, not knowing or caring what she connected with. The excavator buckled and landed on his hands and knees. She kicked again, but he caught her foot and yanked hard. She lost her balance and fell to her side. He scrambled forward on all fours. Like an animal. Charging at her.

She screamed again.

Nikolas bolted forward, slamming into the excavator. Both men fell over, grappling briefly before Nikolas managed to knock the attacker aside.

Li scrambled backwards, away from the fighters.

The excavator struggled to his feet. An unintelligible shout rang from the hallway.

She scooted backwards another inch. The power that had fueled her moments before had vanished, replaced again by the fear. She couldn't hold off another attack.

He hissed and spat at her, then bolted from the room.

Li stared a moment, unbelieving. Then the adrenaline withdrew in a rush, leaving her muscles like the rubbery Jell-o occasionally served in the cafeteria.

Nikolas half-crawled for a moment before managing to get back upright. He crouched beside her. "You are all right? You were not hurt?"

She managed to shake her head.

His head drooped for a moment. "I was afraid. I—it is shame for me. I should have fought. You should never have had to fight him."

Her breathing finally evened out. "It's okay. We're all scared."

M&M appeared in the doorway. "Everyone okay in here?"

"We're okay," one of the scientists behind her whispered.

Michael offered Li a hand up.

She waved him off. "I'm okay."

"On the floor?"

"It's comfy here." She gave him a pleading look. "Just a minute longer?"

Michelle passed him and flipped the power off the console. Her weapon stopped sparking, and she set it on the floor. "I saw that guy come after you, but I couldn't make my way over in time."

"What happened out there? I heard a shout, then he just ran off."

M&M looked at each other and shrugged. "One of them yelled, and they all ran off," Michael said. "I guess they weren't ready for us to defend ourselves."

Rundy stepped into the room. "Anyone hurt?"

The numbness had withdrawn, but Li's hands still tingled. She flexed them and stretched her arms out, testing them. Her forearm still hurt where she'd been hit, but everything still seemed to work okay.

"We are all right here." Nikolas straightened. "Out there, someone is hurt?"

"We got a couple, but we'll patch them up in a more secure location." Rundy reached down to help Li up.

She accepted it this time. "Back in the dorms?"

Rundy nodded. "We need to get the others."

They followed her back into the hallway. The fighters looked haggard, but generally intact. Jersey's arm still swung limply by his side, but he gripped his nightstick in the other hand, ready. Matteo had a few new scratches on his face. Kirk leaned heavily on Reesa, limping and muttering under his breath.

The group automatically returned to their walking order. Li stood by M&M, amazed at how quickly they'd all adapted. It was a wonder she wasn't curled up in the fetal position on the floor rather than walking orderly in line with the others.

They again stopped just inside the door. Rundy made the check this time, declared the hallway clear, and led the way out.

Li rubbed the sore spot on her arm as she exited the building. Her eyes darted to every shadowy corner. Where had the attackers come from? Would they be back? Were they waiting in ambush, hoping to catch the group off guard and defeat them this time?

The next question to cross her mind startled her.

"Why did they come after us?"

"Hmm?" Michelle asked.

"Shh!" someone behind them hissed.

Li lowered her voice. "Why did they come into the admin building? Why'd they attack us?"

Michelle shrugged. "They're irrationally violent."

"Then why did they retreat?"

Her friend didn't answer, but her eyes narrowed as the wheels turned.

"It must be directed," Li continued, processing her own thoughts out loud. "If they were only acting out of some madness driving them to violence, they'd be less discriminating. They didn't attack each other, only us. And they were at least somewhat organized, attacking together and then retreating together."

"So they hoped to achieve something," Michelle mused. "Goal-directed behavior."

"But what? They'd already been through that building. Were they after us? Why?"

"The weapons," Michael said.

Michelle's eyes lit up. "They tried to get the weapons from the security office before, but failed. They knew the security team would retrieve the weapons, though, so they waited until we went in and then attacked in hopes of getting the weapons from us."

Li walked in silence a few more steps. "That sounds really organized. Even rational."

The other two fell silent.

Rundy checked the dorm's main room to make sure no one had entered it while they were gone, then held the door while the group hurried inside.

Li knew it wasn't entirely logical, but she felt better, safer, once they were in the main room with the door shut, even though the lights were worse than when they'd left.

Matteo looked up at the failing lights. "We need to find a new secure base."

"The infirmary would be a good choice, sir," Rundy said. "The back rooms should be easy to secure, and we'll have medical supplies to care for the wounded."

He nodded. "Let's move."

Avery selected Nikolas, Michael, and a few other uninjured men to help him retrieve the wounded, and the small group vanished into the women's dorm hall.

"So what does it mean?" Michelle rubbed her face in thought. "Organized and rational behavior, but irrational and out of character for the people committing it."

"Whatever's affecting them is causing them to become hostile and violent, but isn't affecting their ability to reason and process situations around them." Li frowned. "What would do that?"

Michelle shook her head. "I'm not a doctor, but I know certain types of brain damage can cause changes in behavior."

"But all of them? At once?"

"Some diseases can affect the brain. Maybe it's a virus that damaged the part of the brain responsible for aggression."

"It can't be a virus. Other people would've caught it, too. We're all living too close together for diseases not to spread."

"Then we're back to where we started. Something specific to the excavator's job. Something to do with the suits, or the planet itself."

"Drugs," Reesa said.

Li and Michelle turned to stare at her.

"Sorry. I couldn't help overhearing." She glanced around as if to see if anyone else was listening, but the others mostly clung to each other, talking quietly in anxious whispers and squeaks. "Some drugs make the users start attacking people for no reason. And with the way the excavators are so buddy-buddy with each other, their own little clique, they might be doing some things together that they aren't sharing with anyone else." She paused for effect. "Like drugs."

Michelle frowned. "Possible. You'd think we'd see other signs, though."

"Drugs," Reesa repeated, her tone implying there was no other possible answer.

The women's door swung open again, and a small group shuffled out, some leaning heavily on the helpers while others, like Vera, were carried. Abigail came out last.

"Is that everyone?" Rundy asked, frowning at the door.

"I'm afraid we lost one," Abigail said quietly. "Cove."

One of the medical assistants. Li saw a glimmer in Abigail's eyes. Another coworker and friend lost. She shivered. It still felt surreal. Too surreal.

The unwelcome question whispered through her mind. How many more would they lose before this ended?

"Let's go," Matteo said, marching back to the front door.

And on with business as usual. Li returned to her place in line, numb. Something inside her wanted to cry, to scream and wail and collapse in a puddle on the ground. But layers of shock muted the primal urge. No time to stop and mourn. They had to keep moving, find a safe place, figure out what had happened, fix the excavators, evacuate. Or leave the excavators to die.

She wrapped her arms around her body. A hot tear slipped down her cheek.

The group remained quiet this time as they shuffled out the door. The faces around Li reflected her own shock and misery. This was too much for anyone to take. And she was just a geologist. She should be studying rocks, not fighting for her life.

Matteo led the way to the left this time, to the corner of the cafeteria. The infirmary was a straight shot down the hallway from there. The group trudged onward, exhaustion weighing down their steps. Even the security team seemed to droop. Li's gaze still sought out the dark corners, but all was quiet. Her eyes began to drag. Maybe they could secure the infirmary well enough to get some rest. Just a little.

They passed between the cafeteria and away room doors. Halfway there. Still no signs of excavators. They must have given up after the last attack failed.

Her mind slipped back to the previous conversation. The excavators had formed a planned, organized attack to get the weapons.

Which left another question. Why did the excavators want the weapons? To kill the others? The collection of tasers and nightsticks were hardly lethal; no projectile weapons had been brought to the colony for obvious reasons. One stray bullet could breach the bubble and kill everyone.

Like Michelle said, their behavior was goal-directed. So what was the goal? What did the excavators hope to get by attacking the others? It made no sense.

Her head hurt.

She sighed and rubbed her temples, earning her a twinge of pain in her forearm. None of this made any sense, and going in circles over the nonsense wouldn't magically change it into logic.

The away room door banged open behind them. A roar filled the hallway as excavators in envirosuits poured out. Their heavy footfalls thundered through the space.

Yvette screamed, along with several others.

"Run!" Matteo barked out, dashing to the back of the group. "Get them to the infirmary!"

The rest of the security team followed, clashing with the attackers in the middle.

"Let's go!" Michael shouted, pulling Li and Michelle forward. Nikolas puffed behind them, half-carrying one of the injured scientists. A handful of people, Yvette included, stood frozen in terror, but the others swept them along, rushing to the infirmary.

Li glanced over her shoulder. The hallway filled with excavators, with even more coming behind them. The security team retreated along with the group, but faced backwards, doing everything they could to keep the attackers back.

Reesa reached the infirmary first and held the door open. "Go, go, go!" she barked out, waving the rest inside.

Even the terrified ones needed no encouragement from her, diving through the door. Michael pushed Michelle and Li through, then turned back around.

"M!" Michelle yelled. "Get in here!"

He ignored her, joining the security team at the back of the group.

"Idiot," Michelle muttered, but Li saw the fear in her eyes.

"He'll be okay," she said, gripping Michelle's hand.

A grim smile slipped over Michelle's face. "Because it's us."

"Exactly."

The line of fighters reached the door. Clawing hands reached past their shoulders, but the line held. Rundy shoved Reesa in, then Michael.

Michelle caught his arm and pulled him back over by them. "Quit trying to be noble."

He cradled his arm, and Li saw a gash of red across his sleeve. Still, he grinned. "You know what they say. A leopard can't change its eye color. Needs special contacts for that."

Michelle shook her head and dragged him over to one of the medical assistants for care.

Giles shouted as his leg buckled. He collapsed into the room, a couple excavators falling over him.

Nikolas dashed forward and pulled Giles away from the fight while Kirk and Reesa struggled to shove the excavators back out. They stayed there, helping push the excavators back so more of the security team could get in. Jersey stumbled in, arm in worse shape than before. Paavan followed close behind.

Michelle reappeared behind Li, pushing a gurney in front of her. "Give me a hand!"

Li helped her position it just inside the door. "What're you going to do?"

Michelle hollered, getting Kirk and Reesa's attention. "On my count, pull them in, and we'll push this in place!"

"What good'll that do?" Kirk shouted back, smacking at an excavator's hands with a medical clipboard.

Li saw the determined look in Michelle's eyes and hollered back at him. "Just do it!"

He gave her a scowl, but nodded.

"Ready? Now!" Michelle yelled.

Reesa and Kirk grabbed the remaining three people outside the door and hauled them in. Li put her shoulder into the gurney, shoving it into place before the excavators could follow.

"Hands off!" Michelle shouted, pressing her radio's wire against the gurney.

Li jumped back so fast she tripped over her own feet and landed flat on the floor.

The excavators pushed the gurney inward, starting the charge, but Michelle pressed the button on her radio. The gurney buzzed and rattled with the sudden jolt, as did all of the excavators touching it. The entire mass rocked backwards, startled more than hurt.

Rundy caught the door and slammed it shut, locking it before the excavators recovered from their shock. She closed her eyes and slid down to the floor.

"Were you hurt?" Reesa asked, but the medical staff already pushed past her and collected the security team. Back in their home element, they set to work tending to the injuries.

"Did we lose any?" Matteo called, barely holding still enough for Abigail to clean a gash just below his shoulder.

Jersey started to stand to get a count, but Nikolas pushed him back down.

Michael made the count instead. "Looks like we all made it."

Matteo relaxed, but only slightly. "Good. Good work. We need to barricade the door and get an inventory of the supplies, then—"

"We'll take care of that," Michelle interrupted. "Are there any other exits we need to secure?"

"Just the front," Abigail reported without looking up from her work.

Michelle nodded. "M, Kirk, get the barricade figured out. Everyone else, let's take an inventory and figure out what we have to work with."

Something slammed against the front door.

Yvette whimpered, curling against herself in the corner. "They're trying to get in!"

A few others joined Michael and Kirk in bracing shelves, empty beds, and anything else they could find against the door as it rattled and shook under the assault from outside. Michael finally gestured the others back. Everyone stared at the door, waiting.

It rattled again a couple more times, but the attacks seemed to slow. Something banged against the wall beside the door, then on the other side.

"Looks like they're giving up," Michael said.

"What if they get through the walls?" Yvette whispered.

Abigail gave her a reassuring smile. "They won't, honey."

"They did before!"

Li shivered. Yvette was right. The excavators had cut their way through the wall in the communications room. It would've taken the OLs on the strongest setting to get through. The damage the tools could do at that power made her shiver again.

The excavators did have weapons. Deadly weapons.

Chapter 11

Yvette and a few others squeaked and whimpered as they came to the same conclusion Li had. Voices filled the infirmary.

"They're going to get in!"

"What if they use the OLs on us?"

"We've got nothing to protect ourselves!"

"We're going to die!"

"Quiet!" Matteo barked out. He eyed the group, his eyes seeming even more intense than usual. Anyone who hadn't shut up at his command did so immediately when his eyes found theirs.

He exhaled. "The excavators have had OLs this whole time, but have chosen not to use them on any of us. There's no reason to assume that's going to change now." He held up his taser. "We still have weapons of our own, too. We aren't defenseless."

Rundy stood, wincing and favoring her right leg. "Jersey, Avery, secure a back room for the injured while we figure out what to do next."

The men gave sharp nods and headed to the back of the building. Jersey's arm no longer hung limply, though he kept it close to his body.

"Everyone else, find anything of use and bring it to the middle of the room. We need to know what we have to work with." She strode to Matteo's side and spoke quietly to him, clearly finished giving orders.

Li paused as the others around her spread out, collecting usable items from around the infirmary. Something was bothering her. Something Matteo said. She eyed him.

He spoke to Rundy, but Li couldn't tell what he said. Suddenly his face softened. He brushed a lock of hair out of his wife's face. Pressed a hand against her cheek. Then pulled her into a tight embrace.

Li looked away, embarrassed to have spied on their private moment. They'd always kept their romance separate from their jobs, remaining professional and strictly adhering to the chain of command during work hours and in front of others. But anyone who knew them also knew how deeply they loved each other.

Weapons. The excavators had chosen not to use the OLs as weapons.

"Then why would they have been after the weapons?"

"What?" Reesa asked, dropping an armload of bandages to the growing pile near Li.

Li blinked. She'd spoken out loud again. "Sorry. I was just thinking..."

"Why they were after the weapons in security if they already had weapons." Michelle added a pile of sheets to the supplies. "I've been wondering the same myself."

"Maybe they wanted something less risky?" Li followed Michelle back to the linen cupboard. "The OLs aren't powerful enough to breach the bubble, but could cause a lot of damage if they misfire. They could hit one of their own."

"But that still leaves the question of why they want weapons at all," Michelle said. She gathered up another stack of cloth. "What's their goal? We already know they aren't trying to kill us all."

"We're pretty sure, anyway," Li corrected. She picked up another stack, and they walked back to the supply pile.

"Unless it wasn't the weapons they were after," Michelle mused.

Michael joined them, arm freshly bandaged. "What are we talking about?"

"Why the excavators wanted weapons when they already had some." Li turned to Michelle. "But what else would they be after? Nothing else is stored in the weapons lockers."

"But other things are in the security office." Michelle changed direction and headed for Rundy, a determined look in her eye.

The couple's moment was already over, and Matteo directed the supply-gathering while Rundy checked the work on the back room. Michelle, Michael, and Li wove their way through the flurry of activity to reach her.

"Good," Rundy said to Jersey and Avery. "Move the severely injured inside this room and secure it with one of the medical staff. Anyone who can walk stays with us." As they hurried off to obey, she turned to the three. "Need something?"

"What else was missing or damaged in the security office?" Michelle asked.

"Else?"

"Other than the weapons lockers."

"Some of the cells were damaged when they broke out the excavators from Jess's team we'd managed to capture before..." She paused. "Before the others were... affected. And they destroyed the main terminal. Other than that, nothing."

"The main terminal," Michelle repeated quietly, deep in thought.

Li nodded. "It could be something to do with that."

"What are you three thinking?" Rundy asked.

"They already have weapons, so maybe we were wrong about their goal," Li explained. "What can be done from the security terminal that can't be done anywhere else?"

The security lead shook her head. "Nothing. Anything we can do from there can also be done from Matteo's terminal in his office."

"And it wasn't damaged?" Michael asked.

"It was," Avery said. He ducked his head as the others looked at him. "Sorry. I didn't mean to eaves—"

"What did you see?" Rundy interrupted.

"I checked Mr. Alvarez's office for threats as we swept the building, ma'am. The terminal had been destroyed, same as the security one."

"And you didn't think to tell me about it then?"

He looked surprised. "No, ma'am. The excavators are crazy. I assumed they were just rampaging, damaging anything they came across."

"You saw other items damaged?"

He blinked. "Uh... Not outside those two offices, no." He blinked again, more rapidly. "I apologize, ma'am. I didn't think—"

Rundy lifted a hand cutting him off. "Thank you for telling me now. Carry on."

"So what can be done from those two terminals that can't be done anywhere else?" Michael asked as Avery hurried off.

"Everything." Rundy leaned against the wall and rubbed a bandaged spot on her shoulder. "Access personnel files. Communicate with Earth. Set schedules. View reports. Everything."

But something had to do with the excavators. Something they didn't want done? "Could there have been something in the files about what's going on now? Something the excavators wouldn't have wanted us to know about?"

Rundy shook her head. "I've never come across anything like that."

"What was the last thing you used the system for?" Michael asked.

"Initiating the lockdown."

Lockdown. It secured the lander and sealed the airlock, a containment measure for dire emergencies. Li's next thoughts came out of her mouth in a thin voice. "They didn't want you to remove the lockdown. They wanted everyone trapped in here with them."

The others fell quiet.

"But why? It doesn't make sense. What do they want with us?" Michelle asked.

Rundy sighed. "That's the million-dollar question."

Something banged against the wall near the front door. Li gasped and drew back. Giles and Paavan hurried to the spot, tasers out and ready. Jersey and Avery quickly finished their task and joined them.

No one moved. No one breathed.

Something banged again. Same spot.

Silence.

Li pressed her back against the wall. Her eyes felt dry, and she realized she wasn't blinking. It took effort to force her eyelids to comply.

A spot high on the wall lit up red.

Yvette wailed. Several people scooted further away. Others scurried forward, grabbing anything that would make a weapon.

Li couldn't take her eyes off the red spot as it slowly moved, starting a large circle. This was it. They were cutting through the wall. In moments, the wall would open up and the excavators would pour in, clumping in their heavy suits, firing their OLs on anything that moved.

The suits.

She blinked, the action again slowed by the dryness of her eyes. The suits. The excavators were all in their envirosuits. As if they were preparing to go outside. But why, when they'd destroyed the computers to keep the airlock sealed?

Her gaze remained fixed on the half-circle of glowing metal. It made no sense. No sense at all.

They're crazy, she told herself. Of course their actions won't make sense.

But her conversations with M&M kept rolling through her racing mind. Goal-directed. Organized. They might be crazy, but at least some of their actions showed deliberation.

So why put on the suits?

Outside.

Her breath caught as memories flooded. Trevor, sitting in the main room, angry about how they'd been kept from going back outside after she was injured. Then later, stumbling toward her in the dim nighttime lighting. Talking about going outside. Brent and the others on Jess's team, jumping to their feet and shouting. About being outside.

They wanted outside.

The red glow reached the three-quarters mark. They were almost through.

No, that couldn't be right. If they wanted outside, then why smash the two terminals that could release the lockdown?

Goal-directed. But still crazy. Trevor had grown furious when he saw her outside the dorms that night. His rage at her had overshadowed his desire to get outside.

She saw it in her mind. Brent standing at the terminal, trying to get past the security codes to release the lockdown. Failing. His face twisted in rage as he lifted his OL. The same situation playing out in Matteo's office. Angry excavators, desperate to get outside. And turning violent when they couldn't.

The attack in the admin building hadn't been about the weapons. They'd been after Matteo. Or Rundy. Someone with the authority to lift the lockdown.

To let them outside.

Li opened her mouth.

The red spot finished its circle. The section of wall collapsed inward.

Yvette's screams joined several others, clashing discordantly with roars from the excavators pouring into the room, faces red with fury.

The defenders shouted in return, rushing forward to meet them, weapons raised.

Li scrambled onto a nearby bed. "You can go outside!" Her voice vanished into the cacophony.

She tried again, shouting louder. "You can go outside!"

Two excavators tackled Rundy. Li saw it now. The way some excavators fought wildly to distract everyone while others targeted Rundy and Matteo. Working their way around to surround the two.

"Please, listen!" Li shrieked. "You can go outside! We'll let you!"

No one heard her.

She sucked in a deep breath and screamed it at the top of her lungs. "YOU CAN GO OUTSIDE!"

The fighting continued. She slumped. They must have heard her that time, but it was no good. Her theory was wrong. The excavators weren't goal-oriented. They were just crazy.

And now they were going to kill everyone.

The noise seemed quieter. She blinked and looked around. A few excavators still scuffled, but most had stopped. They stood still, their arms dangling at their sides. Staring at her.

Her body trembled. She'd just made herself a target again. Like with Trevor. Like with Jess's team.

Brent's face caught her attention. His narrowed eyes evaluated her. "She's lying! She can't do that! Can't do that!"

A few other excavators began to rumble. Li held her hands up, hope fluttering back to life in her chest. "No! I'm telling the truth! We'll let you go outside!"

All of the excavators stopped fighting, eyes fixed on Li. The security team and other defenders stayed in place, watching cautiously, but didn't try to attack. Rundy struggled back to her feet.

Matteo's laser gaze fixed on Li, his face asking a question he didn't voice. What did she think she was doing?

"I promise," she pressed, desperate for the excavators to believe her. "We can open the door. We can let you go outside."

Michelle lowered the IV pole she'd held as a weapon. She looked over the excavators, understanding crossing her face. "That's what you wanted. That's why you broke into the security office."

Brent's eyes flicked to her. "The computers are broke. All gone. Bad. Can't open." He pointed to Matteo and Rundy. "They have to fix it. Then open. They can. Have to open."

Li's mind raced. Rundy and Avery said the terminals were destroyed. How bad was it? Could she put them back together? "It'll take time. You'll have to be patient while we fix the terminals."

His face screwed up. "You're lying! It's her fault! She kept us in!"

The other excavators stepped forward, raising their weapons again.

Li's heart stopped. She stumbled backwards and almost fell off the bed.

"I can fix it," Rundy said, her voice calm but loud enough to carry over the crowd.

The excavator's eyes turned to her as one.

She glanced back at Li. Li knew that look. It was the 'you better be right about this' look.

Li nodded.

Rundy turned back to the excavators. "The terminal's beyond repair, but I can manually override the lockdown from the airlock terminal. Let me go to the away room, and I'll open it for you."

The excavators still stared, eyes blank.

Rundy tried again. "You can go outside if you let me use the airlock terminal."

They all stared a moment longer. Then Brent nodded. "Good. You have to come with us. Come. You have to open it."

Matteo's fingers caught Rundy's shoulder before she could step forward. "I have to open it."

Rundy twisted to face him. She subtly shook her head.

He ignored her. "Rundy's code won't work on the manual override. You need my code."

"Sir—" Rundy started.

"Yes. Him. His code. He comes with us now. Come. You have to open it," Brent said, reaching for Matteo.

"I can't let you—" Rundy started again.

Jersey stepped forward. "I'll go with him."

"No, I will," Rundy said, shifting tactics.

Matteo shook his head. "You're staying." His eyes flicked over the others in the room. "Keep them safe until we get back."

"Come now!" Brent snapped. The other excavators rumbled again.

Matteo squeezed Rundy's hand.

She spun and kissed him, hard.

He held her tightly for a moment, then pulled back and walked to Brent, Jersey staying close to his side. "Let's go."

Most of the excavators quickly filed back out of the hole. A few waited until Matteo and Jersey crossed before following them out.

Li's legs failed. She dropped onto the bed.

M&M strode to her, Rundy right behind them.

Michael pointed at her. "You. You're insane. How the heck did you figure that one out?"

She closed her eyes. All of her tension spilled out in a rush of words. "I don't know. It was crazy and stupid and so risky and I never should have said anything. I just thought—because Trevor talked about outside, and Brent and the others did too, and they were all wearing suits. I thought, why would they be in suits if they wanted to keep the airlock sealed? And the rest just sort of came. It was a hunch, and there's no reason that should have worked, and it was so stupid of me, I should've just kept my mouth shut, and—"

"Hey," Michael interrupted. He glanced around, his eyebrows raised. "I don't know if you noticed this, but there don't seem to be any excavators in here trying to kill people."

"It was a good hunch," Michelle said. "You did the right thing."

"Can Matteo really open the door?" Li asked Rundy. Fear still beat at her heart, pushing it faster. If it had been a bluff...

"Yes. There's a manual override." Rundy pushed a loose lock of hair back behind her ear. "If you're right and they're only interested in going outside, he'll open the airlock, the excavators will leave, and he and Jersey will be back before long."

"Seeing as they stopped attacking as soon as they heard her talk about going outside," Michael said, "I'm going to guess that she's right."

"Then why? What do they want outside?" Rundy asked.

At a loss for even a flimsy theory, Li looked to M&M. They looked just as blank as she was.

Michelle finally shrugged. "We had theorized that their behavior could be caused by an external contaminant that only excavators would have been exposed to. It's possible that contaminant is native to the planet's surface."

"Causing them to want to go back outside," Rundy translated.

"It's plausible," Li said.

Rundy nodded in thought for a moment, then straightened. "If this works, we'll have time to figure it out." She paused and gave Li a faint smile, the security guard side of her giving way for a brief moment. "Thank you."

Li nodded. She still couldn't believe that it had worked. But as Michael pointed out, the absence of violent excavators was evidence enough.

Minutes stretched past in relative silence. The medical staff tended to the few new injuries inflicted in the brief fight, but aside from that, there was little movement. Everyone sat or stood, watching the hole in the wall, waiting for the distant rumble of the airlock opening, a glimpse of Matteo or Jersey—any sign that it had worked.

Rundy paced near the hole, occasionally looking out, peering down the hallway at the away room. Avery and Giles stood near her, weapons ready. Kirk and Nikolas hovered close behind, Kirk with an IV pole and Nikolas with a medkit.

"Shouldn't we hear something by now?" Reesa asked.

No one answered.

The clock dragged on. They should have heard something. Li was sure of it. Which meant the plan hadn't worked. The airlock couldn't be opened from the terminal in the away room.

Or worse, she'd been wrong. The excavators wanted Matteo for some reason and had used her theory as a trick to get him. She shuddered and wrapped her arms around her body. She'd gotten her friend's husband killed.

Everyone's radios came to life. A burst of static filled the room, punctuated by brief cuts of Jersey's voice. "...meeting room... went insane, and we... got Matteo..."

Li's eyes widened in fear. She looked at Rundy and saw her friend's face go pale.

Jersey's last word came through loud and clear. "Help!"

Rundy didn't move for a moment, face pale, lips thin. Then she straightened, the security guard back in place. "Abigail, stay with the wounded. Giles, make sure they're secure. Everyone else, arm yourselves with whatever you can find."

Yvette let out a squeak.

"We're really going to storm the away room?" Michael asked.

"Jersey's heading for the meeting room. We'll have to fight our way to him." Rundy picked up a discarded pole from a bunk, most likely dropped by one of the excavators, and tested its weight before pushing it into a nearby scientist's hands. He fumbled it a couple times before managing to get a tenuous grip, holding it away from his body as if it had a bad odor.

Michelle tapped her finger against her lower lip. "Do you suppose the fire suppressant systems are still active?"

Rundy's eyes narrowed. "They should be."

M&M exchanged a look. Michael grinned.

"What exactly are you thinking?" Rundy folded her arms. "What are you going to do?"

"Just what we do best," Michael said. "Cause some chaos."

Chapter 12

Li stood outside the away room door, braced and ready. Clanging, scraping, shouting noises came from inside, but muffled, like it was some distance away. If Rundy was right, it came from the side hallway. The meeting room.

Michelle nodded at her.

Li yanked the door open. M&M advanced inside, each wielding an IV pole in one hand and a bottle of powdered chemicals in the other. A long chain of soaked, dripping sheets connected the two poles.

The away room was a wreck. Excavation gear and discarded bunk parts covered the floor. Some of the bunk parts still had blood on them. One bank of lockers leaned against the next at an odd angle. Another lay flat, the locker doors battered. The terminal in the far corner, next to the airlock, flickered with a faint glow. Copper and sweat and desperation scented the air.

Li could clearly see their goal ahead in spite of the mess piled between it and the entrance. The hallway was about halfway down the room, cutting off from the left wall. They'd have to work their way around some of the tilting lockers to get there. Not to mention the excavators.

It seemed that most of the excavators packed into the hallway, but about a dozen turned glazed looks toward the intruders. Their eyes immediately lit up with fury, and they lurched their way upright.

"Light it," Rundy said, stepping through the door behind M&M.

The two scientists moved as one, each flinging the powder across the length of the sheets.

"Here! Get them!" one of the excavators screeched as she stumbled forward. "Get them!"

Giles signaled, and the rest of the group pushed through the door, filling in the space between the two sheets, keeping a good distance from the material. Giles followed Li in, taking the rear guard with taser firmly in hand.

The riot in the hall grew louder as the excavators changed their focus to the approaching group. More excavators rushed into the large room. They charged forward, only a couple steps behind the dozen that had already been there.

"How long did you say it took?" Rundy hissed.

"Should be any moment..." Michael glanced over at Michelle.

"You made the mixture two parts, one part, three parts, right?" she asked.

"I thought it was one part, three parts, two parts."

The excavators hurdled an upended bench, some with makeshift weapons raised, others grabbing weapons along the way.

"We're talking about the same order?" Michelle asked.

"Same as usual. Wouldn't it be?"

Rundy gripped Michael's shoulder. "Is it going to work or isn't it?"

The excavators were almost at the sheet. Li cringed. Gripped the IV pole Rundy had forced her to take. She'd fought before. She could do it again. She was going to have to.

Kirk lost his nerve. He raised his own weapon and charged to meet the excavators, screaming.

Michelle frowned at Michael. "But if you did one part, three parts, two parts, then that would—"

The sheet erupted in flame, Michael's side nearly twice as high as Michelle's.

Kirk screamed and fell flat on his back. The excavators did the same on the other side.

Li, along with the others in the group, ducked from the sudden blast of heat. She shielded her face, but lowered her hand as the flames settled into equilibrium, burning bright and strong. Dry heat washed over her, but she still pressed close. The closer she could get, the safer she was.

The excavators backpedaled, tripping over each other to get away from the fire. M&M advanced, keeping the burning sheets spread wide enough that the rest of the group remained safely behind the semi-circle of fire. As they moved forward, they angled, forcing the excavators toward the right side of the away room. Away from the hallway.

They left a gap, though, between the fire and the wall. Avery led Giles and Paavan to that gap, facing the hallway, ready to deflect the rest of the excavators. They couldn't bring the fire to the hallway. They wanted the excavators to clear the hallway, not be trapped inside it by the flames.

More excavators poured out, red-faced and shouting in mad confusion. Some started forward, but they all backed away toward the far corner at the sight of the flaming sheets.

Phase one of the plan worked. It looked like most of the excavators had already left the hallway. Li glanced upward. Phase two should be starting soon. How much heat did the sensors in the ceiling have to detect before they—

Alarms blared. White foam sprayed from the ceiling.

Li's entire body locked up. Images flooded her mind. The alarm. The breach. She couldn't move. Couldn't breathe.

She barely saw the remaining excavators flee the hallway, screaming and flailing at the blizzard coating the room. Or the flames begin to die down, smothered by the foam.

"Move!" Rundy shouted.

The word cut through the fog gripping Li, but her body refused to cooperate. Had to move. Had to get to the meeting room. If she stayed here, the excavators would kill her.

But the threat still wasn't enough to break through the terror. The alarm filled her ears, pulsed through her body, suffocated her. The others vanished into the hallway. She was alone. With the excavators.

Someone grabbed her arm and yanked her forward. The walls flew past in a rush. Shouts competed with the blaring alarms. Something slammed into her. The grip on her arm released. She dimly saw a scuffle. The hand caught her again, pulled her forward. Through a doorway.

The door slammed. She fell to the ground. Curled in on herself. Covered her ears with her hands. It made no difference. The alarm still screamed, tearing at her, pulling her back into the past. Breaking her world open and exposing her again to the blackness of space.

The alarm stopped.

She struggled to quiet her body. To stop her hands from shaking. Her heart from pounding in her throat. It took a full minute before she could move again. Trembling, she pushed herself upright.

M&M sat on either side of her, grim expressions on their faces, staring at the center of the room where the rest of the group gathered. The tables and chairs from the last time Li was there now lined the perimeter of the room, some still at angles from being hastily pushed aside.

"Matteo," Michael said in response to Li's unspoken question.

"It doesn't look good," Michelle said.

Li struggled to her feet and hurried into the mess of onlookers. They hovered in a vague circle, keeping a respectful distance. Matteo lay on the floor in the middle. Blood soaked the front of his shirt. Nikolas and one of the medical assistants worked feverishly over him. Rundy knelt at his side, clutching his hand in both of hers.

Something banged against the door.

Avery dashed back to the door, braced it. "This position won't be secure for long, ma'am."

Rundy didn't answer. Her eyes remained fixed on Matteo's face.

Fists pounded on the other side of the door. Li shuddered. The excavators had recovered and were coming after them again.

Reesa, Kirk, and a couple others hurried forward to join Avery. Others, including Yvette, cringed away from the door, huddling in the far corner of the room.

Li shrank from the door, but stayed put. She couldn't leave her friend.

A tear fell from Rundy's eye. She pressed one hand against Matteo's still cheek.

The door shuddered.

"Ma'am!" Avery called.

"We need orders," Jersey said quietly. Li hadn't spotted him before. He sat with his back to the wall, his shirt bloodied and torn at the sleeve. Fresh scratches marked his face and arms.

Rundy remained still a moment longer. Then she stood, her face emotionless. "We need to get to that terminal and try to open the airlock."

Cries rose from the other side of the door. Fists beat in cacophonic rhythm.

"How will we get past them?" Giles asked.

Rundy glanced to M&M.

Michelle stood and pulled a plastic jar from her pocket. "Everyone smear some of this on your shoes. Just a little under your heel and the ball of your foot. It'll give you some traction on the foam."

Rundy took the jar, inspected it briefly, then scooped out a small amount of a goop before passing it to the next person. "And how are we getting past the excavators?"

"We didn't plan for that," Michelle said.

Li stared, incredulous. Rundy and several others echoed her expression.

Michael shrugged. "To be honest, we didn't really think we'd make it this far."

Rundy exhaled. "Okay, people, we need a plan. Ideas?"

No one spoke.

Li backed up to stand beside M&M. "You really don't have a plan?"

"Nothing outside the idea stage," Michelle said.

"Oh." Li looked down. "You got us this far. I'm sure you can come up with something."

"With what?" Michelle waved a hand around the stark room.

"Oh," Li said again. "Right." She eyed the room a moment longer, paying no attention to the ideas being tossed into the room and rejected for various logistical reasons. "Well, it's someone else's turn to come up with a brilliant plan, anyway. You two have done your share." She managed a weak smile. "Thanks for that. Oh, and thanks for getting me in here." A blush pushed its way forward, but she ignored it. "I sort of... locked up, I guess."

"That wasn't us," Michael said. "Sorry, but we thought you were ahead of us."

Li raised her eyebrows. "Then..."

"Nikolas," Michelle said.

Li turned. Nikolas still bent over Matteo, bandaging their leader's abdomen. The doctor had a fresh bruise on his cheek. In spite of the situation, her heart skipped a beat. He'd come back for her. He'd saved her.

"Maybe we could use one of the tables as a battering ram," Isla suggested, pulling Li's attention back to the conversation at hand. "You know, push it ahead of us and force them back."

Rundy pinched the bridge of her nose. "As a last resort, possibly."

"Hey," Michael said brightly. "I have an idea." He strode to the door and leaned close before shouting. "If you let us past, we'll open the airlock and let you go outside!"

The banging sounds increased, accompanied by screeches of 'liar' and 'get them.'

He shrugged.

Jersey shook his head. "When it didn't work, they decided it was all a trick."

"What went wrong?" Li asked. It occurred to her that he might have already explained it to the others while she was freaking out. Her cheeks warmed again.

Jersey shook his head. "I don't know. The excavators kept shouting for Matteo to get it open, and it was taking a minute, then one of them attacked. Then the others..." A distant look glazed his eyes for a moment before he spoke again. "Now they think it was all a trick. I don't know if we can get past them again."

"We have to assume that we can," Rundy said. "And if we can't reach the terminal, then we need an exit strategy."

The door shuddered again.

Rundy looked at it. "Obviously we can't just stay here." She again looked to M&M. Her face remained impartial, but Li could see the faint pleading in her eyes.

Michelle's eyes roved the room. "What exactly do we have to work with?"

"Chairs and tables. There are some excavation supplies in the locker, but those are for demonstration purposes only."

"An OL?" Michael asked.

"No. Those are kept in a sealed storage area."

Li leaned back, mentally reviewing the contents of the locker. An envirosuit. Empty sample jars. A few samples.

The suit. She straightened. "There's an envirosuit in the locker."

"How's that supposed to help?" Kirk demanded. The door shuddered behind him, and he grunted as he repositioned himself to better brace it against the assault.

M&M's eyes lit up at the same time.

"The excavators are all wearing their suits," Michael said.

"They might not notice if one more person in a suit joins them," Michelle finished.

Kirk scoffed. "And then what? What's one person going to do against fifty excavators?"

Nodding, Rundy turned to the locker with a grim expression. "Open the airlock."

"I can't let you go out there on your own." Jersey pushed himself to his feet.

"There's only one suit. I'll blend in."

"How will you get out? They'll see you and know it's a trick."

Michael picked up one of the chairs. "Not if they're adequately distracted."

No one spoke for a moment as Rundy suited up.

"So that's the plan?" Jersey asked. He looked skeptical. "We open the door and attack, and hope that keeps them distracted enough not to notice that you're in a suit?"

"We can make it easier," Michelle said. "We use a table to push them back, like Isla suggested. Rundy will crawl underneath the table and work her way into the crowd from below. Best case, they'll assume she's one of them and was knocked down by the table."

"They have no reason to assume any of us will be suited. And if the rest of us are making a full-on assault, they'll be too distracted to worry about such details," Michael added.

Rundy picked up the helmet. "It's the best shot we have. If I can get the airlock open, they'll leave." She glanced toward Li. "Right?"

"I think so." Several eyes turned on her with doubt. Her cheeks flamed again. "I'm pretty sure."

Rundy nodded. "Jersey, take the lead. Try to work your way out. If this fails, you'll have to get them to safety."

He paused, but nodded.

"Is one problem." Nikolas looked up from Matteo. "He cannot go. Is too weak for moving."

No one spoke for a moment.

Rundy straightened, her face unreadable. "Stay here with him. Lock the door behind us. The excavators should assume that we've all left and won't have any reason to try to get in here. If it works, we'll be back. If it doesn't, we'll find another way to reach you."

"I will do."

Jersey pressed a hand against Nikolas's shoulder. "Take good care of him."

Li saw the grim look on Jersey's face. The poor guy probably blamed himself for Matteo getting hurt. She couldn't imagine the burden of that sort of responsibility.

The next minute passed in a blur of hasty directions and shuffling of people. Those who could fight collected their weapons and the chairs. Several pushed one table into place just behind the door. It was just barely narrow enough to fit through the door. They'd have to enter the hallway in twos, shoulder to shoulder. Li and the other non-fighters were to keep to the back, stay close, keep their heads down.

Shame washed over Li as she took her place near the back of the group. She wished she were stronger. Braver. But they were right to put her with Yvette and the others. She was useless in a real fight.

Rundy put her helmet on, crawled under the table, and signaled she was ready.

The people bracing the door leapt back.

The door flung inward. Excavators stumbled after it.

Jersey led the charge with Avery at his side, shoving the table forward with a roar. The whole group joined in, driving the table forward into the hallway. Li pushed into the mass, doing her best to add her own minimal power to the forward momentum.

Caught off guard, the excavators reeled backwards, and the group made it halfway down the hallway before meeting any real resistance. Li wished she could see under the table, to see if Rundy had managed to get out. She kept her eyes on the attackers instead. The hallway wasn't much wider than the doorway, thankfully, and their attackers couldn't get around the sides.

The excavators pushed back against the table, swung their weapons over its length, but could do little with the narrow hallway creating a choke point. The group had an easier time, lashing out with IV poles to force the excavators back a few more steps, nearly to the end of the hallway. Not only that, but whatever Michelle gave them to put on their feet worked. The white foam piled up on their shoes, but their feet remained relatively firm on the metal floor. The excavators had a much harder time staying solid, their feet often slipping on the slick foam.

Someone tall in front of Li shifted, blocking her view. Shouts and scuffles rang in chaos ahead, sharp smacks occasionally followed by dull thuds. She stood on her tiptoes, trying to see, but the broad shoulders ahead kept her from seeing.

A couple more thuds from ahead preceded freedom. The table slid several feet out of the hallway. The group spilled into the away room. Li almost tripped over someone on the ground. An excavator, curled up tightly and weakly flailing with one hand. Trampled. She felt sick and pressed against the opposite wall to pass him.

The fighters spread out, keeping a solid wall of protection between the excavators and those who couldn't fight. Li filed in behind them. The key thing now was to keep the excavators distracted and head for the exit. And her job was to keep her head down and avoid getting hurt or anything else that might slow the group down. She saw an IV pole on the ground ahead. Most likely hers, dropped and forgotten when the alarm went off. Shame again twisted her stomach.

The ground suddenly trembled. The fighting slowed as everyone looked for the source.

The light above the airlock flashed. The inner door rolled open.

A cry rose from the excavators. Weapons fell to the ground, forgotten as they dashed toward the airlock, grabbing helmets and locking them in place as they went.

The group came to a stop, watching. Li closed her eyes. It had worked. Thank goodness.

"Rundy! Look out!" Jersey abruptly shouted. He raced toward her, swinging his nightstick wildly and knocking a couple excavators flat on his way.

Li gasped and stepped forward, craning her neck to see. A couple excavators near Rundy turned to face the oncoming threat, snarling.

The fighters tensed and moved after Jersey, but Li could see their confusion, their eyes searching as much as hers. Where was the threat?

"Get down!" Jersey shouted, tackling one of the excavators. He grabbed the excavator's OL and turned it on another. The burst missed the excavator. Rundy dodged down just in time to avoid getting caught by the stray shot. Instead, it hit the computer terminal, which spat out a burst of glass and sparks.

Rundy lashed out with one leg, knocking the other excavator flat. "Keep them moving! Let them get to the airlock!" She grabbed Jersey and pulled him out of the scuffle.

The excavators snarled at the two, but then pulled their helmets on and rejoined the flood entering the airlock.

As the airlock filled, the excavators began pounding their fists and hands against the external door, impatient to get outside.

Rundy spoke into the radio. "Calm down. We'll get the door open as soon as everyone's inside."

The assaults on the door only intensified. Bashing. Battering.

Li's chest tightened. The door seemed so thin. If they breached it... Her feet stumbled backwards.

Rundy pushed Jersey toward the excavators and waved to the others in the group. "Get them inside the airlock." She turned back to the terminal, waving aside the wisps of smoke emanating from the hole.

The fighters rushed forward, cramming the remaining excavators into the airlock.

The external door shuddered.

Li stumbled further backwards, tripped, and fell hard. Jarring pain shot through her spine, but she barely noticed it.

Rundy worked at the computer for a minute. "Li, get over here."

The door shook. Li whimpered.

"Now!"

Michelle caught Li's arm and pulled her forward. Michael followed, IV pole ready, but the few remaining excavators paid them no attention.

Li's brain fogged and clouded. "They're going to breach it," she barely managed to stammer out.

"That's why I need you," Rundy said. "The terminal's damaged. I can't get it to work."

The exterior door shuddered again. Li's legs threatened to give out.

Rundy grabbed both her shoulders. "You have to help me get the computer working. Otherwise, we can't shut the inner door. It won't breach if we shut the inner door. Understand?"

Her friend's words pierced the clouds. She managed to nod.

"What do you need?" Michelle asked.

Li stared at the hole in the terminal without seeing. Random strings of letters and numbers flickered across the screen as the CPU did the computer version of puking its guts out.

The door shook again.

"They're all in," Avery shouted. "Get the door shut!"

Had to get the door shut. It couldn't breach if she did. The last traces of cloud vanished. Li unlatched the terminal's massive cover and swung it open, revealing a human-sized cavern of fried wires and circuit boards. "Get the base chip out of a suit."

Michael darted back to the nearest locker bank.

Li leaned the upper half of her body into the space and tugged wires free. She cut off the fused and smoking sections, then reattached them correctly. When Michael returned with the chip, she pulled out the main circuit board. The suit's chip wasn't exactly the same as the damaged parts, but it'd do in a pinch with some creative rewiring.

The outer door creaked. One of the panels in the door bent outward.

Terror spiked through Li's body. She froze.

"You can do it," Michelle said.

"You're almost there," Michael added.

She forced in a couple deep breaths. They'd be safe if she got the door shut. Her hands shook as she tore out the bad chip and put the suit's chip in its place. Wired it in. She opened her mouth, but her voice didn't work. She swallowed hard and tried again. "Got it."

Rundy stepped in. Her fingers danced frenetically over the keyboard. "It's not working."

Michael nudged Li back toward the computer. "You've got this."

Another panel dented outward under the excavator assault.

Li cringed. Checked the connections again. Found the loose wire. No time for a formal connection. She pressed it against the right spot. "Go!"

Rundy typed again, then slapped the last key. The inner door rumbled shut.

Li's legs gave out. She landed in an ungraceful heap on the floor.

Michelle stepped in and held the loose wire in place while Rundy entered the next command.

Michael helped Li onto one of the few upright benches left in the room.

Seconds ticked by. The excavators pushed against the outer door all the harder. Several turned and battered the inner door, faces twisted in rage and mouths open in screams that couldn't be heard through the suits and door.

Li closed her eyes. Pressed her hands over her ears, though her logical side scolded the foolish gesture. There were no sounds to hear.

There would be if the excavators breached the airlock. And if they managed to bash the inner door as well. A shudder rippled through Li's body. Her lungs constricted tighter.

The ground shook again. The outer door rumbled open.

Those in the away room cheered as the excavators fled, vanishing into the dark covering of night.

Heat spread across Li's face as she opened her eyes and let go of her ears. There hadn't even been an alarm that time. Why had she panicked and fallen apart like that? She was acting like a child.

Michelle released the wire and turned to Li. "You did it."

"Right." Li bobbed her head to cover her embarrassment. "It worked."

Michael clapped her on the back, a victorious grin on his face. "One part, three parts, two parts."

Michelle rolled her eyes at him. "Foolhardy and reckless."

"If the shoe fits." His grin didn't diminish.

Rundy walked toward the others. Li watched, waiting for their leader to celebrate their victory or issue the next set of orders. But Rundy continued past the group. Into the hallway.

Matteo. Li hurried after her friend. They'd earned time and could move Matteo safely, get him to the infirmary for treatment. Or maybe they'd have to bring supplies back here and treat him in the meeting room. Whatever needed to happen, they were free to give him proper care. A small smile pushed at her lips. They were okay now.

Rundy knocked on the locked door. "Nikolas, open it."

Li waited behind her friend. The hallway behind them filled as the group followed.

No answer came from the other side of the door.

Rundy pounded again.

Li shifted her weight. "Don't worry." She gave Rundy what she hoped was a reassuring smile. "I'm sure everything's okay."

The taller woman nodded slightly, but her eyes remained fixed on the door. She lifted her fist to pound a third time.

A clicking sound alerted them to the lock being opened. Rundy lowered her hand. The door slowly opened.

Nikolas stood in the doorway, his face pale. Streaks in the blood and grime on his face testified to tears. He wouldn't make eye contact.

Li's heart slid downward to her stomach. She craned her neck to see inside the room. Matteo lay where they'd left him, his body still. Too still.

Nikolas's mouth worked a moment before he managed to speak. "I am sorry. I did all I could, but..."

Rundy pushed past the man and fell to her husband's side.

Li couldn't move.

Matteo was dead.

Chapter 13

The group sat on tables and leaned against the wall. No one spoke. The only sound was the occasional sniffle.

Li sat beside Rundy, numb. The security team hovered just behind them, keeping a respectful distance, in as much shock as everyone else.

Rundy's eyes remained fixed on the far wall, unseeing. The tears had long since dried on her cheeks.

It was Jersey who finally broke the silence. "We should get to the infirmary. Let the others know what happened and take care of the wounded."

No one responded.

Another minute of silence passed, then Jersey stepped forward. "Avery, lead the way back to the infirmary."

Avery silently crossed to the door and held it open. "Let's go, people."

Giles and a few others stepped up to help usher the rest of the group out the door. Giles paused once the others had left, but then turned and followed.

Jersey put a hand on Rundy's shoulder. "Take as long as you need." He caught Li's eye.

She nodded. She'd stay at her friend's side.

He turned to the door.

"No." Rundy stood.

Jersey turned and looked at her. He raised his eyebrows.

She dusted her legs off. "We need to figure out what happened here. Why the excavators turned violent. If there's something we can do to fix it."

"I can see to it, ma'am."

"I trust you can." She wiped the last remnants of tears from her face and adjusted her hair. "I'll be relying on you to help keep the others on track. They need their leaders."

He dipped his head in acquiescence. "Yes, ma'am."

Li stood. "Are you sure—"

"Can't do much good sitting here." Rundy briskly passed her and walked through the door Jersey held open.

Li followed more slowly. She glanced back at the body.

"He was a good leader," Jersey said quietly.

She nodded.

"Thank you for sitting with her. I know it meant a lot." He glanced down the hallway. "She'll need our support."

"Right." Li took a deep breath. She'd do anything, everything she could, to help make this easier on Rundy.

When they reached the infirmary, Rundy had already retaken charge. Abigail oversaw the remaining medial staff, treating wounds and filling the air with the sharp smell of antiseptic. The uninjured worked to inventory the supplies and sort them, clearing space in the middle of the room. Li was relieved to see Vera among them, back on her feet and mostly recovered from her injuries. A handful of scientists, M&M included, worked in the far corner on something Li couldn't see.

Rundy glanced at them as they entered. "Jersey, find out where Abigail needs the most help. Li..." She started to point toward the far corner, but stopped. "They're collecting blood samples. Once they're done, help them work the samples and try to figure out what's affecting our excavators."

"Blood samples?" Li stared blankly.

Rundy exhaled. "From Trevor."

It was Trevor's body in the corner. That's what she hadn't been able to see. A shiver passed through her frame.

Rundy gestured toward the workspace at the side of the room. "Wait there. They'll come to you once they've collected what they need."

Li turned to follow directions, her mind still buzzing. Trevor. The one who started this whole thing. She was glad Rundy hadn't sent her over there. No way she'd be able to keep herself together if she saw Trevor's body. She could barely keep herself together just thinking about it.

She forced herself to breathe steadily. It was time to focus on something else. To figure out what had caused this. And with that answer, maybe they'd find a solution. A way to cure the excavators.

Leaning against the counter, she thought as she waited. It had to be something within the planet. None of the previous expeditions to Mars had found any similar effects on people. But then, none of the other expeditions involved living directly on the surface of the planet for so long. Or mining into the surface so deeply.

The image of a sample sprang to her mind. Purple and teal swirls.

Her mind took off at high gear. She hadn't thought of the sample since Trevor's second attack. She'd figured she'd just imagined things in her stressed state and dismissed it.

But what if she hadn't imagined it?

Trevor had glared at her in the cafeteria after she described the sample to M&M. And when he attacked her, he claimed she'd stolen something from him. She'd assumed he was mad at her for the previous night's fight and talking crazy. But what if his reaction was a direct response to her description of the sample? The substance was somehow involved in this. She hadn't had her hands on it long enough to test it or discover its properties.

She frowned. How could an ore have a behavioral effect on people? It didn't make sense.

Still, the more she thought about it, the more certain she was that the sample had to have something to do with this. Trevor had reacted to her description of the sample. And even before that, when she went into the mines with Jess's team, Jess had all but ordered her not to go into the south tunnels. He'd said it was because they'd already thoroughly excavated those tunnels, but what if he was covering up the location of this foreign ore? After the quake, someone had ran into her. Running from deeper in the tunnel. A south tunnel.

She pushed off the counter and hurried to Rundy's side. "I think I might know what's causing this."

"Get those supplies sorted," Rundy called to someone on the other side of the room. "What?"

"Or, it has something to do with the excavators' behavior, I mean," Li amended. She briefly described the sample and her theory.

"Jersey, help the scientists gather what they need from the lab," Rundy ordered. She turned back to Li. "You're saying a rock is causing violent behavior. How?"

Li faltered. "I don't know. But it must have something to do with this. We should get some people into the mines to try to find a sample."

Rundy almost laughed out loud before the professional mask slid back in place. "Out where the excavators are? I'm not losing any more people."

"But if I'm right, we need samples to study. If we send just one or two people, they could get out there, get a sample, and get back in before the excavators notice."

One of the medical assistants hurried up with a question.

"One moment," Rundy told him. She looked at Li. "I'm sure your theory has merit, but we can't risk contact with the excavators right now. We don't have much time to sort this out. Those suits only carry a limited amount of oxygen. They'll be back in about nine hours, maybe less. We need to follow our best leads first, and that means testing the blood samples. I need you helping with that."

"But it all fits. And it's an external contaminant that only the excavators would have significant exposure to. Don't you see? We need to—"

"Enough!" Rundy snapped.

Li stopped, taken aback.

Her friend took a deep breath and spoke tightly. "You've identified a suspicious coincidence, but your theory hinges on the idea that an ore can cause madness in a human being. There isn't enough evidence to support that idea. We have limited time before the excavators return and a lot of exhausted, frightened people to protect. We cannot waste time chasing flimsy hunches!"

Li stared. Words died without even reaching her mouth. She couldn't even get a full sentence put together in her thoughts.

"Just follow orders." Rundy turned away and spoke with the medical assistant.

Li's feet took her back to the counters at the side of the room without any conscious direction from her brain. Abigail and the scientists barely acknowledged her as she joined them. Tears stung the back of her eyes. In all their years as friends, Rundy had never spoken to her that way.

She's grieving, Li told herself. She's just shocked and in grief and how could Rundy yell at me like that?

Michelle tapped Li's shoulder. "Go get some rest. We're taking shifts. After all, it's not as if it takes a full staff to run tests."

Li glanced where M had motioned and saw several others fast asleep on a handful of cots and beds pushed into the front corner. "I... Rundy told me to help."

"You look about to collapse on your feet." Michael gave her a gentle push toward the beds. "Get a couple hours. It'll take that long for the first round of tests to finish, anyway."

Her feet moved again without direction, and she found herself standing next to one of the beds. She sat down, feeling even number than before. She'd resolved to be helpful to Rundy, but instead wound up ticking her off. Rundy was right, after all. It was a flimsy theory. Stupid. Just a dumb hunch.

But the last time she'd had a hunch, it had proven true.

She glanced over where Rundy still directed a heavy flow of traffic, giving orders, answering questions, making decisions. It couldn't be easy on her friend, having to step into her husband's shoes. So soon after losing him, too. She hadn't meant to yell, Li was sure. She'd just been emotionally exhausted. And she had to make the hard decisions now, to go with the logical choice even if it meant hurting feelings.

Still. The ore theory made sense. No, Li didn't have an answer of how an ore could affect people this way, but she would after she got some samples to test. She was sure of it.

And Michelle had just told her she wouldn't be needed for a couple hours.

Her heart rate picked up. She knew how to suit up and operate the airlock. She'd read the manual enough to recite both procedures backwards, sideways, or upside-down. It was unlikely Rundy had logged out of the airlock terminal, so it still had administration access. If she worked fast, she could gather samples and be back before anyone even realized she was missing.

But if the ore was causing this, what if it infected everyone here? She couldn't bring back a sample and risk that, could she?

Li lay down on the cot. She should just forget about it. Go to sleep. Follow orders.

But her brain wouldn't stop working. The ore couldn't affect them from a single exposure. Scientists like Kirk who'd been out on multiple excavations showed no signs of madness. It obviously required repeated, prolonged exposure to take effect.

She sat up before she was consciously aware of what she was doing. That's right. The ore wouldn't affect them immediately. And with samples to study, they could figure out how to block its effects. And then they'd figure out how to cure the excavators.

A new sense of resolve filled Li. She glanced around the room.

Rundy's back was to her, dealing with some problem Giles had brought her.

The scientists all hovered around the testing equipment, theorizing with each other. Absorbed in the work.

All the people in Li's immediate vicinity were asleep. Everyone else was busy, focused on their tasks.

It took a few moments to work up her courage. Then she stood.

No one took notice.

She took a few steps forward.

No one saw her. No one watched the door.

She took one last look around. Rundy would be angry when she found out, but if the ore really was the answer, the anger wouldn't last long. Li would have saved them hours of work.

Li silently turned and walked out through the hole in the wall.

* * *

Li stood inside the open airlock, taking deep breaths and doing everything she could to bolster her courage. Last time she'd stepped onto Martian soil, she'd been eager to move forward, filled with awe and delight. Now she was almost too afraid to move.

You can do this, she told herself. No one will notice unless you delay.

No one had come running after her, though she had frequently checked over her shoulder when she dashed to the away room. And constantly watched the door as she suited up. She'd been right; Rundy hadn't bothered to log out of the terminal. She'd only needed a minute to properly reconnect the wire, and the terminal was working again. Mostly. Enough to get the door open, anyway.

And now she stood ready to exit the colony. Alone.

A faint glimmer of light on the horizon promised sunrise in an hour or so, but most of the sky loomed dark overhead. The stars twinkled, only slightly different from home. She took another deep breath. Let it out. Time to go.

She stepped onto the red soil and activated the external airlock control. The door slid shut behind her.

One hog remained outside the airlock. The backup hog, for use in case of emergencies. Li decided this qualified and climbed in. The dashboard looked identical to the image in the manual, and she quickly found the starter button.

The machine rumbled beneath her as the electric battery powered the machine. She swept her eyes over the controls, naming each one inside her head. Found the accelerator. Pushed it forward.

The hog lurched forward and swerved, nearly running into the airlock door. She yelped and released the accelerator. The manual hadn't said how sensitive the controls were. This would take a bit of practice.

Lucky for her, the hog's responsiveness wasn't too different from a vehicle she'd driven for two years in college, and within minutes she drove with fair confidence. The larger dips and bumps in the terrain still sent the front wheels twisting in crazy swerves, but she figured out how to get it back under control before too long. It only took her a bit longer than normal to reach the entrance to Mine Two.

Two hogs sat just outside the entrance. Sure enough, this was where the excavators were. She slowed and stared at the black hole gaping in front of her. How far in were they? Would they spot her if she drove the hog in?

Doubtful. If her theory was right, they were far down in the southern tunnels. Deep. She stilled her uncertainties and pushed the accelerator forward, traveling slower through the tight mine tunnels.

It took two wrong turns before she managed to find the hub she'd worked from before, and even then she wasn't entirely confident she'd found the right one. She eyed the dark rock walls around her, unsure, but pushed the doubts aside and climbed out of the hog. It shouldn't matter as long as she followed the southern tunnels deeper into the surface of the planet. That's where Jess didn't want her to go when she'd joined his team for excavation. So that's exactly where she needed to go now.

She turned on her suit's small light and turned off the hog's lights. If the excavators really were down this way, she didn't want to attract attention to herself. Though they might not notice the difference, with her being in a suit. It had worked well enough for Rundy. With any hope, it would work just as well for her.

The sound of her breathing filled the suit. She didn't want to run into any excavators and find out. Especially with the way Jess's team had it out for her. What if they saw her face?

She closed her eyes. She didn't have time to entertain fear. She was a scientist. She could handle this.

Li grabbed her sample bag and started down one of the southern tunnels before the fear could creep back in. She'd made it in without a problem. Get some samples, get out. That's all she had to do.

The lights along the tunnels were off. The tunnels, which had felt claustrophobic before, now seemed infinitely oppressive. The little flashlight was more an emergency measure than designed for proper lighting. It was like trying to find her way in blackness with only a dying cell phone for light. Glints of reflective ores appeared and vanished in the ink surrounding her. Filling the tunnel. Filling her suit.

She clenched her teeth and moved onward, trying to keep her pace steady.

A faint light bobbed ahead.

Her breath caught. She fumbled with the controls on her arm. She could barely see them in the faint lighting. Where was the off button?

The light drew nearer.

She'd be spotted. They'd find her.

Her fingers finally located the right button. Her light blinked out. She edged her way back against the wall and felt a sharp edge press into her suit. A spike of fear shot through her system. She started to jump back away from the edge, but forced herself to hold still. They'd see the movement. Besides, she wasn't slamming into it. The edge wasn't sharp enough to damage the suit just from leaning.

She couldn't convince her heart of that, though. It pounded against her ribs, harder and harder until she feared the oncoming excavator would hear it.

The light was only a few yards away now. Still coming closer.

Her breathing filled her ears. Her hand instinctively rose to cover her mouth, but hit helmet instead. She held her breath for only a moment before realizing that there's no way anyone could hear her breathing through her suit.

The light flickered near her feet. She closed her eyes. As if that would do any good. She clenched her teeth and forced herself to peek through one cracked eye.

The light was gone.

Li opened both eyes and looked around. No light ahead, and no light back the way she'd come. Where'd the excavator go?

She gave it another minute before she felt safe enough to turn her own light back on. Sweeping it slowly, holding her arm out to get as close to the walls as possible, she examined the area around her. Nothing but solid tunnel.

She advanced a few more steps, maintaining the sweep as she went. Still nothing.

About a yard ahead, she found it. A new tunnel branched off from the main tunnel. That must be where the excavator had gone, though all she saw down the tunnel was more of the same ink that filled the rest of the mine.

She kept her light low, aimed at the ground to guide her steps. As she stepped into the new tunnel, she felt the controls on her arm and found the button for the light again. She didn't want to be caught off-guard.

The tunnel twisted to the east ahead. She pressed herself against the far wall, pointed her light back the way she'd come, and peered around the corner. Black.

After a few yards, it twisted back to the south. She repeated the process, but again saw nothing ahead.

Nothing changed for the next few minutes of walking. The tunnel continued in random, odd twists, like a bloodhound on the hunt, sniffing out its prize and correcting its direction along the way. With each turn, she moved on faster. She was sure the excavator had come this way, but the longer she walked, the less sure she was that she'd find anyone down this far.

Li rounded a corner without bothering to look and froze at the sight of dim light glowing further ahead. She leapt back behind the corner and searched for the button to her light. Why'd she stopped holding it? Stupid! Fear made her fingers clumsy, and she managed to activate her radio twice before she finally found the right control and turned the light off. She pressed her body against the wall and waited, hardly daring to breathe.

Nothing came after her. No light came around the corner. She tried to make herself wait longer, but the need to know pressed against her throat harder and harder until she finally had to look. Her fingers gingerly felt their way along the wall until she found the corner again. She crouched down and peered around the edge.

The faint light ahead was still there, but it didn't seem to have changed or moved. Maybe she'd gone undetected.

As she studied the tunnel ahead, it became clearer. The light seemed to be coming from around another twist in the tunnel. She'd have to proceed without her light, with the dim glow ahead her only guide, and hope that no one watched for her around the next corner. Visions of stepping around the corner to find excavators with lights pointed straight at her flashed through her head. It took a moment to stuff them back into the recesses of her mind and gather the courage to continue forward.

She stayed close to the side of the tunnel, her arms swaying as she ran her hand along the uneven edges of the wall beside her. Halfway there. Three quarters.

The ground vanished. Her stomach lurched upward as her foot suddenly clumped into the ground several inches lower than it had been before. She flailed at the wall, trying to catch her balance, but landed heavily on her hands and knees.

Li gasped and struggled to catch her breath. It was just a dip in the floor. Like a walking off a step she hadn't realized was there. She closed her eyes. She was okay.

The light ahead still hadn't changed. As far as she could tell, no one was aware of her approach.

She forced a few deep breaths, then carefully pushed herself back to her feet. Her suit appeared unharmed. The floors were smoother than the walls, so no sharp edges threatened to tear the material. A shudder crept down her back at the thought. If her suit was damaged this time, who'd save her? Not the excavators. She'd die alone in the tunnels.

She clenched her fists. This wasn't helping. And too much time had passed already. She had to move forward, now.

Her next few steps were slower, more cautious, feeling the way before trusting her weight on the floor, but she found no further dips. She reached the corner and pressed herself against the wall. This was it. She'd peek around the corner and find out if the excavators were waiting for her. If she was safe or dead.

Li crouched and peeked.

The dim lighting barely illuminated the space ahead of her, but she felt an immediate sense of awe. Swirls of purple and teal glistened from nearly every surface, threaded only occasionally with grays and reds of silica and iron. The walls of the cavern proceeded upward and melted into the ink, too far above to be reached by the faint lights below. She couldn't see how high they went, but the space had a cathedral feel to it, as if the ceiling rose to infinite heights.

The lighting came from a string of emergency lights spread out around the walls, giving off a soft white glow. Stalagmites rose at intervals, clustering here and there, all composed of the same foreign ore.

Her heart skipped. Purple and teal. Just like the sample she'd found. The one that went missing. The one Trevor accused her of stealing.

She'd been right.

Justification swelled her heart. She took a step forward.

Her foot skidded on loose gravel. She scrambled to regain her balance and managed to stay upright. The pebbles rolled ahead into the cavern.

She froze, her eyes suddenly finding the one thing the beauty of the cavern had distracted her from before.

The excavators. They sat, leaned, and reclined against almost every surface.

But none of them moved. No one seemed to notice the intrusion.

She pressed against the wall at the entrance and studied them a moment longer. They still weren't moving. Strange. Were they sleeping? Unconscious? Dead?

After a few seconds of indecision, she finally chanced stepping forward. She put one foot into the cavern and waited. Still no signs of movement. Another step. Another.

An excavator lounged against a grouping of stalagmites just ahead. She cautiously approached, watching the helmet closely for any signs of movement. As she drew nearer, she recognized Chun Hei's petite face. The woman's eyes were closed, a blissful expression on her face.

Li crept closer. Crouched over Chun Hei's form. But then she hesitated, unsure. How would she check? Shaking the excavator didn't seem smart. If Chun Hei was only sleeping, she'd wake up and recognize Li.

The control panel. Li reached for Chun Hei's left arm and carefully lifted it. The screen was barely visible in the dim lighting, but if she squinted, she could make out the display. Oxygen levels looked fine. Power levels, too. There—the heart rate monitor. Li relaxed at the steadily flashing number. Sixty-five, a perfectly respectable resting heart rate. And proof that Chun Hei was still alive.

Li gently put the woman's arm back down and looked again to her face. And froze.

Chun Hei's eyes were open.

Li couldn't move. Couldn't breathe. She'd been caught.

Chapter 14

Li's muscles remained locked as she stared at Chun Hei's open eyes. Braced for the woman to start screaming and attack.

It took a full minute before Li realized that the excavator still didn't move. Her eyes looked glassy, focused off in the distance. The same blissful expression rested on her face.

Li cautiously backed up half a step. Chun Hei didn't seem to notice.

She continued backwards and finally stood. No one seemed to notice her. As she looked around at the other faces she could see, all had dreamy, peaceful looks about them. If they did see her, they didn't care.

Her heart calmed for the first time since entering the mines. The excavators weren't going to attack her. And it looked like she was right; the strange ore was the cause of this disaster. She'd bring samples back to the colony to study and learn how they caused that effect. Maybe they'd even find a way to reverse it and restore the excavators. Rundy would have to forgive her for disobeying orders.

Li went to the nearest wall and pulled out her OL and an empty sample jar. The more she could collect, the better. And since the excavators weren't concerned about her presence, she could afford to take her time and do it right. She examined the surface of the wall and drew the same conclusions as before. Unusually soft. Unique fracture pattern. Bits crumbled off under her hands, and she caught a couple in the sample jar.

An excavator near her stirred.

She glanced at him and changed her mind. The excavators didn't seem to notice or care, but she didn't want that changing. Especially considering the way Trevor had reacted when he thought someone had taken a sample from him. Would the others be equally protective of the ore? Better to grab samples and get out of there as fast as possible, before the excavators roused enough to figure out what she was doing. Besides, she likely didn't have much time before her absence was noticed in the colony.

The first sample crumbled slightly as she gathered it, but she managed to get most of it in the sample jar. She tucked it in the bag and pulled out a new sample jar, glancing behind herself as she did so. It was hard to see around the bulky helmet that didn't turn nearly as far as her head could, but she didn't see any movement. The excavators still hadn't noticed her. She was safe.

She collected the second sample and set it in the bag. Pulled out a third jar and collected the next one.

A hand clamped on her shoulder.

She screamed and spun around, falling back against the wall.

An excavator squinted at her through bleary eyes, his hand still on her shoulder. A few other excavators stood behind him. Brent peered at her over the first excavator's shoulder.

Her heart stopped.

Brent's eyes went wide. His mouth opened, and his face twisted into an enraged scream.

Li shoved the excavator's hand away from her and bolted. Excavators around her struggled to their feet, the awareness of an intruder breaking through the fog that kept them oblivious before. A hand swiped at her feet, and she barely managed to dodge in time.

Someone caught the sample bag, pulled her back. She screamed again and shoved the strap free, sending the person falling behind her. Kept running.

The tunnel loomed ahead of her, light fading into the ink. She stuffed the sample jar into the pocket on the front of her suit and fumbled with the controls. No way she could run into the darkness. One missed step, and she'd slam into a wall at top speeds.

The darkness neared. Fingers swiped at her from behind, barely missing getting a grip. Couldn't slow down.

She found the button and flicked it on just as the last vestiges of light vanished behind her. A curve stood just ahead. She barely managed to scramble around the corner in time to keep from running into the wall.

Someone caught her arm. She flailed behind her, screaming though she knew no one could hear. Her arm slipped free, and she ran. The sound of footsteps pounding behind her drove her onward, faster and faster. Her frantically waving light barely gave her enough notice of oncoming turns before she skidded around them.

She reached the main tunnel and turned hard. Her right foot gave out, and she crashed to the floor. Scrambled back up. Stumbled forward, glancing back to see how close her pursuers were.

All she saw was ink. No signs of pursuers. But their footsteps still pounded in her ears. It took several seconds of panting before she realized it was her own heart she heard. She bent down, hands on her knees, and fought to catch her breath. She'd been running from nothing.

A faint glow bobbed at the last corner she'd taken, and her chest tightened again. No. They were still after her. But she'd somehow managed to gain some distance in her panicked flight. She turned and ran again, forcing herself to focus.

Li didn't slow again until she reached the hub. The hog was facing the wrong direction, but if she could get it turned around quickly, she'd be back in the safety of the colony before the excavators exited the mine. If they pursued her that far, that is. Maybe they'd give up and go back to the cavern.

She climbed into the hog and turned it on. The lights nearly blinded her as they flared and filled the hub. She had to blink a few times before she could focus on the controls ahead of her.

It took some careful manipulation to edge the wheels, to turn the vehicle in the tight space. By the time she had halfway around, she felt the pressure of time bearing on her chest. She glanced back just as an excavator made it around the last curve. He pointed and doubled down, rushing to get to her.

Her hands scrambled over the controls, inching and working around. It was too late. She should run. Her throat closed. They'd catch her. She shouldn't have stopped at the hog in the first place.

The wheels cleared.

She gasped and shoved the accelerator. The hog responded immediately, jolting forward into a breakneck speed down the tunnel. She made it through a turn, then another, before she reached a straight enough stretch to hazard a glance back.

An excavator clung to the back roll bar. Brent.

He pulled himself up and into the backseat, hateful eyes fixed on her.

She screamed and turned back around just in time to see a coming curve. She took it hard, hoping to jolt Brent away without crashing. She made it through the turn and glanced back to check.

Brent stood behind her, clinging to the forward roll bar. He grabbed her shoulder.

She screamed again, batting at his hand with one of hers, but he let go of the roll bar and reached for her helmet, his hands fumbling with it.

He was trying to pull her helmet off.

Li slapped at his hands again, but he easily pushed her hand away. Panic clouded her vision. She couldn't let him get her helmet. The tunnel raced past, narrowing. She was helpless to fight him. If she didn't keep her focus on the tunnel, they'd crash.

The panic narrowed into a new resolve. She had to get rid of him, to get back to the colony with the sample. No matter what.

Li slunk low in her seat and twisted the controls. The hog edged closer to the side of the tunnel until it bumped against the wall. Brent's hand returned to the roll bar briefly, then back to her helmet.

She clenched her teeth. Twisted hard. The hog bounced back to the other side of the tunnel and bashed into the opposite wall, almost unseating her. Brent barely caught the roll bar in time.

Hope flooded her system, and she twisted again, back the other way. The hog slammed into the other wall. The force knocked her against the controls, and the hog went wild, bashing back and forth between the walls like a pinball. She screamed and held on for her life.

When it finally slowed, she spun to face Brent's attack. But none came. She saw a figure several yards back in the tunnel, struggling to his feet.

It had worked.

She pulled herself back into position in her seat and rammed the accelerator. The hog shot forward, leaving Brent far behind.

* * *

Li didn't slow down for a moment, even as she made it back into the away room. She raced to the terminal and logged Rundy out as soon as the inner door closed. The machine took a moment to process, then blinked a stuttered confirmation on the intact side of the screen. The terminal no longer had emergency security access.

Her knees buckled, and she melted to the floor. Hands trembling and weak, she removed her helmet, powering down the suit. Closed her eyes. She was safe now.

It took a couple minutes before she found the strength to gather herself back up off the floor. She peeled the suit off and left it in a heap. She'd made it halfway to the door before she remembered the sample.

She hurried back to the suit and dug through the layers of material. Had it fallen out in the rough ride? Or been damaged? Her hands finally struck solid plastic, and she let out the breath she'd been holding. She'd lost the first two samples, but at least she still had one. One was better than none.

She clutched the jar like a lifeline and hurried out of the away room. How long had she been gone? If they'd noticed her absence, Rundy would be furious.

Her footsteps echoed in the empty hallway. A faint buzz of activity came from the infirmary. Good, they were all still there. She quickened her pace and hurried back in through the hole.

Several eyes turned on her as she walked in, startled by the movement.

Michelle straightened. "You're back! Where were you?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Rundy said, striding forward. Sparks flashed through her eyes.

Li cringed inside. Rundy was furious. She held up the sample and tried to keep from shaking. "I got it."

Rundy took the jar and studied it, her eyes narrow. "This is the sample you lost?"

There. The perfect solution. If she claimed it was just the sample she'd lost, then she didn't have to admit to leaving the colony. Rundy would be less angry about her searching the lab than entering the mines.

The lie died before it could even reach her tongue. She'd never been a good liar. Rundy would see right through her. Besides, they had to know what she'd seen. The way the excavators behaved in the cavern all but proved that this ore was the key.

She forced herself to stand upright and hold her head steady instead of drooping. Time to put on her big girl panties and face the consequences of her decision.

"No. I gathered it in the mine."

Everyone stared now. No one spoke.

Li fought to keep from cringing into herself. She held Rundy's eyes, waiting for the screaming to start.

A muscle in Rundy's jaw twitched. She was angry. Or disappointed. Probably both.

Rundy's eyes shifted to the jar, then back again. "What did you find?"

Li blinked. "What?" Where was the yelling?

"I expect a full report. Leave nothing out."

"Oh." Li suddenly felt small, more so with everyone staring at her. But this was what she wanted, for them to hear what she'd found so they could study the ore and figure out how it had caused this mess. She squared her shoulders and described what she'd found in the mines: the twisting tunnel off the main south tunnel, the cavern, the excavators, the dazed way they'd behaved.

The memory of a hand grabbing her shoulder stopped her story there. She didn't want to talk about her escape. Didn't want to think about it.

Unfortunately, the others seemed to pick up on her omission.

"So they just let you gather samples?" Michelle folded her arms, skepticism on her face.

"And just let you leave?" Rundy asked, a similar expression on hers.

It took Li a moment to collect herself. She did her best to keep it brief and clinical, but her voice wouldn't stop shaking as she told the rest of the story. By the time she finished, her whole body had joined in the tremble.

M&M appeared on either side of her and led her to an empty cot, where they helped her sit before her legs gave out.

Rundy watched her a moment longer, then handed the sample over to Michelle. "You said you logged my code out of the terminal?"

Li nodded. "No one can get in or out until you put your code in again."

"It'll have to happen before too long," Michelle supplied. She glanced at the clock on the wall. "We have less than six hours before the excavators will be back for fresh oxygen tanks."

"Right." Rundy straightened. "Li, get some rest. The rest of you, back to work." She addressed M&M. "Get your team figuring out what the heck that stuff is and why it's causing this. But you should get some rest, too."

As everyone else turned to follow directions, Li caught Rundy's eye. "Rundy..."

Her friend walked over to her side, eyebrow raised.

"I know you told me not to go out there, but—"

Rundy waved a hand, cutting her off. "There'll be plenty of time for me to yell at you later. For now, rest." She paused, and the security guard side of her gave way to the friend. "You had me worried."

"I'm sorry."

"I have your word you won't try anything stupid like that again?"

Li nodded.

"Good. Rest."

She wanted to protest, to join the scientists at the testing counter and find out what the foreign ore was, but her body was more interested in succumbing to gravity. She slumped flat on the cot beneath her and closed her eyes.

Jersey's voice intruded before she could drift off. "I'm not sure that's safe. I better take a look at it."

She cracked an eye and tilted her head to see. Jersey stood between Michelle and the testing counter, his hand extended toward the sample jar.

Michelle raised an eyebrow. "That's exactly what we're going to be doing."

"But it might not be safe. I should take it somewhere else, with fewer people, and test it."

"I think we got this one, big guy," Michael said, a faint chuckle in his tone. He clapped a friendly hand on Jersey's shoulder. "That's what we're trained for."

Jersey shoved Michael away without taking his eyes off Michelle. "Give it to me."

The activity in the room stopped once more as people turned to stare.

Rundy moved forward, her eyes narrowed, evaluating. "Let the scientists do their work."

"It's a hazard, ma'am. This is for the safety of the survivors. We could all be infected. The sample isn't safe."

Li sat up. She'd never seen him act this way, but he'd always been protective. "It's okay, Jersey. Most of us have been out on excavations by now, even more than once. Minimal, occasional exposure isn't enough to affect a person."

Muscles in his jaw twitched rapidly. "I have to test it. Check it. To make sure."

At a loss for words, Li glanced from him to Michelle, who seemed equally uncertain.

Rundy stepped closer. "Bains, stand down."

He didn't move.

"That's an order."

The muscles twitched even faster. "I have to."

He pulled out his taser and fired. Michelle crumpled to the ground.

Li gasped. Yvette shrieked.

Jersey darted forward, grabbing for the jar.

Michael landed on his back before he reached it, sending both men crashing to the floor. Rundy and the other security staff rushed in. Jersey howled and scrambled about, struggling to knock Michael off, but the smaller man held tight.

Li jumped to her feet and darted in before her brain could kick in and tell her how stupid she was being. Kirk and Reesa arrived at Michelle's side at the same time she did.

Avery and Giles leapt on Jersey's legs while the others went for his arms.

"Bains! Stand down!" Rundy shouted.

"Get the jar," Kirk barked at Li as he and Reesa lifted Michelle to pull her away from the fight. Michelle groaned and stirred, wincing in pain.

The jar rolled on the floor beside the fighters. Li scurried closer and grabbed it.

Jersey swung at her, roaring in fury. His hand clamped over hers.

Panic overwhelmed her system. She screamed and tried to pull free.

Rundy landed on his arm, fighting to pull him back, but his grip only tightened, crushing Li's fingers.

She yelped in pain and clawed at his hand, desperate to get free. Rundy was yelling again, but she couldn't understand the words.

The jar. He crushed her fingers around it, but she could still get her thumb over the edge. She strained at his hand. Managed to free the jar. Caught it in her free hand and flung it toward the scientists huddled by the counter.

Jersey roared again. His fist tightened over hers, bending two of her fingers at a bad angle and sending pain shooting through her hand.

Abigail crouched over his outstretched arm and jabbed a needle into it, quickly emptying the contents.

Jersey yanked, twisted, and struggled. His movements began to slow until he finally fell still.

Rundy climbed free of the pile and pried Jersey's hand off Li. The others followed her lead in disentangling themselves.

"Anyone hurt?" Rundy asked.

Li flexed her hand, feeling tingles as the blood rushed back in. The two fingers still ached a bit, but moved on their own well enough.

Michael was the last to break free of the pile. He rubbed the back of his head as he stood. "I think the floor won." He walked over to the cots.

Li followed. Michelle sat on the edge of one cot, holding her head. Nikolas knelt in front of her, shining a light in her eyes.

"I'm fine," she said before either could speak. "Hit my head on the floor."

"Seems to be going around," Michael replied, still rubbing his own head.

Avery and Paavan hauled Jersey off the floor. "Ma'am?" Avery asked, waiting for direction.

"Secure him." Rundy turned to Abigail. "How long until he wakes up?"

Abigail gave Jersey an appraising look. "With his size, not long. I used a low dose."

"Then get him secure and let me know when he wakes. He knows more about this than he let on."

Li shivered. Jersey had been affected by the ore like the excavators. How? He never participated in excavations. Did that mean anyone could be affected?

It didn't make sense. What she said before held true. All of the scientists had been in the mines, most more than once, and none had been affected.

Nikolas finished examining Michelle and stood, turning to Li. "You are not hurt, I hope?"

"No, I'm not." She sat down next to Michelle. "Thanks for asking."

He glanced back at Jersey, his brow wrinkling. "I am most concerned. Is not right for him to act this. He is not excavator."

"We'll have to see once he wakes up," Michelle said. "He might not be affected like they were."

"He is act like them. He attacks with no reason." He looked even more concerned and puzzled.

"I think Rundy's right. He knows something about this we don't. He might be trying to protect that secret." Michelle glanced back at the testing counter. "Speaking of which."

Michael caught her shoulder before she could stand. "You're overdue for a break. Get some sleep."

Nikolas's brow remained creased a moment longer, then he gave a little nod, seemingly satisfied. "Yes. All of you sleep now." He walked back to join Abigail.

Li felt her hands start shaking again and wished they wouldn't. The idea that Jersey could be sane and deliberately attacking them left her nauseated. She needed something to distract her from those thoughts. And while her body protested its exhaustion, adrenaline and curiosity kept her eyes wide open. "I want to see the sample."

"Me, too." Michelle brushed Michael's hand off and stood. She glanced back. "Coming, M?"

He looked displeased, but stood. "Wouldn't miss it for all the Twinkies on Mars."

Isla looked up from the sample as they approached. "You three should be resting."

"We want to help." Li stared at the little plastic jar. Amazing how it could be the cause of so much trouble.

"There isn't much to do right now. We're running an analysis and won't be able to proceed until we get the results."

"Oh." Li leaned on the counter. She occasionally joined in as the rest of the scientific staff talked about the sample, making observations about its characteristics or musing about how an ore could affect people through envirosuits, but she grew quieter as the minutes dragged by. The adrenaline drained from her system, leaving nothing but willpower keeping her upright.

Michael studied her, then Michelle. "Right. Time for rest."

"No, I want to stay," Michelle protested. She sounded as exhausted as Li felt.

"Don't you?" Li added. "You came over here to see the sample with us."

"That was before you both were too exhausted to put up a fight." He put a hand on each of their backs and guided them toward the cots. "Now it's time to sleep."

Li couldn't muster the energy to resist or even protest further. He nudged her toward a cot, and she fell onto it without complaint. The room faded as she finally succumbed to sleep.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed when a shout woke her. "Let me go!"

Chapter 15

Li sat bolt upright, heart pounding.

Scuffling sounds came from the far end of the infirmary. Jersey sat upright in a chair, his hands cuffed to the frame. He strained against the bonds, snarling at the security team around him.

Michael propped himself up on one elbow a couple cots over. "I think he might be awake."

"Possibility," Michelle said. She sat on the cot between them, keeping a comfortable distance as she watched.

Nikolas hurried over to Jersey. "I should give sedative."

"No." Rundy waved him back. "I want him as clear as possible."

"I think he may be too angry to speak, no? I will give—"

"No, Nikolas." Rundy eyed him until he backed off, then returned her attention to Jersey. "What do you know about this?"

His eyes flashed, glassy but wild. "That's mine. They took it from me. It was mine, and they took it!"

Li's heart sank. Jersey was talking like the excavators.

She wasn't the only one to notice. Rundy folded her arms. "Are you talking about the ore?"

"It's mine!" His voice rose to a near-screech.

A new tremor slipped through Li's body. Just like Trevor, talking about something taken from him. Her eyes widened in realization. After Trevor attacked her outside the cafeteria, Jersey had heard about the sample she'd found in the lab when she gave her statements.

Suddenly she knew why it had gone missing. She hadn't been forgetful or stressed. Jersey had stolen it before she had a chance to get back to the lab.

"How do you know it's yours?"

"I had them. All of them!" He thrashed against the cuffs. "Locked safe, mine, and they took them!"

Nikolas darted in and injected the sedative.

Rundy pulled him back. "What part of 'no' didn't you understand?" she snapped.

Jersey's head drooped.

Nikolas blinked. "The patient was agitated. Is to keep him from harming self."

Rundy grunted in frustration. "Report to Abigail. Don't interfere in an interrogation again."

He obediently trotted off.

The security team gathered close and spoke quietly with Rundy, their voices rising occasionally in displeasure.

Li stood and looked at the clock. She'd been asleep for almost three hours. Which left only three more hours before they estimated the excavators would be back in.

She joined the gathering of scientists at the counter. "Find anything?"

"Not much." Isla looked up with eyes rimmed red from lack of sleep.

M&M reached the counter along with several other scientists who'd taken advantage of the time to sleep.

"You should get some rest," Li said. "We'll work on it for a while."

"There isn't much time." In spite of her words, Isla's eyes drooped further.

Michael gave her a gentle nudge toward the cots. "We can spare you for an hour."

Their team leader had less strength to protest than Li and Michelle had possessed earlier. She stumbled toward the cots. A couple others who hadn't gotten rest yet followed.

Li was already scanning the results of the tests. The sample wasn't radioactive, which was good. But nothing else really stood out as useful. The composition analysis showed some parts silica and magnesium, but the top line, the most prominent component, showed only an error message. Sample unknown.

"At least now we have a live subject to study," Michelle said.

Li studied Jersey. It was hard to think of any person, especially someone she knew, in such a distant manner. But Abigail already hovered over him with an assistant, taking vitals, drawing blood, and performing scans.

This is a good thing, she told herself. If they could get a solid understanding of the exact effects of the foreign ore on the human body, they'd be closer to finding a cure. If there was one to be found.

She straightened and turned back to the counter. They had to assume a cure could be found. Otherwise, all this was for nothing.

"Find anything yet?" Rundy asked, startling Li. She hadn't heard her friend's approach.

"Nothing yet," Michelle said, setting the last page of results down. "But we're about to initiate the next testing stage."

Rundy's eyes flicked to the clock. "How long will that take?"

"Hard to say. An hour, at least."

"How many tests can we run simultaneously?"

"Not many. The results help guide us in what to test for next."

"And we don't have much to work with," Michael added. "It'd be easier if we had a larger sample."

Rundy didn't speak for a moment, looking frustrated and cornered. She shook her head. The security guard returned. "Keep at it. Let me know the instant you find anything."

"Yes, ma'am," Li said. She turned back to the counter and got down to business. "Why don't I take a portion of the sample and start some of the side tests?" There were at least three or four tests she could run while they waited for the second stage to finish.

"We might need it all for the next couple stages," Kirk said, his brow lightly creased. It was almost a scowl, but it lacked its usual energy, as if forming out of habit instead of any real feelings toward her.

Michelle grabbed an empty jar and tapped out three fragments into it, each no larger than a pea. "Good luck."

It wasn't really enough to do much with, but Li took the jar and went to the other end of the counter along with an electrical meter and a couple other tools. The room around her faded as she fell comfortably into routine. Running through dark mines, igniting sheets to scare away crazed lunatics, those were foreign to her. Sterile walls, cold equipment, the scientific method—this was her home.

Isla's voice startled her. "Find anything?"

"Nothing. Neutral pH, and the aqua regia ate it right up." Li glanced back down at the remaining two fragments in front of her, then back up. "I thought you were supposed to be resting."

"I did. For an hour."

Li looked up at the clock. Sure enough, an hour had passed.

Two hours left until the excavators returned.

She shivered. "Right. Sorry. I didn't find anything."

Isla continued on to the others.

Li exhaled. Planted both hands on the counter. Maybe they should give up on finding anything in the time limit. With any hope, the excavators would just come in, refill their air tanks, and go back out.

But if they didn't...

She remembered the look in Brent's eyes as he reached for her helmet, trying to pull it off. To kill her. Her stomach clenched inward. No. They couldn't give up. They had to find the answer.

Her eyes fell on the spectrometer at the back edge of the counter. Worth a peek. All her other tests were giving her nothing, anyway. She dug it out and prepared one of the fragments, then slid it into the machine.

Normal light spectrum showed her that she was looking at a rock.

She sighed and flipped through the machine's settings on autopilot. High light. Low light. Ultraviolet. Infrared.

She froze. No, that couldn't be right. She reset the machine, checked the calibrations, and looked again.

She looked back up. It took a moment before she could speak. "Hey! Over here!"

The others turned to her, waiting.

"It's infrared!"

Isla raised an eyebrow. "What is?"

Words tumbled through Li's head in an excited jumble. She took a deep breath to sort them out. "The sample. It's giving off an infrared wavelength."

Isla strode over, M&M close behind her. Vera hovered, watching without getting closer, while Kirk leaned on one elbow and tried to look bored.

Isla checked the machine.

"It's especially long," Li said. "I'd guess it's borderline to microwave. You can barely see it, but..." She pointed. "See?"

"Sure enough. It's emitting infrared." Isla looked up. "What's that mean?"

"It could be how the mineral is affecting the excavators," Michelle said. "The suits would keep most external contaminants out, but a light wavelength wouldn't be stopped. Especially since the helmets are fairly clear."

Isla studied the machine's results a moment longer, then nodded. "It's possible. I've never heard of anything on the infrared spectrum having that affect, but it is an unknown material."

"Great," Kirk said. "So we can figure out a shielding layer to filter out that wavelength and keep people from being affected. But how does that help us now?"

Li opened her mouth. Paused. Closed it.

"Right." He returned his attention to the equipment in front of him.

Isla and Vera followed suit.

Li sighed and took the sample back out of the spectrometer. Kirk was right. This wasn't going to help them get the excavators back in their right minds. Besides, their mission had already failed. They'd been ordered to evacuate. Knowing how to deal with the foreign mineral without being affected was only helpful if she'd discovered it five months ago.

"It was a good catch," Michelle said. "Any information helps."

"Yeah." Li put the spectrometer away and handed the last fragment back to Michelle. "I don't have any other tests to work on here."

"Come help us back here, then," Michael said.

She didn't feel like being around the others just then, but duty took priority. She followed them back to the other end of the counter and assisted M&M in preparing the next round of tests. Once those were ready, she picked up the results from the previous round and flipped through them again. An odd structure in the chemical analysis drew her eye in. She studied it, squinted at it, and turned the paper upside-down, but couldn't quite sort out what about it had caught her attention.

Abigail slid in between Kirk and Isla. "Rundy said you should know this right away." She set down a handful of papers and a printout of a brain scan. "The only thing we've been able to figure out is that his amygdala is hyperstimulated. That's what's causing the aggressive behavior, but we haven't been able to sort out how."

Li eyed the papers, the text sideways from her angle. The amygdala controlled emotions and aggression, if she recalled. It made sense, given the behavior they'd seen.

"We believe it's triggered by an infrared wavelength the mineral emits," Isla said.

"No, not triggered," Li said. "Otherwise, they'd be aggressive after every excavation. The hyperstimulation must be a withdrawal affect."

"Which still doesn't tell us how to fix it," Kirk added unnecessarily.

Abigail shrugged. "We'll let you know if we find anything else."

Li glanced around to see M&M looking at each other. She'd always thought that wordless communication was limited to twins—or she had until she met these two.

"Abigail," Michelle called. "Does the infirmary have a stock of benzodiazepines?"

The doctor blinked at them. She looked like she was trying to sort out what they were getting at, but failing. "Anti-epileptics? I believe there are some, but not many."

"What are you thinking?" Li asked.

"If the problem is caused by hyperstimulation of the amygdala, then it stands to reason that the best solution is to counteract that," Michelle said.

Abigail's eyes brightened in partial understanding. "Benzodiazepines release GABA."

"The brain's personal 'calm yo' butt down' neurotransmitter," Michael explained in the direction of the blank looks coming from half the scientists.

"Combine that with any antidepressants we can find to release dopamine, serotonin, or one of the other mood-elevating neurotransmitters, and it should do the trick," Michelle finished.

Li and the others looked to Abigail.

The matronly woman stood with her eyes slightly narrowed in thought. Her eyes flickered back and forth across her mental calculations. "Yes. I think that might do it."

Michael tilted his head toward Jersey. "Lucky us, we can even test it."

Abigail's head bobbed. "Right. Tell Rundy. I'll find the benzos."

While the doctor hurried off, Isla flagged down Rundy.

"Find something?" Rundy asked. Anticipation flickered behind her professionalism.

"Maybe. M&M have a theory." Isla glanced at them, and Li thought she saw a hint of skepticism.

Michelle briefly outlined the theory with Michael throwing in the occasional commentary along the way.

When they finished, Rundy eyed the group. "And that will work?"

"It could. Abigail's prepared to test it on Jersey," Isla said.

"Is there any danger to him?"

Michelle's eyes shifted upward in thought. "With the benzodiazepine, only if he's allergic or has glaucoma. Antidepressants, it depends on what type we have here. Usually it's only a problem if the patient has heart problems."

"Or if pregnant or nursing," Michael supplied. "I doubt that will be a concern with Jersey."

"So it should be safe?"

Michelle nodded. "Should be."

"I found them," Abigail said, rejoining the group. She saw Rundy. "Are we all clear for this?"

Rundy paused, but dipped her head. "So long as you feel it won't cause any further harm."

"Give me just a minute to prepare the dosage."

The others wandered toward the back of the infirmary, clustering just a comfortable distance from Jersey and talking quietly. Li followed with M&M, though part of her cringed at the thought of getting any closer to him. He's secure, she told herself. He can't hurt you.

Nikolas slid close to her elbow. "You have found something, yes?"

"Maybe." She gave him the quick version.

"And you think this will solve?"

"We hope." She eyed Jersey's still-sagging head. "How much longer will he be out?"

"Is been hour. He will wake up soon."

It could have been the lack of sleep, but Li thought she heard some displeasure in Nikolas's tone. She gave him a funny look, but caught herself and quickly returned her expression to neutral.

"I am sorry. It sounds heartless, yes?" He flashed an apologetic smile. "I am only worry. I do not wish to see more harm."

She nodded. "I understand." She leaned in closer and stage-whispered. "Your secret's safe with me."

He grinned. "Thank you."

Her heart trilled. She quickly straightened and focused on an invisible speck of dust on the hem of her shirt.

"Got it," Abigail said. She walked to Jersey's side with a needle in hand. He grunted and half-mumbled a few syllables that were almost words.

"Maybe we should give with fewer people here," Nikolas suggested. "To be safe."

"No, proceed," Rundy said. She folded her arms and waited.

Abigail injected the contents of the syringe into Jersey's arm, then stepped back.

Jersey winced at the needle and roused. His lips smacked blankly a couple times, occasionally allowing out another syllable or two. Nose twitched. Eyes squinched, then relaxed.

Rundy drummed her fingers, impatient. "Bains."

He scrunched his eyes once more before opening them. Rage flooded across his face. "You! You took them! You took... you..." The rage slowly gave way to blankness, then a puzzled expression. "Huh?"

Abigail swooped in and shone a light in his eyes. He flinched away, but didn't rage any further.

"Well?" Rundy asked.

"I can't guarantee it without another brain scan, but it appears to have worked," Abigail said.

"What worked?" Jersey started to lift his hands, but was stopped by the cuffs. He looked down at them as if they'd sprouted from magic beans. "What happened?"

Abigail started to answer, but Rundy cut her off. "What do you remember?"

His eyes flickered upward and seemed to stare just past Li. He shook himself a little. His eyes shifted to the left in thought. "I... I don't remember anything. We got the excavators out the airlock, but after that..." He shook his head.

Rundy looked at Abigail.

The doctor shrugged. "It's not an effect of the medicine. It's possible the mineral itself somehow affects memory."

Rundy looked at Isla.

Isla mimicked the doctor's shrug. "I suppose it's possible."

Rundy turned back to Jersey. "But I'm sure you remember something about this mineral."

"Mineral?" he asked, giving her a blank look.

"The reason the excavators went crazy. You went crazy just like them. Which means you were exposed to same mineral that caused their madness." She tapped her foot. "How does that work, exactly?"

His mouth worked a couple of times, failing to produce sound. "Ma'am, I'm trying to think of any mineral I've come in contact with, but I can't. Aside from when I'm assigned to monitor the lab. But I don't work with the minerals. I just watch for any problems."

Rundy's eyes narrowed, but she didn't speak.

"Oh, I forgot." He shifted his weight in the chair. The cuffs rattled against the frame. "Last week, one of the excavators—I think her name is Anna?—dropped her sample bag in the away room, and I helped her gather the samples back into the bag so she could deliver them. Is that what you meant?"

She still didn't speak, waiting.

His eyes searched the others, seeking help. His eyes slowed near Li. Her heart skipped, but then he moved on. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but I really don't know what mineral you're talking about."

Rundy waited a moment longer, then shook her head. "We don't have time for this. Avery, Giles, search the compound, starting with Bains's room and the storage containers behind the dorms."

Jersey's eyes flickered across the group again, desperation on his face. Once more his gaze slowed near Li, but he didn't linger on her, to her relief.

Rundy turned her back on him. "The rest of you—"

"Wait," Jersey said.

She glanced back. "This better be good. Better than a spilled sample bag, at any rate."

His gaze shifted to the floor. "About a month after the excavations started, Jess came to me and asked for help with a problem. To make sure that no excavators were kept off the rotation for more than a day or two." He shifted his weight again in discomfort. "To keep this from happening."

Li stared. "You knew about this? From the beginning?" She fell silent as understanding sank in. Jess had known. All the excavators had known. Not just about the mineral, but also about the dangerous effects it could have. The effects they'd seen.

A memory flashed through her mind. Jersey arguing with Matteo in the cafeteria. Insisting that the excavators should be allowed to leave the colony and return to work as soon as Trevor's service was over. That's why he'd argued so hard. He'd known this would happen.

"Keep talking," Rundy said.

He looked up and met her eyes. "I wanted to tell you, ma'am. I was going to. But he brought me some samples and asked me to just spend a few days studying them. I didn't understand until the third day or so. It was..." He exhaled and looked down again. "It's like nothing I ever experienced before."

The timeline slowly clicked into place in Li's mind. The meteor shower had kept all excavators in the day before Trevor's memorial. And they'd all gone mad during the night after the memorial. Two full days. Jess's team had been affected first, though. Her eyes widened. Because they'd had to come in early.

Because of her.

"What about Trevor?" Michelle asked. The look on her face said that she'd been sorting out the timeline, as well. "All the other excavators exhibited the symptoms after approximately forty-eight hours inside the colony, but for Trevor, it was only about thirty-six hours. Why?"

Jersey shook his head, looking lost. "I honestly don't know. Best I can figure is that Trevor's always been... off. Different. The stuff seemed to affect him more than the others."

It made sense enough. He'd talked a bit strangely even before he went nuts. Chun Hei had even theorized he might have some form of autism. A difference in brain chemistry could cause him to be influenced faster.

Rundy's fingers drummed on her side again. Her eyes narrowed. When she spoke, her voice came out unusually low and calm. "What happened when you and Matteo went to the away room?"

Jersey's face paled. He didn't answer.

"What happened?" Rundy repeated, her voice rising, sharper.

The rest of the security team moved to her side, their muscles tense. Avery's hands tightened into fists.

Li could barely breathe as her mind processed the question. The meaning behind the question. Jersey had gone into the away room with Matteo. Only Jersey had come out alive.

"You told us that the excavators went crazy when it took too long," Rundy said, her voice once again a little too quiet. "That they attacked before he could get the airlock open."

Jersey still didn't answer.

"And when I went to open the airlock, you attacked a couple of them. It puzzled me at the time. I would've noticed if they were coming at me—I was watching for it. I thought I'd just missed something in the panic." She took a step closer to him, hands on hips. "But I didn't miss anything. You weren't firing at the excavators. You were aiming for me."

A few gasps of shock rose from a handful of people who hadn't quite put the implications together yet.

Jersey's eyes flew wide. "No! No, ma'am, I wasn't!"

"At the computer, then." She folded her arms. "You stopped Matteo from opening the airlock. You tried to destroy the terminal so I couldn't open it, either. You didn't want to the excavators to leave. Why? You wanted them to kill us all?"

His face turned even paler. "No! You've got it all wrong." His eyes flicked around for help once more. "Please, you have to believe me!"

"Then why would you try to keep the excavators in?"

A shameful red washed over his pale face. "I..." He sighed, and his gaze dropped to their feet. "I'm security. I was never allowed out on excavations. So they occasionally brought me samples to keep me from experiencing the withdrawals. I kept them in a storage container behind the dorms."

He exhaled again. "When the excavators went insane, I checked on my supplies before joining everyone else in the dorms. The excavators had already gotten to them. And I—I guess I went a little nuts. I couldn't stand the thought of them leaving the colony with my stash."

Rundy's eyes narrowed.

Michelle spoke before she could. "But you weren't without the samples for two days. It hasn't even been a full day yet."

"I don't know why, but the stuff gets, I don't know, weaker. That's why they had to bring me new samples all the time. After a while, the old stuff doesn't work anymore." He looked away. "It had been a while since they brought me fresh stuff. My stash wasn't doing as much as it used to. But it still worked some, and I knew the excavators wouldn't bring me more after they went crazy. I was desperate."

Rundy's lips pressed into a thin line. "So you killed Matteo."

His face whitened once more. "No!" He floundered for words. "I... It wasn't supposed to kill him. I didn't mean for it to. I only wanted to wing him, not kill him. I just wanted to keep them in long enough to get the stuff back."

His shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry."

Even he seemed to recognize the inadequacy of his words. No one spoke for a long moment. The security team tensed further, looking ready to swarm on him and tear him apart.

Li held herself tightly. It had been one thing to face excavators raging in violent madness. It was something else entirely to listen to Jersey talking in his right mind while knowing that he'd deliberately caused so much of their pain.

Anger tried to flare through her, but pity tempered it. He'd been driven mad, just like the excavators. Maybe not to the same degree, but still, his brain chemistry was off. He couldn't be expected to be rational, to behave normally, with the mineral turning his brain into its own personal jungle gym.

Still, part of her screamed for vengeance. Justice. If he'd only told Rundy about the mineral from the beginning, none of this would have happened.

Rundy's fingers clenched into fists until they turned white. Then she straightened, once again the security guard. "Avery, keep watch on the prisoner. Abigail?"

Abigail stared blankly.

"The medication seems to have worked. What's the next step?"

"Oh." It seemed to take Abigail a moment to find her voice again. "Um, make more of it, I suppose."

"Get to it."

"Rundy—" Giles started.

She cut him off. "We will have time to deal with justice later. For now, we have to focus on the excavators and getting them treated."

"Great," Kirk said. "How are we going to get fifty excavators to hold still while we give them their shots?"

"Aren't we just Mister Helpful," Michael said.

Kirk glared.

Michael imitated the glare.

"We'll have to come up with another method of delivery," Michelle said, giving Michael a light push as she spoke.

"Such as?" Rundy asked.

Silence fell as the medics and scientists alike contemplated the matter. Even Li's anger slipped aside, taking second place to her inner scientist.

"Liquid form?" Abigail suggested.

"How will we get them to drink it?" Kirk asked.

"We could spike the nutrient drink," Li offered. "They'll probably need to refill that, too."

Vera frowned. "Possibly, but there's no guarantee they will. They might only refill their air tanks and go back out."

"And it would only stop them after they've gone back out on the surface," Rundy added. "If they decide to cause any trouble before they return to the mines, the drink wouldn't help."

"The liquid's the trick," Michelle said.

Michael faced her. "Contact high?"

"As long as we have the supplies here, yes."

Rundy waved a hand, catching their attention. "Share with the rest of the class already."

"You've heard of the recreational drugs that are absorbed through the skin?" Michelle asked.

"You probably heard warnings to avoid certain night clubs because of it," Michael said. "Someone puts the drug on his hand, then touches as many people as he can to get them high, too."

Rundy and the others nodded.

"Before we were recruited to this mission, our lab was working on a universal medication delivery system based on the same principle," Michelle said. "If we have all the materials here, we could make at least an emulation of it and get the same effect."

Rundy stared blankly for a moment. "You can give them the medication by touching them?"

"By delivering it to be absorbed through the skin, yes."

Kirk snorted. "So you're volunteering to go up to fifty psychotic murderers and, what, give them hugs?"

"Mister Helpful, ladies and gents." Michael waved his hands as if he was a game show girl and Kirk was the grand prize. "Give him a hand."

"It functions through skin absorption. Physical contact isn't necessary," Michelle said. "We could fill the fire suppression tanks with the medication."

"And hose them down," Michael finished.

Rundy studied them for a moment, then looked back to Jersey. He blinked at her with forlorn eyes. She returned her gaze to the scientists. "How fast can you have it ready?"

Michael shrugged. "Hard to say."

Rundy checked the time. "You have an hour. Get it done."

Li worked beside M&M, following their directions to help create as large a batch of the compound as possible. Some of the scientific staff worked with them. Others helped Abigail and Nikolas prepare the medication so it would be ready to mix in once the compound was ready.

"Too bad we don't have anyone else to test this on," Michael said.

"Technically, we could test it on anyone and check their blood levels," Michelle replied. "But that would take longer than we have."

Li's eyes flicked back to the clock for the umpteenth time. The minutes seemed to rush past on greased rollers, faster than they should be. Less than thirty minutes before the excavators would be back.

Rundy paused beside them. "How close are we?"

Michelle dipped a finger into the clear goop and smeared it over the back of her hand. "Close."

"It needs to be closer." She turned. "Li, come with me."

Li blinked, surprised, and quickly handed off her work to Michael. It was the first time Rundy had spoken directly to her since Jersey flipped out. She hurried after her friend. "Yes?"

"I'll have to reenter my code into the terminal for the airlock to open. I'll need you beside me at the terminal the entire time. If anything goes wrong with it, you're the only one who can keep it working."

Images of enraged excavators pounding on the airlock doors filled Li's mind. She swallowed hard. She'd barely managed to keep herself together last time. How did Rundy expect her to be any use this time?

She swallowed again, this time pushing the thoughts away. Rundy needed her. This was the only way to bring an end to this mess. "Okay." She paused. "Rundy, I'm so sorry—"

"Let's just focus on the job." Rundy strode toward the exit a few steps, but slowed. When she turned back to Li, the friend had returned. "I'm sorry. I'm..." She glanced around. "This is harder than anything I prepared for. But we're going to get through this." She met Li's eyes. "We're going to make it."

Li nodded.

Rundy remained silent a moment longer, then turned. "Come on. Let's see to that terminal."

Li's chest squeezed inward as they reached the away room door, but the room proved just as empty as she'd left it. She scolded herself to stop being silly and followed Rundy to the terminal. A slight blush colored her cheeks at the sight of her discarded suit still crumpled in a heap there. She quickly scooped it up and put it on a nearby bench, out of the way.

A few of the connections had come loose. Li again leaned inside the terminal's cavernous inner workings and quickly worked to reattach them, forming a few new ones to bypass some particularly trashed circuits.

The door flew open before she'd gotten half of the connections fixed. Paavan stood in the door frame, eyes wide. "You better come quick, ma'am. Jersey's dead."

Chapter 16

Li stared at Jersey's still form. His eyes fixed on the ceiling, unseeing. Three scorched and smoking holes in his uniform testified to the use of an OL. Her stomach threatened to unload, but her brain was too numb with fog to acknowledge the sensation. She'd never felt so empty in her life. Never faced so much death at once.

She'd have thought she'd feel more of a sense of vindication. Justice had been done. Jersey had been partly responsible of all the deaths up until now. He deserved to die for that.

So why did she feel sick and hollow instead?

Rundy's eyes narrowed as she looked around the room while Avery gave a rattled report. He'd stood watch by Jersey. Jersey had tried to talk to him a couple times, but he was too angry to listen. Abigail had nearly dropped a tray of medicine. He'd hurried over to help her right it. Helped her carry it to the counter. He hadn't been gone for more than a minute or two. When he returned to his post, he'd found Jersey like this.

Rundy threw out rapid-fire questions that Li only half heard. No one else had seen anything. No one had been near Jersey at the time, but everyone was so focused on their own tasks that they hadn't been paying attention.

Rundy exhaled and pressed a hand against her temple. "We don't have time for this. Get back to work on the medication." She turned to Avery. "Direct the team in a search. Collect all OLs. Note the names of anyone carrying one. We'll have to take care of this after the excavators are dealt with."

"Why?" Kirk asked. "He got what he deserved."

A few people, Li included, stared at him in shock. Others seemed to agree with him.

"I believe I told you to return to your work," Rundy snapped. She turned and strode out of the infirmary.

Li hurried after her.

"As if we didn't have enough on our hands, now we have to worry about some vigilante," Rundy snarled. She stopped outside the away room and thumped her head against the door.

Li put a tentative hand on her shoulder. "You'll find who did it."

A grating laugh escaped Rundy's lips. "Thing is, part of me doesn't want to." She shook her head and straightened. The security guard returned. "Come on. We'd better get the airlock ready."

By the time Li finished repairing the terminal, the rest of the group arrived, carrying three large vats of goopy liquid. Avery shut and sealed the exit behind them.

"It's ready," Michelle said. "It should just take a minute to fill the fire suppressant system."

Li stood back as the group carried the vats toward the terminal, stopping just a short distance away. Michael unbolted a panel and pulled it aside, revealing a wide sort of closet containing the suppressant tank.

While the others set to work connecting hoses from the tank to the vats, Michelle joined Rundy and Li at the terminal. "We'll have to set the system into maintenance mode while the switch takes place."

"We'll just have to hope the excavators don't get back before it's done," Rundy said, glancing at the time.

Li followed her friend's gaze. The nine hours were up. The excavators would be back any minute.

Michelle tapped at the keyboard, then again, harder. "It isn't working."

Li returned her attention to the terminal. Sure enough, the intact portion of the screen only showed random strings of letters and numbers. She grunted in frustration and got back into the body of the terminal, digging until she found the broken connection.

"Any signs of them?" Rundy called.

Avery's voice came back from near the airlock's inner door. "Nothing yet."

Not that they'd see much from this angle. Li gritted her teeth and repaired the connection as fast as she could. The whole system was deteriorating, though. The OL blast had done more damage than she'd originally thought. They'd be lucky if it stayed intact long enough to get the excavators back in.

Michelle jumped back on the keyboard as soon as Li closed the case. "Got it."

A flash of memory turned Li's whole body cold. "How are we going to set off the suppressant system?"

"We'll manually trigger it," Michelle replied without looking up from her work.

The coldness deepened. "But that'll set off the alarm." Her voice sounded pathetically thin. Like a child afraid of monsters under the bed. She should have blushed in shame at her foolishness, but the chill held the blush at bay.

Michelle's fingers slowed, then sped up again. "I'll disable the audible alert function." She gave Li a comforting smile. "There won't be any alarm."

Li's head bobbed. She hated her own weakness. But she couldn't deny it. And if the terminal broke while the alarm was going off, she'd be useless. They'd fail because of her. She couldn't let that happen.

Michelle's disabling the alarm, she told herself. It's going to be okay.

Something thumped on the airlock's outer door.

"They're here!" Avery shouted, backing away from the airlock. Giles and Paavan joined him, tasers at the ready.

"Michelle?" Rundy asked, pulling out her own taser.

"Almost got it."

"We're set over here," Michael reported, setting aside the last empty vat.

"Everyone, stay close," Rundy ordered. "If the excavators figure out something's wrong, they may turn aggressive again." She glanced at the terminal. "I'll have to log my code out of the computer as soon as the airlock's shut. Otherwise they may try to use the secondary controls to open it again."

Li shivered.

Michelle finished with a flourish. "Done."

The outer door shuddered.

"Get it open," Avery shouted.

Rundy swapped places with Michelle and punched in her code. The ground rumbled slightly as the outer door activated and rolled open.

Li closed her eyes. Took deep breaths. This was going to work. Everything was going to be okay. It would work.

The excavators filled the airlock. No one pounded on the inner door. Instead, they waited patiently. They'd been dosed, Li realized. The withdrawal affect was no longer driving them. They wouldn't be aggressive—unless they felt someone was trying to keep them from their addiction again. Which was exactly what was about to happen.

She swallowed hard and tried to brace herself.

Michael spoke. His voice was quiet, but in the anticipatory silence filling the room, it seemed almost too loud. "It will take a few minutes for the medication to take effect. The excavators may be hostile during that time. Be ready for that. We have to keep them inside the colony—if they get back to the mineral, it could counteract the effects of the medication, and all this will have been for nothing."

Kirk shot an uncertain look at the ceiling. "We're going to get hosed down, too. What's going to happen to us?"

Michael turned to the other man with a solemn look. He clapped a hand on Kirk's shoulder. "I'm very sorry to tell you this, but you deserve the truth. You're about to become a pleasant person."

Kirk shoved Michael's hand away with a scowl.

"We may all feel a bit calmer and happier from the meds," Abigail said. "But that should be the extent of the effects."

"If it'll stop the excavators, then it's worth it," Rundy said.

"Calmer and happier. Sounds like a typical afternoon in my college days," Michael said.

The light above the inner door blinked on. The airlock was ready.

Rundy tapped in the command.

Li closed her eyes.

The inner door slowly rolled open.

When seconds ticked by with no screaming, Li cracked one eye open.

The excavators calmly entered the room, clustering near the storage rooms to change out their oxygen tanks, helmets off and tucked under their arms. A few even chatted and laughed. None seemed to even be aware of the group standing near the terminal.

Everyone in the group seemed as uncertain as Li, tense and braced, watching intently without moving. The last thing they wanted was to draw attention to themselves.

Rundy remained poised at the terminal, waiting. Avery hovered closest to the airlock, peeking inside occasionally.

The excavators just seemed to keep coming. Li swallowed. She'd forgotten how massive the group looked, especially in their bulky suits. She suddenly felt very small.

Avery signaled Rundy. She quickly entered commands.

The light above the inner airlock door went out. The door didn't close.

Rundy tapped the keys again, but nothing changed. "It isn't working." Her voice was quiet but tight.

Li hurried to the machine. The screen showed her another round of digital vomit. She pried the case open and was assaulted by a cloud of smoke. The temporary connections she'd made hadn't been strong enough. They'd fried under the pressure of use.

"Ma'am?" Michelle said.

Li glanced briefly over her shoulder. The first dozen excavators had finished refilling their tanks and were walking back toward the airlock, helmets still in their hands. If they put their helmets back on, the spray wouldn't reach them. How long would they wait?

"Can you get it working again?" Rundy asked.

Li pulled a few wires free and managed to get some sparks from them. "I think so, but it's going to take a minute." She started the repairs even as she spoke.

Rundy eyed the excavators a moment longer, then spoke to Michelle. "Do it."

Michelle pulled the fire alarm.

For a moment, nothing happened.

The sprinklers above hissed.

Then nothing.

Li finished jury-rigging another cord and hazarded a glance over her shoulder. A couple dozen excavators waited just inside the airlock, ready to go outside. And no spray. Why wasn't it working?

"Shouldn't we see something by now?" Rundy asked, her voice barely controlled.

"I'll check it." Michael slid to the closet.

"No, is too late," Nikolas said. He cast a worried look at the excavators. "And with computer not working... Is better to wait. They will come in again. We will try it then."

Li jumped a little and quickly refocused on the equipment in front of her. If she could get it fixed in time, everything would be okay.

"What in the..." Michael's voice came from behind her, irritated. "Half the hoses are crossed at the top." He paused. "Was someone working up here?"

"Is my fault," Nikolas said, sounding ashamed. "The hoses were not connected when we come in. I tried to fix."

Michael grunted. "Get me something to stand on."

Kirk and Reesa dragged a bench over. Li cringed at the loud scraping sound that rose even above the excavators' chatter.

"Hey," Jess said. "What are they doing here?"

Li's body tensed, her hands stilling over the circuit she'd just finished repairing. She fought the urge to turn and failed.

Jess stood near the airlock, helmet tucked under one arm, hair sticking out on one side. He stared at the group near the terminal, a slightly confused look in his cloudy eyes. Several other excavators stopped and stared, all with the same clouds in their eyes.

Li stared. She'd never seen an excavator look like that. But they'd always collected samples and drilled tunnels as well as dosing themselves. She'd wager they'd gotten more of the mineral in the last nine hours than they'd ever had in one sitting. It must have a stronger cumulative effect that way.

Rundy nudged Li, and she quickly returned her attention to the terminal. Her body remained tense as she worked, her senses on high alert.

"Routine maintenance," Rundy said, stepping closer to Jess. She sounded professional, almost bored. "They're checking the suppressant system."

"Uh..." Jess paused a long time. Li could almost feel his confusion from where she stood. "Oh. Okay."

"Go ahead back to work," Rundy said. "We'll be done here shortly."

"Yeah, we just have to fix some hoses here," Michael said.

"I will fix," Nikolas said. "It will be quick. I see my error."

"No, I've got—"

"It will be quick," Nikolas repeated.

Li finished the next circuit and peeked over her shoulder. Nikolas stood on the bench, hurriedly working with the hoses. Michael stood on the floor beside him, looking a bit puzzled and put out.

"Just maintenance?" Jess asked.

"That's all," Rundy promised.

Jess seemed to accept that and walked back to the airlock.

Li clenched her teeth and returned to the computer. It was a race against time for her and Nikolas. She'd have to get the computer working to keep the excavators inside the away room. He'd have to get the hoses connected right for this to work at all. And they both had to finish before the excavators got impatient and figured out something was up. Good thing she was almost finished.

"Wait a minute," Michelle abruptly said. "What are you doing?"

Li forced herself to stay focused on the terminal. They'd figure it out back there. Plenty of people knew how to connect the hoses. She was the only one who knew how to repair computers.

"I am fixing," Nikolas said.

Last one. Almost there.

"But you just put the input hose in the output valve," Michelle said. "You got it backwards again."

Michael spoke, sounding skeptical. "Why would you put the hoses the same way they were when you knew that was wrong?"

"Is... mistake. I will fix."

The last wires sparked to life on each other. The machine hummed. Li held her breath for a moment, only letting it out when the screen came alive with letters—ones that formed actual words this time. Her fingers flew over the keys. Some excavators were already inside the airlock. If she closed the inner door, the medication wouldn't reach them. She'd have to keep it open. But she could keep them from closing it and escaping. She logged Rundy's code out of the machine and put it back into lockdown mode.

She'd done it. They wouldn't be able to control any of the airlock functions from the secondary panels. Now they just needed to get the hoses fixed. Maybe she could help Nikolas with that.

She turned and hurried toward the bench, but slowed as she reached it. Nikolas was still perched on it, but he looked tense, almost cornered. M&M stood on the floor, staring up at him with skeptical looks. Michelle's eyes were narrowed like they always were when she was forming new ideas.

"The excavators recruited Jersey to help them keep the schedules straight, but they'd need more than just that," Michelle said. "They'd need someone to help control the symptoms as needed."

Everyone stared at Nikolas.

"They'd need someone in the medical staff," Michael said.

Li blinked. What? No, they'd made some mistake. Nikolas couldn't have been involved. She turned to reassure him of his innocence.

He jumped off the bench and grabbed her, yanking her back against himself. One arm snaked around her neck. "Silence now, all of you," he barked.

Li gasped, clutching his arm. "Nikolas! What are you doing?"

"I..." He hesitated. "I am only frightened. It will not work. We must let excavators back into mines."

Rundy stepped closer. Her face was flint hard. "You knew all along. Just like Jersey."

"No, I..." He stepped back against the wall, pulling Li with him.

"That's why you killed him. To keep him from telling us about you."

Li's mind reeled. Nikolas couldn't kill anyone. He couldn't have been involved. He was nice.

The truth sank in despite her mental protests. M&M were right. Someone from medical must have known. She remembered the way Jersey's gaze had kept slowing as he looked past her.

Right where Nikolas had been standing.

Nikolas's grip on her tightened, making her wince. "No. Is not true."

But it was. And now he was trying to keep them from curing the excavators. She saw them past the crowd, elevated by their clunky boots. A few gave curious looks at the group, but most were focused on the airlock. Nearly all of them had finished and waited just inside the airlock.

They had to act now. They couldn't do anything about the inner door, but the terminal would keep the outer door sealed. M&M could fix the hoses in a flash. The only thing in their way was Nikolas.

Rundy seemed to recognize the same thing. She squared her shoulders. "Michael, fix the hoses. Hurry."

Michael shot Nikolas a fierce look and stepped up onto the bench.

"No!" Nikolas barked. He yanked something out from under his shirt.

Everyone froze. Li stared, uncomprehending, at the device he pointed at her.

An OL.

The last tatters of doubts and hopes shredded away into a rising sickness that weakened her muscles. He'd killed Jersey with that same OL. And now he would kill her.

Her chest tightened at the thought. Fear clouded her thoughts. A whimper escaped her lips.

Rundy's eyes narrowed. "Put it down."

"Let the excavators go out. You must!"

"Don't do this," Li tried to say. She wasn't sure her voice had been audible. Her gaze flicked to the airlock again. The last dozen excavators walked toward it. Now or never.

She closed her eyes and did the only thing she could think to do. She went completely limp.

Nikolas stumbled forward, caught off-guard. His grip on her loosened.

She twisted free and crashed to the floor.

Kirk launched himself over her and tackled Nikolas.

Avery started forward.

"Stay put," Rundy barked, dashing toward Nikolas. "Michael!"

But Michael was jumping onto the quickly forming dogpile.

Michelle stepped onto the bench in his place. "He already fixed it. Pull the lever, quick!"

Li scooted back away from the mass of people.

The sprinklers above hissed again, then unleashed a spray of slick liquid.

A startled cry came from the airlock.

"No!" Nikolas howled. The pile of fighters writhed.

"Ew, what is this stuff?" Chun Hei's voice rose above the fray.

"Put your helmets on," Jess called.

Li struggled to her feet. If the excavators thought this was an attack, they might turn violent again. And with half of the fighters focused on Nikolas, she might have to defend herself.

Her chest tightened again at the thought.

But the excavators didn't seem to be attacking. They filled the airlock, helmets snapped on their suits. Waiting.

The pile stilled, then slowly disentangled. Nikolas lay on the floor, eyes fixed open and glassy. Blood trickled from his mouth.

The OL in his hand, twisted the wrong direction, told the rest of the story. He'd shot himself with his own weapon in the confusion.

The sick feeling rose again. Li slid to the floor and let the wall support her. She'd seen more death in the last day than in her entire life. His attack, his threats, the knowledge of the horrific things he'd done, none of those things even dented the horror she felt at the sight of his dead body lying so close to her.

She clenched her eyes shut. It was okay now. Over. The medication would take effect. The excavators would calm down enough to be safely secured. They'd evacuate. No one else would die.

It was all over.

Her radio crackled. "Hey, the door isn't shutting."

The excavators. They were trying to use the secondary panel inside the airlock.

"This panel won't work. What's going on?"

Li pushed herself back to her feet. Had enough time passed for the medication to kick in?

"They did something to it." Jess's voice sounded accusatory, angry.

No. Not enough time. Her fingers clenched inward. Would they attack?

"Who cares?" Chun Hei again. "We're in our suits. Open the outside door."

"But the panel doesn't work," Jess replied.

Li's shoulders tightened until they hurt. Jess is right, she told herself. They can't open the outer door without the panel working. It's okay.

"So?"

Someone banged on the outer door. Then another person. And another. The whole door shuddered.

Li's heart stopped.

The excavators were trying to breach the airlock.

Chapter 17

Rundy grabbed Li's arm and hauled her to the terminal. "Shut the inner door, quickly."

Li's brain refused to function. "But... the medication..."

"They're already dosed," Michelle said from behind her. "Close the inner door."

Li took two tries to find the keyboard. Lockdown kept the secondary panels from operating and the airlock doors from opening. But it wouldn't stop the inner door from closing. Her fingers stumbled over the keys.

A loud popping noise preceded a new cloud of smoke from within the terminal.

The door didn't move.

New waves of terror crashed over Li, dragging her brain into their depths. Her whole body shook.

The outer door shuddered again.

"Fix that thing," Rundy said, then strode toward the airlock, taser at the ready. "We have to distract them, get their focus off the door. Let's go."

She didn't specify who she was ordering, but the security team fell in step behind her. Michael joined, but Michelle stayed put, much to Li's relief. Kirk quickly jumped in behind Michael, and several others followed.

"What do you need?" Michelle asked, popping the terminal open. Another cloud bellowed out through the box-like opening.

Li stared at the mass of fused wires in the middle of the machine. She'd made too many shortcuts. Overloaded the whole system. "I... I can't fix it."

"Yes, you can."

"No, look at it!" Her voice came out as barely more than a squeak. "I can't fix it."

"Then go for option C."

Li stared, Michelle's words adding to the mass of confusion rioting her thoughts.

"What's the alternative?" Michelle explained patiently. "If you can't fix the terminal itself, is there another way to get the door closed?"

Li blinked as the words finally sank in. "Another way..." Circuits and connections flitted through her mind. She bent forward, the top half of her body disappearing into the terminal. "Maybe, if I got to the—"

The door shuddered again, then gave an inch. A roar filled the away room as air rushed to the breach. But the alarm blared even louder.

Terror enveloped Li and tore her away from the room. Into the past.

She stood in the hallway in the shuttle. Holding the door handle, about to open the door. Maryann and Lisbet stood next to her. Talking. Laughing.

And then they were gone.

Her fingers gripped the door handle as her whole body lifted from the floor, the air tearing at her frame like a frenzied animal trying to drag her into its lair. Her lungs collapsed on themselves and burned, crying for oxygen that wouldn't come. Trying to scream without a voice.

Fingers dug into her arm now. Clung to her.

So many screams echoed through her ears as images continued whirling around her. Someone in an envirosuit with arm outstretched, reaching for her before she was sucked through the breach in the shuttle wall. Her fingers slipping.

A voice pierced the roar. "Li, calm down. You can still fix it."

She crumbled into herself. Pressed her free hand against one ear. Tried to cover the other ear, but someone held her other arm tight and wouldn't let it move.

The roar grew louder. She felt the animal again, tugging at her hair, her clothes. She whimpered. Tears stung her eyes.

"Li!" Michelle's voice, right in her ear. "You can do this! We need you!"

Her lungs burned, cried for air again. It had come back for her. It hadn't gotten her last time, so it had come back.

Her fingers instinctively clenched. A sharp edge dug into her hand. The side of the terminal. Michelle clung to the side, pressed flat against the wall to minimize the pull that whipped her hair about her face. She held Li against the side, too, keeping Li's hand tight on the edge.

More screams. Li clenched her eyes shut hard and prayed for it to just be over. Let it just be over. Someone had to save them.

No.

The thought startled her into clarity. She was the only one who could repair the door. She was the only one who knew the machinery.

She had to save them.

The escaping air pulled at her, inviting her back into her panicked stupor, but she fought this time. Forced herself to open her eyes. To focus.

Michael appeared on her other side. "What do we do?" he shouted above the roar.

Li clenched her teeth and focused. Managed to get a half-breath in. "Help me get in."

Michael braced himself against the side and put a hand on her back, ready to push. Michelle did the same.

Li fumbled and found the opening. Her fingers brushed the smoldering mass of wires, and she recoiled from the burn. Refocused. Tried again, more cautiously. Found a safe place to hold. Nodded.

As she lifted her feet, M&M pushed hard. The upper half of her body slid into the terminal's cavity. Slammed into the other side of it. Began to slide out.

Terror flared again. She scrambled at the wires and circuit boards around her, desperate for something solid to hold. Her hand struck the near edge of the terminal casing and latched on. Her slide came to a stop.

The roar grew louder again, and the air tore at her with greater hunger. The excavators had widened the breach. Screams swirled and vanished in the rushing air.

The panic edged out her newfound resolve.

She clenched her teeth again. No. She had to save them. She couldn't wait for someone else to come along and fix everything. She had to be the James Bond this time.

It took everything in her to pull herself up and back into the terminal. Her legs left the ground entirely as the rushing air tried to drag her with it. The animal carrying her off.

She banished the thought and forced her eyes to the machinery in front of her. Wires and connections. This she could understand. She dug through with one hand, keeping a tight grip with the other hand. Light controls. Power controls. The basic motherboard. No, no, no.

Her hand hit it before she saw it. The airlock controls. She tore the board free and pressed it against her other arm. The side of the terminal bit into her stomach as the pull increased. She winced in pain. Kept her grip.

She found the wires she needed. Pulled to get them free.

They stayed attached.

Someone slammed into her legs. A hand clawed at her, then disappeared.

Her fingers whitened in her grip. Had to focus. Had to save them.

She tried using her teeth to pull the wire free, but the wire cover began to give way instead. She'd electrocute herself that way.

Li's mind raced in a muddled panic. She didn't have time for this. She had to get the connection made. Now.

She let go with her other hand.

Her body began to slide.

She fought back the wave of terror. Yanked the wires free. Pressed them against the terminal.

The inner door shuddered. Began to roll.

Pain flooded her as she scraped over the edge of the terminal. She lost her grip on the wires, but the wall shook as the door continued its forward movement. It would close. She just had to keep from being sucked out before that happened.

Her hands groped blindly. She couldn't breathe again. This time it wasn't from panic. The air's rush was too strong.

A hand closed around her wrist. She clutched at it, dug her fingers in, swung her other hand up to clench around it as well.

The inner door locked into place with a resounding thud. The air stilled. Li crashed to the floor.

Alarms still screeched around her, but she no longer cared. She lay on the floor, gasping in the thin remaining air. The slightest smile tugged at her mouth. She'd done it.

The hand still clenched between her hands shifted a little. Li released it and looked up.

Michelle lay on the floor, flexing her crushed hand.

Michael lay beyond her, still holding her ankles. "So," he wheezed, "are we dead?"

"I hope not. This would be a disappointing afterlife," Michelle said.

A weak laugh escaped Li as the vents above them clicked on, sending air whooshing in. She rolled onto her back and closed her eyes, content to simply breathe for the moment.

"Good work," Rundy said.

Li cracked one eye to see Rundy standing over her. Her friend offered a hand to help her up. "Not that you haven't done enough already, but we need you to get the outer door shut properly and the inner door open again." Rundy nodded toward the airlock.

Li took Rundy's hand and glanced in that direction as she stood. Most of the excavators still stood inside the airlock, milling around with confused expressions. Several stood outside the lock, but looked equally aimless.

Jess stood just inside the inner door, peering in with a creased brow. He activated his radio. "Excuse me, ma'am, but are we supposed to be going out on an excavation?"

Rundy shook her head and lifted her own radio. "No. You all need to come in now. Get everyone inside the airlock, and we'll take it from there."

He still looked confused, but nodded and ordered the excavators back into the airlock.

Li turned to the mess in the terminal. The fused mass was like an ideological love child of H. P. Lovecraft and Jules Vernes, but she still felt her smile grow. They'd done it.

The nightmare was over.

Chapter 18

"Anything?" Michelle asked.

"Nada," Michael said.

Li kept her eyes on the work in front of her, feeling a small twinge of disappointment that lessened into numbness with each failed attempt. A full day had passed. After the first few hours spent catching up on much-needed rest and setting up a system to keep the excavators doped up for the long term, M&M had found Nikolas's stash of the mineral behind the infirmary. They'd convinced Rundy to let them study the samples while she and the security team dealt with the excavators and arranged the evacuation. After Li got the terminal back into some Macguyvered form of working order, she'd joined them and a couple other scientists who'd agreed to help.

Their hope was to find some sort of cure or vaccine to eliminate the need for meds. Maybe even make it possible to colonize Mars after all. But as each attempt turned up nothing, Li's hopes for that faded a bit more. They'd be evacuating soon. Returning to Earth as failures. Humanity would spend its last couple generations drifting through space with no planet to call home.

She sighed as her own test turned out zero results. Not that it mattered, anyway. They still couldn't get the right mixture to grow healthy, balanced crops in Martian soil. Mars was a bust no matter what they found.

Li dropped the failed sample on the analyzer. It would record her attempt and project it to the other scientists so none of them wasted time trying methods that had already failed. The list in the analyzers kept growing longer. Part of her wanted to give up on it entirely, but she'd go stir crazy with nothing to do but sit and wait to evacuate. There wasn't really anyone to talk to or hang out with. The excavators were still being kept secured. They'd face justice back on Earth, especially the leaders who had deliberately hidden the substance from the rest of the colony.

Not that it mattered much now.

Li sighed and waited for the analyzer to finish.

"I think I've got something," Michelle said.

Li hurried over, joined by Michael and Vera. Isla looked up from her station on the other side of the room and waited. Kirk didn't bother looking their way.

Michelle pointed to the readout on her analyzer. "The unknown material making up the mineral. It's related to tetrazine."

Michael tilted his head. "Which means it affects the brain entirely through the optic nerve."

"Remember the Visiline studies?"

He grinned. "It could work."

"What?" Vera asked.

M&M were already gathering items and rushing out the door.

For once, Li had managed to partially follow their train of thought. "Visiline was the eye drop company that did that big test on a compound that would inject into the eyes and permanently correct color blindness." Her eyes widened as M&M's intent clicked into place. "It failed, but a similar compound could block the infrared effects of this mineral."

"You think it will work?" Vera asked.

She didn't have an answer for that one. "Knowing M&M, probably."

Abigail had said it seemed that the withdrawal effects were fading on their own as the excavators rehabilitated. M&M's discovery, if it worked, meant that they could continue working in the mines without this happening again. Maybe they wouldn't have to evacuate after all.

But that still left them back at square one. They still had no way for Mars to permanently sustain human life.

Li returned to her station and picked up the sample off the analyzer. The readout on the screen caught her eye. She stopped and read again. Something had changed. The test she'd run had caused some of the structures to break down. To react. To change.

Calcium.

She gasped. Her fingers shook as she grabbed a new sample and ran it through the same test. She held her breath as the analyzer whirred.

Calcium. She'd formed calcium. All with substances native to the planet. The final missing piece to sustainability. To saving the human race.

Her fingers missed the radio twice before she found the right button. "Rundy?" Her friend was probably already occupied with M&M's new discovery, but Li didn't care. "Come to the lab. There's something you need to see."

"Did something happen?" Rundy asked.

Li's grin spread over her face. "Yeah. And I think everything's going to be fine."

THE END

About the Author

I enjoy life with my life-mate and little sprout in the Pacific Northwest. I obtained a degree in Counseling Psychology from Northwest University in Kirkland, WA, which I use to create fully dimensional characters with unique personalities and quirks. In fiction, I'm a huge fan of all things speculative: anything where the rules of reality need not apply. My books include traditional fantasy, space fantasy, post-apocalyptic, and more. When not writing, I can usually be found reading, watching movies, or wasting entirely too much time on the internet.

Connect with me at

cybishop.com

**The "Pay What You Want"** **Quarantine Deal**

It's hard to know where to begin. Most of us have never faced anything like this, not on this scale, and it can be an odd mixture of scary, frustrating, uncertain, and boring as we all do our best to stay secluded and help defeat COVID-19.

In light of this (and the increased need for entertainment options it has presented), I am offering a new payment structure for my books during this time. All of my ebooks are now available at no up-front charge. That's right; you can now download any of my ebooks completely free.

After you have read the book, you then get to decide for yourself what that ebook was worth. Was the entertainment you experienced worth a dollar? Three? Five? More? Whatever you decide is what you get to pay.

For your convenience, there are two options for how to make this payment: through my website, cybishop.com, or through paypal.me/cybishop.

So stay home, stay hydrated, wash your hands, and enjoy some time reading!

