The tropical world of J-16 shrank in the rearview mirror of the Cloud Leopard, having been only momentarily disturbed by a visit from alien beings. Other than a Raptogon with a missing tooth, everything had returned to normal.

Almost.

The steady whir that was the sound of flying ZRKs broke the stillness of the tropical jungle. A swarm of six ZRKs flew in formation toward the new edge of the cliff that Chris had created with the Cloud Cat. Resting on the grass were the remains of the Raptogon tooth. The ZRKs circled the remnant, settled on top, observing.

They flew back to a sleek white craft that was perched on the cliff edge. It was the same size as the Cloud Cat, with a pointed nose and a tripod pedestal. Two doors on the top hinged open and the ZRKs entered.

There was a moment of total silence, and then an older boy emerged from the ship and made his way toward the Raptogon tooth.

Within an hour, the boy had returned, the engine whined to life, and the craft lifted off. It floated out over the cliff, hung there a moment, then shot up to the sky.

Miles above the planet’s surface, another spaceship was in orbit. It was a white ship, not unlike the smaller cargo craft. It looked like a flying wedge that began with a sharp nose and flared out into a triangle. It was at least as large as the Cloud Leopard. The smaller craft approached the giant ship and entered through an air lock in the stern.

On the navigation deck, a deck remarkably similar to the Cloud Leopard’s, four flight seats faced the center monitor. On the monitor was the same gray-haired man who had been observing the competition at Base Ten from deep inside the Sierra Nevada Mountains.

“I see the tooth has been secured,” the man said. “It should be treated in the Element Fuser as quickly as possible. But first, you must be on your way. We don’t want the Cloud Leopard to get too far ahead. Have you locked onto its Gamma trail?”

“Piece of cake,” the pilot replied. “It’ll be like following a trail of bread crumbs, just like we did to get here.”

“Don’t follow too closely,” the man cautioned. “We don’t want them to know they’ve got company…not yet, anyway. Bon voyage, Light Blade.”

The monitor went dark.

The pilot of the ship known as the Light Blade scanned the control panel on his seat, which was an exact duplicate of the control panel on the Cloud Leopard.

“Okay. Gamma drive is primed,” he said, all business. “Maximum booster load is pinned. Time to fly. Is everybody go?”

“Go,” replied Siena Moretti.

“Go,” Niko Rodriguez said.

“Get us out of here,” Anna Turner barked from the commander’s seat. “I’m already sick of this place.”

“All right!” Ravi Chavan said as he slipped on his flight glasses. “The Omega crew is outta here in four…three…two…one…IGNITION.”

Anna gave a sly smile. “Here we come, Dash Conroy.”