{Earth}

The signal.

Lynn gave Andrew a thumbs up. He turned to the group. “All right. Saddle up, everybody, let’s go!”

Everyone assembled to load up at the Arsenal before heading to Reipon for the main event. The Chief Weapons Engineer and Smith toted ahead. Andrew walked alongside Kyle to the conduit. The Doc brought Silence along for some testing that Lynn originally wanted to run on Twenty-One with the Perfect Defense virus. Lucas saw them off with a promise to hold down the fort until they returned with news of the Imminent raid.

The conduit opened into the sky, miles above the ocean.

Andrew whistled. “This alone would deter me from fucking with this place.”

Kyle shrugged and offered, “I guess some people are more determined than others.”

Lynn communicated to some kind of camera in sign language. Smith relayed his own code. Silence watched with rapt attention. Pablo leaned into her and explained, “They’re using their hands to form words. It’s how we communicate with hearing-impaired individuals. Of course, that may not be as common once Enki disseminates nacres to humans.”

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The Icarean female borrowed a pair of his scrubs. The bottoms stopped at her knees. At least the top looked cropped on purpose. One day, they’d find time to get clothes that fit her. Especially with her growing into the Shadow like one of many adopted strays. She tied her black hair into a high ponytail, but left the blue streak in her face. Hopefully, they’d open her memory soon and discover her lineage. No doubt an interesting one, given her unusual features.

Silence caught Andrew looking as the lift took them down the glass cylinder below the ocean. She nodded once to him. A confirmation of sorts.

Good. He needed it. Everyone had to play their parts.

Lynn led them through the guard posts and down a high-security hallway. “And this takes us to the disabler research labs where we can upgrade the guns. Come on.”

They followed. Once inside, she and Smith upgraded six of the Imminent rifles and passed them around. “Everybody got one? Great. So now—”

T.a.o. appeared. Not in the plans. Kyle shot Andrew, simultaneously disabling his nacre and knocking him on his ass. More weapons discharged.

Silence screamed, “Pablo!” A thud followed.

As Andrew faded in and out of consciousness, Lynn fell beside him. Knife in the chest. Brown eyes, unseeing.

No.

Pablo fell next. Skull bashed in.

Barely enough strength to roll over, Andrew found Kyle standing over him with Silence in his arms. At the counter beyond, Smith upgraded more weapons at the point of T.a.o.’s gun.

Betraying them again. Lying about the bombing. Setting them up with the Tribunal. Andrew asked the obvious question, “Why?”

Kyle’s voice came in three pitches, “Chaos.”

That’s what happened if Andrew flipped tails. The coin went up and up. Inevitably, it pitched down. All the while the metal sang to him. A promise that this time, things would go right.

Heads.