A minute later, he could make out dull colors and erratic movement amongst the trees. “Cass!” he yelled, crashing through the brush. It didn’t matter now if he was heard, the Turned were already here. And maybe he could distract them from their prey. “Cass!”

His lungs burned from running, but concern compelled him as smoke and the smell of burnt flesh began to fill the air. Another shot went off. How many bullets did Cass have? That made five now. Should he take out the Turned closest to him or go on?

“Cass!” he shouted again. “I’m coming!”

The Turned had a hard time maneuvering through the branches, giving Theo an advantage. Although they possessed human host bodies, the funguses inside were only capable of instinctual movement and had the limited functions of human senses. He passed them to find at least ten more crowding around something, the trees blocking his view of what that was.

Theo’s mind feverishly took in the situation, calculating what he needed to do. A weapon, he would need a weapon. A rock. No, the ones he spotted were too small. A stick? Again, thin and brittle. He tightened his fists. They were all he had until he could find something else.

The Turned seemed so occupied with their prey they didn’t react to Theo’s presence until he arrived and aimed a powerful kick at the nearest one. It flew forward and before it could get up, Theo was already standing over it, fists ready.

With one glance, he assessed the situation. At least ten Turned, three smoldering bodies, and a bush that had caught on fire. Theo’s heart stopped, and everything around him seemed to come to a standstill. There on the ground lay Cass like a crumpled doll, her face up toward the sky, her mask ripped off and lying a foot away.

Theo could hear nothing but a faint buzz in his head. Cass’s mask was gone. Which meant soon she would be gone as well.

A cry welled up inside of him, primal and full of rage. He might be too late to save Cass, but he wouldn’t allow it to be a loss. He determined retrieve the box and get its contents back to the Daedalus and bring this accursed plague to an end.

Theo charged the closest Turned and caught what was once a young man by the jaw. He had to remind himself there was no human inside the body. The soul had departed a long time ago. This was survival.

The Turned was down. By now the others were gathering around, but Theo was a storm of fists and kicks. Anger and fury propelled his every move. They reached for him with curled fingers and bared teeth. They were animals, and they fought like animals. But there was no refinement in their movement.

One reached for his face and mask, but Theo ducked and brought his arm up in an upper cut. The Turned went flying back. Another one took its place. Theo caught it with a side kick.

At each tiny pause, he looked around—for the box, or Cass’s revolver, or a weapon, but another Turned would appear.

Sweat covered his body and stung his eyes as it rolled down his face. He breathed hard through the mask and felt his goggles slipping down his forehead. He shoved them back up before going after another Turned.

There. Cass’s revolver.

As another Turned fell, Theo dove for the weapon and came up in a tucked roll. Were there any bullets left?

One way to find out.

He shot the middle Turned in a grouping of three. It glanced the shoulder, but it was enough to trigger the incendiary bullet. The Turned exploded in a ball of fire that spread to the two on either side of it.

Then to the tree behind it.

Gales! No time to think about that now. He was down to two Turned. But he still hadn’t spied the box.

Theo brought the revolver up and readied himself. If his opponents were driven by fungus within, he was driven by the agonizing thought of Cass. It powered his body, guiding his every movement, giving him energy he shouldn’t have.

The flames spread as the three Turned fell to the ground. He didn’t have much time.

The two Turned approached him, both once women, but now with cloudy eyes and brown, leathery skin stretched over skulls. He shot, but only a click followed. He threw the gun down. Empty. So he went with his fists instead. It didn’t take much to put them both down. A few of the other Turned were beginning to rise as he hunched over and wiped the sweat from his face. He glanced at Cass with an ache heavier than anything he had experienced before. She would be Turning soon—

He slowly straightened up. Something was different. She lay there, unconscious, but breathing. Just breathing. No violent spasms. No shudders or convulsions. His heart pounded. Was it possible? No, it couldn’t be, the odds of such a thing . . .

Hope surged through him. He was shocked at the tears coming to his eyes. He had less than a minute to decide. Find the puzzle box or grab Cass and get out.

What if he was wrong? Theo glanced around one more time. If she started Turning while they were escaping . . .

He would have to put her down. Permanently.

The thought absolutely sickened him. But if she Turned, she was already gone, and only her body remained.

He made up his mind.

He rushed over to Cass. Blood and scratches coated her face, and her goggles were gone. There was no time for gentleness. He lifted her, threw her over his shoulder, and ran.

His muscles screamed, and his body wanted to collapse. But he kept on running, pushing himself with each breath and each step. If he stopped, they were both dead.

As far as the puzzle box . . .

He remembered everything. He’d always had the ability to recall words or images, even if he’d only seen them once. The same way he remembered Cass when they met on the Daedalus, and those bright green eyes. Once he was in a safe place, he would recall it all and write it down. But the vial would be missing.

A thought struck him. Maybe he wouldn’t need it. Maybe he was holding a sample of it at that moment in his arms.

He reached the first plateau and paused, huffing and puffing. After a few seconds, he spotted a place that could be used as a takeoff. Only a few trees, tall grass, and a lengthy slope. As long as there were no hidden holes or logs.

Now came the hard part: flying tandem with Cass. How to do this . . . how to do this . . .

He laid her down gently and searched her belt and pack. Seconds later, he found what he was looking for. Rope. He would secure Cass in front of him, then use her emergency cord to attach her pack to his own.

He held her close with one hand and used the other to wind the rope around their bodies and through her pack. His tension grew. The need to hurry and the need to make no mistakes in securing the two of them safely together consumed him.

At that moment, the Turned appeared at the bottom of the hill.

His heart beat double time. He pulled the tandem cord from her pack, and after one failed attempt, quickly fastened her to his own. The cord hung over his shoulder near his neck, but once they were in the air, he hoped it would move into a more comfortable position.

Theo gritted his teeth as he pulled on the cord at his side and his glider expanded. He brought out his guiding poles and took in a deep breath.

Don’t fight the air, let it lift you.

The hymn came unbidden to his mind. His lips mouthed a prayer. Theo took another deep breath and started running.

The grinding of metal sounded behind him. That was no Turned. Was it Luron? A shot rang out behind him, confirming his suspicion.

He wanted to glance back, but one false step would send both him and the glider plummeting to the ground. Instead, he focused on the long slope ahead of him and where he would put his feet. Seconds later, his straps began to tighten as the glider and gravity clashed. The leather straps creaked, and Cass let out a groan, and her head fell forward.

“Cass,” he cried out, gripping the guiding poles.

His feet lifted off the ground.

He drew on all his knowledge and experience with flying, tilting the glider slightly to the left to catch an updraft, letting the air lift them higher and higher. For a moment, the glider stalled slightly, and he feared their combined weight would send them crashing, but then the air swept them up again.

He reached the treetops, glided for half a minute, then caught a thermal and began to circle. He scanned the area they had just left. Four Turned were shambling out of the woods and up the hill. Then he looked again. There was no sign of Luron, but Theo knew he was there somewhere.

Theo turned his attention back to the air current. He readjusted the guiding poles and continued his ascent. Was it possible the Turned had somehow subdued the automaton after that first shot? He doubted it. Luron seemed very equipped to deal with anything within the Mist. He just hadn’t been prepared against Theo’s unconventional means of attack.

Which also meant even if they reached the Daedalus, they weren’t really safe. Luron would continue to hunt down the contents of the box, no matter what.

Seconds later, they finally broke through the Mist.

Or at least he thought they did, but the air was as thick and hazy as it had been below, almost like smoke. He took a big breath through his mask. Smelled like smoke, too.

And then he saw it. A ball of flames growing higher and higher, almost reaching the balloon that kept the ship afloat.

The Daedalus was on fire.