In answer, Setrákus Ra appears in the chair next to Ella, wearing the same ornate armor as when he attacked the Sanctuary. All of us flinch backwards. The Mogadorian leader doesn’t notice us, though. He can’t, on account of his head being covered in a black hood. Chains made from glowing blue Loralite are wrapped around Setrákus Ra’s chest and shoulders. They keep him pinned to the chair, even though he struggles.

“What the hell?” Nine asks, taking a cautious step towards Setrákus Ra.

“Why is he here?” I ask Ella.

“I had to pull in everyone who’s been touched by Legacy,” Ella replies. “It was all or none.”

“Legacy . . . you mean?”

“The Entity,” she replies. “I gave it a name. It doesn’t seem to mind.”

Marina chuckles. That makes me smile too, actually. It sounds like the old Ella in there.

“Is this Legacy thing going to come out and introduce itself?” Nine asks. “I want to say what up and ask for new powers.”

“It’s here, Nine,” Ella replies, and I think I see a corner of her mouth perk up in a smile. “It’s in me. It is this room. It is all around us.”

“Oh, okay,” Nine replies.

“Can he hear us?” John asks, staring at the shrouded Setrákus Ra.

“No, but he knows something is happening,” Ella says. “He’s fighting me. Trying to break through. I’m not sure how long I can hold him. We better do what we’re here for.”

“What are we here for?” I ask.

“Everyone, sit down,” Ella replies.

I look around to see if anyone thinks this is as nuts as I do. John and Marina immediately pull up chairs at the table, with Lexa and Adam quickly joining them. Nine catches my eye, flashes me a cock-eyed grin and shrugs like what the hell. He sits down next to John and I squeeze in between Marina and Ella. That leaves only one seat, the one next to Setrákus Ra. No one was eager to sit there.

Grudgingly, Five walks over from the room’s edge and sits down next to his former master. He looks like he’d rather be just about anywhere else right now and avoids making eye contact with any of us.

“Perfect,” Nine sneers.

While everyone gets settled, I lean over and whisper to Ella. I can’t keep my mind off my impending showdown with Setrákus Ra.

“Ella, you said run or die,” I begin, not really sure how to approach clarifying a prophecy with my maybe-dead energy-riddled friend. “Is that . . . are those still our only options? If I fight Setrákus Ra will I—will any of us . . . ?”

Veins in Ella’s forehead throb. “Six, I can’t. I can’t tell you what to do. It’s all . . . it’s all too uncertain.”

“Now what?” John asks Ella, breaking up our conversation.