I'm here.

I can't believe I'm truly here.

The final chapter before the finale.

After this, it's a 7-week posting hiatus, self-interview and contest while I write out that and the epilogue.

Oh boy. It's gonna be a lot of time.

Songs for this chapter:

Heroes (We Could Be) by Alesso and Tove Lo

Wings by Delta Goodrem

Skyfall by Adele

I only own Cora, Emily and the plot. Everything else belongs to the respective owners.

Everything's packed and on my wrist.

Laurie's map is complete and in Em's hands.

Jasper is due to arrive and pick us up at 12AM, 2 hours from now.

The miniature command centre is now fully set up in the attic, waiting to be activated.

I'm supposed to be getting enough rest for the mission, but why can't I sleep?

I don't want to wake Edd up with the tossing and turning I'm pretty sure I'm gonna end up doing, but I just can't seem to close my eyes either.

Rolling out from under the covers, I manage to pick out footsteps from above while I find myself pulling on my glasses and getting dressed.

'Dammit Cora,' I try to stop myself, 'What are you doing? You need sleep! Jasper's not due to arrive for another two hours!'

But still, I creep my way out from the bedroom, then the house before I find myself sprawling myself out on the grass of the front yard, then soon enough, the backyard too.

Straightening my glasses and blinking a few times to readjust to the darkness, I'm taken aback at what secrets are revealed in the night sky.

Stars, millions and millions of them, splattering all around in so many different shapes. Certain clusters of them look like glittered clouds, others just look like glistening ripples made in a puddle. Different sparkling colours splash around within the tiny, tiny dots in the navy blue sky, as if they're millions and millions of people swimming and dancing within the deepest of oceans.

The only thing that is brighter than the stars is the silver sliver of a waxing crescent moon shining from beyond the backyard, casting a faint shadow of the house onto the front yard and the landroad ahead.

This would totally be a better view on the roof.

I start to haul myself up, putting my feet on the faint grooves I find on the left side of the house, the same ones Edd created a hundred years ago when he scrambled up to clear out a branch from the satellite and ended up gaining superpowers.

Scrambling up and trying to make as less noise as possible, I notice in the faint moonlight that Em's usual outfit has changed again: she's not wearing the button-ups at all, instead having just her lilac t-shirt on, hair still out, completely unbothered.

"You're not cold up here?"

"As much as I'm willing to bet that my nuclear-radiated roof still has around 30 degrees Celsius worth of heat, I like the air around yours. Plus-"

"That view." I sigh, "God, Em, it's just so beautiful! Suck it all in while you still can! We might not live to see this in our lifetime ever again!"

"Isn't God amazing? Setting out all of this in front of us with only the power of speech, two full days before humanity began!"

"…This again, Em? Really? You know I like the idea but I'm open to-"

"Shh shh shhhhh, let me have my moment okay."

"Whatever floats your boat, I guess…God, I never knew how much I've needed this view in my life…It's a pity that our phone cameras won't capture it all in its glory. So much for a hundred years of iPhones."

"Eduardo would absolutely kill to see this and paint it. Too bad it's-"

"The last time we see the boys here before we…yeah."

Silence falls and stays for what feels like hours, but Em's watch only counts 10 minutes.

Then, I notice it.

A streak of blue-white light zipping by, a moment of 'blink and you'll miss it.'

"Em! Did you see that!"

"Pipe down Cor!" She shushes me, "See what-oh!"

Two!

Three!

Four!

"Shooting stars! This is incredible!"

But Em's staring off into space (pun intended), zoning out and focusing on something that my crappy eyesight and hand-me-down glasses can't pick out right now.

"Up there," She points to a cluster of stars, "The Big Dipper! Remember when we learnt about constellations in kindergarten?"

"Oh yeah! There's the rest of the Great Bear after that, the Little Dipper too!"

"Found those long before you did Cor. Long before you."

"Oh come on, Em!"

"What? You found four shooting stars first, I find those constellations first. It's very fair, plus you have four wishes up your sleeves now. Who knows what you could do with them!"

"Huh. I thought you stopped believing in wishes since we were nine."

"I do right now—gotta take back a couple chances I've missed when I was a kid, huh?"

"True…hey Em?"

"Yeah Cor?"

"Do you…remember the first day we met? In kindy?"

"…Oh yeah! I think so. I was scared that I was gonna have a bad first day and that the other kids would make fun of my skin—I remember being moved from crèche to crèche because the staff were so derogatory to me and my parents. Mind you, this was before-"

"Those holo-classes of Jane Elliott were made compulsory everywhere. But you were pretty young back then—how could you tell on how bad those assholes were to you?"

"One, I was a baby then, they're just really aware and alert of everything, y'know? Two, the subtle tone they used in their voices while speaking to me or my parents was something I picked up on pretty quick. I think it was that faint sense of…distaste, that's it."

"Wow. Anyway, back to kindy…"

"Right. There I was, a scared little kid, unsure if I'm going to suffer on the first day there. But then here comes this other little girl who looks just as scared as me. So I'm thinking, 'why are you scared? You're totally white, doesn't that give you an advantage or something?' But later I would realise that it was because of those cool glasses that she was wearing that she was scared to go in."

"Shut up! Those glasses made me look like a cross between John Lennon and a 1950's nerd!"

"Yeah right! When we made our way into the room together, everyone thought we were the best thing since the invention of the internet!"

"Em, stop exaggerating! But honestly, I'm still a little…oh, I don't know how to put it…giggly over it, I guess. I still get good vibes off it that just make me feel like a kid again for some weird reason."

"Same." Her smile and voice falls as she focuses again on the stars above, "Cora?"

"Yeah Em?"

"D'you think aliens exist? I mean, I don't believe in them – although it is a neat concept – but I'm curious. Do you think they're real?"

"…"

"Well?"

"…I think I'm with you on this one, Em. I can't stop thinking of all the bad things that could come out of it. It is nice, I mean, I would take the chance if it meant Time Lords got to exist-ow! Don't slap my arm because I like Doctor Who!"

"I thought you got over that show ages ago!"

"You wish. Anyway, like I was saying, it's a nice concept, but we really don't have any idea if the majority of alien species would be nice to humanity or not. Then again, we're trying to disprove Edd's claim of meeting Commander Bai if we're talking about it – But I'm still standing with my argument - it's like that 'To Serve Man' episode of the Twilight Zone we watched in English."

"True. Man, it feels like English class and school are like, an entire lifetime behind us, but…it also feels like yesterday at the same time, y'know?" Her smile falls as if it were a feather before her face is molded into mild confusion.

"Whatcha thinking now?"

"Saint Denis of Paris."

"Oh dear god here we go again."

"Just how can the dude have his head chopped off by the guillotine-"

"Em please I don't know how-"

"Then, as if nothing's happened to him, he stands up-"

"Em-"

"Picks up his own head-"

"Emily!"

"And walks ten kilometres while his head is preaching a sermon on repentance?"

"I told you Em, I don't know! I know it's actual saint history, but-"

"It just makes no sense! I get you! But need I mention Moses? Man, that guy was out the planet!"

"Oh, don't get us sobbing all over Prince of Egypt again! We couldn't get over that for three weeks!"

"I was gonna mention the visuals – splitting of the Red Sea, the backgrounds, the burning bush, oh Cor it makes my heart sing! But the plagues that were sent – man! Well, I would've hated to be there at the time, but I would so love to see the raw power of God that was there back then. I don't know how that was possible-"

"But it is."

"Hm?"

"D'you think that sort of thing can happen again? I mean, isn't it the sort of thing that you and your parents believe?"

I'm not challenging her, but curious. However, I actually managed to stun Em silent as she stares thoughtfully out into the stars.

"…I really, really hope so. I know that if it were to happen here, we wouldn't be able to see it here since…but if we make it through tonight alive, then I'll know for sure that my redeemer lives through time and space."

She sounds so sure, so comforted, so calm.

It's my turn to be stunned for a while before I ask her again.

"Em? What do you think the reality of time is?"

"Pardon me?"

"Is time based on fate or free will?"

"Well, since time isn't constant and paradoxes are allowed to happen…hang on, didn't Mrs Johnson ask us that in Studies of Religion once?"

"She's not here now. What do you think?"

Her answer is totally out of the blue.

"I think it's both."

"What?! No way, that's too confusing to think about!"

"I know, but you should take it as a paradox, Cor. It makes sense without an explanation, y'know? That sort of thing."

"Got an example?"

"Moses and the burning bush. I mean, the bush is clearly on fire, but there's nothing of it shrivelling to ashes or smoking whatsoever. When it stops burning, the bush is completely fine."

I'm stumped, no idea how to respond to this. Em just gives me a little smug smirk.

"Emily Brock," I finally manage out, "Singer, dancer, gymnast, and now theologian to add to the ever-growing list!"

She laughs.

"Maybe." She checks her watch, "Ten to eleven. We've been up here for a while."

"D'you wanna head back down?"

She ponders over the question before smirking.

"Nah. The view's too good here. Hey, y'know how I wouldn't shut up about all that existential stuff on how God lives out of time, yet is omnipresent?"

She's made me lose track already, but I nod anyway.

"Since He knows the past, present and future… if someone were to change the past, and effectively the present and future, d'you think He'd still know what the outcome would be like despite the change?"

Whoa. That's deep, Em.

I put myself in her shoes and start to think over it. In another part of my mind, I start counting the seconds ticking by.

About 1800 seconds have passed.

One half-hour.

I've finally got it.

"I think so."

"Huh?"

"I think God would still know the outcome if someone changed the timeline. He knows everything, right? He knows all the possible pasts, presents and futures. So he would know the outcome."

I'm suddenly taken by surprise as Em latches onto me in an abrupt hug.

"Thank you."

"Wha? What for?"

But I find myself…understanding.

How though?

What was she scared about?

The silence rolls over us in waves as I hold her back – giving us enough time to calm her down before I notice the two yellow slow-moving shooting stars.

Hang on.

That's not right.

Shooting stars don't move this slow!

"Jasper's here already?" Em mutters, looking up, "That's some pretty good camouflage for the skyways, to be sure." She glances at her watch, "But he's not due for another 35 minutes! What's he doing here?"

Another thing – he's driving a hovervan, as if he's expecting all our luggage is gonna be in the back.

"What are you two doing up there?" He whispers as the van's motor hums close to us, the doors opening to let us in, "I need to land and make sure the others get in, this is an emergency!"

Uh oh.

Em and I clamber into the middle seats, but instead of taking off into the city, Jasper makes a landing into the street, just as four hoodie-clad figures make their way out of 27, another three button-upped people coming out of 25.

"You're kidding me!" I hiss, "What's happening? What the f-"

"Shh!" Eduardo shushes us as he lumbers in after three of the seven clamber their way to the back and Edd shuffling in past Em to next to me. "The seven of us figured that you two would be losers at this thing alone, so we hooked up with Jasper to drag us in for the ride."

"Plus," Edd adds on, "You're gonna need a little more than just pure luck to get through this if it were just the both of you."

"So…it's like one last adventure?" I manage out.

"But with you two." Tom grins.

"We better get this joyride going though," Jasper announces as the last door closes and clicks of seatbelts are heard, "I came here for an early start, not only to pick up your boys, but I've been hearing rumours of people being held captive at the base."

"Who?" We ask.

"No details just yet, but I have a feeling that one of them is that Larsson boy, Felix or something. There's others too, but no word on them yet."

Felix Larsson, held prisoner by his own father?

No. That doesn't make any sense.

But if it's not his father, then it might be-

"Say your goodbyes, girls." Jasper announces, cutting off my thoughts, "You aren't coming back to this house for a while."

I'd never see the 21st century ever again.

No parents. No uncles, aunts and cousins. No siblings.

At least it's nice knowing I'll always have some sort of family with me.

Edd gives my hand a squeeze before ruffling my hair.

"You ready to head back?"

Yes.

No.

Oh, I don't know.

"No turning back now."

Why 'Heroes' by Alesso and Tove Lo?

To me, it's a song on Cora and Emily's roof musings and them just going deep into their own thoughts, thinking on what could happen in their timelines after being focused on Eagle's Cross for so long. It's the same deal with 'Wings' by Delta Goodrem. I recommend listening to the lyrics to both the songs and applying them to this chapter.

Why 'Skyfall' by Adele?

If we were to put it in the context of this chapter, around about when Jasper arrives to pick up the 9, it's a very foreshadowing song in a sense. 'This is the end, hold your breath and count to ten...For this is the end, I've drowned and dreamed this moment...let the sky fall, when it crumbles, we will stand tall, together! Let the sky fall, when it crumbles, face it all, together at skyfall.'

All I can guarantee for the finale for now: it'll be one hell of a ride.