I blinked awake on the couch and checked my watch. 6:07 am. The early morning light was just beginning to filter through the curtains of the living room. I glanced over at the computer, the final copy was just finishing, it would be ready in about ten minutes. Then it would be time to leave. I rose and stretched, rolling my neck and shoulders. That was fine by me, I was ready to press on. It was amazing the difference some food, a shower and a few hours of sleep could make. I would try to remember that for the future. As a took stock of my little stack of storage drives, planning how to divide them, I heard footsteps on the stairs and looked over to see Simon crossing the hall, hair still tousled from sleep, rubbing his eyes as he walked. He frowned when he saw me,

“Did you get any rest?”

“I swear, I just got up,” I left out the several other times I woke during the night, that wasn’t relevant. “I got plenty of sleep.”

He narrowed his eyes skeptically but didn’t challenge that. Instead, he ducked into the kitchen,

“Want some coffee?” he called back.

“Sure.”

He stepped out a moment later with two mugs that he placed down on the table.

“How did you do that so quickly?”

“Liz told me she programed the machine last night, so it would be ready in the morning.”

“Smart girl.”

“Yes, she is. Which I did know before, but I don’t think I fully appreciated, until all this.”

“Well, in fairness,” I blew gently on the coffee and took a sip, it had some sort of hazelnut flavor, and though I was usually a straight up black coffee person, it wasn’t bad. “She was lying to you about almost everything, before all this.”

“True,” he nodded thoughtfully. “Maybe I should be upset about that, but is it weird that I think she’s kind of cool?”

“Weird? Maybe. But it would also be a bit hypocritical to be upset. You were lying to her, too.”

“Fair enough,” he sipped his coffee silently, for a moment.

“Why are you up so early?” I asked.

“I don’t know. Hard to sleep, knowing what today is,” Simon shrugged. “Exhaustion got me through until now, but I guess I finally have the energy to be anxious again.”

“Congratulations,” I chuckled.

“I’m not sure it’s an improvement. Afterall, today is…”

“The end of the world as we know it?”

“Yeah. That about sums it up. Are you ready?”

“For which part? The event itself, or everything that happens after?”

“After.”

“God, no. Are you?”

He shook his head, eyes wide,

“I’m afraid… I guess I am just afraid. My whole life, we have always been told to keep the Pact, to keep things secret, because if humans ever found out… Well, let’s just say I am not looking forward to finding out if they were right.”

“I’m sorry it came to this, Simon.”

“Don’t be. This is on the Domini. On me.”

“Hey now, you aren’t one of them anymore, are you?”

Simon smiled,

“No, I’m not. Thank you.”

“For what?”

“For believing that, for accepting it, for protecting me when many others wouldn’t have. Whatever else happens from here, thank you for that.”

“We’ll see if you still feel that way in a week,” I chuckled mirthlessly. “Only a few steps left, now,” I unplugged the final drive and closed the laptop. “We drop off the data to as many people as we can, make sure the announcements go out, then we hunker down and wait to see if the world burns down around us. Easy peasy. What will you do? After this?”

“I’m not sure,” Simon sighed. “I’d kind of like to go back to work, start my life again. But the Domini will still be out there, and I am not sure they will be willing to let what I did go. With any luck, the events of today will drive them underground and they will have more important things to worry about than revenge, but who knows? I will probably need to play it by ear.”

“Probably. Well, just stick with Oliver and Liz, they can watch your back.”

“I think they will have their hands full.”

“Then you can help them, too. Don’t martyr yourself.”

“You’re one to talk,” he snorted.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“Nothing,” he rolled his eyes. “I’m going to go and make breakfast.”

“You are? What, have you been here before?”

“Me? No, never.”

“Do you make breakfast in strange houses often, then?”

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“I’m an incubus, Ray, it comes up more than you’d think,” he smirked as he ducked into the kitchen.

I shook my head and set about packing up each of the drives, preparing them to be delivered. The more copies there were out in the world, the less chance there was that the Domini could find a way to supress it. Any one group could be corrupted or silenced, but not all of them. I would make sure they were all disseminated, then I would meet up with Gail and we would finish this. And then… well, then there was still the Domini and any prisoners they might have, to be dealt with. I checked my phone to see if anyone had gotten back to me in that regard, but the device remained stubbornly free of notifications. I put it down on the table.

“No news, yet?”

I looked up to see Tom enter the room, followed closely by Jessica.

“No, nothing yet. But it could take some time. How did you two sleep?”

“Well enough,” Tom shrugged.

“Don’t lie,” Jessica shook her head. “I know I kept you up. I tossed and turned all night.”

“Don’t worry about it, Jessi. I am a heavy sleeper, you didn’t wake me at all, really.”

I raised an eyebrow; Jessica blushed, slightly.

“I know that the ubarae here aren’t like them. But I still couldn’t stand to be alone. At least if I am with one of you… Anyway, Tom let me stay with him for the night.”

“That’s completely understandable, Jess, you’ve been through a lot. You are going to need some time. When we leave here, I’ll take you back home. You don’t have to be any more involved in this.”

“No!” Jessica yelped.

“Why not? I am sure your husband is worried about you.”

“I can’t go back, not yet,” She shook her head emphatically. “They know where I live, they could come for me any time. And how would I ever explain what happened to Steve? He couldn’t possibly understand.”

“You’ll have to talk to him eventually,” I noted gently.

“I know. I know. Once the announcements are made, and the truth is out there, it will be easier to explain it to him what happened to me, easier to explain why we can’t stay at home, for our safety. Please, just let me stay with you, until then,” she pleaded.

“It won’t be any safer to stay with me,” I shook my head.

“There is nowhere else. I certainly can’t stay here. Please.”

I thought about it for a moment. Perhaps where I was heading would be the right place for Jessica. I nodded.

“Alright, Jess. You can stick with me until I meet up with Gail, she is bound to have a safe place set up for the VIPs from the summit, and you should be able to stay with them, after that.”

“Thank you, Ray.”

“Well, now that that is decided,” Tom clapped his hands. “What smells so good?”

Simon poked his head out of the kitchen with a plate of crispy bacon,

“Breakfast?” he offered.

“I won’t say no to that,” Tom grabbed a few strips.

“Pancakes need a few more minutes, I was just going to set the table.”

“I am not sure we have time for a sit-down breakfast, Simon,” I grabbed a strip of bacon.

“It won’t take long, and you need to eat. Besides, the others aren’t even up yet, so we have some food, and by the time we are done, surely everyone will be ready to set off for the day. Right?”

“Fine,” I capitulated. “But let’s hurry up.”

“Alright, well, I can give you a hand laying things out, then,” Tom followed Simon back into the kitchen.

Jess and I cleared my equipment from the table while Simon and Tom laid out the food and cutlery. By the time they had finished, the smell had lured the rest of the household down and everyone had found a seat around the table.

“I had pancake mix?” Adam raised a questioning eyebrow.

“No, I made them from scratch,” Simon corrected.

“Huh. You are a much better cook than I am. These are pretty good.”

“Are you ready for today?” Oliver asked me between forkfuls.

“As ready as I can be. Tom and I are leaving once we are done here, to make the deliveries.”

“Ridiculous,” Oliver shook his head. “I have been thinking about this plan all night, and I have determined that is would be a waste of resources for you to be running deliveries, while you delay the flight for everyone else. I have people who can handle this. You should go and meet up with the rest, get to the summit as soon as possible. That is where you are needed. Anyone can drop off a package.”

I opened my mouth to protest, but Oliver raised a hand.

“Now, I know you don’t fully trust anyone else, so don’t worry, your friend Tom here can still make half of the deliveries.”

“Gee, thanks,” Tom muttered.

“And I am sure you will be bringing at least one copy to all those important politicians, so you will still have that covered, right? You can be sure that this isn’t some ploy on my part, to keep the information from getting out.”

I bit my lip. He had a point. I should get to Gail as soon as possible, help her coordinate the final details, if I could. And it was a long trip, better not to delay. And if he had wanted to sabotage what I had planned, there had been plenty of opportunities less complicated than this. Finally, I nodded.

“Alright, thank you, Oliver. I will leave this to you and Tom. What are your plans, otherwise?”

“I will stay here, preparing my own speech to our people. They will need guidance and instruction once things are set in motion. They are lucky to have me, to guide them through these difficult times, you know.”

“I do,” I put my fork down and rose. “I suppose that is everything settled, then. Jessica and I should be heading out.”

“Simon and I are coming with you,” Liz finished her glass of juice and stood. “Just give me a moment to grab my things.”

“Are you sure you won’t be needed here?” I raised an eyebrow.

“No, Oliver is safe enough here. And I can’t help him with speeches. I want to be where I can be of some use. And Simon might be of help spotting any familiar faces in the crowd, if it comes to that.”

“Good point. Alright, grab your things and let’s get going, then. Tom,” I motioned him over

He put down his fork and followed me to the couch.

“These are the drives that need to be delivered. Are you alright with this?”

“Yeah, Oliver is right, leave this to me, Ray.”

“I guess this is goodbye, for awhile, then. Be careful, Tom.”

He clasped my hand,

“You too, Ray.”

“See you on the other side.”

I ducked into the hallway and began putting on my shoes.

“Sorry to leave you with all the dishes, Adam,” Simon clapped him on the shoulder.

“Well, I owe you one for cooking, don’t worry about it,” he turned to me. “When did want me to make that information available?”

“Just watch the news. When you see the announcements begin, push the button.”

“Understood.”

“Thank you for your help.”

“Are you ready?” Liz finished putting on her shoes. “Oliver arranged for a car to be waiting for us a few blocks over.”

“Then let’s go. The sooner we get there, the better.”

So, the four of us stepped out into the morning sun. Liz led the way to the car. She took the driver’s seat, so I slipped into the back with Jessica. Simon took the passenger seat.

“Where to?” Liz started the car.

“We are heading to Billy Bishop airport. The summit is in Quebec, after all, and we don’t have time to drive all that way. James arranged for a flight for Gail and her team, and another so that those of us left behind could join them, before the big event. Anyone who got out of the warehouse should have headed there, to wait for today’s flight to depart. One of the calls I made yesterday was to arrange for the plane to wait for us, while I was making deliveries, but it looks like that won’t be a problem and we should be able to leave on time.”

“Oliver does have a good idea, time to time,” Liz admitted grudgingly.

“That he does. Anyway, I’ll call and make sure they prepare things for our arrival. Hopefully, we can be in the air as soon as we arrive.”

I pulled out my phone, but as I did, it began to ring in my hand. Hoping for news, I answered quickly. So quickly that I hadn’t realized it was a video call until the face filled my phone screen.

“James!” I gasped.

He looked terrible. His nose looked broken, he had a black eye and there were smears of red by his ears, where blood had been hastily wiped away. His eyes met mine, but he didn’t speak. I realized why as the camera pulled away.

“You’ll have to pardon the gag,” a voice chimed in from offscreen. “You have no idea how much trouble it was to get this number, and I didn’t want him interrupting while we talked.”

“Carmine,” I narrowed my eyes at the phone.

“Hello, Rayna. I think it’s time we had a little chat, don’t you?”