Dark Matter, page 16
part #2 of The Starfire Wars Series
“We have to go, sir,” Madan says and glances at his Connect. “You’ve already been away from the Capitol building for too long.”
“Honestly, there isn’t that much we can do at this point, though. If the Alku are still refusing to attack . . .” He eyes Javen. “And getting any rebel ships through the Turner Space Fold is proving impossible. It’s too heavily guarded. The living members of the World Senate who side with us would help, if they could, but it’s too dangerous to reveal their positions. The best we can offer you right now is to keep you alive, Dr. Foster. We can rebuild confidence and attempt again later.”
“The Alku may be willing to defend themselves,” Javen says.
“We have a plan to reclaim one of the mining sites and take out the device blocking the Starfire energy,” I add. “But we were really hoping Owens’s contact—you—might be able to secure the help of the World Senate members who are still sympathetic to the cause.”
“For that,” Alina says, “our hands are tied. If there were a way to get ships to Arcadia without using the TSF, I’m certain the option would be considered by the underground Senate members. But right now, their help is impossible.”
I always knew getting outside help was a longshot. But knowing we’re on our own sets a pit in my stomach.
“Well,” Dad says. “We didn’t come here to go into hiding. And if you're just going to sit by and let this travesty happen, then we need to leave.” He looks to Javen. “You can get us back out of the city, right?”
“Yes, sir,” Javen says.
Still not really sure if we’re safe, I holster my pistol in my waistband. If Luca wanted to kill us or take us into custody, he would have done so already. But he could always just be afraid of what Javen might do. I grip onto the journal and turn my attention to Dad. “Let’s leave. We have to get back and prepare.”
“Get back where? For what?” Alina asks.
I look at her. There’s no way I’m telling any of them about the Intersection.
“There’s a war going on, Alina,” I say. “If you haven’t noticed. We need to prepare the troops we have.”
“You won’t win,” Luca warns as he walks to the door and opens it.
“Sometimes you still have to try,” Javen says and then grabs my hand and pulls me to Dad. A cyan glow illuminates us as he clasps Dad’s upper arm. Javen nods to me, and we rush out the door.
I almost expect Luca and Alina to have a small portable device able to block the Starfire energy so guards can jump out in surprise to arrest us. But nothing happens.
Outside, we hurry toward the city’s edge. Javen navigates us back down the safest streets where his Starfire energy can still be maintained. As we near the perimeter of the city, my and Dad’s Connects buzz and a holographic message appears above the screen, rotating and flashing in red.
Emergency Alert
This is probably where I find out Luca and Alina were lying the entire time. “Slow down,” I say to Javen. “We should see whatever this is.” I look out toward the forest. We are so close to being outside of Primaro. My muscles tense with anxiety.
Citizens of Primaro. This is an emergency alert. Please return to your homes. If this is not possible, make your way to the lower levels of the nearest building.
The message repeats itself but gives no further details. An alarm blares from behind us, signaling emergency procedures in the city. Everyone was trained on these before we arrived on Arcadia. But I’m not sure anyone thought we might actually have to use them for a reason like war.
We pick up the pace again, but Javen suddenly slows us and stops. His eyes swirl with cyan, and then he closes them and inhales deeply. When he opens them again, I know by the tension on his face that whatever just happened isn’t positive.
“Wirrin is summoning me. The army used the portal and are already on this side. The troops are in a holding pattern but are waiting to attack.”
Dad’s expression falls. “Why didn’t they wait?”
“He's not sharing his reasons. All I know is that he wants us outside of the mining site.”
“Before we left, they were willing to wait.” Dad’s eyebrows knit in confusion. “Why would Wirrin try and fight again?”
“But the army hasn’t attacked yet, right?” I confirm.
“Not from what I could tell in the summons. But he is agitated,” Javen says. “I suggest getting to him immediately.”
It’s still a half-mile to the Rover, and the mine is on the opposite side of Primaro from our location now. “Can you transport the three of us without draining your energy too much?”
Dad reaches into his pocket and pulls out my Starfire from the Intersection. My chest tenses at the sight. Analya said I would know when I was ready to use the Starfire again, and something inside of me tells me I’m not.
“I know the Alku can’t normally refresh their connection to the Starfire unless they’re on the Paxon side. Javen told me,” I say.
“In the time that you were healing,” Dad says, “Wirrin and the other Alku discovered that the Intersection crystals allow the recharging to happen anywhere.”
“So, have they been renewing their connection with the Intersection Starfire?” I ask. Panic works its way through my chest and arms. “All of them?”
“As the Starfire was being harvested for energy, it took over and refueled them. The process was automatic.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” I ask.
Dad studies me for a second. “This is a good thing.”
“Maybe, but I’m still not sure. When I first found you in the Intersection you . . . you were affected.”
“What do you mean?” Dad’s face scrunches into an almost offended expression.
“You don’t remember?” I ask.
“I admit, I did feel different when I first began studying the Starfire there. But I figured that experience was typical. My body adjusted, and everything is normal now. It’s the same as when your body adjusted.”
“You might be right, Dad.” I look to his hand still clutching the crystal. “But Wirrin told me a story about how the Intersection Starfire can be all-consuming for the Alku.” I move my attention to Javen. “Did you sense any of this from your uncle just now?”
He thinks for a moment. “Possibly, but it may only be his desire to save Paxon.” Javen says. “I’m going to take the risk and take us to Wirrin.”
I open my mouth to protest, but before I can, the force of transporting hits my body as Javen squeezes my hand. I gasp when we jolt to our new location. Javen releases Dad and me, and then Dad shoves the Intersection Starfire into Javen’s hand.
Javen’s eyes go wide, and he inhales deeply, then relaxes. He turns to me, eyes swirling a brighter blue-green than I’ve ever seen. Within seconds, his eyes return to brown. “You weren’t kidding when you said this was powerful.” He hands the crystal back to Dad. “Before we go, I need to initiate the summoning to the Alku still on Paxon.”
Dad and I say nothing, and so Javen falls into a trance-like state, closing his eyes.
After a moment he opens his eyes and points ahead of us. “The camp should be this way.”
“Will they come?” I ask.
“Many of my people are frightened about what is happening on our side. But I believe so.”
I press down my fears. Now Javen has used the Intersection Starfire. But my greater concern is for all the Alku who entered the Intersection and used the Starfire there, as well.
The three of us sprint in the direction Javen indicated, and after a few minutes, we reach the hidden camp among the trees. I search the faces of both the Alku and the humans. Several of the Alku bow their heads to Javen. We finally find Wirrin in the crowd. He extends his hand to Javen, though his serious expression remains.
“Why are you here already?” Javen demands, ignoring Wirrin’s hand. “You were asked to wait.”
Wirrin’s lips form a thin line. “The people were becoming restless.”
“You are leading them, Wirrin,” Dad says. “And we had an agreement.”
Analya comes up from behind. “We used the portal device on the other side and sent a few people through. We were able to get word to General Atkins’s spy. It was either act now or have no chance.” She hands the device back to Dad.
I look around and can’t find my friends. “Where are Beda and Max? And Irene?”
“They are part of the team who volunteered to infiltrate the mining facility,” Wirrin says. “The three are already on their way.”
“What?” I demand. “My friends are going to get killed!”
“Someone has to disable the Inhibitor for us to move in,” Analya says. “Irene has the skills to do what needs to be done, and Max and Beda are protecting her to ensure she gets inside. Once the device is disabled, Beda will summon us.”
My friends are putting themselves into so much danger and I’m not able to help them. My body stiffens and I fidget with my Connect, wanting to contact Max or Irene, but I’m too late.
“And the modified refugee ships?” Dad looks around, but they’re not here. Not that we would be able to see them from our hidden position anyway.
“The portal is ready when we need the ships to come,” Wirrin says. “You can use your device and open the portal for them. The ships should be able to exit directly over the mining site.”
My mind returns to the Emergency Alert in Primaro. “But if the army hasn’t attacked yet,” I ask Dad and Javen, “then why the alarms? Why have everyone return to their homes?”
“That would be our diversion,” Wirrin says. “General Atkins had false intel sent to Hammond, alerting her that the three missing refugee ships were sighted and then re-cloaked. This is, of course, untrue. However, our story sounds plausible enough after the way you evacuated them to the Intersection. If Hammond believes the ships will attack the city, then her focus may not be on the mine.”
Analya goes into a brief trance. “Beda’s team has disabled the Starfire Inhibitor. We must move now.”
Wirrin straightens, and his hand glows blue-green. All the Alku turn his way, including Javen. Their hands illuminate as well, as if a cyan fire were lit in the forest. Wirrin waves them forward. To war. And this time I can’t save them.
Chapter 23
Javen turns to me while I watch the Alku charge. Then, to my surprise, at least a hundred more Alku appear around us, the ones who have decided to follow Javen. Pride fills me with his willingness to be the leader he was born to be. Javen yells for them to follow Wirrin, and without question, the army obeys. Behind us, the crackle and roar of a giant portal sounds. Javen’s face lights up cyan from the glow and his eyes gleam.
Javen clutches my arm, and I flinch from the energy radiating from his Starfire energy. “I don’t know if this is the beginning or the end.” Without another word, his mouth collides with mine. Fire curls through my veins as his breath becomes mine. I nearly drop my mom’s journal but somehow hold it tight in one hand. His touch unravels me until the world spins away for a few heartbeats of time. Here, only Javen and I exist. I return his kiss with more fervor than I have ever expressed before. This need, this fear, his presence—it’s everything. So much so, that when he finally pulls away, the sense of loss is devastating.
“Javen, you are my beginning and end.” I can barely get the words out. A sob knots in my throat and tears prick the back of my eyes. He folds me into his strong arms and holds me tight to his chest as if he’ll never let go. Then he does, and I heave in a ragged breath as he races to join the rest of his people. He can’t leave them to fight on their own.
“That boy is in love with you,” Dad says softly from behind. “I’ve seen the look before.”
I twist around to him, and he holds the Starfire out to me. Any embarrassment I might have had for sharing such an intense, intimate kiss with Javen in front of Dad is gone. In the next hour, many of us will likely die. And right now, Dad is trying to give me the Starfire.
I glance at the crystal and back to his face. “I’m not sure if I should take it. I might not be ready.”
“Something tells me you are.”
Gingerly, I pluck the gem from his palm and suppress the urge to welcome a flood of the crystal’s energy into my body. Barely looking at the Starfire, I grab the necklace and pull the chain over my head.
Dad’s eyes well up with tears and I fall into his arms. “This wasn’t what Arcadia was supposed to be like, Daddy,” I cry into his neck. A blast sounds from behind and I flinch. “How can one planet’s salvation be the another’s doom? It’s not fair.”
Dad pulls back from me and then places his hands on my shoulders. He doesn’t answer my question. Instead, he gently squeezes my upper arms before his hands fall back to his sides.
He steps away from me, but I grab his hand. “How do you know Javen loves me?”
Dad’s lips quirk into a sad smile. “Because the look in his eyes is the same one I gave your mom every morning when I was privileged enough to share my life with hers.”
The words make my breath hitch.
“I want to send you far from here, Cassi. But nowhere is safe. Not Earth, not Primaro, and you can’t hide in the Intersection forever. You’ve made a connection to this planet and its people I don’t entirely understand. All I know is that you are a key to setting things right again.”
I gape at him, not wholly believing his words but also knowing them to be the truth.
“Are you coming?” he asks.
I want to say yes, but apparently my feet refuse to move. “I need a moment.”
Dad nods. “I love you, Cassi.”
“I love you too, Daddy.”
He exhales a quick breath and then sprints toward a group of armed refugees who haven’t joined the fight yet. He taps on the portal device and I whip around just in time for the two modified refugee ships to appear overhead and take off toward the mining site.
Alone and the last to leave the area, I collapse in a heap on the forest floor. I wipe away the river of tears spilling down my cheeks.
My mom’s journal rests solidly in my hands. I turn the small book over and study the plain leather. I trace along the lock, my brows furrowed. Then, as if compelled, I take my necklace off and hold the crystal to the locked front.
The gem pulses and illuminates. I hold my breath, waiting. Hoping. And then it happens. The lock clicks open. My breath hitches.
An explosion rumbles from behind me. I snap my gaze toward it, but I don’t see anything. So, I push up to my feet and scan the area.
“I don’t have time to deal with this.” I bury the journal under fern-like foliage growing beneath a tree. Then I tap my Connect and mark this spot so I can make it back if—when—this is over. I throw a few more handfuls of underbrush on top of the book for good measure and then race to the overlook. Once there, I feel for my pistol; it’s there. But it’s not the best solution, anyway. I’ve never fired one of those things and would probably be dead in a flash if I tried. I fumble for my Starfire, my only hope.
I hold the crystal in my hand and curl my fingers around it. But I’m just not able to focus, so instead I look below the ridge and watch the chaos. The Starfire Inhibitor has been either destroyed or stopped. Dotted bursts of light illuminate the site sporadically. But to hold back the Alku, soldier bots have been released to protect the mine. From the south, Hammond’s ships approach. Shots are fired from one of the upgraded refugee hovers. Despite the Starfire power source upgrades, I’m not sure if our two upgraded escape ships will be powerful enough to control Hammond’s ten other ships.
The refugee ships shoot bolts of cyan lasers at the enemy, but Hammond’s vessels return the fire in full force. On the ground, several refugees and Alku are already down.
Fear gallops through my body and sends ice shards up my spine. I have no idea what to do or whether there’s anything I can do with the Starfire to help. Just stopping the battle won’t solve the problem. If Hammond’s forces are not destroyed, this will continue. And I can’t hide the Alku forever in the Intersection. It’s not meant for them to live there anyway. I’m sure of that.
Another explosion rips from below and jolts me from my thoughts. I clench the Starfire and let my body open as a vessel. If I die, then I die. But I can’t stand by and let all these people kill each other if nothing can be solved by their sacrifices. And if this battle gets out of control, the mine may be damaged further, making it impossible to stop Paxon’s destruction. I need to transport the Alku out of here since the bots have probably already transmitted the feed. Just when I think my pounding heart can’t handle another rush of panic, the crystal’s warm energy fills me, and any fear remaining falls through my fingers as I let myself go.
A blast of light erupts from me, and I grit my teeth against the caustic sensation of being ripped into a galaxy of a billion stars. Pain travels my entire body and my mind reels. This could be the end—of me, of the Alku, Paxon, Arcadia, perhaps even Earth. My jaw aches as I clench it even harder, a relieved whimper escaping my chapped lips when the pain finally subsides. I draw in a much-needed breath. My chest and limbs tingle as if blood has pushed through my once-constricted veins. My mind swirls in a cyan haze.
With a loud crack, the world comes back to me full force and my thoughts buzz with the Alku. It’s as if I’m not only summoning them but also hearing their thoughts and intentions. Through the buzz of communication, I make out Wirrin and Javen issuing battle instructions to the fighting Alku. Responses come through, and I struggle to make sense of their replies. I drop to my knees and throw my hands to my ears, but of course, the voices persist because the sound is in my head. And what I hear gives me pause. All the voices have turned from a position of defense to one of overthrowing. Something has changed. Using the Starfire from the Intersection has shifted the Alku’s thoughts.
