It isn’t long before I see the others come over the hill toward us. They must have seen the glow from the Drifters. Avery takes off at a sprint toward me, then wraps my torso in a tight embrace.
The second Drifter helps Cassius to his feet. We stand in a bubble of dim green, which is already starting to fade.
The Drifters tell us their names are Talan and Sem. Sem’s the one who plucked me from the sky, and speaks better English than Talan. The language processors in their Pearls vary in structure, he says. Some are damaged during transport, and others move more slowly to cater to individual brain functioning.
“Where have you been?” Avery clutches my arm. “By the time we headed outside, you guys were gone.”
“Theo’s escaped.” Cassius steps past her. “He’s Matigo’s son. He wants to kill us.”
Eva follows him. “Matigo has a son?”
Sem looks down at his fingers, watching the last of the Pearl energy drain from his body. “The boy’s shifting powers have been unlocked. He’s in control of Ridium now, just like his father. But he’s young. Inexperienced. We may be able to strike before he has a chance to do any major damage.”
I turn to face him. “How are we supposed to do that?”
Sem stares directly into my eyes. He looks strikingly like Ryel. “Pearl energy is the most powerful force we have. If we can knock him off balance, we’ll attack when he’s most vulnerable.” He sighs. “Talan and I are nearly dissolved of our energy. We won’t be much help in this regard.”
“But you’re talking to the Pearlbreaker.” Skandar moves beside me. “Jesse can get more Drifters.”
Sem extends his fingers. “Let me see your arm.”
I hold up my right hand. He grabs hold and pulls me closer. “Ridium, I see. Your father gave this to you?”
Cassius kicks the dirt before turning to face us again. “It was in the form of a box, at first. It melted and… and now we can’t get them off.”
“These are a problem in the hands of a Shifter like Theo.” Sem glances at Talan. “Though they might be something more.”
I swallow. “Ryel said that it could be programmed.”
“A Shifter can do many things with Ridium,” Sem says. “Not the least of which is programming. It’s possible that your parents coerced a Shifter to imbue these bracelets with a purpose.” He drops my hand.
I stare down at the blackness. “Like what?”
“That isn’t clear, but once a chunk of Ridium is given a purpose, it will follow its programming until another Shifter tells it otherwise. This could be a problem, or a blessing. Only time will tell.”
Cassius rubs his wrist. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
I let my hand fall to my side, forgetting about the bracelet for a moment. “Drifters. We need Drifters.”
Sem nods. “We must attack the boy, and soon. But we need all of the artillery we can get.”
“Okay.” I turn and face the distant mountains. I close my eyes so that nothing can distract me and work through the events of the past few days, considering my options. Allies and enemies, and everything in between. When I open them again, a single vision fills my mind. “Okay. I think I know what to do.” I turn back. “What’s the nearest Skyship?”
Eva shrugs. “There are a couple storage ships just south of the Canadian border.”
“No.” I ball my fist. “It needs to be one of the larger ones, but nothing with a heavy Tribunal presence.”
“Then Altair,” she replies. “Skyship Altair. Southeast of here.”
“What are you thinking, Jesse?” Avery’s eyes narrow.
Cassius smiles. “He’s thinking we need to steal some Pearls.”
“We’ve got two options,” I say. “Break into a Chosen or find a storage facility on one of the Skyships. We can’t just stand here waiting for Pearls to come to us. We need a lot of them, and quick.”
Eva frowns. “And what about Theo?”
Cassius curses under his breath. He clutches his bracelet and meets my eyes. “I’ll handle Theo. At least until you can break the Pearls.”
Sem moves to Talan’s side. “And we will do what we can to help. Unfortunately I don’t think I will be able to enjoy the benefits of flight for much longer. We’ll require use of your shuttle. But we can help organize any freed Drifters. We can make sure your efforts aren’t in vain.”
I nod. “Then let’s get this over with.”
Eva points back to the hill we’d come over. “Shuttle’s just past that point.”
Sem meets my eyes. “Lead the way, Pearlbreaker.”
– Two hours after dawn.
Skyship Altair hovers over the Idaho/Montana border. It’s far enough from either coast to be much of a government stronghold. Eva says she’s heard it’s mainly a recreation and business center. Not a lot of money stored onboard, but given its size, it’ll need a plentiful amount of Pearls to keep it airborne. This will be our target.
The sun beams in every window of our shuttle. The Fringes are bound to be baking, even this early in the morning.
Cassius sits in the pilot’s seat. “So that room we saw, with Matigo and his lieutenant. That was a memory?”
Sem nods. “A reconstruction. Important events are stored in senso-cubes on Haven. The Authority controls all of the planet’s history. I suspect that particular cube was stolen.”
“I found it in Ryel’s pocket,” I say.
Sem’s brows raise. “If he was indeed a pilot with the Authority, I suppose he would have had the opportunity to grab a cube before joining the Resistance. Usually they’re simple to trigger, but Matigo likely had security in place on that cube. You were lucky it managed to activate in the air. Perhaps due to the vast amount of Ridium above it.”
Cassius brings us back level. “Any tips on Theo?”
The Drifter frowns. “Don’t underestimate him.”
“Yeah,” Cassius says. “I think I’ve got that.” He turns to me. “As soon as the officials on Altair see this Academy shuttle land in the docking bay, they’ll likely send people after you.”
I grit my teeth. He’s right. Unless Alkine’s pulled off some sort of diplomatic miracle while I’ve been gone, everybody onboard the Academy are still fugitives from the Skyship Community.
“I won’t stay long,” Cassius continues. “Just a quick drop off. Use the others to create a distraction.”
“Yeah,” I say. “We’ll do what we can.”
Sem nods. “We need to be on the offensive. We can’t drag this out.”
“Good thing,” Cassius responds. “Because we’re almost there.”
– My knees shake with nervous energy. I think about last spring, when I was a simple Skyship trainee floundering in a program that, at the time, seemed too big and too difficult to bear. Now, only four months later, I’m planning an assault against a Skyship.
I think back to what Morse said in the Fringes before Theo killed him. I could be the trigger for this invasion. Has it already happened? If I would’ve stayed back at the Academy like Captain Alkine wanted, would we have had more time to prepare?
There’s no chance to second guess myself, now. We stand in the docking bay of Altair, watching the ship pull away. I don’t know what Cassius thinks he’s doing, going after Theo on his own. I’ve learned not to question him, but it doesn’t sit easy with me.
Before leaving the ship, I grabbed a pistol and tucked it in the waist of my pants. The cold metal is a constant reminder of the risk I’m about to take. It should raise my confidence. Maybe I’d feel better if I was a good aim.
“Find the main security center and keep watch.” I turn to the others. “If something happens, I’m counting on you guys to throw them off track. Create a diversion… or something.”
Eva crosses her arms. “That’s very vague, Jesse.” “I know,” I reply. “But if the Pearls are stored on the lower levels, I won’t be able to see what’s happening in the city. If they’ve got a security patrol after me, I’m blind against them.”
Avery shakes her head. “You’re not doing this alone, Jesse.”
“The fewer of us that go, the less obvious it will be.”
“You need a backup,” she says.
Sem nods. “The girl is right. Talan and I will scout. If necessary, we may be able to provide the distraction you need.”
I meet Avery’s eyes. I try not to let my heart make a stupid decision, but even weighing the pros and cons leads me to the same response. “Okay, Avery. You’re coming with me.”
Eva glances at a shuttle full of commuters in the distance. “Don’t feel too secure, people. Once Jesse starts breaking Pearls, it’s going to be like the Academy times a hundred. People will feel it. The entire ship will.”
I take a deep breath, turning to Avery and grabbing her hand. “You really wanna do this?”
“Do you?” She squeezes my fingers.
I don’t answer. Instead, I clutch the pistol under my shirt, say a few prayers, and hope for the best.