LOGINThe photograph in Junes hand felt really heavy like it was made of stone or something. Her fingers were. The paper was making a soft noise under her grip. The picture showed her and Benson standing on a balcony looking out at a city that was made of stone and had floating gardens. They looked a lot older like they were in their forties or something. Benson had grey hair and June was wearing a fancy robe.. What really caught her attention was the sky behind them. There were three suns. One was red one was gold and one was a blue color. It made her feel sick to her stomach."June what's wrong?" Benson asked, stepping closer to her. His boots made a squelching sound in the red mud.Before June could answer the ground under the library started shaking violently. It was not an earthquake or anything it was like a countdown. A secret door in the center of the crater slid open. Several silver pillars rose up into the air. They were not guns or anything they were like projectors or something.
The sky was not a sky anymore. It looked like a broken mirror. June stood in the middle of a hole in the ground. Her boots were melting on the metal of her fathers ship. The air smelled bad like burnt wires and old copper. The ruins of Gregory University were quiet.. The quiet felt loud like it was screaming.Above her the stars were moving. They were disappearing one by one. They were being replaced by white shapes. These shapes were moving fast. The alien ships were not gone. They were just changing."June get out of there!" Benson yelled. He was running towards her. His face was covered in soot and tears. He did not care about the heat. He did not care about the danger. He only saw June standing in the fire.June turned her head. She was moving slowly like she was underwater. When she looked at Benson he stopped suddenly. He almost fell over.Her eyes were not the same. They were a icy silver. They looked like the color of a moon."The stars " June said. Her voice was not her own.
The silence was awful. It was a silence that made Junes ears ring. She lay in Bensons arms. Her breath came in gasps. The university courtyard was a mess. It was covered in ash and dead vines. The black ships were gone. They were chased away by the light of Junes sacrifice.. The peace did not feel real. It felt like the pause between a heartbeat and a heart attack."June stay with me! Look at me!" Bensons voice was cracking. He was shaking her gently. His fingers were stained with soot.June tried to speak. Her throat felt dry. She looked down at her arm. The black symbols under her skin were moving. They were crawling like insects under her flesh. They glowed with a red light.Suddenly a loud laugh echoed through the courtyard. It came from inside Junes chest."A performance, my daughter " a voice said. It was Arthur Bensons voice. It was smooth and cold. "You emptied the house to chase out the thieves. You forgot who owns the land."Junes body jerked. She was no longer in control of
The ground did not just shake; it groaned like a dying giant.June stood in the center of the university courtyard. Her feet sank into the purple moss that now covered the hard concrete.Above her the stars were disappearing.They were not being covered by clouds.They were being blocked by metal.Thousands of needle-shaped ships came down from the sky.Their sides glowed with a hungry red light."They are here " June whispered.The purple flower in her hand pulsed.Every time it glowed a wave of energy traveled up her arm.It settled deep in her chest.She could feel the ships.She could feel the machine-like minds of the Masters looking down at the city of Umuahia.They were looking for the silver signal.All they found was the soft purple hum of Junes new world."June! Get away from the space!" Benson shouted.He ran toward her.He tripped over a vine that had wrapped itself around a fallen streetlight.He looked very tired.His face was dirty with oil and purple dust.His shirt wa
The wind stopped blowing. The air in Umuahia became very still. It felt like the whole world was holding its breath.June stood in the middle of the road. Her legs were shaking badly. She watched as the big black Master Ship disappeared into the stars.. She did not feel happy or like she had won. She felt like a doctor who just found out that the surgery they did did not work.Junes friend Benson told her they had to leave. He said the Council would send vans soon. He reached for her hand. His face looked pale under the streetlights.June did not move. She was staring at the girl, June 04. The child was standing up straight. Was not crying anymore. There was a purple vein behind her ear that was pulsing like a heart. It was beating at the time as Junes own heart.The little girl whispered to June. Her voice was very thin and quiet. She said the Master Ship did not leave because it was scared. It left because some seeds were planted.June asked her what seeds she was talking about. Her
The sky over Umuahia city got dark. It looked bruised. Like a wound.A giant black needle came out of the clouds. It was miles long. Sharp like a tooth. It moved silently. A killer from stars. The air under it started to hum. The shaking was strong. University building windows shattered into pieces.The Master Ship was not a vehicle. It was a mouth.It hung over the city center."June! Watch out!" Benson screamed.He jumped forward. Tried to grab her hand. The air around June got thick. A silver energy wall pushed him back. Benson hit the road. His metal wrench fell into the gutter.He looked up. His face was full of fear and sadness.June didn't look at him. She couldn't.Inside her mind a thousand windows opened. She felt a womans fear three streets away. A dogs confusion. The cold hunger of the thing in the clouds.Her silver eyes saw the street and every living thing in the city."The needle is looking for the Heart " fifty silver-eyed people said together.They stood in a circle
The darkness wasn’t black. It pulsed red—hot, furious, alive.June’s eyes shot open. She tried to scream, but nothing came out. Her throat burned, like she’d swallowed fire. She tried to move her arms, but they wouldn’t budge. Heavy metal cuffs bit into her wrists. She lay on a cold, slanted table
The wind up here howled like something wounded. Snow spun everywhere, stinging June’s eyes. Above her, the helicopter blades slammed the air—thwack, thwack, thwack—making everything colder, louder, meaner.June stood at the open elevator, boots slipping on frosted metal. One hand gripped the buzzin
The wind on the mountain top stopped suddenly. It felt like someone had turned off a giant machine. The silence was heavy and scary. June stood very still. Her boots dug into the cold snow. She kept her body in front of the elevator door. She had to protect her son, Leo, who was waiting inside.The
The SUV’s tires shrieked as June raced up the narrow mountain road, pushing the car as fast as she dared. Rain had turned to icy snow, painting everything outside in quick flashes—dark trees, white ice, and nothing else. Behind them, the FBI’s blue and red lights danced in the storm, angry and rele







