Too late. The hatch opened. Cold horror froze the sweat on my skin as one then four then seven suited and armed Outsiders poured from the ship. I checked the air pressure gauge that hung on my belt. There still wasn"t enough air for us to shed the s.p.a.ce suits. It would have given us a small advantage.
I pulled my knife. The others followed my example except Bubba Boom. He hadn"t moved, but I didn"t have time to worry about him right now.
The Outsiders fanned out, trying to surround us. They held those long tubes Bubba Boom had warned us about.
"Get behind something," Riley called.
I ducked behind one of the transport"s legs, feeling too big for the first time in my life. Sloan finished bashing the last gun, but it was four against twelve.
"Trella, I admire your tenacity," Ponife said. His voice echoed from a speaker inside the collar of the helmet. "However, it is time to stop. Surrender and I will allow your cohorts to join the other survivors."
"No," Riley said.
"It would be unwise to trust them," Logan said.
"Thanks for the advice, Logan. Tell me something I didn"t know," I snapped. Putting my knife on the floor, I glanced around, searching for a way to escape. "This stinks, but I don"t think we have a choice. Too bad we didn"t get to the hatch in time."
I walked to the hatch and almost laughed when six Outsiders followed me. Tenacious I may be, and stubborn and maybe even a bit reckless, but I never would consider myself dangerous enough to need six escorts.
We entered the ship. The room was similar to Gateway with another door and a control panel. As the hatch closed behind us, I hoped Riley and the others had gotten my hint. One of the Outsiders punched a few b.u.t.tons. I repeated the sequence aloud.
Ponife chuckled drily. "Your friends are in custody. No one is left to help you."
This was the second time he had claimed I was alone and helpless. It didn"t go as he had expected the first time; you"d think he"d learn by now. Or I would. Fear still pulsed through my body.
After a hissing noise vibrated through my suit, the other door opened and we were in an area that resembled a changing room, with empty suits hanging on hooks and shelves full of helmets and gloves.
"Keep your helmet on," Ponife ordered. "We have no plans to kill you."
"I feel so much better," I said.
They removed their helmets.
Ponife had perfected his superior expression. "You should be happy. Your mother and friends will all be members of our new combined community."
"Is she here?" I asked.
"No. She is with the others. Only you will stay with us until our world below isacleaned."
"Cleaned? Why don"t you call it what it is? It"s genocide."
"Because that would be technically inaccurate."
"That shouldn"t bother you since you"ve gotten a bunch of stuff wrong already."
"Trivial issues, causing only minor delays."
"I"m glad you can put a positive spin on what I"d call stupid mistakes."
Ponife took the bait. "For examplea?"
"You a.s.sumed that knife was my only weapon." I pulled the last bomb from my pocket and yanked the pin out.
Rolling it along the floor, I dodged a few Outsiders until one aimed his gun at me and pulled the trigger. One disk clipped my right shoulder, slicing through the suit, my skin and muscles. Fire burned as I lost the use of my right arm in an instant. The air inside my suit leaked through the rip with a high-pitched whistle.
When nothing more happeneda"d.a.m.n, a real dud this timea"Ponife asked, "Is that it? Do you have anything else?" He yanked me to my feet and took off my tool belt. He strode to one of the cabinets and rummaged. Returning, he slapped a white patch over the hole in my suit.
Pain from the slap mixed with amazement. "Why did you save me?" I asked him.
"I told you beforea""
"No plans to kill me. But you said *we" and hea" I pointed with my left hand to the one who still clutched his gun. "He didn"t hesitate. Are you sure your plans match the others"? Because that particular idea is another mistake." I wasn"t being suicidal, really. My will to live throbbed in my heart; I was just hoping to sow a little dissension among the Outsiders.
They glanced at each other until Ponife growled at them to stop. Then an ear-aching alarm sounded. Surprised, their focus shifted to the hatch. I was the only person to see the gla.s.s ball flash.
Once again, I flattened my body to the floor. Gla.s.s shards pelted my right side as a wave of energy rolled me over to my back. I stared at the ceiling, silently thanking Ivie and Kadar.
"Trella, quit napping while we do all the work." Logan"s voice filled my helmet.
Riley"s face blocked my view. "Are you hurt?" he asked.
"Nothing Lamont can"t fix," I said, groaning as I ambled to my feet. Ponife and the other Outsiders had been stunned by the bomb. "How did you two get in here?"
Logan gestured to Riley. "His knife. Sloan"s wrench. Bubba Boom"s surprise recovery. And my genius." Then he muttered, "And your help with the code."
"Can you repeat that last part?" I asked.
"Later," Riley said. "We need to leave before the rest of the Outsiders come to investigate."
We made it through the hatch. Bubba Boom waited nearby with his blow torch. His face was peppered with cuts and a cracked helmet rested by his feet.
"Disk deflected off my helmet," Bubba Boom explained. "I pa.s.sed out from lack of oxygen. I woke when there was enough air, but decided to stay down until the odds looked a little better."
As Bubba Boom sealed the hatch, we removed our suits. Riley helped me with mine.
He inspected the cut on my shoulder. "I see bone. Do you know where your mother is?"
"On the other ship."
We all glanced at the bay door. Two possibilities waited on the other side. Onea"Outsiders controlled the ship. Twoa" Hank and his people had managed to free our Insiders.
Logan examined the panel next to the door. "When should I open it?"
Riley handed me a gun he had taken from the fallen Outsiders and then armed himself with two. I held the unfamiliar weapon in my left hand. Sloan also held one and his wrench rested on his shoulder. Bubba Boom finished sealing the hatch and joined us. Riley gave him one of his guns, then pulled his knife from his belt.
"On three," Riley said. "One."
Logan pressed a few keys.
"Two," Sloan said.
More beeps followed. Logan"s hand hovered above the glowing red b.u.t.ton.
"Two and a half," Bubba Boom said.
A nervous chuckle rolled through us.
"Three," I said.
23.
LOGAN PUNCHED THE b.u.t.tON. THE DOOR SLID OPEN. Chaos greeted us. We clutched our weapons and peered into the crowd of screaming people. I searched for Outsiders, but only Insiders poured from the hatch of the ship.
My brain finally sorted through the overwhelming scene. The screams were happy cries and the Insiders were hugging and celebrating. I spotted Hank leaning against a far wall. We crossed to him, dodging a few overly excited people.
"Looks like my idea to widen the lift worked," I said to him.
"Your idea was c.r.a.p, Trella," he said. "I could only send up a few people at a time."
"How did you take out the guards?"
"I didn"t." He gestured to the Insiders. "They did it before we reached them."
"How?"
Riley clapped me on my good shoulder. "You taught them how to stand up for themselves."
"I don"t think so," Hank said. He poked a finger toward one woman, standing off to the side by herself. "Rumor has it the Doctor knocked out all the Outsiders inside the ship, then rallied and organized everyone else to attack the guards in the bay. The Outsiders didn"t stand a chance." He glared at me, but it didn"t reach his eyes. "Now I know who you inherited your pain in the a.s.sness from."
I smiled. "I"ll take that as a compliment."
Riley and Logan accompanied me as I went to congratulate my mother. Sloan went searching for Jacy and Bubba Boom stayed with Hank.
My mother"s eyes lit up when she spotted us. She wrapped her arms around me, but pulled back when I hissed in pain. Then there was no talking to her as she transformed into doctor mode, tsking over the deep cut and insisting on getting me to the infirmary without delay.
Wishing to remain and find out more details, I grumped at her. "I"d rather have you mother me."
"Then you"re in luck since I can do both. Get moving or I"ll make you stay in the infirmary long after you"re recovered."
"Yes, Mother."
The cleanup took longer this time than when the Force of Sheep had won. Even though the Insiders had all rallied against the Outsiders, resentment still lingered between them. A few of usa"me, Hank, Emek, Jacy and Domotora"sat together and decided how to proceed. Yes, we included Hank. He always wanted the best for Inside and he had good insights into what changes the people craved after the Pop Cops were gone.
We kept the family names and soon everyone Inside had a family. Then we asked everyone to sign up for a job. Except this time, there wouldn"t be scrubs cleaning and uppers working the controls. If a person wished to work in the air plant, he would learn every aspect of the plant and his job would rotate from computer controller to changing filters to hauling cleaning trolls around from shaft to shaft then back to being a controller.
For the jobs no one wanteda"like cleaning out the waste pipesa"every single person of Inside would take a four-hour shift, which, when you considered we had a population of 22,500 and some, that meant I would have to do my four hours every nine hundred weeks. Doable.
Levels five to ten would be completed first and then everyone would be able to move out of the barracks at the same time.
As for the Outsiders, they would be invited to join us, to choose jobs and vote. For those who declined our offer, they would be given a room in the brig. We realized the danger in letting someone like Ponife have freedom in our world, but agreed not to limit or incarcerate someone with a difference in opinion. Actions and not words would land an Insider in trouble. Jacy volunteered to head the ISF for now.
Soon after I had recovered, I joined Logan, Riley, Bubba Boom, Hank and a handful of others in saying goodbye to Anne-Jade. We lined the hallway up to Chomper"s lair and paid tribute to a hero. Logan wished for her to be recycled and not sent out into Outer s.p.a.ce.
"She will always be with us," he said.
By week 147,033, we had completed the work schedule for everyone and repaired all the damage to the machinery and computer. At hour zero of week 147,034 we held elections for Admiral, Vice Admiral, Captain and for the Commander of the ISF. Logan had rigged Video Cameras with sound so every Insider could hear the candidates" plans for our future. I had campaigned for either one of the Admiral positions. The other Admiral candidates were Domotor, Riley"s father Jacob, Emek and Takia. Logan, James Trava and Bubba Boom ran for the Captain"s position. Jacy and Sloan campaigned for Commander.
Riley brought the early election results to me at hour twenty. They would be announced to everyone at hour twenty-five. I was helping Lamont in the infirmary, but he wanted to tell me them in private. We retreated to my room and he closed the door.
He sat on the edge of my bed with me. Impish delight lit his blue eyes. "Remember your promise?"
I pretended to be confused. "Which one? I just promised everyone to keep our world safe and sane. Did they vote for me?"
"I"ll tell you after you keep your promise to me."
"Wella" I tapped my lips with a finger as if I considered his words. "I could just wait five hoursa""
He cut me off with a deep pa.s.sionate kiss.
When he broke it off, I said, "Waiting really isn"t my thing." And I drew him close for another kiss.
Before we could go any further, Riley pulled away. "I have something for you." He stood on the bed and opened the air vent. Reaching in, he grunted and pulled out a small cleaning troll.
"Zippy?" I asked.
"Yep. Logan fixed him." Riley set Zippy in my lap then took both my hands in his. "You made a commitment to the people of Inside and I"m proud of you."
I sensed he had more to say so I kept quiet.
He squeezed my hands as if suddenly nervous. Then he took a breath and said, "I"d like you to make a commitment to me as well. Will you be my mate?"
Before the Outsiders came, I would have been too scared to say yes. Good thing this was after. "Yes."
It was too awkward to kiss with Zippy in my lap, but Riley stopped me from moving him.
"Open Zippy," he said.
"He opens?"
Riley pointed to a b.u.t.ton on the top. I pressed it and a panel opened. Tucked inside Zippy was Sheepy. With a cry of delight, I pulled the little stuffed sheep out. Tied around his neck was a pendant. It was the symbol for Insidea"a square with a capital I in the middle, but on the opposite side was a sheep.
"Does ita""