Underground. How the fucking hell were they underground in a massive jungle in the light of the goddamn day!? Were they even on Earth or had they somehow ended up across the gaxy or lost to time? There were endless possibilities when it came to crazy alien tech and freak accidents, and she had no clue where to even begin.

  Nicole forced herself to take a breath. Panic wouldn’t help them survive and she really needed to be the one to keep a level head given she was trapped with Maraline. If nothing else, she should be able to formute a theory, but that was still a stretch. With their immediate survival covered for the moment, and a distinct ck of options for progressing, they could take some time to consider their next course of action.

  With a final gnce at the crystal that was producing what could only be described as artificial sunlight, Nicole descended the tree. Maraline was waiting for her near the base and she seemingly sighed in relief when Nicole came back into sight. Putting that aside, Nicole dropped back to the ground and fell back on her ass before pulling her legs up so she could wrap her arms around them.

  “We’re underground,” Nicole said. “The entire thing looks like an artificial terrarium or some shit.”

  “Truly?” Maraline asked, her own gaze drifted skyward. “A luminescence stone exists here?”

  Nicole looked up. “Luminescence stone? I’m afraid you’re going to need to expin that one to me.”

  “Right,” Maraline said, moving to sit beside Nicole. “They were a prominent piece of technology in the gactic alliance that predated the Syn Empire and are still in use to this day. They serve as excellent ways to create farmnd in regions where above ground cultivation would be unfeasible. Desert and tundra prominent areas especially.”

  “So, wherever we ended up, that’s Syn tech up there?” Nicole asked.

  “Unlikely,” Maraline said. “As I mentioned, the technology predates our Empire by thousands of years. This crystal could have come from a colony thirty thousand years past and we would have no way to know for sure.”

  “That would predate all known human civilization,” Nicole said with wide eyes.

  Maraline ughed. “It certainly makes one feel small, does it not? And to think, Commander Bartran has been alive nearly as long.”

  Ice spshed down Nicole’s back at the reminder of the enemy commander and what he represented. Sure, she felt that Guiana was the more dangerous fighter, but there was something about the Commander that set her on edge even after inflicting such a blow upon him. It happened by chance, all because her bde’s ability lost a limitation.

  Limits…

  “Bartran was holding back when he fought us.”

  She hadn’t phrased it as a question and thankfully Maraline didn’t try to py word games with her. “Considerably so. He has never lost a duel with Guiana for instance, yet she gave you more trouble, did she not?”

  “Yes,” Nicole admitted through grit teeth. “Be honest, what hope do we actually have to survive this experiment? What future does humanity have after this invasion?”

  Maraline remained silent for some time, leaving Nicole with nothing but the sounds of the artificial jungle to keep her company. Contrary to what most would think, the jungle was anything but silent during the day, with birds and mammals of all sorts letting out their calls at all times, creating a chaotic blend of nature sounds that was almost too much to process.

  “Should we fail, humanity has no future,” Maraline said. “Should my treachery be known, this pnet will be razed as an example to other worlds. Despite knowing this, I cannot abide by the pn that The Prime Administrator asked me to begin.”

  Could she trust Maraline? Was the Syn General being sincere or was this all a ploy to gain more information about Nicole’s abilities? Maraline was injured and needed help, at least at the start of this mess, and Nicole had provided it. It would be all too easy to kidnap a Ranger and have an enemy befriend them, learn their secrets, then kill them in their sleep, yet Maraline hadn’t done that.

  Not yet at least.

  Could Nicole take that risk and reveal some of the secrets she held? Would it make any difference if she did? Sincir’s whole mess was something she wouldn’t betray, despite his idiotic experiment nearly ending Minneapolis wholesale. That left the vision she had when she became a Ranger, the one thing that she could confirm was wholly unique to her experience.

  Yes, others had simir visions, but none were identical so far.

  “What are the odds that the predecessors to the Syn Empire brought us here?” Nicole asked.

  Rather than ugh or call her out, Maraline paused to consider the question. She could practically see the thoughts swirl behind her eyes as they flicked about. Her lips moved in some unknown nguage, be it of Earth or extraterrestrial, Nicole had no idea.

  “As unlikely as I wish to say it is, the presence of a luminescence stone throws several of my theories into question,” Maraline stood with a faint grunt and looked about. “If this is indeed a luminescence farm that fell into disuse, then we should be able to locate the control structure easily enough.”

  “You would know more than I,” Nicole said, pushing off the tree. “Though we should probably see about securing our campsite and setting up proper shelter first. There seemed to be controlled rains further into the cavern.”

  “A weather event, truly?” Maraline asked. “Now I can be certain there will be an intact control module located deeper within. We should be able to ascertain a way out from there.”

  Nicole cpped once. “Great, we have a goal to work towards long term.”

  “Indeed we do,” Maraline said with a smile.

  Setting out to gather wood for the fire and the tree limbs necessary to prepare a shelter, Nicole was content to work with her friend towards that shared goal. Maraline moved a bit stiffly but was able to assist in gathering supplies for their shelter. Despite most of her technology being inactive, she was still as fit as the best humanity could put forward.

  Cy was packed around branches set in the ground, building up a makeshift wall that would protect against the worst of the elements over the night. Watching shelter building videos wasn’t a substitute for experience, but it did give Nicole the general idea of how it worked. So, after a few hours of work, they had a rather ugly mess of mud that was built into the cave just enough to provide shelter from the elements.

  Smoke rose from the stone pipe, away from the cavern to avoid poisoning themselves with carbon monoxide and the fire would bake most of the cy in short order. Once Nicole was sure that everything was functional, she shifted the skin to cover the doorway and sat inside for a few minutes.

  “Are you feeling light headed?” Maraline asked.

  “I don’t think so?” Nicole answered. She was a bit tired from all the work, yet that was to be expected. “How far do you think we are from that control pce you mentioned?”

  There was silence for several moments before Maraline answered. “At least half a day’s walk, and I would need to be looking for long eroded signs of entry.”

  “Probably an all day affair then,” Nicole said, leaning back in the mud hut. “And even then, we might emerge into the middle of another jungle and still be days away from civilization.”

  “In all likelihood,” Maraline agreed. “We will need to prepare ourselves.”

  Nicole sighed, wondering how things were back home. “Will the next attack happen with you being…”

  A mirthless chuckle followed. “Missing? Yes. Commander Bartran is awake, though he is also still in recovery. I have no doubt that he is well aware that I am unaccounted for and is convinced that I have made my escape or some such folly.”

  Nicole could only wince at that. By grasping for the device, which was what Maraline had expected of her if their shared look had been anything to go off of, Nicole had somehow doomed her friend by accident.

  “You could, you know,” Nicole said softly. “We would do our best to protect you if you wanted to take the opportunity.”

  Something shrill and high pitched followed and it took Nicole a moment to realize that Maraline was almost cackling. “Oh, you have no idea what the Syn Empire could do if they wanted to crush a pnet, and believe me, my defection would be enough to justify it.”

  The warning was enough to douse the growing fire within Nicole’s blood. If anyone understood exactly what the Syn could do, it was the woman charged with leading their invasion and picking up the ashes.

  “Then enlighten me,” Nicole said softly. “I know you’re here to study the Source. How does that factor into the invasion? Where would your superiors draw the line that would lead to them cutting their losses and ending our world?”

  “I am unsure,” Maraline admitted. “My own importance is overstated, and I could be repced by any number of Generals that aren’t currently on assignment.”

  Nicole’s eyes widened. “That’s why Guiana is with you.”

  “She was my original partner for the invasion, a mentor so to speak, and the closest thing I have to a mother. She taught me everything I needed to know in order to carry out my duties as the future Regent of Earth. Commander Bartran only stepped in after the first Rangers appeared.”

  “Which means that you aren’t needed at all,” Nicole concluded, her voice turning to a near whisper. “Were you told that Rangers would be chosen?”

  “I was briefed on the Progenitors and how they did something that causes Rangers to appear to stand against us, as well as past examples of such conquests. There were protocols in pce, nothing more.”

  It felt sort of weird to be talking about such things with one of the lead invaders, but their circumstances were anything but normal. Here she was, possibly thousands of miles from home and stuck in an underground jungle likely made by an alien species long since extinct species that was also responsible for the morphing tech in the first pce.

  So, you know, no big deal or anything.

  The light of the crystal was starting to dim, which meant that they would soon need to hunker down in their shelter for the night. While there weren’t likely to be more rge predators nearby, each night would increase the odds of others investigating the former hunting grounds of the dead cats.

  Nicole sighed in frustration. “All of this for what amounts to an oil grab.”

  “We have no use for such a primitive—”

  “It’s a metaphor, or allegory, or some shit,” Nicole said, throwing her hands up. “I don’t fucking know! I just know you’re here killing us for energy, which makes you no better than our own governments honestly. It’s almost poetic really, karma at its finest!”

  Nicole was panting by the end of her rant, still furious at how fucking simple it all was. They were using the Earth as a b for testing methods for harnessing the energy that fueled Rangers with jailbroken morphers or some shit. Rebecca would understand Maraline’s ramblings far better than she ever could.

  A shuddering breath followed as Nicole curled in on herself. “Sorry. It isn’t fair for me to take this out on you.”

  “It is completely fair,” Maraline said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. “I am someone who willingly worked with those invading your home. Anger is understandable in this situation.”

  Nicole had to bite back her first retort, as it wouldn’t be fair to Maraline. Yes, she wanted an outlet for all of her frustrations, yet it didn’t feel right to take them out on the sheltered General currently sitting beside the campfire. She was right, Nicole was fully justified in her anger. Had Maraline not stepped in, Nicole might have just used her new daggers right then and there, ending her own life before she ever had a chance to wield them in defense of others.

  Before she could prove herself worthy of becoming a Ranger.

  “I am angry,” Nicole admitted, almost surprising herself at how easily the words came. “But not at you. I’m angry at those who forced this situation, that there is no greater purpose to this war other than research. Do you even need our resources?”

  “We have long since mastered energy to matter conversion,” Maraline said, her voice calm as ever. “We have no need of anything the Earth can physically provide.”

  That wasn’t a surprise, but it was yet another reason solidified for why she hated the Syn. It would be all too easy for her to extend that to Maraline, to hate the woman who first pulled her out of a spiral that would have ended with her life. With that in mind, the answer is obvious.

  “I should hate you,” Nicole continued. “Yet I can’t bring myself to do so. You’re a friend, despite everything that has come between us.”

  The silence weighed heavy in the air and for a moment Nicole thought she had overstepped. Her words carried weight that went beyond just friendship, there was trust there that many would feel wasn’t earned, yet that didn’t change the truth of it. Nicole trusted Maraline to be genuine with her, regardless of how harsh the truth might yet be.

  What Nicole hadn’t expected was for Maraline to step inside the shelter, settling beside her and near the heat of the fmes. Yes, there was a fire outside as well, but there was something different about the enclosed space and the warmth it provided.

  “I too consider you a friend,” Maraline admitted, her voice catching as she spoke. “I do not know what awaits me, but for now I will endeavor to do what I must to ensure humanity doesn’t lose itself in the coming war.”

  “We fight to survive,” Nicole whispered, letting her weight fall against her friend. “It’s what we humans do. We won’t go quietly into the night.”

  A mirthless chuckle followed, almost sardonic in its tone. “No, I don’t suppose you will. The tenacity of humanity has been one of the Commander’s frequent compints as he recovers.”

  That bit of news brings a smile to Nicole’s lips, happy to hear that she had a part in being a thorn in the side of the leading bastard behind the invasion. Or rather, one of them. There was still the mysterious Administrator that was barely more than rumor, and here she was with the perfect opportunity to learn more.

  “Who is the Administrator?”

  A sharp intake of breath followed, but Nicole sat patiently, giving Maraline the time she needed to come up with an answer, or to allow her to pass the question off with silence. If she chose not to answer, that would be a response all its own, and one that she desperately hoped wouldn’t come. The way she wanted her friend beside her wasn’t completely benign, she owed her much, and the thought of actually fighting her hurt deeply.

  The silence stretched on, ticking away the limited light that remained of the day. Nicole was almost resigned to accept that Maraline wouldn’t betray her people when a faint whisper came from her friend.

  “The Prime Administrator is the leader of the entire Syn Empire, and the one who has determined that the Earth must be destroyed.”

  “Then that is who we must aim to defeat,” Nicole said, her mind racing as she considered the implications.

  “You don’t understand the scope of what is to come,” Maraline said, almost pleading.

  “Probably,” Nicole admitted. They were but one pnet hoping to hold off a force that could traverse the stars. The scary part was, she was beginning to feel hope, and such things were dangerous. “No matter how futile it seems, no matter what comes our way, we will fight.”

  “You will die,” Maraline nearly cried. “I did not help you that day just to see you fall.”

  “Some things are worth dying for,” Nicole said, though Maraline opened her mouth to protest, Nicole pressed on before she could. “I don’t pn to die. I intend to fight for a future where we are free to pursue what we want, love who we want, and live how we want so long as it doesn’t infringe on others’ own liberties. The future you wanted for us sure as hell sounds better than what we have, but your own leaders don’t want that for us. They want us to die for their research.”

  “Which is why I came to you,” Maraline said. “I just don’t know what I can do to stop this.”

  “We’ll figure that out,” Nicole said, pulling her friend into a loose side-along hug. “Now come on, we need to get some sleep if we’re going to find this mysterious control room and get out of here.”

  It was their only clue to go on, and it promised to be a long day full of hard hiking and worse searching for a hidden entrance to something long since lost and with only cursory knowledge to guide them. It was also something they could work towards, which made it important to pursue.

  It was obvious that Maraline was shaken, but that was okay. She had time to figure things out, to come to terms with what she was doing and what it might mean for her own future. That would be something she needed to work through on her own, but that didn’t mean she had to face it alone.

  Nicole would stand with her, and she was willing to bet that her friends would do the same once they had the full story.

  “Goodnight, my friend,” Maraline said, ying down on the hard ground.

  The rancid smell of the skin covering the door was almost nauseating, but it was keeping the chill at bay, not that it stopped Nicole from taking the pce closest to the fire. As Nicole id there, she focused on her breathing, on that growing feeling of warmth within her chest. Whatever the Source was doing to her, it wasn’t abating, it was continuing to swell with each focused breath.

  “M’night,” Nicole muttered in return, the sound of distant thunder almost comforting.

  As she drifted, the warmth driving off the worst of the cold, Nicole couldn’t help but ponder what it all meant for her. Would the strange power be boon or bane? Would it one day attempt to kill her again, or was she tempering herself to the possible damages? Only time would tell and Nicole wasn’t sure she was ready to hear the answer.

  Pendragoon