Puck looked at his nexus. “Working at the moment.”
“Instruct the hangar to ready the ship, then summon the fifteen senior-most circitors to the bay at once. We will meet them there.”
Puck opened a comms menu on his nexus. “Joss?”
Lace’s static-filled voice came through seconds later. “Amaeus? What the hell’s going on?”
“I’ll explain later,” he said, “just scramble that last Hermes, and get it ready to fly.”
“Underst—” A din of crackling static overtook Lace’s voice before the connection cut out completely.
Puck’s brow furrowed. “Comms are down … Shit, whole network’s gone. I can’t warn anyone else.”
Mesa gave a curt nod. “Very well. We will collect who we can along the way.”
She and Puck turned together and headed for the door. Adequin didn’t move. They stopped in the doorway and looked back at her.
“Sir?” Puck said. “Let’s go.”
“I’m not going.”
“EX, you’re at the top of the list. Like a dozen ranks above any of us.”
“I’m not going.”
“Like hell.”
“I can’t do that. You have my permission to take the last Hermes.”
Puck marched back toward her. “Don’t pull this going-down-with-the-ship crap. We need you with us.”
Déjà vu swept over her at Puck’s insistent tone. His eyes, both pleading and panicked, reminded her of something she couldn’t quite put her finger on.
“That’s not going to happen,” Adequin said. “Jack will return from Kharon soon. They’ll bring ships, and I need to be here when they do—help get everyone on board.”
“Rake, that’s over,” Puck insisted. “It’s too late. We have to take who we can and leave—right now.”
“Twenty souls? That’s your solution?”
“Better than zero,” he growled.
Adequin’s Imprints vibrated along with a spike of annoyance. “Watch yourself, Circitor.”
“I’m sorry, sir, but we can’t waste any more time. Remember when those visual pings said thirty-five thousand kilometers? Well, by now, they say ten thousand. If that’s really the Divide rushing toward us, then we have minutes.” He reached toward her, ready to usher her forward. “So let’s go.”
She looked at his open palm and realization washed over her as she recalled what this reminded her of. That time ripple where Cavalon stormed into her quarters and insisted she go with him to “the ship.” She couldn’t quite draw the lines between the two, but she supposed if she hadn’t sent him with Jackin, it could have been him trying to force her to leave instead of Puck.
She cleared her throat. “Get whoever you can aboard that Hermes. Kharon Gate will be the rendezvous.”
Puck dropped his hand. Mesa stepped up next to him, crossing her thin arms.
“Take as much food and water as you can,” Adequin continued. “It’s fourteen weeks at ion speed to Kharon.”
Mesa’s exasperated look remained patient. Puck’s anger thawed, but the pity left in its place wasn’t any better. They didn’t say anything, but they didn’t have to. She knew they meant to overrule her.
Adequin shook her head. “You don’t make the orders here. Neither of you do. This is my choice.”
Puck’s scowl deepened. “There’s no way in hell I’m—”