Vai

It was a different substitute at school. A human again. She had introduced herself as Engineer Wen. She didn't say it outright, but she implied we might have someone new everyday as the G.E.F. had only hired one teacher for the older students. It never even occurred to them that they might need a substitute. Her class was as equally boring as Lieutenant Garcia. At least he had talked about war strategies and not engineering.

"So," Minmin said as soon as class was over. "What happened? Did she show up?"

"Let's not talk about it here," Shel said. "I set up a program." He sent the program through to my okulus and then he disappeared from the school program. Minmin followed him. Owen nodded at me before he followed them.

When I entered the program, I was on a small island filled with green trees and large blue flowers. A large blue and silver bird sat in a tree above us. It had a large green head crest and green eyes. Blue ocean surrounded us. There was a small beach of silver sand between the ocean and the start of green vegetation. The sky was blue, but it was a different blue than the videos I had seen of the sky on Earth. This blue seemed richer, more vibrant. The sky was cloudless. There was a gentle breeze that brushed us.

"Is this a real place somewhere?" Owen asked. He touched one of the blue flowers. The petals folded into themselves.

Shel and Minmin sat at the start of the vegetation, their feet were still on the sand.

"Yes," Shel said. "It's my homeworld, Bundu IV. Just a small piece of it of course. My favorite spot."

Owen sat next to Minmin. "It's very beautiful. Reminds me of my home, Earth."

I didn't go sit with them. I went and stood by the water's edge. The waves lapped around my feet. I was curious how well Shel did in making this place - how real had he tried to make it. I made my ansible shoes disappear. The waves enclosed around my feet. The moisture swept between my toes, around my ankles, the sand underneath my feet shifted with the waves sending little granules around my skin.

"Is it to your satisfaction?" Shel asked me.

I hadn't realized they all watched me until then.

"There aren't really oceans on Mars," I said. It had never occurred to me to try to make my own place within the ansible. It wouldn't have been too hard to do. I could have recreated my past with Callie, Emilio and Posha. I could have ridden that old Levitric repulsor above Olympus City. I turned back to look over the ocean - away from the others - as a tear spilled onto my cheek. Maybe not. I had enough to deal with rather than getting lost in past memories. My hands clenched into fists by my side. I hated him. My father. I hated him for all he took from me.

Another tear spilled onto my cheek. Thankfully, none of them came to check on me. Although, I felt their eyes on me.

"So what happened?" Minmin asked Owen.

I stayed facing the ocean as he relayed what happened the night before. Not just about the girl, Esther, but also about the missing sedatives and how he and I both suspected Esther stole them.

"You should tell security," Minmin said.

I finally composed myself enough that I was able to loosen my hands and turn to them. I walked over to them and sat in the sand in front of them. I dug my toes into the silver sand. I had no idea if the sand felt the same as it would have on Earth's beaches. I had never been to Earth.

"No," Shel said, "they shouldn't tell security."

The two of them exchanged a look. Clearly they were keeping some secrets too.

"Look," Shel said to Minmin, "if there is an unknown powerful alien species and she is the only one who knows, they need to help her."

"Why wouldn't she tell the authorities if that was the case?" Minmin asked. "They are better equipped to deal with it than some girl."

"Maybe the Gathering already knows about it." Shel stopped and looked over the ocean. Something in his gaze reminded me of what I just went through.

"Fathers," I said before I realized it.

"Fathers," he agreed and an understanding passed between us.

Minmin and Owen looked at both of us like we were crazy.

"Maybe only a few in the Gathering know," I suggested. Like my father. He seemed to know a lot about things no one should know about, had authority he shouldn't have. Then again, he was an extremely good scientist at the top of his field. Just look at what he did to me.

"Why would a few in the Gathering keep it secret?" Minmin asked. "It doesn't make sense."

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"It makes sense to me," Shel said. And I could tell he thought of his father just as I had. For the first time since I had awakened I was beginning to feel a connection to someone similar to what I had with Callie, Emilio and Posha. I looked around at my three new friends. Friends. Truly friends.

"We need to ask her," Owen said. "She isn't crazy. And I'm not crazy. I know she made me forget the first time and made me lose ten minutes. Have any of you ever heard of that before?"

We all shook our heads.

"Well, maybe she's a dangerous alien then," Minmin said.

"Maybe," Owen said, "but I doubt it. I'm pretty sure she's human."

"Either way, they need to find her and talk to her." Shel didn't direct this at me and Owen, but at Minmin. They exchanged that look again. "They can't wait for her to just go to them again. What if she never does? What if she's in trouble?"

"We're just kids," Minmin finally said. "We shouldn't get involved in this." She looked away from Shel and looked to me. "Tell your father. Let him find her. He seems to have a lot of knowledge and authority."

"Minmin," Shel said drawing her attention again. "We are not just kids. Don't use that as an excuse."

She frowned at him.

"Tell them," he said.

"Tell us what?" Owen asked.

She bit her bottom lip as she turned to Owen. A low sigh escaped her lips. "I overheard something I shouldn't have."

"What?" I asked.

"The maintenance code."

Owen smiled and he nudged me. "See, we can use that to use the maintenance tunnels to get to the restricted levels."

"They aren't going to use the same code for the Armstar as they do for the Shadow," I said.

"That's what I said," Minmin agreed.

"I have a theory on that though," Shel said. "Tell them the code, Minmin."

"0528IVLM6249ADZX0002"

"And what is your theory?" I asked Shel.

"0002 is the Armstar's number within the G.E.F. Armata. What if the rest of the code is the same and only the last numbers change based on the ship."

"No," I said, but I wondered. "They couldn't be that stupid."

"The long codes aren't easy to memorize," Owen said. "Maybe they made the illusion of it being difficult, but it is really simple. It doesn't happen often, but personnel do sometimes get changed to a different ship. If the only thing they need to know is the ship's new number, it would be an easy shift for maintenance."

"It wouldn't hurt to try," I said. "If it doesn't work, it doesn't work. So what is the Shadow's number in the armata?"

"I don't know," Owen said.

"Seriously?" Minmin asked.

"What?" Owen asked. "It's not like everyone knows their ship number."

"But," Shel said, "the Shadow is the flagship."

"So . . ." Owen said.

"So the number is obviously 0001," Minmin said.

"Of course," Owen said. "Easy, my friend. We were just testing you, weren't we?" He nudged me.

"It's obvious we didn't," I said.

Owen frowned at me. A laugh escaped from me at the look on his face.

"It was obvious," Shel said.

"Let's sign off and go test it then," Owen said. "On level 6. I know just the spot so that no one will notice us. If it doesn't work, maybe I need to make some on-ship deals. I'm good at that."

"Tell us how it goes," Minmin said.

"And," Shel said before we could logoff, "you can come here anytime if you need a refuge."

"Thanks," Owen said and he logged off.

I understood that invitation was directed more to me than Owen. I nodded to Shel as Minmin logged off. I logged off next.

Warpaint greeted me with an algae bar. "Would you like something more substantial to eat after school?" he asked. "Maybe some mashed potatoes."

"They're still made from the algae," I said. I took the bar and took a bite. The algae food wasn't actually that bad. Mashed potatoes tasted like mashed potatoes, it was just that all the algae food left a strange aftertaste.

I walked out of the bedroom, through the living room and out into the corridor.

"Are we going to the gym, sir?" Warpaint asked.

"We're going to meet Owen at the elevators to go to level 6."

"Ah, the museum. Good for you, sir."

I stopped in the corridor and turned to him. "Warpaint, my father isn't spying on me through you right now is he?"

"No, sir. He rarely does that."

"But he does do that."

"Yes, sir."

"When he does, can you give me a signal. Like poke my shoulder or something."

"I can do that, sir. He really doesn't watch you through me very often."

Well, at least there was that.

Owen waited for us at the elevator.

"Ah, my bodyguard has come," Owen said.

"I'm not your bodyguard," Warpaint said. "I'm . . ."

"I know," Owen said. "Just wishful thinking. Ready?"

I nodded. We took the elevator to the 6th floor. Owen took us passed the museum and passed the restaurant. There was a maintenance hatch behind the restaurant in a quiet area.

"Here goes nothing," he said. He punched in the code changing the last number to a 1. The hatch opened.

He and I looked at each other. I hadn't thought that would work. He crawled inside. I bent to look in. I didn't think my large frame could fit in it and I knew Warpaint couldn't. If I left Warpaint, he was likely to tell my father. Especially after what happened in the tailor shop back on Mars.

"I don't think I can fit," I said.

Owen smirked and easily moved down the tunnel. "Too bad for you. See you later, my friend."

"Owen," I called, but he was already gone. I replaced the maintenance hatch. I called him through the okulus.

He answered. "What?"

"At least tell me which level you are going to."

"Why, you can't come anyway."

"Owen."

"I'll start on level 9. I'll tell you if I find her." He hung up.

"Owen," I said out loud.

"He hung up already, sir."

"I know that, Warpaint."

"Then why are you trying to talk to him?"

"I wasn't. I was...nevermind."

"How did you get the code though? It's too bad you just couldn't ask me. I wish I was allowed to give it to you."

I had started to walk back through the corridor towards the restaurant, but at his words, I stopped.

"Does that mean you know the codes and aren't allowed to tell me or you don't know the codes but wish you did so you could tell me."

He didn't answer, but that in itself was an answer.

"What if Owen dies because we aren't there to protect him? Tell me the elevator code to the restricted levels."

"I can't, sir. I am your bodyguard. Not his."

I grabbed at my chest. "He's the only friend I have, Warpaint. If something happens to him. I'll die. We have to go save him to protect me."

Warpaint hesitated. I fell to my knees with my hand still at my chest. I made my breath seem haggard.

"Okay, sir." Warpaint grabbed my shoulders. "Just please don't die. I'll take you. Don't die."

"Thank you, Warpaint. Your actions saved my life." I stood up and followed him as he led me to the elevators.

We got on and the door slid shut.

"Level 9," I said.

He punched in a different code than the maintenance code, but I noted it still ended in 0001.

The elevator door opened and we stepped out onto the quiet level 9.