Magic must have been real because this place was way bigger than it looked from the outside.
It was wide enough to park a ship in. Touching the ceiling would have required a tower of ladders. The stores were sandwiched together in an endless line. Just across from us was a cinnamon bun store. Next to it was a pretzel stand.
People shuffled around in noisy packs with plastic bags either hanging off their shoulders or floating beside them in gray bubbles. I hated bubble bags, but they were pretty popular. I had to admit it was funny to have your stuff floating next to you.
Escalators separated the second and third floors of the place. Three floors, and three of us. I didn’t like the sound of that.
“What is your first impression of your first mall?” Manning asked as he eyed the floors above us.
“This place is huge! It’s like we never left the ship.”
“The Eachtra, you mean?” Laura said with a huge smirk on her face. I just shoved her aside while she snickered. “So obviously we’ll need to split up here. It’ll take too long to search if we stick together.”
Manning stroked his beard. “Yes, I agree. Splitting up would increase our efficiency by sixty-six percent. I’ll search the third floor. Mr. Locke should handle the second. Ms. Genki, search this floor. Any objections?”
“Nope, I trust any plan of yours, Instructor.” Laura gawked down the corridor to our left. Something had caught her eye. “Call if you guys find anything. Oh, and I’ll call if I do too. For sure!”
She wasn’t going to call. Laura ambled off, looking out for backpacks rather than the Oppressed.
“Nice plan, Manning,” I said, “I guess it’s your time to shine, huh? This is your first time being on the field.”
“It certainly is not.” He wore a vacant stare as if revisiting war memories. “We have a chance to finish this right now. I hope you understand that. Even I have more at stake than I let on. Best of luck, Mr. Locke.”
Manning marched away with newfound purpose. What the heck was that about? I thought Manning had just come along so that he could end the war. I wouldn’t be surprised if it turned out he’d lied, but I was curious about his real motivation.
The ascending steps of an escalator were hypnotizing. If a staircase was moving, when was the right time to get on it? I planted my foot on a steel step. It kept rising and it took my foot with it, so I jumped on. My breathing became shallow as I teetered on the moving deathtrap. I grabbed the handrail and regained my balance. I survived! Man, these escalator things were deadly.
I kept my eyes peeled for anything crazy as I stepped off. Besides the prices, why was all the food so expensive? I migrated from one end of the mall to the other as part of a massive crowd. I blended in because each person’s fashion sense was unique. Light colors, dark colors, pants, shorts, dresses, tuxedos. I understood what Laura had been talking about. Everyone had their own lives. No one was concerned with mine.
My legs began to weigh me down. Adding to my exhaustion was the barrage of harsh scents from the stores I passed. Then stress burned its way into my head. It was already summer in a place famous for beach weather, while I was sandwiched between hundreds of people. My suit would flood with sweat before I knew it. I planted myself on the nearest bench. My aching legs cried out in joy.
It felt weird to take a break from saving the universe, so I continued to watch every person that passed by. Too bad I couldn’t memorize a single face. None of them seemed suspicious either because they didn’t stick out. Couldn’t President Frost have helped out more in this regard? We sure could have used an Oppressed Tracker or an Evil Sensor.
“Hey man, is this seat taken?”
A girl to my left was the source of the voice. A dash of blue ran down her long black hair. She had ruby red lips and striking eyelashes. After hanging with just Laura for so long, I’d forgotten that most girls liked makeup.
“Uh, no? You can sit here if you want. I’m just, waiting for someone.”
“Awesome! I appreciate your kindness, my good sir.” She took a mocking bow and sat beside me. Her yellow and blue space suit was like a more upbeat version of my blue and white one. “Name’s Kaela, Kaela Fire. Spelled with an ‘e’ instead of a ‘y,’ because my parents hated me.”
That made me laugh, which untangled my bundle of nerves. “Really? Well, if you think that’s bad, you should hear my last name. It’s Locke, but it has an ‘e’ at the end. The ‘e’ isn’t even pronounced so why is it there?”
She blessed me with a dazzling smile. “I guess that makes us two peas in a pod. Or it would if we weren’t strangers. Did you even tell me your first name, Locke with the unpronounceable ‘e’?”
“Oh, yeah. That might be helpful. I’m Wander Locke, mechanic, inventor, explorer…apparently a braggart.”
Her eyes lit up. “¡Dios mío! That’s…an awesome name! Do you want to trade?”
She laughed before I even responded. Was she okay? She seemed overly giddy now. Why was I even wasting time talking with this woman when the task of finding the Oppressed awaited me?
“Kaela Fire is absolutely a cooler name, so I’d take you up on that!”
I glanced around in search of the unsearchable. “It was nice meeting you, but I—”
“KAELA!”
Who in the galaxy just shouted from across the mall? I looked past Kaela and saw a dude with short black hair stomping toward us. His hair seemed like it was combed once a year. He wore a scowl that was probably his natural face. A bit of his right ear was missing. Did Kaela have a stalker?
“Look who forgot his manners again. Sorry, that’s my ‘friend.’” She added the air quotes with her fingers. “We’re shopping ‘together.’ He’s really ‘annoying.’ Wait, I meant that last part.”
He shot Kaela a familiar-looking glare upon reaching us. “Where have you been? I told you to stay right outside the store!”
His voice had a poisonous tone, like his speech itself was cursed. It caught me off-guard, but Kaela didn’t even flinch.
“Howdy to you too, Dylan,” she said. “And excuse me if I got bored while you were drooling over comics. I keep telling you to just get a tablet. It would save me the trouble of babysitting you.”
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His scowl deepened. “You babysitting me? I’m the one in charge! Who even cares about your boredom? Just follow orders, period.”
She scoffed like a rebellious teenager. “You’re literally not the boss of me.”
“Oh? Then you won’t mind confirming that when we get back.” “I like comic books,” I said under my breath.
Both of them looked at me. Two eyes filled with patience, and two filled with malice. I felt like I was back in Manning’s classroom with all those eyes on me. It felt like that had been so long ago…but it had practically been yesterday.
“Who, are, you?” Dylan stuck his face up to mine. His breath smelled like someone had set the junkyard on fire.
“Wander Locke, a dude who doesn’t appreciate it when someone else is in his face. Could you move, please?”
Dylan grimaced like I’d said something unpleasant. Hopefully, I hadn’t just challenged him. He turned to Kaela, and she shrunk like she was hiding. I was missing something here.
“What exactly do you hope to accomplish here?” Dylan folded his arms as he gave her a quizzical look.
“I have no idea what you’re talking about. I’m minding my own business, talking to this guy with beautiful eyes, and now I got to leave. Hope you’re happy. Sorry, Wander, but this jerkhole and I are late for business. Don’t wait up, bye!”
She seized his wrist and dragged him away. He looked back at me and smirked. It was like the final shot of a horror movie where the monster does its creepy face. Our meeting had been a waste of time, but it was nothing if not interesting. Were my hazel eyes really beautiful?
“Mr. Locke!” Manning ran up beside me but showed no signs of exhaustion. He was the last person I expected to be running anywhere. “The third floor was barren, I’m afraid. Well, it was crowded actually, but no suspicious persons. How has your search been?”
“Could have been better. I just found two friends with completely different personalities.” I pointed at Kaela and Dylan, who were bickering even as they walked away.
“You could honestly say the same about you and Ms. Genki.” Shock broke out on Manning’s face when he spotted them. “You questioned those two individuals?”
“Huh? No, I didn’t question them. They’re just shoppers. I barely got their names.”
“I see…then allow me.”
Manning strolled over before even asking my opinion. So that’s what it felt like. I followed as close as I could while he swerved through the crowd like a snake. He was practically sprinting through the crowd. I’d seen this determination before: in myself. Manning had a theory, and he wanted confirmation.
“Excuse me?” Manning tapped Kaela’s shoulder. Her eyes grew as huge as Laura’s stomach when she turned and saw him. “I was wondering if you could describe the scent of Surge N. Antant to me.” I didn’t think a bolder question existed. Their reactions were the interesting part. Kaela squeaked while Dylan grated his teeth at the floor. Kaela cleared her throat. “Sir, I believe you have us confused with another beautiful woman and disgusting boy. I’m just here to shop until my money runs out. Just like every other normal teenag—I’m gonna stop talking.”
“Understandable, although I don’t recall asking why you’re here.” Manning stared at Kaela, who was looking anywhere but his face. “So, you know nothing about the Oppressed. Is that right?”
I wanted answers, but talking about this in a swarm of people was unnerving. Our information was classified for a reason. Thankfully, no one was gasping or turning around, so we might have been safe.
“Manning, maybe we could make this a whispering interrogation?” I said.
“Oppressed? Never heard of them!” Kaela smiled, but it was much wider than it needed to be. “What kind of monster would ever want to rebel against our glorious government?”
Manning adjusted his glasses. “How is it that you knew they were rebels?”
“Kaela, your ability to fail astonishes me.” Dylan rubbed his brow. “We’re not with those people. Case closed. Quit bugging us.”
He seized Kaela’s wrist this time and pulled her away. Could I really have been talking to two Oppressed agents the whole time? I looked to Manning for final confirmation, which he provided with a nod.
We’d found them.
“Kaela, wait!” I rushed toward them, but they darted between more and more people. They were way harder to follow than Manning. It was like they were trained to lose people. Despite the human wall, I couldn’t afford to lose them. It was like my explorer’s license was dangling over my head. I had to reach it, if not for me, then for Beth. “I said, WAIT!”
Heat surged through my veins. Gasps rang out as darkness fell. The light just vanished from the environment. Only the occasional shaft of moonlight broke it up.
“What?” Manning said. “How in the—the entire mall lost power? Mr. Locke—”
“We can figure it out later, they’re getting away!” I pointed in their vague direction. I could make out shapes, but not faces. “They probably planned this. They told their agents to hack in and cut the power. C’mon!”
People got out their phones, which provided small beams of light. Now I could see faces, but I caught no sign of Kaela’s and Dylan’s. I scanned the sea of people until I caught a trace of Kaela’s bright yellow suit. I bolted in that direction. The overwhelming scents from the stores told me where I was. We were close to the escalators. If they got to the first floor…
“Wand?”
No! I shook my head free of that voice. Then I felt guilty for ignoring my sister. She couldn’t intervene now, I was doing this for her. I couldn’t spot Kaela’s suit anymore. People kept passing by, chatting about things that didn’t matter. There was a yellow flash near the escalators!
“You should take a break, Wand. You’re looking more fried than this omelet. Oh, here’s breakfast, by the way!”
“Stop!” I pounded my forehead. Then I regretted closing my eyes. I hopped onto the escalator. Its constant motion distracted my mind. I clutched my head as it pounded. “You can’t keep doing this. I’ll find you, but you can’t keep doing this.”
“Mr. Locke?” There was Manning’s hand on my shoulder again. “Are you all right?”
“I will be as soon as we catch them!” I leaped off the escalator. People gasped and parted as I fell beside them.
My eyes had adjusted to the dark now. It helped that pale light was flooding in from outside. Kaela’s yellow suit popped up, but the crowd was too big: I couldn’t reach her. We were next to the stupid food court!
They could have headed to another store, but that would only have increased the chances of my finding them. They must have made for the entrance. They were trying to escape. I charged toward it, but I didn’t see any sign of her suit. The pale light enveloped me when I arrived within inches of the glass doors. Outside. They had to be outside.
The doors were already open as people were flooding out. Frigid air rushed past as I squeezed my way out. The cold was nothing compared to the heat of my frustration. Where had they gone? A messy crowd stood before me. People running to each other, discussing the blackout, being in my way. My eyes swept the crowd so many times. Nothing. Not a glimmer or a hint, just nothing.
“It’s all right.” Manning walked up beside me. He’d kept up the whole time. I shouldn’t have been surprised. “It seems dire, but everything will—”
“It’s not all right. I lost them, Manning. We could have ended this. Could have caught them, interrogated them, gotten everything we needed. I ruined all that.” I staggered away from the crowd. They had no way of knowing what I’d just cost them. I slammed my foot against a wall, an impact my suit took for me. “Dang it! This was our only chance!”
“No, it wasn’t. There is no such thing as an ‘only chance.’ See this as a victory, not a defeat. We know their faces now. We will recognize them on the street. You acquired information. The most powerful weapon in the galaxy.”
I sighed and slumped against the wall. We knew their faces, but what good would it do if we never saw them again? If I were with a secret organization, I’d never leave the hideout. This was Thursday night, so we only had tomorrow and Saturday to find them.
Laura burst out of the mall and craned her head around before sprinting to us. A shopping bag hung from her shoulder, and a backpack clung to her…back.
“I came as quickly as I could, Instructor!” Laura said between gasps for air. “Thanks for the message. Cruisers would fly before I got one from Wander. Did you get them?”
“No, because I wasn’t enough.” I was about to whine again, but I couldn’t. I was a leader now, and leaders had to stay strong. If my team felt the disappointment that I did, we’d never get anything done. “It’s okay though. Next time we’ll all be together. Then it’ll be enough.”
“Really? I mean—I couldn’t have said it better myself.” Laura socked my arm. It was an expression of her love that I needed more than ever. “So, I’m guessing you guys caused the blackout?”
“Nope. That must have been the Oppressed.” I looked at the parking lot, where their cruiser probably sat waiting or was driving off. I’d hunt down every cruiser in the city if it meant getting that generator. For their sake, they had better be ready. “They’re crafty, but we’re determined. That means we have the advantage.”