Chapter 2: The Ark

The time that followed, which seemed to stretch out endlessly, remained in Leena's mind long after as a confused jumble of claustrophobia and disorienting motion. Violet whimpered in the darkness; blank, eyeless faces stared at them, outlined in the dim red light. Leena kept her back to her cousins, facing their captors as if she could somehow hide her family from them. She was out of plans now; this was far beyond anything she knew how to deal with. The air seemed thick and smothering; the floor and walls shuddered sickeningly. Fragments of thought surfaced in her mind, blazing for a moment before sinking back: This is it. This is death. I wonder if I'll see God. Then, I wonder if I'll see my dad. The floor heaved and Silas grabbed her shoulder. Am I dying, or am I being born?

Without warning or explanation, the motion of the walls stopped and everything became still. A long time later – or maybe it was only minutes, it was impossible to tell – there was a grinding clunk, as if they had come into contact with something very large. Leena swallowed and squared her shoulders. She gave her cousins' hands a squeeze to steady them.

One of the walls shifted and opened. It was the same entrance they'd come in through. All but two of the guards exited; the remaining ones came to stand on either side of the huddled captives. Leena recognized the tall one with the cloak.

"Out." He pointed to the exit, stepping aside slightly so they could pass. Pulling her cousins along, Leena did as she was told. They stumbled down a short ramp into a narrow corridor that curved away in either direction. Across this, they were shepherded into another tiny, claustrophobic room with the other guards. Everything was pitch dark; what little light they had was dull red and only made it seem darker. The doors to the tiny room closed, and the floor lurched. They were going up.

The doors opened again and they were herded out. It was no less dark here, but the air seemed cooler and more open, with a slight breeze as though a large open space were nearby. Leena and her cousins huddled in the middle of the passage, taking in the arched ceiling, the irregular walls with their many openings. The tall man and two other guards moved to surround them.

"Come," he said with a jerk of his head, and started down the corridor. Something like courage or stubbornness awoke in Leena and she dug in her heels.

"Wait," she called after him. "Where are we? Who are you?" Silas and Violet stayed behind her, clinging together and staring over her shoulders. The tall man turned back.

"I am Algrim the Strong, commander of this Ark." His tone was cold and annoyed. "You will come this way." He resumed his course. Leena scowled. Silas tapped her shoulder.

"Maybe we should do what he says." The boy's voice quavered. She took a breath and started forward. They couldn't afford for her to pick a fight with an alien officer.

Algrim led them down a series of corridors as dark as or darker than the first. Leena's eyes had adjusted to the low light, but there wasn't much to see. They passed a handful of creatures like the guards – they could have been the same guards, for all Leena could tell them apart – before Algrim halted beside a section of wall. Leena missed the mechanism he used, but suddenly a panel slid back and a narrow chamber stood open. Algrim stood back and motioned them to enter. Leena stared suspiciously into the darkness. It didn't smell bad, and there was no movement. There didn't seem to be anything but empty walls and floor.

"Okay, I think it's safe," she said, partly for her cousins' benefit, and partly so that Algrim character would know she wasn't going down without a fight. The three of them entered the room cautiously. They hardly had time to take it in before the door slid shut with an resounding click. Leena whirled.

"Hey. Hey!" She pounded it with her fists. "Open this door! Open it! You did not just lock us in! Algrim! Get back here! Open this door, damn you!" She bounced off the panel like a tennis ball.

"What's gonna happen to us?" Violet's voice was tiny. Leena ground her teeth and tried to pull herself together.

"It's gonna be okay." She went over and put an arm around each of her cousins. "We'll get out of this just fine. Besides, if they wanted to do anything to us, they'd have done it by now." She hoped she sounded more confident than she felt.

"It's so dark in here," Violet whispered. Leena was still holding on to her necklace. She didn't dare put it in her pocket, now that it had turned out to be a glowing alien artifact. She opened her hand and let the dim red blinking light up their faces. It wasn't much, but it kept the darkness at bay.


The room was long and narrow, maybe twice the size of the room Leena and Violet shared at home. The three of them sat huddled in the far corner, using the necklace for light. Leena had no idea how long they were expected to stay there, or even how long it had been since they had been locked in. There was a kind of hole in the corner with a sealed cover that they could use when the need arose, but there was no food or water, and they were all starting to get hungry.

It must have been hours later that the door opened again. It was Algrim. Violet and Silas had dozed off; Leena scrambled to her feet and stood between them and the door.

"You," Algrim said. "Just you. Come with me." He motioned to the necklace in her hand. "And bring that."

Leena braced herself. Behind her, she could hear Silas stirring. She thrust her hand into her pocket and pulled out a butane lighter, which she jammed into her cousin's hand.

"Here. Don't use it too much or it'll run out."

"Huh? What?"

"Take care of Vi! I'll be back!"

"Leena!"

She was already in the corridor. The door slid shut, cutting them off.

"This way." Algrim started down the corridor. Leena followed.