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“NOOOO, don’t leave me, please!”

“Ipromise you,Iwill return.”

“Pleasedon’t …SCOUT, please.Ican’t be alone again.”

“Ok, ok …Iwill stay right here.Justremain calm.”SCOUTstarts talking to the air it seems. “Commander,Ihave foundLacie.Sheis in serious condition, and you need to approach with caution when you leave the timberline, as the main cliff wall has collapsed.Sheis sitting on an outcropping that is weakening as we speak.”

Suddenly, theCommander’svoice is all around me. “Ihave your coordinates.Wewill be there momentarily.”

SCOUTfloats closer, “Lacie,Ineed you to hold perfectly still if you can.Howdid you end up down here?”

“Iwas running fromEric/Jeffery, the serial killer.”SCOUTtilts his head. “That’sa whole other story …Anyway,Iwas pinned … one way meantIwould be tortured until he got tired of me…Theother was quicker, soIhad just stepped back, ready to jump, when he rushed me.Suddenly, the ground gave out from under us, and hereIam.He’ssomewhere down there.Tobe honest, my head is hurting so badly thatI’mterrified you’re not real.”

“Iam real even ifIam much smaller than what you are used to.TheCommander,KyT, andMeKwill be here in just a couple of tics and we will get you out of here.”

IswearIfeel my mind crack, “You’renot real! …IwatchedMeKleave … he let them say all those mean things to me and then just left me here.Noone cares, andI’malways gonna be alone.”Sobbing, the tears stream down my face asIpress my head against the rock.Agentle touch causes me to startle, andIseeSCOUTstanding next to me, only about six inches tall.Histiny hand brushes a tear from my cheek thatIcan truly feel.

“Lacie,Iknow this is confusing, butIneed you to listen …Youare not losing your mind!SinceIam anAI,Ican adjust my size and shape and howIappear to you.Iweigh nothing in this form, andIcan travel much faster.Thatis whyIwas able to get here before the others.Wealmost did not find you since your translator seems to have been damaged, and your comm unit is offline.TheTimbersgave us a basic direction to follow, but luckily,Iwas able to hear your voice echoing off the cliff walls.Ipromise we will get you out of here.”

Justthen, a few rocks fall from above, but whenIstart to sit up,SCOUTstops me.

“Lacie, sit still.Iwould prefer you to move as little as possible.Iam going to float up so thatIcan discuss your situation down here with theCommander, but you will be able to see me at all times.”

Suddenly,Ihear voices above me, andIfeel the rockI’mlying on shift.

“Lacie!Lacie, are you there?SCOUT, is she alright?Lacie, hold on,I’mcoming down to get you.”MeK’svoice ripples throughmy chest, andIfeel like it would be easier to hurl myself over the edge of this rock than to face him.

“MeK,Commander,Ineed both of you to step back off the edge because you are pepperingLaciewith smaller rocks.”

SCOUTsuddenly gets quiet, soIknow whatever they’re talking about, he doesn’t want me to know.ButIcan hear pieces of their conversation becauseMeK’svoice is echoing through the ravine. “Lowerme down …Unstable… she could slip further … both of you could die… no sign of the other body.”

“Commander, what are your orders?”

SCOUTfloats back to me, but this time he is his normal size.Nonetheless,Ican still see through him. “Lacie, we are going to try something, althoughIneed to warn you about the risk.Asyou know, in this form everything passes through me, just as you would if you fell.However,Imay be able to solidify my arms enough to throw you up.MeKhas the longest reach, and theCommander, withKyT’shelp, should be able to anchor him successfully so he can catch you.”

“Whycan’t they just pull me up?”

“Lacie,Iam going to be honest with you.Therock wall is barely hanging on.Itis only by the will of theLordofLightthat you did not, nor have you, plummeted to your death along with the male who put you in this danger.Wecould take the time to race back and get the gear needed to save you, only to lose you before it could arrive.Orwe can use what we have.IfIsolidify entirely,Iwill fall, but ifIonly harden a small part of my body,IbelieveIcan maintain this form and still get you safely toMeK.IfIdrop you, … well,Irefuse to acknowledge that this will not work.Accordingto my calculations, they show an eighty-nine percent success rate.”

“IfIwait?”

“Youhave a forty-three percent success rate.”

“Well, throwing me is sounding better and better.Whatdo you need me to do?”

“Iwant you to slowly stand up if you can, and then when you are steady on your feet, move toward the edge of the platform.Onthree,Iwill solidify enough to throw you, but let me warn you, this is going to hurt.”

“Now?”

“Yes! …Commander,MeK, get ready.”

Ittakes me a minute to get my legs under me asI’mshaking all over.Severaltimes,SCOUTmotions for me to stop moving and holding myself still in one place only makes the shakes worse.Ofcourse, fresh blood starts seeping down my leg and face asIshuffle my feet forward.Iwas terrified when the cliff wall gave out andIstarted to fall, so the fear of that happening again is taking everythingIhave mentally to push myself forward.

“Youare doing great,Lacie.Now,Ineed you to stop and catch your breath.Areyou ready for me?”

“Yes.”

“Wewill count to three together, and thenIwill lift you up.”