“What’s he even doing here?” Domotor asked me. “The Travas are cooperating with the Outsiders.”
James answered before I could. “I’m an Insider. I don’t want them taking our ship. Some Travas are helping, but the rest are being loaded onto the transports with everyone else.”
“Trella, you aren’t going to trust him, are you?” Domotor asked.
Jacy and Riley had trusted him. That was good enough for me. “Do you know where the gas canisters are and how to disable them?” I asked the Captain.
“Yes, I do. But I’ll need a few helpers.”
Wera and Cain volunteered without hesitation. The three of them rushed off.
In order for us to be effective, we needed more Insiders. Many of them won’t believe unless…unless they see it for themselves! “Domotor, can you put together a working computer that isn’t tainted by the Outsiders?”
“If I had the right supplies,” he said with a surly tone, still annoyed.
I turned to Emek and Rat. “Can you fetch for Domotor?”
“Yes,” Emek said.
“Jacob, can you rig the electricity for the computer?”
“As long as there’s juice nearby,” he said.
“Where do you—Quad A1, right?” Domotor asked. He stroked his narrow chin with his long fingers.
“Yep. Call it our headquarters.” Then I had another idea.
“Any way to make the monitor bigger? So a lot of Insiders can see it at the same time?”
“We have a projector,” Emek said.
“A projector?” I asked.
“It’s old tech. It has a light and lenses.” When he realized we didn’t understand, he said, “Basically, it takes a small picture and makes it bigger. You can aim it at a wall.”
“I’ll take a look at it,” Domotor said. “Couldn’t hurt.”
They left. Emek pushed Domotor’s wheelchair, Rat wrote down supplies on a wipe board and Jacob added items.
Sloan, Takia, Hana and Lamont remained. They waited for their orders. I squelched a moment of doubt. This wasn’t the time for second thoughts.
“Takia and Hana, I’m going to need you to be evacuated with the others.”
The women were alarmed and unhappy until I explained why. “I’ll have to find them first, so if you can hide in one of the rooms in Sector F4 that would be perfect.”
They agreed and went to get into position.
I drew in a deep breath. Sloan and Lamont remained. Since I’d been collared, I needed an admiral to bring this whole attack together. Who to trust? My mother, who betrayed us during the last rebellion or the man who started the riot and slapped me?
Deciding I needed both, I addressed Sloan. “You’re in charge of getting recruits. You’ll need to bring them to Quad A1 and convince them about the Outsiders. Then you’ll be needed to lead teams up to level five.”
He laughed. “And then I’ll grow a metal skin so I’m invincible. See? I can be ridiculous, too.”
I stared at him until he frowned. “Why are you here, Sloan?”
“Guilt. I failed to protect Jacy and the Outsiders got him.”
“Leading those teams will save him,” I said.
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“I don’t know how I’ll be able to convince everyone about the Outsiders.”
“If Domotor and Emek get the computer and projector working, you won’t have to.”
Sloan straightened his shoulders. “We’ll need to coordinate. Do you have any microphones?”
“No. Mine busted ages ago.”
He pulled out a couple sets from his tool belt. “For you and the Doc. I’ll make sure the others get them as well.”
I couldn’t wear mine yet so I slid them into my pocket. “Thanks.”
“If you manage this thing, I might change my opinion about you,” Sloan said.
“Just when I thought there wasn’t a reason to stop the Outsiders, you go and provide me one.” For a moment I almost forgot the pain he’d caused me. For a moment.
He gave me a sly grin. “After that crack, I can’t like you…ever.”
“Fine with me. Then I won’t feel guilty when I slap you later.”
“If we survive to later, I’ll give you a free shot.”
“There it is! That’s all the motivation I need.”
After Sloan left, I discussed Lamont’s job with her. “You have a legitimate reason to be on level five. You need to check on their health, see if others might be on the verge of having a seizure. Plus you need to discuss their fertility problems and see if it’s widespread.”
“And incapacitate as many Outsiders as possible when the attack starts?” she asked.
“Unless it goes against your doctor’s creed?”
“I’ll be a doctor up until that moment, then I’ll change jobs for the duration.”
Curious. “To which job?”
“A mother.”
“Fighting Outsiders isn’t in that job description.”
She laughed. “It is when the child is you. No one hurts my little girl and gets away with it.”
Bubba Boom and Ponife arrived right at hour twenty-six. I had just finished changing into my blue climbing suit, and adding a few special items to my tool belt.
Ponife gestured to the belt. “Why do you need that?”