The smoke rolled off Jenna Ashpari's rouged lips, gently spreading throughout her dressing room and hitting the mirror in front of her, fogging it a little. Jenna looked at her dark doe eyes, larger than most human women, and tucked her long black hair behind the fur of her ears, which were dropping low. She was not thrilled to be here, and her ears were giving it away.

She crossed her curvy, fur-covered legs, so one cloved hoof fell gently over another. She put the rolled tobacco on her mouth one more time and inhaled. The smoke filled her lungs and a calm spread through her nerves. She leaned back into her armchair and stared at the intricate painted ceiling, exhaling the smoke again, more smoothly this time. She had always loved the ancient towering buildings of the floating Islands, yet being in this place felt disgusting. Everything about Atlantean high society felt absurd and contrived.

There was a knock on the door.

"One second," she said as she tied her robe, which snagged onto the spotted fur on her stomach, "ouch," she murmured. "Come in!"

A cat halfbreed woman hurried into Jenna's makeshift dressing room in the royal palace's guest wing. "You're taking your time," she said, blinking her almond-shaped eyes, their green and blue hues shimmering as they narrowed, adjusting to the dim light.

"Mona, I needed to smoke before stepping into that nightmare." Jenna put the hand rolled, tobacco cigarette in a silver ashtray on the counter.

Jenna Ashpari, a renowned artist celebrated for her singing and, in her youth, her dancing, had enjoyed a career spanning over three decades. Her talent made her a household name in Atlantis, for commoners and sky gods alike.

This week, her troupe had been hired to perform at a series of events for the new Chancellor's inauguration. Tonight's late evening show was just another in a long string of obligations still to come.

"What do you think of this dress they gave me?" Mona said, as she twirled in her maroon, shimmering outfit. The light danced on it. It hugged Mona's body like it was one size too small.

"Fierce." Jenna winked, forcing enthusiasm. "Wait, are you tucking your tail into your dress, Mona? Isn't that painful?"

Mona would have blushed if she could. She turned around looking at her tail behind her. "There was no place for my tail." Mona was one of the most beautiful women Jenna had ever met. Her cat-like facial features and ears only added to her beauty. Unlike Jenna, Mona was mostly human—no hooved feet, minimal fur covering her body—but she did have a tail.

"This is making your ass look deformed." Jenna said, examining Mona's backside.

Mona laughed loudly. "Yeah, it is."

"Come here, I have some scissors and a needle point, I can fix it." Jenna began to look through her bag on the counter.

Mona slide out of the dress and tossed it to Jenna, "thanks!" Mona shook her body around in her black under garments. Her sultry body and tail wisped about. She put her hands on the ground and deeply stretched into her arms, as her chest met the floor, and her bottom rose to the ceiling, she just inverted her torso and flung her head up toward the ceiling, stretching deeply. She stood up and shook her body out, purring a little. "I've been dying to do that all day."

"I bet you have." Jenna said, as worked with the needle on the dress.

"They had me dance in the foyer of the palace at the luncheon." Mona said, returning to the window and working on reapplying makeup. "I was in nothing but faux cat furs all morning." She stuck her tongue out in disgust. "So this dress feels like a step up."

"What?" Jenna looked at her. "Who approved that outfit? That's not okay—"

"The royal staff said the outfit came per request of the Queen." Mona responded, nonchalantly.

Jenna felt a heat rise inside of her. That's disrespectful. We are humans. We are professionals. Fucking sky gods, she thought to herself.

Mona saw the anger rising in Jenna's face. "Oh, let it go, Jenna. This is the most credits I've made this year. I'm not complaining."

"You're an award-winning performer." Jenna slammed the dress onto the counter. "You have two fucking degrees from Gothur Institute of Art. They can't treat you like this. This is bullshit."

"The sky gods do not give a shit about my credentials. We are freak entertainers to them." Mona said, as she began lining her large feline eyes nonchalantly. "Once an old manager warned me about sky gods. She said the senators can get handsy with the halfbreeds, like they did back when halfbreed slavery was legal."

Jenna sighed and nodded, as she finished the last stitch in Mona's dress. "This ought to take care of it." Jenna handed the maroon dress back to Mona. "I got your back, kid." Jenna was older than Mona by about a decade and half.

Mona smiled at her sweetly. "You know," Mona added, "I swore I saw a little halfbreed boy walking around the party this morning."

"One of ours?" Jenna looked at her wide eyed.

"No, he was just a boy. He looked like a young bull halfbreed." Mona's large eyes became slits as she said the word bull halfbreed.

Jenna thought for a moment. Mona must be mistaken. There is only one bull halfbreed on the continent, and he certainly was not a boy. "That doesn't sound right. Maybe your eyes were playing tricks on you."

"If you say so, Jenna. I could be wrong." Mona shrugged, she was not interested in arguing.

"These sky gods hate our kind. After the civil war, all the halfbreeds on these Islands were murdered. None of them survived. None of them." Jenna said, reaching for her half-smoked cigarette again.

Jenna continued. "Most of us hid in the Underworld until these damn politicians with their god complexes decided we weren't just abominations that needed to be cleansed from the continent." Jenna said, her anger rising. "You must have been a little girl when all that happened."

"I was seven." Mona said. "My mother raised us on a farm out east, my papa was a human farmer. His family had some land out there."

So she's a part breed, Jenna thought, you don't meet many of those. "You're a lucky girl," Jenna added, "to have had two parents who kept you far from the carnage."

Jenna finally stood up, towering over the petite Mona with her tall frame and wide hips balanced on deer-like hind legs. Her dark hair cascaded down her back in a sleek, unbroken fall.

"I better get dressed too." She grabbed a dress from the rack behind her chair and it fell like a flower onto the ground in front of her. "I had this one made for me special, so it doesn't snag on my deer fur..."

Within the hour the performers troupe entered the grand ballroom of the palace for the evening affair. Jenna heard some guests gasp in awe, while others whispered to each other as they watched the numerous halfbreeds enter. Jenna was equally mezmerize, she had never seen so much gold and precious stone adorning one place, nor had she seen so many people floating in the air before.

"Isn't it something?" Mona said, in awe. "I wonder how it feels to be able to fly."

"They can't fly," Jenna rolled her eyes. "They just hover needlessly."

Jenna turned to the troupe and gestured for them to form a circle near the entrance. "All of you are here to mingle with the guests until the show begins, and at that time, we will meet behind the stage to begin our performances. Don't get too close with these people, they are not your friends, and they never will be." Jenna made eye contact with each halfbreeds in front of her.

They all nodded in acknowledgement.

Jenna wasn't done. "Do not accept any drinks from these people. Order your own, carry it with you all night. Do not have more than two." She said, sternly. "Now go." They all began dispersing throughout the ballroom.

Jenna made her way to the ambrosia bar and could not believe her eyes. There stood on the ground, the most recognizable man in the continent, "Marcus Sumeri." Jenna said in her raspy voice.

He turned and smiled, his charm almost disarming. "Jenna Ashpari, the great enchantress," Marcus said smoothly, taking her hand and pressing a light kiss to it. "It's been far too long."

Jenna shook her head, clearly unimpressed. "I heard you'd be here," she replied coolly. "You vanished after the War. I heard you came back for a hot minutes to the Underworld and disappeared again. I was curious to see how time had treated you, but it seems you've managed to evade aging, unlike the rest of us. Congratulations, by the way, on your brother's election—"

Marcus abruptly interrupted her and stepped closer. "I only came to this party, because I heard you were going to perform," whispered Marcus.

Jenna laughed, the sound sharp and pointed. "I've been seeing your face and name plastered everywhere—flashing holographic billboards, transports, these damned cerebral bridges, and every other piece of tech across the continent." She tilted her head, her smile laced with sarcasm, as she touched the device on her temples.

Marcus nodded, averting his gaze. "Well, the implementation of those devices as a public mandate wasn't exactly my idea—" he began.

Jenna's smile faded as she pursed her lips, glaring at him. "I guess you forgot your old friends."

Marcus looked at her with solemn expression. "We all had to do things we regret," he said, quietly.

"Hm." Jenna could feel a deep sadness in his face, but she was here to entertain tonight. "Tell me, Marcus, what's good at this bar?"

"All of the ambrosia. I don't discriminate," Marcus said, waving at the bartender, who was floating glowing drinks to waiting guests.

A beautiful young woman walked over to them. Like Marcus, she kept her feet on the ground. "I hear the grapefruit drink is good," she said.

"Jenna, meet my niece, Inanna," Marcus said, placing a casual arm around Inanna. Then, turning sharply to the bartender, he snapped, "Three grapefruits."

"Your Grace." Jenna bowed slightly. "You look familiar... have we met?" Jenna said, looking from Inanna to Marcus and back.

"Hm, I don't get out much." Inanna said, nervously, "but I'm a fan of your music."

Jenna had certainly seen her somewhere before.

"You know, Inki's kind of a celebrity," said Marcus, "she's all over the fashion streams."

Inanna blushed.

That was not it. Jenna struggled to place her.

The bartender floated the drinks toward them. Marcus effortlessly took two glasses, handing one to Inanna and the other to Jenna with a smooth smile. He picked up the last for himself, taking a slow sip.

"Oh, this is amazing!" Marcus exclaimed.

Inanna smirked, proudly.

Jenna was still in deep thought. "Maybe we crossed paths at the Humri Ball last year... hmm, no, that's not it," she murmured.

Another beauty parted the crowd and floated towards them. Jenna recognized her immediately, bowing deeply. "High Priestess, what an honor to see you again. Congratulations on your husband's-"

"Please stop, Jenna, you're embarrassing me." Cilantra curtsied to Jenna. "I'm so happy to see you again. My son's been dying to meet you." Cilantra took a step sideways to reveal a young bull halfbreed boy standing behind her. "This is Drake."

Jenna was taken aback. The bull halfbreed boy. Jenna's eye's grew larger, she struggled to keep her composure. "Nice to meet you, Drake." She said, uncomfortably.

"I've never met another halfbreed!" Drake said, in his childlike wonder. He looked very closely at her ears, "Can I touch them?"

"Drake! That's not polite." Cilantra said, grabbing his extended arms.

Drake retracted with embarrassment.

Cilantra put her hand on his shoulders. "He's barely seven."

Good goddess, what do these people know about raising a bull halfbreed? Jenna felt terrible for the child. Jenna looked from Cilantra to Drake to Inanna, unsure what to say. "That's... alright," she said, awkwardly. "I have... to go prepare for my performance. It was a pleasure to meet your family." She bowed again and quickly removed herself from the circle.

Jenna was fired-up, she felt her anger rise to her head again. Just when you think the times are changing, they're keeping halfbreeds for sport again! She sipped on her grapefruit ambrosia and took a deep, grounding breath. Just get this day over with, Jenna said to herself.

She glanced around and spotted Mona mingling with a group of senators. It didn't take long for Jenna to notice that Mona was swaying, her balance faltering with every step. Without hesitation, Jenna moved swiftly to stand next to her, discreetly wrapping an arm around Mona's waist to steady her.

The senators barely seemed to notice, they were eyeballing Mona's very tight gown.

"I used to dance with—" Mona slurred, her speech sloppy.

Jenna brazenly interrupted. "Hello, Your Graces. Nice to meet you."

"Jenna Ashpari!" One of the men exclaimed. "I have loved your music since I was a little boy."

"Thank you," Jenna bowed. "I need to borrow Mona. We are going to begin our performance."

"Sure, yes." The man responded, visibly disappointed.

Jenna interlinked her arms with Mona and walked her away from the senators and towards the backstage area.

"Mona, what are you drinking?"

"Strawberry ambrosia?" She slurred.

Jenna sighed. "Someone else brought you this drink?"

Mona nodded. "It was a senator, I did not want to be rude."

Jenna clenched her jaw. "Let's get you some air. I told you, Mona, trust no one here."

"But he was really sweet!" Mona smiled, looking back at at the group of senators.

"He wasn't interested in your story, but rather how much cat fur you have underneath this dress. I was your age once, Mona." Jenna shook off the memory of her past.

Mona smiled, sloppily. "You're such a buzzkill."

"A buzzkill who is trying to carry you right now." Jenna glared at Mona.

Mona sighed and nodded. "Oh, Jenna, I love you."

"I met that bull halfbreed boy you told me about." Jenna said, as they entered backstage.

"You did? I told you!" Mona's eyes grew larger than Jenna thought they ever could.

"This is not a safe place for a little halfbreed boy. Let alone a bull halfbreed."

"Can we help him?" Mona asked, worried.

"He's with the Sumeri family. I don't think it'll be a good idea to ask him if he needs our help." Jenna clenched her fists. "This is how it used to be. The old families kept halfbreeds until they grew tired of them. I assure you they will tire of this boy. These people know nothing about our kind and our needs. I thought the times had changed. I really did."

"Crazy that he's a bull boy." Mona said, her eyes wide.

Jenna's lips were pursed. "He will want to know."

"He will!" Mona said, slurring her words.

Jenna walked Mona out the back and towards their dressing room. A young man, who was walking the halls approached.

"Can-Can I help you?" He asked, nervously.

Jenna looked at him suspiciously, but noticed he was walking with his feet on the ground. "Yes. What's your name?" She was struggling to keep Mona straight up.

"Daniel, Daniel Nuhi."

"Thanks, Daniel."

As if the man finally recognized who he was speaking to. "Oh, Miss Ashpari!"

"Daniel, Mona here has been drinking too much. Could you help me take her to the guest wing."

"Sure," Dan examined Mona and looked genuinely horrified. "What has she been drinking?"

Smart man. "To be honest, I'm not sure." Jenna responded.

Upon reaching the grand room, she was relieved to see that many other halfbreed troupe members had retreated there prior to the performance.

"What's wrong with Mona?" one of them asked, approaching them.

"She may have been drugged."

Daniel stared Jenna, visibly shocked at the revelation.

"Can you make sure, she does not leave our dressing rooms?" She asked the other halfbreeds. "I will be back once the performance is over."

"We will stay here," responded a halfbreed, looking back at her partner in agreement. Jenna knew neither of them could perform without her anyway; she was the star of their act.

"Good." Jenna's anger was throbbing in her head. She looked behind her at the wide eyed man. "Thank you, Daniel. Your help will not be forgotten. Maybe you can escort me back to the ballroom before the performances begin."

"Yes, please this way." Dan stumbled over himself. "Is-is she going to be okay?" He asked, looking back.

Jenna could sense he was genuinely concerned.

"I hope so. I guess these senators are still abusing young halfbreed women."

Dan looked away and said nothing as he walked with Jenna to the ballroom.

Jenna sighed. "What do you do, Daniel?"

"I am Chancellor Marcellius' Chief of Staff," he responded, with pride.

She was surprised. "You—you're Marcellius' Chief—"

Suddenly, a young redheaded woman floated out of the grand ball room in a hurry. "Daniel! Marcellius is looking for you."

The man looked from Jenna to the other woman. "Okay, Alice."

She noticed Jenna. "Oh my god! Jenna Ashpari! I'm your biggest fan." Her eyes grew large.

Jenba ignored the girl and looked back at Daniel. "Thank you, young man, for your help." He nodded in understanding.

She cleared her throat and walked into the hall towards the stage to begin the performances...

The show opened with breathtaking acrobatics by bird halfbreeds, their wings catching the light as they soared and twisted through the air. Gasps filled the hall as a sparrow halfbreed landed a flawless flip on a narrow wire, earning thunderous applause.

Next, the stage was taken by large bear, boar, and gorilla halfbreeds in a powerful display of performative martial arts. They moved with controlled precision, executing rhythmic punches, kicks, and flips in a choreographed combat sequence. A bear halfbreed spun a heavy staff with fluid ease before slamming it into the ground in perfect time with the music. His gorilla counterpart launched into an aerial flip, their movements blending raw strength with a warrior's grace.

The cat halfbreeds followed, their hypnotic dance mesmerizing the audience. Their elegant, feline movements were both sensual and precise, the lead dancer's emerald eyes holding every gaze in the room.

Finally, Jenna took the stage. The crowd roared as she began her signature song, "Ongoing Hathor," her voice rich and velvety, weaving a spell of enchantment. After performing a full set, she ended with "Eternal Flame," her soaring notes leaving the audience on their feet as the curtain fell...

Upon returning to her dressing room with the rest of the troupe, Jenna rushed to Mona. She looked rough and had fallen asleep. "How's she doing now?" She asked the others.

"She threw up and got pretty bad for a while. Then that guy, the one who came in here with you, brought her some injectable medicine. He said it would clear out her system within a few hours. So we gave it to her."

"You trusted him with that—"

"I thought he was a friend of yours!" Said a halfbreed man.

Jenna put her palm to her forehead. "I need a smoke."

Mona finally stirred, "I need to throw up."

The other two ran to her, handing her a container. Mona vomited and took a few deep breaths. "I think I was drugged, Jenna."

"You don't say," Jenna shook her head, putting another  hand rolled tobacco cigarette in her mouth and lighting it. She was searching her mind for the faces of the men who were speaking to Mona in the ballroom, but everything was a blur.

Just then, Jenna's cerebral bridge alerted her about an incoming call. She frowned as she noticed who the call was from: "Don."

"Keep an eye on Mona. Make sure she drinks water." She stepped onto the balcony, gazing at the vast islands under a clear, starry night. All three islands were visible from the royal palace. She gestured her cerebral bridge to take the call.

A hologram flickered to life, revealing a man with slicked-back brown hair streaked with gray and a sharp, stern face. His piercing gaze locked onto Jenna.

"Jenna," he said, calmly, but carrying an unsettling edge.

"I'm working, Don," She replied, agitated.

"I know."

"What do you want?" She asked, sternly.

"We have a problem in the Underworld."

"And?"

"I appears that a sky goddess fell to the Underworld today," Don said, chuckling softly.

"What are you talking about?" Jenna snapped, her patience wearing thin. Yet, she couldn't afford to lose it—not with Don, the man who funded all her clubs.

"An noblewoman was found on our streets." He answered. "In one of your clubs, actually."

"If that was true, I would have heard of it." Jenna said, shifting uncomfortably in her gown.

"Hm," the voice grunted. "Ask around for me, will ya? I'll send you a photo of her. Make sure she's not from an important family." The man pressed on.

Jenna understood Don's implication. She had "asked around" about other women for Don before, and it had never ended well for those women.

"I will not do that kind of work again." She clenched her fist. Never again.

The man laughed. "She's not one of your kind, Jenna."

"It doesn't matter, Don, she is a woman," Jenna snarled at the tablet before cutting the call abruptly.

At the doorway to the balcony, Mona stood with her large, vibrant cat-like pupils fixed on Jenna. What little fur adorned her arms and face was slightly puffed, her instincts clearly picking up on the tension.

"Everything okay, Jenna?" Mona asked, cautiously.

Jenna exhaled deeply. "Yes," though her tone betrayed her lingering unease.

"Was that Don?" Mona pressed, her head tilting slightly.

"It was," Jenna replied, taking a long drag from her cigarette.

"Why did he call?" Mona rubbed her temple.

"About a woman," Jenna said, pulling up a photo on her cerebral bridge. With a flick of her fingers, she shared the holograph for Mona to see.

She froze. The resemblance was uncanny—this woman looked strikingly like Inanna Sumeri. Suddenly, it made sense why Inanna had seemed familiar earlier.

"Where have I seen her before?" Jenna muttered, taking a long drag from her cigarette, the stress settling in.

"Oh," Mona said, glancing at the hologram. "That woman works the bar at your club in District 36."

Jenna frowned, zooming in on the image, studying the woman's features closely.

Mona leaned in, her cat-like pupils narrowing. "Her name is Nora. Why does Don want to know about her?"

"Because she looks strangely like Marcus Sumeri's niece," Jenna said through clenched teeth, her tone sharp with frustration.

Mona knew better than to ask further questions.

Back in the dressing room, Jenna spotted Marcus, surrounded by performers. The women—and even a few men—stood captivated, hanging on his every word. His animated storytelling and easy charisma were downright dangerous.

I do not have energy for this, she sighed.

"In Kemp, the women drape their gowns like this," Marcus said, tossing fabric around himself with exaggerated flair. "And in Alemuria, like this!" He struck a pose, earning laughter from the women as he pulled faces to match.

"Marcus," Jenna interjected sharply, cutting through the laughter. "How can I help you?" 

"Jenna, we need to talk."

"I am exhausted." Jenna said, lighting another cigarette. "Marcus, one of your sky god buddies, maybe a senator, drugged one of my women." She glanced at Mona from the corner of her eyes, who was still struggling to stand up on her own.

Marcus' smile dissipated, as he examined Mona.

"This is the same shit your kind were doing fifteen years ago!" Jenna raised her voice.

Marcus was struggling to find his words. "Don't include me in—"

Jenna snarled at him and turned around. "I don't have the energy to talk to you. Leave."

Everyone in the room was staring at them. Marcus looked around and remained silent, but he did not leave, instead he approached Jenna and placed an arm gently on her shoulders.

"Go away, Marcus," Jenna snapped, shrugging off his arm. "You disappeared after the war. You abandoned us all. Then you show up again, betray Ibris, and vanish for five years." She took a sharp drag from her cigarette, exhaling smoke like it might steady her. "Where the fuck have you been? Getting richer and more powerful? Like your bro—" She stopped herself, swallowing the words that could put her life in danger.

"After the war, Jenna, I was charged with treason," Marcus said after a pause, his voice low. "I had to leave the continent to protect my family. You, of all people, should understand why."

She swallowed and realized for the first time that everyone in the room was watching them.

Marcus smiled widely and looked around as if to put on a show. "You guys may not know this, but Jenna and I used to date two decades ago." He winked, draping an arm around her shoulder again, before planting a quick kiss on her cheek. "Let us old lovers have a little private catch up." He led her back to the balcony.

Jenna shoved Marcus' arm from her shoulder. "I would rather die of some venereal disease than to have been in a relationship with you." She whispered, so no one would hear.

Marcus smirked, then said, more seriously: "Jenna, what happened today with your colleague is not acceptable. I will help you find who did it."

Her anger began to cool, but she tuned her head away from him.

Marcus squeezed Jenna's shoulder. "I also need your help, Jenna."

"What do you need?" She finally asked.

Marcus' voice became almost a whisper. "My intel tells me there are high clearance experiments on a new technology in the Northern mountains and off the Western coast. It's military funded, but privately led. I need you to use your connections to help me find out who's behind it."

Jenna stiffened, fully understanding what he meant by "your connections," but she ignored the implication. "I will not help you kill innocent people to win another war," she said firmly.

"This is not like the civil war, Jenna." Marcus looked around nervously and lowered this voice further, "it is much, much worse."

"Let me make something very clear, Marcus Sumeri. I don't trust you, or whatever you intend to do with this technology. So keep me out of it, alright?"

"From what I am hearing, and I tell you this in deep confidence, this technology is trying to mimic the ancient gravity technology that created the floating islands." Marcus whispered.

"Oh, great. Now the military wants more floating islands for its sky gods," Jenna said, rolling her eyes. "Listen, Marcus, I'm an entertainer. I sing for a living. This is way above my pay grade."

"But you know where Ibris is." Marcus pursed his lips, as he studied her reaction.

Ah, so there it was, the big ask. Jenna's expression didn't falter—stoic, unreadable. Did he think she was a fool? Why would she admit to knowing the whereabouts of a wanted man?

"I have reason to believe that the technology is being weaponized to start a war with Alemuria on Kempian soil."

"I don't give a fuck about the Alemurians and the Kempians. Nor does anyone on these islands, for that matter." She was seething. "The Alemurians and Kempians and their heathen gods can all burn in their deserts."

"Jenna, please—"

"They took halfbreeds and turned them into gods," Jenna exhaled smoke, "and yet still enslave and slaughtered us."

"You don't understand," Marcus interrupted, visibly frustrated. He paused and thought for a moment. "This technology has the potential to destroy the world."

She respected Marcus, but this wasn't her fight. "Don't we say this about all the technology the military is interested in?"

Marcus thought again for a minute and he began gesturing to his cerebral bridge, very quickly.

"What are you doing?" Jenna asked, watching Marcus work his gestures.

"Despite having fought together, Jenna, I see that I cannot gain your trust by words alone." He glared at her and then continued to gestured in front of him. "So let me show you." He pulled up a holographic video that expanded around them. "This is a recording taken on an island called Tiran, it's north of of Kemp, near Amuri. The recording was taken yesterday."

Jenna, still skeptical, watched curiously. A man was holding his hand to his left temple, initiating a three-dimensional recording on his military-grade cerebral bridge. His uniform marked him as high-ranking Atlantean military. He was running, breathing heavily.

"Experiment C4567DF appears to have failed. We are evacuating the island. Please send a pickup, immediately," he said, his voice urgent.

The man kept running as the ground behind him tore itself apart, rumbling violently. At first, it looked like an earthquake, but then the land began to shift, gathering into a tall hill. A massive portion of it separated from the ground and rose into the sky.

The man stopped and turned to watch the floating landmass, then he broke into a sprint in the opposite direction, shouting to the people ahead. "Get out of here, get out of here!"

Before Jenna could make sense of what was happening, the sound of colliding land and rushing water filled the recording. Then, abruptly, the hologram went dark.

Jenna in shock for a minute. "How do you have this recording?"

"I design communications for the military." Marcus adjusted his robes. "I left a few back doors open." Marcus thought for a moment. "One of my geological research teams picked up this video last night tracking communications from this region."

"So what does this mean?"

"The man in the video is called Lt. Jabon Mica. He is an Atlantean earth scientist, who is known to work at top secret military testing sites. When we went to retrieve the files on this project, every way in was blocked. It was as if someone knew we would come looking."

"So much for those back doors, Marcus?" Jenna took another hit of her cigarette, anxiously.

Marcus pulled up a map on his tablet. "My team has began tracking tectonic activity. They've identified similar, smaller-scale occurrences in the north and west of Atlantis."

He swiped to display a holographic map of Atlantis, pointing to highlighted zones of seismic activity. "See here?" he said, tapping the glowing areas. "We tried sending in remote airships, but our technology blacked out. We can't see inside these zones."

She was visibly terrified.

"I don't trust the Atlantean military, and I know you don't either." Marcus gestured to turn off all images. "Help me."

She licked her lips nervously and then nodded. "I'll make the call."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Jenna." Marcus kissed her on the cheek and rushed out.

Jenna looked out at the opulence of these floating islands and felt nauseous. She gestured on her cerebral bridge to make the call. The call went unanswered.

She sighed in relief. She didn't want to talk to him anyway. As she took another long drag of her cigarette, an incoming call notice appeared. Fuck, she stomped her hoofed foot and threw her cigarette off the balcony.

"Jenna," said Ibris in a deep, groggy voice, as if he'd just woken up. "It's been a long time."

"I was hoping never to call you again," Jenna replied through clenched teeth.

There was a pause. "Yet, here you are."

"Ibris, I'm making this call for Marcus Sumeri," she said. "We have a problem."