These people left in a hurry, and we should do the same. Yet I can’t bring myself to say so out loud. Momma could be with Altair’s soldiers still, or back at the ship. But Scorpia would never leave us. She has to be here in the city, somewhere.

Though the wrinkle of frustration in Lyre’s brow says it’s pointless, I dig my comm out of my pocket to check if she’s been in contact. There’s nothing from Scorpia, nothing from Momma, but a multitude of missed calls from Daniil a couple of hours ago. My stomach sinks. With everything that’s been going on, I didn’t even think to ask Momma about him.

But more concerning, there’s a message from Altair buried in the midst of Daniil’s attempts to contact me: Kaiser, report to me immediately.

Yesterday, he wanted nothing to do with me. What does he want now? Unless… A chill trickles down the length of my spine as I remember that last glimpse of him and Momma yesterday. Again, I’m struck with conviction that the timing of this evacuation can’t be a coincidence.

I switch my comm over to the news feed. My device still hasn’t been disconnected from the military network. When I see the updates scrolling across it, I suck in a sharp breath.

Vin has fallen. No survivors.

We’ve lost contact with the troops sent to Vin.

Reports of unknown illness in Il Yask. Initiating quarantine.

Il Yask down. Quarantine failure.

Kelivskyny infected.

Kelivskyny down. Initiate immediate evacuation of all nearby cities.

I scrutinize the updates, trying to make sense of them. Vin is a city near the front, a hotly contested strategic point that recently fell under Isolationist control. That could have been where Momma went to “test” this weapon with Altair’s soldiers.

But Il Yask is a fort under our control, and Kelivskyny one of our cities. I paint the destruction across a mental map, tracing a path from their side of the border to our own—a line straight through the heart of our territory. Whatever is happening, if it continues, it will cut through Fort Jaalis, Fort Sketa, where I left my team—and then Drev Dravaask.

And though the reports don’t specify, I have a sinking suspicion that I know exactly what this is, and why Momma didn’t make it back to her room.

We’ve lost contact with the troops sent to Vin.

I rip my thoughts away from that trail and try to focus. I can’t afford to think about that right now. Judging by the time stamps on these updates, we don’t have long until the destruction reaches us.

But while Momma can handle herself, leaving Scorpia is as good as killing her.

If we stay, we could all die. Yet, despite everything that’s happened between us, the decision is easy. I can’t leave her behind.