Star-Crossed

Part 14

I repeat the procedure, and one-by-one, keep collecting the black vials, putting them in my pocket and sticking the cylindrical cases back into their respective slots in the ceiling.

Just as I'm finished collecting the fifth and final tube, that beetle that was sitting at the center of the ceiling flies toward my face and lands on my cheek. I let out a scream. One of the guards peers inside. He looks around and doesn't see anything so he returns to his post.

Slowly, I move my hand toward the beetle, but it senses me and crawls toward my nose. I breathe very carefully. In and out.

I approach it again - very, very slowly - and then quickly grab it by its stomach. It wiggles ferociously to try to get out of my grasp and then lets out a thick, slimy greenish goo that squirts all over my face and smells like a mixture of rotten eggs and wet garbage.

I do everything in my power to keep from screaming. I can't let that guard hear me again, and I don't want to open my mouth, otherwise the goo - and who knows what else from the beetle - will get inside of me. I don't care what Zayn said about these beetles being considered delicacies on Mimba. I wish I had gloves for my face like I do for my hands.

I continue to hold onto the beetle but tighten my squeeze as hard as I can.

Finally the beetle stops moving. Its eyes flash red for a second and then go back to black. It releases a gas that smells like a steaming pile of poo.

I gag and hold in coughs.

"It's a droid beetle - a camera!" yells Xeno. "Activate Karina's respiratory blockers!"

In a split-second, though I am still able to breathe, I can no longer smell anything.

"Karina, you need to get out of that building NOW," warns Xeno.

I hear a huge explosion in the distance. Zayn.

A couple of skylights above me burst into pieces and a shard of glass cuts my right arm. Blood oozes out, and my real skin color starts to show through the purple of my disguise. I accidentally drop the beetle as an alarm goes off. The guards begin to yell and scatter.

I panic, crawling as fast as I can toward an opening in the ceiling.

Leaping out of the skylight, I am relieved to see the back of the black dune buggy that Zayn and I rode into Mimba on. The guards begin to shout and shoot their weapons. I hang off the side of the scooter as it continues to fly away from the building, finally managing to pull myself onto the seat, as we are no longer directly in harm's way.

A quick wave of relief washes over me for a moment, as I recognize what I've just done.

But then I realize that Zayn is nowhere to be seen.

"Karina!" exclaims Xeno. "Karina - you there?! The bike should have come to get you."

I've positioned myself to be sitting in the driver's seat, and I push the blue button to turn off the smart-settings. Now, I'm controlling the bike myself.

"Yes, Xeno," I respond. "I'm here."

"And you've got the vials of Element X?" asks Xeno.

"Yes," I respond. "All five. But I accidentally dropped the beetle."

There's a pause. Xeno lets out a big sigh. My stomach drops.

"It's okay, Karina," he finally answers. "Just get back to the ship as fast as you can."

"Wait, where's Zayn?" I ask.

"You have no time left," Xeno commands. "Head back to the ship immediately."

"Is Zayn back on the ship already?" I inquire. "Where is he?"

"There's no time to worry about Zayn," he answers. "Do as I say. Now."

I stop the bike for a moment, unsure of what to do. I can see our ship in the distance. If I keep going, I'll surely make it back in time.

But then, an image of me leaving Niko in the forest after our feast flashes across my mind. A pang of guilt surges through my entire body, as I remember that I was too afraid to be there for him, even though he ended up sacrificing his life for me.

"If you don't follow orders immediately, Karina, you will be in grave danger of getting kicked out of the Squad," shouts Xeno.

"I'm not leaving Mimba without Zayn," I respond.

"Karina!" yells Xeno. "Karina - listen to me. You won't make it back to the ship in time if you go after Zayn. It's not worth it. Do you want the Squad to lose one member or two?"

"Xeno," I begin. "I can't leave Mimba knowing that Zayn's still here. It doesn't feel right."

"It doesn't matter how it makes you feel, Karina," Xeno commands. "I am directly ordering you to head back to the ship, NOW. No more questions."

I see a pack of guards - or terrorists, I'm not sure which one - approaching in the distance.

"I'm sorry, Xeno," I conclude, as I take the earpiece, and with it Xeno's voice, out of my head. I throw it down, and imagine it smashing into tiny pieces as it hits the ground.

"Activate holographic map," I announce.

I locate Zayn - he's somewhere near the building that he's just blown up.

I accelerate toward him.

"Karina!" I hear Zayn's voice in the near distance. "What are you doing?! You should be on the ship by now."

I hover over to him and see that his arm is badly hurt.

"Zayn, shut up," I respond. "And hold on tight!"

I scoop him up and place him on the bike behind me, protecting his arm.

"Thank you," he whispers.

I rev-up the engine and fly toward the ship.

At first, only a few beetles smack me here and there. Then, all of the sudden, it is literally raining beetles. I can barely see anything, and I'm starting to lose control of the bike.

The closer we get to the spaceship, the slower and slower we are able to travel, due to the storm of beetles that continue to dominate.

I can see the ship's engines firing up. They are preparing for lift-off.

I close my eyes and push the accelerator all the way down. We fly as fast as we can, through the thickening clouds of beetles. We have to make it.

The last ray of the sun has set. My heart is pounding. My palms are sweating. Zayn is squeezing onto me too tight.

Then, I hear a gunshot and feel the heat of a bullet barely graze my neck.

"Go faster!" yells, Zayn. "They're right behind us!"

"I'm going as fast as I can!" I scream.

I glance back and see a group of the guards from the roof moving toward Zayn and me. But this time, there is someone who I don't recognize from before, leading the pack. Unlike the rest of the guards, he wears a black mask with its eyes and mouth cutout.

There's no way that we are going to make it to the ship before these guys catch up with us.

"Zayn, hold onto me with all you've got," I instruct. "Activate frontal jetpack," I command.

A small jet pack appears on the front of my body, and I accelerate the bike toward what I think is a well that I see on the ground, a few hundred yards ahead of us.

"I'm letting go of the bike at the count of three," I yell at Zayn, over the wind and the droves of beetles.

"One, two, three," I exclaim as I let go of the bike and direct us toward the well.

The bike continues zipping forward as Zayn and I propel downward through the opening on the ground.

We descend deeper and deeper into the well, until I can no longer see any light or hear any sounds from above. I just hope the bottom of this thing somehow leads to a way out, I think to myself. Otherwise, we are so royally screwed.