“Everyone okay?”

A chorus of yes came back to her, plus one “I hate you” from Mir. Mitzi offered a hand to the nearest sitting figure, Eoin, and pulled him to his feet, the exoskeleton’s assistance sending them both stumbling backwards.

“Good luck, team,” Nic said. “I’ll be offering whatever assistance I can from a distance.”

The engines whirred as the Teal Riot lifted away from them, rising towards the atmosphere, its rounded steel hull shining in the sun’s weak light. It was quickly enveloped by the dust that seemed to saturate the area, and Mitzi reflexively raised a hand to shield her eyes from the grit, only to smack her suit’s face instead.

Franc, Skye, and Adam had already unhooked their guns and were turning in slow circles, scanning the area. There wasn’t any motion, but that didn’t mean they were alone.

Nic had set them down in a relatively clear hollow amongst the destruction. Wildly twisted metal beams and the skeletons of buildings surrounded them on all sides. The heavy dust of demolished bricks covered every surface, and she could see more than a few structures that had been scorched with fire.

“They must have put up a hell of a fight,” Mitzi muttered. She turned towards a pile of bricks that had once been a wall and climbed it as well as she could in the too-eager suit, stumbling and staggering. When she reached its top, she turned in a quick circle, surveying the area. The dust was taking its time to settle, obscuring nearly everything.

“The suits have infrared,” Nic said. Mitzi could no longer see the ship, but his voice sounded close and comforting. “I can activate it, if you like.”

“That would be terrific.”

There was a click, then the screen in front of Mitzi’s eyes turned blue. It took her a second to adjust, but then she was able to make out the dull ruins, plus six hot spots waiting for her at the foot of the rubble pile. “I can’t see anything except my team members. Is that good?”

“Ehhh,” Nic said and turned the infrared off. “Not especially. The Cymics don’t carry any heat in their native form, so they won’t show up. The only time you’ll see heat signals is when they change into the human or merged forms—or if there’s an actual human waiting for rescue in this place.”

“What’re the chances of that?”

“Not great. I’m scanning the planet for heat signals now, and so far, it’s not finding anything.”

“Right.” Mitzi had turned in two complete circles, examining everything within eyesight. She’d scrutinised the map of their intended path during the brief shuttle ride to the port, but once she was on the ground, nothing looked familiar. “Can you tell me which way I’m supposed to go?”

“Sure. Do you see a large dark tower to your right?”

Mitzi squinted. “I see the remains of what I assume was once a large dark tower.”

“You’re looking for the entrance to a subterranean stairwell near the base of the tower. We’re going two floors underground to get to the reactor room.”