We arrive with our tows at Point Dume around four in the afternoon. A big pile of rocks protruding from the water off the point makes a perfect place for us to spy on the beach. We hide behind the rocks and keep a lookout for Ty Rath and his men. Thom and I are on watch when they arrive at dusk and set a perimeter up on the point about two hundred feet above the beach.
“They aren’t going to make this easy for us if they keep your friend up there.” Thom sighs. “But then again, I didn’t think they would.”
I bite my lip when two men appear dragging Cam between them. He stumbles as he walks, his hands tied behind him and his shirt spattered with blood. I wish we could rush in and rescue him now. Hang in there, Cam, we’re coming!
Thom sends me a sympathetic glance. “Hey, at least your friend is still alive, and the Chief must want him that way, at least for now.” We slip back into the water to re-oxygenate and let Penn and Janni take the next shift watching Rath’s fighters.
It’s dark by nine-thirty. Thom and I are on watch again, and Rath’s people have settled into their positions around their camp. From our vantage point on the water, it now appears only four fighters are watching and waiting near Cam, but we know at least ten are more hidden about their makeshift camp. All are armed with powerful crossbows or solar rifles.
“It’s time,” Thom says softly and touches my arm. “Remember to fire a foot to the right and a foot below a sighting beam if you see one.”
My stomach churns as we slip back into the water and swim to join the others down by the tows. I want this operation to be over, and I want Cam and my friends all safe. Janni hands out fish tranquilizer pistols to Rad, Ocho, Shadow, Thom, Ree and me, and keeps one for herself.
:Are we sure the dosage in these darts will knock them out?: Ree asks, looking dubious as she loads three darts filled with fish tranquilizer into her pistol.
:Oh yeah,: Rohan says with a grin. :Doc Iharu tried it on Captain Gonzalez’s big first mate, and he says the man went out like a light, and he’s still out.:
:I still think you’d be safer using real spear guns,: Dai grumbles.
:If we kill or injure a bunch of his men, Rath isn’t going to want to deal with us,: Janni says. :We’ll stick with these tranquilizer darts. Shore team, you ready?:
We all nod and swim for the rocks beneath the point. Why did I think we could possibly infiltrate a camp of hardened guerilla fighters? I’m so scared, my teeth are starting to chatter. Afraid the others might hear, I clamp my jaws shut.
:You be careful up there,: Dai says fiercely on a private send as he swims by my side. :Usually I don’t mind not being able to breathe air like a landliver, but tonight I do.:
:I know,: I say, warmed by how worried he is for me. :I’ll be careful.:
The rest of our team stops and waits in the water ten feet down, spear guns loaded and ready to cover our retreat. Shadow and Tobin say earnest goodbyes to each other, and Ree kisses Rad. A pang of regret shoots through me as I glance at Dai. He starts for me, and then he stops, his face torn.
:You are such a stubborn idiot,: I say. :You’re not going to damage me with a hug.:
I look away and try to put Dai out of my mind. I need to focus if I want to survive tonight’s mission.
The shore team surfaces and swims silently toward the point. Thick clouds cover most of the stars and darken the night, which is good for us. We can still see, but Thom says Rath’s men will be using night vision goggles, which means Sunny’s brilliant light show should overload their sensors and blind them for a minute or more. We hope.
Sunny stops at the base of a rock pinnacle beyond the end of the point. The top of the spire sits just a few feet below the point itself.
:Give them the brightest light show you can, and then get out of there before someone decides to shoot you,: I tell her. Sunny nods, looking pale. Silently she climbs up the spire, more agile than most land kids. Tonight she’s wearing just a swimsuit, which will allow more of her bioluminescent light to escape from her arms and legs.
We continue on to the pile of sandstone rocks along the shore directly below the point. As soon as we walk out of the water, I lose track of Ocho and Shadow. They’ve already used their genetic ability to alter their skin color to blend in with their surroundings. To darken his skin, Thom borrowed medical ointment from Tobin and mixed in some black ink Shadow donated. Now he spreads the ointment on his hands and face.
:Good luck,: Janni says, and then Rad, Ocho, Thom and Shadow start working their way silently up a dirt gully that leads to the top of the point. I barely breathe as I watch them, afraid they’ll knock a rock loose that will announce our presence.
Ree, Janni and I stay behind as the rear guard at the rocky shore. After our friends reach the top and leave the chute, we can’t see them anymore.
:’Kay, there’s one guy near the top of this gully,: Thom reports back to us, :but he’s busy watching the water. Shadow’s gonna dart him. Sweet shot! He’s down. Ocho, you take the guy behind the bush over there.:
There’s a brief silence and then Thom announces, :That’s two down and no alarm raised yet. The Chief is not going to be happy with these guys for snoozing on the job. Now we gotta find the closest relay for the perimeter laser. I’d have placed it right about… yeah, here it is, but first we need to knock out the guy on watch ten feet from the relay. Whoa, I know him. That’s Snake Eyes. He is one mean mucker.:
There’s another silence, and we all wait on edge. All I can hear is the blood pounding in my ears.
:Sunny, are you in position now?: Janni asks.
:Yeah,: Sunny replies, :and I’m ready to light up on your signal.:
:Snake Eyes is out,: Thom reports back in. :These darts work great. Sparkhead, come do your thing.:
There’s another silence. I hold my breath because we’re all afraid that an alarm might go off after Rad shorts out the relay for the perimeter laser.
:It gave me a little tingle,: Rad announces after an endless minute, :but I gave it a bigger zap, and now it’s fried.:
I let go a sigh of relief. The night remains quiet with no alarms betraying our presence.
:We’re in position about fifteen feet away from Cam now,: Thom says, :and we’ve taken out most of the fighters on this side of camp. But they’re going to realize something’s wrong any moment now.:
:Roger, that,: Janni says. :Sunny, it’s time for you to do your thing.:
Fifteen seconds later, light flares outward from the top of Sunny’s spire. I don’t want to lose my own night vision, so I close my eyes, but the light she’s generating is so bright, I can sense it through my eyelids.
Her light flickers out. Seconds later, it pulses again even brighter than before. Men exclaim and curse above us.
:The guys are blind, we’ve got Cam, and we’re bugging out,: Thom reports.
“Where’s that light coming from?” a man with a deep voice calls out.
“Chief,” another voice shouts, “there’s someone out on the point. I swear it looks like a girl, and her whole body lights up.”
“Digs, you’re dead if you’re been drinking again,” the man with the deep voice yells. “Whoever she is, shoot her.”
:Sunny, get out of there!: Janni yells telepathically.
:I’m gone,: Sunny says breathlessly, and a second later the pulsing light vanishes.
Two dark figures appear at the top of the gully. Ocho is using two of his arms to carry Cam and the rest to steady himself as he scrambles down to the shore. He sets Cam down beside me at the waterline. I almost burst into tears when I see his battered face. The moment Ocho cuts Cam’s wrists free, he staggers forward and grabs me in a hug.
“I had a hunch you’d try to rescue me, but I can’t believe you pulled it off.”
“I had a lot of help. Can you use a breather?” I ask Cam as Robry splashes out of the water and helps to steady his brother.
“I th-think so.”
I hand him the breather. “Robry and the others are going to take you by tow underwater to where the Phantom’s anchored.”
“Thanks.” Cam places the breather between his teeth, signals it’s working, and Robry and Ocho hurry him down into the water.
Suddenly, I see a white flash from solar fire above us, and someone cries out.
:Crap, they just seared Rad’s shoulder with a solar rifle,: Thom yells. :Shadow, you help him down the gully, and I’ll cover for you.:
Janni and I move closer to the bottom of the gully and peer up. More flashes light the night sky. Shadow and Rad come sliding down the chute, bringing a wave of rocks, gravel and dirt with them. Rad’s face is twisted with pain. Ree takes his arm, and the girls help him into the water. I’m so glad now that we have two experienced medics with us.
:It figures you’re the only clam-head who managed to get hurt,: Ree chides Rad as they slip under the waves.
:Talk to us, Bigfoot,: Janni says anxiously.
:I’m pinned down behind a bush. They haven’t found me yet, but they will when I move, and I’m outa darts.: I hear the strain in his mental voice.
:Janni, we’ve gotta go help him,: I say. :You know he’d try to help us.:
:All right,: she nods after a moment, :but keep your head down. If we can’t reach him, we retreat back to the water. We won’t do anyone any good if we get shot or captured.:
Before she finishes speaking, I’m scrambling up the gully, rocks and gravel biting into my palms. I stop near the top and crawl the last few feet, the acrid scent of singed brush from stray solar shots filling my nostrils. My pulse thunders in my ears as I pull out my tranquilizer pistol and steady my shaking hand on the dirt edge of the gully.
:We’re at the lip now,: Janni tells Thom, crawling up beside me. :Where are you?:
:Ten feet to your right.:
I wait till I spot a red sighting beam, and then I fire my pistol a foot to the right and down from it, just like Thom told me.
A woman, sounding surprised and angry, says, “Chief, some slimesnake just darted me!”
:Sunny, make another light burst down there on the beach,: Janni orders hurriedly. :We need a diversion to get Thom out of here. But after two pulses, dive back into the water. These fighters are seriously mad now and they will try to shoot you.:
:Understood,: Sunny replies. :Two bright light bursts coming up in fifteen seconds.:
:Thom,: Janni says with remarkable calm, :you’re going to have to sprint for us, and Nere and I will cover you.:
:I’m ready.:
Sunny’s light radiates outward from the beach below in a golden flash, and Thom rises from the brush and sprints toward us. He makes it three steps, but just as Sunny creates another light burst, he jerks and falls forward, grunting in pain. Janni and I make a dash for him, solar fire searing the air around us. We grab his arms and try to drag him toward the cliff face, but Thom’s so big, we manage to shift him only a few feet before bright lights shine in our faces.
“Drop your weapons, or we’ll cut you to pieces,” an angry voice orders us from the darkness.
Squinting against the brilliant lights, Janni and I drop our tranquilizer pistols and slowly raise our hands.