"No wonder Yago remembered him," 2Face said."Probably one of his heroes."

  "Maybe," Miss Blake said. "But are these troops equipped to go up against the Blue Meanies? They're six centuries apart in applied technology."

  Jobs watched Yago and the others mount their horses. Most needed help.

  Burroway's foot kept slipping out of the stirrup.

  T.R. barely had the strength to pull himself up into the saddle.

  Anamull threw himself so heavily on his horse, he came close to tumbling off the far side.

  Olga Gonzalez did okay. So did Tate. Roger Dodger let himself be lifted.

  D-Caf made it, but awkwardly. Yago did okay, too, but he sat uncomfortably in the saddle.

  Tamara, still holding the baby, easily mounted her horse, using only one hand to hoist the combined weight.

  "Except for Tamara and the baby, they'll probably be slaughtered," Jobs said. "How are pistols and swords going to take down flying aliens in armor? And cannons can't hit moving targets."

  "Well, the Union soldiers have experience," 2Face said. "Unless they've been called up out of Yago's head with no other input from Mother."

  "She might have put Yago's memories together with information from a data disc," Miss Blake suggested.

  Jobs watched as General Sheridan gave the signal and Yago and the other Remnants rode off at the head of the regiment of Union cavalry. Yago's mouth was set in a grim line. The others looked deeply afraid.

  "So, where exactly are they going?" 2Face said.

  Miss Blake shook her head. "Should we follow them?"

  "I could go."

  Jobs looked down at his little brother.

  "What?"

  Edward shrugged. "I could find out stuff. They won't see me 'cause I won't look like me."

  Jobs looked at Miss Blake and 2Face. "What do you think?" he said.

  2Face crouched in front of Edward and put her hands on his shoulders. "Okay, kid. But you have to be really careful."

  "If they go into battle," Miss Blake said, "stay out of it."

  Edward was Jobs's responsibility. He wasn't sure he should let Edward go, but if Miss Blake thought it was okay, it was probably okay."Thanks, Edward."

  Edward smiled and scurried off. Jobs watched his little brother sneak up close to a slowmoving group of packhorses at the rear of the regiment's column and suddenly seemed to disappear. He blended right into the pack of horses.

  "Okay," he said. "What now?"

  2Face grinned. "Taxi!"

  CHAPTER 16

  "IT'S YAGO'S DAD!"

  2Face shut the front passenger side door behind her. Jobs and Violet were in the backseat, Jobs behind the driver.

  The cab was more of a sports car, 2Face noted. The backseat was practically in the front seat.

  "Look, we ... "

  2Face stopped. Stared at the driver's profile. He turned to look at her, his expression quizzical. 2Face glanced at the identification card on the dashboard. Yeah, same guy. But ...

  "Uh, Mr. Castleman?"

  "That's my name, don't wear it out." The driver chuckled.

  "It's Yago's dad!" 2Face hissed over her shoulder.

  "Don't have no kids," the driver said nonchalantly." Never married. Never got around to it.

  What kind of a name is Yago, anyway? What about a nice, normal name, like, say, Robert?"

  2Face said, "Right. Uh, we need to follow the cavalry."

  "Stop!"

  Mr. Castleman slammed on the brakes. The cab screeched to a stop.

  "We have to pick up Edward," Jobs said, pointing to the horse.

  "Now you just wait a minute, son." Mr. Castleman looked over his shoulder. "Do you know what a horse can do to fine leather upholstery? Plus, I don't know. He looks awfully big."

  2Face rolled her eyes. "just please open your window, sir."

  Mr. Castleman did.

  "Edward?!" Jobs called.

  "I don't want any damage to the paint, either," Mr. Castleman mumbled. Then, "What the ... where did it go?" .

  Miss Blake threw open the mini third door behind the front passenger side door. "Edward, get in!"

  Edward scampered around the front of the cab and climbed in over Miss Blake. He squeezed himself in between her and Jobs.

  "Don't leave yet, Mr. Castleman," Jobs said. The man grunted. Jobs turned to Edward. "Well, did you hear anything? Where are they going?"

  Edward frowned. "Um, it was a weird word. They were all saying it."

  "Saying what?" 2Face said. "C'mon, Edward, think."

  Edward smiled, like he'd just remembered. "They were saying as how they're going to crush the Rebels. At Manastis."

  "Manassas? Is that what they said?" Jobs prodded.

  Edward replied, "Maybe. Someplace where there are Rebels."

  "Manassas," Miss Blake said. "It was the site of several Civil War battles."

  "Who usually won?" Jobs asked.

  "The Rebels."

  "In this case," Jobs said, "the Blue Meanies."

  2Face was grim. "We told Yago not to make a deal with Mother -"

  "But he did," Jobs interrupted, "so now what do we do? Do we help Yago? Or do we stay out of it?"

  "We didn't promise Mother we'd kill the Blue Meanies," Miss Blake said."Yago did."

  "What difference does it make now whether we join in?" 2Face raged. "Mother won't stop until she's eliminated the Meanies. If Yago can't accomplish the extinction, she'll find some other way. And we'll be punished along with Yago."

  "And if Yago does keep his promise ... "

  "We're done," 2Face said. "If he comes out a hero, he's in charge of us all. I've said from the start that Yago is our number one enemy."

  Jobs had been through this with 2Face before. Most times he wasn't sure he trusted 2Face any more than he did Yago."Yago is as much a pawn as we are," he said.

  "But ..."

  Miss Blake put her hand on 2Face's shoulder and Jobs was surprised to see that such a seemingly gentle act of restraint had its desired effect.

  He went on. "But I agree our being captives of a malfunctioning computer can't go on. Mother has to be disconnected."

  Jobs turned to Miss Blake."What do you think?"

  "The enemy of my enemy is my friend," she said carefully. "At least for the duration of the fight. None of us know enough about the Blue Meanies to trust them beyond what we think is their immediate goal - get to Mother. But maybe that's all we need to know, for now."

  Jobs thought he'd been wrong before, like when he'd banked on that "enemy of my enemy" thing, back when he'd ordered an attack on the Squids to show solidarity with the Blue Meanies. Still ...

  "Let's go to Manassas," he said finally."We'll try to forge an alliance with the Blue Meanies."

  Mr. Castleman frowned. "Manassas? That's going to be a hefty fare. You kids have the money?"

  Miss Blake laughed. "Sure."

  "Pedal to the metal, Mr. Castleman, sir," 2Face said. "We need to get to Manassas before the cavalry."

  CHAPTER 17

  "FOUR SACRED STREAMS WAS OUR FRIEND."

  "Here you are," Mr. Castleman said."Manassas."

  Jobs's eyes widened. "Are you sure?"

  Mr. Castleman half turned in his seat. "I've been working this route for ten years, kid. If I say this is Manassas, it's Manassas."

  "Fine, thanks," 2Face said. She pushed open the front passenger side door and got out. The others followed.

  "It's a sports stadium," Miss Blake said, squinting up at the massive structure. Behind them the cab pulled away.

  Jobs nodded. A stadium, but with the usual distortions they'd come to expect. The environment was a combination of Yago's memory and Mother's imperfect research. For example, there was a massive barn door where no barn door should be. And the outer walls were painted in swirls of pink and purple and lime green.

  "Football stadium," 2Face confirmed. "For the Washington Warriors, formerly the Redskins. I had an uncle who was into football."

  "Can we get a hot dog?" Edward asked.

  "I think it's up to them," Jobs said. "Look."

  Atop the stadium's walls Blue Meanies were posted. Jobs counted six sentinels and assumed there were more on the far side of the stadium.

  "How do we get in?" Miss Blake said.

  "First," Jobs said, "we let them know we've come in peace." But would the Blue Meanies understand him? They didn't have Billy to facilitate communication.

  Jobs cleared his throat and looked up at the Blue Meanie positioned directly in his line of sight.

  "We have a message from one of your people," he shouted. "From Four Sacred Streams. He asked us to, uh, sing to his people of his death. He died destroying node thirty-one. We are friends," Jobs added, a bit embarrassed to be shouting all this. "Four Sacred Streams was our friend."

  Jobs, 2Face, Miss Blake, and Edward stood motionless in the muggy air and waited. None of the Blue Meanies on the stadium walls stirred.

  "Well," 2Face said under her breath. "What now?" And then the huge barn doors slowly began to open. "Show time," Miss Blake said softly.

  Noyze watched guards lead the two boys and two girls onto the playing field. From up in the cheap seats nothing about them seemed familiar. But of course the four had been on the Mayflower.

  Noyze scrambled ten rows closer to the field and ducked. She felt her heart pumping in her chest.

  The four kids stopped in front of Twelve Hallowed Stones. Noyze had no doubt he'd understood what the older boy had called out from below. She also knew he wasn't going to let on that he'd understood their message.

  Noyze watched the older boy and the blond girl gesturing, mouths moving,trying to communicate. For a second Noyze lost sight of the little boy. Then she saw him again, standing close to one of the Children.

  The dark-haired girl with the scarred face peered around suspiciously.

  Noyze turned away and snuck off. She would find Dr. Cohen. Together they would find a way to speak to the new captives.

  Maybe together they could all find a way to stay alive.

  * * *

  Twelve Hallowed Stones did not judge the humans to be an immediate threat. So he had dismissed three to wander the camp and indicated he would listen to the light-haired female alone. Too many human voices at once unnerved him.

  The light-haired female squatted in the dirt and with the stick she had requested – which Twelve Hallowed Stones had provided - began to draw.

  The female spoke as she drew, and periodically looked up at Twelve Hallowed Stones intently, willing him to understand. He did understand, of course, but remained impassive.

  First the female drew a simple figure that represented some of the humans. Twelve Hallowed Stones knew this because the female gestured to herself and to the others she'd come with. Besides, he recognized the words she spoke.

  "Us," she'd said, counting off four fingers. "Me and my companions." Clearly she did not know of the existence of the other humans Twelve Hallowed Stones had been guarding.

  Then the female drew a crude four-legged figure and pointed to him. Twelve Hallowed Stones repressed a flicker of annoyance.

  The young female went on to draw figures that represented humans other than those present in the Children's camp. Those on the battleship, Twelve Hallowed Stones guessed.

  "And Mother," she said, looking up at him. Twelve Hallowed Stones watched as the female drew a distinctly human, feminine form, large and round. It was nothing like Mother, but Twelve Hallowed Stones understood.

  What was the human trying to tell him? Twelve Hallowed Stones wished she would just speak and not waste time playing in the dirt.

  Carefully the female drew a large circle that encompassed the other humans and Mother.

  "They have joined forces," she said. "Mother - well, she is making these humans attack you. They're being forced to attempt to destroy you."

  Twelve Hallowed Stones watched as the female drew a thin jagged line, tipped with an arrow, from the large circle to the figure representing the Children. She continued the jagged line all around the figure, until it was enclosed.

  "Do you understand?" she said."The humans are not your enemies."

  Twelve Hallowed Stones gave no sign of understanding. But he did understand and in spite of himself was impressed with the young female's ability to communicate the notion of alliances. What she'd said regarding the humans being forced to march against the Children interested him. He was not sure if he believed it. He was not sure it made a difference.

  Twelve Hallowed Stones looked down at the female, still kneeling in the dirt. The Children would save Mother. They would save themselves.

  The humans would have to be sacrificed.

  Violet was frustrated. She thought this alien understood what she was trying to communicate. But he gave no indication of comprehension, no indication of anything at all.

  If only Billy were there.

  Violet was frustrated but scared, too.

  "I am going back to my friends," she said, and pointed first to herself, then over her shoulder.

  She took a step back. The Blue Meanie just stood there. So Violet turned her back to him and walked away.

  CHAPTER 18

  "WE'RE THE ENEMY IN THE ENEMY CAMP."

  Nobody had locked them up. Jobs thought it was odd but wasn't complaining. The Blue Meanies were letting them walk around free.

  Still, Jobs had some hope for a deal with the Blue Meanies. They didn't seem totally unreasonable.

  While Miss Blake remained to communicate with one of the aliens, Edward had gone with 2Face to look for food. Jobs opted to stay on the edge of the playing field, close to Miss Blake.

  That's when he saw them. They were watching him from the interior end of a long corridor. Jobs took a few steps closer to the opening of the corridor.

  A girl, small and dark skinned, her hair pulled back tightly in a short ponytail, and a woman, slim, medium height, with light brown hair tucked behind her ears. Jobs wondered if they were real or Mother's projections or images called up from the stew in Yago's head.

  Only one way to find out. Jobs walked toward the girl and the woman. They watched him come.

  When he was within fifteen feet of them, the girl smiled. "I remember you," she said. "I saw you and your parents and a little boy. At the barracks. I'd forgotten."

  "You were on the Mayflower," Jobs said, less a question than a statement.

  "Dr. Angelique Cohen," the woman said, extending her hand.

  Jobs took it, introduced himself. He wondered how much these two knew of what had happened to their families. He would spare them the gory details of the Cheesers, the Wormers, the Facelifts.

  "I'm Noyze," the girl said. "Where did you come from? Dr. Cohen and I woke up prisoners of the Children."

  Jobs smiled. "We've been calling them the Blue Meanies. Because of the color of the suits."

  Dr. Cohen raised an eyebrow.

  Jobs shrugged. "We've been wandering. Mostly in two groups."

  "Who's with you?" Dr. Cohen asked eagerly. "Is there a Dr. Alan Carrington? He's my husband."

  Noyze looked steadily at Jobs but didn't ask about anyone.

  Jobs felt uncomfortable.

  "No," he said. Then added quickly," But we know there were eight people missing from the ship. We assumed they'd been taken away by someone. You and Noyze are two. That means there are six others, but we don't know who they are."

  Dr. Cohen's lips tightened and she nodded.

  "Your parents?" Noyze said, her voice gentle.

  The simple question opened the floodgates of sadness. So much loss. How could he ever forget? "They didn't make it," he said. "But Edward, my little brother, did."

  "That's good."

  "Why Noyze?" he said with his almost smile.

  "Mostly deaf until I was twelve," Noyze said simply." After that ... "

  Jobs nodded.

  He spotted 2Face and Edward farther along the concourse and waved to them. When they joined the group, Jobs made quick introductions. He noted 2Face glance at Noyze out of the corner of her eye, almost warily.

 

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