“Not necessarily.” Alexia’s image faded and her voice transferred to the com. “My database does not show any NTC facilities at that location.”

Emanuel ran a hand through his hair and took a seat next to Sophie. “What do you think?” he whispered.

She shrugged and decided to hold off further discussion of the signal. “Let’s table this for now and talk about what we know.” Pausing, she looked around the room. Each member of her team shared the same puzzled look.

“The radio messages Sergeant Overton and his men heard indicated the sky had not only changed colors but there was some sort of mist. This leads me to believe surface water was being vaporized into the sky. If there was enough of it, from lakes, rivers, and so on, then it could potentially have this effect. But that’s not where my theory becomes stretched,” she said, strolling toward a desk in the corner of the room. She reached for a glass of water and held it for the team to see. “Most people don’t realize it, but the human body is 70 percent this,” she said, dumping the water on the ground.

“No fucking way,” Timothy said sarcastically. “Like we didn’t all learn that in middle school.”

“As I was saying, the human body is mostly water. What if the Organics have some way of scanning for it? And what if they have a way of removing it from our bodies? What if the orbs are human-sized petri dishes with one purpose: to drain the host of every ounce of water in its body?”

Overton crossed his thick arms. “Is that what happened to Saafi?”

“I believe so. When the drone’s beam captured him and Emanuel, I saw some drops of liquid rising from their bodies toward the craft. And . . .” she paused and looked at a camera protruding from the wall. “Alexia, do you recall what Saafi’s water composition was when he first got back to the Biosphere?”

“Yes, Dr. Winston. He had lost over 15 percent of his water density.”

“Ding, there you have it,” Emanuel said. “Sophie’s right. Owen survived because the Organics didn’t pick him up with whatever scanning technology they have to detect water sources. Something wasn’t calibrated right.”

“That doesn’t mean they won’t figure out a way to do so,” Sergeant Overton said. “If they have the ability to suck every ounce of water from the surface of the Earth, then they will find a way to get to the hard stuff.”

“Like the pond in Biome 2,” Holly suggested.

“And whoever’s at the other end of that beacon,” Overton added.

“Exactly. I’m guessing this attack will come in surges. Get the easy stuff first and then move on to the rest,” Emanuel said.

“All the more reason to check out this signal, like, now,” Overton said. “Maybe this person knows how to stop them.”