"He's here!" Alice raced into the heart of the crowd, ducked under a burst of fire, skidded across a patch of ice, hopped over writing tendrils of green-shimmering vines. All around her she heard surprised squeaks of "Sorry!" and "Whoops, Alice!" while she charged on ahead, her shining bright eyes trained on the wheelchair at the top of the steps. "Mister Carl!" Alice called in breathless grinning urgency. She caught herself against his arm and stared wide-eyed into Carl's gentle face. "Leo called me!" she whispered in anxious wonder that all of this was finally, truly happening. "He's almost here with the bus!"

Carl's eyes shone warm and proud. "Well, then," he said matter-of-factly, dropping a hand over hers. "What do you say we tell everyone to start getting ready?"

It took Alice a moment to understand that we meant her - and she glanced back over her shoulder at the chaos of noise and laughter and superpowers on display, far louder and greater than her voice could ever be.

But they loved her, and she knew they would listen.

With a puff of her chest, Alice faced the crowd and raised her head high. "Excuse me!" she called out with a squeak in her raised voice, stretching up on her toes. "Everyone! Listen!"

A few heads turned her way. A susurrus of "Sshh!" rippled through the crowd, quieting the guests like dominos, until Ralph's singular laugh was the last tittering sound to be heard. He noticed the sudden silence and clapped his hands over his grinning mouth.

Alice stared up into all their expectant faces. In their eyes she saw pride and joy and love - and they all waited for her to speak. Alice took a moment to draw in a few breaths against the hot pressure of nerves and bursting eagerness. "The bus is almost here!" she called, twisting her hands in her t-shirt. "We all have to get ready … and decide who we're sitting with!"

"Dibs on Alice!" Traci's voice called out almost before Alice had finished - and Alice blushed a tinge of blue.

Ralph was next to shout, bubbling with hope. "Ralph will sit with Kara!"

"Okay Ralph," laughed Kara, while Ralph whooped with glee. "But only for a little while!"

"We'll sit with Adam!" Jerry piped. "We'll have lots of fun!"

"Okay … I guess …" Adam's voice was far from certain.

Connor spoke loud and clear, "I'd like to sit by Ms. Chapman."

Rose raised her hands a little for attention. "Please, everyone, just call me Rose!"

"Thank you, Rose," Connor said neatly.

"Oh he's polite, I like him!" Rose laughed.

Hank snorted. "Just you wait. If we're calling dibs, I call Markus."

"We have a lot to talk about," Markus agreed in a thoughtful tone.

Alice felt her heart swell ten sizes to see all her friends meeting one another, getting along, becoming friends though many of them had only just met. She'd had so many nightmares of shouting and fighting and tears, of having to choose sides in a war among the people she loved, that this joy that filled the air was a wonderful warm surprise. Perhaps, by the time they all returned, she would have a family as big and beautiful as the summer sky.

The bus arrived like a blue house rising over the hill: its lavish bulk took up the whole of the narrow avenue, squeezing its girth between the cars parked on either side. It was glamorously shiny, painted all in sky-bright blue, with tinted windows and smooth sleek lines like something out of a lavish and whimsical dream. Along its side, scripted in beautiful sweeping calligraphy, was the name Alice had given to the prettiest bus she'd ever seen: Blue Sky.

The painted door slid open … but it revealed only Leo in the driver's seat, staring down at them as if he hadn't expected to find a sea of androids gazing back at him. "Uh … all aboard?"

o - o - o - o

*BRRRRRRMMMM*

The gravelly rumble of a motorcycle sputtered and slowed as it approached the house. Luther listened closely while he hefted a stack of suitcases into the open belly of the bus, then stepped aside to watch the rider dismount. [Alice,] Luther said without speaking a word aloud - and without taking his eyes off this newest arrival. This human moved in a rigid and reckless way that put Luther on edge. [Are you expecting someone else?]

Hank and Ralph had just finished strapping Traci's motorcycle to the automatic lift when they both noticed that Luther had gone still and vigilant, casting a long sentinel shadow on the street. Together they approached and followed Luther's stare.

Hank scuffed to a stop when he spotted a familiar leather jacket and dented red bike. He hissed under his breath. "Shit."

Alice dropped quietly out of the bus, and she could still hear the muffled voices laughing inside while she approached Luther, Hank and Ralph. While Luther and Hank stood guard, their faces cool and dangerous, Ralph fidgeted with the hem of his cloak and avoided meeting anyone's eyes. Alice conducted a quick scan of the area - just like Connor had taught her - but found nothing as dangerous as Luther's tone had made it seem. Just a man on a motorcycle. "Who is it?" she asked quietly, slipping a hand into Luther's fingers.

Hank huffed a heavy sigh and dropped his hands in his pockets. "That's Gavin. This is my problem; sorry, Alice." His jaw clenched softly, and he shook his head to clear his thoughts. "He's been having a rough time, so I invited him to try to be nice. He hates this kind of thing, I never thought he'd actually show up." He swallowed a breath. "I'll take care of this."

"It's okay!" Alice assured him with a quiet smile. She saw the way his eyes narrowed, his shoulders angled - like he was bracing for a fight. "I can talk to him."

Ralph waved his hands in urgent warning. "No, Alice! He's very mean, very very mean! He tried to hurt Ralph!"

"He's hostile," Hank agreed. "Especially to androids."

"I'll convince him to leave," Luther promised in a low voice that meant he intended to use his strength and stature to his advantage.

Alice stared up at them all with her lip between her teeth. She gripped Luther's fingers tightly.

The only hostility she could see was directed at Gavin, who - as far as Alice could tell - so far had done nothing at all to imply he meant any harm.

"No." Alice gave Luther's hand a squeeze and let go. Her voice was meek, but determination shone in her face. "Stay here. If he's here to hurt us, I'll tell him to go home."

"Alice, no!" Ralph trembled, his hands balled into fists, eyes wide. "He's dangerous!"

Alice gave him a gentle smile and whispered, "Me too."

Gavin felt the tension in the air long before the little girl approached alone to greet him. Luther, Hank and Ralph loomed in the background, a collective promise of violence should he make any sudden move against their small ambassador. Gavin huffed a sarcastic laugh, a sneer already curling his lip.

Alice stopped a few paces away - and she stared up at the scarred and scrappy human with wide honest eyes. "Hello."

Gavin grit his teeth. His cold glare was focused on Hank - whose forbidding posture now made it crystal clear how welcome Gavin really was. "I've got the wrong house," he growled at Alice, without casting a single look at her. "Fuck off."

"Are you Gavin?" Alice asked in a breath, as if he hadn't said anything at all. "I'm Alice."

"Who gives a shit?" Gavin muttered while he climbed back on his bike, shifted away from the curb. "I'm out of here."

He began to turn the ignition, but stopped when Alice moved too close and gripped his arm in both hands. "Hey, get off me, you little shit," he hissed, but when he finally looked into her eyes, he found her staring back at him in worried determination … almost as if she were concerned for him, instead of terrified like she should be. Gavin leaned away from her a little, almost disgusted by her kindness.

"I want you to come with us." Alice spoke quiet and sincere, with a tug on Gavin's jacket.

"Yeah? And why the fuck would I do that?" Gavin cast a hateful glare at the bus, the faint outlines of shadows behind the tinted windows. "That bus is full of androids, isn't it?" His voice dripped with accusation. "You've got one, maybe two humans going?"

"Three …" Alice whispered, her heart sinking to realize how few humans she really knew.

Gavin hissed a sarcastic chuckle. "Just a taste of what the world's going to be like after humans start going extinct. Congratulations, you and your people are about to replace humanity." He shook away her grip and retrieved his helmet. "No way. Fuck you, and fuck every tin can on the planet."

"Don't give up." There was an edge to Alice's voice that made Gavin pause, the helmet pressed between his hands. Alice peered fiercely up at him, her hands curled into fists. "We didn't fight so you could lose. Nobody has to lose."

"It doesn't matter -"

"It does!" Alice grabbed his elbow again, gripped tight, glaring. "You don't hate us. You hate what you think is going to happen."

Gavin snarled. "It's already happening! It's been happening! You don't see it - I'm about to lose everything because of you fucking machines! There's no place for humans anymore. The future is gonna be androids running everything, and humans'll just fill up the slums and prisons before we die out altogether. None of you dipshits seem to comprehend that."

"We don't want that." Alice set her jaw and gave his arm another firm tug. Her voice raised, firm and loud. "If we don't understand, then help us understand. But you can't do that by running away!"

"I'm not running away!"

"Yes, you are!"

In rigid fury, Gavin scrambled off his bike again, forcing Alice to back up while he hovered menacingly over her. She squinted up at him in defiance while he sneered. "If I get on that bus," Gavin barked, flinging a finger at the bus as if it were guilty, "I promise you'll regret every minute of it."

Alice watched his face carefully - the curl in his scarred lip, the forbidding shadow in his eyes, the set of his teeth - and she knew she had nothing to fear from him. "I promise you won't." When she saw him hesitate, she offered a little smile of reconciliation. "We can bring your bike, too. You can leave and go home whenever you want - but you won't know if you'll hate it until you try."

Gavin trembled in silent rage. Obscenities and insults filled his mouth unspoken - but this little girl had a retort ready for every argument. He clenched his jaw. "Phck," he hissed to himself … then shouldered his bag and walked his motorcycle to the luggage lift, avoiding the stares and strange looks shooting his way.

Alice grinned softly. Whatever trouble she'd just invited - whatever that horrified look on Hank's face meant - she knew this was the right thing to do.

o - o - o - o

"Okay everyone!" Kara stood at the front of the bus to address the quieting passengers, a hopeful but guarded smile on her face. There were too few faces she recognized, and fewer that she trusted half as much as Alice did. "My name is Kara. I know we all don't know each other yet, but I'm sure we'll … get along."

Gavin huffed a sarcastic laugh from the back. Kara watched him steadily - a silent warning in her eyes that was not in any way a bluff - before she continued with a smile. "All of this is only possible because of Carl's unwavering love and generosity." her eyes shone with heartfelt gratitude. "I hope you'll all join me in giving thanks - for this bus and this trip, but also for the chance to come together, to celebrate our lives … and for his unsung, but enormous, role in the freedom of our people."

While the bus filled with applause and cheers and whistles, Kara turned around to clasp Carl's thin hand in her own. Carl - cradled high in Markus' arms - smiled tearily to see so many happy faces gathered in one place. "As far as I see it," he raised his voice, and the passengers quieted in reverence, "you all have a lifetime to catch up to. You have a world to explore - a universe to experience, in ways that only you can. Each one of you is a shining beacon of hope for the generations to come … and I'm proud to have the opportunity to know you. I'm proud to know that Alice has made so many friends." Laughter sparkled among (most of) the passengers, and Carl smiled. "I'm looking forward to the future, the real future, for the first time - and I have all of you to thank for that. I hope, on this journey, each of you will find what you're looking for - and maybe discover some things you never knew you'd always wanted. I encourage you all to call me anytime - keep me in the loop, I want to know everything. Markus knows what'll happen if you don't."

Markus laughed. "We won't make you worry, Dad."

"Better not." Carl grinned up at him, then waved goodbye to the passengers while cheers and applause swelled once more.

Kara stepped to the front again, while Markus and Leo tended to Carl outside. "There's plenty of Thirium and spare parts," Kara announced, "and food and drink in the back. We'll drive during the day and stop at hotels at night as much as we can - all of it is paid for, so no one should worry about money. Talk to me or Luther if you need anything, or if you have a suggestion or a problem, and we'll make sure you're heard."

She scanned all their faces - she saw hope and respect and curiosity, a bit of confusion, and a couple weren't even paying attention at all. She took a slow nervous breath. "I have one request. This bus is automated, but in the event of an emergency or altered course, someone should stay behind the wheel for manual input. Could I ask for a -"

"I'll drive!" shouted North, already on her feet. "It'll be interesting to see how this baby handles on the corners."

Kara, still smiling, winced visibly. "It's going to be a long drive - maybe once we get onto the open road, you'll be more in your element."

"I will monitor the systems." The voice was unfamiliar to most - and Kara's smile dimmed, troubled when the RK900 rose silently from his seat. She could easily imagine that he must care so little whether any of them lived or died. His eyes stung sharp as ice.

Kara cast a glance to Alice … and she drew in a breath, steeled herself to decline the offer -

"Kara." Connor leaned out into the aisle, an arm across his knee. "If anyone can keep his head when something happens, it's Wolf."

Markus returned up the steps having heard all this, and he stared up at Kara with a steady, certain smile. "We trust Wolf with our lives."

Kara studied their determined faces - and then, with the tension eased from her shoulders, she looked back to Wolf. She found his eyes closed, his posture stiffened ever so slightly while he hid away his reaction to those kind and trusting words. Kara allowed a glimmer of a smile of her own. "Wolf. Thank you for volunteering."

"This isn't all going to be easy," Markus warned them while the bus pulled away, leaving Carl and Leo behind, waving farewell in the rearview mirrors. Markus stood in the aisle, gripped the backs of the seats on either side, set them all with a sharp and odd-colored stare. "Androids won't entirely be welcome everywhere we go. I hope this will be a positive adventure for us all, while we experience life in the fullest way we can - but I also ask for your vigilance, your patience, and your kindness for whatever trials we might face in the weeks ahead. The world's still changing - but we're the ones who are going to change it for the better."

Alice stood up on her seat with a hop, and she spun to face everyone. "We're superheroes!" she crowed with a big grin.

The passengers cheered long and loud.