"Nice place," Rose said as Sandage's car entered the driveway. While squat, two-story, and somewhat worn down, the cream-colored house seemed homely and welcoming. A dark-skinned, plump woman stood outside to greet them. A lighter skinned boy, a few years younger than Rose, stood beside her. He shared his father's sharp, intelligent eyes.
"Joe!" Mrs. Sandage gave her husband a quick, but affectionate kiss. She smiled as she spotted the two girls emerging from Sandage's car. "And these must be our guests."
"Hey, I'm Rose."
But Cecilia wasn't as forward. The moment became awkward as she struggled to introduce herself. "Cecilia," she finally managed.
"Why, aren't you a tall thing?" Mrs. Sandage placed her hands on her hips, seeming amused. "What have they been feeding you? You're a bony little thing! Don't worry, I'll make sure you get plenty to eat."
"Okay," Cecilia was at a loss for words at this bombastic introduction.
"Hey, I'm Joe." Sandage's son grinned with a toothy smile. "Nice to meet you."
"You too." Rose paused. "Your name is Joe, too?" She gave the LUVOLT agent a questioning look.
"It's Johannes, actually, but everyone calls me Joe," The son said.
Sandage held out his hands. "It was my dad's idea, okay? It's a family name—my grandfather's, to be precise. But anyway, come in. Dinner will be ready soon. We've got plenty of DVDs to watch while you wait."
"I suppose." Rose would rather play on her laptop or phone, but whatever. Still, she was curious about what movies the Sandage household had. People often had strange, random movies, usually ancient 90s comedies.
"How about basketball? There's a park nearby," Joe offered, eyeing Cecilia with interest. "With her height, I bet she'd score a slam-dunk every shot!"
"What?" Cecilia blinked, confused.
"She doesn't know what basketball is?" Joe whispered to Rose.
"She's been sheltered her whole life," Rose whispered back, giving her best plausible lie. "Really strict mom."
"You realize I can hear you, right?" Cecilia said, annoyed.
"Let's play some basketball." While not the greatest at it, Rose would enjoy teaching her friend the sport.
"We're going to the park!" Joe yelled to his parents.
"Okay, be back by 5:30!" Sandage called, giving them a wave.
"So, why do you have that guy following you everywhere?" Joe whispered as they trekked through the neighborhood, gesturing to the hulking man trailing them.
"Brown? He's my bodyguard," Rose replied.
"What, are you the president or something?" Joe raised an eyebrow. In his hands, he held a basketball he'd retrieved from his garage.
"No, but my life is perilous." Rose signed, her heart heavy. While she liked Mr. Brown, the fact she needed him depressed her.
"Don't you watch the news?" Cecilia asked.
"Why? It's boring," was Joe's flat answer.
"It doesn't matter." Rose would rather they didn't get into the reason she had a bodyguard.
But Cecilia continued the topic, anyway. "You don't even know the planet's being invaded by aliens?"
"I know that much! Give me a break!" Joe shot back.
"Cecilia…" Rose said, but her friend continued forward anyway.
"Well, this girl here is Luyten V's pilot!" Cecilia said, rather smugly.
"What? No way! That can't be true! This girl here—really?" Despite his skepticism, Joe studied Rose more closely. His eyes widened, gaping in shock. "It can't be! You look totally different on TV! I assumed you were, like, a teenager or something!"
"Yep, it's me," Rose said, resigned. Joe's eyes sparkled as he eyed her in admiration.
"Thanks, Cecilia. I was happy not being recognized for once," Rose thought, but pushed her annoyance aside.
"That's the coolest. You really pilot a giant robot?" Joe asked.
"Yep," Rose replied.
"Can I ride in it sometime? My dad's FBI. They'd probably let me," Joe said hopefully.
"You'll have to ask him," Though Rose doubted he'd ever get anywhere close to the planet's last hope.
"My dad never told me he worked with Luyten V," Joe said, somewhat annoyed. "He owes me for this."
"Doesn't your dad tell you what he does?" Cecilia asked.
"No, it's all top-secret stuff, or I'm 'too young to understand,'" Joe said. "He never tells me anything!"
"I suppose he won't," Brown smiled in amusement. "But he doesn't tell you because he's involved with plenty of bad things."
"I'm not a kid," Joe replied, rather annoyed. Rose agreed with him. Why did adults assume they couldn't understand anything?
"But you have some stories, right?" Joe gave Rose a hopeful look.
"I suppose?" Rose glanced at Brown, who only offered a shrug.
"Later," Joe said as they reached the park. It was rather basic, with a basketball court and a play area for younger children. The nearby woods were pretty, though she spotted a water plant poking between the trees. "First, let's see how you play!" He spun the basketball on his finger before throwing it at the hoop. It traveled in with a swoosh.
"Sure," Cecilia said. "How hard could it be?"
///
"Come on! You got this!" Rose yelled from the sidelines.
Cecilia wore a grimace of determination as she reached for the ball in Joe's hands, a kid almost two-thirds her height. But his nimble footwork made the older girl seem like a clumsy oaf in comparison. Her friend had never been the greatest in gym class, but it was clear how little physical ability she had.
"Did they allow her any physical activity in the lab she grew up in?" Rose thought, furious for her friend's sake. If the scientists who created her had allowed her any exercise, it was only to keep their test subject running. She'd yell at Dr. Burbidge to do something about this later.
Rose grimaced as Joe slipped past Cecilia with ease and landed an easy two-pointer. The boy grinned, pleased with his easy victory.
"Is that all you got?" Joe said, his tone smug. "My grandmother has better moves than you."
"We're doing this again," Cecilia said, her jaw clenched in defiance.
"Fine. It's your funeral," Joe said, passing his opponent the ball. While awkward, Cecilia caught it.
"It's a massacre out there," Brown whispered to her as Joe stole the ball and made another easy shot. "Shouldn't we do something about this?"
"What can we do? Cecilia really hates losing," Rose replied. Could they convince Joe to go easier on her?
"Hey, Joe. Tone it down," Rose yelled from her spot on the bleachers. "Cecilia doesn't get out much."
"What? If she can't play well, she shouldn't have entered the court!" Joe shot a three-pointer, much to Cecilia's obvious annoyance.
"Go easier on her." Steel entered Rose's voice.
"Fine, okay. Sheesh," Joe said, cowed.
"Nice mom energy you got there," Brown said, amused as they watched the two continue their game. Much to Rose's satisfaction, Joe slowed down, allowing Cecilia to try her hand at shooting the hoop. She missed, but Cecilia refused to give up.
"Ugh, don't say that. Old people shouldn't speak like that."
"I'm serious, though—you're a natural leader," Brown said. "The world needs more people like you."
"Don't say that." Her, a leader?
"No, like this." Joe positioned Cecilia's arms so her throws would be more effective. He beamed as she finally scored a successful shot.
"I did it," Cecilia said, amazed. She laughed with joy when she made another shot.
Joe beamed. "See? After some practice, you could join a team."
"You're just saying that." As usual, Cecilia took the praise with some skepticism.
"Come on, with your height, you'd be a killer," Joe replied. While it was clear Cecilia possessed no natural talent, she had other attributes that'd make up for it.
"It's time for supper!" Sandage yelled from across the street.
"Coming!" Joe said, picking up his ball. "Good, I'm starving."
"You think he's right?" Cecilia whispered to Rose.
"Sure," Rose replied. "Hard work covers a multitude of sins. A little practice and you'd be a terror on the court. I'll talk to Coach Tombaugh about it."
Cecilia didn't respond, contemplating her friend's words.
"Natural leader," Brown said, pleased.
///
"Vera, please come in!" Rose's mother said, her voice welcoming. Nothing in her words offered the slightest indication that she suspected the truth. "I'm sorry if you're here for Rose, but she's still out of town."
She bent over, her voice a conspiratorial whisper. "It's a little top secret."
"Vera!" Danny said, giving her a tight hug. "Let's play!"
She pushed the small child away. "Yeah, Rose told me. Not where though." In Vera's head, she heard Tseen Foo's obvious annoyance at this, denied an easy prize. "I'm just here for girl talk!"
The excuse sounded dumb to Vera's ears, but Rose's mother only smiled and nodded. "Sure thing, dear. I'd love to talk! Would you like some hot chocolate?."
"Sure." Vera would be crazy to refuse such hospitality. In her coat pocket, the device Master Tarazed gave her stabbed against her side as she sat.
"Me too!" Danny waved his hands wildly.
"Sure thing, kiddo." Rose's mom laughed and prepared their hot chocolate. The steamy, chocolate-scented drink filled Vera's nostrils as Rose's mom handed it to her. "What do you want to talk about?"
"Not much. Just wanted to see how you're doing," Vera replied.
"That's very thoughtful of you, dear," Rose's mother said, sipping her drink. "I'm doing the best under the circumstances. We seem to jump from one crisis to another! My house almost got stomped by an alien monster! The garage was totaled! And a good part of my kitchen got ruined." Vera had seen the tarps covering parts of the house.
"It could have been worse. Thankfully, we weren't home. Poor June. She wasn't so lucky. She was at her house when the Altair attacked. But thanks to God's eternal grace, she wasn't hurt. She's steaming mad, though. So many of her late husband's things got destroyed. I spent an entire day helping her search through the rubble. And Frank across the street had to enter a nursing home now thanks to his injuries. His health was already declining, but it's sad. His grandfather bought that house."
"Oh." Vera had seen the rubble and damage when she'd biked over here. There'd been plenty of broken houses. Some repair crews were still working to repair the damage to the street's infrastructure. "Did anyone die in the attack?"
"Just one person," Rose's mother replied. "Sarah Jane. She was in her kitchen when it collapsed. They had a memorial service last week. Poor dear, she'd worked so hard to buy that house, too. She was planning to have a child soon with her husband."
Okab's attack had disrupted many human lives. It tugged at Vera's heartstrings more than she had expected. But she shrugged off such foolishness. Earth was only a speck of dusk. What did one short, insignificant life matter to the great Altair cause? They must satiate their hunger. That was what Vera told herself as Rose's mom talked more about how the community had suffered since Okab's attack.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Vera. Am I boring you?" Rose's mother asked.
"Nah." Vera quickly sipped her hot chocolate, realizing it was getting cold.
"Children shouldn't need to worry about such matters." Rose's mother's expression turned hard. "The Altair have much to answer for."
"I'm sure," Vera replied awkwardly.
"If only I were Luyten V's pilot instead. Then Rose…" Rose's mother collected herself, rising to her feet. "I made some cookies for when Rose returns. It's cheating a bit, but would you like some? I can always make some more."
"That sounds nice." Humans had surprisingly good food, though pathetically inadequate to sate the hunger of the Altair.
"I'll be right back." Rose's mom disappeared into the kitchen.
"Now's a fantastic time to hide the bomb," Vera thought. Out loud she said, "I'm going to the lady's room. Be right back."
"Okay." There was a hitch in Rose's mother's reply. Had she been crying? Awkwardly, Vera took the staircase upstairs.
"Don't falter now, Aquila. They are just humans." Lord Tarazed had given her an important mission. She couldn't allow Vera's memories to cloud her judgment. Still, why did people like Rose's mother make it so hard?
Rose's room was not unlike how her host Vera had remembered it—somewhat messy and filled with odd trinkets that struck Rose's fancy. Various mechanical parts were spread out on a table, like puzzle pieces that hadn't yet been fit together. Vera bet Rose would contrive a way to make something fully unique from them.
Since young childhood, Rose had been obsessed with taking apart and rebuilding whatever she got her hands on. Not that her room wasn't girly. On her walls were various posters of her favorite bands, many displaying cute boys on them. Fluffy stuffed animals lined her shelves, though oddly organized by their animal kingdom.
"Find any useful data on the Luyten V." Lord Tarazed had given her this assignment, but Vera doubted Rose knew much about anything.
On one table sat her laptop, the one Rose only used for homework and playing Minecraft. But it might have something useful. Then something caught her eye—a notebook beside her laptop. When Vera flipped it open, she found notes, each about the Luyten V. It had various theories about how Luyten V's systems—a hodgepodge of guesswork, but still fascinating. Rose was a very smart girl. Vera froze as one sentence caught her eye:
"I am pretty sure the energy system was of my design. No proof, but it seems like something I would build."
"Huh? What the heck does that mean?" Was Rose saying she helped build the Luyten V? That made no sense.
"Read on," Lord Tarazed said in her head. "We're close to a breakthrough here."
There were more thoughts about what various systems Rose might have built. Bizarrely, she spoke about it as if it were something she'd do in the future. Vera's mind was left a confusing jumble of thoughts as she returned the notebook.
"Something else is going on here," Lord Tarazed mused.
"She's a dumb child," Tseen Foo said. "She's just making things up or whatever. It means nothing."
But Vera doubted this was only a childish flight of fancy. It didn't fit Rose's personality. Rose never did anything without a reason.
"Ahem. Vera, it's rude to snoop."
Vera jerked, eyes wide as she spotted who stood in the doorway. It was Rose's older sister, Sophia. She must have been in her room and overheard Vera talking to herself. Careless.
"I wanted to borrow some CDs from Rose and stumbled across it!" Vera said lamely.
"CDs?" Sophia raised an eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure Rose got rid of hers. She mostly streams music now."
"Yeah, it was a stupid thought," Vera said, cringing she hadn't conceived a better excuse.
Rose's sister, however, accepted her response in good humor. "What are you even looking at, anyway?"
"Just some weird thing about the Luyten V." Vera passed over the notebook. She noted the hypocrisy of Sophia criticizing her for snooping.
"Rose sure is something," Sophia said, wearing a fond smile. "I don't understand any of this. Rose is going to be an amazing engineer when she grows up. Did you know the government is already poaching her?"
"Really?"
"Yeah, her future schooling is already paid for. There's even talk of Rose taking some advanced classes this summer."
"During summer?" Wasn't that a break from endless schooling?
"Typical Rose. She'd rather be in a classroom than be out swimming or something." Sophia studied Rose's notes more closely. "She talks like Luyten V is something she's making in the future."
"Baffling, right?"
Sophia's expression turned thoughtful. "The Luyten V did just appear one day."
"I suppose so." Vera considered the day the Luyten V had first appeared. It'd come crashing to the ground after some strange lights appeared in the sky. Her host had seen it herself when she'd been walking her dog. The government had reported it had crashed after its experimental plane had a malfunction, but was this true?
"Tsk. What an annoying mystery," Tseen Foo said. "What are these humans playing at?"
"Plant the bomb and leave," Lord Tarazed said. "We'll research this later."
"I'd better get going. Your mom promised some cookies," Vera gave a fake laugh. "Want to join us?"
"Maybe later," Sophia replied. "I still need to study. College entrance exams are a pain. Unlike Rose, I don't have the government falling over itself for me."
They parted, and Rose's sister returned to her room. When Vera saw the coast was clear, she returned to Rose's room. With her ideal hiding spot already in mind, she ducked down to plant the bomb under Rose's bed. Vera paused, questioning if she could follow through. No turning back once she planted this bomb.
"Plant it. It is your mission. You are not Vera, Aquila. You are an Altair," Lord Tarazed said.
"You're right." Vera was long gone. She was Aquila. Her hands were steady as she planted the device, sticking it to the bed frame firmly.
A lightness came to Vera's heart as she returned downstairs, laughing as she caught Rose's mother's confused expression. "I thought I left something in Rose's room. Turned out, I didn't."
"Oh." Rose's mom smiled. "The cookies are ready."
"Sounds great." Vera felt on top of the world. She'd finally committed to the right side. Soon, Rose would be gone, and her people would begin their conquest of this universe. Vera was nothing but a dead phantom. The Altair were supreme, and nothing would stop them.
///
"What the heck?" Sophia watched as Vera returned downstairs, an odd smile on her face. Despite claiming she'd leave right away, Vera had returned to Rose's room again.
"Everything seems in order." Yet, some instinct warned something was terribly wrong. Vera had been acting strangely—like she was play-acting her own life.
"What is this?" After a thorough search of Rose's room, Sophia had discovered a strange object. Under Rose's bed was a black box that screamed bomb. Sophia's heart rate had kicked up by several orders of magnitude when she'd found it.
She carefully lowered a blanket that had covered the bottom of her sister's bed. If it were a bomb, she dared not even touch it. Still, why would Vera plant a bomb under Rose's bed?
Whatever the case, she'd find out. While she didn't have a giant robot, she'd protect her sister. She dialed a special contact number LUVOLT had given her.
"Hey, Sandage. We might have a situation."