Page 10 of The Last Hope

I can’t see any of this. I can only hear it and feel what Mykal feels.

I stumble to my feet, standing, and lean on the door while the cadet zaps Mykal repeatedly. Until Mykal involuntarily releases his clutch. He trips backward. Falling down next to Court.

Me again.

I stick my arm through the hatch and immediately clasp a rod.The zapper thing.I fight with the woozy cadet. “We did nothing wrong!” I scream, wrenching the rod with everything I have in me.

We did nothing to deserve this.

Sizzling maddened tears prickle my eyes, and I yell and yank and I must press a button because I hear another zap and his garbled voice.

What sounds like a body hits the floor with a loud, echoingthump.

My brows spike.

I stay very still.

Waiting.

And the cadet goes completely quiet.

“Franny, bring it inside,” Court says quickly, referring to the weapon. He slowly rises with Mykal, both hunching with the low ceiling.

I maneuver the rod long-ways and carefully slip it into the brig. I cradle the sleek light weapon that appears more like a blue broomstick with no bristles. Each end is flat and identical.

Mykal sidles next to me. “What in three hells is that?” He tilts his head and inspects the zapper thing.

“I haven’t seen anything like it before.” I pant, still catching my breath. I run my fingers down the smooth rod. I can’t find the button that I pressed. “Maybe it’s an Influential weapon.” I look to Court, who’d know best about Influential business.

Court wipes his damp forehead. “Most likely, it’s a Saltare-1 weapon.”

I nod. Our icy home planet, Saltare-3, wasn’t as technologically advanced as our sister planets. While we lived in perpetual winter, others in our galaxy had better climates. Especially the largest planet of all: Saltare-1.

I never needed to think much of our four sister planets. Not when I thought I’d die at seventeen. But in StarDust, I learned to read and I did discover a bit more than the tales I heard.

I discovered that Saltare-1 has the most technology and sent our planet aerospace training machines, holograms, and theSagastarcraft. All in hopes that Saltare-3 would join Saltarians in a war against Andola. Earth.

For Court, Mykal, and I—all we wanted was to find peace. And safety.

“So Saltare-1 may have more of these zappy things?” I ask Court.

He cringes. “Why must you use slang?”

That’s what he’s so worried about? Really? “What harm is there in talking how I like? We’re not pretending to be Influentials anymore. They know ourrealnames.”

We told Commander Theron who we are. I didn’t bother saying that I’m Wilafran Elcastle when I could be Franny Bluecastle. Court didn’t chide me either. We all believed it’d help free us.

Obviously, we were wrong. It wouldn’t be the first time.

Before Court responds, Mykal nods at the rod. “Let me see the funny-looking stick.” He reaches for the weapon, and I tuck the rod to my chest.

“I think I should hold on to the funny-looking stick,” I say.

Court tells Mykal, “You’ll break it.”

He scratches the light stubble along his hard jaw. “You’re telling me these wondrous ladies and men from this forward-thinking planet didn’tthinkto make an unbreakable stick?”

My brows pinch. Could theRomuluscrew possess unbreakable, undefeatable weapons? I guess I wouldn’t know. But at least we have one to use against them.