Ling flipped several toggles; Vapor turned two large knobs. The two made eye contact; Vapor nodded.

Ling said, “Sprite.”

Sprite flipped down two differing eyepieces over the front of her compuglasses and turned up a slide along the edge. She reached her gloved hands forward and made a distinct flicking motion with her hands above her. Power sources hummed, booting up; the long florescent bulbs in the room dimmed, some flickering briefly to black.

Helen held her breath, hand resting on her dog’s head.

The aces watched their monitors, flipping through readouts.

Helen watched Sprite, but she was not moving.