A Hero in the Dark: 2nd Edition

Chapter 70: Be the Mediator

It's a breeze getting to the city where the warship is idle over Manhattan. Mog-structor—Carsonick—radios the scouts nearby and guides me through the docking bay doors. It's harder than I imagined, but I am able to pull the ship in, only slightly scratching its roof.

By the time we exit, I'm surprised to find nothing but ash spread about the floor. Mogadorians wait for us, all of them scouts. "What happened here?"

"The Garde ambushed it, Ma'am," says one.

"Killed them all," says another.

"For what? Why would they—?" I wonder.

"Some of them Skimmers are missing parts," notes Carsonick then, eyeing a nearby Skimmer before motioning to the rest. "Looks like these cloaking devices have all been dismantled."

"Cloaking devices?"

He nods. "Protect the vessels from trajectory damage," he explains. "If they're gone, these ships are vulnerable to attack, and the devices can be used on other warships to bypass our defenses."

"So, we need to get them back."

"That would be ideal," Carsonick says with a nod.

I sigh and sit near the far wall, leaning against it and slumping to the ground. John and the others must've stolen them to attack the fleet, which means Adam must've told them how they work, which means they did escape, Sam's free, and they'll be launching an attack soon—all while Beloved Leader is MIA. What on earth am I supposed to do? Sit back and let that happen? No.

They don't need to do this. If they listened to what he had to say—humanity too—we wouldn't even need a fleet. I know he destroyed their planet and almost decimated their whole race, but he didn't. Lorien lives; I can feel it. It's like it's in me—and maybe it is in all of them—but it's like I can hear it breathe, breathe through my pendant. If they stopped and listened for one second, we could all live happy; coexist. Why does this need to be a bloodbath?

Is it right to try and talk to them again? If I talked to John...

I remember how diplomatic he was. Maybe he'll see reason. Maybe he'll be able to help me convince them. I know he's probably still mad at me, but... if he really cares about me... is it too much to expect that he'll listen to what I have to say, and maybe, just maybe, put an end to this? If I can just find out where he is...

I stand and stride my way back to them. Carsonick turns to me when I do, and the rest follows. "I know what to do," I tell him. "Start the Skimmer; we're going to find John Smith. Everyone else: Resume your duties over this warship; I want it up and functional as soon as possible. If Beloved Leader radios in, answer and give him the update." I gloss over them all, most of which nod; those that don't, watching, waiting, with confused looks on their faces. "What is it?"

"We are not engineers," answers one of the ten. "Or pilots. Or soldiers."

"Then what are you?" I ask, blatantly aware of the harshness in my tone.

"We are but simple scouts."

"Fine," I mutter, waving them to follow up the ramp of the Skimmer we came from. "You'll come with us to find John, and when we do, keep an eye out for any activity and alert me if you see anything, k?" They nod, and before I know it, the door shuts closed.

I take a seat in the middle of the floor, cross-legged, and close my eyes. I reach out to John's mind, trying to focus on the last time I was with him. John. Can you hear me?

I barely need to shout like I did to Sam, and he still answers within the minute. Emily! Shit. Is it really you?! What the others told me... is it true? He sounds desperate, and maybe even a little hurt, but right now, I hate to say that I don't care; I'm just upset, and frankly, stressed.