Ryker bounced Eudora in his arms as he paced his living room, working to soothe his fussy daughter while Bastion, Rhonin, and Rumi all sat at his cramped kitchen table. Each had a cup of rapidly cooling tea, and Ryker's sat untouched on the counter.

"Ryker, are you listening to me?" Rumi demanded. She'd given up trying to hold the baby after a sharp glare from her son. "You can't go to the surface without a plan, or with an infant. We don't know what's up there, and you still haven't fully recovered from being poisoned."

Eudora squirmed and flailed as if in agreement. Noor had fed and changed her before Ryker returned, informing him that she'd been irritable all evening. Songs and rocking hadn't helped either; it was as if she sensed Ryker's stress before he realized it himself.

Several months prior, Ryker had fallen victim like so many others to intentional poison via the Council in an effort to quietly cull the population. He'd survived, in large part thanks to his late mother-in-law, who'd paid the price with her life after discovering the cause. The effects had taken their toll in the forms of chronic pain and short of breath. Just making the trip to the lifts and back had left him winded, sore, and irritable.

Carefully resting her against his shoulder, Ryker rubbed her back and sighed as he tried to keep his voice even. "I know, but I can't leave Kanden to his fate either. Bastion and Rhonin can't go after him—we need their DNA to get out later. And Zephyr..."

The muscles above his mouth seized, and he shut his eyes.

Zephyr was an idiot, but would have been the ideal candidate to send had he not been partially paralyzed during the riots. No matter how much Ryker detested him, Zephyr would go through hell and back to retrieve Kanden.

"Well, Zephyr is no longer a viable option," Ryker said after releasing a slow breath. "There's no one else. If we want to get out of here, someone needs to go out and collect samples. Reconnaissance needs to happen so we can determine a safe location to settle. What we can't do is stay down here forever."

"What about Scorio or Olivine?" Bastion asked.

"No," Rhonin and Ryker replied in unison, equally forceful in their answer.

Rhonin shook his head and drummed the table with his fingers. "No," he reiterated. "I agree Olivine is likely one of the most qualified enforcers when it comes to survival, but she is not fit to command any sort of expedition on the surface. She can barely follow orders, and I don't trust her not to act on emotion or bias."

Unable to sit still any longer after bouncing his leg for the past several minutes, Bastion stood. "But what about Scorio? He could lead a small team to Overland."

Ryker shrugged. "I'd be okay going to the surface with Scorio. You should be wary of Olivine no matter where she is. That woman craves power and isn't afraid to abuse it."

Nevermind the fact she'd used physical force against Ryker after the riots; he hadn't told anyone what she'd done when other enforcers hadn't been around. It wouldn't have mattered back then anyway. Too many people had died, and Ryker had been a convenient scapegoat. But then there was her behavior toward Kanden and Giada during their training. To say Ryker didn't trust her in any leadership capacity was an understatement.

"What about Eudora?" Rumi asked, coming back around to the previous topic. "You can't bring her to the surface, and if you don't come back, she'll be orphaned. Again."

Scratching the space between his brow, Ryker huffed. He'd thought about little else than his family, and was aware of the risks and potential outcome. "I don't want to leave her behind, but I can't leave my husband to his fate either. She'll be safe with you and Bastion while I'm gone."

Bastion rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Well, I guess that part is settled. I don't think we can persuade you to choose any other course."

"Nope." Ryker's voice remained firm.

Bastion and Rhonin shared a look before the younger man set his tea aside and sighed. "Very well. Let's assemble a team and get you to the surface then. We've wasted enough time."

~*~

On the catwalk of the upper-most floor, wearing tan tactical suits and sturdy boots found inside storage lockers, Ryker stood with Scorio, Giada, and Marina, as well as five enforcers he wasn't familiar with. Afternoon sunlight bathed the group as the sun made its descent over the mountains in the distance, casting a soft orange glow until the horizon lit up like fire.

Rhonin scowled at Marina, who pointedly ignored him as he and Bastion handed the team knapsacks filled to the brim. The strings barely closed around the top, and the buckles strained against the course, bulky fabric.

"These are all the provisions we can spare," Bastion explained. "You've got enough food for three days—five if you ration carefully—medical kits, a small knife, rope, and a change of clothes. Your priority is to find shelter and water. Marina will guide you in purifying it, and you'll have to figure out how to make a fire since we don't have flint." Eyes landing on Marina, Giada, Scorio, and finally Ryker, he said, "I can't stress enough that if you run into trouble up there, you're on your own. If any of you wish to back out, this is the time."

Slipping the backpack over his shoulders, Ryker tightened the straps and set his jaw. "We all know the risks. Just keep this place together and my daughter safe."

A mutual, unspoken acknowledgement passed between them, and Bastion nodded curtly. Then he led them to an enormous metal door at the far end.

He stopped long enough to address the AI. "HOL•I, we are ready to open the vault and send a team to the surface."

A hologram appeared against the eastern window, making the enforcers jump. "As you wish, Bastion." Folding their hands in front of their body, HOL•I's opaque gaze passed over the group, unblinking. "While you prepared, I have run diagnostics on the exterior drones. We have six in working order, and I will release one after your team exits the bunker. I have another ready for deployment in case we encounter more unknown entities. From there, I will use the pre-installed navigation system to locate coordinates for a facility approximately ten miles from here. Provided the facility is in operational order, I should be able to connect to the mainframe and collect data from there."

Bastion cast an uncertain glance toward Giada. "I realize you aren't an engineer, but I hope you understood all that, what with your parents being in that faction and all."

She tucked a red curl behind her ear and patted her large cargo pocket on her thigh. "Please, my dad taught me everything he knows. He packed a small tool and diagnostic kit for me. With luck, we can send some kind of signal back to indicate our status."

"I guess that's it then," Marina said, approaching the vault door.

Rhonin quickly hastened to her side and gently touched her arm. "Wait."

She sighed as she turned, but parted her mouth in surprise when he wrapped her into a hug. "Come back to me, alright?"

Marina's features softened as she smiled and planted a kiss on his mouth. "Hey, it'll be okay. We might actually have a way out. Isn't that worth looking forward to?"

"Not if our people get kidnapped or killed."

Ryker emphasized, but also shared Marina's enthusiasm to study the world cut off to them for so long.

He joined Marina by the door once they'd released each other, followed by Scorio and Giada. Now in place with nothing to do but move forward with their plan, Ryker addressed the AI. "Alright, HOL•I, we're ready."

"As you wish, Ryker. I am unlocking the door now."

On cue, a lock unclicked and hydraulic hinges hissed. Bright sunlight spilled into the corridor, forcing the group to shield their eyes.

With Scorio taking the lead, the group moved toward the exit and stepped onto the fresh earth, loudly crunching beneath their boots. Ryker turned around as the door began to close, and waved at Bastion and Rhonin. "We'll come back," he promised.

The door shut before Bastion could reply.

Reality slowly dawned as the sun warmed Ryker's pale hands. He quickly blinked when he dared to look up and made a mental note not to look directly into the sun again. The smell of plants and dirt filled his nose, and chirps echoed around and above the group.

"It's so..." Ryker paused, unsure how best to describe this new landscape.

"Alive," Marina finished.

"And bright," Giada added, squinting and keeping her gaze lowered.

Slowly, they studied the terrain. Trees with red bark and green and yellow leaves dotted the hilly mountain. Boulders and rocks in every size jutted from the ground. Leaves and twigs blanketed the wild grass.

A metallic device shaped like a thin box whirred overhead, scanning their spherical radius with shimmering blue light. HOL•I's voice then spoke to the group through a small speaker. "Our destination is to the northeast. I do not currently detect the presence of unidentified aerial phenomena, but we should maintain cover under the trees. Even with heat seeking technology, trees within line of sight will hinder any surveillance efforts."

Scorio nodded. "Lead the way."

HOL•I didn't reply.

Groaning, Ryker said, "HOL•I, please reply to any and all inquiries put forth to you by Scorio, Marina, Giada, or myself unless otherwise instructed. We need you to lead us to that facility you mentioned."

"As you wish, Ryker."

HOL•I elevated its elevation and flew past them, scanning and adjusting trajectory as the group followed.

"We're gonna have to work on the AI's learning," Ryker grumbled. "This won't be an efficient method of travel if the robot has to constantly defer to me."

"Actually, I am an artificial intelligence, programmed to learn from human interaction," HOL•I supplied unhelpfully.

Giada snorted while Marina puckered her lips and shook her head. Scorio kept moving, picking his way down the sloping mountainside.

Suddenly, HOL•I stopped and rescanned their surroundings before a red light flashed. "Unidentified aerial phenomenon detected. I advise finding immediate cover."

Everyone glanced upward, spotting a silver flying craft above the trees, heading towards the area they'd barely left.

The group quickly dropped to the ground and crawled into a patch of small shrubs. The cover wasn't perfect, but it provided more protection than simply standing in the open.

With its volume lowered, HOL•I spoke calmly, turned to face Ryker as if it could actually see him like a sentient human being. "I have used a remote signal to deploy the second drone. Please stand by."

Keeping his gravity low, Ryker chanced a glance at the sky, where the vessel picked up speed and veered to the south.

"What's it doing?" Ryker asked.

"I am using my drone to divert the alien craft's attention from this location. Once we are clear of this obstacle, your party should seek shelter in a cave. If we are successful in evading those manning the ship, the group should be able to safely travel at night since their focus seems to be on Bunker 004."

"What?" Giada mouthed.

Ryker only shook his head. There was too much to explain with no time to do so. For now, they needed to focus on not being seen.

"Do we have any natural way to camouflage ourselves while we wait this out?" he asked HOL•I.

"Negative. Too much movement to cover yourselves will likely draw attention. We should remain in place for the time being."

Another vessel, smaller than the first, whizzed past from the same originating direction. Unlike its counterpart though, this ship flew to the east and out of sight.

After what felt like several minutes, HOL•I's lights flashed red before reverting to its standard blue. "My drone has been shot down. Activating remote auto-self-destruct sequence to avoid transference of data."

One after the other, three yellow lights flashed. "The second drone has completed its auto-self-destruct function."

"What do we do in the meantime?" Scorio asked in a hushed tone, keeping close to the bushes.

HOL•I rotated 180° to face him. Blue lights steady as ever, they replied, "We wait until the threat has passed."

Which might be awhile, Ryker thought dismally as he spotted the ships traveling at a lower speed in loops near the bunker and surrounding trees.

He sighed. "Guess we'd best get comfortable then. We aren't leaving this spot anytime soon."