Being tumbled into a disused cave mouth, its floor littered with rubble from an ancient fall or construction, left another set of bruises, but the lower gravity allowed Dale and the others to tumble like socks in a dryer.

As Dale lay on his side, catching his breath, he saw Dash squeeze through the opening, then immediately begin pulling rocks from the floor. “Work!” the Sentry commanded. He stuffed several into the passage.

“Come on, everybody, you heard the request,” Zack said. In slow motion, as if battered by Dash’s toss, Makali and Valya began reaching for rocks.

What Dale heard was something entirely different, and substantially more disturbing: horrific scrabbling, grunting, and other nasty sounds from just beyond the opening.

The pursuing Sentries were here!

He rose and picked up the largest rock he could carry. With his hip, he shoved Valya aside and jammed the rock into the mouth. Combined with the earlier efforts, the opening was now half the size it had been—

And just in time. The mouth darkened as the big Sentries arrived.

A Sentry arm shot through the opening, the clawed hand slashing violently. Valya screamed. Even Makali looked startled. “More!” Dash said, continuing to stuff rocks into the mouth.

Seeing the value of this—the Sentries on the other side were pushing the rocks aside—Dale added more debris. “Zack,” he said, “brace me!” He dropped to his back and used his feet to wedge the rocks more tightly. This did his feet no good at all, but he would rather limp on bloody soles than be captured by angry Sentries.

“I think that’s as good as we get,” Zack said, breathing hard and looking worn.

Dash seemed to agree; the opening was now small enough that a cat would have a hard time squeezing through. But it was large enough to allow one of the Sentries to reach inside again.

And this time the Sentry spoke. Its original voice was a raging growl that reminded Dale of an angry bear. But he could hear words, too: “Return!” “Savage!” “Traitor!” “Die!”

Dale realized that Dash’s translator was picking up the Sentry’s tirade, and transmitting pieces of it.

“Go!” Dash said, roughly shoving the humans farther down the tunnel.

Dale needed no encouragement to get as far from the angry Sentries as possible. Behind him, he heard the sudden crash of rocks falling. For a moment, he feared it meant the pursuing Sentries had broken through…but he realized that Dash had caused a cave-in near the mouth.

In a few moments, they were all in near-darkness, Makali and Valya walking a slow, unsteady point…Dale with Zack and, finally, Dash.

“They don’t seem happy that you got away,” Dale said to the Sentry.

Zack have him his exasperated look. “You think it’s going to respond to a statement like that?”

“Never know till you try.”

“That was DSZ,” Dash said.

“Your connate?” Zack said.

“Yes.”

Dash took a moment to glance back at the opening…and DSZ’s arm, still waving.

Before they had gone very far, Makali switched on the black box display. “Why now?” Dale said.

Makali held up the unit. “It’s the only light we have.”

He felt stupid, but to his amazement, Zack said, “I didn’t realize it, either.” Then he added, “Since you’ve got it running, why not show Dash?”

When Makali did so, the Sentry snatched it out of her hands with eager curiosity—or so it seemed to Dale. He was afraid the Sentry would smash the unit against the tunnel wall, dooming them to a dark passage.

Instead, the Sentry handed the black box back to Makali. “Do you know that creature?” Zack said. Receiving no answer, he turned to Valya. “What do you think?”

“I think he heard and understood you,” Valya said.

Dash was already walking away, making long strides into the dark tunnel. He seemed not to require the sad little light the humans found so necessary.

They had to hurry to catch up. It was especially annoying for Dale; his feet hurt. He was probably leaving bloody footprints now.

Zack wasn’t ready to give up the interrogation. “If you know what that creature is, tell us.”

Dash kept walking, with Zack pursuing him like a puppy. “Is that the enemy? Is that what the Architects are afraid of? If so, I can understand your fear….”

“Jesus Christ,” Dale said, “how can you understand anything about this character!”

“Goddammit,” Zack said, turning back and heading straight for him. He actually poked him in the chest. “I don’t assume a fucking thing. I just want a response, okay?”

Dale didn’t want a fight. “Well, I don’t think you’re getting one.”

Makali stepped between them. “Both of you, stop this. We’re losing Dash.”

When they closed in, Zack tried again, but with a change of subject. “Now that we’re out of your old habitat, where are you taking us?”

This time the Sentry answered. “Control,” it said. “Vessel.” Then, clearly unwilling to waste one more second communicating with humans, it ran on ahead.

Nevertheless, those were magic words, even to Dale. He wouldn’t mind having control over this vessel at all. He had just about concluded that for the rest of his life he was going to have to give up the dream that he would ever have a clear idea what he was doing, or why. It was as if he had left motivation or reason behind on Earth.

And he no longer had his Hulk medallion for protection.

Some time later, Dash stopped and began clawing at what looked to Dale like another pile of rubble. “What now?” Valya said. She had been so silent during the hike that Dale had thought to stop and search for her…she had always been following, but slowly and painfully.

“I think it’s another habitat,” Zack said.

With five creatures and eleven hands (Dale saw that Dash was still protecting its number three arm and hand), this cave mouth was cleared quickly.

They were able to pass through without difficulty, though Dale noticed that the air was stale, burned, almost dead. He had to take several breaths to assure himself that he was still taking in oxygen.

Dash seemed to be laboring.

“Well, good news,” Makali said. “We won’t have to paddle across this one.”

She was correct. This habitat was a giant void…a huge space lit only by scattered, yellowed glowworms that showed a barren, lifeless, blasted landscape.

RACHEL

Run.

Rachel Stewart’s entire existence, her fourteen years of life, all her dreams, hopes, fantasies, accomplishments, disappointments, everything she owned, all that she had heard and seen, all reduced to one concept.

Run!

She was fast. Rather, playing soccer, with rest and food, she was faster than most girls her age. Was she faster than this Long Legs?

Or, as one of her father’s oft-repeated jokes suggested, was she faster than one of the other potential victims? Faster than Cowboy?

She didn’t know. She couldn’t do anything about it, anyway—

But run!

Yvonne was the closest thing to a local guide. She had led them downstairs and out of the Museum of Lost Aliens and across “town,” toward the far side of the habitat. Rachel had wondered why she was going so fast. Even Cowboy seemed unwilling to keep up with Yvonne. The dog kept stopping every few meters and sitting down.

“What was that thing?” Pav had said, walking as quickly as he could while still looking over his shoulder. Rachel wanted to grab him and scream, Run!

“‘Long Legs,’” Yvonne had said. “But the name…whenever I think it, it makes me feel scared and sick.”

“We already suspected it might not be friendly,” Zhao had said.

“What would it want with us?” Pav said. “I didn’t think aliens ate humans.”

“No,” Yvonne said, “but it might want something we carry or have. Water. Energy. Matter.”

“Well, it’s dead, isn’t it?” Rachel had said. “Can’t we slow down?”