Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Jak had never been more scared than the day that he learned that he was going to be a father

His face had gone numb as he’d been hit with the enormity of the situation. He had faced death. He had faced the strongest, cruelest powers in the world. He had faced torture. He had faced himself and what he’d become. But nothing had scared him more than that thought of being a father, and risking passing his darkness down.

But somehow, the months had passed, and now there was a squirming bundle in his arms. His daughter.

He looked from her to Keira, in wonder. Never in his life had he felt a love like this. There was nothing in the world that he wouldn’t do to protect his little girl. He couldn’t put it into words if he tried.

Keira patted the bed beside her. She was exhausted, sweaty, and her hair was messy. But she had never looked more beautiful to Jak, and he’d stand by that.

He took a seat on the side of the bed, holding the baby—their baby—close enough for Keira to see her clearly. Keira leaned her head against his arm, not wanting to hold herself up a moment longer.

“What should we call her?” she asked, sounding exhausted.

For months, that question had tortured him. But now, he had the answer.

Just a few hours before, there had been a long stretch where he and Keira had been waiting for the delivery. He had taken to wandering the halls of the hospital, not knowing what to do with himself. He wondered if there was anyone in the world who felt more useless than a father right before the delivery. Probably not, he mused.

When he meandered back to the room where Keira would have the baby, she was inside, talking with her father. He decided that he would hang back for a minute, to give them time to talk. They’d spent a lot of time with Samos the past few months, talking to him about the baby, and about whether she would be receptive to eco. It seemed that they might be talking about something personal, judging by their expressions. Jak knew when he wasn’t needed.

So, instead, he sat on a bench in the hall. He reached into the bag that Keira had packed for this day. He wanted to be a good father, and planned to be there for her every step of the way. But he had known pitifully little about what you needed to bring to the hospital, so he had let her handle the packing. Instead, he’d focused on planning the fastest route to the hospital and setting up the baby’s room in their small, shared apartment.

Shifting through the bag, Jak sought something to occupy him while he waited for Samos and Keira to finish talking. He felt his fingers brush against the pages of a book. Confused, he pulled it out. Why would they need a book for this?

Holding it up, he recognized it instantly. Jak had seen Keira flipping through it countless times throughout her pregnancy, often chewing on a pen as she did. It was a baby name book. It was well-worn now, with dog-eared pages and a grease stain on one of the pages. Had she brought it with her to work? He smiled a little, amused.

He started flipping through the book. Naming the baby was something that he and Keira had really been struggling with. It felt like the first, real decision they had to make about the baby, and he didn’t want to make the wrong one. First, he had looked into the names of other members of the Mar family. His own father had named him after Mar, the most prominent of their ancestors. It seemed only right to look to his ancestors for names, as well.

But when he had dug into his family’s history, he just hadn’t been able to find a name that seemed right. So much about his family had been lost through the ages. The only name from his ancestors that he’d found for a girl had been Mara. It was a feminized version of the Mar name that some of Jak’s female ancestors had been named. While he’d liked the connection to his family history, he hadn’t wanted it to be his daughter’s first name. She would have enough baggage to deal with without carrying the Mar lineage in her given name. As a compromise, they had decided to give their daughter the middle name Mara in tribute to his family history. Of course, that still left finding her a suitable first name, which had been the hard part.

Jak had asked his many friends for inspiration, and he’d spoken to Keira about it late into the night. Daxter had given him loads of suggestions, none of them usable. He’d even suggested giving the baby a female version of his own name, saying that someone had to carry on his legacy. Keira had put a stop to that idea immediately.

All the suggestions in the world, and none of them seemed right.

Now, it was just a few hours before the birth. They were really down to the wire, now. Sitting on that bench, Jak had decided that he would just have to pick one of the names that Keira had highlighted, and tell her that they should use it.

Looking through the pages, he found many notes in the margins written in his wife’s cramped handwriting. Many names were circled and crossed out, like Keira had talked herself out of liking them, much like Jak had himself with countless names over the past few months. Keira had seemed to gravitate to names pertaining to mechanical things, but unfortunately, most of those were in the boy’s section. She had particularly seemed to like the name “Axel,” circling it three times. Next to it she had written: “Could we name a girl this? Ask Jak.” Later, she’d crossed this note out and written under it, “Nevermind. Tess says ‘no.’"

Jak couldn’t help but chuckle at that, a surge of affection for Keira bubbling in his chest. Truth be told, he also liked the name Axel. It would have been a good name if they were having a boy, given that vehicles and racing had been one of the major things that had brought them together. But, he had to agree with Tess. He couldn’t imagine naming a daughter that.

Sighing, he flipped absently through the book, alighting on some names before passing them. About to give up entirely, he let his eyes mist over, and started flipping even more quickly, so the pages became a blur under his thumb.

But then a phrase jumped out at him. “To protect,” it said. It had been in the girl section, but he’d passed the page. Slightly frantic, Jak flipped back through the book, trying to find it again.

After a few false starts, he found it. He read the name next to the meaning that had jumped out at him. It was perfect. Naming her something that meant “to protect” was like a promise he would give his daughter—right from the moment she was born—that he would always protect her, no matter what. He’d closed the book, feeling certainty for the first time since he’d first learned that he would be a dad.

Just then, Keira had called his name, with pain in her voice. The labor had begun in earnest, and she needed him by her side.

Now, hours later, he finally held his newborn daughter, and he hadn’t said anything to Keira about the name he’d found. Until now, they’d been united in their indecision, and right before the delivery, loopy from drugs, pain, and lack of sleep, Keira had just started listing vehicle parts and model names, trying to see if any of them sounded like a possible name for their baby.

Jak had put off the issue then, telling her that they could talk about it after the baby was born. After all, he was sure about the name that he’d picked. He just had to get Keira on board.

“There is one name,” he said, voice rough. How many hours had it been since he’d last slept? At least since Keira had gripped his arm in the middle of the night at least ten hours before, telling him it was time. It felt like more.

Keira tilted her head, and he could feel the movement against his arm. He looked down into her eyes, turning away from his baby for the first time.

“Lexi,” he said. “I learned about it a few hours ago. It means, ‘to protect.’ It’s kind of like..a promise, to her.” Then, with a gentle smile, he added, “It also has a lot of the same letters as ‘Axel,’ I noticed.”

Keira smiled up at him, radiant. “Lexi is perfect,” she said. She had bags under her eyes, and looked utterly exhausted. And she was the most beautiful woman in the world to him.

Jak grinned at her. It was his biggest grin, the one that he saved just for her.

He looked down at the baby. They’d already agreed on her middle and last names. His family didn’t really have a last name, so the baby would take Keira’s. Besides, Samos would appreciate that connection to his side of the family, and they both owed him so much. Her middle name was going to be Mara, as a nod to her Mar ancestry, and to the name that his father Damas had given Jak when he’d been born. With all the pieces finally in place, the baby had her name.

Jak held her up a little bit higher.

“Lexi Mara Hagai,” he said, looking at her.

Keira nodded against his shoulder. “Perfect,” she said again, looking like she was about to pass out from exhaustion. Jak didn’t blame her. He’d always known that she was strong, but he still couldn’t quite believe what she’d just done.

“I hear that I’m an uncle,” said Daxter boisterously, coming in the door. Tiny at only about two feet tall, with orange and yellow fur and his long ottsel tail, he was a welcome and familiar sight.

He looked happy, but tired. He’d been there since the beginning, saying that there was no way that he was going to let his best buddy go through this without his expertise. Jak had tried to note that the experience of having an ottsel baby was probably very different than having a human baby. But, still, he’d been happy to have Daxter around for moral support right up to the delivery, at which point he’d been shooed out of the room. Only Samos and Jak had stayed through the birth, with Samos coaching her through the pain and Jak letting his hand be crushed in Keira’s vice-like grip. Then, after Lexi had been born, even Samos had left to give them a moment, wiping his eyes as he went.

“That’s right, bud,” Jak said to Daxter. “Meet Lexi.”

Daxter hopped onto the chair next to the bed, where he could get a better view of her. Standing on the chair, he was about three feet tall. He’d used to complain about his transformation into an ottsel, until his girlfriend Tess, had become one, too. They’d gotten married shortly after, and about two years ago had had a daughter of their own, Beth, who was painfully excited to meet the baby. Jak silently hoped that Lexi and Beth would be as good of friends and he and Dax had always been.

“Lexi, huh?” said Dax in his brash voice, looking down at her. “Good name. And cute kid.” He bumped Jak on the shoulder, and said, “You did a good job, you two. Though, she probably takes after her mom, huh? Otherwise, there’s no way she’d be that cute.” Jak snorted fondly at the comment.

And indeed, Lexi did have a heart-shaped face that looked a lot like Keira’s, but in miniature. It was clear where she had gotten it from. The only difference was that it was slightly less wide, and a little bit longer, like his. But the hair could have come from either of them. Right now, it was just a shock of light green, short and fuzzy. Only time would tell if it would grow in more yellow like his or blue like hers. Jak didn’t care how it grew. She was already perfect either way.

Just then, Lexi opened her eyes. And they were the same shape as her fathers, but a shocking shade of green that matched her hair.

It was the first time that she had opened her eyes. Jak gasped. He had come to grips with the fact that he’d be a father months ago. Or, at least, he’d thought he had. But this was something different. Seeing his features in another person’s face was something he’d never expected in his life. He had been adopted when he was young, and even when he had briefly met his father when he was eighteen, they hadn’t looked much the same. In fact, he hadn’t even known that Damas was his father until it was too late.

But now, here she was. His daughter, with her halo of short green hair and green eyes, just like her mother’s. Just like her, with aspects of him mixed in.

I will give you everything I have, forever. Anything you ever need, I’ll get for you. I will protect you from anything that tries to hurt you, he promised silently.

“Can we come in?” asked a woman at the door. It was Ashelin, wearing her usual black and red outfit. This version of her outfit was only slightly less revealing than what she had worn during the height of their adventures, with tight black pants and a red tank top, covered with her dark jacket. That was one of the benefits of being the governor of the city; you could wear what you liked. Her tattooed face was still framed with her familiar, red dreadlocks. Samos stood behind her, holding a coffee. Jak nodded, and the whole group trooped in. Torn, Samos, Ashelin, and Tess.

They gathered around, alternatively cooing at the baby and analyzing all the ways that she looked like her parents. Jak stayed silent, committing her tiny face to memory.

There had been a time, all those years ago in Sandover, when he’d fallen for Keira for the first time. It was more than a childhood crush, and he’d known it even then. But he’d never dreamed of ending up here. Not least because he never could have guessed that they would have come to Haven. Back then, he couldn’t have dreamed of someday marrying Keira. They were just too young, and more focused on their adventures. It had seemed like they had all the time in the world.

But now, here they were.

“Okay, everyone,” said Ashelin. “I say that we give these two—excuse me—these three some space. I’m sure that they want privacy right now. And some sleep, if they can manage it.”

Keira chuckled, relieved. “Thank, you, Ashelin,” she said. They’d become decent friends recently. Jak had never seen that one coming, but it was good to see.

“No problem,” said Ashelin, pushing her boyfriend Torn toward the door. “Come on, big guy. You can coo at the baby later.” Torn grumbled, caught. His macho persona had all but crumbled the first time Lexi had burbled at him. He’d looked like his typical, gruff self when he’d first come into the room, with his red military uniform and tattooed face, but he’d ended up cooing over Lexi as much as anyone else, just like Ashelin said.

Before the group had completely left the room, Tess made sure to pause in the door and tell Keira that she was going to bring Beth to meet Lexi as soon as possible. Keira responded affirmatively, telling Tess that it was a plan, and thanking her for being there. Tess beamed at them all, before turning and leaving with the rest of them, blonde hair swishing out behind her. Daxter hopped onto Torn’s shoulder as they walked out, saying, “Let’s go celebrate!”

“Thanks, guys,” called Jak to his friends as they left. He handed the baby back to Keira, who looked down at her adoringly.

Samos was the last out the door, and Jak suddenly remembered that he’d wanted to talk with him. For the past few months, they’d been coming to see him regularly. Samos had been taking scans of the baby periodically, trying to determine how receptive to eco she’d be. So far, he hadn’t been able to come up with anything definitive. But Jak hoped that he might be able to determine something now that she’d been born.

Turning to Keira, he said, “Give me a second. I want to ask your father something.”

She nodded, eyes softening. “Okay. I’ll try feeding her.”

Jak kissed her quickly, just a quick brush of lips on lips, and followed Samos out the door.

Luckily, he was lagging behind the others, using his cane for support. The groups was almost out the front door, and he could hear Daxter loudly proposing they all head to the Naughty Ottsel for a celebratory drink on the house from where he was perched on Torn’s shoulder. Samos was far enough behind them that Jak could grab his attention without stopping the rest of the group.

“Samos,” Jak said in his deep, gruff voice. “I need to talk to you.”

Samos turned. He looked nothing like his daughter, who was slim, curvy and pale, with blue-green hair that she always wore short. Samos, on the other hand, had skin dyed green from years of exposure to his preferred eco from his work as a sage. As long as Jak had known him, which was most of Jak’s life, he’d been short, like he was hunched with age. His hair was white, still wrapped around a log, and he still wore wooden shoes that were about five inches high. Everything about his appearance marked him as the sage he was, and had been longer than either Jak or Keira had been alive. And it was exactly that expertise that Jak needed now.

“Ah. I should have expected that,” Samos said. He nodded to the busy hallway. “Let’s go find somewhere we can talk in private.”

They walked until they found a waiting room that was empty. Samos went to the coffee pot and poured himself a drink. Being there through the whole labor had really taken it out of him, it seemed.

Once he was satisfied with his sugar and cream, Samos turned back to Jak.

“What did you want to talk about, Jak?” he asked in his gravest voice.

“The baby, Lexi,” Jak said, “when will you be able to tell if she has powers; if she’s like me?” Jak asked this with more desperation than he was used to feeling, cyan eyes wide. He was so much taller and broader than his father-in-law, from years of running around, carrying a gun. His green-blonde hair was cropped short, and he was wearing an outfit that had been calculated to intimidate, with a blue leather jacket over a simple white shirt and tan pants. Weapons were prominently displayed, strapped to his back and hip at all times. Normally, Jak knew that he had nothing to fear from anyone. But he was afraid of what Samos would say.

Samos stirred his drink thoughtfully. “It’s not as simple as taking a scan,” he said. Jak went to speak, about to ask why, then, they’d spent the last few months of the pregnancy taking so many. Before he could, Samos held up a hand to stop him. “The scans were to determine if the baby had been affected by the eco that was in your body at the time of conception. But we won’t know how she is going to react to eco until she’s older. As I’ve said, as a descendant of Mar, there is a good chance that she will inherit your abilities. But it’s just too soon to tell. We can continue checking in on her every year or so, but if she’s like you, it likely won’t be until she’s a teenager that we’ll know any more.”

“I don’t want her to be like me,” Jak said, instantly. For the last few months, it felt like those words were always on the tip of his tongue, and he was constantly biting them down, especially in front of Keira. But it was something that he was very firm on. If Lexi didn’t inherit his abilities, that meant that she would have a chance at a normal life. There would be no reason for anyone to exploit her, like they’d done to him. She would get to be normal, and ordinary and safe. There was nothing he wanted more than that, especially now that he’d seen her tiny face.

Samos peered over his glasses at Jak, pityingly. “I know, Jak. You’ve made that very clear, to me at least. But there’s nothing that can be done, one way or the other. Either she will inherit your ability to channel eco, or she won’t. It’s completely up to random genetics.”

Jak gulped. “What if...what if we try to keep her away from eco?” he said. He balled his fists at his sides. He had a feeling that it wasn’t the right thing to ask. Then he remembered the way he’d felt when he’d first seen her, and the silent promise he’d given her, and he knew that if he could keep her away from danger, he’d do it. No questions asked.

Samos shook his head. “Jak, remember how I tried to keep you and Daxter away from danger, and away from dark eco? At least, until I had no other choice? Remember how that turned out? Children find danger; it’s the way of the world.” In the face of Jak’s mounting anger, he calmly added, “I’m just not sure if these things can always be stopped.”

“I can try,” said Jak firmly.

Samos gave him a long look, then shrugged. “Well, Jak. She is your daughter. And it’s your choice how you raise her. Your’s and Keira’s,” he said, raising a finger. “Just remember, if she’s anything like you—or Keira for that matter—she will have a strong will of her own one day."

“I know,” said Jak. How many times had he gone against Samos’s orders growing up in Sandover? And besides, wasn’t her strong will one of the things he loved most about Keira? “But, you have to understand. I have to try. I have to try to keep her safe. I can’t imagine...if anything were to happen to her.” He could hardly say the words.

Samos nodded. “Now you know how I’ve felt all these years,” he said. “You and Keira will wish you’d given me an easier time of it, you’ll see.” He smiled ruefully. But then, he became more serious. “I know that you will do everything you can to protect her. It helps me sleep at night, knowing Keira and the baby are under your protection. I’m sure that you’ll be a good father. I’m not sure if I say that enough.”

He’d never said it, but Jak appreciated it all the same. It would have been so easy for Samos to write him off, with everything that he knew about his past. “Thanks, Samos,” he said gruffly. “That means a lot to me.”

Samos nodded, and yawned widely. “Well, I’m going to head home now. I’m sure you and Keira have things handled here, for now.”

Jak smiled slightly and raised an eyebrow. “You’re not heading to the Naughty Ottsel for that free drink?” he asked.

Samos’s eyes widened. “God, no! I’m going home, and I’m going right to sleep. I’m a grandfather now, I need my rest,” he said, letting his cane take his weight. Jak fought the urge to help him up. Samos liked to stay independent.

“I can give Lexi a check-up soon,” said Samos, as Jak walked him to the entrance of the hospital. “For now, though, she seems just like any other baby. Call me if you need anything. I’m serious, Jak. I’ve seen it all before, trust me.”

“I know, Samos,” Jak said. Samos was the only person in the world who could still make him feel like the kid he was back in Sandover.

At the door, Samos turned and said, “Give Keira my best. Tell her I love her, and that I’m so proud of her. And for god’s sake, get some sleep. You look dead on your feet.”

“I will, Samos,” Jak said. “Goodbye.”

He walked back to the room. Lexi was sleeping in a little bassinet at the foot of Keira’s bed. Jak stood over her for a moment, drinking in her face and looking at her tiny, balled-up fists. She twitched in her sleep, looking like she was punching and kicking in her sleep. The corner of his mouth quirked up. The movement had reminded him of a younger version of himself.

He briefly considered sleeping on the cot at the edge of the room, but changed his mind. Instead, he sidled into the bed next to Keira. She scooted closer to him unconsciously, mumbling, and he wrapped an arm around her. Jak took one last look at his little family, and promptly followed them into sleep.

Chapter Text

Chapter 2: The Race

The city blurred around Lexi as she zoomed toward the racetracks.  She was running late, like always.  She had a bagel that she had grabbed hurriedly from the kitchen before leaving the house, and she took furious bites as she rode.  This was going to be her last chance to eat for hours.  After she finished it, she leaned even farther forward on her hoverboard, pushing it to its maximum speed.  She grumbled internally at the speed inhibitor that kept it from going any faster.  One of these days, she was really going to have to figure out how to get rid of that thing, without hurting her board in the process.  

She berated herself again and again.  Of all the days to sleep in, this had to be the worst.  There was no way she could be late, not today!  The worst part was that both her mother and her father had warned her about this very thing happening.  By now, they would both be waiting for her, and if she didn’t show, she was going to miss her big chance. 

Gripped by the thought, she leaned even farther forward on her hoverboard.  Though it could go no faster, she could make the turns sharper.  She was almost horizontal, and  she passed an old lady who yelled at her to slow down.  Lexi called a hasty “Sorry!” over her shoulder, but didn’t slow down.  Sometimes, she wished that the judges could see how fast she could make the run from her family’s apartment to the racetracks.  If they did, she’d have the trophy in the bag.  She had it down to about five minutes now, which wasn’t too bad.  Of course, her mom could do it in four, and her dad could do it even faster on his hoverbike, but Lexi was getting faster all the time. 

Lexi zoomed through the racetrack’s open entrance and directly into the garages, zeroing in on her mother’s.  She’d have to see her before the race began, to drop off her things and make sure that her zoomer was ready. 

In one smooth motion in the hallway, Lexi hopped off her board and put it on her back, not even breaking her stride.  Her father always joked that Lexi had practically learned to board before she’d walked, and he was probably right.  They had the pictures of a green-haired toddler balancing on a board to prove it.  When Lexi dashed into the garage, panting, she found her mother already waiting for her.  

“You’re late,” said Keira, not looking up from her welding.  

“I know, I know,” Lexi said, setting down her bag.  She regarded herself in a full-length mirror, crammed into the corner of the garage.  Her mother didn’t often use it, but liked to have it for when she needed to change before leaving.  Having not yet changed into her racing uniform, Lexi wore her typical street-wear: skin-tight pants, black sneakers, and a loose denim jacket over a light gray shirt.  The looseness of her jacket was purposeful.  Recently, her body had been changing, becoming more like Keira’s every day.  Since Lexi was still not sure what to do with the extra attention, she dressed to cover herself up most of the time.  Maybe one day, she’d be used to the stares, but not today. 

Her green eyes, also from her mother, regarded her in the mirror.  They were wide like her mother’s, but Lexi knew that it was also partially the nerves. She had gotten a lot of things from her mother, but one could still find Jak’s influence there.  For example, her face; it was a lot like Keira’s, except slightly closer to her father’s in shape.  She also had his nose, but in miniature.  Lexi thought that it looked snubby on her face, but her mother always insisted it was adorable.  In fact, both she and Jak were always telling her how pretty she was.  She wasn’t sure yet if she believed them. 

Before leaving the house, she’d stuffed her messy morning hair into a dark beanie.  With practiced movements, she pulled it off and put her long, green-blonde hair into a messy bun to keep it off her face.  She could stuff it into her helmet, later.  For a long time, her hair had been pure green, and she would have been okay with it staying that way.  But around the same time her family had started spending summers in Spargus, it had lightened considerably.  Now, only the roots and her eyebrows were a dark green, like her father’s.  The rest was blonde.  She liked the change, except for one thing.  Now, everyone could tell from just one look at her that she was Jak’s daughter; she never got a moment to shine on her own.    

Keira gave her daughter an exasperated look, but she didn’t sound too put out when she said, “I know that you love rushing around the city, but it is possible to leave the house more than five minutes before you’re supposed to be somewhere, you know?” 

“Aw, but where’s the challenge in that?” Lexi asked, raising an eyebrow and walking over to her mother, who was leaning over an engine, wearing her usual work outfit, which was a white shirt under half undone coveralls.  Her blueish-green hair stuck out from behind her welder’s mask, and her stance was calmly confident, as it always was in her garage. 

Keira rolled her eyes fondly.  “You’re becoming more and more like your father every day,” she said.  “By the way, he came by earlier.  He told me to wish you luck, and said that he’d be right next to the track, watching.” 

Lexi felt a rush of joy.  Of course, he was here.  He came to all her races.  But it always gave her a boost, knowing that he would right there, supporting her.  He hardly ever used his fame to pull strings, but one exception was that he always insisted on getting to stand in the employee section, right near the track while she raced.  It made her feel safe.  

This was the last round of the junior races before the inter-city competition, and Lexi was giddy with anticipation.  Today, she’d be racing against the best of the best from the junior league, for a chance to represent her city in the finals in the fall.  Lexi had been looking forward to this ever since she had climbed onto her first hover-bike as a kid.

Over the intercom came a sterile, female voice.  “Will all junior league racers proceed to the main desk for check-in?”  

Hearing it over the intercom made it all so real.  Lexi’s nerves must have shown on her face, because Keira walked over to her, and put her hands on Lexi’s shoulders.  

All traces of teasing had left Keira’s voice when she said, “Hey, you’re going to be great.  You know the track forward and backward, and you’ve been preparing for this your whole life.” 

It was true. Lexi had been practicing for so long  She would come early to the track for practice time, and stay late, taking the same turns again and again.  Lexi’s eyes traveled to the shelves and shelves filled with racing trophies, won by both her parents.  She had been born into racing; she could do this. 

Lexi took a deep breath and said, “I know.  I’m ready, just a little nervous.”  She shook out her arms to bring feeling back to her fingertips. 

Keira smiled, and hugged her daughter.  “I know.”  Before lone, she pulled away, and playfully shooed Lexi away with a rag that had been tucked into one of her oversized pockets.  “Now, get going.  You have a race to win!  I’ll be up in the stands, cheering you on!” 

Lexi turned and ran from the room, calling, “Thanks, mom!” over her shoulder.  

It was time to race. 

Soon enough, Lexi had signed herself in.  After, she stood tensely next to the other teenagers, waiting to race.  Lexi was among the youngest, and definitely the shortest.  They were all wearing the same outfits, a protective cover-all provided to them by the stadium along with green helmets.  Standing among so many people who towered above her, Lexi always felt absolutely tiny.  But she remembered her mother’s words. 

“Let them underestimate you,” Keira had said months ago when training had first begun.  “They underestimated me when I was your age.  But, your size will actually give you an advantage when it comes to sticking hard turns and moving fast.  They won’t see that, though.  All they’ll see is a little girl.  Let them, and then leave them in the dust.” 

The memory resolved Lexi.  She straightened her shoulders, and looked forward steadily. 

“Your parents and/or guardians have already signed the 0release forms,” said the bored voice of the woman briefing them before the race.  “So we can’t be held liable for any damage that comes to yourselves or your vehicles in the race.” 

Lexi fidgeted impatiently.  She’d heard this speech so many times before.  Didn’t they understand that, by now, everyone got it? 

Behind Lexi, one of the male racers leaned in and said, “Is your daddy going to be hovering in the pits in case his little Lexi-wexie gets a little scrape?”  Lexi groaned internally.  Burke.  He was an annoying male racer about her age who was sponsored by a rival racing team.  

Burke’s chortling asshole of a friend next to him added, “Yeah, is your daddy going to stop the race if his little girl gets a papercut on the release forms?” 

If they hadn’t been about to race, Lexi would have been tempted to just elbow them.  But if she did that now, she could be accused of sabotaging the other racers and barred from the race.  There was no way that was happening. 

Barely turning, Lexi whispered back to them, “The only ones who should be worrying about getting hurt out there are you two.”

They started laughing even harder behind her, doubting her bravado.  But Lexi bit her tongue, swallowing her further taunts.  She would just have to make them eat their words on the track. 

Finally, once the briefing was done, the racers were allowed to walk onto the starting line.  Their hoverbikes were primed and ready.  Keira had double-checked  and triple-checked Lexi’s zoomer herself that morning.  A rush of affection for her mother rose in Lexi’s chest when she saw her bike, gleaming and ready. 

Throwing one leg over her bike, Lexi eased it into hover mode.  It went from being a dead thing to something like a friend, supporting her weight.   

She leaned forward and whispered, “We got this,” into its metal hull.  She knew that the other racers would have thought she was weird if they had heard her.  Still, she felt that it had to be said.  

In front of her, three mounted lights flashed one by one.  As they did, she and all the other racers leaned forward, revving their engines.  The anticipation of a race crackled through her, and in the rush of waiting for the race to start, it was easy to forget every snide remark the other racers had ever said to her.  After all, this was her turf.  

With the final light, the racers had permission to move.  Finally.   Lexi leaned forward with everything she had in her, and her vehicle purred happily underneath her.  Next to her, the other racers also took their start.  Since they were all using machines that had been provided to them by the garage, no one had any kind of a mechanical edge.  Not that she needed one. 

She took the first turn hard, twisting her body.  Lexi’s body worked in concert with her machine, and it was the perfect rise.  She could tell that she might have pulled an inch or two ahead of the others with that turn.  Underneath her visor, she grinned.  Then, she made certain to hit the acceleration pad on the floor, picking up a bit of air for her trouble.  Her stomach flipped, a giddy feeling that she would never get tired of.   

Lexi took the next two laps much the same way, barely holding the lead.  The other racers were good, alright.  But then, someone’s bike swung too close to her.  Pulling away to avoid a collision, she lost precious momentum.  The other racer sped ahead of her, and she could hear Burke’s distinct laugh as he went.  Of course, it was him.  He must have felt resentful at her lead, and had pulled a cheap trick, nearly colliding with her to make her lose focus.  Even in the junior racing leagues, rules weren’t heavily enforced, and because he hadn’t directly crashed into her, he wouldn’t be disqualified.  

But it was still a cheap trick, and as one or two other racers sped in front of Lexi, she could hear the roar of disapproval from the crowd, and she could tell that she wasn’t the only one who was pissed.  In fact, her father was probably seething next to the track. 

She had to get her game face back on.  All the complaining in the world wouldn’t change anything if he won.  So, instead, she leaned even farther forward, and twisted the throttle even harder.  She had an idea. 

There was a risky jump that was also not technically illegal.  If she managed it, she would be able to jump directly from the top of one loop in the track to the bottom of another, cutting out a decent chunk of track for herself.  It just might be enough to put her back in the game.  But junior racers rarely attempted it.  Not only did you have to hit the jump with the perfect speed and angle, but you also had to pull up with all your might and take a rough landing on the other side.  It was one of the jumps that her father was famous for always taking, and always landing.  It’d be a tricky jump, and she’d never attempted it on this type of zoomer.  But, she told herself, it wasn’t like Burke’s little stunt had given her much of a choice.  

Twisting the throttle, she twisted expertly between the two racers who had passed her.  Burke was nursing a healthy lead now, and still giving it all he’d got.  There was no way that he was going to make passing easy for her.  But that just meant that she would have to try harder. 

Hitting the last acceleration pad before the jump, she twisted toward it.  She tried to clear out all the sound and movement around her, and concentrated all her energy on hitting the jump.  

When she ran off the track, she pulled back on her handlebars, and leaned back with all her might.  The zoomer passed the edge of the track, and flew into the air.  There were a few, glorious moments of freefall.  Then, she hit the other side of the track, landing with a startling jolt.  But her zoomer compensated, and she silently thanked it.  

Burke was still just a little ahead of her, but he wouldn’t be for long.  There was only about half a lap left, and there was no way that she was going to let him win.  Not after landing a jump like that.  And especially when she had seen, for just a second, her father, right on the edge of the track.  Just like he’d promised. 

Leaning in sync with her zoomer, Lexi saw that Burke was taking the next turn too wide.  Moving into the tiny space this left, she passed him, leaning so far to the right that she was practically sideways.  The rush came back to her, and when she straightened, she could hear Burke cursing behind her.  The crowd screamed and cheered at this upset, and Lexi had trouble tuning them out when she finally passed the finish line.  

Sitting back on her ride and easing it into a slower mode, she threw her arms in the air.  Lexi couldn’t believe it.  She’d won!  She let out a whoop of joy, and she could see that her image was on the large screen in the center of the room, but she didn’t have eyes for that.  She found her father’s face, and beamed.  He stood right next to the racer’s exit, and looked quietly impressed.  Her chest filled with joy, and she was about to scan the crowds to look for her friends and other family, who she knew would be in the stands, when the ground began to shake, ending her celebration early. 

The quaking was so strong, that even though Lexi’s bike hovered about a foot off the ground, the movements of the earth jostled her still.  The bike bobbed and weaved under her trying to stay balanced, and Lexi struggled to keep it straight, every muscle of her core straining.  Behind her came the unmistakable sounds of people screeching to unexpected stops.  Knowing she was about to be thrown off her bike, Lexi threw herself from it on instinct, and curled into a ball as she landed, like her father had taught her to do in an emergency.  The force of the fall was tremendous, but she came out of it unhurt.  She felt, rather than heard, her bike twist off to one side and crash into the wall.  Luckily, she had already thrown her arms over her head to protect it.  

Distantly, Lexi could hear the panicked screams of the crowd.   She also heard her father bellow, “Lexi!”  The earth stopped shaking, and Lexi lifted her head cautiously.  Her father, Jak, was running toward her, before the guards who lined the walls of the track pushed him back. 

Lexi stood, feeling shaky on her legs, and called, “It’s okay, daddy!  I’m fine.” 

He visibly relaxed, and stopped pressing against the guards.  Lexi knew that if he wanted to, he could have made short work of getting past them.  It was only because she was unhurt that he didn’t do so now. 

Soon, medics came on to the track, confirming that all the racers were unhurt and in a state to be moved off the track, all while Jak waited anxiously.  Luckily, most everyone’s safety training had kicked in, and the only injuries were a twisted ankle and a sprained knee.  Really, it was a miracle that nothing worse had happened.  Ashelin, who had been watching from the governor’s booth, came down to personally assess the situation.  Then, she had broadcasted herself on the huge screens that were mounted above the track.  She tried to calm everyone, saying that this had just been a normal earthquake, and that there was no reason for concern.  However, just to be safe, the seniors race that would have taken place immediately after the race Lexi had won was postponed indefinitely.  

Lexi, unhurt but shaken, sat between her parents while Ashelin had given her short speech.  Something had seemed wrong about the earthquake, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on it.  Earthquakes didn’t happen here that often.  In fact, she could not remember something like this happening in her lifetime. 

Jolting Lexi out of her reverie, Keira said, “Well, looks like they’re going to shut down for today.  With the senior race postponed, there’s no real reason for me to stay.”   

Jak was distracted, as if he, too, was lost in thought.  “How about you two head home before me?  I want to hang back and talk to Ashelin about what just happened, about safety measures and what this could mean for the city.”  

While Jak didn’t have an official title, it was well-known that he had a job that was all his own.  After he had saved the city and the world multiple times, Jak had finally won Haven’s trust completely.  He had become the highly respected protector of the city.  Even without an official title, he was paid to protect the city, and was well-known for working on a largely freelance basis.  No one told him how to protect the city, because they knew that leaving him to act on his own was much more effective.  It only made sense that he would check in with Ashelin about what just happened.  

Keira nodded.  “Okay, sweetie.  But try not to get back too late.  Remember, we have a big day tomorrow.” 

Lexi’s stomach twisted with nerves.  Somehow, in the rush of the race and the shock of the quake, she had almost managed to forget what was happening the next day.  She crossed her arms tightly over her chest, trying to hide how nervous the reminder had made her.   

But of course, her father noticed.  He always noticed when she was distressed.  He laid a hand on Lexi’s shoulder as he stood to go.  

“Hey, it’ll be okay.  No matter what happens tomorrow,” he bent slightly, so they were eye-to-eye.  “I promise.”  It was probably the only thing that he could have said to comfort her.  His promises were golden.  

Lexi swallowed, and tried to smile.  “I know,” she said.  “I’ll see you at home?” 

Jak nodded, and stood again, giving them brief good-byes.  Standing next to her mother, she watched him go.  And she tried not to think about tomorrow.  

Chapter Text

Chapter 3: The Eco Test

Too soon, it was the next morning.  The family had woken early, and gotten ready in relative silence.  Lexi soon found herself sitting in the backseat of the family’s zoomer.  Without doors or a roof, it was open to the bracing air of the early morning, and it was probably her favorite vehicle in the world.  

Right now, she was tucked in the backseat, watching as the ground passed by down below as the zoomer flew at cruising height.  Her father was driving with one hand, and had his other hand resting on the center console, linked with her mother’s.  They were always doing little things like that, holding hands or casually touching.  Lexi had used to be embarrassed seeing them do that kind of thing, but now she had to admit that it was kind of nice, seeing all the little ways they showed they cared.  But she never said it aloud.

At a traffic stop, Keira turned in her seat to look back at Lexi. 

“How’re you feeling?” she asked with a slight, reassuring smile.  She clearly expected Lexi to be nervous on this day.  Of course, she was right, but Lexi didn’t want to let it show.  

“I’m fine,” Lexi said brightly.  And why shouldn’t she be?  She had made this exact visit yearly since she’d been a baby.  This time would be just like all the others, she kept telling herself. 

But of course, that was the problem. 

They touched down in front of her grandfather’s house.  Lexi visited often, mostly with her mother.  This was also where she stayed on the rare occasion that her parents went out of town without her.  It was so familiar to her, and normally, just the sight of the little wooden hut was enough to brighten her day.  But never on this day, when she came in for her yearly test.  This day, she dreaded going in. 

Jak walked until he was standing in front of her.  He put his hands on her shoulders, reassuring her.  “Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked.  “If you want, we can do this another day.  I know that you were pretty shaken up yesterday, with the earthquake and everything.” 

Lexi shook her head, trying to look certain.  “No, let’s do it now.  I don’t want to have to wonder anymore.  It’ll be better if I know, you know?” 

His look was sympathetic.  Both of them knew that, one way or the other, there was no way that both of them were going to leave this check-up happy.  The results, whatever they were, would surely disappoint one, and thrill the other.  But even though they wanted different things from this visit didn’t mean they weren’t still on the same team.   

As if to prove how much he cared, Jak silently pulled her into a hug.  He whispered, “I’ll love you forever, no matter what.  You know that, right?” 

She smiled and said, “Yeah, daddy.  I know.  I love you too.”  Finally, the smile on her face was a real one.  Then, it was time to head inside. 

“Lexi!” said her grandfather, Samos.  He was short even with his high wooden shoes, and hunched over with age.  His skin was green, from years of green eco exposure from his years as a sage.  He had white hair, getting thinner all the time, and a thick white moustache.  His hair was wrapped around the log that adorned the top of his head, a feature so familiar Lexi practically didn’t notice it anymore.  He had recently traded in his glasses for an even thicker pair, and was always complaining that he was “becoming more like a bat by the day”.  Still, he found things to keep himself busy in retirement, mostly advising the city council on eco and helping the rare people who came in, seeking his expertise.  But other than that, this yearly check up was his busiest day of the year.  

“Grandpa!” Lexi said, stooping over to hug him.  Even though she dreaded the check-up, she never dreaded seeing him.  In fact, since someone had to administer the test, she was glad that out of everyone else in the world, it was him.  He never made her feel bad when she inevitably failed.   

“How are you, my dear?” Samos asked jovially, returning her hug.  

Lexi smiled.  “Good!  I won the junior racing final yesterday.  They decided that since everyone crossed the finish line before the earthquake started, they aren’t going to have us re-do it.  So, I’m definitely going to the inter-city competition in August!”  

Samos hummed thoughtfully, both hands resting in front of him on his wooden cane.  “Yes, I heard that the earthquake occurred right at the end of your race.  I’m so glad that you were unhurt.  The timing was very...unfortunate.”  He paused, before composing himself.  “But, of course, I always knew that you’d win!  I didn’t doubt it for a second.”  

Lexi flushed with pride as Samos turned to his daughter and son-in-law.  “And, Keira, Jak, how are you two?” 

Jak gave a gruff, “Good,” and Keira stepped forward, hugging her father tightly and telling him that she was good, too.  For a few minutes, Keira and Samos made small talk, catching up on everything happening in their lives.  They avoided talking about the previous day’s earthquake, or the smaller ones that had jolted the city that morning as Lexi had been getting ready.  They were small enough to be ignored, for now.  For a brief time, larger problems about eco and earthquakes were put aside. 

But, soon, the time for small talk was over.  

Samos took a seat in his living room, leaning much of his weight on his cane.  “Now,” he said,  “for the check-up.” 

Lexi gulped, trying to hide her nerves, and sat in front of him on a stool.  He gave her a sympathetic look, as if he understood what it felt like, to be tested like this. 

“Now, Lexi, as you know, during these check-ups, there hasn’t been any response to the eco so far.  And, now that you’re sixteen, you’re at an age where if it doesn’t happen now, there’s a good chance that it will never happen,” Samos said kindly.  His expression, behind the thick glasses, was also kind. 

Lexi had never made a secret of her desire to inherit her father’s powers.  When she was a child, she had spent much of her time mimicking her father, and telling everyone who would listen that she would be a hero like him one day.  On the other hand, Jak wanted nothing more than for the Mar legacy to skip her, and to give her a normal life.  After fifteen years of Lexi never being able to channel eco during her yearly test, it was starting to look like her father would get his way. 

Not trusting her voice, Lexi nodded, clenching her fists in her lap. 

Her grandfather sighed.  “So, that is good news, in a way.  If it doesn’t work this time, I think that we can assume that the abilities weren’t passed down, and we can stop these yearly check-ups.” 

Lexi could sense her father’s tension behind her.  There was nothing that he wanted more, and he didn’t bother hiding it.  

“I understand,” she said, trying to keep her voice calm.  Her grandfather had to know that, no matter what happened, she didn’t blame him.  That no matter what happened, she wouldn’t be mad at him.  She had to show that she knew that this was about her, not him.  

Samos nodded, and stood with a grunt.  He went to the back of the room, and opened a metal canister.  From the open container, he scooped up a palm-sized amount of white eco.  He had pulled on protective gloves that kept it from sinking into his own skin.  The eco glowed and pulsed in his hand. 

She gasped.  It was beautiful.  Normally, they performed this test with yellow, red or blue eco, which were comparatively easy to come by.  The eco in front of her now was rare, powerful and beautiful.  Lexi couldn’t pull her eyes away.   

Noting her surprise and wonder, Samos said, “I wanted to be very sure, given this will probably be the final test.  This is some of the most concentrated white eco I could find.  If nothing happens with this, well…” he trailed off.  Lexi could guess what went unsaid.  If it didn’t work with this, it wouldn’t work with anything.  

She nodded again, with more force this time.  Suddenly, she was flooded with a rush of determination.  With such a powerful eco, surely she could channel it, couldn’t she? 

As Samos walked toward her, Lexi could feel her father’s firm hand on her shoulder, offering his support.  While Jak didn’t want her to have powers of her own, he knew how nervous these tests always made her.  She smiled slightly in appreciation, and once Samos stood in front of her, she held out both her hands, palms-up.  It was like she was outside, trying to catch rain in the palms of her hands. 

Her grandfather gently placed the eco in her hands.  It was warm, and positively pulsed.  It was like holding happiness.  The light eco hovered, bobbing for a second, as if it was recognizing an old friend, and then blinked out of existence in her palm.  She felt it sink into her skin. 

Lexi stared at her now-empty hands.  The warmth and the happiness faded.  She knew that this should be the part where she should be able to channel the eco.  She should have been able to use it to generate wings or freeze time, or any of the other amazing things that her father was able to do.  But there was nothing new.  No new ability, no sense that she could do anything at all.  It was like nothing had happened at all.   

Lexi blinked rapidly, fighting off tears.  They were all watching her so intently, and her grandfather had both his eyebrows raised, as if he was expecting something.  It hurt to disappoint him again.  Just like she always did.  

She shook her head.  

Her mother was in front of her in a moment, hugging her tightly around the shoulders.  “It’s okay, sweetie.”  Her father knelt at her side, keeping a hand on her shoulder.  On his face, she could see his sympathy for her mixed with his relief.  She wondered which was stronger.  Her grandfather rose with a grunt, and closed the canister.  Lexi blinked harder.

After Lexi failed the test for the last time, there were a lot of emotions to work through.  Both her parents comforted her, and her grandfather kept assuring her that this was just a matter of random genetics.  In fact, Keira looked guilty at the mention of genetics, as if it was her fault, and that had just made it worse.  And, of course, there was the constant, unspoken presence of her father’s palpable relief.  Still, he was too kind to gloat openly.  Eventually, Lexi insisted that she was really okay, and they settled on ordering something to eat, and spending the rest of the day together as a family. 

After they ate, Lexi found herself wandering out into her grandfather’s porch.  She sat on the hard wooden surface, and hugged her legs to her chest.  This was really it.  She didn’t have her father’s abilities.  A breeze stirred her light hair, and she closed her eyes.  

She felt strangely hollow, despite everything her family had done to comfort her, and all she wanted was to be alone.  But then, her grandfather came out, opening the screen door and sitting in a cushioned chair next to her.  

“I thought you’d be out here,” he said, letting out a sigh as he settled into the chair. 

She didn’t say anything, and just turned her face away.  

He sighed again, more loudly.  “I know that you’re disappointed, but you have to know, Lexi, no one thinks any less of you.  All this was random, just a quirk of genetics.  It’s hard, and I don’t expect you to be happy about it, but you can still be anything that you want to be.  You can still be a hero, like your father, if that’s what you want.” 

“It’s not about being a hero,” Lexi said into her legs, but then she sat up straighter, so her grandfather would be able to hear her.  “It’s not about any of that.  I mean, when I was a kid, the idea of rescuing the city for fame and glory sounded pretty good.  But now, while I would do anything for the city, this isn’t about getting anything.  I just…” she held up her hands, trying to explain herself in gestures.  But it was pointless, so she tried to put it into words.  “I’ve always felt like there was this other side of me.  Like there was another Lexi inside of me that I was going to meet someday.  And I was so sure that this was it.” 

She looked at him.  “It’s like, there’s this hidden part of me, and I know it’s there,” she said, with a hand on her heart, “but I don’t know how to tap into it, and now I don’t know if I ever will.”  She looked at him, silently pleading for him to understand.  

Samos hummed thoughtfully, then said, “The first thing you learn when you study eco is that it is such a mysterious thing.”  Samos gestured vaguely, leaving a trail of green eco in the wake of his hand.  “We often don’t know why it does the things it does, and it often acts in its own time.  I just wanted you to know that it is unlikely to happen for the first time after sixteen, so you didn’t spend the rest of your life waiting.  I wanted you to be free of expectation.  But anything could happen, even now.”

Lexi felt the faintest stirrings of hope.  She turned more fully toward him, letting her legs fall.  “Does daddy know that?” she asked.  No doubt, he’d be upset if he did. 

Samos shook his head.  “Technically, he does.  I’m sure that I’ve mentioned it a few times over the years.  But he doesn’t want to believe it.  He’s always wanted you to not inherit his powers.  It’s no secret that he’s relieved.” 

Lexi nodded, and said, “I know.  I’m not mad at him, or anything.”  She swung her unfolded legs off the edge of his porch.  “He’s just looking out for me, as always.”  

Samos smiled at her.  “So wise for your age,” he said.  “That’s how I know that you’ll be just fine, with or without powers.” 

She smiled up at him silently.  

“Now, let’s go back inside.  It’s getting chilly.”  He tried to stand with a grunt.  Lexi stood, and offered him a hand to get out of his chair.  Then, she pulled him into a grateful hug, and he patted her back, reaching up to do it.

“I love you, grandpa,” she whispered. 

“I love you too, sweetheart,” he said, smiling at her when they pulled away.  “Now, come on.  I have a dessert prepared.  I made your favorite.”

His words filled her with a flood of happiness, like she was still holding the eco within her. 

After Lexi and her parents had finished dessert but before they left, Jak stopped to talk to Samos in the doorway. 

“That earthquake yesterday, and the smaller ones today,” Jak said, arms crossed.  “What did you make of them, Samos?”

Samos’s eyes darted away evasively.  “I wouldn’t know anything about that,” he said.  “Doesn’t the city have people who study that sort of thing?” 

“Seismologists, yeah,” said Jak.  “I already swung by the university to talk with some yesterday.  But they say it’s unusual.  They have reason to believe that someone might have caused them.” 

Lexi shot Keira a surprised glance, still holding the leftover dessert her grandfather had given her.  Keira nodded slightly, indicating that she already knew.  Not for the first time, Lexi scrunched up her face with frustration, wishing that people told her things, too.  

Samos stroked his beard.  “That’s interesting.  But, Jak, the earthquakes were probably just a natural occurrence.  And I’m sure that the city has it well in hand.”  He waved his hands dismissively, and it was clear that he wanted an end to this line of questioning. 

“I just thought that maybe, if this isn’t normal, it might be nice to have a warning, Samos,” Jak prompted.  

“I couldn’t tell you anything,” said Samos, waving him away.  “Maybe if there was more data, but there isn’t.  Just, keep an eye on things.  I’m sure that it’ll be fine.” 

Jak’s brow furrowed doubtfully.  “Okay,” he said.  “You’re probably right.”  His arms fell to his sides, and it was clear that he was finished questioning. 

They loaded back into the hover, waving goodbye to Samos on the porch.  It was early afternoon, and there was nothing else that they had to do that day.  After a whole day spent not really knowing what to do to make Lexi feel better, Jak decided to give it another try.  At the first traffic light, he pulled the hovercar to a stop, and turned around in his seat to look at Lexi.  

“You know, I was thinking that maybe later, we should go to the hoverboard park, then out for ice cream.  You know, like we used to when you were younger?” he said, sweet but uncertain.  “How does that sound?” 

Lexi smiled.  “That sounds great, daddy,” she said.  

Jak smiled at her, and reached back to brush some hair out of her face.  “Hey,” he said.  “It’s going to be okay.  This doesn’t change anything.” 

She nodded.  That, at least, was true.  Everything was exactly the same as it had always been.  And that was the problem. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 4: Waking Nightmare

That night, Lexi woke with a start in the middle of the night, panting and sweating from the stress of her nightmare.  She clutched her chest, remembering.  In the dream, she had been fighting a dark figure.  Lexi recalled swinging and clawing at it with everything that she had..  She was so filled with rage, but the twisted, hunched figure had only chuckled at her efforts. 

Then, a rift had opened in the ground between the figure and Lexi.  The pit that then separated them had been filled with the darkest of ecos, which showed shades of the deepest purple as it rippled.  The dark figure had given her a mocking ‘come here’ gesture, as if daring Lexi to try the jump.    Through the haze of her confused dream logic all Lexi knew was that this person, whoever they were, needed to be stopped at any cost.  With a scream of frustration, Lexi had put aside all thoughts of self-preservation, and jumped.  She landed almost on the other side, clinging to the edge of the other side of the pit.  Lexi’s legs had scrambled for purchase so she could put herself away from the dark eco.  But it was too late.  Her legs slipped, and plunged into the dark eco.  Lexi could feel it surge within her.  

Suddenly, Lexi had been filled with a driving, horrible rage, and she could feel herself change.  Her skin went pale, her muscles grew and rippled, and her fingers lengthened into claws.  With her new fury and strength, Lexi pulled herself up and forward, slashing at the dark figure again, this time with claws.  It laughed, as if Lexi’s transformation was the funniest thing they had ever seen.  

Lexi had woken in a cold sweat then.  She leaned forward, hugging her knees to her chest.  The dream had been so real, and the anger that was still leaving her body made her feel weak and nauseous.  There wasn’t any chance of getting back to sleep after that.  Besides, her father had always told her to tell him right away if she found herself having thoughts like that, no matter what time it was.  And that certainly included dreams about using dark eco to transform.   Glancing at the clock and seeing that it was early, Lexi figured that there was a decent chance that he might be up already.  And, if not, she might as well wait for him in the living room.  Maybe she could watch some tv to calm her nerves.  

She padded out into the hall, closing her door quietly behind her.  Her green-blonde hair was done in two long braids, and she shivered in her thin sleep clothes as she walked past her parents’ bedroom door.  Downstairs, she could see light pooling in the living room, and she could hear the soft buzz of the tv, sure signs that her father was awake already.  With equal parts trepidation and relief, Lexi made her way toward the stairs, so she could tell her dad about her dream.  But, before she came out onto the landing, she heard the doorbell ring, which was unusual so early in the morning.  Curious, Lexi crept down the hall toward the noise.  

From the top of the stairs, she could hear her father grunt as he stood to answer the door.  He rolled his shoulders as he went, and Lexi wondered if it was one of his former injuries acting up.  

Jak opened the door, and over her father’s shoulder, Lexi saw her uncle Torn and aunt Ashelin standing outside.  They had serious expressions on their faces which made them look less like cherished family friends, and more like the leaders of the city.  Lexi leaned against the wall, hoping to stay unseen. 

“Jak, we need to talk,” said Uncle Torn in his familiar, gravelly voice.  He was standing in the doorway, broad and tall.  His brown, shoulder-length hair was done in its usual bundles, with two larger ones framing his face.  He looked regal as ever, like a king out of one of the old stories.  But, of course, it was Ashelin who was governor of the city, while he headed up the military.  Ashelin stood next to him, bundled up against the rain.   Jak leaned against the side of the door, one arm braced against it.  In a stark contrast to their professional clothing and tired faces, he was still wearing the gray sweats and white tank top that he wore to sleep.  Still, he sounded confident when he replied.  

“This couldn’t wait til morning?” Jak asked.  From what Lexi could tell, there were two sides to Jak’s relationship with Torn and Ashelin.  When they visited as friends, the whole group would laugh and drink and talk about their past adventures. But when it came to talking about serious matters relating to the city, they could be surprisingly blunt with each other, especially when they troubled Jak about something very early or in the middle of the night.  Lexi supposed that it had something to do with the fact that her father was one of the few people in the city who could have an attitude with them. And the thing about Torn and Ashelin was that they could have an attitude right back.  

“No, it can’t,” said Ashelin.  She stood behind Torn with her hands crossed against her chest, looking regal in the red and black gear that always made her look like a warrior, as well as the leader of the city.  Her red hair was still dry, covered as it was by a deep hood that partially hid her familiar face, tattooed like her husband’s.

Jak sighed, and rubbed one hand down his face.  He stood out of the way of the door.  “Alright,” he said.  “Come in.  But try to stay quiet; Lexi is sleeping and Keira has a race in the morning.” 

Hearing Jak mention her name reminded Lexi of what she had come out here to tell him.  Now, though, it was more important to hear what Torn and Ashelin had to say.  She was too interested to turn away.  She crouched, and waited for a chance to sneak after them. 

They came in, hung their wet cloaks on the coat rack, and followed Jak into the small kitchen off their living room.  Once Lexi was sure they wouldn’t see her, she crept down the staircase, making sure to skip the step that always made a loud noise.  Then, she ducked into the living room, out of sight but able to hear them clearly.  She could even see their arms and legs from where she crouched behind the sofa. 

They arranged themselves, standing around the dinner table like they were a three-person war council.  Which—in a way—they were.  

Jak propped his hands on the back of one of the chairs, and leaned forward.  “What’s this about?” he asked. 

Ashelin answered, “It’s about the earthquakes, Jak.  It’s worse than we first thought.  They could represent a real threat to the city,”  She sounded deadly serious, and Lexi’s stomach sunk.  

Lexi’s dad didn’t sound surprised when he asked,  “What kind of threat?” 

“Something big,” said Torn.  “We have seismographs set up all around the city.  We’re picking up serious tectonic activity, and it’s all originating just west of the city. We think it might be related to the dark eco mines outside the city.  And we have reason to suspect foul play.” 

Lexi fought the urge to gasp at this news.  Ever since the reservoir had been discovered by miners years ago, the city had monitored it.  It had never moved or changed, and the city worked hard to keep it that way.  Miners worked carefully, all under the city’s watch to make sure the eco didn’t fall into the wrong hands.  If anyone was interfering with it, it could be very bad for the city. 

Jak sounded tense when he responded.  Lexi imagined he was gripping the back of the chair, as he leaned forward even more.  “What do you need me to do?” he asked. 

There was a sound like a scroll of paper being unrolled on the kitchen table.  A map, maybe?  Then, Torn said, “You can reach the epicenter of the seismic activity through the west gate of the city.  We want you and Daxter to go check it out, first thing in the morning.  While our scientists and eco-ologists try to work out if this is happening for natural reasons, we want you on the ground to determine if there is any one causing this.” 

Ashelin said, “It goes without saying, Jak, we don’t want anyone tapping into this supply of dark eco without permission from the city.  We’re extremely careful about that.  You, more than anyone, know what it could mean if someone takes control of it.  If there’s anyone tampering with the site, we want you to neutralize them.  By any means necessary.” 

This time, Lexi couldn’t stop herself from gasping.  She knew that her father went into danger with Daxter on his shoulder all the time to face threats to the city.  But she had never heard such a violent order coming directly from her aunt Ashelin before.  At the thought of her father carrying out such orders, Lexi shivered.  

With any other group of people, she might have gotten away with gasping.  It had been quiet, and she could have stayed still, or tried to make her way back up the stairs.  But the three at the table were well-trained from years of combat, and they all heard the tiny noise.  They froze, and Lexi imagined Torn and Ashelin reaching for the weapons at the belts, as if they thought that a spy had followed them here from the palace somehow. 

Luckily, Jak knew it was just her.  Unluckily, Jak knew it was her.  

With a heavy sigh, Jak said, “Lexi, come on out.”  Grudgingly, Lexi left her hiding place, and walked into the kitchen’s doorway. 

“Hi, daddy.  I couldn’t sleep,” she said awkwardly.  She crossed her arms over her chest, suddenly conscious of her light blue sleep clothes and how her hair was in two long braids.  Torn and Ashelin looked so startled that it might have been funny if Lexi hadn’t just been caught.  As it was, there was nothing funny about it. 

“Would you believe me if I said I didn’t hear anything?”  Lexi asked, cringing and turning away slightly.  She knew what his answer would be even as she asked it.  

Jak shook his head.  “No, Lexi.  Sorry, but I wouldn’t buy that.  I can tell when you’re lying.” 

Since she hadn’t yet been told off for intruding, Lexi started to feel more optimistic about getting more information.  She rushed forward.  

“Are the earthquakes really that bad?” she asked, leaning forward over the kitchen table.  Her guess about the roll of paper had been right, and there was a beige map of the city and its outskirts sprawled across the table.  On it were three red dots clustered together on the outskirts of the city, seemingly to indicate the quakes’ epicenters.   

Torn cleared his throat and said awkwardly, “Sorry, kid.  You weren’t supposed to hear that.  It’s strictly confidential.  But, you don’t have to worry.  We have everything under control.”  He pulled on the map, rolling it up in one, smooth motion.  The look on uncle Torn’s face as he said it was pure him, world-weary but confident and comforting.  Lexi tried to look reassured, but she was sure her doubt showed on her face. 

Ashelin glanced at her husband.   “She’s already heard the worst of it.  We could tell her a little more.  It might make her feel better than just leaving her in the dark would.  If that’s fine with you, Jak.”  

Jak looked doubtful himself, but just crossed his arms and nodded. 

Ashelin nodded back and said, “From our scans, we haven’t yet been able to rule out a natural cause.  It’s entirely possible that the shifts are natural, and that we’ll just have to find a way to either stop, mitigate, or cope with it.” 

“What if it isn't natural?” Lexi asked, gaze hopping from face to face. 

“If it isn’t natural,” said Ashelin.  “Then someone is causing this, and they need to be stopped.  And if there’s someone to be stopped, your father can stop them,  There’s nothing for you to worry about.” 

But of course, the thought of her father going into battle again just made her nervous.  She had grown up on stories of how her father and Daxter had faced countless dangers to save the world three times before they were twenty.  She knew that her dad had risked his life many times before she was born, and that he’d killed people.  A lot of people, according to most sources.  While Lexi had always known that those things had happened, it seemed like some other version of her dad had done them.  She never liked thinking about her father, the person she looked up to more than anyone else in the world, killing or risking his life. 

But now, she might have to. 

Still, she was glad that Ashelin had told her.  That was the best thing about Ashelin.  She never dumbed things down or treated Lexi like she couldn’t handle things.  Lexi gave her a small nod of thanks for her honesty, even if hearing it had made her more nervous.
Her dad nodded,  “Ashelin’s right.  I’ve stopped worse things from destroying the city, trust me.” 

Lexi knew that their words were meant to be comforting.  And, to a degree, they were. But the frightening images of her dream came back to her, and she remembered the feeling of dark eco coursing through her body.  It was something she was never supposed to feel, if her father had his way.  And now, they knew for sure that the earthquakes were connected with the dark eco mines outside the city.  Could it all be a coincidence?  

She looked around at them all.  There was concern in their eyes.  It was clear that they knew that she was still worried, and that they wanted to know why.  But, the thought of telling her father about her dream when he already had so much to deal with made her pause. 

So instead, Lexi laughed nervously.  “Okay,” she said.  “I feel a lot better now, daddy.  Thank you, Ashelin.”  She forced a smile onto her face that she hoped that they would believe, even as her thoughts stayed dark.  

I remember the eco, curling, beckoning, she thought. 

Then, Jak relaxed and said, “I’m glad,” and more firmly he added, “but I think that that’s enough for one night.”  Looking at Torn, he said, “Dax and I will go check it out in the morning.  I assume we’ll have clearance?” 

Torn nodded, all business once again.  “Yeah, they’ll be expecting you at forest gate, on the west side of the city.  We’ve been sending troops out round-the-clock to check things out.  There will be another group heading out in the morning, but I don’t expect you to tag along with them.  Do what you gotta do, Jak.”  

Lexi’s father nodded.  He was always given a lot of leeway on missions.  Everyone knew that things worked out better that way.  

“I’ll get to the bottom of this,” said Jak with a look of steely determination in his eyes, and Lexi knew he would.  For him, dark eco was personal. 

They walked Torn and Ashelin to the door.  Then, the couple left, but not before hugging Lexi good-bye.  In a moment, the stern leaders of the city they’d been in the kitchen were gone, replaced with her familiar aunt and uncle.  Torn gave his normal one-armed hug and said, “Take care of yourself, kid,” like he always did.  Ashelin gave Lexi a full hug, and quietly told her, “It’s going to be okay.”   Lexi squeezed her tightly, to show that she’d heard it.  Even if she had trouble believing it. 

Jak walked Lexi back upstairs.  He was going to take another shot at getting some sleep before his early morning, and seemed to expect her to do the same.  Before walking into her room, she stopped in the hallway.  She still hadn’t told him about the dream, but there was something else on her mind. 

“Dad?” she asked, with her hand on the doorknob. 

“Yes, Lexi?” he asked, pausing in front of the door to his own room. 

Lexi gulped.  “If someone is accessing the dark eco, do you think that there’s a chance they may try exposing me to it?” 

It was something that she had always been afraid of.  If she had powers, they had never surfaced.  But, just being who she was, there was a chance that someone might do to her what had been done to her father all those years ago, before she had been born.  Lexi was terrified of someone, anyone, exposing her to dark eco against her will in an attempt to turn her into a weapon.  And the quakes and her dream were pulling those old fears back to the surface.  

Jak’s face hardened for a second.  Then, he fixed Lexi with a serious look, and put his hands on her shoulders.  

“Lexi, as long as I’m alive, no one’s taking you away from me.  No one is going to force anything you don’t want on you.  That’s a promise.” After saying this, he went silent, letting his words sink in.  

Lexi smiled wanly.  Even with everything going through her mind, she knew that a promise from her father was basically golden.  

“Thanks, daddy,” she said, and she meant it. 

“Good night, Lexi,” said Jak.  

“’Night, daddy,” Lexi said, hugging him good-night.  Then, as she laid in bed that night, she tried to come up with a plan. 

If something was happening outside the city, she needed to see it first-hand.

Chapter Text

Chapter 5: Sneaking out of the City

By the next morning, Lexi had her plan.  The first thing she did was send a message to her best friend, Beth, asking her to come upstairs to meet her.  When Beth finally arrived, Lexi was sitting on the edge of her bed, tying her boots on with quick, sure movements.  Without a word, Lexi stood and held a hand out.  

“Let’s go,” said Lexi.  She had a look of such determination on her face, that she almost looked angry.  

Beth stood in front of her friend, not hopping on to her friend’s shoulder like she usually did.  Like the rest of her family, she was about two-feet tall, with orange and yellow fur.  She was wearing a comfortable-looking lime green tank top and shorts which she’d strategically cut to let out her long tail.  Her long, pale blonde hair that she inherited from her mother was pulled into a low ponytail, except for a curl of bangs that framed her face.  She looked confused as she stood in front of her friend. 

“Um,” said Beth.  “Why?” 

Lexi irritably blew a lock of hair out of her face.  “I told you why.  There’s something going on in the forest, and I want to check it out.”  As she said this, she punched her open palm to drive home her point. 

“Yeah….” said Beth.  “So, I was actually concerned about that.  In your message, you also said that we were leaving the city.  But, we’re kind of, you know, not allowed to.”  That was true.  Jak had always been firm about that, never letting either of them leave the city without him.  Other than the few times he took them with him on his safer missions they—like most citizens—stayed within the walls of the city. 

“We’re going to follow some of the soldiers out of the city.  It’s not just our dads leaving, and I’m sure we’ll be able to sneak out in the confusion somehow,” said Lexi, grabbing her hover-board, and strapping it to her back.  Once it was on, she did a quick scan of the room, looking for anything else that might be useful outside the city.  Then, she saw the bat that she had propped against her wall.  She hesitated for a moment before grabbing it, but it was the best weapon she had.  Beth raised her eyebrows as Lexi strapped it to her back next to the board, but didn’t say anything.  Instead, she merely shrugged and scrambled up her friend’s arm and onto her shoulder, like she was used to. 

As soon as they were out the door of the apartment building, Lexi drew out her hoverboard, and flicked it open.  Once it was hovering about a foot off the ground, she jumped on with a practiced grace.  That way, they zoomed west through the city, bobbing and weaving through pedestrians as they went.  

“So, about leaving the city.  Isn’t it, you know, an incredibly bad idea?” asked Beth.  She said it casually, but Lexi knew that her tone was hiding genuine worry.  

“We have to try,” said Lexi, easing the board around a corner.  “There’s something going on with the dark eco outside the city, and I have to do something about it.”   

“You know, you really don’t,” said Beth, thoughtfully.  “But I’m not going to convince you of that, am I?” 

“Nope,” said Lexi. 

Beth nodded.  “I thought so.  But I’m still coming.  You need someone to help you dial down on the wild stunts, and I guess it’s going to have to be me.”  The way that she said it, like she was a long-suffering nanny to a particularly difficult child, made Lexi want to laugh.  

Instead, Lexi snorted fondly, and said,  “Okay, you do that.”  That had always been the nature of their relationship.  While Lexi was the more physically capable of the two, she knew that she just had to have her friend with her on this expedition.  She’d known Beth her entire life, and appreciated having her friend’s point of view.  And it was a true testament to their friendship that Beth put up with Lexi’s schemes, and even tagged along with them.  Lexi was glad to have her along for the ride. 

“Thanks, Beth,” said Lexi.  “I’m going to owe you one.”  

“Oh, I know,” said Beth, with a teasing flip of her hair.  

Lexi’s laugh was lost to the wind. 

Sneaking out the city was concerningly easy.  The years of peace that the city had experienced under her father’s protection had made people complacent.  Now, while the walls were guarded at all times, the Krimson Guard often thought of the wall more as an easy shift, instead of the first line of defense against hordes of metalheads that it once was.  Lexi thought that it would be easy to find a way out through the gate.  

However, when they reached the gate, they saw that it wasn’t going to be easy.  Normally, under the new, looser laws of the city, any citizen of the city was allowed to come and go as they pleased.  But now, as this gate was the main access point for the military investigation outside the city, things had changed.  As Lexi approached the gate, she hopped off her hover board and ducked behind a building, out of sight of the guards, taking a lay of the land. 

Guards had cordoned off the gate with tape and signs that directed citizens to use another gate if they wanted to leave the city.  There were about a dozen or so guards in thick, crimson armor clustered around the huge metal door, with one of them manning a control panel to the right of the door, opening it periodically to let soldiers and vehicles through.  Scanning the exit, Lexi tried to determine the best way through the guards and out of the city.  Then, she saw that there was a heavily-loaded military truck about to pass her hiding spot, with two guards up front.  She held a finger to her lips, silently asking Beth to be quiet.  Beth gave her a concerned look, but Lexi had already left their hiding place, and started walking toward the truck. 

The back was filled completely with fabric, poles, and crates of military supplies.  Walking quickly but casually, Lexi went alongside the truck, parallel to its path, the truck hiding her from the eyes of the guards at the door.  

Without thinking, Lexi ran forward to scramble over the side of the truck, pulling herself into the mess of supplies in the back until they were hidden from sight.  She tucked herself into a ball, willing her pounding heart to slow down.  Beth made a protesting sound, but Lexi covered her mouth to keep her from shouting out, earning herself an affronted look from her friend.  Lexi bit her lip and shook her head, pointing up to indicate the soldiers they were passing.  Beth gave her a stern look, but nodded, and Lexi took her hand away. 

They stayed like that, curled up and quiet, until they felt the vehicle stop.  After a moment, they could hear the driver and his passenger open and close their doors, talking about supplies and placement as they walked away.  Ignoring the pounding of her heart, Lexi counted to ten slowly, listening intently, before deciding to check if it was safe to leave. 

Lexi peaked her head over the side of the cargo hold.  Looking around to check that no one was watching, Lexi was pleased to see that no one was near.  She hopped over the side of the stopped truck, and ran quickly into the cover of the forest, driving herself forward to put as much distance between her and the guards making camp near the gate.  

After a few minutes of running, Lexi was confident that they would now be out of earshot of the guards’ encampment.  She decided to take a break, bending over with her hands on her knees as she took great, panting breaths. 

Beth hopped off her shoulder, and stood in front of her friend, arms crossed in front of her chest.  She looked pissed. 

“What?” asked Lexi between gasping breaths, blinking tears out of her eyes.  “Did I do something?” 

“Oh, nothing.  Just the fact that you just jumped into the back of a military vehicle with me on your shoulder!  Imagine if they had caught us,” said Beth, throwing her arms up into the air. 

“But they didn’t catch us,” said Lexi, straightening up and taking in their surroundings.  The city still loomed on their right side, but they were out of earshot of the military in the forest, at least.  Then, she looked down to see that Beth was still pouting.  “Look, I’m sorry, but I totally had it under control!  Besides, even if they had caught us, they weren’t about to shoot a teenage girl and an ottsel, were they?  And if they’d seen us, I would have thought of something.” 

Beth shook her head, tsk-tsking at her friend.  “Well, the next time you do something that could get us arrested, let me know first, okay?”  she said, clearly exasperated. 

“Sorry, Beth,” said Lexi, kneeling down so she was at eye-level with her friend.  “But I didn’t have much choice, did I?” 

“You know, I’d love to believe that, except you did have a choice,” said Beth.  “You could have chosen to stay home in the first place!”  Her volume had climbed as she spoke, until she was all but shouting under the forest canopy.  Lexi could hear birds take wing, and she cringed, thinkinging of the military encampment just out of sight.

She held up both hands in a pacifying gesture, and shushed her friend desperately.  “Beth, sh, someone might hear us.”  She looked cautiously over her shoulder, and added, “Get on my shoulder, we need to get moving.” 

With a bregruding sigh, Beth complied.  Lexi stood, and started walking under the forest canopy. 

“Now,” she said, pausing to vault over a fallen tree, “we find out who’s been messing with the dark eco, and we take them in.” 

Beth scoffed.  “You still haven’t told me why we have to do it.  Shouldn’t we just leave it to the city’s forces?  Or...you know, to our parents?” 

Lexi shook her head.  “I can’t explain why, but I just have this feeling that I’m the one who has to do this.  It has to be me.” 

Beth shook her head and shivered at the sound of a branch cracking ahead of them.  “Oh, goodie.  Feelings.” 

“Shhh,” Lexi said, holding up her arm.  “Did you hear that?:  Something had shifted in the trees in front of them.  Lexi started walking faster, taking a quick peek over her shoulder to make sure that the city was still safely in sight.  

“I will not ‘sh,’” said Beth, indignantly.  “I mean, I get feelings, and that you want to be like your dad.  But there has got to be something else going on.  There has to be a reason that today is the day that you jumped into ‘hero mode.’  You’ve never done it before, and your dad’s been in loads of sticky situations without you wanting to intervene.” 

Lexi sighed and stopped.  It was true, after all.  While she had always wanted to follow in her father’s footsteps, this was the most involved she’d ever been.  She remembered when he had broken up a huge gang that had tried to expand its operations outside of Kras City, or when he’d been the only one who had been able to track down the person who’d been kidnapping people in the city.  Yes, she had been worried about him those times, too.  But now, things just felt different.  

And that wasn’t even taking her dreams into account.  

She turned to Beth.  “Okay,” she hissed out in a whisper.  “I’ll tell you what’s changed.”  Or, at least, part of what’s changed, she added silently. 

“I’m listening,” said Beth, standing on Lexi’s shoulder and crossing her arms.

“Before all this dark eco stuff started happening, I’ve been having these dreams for the last few months, and in the dreams, I was using eco.  I thought that maybe they meant that I would get powers, after all.  But, then I had this one dream, right after the quakes started....” 

She trailed off.  Beth was still looking at her expectantly.  Lexi looked at the ground, not wanting to face Beth’s gaze.  “In it, I was using dark eco.  There was dark eco all around me, actually.  And I was fighting this...thing.  I don’t really know who—or what—it was.  I just knew that it had to be stopped.  Then, I almost fell, so close to the dark eco that I was able to absorb some.  The next thing I knew; I transformed.” 

Beth jumped off her shoulder, landing on the ground in front of her.  “ What?” she asked.  “You had a dream where you were using dark eco?  And you didn’t tell your dad, or your grandpa?” 

“I haven’t told anybody,” Lexi said, expression pleading.  “Except for you, just now.  And I need you to keep it to yourself,” she said, crouching in front of her friend so they could be at eye-level with each other.  “I don’t want to worry anybody.  It doesn’t mean anything.  You have to believe me.” 

Beth started pacing in two short lines, going back and forth and gesturing wildly as she spoke.  “Man, I wish I could.  But Lexi, you must think it means something if it was enough to get you out here in the first place.”  She turned back to her friend, a pleading look in her eyes.  “You have to tell somebody.  Somebody who actually knows about these things!  We all thought that you didn’t have powers, but now, the dark eco at the edge of the city started shifting, right at the same time that you had that dream.  That’s gotta mean something.” 

“I know,” Lexi admitted, quietly.  “I just...I don’t want to scare my dad.”  Her open hands fell onto her lap.  “You know how he is about all this stuff.  If he knew that I had dreams like that, with all the dark eco is acting up, he would completely freak out.” 

Beth’s eyes softened.  “I get why you don’t want to tell him.  That is not going to be a fun conversation, but you have to do it.” 

“I know,” said Lexi.  “But, for now, can we just focus on finding whoever’s behind this?  I have a feeling that if we find them, I’ll be able to find out what’s going on with me.  It’s just a feeling, but I don’t see why we shouldn’t give it a shot.” 

Beth stared at her friend for one long second, and then threw up her arms in surrender.  “Okay, okay,” she said.  “I said that I’d come with you, so that’s what I’m going to do.”  She hopped back on her friend’s shoulder and added, “Oh, and by the way, you’re so going to owe me.” 

“I know,” said Lexi, smiling.  “But we can deal with that later.  For now, let’s find whatever made that sound.” 

The two girls kept moving through the dense forest that bordered the city.  They’d lost sight of the soldiers through the thick brush, but they made sure that the wall of the city stayed in sight.  They had to make sure they could find their way back when they were done searching.  

Suddenly, Lexi felt the slight sting of claws digging into her shoulder through the fabric of her light, cotton t-shirt.  

“Ow,” she said, more as a comment than as a complaint.  “What’re you up to, up there?” she asked, turning her head up to look at her friend. 

Beth ignored her question.  Her eyes were fixed in the middle distance, and she said, “There’s someone there.” 

Stomach sinking, Lexi sank into a crouch.  Indeed, she could just see a figure through a  break in the trees.  He was in the center of a clearing, crouching over to work on something.  Lexi knew right away that they weren’t a member of the Krimson Guard, because they weren’t wearing the requisite red and black uniform.  Instead, they had a black cloak draped over themselves, and they were wearing a strange, animalistic mask.  It reminded her of some kind of angry monkey, with a smiling mouth full of painted-on, jagged teeth. 

She ducked behind a bush, and she and Beth stayed quiet, watching the figure move around.  In his baggy get-up, it was impossible to tell how big he was, or if he had any hidden weapons.  At the very least, he had a long, wooden staff strapped to his back, presented for the world to see.  But Lexi wasn’t intimidated by it, not with her bat and pepper spray.  Still, she knew that she wasn’t well-armed herself, and she wished more than ever that her dad had let her get a gun before her eighteenth birthday.  Internally, she cursed herself for being sixteen. 

The figure walked around the clearing.  He was peering at the broken bark of some trees that had probably been damaged in one of the earthquakes.  In his hand was a strange, beeping device.  He ran it along the trees, and Lexi noticed that its beeping sped up and slowed, depending on where he placed it.  It must have been some kind of scanner.  Eventually, he came to one spot where the scanner’s beeps started coming so fast that it sounded more like one, constant whine, accompanied by wildly flashing lights.  It was certainly a strange sight, and the figure seemed to agree, pausing abruptly.   He then lifted up the back of his cloak briefly, revealing a pair of dark pants and a maroon tunic.  Then, he attached the device to a loop on his belt, and took out another device.  

Beth and Lexi exchanged perplexed looks.  What was he doing?

Lexi was just thinking that just maybe, he was here with her aunt Ashelin’s permission.  He could just be some sort of scientist from the city who had wandered far from camp.  But then, that didn’t explain the get-up.  In the clothes he was wearing, he didn’t look like one of the city’s scientists at all.  And, besides, if Ashelin had sent a scientist out to study the dark eco, there’s no way that she would have sent him alone, without any back-up.  

Lexi was about to communicate all of this to Beth silently when the person bent over with the device he’d taken from his belt.  It was relatively small, with what looked to be a screen and a small radar, topped by an antenna.  To her surprise, the boy stuck a metal protrusion on the bottom deep into the ground.  With confident swipes at the screen, he seemed to be giving the device instructions, and the radar at the top of it started slowly spinning, emitting another beeping sound and flashing green. 

The ground began to shake. 

In less than a second, Lexi made up her mind.  This was clearly the person causing the quakes, and that was the device he was using to do it.  She had to take him down. 

Everything happened so fast.  The boy jumped up and away from the device, as if he was startled by it.  In the same moment, Lexi jumped out from the cover of the bush, and started running toward him.  She had to stop him and turn off the device before the quake could get any worse. 

She saw him turn toward her, slowly, as if the world was freezing even as it shook.  Then, she leapt forward, grabbing him.  Beth had already jumped off her shoulder, and was now fiddling with the device, clearly trying to turn it off. 

As Lexi began to struggle with the boy, it seemed that Beth had pulled it off, because the earth stopped shaking.  It was a relief, because that had been the largest, longest quake so far.  A crack was forming in the ground near them, but Lexi couldn’t focus on that.  She had a fight to win.  She and the boy tumbled on the ground, both scrambling for dominance.  He was stronger than her, it was undeniable.  But, luckily, she had gained a lot of skill through practice fighting with her father over the years.  Lexi twisted, and managed to flip the boy, so she was holding him against the ground.  

“You’re under arrest!” she shouted, once he was pinned to the ground, looking up at her through the holes in his mask.   Beth had disappeared into the brush at the edge of the clearing, hiding.  

“For what?!”  the boy shouted, staring up at her.  “I haven’t done anything!” 

Lexi faltered for a second, then regained her train of thought.  “Of course you have.  I saw you play with that little toy of yours, and then the world started shaking.  Clearly, you’re the one behind all the weird stuff that’s been going on.” 

He sputtered.  “What?  No!  That’s just a dark eco detector.  I’m here trying to figure out what you Haven City people are doing to the reservoirs!” 

Lexi’s mind stuttered over this new information.  He spoke as if he was separate from Haven City somehow, which didn’t make sense.  The nearest city was Spargus, and why would anyone from Spargus be here, poking around in the forest?  Not to mention the fact that he thought that Haven City citizens were the ones causing the quakes, which didn’t make any sense. 

Confused, Lexi didn’t notice that the boy had gotten one of his hands free.   Deftly, he flipped out of her grip.  In a second, she was laying flat on her back, and he was trying to duck away.  Growling in frustration, Lexi leapt to her feet and launched herself at him again.  They collided, and she was going to try knocking him to the ground when he seized the staff from his back, and used it to sweep her feet out from under her.  She hit the ground and the air was knocked from her body.  She grimaced, and cleared her head with a strong shake before jumping back up into the fight. 

This time, he was prepared, standing face-to-face with the staff in hand.  Still, she dove forward, ducking under his staff.  Then, she twisted, grabbing one of his arms and quickly pulling it behind him, like she’d learned from her father.  The boy gave a gasp of pain, and pulled away, surprising Lexi with his strength.  For a second, Lexi wondered what she was going to do. 

Before she could think of anything, there came a scream from behind him and to the left.  Beth was running toward him, with a branch that was longer than she was in her hands.  Taking him off guard, Beth managed to hit him on the head.  It wasn’t a hard blow, but it was enough to throw him off.  Lexi took the chance this gave her to drive her elbow backward, into his unprotected solar plexus.  He fell into a sprawled sitting position, the air knocked out of him.  

Not wasting a moment, Lexi seized his staff from him, and spun away, facing him and holding the staff in what she hoped was a threatening way. 

“You’re under arrest,” she said again, trying to convey that she was the one in charge, here. 

But after a moment of regaining his breath, he said to Beth, “You’re...an ottsel,” in a shocked tone. 

Beth shook her head theatrically and rolled her eyes.  Then, she said, “What, have you been living under a rock?  I’m a precursor ,” she said, with a look of derision.  “My dad happens to be famous.  You know, for saving the world?” 

The boy sat staring at her for another long moment, before saying, “You’re an ottsel.  And you hit me on the head.  With a stick.” 

“Um, Beth,” said Lexi out of the corner of her mouth, “I think you might have hit him a little too hard.”  She felt like she was losing control of the situation, which she couldn’t let happen.  Not if she was going to get this boy back to the city for questioning.  

So, she cleared her throat, and tried to sound decisive when she said, “You’re coming with us.  I have a feeling that there’s more that you’re not telling us, and you need to come with us to the city to answer some questions.”  She crossed her arms casually, as if this was something she did every day.   

That regained his attention.  His gaze snapped to her, so the strange mask was pointed up at her.  “I can’t go to the city,” he said, flatly.  

“Why not?” asked Beth, hands on her hips.  “What, are you in trouble there or something?”  

He shook his masked head.  “No.  But if I go there, I will be.”  He took off the mask, then, and looked beseechingly up at them.   Lexi realized that he couldn’t be much older than she was.  At the most, he might be seventeen, but there was a glow to his face that made him seem even younger.  He had dark brown skin, which was flushed with exertion from their fight.  He had a strong jawline, and defined cheekbones, covered in a light scattering of freckles.  His hair, which was disappearing behind the mask sitting on top of his head, was pulled back in golden brown dreadlocks that were at the back of his head.  Lexi could see that while the roots of his hair were such a dark brown they were almost black, that the sun had lightened the rest of his hair to something approaching gold.  His hazel eyes were wide, piercing, and fixed on her determinately.  Golden flecks shone near his irises. 

“I can’t go to the city,” he said, “because if I do, it’ll ruin everything.  I promise, I’m not the one behind this.  I’m just a shaman’s apprentice, trying to protect my village.  I wish I could go to the city, but I can’t.  I can’t just leave them behind.”  

Lexi’s shoulders sagged.  “You mean, there really are people living outside the city?”

This complicated her simple plan of bringing in this boy for questioning.  She knew that he wouldn’t be mistreated by the city, not as long as her aunt Ashelin could help it.  But now, if what he said was true, her choice might affect a whole village.  If she turned in this boy, it would bring the attention of the city down on them, which they clearly didn’t want.  

He nodded.  “I can’t tell you any more.  You just have to believe me.” 

Lexi’s arms started shaking, and she tensed her muscles to still them.  She had known that adventuring would involve difficult choices like this.  Her father had always been firm and decisive in the stories people told about his adventures.  And now, Lexi was facing her own choice.  The boy might know more than he was letting on, and Ashelin would probably want to meet him.  But could she really bring him in against his will? 

Before she could make up her mind, the world quaked again, stronger this time.  The boy instinctively jumped to his feet.  Earlier, the tremors had been faint enough to be ignored.  Now, the entire ground seemed to be shifting underneath them, particularly under the boy.  At first, it seemed that he was going to take this chance to flee, but there was only time for him to look down at his feet and for Lexi to shout, “Wait!” before the ground split beneath him and he was falling.  

Without thinking, Lexi leapt into the gap after him, reaching blindly for him as the world opened up around them.  All three of them were now falling toward a river of dark eco at the bottom of a gorge that had opened up beneath them.  For a few horrible moments, Lexi fell into the gorge with Beth and the boy, not knowing what to do.  She felt when Beth, who had been on her shoulder, let go in her fright, and started pulling away, and she could also see the wide eyes of the boy as he looked up at her, terrified.  Lexi screamed, fighting to think of something, anything, she could do to slow their falls and save the three of them.  

Then, without warning, the white eco that had been lying dormant in her system ever since her eco test soared up inside her.  It was like there was a kind, strong voice inside her, telling her what to do.  Their falls seemed to slow, and Lexi had time to reach out first to Beth, who she put back on her shoulder, then to the boy, whose cloak she grabbed.  Then, acting on an instinct buried deep inside her, she channeled the white eco, letting it run through her like light through water. 

Lexi’s eyes glowed white, and thin, gossamer wings burst out of her back. She flapped them, first slowing their fall to a stop, then pulling them slowly higher and higher, until the three of them were cresting the top of the ridge of the gorge.  She flapped once, then twice at the top, trying to stay aloft.  But her power was fading fast, so she deposited the boy and Beth on a small island in the midst of the dark eco.  It was all she could do.  Just as she set them down on the ground in front of her, the power faded from her entirely, and she fell to the ground, tired beyond belief. 

For a second, Lexi stayed crouched on all fours, held by arms that could barely take her weight.  Then, she collapsed.  After a moment, she rolled over onto her back, panting and staring at the sky.  She couldn’t believe that they had survived.  And, even more, she couldn’t believe that she had powers that had been dormant her whole life.  

The boy, who was laying on the ground next to her and breathing erratically, turned to her and said, “Who exactly are you?”  

“That’s a long story,” said Lexi, barely moving.  She felt too tired and bruised to sit up.  

It was then that Beth said, “Um, yeah, it’s a long story!”  She sprang up from where she had been sprawled on the ground next to them, and rounded on her prone friend. 

“Lexi, you have powers!” Beth screamed.  “This is amazing.  Do you realize that you just made history?  I just witnessed history.”  Her eyes widened as she said this, and she flapped her hands in excitement. 

“Lexi,” she said, calming herself for a moment.  “You’re a hero, just like your dad.”  Her blue eyes were wide and misty with emotion. 

Lexi slowly sat up, and hugged her legs to her chest.  It was then that she could see exactly how much of a predicament they were still in.  The island that she had pulled the other two onto was small, thin, and surrounded on all sides but at least a ten-foot gorge, with rivers of dark eco surrounding on all sides.  As she stood to get the lay of the land, she saw that there were a few other islands like the ones that they stood on.  Luckily, she had managed to pull them onto the largest of them.  Unluckily, none of the islands, including this one, seemed stable.  As she watched, one of the small islands seemed to shift and drop a bit.  She shuddered, and scooted away from the edge a bit. 

“Well,” she said, “I’m not much of a hero unless I get us off this island, am I?”  As she said this, she took a decisive stance and pulled her long, blonde hair into a ponytail.  She needed to think.  

Beth still seemed shell-shocked by her friend’s change.  “I mean, yeah, we need to get off the island.  But you don’t even want to take a second to let this sink in?  You’re just like your dad!  This is exactly what you’ve always wanted,” Beth said, plaintively.  Clearly, she didn’t want to be the only one consumed with excitement.  

Lexi absently shook her head.  She didn’t feel like her dad.  After all these years of never being able to access her powers, the change in her was so sharp and sudden, she could hardly fathom it.  Especially not now, when the dark eco around them was rising. 

“Um,” said the boy, still sitting next to them, looking shocked.  “Who, exactly, is your dad?” 

Lexi sighed.  “Jak.  The saviour of Spargus and Haven City.”  Even though she loved her father completely, she always dreaded telling people about her connection to him.  Whenever she did, she could see the way their opinion of her would shift, as his reputation swallowed her up in its shadow.  They’d either look at her with a sparkle in their eyes, like they were expecting her to be just like him.  Or, more often, it was like they couldn’t see Lexi at all.  

“Who?” the boy asked, looking genuinely confused. 

Well.  That was unexpected. 

“Oh, come on , forest boy,” said Beth.  “Even you have got to have heard of him.  Long-lost descendant of Mar, saved the world three times, is this ringing any bells?  He’s like...my dad’s best friend.” 

The boy still looked bemused, and Lexi luxuriated in the feeling of someone not seeing her as just her father’s daughter.  He stood, and shook the dirt off his dark clothing. 

“Well,” he said.  “I’m not going to lie.  I have no idea who you’re talking about.  But what you just did,” he looked right into Lexi’s eyes, “was amazing.  You saved my life.  Thank you.”  He bowed his head in thanks. 

“It’s okay,” said Lexi, shrugging uncomfortably.  “Anyone would have done it.  You know, if they could have,” she added awkwardly, cringing.   

He shook his head.  “Trust me,” he said.  “Not everyone would have.  I think that the least I can do is re-introduce myself.  I’m Rick.”  He held out a hand, and Lexi was bemused by the formal gesture. 

Still, she took it and said, “Hi, Rick.  I’m Lexi Hagai, and this is my friend Beth.”  She jerked a thumb to point at Beth, who was standing behind her.  “And, um...I’m sorry for trying to kidnap you earlier.” 

Rick chuckled, and said, “It’s okay.  I think we have bigger problems, now.”   He let go of her hand, and turned to face the edge of the pit.  “So, what are we going to do about this?”  he asked. 

“I don’t know,” she said, and pressed a hand against her forehead, frustrated.  “I can’t believe this.  All the magical powers in the world, and I just had to fly us here, instead of to the safe side of the gorge.” 

Beth touched her leg comfortingly and said, “You couldn’t have known.  You only had a few seconds before we were all going to fall into that dark eco.”  She made a disgusted face at the thought.  “Besides, can’t you just fly us back to the other side?” she asked with hope in her voice. 

Lexi shook her head.  “No, I can’t.  I already used all the white eco in my body.  I can just tell.  There’s no way that I’m going to be able to do that again.  At least, not without refueling,” she said, not knowing if that was the right term for absorbing eco into your body.  

This was the bad news that she had dreaded giving her companions.  It meant that they were really stuck, and that Lexi hadn’t really saved them; not yet, at least.  All she’d done was buy them some time.  At the news, Beth went silent with a worried look that made Lexi’s stomach sink.  Rick also didn’t make a sound, and instead started pacing the island, thoughtfully.  Neither of them seemed disappointed in her, which only made her feel worse than if they had yelled at her. 

Rick seemed preoccupied with something.  Thoughtfully, he kicked a rock into the pit to the right of them.  He watched as the pebble fell down into the dark eco below.  He leaned forward to watch the pebble be swallowed up by the eco with a soft “plop.”  He sucked on his teeth, and said, “Well, we won’t get out that way.” 

Then, he turned and looked at Lexi appraisingly, craning his neck, like he was trying to see her back side. 

Lexi flushed and twisted, so he wouldn't see.  “What?” she asked.  

His brows furrowed further.  “What’s that...on your back?”  

She turned slightly, craning her neck to look.  The collapsed hoverboard strapped to her back was such a part of her, that she often forgot it was there.  Remembering it was like remembering to breathe or blink.

Lexi chuckled when she realized what he’d been looking at, relieved he hadn’t been craning his neck for a less savory reason.  “Oh, this?” she said, “This is just my hoverboard.  It’s one of my dad’s old ones, but he had my mom put speed and height inhibitors on it before they gave it to me.  They didn’t want me getting hurt.”  She rolled her eyes slightly.  Now, all the limits on her board seemed a bit silly, considering all the trouble she’d gotten herself into despite them.  

He tilted his head, “‘Hoverboard’?  What does it do?” 

Figuring that action would explain better than words, Lexi took the board from her back.  With a snap, she pulled it out to its full size.  Then, she hopped on it, and gave it a spin or two on the spot, showing how it hovered about a foot off the ground.  “See?” she asked.  “It’s a board, and it hovers.  It’s pretty simple, actually.”  With those words, she hopped back off, and strapped it back onto her back. 

The boy’s eyes, wide from her demonstration, seemed like they were about to pop out of his head.  “Why didn’t you mention you had that!?” he asked.  He gestured toward the solid ground on the other side of the eco-filled gorge.  “You could just use that to get to the other side, couldn’t you?” 

Lexi snorted.  “One of my dad’s souped up ones might be able to pull off that jump, but not mine.  Not as long as these speed inhibitors are on it,” she said, confidently.   She knew better than anyone else exactly what her board could do. 

Rick, still looking contemplative, said, “Can I see it?  I think I might be able to take off the inhibitors.” 

Lexi laughed.  “Man, you don’t know how many times we’ve tried that.  It’s impossible.  My mom knows how to modify these things better than anybody.  I mean, she would, she invented them.”  She couldn’t keep the tone of pride out of her voice.  “Even though I wish I could out-mod her, I have to respect her skill.” 

“Just...give me a chance.  I really think I can do it,” said Rick, holding out his hands for the board. 

Beth and Lexi exchanged a glance.  In it, Lexi could see that Beth understood just how wary this request made her.  But then, Lexi figured that it wasn’t like he could take it anywhere. 

“Alright,” she said.  “But if you hurt my baby….” she trailed off, not wanting to threaten him when they were already in such a bleak situation.  “Well, just don’t do anything to her, she’s my favorite thing in the world,” she finished lamely.  

She handed him the board.  With a flick of his wrist, he made it spring open, just as she had. 

“Whoa, how’d you know how to do that?” she asked, eyes wide. 

It was his turn to roll his eyes slightly.  “I may live outside the city, but it’s not like I’ve never handled technology.  I fiddle with stuff like this all the time.  Stuff that I...find.”  He plopped down, sitting with one leg bent and the other stretched out on the springy turf, and started fiddling with the inhibitor.  After a while, he pulled a wench out of one of his deep pockets, and started twisting it in one of the screws in the back panel.  He stuck out his tongue to one side, concentrating. 

Lexi hissed.  It was hard watching someone work on her board.  But she fought the urge to stop him.  Instead, she laughed nervously and said, “You carry a wrench around?  That’s like something my mom would do,” as she took a seat next to him.  

He shrugged.  “It comes in handy more often than you’d think.”  He gave another experimental twist of the wrench, and Lexi hissed between her teeth.  

“My mom just carries around guns,” said Beth.  She was laying on her back looking up at the sky through the trees, her hands pillowing her head.  Rick looked up from his work.  

“Should I be...concerned about that?” he asked, brow furrowed. 

Lexi laughed.  “Nah, you don’t need to worry.  That’s just aunt Tess.  She owns a gun shop,” she said.  She leaned back on her hands.  Now that she saw how carefully he was working, she was able to relax a bit.   That is, until the island gave another warning shudder, and sank about a foot.  Lexi gripped the grass, as if it would keep her safe. 

“The real question is how we’ll get out of this if your idea doesn’t work,” said Lexi.  “Like I said, I don’t have any more eco in my system, and I’m not messing with the dark eco in the pit.  Not after the stories my dad has told me.”  Or after that dream, she thought, as a shudder coursed through her body. 

Beth tilted her head up to look at her friend.  “Oh, come on, Lex.  You know your dad’ll find us.  You know how he is,” she laid her head back on the ground, and continued, waving one hand in the air to illustrate her points.  “My dad and your dad will realize we’re gone and figure we probably left the city.  Then, your dad’s gonna come looking for us, and my dad will be right there with him.  And in the end, your dad is definitely going to find us, even if he has to go all dark eco mode and tear up every tree in the forest to do it,” she said.  

“I hope he doesn’t,” whispered Rick under his breath, continuing to work.  

Beth ignored him, and kept going, “Really, I’m more worried about what’s going to happen after they find us.  We’re going to be grounded for life.  Like, literally for life.  I’ll be on babysitting duty until Sophie is eighteen, and you may never see the sun again.”  She put the back of her hand to her forehead and closed her eyes dramatically.  

She was being silly to get her to laugh, Lexi knew, given that her little sister Sophie was only a year old.  Lexi forced herself to laugh, but didn’t feel much better.  “I know, I should trust they’ll find us.  But, Beth, we’re really far from the city, and this island is sinking.  I’m just not sure if they’ll find us in time.” 

Right then, Rick cried out in triumph.  “They might not have to!  I have the board working!”  As if to prove his point, he stood and put it near the ground, where it hovered obediently, waiting to take a passenger’s weight. 

“What?!” cried Lexi in delight.  “I can’t believe it, you really did it?”  She stood, and Beth hopped back onto her shoulder.  

“Yep,” said Rick proudly.  “Now, I don’t know how it’ll measure up to one of your dad’s boards, but now, you should be able to push it much faster and higher.”  

Lexi screamed with delight and hugged him.  Regretting it instantly, she sprung away from him and cleared her throat.  “Um, good job,” she said, trying to use a deeper, more serious voice, to sound more like her father did.  Beth cast a sly glance her way, but Lexi ignored it.  

Rick gave a shy smile and said, “Well, go on.  Give it a try.”  He gestured down toward the board where it hovered. 

Lexi sprung forward, throwing her weight onto the board.  After a few experimental runs up and down the island, she could tell that it would be able to go much faster and jump much further.  Of course, she wouldn’t be sure if it could make the jump until she tried it; but now, it might be the best chance they had to get off the island. 

Hopping off, Lexi said, “I’m not positive, but I should be able to make the jump now, especially if I build up some speed, first.  But...there is one problem.  The board can only take one passenger—” 

“Plus me,” added Beth from her shoulder.

“Plus Beth—at a time.” Lexi amended guiltily.   Rick’s face fell. 

Then, he shifted his feet, and cleared his throat.  “Well, that’s okay.  You don’t owe me anything.  I’m sure one of my village’s scouts will find me soon.  Go ahead, you should make the  jump before we sink.  I’ll find my own way home.”  When Rick said this, he tried to give her a brave smile, which hurt Lexi to see.  

She bit her lip, and then shook her head.  “No, I can’t leave you.  It wouldn’t be right, not after you fixed my board for me. Here’s what we’ll do.  Beth and I will jump.  My dad makes bigger jumps on his board all the time.  Then, we’ll get help.  Or, if we can’t, figure out another way to get you across the gorge.  It’s the least we can do.”  

“Are you sure?” Rick asked, eyebrows raised.  

Lexi nodded, firmly.  It was the first time she’d felt really sure all day.  “Yes, I’m sure,” she said confidently.  

“I’ll stay,” Beth said suddenly. 

“What?” Lexi snapped.  “Beth, the board should be able to take your weight…” 

Beth hopped off her shoulder.  “No, thank you.  That jump is scary, and I want no part of it.”  At Lexi’s concerned expression, she said, “Think of it this way: I may be light, but I think your chances of getting across the gorge will be better without me.  Besides,” she added with a sly smile, “I’ll be the perfect collateral.  That way, Rick here will know for sure that you’re coming back for him.  After all, you’d be lost without me.”  She gave a huge smile at this, and Lexi was tempted to argue, but she knew that they were running out of time.  Besides, Beth was right about one thing at least, Lexi needed every advantage she could get before she tried this jump. 

“Okay,” Lexi said, trying to sound more confident than she felt.  She wanted her friend to make the jump with her more than anything, but knew she couldn’t force the point.  Beth made some decent points, and there was no time for further debate. 

Lexi carried her board to one end of the island, and placed it on the ground.  It hovered there obediently, waiting to take her weight.  She reminded herself that she had made countless jumps like this in the obstacle course at the racetrack back home.  The only difference was that this jump carried a much bigger risk.  But she also knew from racing that it was when you focused on what could go wrong that mistakes were made.  No, she would just have to clear her head and get this over with. 

“You got this!” shouted Beth, standing off to the side. 

“Yeah,” said Rick  “You can do this.”  They both looked much more confident than Lexi felt.  She took a deep breath and nodded. 

She jumped onto the board, and didn’t give herself a second to doubt.  Instead, she just bent into a crouch and leaned forward with all her might.  Her speed increased, until the forest around her became a dizzying blur of green.  The board shuddered under the new, higher speeds.  In response, Lexi just pushed forward even harder.  She pretended that she was at her mom’s obstacle course back in the city, testing a new jump for her.  Emptying her mind of fear, Lexi extended her legs for the jump at the exact second that her board left the spongy turf of the island for the open air of the gorge.  

For a few breathless moments that felt like forever, Lexi flew through the air.  It was like she had wings all over again.  She couldn’t fight the delighted whoop that bubbled out of her.  The other side of the gorge drew closer and closer, and she tumbled toward it at a concerning speed.  

Too fast, the ground came up to meet her.  She had just barely cleared the jump.  Her landing was bad, and she crashed to the ground.  Luckily, she’d had lots of practice falling.  She tucked into a ball and rolled, crashing through the brush and brambles while her board dug a trench in the ground to her right. 

When her world finally stopped spinning, Lexi was a little bundle of aches and pains, but she was safe and relatively unharmed.  More importantly, she had gotten off the island.  Returning to reality, she noticed Rick and Beth peering at her intently, as if remotely checking her for injury.  

Lexi stood and shouted, “I made it!  I’m okay.”  She could hardly believe it herself.  Both the boy and Beth sagged with relief.  

“Nice job, girl,” shouted Beth, cupping her hands around her mouth.  She stood on the island, looking almost comically tiny next to the teenage boy next to her.  Though she was only two feet tall, her orange fur stuck out vividly against the green of the forest.  “Now, hurry up and save us, please!”  

Lexi nodded and returned her board to her back.  She didn’t waste another moment, immediately starting to look for anything she could use to get them off the island.  After half a minute, she spotted something.  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a tree that had been broken in the quake.  It looked long enough to make it to the island, if it fell the right way.  All it needed was a push. 

She braced herself against the rough bark of the tree, pushing with all her might.  When the shattered truck refused to give, Beth called out, “I appreciate the thought, really.  But I don’t think that’s working.”  The island shifted again, and Beth could hardly keep the panic from her voice.  

Cursing under her breath, Lexi stopped pushing and called back, “You’re right.  I’m going to try to find help, either from Rick’s village or the city.”   Whatever Rick’s reaction to this was, she didn’t see it.  She was already running.  They were running out of time.  

After running for a few minutes without seeing anything, Lexi started to doubt that she would find anyone in time; still, she couldn’t give up.  She kept running, hoping against hope that she would find something, anything, that could help in this dire situation.  But time was running out.  

Then, she saw a flash of red through the trees.  Mistaking it for the distinct red of the Krimson Guard, she stopped in her tracks.  Maybe it would be worth the trouble they’d get into to ask them for help.  But when she looked more closely at the moving, red shape, she realized that it couldn’t be a person.  Instead, it seemed to be some form of gas, rippling and seeping between the dark, volcanic rock of the forest.  

Red eco, Lexi thought in awe as she realized what it was.  

Like metal to a magnet, Lexi was drawn toward it.  It seemed that the dark eco in the gorge wasn’t the only eco that had been freed by the quakes.  Lexi had learned about what red eco could do from the stories her uncle Daxter had told her about his and Jak’s adventures.  It could make someone much stronger for a short time, if channelled properly.  Of course, she had never done it.  The hand that she had been reaching slowly for the eco paused as she remembered how new to all this she was.  She had only channeled eco once.  Could she do it again?  

Then, she pushed her doubts away.  Whatever happened, this might be the best chance she had to save her companions.  With the strength the eco could give her, she just might be able to push over the tree she’d seen to make a bridge for them.  At the thought of them waiting on the island, Lexi made up her mind.  

Lexi dashed into the eco, not giving herself time to hesitate.  It was different than she had expected.  It filled her with a tingling sensation, and she could practically chart the course it made as it flowed into her body.  She held her hands in front of herself, flexing them in wonder.  The change was immediate.  Even without channeling the eco, she felt calmer and more centered.  It was like she’d found a lost part of herself.  A laugh bubbled out of her at the thought. 

Once she sensed that her body could hold no more eco, she started running back to Beth and Rick, who were still waiting on the island.  

When she broke back into the clearing, Lexi saw that Rick had his arms wrapped around his legs, waiting expectantly.  Beth was pacing, desperately waving her arms and probably talking about a mile a minute, based on what Lexi knew about her.  

Seeing Lexi approach, Rick jumped up.  He scanned the empty clearing behind her, looking anxious.  “Where is everyone?  I thought you were getting help?” 

“I had another idea,” said Lexi, running back to the far side of the half-broken tree.  “Trust me.  I think this’ll work.” 

“Okay…” said Beth, doubtfully.  “But you should hurry.  The island is sinking fast.”  Sure enough, the ground under Beth and Rick shook again.  Beth bit out a short scream and threw her arms out, trying to stay balanced.  

A surge of panic rose in Lexi.  Not wasting a second more, Lexi let the red eco flow into her muscles.  Around her, a red aura glowed.  As the eco moved through her, she felt her muscles swell.  She had never felt so strong.  Then, she pushed against the tree with all her might.  The tree began to give before her newfound might.  

Taking in a sharp breath, Lexi didn’t stop pushing, even as the tree’s thick trunk protested under the strain.  With crunches and snaps, the tree fell.  Its leafy branches crashed to the ground of the island on the other side of the ravine, right in front of Rick and Beth.  Rick crouched, grabbing the top of the tree to hold it steady. 

“Go!” he shouted to Beth, as the island gave another warning lurch.  Casting a guilty look back at him over her shoulder, Beth compiled.  She scrambled across the tree on all fours to Lexi, who was holding the roots of the tree in place on the other side.  Only when Beth was across did Rick stand and start scrambling across the bridge himself. 

The island gave another shudder and seemed to lose all stability.  Sinking quickly into the eco, the island sank like an ice cube thrown into a pot of boiling water.  

“Run!” shouted Lexi to Rick, even though he already was.  The island tumbled, giving a last shudder.  As it fell, it took the tree with it. 

Rick was almost across, but was going to be too late.  Thoughtlessly, Lexi shot her hand out to catch him.  With the red eco still coursing through her body, she managed to grip his wrist as he fell.  As she pulled, his feet scrambled up the rough rock walls of the gorge that the earthquake had created.  Beth was behind them, pulling on Lexi’s foot as hard as she could.  It wasn’t much, but it was appreciated.  With a final burst of energy, Lexi pulled Rick up to solid ground. 

Exhausted, she rolled onto her back and panted.  Before this, she had never channeled eco in her life, and this whole mess had been the world’s toughest crash course.  Rick seemed stunned by the close escape, and Beth had plopped down next to them.  

After catching his breath, Rick leaned his head up, looked at Lexi, and asked, “Seriously, who are you?”  

Lexi smiled, despite herself.  “That question,” she said, “can wait.  First, we have to get back to the city.” 

His head shot up.  “You can’t seriously think I’m going to the city.” 

Beth seemed about to argue, probably just on principle.  But Lexi sat up before she could. 

“You’re right,” she said.  “It wouldn’t be right, taking you in.  But Beth and I have to get home.  And you might as well walk with us, right?” 

Rick looked dubious, like this was just another scheme to take him into custody.  “And how do I know you won’t try to arrest me on the way?” 

Lexi stood, and offered him a hand, “Because, if you tell us what you know on the way, we won’t have to.” 

Beth hopped back onto Lexi’s shoulder then, and added with a wicked grin, “Besides, you’re not scared of us, are you?” 

Rick looked incredulous, resting his arms on his bent knees and shifting his gaze from one smiling girl to the other.  But he stood with a sigh and Lexi’s offered hand, anyway. 

“I’ll walk with you part of the way, and I’ll tell you part of what I know, but it isn’t much.”  Then, he gave Lexi a long, doubtful look.  “But can you at least answer this: is everyone in Haven like you guys?” 

Beth gave a long laugh, and at first the only answer Lexi gave him was a smirk.  But then, she took some pity on him, and added, “Well, someday you’ll have to go there for yourself and see,” with a wink.   

It turned out that Rick had been honest when he told them that he didn’t know much more than they did.  All he had noticed was the dark eco surges on an eco-detector he had.  That had been before the quakes had started, and ever since then, he’d been spending his days combing the forest, trying to find the epicenter.  When Lexi pressed him for more information about the device that had detected the dark eco surges, or how he knew how to use it, he became evasive. 

“That’s basically all I know,” Rick said, hands in the pockets of his pants.  He kicked a pebble as they walked.  “Well, that and that we need to stop this, as soon as possible.” 

Lexi hummed to herself, thinking.  Then, she cut him a sideways glance and said, “And you thought that Haven City was behind this, right?” 

The boy gave an expressive shrug.  “It was just a theory.  Besides my village and the city, I just don’t know who it could be, and I know that it can’t be anyone from where I live.”  His face hardened with conviction.  “The forest is way too important to any of us to jeopardize with this kind of thing.”  

Catching the look on Lexi’s face, he amended, “Of course, now I don’t think that it’s you guys, either.  Or that it’s something the city as a whole is doing.”  He shrugged.  “Who knows, maybe it’s just one or two insurrectionists or something.” 

“Yeah, maybe,” said Lexi, lapsing into thought.  She had come out here to find whoever was behind this.  Instead, she had found a member of a mysterious village, more questions, and her powers.  There was so much to mull over, that she nearly jumped out of her skin when Rick grabbed her arm. 

“This is as far as I can go,” he said, scanning the path ahead of them.  Sure enough, they were nearly back to the military camp.  Lexi almost expected him to slink into the tree cover without another word.  But, instead, he came forward, until they were standing toe-to-toe.  

“But, before I go, there’s one last thing I need.”  He gave her the same, pleading look that he had given her before they had fallen into the gorge.  She could see flecks of green in his eyes.  

“Y-yeah?” she stuttered.  She could feel her heart pounding.  She hoped that it didn’t show on her face.  

“I need to see you again!” he said earnestly.  

Lexi flushed, and Beth wolf-whistled.  

“Dang,” Beth said.  “Do you guys want some privacy, or…?”  Even though Lexi wasn’t looking at her, she could practically hear her smiling.  That little traitor.  Lexi fought the urge to knock Beth off her shoulder. 

Rick looked confused for a moment, then blushed.  “What?  N-no, not like that,”  he sputtered.  He leaned forward, face flushed with excitement.  “What I mean is, you have to come back.  There’s someone you have to meet, and I can bring you to them.  The oracle of my village has been waiting for someone like you for a very long time.  For years, they’ve been asking for us to bring them someone with powers.  As soon as you flew out of that canyon, I knew that you had to be the one that they’ve been talking about.”  His eyes sparkle, and for a moment, it seemed as though he might reach for her hands before he let his own drop.  “I’ve been thinking for a while that the oracle might have some insight into what’s going on.  I think that their wisdom is the key to solving this, and you’re the key to talking to them.”  

Lexi’s heart jumped in her chest.  He was looking at her like she was made out of solid gold.  Even though she knew it was just because of her lineage, she couldn’t fight the flattered feeling that fluttered in her chest.  And while they hadn’t managed to capture the real culprit behind the earthquakes, this was the next best thing: a lead. 

“Yes!” she said, not pausing to think. “I’d love to meet with your village’s oracle.” 

But then, she remembered how hard it had been to get into the forest in the first place, and added, “I mean, I want to, absolutely.  I’d love to talk to them, and possibly learn more about myself.  I’m just just sure if I can.  The longer this goes on, the harder it’s going to be to leave the city, especially once the troops finish their encampment.”  

Rick’s eyebrows furrowed, and he looked between the two of them.  “Then why don’t we just go now?  You’re here now, and I know the way.”  He jerked a thumb at himself, and she could detect a distinct trace of pride in his voice as he spoke.  

Still, Lexi knew that she couldn’t.  Not now, at least.  She took a step back, as if she were in danger of being drawn in by his eagerness.  “No, I really can’t.  I have to get back to the city before my dad notices that I’m gone.  That is, if he hasn’t already.”  Right as she said it, she could hear crashing through the trees from the direction of the fledgling military encampment.  Before, it had felt like they had been alone in the forest.  Now, it felt like the troops were closing in on them. 

Rick looked over her shoulder, clearly panicked.  Immediately, she felt much worse about her earlier plan to turn him in to the soldiers. 

Lexi bit her lip, and looked over her shoulder, as well.  They were running out of time.  “Look,” she said, “if you can help me find a way out of the city, I’d be happy to, okay?”  She said this over the sound of her own pounding heart, even though she knew that it was probably a bad idea.    

A look of radiant joy and relief crossed his face, before he regained control.  With a nod of understanding, he said, “I will find a way to get a message to you, I promise.  Where will I be able to reach you?” 

Lexi shrugged, perplexed.  “I have a tablet?” she said. 

He nodded, and swept back down his mask over his face.  “I can work with that.  You’ll be hearing from me, I promise.  I’ll see you soon, Lexi.”  She wondered what face he was making under the cover of his mask.  

“Okay,” said Lexi, feeling swept away by the turn of this conversation.  “Bye.”  As she said this, she gave a lame wave at his retreating back. 

Without another word, he slunk into the cover of the foliage.  After waiting until Rick was completely out of sight, Beth said, “Well, that was unexpected.” 

“What part?” asked Lexi, dryly.  Her mind was still reeling from everything she had learned.  She couldn’t believe how much had changed in just one morning. 

“All of it,” said Beth.  “But especially your powers.  I still can’t believe it!  And I was the first one to see them in action.”  She got a dreamy look on her face.  “I am definitely putting that in the book I’m going to write someday.” 

Despite everything, the tension cracked.  “You do that,” said Lexi with a laugh. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 6: Grounded

Before long, Lexi and Beth could hear a clamor in the trees up ahead.  When they had snuck away from the encampment that morning, it had seemed almost asleep.  Now, it looked like a freshly stepped-on anthill, with the rushing red bodies of the Krimson guard everywhere.  Lexi and Beth could hear the sounds of shouting and vehicles pushing through the underbrush. 

“Oh no,” said Lexi, heart sinking. 

Beth’s nose crinkled in confusion.  “What?” she asked. 

“I bet you anything that the panic is because of us,” said Lexi.  “My dad probably noticed we were gone, and had Torn get the troops to look for us.”  

“You really think so?” said Beth, with a tilt of the head.  

Then, they heard a soldier's raised voice through the trees, calling their names.  Lexi’s stomach clenched, and she realized there was nothing left to do but face the music.  

“Yep,” said Lexi, even though it was obvious at this point who the troops were looking for.  She hung her head, and walked toward the calling voice.  In her wide experience of getting caught rebelling, she knew when it was time to turn herself in.  

Before long, she came through a gap into the trees, and found the soldier they’d heard.  He was covered head-to-toe in the typical red armor of the Krimson Guard, and he had his radio raised to his mouth, clearly about to say something, possibly to a superior.  

After a pause, he got over the shock of seeing the two lost girls standing right in front of him.  Then he said into the radio, “Call off the search party.  I found them.  I’m bringing them in now.”  Then, he cut off the radio call with a decisive click. 

Lexi grimaced, but walked up to him, Beth still perched on her shoulder.  The man introduced himself briefly, and confirmed Lexi’s fears.  Jak, after seeing that she and Beth were missing earlier that morning, had immediately requested some of the troops in the area to assist the search.  As the troops respected him almost universally, they had jumped on the task.  The guard who had found them told them all this as they walked.  While it was clear that he wasn’t trying to startle them, Lexi sensed from the way he spoke that she was facing a lot of trouble at the city gates, where he was taking them to meet their fathers.  

Gulping down her nerves, she followed him anyway.  On her shoulder, Lexi could sense Beth’s anxiety like it was her own.  Though she was scared to break the silence, Lexi wished that she could say something to comfort her friend.  But when they reached the gate, and she saw her father waiting angrily for her, Lexi wished that there was someone there to comfort her.

The first thing that Jak said was, “Lexi, I can’t believe what you did!  You could’ve gotten yourself and Beth killed!”  His cyan eyes glinted with anger, and his fists were balled at his sides.  

“It wasn’t like that!” piped up Beth unhelpfully from Lexi’s shoulder.  “Lexi saved our lives like three times out there!”  She said it with a note of pride, as if Lexi’s heroism had made the danger worth it.  Lexi cringed. 

“That just means you two almost died three times out there!” replied Jak, anger sharpening.  His eyebrows furrowed even deeper.  

Beth deflated, and from the look on her face it was clear that she regretted butting into the conversation.  Still, she lifted one finger and softly added, “It might have been more like twice, actually.” 

“That’s not the point,” said Jak, pinching the bridge of his nose.  “The point is, Lexi, you should have known better.  You know perfectly well that you are not allowed to leave the city.  And the fact that you walked straight into dark eco territory when the reservoir is at its least stable—” he broke off, as if he couldn’t even fathom how irresponsible she’d been.  His disappointment hurt more than anything else could have.  Lexi found herself staring resolutely at her feet.  

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Beth give her a questioning look, as if she was silently asking if they should tell Jak about Lexi’s powers.  Maybe Beth thought it would turn the tide of this conversation.  While it would be an immense distraction, Lexi knew it wouldn’t be worth it.  It just wasn’t the right time to tell him.  She gave a shake of her head so small, only Beth would see it.  

She wasn’t ready yet. 

Jak continued, “Lexi, I don’t know how to tell you how much you’ve disappointed me.  The way that you just ran straight into danger, where you knew you weren’t supposed to go.  Do you have any idea what that did to your mother?  Or to me?  When we realized that you weren’t anywhere you were supposed to be, we thought that we were going to lose you!”  A surge of guilt ran through Lexi.  She hadn’t even considered how they’d feel when they were unable to find her, especially with everything going on in the forest.  

“I’m sorry,” Lexi said, looking up at him with watery eyes.  “But, I-I, just wanted to find out what was going on.  You know, with the dark eco.”  She cringed.  Even to her ears, it was a weak excuse.  

“You should’ve stayed home,” said Jak, “and let me handle this.”  

The way he said felt so final and awful.  It firmly told Lexi that this wasn’t her world, and it never would be, even if she did have powers.  Her arms clenched involuntarily, and she blinked rapidly, fighting her tears back.  She would not cry. 

Just then, the doors to the city reopened, and through it came Keira, Tess, and Samos.  At the sight of Lexi, Keira rushed forward, tackling her daughter in a hug.  Meanwhile, Beth had jumped from Lexi’s shoulder to greet her own mother, who gave her a similar reception. 

“Oh, my baby!  I was so scared when we couldn’t find you!”  Keira said, holding Lexi tight.  She pulled back, and started checking Lexi all over for injuries.  “Are you okay?  Did anything happen out there?”  Her eyes were wide with worry.  

“Yeah, mom, I’m fine,” Lexi said.  She didn’t mention any of the crazy risks that she’d taken.  Keira looked upset enough as it was.  

Daxter chose then to hop off his friend’s shoulder, and march up to Beth, who Tess was still hugging tightly.  Tess pulled away from her daughter, a concerned look on her face.  

“Bethany, don’t think that you’re not in trouble, too!” he said.  Exasperated, his voice rose an octave, and he waved his arms wildly in the air.  “Do you know how we felt when you just up and disappeared!  I thought that we’d find you two dead in a ditch!” 

Tess gasped, and pulled Beth tight against her chest, where it seemed she might suffocate.  Beth flung her arms out, scrambling, as Tess said, “Daxie!  Don’t say such terrible things!  I can’t even imagine!”  Tess appeared in danger of bursting into tears.  Still wrapped in her own mother’s arms, Lexi knew then that she had to say something.  She couldn't stand the sight of her friend getting in trouble for something she didn’t do. 

Lexi gently pulled out of her mother’s hug, and stepped forward.  “You shouldn’t punish Beth,” she said.  “It was my fault.  It was my idea to go into the forest, and it was my fault that we were in danger.  She didn’t even want to go.  She just went to keep an eye on me, and make sure I didn’t do anything too reckless.  You guys should punish me, not her.”  She was looking down, gripping her elbows awkwardly.  When she peeked up, it was to see that Beth had pulled her face free, and looked genuinely worried for Lexi.  Daxter, Tess, and Keira all looked shocked.  Jak just looked angry. 

Daxter finally nodded, and said, “I believe that.  Beth, I think we’ll give you a light sentence, then.  Tess, what do you think?  Should an extra shift in the gun shop do it?”  Beth often worked shifts at her mom’s shop, and while she didn’t mind it, she also cherished her free time.  Still, Beth was clearly getting off lightly, which flooded Lexi with relief. 

Tess, who still had Beth locked in a tight embrace nodded primly and said, “Yes, I think that’ll do.”  Finally, she let go of Beth, who rubbed her arms, as if to bring circulation back into them. 

Jak turned his intimidating gaze on Lexi.  She gulped.  Keira finally pulled back from Lexi, and stood next to Jak with her arms crossed.  Now that she’d gotten past her initial exhilaration at seeing Lexi unharmed, she was angry, as well.  It was clear that she’d stand behind any punishment Jak assigned. 

“Lexi, you’re grounded.  Give me your jet board,” Jak said. 

Lexi gasped.  Her parents had never taken away her board before.  It was like a part of her.  Desperate, she turned to Keira and said, “Mom!” pleadingly. 

Keira shook her head.  “No, Lexi,” she said, even as a wave of sorrow crossed her face.  “I think that your father is right.  Give him the board.” 

Gulping, Lexi took the board from her back.  She held it in front of her for just a moment, drinking it in.  Now that she had to give it up, she realized how much she needed it.  Her board wasn’t just a fun toy or an easy way to get around.  It was a part of her. 

Still, there was no fighting it.  With a grimace, she handed the board to her dad, even though she hated to do so. 

Quickly, Jak stowed it away on his back, presumably next to his own board.  He seemed about to speak, likely to add to the punishment that he’d already given, when Samos broke in, speaking for the first time since he’d arrived.  

“Jak, while we’re on the topic of punishment, I should note that my hut could use a deep cleaning.  And I could always use some help watering my plants.”  He said it sedately, like he was making an observation about the weather.  Still, Lexi suspected that he knew what he was doing.  

Jak nodded, a hard look in his eyes.  “You know, Samos, that sounds like a pretty good idea.  Lexi, first thing tomorrow, I’m taking you to your grandfather’s house.  You can spend the week there, doing chores.  That way, he can make sure you don’t leave the city.” 

Lexi wanted to grumble out a retort, but she knew that it would only make things worse.  Instead, she looked down at her shoes and said, “Okay, daddy.” 

Jak sighed, and his look became kinder, but no less stern.  He crossed his arms across his broad chest.  “Lexi, you know that we’re doing this for your own good, right?  We’re just trying to keep you safe within the city because we love you.  We still don’t know what we’re dealing with out here.”  He waved one arm vaguely behind him, as if he was indicating the entire forest.  Lexi remembered how the dark eco had shifted and writhed at the bottom of the rift, and shivered involuntarily.  

“I know,” she said, deflating.  

Her father gave her a long, sad look, then said to his wife, “I’m taking Lexi home.” 

Keira stood, and shook her head.  Her head seemed to have cleared completely.  “No, no.  I took the rest of the day off, anyway, and you’re needed here.  I’ll take her home.” 

“We can all go together,” Jak said, in his usual, gruff voice.  “I already told Torn I was done for the day.  We’re going to keep looking tomorrow.”  Lexi could picture him, crawling and fighting his way through the forest tomorrow, while she was cleaning Samos’s hut.  She tried not to show her disappointment on her face.  

Keira nodded and Jak turned without another word, exiting the forest with his wife at his side.  Silently, Lexi followed them back into the city. 

The next morning, Lexi woke up grounded.  She wasn’t allowed to hoverboard.  She wasn’t allowed to leave the house except to go straight to her part-time job or grandfather’s house to do chores.  And, most of all, she wasn’t allowed to see with Beth.  In fact, that rule was so strict, that until her punishment was over, she wouldn’t be able to carry out the favor she’d promised Beth in exchange for coming with her into the forest. She would just have to keep that promise later.

When she wasn’t doing her job or at her grandfather’s she was to stay in her room, and since the finals race had ended the junior’s racing season, she didn’t even have racing practice to look forward to.  

Early the next morning, true to his word, Lexi’s father had woken her to take her to her grandfather’s house.  Jak was still quiet and glowering as she’d climbed from the hover, barely offering her a good-bye nod.  Her uncle Daxter, on the other hand, mouthed “Hang in there, kid,” at her as they left her at the door.  The way he’d done it had cheered her up, because it reminded her of how he’d faced countless punishments like this from Samos when he was growing up.  Lexi gave her uncle a weak smile as their hover took off, leaving her.  She took a moment to compose herself, and opened her grandpa’s door. 

When she came in, Samos was hovering about a foot off the ground, meditating.  There was a barely-visible aura of green eco around him that made him look more vital than most men his age.  He liked to say that the promise of aging gracefully had been what had drawn him to the study of green eco in the first place, but Lexi was pretty sure he was exaggerating. 

Lexi cleared her throat in the doorway, knowing that he would be expecting her. 

Cracking one eye open, he said, “Ah, Lexi.  You’re right on time.  Your father is as punctual as ever.” 

“Hi, grandpa,” Lexi said, feeling embarrassed.  She still didn’t know how mad he was about her stunt in the forest.  Anxiously, she waited for him to speak.  

“So, you’re here to do chores?” he asked, closing his eyes again.  

Lexi awkwardly shifted her feet.  “Yep,” she said.  “That’s what dad says, anyway.”  

“Hm,” said Samos to himself.  “Interesting.  Well, first thing’s first, can you grab that blue eco crystal for me?  It’s on the table.” 

Lexi looked around the room, noting that it was suspiciously clean.  Hadn’t he said that he’d really needed it cleaned?  Putting this thought aside, she soon spotted the crystal he was talking about.  It stood prominently on the table, surrounded by thriving houseplants.  Weird.  Hadn’t he said that he’d needed help with them, too? 

Ignoring these thoughts, Lexi reached for the crystal.  She was about to touch it when she wondered if it would transfer its energy into her now that she had her abilities.  Would it be noticeable if it did?  She took a peek at her grandfather, who was still hovering, eyes resolutely closed. 

“I’m waiting,” he said casually.
She reached for it, trying to let as little as possible touch her skin.  Still, she felt a shiver of energy, and saw eco crackle on the surface and into her, for just a second.  She spared another quick glance at her grandfather, but he floated as peacefully as ever.  Clearly, he hadn’t seen.  She sighed in relief.  As long as she kept control and didn’t use the eco, he wouldn’t have to know. 

She carried it over to him, using both hands.  It was surprisingly heavy.  

“Here you go,” said Lexi.  

He opened both eyes this time, and took the crystal from her hands.  Uncrossing his legs, he put his feet back on the ground, and his knees shook as they took his weight. 
“Thank you, dear,” Samos said.  He put down the crystal on a coffee table next to him.  “Now, tea.” 

“Tea?” asked Lexi.  So far, this wasn’t going the way that she’d been expecting. 

“Yes,” said Samos, “Tea.”  He walked over to the pot.  It was almost ready.  That was also strange.  He wasn’t even going to have her make the tea?  So far, this visit didn’t seem like much of a punishment. 

Even though he didn’t ask for her help, she rushed forward, and helped him get their drinks ready, filling two delicate-looking teacups.  One was a lovely porcelain blue, and the other was a ratty old mug.  Since they were the only in his cupboard, Lexi figured they would do.
“You take this one, child,” he said, handing her the fancy cup and taking the older, dingier one for himself. 

“Okay…” she said, wondering what he was up to as she added milk and sugar cubes to their cups. 

They went back to the living room, and sat opposite each other across his small table.  Samos took a sip of his tea and let out a sigh of contentment.  

Lexi barely touched her own drink, feeling like she was being tricked somehow.  After a while, when it was clear that he wasn’t going to speak, Lexi shrugged and began to drink.  They sat like that in complete silence.  

Finally, when Samos was finished, he set down the cup into the saucer, still holding it.  Lexi was just wondering if she should ask him if she was still getting punished, when he finally chose to speak. 

“Now, Lexi,” he said.  “When were you planning on telling me that you’d gotten your powers?”

Lexi sputtered into her cup.  Hot tea went up her nose, and she started coughing. 

When she got her breathing back under control, she croaked, “What?”  Through her watery eyes, she could see that he was looking at her impassively, eyebrows raised.  He looked neither disapproving or angry. 

“Your powers.  When were you planning on telling me about them?” he repeated placidly. 
She shook her head confusedly.  “I don’t know what you’re talking about!  I don’t have powers, you know that.”  She set her cup and saucer down on the table in front of her.  “I’ve never had powers, and you’re the one who did the tests to prove it!”  

He looked at her, clearly not impressed with her lying.  “You know, I raised your mother.  I practically raised your father, and Daxter could give both of them a run for their money.  I know how to tell when someone is lying.” 

“Grandpa, I’m sorry, but I really don’t know what to tell you,” Lexi said, and she hoped that the sincerity in her voice would convince him.  After all, she really didn’t know what to tell him. 

He twiddled the cup in his hands, and was thoughtful for a second.  “Well, then,” he said.  “I suppose that if you say you don’t have powers, you don’t have powers.”  He shrugged expressively.  “My mistake.  I must just be a silly old man, seeing eco everywhere.”  He shook his head self-deprecatingly, but before she could comfort him, he suddenly threw the cup hard over her head. 

It came so fast that she had no time to think.  Blue eco rose up inside her, as natural as breathing.  The world seemed to slow as the blue eco gave her superhuman speed.  Before she knew it, she had swept the cup out of the air above her head.  She hadn’t spilled a drop of tea.   

Horrified, she looked at her grandfather, then down at herself.  The blue eco was still crackling along her body like electricity.  She gulped, and forced it to stop.  The blue aura fizzled out, but it was too late. 

Her grandfather said, “Just as I suspected.  Your powers have come in, at last.” 

She gaped at him.  “You knew? ” she said.  “You knew all along that I’d get them?” 

He shook his head.  “No, I was never sure.  Eco is a complicated thing; that part’s still true.  But, over the years, I started to wonder if the way we were testing you wasn’t working.  I wondered if maybe it would take something bigger to activate them, like a real threat or danger.  After all, your father’s powers didn’t activate until it was time for him to save his little friend.  Of course, I never told your father this.  Imagine me suggesting putting you into danger to activate the powers he never wanted you to have in the first place.  He would have had my head.”  Samos shook his head at the thought.  “So, I decided to let the matter rest. 

“Then, when I heard that you’d been lost in the forest, right as the dark eco started to shift...well, I had my suspicions.  Then, when I came to see you afterwood, and I saw the look in your eyes, I knew that something had happened in the forest that you weren’t telling us about, and I was able to hazard a guess as to what it was.  So, I thought that I’d have to see for myself.”  

Lexi looked down at her fists, balled in her lap.  At the mention of her father, her heart had started to pound.  “Are you going to tell my dad?” she asked.  

Samos gave her a long, thoughtful look.  “No,” he said, with deliberation, hands resting on the top of his cane.  “No, I don’t think I will.” 

Lexi was about to burst out with thanks when he raised one finger, stopping her.  “But,” he added, “I do think that you are going to have to be the one to tell him.  It just makes sense that this is news that he should hear from you; and sooner rather than later.” 

She swallowed.  She hated the idea.  But she knew she was lucky that he was giving her a choice at all.  

Raising her head to meet Samos’s gaze she said, “I know I should tell him.  But I don’t want to worry him.  He’s always hated the idea of me being able to use eco.  Every year, it was always so clear that he was relieved when I failed the test.”  She blinked furiously, not wanting to cry. 

Samos sighed.  “It’s so ironic, how alike you two are.  I never thought that I’d meet someone as stubborn and protective as him.  And then you came along.”  He stood, and started walking around the living room, looking around at the metallic eco-measuring devices that were strewn along the walls of the room.  “Because I do think that’s what you’re trying to do.  You’re trying to protect him.  But I think that you should know that—on some level—he’s been preparing for this possibility since before you were born, even if he doesn’t let it show.  I promise you, Lexi, there will come a time when Jak will accept your powers.” 

Lexi was glad when Samos took that moment to study one of his plants, giving her the chance to furiously blink her tears away, unseen.  “Really?” she asked in a small voice. 

He turned back to her.  “Really.”  He walked back to his chair, and sat back down with a grunt before continuing.  

“What you have to understand about your father is that he had only a short time to truly enjoy his powers.  There was a time when his eco-channeling abilities meant freedom, power, and the ability to help others.  He embraced them, once.  But then, there is what Praxis did to him.  Jak was exploited and tortured for his powers.  You’re old enough to know that.  Ever since then, your father’s relationship to his powers has been complicated.  But they are still a part of him, as they’re a part of you.  And I think that when your father looks at you, he sees a part of himself.  He, more than anyone else, knows what’s at stake for you. 

“But that doesn’t mean that you should fear your powers.  They’re as much a part of you as your hands and your knees.  You shouldn’t fear them, but rather the people who would take advantage of them.

“Do you understand?” he asked, bushy white eyebrows raised. 

Lexi nodded solemnly and clenched her fists tighter.  She wasn’t going to let anyone take advantage of her, not if she could help it.  “I understand,” she said. 

“Good,” Samos said, clapping his hands.  “Now, to business.  I’m sure you’ve noticed that there aren’t any chores to do around here.  Well, I could use help with the ficuses, but that’s always the case.  They’re quite finicky.”  He stroked his beard thoughtfully, before collecting himself. 

“But, the real reason I brought you here is so you can practice your abilities.  I have a suspicion that you’re going to need them.” 

Not only was Lexi not in trouble, but she was actually going to receive eco training from an actual eco sage!  This was far better than anything she could have ever expected.  She grinned ear-to-ear and rushed forward to hug him.  

“Thank you, grandpa!” she exclaimed, holding him tightly.  “I love you so much.” 

He patted her back.  “I love you too, Lexi,” he said. 

But while Lexi was extremely happy with how the visit had turned out, there was still one question that demanded an answer.  

“Hey, grandpa,” she said, pulling away from the hug, “were you really sure that I’d catch that cup you threw earlier?”  

Samos shrugged expressively.  “Oh, that old thing?”  He shrugged.  “I was pretty sure you’d catch it, but you’ll notice that I had you take my favorite cup,” he said with a wink.  “I wouldn’t have been too bothered if you hadn’t managed to catch that one.”  He indicated the older cup with a nod of his head. 

Lexi, giddy from the idea of training, couldn’t fight the laugh that bubbled up at that. 

Every morning that week, Jak dropped Lexi off at her grandfather’s house like clockwork. Once he’d dropped her on the doorstop, he’d fly off to continue investigating the eco problem.  Luckily, her father was still under the impression that she was spending her days completing boring chores for Samos.  

To keep up the illusion, Lexi always stayed quiet on the ride to Samos’s house, and would trudge inside with a half-hearted goodbye.  Samos, for his part, greeted her at the door each day with a firm, “Come in, young lady.”  Jak would nod his approval, and Lexi would slink in, hands in her pockets and shoulders slumped.  

Once inside, Samos would use his cane to pull aside the curtains.  Then, he’d wait for Jak to leave.  Then, and only then, he would turn to her, clap his hands, and say, “Let’s begin.” 

Every day was different.  Samos had an impressive stash of different types of ecos, in many different forms.  There were eco crystals of all kinds, the sizzling electricity of blue eco,  ever-changing red eco, and soft, floating green and white orbs.  Like when he used to do Lexi’s yearly eco tests, he was careful to never absorb the eco into his own skin.  Instead, he would use tongs, visors, and protective gloves to remove the eco from their containers, before presenting them to Lexi.  Then, she’d sit in respectful silence as Samos explained them each in turn.  

“Green eco is about so much more than healing,” he said the first day.  “It is also about restoration, peace, and new beginnings. It has always been underestimated, but you should never overlook it.  It has more power than most people know, which is why I dedicated my life to its study.”  

She nodded as she took the green orb from where it hovered above his outstretched hands.  Suddenly, she felt a wave of health and wellness surge through her.  Samos nodded at her joyful expression.  

“Yes,”  he said, “as I’m sure you can guess, it’s very useful as a restorative, especially in combat.  People tend to put it in crates these days, of which I’ve never been a fan.  I’ve always thought that green eco deserves to be free.”  

She could have easily dismissed this idea out of hand, but then she remembered how the green eco had seemed so full of life as it had bobbed and floated in her hand.  With that in mind, she couldn’t help but agree.  If she could float like that, she would never want to be pinned down, either. 

Later, he’d trained her in the use of blue eco, getting her to understand how to use it, rather than letting it use her like it had before, when the cup had flown at her.  

“Remember, blue eco surges with energy,” Samos said, “and that can lead to a lot of stress on the body.  Make sure that you’re the one in the pilot seat, rather than the other way around.  Keep your mind clear, and maintain control at all times.” 

She had nodded firmly, absorbed the blue eco had handed her, and ran up and down a course Samos had prepared for her in his small yard while he looked on, sitting cross-legged on his porch.  It took all her concentration to maintain control and precision even as she tried to run the course as quickly as possible.  In a lot of ways, it was a lot like racing, because it wasn’t just about going as fast as she could, but also about maintaining control.  The best part was that due to the effects of the eco, she was just as joyous and wired at the end of the day as she’d been in the beginning, despite racing the course countless times.  She never even lost her breath. 

The last time she ran it, she just managed to stay within the lines he’d drawn for her.  After, sweaty from running the course, Lexi stayed running in place while she waited for his feedback.  

Her grandfather had tilted his head and said, “You know what?  Good enough,” with a shrug. 

For that week, she practiced using all the ecos in turn running with blue, fighting dummies with red, taking aim with ranged weapons with yellow, and finally healing and meditating with green.  Ironically, those were the hardest days of all, when she would spend what felt like hours sitting cross-legged next to Samos, desperately wanting to open her eyes.  

As the week drew to a close, she felt stronger and more connected to all the ecos than she’d ever been before.  Still, there was still something that weighed more and more heavily on her mind every day.  

Finally couldn’t hold in any longer and asked him over tea after a long day of training. 

“Grandpa,” she asked cautiously, “why didn’t you train my dad like this?”

Samos started at that, and put his cup down.  A pause stretched between them, and when he did answer, he did so thoughtfully.  

“The main reason was simply that there wasn’t enough time.  By the time Jak discovered his abilities, we had to stop Gol and Maia, and there was little time to waste.  I did send him to train on an island near our home of Sandover before sending him on his adventure, but that’s all that we had time for.  The rest he learned ‘on the job,’ as it were.  

“Then, once all that was resolved, it was already time to use the rift gate to come to the future.  Er...present.  Whatever,” he said.  He waved his hand dismissively—like he often did when the subject of time travel popped up—before continuing: 

“Now, things are different.  Things are more peaceful, for one thing, and we simply have more time,” Samos said.  Then with a deep sigh he added, “I always wished that I could have given Jak more time to adjust.  Gol, Maia, the Rift gate: it all happened so fast.”  He shook his head.  “Oh, well.  He turned out well, in the end.”   

Lexi nodded absent-mindedly.  Then, she said, “But, things aren’t exactly peaceful, are they?  Not as long as someone is messing with the dark eco, anyway.  I know that I’m safe with you, but I’ve heard that there are dark eco leaks in other parts of the city, and whole neighborhoods have been evacuated!”  It was true.  While she had been training, the quakes had continued, and every day they grew in strength and frequency.  

She looked down.  “I know that dad doesn’t want me to worry, but I can tell that he’s been trying to hide how bad it is.  He’s out all day, doing who knows what trying to get to the bottom of it.  Then, he gets home so late and exhausted that he just falls asleep on the couch.” 

Lexi looked up to see her grandfather looking at her thoughtfully, and realized that she sounded weak.  “I mean, I know that it’s okay.  This is just the way it is,” she gave a shrug, hoping that she came off as tough and dignified.  “Whenever there’s a threat to the city, that’s what he does.  He fixes it.  I know that he’s dealt with much more dangerous stuff before, and my parents tell me that I don’t have to worry.  But...it’s hard not to, you know?”  Lexi squinted at him, embarrassed to have poured out all her worry like this.  Maybe all this tea and mediation was getting to her.  

At the end of Lexi’s rant, Samos set down his empty cup in his saucer.  “Yes.  You have a point.  This isn’t the most peaceful period the city has seen, that is true.  And I wish that you didn’t have cause to worry.  It’s hard to see your family in danger, I know.  But there is one silver lining,” he said, raising a finger,  “I think that this crisis gave your abilities the perfect chance to show themselves.”  

Lexi tilted her head, her eyebrows drawn together.  “What do you mean?” she asked. 

Samos stroked his white beard and said,  “This is just a theory, so don’t quote me on this; but it’s possible that the descendents of Mar don’t display their powers until they’re needed.”  

Lexi shivered.  I’m needed, she thought.  The idea was almost as good as a dose of blue eco to the heart.  

Her grandfather peered over his glasses at her.  “Like I said, it’s just a theory.  Your powers manifesting at this point could also be a simple matter of genetics.  There’s no real way of knowing, since so much information about the Mar family has been lost over the generations.”  He shrugged, and went to take her cup.  Lexi waved him off and instead took both their cups to the sink to wash.  

Samos nodded his thanks, and after rinsing the cups, she returned to the living room.  It was early in the afternoon, still hours before her father would come get her.  

After returning to her seat, Lexi planted her hands on her knees and said excitedly, “So, what’s next?  White eco?  Flying? Punching?” She mimed punching the air as she said it.  

Her grandfather smiled fondly.  “There is one last thing.  And no, it is not punching.  If you want to learn more about punching, you can always ask your dad.  You don’t want to learn fighting from an old man like me.”  He planted his wooden shoes firmly and heaved himself to his feet.  “There is one last thing, but it isn’t a lesson, per say.” 

Lexi sat up even straighter, watching him walk to the back of the room.  Her heart started beating quickly.  She had a feeling that this was going to be big.  There was a sense in the air that Samos had been working up to this all week.  She clenched her fists on her lap.  

When he came back, Samos held a simple, wooden box.  With a questioning glance, Lexi took it from him gently.  Then she sat there, just holding it.  It had a plain design, and it wasn’t heavy.  She wondered what could possibly be so important about such a small, unassuming package.  

After a few loaded seconds, Samos finally said, “Well, go on.  Open it.  It’s yours, after all.” 

Lexi opened the box.  She couldn't hide the surprise on her face when she didn’t find anything to do with white eco.  After all, white and dark eco were the only types of eco that they hadn’t yet studied.  She already knew that there was no chance that they would be working with dark eco, but she’d been secretly waiting for the day that they would work with white eco. 

Instead inside the box, she found a seal of Mar necklace.  It rested on a bed of thick white padding, as if Samos had been afraid of it shifting and breaking.  Brushing the smooth, round pendant with her fingers, she took in the familiar design.  She had always thought that the symbol of her family house looked like two circles with tails, chasing each other. It was the usual pinkish-beige of precursor metal, and it was on a thin brown leather cord, which had probably been Samos’s contribution.  

Looking down at it, Lexi found herself blinking rapidly.  “Is this…” 

“Your other grandfather’s seal?  Yes, it is.”  Samos resumed his seat in front of her.   “Your father didn’t have much use of it after he finished most of his adventures, so he asked me to take it for safe-keeping.” 

Lexi felt a surge of emotion at that.  Her father’s father had died years before she had been born, and she knew that it was a sensitive subject for her father.  She couldn’t help but wonder if his father’s death had been part of the reason Jak had given it away.  It had to carry negative memories.  Suddenly, she wondered if she was the right person to take it.  Was it because she had inherited her father’s powers that Samos thought that she was now ready?  And would she ever really be ready to carry Mar’s legacy?   

“You’re giving it to me?” she asked.  Her eyes were moist now.  

He nodded.  “Yes.  I think you’re ready.”  

She glanced down, wondering what had changed.  Then, she asked, “Because I have powers now?”  She wasn’t sure what she wanted his answer to be.  

Samos shook his head.  “No, I would have given it to you either way.  With or without powers, you’re still a descendant of Mar, and you’re still my granddaughter.  It’s always been yours, and I was always planning on making sure that it made it to your hands someday.”  He inclined his head at her, which she took as a signal to put it on.  Reverently, she lifted it from the box by its leather cord and put it around her neck.  

He continued, saying, “I was planning on giving it to you on your seventeenth birthday, but I had a feeling that you might need it earlier than that.”  He lapsed into a mysterious silence, and Lexi couldn’t guess what he was thinking.  

Still, she deeply appreciated his gift, and she rose to give him a hug.  “Thank you, grandpa.  You have no idea how much this means to me.”  

He hugged her back, and patted her arm while chuckling awkwardly.  “Well, don’t thank me too much.  It was always going to be yours, after all.  I’m just the means of delivery.  Technically, it comes from the other side of your family.”  

After she pulled away, he said, “Lexi, you need to understand that the history of the Mar family is mixed.  There is a lot we don’t know, a lot of mystery, and a lot of pain.  I must say that while I’m proud of your father for many things, the thing I’m most proud of is that he raised you so that this seal is something you can carry proudly, without any bad memories.  It is very admirable, after everything he’s been through.  I know that things are...tense right now between you two, but I hope that you both soon move past it.  He just wants what’s best for you, even if he doesn’t always have the best way of showing it.”  

Lexi wiped her eyes, and Samos looked away, knowing that she wouldn’t want him to see.  

I will not cry, she firmly told herself.  She took a steadying breath, and tucked the seal under her shirt.  If Jak saw it, it would only raise questions that she wouldn’t know how to answer.  It would be enough just knowing it was there, even if it was out of sight.  As soon as the smooth metal was resting against her skin, she felt stronger, and less likely to cry.  

“I’ll try to forgive him,” Lexi said.  It seemed like such a small price to pay for such a wonderful gift.  She was more than willing to pay it.   

They sat there in silence for a few moments, as if letting the enormity of the situation sink in.  

Antsy, Lexi finally said, “So, now what?  Are we done training?  Don’t we still have to cover white eco?”  She tilted her head quizzically.  

Samos peered up at her over his thick glasses.  “You know, I had some thoughts about that.  You’ve been struggling to channel white eco ever since the time you used it in the forest, correct?”  

Lexi nodded.  She hadn’t told him the entire story of what had happened in the forest, taking out every mention of Rick and his village.  But she had told him about how—out of desperation while falling into the pit of dark eco—she had used the remaining white eco in her body to sprout wings and fly.  Since she’d started coming to his house to train, there had been a few times when she had absorbed white eco into her body, but she was never able to do anything with it.  Every time she failed to channel white eco, Samos had just looked at her thoughtfully, and told her that ability would come later.  Lexi had assumed that meant they would cover it by the end of training; but, from his somber look, she was starting to have her doubts.  

“I had a thought about that, actually,” Samos said.  “That was the last eco that Jak was able to master, though he did channel it once or twice before then, most notably when he first defeated Gol and Maia at their Citadel.  I think that the time that you used it in the forest was like the early times your father used the eco.  That is to say, I think that it might have been a one-off instance that you won’t be able to replicate.” 

Lexi’s heart sank.  “You mean like a fluke?” she asked. 

“No.  More like….an early indicator of what you’ll be able to do.  It could be a hint of what’s to come as you master your ability to channel ecos of all kinds.  Don’t worry, I have no doubt that you will one day be able to channel white eco; but it might take a while.  There are a few theories I have about that, but I won’t trouble you with them,” he said with an airy wave.   

Lexi’s eyes snapped up.  Now that she knew he had theories about her powers, she desperately wanted to know what they were.  But, looking at the steely glint in his eyes, she was reminded of the way that her mother could get sometimes, and she decided to back off.  It was clear that he’d already made up his mind and that there was no point badgering him.  She would just have to hope that he would tell her eventually.  

So, instead she said, “Well, okay.  As long as you’re not worried or anything, I guess that it’s fine.”  She shrugged, feeling slightly downcast.  But then, she realized that this meant that they were at the end of their training, and she brightened up, brimming with curiosity.  

“So, wait, that means we’re really done with training now, doesn’t it?  What happens next?”  She tilted her head at him, eyes wide.  

Samos peered at her seriously before saying, “Well, Lexi.  I think that whatever happens next is up to you.”  And with that, he took another sip of his tea.  

Chapter Text

Chapter 7: The Oracle

After that last conversation with her grandfather, Lexi spent every minute of every day planning how to leave the city.  On the bright side, she now had a contact outside the city, and some experience sneaking out of it.  However, security had only tightened since then, especially as the quakes destroyed more and more of the city. 

Though at first she had hesitated to trust Rick, she was greatly comforted by the way that he had acted after they almost fell into the gorge.  Her father had always told her that you could always see who a person really was when they had to face danger and challenge, and she had been impressed with Rick’s ability to think clearly under stress.  And, more importantly, he had done everything that he could to get himself and Beth off the island safely.  Lexi hadn’t forgotten the way that he had stayed back, holding his side of the tree steady as Beth had scrambled across it.  And later, he had seemed genuine about wanting to introduce her to the oracle of his village.  Her parents had always told her to trust her instincts, and while the invitation made her nervous, it wasn’t because of the boy she had met that day.  

Trusting Rick wasn’t the problem.  Getting to him was. 

The good news was that now, she had a lot more freedom to plan her escape.  After that last day of training, Samos had made it clear to Jak that there was nothing left for her to do at his cottage—which was true enough—and that she would simply have to finish out her punishment somewhere else.  With anyone else, Jak might have tried harder to change his mind, but he knew that there was no point in fighting with his father-in-law, especially because Keira would be likely to take her father’s side.  

So, Jak had simply relented, grumbling as they left.  Lexi peeked over her shoulder as they left, and she would have sworn that—for just a second—Samos was giving her a wink.  

After that last day of training, Lexi knew just what her next step had to be.  She had to get into contact with Rick somehow.  He had implied that he would be able to reach her through her tablet, though she had no idea how.  The problem was that her parents had taken her tablet when she’d been grounded, so that was going to be a no-go.  But as she laid in bed that night, she was resolved that she would simply have to find a screen and reach him somehow.  

The next day, she crept around the house, looking for an opportunity to use any unused screens to her advantage.  Unfortunately, both her parents were home, keeping an eye on her.  Her mother was using her own tablet in her room, probably researching parts for work, and her father was planted firmly in the living room, in view of their one communal work screen.  

Lexi was just about to give up hope when there the doorbell rang.  Still not allowed to leave the house, Lexi leaned the entrance from the kitchen into the living room, and watched him answer the door. 

“Hey, Ashelin,” Jak said, as he opened the door.  “I’m guessing it’s time?” 

“Yep,” Ashelin said, brief as ever.  

Jak gave a stiff nod, and waved Ashelin in.  “Just let me get my things,” he said in his gruff voice.  “I’m sure that once I leave, I won’t be back for hours; and I want to be prepared for anything.”

Ashelin walked in, and stood with her legs firmly planted in their living room.  “Oh, I’m sure,” she said.  “Go ahead, get ready.  I’ll wait here,” she said with a wave of her hand.  With that, Jak went upstairs to his bedroom, and Lexi knew that he would be outfitting himself with weapons that he had locked in the safe in the closet of the main bedroom.  As he went, Ashelin called after him, “Oh, and after the meeting, I’ll turn you loose to go meet with your...contacts.”  

She had paused and trailed off when she’d seen Lexi in the doorway.  Lexi took this to mean that these “contacts,” whoever they happened to be, were probably seedy.  Most of his contacts were. 

Ashelin shook her head slightly, as if clearing her ears of water, and continued, saying, “Hi, Lexi.  I hear you’re grounded.”  

She crossed her arms, but the look on her face was more fondly exasperated than anything.  Sometimes, it struck Lexi how strange it was that the leader of the city—beloved but intimidating—was her aunt.  Ashelin had told her years ago that being an aunt suited her better than being a mother ever would, because she never had to punish Lexi when she did wrong.  And, indeed, while Lexi and Beth’s antics growing up had driven their parents crazy, all Ashelin had ever given them was a fond shake of the head.  

“Yep,” said Lexi, as she walked more fully into the room.  “I’ve been spending the last few days at my grandpa’s, doing things for him, you know?”  She didn’t feel the need to clarify that, in reality, these “things” had included studying eco and meditating on their power for hours on end.  

Ashelin’s brow crinkled a little.  “Why aren’t you there, then?” 

Lexi shrugged.  “He ran out of things for me to do.”  She leaned in conspiratorially.  “To tell you the truth, I think that my dad doesn’t really know what to do with me.”  It was true.  He wasn’t even confining her to her room anymore, as if in the midst of everything else going on, punishing her was no longer a priority.  

Ashelin hummed to herself, and Jak came back into the room.  As Lexi had expected, he now had a huge gun strapped to his back, in addition to the smaller one that he always kept on his hip.  

Acting as though she hadn’t seen him, Ashelin said, “Well, maybe you should just come with us, then.” 

“No way,” said Jak immediately. 

Ashelin turned, as if she had just noticed him come through the door.  “Oh, Jak,” she said.  “I didn’t see you there.  I was just telling Lexi that if you want to keep an eye on her, she may as well come with us to the palace.” 

Jak rolled his eyes, as if he was dealing with a difficult sister, rather than the leader of the city.  “Oh, of course.  Because that definitely sounds like a punishment,” he said sarcastically.  

“I’m just saying,” said Ashelin with a shrug, “if you leave her, there’s no telling what she’ll get up to.  If you take her, you can just put her in a boring room in the palace.  I promise that we have plenty.”  

Jak looked at Lexi thoughtfully.  “Well,” he said, “I guess she can come.  Just to get her out of the house for a bit.”  But then, he planted his hands on his hips.  “But, Lexi, you’re still grounded.  This isn’t meant to be fun.” 

It was Ashelin’s turn to roll her eyes.  “When is a council meeting ever fun, Jak?” 

After thanking Ashelin profusely, Lexi hopped into the hover.  Jak and Ashelin were talking up front as they made the trip, but Lexi could tell that they weren’t speaking freely.  They were choosing their words carefully to be sure they weren’t revealing too much about the forest and its eco.  Their secrecy was so annoying, especially when there was still so much she didn’t know.  While this trip might be a good chance to talk to Rick, Lexi knew that she was going to learn anything new about the eco on it. 

Finally, they touched down on the landing pad in front of the palace.  Lexi tilted her head up at the palace, as familiar as her own home.  The apartment that Torn and Ashelin kept at the apartment was deceptively small, and they conducted much of their business in the rest of the building.  They weren’t stingy with the space, and often invited their friends over.  Lexi had been coming here since she was a little girl.  She knew almost all of its halls and rooms like they were her own. 

Ashelin’s security detail greeted her as she got down.  Then, she got sidetracked talking with a nameless official.  She waved Jak and Lexi on ahead, calling out a room number before she became completely wrapped up in her conversation.  That must be where she planned to meet them.  Lexi swallowed at the thought of making the walk alone with her father, who was still a glowering tower of ice around her. 

Hanging out with Ashelin had made Lexi feel normal for the first time in a while.  Now, she again faced the awkward silence that still lingered between her and her father.  

They walked in silence to the room that Ashelin had indicated.  Soon enough, there would be a council meeting in the huge round room next door.  She’d been in the room a few times, but never when council was in session.  A smile played on her lips as she thought of the time that she and Beth had played hide-and-sneak in the grand room, hiding behind the decorations and under the grand central chair that Ashelin sometimes sat in. 

Once in the room, Jak turned on his heel and said, “Wait here.  Remember, you’re not here to have fun, but just so I can keep an eye on you.” 

Lexi sat down with a huff in one of the comfortable chairs and put her head in her hands.  “Fine,” she said. 

Jak’s eyes narrowed.  “I’m serious, Lexi.  I just brought you because I wanted to be sure you didn’t try to sneak off again.” 

Crossing her arms, Lexi turned away.  “Okay, okay,” she said.  “I’m not going to sneak away.” 

Jak stared down at her thoughtfully, then sighed.  “Look, Lexi, I know that it might seem harsh, but…” 

Whatever he was going to say was interrupted by Ashelin who walked into the room at a fast clip.  “Jak,” she said.  “The meeting’s starting, and they want to hear from you first.” 

Jak spared her a glance, before opening his mouth again.  It seemed that though he was going to finish whatever he’d been telling Lexi.  But then, he decided against it and said, “Alright.  Lexi, we’ll continue this conversation later.” 

It was only then that Ashelin sensed the tension in the room, glancing between the two quickly, but Lexi just nodded stiffly at her dad.  She had nothing else to say, and hoped that he would just leave already. 

Jak squared his shoulders, and followed Ashelin into the council room through the wood-paneled doors.  Despite her annoyance with him, Lexi felt a pang of sympathy for him.  The first time he’d ever gone to a council meeting—before Lexi was born—it was only to be banished to the desert.  Though Ashelin had long since purged the council of everyone who had played a role in his banishment, Lexi knew that Jak still distrusted them.  As the undisputed hero of the city, they listened to him now, but he would never shake the slight unease he felt around them.  

Just before he was out the door, Lexi dropped her guard and said, “Good luck, daddy.”  He gave her a small smile in response, and for a second, things almost felt normal. 

But then, he and Ashelin were through the doors, and Lexi was alone with her thoughts.  And all she knew was that now would be her best chance to reach out to Rick.  Standing quietly and peeking out the door, Lexi made certain that the hallway was deserted.  It was, which she had expected.  Everyone important was obviously in the council meeting.  Curiosity stealing over her, Lexi tried the door that Jak and Ashelin had taken into the council chambers, only to find that they had locked it behind them. 

Figures, thought Lexi.  Well, there went any chance of eavesdropping, but that wasn’t her main goal, anyway.  

Lexi took a quick scan of the technology in the room.  There wasn’t much, which worked for her.  If the tech in the room had seemed at all appealing or fun, there was no way that Jak would have left her here while she was grounded.  There was just one security screen with a rudimentary interface set on a desk and a bulky tv screen mounted on the opposite wall.  There was no remote control for this screen, and it was set to some bland political show.  Lexi wasn’t the best with technology, but she knew that this was going to be her last, best chance to reach Rick for a while. 

Pushing a lock of hair behind one long ear, she rushed forward to take the seat in front of the security screen.  She swiped her finger across the screen, she came to the login screen.  Luckily, Lexi spent enough time in the palace that Ashelin had given her an account on the palace’s system.  Of course, her account was severely limited.  With it, she wasn’t able to access any secret information or control any of the technology in the palace, but just being able to access the internet should be enough. 

Since her father would be furious at her for even logging on to a computer, Lexi worked fast.  She had to be finished before the meeting ended.  Typing fast, she checked everywhere she could think that Rick might have sent her a message.  First, she logged into a messaging app that she and Beth used often.  After seeing nothing there, she combed through all her online profiles, but only found the usual messages and invites from acquaintances who didn’t know she was grounded.  Sweating now, Lexi thought hard of any other way that he might have tried to reach out to her.  Finally, she remembered the official email address that her father had made for her.  Of course, that would be the only thing connected to her real name, which was all Rick knew about her online presence.  

With a swipe of her hand, Lexi dismissed all the glowing blue screens she had been looking at, and opened a new one.  Working fast, she logged into her account and hit gold.  

Spanning the last week were a series of messages from Rick, increasing in frequency and panic as the days went on.  Lexi scanned them quickly, focusing only on the highlights.  

Um, hi.  I said that I’d reach out, so this is me, reaching out.  Oh, and I almost forgot, this is Rick.  From the forest, read the first one.  Then, there was a space of about a day without any correspondence, then: 

Hi Lexi, sorry for reaching out again so soon, but I found out a way to sneak you out of the city.  Message me back ASAP.  Oh, yeah, and this is Rick (from the forest.) 

Then, a few frantic messages later: 

Lexi, it occurs to me that you might have forgotten who I am.  I’m Rick, from the forest.  We almost died in a pit.  Message when you can. 

Feeling bad for leaving him hanging for so long, even without knowing, Lexi typed a reply as quickly as she could: 

I’m sorry, but I’m being punished and everything I could use to communicate was taken away.  But whatever you’re planning, I’m down.  Just reach out with the details, but quickly.  I can’t stay online for long.  

• Lexi 

After she sent the message, Lexi settled in to wait.  She only had until the end of the council meeting, so she would just have to hope that Rick would write back soon.  There were a few heart-pounding moments, which she spent straining to hear if the council meeting was ending.  Finally, there was a flash on the screen, and Lexi leaned forward so the front two legs of her dangling chair hit the ground with a thud.  Heart pounding, she swiped at the screen, expecting to see another string of panicked words waiting.  

But instead, the screen emptied for a second, before filling with a nervous face.  It was Rick. 

“Lexi, are you okay?” he asked, clearly panicked.  His hazel eyes were wide, and he looked to be in a hut of some kind. 

“What?!”  asked Lexi.  She swung her head to look back at the door to the meeting room, throat clenching.  When she looked back, she said, “Rick, you can’t be here!  Do you know how much trouble I could get in if someone saw you?” 

His face hardened with a grim certainty.  “I knew it,” he said.  “They took you captive, didn’t they?” 

Lexi’s brow furrowed perplexedly.  “What are you talking about?  I’m fine!”  

He looked confused, and seemed to be scanning the room behind her for the first time, as if he was looking to see who was making her say such things.  Then, he said, “Lexi, your message came from the palace, and you said that you were being punished.  I assumed that they took you in for leaving the city.”  

For a second, Lexi fought the urge to groan.  “Rick, it’s not like that.  I was grounded , not arrested!  I’m completely fine, I promise.”  She was about to continue, maybe ask him for the details about sneaking into the forest while he was on the line.  But, just then, she heard what sounded like footsteps from the hallway in front of the door.  In a panic, she slammed the computer shut, abruptly ending the transmission without a good-bye.  

She sat there, feeling her heart slow and the sweat cool on her body.  For a few long moments, she strained to hear any other footsteps near the door.  But when none came, she realized that she must have just heard someone walking down the hallway past the door. 

Lexi was just about to reopen the screens to send Rick another message, asking for the details of their meeting, when the tv screen flickered.  Turning in horror Lexi saw his image pop up on the larger screen. 

Lexi stood abruptly, and planted herself firmly in front of the tv.  Utterly confused, she shouted, “Rick!  How are you even doing this?”  She threw her arms up in the air in frustration. 

He shrugged.  “I hacked into the system.  Our transmission got cut, but I wanted to make absolutely sure you weren’t in danger.”  If it weren’t for the completely genuine look of worry on his face, his confusion would have been a lot more annoying.  And that was saying something.  

Lexi groaned and pinched the bridge of her nose, a habit she had picked up from her father.  “Rick, for the last time, I’m not a prisoner.  I’m here as a guest.  When I said that I was being punished, I just meant by my parents. I’m just grounded!” she shouted.  His brows furrowed, as if he had never heard the word in that context before.  She tried to soften her voice.  “Look, I’m totally fine, okay?  But I won’t be if my dad catches me using technology to talk to you!”  

Rick blanched and said, “Okay.  But you will come to the forest, right?” 

“Of course I will!” said Lexi.  It had never been a question. 

He smiled and said.  “Good.  Head to Sewer Gate 3 tonight, and use the access panel to request an opening.  I’ll let you in, and I’ll wait for you on the other side.  Based on the maps I read, from there it’s a straight shot down that tunnel to the forest, you can’t miss it.”   

Lexi nodded frantically toward the screen. “Fine!” she said, waving him away.  “I’ll be there, but you’ve got to go!” 

He nodded, and seemed about to hang up the call.  But, just then, she heard the very real sound of a doorknob turning.  It came from the direction of the council room.  There wasn’t going to be enough time.  

With a small shriek, Lexi darted forward, and grabbed the plug to the tv, yanking it out just as Jak and Ashelin came into the room.  The screen flickered off, taking Rick’s face with it.  But though the tv screen was now clear of Rick’s face, there was no denying that Lexi was in an awkward position.  She was standing in the middle of the room, face flushed, plug in hand, and in a lunged-forward stance, balanced precariously on one leg.  She knew that the situation was ridiculous, and it registered on Jak and Ashelin’s faces.  The way they were looking at her, you’d think she had torn the entire tv screen from the wall and bitten into it.  But still, Lexi knew that she could really use a cover story right about now.  

Too bad she didn’t have one. 

Jak was the first to break the awkward silence.  “Um, Lexi….What was that about?” he asked. 

Lexi blew a lock of blonde hair out of her face and shifted out of her lunging position and back to both feet, trying to look natural even as she still held the tv’s plug in one hand.  

“Oh, well,” she said.  “Um, you know how the tv in here doesn’t have a remote or anything, and just plays political commentary shows all the time?” she asked with an unconvincing grin.  Buoyed by their nods, Lexi went on, “Well, I was sort of watching it, ‘cause I figured that I must be allowed to because you left me in here and it was super boring anyway, so I thought that you wouldn’t mind...”  They kept staring at her blankly. 

Lexi cleared her throat and continued, “So, like I said, I was just sort of listening to it, but then this other show came on and it was like some totally trashy show that was ripping on you, dad!”  Lexi hoped that she sounded genuinely annoyed, which she would be if her story was true.  “So I got mad and just had to turn it off.  But, you know:” she said, waving the plug sheepishly, “No remote.” 

Jak’s hard gaze softened.  While he had never cared what shows like that had to say about him, he always liked it when Lexi disagreed with them, which she often did.  Loudly.  He may not care about the shows, but he did care what she thought of him.  For the first time in days, Jak’s frosty exterior softened, which made Lexi more hopeful for forgiveness than she’d been in days.  The corner of his mouth even twitched up a bit.  She always loved these smiles the best, when it was clear that he was trying so hard to be mad or serious, but just couldn’t fight her silliness.  It made Lexi smile herself, just a little bit.  Even though there was a small part of her that felt guilty that it was based on a lie.  

Night had fallen before Lexi had a chance to sneak out.  Working in the dark, she dressed herself in all black.  Then, she paired her outfit with the lightest, quietest pair of boots she owned.  She tied them tight, then forced a small black beanie over her head.  Finally she twisted up her long blonde hair and stuffed it into the hat so that only her green roots were showing.  Giving her outfit a once-over in the mirror, she couldn’t help feeling just a tiny bit like a badass. 

Slowly, silently, she crept down the stairs.  She had only ever snuck out of her house once or twice before this night, so she didn’t have much experience on her side.  Luckily though, while her dad had always been paranoid, their apartment’s defenses were more about keeping threats out than keeping Lexi in.  When she got to the front door, it was the work of a moment to type the passcode in and ease it open. 

Heading outside, Lexi felt guilty for the hundredth time that night.  The distress in her mother’s voice when they’d found her in the forest came back to haunt her.  She shivered, though the night was warm.  She never wanted to make her mother feel that way again.  But still, she had no choice.  She couldn’t spend the rest of her life wondering what she might have learned if only she had taken this chance.  There was something about herself that she needed to know, and this might be the way to find it.  

She cleared her head of guilty thoughts, and resolutely refused to think of how disappointed her father would be if he knew where she was going.  

As she walked, she missed the familiar weight of Beth on her shoulder.  Normally, this was the sort of thing they would do together: but not this time.  There had been no way to get a message to Beth in time for this journey, and it would have been especially difficult to get out of their shared apartment building together at night.  Besides, she had a feeling that this was something she shouldn’t drag Beth into.  

No, this was something that she had to do herself.  

Since her hoverboard was still under her father’s lock and key, she would have to walk to the sewer gate that Rick had told her about.  It wasn’t a problem, really.  Thanks to her father’s combat training, Lexi wasn’t afraid to walk Haven’s streets at night.  Still, she kept her head bent low so she wouldn’t draw too much attention. After only about five minutes of walking, she was there, at Sewer Gate Three.

As she approached the huge sewer door, Lexi was relieved to see a small, rectangular access panel set into the wall next to the deep-set metal door of the sewer gate.  Rick had said that panel was how he was going to let her into the sewer.  Lexi glanced from left to right to make sure that no one was looking, and headed straight for it. 

The access panel was behind a protective, plastic casing which was easy enough to pull off.  Once she opened the panel, she found a screen that was off.  She pushed the “On” button, hoping that Rick knew what he was doing.  

The screen came on, and she was horrified to see that there was a camera right above it, looking right at her face.  A green grid of lights covered Lexi’s face, and she knew that it must be taking a scan of it.  Lexi could feel the sweat freeze on her body.  This was it.  Either Rick would have given her the permissions that she needed for the door to open, or she would be caught. 

“Requesting Access.  Please wait,” the screen said.  So Lexi waited.  

It was very early the night that Lexi would be coming into the forest, and Rick was laying in bed.  He was staring at the ceiling, hands behind his head.  He’d gone to bed early that night—very shortly after the sunset, in fact—to make sure that he would have enough time for what he had to do.  Rick lifted his head slightly to check that his uncle was asleep in his own bed on the other side of the room.  He stayed still for a long minute, listening to his uncle’s deep breaths, trying to determine if he was really asleep.  The old man mumbled something and burrowed deeper into his sheets.   That settled it.  Rick swung himself out of bed, striving not to make a sound.  

Quietly, he crept across the wooden floor of the room, and stooped to reach behind a large potted plant in the corner.  Once there, he took up the small bag that he’d hidden there for this trip.  Rick slung it over his shoulder, laced up his boots, and took one last look at his sleeping uncle before leaving the room. 

As he closed the door behind him, he remembered again the conversation that he’d had with Lexi.  Pausing in the process of locking the door, he hung his head and fought the urge to groan.  He still couldn’t believe how badly it had gone.  In the days that he’d been waiting for Lexi to reach out to him, he’d planned the conversation they’d have in his head while he’d worked on chores.  In his imagination, he had been direct and composed.  She would have been impressed, rather than horrified, that he had figured out how to call her.  His skill with technology would have been on full display, and he would have proven himself as a good ally to have in the fight against evil.  Then, he was going to tell her about how he’d hacked the sewer gate.  The best part was going to get to see the look on her face.  His daydreams had always ended the same way, with her happily agreeing to meet him.  In his imagination, everything had gone perfectly.  

But then, everything had gone wrong.  When he’d seen that her message was coming from the palace, he’d been flooded with worry.  Growing up, he’d been told all about Haven’s evil baron, and how he ruled with an iron fist from his palace that towered over the city.  Seeing that Lexi was there, and talking about punishment, he’d called her without a moment’s thought. 

This time, he didn’t manage to stifle the groan that bubbled from his throat.  Luckily, he was far from anyone who could hear, walking the long distance from his uncle’s house to the village’s exit.  Still, he firmly reminded himself to stay quiet.  If he got caught, he wouldn’t be able to let Lexi out of the city.  Remembering his goal, he moved a little faster, cutting through the foliage that surrounded his village.  

Their conversation had been a complete disaster.  He had been so scared for her safety, that it had taken an embarrassingly long time to realize that she was fine.  In fact, she’d seemed to be completely at her ease.  At least, until Rick had called her.  She had clearly been terrified at the prospect of being seen talking to him.  And he had to admit, that hadn’t been good for the old ego.  But once they’d sorted that out, he’d wasted no more time in telling her his plan.  Then, after days of dreaming about it, he officially asked her to meet him again in the forest that night. 

“Fine!” was all she’d said before the feed had abruptly cut off.  If he was being honest with himself, it hadn’t seemed like a promising response.  

But Rick kept telling himself that, whether or not she came, he had to try.  He would go to where he’d said they’d meet, and he would wait to open the gate.  He had to see her again, he just knew it.  Especially because of how her face kept popping up in his head.  

Trying to look composed and confident, Rick reached the exit to the village, which was hidden from outside view.  He strode past the guard on watch, pulling his dark cloak further down over his face.  The guard nodded at him, with apparent disinterest.  Like the forcefield that surrounded the village, the guard wasn’t there to keep the villagers in, but to keep threats out.  Walking out through the forcefield was easy, and Rick only felt a little buzz of energy as he went through it.  Getting back in would be a little trickier, because he would have to convince whoever was on guard to let down the forcefield walls.  Still, as long as they assumed that he was an older member of the tribe, he was free to come and go as he wished.  If they found out what he was doing, that would be another story.  But he could cross that bridge if and when he came to it. 

Walking briskly, he cut through the forest on a familiar path.  He traced this route to the city more than anyone else in the village: so much so that he could see his remnants of his boot marks on the path.  He’d have to remember to wipe them away on the way back.  It wouldn’t do to leave them, not with so many outsiders wandering around.  And that included Lexi.  

It wasn’t long until he came to the clearing where he’d told her he’d been waiting.  He’d managed to hack into the Haven City sewer system long ago, mostly as a personal project.  Back then, he’d just been doing to prove it was possible, and to while away the long night hours when it was impossible to sleep.  For years, he hadn’t even thought about the project, and he certainly never thought that he’d ever use it to sneak someone from Haven into the forest.  That is, until he had a good reason.  After all, his father had always said that life was full of surprises and that you just had to go with them.  

Rick took a seat on a boulder at the edge of the man-made clearing and pulled out his tablet.  It took only a moment to boot it up, and when he did, he stared down at the screen.  If Lexi ended up taking his advice and activating the panel next to the sewer gate, he’d be able to grant her access from the tablet.  Until then, he would just have to wait.  

Realizing that he shouldn’t keep staring at the brightly-lit screen if he wanted to preserve his night vision, he looked at the door instead.  He couldn’t stop feeling like an idiot.  How long had he’d stared at the city like a love-struck fool, secretly wanting to go there, despite the danger?  And now, against all logic, he was bringing one of its citizens into the forest.  Letting insiders in was the last thing that they were ever supposed to do, even if it was done the oracle’s orders.  The rules against outsiders overruled everything, including logic and self-preservation.  He knew that if he had brought up Lexi’s existence to the village elders, they just would have written him off as deranged and unsafe. 

Still, he knew how important this could be.  The oracle had only spoken a handful of times in the last few decades, and only ever to ask for someone with powers like Lexi’s; because that person was destined to become a grand hero someday.  Rick was sure that Lexi appearing right when the village needed saving most had to mean something.  As long as he took care to take her the long way, far away from the village, it should be alright.  That way, it was like he was hardly breaking any rules at all.  Besides his uncle’s rule not about not leaving the village at night.  And the village’s omni-present rule to not speak to outsiders.  And the unspoken rule that no one disturbed the oracle without permission.  

He shook his head, trying to clear it of worries.  He’d made up his mind hours ago, and there was no point agonizing over it, now.   

Instead, he focused on remembering the way that Lexi had lit up with her powers, and the way that she had tumbled through the air after her jump.  He replayed in his head when she had tried to arrest him, and his mouth twitched into a smile.  He remembered the way that her bright green eyes had sparkled with mischief when he’d taken the inhibitor off her board, as if she was already planning how many stunts she could pull with it now.  Then, there was the tight way that she had hugged him.  When he focused on moments like that, he could almost imagine that she would want to see him again, too. 

Most of all, he remembered when she’d first tackled him, seeming like a force of nature seeming to come out of nowhere.  Then, in a blink, he had been looking up at the most beautiful girl he’d ever seen, with wide green eyes and light hair framing a heart-shaped face.  She had been a beautiful girl, who seemed to be doing her level best to kill him.  It did things to a guy.   

He remembered all that, and felt like a fool all over again.  The cynical part of him was worried that he was here for all the wrong reasons.  He shook his head as if to free it of water, and reminded himself why he was really here.  The oracle had to meet her, and that was all this could be.  At least, as long as he was here and she was in the city.  

As if prompted by this thought, his tablet’s screen lit up green. 

“Open requested at Gate 3.  Approve?” it asked. 

And, despite everything he’d just told himself, his heart started to race.  He selected “Yes,” and settled in to wait. 

The access panel’s screen, which had been gray and empty, gave a friendly “beep beep,” and said, “Access granted.”  

The huge metal door to the sewer opened.  

Lexi unclenched her fists, and rubbed her sweaty palms on her dark jacket.  She couldn’t believe it.  It had worked!  She was in.  She peered left and right, making sure that no one would see her go in.  Once the coast was clear, she pulled her jacket’s collar up higher to cover her face, and ducked in.  After a handful of steps, the door closed firmly behind her.  

She shivered and pulled her jacket tighter around herself.  The tunnel was dim, with only small, pale rectangular lights set about every six feet on either side of the sloping ceiling.  By the looks of it, they were only there to light up maintenance work that hardly ever happened.  Happy that she’d packed it, Lexi pulled a flashlight from her bag and used it to light the path.  Feeling more confident, she picked up the pace, covering the distance with long, confident strides. 

Rick had told her that it would be a straight shot from the sewer gate to the exit in the forest.  So, this should be easy, right? 

Just then, there was an inhuman screech in the dark in front of her.  Lexi scrambled backward, and her flashlight scrambled with her, scattering its light wildly.   

She swallowed, and tried to compose herself.  Hadn’t her father faced much worse things in the dark?  She could deal with this, she was sure.  Lexi cleared her throat, and straightened up, just like he’d always told her to do when she was scared.  If you can’t be brave, she thought, you’ll just have to pretend.

“Who’s there?” she asked, on the off chance that whatever made that sound was human.  She doubted it, but wanted to rule out the possibility, just in case.  

There was another hiss, and this time she was sure that it was from an animal.  

Lexi reached for her belt.  While she didn’t have access to guns, her father had never begrudged her items she could use to defend herself.  From her belt she grabbed a short, black bat, made of a shiny, dark wood that seemed to have hardened over the course of centuries.  Once it was free from her hip, Lexi put her flashlight away and crept forward. 

She could hear the sound of rocks scattering and water splashing, and up rushed the source of the hissing.  It might have once been a rat, but something had clearly gone wrong.  It was the size of a small crocadog, and it had an evil, manic look in its beedy rodent eyes. Squinting in the dark, Lexi could see that they were completely black, as if the pupil had swallowed the iris entirely.  With a shiver, she realized where she’d seen eyes like that: in her father’s face when he transformed into his dark form.  She took an involuntary step back.  

The dark eco has been here, too, she thought with a fright. 

  From the darkness came a pack of more of the creatures, following the leader.  Lexi gripped her bat with both hands, waiting for them to come forward.  Bending her knees slightly, she took up the stance that her father had taught her.  She’d been wanting to fight something for ages.  

The leader leapt.  In the split second that he flew across the room, Lexi let red eco course through her.  She rushed forward, hitting the thing out of the air.  It splashed into the murky water on the floor of the tunnel, and two more took its place, hissing and clawing at her.  She kicked them away, turning to make sure that she wasn’t leaving herself vulnerable to an attack from behind.  Twisting and bobbing, she worked through the group, each one more voracious and angry than the last as they became more desperate.  Finally, one managed to knock her back.  

She landed on her back, but luckily hadn’t fallen into the water lining the middle of the path.  Using the leverage of her new position, she kicked up and out at the thing, which was just inches away from digging its dirty claws into her face.  It flew away from her, and she used the momentum in her legs to launch herself to her feet.  

Finally, she was standing, panting, looking around at the group of creatures.  There had probably been about twenty in all, huge and consumed with bloodlust.  Now, they all laid dead at her feet.  Despite knowing that she’d been acting in self-defense, she didn’t feel good about the defeat.  From the looks of it, they must have been exposed to dark eco due to the earthquakes somehow.  If it hadn’t been for that, they would have just scattered at her approach, like normal rats.  They wouldn’t have been big, strong, and angry.  They wouldn’t have had eyes that were straight out of her darkest nightmare.  

She shook her head sadly.  Remembering their empty, dark eyes, she wondered what that would feel like, to be so consumed with the need to fight and bite and chew?  She hoped she’d never know. 

Lexi turned to the side, looking down the tunnel that they had come from.  She was glad that she wouldn’t have to follow it.  She’d be willing to bet there was dark eco at the end of it.  

Making a mental note of the position of the rat-infested tunnel for later, Lexi looked at her watch.  She hadn’t lost as much time to the fight as she’d thought she had.  Still, she had to get moving.  The sooner she got to the forest, the sooner she could get back.  

She shifted the pack on her back, and kept going. 

As she walked, she found that while Rick hadn’t been lying when he’d said that it would be a straight line into the forest, he had severely underestimated how difficult the journey would be.  It seemed that it had been years since the tunnel had been maintained.  At one point she’d used blue eco to take a running jump to cross a six foot gap where the metal of the path had rusted and fallen away.  At another point, she’d had to fling a rope from her pack up into the dark to climb over a shear wall that she hadn’t been expecting.  The worst part were the security fences, which she had to periodically climb over or scramble underneath.  

By the end of it, she felt like she’d run a particularly brutal obstacle course, and all with blood on her hands from the rats.  Then, she finally saw a gate in front of her. 

She started to run, rushing as fast as she could toward the door.  Above it was posted a sign that said “Forest Exit,” bordered and lined with diagonal black and yellow stripes.  Next to the metal door was an access panel that was much like the one at the start of this journey.  Relieved, Lexi pressed the “on” button.  This time, there wasn’t even a pause before the door opened.  

Then, she went outside.  

It was such a relief to breathe fresh air again.  She took in huge gulps of the deep, clean scent of the forest to clear her nose of the smells of the sewer.  If green eco had a smell, it would be like this.  And, like green eco, just the presence of the forest was enough to heal and ground her spirit.  In the peace of the forest, Lexi took deep breaths, trying to clear her mind for the journey ahead.  No matter what happened next, she reminded herself, it would all be worth it if she could learn something—anything—about her legacy.  

Tired from her run, she put her hands on her knees, breathing deeply as she steadied herself.  Then, she straightened when she heard a familiar voice call out to her.  

“You came,” the voice said.  

She looked up, and there was Rick, sitting on a rock.  In his hands was a tablet, which she assumed he’d used to hack the door open.  He looked surprised to see her there, which didn’t make any sense, given that he was the one who’d opened the door, wasn’t he?  

Lexi pushed her shoulders back, trying to look dignified, even though she could still feel the slime of the sewer on her all-black outfit.  

“Of course I did,” she said.  “I have to see the oracle.”  It was a plain fact, and she spoke it like one.  She could imagine herself as the hero in one of her dad’s stories, and heroes were always direct and brave, and that was just what she was going to be. 

When the door had opened and Lexi had come through, Rick had found himself shocked at the sight of her all over again.  Over the past few days, a part of him had started to feel like he had started to over-glorify her appearance in his imagination.  He was shocked to realize how wrong he was. 

Because, even in the dim light cast by the city, her green eyes were just as vivid as he remembered, and her stance still radiated confidence.  Tonight, her long, blonde hair was tucked up in a black beanie, with only her green roots showing.  And her covered hair wasn’t the only sign that she had been going for an “incognito” look.  She was also wearing an all-black outfit, seemingly picked to keep her from standing out.  As if anything like that could make her blend in.  Even when she was standing in the middle of a forest clearing in the middle of the night, she looked like she owned the place. 

No, Rick thought, no amount of camouflage would help her blend in. 

But before he let himself get drawn into the line of thought again, he firmly reminded himself to stick to the mission.   They had places to be, and not much time left to get there.  

Still, he couldn’t stop the corner of his lips from twitching up into the smallest of smiles, before nodding once, certain.  “Good,” he said, “Then, let’s get going.”

Without wasting any more time, they started walking through the chill night air of the forest.  The farther they went, the less they could see the lights of the city.  After a while, Rick pulled a torch out of his pocket, and started using it to light the way.  Lexi let him, figuring she might as well save her flashlight’s battery for the trip back.  They went like that in silence for a while, before Lexi decided to speak.  

“So…” she said, casting around for a topic of conversation, “that was pretty impressive, hacking the sewer gate.”  She didn’t mention that he’d also hacked the palace, because that topic was still a little embarrassing.  “I’m surprised you managed it from outside the city.” 

He nodded modestly, not too swept up in her praise.  “Thanks,” he said, levely.  “I learned how to get into the city’s system a while ago, but I’ve never really had a use for it until now.” 

“But how did you hack into the system?  I thought that all the city’s tech was on its own, closed system?” she said, turning to look at him as they walked.  She wasn’t just making idle conversation; she really wanted to know. 

He smiled bigger, warming up to the topic.  “Well, that’s the thing.  Using outside tech, there would be no chance.  But get something from the city, even if it’s the workscreen of the lowest-ranked employee in the city, and you have an in.  Sure, it took a long time bashing away at the firewall, but once I had this baby,” he said, holding up the tablet he’d been using, “I knew that I had a way into the city.”  He seemed lit up from within from this information, as if hacking into the city was the only thing he’d ever wanted.  

“That’s...pretty impressive,” she said, eyebrows raised.  “I’ve always preferred working on vehicles to hacking things.  But now, it seems like I missed out on an important skill.”  Then, she laughed self-deprecatingly and said, “I don’t think I could ever learn how to do it, anyway.”  

He chuckled lightly and said, “Ah, no.  It’s no big deal.”  He tucked the tablet back into the bag strapped to his back, and took a large step over a log that had fallen across the path.  “I mean, spend enough time looking at a screen, and you’re bound to pick up something.  It’s really nothing.  In fact, I could show you sometime.”  

She blushed, and she was glad that they were in the dark of the forest.  “Definitely,” she said.  Then, something occurred to her.  “Wait, how did you get that tablet in the first place?” 

There was a long, embarrassed pause.  Then, he cleared his throat and said, “Um, well.  I sort of...scavenged it.”  He looked around and said, “There’s this old dumping ground…”  He trailed off, clearly not wanting to elaborate.   

“Ah,” said Lexi.  “Right.”  It was at times like this that she remembered that she was really talking to someone from outside the city; someone who had to scavenge for technology. 

While he seemed to have been embarrassed by the admission, Lexi couldn’t imagine anything being less worthy of embarrassment.  Finding a scavenged tablet, restoring it, and hacking it to suit his own purposes: all of it was extremely impressive.  She was about to say something to this effect to alleviate the awkwardness, when she heard a shifting in the trees. 

Lexi’s arm shot out to stop Rick instinctively.  “Did you hear that?” she asked, tilting her head to better hear the sound.  

  He nodded, and reached for a weapon on his belt.  He lowered himself into a crouch, and Lexi followed his lead, wondering what they were facing in the dark.  She was tempted to ask, but he put a finger to his lips.  Quietly, they started crawling by inches toward the sound.
Then came the much louder sound of an angry growl.  Out of the trees leapt a pack of creatures that Lexi couldn’t name.  They reminded her of the eco-affected rats that she’d fought in the sewer, except much, much bigger.  Though they were unrecognizable as normal animals under the influence of the dark eco, they had a canine cast to their features.  That, and the way they moved, made her think that they must have been some kind of wolf that must have encountered dark eco.  Without meaning to, she let out a battle scream, rising to face them.   

The pack was now circling them, baring their teeth.  There was no other option.  They would have to fight.  

Rick seemed to agree, standing and pulling his staff from his back.  He swung it viciously at the first creature to pounce, batting it away.  The apparent speed and strength of the creatures made Lexi wish that she’d thought to absorb more eco before she’d left.  But all she had in her system was a bit of blue eco.  One of the creatures pounced, and Lexi knew that what little eco she’d absorbed would just have to be enough.  

She reached inside herself to tap into the blue eco and the sense of freedom that came with it.  After a single, breathless moment, she could feel the eco crackle under her skin, and she rushed forward, toward another one of the creatures.  The fight slowed to a crawl around her.  She dispatched another creature with a firm hit.  Its neighbor growled, and leapt on her, snapping its teeth.  For just a moment, she could feel them close around her arm, but she didn’t have time to think about that now.  Twisting down and under the creature, Lexi was under it in a second.  She laid on the ground, bracing herself to drive up both legs in a firm kick that sent it flying.   

Leaping to her feet again, Lexi came up in time to see Rick land a good hit on the pack’s leader with his staff.  Lexi kicked hard at the one that had tried to bite her, and the group started to retreat.  They watched, panting, until all the creatures were out of sight.  

It was only then that Lexi let herself sag under the weight of her exhaustion and pain, gasping.  She planted her hands on her knees, and bent over so her hair hung limp over her eyes.  Rick came over to her, and his eyes widened in alarm when he saw the red marks on her arm that showed that she’d been bitten.  Wincing in sympathy, he gently took her arm, twisting it so he could better see the bite.  

“Are you okay?” he asked. 

She smiled up at him in thanks.  “Yeah,” she said. “I’m okay.  That creature—whatever it was—didn’t break the skin.” 

He let out a sigh of relief.  “That’s good. I think they’ve been exposed to dark eco.” 

Lexi shivered, remembering her vivid dreams of the last few nights.  

“I think so, too,” she said.  “It would have been bad, getting any of that in my system.”  She stood, and knew that there was something that she had to say, even if it was a little embarrassing.  

“Hey,” she said, planting her hands on her hips.  “Thanks for the help back there.  You’re a pretty good fighter.”  

“You’re not too bad, yourself,” he said, quirking up an eyebrow at her.  

They gathered their things, and were about to set off again, when Lexi looked back at the scene of the fight.  Her arm was still throbbing where the creature had tried to break the skin, and she could see the desperation of the fight in the scuff marks their boots had left in the ground.  

She felt herself deflate a little, looking at it.  “Maybe my dad was right,” she said, hugging herself tight.   

He cocked his head at her.  “About what?” he asked. 

“About leaving the city,” she said.  “Maybe I shouldn’t have done it.”  

Rick just looked more confused.  “You’re a great fighter, and you have eco abilities.  Why wouldn’t he be okay with you leaving the city?” 

She sighed.  What a long story.  “The thing is,” she said, “he’s always been kind of paranoid when it comes to me.  He taught me how to fight, and how to protect myself, but he doesn’t want me leaving the city because that’s where he can keep an eye on me.  He’s so scared of me getting hurt that I haven’t even told him that I inherited his powers yet.”  She looked down, and added, “Still, I was so determined to see the oracle that I came anyway without telling anybody.  But, now, I’m not so sure.”    

Lexi trailed off, and then chuckled quietly, fists stuffed into her jacket pockets.  “You must think I’m ridiculous,” she said.  “I mean, it’s not like I haven’t done dangerous stuff before.  And I do have powers, now.”  She squinted back toward the city.  “I just wonder if this time I’ve bitten off more than I can chew.”  

Even in the dark, Lexi could see Rick shake his head furiously.  “I definitely don’t think you’re ridiculous.  I totally get what you mean.  That’s how I felt, too. In my village, we’ve always been told to just stay out of everything relating to the city.  No one even knows that I’ve been scouting out the forest looking for the cause.  My uncle would kill me if he knew!  But it just felt like I had something to prove.” 

“Exactly!”  Lexi said, loosening her stance.  Feeling better, she started moving again, and Rick sped up to match her pace.  “Like, it feels like I’ve lived my entire life in my father’s shadow, and it just felt like I would have to get out from under it and do something for myself.  It just felt like, otherwise, I’d be in his shadow for the rest of my life.  Do you know what I mean?” 

He nodded.  “Oh, trust me.  With Haven City looming over me my whole life, I definitely know what it feels like, growing up in a shadow.”  He peered up and over his shoulder at the city, sadly.  

Things were awkward again, for a moment.  But then, Lexi just had to ask, “Why does your village hate the city so much, anyway?”  She kicked a stone casually as she said it, as if his answer wouldn’t trouble her, no matter what it was.  

“You’re kidding, right?” he asked, eyebrows raising almost to his hairline.  “I mean, I guess you’re not, growing up there and everything.  Well, it all started when metalheads attacked several hundred years ago, and the most powerful man in the land proposed putting up walls around the biggest settlement to protect themselves from them.” 

Lexi nodded.  She was familiar with the story of the city’s founding.  “Yeah, that was Mar,” she said, naming her ancestor and the legendary founder of Haven City.  “He built the walls, and as more and more outsiders came, they expanded the boundaries of the city and built larger and larger within them.” 

“Yep,” he said, pointing at her in agreement.  “But, the thing is, there were some people, like the founders of my village, who would rather risk fighting the metalheads themselves than be under the power of one man.” 

“That’s insane!” Lexi said, pulling up short and waving her hands in disbelief.  “Wait, so until my father defeated the leader of the metalheads, what did you guys do?” 

Rick shrugged.  “All I know, I know from hearing the stories.  The metalhead leader disappeared right before I was born,” he said.  “We never really knew why, but we assumed it must have been someone from the city.  Before that, we relied on our own militia and walls.  And we’re also pretty secluded and secret, which helps.” 

Lexi started to walk again, shaking her head.  “Still, I can’t believe there were that many people who didn’t want to be part of the city.” 

“Why not?  I mean, aren’t you guys run by a crazy despot?  We do get some information from the things we...find.”  Again, he seemed to stumble at the mention of scavenging, so she decided to keep the conversation going.  

“We aren’t led by Baron Praxis anymore.  My father overthrew him years before I was born,” she said, triumphantly.  It felt good to defend her family’s legacy.  “Now, we’re led by his daughter and her husband.” 

Though she couldn’t properly see his face, she could practically hear his eyes rolling when he said, “Oh, wow.  The daughter of a despot, instead of the despot himself.  That sounds like a huge improvement.”  

“For your information,” Lexi said, crossing her arms, “it is a big improvement!  Ashelin is the best governor the city’s ever had.  She helped overthrow her father, she works hard constantly for the good of the city, and she lets her people be free,” she said, ticking off every point on another raised finger.  “She’s the best, and I should know.  I’m her niece.”   While she said this last point proudly, she could instantly feel the temperature of the conversation drop.  

This time, Rick was the one who stopped.  There was a loaded pause. 

“Your aunt,” he said, as if fighting to stay composed, “is the governor of Haven City?”

“Well...” said Lexi, feeling like she had to salvage the situation somewhat.  Her arms fell to her sides.  “We’re not technically related?” she said, even though she knew it wasn’t a helpful point.  

Rick still didn’t know what to say.  He ran his hands through his hair and said, as if to himself, “I’m leading the niece of the city through the forest.  And her father is their best warrior.”  He looked back at the city behind them.  “This is a mistake, isn’t it?  My village really is going to kill me.” 

Lexi waved her hands.  “No, they won’t, because no one’s going to find out about this.  Do you know why? Because my dad and aunt would kill ME if they found out I was here.  I’m not going to tell anyone, and neither are you, and it’s all going to be fine,” she said, trying to sound confident.  “C’mon, Rick.  You know that you had a good reason to bring me here, or you never would have hacked that door.  The oracle has something to tell me.  You know it, and I know it.  So, it’s got to be okay, doesn’t it?”  Her head was tilted, and she seemed to be asking for reassurance as much as she was offering it.  

Rick took a deep breath, and seemed to get himself back under control.  “You’re right.  I mean, both of us are probably stupid to take this risk, but at least we’re being stupid together?” 

Up to that point, Lexi had been fighting off her fear, wondering if she could really trust this guy.  But right then, in that moment, she knew that there was no way he was going to hurt her.   

She laughed, letting out all of her nervousness in the burst of sound.  “Exactly,” she said.  “We’re both stupid.  Now, let’s go.  I have to be back before dawn.  That’s when my dad always wakes up.” 

He nodded, firmly.  And they rushed the last mile or so to his village.  

Though Rick assured Lexi that he was still stupid, and still trusted her, he still didn’t let her into his village.  In fact, from the twisted, circuitous path they took, she couldn’t even see it.  He told her that it wasn’t personal, just that he couldn’t let any outsider into the village, not after everything the elders had done over the years to hide it.  Lexi understood, even though she burned with curiosity.  

Still, she dutifully followed him as he gave the village a wide berth.  At some point, the foliage around them became thicker, plants crowding them on all sides.  For a city girl who spent months at a time living in the desert, the close foliage was almost oppressive.  Rick, on the other hand, moved through the undergrowth like a fish through water.  Just ahead of her, he held aside a curtain of foliage that hid a stone path.  Lexi ducked under his arm onto the path, and the way became easier for a while. The path was sparse, with huge gaps between the stones that marked it, and they would have looked random if she hadn’t been led along it.  In fact, paths would lead off to one side or the other every so often, but Rick let her know when not to follow them.  She worked hard to stay close to him, and managed it somehow.  

After a while Lexi looked up nervously to track the moon’s progress across the sky.  While they were still a long way off from dawn, the moon had moved noticeably since she’d left the city.  

“Rick, are we almost there?” she asked, reaching out to tap his arm.  

“Yep,” he said, focusing on the path ahead.  “One last thing.” 

They came upon a gap between themselves and the rest of the hill they were climbing.  The gap looked too wide to jump, and Lexi didn’t have the white eco that she would need to fly over it.  Besides, she knew from her training that even if she had white eco, she wouldn’t have been able to channel it.  

No, they would have to find another way across.  “What next?” Lexi asked.  

Looking behind some bushes, Rick rolled out a log.  “We make a bridge,” he said, simply. 

Lexi stepped forward, and helped him pull the makeshift bridge out and set it across the gap.  Rick then stayed on one side, holding it steady for Lexi.  She was forcibly reminded of when he had done the same for Beth about a week before, and she was flooded with a rush of gratitude for him.  Thanking him, Lexi rushed across the bridge as fast as she could.  

Rick followed her.  Once across, he led her up the rest of the hill.  

Then they saw it.  

Lexi knew instantly what it was, even though it was hidden behind yet more foliage, which seemed to have grown up around it over the hundreds of years since her father had last seen it.  Like all precursor artifacts, it was a strange, rounded shape with large eyes and a drooping truck.  The whole thing was the pinkish-beige of precursor metal, and it had precursor writing in a looping script wrapped around its one, remaining leg.  One eye was missing, and the entire right side looked like it had been damaged in a landslide.  But through it all, she could tell what it was.  

She walked forward in shock.  “It’s an oracle statue.  My dad always talked about these statues, and how they gave him guidance and advice on his journeys.”  She reached out a hand, lightly touching it.  Her voice was filled with awe when she said, “I never thought that I would see one in real life.” 

Rick stood there, looking for all the world like he was waiting for her to say something.  Unsure of what to say, she asked him, “What do I do now?” 

He walked up beside her.  “I have to admit, I’m no expert.  Like I said, no one’s been able to get much out of it for the last few decades.”  He shook his head slightly.  “The only ones who have ever been able to get it to talk are the elders of the village.  Then, when it does speak, it’s only been to tell us to bring it the next ‘child of Mar.’  It said that we would know who they—I mean, you—were by your powers.” 

He tilted his head and said, “You’re definitely the person it’s been waiting for.  Maybe, just tell it who you are?” 

Lexi swallowed, but stood her ground in front of the statue.  

“I am Lexi Mara Hagai,” she said clearly and confidently.  “I am a descendant of the original Mar, the founder of Haven City, and the only daughter of the hero who was named for him.  My father was born Mar, but is better known as Jak: the saviour of Spargus and Haven City.  And I am here to ask you some questions.”  

For a second, nothing happened.  But, then, the oracle’s last remaining eye lit up, even though it was empty.  But, of course, her father must have taken the power cells from it, hundreds of years ago.  The thought made her shiver.  She couldn’t let that distract her now, not with something so amazing happening.  Rick stood behind her, slack-jawed and entranced.   

“Greetings, daughter of Mar,” it said in a booming voice.  “I have waited a long time to meet you.” 

Lexi’s knees trembled, and she took one shaky step forward.  

“Hi,” she said, in a trembling voice.  Then, realizing how juvenile this sounded, she cleared her voice, and tried to sound more dignified.  She pretended that she was her father, speaking at a council meeting.  Trying to look the part, she put her hands before her back and tried to stand with a soldier's bearing.  Or, at least, her own version of a soldier's bearing.  “You wanted to speak with me?” 

There was an agonizingly long pause.  Then, the oracle said, “Yes.  I have waited hundreds of years to speak to you.” 

Okay, wow, thought Lexi.  That’s a lot of pressure. 

She took another step forward and was now so close that she had to crane her head up and back to keep it in her sight.  “What do you want to tell me?” she prompted. 

The statue’s one eye flickered, almost as if he had to reach deep within himself to retrieve whatever he wanted to say.  “I sense that great changes come to this land.  The ground shakes beneath our feet.  Dark forces are stirring,” he said.  His remaining eye dimmed so much it almost went out, before lighting up again.  “Forces that have been dormant for ages walk the earth again.” 

Lexi nodded eagerly.  “That’s what I came here to ask you about!  There’s something wrong with the dark eco pits.  How do we stop it?”  

The statue was silent for a moment.  Then, it said, “You will have to embrace all parts of yourself.  Conquer the darkness within, and you will be able to conquer the darkness without.” 

Lexi’s brow furrowed, even as she fought off a shiver.  The darkness within?  That didn’t sound good. 
Like she often did when she was uncomfortable, she tried to deflect with humor.  “You know, I really was hoping for more like...the name of a weapon, or a location.  Not that that isn’t great advice,” she added, with a pacifying hand gesture.  It wouldn’t do to upset such an ancient piece of precursor technology. 

“The Mar family has a complex legacy.  That legacy continues with you.  What you do with it, depends on you,” the Oracle said, as if Lexi hadn’t interrupted.  “Like your father and his ancestors before him, you will have to find your own way to balance the forces within.” 

There was that word again, “within.”  The way he said it made it sound like there was something uncontrollable inside her.  Lexi fought the urge to press her hand to her chest, us if to push the “forces within” back inside her ribcage.  But, of course, actually dealing with this problem wouldn’t be as simple as that; she could feel it.  

“Okay….” said Lexi, slowly.  “So, let me make sure that I have this straight.  To defeat whoever’s behind the eco stirring, I’m going to have to embrace all the sides of me, and it has something to do with the Mar legacy, right?  If I do that, I’ll be able to defeat whoever’s messing with the dark eco, right?” 

The eye flickered.  “I cannot make that promise.  All I can tell you is this: conquer yourself, and you will be able to do great things.  However, if you don’t find balance, the full extent of your powers become locked within you, and the power of the Mar family will go dormant for another generation.” 

Lexi shuddered, and her voice rose to a shout.  “Wait, I would lose my powers?” she asked.  “But—but I just got them!  I can’t lose them now!” She placed a hand to her heart beseechingly.  “How much time do I have to figure this out?”

“Rickard Laurens, I have information for you, as well,” the statue said then, ignoring Lexi’s question.  

Rick blanched, clearly shocked.  It was clear that he hadn’t expected the oracle to talk to him.  He took a hesitant step forward, uncrossing his arms.  When he got to the foot of the statue, he knelt in front of it reverently on one bent knee, in a show of respect that Lexi then copied.  As she crouched beside him, she marvelled at how the statue had known Rick’s name, even though it hadn’t spoken to anyone in generations.  And not only did it know his name, but the oracle had also deemed Rick worthy of his advice.    

“You have a place in this story as well,” the oracle said.  Rick’s eyes widened, and his mouth gaped open.  Lexi still wanted to demand an answer to her question, but she couldn’t interrupt them.  This was too important.  Instead, she held her breath and bit her lip.  

Rick’s head snapped up, and his eyes widened.  “I do?” he asked. 

“Yes,” boomed the statue.  “But before you can complete your mission, you will lose much.  There are many ways to bring about the destiny that has recently fallen to you.  On your journey, you will be faced with many grand decisions.  But take comfort in the fact that you will know them when they are presented to you.  Not everyone knows when their choices will shape their fortunes.”  

Rick seemed to swallow, and nodded determinedly.  “I will not make the wrong choice,” he said, his eyes as hard as flint.  Lexi felt a surge of respect for him in her chest.  

“There are no wrong choices,” the oracle said.  “Just different paths.  Which one the two of you walk is up to you, even if your destinies have already been written.”  At that, Lexi and Rick exchanged a quick glance.  

But before they could speak again to ask any other questions, the statue’s eyes went dark, and it was clear that it would say no more. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 8: Returning to the  City

Without much time to waste, they started rushing back the way they’d come as soon as the statue went silent.  The sky was beginning to lighten, and Lexi still had a long way to go before she was home.  

“I can’t believe what it said,” Lexi said, panting with every breath.  She still wasn’t used to so much climbing and ducking under branches and over fallen logs.  

If I’m going to follow in my father’s footsteps, I’m really going to have to start working out, she thought as she went.  

“I know,” said Rick, sounding pretty shaken himself.  He held a branch out of Lexi’s way.  “I never thought in a million years that it would talk to me.”  He somehow managed to look bashful about it, like the Oracle had been a pretty girl at a party instead of an ancient piece of precursor technology.  

Lexi giggled.  “Really?  Well, congrats, buddy.  It did.  And, even better, you have an important role to play, whatever that means!”  She punched his arm lightly.  It was easy to be happy for him, with the way he was giddily stuttering over his newfound destiny.  

“You know,” he said, “that’s the weird part.”  He shook his head thoughtfully.  “The way that the Oracle was talking, it sounded like destiny just kind of happened to me recently.  Which, when you think about it, is exactly the opposite of what destiny is supposed to be.  I wonder what it means.”  He held a hand out behind him, hoisting Lexi up over a particularly high obstacle. 

Lexi hummed thoughtfully, mulling over the few things she knew about the past of the boy walking beside her. 

“Maybe,” she said, “your destiny happened when you became the shaman’s apprentice.  Or, maybe when you decided to try to solve the dark eco problem.”  Then, rushing forward so she was walking next to him, Lexi playfully bumped him with her shoulder, something she often did to her male friends back home.  “Or, maybe it was when you met me,” she said with a wink. 

She had only meant it as a joke, but with the way his eyes darted to her and his change in expression, it was clear even in the low light that he was blushing.  Lexi blushed as well, and looked away, not knowing what to say.  

Luckily, he seemed to.  After an awkward pause, he laughed nervously and said, “Or, maybe it was when I ate porridge for breakfast a week ago, instead of toast,” he said.  “Maybe destiny is a fragile thing,” he said, putting his hand to his chin as if he were stroking a grand beard.  The way that he said it, all thoughtful and full of wisdom, he sounded just like her grandfather. 

Relieved, Lexi found herself laughing at this weak attempt at a joke.  She shoved him playfully.  “You sound just like my grandpa!”  she hooted, laughing hard.  “He’s a green sage, and he’s all about wisdom, tea and eco.”  She ticked off the items on her fingers as she talked, then paused.  “And not necessarily in that order.” 

Rick smiled, and the corners of his eyes crinkled fondly.  “The green sage, huh?” he asked.  “I was actually going for an impression of my uncle,” he said.  His eyes were alight.  

She nodded.  “Man, I swear, all these ‘ancient wisdom’ types are all the same,” she said with a certain degree of exasperated fondness.  She jerked her thumb back toward the Oracle, who had long fallen behind them.  “I mean, they always give the most vague advice, right?” 

He nodded, looking thoughtful again.  “Speaking of which, I was wondering what it meant, what he said to you.  You know, about embracing all the parts of you?” 

Lexi put her hands in the pockets of her jacket, and looked up at the thin patch of stars that she could see through the thick foliage high above them.  “Well,” she said.  “There’s a lot of parts of me.  There’s the part from Haven; and the part from Spargus.  There are the things that I got from my mom, and the things I got from my dad.  And, even if he was just talking about the Mar legacy, there I’m sure that there is a lot to unpack there.” 

They were almost at the wall of the city, now.  Though she felt dead on her feet, there was a part of Lexi that didn’t want the night to end.  Talking to Rick was just so easy, and it felt like there was nothing she had to hide from him.  She could have kept this conversation going all morning, talking about his history and hers.  

But no, she had to go home.  

Peering ahead, Rick seemed to also notice how fast the city was approaching.  “Well,” he said.  “Maybe, then, our next step should be to learn more about the Mar legacy.  I’ve heard rumors that there is still a way to access the Tomb of Mar, here in the forest.  Maybe there’s something there about your family that could help?” he asked.  

Lexi tilted her head.  “I thought that it was made inaccessible when the former palace fell years ago?”  At least, that was what her father had always said. 

Rick shook his head enthusiastically.  “I don’t know anything about that, but this is an underground path that stems all the way from the forest.  If there’s a way left back into the tomb, it’s that,” he said with confidence.  

“How do you know all this stuff?” Lexi asked, tilting her head.  

He shrugged, but seemed happy.  “When you live with the village shaman, you learn things,” he said.  “So, what do you say?   We can try to check it out one of these days.” 

She groaned.  “I want to, really.  But it might be hard, with my dad and the city stepping up security and everything.” 

They had reached the sewer gate again, and were now standing in the small clearing where Rick had been waiting for her at the start of the night.  

He seemed about to say something, but she cut him off.  She was honestly not sure how she’d get in contact with him again, especially with how hard her father was cracking down on his many rules.  Besides, he was out here, in the forest.  Who knew when she’d see him again?  If she only had a few more minutes with him, there was something she had to ask. 

Standing right in front of the doorway back into the city, Lexi said, “You knew how risky it would be, leading me through the forest to speak to the oracle.  Why’d you do it?” 

She didn’t know what she wanted him to say.  All she knew was that he was the first person who looked at her as if she was more than just a lesser version of her father.  Before she went back into the city to face more of those dismissive looks, she wanted something to hold on to. 

He paused, and stood there for a long time before saying, “Well, my uncle always told me that one day, I might meet someone like you.  Someone from the city, and the Mar family.  And I knew that when I did, no matter what anyone said, I should bring them to the oracle myself.” 

Lexi deflated a little.  So, it had been about her family, after all.  “Oh,” she said, trying not to sound disappointed.  “That makes sense.”  She turned to walk away.  

However, though she’d tried to hide her disappointment, he seemed to pick up on it.  He reached forward, and grabbed her arm.  

“But that’s not the reason why,” he said, sounding flustered.  “Not the real reason, anyway.”  

“Oh?” she asked, not daring to say more. 

He shifted nervously on his feet.  “It’s just that I’ve never met anyone like you.  You’re so noble, and brave.  I haven’t forgotten that you saved me, when you had nothing to gain.  You didn’t owe me anything, but you did it anyway.  And seeing you light up when you face a challenge…” he trailed off, blushing. 

Once again, Lexi marvelled at the night she was having.  

“Thanks,” she said.  “I’ve never met anyone like you, either.”  She lifted a leg, and slung it through the open sewer door.  The door was so high that it was going to take both hands to hoist herself through.  She put her hands on the edge of the doorway, and went to sling her other leg over and through.  Despite her exhaustion, it was time to make the walk back into the city. 

Rick’s mind had seemed to short-circuit before, but her impending departure jolted him back to reality. 

“Wait, Lexi,” he said, waving her down.  He rushed over to her to where she sat awkwardly, halfway in and out of the city.  

He pulled a small communication device out of his pocket.  “I made this.  I wasn’t sure if you’d want it, which is why I didn’t bring it up until now.  But, I figured that it will make it easier for us to get in contact with each other.  It’s on a closed circuit, so we’ll be the only ones who can access it.  That way, you can let me know if you find any more leads, and I’ll do the same,” he said this, holding up his own communicator.  She could tell that the one he was giving her was a slightly more stream-lined version of the bulky device he was holding.  

She took the communicator and turned it over in her hand.  It was tiny, with exposed circuitry.  It looked like something Rick had made himself from spare parts.  She pressed it to her chest. 

“Thanks,” she said.  “I will definitely reach out if I learn anything.”   Then, not believing her own daring, she ducked forward, and kissed him on the cheek.  He sputtered, and she turned away, smiling.  

Now, it was time to head back to the city.  

Early that morning, Jak woke with a start, heart racing.  

He sat up in bed, sweating.  His hair stood up on end, and he was only wearing a pair of grey sweatpants.  He’d been having the strangest dream.  But now that he was awake, he couldn’t seem to cling to any of the details.  Could it have had something to do with the eco emergency?  He couldn’t be sure.  

“Jak?” came Keira’s voice from the dark, quiet and croaky from sleep.  “Why’re you up so early?”  

“No reason,” he said, looking down at her.  Her eyebrows were pinched together in concern.  “It was just a dream.  Go back to sleep.” 

She nodded sleepily and mumbled something that might have been, “Okay,” before turning over and going back to sleep with a soft sigh. 

Jak knew that there was no way that he was going to be getting back to sleep.  He felt like something was wrong, and that it had something to do with Lexi.  Ever since they’d found her in the forest, she’d been so silent and sullen around him.  It reminded him uncomfortably of the way that he’d been around her age.  

That was it.  He had to check on her.  

Lexi ran through the city streets.  The sun was coming up in the east, and she was using its direction to guide her way through the city to her home.  There was no doubt that her father was about to wake up, if he hadn’t already.  At the thought, she hit the pavement even harder.  

Soon, she reached the outside of their apartment building, and looked up in dread at her bedroom window, several stories up.  With the alarm set on the front door, that would be the only way back in, and she didn’t have time to think.  

So, she didn’t.  Instead, she threw the bag that she had packed the previous night into the alley next to her building.  If she had time later, she could retrieve it.  It would be easier to make the climb without it.  Trusting her new abilities and her recent training, she took a running start.  Using one foot, she launched herself up the wall, scrambling for purchase.  Every window sill and every missing brick offered her a place to grip, and she used them all, climbing like her life depended on it.  

But then, her arm flew back when she put her weight on a loose brick that came away from the building.  She almost fell right along with it.  Worse, she had twisted enough with the force of the slip that she saw the brick fall down and down into the concrete alley that now seemed dizzyingly far away.   Twisting back, she clung to the wall, groping around for more solid purchase.  For just a moment, she considered calling for help.  But that wasn't an option.  If she was caught now, she would never be let out of the house again, let alone make it to the Tomb of Mar to figure out what the oracle had meant.  That couldn’t happen. 

Taking just a moment to compose herself with a deep breath, Lexi kept climbing. 

Jak pulled on a white wife beater before leaving his and Keira’s bedroom.  As he’d left the bed, Keira had turned over into the warm spot his body had left, mumbling to herself.  He’d moved more quietly after that, not wanting to wake her again.  

Rubbing his bleary eyes, he stumbled forward and opened the door that led to the hall.  Images from his dream kept coming back to him.  They stirred memories from Sandover that he hadn’t thought about in ages.  Something about the village, it seemed.  No, not the village, exactly.  The memory pulled more and more to the edge of the village, but what had been there that would be worth remembering?  Then, there it was.  Right on the edge of recollection was the image of the precursor statue on the far side of the village as it had spoken to him about destiny.  He shook his head.  There was no reason that he should be thinking about that after all these years, was there?

Consumed in these thoughts, Jak found himself standing outside his daughter’s door.  He paused before opening it.  It was possible that he wasn’t thinking straight.  After all, there was nothing threatening her and no real reason to be afraid.  Thinking about dark eco now, all day, every day, must have been getting to him.  It weighed on him, especially since Lexi was a teenager fighting for independence when all he wanted was to keep her close to him.  He wanted to keep her safe, when all she wanted was to pull away.  

His hand fell to his side.  Maybe he was being ridiculous. 

He turned to walk away, rubbing the back of his head, when he heard a crash from inside Lexi’s room. 

When she reached the window, Lexi pulled herself through.  Once she was inside, the first thing she did was stare at the clock in her alarm in horror.  It was five a.m., a normal time to see her father wandering around.  There wasn’t any more time. 

She scrambled to get out of her black clothes.  Once they were off, she stuffed them into a heap at the bottom of her closet.  Then, she quickly pulled on the set of sleep clothes that she’d been wearing when she’d gone to bed last night, a loose t-shirt and baggy shorts that came to her knees.  She sprayed herself with a copious amount of perfume and deodorant, hoping that it would cover the smell of the sewer that still clung to her.  

Then, she looked at her bed, not wanting to soil the sheets with the sweat and slime that still covered her skin.  But then, she heard footsteps outside her room and promptly forgot about cleanliness.  She practically jumped into the bed, and, in her haste, somehow managed to knock into her bedside table, scattering her belongings and resulting in a spectacular crash.  She jolted, but wasn’t able to do anything else before Jak burst into the room.  

He’d opened the door in about half a second, and looked around the room frantically, as if looking for signs of a kidnapping.  

“Lexi?!” he asked, looking around the room.  “What was that?  What’s happening?”  He had already grabbed the concealed-carry pistol that he kept on his hip at all times, even at five in the morning.  He was always ready for anything, as a result of his dangerous past.  

Lexi feigned just waking up.  She quickly sat upright, and squinted up at him. 

“Daddy, it’s okay,” she said.  Then, she looked at the mess on the ground beside her.  Several of her knick-knacks and decorations now littered the floor, and she looked at them blearily.  A picture of her and Beth sat on the floor with its frame cracked, and an empty vase had fallen.  She didn’t have to fake being tired, after a night spent running around and fighting giant rats in the sewer.  

“I’m sorry, daddy, I just knocked that down when I was reaching for my water.”  She looked up at him, feeling a rush of guilt.  “I didn’t mean to freak you out, or anything.”  That part was true, at least.   

Jak let out a breath, and seemed to deflate.  He replaced his gun on his hip, and pulled his hand away from it.  Then, he rubbed his temple soothingly.  “Okay,” he said.  “That’s okay.”  But he still had a critical look on his face.  His gaze jumped to her window, which still hung open.  Lexi’s heart jumped in her chest, but if he found that suspicious, he didn’t show it on his face.  

Instead, he shook his head as if he was clearing it.  “Well, that’s fine, Lexi.  Do you want help cleaning it or anything?” 

Lexi sat up and stretched, planting her bare feet on the floor.  “No, that’s okay, daddy, really.  I’m the one who made the mess, so I can clean it up.  Thanks, though.” 

He nodded, and turned to go.  But his brow was still furrowed, and it seemed to be on the verge of saying something. 

Finally, he said, “Lexi, maybe you should sleep with your window closed, just until all this eco stuff is solved.  I have a feeling that whoever’s behind it might….” he trailed off, not wanting to put words to his thoughts. 

Her heart sank.  Now that he’d said that, her fear of getting caught paled in comparison to what he was alluding to.  It was his darkest fear; that someone would take her the same way that he’d been taken, and expose her against her will to dark eco.  He had never wanted to talk about it, but she’d worked out what he feared on her own, through careful observation and the insights of others.  

She turned toward him, eyes widening.  “Daddy, don’t worry.  Nothing’s going to happen to me.”  With her new powers, she was more confident than ever in her fighting abilities. Besides, she was pretty sure that she’d find the answers she’d need deep in the forest.  But then, she couldn’t tell him any of that, yet.  

Jak shook his head again and offered a small smile.  “I shouldn’t have said anything.  I don’t want you to worry.  You’re right, nothing’s going to happen to you,” he said.  He cleared his throat in the silence that followed.  She hoped that he wasn’t going to come up and give her a hug, because then there would be no way to hide the sewer smell.  

Instead, he turned slightly away in the doorway and said, “I’m going to get a start on breakfast,” he said.  “Anything you want?” 

Feeling extremely guilty she said, “Whatever’s easiest,” with a smile. 

He nodded, and left.  

As soon as Lexi’s door was closed again, she flopped down on the bed.  She couldn’t believe what she’d just gotten away with.  Even in normal times, she wasn’t allowed out of the city, especially at night, and especially with a boy.  And she’d done it all without even considering how scared for her her father had been.  She couldn’t believe that she’d been so ignorant.  

But, still, what was done was done, and there would be no use beating herself up about it now.  No, what she had to do next was tell Beth, somehow.  

Chapter Text

Chapter 9: Day Trip

Lexi only just managed to shower, eat, and clean up the mess she’d made before she ended up back in bed, dead asleep.  A few hours later, she woke to a knock at her bedroom door.  

“Lex, it’s eight in the morning, it’s time to wake up,” her father said. 

Lexi groaned into her pillow.  Her dad never let her sleep in, even on weekends.  It looked like she would have to face the day with less than three hours of sleep.  Still, she rose.  

It was only when she saw the communicator sitting on her bedside table that the events of last night came back to her.  Until then, she hadn’t had a moment to think.  But now, it all flooded back: meeting the oracle, fighting the creatures in the woods, being out all night with Rick, the kiss. 

She rolled over, and covered her burning face with her hands.  Last night, everything had seemed possible.  Now, she once again faced reality.  She had broken about a dozen rules, and embarrassed herself.  The memory of herself at the gate to the city and begging for Rick’s praise came back with a vengeance, and she groaned in agony.  Her only real comfort was that he’d offered it so freely. 

Aching, she sat up.  She still hadn’t processed everything that had happened that night, but her father was right.  It was time to wake up.  Shrugging hugely, she yawned and put her new communicator in her pocket.  Her plan was to keep it close in case it went off, but to also keep it hidden.  She was not about to have a repeat of the close call she’d had in the palace.  

Lexi went downstairs, and found her mother reading her tablet at the kitchen table.  She was so absorbed in her reading that she hardly seemed to notice the toast she was eating.  But Lexi was used to the way her mother got when she was focused.  Sometimes, when Keira had a particularly engrossing project in the garage, someone (mostly Jak or Lexi) would have to remind her to eat and sleep.  

“Morning, mom,” said Lexi, taking a seat at the kitchen table.  She’d eaten a light breakfast with her father earlier that morning before stumbling back to bed, exhausted.  At the time, the excuse she’d made was that she hadn’t slept well.  Jak had given her an odd look, but had left it at that.  

Keira waved at Lexi vaguely with her free hand, eyes still focused on the screen. Taking a quick peek, Lexi saw that she was reading an article about the dark eco disturbances.  Her father’s name was on the screen.  

“What does it say?” Lexi asked.  It was strange how easy it was to forget that her father was a celebrity, until she saw his name in print or on tv.  

Keira sighed, and pushed it away.  “Nothing we didn’t already know.  Just that the quakes are getting stronger every day.  They mentioned that your dad’s been looking into it, but that they couldn’t get him to comment.  You know how he is with reporters,” she said, the corner of her mouth quirking up.  Lexi grinned back.  She remembered what had happened to the paparazzi who had followed their family home after a race one day, looking to take pictures for their rag.  After that day, word had spread, and they’d never tried it again. 

Just then, her father walked into the room, fully dressed and ready for the day.  He was wearing a white undershirt, and tan pants covered in sparse armor used in Spargus.  Jak tended to wear it a lot of the time, and especially when he was tending to “business.”  His goggles were perched on his short-cropped hair, and he looked ready for anything.  

Turning to him, Keira said, “Where are you going today, sweetie?” 

He shrugged on his thick, blue leather coat hanging by the door, and adjusted it around his shoulders.  On one shoulder was a metal plate that Uncle Daxter sat on.  He was probably going too, Lexi supposed. 

“I’m going back to the west gate,” said Jak, and he pulled on the leather straps that tied his guns to his back.  “Torn’s meeting me there, and we’re going deeper into the forest, to the site of an old eco shrine.  We think it might have something to do with what’s been happening.” 

Lexi anxiously sipped her orange juice, remembering Rick and his village.  Presumably, they were well-hidden enough that her father wasn’t likely to find them, given that no one had found them this long.  But she could see why the heightened soldier presence in the forest made Rick nervous.  

“That’s good,” said Keira.  “I’m going to go to my father’s house today to talk to him about all this.  I didn’t want to bother him, given his retirement.  But I feel like he’s one of the few people who might have an idea of what’s happening.” 

Jak nodded in mute agreement, and kissed her on the temple.  “Good idea,” he said.  Keira smiled appreciatively.  

Then, Jak surprised Lexi.  He cleared his throat, and looked at her.  

“Oh, and Lexi, you mother and I had a talk last night.  I guess that I might have been a bit too harsh about the forest thing.  It’s just...you know….” he trailed off, and shook his head, struggling to find the right words.  “Well, I can admit it.  It scared me.  But I guess that it’s not doing you any good, being locked up in here.” 

He fixed her with a firm look, that was softened by the fact that Keira was smiling at her, one arm resting on Jak’s bicep.  “You’re still in trouble, and I don’t want you going anywhere near the west gate, but you’re not grounded anymore, and you can see Beth again.  I don’t think it’s good for you, being separated from your friend.”  He cleared his throat again.  “Just, be careful, okay?  I’m sure we can figure out all this eco business, but until we do, just stay clear of the area, okay?” 

“Okay,” said Lexi, coming forward to hug him.  “Thanks, daddy.  I promise that I’ll be careful.” 

He hugged her back.  Neither of them ever seemed to use the word “sorry” after their fights.  They were both too stubborn for that.  But this felt like forgiveness.  

But when Lexi felt the communicator shift in her pocket, she wasn’t sure if she deserved it.  

The first thing Lexi did with her new-found freedom was retrieve her hoverboard from the closet where her father had hidden it.  Ignoring how ridiculous she must have looked, she pressed a kiss to its hard, rubbery outer surface.  

“I am so sorry we were separated,” she whispered to it.  “I promise, I won’t let it happen again.”  She hugged it close to her chest for good measure before strapping it to her back.  

Her father had already left, but not before telling them that he wasn’t sure what time he’d be back that night.  Keira had nodded sadly.  By now, she was used to the demands of his job as the city’s protector.  Most of the time, he just kept an eye on things and stayed in contact with Torn and Ashelin about the goings-on in the city.  But when the city needed him, like now, he often worked strange hours and was out half the night, risking his life the whole time.  

Her mother hugged him tighter before he left that morning, which had prompted Lexi to rush forward to hug him, too.  He’d kissed her on the forehead, and promised them that he would be fine before he took up his keys and left.  

“Do you want to come with me to see your grandpa?” Keira sked, head tilted and a happy look on her face.  She was about to head out, as well.   

“I wish I could, but I promised Beth that I would help her with babysitting as soon as I could,” Lexi said, apologetically.  “I already messaged her, and she’s downstairs, waiting for me.” 

Keira smiled.  “Of course, you’re going to want to see your friend after so long apart.  Tell her and Tess that I said, ‘hi!’” 

“I will!” Lexi said.  “And tell grandpa I said ‘hi’ too.”  She offered her mother a hasty wave as she’d gone out the door.  As soon as her parents were gone—and Lexi was reunited with her board—she launched herself out the front door, itching to fly after a week of walking. 

So, before she went to Beth’s house, that’s exactly what she did.  She took the board and rushed up and down the street, feeling the exhilaration of the break-neck speed and the wind in her hair all over again.  She ducked lower, shifting her center of gravity and spurring the board even faster.  Throwing back her head, she let out a “whoop” of enjoyment.  It felt so good to get off the ground.  

After a few spins around the neighborhood, Lexi went into the alley near her apartment and checked to see if her bag from last night was still there.  After a short scramble in the bushes lining the alley, she found her bag.  When she did, she clutched it tightly to her chest, relieved.  Though it wouldn’t have been a big deal if she hadn’t been able to retrieve it, finding it meant there was one less thing to worry about.  Satisfied, Lexi stored the pack and her board on her back, and walked back into the apartment building.  

Beth’s family lived in the apartment right beneath them, which meant that Lexi was constantly visiting her.  That is, except for when she was grounded.  But that was all behind her, now.  Stepping forward briskly, Lexi took the elevator up to her friend’s apartment, and boy, did she have a story to tell.    

Lexi just hoped that Beth would believe her.  

“I can’t believe it!” Beth shouted about thirty minutes later.  She was giving her baby sister, Sophie, a bottle.  Sophie stared up at her with the unreserved love of a baby.  Lexi found it strangely comforting.  Especially considering that, at the same time, Beth’s nine-year-old twin brothers were probably wrecking some other part of the house.  They would really have to check at some point. 

“Well, it happened,” Lexi said, hands spread.  “All of it.  I just don’t know what to make of it.” 

“Me neither!  But I thought that you would, at least.  I thought that you chosen-one types always had like, and innate sense of what was happening,” Beth said, tilting her head.  

Lexi snorted, squinting her eyes.  “I’m still a normal person,” she said.  “I’m not a ‘chosen-one,’ and I don’t have any more idea what’s going on than the next person.”  Then, after a moment’s pause, she shrugged and said, “Okay, maybe I do know a little more than the average person, but that’s only because sometimes I overhear what my dad’s planning.  And, because my grandpa tells me about eco stuff all the time.” 

Beth nodded absently.  “That’s hard to believe, too.  I can’t believe that Samos knows!”  Sophie finished the bottle, and Beth set it to the side, putting her baby sister on her shoulder and starting to burp her.  

Then, there was a loud sound in the other room, and Beth called over her shoulder, “Noah, Junior, cut it out, whatever you’re doing!”  All they got in response was the sound of snickering from the other room.  Beth rolled her eyes and shuddered.  She handed the baby to Lexi, who took her bemusedly.  Sophie was so tiny, even compared to human babies.  Lexi was always afraid that she’d break her, somehow.  

Beth excused herself and ducked out of the room, and Lexi heard the sounds of her scolding the boys about whatever they’d been doing.  Lexi looked down at Sophie, who looked confused, and shrugged.
“I don’t know either, kid,” she said.  Sophie just blew a spit bubble in response. 

When Beth came back, she took Sophie back into her arms, and said composedly, “Where were we?  Oh, yeah, your grandpa knows you have powers.  How come he hasn’t told your dad?”  Her head tilted with the question.  

Lexi shrugged, still a little taken aback by the interruption.  “My grandpa thinks I should tell my dad.  But, he also trained me, and kept my secret.  I think that, overall, he’s glad that I have them.  It’s almost like he thinks I’ll be safer now, or something.” 

“I guess that makes sense,” said Beth.  “Now, if anyone looks at you the wrong way, and you can just go ‘boom,’ ‘pow,’ eco powers on them!”  She used one hand to mime punching as she said this, making Sophie squirm.  Beth looked panicked for a second, and gently rocked Sophie until she relaxed again. 

Lexi rolled her eyes.  “I would not go ‘boom,’ ‘pow’ on someone just for looking at me funny.”  

Beth, who ignored this, said, “Still, though, I can’t believe you haven’t told your dad!  You do know he’s going to find out eventually, right?” 

“I guess…” said Lexi.  “I mean, there’s a lot of stuff that he doesn’t know yet.  He’d freak out if he knew that I snuck into the forest last night, let alone that I had powers when I did it.” 

“Oh, yeah,” said Beth, raising both eyebrows.  “We haven’t even talked about that part.  I didn’t know that you had it in you.”  She had a wicked grin.  

“What, sneaking out?  Well, I had a good reason too,” said Lexi defensively, crossing her arms.  

“No, I mean, going out with a guy you just met,” said Beth.  “Very bold, Hagai, I like it.”  She said, mockingly. 

Lexi groaned loudly.  “It wasn’t like that!  It wasn’t a date.  He had information I needed, so I met him.  He’s an informant,” she said primly.  Calling Rick an “informant” made her sound more like her dad, who had various contacts scattered all over the city and the wastes, to.  Putting it that way made it seem much more professional, even if she could feel her face heat slightly. 

“Right….” said Beth, doubtfully.  “‘Informant.’  Is that what the kids are calling it these days?” she asked, head tilted.  Lexi threw a pillow at her lightly, making sure to aim high so it wouldn’t hit Sophie, and Beth dodged it, laughing. 

Lexi had told her everything, including what she and Rick had said at the gate.  The only thing she hadn’t told Beth about was the kiss on the cheek.  She had already embarrassed herself enough that day.

Luckily, Beth seemed ready to let it go.  “I guess the only thing that we have to do now is figure out what to do next,” she said, instead.  

That was Lexi’s cue to pull the communicator out of her pocket.  “You’re right.  And, once we do figure out what to do next, we can use this to contact Rick.  I think that he could be a lot of help.  He also said that he’d tell us if he found something, too.” 

“Yeah, but how do we figure out anything else?” asked Beth.  “Your dad doesn’t even know anything!  All anyone knows is that it’s getting worse.  Which means that It’s probably just a matter of time before one of these quakes really messes up the city.” 

Lexi nodded, grimacing.  “Exactly,” she said.  She pushed her hair out of her face.  “Well, my dad and yours are in the forest with Torn today, investigating.  And my mom is talking with my grandpa about it.  Maybe we should see what Ashelin is doing?  She’s been letting me tag along with her a lot more to her work things lately; maybe she’ll let us investigate with her.  And, there’s another thing…”  She trailed off, hesitating.  

“Oh no,” Beth said, stilling in the middle of rocking Sophie.  “I don’t think I like the sound of this.” 

“You won’t,” said Lexi.  “But last night, in the sewer—” 

“—Okay, I was right.  I do not like the sound of this.” 

“Just listen,” Lexi said, holding up her hands placatingly.  “Remember those rats I told you about?  The ones I fought in the sewer?  Well, I think they have a nest.  When they attacked me, they all came from this one passage.  I wanted to check it out last night, but I just didn’t have the time.  We should go look sometime today.  There might be a concentration of dark eco there, transforming them.  And if there is, we should let someone know.  We could call in an anonymous tip or something.” 

Beth set her baby sister down in her lap, and then waved both hands.  “Whoa, whoa, whoa.”  When she spoke again, her voice was filled with horror.  “You want me to go with you into a dank, disgusting sewer filled to the brim with mutated rats the size of crocadogs ?” 

Lexi let the question hang in the air for a second before saying, “Yes.”

Beth let out a long breath through her nose.  Then, she said, “Fine.  I know that I should go with you, or you’ll somehow get yourself killed.  How about this, you take a nap for a couple of hours, and then we’ll go.” 

“Beth, I’m supposed to be helping you babysit,” said Lexi.  But, truthfully, there was nothing she wanted more than to get some more sleep, especially if she was going to be fighting again later that day.  

Beth waved her off, standing.  “Oh, don’t worry.  You’ll still owe me.  Maybe you can take one of my shifts at the gun store if I land a date with that cute guy from the market.  Or, maybe I’ll have you babysit the twins on one of their bad days.  I fully intend on still cashing out, but right now, you look about two seconds from passing out.” 

Lexi nodded in relief, finally letting her head hang.  “Thanks, Beth,” she said.  “I appreciate it.” 

“No problem, girlie,” said Beth.  “Take the couch, if you want.  I’m going to go see what the twins are up to.”  She shuddered theatrically.  “They’ve been really quiet, and that’s never a good sign with them.” 

Lexi agreed, and just about made it to the couch before she was dead asleep.  

By the time she woke up, Beth’s mother, Tess, had finished at the gun shop for the day.  Tess came into the main room to greet them, thanking her daughter for babysitting as she took Sophie from her. 

Tess sighed.  “I wish I could bring Sophie into the shop with me, but she doesn’t like the sound of gunfire.”  She then cooed at her baby, “No, you don’t, do you?  You don’t like the sound of people shooting big guns, do you?” 

Sophie, not understanding any of this, gurgled happily, limbs and tail hanging limply as Tess held her.   

Tess looked up at the girls then, and said, “So, Lexi, I hear that you’re free now.  What are you girls planning on doing today?” 

Lexi, who’d woken at the sound of the front door opening, was sitting with her legs crossed on the couch, as Beth pulled on her small, custom-made coat.   

Without looking at her mother, Beth said, “Well, we were just talking about going to the hoverboard park, or to the mall, maybe.”  At this, she did look at her mother.  “As long as that’s cool with you?” 

Tess shrugged expressively.  “I don’t mind.  I’m just going to give Sophie her nap, and then I’m going to check on the twins,” she tilted her head.  “They didn’t give you too much trouble, did they?”

Beth let out a big breath and said, “Oh, just the usual.  Junior tried to plant about a dozen stink bombs in the bathroom, but I put a stop to that.  And Noah seems to be making a giant slingshot.  And when I say ‘giant,’ I mean ‘bigger than him’.  I thought I’d let you know.”   

Tess nodded sagely, as if she could have expected nothing less.  Then, she returned the squirming Sophie to the fabric sling she often had strapped to her chest.  “Well, thank you for watching them all, sweetie.  Call me if you girls need anything!  Remember, things are a bit tense right now.” 

As they walked out, Lexi thought about how even in an entire extended family of military leaders, former criminals, and warriors like her father, Tess was the only one who would call the city being threatened by a mysterious, evil force “a bit tense.”  But then, she dealt with the twins every day.  Maybe that put things in perspective.  

The first thing they did was walk to the sewer gate that Lexi had used the night before.  Now that she wasn’t grounded, she didn’t have to access it in the cover of night.  But, at the same time, they had to be sneaky about it.  Against Tess’s direction, they’d left their phones at home, knowing that their parents could use them to track their location.  Still, they walked once around the hoverboard park before going to the gate, just in case.  Looking over her shoulder carefully, Lexi had almost reached the gate when something occurred to her.   

“Do you think that I should message Rick first?” she asked Beth out of the corner of her mouth, acting as though she’d asked something casual.  

“What, and ask him to prom?” Beth asked immediately. 

Lexi fought the urge to groan.  “ No ,” she said.  “I mean, for one thing, I’m going to have to ask him to open the door.  But maybe I should also see if he wants to meet up with us, so he can use his eco-measuring devices when we check out whatever’s happening in the sewer.” 

Beth was quiet on her friend’s shoulder for a moment before slowly saying, “You know, that’s actually a good idea.  Maybe you should.  The only thing is, won’t he think it’s risky?  I thought that he was paranoid about that kind of thing.  You know, entering the city.”  

“He is,” said Lexi.  “Well, sort of.  He doesn’t have a problem with the city as it is now, I think.  He’s just worried about people finding out where his village is.  He won’t even tell me it’s location.”  

Beth nodded.  “Oh, I see.  Well, in that case, I definitely think you should ask him.  If he really doesn’t want to come, he can always just say, ‘no.’”  She shrugged. 

Lexi nodded, and took out the communicator that Rick had given her, and typed out a short message, asking him to open the door and letting him know where they’d be.  She shut it again with a decisive click and returned it to her pocket.  Now, it was time for the hard part.  

They came to the door, and looked around for any witnesses.  Lexi opened it again, just like she’d done last night.  For a few, long minutes, they stood there, waiting.  Finally, there was a flash of green, and the door opened.  Rick must have gotten their message.  They ducked inside, and started scrambling through the disgusting tunnels. 

“Geez,” said Beth, clearly upset with the state of the place.  “This is disgusting!  And dark, and depressing.  It’s all kinds of unfortunate things.  I can’t believe you walked through all this by yourself.  No, scratch that: I can’t believe that you’re doing it again!  Voluntarily!” 

“Well,” Lexi said, “It is a sewer.  You should have expected all those unfortunate things.  Besides, you have no reason to complain.  It’s my shoes that are going to get ruined.  You’re all the way up on my shoulder.” 

Beth held her nose and pulled a dramatically disgusted face.  “It is not far enough, trust me.” 

Lexi snorted.  “You’ll be fine,” she said, as she moved further down the tunnel.  Her earlier fight seemed to have cleared a path through the sewer, because there were no creatures coming to meet her.  Still, she had a feeling, right at the edge of consciousness, that someone or something was watching her. 

There was a sound, and Beth clenched her claws into her friend’s shoulder, releasing her nose in the process.  “What was that?” she asked, clearly panicked. 

“Shhhh,” said Lexi.  She held her flashlight higher, and looked further down the tunnel.  “It might be one of the creatures.  Or, more likely, a leaky pipe.” 

Beth shivered.  “You might have a point.  But I still don’t like it.”  

Lexi turned down a hall, and they found a relatively clean-looking pipe running along the wall at shoulder height.  Beth hopped on to it, and started walking next to her friend.  She crossed her arms and said, “Why do we have to be the ones to check this place out, again?” 

“Because we’re the only ones who know about it,” said Lexi.  “Well, us, and Rick.” 

“No, what I mean is, why don’t we just send in an anonymous tip or something to the palace?  You could pretend to be a concerned citizen who saw the creatures in here somehow, and you know that our dads and the military would be here like that, ” she said, snapping.  “In fact, you kind of are just a concerned citizen, in a way.”  She tilted her head innocently. 

This rubbed Lexi the wrong way, even though she knew it was true.  But, then again, how was she supposed to think of herself as just a normal citizen with her dreams and abilities?  She had powers, now.  Didn’t that mean that she was responsible for using them correctly? 

Before Lexi could open her mouth to speak, there was a louder noise down the tunnel in front of them.  It sounded like the grinding of metal-on-metal.  Lexi reached for her bat, which was still the best weapon she had.  

She raised it and said, “Okay, that was definitely not just leaky pipes.” 

Despite her fear, Lexi kept going, toward the noise.  After all, it wasn’t like she could leave without seeing what it had been.  

“What do you think you’re doing?” hissed Beth in her ear.  She had jumped back on Lexi’s shoulder at the sound, and was now wrapped tightly around her friend’s shoulder and shaking.   

Lexi held up a finger to her lips, not stopping.  She kept creeping along the wall, hoping that whoever or whatever had made that noise wouldn’t see them.  As she got closer, she realized that the metal sound had been a door opening.  Lexi felt the stirrings of recognition as she saw more of the tunnel.  Recognition dawned, and she realized that it was the same one that she’d gone down the previous night.  It had been hard to tell in the dark, but with the light pouring in from the open door, she was sure.  

With a laugh, Lexi stopped crouching along the wall, and rushed forward.  

“Okay,” said Beth, almost to herself.  “It’s official: Lexi has no idea what she’s doing.” 

“Rick?” called Lexi, down the tunnel.  “Is that you?”  Her weapon was still raised, just in case. 

“Lexi?” said Rick, his voice echoing down the tunnels.  Distance must be deceptive here, because he was farther away than she’d thought.  

Lexi laughed again, for real this time, and lowered her bat, without bothering to return it to its holster.  She started down the tunnel towards his voice, and said, “Jeez, Rick.  You could have given us a warning or something.” 

“Yeah,” called Beth in agreement.  “You almost gave us heart attacks.  Then, we would have just been two beautiful corpses left to rot in the sewer tunnels, and it would have been all your fault.” 

They reached Rick then.  He stood awkwardly in the center of the tunnel, fiddling so intently with his makeshift communicator that he hadn’t seemed to have heard what Beth had said.  His brows were furrowed, and he said, in a questioning tone, “But, I did message you a while ago to let you know I was here.  And I just tried to call you.”  When his eyes met Lexi’s, they were filled with concern.  

Beth raised her eyebrows.  “Wow, you guys exchanged numbers?  Cute.” 

Lexi blushed and waved her off.  “That’s odd.  I didn’t get anything on my end,” she said.  Just to be sure, she pulled out her own communicator, and checked the screen.  It was just as she’d expected: blank.     

Rick pocketed the device, pointedly ignoring Beth’s comment.  “The communicators don’t seem to work down here.  It must be the thick, sewer walls,” he said, reaching out to touch one thoughtfully.  Then, he pulled his hand back and looked at it disgustedly, before wiping it off on the one, clean pipe. 

“Wait, wait, wait,” said Lexi, waving her hands in front of her.  “That probably means that no other communications can get out of here, right?” 

Rick shrugged.  “I suppose so, but that doesn’t make much difference to me.  I’ve never really had much use for communicators, ‘til now.”  

Beth hissed.  “Well, it does to us.  It means that if something bad happens, we’re not going to be able to let the outside world know, even with those special communicators of yours,” she said, shivering dramatically.  “So let’s check out this eco problem so we can get out of here a.s.a.p.”  

Lexi nodded and said, “Beth’s right.  The sooner we’re out of here, the better.” 

“Alright, Lexi,” said Rick, “you’re the one who knows the tunnels best.  Lead the way.” 

As they started walking, Lexi asked, “Wait, I thought that you said that you’ve been in these tunnels before?  

Rick shrugged.  “I knew that they lead into and out of the city, and I knew that I could hack the gates, but I’ve never actually used them to enter the city.  In fact, I’ve never actually been inside them until today.”  He shrugged.  “I never thought that it would be a good idea, heading into the city without money, or documentation, or anything.” 

“Oh, you’re right!” said Beth from Lexi’s shoulder.  “The city basically doesn’t know you exist.  To them, you’re like this total mystery.  An enigma.  ‘The Ghost.’”  She mimed something disappearing. 

“Well, I’m more like some nerdy kid without a birth certificate, but I guess that ‘The Ghost’ does sound cooler,” said Rick, giving Beth a sideways smile.   

“Don’t mind her,” said Lexi, giggling.  “Beth’s always trying to give people weird nicknames.” 

“Speaking of, I have some good ones brewing for you, eco-girl, so don’t speak too soon,” said Beth, with an eyebrow raised.  

“Eco-girl?” asked Lexi with a snort.  “I don’t know about that.” 

“Well, you won’t let me call you princess,” said Beth with a long-suffering sigh.  

The side of Rick’s mouth quirked up even farther, and he couldn’t hide the laugh in his voice when he repeated, “Princess?” in an incredulous tone.  

“Yes,” said Lexi.  “Some people try to call me that.  But they only ever try it once.  After that, they know better.  My dad abdicated all claims to rule Spargus before I was even born!  I am no princess.”  She crossed her arms in defiance. 

“Yeah, but aren’t you also a descendant of Mar, technically?  You can’t abdicate that,” said Beth.  This was a familiar fight, one that they’d had a dozen times before.   They’d had it so many times, in fact, that they could practically do it on auto-pilot now.  

Lexi let out a frustrated breath.  “It’s not like we get any political power from it.  And that’s just the way we like it.”  The thought of her dad trying to run a city, and having to go to meetings all day, was absolutely laughable.  And the thought of inheriting a city from him one day was suffocating.  They were better off without it.  

Beth held up her hands in submission.  “Okay, okay,” she said.  “I just don’t understand how you can turn down being called ‘princess’.  If nothing else, it’s a great nickname.  If I had a chance to be a princess, I’d take it a minute.  Just imagine: Princess Beth, ruling over her kingdom.”  She sighed dreamily.  

Lexi snorted.  “It’s just not my thing, I guess,” she said.  “Honestly, I’d rather be called almost anything else.” 

“I agree,” said Rick, looking at them thoughtfully.  “It’s hard to imagine a princess doing half the things you do.  I’ll think of something better.”  He said it with confidence, as if he’d just settled the issue completely.  

Lexi raised an eyebrow.  “Oh, you will, will you?” 

“Don’t doubt me, eco-girl,” he said, jokingly.  “I happen to be the foremost nick-namer in my village.”  He jerked a thumb at himself, even though she wasn’t sure that was something to be proud of, even if it was true. 

She was about to tell him just that, when he stuck his arm out, stopping her in her tracks.  Remembering where she was, she moved into a crouch next to him.  She didn’t want to be seen.  He ducked too, then gestured for her to follow him behind a low wall.  Once they were behind it, could watch the scene in front of them without being spotted.  

The same dark eco creatures from the night before filled the room, but with one major change: their numbers had grown.  Now, they looked like a writhing, black carpet, and the sound of their nails on the hard floor of the sewer grated on Lexi’s ears and turned her stomach.  

They moved far too orderly for normal animals, marching in tight lines.  Some of them scuttled down tunnels and up pipes until they were out of sight.  Their eyes were consumed with black, just as before.  Worst of all, the group wasn’t just made up of rats, but also other small creatures from the forest.  But, that didn’t make any sense.  What were forest creatures doing here?  There was no way that outside animals would have come into these dank tunnels on their own.  No, something else was behind this.  

The creatures kept moving as though they were under someone’s control.  And, from the way they were moving, they had places to go.   

At the center of the room’s floor, was a large drain which spewed a continual stream of dark eco up and into the room.  Already, it was surrounded by a dark pool that only seemed to grow.  The only thing that kept it from spreading uncontrollably was the eco that was continually falling down the drain.  Still, all this eco must have been behind all the transformations.  Desperately, Lexi looked around the room, seeking anything she could use to shut it off before the pool got any bigger.  

There!  On the wall, she saw something promising, though she couldn’t see it clearly, and she stood to move toward it.  Rick grabbed her arm, and tried to pull her back down.  “What are you doing?” he hissed. 

“Rick, trust me ,” Beth hissed at him.  “She doesn’t know.” 

Lexi returned to a crouch to explain, even though she knew they wouldn’t agree.  She’d still do it anyway. 

“I’m going to shut off that dark eco vent,” she said.  “Before any more creatures can be corrupted.”  She tilted her head to the left to indicate the strange, seething mass of creatures.   

Rick looked doubtful for a second, and Lexi braced herself for an argument.  But instead, he sighed and said, “You’re right.  We have to do something.  I’m sure that there’s a switch or a valve or something, but we can’t just rush in.  Those things are small, but I’m not too sure about our chances if they swarm us all at once.” 

“ Ahem ,” said Beth. “May I remind you that small is a relative term?”  Even though she was only two feet tall, she stood haughtily, as if her height were everyone else’s problem, instead of her’s. 

Rick nodded.  “Exactly.  That’s even more of a reason to think this through.” 

Lexi huffed, but knew they were right.  Rushing in wasn’t the right play, here.  But, at the same time, she didn’t want to leave this to the city’s government to sort out.  She had a feeling that by the time they got here, the tunnel would be in a much worse state. 

“Okay, okay,” Lexi said.  “You guys are right.  But, look,” she said, pointing, “there’s a valve up there!  I’m just not sure if it’s the right one.”  And, sure enough, there it was, embedded high on the wall, next to a metal walkway.  

Rick nodded, and pulled his tablet back up.  “Got it.  Luckily, I have the sewer’s plans downloaded.  I should be able to figure out what that valve connects to,” he said.  His face was lit with the muted blue light of his screen, and it was set with determination as he swiped through pages and pages of crowded information. 

Lexi looked again at the creatures, wondering where they were going, and what planning for when they got there.  Since they had already attacked unprompted before, she knew they were violent.  It made her wonder: what would happen if they escaped the sewers?  She shivered, remembering what it was like to be on the other end of those dark, curved claws.  

Before she could get any more swept up in these thoughts, however, Lexi noticed the dark eco in the vent crest even higher.  All the time, the flow seemed to be getting stronger.  That was enough to bring her back to earth.  

“Um…” Lexi said to Rick.  “I don’t want to rush you, but….” 

“I need to rush?” he asked, sardonically.  “It’s fine, I got it,” he had stopped flipping frantically between screens, and was instead intently scanning the page that he was on.  Then, he nodded, at first hesitantly and then with certainty.  “Yes….yeah, I think that’s the right vent.  It connects to that drain, anyway, but it was never meant for dark eco.  Someone must be repurposing it.”  

Satisfied that his search was complete, Rick tucked away the tablet again, and said, “But, Lexi, you have to make sure not to get their attention.  If one attacks, they’re going to swarm, and we’d be vastly out-numbered and barely armed.” 

Lexi let out a breath.  “You’re right,” she said, scanning the valve she had to reach.  The valve was set up high in the room, next to a rickety metal walkway.  The walkway looked like her apartment building’s fire escape back in the city: complete with a ladder that hadn’t been let down.  It was about a two-story climb up to the relative safety of the walkway.  But then, hadn’t she made a climb a lot like that same day?  Sure, the sewer wall would be slimier than the one back home, but she’d just have to avoid thinking about it.  

Swallowing her nausea, Lexi pulled her hair up into a ponytail with a black elastic hair tie from her wrist.  “Well, then, I’ll just have to climb up there without alerting them.” 

Rick looked from her to the wall, panicked.  “Are you crazy?!  You’re going to climb that ?  It’s at least three stories up, with cement at the bottom, and surrounded by dark eco creatures.  The ladder isn’t even down!” 

“It looks more like two stories to me, so it shouldn’t be a problem,” she said.  Then, without really knowing why, she hissed, “Cover me!” to Rick as she left.  She’d said it as if there was anything that he could do to help her, which probably wasn’t the case.  But still, it had seemed like the right thing to say.  

With this last order still ringing in her ears, Lexi launched herself over the short wall they’d hidden behind.  On the other side, she sank into a crouch.  Beth was still on her shoulder, and hunkered down close to her, going totally silent.  It seemed that she was bracing herself just as much as Lexi was.  

Lexi crept slowly along the wall, shifting each leg only when it was safe to do so.  The creatures hadn’t noticed her yet.  But now that she was closer to them, she realized that they were larger than she’d first thought.  Even though she could probably take them, there were a lot of reasons not to engage.  Not least of which was that their teeth seemed to be dripping with dark eco, and she dreaded what effect it might have on her if she were bitten.  

When she got to the bottom of the wall she’d have to climb, Lexi looked quickly over her shoulder.  The creatures still hadn’t noticed her, and more distance separated them.  Still, she wished again that she could just gun them down.  But there was no time to dwell on her lack of a firearm.  Instead, she examined the tableau of pipes and irregularities in the wall, planning her way up.  Without giving herself time to doubt, Lexi grabbed a pipe and started to climb. 

Once she’d started, it was a natural climb.  Despite the stressful situation, she fell into the simple, mental pattern of climbing: find a handhold, find a toehold, push yourself higher.  Find a handhold, find a toehold, push.  Again and again, its soothing monotony cleared her mind.  Soon, she reached the metal walkway just under the valve.  Over-confident with the exhilaration of making it, Lexi quickly grabbed for it.  Too quickly, in fact.  

Her fingers slipped.  She almost fell, and her close call from that morning flashed before her eyes.  Beth yelped, high-pitched and right in Lexi’s ear, and clung on desperately.  Lexi regained her balance at the last moment, but was still shaken.  She clung tightly to the wall, breathing heavily.  Luckily, the noise hadn’t disturbed the creatures below.  

With a last push of effort, Lexi pulled herself all the way onto the ledge.  After pulling herself together, she grabbed the valve and yanked with all her might.  To her horror, it was so old and heavy that it barely moved.  There was no way that she had come up all this way for nothing, though, so she spit on her hands, readjusted her grip, and pulled again, throwing her entire body into it.  She wished that she had thought to bring some eco with her today.  But she hadn’t, so brute force would have to do.  

Frustrated at her lack of progress, Lexi gave a small grunt, and pulled so hard that sweat beaded on her brow.  The valve moved just the tiniest bit, and triumph swelled in her chest.  

That is, until her arm slipped with the unexpected give of the valve, and her elbow hit the latch holding the ladder with a clang.  She bit back a cry of pain, and gripped her elbow, which throbbed from the hit.  But there was no use for her silence.  Not only had her elbow made a loud, ringing sound against the metal, it had also broken the latch holding the ladder still.  With nothing to hold it, the ladder fell open and downward in a series of loud, metallic crashing sounds.  One set after another fell, until the ladder reached the ground two stories below.  

Lexi slowly turned to look at the mass of creatures on the far side of the room.  They all stood stock-still, staring directly at her.  

Beth screamed on her shoulder, but Lexi ignored her, instead redoubling her effort to close the valve.  Down below, Rick jumped out from behind the wall he’d been using for cover, and ran toward the ladder.  He’d known that they would need help the moment the sound had rung out through the empty room, and had rushed forward without thinking.  Once he reached the ladder, he climbed it quickly, and stood next to Lexi.  

After the valve had given in just that first little bit, it became easier and easier to keep it moving.  Still, Lexi used all her strength to turn it, hand-over-hand again and again, just like she was climbing.  Rick braced himself on the metal frame of the ledge, and kicked at the top of the rusty ladder with all this might.  Lexi wondered what he was doing, until she noticed the creatures climbing up it toward them.  Luck was on their side, however, because the metal was so weak and rusted that with a final, furious kick, Rick separated it from the walkway entirely.  The ladder fell away from them, toppling like a tree.  It landed with a great crash on the ground, crushing some of the creatures as it went.   

“Nice going,” said Beth, “but what do we do now?” 

Just then, Lexi finished closing the valve.  Sweat beaded on her forehead, but it had been worth it.  Far below, the dark eco stopped leaping and jumping in the drain.  However, the creatures seemed angrier than ever, giving a collective hiss that swallowed up all the other sounds of the sewer.  With the ladder down, they would have to find another way out.  Lexi gave the room a quick scan, desperate to find one.  Then, she found it.  

There was an access hatch set high in the ceiling, above them and off to the right.  The distance was too far and the walls were too steep for Lexi to climb.  But, luckily, she knew someone who could. 

“Do you think you could get that hatch open?” she asked Beth, pointing at it. 

Beth tilted her head and said, “I think so, but I’m not sure about that climb.  It’s kind of...steep.”  She shivered a little on Lexi’s shoulder. 

“Could you try?” asked Lexi, a note of desperation in her voice.  “I wouldn’t ask, except,” she said, indicating the creatures swarming up the walls, “this is kind of a dire situation.” 

“Point taken,” said Beth.  With that, she began scalking the wall toward the hatch. No doubt, she didn’t mind getting off the walkway, despite the height: not with more and more creatures approaching all the time.  

While Beth was taking care of that, that wasn’t the last of their problems.  The creatures were upon them. 

Creatures crested the ledge of the walkway they stood on.  Lexi took out her bat and started swinging.  As more and more came, she incorporated hits from her feet, elbows, and knees; anything to keep them away. 

“Now what?” she called out to Rick.  He was also fighting the creatures, using the wooden staff he’d had strapped to his back.   

“I have an idea,” he said, “but you’re not going to like it.”  He landed a particularly impressive hit on a creature, knocking it off the edge where it’d been snapping its disgusting teeth.  

“Any idea is a good idea!” shouted Lexi, who was now braced against the back wall, kicking creatures off the edge as fast as she could.  

“Alright,” he said, inclining his head.  “Cover me.” 

She nodded, and managed to fight even harder somehow.  Without Rick, she now had to do enough for two people, and more and more creatures were cresting the ledge all the time. Her bat kept them back.  Rick hunkered down behind her, and tapped away desperately on his tablet.  Lexi had no idea what he had planned, but whatever it was, it had to be better than this. 

As she fought, Lexi checked in on Beth, who was doing a great job climbing up the wall.  Lexi climbed all the time, but she had nothing on Beth’s innate ability.  Being an ottsel came with its advantages.  Lexi, for her part, was just happy to get her friend away from this mess.  

After a few minutes of typing, Rick shouted, “I got it!  Brace yourself, eco girl.” 

Before she could say anything, Lexi heard the far-off sound of rushing water, getting closer.  A lot closer.  

At the time, she had been holding off a creature with her bat held in both hands horizontally in front of her face.  It had been only an arm’s length away from her face, snapping its teeth viciously, but had stopped when it heard the sound.  In fact, all the creatures had stopped, and turned as one toward the sound.  Lexi thought again about how different they behaved from other wild animals, when Rick roughly grabbed the back of her shirt, and pulled her away from the ledge.  He’d pulled her until she was up against the wall, and braced himself in front of her.  

Then, the room flooded. 

An unimaginably huge wave of water crashed into the room, filling the chamber with a ginormous torrent.  At first, Lexi had been shocked and more than a little annoyed with the way Rick had pulled her back.  She could do without being grabbed, thanks.  But, it turned out to be a good thing, because the rush of water was high enough to hit them.  It slammed into their legs, and without the preparation and extra support, Lexi might have been swept off the ledge, just like the creatures who had been attacking them.  The water carried the creatures away while they made animalistic shrieks and screeches that Lexi wished that she could unhear.  But because she couldn’t, she just held on to Rick as the water tried to push them off the ledge.

Lexi couldn’t have said how long the water rushed past them.  In reality, it had probably been only thirty seconds.  But it felt long enough to last a lifetime, so she just kept holding on.  

Finally, the water slowed.  The water dropped significantly in height, until it only pooled around their ankles.  At least now, they weren’t in danger of being pulled away by it.  

Rick pulled away from Lexi, and said, “You good?”  There was real concern in his eyes, and he still had his arms braced against the wall on either side of her head.  With any other guy, she might have felt trapped, claustrophobic, even.  But with Rick, she just felt protected.  And a little embarrassed.  She realized that she had to tilt her head up to meet his eyes.  

She gulped, and said, “I’m fine, thank you,” she looked to the side, “but we still have to find a way out of here.” 

“ Ahem, ” called Beth.  The hatch was now open, and a retractable ladder hung from it.  Luckily, it was in better shape than the one that had gotten them into this mess.  

Beth sat on a rung of the ladder, an elbow braced on the rung above it, with her head pillowed in her hand.  Cleary, she’d been paying attention.  “If you two are done with...whatever you’re doing, I got the hatch open.  Which was very difficult, I might add.  And that’s without even mentioning how hard it was getting the ladder down.  All by myself, I might add.  Please, congratulate me.”  She flopped her head back, throwing the back of her palm against her forehead dramatically, as if she might faint.   

Lexi pushed Rick away, blushing.  She may have liked having his support as the water had rushed around them, but she didn’t need to be teased about it right afterward.    

Rick took another step back, cleared his throat awkwardly and said, “Thanks, Beth.  You really saved the day.” 

Beth smirked.  “Oh, I know,” she said.  But then, with a dismissive nod she added, “Though, I guess you two helped, a little.  Now, come on!  I don’t know about you guys, but I don’t want to spend any more time in the sewer than I have to.”   

Lexi and Rick readily agreed.  They took turns leaping from the walkway and onto the ladder that would lead them out of there. 

Then, they climbed. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 10: The Return of Micah

Upon exiting up the hatch, they found themselves in yet another maintenance tunnel.  The first thing Rick and Lexi did once they were back on solid land was wring out their clothing as best as they could.  Beth happily reported that because she’d been at the top of the room, getting the hatch open when the flood happened, she was still dry, which made Lexi grumble openly.  Lexi reflected that it would be nice to have a day where she didn’t end smelling like a sewer. 

Once they were some approximation of dry, their next step was finding a way out of there.  Luckily, Rick’s tablet had survived the flood, since it’d been strapped high on his back.  Using it, Rick accessed the sewer maps.  He nervously reported that they were right under the city, near the university’s south campus.  Lexi reflected how far they’d travelled from the sewer gate on the other side of the city.  But, soon enough, Rick traced a path all the way back to where they’d begun, avoiding the now-flooded lower tunnels they’d come from.   

“You sure do know a lot about getting around a sewer for someone who’s never been here before,” said Lexi, twisting the soaked lower portion of her long braid.  She picked it up and looked at it distastefully.  She’d need a shower the moment she got home.  

Rick shrugged bashfully, smiling.  “I’m just good with maps, I guess.  I’m going to lead us to a door that should lead back to the city, and then I’m going to split and head back to the forest along another route.  I need to get back before anyone notices I’m gone.” 

They started walking in silence.  Even the normally talkative Beth was quiet as they absorbed everything that had happened.  Lexi thought about that last creature she’d fought, and the look of anger and intelligence in its eyes as the water had rushed towards them.  There had been something almost—human—about the way it had looked at her.  Lexi hugged herself.  She didn’t want to tell her friends about it, because she knew how ridiculous it sounded.  It had just been a creature subjected to dark eco.  There was no way that it could be as smart as a person; could there?  She shivered, but didn’t say anything.  

When they reached the end of one tunnel, it was time to part.  One way led back to the city, and the other led back into the forest.  Rick had to leave.  It surprised Lexi how upset she was at the thought.  

“Well,” she said, standing awkwardly at the junction where they would part.  She swung her arms that hung at her sides.  It was like she’d completely forgotten how to move them normally.  “I guess this is where we say good-bye.” 

“For now,” Rick said.  “I still have to help you get into the Tomb of Mar, to see if there is anything there we can use to figure out what the oracle said.  Once I’m able and you’re out of the sewer, I’ll send you a message.  We’ll plan something, I promise.”  He looked at her, gaze firm and steady. 

“Great!” said Lexi.  Internally, she cringed at how high her voice went.  She refused to think about the fun Beth must be having.  “Well, bye for now, then.” 

“Yeah,” said Beth, far too happily.  “Bye, Rick.”  He barely seemed to notice that she’d said anything, at first.  He was looking at Lexi so intently, that it made her feel like she would vibrate out of her skin.  

He started to walk backward down the tunnel back to the forest, still looking at Lexi.  “Bye, Beth.  Thanks for coming today.  I know it wasn’t your idea of a good time.” 

“Yep!” said Beth, cheerfully.  “But don’t worry, I’m over it.” 

Rick smiled sheepishly, and said, “Hey, Lexi,” he said, “remember how I said that I’d give you a new nickname?  Well, I got it.  You’re no princess, all right.  You’re a queen.” 

Lexi blushed as hot as the sun as he turned with a small wave and started walking back to the forest.  A door closed between them, hiding him from view.  

Beth whistled under her breath.  “Woooow,” she said, “he is so into you.” 

“Shut up,” said Lexi, fondly.  She couldn’t really be mad at her friend, not after what they’d just been through.  Lexi started walking along the path back to their part of the city.  Once again, time pressed down on her, and she knew that she had to get home as soon as possible.  She had a feeling that she had something else to do today, but had trouble remembering.  

“Hey, Lexi?” asked Beth, pulling Lexi out of her thoughts.  

“Hmmmm?” Lexi hummed in response.  She’d just have to figure out what she was supposed to do later. 

“Serious question:” said Beth on her shoulder.  “What’s the deal with him?”  She tilted her head back toward the door where they’d parted. 

Lexi raised an eyebrow.  “With Rick?”  She thought back to what she’d learned about him on their forest journey.  “Well, all I really know about him is that he lives with his uncle, who is a shaman or something, which is why he knows so much about eco and stuff.” 

“Not that deal,” Beth said, rolling her eyes.  “The deal with you guys.  There are definite vibes there.” 

“There’s nothing to say,” said Lexi firmly, scrunching up her nose at the question.  “And, besides, even if there was, I really wouldn’t be the person to ask.  You know that I don’t know anything about that kind of thing.” 

Beth said, “No, you’re right.  You’re definitely not the person to ask.  Maybe I should ask Rick the time I see him.  I could give that whole ‘don’t break with my friend’s heart or I’ll break you,’ speech.”  

They came to the end of the tunnel.  There was yet another ladder ahead of them.  But, luckily, this one led all the way up to a manhole.  Natural light streaming in from above, which filled Lexi’s chest with joy.  She started climbing the ladder, though her arms were beginning to ache from all the other climbing she’d done that day.  Forget working out, all this “hero” business would get her buff in no time.  

Lexi snorted in response to Beth’s offered threat.  “That’s very sweet, Beth.  But maybe we can save the threatening speeches to my dad,” she said as she climbed.  “You know how he’s always saying that I’m not allowed to date until I’m thirty, anyway.” 

Beth hummed thoughtfully.  “But, I mean, I kind of doubt that your dad will ever meet him.  Our dads have been in the forest a lot lately, but it’s not exactly like they roll in the same circles, do they?  And I can’t really see Rick ever coming to the city.” 

Lexi froze for a second.  For the last few days, she had been so absorbed in what she’d been doing that she hadn’t really spared a thought to how things would be when it was over.  After this issue with eco was over, she wasn’t going to have a reason to see Rick anymore.  He would never come to the city.  No matter how much Beth joked, he would never have a chance to meet her family.  Instead, he would just continue with the life that she’d so rudely interrupted.  And why shouldn’t he?  It wasn’t like he owed her anything.  She shook her head slightly, and kept climbing.  If Beth noticed her lapse into silence, she didn’t say anything.  

When she reached the top of the ladder, Lexi braced her hands on the manhole, and pushed with all her might.  She stuck her head out to check if the coast was clear, and was happy to see that the manhole opened up into a deserted alley, which presented no danger of being seen.  With a heave, she pushed the manhole entirely out of the way, and pulled herself out.  

“Ugh, remind me never go into the sewer again,” Beth said, ringing her light blonde hair of the foul moisture that still clung to it. 

“I’ll try,” said Lexi, dryly.  “C’mon, let’s go home.” 

Lexi started walking, with Beth prattling in her friend’s ear about how she was going to take a shower the instant she got home.  Lexi wasn’t really listening, instead trying desperately to think of the activity she had later that day.  She was sure that it had been something…

Then, it hit her suddenly.  She stopped in her tracks and shouted at Beth, “What day is it?” 

Beth leaned away, and said, “Ow, the ears!  And the fifth, why?” 

“Oh no, no, no,” said Lexi, starting to run as fast as her legs could carry her.  Beth gripped more tightly to the fabric of Lexi’s t-shirt.  

“What is wrong with it being the fifth?” asked Beth. 

“I’m supposed to meet Ashelin!” Lexi shouted in response.  She didn’t stop pumping her legs, running as fast as she could toward home. 

Ever since she could remember, whenever her family was in Haven, Ashelin always made a point to spend time with Lexi at least once a month.  It was because, due to the strange time-travel anomaly that had created her family, and her being an only child, her parents had been worried that she would be lonely.  Beth didn’t have that problem, with her little siblings, and the extensive family on her mother’s side.  

Jak had been so concerned about Lexi’s well-being, that Ashelin had promised him before Lexi had even been born to spend as much time with her goddaughter and niece as her busy schedule permitted.  This had translated to one day a month, at the very least, where they might go out to eat, or to the hoverboard park, or just to talk at the palace.  It was a sacred institution, one that neither of them ever cancelled if they could help it, and Lexi couldn’t believe that she’d almost forgotten it.  It was the fifth and the first Saturday of the month, which meant that Ashelin would be at her house to pick her up before she knew it.  

“Ashelin?” said Beth, finally concerned.  “Wow, you should really hurry then.” 

Somehow, Lexi found the breath to huff her irritation at her friend. 

Lexi barely managed to take the world’s shortest shower and change before Ashelin’s official vehicle, painted a deep red, touched down on the street in front of her house.  Even though they lived in one of the nicer neighborhoods of the city, the sight was still slightly strange. Ashelin didn’t typically pull out all the stops like this, instead preferring to take her personal hover.  People up and down the street pointed at the hover—the governor’s hover—in awe that it had landed in front of their apartment building.  Lexi didn’t let it bother her, and instead rushed forward to hop in.  To her, Ashelin would always be her auntie first, and the governor second.  

She strapped herself into the seat, and said.  “Hi, Ashelin.  It’s good to see you.”  She struggled not to show how winded she was from all the rushing. 

Ashelin pulled the vehicle up, and started speeding away.  “Yeah?” she asked.  “And why’s that?” she asked wryly. 

Lexi laughed.  “Because it’s always nice to see you!” she said.  She grew a little more serious, and added, “And, because, I really need someone to talk to.”  And it was true.  While the thought of meeting up with Ashelin today had initially filled her with stress, now that she was here, she was completely relieved.  Maybe, now, she had someone else to open up to. 

Ashelin inclined her head in acknowledgement.  “I’m not surprised, after everything that happened with the forest.”  

“Oh...that,” Lexi said.  Of course Ashelin knew about that.  Her parents must have told her all about it.  Still, she and Lexi hadn’t really talked about it during their outing to the palace earlier that week.  Embarrassed, Lexi felt the need to explain.  “I’m sorry—” 

Ashelin held up a hand to stop her.  “You don’t have to apologize to me, trust me.  If you knew half the things that your dad was getting up to when he was about your age….” she said, shaking her head slightly.  “Well, anyway, you made it out safely, and that’s all that really matters.  And, from what I heard, you handled yourself pretty well out there.” 

She smiled, prompting Lexi to smile as well, looking down in an attempt to hide it.  No one had said anything positive about the forest incident before this, and it was strangely gratifying.  

Ashelin held up a hand.  “Let me be clear,” she said.  “I am not condoning what you did.  If your father thought I did that, he’d never forgive me.  I just wanted you to know that I’m not mad at you, that’s all.” 

Lexi nodded silently, and looked out the window, wondering what to say.  She kind of wanted to ask what, exactly, her father had gotten up to around her age.  It sounded interesting.  But she had a feeling that she wouldn’t get any answers from that line of questioning. 

After a pause, Ashelin said, “But I know that you don’t want to talk about sneaking into the forest anymore.”  At a red light, she looked at Lexi with concern in her eyes.  “So, I wanted to ask: Is something wrong, Lexi?” 

“No,” said Lexi, without pausing to think.  It must have seemed suspicious how quickly the word was out of her mouth.  

Ashelin raised an eyebrow.  “Do you really expect me to believe that?  Lexi, I’ve known you your whole life.  I know when something’s up, and I know when you need to talk.  I’m not trying to get you in trouble.  You know you can always talk to me.  I’m just worried.”  

Lexi frowned slightly.  The worst thing about everything happening wasn’t the danger, or the late nights, or even the sewer smell that clung to her after many showers.  The worst part was how she made her family feel.  First, there had been the horrible fear that she’d put her parents into when she’d gone into the forest.  She was sure that she would never forget the look of fear on her mother’s face.  And now, she was worrying Ashelin, the most unshakable person she knew.  But even though there was so much she wanted to get off her chest, Lexi knew that she couldn’t reveal what was really happening; not while she was still investigating.  

“I just…” Lexi started.  She didn’t know what to say.  Ashelin had always been Lexi’s to-go for topics like broken rules and rebellious urges.  Sometimes, she even pulled Lexi from school for a day when Lexi really needed a break.  

The problem was, even if Ashelin could normally keep a secret, there was no way that she could stay silent about this.  If she knew that Lexi had powers, and was actively endangering herself, there was no question—she would tell Jak immediately.  Her concern for Lexi’s well-being would trump any promise of secrecy.  

Lexi turned away.  “I just…” she repeated.  “I want to be like my dad.  That’s all.”  It was the right thing to say.  After all, it was true.  Ashelin just didn’t have to know how true it was.  

Her aunt sat in silence for a moment, then nodded.  “I understand,” she said. 

Lexi started and asked, “You do?”  It was so good to be heard; it was so good to make sense to someone.  She’d spent so much time feeling like a mystery that there was no chance of solving. 

Ashelin nodded again, more heartily.  “Oh, yeah.  You’ve always wanted to be like your dad.  Remember the games you and Beth used to play, re-enacting his adventures?  And now you’re about the age that he was when he first saved the city.  It makes sense that you’d want more than ever to be like him, especially with everything happening outside the city. 
“But the thing about your dad is that he doesn’t see himself the way the rest of the world does.  Or, the way his family does.”  The way that she said it, Lexi knew that she was including herself and the rest of the extended family of friends that her father had built around himself.  

“I think he still feels guilty, in a lot of ways.  He still blames himself for a lot of the things that were done to him, and for the things he did because of them.” 

“That doesn’t make any sense!” Lexi said, unable hold it back. 

Ashelin held up a hand, not judging, but still firm.  “It doesn’t have to make sense.  The things that he went through...well, they change how you look at the world.  There’s a reason he works so hard to protect you.  You’re now the same age that he was when he was tortured.  It’s a bit paranoid, but I think that the idea of you being like him, in any way, scares him.  And that includes running around and saving the day,” she said, the side of her mouth pulling into a sad smile.  When Lexi didn’t respond, she continued: 

“People don’t always make sense, Lexi.  That goes especially when it comes to the people they love.  You’ll see that more as you grow up.  But, in the meantime, I do think that it would be a good idea to talk with your dad about all of this.” 

Lexi wrapped her arms around herself and huffed.  “He wouldn’t understand.”  Instead, he’d probably just bolt the windows shut, she thought cynically.  

Ashelin sighed.  “Lexi, trust me, he’s the person who would understand the most.” 

At the next stop, Ashelin gave her a look that was so deep and knowing, that it made Lexi feel like she knew exactly what she was doing.  Or, at least, that she had her suspicions.   

“Ashelin…” she said, not knowing where her sentence was going.  However, before she could say anything, she noticed that the zoomer was slowing.  They were on the landing pad in front of the palace.  Lexi looked around confusedly.  “Um, Ashelin?  Why are we at the palace?” 

Normally, for these monthly outings, they did things like go out to eat, walk around at a park or watch a movie.  It varied, but their hang-outs rarely happened at the palace.  Ashelin needed a break from the place as much as Lexi needed these talks. 

“Well,” said Ashelin, shifting the hover into park, letting it settle onto the ground with a soft hum, “I was thinking of us doing something different today.  Today, we’re greeting a diplomat.” 

Lexi scrunched up her face reflexively.  “A diplomat?” she asked.  She thought of the kind of men that came when the council was in session, to represent their far-flung cities.  Most of them were, in Lexi’s opinion, too boring to make good company.  She had no idea why Ashlein would take her to greet one. 

Ashelin smiled at Lexi’s expression.  “Not just any diplomat, Lexi.  Brick.” 

“Micah’s dad?!” Lexi shouted in delight.  “Brick’s coming, really?  Is Micah coming with him?”  

“Yes and yes,” said Ashelin, smoothly.  Her small smile grew slightly.  “And your dad’s here, too.  Once he heard Brick was on his way, Jak made it clear he had to be part of the greeting party.  Brick doesn’t trust many people in the city, and Jak wants to make sure Brick sees a friendly face when he arrives.” 

Ashelin shrugged casually, and said, “But, if you don’t want to see your friend, we can always leave...”  Her right hand floated over the gearshift.  

“No, I want to come!” shouted Lexi.  “I haven’t seen Micah in forever. I’d love to greet him.”  

This was the bright lining that she hadn’t expected that day.  Micah was her best friend from Spargus, and the son of their diplomat.  As a result, he spent the council season in Haven every year.  That, coupled with the time that Lexi spent in Spargus every year, made Micah one of her closest friends in the world.  No one else really understood what it meant to be part of both cities like he did.  

“Good,” Ashelin said.  “Then you’re going to be part of the official greeting party.  It’s nothing fancy, we’ll talk some things over, have lunch, and Brick’s probably going to want to go to the council meeting after.

“Which, by the way, you won’t be allowed to come to.  Sorry, Lexi, but I know that it just wouldn’t fly with the council.  And, more importantly, with your dad.” 

“I don’t mind,” Lexi said.  “As long as I get to see Micah.”  In the privacy of her own mind, she added, and as long as I can tell him everything that’s happened.  

They disembarked from the parked hover, and made their way to the front of the palace.  “Why are they coming early, anyway?  Don’t they normally come in a month or so?”  

Ashelin sighed.  “Well, Brick got it into his head that anything that has to do with eco has to do with Spargus, because of all the temples they have there.  So, according to his logic, he has to have a seat at the table when we decide what to do about it.”  She let out a long breath.  “I suppose that he does have a point.  If this eco thing gets any bigger, it could start affecting them, too.  And, of course, Sig signed off on it, so I really can’t complain.” 

They arrived at the diplomat’s landing platform.  Ashelin told Lexi that Jak would be there soon.  She then started speaking with an advisor, smoothing out a few accommodations they were making for Brick’s last-minute trip. 

Lexi reflected on how unusual things must be for the diplomat to come to Haven early.  Normally, he and Micah split the year between their home in Spargus, and the diplomat’s townhouse in Haven City.  Because he moved between the cities so much, Micah had always had a hard time forming friendships.  Except for with Lexi, of course.  Their friendship had been solid by the time they were seven.  Micah was the big brother she’d never had, often infuriatingly rational in the face of her crazy schemes, and often suffocatingly over-protective of her. 

And she couldn’t wait to see him.  If she could tell anyone about what was happening, she could him.  He was sure to know what to do. 

Jak made his appearance then.  He walked in boldly through the front gate of the palace.  There was a time when him doing so would’ve been unthinkable.  But now, all it took was the briefest flash of his ID for the two guards posted at the gate for them to hurriedly wave him in.  Everyone knew by now that he could be trusted to make the city a safer place. 

Spotting Ashelin and Lexi immediately, Jak went over to them and gave Lexi a brief hug.  From the cavalier way he did it, Lexi surmised that Ashelin must have gotten his permission, already.  It wasn’t surprising that he’d agreed to let Lexi come today.  He never really minded Lexi tagging along with her aunt on work assignments, as long as they weren’t dangerous or gave her too much information about the city.  He had complete and utter trust in Ashelin to watch out for Lexi’s well-being, so he generally agreed with letting Ashelin bring Lexi along.  

“When is Brick arriving?” he asked Ashelin, not bothering with greetings.  

She looked at her watch.  “He could be here any moment.  You know Brick.  He only let my assistants know he was coming when he was a half hour away from the city.” 

Jak chuckled and shook his head fondly.  “Yep.  That’s Brick all right.” 

“I’m glad you’re here,” Ashelin told him.  “Brick will be happy to see a friendly face.  Based on what he’s said, he doesn’t think that Haven is doing enough to counter the dark eco.  It’ll be a great help for him to hear about our efforts directly from someone he trusts.” 

Then she tilted her head to one side, indicating Lexi.  With this, she added, “And I think that he will also appreciate his son getting to see Lexi.  It’ll remind him that he has friends in the city, and that we have to work together on this.”
Lexi stood silently.  Ashelin was always thinking about stuff like this; about every little thing they could do to give them an edge in every situation.  It was what made her such a good governor of the city.  Even if it meant that she was using her as bait, Lexi didn’t mind.  Greeting Micah was worth it, and getting to sit in on a diplomatic meeting was sure to be interesting.  

Above the city came the whir of a huge hover approaching, whipping up the air of the courtyard with its approach and blocking out the sun.  That would be Brick’s ride. 

A huge, black hover touched down in front of the palace, and the wind of its approach stirred their hair and clothes.  The entire side of the vehicle turned out to be a huge door, which sprung open to reveal Brick. 

He was a huge, muscular man, wearing the typical loose, light clothing of Spargus, tied on with leather.  He had long, rusty red hair, pulled partially back into messy braids and dreads, like the ones that adorned his long mustache.  The impression he gave was of someone who had just returned from an expedition to the center of the desert.  Lexi knew this was slight trickery on his part: he dressed more casually when at home, but loved making sure that no one in Haven city ever forgot where he came from.  That was when he busted out his very best Wasteland gear. 

“Jak!” Brick shouted, holding his arms out wide.  He came off the ship, and clasped Jak’s arm in a firm handshake.  “I didn’t think I’d been seeing you so quickly.  But, I suppose that was my mistake, eh?”  Even with the emergency that had brought him here, he was as jovial as ever.  His laughter boomed through the courtyard.  Ashelin had been right about making sure the first face Brick saw was a trusted friend.  Brick then added, “And Lexi!  It’s so good to see you.  My, have you gotten taller?”  He asked this jovially, hands on his hips, making him look even broader. 

Lexi laughed.  “No,” she said, cheerfully.  “Still short.”  

Brick shook his head fondly.  “Your growth spurt will come, I’m sure of it!” he bellowed.  Then, he shook her hand firmly, almost knocking her to the ground.  She returned the shake warmly.  “But now, I’m under no delusions,” he said.  “I know you’re here to see Micah, not this embarrassing old man.  Micah, get out here!  There’s someone to meet you.”  He beamed up at the ship.       

His youngest son came out of the ship then.  Micah had shot up in recent years, almost overtaking his father in height, and with Brick’s same bulky, strong build.   His black hair was cropped short, as maintaining hair any longer than that was difficult out in the desert.  He had olive skin, and darker eyes than his father, which he had gotten from his late mother.

More taciturn than his father, he didn’t shout as he came off the hover to discover Lexi standing there with her father.  Instead, only his eyebrows shot up comically when he saw her.  She raised her own eyebrows back at him, as if to say, Look at me, I’m greeting diplomats now.   He didn’t have to know that this was a one-off thing.  His expression morphed into one of only slight surprise, and he shrugged.  Then, he shifted the huge bag on his shoulder and walked over to them.  

The hover’s engines turned off, and they were able to speak normally in the resulting silence.  Jak planted his hands on his hips and entered into a friendly discussion with Brick about how things were going in Spargus.  As they talked, Lexi walked up to Micah and gave him a hug. 

“Micah, you have no idea how happy I am to see you!" Lexi said.  He was the most reasonable person she knew; him being here would change everything. 

He took half a second to return the hug, but when he did the embrace was warm and comforting.  “I’m happy to see you too, Lexi.  I’m just surprised to see you right in front of the palace,” he said.   

Lexi waved him off, saying, “Oh, you haven’t heard?  I’m very important around here.  They’re going to have me start greeting all the diplomats.”  She lied freely, knowing Micah wouldn’t buy any of it anyway.  “ And I get to stay for the welcome lunch and everything.” 

Micah raised an eyebrow.  “Everything?” he asked doubtfully.  “Does that include the big council meeting this afternoon?”   

Oh no.  She was caught.  “Okay, so maybe not everything ,” she admitted after a pause.

Micah snorted and smiled in amusement.  “That’s what I thought,” he said.  He set down the bag, and straightened to his full height.  “That’s the meeting that had my dad rush over here so quickly.  Once he heard that something this big was happening in the city, he said that representation from Spargus had to be at the table for the final decision.  He only let me pack about thirty minutes before we left.”  He shifted the bag again.  “This is mostly just my communicator and what clothes I could stuff in there.”  

Lexi leaned forward and whispered, "Do you think they will make a decision this afternoon?” 

Micah shrugged expansively, an easy feat with his broad shoulders.  “I don’t know what to think.  With so many people on the council, there’s no way to make everyone happy, and it takes them forever to make any decision.  But you know my dad; he’s just the opposite.  If he got his way, we’d march in today and deal with this fast, before it gets any worse.  He thinks that if we leave it, the quakes might reach Spargus someday.  And, he also thinks that whoever’s behind this is after power, and they won’t stop unless someone makes them.” 

“So, he thinks there’s someone behind this, too,” Lexi said thoughtfully, arms crossed across her chest. 

Micah snorted.  “Of course he does.  He sees enemies everywhere, even when there aren’t any.  I think it’s because of the time he spent as a mercenary,” Micah said.  “In my opinion, there’s no reason to jump to conclusions.”  He was so much more reserved than his father—or Lexi, for that matter.  

Lexi gave a small roll of her eyes.  “What else could explain the earthquakes?  There has got to be someone behind this.”  With these words, she made a fist and punched it into her other hand’s open palm, for emphasis.  

Micah shrugged, as unaffected by her rambunctious attitude as always.  “Tectonic plates shifting?   A build-up of pressure in the eco?  Pollution?  It could be anything, Lexi.  We shouldn’t jump to conclusions until we have all the info.  I, for one, want to hear what the scientists have to say.”  

Lexi huffed out an irritated breath.  “ You’re the one who should be the diplomat.  I think you’re the only one still taking those possibilities seriously.  Everyone else is totally riled up and paranoid.  You should have seen my dad this morning!  When he heard a noise in my room, he acted like someone was in there attacking me or something.” 

Micah tilted his head at that, dark eyes thoughtful.  “Hmmm.  Now, that’s interesting.  I mean, your dad is super protective of you, but if anyone has any clue about this eco stuff, it’s him.  Maybe…” 

Before he could finish that thought, the adults waved them over.  It was time to go inside.  

Lexi swiveled her head back to her friend, and she gripped his arm, tight.  “We’ll talk more about this later, alright?” she asked.  “There’s still so much I have to tell you.”  

He nodded, bemused at her desperation.  “Of course, Lexi,” he said. “Whatever you want.  Now, c’mon.  The palace always has something good to eat, that’ll cheer you up.”  He clasped a hand on her shoulder, and gently led her inside.  She faked a smile as she let herself be led in; but inside, all she could think about was the council meeting she wouldn’t get to see.  

Chapter Text

Chapter 10: The Truth

“Wait, Micah’s back in town?” asked Beth, grinning widely.  “Tall, dark, serious, brooding Micah?” 

“He does not brood,” said Lexi.  “He just has a resting broody face.”  

It was the next day, and Lexi was bringing Beth up to speed about what little she’d learned the day before.  They sat in the hoverboarding park near their apartment where Micah was coming to meet them.  Lexi wanted to be on neutral territory when she told him her story.  He was going to get there soon.   

Beth waved her away.  “Man, I have to say, everything sucks right now, and I’m not going to pretend it doesn’t.  But Micah coming here a full two months early is definitely a bright side.  I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, but Spargus did a great job on him.”  She bit her lip.  

Lexi rolled her eyes good-naturedly, and couldn’t help smiling.  Beth’s over-the-top adoration of Micah was a long-running joke between them, and she suspected that Beth played it up for her amusement.  “Well, try not to drool too much, okay?  I want to let him in on everything that’s been happening.” 

Beth’s eyes widened and she waved her arms wildly.  “Wait, like everything everything?  Like, ‘you have powers’ everything?” 

“Yep,” said Lexi.  “And like ‘Rick’ and ‘the Oracle’ everything.  Everything.  Micah’s smart, and I’m sure he can help us figure something out.”  She spun the straw in her soda, wondering where to start once he got there. 

“Oh, yeah,” said Beth, fondly, waving herself as if she were about to faint.  “He’s smart, too!  Can I just take a minute to thank Spargus, personally, for how great he is?”  

Lexi chuckled and rolled her eyes.  Beth was always getting ridiculous and very vocal crushes on guys she’d met, especially the ones from Spargus.  Beth tended to think that they were all strong, silent, and deep.  Lexi, who had much more experience with teenage boys from Spargus, thought that most of them probably just didn’t have much to say.  But if Beth’s fantasies kept her happy, Lexi wasn’t going to get in her way. 

From where they sat on the low fence of the park, she had a good vantage point to see Micah as he approached.  He waved at them, warmly.  Lexi waved back half-heartedly, knowing that her story was going to wipe the smile right off his face.  

“I really hope that he isn’t going to be upset with us,” Lexi said, nervously.  

Beth, perched on Lexi’s shoulder, said, “He won’t be mad?  Why would he be?  We’re just trying to save the city.”  She shook her mane of blonde hair imperiously.  “Besides, even if he does get mad, what do you mean, ‘us’?  Everything’s been your idea so far.”  

But before Lexi could explain her reasoning, Micah had reached them, and it was time to tell him everything.  

“What were you thinking?” Micah bellowed at the conclusion of Lexi’s story. 

Lexi shushed him, “Micah, not so loud!”  The park was nearly empty, but they couldn’t risk being overheard.  “And I was thinking that I had to save the city!”  She conveyed with her expression how serious the situation was, and just how much danger the city was in.  

Micah looked at her, perplexed.  “And you have to be the one to do it?” he asked. 

She gulped.  “Yes,” she said, straightening.  “I have my powers now, which means that I have a certain responsibility to the city.  Which is why I’m going to meet Rick later today to search Mar’s tomb for answers.”  She said it firmly, hoping that her tone showed that there was no room for argument.  It was happening, and she wasn’t going to let Micah stop them.  

“You’re going out to meet his guy again?” asked Micah, absolutely incredulous.  “Lexi, do you have any idea how ridiculous that is?  He could be anybody!”  He waved an arm passionately.  “This could all just be some plot to kidnap you, or exploit you for your powers, or anything!” 

The most surprising thing had been how quickly Micah had accepted her powers.  He didn’t seem to mind that they existed at all.  In fact, he had glossed over them entirely in favor of yelling at her for all the stupid risks she’d been taking lately.  It would have almost been nice, if it weren’t for the yelling. 

“I was trying to save the city!” shouted Lexi.  She knew that she must be making a scene, and counted herself lucky that there weren’t many people there to see.  

“Oh, of course!” said Micah, throwing his arms into the air.  “You were just trying to save the city.  That’s why you’ve been creeping around in sewers, and running away, and hiding in the forest, and risking your life!  That makes total sense.  I mean, it’s not like there’s anyone else who knows how to save the city.  Someone who’s been doing it longer than you’ve been alive.  Nooooo, you’ve had your powers for a week, so of course it had to be you!” 

Lexi reared back.  It was a blow, being reminded of just how much more experience her father had than her.  Her inexperience was a knife that Micah knew just how to twist.  “That doesn’t matter!”  she said.  “I had to do this, don’t you understand?” 

“No, Lexi,” Micah said.  “I don’t understand.  The first thing you should’ve done after getting your powers was tell your dad about them.  Anything else just doesn’t make sense to me.”  He crossed his arms in front of his broad chest.  With this statement some of his anger evaporated, only to be replaced with disappointment, which was even worse. 

“Because….” Lexi sat down heavily on the bench behind her.  “Because I just had to do this.  I thought that if I could solve this on my own, my dad would have to admit that I should be able to use my powers, and that I had to follow in his footsteps.” 

She looked down and blinked rapidly.  I will not cry, she thought.  I.  Will.  Not.  Cry . 

“This is all I’ve ever wanted.  Getting his powers and being like him.  I thought that it was never going to happen for me.  Then, all of a sudden, it did.  And it was amazing.  It’s been amazing.”  She peaked up at Micah, and saw him softening.  His stance loosened, and he slightly lowered the arms that had been crossed so tightly over his chest.  She went on.  

“At first, that’s all I was thinking about.  That if I could handle this dark eco problem on my own, he would have to consider letting me be a hero, like him.  And when Rick told me about the oracle, I thought that they would be able to help me solve this earthquake problem.  

“But now, there’s so much more than that.  There’s something I don’t know about my powers, and I need to find out what it is.”  She shot him a pleading expression.  “I think that I can really do this.  With Rick’s help, and Beth’s, and your’s, I think that we could really do this.  We can find out what’s going on with me, and we can stop whoever is threatening our city—our home.”  She knew it was a risky argument.  While he spent much of the year in Haven City, he came from Spargus originally, and she wasn’t always sure if Haven really was a second home to him.  

Micah laced his fingers together, and he used them to push back his hair.  He closed his eyes and let out a long, slow breath.  Then, he peaked open one eye at her, and said, “Do you really need my help with this?” he asked. 

Lexi peered up at him.  “Yes,” she said.  “I really need your help.  You’re the calmest person I know, and I need you on my side for this.”  

Sighing again, Micah took a seat on the bench next to Lexi.  “Alright,” he said.  “I’ll help you.  If only to keep you from getting yourself killed out there.”  

“Good luck,” Beth said, examining her nails closely.  She’d stood watching this whole conversation uncomfortably, and was relieved they were done arguing.  “I’ve been trying for weeks to keep her from getting herself killed.” 

Micah snorted.  “Well, you must be doing something right, since Lexi’s still sitting here.” 

Lex was sure that Beth was blushing under the light fur on her face, but she tried to play it off.  “Well, you know,” she said, buffing her nails, “it’s just what I do.” 

In spite of everything, Lexi couldn’t help smiling. 

The next thing they had to do was meet Rick so he could lead them to the other entrance into Mar’s Tomb at the edge of the forest.  Despite his misgivings, Micah was going with them.  Still, he reminded them all the way there that he didn’t think it was a good idea.  Lexi told him that his concerns were duly noted, and kept going anyway.  

She shifted the blackpack higher up her back.  She’d been preparing for this trip for days, but there were still nervous butterflies in her stomach.  There was no telling just how much they could learn from the tomb.  Luckily, getting there was going to be much easier with Micah’s help.  As the son of a diplomat, he had the clearance needed to get out through the forest gates.   Together, they used a lesser-used gate to avoid the high Krimson guard presence at the west gate.  It would be a long walk, but it was worth it to avoid getting caught.  

“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” said Micah, after he’d typed his password into the panel next to the gate.  “I respect your dad, you know?  And he’d go beserk if he knew I was sneaking you out like this.” 

“Nah,” said Beth.  “After Lexi, you’re his favorite, and you know it.” 

Micah snorted.  “If he ever finds out about this, I doubt that’ll still be the case.” 

“You worry too much,” Lexi said.  They were trekking through the forest now, and she brushed aside a low-hanging branch.  “Besides, if we got caught, I’m taking the blame.  That goes for you too, Beth.”  She added this with a jerk of her head towards her friend to indicate her inclusion. 

“Good,” said Beth.  “I have college applications coming up, and I do not need to be grounded for the rest of my life before I do them.” 

“You’re going to college?” asked Micah with an eyebrow raised curiously. 

Beth stood imperiously on Lexi’s shoulder, tail hanging behind her.  “You don’t need to sound so surprised, Micah.  I happen to be a very good student.  You know, most of the time.”  

Micah cringed.  “Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that,” he said.  He ran a hand through his short-cropped hair.  “It’s just...I have applications in a year or so, and I’m not sure what I’m going to do yet.  I was wondering if you have advice.” 

Beth softened.  “Oh.  Well, I’m going to the school in the city.  I do not need a commute every morning,” she said with a shudder.  “Besides, this one wouldn’t know what to do without me, right Lexi?” 

Lexi smiled, and scrambled over a log.  “That’s right.  What would I do without you on my shoulder all day?” she asked dramatically.  “I could never cope with the loneliness!” 

“Yes,” said Beth, with a smug air, untouched by her friend’s sarcasm, “you couldn’t.  What about you, Micah?  What are you thinking of?” 

He shrugged.  “Well, I’m debating whether I should go to Haven’s university, or continue my training back in Spargus.”  

“You should go to school in Haven!” said Lexi immediately.  “We’d love to have you around more often.” 

“Definitely,” said Beth, biting her bottom lip.  Lexi was sure that under her fur, she was blushing. 

Micah didn’t seem to notice, and just said, “I don’t know,” he said.  “I think it’d be hard for my dad.  I mean, he’d still have my older brothers, but I’d still feel bad, leaving him.  I’m the only one still living with him, and I don’t want to desert him.”  He let out a breath.  “What about you, Lexi?  Where do you see yourself in two years?  Do you think you’ll go to school in Haven or Spargus?” 

Honestly, Lexi could see herself never picking once and for all between Haven and Spargus.  Like her dad, she would always be moving between the two, even if she did pick a college.  So, she didn’t want to focus on that part of the question.  Much more important to her was the assumption that she would still be going to college at all. 

She snorted.  “In two years, I’m going to be a hero, just like my dad,” she said.  She hopped onto a log and tossed her head.  “He didn’t go to college; why should I?” 

Beth and Micah exchanged a loaded glance.  Then, Beth said, “And you’re going to...tell your dad that?” 

Micah whistled under his breath and shook his head.  “Wow, you really do have a death wish, Lexi.” 

“Oh, whatever,” Lexi said.  “You’ll see, once he sees that I can handle this stuff on my own, I’ll be able to convince him of anything.” 

“Yeah, like that yakkows can fly,” mumbled Beth under her breath. 
Lexi didn’t dignify this with a response, because at that moment, the communicator in her pocket started to beep.  She pulled it out with a wide smile on her face.  Clutching it in both hands, she answered the call. 

“Lexi?” asked Rick’s holographic face, hanging in the air before her.  “Are you on your way?” 

“Yep,” Lexi said.  “And I brought some friends.”  She swept her hand behind herself, indicating Beth and Micah.  Beth flashed a peace sign and a smile, but Micah was less receptive. 

Micah crossed his arms across his broad chest.  “Is this the guy?” he asked. 

Lexi groaned.  “Yes,” she said with a roll of her eyes.  She said to the hologram, “I’m sorry, Rick.  My friend Micah here is just mad because he thinks that you’ve put me in danger or something.  I told him that none of the dangerous stuff was your fault, but he doesn’t believe me.”  She spared an annoyed glance at Micah.  

“Oh,” said Rick, eyes wide.  “Well, I’m sorry, Micah.  But I promise, I would never intentionally put Lexi in danger…” 

“Whatever,” said Micah, waving off his explanation.  “I don’t need to hear it.  Just tell me, where are we meeting up?” 

“We’re almost there,” said Lexi.  “We agreed on a spot we passed the other night.”  Bringing up the night that she had snuck into the forest had been the wrong choice, judging by the tendon that twitched in Micah’s neck.  She pressed on, saying, “We’ll be there soon, Rick.  Be ready.” 

Rick nodded, and his holographic head bobbed mid-air.  “Okay, see you soon,” he said.  Lexi and Beth said their own goodbyes, and his hologram flicked out of existence. 

Lexi turned to Micah and said, “You didn’t have to act like that,” she said.  “He really isn’t responsible for anything I’m doing.  He’s just an informant.” 

“Sure,” said Beth, “if that's what they’re calling it these days.”  Lexi groaned in embarrassment, and Micah’s eyes narrowed. 

“Fine,” he said, after a long pause.  “I’ll play nice, but I’m going to keep an eye on this guy.” 

“That’s all I’m asking,” said Lexi.  “Now, come on, we’re almost there!” she said.  Then, she led them to their meeting spot. 

Once they met up with Rick, things progressed quickly.  He greeted them nervously, tablet in hand, and checked around to make sure that they hadn’t been followed.  Despite his promise to play nice, Micah gave Rick a decidedly chilly greeting, but Lexi knew that was the least of their worries. 

“How long ‘til we get to the tomb?” Lexi asked, wanting to break the tension. 

“Not long at all,” said Rick with a smile.  “The secret tunnel we’re taking is near Haven’s south wall.  Since the tomb is under the center of the city, most of the walk is going to be in the underground tunnels beneath the city.” 

Beth groaned.  “Oh, great,” she said.  “Lexi, I thought that you promised no more tunnels!” 

“Uh-uh,” said Lexi, raising a finger.  “I promised no more sewers.  And I reserve the right to take back that promise for a good enough reason, like saving hundreds of people.” 

With a grumble, Beth crossed her arms and said, “Next time, I really need to get any promises in writing.” 

Lexi chuckled, and said, “Alright, you do that, Beth.” 

Micah, who walked behind them begrudgingly, said, “So, is this how your ‘adventures’ usually go?  Wandering around and bickering?” 

“Yes,” Beth said, “pretty much.  And you get a front seat.”  She leaned forward on Lexi’s shoulder, and added, “Aren’t you lucky?”  

Micah snorted.  “Sure, I’m lucky.  Lucky you two haven’t gotten yourselves killed already.” 

Normally, Lexi would have taken to this bait with a quip or a joke.  But under the jokes the tension from their earlier fight remained.  When he really saw what was out there, and how much Lexi was able to do for herself, he would forgive her.  And, once he was onboard, his help would be invaluable.  Until then, she bit her tongue—a difficult feat—and let Micah and Beth continue their playful bickering without her.  

After a short walk through the forest, they drew close to the south wall of the city, like Rick had said.  They came upon a spot that was no different than other parts of the forest, except that the foliage was lighter on the ground, as if it hadn’t had as much time to grow. 

“Weird,” said Lexi.  “Is this the place, Rick?” 

“Yes, I think so,” said Rick.  He held his tablet up at about chest height, peering at it intently.  “At least, according to my readings, the entrance should be here, but I’m not sure how to open it, exactly.”  He lowered the tablet only then, like it was his only shield against criticism.  Rick cringed like he was ready for anything they could throw at him. 

Micah snorted, and leaned against a tree with a shake of his head.  He crossed his arms and said, “So, I guess I can expect that we’ll be out here a while, huh?” 

Even though she had just promised herself that she wasn’t going to raise to his bait, Lexi darted an angry look his way.  Then, she slammed a clenched fist into her other palm and said, “O-kay.  We’ve solved harder problems together, so we can solve this one together, too!”  The embarrassment on Rick’s face melted away, and he gave her a grateful smile. 

“Well,” Rick said, walking forward and crouching near the start of the less dense greenery, “from the looks of it, the plants here have been disturbed before.”  With a pointed finger, he traced the sharp lines of the disturbance, and remarked, “Look at the shape.  It looks too regular, like it’s man-made.” 

“You’re right,” said Lexi, crouching down next to him.  She pointed to the point where the pattern started.  “So, maybe this is where the tunnel opens up?” 

“That’s what I was thinking,” said Rick.  He stood again and dusted his hands off on his dark pants.  “We found out where it is, now we just have to figure out how it opens.” 

He retreated again, and started typing away furiously on his tablet, looking for answers. After a second, he took out a device from his back pocket, set it down, and crouched down to examine it.  

Lexi, on the other hand, preferred exploring the real world for solutions to her problems.  She started walking up and down the clearing, pausing and poking around on all the edges of the disturbed foliage they’d noticed.  She’d crouch, poke around, and stand again.  Eventually, Beth hopped off her shoulder and took station next to Micah, where she engaged him in more small talk about their college plans.  Clearly, neither in them was in the mood for helping. 

Finally, Lexi knelt down right at the front of the disturbed earth.  She sank her fingers into the thin, brown soil.  She had a feeling that whatever controlled this opening was nearby.  

Her fingers brushed something that felt like metal a few inches under the surface of the soil.  Curious, she tried to work it free.  Whatever it was, it was either too heavy or attached to something, because it refused to budge.  Because pulling it out hadn’t worked, Lexi instead brushed it free of the soil that covered it.  With a start, she recognized the distinct pinkish hue of Precursor metal, with some sort of symbol.  Wanting to see the symbol clearly, she dug even faster.  When it was revealed, she saw that it looked like some kind of lightning bolt.  There was only one thing that could mean. 

She pressed her hand firmly down on the symbol, and channeled blue eco through her body.  A crackle of blue electricity shot down her arm and into the symbol. 

Behind her, just then, Rick turned away from the device he’d been using and said, “Guys, these scans indicate that there is Precursor technology in this clearing!  So, we should be looking for…” he trailed off, having finally seen Lexi using her powers. 

Lexi was still kneeling over, covered in blue electricity.  She was concentrating deeply, and didn’t look up from what she was doing.  Under her, she felt a rumbling.  Luckily, this rumbling was much more controlled than the earthquakes had been, so she wasn’t worried.  Micah and Beth stirred from where they’d been talking at the edge of the clearing, and walked forward, mouths open. 

The shuddering grew, until the ground seemed to open up beneath them, revealing a slanting tunnel into the ground that explained the pattern of younger foliage.  

Lexi released the blue eco’s energy, and the blue electricity disappeared with a poof.  Only then did she look at her friends.  Then, she offered them a small, satisfied smile. 

Rick hadn’t moved, and he closed his mouth, which had been hanging open in shock.  “Um, yeah,” he said.  “That’s the kind of thing we’re looking for.” 

Lexi stood up, and brushed the soil from her pants.  “So,” she said, gesturing to the tunnel’s opening, “are we going, or not?” 

Chapter Text

Chapter 12: Mar’s Tomb

They walked forward, flashlights illuminating their way.  Rick pulled a little ahead of the group, his eyes fixed to his tablet’s screen.  He must have been using it to navigate the way under the city, because he led them confidently when they came to turns in the path.  Lexi fell back, leaving him to it.  

Then, she bumped Micah with her shoulder.  “So, now that you’ve seen my powers in action, you must not be mad about them anymore, huh?  I mean, I don’t want to brag, but I am the one who got us in here,” she said jokingly, hoping to pull him out of his sullen anger.  

Instead, Micah scrunched up his face and said, “I’m not mad about the powers, Lexi.  I never was.  With or without them, you’re still the same person you always were, so I can’t be mad about them.”  He shook his head with his eyes closed.  “No, what made me mad was the danger you’re putting yourself in.” 

“I know,” said Lexi, looking down, and she had.  Her joking manner fell away in a second. 

Micah sighed and said, “But, I have to admit, that was pretty cool.  I guess I can see why you’d want to do it more; and why you’d seek out adventure.  I just wish that you’d told your dad before doing it.” 

Lexi perked up hopefully, but knew that she wasn’t completely out of the forest, yet.  

“I was going to,” she said, “and I’m still planning to.  My grandpa told me the same thing, but I didn’t give him a direct promise.  But I will, I promise you.”  She crossed her heart over her chest, a gesture that she and Micah had used countless times growing up when they gave each other their word.  “I already made up my mind to do it, and I know that I’ve upset you more than my grandpa.  If giving you a promise makes you feel better, I’m happy to do it.” 

His expression softened entirely, and he mirrored her gesture, crossing his finger over his heart, as well.  “Okay,” he said.  And just like that, she was forgiven.  With the air cleared between them, they walked the rest of the way to the tomb in the familiar, companionable silence of their childhoods.   

Finally, they came to wide, double doors set deep in the wall.  Their flashlights’ lights fell upon it, illuminating countless swirls of thick, curvy writing. 

Rick walked forward, and gave the doors a push.  As Lexi expected, they didn’t budge.  She walked up next to him.  

“Nothing,” he said, turning to her.  “Though, I have to admit that I didn’t really think that would work.  I imagine that it might take channeling eco or something.  Do you have any left in your system?” 

“No,” said Lexi, cringing.  Opening the door to the tunnels had drained her of all the eco she’d absorbed before she’d left the city.  She looked around desperately, hoping that there might be a eco channel nearby, or some other way to get the door open. 

Then, Micah said, “Guys, I don’t think that’ll be necessary.”  He pointed to an indent in the doors where they met.  “Doesn’t that look like somewhere you’d put a key or something?” 

The others gathered around to examine the indent.  It was round, and it had a distinct shape that Lexi recognized immediately. 

“It’s the seal of Mar,” Beth whispered in her ear, giving word to her thoughts. 

Thinking quickly, Lexi reached inside her shirt to pull out the leather cord that her seal rested on.  The cord was so long that the seal hung almost to her belly button, where it was kept warm and secret, pressed to her skin by her t-shirt and jacket.  

“I didn’t know you had Mar’s seal,” said Rick, in awe.  “It’s an incredibly powerful relic.” 

Lexi nodded.  “Yeah,” she said.  “My grandpa Samos gave it to me, and my dad got it from his father.”  She looked up into Rick’s hazel eyes.  “I keep it hidden from my dad.  If he knew I had it, he’d be suspicious.”  She shrugged.  “Besides, the whole Mar legacy is a heavy burden for him.”

He nodded his understanding, and was thoughtful when he stepped away. 

Letting out a breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding, Lexi walked forward, and put the seal in the opening.
With a groan, the doors opened wide before them. 

They walked into a large, cavernous room.  It was carved out of the stone that made up the foundation of the city, with grand stone pillars holding up the ceiling.  As soon as they stepped into the room, braziers along the walls lit up, red and green.  On the far side of the room was a huge fresco of carved stone depicting what looked like generations of the Mar family history.  But above all, Lexi’s eyes scanned the carvings of Mar, set deep into the wall every few feet.  The carvings depicted him as standing tall and noble in his robes.  Lexi felt the strange stirring her chest she always felt when she really stopped to look at him.  This was the man who had founded her city and started her family line.  But, even with all that, she didn’t really know anything about him.  He had done so much for her, and—at the same time—nothing at all. 

“Lexi,” said Beth, making her jump out of her reverie.  “I don’t want to be the bearer of bad news, but I have to say that this place doesn’t look very structurally sound.” 

It was true.  Some of the large pillars that held up the roof had fallen, leaving less than a dozen standing sentry through the eons.  Even those looked weak and old, with pieces missing.  Worse still was the fact that this room was the only part of the tomb they would be able to access.  The only other exit was a huge door that was completely obstructed by a blockade of stone.  It must have fallen long ago, judging by the undisturbed dust of centuries. 

Indeed, the only sign that people had been here at all were footsteps through the dust, which meandered through the room, mostly along the walls. 

“Who do you think made these?” asked Lexi, stooping next to some of the prints.

Rick went over to stoop down next to her and said, “Decades ago, my village discovered the way down here.  Our shamans figured out how a way to get the doors open, and studied it thoroughly.  That’s how I knew about it in the first place.  But then,” he shrugged, “over time, people lost interest.  That’s why it hasn’t been opened in so long.” 

Lexi stood up and dusted off her pants.  “I guess that makes sense,” she said, even as she felt a little sad that this place had been forgotten.  “There’s not much to see here.” 

Rick looked at her concernedly, and stood.  “I’m sorry that there isn’t more here.  I wish that I’d known that before I brought you here.  Do you think that you’ll be able to find what you need?” 

Lexi turned to face the blocked doorway.  Through there, and possibly even more tunnels and twisting paths, was the real Tomb of Mar; the place where her father had proved himself so long ago.  This room was probably just a distant off-shoot of the sprawling, underground catacomb.  She shrugged off her disappointment, and pushed away the thought of completing Mar’s tests herself.  All her life, she had known that her dad had completed them, but that the tomb had been made inaccessible by the collapse of the old palace.  With the news she could access the tomb had come the spark of hope that she would be able to complete the tests herself.  But now, she knew; she would never get her chance.   

She swallowed her self-pity.  That had been the case before, and she’d never let it stop her before.  Even without the tomb’s tests, she could still prove herself.  And, she didn’t want to make Rick feel bad, after how excited he’d been to share this lead.  It might still be a good place to gain insight into the oracle’s prophecy. 

So, she turned to him and said, “It’s okay, Rick.  We’ve thought that the one passage into the Tomb had been destroyed by the old palace’s fall before I was even born.  I never thought that I would get in here at all, and it’s all because of you.”  She smiled, and was gratified when his face brightened.  When he looked like that, it was hard not to feel that spark of hope.  

“You know what?” she said.  “We’ll just have to figure out what the oracle meant some other way.  It’s totally okay.” 

Just then, Micah said, “That sounds all well and good, but I really think that you guys should check this out before we leave.”  

The others had been so focused on the broken pillars and blocked door that they hadn’t even looked at the more intricate carvings of the Mar family on the far wall.  Of course it had been Micah, with his usual methodical patience, who had bothered to examine them at all.  

The rest of the group walked forward.  There was a frieze set deep into the sandy stone of the wall, depicting images from the Mar family history.  The carvings were expansive, and seemed to cover several generations of the family, starting with Mar and continuing with his descendants.  Lexi went to the beginning of the carvings, and walked along them slowly.  

“I can’t believe this,” she said, voice echoing.  “This is the entire history of my family!  It has all the parts that went missing.”  Her eyes sparkled when she smiled at her friends, prompting similar expressions from them.  Rick in particular looked thrilled at the discovery of so much history.  Lexi moved more quickly, pointing at different carvings as she went.  

“See, this is Mar founding the city,” she said, indicating a carving of her best-known ancestor, holding up his seal—the family seal—in front of an image of the city.  “But this next part was lost to the ages.  It looks like different generations of my family running the city and fighting the metal-heads.”  Indeed, there were countless images of people with Mar’s distinct features, carrying on his legacy; fighting and leading the city.  

Most striking to Lexi were the carvings that showed her ancestors using the same powers that ran through her veins.  Absently, she touched the seal that rested on her chest.  Whether or not this is what the oracle had meant when he had told her to find balance, she was glad that she’d done it, if only for this feeling alone. 

“Whoa,” said Micah.  He’d been ahead of her in his examination of the carvings, until he stopped short in front of one image further down the way.  “Um, Lexi.  You need to take a look at this.”

“What is it?” asked Lexi.  Her blood was still bubbling with the excitement of her earlier discovery, and she couldn’t imagine what more was waiting. 

Micah pointed silently to the carving.  It showed a man, possibly Mar’s great-grandson, hunched over with long claws.  Carved into the stone around him was the lightning pattern of dark eco flowing through a human body.  The lightning symbols might have also stood for blue eco, if it wasn’t for the look of complete anger on his face, and his blacked-out eyes.  There could only be one explanation; he was using dark eco.  

“He’s channeling dark eco,” whispered Beth, giving voice to Lexi’s thoughts. 

Lexi shook her head and said, “But that’s impossible.”  She pointed at the carving, horrified.  “This has to be at over a hundred years old, and my dad was the first one with dark eco powers, and only because the baron’s sick experimentation.” 

“I’m not sure about that,” said Micah.  “From the looks of this, members of your family have been able to channel dark eco for much longer than that.  Or, at the very least, he was.”  He waved his hand at the carving.  Then, seeing how distressed this made Lexi, he added placatingly, “It’s probably extremely rare, or else we should have heard about this before now.” 

“But it should be impossible,” Lexi said again in a small voice.  Her whole life, her father’s dark powers had cast a shadow over her, along with his inexcusable torture at the hands of the baron.  That had always been the real reason her father had worked so hard to protect her.  He had never wanted anyone to force his powers on her, as well.   

And now, right in front of her, was evidence that her family had been able to channel dark eco hundreds of years before the Baron and his evil experiments.  This meant that it might be genetic.  There might be no avoiding them. 

Lexi touched the image gently in the silence of the hall.  When she ran her fingertips across the image of the corrupt, stooped form of her ancestor, she felt the rise and fall of the stone.  She knew, then, that this could be her someday.  More than anything else, she wished that there was a way to share how she was feeling.  Then, a story she hadn’t thought about in years jumped to the front of her mind as she stared at the carving, and she started to speak.
“Did I ever tell you guys about the first time I saw my dad in his dark form?” asked Lexi.  

Beth’s eyes went wide, and she exchanged a glance with Micah, who stood behind them, as solid as ever.  Rick froze, eyes fixed on her.  

Without being prompted, Lexi continued, staring through the images on the wall and into the past. 

“I was a little girl.  Six or seven.  My mom, dad, and I had gone off-roading in one of Sig’s trucks in the desert outside Spargus.  That was the kind of thing we liked to do when we visited.  Normally, we’d drive around, find somewhere to eat our lunch, and return by sunset.  But that day, we broke down miles from the city.  We weren’t worried, though.  We had spare parts, and my mom probably could have fixed it with nothing.  

“She was under the hood, working, and my dad was pitching in.  I was sitting off to the side, waiting for them to finish.  I wasn’t scared.  This kind of thing happened all the time in Spargus.”  She spared a glance to Micah, who nodded.  He knew better than anyone what a childhood in Spargus was like: full of unexpected challenges.  

Lexi let out a deep breath before saying, “Then, I saw it.  There was a huge plume of dust in the distance, getting bigger.  I pointed at it, and shouted, ‘Daddy, look!  Sig is coming!’  I thought that he must have found us and was on his way to help.  My daddy turned to look at it, and his brow furrowed.  Suddenly, he became very still.  He said, ‘That’s not Sig.’  And the way he said it…” she shivered.  

She steeled herself, and pressed on.  “Well, then my mom was looking, too, and her eyes went wide.  I knew something was wrong, but I was just a little girl.  What did I know about the bandits who roam the desert?  My dad got very serious, and said, ‘Keira, take Lexi into the car.  Lock the doors.  Sit in the back seat, don’t leave, and don’t make a noise, no matter what happens.’  She nodded, and picked me up like I was a ball, and ran into the car.  She locked all the doors, and pulled me close to her in the backseat.  I could feel her shaking.” 

Lexi looked up.  “Suddenly, there was a circle of huge cars surrounding us on all sides, still driving.  My daddy stood between us and them, and I was shaking now, too.  I knew from my uncle Daxter’s stories that he was good at fighting.  But there were so many of them and there was no help coming. 

“Finally, the cars stopped.  The leader jumped out of his car.  He was bigger than my dad, with this bushy black beard and scars all over his body.  They stood face-to-face, and I’d never seen my dad so angry.  It wasn’t like when I made a mess or talked back to him.  This was a completely different level of anger.  The bandit told my dad that this was a robbery, and that if he gave them everything he had, they’d spare his life.  He didn’t mention my mom or me.  They didn’t know we were there, I guess. 

“My dad said, ‘Somehow, I doubt that.’  He was so angry, just staring daggers at this guy.  I didn’t know it then, but my dad was universally hated by bandits like them because of how many of them he’d taken into custody; and they had recognized him instantly.  There was no way that they were going to let him go so easily, and he knew it.  

“The leader spat on the ground, and looked around at his goons, who all laughed.  ‘You know,’ he said, ‘you’re smarter than I expected.  Or, at least, you’re quick on the uptake.  Yeah, I’m thinking that business would be a lot easier without you messing up our operations…Jak.’” 

Lexi swallowed.  “I squirmed, then, and tried to cry out to my daddy, but my mother covered my mouth.  But that just made me squirm harder.  She must have wanted to cry out, too, but she knew how important it was to follow my dad’s instructions in an emergency.  He had saved them so many times before, you know?”  She shrugged before continuing.  

“‘You’re making a mistake,’ my dad said.  ‘You can turn back now.  This is your last shot at mercy.  Take it.’  They laughed at him.  One man, with one gun, against all of them?  They must have thought that it was a sure thing.  But what they didn’t know was, he had dark eco in his system.  

“He transformed.  My mom tried to cover my eyes.  I think that she didn’t want me to see my dad like that.  But I peeked through her fingers.  I had never seen him move like that.  I’d never seen anyone move like that.  It was over so fast, but it was still terrifying. 

“When he was done, the dark eco left his body with a fizzle, he climbed up into the car to make sure that we were okay.  There had been so much gunfire, scattered everywhere.  But the hull of the car had kept us safe.  I was crying, then.  It was the scariest thing that had ever happened to me.  

“He climbed into the backseat, and comforted me.  He took me from my mother’s arms, and held me close.  He held me while I cried, and that’s when I noticed that he was also shaking.  That’s when I realized that he’d been scared, too.  He had transformed from this furious fighting machine back into my daddy.  But after that, I always knew what it really meant, when he turned into his dark form in all the stories.  After that, I knew what he was capable of.” 

Lexi looked into her ancestor’s black eyes, “And what I could be capable of, if I inherited his powers.” 

Everyone was quiet, looking at Lexi.  She had never felt so alone when surrounded by people.  Her arm fell to her side.  

Then, Beth said, “Lexi, this mural probably doesn’t mean anything.  Your dad only got his powers because of the dark eco experimentation, right?  You’re probably fine.”  She worked so hard to sound cheerful for her friend. 

Lexi took a step back from the carving.  “Yeah,” she said.  “You’re probably right.  But seeing my dad’s powers isn’t the only part of that story that bothers me.” 

“What else?” asked Rick.  He reached out a hand towards Lexi’s shoulders, but retreated under Micah's glare.  Lexi didn’t notice.  

Instead, she turned away from the wall and said, “I was so mad at myself, for being so useless.”  She hugged her arms across her chest.  “He was in danger, right in front of me, and all I could do was cry.  I never want to be that helpless again.”  She looked up at them.  “I know that I’ve dragged you guys into a lot of trouble, lately.  But that’s the real reason why.  I can’t just sit by and do nothing.  I can’t do it ever again.”  

Rick took another hesitant step towards her.  He wanted to comfort her, but didn’t know how.  

Then, the tunnel shook.  This time, the shaking went on longer and with more power than ever before.  Clumps of rock fell from the ceiling, and the entire room gave a warning shudder.  One pillar lost the last stone that had been holding it up precariously, and tumbled toward them.  Rick, who had already been reaching out to hug Lexi, dove forward and pulled her to him instinctively, pulling her out of the path of a falling stone.  Startled out of her reverie, Lexi turned to him, surprised and grateful.  

“I think this is our cue to leave!” shouted Beth, returning to her usual place on Lexi’s shoulder.  

“Run!” shouted Micah, pointing to the door.  Bracing their arms above their heads to protect them from falling debris, the group started running, staggering toward the opening to the tunnel.  

This time, they ran through the confusing warren of tunnels without the help of Rick’s directions.  Luckily, they remembered enough of the key turning points to find their way, fighting against the shaking ground with every step they took.  Sooner than expected, they saw light at the end of the tunnel.  They dove toward it.  Stepping back out into the open air was a great relief, now that there weren’t tons of rock crumbling above their heads.  

But though they were out of the tunnel, they couldn’t relax completely; the quakes showed no sign of stopping.  The ground still shook harder than ever, threatening to throw Lexi and her friends down with every step.  Once they were out, Micah shouted, “Get down and cover your heads!”  They did so, and didn’t move again until the ground stopped shaking. 

When the earth stopped quaking, the stillness was absolute.  Even the birds in the trees seemed to freeze.  But Lexi knew that her new sense of safety was wrong.  The quakes could start again any second. 

Rick stood first.  “My uncle!” he said in horror.  “I have to go home to check on him!  The quakes are closer than they’ve ever been before.” 

“I’ll go with you!” said Lexi, standing as well.  

“No,” he said firmly, planting his hands on her shoulders to hold her still.  “It’s not safe.  Go back to the city.  I’ll let you know by our communicators if we’re safe.”  

“And if you aren’t?” asked Lexi, upset at the thought of being sent away.  

Rick shook his head.  “Don’t come then, either.  Just...report our location to the military.  Or to your aunt, or your dad.  Anyone who can help.  But only if I send you the word, okay?”  He looked into her eyes beseechingly.  “Please?” 

Lexi was speechless at the thought of him revealing his village’s location.  “Are you sure?” she asked. 

He nodded.  “Yes.  I can’t protect what isn’t there, can I?” he asked.

She blinked rapidly.  “You have to let me help.  Please, Rick.  You said that you trusted me.”  She put her hands on his, still on her shoulders.  

He took her hands from her shoulders, and pulled their linked hands between them.  “I do.  That’s why I trust you to do this for me.  And I want you to trust me when I say it’s better for you to go back to the city.” 

Micah looked at Rick appraisingly, as if he still didn’t know what to make of this boy who had seemed so dangerous, but who had also saved Lexi in the dark of the tunnels, and was now sending her away for her safety.  Later, he’d have to reconcile this new information with what he thought of him.  But at that moment, Micah knew the most important thing was getting Lexi back to the city. 

So, he put a hand on her shoulder and said, “Lexi?  It’s time to go.” 

Lexi nodded slowly, not looking away from Rick’s face.  Then, she dove forward and hugged him tightly.  “Be safe,” she said into his chest. 

Surprised, he hugged her back lightly and said, “I’ll try.”  Then, he pushed her away gently and said, “Now, go.”  

She nodded, and left.

Chapter Text

Chapter 13: Collapse

Lexi and Micah ran all the way back to the city.  Whenever the quakes came, which was often, they would find cover, and duck until it was over.  Every time, as soon as the quake was over, they’d start to run again.  They needed to get back to the safety of the city.  Not only did they have to be ready in case Rick needed them, but they also had to make sure everyone home was safe. 

Finally, they reached the gate.  It was easy to slip through unnoticed in the chaos.  All around the gate, the new Krimson Guard were mobilizing to protect civilians.  They were leading people into cover, and leading them away from the danger outside.  As they walked through the streets, the three of them saw zoomers that had crashed and buildings that had collapsed.  Debris covered the streets, making it hard to navigate. 

Micah walked them all the way to their apartment before he changed direction, telling them over his shoulder that he was going home to check on his father.  Lexi nodded, and ran into her building, where she felt safe at last.  Their part of the city hadn’t been hit hard by the earthquakes, which made it easy to pretend that everything was okay.

The girls split up in the hall, each going to her own apartment.  There, they both separately found that their homes were empty.  Beth, not wanting to be alone, immediately went upstairs to be with Lexi.  Together, they sat on the floor of the living room, taking out their communicators to check if everyone they knew were okay. 

As soon as Lexi did so, she found that her communicator was filled with panicked voicemails from every member of her family, both in Haven and Spargus City.  Apparently, news of the quakes had spread quickly.  Beth found a similar torrent of concern on her communicator, and they spent the next hour calling people and telling them they got home safely.  Lexi started with their parents before including her extended family of Samos, Torn and Ashelin.  They told all of them where they were, and that they were unhurt. 

When Keira had answered, she had nearly broken into tears of relief at the sound of her daughter’s voice, which made Lexi feel the familiar stirring of guilt in her stomach.  That settled it; she would have to tell her parents what she was doing later that day, if she could manage it.  Even if she had to stop adventuring, she couldn’t keep endangering herself without her family knowing.  It was time.  She closed the communicator with a small “click.” 

“How’s aunt Keira?” asked Beth, who had just gotten off the phone with her own mother, who’d also been worried sick. 

“She’s safe,” said Lexi, hollowly, “and relieved.”  Then, she shook herself and perked up.  She was just lucky that her mother was unhurt.  “She was at the racetrack, and it’s built to withstand this kind of thing.  How’s Tess?” 

“Good,” said Beth.  “And my brothers and sister were with her, thank God.”  She held her communicator to her chest.  “Everyone’s fine, she says.” 

“That’s great to hear,” said Lexi.  But there was still one person whose safety they still didn’t know about.  The communicator Rick had given her sat in her pocket, silent and heavy as a brick.  The longer he went without calling, the longer they didn’t know his fate, or the fate of his entire village. 

As if reading her friend’s mind, Beth said, “Are you worried about Rick?” 

Lexi nodded, not bothering to hide her distress.  “And his village.”  She took the communicator out of her pocket, and set it on the ground in between them.  The ground shook again, a tiny tremor compared to the rest, and Lexi braced her hands on either side of her.  

When it was over, Beth said, “You know, it’s strange.  There’s so much that we know now, that seemed impossible just a week ago.”  She was staring at the communicator intently. 

“You’re right,” said Lexi.  “And now, there’s a whole village out there, and we’re the only people in the city who know about them.” 

Beth gulped.  “Do you think we should say something?” 

Lexi hugged her legs to her chest.  “Not yet,” she said.  “I know what you mean.  I want to, too.  Especially because my dad is already in the area.” 

It was true.  Jak had been the first person Lexi had called, and that was the first thing he’d told her, once he’d found out she was safe.  He’d been patrolling the area with Daxter and Torn, like he had for the last few weeks.  They were fine, and they were going to keep investigating.  With the quakes happening so fast, the pressure was building for them to figure out what was happening.  Lexi had told him to be careful, and he’d promised he would.  He’d hung up, but not before Lexi had known that she could send him to Rick’s aid in a heartbeat.  Now, she just needed Rick’s signal.  

They sat in silence, staring at Rick’s silent communicator set on the floor between them.  With every second, Lexi’s worry grew.  She started chewing her nails compulsively, even though her nail-biting always made Beth complain.  When Beth’s pleas couldn’t get her to stop, Lexi remembered the way that her father’s nails grew when he channeled dark eco, and she lowered her hand. 

After what felt like an eternity of waiting and watching, the communicator rang. 

Beth’s gaze snapped up to her friend’s eyes, and Lexi jolted from her reverie.  She dove forward, and scooped up the communicator, answering it instantly.  

“Rick?” Lexi asked breathlessly.  
“It’s bad,” he said instantly.  A hologram in the form of his face floated in the center of the room, and Lexi could sense movement and chaos all around him.  “The quakes are getting stronger all the time.  Our buildings are strong, but they can’t take much more, and there are cracks in the ground.  We need to evacuate, but the village leaders aren’t convinced.  As long as our location is secret, they’re going to want to keep it that way, no matter the risk.  We need all the help we can get.” 

Lexi’s heart sank, before she was hit with a wave of determination.  Rick’s village needed to be saved, and she’d be the one to do it.  

“What do you want me to do?” she asked. 

“Tell everyone.  Your aunt, your dad, the military.  Let them know, and send them to the forest.  I’ll meet them, and bring them to the village.” 

Beth’s eyes widened with worry.  “Is that a good idea?” 

“I’m the only one who can show them the way,” he said.  “Then, once the village is discovered, there will be no point hiding, and then the forces of the city can help us evacuate.” 

“Okay,” said Lexi, trying to match his confident tone.  “I’ll tell them.”  She stood, and Rick could sense the purpose in her stance. 

“Thank you, Lexi,” he said, eyes kind.  “But remember what I said; I don’t want you to come.  It’s dangerous here.  If you tell them there are people here who need help, that’ll be more than enough.” 

“But, Rick…” Lexi said.  She was going to say something about her powers, about how having them meant that she had a responsibility to use them for things like this.  She wanted to say that she didn’t want to be that helpless little girl from the story she’d told that day.  She would have told him all that, even though really, she just wanted to be by his side as he faced the greatest challenge of his life. 

He cut her off.  “Lexi,” he said.  “Please.”  His look was full of everything he hadn’t said, too. 

So, she swallowed, and agreed. 

After she hung up, the first thing Lexi did was put in an anonymous tip to the government’s hotline, which had been created in light of the emergency.  She told them, as best she could, where the village was located.  She didn’t specify what they’d find there, and instead just said there were people there who needed their help.  The woman on the line took her tip politely, and said that it would be investigated in due time.  Not satisfied, Lexi called Ashelin next. 

“Aunt Ashelin,” she said, as soon as Ashelin picked up. 

“What’s wrong?  Are you and Beth okay?” it was noisy wherever she was, and she looked panicked to be receiving a call from Lexi right then.  

“We’re fine.  But, Ashelin, there’s something important I have to tell you, and I can’t tell you how I know.  Not yet, anyway.”  Lexi was still going to share the full story, but she wanted her father to be the first one she told. 

Ashelin’s brow furrowed in confusion.  “What is it, Lexi?” she asked. 

“There’s people in the forest, a lot of them, and they need our help right now.  I don’t know where they are, exactly, but I can give you the general location.  If you start heading that way, you should find someone who can show you the way.”

Even though she was confused, Ashelin respected Lexi, and didn’t question how she knew this.  Instead she said, “Okay.  I’ll tell everyone I can.”  

Lexi swallowed.  This was going to be the hard part.  “My dad needs to know, too.  Can you tell him?”  

“I can’t,” Ashelin instantly said. 

Beth tilted her head, and Lexi said, “Why not?” 

A look of regret crossed Ashelin’s face and she said, “We lost communication with him and Torn not long ago.  I’m not sure why.  They probably moved deeper into the forest, out of range of our communicators, but they think they might be able to catch whoever is behind this.  The last thing they told me before the connection broke was that they had a lead.” 

Lexi’s heart sank.  “But there are also a lot of innocents in the forest right now!” 

“You let me worry about that,” Ashelin said.  “I’m going to do everything I can, Lexi.  Just stay put.  You’re safe where you are, and I want it to stay that way.  I’m going to start spreading this information as fast as I can.  Take care of yourself.” 

“I will,” Lexi said despondently before hanging up.  She and Beth sat in silence for a few seconds. 

“So your dad is out in the forest, all riled up and angry, looking for whoever is behind this and Rick is walking around looking for people from Haven?” asked Beth nervously.  “And we can’t call him.” 

“Yes,” said Lexi, staring straight ahead. 

“And when we first saw Rick, standing around in the supposedly empty forest, we thought it was him,” said Beth, “because we were dumb.” 

Lexi cringed.  “Yes,” she said. 

“And they might run into each other before Ashelin can get there to explain what’s going on."  

“Yes,” Lexi said.  She knew what that meant.  If they met Rick like that, they might arrest him for questioning instead of helping him.  Or, even worse.

She stood.  “So I have to get there before that happens.” 

Beth swallowed and said, “Yes.  Yes, I think you’re right.  And I’m coming, too.”  She jumped onto Lexi’s shoulder. 

“Are you sure?” Lexi said.  She felt bad for all the trouble she’d caused her friend, and she knew that she was about to head straight into danger, with Beth on her shoulder. 

“Of course I’m sure!” said Beth.  “Between us, I’m the charmer.  You’ll need me there to smooth things over.”  Lexi looked up at her friend gratefully, and gave her a smile.  As long as they had each other, how bad could things be? 

“Okay,” she said.  “Let’s get going.”

Chapter Text

Chapter 14: Fallout

It was the work of a moment to get the family’s one-person zoomer.  Lexi felt awful taking it, but she knew that it was the only way that she would get there in time.  She’d be grounded for the rest of her life, but that it was worth it. 

She used every bit of her racing prowess to weave through the chaos of the city to the forest gate.  This time, it was about so much more than a title and a trophy; lives were at stake.  

When they got there, Lexi parked the zoomer along the side of one street.  It was almost suspicious how empty the area was of Krimson guards, until Lexi realized that they had probably all been mobilized to other parts of the city.  After checking to make sure the coast was clear, Lexi made her way to the gate.  She quickly typed in the code Micah had used, which she’d memorized with his grudging permission.  When the gates opened, she almost sagged with relief.  but there was no time to waste. 

Into the forest she ran.  She ran and ran, crashing through the branches.  Rick needed her help.

Rick moved through the trees, quick as lightning.  He wasn’t sure where to find the help Lexi was sending.  All he knew was they had to be here soon, or there was nothing else he could do. 

He shook his head.  He couldn’t think like that.  Not now, when so many people depended on him.
Rick’s village had always proudly held on to its secrecy and strength.  When the founders had been bombarded with burning stones hundreds of years ago by a giant monster, they had stood firm.  When Mar had come to them, asking that they join his new city, they had stood firm.  Even when they’d been forced to move closer to the city and retreat into secrecy, they’d stood firm in their beliefs.  And now, being shaken by the ground under their feet, they would rather stand firm than admit they needed help.  Which was why Rick had to make that choice for them. 

He doubted this decision.  Of course he did.  After all, he had grown up being told about how horrible the city was, and how it would try to absorb everything different and change it.  Then, he’d met Lexi.  She was a girl from the city who was nothing like what he’d expected.  She’d told him that the city had been liberated from the evil baron, and was now filled with people who wanted to help.  Even better, they had been able to form a diplomatic arrangement with another city, Micah’s hometown of Spargus, without absorbing it into itself.  Maybe things could be better than they were before, when his father had fled the city long before Rick’s birth. 

He had to cling to hope.  

Suddenly, he saw someone in the forest ahead of him.  With a jolt of recognition, Rick realized that he must be Lexi’s father, Jak.  They had the same yellow-green hair, which he had cropped short, and he had a similar snub nose, except bigger.  Their faces were also similar, but he was built more broadly and was more intimidating than his daughter.  The most striking similarity by far was that this man, just like Lexi, had an orange and yellow ottsel on his shoulder, except this one was a male who looked to be about Jak’s age, as much as any ottsel can look middle-aged, with a few flecks of white in his otherwise yellow and orange fur. 

The ottsel wasn’t the only person with him.  Behind Jak stood about a half dozen soldiers, and next to him was a man with brown braids and a tattoo-covered face.  

They were talking amongst themselves loudly. 

“We need to stop this, Jak.  There’s no way that I’m going to let this get bad enough to engulf the city,” said the man with the tattooed face.  His voice was gruff, deep, and frustrated.  He was acting like a demanding boss who wasn’t getting what he needed from an employee, as if Jak had missed an important deadline.  His braids, which were almost shoulder length, swung when he gestured wildy to the city behind them. 

“I’m not planning to, either,” said Jak. He pinched the bridge of his nose, clearly exhausted.  “I’m just as motivated as anyone else to put a stop to this, Torn.  And I’ve stopped worse.”  

This seemed to pacify the other man, Torn, who clenched his hands on either side of his hips, as if he could channel his frustration into them.  “I know,” he said.  “I know.  But we’re so close, whoever’s behind this has to be out here somewhere.” 

Rick’s heart started beating faster.  Not for the first time, he wondered what he was thinking, standing so close to these people, who had been the sworn enemies of his village before he’d even been born.  They could arrest him on sight.  What was he thinking, approaching them for help?  It would be better if he stepped away and found help elsewhere. 

He pushed his mask down over his face, and took one step back.  There was the loud “crack” of a stick snapping.  Jak, Torn, and the others all turned toward them.  On instinct, Rick scrambled backward, and took a hard fall, his gloved hands hitting the ground painfully. 

“Who’s there?” someone asked.  It sounded like Jak.  Rick scrambled faster, and turned to run.  But before he could get anywhere, the men were upon them, and Rick sat panting on the ground between them, and no one was coming. 

Jak's jaw dropped.  There, out of nowhere, sat a teenaged boy on the ground.  "Guns down," he said, assuming that the boy must be innnocent.  Innocent, but definitely suspicious.  Jak exchanged looks with his companions, but they all seemed just as lost as he was. 

Torn took the lead, saying, "You're just a kid."  He looked down at the boy, utterly bemused, but without drawing his gun.  "There is a lot of dangerous stuff out here?  What on earth are you doing here?" 

There was concern in his voice, and Rick instantly knew that he wasn't in immediate danger.  Still, he'd have to get his answers right, if he was going to convince them to listen.  The rest of his village depended on him. 

"Please," he said, without introduction.  He shifted his weight nervously.  "It's my village; it's in danger." 

The men exchanged cool glances, and Jak crossed his arms.  They were doubtful, but still, it was Torn who spoke.  "Village?  What village?" he asked. 

That's when Lexi found the group.  Knowing immediately that Rick needed her help, she jumped in front of him, and shouted, "He's telling the truth!" 

Though the men were all well-trained, the sound of her arrival caught them off guard.  A few hands moved towards weapons, and even Jak jolted.  He looked about ready to attack for a moment, before his wide, cyan eyes caught on Lexi's face.  Though his hand hadn't even touched the grip of his gun, he was filled with a sudden horror at what he'd almost done, and more horror at how the men around him reached for their own guns. 

“Don’t shoot!” shouted Torn and her father at the same time.  While both voices were panicked, Torn said it with the authority of a commander used to being listened to.  Her father just sounded angry. 

Lexi opened her eyes.  All eyes were locked on her, and she could practically feel the waves of shock rising off the crowd.  She took a quick peek over her shoulder at Rick.  Though she couldn’t see his face, he radiated the same shock as the others.  But he was okay, and that was the most important thing.  

She turned back to the group of men.  

“Lexi!” said her father, voice more angry than she’d ever heard it before.  “What are you doing jumping out at us in the forest like that?  I could have shot you!”  

Lexi locked eyes with her father.  “Daddy, you have to listen to me.  This is Rick, and he’s innocent.  He’s been helping me figure out what’s been happening.  He lives in a village outside the city, and they are getting hit by the quakes even worse than we are.”  As she looked at him, her eyes welled up, and she kept her arms up, to show that Rick was still under her protection.  

“He’s innocent,” she repeated.  “And I couldn’t let you hurt him, I just couldn’t.”  She looked at him pleadingly.  He had already taken his hand away from his gun, but at these words he lowered it even more.  No gun had ever been pointed at Rick, but the threat of it still hurt. Jak looked completely shocked, like his mind was pulling him in five directions at once. 

Torn was the one who broke the awful silence.  “No one lives outside the main cities,” he said in his deep smoker’s voice.  

“Rick does,” said Lexi.  She reached back and took Rick’s hand.  Her father’s eyes widened even more.  

It was official.  She was going to be grounded for life.  But any punishment was worth saving Rick’s life.  Even if she never touched eco again, this would be worth it.  She would tell her father everything.   

“They’re the descendants of an offshoot of villagers who didn’t want to join Haven in the beginning.  Their village is hidden, and it’s about to be destroyed by the eco quakes.  The ground is cracking there, and it’s only getting worse.  He just wants to make it stop.  I had to save him,” she said.  She kept her eyes on her father, hoping that he would understand.  He, of all people, had to understand.  

“Are we really supposed to trust a teenage girl?” someone said skeptically with both eyebrows raised.  Lexi hated him immediately.  He was one of the Krimson guard, but judging by his maskless uniform and the badges on his breast, he must be some kind of general.  Surely she must have seen him before, but she didn’t really know him. 

The man went on, saying, “Clearly, she has no idea what she’s talking about.  Either she’s in league with him, or she’s suffering from some form of Stockholm syndrome.  She’s obviously delusional.”  He said this all with an undeniable air of superiority that made Lexi’s blood boil.   

His words had the same effect on her father, who said, even through his frustration, “Watch what you say about my daughter,” cutting the man an angry glance. 

It was only then that most people realized who she was, that she was Jak’s daughter, not just some random girl.  A few guards dropped their guns entirely, and whispered to each other in confusion.  They all knew what Jak would do, if he thought they posed a threat to his little girl.  But she wouldn’t forget soon how willing they’d been to draw those same guns on Rick. 

Jak seemed to have gone almost catatonic with rage, and stayed silent for a long moment.  Then, he said, “Lexi, Bethany, you two are going to have to explain everything. ” 

At the sound of her name, Beth went stiff.  Jak was like a second father to her, and she was terrified of him being angry at her.  

“I’ll tell you everything,” said Lexi.  “None of this is her fault, or his.  It’s my fault, so blame me.”  She gestured broadly to her chest.  

Jak shook his head, and there was an edge of disappointment and pain to his anger, now.  It was even worse than the pure rage she’d seen before. 

“Lexi, Beth,” he said, taking an awful pause before he added, “and Rick.  Come with us.” 

They followed Jak, with Daxter on his shoulder.  They walked only a minute or so before they reached the small military encampment.  Without pause, Jak led them into the biggest tent, which must have been where Torn and Ashelin directed operations.  

Lexi was shocked to discover how close Rick had come to this camp and to the city.  He had been so close, and yet so far away.  He was looking at his feet, and Lexi’s heart swelled with pity.  All this, just for wanting to help his village.  She straightened her shoulders, deciding that she would just have to make sure that he hadn’t gone to all this trouble for nothing. 

Torn barked an order to his soldiers, telling them to get back to work before following Jak, Daxter, Rick and Lexi into the tent.  Lexi shivered as she went through the tent’s door.   

When they were inside, Rick stared around in wonder at the technology surrounding him.  In any other situation, Lexi would have been happy for him.  There was nothing he loved more than technology, and she wished that he had free reign to investigate it fully.  As it was, all he could do was feast his eyes on the panels, devices, and communicators that lined the walls.  Rick’s eyes widened when he saw the holographic map of the city and its surrounding areas set on a table in the middle of the room.  He seemed itching to touch it.  A bubble of fondness rose in Lexi’s chest, but she forced it down before it would show on her face.  

Before anyone could say anything, the tent’s flap shifted again, and someone came in.  A short and green someone.  

“Grandpa?” Lexi asked.  “What are you doing here?!”  Jak and Torn looked as confused as she felt.  

Samos walked fully into the tent, and said, “Things are bad enough that I have to come out of retirement.  Temporarily, at least.  I was in the camp, helping with the eco-studies, when I saw all of you come into the tent.  And I had a feeling that I should be here for this conversation.”  He turned to Torn and Jak.  “If that’s okay, of course?”  Though he made a show of asking permission, his mild tone seemed to suggest that he wasn’t planning to leave, no matter what they said. 

Jak waved him off.  “Fine,” he said.  “Stay.”  Lexi swallowed.  Though she was ashamed that her grandpa would be here for this, it felt good to have him in the room.  As if he could read her mind, Samos gave her a fond wink before he took a seat next to the map table. 

Torn took a seat himself at the head of the table.  He braced an elbow on one leg and leaned forward, still peering at Rick quizzically.  He was the husband of the governor, but his only real title was leader of the military.  But in that moment—with his stature, braided hair, and stern face—he looked more like a king.  He had never been the most expressive of people, but Lexi could see his anger now, plain for the world to see.  

Before Lexi began to speak Torn said in his deep voice, “Jak, we should call Ashelin and Sig before she begins.  They need to hear this.” 

She swallowed.  Jak nodded, and said, “And I’ll call Keira.”  He pulled out his communicator, pressed the first button, and Keira’s hologram instantly flickered into existence.  From the image, it was clear that she’d been working in the racetrack’s garage, and had just pushed her welder’s mask back over her blue hair.  She looked slightly worried. 

“Jak?” she asked.  “What’s wrong?” 

Jak replied, “Lexi has something she wants to say,” in a tense voice.  He placed the communicator on the floor, so her image stood in front of Lexi, and between him and the map table. 

“Okay…” Keira said, face crowded with uncertainty.  Her daughter gave a weak nod.  It had to be clear that Lexi was in trouble, but Keira had no idea just how much.  

Lexi didn’t look forward to telling her. 

Torn made quick work of calling Ashelin.  Ashelin’s hologram soon winked into existence on the other side of the table. 

“Torn, what is it?  Did something happen?” she asked in a panic.  Then, she saw Lexi and her jaw dropped  “Lexi?” 

“We’re waiting for Sig,” said Torn, by way of answer, still sitting.  There was too much to say before they were ready.  Ashelin’s jaw tightened, but she didn’t say anything.  Instead, she nodded to Lexi, as if to tell her that everything was going to be okay. 

Sig’s hologram took longer to appear, with the distance affecting the connection.  When he did pop up, he said, “Torn?  We don’t often use this line, what’s going on?” 

When he saw Lexi, he looked pleasantly surprised.  “Stringbean?” he called her, using the nickname he’d given her when she was three.  “What are you doing at an official meeting?”  But when he saw Jak’s expression, he sobered.  

“What’s going on?” he asked, looking around the room.  

Ashelin’s hologram said, “That’s what I want to know.”  She crossed her arms. 

“And Lexi’s going to tell us,” Jak said.  He nodded to her.  “Go on,” he said, standing in front of her. 

Lexi couldn’t get her voice to work.  Where did she start?  How could she tell them that she had eco-channeling abilities?  How could she tell them about the forest, and Rick, and his village?  She’d known that this was coming, but now that she was there, there was just too much to say.  

Lexi opened her mouth, about to beg for mercy, when Beth started talking. 

Beth jumped to the ground and shouted, “Lexi has powers!”  It was like she’d been on the verge of bursting for weeks, and was finally letting this huge secret free.  Lexi hadn’t even noticed, but Beth must have been about to vibrate out of her skin, waiting for the tension to be broken. 

The adults all looked from Beth to Lexi and back, open-mouthed. 

“Oh my God,” said Jak.  Lexi had never seen him so surprised. 

Beth nodded, desperately, then launched into the full story, gesturing wildly as she spoke, speaking it all on one breath.  

“When the earthquakes started happening Lexi was having these weird dreams.  They were freaking her out so she told me that she felt like she had to go into the forest to try to figure out what was happening.  I told her that was crazy but she didn’t listen to me, you know she never listens to me.  So, we went into the forest and we found Rick and he was using this weird eco device so she tackled him and was all like, ‘You’re under arrest!’”  

She pointed to Rick when she said this.  He’d taken off his mask, and his hazel eyes were wide as she shouted. 

“And so Rick was like, ‘What are you doing?’ and we were like, ‘You’re wrecking the city!’ and he said he wasn’t, but we didn’t believe him. 

“So, we took him hostage and we were taking him back to the city for questioning, but then there was an earthquake and the whole world seemed to split open, and we were falling into a pit of dark eco!” She all but shouted this, making more than one person jump.  Their reactions only spurred her on.   “But Lexi grabbed us, and FLEW, using white eco!”  She waved her arms wildly. 

The adults looked confused, and Jak seemed about to say something.  But before he could, Beth said, “THEN she dropped us on this island in the middle of all the eco, but she wasn’t able to go any farther and her wings disappeared.  

“And then, we thought that we were all going to die, because the island kept shifting and sinking, but Rick hacked her hoverboard to make it faster, and Lexi used it to get off the island and used red eco to be strong enough to push over a tree to make a bridge.  It was amazing!  But then she told me that I couldn’t tell anyone that she had powers and Rick told her that there was an oracle in his village who might know something so Lexi snuck out one night…” 

“She snuck out ?” asked her father.  Lexi flushed.  This couldn’t get any worse, could it? 

Beth nodded furiously, and pointed at him, like she was a teacher and he had gotten an answer right.  “Yes!  But it wasn’t a date, I don’t think.  She won’t tell me, anyway.” 

Oh.  It could get worse.  “It wasn’t!” Lexi shouted, blushing.  “He’s an informant.”  When that didn’t seem like enough to describe what Rick was to her she added, “And my friend.”  Lexi couldn’t risk looking at him with this admission hanging in the air, but she could feel his presence in the room behind her.  What effect could this story be having on him? 

Jak nodded angrily and said,  “Keep going,” to Beth.  

Beth took a deep breath and said, “Okay, so get this!  The oracle was one of those Precursor statues that you used to talk to before!  Rick’s village has been protecting it for hundreds of years, apparently.  The oracle told her all this stuff about a dark force coming back to the city, and about the destiny of Mar and everything.  About her destiny,” the adults’ eyes snapped back to Lexi.  She didn’t know what to do under the weight of their gazes.  

“What did the oracle say?” asked Ashelin, looking concerned. 

“All kinds of things,” said Beth.  “I mean, I wasn’t there, but Lexi said that she learned that she has her powers for a reason.  She has some big destiny, and she also has to find balance within or something.  I’m not sure.  So, anyway, then we went into the sewer, which was disgusting by the way, and we saw all these creatures corrupted by dark eco and their eyes were completely black, and it was so weird, like they weren’t really looking at us.  I can’t explain it.  And anyway, we turned off this dark eco vent—you’re welcome, by the way—and called in a tip about it to the government.” 

“That tip was from you ?” asked Torn.  His arms were crossed tightly against his chest, and his eyes narrowed in disbelief.  

Beth nodded vigorously.  “Yep.  Then, Micah came to the city and he was all,” she puffed her small chest full of air and held her hands out at her sides, and said in a deeper voice, “‘Lexi, Beth, you shouldn’t go into dark-eco invested places.  It’s dangerous and stupid.’  But we didn’t listen to him.  And...also kind of sort of convinced him to come with us,” she said, looking ashamed to admit it.  Micah was the son of a visiting dignitary, after all, and should not have been dragged into their schemes.  Jak put his hand to his face.

Beth ignored this and hopped onto the central table, making the holographic map flicker.  She pointed at different points of the map.  “Earlier, we went here, where there’s another entrance into the tomb of Mar.  And after the quakes, we went here looking for him.  And here’s where we ran into you guys, which was awkward.”  

“But why were you looking for him today?” asked Torn, waving a hand to slow the furious pace of the story.  

“Well, today, Rick sent us a distress call, saying that his village needed help, a.s.a.p.  So, we called in a tip to Ashelin, but we wanted to make sure that we were with Rick when you guys met him.  Then, we saw that you guys might hurt Rick so Lexi jumped in front of him.  And now we’re here,” she took a few, ragged breaths before finishing with, “And, dad, I am so sorry that I didn’t tell you.  I’ve been dying to tell someone for weeks.  I think that’s everything.”  

Everyone stood in a shocked silence.  Every single adult in the room looked utterly shell-shocked.  

“Well, now you know how I felt, Jak,” said Samos, into the horrible silence, effectively shattering it.  His palms rested lightly on his cane, and he was the only one in the room completely at peace.  

“Lexi, you have powers?” asked Keira over the hologram.  She looked shocked and a little hurt, as well.  “Why didn’t you tell us?”  To Lexi, knowing she’d hurt her mother was worse than any punishment.  

She reached forward, and started, “Mom…” 

Before Lexi could finish her sentence, Keira said abruptly, “I’m heading over there, right now.” 

Jak turned to the hologram, looking concerned.  “Keira, it’s really rough out here.  You don’t have to…”  But Keira had already hung up with a determined look on her face. 

Jak shook his head, looking at the blank space where his wife’s face had been a second ago, before he turned back to Lexi.  “Is this all true?” he asked.  

Lexi looked at him.  She nodded. 

“That’s...a lot of information,” said Ashelin.  Then, she shook her head and said,  “We’ll deal with it a bit at a time.  Rick, that was your name, right?  Your village is in immediate danger?” 

He nodded, desperately.  “Yes.  I’ve seen enough to know that it’s about to fall into the dark eco, but when I left they were still hesitating to evacuate.  They didn’t believe me, but they need to leave now, or no one will survive.  I tried to convince them to evacuate, but they don’t want to risk discovery.  I figured that if I blew the whistle on us, they’d have no reason not to.”  His shoulders sagged with the weight of his decision, but it was already made.   

Ashelin nodded once firmly.  “Okay.  Torn, I’ll be there as soon as I can.  Everyone else, take some troops and follow Rick to his village.  If he’s lying, you should be able to handle anything he can throw at you.  And if he’s not, we’re not letting these quakes take any innocents, even if they’re not our citizens.” 

She swiped her hand through the air, cutting the feed.  Rick gaped at where her hologram had been standing.  He must have been shocked to see the leader of the city so boldly offer her support after everything she had thought of her.

Sig signed off next, saying, “I’m too far away to be much help right this second.  I’ll call Brick to let him know, and I’m leaving for Haven City asap.  We’re going to do whatever we can to help.”  He swiped his hand, and his image also disappeared.  

Torn immediately took charge, and said to Rick, “Alright, kid.  I’m not sure if I can trust you.  But if you’re telling the truth, then lives are at stake, and you’re the only one who knows the way, right?” 

Rick nodded, dumbfounded.  

“Rick, are you sure about this?” Beth asked, tilting her head.  “Once the cat’s out of the bag, you won’t be able to hide anymore.” 

“I can’t hide what doesn’t exist,” said Rick, with more gravity than someone his age should experience.  Something in his words or tone must have resonated with Torn, because he nodded once, firmly.   

“Jak, we’ll get together a team, and head there to evacuate the village.  We’ll figure out where to send them once Ashelin gets here.” 

Jak nodded, his eyes as hard as flint.  His stance was tense, and he refused to look at Lexi.  It was like he’d been waiting for an excuse to get out of that tent and away from Lexi. 

As they walked out, Lexi wanted nothing more than to follow them.  But when she took just one step, her father turned and said, “Lexi, you’re going to stay here with your grandfather and wait for your mother.” 

“You too, Beth,” said Daxter, looking uncharacteristically angry. 
“But, dad,” said Lexi.  “I have powers.  I can help evacuate the village,” she waved vaguely in the direction they were heading.  She’d never even seen the village, but she wanted to help protect it.  

“You’ve done enough,” he said, angrily, staring her down.  “You are going to stay here, where it’s safe.  We’ll discuss everything when I come back.” 

Lexi sagged.  “Okay, daddy,” she said, deflated.  

He swept aside the flap of the tent and was out in a second, Torn walking alongside him.  Rick took one last, fleeting look at Lexi before he left.  Whatever he was feeling, Lexi couldn’t read his expression. 

Lexi sank to her knees.  After everything, she couldn’t keep herself up on her own power, knowing how many people were in danger and that she couldn’t do anything to help them.  At least, no more than she’d already done.  She would have to hope it would be enough.   

Beth stood next to her, and put a hand on her friend’s shoulder.  “I’m sorry,” she said.  “Maybe I could have said all that in a better way.  It all just kind of...came out of me.” 

Lexi shook her head lethargically.  “No.  It’s better that we got it over with quickly.  Besides, it’s not your fault.  None of this is your fault,” she turned to look at Beth.  “I’ll make sure that they know that, when they come back.  It’s going to be okay.”  But even as she said it, she heard how hollow her voice was. 

“Lexi,” said Samos.  He’d risen from where he’d been sitting with a grunt, and now stood next to her.  “Get up, child.  You’re right; it’s all going to be okay.” 

Lexi didn’t have it in her to stand.  Instead, she turned to him, eyes watering.  “Is he ever going to forgive me?” she asked in a small voice.  She had never made her father so angry, and it had all been her fault.   

He hummed thoughtfully.  “You know, Lexi, there are many reasons I envy the young, but one thing I don’t miss is thinking in such black and white terms.  He is angry, yes, but he still loves you.  He might be angry for a long time, but his love for you will overcome that anger, and he will forgive you.  I’m sure of it.” 

Lexi leaned against him.  Kneeling, she was about his height.  His support was needed and wonderful.  “You really think he will?” she said.  

“Of course he will,” he said, patting her hair.  “He just needs time.  You have to understand, this is the very thing that he’s been dreading since before you were born.” 

She wiped her eyes angrily.  “What, that I would be a complete mess?  That I would never be able to do anything right?”  Beth’s face crinkled with sympathy, and reached up to touch her shoulder silently, blue eyes wide. 

Samos looked down at her, kindly.  “No, Lexi.  Just the opposite, in fact.  He was scared that you would turn out exactly like him.” 

Chapter Text

Chapter 15: Saving The Village

Jak tore through the forest, piloting a four-person hover and following the boy’s directions.  The same boy who had dragged Lexi into this whole mess.  He couldn’t think clearly.  To him, there was nothing trustworthy about a boy who would sneak his daughter out of the city for his own purposes into a forest invested with dark eco.  He was incredibly angry, but he couldn’t act on it.  Not until they knew for certain whether this boy’s word could be trusted. 

When they’d left the tent, Torn had ordered most of his men to follow them on hovers to offer aid to the village.  A good quarter of them were left to guard the small camp, which suited Jak just fine.  There wasn’t doubt in his head that someone had plotted this, and now that Lexi had powers, she was more vulnerable than ever.  Her inheriting his powers would change everything. 

Jak stopped himself.  He couldn’t think about that right now.  If there was one thing he was good at, it was forcing unwanted thoughts to the back of his mind.  He had other things to focus on.  

The boy sat next to him in the hover, occasionally pointing the way silently.  He was absorbed in his own thoughts, and Jak wasn’t likely to start a conversation with him.  Torn was in the back of the doorless hover, holding his large gun with one hand and clinging to the top of the frame with the other.  When Jak took a particularly hard turn, Torn leaned forward.  

“Jak, slow down.  The troops have to keep a visual on us if they’re going to follow, and this foliage is dense.”  At the sound of the words, ‘troops,” and ‘follow,’ the boy gripped even harder onto the armrest, and Jak felt a cruel stab of satisfaction.  This boy clearly wanted something from his daughter, and whatever it was, Jak was in no mood to trust him.  

Still, he slowed the hover enough for the others to follow.  It wouldn’t do to not bring backup if innocents needed them.  In the rearview, he could pick out the red vehicles cutting through the trees behind them. 
Jak shot a glance at the boy, Rick.  “I almost hope that this is a trap, so I can finally take down whoever’s behind this.” 

The boy shook his head, looking defeated.  “It’s no trap.  I can see why you might think it is, but your daughter…” 

“You don’t get to talk to me about my daughter,” Jak said, tone icey.  

The boy—wisely, in Jak’s opinion—stopped talking.  More and more, Jak believed that this boy had been the reason that Lexi had been acting out so much lately.  Maybe he had her convinced, but Jak wasn’t going to believe him.  Not until he had a reason.  

No matter what, Jak had already decided one thing; he couldn’t hurt the kid.  He still had no idea what was going on.  For all he knew, this kid was in league with whoever was behind all this.  If that were the case, hopefully this wild goose chase would finally lead them to the end of this mess.  They’d decide what to do about the kid after.  But, in the meantime, Jak couldn’t fight the impression that this boy, whatever his intentions had been, was responsible for the way Lexi had been acting.  It was easier to blame him than Lexi.  She could never do these things on her own.  

But then, if the eco was making changes in her…

“There it is,” said the boy, pointing at a wall of foliage. 

“There’s nothing there,” said Torn.  

The boy shook his head.  “It’s hidden.  I’ll show you the way.  Land in that clearing.” 

Jak took his direction, and the hover landed with a soft “thud.”  They all hopped out, guns up and pointing into the trees, in case there was an ambush waiting.  All except the boy, who simply walked forward.  Pushing aside some foliage, he located a metal panel that was completely out of place amongst the thick foliage.  With a few expert moves, he adjusted the dials and switches on the panel, and typed in some kind of code.  There was a buzzing sound, and suddenly, a force field seemingly flashed into existence, crackling with blue eco.  The huge, blue dome stretched far into the distance in front of them.  It flickered once, then disappeared. 

Once it was gone, they could hear the sound of people screaming.  Rick ducked through the branches, and a village opened before them.  Through the force field and trees, they would never have seen it.  The buildings were well-made, and were hooked up to a power grid of some kind.  Any other time, the village would have been welcoming and charming, with its wooden buildings set in trees and on stilts, with stairs and ladders leading into them.  As it was, cracks spread along the ground, revealing dark eco shining below.  So the boy had been telling the truth: about this, at least.  

He looked down at the cracks fearfully, and whispered, “Those weren’t here before.” 

At that moment, a broad man with long, dark hair twisted into braids stepped forward, and grabbed Rick by the scruff of his neck. 

  “You!” he said.  “You disappear when the village is in need, and bring back outsiders?”  The rage in his voice and fear in his eyes was the best indication to Jak that no one else was in on Rick’s plan, if he even had one.  The other villagers stared at them, in shock. 

Jak stepped forward now.  “We’re here to help you evacuate.  Looks to me like you need it.” 

The man’s anger shifted to Jak, but he let go of Rick all the same.  “Fine,” he said.  “Fine!  I suppose that it’s not like we have any choice anymore.”  He ran his hands through his hair as he saw the Haven City soldiers trooping in.  “Who’s in charge of them?” he asked, pointing a thick finger at them roughly. 

“Me,” said Torn. 

The man nodded.  “I’m in charge here.  I’ll help you direct them to help everyone escape.”  Then, he gave Rick a stern look, and gestured deeper into the village with a jerk of his head.  “You, go get the shaman.  He said that he was doing something too important to abandon, and no one has been able to convince him to leave his hut.  You’re probably the only one who can get him to stop whatever he’s doing.” 

Rick blanched, but nodded.  It reminded Jak of the million times he’d seen people who were too young being asked to do too much.  He made a split-second decision.  

“I’ll go with him,” he said.  “Torn, you got things here?” 

Torn nodded, and waved him away.  He was already directing his troops, who moved through the village, calming people and leading away from the chaos that consumed the village.  Red uniforms disappeared further into the village to help those who’d been trapped by the collapsing ground. 

Rick shot Jak a confused but grateful look, and waved for him to follow.  They ran through the village, against the tide of fleeing people.  Jak couldn’t believe there were so many people living just outside the city walls.    The village was composed of people of every age and race.  Families of every size and makeup ran past them, desperately.  He scanned them, making sure that they were alright and heading in the right direction.  One woman had fallen behind the crowd, holding a small child that reminded Jak of Lexi when she’d been a baby.  

Suddenly, out of the forest came a terrible roar, followed by more screams from the villagers.  Hordes of dark creatures poured out of the woods.  They had probably been large predators even before they’d been corrupted.  From their dark eyes and vicious looks, Jak knew instantly what had happened.  They’d been exposed to dark eco. 

The soldiers behind and around them started fighting the clumps of creatures, but one broke away and ran toward the woman carrying her baby.  Jak changed direction, and called over this shoulder, “I have to help her.”  

Rick’s eyes widened when he saw the woman, and for a second it seemed that he would follow.  Jak paused and shook his head.  

“I can handle this.  Keep going,” he said.  “Get the shaman, and I’ll meet you there.”   

Rick nodded.  “It’s that way,” he said, pointing.  “I’ll find you when I’m done.”  

Jak marvelled at how quickly they had ended up on the same team, and nodded silently.  Then, he launched himself between the woman and the screaming creature, and began to fight. 

Rick kept running through the village.  More and more, he noticed that there were streaks of white light coursing through the ground.  The lines pulsated and shone under his feet, and everywhere they went, the chaos of the dark eco seemed to subside.  As the lines of white running through the ground increased in brightness and frequency, Rick realized they all came from the hut that he had called home for the last four years.  They must have been related to whatever was keeping his uncle from leaving. 

Rick filed this discovery away, and kept climbing up through the village, until he came upon his uncle’s tiny hut, built partially into a tree.  From the top, one could overlook the entire village, and it had been purposefully built in the style of the sages’ huts from long ago.  He felt a pang of sorrow, knowing that it was sure to be destroyed as the village succumbed to the dark eco.  But it wasn’t the house that mattered.  They could rebuild later.  What mattered was the people. 

Rick ran through the front door and was surprised to see that his uncle wasn’t manning any of the devices at the front of the hut.  These were the devices that supplied eco-based power to the village and the force field that protected it from outsiders.  He’d been sure this was where his uncle would be.  That is, until he heard a mechanical clank and thrum emanating from the ceiling above.  

“Oh no,” said Rick immediately.  

He climbed the staircase built into the truck of the tree, scrambling up and up until he was almost at the top of the house.  Through the many large windows, Rick could see all the chaos of the evacuating village below.  When he moved further into the room, there he was; bent over yet another metallic panel, was the stooped, white-haired shaman.  

“Uncle,” said Rick. “It’s time to go.”  As he went over to the old man to pry him away from the strange device he was working on, the ground shook again, and he almost fell.  The old man, somehow, managed to stand his ground out of sheer will.  

Rick’s uncle looked up at him, and said, “Rick?  What are you doing here?” 

“I’m here to get you!” Rick said, extending one hand.  He kept the other braced against the wall, because the room was shaking.  He’d have to be stable if he was going to get his uncle to safety.  

Rick’s uncle smiled sadly, and shook his head.  “I’m not leaving, Rick.” 

“What are you talking about?” Rick asked.  The ground gave a bigger shake than before, and Rick cursed under his breath.  “Uncle, it’s terrible out there.  We don’t have a lot of time, and we have to leave.” 

Rick’s uncle shook his head.  “It isn’t as bad as it could be, or as bad as it would become if I left.” 

Rick waited for the ground to stop lurching, then walked forward into the room.  “If you mean that device you’re working on, just leave it on and let’s go!”  He was becoming desperate, now.  His stomach twisted with the knowledge that his entire village was out there, struggling to survive.  Propped in front of the window was his uncle’s spyglass, pointing right at the village, but didn’t have to use it to see lines of villagers departing.  From here, he was unable to help them, and his uselessness made him sick.  

“I can’t,” his uncle said.  “I pulled this all together when the quakes started today.  This invention was only ever meant to infuse the ground with different types of ecos, like green and red, for healing and strength.  But it was never meant for white eco,” he twisted a dial on the device, which shuddered against the strain.  “Very few things are.”  He gave his head a shake.  “I put every bit of white eco I had into it, and it’s taking everything I know to keep it going.  If I leave, it will stop functioning, and the dark eco will take the village in seconds.” 

Rick’s knees almost crumbled under him, “So you’re saying, that thing is the only thing holding the village together.”  He looked at the hunkered, steaming device in awe.  The lines of white eco he’d run over to get here came back to him.  He understood them, now.  

His uncle nodded.  “If I left, the village would only last a few seconds at most.” 

In a moment, Rick crossed the room, and stood next to his uncle.  “Let me take over,” he said.  “I can run these things almost as well as you can, and you have to get out of here.  I can take over.”  He could hear the pleading in his own voice.   

His uncle smiled fondly.  “I’m sure you could.  But I’m not going to let you, Rick.”  The device gave a warning shudder, and the shaman went into a flurry of actions, tightening parts, twisting knobs, and all but beating the protesting thing into submission.  Even so, it clearly wouldn’t last. 

“But…” said Rick, reaching for reasons. 

“You’re young,” said his uncle, “and full of potential, and already going out on your own adventures.” 

“You knew about that?” asked Rick, devastated. 

“Don’t feel bad,” said his uncle.  “I saw the soldiers from my spyglass, helping the villagers escape.  Don’t think I don’t know who brought them.”  To any other villager, this revelation would have resulted in mistrust and anger.  But instead, his uncle took one hand away from the puffing, shuddering device, and laid it on Rick’s shoulder fondly.  “You made the right choice.  You have a good heart and a good head.  Things aren’t going to be easy, and you’ll have a lot of choices to make, but I am confident that you will make the right ones.” 

These words echoed what Oracle had said so closely, that it made Rick wonder if this old man somehow knew about the prophecy, too.  At this point, nothing would have surprised him. 

Silent tears streamed down Rick’s face.  “You’re the only one who took me in,” he said.  “After everyone else gave up on me.  You’re the only one who never did.  I can’t just leave you.” 

His uncle turned away from the device entirely.  “Repay me by living a good life.  The life you are destined to lead,” he said.  He gave Rick a last hug, and said, “You have to go.  I can only hold this together for so long.” 

Rick wiped his eyes, and nodded.  He turned to leave, and with every step, all he wanted was to turn back.  At the doorway, he turned and said, “I’ll never forget everything you did for me.  I love you.” 

The man smiled, and lifted one hand in acknowledgement.  “I love you too, nephew,” he said. 

Rick left. 

Jak had ended up fighting most of the creatures that had steamed from the forest.  After the last one fell, and the woman and her baby were safe to leave, Jak continued along the path Rick had indicated.  It wasn’t long before Jak met Rick, who’d been leaving a house set into a tree.  The shaman wasn’t with him. 

“Where’s the old man?” he asked. 

Rick shook his head sadly.  He was emotionally destitute.  Jak knew that look. 

“Oh,” he said, awkwardly.  What could he possibly say to comfort this boy who he knew nothing about?  He didn’t even know how close the boy had been to this “shaman” person, or what had happened in that tree.  He didn’t know what to say, or what the boy needed. 

“I’ve...been there,” Jak said gruffly.  “I’m sorry.”  He didn’t put a hand on the boy’s shoulder.  It would have been too much.  Rick just shrugged, expression grim, and didn’t say anything. 

“He’s holding the village together with some kind of device,” Rick said, hesitating on every word.  “He made me leave, but he said that we don’t have long, even with him pumping white eco into the ground.” 

That explained the white, pulsating lines flowing through the ground beneath their feet.  Jak nodded.  He’d seen the work of sages and their type enough to know what it meant.  White eco was highly limited, and the shaman must be running out by now.  “He can’t have much left,” Jak said.  “We have to go.” 

They started running for the exit.  By now, the village was almost empty, with a few stragglers still leaving.  Torn was in the heart of the village, directing operations.  He helped an old woman out of her hut, and another soldier gave her his shoulder for support.  With the last few villagers leaving, it was time to depart. 

“Did you get him?” asked Torn, referring to the shaman. 

“No,” said Jak.  He didn’t offer any more explanation, but if Torn had anything to say about the looks on their faces, he didn’t say it.    

“Alright,” Torn said.  “I think that’s everyone.  It’s time to leave.” 

As if to confirm his words, the ground shook again, worse than ever.  Rick shot one last glance at his home. 

They didn’t stop running until the village was behind them. 

Lexi sat in a tense silence in the military camp.  When her father had left, he’d made it clear that she wasn’t allowed to leave.  The soldiers didn’t make it official or try to intimidate her, but Lexi knew from their stances that they would stop her if she made one wrong move.  So, she sat on the ground near the exit to the camp with her arms wrapped around her knees.  While she hadn’t been officially arrested, she still felt imprisoned.  Samos had followed her out, and hovered nearby, drinking his tea.  Beth had stayed inside the tent, saying that being inside helped her cope with the swaying of the quakes, which escalated all the time.  

The ground shook again, and Lexi threw out her arms on either side to maintain her balance.  Samos levitated his cup into the air in front of him where it wouldn’t be affected by the ground’s shaking. 

It stopped, and everything became still again.  Still, and silent. 

Lexi snapped.  “I can’t take it anymore!” she shouted.  The two soldiers who had been conspicuously standing near her jolted, and one of them moved toward her cautiously, ready to tackle her if she ran toward the exit.  Instead, Lexi ran to the nearest tree, which was actually deeper into the camp.  The soldiers, confused, stopped in front of her. 

She turned to the shorter soldier and said, “I’m not trying to leave, okay?  I just want to climb this tree so I can see what’s happening.  Please?”  They could stop her if they wanted, and they both knew it. 

The soldier exchanged a glance with her superior, and the taller one shrugged, indicating it was up to her.  “Sure,” she said.  “I guess I can’t stop you.  But if you try anything funny—”  She trailed off, unsure of what to say. 

“I won’t, trust me,” said Lexi.  Even if she wanted to, she didn’t have any white eco left in her body.  She remembered her grandfather’s presence.  She turned to him and said questioningly, “Grandpa, are you okay if I…?” 

Samos, who’d watched this entire interaction, nodded.  “Be careful,” he said.  “And tell me what you see.” 

Lexi nodded back, and started climbing the tree.  Compared to the other things that she’d been climbing lately, this tree was very easy.  Tall and strong, it supported her weight well as she went up higher and higher.  

Finally, she reached the top.  In the distance, she could see where the village must be, based on the direction everyone had left.  The ground shook again, and Lexi clung more tightly to the tree.  She leaned forward and squinted as hard as she could, trying to see the village.  There was a flash of white ahead of her, as if someone had released a burst of white eco into the air.  

Then, it happened.  The ground rumbled, and a huge chunk of land shuddered, and fell.  

Lexi screamed.

Chapter Text

Part II

Chapter 15: Change

By the time the villagers arrived at camp, everything had changed.  It was now known beyond a shadow of a doubt that Rick had been telling the truth, now that the quakes had destroyed the village.  It had been decided; the city was going to help the survivors through the eco crisis.  No one knew what would happen next. 

Lexi’s scream at the fall of the village had alerted everyone else in camp.  After she’d climbed down the tree, everyone from Beth to the soldiers begged her to tell them what happened.  She’d shaken her head mutely before saying, “It’s all gone.”  Lexi had been massively relieved when Keira arrived, and she had jumped into her mother’s arms the moment she’d entered the encampment.  Together, they waited for Jak to come back. 

The tense mood had lessened massively when survivors started streaming into the camp.  Lexi had been waiting at the edge of the camp with Keira, Samos, and Beth when Rick came back, looking crushed.  Lexi gave him a silent, questioning look that meant, “Did your uncle make it?”  

He just shook his head, devastated. 

Lexi put her hands to her mouth, horrified. Rick had never mentioned any other family.  This meant that he was completely alone in the world.  The news shattered her. 

Jak, looking exhausted, saw this exchange.  In that moment, all of his angry energy just melted away.  Maybe he’d already vented his frustrations, and knew that the teenagers had been through enough, without him piling on.  Besides, he’d finally been able to strike back against the eco crisis.  He’d saved the lives of many villagers that day, and it had been good to finally do something.  Off to the side, a cadet who’d been there was already describing what it’d been like, seeing Jak in action, and how many dark creatures he’d defeated.  But Jak didn’t have an ear for this praise.  

Instead, he went straight to his wife, who pulled him into a hug.   

When he pulled away, Jak told her, “We’re going to have the refugees stay in this camp.  And I think that it’s time that we stay at headquarters, until this blows over.  Torn and I discussed it on the way, and he agreed.” 

Headquarters was something that Jak and his friends had created years ago.  Since so many of them had vulnerable family members to protect now, including children, they agreed that when things got particularly bad, they wanted a place to pool their resources and keep their families safe.  Lexi had only stayed there a handful of times in her life.  The most prominent in her memory were the few weeks they’d spent there when some of her father’s old enemies had resurfaced, making death threats.  If they were going there now, then things really were bad. 

Keira nodded.  “I think that’s a good idea,” she said.  She put a hand to his cheek, and he leaned against it, letting his eyes close.  He must have been dead on his feet after all that fighting on top of his sleepless nights.  “We have to keep Lexi safe,” Keira whispered to him, almost too low for Lexi to hear.  Her father nodded.  They all knew what was at stake, now that she had powers.  Lexi hugged herself, feeling sick to her stomach. 

“What about the boy?” asked Torn. 

Jak turned to him.  “Excuse me?” he asked. 

“The boy,” Torn repeated.  He crossed his arms across his chest, adamant.  “I think that he should come back to headquarters with us.  He obviously knows more about the eco problem than most.”  He leaned forward and added quietly, “And, he’s just been orphaned, Jak.  We both saw it.  He can’t just be left by himself.”  

Jak looked at the boy.  Then, he called over lexi.   

She jumped at the sound of his commanding voice, but walked forward anyway.  “Yeah, daddy?” she asked hesitantly. 

He fixed his piercing blue eyes on her, as if promised he’d be able to see through any lies.  It was good that she was done with those. 

“Lexi, whose idea was it?  The investigating, the fighting, the sneaking out; all of it.  Yours or his?” 

Lexi took a deep breath.  “Investigating and leaving for the forest in the first place were all my ideas.  When Rick told me about the oracle, I wanted to see them.”  Absently, she pressed a hand to her chest.  “Rick didn’t have to convince me, and he didn’t have to trick me.  He hasn’t done anything to me.  He was just looking into the dark eco when we met him, that’s all.  In fact, I’m the one who’s been dragging him into trouble.  All he’s guilty of is hacking the sewer door to let me out of the city, but that’s it.” 

She looked up at him, eyes watering.  “He hasn’t done anything to me, or anyone else.  He just wanted to save his town, and now his uncle is dead.  His uncle is the only family he’s ever mentioned, and just look at him.  I think he’s alone, now.”  Rick was indeed sitting on a rock out of earshot, with his head in his hands.  He seemed utterly isolated, even surrounded by other members of his village. 

  Jak let out an exasperated breath, and looked up at the foliage above them.  “Of course, we’ll find a place for him.  But not in headquarters.”  At the confused tilt of Lexi’s head, Jak raised an eyebrow and said, “You do realize that there is no way I’m letting a teenage boy I don’t even know sleep under the same roof as you, right?”  This statement, while ridiculous, did more to convince Lexi that her father was willing to give Rick a chance than anything else could have.  The fact that he was focused on such a trivial issue meant that he had moved past his earlier anger with him.  Before Lexi could voice her relief, someone spoke up behind them. 

“He can stay in the palace.  We have more than enough room,” said the authoritative voice.  Lexi turned.  It was Ashelin, standing there with one fist on her hip.  At their confused looks, she shrugged and said, “I overheard enough to grasp the situation.”  Rick lifted his head from his hands, and turned bleary eyes towards them. 

Jak nodded.  “Alright,” he said.  “We’ll head back to headquarters, regroup, and get some rest.  Then, we’re going to get to the bottom of this before that...thing spreads.”  He pointed back vaguely in the direction of the dark eco that had destroyed the village. 

Lexi shivered, hearing her father call it, “that thing.”  It made it sound as if it had a mind of its own.  Which, maybe it did. 

Keira said, “Okay.  Jak, let’s go to the house to pick up the dog and some necessities.  Ashelin, can you take the girls and Rick to headquarters?”  She turned to her long-time friend.  

Ashelin nodded, and Lexi and Beth obediently followed Ashelin to her four-person hover car.  Rick, after a thoughtful pause, came with them.  

  Lexi took her seat, and with every other seat taken Beth curled up in her lap like a cat.  Right before the hover took off, Jak leaned on the door and said to Lexi, “We’ll talk more when we get there.  I love you,” he said.  He always said that a lot when they were fighting, as if he didn’t want Lexi to forget. 

“I love you too,” she replied quietly, and they took off.

Chapter Text

Chapter 17: Return to Base

Headquarters was technically just an old, brick outer wing of the palace, disconnected from the main building and often unused.  It centered around a circular room that had once been used for debates and speeches.  They’d converted into an open, central room with lots of seating and screens lining the walls, built for comfort and to be the headquarter’s center of operations.  This main room was ringed with small apartments and rooms for families and allies to use whenever needed.  When things got too dangerous for the city, this is where they came. The rest of the time, Jak and his allies used the space for discussion and strategizing without moving in their families.  But this time was different. 

Ashelin had dropped them off, making sure that they were secure and guarded before rushing off to do something else.  No doubt, with the influx of refugees outside the city, there must be a lot for her to attend to.  

Lexi sat in the central room, wondering if she would now be locked out of the investigation all over again.  She’d learned so much, and she didn’t know how she could go back to the old ways.  

Rick sat at the far end of the room, his head back in his hands.  He looked like he was about the puke.  Lexi didn’t know what to say to him, but did know that she should say something. 

She cut a questioning glance to Beth, silently asking what to do.  Beth must have misinterpreted the look as her asking for privacy, because she loudly said, “I’m going to call my mom, see when she and my siblings are going to get here.”  Then, Beth scampered off to her family's rooms.  Lexi took a deep breath.  This was something she’d just have to do on her own.  

She walked over to Rick, and sat next to him. 

“How are you holding up?” she asked. 

He laughed dryly, without humor.  “Poorly.”  His hands dropped, but he didn’t lift his head.  

Lexi winced and looked at her shoes.  Of course, he wasn’t doing well.  His uncle had just died.  She was terrible at being comforting. 

She swallowed, and tried again, saying, “I’m sorry about your uncle, and about your village….” 

He braced his arms hard against his legs.  “It could have been worse.  We can rebuild the village and the buildings.  My uncle was the only casualty, and he died protecting the village.  It’s….it’s what he would have wanted,” he said.  Every word sounded like it hurt.  “It’s just…Lexi, I have no idea what I’m doing.” 

“Me neither,” she said, still staring at her shoes.  “I thought that I was finally getting a grasp of this thing, like I was so close to a breakthrough.  And now look.  I got your village destroyed.” 

He looked at her, confused.  “No, you didn’t.” 

She blinked.  “Rick, don’t you think that it’s weird that all this horrible stuff started happening to you after you met me?  And that my powers came in at the same time as this huge disaster?  And that this is happening as soon as I came of age?  I’m starting to think that this is all my fault, somehow.” 

Rick shook his head, slowly, brow furrowed.  “Didn’t your dad also come of age in this city?  Why didn’t it happen when he was your age?”  He shook his head again, harder.  “No, I think that you getting your powers was a side effect, not a cause.  I just don’t think that someone like you could be the cause of something like this.” 

“Really?” she asked.  Ever since she’d started having those awful dreams, she had felt so contaminated, like there was something wrong with her.  It was nice to hear that someone thought otherwise.  

He shook his head.  “No, something else is causing this, I’m sure of it.  Something deep and terrible.  I just wish that we knew more.”  He jiggled his knee with a frantic, nervous energy.  She gently placed her hand on his knee, making it still.  He looked at her, and she pulled her hand away, blushing. 

To change the subject, she said, “Well, we don’t have to worry about that, anymore.  Once my dad and his friends get here, they’ll have us tell them everything, every detail.  And then, the investigation will be in their hands, and they know more about this stuff than we do.” 

“You don’t sound too happy about that,” said Rick, peering at her intently. 

Lexi chuckled dryly.  “Remember when we met, and I told you about how I’ve lived my entire life in my father’s shadow?  Well, welcome to the shadow,” she said, gesturing vaguely at the entire building.  “You’re going to see just how he is at solving these things, and at fighting.  I was kidding myself, thinking that I could ever step into his shoes.” 

She looked down. “I feel awful saying this, but I thought that this was my one chance to prove to him that I could do this.  I thought that if I could fix a problem like this beyond a shadow of a doubt, that I could handle my own problems, he would have to accept that I can be a part of this world.  But, I failed.  And, in the process, I kept your village from getting the help it needed.”  She put her face into her hands.  

He pulled them away, “Hey, you didn’t do that.  If anyone did that, it was me.  I could have reached out to the city at any time.  But I didn’t, because I thought that proving our strength was more important than asking for help.  I wanted to show that I—that we —could do this on our own.  We’re both stupid, remember?”  He gave her the tiniest of hopeful smiles.  His face was close to hers, where she was relieved to see him smile.  

She smiled back.  “Yeah,” she agreed.  “We’re both idiots.  How could I forget?” 

Then, his look became slightly more serious.  “But, seriously, Lexi, you saved my village, and you saved me.  You stopped them when they were about to arrest me, or worse.  And without you backing me up, I don’t think that they would have helped me evacuate.” 

Lexi sniffed.  “Really?” 

“Yeah,” Rick said, setting down her hands.  “No one’s ever stood up for me like that.”  This admission seemed to embarrass him, because he looked away, toward the door, and cleared his throat.  “I just wanted to say that now.  I get that feeling that once your father and the other leaders get here, things are going to get rough in here.  And I wanted you to know that I wasn’t mad at you, in case they want to keep us separated.”  

She cringed.  “Yeah, about that…you should know that my dad is very, very protective.  In fact,” she said, standing, “it’ll probably be better for you, if you’re not seen talking to me right now.  I’m going to go see where Beth got to.  Will you be okay?  Being alone, I mean?” 

Rick nodded, mostly looking tired.  “I’m alright.  I just need a minute to clear my head, I think.” 

She smiled at him, briefly, and went to Beth’s room.  That’s where she was when the adults poured into the central room.  Tess, Ashelin, Torn, Brick, Keira, Samos, and Jak soon gathered around the central table, speaking animatedly.  Micah came in with Brick, and Tess had brought Beth’s siblings.  Tess ushered her other children into Beth’s room to wait with them, and Micah had followed.  Soon, the ottsel family’s small apartment was filled to the brim with children.  

Once they’d made sure that the children were in the room together, the adults went back into the central room to question Rick.  As soon as their attention was elsewhere, Beth and Lexi cracked open the door to eavesdrop. 

“Aren’t we supposed to be watching the baby?” asked Micah, dryly.  And, indeed, Tess had left baby Sophie in the room with them, and she was laying on Beth’s unmade bed and cooing. 

Beth rolled her eyes, picked up her baby sister, and said, “I can take care of my sister and eavesdrop, thank you very much.”  Micah held up his hands in submission, smiling softly and with amusement. 

“Shhhhh,” hissed Lexi.  She had one long ear pressed to the door that she was leaning on. 

“Alright, Rick,” said Ashelin, “We’re going to be questioning other prominent figures from your village, but it seems from a quick observation that you are the one from there who knows the most about eco, besides…” she trailed off awkwardly. 

“Besides my uncle,” finished Rick, stoutly.  Lexi allowed herself a pang of sorrow, before returning her focus to the tiny sliver of the central room she could see through the crack in the doorway.   

Ashelin shifted uncomfortably.  She stood in front of Rick, with the other adults evenly spaced along the circular walls.  Rick was sitting in a foldable metal chair, unbound and unhurt.  Despite this, it was still clear that he was under interrogation.  Still, he sat casually, leaning back slightly and not betraying emotion as he spoke.  The pain that had been on his face when Lexi had come in was now wiped away.  Jak stared at him intently.  Even Lexi would have been intimidated in Rick’s place, and she was impressed by how composed he was. 

“Well, Rick, I just want you to know that you’re not under arrest, and you’re not in trouble,” said Ashelin.  “We’re also trying to stop whatever’s happening, which means that we’re on the same side.  We just want more information.” 

Rick let out a deep sigh, and nodded.  He began his story, saying, “I was probably the first one in my village to know.  My uncle, while not a sage, had always kept up the old traditions.  He had a lot of old, eco-monitoring technology taken directly from the sages’ writings.” 

Lexi imagined her grandfather’s ears pricking up, though she couldn’t see him clearly.  Samos would love hearing that someone had kept the study of eco going.  

“My uncle took me in when my father died.  Before, I had been in training to become a chief, to follow in my father’s footsteps.  But after my father’s death, another man was chosen as chief.  I was bounced from house to house for a while, never really fitting in, until my adoptive uncle started training me to be a shaman, like him.  My uncle had all these old, eco-detecting instruments, and he taught me how to use them.  He was getting old, and I’d been taking on more and more responsibilities for the past few years.  By the time the earthquakes started happening, I was the one mostly keeping the devices running, and he was in no shape to leave the hut except on special occasions.” 

Rick took a breath, looking upset.  “So, when the quakes started, I began heading out, using my uncle’s devices to trace the quakes to their source.  I wore a disguise, because I had seen Haven City soldiers combing through the forest, and I didn’t want to get caught or be recognizable.” 

At that, Torn broke in, sounding almost offended when he said, “And why all the secrecy, anyway?  Why was the village so well-hidden from the city?”  

Rick sighed again, and rubbed his eyes.  Lexi felt his tiredness as if it were her own, and her knees weakened.  She wanted to sleep so badly, but she just focused more intently to fight the urge. 

“My village was founded by people who didn’t want to be a part of Haven City, that’s it,” Rick said.  “Ever since then, we’ve kept ourselves separated, but we don’t bear Haven city any ill will.  You’ll see, when you question the chief.” 

“I’ll make a note of that,” said Ashelin.  “Continue your story.  What happened next?” 

“Do I have to tell you everything?” he asked.  He didn’t sound argumentative or sassy, but instead like he just wasn’t sure how much they would find interesting. 

“Yes,” said Jak, coldy.  “Especially because I get the feeling this is when my daughter comes into the story.”  Lexi shivered involuntarily.  Rick shouldn’t get in trouble because of her involvement.  She wanted to defend him, but she knew that it would only make things worse if she burst through the door right then.  This was all on him. 

Rick didn’t respond directly, and instead said, “Well, one day, I was combing through the forest with my devices.  I thought I was getting close to the source, when a girl with green-blonde hair tackled me out of nowhere.  That girl was Lexi, but I didn’t know that yet.  At first I thought that she was a Haven City citizen, or maybe a cadet in the army.  She tried to get me in a headlock, and we fought a bit.”  Jak tensed, and Rick quickly added, “It was all in self-defense, and I made a point not to hurt her.  Then, while we fought, her friend, Beth, ran up and hit me in the head with a stick.” 

“With a stick?” asked Ashelin, deadpan. 

Rick nodded.  “It was a big stick.” 

“That’s my girl,” said Daxter with obvious pride, and Tess shushed him. 

“Well, anyway,” continued Rick, “they said that they were ‘taking me in for questioning,’ because they thought that I was the one behind the quakes.  And, I have to admit, standing alone in a field with eco-related devices didn’t look good at the time.” 

He continued through the story that Beth had already covered very briefly during her screed, offering more details this time.  He even told them about how and why he’d snuck Lexi out of the city, and everything they’d done, giving a blow-by-blow account with time-stamps from his memory of the night.  The only thing Rick left out was their conversation they’d had at the gate, and the kiss on the cheek, which was a major relief.  Lexi was also relieved that by this point in the story her father’s stance had loosened just a tiny bit towards him. 

“Then what?” Jak asked, with his arms crossed against his chest. 

“We became friends,” said Rick, simply.  “Lexi, Beth, and I.  And even Micah started warming up to me, I think.  We all bonded over our trips into the forest.  We all had this delusion of grandeur, like we were going to get to the bottom of this and be the ones to save the cities, and my village.”  His knuckles clasped his knees so hard, that they paled compared to the medium brown of his skin.  “We really thought we could do it.  I thought that when we did, I could prove that my village has something of value to bring to the table.  But that’s all ruined.  I knew as soon as I got home from Mar’s tomb.  I’d been out in the forest observing the quakes enough to know the sure signs of destruction coming.  I told the chief to start evacuating.  

“He didn’t listen to me.  Instead, he told me that I was overreacting, and that when things got hard, we stood our ground.”  Rick shook his head.  “But I knew that wasn’t an option.  I’d seen what it’d been like, inside Mar’s tomb and when the ground split beneath our feet.  I knew how much damage the quakes could do, and that they weren’t stopping any time soon. 

“Since he refused to evacuate, I did the only thing I could.  I called Lexi with the communicator I gave her.  I told her that we needed help: any help she could get.  I knew that we needed it, and that once my village’s secret was shattered, the chief would have no reason not to accept.  Lexi agreed.  I told her not to come herself, but she hung up.  I didn’t know that she was coming; I was too busy rushing toward the help she was sending.  That’s when I run into you guys. 

“I was terrified, really.  I had no idea how to convey my innocence, and you had no reason to trust me.  I thought I’d be arrested: that I’d missed my chance.  That’s when Lexi jumped in.  And you all know the rest,” he finished, sadly. 

The entire room filled with an awkward silence.  

“I can’t believe Lexi did all that,” said Keira, into the shocked silence, looking around at the others.  Lexi couldn’t tell if she was more angry, surprised, or something else that she couldn’t quite place. 

“Lexi and Beth,” said Daxter.  “We need to remember her contribution to the team.”

“What I don’t get,” said Jak, leaning forward on the table, staring Rick down, “is why you thought that it was appropriate to get my daughter dragged into this.  Why didn’t you just handle it yourself?” 

Rick rubbed his face.  “I didn’t want to call her, really.  But she was my only contact in the city.  If I’d had time, I could have tried to get a message to the city some other way.  But I didn’t have any time.  And, I knew that she had a direct connection to the leaders of the city.  She’d told me that she was the honorary niece of the governor, and that the new leaders could be trusted.  I also knew that she was the daughter of the greatest warrior in the city.  

He leaned forward.  “I told her not to come, really.  I begged her to just let someone know, and stay home.  But, I think that after she tipped off the military, she came anyway,” he laughed without humor, and shook his head.  “I realize now that expecting her not to come was a ridiculous pipe dream.”  

At Jak’s stern look, he sobered.  “You have to believe me, I would never put her in danger.  I didn’t want her out there today,” he jerked his head to the left, indicating his village and its destruction.  “I never did anything to endanger her, I promise.  And as much as she had to trust me, I had to trust her, too.  And I wouldn’t have done anything to get her hurt on purpose.” 

There was a long silence.  Beth looked up at Lexi and mouthed, “Whoa,” clearly shocked. 

Jak had gone very quiet, and Lexi couldn’t see his face.  Still, she assumed that he was still angry.  There was no chance that he would have been okay with her talking to Rick—much less jumping in front of guns for him—and there was nothing he could say to change that.  Not to mention that, until they’d questioned other members of his village, they weren’t likely to take his words at face value, anyway. 

“Well,” said Ashelin, stepping forward.  “This certainly changes things.  We’re going to house the villagers for now, in the encampment outside the city.  We’ll expand it to accommodate everyone, but we may want to think about moving them within the walls soon, anyway.  Within the walls will be safer for the refugees, and I imagine that this eco problem isn’t going away any time soon. 

“Jak, we’re going to need you on the ground, continuing to investigate.  Torn, Brick, and I will go with you, whenever possible.  Samos, we’d appreciate any help you can give on the research front.  The headquarter’s labs are all yours.  Keira, Tess, your skill sets are always appreciated and welcome.  We’d appreciate any help you two could give, as well.  We’ll all get an early night, and regroup in the morning.  For now, finding the solution to the eco problem is our first priority.  I expect all hands on deck, helping any way you can.” 

Then, to Rick she said, “You’re a special case.  As a minor and someone who is directly involved, we’re going to want to keep you close for information.  My earlier offer still stands.  You can stay in the palace for the duration of the crisis.  And after...well, we’ll have to see what we can do.”  She said it sadly.  Knowing Ashelin, she wouldn’t feel good about turning out an orphan, whether the city was in crisis or not.  But there was no way to know if someone else would claim him, or where Rick would even want to go, after his home had been razed to the ground.  Rick nodded tiredly in reply, and said, “Thanks,” looking awestruck at her generosity. 

As the group started to break away, Rick held up a hand, saying, “Wait.” 

The group, as one, turned back to him.  Lexi couldn’t see their faces, and she wondered whether they were more expectant or angry.  She took her eye away from the crack in the doorway, and pressed her ear more firmly against the door where she’d been listening.  

Rick paused for a moment, as if gathering his thoughts.  Then, he said, “Look, I know that you all don’t have any reason to trust me, except for my word and the word of my friends.  But I still want to be involved.  I want to help solve this.  This...darkness, whatever it is, it took my home, my entire village, and my uncle.  I’m alone now, and I know I’m young, but I have some skills to offer, too.  I was trained in basic combat and battle strategy, and I’ve spent more than half my life studying eco, while working with very patchy, second-hand equipment.  I’m sure that with the resources here, I could do a lot more.”  He waved his arm, indicating the cutting-edge technology all around them.  It reminded Lexi of the covetous glance that he’d given the laboratory when he’d come in.  She didn’t doubt that the lab was where he was looking now. 

Lexi’s father said, “Look, kid.  I appreciate that you’re in a bad situation.  And we’re not going to turn you out on the street or anything.  But I don’t really think that we need an untested teenager’s help solving this.”  He sounded firm, but considerably less angry.  It was hard to be angry at someone who had just lost everything.  In fact, it was a kind rejection, coming from him. 

Lexi almost expected her mother to step in.  Keira was often a mollifying force on her husband, and a smart kid wanting to prove himself was exactly the kind of charity case that she’d take up.  But, to Lexi’s surprise, it was Ashelin who spoke up first. 

“Jak, I think you’re forgetting when almost all of us were just a bunch of untested teenagers, running around trying to save the city.  And that includes you.”  She was standing with a hand on her hip, which was cocked out.  “The Underground took a chance on you , if you recall.”  Aunt Ashelin was probably one of the few people who could talk to Jak that way.  Even more impressively, her words seemed to have taken the steam out of him.  He stood quietly as Ashelin walked across the room to stand in front of Rick.    

When she reached him, she stared at him for a few long seconds, as if she was looking for something.  Rick sat still, looking confused but holding her gaze steadily. 

Seeming appeased with whatever she’d seen in him, Ashelin leaned back and said, “I like the looks of this kid.  I’ll vouch for him.  He’ll be my responsibility.” 

“I agree,” said Torn.  From where he stood leaning against the round wall, he cleared his gruff voice and added, “But since you’re still an unknown element, kid, we would have to be fools to let you access our equipment without supervision.”  Rick seemed about to protest, but Torn held up a hand to stop him. “Let me finish.  Like Ash says, you’re a special case and you seem to know a lot about this eco stuff.  You can help in the labs, supervised and on a probationary period.” 

This caused a bit of an uproar.  Some people didn’t trust him at all, and others offered to also keep an eye on him.  Her father didn't think that it was a good idea, but was overruled.  It was decided; they would give Rick a chance to prove himself. 

Lexi pulled away from the door, and fought the urge to shout her relief.  After such a horrible day, this was the sliver of light that she hadn’t known she’d needed.  Now, in his mourning, Rick would have distractions and company.  He would be safe, and close.  She put a hand to her heart, utterly relieved. 

Still, a heavy weight hung in the air.  Lexi plopped down on Beth’s bed and said, “Poor Rick.” 

Beth looked down, rocking her little sister idly.  “I know,” she said.  

Micah also pulled away from the door, now that the interesting part of the conversation was over.  Still, he stood peering at it, thoughtfully.  

“I wonder what’s going to happen next?” he asked.  He took a step away from the door and towards them.  “Like, to us?”  

Lexi snorted.  “Oh, yeah.  I keep forgetting that you’ve never been to headquarters before.” 

“Yeah,” said Beth, gently laying down her sleeping sister on the bed next to her.  “You must have been in Spargus during the other emergencies.”  She stretched her sore arms above her head, before launching into an explanation.  

“What happens next is we are going to stay here, basically twenty four hours a day, seven days a week, just like we always do when we come here.  It’s pretty miserable.  The doors are always locked, there’s no windows, and there are always at least two adults guarding us.  We’re allowed onto the palace grounds and the balcony, but that’s about it.  The twins are going to be a nightmare in here,” she said, shivering. 

Lexi wrapped her arms around her legs and put her head down on her knees.  “Staying inside isn’t the part I’m worried about.  I’m more worried about—” 

“Lexi Mara Hagai!” bellowed her father from the central room.  “Get over here, now!” 

“—that,” she said, lifting her head again.  

Beth flinched at the sound of Jak’s voice, and even Micah looked surprised.  Lexi realized that he’d probably never seen her father this angry.  He’s in for a treat, she thought sarcastically.  

“Good luck,” whispered Beth, as Lexi left the room.  

When she reached the central chamber, her whole family was waiting for her.  Keira looked slightly angry, but it was nothing compared to the rage that rolled off her father in waves.  Samos was sitting on one of the couches circling the central table.  He stared meditatively off into space.  

Lexi gulped, and stood in front of Jak.  The other adults were leaving, awkwardly ducking into their own apartments and rooms off the central chamber.  There wasn’t going to be any help there. 

“Lexi,” Jak said, standing in the center of the circular room, staring down at her coldly.  Lexi noticed flecks of gray in his hair.  Were those because of her?  

“I want you to explain yourself,” he said.  His cold tone was worse than yelling. 

Lexi looked from him to her mother, who looked more confused now than anything.  It was clear; Keira was silently begging for an explanation.  The guilt ate away at Lexi.  She looked down. 

“I don’t have anything to say,” she said. 

Jak’s eyes narrowed.  “Really?  Maybe you could talk about how you didn’t tell us that you have powers.  Or, you could tell us why you snuck out of the city multiple times.  Or why you thought that it would be a good idea to experiment with eco all by yourself, knowing what it could have done!  You have risked your life countless times in the last few weeks, and I just don’t know what you were thinking.”  He’d had one hand pressed to his forehead when he’d started, but had soon lowered it in a questioning gesture, with his other hand on his hip. 

His accusations spurred her to speak.  “They needed me,” Lexi said, voice cracking. 

“Who?” he asked.  “The villagers?”  He swung out his arm.  “You could have told us about the villagers long ago, and stayed home where it’s safe.  None of this had to be your responsibility.  Do you have any idea how hard I’ve worked to make this city a safe place for you?  Don’t you understand that this was the last thing I ever wanted for you?  Now, there’s a maniac manipulating dark eco, who could have taken you , and you threw away everything I’ve ever done for you!  I can’t fathom it, Lexi.  I just can’t.” 

Lexi looked up at him, struck by how much taller he was than her, and by the bags under his eyes.  His fears were fueling his anger, and she didn’t know how to calm them.  

So, instead of trying, she just whispered, “I wanted to be like you.”  The words barely made it past her lips.  

“I didn’t hear you,” Jak said tensely.

“I said, ‘I wanted to be like you!’ she shouted, eyes closed and fists clenched at her sides.  She kept her eyes closed and added, “All my life, I’ve heard all about the wonderful things you’ve done, and about the people you’ve saved, and all I’ve ever wanted to be like you.” 

Lexi opened her eyes, fighting back the tears that threatened to pour down her face.  “My whole life, you’ve been teaching me how to fight and how to survive.  You spent sixteen years showing me what it means to protect the people who need protecting and save the ones who need to be saved.  You taught me all that, and then when I followed your example, you got angry at me?”  She pressed her hands to her face to fight off the pressure of her unshed tears.  I will not cry, I will not cry, she thought harshly. 

“You know what,” she went on with a bitter laugh, “ that’s what I don’t understand.  Isn’t everything I’ve done exactly what you would have done in my position?  When Gol and Maia were attacking Sandover when you were a kid, you would never have sat at home and let them!” 

“That was different!” Jak shouted.  “I didn’t have anyone else to do it for me.  You’re lucky, you get to be normal, you get to be safe.  And you’re throwing all that away,” he said.  He pointed at his chest.  “This stuff is my problem, not yours.  This is my job, not yours.  Why don’t you understand that?” 

That drew her up short.  “But, daddy…” she said.  The words stuck in her mouth.  How could she tell him how much she wanted this?  How could she convince him that she needed to be out there, helping him?  She’d fought so hard not to be a scared little girl, but in that moment, that’s exactly what she felt like.
“But nothing,” Jak said.  “You deliberately disobeyed me.  You’re going to stay inside headquarters, and I don’t want you touching eco again.” 

“Dad!” Lexi shouted, horrified.  She couldn’t imagine a life without eco, not so soon after discovering it.  It was a part of her, a book that she’d just started to read.  The thought of losing that part of her hurt immensely.  Keira blanched behind him, and Samos spoke up for the first time during the fight.   

“Jak,” Samos said, levely.  “I do not think that’s a fair request.  The cat’s already been let out of the bag, proverbially speaking, and taking eco away from her permanently wouldn’t be good for her system.” 

Jak’s chest was heaving with the force of his anger, and he took a deep breath, running a hand through his short-cropped green-blonde hair and taking in a deep breath.  “Fine.  Fine!  After this is over, we’ll discuss what we’ll do about the eco.  But you’re not going near dark eco again, and you’re not going to try to solve anything.  I’ll take care of that myself.”  With that, he turned on his heels and left the room.  Keira hugged herself, looking shaken by the fight. 

Right before her father was out the door, Lexi took a few steps forward and screamed, “Maybe I don’t want to be like you, after all!” 

Jak paused in the door, stopping dead like he’d been hit.  Then, he kept on walking.

Chapter Text

Chapter 18: Rick’s Presentation

It had been almost a week since the evacuation of the village, and Torn was absolutely ragged.   Whenever he wasn’t helping in the city, he was on patrol with Jak.  They’d also been reaching out to some of their seedier contacts, hoping to pinpoint the origin of the dark eco now seeping into the city.  Still, they hadn’t come up with anything.  Worst of all, more dark creatures were flooding into the city all the time, and holding them at bay was a full-time job by itself. 

He was heading back to the palace now, to regroup and think.  Normally, during a crisis like this, he would head straight to headquarters.  But with Jak and Lexi fighting the way they were, there was no guarantee of peace and quiet there.  Instead, Torn was going to consult his maps in the privacy of his apartment. 

When he and Ashelin had permanently moved into the rebuilt palace, they’d cordoned off a small section for their personal use.  They used the rest of the palace for meetings, business, and public tours.  Early in their marriage, they’d agreed that they’d make sure that the palace stayed open and transparent to the public, and that the majority of it would be for government use.  After all, they didn’t need much; just a study for each of them, a kitchen, a living room, a dining room, some bathrooms, and a master bedroom.  Their apartments also had a guest room that often went unused.  That’s where the boy, Rick, was staying now. 

Torn still didn’t know what to make of him.  This wasn’t the first time that Ashelin had let a stray stay in the palace, but it was the first time she’d lent one a room in their personal apartment.  Normally, her charity cases stayed in one of the other countless, well-furnished rooms strewn throughout the palace.  Ashelin was never very trustful of strangers, but she seemed to have a soft spot for this rebellious youth.  He must have reminded her of the kind that had once made up so much of the Underground during Praxis’s reign.  

As for Torn, when Ashelin had offered the boy the use of their guest room, he had just shrugged his shoulders and let it happen.  He didn’t mind, as long as the kid stayed out of his hair. 

But when Torn walked into his study, there Rick was, working on something strewn all across the floor.  He sat cross-legged on the floor, wearing the strange combination of cadet uniform and civilian clothing that he’d worn since he got there.  To tell the truth, they had outfitted him by digging through a box of odds-and-ends they’d had in the barracks.  Some had come from the lost and found.  The boy had taken to them, anyway.  He wore normal blue pants and tan, athletic boots that wouldn’t have looked out of place on any of the obnoxious teens who liked to hoverboard down the city’s streets.  But his shirt was a standard-issue white undershirt with short sleeves, and over it, he wore a dark red cadet’s jacket, made of a durable, water-resistant material.  It was more of a bomber jacket than anything else, and he’d taken to it immediately, swapping it out for the dark cloak they’d found him in.  The jacket wasn’t a part of the standard cadet uniform.  Instead, it was only issued to those who were learning to pilot airships or who had been placed in colder climates.  It wasn’t as formal as most cadet’s uniforms.  Still, the kid somehow looked older in it. 

In fact, everything about him had seemed to change these last few days.  He didn’t seem as young as he had when they’d found him in the forest.  But, Torn supposed, loss could do that to a person, and he’d lost a lot over the last few days.  Torn shook away the thought.  Sure, they’d temporarily taken him in, but it wasn’t his job to psychoanalyze the kid. 

Whatever Rick was making, he was mostly using spare parts that he’d found around the palace.  The boy was enthusiastically soldering wires together, and the melted metal threatened to go everywhere.  Pieces of whatever he was working on littered the floor, including what seemed to be part of the blender that had gone missing.  The boy set down the part he was working on, and started hammering something. 

Well, so much for a quiet afternoon pouring over maps and strategies, Torn thought, gripping the rolled maps under his arm more tightly. 

Over the last few years training cadets for Haven’s military, he’d built up a lot of patience for tomfoolery of all kinds.  But, in the face of all this, his old attitude reared its head.  

“What do you think you’re doing?” Torn asked.   

The boy jumped, startled out of a state of deep focus.  Luckily, he kept control of his hand that was hammering the metal, and didn’t break anything.  Rick’s eyes met Torn’s, and he looked down at his half-made contraption, and then back at him.

“Um…” Rick said, glancing down shiftily at the pile of scrap metal and eco crystals that covered the floor.  “Working?”  He said it with a questing in his voice, as if he wasn’t sure. 

Torn huffed out an exasperated breath, and walked over to the map table.  “You know, kid, for someone trying so hard to be trusted, you sure act questionable sometimes.” 

The boy grimaced, and ran a grease-stained hand through his hair.  “I know.  Sorry,” he said.  “I didn’t tell anyone about this, in case it doesn’t work.  I don’t want to get anyone’s hopes up.”  He lifted one shoulder in a shrug. 

Intrigued, but unwilling to show it, Torn crossed his arms and leaned back against the desk.  “What’s it supposed to do?” 

“Well,” said Rick, twisting a screw in place more tightly.  “If it works it should be able to distribute a concentrated ray of white eco.  I’m hoping that if we use it on the origin point of the dark eco, we can stop it for good.” 

Torn hummed thoughtfully.  They had been thinking about this problem so much in terms of stopping the person or people causing it, that they hadn’t thought much further than that.  They’d figured that if they stopped the person, they’d stop the eco, right?  But, now that the kid mentioned it, even if they stopped the culprits, if they wanted to remove the problem entirely they would have to stop the source.  Torn couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of it.  Was he really getting that slow? 

Torn rubbed his stubbly chin, thoughtfully.  “That’s,” he said, “actually not a bad idea.” 

Rick’s shoulders slumped with relief, and he nodded his thanks.  “If it works,” he repeated.  “Which is still a pretty big ‘if.’  I wanted to run the idea by the green eco sage, but I imagine that he’s not too happy with me right now.” 

Torn walked further into the room and said, “Samos?  Why should he be upset with you?” 

Rick looked slightly panicked for a second, before clearing the expression from his face.  “Oh, you know,” he said, fidgeting listlessly with his device.  “I just don’t imagine any of Lexi’s family like me too much right now.  I think that they blame me for her harnessing her powers.  I think her dad hates me, anyway.” 

Torn hummed thoughtfully, then took a seat on the other side of the room, facing the kid.  He didn’t know what to say.  All these teenagers running around headquarters these days reminded him of the early days of the Underground, when he had been responsible for assigning tasks and making sure that no one knew too much too soon.  Having kids around complicated things.  To make matters worse, Torn had been prepared to dislike the kid on Jak’s behalf.  But, given the way the kid worked away on his devices all day, not really expecting anything of anybody, he was becoming hard to dislike. 

“Kid, how about taking a break?” Torn said.  “You seem exhausted.  How long have you even been working on this thing?” 

Rick sat back on his heels, seeming relieved, as if he’d been waiting all day for permission to relax.  He rubbed his tired eyes and said, “Since last night.  With the quakes getting worse every day, I wanted to have a working prototype ready asap.”  He looked around the room blearily, as if this was the first time he’d noticed his surroundings.  “Sorry for working here, by the way.  Governor Ashelin kicked me out of her study about an hour ago, and she said the light in here was better for working, anyway.” 

Torn chuckled fondly.  That was just like Ash.  She’d wanted to get her work done, too, so she’d made Rick Torn’s problem.  He couldn’t even be mad.

“That’s fine, kid.  As long as none of those are prohibited materials,” he said, eyeing the pile of crystals suspiciously. 

Rick held his hands up innocently.  “Oh, no,” he said.  “Nothing like that, I only use that stuff in the lab, with Samos or Keira watching.  This is just a prototype, and these are de-powered blue eco crystals, just to test the concept.” 

Torn shrugged.  “Then that’s fine with me.  Want a drink?” 

“Um, sure,” said Rick, bracing his hands on his bent legs.  “What do you have?” 

Crossing the room to his desk, Torn reached behind it and opened the mini-fridge that he had stashed there.  Rick’s eyebrows raised considerably.  

“I got soda, water, juice, and beer,” he peered at Rick over his desk.  “But the last one isn’t on offer.  At least, not to seventeen-year-olds.” 

Rick’s eyebrows stayed risen, and he said, “Soda, please.” 

Torn took one out, and tossed it to the boy before grabbing one for himself.  He didn’t need to be drinking anything stronger this early in the day. 

“I wish I’d known about that an hour ago,” Rick said, wistfully.  “I was thirsty, but didn’t want to leave my post.” 

“Leave my post”, Torn noted internally.  What a serious kid. He acted like this was on a guard post, not working on some device of his own free will in someone else’s study.  It reminded him of somebody. 

“Yeah, well,” said Torn.  “Just don’t tell anyone.  I have a reputation to uphold, and a minifridge with soda under my desk hardly fits it.” 

Rick offered a real smile, and sat on a brown leather couch on the other side of the room, relieved.  He took a sip from his drink, and found that he liked the taste.  

Torn wasn’t one to break a welcome silence like this, but there was something that had been preying on his mind lately.   

“Hey, kid,” he said, “I gotta ask, why are you working so hard on this stuff, anyway?  No one said it was your responsibility.”  Every time Torn had gotten home from a long day patrolling the forest or aiding the refugees, Rick had always been awake, pouring over books about eco in the main room of the apartment, and tirelessly listening to all the music he’d missed, living in the forest.  Having a teenager around was really weird.  And loud. 

Rick shrugged and replied, “As long as I’m here, I ought to make myself useful, don’t you think?” He took a sip of his drink and looked down into the dark, bubbling liquid.  “I mean, you guys all know the backstory.  Ever since I was twelve, my village kept bouncing me from house to house.  They didn’t really know what to do with me, once my dad died.”  His gaze was a million miles away.  “I always tried to be useful wherever they put me.  But I was never that good at farming, or fishing, or even guarding the gates.  Then someone decided that since the shaman was getting older that he could use someone to do chores around the house.  And it was a good place to keep me out of the way.   At first, I wasn’t even supposed to be his apprentice or anything.  I was just his errand boy.”  He snorted, self-deprecating.  Then, he finally pulled his eyes from his drink, which was cooling his hands.  “But I hated feeling like anyone could replace me, and like I wasn’t really helping.  So, I started learning his trade, and he gave me more and more to do every day. 

“It was the only trade that I was good at, and I learned a lot doing it.  And, in the end, my uncle’s home was the only place that stuck.  He was the only one who believed in me.” 

Rick snapped back to reality, and looked slightly embarrassed, as if he hadn’t realized how much he’d been saying.  He coughed awkwardly and said, “And now, I guess it’s just habit, trying to stay as useful as possible.  Believe me, I know that this isn’t a free ticket or anything.”  He said it as if this was just another house that would bounce him if he wasn’t useful.  

Torn shrugged.  “Well, you deserve a rest, kid.  After all, it sounds like you’ve been up all night.  Why don’t you eat something and get some sleep?” 

Rick looked at him thoughtfully, weighing up his suggestion.  “Alright,” he said, stretching.  “I guess you’re right.  I won’t be much use to anyone like this.”  

“And don’t bother with the healthy stuff at the front of the fridge,” Torn said, “The good stuff is hidden at the back.”  Marriage with Ashelin had come with its little compromises.  

Rick chuckled.  “Noted,” he said.  He swept the parts he was working on into a box, and left the room.  After the boy left, and Torn was finally left in the silence that he’d so desperately wanted when he came into the room, he had a moment to reflect.  He realized who Rick reminded him of so strongly—himself.  

Lexi had spent the last week sitting around headquarters, her pet crocadog, Doc, sitting on her lap.   The only things that ever changed for her were which room she sat in at any given time, and who came in and out of headquarters.  After that first day, there hadn’t been any interesting conversations to eavesdrop on.  Everything interesting in the world was happening outside these walls.  And any discoveries that were being made weren’t discussed here, that was for sure.  Since that kind of collaboration was exactly what headquarters had been made for, Lexi had a feeling that her father was purposefully distancing her from any information. 

That’s why—when she heard that Rick was going to be making a presentation in the palace about a week into her confinement—she was immediately dying to go.  She hadn’t seen Rick since he’d come to the city, and she only ever heard about him from Torn, Brick, and Ashelin during their brief visits.  Apparently, he’d been spending the last few days and nights working on an invention that he hoped would put an end to the dark eco disturbances, once and for all.  When she’d heard, Lexi knew that she had to go.  This presentation wasn’t the kind of thing that she wanted to hear about second-hand, or at the crack of a doorway as others discussed it.  She wanted to be in the audience.  

So, to this end, she waited quietly in her room for one of her parents to come home, so she could ask them if she could watch Rick’s presentation.  Since both her parents had been busy lately, it was shaping up to be a long wait.  Keira had taken up helping her father in the lab as he looked over dark eco samples brought in by Torn and Jak.  All hours of the day, she could see them, working away through the glass walls of the lab, her grandfather explaining something animatedly, and Keira listening intently.  

Jak, on the other hand, was out of the headquarters at almost all hours of the day.  Whatever he was doing, he wouldn’t say.  Or, at least, not to Lexi.  Still, Lexi figured that she could get permission from her mother when she was done in the lab for the day, and that her father wouldn’t be home soon enough to stop her.  After all, the presentation was later that day.  There wasn’t any time to waste. 

Knowing that, Lexi went to the door.  Maybe it was time to take matters into her own hands, and seek out someone to give her permission.  If she went straight to the lab, she should be able to catch her mother leaving the lab. 

Instead, she almost walked straight into her father, who was coming in.  He looked wrecked, like he hadn’t slept in days.  Which could definitely be the case; he was never in their apartment at headquarters long enough to rest.  He started as they almost ran into each other.  Things between them had been tense lately, with even the smallest conversations often turning into full-blown fights. 

“Lexi?” Jak asked.  “Where are you going?” 

Technically, Lexi was allowed to walk around headquarters as much as she liked.  However, with her and her friends all on lockdown, there was never much reason for her to leave her room, which Jak knew. 

“Oh, I was just looking for mom,” Lexi said innocently, putting her hands behind her back. 

Jak narrowed his eyes.  “Why?”

“I just wanted to ask her something.  Before Rick’s presentation,” said Lexi, a questioning tone entering her voice.  She wasn’t sure how obvious she was being. 

Not obvious enough for her sleep-deprived father, it seemed.  He closed his eyes tiredly and said, “Whatever it is, it’ll have to wait.  She’s busy now, and is heading straight to the presentation from the lab.  She’s helping Samos with something.” 

That figures, thought Lexi.  She said, “Well, it can’t really wait.” 

“What is it?” asked Jak.  He walked over to the fridge in their small kitchenette, taking out a bright purple fruit from Spargus to eat.  “You can always ask me,” he said, before taking a huge bite out of the spiny fruit. 

For a second, Lexi wondered if she could.  But, to be fair, this was the first time in a while that a conversation of theirs had gone so well.  Maybe her father was too tired to fight right now. 

“Well…” she said, hesitantly, “I was wondering if I could watch Rick’s presentation today.  He’s probably nervous, and I bet that he would like to have a friendly face in the audience.  And since it’s happening on palace grounds, it’s not like I’m really getting involved or going outside anything.  I just want to support him, as a friend.”  She cringed.  Had she said too much? 

Jak shrugged, and bit again into his snack.  As soon as he finished his bite, he said, “Sure, why not?” 

“Really?” Lexi asked, stunned. 

“Yeah,” he said.  “It’s happening in an empty room in the palace.  You can walk with your mom and me in about an hour.  I’m meeting her outside the lab.” 

Lexi tilted her head.  After a week of non-stop fighting, she was shocked to have him agree so quickly.  “And you’re really sure?  What changed your mind?” 

He peered at her over the counter in the middle of the small room.  “It’s just like you said: there’s no harm in it, really.  And it’s good to be there for your friends.” 

“Well, okay,” said Lexi.  She hopped off her chair and hopped across the room, giving her dad a big hug when she’d crossed the room.  “Thanks, daddy!  I’ll be ready.”  Then, she scampered away into her bedroom, not wanting to say anything else to push her luck. 

When Jak looked after his daughter, he thought about how nice it was, getting to act normal with her again.  That had been part of the reason that he’d agreed so readily to her request.  He knew that sometimes, he was too hard on her.  Besides, on some of their missions lately, Torn had put in a good word for that kid, Rick.  If anyone would be able to get a good read on Rick’s character, it’d be Torn.  He wasn’t one to be tricked easily, and— along with Ashelin—had spent the most time with Rick lately.  Jak also couldn’t help remembering the bleak, familiar look in the boy’s eyes when he’d come back alone from the shaman’s hut. 

Fighting off a shiver, Jak reflected that the boy probably did deserve to see a friendly face today.  But Jak also knew that he’d just have to keep a close eye on the proceedings.  

Rick was getting ready in an unused lecture room in the palace, bustling around and making last minute alterations before his presentation.  After a solid week of working, it was finally time to present his device.  It was a squat, compact metal box.  At the top was an open hatch at the top for eco insertion and down the front side were dials and radars to monitor and direct the flow.  It all culminated at the bottom, with a concentrating ray.  He’d partially based the invention on the jury-rigged device his uncle had used to pump white eco into the ground.  Like that device, white eco could be blasted into the ground to slow the destruction of the dark eco, but on a much more concentrated basis.  

Face scrunched with supreme concentration, Rick adjusted the eco-monitors so they all rested at "zero".  With one last twist of the dials, he was satisfied.  

He took a step back to take in his invention.  It was perched on a raised platform at the front of the room.  He’d filled the whiteboards at the back of the lecture hall with facts and figures explaining his theories, written in his cramped, red handwriting.  The rest of the room was pretty nondescript, with white walls and huge windows looking out onto the palace grounds.  He could see the tall, red building of headquarters far across the courtyard.  Looking at it, he remembered Lexi, and wondered if she’d be able to come that day.  

Ashelin came in ahead of the others.  The crowd was going to be limited to the few adults who worked in headquarters, which they’d soon be leaving to come here.  Still, the pressure was enormous.  He’d asked for one chance, and this was it. 

“It’s almost time for your presentation,” she said.  “Nervous?”

Rick shook his head, so as not to worry her.  “No, I’m pretty sure I can get it to work.  And, I mean, out of everything that’s happened the last few weeks, this should be the least intimidating.” 

Ashelin let out a dry chuckle.  “You’d be surprised how many people wouldn’t agree with you.  Did you know some people are more afraid of public speaking than dying?” 

He laughed.  “Well, I know which I’d rather do, anyway.”  He tried to seem as confident as possible, and was only faking a little of his bravado.  

“You’re lucky, then,” she said.  Then she added thoughtfully, “You know, that’s a good trait in a leader.” 

Not knowing what to make of that, Rick stayed silent, sitting back on his heels. 

“Anyway,” Ashelin continued.  “Are you about ready?  Everyone should be on their way soon.  I could let them know.” 

“Yeah,” said Rick.  Surreptitiously, he wiped his sweaty palms on his pant legs to dry them.  There was something to be said about the new clothes they’d given him since he’d come to the city: they were comfortable, and their casual designs made him feel like he belonged in the city.  

Ash nodded, and turned to go.  “I’ll get them.  Knock ‘em out, kid,” she said. 

Rick swallowed nervously, then started flipping through his notes as quickly as possible, skimming for important phrases to drop while presenting. 

Torn was the first to come inside.  The first thing he did was walk around the device a few times, examining it intently.  Rick knew that he was mentally cataloging all the little changes that Rick had made since Torn had seen it last in his study.  Not much had changed.  After the third model started working, most of the changes were cosmetic.  This most recent version was less bulky and easier to operate.  Finished with his look-over, Torn hummed thoughtfully. 

“Not bad,” he said.  “You ready?” 

Rick nodded.  Then, through the windows, he caught a glimpse of Lexi, walking toward them, sandwiched between her parents.  Her hands were in her pockets, and she was glowing, laughing at some comment one of them had made.  Rick didn’t even realize he was staring until Lexi saw him through the glass, and gave him a small wave and a smile.  Thankfully, her parents were too wrapped up in their own conversation to notice.  

Rick lifted a hand and twitched his fingers in response.  

Torn, noticing this display, craned his neck so he could see who Rick was waving to.  Instantly, his demeanor changed.  

“Oh, no,” Torn said with a groan.  “You like her, don’t you?” 

Rick, still squatting on the floor, thought briefly about lying.  But Torn wouldn’t be easy to trick.  After all, to have risen to the top of the military, he had to be able to read people, right?  There was no use hiding it.  

Instead, he said, “Is it that obvious?” 

Torn snorted.  “Yes, it is.  So, here’s a piece of advice: wipe that look off your face before Jak gets here.” 

Rick’s blood froze.  “Why, what would he do to me?” he asked, panicking slightly. 

With a shrug, Torn said, “Probably nothing, as long as you don’t try anything.  He’s a good guy, really, just very protective, especially of Lexi.  Just, watch out, that’s all I’m gonna say.”  He raised both hands, as if by giving Rick this advice he was absolving himself of all responsibility.  You’ve been warned, kid, he seemed to be saying. 

“I can’t believe this,” Rick said, sinking to the ground, knees bent.  “I finally met a girl I like, and her dad is the most intimidating man in the city.” 

Torn laughed.  “You think you have it bad?  Ashelin’s dad was Baron Praxis.” 

Rick tilted his head.  True, he’d known botht that Torn and Ashelin were married, and that she was the daughter of the former baron, but somehow, those two thoughts had never really come together. 

“Oh, yeah,” said Rick, briefly knocked out of his own self-pity by sheer curiosity.  “How’d that work out, anyway?”

Torn gave him a long, pitying look.  “That’s a long, long story, kid, and right now, we don’t have time to get into it.” 

Tucking away the question for later, Rick returned to the matter at hand.  He shrugged.  “Well, it’s a good point, anyway,” said Rick, squinting up at him.  “At least Jak’s on our side, right?” 

“Well, he is,” said Torn, jokingly, “as long as you don’t try anything with Lexi.” 

It wasn’t long before everyone was in the room to watch Rick’s presentation.  Lexi wasn’t the only one of Rick’s friends who’d made it.  Micah sat next to her, looking as serious as ever.  Beth stayed on her friend’s shoulder, presumably hoping for a good view.  Despite their presence, Rick’s eyes were drawn to Lexi.  Her long hair was pulled back in two braids, and she was wearing a loose, gray tee tucked into a pair of black shorts.  She looked amazing.  

Catching his gaze on her, she smiled encouragingly and mouthed, “Good luck.”  He smiled back, and directed his attention back to the rest of the audience.  It was made up of all the adults who were a part of Jak’s team in fighting the dark eco disturbances: Torn, Ashelin, Jak, Keira, Samos, Daxter, Brick, and Tess.  Sig, the leader from Spargus, was the only one who hadn’t been able to make it.  Though he’d been doing his best to help with the dark eco disturbances, he still had to spend hours a day juggling his duties as the leader of Spargus.  They were going to give him a full report after this meeting.  Provided it went as hoped. 

Rick cleared his throat and said, “As you all know, we’re facing a strong threat from the west in the form of the dark eco quakes.”  Silence followed this statement.  Jak, leaning forward and bracing one hand on his knee, didn’t look impressed.  Rick coughed.  “Well, I mean, of course you guys know that.  We all know that.  It’s been really obvious.  And, if anyone would be aware, it would be you guys, seeing as you're all outside every day.” 

Torn gave a subtle gesture, indicating “move on.” 

“So!” Rick said, snapping back to reality.  “I was thinking, what if it isn’t enough to just stop whoever’s causing this?  We have no idea what they’ve done to the dark eco reservoirs underground to get them to act this way.  So, I believe that if we want to truly end what’s been happening, we’re going to have to go to the source, and destroy the disturbance, once and for all.” 

This piqued the interest of the audience, even Brick, who had been staring off into space.  Rick picked up steam, and walked across the platform to his device.  He gestured broadly at it and the white board covered with his writing.  “That’s why I propose that we use this device, or one like it, to pump white eco into the source of the disturbances.  Hopefully, with the right calibration, we should be able to return the dark eco reservoirs to their normal state, without harming the local ecosystem.”  He paused, and took a breath.  It seemed to be going well. 

He went on, “This device is based on a similar one the former shaman of my village, my uncle, used to delay the dark eco’s destruction of my village.  It worked long enough for everyone to evacuate.  The main difference is this version is much stronger.  It is powered by pure white eco crystals, in a much larger quantity than my uncle used in his device.  In theory, if someone were to use it at the source of the quakes—the epicenter, in other words—they should be able to stop the quakes and return the dark eco to its previous, depowered state.” 

He felt at this point that he’d strayed too far into techno-babble, based on the glazed looks in some audience members’ eyes, and decided to get to the point.  

“Now, I will demonstrate what I mean.  Until now, I’ve been testing its capabilities with blue eco crystals, which are much more common and low-energy.  But now, I will show how it works with a small portion of white eco.” 

Rick went to the side of the room, where a sealed metal canister waited.  With careful fingers, he opened it.  Pulling on a pair of thick gloves for safety, he pulled out one small, white eco crystal.  He walked back to his device, knowing full well that if he didn’t have the audiences’ attention before, he’d certainly grabbed it now.  He placed the crystal into the top of the device and turned to the audience. 

“Now, I know we’re inside, but you shouldn’t worry.  White eco has mostly beneficial effects, and besides, there is no dark eco here to counteract.  Outside, all it would be able to do would be heal the ground and purify it of dark eco.  Inside, it will be able to do even less.  This is just to demonstrate the principle.” 

He felt nervous again, until he caught Lexi’s gaze.  Her green eyes sparkled with excitement, and the way she looked at him made him feel like he could do anything.  Taking in a calming breath, he shifted the prototype into gear. 

For a moment, the display bordered on impressive.  It shuddered, and white lights arched through the room as it warmed up.  The crystals in the see-through chamber started floating, and disappeared as they were replaced with a pure, white light.  They started shifting and coalescing, somewhere between light and plasma.  The small audience leaned forward with rapt attention, and even Jak looked impressed.  

But then, everything went wrong.  With a disappointing shudder, the device let out a high-pitched whine.  The shudders grew, and a red light flashed on the side.  

“Hit the deck!” shouted Rick.  There’d always been a chance of this happening, and he was prepared.  He jumped off the platform entirely, got on the floor, and covered his head.  Everyone else heeded his message, getting down on the floor around him, looking panicked. 

With a last, huge noise, the device exploded entirely, showering them with debris. 

Suddenly, there was nothing to show for all the work he’d put into it over the last few days than a pile of smoking metal.  

Rick was the first back on his feet, the others looking around cautiously. 
“That’s it?” asked Daxter, dryly, lifting his face from where it’d been pressed to the floor. 

“Look,” Rick said desperately, “that was just a prototype.  I’m sure that I can get it to work.”  He pointed at the whiteboard behind him, filled with cramped writing and equations that he’d worked all night on.  “It all makes sense in theory.  I’ve spent hours perfecting the theory.  I know I can get it to work.” 

The aura of pity was worse than outright rejection.  At least if everyone had told him that his plans had been stupid, Rick could have lost himself to anger and frustration.  Instead, the adults who had gathered to watch his presentation stood awkwardly about the room, not looking directly at him.  He felt like a foolish child who’d mistakenly sat at the grown-up table before he was ready.  

The silence said that they’d given him his shot, and he’d blown it.  Lexi bit her lip concernedly.  That was the worst part of all.  The look of pity on her face. 

“Hey,” said Torn.  “It’s okay.  Once we find out whoever’s behind this, we should be able to brute force our way through this.  Chances are, we won’t need to use the device.”  

That stung.  After years of rejection in his hometown, the last thing that Rick wanted was to feel useless.  Lexi, who’d wrapped her arms around herself in sympathy, spoke up then. 

“Well, I thought it was a great idea!” she said, looking around at everyone, daring them to contradict her.  Though Rick appreciated her comment, he caught that she spoke about his idea in the past tense. 

“I agree,” said Ashelin.  “And, with everything that’s been happening, we need more good ideas around here.”  She gave him a comforting look, and said more quietly, “Don’t give up on this.  Some things take a few tries.”  Jak hadn’t said anything, but he inclined his head so slightly at this comment that Rick thought he might have imagined it.  

The small audience broke up and left then, leaving Rick to clean up the remains of his invention.  Lexi tried coming over to talk to him, before her parents herded her out again.  Of course, she must still be grounded.  He wondered how on earth she had convinced them to let her come to this disaster.  He wished he’d made it worth it for her.  

After sweeping up the metal into a neat pile, he sighed sadly.  This had been the sixth model, and the first to detonate so impressively.  But, he felt a start of hope when he realized that this was also the first version to use white eco, instead of huge quantities of blue.  Maybe he’d gotten the conversion of power wrong.  That was it; he must have miscalculated.  

Hastily grabbing his notes, he flipped frantically over to the page about white eco.  He skimmed the notes again, noting the calculations he’d done, and how much he had underestimated the power of white eco.  

Under the heading of the page that read, “White Eco”, he wrote, “stronger than you’d think,” in red ink.  Forgetting his environment, he sank to the ground, and started recalculating desperately, remembering Lexi’s disappointed face.  

This time, he’d get it right. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 19: A Rooftop Conversation

The next few days were some of Lexi’s worst.  Her only source of information were the endless meetings in the central room, which she overheard from the cracks in doorways.   That was the only thing that happened in the headquarters, these days.  She hadn’t seen Rick since his invention’s explosive demonstration, and she wished that she’d said something to wipe the sad look off his face.  Clearly, he was working hard in the palace, and she wanted to tell him that he was doing great.  But she’d had both her regular and secret communicators confiscated more than a week ago, and there was no other way to reach him. 

The worst was that her father was running himself absolutely ragged, hardly ever coming back to headquarters.  When he was home, he’d head to his bedroom, and fall onto the bed, asleep before his head hit the pillow.  Lexi only heard second-hand what he did and where he went.  Apparently, in addition to leading daily expeditions into the forest and the surrounding areas, he was also single-handedly keeping the corrupted animals from overtaking the city, though they poured in from all sides constantly.  No wonder he was too tired to speak. 

Lexi’s mother and grandfather spent their time in the lab attached to headquarters, puzzling away at scans to solve the eco problem.  They had also comforted her after her explosive fight with her father, saying that her Jak would forgive her for sure; it was only a matter of time. 

But more and more, time was the one thing they didn’t have.  The quakes got worse and worse, sometimes shaking headquarters to the core.  Lexi’s dreams were also getting worse, especially now that she couldn’t use eco anymore.  She felt pent up with the stuff, full to bursting with trapped energy.  She woke often in the middle of the night, thrashing and sweating in her temporary bedroom, her mind filled with images of using all kinds of ecos.  In reality, though, the only eco that remained in her body was the white eco that she’d absorbed during training with her grandfather, and that was only because she’d never managed to channel it.  When she was alone in the courtyard or on their headquarter's only balcony, she tried her hardest to sprout wings, like she had that first time in the forest.  

It never worked. 

Over time, Lexi noticed her father coming in more and more.  At first, it seemed that he only came in to sleep.  But then, he’d started coming in for meetings, giving the others intel in the central room, and marking on their shared map places where he’d found things.  

After about a week, about the time of Rick’s failed presentation, the ice between Jak and Lexi melted slightly.  She was relieved, because the distance had been breaking her heart.  It seemed Jak felt the same way.  There were awkward moments sometimes, when he seemed right on the verge of telling her something before changing his mind.  Neither of them knew what to say, so they didn’t say anything at all.  Even so, at least they could manage to be in the same room without fighting. 

Usually. 

Early one day a little over a week into her quarantine, Lexi was sitting on the headquarter’s roof when her father came to her.  Other than the balcony and the courtyard, the roof was the only place Lexi could escape.  Each place had its charms.  The balcony had been a holdover from when headquarters had been a guest home for nobility, before her father and his allies had taken it over.  It was still a nice place to get fresh air and sunlight, but the twins had already been playing on it when she’d walked by them.  She’d left them to it, and instead climbed onto the roof from a small trap door tucked away on the highest level.  From here, she could see the courtyard, where Micah was continuing his training, huffing and puffing as he worked out.  Beth was sitting nearby, pretending to read a magazine, but occasionally peeking at Lexi’s friend.  Lexi was glad she’d chosen the roof.  

She technically wasn’t supposed to be up here, but that didn’t stop her.  It was her only private place in all of headquarters, and from here, she had a wonderful view of the city, tinged with the orange of the early morning.  She’d even brought her crocadog, Doc, who had been following her obsessively.  Lexi kept a tight grip on him, but if he was afraid of the heights, he didn’t show it, instead staring up at her adoringly.  He, more than anyone else, knew when she was melancholy, and had taken on the job of being her personal cheerleader over the last few days.  He was the best part of quarantine. 

That’s where she was when the trap door opened behind her, and her father came out. 

It took only a moment for Jak, with a practiced grace that came from years of scaling heights and running, crossed the roof to be near her.  Soon, he stood behind her and cleared his throat.  Lexi didn’t say anything.  She was still hurt by the way that he had dragged her so quickly back to headquarters after Rick’s presentation, not even giving her a moment to comfort her friend.  That, on top of everything, weighed heavily on her mind.  She turned away, and buried her fingers into her dog’s fur.  Doc looked up at her with a doleful expression, clearing taking her side.  

Jak sighed, and took a seat on the roof next to her.  “Lexi…” he said.  There was a long pause.  She had no idea what he’d have to say.  He was even more stubborn than she was, and she doubted that he would want to make up before she did.  Besides, they’d both gone over a week without really apologizing.  How were they supposed to put all emotion into words now?  

But even if she had been expecting a straight-forward apology, that wasn’t what she was getting. 

“Did I ever tell you why I named you ‘Lexi?’” Jak asked, quietly. 

Lexi lifted her head slightly.  For any other comment, she might have not responded at all, but he had caught her off guard.  Without a sound, she shook her head.  

Jak took a deep breath in.  “I chose ‘Lexi’ because it means ‘to protect,’” he said.  He turned away.  “I wasn’t sure if I’d be a good father.  I’m still not sure if I have been.  But I wanted to promise you that I would always protect you, no matter what.  I just...I wanted to keep you safe.  It’s all I’ve ever wanted.”  His voice was rough with suppressed emotion.  This was the closest he’d ever come to apologizing to her directly.  The pain and vulnerability in his voice softened any of her lingering anger.  He couldn’t even look at her, instead fixing his gaze on the city. 

Lexi looked down and said, “You’re a great dad.  You’ve always been a great dad.  I’m sorry about what I said.  I didn’t want to make you feel like you’ve done a bad job raising me.  I was just angry.  I’m sorry.” 

He swallowed, and nodded, silently.  He squinted out over the city and laughed, once, without much humor.  “Samos is right.  You really did turn out like me.” 

Lexi turned her head.  “What do you mean?” she asked.  

Jak studied the skyline.  “Just...when I look at you, I feel like I’m seeing myself at your age.  It makes me realize that I wouldn’t know what to say, if I could talk to myself back then.  I mean, how could I look into that stubborn face and say, ‘Don’t use your powers’?  I don’t even know if I would have wanted to.” 

He looked down.  “I used to be so reckless with my life.  I didn’t have anything to live for.  Not really, anyway.”  Lexi picked up her head and unfolded her legs, letting them dangle off the roof’s edge.  Doc shifted in her lap, and she pulled him closer.  

Jak went on.  “All I wanted was revenge.  I was so angry, all the time.”  He sighed.  “Then, you came along, and everything changed.  Suddenly, I had a reason to stay.  I had someone who I loved more than I loved myself.  When you were born, I knew that I didn’t deserve you, or your mother.  Everything else in my life, I got through racing or fighting or spite.  You’re the only exception, Lexi.” 

Lexi blinked her moistening eyes, and he went on.  “I know that sometimes, I can lash out.  Maybe I shouldn’t have been so strict.  But all I’ve ever wanted is to keep you safe.  You can understand that, can’t you?” 

She nodded, and said.  “I understand, daddy.”  It was her turn to feel guilty.  She had to explain herself, too.  “I’m sorry for putting myself in danger all the time.  And for never listening to you.  I know I can be hard to deal with.  But I really thought that I was doing the right thing.  I’ve always felt like there was a part of me that was missing.  Whenever we did the eco tests, I always felt like a total failure when I couldn’t get the eco to do anything.” 

Jak flinched like he’d been hit.  Lexi’s disappointment had always been clear, but maybe he hadn’t realized the extent to which those tests had made her unhappy. Lexi scrambled to say, “I mean, I know that isn’t how you and mom and grandpa thought of it.  To you guys, it must have been a relief.  But to me, it was like there was this part of me that I could never reach, and every year, the test reminded me…” she trailed off.  “It just...it made me feel like half of myself, if that makes sense?” 

Jak looked at her, pained.  “Yeah,” he said gruffly.  “I know what you mean.” 

Lexi peered over the city thoughtfully.  Something occurred to her.  “You know,” she said, slowly,  “if Lexi means ‘to protect,’ maybe it’s had two meanings this whole time.  Maybe it’s your promise to protect me, but it also means that it’s my destiny to protect the city,” she waved her arm out, gesturing at the whole city, spread in front of them.  “Did you ever think of it that way?” 

A muscle flexed in his jaw, but he turned away.  “No,” he said.  “I never did.  It feels like I’ve spent my whole life saving and protecting people, because I was the only one who could, and I didn’t want the same thing forced on you.  I wanted to give you the ability to choose.” 

She turned on her seat, looking up at him pleadingly.  “But what if that is what I choose?” she asked. 

Jak cringed, “Lexi…” he started.  

But she didn’t let him finish.  She pulled herself up and said, “This is all I’ve ever wanted.  My whole life, I’ve seen you run bravely into danger, and I’ve felt so weak and useless, always staying put, worrying about you.”  She gestured out widely at the city.  “I want to be out there , helping people, and helping you.  I have powers, and doesn’t that mean it’s my responsibility to use them correctly?”  She was begging now, she could hear it in her own voice.   

Her shoulders shook from all the emotion she’d pushed down over the years.  “I know that now, it’s my turn to do this.  Just let me do this.  Please.”  

He looked like he’d been hit by lightning.  “Lexi,” he said.  “I didn’t know that you felt that way.”  Concern filled his cyan eyes.  “You don’t have to worry about me.  I can take care of myself.” 

“And so can I,” she said.  She tried to fill her voice with confidence that she wasn’t sure she had.  “I can do this.  I’ve been out there, and I’ve done it.  I know that you never wanted me to, but this is who I am.  I know that I am.  I’m not going to grow up to be a mechanic, or a politician, or anything else.  Or, at least, if I do become one of those things, it won’t be the only thing I am.  I’m also like you.  I’m a hero.” 

“I know,” he said, looking down at her.  

She blinked, startled.  “You do?” she asked.  She was lucky that she hadn’t fallen off the roof in her surprise.  

He nodded.  “Yes.  I can see it in your eyes.  There’s no stopping you.  At least, not by forcing you.  I think I knew, the moment I saw you in the forest.  It’s like your grandfather said, the cat’s already been let out of the bag.”  He looked more defeated than she’d ever seen him, but also strangely accepting.  “But Lexi, I can’t just let you go without putting up a fight.  You’re my daughter, and it’s my job to keep you from danger.  You have to understand that, can’t you?” 

“Then come with me!” she shouted, grasping onto this sign of hope that he might accept her into his world.  He blinked at her.  

“What?” he asked.  

“Come with me,” she said, pleadingly.  “Or, let me come with you.  I know that this is my destiny.  So, let me go with you.  You can protect me, and teach me how to be a hero.” 

Jak blinked, and looked away.  “I can’t do that, Lexi.  This isn’t about controlling you, or telling you what to do.  It’s just...I don’t know if I could live with myself, if I let anything that’s happened to me happen to you, too.  I don’t know how I could face my reflection, or your mother, if I let anything happen to you.” 

Lexi couldn’t bear looking at him.  “I know…” she said. 

“So, you won’t go looking for trouble?” Jak asked, sounding truly hopeful. 

And what was she supposed to say to that?  That it felt like this was what her entire life had been building to?  That she just knew she should be out there, fighting crime and protecting the city?  How could she say that to someone who wanted to protect her so badly, and whose face held so much pain?  His pain was more disturbing than when his anger, or in his dark form, or even his fighting.  All of that stuff, dark as it was, were just parts of him.  But him looking so vulnerable and scared was rare.  He had always been her rock.  There had never been anything that shaken him to his core, until now. 

Lexi lowered her gaze.  “I can try,” she said.  “But I can’t make any promises.”  It was the only comforting thing she could say while staying honest.  She couldn’t promise him anything, and she knew it.  

He was about to say something, but then seemed to think better of it.  He just sighed, heavily.  “That’s the best that I’m going to get, isn’t it?” he asked.  He wasn’t happy, but at least he didn’t sound as beaten down as before. 

Lexi tilted her head, looking up at him.  “I’ll do my best,” she said.  “To stay safe.  But if something happens, like with Rick’s village, I’m also going to do whatever I can to help.  Like how you taught me.” 

He looked at her, appraisingly.  “I can accept that,” he said.  Jak kissed Lexi on the forehead, and stood heavily.  “I just...I wanted you to know that I still love you.  I’ll love you no matter what, that’s all.  I just...I want you safe.” 

She smiled a little.  “I know, daddy.  I love you, too.”  And, feeling that this wasn’t enough, she stood and hugged him, standing a little higher on the roof, so she was eye-to-eye with him.  He hugged her back, relieved.  Doc, still in Lexi’s arms, barked happily.  He, at least, was happy.  

Just as they were breaking up the hug, Jak’s communicator sounded at the same time as a ringing alarm that shook the roof they stood on, and all the headquarter’s lights started flashing red and white.  Alarms pierced the air around them, and Lexi knew exactly what that meant.  

There had been a development, at last. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 20: Leaving

“We have to get to the central room!” Lexi said, rushing toward the roof’s trap door.  Jak didn’t protest, since he was already heading there, himself.  It was the work of a moment for him to open the door and hop down into headquarters, Lexi right behind. She set down her dog, who scampered into her room, probably to hide under her bed from all the alarms.  Lexi, on the other hand, followed her father, who was marching down the curved hallway toward the central chamber of headquarters.  

When Jak pushed open the doors to the central room, he saw that almost everyone was already gathered there.  Having just come inside, he stood on the curved hallway of the second level of headquarters, which was open to the central gathering space a floor below.  He leaned over the circular railing and called down, “What happened?” 

Keira and her father had also come in from the lab, where it seemed that they had been working on something.  Rick stood behind them, wide-eyed.  He must have been assisting them when the alarms sounded.  

“Yeah, what is it?” asked Keira, sounding concerned. 

Torn answered, striding through the front door into the center of the room.  “We found the culprit.  Someone has been sighted in the eastern sector, tearing up the city using dark eco.” 

Jak gripped the metal railing so tight that it seemed it might snap.  He felt a surge of dark eco inside him, unlike anything he’d felt in years.  It was a pure rage.  

Finally, he thought, striding down the stairs into the lower level of the chamber.  Obliquely, he knew that Lexi was following him, eyes wide.  Her being there reminded him why this needed to be stopped.  Now, whoever had been threatening her safety could be stopped.  

“Where?” Jak asked when he reached the lower level, and stood next to the map. 

“I have the coordinates,” said Ashelin with icy calm.  “I say we create a strike-team, and take him out immediately.  I want this done.” 

Jak nodded once, firmly.  “Sig, Torn, Ashelin, Brick, Dax,” he said, looking at each of them, in turn.  They all nodded their approval, except Daxter, who threw his arms up in exasperation.  Even all these years later, and he still complained every time Jak dragged him into danger.  Under his breath, he mumbled something about how he was getting too old for this, followed by a few choice words he shouldn’t use in front of the kids. 

Brick cocked his gun and said, “I’ve never had so much fun in this city.  No offense,” he added, looking at Ashelin. 

“None taken,” said Ashelin, shrugging.  “Now, let’s get going.” 

With a nod of acknowledgment, Brick strapped the gun to his back, and hefted two, large hammers.  After years of working in a quarry before taking up government work, hammers were always his weapons of choice.  Jak had seen them in action, and knew that they were not to be trifled with.  

“Daddy,” said Lexi, gipping Jak’s tunic as he was setting out.  It reminded him, for one heart-breaking moment, of what their frequent good-byes had been like when she was toddler.  Back then, the city had been a much rougher place.  Her birth was when he’d really committed to helping Torn and Ashelin eradicate the danger on the streets, which had meant long hours prowling the dark city streets at night, rooting out crime and violence.  But even so, the hardest part hadn’t been the hours, or the violence.  It had been leaving Lexi when she was so helpless and tiny, especially when she looked up at him with those sad, green eyes.  He had never been good at good-byes. 

He turned, and hugged her fiercely.  He held up one arm, indicating to Keira to join in.  His wife rushed forward, and buried her face in his chest, gripping him tight.  Jak squeezed his eyes tight, and held his little family.  Leaving for missions never used to be like this.  

Now, he had something to lose. 

After hugging them both for what felt like an eternity, he pulled away, and planted his hands on Lexi’s shoulders, forcing her to look at him.  “Stay safe,” he said, looking down at her seriously.   

Lexi nodded, but tried to look away.  “I’ll try.” 

It was the best he was going to get.  He nodded, and stood up straight.  “I love you both so much,” he told them.  “I’ll come back after I end this.” 

“Go get ‘em, handsome,” said Keira, fondly.  He nodded to her. 

Looking around, he saw that similar good-byes were taking place all around the room.  Daxter, and his family.  Brick was telling Micah to be strong, and the boy was nodding stoically.  Torn was even saying something to Rick, who nodded, brows furrowed like he was considering something.  Ashelin stood near them silently, glancing once at the doorway.  That look reminded Jak that it was time to leave. 

“C’mon, Dax,” Jak said to his best friend.  

Daxter rolled his eyes dramatically and said, “Jak, we’re getting too old for this.  Why, oh why didn't I choose a more stable career?  Preferrably, one with a 401k.”  But he still hopped onto Jak’s shoulder.  Jak smiled, and nodded to him. 

Then, they left. 

Lexi felt awful.  She’d been left in safety while her father was rushing off to fight for his life.  She couldn’t stop pacing the central chamber.  It was empty except for her friends.  Every adult who wasn’t a part of the strike team had left, scattering throughout the palace grounds to do other things.  Samos had left to watch security feeds, Keira had gone to the garage to see if there was anything she could do to help mobilize the army, and Tess had gone to the armory to help arm soldiers who were going out to fight.  Lexi, Micah, Beth, Rick, and Beth’s twin brothers were under the protection of some guards at headquarters, who weren’t going to let them leave any time soon.  

The only child who wasn’t with them was Beth’s baby sister, Sophie, who had still been strapped to Tess’s chest with a long wrap of light green fabric when she’d rushed off to the armory.  

“You’re pacing,” Beth said to Lexi, as they waited in the quiet central chamber of headquarters.  “It’s stressing me out.  You know, on top of everything else.” 

“Something’s not right,” said Lexi.  She shook her head and combed her fingers through her hair, close to her scalp.  “This is too easy.  We’re missing something.” 

“I agree,” said Rick.  When the attack had happened on the east side, he’d been working with Keira and Samos in the lab.  After his presentation, something had shifted, and everyone had started trusting him to work directly with prohibited materials.  Even Jak didn’t seem to mind leaving him with the other kids.  Now, he was one of them.  

“Rick,” said Lexi.  “Didn’t you say that the epicenter of the dark eco activity was in the forest to the west of the city?  If that’s the case, why would they attack on the east side?” 

Rick nodded, and squinted up at the light, not seeming to see it through the thoughts that were crowding his head.  “That’s what I was thinking.  It doesn’t seem right.”  His eyes brightened, and he said, “Let me check something,” before rushing back into the lab.  

After some rustling and digging, Rick returned with what looked like a huge eco-scanner, with a wide green screen that showed a multitude of clustered, yellow dots near its center.  Rick laid it down on the table in the center of the room, and the teenagers all gathered around it.  

“Back when I was in the forest,” he explained, “I left detectors all around where I thought the epicenter was.  It took a while, but this morning, I finally managed to pick up their signals again.  Now, let me see…”  Intensity rolled off him in waves as he worked, fiddling with knobs and dials along the side of the screen, seeking the perfect frequency.  Then, all of a sudden, he looked up, panic in his eyes. 

“What is it?” whispered Lexi, dread clutching her chest. 

He swallowed around a dry throat.  “There is a lot of activity in the west.  More movement than I’ve ever seen.”  He shook his head slowly.  “There is only one thing this could mean.  Whatever’s happening on the Eastside…” 

“It’s just a distraction,” whispered Lexi, horrified. 

Rick nodded.  “That’s what I think,” he agreed. 

Lexi straightened, and said, “We’re leaving.”  

“We’re what?” asked Beth, stirring from where she’d been sitting on the table.  

“We’re going,” said Lexi.  “Now.” 

That’s all it took to convince Rick.  Immediately, he was planning.  He stood tall and said, “I know that my previous prototype didn’t work, but in the meantime I’ve made a lot of improvements and corrections.  Before, I underestimated white eco’s power, but that’s fixed now.  My final version is ready, and it should be able to contain the power of white eco.  If we set it off in the epicenter, we can end this, once and for all.” 

It was Lexi’s turn to nod.  “Bring it here.  I’ll take it with me,” she said.  She turned to her other friends and said, “We leave as soon as we can.” 

Beth waved her hands in front of her face and said, “Are you serious?  The guards aren’t about to let us leave headquarters.  And, on the off chance we get past them, we might still run into our moms in the palace, and they’ll stop us.  There’s just no way.” 

“We have to try,” said Lexi through gritted teeth.  “My dad and his striketeam are chasing a diversion right now, while the real danger is building up to something in the forest.  There’s no time to tell anyone.  We have to do this ourselves.  I’m positive.”  Lexi walked over to her bag, and slung it carelessly onto her shoulders.  She strapped her hoverboard over it, and cast around, looking for something she could use to hit anyone or anything that got in her way.  

Beth stood in front of her.  “You know what your dad said.  This is too dangerous.  You know what these eco goons might do to you.”  She hopped onto her friend’s chest, and gripped the collar of her blue t-shirt, using it to shake some sense into her.  But, with the size difference, it looked more like she was trying to fight a mountain. 

Lexi gently pried her friend’s fingers off, and bent to the ground, crouching and setting her down gently.  “You know what my dad said before he left?  He told me that the reason that he named me Lexi was because it means ‘to protect.’  Well, I think that now, it’s my turn to do my part to protect the city.” 

Rick strapped the boxy final version of his invention to his back.  It was clunky, but small enough to be carried.  “I'm going with you.” 

Lexi’s eyes widened.  “You don’t have to….” she started, standing and reaching for the device.  But Rick twisted away from her, holding up a hand to stop her approach.  

“No,” he said.  “I want to go; I really do.  I said that I wanted to help, and there’s no way I’m giving up my big chance.” 

Micah stood with a grunt.  “I’m coming too, Lexi.  Don’t even bother arguing.  I could never forgive myself if I let you go by yourself.”  Lexi looked at her small band of friends, all so different and dear to her.  The thought of leading them into danger—real danger—hurt her.  But, they were right.  There was no point arguing.  They were coming; there was no way around it. 

Beth gave Lexi a pleading look.  “Are you really sure you want to do this?” she asked. 

“More than anything,” said Lexi, and she was.  The feeling of certainty settled within her, pleasant and unfamiliar, right beneath her solar plexus. 

Beth nodded, begrudgingly  “Alright,” she said.  Then, to Lexi’s utter shock, she turned on her heel and shouted, “NOAH, JUNIOR!  COME HERE!” 

“Um,” said Lexi, taken aback and blinking.  “We’re not bringing your little brothers.  They’re nine.” 

Beth rolled her eyes.  “I know that.  But if we’re going to leave, we need someone to distract the guards.  And I can’t think of any two people who are more distracting.” 

Right then, Noah and Junior scampered into the room.  While Beth looked remarkably like her mother, the twins were Daxter in miniature.  The only difference between them was that Noah wore glasses, and Daxter Jr. wore the blonde fur on the top of his head in small, gelled spikes.  

“What?” said Junior right as Noah said, “Yeah?”  Noah didn’t even look up from the portable video game he was playing.  The sounds of fighting emminnated from it’s tiny speakers. 

“I have a job for you two,” said Beth.  She stood in front of them, standing tall and firm like a military commander.  “Listen, I know that you guys have been dying to go berserk for weeks.  Now’s your chance.  And I happen to know for a fact that when we packed to come to HQ you two filled your bags with firecrackers instead of clothes, which is why you’ve been wearing the same clothes for a week.” 

Junior seemed about the protest, but Beth held up a gloved hand and said, “I’m not trying to bust you.  I want you to use all of them, right now.” 

Noah lowered his game, his eyes wide behind his glasses.  Junior’s mouth was hanging open.  “All of them?” he asked, in wonder.  

Beth nodded.  “Yep,” she said, popping the “p” in “yep”.  “And that ‘secret project’ you guys have been working on?  The one that you think no one knows about and that’s hidden under Noah’s bed?  I think it’s time you used that, too.” 

The twins both looked at their big sister with awe in their eyes.  “Really?” asked Junior.  “Do you think it’s ready?”  He had seemed to instantly accept that she knew about their previously secret project, and had moved on surprisingly quickly. 

Beth smiled.  “Yep,” she said.  “See, my friends and I are going to sneak out.  And I need you too to be as loud and disruptive as possible, so the guards are distracted.”  She crouched slightly, hands on her knees, so she was on their level.  “This is the role you were born for, boys.  Make me proud.” 

Noah’s eyes swam with unshed tears, and Junior launched himself forward to hug her.  

“I always thought there was a chance you were cool,” he said, “you know, buried deep down.  Deep, deep, deep down.  And I was right!” 

She hugged him back, and pulled Noah into the hug, too.  “I’m going to take that as a compliment,” she said.  Then, she ruffled their hair with both hands, and gently pushed them away.  “I love you little boogers.  Stay safe.” 

Agreeing quickly, the twins turned and ran on all fours back to their shared room with Beth, going quickly as if they were scared that Beth would take her permission away from them. 

“Did you just...weaponize your little brothers?” asked Lexi. “Because that’s slightly terrifying, but also impressive.” 

Beth stood and blew a strand of loose, blonde hair out of her face.  “What?” she said, with a slight shrug.  “I work in a gun shop all day.  I could weaponize anything.”  Then, she looked slightly guilty and added, “Besides, the guards won’t hurt them.  The twins will just get herded back to their rooms, and I’ll take the blame.  It’ll be okay.”  Based on the nervous way she bit her lip, Beth might have been trying to convince herself, too, but Lexi didn’t have time to argue. 

Instead, she nodded.  They heard a crash from the other room, and shouting from one of the guards.  Lexi jerked her thumb back toward the sound.  “Is that our cue to start running?” 

Beth hopped on her friend’s shoulder, cringing.  “Ready when you are, I guess,” she said.

By the time they had made it out of the main doors of headquarters, the group could see that the guards who had been tasked with keeping them inside had left to investigate the loud sounds coming from the other side of the building.  There was the distinct sound of an explosion, but Lexi forced it out of her mind as soon as she heard it.  Hopefully, the twins had learned enough from their mom to have been clear of the explosion before it happened.

Only one guard remained in the doorway to the main room.  Beyond him lay the foyer, and beyond that, the courtyard.  Lexi was just deciding what to do when he answered a call on his communicator.  

“What?  The little ones?  What do you mean, they’re shooting at you?  Look, they’re about a foot tall, you two should be able to handle them.”  He pinched the bridge of his nose.  “Yes, I know their size just makes them harder to catch.  Look, I’m sure that you two can handle it yourself.  Just make sure you don’t hurt them, they’re just kids.” 

But, at that moment, there was an enormous crash followed by loud cackling.  The guard at the door said, “...You know what, I’m on my way.”  Then, he, too, left his post. 

Beth let out an enormous sigh.  “I thought it would work, but I didn’t think that it would work that well.”  She looked a little panicked.  “Do you think they broke something expensive?” 

“There’s no time to worry about that, now,” Lexi said.  “Let’s go.”  

She turned and waved for the boys to follow, and she moved on in an awkward crouch.  They walked quickly and confidently, heading for the foyer.  Once they were out, they would have to find a way out of the palace grounds.  Hopefully Micah’s badge would help them get past the gates.  But before that, they had to get out of headquarters.  

But as soon as the automatic doors into the foyer swung open, they saw Keira and Tess, standing right in front of the main door with their arms crossed.  They must have left their stations to guard this final doorway.  Lexi slid to a stop and groaned internally.  They’d made it so far, only to be stopped at the last possible moment.  And now, there was no chance, not with their moms in the way.  Still, they’d have to try.  The whole city depended on them, and they’d already been seen.  They had to leave, and their only chance would be getting their parents to agree.  Lexi stepped forward, ready to make her case.  

To her surprise, as soon as she took that first step forward, Keira said, “Lexi, I can’t believe that you thought that you were leaving here without saying ‘goodbye.’” 

Lexi faltered.  “What?” she asked.  Both her mother and Tess were giving them soft, knowing smiles.  

Keira hugged her daughter, and said into her hair, “Letting my baby go into danger is probably the hardest thing I will ever do.  But, I know you, and stopping you is not the right thing to do.  Besides, I’ve done this so many times before for your father.  I can do it again, for you.  I had a feeling you’d be coming here, and I just needed to make sure I was here to say good-bye, and Tess agreed.” 

Lexi pulled away and looked up at her, shocked.  “Really?” 

Keira nodded.  “Of course, baby,” she kissed her forehead.  “Just come back, okay?”  She smoothed her daughter’s green-blonde hair, giving her a look that was painfully fond.  That pure love made it harder to leave than screaming and fighting would have.  Now, she remembered what she was risking.  

But then, it wasn’t like she had a choice, so she just nodded, silently. 

Tess then said to her daughter, “And, Beth, I know that if Lexi’s going that there’s no stopping you, either.  So, I want you girls to have something.”  From a gray, nondescript box along the wall, she pulled out a gun that was about the length of her entire body.  The baby strapped to her chest cooed appreciatively. 

“This is a modified shotgun, created for speed, accuracy, and a relatively small kickback.  Perfect for a girl of your height, and not too dissimilar from the first gun I gave your father, when he had to protect my Daxie,” said Tess, cocking it with a look of glee.  “If you girls are running off to save the day, I want you to have it, Lexi.  Just consider it an early birthday present.  And Christmas, and your next birthday, too.”  

Lexi took it reverentially.  “Thank you,” she said, almost choking on the words.    

Rick looked worriedly toward the door, silhouette bulky from the device strapped to his back next to his warrior’s staff.  “Guys, I think that we should really get going,” he said, touching Lexi’s arm gently. 

Keira nodded.  “You’re right.  Good luck, girls, Micah,” she said, pulling them in for one last hug.  “And you too, Rick,” she said.  She held out an arm for him, too, and he joined the hug hesitantly, as if he was unused to a mother’s hugs.  He probably was. 

As soon as the hug broke, Rick cleared his throat and said, “Thank you,” roughly.  

Lexi offered one last good-bye to her mother and aunt Tess.  Then, the automatic doors slid open before them, and they were off. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 21: Chaos Reigns

They ran as quickly as they could through the chaotic streets.  The ground shook beneath them more than ever before, and everywhere they looked, panicked citizens fled the city.  Rick had been right when he said that the west was still under threat.  As they moved through the city, people were running toward the city center, away from both the west and the east.  The only difference was that while the east was being bombarded with dark eco and quakes, the west was flooded with dark, corrupted creatures.  Soldiers were fighting them off left and right, but Lexi knew that the closer they got to the west gate, the more likely it was that they would have to fight for themselves.  She shifted her gun in her grip.  

Lexi wondered how whoever behind this was destroying the city from both sides.  They must have split their forces in half, somehow.  But how powerful could they be, to wreak so much destruction on a whole city?  The thought made her queasy.  

Rick held his screen in front of his face, and swiped at it desperately as they ran through the city.  Lexi knew he must be pinpointing the epicenter of the dark eco.  It must have been difficult, given the way it oozed and surged, flowing out of the cracks of the city.  

“Watch out!” she shouted, pulling him away from a fissure that had just opened in front of him.  He started, and thanked her once he was out of harm’s way.  Then, he put aside his tablet, and they kept running, this time with him watching where he placed his feet. 

They didn’t bother with the sewer entrance this time.  Things were so chaotic that by the time they reached the forest gate, most of the soldiers had left to help more vulnerable civilians.  While they had to duck and weave to get to the doorway through the crush of evacuating civilians, they were in a bubble of peace once they reached the gate itself.  Rick made quick work of hacking into the access hatch embedded into the metal doorframe by plugging his tablet into a port and typing away furiously.  Lexi stood watch while he worked, and soon enough, the door was open, and they left the city. 

When the strike team reached the square where the attack was occuring, things were strangely quiet.  Dark eco spread slowly on the streets and people were fleeing in all directions.  But other than that, there was nothing.  Nothing Jak could shoot, anyway.  Still, he hefted his gun, and looked around the square, ready. 

“Uh….” said Daxter, on his shoulder.  “The square is empty, right?  That’s not just me, hallucinating?” 

Ashelin said, “I doubt it’ll stay that way.”  Her gun was also raised. 

At that moment, a geyser of dark eco erupted from a nearby sewer grate.  It would have covered them all, but they moved fast, ducking away.  Even Jak moved, though it couldn’t hurt him, to protect Daxter from it. 

“There he is,” said Jak, pointing, once it finished.  And, indeed, there he was. 

It was the form of a tiny, emaciated old man, consumed almost entirely by dark eco.  He wheezed painfully, as if every move hurt him, and he had pasty gray skin and a face that Jak recognized. 

“Wait,” said Daxter, leaning forward and squinting.  “That isn’t...that can’t be…” 

“Gol,” said Jak, matter-of-factly.  

“What?!” Daxter shouted.  Then, to Gol, he said, “I thought that we dumped you and your crazy sister into a sealed pot of dark eco.  You know, before we jumped five hundred years into the future.”   He gestured casually as he said it, as if time travel was a daily occurrence.  “You should be dead by now.  And I mean, dead dead.” 

The eco set down the man, coagulating into a hand.  Jak took a shot at him, but it was redirected by some kind of dark, electrical force-field.  The man laughed—an awful, raspy sound that seemed to shake his entire, frail body.  

“You forgot one thing, puny boys,” he raised both arms, and the street behind him filled with more dark eco, which crested and surged through the city streets.  Geysers of the stuff burst from underground pipes, coating everything.  “Dark eco strengthens us.  It kept us frozen.  We bided our time, sleeping and waiting.”  He was still wheezing, as if each word was a challenge.  “We sank deep into the earth, into the bowels of the reservoir, until something hit the hull of our ship, weakening it.”  He laughed again, and it’s sound was raspy and terrible.  More dark eco surged up around him, lifting him off the ground.  Dark creatures oozed out of every shadow, until he was surrounded by supernatural protection.  

“We spent centuries hidden away, learning to control dark eco in ways you wouldn’t comprehend.  Until one day, our prison cracked.  Now, we’re back.  And we won’t make the same mistakes again.” 

Around him, Jak sensed the strike team preparing for battle, raising their guns and bending their knees.  

“Enough talking,” he said before he rushed forward, taking his dark form.  Behind him, his friends’ bullets tore through the air, seeking their target.  

Lexi and her friends ran through the forest.  Despite the stitch in her side, Lexi knew that there was no stopping until they’d ended this.  

Rick was leading them, now.  He’d told them before they left the city that he had a good idea where the epicenter was.  That was where they were heading now.  Once he was close enough, he would use his devices to pinpoint it. 

They saw more and more creatures as they went, all running past them and out of the forest.  Everything from wolves to bears had been transformed into huge, misshapen creatures, consumed by dark eco and with eyes like night

A frantic beeping came from Rick’s tablet.  He held it in front of his face, and said, “I found it!  I’ve pinpointed the epicenter.  It’s just ahead and to the left.”  His face, partly obscured by his screen, shone with pride and delight.  Everyone had slowed around him, and watched him intently.  All of them, that is, but Beth. 

“Um, let me guess,” she said.  “It’s about a hundred feet away, right?” 

“Yeah, how’d you know?” asked Rick, not looking up and still walking forward, blindly.  The others, however, had seen.  With a gentle grip on his arm, Lexi stopped him, pushed down his screen with one finger, and gestured broadly.  

Ahead of them, a huge fissure unlike anything they’d seen so far opened into the earth.  It looked like a deep tunnel leading into the earth, and it pulsed with dark electricity.  

“Oh,” said Rick.  “Yeah, that’ll be it.”  He returned his tablet to the strap on his back. 

Lexi nodded.  “Now, we just have to get in.”  The entrance was swarmed with a mind-boggling amount of dark creatures.  She lifted her gun, but Micah pushed it back down again.  

“No,” he said simply.  Lexi looked at him, perplexed. 

“Why not?” said Lexi.  

Micah shook his head emphatically.  “You, Rick, and Beth need to get that device down there to stop this once and for all.  You guys don’t need to fight those things, and if you start, who knows how long until you’re able to get away?”  He jerked his head toward the creatures, and he took out his own weapon.  “I’ll draw them away, and handle them myself.” 

Horrified, Lexi said, “Micah, I couldn’t ask you to do something so dangerous.”  But he just waved her off. 

“My dad and I fight worse things in the desert all the time.  This is nothing.  Besides, I just know that you have to be the one down there to finish this.  Call it a feeling.”  He smiled at her, slightly. 

It was true, Lexi knew.  Anyone who grew up in Spargus learned how to fight and shoot, almost by necessity.  Still, she knew that he was exaggerating.  This was like nothing they’d seen before.  All of a sudden, Lexi realized just how much she owed her friends and family for joining her on this journey. 

She leapt forward and hugged Micah tightly.  While still hugging him, she said, “Just distract them long enough for us to get inside.  Then, get to safety.  Don’t get yourself killed playing hero.” 

“I can’t make any promises,” Micah said with a wink, throwing one of her favorite lines back at her.  It wasn’t fun to hear.  Then, he rushed forward, and shouted, “Come and get me, eco freaks!  The creatures lifted their heads as one, and charged.  Micah bent his knees, ready for battle.  With one swing of his hammer, he took out about seven of the creatures.  That got Lexi thinking that maybe he really could handle this on his own.  

“Alright,” she said to Rick who was next to her, still hidden in the glade.  “While they’re distracted, let’s run for it.  See you inside?”  She lifted her hand into the air, as if to shake.  

He nodded and took her hand, giving it a good squeeze before letting go. 

They ran into the tunnel, past Micah and the creatures he was fighting.  One of the creatures turned to watch them as they left, but Micah just hit the creature while it was looking the other way.  Micah gave them one last nod before he was out of sight. Rick and Lexi kept running, with Beth bouncing on her friend’s shoulder.  

The fighting raged around Jak.  His friends were focusing on the creatures that surrounded him, giving him free reign to fight Gol.  That worked for him, he thought grimly.  This was a rematch he’d never expected, and he wanted to really finish the job this time. 

A protective force field still surrounded Gol.  Getting past it was going to be a problem and Jak knew it.  It was a good thing that Jak knew exactly what would be able to take it down. 

Gol cackled from where he floated, suspended and defended by dark eco.  “Fools!”  He raised his hands, and more dark eco shot up.  “You don’t have the required skill with dark eco to take down my shield.”  He just might be right, Jak thought.  But he just might have enough skill with another type of eco.  

Ashelin said, “Jak, if you have any way to get past that forcefield, now would be a great time.”  As she said this, she shot a creature that was flying through the air toward her.  She was right.  The hordes of creatures around him were thin enough now that they would all be able to fight him the moment that field was down. 

Jak nodded, and stepped forward smartly.  He channeled white eco, as much as he possibly could.  It ran up and down his arms.  Gol’s eyes widened almost comically.  

Placing both hands on the clear dark force field, Jak felt it crackle beneath his palms.  It hurt tremendously, but he fought off the pain.  Instead, he focused on channeling the white eco, forcing it down his arms and into the force field.  

“Stop!” shouted Gol.  “Stop him, my creatures!”  The remaining creatures surrounded Jak, but he was unable to fight them, too intent on his task. However, his friends started fighting them, and he kept working on taking down the shield.  

With a final crackle, it fell entirely.  The fight could begin, finally.  

Jak lowered his arms, and stepped forward.  “This ends now, Gol.”  

“Do you really think I’d give up that easily?” asked Gol.  He held up his hands, ready to fight.  He threw dark eco at them, and sent crackles of dark electricity into the ground.  The rest of the strike team came forward, dodging attacks and moving forward all the time.  Whenever possible, they struck him where he was in the air, but he was stronger than they might have expected, and a moving target was hard to hit. 

Jak swiped some dark eco off his face, and then dove forward.  He’d said he’d finish this, and that’s exactly what he’d do.  

Lexi and Rick had gone about a hundred paces into the tunnel before they stopped, panting.  Rick gripped a stitch in his side, and Lexi wondered just how heavy the device on his back was. 

Between panting breaths, Lexi asked, “What next?”  

Rick straightened, and shook his device off his shoulders, for just a second.  “I’m going to find the epicenter, and I’m going to set up my invention.  It has a remote detonator, so once it’s set up, we can get safely away and set it off.  What do you think?” 

“Sounds good to me,” said Lexi, straightening.  “Do you want me to take a turn carrying that thing?  It looks heavy.” 

He shook his head.  “It’s fine, I just need to work out more,” he said, with a self-deprecating grin.  It was so much like what Lexi had been telling herself for weeks that she couldn’t fight that smile that jumped to her lips.  Time froze, and for just a moment everything felt normal again.  

“Um, guys?” said Beth, after a long moment.  “I hate to break up such a nice moment, but we kind of have a place to be, remember?” 

Lexi shook herself.  “Beth’s right,” she said.  “Let’s get going.” 

It wasn’t long before they found it: the epicenter.  It was a continuous geyser of dark eco, pouring in from the ground and up through the roof, looking more like a vertical river than anything else.  Lexi looked at it in horror. 
“It’s just wrong,” she said on instinct, shaking her head.  “It’s all out of balance.  There’s not supposed to be this much dark eco in one place.” 

“That’s why we’re going to change that,” Rick said.  He set down his invention heavily, and started fiddling with the dials.  “Once we’re done with this, everything is going to go back to normal, I promise.” 

While she nodded, Lexi wasn’t entirely sure if she could agree.  She looked further down the tunnel.  “But we never found who was doing this,” she said, looking at Rick in concern. 

He paused in his work, and looked up at her, as well.  “I know,” he said, seriously, not brushing off her concerns.  “But, Lexi, I’m just not sure…” 

Before he could finish his sentence, a cackle echoed from further down the tunnel.  Lexi and Beth jumped.  

“I see you, petty children, playing with your toys,” said a high, cold voice.  “You will never stop me with such things.  But you are too cowardly to face me, aren’t you, Lexi?” 

Beth shivered, and whispered, “How does she know your name?” 

Lexi stood up straighter, and said, “It doesn’t matter.  Whoever she is, whatever she wants; I have to face her.”  

Rick stopped working, stood up, and said, “Lexi, no, wait—” 

“It’s okay,” Lexi interrupted him.  “I’ve been saying it since the beginning, haven’t I?  I’ve always known that it has to be me.”  She gestured to his device with a tilt of her head.  “You’re the only one who knows how to set it up, and someone has to face her.  This is her source of power, we have to get rid of it, but she also needs to be stopped.  It can’t just be one or the other; it has to be both.” 

Rick looked pained for a second, then looked away.  He seemed too ashamed to speak. 

“Hey,” said Lexi.  “Don’t be upset.  This just means we’re a really good team, right?” 

He nodded sadly.  “I guess,” he said.  “I just...I wish that I had known all this sooner.  I could have told everyone about this, and we wouldn’t have had to do this alone.  You wouldn’t have to do this alone.”  But then, he huffed out a weak laugh that was more a breath than anything. “But then, I guess that they probably wouldn’t have listened to me, anyway.” 

Lexi reached out to touch his arm, but thought better of it about halfway.  “I would have,” she said.  She smiled.  “Besides, I won’t be all alone.  I have Beth, and as soon as you’re finished up here, you can come after me.” 

Rick looked down at her, and smiled.  “It’s a plan,” he said.  But the moment was gone almost instantly, and it was time to get back to the fight.  Lexi nodded, and ran to the bottom of the tunnel.  It was time to face her destiny.  

Eventually, someone, Jak didn’t know who, landed a final blow.  Gol stuttered in mid-air, and fell to the ground.  The dark eco pulled away from him, like water repelled by oil.  

As Gol lay there dying, Jak looked down at him.  Anger still burned powerfully within him. 

Daxter brushed his hands together as if to rid them of dust, saying, “Another one for the record books, eh, Jak?  Jak?” 

But Jak couldn’t relax yet.  Something had stuck out to him, and he couldn’t rest until he’d followed this lead.  “Earlier, you said ‘we,’” he said, gripping the front of Gol’s dark, frayed tunic.  In a deadly tone, Jak said, “Who’s ‘we’?” 

Gol laughed, a high, awful sound.  “She was right, you know.  You fools played right into our plan.  I was hoping to survive.  But, no matter,” he coughed, sounding like he was hacking up part of his lung.  “My sister will succeed.  The dark eco connects us; I can see through her eyes as clearly as mine, and you’re too late.” 

Jak’s blood ran cold.  “What are you talking about?” he demanded, giving Gol a sharp shake, hoping to jostle something out of him before he died. 

“We’ve been watching for a while,” Gol said, the laughter still dying on his lips.  “Through the eyes of our little pets.  You have a daughter, don’t you?  She looks just like you.” 

The world went cold.  Jak dropped Gol the foot to the ground.  He fell with a sickening crack. 

“No,” Jak said, horrified, shaking his head and backing away.  At that moment, he was fourteen years old again, and Praxis’s Krimson Guards were approaching, coming to take him away. 

“Yes,” Gol said.  “We remembered you, you see.  We knew that we would have to do something big to get you out of our way.  And, don’t worry.  My sister has big plans for your little Lexi.” 

Jak channeled dark eco, making it surge to the surface.  There was so much dark eco everywhere around him, soaking into him, making his rage even worse.  He punched the ground next to Gol, not caring for the pain.  The cement cracked beneath his fist.  

“Where.  Is.  She?” Jak said through gritted teeth. 

Gol smiled up at him, and died.    

Jak stood, and turned on his heel, walking quickly away.  He couldn’t let this happen.  Not again.  Not to his daughter.  Not to Lexi.  

  Ashelin ran alongside him.  She’d heard it all, and was pale with horror.  “Jak, Jak, wait!  Where are you going?”  She reached for his arm, but he shrugged her off, not saying anything. 

“Jak, stop,” shouted Ashelin, as he boarded an unclaimed motorized hover bike, stealing as easily as when he’d been seventeen.  “I want to find her too, but you can’t just rush off.  We don’t even know where she is!” she shouted.  “You would have to search the whole city!” 

“I don’t care,” said Jak, kicking the hover into gear.  “I’ll find her, even if I have to tear the entire city to the ground.” 

Torn looked down at his communicator, which was buzzing again and again with continual messages.  “That’s a nice thought, Jak, but you won’t have to.  I know exactly where she is.” 

Chapter Text

Chapter 22: The Dark Eco Cavern

At the end of the tunnel, Lexi found a huge cavern, round and empty.  Here was the bottom of the geyser, which poured up all the time from a pool of dark eco.  Rick must have been directly above, setting up his invention in the geyser emanating from this room. 

Glancing around the room, Lexi saw what looked like dark water stains in rings all around the round walls of the enormous space.  It looked like a river basin that had been drained.  She wondered if the whole cavern had once been filled with dark eco, which had since been siphoned off into the geyser.  This is where the eco had come from, and where it should still be.  Here, and not in the streets of her city. She shivered.  Suddenly, she felt the same sweeping wave of dread that she’d felt when she’d first seen the geyser.  The eco wasn’t where it belonged.  It wasn’t the eco that was wrong.  It was just how misplaced it’d become.  Someone took something resting in the ground, and took it for themselves. It was just wrong .

But there was no time to dwell on that now.  Instead, Lexi walked hesitantly into the room.  She hefted her gun, and called out, “Who’s there?  Who called me?”  

Nothing.  Lexi went further into the cavern, down the sloping walls of it.  Someone had to be here, someone who had said those taunting things and created this mess.  Lexi heard a small noise, and swung around, pointing her gun at nothing. 

A chuckle emanated behind her.  “Silly Lexi.  Shoot there only if you want to waste bullets.” 

Lexi spun around, pointing her gun up, toward the voice. 

Where she pointed was an old, thin woman, held up by eco.  She had appeared so suddenly, she must have blended perfectly into the shadows.  In fact, she was wrapped up in more dark eco than any person’s body should be able to stand.  She was held aloft by great tendrils of the stuff, which came from the nearly-emptied pool behind her.  Her white hair hung lank to her waist, and she wore tattered precursor armor. 

“Maia?” Beth whispered.  She, more than anyone else, had grown up on Daxter’s stories, and she’d been the first to realize who it was.  Lexi knew she was right instantly.  This was the woman who—along with her brother, Gol—had been corrupted by dark eco centuries ago.  They had tried to destroy the world, using dark eco to twist it into a corrupt reflection of them.  That is, until Lexi’s father and his friends had stopped them. 

Lexi fought the urge to lower her gun.  Maia might look old, but she was not defenseless.  “How do you know who I am?” asked Lexi, fighting to keep her voice steady. 

Maia chuckled again, and rose even higher, held by the eco.  Her limbs were so thin, Lexi wondered if they could bear her weight.  “Oh, child.  I have always known who you were.” 

“Explain!” shouted Lexi, losing patience, and growing angry in her fear. 

“Tsk, tsk.  Such a temper.  Though, that temper of yours could do great things, if directed the right way,” Maia said, clenching her fist.  

With that, the dark eco surged forward, picking Lexi up like she was nothing.  With a careless flick of her wrist, the dark woman sent Lexi flying.  Lexi hit the wall of the cave, and slid down it.  The world spun around her. 

“You know,” said Maia drifting closer, “My brother has often lacked subtlety.  He always wanted to rush forward without thinking.  But now, we have eyes all over the city.  There’s no where our fingers don’t reach.  And, what did we see?  The brat who stopped us in the first place, all grown up, and with a brat of a daughter, too.”  She grimaced, angrily.    

Lexi stood, though it felt like it took all the effort in her body.  She picked up her gun, and shot at Maia.  A crackle of black electricity surrounded her for a moment, and the bullets scattered, not finding their target.  

“We knew that Jak was our biggest obstacle to limitless power.  So, we kept an eye on his daughter.  A little girl, with little toys and little friends, playing soldier in the woods,” said Maia, gliding forward, held aloft by the eco.  “As I watched, I thought, this little girl must be his weakness.  I saw how hard he was working, combing through the forest and killing my pets.  And all the time, the thing that drove him was you.” 

She had so much venom in her voice, and it only got worse as she said, “And now, what a great way to get revenge.  Your father took my brother, and now I can take his daughter.” 

No, no, no, thought Lexi.  Her shoulder blades dug into the cave wall behind her.  Maia reached forward, and pulled her up by the hair, lifting her off the ground.  Her fingers were cold and sharp where they bit into her scalp.  

“But I’m not going to kill you.  That would be over far too quickly.  Besides, doing that would leave me with no leverage when your father came to kill me.  No, I won’t kill you.  I am going to corrupt you.  I am going to turn you into my rabid little guard dog, Lexi, and then I will keep you on a very short chain,” Maia said, giving her hair another yank.  Lexi screamed out in pain, clinging to her green roots to take some of the pressure off her scalp.  “What would Jak do, if he came to find me, and you were already corrupted by dark eco?  Would he have it in him to take down his little monster, or would I have him at last?  I’m excited to find out.”  

She reached out a horrible, clawed hand, and put it around Lexi’s neck. 

Jak used every bit of his driving experience to tear across the city on the borrowed hoverbike.  Haven’s armies were following, but Jak was the world’s greatest racer, and he’d never driven faster than this.  Daxter hung on by his fingertips, but hadn’t complained.  Where Lexi went, Beth went, which meant that both their daughters had to be saved.  Daxter wouldn’t let go for anything. 

When Jak got to the open doors of the city leading into the forest, he didn’t stop.  Instead, the few guards who were now gathered around the wide open gate dove to the ground to avoid getting hit as Jak sped by.  He kept driving, heading deeper into the forest, moving deftly between the trees.  Torn had received message after message with coordinates and a note saying that’s where Lexi was; fighting someone in a cave.  The messenger didn’t seem to know who.  But it had to be Maia.  Whatever she was planning, she had to be stopped before she hurt Lexi.  That’s what drove Jak now. 

He reached the location from the message, and found a tunnel leading into the ground.  Next to it was Micah, surrounded on all sides by dark creatures.  He sat on a rock, looking exhausted.  When Jak went up to him, he didn’t even have to ask.  Micah just jerked his thumb to the tunnel and said, “Lexi’s down there.” 

Jak nodded.  He’d always liked Micah, and felt a moment of pride, seeing how well he’d done.  “Good work,” he said, with a grim satisfaction, looking at the bodies.  Then, without another word, Jak went down the tunnel at a flat run. 

Maia’s cold hand pushed Lexi’s jaw up, forcing her to look at her captor.  The grip wasn’t tight enough to cut off her breathing, but Lexi frlt dark eco sizzling into her from that thin, wiry hand.  

“No,” Lexi gasped, kicking and clawing with all her might.  The edges of her vision were disappearing, but her father had to be coming.  He just had to be.  She just had to stay awake…

With a crack, something hit Maia on the back of the head.  She cursed.  The strike had been so unexpected, that she must have let her shield down. 

“What,” Maia said, “was that,” so deadpan that it hardly seemed to be a question. 

Maia turned, and dropped Lexi.  Lexi’s legs went out beneath her, and her head hit the ground with a crack.  The world spun.  But she struggled to get her bearings and pull her head up, despite the pain.  The stone-thrower had been Beth, who had perfectly hit the back of Maia’s head.  Now, Beth stood in front of Maia, with a look of pure horror on her face, like she’d only just realized what she’d done. 

Lexi waved weakly at Beth, and tried to shout, “Run,” but her voice didn’t work.  All that came out was a croak.  Luckily, her friend had already turned to run on all fours, going as fast as she could toward the entrance of the cave.  Lexi reached a hand toward her friend uselessly.  She could have accepted herself getting hurt, deep in this dangerous cavern she’d willingly come to.  But she couldn’t stand the thought of Beth getting hurt, too. 

Beth, realizing that reaching the door before Maia got her would be impossible, ducked under some rubble.  Maia hit the spot with a blast of electrified dark eco, instantly melting the rock into slag.  Lexi was about to scream, until she saw Beth pop up again behind another clump of rocks.  

“You need to work on your aim!” shouted Beth, feigning bravery and utter confidence. 

Maia growled, angrily, and Beth disappeared into the rubble again.  Lexi tried to lift herself to her feet, and fell forward onto all fours.  Whatever Maia had done to her, it made it hard to stand.  All she could do was stare into the pool of dark eco next to her, head going fuzzy. Reality was weaving in and out, but she needed to protect her friend.  Her inability to do so filled her with the kind of anger that drove fists through walls.  

As she looked into the dark eco pool writhing and shifting under her gaze, she could have sworn that, for just one second, she saw her own reflection within it.  But that couldn’t be possible.  Dark eco didn’t reflect anything.  It was too dark for that, absorbing everything.  Lexi propped herself up, and stared more deeply.  Then, the oracle’s words finally clicked into place.  

“You will have to accept all of yourself,” he’d said.  

Could it really be that simple?  Was this the side of her that she had to accept?  The Mar seal had come out from under her shirt in her fall, and she looked at it.  The shape carved into the metal was like two halves of a whole, spinning around each other, perfectly balanced.  Maybe, in the same way that the darkness had been too much for her father without the light, maybe she needed the darkness to access all her might.  Images flashed in her mind of the first time she had seen her father take his dark form, when he had protected her and her mother from those bandits in the desert.  It had been terrible to see him like that.  But then, his anger had been born from his love for them, and his desire to protect them.  Could it be that way with her?   

Lexi was uncertain.  There was a place for anger in her life, if only to protect those she loved.  But she wasn’t sure she could keep control of herself in the presence of someone who had so thoroughly mastered dark eco if she transformed.  There were many reasons to hesitate.  Then, she heard Beth squeal with fright.  A quick glance confirmed that Maia had grabbed her friend.  

Enough was enough.  Lexi placed both hands on the ground, and pulled in some of the dark eco that was scattered on the ground all around her.  There was so much of it, on the ground and crackling in the air, that it was easy to do.  It was like absorbing any other type of eco.  She could feel the crackle of its energy enter her and move through her body, ready to change her. 

She felt stronger, and more angry.  Slowly, Lexi stood.  

Then, she shouted, “Yo, Maia!” 
The dark figure, hovering in the air and holding a struggling Beth, turned to look at her with a questioning look on her face. 

“Put.  My.  Friend.  Down,” said Lexi, standing up straight and radiating an intimidating aura.  With all the anger inside her, it wasn’t hard. 

Maia smirked, and let Beth go.  Beth landed deftly on all four legs, and gave Lexi a confused, pleading look.  

Lexi turned to her, and tried to smile.  “Go get Rick,” she said.  “Tell him we’re about ready down here.”  Beth looked hesitant for a moment, before nodding once and running, still on all fours, out of the cavern. 

Maia rushed toward Lexi, moving through the air with the aid of the eco that held her.  “What is this, more games and more toys?  When will you give it up, girl?  I have you in my grasp.”  The dark eco lifted Maia higher into the air, and she raised her arms, fingers twisting unpleasantly. 

“Don’t you understand?  I could turn you into this .  I’m willing to give you all the power that your father has denied you.  You could be just like me,” Maia said, a cruel smile on her face. 

Lexi wiped some blood from her brow, having just noticed she was bleeding. 

“See, the thing is, Maia,” Lexi said, “I’m a lot of things, but I’ll never be like you.” 

After making sure that Beth was out of sight, Lexi let the dark eco flow through her, causing a transformation that had always been waiting somewhere deep beneath her skin.  Her skin turned pale, her hair lightened, and her nails elongated into points.  At first, Maia’s expression twisted into one of pure delight.  She thought she’d won, and had convinced Lexi to turn to her side.  But then, Lexi rushed forward, slashing her new claws at Maia.  Then, her expression changed into one of profound horror. 

As Maia dodged the attack, she raised one hand, like she was controlling a puppet.  She strained her arm forward, as if reaching inside Lexi to control her.  Lexi gritted her teeth, and resisted the wave of temptation that flooded through her.  For a second, there was a voice within her that had told her to protect Maia from anyone who would harm her.  It told her that it would be easier to give in to her baser urges.  Lexi fell to her knees and pushed against the foriegn thoughts.  They aren’t me.  They are not me, she told herself again and again. 

Lexi hung in the balance for a loaded moment, between herself and the person Maia wanted her to be, until she remembered her friends, family and all the other people depending on her outside.  

The wave of temptation shattered.  Maia’s face twisted, even more horror-struck as Lexi slowly stood.  Lexi didn’t know what she looked like, except that her fingernails were long and her fingers were pale.  She couldn’t dwell on that now.  With a quick movemeant, Lexi’s eyes shifted from Maia to the geyser of dark eco behind her.  The epicenter.  Rick was going to deploy his weapon soon, and she knew exactly where Maia should be when he did. 

Lexi darted forward, attacking Maia with strong swipes of her claws, pushing her back toward the dark eco. 

Rick looked up from his task.  This final version of the device could work automatically once set up.  Before, he had thought that he would use that feature to escape, running with the girls out of the tunnels entirely.  But instead, he had another place to be.  

He knew from the sounds that Lexi was fighting someone.  Beth had confirmed his fears, running up from deeper in the tunnel.  She’d told him that Lexi was ready for him to use his device, and that she was going to find help.  He’d had the same idea earlier, and had sent a veritable torrent of messages to Torn and Ashelin, detailing their coordinates and situation.  He’d programmed his communicator to send the same message again and again every few minutes until it was read.  He just hoped that he’d done the right thing. 

But right now, all that could wait.  He had to help Lexi. 

Jak powered down the halls.  He’d heard the sound of fighting ringing through the halls, and had pumped his arms even harder, continuing with an angry curse.  All he could do was keep going.  He couldn’t stop for even a second; he couldn’t give himself a moment to worry.  Daxter was silent on his shoulder, knowing just as well as Jak what the stakes were.  

Daxter was thinking of his own daughter, somewhere in these tunnels and in danger.  Though silent, he was sick with worry.  But then, as if summoned by his thoughts, an orange dot came out of the distance.  It wasn’t long before the dot resolved into his daughter, running on all fours.   

When she got to them, she stood on two feet, panting, and said, “Lexi...sent me…get someone.”  It was beyond her to speak properly. 

Jak nodded, and picked her up.  He put her on his unoccupied shoulder without a second thought.  “Where?” he asked. She pointed down the main hall, and he kept running. 

Rick burst into the cavern.  He instantly took in the situation.  Lexi had transformed, looking like a more aggressive, paler version of herself.  She had dark eyes and claws, and her hair had turned white.  She looked like the carving of her ancestor that they’d found Mar’s tomb.  That could only mean one thing; she was using dark eco.  His heart sank to his feet.  Had the taunting woman done that to her? 

But then, he realized that Lexi wasn’t under anyone else’s control.  No, she was putting up too good of a fight for that.   Lexi was clearly winning, helped along by how weak this dark woman was without her creatures.  Rick silently thanked Micah for holding them back.  But at the same time, he was uncertain.  He didn’t know how to help, or even get Lexi’s attention.  She was so intent on their fight, and he was too far away.  He ran forward anyway, and almost reached them before hitting a forcefield, not unlike the one that his village used, except made out of a crackling, negative energy.  It was only visible when he hit it, which he did again and again, trying to get through.  He took a step back.  There was no way through.  He’d have to find another way to help Lexi. 

Then, he observed the fight more closely, and realized that Lexi was pushing the corrupted woman further and further back into the room, towards the geyser of dark eco that was destroying the city. 

He had a sudden flash of understanding.  The epicenter!  Lexi was brilliant.  If they could push this woman into the epicenter’s geyser at the same moment he detonated the weapon, they could neutralize both the weapon and its creator at the same time.  That, he could definitely help with. 

Rick ran further into the room.  He didn’t have a weapon, or any real business being there.  But he had to let Lexi know that the weapon was ready, and that Rick had the activator with him.  It was time. 

“Lexi!” he shouted.  

Lexi turned to look at him, and faltered.  Her previously-green eyes met his, and in them Rick saw a lot of things.  He saw fear, recognition, protectiveness, and anger.  Lexi paused for only a second, but Maia took advantage of it, swiping hard at Lexi and almost knocking her to the ground.  

Rick cursed and ran forward, pressing against the invisible barrier, which became a wall of dark electricity as he touched it.  “The weapon’s ready!”  he shouted, brandishing the detonator.  “Now!” 

The momentary horror melted from Lexi’s pale, animalistic face, replaced with a look of grim determination.  She pushed Maia, sputtering and cursing, backward into the eco geyser.  Then, she pushed Maia into it, holding her there with one braced arm, bent at the elbow.  Maia struggled fruitlessly, pure anger on her face.  

Rick planted his feet, and pressed the button. 

It all happened in a moment.  The room lit up pure white.  White eco shot down in a beam down into the geyser, pushing it further and further back until it reached Maia’s squirming form.  She let out a terrible screech as it hit her.  Lexi, right up against the geyser, was forced back by the clash of light and dark eco.  She flew backward, immediately returning to her normal form.  Rick knew that the white eco wouldn’t hurt her, but that fall certainly could.  Without thinking, he rushed forward, not even noticing that the barrier had gone down with its creator.  He ran with all his might, and caught her just as she was about to hit the ground.  Instinctively, he covered her body with his own as the cavern shook, which it did until the machine above powered down. 

Once the shaking stopped, he set her down as gently as he could.  He looked down at her pretty face, unchanged by either dark or white eco.  She was just Lexi, once again.  Her eyes were closed.  

“Lexi?” he said, a pit in his stomach.  To his relief, she stirred, groaning.  She opened her wide green eyes and looked up at him, eyes bleary as if with sleep.   

“Did we win?” she asked, voice groggy.  

“Yeah,” Rick said, smiling.  “We won, thanks to you.” 

She let out a huff of breath.  “And you.  And Micah.  And Beth.”  Her eyes flooded with concern, and she sat up sharply, gasping with pain as she did.  “Beth, where’s Beth?” she asked, panicked.  

“She’s okay,” he said soothingly.  “She passed me earlier, looking for help.  She let me know you were waiting for me.  She’s probably bringing your dad here by now.” 

Her head fell back, and she closed her eyes.  “My dad’s coming?” she asked. 

He nodded, but realized she couldn’t see him.  “Yeah.  Yeah, he’s coming.  I sent Torn a message, when we were going into the tunnels.  Well, a lot of messages, actually.  I set up my tablet to send them every few minutes until they’re read.  I’m sure he’s told your dad, by now.  When I saw what we were up against, I realized that we were out of our depth, and I wanted him to know where you were.  I’m sorry.” 

Lexi furrowed her brows.  “Why are you sorry?” she asked.  “I want him here.  I just want my daddy.”  Her chin trembled.  He realized then just how much she’d been through.  There was a cut on her head that was bleeding, and though he had caught her before she’d hit the ground, how much damage had she taken in the battle?  Her pupils were blown out, and she might have a concussion.  

Rick had never seen her so vulnerable.  The entire time that he’d known her, she had been like a flash of lightning, quick and unstoppable.  When he’d come into this cavern, he’d seen her at her darkest and at her most light.  And now, she was like a small bird, held in his arms.  No, not exactly like that.  She was still strong and determined.  But she was also just like any hurt girl who just wanted her comfort.  There were so many sides to her.  He’d never known how much you could discover about one person.

He set her on the ground, taking off his jacket and balling it up under her head for support.  “Do you want me to go get them?” he asked, planting his hands on his bent knees, ready to stand.  “I’m sure that your dad will know what to do next.” 

He was already standing to go, but she grabbed his sleeve.  When he turned back, she looked up at him, clearly upset at the prospect of him leaving.  “Please,” she said softly, “Just...wait with me?  I don’t want to be alone right now.  Beth will get them.”  She looked like she was fighting to not cry. 

Rick returned to a crouch next to her, and took her hand.  Her face creased with pain for a brief second, and he was jolted by it, and his complete inability to do anything.  All he could do was remain.  

“Okay,” he said.  “I’ll stay.” 

Jak almost fell when the cave shook horribly.  He stumbled in his journey, only to brace himself against the rocky wall to stay upright.  The ottsells on his shoulders clung tight, and Beth’s eyes went wide.  

“Rick’s invention,” she whispered.  She’d caught her breath minutes ago, but this was the first time she’d said anything.  She turned to look Jak in the eye.  “We must be close.” 

Sure enough, after just a minute more of running, Jak burst into a huge, central chamber.  He could see where the dark eco must have been coming from, because there were still lingering pools scattered on the ground.  But the white eco from Rick’s device must have dispersed much of it, because there wasn’t much to see. 

Not that it mattered, anyway.  There could have been all the eco in the world in that room.  Jak only had eyes for the small figure of his daughter, lying on the ground.  He shouted, “Lexi!” and rushed to her side.  He slid to a stop next to her prone body.  

The boy, Rick, was next to her, holding her hand and looking concerned.  When the boy saw him, he quickly said, “She’s okay!  She’s alive, but she got hurt in the fight.” 

Relief coursed through Jak’s veins like a drug.  Lexi opened her eyes, looked up at him, and said, “Hi, daddy.”  Her voice was rough, like she’d been screaming.   

“Lexi….what happened?” he asked, kneeling beside her.

Beth hopped off his shoulder to stand next to her friend and said, “She saved my life.”  Her eyes were wide, wet discs in the low light of the cave.  She wiped her face and said, “Maia was….Maia had me, and Lexi turned dark and fought her off.”  

Lexi smiled slightly, looking very tired.  “Well, nobody messes with my best friend,” she said.  

If Jak hadn’t already been kneeling, he would have slumped to the ground.  “No…” he said.  “No, no.  Maia made you..?  You...”  He swallowed his pain and said, voice hitching in horror, “You transformed?” 

A concerned look crossed Lexi’s face, and she tried to sit up.  But, with a grimace, she decided against it.  She laid back again onto a makeshift pillow of some kind.  Jak realized that the boy had taken off the red cadet’s jacket he was always wearing, and was instead kneeling there in a white tank top and the dark pants of the Krimson cadet’s uniform. 

“I did,” said Lexi, trying to sound firm.  “But dad, it’s okay.  Maia didn’t manage to torture me.  It wasn’t like with…with the baron.”  She seemed hesitant to say it, not wanting to bring up something so painful.  But Jak was glad she had.  He didn’t mind it being brought up, as long as she hadn’t gone through it, herself.  Lexi went on, “I went to the Tomb of Mar.  I saw something there.  Our ancestors have always been able to channel both the dark and the light.  I don’t know if you knew that.”  She blinked sleeplily.  

Jak was worried she’d had a concussion.  He squeezed her hand and said, “It’s okay, Lexi.  It’s all okay.  Don’t fall asleep.”  He took out some green eco from a jacket pocket, and gave it to her.  She absorbed it, and some of the tension melted out of her.  Still, he didn’t want to move her.  Not until he was sure it wouldn’t hurt her.  He looked toward the entrance of the cavern.  Reinforcements were on their way, including ones who knew how to heal better than he did.  All those years, everything he’d learned, and he’d give it up in a heartbeat for the knowledge to heal Lexi, right here and now.   

Still, all he could do was keep her awake and distracted from the pain.  She refocused on him and said, dreamily, “What they did to you, it wasn’t right.  Praxis and Errol, I mean.  But I realized when I was fighting her, that this was the only way.  I have to embrace the dark and the light.  I’ll still probably never be as powerful as you, and I’m okay with that.  

“But, I am sorry, daddy.  For everything.” 

Jak looked intently at her, and then at Rick, and Beth.  He didn’t want an audience for this conversation.  The two teenagers walked away politely, giving them space.  “I never wanted you to have to use dark eco,” he said, voice tight.  “I never wanted that for you.”  It was like the world was crumbling to pieces beneath him.  

“But dad,” Lexi said. “It’s okay, really.  It’s just...anger.  And there is a place for anger, if you use it to protect yourself and the ones you love.  Remember, when you transformed to save mom and me from those bandits in the desert?”  

Jak flinched like he’d been hit.  “I….I always hoped you’d forgotten that.” 

She looked at him, looking suddenly much older than her sixteen years.  “How could I forget something like that?” Lexi asked.  “I used to think about it all the time.  Because...you saved me by transforming.  It was scary, but you also saved me.  And I always knew, deep down, that it could happen to me, too.”  She blinked away tears.  “And now, we’re the only two people in the world who really understand.  If you ever want to talk about it, I’m the only one who understands.  And I’m going to need your help.”  Her little chin trembled, and she was rambling now.  

Jak gently pulled her into a hug.  “Of course, Lexi.  I’m not leaving you alone with this, I promise.”  

And Lexi burst into tears. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 23: Healing

Lexi woke up more than nineteen hours later, feeling much better.  She was surprised to find herself in a hospital bed, instead of at headquarters or her bedroom at home.  

Her father sat in the chair next to her, stance tense, but relief clear on his face to see her awake.   

“Daddy?” Lexi asked.  “Where am I?  What happened?”  She sat up, and felt a jolt of pain.  She pulled up her bedclothes to find a large bandage wrapped around her entire midsection.  Suddenly, it all came back to her in a flash: how Maia had thrown her around and rained blows down on her during their short fight.  She shivered. 

“You were very hurt,” Jak said, long fingers steepled together in front of him.  “But Ashelin and your grandfather came once we had your coordinates.  He’s the best healer we have, and he treated you in one of the tents in the forest.  He fixed the worst of the damage.  But you’re still going to need to rest for a few days.” 

Lexi grimaced, and eased herself back into the pillows. 

“I...fell asleep, didn’t I?” she asked.  Everything was so fuzzy.  She remembered seeing her father, talking to him, and then breaking down into tears against his shoulders.  Shuddering sobs had wracked her body, and that was about all she could remember before she’d passed out from the strain. 

Jak nodded.  “You’ve been out...a long time.”  He sounded pained, as if every hour had hurt him physically.  “We were... I was really worried.”  He was leaning forward, every muscle clenched.  She doubted that he’d left that chair once since he’d brought her here.  

Lexi looked around.  “Where is everyone?”  

“Sleeping, mostly,” he said quietly.  “It’s very early.”  He stood.  “I’m going to get your mother.  She told me to get her the moment you woke up.” 

“Wait!”  said Lexi.  There was something she wanted settled before her mother arrived.  “Maia...is she…? Did I….?” 

“Kill her?” her father asked in his blunt way.  Lexi’s stomach sank, and she nodded, fighting the urge to puke.  But all her nausea and fear turned into relief when he shook his head firmly.  

“No,” he went on.  “Though, she was badly injured by the time I reached the cavern.  She was so corrupted that her body could barely stand white eco, but she survived, somehow.  She’s in holding now.  The council will decide what to do with her.” 

“You didn’t want to….you know?” asked Lexi, meaning to ask him if he’d wanted to kill her himself.  She’d cringed internally as soon as she’d said it, but there was a part of her that needed to know. 

Jak gave her a long look.  “She hurt you, badly.  If it were just up to what I wanted…” he trailed off, but a tendon flexed in his neck.  He closed his eyes tightly against the rage that flooded through him.  “But I had you in my arms, and getting you home safely was more important.  Besides, reinforcements were flooding in at that point.  I made my choice, and they took her in.” 

Relief flooded through Lexi.  For her father to have chosen mercy, no matter how angry he’d been, was amazing. 

“Okay,” she said and nodded.  “Okay, I just wanted to know.  I want to see mom, now.” 

He nodded, and moved toward the door.  He looked so tired.  Had he slept at all since she’d passed out?  

“Daddy?” she said in a small voice before he reached the door. 

Jak turned toward her, hand on the doorknob.  “Yes?” he asked.
“I love you,” she said.  She didn’t know why, but it just seemed like the right thing to say. 

Despite everything, the corner of Jak’s mouth turned up in a small smile.  In the coming days, there would be so much to talk about and much to decide.  But now, at least, everything could be boiled down to those simple words.  “I love you too, Lexi,” he replied.  

Chapter Text

Part III

Chapter 24: The Party

“Hold still ,” said Beth, standing behind Lexi and combing her friend’s hair roughly. 

“It hurts!” said Lexi, pulling away.  

Beth moved Lexi back into place in front of her with both hands, and said, “You know, after that fight you’re the last person in the world who should be so tender-headed.”  Lexi could almost hear the roll of her eyes.  “Besides, your fidgeting isn’t helping.” 

“Sorry,” said Lexi, “I guess I’m just nervous.”  She was squirming, uncomfortable with all the attention being paid to her appearance.  Normally, she went out with just a ponytail or a braid.  But apparently, that wouldn’t fly tonight.  Beth had found instructions to a complicated up-do that she wanted to try on Lexi’s hair that night.  Having no idea herself how to get ready for a party like this, Lexi had given Beth temporary control of her hair.  And now, she was paying for it.  

“Just, try not to yank all my hair out?” Lexi added with a wince.  “Please?” 

Beth sighed, and said, “Okay, okay,” with her hands up in submission.  Her touch in Lexi’s hair became more gentle, and Lexi sank into her chair, relieved.  

In the days since Lexi had come out of the dark eco cavern, everyone had fallen into an uneasy limbo.  There were so many matters left to be settled, and so much talking to be done.  Lexi was at a point where she’s stopped eavesdropping or sneaking around to find information.  Instead, she’d just told her father everything that had happened in the dark eco chamber and waited for his decision.  After all, it would be up to him if she touched eco again, or went on another adventure.  She was done fighting him. 

Her change of heart had come partially because of how heartbroken he’d been.  She’d shaken him to his core when she told him that she’d learned to channel dark eco.  It was the last thing that he’d ever wanted for her, and he’d been mired in guilt and distress ever since.  Samos tried to explain that Lexi most likely would have ended up channeling dark eco somehow anyway, but that hadn’t made him feel better.  Instead, Jak had all but disappeared for the rest of the day, saying that he needed space to think.  Lexi waited and wondered where he went. 

When he’d come back, Jak had made it clear that he wasn’t angry at Lexi, but that he just didn’t know what to make of everything.  He’d been quiet since then, and Lexi didn’t want to press him for a decision.  It had to happen in its own time. 

“Lexi, are you okay?” asked Beth, stalling her brush in Lexi’s golden hair. 

“Hm?” Lexi hadn’t noticed that she had started resting her head on her palm, absently staring into the mirror in front of her.  She looked about a million miles away.  No wonder Beth had asked how she was doing.  

Lexi sat up straighter.  “I’m fine.  Just...thinking.” 

Beth hummed sympathetically, and resumed combing Lexi’s hair gently.  “About your dad?” she asked. 

Lexi picked at a loose thread on her gray sweatpants.  “Yeah,” she said.  

Beth set down the brush on the vanity table.  “To tell you the truth, that’s why I got so involved in helping with the party planning.  You know, like buying everyone their outfits and everything?” 

Lexi raised an eyebrow.  “I thought you were doing all that just because you loved that kind of stuff?”  She pulled her knees up to her chest, and regarded her oldest friend in the reflection.  

“Oh, don’t get me wrong, I do love it,” said Beth with relish, before becoming serious again.  “But also, it’s just been so awkward around here the last few days.  You know, with your dad not talking, and with so much still up in the air and everything.  I mean, we don’t even know if we’re going to be able to go on an adventure ever again,” Beth said, with a note of distress. 

Lexi cracked a small smile.  “I thought that you hated adventures?” 

Beth waved her hands dismissively.  “I said no such thing.  I hate sewers, not adventures .   And, believe me, I’m holding you to your promise of us never going in one again.”  She waved the straightening iron threateningly, which made Lexi giggle.  Beth smiled as well,  and said, “But, seriously, Lexi, you didn’t see what I saw when we were out there, doing all those harebrained, dangerous things.  It was like you just...lit up inside.  I’ve never seen you look so certain.  It was like you’d finally found your place.  And if you’re going on adventures, then that’s where I want to be, too.” 

Lexi smiled even more.  She leaned back into her friend and reached her arms up to hug her.  “Thanks, Beth.  That means a lot to me.” 

Beth hugged her back and then said, “Now, turn.”  She held up a bottle of hairspray in a threatening way, as if it were a gun.  “I’m going to get your hair to cooperate, if it’s the last thing I do.” 

Today was the day of the party.  Which also meant it was the last day Rick would stay in the palace.  He’d stay for the party, and then head back to the refugee camp later that night.  He’d intruded on Torn and Ashelin’s hospitality long enough, and it was time to leave.  He was seventeen, and old enough to take care of himself. 

He forced down the many identical outfits he’d been wearing lately into his trunk, and forced the zipper around the edge.  Even those few possessions, the clothes and the suitcase, had been gifts from Torn and Ashelin.  All he had to his name was the patent to his invention which Ashelin had filed for him, the suit Beth had picked for him, and the surprise he’d bought for Lexi.  Oh, and his portion of the reward money.  He couldn’t forget about that.  It should be enough for him to find somewhere to live.  He could figure the rest out from there. 

Rick straightened and stretched.  With the packing done, there wasn’t much left to do today.  The party wasn’t for hours, and it wouldn’t take much for him to get ready.  Still, he couldn’t fight the feeling that he was forgetting something.  He checked his to-pack list again, making sure he wasn’t missing any necessities.  

“Knock knock,” a voice said in the doorway.  Rick turned to look.  

It was Ashelin, with Torn beside her.  Since the door to the guest room had been open, she hadn’t bothered knocking.  Still, Rick appreciated the verbal warning she’d given.  

“Oh, hey, Ashelin, Torn,” he said cheerfully.  Though he was sad to be leaving, he had really grown to like them over the course of the investigation, and especially after.  While they’d both been busy dealing with the destruction of the city and caring for the refugees, they’d still come through for him in so many small ways, to thank him for the part he’d played in saving the city.  In fact, it had been Ashelin who’d insisted on Rick taking out a patent on his invention.  She wanted him the rights to it, uncontested.  When he thought about how much easier it would have been for her to simply take the patents in the name of the city, Rick was flooded with gratitude and relief.  Because of those patents, he’d definitely come away from all this with something.  He liked them.  It was going to be hard to leave. 

“You busy?” asked Ashelin, leaning back against the door frame. 

Rick glanced at his packed bags and swiped his hands together, as if dusting them off. “Nope,” he said.  “I just finished packing, and I don’t have anything else to do until the party.” 

Ashelin’s brow furrowed and she looked at her husband, who shrugged.  “Packing?” she asked.  “Where are you going?” 

Oh, right , Rick thought.   That’s what I forgot.  In the rush of everything that’d been happening, he’d completely forgotten to tell them he was leaving. 

“Well,” he said, running a hand along his dreadlocks, “I figured that you guys wouldn’t want me around anymore, you know.”  At their startled expressions, Rick was afraid that he’d offended them, somehow.  He waved his hands.  “I mean, not that I expected you guys too, or anything.  Trust me, you guys have done way more for me than I ever could have expected, and I appreciate all of it, I really do.  But I know that you guys were only planning on housing me until the crisis was over.  It’s okay, with my reward money and the patent on my invention, I’ll be fine.  I’ll just head to the refugee camp, and see what I can do from there.”  The couple exchanged a deeply confused glance.  

Torn broke the silence, saying, “Kid, I think you’re misunderstanding.  We aren’t making you leave.” 

Everything froze.  This was so different than all the times, back in his village, when his foster families had given up on him.  Back then, no one had ever forced him out the door, but he could tell when he was unwanted.  It had always been clear when they’d wanted him elsewhere.  He hadn’t seemed to fit in anywhere, until he’d found a home in his uncle’s hut.  He’d just assumed things hadn’t changed.  

“Really?” he asked, unbelievingly.  They must have seen the doubt in his face, because Ashelin pushed herself off the doorframe and waved her hand for him to follow. 

“C’mon,” she said.  “We actually came in here to show you something.” 

Starry-eyed, Rick followed them through their now-familiar home.  The apartment, though dwarfed by the rest of the palace, wasn’t small by any means.  They walked past the kitchen and main room, to the hall with all the offices.  Ashelin walked confidently up to the door of a previously unused closet, and pulled it open. 

Inside was perfect.  It was large for a closet, about the size of a small bedroom, with some space to walk around its one desk, which was covered in graphing paper and writing utensils.  There was even a white board set on one wall, complete with markers and an eraser.  Rick walked in, and turned from side to side, amazed. 

“When we were rebuilding the palace, the one thing the architect insisted on was giving me a lot of closet space,” Ashelin said.  “I told the man, ‘Do I look like a fashion model?  I just need one closet,’ but did he listen?”  She shook her head.  “And that’s how I ended up with a hall closet and nothing to do with it.  Until now, anyway.” 

As Rick touched the desk, Ashelin said, “I know it’s not much, but you can decorate it however you want.  We figured that if you’d be staying here, you’d want your own workspace.” 

“It’s amazing,” said Rick, standing in the middle of the room and looking around reverently.  And it was. 

“Yeah, well, mostly we just wanted to keep you from crashing our offices,” said Torn, gruffly.  “It gets loud with you in them, you know, and we need quiet to get things done.”  He had his arms tight around his chest, as if he could force down any emotion.  

Ashelin walked into the room then, and started pointing at different parts of it.  She made suggestions for certain changes, if Rick wanted to make them.  Torn walked into the room, too, and quietly indicated a mini-fridge hidden cleverly under the desk.  He held up a finger to his lips, indicating it was a secret.  Presumably, Ashelin wouldn’t want Rick eating in here, and Torn wanted Rick to keep it to himself.  It was all so great.  Rick blinked back tears. 

“Now, we aren’t making you stay here, either,” said Ashelin, holding up her hands.  “A kid like you, with a good head on his shoulders, has a lot of places he can go, and we know that.  Torn and I were actually discussing the possibility of you enrolling in this boot camp coming up, for prospective cadets for Haven’s military.  It’d give you a sense of what it’d be like, anyway.  But, the point is, those are all your decisions to make.  We just wanted you to know, you always have a place here when you’re in the city.” 

Hugging them wouldn’t have been the right move.  They just weren’t that kind of couple.  An office was about as emotional as he could expect them to get.  Luckily, he knew just how to make them happy. 

“Thank you,” Rick said.  “You can’t know how much this means to me, really.  And I promise that, whatever I do next, I won’t put any of this to waste.  I’ll work hard, no matter what I end up doing.” 

Ashelin cracked a closed-lip smile, and even Torn looked happy.  “You’re welcome, Rick,” she said.  “It was nothing.” 

“Look, the dress is already picked out, and it’s perfect.  It is so your color!  You just have to put it on,” said Beth, pushing Lexi into her room, which was hard to do, given she was about two feet tall.  

“I feel ridiculous,” Lexi called as the door closed behind her.  

“Oh, you can be a girl for once in your life, oh ‘daughter of Mar,’” said Beth, rolling her eyes at the closed door. 

Lexi chuckled and shook her head at her friend.  Once she’d locked the door behind her, she went over to the dress that was laid out on her bed.  It really was beautiful.  Beth had known her well enough to steer clear of anything gaudy or ornate.  Instead, she had picked a simple dress, made out of dark blue velvet and dotted lightly with silver rhinestones.  Lexi ran a hand over them reflexively.  The dress looked like a piece of the night sky, cut into fabric. 

The city had given all of them—Rick, Beth, and Micah, and Lexi—a cash reward for what they’d done to save the city.  Lexi had given some of it to Beth to go dress shopping for her, which Beth had done happily.  The rest had gone directly into her dream car fund, which Lexi had been working on since she was about eight.  Apparently, Beth was using her share to pay for her first semester of college, and Micah was taking his back to Spargus.  From there he would decide what to do with it.  He liked the idea of using it to help him buy his own place, once he’d turned eighteen.  

Rick didn’t know what to do with his share.  But then, he didn’t know much about his future, these days.  Orphaned at seventeen, and in a new city, he had thought that he would have no opportunities here, but doors were opening quickly.  The day of the attacks, the neighborhood nearest the forest had been torn nearly to the ground.  Some of the villagers had volunteered to help in the reconstruction, in exchange for getting monetary help moving there.  More villagers had wanted to move into the city than any of them had ever known.  

For the ones who didn’t want to move to the city, there were talks of the city aiding with the reconstruction efforts, in exchange for an alliance.  It would be like the one they had with Spargus, where neither would dominate the others.  The discussions had raged on behind the locked doors of the council room for the last week, and that’s mostly where Ashelin, Torn, Sig and Brick had been; representing what such an alliance would look like to the wary leaders of Rick’s village.  Lexi was confident that they would come to an agreement, but knew that everyone was going to draw out the arguments, voicing their every concern.  Once it was decided, rebuilding the village and the destroyed Haven streets were both going to be immense projects, and Rick was interested in both of them. 

Word had spread about what he’d done in the forest, and Rick could have his pick of either project.  There were hints that if he did well enough at either, he could become the leader of his village one day; just as his father had wanted.  Which would mean him moving back into the forest permanently.  

Lexi’s hand stalled as she ran it along the dress.  Rick potentially leaving was one of the main things she was nervous about these days.  Still, she had to go to the party.  This would be the first time she’d seen him since the scene in the dark eco cavern, and she had to know if he’d made his decision.  She needed to know what he had thought about seeing her monstrous transformation in the cavern.  

Resolving her decision, Lexi pulled on the dress.  Put together, the dress, her up-do and the subtle eye-makeup Beth had applied, all had a striking effect.  Even Lexi had to admit, she looked beautiful.  

She left her room, and walked slowly down the stairs into the living room where everyone was waiting.  Beth had put on her own dress, which was a light green with a tight bodice and a flowing, silky skirt.  She must have made it herself.  It was hard to find clothes that fit in stores when you were about three feet tall.  Her hair was pulled up into a complicated bun of her own creation, and her lips were painted the perfect shade of pink. 

“You look amazing!” said Beth, as Lexi came down the stairs.  

The adults agreed, with both Tess and Keira cooing over their daughters, taking pictures.  They were all going to the party together, except for Jak and Daxter.  They were at the palace already.  They’d been there all day, working with Torn and Ashelin on agreements between the village leaders and the city.  Maintaining their independence and sovereignty was something the villagers were passionate about, which had dominated discussions.  But Ashelin had agreed that it was important, and worth working out to everyone’s satisfaction. 

Also, it had turned out that Brick was immensely helpful during those tough discussions.  When the villagers had seen how the fiercely independent Spargus City was able to maintain their freedom while being a territory, it had helped considerably.  Still, Lexi was sure that her father was going to be tired after hours of discussion.  Politics had never been his thing, but Torn had insisted on Jak’s attendance.  Her father’s exhaustion wasn’t going to help tonight, Lexi knew.  But this conversation had waited long enough. 

“Okay,” said Keira, stashing her camera in her purse.  She was wearing a simple, flowing lilac dress.  She hardly ever dressed up; she must have really been proud of Lexi to do so today.  “Though I wish I could take pictures of you two all night, we really need to get going.  Lexi, are you ready?” 

Lexi must have been staring off into space again.  “What?  Oh, yeah, right.  Yeah, I’m ready,” she said, blinking.  She clutched the strap of her small, black purse.  Tonight’s party was going to be nerve-wracking, but it had to be done.  

As Tess and Beth went through the door, chattering animatedly, Keira looked at her daughter appraisingly and said, “Hey, whatever’s on your mind, I’m sure it will turn out okay.”  She leaned forward, and hugged her.  “I am so proud of you, and I know that everything will work out the way it’s supposed to.”  She pulled away slightly and added with a wink, “I find that they usually do.” 

“Thanks, mom,” said Lexi, who had melted into the hug appreciatively.  It was so comforting, and just what she needed.  When she pulled away, she felt a million times better.  “I’m ready for real, now.”  

Keira ran a hand along her daughter’s hair fondly, careful not to disturb Beth’s work.  “I know,” she said. 

The party had barely begun when they arrived.  It was being held in the palace’s ballroom, which was hardly ever used.  The room was large and open, with curtained-off balconies that overlooked the city.  The lights were low, and music had already begun.  When Lexi and Beth arrived, there was a cheer from the guests as they were announced as heroes of the city.  But Lexi didn’t care about that.  There was only one person she wanted to talk to. 

She stood up on her tip-toes, looking around desperately for her father.  Then, she spotted him.  Jak was still wearing his usual outfit of a blue leather jacket over a practical white shirt and tan pants, crossed with straps that normally held weapons.  He’d set them aside for the party, it seemed, but Lexi knew better than anybody that he didn’t need them to be intimidating.  Jak was standing near the snack table, talking to Torn about something—presumably, something related to work.  That’s all anyone talked about these days.  

Lexi tapped her mom’s shoulder before saying, “I’m going to go talk to him,” tilting her head to indicate her father. 

Keira smiled fondly, as if she’d known all along that this was what had been making Lexi so nervous.  “Of course, sweetie.  Tess and I will go grab a table, okay?  You and your father can join us later, okay?”  She touched her daughter’s arm bracingly.  

“Okay,” agreed Lexi.  “I’ll see you later.”  Then, she swallowed nervously, and split off from the small group, walking straight for her dad.  With every step, her father seemed further and further away.  They hadn’t spoken much in days, and Lexi wanted to settle things; one way or the other. 

Jak noticed her before she got to him.  They exchanged their normal greetings, as if nothing were different between them.  But everything was different.  It was unsustainable, and Lexi wanted to fix it.  

“Daddy?” she asked in a small voice.  “Can we talk about something?” 

Jak nodded silently, and gave Torn a quick good-bye.  Together, father and daughter walked out of the party, until they were standing in the ballroom’s foyer, where they wouldn’t be overheard.  

Once they’d left the party, Jak seemed about to say something, before Lexi stopped him, saying, “Dad, I’m sure that you have a lot to say, but before you do,” Lexi paused to gulp, “I want to tell you something.” 

Jak nodded silently. 

Lexi took a cleansing breath.  Now was her time to say everything she’d been planning for days.  Her speech had seemed so prepared and ready in her head, but now, under her father’s steady gaze, she didn’t know what to say.  

Finally, she said, “Dad, I just want to say that I’m sorry.  I should have listened to you, and I shouldn’t have run into danger like I did.  I worried you, and mom, and...everyone, really.  And that was wrong.”  She took a pause, looking for a reaction.  When her father didn’t offer one, she pushed on. 

“I know that you’re still upset about everything I’ve done recently.  You’re right to be.  And I know that you’ve been trying to decide what to do with me.”  She looked down at her shoes, shamefully.  “But before you do, I just wanted to say my piece.” 

She looked up at him, then.  This was going to be the hardest part, she knew.  After tonight, she might never go on an adventure again.  But this had to be done. 

Jak stood, waiting expectantly for Lexi to say whatever she’d planned.  He thought that he could guess what it would be, but he was giving her the right to say it herself. 

“Daddy, I want you to know that I’ve already made up my mind,” Lexi said.  She raised her chin defiantly.  Jak assumed that now she would argue that this was her destiny; that adventuring was something that she had to do.  She would say that he wasn’t going to be able to stop her, he was sure.  He knew how stubborn she could be.  She was a lot like him, in that way.   

But then, what Lexi actually said caught him completely off-guard.  “Daddy, I know that this is a part of me.  Using eco is a part of me, and there’s nothing I want more than to be like you.  I was lying, when I said otherwise. 

“But, if I really want to be like you, that also means being responsible.  And I know that you would never do anything that could hurt me, or mom.  You’d give up adventuring, if you had to, for us.  So, that’s what I should do, too.  If you don’t want me using eco, I’ll give it up.  And I won’t sneak off or try to save the city, ever again.” 

Her little chin trembled, but she held his gaze steadily.  It struck him, then, just how much she’d grown.  She wasn’t the scrappy kid picking playground fights anymore.  She was his daughter, through and through.  And he had never been more proud of her. 

“Lexi,” Jak said after a loaded pause.  “I wasn’t going to have you give up eco.”  Her face lit up with surprise and relief.  Wanting to quell her reaction, he held up a hand.  He had to let her know that limits came with her new freedom, before she became too excited.  

“Let me finish.  I never want you to sneak behind my back again, and I want you to talk to me, no matter what happens.  Do you understand?” 

She nodded, desperately.  Then, he went on, “And, for as long as it’s possible, I want to go with you when you’re fighting, or sneaking around, or whatever it is you’re planning on doing with eco.  And, you’re staying in school, and keeping your job at the garage.  I want you to have something to fall back on.”  That was something that he’d decided with Keira.  In the days since Lexi had woken up, they’d talked a lot together about what to do with their daughter.  There had been one conversation that had particularly stuck with him the last few days as he’d been deciding. 

Jak had told Keira that he didn’t want Lexi to be a hero, like him.  He wanted Lexi to be like Keira, and stay safe.  To which Keira had sarcastically replied, “Oh, because being a racer is so safe?”  He’d told her that wasn’t the point.  The point was that he didn’t want Lexi to go through the same things he had.  Keira had looked at him so kindly, with those beautiful eyes of hers, and said, “I know, Jak.  But, ultimately, it has to be her decision.  She’s going to grow up someday, and eventually, we won’t have a say.  Don’t we want her to be prepared for that day?”  As much as he hadn’t wanted to admit it, she was right. 

“Oh, thank you, daddy!” Lexi said then.  But Jak stopped her again with another raised hand. 

“One more thing,” he said, smiling.  “I think that it’s about time we pick up self-defense training again, but with eco, this time.” 

Lexi gasped.  “Really?”  Her eyes sparkled, like this was better than anything she could have ever expected.  

He nodded.  “I’ve been thinking about what you said.  And you’re right.  You’re the only other person in the world who knows this side of eco.  And, you’re the only person I can pass it down to.  Besides, being a hero is difficult.  More difficult than you can imagine.  And I want you prepared for everything.” 

Lexi launched herself forward, hugging Jak with all her might.  “Thank you daddy!  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  I promise, I won’t let you down,” she said with fierce determination on her little, pretty face.  She looked so much like her mother, but with his nose, in miniature.  She was the best thing he’d ever created.  

He stroked her hair, green and blonde and so like his own.  “You could never let me down, Lexi.” 

He didn’t even mention it when she started to sniffle against his tunic. 

When Lexi finally composed herself enough to return to the party, she wasn’t sure if she was more excited or scared to see Rick again.  This would be the first time he’d seen her since her transformation in the cavern.  Part of her wanted to hide, knowing that he had seen her at her darkest point.  She wouldn’t have blamed him if he never wanted to speak to her again.  If that was what he wanted to tell her tonight, she could bear it.  Though, she could do without getting publicly rejected at such a big party.  Still, she’d put it off long enough.  It had to be done.  Lexi pulled her shoulders back, and started looking for him.  

After just one circuit of the party, looking for Rick with Beth on her shoulder, Lexi seriously considered taking a break from searching.  But suddenly, there he was.  Rick stood near the snacks, talking with Torn and Ashelin.  The older couple weren’t the most expressive people in the world, but they seemed invested in whatever Rick was saying.  Ashelin nodded, looking happy, and Torn held out a hand to shake Rick’s.  Lexi wondered with a pit in her stomach if Rick was agreeing to join the reconstruction project.  If he did, he would become the chief of his village for sure. 

And sure, his village wasn’t too far from the city.  But, still, if he made this choice, he’d go there permanently.  Then, he’d be just out of reach, outside the city.  He’d be so hard to see.  Still, Lexi knew she had to support him, whatever he chose.  He needed her support. 

Just as Rick seemed to be wrapping up his conversation, he turned to see Lexi approaching.  His eyes widened, and he looked away, and then back quickly.  Then, he stared for a few seconds before becoming embarrassed and looking away completely.  He put a hand to the back of his neck.  Ashelin, standing next to him, raised an eyebrow. 

“Oh no,” Lexi whispered to Beth.  “Do you think he’s mad at me?”

“Wow,” said Beth.  “Girl, I love you, but you are so clueless.  Look, I’m sure he just wants to talk to you.  And I suddenly need to get a drink.  Somewhere else.” 

“Beth, wait!” said Lexi, not wanting to be left alone.  But Beth had already hopped off her shoulder, and was scampering off to the drinks counter, true to her word.  

Lexi swallowed.  Now, she could find out what Rick had decided.  It would be like ripping off a bandaid.  If she had been brave in the face of Maia’s threats and destruction, she could be brave now.  And, best of all, her father wasn’t around.  This would be her best shot, and she had to take it.  

She squared her shoulders, and walked over to him.  Ashelin pulled Torn away, making some excuse about wanting to dance, to which he grumbled loudly.

“Hi, Rick,” said Lexi, nervously, once they were alone.  

“Hey, Lexi,” he said, looking concerned.  “I haven’t seen you since…”  He trailed off, and rubbed the back of his neck again.  “Well, you know.  How’re you holding up?” 

She nodded.  “I’m good.  In fact, I wanted to talk to you about that.” 

He nodded.  Lexi thought that she could see him sweating.  Maybe he was also struggling to be brave.  The thought was comforting.  

Rick gestured toward one of the balconies overlooking the courtyard.  “After you,” he said. 

Lexi smiled at him, and walked through the lacy curtain and out onto the balcony.  The curtain was a gossamer yellow, which offered some privacy.  Outside, it was cool.  It was probably one of the last cool days before summer.  

Once they were alone, the first thing Lexi said was, “You’re not going to believe this.  My dad is going to train me!  I still have to go to normal school, but he’s going to teach me more about how to use my powers, how to fight, how to drive, everything.”  Though there was so much else to say, this piece of news was so exciting that she couldn’t contain herself.  She couldn’t fight off the huge grin that stole over her face. 

“That’s amazing, Lexi!” Rick said.  He moved to hug her, before awkwardness made him pause.  She giggled, and moved into his arms, anyway. 

“I know,” she said, leaning her head against his chest.  She could practically feel his breath hitch.  “It really is.”  

They paused there in each other’s arms before he said, “I have some news, too.” 

“Oh?” she asked.  She tried to hide her concern.  Still, she’d already decided to support him, and that was exactly what she was going to do.  No matter what he’d chosen, he was her friend, and he deserved her help in anything he wanted to do. 

“I was actually just talking to Torn and Ashelin about it,” Rick said.  He pulled away from the hug, and sat on a short stone bench near the edge of the balcony, pulling her down to sit next to him. 

“Yeah?” Lexi said.  She promised herself that no matter what he said, she’d be strong, for both of them. 

“I’m enrolling in this boot camp Torn’s running,” Rick said.  “To see if maybe I want to be a cadet, one day.”  

Lexi gaped at him.  This was so different than anything she’d expected.  She had thought that maybe he was going to say he was moving back to the village, or possibly into the neighborhood Haven was rebuilding.  But this was completely different.  Suddenly, the happy looks on Torn and Ashelin’s faces made a lot more sense.  They always loved finding a promising new cadet, and after everything that Rick had done in the last few weeks, he was nothing if not promising.  Of course, this was just boot camp.  It didn’t mean that he was necessarily joining the military.  This meant that his future was still undecided, which Lexi liked.  

In her shock, Lexi was silent for so long that Rick bit his lip.  He looked at her doubtfully,  like maybe he’d said the wrong thing.  She had to say something. 

“That’s so great!” said Lexi.  “I’m so happy for you.” 

Rick rubbed the back of his neck.  He did that a lot when he was nervous, Lexi noted.  

“I think so, too,” he said, “I mean, I’ve really hit it off with Torn the last few days, and I’m really excited to work for him.  And, Ashelin too, of course.  I can’t believe that I used to think that she’d be anything like Baron Praxis.  She’s a great leader, and I’d love to learn more from her.  The best part is that they said that I can stay with them whenever I’m in the city!” 

“Does that mean you’re moving here, then?” asked Lexi.  She felt a surge of excitement that was immediately tinged with guilt.  Her tone softened.  “What about your village?”  

He shrugged.  “My village will always be home.  And I can always visit.  I will always visit.  But, I don’t really have a future there.  At least, not anymore, anyway.”  He looked away, saddened at his uncle’s memory, but he forced himself to brighten quickly.  “Besides, I have a feeling that the real action is always going to be here, with you Haven kids.”  He brushed a lock of hair away from Lexi’s face affectionately.   

Lexi sputtered, not knowing what to say.  There was a whole world of feeling within, and no way to let it out.  Talking to guys was harder than she ever could have guessed. 

“Well, I’m glad you’re sticking around,” she said.  Then, she cleared her throat.  “You know, because of the opportunities and stuff.”  She blushed a little. 

Rick chuckled.  “I mean, I won’t be moving straight into Haven.  Orientation is going to be here in the palace, but the boot camp itself is held out of town somewhere.  A lot of it is confidential, so I don’t know much about it; just that it’s going to be six weeks.” 

Lexi cringed internally.  But, she remembered how she’d promised herself to be supportive, no matter what.  Besides, six weeks was a small price to pay to keep Rick in the city. 

“That sucks,” she said.  “But it’s not too long.”  Please, don’t make me say out loud that I’ll miss you, she thought.  Her face was red enough at just the thought, and she wasn’t sure if she could handle saying it out loud.  

Rick gave her a long look, as if waiting for something.  Then, he said, “I got you something.  So you’ll remember me for the six long, long weeks I’m away and you’re miserable without me.” 

Lexi snorted, relieved.  “I just said, six weeks isn’t that long.  I’ll find some way to manage without you, trust me,” she said, humor coloring every word.  “But I’ll take a gift if you have one.”  She shifted in the seat, moving closer to him. 

Rick smiled.  From a pocket, he pulled out a small, black box.  “It’s not much, so don’t freak out or anything.  I used some of my reward money to get it.” 

She took the box, and opened the hinge that ran along it horizontally.  Inside was a simple silver chain.  It was graceful, beautiful, but it also looked tough enough to take a beating.  She picked it up and observed it in the light. 

He said, “It’s for your Mar seal.  I noticed that you were wearing it on a leather cord, and I thought that maybe you should have something more durable, if you’re going to take it on all your adventures.” 

Lexi tilted her head, still holding the beautiful chain.  “But, you must have gotten this before you knew my dad was going to let me continue my training.  How’d you know I’d still be adventuring?” 

Rick shrugged.  “I never had any doubt that you would be. You were born for this, Lexi.  Anyone who’s seen you in action would know that.” 

At the mention of seeing what she could do, Lexi let her eyes drop, suddenly downcast.  

“What’s wrong?” Rick asked, looking at her with concern. 

Lexi grimaced.  “I just...I don’t know how you could see me the same way, now that you’ve seen me in my dark form.  I mean, I wouldn’t blame you or anything if you couldn’t.  But I just keep thinking about how deranged and savage I must have seemed.” 

He put a hand over hers.  She looked up.  “Never,” he said. 

“What?” she asked, voice trembling.  

“I could never see you as savage.  That’s not you.  That transformation wasn’t you.”  He flushed.  “Maybe I don’t know enough to say that; I haven’t known you all that long.  But I know what really drives you, and it goes beyond the eco.  And the eco doesn’t really change you.  I’ve seen that, when you’ve used it.  It’s all just powers, Lexi.  Dark eco might be harder to control, but it’s just a power, and I know that you can control it, too.” 

Lexi smiled up at him.  “You really don’t mind?” she asked. 

He smiled back.  “Of course not.  It’s just a part of you, how could I mind it?  Besides, your dark form saved your life, and the entire city.” 

“I guess you’re right,” said Lexi.  Silently, she untied the leather cord from around her neck, and took the seal off it.  Then, she slid the seal onto the silver chain.  She went to latch it behind her neck, but found the small catch tricky to fasten.  Her brows furrowed in frustration as it refused to attach.  

“Here,” said Rick.  He gestured for her to turn, and she did so.  Soon, she sat on the bench with her back to him.  Lexi swept her hair out of the way, and Rick put the necklace on her, latching it behind her.  She couldn’t suppress a shiver as his fingers brushed her neck. 

She looked back over her shoulder and said, “Thanks, Rick.” 

He was blushing furiously now.  “No problem, Lexi,” he stuttered.  He returned his hand to the back of his neck.  Lexi smiled, and turned all the way back so she was facing him.  

Rick looked down.  “You look really nice today, by the way.  Like...classy.  I mean, not that you don’t normally look nice and classy!  I mean, you always look…” he trailed off, and she took his hand and squeezed it, stopping him. 

“You look nice, too,” she said.  It was easier to be relaxed when she knew that she wasn’t the only one who felt this way.

It was almost imperceptible, at first, how slowly he was leaning in towards her.  She found herself leaning in, too, and she could not have said who had started it.  All she knew was that her eyes were sliding closed, and she was so, so close— 

“Hey, Rick, I figured while you’re here I might as well show you the barracks, since you might join up one day,” said Torn, pulling aside the curtain to the balcony. 

Lexi and Rick jumped away from each other, blushing and sputtering.  Torn, realizing immediately what he’d walked into, offered a hasty excuse and stumbled away.  The curtain fell closed again. 

Lexi buried her red face in her hands.  This was the most embarrassing moment of her life.  No, scratch that, this wasn’t just the most embarrassing moment of her life.  This was the most embarrassing moment of anyone’s life, ever.  She held the record; this was the most embarrassed it was possible to be.  She screamed.  

“Oh my god!  I can’t believe he saw that!” she said.  “Of all the people in the world to see that, Torn!  He’s like an uncle to me.  This is so embarrassing.” 

“And he’s...he’s my future boss.  He runs the boot camp,” said Rick, cringing and pointing after Torn.  Then, he added, completely shell-shocked, “And he’s your dad’s friend.” 

“Oh, no,” said Lexi, opening her fingers and peering between them.  “You don’t think he’s going to tell my dad, do you?” 

Rick blanched.  “I hope not.  It wouldn’t be much of a military career, if I died before it started.” 

At that, Lexi couldn’t help but bust out into wild giggling.  Rick tried to keep a straight face, but soon he was laughing just as hard as her, if not harder.  When they finally calmed down just a bit, he smoothed a piece of hair away from her face.  

“Oh, well,” he said.  “I’ll be back in six weeks.”  

She took his hand on the bench, and gave it a squeeze.  “Okay,” she said.  “I can wait six weeks.”  Then, she leaned forward to give him another kiss on the cheek.  And with the way that he looked at her in the moonlight, Lexi felt like she could fly.  

When they went back to the party, Lexi hoped that no one would be able to read what had just happened on her face.  Or Rick’s face, for that matter.  After the moment had passed, they’d agreed that they should get back to the party before people started to notice that they were gone.  They hadn’t talked at all about what their almost-kiss had meant.  He was about to leave for six weeks, and her dad was just as protective as he’d ever been.  It was going to be tricky, they knew.  And tonight wasn’t the time to think about that kind of thing.   

Tonight was for celebrating.  

“There you are!”  said Beth to Lexi when they joined them at their table.  “I was about to go looking for you.”  Lexi smiled at her friend, and tried to act casual, as if nothing had happened.  Besides, in a way, nothing had. 

Instead, she let Rick lead the conversation.  As soon as everyone was sitting, he shared his news with the group.  

Beth’s nose wrinkled, and she was the first to respond.  “You’re going to boot camp?  Voluntarily?!  Didn’t you want to try being a normal teenager for like...a week?” 

“Beeeeth,” said Lexi, in a warning tone.  “I think we should be supportive of our friend.” 

But Rick just chuckled and said, “What can I say?  The outfits aren’t bad.”  He gave a slight shrug.  It was funny, coming from a guy who’d been wearing nothing but cadet’s uniforms for the past few weeks.  As long as boot camp allowed practical pants and jackets, he’d be fine.

Beth thought for a moment and said, “Fair point.”  She uncrossed her arms.
“Oh, and remember how I told you how I don’t have a birth certificate or like...any other paperwork with the city that says that I exist?” said Rick.  “Well, Torn and Ashelin are going to fix that.  I’m going to be a village territory citizen before too long.” 

“That’s great!” said Lexi, grabbing his arm, before quickly releasing it.  She did not need her parents seeing her touching him.  

“Ah, the death of ‘the ghost’,” said Beth, shaking her head.  “That would have been a really good nickname.  Oh, well.  Welcome to legally existing, Rick.”  She held up her drink in a toast.  Soon, everyone else was, too. The whole group—Lexi, Micah, and Beth—raised a toast to Rick’s existence, shouting “To Rick!” 

“What am I missing?” said Jak, coming up from behind them.  Keira stood next to him, looking faintly amused.  

“Nothing much,” said Beth.  “Just a toast to Haven City’s newest cadet.” 

Jak’s eyebrows raised.  “You’re joining the military?”  he asked Rick. 

Rick, going right back to looking nervous, said, “Um, no.  I mean, maybe, sir.  I’m going to boot camp soon, to help me decide.”  He shifted uneasily in his seat.  But Jak didn’t have much of a reaction.  He just looked at the boy thoughtfully, then shrugged.  Lexi was just glad that he didn’t seem about to attack him.  Torn must not have told him anything, thank God.  

“You know what?  They could be playing much better music,” said Beth, breaking the tension.  “The hero of the hour needs to dance!” 

“I don’t dance,” Lexi started to say, but Beth had already left.    

She dashed across the room on all fours, and jumped on to the deejay booth. 

Lexi used her hands to cover her mouth, and Micah said, “What on earth is she doing?”  He had his elbows braced on the table, and watched her antics with interest.  

Beth climbed on to the top of the booth.  Standing on it, she was high enough over the crowd to be seen by everyone, and was about eye-level with the deejay, who looked at her confusedly.   Then, Beth took the mic, and said into it, “Is this a party, or not?!  Let’s get some real music playing!”  With a flourish, she pressed a few buttons on screen in front of the deejay, who was starting to look pissed.  With a laugh, Beth jumped down from the booth before the man could stop her and ran back to the group. 

Daxter, still on Jak’s shoulder, pretended to wipe a tear away.  “That’s my girl,” he said.  “She takes after me, you know?  Always the life of the party.”  

Lexi laughed hugely when Beth came back.  “I can’t believe you just did that!” she said.  “I’m a little impressed, but mostly just embarrassed for you.” 

“Well, I’m not embarrassed at all, so don’t worry about it,” said Beth, waving her off.  “Besides, I did it for your benefit.”  She stood on the table in front of her friend, and took both her hands in hers.  “Now come on and dance.  I know you love this song!” 

In between giggles and protests, Lexi tried to pull away.  Honestly, she could have easily gotten away, but it was more fun to pretend that she couldn’t.  

But then, Micah threw down his napkin, stood and said, “Screw it,” and took to the dance floor.  

“Yes!” shouted Beth, pointing at him.  “That’s the spirit.  What about you, Rick?  You’ve certainly earned the right to party.”  She wiggled her eyebrows at him.  

“You,” said Rick calmly, “are a bad influence.” 

Beth beamed.  “Thank you,” she said brightly. 

Rick stood, holding out a hand to Lexi.  “What do you say?  One last hurrah before I go away?” 

Lexi smiled at him, hoping to be charming.  “Okay,” she agreed, “one last hurrah.”  She stood.  

The three friends took to the dance floor to join Micah.  Tess and Keira were beaming, while Ashelin looked at them all knowingly.  Torn had seemed to have gotten over his embarrassment, and was sitting happily next to his wife, eating industriously.  

Jak was staring after Rik and gripping his drink too tightly.  From the look on his face, he might have just realized what might be happening.  Lexi decided that he probably deserved a word of comfort.  She let go of Rick’s hand, and dashed back to her father.  

When she got back to the table, she hugged him quickly and whispered, “He’s going to boot camp, daddy.  You can kill him in six weeks.”  Then, she patted his arm, and went back to her friends.  

Chapter Text

Chapter 25: Epilogue

Lexi woke with a start from a pleasant dream.  She tried to cling to it, but it was fading fast.  All she could remember was that she’d been racing in the professional leagues, and she’d been winning. 

Happiness bubbled in her stomach, as she thought about how, one day soon, that dream might come true.  She was almost old enough now to compete in the city races, after all.  Assuming she could get her dad on board, of course. 

Peeking at her clock, she started when she saw the time.  She’d be late for training if she didn’t get out of bed right away.  

She hopped up and threw her hair into a high ponytail.  She pulled on her new clothes, an outfit that she had bought in honor of her new status as the new hero of Haven City.  Tight, black pants that were made to stretch, a white tank top, brown, sturdy boots.  And, to top it off, the best part; a retro dark blue jacket with knitted yellow accents at the end of the sleeves and at her collar.  She straightened it, looking at herself happily in the mirror. 

As she pulled on her shoes, Lexi hurriedly opened her computer’s holographic screen, checking to see if Rick had sent her anything from boot camp that morning.  Communication between them was limited, because he had to focus on training.  But, of course, he’d managed to hack a screen somewhere at camp, and now, rarely a day went by without him messaging her something.  

And, sure enough, she opened her inbox, and there it was. 

“Good morning, queen.  I’m sure you’ll kill it today,” he’d sent, along with a smiling emoji.  He’d just learned about them, and had really taken to them. 

 Snorting, Lexi blushed happily, and quickly sent a kind message back, wishing him luck on his weapons test that day.  It was funny.  They still had to communicate secretly, even though so much had changed between them.  Still, it was worth the secrecy.  Though miles separated them for now, it was  nice knowing that there was someone out there supporting you.  She liked to think he felt the same way about her.  

The message puffed her up with energy and happiness, and she slid down the bannister of the stairs into the main room of the house.  Then, she ducked into the kitchen to grab something quick to eat. 

Keira was in the kitchen, making herself breakfast.  She wouldn’t be needed at the track for a few hours, still.  “You’re going to be late,” her mother said, a slight smile on her face. 

“I know, I know,” said Lexi, grabbing her bag to run out the door.  “I’m heading out as fast as I can!” 

Keira’s smile widened slightly.  “I’m just letting you know,” she said with a shug.  She walked over to her daughter and gave her a kiss on the forehead.  “If you’re late, you’ll have to take it up with him, not me.” 

Lexi gave a mock shiver of horror.  “Oh, I know.  I better get going.”  She grabbed an apple from a bowl on the table, and rushed out the door.  “Bye, mom!” she shouted, waving with her free hand.  It was the work of a moment to rush down stairs to Beth’s door to pick her friend up, literally.  At the door, Lexi greeted her friend’s family happily as she waited for Beth to be ready.  

Once Beth came out, also wearing a fresh, new outfit of shorts and a lime green tank top, Tess said, “Have fun at training, girls.”  She didn’t stop feeding baby Sophie, and used her free hand to wave them a friendly good-bye.  

“Will do, mom,” said Beth, glowing with happiness as she took her spot on her friend’s shoulder.  As the door closed behind them, Lexi could hear, for just a moment, Noah and Junior arguing to their mother, once again, that they should also get to go to training.  Ever since they’d helped them sneak out of headquarters, their self-confidence had shot through the roof.  After all, as they kept claiming, they had helped save the city, too.  

For now, they were still too young, but the topic would be revisited when they were a little bit older.  Lexi smiled at the thought of the twins learning even more about weaponry. 

Watch out, world, she thought.  You don’t know what’s going to hit you. 

Once they were out on the street, Lexi hopped onto her board, hovering at a sedate pace as she chewed her piece of fruit.  A few bites later, it was gone.  She threw it with an expert overhand toss into a nearby trash can.  Someone grumbled at her as she did it, as she had just missed hitting him with it.

“Sorry!” she shouted over her shoulder.  But she was already speeding away.  Her mother had been right, she was almost late, which just wouldn’t do.   

Lexi leaned forward, coaxing her board to its full speed, and pressed the button on the back that made it rise higher.  The board climbed, and Lexi let out a whoop from deep within.  They zoomed high above the street, going faster all the time.  Life was better without a speed inhibitor, and she silently thanked Rick for the thousandth time for getting rid of it.  Lexi outstretched one hand, feeling the force of the wind pushing back against it.  Her chest was filled with such joy, it felt that it shouldn’t be able to contain it all.  

Around her, the city sank into a blur of green and gray.  It wasn’t perfect, and it never would be perfect.  But it was home, and on a beautiful day like this, she couldn’t dwell on its problems.  There would be time for those later.  

So, instead, Lexi and Beth whooped and hollered through the city, taking hard turns that drew them almost horizontal to the ground speeding past them. 

Finally, they reached their destination.  The park where Lexi began every morning training.  She still had to return to school after summer break was over, and still had to do chores and homework.  But, for a few glorious hours every morning, she was learning how to balance the dark and the light within her, and she was learning how to fight.  It was incredibly difficult; but at least there was one other person who knew exactly what it was like. 

Her father was already waiting for her at the gate of the park, wearing casual clothes.  He always managed to get there unfairly early. 

“You’re late,” said Jak, not angrily.  Lexi folded her board up underneath her, and strapped it to her back in one smooth, practiced motion. 

“I know,” she said, panting from the exhilaration of her flight, even though it hadn’t been physically taxing.  “Sorry about that,” she said.  “I must have slept in.” 

“Nightmares again?” he asked, concerned.  They knew now what that could mean. 

“No,” Lexi said, shaking her head with a smile.  “Everything’s good, I’m just lazy.” 

Jak snorted.  “Well, that’s a relief,” he said, with a fond roll of his eyes.  “Now, let’s get to work.” 

Lexi bent her knees, ready to spar.  Training was different now.  Jak never held back these days.  Whether that meant having her practice climbing over things, racing through the city, training with eco, or practicing fighting, every day was brutal and draining.  And Lexi wouldn’t have it any other way. 

“I’m ready when you are,” she said, grinning widely and raising her fists.