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  Hawk was relieved to have the pressure off of him and his lack of medical knowledge.

  “What is moonslate?” Lula asked, finally looking interested in the conversation.

  “It’s a slate from the moon. It comes from Terrana,” Danny said, pointing toward the sky. Between the trees, the dome, and the clouds, they couldn’t see either moon.

  “How does it get here?” Lula asked, looking up.

  “Spaceship,” Danny smiled.

  “We just came from there last week. Visiting some friends,” Sky said.

  “On the moons? There are people on the moons?” Lula asked, her smile growing.

  “Absolutely,” Danny said. He started sharing the history of the human settlements on Terrana and Caldori. Kyan seemed more engaged as well, making furious notes in her book, and asking questions about the size of the surviving colony.

  For the next two hours, they picked Danny’s brain about the history of the decimation of Aquia and the retreat of the humans into isolated cities. The Cordovans recorded the destruction of the planet as something the Aquian nations did to each other. They had no memory of the Caldori settlements and their records said Terrana was a ten-man science outpost. They believed that their moonslate was a chemical composite designed in a laboratory. Given the dome’s condition and cloaking ability, it possibly was.

  Hawk was glad they were talking but started to feel uncomfortable about their quick abandonment of his mystery in favor of Danny’s history lesson. With Danny gesturing animatedly, Tray was able to slip out and leave the deck. Hawk gave Sky’s hand a squeeze, then he followed Tray to the glider.

  “Out here again?”

  Tray slouched in the back seat eating a sandwich and Hawk exhaled in relief. It was past time for them to eat. Tray had recently gotten a nanobot in his gut so that he wouldn’t pass out if he was late for a meal, but the bot also screwed with his ability to feel hunger, and he’d been sick earlier.

  “Didn’t want to be rude,” Tray said.

  “I could use a bite myself.”

  Tray handed Hawk a sandwich and Hawk salivated, only just realizing how hungry he was. He wolfed down half the sandwich, then motioned Tray to give him a canteen.

  “Danny seems excited,” Hawk said.

  “He thinks this is the Hidden City of Hope. He’s been looking for it since before I knew him,” Tray shrugged. “What do you want to do?”

  “Avery said that men can make babies without women. Gender doesn’t matter. That would change everything in Rocan. I have to see what they can do. For my children,” Hawk said. “I understand if you don’t want to stay.”

  “They look through me, not at me,” Tray said. “It’s the same thing the Rocanese doctors did. Like I’m a curiosity, not a person.”

  “They do seem short-sighted,” Hawk said, leaning into the cockpit, surveying what else there was to eat. “They are worried about illness. They want to protect us and their people.”

  Tray shook his head. “What if they decide we’re sick and they quarantine us? What if… what if I get one of their diseases and can never go back to Quin? I’ll never see Hero again. If we’re invisible in there, how would I even talk to him?”

  Guilt ate away at Hawk now that he saw the bald fear in Tray’s expression. Tray had put his life on hold to help Hawk on this quest. “Then it’s time for you to go home. You’ve done more than enough, Tray. I’m here. This is Cordova.”

  “The point wasn’t to get you here. It was to get whatever is here back to Rocan. And I’ll do that,” Tray promised. “I just… can’t go through that airlock with you.”

  “I’ll fly you back to the ship.”

  “I’ll take him,” Danny interrupted, coming up behind them. Hawk flinched and nearly slid off the wing, but Danny put an arm out to steady him. “We’ll update the crew. Hawk, you should talk to them. Make sure you want to go in. And if you do, don’t go in without me.”

  7

  Danny couldn’t believe they’d found the Hidden City. The lore of the Panoptica had inspired him, even before he knew his mother’s entanglement with the hybrid power trade. If these people could embed hybrid powers in technology, there’d be no need to hunt and enslave their kind. People like Hawk would be safer in the world. When Danny had been comparing histories, he had brought up the myth of Elpis, to see how the Cordovans reacted. Kyan had laughed, commenting about how centuries of storytelling could bend perceptions. She liked the idea of being revered around the globe for their technology.

  Worried he’d miss the precisely timed opening of the Cordovan gate, he rushed the Bobsled back to Oriana, vringing Saskia to cover the details of the plan. The past few hours, they’d had to exit the Cordovan shield to communicate with the ship, so there wasn’t that much news. They pulled into Oriana’s bay and Danny idled the Bobsled, debating whether he was going to stay long enough to power down completely. When he slid back the cockpit cover, Saskia, Chase, and Amanda were waiting.

  Tray had gone silent as soon as they were in the air, and Danny assumed he was trying to keep his lunch down. Unbuckling his harness, Danny turned to make sure his brother hadn’t died, but Tray was slouched against the back wall of the cabin, Hawk’s flight jacket tucked over him like a blanket, fast asleep. Hawk had decided the jacket would be safer on the ship rather than passing through the Cordovan decontamination process. Danny checked compulsively for any signs of illness in his brother, and finding none, he pinched Tray’s nose.

  “Jackass!” Tray cried, swatting Danny’s hand before he’d even opened his eyes.

  “Get out of the ‘sled. I want to get back to Cordova.” Danny chuckled, hurrying out of the ‘sled before his brother could retaliate. Tray chased him into the bay and hopped onto Danny’s back in mock-wrestle.

  “I’m trying to captain here!” Danny cried, spinning to get Tray off his back. As long as they could play, he’d feel better about leaving his brother behind while he went to explore Cordova. Saskia approached from behind and tugged Tray’s arm, inviting him to slide off Danny and into her embrace. The hug was anything but relaxed and tender.

  “Where’s Morrigan?” Danny asked, checking the stack of tools Chase had gathered in order to get the glider out of the mud.

  “High as a kite and not going anywhere,” Saskia said. “I don’t like you not being in contact when you’re in there. It’s not like we can storm an invisible gate.”

  “If Hawk can see it, I bet I can, too,” Amanda said.

  “You are staying here. Saskia, Chase, ready to go?” Danny said authoritatively.

  Chase fumbled with the zipper on his jacket, fighting with his uncooperative fingers. “Why am I going again?”

  “Meet new people; explore new worlds. It’ll be fun,” Danny said cheekily.

  “I’ve had more fun than I can stand,” Chase complained, giving up on his zipper. “Give me a hand.”

  “I need you two to retrieve the glider. The Bobsled is staying there so that the rest of us have an easy escape,” Danny said, zipping up Chase’s coat, then helping him with his gloves. Danny had thought Chase was doing better, but if Chase couldn’t even zip his own coat maybe he should let Amanda handle this job.

  “Your signal was blinking in and out,” Saskia said. “They might find a way to cloak it altogether, or pull it into the city’s cloak.”

  “We have Tray’s map. We have the glider’s approach and the Bobsled’s and we have a position relative to Oriana,” Danny said, although he couldn’t discount the possibility that the whole airlock was nothing more than a portal to someplace else. “Their gate opens every eight hours. I’m taking the others in; we’ll see what they can do for Hawk. Expect contact in eight hours.”

  “Should we meet you by the gate?” Saskia asked.

  “No. If something goes wrong and we’re fleeing, I don’t want a crowd. Have the ship ready to meet us in the air,” Danny said. “Amanda, be ready to fly.”

  “You should take me,” she said. She was already bundled i
n a coat, and no doubt armed.

  “Not this time. We can’t risk you having an episode,” Danny said.

  “Neither can they,” Amanda countered. Her cheeks reddened and she stepped away from the others, her fingers dipping into her sleeve, brushing the sheathe that held her knife. Danny came up behind her, resting an arm around her waist while he pulled her hand away from the weapon.

  “Danny, I nearly killed her,” Amanda said, voice low and cracking. “I need help. I need… something.”

  “I’ll ask while I’m in there,” Danny promised, giving her a squeeze around the midsection. “Maybe there’s something they can bring to the ship, but we’re here for Hawk first.”

  “Okay,” she relented, fear in her voice. “If you come out in eight hours and everyone else dead, it’s on you.”

  Danny laughed, not wanting to acknowledge the possibility.

  The sight of Morrigan’s bleeding face flashed through his mind. Short of locking Amanda in a room or chaining her to a bed, there wasn’t much he could do. If this was the City of Hope, he’d find help for her.

  Less than an hour later, Danny landed the Bobsled beside the glider. His map tool said he was five kilometers off course. The others were right; something was interfering with their signal. Had he not spotted the bright red glider, he’d have missed the clearing completely. Lula and Hawk greeted them, Lula smiling bright and wide as she skipped over to the Bobsled, touching its sleek, silver body.

  “It looks like a giant seed. How does it fly?” Lula asked.

  “It creates thrust using an artificial gravity source,” Hawk said. “My glider uses the air, like a bird.”

  “I have seen many birds. They land far more gracefully than your glider,” Lula laughed, running her fingers along the edge of the glider’s wing. “Can you take me up?”

  “Not today,” Danny said. “The gate is opening soon, isn’t it?”

  “I guess,” Lula shrugged. “Do you have schematics? I want to see if I can build one.”

  Danny smiled and clapped Hawk’s shoulder. “You have the builders right here. He built the glider. I built the ‘sled.”

  “What would you do with a flying machine?” Avery chastised, appearing behind them as she stepped off the deck. “Honestly, Lula.”

  Saskia gasped and Chase yelped, ducking for cover.

  “It’s all right,” Danny told them, though even he felt disoriented by Avery’s sudden appearance.

  “Expand the ring of your current expeditions beyond how far we can walk in a week?” Lula retorted. “Bring more equipment than what we can carry on our backs?”

  “We can monitor from inside. Come on. Our door is opening,” Avery grumbled, dragging Lula back to the deck by her arm. Danny shouldered the bag he’d packed for himself and the others, gave a few parting orders to Saskia and Chase, then linked arms with Hawk, letting the man guide him back onto the invisible deck. The magical appearance of the dome took his breath away.

  The sound around him shifted, and a low rumble vibrated through Danny’s bones. The massive, black door opened, and a blast of pressurized air nearly knocked him off the deck. Avery pulled Lula into the airlock. Lula protested the entire way, but her words were drowned by the thrum of mechanical equipment. Hawk gripped Danny’s elbow tighter, then he took Sky’s hand, too, and the three of them went inside.

  “Your decontamination will begin after I pass through. Prepare yourselves,” Kyan said. She’d described the decontamination process a few hours ago, and it was simple, but rigorous.

  “I am more than ready,” Danny said, feeling butterflies in his stomach. He was glad Tray wasn’t here. It would be easier to explore if he wasn’t worrying over his brother.

  Kyan passed through the interior door, and Hawk pulled out his flask, taking a quick swig of gin.

  “Anyone else need a drink?”

  “Don’t drink too much or they’ll detox you. Not as bad as Oriana’s Detox, but still, a terrible waste,” Sky said.

  “I’m freaking out. I’ll risk it,” Hawk said.

  “There’s no reason to freak out, Hawk. This is what we’ve been heading for since the day we met,” Danny said, squeezing Hawk’s shoulder.

  They passed into a dark, steamy room, with lights dotting the floor and a few shining overhead. Against the back walls was a row of shallow tubs and shower heads. Sky started stripping as soon as the door sealed them in.

  “Sky!” Danny hissed.

  A voice boomed over a loudspeaker, instructing them to remove their clothes and place them into bins on a conveyor belt.

  Now Danny was doubly glad he’d left Tray behind. And Amanda.

  “This isn’t the fun kind of nakedness. It doesn’t matter if you’re in here with three people or twenty, it’s going to be miserable,” Sky said, her own hand hesitating over the container that held her satchel. “Still more than ready?”

  “You trust these people. I’m trusting you,” Danny said, his confidence wavering.

  “These people can help you. Not just Hawk. Everyone on your crew. My medical kit comes from them. You can keep to your own corner and whine about it, or we can hang modesty, and keep each other as comfortable as possible. The longer you take deciding, the longer we’re in here.”

  The voice repeated the initial request to disrobe, and Danny knew he had no choice. There were times when modesty wasn’t an option on the ship, but it felt different knowing the Granger cousins, and possibly a few others, were monitoring them.

  After they stripped, steam filled the room and Danny sat on one of the little benches. It was an uncomfortable mesh, designed to let the steam through. The lights in the room dimmed and the air grew humid, making it hard to breathe. Danny’s mind went back to the interrogation room on Terrana. During the Revolution, he’d spent many hours in those dark, humid rooms, chained to an electrified wall. Every bone in his hand had been broken at least once by his captors. He wasn’t prepared to be slapped by that memory.

  Sky dropped a small washcloth on his lap, then sat next to him on the bench.

  “They have these here to keep the sweat out of your eyes,” she said. There was a cloth over her lap, too. It was the first time Danny had known her to express any modesty.

  Danny blinked, a stream of tears wetting his cheeks. He dabbed them away with the washcloth, shuddering in disgust at the caustic smell filling the room.

  “Are you crying?” Sky asked, ghosting her fingers across his shoulders.

  Danny covered his nose and mouth with the washcloth to block the smell. “Flashback. Terranan interrogation room. I can hear my bones breaking.”

  “You’re safe in here,” she assured, kissing his shoulder. “There’s no one coming to hurt you. I promise. I know these people.”

  “You know a lot of people that try to kill us.”

  “Can I help?”

  “Don’t know,” he said, trying desperately to stay in the present. Without warning, the steam cleared, and dry air blasted his face. Danny sucked in the air and leaned back, but the bench wasn’t wide enough, and he tumbled. Sky caught him before he tipped too far. Once he steadied himself, she leaned away, letting the breeze tussle her sweat-soaked hair.

  “Hawk, come here!” she called.

  “No,” Hawk said. He was by the conveyer belt and, from the look of it, was dealing with his stress by dismantling the machine.

  “The misting starts next. It helps to have someone’s hand to crush as you scream in agony,” Sky said.

  “Agony?” Hawk asked, his face going ashen.

  “I’m kidding. It’s more of a mild discomfort,” she said, dragging Hawk away from the conveyer machine. The speaker voice instructed them to stand and Sky situated Hawk between her and Danny.

  The misting started and Danny jumped. Several jets of frigid liquid sprayed over them, front and back. With a grimace, he thought it was odd they weren’t at least given masks or warned to hold their breath.

  “It burns,” Hawk whimpered, shifting foot-to-foo
t, squeezing his eyes shut.

  “Yeah, it’s tingly,” Sky agreed.

  “I think it’s nice,” Danny said. Once he’d gotten accustomed to being sprayed, the chemical itself had an intriguing cooling sensation.

  “It burns,” Hawk said again.

  “It’s almost over. Keep your mouth closed,” Sky said. The overhead voice echoed the instruction and the mist raised to chin level, then rose slowly over their faces.

  Hawk croaked and crushed Danny’s hand, his fidgeting turning to violent jerks. The cold mist was replaced by a warmer spray and Hawk screamed, dropping to his knees.

  “No. Stand up,” Sky ordered.

  “I can’t breathe!” Hawk rasped.

  Danny peeked through squinted eyes, searching for the washcloth he’d dropped. Hawk fell to the floor, but still had an iron grip on Danny’s hand.

  “Hawk,” he cried.

  “Stop the program! Something is wrong!” Sky hollered. The mist stopped and tepid water sprayed from the ceiling, washing away the chemical smell, but when the water mixed with the chemicals, Danny’s skin burned, too. Hawk wheezed and writhed, but Sky tried to keep him under the shower, making sure his skin got rinsed.

  Danny found the washcloths and held two close to the showerhead so they’d soak faster. He gave one to Sky, then knelt to help her. Hives broke out over Hawk’s skin, and his face and throat swelled as he gasped for breath.

  The water stopped and as soon as a door opened, Danny scooped Hawk up and charged through. The next room was a sterile, white waiting area with a table, but no chairs. The table had stacks of white clothes and an assortment of shoes on top. Danny swept them aside with his elbow and set Hawk down. He forced Hawk’s mouth open, pushing against Hawk’s swelling tongue with his finger.

  “Hurry! He can’t breathe!” Sky hollered, grabbing a tunic from the floor and dressing quickly. Hawk’s fingernails dug into Danny’s skin, but his grip grew more slack with every breath he failed to take.

  A new woman entered, her body encased in a protective orange garment that bubbled around her head. She scanned Hawk with a handheld tablet, then attached a circular device to his neck. As soon as Hawk had air, he howled in pain. Danny held him to the table, but Sky pulled Danny back.