Chapter One

"You can't do this. You report to me. This is wrong, and you know it! This is wrong, and you report to me!"

"As I said before, sir, I no longer report to you."

"This is wrong! My son and daughter are going to die!"

"Your daughter is already dead! Your son? He's probably dead by now too."

Don Barbara lunged at the black military officer before him. His chains loosened for a second before snapping him back into his seat. He slammed into the metal wall behind him, hitting his head. Motion sickness crept over him, but he shook it away. He would not appear or even be unnerved in front of the man sitting opposite him.

"Are you done?"

"Not even close."

"Sorry, sir, but it's over. You should have listened to me, but you didn't. You listened to your son, and that's why you're now our prisoner. And I like you, sir, but if given the order, I will put you down. Do you understand me? I will put you down."

BAM. The van snapped into a swerve. Windows shattered. Metal screamed and twisted. A second later, tires burned rubber and lifted upward. SMASH. The van spun around and around, slowly crawling to a stop with its tires now up in the air.

A moment later, the back doors flew open. Military figures appeared and snapped up the black box that had rolled across the floor during the crash. A pistol suppressor flashed in the air. The black military officer's chest exploded with a single round. He was dead, and the gun was now aimed at Don Barbara.

"No!" It was a woman's voice. "He touched the egg. He comes with us. Take him."

Confusion clouded Don's mind as he was dragged out of the van. He was hurt, dizzy, but nothing felt broken. He tasted blood. His lip was bleeding. His vision struggled to clear, and when it finally did, he was being pushed into a military helicopter. "Did you crash into the van with a helicopter?"

"Her idea," the pilot snarled as the other two military officers squeezed in. "You're lucky that we can still fly," and with that said, the helicopter left the ground.

"Where are we going?"

The woman had a tight, black ponytail. Her clothes were all black. Her lips and skin were pale. Her hands were hidden in black gloves. She even wore black sunglasses. "The dome, Mr. Barbara. We are going to the dome."

"You can't. They'll shoot us down. You know that, right? We will be shot down before we can even get there."

"We have orders from the president, Mr. Barbara. We'll get there. I assure you. We will."

"How is that possible? Who are you people?"

"You ever hear of Project Echo?"

"Heather," a military man warned her.

"That's an urban myth."

"Welcome to the real world. Now, shut up," and with that said, she sat back in her seat. Don Barbara might not be able to see her eyes, but he could feel them burning right through him. "You'll see your son again."

It was hard to gauge how much time exactly disappeared. Ground forces were still seen stretched out along the perimeter to the dome. Alarms were raised as they flew overhead. No fire. Maybe, Don Barbara wondered, they did receive presidential orders to approach the dome, but he doubted it. He had to cash in every coin, every debt just to get to his son, so how did this woman, whoever she might be, get to ride a helicopter right up to the dome? And how was Project Echo real?

"We're here." The pilot aimed for a landing a short distance away from the dome. He hoped they would be quick. He didn't need to be anywhere closer to this thing than he wanted to be. "Everyone, out."

Don Barbara watched the helicopter take off and fly away. He lifted his hand up over his eyes, shielding his sight from the sun. A wind drifted around him, and he was cold. He was rattled, but his injuries from the crash seemed to be fading. But whatever happened next, he was still their prisoner.

"The egg," she commanded, and the black box was placed in her hands.

"You can't control that thing."

"Yes, I can, Mr. Barbara." She removed her black gloves, revealing pale skin underneath. She opened the box slowly. She lifted the egg upward, and it started to hum. She cast the box aside and held the egg up against the dome. It shifted colors, black, purple, and then blue, and a hole appeared in the dome. "Go!"

The two military men seized Don Barbara and hurried inside. The woman followed, still cradling the egg. The hole closed shut behind them. They were now inside, trapped like those originally living or visiting here.

"Are you insane! It's going to crush us!"

"Relax, Don Barbara."

"It's Don."

"Don, the dome is our friend again." She looked down at the egg in her hands. "You're home," she whispered to the egg.

"Who are you?"

"I'm…" She glanced at the two military men beside him. "I'm Heather."