Tevin's Arc

Chapter 4 of 5

Back at the dome, Bethany kept her eyes on the monitors. Ambrose had shown them how before the group left. Green frames for the outer ridge. Blue for the near approach. A row of small screens along a wood-and-metal shack under the glass. Emmy sat cross-legged on the floor beside her, chin on her fist. Julius stood behind them, arms folded, watching the door as much as the screens. "Still nothing," Emmy said. "They'll come," Bethany said. She did not know if that was true. Tevin had been gone since sunup. The core mission was simple on paper. Nothing was simple with the Vael. Julius tapped the middle screen. "Movement." Bethany leaned in. A shape crossed the blue frame, low and fast. One man. Goggles glinting. The core clutched to his chest, blue seams flashing under his arm. "Ambrose," Emmy said. She stood up. Then the second shape came into frame. A maw. Long body dragging through the dust, mouth already open. It was gaining. Bethany ran for the dome door. Her hands shook on the lever. Julius was beside her before she asked. "Wait for my mark," he said. He watched the screen over her shoulder. "Wait. Wait. Now." Bethany threw the lever. The door slid up. Ambrose came through at a stumble, the core banging against his ribs. Julius slammed the lever back down. The door dropped. Something heavy hit it from outside. The dome shivered. Then it was quiet. Ambrose bent double, hands on his knees. His goggles fogged. "Where are the others?" Emmy said. Flat. No softening. Ambrose swallowed. "It went south. A column came off the mountain. They stayed at a gap to hold them." He looked at Emmy, then Bethany. "Tevin's idea. If we all ran home, we brought them here." Bethany's mouth went dry. "How many Vael?" "Too many." Emmy did not move. "Are they dead?" "I don't know," Ambrose said. He straightened. "I have to install this now. If we sit and wait, nothing they did means anything." He crossed to the shack in the center of the dome and knelt by the panel under the satellite rig. He pried the cover off. The black core caught the blue light of the dome and threw it back. Bethany watched him work. Emmy watched the door. Julius watched the screens. "Come on," Emmy said, under her breath. "Come on." Minutes passed. Ambrose muttered to himself. A wire sparked. He swore and kept going. Julius spoke first. "Bethany." She was already looking. Four shapes on the green frame. Walking, not running. One with wings folded low. One trailing smoke from his mouth. One with a gun over her shoulder. And the last one in front, shackles glowing at his wrists. Bethany ran the lever again. The door lifted. They came in one at a time. Bruised. Bloodied. Riley's arm was wrapped in a strip of her own shirt. Harlen's mouth rig was cracked. Elina's left wing had a shard missing. Tevin walked last and stopped just inside. "You held," Ambrose said, without looking up. "We held," Tevin said. Emmy walked over and put her hand on Tevin's arm. She did not say anything. Bethany closed the door. At the shack, the core clicked into place. The blue seams brightened. A low hum spread through the floor. On the outer monitors, the ridge was empty. The mountain was quiet. For tonight, they were all inside. The dome was live. And Tevin's shackles still glowed.