Beckett
Nobody slept last night. Not after we all realized she thinks we’re dead.
We’re sitting in the Community Hall. Maps on the table along with Kyron’s relay notes.
The bread Vaelor made sits untouched on the counter.
I’m on the bench with my laptop, trying to get through Order security again.
Same walls. Same dead ends. I’ve been at this for hours and I’m not any closer to finding where they’re keeping her.
I break through another layer. Hit another wall.
I want to throw the laptop across the room.
Rane cracks first.
“Do you think she really believes we’re dead?”
“Stop,” Locke says.
“We have to talk about it sometime,” Vaelor says.
“Yeah,” Locke says. “But not right now. What we need is to do something.”
I don’t say anything. Just keep my eyes on the screen.
Then we hear it.
Low and mechanical. The kind of sound that you can feel vibrate through your body.
Kyron looks up. “They’re here.”
We’re outside before anyone says another word.
The whole town is already gathering in the main street. Darcy with her kid. A couple of the forest shifters at the tree line. I’m not sure where the crow is. I haven’t seen it since the morning…
Nope. Not going there.
Minerva is near the front. Hands clasped in front of her. Beaming.
I’ve never seen Minerva like this before.
Brent stands beside her. He looks excited and wary at the same time. Like he’s not entirely sure this is safe but he’s committed now.
The sound gets louder.
Then it clears the tree line.
Kyron wasn’t exaggerating, the ship is enormous.
Metal hull catching the first light. Mechanisms along the sides rotating, adjusting, doing things I might need to figure out later.
It descends slow and deliberate, like whoever is steering it has done this a thousand times and finds none of it remarkable.
The whole street goes quiet.
Rane’s mouth is open. And it’s the first time I’ve wanted to smile since I woke up in the Community Hall.
Kyron looks at me with an expression that is very carefully neutral.
Locke watches it with his arms crossed.
The ship settles in the field beyond the houses. Something locks into place. A hiss. Then silence.
A few moments go by and then a ramp deploys.
Light spills out — warm, brass-tinted.
Someone drops off the ramp before it finishes extending.
Dark hair in his eyes. Pointed ears with rings along one of them. Soot on his hands. At least six-five, probably more. He’s already looking at everything — the houses, the tree line, all of us.
He lands in the grass and spreads his arms, grinning wide.
“What’s up, bitches!”
I blink.
Trey makes a sound somewhere behind me.
Two more come down behind him.
The first one is all silver hair and armor and a scar cutting from cheekbone to temple. He doesn’t look around. Just walks straight down the ramp like he already knows where he’s going.
The third one is last off. Sleeves rolled. Collar open. Gloves in his back pocket. He’s scanning the crowd the same way I do when I’m trying to get a read on a room.
All three of them are massive. Taller than anyone I’ve ever seen. Broader.
Locke uncrosses his arms and stands up straighter.
I look at Rane. He’s still staring with his mouth open.
At this point I’m holding back a laugh.
The three of them walk forward together and stop a few feet away.
Stand there.
Everyone just stares.
Kree looks around. “So who’s in charge of this place?”
Minerva steps forward. “I am. Minerva. We’ve been in contact.”
“Right.” Kree grins. “I’m Kree. That’s Liam.” He jerks his thumb at the one with the scar. “And Declan.”
Liam gives a single nod.
Declan raises a hand in a half-wave.
Rane, beside me: “Are you guys like… fae? You’re fae, right?”
Kree’s grin gets wider. “Yeah.”
“That’s so cool,” Rane says. “I’ve never met—”
“Rane,” Locke says.
“—actual fae before, and the ship is—”
“Rane.”
“—incredible, by the way, how does it even—”
Kree walks over and puts a hand on Rane’s shoulder. Large hand. Rane stops talking immediately.
“You good short stuff?” Kree asks.
Rane nods.
“Cool.” Kree pats his shoulder and walks back.
I’m biting the inside of my cheek to keep from laughing.
Liam looks at Minerva. “You don’t know how this works, so we’ll stay, help you set it up, and show you. Once we’re finished, you can provide us with what we’ve bargained for and we’ll be on our way.”
I look at the flying machine. Back at them.
I wonder how fast it goes.
Brent steps forward. “I’m Brent. I’ll be the one you’ll be working with. Probably Cal as well.”
Declan looks out at the forest line, the town, back at Brent. “You’ll need more than that. This seems like a lot of area to cover.”
Brent immediately looks at us.
Fuck.
“Let’s get you settled first,” Minerva says to the fae. She turns. “Lena!”
She waits.
Nothing.
Minerva looks around. “Where is that girl?”
Brent shrugs.
“Oh very well.” Minerva looks at Brent. “Please take them to the available housing.” She looks at us. “Take them with you.”
“Come on,” Brent says to the fae. “Follow me.”
Rane immediately falls into step beside Kree. “So how does the ship actually fly? Like what’s the mechanism? Is it steam-powered or—”
Kree grins. “Oh, you’re gonna love this.”
And then he’s off, hands gesturing, explaining something that I definitely want to hear more about later while Rane nods enthusiastically and asks follow-up questions.
We follow Brent and the fae down the row of houses.
Kree’s still talking — something about compression ratios and fuel cells and rotational lift — and Rane’s eating it up.
Locke walks a few steps behind them, arms crossed but listening.
Kyron’s doing that thing where he looks like he’s not paying attention but is absolutely listening to every word.
Brent stops at the empty house. “This is yours while you’re here.”
Liam nods once. Declan’s already scanning the windows, the door frame, the sight lines. Kree pokes his head inside.
“Not bad,” he says. “We’ve stayed in worse.”
“We’ll get started after breakfast,” Liam says to Brent.
Brent nods. Looks at us. “You too. Minerva wants everyone on this.”
We head into our house next door.
“Anyone think this is going to be a nightmare?” Vaelor asks.
“No no, they’re from Clockwork Order,” Rane says. “Not Nightmare.”
Vaelor rolls his eyes. “I know that.”
Trey laughs.
“Either way,” Kyron says. “We need to get this done quickly and figure out how to get to Nova.”
I nod. “I’ll keep working on getting into their systems. See what I can find.” I turn, heading for the stairs. “I need my signal interceptor. I know I packed it.”
I take the steps two at a time, heading straight for Nova’s room. The one that’s turned into storage because she never slept in it. My bag is where I left it, half unpacked in the corner.
I dig through it. Laptop. Cables. Extra drive. Where the fuck—
My hand lands on fabric.
Soft. Familiar.
I freeze.
I pull it out slowly.
Nova’s jacket. The one I grabbed from the bathroom when we were frantically packing to leave the Academy. I don’t even remember deciding to take it. I just did.
I bring it to my nose and breathe her in with my eyes closed.
Her scent almost makes my knees buckle.
I stand there for a few minutes just breathing. Trying to calm down. Trying to remember how to function.
I fold the jacket carefully.
Something falls onto the ground.
Weird.
I pick it up.
A card. Plain white. A name and a number printed in simple black text.
Linda Luceran
And a phone number. That’s all it says.
Why would Nova have this?
I stare at it for a long moment.
I don’t know what it means.
But it’s the only lead I’ve got.