RONAN The old wooden floor at the bottom of the door groaned loudly under my feet. The sound seemed too big for the dark living room. Only the light of the new stars came in, shining through the thin curtains my father had chosen. The dark did not matter to my eyes. My special contacts gathered every bit of light and painted an improved, bright version of the room for me. The colors looked a little faded and strange, but I could see everything clearly, almost like it was daytime. A deep silence filled the house. Given the late hour, this should not have bothered me, but it did. It felt heavy and wrong. My parents were clearly not home. Where were they? Where were my brothers and sister? At least half of them lived close enough to walk here. This property was built to be safe. It had its own well with a clean filter and its own solar power system with big batteries. If you wanted to wait out a disaster, this was the perfect place. So why was everyone gone? The floor groaned again, a tired sound, as the remains of the army squad entered. They carried their wounded friend between them. I pushed the cold fear growing in my chest down deep, locking it away for now. Silently, I guided them to the big kitchen. The large center island dominated the vast communal space my parents loved. They built this home knowing it would host countless family gatherings. Now, its smooth stone top was the perfect place to try and save a man's life.The wounded soldier barely took up a quarter of its surface. I placed the heavy helmet they had lent me on the opposite end, away from O'Brien. "We really could use some proper light if we're going to plug this bleeding," Jackson said, his voice tight. "You sure this place has battery backups?" I gave a firm nod and looked at Sergeant Nguyen. He was standing very still, biting his lip slightly in thought. He turned his head toward Ackerman. "Do a full sweep of the structure. Secure it. Then establish a lookout point upstairs." Then he turned his steady gaze to me. "Is there any way to get just the lights on above this island? I would rather not announce our presence to the entire area." I understood his worry completely. The power was dead all across this part of town. Any light would be a beacon.Anyone who saw this house lit up, running on stored power, would head straight for it looking for help. And after the hostile reception this squad had already faced, they were not interested in meeting any neighbors. I focused, activating my contacts fully. I found our house server on the quiet wireless network. My mother had password-protected it before leaving. Using our family passcode, I slipped inside the system. My hands moved in the air at the edges of my vision, working with the virtual field to give commands. Within moments, the house gave a quiet shudder and sprang back to a whisper of life as I activated the battery system. I was very careful, limiting the power to only what we needed. A single line of recessed lights above the island glowed a soft white. Their intensity grew until they cast a bright, clean pool of light over the stone.At the same time, the air conditioning began a low hum through the ceiling vents, and the quiet appliances in the kitchen beeped awake. Then my mother's recorded voice filled the sudden silence, cheerful and out of place. "Welcome home, Dill Pickle." Nguyen arched an eyebrow at me. O'Brien let out a rough sound that was part laugh and part agony as Jackson jammed a coagulant syringe deep into the open wound on his leg. I managed a weak smile, feeling my face grow warm with a familiar embarrassment. "My name is Ronan," I said, my voice quieter than I intended. But my mother's voice started a chain reaction inside me. Concern and a sharp guilt began to twist in my stomach and eat at my core. Not knowing where they were right now was a physical ache. I forced the feeling down. It would have to wait. I had to stay on task. Once I finally reached my destination, I would dedicate all the time necessary to review their digital footprint. I would find them. The odds were good my mom hadn't tried to hide the car's access to the local cellular network. She might not have even stopped it from connecting. I would track them. I let out a long, shuddering sigh, forcing myself to be calm. I moved away from the kitchen, walking through the familiar shadows of the house. I caught sight of myself in one of my father's pieces of reflective art hanging in the family room. The man staring back was a stranger in battle dress uniforms and a dead soldier's boots. The sight sent a fresh chill through me. "Going to check my room for some different clothes," I said, my voice just above a whisper, to no one in particular.I needed to feel like myself again, even for just a moment.