Manning and I were leaning on either side of the window beside his front door, watching the street through the white blinds. I’d messaged Frost an hour previously, but she had probably been in space. So of course it was taking forever for her to show. Having the president as an actual contact was unreal. I would have freaked out about it back when things had excited me.
“You sure you’re still down for this craziness?” I asked. “You realize that going to Epsilon is…well, what else do I need to say? Wouldn’t you rather go back to being an instructor? It’s the much safer option.”
“Only you would convince someone of something then try to talk them out of it.” Manning closed his eyes as he grinned. “I’m definitely still ‘down.’ There’s no turning back at this point. We’re part of something…I was going to say incredible, but life-changing is a better term. If I quit now, I won’t be able to have a peaceful life. Besides, I must be there for you children. You’re the future, after all.”
“I’m the future?” I glanced at my stump. “Pretty bleak-looking future.”
My pocket vibrated. I would have reached into it, but I already knew why my phone was going off. A long purple cruiser zoomed up behind Manning’s cruiser. No doubts as to who that was.
Manning and I stepped outside and approached the fancy cruiser with the icicle decal on the hood.
Way to make yourself a target, Frost.
Frost wasn’t driving, so I strolled up to the fifth window in the hope that she’d be sitting there. I recoiled as the window actually rolled down. Frost’s calculating gaze was right behind it. She displayed none of the cheerfulness of the previous day.
“Hello, Wander; hello…Theodore.”
Manning forced a joyful expression. “Madam President. How are you this morning?”
Manning had previously worked for Frost as one of her secret agents. He had agreed to get a shield generator back in exchange for her assistance of his brother, Upton, whose Hybrid Implants had warped his mind. We’d never gotten that generator. When we’d rescued Rebecca, we’d realized that Frost probably hadn’t planned on fulfilling that promise. Obviously, Frost didn’t know that we knew, but something about Manning was upsetting her anyway.
“I’m fine. Thank you for asking,” she said. “I apologize again for not being able to help you and your brother. Perhaps we can come to a new agreement in the future?”
Manning’s face twitched with anger, but he assumed a neutral expression so quickly that it was like I’d imagined his emotion. “Nothing would make me happier. Farewell, Wander. I shall see you around.”
He turned and walked back to his house. His stride had lost some of its composure. Frost’s talk of a future agreement made me wonder what would happen after we rescued Laura. Would we all come back to the Moon? It’d be pretty anti-climactic. I wanted to go back to the Oppressed base, but it wasn’t possible. Not with Frost on my back.
I climbed inside the cruiser and took a seat beside Frost. Her entire demeanor changed as I settled in. She beamed like she had on the previous day, and her shoulders relaxed. Either she really hated Manning, or she was happy to see me. I didn’t know which one was more likely.
“Frost, we should talk about the rescue mission,” I said as the cruiser rumbled to life. We were on the move. I didn’t know where we were going, but I also didn’t care. “Don’t you think it’s time that we undertook it? I’m ready. I promise.”
“Such a somber topic, but I suppose we can discuss it.” Frost put on her sunglasses. That was fine, but then she whipped out a brown trench coat from behind her seat. She pulled it on over her suit, and it gave her a bulky appearance. Was she putting on a disguise? “We can discuss all sorts of things at our destination.”
“Which is?”
“You’ll see!” She directed her smile at the window.
Frost shifted between stern authority figure and overexcited babysitter way too often. It was like she had two personalities.
The answer to my question eventually manifested in the familiar form of New Selene Park. It was a field of grass broken up by a tranquil river and a sandbox, and it offered a slide and swing set for kids. Metal benches marked the chalky sidewalks.
“You brought me to the park? To discuss war?” I asked.
Frost shrugged. “That’s the topic you suggested. When I planned this, I imagined that we’d just…spend time together. Perhaps we’d discuss life while taking a relaxing stroll? It was somewhat of an impulsive decision.” She massaged her forehead, which now sat between her sunglasses and the hood of her coat. “Work has been quite stressful lately. I’ve been pushing this Epsilon Explorer angle to soothe the public’s fears. I’ve been able to keep Lauretta’s capture from becoming common knowledge, but I can do nothing about speculation. This war is hurrying in an unknown direction.”
That sounded a lot like what Manning had said. Everyone seemed to think we were on the verge of something crazy happening. From my perspective, it had already happened. I couldn’t imagine what could be worse, but I understood that Frost was stressed out about it. I shouldn’t have cared since she was like secretly evil or something, but, apparently, I did.
“Fine. Let’s enjoy the park,” I said.
Her face lit up with excitement. “Wonderful!”
Fresh air greeted us as we stepped outside. We ultimately sat down on a bench, and its warmth poked at me through my clothes. The cheerful cries of children kept the silence at bay. One sped down the slide with his arms up, evidently enjoying his summer vacation: the one that was about to end.
It all felt so fake. How could a relaxing park coexist with New Earth, a planet whose own inhabitants were tearing it apart? This galaxy was full of horrors like a planet-devastating cannon that could be fired at any second. Life was full of tragedy, and we only relaxed to distract ourselves from it. I was done ignoring it.
Frost inhaled then exhaled through her nose. “Such lovely air. The artificial oxygen of the First Ship gets stale after a while as does being on a ship rather than a planet…Oh! An auto vendor.”
She leaned over the side of her bench and tapped a giant white block. I’d forgotten that it was there. Back when Laura and I had been in the habit of walking to the park after school, that thing had just been installed. I had tried to steal parts from it, but she had stopped me. I would have done anything to go back to that time.
“Here you are.” Frost held something out to me. I blinked to regain focus, and then I peered down at a vanilla and chocolate ice cream cone. The flavors swirled around each other. She licked her own red and white cone, watching me hesitate. I could smell the peppermint. “I apologize if it’s not to your liking. I should have asked before—”
“Frost, it’s fine. It’s just ice cream.” I reached for the cone but realized I was using the wrong arm. Again. I reached around and took it with my left hand. It was cold, which nicely clashed with the heat from the bench. “Thank you.”
“No need to thank me.” She looked up at the park. “It’s a good thing there aren’t many people around today. If they didn’t recognize me, they’d recognize you. What kind of disguise would you prefer for next time?”
I glared at my cone as I licked it. “I’d prefer it if we could discuss the mission, Frost.”
She maintained her composure for a second longer before sighing. “All right. As you’re already aware, any mission that involves Epsilon is a suicide mission. Before I send anyone out, I need to make sure they’re being led by the best. That being General Alhabor, the man in charge of my most elite team: the Constellations.”
I choked on a dollop of ice cream. “The Constellations? They’re real?”
The Constellations were rumored to be the new Humanity’s Oath. Word around the schoolyard was that Frost sent the Constellations to deal with any situation that was too dangerous for regular soldiers. She allegedly kept them secret to avoid the publicity and celebrity that had characterized the tenure of Humanity’s Oath. I think my friend, Kaela, had even tried mentioning them to me once.
“They are very real. I wouldn’t have to worry about you if they were leading the mission. Unfortunately, there is an issue.”
“There always is.”
“During a reconnaissance mission, one of the most prominent members, Sirius, was captured by the enemy. General Alhabor swore to rescue his comrade by any means necessary. That means pursuing said enemy until he can recover Sirius and bring him back safe and sound. Sorry to say so, but your rescue mission is on hold until the general returns from his.”
The enemy? Surely, she must have been talking about the AI? I knew they liked kidnapping people, but kidnapping one of the Constellations?
“Fine, I’ll help,” I said. “Let me help this general guy get his friend back. Then he can help me get my friend back. It all works out.”
Frost’s eyes widened. “No. If a member of the Constellations could be taken by these foes, then it’d be foolish to assume that you’d stand a chance. It’s too dangerous. I can’t allow it.”
I scoffed. “And going to Epsilon isn’t? Frost, I’m fine.” I grimaced at my own lie, but pressed on like it was true. “I’ve survived a lot in the past few months, so, if you’re worried for anyone, be worried for the guys I’m up against.”
My acting had gotten better.
Frost gazed at me as if I had grown before her eyes. She hadn’t really seen that side of me before. If it meant keeping my friends safe, I’d throw myself into danger as often as I needed to. I shuddered as pain shot through my right hand, but I didn’t even look in its direction. That kind of pain was worth it if they’d be safe.
“I’d continue the argument if I thought there was any point to it.” Frost smiled and shook her head. “Sometimes, I see myself in you, Wander. You were born into all this, you know. You didn’t ask to be Michelangelo Locke’s grandson, but you feel certain responsibilities because of it. I apologize if I contributed to that.”
She was finally apologizing for starting all this. Good. However, the people of New Earth needed it more than I did. I also didn’t understand the part about seeing herself in me. How were we alike? I didn’t want to be anything like this woman.
“Don’t you just mean you feel the weight of your presidential responsibilities?” I asked. “I don’t think that’s comparable to my situation.”
“No.” She lowered her ice cream as a somber expression took over her face. “From an early age, I was pressured to live up to my ancestor, Omen Frost, the Father of the Future. How does anyone live up to a title like that?! My family groomed me to hold a position of power like he had, so I set my sights on becoming a president. Anything else would have paled in comparison.”
I sat up straighter as the magnitude of her words hit me. Frost actually was like me. I’d struggled, living in the shadow of my grandfather my whole life. That had faded a bit after I’d actually met the guy (or at least his ghost in a strange limbo dimension), but a feeling that had festered my whole life wouldn’t leave that easily.
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“After you became president…did the pressure disappear? Did you feel like you no longer had to be that perfect successor?”
Frost met my gaze. And I found that I didn’t mind. “No. Every time I made a mistake, I asked myself if Omen would have done the same. And I have made so many mistakes.” Frost went silent as she stood up and looked at the sky. It was funny how much I could relate to her. Even though I had become the Epsilon Explorer, I still felt inferior to Michelangelo. He had never even gone to Epsilon, though. Would I ever be able to get rid of that feeling? “I even allowed New Earth to fall into such a disgraceful state. That’s the second Earth that’s been devastated.”
Speaking of Earth, there was something I wanted confirmed. It was hard to talk to Frost about everything I’d learned (because so much of it put her in a bad light), but she wouldn’t have any problem confirming something specific I’d learned before my defeat on Epsilon.
“Frost…were the AI created on Earth?” I asked. “One of them told me that on Epsilon. I don’t know how it’d be possible, but I thought I’d ask anyway.”
Frost snickered. “I assume that the AI who told you is the same one who destroyed your arm. If that’s the case, why would you trust a word they said?” Her confident smirk spoke volumes. My question didn’t even seem to have surprised her. Perhaps I didn’t have to worry about it either. Frost suddenly clapped her hands, snapping me out of my thoughts. “Right, we should be on our way. If you’re really going on this mission, there’s someone you should speak with.”
“Huh? Who would that be?” I tried to stand, but I flopped back down because I couldn’t push myself up with a cone in my only hand. Frost grasped my wrist and pulled me to my feet, smiling as she did. “Oh…thanks.”
She nodded. “Just as the Constellations are secretive, so are their identities. You’ll learn this eventually, so telling you now makes no difference: Sirius’ true name is Benjamin Oak.”
----------------------------------------
While it seemed tremendously massive on the outside, the First Ship was even bigger on the inside. I’d never considered what all the extra rooms might be for because I’d only ever been to Frost’s office and the hospital wing. This new room she brought me to was pure white, as cold as her room, and it was made up of cube-shaped compartments. I couldn’t see into them because pulsating red walls blocked off their interiors. Solidios. Usually that stuff was clear, so its opacity surely meant that the cells contained things that Frost wanted to stay hidden.
“I need you to answer this honestly: are we in a prison?” I asked as I eyed each red wall we passed.
“My honest opinion is that ‘prison’ is a strong word,” Frost said. She gazed ahead, refusing to look at a single cell. “It’s just that capturing criminals opens up certain opportunities, for instance, interrogations. I’d rather do that somewhere more private than in a public penitentiary. These cells are only meant to be temporary. I assure you that most of them are empty.”
That possibly-false explanation did nothing to ease the bone-chilling atmosphere, and our echoing footsteps only made things worse. I quickened my pace and kept my head down. The sooner we finished our business, the sooner we could leave.
Frost continued to march past the cells. Finally, she stopped and held up her palm. She motioned to a cell toward the back. It didn’t look any different from the others, but it must have been the one.
“He’s in there,” she said, confirming my suspicions. “Since you two have a history, I believe it’d be best if you talked alone. I’m not exactly his favorite person after all of our interrogation sessions.”
Seeing as I had a lot to say, I was fine with that. Our history was complex, but maybe I could use that to my advantage.
“I’m cool with that. You really don’t mind if I actually convince him to come along?”
“If you can convince a ruffian like him to be an ally rather than a bother, then by all means.” Frost’s expression softened. “When you’re finished here, come to a room labeled ‘Laboratory’ on the second floor. There’s something I wish to show you.”
She waved goodbye at me as she made her way out. I ran a hand through my hair and approached the cell. There was a control panel next to it. Frost had instructed me to hit the green button when I was ready…so I did. The red wall immediately dissipated. It revealed a man slumping in the back of the cell.
He was a guy with messy and feathered black hair. His head was bowed, so he might not have known I was there. He was skinnier than he had been the last time I’d seen him, but that may have been because his space suit was missing. He was dressed from neck to toe in a purple jumpsuit. It didn’t suit him. Was that a pun? No wonder I’d stopped making jokes.
“Anderson,” I said, announcing my presence. “We have something to talk about.”
Anderson Oak raised his head and sneered. The bags under his eyes reminded me of mine. The faintest hint of his former bravado was still present. Like me, he hadn’t given up yet.
“About time, Locke,” he said with forced confidence. “I almost thought you’d forgotten about me.”
Anderson had bullied me in elementary school and high school. I hadn’t seen him much in middle school, and I wished it would have stayed that way. He was nothing more than a jerk who forced his way in and out of any situation. My exact opposite.
I attempted to cross my arms, and then my face grew hot at my failure to do so. “I didn’t owe you a visit or anything else for that matter. It’s not my fault you weren’t taking your job seriously. Did you actually think you wouldn’t get in trouble for using government tech like that?”
Anderson’s gaze lingered on my right “arm.” I expected him to laugh or look even more smug, but his smirk dropped entirely. It was replaced by eyes wide with shock.
“What the hell happened to you?!” He scrambled to his feet. He also winced as he stood, indicating that he wasn’t used to doing so. “How’d you lose an arm?”
“Mind your own business.” I adjusted my stance so that my left side would face him more than my right. “Do you want to get out of here or what?”
“What? Oh! You’re a rebel now, aren’t you? I almost forgot about that.” His smirk returned. “Or do you still work for Frost? It’d be hard for a rebel to get in here…twice, so I’m a bit confused. I don’t really get news in here. Heck, I barely get food. Frost just let it slip that you’re called the Epsilon Explorer now? Man, you really are working for both sides. How do you manage that?”
Even if I had a non-complicated answer, I had to stick to the statement that I owed him nothing. Why was I even having this pointless conversation? I had come to see him for a reason.
“Ben got captured, and he needs our help. Do you want in on his rescue mission or not?”
His confidence was shattered again. “Captured? My bro was…Who did it? Tell me everything, Locke!”
“I don’t have all the details,” I said, which was true. I didn’t need details, just Alhabor’s help. “Frost just told me that your brother was taken on a mission. Me, this General Alhabor guy, and I think Instructor Manning are all going. When Frost told me she had you locked up, I figured that you should come too. He’s your brother.”
Anderson scoffed. “You of all people think I should come? Have you forgotten what I did to you and your pals? Nah. You haven’t. I can see how pissed you are. This must be a trick, and I ain’t falling for it.” He sat back down, confident in his refusal. “Leave me alone. I’ve been embarrassed enough.”
“Yeah, and it’s all your fault!” I slammed my fists against the invisible wall. Bursts of red spread from where I’d hit it. “You assaulted us. You captured us. You hit my friend, Nessa. You’re the one who ruined our friendship for no reason back in schoo—”
Anderson threw himself against the solidios too, spreading wisps of red like mine.
“I told you to leave me alone!” he shouted as the red shrouded his face. He went back to his wall, slammed his back against it, and slid down to the floor.
This interrogation was over, and I hadn’t gotten anything of use. I’d never imagined that Anderson could refuse to help his own brother out. Especially if it was because of his childish grudge against me. It hurt to imagine the man he would be if he could just let go of that…
I trudged into the elevator. Whatever Frost had to show me, I hoped it was good. I wasn’t in the mood for another disappointment. Not that there was ever a good mood for disappointment.
When my ride stopped on the second floor, I realized that it was almost as cold as Frost’s room. It sucked for her employees, but I was sure they had gotten used to it. I walked down the black hallway, following it as it curved to the left. I glanced at every door until I stumbled upon the one labeled “Laboratory” like Frost had said. Then I shrugged and pressed my palm against the red hand scanner. It flashed green. The door slid away, unveiling the room in all its glory.
Suspension tables littered the room. They held objects in midair so that people could stare up at them. Occasionally, they would adjust the purple suspension field or tap the tablets in their hands. I assumed they were recording data…or just sketching the items. Frost stood in the very back, admiring a space suit. Five people surrounded her. They were probably the inventors of the suit.
“Frost?” I stepped inside. Every eye fell on me. I was getting used to this even though it was still annoying. “What’s going on here?”
“Wander. Just in time!” She clapped her hands together as she beamed. “I assume the meeting with your ‘friend’ didn’t go well. That’s perfectly fine because I have a gift: one that’ll restore your precious smile. Behold, your new space suit.”
She motioned to the suit as she stepped aside. Her employees did the same. Now I could see that the suit was blue and black, a stark contrast to the blue and white one I was wearing. I stepped closer and realized that the model was sleeker and shinier than my suit had ever been. I hadn’t been keeping up with modern tech, but I was sure I was looking at the best example of it. I’d never be able to afford it on my own.
I reached out and felt the metal. It was smooth since plasma blasts hadn’t warped it…yet. I craned my head around the suit as I examined the rest of it. Clean vents, wider collar space for storing multiple helmets…It even seemed to have phone-to-visor tech. She had gone all out.
“This is incredible, Frost!” My hands roamed the suit, just like they had everything new I had gotten as a kid. For just a second, I felt like my old self again. Then reality stole my happiness by showing me the suit’s right arm. It was much shorter than the other one. “Oh. Thanks for the customization, I guess.”
“Do you truly think me that cruel?” she asked. “Inspect the bottom of that appendage, please.”
I shrugged and lifted the suit’s arm up. The metal glided effortlessly, allowing me to inspect the arm with ease. A large, empty socket greeted me on the arm’s bottom. Something was meant to be plugged into it. What would go on the end of an arm besides…the rest of it?
I looked up to see Frost holding a box with the same colors as my new space suit. Color drained from my face as I backed away from her. I wanted to put as much distance as possible between me and that box.
“Here! You’ll have to open it to see what’s inside!” Frost held it out as if it were something I wanted. “I promise it’s delightful!”
How dumb did she think I was?
“I…I can’t.” I gripped my right shoulder as it all came flooding back. The unwavering heat that had filled my arm a second before disappearing without a trace. I had been spared the pain because I had passed out the next second. I’d almost died. I should have died! “It’s not that easy. I know what’s in that box and it’s not going to fix what’s wrong with me.”
Frost lifted her eyebrows out of confusion. “What? Of course it will. There’s nothing that can’t be fixed with technology. Here. Maybe if you saw it for yourself?”
I pleaded with her to stop, but it was too late. She removed the box’s lid, revealing a blue bionic arm. The replacement. It was bulkier than a human arm, and obviously more colorful, but it was definitely a limb. Being a cyborg had always been a childhood dream of mine, but the reality was much more terrifying. I already had AI tech inside me, so accepting this would just be too much.
“I don’t need it,” I said. “You’re only giving me this because you think I need the extra help. You think this will ‘cure’ me. It’ll take a lot more than a new arm to fix what’s broken.”
Frost frowned. “I understand, but it’ll still help. Please try it. That’s all I’m asking.”
“I just don’t need it, Frost. I don’t need any help to—”
I froze as I recalled a memory. A painful one. Back when I had been in the Oppressed, a close friend of mine had sacrificed her mobility to get my friends and I out of a situation that Anderson had put us in. I had helped her recover, but I hadn’t been able to do much before Epsilon happened. She had been afraid of losing me, and I had been ripped away from her. Now here I was, doing exactly what I had begged her not to do: refusing help. She’d kick my butt if she found out.
Great, now I have to show Nessa that I’m not a hypocrite.
“Show some respect, young man!” said one of Frost’s employees. “Madam President ordered the construction of these objects out of the goodness of her heart! For you to reject them is borderline treason.”
“It’s quite all right, so don’t lash out at him,” Frost said in the authoritative tone of a president. “If Wander isn’t ready, then we shouldn’t push him. All we can do is wait and hope.”
“The wait is over,” I said as I eyed the new space suit. I had to forget about taking it slow and just jump in.
I walked to the back of the suit and hit the green, yellow, and red buttons on its neck. The metal hissed as it opened up like two halves of a broken eggshell. Stepping into the suit, I forced my limbs into their respective spots. The interior cushioning was nice but not enough to make me comfortable. I wiggled into place as I made the metal close behind me. It was tighter than my last suit but also easier to move around in. I didn’t remember giving Frost my measurements, but she had done a good job. It sucked that this was the easy part.
I raised my right arm toward Frost. Her eyes twinkled as she held up the blue arm and pushed its peg into my suit’s socket. Hopefully, she couldn’t hear my heart hammering away. As the arm clicked into place, lines of black raced down it. My brain faltered as I registered feeling in the arm. It wasn’t phantom pain this time. I was actually feeling something that had previously been stolen.
“Well? How does it feel?” Frost asked.
I was too nervous to try it. Didn’t this kind of thing require physical therapy? I guessed technology this advanced didn’t need it. But I was too scared to make a fist. What if it hurt? What if it felt too weird and I started freaking out? There was only one way to find out…
My “fingers” moved toward my palm, but they couldn’t reach it. They trembled as I willed them to keep going. I got the same result. I knew I could do it. So I tried again, but all my fingers did was tremble harder. Now they were just mocking me. My forehead burned as I kept trying, and my entire hand shook. How was it that I couldn’t even make a fist?
“Wander, wait!” Frost pushed my hand down and out of sight. She grabbed my shoulders next. “Don’t push yourself. You’ve made it this far, and that’s more than enough.”
“But—”
“No. Listen to me. You’ve been through so much. Of course, I’m not asking you to be fine in the blink of an eye. The fact that you equipped the arm at all is a triumph!” Frost motioned for the employees to leave. They all turned their backs and walked away. Frost leaned forward and cupped her mouth. “General Alhabor is on his way back. Return home, wrap up your unfinished business, and I’ll see you later this afternoon. Remember: I’m proud of you.”
That was nice to hear, but I’d need a lot more than pride for this new adventure. My next stop was the Moon, for the final time…