Rising Tides | 2

14 | W r e n

—

We were in the control room for the second time in a week. It seemed that every time anything even slightly interesting happened in Auchterton, it involved the five of us. General Hatis and Cleo had rushed us to the control room moments after alerting us of a "new development". Diana stayed behind, not wanting to be involved.

No one would say what the development was. Everyone in the room only glanced at us with sympathetic expressions, eyes not lingering longer than necessary. I stood next to Ember, my hand against her white cotton shirt near the small of her back. Adara and Ragan stood nearby, exchanging hushed words. There was an awkward silence that hung in the air.

Slowly, the rebellion officers trickled in. Colonel Peros, being as loyal as a dog, took his place next to General Hatis. Captain Blais stood on his other side. Rhea and August crept to where Adara and Ragan stood. Cleo Nicca stood next to August. She placed a hand on his shoulder, and he leaned down so she could whisper in his ear.

Calix and Giovanni scurried in moments later, whispering to each other and disrupting the silence. Their mouths clamped shut immediately at the dismayed faces around them. Commander Veronica Tanmos was the last in, slinking towards the back of the room to hide in the shadows of the monitors. Whatever was going on must've been serious if all the officers in addition to the five of us were present.

The general glanced around. "It seems we have all arrived," his voice boomed. He didn't seem thrilled to be here. "One hour ago, there was a shift in the dimensions. This is only possible if someone leaves this world and enters another. In this case, the human world. The Crown shut down all recruitments a month ago meaning no one has been jumping to other dimensions since."

He paused and looked around, beginning to pace the floor. I wasn't sure I understood the urgency of the matter. So, someone left Auchterton? No big deal. People traveled to Earth all the time. I, personally, had never been, but I had friends who would go for vacation. Traveling to the other dimension shouldn't have been a concern.

"Intel has been monitoring the jump points between dimensions for suspicious activity. We all know that Maddox plans to take over the human realm. That jump an hour ago was the first dimension jump since the Crown halted all recruitments. Our team was able to locate the jump point." General Hatis focused his attention on Ember. My thumb caressed her back. "He went to Seattle."

I felt Ember stiffen next to me. Her voice was tense and alarmed. "What? Why would he do that?"

The general frowned. "That is what we are currently trying to figure out, my dear."

My dear. The general certainly was having some sort of change of heart. He used to pester Ember about her incredulous behavior and try his best to make her irritated even though she was the key to everything he believed in. She irritated him on purpose, as well. They despised each other but knew they would have to work together to survive. Now, that hatred seemed to be disappearing.

Ember moved away from me and strode towards the door. She pulled her brown leather jacket off one of the tables and began putting it on. "He's going after my family. There's no other explanation." She turned to the general. "I have to stop him."

I rushed forward, grabbing her arm to keep her from leaving. "You can't go on your own. Besides, we don't even know if he's still there."

A man sitting in front of one of the monitors in the room cleared his throat. "Actually, I've detected another disturbance. It occurred almost ten minutes after the first."

The general's back straightened. "Where?"

"Porthmore, sir."

The room became even more silent than before. Ember slumped against me. She lowered her head. "We were too late."