“Like you didn’t do anything crazy the last time I left you?” He laughed.
We neared the pyramids. After days of commotion there, they seemed eerily quiet and serene on the viewscreen. Nothing was left but some tents and millions of footprints from around the world.
“It’s always more fun exploring ancient alien planets with you, buddy. You know that.”
He lowered us, and we headed to the ramp in the middle of the ship, opening it to a brisk midnight desert breeze. “You have everything you need?” he asked, passing me a heavy pack.
Mary swung on a winter jacket and tossed me mine, which I caught with my free hand. “I think so. Sad to think this is the last time we’ll see Earth.”
“You never know,” Slate said back. “Especially with you, boss.”
Mary hugged our big friend. “Zeke Campbell, you’re one in a million. I can’t wait to see you back home. Thanks for keeping Clare and Nick safe up there.” She kissed his cheek, and I hugged him too.
“I couldn’t keep us all safe,” he said somberly.
“You couldn’t help that,” Mary said.
“I guess so. I wish I could just leave this ship behind and come with you, but Magnus is probably right. Every asset should be saved.”
“See you soon.” I saluted him, and we walked down and toward the pyramid. Slate lifted off and headed upward toward the last warship, waiting for the remaining Kraski ships to join them for the journey home.
We watched him leave, looking at the starlit sky. This was it. No more Earth. I thought about my farm back home, my parents now both gone. With a glance over at Mary, I knew she was thinking about it all too, and a single tear rolled down her cheek.
I stretched out my hand, grabbing hers. “New Spero will be our new home. A fresh start for everyone.”
“I’ll miss what we had.”
“Me too.”
We stared into the sky for a while longer before shaking it off and heading toward the pyramid.
“After you,” I said, waving Mary into the entrance. We walked along the pathways in silence; recently installed battery-powered LEDs lit our path. The walkway slanted down the whole time, and soon we were at the floor built to separate our people from the portal.
Crude stairs had been dug into it during the excavation process, and we carefully stepped down them, aware of how many feet had walked down them over the last week.
It looked far different than the portal we’d emerged from not long ago. Now the walls had lights mounted on them, and the halls had been widened to fit more people through at once. The entrance to the portal room was there, the round stone door open just enough to allow us to slip through.
I lowered the heavy pack to the dirt floor, thankful for the reprieve from its weight.
“Let’s set them down the hall a way too,” I said. Mary grabbed a few of the small bombs from the pack and lined the hall with them, one every three yards. They each packed a punch, but we wanted to make sure the portal was gone for good.
Once we emptied the bag of them, Mary took the detonator and slid it into her breast pocket. I tried to roll the door closed, but it didn’t matter. None of it would survive the coming explosion.
“What about everyone we didn’t remove?” I asked, feeling the guilt weigh heavily on me.
“We don’t have the time or resources.”
I nodded and moved to the center of the room where the table sat, its gemstone glowing now. We’d run this portal ragged, but it didn’t seem to have any limitations. That was good to know for other planets. I’d have to fill Sarlun in on my findings. He’d be saddened to hear we’d destroyed one of them, but I hoped he’d understand why.
With the icon loaded for New Spero, Mary slipped the detonator out.
I grabbed the communicator that was linked to the one we’d left behind on the Bhlat ship housing the Empress and tapped it.
“Empress,” I said into it.
“Dean Parker.” Her voice sounded stronger than the last time we’d spoken.
“It’s done. Earth is yours.”
“Thank you.”
“Remember our deal. Our conflict is over. When the dust settles, I’ll contact you with the locations I promised you.” I held my breath, half-expecting a retort.
“Our conflict is over.”
With the communicator back in my pack, Mary set the detonator timer to twenty seconds.
“Goodbye, Earth,” she said quietly.
I pressed the icon, and everything went white.
THIRTY-ONE
“I do,” Mary said through a beautiful smile.
“I now pronounce you man and wife.” The officiant clapped her hands together.
I leaned in, taking Mary’s hands in mine, and I heard the words “you may kiss the bride” after we were already deep into our first kiss as a married couple.
Our friends cheered us on. After a few seconds, I pulled back, not wanting to overdo it.
Mary was so gorgeous, wearing a contemporary wedding dress, her hair in an updo I hadn’t seen before. I wore a tuxedo, the dark pink accents matching her flowers, but it all felt a little out of place on our acreage on New Spero. We’d discussed swaying from tradition, but in the end, elected to follow the old ways from Earth. We couldn’t lose those types of conventions, not with the loss of our home so fresh in everyone’s minds.
We turned to the crowd. I spotted almost everyone we knew, and then some. The day was warm, the planet’s summer season in full effect, and some of the guests were using handmade fans to cool themselves.
Natalia stood beside Mary, acting as her maid of honor, with Magnus at my side as my best man. I glanced and smiled at the front rows, spotting Slate sitting with Clare and Nick, all of them smiling widely. I waved and got a thumbs-up from Slate.
“Time to party!” Mary yelled, getting another cheer. Music came on the speakers, and we walked through the crowd again, stopping to chat here and there. I saw Isabelle and James talking with Leonard, who looked great in his new suit.
Suma and her Gatekeeper father Sarlun were there too, beside Leslie and Terrance. They’d all traveled here for the event via the portals.
“I’m really happy for you two lovebirds,” Magnus said, wrapping his big arm around my shoulder. “I knew we’d make an honest man out of you.”
Natalia was fixing something in Mary’s hair, and little Dean ran up to his dad; Magnus scooped him up in his arms.
I felt something on the back of my leg. I turned to see Carey, holding a toy and pushing it against my calf. I knelt down, so happy to see the aging dog still with so much energy. He accepted my incessant petting and eventually rolled over to let me rub his stomach.
The younger pups found their way over when they saw this, and soon I was playing with them all, tossing a ball while they ran after it. After a few throws, Carey slumped his butt down on my shoe, and watched the more exuberant dogs keep chasing the object.
I loved that dog so much, and he knew it. I could feel Magnus’ gaze on me.
“I’ll be fine. He’s your dog. I only selfishly wish that had worked out differently,” I said.
Maggie trotted over, and Magnus’s son handed me a small bag. I opened it and found a leash, a dog dish, and some food.
“What’s this, Dean?” I asked the boy.
“Maggie’s going to live with you, buddy,” Magnus said, while his little boy shyly hid behind his dad’s leg.
“You don’t have to do that,” I said, looking at the cute dog rolling in the grass.
“Believe me, we have enough going on, and she’s never happier than when she’s over here with you. Don’t say no. You need it as much as she does.”