I walked as close to Mae and Xam as I could and tried to act like the lack of light in the maintenance shafts didn’t terrify me. I had been told my whole life that the dark wasn’t something to be afraid of but I think those people have never encountered something malevolent in the darkness. It was the biggest relief that my actual friends never poked fun at my phobia. 

Xamber squeezed my hand with a tender smile. “It’s okay, Kol. You’re safe with us.”

I gave him my most convincing smile and his small laugh let me know he could see right through my feigned bravery. “I know. The darkness can’t get me. The monsters are few and far between.”

“Down here, maybe.” Anak walked beside Ryka just ahead of us, the light from the tablet only barely allowing me to see Anak’s face as he looked over his shoulder.  “Up above, monsters are possibly more numerous than Shapeshifters. Partially because some of my people have been consumed by the Corruption and became the monsters they once feared.”

My vice-like grip on Xam’s hand only tightened and I had to loosen it when I heard his quiet sound of pain. “Sorry.”

He shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, Kol. My hand has been through worse. Remember when I got it stuck in the transport door? The medic said I was lucky I didn’t lose a finger.”

“Probably because Kolyver pried the door open within a few seconds.” Mae hooked her arm around mine and smiled at me in that way that made me feel better no matter how bad I felt.

“I was just doing what any good friend would have done.” The dark didn’t seem as bad with both of my partners so close to me. I sometimes wondered how I had gotten lucky enough to find two people who cared for me so much.

Ryka shined their light on the maintenance door and I think we were all glad it didn’t have a digital lock like the restricted room. Ryka tried the handle and sighed when it didn’t give. “Anyone know how to pick a lock?”

I sheepishly raised my hand. “That would be me. I, uh, I used to...redistribute the possessions of others who had more than enough and did not spread the wealth. I wasn’t going to let a lock get in the way of helping the less fortunate.” I knelt in front of the door and examined the lock under Ryka’s light. “Oh, yeah, no problem at all. This isn’t even a complicated one.” I reached into my pocket and fished out a small tool I carried at all times. I easily picked the lock and swung the door open. “Duh-nuh.” I smiled when that got a laugh out of my friends. Even Anak cracked a smile.

Anak went into the pitch-black room and I was thankful when he found an overhead light. The room was filled with equipment used to make repairs on the various systems in the colony. The only oddity was a large shipping container with another digital lock on it.

Anak stepped up to it, but Ryka grabbed his arm with a stern look. “Would you let me try a passcode before you go using more magic?”

Anak huffed and took a step back, gesturing to the lock. “Magic would be a more efficient method of getting into it, but fine.”

Ryka rolled their eyes before typing a code into the keypad. There was an audible clunk as the lock disengaged. Ryka gave Anak a triumphant smirk. “What was that about magic being more efficient?” The pair laughed when Ryka nudged their companion.

I started to pull the container’s heavy metal door open with some difficulty, turning away the help my friends offered. “I’ve got it.”

Xam shook his head and helped me anyway. “You know these doors take two or even three people to open.”

Anak’s eyes were a bit wide once we had gotten the door open. “I’m impressed you were able to move it on your own at all, Kolyver. You’re quite strong for an individual your age.”

I stretched out a small ache in my shoulder before shrugging. “I’ve always been stronger than others. It means I end up carrying things a lot, but I don’t really mind. I like feeling useful.”

“Your worth isn’t measured in how much you can do for others, Kolyver. You would be just as useful if you weren’t as strong as you are.” Mae stood on her toes to kiss my forehead.

Ryka shined their light around the nearly empty shipping container, illuminating the small pile of boxes in the corner with FRAGILE written across their sides in large red letters. Ryka pointed to a label that was on each of the boxes. “That’s the sign used to mark explosives.”

I approached the boxes and easily pried one open with my bare hands. Inside was a stack of what looked like clay. “What is this stuff?”

Anak examined the contents. “Plaster explosives. This could easily have caused the explosions. Even if this shipping container was only half full of boxes like this, it would be more than enough to sabotage the air filtration system without leaving much trace. It’s meant to burn off as much as possible.”

Ryka took several pictures with their tablet. “I sent these to my personal database so even if something happens to my tablet the evidence won’t be lost. I still think we need to go to the site of the explosion. We need all the evidence we can get.”

Mae frowned deeply. “I think this is enough evidence, isn’t it? We found the explosives.”

Ryka shook their head with a serious expression. “No. We need to be able to prove these explosives were the source of the disaster. The filtration system isn’t far from here. We still have plenty of time to get back.”

Mae crossed her arms. “I just have a bad feeling about this.”

Xam nudged her lightly. “Everything will be okay, Mae. You’re worrying too much.”

Mae followed the rest of us out of the shipping container. “I don’t think the rest of you are worrying enough.”

Ryka was able to get us to the filtration system in only a few minutes. The closer we got, the less effective our breathing masks became. My eyes watered from the residual pollutants in the air despite the protection the mask was supposed to give. Almost every surface was scorched and covered in ashes and grime. The filtration system was in pieces, some of which we had passed on our way to the main hub. Even though the fires had been out for quite some time, there was still a strange haziness to the air as though smoke still hung there.

Ryka ran their gloved fingers through some of the grime that covered everything in sight. They rubbed their fingers together, an odd silver glow illuminating their eyes. “Definitely from the plaster explosives.” 

I tilted my head. “Ryka, can you use magic like Anak?”

Ryka’s eyes went wide when they realized I had caught them and they gave me a nervous smile. “Yes, kind of. Anak is much more powerful than I am. I can only do a fraction of the things he can.”

Mae furrowed her eyebrows. “I thought he said it was rare for Humans to survive becoming...what did you call Minister Saltyr? An Awoken?”

Anak had borrowed Ryka’s tablet to take pictures. “Correct. It is rare but the process can be made easier if the one going through their Awakening has a Guide. I did that for Ryka. It is unlikely they would have survived without me.”

“So sad you put all the effort forward only to get everyone here killed.”