Everyone was gathered around the cabin's living room as we discussed the final parts of our plan for when the cadre came for us.

Since everyone had been waiting for us when we made it back to the hotel, it was easy to get us all out and on the move toward the cabin. We moved at a good pace, and I didn't have to remind everyone too often about good noise discipline while we traveled.

Sarah had set up a roving guard rotation around the cabin while we talked and planned. In addition to that, we had lookouts watching out for any sign of attack.

Without a clock, we had no idea what the actual time was, but I was pretty sure it was close to dawn. The temperature had slowly dropped all night, and a chill ran up my arms every time I stepped outside. A light film of moisture gathered on the plants outside, waiting for the first rays of the sun to change them into a mist.

The cold affected me more than the others. Physical types had tougher skin than me, luckily, there were some spare blankets in the house, and I made sure that Victor had plenty because he was the only non-physical kid.

The rumbling of Humvee engines echoed through the trees and up the long driveway, so we knew they were coming long before the lights began to show through the wooden pillars. As the vehicles broke past the tree line, the full force of their lights bore down on us. The light penetrated through the windows, casting shadows that cut along the wall like a butcher knife. Everyone on lookout duty at the front of the house had their night vision blasted away.

I had been walking between the front and the back of the cabin. As soon as I saw the traces of light at the front, I expeditiously moved to the back to check that nothing had changed. I didn't think they would commit all their forces to a frontal assault. I switched my sight so I could perceive auras and energies. Everything gave distinct colors that let me pick them out, even at night.

The enemy scout was still in position. He hadn't moved since I spotted him shortly after we all got to the cabin. Taking the scout would have alerted the cadre that we knew they were coming, and I wanted our lack of surprise to be a surprise.

I quickly counted to confirm there weren't more enemy troops than the last time. Satisfied, I went to the windows on each side of the house and did the same. Once done, I went back to the front to find out what was happening there.

Six Humvees had pulled up and fanned out in front of the house. They were still running and had their high beams illuminating the place. It was tough to see what was happening behind the lights, but it became more evident when I switched my ability on.

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The doors to the humvees were open, and I could see that soldiers were in fighting positions, spread out among the vehicles and using them for cover. I tried to see if I could make out anyone specific, but with my power activated, everything but the colors were out of focus. However, after a moment, I saw someone move from their fighting position behind one of the vehicles, then move up to one of the doors.

"Cadets," Colonel Baxter's voice boomed from a megaphone. "This is Colonel Baxter for the Camp Walker Protection and Reintegration Training Center. You are violating the rules the United States Government set forth regarding the threat you pose to the outside world. You are hereby ordered to surrender. This will be your only warning. You will be given five minutes to exit the building and turn yourselves in for reprocessing in the camp. Failure to comply will result in an escalation of force. Your time starts now."

"Yeah, right," I said to no one in particular.

I went back, and sure enough, the attack started, but it wasn't the one the colonel expected. I could see that the people we had hiding within the trees had captured and immobilized all the enemies in the back and sides. It was their mistake to send soldiers and people that manipulated metal into a forest to fight against people who controlled wood.

Satisfied with the results at the back, I moved to the front to deal with that threat. We didn't have enough people to place in the wood line at the front of the house, so we just decided to deal with whatever showed up on our own. Looking out into the front yard, there were a lot more soldiers than I thought would show up. I needed to see if I could get some extra time to develop a more comprehensive plan.

"What are you going to do with us if we surrender?" I yelled.

After a moment of silence long enough that I thought I wouldn't get an answer, the colonel's voice boomed over the megaphone, "Three minutes remaining."

I was worried then. The colonel was too confident and calm. He had to have something else planned. My people wouldn't have attacked if his people didn't move forward to do the same. So he was planning on them attacking right when he started talking, so he had to know it wasn't going well.

"Two minutes," his voice boomed again.

I went back again to check on everything. Looking out the kitchen window, I hadn't activated my power yet. I could see the first gleam of the morning sun glint over the edge of a distant mountain range like a giant peaking over a wall.

Then I saw a tree explode from the forest.

It instantly turned into mulch as it flew toward the house. I jumped to the floor as the tree's fragments hit the building and blew out every window in the back. As the dust settled and the glass stopped falling, I heard gunfire coming from the front of the house. It seemed that our two minutes were up.

I peeked out of the kitchen window, or what was left of it, and I could see a group of people walking through the still-falling dust and debris. There were five of them spread out in a wedge formation. They moved swiftly but unhurriedly while they continuously searched their surroundings. They didn't have weapons, and as they came into focus, walking out of the carnage of the backyard like badasses, I realized who they were and how much we had miscalculated. Walking point in the wedge was Claire, so the other kids with her must be the rest of the Sirens.

I didn't plan on that, which was not good for my flimsy plan.