The climb was easier than Andie expected. Everything was spaced fairly close together, and within a minute she found herself standing at the top of a platform next to Malissy. Malissy showed her how to clip her harness to two parallel wires running above her head and directed her out onto a single wire, like she was a tightrope walker. Andie took a deep breath and stepped out on the wire.
She had never had so much fun. The wires steadily led her to higher and higher platforms; soon she was looking down at a sixty foot drop or more. If it weren’t for the ceiling overhead, she would have felt like she was traveling through the sky. Most of it wasn’t difficult, but there were parts where she had to unhook herself and travel through various obstacles they had placed up in the treetops. Finally, the slope of the wires led her back down, until she reached a platform where she could see her next stop was the platform where she started. The final space had no wires at all; instead, she had to swing across the gap on a rope. It was exhilarating!
Back at the starting point, Malissy gave her a few quick instructions, and then Andie rappelled down the slick board, pushing off at the bottom and swinging out to the ground. Bryar was waiting for her at the bottom.
“That was incredible!” she chattered to him excitedly. “I don’t think I’ve ever had so much fun!” After such an experience Andie really couldn’t think of what else she wanted to do. Suddenly, she stifled a large yawn. “Maybe you should rest a bit,” Bryar suggested.
“Oh, I’m too excited to rest. Who could after that?” Andie protested, though she couldn’t help but yawn again.
“I can think of a way. Maybe you should try the relaxation rooms.” His idea sounded good so she let him lead her away from the ropes course. She was really starting to get foggy from the lack of sleep, and the hallways all looked the same. Fortunately, she just had to follow Bryar; he seemed to know exactly where to go.
Once they finally stopped moving, Brian pointed to a door. “It’s just inside there,” he explained. “I’ll leave you here, but I just want to tell you that I had a wonderful evening, more so than usual. Take care, Andie.”
She smiled happily and tipped him an enormous amount before entering the door he had indicated.
The massage was heavenly. She had never felt so luxuriously relaxed in her life. She could hardly move she was so limp. It was a wonderful feeling. Next, the woman who had attended her suggested a bath. Andie had not taken a bath since she was a child, but the thought sounded nice so in the end she agreed. After all, the employees around here really knew what they were talking about.
What an enormous bathtub! It was the size of her room back on base and filled with a thick layer of lavender-scented bubbles. Andie slipped into the steaming tub, and the attendant brought her a large ice cream float to sip at. She lounged there soaking until she was nearly a prune. Then the attendant helped her slip into a loose, flowing robe.
“What do you wish now?” the attendant inquired pleasantly.
“More than anything,” Andie mumbled, her eyes drooping, “I would like to sleep for a little while.”
The woman nodded. Apparently, this wasn’t unusual in the relaxation division. “Would you like company?” she asked discreetly.
“No, thanks,” Andie answered, only vaguely aware of what she was saying. Her eyes kept closing of their own accord, and she wobbled a bit. The attendant steadied her with a hand and then led her into a hallway lined with doors. They entered a plain door on the right and Andie crawled into the bed within. The bed was about the size of the bathtub, and she snuggled into the thick down comforter. The bed was warm, and she quickly slipped off to sleep.
Several hours later, Andie awoke well-rested and comfortable to a tray of sandwiches and a glass of milk. Andie nearly swallowed the sandwiches whole, she was so hungry. Glancing over at the chair next to her bed, she saw her clothes, freshly laundered and pressed. What service! Looking at her watch, she saw that she had just enough time to meet up with her friends.
After dressing, she made her way back into the hall, looking around in dim confusion. Which way had she come in? Fortunately, an attendant appeared silently at her side and asked if there was anything she needed. “Do you know how I get back to the entrance?” Andie asked. The directions were detailed, and Andie easily found herself back at the fountain just inside the front entrance. She was the last of her comrades to arrive.
“Ah, Andie, how refreshed you look!” beamed Jacques.
“You don’t look so bad yourself,” she replied, studying his face. He looked happier than she had ever seen him. “He spent the night with a gorgeous woman,” Kelly whispered in her ear. “I don’t think it will ever happen again, not in this lifetime anyway.” Andie nearly giggled, pressing her knuckles to her mouth to stifle it.
It turned out that everyone in the group had gotten some sleep during the night. That was good because if they hadn’t, it might have been worse. Two of the guys had the worst hangovers Andie had ever seen. Kelly herself was a little on the ragged side, having spent almost all of the night on the VR floor, playing a part in a large reenactment of a legendary battle on Terra. She was nearly giddy as she told her about how her squad had changed the entire outcome of the battle, leading to the early end of the Terran Civil War.
They left the QE reluctantly, after having had such a great time. Once back in her room at the Academy, she packed her bags with renewed vigor. She couldn’t wait to get home and tell Casey all about her night. He would love to hear about it. Suddenly, a knock sounded at her door and Andie looked up in surprise. She wasn’t expecting anyone, and Kelly was passed out cold on her bed. Curiously, she opened the door.
“Casey, what are you doing here?” Andie asked in astonishment. He stood in her doorway, his jacket over his arm. “I hoped you would be here so I could catch you before you left,” he said as she ushered him into the room and closed the door behind him. He glanced at Kelly’s sleeping form and dropped into Andie’s desk chair.
“But why aren’t you already back home?” Andie puzzled.
“Remember Kathlyn? Well, she’s sick, and everyone’s gone home for the vacation. She commed me, and I agreed to stay with her while everyone’s gone,” he explained.
Kathlyn sick and alone? Andie doubted that. It was probably just a ruse to get Casey to herself. She had repeatedly tried to warn Casey that Kathlyn was desperately trying to land him, but he had always laughed, just explaining that she was only a friend and nothing more. Andie knew better. If Kathlyn could have her way, it would be more than that.
“Well, heaven forbid Kathlyn should spend a couple of weeks without you around,” Andie snorted. Guys were so clueless.
“She’s just sick and all alone, Andie. I don’t know how you can be so heartless,” he defended. Well, if Casey was determined to be blind, he deserved to suffer through whatever she managed to cook up. Andie waved her hand. “Have it your way, Casey,” she relented.
“I wish I could spend my vacation with you, Andie, but you’re starting your new job in a few days anyway, and you wouldn’t have a lot of spare time for me,” Casey rationalized.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll see you during the next break though, right?”
“Of course! I promise that we’ll spend it all together, OK?”
“You’ve got a deal,” Andie agreed, throwing her arms around him. “Take care until then.” He hugged her tight and then quietly let himself out of the room. She watched him go, sighing heavily. It was kind of sad to be going their separate ways. Even though she was going to be starting the career she had always dreamed about, for a moment she wished they could just be children on base again. Life without Casey around just wasn’t going to be the same.
5. A Night on the Town
Life as a pilot was actually far more monotonous that Andie had ever expected. Especially at Dos Cientos. Since they were so far from any major urban areas, the skiffs were no
t called out to keep order very often. (No wonder her father had worked to get her assigned to his base.) She spent a lot of time taking care of mundane flight deck tasks with her squad mates, trying to keep as busy as she could while trying to be alert for any real emergencies. In some ways she felt like she was still working her maintenance job. At least there were fairly frequent training flights to keep her skills sharp. She looked for those scheduled flights as an important break in the monotony.
Kelly and Andie had requested to share quarters again. They were assigned a tiny suite, more of a glorified bedroom. It was a relief to be with someone familiar. Though Andie had technically moved back home, living in the pilots’ quarters was very different from living in her parents’ suite, and at first she was a little bit homesick. Plus, she found she was the only female skiff pilot in her squadron. She hadn’t expected that it would matter, but in a way it did. There were stories and inside jokes and camaraderie that at first she just couldn’t share. Plus rumors of her high flight scores had preceded her, and some of the squad seemed to be a bit resentful. The rest were incredulous that this “little girl” could possibly fly better than them. It made things uncomfortable for awhile, until her first callout came after her post to Dos Cientos. It was for a brawl that had broken out at the mines when some of the miners had whipped a crowd into a frenzy over a wage dispute. Andie had flown so well and effectively while they dispensed the stunning gases that everything was controlled before hardly anyone had gotten hurt. After that, there were no more disparaging comments about her piloting. They still called her “the little girl,” but it soon turned into more of a good-natured nickname.
When she had first met her squadron she had been disappointed to learn that the handsome Scott Johnson was not part of her group. He was the squad leader for the grave shift. The grave shift was reserved for the more experienced pilots since it was harder to fly in the dark, and most of the conflicts at night were far, far nastier. Since they worked opposite shifts she almost never saw him. However, one day by chance she ran into him in the hallway of the pilots’ quarters. She had been lost in thought, reading her latest message from Casey on her flipcom, and she nearly walked right into him.
“Hey,” he greeted. She looked up, startled. “It’s Andie, right?” he asked, his voice warm. She fumbled her flipcom shut and tried to collect her wits. “Yeah, that’s me,” she said lamely. For a moment Scott seemed to be waiting for her to say something, and she desperately searched for something clever to say, but nothing was coming to mind.
“So how’s the new job going?” asked Scott, casually leaning against the wall. “The guys treating you all right?”
“I’m enjoying it. The guys are fine now that they’ve gotten over the fact that I came out of the Academy with better scores than they did,” she added with a grin. Then she mentally kicked herself. It sounded like she was one conceited woman! But Scott only smiled in return.
“It is a blow to the ego, you know. Most of those guys are pretty cocky so it’s not such a bad thing to take them down a peg or two,” he observed. Inside, Andie wondered what to make of that comment. Did he think she was just as cocky as the rest of her squad? Or was that just normal, since all the pilots tended to be very self-confident? She was so busy analyzing Scott’s responses she nearly missed the bombshell he dropped on her next.
“So I’ve really wanted to ask you to dinner but I’ve never been able to work out the schedule. But next week I’m taking some vacation days, and I was wondering if you would be interested in going out with me on your day off,” he asked her smoothly.
Andie stared at him, dumbfounded. Was he actually asking her on a date? Scott Johnson was asking her on a date?! For a moment she just stared at him, trying to make sure she had heard him right. But he was still waiting expectantly, so he must have meant what he said.
“Um, sure,” she answered, a bit breathlessly.
“Here, let me give you my comm address. As soon as you know your schedule next week, shoot me a comm and we’ll work something out.”
“OK,” she managed. She brought out her flipcom and typed in his address as he dictated it. Then he calmly wished her a good day and kept walking down the hallway. It was all Andie could do not to turn around and stare at his back. Instead, she rushed down the hall and flung herself into the room that she shared with Kelly. Kelly was laying on her bed, music buds in her ears. Andie tossed her bag on the bed and waved frantically for Kelly’s attention. Her friend sat up. “What is it?” she asked, alarmed.
“I just got asked out by Scott Johnson,” Andie confessed, her voice high with excitement.
“Scott Johnson?” asked Kelly, puzzled.
“You know the grave shift squadron leader. Tall, handsome, dreamy eyes . . .” gushed Andie. Kelly raised her eyebrows.
“On a date?” she clarified skeptically. Andie snorted. “Of course on a date. What else would he have asked me out for?” Kelly just shrugged. It was clear she was not as excited about this news as Andie was.
“Of course, I’m bound to make a fool out of myself,” Andie fretted. Kelly shook her head in dissent. “You’re not going to make a fool of yourself. He’s just another guy, Andie. You deal with them all day long.”
“This is different,” Andie insisted. “He’s so cute and charming, and way more mature than me. He’s probably going to think I’m just a kid, like every other pilot around here. Besides, I don’t have anything nice to wear. All my clothes are either uniforms or super casual things.” Kelly suddenly switched into her big sister mode.
“He’s not going to think you’re a child,” she reassured. “You worry too much. If he thought you were just a little girl he never would have wanted to date you in the first place. I’ll lend you an outfit too, you don’t have anything to worry about.” Andie gratefully thanked Kelly. Still, she couldn’t quite relax all week. A few days later her schedule for the next two weeks was posted, and she sent Scott a message with her days off. He confirmed a date and a time with her, arranging to pick her up at her quarters. Unfortunately, Kelly was going to be on duty during that time, so she wouldn’t have the moral support of her roommate. Still, when the big night came, she faced her mirror with a little more confidence. Kelly had chosen Andie’s outfit, and at first Andie had looked askance at it. For one thing, it was a silky blouse with a tan flowing skirt. Andie hated the way she felt practically naked with air swirling up a skirt. Besides, a skirt was like clothing from her grandparents’ age—or more likely, her great-grandparents’ era. For another, it was the dead of winter in Dos Cientos right now, with snow from the last storm still drifting up against the buildings. She was going to freeze!
“Kel-ly,” she moaned. “You can’t possibly expect me to wear that!”
“Do you want to look nice or not?” Kelly demanded as she poked through Andie’s shoes.
“I want to look nice, not like I walked off the screen of a history site,” she complained, holding out the folds of the skirt. “Who wears skirts anymore?”
“Weren’t your eyes open that night at the QE? This is cutting edge fashion, Andie. And more practically, it’s probably the only thing I own that won’t look ridiculously long on you. It’ll just look like a longer skirt.” She straightened with a pair of Andie’s boots—emerald green, suede boots that went halfway up her calf. They had been a gift from Jenna—Andie had half-heartedly thanked her, thinking she would have to be desperate to wear such trendy shoes. However, she quickly learned that they were incredibly comfortable. Whoever had designed them had clearly felt comfort was as important as fashion. Still, Andie rarely put them on. After all, what would she wear them with?
Now she knew. “These are perfect!” Kelly was enthusiastic. “I didn’t know you had something like this at all, and I knew you would never fit any of my shoes.”
Andie was still grumpy. “I’m still going to get frostbite, Kelly.”
Kelly just wa
ved that away. “Naw, I’ve got some tan leggings that you can wear under them. They’ll be too long, but the boots will hide that.”
In the end, Andie had given in, and when she stood in front of the full-length mirror for the first time, she saw that the outfit had transformed her. She looked softer, more feminine, and older. It was her first experience with how clothes could completely change her appearance, and she found she liked it. Silently, she praised Kelly as she picked up her coat and gloves. Now she felt like she wouldn’t embarrass Scott. At least not by the way she looked anyway.
Scott was exactly on time.
“You look stunning!” Scott complimented appreciatively, when she opened the door for him. Andie could feel the heat rising in her cheeks. “Thanks!” she beamed. Mentally, she blessed her roommate’s impeccable fashion sense. “Shall we?” Scott said, offering her his arm. With butterflies in her stomach, she took his arm and they started down the hallway.
“Where are we going tonight?” she asked with pleasant anticipation. There were several good restaurants and three clubs on base, plus the regular rec complex activities. None of it was up to Omphalos’ standards, but any of them sounded fine to Andie. Anywhere would be fun with Scott, she was sure!
“I thought we’d go to a little place off base,” Scott suggested.
“Off base?” Andie’s mouth turned down a bit. Was he serious? He could only mean Rhindhol, which was a seething mass of discontent at the moment, since the miners were threatening to strike at any time. Certainly they wouldn’t be too friendly to the pilots who had subdued their riot only a couple of weeks before.
“Sure, I go there all the time. They have this great little tavern with some of the best music in the province,” Scott said without even the slightest hint of concern. Andie smiled half-heartedly. “Sounds great,” she tried to enthuse. Inside, her stomach began to twist with more than butterflies, but she forced the feeling away. Going off base in such conditions made her uneasy, but it would never do to let Scott see that. Not if she wanted him to see her as more than a frightened little girl!
The Legend of Sirra Bruche Page 8