Rinn awoke, tucked safe in someone's embrace. That didn't calm her much. The argument brewing close by didn't help.

"Ian?"

Those arms tightened. "I got you."

Opening her eyes proved painful so Rinn closed them again. As far as she could tell, they were sitting on the ground. She didn't recognize the voices but the mounting rage that came with it was palpable.

"She's not setting foot into my gym," a woman insisted.

"And I said that was fine, but all attempts I've made at trying to contact HQ has come back denied. The System's rejecting my portals so I have to go there on foot. So all I'm asking is for you to keep them for a few hours."

Rinn's next attempt at bearing the lights was better. She leaned away, the sight of the curious blue eyes made her world come back into focus.

"Ian."

She leaned in again, pressing her face into his neck. She couldn't remember the last time she saw him. It didn't feel so long ago and yet, she couldn't shake the sense of loss.

When he put his cheek against her forehead, she smiled.

"No. The answer stays no. Not now, not ever. If your father finds out—"

Ian's flinch led Rinn to look up and around. Everything went dark. Her throat felt tight.

A woman in an Elete Elemental uniform rushed to the wall, a penlight in her mouth. When she opened a panel, she took the light from her lips and said, "We've lost power to this entire section. And...life support's dropping fast."

"I could have told you that," another woman—another Elemental said. Red. "That wheezing feeling is our oxygen depleting. Norman doesn't approve. Val, we must.... We must find another solution for these two. If we anger Norman...."

The E with the penlight—Val—stood to her full height, enraged. "Mother. For the love of the Colony, do you just always invoke that name when the mood suits you. Norman doesn't approve, Norman doesn't approve. Approve of what?" Her voice softened. "Mother, it's a glitch. One that we'll fix. I'm the chief engineer. They'll need me. If I can get to a bigger panel—"

Zap.

Val's body collapsed. Two wires snaked from the wall, flickering and sparking as they touched one another.

Several people rushed to her aid, but Val's mother extended her hands to keep them back.

"No. She's alive. Norman won't hurt her. He's just trying to make a point." She glanced from the open panel down to her daughter again. "He doesn't approve of what we're doing."

"Grandma, is it really like that?" One of the other E's asked. "Should I go get Grandpa?"

The woman grabbed the youth by his shirt. "No. We do this without him."

At her words, the wires withdrew back into the panel. She didn't seem to know what to do next.

"Red?" Ian shouted a warning and gestured to another E who sagged to the floor. "The air."

Val's mother—Red—regarded him. She looked helpless when she cleared her throat and said, "I'll take you to my gym, Tellman. How about that? You and your friend there. Consider yourselves my guests."

A whoop sound came and the tunnel illuminated, so bright, Rinn had to hide her face against Ian's neck again.

She wasn't sure what was happening, but she heard the fear in Ian's voice when the Irishman said, "Red, I'm sorry. If I'm causing trouble for you and yours...."

"Stop talking, Tell."

Rinn risked the lights to look at the E's again. Red's youthful face didn't surprise her—E's kept their youth for most of their lives. They'd die of old age eventually, even if they didn't look it. That much Rinn knew, but it occurred to her she didn't know how she'd come to that knowledge.

Red was slow to help Val up. After the panel on the wall slid shut on its own, they started to walk.

"Stay away from the walls," Red warned. "And let me remind you all, your grandfather doesn't hear a word of this. Clear?"

Several people nodded.

Rinn stood but when Ian got to his feet, he picked her up again. The action was so effortless for him that she stifled a sound. And then she saw him—he was huge.

"Holy shit, Ian...."

The blue eyes focused on her again. "What?"

"I—I can walk," Rinn insisted.

Ian wore a blank expression. Finally, he awoke from his daze. "I've just...I've been carrying you for five years. I don't mind it. It's quite a walk from here." At the silence, he repeated, "I've been carrying you for five years...."

And that was that. Rinn looked up at the lights that followed them. Norman. She knew that name—it calmed her to hear it. What she just witnessed sent her into a worry, however.

"Is that E all right?"

"Val?" Ian stared ahead. "She'll be fine. Norm's on our side. So don't worry."

The fear in Red's voice was still too fresh for Rinn to believe that.

"He hurt her, though."

"Val's his sister. He wouldn't hurt her. Red's just a little superstitious."

That one word summed it all up. If even Ian, the king of all things superstitious was accusing Red of being worse then Rinn decided to forgive what she saw. Ian was safe—they were safe. And although she wondered how and when she'd entered the Colony, a part of her was grateful to be there.

Three hours. With no breaks and no talking, three hours later they reached their destination. The route the E's took from the main tunnel was baffling and hard to retrace. Rinn tried to remember it, though she doubted her ability to do so.

She touched the wall ever so often, marking her way.

"What are you doing?" Ian asked.

Rinn shook her head and confessed, "I really don't know. I just...I feel like I should do this."

They came out into a city. Rinn let out a gasp. The balls of fire sailing past and the loud banging of guns striking targets meant this was really what Red said...a gym—A training facility for E's.

The last Yule to Elemental war was nearly thirty years ago. And that was one bloody mess.

"Thought E's were at peace with regular people—with Yules," Rinn muttered.

Ian regarded her in confusion. "They are." He gestured to the people sparring. "But poachers, people trying to steal an E's power for their own, are still pretty abundant."

"Steal?" Rinn smiled at the thought. "Like their youth?"

Slower to respond, Ian hesitated. "Yeah.... Stop saying that with a smile. It's creepy."

Chuckling, Rinn pressed her face into his neck again. "I'm just remembering bits and pieces. Everything feels distant so when something comes, I just get excited about it. Don't take it wrong."

"Remembering?" Ian asked, worried. "You've forgotten something? Forgotten me?"

With no clear answer to give, Rinn remained silent.

She felt unsteady when Ian allowed her to stand. It took a few tries before she could move without help. She felt strong and after she could pace without problems, she walked on her own. Her attempt at taking Ian's hand failed when the man dodged her grip.

Ian muttered something to Red who turned to him then regarded Rinn in confusion. "Memory loss? Are you certain?"

A thought popped into Rinn's mind and she assured them, "It's nothing to worry about, ma'am. Someone's locked off some of my memories. That much I know."

Val, the engineer sauntered to stand by her mother's side, marveling, "And you don't find that at all concerning?"

Rinn didn't. She didn't dare vocalize those feelings. Memory loss in the Colony meant a damaged mind—a damaged and abused mind. This wasn't like that.

Red said, "Val is going to give you a quick checkup—"

"No, she fucking ain't," Ian interrupted. "Nobody's touching her."

Rinn saw no harm in it, but before she could agree, she was faced with a bigger problem. She looked between Red and Ian and realized they were in the middle of a standoff. Ian's look of determination mirrored Red's.

Thoughts of a possible conflict had Rinn feeling hollow.

"Tell you what," Rinn said, turning to Red as she reached down and took hold of Ian's right hand. "Give us some time to talk about it and we'll see what happens in the morning. Okay?"

Red protested, "I really think it's best if we check you early."

Ian tensed, so Rinn rubbed the man's palm with her thumb, hoping to soothe him. She found herself following her grip. Till now, Ian'd been a close friend. Feelings had developed over the years, strong feelings, but when did they get on hand-holding terms?

Still, she was hesitant to take them backwards.

What she needed to do was figure out what was going on.

"Honestly, ma'am," Rinn said. "I...I'm just hungry. I'm starved, actually. And I feel like I haven't seen Ian in ages. Can—" She hesitated and confessed. "I miss him. Can we just get some time together?"

Ian's grip tightened and he sagged to his knees.

"Ian!"

The moment he let Rinn go, Red rushed him.

Val caught her arm. "Don't bother. He's live."

Surprised painted on her face, Red regarded her daughter in confusion. "And you couldn't inform me sooner?"

Ian shivered and Rinn hurried to kneel beside him. "Ian? What's wrong?"

"There's no point in telling you," Val muttered, "because it's illegal to help him."

Red let out several swears as she inched Rinn out of the way, held Ian around the waist, and hoisted him up. "I need help!" she cried out. Several E's came to her aid.

Though desperate to follow, Rinn obeyed Val's somber headshake. Red was determined as she guided Ian away, but something in the way Val watched them said it was a wasted effort.

Still, Rinn thought to go.

"Please stay close to me for a bit longer," Val begged.

Rinn blinked at her. The tonal shift was suspicious. "What business do you have with me?"

Val's frown never faded when she turned to meet eyes with her. "I'd like to look at your face."

"My—beg your pardon?"

But Val only forced a smile that ended up looking crooked somehow.

"Is that all right?" She reached behind her for a diskette then held it out. "It would require authorization from either you or your spouse to conduct."

That one word propelled Rinn back. "My—my spouse?"

"Yes." Val began to type. "Your husband." At the silence, she slowed and squinted. "Or...or is that news to you?"

It was news; it was more than news, it was a stupid lie. She and Ian had been trapped Topside, a place feared by every Colony dweller, with good reason. A place of people eager to infiltrate the Colony to reap it of its resources. A place where no one could leave easily even if they made it to the Colony entry point. For Ian, a non-Topsider, to make it here was amazing. But to make it with Rinn as well, that must have taken the crime of the century.

No wonder he didn't want Val mucking about with checkups.

Rinn summoned her composure and was polite to bow her head and say, "I have no problems with it whatsoever, but...I'd like to check on Ian first."

When she took a step, Val blocked her path. All joy and goodwill now gone from her voice, the red-headed E said, "But I insist."

Giving a Colony official probable cause was never a good idea so Rinn swallowed hard and followed Val when the woman turned. She headed in the opposite direction to Ian. Each step filled Rinn with dread.

They were no longer in the open training area, but rather a narrow hallway heading to someone's personal quarters.

"It's the strangest thing," Val began, "I try to do my job and the System attacks me. But that's only going to make me more determined. I'm not sure what's causing it, but don't get your hopes up, the System has no access to this structure."

They reached the door and Val typed on the wall. Once the steel slid back, Rinn swallowed down her panic.

There was no way to get out of this. And the reenforced steel of the room meant there was no way to leave that cell either.

Her pulse quickened but Val stared her down, waiting.

"Is something wrong?" Val asked.

It took everything inside Rinn to smile back. "No. Not at all."

Only the fact that she was about to enter a sound-proof room where Ian would never know she'd disappeared into.

"He's a good man," Rinn entreated. "He's not a danger to the Colony. You don't need to do this to control him."

Val answered, "It's not him who I see as a danger." She turned the diskette around to show Rinn a face Rinn almost didn't recognize. It was her but...not her. And the name she could read from the Colony language didn't belong to her either. "Is this you?"

It wasn't. Rinn's vision blurred. She tried to make sense of what she was seeing. Maybe Ian'd doctored some photos. But the System was flawless. There was no way to hack, alter, or manipulate it.

What was she supposed to answer?

Something in Val's expression changed. Her determined gaze shifted past Rinn and softened.

The woman no longer looked ferocious, but rather...afraid.

"Shit," Val muttered.

"I've asked you not to use such language," a husky voice said, closing in.

Rinn turned to see who had arrived. When she caught sight of who it was, she was both elated and shocked.