Fractured Futures Page 9

  Now that we’re close to the walls of the ship, it’s clear the material is solid, despite its liquidy appearance. It’s so solid, in fact, that there doesn’t appear to be a door. So while we’ve reached the top of the ramp, we have no clue how to enter.

  I’m about to ask if anyone has a guess how to get in when the wall of the ship directly in front of us begins to move, the metal starting to ripple and unfold into the shape of a door.

  I swallow my nerves. There’s a decent chance that once this door is fully open, I’ll see Mira standing on the other side.

  But then the ship’s metal stops moving, and what’s left is a door-size opening for us to pass through. Mira isn’t there. In fact, no one is.

  “Still no welcoming party,” I whisper to my pod mates.

  Marco and Addy march right in. I let Cole and Lucy go next. I take a final look at the bounding base and follow my friends. As soon as I cross the threshold, the metal rushes in to form a solid wall behind me.

  From the inside, the walls don’t look like metal.

  “We’re in the middle of a cantaloupe, just like the last time we were on one of these ships,” Marco says. Sure enough, the walls are orange, and the vessel has the faint smell of rotten fruit. The floor is squishy beneath our feet. I poke a finger at the wall, and it’s the same squishy substance.

  Addy takes a few more steps then abruptly stops. “I think there’s a wall here.”

  Cole puts his hand out in front of him and inches forward. Sure enough, his fingers stop in what looks like the middle of the air. “Invisible wall. Fascinating.”

  As the rest of us explore the parameters of the wall, a chime sounds. The barriers holding us flicker and then fade.

  “What was that?” Lucy asks.

  “Definitely a scanner,” Cole says. “I’m sure they’re checking that we’re not transporting prohibited items, especially tracking devices.”

  Addy extends her hand. “Do you think the wall is still—”

  Before she can finish her sentence, everything changes. We’re suddenly standing aboard an Earth Force passenger craft. I nearly lose my balance, catching myself on one of the tweed seats in the row behind me.

  Marco turns in a circle. “What the—”

  “Did they bound us somewhere?” Lucy asks.

  I take a step across the space that seconds ago was an invisible wall. “I’m not sure.”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Cole asks. “This is VR.”

  “How can you tell?” Addy asks.

  “Clearly they have the technology,” Cole says. “The Alks didn’t invent VR. I’m sure they brokered for it. I’m also sure the Youli had the tech long before Seelok and his crew. Not to mention, I’d already deduced that the interior of this ship was VR compatible.”

  Now that he says it, I realize the mushy orange walls are curiously similar to the walls of our common room on Alkalinia before the VR kicked in.

  Marco makes a face. “If the Youli home world is anything like that snake hole, it’s going to be a very long few days.”

  “Not to mention,” Cole continues, ignoring Marco, “this craft is an old model. Aside from making absolutely zero sense, if the Youli were really going to bound us to an Earth Force passenger craft, wouldn’t they choose one that was still operational?”

  “So why make their own ship look like ours?” Addy asks.

  Cole shrugs. “I don’t know, maybe they want to make us feel comfortable?”

  “Youli hospitality,” Addy says. “I like it!”

  As if someone heard Addy’s comment, a voice comes on over an intercom. “Welcome, Earthlings. We will be departing momentarily. Please take your seats.”

  “That must mean us,” I say. “If we’re about to bound, we better buckle up.”

  We head over to the seats. I have my sister on one side and Cole on the other. My hands are shaking so badly that Addy has to help me fasten my straps. Now that we’re about to leave, I’m incredibly anxious. I didn’t spend any time thinking through the logistics. I hate bounding by ship. The Earth Force ships are bad enough. I definitely don’t want to bound on a Youli vessel. What if they don’t work for humans? What if something goes horribly wrong? We could end up in the rift, or worse, scattered across the galaxy.

  Addy places her palm on top of mine. “Breathe, Jasper. It will be over in an instant.”

  I close my eyes. A chime sounds in the cabin. The next thing I know, I feel weightless, like I’ve been dropped into a zero gravity chamber. Then, just as quickly, the feeling’s gone.

  “Welcome to your destination,” the intercom announces. “Please proceed to the exit.”

  I blink my eyes. Everything looks exactly as before.

  “Is that it?” Marco asks. “We’re already there?”

  I exhale the breath I’d been holding since before the bound. That wasn’t too bad.

  “Earth Force could learn a few things about bounding in comfort from the Youli,” Lucy says.

  “Definitely,” Cole says. “This tech is amazing. The main reason I wanted to come was to experience their technology firsthand.”

  “That’s a surprise to no one, Wiki,” Marco says.

  “Enough, Marco,” Lucy says as she undoes her harness. “He’s Cole or Captain Thompson. Didn’t you read the final term sheet of the cease-fire? No nicknames.”

  “Of course I didn’t read it. Is that really in there?”

  “No,” Lucy says, “but it should have been. You better not be calling me names.”

  “Or what?” Addy says, rolling her eyes.

  Lucy puts her hands on her hips and is clearly about to dress down my sister.

  “Hey!” I say. “Let’s focus on why we’re here, which is presumably right on the other side of that exit. Shall we?” I stand and wave my pod mates toward the door that’s suddenly appeared on the wall of the craft.

  I waver between wanting to be first out or last. Will Mira be waiting on the other side this time? And if she is, what should I do? I don’t want to look overeager.

  What if she’s not there? Does that mean she doesn’t want to see me? Did she show up at the bounding station a month ago just because the Youli told her to? What if our moment alone together meant nothing to her? Maybe our connection is all in my mind.

  “You with us, Ace?” Marco asks.

  I shake my head to get it in gear. “How long did you last on the no-nicknames thing? Two minutes?”

  He shrugs. “Maybe. It could have been less. Let’s go.”

  We cluster near the closed door, waiting for something to happen. Just as quickly as before, the space transforms back into the orange mush. The light in front of us intensifies, and the wall where the door was seconds ago begins to peel back. In fact, the entire vessel seems to be melting away like an ice cube under a flame.

  In a matter of seconds, we’re standing together on a silver platform. The ship we were on moments before has completely vanished.

  “Whoa,” Marco says. “We’re not in Amazonas anymore.”

  “Kansas,” Lucy whispers.

  “Huh?” I ask.

  “Kansas. We’re not in Kansas anymore. It’s from The Wizard of Oz.”

  “Wherever we are, it’s definitely not Earth,” Addy says. “In fact, it’s not a planet at all.”

  11

  ADDY’S RIGHT. THIS THING DEFINITELY isn’t a planet. There’s no sign of a planet anywhere. It looks like we’re standing in the middle of open space. All I can see is stars. There’s nothing to suggest the ship we traveled aboard was ever here. How that’s possible? I have no clue.

  “We must be enclosed, right?” Marco asks. “That’s the only way we’re not dead.”

  “I think we’re in a clear sphere,” Cole says.

  If I squint, I can just make out a metal grid surrounding us in a sphere shape like Cole said. The grid must be holding together a clear enclosure. I slowly turn in a circle. The exact center is the metal platform where we’re standing.

  “What is this place?” I ask.

  “Where are all the people, or Youli, or whatever we’re supposed to call them?” Addy asks.

  “There’s no one here,” Cole says.

  “Always one to state the obvious, Wiki,” Marco says.

  Lucy kicks Marco’s shoe.

  Cole doesn’t seem to have noticed. He’s looking around, his eyes lit up like he’s getting a sneak peek of the next edition of Evolution. “This is amazing,” he says. “I can’t believe how far they’ve gone to keep their planet hidden.”

  “What are you talking about?” Lucy asks.

  “This must be a pin sphere,” he continues. “Instead of bounding us directly to their planet, they brought us to a drop-off location. There are probably dozens of them in this sector, all completely cloaked. I’m sure they’re linked organically to the Youli systems, just like how the Youli themselves are linked. So even though to us it seems like we’re totally alone, they’re watching our every move.”

  “Creepy,” Addy says.

  “So you think they’ll send a shuttle to take us to the planet?” I ask.

  “Doubtful,” Cole says. “That would be too easy to track. I don’t know what kind of tech they’ll use to transport us, but I can’t wait to find out.”

  Now that’s the Cole I know. The rest of us are freaked to find out what our so-called mortal enemies have in store for us, and he’s practically bouncing on his toes with excitement to see what cool Youli tech will be rolled out next.

  While Cole explains the pin sphere, Marco creeps closer to the edge of the platform.

  “Careful!” Lucy shouts as Marco dangles a foot over the side.

  Just as he does, the edge of the platform ripples. The silver flows out from the platform, melding into a silver path, suspended in space, angling down.

  “Follow the silver road?” Marco asks.

  Lucy looks at him quizzically. “What’s with you and The Wizard of Oz references today?”

  “This place looks like it was created by wizards,” Addy says.

  We follow Marco onto the silver walkway. As we move forward, the path unfurls before us and gently slopes toward the bottom of the sphere—or at least what feels like the bottom from the perspective of this platform.

  “I’m pretty sure we’re in zero gravity,” Cole says. “There must be some kind of magnetlike properties that keep us anchored to the path.”

  “So you mean if I jumped off I’d float?” Marco asks, setting down his blast pack.

  “Don’t try—” But before Lucy can get the words out, Marco leaps.

  I hold my breath, half expecting him to plummet to the bottom of the sphere, break the glass, and be sucked into open space, probably vacuuming the rest of us out with him.

  But no. He floats, just like Cole predicted. Marco spins in midair, then somersaults. The movement pushes him away from the walkway, toward the edge of the sphere. He reclines and crosses his hands behind his head.

  “Fabulous,” Lucy says. “How on earth are we going to get him back?”

  “I’ll get him.” Addy sets down her pack and jumps off the walkway.

  Lucy throws her arms in the air. “Great. Now we need to rescue them both. Do either of them ever think first?”

  “Not really,” I say. “That’s why they like each other so much.”

  Addy’s initial momentum propels her all the way to Marco. They collide and tumble together through the sphere, laughing hysterically, then roughly colliding with the clear edge. Fortunately, it doesn’t break.

  “Get back here!” Lucy shouts. “If the Youli are watching like Cole said, they’re going to think we’re a bunch of fools!”

  “Be there in a sec!” Addy replies. She says something to Marco, and then they both align their feet with the edge of the sphere and push off.

  They soar across the sphere toward the walkway. At roughly the midpoint, they start to slow down. They stop completely a few meters short of the silver walkway and then slowly begin to accelerate back to the edge of the sphere. I glance at Cole, whose face is scrunched up in thought.

  “Take two!” Marco shouts once they’re back at the edge. They push off hard but still can’t make it all the way to the walkway.

  “There must be a small amount of the magnetlike material in the sphere casing,” Cole says. “It’s not enough to pull us off the platform or the walkway, but it’s enough to prevent them from getting back here.”

  “Seriously?” Lucy asks. “I can’t believe this! At least they could have taken their blast packs with them. Maybe now you’ll understand why I wasn’t the least bit tempted to join the Resistance, Jasper. They’re ridiculous.”

  “No worries!” Marco shouts. “We’ll use our gloves.”

  “Don’t!” Cole shouts. “We have no idea what kind of scramblers they’re using here. Being stuck in this sphere is better than being stuck in the rift.”

  “See what I mean?” Lucy says. “They’re going to get their atoms scattered across the galaxy. Can someone please go get them?”

  “We can’t risk using our packs, either,” Cole says. “The air in here could be highly flammable, and the packs’ ignitions could set the whole sphere on fire.”

  “Wonderful,” Lucy says. “Just when I thought they—”

  I ignore Lucy and sit cross-legged on the platform, searching my brain for a solution. “What if we took off our belts and linked them together? When they’re close, we can swing the belts out like a rope and reel them in.”

  Cole shrugs. Lucy asks if I’m serious. But since neither of them comes up with a better idea, we give it a try. Once we’ve assembled the belt rope, Addy and Marco push off again. When they close in, I swing the rope. It narrowly misses Marco’s hands.

  We try a few more times but can’t manage to make a connection, and Marco and Addy are starting to get tired. Each launch is shorter than the last.

  While I’m trying to reel them in with the rope, Lucy is pacing the platform in a huff. Cole is sitting with his legs hanging off the path, lost in thought. He never bought into the belt rope idea. Hopefully, he comes up with another plan soon.

  “This is absurd!” Lucy says. “If the Youli can monitor us organically, or whatever you said before, why don’t they help us? I thought the whole point was for us to visit their home world before the Intragalactic Summit.”

  “I guess they want to get a look at us first,” I say, “like bugs under a microscope.”

  “Impulsive, grossly underdeveloped bugs,” Lucy says, nodding at Marco and my sister, who are currently engaged in some kind of tickle contest.

  In this case, I can’t disagree. “Pretty much.”

  Marco pushes off again. I swing the rope. It misses his hands by a solid meter.

  “That’s it!” Cole says like we’re in the middle of a conversation. “If we’re not leaving here by bounding technology, then our course has to be linear. And that means we’ll need to exit from somewhere on the edge of the sphere. Let’s go!”

  He starts walking, and the silver path unfurls before him.

  “Wait a second,” I say, grabbing Marco’s and Addy’s packs and dashing after him. “What are you talking about? What about Marco and Addy?”

  “Leave them,” Lucy says under her breath.

  “Simple!” Cole’s smiling now. He’s definitely confident in whatever conclusion he’s reached. “We’ll see where we end up on the silver path, and they can crawl along the edge of the sphere to meet us. It won’t be a direct route, but that’s the price they pay for derailing our trip.”

  Fair point.

  I shout the plan to Marco and Addy. They give us a thumbs-up, then stretch out on their backs against the edge of the sphere. It looks like they’re going to take a snooze until they know where they need to crawl.

  Cole, Lucy, and I weave our way down the silver ramp until we reach the very bottom of the sphere. As soon as we get there, a second silver platform forms. The floor is concave. Once all three of us are standing on it, the liquid silver rises around us to form a smaller, silver sphere.

  “Addy!” I can’t let us get separated.

  A second later, the silver rolls away on one side, forming a door-size entryway.

  “This must be a launch capsule,” Cole says. “I bet it will take us to the Youli planet.”

  “Well, let’s hope they make it here before it decides to launch.”

  “They’ll make it,” Cole says.

  “The Youli are watching, remember?” Lucy says. “I suspect they won’t leave half of us behind, even if it’s the far less desirable half.”

  Addy and Marco slowly make their way to the capsule. By the time they arrive, they’re both gasping for breath and dripping with sweat. The crawl route must have been pretty tough. They slide into the pod, and the door seals instantly.

  Lucy turns her back to Marco and Addy, which isn’t much of a surprise. I just laugh at them because they deserve it, and also because I doubt either one of them really regrets jumping.

  With all of us piled into the capsule, it’s a tight squeeze. Again I feel my nerves building. Cole said he doesn’t think we’re in for another bound, but that doesn’t make me feel any calmer or less claustrophobic. At least I know what bounding is. Traveling by launch capsule from a pin sphere is an unfamiliar mode of transportation, and not one I signed on for. I grab Addy’s sweaty hand.

  The next thing I know, the pin sphere spits out our capsule. We zip through the cosmos, like we’ve been dropped from one of those multistoried amusement rides that lets you free-fall toward the ground, catching you mere meters before you crash.

  Just like that, something snags us, but instead of bringing us to a stop, it flings us to the side. Now we’re whirling through space, literally whirling, because the small capsule is tumbling. All sense of gravity is gone. I have no idea what’s up or down, because really, nothing is.

  “What’s happening?” I whisper through gritted teeth.

  “I think they’re setting us into orbit,” Cole says.

  “Huh?” I ask.

  “I think this is how they avoid us getting picked up by detection tech.” Cole’s voice shakes when he talks thanks to the whirling. “We look like a piece of space debris. Once we swing close enough to their system, we should get caught up in their gravity and pulled through their shield.”