The sky was still littered with ships. If this talk went well, they’d be gone in a minute. The trail of destroyed AI and Dwarfs continued out here, and it led to a chilling sight. My friends were gathered around the ruined Purple Dwarf. Its arms and legs had been blown apart, and its torso was littered with dents and holes; Peta’s minigun must have finally gotten to it. The screen was cracked, but Frost and her scowl were as clear as day.

“About time,” Beth said as she spotted Nessa and I walking over. “Don’t ever keep us waiting again.”

“What she means is that she was worried, and she hated it,” Laura translated. Beth shot her a glare but didn’t protest.

I smiled at them and approached the cracked screen. It was clear to me in that moment that the warmth in President Frost’s eyes was misleading. She reserved the warmth she expressed for furthering her ambitions. She had sacrificed our people just to defeat the AI, and I’d never forgive that.

“I beat Alhabor,” I said. “The servers are safe. Your precious general was just a bloodthirsty idiot in the end. Shut down your robots, stop your invasion, and just leave.”

“I’ll leave as soon as you explain why you’re helping a race of murderers!” Frost flailed her arms like an upset child. “Surely, you don’t place all the blame for your parents’ demise on me. You know your grandfather died because of them.”

“Michelangelo Locke died defending his allies from my troops,” Exo said. “They had orders to subdue him and the rest of his team during their escape, not to kill them. He used the power of the Alpha to keep my AI at bay, draining his own lifeforce in the process. He was not killed. He—”

“Sacrificed himself,” I said as my shoulders slumped. “Yeah, that seems fitting. And it’s a hell of a lot more than I can say for what Frost did to my parents. They were slaughtered just so that she could turn me into her personal weapon. You want to know why I’m siding with the AI? It’s not because I suddenly like them or can even tolerate them. It’s because their vision for the future isn’t as insane as yours! Humans and AI coexisting is a stretch, but it’s the best outcome for everyone.”

Frost chortled. “And destroying every last AI isn’t? You keep saying it’s wrong to use my people as soldiers, but once the war is over and I let them out of the Dwarfs, they’ll applaud me. They’ll immortalize me as the president who saved the galaxy. What will they say about you lot when you’re asking them to give the AI a chance?”

If the goal was to win a popularity contest, then our route was the worst way to accomplish it. The fact that Frost even cared about that was proof of how blind she was. Plus there was no way she would just abandon the Dwarfs when this was over. She would want to use them for the same purpose she wanted to use me for: domination.

“You know, if it wasn’t for your crazy family starting this whole mess, I think things could have gone a lot differently. If you hadn’t spent your childhood obsessing about the AI…you could have become a great leader.”

And we could have been great friends.

“You have no idea what my childhood was like. However, you agree that my family is truly to blame for all this. That’s a good note to end on.” She choked up a little, like it actually hurt her to cut ties with me. She’d spent my whole life planning to make me into her little sidekick, and, instead, I was siding with her worst enemies. Upon that revelation, I felt the tiniest ounce of pity for her. “As soon as I withdraw my troops, I’m declaring you and your friends defectors. You’ll never be welcome in the First Division again, so…this is goodbye, Wander.”

The soft tone of her voice reminded me of the time we had spent eating ice cream in the park back when she had almost been the mother figure that she wanted to be. Her kindness had been a shining beacon, and now her cruelty was the reason we stood on opposite sides.

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I saluted her. “Bye, Frost. Take it away, Peta.”

I turned my back on her, and Peta’s minigun began to spin. Miniature explosions went off as his plasma bullets shattered the screen. I felt the urge to look at the ruined screen, but I couldn’t. I could never turn back now.

A series of booms went off above us as the First Division ships sped away. Frost really was withdrawing her troops. All it had taken was one emotional farewell. Once the last ship had zoomed off, a collective wave of relief washed over us. We’d just fended off an invasion. We never could have done it without the AI or each other.

Laura sighed. “Well, that’s that. Now what?”

“Now we bury the dead.” Exo lowered his head. “In a manner of speaking. Margaret left behind a trail of destruction that we’ll need to attend to. Also, I’m certain that there are still a few active Black Dwarfs wandering around the mansion. Before that, I want to discuss this alliance that Alpha mentioned to Margaret.”

I’d forgotten that we hadn’t formally discussed the teaming up yet. These guys must have been really confused during the entire confrontation. I sighed and explained everything that had happened leading up to the present. It took longer than I expected. This was also the third or fourth time that I’d had to catch someone up on something. I needed to write it all down in a book or something so that I could hand it to the next person who asked for a recap.

“How dare that hag copy us. Stealing people is what we do!” Peta said. He noticed the glare I gave him and chuckled a little. “I mean ‘did.’ We don’t do it anymore…unfortunately.”

“What was that last part—actually, never mind.” Surge shook his head. “Anyway, establishing an alliance with you wasn’t our first choice, but it’s looking pretty necessary if we want to win this thing. The problem is that the rest of my organization wouldn’t agree. Even if I could convince them otherwise, they definitely wouldn’t want to live here. You’re the ambassador, kid, so what do you think?”

“Sounds like we need a compromise.” I rubbed my chin as I thought up a set of terms. “Most of us need to head back to Earth, but we can keep in contact. You guys have some sort of galactic communications tech, don’t you? If you lend it to us, we can keep in touch from Earth.”

Beth scowled. “I’m not going back with you. My home is here.”

“As dumb as that sounds, I anticipated it. If the AI have tech they need to deliver, you can bring it when you come visit your loving big brother. We can make this work.”

Everyone exchanged looks of uncertainty. I was right there with them. I was acting confident because I had to be, but this plan was ridiculous. We couldn’t beat Frost by working from two opposite ends of the galaxy. We had to be united during the final battle. I guess we’d figure that out once we got there.

“Understood,” Exo said. “This alliance sounds like the first step to achieving the unity I desire, so, of course, I’ll agree to it. I’ll ask the Kilos and Megas to begin construction on communicators. I assume you’ll want them integrated into your space suits, so I suggest you stay until they’re completed.”

I looked at Surge, who nodded. “Okay. We’ve got some stuff to take care of anyway.”

I had to check on Anderson, I had to make sure Ben was going to be okay, and I needed to make sure we got Alhabor tied up before he could sneak off again. Now that I thought about it, why didn’t I just ask the AI to make new suits for a few of us? My life was about to get a whole lot busier.

Exo and Peta stomped off toward the dome. I assumed they were off to “bury the dead.” Beth followed them, leaving me with the people I’d be going home with later.

“The Oppressed are seriously teaming up with the AI.” Kaela dragged her hands down her face as she groaned. “I hate this, but we don’t have a choice. Frost will flatten us if we go up against her alone.”

“Quit whining. I’d never turn against powerful allies.” Dylan glared daggers at his hands. “Even though they gifted me with the wrong set of abilities. I’ll find some way to make use of them.”

“I’m excited to wield AI technology.” Nessa smiled up at me. Thank goodness she had willingly gone back to her wheelchair. Finishing her legs would be my number one priority when we got back to Earth. “Besides, I trust Wander’s judgment.”

“Same here,” Laura said. “Plus I’m already cool with the AI. They won’t steer us wrong even if they are super weird.”

“I always said I’d do whatever it took to end Frost’s reign,” Surge said. “I didn’t expect to ever go this low, but I suppose I’ve brought this upon myself. Come on. Let’s get to work.”

My friends and I walked to the mansion together. When this adventure had begun, I had been alone and depressed in Opifex’s house. Now I was surrounded by my closest friends, and I was filled with hope. Despite how hard I had fallen, I had gotten back up. That was why it was so easy to be hopeful about the future.

How hard could it be to win a war?