We sprint after the soldier, not daring to look back. The open plateau provides no cover. One well-placed sniper could pick us off with ease, but we cross without being attacked. When we reach the cave, Dillan waits by the entrance. His gaze is fixed on the horizon, while Cael stands beside him, studying a hand-held scanner.

“What’s happening?” Astrid demands. “Are we under attack?”

Cael glances up at her. “Not yet, but our troops up north are.” His forehead is bruised and still crusted with blood from the Mudcrawler crash, but he doesn’t seem to notice. He points to the flickering skyline, which looks like an electrical storm raging in the distance. “They must have spotted them near the fortress and launched a pre-emptive strike.”

“Or someone tipped them off,” Lily adds bitterly.

Astrid’s face blanches. “W-What about my father?”

“We don’t know yet,” Dillan answers, “but there’s another problem. Our scouts just spotted a drone flying in from the north.”

“Looking for us,” Astrid murmurs in disbelief.

“Drones have bioelectric sensors, so I’d say they’ve found us,” Dillan corrects. “Assuming the closest runway is near Scilla Rock, enemy wings could be here in less than fifteen minutes. We need to evacuate. Now.”

“But how did they know where to look?” I ask. Ferro was caught before we planned the raid. There’s no way he could have warned Gant. What if there’s another traitor?

Dillan squints at the burning horizon and I can tell he’s wondering the same thing. “Let’s hope we live to figure that out,” he says before stalking back into the cave.

*

There’s no time to gather supplies. Lily tosses me a frag gun, then hands Astrid a slicer.

“For emergency use only,” she warns. “And if you point those anywhere near me, I’ll knock you out cold.” She turns to Vin, who’s shouldering what looks like a pulse rifle. “That includes you, big guy.”

“Yes, ma’am,” he answers with a grin. “Defensive use only.”

“Scouts report we’re clear to the northwest,” Dillan informs us. “That’s where we’re heading.” He flashes his soldiers a hand signal and they fan out into a spearhead formation, pointing our way across the plateau. Meanwhile, the three sentries guarding the cave stay behind, frag guns trained on the flickering horizon.

“Like ducks flying over a shooting range,” Vin mutters as we jog into the open. He’s right. The exposed terrain offers no cover. A single Blue Wing coming over the ridge could vaporize us all in nanoseconds.

I glance up at the sky, alarmed to see the storm is starting to break up overhead. Moonlight ripples through a small gap in the clouds, milky and iridescent as mother of pearl.

“Cloud cover’s still too thick for the satellites,” Dillan says, following my gaze, “but drones and Wings are another story. We need to get to that ridge before they spot us.” He points to a dark mound in the foreground.

“How far?”

He answers my question by accelerating to a flat-out sprint. I keep my eyes on the uneven ground as I race after him, knowing even a twisted ankle could be lethal. The plateau, which looked flat from a distance, is covered by V-shaped dunes that point away from the ocean. Half way across the plain and my legs are on fire, my lungs burning for oxygen. When I stop to catch my breath, Astrid pulls up beside me, looking like she’s barely broken a sweat.

She waits for me to recover, stretching her calves to stay loose. The graceful motion reminds me of how she used to warm up for relay races at the GA. She always ran the anchor lap, and her team always won.

“You okay?” she asks after a few beats of silence.

“Yeah.” I draw a deep breath, then look over my shoulder. Good. Vin and Brenne are only a few paces back. “Some escape plan, huh?”

“We’re not finished yet.” She leans in to kiss me and I feel her smile tugging against my cheek. “We’re going to make it. Just try to keep up, okay?”

“Hey!” Vin yells as he bounds past us. “Less kissing! More running for your lives!”

As if to prove his point, a huge explosion erupts behind us, flaring above the horizon like a violent sunrise. Its orange glow lights up the ridge, revealing a vertical wall that’s riddled with fissures. My breath catches as I realize that’s where we’re headed. Straight into a rocky labyrinth. Into a nightmare I thought only existed in Ferro’s warped imagination.

But it’s real. As we get closer to the ridge, I count at least a dozen crevices carving their way through its sheer face. One rift looks wider than all the others combined, and that’s where we’re heading.

When we reach the shadowed entrance to the gorge, my stomach does a nervous flip. This must be the rift valley Dillan mentioned as our planned escape route. The path ahead looks barely wider than a subnaut, with near-vertical walls rising on each side. I whirl back around to face the plateau, praying there’s another way.

Dillan claps me on the shoulder. “It’s wider than it looks, Wil. We mapped out the terrain before your arrival. Trust me. Cillian’s satellites and drones won’t spot us in there. That’s why it’s the safest path to our helicrafts. They’re hidden and waiting for us on the other side.”

“But we’ll be trapped!” I protest. “If the Enforcers –”

“Hold on a second,” Lily cuts in. “We don’t even know if they have boots on the ground yet.” She turns to Cael, frowning when she sees his grave expression. “What? What is it?”

He looks up from his scanner and shakes his head.

“Something trip the motion sensors?” Dillan asks in a low voice.

“I wouldn’t know.” Cael furrows his brow. “My scanner’s dead.”

Dillan pivots to one of his men – the brawny soldier who got stuck in the crevice on our way to base camp. “Rem? Are you getting anything?”

The soldier fiddles with his scanner for a few moments before shaking his head. “Nothing, sir. Can’t even run a diagnostic. The power cell must be dead.”

“Same here,” Cael reports.

“But that would mean…” Dillan trails off, lips pressing into an angry line.

“An EMP,” Cael finishes for him. “Must have been set off by that last explosion.” He lifts his slicer from its holster, aiming for a distant boulder before pulling the trigger. Nothing. When Lily tries to fire her slicer, she gets the same result. I’m about to try with my frag gun, but Cael grabs my shoulder.

“Yours will work,” he explains. “Frag guns use propellant and a spark generator. Electromagnetic pulses only fry electronics. Things with complex circuits, like slicers, scanners and…” – he turns to Dillan – “helicrafts.”

“This ridge is magnetic,” the general counters, “and even if the EMP reached our helis, they’re equipped with anti-threat pulse tech. They’ll fly. We just have to get to them.”

“What about these blocking collars?” Astrid cuts in, touching hers. “I’m guessing they’ve got some complex circuits inside, right? Let’s see if they still work.” She turns in a slow circle, surveying the faces around her before fixing her gaze on Lily.

“Hmm.” She smiles. “You just answered that question. If you feel that way about Wil, why don’t you just tell him already? Enough with the bitchy routine. There’s a good chance we’ll all die today, so don’t you think it’s time to be honest for a change?”

Lily balls her fists in response, cheeks flaming. “You know nothing about me, Stalker.”

“I know you’re in love,” Astrid replies, turning to Cael. “And it’s not just with you. Sorry.”

“Enough!”

We spin around to Thea, whose dark eyes are fixed on Astrid. “Is this how you use your power? To taunt a girl who should be your friend?” Her voice drops an octave. “Maybe I was wrong about you.”

Astrid’s shoulders slump, as if she just realized the spitefulness of her words. “No…” She turns to Lily. “I’m sorry. It’s just that I’m so angry… and scared.” Her lower lip quivers. “And weak. That’s what I just saw. That I’m so much weaker than you.”

Lily stares at her for a long moment, like she’s the one who can sift. “True,” she finally replies with a tight smile. “And if we live through this, I’ll prove it by bruising up that pretty Stalker face of yours if you ever try to sift me again. That goes for all of you.” She turns to Vin and Brenne before reluctantly making eye contact with me.  “Thea showed us how to hide our thoughts. Is that really what you want us to do?”

I open my mouth, but she turns away before I can reassure her I’ll keep my promise. Astrid’s right. The EMP must have fried our blocking collars, because it’s impossible to ignore Lily’s anger and humiliation. She’s flaring like a supernova, but I won’t sift her, despite the temptation. Despite the urge to go searching for what Astrid just saw.

Pop!

Everyone turns toward the sudden crackling noise, which sounds like fireworks going off in the distance. No, not fireworks. Frag fire. Seconds later, an even more gut-wrenching sound rises above the wind: faint screams, echoing to silence.

Dillan whips around to face Thea. “My men?”

“I’m sorry,” she confirms with a pained expression.

The general scans the open plain, face taut. Focused. “How many are coming?”

“Too many. They’re checking the cave, but it won’t take long to pick up our trail.” She faces Astrid. “They’ve brought Guardians. Can you feel them?”

Astrid’s lids flutter before she answers. “Yes. They’re scanning right now.” She turns to Dillan’s soldiers, frowning with concern. On the outside, the men look stoic and formidable, but that’s just a façade. When I close my eyes, I see the fear rippling off them in blinding pulses of gold. They may as well be shooting up flares to announce our location.

“No way to know if the EMP also damaged your tracking chips, so let’s assume they’re still live,” Cael warns. “This ridge should have enough magnetite to block the signal but we need to get deeper.” He motions for us to follow him into the rift valley, but Thea and Dillan stay frozen near the entrance.

“Come on!” Lily urges, but they ignore our frantic gestures.

“There’s another ravine just west of here.” Thea points over her shoulder. “Where does it lead?”

Dillan bites his lip. Slowly shakes his head. “No. You can’t.”

She reaches for his face, gently tracing her fingers along his stubble-darkened jawline. “It’s our only chance, and we don’t have time to argue. That ravine looked like it angled away from this one. Am I right?”

“Yes.” He looks away. “It cuts southwest about half a mile, but then it dead ends.” When he meets her gaze again, there’s desperation in his eyes. “Please, Thea. Don’t do this. There must be another way. I’ll go.”

“No.” She gives him a bittersweet smile. “They’ll only follow me.”

I stare at them, suddenly grasping the complexity of their relationship. It’s written in the pain etched on Dillan’s face. In the torment, I sense in his aura. They’re more than the co-leaders of this rebellion. They’re in love. I was just too self-absorbed to notice.

“What about clouding?” Astrid cuts in from behind us. “We can block their ability to sift, just like I did to Wil in Washton. I’ll help you.”

“There are too many,” Thea replies. “I’m sensing ten Guardians, maybe more. It’s impossible to cloud that many minds, but I only have to reach one to lead the others.”

Just like she did to me in Washton. We’re losing the argument. Cael and Lily look miserable, but I can tell from their silence that they won’t question Thea’s judgment. Not even when it comes to this. Lily rushes up to give her a hug. When she chokes off a sob, I remember what she said about Thea being like a mother to her. She shouldn’t have to bear more loss and pain.

Thea must realize this too, because she musters a reassuring smile. “This isn’t the end,” she promises. “Once I’ve lead them away, I’ll meet you on the other side of the ridge.”

“But you’ll be trapped,” Dillan protests.

“Not necessarily. I can climb, can’t I?”

He doesn’t even try to mirror her smile. “I’m going with you.”

“You can’t.” Her gaze shifts to Astrid and me. “I’m counting on you to get them to safety. I know you have your doubts, but they’re the key to everything.”

Before Dillan can protest further, she takes a sleeping-bag-sized sack from his shoulder. A chill spikes through me when I realize what must be inside.

Explosives. She’s going to lead our hunters into a trap.

Her features blur and I realize I’m tearing up. This mysterious woman, with all her flaws and shortcomings, is still the closest thing to a mother I’ve ever known. She’s about to vanish again and I still know almost nothing about her.

“Dillan’s right,” I say, fighting back tears. “We can’t do this without you.”

“You’ll have to.” She glances over her shoulder to check the plateau. There’s no movement out in the open, but I sense our enemies approaching, like a static charge building before a storm.  When she turns back to face me, her voice is urgent. Firm. “You’re Allie’s last guardian. Now go!”

“But what about Astrid?”

“She isn’t ready. This can’t be forced on her.”

She holds my gaze for two heartbeats. Just long enough to let me know she’s saying good-bye. And then she’s gone, her parting words coming to me in that watery voice only I can hear.

Keep Allie's memory alive.

***

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