There his father was, live on the Federation of America News broadcast. He stood behind a podium of microphones outside of their family house in Dogma Isle. His tan skin was more wrinkled than Evan remembered, edged with combed gray hair.

Something kicked Evan’s heart as he watched, hearing nothing as his father’s mouth moved.

“Why can’t I hear the broadcast?” he asked.

Rowic and Vihn kept their eyes on their controls, not yet acknowledging what was going on.

The hacker said, “Our ship blocks out most sounds, pretty airtight. Don’t worry bro, we’re almost landed. See something good on?”

“His father,” Vihn said, looking up.

“Oh,” Rowic said, finally seeing it all.

Never had Evan found himself anxious to hear what his father was saying on TV. What was the Federation saying about the Governor? What was he saying about Evan? He wished he could read lips.

Ad Astra dropped onto a platform amongst a ragtag fleet of airships. Some were sleek, others rotund, each with a mix of wings, engines, and guns.

“Landing ramp’s down,” Rowic announced. “The news always loops, so no ru—.”

Evan sprinted out of the cockpit, through the main crew bay, past the rebels as they were exiting the ship. He bumped into someone but was deaf to their complaints. Despite being outside of the ship, his father’s voice was a muted thing. Evan continued toward the edge of the landing zone, mid-level to the rest of the base. He grabbed hold of a set of railings. The scent of sewage and burning fires wafted through his nose as he watched the screen.

His father’s voice battled with the roar of water and a swell of people chattering in what looked to be a marketplace with hundreds of booths. By the time Evan was close enough to hear the program, the broadcast flashed away from his father’s face to a man and woman in suits sitting across from each other in an interview. A banner explained what the meeting was about, New CEO of Monolith Industries takes over while Governor Hendricks focuses on district affairs.

Evan slumped to the guardrail. The man was the Governor’s second in command, Charlie Crain. What was going on?

“Congratulations Mr. Crain,” the woman started, “on your recent acquisition of the CEO title and position of Monolith; a very daunting role to fill.”

Charlie wound his mouth into a shark-toothed grin, “Sure. I’m blessed the Governor would consider me for the position.”

“Why is it that he has? Does it have to do with the Hazard Station Massacre?” the reporter asked.

“Certainly. The recent incident demands his attention, more than he can provide while also maintaining our nation’s leading tech entity. Thus, he trusted me to look after Monolith in the meantime.”

Bull. Father would have rather died than give up Monolith. It was more likely President Nero had something to do with this.

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

“They make it sound like they’re going to cover everything up,” Vihn said as he leaned over the guardrail next to Evan. He took a swig from a flask in his hand.

Evan scowled. “It doesn’t make sense. They talk like he’s still in office. But if this whole thing is my fault, and they know I’m Afflicted, they would have…”

“Killed him?” Vihn asked.

“Why wouldn’t they?” It was a weird sensation Evan felt – in one mind, he was beyond grateful his father seemed to be fine, but the other part of him knew there had to be something far more sinister behind this.

Vihn chewed the corner of his lip. “Can’t say, kid. But these broadcasts are just propaganda. They run them on loop. I bet if we stick around for a bit, they’ll show your dad’s interview again.”

Evan sighed and waited with Vihn until they played footage that he couldn't believe they had. It was the pub from Hazard Station, from the perspective of a body camera. It showed legs splayed out from whomever the camera belonged to, but they didn’t move. Other Federation soldiers lay mutilated and screaming in agony. Krow’s body ignited with energy, the moment after he’d knocked Evan back into the bar and was about to kill him. But the shot was angled so that it never showed Evan’s mangled body. The scene cut away right as Vihn’s vines crashed through the wall.

The reporter’s next words were a jumbled mess as Evan tried to wrap his mind around what he’d just seen. But before he could process it all, they played his father’s interview again.

“Governor Hendricks,” the reporter said, “what are your plans regarding the terrorist attack carried out by these Afflicted terrorists, which resulted in the deaths of several Federation enforcers and civilians yesterday?”

The Governor frowned. “We grieve the noble officers who died protecting the people of Hazard Station. Affliction is dangerous in any and every form, and I am finished seeing these things make good people suffer. We are increasing our efforts to restore peace. I have enlisted the war hero, Purifier Joseph Krow, to head our new initiative in bringing these terrorists to justice. I am confident that he will root them out from every hole.”

“Fun guy,” Vihn said.

Evan ignored him.

The reporter asked, “your son, Evangelos Jr., he was last seen boarding a tram that had passed through Hazard Station that day. Is he alright?”

“Yes,” the Governor answered.

Evan furled his brow, unable to predict where this was going.

“I thought it’d be a good idea to send my son to the North so he could get a broader sense of the Federation before returning home to intern at Monolith. Fortunately, the attack happened after he had boarded another train to Montreal.”

“Ah, that makes sense.” The reporter leaned in. “Now, the last question we have is one from the public. Some people were concerned about your resolve regarding Afflicted recently. Do you have any comments?”

Without a lick of emotion, the Governor said, “I have no sympathy for the Afflicted. In fact, the same day of the attack, I had ordered the arrest of a mutant at Nero Caine Academy.”

What?

“Wasn’t it your adopted son?”

“It was,”

It…?

The Governor continued. “But like most Afflicted, there was no way of detecting the corruption until a later age. I’m only thankful we could stop it before anyone was hurt. I did not hesitate to have it arrested when we received the notification. These things have no place in our society.”

The reporter nodded. “That’s good to hear you say. As always, you remain a great example of the strength of our nation.”

Something twisted and burned inside of Evan. It couldn’t be true. If they were covering up Evan’s Affliction, then they could also be forcing his dad to lie, make him a puppet. Or maybe his father had found a way to cover everything up himself. There were too many questions. Evan clutched on to hope that his father was lying to the news.

Vihn shook his head. “Remember what I said? If the public ever learned that the GK had powers this whole time, the Feds would lose the East. You’re their dirty secret.”

If Evan was going to figure this out and get home, there seemed to be only one person who could help him – the rebel leader. “I want to speak to Andrea.”

Vihn flashed a crooked grin as he looked past Evan to something behind him.

“Then speak to me,” another voice said.

Evan turned to see a pair of mixed matched eyes staring back at him; one the depth of ocean, and the other the Moon’s reflection.