MasukZeph was already outside. Yelling at him wouldn't help, so Nicole focused on getting them both through this.Then she remembered the tear gas. She never collected any herself, but Zeph had a few canisters. He scavenged all sorts of supplies over the years. Nicole gave them a quick once-over before storing them in a corner of her space.Since she wasn't the one who gathered them, she barely remembered what was there. After nine years, the tear gas slipped her mind entirely.She pulled out the canisters and handed two to Zeph. With two apiece, they sprayed frantically at the advancing swarm.If this failed, they were out of options.White clouds spread across the deck, and the bugs backed away. As soon as they retreated beyond the cloud, Zeph grabbed Nicole and rushed her toward the capsule.She barely made it through the hatch before the swarm advanced again.Before closing the hatch, Nicole reached out and pressed her palm against the yacht, pulling it into her storage space.
At first, Zeph mistook the dark patch for a current. But the wind was mild, and the darkness spread far too quickly.The mass raced toward the fishing boat and surrounded it. Then countless tiny shapes swarmed up the hull in a dense, unbroken stream.They were black, roughly the size and shape of beetles, and moved astonishingly fast.The swarm poured over the boat like a black tide. Dense clusters never bothered Zeph before, but the sight made his skin crawl.He lowered the binoculars to tell Nicole they needed to leave. Before he could speak, Poppy screamed. "Bugs! There are bugs!"They spun around. While they watched the fishing boat, black insects climbed aboard behind them.More raced up the yacht's hull. Their legs made an audible rustling as they scrambled over one another.Each had a black shell and eerie green eyes. They covered more of the deck by the second.They seemed to track by scent. As soon as they reached the deck, they headed straight for Nicole and the other
Nicole regretted leaving so quickly that day. She should've examined the bodies before they left.Her theory made Zeph chuckle. "You know people can train themselves to hold their breath underwater, right?"Most people only managed a minute or two, but trained divers could stay under much longer. With their lives at stake, the attackers had plenty of reason to develop that skill.Training could improve their swimming speed, too. Strong swimmers could cover a considerable distance before they needed to surface.That made the Ardelonians' underwater approach less mysterious than Nicole first thought. Even after everything she witnessed, people still found ways to surprise her.The ocean stretched to the horizon beneath sunset clouds that set half the sky ablaze. Tired of being cooped up in the submarine, the four of them stayed on deck for dinner in the evening breeze.After days of bland packaged meals, barbecue sounded perfect.They brought up a table and chairs, set out a por
It took two trips to ferry all the supplies back to Sawyer's submarine.The submarine sounded its horn in thanks. Across the water, Sawyer and his crew saluted Nicole and Zeph before heading below.Then submarine No. 1926 slowly submerged and disappeared beneath the surface.Nicole watched the water settle, surprised by how much she already missed them. With nothing but ocean stretching in every direction, she felt alone again.Zeph seemed to sense it. "You still have me."Nicole took his hand. "We're a family. We count as one, don't we?"He smiled and conceded the point."Does it feel a little lonely now that they're gone?" she asked.After nearly two weeks together, they were friends. Saying goodbye was bound to hurt."Do you want to go to the new settlement?" Nicole asked."Not right now," Zeph admitted.She turned to him, curious. "Why not?"People were complicated. They fought and schemed when they lived together, then missed the company when they were alone. Even the
After so long adrift at sea, Sawyer and his crew desperately wanted a place to settle. More than anything, they hoped to find their families and friends and be together again.They still had faith in Yorwyn and trusted that the new settlement would become a home."Could you take the pilot home?" Nicole asked.Sawyer's voice caught. "Of course. It would be an honor."Nicole asked Zeph to go below and bring up the box containing the man's ashes. She also suggested sending the crew off with some food and medicinal herbs.Her storage space produced far more of both than the four of them could ever use. There was no point letting the surplus pile up while Sawyer and his crew struggled to get by.The coordinates were a long way off, and the route would take them through dangerous currents. They needed their strength to make it through the journey.The storage space belonged to Nicole, and Zeph supported her decision. "How much do you wanna give them?"He was glad she brought it up. S
When Ardelon was destroyed in a matter of moments, many of its survivors drifted from one country to another or turned to piracy. They didn't just rob people; they hunted survivors from other nations for food.Of the dozens of Savadian survivors captured just ten days earlier, only a handful remained. The Ardelonian pirates forced them to pretend they were injured and call for help, drawing other survivors aboard so the pirates could kill and eat them.Sawyer kept one detail to himself. Several bodies lay in the hold, all victims who had been lured aboard and murdered that day."Those monsters," he spat. "How could anyone do this?"Sawyer spent years at the military base, sheltered from much of the violence and cruelty beyond its walls. Nothing prepared him for a discovery like this.Nicole shared his anger, but the pirates' physical deformities concerned her more. Something caused those changes, and she needed to know what it was.Zeph frowned. "Could eating mutated sea creatu
Two miles was nothing. The Hummer reached the entrance to the complex in just a few minutes.Nicole handed the man 400 dollars, thanking him for saving her and for ignoring traffic rules.His voice stayed cool. "No need. I was heading this way, anyway."Seeing he wouldn't take it, she didn't push
Just after midnight, the timer refreshed. One hundred thirty minutes remaining.That meant time could stack.Nicole nearly laughed out loud. Seconds mattered. During crucial moments, even a minute could mean the difference between living and dying.She decided that unless it was absolutely necess
Nicole jolted, then immediately checked with her mind.The storage space was still there. The supplies were still there, too. She tested it; she thought of an item, and a coal briquette appeared in her hand.Sweeping the space again, she noticed the glowing timer had reset to zero.That was when
After paying the deposit, Nicole drove straight to the largest outdoor gear store downtown.The outdoor gear market was fiercely competitive. The store was in full clearance mode, shutting down with brutal discounts. Some items were marked down to 20% of the original price.Perfect timing.Nicole







