“That is incorrect, Dextro Arez.” A voice squeaked out from Dex’s wrist.

“What the—” Andi yelped. Dex nearly crashed the transport into an ice spiral as he whirled around, forgetting the gears for a moment.

“Dex!” Andi screamed, reaching over and grabbing the wheel. The transport spun as both of them grappled for control, finally slowing to a near-stop. They hovered over a broad expanse of frozen lake, colors shifting beneath the surface.

Dex looked down at the watch on his wrist. “Alfie?” he asked incredulously.

“Artificial Life Form Intelligence Emissary,” the droid reminded him.

“You scared the hell out of us, Alfie,” Andi gasped.

Alfie’s voice was as dry as ever. “Impossible. Hell cannot be contained in a human body, nor can it be proved that it is, in fact, real.”

Dex burst out laughing, the sound strangely out of place after the attack, but welcome all the same. “Took you long enough to show up. Finally found a connection?”

“We are on Solera,” Alfie said, as if he’d just noticed. Likely his chip was finally done calibrating into the watch, re-tethered to the feed. “Why are we on Solera?”

Dex kicked the engine back into gear, turning them back toward Craatia. “You’ve been a little under the weather, pal. Last we saw you, you were supposed to be delivering the results of those blood tests you performed on Valen, before the Marauder crashed on Adhira. You said there was a team of scientists in Averia that needed the information.”

“Then someone murdered you,” Andi said. “But I saved your memory chip, so you could tell us what the hell happened, and who did it.”

“Incorrect again,” Alfie said. “I cannot be murdered, for I am not alive. I was dismembered by Sir Valen Cortas. He commanded me to allow him to do so.”

Dex cursed. “Of course you were. What was he trying to hide, besides the fact that he was related to Nor? And why am I incorrect again?”

“You said Valen Cortas was Arcardian, born and raised. Valen is half Arcardian, yes,” Alfie said. “But according to his DNA, he is also half...”

His words trailed off. Dex’s watch screen flickered, as if it were malfunctioning.

“Alfie?” Dex asked. He shrugged and knocked the watch against the transport’s dash.

The screen flickered back on. “I cannot compute.”

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” Dex sputtered.

“He should be half–Xen Pterran, right?” Andi asked. “Because of Klaren?”

“Evidently Klaren Solis was not Xen Pterran,” Alfie replied. “But there is nothing in the entire Mirabellian database that explains where her DNA originates from.”

Andi met Dex’s gaze, the uneasiness in his expression mirroring her own feelings. “So you’re saying that Valen’s mother isn’t from Mirabel?” Dex asked. “But how is that possible? Maybe her people just haven’t been discovered yet?”