Before I can answer, I hear Sarah scream. Her gun is making an empty clicking sound and, realizing that she’s empty, the Mogs have descended on her. One of them reaches through the doorway and buries a dagger deep into her shoulder. She falls to the ground, grasping her shoulder as another Mog reaches in and yanks Ella violently from Sarah’s arms.

I light up my Lumen, but it’s too dangerous to launch a fireball while the Mogs are holding Ella. They’re out of range quickly, disappearing down the hallway in retreat. I reach out with my telekinesis and drag Sarah over to us.

“Are you all right?” I ask, quickly looking over the wound in her shoulder. It looks bad, but not fatal. Sarah looks stunned and relieved to see me awake.

“John!” she exclaims, and yanks me in close with her good arm. It’s not even a half-second hug, Sarah shoving me away, realizing the danger. “Go! You have to stop them!”

I leap to my feet, ready to tear off after the retreating Mogadorians. I stop myself, looking down at Sam and his father. Malcolm is still alive, but fading fast. The way Sam crouches over him, holding his hand, it reminds me of that night at Paradise High School when I was powerless to stop Henri from dying. I could save him, I realize.

Healing Malcolm would mean letting the Mogs escape with Ella, though. It would bring Setrákus Ra closer to what he wants—a future that I still don’t entirely understand, but one where Ella rules over humanity alongside him.

Sam looks up at me, his cheeks wet with tears. “John! What’re you waiting for? Go help Ella!”

I think of that Sam I saw in the nightmare, how tired and beaten down he looked, his spirit gone out of him. I think of how badly it hurt me to lose Henri. I can’t let my friend go through all that, not after he and Malcolm have just found each other again.

Letting Ella go, the future I could be dooming her to—no, there will be time to stop that later, I tell myself. I have to help Malcolm now.

I kneel back down and press my hands to Malcolm’s stomach and his wound begins to close slowly beneath my touch. Finally, some color begins to return to Malcolm’s face, and his eyes open.

Sam is staring at me. “You let them take her.”

“I made a choice,” I reply. “They won’t hurt her.”

“How—how can you know that?” Sarah asks.

“Because Ella—” I shake my head. “We’ll save her. We will stop them. All of us, together, I swear.”

Sam grabs my shoulder. “Thank you, John.”