Page 123 of Blightfall

As we approached, it became more and more clear that the surface of the planet had exploded. Debris hung motionless in a spray pattern, as if it had erupted from the surface and then frozen, suspended on its outward path by invisible wires.

Ridges around the ragged edges of the torn earth below kept the oceans from rushing into the concave hole created by the explosion. If the land below had still been subject to the laws of ordinary physics, gravity should have pulled those pieces of rock back in, making them part of the orbiting whole again, or else expelled them, throwing the planet off balance.

It had done neither. The pieces hung in permanent stasis, a monument to whatever horror had caused this.

“Which part exploded?” I asked. “North America?”

“I think so,” Suki said. “And South America, it seems.”

This must be where the debris around Blightfall came from. Half of Earth’s surface had erupted, sending large chunks of matter into stasis around the planet on this side, and into orbit around Blightfall on the other. I wondered if this event was what caused the strange inhibitor field as well—some leftover effect of a mass this large making the transition from one side to the other.

“We found Earth,” I said. “Stars, we have to get back to tell the others.” Humanity needed something to unite us, and if there was ever anything that would bring us all together in purpose, this was it.

Forty-Three

Sadie

“Welcome for what?” I asked Ivy. “Imprisoning us?”

“For saving you,” Ivy said, as if this was obvious.

I was beginning to think maybe her databanks were corrupt. “Is that what this is?” I asked, lifting my chin toward the glass doors of the refrigerator. Air pushed through a grate on the wall, smelling slightly like the solvents we used to clean our starfighters.

Oh, stars. Whatever chemicals they were using to prepare our bodies to be frozen were already coming through that grate.

“I saved you all!” Ivy said, not really answering my question. “And you are so very, very welcome. I mean that from the bottom of my heart.”

Maybe it was better to play along. “Thank you!” I said. “We’re so grateful to you for saving us! And you were really effective at it too. We’re all saved now. So if you don’t mind, we’d like to be going…” I inched my foot toward the grate, pulling it tight against the restraints that tethered me to the back of the unit. If I pivoted my toes, I could just barely slide them to the edge of the grate, but I couldn’t reach to kick it in.

“How,” Ivy said, “do you intend to show me your undying gratitude?”

I shot an alarmed look at Nedd, who shrugged, as if to say, It was your brilliant idea to thank the insane artificial intelligence.

I shot him a glare that I hoped replied, Unless you’re going to help, you don’t get to criticize.

I thought my message got through, because Nedd opened his mouth. “We thought a thank-you would suffice.”

The AI made a disgruntled noise but was interrupted by screams in the warehouse. Through the refrigerator glass and the windows that overlooked the warehouse, we watched a DDF starship fly through the nowhere portal, headed straight for the warehouse wall. The Dulo shot out the wall and kept flying, right out of the warehouse again and into the sky beyond. Outside, I could see more buildings like this one, rows and rows of them.

I blinked.

Who had that been? Gilaf? Alanik? Arturo?

“That was one way to get in,” Nedd said.

Stars, how bad had things gotten out there that one of our flight members had flown a ship through that gate?

“It was,” I agreed. A moment later, the radio at my belt sputtered to life.

“Nedder?” Arturo said. “Sentry? Are you there? Do you copy?”

I tried to reach the radio so I could press the button to respond, but it was just out of my reach.

Scud. There had to be a way to respond. Nedd and I stared at the hole in the warehouse wall as if willing Arturo to return.

He didn’t.

“I guess that wasn’t our rescue, then,” Nedd said.